Former banker Samuel Levitan expires in N.C.

SAMUEL TEO LEVITAN, a banker and respected New Orleans community leader, died from cancer at his home in Raleigh, N.C. on July 31, 2018, where he had moved after Hurricane Katrina. He was 94.

He is survived by his wife, Gertrude Koniarski Levitan, his two sons Tom and Scott and a number of grandchildren.

A New Orleans native, Levitan lived most of his life in New Orleans, having been a resident of the Jewish Children’s Home (now Jewish Children’s Regional Service, JCRS) for about a decade, after his mother died when he was only two years old. His salesman father placed him into the home as a “half orphan,” a common practice of the day. Levitan lived there until he was 13, when his father remarried.

Levitan was the valedictorian of his graduating class at Samuel J. Peters High School. He served in the US Army during World War II, during which time his transport ship was hit by a torpedo that failed to detonate and was able to continue to its destination.

After his military service, when he returned to New Orleans, Levitan began work at the Whitney Bank, where he rose to the position of vice president, retiring in 1987.

His dedication to the bank and his customers was noteworthy. For example, on the day in early September in 1965 when Hurricane Betsy hit New Orleans, he walked 40 blocks from his home to the Broad Street branch to make sure an officer was present when the safe was scheduled to unlock.

He was an incredibly loved and respected man who was grateful for every day of his life. He maintained dear childhood friendships, adding new ones throughout his life.

Levitan was committed to the Jewish community in New Orleans and his generous and kind spirit was reciprocated by all who knew him. He served on the JCRS board from 1985 to 1999  and was the board’s treasurer and the endowment trustee chair for a number of years.

Levitan’s body has been donated to the Anatomic Gift Foundation in the hope that this gift may help identify treatments for metastatic lymphoma and merkel cell carcinoma.

Memorial donations are suggested to Jewish Children’s Regional Service, 3500 N. Causeway Blvd, #1120, Metairie, LA 70002 or to another charity of your choice.