Leopold Fleischer, 84, of the Selfhelp Home, Chicago, and formerly of Skokie, a retired cantor and teacher, died Saturday at his daughter’s residence. Mr. Fleischer was cantor emeritus of Congregation Ezra Habonim in Chicago. He attended cantorial school and seminary to attain his teaching degree while still living in Germany. He left Germany with his new bride in 1939 because of the anti-Semitic policies of the Nazis. Their honeymoon was spent on a ship that took them to Shanghai, where he served as a cantor. Mr. Fleischer and his family settled in San Francisco in 1948, where he served as a cantor, and moved to Chicago in 1955 when a position opened at the former Habonim Congregation in Hyde Park. In 1973, he became cantor at the merged Congregation Ezra Habonim. He was made cantor emeritus in 1976. Survivors include a daughter, Judy Kolb; a son, Ernest; a brother; five grandchildren; and a great-grandchild. Services for Mr. Fleischer will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Piser Weinstein Menorah Chapels, 9200 N. Skokie Blvd., Skokie.
