David Reich Breakstone

Beloved Teacher, Writer, and Friend

David Reich Breakstone, 81, died peacefully at home in Watertown on April 1, 2020, after a long illness.

He was an inspiring teacher with a passion for good writing and a gift for mentoring students and colleagues as they found their own voices. He taught writing and public speaking at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Writing Program and Sloan School. For five years he worked as an editor and writer at Boston Children’s Hospital, where he supervised the revision of The Child Health Encyclopedia . He found his most satisfying work at Brandeis’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management, where he spearheaded the Team Consulting Project, which gives master’s students real-life experience consulting for nonprofit organizations.

David was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on July 30, 1938, to Zelig Breakstone and Ida Reich Breakstone. His grandparents emigrated from Lithuania and the Ukraine to escape religious persecution. He graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School and went to the University of Pittsburgh, where he received his bachelor’s degree summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa and a master’s degree in English Literature. After college, David moved to Cambridge for graduate study in English Literature and American Literature at Harvard.

David had a great many loves. Although he left Pittsburgh after college, his affection for the city never dimmed. He spoke glowingly of growing up in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood. David happily spent hours telling stories about serving as a crossing guard at Wightman School, trips to Kennywood amusement park, and Pirates games at Forbes Field. Serving as captain of the 1954 Red Team at Kamp Kewanee was one of his proudest memories. During college, he wrote sports stories for The Pitt News , and he remained a devoted fan of the Pirates and the Steelers, even when they played his adopted Boston sports teams.

He loved reading, writing, and literature. Throughout his life, David read voraciously. Every day began with reading The Boston Globe, followed by composing appreciative emails to journalists whose work he admired. Mountains of books borrowed from the Watertown Free Public Library constantly covered his desk. He recited Shakespeare sonnets from memory and found solace in the poetry of Mary Oliver. His writings included a Passover Haggadah and a much-loved prayer for the Jewish Family & Children’s Service’s Healing Connections. In recent years, he relished the classes and community of the Brandeis Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

David’s desire for a more just and peaceful world found expression in volunteer work, beginning with the Peace Education Committee of the American Friends Service Committee during the Vietnam War. For decades, he was a devoted member of Temple Emmanuel of the Merrimack Valley in Lowell, serving as president from 1987 to 1989. He chaired the Reform Judaism in New England’s AIDS Task Force and served as a Trustee of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations. In recent years, he was grateful to be part of Temple Beth Zion in Brookline. He sought out ways to contribute to Watertown, his home since 1980. He served on the building committee for the expansion of the Watertown Free Public Library and helped to organize the World in Watertown’s annual MLK Unity Breakfast.

More than anything, David loved his family and friends. He nurtured a broad network of friends, reaching back to elementary school. He valued his membership in a men’s group for 32 years, a couple’s group for 26 years, and a group of three interfaith families who celebrated holidays together for 44 years. As his health deteriorated, he took great pleasure in reconnecting and reminiscing with dear ones who came in a steady stream for last visits. Even when he struggled with pain and confusion, he retained his capacity for empathic listening and hilarious flashes of wit.

David delighted in making and eating food with loved ones. Cooking pancake breakfasts, Shabbat dinners and Passover sponge cakes gave him particular joy. He was a connoisseur of fish and chips, always with extra tartar sauce. David was a regular at Aram’s Café in Belmont and the Deluxe Town Diner in Watertown.

He was fiercely devoted to his family. For many years when his sons were in grade school, David rose before dawn to fold dozens of copies of the Globe for their paper routes. Family trips to the White Mountains were annual highlights. He was thrilled to be “Pup” to granddaughter Phia and grandson Theo, whose birth David celebrated in March. David’s greatest love was Sharon Bauer, his wife of 51 years. Their relationship was grounded in rituals, community, reading, nature, and the arts. David always maintained that meeting Sharon was the best thing that ever happened to him.

E.B. White wrote in Charlotte’s Web , “It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer.” David’s family and friends have his treasured letters, notes, and emails to prove that they were fortunate to have known such a person.

On April 3 neighbors, spaced six feet apart, kept vigil outside as David’s coffin left his house. A handful of loved ones attended a green burial at Mount Auburn Cemetery and dozens more joined through a live videostream. A larger memorial service will be held at Temple Beth Zion in Brookline once it is safe for us to gather again.

David was predeceased by his mother, father, and younger brother Alan. He is survived by his wife Sharon, son Ben, daughter-in-law Courtney St. Clair, son Joel, daughter-in-law Maggie Mills, granddaughter Sophia, grandson Theodore, sister-in-law Sheila Bennett, brother-in-law David Bennett, and a wide circle of family and friends.

David’s family thanks Belmont Manor, Compassionate Care Hospice, and Peaceful Passage at Home for their loving care at the end of David’s life. They are also indebted to the countless friends who offered support in creative ways despite the limitations imposed by the pandemic.

David requested that memorial donations be made to Jewish Family & Children’s Service, the Watertown Free Public Library, the Boston Symphony Orchestra or the University of Pittsburgh.

Donations to be made In Memory of David Breakstone

Include that your donation is in his memory

Jewish Family & Children’s Service

“Healing Connections” Program

1430 Main St, Waltham, MA 02451

https://www.jfcsboston.org/Give/Giving-to-JF-CS

Watertown Free Public Library

123 Main St.

Watertown, MA 02472
checks payable to WFPL Building Fund

Boston Symphony Orchestra

Att: Heather Laplante
301 Massachusetts Ave.

Boston, MA 02115

https://www.bso.org/brands/bso/contribute.aspx

The University of Pittsburgh

Undergraduate Writing Excellence Fund

Division of PAE

128 N. Craig Street

Pittsburgh PA 15260

https://www.giveto.pitt.edu