Helen (Gelbard) Rakin of Brookline on Saturday, July 6, 2024.
Devoted wife of Anatoly. Beloved mother of David Drazen (wife, Chaya), Daniel Drazen (wife, Holly), Mark Drazen and stepmother of Irina Rakin. Loving grandmother of Joshua, Joseph and Yoni Drazen. Dear sister of Joseph Gelbard (wife, Silvia). Former wife of the late Clifford Drazen. Services at Levine Chapels, 470 Harvard Street, Brookline on Monday, July 8, 2024 at 10:00am. Interment at the Young Israel Cemetery, 350 Grove Street, West Roxbury. Shiva at the late residence. Remembrances may be made to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America or Friends of the Israel Defense Forces.
Helen Rakin was a Holocaust survivor. She was born in Czestochowa, Poland in 1935 and spent part of her early years living in a ghetto before going into hiding during the Holocaust. Professionally, Helen worked as an Admissions Officer for Harvard Medical School for 25 years.