Alice Fischer Bloom
Birth: 5 Apr 1917, San Francisco, CA
Death: 2 Jul 1995, Stockton, CA
Spouse: Lloyd Marks Bloom
Birth: 2 Jan 1912, San Francisco, California
Death: 13 May 1992, Stockton, California
Marriage: 5 Feb 1938, San Francisco, California
Children: Mark Charles (1941-2003)
Barry Joel (1945-)
Alice Harriet Fischer was the first grandchild of Patrick and Ellen Silk. She was born in her parents’ house at 9 Chenery Street, technically in Glen Park but just a stone’s throw from her grandparents old house in Bernal Heights. She was named after her mother’s older sister Mary Alice, who had died when she was five. Alice grew up in the Noe Valley/Glen Park area until 1930 when the family moved to Funston Street. She probably went to Fairmount School like her Aunt Gert. Being extremely bright, she attended Lowell High School, graduating in 1934. After high school, Alice went to work for the SF Newspaper Company. There, she met a handsome young man named Lloyd Bloom.
Death: 2 Jul 1995, Stockton, CA
Spouse: Lloyd Marks Bloom
Birth: 2 Jan 1912, San Francisco, California
Death: 13 May 1992, Stockton, California
Marriage: 5 Feb 1938, San Francisco, California
Children: Mark Charles (1941-2003)
Barry Joel (1945-)
Alice Harriet Fischer was the first grandchild of Patrick and Ellen Silk. She was born in her parents’ house at 9 Chenery Street, technically in Glen Park but just a stone’s throw from her grandparents old house in Bernal Heights. She was named after her mother’s older sister Mary Alice, who had died when she was five. Alice grew up in the Noe Valley/Glen Park area until 1930 when the family moved to Funston Street. She probably went to Fairmount School like her Aunt Gert. Being extremely bright, she attended Lowell High School, graduating in 1934. After high school, Alice went to work for the SF Newspaper Company. There, she met a handsome young man named Lloyd Bloom.
Lloyd Marks Bloom was born on January 2, 1912. He was the only child of Marks Bloom and Serena Marcuse, both of whom were native San Franciscans. Marks’ father was from Russia and his mother was from Berlin, but Selena’s family were Argonauts and had been in the City since 1950. Marks owned a candy store on Langston Street in Bernal Heights in 1892 and may have known Alice’s grandparents. He later went into the clothing business and did quite well. By 1940, he owned a printing business.
Lloyd was a graduate of Mission High School and attended the University of San Francisco. Alice always told him, “You might have gone to college, but I was smarter because I got into Lowell.” (Lowell is the magnet school for bright public school children in San Francisco and is very difficult to get into.) Lloyd was a member of the Interfraternity Council of 1932 and was the Psi Chi house manager. Psi Chi was a primarily Jewish fraternity established in 1931 and was housed at 42 Cole Street. Psi Chi at USF now is the National Honors Society for Psychology. Lloyd would graduate from USF in 1934, but, because of the moratorium placed on yearbooks by the Archbishop from 1932-1942, what his degree was is unknown. After graduation, he got a job working for the San Francisco Newspaper Company as a bookkeeper.
In 1936, Lloyd joined Fidelity Lodge #120 of the Masons with his father. He would become the secretary for the Lodge for 1939. Throughout her early life, Alice had been a member of the Esthers, the girls part of Eastern Star to which her mother and aunt belonged. Lloyd would be a Mason and Alice a member of The Order of the Eastern Star for over 50 years.
Lloyd had grown up at 800 Dolores Street, at the corner of Dolores and 21st Street. His father had bought the lot from Joseph Coppersmith on July 10, 1909, for $10 and built three flats there. In 1937, Lloyd’s mother died and Marks signed the building over to Lloyd as a wedding present. In 2012, the triplex sold for $2.235 million.
Lloyd was a graduate of Mission High School and attended the University of San Francisco. Alice always told him, “You might have gone to college, but I was smarter because I got into Lowell.” (Lowell is the magnet school for bright public school children in San Francisco and is very difficult to get into.) Lloyd was a member of the Interfraternity Council of 1932 and was the Psi Chi house manager. Psi Chi was a primarily Jewish fraternity established in 1931 and was housed at 42 Cole Street. Psi Chi at USF now is the National Honors Society for Psychology. Lloyd would graduate from USF in 1934, but, because of the moratorium placed on yearbooks by the Archbishop from 1932-1942, what his degree was is unknown. After graduation, he got a job working for the San Francisco Newspaper Company as a bookkeeper.
In 1936, Lloyd joined Fidelity Lodge #120 of the Masons with his father. He would become the secretary for the Lodge for 1939. Throughout her early life, Alice had been a member of the Esthers, the girls part of Eastern Star to which her mother and aunt belonged. Lloyd would be a Mason and Alice a member of The Order of the Eastern Star for over 50 years.
Lloyd had grown up at 800 Dolores Street, at the corner of Dolores and 21st Street. His father had bought the lot from Joseph Coppersmith on July 10, 1909, for $10 and built three flats there. In 1937, Lloyd’s mother died and Marks signed the building over to Lloyd as a wedding present. In 2012, the triplex sold for $2.235 million.
Lloyd and Alice were married on February 5, 1938, in San Francisco. Being the daughter of a newspaperman, Alice’s engagement announcement and an article about the wedding were in the Chronicle. There was an announcement cocktail party in 1937 at the home on Funston. The wedding reception was held at El Jardin’s Restaurant on California Street, followed by a honeymoon in Palm Springs. Upon returning home, they moved into the Dolores Street flats.
In 1941, the Blooms experienced three major events. First, in February, Lloyd’s father Marks died. In the Spring, with Alice pregnant, Lloyd left SF News and went to work for Louis Cohen as the office manager at Wesco Sales Company, an auto parts distributor. Lloyd would work there for the next four years. In October, Alice gave birth to their first son whom they named Mark after his grandfather. As the sole support of the family, Mark’s birth kept Lloyd out of the draft a year later.
In 1945, their second son, Barry, was born. At about the same time, the editor of the Chronicle Bowling Column, a man named Dan Dorcey, came to Lloyd and Charlie with the idea of buying a bowling alley. The popularity of the sport was on the rise, and he thought they could capitalize. There were two places they could invest—San Carlos and Stockton. The three of them decided on Stockton. Alice was none too happy about leaving the City, but the family moved. (According to their son Barry, Alice never forgave Lloyd from dragging her away from the City.) On May 1, 1946, they opened the new, 16-lane, $250,000 El Dorado Bowl with the City Manager, Walter Hogan, rolling the first ball. No one remembers if it was a strike or a gutter ball, but the Bowl was a hit. The El Dorado was a mainstay of the community for the next 60 years. In 1956, Lloyd and Alice bought Dan Dorcey’s share of the alley. They owned and operated the bowling alley for the rest of their lives with Lloyd handing the day-to-day operations and Alice serving as an equal partner on the running of the financial side of the business. Three generations of Blooms would grow up in Stockton.
Stockton was a fairly small town surrounded by farming communities. It might have been best known at the time as the weigh station for Japanese internees in 1942 as they were shipped to camps further inland. Since 1911, it had been the home of the College of the Pacific, renamed the University of the Pacific in 1962, which was the first institution of higher learning in the Central Valley. But it had not really become a college town yet. After the War, there were major commercial and residential developments and the Blooms were on the front edge of the wave. Industrial growth accompanied this development, but Barry Bloom remembered the town as a farming community with a lot of available space for hunting and fishing on the nearby Delta.
In 1941, the Blooms experienced three major events. First, in February, Lloyd’s father Marks died. In the Spring, with Alice pregnant, Lloyd left SF News and went to work for Louis Cohen as the office manager at Wesco Sales Company, an auto parts distributor. Lloyd would work there for the next four years. In October, Alice gave birth to their first son whom they named Mark after his grandfather. As the sole support of the family, Mark’s birth kept Lloyd out of the draft a year later.
In 1945, their second son, Barry, was born. At about the same time, the editor of the Chronicle Bowling Column, a man named Dan Dorcey, came to Lloyd and Charlie with the idea of buying a bowling alley. The popularity of the sport was on the rise, and he thought they could capitalize. There were two places they could invest—San Carlos and Stockton. The three of them decided on Stockton. Alice was none too happy about leaving the City, but the family moved. (According to their son Barry, Alice never forgave Lloyd from dragging her away from the City.) On May 1, 1946, they opened the new, 16-lane, $250,000 El Dorado Bowl with the City Manager, Walter Hogan, rolling the first ball. No one remembers if it was a strike or a gutter ball, but the Bowl was a hit. The El Dorado was a mainstay of the community for the next 60 years. In 1956, Lloyd and Alice bought Dan Dorcey’s share of the alley. They owned and operated the bowling alley for the rest of their lives with Lloyd handing the day-to-day operations and Alice serving as an equal partner on the running of the financial side of the business. Three generations of Blooms would grow up in Stockton.
Stockton was a fairly small town surrounded by farming communities. It might have been best known at the time as the weigh station for Japanese internees in 1942 as they were shipped to camps further inland. Since 1911, it had been the home of the College of the Pacific, renamed the University of the Pacific in 1962, which was the first institution of higher learning in the Central Valley. But it had not really become a college town yet. After the War, there were major commercial and residential developments and the Blooms were on the front edge of the wave. Industrial growth accompanied this development, but Barry Bloom remembered the town as a farming community with a lot of available space for hunting and fishing on the nearby Delta.
Initially, the Blooms lived at 27 West Poplar in an old house from 1900 that was on the north side of town near the University of the Pacific campus. After four years, they moved to 851 East Monterey Avenue. It was a smaller house, but it was within walking distance from the bowling alley. In 1955, Charlie Fischer retired and moved to Stockton to live with the Blooms, so they bought the house at 2801 Bonnie Lane. It became the family home for the rest of their lives. The new house had been built in 1949. It had four bedrooms and 2½ baths, was 2210 square feet on a 6600 square-foot lot, and was near the college. There was a studio unit with its own bathroom for Charlie. It was in a nice suburban neighborhood that had many young families with children. Barry remembered sneaking onto the college campus to play on the football field. Over time, the neighbors grew old together, and the neighborhood became like a retirement community.
Family vacations were often spent in Tahoe with the Schneiders and the Rosens. Like Ruben and Bob, Lloyd liked to gamble. Barry remembered sitting on his lap at the slot machine and pulling the arm (back in the ‘50s, children were allowed in the casinos). Barry remembered Ruben, Bob, and Lloyd loved to shoot craps. They did not seem to overindulge financially, but they enjoyed the excitement of the game. Another form of gambling they enjoyed was “the ponies.” They all liked to spend the day at the track, betting on various races. Even Charlie liked it, but he warned young Barry, “You can win a race, but you can’t win the Races.” The house always has the advantage.
Lloyd was an excellent bowler and always did well in the annual West Coast Tournament that was held at the El Dorado. He was also a baseball and football fan. Barry, who played baseball in high school, remembered going to Giants games at both Seal Stadium and Candlestick Park.
The early ‘60s saw several changes for the Blooms. In 1960, Mark got married, and, in 1965, Barry joined the Navy. Lloyd and Alice became empty nesters. But in between, they became grandparents for the first time with the birth of Mark’s son Charlie. Their granddaughter Amy was born in 1967. They loved being grandparents and were always there for the grandkids. Alice would take care of them after school and make sure they got to doctor and dentist appointments. She and Lloyd would take them on fun trips to the City to visit the SF Zoo or the Aquarium in Golden Gate Park. Fleishhacker Pool and Playland-at-the-Beach were big hits.
Another change occurred in 1962 when Charlie Fischer passed away. There was some tension over who should inherit his share of the El Dorado. The Scheiders thought that the bowling alley should go completely to the Blooms. The estate was large enough for reallocation of other assets to make a fair distribution, but some hard feeling persisted, as often happens between siblings in this kind of situation. Everyone got over it in the long run, though.
In 1965, Alice was diagnosed with colon cancer. It was treatable, and Alice recovered to continue for 30 more years. In part, that was due to her quitting smoking, something Lloyd was not able to do. The health scare occurred while Barry was at boot camp, and they did not tell him until later because they did not want him to worry.
Alice had been a member of the Order of the Eastern Star since she was young. Part of their philosophy involved volunteering in the community, something that fit Alice’s personality well. Like her cousin Dolores at St Mary’s in San Francisco, Alice became a member of the St Joseph’s Medical Center Auxiliary in Stockton. Her job was described as being like a candy striper. She delivered newspapers and magazine and generally helped buoy patients’ spirits. She probably held babies as well, when the hospital introduced that service for improved infant health.
In 1982, Lloyd retired from the day-to-day running of the bowling alley, and he and Alice bought a mobile home. They joined a caravan of Shriners that traveled around North America. They traveled through the South, the Eastern seaboard, and up into Canada. Unfortunately, Lloyd had a stroke a few years later. Lloyd had always been a heavy smoker. Alice decided it was not safe for them to keep driving, so they sold the motorhome.
In 1988, the Blooms became great grandparents when Amy had her first son, Thomas Jacob (TJ). There would be five great grandchildren in all, but Lloyd and Alice would not meet the last two. Lloyd had developed emphysema and was on oxygen. On May 13, 1992, Lloyd had another stroke and died. He was 80 years old. His remains were cremated, and the ashes were scattered at Kirby Cove, off of the Marin headlands.
Family vacations were often spent in Tahoe with the Schneiders and the Rosens. Like Ruben and Bob, Lloyd liked to gamble. Barry remembered sitting on his lap at the slot machine and pulling the arm (back in the ‘50s, children were allowed in the casinos). Barry remembered Ruben, Bob, and Lloyd loved to shoot craps. They did not seem to overindulge financially, but they enjoyed the excitement of the game. Another form of gambling they enjoyed was “the ponies.” They all liked to spend the day at the track, betting on various races. Even Charlie liked it, but he warned young Barry, “You can win a race, but you can’t win the Races.” The house always has the advantage.
Lloyd was an excellent bowler and always did well in the annual West Coast Tournament that was held at the El Dorado. He was also a baseball and football fan. Barry, who played baseball in high school, remembered going to Giants games at both Seal Stadium and Candlestick Park.
The early ‘60s saw several changes for the Blooms. In 1960, Mark got married, and, in 1965, Barry joined the Navy. Lloyd and Alice became empty nesters. But in between, they became grandparents for the first time with the birth of Mark’s son Charlie. Their granddaughter Amy was born in 1967. They loved being grandparents and were always there for the grandkids. Alice would take care of them after school and make sure they got to doctor and dentist appointments. She and Lloyd would take them on fun trips to the City to visit the SF Zoo or the Aquarium in Golden Gate Park. Fleishhacker Pool and Playland-at-the-Beach were big hits.
Another change occurred in 1962 when Charlie Fischer passed away. There was some tension over who should inherit his share of the El Dorado. The Scheiders thought that the bowling alley should go completely to the Blooms. The estate was large enough for reallocation of other assets to make a fair distribution, but some hard feeling persisted, as often happens between siblings in this kind of situation. Everyone got over it in the long run, though.
In 1965, Alice was diagnosed with colon cancer. It was treatable, and Alice recovered to continue for 30 more years. In part, that was due to her quitting smoking, something Lloyd was not able to do. The health scare occurred while Barry was at boot camp, and they did not tell him until later because they did not want him to worry.
Alice had been a member of the Order of the Eastern Star since she was young. Part of their philosophy involved volunteering in the community, something that fit Alice’s personality well. Like her cousin Dolores at St Mary’s in San Francisco, Alice became a member of the St Joseph’s Medical Center Auxiliary in Stockton. Her job was described as being like a candy striper. She delivered newspapers and magazine and generally helped buoy patients’ spirits. She probably held babies as well, when the hospital introduced that service for improved infant health.
In 1982, Lloyd retired from the day-to-day running of the bowling alley, and he and Alice bought a mobile home. They joined a caravan of Shriners that traveled around North America. They traveled through the South, the Eastern seaboard, and up into Canada. Unfortunately, Lloyd had a stroke a few years later. Lloyd had always been a heavy smoker. Alice decided it was not safe for them to keep driving, so they sold the motorhome.
In 1988, the Blooms became great grandparents when Amy had her first son, Thomas Jacob (TJ). There would be five great grandchildren in all, but Lloyd and Alice would not meet the last two. Lloyd had developed emphysema and was on oxygen. On May 13, 1992, Lloyd had another stroke and died. He was 80 years old. His remains were cremated, and the ashes were scattered at Kirby Cove, off of the Marin headlands.
Around the same time, Alice’s cancer returned, this time as spots on her liver. The cancer traveled to her brain. Alice passed away on July 2, 1995. She was 78. After a private service at the DeYoung Memorial Chapel, her remains were cremated. Her ashes joined Lloyd’s at Kirby Cove.
Alice was a bright young girl who grew into an intelligent businesswoman. But more importantly, she became a wonderful wife, mother, and grandmother. She met her soul-mate at the age of 18 and was with him for the next sixty years. Over the 57 years of their marriage, there were rarely apart. She created a loving household that provided her sons with a solid foundation for their lives. They always knew they could count on her. She was a strong woman who gave of herself and always put other people first, whether it was volunteering at the hospital or protecting her sons from worrying about her. Though not particularly religious, her 60+ year association with Eastern Star was an anchor-point that guided her in a selfless life. She is sorely missed by those who knew her.
Alice was a bright young girl who grew into an intelligent businesswoman. But more importantly, she became a wonderful wife, mother, and grandmother. She met her soul-mate at the age of 18 and was with him for the next sixty years. Over the 57 years of their marriage, there were rarely apart. She created a loving household that provided her sons with a solid foundation for their lives. They always knew they could count on her. She was a strong woman who gave of herself and always put other people first, whether it was volunteering at the hospital or protecting her sons from worrying about her. Though not particularly religious, her 60+ year association with Eastern Star was an anchor-point that guided her in a selfless life. She is sorely missed by those who knew her.