2010 Plenum Report
Plenum Report
Phyllis Markus, the Barbara and Michael N. Newmark Emerging Leader Awardee, then gave her report on the 2010 JCPA Plenum in Dallas recently attended by a delegation of 16 from St. Louis.
Please click here to read her report
Following are photos taken at the Plenum
Left: Phyllis Markus, Barbara and Michael Newmark Emerging Leader Awardee
Right: Orli Pinsberg, Mazon Fellow
Below: Phyllis Markus; Batya Abramson-Goldstein, JCRC Executive Director; Gerry Greiman, JCRC President; and Roberta Gutwein, CAP and JFHN Committee
JCRC Annual Meeting
May 26, 2010
The Jewish Community Relations Council held its 72nd Annual Meeting on May 26, 2010 at the Crowne Plaza Clayton. There were 235 attending, among them, leaders of the African-American, Hispanic, and Bosnian communities, Catholic, Protestant, Hindu, Muslim and faith leaders; rabbis from all streams of Judaism, Jewish Federation and other Jewish organizational leadership, leadership of academic institutions and faculty and prior recipients of the major awards. The installation of the 2010-2011 officers and at-large members was also held at the luncheon. Rabbi Howard Kaplansky gave a blessing and the hamotzi.
Gerry Greiman, JCRC President, extended a warm welcome to the audience, which he noted was the largest JCRC Annual Meeting ever. He stressed the role of the JCRC in enlisting the understanding and support of diverse organizations and elements in the total community regarding issues of concern to the Jewish community. He noted that community relations is a two way street, and that we need to be attuned to the needs of others, as we wish them to respond to our needs.
Taking note of the fact that the JCRC is a constituent agency of the Jewish Federation and the fact that our work would not be possible without its support, Greiman called upon Sanford Neuman, Jewish Federation president to offer remarks.
Phyllis Markus, JCRC Vice President, was recognized as the Michael and Barbara Newmark JCRC Emerging Leader Awardee. Phyllis is currently Chair of the Community Against Poverty (CAP) committee. Barbara Newmark, in presenting the award noted that it was established to encourage emerging leaders to intensify their community relations experiences on both the local and national level. In accepting the award, Phyllis said she was greatly privileged to be the recipient and thanked Barbara and Michael and JCRC for the opportunity to become part of an organization so richly steeped in reaching out to the broader community to do good work.
JCRC Executive Director, Batya Abramson-Goldstein then gave her remarks to the gathering. “To undertake the work of community relations is a privilege. It is a challenge. In fact, it is an obligation. Many of you may be familiar with the words of Rabbi Tarfon, who in the Talmud, said ‘You are not required to finish the work, but you are also not free to desist from it.” She went on to say that “we pledge to look forward, ever aware of tomorrow’s challenges, because these challenges facing us, the different cultural, ethnic, political or religious groups who live in our St. Lois area, these challenges towards making St. Louis a better place don’t stop. They won’t stop. Neither can we. Neither will we.”
Batya then announced the establishment of The Michael and Barbara Newmark Institute for Human Relations. The Newmark Institute is being established in recognition of the life long work and contributions of Michael and Barbara in the area of human relations and in supporting a diverse and pluralistic community. In his response, Michael Newmark took note of extreme elements of the left and right who “threaten our harmonious society, and can cause all of our work for many years to be for naught. We must all continue to make America work. Because we are a diverse and pluralistic society, because that diversity is increasing, because we are a minority in this pluralistic society—for all of these reasons and more, it is time for us to redouble our efforts to reach out to others and help build a harmonious community.
The Milton I. and Merle K. Goldstein Scholarship Fund was established in 2008 to provide each year a one-year scholarship to help fund post-high school education of a graduating member of the senior class of Soldan International Studies High School. This is the first year a student received this award. Joel Goldstein, son of Milton and Merle Goldstein, presented Melisa Muminovic a $1,000 scholarship check. Melisa came to the United States from Sarajevo 12 years ago. She will be the first member of her family to attend college when she starts at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Dr. Ghazala Hayat, a medical doctor on the faculty of St. Louis University Health Sciences Center and a past president of both the Islamic Foundation and Interfaith Partnership, received the Norman A. Stack Community Relations Award. This award was established in 1989 to honor leaders of the St. Louis community who have made significant contributions to interfaith understanding, intergroup relations, and social justice. Working with the JCRC, Dr. Hayat is a co-founder of The Sidney and Anna Frager Jewish Muslim Teen Dialogue. In accepting the award, Dr. Hayat offered greetings of Shalom and Salaam, the Jewish and Islamic words of hello and peace be with you. She expressed appreciation to her family and friends, many, many of whom were present at the event. Dr. Hayat went on to say “whether we face good times or hard times, we must continue to work together.”
Please see The Jewish Light's aricle on our Annual Meeting - click this link to read
http://www.stljewishlight.com/news/local/article_9177ffd8-6f19-11df-930c-001cc4c002e0.html. Also, Saint Louis University covered the event in their newsletter. This can be read at
http://www.slu.edu/x37189.xml.
Below are some photos from the Annual Meeting. To view other photos, please click here to go to the photo gallery on www.jewishinstlouis.org
Below: Gerry Greiman, JCRC President, Dr. Ghazala Hayat, Norman A. Stack
awardee, and Batya Abramson-Goldstein, JCRC Executive Director
Phyllis Markus, JCRC Vice President, being presented with the
2010 Michael and Barbara Newmark Emerging Leader
Award by Barbara Newmark
Below: Joel Goldstein, presents Melisa Muminovic, Soldan student, with the first
Milton I. and Merle K. Goldstein scholarship.
Pictured Below: Front: Barbara Newmark and Batya Abramson-Goldstein
Back Row: Michael Newmark, Gerry Greiman and Phyllis Markus
Above: Swami Nishpapananda and Guillermo Dr. Hayat being congratulated by Jesse Swanigan
Rodriguez of Webster University
Batya Abramson-Goldsten and Rev. E. G. Shields, Sr.
Photographs by Bryan Schraier
