Businessman known for humor, integrity

His jingle, 'No money you'll be riskin' if you call Joe Ziskind,' which was prominently displayed on the KDKA scoreboard at old Forbes Field in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, was truly a microcosm of Joseph Ziskind's career in the home improvement industry.

'There were three words that best described my father as a businessman,' recalled his daughter, Judith Wolff. 'The words were integrity, kindness and humor. And these were rare qualities in the cut-throat home improvement business.'

Joseph Ziskind, a resident of Pompano Beach, Fla., and a former resident of Pittsburgh's Point Breeze section, died from complications following a heart attack on Thursday, July 26, 2001, in the Fletcher Allen Hospital, Burlington, Vt. He was 90.

Born in Czechoslovakia, Joe Ziskind was one of 11 children of the family of Zisa and Rose Moskovits Ziskind. His father left his family in Czechoslovakia and arrived in the United States during the World War I era and went into the scrap steel business in West Newton, Westmoreland County.

'My father met his father for the first time when my father arrived in the United States as a nine-year-old in 1920,' said Wolff. 'He was just a baby when my grandfather left Czechoslovakia to come to the United States.'

Wolff said her father never forgot the poverty that he left behind in Czechoslovakia. 'When people would say that they recalled the Depression when children only received one pair of shoes each year, my father would reply that they were lucky, very few kids even had shoes in Czechoslovakia.'

In order to help his parents support their large family, Joe Ziskind dropped out of high school during the 10th grade and went to work for his brothers who were operating a grocery store and meat market in West Newton. 'Dad was making the princely sum of $12 a week,' said Wolff.

While home on leave during World War II, Joe Ziskind, who was serving as a butcher in an Army mess hall while in the service, was introduced to Mildred Mermelstein, a buyer for Kaufmann's Department Store. 'I was living with my widowed mother in Oakland,' recalled Mildred Ziskind. 'Joe had told a friend that he didn't know too many people in Pittsburgh and was lonely.

'A friend suggested that he call me at Kaufmann's,' added Mrs. Ziskind. 'It was a rainy night and Joe offered to pick me up after work and ride me home. I agreed. But I never expected him to pick me up in a brand new Pontiac. In those days, you were lucky just to have a car. He even treated me to a steak dinner. My mother was impressed.

'But,' Mrs. Ziskind added, 'it wasn't the new car or expensive dinner that impressed me. It was his gentleness. I could see that he was a gentleman. I even told my mother that night that I was pretty sure that Joe was going to be the man for me. We were married on Jan. 28, 1945.'

In the ensuing years, Mr. Ziskind became one of the top salesmen in the home improvement field. In 1958, he went on his own and established the J. Ziskind Construction Co. in the Squirrel Hill section of Pittsburgh.

'What made my dad stand out,' said Judith Wolff, 'was his honesty. His word was his bond. He stood by his work.'

Businessman Joe Titlebaum recalled that many of his friends who went into the home improvement industry got their start working with Mr. Ziskind. 'Joe Ziskind had a great reputation of being honest and fair. And he treated his men with the same respect. Even on the streets of Squirrel Hill, it was said Joe was a nice man to know.'

For years the Ziskinds attended Tree of Life Congregation and in later years Rodef Shalom Congregation in Oakland.

Mr. Ziskind is survived by his wife, Mildred Mermelstein Ziskind of Pompano Beach, Fla.; daughters, Judith Wolff and Joyce Arnoff, both of New York City and Nancy Hittman of Olive Branch, Miss., and grandchildren, Jonathan, Harris, Erica and Elly.

Services at 1 p.m. today in the Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., 5509 Centre Ave., in Pittsburgh's Shadyside neighborhood. Visitation one hour prior to the service. Interment in Homestead Hebrew Cemetery, Homestead, Allegheny County.

Contributions may be made to Charles M. Morris Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15217, or Friends of Israel Defense Forces, 298 Fifth Ave., 5th Floor, New York, NY 10001.