Professor Michael Slifkin z"l

1937-2007

I’m very much missing my father, Professor Michael Slifkin z"l, on the 16th yahrzeit of his passing. He was a role model for my family in responsibility, integrity, selflessness, standing up for the right thing, and dad jokes.
Here's just one anecdote which illustrates his qualities. When my father moved to Israel and realized that the college in which he taught had no safety officer, he went to the administration and pointed that out. They were not interested in putting someone in that position. So my father voluntarily took on the role, even though (as anyone who know how things work in Israel will appreciate) it did not win him any popularity. Safety is the kind of thing that many people don't think about unless something bad happens, but who knows what accidents were averted because of my father's sense of responsibility.
Here's a picture from 24 years ago, back when I was 23 going on 12. My father and I spent a week in Kenya, including this canoe trip in the mangrove swamps on the coast. (That was back when there was lots of Israeli tourism to Kenya, before the hotel that we stayed at was bombed and missiles were fired at the Israeli plane.) My father was fascinated by the natural world and imparted that to me, which is just one of the things for which I am forever grateful.