Naomi Jean Cohen, 64, passed away in her Schererville, IN home on March 4th 2022, after a long battle with ovarian cancer. She was surrounded by loving family and friends.

Born on August 28th, 1957, on the South Side of Chicago, Naomi Fruehauf moved to Munster, Indiana in 1970. She graduated early from Munster High School to spend a semester at Kibbutz Maayan Tzvi in Israel. Naomi graduated in 1980 from Indiana University, while also studying at Hebrew University in Jerusalem for a year, where she met her first husband, Chaim Cohen. Married in 1978 (div. 2003), Naomi and Chaim had three children together of whom she was so proud: Adam (Lindsay Danas Cohen), Daniel, and Alexandra (Omri Markovich). In the 1980s, the family moved back and forth from the US to Israel, settling back in Munster, IN in October 1988.

Naomi loved life profoundly and saw life as a beautiful gift, making every personal interaction and shared experience an exciting adventure. Naomi always wanted those around her to enjoy these moments as much as she did – looking for opportunities for pranks and surprises to add to the joy and making the most out of any situation. Naomi will be remembered for her radiance, energy and warmth, deep love for teaching and learning, her unbridled strength, creativity, unfiltered opinions, back-seat driving, spontaneity, bargain hunting, being a night owl, and her enduring, abundant love for her family and friends—especially being an adoring Nana.

Naomi always had her hands full and lived a very active life. Over the course of her career, Naomi was a waitress, Hebrew School teacher, pharmaceutical sales agent, and corporate travel sales rep. A talented saleswoman and road-warrior, her 20 year career with Hilton Hotels catered to her love of traveling, and deep friendships with her “Hilton Family”. Taking after her parents, Naomi was also actively engaged in the Jewish Community in NW Indiana where she established life-long friendships, in addition to her friendships she’s maintained and cherished since childhood. Naomi had such love and passion for her family, and was an active mother, Nana, daughter, wife, sister, step-mom, aunt, and cousin. One of Naomi’s greatest joys in life was being a Nana to three grandchildren with whom she was very involved. Naomi was a strong fighter, and she maintained this active lifestyle throughout her 8.5 year battle with ovarian cancer.

Naomi is survived by her devoted husband and partner of 15 years Barry Weiss (married 2019), her loving parents Ernest and Ursula Fruehauf, her proud and beloved three children and two stepchildren, Lenny Weiss (Trista) and Lindsay Weiss, and three grandsons (Asher and Pace Cohen and Aviv Markovich) and her adoring siblings Ruth Fruehauf (Michael Ostrower) and Ora Fisher (Joseph).

Visitation will be held at Congregation Beth Israel at 9am CST on Tuesday March 8th with funeral services to follow at 10am CST (livestream will be made available). Burial will be held at Oakridge Jewish Cemetery in Hillside, IL. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to:

• Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA)
• Sharsheret.org
• The Fruehauf Fund of the Jewish Federation of Northwest Indiana
• Congregation Beth Israel

“Like the ocean waters, life’s journey is filled with waves of ups and downs, both big and small. What matters most are those with whom you ride those waves, to share in life’s best experiences, and to support each other through the rough waters.”

-Naomi’s favorite excerpt from the wedding speech her son Daniel wrote for her and Barry’s cruise-ship wedding (July 2019)