Beacon, Fall 2016

The Surprising Jewish Story of Rock & Roll’s Legendary Promoter Teaching the Teachers Mensches, Megillahs, and Movies

FALL 2016

Photo: Matthew Christopher

Contents

04 Founding (Jewish) Mother 05 Teaching the Teachers 06 Hanukkah Surprise 07 Member Memory 08 Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution

11 12 14 16 17

Calendar of Events Mensches, Megillahs, and Movies A Gala Celebration of Education Our Communities: Galveston, Texas Reflecting on Success: Annual Report

Image Above:

On July 20, the Museum hosted a meet-and-greet with OPEN for Interpretation artist-in-residence JJ Tiziou in celebration of his Faces of Migration photography installation with accompanying projections. Shown above are guests enjoying the reception and exploring the installation, which features 352 community portraits of individuals who have directly or in some generation in their families experienced migration or displacement. Learn more about OPEN for Interpretation and the Museum’s next artists-in-residence on pp. 12–13.

MISSION STATEMENT: The National Museum of American Jewish History, on historic Independence Mall in Philadelphia, presents educational programs and experiences that preserve, explore, and celebrate the history of Jews in America. Its purpose is to connect Jews more closely to their heritage and to inspire in people of all backgrounds a greater appreciation for the diversity of the American Jewish experience and the freedoms to which Americans aspire.

From the Director Justice, justice you shall pursue — DE UT E RONOMY 1 6 : 2 0

Photo by NMAJH Open for Interpretation Artist-inResidence, JJ Tiziou. As part of his residency, Tiziou took photos of staff, some of which he included in a street-level installation called “A confession & an invitation.”

I F T H E R E I S A N E N D U R I N G J E W I S H VA L U E that infuses both Jewish wisdom and American Jewish history—it may just be social justice.

So not surprisingly, social justice is a prominent theme in our Museum and permeates our core exhibition, our special exhibitions, and much of our activity.

In Judaism, the pursuit of justice is not just a good deed; it is an obligation.

At a time when many Americans (and American Jews) are acutely aware of disparities in opportunity and treatment, many are deeply invested in making our world more just, and have been from the moment our Museum’s narrative starts in 1654.

In this issue of Beacon, as in life, justice is found in unexpected places.

Bill Graham (see story pp. 8–10) is known as one of the great rock and roll impresarios in history, and he would be worthy of his fame and the exhibition that honors him for that alone. But perhaps his most significant legacy is the great benefit concerts—using the power of music to bring people together for a cause—that have now become so familiar to us.

This Beacon will be published the same month in which our country may elect its first woman president. This would hardly have been imaginable without the advent of NOW (see p. 4), founded in 1966 with many Jewish women at the helm. Like Bill Graham, Sonia Pressman Fuentes was a Holocaust refugee and a finely attuned witness to racial injustice in America.

She attributes her own game-changing activism to those experiences, and to a Jewish sense of social justice.

At last spring’s gala in New York, our induction of Julius Rosenwald into the Only in America Hall of Fame celebrated that incredible individual—and four contemporary philanthropists—who recognized the severity of educational inequity and its consequences, and who have committed themselves to leveling the playing field through deep investment in educational equality (pp. 14–15).

Our Museum inspires audiences and participants to deeply and actively engage with their history in order to dream, dare, and do more to transform their lives and the world in which we live today.

Warmly,

Ivy L. Barsky, CEO and Gwen Goodman Director P.S. W e’d love to hear your thoughts on our magazine.

Please feel free to email us at beacon@nmajh.org.

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Founding (Jewish) Mother Sonia Pressman Fuentes

Fifty Years Later, Sonia Pressman Fuentes Recalls Her Role in the Launch of NOW, the Landmark Women’s Rights Organization

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t two meetings in Washington, D.C., in June and October of 1966, 47 women and two men, intent on changing the second-class status of American women, formed a new organization called National Organization for Women (NOW). NOW became a key player in the US movement for women’s rights.

This year, NOW celebrates its 50th anniversary. A number of its founders were Jews, including Betty Friedan, author of the influential book The Feminine Mystique and NOW’s first president. Other Jewish founders included Muriel Fox, Bessie Margolin, Gene Boyer, Alice Rossi—and a 38-year-old lawyer named Sonia Pressman (now Sonia Pressman Fuentes).

“ My Jewish identity is a part of me like my hands are and like my bones are ... Whatever I do is related to my Jewish identity.”

“The EEOC was not enforcing prohibitions against sex discrimination” despite its mandate, Fuentes remembers.

Fueled by her frustration, she met with Betty Friedan and urged her to organize a movement similar to the one for civil rights. Within a year, NOW came into being.

“My work at the EEOC and being a founder of NOW are the most important things [I’ve done] in my life,” says Fuentes, now 88, adding that she has always felt deeply committed to tikkun olam (repairing the world). “My Jewish identity is a part of me like my hands are and like my bones are,” she says. “Whatever I do is related to my Jewish identity.”

—— Sonia Pressman Fuentes’s memoir, Eat First—You Don’t Know What They’ll Give You: The Adventures of an Immigrant Family and Their Feminist Daughter, is available at the Museum Store or online at judaicashop.net.

—SON IA P R E S S M AN F U E N T E S

Fuentes had been a refugee, fleeing Nazi Germany at age five with her parents and brother in 1933. She remembers being aware—though a child at the time—of the injustices of racism she observed during family car trips from New York to Florida. “I saw the segregation in the South, signs on buses, restrooms, and fountains. I saw racist headlines in newspapers. I don’t know why, maybe because I was Jewish or had a sense of justice, but I knew that was wrong.”

Although her parents were not educated, Fuentes excelled academically. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University, then graduated from law school at the University of Miami in Florida in 1957. In 1965, she became the first woman attorney in the Office of the General Counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

That agency was created to enforce Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.

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Photo: Vincent J. Grass

Sonia Pressman (today Pressman Fuentes) appears front row, third from the right, in a historic photograph taken at NOW’s October 1966 meeting. The photo is part of the Museum’s core exhibition, showing Jews’ involvement in the social justice movements of the 1960s. Courtesy of Sonia Pressman and the Jewish Women’s Archive.

Teaching the Teachers

The Museum Launches Its First National Educators’ Institute

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uly may seem like an unusual month in which to be thinking about Passover. But this summer, Liora Chessin, a teacher at N.E. Miles Jewish Day School in Birmingham, Alabama, was considering how she would use the history of the 1969 Freedom Seder to inspire her students this year.

The Freedom Seder intertwined the Exodus story of the Jews’ struggle for liberation with the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Chessin was reminded of the event when she viewed the Hagaddah used at that Seder (which is displayed on the Museum’s second floor). She commented, “I’m always looking for great primary sources to help make Jewish history relevant and help me teach American history through a Jewish lens.”

Chessin attended the Museum’s first National Educators’ Institute, “The Art and Science of Teaching Jewish History in America,” with 23 other secondary-level Jewish day school educators. She and her peers participated in presentations, tours, and discussions led by historians, Museum curators, and educators. “Teachers are always seeking additional materials, curricula, and objects to enliven their teaching,” observes Jonathan Krasner, PhD, presenter and associate professor at Brandeis University. “We are trying to provide those tools.”

The Institute’s goal is to energize educators and provide them with practical guidelines. “The Museum is an educational enterprise,” notes Ben Jacobs, PhD, a co-director of the Institute and visiting scholar at George Washington University.

“The team is striving to bring the collection to students across the country who might not be able to interact with its resources otherwise.”

For example, Sara Coxe, PhD, who teaches at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Maryland, is excited to introduce students to their state’s early 19th-century “Jew Bill,” which allowed Jews to hold public office in Maryland, as a way to discuss religious freedom and teach the difference between federal and states’ rights. “It’s a great resource, and so relevant as they develop their American Jewish identities,” remarks Dr. Coxe.

Teaching American Jewish history is to teach Jewish children “their story … and invest in the future,” says Dr. Krasner.

Laurie Austen, who teaches at Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School in Baltimore, Maryland, believes that what she discovered at the Institute could help her “strengthen students’ identity as American Jews.”

“I learned so much,” Austen adds. “It’s been enriching intellectually, but also very practical.”

—— To learn more about the Museum’s professional development for educators, contact Ronit Lusky, manager of education programs, at 215.923.3811 x140 or rlusky@nmajh.org, or visit NMAJH.org/educators.

Leadership funding for the National Educators’ Institute is provided by an anonymous foundation. Major supporters include: Lynne and Len Barrack, the Solomon & Sylvia Bronstein Foundation, Robin and Bradford Klatt, and the Lucius N. Littauer Foundation.

Above: Associate Professor at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Reena Sigman discusses what makes the American Jewish experience unique with a group of teachers at one of the many breakout sessions.

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A Hanukkah Heirloom This Artifact Was Not What It Originally Seemed

By Claire Pingel, Chief Registrar and Associate Curator

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clearly remember one moment from our 1996 artifact inventory. I pulled a box from a shelf and started unwrapping tissue-covered silver things. On a legal pad, I noted an object’s identification number—1981.1.1a—and described it as a toy couch. When I unwrapped the next thing (it was 1981.1.1b), I was puzzled. The curators explained that this was no fancy toy, but a pocket-sized Hanukkah lamp with a removable oil tray. I was enchanted.

In 1981, the donor, Isabel Mendes Goodman Greenwald, told us about her Spanish ancestors, who hid their Jewish identity during the Inquisition. They moved to Portugal, then Amsterdam and Curaçao. She came from a prestigious line of rabbis, merchants, even a Revolutionary War soldier. Each generation was on the move, and many crossed the Atlantic multiple times.

A compact lamp like this would have been perfect for observing Hanukkah on the road or even shipboard. Turn the couch upside down, unlatch a hinged panel, and remove the tray. Lock the hinged panel in place by twisting two little circles. Insert the tray’s little pegs into tubes on the hinged panel, and voilá.

I never spoke with Mrs. Greenwald—she passed away before I arrived at the Museum—but I imagine that she heard family stories from her mother, Vera de Sola Mendes, daughter of Isabel Cohen of London and Jamaican-born

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Reverend Frederick de Sola Mendes. He was the son of London-born Eliza de Sola and another Jamaican native, Abraham Pereira Mendes, a merchant who served as a minister in various congregations in the Caribbean and the US. The stories we inherit are important, and we often attach those stories to objects. They help us to remember, and they comfort us when our loved ones pass on. Isn’t it nice to imagine a young family, on its way to start a new life in the New World? I imagine this: the ship glides across the waves.

Faces lit by glowing wicks, they pray together, commemorating a long-ago miracle shared by countless generations.

—— Please visit our Pinterest page at Pinterest.com/NMAJH to see additional interesting Hanukkah lamps.

Above and below: Hanukkah lamp, chased and embossed silver.

S TA FF

Member Memory

Lawrence and Suzanne Fishman 1654 Society Members

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awrence and Suzanne Fishman’s first encounter with the Museum was at a family reunion in 2011. The building had opened just a few months earlier, and the Fishmans had come from Miami for the event. Twenty-five family members spent an afternoon visiting the exhibitions.

“We were so impressed,” recalls Larry, a retired physician.

“It’s such a beautiful building,” and “such an important concept—the telling of the history of Jews in America.” As a result of that visit, the Fishmans’ son and daughter-in-law decided to celebrate their son’s bar mitzvah there.

Honoring their grandson with family and friends at the Museum proved a unique and stirring experience for Larry and Sue. “Guests had the opportunity to enjoy the exhibits,” recalls Sue, a former teacher. “What a perfect [venue] for a bar mitzvah,” says Larry, adding that the lighting and the view of Philadelphia from the fifth floor were spectacular.

Five years later, the Fishmans continue to support the Museum as members of the 1654 Society. Larry says he is particularly moved by the objects from the early part of the American Jewish experience, especially George Washington’s letter to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island. “It’s a remarkably clear statement, written before the Constitution and Bill of Rights were ratified, promising the ‘Children of Abraham’ not just tolerance, but a government that had no place for bigotry or persecution.”

Supporting the Museum is one of many ways in which the Fishmans, who recently celebrated their 60th anniversary, express their gratitude. “We have spent the last decade trying to give back,” says Sue. “We recognize our good fortune as Americans and believe strongly in tikkun olam,” says Larry. “We hope our children will value and continue that tradition.”

—— The 1654 Society is a leadership annual giving group for individuals and families who agree to make a four-year pledge to the Museum of $1,800 or more per year. For more information on the Society and its benefits, please visit NMAJH.org/1654Society.

For more information on rentals at the Museum, contact Ellen Weiss, events manager, at 215.923.3811 x143 or eweiss@nmajh.org.

Have your own Member Memory to share? Tell us, in 150 words or less, about your meaningful moment at the Museum. Email it to beacon@nmajh.org.

Above: Family and friends dance at the bar mitzvah of the Fishmans’ grandson Nicolas, held at the Museum in 2011.

P R O FILE

Megan Helzner

Associate Director of Development, Annual and Corporate Giving Megan stands below a photograph o f he r gr an d f ath er Mor r y, grandmother Isabel, and her father Steve, and beside a photograph of her mother Paula. Morry directed Philadelphia’s Workmen’s Circle Chorus: “He was committed to the preservation of Yiddish music and culture,”says Megan. Likewise, as Associate Director of Development, Photo: Ilana Blumenthal Megan’s job is to help preserve and connect people to the history of Jews in America.

These photos are among many of American Jews from the second half of the 20th century’s New Faces, New Voices installation on the second floor. (To hear Megan discuss one of the photos, please visit NMAJH.org/staffvlogs/ megan.)

Laying the foundation: Megan began working at the

Museum eight years ago, before it opened at its current site. She has been part of the membership team since 2013, and was instrumental in building the Museum’s group sales operation and its Young Friends group, and in formalizing its development systems.

Extended NMAJH family: “I really value our volunteers,

donors, and members; they are kind, intelligent role models and friends.” Megan enjoys chatting with volunteers when she stops by the coat check, catching up with docents in the café, and receiving emails from members.

Best part of the job: “Bringing our collections and programs into our member and donor communications.

More than half of our members live outside Philadelphia.

Many say they have never visited, so we must bring the Museum’s stories to their doors and inboxes.”

Seeking stories abroad: While she has explored Jewishthemed museums and sites in Argentina, Italy, and Hungary, she feels privileged to work at the only museum that tells the story of Jewish life here.

Food for thought: Megan got a taste of the slow food

movement, which is committed to good, clean, and fair food, while studying in Italy as an undergraduate. Later, she served three years on Slow Food Philadelphia’s steering committee.

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A NEW EXHIBITION EXPLORES HOW ROCK MUSIC—AND A REFUGEE FROM NAZI GERMANY— AFFECTED A M E R I C A N C U LT U R E 8

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ince mid-September, the Museum has been filled with the rhythms of rock and roll. Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution presents sights—a psychedelic light show, memorable photos, groovy posters—and sounds—concert recordings and interviews with musical icons—from the rock music scene of the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s. Visitors will discover Carlos Santana’s and Jerry Garcia’s guitars, Janis Joplin’s feather boa and tambourine, notable items from the Rolling Stones and the Who; and artifacts from seminal benefit concerts, including Live Aid and Human Rights Now!

On view through January 16, Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution explores the outsize effect rock has had on American culture. The exhibition also tells the story of a music impresario whose influence was surprisingly far-reaching.

“Bill Graham was my hero,” says Pierre Robert, long-time disc jockey at Philadelphia rock station 93.3 WMMR. “He was one of the most colorful people in entertainment, and the greatest concert promoter of all time. I am so excited about this exhibition.”

Graham towered over the rock scene for more than 25 years. But few people knew his astonishing personal story: he arrived in the US in 1941, unaccompanied, as a child refugee from Nazi Germany. “His is undeniably an ‘only in America’ story,” says Josh Perelman, PhD, the Museum’s chief curator and director of exhibitions and collections.

“Bill Graham arrived in America under the worst of circumstances, and through perseverance and his embrace of this country and all it stands for, he helped to define rock and roll in ways that are still relevant today.”

Graham was born Wolodia Grajonca in 1931 to Russian Jewish parents who had immigrated to Berlin in search of a better life. His father died shortly after his birth. When the Nazis rose to power in Germany, Bill’s mother sent him to live in a kinderheim (children’s home) in the hope of keeping him safe. After Kristallnacht, she put her only son on a children’s transport to France where he would live with other refugee children for the next two years. She later died on a train to Auschwitz where one of Bill’s five sisters also perished.

After Paris fell to the Nazis in 1940, an International Red Cross worker led Graham and other Jewish orphans to Lisbon, Portugal, where they boarded an ocean liner

bound for New York. Malnourished and weighing only fiftyfive pounds, 10-year-old Bill endured an agonizing nine-week wait before foster parents Pearl and Alfred Ehrenreich took him into their Bronx home.

The exhibition includes photos of Graham working in the Catskills as a young man and serving in the US armed forces in Korea. When he moved to California in the early 1960s, he discovered his calling in the entertainment world.

He promoted his first concert in 1965, at age 34, and soon was presenting concerts by iconic bands such as the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Santana, and the Rolling Stones.

Top left: Bill Graham, at a family barbecue, Butano Canyon, Northern California, 1972.

Photo © Graham Nash 1972.

Above: Fender Stratocaster fragment smashed by Jimi Hendrix at Royal Albert Hall, London, February 24, 1969.

Opposite page: The Grajonca family. Berlin, ca. 1938. Gelatin silver print. Collection of David and Alex Graham. Evelyn, Sonja, and Ester stand beside Frieda. Eleven-year-old Tolla and eight-year-old Bill stand before her.

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Graham did not consider himself observant, but he expressed Jewish values in many ways. During Hanukkah 1975, he donated a 25-foot-tall menorah to Chabad. It is still lit each year in San Francisco’s Union Square. In 1985, Graham vigorously protested President Ronald Reagan’s visit to a military cemetery near Bitburg, Germany, where members of the Nazi Waffen-SS were buried. It is believed that Graham’s political activism led to a firebombing of his office, which caused significant damage, including to a scale model of the aforementioned menorah.

Graham’s commitment to social justice and free speech was seen most clearly, perhaps, in his central role in numerous benefit concerts.

Known as a tough businessman, Graham was always focused on providing the audience with a great experience. Pierre Robert recalls one noteworthy concert—the Band’s final show, “The Last Waltz,” which was filmed by Martin Scorsese at Graham’s Winterland Ballroom. The concert ended early the following morning. “Bill served breakfast to an audience of 7,000 people,” he remarks. There was also the iconic barrel of free apples that Graham used to offer to those entering his Fillmore Auditorium. In his autobiography, Bill Graham Presents: My Life Inside Rock and Out, Graham wrote “I was always looking for ways to make the place more haimish [homey] . . . the apples made it softer for people to come in.”

Graham died in a helicopter accident in 1991, returning home from a concert. The next year, he was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, joining the Grateful Dead and the Rolling Stones, whose success—among many, many others—he had helped to promote.

In the words of Peter Coyote, whose early acting career Graham helped to cultivate, “Bill Graham was a mensch.”

Top Right: Scale model of the Bill Graham Menorah in Union Square, burned in office firebombing, San Francisco, 1985. Collection of David and Alex Graham.

Left: To promote the Bill Graham exhibition, the Museum purchased a 1979 VW Bus and lovingly named it Steely Van. Together with the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the Museum held a community-wide paint day to cover Steely in the names of bands that Bill Graham promoted.

Photo: Ilana Blumenthal

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Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution is organized by the Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, in association with the Bill Graham Memorial Foundation, and made possible by the support of Alex Graham, David Graham, and Danny Scher.

WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE MUSEUM • LATE FALL/WINTER

Calendar of Events Museum members enjoy a first look at Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution on September 14.

November

The Gershman Y’s Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival

Wednesday, November 9 • At the Museum Documentaries throughout the day about Jerry Lewis, Eva Hesse, and Jan Karski.

Details and tickets at PJFF.org.

First Person Arts Festival

At the Museum • Thursday, November 10 7:30 pm Jennifer Teege reads from her internationally bestselling memoir, My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me. Tickets at firstpersonarts.org.

Rock Docs with World Cafe Live and WXPN

At the Museum • 6 pm Pre-party, 7 pm Film $15 General Admission

Wednesday, November 30 The Last Waltz

Thursday, December 8 Monterey Pop

Curated by longtime Inquirer film critic, Carrie Rickey.

December

Docent/Members Book Club with author Corinne Joy Brown, Hidden Star (2016)

December 1 • 2 – 3:30 pm

Free for Volunteers and Members.

Rock and Roll Student Band Showcase

December 13 • 6 – 9 pm

Performances by Philadelphia public school rock bands.

OPEN for Interpretation: The (Whole) Cinemagillah Film Premiere

Wednesday, December 14 • 7 pm

February

Film: Persona Non Grata

$10/Free for Members Join NMAJH artists-in-residence Tiffany Shlain and Ken Goldberg as they premiere their new short film.

NMAJH.org/OPEN for details.

Sunday, February 12 • 2 pm

Cocktails and Candles

Presented with the Philadelphia Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League and the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival.

Thursday, December 22 • 7 – 10 pm

$35/$25 for Young Friends Members Join the Young Friends of NMAJH for a pre-Hanukkah celebration full of lights, latkes, and libations!

Sunday, December 25 • 10 am – 5 pm

Details and tickets at NMAJH.org/Dec25.

Sponsored by the Robert Saligman Jewish Heritage Fund.

January

Martha “Bill Graham” Cracker Cabaret

Saturday, January 14 • 7 and 10 pm

$30/$24 Members A Bill Graham era inspired rock & roll cabaret from ageless diva Martha Graham Cracker (no relation).

Martin Luther King Day

Monday, January 16

Free Honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a day filled with family-friendly activities.

$10/Free for NMAJH and JACL Members The little-known story of the only Japanese Righteous Among the Nations, Chiune Sugihara (Japan, 2015, 139 min.)

Presidents Day

Monday, February 20

Free Join us for a special Family Day honoring our nation’s first president.

In partnership with JCHAI Sensory Friendly programs for visitors with special needs.

Seinfeldia

Wednesday, February 22 • 7 pm

$8/Free for Members With Jennifer Armstrong, author of the New York Times bestseller, Seinfeldia: How a Show About Nothing Changed Everything.

Sponsored by the Jewish Book Council.

Members’ Trip to see An Evening with Groucho

Monday, February 27 • Walnut Street Theatre $40

Second Sundays

November 13, December 11, January 8, and February 12

Free with Museum admission.

See NMAJH.org/kids_and_families for more details.

All programs labeled with this apple are being held in conjunction with Bill Graham and the Rock & Roll Revolution. Graham was known for having a barrel of free apples for concertgoers positioned near the entrance to the Fillmore in San Francisco.

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Photo: Jerod Harris

Mensches, Megillahs, and Movies

Artists-in-Residence Tiffany Shlain and Ken Goldberg Mash Up Scrolls and Reels

“I

love the word ‘mensch!’” exclaims Tiffany Shlain at the beginning of her 10-minute mini-movie, The Making of a Mensch. “As the world is becoming more and more 24/7—more distractions, more forces coming at us trying to influence us—we need more mensches,” says the Emmynominated filmmaker.

The Making of a Mensch explores traditional Jewish values by juxtaposing funny images with provocative questions. It premiered as part of Character Day, an annual international program of films, resources, and conversation Shlain directs from her film studio in San Francisco. The Museum offered a screening of the film this September in honor of the third Character Day. Shlain’s collaborator and husband is Ken Goldberg, PhD, artist and robotics professor at University of California, Berkeley. “Connecting and engaging people using new technologies is at the core of our philosophy,” explains Goldberg.

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The two are exploring a filmmaking process they call “cloud filmmaking”—involving the public in the creation of film projects via the Internet and social media.

Shlain and Goldberg are the fourth artists-in-residence at the Museum. “We were intrigued that many of their previous films have explored contemporary issues through a Jewish lens,” says Emily August, who oversees the Museum’s artist-in-residency program, OPEN for Interpretation. “Those are the kinds of connections we strive to create in the Museum.

We’re excited by the potential of this project to engage a global audience in a virtual conversation inspired by Museum content in a uniquely ‘Tiffany and Ken’ way.”

Above: Tiffany Shlain TEDMED 2014’s “Human Nature Inside and Out” session.

Opposite page: Visitors enjoying the Museum’s Entertainment Theatre.

The Whole Cinemagillah As part of their residency, Shlain and Goldberg will create an original short film dubbed The (Whole) Cinemagillah. This portmanteau combines cinema (“a sequence of images wound onto a reel and unwound to tell a story”) and the Hebrew word megillah (“a sequence of words wound onto a scroll and unwound to tell a story”).

“ Film shapes much of our sense of history …

It’s such a powerful influence on what we remember—the poignant and juicy stuff.”

— T IFFAN Y S HLA I N

The partners created and aired an online video announcement over the summer inviting people to participate in the project by sharing their favorite Jewish moments from TV and film. They will edit all the clips together to visually convey impressions of the American Jewish experience in a short film.

The submissions, along with the Museum’s stories and films about early Hollywood, will inspire The (Whole) Cinemagillah, which will premiere at the Museum on December 14 with the creators in attendance.

“Film shapes much of our sense of history,” says Shlain.

“It’s such a powerful influence on what we remember—the poignant and juicy stuff.”

—— To learn more about the project and how to participate, and to reserve your spot for the premiere, visit NMAJH.org/OPEN.

for What?

WHY DOES A JEWISH HISTORY MUSEUM HAVE AN ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM?

Over the past four years, the National Museum of American Jewish History has hosted four artists-in-residence. The program—OPEN for Interpretation—is a prime example of the Museum’s creative approach to bringing history to life.

The goal of OPEN, says Emily August, director of the Museum’s public programs, is to “welcome creative thinkers across genres to inspire new connections for visitors with the stories we tell here of imagination, struggle, and heritage. OPEN artists urge visitors to think about the past, present, and future through artists’ lenses as they encounter history in a unique way.”

“History museums are challenged with presenting history as a living, breathing part of our life experience in a way that resonates with different kinds of people,” says Deborah Schwartz, president of the Brooklyn Historical Society and an OPEN advisory committee member. “This kind of program—that aims to be provocative and energizing—is so valuable. One of the exciting things about bringing artists who are risk takers into the loop is that they see the world with a different point of view.”

Three OPEN programs have already concluded: • Earlier this year, artist JJ Tiziou produced an immersive visitor experience that included his own photographs, portraits he took of community members at the Museum and throughout Philadelphia, and letters written by himself and other visitors, complementing the Museum’s narratives of immigration, education, freedom, and identity.

• In 2014, artists-in-residence Dito van Reigersberg (aka Martha Graham Cracker) and Andrew Nelson produced a cabaret and audio experience inspired by unexpected stories told in the Museum.

• In the program’s inaugural year of 2013, Keir Johnston and Ernel Martinez created a textile-based installation inspired by the Museum’s themes of labor and struggle.

“The Museum has done a wonderful job of finding artists who love the idea of responding to history and who engage people in unexpected ways,” notes Schwartz.

The Museum is looking forward to continued success, says August.

“We’ve learned so much with each artist. We hope the program will continue to help visitors make unexpected connections between their own lives and the stories we tell every day.”

Photo: Ilana Blumenthal

For a sample of previous OPEN artists’ work at the Museum, please visit NMAJH.org/OPEN.

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Photo: Sean Zanni

A Gala Celebration of Education

The Museum Honors Philanthropists’ Commitment to Learning, and Commemorates an Extraordinary Relationship

Senator Cory A. Booker inducts Julius Rosenwald into the Only in America® Gallery/Hall of Fame.

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bright spotlight shone on education at the Museum’s 2016 gala this June 1. Three hundred guests came to New York City’s Gotham Hall to honor five Jewish philanthropists who made advancing learning the centerpiece of their charitable work.

Four of the philanthropists were present: media executive Sherry Lansing; retired ARAMARK chairman Joseph Neubauer; Rose Associates chairman Daniel Rose; and George Weiss, CEO of Weiss Multi-Strategy Advisors. Each has devoted enormous energy to improving educational opportunity in the United States (see sidebar, “The Honorees”).

Photo: Sean Zanni Photo: Patrick McMullan

Top: Descendants of Julius Rosenwald Only in America® inductee with documentary filmmaker Aviva Kempner and historian, author, and New York University professor Hasia Diner at Gotham Hall, NY. Bottom: Sidney Kimmel, Dr. Robert Zimmer, Sherry Lansing, Joe Neubauer, Dan Rose, George Weiss, Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and Nekia Rosado.

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The fifth philanthropist was a historic figure whose remarkable work was celebrated in a recent documentary film: Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears, Roebuck and Co. in the early 1900s. During a time of racial segregation in public services, employment, and education, Rosenwald helped to fund and build thousands of schools for African American children across 11 southern states.

To honor Rosenwald’s astonishing achievements, the Museum chose him to be the 19th member of its Only in America® Gallery/Hall of Fame. A number of Rosenwald’s descendants were present, including his grandson and biographer, Peter Ascoli. Rosenwald’s induction marked the first addition to the Hall of Fame since the Museum’s opening six years ago.

“It was such an inspiring evening, being among present-day philanthropists who are truly carrying on Rosenwald’s legacy,” notes Ivy Barsky, the Museum’s CEO and Gwen Goodman Director. “We raised nearly $1.5 million to support the work we do every day to present educational experiences that honor the history of Jews in America—and the freedoms and opportunities to which we all aspire.”

Celebrating Meaningful Bonds The evening was a powerful reminder of the historic relationship between American Jews and African Americans.

Rosenwald’s friendship with Up From Slavery author Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute, was a notable example.

“Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington began a relationship that ultimately led to more than 5,000 Rosenwald schools being built [and] over 300 teachers’ homes being built . . . throughout the south,” Dr. Brian L. Johnson, president of Tuskegee University, told attendees.

Other speakers provided vivid evidence that those connections continue today. For example, astrophysicist and author Neal deGrasse Tyson celebrated the Jewish and African American commitment to justice during his introduction of honoree Daniel Rose: “There’s a shared destiny . . . of being rejected by an establishment, and that brings you together to try to solve problems.”

Happenings at NMAJH The speaker who outlined Rosenwald’s story gave a stirring address rich with references to his own rabbinical teachers, and to Pirkei Avot (the Wisdom of the Fathers), tzedakah (charity), and chesed (loving-kindness). He marveled at Moses’s fierceness at Sinai and quoted a passage from Exodus in Hebrew.

That speaker—US senator Cory A. Booker—expressed his pride in being the fourth elected African American in the US Senate, and in the “American spirit” and “Jewish ideals” that helped him achieve that position. Booker concluded his talk by saying, “I am so proud to stand here today to officially induct Julius Rosenwald into the National Museum of American Jewish History’s Only in America® Gallery/Hall of Fame.”(To watch a video of Senator Booker’s remarks, please visit NMAJH.org/nycgala.)

Right: Caroline and Sidney Kimmel at Gala.

Photo: Ilana Blumenthal

Left: Sarena Snider at Gala.

NMAJH Young Friends Ari Sliffman, Alexis Gross, Emily Seckel, Dahlia Silberg, and Drew Rifkin at the 4th Annual Midsummers Eve: Celebrating Life, Love, and Tu B’Av.

Silvia Fein celebrates her 100th birthday with her sister, former Museum docent Sarah Goldberg, and 37 other family members.

THE HONOREES

FOUNDER OF ENCORPS TEACHERS PROGRAM AND PRIMETIME LAUSD

“ My mother escaped Nazi Germany when she was just 17 . . . and built a new life.

[She] instilled in me a strong sense of . . . Jewish values [and] always valued education.”

Photo: Ilana Blumenthal

SHERRY LANSING

Photo: Ilana Blumenthal

The Museum’s second annual Only in America Gala honored modern-day American Jewish philanthropists whose commitment to education echoes Julius Rosenwald’s. The honorees and excerpts of their remarks are listed below:

Left: During a recent visit to the Museum Cody Pomeranz holds up the sign he donated when the Defense of Marriage Act was overturned.

Right: Father and daughter enjoy July 4th at NMAJH.

JOSEPH NEUBAUER CHAIRMAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO BOARD OF TRUSTEES

“ America is the best integrator of immigrants, and I have been the beneficiary of American integration. The welcome I received, the people who helped me, the opportunities I enjoyed are what motivates most of my philanthropy.”

DANIEL ROSE “ I am proud to be part of such a philanthropic tradition . . . that was articulated by Hillel when he said, “If I am not for myself, then who will be for me? And if I am only for myself, then what am I? And if not now, when?”

GEORGE WEISS CHAIRMAN OF SAY YES TO EDUCATION

“ You have to give hope. [The colleges that partner with us] offer kids free tuition; that expands their horizons. Julius Rosenwald has shown us the light.”

Photo: Dajana Denes-Walters

FOUNDER OF THE HARLEM EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES FUND

Journalist, LGBT advocate, and Philadelphia Gay News founder Mark Segal discusses his recent memoir at the June 15 Café Conversation.

FALL 2016

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OUR COMMUNITIES

Galveston, Texas A Proud Port Steeped in American Jewish History

A

sk Harris “Shrub” Kempner what makes his home of Galveston, Texas, distinctive, and he will reply, “Galveston welcomed, and welcomes, people who are different— including Jews. That’s one reason why I’ve chosen to stay,” says Kempner, founder and president of Kempner Capital Management, who was educated at Harvard and Stanford Universities.

Galveston most memorably extended its hospitality more than 100 years ago, during the period of mass immigration to the United States. At the time, the majority of Jewish immigrants from Europe arrived in New York and other eastern cities. But thanks to a program called “The Galveston Movement,” led by Jewish investment banker Jacob Schiff, 10,000 European Jewish immigrants were directed to this island city between 1907 and 1915. The movement is featured on the Museum’s third floor, which chronicles the mass migration of the late 19th and early 20th centuries; one of many objects displayed is a letter to Schiff from a factory owner in Georgia requesting Russian Jewish workers.

The Galveston Movement’s goal was to reduce the concentration of Jews in eastern US cities and establish new Jewish communities across the West. Instrumental in the effort was Reform Rabbi Henry Cohen of Congregation B’nai Israel (CBI)—“a very short force of nature who smelled of tobacco and holiness,” says Kempner.

The Kempner family worked with Rabbi Cohen to enlist financial support for newly immigrated Jews.

“It was a big-time mitzvah—helping to mobilize the community,” says Kempner.

A small number of Jews had lived in Galveston since the early 1800s. The Kempner clan arrived in the 1870s, when Harris Kempner, Kempner’s great grandfather, a devout Jew who had left Eastern Europe for New York in 1854, settled in Galveston with his wife Eliza. Jewish life at the time centered around two synagogues, and men’s and women’s groups.

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Above: First Jewish immigrants to Galveston, 1907, University of Texas, Institute of Texas Cultures at San Antonio.

Left: Shrub and wife Peaches Kempner.

“Galveston was where the action was; the city was one of the wealthiest in the country,” Kempner notes. There, according to Shrub, money from Europe and the American Northeast converged with commodities—cattle, cotton, timber, and oil, for example—of the hinterlands.

While early 1900s Galveston was not immune from anti-Semitism, the devastating hurricane of September 8, 1900, marked a turning point, ushering in, as Kempner understands it, the tolerance Galveston celebrates today. His grandfather, Isaac Herbert Kempner, the city’s commissioner of finance, told his grandson, “We didn’t have time for differences that had existed before.” Kempner adds, “Those who remained to rebuild, people of all walks of life, had a lot of work to do.”

Today, Galveston is home to two synagogues, Congregation Beth Jacob and Congregation B’nai Israel, where Kempner teaches religious school. While he is not observant, he believes in the perseverance of the Jewish people. “Being Jewish is a peoplehood matter,” says Kempner. “My pride in what a tiny minority has contributed worldwide is very strong.”

—— This article is part of a series that highlights American Jewish communities, both then and now, across the country.

REFLECTING on SUCCESS

A N N UA L R E P O R T • F I S CA L Y E A R 2 0 1 6 ( J U LY 1 , 2 0 1 5 T H R O U G H J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6 )

E

ach year, the Museum welcomes visitors from across the world. This year brought us individual visitors, families, and groups from as far as Australia, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, Russia, Spain, Switzerland,Taipei, and the UK.

60

Nearly 60 college, graduate school, and recent graduate interns brought their fresh perspectives to summer, fall, and spring internship positions at the Museum. “ Far from my real home and family, the Museum became my new home and the NMAJH team my new family.

The NMAJH internship program presents opportunities for education, connection, and enrichment to students from around the world.”

—Hadassa Schrijver, Reinwardt Academy (Amsterdam), Fall 2015 “ … thank you for taking me under your wing and giving me the chance to learn.”

—Deepika Satyadev, Drexel University, Fall 2015 - Spring 2016 “ I got a good picture of how I might apply my interests in art and history to a museum career …”

—Jeremy Wolin, Brown/RISD, Summer 2016

Last year, the Museum served nearly

11,700 students

representing an almost 21% increase from the previous year.

1,000 donors

Nearly from across the country made their first gift to NMAJH in FY16.

2,600 students participated in the

Becoming American: Traveling Suitcase program in their classrooms.

has traveled across the country to six different cities. Nearly 50,000 individuals have seen this home run of an exhibition this past year!

100

programs

MORE THAN

100 Events Various corporations, nonprofit groups, colleges and universities, and families utilized the Museum as a venue for their special events. More than 100 events took place including 31 weddings and 5 bar and bat mitzvahs. Mazel tov to all who celebrated a special lifecycle event here!

The Museum presented nearly 100 programs including lectures, film screenings, family days, book club meetings, Young Friends events, comedy and theater programs, sensory friendly activities, and more.

FALL 2016

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REFLECTING on SUCCESS

A N N UA L R E P O R T • F I S CA L Y E A R 2 0 1 6 ( J U LY 1 , 2 0 1 5 T H R O U G H J U N E 3 0 , 2 0 1 6 )

60%

MANY THANKS TO OUR GENEROUS DONORS

P LED G ES A N D CA S H G I F T S M A D E I N F I S CA L Y E A R 2016 ( J U LY 1, 2015 T H RO U G H J U N E 30, 2016 )

of the Museum’s members live outside of a 50-mile radius of the Museum. Our member retention rate is 90%, which is 50% higher than the industry average.

THE MUSEUM PRESENT ED

3 Special Exhibitions

on topics as diverse as children’s books, LGBT history, and agriculture.

On July 4, 2015, the Museum welcomed more than

2,000 visitors

to celebrate Independence Day.

$100,000 to $1,000,000+ Howard B. Bernick Faye and Gerson Blatnick Public Programming Fund via Beth-Ann Blatnick Deborah and Craig Cogut Sandy and Steve Cozen Betsy and Philip Darivoff Mindy and Andy Heyer The Eleanor M. and Herbert D. Katz Family Foundation, Inc. Sidney Kimmel Foundation The Lauder Foundation Leonard and Judy Lauder Fund Bennett S. LeBow Samuel P. Mandell Foundation John P. and Anne Welsh McNulty Foundation Hilarie and Mitchell Morgan The Neubauer Family Foundation Lyn M. Ross Robert Saligman Charitable Foundation Diane and Marc Spilker TD Bank Charitable Foundation Tisch Foundation, Inc. Joan H. and Preston R. Tisch Fund Leesa and Leon Wagner Weiss Family Foundation Marian and Norman Wolgin

$50,000 to $99,999

18,000 children, teens, and adults experienced the Museum

Nearly

thanks to special access initiatives including the ACCESS, STAMP, Blue Star Museums, and Art Reach programs; through free admission days, pay-what-

Richard A. and Susan P. Friedman Family Foundation Hess Foundation, Inc. Jane and Daniel Och Family Foundation Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission Marcia and Ron Rubin

you-wish evenings, the Free February program, free

$25,000 to $49,999

access to the Only In America® Gallery and first

Anonymous Arete Foundation Susanna Lachs Adler and Dean Adler University of Chicago Robert J. Zimmer, President Comcast Corporation The Connelly Foundation Pamela and Alec Ellison Goldman, Sachs & Co.

floor; and through underwriting thanks to generous donors who support our education program.

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Deanne and Arnold Kaplan Foundation The David and Sondra Mack Foundation Inc. National Endowment for the Humanities Howard and Geraldine Polinger Family Foundation Lisa Popowich and Jonathan Stein Daniel and Joanna S. Rose The Edward John and Patricia Rosenwald Foundation Rebecca and Daniel Shapiro The Snider Foundation The Wilf Family Lisa and Richard Witten Renée and Joseph Zuritsky

$10,000 to $24,999 Madlyn and Leonard Abramson Tracy and Dennis Albers Bank of America Anonymous Barrack Foundation Ivy L. Barsky and Randall Freed Stuart and Marcella Bernstein Harold & Renee Berger Foundation Blank Rome LLP Don and Linda Brodie Lois and Julian Brodsky Solomon & Sylvia Bronstein Foundation Canada Dry Charina Endowment Fund, Inc. Christie’s D. Walter Cohen and Claire J. Reichlin Robert Lloyd Corkin Charitable Foundation The Cozen O’Connor Foundation, Inc. Judith Creed and Robert Schwartz Roberta and Carl Dranoff Alicia Felton and Sherrill Neff Sheila and Milton Fine Suzanne and Lawrence Fishman Ann and Robert Fromer Julie Goldman and Alan Hoffman Liz and Matthew Kamens The Sylvia Kellem Memorial Fund

The Kestenbaum Family Foundation The Lazarus Charitable Trust Cheryl and Philip L. Milstein MKM Holdings, LLC Morris Morgenstern Foundation Offit Capital Origlio Beverage Ellen and Mark Oster University of Pennsylvania Penn Medicine Daniel Promislo Kathy Fields-Rayant and Garry A. Rayant Barbara Spiro Ryan and Robert Ryan Savitz Family Foundation Susan and Clifford Schlesinger Seed the Dream Foundation Tracey and Shanin Specter The Tobin Family Foundation Robbi and Bruce Toll Universal Health Services, Inc. Roy J. Zuckerberg

$5,000 to $9,999 Elie M. Abemayor Joseph Alexander Foundation, Inc. The Eugene Applebaum Family Foundation Lezlie and Richard Atlas Bryna and Fred Berman Miriam G. Bernstein The Bilger Foundation Roberta and Stanley Bogen Anna and Michael Boni The Brown Foundation Suzanne and Norman Cohn Richard and Rosalee C. Davison Foundation, Inc. Marian and Kenneth J. Disken Allan Domb Peter and Silvia Dreyfuss Duane Morris, LLP EisnerAmper, LLP Famous Famiglia Pizza Gloria and Paul Fine Phyllis and Gary Finkelstein Firstrust Bank Judith R. Forman and Richard N. Weiner Tracey and Patrick Gallagher Melanie and Steven Glass Jane and Neil Golub Sylvia G. Gordon

Terry A. Graboyes Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance Julia and Joel Greenblatt Andrea Hirschfeld Jane Barr Horstman and John Horstman Insperity Michelle and Joe Jacobs Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Mercer in partnership with the Harold Grinspoon Foundation Sherri Jurgens and Michael Ross Sherry Lansing Foundation Fran and Leon Levy Howard and Marcia z”l Lipschutz Lucius N. Littauer Foundation Sueyun and Gene Locks Lillian Lorber Charitable Trust Jeffrey Lurie Family Foundation Beatrice and Larry V. Metzman Jennifer Mendel and Fred D. Fox Robin Chemers Neustein and Shimon Neustein Evy Palecznicki and Barry Stucker PECO The Philadelphia Cultural Fund Norman Raab Foundation Rosenblatt Charitable Trust Barbara and Richard Rothschild Robin and Steven J. Rotter Say Yes to Education, Inc. Roberta and Ernest Scheller, Jr Family Foundation Miriam and Allan Schneirov Connie Smukler Rayman Solomon and Carol Avins Esta Stecher Sidney Stern Memorial Trust Meredith and Jon Stevens Toby Strogatz and Stephen B. Klein Lynne L. Tarnopol Laurence Weiss

$2,000 to $4,999 ARAMARK Lucy and Peter Ascoli The Martin S. Berger Family Foundation Kim D. and Robert R. Baron Boyds Philadelphia Philip Balderston

BOARD MEMBERS

Nancy Brinker Charitable Foundation The Broad Foundation Peggy Butchkavitz and Carl Poplar Paul & Pearl Caslow Foundation Louise and Bob Cohen Cindi and Glenn Cooper Geraldine and Harold Cramer Jackie and Mitchell Dickman Lee Ducat Douglas Durst Echelon Protection & Surveillance Susie and Edward Elson Lynn and Arnold Feld Marie and Joseph Field The Judith Stillman Finkel Family Fund Allison Schneirov Fisch and Steven Fisch Marian and Elliot Fisher The David Geffen Foundation The Edwin M. Gilberg Family Foundation Robin and Neil Goldberg Margaret F. and Joseph S. Gordon Alan z”l and Gwen Goodman Richard J. Green Bernard and Harriet Gross Iris and Igal Hami H. Adam Holt Farah Jimenez and David Hyman Susan and Leonard Klehr Jamie and Warren Klein Elaine and Manny Landau Christopher Ludwick Foundation The William and Phyllis Mack Family Foundation Inc Susan and Morris Mark Susan and James Meyer Linda and H. Laddie Montague Camp Onibar-Geneva Renunion Committee in honor of Peter Kalikow National Philanthropic Trust Barbara and Edward K. Portnof Powell Family Foundation The Honorable Edward G. Rendell Emily Rose and James Marrow Martha and Greg Rosenbaum Melissa and Douglas Sayer Tom Scannapieco Howard and Debbie Schiller Elizabeth and Alan L. Shulman Avi Silberstein Stephen D. and Marsha M. Silberstein The Paul and Emily Singer Family Foundation Joan and Bernard Spain Steinhart Family Trust Maria Hammer-Tuttle and Robert Tuttle Etta Z. Winigrad

$1,000 to $1,999 ABM Janitorial - Midatlantic, Inc Hallee and David Adelman Akman Family Charity of the Jewish Community Foundation, Inc. Anonymous Myrna and Howard Asher Avery Foundation Blaire Baron and Derek Pew The Honorable Phyllis Beck and Aaron Beck Judith and Howard Berkowitz Ambassador Stuart Bernstein and Wilma Bernstein Lynne Z. Gold-Bikin Cecilie and Eugene Block Judith and Alvin Block Lila and Barry Bloom Beth and David Blum Sylvia C. Blume Harris T. Bock and Phyllis T. Fine Daniel & Estrellita Brodsky Foundation The Honorable Anita B. Brody Rita and Charles Bronfman Amy and Marc Brownstein Hedda and Hugh Chairnoff Ellen and Winston Churchill Clayman Family Foundation The Abby and David Cohen Family Foundation Ellen Singer Coleman and Michael Coleman Commonwealth Investment Management Group LLC Rhoda and Michael Danziger Joseph DeMaio, Jr. Dolfinger-McMahon Foundation Gwen and Howard Dvorkin Mitzi & Warren Eisenberg Family Foundation, Inc. Barbara and Bertram Ellick Amy and Len Feldman Stephen Fiverson Deborah and Ken Fleekop Alan Franco Linda Frankel Anne L. Freedman Leon Frenkel Susan Garber and Edward Brown The Joseph and Anna Gartner Foundation Barbara and Sidney Geller Sybil Terres Gilmar Arlene and Stanley Ginsburg Doris and Arnold Glaberson Lisa Glassner-Kovacs and David Kovacs Richard and Linda Glazer Barbara and Edward Glickman Sarita and Morris Gocial Rosalie and Harvey Goldberg John Golden Jane and Joseph Goldblum

William Goldman Foundation Goldsmith Weiss Foundation Edward J. and Myrna K. Goodman Foundation Ellen and Bernie Gottlieb Daniel Haggerty Hinda and Eric Haskell Andrea and Brad Heffler James Hendler Lynne and Harold Honickman Patricia and Kenneth Hurd Chris Stern Hyman Naomi and Robert Jackman Debbie and Neal Jacobs Jenkintown Building Services, Inc Elaine Wolk Kaufman Florence Kaufman Charles & Esther Lee Kimerling Charitable Foundation Celia Goldman Kirsch and Laurence Kirsch Linda and Jack Kirshner Wendy and Joshua Klein Jane and Leonard Korman Family Foundation The Martin & Sylvia Kreithen Foundation Scott Kursman Sharon and Michael Lefkowitz Joye and Bruce Lesser Harvey Levin Stephanie and David Levin Suzanne and Robert Levin Susan Lewis and Joseph Kluger Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation Elaine Lindy Jon Liss Nancy and Jerald Matt Robin and Roger Meltzer Minow Family Foundation Maxine and Jeff Morgan Marion Morillo David & Inez Myers Foundation Newman & Company Lisa Simon Nugiel and David Nugiel Nancy and Harold Oelbaum Linda and David Paskin Barbara and Jerry Pearlman Karen and James Pearlstein Susan Pernick Lauren and Scott Pinkus Sheri and Ken Resnik The Suzanne F. & Ralph J. Roberts Foundation Beth Robinson and Frederick Strober Margo Robinson Elliott Rosch Adam R. Rose Sandra and Frederick Rose Susan and Elihu Rose Merry Ross and Patrick D. Zimski

Carrie Rubin and Michael O’Neill Joy Sardinsky and S. David Fineman Ruth Sarner-Libros Sherrie R. Savett Julie and Jordan Savitch Marcia and Albert Schmier Carol and Elliot Schwartz Dina and Ronald Schwartz The Howard J. Sedran Family Foundation Bernard & Idajane Segal Family Foundation Bubbles M. Seidenberg George, Joan and Jack Shuster Foundation Jeanne S. & Herbert J. Siegel Philanthropic Fund Fran and Saul Singer Karen Poul Sirlin and Jon Sirlin Shirley and Albert H. Small Gordon H. Smith Babette and Harvey Snyder Solis-Cohen Spigel Family Fund Susan and Adam Sokoloff Rachel and David Steerman Abbie and Fred Stein Nancy and Ken Stein Sidney J. Stein Foundation Kathleen Waits and Martin Belsky Judie and Bennett Weinstock Lynn and Peter Weisbord Lisa Wershaw and Steven Engelmyer Erving and Joyce Wolf Foundation Judith Wolf and Howard Eisen Wendy Wolf and Jack Behrle Linda and Harold B. Yaffe Norman P. Zarwin

LEGACY SOCIETY Our Legacy Society is growing thanks to individuals who have named the Museum in their estate plans.

We are deeply grateful to the Leo Nothmann Marital Trust, whose bequest was realized this year.

Join the dozens who are committed to sustaining the Museum’s future as members of the Legacy Society.

For more information, please contact Ilana B. Dean at 215.923.3811 x111 or idean@NMAJH.org.

NMAJH Officers Philip M. Darivoff, Chairperson Lyn M. Ross, Honorary Chairperson Stephen Cozen, First Vice Chairperson Andrew R. Heyer, Vice Chairperson Thomas O. Katz, Vice Chairperson Miriam Schneirov, Vice Chairperson Joseph S. Zuritsky, Vice Chairperson Ira Saligman z”l, Treasurer Lisa B. Popowich, Secretary George Ross z”l, Founding Chairperson

Trustees Susanna Lachs Adler Elijah S. Dornstreich Alec Ellison Abbie Green Friedman Alan J. Hoffman Sharon Tobin Kestenbaum Elaine Lindy Seymour G. Mandell Anne Welsh McNulty Mitchell L. Morgan Mark Oster Marc Porter Daniel Promislo Ronald Rubin Sherrie R. Savett Daniel A. Shapiro Shanin Specter Barbara Spiro Ryan Lindy Snider Robbi Toll The Honorable Harold Berger, Trustee Emeritus D. Walter Cohen, Chairman Emeritus Gwen Goodman, Executive Director Emerita Raymond Perelman, Trustee Emeritus Ruth Sarner Libros, President Emerita Samuel J. Savitz, Trustee Emeritus

National Leadership Council Roy Zuckerberg (New York, NY), Chair Eugene Applebaum (Detroit, MI) Charles Bronfman (New York, NY) Betsy Z. Cohen (New York, NY) Ambassador Edward Elson (Palm Beach, NY) Milton Fine (Pittsburgh, PA) Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg (Bronx, NY) J. Ira Harris (Palm Beach, FL) Senator Joseph Lieberman (Hartford, CT) Newton Minow (Chicago, IL) Ambassador John L. Loeb, Jr. (New York, NY) Allan (Bud) Selig (Milwaukee, WI) Albert Small (Washington, DC) Edward Snider z”l (Philadelphia, PA) Fred Wilpon (New York, NY)

Ivy L. Barsky, CEO and Gwen Goodman Director

For a donor listing including members at the Supporter Level through $999, please visit NMAJH.org/annualreport.

FALL 2016

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Beacon © 2016 National Museum of American Jewish History

WHAT IS IT ?

Pictured here is an object from our collection.

Can you tell what the object is? Submit your guess to beacon@nmajh.org and be entered for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to our Museum Store. Watch for the answer to be revealed in our December e-newsletter!