30 YEARS OF THE MAIMONIDES SOCIETY:
Dr. Stuart Schwartz By Laura Rigge HAKOL Editor Editor’s Note: This is part of a series commemorating the 30th anniversary of the founding of the Maimonides Society. Each month, we will profile one of the founding members. Dr. Stuart Schwartz didn’t always know what he wanted to be when he grew up. He knew he didn’t want to follow in his father’s footsteps and join the retail business, and he knew he had a knack for the sciences, but he wasn’t keen on becoming a physician. But thanks to a relationship with his family’s dentist, a new path opened to him. “Unfortunately, as a kid I made many trips to the dentist,” Schwartz joked. “We were very friendly, and our relationship ultimately inspired me to pursue dentistry as a profession.” Schwartz went to dental school before eventually became an oral surgeon, a career which he enjoyed for decades before retiring eight years ago. The Maimonides Society is spe-
cial to Schwartz, and for good reason: he was the one who thought of the idea for a society of healthcare professionals. Schwartz was the president of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley when he and then-Executive Director Ivan Schonfeld created the Maimonides Society. They had just visited an exhibit called “The Precious Legacy” at the Jewish Museum in New York City. The exhibit displayed Jewish artifacts that the Nazis had stolen and later stored in Czechoslovakia. While he was touring the exhibit, Schwartz noticed that there were many pictures of members of Burial Societies that were common throughout the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe at the time. The people in these societies were community members who took care of arrangements for burials for families when a loved one passed away. Schwartz was inspired. “I thought we should have something like that in the Lehigh Valley,” he said. “But instead of helping with burial, we should help them im-
prove their health.” Schwartz pitched the idea to other physicians, and the Maimonides Society was born. The first of its kind in the country, its members served the local community by providing free medical care to those in need. Now, 30 years later, the Maimonides Society has grown and expanded to include physicians, dentists and other health care professionals across the Lehigh Valley. There are also other Maimonides Societies across the country. Schwartz is proud of the success of the Maimonides Society. He points to the campaign participation of members as an important role, stressing that the society helped medical professionals realize their role as leaders of the community. Schwartz also counted the pro-bono work many members did to help incoming immigrants from Russia as one of the finest moments of the society. But he is most proud of the visiting physician program that brings Israeli physicians to the Lehigh Valley each year to build a sense of community as well as to share medical knowledge.
In addition to his work with the Maimonides Society and Federation, Schwartz has served as a board member of the Jewish Day School of the Lehigh Valley and Congregation Keneseth Israel. He and his wife Janice spend part of the year in Emmaus and part of the year in Del Ray, Florida. Schwartz has two children, two step-children and 15 grandchildren.
Maimonides brunch tackles deployment medicine
Dr. Karen Dacey, ophthalmologist and Maimonides Society vice president.
The Maimonides Society of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley hosted a bagel brunch on Oct. 25 at the JCC featuring Dr. Karen Dacey. Dacey, an ophthalmologist, talked about her 11 years serving in the United States Air Force and the care she provided while stationed at the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Dacey is vice president of the Maimonides Society and currently practices at McDonald Ophtalmology and Associates. The Maimonides Society is composed of involved heath care professionals, physicians and dentists in the Lehigh Valley. Bagel brunches are held throughout the year as a way for members to learn from each other and network. Interested in learning more about joining the Maimonides Society? Contact the Jewish Federation at 610-821-5500 or visit www.jewishlehighvalley.org/maimonides. HAKOL LEHIGH VALLEY | DECEMBER 2015 3