Temple Beth Solomon of the Deaf celebrated its 54th year. The photo shows charter members in attendance.
Photo: L-R Back Row: Rabbi Deborah Goldmann, Sophie Bobrosky Katz, Dianna Levin Kanawyer, Helen Zucker Diamond, Elaine Fromberg Aikins, Renah Ben-Ari, Maurice Richter, Front Row, L-R: Adele Podolsky, Helen Lovitch, Ruth Richter, Joyce Groode Linden. Source: Congregation News.
“In September 1953, five couples launched their deaf children on a Judaic spiritual adventure,” TBS president Joe Slotnick wrote in their “Congregation News” publication, “The five couples that started the very first Sunday School for deaf children were: Shirley & Louis Goldman, David and Helen Frees, Jim & Blanche Fortus, Gunter & Sylvia Sultan and Harry & Rose Zucker, most of whom became TBS Charter members.”
“Continuing in the quest for a more permanent and inclusive circumstance, Rose Zucker worked tirelessly with the deaf community until 1960 to establish TBS.
She inspired 120 Charter Members to commit themselves to TBS’ birth and Deaf Jews everywhere making a monumental contribution to the larger, national Deaf community. Here we are 54 years later, still intact, although smaller, extremely proud of our legacy.
We celebrate and honor our 16 surviving Charter Members, whose gift of TBS to Deaf Jews everywhere is a model of leadership and a can-do spirit of love and devotion. We love and deeply respect you all for your miraculous perseverance, patience and compassion and for all your hard work to establish our place in the very important annals of Deaf History.
On May 2nd, we were so fortunate to have 10 of our own remaining Charter Members with us (pictured above) to commemorate their remarkable contributions to TBS over these 54 years. We also want to honor and thank those who were not able to attend: Julia Beesen, Myron Goldman, Geon Groode, Marge Klugman, Bill Klein, and Audrey Winerman. Ruth Beesen was also not in attendance and sadly passed away on the same day as our May 2nd celebration.
Slotnick reported that 55 people attended that May 2nd Shabbat Service to celebrate TBS’ 54th anniversary. Of the original 120 Charter Members, only 16 are still alive.
Source: Congregation News
