The Cost of Prayers at a Jewish Funeral

As the oldest surviving male relative, my father bore the duty of burying his Uncle Koppel. Koppel had survived three years in Nazi concentration camps and the misery of post-war Vienna. He came to America and found success as a dentist. He never married, had no children and lived with his sister, also a survivor. In his 90s, after years of ill health, Koppel finally succumbed.