Yelena A. Gurfinkel February 15, 1951 – November 13, 2025 Yelena Gurfinkel passed away on Thursday, November 13th, 2025 in Mayo Clinic's St. Mary's Hospital where she was receiving care for a brain tumour. She was 3 months shy of her 75th birthday. Yelena was born in Ukraine in 1951 and spent her early childhood in Kiev surrounded by the warmth and love of her grandmother. After moving to Moscow she worked for many years by her father's side at the Central Institute of Mechanical Engineering until coming to the US in 1996. She was determined to make a life for herself in a new country despite immigrating at the age of 45 with a limited grasp of language and culture, and she has done exactly that. She started at Columbia Sportswear Company rising from a data entry position to a planning analyst, carrying her talents forward to United Healthcare where she became a highly respected business analyst. A common thread can be seen throughout her entire career: she treated everyone with kindness and patience, always trying to build people up. After arrival to the US, she could openly practice Judaism which her beloved grandmother could only dream of. She embraced her Jewish faith as both a devoted student and a dedicated teacher, while always maintaining an open mind and heart to the wisdom of other religions. As dedicated as she was to her work and religious studies, she loved her family and adored her grandchildren. It is hard to find a more doting and proud mother and grandmother. She is survived by her son, Alexander (Lindsay Howell), 2 grandchildren (Peter and George) and her sister Vera in Moscow, Russia. We miss you, Baba…

A memorial service will be held 11:00 a.m. Sunday, January 4, 2026 at B'nai Israel Synagogue, 150 7th Avenue SW, Rochester, MN 55902. Please consider a donation to your local food shelf in Yelena's memory. To view the service online please click HERE