Highlights in 120-Year History of American Jewish Centers brew Association was organ- ized in 1888 by the New York YMHA (92nd St. Y) as a ladies auxiliary. The first swimming pool in a YMHA, incorporated in the new building of the Philadel- phia Hebrew Education So- ciety and which opened in 1891, was designed primarily as a public bath. CHRISALLE MOMS. The wave of immigration of HAIR FASHIONS The library of the 92nd St. Jews from Eastern Europe Specialist.. in flair Tinting Y in New York (now cele- found the YMHAs ready to 17190 Livernois, brating the centennial year) 862-2337, 862-2338 was the nucleus of the Agui- Irma McKenzie, prop. lar Free Public Library, which in turn became a part Season's Greetinsz-.s of the New York Public Li- PEKIN PAVILION brary. (Continued from Page 67) RESTAURANT The first serious effort to 7437 East Jefferson, Detroit coordinate the work of Jewish signatures to a petition to the 331-9262 824-2464 religious schools in New York government not to transform Carry-Outs — Choice Liquor City was the annual Hebrew their largest synagogue into Beer and R ine competitive examination a Workers' Club and that sponsored by the 92nd Street they had set a goal of 60,000 Happy Holiday To All Y for all children of Jewish signatures. The Soviet censor let the cable through. schools. RED-WAY Several days later I was in- The first essay contests in Jewish history and literature formed at the foreign com- CARTAGE CO. were conducted in 1876 and missariat that the synagogue 5100 E. NEVADA 1877 by the New York and was not as yet about to be- FO 6-6000 come a club house. By that Philadelphia Ys. time I had already spoken The first YMHA in Boston, New Year Greetings to All organized in 1875, had as its with both Smidovich and RYNNE CHINA CO. headquarters a room in City Lunacharsky but I was not Largest White China Dealers in the Middlewest Hall set aside for its use by at liberty to make public Everything for China Painter their assurances. the mayor. Imports from Fronce, Germany On Aug. 2, I was in a posi- and Japan The first organization to be LI 2-8700 tion to send to New York 222 W. 8 Mile called Young Women's He- 1 Blk. W. of John R, Hazel Pork the following cable, which then appeared in the Ameri- can press: A Very Healthy and Happy New Year . "The demand on the part to the Jewish Community of Jewish Communists in Moscow that the Great Choral Synagogue there be turned into a Workers' Club has been TR 3-7770 ■ rejected by the Soviet gov- ernment. At the same time a decision was made to con- New Year Greetings to All sider inadvisable any further converting of synagogues into clubs anywhere in the country." Thus the wave of convert- ing synagogues into clubs was halted, but synagogues were liquidated in other ways. Established 1890 In Smolensk the local Soviet 120 Mt. Elliott 259-2309 — 259-3910 had already decided to close the synagogue there and use the building for a club house, Wishing You but in Smidovich's office I was shown specific instruc- A Happy & Healthy New Year tions to the Municipal Soviet of Smolensk ordering the re- David & Leonard Lowenstein opening of the synagogue. Characteristic of the atti- tude of Lunacharsky was a speech he delivered in Mos- cow a short time later — on Nov. 13 — at a celebration of the 100th birthday of the world-renowned great Rus- sian writer, Lev Tolstoy. Lunacharsky compared Tol- stoy's liberal ideals with the Pentateuch. "Just as Tolstoy took the part of the peasants against their enslavers, so also did the Bible," Luna- charsky told the large, festive audience. Such a reference to the Bible in Moscow at that time was particularly significant, 1599 East Warren TE 1-7900 especially since the speaker was no other than the Com- missar of Culture. By LIONEL KOPPMAN This year marks the 120th anniversary of the founding of the first Jewish Commun- ity Center in Baltimore. As the JCC movement looks ahead to its second 120 years, here are some of the inter- esting highl igh ts of its Holiday Good Cheer history: Unlike other Jewish insti- tutions which were imported from Europe, the Jewish Community Center (or YM and YWHA) was born in America. The first professional em- ployee of a YMHA was the librarian, and the first Y fa- cilities were mostly reading Moscow Jewish Leaders Gather FIELD'S EMPLOYMENT Amsterdam Press Millard Press and White Color Card Co. Yellow Cab of Southfield 559-6789 Happy New Year to Our Friends and Patrons FRIGID FOOD PRODUCTS, INC. Wishing Our many Friends and Customers A Very Happy and Prosperous New Year Diamonds are our Specialty. Any size and any shape. I Appreciate the Confidence You Have Shown WIDENBAUM JEWELRY 1025-1026 David Stott Bldg., 1150 Griswold WO 3-5301 STAR-SPANGLED SAVINGS PLAN 68—Friday, Sept. 13, 1974 THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS is today a flourishing Jewish performing arts than ever respond to their needs to pre- community center movement before. Certainly one factor serve their traditions and in Europe. In France, the in stimulating this interest in cultural interests while be- Jewish community centers Jewish culture has been the coming adjusted to their new were described as "an Amer- work of JWB. land. ican import served up with After two earlier attempts, French spices." New Year Greetings the first permanent national A part of the drama of Is- Bagel Restaurant association of YMHAs and rael's birth, JWB has had a Jewish Community Centers— link to the Jewish state ever & Caterers the Council of Young Men's since. Creation of the Jeru- 13928 Woodward Hebrew and Kindred Associa- salem YMHA by JWB at the Highland Park 867-0003 tions — was formed in 1913. behest of such leaders as Dr. Among the organizers were Judah L. Magnes, and sup- the major leaders of Ameri- port of the Y by American Happy New Year can Jewry—Dr. Cyrus Adler, JCCs have led to a national Louis Marshall, Jacob Schiff, community center movement Felix Warburg, Judge Julian in Israel. Detroit's Only Exclusive W. Mack, Professor Morris Bedroom Store More than 2,000 local Jew- ra Loeb and Judge Samuel ish groups annually mark 5802 E. 8 Mile TW 1 1720 ri Greenbaum. Next to Sofas, Inc.. Jewish Book Month and Jew- On April 9, 1917 — three ish Music Month with the as- days after the U.S. entered sistance, encouragement and lie• ?ear Greetings World War I—JWB was cre- materials provided by JWB's From ated to represent the Ameri- Jewish Book and Music can Jewish community in Councils. serving the religious, morale More Jews are buying and and welfare needs of Jews reading Jewish books, enjoy- in the Armed Forces. Its first ing Jewish -music, and attend- 23535 Woodward, Ferndale name: Jewish Board for Wel- ing programs of lectures and fare Work. Many of the lead- ers involved in its founding NEW YEAR GREE'T'INGS Best Wishes for a were the same as helped Happy New Year OAKLAND WASTE from the council of Ys. MATERIAL CO. JWB's experience in uniting DAVIS IRON Buyers of Waste Paper Jewish groups — groups that — Scrap Metal — Rags rarely worked together before 1534 Gillet WORKS, Inc. TR 3-2575 — proved that Jewish unity for constructive Jewish pur- enr Happy Nei( poses was feasible. That, plus New Year Greetings the fact that YMHAs were PASADENA KOSHER already active in the work MEAT AND of JWB, led to a merger of POULTRY MKT. the council of YMHAs and 24721 Coolidge Hwy. 4238 E. Davison JWB' in 1921. Oak Park, Michigan There was hesitation about LI 3-8860 TW 2-0100 We Deliver the choice of the name "Jew- ish Welfare Board" which hardly seemed an appropriate Happy New Year to Our New Year Wishes label for a YMHA movement. Friends and Patrons JWB could claim only legal (I grounds for the choice of the name — the requirement to Gowns for All Occasions Southfield at 13 Mile Rd. maintain the service to men 10909 Grand River WE 3-4636 646-8484 in uniform and to veterans 1530 Woodward WO 5-0922 in peace time. The decision to merge the two organizations rather than New Year Greetings to establish a totally new structure could only be re- garded as an act of states- manship by JWB, a recogni- tion of the value of preserving the Y movement and its po tential for enlarging its pur- pose to better serve the needs of the American Jewish com- munity. 22060 W. 10 Mile Rd. at Lahser The YMHAs, YWHAs and Wish / 1/1 Their Friends a nd Customers other groups had to be en- A Haply, Health and Prosperous couraged to join forces and NEW YEAR become broadly-based Jewish community centers, a n d JWB took the responsibility Happy New Year to Our Friends and Patrons of directing such efforts and securing support of lay leaders. JWB expanded its purchas- Kosher Meat & Poultry Market ing service to enable indi- LI 7-4121 vidual centers to buy small 26035 Coolidge amounts of supplies at prices allowed for quantity. purchas- ing. The Home Camp, now known as Day Camp, was a • creation born of the Depres- sion. Representing American • •••••••• •••4••••••••••••••••••••••• Jewry on the U.S. Olympic •• Committee, J W B opposed W~1001WOM U.S. participation in the 1936 IIIIIMMIIMMIDINIMOMWIEMMINIM Olympic Games in Berlin be- cause of the Nazis. Destroyed by the Nazi Holo- caust, European communities Of were helped to rebuild by JWB and JDC through Louis Kraft. JWB saw that a prim- ary need was to create a Wish Their Many Friends and Customers feeling of community. This inevitably spelled "Jewish Community Center." As the survivors themselves put it, "(We need) a Jewish address in the community." Out of the ashes grew what r 1111MINININ BEDROOMS INC - BESSENGER'S I Davison Auto Parts AY'S BRIDAL SALON Herman Jaffe Photography BLUE FLASH CHEMICAL CO. Boesky's of Southfield - COHEN & SON ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • Best Wishes For A • • Happy, Healthy New Year • • • • REPUBLIC DEVELOPMENT CORP. Jerry and Anita Silberman Anita Handbag Studio * 41 * 4** * ihr lir Ar * Sign for S. IL S. 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