Harold Zalkind, age 96, passed away after a brief illness on May 11, 2021, at home in Amherst, MA, surrounded by his family. He was born in Chicago, IL and was raised in the Bronx, NY. Hal, as he preferred to be called, moved to Amherst with his beloved wife Shirley Zalkind from Rye, NY in 2013 to live with his daughter and son-in-law. Hal grew up in the Bronx, NY where he was a star athlete, winning trophies for golf and tennis before graduating DeWitt Clinton High School in 1942. He met the love of his life Shirley, who lived across the street on East Gun Hill Road, at age 13. After graduating from high school, Hal enlisted in the Air Force and enrolled in the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP), at Clark University in Worcester. As the war escalated in 1944, all those enlisted were transferred into the Army, no matter their training. Hal was assigned to the 26th Division of the 101st Infantry Regiment, of the Massachusetts National Guard, and sent to Fort Jackson in Columbia, SC for training. While there, Shirley traveled alone by train from New York to meet him so they could marry before he went overseas. Both were 19 years old. While in Europe Hal was wounded by sniper fire and hospitalized shortly before the Battle of the Bulge. At home in New York, Shirley received his army duffle bag containing his bloodied uniform without indication of Hal’s health or whereabouts, and news of his survival did not come until months later. Hal was honored with a Purple Heart for his service. Upon returning from the war, Hal joined Shirley’s brother in partnership in the family dry-cleaning and laundry business. They moved the business, Belle Cleaners, from the Bronx to Rye, NY. Hal and Shirley followed the business, first living in Port Chester, NY where they started their family, and then moving to Rye in 1967. Hal was an avid gardener who turned his home into a beautiful floral paradise that inspired all who visited. He volunteered at the Rye Nature Center for several years and took an interest in environmentalism. Shirley, an art teacher, painted many of Hal’s garden treasures in watercolor and the paintings decorated their homes in both Rye and Amherst. Hal was also an avid deep sea fisherman, and enjoyed fishing off the coast of Monhegan Island, ME. Hal and Shirley spent many of their retirement years wintering on St Martin, where he remained a serious tennis player well into his late 80s. After Hurricane Sandy, Hal and Shirley moved to Amherst to live with their family. Hal remarked that, upon moving to Amherst, he had come full circle from his time at Clark, back to Massachusetts. Hal was predeceased by their son Robert in 1983, and leaves behind his beloved wife Shirley Zalkind, his daughter Nina Zalkind Tetenbaum and son-in-law Don Tetenbaum, his grandsons Joshua and Noah Tetenbaum, and granddaughter-in-law Jennie Rose Halperin. He was loved and admired by his extended family and many, many friends he and Shirley acquired throughout their long life shared together. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Harold’s memory to the Jewish Climate Initiative (https://www.interfaithsustain.com/ jewish-climate-initiative/), or Cooley Dickinson VNA and Hospice https://www.cooleydickinson.org/programs-services/vna-hospice/ .