AJCOP AWARD WINNERS
AJCOP 2011 Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award:
Murray N. Schneier
Murray Schneier (L) receives the AJCOP Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award for 2011 from AJCOP Executive Director, Lou Solomon. The award was presented on February 2, 2011 at the 9th Annual AJCOP Retirees Luncheon in Boca Raton, of which Murray was a co-founder and continues as a coordinator of the event.
Murray N. Schneier
Murray Schneier was born to a family of four sons in Boro Park and holds a Bachelor of Hebrew Literature degree from Herzleah College, a B.S. from City College of NY and a MSW from the University of Connecticut. Following a long and distinguished career of over 40 years in the Jewish Center and Federation fields, having served in Passaic, San Diego, Long Beach, St. Louis, Atlantic City, Portland, OR and also serving as Florida Regional Director of ORT, Murray and Sandy retired in Boynton Beach, Florida.
Once a community organizer, always a community organizer. Murray first set out to organize the activities for his development community. He then organized and founded a Conservative synagogue, Temple Torah, which began in a storefront on Military Trail and Boynton Beach Blvd. and served as it’s president. The shul thrived, and after several years, Murray negotiated with the Palm Beach Federation to secure property on the campus of the soon to be built Boynton Beach JCC, to serve as the new home of the temple. Since every Jew moving to a new island must have a shul that they DON’T go to, Murray then organized a second temple, the Reform congregation Shaarei Shalom. The new temple took over the storefront property vacated by Temple Torah. Murray also served as its president, and after several years they too built a new building in western Boynton Beach. Today, each temple has a fully developed religious program—rabbi, cantor, religious school, youth groups, adult social action and activity groups and classes—and memberships of over 1400 families combined (900 and 500 respectively).
A charter member of AJCOP, Murray has been steadfast in his support of his professional association. Together with Bob Kerbel, Norman Schimelman and Joel Telles, Murray organized the now annual AJCOP Retirees Reunion Luncheon that has been held in February or March for the past nine years in South Florida. In addition to the Florida retirees, of which there are many, colleagues from Minnesota, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Texas and other states have attended as well—delighting to meaningful programs and the chance to schmooze with old friends.
Sandy, Murray’s wife of 59 years, contributed Murray’s formula for being a President: “All one needs is a big heart, a tough hide, and some soothing Pepto Bismol. If all else fails, stash a bottle of schnopps in the lower right hand drawer of your desk. AND The nicest thing about retirement is that you never have to move.”
Murray did not know about his nomination for the Rosichan Award. When we told him, he said that there were at least four people he could think of that deserved it more. He is a man who we are privileged to honor for what he has done and continues to do yiddle by yiddle for the Jewish People.
AJCOP 2010 Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award:
Louis B. Solomon
Lou Solomon (L) receives the AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award for 2010 from Alan Engel, AJCOP President. The award was presented at the Sunday evening, November 7th Awards Reception at the Sheraton Hotel, at the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly in New Orleans, LA.
Louis B. Solomon
Lou Solomon was born in Indianapolis and grew up in Dayton, Ohio and South Bend, Indiana. He graduated from Indiana University, with a B.S in Health, Physical Education & Recreation, attended the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Connecticut and received a Certificate in Jewish Communal Service from the Hebrew Union College~Jewish Institute of Religion School of Jewish Communal Service. Lou’s career in Jewish Communal Service began in the Jewish Center field in Savannah, GA in 1964. He followed his boss, Herb Rosenblatt (z’l) to Troy, NY, where he served as the P.E. Director of the JCC. In 1969, Lou became the Assistant Director of the United Jewish Fund & Council in St. Paul, MN. For 25 years, Lou served as executive director of five great small and intermediate sized Jewish communities~ St. Petersburg, FL (which Lou merged with Clearwater to become Pinellas County), Omaha, Indianapolis, Jacksonville and Chattanooga~ making positive impacts in each of them. He also served as Midwest Regional Director of the American Technion Society. In 1997, Lou joined the endowment staff of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County, where he now serves as Director of Planned Giving and Endowments. He also served as Director of the Boynton Beach/Lake Worth satellite office.
Lou has served as Executive Director of AJCOP: The Association of Jewish Community Organization Professionals since 1994. Lou’s relationship with AJCOP began at the founding of the organization in 1969. He was carefully mentored by his first federation boss, Morrie Lapidos, and by Ben Mandelkorn (z’l) himself, served on the AJCOP Board in many capacities, and served as President from 1983-85. During Lou’s tenure as membership chair in the late 1970’s, AJCOP grew from 580 to our peak of over 800 members. In 1986 Lou and Marden Paru established the AJCOP Job Bank, which is still in existence as a service to our members. At that time, there were no other Jewish Community Organization job listings, except CJF that handled only Federation placements. The national agencies had no central place to list jobs. This preceded by many years the online listings by Jewishjobs.com, Monster.com, etc. In 2004, he was instrumental in implementing the AJCOP Chaver (Mentoring) program. This successful program has carefully matched over 30 young professionals with a seasoned professional.
Lou is affiliated with the Association of Jewish Community Organization Professionals, National Society of Fund Raising Executives, Jewish Communal Service Association of North America, Indiana University Alumni Association, Hebrew Union College School of Jewish Communal Service Alumni Association, Temple Beth Tikvah. He served as Chair of the Intermediate Cities Executive Seminar in the 1980-82; Chair, CJF Small Cities Executive Seminar, 1995; Program Chair, CJF Small Cities Executive Seminar in Israel, 1994; President, Association of Jewish Community Organization Professionals, 1983-85 and Board Member 1973-1994; Board Member, Jewish Communal Service Association of North America, 1994-2006 and is currently a Board member of the World Council of Jewish Communal Service. Lou was one of the first communal service recipients of an Honorary Doctorate from Hebrew Union College ~JIR, in Jewish Communal Service in 2000.
Lou and his wife of 40 years, Marlene, have two daughters, and four grandchildren.
AJCOP Norman Edell Fellow for 2010: Anna Schwartz Shabtay
Anna Schwartz Shabtay(L), was presented the AJCOP Norman Edell Fellowship for 2010 by Debra Barton Grant, Edell Committee Member. The award was presented at the Sunday evening, November 7th Awards Reception at the Sheraton Hotel, at the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly in New Orleans, LA.
Anna Schwartz Shabtay
Anna currently serves as the Campaign Communications Manager at the Jewish Federation of Greater Long Beach and West Orange County. She oversees the marketing and communications along with managing the Annual Campaign. She also works on young adult outreach and engagement and coordinates the New Leaders Forum, a yearlong leadership development program for rising community leaders.
Anna has been passionate about the Jewish community ever since she was a little girl growing up at Temple Israel in Memphis, TN. She was also a camper and counselor at Henry S. Jacobs Camp, the URJ camp in Utica, MS.
Anna graduated from Hebrew Union College and University of Southern California with masters’ degrees in Jewish Communal Service and Public Administration in 2009. She received her bachelor’s degree in Communication and Judaic Studies from the University of Arizona.
Anna studied abroad her junior year in college at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. During her time in Israel, she met her husband, Erez. They were married in May of 2008. They currently live in Culver City, CA with their two Great Danes, George and Cleo and are expecting their first child in February 2011.
Past AJCOP Awardees
Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award
2009: William S. Bernstein
2008: Daniel Allen and Steven Morrison
2007: Phyllis Cook and Jeffrey L. Klein
2006: Maxyne Finkelstein
2005: Jacob Solomon
2004: Jay Yoskowitz*
2003: Dr. John Ruskay
2002: Dr. Jeffrey R. Solomon
2001: Cindy Chazan and Stephen H. Hoffman
2000: Max L. Kleinman
1999: Peter H. Wells
1998: Darrell Friedman and Norbert Fruehauf
1997: Howard M. Rieger
1996: Ferne Katleman
1995: Stephen Solender
1994: Michael Schneider
1993: Martin Kraar*
1992: Melvyn H. Bloom
1991: Dr. Steven B. Nasatir
1990: Irving Kessler*
1989: Ben M. Mandelkorn*
1988: Charles Miller and Carmi Schwartz
1987: Ted Kanner
1986: Irving Bernstein*
Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award
2006: Robert Fitterman*
2005: Ted Comet & Martin Waxman
2004: Daniel Mann
2003: Merv Lemmerman
2002: Hans Mayer
2001: Morris Stein
2000: Gerald Bubis and Ernest Kahn
1999: Herman S. Markowitz
1998: Melvin S. Cohen*
1997: Maurice Bernstein* & Daniel Thursz*
1996: Melvin S. Zaret*
1995: Phillip Bernstein* & Irving Kessler*
1994: Sanford Solender* and David Zeff*
1993: Donald Feldstein
1992: Saul Schwarz*
1991: Henry Zucker*
1990: Charles Zibbel*
1989: Isidore Sobeloff*
Norman Edell Fellowship Award
2009: Josh Davidson
2008: Mary Brown
2007: Emilie Kuperman
2006: Tova Grunes
2005: Adam Bronstone
2004: Bari Elias
2002: Jeffrey Rips
2001: Ziva Starr Raney
Bernard Rodkin Israel Experience Fellowhsip Award
2008: Stuart Butwinick, Laura Gottlieb, Eve Samson & Joseph Selesny
2007: Cheryl Carne, Bari Elias, Leon Weinerman & Maureen Wise
2005: Sam Sokolove
2004: Amy Wagner Simpson
2003: Sara Schlossberg & Karen Taylor
Professional of the Year Award
1990: Andrew Paller
1989: Joel Daner
1986: Harriet Hoffman
AJCOP 2009 Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award:
William S. Bernstein
Bill Bernstein accepts the AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award for 2009
from Steven Morrison, AJCOP Awards Co-chair. The award was presented at the Monday evening, November 9th Awards Reception at the Marriott Wardman Park, at the General Assembly in Washington, DC.
William S. Bernstein
Bill Bernstein has served as President & CEO of the Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County since 2003. Prior to that, he
was the senior executive vice president for financial resource development at the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles. Bill received his bachelor’s degree in political science from Montclair State College in New Jersey in 1974, and his master’s degree in social work from Rutgers University in New Jersey in 1975. That same year, he began his career as program director for older-adult services at the YMHA of Metropolitan New Jersey in West Orange. During his career he has served as assistant director for community planning and program development at the Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston, senior vice president and chief operating officer for the Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, and associate dean for alumni affairs and development at the University of Maryland School of Law. Before heading all fundraising efforts at the Los Angeles Federation, he served there as regional director and as associate campaign director. Bill is a graduate of theWexner-Heritage Foundation Program.
Bill is the immediate past president of the Association of Jewish Community Organization Professionals, immediate past chair of the Large City Executives Group and serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Jewish Federations of North America (formerly UJC). He has served as a member of the Executive and member of the Jewish Agency Board of Governors. Bill first served on the Board of Directors of AJCOP when Ben Mandelkorn (obm) was the executive director. As AJCOP President during a difficult time, he renewed the strategic planning process for the organization and held two well attended regional professional development conferences, one in New York and one in South Florida. Through his efforts, funds were obtained to help sustain AJCOP’s programs. Bill has hosted the AJCOP Annual Retirees' Reunion at the Boca Federation facilities for several years, which brings multi-generations of colleagues together for informative programs. Despite his own pressing schedule, Bill is always there, and addresses his retired colleagues with candid in-depth updates of what is happening in the field today. There is a genuine sharing and caring interchange and the distinct impression that there is no place else in the world that he would rather be at that point in time.
Bill is married to Ilene Kramer Bernstein, who is a freelance producer of television commercials nationwide. Ilene and Bill have three children, Jesse - 27, Senior Fellow with Human Rights First, in Washington, DC and recent graduate of the London School of Economics; Noah – 24, he is currently serving as a participant in Masa Program in Israel and is assigned to the Israel Defense Forces and Andrew – 17, who is a senior at North Broward Preparatory Academy. Bill and Ilene are Golden Chai Members of B’nai Torah Congregation in Boca Raton, as well as members of Temple Beth El. Both Ilene and Bill provide volunteer service in their community to United Way, Cerebral Palsy and the American Heart Association.
AJCOP Norman Edell Fellow for 2009: Josh Davidson
Josh Davidson (L), was presented the AJCOP Norman Edell Fellowship for 2009 by Jeffrey Feld, Edell Committee Chair. The award was presented at the Monday evening, November 9th Awards Reception at the Marriott Wardman Park, at the General Assembly in Washington, DC.
Josh Davidson
Josh Davidson is a twenty-three year old native of Madison, Wisconsin. In 2008, he graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Sociology, and has aspirations to attend graduate school to obtain a Master’s degree in social work with a focus in family counseling. Currently, Josh works for the Jewish Federation of Madison as a preschool teacher and as the Lawrence A. Weinstein Outreach Coordinator for Jewish Youth. In the summers, Josh is the director of one of the Federation’s summer camps, Camp Shalom Bogrim. During the school year, he is an assistant coach for his former high school’s Ultimate Frisbee team. Josh is very grateful to the Association of Jewish Community Organization Professionals for awarding him the 2009 Norman Edell Fellowship. Josh is thrilled to be in Washington D.C. for the first time, and feels very fortunate to be given the opportunity to attend his first GA.
AJCOP 2008 Mandelkorn
Distinguished Service Award:
Daniel Allen and Steven Morrison
 |
 |
Above Left: Steve Morrison accepts Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award from Gloria Schwartz. Above Right: Danny Allen (R) accepts Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award from Bill Bernstein. The awards were presented at the Monday evening November 17th Awards Reception held in Weizmann Hall of the Jewish Agency for Israel Building inJerusalem.
.
Daniel R. Allen
Daniel R. Allen joined American Friends of Magen David Adom-ARMDI (AFMDA) as the Chief Executive Officer in November 2004. Allen’s strategic leadership enabled AFMDA to raise over $12m during the six weeks of the second Lebanon war reaching a 2006 campaign total of $32 million – more than three times the pre intifada II annual campaigns, followed by a 2007 campaign of also $32 million and on track approaching a similar level for 2008. In his long and varied career, Danny has served as a pulpit Rabbi, Hillel Rabbi in Atlanta and East Lansing, National Young Leadership Director for UJA, as Executive Vice Chairman of the United Israel Appeal where during his tenure in the 1990’s more than 1,000,000 Jews from the Former Soviet Union and Ethiopia made aliyah to Israel, Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, and President of the Masorti Foundation for Conservative Judaism in Israel. As the father, son and brother of Israelis, Danny is one of the leading experts within American Jewish organizational life on Israel and American Jewish Philanthropy. Danny has served the Jewish people with distinction and has served the communities and organizations with which he has worked with devotion and vision. Danny is involved in a host of civic and other communal activities, some as a volunteer~ because it is his responsibility to give back~ and some because he just has a passion for being involved and making a difference. Danny is a professionals’ professional, contributing to colleagues through writing articles, giving speeches, participation in conferences and most uniquely, on a person to person level. He makes long lasting professional relationships that become committed friendships, and he is always on call to counsel or consult with a colleague and share his experience to help not just in a specific task, but for the personal development of the person lucky enough to get his thoughts and feedback. It is rare to be in a large Jewish communal setting and not meet someone who knows and has admired Danny. He is a leader who people trust and follow. Danny has served on the AJCOP Board of Directors for over 20 years, as co-chair of the AJCOP International Jobbank, Treasurer, Vice President, President, Past-President, and now chair of the Rodkin Israel Experience Committee. Through his association with AJCOP, Danny has built a team of outstanding professionals ~ with emphasis on being a team ~ bringing together some of the best professionals in the business to share his vision for a better Jewish world and be a part of what he is doing. A strong part of their professional development is their membership in AJCOP.
Danny and his wife Mary Lou are the parents of three children: Sarah, Director of Operations in Jerusalem for all Hillel Israel Trips – including Birthright; Uri, a rabbinical student at the Hartman Institute, both with us here tonight; and Noah, a member of the AIPAC political staff in Washington.
Steven H. Morrison
Steven Morrison is the executive director of the Madison Jewish Community Council and Jewish Social Services of Madison, a position he assumed in March 1984. Like all small Jewish community Federation directors, Steve is not only the CEO and COO, but also has major FRD responsibility, is the CRC staff, newspaper editor, HR director, IT guy, and (given the Federation’s 154-acre “country” campus and “in-town” community building) has been known to change a light bulb or two!
Steve has spent most of his life involved in the organized Jewish community. Five years after joining the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization in 1959 in his hometown of Elgin, Illinois, he was elected AZA Grand Aleph Godol - International President. Five years later, in 1968, what was to become a 40-year Jewish community organization career began when Steve assumed his first position with B’nai B’rith in Chicago. He moved to B’nai B’rith’s international office in Washington a year later where he held several posts culminating as Membership Director until his move to Madison nearly 25 years ago. Steve has been a Board member of many organizations including the then-named Conference of Jewish Communal Service during the early 1980’s and has been a member of AJCOP since 1970. He served a two-year term as the President of the Association of Small Jewish Community Federation Executives, has served on the UJC Executive Committee, and continues to serve on a number of UJC committees. In the general community, Steve has chaired the Madison public schools human relations council for most of the last twenty years and, for the past decade, has been an elected officer of the city’s Equal Opportunities Commission. Steve is married to Goldie Kadushin, a professor of social work at the Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
AJCOP Norman Edell Fellow
for 2008: Mary Brown
Mary Brown accepts the Norman Edell Fellowship from Jeffrey Feld, Edell Fellowship Committee Chair, at the AJCOP Award Reception in Jerusalem.
Mary Brown returned to her hometown of South Bend with her J.D. from the Indiana University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, cum laude, from Colorado College. For the past two years the Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley has been proud to have her as their program/campaign associate, and has recently promoted her to Director of Financial Resource Development. Mary finds it incredibly exciting to be part of a small professional team at this functional Federation, where she has the opportunity to at one moment work on the Financial Resource Development of the Federation and the next work with the community Shaliach as co-director of the Jewish Federation’s summer day camp. Highlights of her time at the Jewish Federation have included researching, establishing and directing the local PJ Library program, staffing the Jewish Women’s Endowment Fund’s grant cycle, and helping to bring her community’s Annual Jewish Welfare Fund Campaign to its highest level in over forty years. Mary is a voracious reader and self-proclaimed dog lover, and never thought she could be so inspired to come to work every day!
AJCOP 2008 Rodkin Israel Experience Fellows:
Stuart Botwinick, Laura Gottlieb,
Eve Samson & Joseph Selesny
(L-R) Stu Botwinick, Laura Gottlieb, Eve Samson & Joey Selesny
The AJCOP Bernard Rodkin Israel Experience Fellowship provides an opportunity to increase one’s knowledge, experience and understanding of Israeli society and her social welfare system.
Stuart Botwinick was recently promoted to Assistant Executive Director of Sid Jacobson Jewish Community Center in East Hills, New York. After completing his MA in Jewish Education and MA in Jewish Communal Studies at Gratz College, Stu spent a year and a half at UJA-Federation of New York in Program Evaluation. Since then he has been involved in direct service as the Teen Director, Program Director and now Assistant Executive Director at Sid Jacobson JCC. Over the past eight years at Sid Jacobson, Stu has been instrumental in developing award winning teen programming, researching new models for teen engagement and building unique community partnerships. Among his most notable contributions are the development of Jewish service learning programs, including the Community Service Summer Experience and Alternative Spring Break, and the Partners In Community Care program, a social service partnership between the JCC and 13 area synagogues. As part of his continued professional development, Stu completed the Jewish Community Center Association (JCCA) Middle Management Training Program in 2006 and the Institute for Non-Profit Management at Columbia University in 2008. As a 2008 AJCOP Rodkin Israel Experience Fellow, Stu is eager to use this opportunity to learn more about Israeli society and the Jewish and Israeli identity building components of non-religious Israeli youth programs.
Laura Gottlieb is the Assistant Director of Human Resource Development at the Greater Miami Jewish Federation. Laura is a FEREP (Federation Executive Recruitment and Education Program) Scholar and attended the Darrell D. Friedman Institute for Professional Development. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, as well as a Master’s Degree in Jewish Communal Service from Baltimore Hebrew University. Laura serves as a member of UJC’s National Recruitment Corps and is the co-founder of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation’s Young Professionals Working Group.
Eve Samson is currently the Assistant Director of Grants and Community Services at the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, where she has worked for the past seven years. Her responsibilities include enhancing resource development and collaborating with affiliated agencies on needs assessments, program development and evaluation. Eve holds a B.S. in social policy from Northwestern University and a M.S. in non-profit administration from DePaul University. In July 2008, she participated in the Kaplan Seminar for Emerging Jewish Professionals.
Joey Selesny is the Associate Director of Financial Resource Development at the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. Selesny has been at the Detroit Federation since 2001 and has spends a majority of his time focusing solely on FRD. Joey is a native Detroiter, attended Yeshivat Akiva (K-12) and left Detroit briefly after high school to study in Israel and attend Yeshiva University (’95). Joey is finishing his MBA in Finance at Lawrence Technological University. He is married to Chaya Kleinfeldt (formerly of Memphis, TN), and they have 3 children.
Past AJCOP Awardees
Professional of the Year Award
1990: Andrew Paller
1989: Joel Daner
1986: Harriet Hoffman
Distinguished Service Award
2007: Phyllis Cook and Jeffrey L. Klein
2006: Maxyne Finkelstein
2005: Jacob Solomon
2004: Jay Yoskowitz*
2003: Dr. John Ruskay
2002: Dr. Jeffrey R. Solomon
2001: Cindy Chazan and Stephen H. Hoffman
2000: Max L. Kleinman
1999: Peter H. Wells
1998: Darrell Friedman and Norbert Fruehauf
1997: Howard M. Rieger
1996: Ferne Katleman
1995: Stephen Solender
1994: Michael Schneider
1993: Martin Kraar
1992: Melvyn H. Bloom
1991: Dr. Steven B. Nasatir
1990: Irving Kessler
1989: Ben M. Mandelkorn*
1988: Charles Miller and Carmi Schwartz
1987: Ted Kanner
1986: Irving Bernstein*
Retiree of the Year Award
2006: Robert Fitterman*
2005: Ted Comet & Martin Waxman
2004: Daniel Mann
2003: Merv Lemmerman
2002: Hans Mayer
2001: Morris Stein
2000: Gerald Bubis and Ernest Kahn
1999: Herman S. Markowitz
1998: Melvin S. Cohen
1997: Maurice Bernstein* & Daniel Thursz*
1996: Melvin S. Zaret
1995: Phillip Bernstein* & Irving Kessler
1994: Sanford Solender* and David Zeff*
1993: Donald Feldstein
1992: Saul Schwarz*
1991: Henry Zucker*
1990: Charles Zibbel*
1989: Isidore Sobeloff*
Norman Edell Fellowship Award
2007: Emilie Kuperman
2006: Tova Grunes
2005: Adam Bronstone
2004: Bari Elias
2002: Jeffrey Rips
2001: Ziva Starr Raney
Bernard Rodkin Israel Experience Fellowhsip Award
2007: Cheryl Carne, Bari Elias, Leon Weinerman & Maureen Wise
2005: Sam Sokolove
2004: Amy Wagner Simpson
2003: Sara Schlossberg & Karen Taylor
2008
Mandelkorn Award Committee:
William Bernstein, Chair
Melvyn Bloom, Ted Farber, Maxyne Finkelstein, Richard Jacobs, Laura Kaplansky, Jeffrey Klein, Richard Meyer, Mitch Orlik, Michael Rassler, Howard Ross, Jay Rubin, Eli Skora, Becky Sobelman-Stern, Eric Stillman, Alan Engel and Lou Solomon.
2008 Edell
Fellowship Committee:
Jeffrey Feld,
Chair
Michael Dzik, David Edell, Michael
Rassler, Leah Ronen, Gloria Schwartz, Alan Engel and Louis
Solomon.
2008 Bernard Rodkin
Fellowship Committee:
Daniel Allen,
Chair
Maxyne Finkelstein, Debra Barton Grant, Adam Schwartz, Sam Sokolove,Alan Engel, Louis
Solomon and Herman Markowitz, Chair Emeritus.
AJCOP 2007 Mandelkorn
Distinguished Service Award:
Phyllis Cook & Jeffrey L. Klein
Phyllis Cook (R) is presented her AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award by Maxyne Finkelstein, AJCOP Awards Chair for 2007.
Jeffrey L. Klein (R) is presented his AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award by Jacob Solomon.
Phyllis Cook has been the Executive Director of the Jewish Community Endowment Fund and Associate Director of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties since 1983. The Endowment Fund assets have grown in that time from $27 million to $2.8 billion in 2007 and annual grants to the community have increased from $4 million to more than $200 million. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Michigan with graduate study at the University of California, Berkeley. She presently serves on 4 private foundations and oversees the Federation’s 72 supporting foundations, 868 philanthropic funds and restricted funds. She serves on the Advisory Board of the Brandeis University Steinhardt Social Research Institute. After nearly a quarter-century at the helm, Phyllis Cook has announced she will step down as executive director of the S.F.-based Jewish Community Endowment Fund and as associate executive director of the Jewish Community Federation. Her departure is set for June 30, 2008. A native of Idaho Falls, Idaho, Cook joined the endowment as director in January 1983. At the time, the fund had less than $28 million in assets, and distributed $4 million in grants. At last count, the endowment claimed more than $2.6 billion in assets and allocated more than $200 million in grants over the past year. "During her tenure, Phyllis has created one of the largest, if not the largest, federation endowment funds in the country, as well as numerous innovative programs associated with endowment," said endowment committee chair Richard Rosenberg. "Fortunately, she has also had the ability to attract and retain a superior staff, so when Phyllis retires, the federation has the people to carry on the legacy she established." Cook says she will continue working privately with donors and institutions, Jewish and non-Jewish, to "help them achieve their philanthropic objectives, and help them repair the world."
Jeffrey Klein has been the Chief
Executive Officer of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County since April
1986, and is one of America’s senior chief executives. During this period, the
Federation has grown substantially from a campaign of $6.6 million to a Campaign
that exceeded $32 million in 2007. Foundation assets have increased more than 25
fold. Several times during his tenure, the Federation has won national awards as
the best Federation/UJA Annual Campaign in the country. The services in the
community have grown geometrically under Jeffrey’s leadership, while the
Federation has remained strong in support of overseas needs. During his tenure,
the community has built its central facilities, including state-of-the-art
Campuses in West Palm Beach and in Boynton Beach/Lake Worth. Many of the
agencies and services that exist today were created during his tenure. The
Federation has also been expanded with the commencement of the Fund for Jewish
Continuity, Partnership 2000, Israel Program Center, educational initiatives,
lay and professional leadership development and this year, both collaborative
fundraising and strategic planning initiatives. In recent years, major
initiatives for Ethiopian Jewry, Youth Futures, and a broad array of programs in
St. Petersburg, Russia have been added to our successful Partnership 2000
relationship. One of the major Federations in the country, the Jewish Federation
of Palm Beach County is now one of the largest elective overseas funders in the
national system and is highly regarded as a model of excellence on a national
and international level. As Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey is
principally responsible for execution of the policies established by Federation’s
Board of Directors for the community’s Central Fund Raising, Planning and
Allocating body. On a national level, Jeffrey has served as Chairman of the
Large City Executives Group for North America Federations, as a member of the
United Jewish Communities’ Executive Committee, as a member of its Israel and
Overseas Pillar, currently serves in Renewal and Renaissance, and has served as
one of four associate professional members of the Jewish Agency Executive. An
attorney by background, Jeffrey previously practiced real estate and corporate
law for a number of years.
AJCOP Norman Edell Fellow for 2007: Emilie Kuperman
Emilie Kuperman (R) is presented her AJCOP Norman Edell Fellowship Award by Jeffrey Feld, AJCOP Edell Fellowship Award Chair for 2007.
Emilie Kuperman is the Development Director of the Tampa Jewish Federation. Previously, the Women's Division Director for the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland, she holds a Masters degree in Nonprofit Management and has been working in the Federation system for 4 years. Emilie finds working with a young Jewish Community through a functional Federation to be exciting, and relishes in opportunities to creatively implement new development initiatives. She is also an avid tap dancer.
AJCOP 2006 Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award: Maxyne Finkelstein
Maxyne Finkelstein, CEO of the Jewish Agency for Israel North America, accepts the AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award for 2006, from AJCOP Past President and longtime colleague Mitch Orlik, Executive Director of the Israel Cancer Research Fund in Los Angeles.
Maxyne Finkelstein recently assumed the professional position of CEO of the Jewish Agency for Israel, North America. She is the first professional to hold this position which is responsible for the financial resource development, service, representation and operations of JAFI in the United States and Canada. She served as the Chief Professional of the UIA Federations Canada, the national organization representing the interests of the Federations and Jewish communities of Canada in regard to the national and Israel and overseas agendas, from 2000 to 2006.
Maxyne Finkelstein began her career in Jewish communal service in Montreal. She held professional positions at the Canadian Jewish Congress and the Cumming Center for Seniors prior to joining the Montreal Federation in 1985. During her fourteen years with Federation CJA she worked in various capacities, most recently, she was professionally responsible for the development of a new strategic vision for service delivery and a part of the team which managed the rebuilding of the Montreal Jewish Community Campus. During the past 25 years, Maxyne has been intimately involved with the relationship of Israel to the Jewish Community both from a perspective of resource development and as a source of identity. In 1988 she published a first article in the Journal of Jewish Communal Service relating to Israel experience as an important form of identity. She provided the professional leadership to the early development of the Partnership 2000 in Montreal with Beersheva and Bnai Shimon. While working at UIA Federations Canada, her major focus was strengthening Annual Federation Campaigns and the reorganization of domestic advocacy services. During her tenure the organization developed strong program components which serve the next generation and rebuilt a national Women’s Division. In this context she was committed to building a vibrant core of national leadership with a vision of serving and enriching national collective responsibility through the passion and expertise they developed as leaders in local Federations.
AJCOP Rosichan Retiree of the Year for 2006:
Robert Fitterman
Robert Fitterman
Bob Fitterman was born and raised in Malden., Mass. He is a graduate of Bates College (Lewiston , Maine) and holds a MA from the Graduate School for Jewish Social Work, NY, and also worked toward a doctorate from Ohio State. Bob began his career, working at the Jewish Board of Guardians – a family service agency in New York, went on to work for the State of New York and then worked for a Family Service agency in Pittsburgh.
In 1948 Bob became the Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Dayton, Ohio. During his thirty year tenure there, the community built a Jewish Home for the Aged, and a Jewish Community Center Building. During the 1967 War and the Yom Kippur War, Dayton's Israel Emergency Campaign giving made it one of the highest per capita Jewish communities in the country.
Bob retired in 1978, and he and Mollye moved to Singer Island , Fl. where they became involved with Jewish Federation of Palm Beach. He served as Interim Executive Director there for a year or so, accepting no salary for his service. He also served as the first Endowment Director of the Palm Beach Federation. He and Mollye were very active in establishing a Federation presence on Singer Island, and running the campaign there. They also volunteered at the Riviera Beach Library, and at St. Mary’s Hospital for many years. Bob is a charter member of AJCOP, and served as its President from 1973-1975.
Peter Wells came to work for Bob in Dayton in 1973. "Bob and Mollye became our family in Dayton," Peter related. "Bob was always interested in professional development and made certain that I was able to finish the program at the School of Jewish Communal Service. He had a very open supervision style. He introduced me to all of the important people, encouraged me to form my own relationships and gave me major responsibility in the community. Most importantly, Bob always took great pleasure in all of my successes," Peter noted.
The Fittermans have lived in St. Louis for the past several years, where their daughter Susan Witte is a Senior Planning & Allocations Associate at the Jewish Federation of St. Louis.
AJCOP Norman Edell Fellow for 2006: Tova Grunes
Tova Grunes, Young Leadership Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater East Bay, receives the AJCOP Edell Fellowship for 2006 from Edell Awards Committee Chair Alan Engel at the AJCOP Awards Reception at the UJC General Assembly in Los Angeles.
Tova Grunes is Young Leadership Director at the Jewish Federation of the Greater East Bay. Highlights of the position have included putting on the largest East Bay young adult gathering every fall with what started at around 350 people in 2004 and grew to over 700 in 2006. Since she joined the Federation in November 2004, its Young Leadership Division database has doubled and its YLD campaign has quadrupled. Originally from Minneapolis, Tova grew up very involved in the Jewish community attending synagogue, UAHC and Habonim camps. She spent many summers working at Camp Teko in Minneapolis as a counselor, cook and eventually assistant director. Tova served on local and regional NFTY boards and attended the UAHC Biennial in Orlando, attended a North American NFTY Board meeting in Toronto and spent four weeks at Kutz leadership camp in New York. Tova graduated from Vassar College in New York, where she majored in Urban Studies with concentrations in education and global health and development, and earned a minor in Africana Studies. She spent five months studying health and development in Kenya and Tanzania (and can speak Swahili). Her time in East Africa transformed her outlook on the human condition and the responsibility that each of us has to respond to people in great need. In the last several years Tova has become a certified HIV test counselor and an Emergency Medical Technician, danced with a repertory company, worked as a professional cook, and become a voracious baseball fan. Tova is thrilled to be in a position that inspires her daily. She is grateful for the opportunity to work with dedicated and inspiring volunteers and colleagues and feels so fortunate to have a fulfilling position as a Jewish communal professional in the vibrant East Bay Jewish community.
AJCOP 2005 Rosichan Retirees of the Year
Ted Comet and Martin Waxman
Bob Hiller presents the AJCOP Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award to
Marty Waxman with Lou Solomon, AJCOP Exec. The award is a framed page from the Moss Hagaddah.
Ted Comet received the AJCOP Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award from Max Kleinman at the GA in Toronto. Ted quipped that he didn't retire, but was "re-tired"--with new tread he will keep rolling along until at least 120.
AJCOP
2005 Mandelkorn Distinguished Service AwardJacob Solomon
Jacob Solomon receives the 2005 Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award from his friend and colleague Jeffrey Klein at the AJCOP Annual Meeting and Professional Development Day.
AJCOP
2004 Rosichan Retiree of the Year
Daniel Mann
Burt Lazarow (R) presents the
Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award for 2004
to his old friend Danny Mann, with Danny Allen, Max Kleinman and Lou Solomon.Endowed by Florence Hutner Rosichan in memory of her beloved husband, long time Jewish Federation Executive, Arthur Rosichan, the AJCOP Rosichan Retiree of the Year Award is presented to a retired Jewish community organization professional who has had a distinguished career, has served as a role model, and who, during retirement, continues to make a contribution to the field.
Beginning with the influence of his family, his Jewish education, and his youth activity in his native Cincinnati and continuing to this day, Daniel Mann has always tried to serve as a volunteer in the community. Now he is a retired Jewish communal worker and educator, but in the years in which he was both a professional and an academic, he felt that volunteer work complemented those roles—and urged the same in dealing with students, interns, and younger workers.
Since his retirement in the 1980’s, he has had an opportunity to contribute even more as a volunteer, both locally and nationally. Mann served previously as executive director of the Jewish Community Council of Greater Washington and, before that, as national coordinator of the American Zionist Movement in New York. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Mann graduated from the University of Chicago, received his M.A. from Columbia University, and completed Ph.D. course requirements in American Government at Georgetown University. In the 1950’s, he also studied at Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago and participated in one of the earliest long-term Israel-experience programs for North American Jewish youth under the sponsorship of Habonim. From 1979 to 1991 Mann served as international director of the B’nai B’rith Israel Commission. In 1988, a major project of that agency, the Active Retirees in Israel (ARI) program, won the coveted William J. Shroder Award of the Council of Jewish Federations (now the United Jewish Communities) for superior initiative and achievement in the field of community-service programming. In 1990 he staffed the B’nai B’rith committee that negotiated the affiliation of that organization with the World Zionist Organization and by extension the Jewish Agency. Mann is a past president of the Jewish Communal Service Association of North America, the Founding Chair of the Habonim Dror Foundation and serves on the Editorial Board of the Jewish Frontier and the governing bodies of several national Jewish organizations. He is an Honorary Fellow of the World Zionist General Council and has served on several committees of the Jewish Agency for Israel. In the Greater Washington community he is the chair of the Isaac Franck Jewish Public Library (a project of the local Board of Jewish Education), a director of the Jewish Historical Society, and a member of the Israel and Overseas Committee of the Jewish Federation.
Much of the inspiration for the above comes from his wife, Elaine, who had a distinguished career in the center field, including seven years as COO—one as acting CEO—of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington. She was the first recipient of the AJCP Center Worker of the Year Award and served on that Board, as well as an officer of JCSA. (They may be the only couple in which both spouses were JCSA officers.) Since her retirement, she has been an active volunteer in the community, including the chairing of the Yiddish Culture Festival in 2003, a nationally recognized event in Washington.
AJCOP
2004
Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award
Jay Yoskowitz
Mel Bloom (L) presents the Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award for 2004 to Janet Yoskowitz, who accepted the award on behalf of her husband, Jay (busy working for the Jewish People in Israel.
Jay Yoskowitz has spent his entire professional career serving Jewish organizations locally and nationally throughout the United States. Beginning as the Regional Director for the B’nai B’rith organization in Texas and Oklahoma in 1970, he currently serves as Senior Vice President for the American Technion Society. He has lived in his present home in Westchester County, New York since 1981, at which time he moved to the Council of Jewish Federations as Director of the Department of Personnel Services from having served as Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Des Moines. Jay went on to serve as the Executive Director Greenwich Jewish Federation, National Field Director Jewish National Fund, Associate Executive Vice Chairman and Executive Vice Chairman of the United Israel Appeal and Senior Associate Executive Vice President/ Chief Operation Officer and Executive Vice President of the Council of Jewish Federations. He is proud of the fact that his three children have lived in the same home throughout their elementary, high school and college experience. Seth, his son, who is married to Karen Edell Yoskowitz, is an environmental engineer and lives in Bethesda, MD. Joy, his daughter lives in Manhattan and is employed by Price Waterhouse as a consultant and his other daughter, Rebecca lives in Virginia where she is employed by Emily’s List. Janet, his wife of 31 years, is a senior adjunct instructor at Westchester Community College. Jay served as a member of the Board of Directors of Beth El Synagogue Center and is a member of the Synagogue 2000 Team, Ritual Committee and the Personnel Committee. Jay received an Honorary Doctorate from Hebrew Union College in 2004. He is honored to receive the AJCOP Mandelkorn Distinguished Service Award for 2004 and joins a distinguished list of prior recipients.
Updated November 15, 2010