Julius Solomon Cohen, 98, of Saline, Michigan, passed away peacefully on August 28 following a brief illness, with family at his side.

Born June 18, 1928, in Monticello, New York, Julius was raised and educated in nearby Hurleyville, the only son of Rose (Jacobson) and Abraham Isaac Cohen, the grandson of Max and Bessie Jacobson and Samuel and Freda Dorva Musnikow, and the brother of Phyllis “Doreen” Cohen, all of whom preceded him in death.  He was also predeceased by his wife, Loretta. He is survived by his four children: Rose (Rick Silver), parents of Shana, Arianna, and Miriyam; Elizabeth (Brent Bailey), parents of Suzannah and Lilllian; Suzanne (David Wak); David (Edith Parker); and five great grandchildren as well as an extended family that claims its roots and gathers annually in Hurleyville but is now widely dispersed across the country.

Julius graduated from Syracuse University and obtained his master and doctorate degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University in 1962. His career as an educator began in Harlem, New York City, teaching a junior high school class of boys, then classified as mentally retarded. Following a stint in the army during the Korean War, he returned to Sullivan County, New York, where he organized and taught the special education class in the Fallsburg, New York school system. Upon joining the faculty at Syracuse University, Julius developed and administered the Rehabilitation Counselor Training program, the first such program in the nation that prepared students to work with clients who were diagnosed as mentally retarded.

He was subsequently recruited by the University of Michigan to help establish the Institute for the Study of Mental Retardation and Related Disabilities, which positioned him to have national impact in the field of disability rights. Julius served on national committees on disabilities, and his research informed advocacy for the potential of persons with mental disabilities to become productive, contributing citizens, and for ensuring the legal rights of these individuals. He took great pleasure in the role he played as a mentor, continuing to correspond with his former students who became leaders in the field of disabilities. The ripple effects of his professional cohorts on improving the lives of persons with limited mental abilities and related disabilities, and their families, endure.

In retirement in Saline, Michigan Julius continued to enjoy his passion for Chinese language and cuisine, his membership and board service at Beth Israel Synagogue, the Saline Area Senior Center, and the convenience of electronic communications to stay in touch with his children, family, and friends. He was also an active patron of the Saline Public Library, which unfailingly accommodated his many requests for books.

Julius’s greatest pride was his four children, each of them, in a variety of ways, became a helping professional. He admired their values, enjoyed their friendship, and felt a collegial connection to their commitment to improve their communities.

In many small ways, Julius left the world a little better than how he found it.

The funeral home that handled the funeral was the Colonial Family of Funeral Homes in Woodbourne, NY. He is buried in Hurleyville Jewish Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to your local public library or a charity of your choice.