In Memory of Ellen R. Geiselman
Ellen Geiselman passed quietly on 20 September 2017 with her husband and daughter at her side holding her hands.
Ellen was born and grew-up in Long Beach, NY and enjoyed summers there her entire life. First with her parents Susan and Dan Joffe and later with her brother Larry and sister Sharon. Even when the family lived in other towns, Sue would bring the kids back to Long Beach for summers with their grandparents Billie & Moe Unger and great grandmother Beckie Ma, spending time on the beach and at home surrounded by family. Ellen and her family also spent time with her other grandparents Sarah and Julian Joffe at their home on Rainbow Lake in the Adirondacks, another area she loved and later would introduce to her husband and kids.
Ellen was born and grew-up in Long Beach, NY and enjoyed summers there her entire life. First with her parents Susan and Dan Joffe and later with her brother Larry and sister Sharon. Even when the family lived in other towns, Sue would bring the kids back to Long Beach for summers with their grandparents Billie & Moe Unger and great grandmother Beckie Ma, spending time on the beach and at home surrounded by family. Ellen and her family also spent time with her other grandparents Sarah and Julian Joffe at their home on Rainbow Lake in the Adirondacks, another area she loved and later would introduce to her husband and kids.
Her parents nurtured her artistic talents and creative endeavors from a very young age. She never watched TV without doing a craft project as a little girl. Her friends loved coming over because she had the best art supplies. She put her creative touch on family meals, making menus & place cards, made posters and signs for the various school plays in which she also performed, learned calligraphy and designed invitations for bar mitzvahs, reunions and weddings. She started the tradition of making gingerbread houses during the holidays first with Sharon, then with her kids Michail and Rebekah and most recently with her niece Daniella. She would make thoughtful gifts for everyone in the family and more recently taught herself to sew to expand her repertoire.
In 1979 Ellen went off to Carnegie Mellon University to continue her arts education in graphic design. This is where she also met her future husband Mark. After the usual freshman year fraternity party hopping ending up at Theta Xi, Mark "kidnapped" Ellen with a few other Architecture students and caught a bus to deserted downtown Pittsburgh to see the fountain at Point State Park which was, unfortunately, not running. Ellen and Mark always thought of that as their "first date.†Almost four years later Mark proposed to her on that same spot and a little more than a year after that they were married.
In 1979 Ellen went off to Carnegie Mellon University to continue her arts education in graphic design. This is where she also met her future husband Mark. After the usual freshman year fraternity party hopping ending up at Theta Xi, Mark "kidnapped" Ellen with a few other Architecture students and caught a bus to deserted downtown Pittsburgh to see the fountain at Point State Park which was, unfortunately, not running. Ellen and Mark always thought of that as their "first date.†Almost four years later Mark proposed to her on that same spot and a little more than a year after that they were married.
After college, Ellen and Mark moved to Long Beach where they would spend the rest of their lives together raising their children and enjoying their time with family. Ellen was a tireless advocate for Michail and Rebekah. She got involved in PTA when Michail started school and remained involved for Rebekah helping them both throughout their academic careers, fighting to get Michail into the school that was best for him. She was always there for help with papers and support for any life decisions they needed to make. She was so proud of them both, Michail sticking with it and getting into the electrician’s union and Rebekah starting grad school at her parent’s alma mater.
Daughter, big sister, wife, auntie, best friend and “Mom†She will be in our hearts always.
Daughter, big sister, wife, auntie, best friend and “Mom†She will be in our hearts always.
Ocular Melanoma is a rare disease. Therefore funding for research to find a cure is very limited at this time. Contributions in Ellen’s honor can be sent to the Ocular Melanoma Foundation at 1717 K St. NW, Suite #900, Washington DC 20006 or by clicking the blue donate button on the right.
If you have any questions or want further information about Warrior fundraising with OMF, please email warriors@ocularmelanoma.org.
