Charlotte Lash's Obituary
Charlotte Lash, age 92, passed away peacefully in her sleep on May 31, 2020 in Tampa,
Florida where she lived for many years. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Philip and
Hermione Berkowitz on February 6, 1928. She was the youngest of four children, Julia
Jean Bandzuch, Jerome Berk, and Lillian Beal, all of whom predeceased her. She was
married to Richard Lash, her childhood sweetheart, who also pre-deceased her in 2003.
Charlotte is survived by her three sons, David, Dennis, and Brian, her loving daughters-inlaw
Kim Lash and Janice Lash; her nephews and nieces, Robert Berk, Eileen Beal, Larry
Berk, Peter Berk, Nancy Pilchin and David Beal. She had three grandchildren, Sarah, Lisa,
and Ian (whom she raised as a son) and three great grandchildren, Evelyn, London, and
Levi.
Charlotte was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. She met her husband Richard (Dickie)
Lash at Glenville High School. She attended college briefly at Ohio State University before
eloping and settling down to raise her family. Charlotte and Richard lived with her parents
on Durant Avenue before moving to Bendemeer in Cleveland Heights where they raised
their three sons.
Charlotte was very active in her boys’ lives as a Cub Scout den mother and little league
baseball mom. She made sure that all her sons played musical instruments, went to
Hebrew school, had opportunities to play sports, and worked to earn their own money. She
drove them everywhere they needed to go in her red Rambler station wagon. When her
youngest son Brian reached his teen years, Charlotte entered the workforce with Richard
at Advance Process Supply Company.
Charlotte enjoyed going on vacations with extended family and friends. Her two favorite
past times were gardening and playing mah-jongg. Charlotte traveled extensively, often
with her sister Jean and the husbands. She visited Mallorca, France, Italy, Scandinavia,
Czechoslovakia, and Australia. When her husband Richard was offered employment in
England, they moved there for two years and lived in a wonderful home in Surrey. While
there, her sons visited. She accompanied Richard on business trips to Berlin, Dublin,
Amsterdam and Rome among other cities.
A grand trip to Israel was planned but then canceled when she hurried back to Cleveland
to attend to her grandson, Ian, who had a serious medical condition. From that point
forward, Charlotte took over raising him, with the help of Richard and Ian‘s father, Brian.
There were times when she joked that her other three boys were practice and that God had
saved the best for last.
Charlotte lived the snowbird life traveling between Tampa, Florida and Beachwood, Ohio
until she and Richard eventually moved permanently to Tampa. When Richard died, she
and her sister bought side-by-side condominiums, where she continued to enjoy family,
friends, gardening and mah-jongg. The most important thing to Charlotte was her family.
She would sometimes host two separate Thanksgiving dinners to accommodate her
extended family in her small condominium.
Charlotte always had a special place in her heart for her daughter-in-law Kim and her niece
Eileen who were both there for her in the good times and also during the last two difficult
years when she started to have inevitable health issues. Toward the end she often
remarked how glad she was that David, Dennis, and Ian were happily married, and that
Brian had a hurricane-proof house. To say that Charlotte was selfless would be a huge
understatement. She will be dearly missed and lovingly remembered
What’s your fondest memory of Charlotte?
What’s a lesson you learned from Charlotte?
Share a story where Charlotte's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Charlotte you’ll never forget.
How did Charlotte make you smile?