Ethel Jacqueline Shutoff

Ethel was born on 11/4/27 to Arnold and Fay Schaeffer (nee Abromowitz) in the “Brewerytown” section of Philadelphia and was a graduate of William Penn High School. She was always proud of having grown up in a tough neighborhood and was very fond of telling her own children and her grandchildren about beating up Donald Lamont as well as various and sundry other antisemites after school.

Ethel was well-loved by so many. Those who were close to her described her as being as kind, generous, loving, and considerate. She loved her family and friends unconditionally and never uttered a dishonest word in her entire life. There was a very special place in her heart for her grandchildren who she frequently described as being “beautiful and brilliant.” Gifted with a unique sense of humor; she was 100% unpretentious and cracked us up constantly without even trying. Ethel also believed in community service. For years, she delivered for Meals on Wheels and spent almost twenty years volunteering at Jeanes Hospital.

She loved music, literature and movies - especially the great old ones. Almost every night, she fell asleep listening to Anton Karas play the theme from The Third Man with Orson Wells and Joseph Cotten. She also loved to tell stories, so much so that we heard them again and again. If you didn’t know her, you might think that she was in cognitive decline. But, she had every marble she was ever born with and she just loved to tell stories. She also had a lexicon of expressions that she loved to repeat, for example: when trying to settle a disagreement - “that’s why they have chocolate and vanilla ice cream,” or when discovering unexpectedly that a person was Jewish: “If you shake anyone’s family tree hard enough, a Jew will fall out.”

Ethel was predeceased by her husband, Lou, of almost 60 years, and her much beloved son, Harry. She is survived by her son Carl (Frances), daughter-in-law Joan (the late Harry), brother Jules (Harriet), grandchildren Ivan, David (Kelly), Robin (Stefan), Sookyung, Mariel (Pedro), great-grandchildren Hazel, Milo, and Jae and numerous nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, grand-nephews and a legion of devoted friends.

Contributions in her memory may be made to Meals on Wheels or the charity of the donor's choice.