Fay's Obituary from the News and Courier

Fay C. Brickman, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday, passed away on Wednesday, September 1, 2021, at home, surrounded by her children/

Born and raised in Charleston, Fay was the youngest of the five children of Ida and Samuel Cohen.

. Fay graduated from Memminger High School for Girls and received her Bachelor's degree from the College of Charleston in 1943. She married her high school sweetheart, Jack P. Brickman, of blessed memory, after he returned from serving in combat in the Pacific theater, with the rank of Captain, during World War II. They were happily married for seventy years, raising six children, all six of whom received law degrees.

Fay was known by all for her compassion, sweetness, selflessness, intelligence and great sense of humor. She was a wonderful woman whose acts of loving-kindness, charity and generosity were legendary. She especially cared for those who were vulnerable and overlooked. She saw only the good in everyone and expressed love for everyone. She was devoted to her synagogue, Brith Shalom Beth Israel. At the synagogue Fay served in many roles, including Sisterhood President and as the leader of the Condolence Committee, providing comfort to mourning families.

Fay and Jack established endowed scholarships at both the College of Charleston and the University of Virginia Law School. In addition, the Preschool at the Addlestone Hebrew Academy was named after them.

In 2005, then Mayor Joe P. Riley issued a proclamation naming August 21st as "Jack and Fay Brickman Day" as part of "The Crown of the Good Name" honoring their decades of charity and devotion to the Charleston community. On her hundredth birthday, Charleston Mayor John J. Tecklenburg proclaimed June 17, 2021 "Fay Brickman Day". In addition, on her 100th birthday, her life story was recorded in the U.S. Congressional Record by US Senator Tim Scott, and the flag flying above the U.S. Capitol on that day was presented to Fay.

Both Mayor Tecklenburg and Senator Scott visited Fay to celebrate her 100th birthday. Fay always commemorated holidays and life events with her own poetry and all who received these poems treasure them to this day. Fay is survived by her six loving and beloved children: Steven Alan Brickman of Birmingham; Barbara Brickman Stein (Sheldon Stein) of Dallas, TX; Michael Joseph Brickman (Tippy Stern Brickman) of Charleston; David Reuben Brickman (Nancy Brickman) of Dallas, TX; Lowell Kapler Brickman (Jeanette Brickman) of Austin, TX; and Luba Brickman Seidman (Steven Seidman) of Chappaqua,NY.

Fay was "Grandma Fay" to over twenty five grandchildren and great-grandchildren and Aunt Fay to many more. The entire Brickman family is thankful for and tremendously moved by the outpouring of support they have received The family requests that donations please be made in Fay's memory to her beloved BSBI Synagogue, 182 Rutledge Avenue, Charleston, SC, 29403.

Lenora Walker Pate's Obituary from the Birmingham News

Lenora Walker Pate of Birmingham, AL., passed away peacefully, surrounded by her devoted husband, Steven Brickman, and her loving family, on June 23, 2021. Born on May 22, 1949, to James and Emily Walker, Lenora was raised in Inglenook in North Birmingham with her two siblings, Jim Walker and Oscar Walker.

She excelled in school, and went on to graduate from Phillips High School in 1967 at the top of her class. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Alabama, Birmingham, with academic honors, completing her collegiate coursework in only three years. In 1969, she married Gordon Pate with whom she had two sons, Gavin Pate and Ashby Pate.

She taught seventh and eighth grade gifted students in the early 1970s and was beloved by all of them. When her sons were born, she left teaching and devoted her life to her family. In 1985, while raising Gavin and Ashby as a single mother, Lenora graduated from Samford University's Cumberland School of Law, summa cum laude and as salutatorian of her class. Shortly thereafter, she began working at the law firm of Sirote and Permutt, where she worked with great distinction for over 35 years. At Sirote, she met the love of her life and fellow attorney, Steven Brickman. They married in 1987 and have been devoted partners, in life, law, and love, for over 33 years.

Steven supported Lenora in an inimitable way, selflessly raising Gavin and Ashby and working alongside Lenora as her career and her life's work became one of the most distinguished in Alabama. To say that Lenora's professional career was remarkable is an understatement. Her accolades are too numerous to list, but they include her appointment to Governor Jim Folsom's Cabinet in 1994, becoming the first woman Director of the Department of Industrial Relations in Alabama history; her run for Governor of the State of Alabama in 1998, the first woman to do so since Lurlene Wallace in the 1960s; her countless professional awards and recognitions-being named as Best Lawyers Health Care Lawyer of the Year in 2016 and 2021, being ranked as a "Best Lawyer in America" for Health Care law for 14 straight years from 2007-2021, being named as a "Top Five Most Influential Lawyer" in 1999 by the Birmingham News, serving as Chair of the Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform from 2003-2020, and playing an integral role in the development of UAB's Kirklin Clinic, working hand in hand with John Kirklin and the entire medical community to help make UAB what it is today.

Even more important to Lenora than her professional contributions was her tireless charitable work. Driven by her steadfast faith in God, Lenora gave and gave and gave-of her time, her resources, her attention, and her love. She was a devoted member of Dawson Memorial Baptist Church for her entire adult life, and she served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the American Cancer Society, as the first non-Jewish Member of the Birmingham Jewish Federation, as a Member of the Samford University Board of Overseers, and as Chair of the Alabama Women's Commission. In 2017, she received the American Cancer Society's St. George National Award for her work in passing anti-smoking ordinances, and she also raised funds and awareness to support research for cancer-the disease she battled with grace and optimism for over 21 years.

Lenora loved people. Her countless journals and the margin notes in her time-worn Bible reveal a heart on fire for God and her fellow man. To spend any time reading them is to see a woman ceaselessly praising the Lord for the blessings of her life and constantly seeking ways to enrich the lives of as many people as she could in the time she had been given. She prayed for everyone she knew, by name, sometimes for hours each morning before she began her work. She played the piano and sang beautifully, giving her sons and her grandchildren the gift of her music, especially on Christmas Eve when she cherished playing play carols for all who gathered 'round.

She loved to travel, and she loved to talk-to anyone who was fortunate enough to listen-about her faith in God, her faith in common goodness, her faith in the strength of women and young girls, and her faith in the simple power of a family, gathering together, around a table on a Friday night. She exuded optimism, hope, and courage. She was brilliant, but abundantly kind, humble, and patient.

She embodied the Christian faith of her upbringing, embraced the Jewish faith of her husband, Steven, and accepted everyone she knew-of any faith or none at all-as her brothers and sisters, modeling for all to see how the love of Christ should truly be expressed. She was known and loved dearly as "Mimi" by her five grandchildren-Mason, Beckett, Rhea, Oa, and Veda Rose-and her daughter-in-law, Janna. She was also known as Mom, Noni, Mrs. Pate, Mrs. Brickman, and Ms. Lenora to men and women of all ages, whose lives she touched every single day. Lenora and her family would prefer that donations be made in her name to the American Cancer Society.