Obituary of Ana Block

Ana Block passed away peacefully on December 15 in her home with her husband at her side. She had celebrated her 85th birthday on November 9. Ana was born in Montevideo, Uruguay the daughter of Polish immigrants Tesia and Jaime Cyrkus. From the time she was a young girl her passion was music. She was proud to have been picked for solos in elementary school. She had many friends among the Jewish community in Montevideo. It was through that community that she met her beloved husband, Ernesto. In October they celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary. At 21 with their one-year old daughter, Fany, they immigrated to the United States. Ana knew no English when she arrived; however, she adapted well to life in Los Angeles, CA. Because of her large, beautiful personality she made many new friends. Everything about Ana was large—her smile, her opinions, her voice, her generosity, and her love for her family. She was a dedicated bank teller for 20 years, taking early retirement at 59. She was so well respected at the bank that her manager took Ana's advice and also moved to Sun City. In addition to music, Ana was an accomplished seamstress who loved fashion, cats, and swimming. In Sun City Ana was able to devote time to her passion for music. She was one of the first members of the Bet Knesset Bamidbar choir and took keyboard lessons. At 69 she became a Bat Mitzvah. She and Ernie founded the ping pong club. They traveled to most of Europe, Latin America, and Israel. Ana loved taking her family to play bingo whenever they visited. Ana is survived by her husband, Ernie of Sun City, her children Fany/Sheri (Louis) Schwarzbach of Northridge and Miriam Block of Minneapolis, her sister Blima Kolkin of Israel, her grandchildren Jennifer (Mike) Brody of San Francisco, Jamie Schwarzbach of San Francisco, Roarke Thornswood of Minneapolis, Lennox Thornswood of Minneapolis, and her nephews Saul Kolkin of Uruguay and Alfredo Kolkin of Israel. She is preceded in death by her parents Tesia and Jaime Cyrkus and her sister Tova Yellen. The funeral service will be held at Kraft Sussman Funeral Services, (3975 S Durango Drive, Suite 104, Las Vegas 89147, on Monday, December 19th at 10:00 am with Rabbi Brooks officiating. Burial will follow at Bunkers Memory Gardens Memorial Park. Memorial donations may be made to breast cancer research. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to Ana's caring oncologist, Dr. James Sanchez.