Background
Evelyn Kozak was born on August 14, 1899 on the Lower East Side of New York City. Kozak attended grammar school in Brooklyn, where she was valedictorian, and grew up at 2816 Farragut Road in Flatbush, Brooklyn.
Evelyn Kozak was born on August 14, 1899 on the Lower East Side of New York City. Kozak attended grammar school in Brooklyn, where she was valedictorian, and grew up at 2816 Farragut Road in Flatbush, Brooklyn.
She was also the oldest verified Jew in history after surpassing fellow American Adelheid Kirschbaum"s age of 113 years and 83 days on November 6, 2012. Kozak remained the oldest Jew ever until she was surpassed by Goldie Steinberg on August 28, 2014. Her parents, Isaac and Kate (Chaikin) Jacobson, had moved from Russia, and had nine children.
Early adulthood
She lived and worked there for over 50 years as the operator of a motel on Miami Beach.
She lived in Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from the age of 90. She was an avid Scrabble player until she turned 95.
When someone observed once that she was very honest, she responded: "Honesty doesn"t come in degrees. You are either honest, or not."
Centenarian years
Pittsburgh City Council President Doug Shields declared August 5 to be "Evelyn Kozak Day" in Pittsburgh in 2009 in honor of her 110th birthday, saying that she was the oldest living Pittsburgher.
Kozak said, "So much hoopla! I am not entitled to all this kowtowing.
Old age does not necessarily equate to wisdom."
Kozak loved reading, and enjoyed being read to In her later years, when asked the secret of her longevity, she tapped her heart and replied, "a good conscience."
When she was 111 years old, she asked relatives to look for an older eligible bachelor for her. When they located for her a 115-year-old Israeli man, Kozak said: "He"s too old for medical
I don"t want to be alone in my old age."
Death
Kozak died in a Brooklyn, New York hospital on June 11, 2013, the day after she had a heart attack.
She was 113 years, 301 days old. Kozak was the last surviving Jew born in the 1800s.
She had five children, 10 grandchildren, 28 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson. She was survived by Goldie Steinberg, also of New York, born October 30, 1900, which was within the 19th century but not the 1800s.
The article previously cited that referred to Kozol as the last Jew born in the 19th century, should more properly have described her as the last Jew born in the 1800s.