Capt
Anthony Murray Neville "Tony" ROSKIN
Anthony Roskin
A-2 Jacket of Anthony Roskin. Courtesy of Roskin Family
Hometown During Time of Service: Marion, IN
Assigned to the 100th Bombardment Group
Location:
Unit: 350th Bombardment Squadron
Rank:
Position: Copilot
Beginning Date of 100th Service: Unknown
Time of Service at Thorpe Abbotts: Unknown - Unknown
Additional 100th Service Notes
Comments: Trained with 100BG and ended up at BAD Burtonwood.
Biography
Born April 6, 1920
Birthplace: Cardiff, Wales
Died postwar on July 11, 2017
Tony died in Gilroy, California at the age of 97.
Tony and his family emigrated from Wales to the US when Tony was seven years old.
Comments and Notes
Memo 1:
Tony Roskin
Tony Roskin, Retail Jeweler, Influential Community & Business Leader, dies at 97.
Anthony "Tony" Murray Neville Roskin, loving husband and dance partner, wise father and father-in-law, fun-loving and generous grandfather, and avid golfer, died July 11, in Gilroy, Cal., at the age of 97.
He was a leading jeweler in Marion, Ind., for over 40 years; an influential civic and business leader there, and instrumental in eliminating local religious discrimination.
Born Apr. 6, 1920 to Sarah Mae (Greene) and Gilbert Roskin of Cardiff, Wales, the U.K., the family emigrated to the U.S. and settled in Marion, when Tony was 7. As a teenager, he worked in several movie theaters in town, intending to go into the movie/marketing business. However, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941, brought the U.S. into WWII. In January 1942, Roskin enlisted in the Army Air Corps. He trained as a co-pilot with the 100th Airborne, flying B-17s (the famous "Flying Fortresses"). His final commission was as commander of maintenance mechanics at Burtonwood Airfield, Lancashire, England, as part of the 8th Air Force division.
After the war, Capt. Tony Roskin returned home to Marion, where he worked with his father at Gil Roskin Jewelers. In 1947, he met Mildred Levy, of Brooklyn, New York, where they married on Jan. 1, 1948, during the heaviest snow storm in that city's history. They had three children; David Scott, 1949; Gary Allan, 1952; and Wendy Rebecca, 1955.
Thanks to Tony's business expertise, Gilbert Roskin Jewelers became an American Gem Society guild store, and one of the finest, most successful jewelry stores in the region. He also owned Eisenbach Jewelers in West Lafayette, Ind.
In 1983, he sold the jewelry stores, and Tony and Mildred retired to southern California to play golf at Ironwood CC in Palm Desert. However, he kept his hand in the jewelry business by working part time in two local jewelry stores, Elegante, and B.Alsohns. Mildred passed away in 1997. Tony found new happiness with Deana Blissmer. Eventually, they moved to Coarsegold, Cal., near Deana's family.
Tony Roskin passed away on July 11 due to complications from colorectal cancer. He is survived by his companion, Deana Blissmer; his three children, David, Gary, and Wendy, daughter-in-law Lori (David's wife) and daughters Celia (19) and Sofie (17); daughter-in-law Linda (Gary's wife) and daughter Remy (17); and son-in-law Paul Sherman (Wendy's husband) and sons Aaron (33) and Julian (30).
Also surviving him are his late sister Jeanne's children, David Maidenburg, and Suzy (Maidenburg) Shoshan and family; Suzy's husband Rafi and sons, Gaby, David, and Nathaniel; Maidenberg family nieces and nephews in Marion; and in Dallas, Tex., Tony Roskin's brother-in-law Jerome Blum and family, plus cousins in England.
A memorial service is being planned for a date yet to be determined.
Condolences can be sent to the family in care of Wendy Roskin, 3211 N. Lincoln Ave., Altadena, CA 91001
In lieu of flowers, donations in Tony Roskin's memory can be made to M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Center for research in colorectal cancer www.mdanderson.org, or the 100th Bomb Group Foundation, https://100thbg.com/.
To view and sign this guestbook, please visit: desertsun.com/obituaries
Published in The Desert Sun on Sept. 10, 2017
