Alice Lev Obituary

[iwasthere]

I knew alice a wonderful woman that made a difference in the world.

[JoyceFarrell]

YOUNGSTOWN – Alice Raful Lev, passed away on Dec. 14, 2016, and she was born on Dec. 22, 1925, in Akron, to Joseph and Molly Raful. She was the second of three children, having an older brother, Robert Raful, and a younger sister Carol Tager. The family had movie theaters in Cleveland and then Newton Falls, where she spent most of her childhood.
About 1941, the family moved to Youngstown, where the family built and opened the Newport Theater, a state of the art theater on the south side of Youngstown. Alice spent her senior year in Youngstown and graduated from Boardman High School. In Youngstown, there was a large Jewish population and it was there that she was able to meet and date some Jewish men for the first time, including her future husband, Irving.
Not really at ease with the country club life-style of many housewives, Alice got involved in a place where she felt she could make a difference, public service, and fighting for the rights of the disadvantaged.
After a lifetime of public service, in 1988, Alice was inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame as a "community organizer and advocate for social justice." She joins the ranks of other great Ohio women such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Gloria Steinem, Annie Oakley, and Doris Day. The following is from their website.
"Alice Lev's lifelong commitment to social justice has benefitted disadvantaged persons, women and minorities on the national, state and local levels. She was a member of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission Advisory Board and helped establish the Minority Business Division of the Ohio Department of Development.
Mrs. Lev became executive director of the Youngstown Area Development Corporation, a minority business and community development agency, in 1972. Previously, as the associate director of the Youngstown Fair Housing Committee, she helped author and secure passage of Youngstown's Fair Housing law and served with the Statewide Fair Housing Association to secure a State Fair Housing law. Her work focused on developing low income, subsidized housing throughout Ohio, especially for persons who have a mental illness.
She has served on the NAACP board, the Jewish Community Relations Council, Urban League, National Organization for Women and the Ohio and Youngstown Peace Councils. Alice was active on countless community organizations. She was a member of the Mahoning County Democratic Central Committee and was the chairman of the Ohio Chapter of Americans for Democratic Action.
Mrs. Lev, a licensed social worker, is a strong force for social justice, racial harmony, political activism and equal opportunity for all.
In her later years, it was impossible to walk along Federal Street in downtown Youngstown with Alice without many people coming up and thanking her for helping them get their first job, changing their life, loaning them money when in need, or many other things. Throughout her life, Alice had always tried to help people, taking her big small town heart out in the world and doing what good she could whenever it was possible.
Alice is survived by her husband Irv; sons Steve Lev and Doug Lev; daughter Roslyn Lev Malloy and her husband, Chris; grandchildren Stacie Tomasello and husband Jim, Stephanie Shanholtzer and husband Bobby, Yair Lev and wife Bari, and Yael Lev and her husband, Yinon; and six great-grandchildren, Joey, Sammy, Emma, Andrew, Ryan and Anat.
Services will be held at the Shriver Allison Funeral Home, 292 Madison Ave. in Youngstown, on Monday, Dec. 19. Calling hours are at 10 a.m. and services starting at 11 a.m. There will be a private internment.