Abraham Schuster

Abraham Schuster passed away at his home in West Dover, VT at 11:00 Monday night, on March 18. At 93 years, Abe struggled with diabetes, Alzheimers, and Parkinson’s, but never complained; he kept his sense of humor and remained the strong, loving spirit many people admired. Born in Nyack, NY, to Oscar and Goldie Schuster, Abe was an Eagle Scout, beloved husband, father, uncle, foster-dad, athlete, coach, teacher, and mentor; he was a champion wrestler in high school and college. Although small in stature, Abe was nicknamed the “Mighty Molecule," and inducted into two Halls of Fame in New York. After two years in the Army, including time as a medic in Korea, Abe went to Penn State and earned a Master’s in Education while also interning as assistant wrestling coach for Penn State’s national championship team. He retuned to Spring Valley to marry Faith Purisch in 1954. Beginning his long career as a teacher, Abe worked summers running the waterfront and water safety instruction at Camp Hill, Town & Country and Ramaquois day camps, where he taught thousands of kids to swim. Abe’s “real” job was physical education teacher and coach (soccer, track and field, and wrestling). Abe served as Chair of the Physical Education Department at Pomona Junior High School (PJHS), where he was recruited before the school opened. Twenty years later, Abe retired at age 55, after surviving breast cancer. Faith, who also taught at PJHS for twenty years, retired too. Together, they set out to fulfill their dream—moving to Vermont near the Mount Snow Ski area, where they could ski weekdays and avoid weekend crowds. When they weren’t skiing, they supported the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community, which they treasured. Abe always had a smile, wisdom or encouragement to offer. He will be missed by everyone who knew him, most especially his wife of nearly 70 years, his sons Steven, David, and Jeremy, four nephews and their families, and the Jewish community.