The Southern Shmooze
May 2022
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Celebrate MSJE!
Saturday, June 11 & Sunday, June 12
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We are finally having the Grand Opening we always imagined.
Register now for our weekend of celebration, food, music, memories, and mishpocha!
All events on Sunday are open to the general public. The reception on Saturday night is open to members and donors only. If you are not already a member or a donor, there is still time to become one via this link: msje.org/support
For the full weekend schedule and to register today, click the link below or visit: msje.org/celebrate
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An Exciting Alliance
MSJE and SJHS will work together
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We are excited to announce that the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience has entered into a strategic alliance with the Southern Jewish Historical Society to further both organizations' missions.
Since 1977, SJHS has worked to foster scholarship about the experience of Southern Jews. With an annual conference, academic journal, and active grant and award programs, the society has helped to move Southern Jewish history from the margins of the American Jewish narrative into the mainstream.
With such overlap in our missions, we are eager to see how this alliance blooms. Early agreements include promoting each other's programming, supporting the Southern Jewish History journal, and collaborating on mutually-beneficial grants. Southern Jewish history is at the core of our work, and we hope you share our enthusiasm for how our two organizations will grow together.
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A Fond Farewell
from Anna Tucker
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Three years ago – almost to the day – I first set eyes on the 4,000-piece permanent collection housed by the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience. I was in Jackson, Mississippi, preparing the collection for its move to New Orleans. It was my first month on the job, and it turns out that moving thousands of artifacts proved to be the best way to familiarize myself with the MSJE’s collection of Southern Jewish history. The objects I encountered during that first visit ran the gamut from religious to business to social history: A 19th century Torah crown used by the congregants at Gemiluth Chassed in Port Gibson, Mississippi; the Knickerbocker Hotel sign, connoting Kosher Dining, from Hot Springs, Arkansas; and crates of prints by Bill Aron, whose photographs depict the faces of people whom I have come to know through the stories retold to me by Aron and Vicki Reikes Fox.
As I move into my new position as Executive Director of the Framingham History Center in Massachusetts, these early memories have crossed my mind numerous times in the moments leading up to my departure. Even more than the objects themselves, I find myself recalling conversations that surround them. One of the most gratifying parts of my position as curator at MSJE has been the opportunity to bear witness to these stories. Stories are what connect us to each other, and I have seen MSJE become a space of meaning and memory, between family, friends, and even strangers.
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It has been one of the greatest honors of my career to work with the MSJE staff and Executive Director, Kenneth Hoffman; the MSJE Board, including Jay Tanenbaum, Morris Mintz, and Rusty Palmer; and an extraordinary team of designers, fabricators, and historians to bring about the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in New Orleans. I find myself incapable of compressing into a few short paragraphs my deep gratitude for all those who made my time here meaningful, and so I leave you with the only words I know to express myself: thank you.
Even though I am moving many states – and several degrees Fahrenheit – away, I look forward to coming back to visit the people and the place that has become a living example of the tagline, “Shalom, make yourself at home.” MSJE will always be home to me.
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First image: Anna Tucker visiting the MSJE collection in storage in Jackson, MS, in April 2019.
Second image: Tucker in Gallery 1: From Immigrants to Southerners, 2021; courtesy of Berry College/Brant Sanderlin.
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Saying farewell to Anna Tucker is difficult. She came to us just as we began the serious business of outlining and drafting the actual museum content. It didn’t take long for us to realize that we had a tireless special talent, a shining star. Anna managed the impossible, getting a diverse slate of hands-on organizers, bosses, and advisors all to feel listened to and respected. The result could have been chaos, but in her hands, it became a symphony. (A nod to another of Anna’s talents. She is a classical pianist!) Anna leaves a large legacy here, and we will always be indebted to her. - Jay Tanenbaum, Chair
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Museum employees love their mothers... |
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Mother’s Day celebrates the women who raised us and shaped us into who we are today. From packed lunches with napkin notes, to the bandages and kisses after falling off your bike, to being the first one to cry at all of your milestone events. The staff at MSJE would like to wish a Happy Mother's Day to all of the incredible moms out there, including our own! |
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Happy Mother’s Day to the grooviest, wildest, curliest, crawfish-loving lady the world has ever known! - Emma Storm Herr, Director of Development
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No one belts out Streisand and Minnelli while baking a chocolate chess pie like my mother. No one. I am "the luckiest people." Love you, Mom! - Kenneth Hoffman, Executive Director
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Shout out to my mom, Barb Meister, who is always ready to be a sounding board for my wacky ideas and offer much appreciated advice that I may (or may not) follow. Her hard work demeanor and passion for family inspires me each day. Happy Mother's Day - the first one of being a mom and a GRANDMA! - Lizzi Meister, Public Programs Manager
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I may be bias but, Happy Mother's Day to the most amazing mom in the world! I feel so blessed to have been given the most amazing role model. You are the epitome of class and I hope they I can become half the women that you are. Love ya Toots! - Krista Toussant, Membership & Marketing Coordinator
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My favorite memory of my mother is the way she inspired my brother and I to see the world. My mom told me at a young age, "The best education you will get is from seeing the world around you; the cultures, the food, the people. No school can teach you that." She inspired me to be open to all different types of people, beliefs, religions, and cultures and I truly believe that it had an impact on my decision to join the team at the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience. Thanks Mom for teaching me to love this great big world out there! - Abbey Lewis, Visitor Services Manager
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Upcoming Event
Poetry Reading & Writing Workshop
with Marian Moore and Whitney Mackman
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Let’s get creative
Inspired by history
At the Museum
(it's a haiku, get it?)
Sunday, May 15, 1:30-3:00pm Central
Join poets Marian Moore, author of Louisiana Midrash, and Whitney Mackman, creative writing instructor at Loyola University, at MSJE on Sunday, May 15, from 1:30pm-3:00pm Central, for a fun, casual, doesn't-have-to-rhyme-but-it-can poetry writing workshop. Hear from these poets about their work and creative process. Explore our galleries for poetic inspiration from Southern and/or Jewish history. Then, write our own poetry and share it with the group (or not)! No experience necessary, just bring your creative self.
MSJE Members receive 15% off book purchases. If you would like to become a Member, Click here. Buy Louisiana Midrash here.
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For 24 hours on Tuesday, May 3rd, hundreds of New Orleans non-profits will be participating in GiveNOLA Day – a great opportunity for you to support MSJE! We will be competing for matching gifts against other museums and organizations to see who can raise the most money and who can receive the most individual donations. There are even cash prizes for museums who receive donations every hour throughout the day.
Last year we exceeded our GiveNOLA Day goal of $18,000. We've set a goal this year of raising $25,000. Will you help us reach it?
The important thing to know: YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE FROM NEW ORLEANS TO PARTICIPATE. Anyone can donate and at any amount.
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Museum Store Item of the Month
Israel Jazz Fest Poster
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This Preservation Hall Jazz Band poster from the 1972 Israel Festival is the perfect item to pick up during Jazz Fest. Hang it over your hi-fi turntable and crank some New Orleans jazz!! Stop by the Museum Store or orders your today on the online store.
Use code JAZZ10 for 10% off your online or in-store purchases of Israel Jazz Fest Posters during the entire month of May.
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The Museum Store is dedicated by Harold Wainer in memory of George & Helen Wainer and Harriet Wainer Kuglerat. |
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Teacher Appreciation Week
It's time for teachers to get the extra credit they deserve!
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Photo: MSJE Private Collection |
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MSJE offers both in-person and virtual school tours. Whether your tour happens here at the Museum or right in your classroom, your students will have the opportunity to explore and expand their understanding of the South, of the United States, and most importantly, their own community and themselves.
Because we want to get to know you, and we want you to get to know the Museum, we're offering you a free visit to the Museum. Fill out our short Teacher Survey to claim your complimentary Museum ticket and add your name to our teacher email list. Do you know a teacher? Forward them this email so they can visit the Museum on us!
For more information on school tours, email Lizzi.
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This Month in Southern Jewish History |
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TENNESSEE: May 6, 1951
Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion and Labor Minister Golda Meyerson are honored at a dinner at the Hotel Farragut in Knoxville. They were in Tennessee to visit TVA installations and learn about the latest hydroelectric technologies. In attendance was Gov. Gordon Browning (pictured center), Rep. Howard Baker and Rep. Al Gore, Sr. Meyerson (who was born in Kiev, Ukraine) would soon be known widely as Golda Meir. Photo courtesy of Jay Glazer. That's his mother, Ida, second from the left.
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LOUISIANA: May 11, 1913
Although not Southern Jews, The Marx Brothers performed their Yiddish theater-influenced comedy in New Orleans several times between 1910-1917. In 1913, they performed for a week at the Greenwall Theater (corner of Dauphine and Iberville). The Times-Democrat reported: "Arthur Marx's performance on the harp was of such merit that the audience was loath to have him finish, and encored him repeatedly..." Can you tell which Marx Brother would soon be known only as Harpo?
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MISSISSIPPI: May 14, 1840
Chapman Levy is announced as one of the state electors for presidential candidate Martin Van Buren. Levy, born in Camden, SC, was a prominent lawyer, state politician, and brickyard owner. He owned 31 enslaved people, making him one of the largest Jewish slave owners of the time. Levy eventually moved to Mississippi where he again involved himself in state politics, supporting the unsuccessful re-election candidacy of Van Buren.
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TEXAS: May 21, 1916
The cornerstone of Mt. Sinai Temple is laid in El Paso. In his dedication address, Rabbi Martin Zielonka said, “The rock and brick, the lumber and lime, are but the outward form, the body which will contain the soul of this building. The mason and the carpenter, the plumber and the plasterer will erect the building, but we are here, we and our children, are here to breathe into it the breath of life, to give it the everlasting soul…”
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ARKANSAS: May 25, 1883
Pitzele’s “Jew Store” opens, as announced in The Clarksdale Enterprise newspaper. Clarkdale, in northwest Arkansas, had no organized Jewish community and likely no other Jewish merchants on its main street. The term "Jew Store," which had originally been used disparagingly to describe a quickly set up store selling shoddy merchandise on a cash-only basis by an unscrupulous proprietor, had by this time morphed into a more ambiguous term connoting a store featuring a large variety of merchandise sold at affordable prices, often with good credit terms.
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KENTUCKY: May 29, 1907
Louisville's Courier-Journal newspaper announces that two new Yiddish plays, "The Rabbi's Daughter" and "The Forbidden Love," direct from the Windsor Theater in New York, would be performed in town. At the time, Yiddish theater companies thrived in New York, where Eastern European Jewish immigrants had been pouring into the country since the 1880s. By WWI, there were as many as 22 Yiddish theater troupes in NYC. With so many actors and plays, many took their shows on the road–even through the Jewish South.
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So Many Ways to Support MSJE... |
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GIVE ONLINE
MAIL US A CHECK
to PO Box 15071, New Orleans, LA 70175
DONATE FROM YOUR IRA
required distribution
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DESIGNATE MSJE
as a recipient of your Donor Advised Fund
DONATE STOCK
or other marketable securities
INCLUDE MSJE
in your estate planning (we can help)
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Shalom. Make yourself at home.®
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Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
818 Howard Avenue | New Orleans, LA 70113
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Banner images (l-r): Members of Congregation Beth Israel in Clarksdale, MS, c.1910. Collection of Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience; Blue Star campers, North Carolina, 2016. Courtesy of Blue Star Camps.
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