Obituaries: May 25th, 2023

Basil Bernstein, M.D.

FORT WORTH — Dr. Basil Bernstein, 74, passed away on May 19, 2023, surrounded by family. He was born in Worcester, South Africa, on March 25, 1949, to Barnett and Rose Bernstein. He served in the Army in South Africa and attended medical school at the University of Cape Town.

Dr. Bernstein was a family practice physician for over 40 years, serving many generations of families in Fort Worth. His work was his passion and he experienced great joy from diagnosing, counseling and treating patients. He also enjoyed travel, reading, Broadway musicals and shopping.

Loved and adored by all who knew him, he is survived by his children, Linda, Michael and Jamie; his grandchildren, Ethan, Jacob, Elle and Maddie; and his sister, Fannie. 

He was preceded in death by his wife, Elaine, and his brother, Louis.

Following committal prayers, Basil was laid to rest next to his wife in Ahavath Sholom Cemetery. His family will be having a private memorial service.

Please consider contributions to the American Heart Association in his memory.

Dr. Bernstein’s family entrusted his care and services to E. C. “Trey” Harper III and Robertson Mueller Harper Funerals, Cremations & Life Celebrations.

Paul Davis

Paul Edward Davis, loving father, grandfather and husband, passed away peacefully on May 16, 2023, at the age of 87. Paul was born in 1936 to Morris and Genevieve (Itkin) Davis. He attended Grand High School in Portland, Oregon, along with his big sister, Ellie (Capeloto). Paul went on to receive an undergraduate degree from the University of Washington, where, by his own admission, he prioritized having a good time with his ZBT (Zeta Beta Tau) fraternity brothers over academics.

In 1962, Paul enlisted in the Air Force and attained the rank of captain before being honorably discharged after four years of service. He was deployed in the Moroccan dessert, where he dodged scorpions, ate rations and served as a radar specialist.

After leaving the military, Paul met the love of his life, Carrie Jaffe Davis, with whom he recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. They raised three wonderful children and eventually settled in Naperville, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Paul quickly rose through the ranks of companies such as Admiral and Cobra to become an admired executive and leader in the business community. Colleagues and clients gravitated toward his confidence as well as his natural ability to connect with others regardless of their background.

Paul’s success in business gave him and Carrie the opportunity to travel the world and make many lifelong friends. It also attracted the attention of Japanese consumer electronics giant Uniden, which recruited him to run the company’s North American subsidiary in Irving, Texas. Paul remained president of Uniden America for 15 years, regularly traveling to Tokyo, where he impressed his Japanese colleagues with his business acumen and his willingness to eat the most exotic foods (by Western standards).

After retiring, Paul enjoyed golf, traveling with Carrie, spending time with his grandchildren and working for the Denton Country Appraisal Review Board (ARB). At the ARB, Paul made new friends, engaged in spirited debates and lent his considerable expertise to a subject near and dear to his heart (real estate).

In addition to his wife, Carrie, and sister, Ellie, Paul is survived by his three children, Brian, Jim and Karen (Moody), as well as six grandchildren, Hayley, Cole, Elliot, Avery, Jack and Addison. He cherished his family, especially his grandkids, and will be greatly missed by them. Paul adored dogs and was predeceased by many beloved canine family members, including Mindy, Snoopy, Spencer, Zoey and Muffin, among others.

The family is deeply grateful to the nurses, doctors and staff of Texas Oncology and Faith Presbyterian Hospice for the care and compassion that they provided to Paul and the family during his final days and months.

A memorial service for friends and family will take place next month.

The family asks that any donations be made in Paul’s name to Jewish Family Service of Greater Dallas (https://jfsdallas.org/donate/donate-now/).

Dolores Krasne (Dot) Neustadt

Dot Neustadt passed away on May 20, 2023, at home with her family by her side. In her last days she was surrounded by family, friends and the wonderful caretakers who cared for her so lovingly and diligently over the last several years.

Dot was born April 12, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri, to Esther and Hyman Krasne. She met and married Walter Neustadt, Jr. (z”l), in 1950 and they moved to Ardmore, Oklahoma, where they lived until their move to Dallas in 1998.

She attended Mount Vernon Junior College in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans with a degree in sociology.

Dot was very active in the American Red Cross, both at the national and local level, where she served as president of the Carter County Red Cross Chapter with special emphasis on the Disaster Program. She also served as an advisory board member of the War Crimes and Holocaust Tracing Service operated by the American Red Cross in Baltimore, Maryland. She founded and was the first president of the Women’s Auxiliary of Mercy Memorial Health Center in Ardmore. She also volunteered extensively in the dialysis unit. She was a past board member of Jewish Children’s Regional Services in New Orleans. She and Walter established the Dolores K. and Walter Neustadt Jr. Professorship of Comparative Literature at the University of Oklahoma, the Dolores and Walter Neustadt Lecture series at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas and the Neustadt Lectures at Oklahoma City University.

But Dot’s greatest accomplishment was the world she created by making everyone feel so special and so loved. No one mattered more to her than her late husband Walter Neustadt, late sister Shirley Haspel, caretakers, friends, very large extended family, her children and grandchildren and her dog, Fanny.

She is survived by her daughters, Nancy (Scott) Barcelo of Watertown, Massachusetts; Susan Schwartz of Dallas; Kathy Neustadt of Denver, Colorado; and her grandchildren, Sam and Emmy Barcelo, Elizabeth and Katie Schwartz and Tess and Josh Hankin.

A service was held May 22 at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas. Rabbi Debra J. Robbins, Rabbi David Stern and Rabbi Nancy Kasten officiated.

Please send memorial donations to Equest Therapeutic Horsemanship, P.O. Box 171779, Dallas, TX 75217 or at www.equest.org.

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