Israel Kupiec, 88, passed away on Feb. 15, 2024. He was born on Jan. 15, 1936 in Tel Aviv – the son of Polish immigrants who fled with his older brother just a few years before the outbreak of World War II.
Israel was the first to attend college in his family and came to the United States in 1961 with a degree in electrical engineering from the Technion – Israeli Institute of Technology and a plan to study at Ohio University. But the plan changed. On the ship sailing from Haifa to New York City, Israel met and fell in love with his future wife, Charlotte Mass (the Brooklyn-born Charlotte was heading home to care for her sick father, leaving behind her kibbutz and her dream of a life in Israel).
To be closer to Charlotte, Israel transferred to Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, where he would earn his PhD in electrophysics.
Israel taught Charlotte to drive, an inherently intense situation made even more so by the busy streets and highways of Brooklyn, and she knew then this relationship would last. They were married April 10, 1962.
The newlyweds would make their first homes together in the outer boroughs, where they had three children, and ultimately moved to the house in Bedford, where the fourth was born. This would be their Eden.
Together, they planted maple and spruce and gardens, and Israel strung the trees with birdhouses, observing the songbirds and waterfowl that came to feed and nest. New rooms were added and the bedrooms preserved so that the children always had a place to sleep when they returned as college grads and ultimately as parents with children of their own.
Israel worked until the age of 82 at MIT Lincoln Laboratory, where he eventually became the associate group leader in the Aerospace Division and was responsible for many high-profile radar developments.
He enjoyed the respect and affection of the younger generations of engineers through mentorship and over lunches in the lab cafeteria.
Israel took his family for two assignments to Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands, where he commuted daily by plane between islands and eventually became associate site manager, helping to oversee the work of scientists and staff engaged in military research. When not at work, he swam in a warm lagoon, got sunburned on fishing boats and trips by barge to local islands, and tried scuba diving, tennis, and running.
He studied English systematically, intrigued by its slang and vast vocabulary, and was a voracious reader of novels, nonfiction, poetry, and the news (he was deeply engaged in world politics his entire life). But he never stopped reading in Hebrew, and his memories of growing up in Israel remained sharp. He could quiet a noisy family dinner with recollections of his military service and childhood larks, of former teachers and old friendships, and of the struggle for statehood. He brought this intellect and curiosity to his practice of Judaism at home, where he led the Passover seder and Friday night kiddish, and at Temple Emunah, where he was often called upon to read the torah and haftorah.
Israel could be bearishly gruff and disarmingly sentimental, a keen interpreter of the world and a composer of silly fantasies and dances for his young children. He could be terse on the phone, focused on evidence of his children’s wellbeing, and tender in his letters and during kitchen conversations.
The family took many trips together and indulged his love for mountain drives and big vistas. But perhaps most of all, he loved to be at home, in the warmth of visiting children and grandchildren, in a haven of the familiar, and with the freedom to nap as he pleased and to tinker — to build birdhouses (and even a bat house) and to do all sorts of home improvement projects for which one usually hires a professional, but which could be done by a layperson who could teach himself almost anything.
Israel is survived by his wife Charlotte of 62 years, his four children and their spouses (Raun Kupiec and Barbara Gazley, Yael Kupiec-Dar and Yaron Dar, Tamar Kupiec and Steve Tremble, and Nadav Kupiec and Jennifer Kupiec) and seven grandchildren (Eli, Netta, Shani, Mina, Aviv, Amos, and Benjamin). He will be forever adored and remembered.
Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 18 at Temple Emunah in Lexington. Interment will follow at Shawsheen Cemetery in Bedford. Shiva with a service will take place at his late home on Sunday, Feb. 18 – Thursday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., and visiting hours will be held Monday, Feb. 19 and Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 10 a.m. to noon.
Remembrances may be made to Temple Emunah and Combined Jewish Philanthropies.
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