He was a World War II veteran who fought at the Battle of Okinawa, and when he returned to Dayton, he started Levin Service Company with his brother Sam and his twin, Lou.
Levin Service Company operated several iconic Dayton businesses, including the Dixie Drive-In, which is still operated by the company, Kon-Ike Theater on Salem Avenue, the Rhino Restaurant in downtown Dayton, Caeser Creek Flea Market and Treasure Aisles Market. The company owned more than 17 movie theaters at one point.
The brothers also ran the Levin Family Foundation, which was founded after Sam Levin died. The foundation focuses on alleviating hunger, homelessness and other basic needs in the Dayton region.
“People had a lot of legitimate respect for him, held him in high regard and he was just a sweet guy,” said Ryan Levin, owner of Levin Service Company, which expanded into land development, and a board member on the Levin Family Foundation.
Ryan Levin remembered Al Levin as someone who was concerned about the general welfare of people. He was a long-time member of the Optimist Club.
“He was a very loyal businessman,” Ryan Levin said.
Karen Levin, Al’s sister-in-law who was with him when he died, said Levin took pleasure in his work in the foundation.
“Al was one of the most kind and gentle people you will ever want to meet,” she said. “He had a very strong sense of family and community.”
Al and Lou Levin were inseparable, both Karen and Ryan Levin said.
“I mean World War II together, everything in their lives, they’ve done together,” Karen Levin said. “They called themselves womb mates.”
Karen Levin said Al Levin received his cancer diagnosis in November and due to his age, couldn’t receive treatment. At the doctor’s appointment, he sat for a minute, then told her that he’d lived a good life.
His last wish was to die peacefully in his sleep at home, which Karen Levin said he was able to do. She sat with him on Saturday as he took his last breath.
“I feel really bad because we’ve lost him, but he got his wish,” she said.
Later, she went to his apartment to get a few things for his burial.
“I walked in there and I looked at the bed because I almost expected to see him,” she said. “You can feel, you knew he had been there. But all of a sudden, there was just this sense of emptiness.”
His funeral is scheduled for today Friday, Dec. 29 at 11 a.m. at the Beth Abraham Cemetery Chapel, 1817 West Schantz Ave. At 1 p.m., the family is having a light lunch at the Levin Family Foundation office, 7812 McEwen Rd., Dayton. Any donations to be made are requested to go to the Ohio Hospice of Dayton.
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