Leslie Mitnick

Funeral Date and Time:

Monday, February 12, 2024 at 11:00 am

Funeral Service Information:

Leslie "Les" Mitnick; died February 4, 2024. Teacher and retired educator with the Chicago Public Schools for forty years, and mentor to countless students throughout his long and distinguished career. Les was also an accomplished pianist and lecturer who used his piano and teaching skills to enrich the lives of people in many clubs and organizations after his official retirement from public school teaching in 2010. He was a passionate, life-long, and devoted aficionado of classical music, opera, film, wildlife, and United States History, and spent many years doing countless lectures on these subjects for various classes and seminars, as well as for Lyric Opera of Chicago. Les also wrote and published many articles and columns on opera and contemporary issues. As a Graduate Student in the late 1960's and early 1970's, he worked as a staff writer for the Lerner Newspapers, for whom he interviewed some of the greatest film and opera stars of the time. Throughout his teaching career, Les was a staunch advocate for at-risk students who sought his counsel and guidance on many personal, emotional, and academic levels. As a History and English teacher, he also was a perpetual student of Spanish, Italian, French, and German. He was an avid reader of historical non-fiction. His beloved parents, Dorothy and Frank Mitnick, his brother, Paul Mitnick, and uncle, Lester Hoffman, preceded him in death. Beloved cousins Ronald (Jane) Sanfield, Linda (Jeff) Fierstein, Phillip (Judy) Sanfield, Jeffrey Goldsher, Nancy and Dr. Theodore Gehrig survive Les. Beloved sister-in-law Beth Mitnick and aunt Blanche Hoffman. Many close and true friends, as well as teacher colleagues who enriched Les' life will also fondly remember him, as will the tens of thousands of students whose lives Les touched with his teaching, professional guidance and mentoring. Les continued to share his love of music with seniors and taught classes at various residential facilities following his official retirement from the Chicago Public Schools. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Anti-Cruelty Society, or any foundation that provides care and shelter for homeless and abused animals. Les' life was truly a life well lived. Memorial Service Monday, February 12, 2024 in the chapel of Westlawn Cemetery and Mausoleum

Funeral Provider:

Lakeshore Jewish Funerals

Clergy:

Rabbi Paul Cohen

Shiva:

Nancy and Ted Gehrig's home; 3641 Palm Canyon Drive; Northbrook, iL 60062; Monday only