A beloved husband, father and grandfather and teacher, Herman Katz died peacefully at his home in Sherman Oaks on April 12, 2015. Katz’s greatest joy and satisfaction came from family, friends, colleagues and students who admired and treasured him. The son of a Russian Jewish mother and an American Jewish father, Katz was raised in City Terrace and Boyle Heights, and as a dedicated educator he devoted more than 50 years to Hollenbeck Junior High and Roosevelt High School, beginning in 1957, in the very community where he grew up. He was also the teacher to whom a young and confused Tony Villar went for help at Roosevelt High. Katz offered the young Tony encouragement and suggested that he take the SAT exams and apply to college. “I saw that he was a bright kid, and from what he had told me, he really didn't know what he was going to do,” Katz told the Journal in 2006. “It was just a matter of encouraging him.” That same young man would go on to become City of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who often credited Katz with turning his life around.
Katz’s legacy of compassion and service will be carried on by the countless lives he touched. He will be remembered and missed forever. He is survived by his loving wife, Beverly, of 60 years, two daughters, three grandsons, a future son-in-law and two future granddaughters-in-law. There will be a memorial to celebrate his 82-year life in June.
