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..
-byDAVID A. SAGERMAN
camp d tree tor
�Sta.ff
Officer•
YOUNG MEN'S HEBREW ASSOCIATION
Lewi& D . Cole, President
Abe 8 . Berman, l•I J'lce Pre.Jule11t
Jo,epb J , Kaplu , 211d l'l,-,Pre,id,111
C, Saal Bertunan, 3rd l'lu-Pre,ld,nl
Sam J , B,ierlield, 4111 l'lu-Pruldelll
Morrh Sjmon, Trea.,urer
Mu . Jacob LeYy. Secrelo'1
0
Organized 1890
"The Jewish Community Center of Louisville"
AJlillated With Co-uull7 Chell
Member of the National Jewi1h Welr•re Board
Aaron S. Schreiber, Esew1i11e Diru.10,
Maurice M. Richlin, A1laktic Director
David S ■ gt.rmao, Sup. Adult Activitie..
Edith R. Cohen. Sup . Youth Acl'iviti~
Jton c ua M ■ 1 cr. Publk Relatio,u
Margaret Friedlander, Dance lrurruelor
Pauline Pc ■ raon , Bu~ineu Mano, e.r
Raema Ed~htt:in . ecretory
, \f&Uated With Louln·llle Conference or Jewl eb Orgaab.atio••
JAckson 7164
729 S. SECOND STREET
LOUISVILLE 2, K E N T U C K Y - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
September 6, 1950.
Board of Directo r s
Young Mon 1 s Hebrew Association
72 9 South Second Street
Louisvi ll e 2, Kentucky
Dear Board of Dir e ctors~
Upon tho r equest of tho Crunp To.11 Tr ees Committee , I am
subr.litting this r eport o.s compiled by Mr. David A. So.gormun, Crunp
Director .
I am very much impres sed with this information as it brings
out mnny fnc ots of tho ca.mp op er at ion which I f oo l ar c informo.t ivo
nnd intorosting t o a ll of us.
Mr . Sngormo.n spent mnny hours i n the pr oparo.tion of this report
which touches upon every phase of tho cnmp oper at ion. I f oo l tho.t
ho has done o.n outst o.nding job in tho prosonto.tion of this analysis
o.nd I run sure that you will wunt to r oa d i t car efully.
Since r e ly yours,
s. SCHREIBER
Exec utive Director
AARON
ASS :RE
Board of Director.
Honorary Board Member11
Sidae7 D . Appel
Louil Cohen
A . W. Fl,hebaker
Ur. Jo, . M. Frehlin1
Arthur S. Klia1
Fred Lf:yy
Jame ■ B . Le•y
M.F.Man
ChH , W'. l'tlorri,
Ma.s 'Wa]dmaa
Benj . F . \l-Hhtr
Mu. Jacob Ade.
Ale Bornttein
Rabbi B. Brilliant
Mrt. I. Oreyfu,
JOI , li10l1ebaker
Nor-ber l Friedman
Rab bi J. J. Gittleman
ol ColJber1
Bt'rnud S. Cold,teio
Herman C. Bandmaker
Carl Belman
Dnld W. Karp
Jame ■ Kaadan
Barry J . Klein
Murrel D. Klein
Barry J. Klein
Human Landau
Mr,. Sam Lerman
hadore Luine
Tony Le•it ■ n
E. J. Lip,cbull
Rabbi M. M. Perle,
Dr. I . B. Perl,teiD
Dr. Jo,epb Rauch
M.ra. Milton B. Roben,oo
Rebbi Solomon Roodmao
Ah·in S. Rotenberg , Jr .
Bernard D . Roac..nblum
Farrell E. Salzman
Dr. Herbert S. Waller
Ferd B. Weh. Jr .
Mr,. Abe Yorre
Alexa nder W. Erleo, Es,olfido
Dr. I. T. Naamani, Es..oJllcio
D ■•jd Dobaon, E•-oJJieio
�R E P OR T
0 F
0 P E R AT I ON S
C A MP
T AL L
T R E E S
-----------
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY
- 1950 SEASON -
by
David A. Sagerman, Director
Camp Tall Trees
�CONTENTS
OF
TABLE
...• • • • • •
.•.• •
Forward.
•
• •
•
.
Staff Organization and Salary Chart. • . •
Financial Report 1950 Season • • . • . • • • •
Camper Breakdown • • • • • . • . • . • . •
•
. • • .. • • • • •
Camp Objectives. • . . • •
Preface.
.• .
.•
• •
.•
Counsellors. • • • • • •
•
..
2
•
4
•
5
•
6
• • • • • • • • • • •
7
Programming. • •
• •
Health and
.• • • .•
• • . • • • •
•
Safety. • • • . •
• •
• • • • •
.•
• • • • • •
Sports . • • • • • • • • • •
Religious Services •
Movies •
Library.
...
.•.•
•
•
8-9
• • .10-12
• • • • • • • • .13-14
• • • •
.•
• • .15-16
Records. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Swimming • •
1
3
.•
•
•
•
Counsellor Training. • • • • • • •
Food •
Page
.' •
• . .
.•• •• •
. • • •
..•
• .
• • • •
.•
17
.18-19
• • • • • • • •
20
• • • • • • • .21-23
• • •
• • • • •
•
.
•
24
• •
25
�PREFACE
The purpose of this report is to present an objective and
valid review of the Louisville YMHA Camp Tall Trees at Rock Haven,
Kentucky during the period June 11 - July 23, 1950.
For the sake of clarity the report has been broken down into
a number of sections, each dealing with a specific aspect of the
camp function.
This does not disregard the obvious overlappin g
and integratio n of the areas discussed , but rather serves to
present the dynamic aspects of these areas more vividly.
No
attempt has been made to give a complete picture of the camp
organizat ion, administr ation, supervisio n, nnd program.
However,
it is hoped that Board and Camp Committee members will better
understand the general nature of operation s of Camp Tall Trees
during the 1950 season and use the report as a guide for more
effective planning for the forthcomin g camp season.
I would like to express my sincere appreciati on to Mr. Abe
Berman, chairman of the Camp Committee , for his interest and
great help at all times, as well as the other members of the
committee who could always be depended upon for their utmost
cooperatio n.
I am especially grateful to Mr. Aaron Schreiber ,
Executive Director of the YMHA for his able guidance and assistance during the camp season.
-1-
�FORWARD
The camp is unique in the emphasis it places upon children's
living together continuously, cooperatively and democratically in
intimate contact with the out-of-doors.
It is a direct experience
as opposed to the vicarious learning of the classroom.
tive days camping was just plain outdoor living.
In primi-
However, when we
consider the term camping today, we usually associate with it certain elements that are inherent,--namely, outdoor experiences related to food and shelter; recreation and group living; it implies
social adjustment; it is educational in that the learning experi~
ences-whether oriented towards skills, knowledge, or appreciationare vital, direct, and meaningful.
•All these lend enrichment to
the growth of the child.
Why a Jewish camp?
To encourage and help transmit our Jewish
culture and heri tagEJ within a derr-,ocratic framework on the level
that the camper is ready to receive, and to help develop spiritual
growth,
The camping ·movement has be en viewed as one of the great-
est educational contributions in the past fifty years.
has added fun to learning.
The camp
�(
(
CAMP TALL TREES
1950 Season
STAFF ORGANIZATION AND SALARIES
Till!A CMP COL'J.UTTEE
Abe Berman, Chairman
Aaron S . Schreiber, YlJHA Director
Abe Jacobson, Arthur Kling, Joseph Kaplan, Poachy Marks
Sidney Appel, Evelyn Levine, Al Erlen, Lewis D. Cole, David Sagerrnan , Sec'y .
CAT'Jl DIRECTOR
David A. Sagerman
HEAD COUl'TSELLOR (camp doctor)
I
~
I
( $250)
BOY COUNSELLORS
GIRL COUNSELLORS
Counsellor A
181 years
(~125)
Counsellor B
(20½ years)
($125)
Cotmsellor B
20 years
($125)
Counsellor C
18½ years
(t 10O)
Counsellor D
19 years
( ~125)
Counsellor C
22½ years
Counsellor D
(19 years)
(~125)
($ 125)
Counsellor A
24 years
($125)
KITCHEN STAFF
COOK
(02 40)
KITCHEN HELP
($100)
KITCHEN
HELP
(C:12O)
TOTAL SALA.RIES 1949--$27 79. 87
TOTAL SAL.ARIES 195O-- tl685 . OO
�.
INC01.~E
Camp Fees .
Handcraft & Canteen.
Non-nembership fee
.
•
•
. ..
•
.• .
.
•
.
.
.
.
. .
TOTAL INCOME
EXP ENDITURES:
Food•
•
•
Meat
Bread
Eggs, butter., milk
Vegetables.
Gumperts
I
~
I
1949
1950
.
•
• •
•
•
636.38
.
.
.
• . • • 682.79
137.14
. ..
• • • • 172.63
424.36
500.97
.
.
•
•
156.53
.
.
.
.
• • . . 190.23
97.05
219.30
.
.
• • • •
•
36.25
.
.
.
.
.
Fish
•
•
•
.
Staples (canned goods, etc.).
• 613.50
.. .• . . • .. • • .• • • • . .578.11
.
~lnries .
•
• •
.
I:Uectricity . .
•
•
•
•
•
• •
•
•
• •
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
•
•
•
~flt •
• •
•
• •
•
. • . • • • . •
.
_,.arts. • • . .
• . • • • . •
~teen • . . . • . • • • • . • • • . • . . • • • . • •
Sup~lies & Equipment. . • . • • • •
• • . • •
• • • .
(including soaps, disinfectants, paper towels, toilet paper, dishes, etc.)
. .. . .• . • .•
Qtfice Su~plies.
• • • . . • . . . . .
.
.
.
.
loo
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
• •
•
Transportation (including truck used for change periods) . . . . . . •
.
.
Pi-ogram
supplies (including paper goods). • • . • •
• •
•
.
.
.
Poete.ge, publicity,printing. .
•
•
• • • •
.
.
.
.
FllOl
• • .
• • • .
.
.
. • • • .• • •• .• ••
~letic sup? lies •
• • . • • . • •
. .. . .• .
Opening & clQsing • • . •
• . • • • • •
.
.
.
.
Laundry .
•
•
•
•
•
.
.
l,:edical Sup:;:, lies • • . .
•
• . . . • • •
. • .. . .. . .
.
Conference expense. . .
• •
• . • .
.
.
.
.
.
.
Miscellaneous
.
•
. •• • • . • . . • • •• • • . • .• •
Refunds . • . •
Garbage disposal
.• • • • • • • .
New boilers . .
. .• • • • .• .•
• • • • • • • • • •
r
4
&
~
Ca.Mp Fees
YLlf.A 1·embe rs
l'T on-t::embers
-
035 per t wo 'T~~,e c}-:::
per io d .
•
~40 per t wo week pe riod •
TOTAL EXPENSE
TOTAL INCONB
DEFICIT
1949
.$ 5,920.00
124.10
$
1950
5,180.00
91.75
170.00
$ 6.,044.10
$
5,441.75
2,415.67
2,029.57
<Cl
11;: .
f;tJ
r3
>
t-<
t"'
2,779.87
36.80
331.20
86.88
72.85
234.85
1,685.00
88.13
331.20
41.77
93.97
116 .67
22.78
82.03
423.13
228.73
66.10
10.27
63.28
62.37
64.80
45.35
30.00
8.64
20.00
44.45
281.71
69.76
70.62
-----------------
----28.58
_____ .,.
------
70.15
50.00
5.17
130.00
25.00
60.00
$ 7,065.60
$ 5,241.75
6,044.10
$ 1,021. 50 SURPLUS
DAY CAMP DEFICIT
BALANCE
5,441.75
200.00
$
<!'
200.00
'Ii'
000.00
r3
~
tz:l
Cl.I
t-'
<O
Q'1
0
Cll
~
i
>xj
H
~
0
H
>
;
0
:::0
r3
�CAMP TALL TREES
1950 SEASON
CAMPER BREAKDOWN
•
Planned camper capacity for 1950 season .
Number of campers served .
Number of different campers served . • .
•
•
•
•
•
I. Number of campers by period;
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
1949
Bows Girls
A. 1st period
B. 2nd period
C . 3rd period
19
17
28
28
28
75
25
70
(145)
20
35
28
23
30
26
79
83
(162)
II. Aftie Distribution By Periods (1950)
1st Period
8 yrs.
9 yrs.
10
11
12
13
14
15
yrs.
yrs.
yrs.
yrs.
yrs.
yrs.
Boy~
5
2
3
1
Girls
4
2
2
2
2nd Period
Boys
3
5
4
3
2
6
4
2
3
4
2
1
4
.144
.145
. 99
•
Girls
3
5
4
7
9
2
Total Age
Dtet.
3rd Period
Boys
2
5
6
2
3
3
7
Girls
4
5
Boys Girlf
10
11
12
1
5
13
9
4
10
4
7
14
1
--
11
7
14
15
10
.2
III. Average Food Costs Per Person
1 949 . • .Campers plus staff (225)--actua l food expenditures
$ 2,366.00
10.51
CJst per person per period
'it'
i,., ~
1950 . . . Campers plus staff (190)--actua l food expenditures
-1? 2,30.00
$ 10.• 68
Cost per person per period
- 5-
�CAMP OBJECTIVES
The program at Camp Tall Tree s hBs been evolved with the
following objective s in mind:
1.
To dev e lop s e lf-re lia nc e , insight, and resourc e fulness through
dire ct expe ri enc e s in group living ;
2.
To l ea rn the fund amental:' skills necess a ry for living in the
out-of-doors;
3.
To deve lop n ew leisure time a ctivitie s high in carry-over va lue
4.
To d e ve lop physic a l ho alth throu gh di e t, r e st, and activities;
5.
To d c volo p knowledge, judgme nt, insight, and appro::. ciation of
the world a bout us;
6.
To de velop whol e some attitudes a nd high ideals;
7.
To r emove superstitions a nd fe a rs of the outdoors and show that
t he world a bout us c a n be us ed to enrich live s;
8.
To encour ag e socia l valu e in group living--getting a long togc the r--re c o 6 nizG soci&l r e s ponsibility as an individual to the
g roup; d e vel op cornmunity expe ri e nc e :J.nd r e s pon s ibility through
g roup proj0cts;
9.
To he lp d e ve. lop a sounder per·sons.lity b y e. tt e mpt ing to mee t the
n eeds of the camp e r in terms of his physical, social, moral,
a nd ps ychologic a l d eve lopme nt;
J.O.
To d e ve lop democra tic principle s of sh2, ring, planning, and
c oope r &. tion;
11.
To encourag e and he lp transmit our Jewish culture o. nd heritage;
12.
To m[t k c friends ond ha vE. fun in pleas a nt surroundings.
·- 6 -
�COUNSELLORS
Leadership for camp counselling implies the possession of
personal qualities, skills, trnining, nnd experience which will
enable each counsellor to perform his specific function in the
camp progrRm .
The counsellor must also he.ve a clear understanding
of his professional relctionships to the camp administration , to
campers, to parents, to ether staff members, and to tho locnl
community~
Though th e program is the real reason children ~njoy
camping, whether or not a camp realizes its major goals depends
upon the skill with which the program is planned and carried out .
The counsellor in terms of his skills, physical, social, intellectual, and emotional qualities is the key to the successful camp
program.
The counsellor at Camp Tall Tre e s during the 1950 season was
selected on the basis of pe rsonal qualities, education , and extent
of previous camping experience .
All the counsellors were either
coll ege students or c ollege graduatos and had had previous camping
experience.
There were no specialty counsellors.
ERch cabin-
couns e llor group workc~ out its own overall program, including
activities such as archery, crafts, nature, etc.
Each counsellor,
however, assumed a specinlized role in addition to his or her
regular duties.
A malG and female counsellor (bo th lifeguard ex-
am iners) conducted the swimm ing program.
Another person was in
charg e of c2nteen; library~ athletic equipment; ballet class; healt
class, etc.
Counsellors t no k turns in conducting nnd leading even-
ing programs, dependent up on their interests and skills.
They re-
ceived one day off during the week except the opening and closing
weeks of camp.
girls I area.
OD duty was rotated daily in both tho boys' ana
- 7 -
�COUNSELLOR TRAINING
1.
Training prior to camp
a.
b.
2.
personal interviews prlor to opening of camp where . aims,
objectives, philosophY,and program possibilities are
discussed
correspondence with counsellors prior to their arrival
at camp to discuss the various aspects of camping
Pre-camp conference
Two days prior to opening of camp a pre-camp training
course was held at C8ll11p Tall Trees.
Only two days are avail-
able for pre-camp training due to a time element in obtaining
the camp area.
Four days would be highly desirable.
The
nature of the training period was that of having discussion
leaders qualified in certain areas of camp program to present
some of the objectives and values of that particular phase of
camping experience and how each counsellor would fit into the
total picture in making use of this program area.
The history and background of the camping movement as well
as philosophy of camping was discussed by the director.
Health and safety was discussed by the camp doctor.
Swimming
instruction and safety were presented by the life guard
examiner.
Sessions were held on camp routine and schedules,
staff regulations, campcrafts, sports, recordkeeping and
reports, singing, table courtesies, arts and crafts , trips,
and Jewish content in program areas.
in
The films, "School Time
Camp" and "Feeling of Rejection" were shown and discussed.
In almost every tnstance the counsellors participated in the
planning and in the discussion of the counsellor training
course.
-· 8 -
�3.
In-service training
From time to time demonstration s and discussions we re held
on various phases of camping and program.
staff meetings a week we re held .
An average of two
Individual conferences we re
held onc e a week be twee n the di r ector and couns el lor.
Daily
narratives and period r eports we r e kep t by all couns el lors
and were used a s a basis for discussion a t staff mee tin gs
and individual confe r ences.
In order for the couns ellor
to do a more eff e ctive job and have a more satisfying pe rsonal expe ri enc e at camp , it is r ecomme nd ed tha t the various
staff tra in ing methods employ ed this past year be utiliz ed
for th e coming s ea son, and, if possible, to ha ve a longe r
p r e -c amp confe r e nc e period to furth e r exp lor e a r ea s of
prog r amming and orie ntation.
- 9 -
�PROGRAI,1MING
Camp Tall Trees is organized as a decentralized co-ed camp
with a counsellor-camper ratio of 1 to 6 -7.
In view of the
American Camping Association standard of 1 to 8 as a mark of
good camping , this ratio is highly satisfactory.
Since the needs and interests of campers vary (age, sex , etc .l
an at tempt was made to
rnep the p r ogram balanced and va ried s o
that the camp objectives coulo be achieved while meeting the
needs of the individual ca mper in terms of his physical , mental ,
social and emotional edjustments .
Programming wa s highly flex -
ibl e ano the cabin group and counsellor - in-charge were primarily
r esponsible for the types of activities carried on by each group .
Besides th e ca b in -c ounsellor method of d e termining th e cabin
group program,
in c e rt a in a ctivities camper r ep res e ntatives
planned programs, a nd in other inst an c e s acti it y was pr ea rranged
by st a ff .
In al l
instances the he a lth ana s a fety of the c ampe r
was a p rime conside r a tion.
Ther e was an hour rest period afte r
lunch every ~ft e rnoon and b e dtime was 9:00 p . m.
As units,
t he c a mpers planned the ir cookouts , overnights ,
exploration trips, fishing trips , crafts, hikes, e tc .
As repre -
sentatives of g rou p s they helped plan reli g ious programs , sports
ev e nts, c amp fire programs , mass activities , skit nights , carnival
a nd othe r spe cia l c ctiviti e s .
The staff a rr anged for such p ro-
gram s as a couns e llor show, u nd banquet .
In gene r a l, tho campers
pra ctic ed planning, thinking, a nd living coop e rativ e ly.
only t a lk ed d emocra cy, t hey liv ed it .
They shared in the respon -
sibility a s well as the benefits of their activities .
- 10 -
They not
�Tho general basis of program content involved camper interes·
c amper needs, staff interests and capabilities, the equipment
available, the c amp site, and the philosophy of camping as de veloped by the camp director and staff.
The daily schedule in-
cluded a morning and afternoon swim period; a morning and afternoon activities period, and an evening program .
The program was
evaluated from time to time at staff meetings and at individual
conferences with counsellors in ternis of objectives achieved in
proportion to the period of time spent in camp; the counsellor
point of view; the campor point of view; and in terms of uso of
Program records and camper records
mn terials in the environment.
were used in these evaluations.
The programs listed repres~nt
the actual activities campers participntec in during tho camp
sercson.
However, this does not include the entire scope of the
camp progre.m .
A. Daily Progran~ing
Photography
Campcrafts
Hiking
Cookouts
Games--indoor; outdooractivc; inactive
B.
Story telling
Dram:.:i.tics
Singing
Berry picking
B0king pies
Pishing
Swimming
Athletic activities
Nature hikos--trees, ani mals, flowers, minerals
Arts and crnfts--v. oodwork,
woodburning, tin can
crafts, gimp projects,
copper tooling, leaf
prints
Exploration trips--pipe
line, Morgans Cave, Blue
Hole, etc.
1
-
Projects - -trce house , nature
museum, dining hall decorations
Rest periods- - rcst, letter writin
quiet games, read, discuss program
Flag ceremonies
Afternoon snack
Overnights
Each group aftor having experiences of hiking anc1 2 cookout
during the first week, w8nt on ar
overnight hike and cooked at leae
two meals outdoors.
The group living expE.:rience, the
acquisition of new skills , and
the thrill of n new experience
and the reassur&nce that the out
of doors ~re safe, makes this a
must in the camping program.
11 -
�C. SpC; cinl Activi tie s
Trip t o Ft . Knox - -gold vault ,
Patt on museum , swim , fl ag
loweri~ g , movie
Hay rid e t o farm and picni c
St a t e Cha mp di vin g exh ibition
Campe r - Couns ul l or s o ftb a l l
v.nd ba ske t ba ll ac ti vi ti e s
Carniv a l
Come F-S y ou a re d a nc e
Dramat ics
.So c ial ·game.a.
St or y t e lling night
F'r ee nig ht
E . Class e s
Hea lth
Be. ll e t
Cho ir (f or s e rv i c e s)
D. Eve ni ng Activi ti e s
Tr ea s u r e hunt s
Sc o. v 0ng6 r h un ts
Campfi r e s
Stu nt nigh t s
F . J ewish Co nt e nt
Fr iriay e ve ni ng a nc Sa turday
mo rning s e r v ic e s
Onog Sh9. bba ts
St ory t c ll j ng
J ev ish trut h a nd c ons e qu e nc e s
Cr ea tivs d rnmG t i cs (b ~s ed on
Bibl e t heme s)
Ma cc ::1bc id d r.y
Sca venge r hunt ba s ed on Bible
theme s
t:'1J i z s hc,vrn
S1uare a n~ s oci a l d an c ing
Cap t ur e the fl ag
Midnig ht s wim
Campe r-c ou ns e ll o r sh ow
Camps r-c c uns e ll or game s
Camper be. nque t
Spel l ing bee
Mo v iC; s
N0wsp2.pe r
- 12 -
�FOOD
Menu plannin g was aimed at a balance d diet of plain, wholesome food, well cooked and attract ively served . • The primary considera tions were to meet the nutriti onal require ments and provide
adequa te food for the growing chil~.
The food budget , though
predete rmined , was flexib le in that all these criter ia were met
more than adequa tely . Foodst uffs include d moals served in the
dining hall as well as outdoo r cooking , camp partie s, and for
specia l occasio ns. Dietary laws were observ ed. The menus were
set up in consul tation with a dietici an for the entire camp
period prior to the opening of camp .
Variety , nutriti ve value ,
avnila bility of foods and use of left-ov ers were factors considered in the plannin g of _meals. Afterno on snacks were pro~
vided daily and bedtime snacks from time to time .
snacks
w ✓ re
provide d each evenin g.
Counse llor
Counse llors were made aware
of the individ ual camper 's n(rnds from a medica l history and
parent s report provide d us on each child .
to help develo p desira ble
An attemp t was made
food habits in terms of needs.
Menus
for cookou ts end overnig ht hikes were reviewe d carefu lly by the
counse llor and camp directo r to determ ine balanc e, adequa cy, and
nutriti onal value.
Record s of menus of all cookou ts and over-
nights were mainta ined as referen ces for future guidan ce .
The kitchen staff consist ed of a cook, who was respon sible
for the prepar ntion of all meals, and two helpers whose primary
duties consist ed of washin g dishes , cleanin g the kitchen and
dining hall, and setting the dining hall tables .
This staff was
able to handle service for sixty-f ive person s includi ng the staff.
The dining hall was a place for relaxti on and educat ion as well ,
and table courte sies we~e practic ed at all times •
.. 13 -
�A very adequate sto ckroom made it possibl e to place a large
initial order of canned foods and ce r tain staples so that only
one other large order of this type was necessary to meet the re quirement s for the remainder of the season .
Savings in time and
money resulted from these quantity purchases .
Fresh fruits and
vegetables wero primarily purchased weekly, though sometimes i t
was necessary or desirable to purchase aaily .
were delivered to camp daily.
Dairy products
A deep freeze at camp made it
possible to hold a reserve of four days ' meat supplies at one
time and orders were delivered a day prior to use of the last
day ' s supply .
Health examinatio ns were requirod for the cook and the two
kitchen helpers .
Personal cleanlines s was stressed at all times .
The kitchen and dining hall were scrubbed weekly .
Garbage was
removed daily and whatever remained was burned in an incinera t or.
Plnt6s and utensils were thoroughly cleaned, washed with soap ,
sterilize d , and dried .
Fly and rodent controls were effected by
the frequent use of insecticid es, and thorough screening of all
doors and windows .
In general, the kitchen and food practices
and procodure s provea more than satisfa c tory .
- 14 -
•
�HEALTH AND SAFETY
The whole camping experience is closely interwoven with
health, and safety provisions and practices.
One of the import-
ant aims is health improvement, and the dovelopmont of desirable
health habits.
Safety is also a major concern in camp layout as
well as in all phases of the camp program.
Health and safety precautions at Camp Tall Trees were fairly
rigid and the results of these measures were very satisfactory.
In gen0ral, the health and safety of the campers was very good-there were no serious illnesses or accidents.
There were the
usual scratches, bites, bruises, cuts, blisters, abrasions, sore
throats and colds.
However, the number of cases was relatively
The following measures were carried out for camp health.
small.
I. General Camp Health
A. Sanitation
l. drinking water inspected by city
2. garbage picked up daily or burned
3. kitchen and din:tng hall cleaned daily and scrubbed
weekly
4. camp area sprayed for mosquitoes by Army
5. latrines and washing area cleaned daily
6. camp area policed regularly
B. Balanced Diet
1. plain, wholesome food, well-cooked and attractively
served, and adequate for needs of growing child.
c.
Physical and Mental Health
1. counsellors planned activities so that there would be
no 6verstrain and overfntigue of their crunp groups
2. counsellors were guided by pre-camp data on individual
campers
3. counsellors received some understandlng of mental
hygiene in staff meetings and individual conferences.
D. Waterfront
1. qunltfied lifeguards for instr~ction and adequate
protection by counsellor coverage of specific swimming
areas
2. water treated and tested each dny
- 15 -
�3.
4.
5.
6.
shower faciliti es near pool
safety devices such as life buoy and bamboo pole
counsel lors instruct ed in first aid by camp doctor
camp doctor final authorit y on whether camper could
go swimming
E. Sleeping Quarters
1. cabinsw i th no more than five campers for heal th
precauti ons
2. daily inspecti on of c ebins and weekly scrub down
F. Lnund ry
1. campers laundry taken into town weekly
2. kitchen lrnlp did some campers ' laundry
3. campers did individu al laundry
II, Persona l Health
A. Honlth Practice s
I";onmp 0rs were educated to change clo thes frequen tly and
keep clean
2, rest periods were provide~ each day after lunch
3, counsel lors concerne d self with eat:l.ng habits of
onmpers
4. nine o 'clock bedtime
III, Safety
A,
Preoa.ut ions
1, campers learned charact eristics of poison ivy--its
preventi on and cure
e, trips wh:i.ch lnvolved dangerou s cliffs and hills were
ovoid Eid
3, safety at the waterfvo ~t wns constan tly impresse d
upon the campers
y
Infirmar.._
IV, .....,..,...._,,
A, Orp;aniz ation
1, supervis ed by medical student
also wheneve r
2, sick calls in morning and afternoo n
necessar y
3, adequate supply of first aid equipme nt and medical
supplies
Due to defectiv e bo1lers during the first two periods, the
availab ility of hot water was not assured . Gas heaters replaced
the coal stoves tqe last period and this proved very satisfac tory.
One of tho toilets in enah latrine was inoperat ive for various
lengths of time during the six weoks as was the boys urinal.
These conditio ns were reported to the park superint endent and
correcte d as they occured , Clo~ er supervis ion of campers would
alleviat e the problem of stoppage of toilets, It is recomme nded
that n hot wate r tap and toildet faojliti es be installe d in the
infirmar y,
... l6 "'
�RECORDS
Records are extreme ly valuable in that they serve as guideposts as to particip ation, achie vement, financia l status, as well
as a number of other purpose s.
They lend themselv es readily to
interpre tation for future guidanc e,
Like any report, camp re-
cords are valuable only as they are used.
During the 1950 season
at Camp Tall Trees the followin g records were maintain ed.
I.
Health
a. Health history (physici an)
b. Confide ntial informa tion by parent
c. Acciden t record
II.
III.
Business
a. Contrac ts -- food, personn el, parks
b. Payroll
c. Individu al accounts
d. Financi al statemen ts
e. Transpo rtation
f. Food invento ries
Personne l Records
a. Camper applicat ions
b. Counsel lor applicat ions
c. Registr ation lists and enrollm ents
a. Counsel lors' daily narrativ e
e. Counsel lors' camper period report
f •. OD and Days Off records
g. Counsel lor rating scales
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
Evening programs
Daily program schedule
Swimming records
Canteen and craft records
Indoor games and sports equipme nt records
Library records
Cookout records
Overnig ht reports
- 17 -
�SWIMMING
Safety:
follows:
The qualific ations of the guarding counsel lors were as
two life guard instruct ors, two senior life guards, and
five counsel lors who didn't necessa rily have train:ing or life
saving experien ce.
Each counsel lor was given a specific area of
the pool to guard which best fitted his ability .
The duties of
the guarding counsel lor were to watch his assigned area, to enforce safety regulati ons of the pool, and to give individu al
The duties of the instruct ors
help and assistan ce where needed.
were to set up safety regulati ons, supervis e guards, organize and
instruct classes.
The Buddy System was employed as a checking device.
Each
camper was assigned a partner and these partners swam together
They were required to stay to-
in the same area of the pool.
gether througho ut the swim and at a whistle which blew at fifteen
minute interval s, they ·were supposed to become quiet and raise
their buddy's hand.
This system proved to be the simples t and
most effectiv e checking method.
A ring buoy and a bamboo pole
were on hand at the pool to use as safety devices .
Classes:
The first day of each period every camper was screened
and placed in an instruct ion class (beginne rs, interme diates,
swimmer s, life saving, and advanced swimmer s),
During the first
and second periods instruct ion was given during the general
swims on the average of three times a week to each class.
great portion of this time was devoted to the beginne rs.
A
There
was some difficu lty in conducti ng classes for the more advanced
swimmers due to overcrow dedness in deep water.
- 18 -
During the third
�period the classes were taken separately for one-half hour every
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday .
Therefore each class had the
same amount of instruction.
At the end of every period Red Cross swimming tests were
given to each class.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
77
23
23
18
8
5
The overall results were as follows:
tests were passed by 61 individuals
beginners out of 50 passed their test
intermediates out of 28 passed
swimmers out of 22 passed
Jr. Life Savers out of 10 passed
advanced swimmers out of 5 passed
Ev8ry person tn camp regardless of wh0ther or not he passed
his test, made a dufinite advancement.
Ev8luation:
The swimming program this year was very gratifying .
Evciry camper received at least a minimum amount of individual
The testing was in strict compliance with Red cross
inst~uction.
standards.
Two ... thirds of the camp passed tests.
passed two tests.
F'ifteen campers
The system used for the third period was
definitely superior than that used during the first two periods
since the instructor could devote more time to teaching each
class--particularly the more advanced swimmers .
Of all the
classes, the Jr. Life Saving class was the weakest.
This was
due to the lack of time available for instruction since the
pool was sh3red with another agency.
Recommendation:
The greatest problem of the swimming setup is
the inability to have full time use of the pool since it is
shared with the YMCA camp.
More general counsellors qualified
to help in swimming instruction would prove invaluable.
A three
week camping period would facilitate instruction considerably . It
is difficult to conduct a class in a two week period--especially
for beginners.
Separate instruction periods should be the class
arrangement for next year.
- 19
T"
�SPORTS
The physi cal g rowth of t he c amper is vital to t he c ampi ng
program, and , as in ot he r a r eas, was developed wi th the pri ma ry
purpose of maki ng a place for all - - in t erm s of va rious interests ,
stages of d evelopmEint, expe rienc e , and s kill,
The physical we ll -
being of the camper ·was a ma.;or conc e rn and a ccid e nt prevention
and ove r ex e rtion of t he individua l was ca r efully watched .
Efforts
we re ma de by a ll counsello rs to have the campe r part i ci pate
active ly in the physica l a ctiviti e s whe neve r possibl e.
Howe ver ,
.no child was for ced to e nga ge in any a ctivity he d efini t e l y did
no t choos e to parti ci pa te in .
Competiti ve sp irit wa s guided a long
such line s that trying who l ehea rt ed l y to win was more impo rt an t
t han· the actu a l winning .
Soci a l dev e lopme nt was empha si zed --
tr icke ry and uns portsma nlike condu ct were frown ed upon while
e motiona l co n trol , r e spe ct for a nd fri e ndiinoss t owa rd opponents ,
irnividua l a nd group cooperatio n and r e spons ib il ity we r e looked
upon with hig h r ega rd.
The sports pa rti c ipa t e d in by the c ampers this past s eason
were :
arche ry, bndminton , bask etball , goa l hi, hor s esho e pitching
ping pong, soft ball , socc e r, volleybal l, and swimming, Emphas is
was on participa tion on a n informa l basis thou gh the r e wa s some
organiz ed whol e some competitio n in softball, basketbal l, a s we l l
as a swimming me ot.
- 20 -
�RELIGIOUS SERVICES
We were fortunate in securing a rabbinical student from one
of the schools who , in addition to his religious training, had the
ability to relate to children and help them in planning and
carrying out a religious program for camp at their level .
At the beginning of the camping season an effort was made
to organize the services for Sabbath into a pattern that was
acceptable both to the Reform and Conservative~Orthodox group
in camp.
Because of its greater literary value, as well as its
shortness, the Union Prayer Book service for both days was selecte(
as the model .
The Friday night service consisted of the following :
a . An opening Readers I Prayer which set the tone for the entire
service.
b. A responsive reading from one of the psalms.
c . The Bawrechu, with response by choir and congregation .
d . The Maariv aarawvim in English.
e. The Shema, said by both reader and choir and congregation.
f . The V1 awhavtaw, said in English .
g . The Micawmochaw read responsively by reRder, cholr and
congregation.
h. The shawmroo b'nai Yisroel said in English.
i . A shortened English Amida.
j. A rtsai B 1 mnoohawsaynoo in English .
k. A readers' prayer before the silent prayer.
],. The silent prayer followed by "May the➔ words • .. 11 sung by
choir and congregation.
m. The sermon.
n. 11 May the time not be distant ..• " followed by yom hahoo in
English.
o. Closing Hymn.
p . Benediction, related to the sermon.
The Saturday morning service, though shorter, maintained
basically the same elements, with the exception of the Michawmocha
The Torah service consisted of blessings before and after the
Torah, the first few verses read in Hebrew, and the remainder in
English, the blessings before and after the Haftorah, and a Haf-
torah rela t0d to the Torah section.
each of these.
- 21 ...
Snort explanations preceded
�It will be noted that there was no change from the traditional service at the synagogue or temple of the camper, although,
of course, the service was much shorter.
The Adoration was elimi-
nated as being a distinctively ~eform feature in the regular
service.
Tho basic reasons for maintaining a standard service
wore as follows:
a.
b.
c.
d.
The element of recall was greater, making it easier for
the younger campers to follow the service.
The service would help understanding of the service used
at home, rather than a service that was a completely new
experience.
The readers' prayers added the special camp touch as did
the sermon.
Most so-called camp services examined were filled with
hackneyed phrases, and since the service still had its
basic outlines,the special camp references only made the
s e rvice longer.
A choir was organized to help carry out the service.
Little
emphasts was placed on singing ability, but a great emphasis was
placed on eagerness to learn.
Various types of recognition for
the choir were given, including refreshments at the end of choir
practice, grab-bag parties, and a prominent place in every service.
No songs were taught outside of regular songs for the service because of the shortness of time.
The choir, composed of boys and
girls, averaged between seven and nine members, with usually more
campers applying for choir than there were places for them.
The
individual readers were selected from each counsellor's group and
rehearsed prior to the service.
for them.
The readers' prayers were written
These prayers usually emphasized aspects of camp life
such as cooperation, comradeship, devotion, etc.
The sermon it-
self followed a flexible pattern but generally tended to follow
the following outlines:
a.
b.
c.
d.
Introduction to a general theme
Story illustrating the general theme
Moral of the story
Application of the moral to the camp situation
- 22 -
�The following conclusions can be arrived at from this year I s experience:
a.
b.
c.
d.
The services were generally successful. The greatest
~ey to this was the fact that attendance at services
was not considered a chore, and permission to participate
in them was a coveted honor.
The sermons that were most successful were those that
emphasized the story and "soft pedaled" the moral. The
suspense type of story was the most successful.
The choir rehearsals were rather short; the reward aspect might be deemphasized next year.
The brunt of a succussful service tended to rest on one
person, Moro pa~ticipation in actual organization of
tho service might bo more desirable, although unilateral
direction is more of a coordinating factor.
- 23 -
�MOVIES
Movies were shown weekly to the campers.
The films were
screened and obtained free of charge from the Louisville Public
Library.
The presentations usually lasted an hour.
Special
films were selected for counsellors from time to time. . The
films chosen for the campers were based to meet the varied interests of boys and girls as well as accounting for the different
age groups represented.
They wer~ also selected on the basis of
entertainment value and educational purpose.
Counsellors and
campers had a voice in the selertion of films shown.
The pic-
tures were well received and the campers seemed to enjoy them
very much.
A sampling of the films used were:
Campers
-rr"swimming for BeginnersH
"Basketball Thrills of 1949 11
"Here Comes The Circus"
"Let's All Sing Together"
"Follow the Arrow"
"News Parade of 1948 11
"We Do It Because"
"America the Beautiful"
"Story of Money"
"Animals Growing Up 11
"The Zoo 11
11 0f These Our People 11 ( background of Jews from Colonial
times to present and their contribution)
11
Kentuckie Rifle"
"Football Parade of 1948 11
"Mother Goose Stories"
"Sport Thrills of the Year"
"Yankee Doodle Goes to Town 11
"Care of Pets"
"Behind Your Radio Dial"
Counsellors
"School Time in Camp"
"Feeling of Rejection"
"Where Will You Hide"
11
Boundry Lines"
"Marriage and Di vo re e"
"Swimming for Beginners"
- 24 -
�LIBRARY
The Camp Tall Trees library, located in the dining hall,
was composed of eighty-six books.
An assortment of fifty books
for boys and girls aged eight to fifteen was prepared and loanerl
to Camp by the Public Library in Louisville.
the property of the YMHA.
The remainder were
A counsellor was in charge of the
library which remained open for fifteen minutes every afternoon
after lunch.
During the first period more books were checked out than
during the remaining two periods,
out the first period.
Fifty-two books were checked
Several days of rain probably contributed
to an unusual amount of reading at this time.
period twenty-four books were checked out.
During the second
This drop might be
attributed in large part to the fine weather during this period.
The third period showed a total checkout of thirty-seven books.
The library system employed at camp s semed very satisfactory.
It was felt t~at the sampling of books was quite adequate, but
that there should have been a greater selection for distribution.
- 25 -
�
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Title
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Jewish Summer Camps, 1945-1968
Description
An account of the resource
Brochures, newspapers, reports, and textiles representing summer camps operated by the Young Men's Hebrew Association and the Jewish Community Center of Louisville.
Digitization supported by the Jewish Heritage Fund.<br /><br /><img src="https://jewishheritagefund.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" alt="jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" width="306" height="58" />
Source
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Jewish Community of Louisville museum collections and records, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Type
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
Date
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1945-1968
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Identifier
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Mss. BD J59 Folder 0538 Item 004
Title
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Report of Operations: YMHA Camp Tall Trees, 1950
Creator
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Sagerman, David A.
Young Men’s Hebrew Association (Louisville, Ky.)
Description
An account of the resource
29-page report on the 1950 season of Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. The Louisville Young Men's Hebrew Association (YMHA) operated the Jewish overnight summer camp.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1950
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
1950s
Subject
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Meade County (Ky.)
Brandenburg (Ky.)
Kentucky--Brandenburg
Kentucky--Meade County
Camp Tall Trees
Otter Creek Outdoor Recreation Area (Ky.)
Jews
Jewish children
Jewish youth
Jewish camps
Camps
Children
Youth
Sagerman, David A.
Young Men’s Hebrew Association (Louisville, Ky.)
Judaism--Customs and practices
Judaism
Jewish religious education
Democracy
Education
Leisure
Food service
Swimming--Training
Physical education and training
Motion pictures
Libraries
Format
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report
administrative report
Type
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Text
Language
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eng
Source
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Mss. BD J59, Folder 538, Jewish Community of Louisville records, 1896-2022, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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PDF Text
Text
July 14, 1951
EDITORIAL
This Is the second issue of the TALL
TREES TOWER. It is an attempt to
picture to you the many activities that
we, the campers of Camp TallTrees,
had during those two exciting weeks.
This second period we will all treasure
because of its excitement, its fun, and
its many chances to learn new activities
and make new friends. * We all learned
a great deal from camp.
WHAT’S COOKIN’ AT TALL TREES
Period
Issue No. 2
period; Jerry Miller, our head
, claims that Dave’s efforts
will be strictly an interfaith project
which Holy Name, which takes over Tail
trees after us, will benefit from. Dave,
however, has enlisted the aid of Davey
Kahn, and the two Daves are working
hard to show Jerry, and the rest of the
camp, that they are wrong. They
guarantee radishes, lettuce and carrots
for the last period banquet. Every day
after lunch and supper you can see these
two Camp Talltree farmers rationing
water to their starving plants from can
teens. Jerry just smiles and shakes
his head from side to side. Maybe
a prayer will help.
Many of us don’t realize it, but three of
the most important people in camp are
our kitchen staff. Fanny Rae, our be
loved cook, makes some mighty fine
FAMOUS MISQUOTES FROM '
.
dishes for us, and is assisted by her
COUNSELLORS
efficient and friendly helpers, Louise
and Miss Mary. They never seem to
lose their tempers with us, though some Jerry “I quit, Dave I Get an octupus 1 ”
times we can get mighty annoying.
Simon “There certainly is something to
Finally, there is our camp director,
what you say.”
David Sagerman, who brews up a right
smart amount of “bug juice” and makes
Fadel “Come on, £rls. Let’s go! ”
some delicious cake for ' the whole
A
camp.
Leon “Anyone find a frog around here?’?
BETTER HOMES & GARDENS
One of the new projects here in camp
is known in various circles as “Dave’s
Folly’’, “Camp Talltrees’ Interfaith
Program,’’ and other such titles. It
is Dave Sager man’s vegetable garden
by the basketball court. Dave has plan
ted carrots, lettuce, and radishes, in
his garden early in the beginning of the
Irv “Our next project will be a lion’s
cage.”
Susie “Nothing I like better than the
Ballet Theatre.”
Jane
“How did you say we do that?”
Helen “I just love camp I ”
Paul
‘ ‘Now, make like a windmill... ”
�- 2 -
A COUNSELLOR’S EYE-VIEW OF
HIS CAMPERS
With some apprehension I watched my
new group as they noisely clamored
from the bus. These beys immediate
ly got together like locusts in a field
of wheat, and remained together in
a solid, smoothly working unit for the
entire period. There were, of course,,
some normal falling outs in ihe usual
march of events; but my boys were
really “He Men” and right after any
problem they got together again and for
get. all differences. By the time these
campers left me, I had become more :
attached to them than I ever had before.
- Irv Goldstein.
A CAMP DIRECTOR’S HQPE^
A -v j,
Every child should know a;hi-JI,
And the clean joy of runr^^'c
its long slope
With the wind in his hair.',? k
The comfort of its cool lap of shade
And the supple strength of its arms
Balsfticing him between earth and sky
So he is the creature of both.
He should know bits of singing water The strange mysteries of its depths,
And the long sweet grasses that
border it.
Every child should know some scrap
Of uninterrupted sky, to shout against;
And have one star, dependable and
bright,
For wishing on.
WHAT IS SPORTSMANSHIP?
Sportsmanship is something we need
not only in our camp, but the world
over. For sportsmanship brings us
friends, happiness and satisfaction.
The games
activities that we have
are based on sportsmanship. In any
game we play or anything we do, we
find it is needed. When we go over to
the softball field or to the badminton
court, we see that we have a much
more enjoyable time if we are good
sports and cooperate with others. In
this camp we know the true meaning
of fellowship and friendship which in
Hie end add up to SPORTSMANSHIP.
- Delores Cohen
CONGRATULATIONS
Congratulations and best
wishes to our head counsellor,
Jerry Miller on his forthco
ming marriage to Miss Sara
Stein. Both the counsellors
and the campers join in to say
good luck, Jerry and Sara.
RELIGION IN CAMP
’
• ( •
Have you ever thought that all of
the great events in Judaism never
happened in cities ? Moses climbed
on top of a mountain to receive the
message of God, Elijah sought vic
tory ovgt the prophets of Baal on
a hill. Wnah found God on the high
seas. Somewhat in the same way
we in camp find God much closer to
us than in the cities. God lives
for us in ever'7 tree, in every sun
rise. When, we worship on Friday
and Saturday, it is our Judaism as
it should be — ? the Judaism of an
outdoor people, living among vine
yards and gardens. Here in the
camp, we find God much more
readily because we live with him all
day long. It is suitable that we begin
activities in camp by saying grace at
breakfast ernd close it with the singing
of “God is Nigh” at taps. And when
we retire with Nature’s symphony of
sound as our background, we feel God’s
presence nearer than ever.
�- 3 -
TALLTREES CHIPS
RIDDLE ME AGAIN ! ! I 1 ! I I !
John Pachter “What is a plant
The love bug sure gets around. Just'
that
has no roots?”
ask Gordon Gutmann and Irene Muhr.
Charles
Sapoznick - “A manu
Some of our cutest couples at camp
facturing plant. * ’
this year are Sandra Baldwin and
Charles Cohen, Joy Yudofsky and Emo
Eddie Mueller - What is a horn
ry Straus, Marcia Fox and Eddie
that
doesn’t toot ?
Gordon, Margie Berman and Eddie
Marty Weinberg - ”A shoe
Mueller, Beverly Goldsmith and Lee
horn.
”
Burstyn... Won’t David K. ever give
the girls a break?... Mona, Delores
Beverly Goldsmith - “Why
C and Ealaine are all racing after the
did the moron take peanuts to
same guy. Who is going to win?...
bed with him?”
Melvin G. seems to have no special
Ruth Ann Rozel - To feed his
girl in camp since his one and only
pigeon toes. ”
Lois is at home... Clarice Heller
and ''Pudgie” Marks make a cute
Nancy Seidman - “Why did the
couple, don’t they?... Carol Baker &
moron take hay to bed with him?
Dewey Wantz were seen at the movies
Margie Berman - “To feed his
together. They had a date for the
nightmare. ”
hayride.
-Sandra Turk & Sandra Baldwin.
- A. Nony. Mouse
“ A-TENTIN’
TOI^hSS^
COOKING OUT IS FUN
Our group went to Morgan’s Cave for
our
cookout. When we got there we
Cabins 64 &
looked for dry wood which was rather
from an overnight hike. We went with
hard
to find since it had rained earlier
Paul’s group to the Old Tenting Groun
in
the
day. Our counselor Helen chop
ds.
ped down a dead tree for firewood. We
After we arrived there, we unpacked
chopped
it into small pieces, then we
our bedrolls. Then we put up our tents.
made the fire.
Paul, with the help of the campers,
built a fire. Fadel, our counsellor, with For lunch we had Pronto Pups, baked
beans and coru-on-the-cob. After we ate
the help of Syrell Sapoznick, Louise
we cleaned up our trash and went down
Weaken. Davise Honig, Miriam
to the creek to wash the dishes.
Frank, Davise Honig, Miriam Frank,
We took pictures and we also explored for
Fran.iss Goldberg, Hannah Rita Wolf
a
while. Then we hiked back. We had a
son and Syrl Cohen, started supper.
very nice time.
After a short while, the 1 'never tiring
- Gerry Friedman
campers” set out for a short hike to
the General Store. When we returned,
NATURE BOY
we roasted marshmellows. Then Paul
told us a story.
One day during the second period our
After that we all went to bed. It was
group went on a nature hike to Van Bu
rather cold, but we all slept well. In
ren. Houston Oppenheimer saw a snake.
the morning we had another fire going.
We saw a spider with baby spiders on
After breakfast we started back again.
her back. We also saw a tree that had
It seemed shorter coming back than it
thorns two inches long.
did going. We all had a good time.
- Steve Hyman.
- Syrl Cohen.
�- 4 THE SECOND PERIOD CAMPERS
The Chatterboxes - Judy
Wolf , couns ellor .
The Sweetie Pies - Fadel Fried
lander, counsellor
Joy Yudofsky - She certainly lives
up to her first name.
Sandra Baldwin - “Can we lead a
song?”
Sandra Turk - “Are there secon
ds?”
Nancy Seidman - Future Miss
America.
Marcia Fox - Always cheerful.
Margie Berman - Well liked and
active in all activities.
Beverly Goldsmith - Pretty
dimples.
Beverly Ostroff - On the ball.
Miriam Frank - “When I marry
my millionaire the first thing I’ll do
is put escalators on these roads.”
Davise Honig - “I have men problems
but not the bad kind; I have the good kind.
Too many.”
Frances Goldberg - “Fadel, come
here quick i There’s an octupus in our
cabin.”
Syrl Cohen - “I don’t want to do it
unless Frances does it.”
Syrell Sapoznick - “The beginners
test was easy.”
Hannah Wolfson - “This is the first
time I’ve been at camp.”
Louise Weleken - “I put up two
tents by myself.”
The Lazy Daisies - Helen
Barish, counsellor.
Cabin 67 had a swell bunch of girls.
The chatterbox of the group was the
attractive brunette, Caryl Jane Flumbaum. Elain Levitan was always leader
on the hikes, and she kept up a swell
pace. The two “look-alikes” Mona
Garon and Sharon Morguelan were
always seen together. The cut-up of
the bunch, Gerry Friedman, was wellliked by all and helped her cabin mates
to have a swell time at camp.
-----
The Spirit of ’76 - Paul Bell,
c ouns ellor.
Mel Woodman - “Aw, come on,
Paul. Let’s go on a really rough hike.”
Ivan Marks - “ I’ve only had six
helpings of mashed potatoes. Can’t I
have sevenths?”
Dewey Wantz - “I think we should
play softball this morning. We haven’t
played it for hours.”
Barry Friedman - “But we just
The Fancy Pants - Jane Bermanpan’t hear that bell ring in the morning
counsellor.
and no one ever wakes us up. ”
John LeNard - “We’re moving to
Delores Cohen - “Let’s play soft- Washington but I’m not a congressman
ball.”
yet.”
Ruth Ann Rozel - “ All I like to do
----The
Wildcats
- Leon Kreitman,
is hike.”
Irene Muhr - “Let’s sing‘She Waded counsellor.
in the Water’.”
Charles Sapoznick - Lanyard king
Carol Baker -‘Camp is so much Richard Stern - “This place ain’t
civilized.
fun this year.”
Clarice Heller - “I want to sing.” Morty Weinberg - Good sense of
humor.
Debby Erlen - “Swimming is my
Jimmy Cohn - “What do we do next,
favorite sport.”
Leon?”
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Jewish Summer Camps, 1945-1968
Description
An account of the resource
Brochures, newspapers, reports, and textiles representing summer camps operated by the Young Men's Hebrew Association and the Jewish Community Center of Louisville.
Digitization supported by the Jewish Heritage Fund.<br /><br /><img src="https://jewishheritagefund.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" alt="jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" width="306" height="58" />
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Jewish Community of Louisville museum collections and records, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1945-1968
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Mss. BD J59 Folder 0538 Item 006
Title
A name given to the resource
Tall Trees Tower, Second Camping Period, July 14, 1951
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Camp Tall Trees
Goldstein, Irvin
Cohen, Delores
Turk, Sandra
Baldwin, Sandra
Cohen, Syrl
Hyman, Steve
Friedman, Gerry
Description
An account of the resource
Four-page newspaper produced by Jewish counselors and campers of Camp Tall Trees in Meade County, Kentucky. Includes a list of the cabins and campers with a characteristic of each.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1951-07-14
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
1950s
Subject
The topic of the resource
Meade County (Ky.)
Brandenburg (Ky.)
Kentucky--Brandenburg
Kentucky--Meade County
Camp Tall Trees
Otter Creek Outdoor Recreation Area (Ky.)
Jews
Jewish children
Jewish youth
Jewish camps
Camps
Children
Youth
Miller, Jerry
Stein, Sara
Wolf, Judy
Friedlander, Fadel
Bell, Paul
Kreitman, Leon
Berman, Jane
Barish, Helen
Goldstein, Irvin
Sagerman, David
Faith
Judaism
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
newspaper
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Still Image
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Mss. BD J59, Folder 538, Jewish Community of Louisville records, 1896-2022, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
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a97f106017120dcd74a8d673e9ab20db
PDF Text
Text
�7
Monday
June 18
Monday
July 9
56 ^5^1/ ___ S
FIRST
thru
SECOND
thru
9:30 - 9:50 - Campers gather
. - “in cab In- dis 2
cuss cabin proJ s c ts •
9:50 -10:10 - Assembly
songs and plans
for the day.
10:15-11:00 - Activity period.
11:00-11:45 - Crafts,rhythm:
band,a thle ti cs,
dramatics,danc
ing, etc.
11:45-12:00 - Washing up and
getting ready
for lunch.
12:00- 1:30 - Rest period
(Monday - Camp
Council)
1:30 - 4;O0- Swim at a lo’
cal pool. An
attempt will
be made to
teach (each
child to swim.
4:00 - 4;30- Return to Camp.
■Milk & Cookies.
4:30
- Dismissal
Friday
July 6
Friday
July 27
Camp operates Monday thru
Friday from 9:30 A.M. to
4:30 P.M.________
_______ -
77^J
Registration must be for
one full period.
There will be two three
week periods.;
Rates':
$4.00 per week for
.members
$4.50 per week for
non-membei^s____ ___»
Application forms and fur
ther information may be
obtained by calling:
Robert H. Weiner
Y.M.H.A. - Jackson 7164
Fees are payable in ad
vance.
are
Camp Riccaree operates from the Y.M.L.A. building where
ainine
located cabins, craft shops, council ring, ana the dining
room. The camp is operated during the day with activities
and program similar to a boarding camp., Parks, swimming
pools, and other public and private facilities are used as
occasions warrant.
Young Men’s Hebrew Association
729 South Second Street
Louisville 2, Kentucky
Jackson 7164
C 4 I P
STAFF
- Camp Committe Chr.
Alexander’Erlen - Gen.Secretary.
Robert Weiner - Camp Director
Mildred Bloom - Head Counselor
Abe B. Berman
Mail your application in
early.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Jewish Summer Camps, 1945-1968
Description
An account of the resource
Brochures, newspapers, reports, and textiles representing summer camps operated by the Young Men's Hebrew Association and the Jewish Community Center of Louisville.
Digitization supported by the Jewish Heritage Fund.<br /><br /><img src="https://jewishheritagefund.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" alt="jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" width="306" height="58" />
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Jewish Community of Louisville museum collections and records, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1945-1968
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Mss. BD J59 Folder 0538 Item 001
Title
A name given to the resource
Camp Riccaree YMHA Day Camp, 1945
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Young Men’s Hebrew Association (Louisville, Ky.)
Schwartz, Allan
Description
An account of the resource
2-page brochure for the June-July 1945 season of Camp Riccaree day camp operated by the Young Men's Hebrew Association in Louisville, Kentucky. The center fold notes "Camp Riccaree operates from the Y.M.H.A. building where are located cabins, craft shops, council ring, and the dining room. The camp is operated during the day with activities and programs similar to a boarding camp. Parks, swimming pools, and other public and private facilities are used as occasions warrant." The brochure details the fees, season and daily schedules, and staff.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1945
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
1940s
Subject
The topic of the resource
Young Men’s Hebrew Association (Louisville, Ky.)
Camp Riccaree
Louisville (Ky.)
Kentucky--Louisville
Jews
Jewish children
Jewish youth
Jewish camps
Camps
Children
Youth
Judaism--Customs and practices
Judaism
Jewish religious education
Berman, Abe B.
Erlen, Alexander
Weiner, Robert H.
Bloom, Mildred
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
brochure
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Still Image
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Mss. BD J59, Folder 538, Jewish Community of Louisville records, 1896-2022, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
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aad002eb83a27838a1c39458cc6e698c
PDF Text
Text
���
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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The Holocaust and the Ohio Valley, 1920, 1933-1990s
Description
An account of the resource
This collection consists of documents and photographs related to Jewish experiences in the Holocaust and World War II, Jewish American efforts to support refugees, and historical memory of the Holocaust in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. This digitization project is in partnership with the Louisville Ballet's <em><a href="https://www.louisvilleballet.org/a-time-remembered/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">A Time Remembered</a> </em>performance, which marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
<div><br />Holocaust-era family documents center on the Wolff, Levy, and Ackermann families who escaped to the United States from France and Austria, and ultimately settled in Louisville. Passports provide photographs of the family members and track their movements through countries. Letters document their efforts to navigate the administrative barriers to passage, and the tragic fate of relatives who were not approved to leave.<br /><br />Records from the National Council of Jewish Women, Louisville Section document the organization's activist work in fundraising for and directly serving refugees in the city, and political organizing around national immigration policies and economic boycotts of German-made goods. The collection includes sample correspondence from national organizations and individuals who supported and were against Zionism in response to the violent antisemitism of the Holocaust. <br /><br />The final items in the collection document Holocaust memorial events in the 1990s. Invitations, photographs, scripts, press releases, and articles represent the memorialization work of the Jewish Community Center, Jewish Community Federation of Louisville, <span>Louisville Ballet, Louisville Orchestra, and other organizations.</span></div>
<br />This project was generously supported by the Jewish Heritage Fund.<br /><br /><a href="https://jewishheritagefund.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://jewishheritagefund.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" alt="jhfe-logo-leftaligned-color@2x.png" width="306" height="58" /></a>
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1920, 1933-1990s
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
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Mss. A B527a Folder 01 Item 02
Title
A name given to the resource
Letter from Isaac W. Bernheim to A. B. Cowen, September 15, 1941
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Bernheim, Isaac Wolfe, 1848-1945
Description
An account of the resource
A letter from retired Louisville distiller and philanthropist Isaac W. Bernheim (1848-1945) to A. B. Cowen reflecting on the state of Judaism and Jewish life in the United States in relation to World War II and broader changes. He stresses elements of Reform Judaism and argues against the undercurrents of Zionism, referring to Judaism as "a universal religion which knows no land or people or race."
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1941-09-15
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
1940s
Subject
The topic of the resource
Judaism
Jews
World War, 1939-1945
Jewish Holocaust (1939-1945)
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
letter
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Mss. A B527a, Folder 1, Bernheim, Isaac Wolfe, 1848-1946. Papers, 1922-1943, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
-
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a26abfb39c9fc87c83927e258f9d8401
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Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. lam
with
on
Kimberly Feinberg, I am conducting an interview
Genie Aberson
for the JFVS archives
July 30, 2007.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My mother, through my grandparents,
was first generation bom in Louisville,
they came from different parts of Germany, grandfather Joseph Lang came from Frankfort
and grand
mother came from Aingbach. And they
came over here and met in Louisville.
My Father’s family is from Germany also, but not sure which parts, the name was
Lowenstein. Elsie Flisher. Fleischer was my other Grandmother Lowenstein
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
annie Lang
Mother
was Fbom in Louisville.
Father Stanley Ben Lowenstein in Hamilton OH
They met when
she went to university of Cincinnati an
Conservatory
d
he went to
School
law school
of Music
in Cincy there and that’s
how they met.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
March 18, 1940. mainly English, a little German, quite a bit later when grandmother
lived with us when I was about 12. first house was 2228 village drive in Louisville,
near the famous village drive circle in the highlands. When I was bout 12 we moved to
2320 on village drive. Brother, mother, father, grandmother and leased with us.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
A lot of Jewish people lot of fun. It was like a temple. And a lot of my parents friends knew each
other and were friends with each other, and we would hang out with the many Jewish people there. A
lot of my parents’ friends who were Jewish were in the neighborhood also. No, Iwalked
could have
to school but I was driven. I wentto temple and Sunday school, we were in a driving
group then. Was both, the model drug store was a Jewish drugstore and we would go over there
& have delicious sodas and we would hang out and have a good time.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
It probably affected my family, but not me. I didn’t really feel it.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
�A lot of car trips, some plane^Jhatwas^yery exciting and it was not as frequent, by plane we went
to Cincinnati and Chicago, we took a trip to Hawaii, when I was in high school, and my
brother had just graduated that
fromwas
highaschool.
big deal we loved that.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
Very actively, my grandfather on my mother’s side was president of the temple, Brith Sholom
My father was
pres of temple,BrithShol mand mother pres of sisterhood. I had a very involved family.fathempl or 8 years
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All of them, especially Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Hanukkah, and Passover was a
big deal to my family. I have wonderful memories of it.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
Yes, confirmed.
I was
11.What is your educational background? What was your career?
Hs, and 3 yrs to college the university of Miami and University
transferred toof Kentucky and at
UofL a few courses but didn’t graduate. Elementary education. And volunteered.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I was bom here and never left. There were friends and family and it was easy. and I loved it.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
Well it’s really cute. I was at University of Kentucky I had just transferred from U of Miami
Miami to be with someone I had been with in high school. And his fraternity brother
introduced us at a frat party. October 16, 1960. 3 children. 2 daughters and a son.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
I was a vice president of the sisterhood, at Brith Shohem which is now combined
with the temple, membership chair, active in the guild, women’s auxiliary officer of
in Jewish Hospita
that, head of the bingo project, and patients watched bingo and patients loved it. I just
like to volunteer one time things, and now I still like to help out
a little bit. Yes.was
My very
husband
involved in the J
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
�My grandfather brought over a lot of his family about 1930’s and came over himself
for better job opportunity. Not really no.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Going to Israel. We were on a mission from New York and I never imagined that something could
be that touching. Even though you read about it, you can’t even visualize. And the
wonderful education from the guides, I feel very lucky that I got that experience. Very much
did, mother loved going to temple and had a lot of sayings thank god and knock on wood.
She had high spirituality and loved going to temple and the holidayswere very impressed on
me. And fasting and Passover andobservdtheritualsofJudaismthe whole bit.
'J"
Love to read, bridge, canasta, tennis, work out, going to art museums, and art ©lass,'
and works or art, piays and symphony, being social, and being with friends having
them over and having cookouts.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Christmas, because my in-laws anniversary was Christmas day, being their
anniversary we always had friends and made a big deal out of the day. Holidays,
birthdays and any family occasion.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
Good mother, and a friend, and a active
grandparent, and sister, family is the most
important. We are very close. Closeness of family and being there for each other and
make the most of being together and share the closeness. Do for each other and
always enjoy and make the most of their time together. Even if they don’t live in the
same city make time to see each other and be there for each other. Bea wonderful
parent and grandparent. And be proud of what religion
you are, your Jewishness, and give
back to your community because it’s been so good to you through volunteering or
monetarily. donating
JFVS/aj 07/30/07
Word.olderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. lam
with
on
Kimberly Feinberg, I am conducting an interview
Genie Aberson
for the JFVS archives
July 30, 2007.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My mother was first generation bom in Louisville, my grandparents came from
different parts of Germany, my grandfather, Joseph Lang, came from Frankfort and
grandmother came from Ainsbach. And they came over here, and met in Louisville.
My father’s family is from Germany also, but not sure which parts, name was
Lowenstein. Elsie Fleischer Lowenstein was my other grandmother.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother, Fannie Lang, was bom in Louisville.
My father, Stanley Ben Lowenstein, was bom in Hamilton, OH.
They met when she went to University of Cincinnati Conservatory School of Music
and he went to law school in Cincinnati, and that’s how they met.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
March 18, 1940. mainly English, a little German, quite a bit later when grandmother
lived with us when I was about 12. First house was 2228 village drive in Louisville,
near the famous Village Drive Circle. In the highlands. When I was about 12 we
moved to 2320 on village drive. Brother , mother, father, grandmother lived with us.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
A lot of Jewish people lot of fun. It was like a temple. And a lot of my parent’s
friends knew each other, we were friends with each other, and we would hang out
with the many Jewish people there. A lot of my parents’ friends who were Jewish
were in the neighborhood also. No, I could have walked to school, but I was driven. I
went to temple and Sunday school; we were in a driving group then. There were
both, the Model Drug Store, was a Jewish drugstore and we would go over there and
have delicious sodas and we would hang out and have a good time.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
It probably affected my family, but not me. I didn’t really feel it.
�7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
A lot of car trips, some plane, that was very exciting and it was not as frequent, by
plane I went to Cincinnati and Chicago, and the family took a trip to Hawaii, when I
was in high school, my brother had just graduated from high school and that was a
big deal, we loved that.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
Very actively, my grandfather on my mother’s side was president of the temple Brith
Shalom, my father president of temple Brith Shalom, and mother president of
sisterhood at Brith Shalom for 8 years. I had a very involved family at the temple.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All of them, especially Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Hanukkah, and Passover were
a big deal to my family. I have wonderful memories of it.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
Yes, I was confirmed.
11 .What is your educational background? What was your career?
High school, and 3 yrs to college the University of Miami and transferred to
University of Kentucky, and I took a few courses at UofL, but didn’t graduate.
Elementary education. And volunteered.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I was bom here and never left. There were friends and family and it was easy and I
loved it.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
Well it’s really cute. I was at University of Kentucky I had just transferred from the
University of Miami to be with someone I had been with in high school. And his
fraternity brother introduced us at a frat party. October 16, 1960. 3 children. 2
daughters and a son.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
I was a vice president of the sisterhood, at Brith Shohem which is now combined
with the temple, membership chair, active in the guild, women’s auxiliary officer of
�Jewish Hospital in that, head of the bingo time project, and patients watched bingo
and patients loved it. I just like to volunteer one shot things, and now I still like to
help out a little bit. Yes, my husband was very involved in the Jewish community.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My grandfather brought over a lot of his family about 1930’s and came over himself
for better job opportunity. Not really no.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Going to Israel. We were on a UJA mission from New York, and I never imagined
that something could be that touching. Even though you read about it, you can’t even
visualize. And the wonderful education from the guides, I feel very lucky that I got that
experience. Very much did, mother loved going to temple and had a lot of sayings thank god
and knock on wood. She had high spirituality and loved going to temple and the holidays
were very impressed on me. And fasting and Passover, and observed the rituals of Judaism.
Also the importance of the Seder, because my family made a big deal out of that by
having lots of family. It was most enjoyable and memorable having the short service with all
of us participating.
17. What interests do you have?
Love to read, play bridge, play canasta, I played tennis, I work out, going to art
museums, and art glass, and works of art, Broadway plays and attending symphony,
being social, and being with friends having them over and having cookouts.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Christmas, because my in-laws anniversary was Christmas day, being their
anniversary we always had friends and made a big deal out of the day. Holidays,
birthdays and any family occasion.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
To be a good mother, and a friend, and a caring, active grandparent, and sister, family
is the most important. We are very close. Closeness of family and being there for
each other and make the most of being together and share the closeness. Do for each
other and always enjoy and make the most of their time together. Even if they don’t
live in the same city make time to see each other and be there for each other. Be a
wonderful parent and grandparent. And be proud of what religion you are, your
Jewishness, and give back to your community because it’s been so good to you
through volunteering or monetarily donating.
JFVS/aj 07/30/07
Word.olderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�Jewish Family & \Vocational Service
Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
JFVS is always here throughout
every season of your life.
Board of Directors
Judy Freundlich Tiell
Executive Director
Barbara Goldberg
President
Debbie Friedman
Jay Klempner
Vice Presidents
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
Mark Ament
Treasurer
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Lowell D. Katz, M.D.
Ex-officio President
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky 40205.
Mitchell Charney
Jane Goldstein
Marjorie B. Kohn
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Gail Pohn
Lillian Seligman
Steven Shapiro
Jeffrey Weiss
P'^t Presidents
My story will be kept in the JFVS Library and can be accessed by interested people.
It will be preserved archivally for future generations.
o D. Cole
Arthur Grossman
Shelton R. Weber
Honorary Directors
Caren Carney
Sally Davis
Ann Friedman
Sandi Friedson
Alyson Goldberg
Rick Greenberg
Ronald Levine
Martin Margulis
Stephanie Mutchnick
Marsha Beck Roth
Hunt Schuster
Brian Segal
Bernard Sweet
Reed Weinberg
Amy Wisotsky
Rabbi David Ariel-Joel
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Nadia Siritsky
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Rabbi Bradley C. Tecktiel
JFVS/aj 7/18/007
Word.coununit. permission.history
Association of Jewish
Family & Children's
Agencies
International Association of
Jewish Vocational Services
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
Metro United Way
3587 Dutchmans Lane • Louisville, Kentucky 40205 • (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
Type
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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024x6_abersong
Title
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Interview with Genie Aberson, 2007
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Genie Aberson (1940-) on July 30, 2007. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Aberson, Genie, 1940-
Feinberg, Kimberly
Date
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2007-07-30
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Aberson, Leslie D., 1936-
Highlands (Louisville, Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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4c7091a749815921c01270ebbb94b0ee
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. lam
with
on
Ann Friedman
Les Aberson
February 4, 2002
, I am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My maternal grandparents come from Latvia, Russia in the late 1890’s. They came
after the pogroms came into power for freedom. One of my mother’s brothers was
bom in Russia. He was the only sibling to be bom there. They came to New York
and then moved to St. Louis. He was a blacksmith.
On my father’s side, my grandparents came from Russia, moved to Germany,
England, and then St. Louis. My father’s mother was from Worchester England. My
dad’s father was a tailor, and made clothing.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My father, Hillard Aberson, was bom 8/15/1903 in St. Louis. My mother Adele
Wenneier Aberson, was bom 2/10/1911 in St. Louis.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
I was bom on 5/30/36. English was spoken in my house, but my mother would speak
Yiddish when she wanted to say something secretively. My mother and sister lived in
the house with me in St. Louis. My sister’s name is Renee Aberson Hymson.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
I lived in a Will Simon neighborhood, you knew your neighbors. My oldest friends
were Irish Catholic, white Jewish, and non-Jewish. There was no prejudice shown.
There was an area with though guys, but I always went with my Irish friends, and
they left us alone. I walked alone to Delmar-Hamed, my school, which was a few
miles to walk to. I went to Hamley Junior High School, and we had moved far west
to a larger home. I had a very long walk of two or three miles. Winters were cold and
there was no bus. We moved to Lexington when I went to Lafayette High. I got my
driver’s license when I was 15, and I had skipped a grade. I drove the last few years
to School.
I was part of the Sheramut Congregation in St. Louis. When we moved to Lexington
I was part of Adath Israel. My family went to services. I blew the shofar on Rosh
�Hashanah. They would pull pranks on me. One year there was streamers, one year
confetti. When I blew the shofar herds would come. We had no air conditioning, and
they would flock to the area.
In St. Louis Mr. Jaspers was the grocery store, but there was no drug store. Mr.
Jaspers was very nice and let us have a pickle. You knew everybody.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
We were not part of the flood.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
Automobile
When we were very young we would always go with my parents on vacation. We
went to Miami, Lexington, Louisville, and New England. When we were in
Lexington there was a lot of family together; lots of aunts and uncles. We had lots of
family picnics, and they were great.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
My father was president of the brotherhood, and my mother was president of the
sisterhood.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All of the holidays were observed. Christmas was my parents’ anniversary, and we
had a big tree. We celebrated every major Jewish holiday.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I attended Adath Israel and was confirmed.
11. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I got a BS from UK in 1957, and a law degree in 1960. My first job was attorney for
the department of highways, appellate division. I would write briefs for court of
appeals. I wrote the case: Low to value lease hold interests in to eminent domain. I
wrote laws that are still in effect today. It was a precedent. It stands as a landmark
case. I then went to trail as district attorney for Lexington, KY (27 counties). After a
year the director of the Louisville department wanted to make me an assistant. We
decided that we had to leave Lexington and turned down the big promotion.
I left and went with Shelly Wehers and Fred Goldberg. I was with them 2 years, and
did general work. I wanted to do a different kind of law. I had been working for Jae
Kaplan, and he hired me. He had a well respected practice. This was in 1963.1 did
trial work, business law, and estate work.
Today my law relates to business and real estate; it relates almost exclusively to
corporate tax and estate work.
�12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
My position with Goldberg in 1961.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
Genie was dating my little brother in my fraternity, and she broke up with him. I then
started to date her.
Genie loved to go out to dinner. I never called her for a date, I just drove in and often
she was on a date. Once I went there and I spent time with her folks. She asked me to
marry her. I got her a watch for our engagement.
I hadn’t packed to our honeymoon, and I also lost my pants. We had to go back and
pack.
We were married at Brith Shalom October 16, 1960 by Martin Perely and Joe
Rosenbloom.
We had three children. Karen Lowenstein Aberson Mengel married Dr. Barry
Mengel and had two children, Abigail Fae Mengel and Jashua Sonley. Angela Lynn
Aberson Weildstein married Daniel Weilstein and had two children, Max and
Charles. Leslie Hillard Aberson married DJacqueline and had two children, Jordon
Hunter and Gabriella Ashley.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
I was president of Bnai Brith, Brith Shalom, and the temple men’s club. I was on the
Jewish Hospital board, public capital campaign chair for Jewish Hospital, capital
campaign chair for Temple, and a board member for the conference of Christians and
Jews.
Genie was part of the sisterhood, and my children were in religious clubs; my whole
family was involved in temple.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
During WWII all of my cousins were in the Pacific and Europe. My mother helped
with the Red Cross, and my father was also involved. All of my cousins came back.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Rabbi Gordon from St. Louis was a fabulous guy. When he spoke it was as if G-d
was speaking.
My parents’ values were unbelievable.
All of the arts are important, they set the example. I had a very special mom and dad
that always made time.
When I was in grade school a teacher asked me to write an essay about the man you
most admired and I wrote about my dad. I was the only one.
I am awed by nature.
�I try to follow Jewish values; it’s the values as much as the religion. It’s not the ritual
it’s who and what you are.
17. What interests do you have?
Professionally, well read, business I am in, and friendships are my interests.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Holidays were fabulous. I remember my dad’s mother, she was the only grandparent
alive, special occasions, my birthday, Christmas, we had Hershey and no one could
get it, we had a party at my parents’ at Christmas. For my parents’ big occasions we
had big parties. All of my life cycle events were important.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
That others had learned values from me and people are proud of me and love me. I
want them to think of the great memories we had together. I want people to think of
me as a good person.
It is important to be caring and honest. Good character leaves a good name.
JFVS/aj 06/13/07
Word.olderAdult.OralHistaries.forms
�Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
Board of Directors
Stephanie Speige!
Executive Director
Marjorie B. Kohn
President
Steven Shapira
President Elect/Treasurar
Barbara Goldberg
David Handmaker
Lowell Katz
Robert Riley
Vice Presidents
Gail Pohn
Ex-officio President
MltcheH Charney
jane Goldstein
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Lillian Seligman
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS Library and can be accessed by
interested people. It will be preserved archivally for future generations.
Lewis D. Cole
Alexander Erlen
Arthur Grossman
Shelton R.Weber
Honorary Directors
'Km ent
Bennett
Ellyn Berman
Joan Byer
Howard L- Cantor
Natalie Davis
Jonathan Dubins
Simon Reids
Phyllis Horman
Ann Friedman
Bob German
Rachel Greenberg
Debbie Hyman
Howard KapHn
Jay Klempner
Benjamin Levitan
Chuck OXoon
Jordan Pohn
Suzy Post
Mona Schramko
Judy Shapira
Julie Strull
Susan Waterman
Frank Welsberg
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Rabbi Bradley C.Tecktiel
Witness
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 10/4/01
Word, coununitpannission.history
Association of Jewish
Family & Children's
Agencies
International Association of
Jewish Vocational Services
Accredited by
til of Accreditation of Services
pllies and Children, Inc.
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
�Feb
15 02
11:21a
502-326-2669
Bob Friedman
p.2
LESLIE D. ABERSON
PERSONAL INFORMATION:
PROFESSIONAL:
Member of law firm Rothschild, Aberson, Miller & Goodin
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND:
Bachelor of Science Degree - University of Kentucky - 1957
Juris Doctor - University of Kentucky - 1960
CURRENT MEMBERSHIPS AND ORGANIZATIONS;
Director - University of Kentucky Law School Foundation since 1987
Fellow - University of Kentucky
Director - Louisville Free Public Library Foundation since 1988
Director - Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame since 1963
(Bank of Louisville)
Director - MidAmerica Bancorp
since 1982
Member - Jewish Hospital Institutional Review Committee
Director - The Temple
RECENT PAST MEMBERSHIPS AND ORGANIZATIONS:
Member Kentucky Council on Higher Education until 1992
Director - Jewish Hospital of Louisville
Director - Louisville Medical Research Foundation
President & Director - B'rith Sholom Temple
Director - National Conference of Christians and Jews
Vice President
Louisville
&
Director
-
Jewish
Community
Federation
of
�Feb
15 02
11:22a
Bob Friedman
502-326-2669
Leslie D. Aberson
Page 2
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:
Louisville Bar Association
Kentucky Bar Association
Kentucky Trial Lawyer's Association
American Trial Lawyer's Association
Admitted to practice - State of Kentucky, United States Tax Court
and Supreme Court of the United States
MISCELLANEOUS:
Recipient - Louis Cole Young Leadership Award
Married - former Regene Jo Lowenstein.
Three children: Karen A.
Mangel,
Angie A.
Wildstein and Leslie H Aberson.
Three
grandchildren: Abigail and Josh Mangel and Maxwell H. Wildstein.
p.3
�Feb
15 02
1 1 :22a
p. 4
502-326-2669
Bob Fr i edman
LESLIE D. ABERSON
CURRENT MEMBERSHIPS AND ORGANIZATIONS:
Director - Louisville Free Public Library Foundation since 1968
Director - Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame since 1963
(Bank of Louisville) since 1982
Director - MidAmerica Bancorp
Member - Jewish Hospital Institutional Review Committee
Director - The Temple and current Chairman of The Temple Capital
Campaign Drive
Fellow - University of Kentucky
RECENT PAST MEMBERSHIPS AND ORGANIZATIONS:
Director - University of Kentucky Law School Foundation
Member Kentucky Council on Higher Education until 1992
Director - Jewish Hospital of Louisville
Director - Louisville Medical Research Foundation
President & Director - B1rith Sholom Temple
Director - National Conference of Christians and Jews
Vice President
Louisville
&
Director
-
Jewish
Community
Federation
of
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS:
Louisville Bar Association
Kentucky Bar Association
Admitted to practice - State of Kentucky, United States Tax Court
and Supreme Court of the United States
C: \DOCUMENT\IxDA-PERS\lda .bio2 -wpd
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
Language
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eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_abersonl
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Les Aberson, 2002
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Leslie D. Aberson (1936-) on February 4, 2002. The summary is accompanied by Aberson's resume. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Aberson, Leslie D., 1936-
Friedman, Ann
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2002-02-04
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
St. Louis (Mo.)
Missouri
Lexington (Ky.)
Fayette County (Ky.)
Lawyers
Aberson, Genie, 1940-
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/2a0e2f175d3b79d0652a8242d18b5ee8.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=PABGvT23Gb7qGmhU0RF3Y%7E8jOhS7d-jnNdoHcW7cc6gwsrO7oFxoj6Afq11Z6aotUb20%7EAeE53U6eGNOBXJWydxdFsEsG32wxSumdboZyaPV8Xle2WMEx9ImgypdlF4vYwrkTDhwJC3XFQtSG14JFMf1IzlfwyeAQUFKe49y5-iZn1WKlF%7EmKk-2UI6qiIDIISAPwkeCDqAlqoxNT6gOKm21vxtP27hPGwUiZU%7EiryOqFOYj-hfEA9GC7sc7bhCtrPq1kd4ntIIdhH66-sxDPJlMLpgDHlUrzsoU%7EaHc6yjIrKq9LzlHxjD%7EOu%7Euyy8HFuughh%7EzhZ0FkIkQWJnoVA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
a4355990ed26a9e10d8e2cb22764e968
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. I am
with
on
Robert Friedman
, I am conducting an interview
Marie K. Abrams
for the JFVS archives
October 2, 2001.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
Charles SW1 helped my father come from Germany in 1929 when he was 18 years old, because
Hitler was coming into power, and he had to leave.
My grandmother came in 1939, because she wouldn’t leave my grandfather while he was alive.
My mother’s grandparents came from Lithuania and were married in 1893 in Louisville, Kentucky,
and then went to Mississippi and lived there in a small town until my grandmother came over from
Lithuania in 1886. After my mother was bom they moved back to Louisville.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother Thelma Evans Kahn 4/22/12-7/10/89 was bom in Louisville, Kentucky.
My father Leo Kahn 2/7/11- 4/27/87 was bom in Germany.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
I was bom 10/19/37.
My father decided that English would be the only language spoken in my house. Even when
refugees came to our house he would only speak English.
We lived on Auerbach er Court when I was bom. When I was 1 /2 we moved to Murray.
We had a one bedroom apartment, in which the maid lived along with the family, so I slept in the
back.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
There were Jews were in my neighborhood, we were the only Jewish family, and people walked
places. It was 2-3 blocks to the grocery store, Liberty Bank, and Cherokee Dairy, where everyone
walked to get ice cream. When I was in 5th and 6th grades I walked to both school and temple.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
This question was not asked
�7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
I preferred traveling by bus. From the age of 1 I went to AJ until I was about 3. When I was 8 or 9 I
would go to YMHA to dancing school.
Every Saturday I went to Brith Shalom, and then Laura Kahy and I would go to 2nd and Broadway
for lunch and a movie. When we took long trips we took the train and when I was a teenager we
used a car.
I went to Chattanooga and I stayed one month during the Polis Scare, and for 5years I went to
Biloxi Mississippi for a big family reunion.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
My father was on the board of the temple.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
We celebrated Passover dinner at my mother’s sister’s (Aunt Sophie’s) house, Rosh Hashanah at
home, and for the Sabbath I went to Brith Shalom every Saturday.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I attended temple and was confirmed with my class until we graduated high school which no other
class had done.
11. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I spent 2 years at Vanderbilt and 2 years at the University of Louisville. I received History, Sacred
Science, and a Teaching certificate. I then taught at Southern High for 2.5 years, and when I stopped
teaching there was a great teacher increase.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I have always lived in Louisville. My family came here when my mother was bom.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
I met Ronnie at Vanderbilt. I was a Frat. Project. I was dating a ZBT
Parents picked me up at end of freshman year. My mother said about Ronnie, “He’s cute.”
�I said “yuck”
When I went sophomore year I had broken up with the ZBT brother. Ronnie decided they were
going to rush the Jewish girls. I always had dates with the 2 guys. Ronnie said he was serious so I
stopped dating the other guy.
We were married on February 2, 1958 in my parents’ living room. We had a choice of big wedding
or small and cash was sparse to us.
I had two children, Elizabeth Sue (Beth) Abrams Mitchell 5/11/62 and
Marc Neil Abrams 5/19/64.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
Club?
My mother and father active in the temple, Shriners, and Oldhum Church.
My mother was very active in NCSW but wouldn’t take presidency. When I joined she resigned.
NCJW?
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My father’s father (my grandfather) was killed in WWI in Germany.
WWII my father was of age to be drafted but declared 47-7th and became an air raid warden. I
remember the rations and tin cans. My family had no personal involvement in Israeli wars.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
I always was devout to Judaism because of the concept of giving and responsibility to uphold
justice to make the world a better place.
As a teenager I was attentive to services. I didn’t think of spirituality. I lived through Judaism “It’s
what you do” if you are a Jew.
I was always drawn to livelihood passages, “Do Justice-love mercy. I walk humbly with thou G-d.”
There is not a day in my life that I’m not affected by choices. I can make (Jewish) it’s me!
17. What interests do you have?
My interests include family, community service, friends, and reading.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
They all deal with humor and storytelling. My father was a practical joker and my children still tell
Thelma and Ted jokes or stories.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
My legacy is my children. Remembered for their humor and humanity.
�I want to be remembered for the small things that have affected others.
Little victories are the values that everyone should take with them.
JFVS/aj 06/01/07
Word.olderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�Resume
MARIE K. ABRAMS
2829 Avenue of the Woods
Louisville, KY 40241
502-426-4220
CURRENT COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
Board of Trustees, University of Louisville
Board, Jewish Council for Public Afiairs (JCPA)
Board, Southern Regional Council
Board, Center for Women and Families
United Jewish Communities (UJC), Trustee and Pillar member of HSSP (Human Services and
Social Policy)
UJC, HSSP Chair of National Agencies Committee
PAST COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
National Vice Chair, National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council (NJCRAC)
Co-Chair Equal Opportunity and Social Justice Task Force, NJCRAC
Race and Public Policy Ad Hoc Committee, JCPA
Chair, Social Security Task Force, Council of Jewish Federation’s Washington Action Office
Chairperson, Kentucky Commission on Women
President, National Council of Jewish Women (N.C.J.W.), Louisville Section
Member, National Board, N.C.J.W. and Vice Chair of National Affairs Committee
President, Kentucky Youth Advocates
Leadership Kentucky Class, 1986
Board, Louisville Jewish Community Federation
Chair, Women's Division, Louisville United Jewish Campaign
Chair, Community Relations Council, Jewish Community Federation
Advisory Council, Jefferson County Office for Women
Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Task Force
Louisville Public Education Committee (group of 12 people appointed by the Chamber of
Commerce to involve the business community in the direction and quality of education in our
community)
Chairman, Israel Advisory Committee of the Louisville Community Relations Council (CRC)
Governor's Task Force on Juvenile Delinquency; Chair, Subcommittee on Status Offenders
Board, Jewish Hospital
Chair, Task Force on Educational Funding, Jefferson County Public Schools
Chair, Community-wide pro- and anti-busing dialogue group appointed by mayor and county
judge to reduce tension
Chair, Title XX Coalition
White House Conference on Domestic and Economic Affairs
Board member, Louisville and Jefferson County Youth Commission
�Board member, Jewish Social Service Agency
Board member, Family and Children’s Agency
Board member, Jewish Community Center
Delegate, Democratic National Convention, 1988
Chair, Harvey Sloane Inauguration, 1982
EMPLOYMENT
Legislative Aide to Kentucky Senate Majority Office, 1982-Present, (full-time during sessions,
part-time in interim)
Associate, Schimpeler Corradino & Associates, 1984-1989, an engineering and urban design firm
(coordinated projects, managed public involvement activities and served as intergovernmental
liaison)
Legislative Aide to Chairman Senate Appropriations and Revenue Committee, 1980
Administrative Assistant to Governor of Kentucky during 1972 and 1974 General Assemblies
Public School Teacher
AWARDS
Hannah G. Solomon Award, National Council of Jewish Women, Louisville Section
Lewis Cole Young Leadership Award, Jewish Community Federation
Wilson Wyatt, Sr. Award, Leadership Kentucky
National Conference Brotherhood Award
Ottenheimer Award
EDUCATION
Vanderbilt University, 1955-1957
B.A., University of Louisville, 1959 - Social Science Major
�Jewish Family & Vocational Service
Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
Board of Directors
Stephanie Speigel
Executive Director
Marjorie B. Kohn
President
Steven Shapiro
President Elect/Treasurer
Barbara Goldberg
David Handmaker
Lowell Katz
Robert Riley
Vice Presidents
Gail Pohn
Ex-officio President
Mitchell Charney
Jane Goldstein
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Lillian Seligman
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
Lewis D. Cole
Alexander Erlen
Arthur Grossman
Shelton R.Weber
Honorary Directors
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS library unless I choose to keep it myself.
’ark Ament
.ne Bennett
_ilyn Berman
Joan Byer
Howard L Cantor
Natalie Davis
Jonathan Dubins
Simon Fields
Phyllis Florman
Ann Friedman
Bob German
Rachel Greenberg
Debbie Hyman
Howard Kaplin
Jay Klempner
Benjamin Levitan
Chuck O'Koon
Jordan Pohn
Suzy Post
Mona Schramko
Judy Shapira
Julie Strull
Susan Waterman
Frank Weisberg
Participant
Witness
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Rabbi Bradley C.Tecktiel
JFVS/aj 5/14/01
Word.coununit.p
Association of Jewish
Family & Children's
Agencies
International Association of
Jewish Vocational Services
Accredited by
Council of Accreditation of Services
or Families and Children, Inc.
United Way
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
3587 Dutchmans Lane • Louisville, Kentucky 40205 • (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�
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The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
Language
A language of the resource
eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_abramsm
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Marie Abrams, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Marie Abrams (1937-) on October 2, 2001. The summary is accompanied by Marie Abrams's resume. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Abrams, Marie K., 1937-
Friedman, Robert
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2001-10-02
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Highlands (Louisville, Ky.)
Abrams, Ronald W., 1936-
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/b9df4a592918a00520f31a288752766b.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=Emjag68l950gfUfDVZ4rRxuu0vKMxZMw-CBkLiztxLFzxjb%7EBNWqV-zN0dTDpQsgm97pu9KzbO0jCq1Sfma4w5oWq%7Edo6pOkArVkIpYC3GQwjjj4Iw55VvuP9lsl0e61Y5SpeTzausH5iLmbwSh-vtW0EdwwuJ0AkmnSLfeP-oGCQhuokPnjEVLiiN6xIjFou8soaDmcbhISKUfd8JlgOqGEKfDx6t1ubN0WMekW6TOQwWwPqAwYISgvaPj28JorCFDP0QjzBsrir5rrZz8JvE-U3dy%7E-cwv2a8l8MklhUiVLEx6H-2%7E7qTCY57G2voJCtdkdoXHEilUAuS%7EA9cOAA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
6bcd2c078bf84876396e62a99902bbbc
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1.
lam _____ Ann Friedman
with______ Nancy K. Abrams
on________ February 6, 2002
, I am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
On my mother’s side, my great grandfather came from Scotland. My grandfather and
grandmother lived in Covington, KY but moved to Cincinnati, OH where my mother
was bom. My father was bom in Mississippi and his parents were also bom in this
country. I don’t know where my great grandparents were bom but they tleft this
country and went to Israel to die. In 1967, my husband and I went to Israel and found
their graves at Mt. Olive.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My father, Harry Klein, was bom near Jackson, MI. My mother, Marjorie Levine
Klein, was in Cincinnati, OH.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
My birth date is January 16, 1938. Only English was spoken at home. We lived in the
Highlands, and I have one sister. When I was in my teens, my grandmother and
great-grandparents all came to live in our home.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
There were many Jewish families living in the Highlands, and all my relatives lived
within a two-mile radius. Out chauffer drove us to school and I was embarrassed so I
sat next to him rather than in the back with my sister. On pretty days, I walked home
with friends. When I was in high school, I would get out of the chauffeur driven car a
block from school and walk. We were always driven to Sunday school, as we had
carpools and everybody in our neighborhood had a chauffeur. When I went to
temple, it was always with my parents. We had a drug store at Bardstown Road
where we hung out. I also went to Cherokee Ice Cream every day for a chocolate ice
cream cone, even in the winter.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
�The flood didn’t really affect my family as we lived in an apartment at that time. My
parents had people over for meals during the flood, people who couldn’t get to their
homes.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
We drove and took the train to Cincinnati many times. We went to Florida when I
was one for six months because I was sick. Years later we drove often to Florida. I
took a train to Camp Wenonah in Maine every summer.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
We belonged to the temple, but were never really involved. My father was always
involved with selling bonds.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
Passover was the big holiday with all of the family together. We also celevrated all
the other major Jewish holidays.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I went to Sunday school and I was confirmed.
11. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I had one year of college in Illinois. My career was motherhood and volunteering. I
worked for the temple sisterhood, but mainly for NCJW and the UJC.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I was bom in Louisville.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
My brother-in-law introduced us in Louisville in 1955, and we were married there in
1957. We have four children, Karen, Kenny, Kathy, and Keith, all with a K. We also
hace twelve wonderful grandchildren (one deceased).
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
I started out with the temple sisterhood, but mostly NCJW, which I started doing in
my early 20’s, and I was president when I was 35. then I started the candy business,
which I had for 18 years. Out children were very involved with B’nai Brith clubs and
volunteer work. Our son Kenny started a few volunteer programs that raised money
for heart disease (in high school).
�15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My family was not affected at all.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
There really were not a lot, we always had out extended family for the Jewish
Heritage, and we always felt very Jewish. I feel like our parents tried to assimilate.
Today there is a lot more with my children.
17. What interests do you have?
My interests were golf, tennis, reading, walking, bridge, and especially volunteer
work. Now I play tennis, read, walk, play bridge, and do limited volunteer work.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Taking our four children, their spouses, and their children on family vacations early
in the summer. Raising my children was the most wonderful time of my life. Once I
was eighteen, I went to Florida every year with my parents and my sister, and we
went to school there. A bus would pick me up at the hotel. This continued through
my second year of high school. My parents took my husband and me on several trips
to Europe. My grandmother went on one. I have great memories of my aunt and
those trips. That is why my husband and I now take our children and grandchildren,
so that we may always be close to family.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
I would like my children to be good, caring parents, which they are. They have more
religion in their life, which pleases me greatly. They are very caring, loving, and
thoughtful people. They do lots of volunteer work and we see, in their own way, they
are trying to make out world a better place.
I feel like I have passed these values on to them. I really did something right. That is
how I would like to be remembered, a good parent, grandparent, and friend.
JFVS/aj 06/13/07
Word.oiderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS Library and can be accessed by
interested people. It will be preserved archivally for future generations.
Participant
Witness
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 10/4/01
Word.coununit.permission.history
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
Language
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eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
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Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_abramsn
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Nancy Abrams, 2002
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Nancy Abrams (1938-) on February 6, 2002. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Nancy K. Abrams was born in Louisville, and grew up in the Highlands in her youth. Her daily life included attending middle and high school, Sunday school on weekends, and socializing with friends at a Bardstown Road drug store. She and her family were largely unaffected by the local flood of 1937 and the international Jewish crisis of the Holocaust and Israeli conflicts. She maintained Jewish faith by being confirmed and participating in the NCJW, a demonstration of social service she passed on to subsequent generations in her family.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Abrams, Nancy K., 1938-
Friedman, Ann
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2002-02-06
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Highlands (Louisville, Ky.)
Abrams, Ronald W., 1936-
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/673e280476d25c2a04933c547adef040.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=O0RFTwFZrMjHaxhIzOkLYGIy7EYhdx6FppDGYRbCIMnqxG8sIie2Uu-PLuUP93Fl9q651t1OyHvVKX8l9jypBNFrdwXu6KxbWTkR4dYd6oTLxIFZqo8QxVB-1EkYJ5fzn3hnbuxwd4aKp9jT-R9uPTjqX1mWTzHaKwAqzoFLQP2dYxM6fz2IUPgL-3vq1ytunBf6yKPkcQOxLwEp4mQBb3uz1oO6YaOiBF1MYsg-7-j0SP6IJX4thV4PPu2gM9e6pHwzB95kb8kKWz5jtJQt-SNxCACeM9QE19o%7E8AiqTSSXDMAZQ-9M37cMEDRLthURsxCzgjLg2ah-DzwDNLD3lw__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
0bd88217189431e1ad0225b5a5b94b70
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. lam
with
on
Robert Friedman
, I am conducting an interview
Ronald Abrams
for the JFVS archives
October 2, 2001.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My mother and her father came to the United States when she was six months old.
She was bom in Minsk, Russia or on the ship. She never knew her birthday, date, just
the year of 1901. My dad was bom in the United States in New York in 1849. His
father, from Lithuania came over in the 1880’s.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother, Dorothy Peterman Abromovitz Giller, was bom April 5, 1901 and died
February 5, 1987. My father, Benjamin Abromovitz, was bom February 5, 1894 and
died May 18, 1967. My name was always Abrams.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
I was bom June 22, 1936. The languages spoken in my home were English and some
Yiddish. My grandfather lived with us until I was 5 at which point he died. We lived
in the same apartment until my mother died. My sister also lived there. She was 13
when I was bom, so she was only home for summers.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
We lived in the upper west side of Manhattan, at 85 and West End Avenue. There
were primarily Jewish families. I never though about being Jewish. I did not know in
grade school or high school if my friends were Jewish or not. I went to high school in
the Bronx. I went to Bronx High School of Science, a college prep high school. I
walked to grade school and junior high. I took the subway to high school. There were
several grocery stores and drug stores. We lived a block away from Broadway and I
would go to Riverside Park.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
Not asked on this interview.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
�I went camp every summer in Connecticut and up state New York for two months.
There was one time I went to California by train with my family. We also went to
Long Island to visit family. We went by car, and never flew.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
No, but we were involved in Hebrew Kindergarten and Infants Home. My father
founded it.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
We did not observe holidays and rituals.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I attended Sunday school for 3 years. I was Bar Mitzvahed but never learned Hebrew.
We were never members of a congregation and I had no formal education. My firs
Seder was in school at Vanderbilt University.
11.What is your educational background? What was your career?
I received a BA in business from Vanderbilt University. I then went to Coopers and
Lybrand as an accountant. I then spent 41 years at Yeager, Ford, and Warren. I am
now retired, but I’m still involved with assisting start up companies. (Please see
attached sheet.)
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
Marie, because we were dating, and my business, brought me to Louisville. I was
going to school at Vanderbilt University and came for a holiday weekend. While I
was here inn Louisville, I talked to a CPA who said to graduate and get a CPA
degree.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
I met Marie at Vanderbilt.She was a Frat. Project. She was dating a ZBT
When I went sophomore year she had broken up with the ZBT brother. I decided they were going to
rush the Jewish girls. She always had dates with the 2 guys. I said I was serious so she stopped
dating the other guy.
We were married on February 2, 1958 in her parents’ living room. We had a choice of big wedding
or small and cash was sparse to us.
I had two children, Elizabeth Sue (Beth) Abrams Mitchell 5/11/62 and
Marc Neil Abrams 5/19/64.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
�My mother and father active in the temple, Shriners, and Oldhum Church.
My mother was very active in NCSW but wouldn’t take presidency. When I joined she resigned.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My brother-in-law was in the navy during WWII. My family was not affected by the
wars in Israel.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
I have no real spiritual memories in the religious sense. Family has made the
difference. The march on Washington-Soviet Jewry. I believe in what we do here.
Marie taught me how to be Jewish.
17. What interests do you have?
The community, golf, and travel are my interests. Another interest of mine is to help
young people start their business, not in a tax related way, but to help them raise
money.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Trips before 1976. The 200th anniversary in 1975. The Seder where we took from two
books (we would have other people over and Marie planned the service).
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
My legacy is community and general involvement. Our children are heavily involved
in the community, which is a lovely change for us. Beth is involved in NCSW. I tried
to do a good job in the community.
JFVS/aj 10/17/02
Word.olderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
Board of Directors
Stephanie Speigel
Executive Director
Marjorie B. Kohn
President
Steven Shapiro
President Elect/Treasurer
Barbara Goldberg
David Handmaker
Lowell Katz
Robert Riley
Vice Presidents
Gail Pohn
Ex-officio President
Mitchell Charney
jane Goldstein
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Lillian Seligman
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
Lewis D. Cole
Alexander Erlen
Arthur Grossman
Shelton R.Weber
Honorary Directors
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS library unless I choose to keep it myself.
Mark Ament
'>iane Bennett
Jlyn Berman
Joan Byer
Howard L. Cantor
Natalie Davis
Jonathan Dubins
Simon Fields
Phyllis Florman
Ann Friedman
Bob German
Rachel Greenberg
Debbie Hyman
Howard Kaplin
Jay Klempner
Benjamin Levitan
Chuck O'Koon
Jordan Pohn
Suzy Post
Mona Schramko
Judy Shapira
Julie Strull
Susan Waterman
Frank Weisberg
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Rabbi Bradley C.Tecktiel
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 5/14/01
Word.coununit.pennission.history
Association of Jewish
Family & Children's
Agepcies
International Association of
Jewish Vocational Services
Accredited by
Council of Accreditation of Services
for Families and Children. Inc.
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
3587 Dutchmans Lane ■ Louisville, Kentucky 40205 • (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�BIOGRAPHY
RONALD W. ABRAMS
EDUCATION
1950- 1953
1953 - 1957
1957- 1958
Bronx High School of Science
B.A., Vanderbilt University
University of Louisville
EMPLOYMENT
1957 - Present
1971 - Present
1977 - 1990
1990 - 1994
1994 - 1997
1998-1999
20012001-
Coopers & Lybrand, Louisville, Kentucky
(or its predecessor)
Partner
Partner in Charge of Taxes
Executive Tax Partner
Tax Market Leader
Viperlink, International, CFO, Director
T eledvance,LLC-Director
Monty’s Plant Food-Director
COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
Adath Israel B’rith Sholom (B’rith Sholom)
Treasurer
1967 - 1969
1969- 1971
Secretary
1971 - 1973
Second Vice President
1973 - 1975
First Vice President
1975 - 1977
President
1977-Present
Board Member
Jewish Community Federation
1974 - Present
Board Member
1973 - Present
Campaign - UJC
1977 - 1980
Chairman Community Relations Council
1982
Chairman Group & Social Services Subcommittee,
Planning & Budgeting Committee
1982 - Present
Endowment Fund
1983 - 1986
Treasurer
1986 - 1988
Vice President
1986
Co-Chairman of United Jewish Campaign
1988 - 1991
President
1991 - Present
Executive Committee
�1997 - Present
Chair, Foundation
�Metro United Way
1987
Portfolio Chairman
1991
Leadership Circle Chairman
1991 - 1995
Nominating Committee
1994
Endowment Committee
1994
Allen Society- Volunteer of the Year
1995 - Present
Resource Development Cabinet
1997 - Present
Board of Directors
Louisville Chamber of Commerce Activities
Economic Development Steering Committee Targeted Marketing Subcommittee Chairman
Occupational Tax Task Force
Entrepreneurial Conference
Chairman, Tax Legislative Policy Subcommittee
Government Affairs Committee
OTHER
1971 - 1974
1973
1973
1968
1969 - 1971
1971 - 1973
1974
1974- 1982
1978 - 1979
1973 - 1975
1969- 1971
1974
1976- 1978
1976 - 1978
1981 - 1982
Community Action Committee, Louisville and Jefferson County
Council on Religion and Race Board
Bureau of Jewish Education Board
B'nai Brith - Treasurer
Actors Theatre Board Member
Standard Country Club Board Member - Treasurer
Young Leadership Award, Jewish Community Federation
National Conference of Christians & Jews:
Board Member
Co-Chairman
Member, Legislation Advisory Committee Kentucky Society of CPA's
Chairman, Federal Taxation Committee Kentucky Society of CPA's
Treasurer, Vote Yes for Transit Committee
Governor's Economic Development Committee,
Task Force-on Finance
Board Member, Midwest Council, Union of
American Hebrew Congregations
Leadership Louisville, Louisville Chamber of Commerce
National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council
/
Jewish Council for Public Affairs
1982 - 1986
Church State Commission
1982 - Present
Equal Opportunity and Social Justice Task Force
1995
Chair, Budget and Finance Committee
1996- 2000
Treasurer
2000- Present
Executive Com
�1979- 1983
1984- 1990
1990 - Present
1987- 1993
1994- 1996
1989 - Present
1991 - 1993
1992
1994- 1996
Urban League - Board Member
Jewish Hospital Board
Jewish Hospital Healthcare Systems Board
Fifteen Telecommunications (Public TV station):
Chairman and Board Member, Finance Committee
Chairman, Team One subsidiary board
Regional Cancer Center Corporation Board Member
Midwest United Jewish Appeal Major Gifts Committee
Person of the Year - B’nai Brith
Council on Peacemaking - Board Member
Council of Jewish Federations - (National)
1991 - 1993
Board Member
1993 - 1996
Vice Chairman, Community Budgeting Council
1997
National Funding Council, Executive Committee
1995 - 1997
Strategic Planning Steering Committee
1995 - 1997 1998 - Present
Task Force on Soviet Jewry AdvocacyBoard Member
�
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
Language
A language of the resource
eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_abramsr
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Ronald Abrams, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Ronald Abrams (1936-) on October 2, 2001. The summary is accompanied by Ronald Abrams's resume. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Abrams, Ronald W., 1936-
Friedman, Robert
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2001-10-02
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
New York (N.Y.)
Accountants
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/e12bda8b56898c67ec8807501db40ca8.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=UKjLx3rmonRKCJb2VVse0kUucUzXiV4RGLuBbCkO-RyKTg0GONhYWKfIR-lVcYn%7EMWQOqWp3Lx4snJOvZyM2LMoXfcQfXMkLQWz2tprLnbPnOF013JV-XbNUJdfHnYfDiFsKJN-GkEaX2m62LsidJ8daYvbNwbsMujIrVyc%7Ecq2IYnLqGL4c1ifTjos40v4%7EzH3DxEvSsJHTCLK6rlEI3Z05YZa3d7wOGHoG3SofFsvcpHK7HzbaEF3gefZHEYwEyK-LgSs91k37r5GCtn2tTJdWIHnoTFKLvRN70E4ts5UyluhghuyKQAWRFYu16hZVTWTDH6iuNUIyTNwTroZzew__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
5cda875b0073eba0c96a445bc72dc071
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
/
1. lam _____ Kim berly Feinberg
\/
Blema Baer
w ith
7
0
0
August 6, 2
on
, I am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives
.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My father came to America first because he had a sister living here. And he sent for
my mother and brother and sister, who came over later.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother, Ida Kasap, was bom in Kiev.
My father, Samuel Sandler, was bom in Kiev.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/aunts?
Grandparents?
July 10, 1914. Mostly English. Mom and pop didn’t speak Yiddish very often. 763 S
1st street, I think it’s all commercial right now. Brothers, 3, and 4 sisters, mother and
father.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
Friendly, no Jews lived there. Yes, yes. Yes, there was a grocery right on the comer
right where we lived, a Pigly Wiggly, and the drug store was about three blocks from
where we lived, Davis’s drug store.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
Quite a bit. My father was in Chicago buying clothes for his store, and one of my
brother’s was down at the store, and another brother was down at the river putting up
sand bags. And my sister and I were washing this beautiful punch bowl and listening
to the news and I dropped the punch bowl. Then my sister and I went to the school,
which was about ‘A a block away. And a boat came over to our house to take us out
of there. There were about 500 on the second floor of the school and 500 that lived
on the first floor, and we were there for quite a bit.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
Planes, I’ve been on two cruises they are great but I like trains or planes. Street car.
No.
�8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
No, just as members.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All of them. We had one shlu kappors, it was when we would put money in the
charity boxes and swing chickens. We had Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and
Passover.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
Yes, went to Hebrew school for a short time. No, no.
11 .What is your educational background? What was your career?
Hs graduate, and took some courses at UofL, observed but didn’t register.
Started out working at Selman’s, then my husband was a football coach, then I had
'YOMZ' two children, then when pay became ill he had dabbled in insurance so I went into
agency and became a business woman.
that for climbrng^pplej^
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
Bom here.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
First I met him when I was in high school, and he would come by at the end of school
and offer me a ride home, but I didn’t date him for a long time after that. Then he
started calling me for dates and that was it. June 21, 1938 at Anches Sphard
synagogue. Two children one son has passed away.
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
Volunteering for everything, united Jewish campaign, bond selling for Israel, 7,000
hrs for Jewish hospital. Ever since I was 7 I was volunteering, I used to write letters
to my parent’s friends children. Jewish convalescent children, council, and
community chest, the arts and crafts gallery, my list can go on and on. My family
wasn’t really involved, my brothers were away from here, and they traveled a lot. I
was really the most active in my family.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
�Just like everyone, devastated, my brother served in the service and got
accommodation for his services. My son was over in Vietnam taking pictures, my
sister worked at the hospital as a candy(strippbf, but everyone safely returned home
after the wars. My father, who was a tailor, would fix the soldiers uniforms and
S'
clothes, without charge.
No.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Just the fact that Judaism has taught me about sharing and caring for others, and to
try to be an example and role model of being good and considerate and thoughtful of other
people. It’s taught me charity and its importance.
17. What interests do you have?
Right now, working at the hospital is one of my greatest interests, I love to go
antiquing, reading, I used to love to drive, but they’ve taken my car away from me,
so I straighten up my house and do all the little chores, I still volunteer at 93yrs old, I
visit the patients, I have a nephew who is a dr. and he calls me to visit his patients.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
My family, my sisters and I were the best of friends, and my brothers were also realy
close to us. My sisters and I would travel together, one of my sisters and I went to
Israel together and my four sisters and I went to Japan together. And we would
celebrate all of the holidays together. I just have the fondest memories with family.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
I don’t know. I would like to be remembered as a very caring person. The golden
rule, do unto others as u would like to have done unto u, and I really try to live that, I
think prayers are important. When I was really sick I used to watch touched by an
angel, and I remember when I had my heart surgery and I was there for 7wks. And it
dawned on me that I hadn’t said my prayers, and I remembered how important it was
to talk to g-d. And once I began to say them again I really started feeling better. It’s
important to know that there is someone greater than us that’s looking down on us
and really taking care of us.
JFVS/aj 08/06/07
Word.olderAdultOralHistories.forms
�Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
JFVS is always here throughout
every season of your life.
Board o f Directors
Judy Freundlich Tiell
Executive Director
Barbara Goldberg
President
Debbie Friedman
Jay Klempner
Vice Presidents
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
Mark Ament
Treasurer
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Lowell D. Katz, M.D.
Ex-officio President
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky 40205.
Mitchell Charney
Jane Goldstein
Marjorie B. Kohn
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Gail Pohn
Lillian Seligman
Steven Shapiro
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
My story will be kept in the JFVS Library and can be accessed by interested people.
It will be preserved archivally for future generations.
D. Cole
.ur Grossman
Shelton R. Weber
Honorary Directors
Participant
Caren Carney
Sally Davis
Ann Friedman
Sandi Friedson
Alyson Goldberg
Rick Greenberg
Ronald Levine
Martin Margulis
Stephanie Mutchnick
Marsha Beck Roth
Hunt Schuster
Brian Segal
Bernard Sweet
Reed Weinberg
Amy Wisotsky
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
Rabbi
David Ariel-Joel
Avrohom Litvin
Stanley Miles
Joe Rooks Rapport
Gaylia R. Rooks
Nadia Siritsky
Robert Slosberg
Bradley C. Tecktiel
Witrfe^,
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 7/18/007
Word.coununit. permission.history
Association of Jewish
Family & Children's
Agencies
International Association of
Jewish Vocational Services
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
F E T D ^ f^ A ^O N
Metro United Way
3587 Dutchmans Lane • Louisville, Kentucky 40205 ♦ (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�Blema Baer, 99, died Friday, October 4, 2013 at Deer Park Retirement
Center in Cincinnati. She was a native of Louisville bom July 10,1914.
Blema was retired sales agent for Klein & Appel Insurance Agency (19541992). She wore many hats as a volunteer for 54 years at Jewish Hospital
but her favorite one was visiting the patients on Friday. She was often
called "Mama Baer" and "Girl Friday". She served on Jewish Hospital
Guild, member of The Speed Museum, a life member of Hadassah, serving
on the board, member of NCJW - Louisville Section, member of
Congregation Anshei Sfard and Congregation Anshei Sfard Sisterhood.
She was a volunteer for United Jewish Campaign, Bonds for Israel, Arts &
Crafts gallery and Jewish Home for Convalescent Children. She received
The Julia Victor Volunteer of the Year Award in 1986 and won The Bell
Award in 2010.
Blema's special way with people has also been helpful to Jewish Hospital
Transplant Program. The hospital's social service staff needed someone to
be a committed friend to Kentucky's first heart transplant recipient. Blema
was selected because of her supportive and nurturing nature as well as her
level-headedness in dealing with complicated and unpredictable situations.
She was so effective in her first case that social services requested her
assistance with other patients.
Blema enjoyed antique shopping, square dancing, reading, needlepoint and
her Canasta games. Her home was always open to family, friends and to
Ray's football players, better known as "His" boys.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Raymond Baer; her son Perry
Baer; her parents, Samuel and Ida Kapsah Sandler; her sisters, Cecil
Speevack, Rebecca Judah, Flora Levine and Marian Stem; her brothers, Jack
Sandler, Morris Sandler and Carl Sandler.
She is survived by her devoted son and daughter-in-law, Gordon and
Shirley Baer; sister-in-laws, Emma Sandler and Arlette Baer; and many
devoted, nieces, nephews, great-nieces, great-nephews and friends.
Funeral services will be 2:00 p.m. Sunday, October 6,2013 at Herman
Meyer & Son, 1338 Ellison Avenue with burial to follow in Anshei Sfard
Cemetery. Visitation will be after 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, expressions
of sympathy may go to donor's favorite charity.
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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Identifier
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024x6_baerb
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Blema Baer, 2007
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Blema Baer (1914-2013) on August 7, 2007. The summary is accompanied by an obituary for Blema Baer. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
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Baer, Blema, 1914-2013
Feinberg, Kimberly
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2007-08-07
Format
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Floods
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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f3dafcd603742bd5daa34f8f10c05054
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. I am Linda Leeser, and I am conducting an interview
with Ethel C. B aeffor the JFCS archives
October 26, 2010.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when?
Ethel’s Mother came to this country when she was 20 years old, around 1920. First one
of her brothers came, then another, then another, and then it was her turn. Another sister
of her Mother moved to Argentina. Ethel’s Mother came to Chicago, where one of her
brothers lived. She worked in a knitted dress factory, sewing beads on the dresses.
Mother attended the Huffman Preparatory School to learn English.
Her Father came sometime between 1918 and 1920. He was a tailor and heard of an
opening for a tailor, and that is what brought him. Edith’s parents knew each other in the
old country, and when her Father heard that her Mother was in Chicago, he went to see
her.
Both sides of the family lost relatives in the Holocaust.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
Father-Solomon (Shalom) Cooper, born in 1900 in Bialystok.
Mother-Edith Kagan, also born in 1900 in Bialystok.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home? Where did you
live then? Who lived in the same house with you?
Her birth date is 7-24-24.
They spoke Yiddish and English at home. Both parents became citizens at the Old
Neighborhood House.
They lived at 1121 East Broadway. There was Mother, Father, Bubby Adel Kagan,
brother (who was 4 years younger) and sister (who was 13 years younger).
5. What was your neighborhood like?
They lived in a family-oriented neighborhood, but there were no other Jews. Her Father’s
tailor shop was in the front of their house on East Broadway, and the family lived in the
back. They were a couple houses away from the Lutheran Church, and the minister’s
children were some of the kids with whom she played. They were respectful of Ethel’s
family religion, and the minister asked Bubby what would be kosher so that she could eat
with them. In her backyard there were peach trees and a grape arbor, and that was a great
source of fun for the neighborhood kids. A girl named Lucille, who was from a German
family, became a good friend, and they put on plays in the summer and served lemonade
and charged admission.
�Ethel lived across the street from Normal School, which is now Breckinridge School,
which she attended. Then the school become Eastern Junior High, and she went there,
and then to Atherton.
Attended Sunday school at KI on the comer of Floyd and Jacob.
There was a grocery store called Coldiron’s and a drug store on the corner of Barrett and
Broadway, that was owned by Harry Meit. Also found in that area was Dages Paints, OK
storage located on the corner of Barrett and Broadway. Her uncle Albert was a kosher
butcher and and worked for the Fuch’s. There was also a kosher deli on Preston Street
called Deitz. . Mother could get goats’ milk from Marcus Dairy at the recommendation of
Ethel’s pediatrician, because she was lactose intolerant. Cave Hill was one of her favorite
haunts, as was Highland Library.
During the Depression, everything was scarce, but she remembers farmers coming by
selling fruit in season and eggs.
The area of Grey, Chestnut, Walnut, and Preston was the place where much of Jewish life
was centered.
Ethel’s family moved to Indianapolis for one year because her Father became ill and
couldn’t work as a tailor. Ethel worked in a restaurant that year and went to Arther
Jordon Music School on a scholarship.
6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
Ethel was 13 years old at the time of the flood. The water level came very close to their
home, even past the bottom of the hill that started at Barrett and Broadway. She
remembers people coming in boats to give typhoid shots, and the Red Cross came with
flour and yeast, and Bubby made bread. They had to boil their water and put a little
iodine in it. Although the house was not inundated with floodwater, her Father’s tailor
shop show room was used to give typhoid shots and radio was established to send boats.
Other family came to stay with them during this time, and there were 10 people in 3 %
rooms. The family could watch the water rise. Ethel remembers some kids being able to
ice skate to school from Butchertown prior to the flood.
Her Mother worried about Ethel and her brother loosing schooling because of the flood,
so they were sent to their uncle in Champaign, Illinois for a semester.
7. If you wished to travel, what kind of transportation did you use?
The family had a 1929 Chevy which Father called their “Jewish Packard”. She
remembers a trip the family took to the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago. There was a
streetcar that went down Broadway with its rails in the middle of the street.
�8. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple?
Ethel’s Father was a cantor and sang with Keneseth Israel sometimes, and also Anshei
Sfard, if there were no customers. Making a living was primary. But Bubby went every
Shabbat. Sometimes when Ethel was good, she would go to shul with Bubby and then go
with her to her Bubby’s girlfriends’ homes. Mother would go to shul sometimes, as
would Ethel. Then she would go to the picture show with her girlfriends before the price
changed in the afternoons. They would also go to Taylor’s Drug Store for tuna and
cokes..
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
Shabbas, Havdallah, Friday eve dinner, even when the pantry was lean. Usually they
would have meat or chicken once/week. And Passover was also observed and celebrated.
It was fun to change dishes and Bubby would make wine from the grape arbor. But Ethel
had an allergy to the rosin in grapes and peaches, and was not allowed to have any of the
things that Bubby made from them. She could drink mead, though, which Bubby also
made. They could seat 20 around the dining room table. They had an icebox, not a
refrigerator. In the morning, the women would congregate in the kitchen and cook all
day to prepare-including her Father’s sister and Mother’s sister-in-law.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bat Mitzvah?
Ethel went to Sunday school and was confirmed, but she didn’t learn Hebrew. That was
just not something girls did in those days. She remembers roller-skating to the library,
and the sidewalks from Barrett to Rubel Ave. were bricks!!
11. What is your educational background? What was your career?
Ethel received a Bachelors Degree in Music Education at the University of Louisville,
(which was not a state school then). During part of that time she joined the Cadet Nurse
Corp, for 1 years. She worked at the Autistic School as the music therapist for 14
years. A friend worked there and asked her to join them. It was located at 4th and St.
Catherine, then at the Hurstbourne Christian Church, and finally it moved to the Coach
House behind the Women’s Club on 4th Street. The public school system did not accept
children with autism at that time. Ethel still has tapes of her work with the children, and
her memories are touching. She went on to get her degree at the Institute of Music
Therapy at the age of 54.
12. Ethel was born in Louisville. See # 2 and #3 for family history.
13. How did you meet your husband? Where were you married? Did you have children?
She and her husband Ed worked at Waterman’s Department Store-all Jewish kids worked
there. They were married in Holyoke, MA, where her husband was stationed, on July 7,
1945, by a Rabbi who didn’t speak English.
�Ethel has three children: son Sol is a music professor; daughter Lois is a Spanish
professor; son Andrew is a chiropractor.
14. Tell about your involvement in the Jewish Community?
As a girl, Ethel belonged to the Fillies Club, played piano at the YWHA for dance
classes, and also worked for the USO where she brought classical music recordings for
the soldiers.
She and her husband and children were members of Brith Shalom where all their kids
were confirmed and their sons Bar Mitzvahed. Their daughter had a Bat Mitzvah when
she was 50 years old, in Illinois.
They kept kosher while her Mother lived with then, but not after.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
Her Father developed Parkinson’s disease at age 37, thought to have been contracted as a
result of encephalitis from the war. Her brother was too young for the army in WWII, but
he joined the Reserves when he was old enough. During this time, her Mother ran a dry
cleaning shop. Ethel’s husband served in WWII at 19 years of age-until he was 21 or 22.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
She loved Chanukah-latkes, dreidl, gelt, lighting the candles and singing. Her Father was
a musician, too, and those are fond memories-music and the holidays. Ethel loved Pesach
best!!! Mr. Rubenstein used to bring over the Pesach order to them.
Her Bubby instituted the tzedakah box, which was called the “Thank God box”. Visiting
rabbis could eat with them because they were kosher. The family was brought up to be
charitable. When beggars came to the house, the family would share food with them,
giving them sandwiches, but didn’t let them in the house. During the Depression,
everything was scarce, but there was fruit in season. Farmers would come by with
strawberries and eggs.
17. What interests do you have?
Ethel likes to play bridge; she plays piano for the senior citizens club at JCC, and she
likes to read-especially fiction and biographies. She enjoys going to plays with her
friends and enjoys needlework.
18. What are your favorite family memories?
Celebrating the holidays with family and friends has always been special to her.
�19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values would
you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
She hopes that the people she has known will enjoy music and literature. She is a firm
believer in education. Her philosophy is “Live and let live,” which is not always so easy
to do. Be a good parent, a good friend, and enjoy life.
�
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
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Identifier
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024x6_baere
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Ethel Baer, 2010
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Ethel Baer (1924-2012) on October 26, 2010. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Ethel C. Baer was born to Polish immigrant parents and was raised in a practicing Jewish household in which she spoke Yiddish and English. Her neighborhood, in which very few other Jewish families lived, accepted her and she made many good friends. She attended Atherton High School and enjoyed going to drugstores with friends, walking Cave Hill Cemetery, and getting groceries locally from farmers and butchers. The Baers were not severely affected by the Great Flood; however, they did assist others in escaping the floodwaters and finding food. Each side of the family lost relatives in the Holocaust. Ethel’s husband served in WWII when he was 19-21 years old. Ethel was heavily involved in religious life and practice, observing feasts such as Passover at home, keeping strictly kosher, and her daughter had a Bat Mitzvah at age 50. Her interests include playing Bridge, playing piano for senior citizens at the Jewish Community Center, and living life by the mantra of “Live and Let Live.”
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Baer, Ethel, 1924-2012
Lesser, Linda
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-10-26
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Chicago (Ill.)
Immigration
Textile workers
Clothing workers
Tailors
Floods
Business enterprises
Music therapists
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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3ea6ba39072300f223d482dc3c96e212
PDF Text
Text
My name is
Shirley Bailen
and
This is my story
I was bom in Louisville in the “old” Jewish hospital on May 7, 1922. My father was
Wolf Diamond (1884-1978). He was bom in Lithuania. My mother was Birdie Marks.
(1888-1978). She was bom in Louisville. I was the third child bom in our family. My
sister, Tobie was bom in 1912 and my brother, Victor, was bom in 1915.
We lived above my father’s shoe store at 603 West Market. Our next home was at
Second at and Lee when I was six. Two years later we moved to Second and Gaulbert. I
started school at Prentice Elementary for kindergarten and the first half of first grade. My
mother and I walked to school every day. My next school was Cochran which was at
Second and Hill. After sixth grade I went to Halleck Hall Junior High and then to
Louisville Girls High, graduating in 1940.
Everyone remembers we had a major flood here in January-February 1937. We lived on
the third floor and while we didn’t get flooded ourselves, the water got into the basement
and the furnace was out of commission. At times, t was so cold that my sister and I
huddled together in a twin bed under all the blankets we owned trying to get warm. My
father tried to cook an egg in a spoon using a candle for heat. We had to get to my Aunt
Esther Marks and Uncle Harry who lived at Second and Brandeis. My mother stopped a
passing boat operated by two young men and they took my sister and me. Later my
parents came. We later moved to the Highlands, near the “loop” at Highland Avenue and
we stayed with my father’s sister, a family by the name of Sadawitz, until we were able
to get back in our home after the waters receded and repairs were made to the furnace.
My brother became a pharmacist and married a girl from North Dakota and my sister
became a teacher and she married Abe Goldberg. He was a tailor and had a shop on West
Market. I got married right out of high school. It was on October 27, 1940, David Bailen
(1918-2004) and I married and began a wonderful life together for 67 years. We knew we
couldn’t afford the expense of a large wedding, and the potential guest lists had already
expanded beyond our budget. So we went to Lexington and Rabbi Pero married us in a
private ceremony.
David got a job as a photographer at a ship yard in Evansville, Indiana. It made landing
craft for the military. When WWII started he joined the Air Force and we relocated to a
base at Stana, California. We rode our bicycles every where and really liked California
and we seriously considered staying there. While he was in service there I worked on the
base for the air force, also.
1
�Of course during the war, there were shortages of most items and everyone had ration
cards. We drank our coffee black as we could not get cream. Mother would send us extra
ration stamps so we could buy meat occasionally. Once we went to the races in Tijuana,
Mexico. We biked everywhere we could...to Laguna Beach...to Balboa. We had become
real Californians, but fate stepped in when David’s father died.
After the war we came home and David opened a photo shop in Bonnycastle drugs. Later
Hucks Pharmacy, near Speed and Bardstown Road closed and sold his pharmacy
business to Bonnycastle, so David moved his photo shop to that location and we ran a
dispensary, no pharmacy. Several years later we were unable to renew our lease and
closed that business.
Then the course of our lives changed again. David worked in sales for one of the
candy/tobacco wholesale businesses and during this same time, Donald Stem who had a
drug store decided that he needed help. He wanted to spend all of his time with the
prescription service and asked me to run the rest of the store for him. This proved to be a
good arrangement for both of us, and I did this for 12 years.
One event was significant in my life; at age 56 I had cancer. The doctors were reluctant to
tell me about my chances for cure and survival. I insisted and was told that I had only a
20% chance. I told the doctor that I was tough and would beat it. After all, I had children
and grandchildren I needed to be here for.
There came another unusual opportunity when Jack Benjamin was involved with the
drama department at the new JCC on Dutchman’s Lane. He asked David to read for a
part. David had never done anything with any theater, but finally agreed to read. David
was pretty good with accents and we were all surprised when he was selected for the lead
in the play, ft was such a big success and had so many sold out performances, they had to
extend it for a month.
Another unusual experience occurred when David won a trip to the Los Angeles summer
Olympics in 1968. His name was drawn by M & M, one of the candy companies he
represented. We stayed at Disney and after the Olympics we went to Mexico City for a
week before returning to Louisville.
Our son, James, was bom here in Louisville while David was still in the army. James
attended Centre College on scholarship in Danville. It is a Christian college and a
required course was Christian Bible. James took the course and wrote a paper on a Jewish
leader and won first place and $263 prize money. He went to UL medical school and
made urology as his specialty. He helped form the medical group First Urology which is
the largest such group in this area. He married Cathy Eichengreen.
2
�James has three children: Michael attended college at Northwestern and became an
investment banker with Deutsch Bank in Manhattan. He married Karen Carney. He was
going to work the morning of 9/11. After the collapse of the second tower he had to walk
17 blocks before he could get a phone signal to call us and report that he was OK. They
decided that they would rather live in Louisville and came home. He works for Texas
Roadhouse as chief financial officer. They have two children: Brody, 9 and Zoe, 6.
James second child is Neil, who married Lisa. They have Blair, 5 and Whitney, 2. He is a
lawyer with the Stites-Harbison group.
Their third child is Erica. She is a pediatrician. Her husband is Sean Griffin. He is an
orthopedic surgeon at Norton Hospital. They have no children.
Our second son is Barry Paul Bailen. He lives in Olympia, Washington and is now retired
from Evergreen University as an academic counselor. His daughter is Molly and she is
marred to Greg Maalof. They live in Portland, OR.
While we were retired we participated in at least 10 Elderhostel programs at various
places of interest including San Francisco, Boston, New Orleans, and St. Louis. We lived
in a condo in the St Matthews area.
Following David’s death in 2004 I continued to be active and I volunteered at Jewish
hospital, at the Kentucky Center for the Arts, and for a year at the Louisville Free Public
Library After being alone for 6 years I moved into Magnolia Springs and I have been
here about eight years now7.
interview by
Irvin Goldstein
May, 2018
3
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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024x6_bailens
Title
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Interview with Shirley Bailen, 2018
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Shirley Bailen (1922-2019) in May 2018. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Bailen, Shirley D., 1922-2019
Goldstein, Irvin
Date
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2018-05
Format
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Floods
Old Louisville (Louisville, Ky.)
Highlands (Louisville, Ky.)
World War, 1939-1945
Business enterprises
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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84086c84f7e2d4025dd9e89a4ca91831
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
I am
Gay A
Balleisen
d
e
l s
t e
i n
, I am conducting an interview with:
Caroline
for the JFCS archives in September 2011 .
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when? How did they
travel?
My parents, Belle Stern and Isadore Maurice Kimmelfield, were born in Kupel, a village near Odessa,
Ukraine. One of Belle’s sisters ran away and Belle went after her, traveling all over Europe for two
years. The sister ended up in New York, and Belle found her there in 1917. She stayed with her
sister for awhile and then went to New Bedford, Conn, to teach Hebrew. She spoke four languages.
Isadore was a Talmudic scholar, a Zionist, and a Socialist. (Jews were slowly being assimilated into
Russian society but few Jews were allowed in schools.) Isadore left Kupel in 1914 to escape the
draft, went to Cleveland and then to New York. He met Belle at a landsman society. She was being
courted by Velvel Chomsky who became president of Dropsie College and was the father of Noam
Chomsky, but she chose Isadore instead. Isadore was a foreman with Western Union but he went on
strike with his workers and was boycotted for two years. Then he worked for All America Cable and
stayed there for the rest of his life. Belle went to adult education classes and took English to get a
job, but her husband wouldn’t let her work. Everyone spoke English in their home, no Yiddish,
because Belle wanted her kids to be Americanized.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born? Have there been other
family names used in the past? Where, when, and why was it changed?
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
I was born in 1930 in Brooklyn, N.Y. I had one older brother, Arthur. I lived in Brooklyn until I went to
college. No other Jewish families lived near us.
4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/Aunts?
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come? How did
they travel? Did they share any unusual experiences with you?
I met Paul Tenen at Brooklyn College and after several years of dating, we married in 1952 after I
graduated from Columbia Law School. Three years later Paul was killed in an auto accident. Five
years later I met Donald Balleisen, and we married in 1959. Donald graduated from Princeton and
Harvard Law School. He worked for Penicken Ford which was sold to Reynolds Tobacco Co., and
we did not want to move to Winston Salem. I knew about Louisville—its orchestra, the Courier
Journal and Harry Carmichael who desegregated schools before there was a law—so we decided to
move to Louisville. I had mainly preferred mixed gender groups, but I was invited to a meeting of
NCJW, and I was so impressed by them that I joined the group.
6. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? What kind of shops were in
your neighborhood?
�I lived in Louisville on Runnymede since 1969. The houses were just being built then, and many
Jews lived there. Donald and I were associated with The Temple (which was downtown) and we
shopped at Holiday Manor. We were not here for the flood but were here for the tornado which went
ip 1-71 but missed our subdivision. We put the kids in the basement, but Donald was upstairs talking
on the phone to N.Y. and I kept calling him to come down to the basement.
7. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and
your loved ones?
8. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did
you travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use
when you traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do
you have of those trips?
THIS GOES BACK TO THE TIME IN BROOKLYN. My family used the subway and buses. Even
when we went to the country, Northbranch in the Catskills, we took a bus for five hours. We and
another family rented rooms in a farmhouse there. We played Monopoly, hiked, picked berries, etc.
It was there that I had my first incident of anti-Semitism when a child called me a dirty Jew. At home I
lived close to Coney Island.
9. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple? Were your parents or other family
members religious?
BROOKLYN: My family was not much involved with religion. We went to synagogue on the high
holidays and celebrated Thanksgiving but not Christmas. Once when I was 6 or 7 my father tried to
’et me sit with him in the Synagogue, but I was sent to sit upstairs with my mother.
10. What holidays and rituals were observed in your family? Do you have any significant
memories surrounding Jewish celebrations and what was special about those occasions?
11. Did you attend Sunday School or other religious schools? Were you confirmed? Did you
have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah? What are your memories from that time? Are you still in touch with
some of the people that attended Sunday School with you?
BROOKLYN: I went to Sunday School at the Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst, which was
like the JCC. I was not confirmed, but learned Bible stories, sang, took ballet and drama. I am not
now in touch with anyone there; but one friend, Iris Kline Owens, persuaded me to apply to Barnard.
I would have liked to be in touch with her, but she died. Iris wrote novels. Other well-known people
who attended the Community House were Rhoda Karpatkin who was a CEO of Consumer Union and
Maurice Sendak.
12. What is your educational background? What was your occupation? Who or what
influenced you to choose your career? What kind of preparation or training was required
for your career?
I attended Brooklyn College, Barnard, and Columbia. My first job, in high school, was selling linens at
Loessers Dept, store in Brooklyn. When I graduated from law school there were few if any jobs for
Jewish women, so the Dean of the law school hired me to work on a project to develop an income tax
code. The people on that committee were famous and interesting. They met at the Bar Association
and usually had lunch at the Harvard Club, but since it did not let in women when they were with me
they went across the street to the Algonquin. The office looked at the Colgate clock, same as in
Louisville. The firm had two Jewish partners, one of whom hired me. I was always interested in
�public policy which led me to become an attorney. I had thought I would go into politics, but didn’t
have the confidence. Instead, I decided to open my own practice, and worked for the same professor
who had hired me, doing research at the Columbia library. There I met Myra Schumann who was
ioing the same kind of work. I told Myra I wanted to meet a man who wanted to marry, not just have
sex. Myra talked to her husband who was a friend of Donald Balleisen and set up a date for him with
me. Donald was tall, wore a hat, and took me to dinner at the Plaza, then to the movie (The Last
Angry Man), on to a jazz club, and then to a walk by the river. This was January 17, 1959. On
Valentine’s Day he gave me a lovely heart pin, and we married on April 8, 1959, a small wedding at
the Sheraton Netherlands. We had three children: Ellen, born January 9, 1960; Wendy, born October
13, 1963; and Edward, born July 3, 1965. I have three grandchildren; Cassandra Marie Finger who
graduated from Smith three years ago; Zach who is 15 and Aaron, 13, who live with Edward in
Durham, SC where he is a professor at Duke. Daughter Ellen lives in New York and teaches ESL at
CUNY and does pension consulting for the teachers’ union.
While I was raising my children in Louisville, I was on many boards. When my husband left
Greenbaum, I became his associate lawyer, and 'then we became partners with Tilford, Dobbins,
Alexanders, Buckaway, and Black. I specialized in estate tax, tax planning, and was a courtappointed lawyer for children’s abuse cases.
13. How did you meet your mate? At what point did you realize that this was the one you
wanted to marry? Where and when were you married? Do you have children?
Grandchildren?
14. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community outside of your temple or synagogue
when you were growing up.
15. What was your involvement in the non- Jewish community? Did you witness any antiSemitism living in Louisville? If so, how was this incident handled?
In my neighborhood in Brooklyn was an Italian Catholic girl who became my close friend. We would
walk to the Bay wearing shorts and the soldiers in trucks would whistle at us. However, once a man
exposed himself and that was the end of the walks. I experienced no anti-Semitism in Louisville.
16. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel? Pearl Harbor? What are
your earliest recollections when thinking about major events in history?
I had one aunt who immigrated to Israel in the 1950s. My Mother’s oldest brother, who had four kids,
was in the Red Army and they ended up in a displaced persons’ camp. Bella, who was a poll
watcher, finally got them into the U.S. Her brother became a professor at Dropsie College, but was
angry with his sister for not getting him a position in New York. My brother enlisted in the army at 17
(1943) and wanted to go into the Specialized Training program. Later he was sent to Penn State on
the Gl Bill and became an attorney.
17. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
I have no spiritual memories. I just liked being Jewish.
18. What interests or hobbies did you have when you were young and what are they now?
What schools did you attend and are there any memories that stand out from that time in
your life?
When I was young I liked Frank Sinatra, drawing, my cat, folk dancing (as a teenager), politics and
playing the piano. I took lessons for eight years at the 3rd Street Music Settlement where lessons
�plus music theory were $1.25. Now I am involved in writing my memoirs, politics, the Citizens
Housing Counsel, the Citizens Union, and the American Jewish Committee.
19. What
are your favorite family memories - whether it was with your family of origin, or your
extended family and friends?
My best memories are of having my whole family here for my birthday. I wish I had been more
involved with them, but they are all far apart geographically.
20. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What message do you want
to leave for your children and future generations?
I would like to be remembered as a person who really cared about Tikkun 01am. I want my children
and grandchildren to do their own thing and be happy. I am very proud of all of them.
�
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
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eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_balleisenc
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Caroline Balleisen, 2011
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Caroline Balleisen (1930-2020) in September 2011. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Balleisen, Caroline, 1930-2020
Adelstein, Gay
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2011-09
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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68466f926d3eef0aac4aad5530babf86
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
Ia
. ^
Ann F
r i e d
m
a
n
, I am conducting an interview with:
Helene Banks
for the JFCS archives in 2001.
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when? How did they
travel?
My mother was bom in the United States (Philadelphia, PA) but returned to Brussels, Belgium with
her parents and brother Ben (also born in the U.S.) around 1912. Her parents felt there was much
anti-Semitism in U.S. at that time and felt they would live more comfortably in Belgium. My mother
returned to the United States in July 1940 when we were fleeing the Germans in World War II. She
came with me (age 3-1/2) and my sister Simone who was only three weeks old and who was born in
Bordeaux, France, en route to the United States. I was born in Brussels but we had to flee Brussels
because the German occupation had already begun there. My mother had never relinquished her
U.S. citizenship so we, as her children, were able to come to the U.S. with her. My father couldn’t
come at that time because he was not a U.S. citizen, having been bom in Poland. He fled to
Casablanca, finally making it to the United States and rejoining his family in 1941. My mother’s
brothers helped him get to the U.S.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born? Have there been other
family names used in the past? Where, when, and why was it changed?
My mother’s name was Lena Halpern. She was born in Philadelphia, PA on May 14, 1907. My
father’s name was Leon Bronstein (later Anglicized to Brownson). He was born in Poland about ten
days after Chanukah in 1908.
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
French and English were spoken in our home. When I arrived in the U.S. at age 3, I didn’t know a
word of English - a year later I didn’t know a word of French. We lived in New York City immediately
after arriving in the U.S. When my father rejoined us a year later, we moved to Norfolk, Virginia
where my father accepted a position as a furrier in a well-known department store. Later he opened
his own fur salon and storage vault which in the 50s was billed as the largest fur storage vault in the
South. We lived in a small bungalow in a lovely residential area. When I was 12 years old my
parents built a large brick Colonial home in the Larchmont area of Norfolk. I lived in both these
homes with my three younger sisters, Simone (Mona), Bernice (Bunny), and Rachele Joyce (we
called her Joyce then). No aunts or uncles lived nearby and all four of my grandparents were lost in
the Holocaust.
4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/Aunts?
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come? How did
they travel? Did they share any unusual experiences with you?
I came with my former husband who was transferred to Louisville with the Recruiting Service of the
U.S. Airforce. We arrived here on June 9, 1975.
�6. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? What kind of shops were in
your neighborhood?
There were several other Jewish families in the Ghent area where we lived in our first home. We
walked to school. We were driven to Sunday school at Temple Beth El, our Conservative synagogue.
There were both a grocery and a drug store in this area. We had no Jewish neighbors in the
Larchmont area. I took a bus to high school each day and we had to travel some distance to get to a
grocery or drug store.
7. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and
your loved ones?
The flood did not affect me because I did not live in Louisville at that time.
8. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did
you travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use
when you traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do
you have of those trips?
We didn’t travel a lot but when we did, it was by car. We did attend family weddings and Bar
Mitzvahs, usually in New York. I took my first plane trip to New York to visit my aunts, uncles and
cousins when I was 17 years old.
9. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple? Were your parents or other family
members religious?
Yes, my family was always involved with our synagogue. My father was a respected member of our
synagogue and belonged to the Men’s Club. My mother belonged to the Sisterhood.
10. What holidays and rituals were observed in your family? Do you have any significant
memories surrounding Jewish celebrations and what was special about those occasions?
All Jewish holidays and rituals were celebrated in our home and in the synagogue. We were
Conservative and very observant.
11. Did you attend Sunday school or other religious schools? Were you confirmed? Did you
have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah? What are your memories from that time? Are you still in touch with
some of the people that attended Sunday school with you?
Yes, I attended Sunday school, Hebrew school and I was confirmed.
12. What is your educational background? What was your occupation? Who or what
influenced you to choose your career? What kind of preparation or training was required
for your career?
i graduated high school and completed one year of college. I took a summer job for an insurance
company and promised to stay. I did not return to college for that reason. I was an executive
secretary, a legal secretary and administrative assistant. I retired from KFC Corp, headquarters in
November, 1985.
�13. How did you meet your mate? At what point did you realize that this was the one you
wanted to marry? Where and when were you married? Do you have children?
Grandchildren?
I met my first husband, Jack Jaffe, at the Jewish Community Center in Norfolk, Virginia in 1956. We
were married March 2, 1957 in Norfolk. We had three children: Denis (Deni) JaffeTownsend, Sharon
Ellen Jaffe (Glasser), and Leonard Burton Jaffe. Jack and I were divorced in June, 1976 and he died
in June, 1980. I net Norman Banks in June of 1982. His sister Rhona, after meeting me, gave
Norman my number to call and we began dating regularly thereafter. We were married at Adath
Jeshurun on May 27, 1984. We have no children together. Norman has three children of his own
from his previous marriage,
14. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community outside of your temple or synagogue
when you were growing up.
Before moving to Louisville, I was always working full time but was a member of Hadassah (and still
am) because there was always a chapter in every city to which we were transferred. I joined NCJW,
Louisville Section, the day I retired from KFC - November 1, 1985. I have remained active in all
areas of the section and served as president from 1991 to 1993. In the late 70s I was an advisor to
Modern Femmes BBG. I chaired the Scholarship Committee of the Home of the Innocents Auxiliary,
served on the Holocaust Steering Committee and on the Board of the Federation’s Community
Relations Council. My children were active in the Jewish community organizations in San Antonio
and Louisville. They continue to serve their respective communities.
15. What was your involvement in the non- Jewish community? Did you witness any antiSemitism living in Louisville? If so, how was this incident handled?
16. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel? Pearl Harbor? What are
your earliest recollections when thinking about major events in history?
As mentioned earlier, I lost all four of my grandparents in the gas chambers. And there, but for the
grace of G-d, went I. Although I have not been directly affected by the wars in Israel, I have grave
concern for its people. I pray they will one day enjoy peace.
17. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
I particularly recall celebrating Simchas Torah with my father. The men marched around the
synagogue carrying all the torahs from the ark and we children followed behind, carrying and waving
our flags that we topped with an apple. A fond memory is of sitting between Joe Kaplan and my
husband Norman chanting and singing the prayers on the High Holidays at Adath Jeshurun. Judaism
has affected my life greatly. I have tried t live my life by its commandments.
18. What interests or hobbies did you have when you were young and what are they now?
What schools did you attend and are there any memories that stand out from that time in
your life?
family, volunteer work, mahjong, needlepointing, knitting and reading are my interests.
19. What are your favorite family memories - whether it was with your family of origin, or your
extended family and friends?
�My sister Mona and I would get my mother’s hats down from her closet and along with my mother, the
three of us would try on all the hats frontwards, backwards and inside out. We’d laugh so hard. My
son’s Bar Mitzvah and all our other joyous family events also are favorite memories.
20. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What message do you want
to leave for your children and future generations?
My legacy to this world is my three children who, in spite of obstacles and hardships they had to
overcome, have become outstanding and respected citizens in their own communities. I’d like to be
remembered as a good wife, a good mother, honest, caring and someone who tried to help others.
�QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
Ann Friedman
1. I am
Helene Banks
with
__________________ , 2001.
*
y
, I am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives on
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country
and when.
My mother was bom in the United States (Philadelphia, PA) but returned to Brussels,
Belgium with her parents and brother Ben (also bom in the U.S.) around 1912. Her
parents felt there was much anti-Semitism in the U.S. at that time and felt they would live
more comfortably in Belgium. My mother returned to the United States in July 1940
when we were fleeing the Germans in World War II. She came with me (age 3-1/2) and
my sister Simone who was only 3 weeks old and who was bom in Bordeaux, France, en
route to the United States. I was bom in Brussels but we had to flee Brussels because the
German occupation had already begun there. My mother had never relinquished her U.S.
citizenship so we, as her children, were able to come to the U.S. with her. My father
couldn’t come at that time because he was not a U.S. citizen having been bom in Poland.
He fled to Casablanca, finally making it to the United States and rejoining his family in
1941. My m other’s brothers helped him get to the U.S.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother’s name was Lena Halpern. She was bom in Philadelphia, PA on May 14,
1907. My father’s name was Leon Bronstein (later Anglicized to Brownson). He was
bom in Poland about ten days after Chanukah in 1908.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents? - Uncles? - Aunts? - Brothers? - Sisters?
French and English were spoken in our home. When I arrived in the U.S. at age 3, I
didn’t know a w ord o f English - a year later I didn’t know a word o f French. We lived in
New York City immediately after arriving in the U.S. When my father rejoined us a year
later, we moved to Norfolk, Virginia where my father accepted a position as a furrier in a
well-known department store. Later he opened his own fur salon and storage vault which
in the 50’s was billed as the largest fur storage vault in the South. We lived in a small
bungalow in a lovely residential area. When I was 12 years old my parents built a large
brick Colonial home in the Larchmont area o f Norfolk. I lived in both these homes with
my three younger sisters, Simone (Mona), Bernice (Bunny) and Rachele Joyce (we called
her Joyce then). No aunts or uncles lived nearby and all four o f my grandparents were lost
in the Holocaust.
�5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple?
Was there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
There were several other Jewish families in the Ghent area where we lived in our first
home. We walked to school. We were driven to Sunday School at Temple Beth El, our
Conservative Synagogue. There were both a grocery and drug store in this area. We
had no Jewish neighbors in the Larchmont area. I took a bus to high school each day and
we had to travel some distance to get to a grocery or drug store.
6. If you wished to travel, what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
We didn’t travel a lot but when we did, it was by car. We did attend family weddings and
Bar Mitzvahs, usually in New York. I took my first plane trip to New York to visit my
aunts, uncles and cousins when I was 17 years old.
7. Was you family involved in a synagogue/temple?
Yes, my family was always involved with our synagogue. My father was a respected
member o f our Synagogue and belonged to the Men’s Club. My mother belonged to the
Sisterhood.
8. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All Jewish holidays and rituals were celebrated in our home and in the synagogue. We
were Conservative and very observant.
9. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
Yes, I attended Sunday school, Hebrew school and I was confirmed.
10. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I graduated high school and completed one year o f college. I took a summer job for an
insurance company and promised to stay. I did not return to college for that reason. I
was an executive secretary, a legal secretary and administrative assistant. I retired from
KFC Corp, headquarters in November 1985.
11. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come.
I came with my former husband who was transferred to Louisville with the Recruiting
Service o f the U. S. Air Force. We arrived here on June 9, 1975.
�12. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you
married? Did you have children?
I met my first husband, Jack Jaffe, at the Jewish Community Center in Norfolk, Virginia in
1956. We were married March 2, 1957 in Norfolk. We had three children, Denise (Deni)
Jaffe Townsend, Sharon Ellen Jaffe (Glasser) and Leonard Burton Jaffe. Jack and I were
divorced in June 1976 and he died in June 1980. I met Norman Banks in June o f 1982.
His sister Rhona, after meeting me, gave Norman my number to call and we began dating
regularly thereafter. We were married at Adath Jeshurun on May 27,1984. We have no
children together. Norman has three children o f his own from his previous marriage.
13. Tell all about your involvement in the Jewish Community. Was your
whole family involved.
Before moving to Louisville I was always working full time but was a member o f
Hadassah (and still am) because there was always a chapter in every city to which we were
transferred. I joined NCJW, Louisville Section the day I retired from KFC - November 1,
1985. I have remained active in all areas o f the section and served as President from 1991
to 1993. In the late ‘70’s I was an advisor to M odem Femmes BBG. I chaired the
Scholarship Committee o f the Home o f the Innocents Auxiliary , served on the Holocaust
Steering Committee and on the Board o f the Federation’s Community Relations Council.
My children were active in the Jewish community organizations in San Antonio and
Louisville. They continue to serve their respective communities.
14. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
As mentioned earlier, I lost all four o f my grandparents in the gas chambers. And there for
the grace o f G-d went I. Although I have not been directly affected by the wars in Israel, I
have grave concern for its people. I pray they will one day enjoy peace.
15. What are your favorite spiritual memories. How did religion affect your
life?
I particularly recall celebrating Simchas Torah with my father. The men marched around
the synagogue carrying all the torahs from the ark and we children followed behind
carrying and waving our flags that we topped with an apple. Another fond memory is of
sitting between Joe Kaplan and my husband Norman chanting and singing the prayers on
the High Holidays at Adath Jeshurun. Judaism has affected my life greatly. I have tried to
live my life by its commandments.
16. What interests do you have?
Family, volunteer work, Mah Jong, needlepointing, knitting and reading are my interests.
�17. What are your favorite family memories.
My sister Mona and I would get my mothers hats down from her closet and along with my
mother, the three o f us would try on all the hats frontward, backwards and inside out.
W e’d laugh so hard. My son’s Bar Mitzvah and all our other joyous family events also are
favorite memories.
18. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What
values would you like to pass on to those you leave behind.
My legacy to this world is my three children who, in spite o f obstacles and hardships they
had to overcome, have become outstanding and respected citizens in their own
communities. I ’d like to be remembered as a good wife, a good mother, honest, caring
and someone who tried to help others.
There was no question about the 1937 flood on the form when this interview
was done.
The flood did not affect me because I did not live in Louisville at that time.
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
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Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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024x6_banksh
Title
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Interview with Helene Banks, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Helene Banks in 2001. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
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Banks, Helene
Friedman, Ann
Date
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2001
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Text
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
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20th century
21st century
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eng
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
I am Ann F r i e d m a n , I am conducting an interview with:
Norman Banks
On July 26, 2001 for the JFCS archives.
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when? How did they
travel?
My grandparents lived in the Ukraine. My grandfather was a miller (flour) by trade. When the
Cossacks came to their village the men were taken away to serve in the military. My grandfather,
Nathan, and my grandmother, Clara Michelbanc, fled with their children, Maurice, Fannie and another
sister who was called “Red,” to a seaport city in Germany where they stayed only until they were able
to get passage to the United States in 1898. My father, Maurice, had another brother named Martin
who was born after the family arrived in the United States. The family first arrived in New York and
then went to Baltimore.
My mother, Esther Sophie Bordensky, “Sophie,” came in the United States with her parents from
Poland or Russia in the 1890s. Sophie had nine siblings (ten children). One of her brothers will be
100 years old this year; he lives in Rockville, MD. The family settled in the same area as my father’s
family, Wilkins Avenue in Baltimore. My parents met because they lived close to each other. They
married in 1916.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born? Have there been other
family names used in the past? Where, when, and why was it changed?
My mother was Esther Sophie Bordensky Banks.
My father was Maurice Banks.
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
I was born on April 25, 1918. My grandparents spoke Yiddish and some English. My sister, Rhona
Banks Singlust, and I spoke English.
�4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/Aunts?
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come? How did
they travel? Did they share any unusual experiences with you?
I came to Louisville in 1933. After the Depression, Fort Eustis was closed and the troops were moved
to fort Knox, Kentucky. An Army general asked my father if he would like to come to Fort Knox. He
came in 1931, and the rest of the family joined him in 1933.
6. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? What kind of shops were in
your neighborhood?
The Jews of Baltimore lived in the Carroll Park area, somewhat like a ghetto, with Italians living in
their own area and Poles in their own. Jews traveled together. That’s the way it was - rough.
The family moved to Hopewell, Virginia, a very small town near Ft. Eustis, when I was two or three
years old. My father and brother-in-law opened a grocery and they took turns working in the grocery
while also working in a munitions plant. About 18 months later World War I ended, the munitions
plant closed, people lost their jobs, the grocery closed, and the town virtually became a “ghost town.”
A business opportunity presented itself in Clarksburg, West Virginia and my family lived there for
about two years, after which the family relocated to Newport News, Virginia. It was there that I went
to Sunday school, Hebrew School and went to schul. My mother’s father was a cantor so religion
was a great priority. This was where I really grew up, attended services and had my Bar Mitzvahl
7. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and
your loved ones?
8. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did
you travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use
when you traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do
you have of those trips?
We traveled by train or automobile. I would go to Baltimore with my mother who had a chronic
medical condition and was treated by her brother, Nathan Bordensky, who was a doctor. We also
�traveled to see family on the old Kiptopeke Ferry, which in those days took you from Virginia to
Maryland (you actually took your car on the ferry and drove the rest of the way.)
9. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple? Were your parents or other family
members religious?
My family and I attended the Orthodox synagogue.
10. What holidays and rituals were observed in your family? Do you have any significant
memories surrounding Jewish celebrations and what was special about those occasions?
All Jewish holidays and rituals were observed and I was raised in a kosher home. On Shabbat and
holidays my grandmother would not cook because they could not burn a flame. She took her food to
the bakery because the baker’s ovens remained warm.
11. Did you attend Sunday School or other religious schools? Were you confirmed? Did you
have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah? What are your memories from that time? Are you still in touch with
some of the people that attended Sunday School with you?
I attended religious school and became a Bar Mitzvah. I was to be confirmed but got into an
argument with the rabbi. The Confirmation class had to write speeches using the letters from the
word “dogma.” My assigned letter was “d.” I wrote the speech but the rabbi refused to accept it and
said I had to write another speech. I refused and my father was called to come to the synagogue. I
never wrote a new speech, but the rabbi was fired when it was learned he had never been ordained.
12. What is your educational background? What was your occupation? Who or what
influenced you to choose your career? What kind of preparation or training was required
for your career?
I attended two years of high school in Newport News, Virginia and completed the last two years at
Male High School here in Louisville. The family moved to Louisville in 1922. My career was working
for my father in the laundry, dry cleaning and tailoring business. The Depression had hit and
everything was tough. The Bank of Kentucky failed, the insurance policy with the bank failed and
“there went my education down the tubes.”
13. How did you meet your mate? At what point did you realize that this was the one you
wanted to marry? Where and when were you married? Do you have children?
Grandchildren?
�I met my first wife, Birdie Mae Kaplan, when she slammed the door in my face at a party. We dated
for about three years until her mother urged me to make a marital decision. We married on July 7,
1940 at the Kentucky Hotel at Fifth and Walnut Rabbi Gittleman married us. It was a huge wedding.
We had three children - Jeffrey Banks, Neil Banks and Anne Banks. Birdie Mae passed away in
November, 1981. I met Helene Jaffe through my sister and we started dating right away - July, 1982.
We dated for two years but I also dated a few other women. I “sowed a lot of wild oats.” We married
on May 27, 1984. Helene has three children.
14. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community outside of your temple or synagogue
when you were growing up.
I was active at Adath Jeshurun as Treasurer of the Board and worked for UJC for a number of years.
The whole family is active in the Jewish community in many organizations in different areas.
15. What was your involvement in the non- Jewish community? Did you witness any antiSemitism living in Louisville? If so, how was this incident handled?
16. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel? Pearl Harbor? What are
your earliest recollections when thinking about major events in history?
I was in the Tank Corps in Germany and spent eighteen months in the service.
17. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Attending services with my family is a favorite spiritual memory. “My religion is the core of my being.”
18. What interests or hobbies did you have when you were young and what are they now?
What schools did you attend and are there any memories that stand out from that time in
your life?
My interests were and are golf, cards (bridge), reading, music and dancing.
19. What are your favorite family memories - whether it was with your family of origin, or your
extended family and friends?
My fondest memories are of family and marriage. We were a large family and went on trips together
and celebrated occasions together. .Family is most important to me.
�20. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What message do you want
to leave for your children and future generations?
He was a good man, Gunga Din!” He loved all his family, his children and Helene’s children. I want
to be remembered as a “good guy,” honest, honorable and with a good sense of humor.
�QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. la m ______ Ann Friedman______ ______ , I am conducting an interview
with
Norman Banks
Z'
for the JFVS archives
on
July 26, 2
0
0
1
.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My grandparents lived in the Ukraine. My grandfather was a miller (flour) by trade. When
the Cossacks came to their village the men were taken away to serve in the military. My
grandfather, Nathan and my grandmother, Clara Michelbanc fled with their children,
Maurice, Fannie and another sister who was called “Red”, to a seaport city in Germany
where they stayed only until they were able to get passage to the United States in 1898. My
father, Maurice, had another brother named Martin who was bom after the family arrived in
the United States. The family first arrived in New York and then went to Baltimore.
My mother, Esther Sophie Bordensky “Sophie”, came in the United States with her parents
from Poland or Russia in the 1890’s. Sophie had nine siblings (ten children). One of her
brothers will be 100 years old this year, he lives in Rockville, MD. The family settled in the
same area as my father’s family, Wilkins Avenue is Baltimore. My parents met because
they lived close to each other. They married in 1916.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My mother was Esther Sophie Bordensky Banks.
My father was Maurice Banks.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents? - Uncles? - Aunts? - Brothers? - Sisters?
I was bom on April 25, 1918. My grandparents spoke Yiddish and some English. My
sister, Rhona Banks Singlust and I spoke English.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
The Jews of Baltimore lived in the Carroll Park area, somewhat like a ghetto with Italians
living in their own area and the Poles in their own. Jew traveled together. That’s the way it
was - rough.
The family moved to Hopewell, Virginia, a very small town near Ft. Eustis, when I was two
or three years old. My father and brother-in-law opened a grocery and they took turns
working in the grocery while also working in a munitions plant. About 18 months later
World War I ended, the munitions plant closed, people lost their jobs, the grocery closed,
�and the town virtually became a “ghost town.” A business opportunity presented itself in
Clarksburg, West Virginia and my family there for about two years after which the family
relocated to Newport News, Virginia. It was there that I went to Sunday school, Hebrew
school and went to Schul. My mother’s father was a cantor so religion was a great priority.
This was where I really grew up, attended services and had my Bar Mitzvah.
6. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
We traveled by train or automobile. I would go to Baltimore with my mother who had a
chronic medical condition and was treated by her brother, Nathan Bordensky, who was a
doctor. We also traveled to see family on the old Kiptopeke Ferry, which in those days took
you from Virginia to Maryland (you actually took your car on the ferry and drove the rest of
the way).
7. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
My family and I attended the Orthodox synagogue.
8. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All Jewish holidays and rituals were observed and I was raised in a kosher home. On
Shabbat and holidays my grandmother would not cook because they could not bum a flame.
She took her food to the bakery because the baker’s ovens remained warm.
9. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I attended religious school and became a Bar Mitzvah. I was to be confirmed but got into an
argument with the Rabbi. The Confirmation Class had to write speeches using the letters
from the word “dogma.” My assigned letter was “d.” I wrote the speech but the Rabbi
refused to accept it and said I had to write another speech. I refused and my father was
called to come to the synagogue. I never wrote a new speech, but the Rabbi was fired when
it was learned he had never been ordained.
10. What is your edlueatiioniag background? What was your career?
I attend two years of high school in Newport News, Virginia and completed the last two
years at Male High School here in Louisville. The family moved to Louisville in 1933. My
career was working for my father in the laundry, dry cleaning and tailoring business. The
Depression had hit and everything was tough. The Bank of Kentucky failed, the insurance
policy with the bank failed and “there went my education down the tubes.”
11. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I came to Louisville in 1933. After the Depression, Fort Eustis was closed and the troops
were moved to Fort Knox, Kentucky. An Army General asked my father if he would like to
come to Fort Knox. He came in 1931 and the rest of the family joined him in 1933.
�12. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
I met my first wife, Birdie Mae Kaplan, when she slammed the door in my face at a party.
We dated for about three years until her mother urged me to make a marital decision. We
married on July 7, 1940 at the Kentucky Hotel at 5th and Walnut Streets in Louisville.
Rabbi Gittleman married us. It was a huge wedding. We had three children - Jeffrey
Banks, Neil Banks and Anne Banks. Birdie Mae passed away in November 1981. I met
Helene Jaffe through my sister and we started dating right away - July 1982. We dated for
two years but I also dated a few other women. I “sewed a lot of wild oats.” We married
May 27, 1984. Helene has three children.
13. Tell about your involvement in the Jewish Community. Was your whole
family involved?
I was active at Adath Jeshurun as Treasurer of the Board and worked for UJC for a number
of years. The whole family is active is in the Jewish community in many organizations in
different areas.
14. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
I was in the Tank Corps in Germany and spent eighteen months in the service.
15. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Attending services with my family in a favorite spiritual memory. “My religion is the core
of my being.”
16. What interests did you have?
My interests were and are golf, cards (bridge), reading, music and dancing.
17. What are your favorite family memories?
My fondest memories are of family and marriage. We were a large family and went on trips
together and celebrated occasions together. Family is most important to me.
18. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
“He was a good man, Gunga Din!” He loved all his family, his children and Helene’s
children. I want to be remembered as a “good guy”, honest, honorable and with a good
sense of humor.
JFVS/aj 6/10/02
Word.olderAdultOralHistories.Banks Norman
�#
Friday, March 21, 2008 ~ 14 Adar II 5768
■ Norman Banks, 89, died Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at the
Episcopal Church Home after a lengthy illness.
Mr. Banks was a 1935 graduate of Louisville Male High School and had
served with the U.S. Army Tank Corps in World War II. He was in the
laundry and dry cleaning business in the Fort Knox and Radcliff areas
and was president of the Muldraugh Realty Company. He was the 54th
member of the Standard Country Club and member of B'nai Brith and
Congregation Adath Jeshurun.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Maurice and Sophie Banks;
his first wife, Birdie Mae Banks; and his sister, Rhona Singlust.
He is survived by his wife, Helene D. Banks; his sons, Jeffrey (Carol)
and Neil; daughter, Anne Banks; stepchildren, Deni Townsend (Bill),
Sharon Jaffe (James Glasser) and Leonard Jaffe (Charleen);
grandchildren, Sara Dentinger (Jeff), Michael Banks, Jonathan Bronner
(Sara), Meredith and Elizabeth Bronner, Adam, Brandon and Emilee
Banks, Jaclyn Lackey (Jason), and Sarah and Annie Glasser; great
grandchildren, Noah and Olivia Dentinger; brothers-in-law, Dr. Martin
Kaplan and Dr. Ben Kaplan (Miriam); and Martha Brown, who helped
care for him.
The family wishes to thank the loving and caring staff of the Episcopal
Church Home.
His funeral will be 2:00pm Friday, March 21,2008 at the funeral home,
with burial in Adath Jeshurun Cemetery 2926 Preston Highway.
Visitation will begin at 1:00pm Friday.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Parkinson's Support
Center of Kentuckiana, Congregation Adath Jeshurun or Hosparus of
Louisville.
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Collection
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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024x6_banksn
Title
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Interview with Norman Banks, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Norman Banks (1918-2008) on July 26, 2001. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
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Banks, Norman, 1918-2008
Friedman, Ann
Date
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2001-07-26
Format
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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01a2e4f2bce899197e4d16643c2f70d3
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORY OF MARGOT BARR
1. I am Helene Banks, I am conducting an interview with Margot Barr for the
JFCS archives on June 29, 2010.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My family came to the United States in August 1939 from Donauschingen in
Germany. My father and other townsmen were put in jail on Kristalnacht.
We lived in a small community and my father was released from jail when the
family obtained the records necessary to travel. We went to
and stayed there for a couple of days because Dad’s mother and other
relatives lived there. Then we went to Paris for a couple of days. Dad wanted
to stay, but mother said “no.” We were on the last ship to leave in August of
1939. When we arrived in New York, my Dad had 10 cents. Mother’s sister
lived in New York. My uncle, aunt and their two children were with us on the
ship. My aunt was the one who talked my mother into getting papers to be able
to leave when the time came.
3
What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My father’s name was Fred Bensinger and mother’s name was Judith. They were
Both were born in Germany.
4.
What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Sisters?
Grandparents? Uncles/Aunts? Brothers?
I was born September 25, 1929 (I was 9 years old when I came here.). German
and Yiddush were spoken in my home and we had to learn English when we
arrived in the United States. We were separated from our parents for a short time
(our family didn’t have any money) and our mother disapproved of the separation.
Finally, we were all reunited. When we came to Louisville, Dad was given a job
operating an elevator. We lived downtown on Brook Street. My brother, sister,
Mother, Dad and I lived together in the same house. We lived right next to the
school.
5.
What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
Jews lived everywhere in the neighborhood; on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Streets. The Jews
lived all around us. Yes, I walked to school. Both my brother and sister went to
�Sunday School but I did not. We went to the Temple first. Then we joined Adath
Oral History of Margot Barr
June 29, 2010
Page 2
Jeshurun and I then went with my brother and sister.
6.
How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
We weren’t here until 1939.
7.
If you wished to travel, what kind of transportation did you use. Did you
travel when you were young. If so, where?
We didn’t travel. I did travel with three other girls by train to Florida when I was
18 or 19.
8.
Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple?
My whole family was involved at Adath Jeshurun..
9.
What holidays and rituals were observed?
All holidays and rituals were observed in our home.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I did not attend religious school. I was not Confirmed or Bat Mitzvahed.
11. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I finished high school and went to night school to take college courses at the
University of Louisville. I worked in an office as a secretary.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I came with my family in 1939 or 1940.
13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Do you have children?
I met my husband in Louisville in 19 ?? . He owned a store on 4 Street. We were
married in Louisville on August 10, 1952. I have three children; Sandy Hammond,
Jennifer Burke and Jeff Barr.
�Oral History of Margot Barr
September 29, 2010
Page 3
14. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community? Was your whole family
involved?
My whole family was involved in the Jewish Community. My mother always
helped at the JCC, especially with senior activities. My children have also been
involved.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
Our family was deeply affected by World War II. We had to escape Europe. The
wars in Israel affected me as they did other Jews. I was very distressed and
supported them as we could. We bought Israeli bonds
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
My spiritual memories are being together with my family for Jewish holidays and
family celebrations. .My mother always cooked and we would go to services
together.
17.
What interests do you have?
I play bridge, go out with friends to the theater and go to lunch and dinner
Occasionally.
18. What are you favorite family memories?
My best memories are being together with my family and parents.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
Would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
It is important to keep the family as a group and do everything you can to help the
needy. Make sure the family is able to get an education and that everyone has a
good life.
�Margot Barr
Margot Barr, nee Bensinger, was bom in September, 1929, in a small town in Germany,
called Donaueschingen. She was the oldest of three siblings, Ann, and Carl. As
conditions in Germany began to deteriorate her parents realized the urgency of
emigration. She remembers that her father, Fred, was jailed for a time by the Nazis He
had a small retail shop, which was taken from them. These were perilous times for Jews
in Germany, and eventually all of Europe.
Her mother’s sister and her family also were able to leave Germany and they were the
only other family members who escaped, those remaining all eventually perished. A
cousin in Chicago was a sponsor and helped the family get the required papers for
emigration from Germany. At one point they even tried to get to South America but that
didn’t work out and then the visa to America finally became available.
When the family was finally allowed to leave, they left with little in the way of
possessions or wealth. They used the last of their funds to pay for the journey and arrived
with little more than the clothes they were wearing. Their boxes of belongings were to be
shipped to them but nothing ever arrived. They first went to France, where a cousin of her
father’s encouraged them to settle there. However, Margot’s mother, Judith, insisted that
they follow their original plans and leave Europe right away, which proved to be the
action that saved the family.
They arrived in New York in August, 1939, just prior to the outbreak of war in Europe in
September. Margot was 10. The family lived in New York a short time before they were
helped by HIAS, which found a place for them in Kansas City. The family was given bus
tickets for their trip. However, when the bus stopped in Louisville, Fred decided that
since they had some relatives here, they would remain in Louisville.
They lived for a while at 944 South Brook Street near Male High. Her mother worked at
a shop across the street from the school and had other part time jobs, which allowed her
to be there when the children came home from school. Her parents attended classes to
learn English and the children picked up English rather easily, as children often do. They
later moved to 954 South Brook to a larger house, which enabled them to take in
boarders. Her sister, Ann Schaffer, now lives in New York. Margot and her brother, Carl,
still reside in Louisville. Margot’s father, Fred, died August, 1979 and Margot’s mother,
Judith, lived independently and enjoyed good health until very late in life and died in her
own home September, 2007 at the age of 103.
Margot recalls that the people of Louisville were helpful, friendly and welcoming and
assisted the family to get settled. She went to Girl’s High but did not attend college. She
met her husband, Larry, who was bom in Dayton, OH and had moved to Louisville from
Huntington, West Virginia to take a job in sales. He was the manager of the Collins stores
on Fourth. They were married in 1951. Margot and Larry moved to Dorothy Ave and
lived there for about five years before moving to a home on Wendell, in the Bowman
Field area. Larry died in February, 2003.
�The Barr’s had three children, Jan, Sandy and Jeff. They were members of Adath
Jeshurun, which Margot said was a welcoming and warm congregation. Her children
attended religious school at AJ and Jeff celebrated his bar mitzvah there. The family
enjoyed occasional travel by auto, seeing many sites in this country while the children
were young.
Margot recalls being busy with her children and home. She was a secretary/receptionist
for Temple Brith Sholom for many years and continued with the congregation when it
merged with Temple Adath Israel, now called The Temple. She recalls the many seders
and other religious observances at home as well as the functions held at Congregation
Adath Jeshurun.
Her daughter, Jan, married Robert Burke and lives in the North Palm Beach area. They
have three children. Daughter Sandy, married Dr. Mark Hammond, a local dentist, and
they have two children. Her son Jeff also lives in Louisville.
Additional family information
Fred Bensinger was the son of Carl and Bertha Bensinger.
Judith Bensinger was the daughter of Isaac and Sophie Schlessinger
Lawrence (Larry) Barr was the son of Samuel and Sophie Barr
Prepared by Irvin Goldstein with additional details by Carl Bensinger.
December, 2011
�Margot, 85, died peacefully on March 22, 2015. She was bom
Barr
in Germany and came to this country with her family as a child. She was the
secretary of The Temple before her retirement. She was a star bridge player
who acquired life master status and an avid Mah Jong player. She was a
member of Congregation Adath Jeshurun, The Temple and the Jewish
Community Center.
She is preceded in death by her loving husband of 51 years, Larry Barr; and
her parents, Fred and Judith Bensinger.
She is survived by her children, Jeff Barr, Jan Burke (Rob) and Sandy Hammond (Mark); her
grandchildren, Jamie Burke, Jeremy Burke, Joshua Burke, Lauren Hammond (Ryan Rosenthal)
and Kenny Hammond (Liz); her great-grandchild, Sophie Hammond; her brother, Carl
Bensinger; her sister, Ann Schaffer (Sam); her cousin, Hans Bensinger; and several nieces,
nephews and cousins.
Funeral services will be 3:00 p.m. Monday, March 23, 2015 at Herman Meyer & Son, 1338
Ellison Avenue with burial to follow in Adath Jeshurun Cemetery. Visitation will begin after
2:00 p.m. Contributions, in her memory, may be made to the Judith Bensinger Fund at the
Jewish Community Center, The Temple or Congregation Adath Jeshurun.
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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Collection
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20th century
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Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
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024x6_barrm
Title
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Interview with Margot Barr, 2010
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Margot Barr (1929-2015) on June 29, 2010. The summary is accompanied by an obituary for Margot Barr. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
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Barr, Margot, 1929-2015
Banks, Helene
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2010-06-29
Format
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Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
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Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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PDF Text
Text
My Name is Enid German-Beck
And This is My Story
I was bom on November 18th, 1930 to Dave and Hilda Bordorf at the Jewish Hospital in
Louisville. My parents lived on Douglass Boulevard with my older sister Sherry at the
time. Sherry was bom in February of 1927, she later died in 2005. The first place I
remember living however was Eastern Parkway, east of Bardstown road about halfway to
Cherokee Park. This must have been around the end of 1935. My father sold tires on
credit and he did very well for us. Goodyear and Goodrich thought my father’s business
was a good idea and Goodrich attempted to hire him. My father declined their offer and
they eventually put him out of business as he was a competitor. This severely hurt my
father’s finances and coupled with the losses he took during the 1937 flood it forced us to
move to Sherwood Avenue. Granted it was just one street over but the difference in the
economic status between the two streets way very apparent. However, I was still a child
at this point and it did not impact me as much as my parents.
I remember having a lot of fun growing up. It seemed no matter where I lived there were
always other boys and girls my age to play with. When we lived on Eastern Parkway, we
would get together on Peggy Ray’s porch and listen to the radio, Buck Rogers and other
shows were always played. During the week we’d play outside. I learned to ride a bike
when we lived on Eastern Parkway. Back then the bicycle stands were located on the
back on the bike. You'd flip it down and it'd sit on this mechanism that allowed you to
pedal but didn't allow the bike to move. One evening I was sitting on my sister's bike
pedaling when my father came home from work. He pushed the bike of the stand and I
started forward. Somehow, I managed to balance myself and I was riding a bike for the
first time.
When I was around four years old, I got angry with my mom and decided to run away
from home. I knew the route my father would take to work; he’d head down the driveway
and turn left toward Bardstown Road. I thought I would follow my dad’s route, but I had
no idea where to go once I turned left. I ended up at a gas station frequented by my
parents and the man who was working there recognized me. He didn’t know how to get
in touch with my parents or where I lived so he took me home with him and his wife fed
me lunch. Later in the day I heard our maid, Adeline, calling my name and she took me
home. Apparently, my mother and Adeline found out I was missing and called the police
and had been searching for me.
While still living on Eastern Parkway, Johnny Greenebaun and I would play in Cherokee
Park. We went there one day after a rain and played near a creek that ran thru the park. I
got to close to the edge and began sliding down the muddy bank, unable to stop myself.
Johnny grabbed my hand and with his other hand grabbed a thin tree and was able to pull
me to safety. I credit him with saving my life.
1
�Other fun things to do in Cherokee Park were climbing Big Rock and the Daniel Boone
monument. We also enjoyed the swings, seasaws, and sliding board. It was a good place
to picnic, too.
When we moved to Sherwood in about 1937 there was a large group of people my age to
play with. We’d play games such as prisoners base, kick the can, and my father runs a
grocery. We'd stay out all day, go home for supper, and then come right back out and
play until dark. I remember that in the summer the tar that they put down for roads would
get soft because of the heat. We'd walk barefoot in the tar, so we could see our footprints.
We had a coal furnace on Sherwood and a highlight of the day would be when they
delivered coal. All the kids would come and watch the men shovel the coal into the chute.
There was a bakery, Donaldson's, that delivered bread, cakes, etc. via a horse drawn
carriage. Occasionally he would let us ride in the carriage (more like a big box) with him.
The ice man delivered to houses that did not have electric refrigerators. The family put a
sign in the window that indicated how much ice they wanted. The ice man would give us
shards of ice to eat. There were street hawkers: men selling strawberries and
watermelons. A man had a bicycle with a knife sharpening attachment. And also a man
collected rags occasionally.
My parents would drive us to Bowman field to cool off on a hot evening. We would sit
on benches that were close to the airstrip and anytime the prop planes landed or took off
we were met with a lovely breeze. We also enjoyed root beer from a root beer stand there
as well.
We moved to Trevilian Way in June, 1941. On Trevilian Way we’d gather on the next
street over: Hillside. There was a farm called Evan’s Farm where we’d occasionally be
allowed to ride a horse. We’d also get together and play games like basket ball and things
like that. We’d also spend time in Iroquois Park amphitheater. At that time they had a
row of nozzles that sprayed water in the air to conceal the stage instead of curtains today.
My parents also took my sister and me to see Victor Borge perform and on another
occasion to see a play called “Tomorrow the World” at the Memorial Auditorium.
I also remember that every winter the kids would get together at Tennis Court Hill in
Cherokee Park to sled. It was the hill right above the tennis courts and the police would
set up a first aid station and a place to dry gloves. It was a wonderful hill for sledding.
There was also one Christmas on Sherwood, I must have been eight or nine, when my
mother had to take the bus home with all the Christmas gifts. My father had kept his store
open late and needed to keep the car. My mother got off work and went to buy the
Christmas gifts. She had to ride the bus from downtown to our house and then walk from
Bardstown road to Sherwood with all the presents. That was a far walk and I thought she
was a superwoman. We attended religious services at Adath Israel at the Temple on 3rd
Street. I remember it had Greek-like pillars in the front and a couple statues of Moses,
they must have been replicas of some famous statues. The Rabbi’s name was Rauch and
I’d attend Sunday school there. At one time I could point at one of the chandeliers and
2
�tell you how many light bulbs were in it. During my confirmation year there was a
sergeant from Fort Knox teaching the class. I can’t remember his name, but he taught us
the basics of other religions and things like that. I also tried to learn Hebrew, but I didn’t
do well at it. Apparently, I have no knack to learning foreign language.
A fact that is probably interesting from my childhood would be the transportation in
Louisville. My family only had one car and when my father had to use it we had to ride
the public transportation. There were street cars that you could ride in to go downtown.
At this time the cars were segregated where whites sat in the front and the African
Americans sat in the back. I also wanted to sit in the back, I thought it would be cool to
have a window behind me and on both sides to look out of. I didn’t understand what
segregation was at the time and why I wasn’t allowed to go where the African Americans
were. In 1940, the mayor of Louisville, Wilson Wyatt, ended the segregation of the
transportation and library systems in the city. He later became Adlai Stevenson’s
campaign manager when he ran for president as a democrat.
The 1937 Flood is also a vivid memory of my childhood. There is a very famous picture
of the statue of Abraham Lincoln outside of the library standing on water. The Army
engineers had to build pontoon bridges just so you could get around the city. All the
sewers backed up and there were limited times for running water. The radio broadcasts
said to fill pots and pans with water in order to store it. My mom did that and filled the
bathtub with water. Our aunt and uncle came to live with us as well due to their house
flooding. We had to get typhoid shots and all schools were suspended. There was no
electricity, so my sister and I had fun with candles in front of our mother’s vanity. We
were trying to be spooky and made our faces look shadowy. We let out of joyful cheer
when the electricity finally kicked on. The only reason we knew it had come on was the
fact that the refrigerator kicked on. Back then the fridges had their compressors on top
and when they came on there was a loud humming sound.
I started my education at Longfellow Elementary which is now a school for special
learning. I attended kindergarten through sixth grade there. When I was in the fourth or
fifth grade there was a measles epidemic in Louisville. If you hadn’t had the measles yet
you were told to stay home. Well I hadn’t had them yet and there was another boy from
my class that hadn’t had them either. We’d go to Cherokee park and play all day. We
must have known about the war in Europe, this was before the U.S. fought, at the time
because we’d recreate bombing scenes with rocks. After two weeks the quarantine was
ended and we could return to school. Funny thing was, I went back to school and the boy
caught the measles!
I went to Highland Junior High for the seventh through the ninth grade. By this time, we
already lived on Trevilian Way and my parents had recovered from their financial issues.
The war in Europe (WWII) was impacting the U.S. as well. When the U.S. entered the
war, my father was too old to be drafted; he worked as a manager at a liquor store. My
mother worked at the Wilbur Roger store, a chain of women’s clothing, where she was
the assistant manager (later manager). When the news of the Pearl Harbor attack came
3
�over the radio, I was playing solitaire in the living room, my mother was in the kitchen,
and my father must have been outside working. Now I had no idea where Pearl Harbor
was or the significance of an attack on it, I learned a lot of geography during the war. My
mother was visibly upset at the news. She went to find my father to tell him and both
were incredibly concerned. I remember sitting on the porch one day and seeing an Army
car pull up to the house across the street. It took us a moment, but we soon realized that
our neighbor’s son had been killed in the fighting.
The city held a blood drive for the military while I was in junior high. It was a
competition to get as many people to donate as we could. I rode my bike to Bowman
Field to try to get volunteers. There was a sizeable air force unit stationed there and
somehow, I was able to get many of them to sign up. I ended up coming in second in the
whole city! The newspaper headlines read something like "The Girl Who Robbed Peter to
Pay Paul!" That was when I learned what that phrase meant!
A polio epidemic hit Louisville during this era as well. Everything was closed, and you
could only play board games or ride bikes. In fact, many people just stayed inside. We
played a never ending game of Monopoly. The banker continued to hand out money so
the game wouldn’t end. When the epidemic ended, the kids would gather at the Lakeside
pool and spend whole days there. A surprising issue I developed as a child was having
reoccurring nightmares about Hitler, I’m sure this was something that plagued everyone’s
mind.
Rationing also impacted our family. Any materials needed for the war effort was
rationed. This included tires, gas, shoes, sugar, and meat among other things. I remember
we’d get extra meat from our parent’s friends, the Karls, in exchange for liquor. The
Karls were in the meat business and my father was still in the liquor business. My father
also kept the owner of the Ford agency supplied with wine and liquor during the war.
Because of this, when the war ended my father was able to purchase the first Ford car that
came into the showroom. I remember we drove to Connecticut where my mother’s family
lived. Somewhere between New York and New Haven we were pulled over by a
policeman. My mother started giving him lip saying something along the lines of “We
weren’t going over the speed limit, we’ve done nothing illegal.” The policeman told her
to be quiet because he was just interested in looking at the new car!
After Junior High I went to Atherton High School in 1945 and later graduated in 1948
after the war had ended. I could drive during this time and before they installed the flood
walls we’d drive to the river to watch it rise after a heavy ran. After high school I went on
to Rockford College in September of 1948 and later transferred to Miami University of
Ohio. While I was at Miami, I met Sid German and we began to date. We married in
1951 and during this time he went to fight in Korea. After the war we had two children,
Brad and Barbara. Brad was bom in 1958. He married Francesca MacArthur, a relative of
General MacArthur. Together they had two children, Rebecca and David. Francesca
converted to Judaism so both of their children were raised Jewish. They live in Bethesda,
Maryland and Brad has recently retired. Barbara was bom in 1960. She married Dave
4
�Harris and together had two children Corwin and Joshua. Corwin has both of my great
grandchildren. Barbara and Dave divorced, and she went on to marry Michael Carter.
They are now divorced. She lives in Beachwood, a suburb of Cleveland and has physical
problems from three automobile accidents, none of which were her fault. In 1964 I
received a Bachelors degree in English from what is now known as Case Western
Reserve University. I continued into graduate school at Case Western Reserve University
and in 1966 received a Masters in Education with a specialization in school counseling. I
also attended Kent State University where I took Small Group Studies
I often think back to my time in Louisville. I remember when Judy Levinstein and I
would go to Churchill Downs to bet and cheer for the horses that my father selected for
us. He was a good handicapper because his picks either came in Win, Place, or Show. I
remember my time at the YMHA on 2nd street. There were a lot of clubs that met there
and I was a member of The Sweater Girls, I played on their basketball team. There was
another girls club called The Hen Hussies. The boys clubs were known as The Condors
and The Clovers. All of the clubs organized formal dances where Charlie Bunsen and the
Bunsen Burners played.
In 1973 Sid and I separated. I stayed in Cleveland, Ohio and was a guidance counselor at
Kirk Middle School in East Cleveland, where I remained for twenty-five years. I also
worked part time as an academic and career counselor at the Cuyahoga Community
College and conducted workshops in Assertive Communication for continuing education.
I eventually came to sit on the board of trustees of the Center for Families and Children
representing the East Cleveland School District. In 1979 I met Duane Beck, the Director
of the Center for Families and Children. We came to know each other very well and
married in 1986. Duane passed away in 2014.1 attend services at the Jewish Secular
Community in Cleveland
Interview by Ian Stamper and Irvin Goldstein
November 2018
5
�'nms
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Miss Enid Kay Bordorf, daughter of the David Bordorfs.
who live on Trevilian Way, cuts the cake at the party
given her last Saturday by her parents at the Standard
Club in honor of her sixteenth birthday anniversary.
Standing about the table: Pfc. Joseph W einstein of
New Haven, Conn., Margaret Flarsheim, A rth u r Lerman,
Miss Bordorf, Irving Hirsch and Joyce Brody. About
100 guests were invited to celebrate the occasion.
���
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Dublin Core
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
Type
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
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Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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Identifier
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024x6_becke
Title
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Interview with Enid German-Beck and photographs, 1930s-1950s, 2010-2011
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Enid German-Beck (1930-) in November 2010. The summary is accompanied by photographs of Enid, her homes, and her family and friends, dating from the 1930s-1950s, 2011. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
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German-Beck, Enid, 1930-
Goldstein, Irvin
Stamper, Ian
Date
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2010-11
2011-06
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Report
Photograph
Type
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Text
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Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
1930s
1940s
1950s
Language
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eng
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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d50fda2ea0421be6b485bafe449e99ea
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
We are Maxine Switow and Anita Weber, conducting an interview with:
Carol Behr
for the JFCS archives on December 23, 2011.
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when? How did they
travel?
My paternal grandparents were from Vienna, Austria, from a much assimilated family. My paternal
grandmother came to New York with her father who wanted to take her away from an unsuitable
suitor. In the early 1920s she met a man. They worked in a restaurant after they married. He died
very early. She later moved to Louisville with my mother and father. My maternal grandparents
came from St. Petersburg where my grandmother’s father was an overseer for a large estate. They
left St. Petersburg before the Revolution where they barely escaped the Cossacks. My maternal
grandmother became a well-known dress designer (“Madame Reed”) in New York City. She and my
grandfather lived at 59th and Madison for many years. Both of my parents, Shirley (Sophie Resnikoff)
and Julien Greenfield, were born in New York City. My father’s mother, Rosalie Greenfield, lived with
my parents, my sister and me from 1937 until her death in 1955.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born? Have there been other
family names used in the past? Where, when, and why was it changed?
My dad, Julian Greenfield, came to Louisville for a job in women’s wear. He opened the Joy Shop.
They didn’t know a soul. My mom, Sophie, changed her name to Shirley and her Russian maiden
name was Resnikoff which she didn’t change. Both parents were born in New York City.
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
I was born 2/12/1933. English was spoken at home, never Yiddish. I was born in Bridgeport,
Connecticut. My family moved to Louisville by train and car when I was two. My paternal
grandmother lived with us.
4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/Aunts?
�My parents lived in a rented house when they first came to Louisville, where soon after all their
belongings were gone due to a fire. My sister was five years older. We moved to the Highlands on
Spring Drive, Woodbourne and Lauderdale. We lived in the first “all-electric” house in the Highlands
on Lauderdale. There were many other Jews who lived on Lauderdale. I walked to Highland Jr.
High, took a bus to Atherton. My grandmother lived with us. Both my parents worked downtown on
4th Street. My family and I attended Adath Israel (3rd Street Temple). There were a few stores at
Douglass—Heitzman’s Bakery and a produce store, an A&P, some drug stores—near my home.
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come? How did
they travel? Did they share any unusual experiences with you?
A job was the reason for the move. We came by car and train. As soon as we came, there was a
major flood and our belongings were lost in a fire.
6. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? What kind of shops were in
your neighborhood?
See Question 4.
7. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and
your loved ones?
Since we lived in the Highlands, we did not have to move out during the flood. In fact, other people
moved into the garage of the Spring Drive Apts, where we lived during the flood.
8. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did
you travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use
when you traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do
you have of those trips?
We always had a car, but we often used a bus for transportation in Louisville. My dad took me out of
town to Lake Wawasee in the car, because I had hay fever and I was uncomfortable, and it was very
hot in Louisville!
9. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple? Were your parents or other family
members religious?
I was involved with the Temple, and Dr. Rauch was the Rabbi. We were not very observant and did
not keep Kosher.
�10. What holidays and rituals were observed in your family? Do you have any significant
memories surrounding Jewish celebrations and what was special about those occasions?
My family observed Passover and Chanukah.
11. Did you attend Sunday School or other religious schools? Were you confirmed? Did you
have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah? What are your memories from that time? Are you still in touch with
some of the people that attended Sunday school with you?
I was confirmed, and attended Sunday school. I enjoyed Sunday school, and am still in touch with
friends from Adath Israel. Rabbi Rauch was my earliest rabbi; later Rabbi Herbert Waller was rabbi. I
did not have a Bat mitzvah; it was not done at Adath Israel.
12. What is your educational background? What was your occupation? Who or what
influenced you to choose your career? What kind of preparation or training was required
for your career?
I attended Indiana University for two years. Twenty years later I went to University of Louisville to get
a business degree, but never graduated. I did a great deal of volunteer work in many organizations
which influenced my life and enabled me in my future job opportunities. I ran a mini warehouse;
worked for Jefferson County-City of Louisville for 20 years; did event planning and directed
departments for the city and county.
13. How did you meet your mate? At what point did you realize that this was the one you
wanted to marry? Where and when were you married? Do you have children?
Grandchildren?
I met my ex-husband, Max Behr, at the YMHA. We came from diverse backgrounds; I was Reform
and Max was Orthodox. We married in 1952 and have two children, a daughter, Rhonda, and a son,
Mark, and five grandchildren. We divorced in 1988.
14. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community outside of your temple or synagogue
when you were growing up.
Later, I was VERY involved in the Jewish community, Young Judea, YMHA, girls’ clubs, Hen Hussies,
and Sigma Theta Pi.
15. What was your involvement in the non- Jewish community? Did you witness any antiSemitism living in Louisville? If so, how was this incident handled?
I worked for Mayor Harvey Sloane and the City of Louisville and Jefferson County for 20 years, ran a
mini warehouse, sold diamond dental bits, worked for a microfilm company, etc. There was a great
�deal of anti-Semitism, but I ignored it. I would hear the worst remarks about Jews. Many times I
would try to educate those people. Mostly, I ignored it.
16. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel? Pearl Harbor? What are
your earliest recollections when thinking about major events in history?
My brother-in-law served in the Navy. My earliest recollections regarding the war were sitting by the
radio and listening to the news with my family, and later about the Israeli wars.
17. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Everything in life affects you spiritually, and that religion affects everyday life if you love your religion.
I am very proud to be Jewish, and my life reflects that feeling.
18. What interests or hobbies did you have when you were young and what are they now?
What schools did you attend and are there any memories that stand out from that time in
your life?
My favorite hobby was dancing. I belonged to a dance group, and we were “therapists” for each
other. It was a modern dance group developed at the YMHA and the Jewish Community Center.
Also, when Max and I lived in Germany while he was in the service, I taught dancing in Germany. I
felt that I was “my mother’s daughter.” She was also a “doer” and a productive person who owned a
store at 4th and Market. I was very involved in Hadassah, as was my mother.
19. What are your favorite family memories - whether it was with your family of origin, or your
extended family and friends?
My favorite spiritual memories are the births of my children and grandchildren, their mitzvahs, and
watching and engaging in their lives.
20. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What message do you want
to leave for your children and future generations?
My legacy? Being home and having family dinners, being a great mom and grandmother with my
family and grandchildren; hoping I contributed something in my lifetime through examples of
community service and family devotion.
�
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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eng
heb
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
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024x6_behrc
Title
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Interview with Carol Behr, 2011
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Carol Behr (1933-) on December 23, 2011. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Behr, Carol, 1933-
Switlow, Maxine
Weber, Anita
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2011-12-23
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
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https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/b3663ae02b3bdd309a8baae25a6bab49.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=LQTwYBfz10TwJuEYB5bJSC5WN2BntLUaF0RKdo7pE6v2b%7E759vzH13gHWsiWDVwSm-JCFxjzoD8ARgBd%7EWyaDHxBKRC1MfKj7PCGEuFwxEtsIHmxn6I6rCXAYhuLkYfANBqhb-cqmkRu0-UfKbRSeqrQs-UkM7OPMVcGxLJRnmg1NMifle02WnEc5luiMUicGOAAo1CWrFq1hNdWGDx5GGljAsbyQJot%7EBmghHgti7oep0-7UTtF7F-okuo176kirizPZ4rrIrRjo%7E6-k0WvOKhTqT8GD5w0xrEvxxuiSuGJZoinIPWc3OaghfHkKYKkyaPZLVz4HbLihr6INp6ndA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
47e656e5932d15f69f9394321025a68a
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1.
lam ____ Ann Friedman
w ith______ Jack Benjamin
o n ________ July 24, 2001
, I am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My father had an uncle who came to Louisville in 1880. He lived in Shawnee Terrace and his name
was Benjamin. My father’s sister, Hattie Benjamin, married Hyman Knopf and she came to
Louisville in early 1990’s. Some family members came to New York before WWI. Other uncles,
nieces, and aunts lived in East New York. One brother came when WWI went to Germany, he
fought in the German Army and then came here. In the 1920’s he fought in the United States Army.
He had moved here. Te rest of my father’s family immigrated except one sister who died in the
Holocaust. All of my mother’s family except for one niece perished in the Holocaust.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
My father, Max Benjamin, was bom in East Prussia on January 21,1888. My mother, Julia
Zemik Benjamin, was bom in upper Silisia on November 2, 1888.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents?
Uncles/aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
I was bom on May 6, 1927. German and English were spoken in my home. Up until I was ten we
lived in a small Beuthen in Upper Silisia. M.F.B.S.M. My mother’s father and mother. I was 5 and 8
when my grandparents died. I came to the United States with my brother through Hias. I lived on
Madison Street with my father’s brother, his wife, and daughter. I didn’t have a difficult adjustment.
My brother lived with his daughter and her husband, and son with the original Emigre in the West
end.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
In Germany we lived in a large residence, which was over two businesses. One of the businesses
was a saloon, which belonged to father and my mother’s brother. I lived on Town Square and
directly across the square were orthodox and conservative schools and one may have been German
reform. There was a kosher butcher and an apothecary. I went to a Jewish elementary school and the
synagogue on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
On Madison Street Jews, Syrians, and Lebanese lived. Our house was one block form General
Hospital. 1 walked to George W. Morris School, which was two blocks away. I went to A.J. Hebrew
School and Sunday school. We were two blocks away from the Hay Market and we shopped there. I
had my tonsils removed in the doctor’s office.
�6. How did the 1937 flood affect you and your family?
Not asked during this questionnaire.
7. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
When I lived in Germany I took a train to the United States. We had a chauffer and a
town car. In Louisville I would walk or take the streetcar. I went to camp Tall Trees
for several summers. The first year that we were in this country my mother and dad
worked at Tall Trees. My sister would light the Friday night candles in Mrs. Nevils
home.
8. Was your family involved in a synagogue / temple?
I belonged to Adath Jeshurun and attended services. I attended the syna gogue on
Sabbath and High Holidays.
9. What holidays and rituals were observed?
All of them.
10. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
My bar mitzvah was held at Adath Jerhurun, the temple where I went to Sunday
school and Hebrew school.
11 .What is your educational background? What was your career?
I attended the University of Louisville. I was a sociology major. I started working as
a teen with Mrs. Arthur Kling as an arts and crafts assistant at Camp Ricory. I
worked at the Y.M.H.A. I was a counselor at Tall Trees until 1945, when Uncle Sam
called me for duty. I was active in the Air Force for two years and came back to
Louisville and enrolled at the University of Louisville. I was head counselor at Tall
Trees and got married. I married Ann Poland and then joined my wife’s mother in
Lads & Dads business. I ran the day camp at the Jewish Community Center (J.C.C.).
I was also the Adult Program Director. I got divorced and changed careers. After a
few years I became facilities and membership director at the J.C.C., and I stayed at
the center for fifteen years. Then I went into the grocery business for two years in
New Albany, Indiana. When The Temple was new they were looking for an
administrator and I got the job. I was administrator for twenty-one years. A teacher
once told me that since he was I was Jewish my name must be Jacob, instead of Jack.
12. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
Answered above
�13. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
I met my second wife, Mary Pfieffer, at The Temple and in 1990 we were married. I
have one son whose name is Max Benjamin
14. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community? Was you whole family
involved?
I was always involved with the Jewish Community. I was a board member and
Sunday school principal at Brith Shalom. I was on the board at the J.C.C. and
chairman of the camp committee. I received the JWB associate award. In 1980 I
worked at The Temple in all areas of administration. My family was not involved. I
was the youngest board member at the J.C.C.
15. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My father was in the German Army in WWI. My mother lost a brother during WWII.
My brother was named after this uncle. I served two years duty in the Caribbean. I
served on a 85 foot rescue boat. At the end of the war a counselor asked me what I
would like to do when the war was over. I said that I would like to got into the
Foreign Service. The counselor said, “Jews wouldn’t be in that field.” I tried to sign
up to fight in the wars in Israel. Hagana came to the United States looking for
recently discharged service men. I was talked out of going to Hagana.
16. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
Standing on top of a mountain in the Rocey’s of on the sea shore. Religion has made
me an ethical person.
17. What interests do you have?
My interests are history, the Louisville Jewish community, photography, gardening,
reading, opera, and the heritage theater (when Tarbis played husband and wife in the
play, the last scene was so emotional. I was doing the lights and tears would roll
down my face.)
18. What are your favorite family memories?
The birth of my son.
19. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
�I’ve contributed to the Jewish community so that in 200 years it will still be around. I
would like to be remembered as someone who was involved in many events and that
I was part of the community
JFVS/aj 06/13/02
Word.olderAdult.OralHistories.forms
�Jewish Family & Vocational Service
Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
Board of Directors
Stephanie Speigel
Executive D irector
Marjorie B. Kohn
President
Steven Shapiro
President Elect/Treasurer
Barbara Goldberg
David Handmaker
Lowell Katz
Robert Riley
Vice Presidents
Gail Pohn
Ex-officio President
Mitchell Charney
jane Goldstein
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Lillian Seligman
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS library unless I choose to keep it myself.
Lewis D. Cole
Alexander Erlen
A rthur Grossman
Shelton R.Weber
Honorary Directors
' Mtman
: Bennett
; >i Berman
Susan Blieden
Donald Bornstein
Joan Byer
Howard L Cantor
Jonathan Dubins
Glenn Fine
Phyllis Florman
Ann Friedman
Bob German
Mikhail Goldentul
Debbie Hyman
Howard Kaplin
Jay Klempner
Laurie Kupferman
Alan Levitan
Benjamin Levitan
Jack B. Loewy
Victoria Lyalina
Kim Newstadt
Chuck O 'Koon
Suzy Post
Judy Shapira
Witness
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 5/14/01
Word.coununit.pennission.history
Rabbi Chester Diamond
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Shmuel Mann
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Solomon Roodman
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Association o f Jewish
Family & Children's
Agencies
International Association of
’ -w sh Vocational Services
adited by
council of Accreditation o f Services
for Families and Children. Inc.
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
3587 Dutchmans Lane • Louisville, Kentucky 40205 • (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
I am Ann Roberts, I am conducting an interview with: Jack Benjamin for the JFCS archives on
January 19, 2011.
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when?
Jack and his family fled the Nazis from Silesia, the southeastern part of Germany. In 1938, he
and his brother arrived in Louisville. He went to live with his uncle (father’s brother), and
his brother lived with a cousin, whose family had immigrated to Louisville in the 1880's. The
following year, Jack's parents and sisfer joined him in Louisville.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born?
His father, Max was originally from East Prussia.
His mother, Julia was from Beuthen, Selesia near Poland.
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Jack was born May 6, 1927.
The Benjamin's spoke German at home.
4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Uncles/Aunts?
Brothers? Sisters?
The family lived in Old Louisville, on Brook St., across from the old Male H.S. During this time
period, many Jews lived in the neighborhood, due to the close proximity to synagogues.
While attending high school, Jack was the front desk room clerk at the nearby YMHA (on
2nd St.) during World War II.
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come?
It should be noted that the family immigrated to Louisville because other family members
came in thel880’s, and again in the 1920’s when Max's sister, Haddie arrived. She
owned a restaurant and worked at Camp Tall Trees.
6. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? Was there a neighborhood
grocery? Drug store?
7. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and your
loved ones?
8. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use when you
traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do you have of
those trips?
The primary fransporfafion for the family was the trolley system and of course, walking.
9. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple?
In terms of involvement in the synagogue, the family was very busy making a living, but they
did attend Shabbat services and observed holidays.
�10. W hat holidays and ritu a ls w ere observed in yo u r fa m ily? Do you have any s ig n ific a n t
m em ories surrou ndin g Jew ish celebrations and w ha t w as special ab out those occasions?
Some of Jack’s most significant memories surrounding Jewish celebrations are, his Bar
Mitzvah, as well as enjoying his mother's "wonderful” cooking on a regular basis.
11. Did you attend re lig io u s s c h o o l? W ere you confirm ed? Did you have a Bar M itzvah? W hat are
y o u r m em ories from th a t tim e ? Are you s till in touch w ith som e o f the people tha t attended
Sunday School w ith you ?
Jack is no longer in touch with the other students from Sunday School.
12. W hat is yo u r educational ba ckg ro u n d ? W hat was yo u r career? W ho o r w ha t influenced you to
choose yo u r career?
He attended U of L where, he was interested in social work. Between 1945-47, he was in the
Air Force--in the air-sea rescue unit. Over the years he worked at Camp Tall Trees (his
parents did also), and did so again after the Air Force.
13. How did you meet y o u r h u sban d/w ife? Where and w hen w ere you m arried? Do you have
ch ild re n ? G randchildren?
In 1949, he married and divorced some years later.
14. D iscuss your in vo lve m e n t in the Jew ish C om m unity o u tside o f y o u r tem ple or synagogue
w hen you were grow ing up.
From 1962- 1978, Jack was the Adult Program Director at the J.C.C., and prior to that, he was
on the Board at the Center. Over the years, he contributed his talents to working with the
Center’s Heritage Theater. Not only did he build scenery, and help with lighting, and had a
partin “All My Sons.” In 1979, the Temple merger took place and Jack was hired as the
Temple's first administrator.
In 2000, Jack became Executive Director Emeritus and is a lifetime member of the Board of
Trustees at the Temple.
15. W hat was your in v o lv e m e n t in the non- Jew ish co m m u n ity? Did you w itne ss any antiS em itism living in L o u is v ille ?
Between 1978-1980, Jack was in a partnership with his brother-in-law in a grocery store in
New Albany, IN.
16. How was your fa m ily affected by the W orld W ars? W ars in Israel?
Jack’s brother, Fred was killed in Italy in World War II on March 7, 1945.
17. W hat are your fa vo rite s p iritu a l m em ories? How did re lig ion a ffect yo u r life?
18. W hat interests or hobbie s did you have when you w ere young and w h a t are they now?
19. W hat are your fa vo rite fa m ily m em ories - w hether it was w ith y o u r fa m ily o f origin, or yo u r
extended fam ily and frie n d s ?
W hat is your legacy? H ow w o u ld you like to be rem em bered? W hat values w ould you like to
pass on to those you leave behind?
Jack has a long history of commitment to the Jewish community. He would like to be
remembered for helping people and being a "nice guy.”
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/" target="_blank" title="In Copyright" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/</a>
Language
A language of the resource
eng
heb
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Collection
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
024x6_benjaminj
Title
A name given to the resource
Interview with Jack Benjamin, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Jack Benjamin (1927-) on July 24, 2001. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Benjamin, Jack, 1927-
Friedman, Ann
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2001-07-24
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Report
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Subject
The topic of the resource
Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
-
https://d1y502jg6fpugt.cloudfront.net/34455/archive/files/a036d45cd9654dbd81765dcfc73f5b59.pdf?Expires=1779321600&Signature=nUuoAI5l%7ErO1wjWBDd5e18PquWQSz0rc-mTagSowm0objYC-LkcHODeyyN5CQvw5o%7EZqWIDjSF16hTKyJlsXiFfRIthfyj9gwZ6YyrthH7m2ZYeB6w%7EMNyYh4iFFdMIloE%7EjRwkTHFC3JDOKf6oI5935w6uCJLc282bIG1PKlxeIDcubS1C9fpxlU89rVLVTl4p0y%7E3IouWwT4Y6xAVw6h7Gewt4o6smcRYi4b5fl6UKXRtdBniyuWDQR9rGIJ%7Ey-AStkc%7Eb%7E6oPe900soxxqP3Mb9K3pNj9JQN4PzrixvtwYFMwdSnS1K3p9l42pl3xZ79F4W8izgRPFsXRu3dmPA__&Key-Pair-Id=K6UGZS9ZTDSZM
969ca52f22635a778798eaa7846c772b
PDF Text
Text
QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
1. lam _____ Ann Friedman_________ z
w ith
Madeline Bernstein
J am conducting an interview
for the JFVS archives.
2. Can you tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and
when?
My father came from Minsh, Russia before World War I in 1915. My mother came to this
country in 1924 from Estonia, Russia.
3. What were your parents’ names and where were they born?
Father - Julius Solavich, he didn’t make his name clear so they put down Soloff. He was
bom in 1898 and died in 1944. He had typhoid fever when he was in his teens and lost his
hair. He had a terrific sense of humor and loved people. He was in the scrap metal business
and then opened a little store. His first wife died of consumption when their son, my half
brother was ten years old. On her deathbed she wished that my father would bring her sister
over to help take care of them. My mother, Mary Marher, was bom August 18, 1904. She
was engaged to be married to a medical student in Estonia and she came to the United States
to take care of my half brother. Her fiance was to come to the United States after he became
a M.D. and they were to be married. When she got to Mexico they would not let her in the
country unless she was married or had a blood relative. My father came to get her and
married her. I was bom two years later.
4. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
Where did you live then? Who lived in the same house with you Grandparents? - Uncles? - Aunts? - Brothers? - Sisters?
My birth date in May 22, 1926. Yiddish, Russian and English were spoken at home. When
my parents didn’t want me to know what was going on they spoke Russian. We lived above
our clothing store on Willard Avenue in Michigan City. My mother, father, half brother and
my sister, Pearl was bom six years later, she lived there too. Milton, my half brother, died
during the war in November 1944. He had only been married for six months when he died.
He married his first cousin, Sarah. They had a daughter, Margie who was bom after Milton
died.
5. What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the
neighborhood? Did you walk to school? Sunday School? Temple? Was
there a neighborhood grocery? Drug store?
My neighborhood was mostly gentile. Polish and German. There were no Jews in the
neighborhood and few in Michigan City. A Jewish family from Chicago moved in one
summer. I walked to school about a mile away. I went to Sunday school (Chador) 8-12.
We had a synagogue - orthodox and we were very religious. There was a neighborhood
grocery and drug store. We had a little clothing store and we lived over the store.
�6. If you wished to travel what kind of transportation did you use? Did you
travel when you were young? If so, where?
If we traveled we took a bus or train, we didn’t have a car. When I was young we traveled
to Fort Wayne and South Bend Indiana. We didn’t travel much because we lived on Lake
Michigan. Our family would visit us!
7. Was your family involved in a synagogue I temple?
We would attend the synagogue for High Holidays. My parents were too busy working.
We didn’t have a full time Rabbi.
8. What holidays and rituals were observed?
Chanukah, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah and Passover were all observed. We would fast
for Yom Kippur.
9. Did you attend religious school? Were you confirmed? Bar Mitzvah?
I attended Chador and I was not confirmed or Bat Mitzvah.
10. What is your educational background? What was your career?
I graduated from high school and went to Indiana State to become a teacher. When my dad
and brother died I had to come home. I was eighteen years old when my dad died. I got a
job at a lumber company at a secretary. I went to college on scholarship for one semester.
My mother met Conrad Linde and they were married. I saved money from working and
with a scholarship I decided to go to Indiana University. I met a good friend and we went to
the university together. I never graduated from Indiana University.
11. What brought you to Louisville and when did you come?
I came to Louisville in 1948 with my husband, Sylvain.
12. How did you meet your husband/wife? Where and when were you married?
Did you have children?
I met Sylvain at Hillel my first year at Indiana University. He was a junior looking at the
new freshman. We dated a year before we became engaged. I went back to school in 1946
and we eloped and married in Martinsville, Indiana. A justice of the peace married us. He
wore marine greens and boots and his wife was the witness. We had three children. Jim
bom in 1950, Hank bom in 1953 and Amy bom in 1956.
13. Tell about you involvement in the Jewish Community. Was you whole family
involved?
We all belonged to the Jewish Community Center. The boys belonged to the club as well as
Amy. I worked at J.C.C. I belonged to the sisterhood and was vice president. I was also
�involved with Kosair Hospital with epileptic children. Sylvain was involved in J.C.C.,
Shriners and was Temple brotherhood president.
14. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel?
My brother was killed in the war. My mother’s brother lived in Poland and had four
children. He had to shoot and bury them and then he was killed.
15. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
My favorite spiritual memories were associated with my mom. Kassals came into their
village to kill. My mother’s parents were killed but mother and her siblings survived. She
always believed that God watched over them. I feel that God has kept me in good health.
Religion affects my life all the time. I learned this through Judaism. One is good to others,
especially older people who can’t get out.
16. What interests did you have?
Bridge, Maj Jong, reading, cross stitching, people, volunteer work, Home of the Innocents,
Diabetic Foundation and the Temple.
17. What are your favorite family memories?
My family coming to visit in Michigan City. My whole family would come, cousins, aunts
and uncles, everyone.
18. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What values
would you like to pass on to those you leave behind?
I would like to be remembered as a good friend and giving of myself. I hope that many
values have been passed on to my children. They are very caring and giving of themselves.
When I die I want people to celebrate my life. I have three wonderful children and I
couldn’t ask for more than that. My mother was my greatest influence. She was the kind of
person that I wanted to be.
JFVS/aj 11/16/01
Word.olderAdultOralHistories.Bernstein Madeline
�Jewish Family & Vocational Service
Louis & Lee Roth Family Center
B oard o f D ire c to rs
Stephanie Speigel
Executive D irector
Marjorie B. Kohn
President
Steven Shapiro
President Elect/Treasurer
Barbara Goldberg
David Handmaker
Lowell Katz
Robert Riley
Vice Presidents
Gail Pohn
Ex-officio President
Mitchell Charney
Jane Goldstein
Robert Levine
Howard Markus
Shirley Markus
Lillian Seligman
Jeffrey Weiss
Past Presidents
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I do hereby give my permission to record my life history through the Jewish
Family and Vocational Service, 3587 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, Kentucky
40205. My story will be kept in the JFVS library unless I choose to keep it myself.
Lewis D. Cole
Alexander Erlen
A rthur Grossman
Shelton R.Weber
Honorary Directors
Altman
j Bennett
i Berman
Susan Blieden
Donald Bornstein
Joan Byer
Howard L Cantor
Jonathan Dubins
Glenn Fine
Phyllis Florman
Ann Friedman
Bob German
Mikhail Goldentul
Debbie Hyman
Howard Kaplin
Jay Klempner
Laurie Kupferman
Alan Levitan
Benjamin Levitan
Jack B. Loewy
Victoria Lyalina
Kim Newstadt
Chuck O ’Koon
Suzy Post
Judy Shapira
Participant
Witness
7- ^6 - b )
Date Signed
JFVS/aj 5/14/01
Word.coununit.pennission.history
Rabbi Chester Diamond
Rabbi Avrohom Litvin
Rabbi Shmuel Mann
Rabbi Stanley Miles
Rabbi Joe Rooks Rapport
Rabbi Solomon Roodman
Rabbi Gaylia R. Rooks
Rabbi Robert Slosberg
Association o f Jewish
Family & Children’s
Agencies
International Association of
'"wish Vocational Services
•edited by
Council o f Accreditation of Services
fo r Families and Children, Inc.
Jewish Family & Vocational Service
3587 Dutchmans Lane • Louisville, Kentucky 40205 • (502) 452-6341 • Fax (502) 452-6718
E-mail: jfvs@jfvs.com • Web: www.jfvs.com
�QUESTIONAIRE FOR ORAL HISTORIES
I am
Ann F r i e d m
a n ? , I am conducting an interview with:
Madeleine
Bernstein for the JFCS archives.
1. Tell me how and why your family originally came to this country and when? How did they
travel?
My father came from Minsk, Russia before World War I in 1915. My mother came to this country in
1924 from Estonia, Russia.
2. Tell me about your parents - their names and where were they born? Have there been other
family names used in the past? Where, when, and why was it changed?
Father - Julius Solavich; he didn’t make his name clear so they put down Soloff. H was born in 1898
and died in 1944. He had typhoid fever when he was in his teens and lost his hair. He had a terrific
sense of humor and loved people. He was in the scrap metal business and then opened a little store.
His first wife died of consumption when their son, my half-brother, was ten years old. On her
deathbed she wished that my father would bring her sister over to help take care of them. My mother,
Mary Marher, was born August 18, 1904. She was engaged to be married to a medical student in
Estonia and she came to the United States to take care of my half-brother. Her fiance was to come to
the United States after he became an M.D. and they were to be married. When she got to Mexico
they would not let her in the country unless she was married or had a blood relative. My father came
to get her and married her. I was born two years later.
3. What is your birth date? What language(s) were spoken in your home?
My birthdate is May 22, 1926. Yiddish, Russian and English were spoken at home. When my
parents didn’t want me to know what was going on they spoke Russian.
4. Where did you live as a child? Who lived in the same house with you - Grandparents?
Brothers? Sisters?
Uncles/Aunts?
We lived above our clothing store on Willard Avenue in Michigan City. My mother, father, half-brother
and my sister Pearl, who was born six years later, lived there, too. Milton, my half-brother, died
during the war in November, 1944. He had only been married for six months when he died. He
married his first cousin, Sarah. They had a daughter, Margie, who was born after Milton died.
5. What brought you or your family to Louisville, Kentucky and when did you come? How did
they travel? Did they share any unusual experiences with you?
I came to Louisville in 1948 with my husband, Sylvain.
L What was your neighborhood like? Were there other Jews living in the neighborhood? Did
you walk to school? Sunday school? Synagogue/Temple? What kind of shops were in
your neighborhood?
�My neighborhood was mostly gentile, Polish and German. There were no Jews in the neighborhood
and few in Michigan City. A Jewish family from Chicago moved in one summer. I walked to school
about a mile away. I went to Sunday school (Chador) 8-12. We had a synagogue - orthodox, and we
vere very religious. There was a neighborhood grocery and drug store. We had a little clothing store
and we lived over the store.
5. If you or your family lived in Louisville at the time - how did the 1937 flood affect you and
your loved ones?
NA
6. If you wished to travel within the city limits what kind of transportation did you use? Did
you travel out of town when you were young? What kind of transportation did you use
when you traveled out of town? And if so, where did you go? What special memories do
you have of those trips?
If we traveled, we took a bus or train. We didn’t have a car. When I was young we traveled to Fort
Wayne and South Bend, Indiana. We didn’t travel much because we lived on Lake Michigan. Our
family would visit us!
7. Was your family involved in a synagogue/temple? Were your parents or other family
members religious?
\Ne would attend the synagogue for High Holidays. My parents were too busy working. We didn’t
have a full-time rabbi.
8. What holidays and rituals were observed in your family? Do you have any significant
memories surrounding Jewish celebrations and what was special about those
occasions?
Chanukah, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah and Passover were all observed. We would fast for Yom
Kippur.
9. Did you attend Sunday school or other religious schools? Were you confirmed? Did you
have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah? What are your memories from that time? Are you still in touch with
some of the people that attended Sunday school with you?
I attended Chador and I was not confirmed or Bat Mitzvah.
10. What is your educational background? What was your occupation? Who or what
influenced you to choose your career? What kind of preparation or training was required
for your career?
I graduated from high school and went to Indiana State to become a teacher. When my dad and
brother died I had to come home. I was eighteen years old when my dad died. I got a job at a lumber
company as a secretary. I went to college on scholarship for one semester. My mother met Conrad
�Linde and they were married. I saved money from working and with a scholarship I decided to go to
Indiana University. I met a good friend and we went to the university together. I never graduated
from Indiana University.
11. How did you meet your mate? At what point did you realize that this was the one you
wanted to marry? Where and when were you married? Do you have children?
Grandchildren?
I met Sylvain at Hillel my first year at Indiana University. He was a junior looking at the new
freshman. We dated a year before we became engaged. I went back to school in 1946 and we
eloped and married in Martinsville, Indiana. A justice of the peace married us. He wore marine
greens and boots and his wife was the witness. We had three children: Jim, bom in 1950; Hank,
born in 1953; and Amy, born in 1956.
12. Discuss your involvement in the Jewish Community outside of your temple or synagogue
when you were growing up.
We belonged to the Jewish Community Center. The boys belonged to the club, as well as Amy. I
worked at J.C.C. I belonged to the sisterhood and was vice president. I was also involved with
Kosair Hospital with epileptic children. Sylvain was involved in J.C.C., Shriners, and was The Temple
brotherhood president.
13. What was your involvement in the non- Jewish community? Did you witness any antiSemitism living in Louisville? If so, how was this incident handled?
NA
14. How was your family affected by the World Wars? Wars in Israel? Pearl Harbor? What are
your earliest recollections when thinking about major events in history?
My brother was killed in the war. My mother’s brother lived in Poland and had four children. He had
to shoot and bury them and then he was killed.
15. What are your favorite spiritual memories? How did religion affect your life?
My favorite spiritual memories were associated with my mom. Kassals came into their village to kill.
My mother’s parents were killed but mother and her siblings survived. She always believed that God
watched over them. I feel that God has kept me in good health. Religion affects my life all the time. I
learned this through Judaism. One is good to others, especially older people who can’t get out.
16. What interests or hobbies did you have when you were young and what are they now?
What schools did you attend and are there any memories that stand out from that time in
your life?
Bridge, Mah Jongg, reading, cross-stitching, people, volunteer work, Home of the Innocents, Diabetic
Foundation and The Temple.
�17. What are your favorite family memories - whether it was with your family of origin, or your
extended family and friends?
7ly family coming to visit in Michigan City. My whole family would come, cousins, aunts and uncles,
everyone.
18. What is your legacy? How would you like to be remembered? What message do you want
to leave for your children and future generations?
I would like to be remembered as a good friend and giving of myself. I hope that many values have
been passed on to my children. They are very caring and giving of themselves. When I die, I want
people to celebrate my life. I have three wonderful children and I couldn’t ask for more than that. My
mother was my greatest influence. She was the kind of person that I wanted to be.
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, 2001-2018
Creator
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Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
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Language
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eng
heb
Type
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Collection
Coverage
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20th century
21st century
Description
An account of the resource
Summaries of 206 interviews with Jewish community members in Louisville, Kentucky, conducted by Jewish Family and Career Services volunteers. Originally started by Ann Friedman, Director of Klein Older Adult Services, the project sent volunteers to listen to seniors and summarize their stories. The volunteers used a standardized script to ask community members about their family’s immigration to the United States and move to Louisville; their family and religious life in Louisville; and what they hoped their legacy would be. Some of the interviews include supplemental material on the narrators, such as resumes, obituaries, and photographs.
Date
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bulk 2001-2018
1930s-1950s
1980s-2018
Text
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024x6_bernsteinm
Title
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Interview with Madeline Bernstein, 2001
Description
An account of the resource
Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Madeline Bernstein (1926-) in 2001. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.
Madeline Bernstein grew up in a Jewish household in which her family spoke Russian, Yiddish, and English. She attended Synagogue with her family despite not having a full time Rabbi; however, she was not confirmed and did not receive a Bat Mitzvah. She lived in a primarily German and Polish part of Louisville. After attending Indiana University with her husband she came to Louisville, had three children together, and joined the Jewish Community Center as a family. Though losing her brother, uncle, and her uncle’s children to the Second World War, she maintained good health herself. Her pastimes include playing Bridge, Maj Jong, volunteering in Louisville, and following in the footsteps of her mother to pass on her values to future generations.
Creator
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Bernstein, Madeline, 1926-
Friedman, Ann
Date
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2001
Format
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Report
Type
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Text
Subject
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Interviews
Jewish families
Jews
Judaism
Jefferson County (Ky.)
Kentucky
Louisville (Ky.)
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
20th century
21st century
Language
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eng
Source
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024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Rights
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In Copyright
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Property rights in the collection belong to The Filson Historical Society. The Filson Historical Society can provide high-resolution scans of original source materials from its holdings for non-commercial and commercial use. To learn about this process, visit https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/order-reproductions/
Publisher
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The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)