Gisha Linchis Berkowitz, 89, formerly of Mt. Airy, a retired teacher and community activist, died Jan. 20 of vascular dementia at her home in Atria Southpoint Walk in Durham, N.C.
Mrs. Berkowitz retired in 1983 after 11 years as director of the Alternative East High School in Wyncote. One of the few alternative high schools in the country, it was modeled on the Parkway alternative school in Philadelphia.
Earlier she was the local coordinator for college interns sent to Philadelphia by the Great Lakes Colleges Association and was director of the Germantown Area Schools Project, a program that brought together public, private and parochial school students for shared learning at different school locations.
She was long active in efforts for racial justice, religious tolerance and quality education for all students. She was a member of the Jewish Community Relations Council, East Mount Airy Neighbors, the Jenks Home and School Association and the Citizens Committee on Public Education in Philadelphia.
Born in Germantown, she graduated from Germantown High School and received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Bryn Mawr College. She earned a master’s degree in teaching from Antioch College and a principal’s certificate from the University of Pennsylvania.
Mrs. Berkowitz is survived by sons Steven J. and Alan R.; seven grandchildren; and a great- grandchild. She was preceded in death by her husband, Raymond, in 2006, and a son, David, in 2008.
Funeral services were held on Feb. 5.
Memorial donations may be made to the Social Action Fund at the Germantown Jewish Centre, 400 W. Ellet St., Philadelphia, PA 19119, or through https://germantownjewishcentre.org, or to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Box 97166, Washington, D.C. 20077-7543 or via https://www.plannedparenthood.org. – WF
