THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, August 6, 1996 TAG: 9608060287
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B6 EDITION: FINAL
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 75 lines
Samuel Sandler, 73, chairman of L.M. Sandler & Sons, Inc., died Aug. 5, 1996, in Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.
Mr. Sandler was a native of Norfolk and was the son of the late Leo Max Sandler and Eva Sherman Sandler. He attended Norfolk Public Schools and left Virginia Polytechnic Institute to join the U.S. Army, landing on the Normandy Beaches on D-Day +4. He was honorably discharged in 1945 when he returned to join the family business, Sandler Foods, then operating in the old City Market. That business had commenced in 1920 and continued to operate during the second world war, being guided by his parents and his future wife, Reba Salzberg.
Following his return, he, his wife and his brother, Harry Sandler, built the business into one of the leading institutional food distributors in the U.S., while being joined by his sons, Steven Bruce and Arthur Bert Sandler. The food distribution portion of the family's holdings were merged into Consolidated Foodservice Companies in August, 1989 and that company was merged into a division of the Sara Lee Corporation in July, 1995. Mr. Sandler was a founder of Frosty Acres which later merged with Comsource becoming the largest institutional foodservice cooperative in the United States. In May of 1992, Mr. Sandler was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Business Administration in Food Service Management by Johnson and Wales University.
During his lifetime in Norfolk, Mr. Sandler was actively involved in a number of religious and social activities, which included his becoming one of the organizing founders of Temple Israel. He was active until the end of his life, in the Tidewater Jewish Federation, where he had served as president, as have each of his sons. Until his death, he remained active in Temple Israel, having served as president and continually as a member of the board of directors. He was active in the American Defamation League, American Israel Public Affairs Committee and numerous other Jewish philanthropic organizations. He and his wife, Reba were active supporters of the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and were life-long members of B'Nai Israel Congregation. Mr. Sandler was the first member of Congregation Beth El. Mr. Sandler received the Ben Gurion Award from the Israel Bonds Organization and the first Natan Sharansky Freedom Award for human rights.
Mr. Sandler was active in the public discussion and referendum on retaining the Norfolk City Market, where the family had maintained a seafood market for more than 30 years. Mr. Sandler enjoyed meeting and talking to customers for several decades and reestablished the retail seafood activity at the Sandler Foods distribution facility on Northampton Boulevard and Diamond Springs Road.
He had served as a long-time member of the Norfolk Airport Authority, including several terms as its chairman, during the period of the airport's expansion. Mr. Sandler was active in the Tidewater Council of Boy Scouts which had awarded him the Golden Eagle Award. Mr. Sandler was a recipient of the Outstanding Citizen Award from the National Conference of Christians and Jews. He was active in number of national and international seafood industry organizations and worked closely with the Virginia Marine Science Board in Gloucester and the Seafood Marine Science Department at Virginia Tech.
In recent years, Mr. Sandler had become a member and an active paticipant in the 400 Club. Mr. Sandler was an active sponsor and member of the board of the National Diabetes Institute and an active supporter of the Eastern Virginia Medical School, the Chysler Museum and the Virginia Symphony.
Mr. Sandler is survived by his wife of more than 50 years, Reba Salzberg Sandler; his daughter, Sheri Cyd of New York City; his sons, Steven Bruce of Virginia Beach and Arthur Bert of Norfolk; his daughters-in-law, Toni Robin Sandler and Annie Laurie Sandler; also his eight grandchildren, Wesley, Leyla, Mitchell, Eva, Katie, Jessica, Max and Dylan. He is also survived by his brother, Harry Sandler, who was an active participant in building Sandler Foods, and his brother and sister-in-law, Bernard and Edyth Salzberg.
Funeral services will be conducted at 11 a.m. today at the sanctuary of Temple Israel, Norfolk, by Rabbi Michael E. Panitz, Rabbi Israel Bornstein ,Cantor Yael Fishman and Cantor Emeritus Isaac Danker. Burial will be at Forest Lawn Cemetery. H.D. Oliver Funeral Apts., Norfolk chapel will be handling the arrangements.
The family will sit shiva at the Sandler Family home at 234 N. Blake Road in Norfolk for the seven days following the interment. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Sam Sandler Memorial Endowment Funds of the Tidewater Jewish Foundation, Tidewater Council of Boy Scouts, the Diabetes Institute, or the charity of choice.
KEYWORDS: DEATH OBITUARY by CNB