A “musical extravaganza” celebration of his life will be held this Saturday, March 14, 2015, 1:30 P.M., at Habing Family Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to the Esther and Fred Scholarship Fund.
Fred Forman, a man who cared about family, community, education, and the state of the world, passed away peacefully, early Sunday morning, surrounded by his family. He had been of ill health for the previous two years following the death of his dear wife, Esther.
Fred was born to Joseph and Charlotte Forman in Prospect Park, PA on August 29, 1929. He was born into a family of grocers. He enjoyed a secure, carefree childhood while his parents tended to their various neighborhood markets.
He loved sports. When he was 12 years old, he and other neighborhood boys formed a baseball team and traveled by bus and train to compete against other teams, mostly adults. In high school, he played football ,basketball, and excelled in baseball.
After high school, he attended junior college and then served in the Army during the Korean War. Upon his discharge, he moved to Albuquerque, NM. He returned to college to get his teaching degree. There he met his wife, Esther.
He said, “Before I met Esther, I was a leaf floating aimlessly on a still pond.”
In 1960, Fred moved his family to Gilroy, where he taught for 35 years. He taught 7th and 8th grade at Brownell for many years before moving to Jordan where he taught 6th grade. He was an intensely innovative and dedicated teacher. He was very active in the Gilroy Teachers Association, serving as a negotiator and school representative.
A staunch Democrat, he worked actively on many local and national campaigns. After retirement, he devoted his time to caring for his grandchildren.
He is survived by his children, Douglas (Caroline), and Karen Chavez (Steve), sister, Anna Forman, grandchildren, Emilia, Daniel, Lucas and Benjamin, nieces, Mara, Roberta, Wanda and Esther, nephews, Alan, David, Rick, Richard, Dylan, Forest and Skye.
