Tel Aviv Honors 105-Year-Old Resident

A special birthday celebration in Tel Aviv, Israel for a remarkable man.  

Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein is receiving special treatment for reaching the ripe old age of 105. 

But it's not just his age that makes Freidrich a special person, also due to his active involvement in the life of his town Tel Aviv. 

The city’s mayor presents an award, recognizing his age and his contribution. 

[Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein]:

“The mayor gave me a medal of the city. My name is on it and also says that I’ve been a resident of Tel Aviv for 75 years, and that I’ve reached the age of 105 years.”

Despite his age, Dr. Reichenstein leads a busy life. 

Every morning he exercises and meditates.

Dr. Reichenstein has also recently finished writing a book which almost took 4 years to complete. 

The book is about his life and contains original documents on key events.

[Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein]:

“My children and friends urged me to write about my life. But I didn’t want to do it because there were terrible things, and I was reluctant to write about them.”

One of Dr. Reichenstein’s bad memories is the humiliation he experienced when he was sworn in as a lawyer in Germany in 1933. 

[Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein]:

“I entered the ceremony hall and saw many people…lawyers and judges, and behind them stood the Nazis, the S.S. and the S.A…. and they threw the Jews down the stairs, including me. And outside there stood a garbage truck and they made us climb into it so that we were evacuated from there as garbage.”

In 1935 he immigrated to Israel but did not practice law there. 

Instead he established the first newspaper in the German language in Israel.

[Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein]:

“In Israel I could not use the law I had learned and I didn’t want to start studying again to become a lawyer in Israel. So I looked for another profession and tried all kinds of things. By chance, I established a newspaper.”

He was the publisher of the paper “Today’s News” for about 30 years until it closed down.

Dr. Reichenstein’s daughter remembers the time she spent with her father when she was young. 

She now has grandchildren of her own.

[Yael Rosenblum-Vardi, Daughter of Dr. Reichenstein]:

“What we did most often together was sports. When I was young, we used to walk on the beach together in the summer and the winter. Sometimes we laugh when father says ‘I’m 105 and I have a 72-year-old daughter…but the truth is we’re more like friends than just a father and a daughter. We laugh a lot and father often confides in me. I’ve learned a lot from him. He is a very knowledgeable person.”

There’s a reason behind Dr. Reichenstein’s longevity.

[Yael Rosenblum-Vardi, Daughter of Dr. Reichenstein]:

“He finds joy in the little details, in food, in beautiful women. When he goes to the park he says ‘look at those beautiful, lovely children.’ Everything interests him and gives him joy.”

[Dr. Friedrich Reichenstein]:

“I’ve always been curious… always active. I went swimming every day, and went to all the concerts. I always keep my optimism, I laugh, and I let others laugh too.”

The publishing of Friedrich's book will be long-anticipated.

Reporter:Janet Zrian         Photographer:David Bershadsky

NTD News, Tel Aviv, Israel