Campus mourns late Lee's Hoagies owner

Jan Zucker, 49, died of a heart attack Tuesday. He owned Lee's for 14 years. Known as a friend and father-figure to countless Penn students and alumni, Jan Zucker, the long-time owner of Lee's Hoagie House, died Tuesday at his home in Huntington Valley after suffering a heart attack. He was 49. Zucker had owned the campus staple -- located at 4034 Walnut Street -- since its opening in 1985. During his 14-year stint at the popular eatery, Zucker befriended many of his customers, several of whom maintained contact with him long after they graduated. "He loved the students. It kept him feeling young. He just loved being here," said his wife Lois, who worked "side by side" with her husband and will now serve as its sole owner. On the second floor of Lee's Hoagie House, an array of postcards from alumni and several fraternity and sorority composite photographs bear testament to the tight bond that Zucker shared with his past and present customers. "People who graduated 10 years ago would come back in and show Jan who they had married," Lois said. Several regular student customers said they will remember Zucker for his amiable personality. "I loved Jan," College sophomore Lexie Gultanoff said. "I'm in there every single day. He knew my name, he'd always give me stuff." And College junior Carin Zelkowitz added, "I'd always go in there and expect to see him, sitting there and smiling. That's what I equate with Lee's Hoagies." But Zucker will be missed by more than just students. "He was my best friend for many years. He was like a father to me. He was like a father to everyone basically," said Juan Rodriguez, the store's 40-year-old manager. And Beth Ogubunka, a Lee's employee for nine years, says she "cried all night" after hearing the news. "It was a hurtful thing," Ogubunka said. "Not only do you feel like you lost a boss, you feel like you lost a friend and a pal." According to his wife, Zucker had spent a "great day" at work Tuesday and then had a "wonderful dinner" with his 25-year-old son, Jason. Several minutes after returning home that night, Zucker suffered a massive coronary while turning on his computer. Zucker's funeral was held yesterday morning at Joseph Levine and Son's Funeral Home on Broad Street before a crowd of around 200 mourners. He was buried yesterday afternoon at the King David Cemetery. Although Zucker will no longer run the deli, his wife said Lee's Hoagie House will always be her husband's "legacy." "After his family, this business was his heart and soul. It was his baby," she said.