My grandfather Richard Loeb’s (aka Poppy Dick) family immigrated to the US from Stugart, Germany in the late 1800’s, prior to both World Wars. Poppy was born and raised in Harlem on 114th Street. He lived with his mother, Edith Marx Loeb. His father, Alfred Loeb, died when he was 12 and he was an only child.  He graduated from George Washington High School in 1926 and then went to NYU. He was a true New Yorker. He was the ultimate athlete and told everyone how he was voted best all around camper at Schroon Lake Camp. He loved the NY Giants baseball team so much, when they were transferred to San Francisco he went to the field and took a pile of dirt. He loved to bet on any sports game around. He collected playbills from every show he ever went to.  Poppy ran a housewares company for many years and was a traveling salesman, something he took tremendous pride in.  Poppy married my grandmother, Muriel Menschel, around 1935.  He was very funny. When I was little he used to a have a noise machine that said curse words and he’d put in his pocket in the elevator and play it and the other people in the elevator would have no idea where the words were coming from. He was a character to its fullest. Poppy didn’t like to spend money, but he lived a very full life. His legacy is his two children Bonnie Sue Loeb Chajet and Alfred Loeb, three grandchildren, Lisa, Lori and Jeremy.  And he would have loved his great grandchildren, Sonia, Sasha and Emanuel.

– Lisa Chajet

Relationship:  Grandchild of im/migrant Grandchild of im/migrant