A Lifelong Passion . . .
Commitment to Volunteerism
As a little girl in the 1930s, Claire Sorkow stood on the corner of Ryan and Pujo streets on Poppy Day and sold construction paper flowers for the American Legion. The Legion is a service organization composed of war veterans including Claire’s father, Col. Louis Z. Kushner, who served in both world wars. It is Sorkow’s earliest memory of volunteerism – a community service she learned from her parents. “They were very compassionate, idealistic and caring people,” Sorkow said. “During the depression, I used to think our house was marked. The homeless men who traveled on trains came to our Division Street home because we always gave them sandwiches.” Sorkow has progressed from paper poppies to serving on more than 30 boards of directors, often in elected positions or other areas of leadership. During her year as president of the Louisiana State Medical Society Alliance, she had as her theme: “Volunteerism: Looking Inward, Reaching Outward.” “That’s what volunteerism is all about,” she said. “Looking inward at ourselves and reaching outward to help others.” She has served more than 15 years on the McNeese Foundation board of directors and was elected president in November 2006. She said she has “grown as the Foundation has grown.” She has a personal fondness for the University, partly because the first student loan to be given by a McNeese fund was made in honor of her brother, Charles Kushner, who died of leukemia in 1941 at age 18. The first Charles Kushner Pre-Medicine Memorial Scholarship was awarded in 1942 according to an article in McNeese’s student newspaper, The Contraband. The Charles Kushner Pre-Medicine Student Loan Fund was created with contributions from Charles’ friends. The loans were made to underprivileged students without interest. “When Mother and Daddy started the scholarship, the cost of attending McNeese may have been several hundred dollars. Today, a couple hundred dollars may cover the cost of one book,” Sorkow said. “There was a different need in 1941, but there is still a great need for student financial aid. There will always be that need.” Claire’s family legacy at McNeese State University began with her late brother, but it didn’t end there. In 1969, her aunts established a visual arts scholarship in honor of their brother, Abraham L. Kushner, who died in 1968 at age 74. In addition to the A.L. Kushner Memorial Scholarship, the Kushner family donated more than 80 books from Abraham’s art collection to the University. A pre-medical scholarship was established in honor of Claire’s grandparents, Ezrael and Hannah Kushner. The scholarship was earmarked for McNeese seniors who had been accepted to medical school. Another scholarship in the Foundation is the Charles Kushner-Dr. Eli Sorkow Pre-Medicine Scholarship established by Claire and her husband, Eli Sorkow, M.D. “Life is worthless unless you put some value in it,” Sorkow said. “Why not do something for others, especially if you have the time? To me, volunteering is a way of life—an exciting way of life that molded my sense of commitment to humankind and who I am.” Sorkow said she “learns every day from other people” and considers herself a people person, which has helped her achieve her philanthropic visions. She said the world is composed of those who are leaders and those who want to be led, and she has learned how to work with both – an essential skill in lasting success. “The secret to leading people is to allow them to work on projects at their own pace. You give them a seed, let them plant it and watch it grow,” she said. 3