Evelyn Kozak

Evelyn Kozak (née Jacobson) (August 14, 1899 – June 11, 2013) was an American supercentenarian who was the world's oldest living Jew, until her death at the age of 113 years, 301 days. She was also the oldest verified Jew in history after surpassing fellow American Adelheid Kirschbaum's age of 113 years, 83 days on November 6, 2012. Kozak remained the oldest Jew ever until she was surpassed by Goldie Steinberg on August 28, 2014.

Early life

Evelyn Kozak was born on August 14, 1899 on the Lower East Side of New York City. Her parents, Isaac and Kate (Chaikin) Jacobson, had moved from Russia, and had nine children.

Kozak attended grammar school in Brooklyn, where she was valedictorian, and grew up at 2816 Farragut Road in Flatbush, Brooklyn. She then worked for a paper box company that her parents owned.

Early adulthood

Kozak was married in 1921, and had five children, two of whom are deceased as are her two husbands.

Kozak moved to New Jersey as an adult, and then to Miami, Florida, after she got married. 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."

After she turned 110, she lived in the Kensington section of Brooklyn with her granddaughter Brucha Weisberger and her family, which when she moved in included eight great-grandchildren under the age of 13. Kozak loved reading, and enjoyed being read to. She was devoted to Judaism and the State of Israel. 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 me. 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.