Message from Bernard Spiegal & Ruth (Spiegal) Fletcher

26 June 2021

Dear Anthony, Jacqueline, Alan, Stephen,

Ruth and I could not let the death of your father, Sidney, pass without saying a few words. Some people leave an enduring impression. Your father is one.

We remember with the close relationship our parents – Nat and Susi – had with yours, Mildred and Sidney. And beyond the affection, the respect that our parents had for your dad, Sidney.

Particularly graphic are our memories of the Spiegal’s annual pilgrimage to Sunningdale Road Seder nights - was it Sunningdale Road? - presided over by (uncle) Sidney.

More recently, as our father’s health and memory declined, Sidney regularly visited him. A feat of no mean patience and forbearance given our dad’s tendency to - how shall we say? – be repetitive. Those visits were important to dad – in the moment of their occurrence they were meaningful – as they were for us.

Perhaps particularly poignant for Ruth and I – we were talking about this only recently – is our keen appreciation of the words Sidney quietly said to each of us individually at the funerals of our parents. They were in a sense an endorsement of what we had tried to achieve for mum and dad. Because your father always represented to us a fusion of compassion and authority, they had particular force.

We wish you all a long life.

Ruth & Bernard