Asher J. Matathias, a Holocaust survivor who spent decades telling students about his family’s survival and warning of the dangers of antisemitism, died Sept. 13 at 82.
A lifelong Woodmere resident, Matathias was a political science professor, educator, writer, Jewish communal leader and devoted family man. He was known to generations of students as “The Singing Professor,” a fitting nickname for a man who could often be heard singing in his home, his car or the hallways of the schools where he taught.
Born Dec. 3, 1943, while his parents, Jacob and Sara (Nina) Matathias, were hiding from the Nazis on Mount Pelion in Volos, Greece, Matathias survived because of a series of extraordinary acts of courage.
His parents had fled into hiding. Greek Christians, including Phroso and Yiorgos Stamos, helped protect the family. And when a German patrol eventually discovered Matathias’ mother with her infant son, the officer looked into the baby’s crib, thought of his own young son in Germany and chose to walk away.
“He understood that individual choices mattered,” his daughter Sara said in her eulogy. “He understood that words mattered and that what people chose to do in moments of moral consequence could change the course of another person’s life.”
After surviving the Holocaust and the Greek Civil War, Matathias immigrated to the United States with his family in 1956 at 12.
Education became one of the defining forces of his life. He studied political science and eventually became a professor, teaching generations of students and encouraging them to question, debate and support their opinions with facts.
“After a lifetime of teaching, his students were everywhere,” Sara said.
For decades, he visited schools, synagogues and community organizations, speaking about his family’s experience, the Holocaust, Greek Jewry, antisemitism and Israel. He never accepted payment for his Holocaust presentations.
He wanted students to understand that the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis were not simply a statistic, but individuals with families, dreams and lives.
“He wanted young people to understand what hatred and antisemitism could do,” Sara said. “He wanted them to understand what happens when language dehumanizes people, what happens when good people look away, and what can happen when one person chooses not to.”
Matathias was always prepared to tell his story. His family remembers him routinely carrying papers under his arm — copies of his story that he could hand to anyone who was willing to listen.
In 2019, he accompanied one of his granddaughters to Steiner Studios in Brooklyn after she was cast in a small role in the Amazon series “Hunters,” a drama involving Holocaust survivors and Nazis living secretly in postwar America.
When a producer learned that the grandfather accompanying her was himself a Holocaust survivor, Matathias pulled out his papers and began telling his story. He handed the producer a copy.
His commitment to Jewish life extended beyond Holocaust education.
For decades, Matathias served as president of B’nai B’rith Long Island Lodge No. 1353 and was active in Jewish communal and charitable causes. He wrote and lectured extensively about Greek Jewry, Israel, antisemitism and the Holocaust and wrote a play about the Jews of Salonika.
His connection to the Sephardic Temple in Cedarhurst dated to his arrival in the United States. Rabbi Marans, of blessed memory, greeted the Matathias family when they arrived by ship, and Matathias soon became part of the congregation.
He and his parents eventually became founding members of the Sephardic Temple, which remained an important part of his life and that of his family for generations.
Throughout the Five Towns, Matathias became a familiar figure. He and his wife, Anna, were also regulars at Starbucks in Hewlett, where Matathias knew the baristas by name and took an interest in their lives.
Matathias and Anna were married for 56 years after meeting in Greece in 1970. They married just 13 days after meeting.
Together, they raised three daughters — Miriam, Joy and Sara — and became grandparents to seven grandchildren.
“They didn’t just love each other,” Sara said. “They really liked each other.”
Matathias was immensely proud of his daughters and treasured his role as “Papou” to his grandchildren.
Matathias had been preparing to turn his own story into a book. His first meeting about the project had been scheduled for the week he became ill. His family intends to finish the project.
“For a man who spent his life carrying his story under his arm, we will make sure it is finally bound between two covers,” Sara said.
Matathias is survived by Anna, his wife of 56 years; daughters Miriam, Joy and Sara and their families; seven grandchildren; his brother, Dr. Daniel Matathias; his sister, Rachelle Matathias-Cohen; and extended family in the United States, Greece and Israel. His sister Maroula (Miriam) died of childhood leukemia at age 11.
The Matathias family is collecting memories and stories from those whose lives were touched by Professor Asher J. Matathias. Memories can be shared at keshercollective@gmail.com.
