M. Melvin Shralow

M. Melvin “Mel” Shralow – lawyer, seafarer, lifelong learner – died Thursday, April 2, at the nursing center at The Quadrangle in Haverford, Pa. He was 89.

Mel had lived in his apartment at The Quadrangle for eight years before moving to the nursing center in recent weeks. Mel was passionate about life and his many interests – law, music, art, literature, history, theater, movies, boating, and sports, especially Penn State football. But he was most passionate in his love for his family and many friends. He especially rejoiced in becoming a great-grandfather to Rose Aviv Brafman Nadel just over a year ago.

Mel was a 50-plus-year member of the Philadelphia Bar Association. He argued and won significant cases before juries and judges and served as a trusted adviser to his clients – many of whom remain among his best friends to this day.

Mel practiced at a number of firms during his career, most recently at White and Williams. He was a name partner of several smaller firms at various earlier times, including Shralow and Newman and Frumkin, Shralow, and Cerullo. He was a professor at Villanova Law School during 1969 and 1970, an experience he cherished the rest of his life.

After his retirement from full-time practice, Mel continued to work part-time, including as an arbitrator for FINRA until within the past year. Until recent weeks, he stayed actively engaged advising on rails-to-trails right-of-way issues, thanks to his friend and colleague Andy Strauss.

Mel lost his beloved wife, Rhoda Honey Robin Shralow, in August 2016. Mel recovered from this crushing loss and employed his lifelong learning skills to create a new life for himself at The Quadrangle. He involved himself thoroughly in The Quadrangle community, participating in committees, activities, and friendships. It was there he met Betsy West, his loving and trusted companion during recent years.

Philadelphia Born and Bred

Mel was born in 1936 at what was then called Jewish Hospital, now Einstein Hospital, in North Philadelphia. He grew up poor in a small row home in the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood of Philadelphia with his parents and younger sister, the late Sandra Rosenblum. Mel’s academic talents and sharp, analytic mind manifested early on, and he saw education – and excellence – as his ticket out of poverty.

Mel was proud to be a product of Blaine School, Central High School 99th Class, University of Pennsylvania Engineering School Class of 1957, and Harvard Law School, Class of 1960. He earned scholarships, worked part-time, and took loans in order to make his dream of a Harvard education a reality.

A Love for Boats and the Water

Mel’s pursuit of his lifelong love for boats and boating started at age 12 with the Sea Scouts, where he would ride a bus from Strawberry Mansion and then walk a mile to the Philadelphia Sea Scouts chapter waterfront facility on the Delaware River in Northeast Philly. Mel later owned several sail and powerboats and enjoyed cruising with Rhoda to anchor overnight in a quiet cove. He also became highly active in the Delaware River chapter of the Power Squadron, which promotes boating and safety on the water.

Family memories are too numerous to account. A sampling includes weeklong sailing trips on the Chesapeake Bay in Genesis, a 26-foot sloop with no shower. Decades of Memorial Day barbeques at the house on Dover Road and New Years’ Eves with the Kaplans, Kings, and Packels. Summer vacations on Long Beach Island with the family – an event Rhoda eagerly awaited all year.

A Love for Learning

Mel read incessantly and loved to learn. He was devoted to The New York Times. He also had a lifelong love for sports, exercise, and outdoor activity. He was a standout as a walk-on with the crew team at Penn, and later ran 10K road races, played tennis, pickup basketball, and golf. Mel was a bookworm, but a bookworm who could row, run, and rebound.

Mel was active in professional circles and with organizations and causes he believed in, and he was not afraid to lead. A sampling of his professional and civic leadership positions incudes:

· Executive Assistant to Attorney General of Pennsylvania, 1971

· Hearing Officer, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, 1971-1972

· President, Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Philadelphia, 1991-1993

· Executive Committee, National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council, 1991-1993

· Board of Directors, Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, 1991

Mel also served as a judge pro tempore in Philadelphia, volunteering his time to help reduce court backlogs.

Mel is also survived by a daughter, Donna Nadel, and her husband, Paul, of Santa Monica, Calif.; two sons, Jeffrey, and his wife, Leslie, of Philadelphia, and Bill, and his partner, Karen Flam, of Doylestown; five grandchildren, Sean Nadel and his wife, Sarah Brafman, of South Orange, N.J.; Alison Nadel, of Brooklyn, N.Y., Jesse Nadel, of Boston, Mass., Matthew Shralow of Philadelphia, and Samantha Shralow of Marlton, N.J.; and a great-granddaughter Rose Aviv Brafman Nadel, of South Orange, N.J.

A service will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, April 6, at Adath Israel, 250 N. Highland Ave., Merion Station, PA 19066.

Arr. by Joseph Levine & Sons www.levinefuneral.com