Bethal’s last committee member passes on

Own Correspondent

He was brought up in Doornfontein in Johannesburg and later attended Athlone Boys High.

The Second World War broke out in 1939 and unbeknown to his family Alec enlisted in the army as a medic. After his basic training he was transferred to Kenya and finally on to North Africa where he served at El Alamein in Egypt and Palestine.

After the war he returned to South Africa where he worked for Associated Press. It was at this time that the opportunity arose for him to join his brother-in-law, Norman Ginsberg and his sister Sarah in Bethal, to work at Highveld Selected Seeds.

Before moving to Bethal, Alec met Cynthia Lack and they were married at the Yeoville Shul in 1951. Bethal in those days had a thriving, prosperous Jewish community with a high proportion involved in farming.

Because he always had a pipe dangling from his mouth, he earned himself the nickname “Mapiep”, which was how his staff referred to him.

After the Bethal Mills and Highveld Seeds ceased trading in 1970, Alec joined the Ellerines Group at Volks Furnishers in Bethal.

In the mid to late 70s things in Bethal began to change and it was then that Alec and Cynthia decided to look to their future. Retirement beckoned and Durban seemed the ideal place to spend their autumn years.

The Meskins injected themselves into the Beachfront Jewish community and they became more involved in the now renamed Vryheid Shul where Alec was a regular at all the services and an active member. 

Alec and Cynthia were married for more than 64 years. He is survived by Cynthia and three children, Rene, Geoff and Lynette and four grandchildren.

May his memory be for a blessing.