Elise Lasry

Elise Lasry was born in Marrakesh, Morocco on October 28, 1933, one of nine children of Nessim and Esther Perez. She began her career as a certified teacher in 1956 at the Alliance Francaise school system in Marrakesh, at a time when Morocco was a French protectorate. In 1957, Elise met Moise Lasry and they were married December 17, 1958. They had three children – Marc, Sonia and Ruth – all while Elise was working as an Alliance Francaise teacher.

In 1966, seeking a better life for their children, Elise and Moise emigrated to the United States with their children and settled in Hartford, Connecticut. Elise secured a position as a French teacher at Renbrook School, where she worked for many years. While teaching at Renbrook, she attended Trinity College, where she earned a Master’s degree in French Literature in 1972. Besides working as a teacher, Elise and her husband also owned a Moroccan import business called “Lasry’s”, which sold Moroccan garments to major fashion outlets, including Talbots and many high-end boutiques. In 1977, Elise left Renbrook to direct the English as a Second Language (ESL) program at Wesleyan University. In 1980, she became the director of ESL programming at Hartford Community College, retiring in 1991 after a decades-long career in education.

Elise was an avid bridge player and participated in weekly bridge games with members of the Beth David Synagogue, where she was also active in the sisterhood. She competed in numerous bridge tournaments, and, in 2002, attained her Life Masters Certificate in Bridge from the American Contract Bridge League.  Elise had a long and happy marriage to Moise, who passed away in 1996. She is survived by her three children,
Marc, Sonia and Ruth, and daughter-in-law Cathy and son-in-law Jeffrey. Her greatest blessing in life was being the grandmother of Samantha, John, Alexander, Lauren, Zachary, Arianna, Emma, Sophie, Alex, Sam, Jasmine, Max, Alicia, Hannah, and Miriam; and, the great grandmother of Lake, Tibi, India, Matteo, Noa, Maya, Moise, Jacob, Wilder, Romeo, Eleanor, Madeline, and Cameron. She is survived by her siblings Mimi, Guy and Albert. Sadly, her siblings Suzanne, Joseph, Jacques, Colette and Marguerite passed away previously.

There will be a memorial service on Thursday, January 9, at 1:00 PM at the Weinstein Mortuary located at 640 Farmington Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105

Following the memorial service, the family will have a private burial.

May her memory be a blessing.