Vera Gertler

Vera Gertler passed away peacefully on May 14 in San Francisco at the age of 91, with her son and grandchildren by her side.

Born in Milan, Italy, on June 23, 1933, Vera escaped the Holocaust as a young girl and resettled in Zurich, Switzerland, where she trained as a nurse. After liberation, as a skilled nurse and fluent in German, French and Italian, she rescued Jewish children in North Africa for their resettlement in Israel. While in Israel, she met her husband, Siegmund (“Sigi”) Gertler, and lived in Haifa, where Vera worked as a nurse.

In 1959, Vera and Sigi immigrated to San Francisco, the year their son, Peter, was born. Vera worked at California Blue Shield over 30 years, managing a claims department. After Sigi’s passing, Vera retired and moved to Belvedere in 1998 to be near her sisters, Gabriella Isaacson and Eva Hudson. She volunteered for over 25 years with Jewish Family and Children’s Services and served on several Belvedere civic committees. She was affectionately known as the Ambassador of Tamalpais Avenue. In 2013, she was honored as Belvedere’s Citizen of the Year.

In 2019, Vera returned to San Francisco. She was deeply loving and caring to her family and friends. She is survived by her son, Peter; grandchildren, Simon and Ellie; and sisters, Gabriella and Eva.

Memorial contributions can be made to:

• Jewish Family and Children’s Services of SF: https://donate.jfcs.org

• Belvedere Tiburon Library Foundation: https://www.beltiblibrary.org/library-foundation/donate