Eli Fromm

Eli Fromm, 85, formerly of Audubon and Broomall, PA, died on January 20, 2025. He was the beloved husband of Dorothy Gold Fromm; beloved father of Steve (Laura), Larry (Galit) and Richard (Lorien); proud grandfather of Matty and David Fromm, Ruben and Shira Fromm, Dylan and Lyra Fromm, loving brother of the late Menachem Fromm, and brother-in-law of Elaine Strum.

Delivered at the home of a distant relative in Niedaltdorf, Germany, to Helen and Siegried Fromm, Eli was literally born as his parents were fleeing Germany. His father, Siegfried, had been imprisoned in Buchenwald on November 10, 1938 during Kristallnacht. He had served on the front lines in WWI, and was ultimately able to negotiate his release, under the condition that the family leave Germany, fleeing their home in the district of Düren, near Aachen. The Fromm family were cattle farmers who can trace their family back to 17th century Germany. Eli’s mother, Helen, was nine months pregnant at the time. Siegfried, Helen, and their then 11 year old son Menachem boarded a train to France, and Helen went into labor on the train. They disembarked and went to the home of Loni Pins’ parents, where Eli was born. The family made their way to France, then England, and eventually settled in Newark, NJ, where Siegfried worked as a butcher, and then in Vineland, NJ, where Siegfried started an egg farm. Eli worked on the farm, and during school started a business vaccinating chickens. Loni Pins eventually made her way to Cleveland, Ohio, and remained close to Eli for the course of their lifetimes.

Siegfried passed away while Eli was in high school, and though Eli had received a full scholarship to attend MIT, he decided to stay local and attend Drexel University so he could help his mother run the farm. Eli received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering in 1962 and a Masters in Biomedical Engineering in 1964 from Drexel, and a PhD in physiology from Jefferson Medical College in 1967. While he was pursuing his masters, he met Dorothy Gold on a blind date at a fraternity party at Drexel, and they married in December 1962.

Eli worked early in his career as an engineer at General Electric and then at DuPont. He began working at Drexel as an assistant professor in 1967, where he made notable contributions to the field of biotelemetry. While at Drexel, he served in a wide variety of academic leadership roles, including the Vice Provost of Research and Graduate Studies, and the Vice President for Educational Research, and he was named the Leroy A. Brothers Professor in the College of Engineering. In 2002 he became the inaugural recipient of the National Academy of Engineering's Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education. Eli was elected as a member into the National Academy of Engineering in 2004 for innovation and leadership in the development of a holistic curriculum for engineering education. Earlier in his career, he served on the staff of the Committee on Science and Technology of the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Legislative Office for Research Liaison of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Eli retired from Drexel in 2017.

Eli and Dorothy funded the Helen and Siegfried Fromm Chapel, in the Raymond G. Center for Jewish Life at Drexel, in honor of his parents and in memory of their strength and courage to survive the Holocaust and re-establish their lives, family, and strong Jewish beliefs in the U.S. 

He spent his retirement involved in the Jewish Interest Group at the Shannondell retirement community, where he established and edited the Jewish Interest Group newsletter, participated in the model train club, and spent time with Dorothy, his three sons, and six grandchildren, and a wonderful group of friends and fellow Shannondell residents, including other transplants from Broomall.

Eli was brilliant, kind, resourceful, resilient, loyal, and disciplined. One of his great hobbies was small construction projects. He single handedly built the basement of their Broomall home, built the roof over their patio, and also enjoyed tinkering with his antique MG. He loved to repair —- appliances, TV’s, windows —- whatever broke, Eli was happy to fix. He was also the co-creator of the math and science based Solar Bases board game. Eli loved peanuts, kosher salami, and herring in wine sauce, and couldn’t resist a gluten-free cookie or slice of gluten-free chocolate cake.

There will be a graveside funeral on Thursday, January 23, 1:00 pm at Haym Solomon Memorial Park in Frazier, PA, followed by a shiva and memorial service at Shannondell in the card room of the Bradford Clubhouse, led by Rabbi Alan Fuchs 7:30 pm. There will be a shiva on Sunday, January 26th at Steve and Laura’s home in NYC. Donations in Eli’s name to Drexel Hillel can be made online here.