The Southern Shmooze
November 2022
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GivingThanksGivingThanksGivingThanks |
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In Judaism there is a Hebrew phrase, Hakarat Hatov, which means "recognizing the good." From the time we wake up in the morning to the time we go to bed each night, Jews are traditionally supposed to find 100 things to be thankful for. Not so easy to do, but a meaningful goal for anyone looking to bring more gratitude into their life. Thanksgiving provides us with a wonderful opportunity to focus on the people and things that give our lives so much meaning and joy.
Here are a few things we are thankful for at MSJE:
Our Artifact Donors – for giving us a piece of your family's or community's history so we can share your stories with the world through exhibits, research, and even this newsletter.
Our Board of Directors – for giving of your time, your energy, and your guidance to the Museum.
Our Volunteers – for helping our visitors to feel at home in our galleries and assisting with all manner of day-to-day activities.
Our Donors and Members – for believing in our mission and for providing us with the strongest possible foundation on which to maintain our world-class museum. We can't do this without you!
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The Town Talk, Alexandria, LA, November, 22 1944 (btw, Cohen's may be open Thanksgiving Day, but MSJE will be closed.)
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New Acquisitions
From Atlanta to Shanghai in the US Navy
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Just in time for Veterans Day, we've received a wonderful donation of artifacts from Shreveport native and United States Air Force veteran Risa Morris. It is a sharp reminder that Jews have been part of defending our country since colonial times.
The collection includes photographs, letters, postcards, documents, and souvenirs belonging to her father, Edward Morris, from his time in the US Navy before and during WWII. Edward was born in Atlanta in 1916. He enlisted in the Navy in 1934, was discharged in 1938, reenlisted in January 1942, just a month after Pearl Harbor, and served until October 1945.
Following her father's example, Risa Morris joined the Air Force after college and saw combat deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan.
In an article in Washington Jewish Week titled, "Military Jews find religion when they can," Risa said, “It’s different when it’s a challenge. I couldn’t lose such a big part of my character and my values while I was deployed. It was even more important to hold on to that part of humanity, because you were surrounded by inhumanity.... My faith is who I am and my military service is who I am."
The Risa Morris Collection also includes items from the Levison, Morris, and Goldman families of Dallas and Ft. Worth.
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Petty Officer, First Class Edward Morris, c. 1945. He served as a fireman and a ship-fitter, mostly in the Pacific Theater of War, but also briefly in the Atlantic. In all, he served nearly eight years in the US Navy. |
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Per long-standing naval tradition, when Edward first crossed the equator and crossed the 180th meridian (International Date Line), he received these certificates (along with a memorable hazing by his more veteran shipmates). |
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While serving about the USS Chaumont, a Navy transport built in 1920, Edward saw first-hand some of the destruction caused by the first Battle of Shanghai, in 1937. This album contains seventy-five black-and-white photographs of the battle of Shanghai, including graphic images of the Cathay Hotel and Wing On Department Store bombings. |
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Risa Morris sits on Saddam Hussein’s throne at Al-Faw Palace in Baghdad on her 45th birthday. For Risa, care packages with menorahs, challah, and other comforts of a Jewish home arriving during her deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq helped strengthen her Jewish identity. Thank you for your service, Risa! |
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Emily Williams: Jewish Alabama Fieldwork
Sunday, November 6, 3:00pm Central
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Join us at the Museum as photographer and oral historian Emily Williams gives a glimpse of her ongoing exploration of the Jewish South. Williams will share images, interviews, and stories from her most recent in-depth fieldwork through Alabama. Reception with light refreshments to follow.
Who: Emily Williams, photographer and oral historian
Where: The Mintz Family Theater at MSJE, 818 Howard Ave.
When: Sunday, November 6, 3:00pm Central
Cost: Free, no registration required
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Book Talk: The Sugar King
Wednesday, November 30, 6:00pm Central
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Join us for a talk with New York Times best-selling author Peter Wolf as he discusses his new book, The Sugar King: Leon Godchaux, A New Orleans Legend, His Creole Slave, and His Jewish Roots. Wolf is a sixth-generation native of New Orleans and the author of the 2013 book, My New Orleans, Gone Away: A Memoir of Loss and Renewal. Reception with light refreshments to follow.
Who: Peter Wolf, author of The Sugar King (and great-great grandson of Leon Godchaux)
Where: The Mintz Family Theater at MSJE, 818 Howard Ave.
When: Wednesday, November 30, 6:00pm Central
Cost: Free, but seating is limited.
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A Civic Survey
In 1963, following a fourteen-year legal battle, Morris Abram of Fitzgerald, GA, successfully argued for the US Supreme Court to strike down a rule that gives disproportionate voting weight to white rural counties in Georgia. His case is the basis for the “one voter, one vote” constitutional ruling.
As a group, American Jews have long ranked at or near the top of the list of most active voters. Like many immigrant communities, a history of discrimination and oppression by non-democratic governments in the "old country" has given Jews a heightened awareness of their civic responsibility.
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WILL YOU BE VOTING ON ELECTION DAY?
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We're Going Places
MSJE staff attends SJHS and SEMC conferences
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As a relatively new museum, MSJE is excited to be increasing our presence at museum and academic conferences, while at the same time investing in the professional development of our awesome staff. |
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Executive Director Kenneth Hoffman represented the museum at the Southern Jewish Historical Society's annual conference, held this year in Charleston, SC. Here he is pictured with Anna Tucker, the museum's inaugural curator, who has since taken on the leadership of the Framingham History Center, in Massachusetts. |
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Our public programs manager Lizzi Meister and our new curator Dr. Tine Rassalle attended the Southeastern Museums Conference in Bentonville, AR. There they enjoyed sessions exploring best practices for creative educational programming, innovative exhibit design, and the latest trends in collections management. |
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Museum Store Item of the Month
Jewish Holiday Greeting Cards
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Connect with family and friends with these fun, colorable greeting cards, designed by our own Visitor Services Associate Naomi Blausapp. Each set contains 14 cards and 14 envelopes, are blank on the inside for your personal messages, and come bundled with a festive blue ribbon. Perfect for sending individually or for gifting as a set!
Use discount code HOLIDAY10 for 10% off!
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The Museum Store is dedicated by Harold Wainer in memory of George & Helen Wainer and Harriet Wainer Kugler. |
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This Month in Southern Jewish History |
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LOUISIANA: November 3, 1912
Ida Kohlmeyer is born in New Orleans. Kohlmeyer studied art at Newcomb College and the Hans Hoffmann school in Massachusetts. She was greatly influenced by abstract expressionist Mark Rothko, when he was a visiting artist at Tulane. Kohlmeyer would go on to reach great acclaim as an abstract artist and sculptor, and her works can be found in museums and public spaces across the country.
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VIRGINIA: November 7, 1922
The New Leader newspaper in Staunton reports that Jefferson Levy has offered to sell Monticello to the Thomas Jefferson National Memorial Association for $500,000. Financing would be guaranteed if the people of Virginia raised $50,000 within three week. They did. Levy's father, Uriah P. Levy, purchased Monticello in 1830 and the Levys maintained it for more than 90 years, ensuring its survival.
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TEXAS: November 10, 1982
At a meeting of the Corpus Christi City Council, Mayor Luther Jones declares it Rabbi Sidney Wolf Day, in honor of Temple Beth El's retired rabbi and civic leader. A native of Cincinnati, Rabbi Wolf assumed his rabbinical duties in Corpus Christi in 1932 and served until retiring in 1972, making him the longest-serving clergyman in town to date. He was a champion of civil rights and helped establish some of America's earliest interfaith Thanksgiving services.
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GEORGIA: November 20, 1790
Georgia Governor Edward Telfain authorizes the charter for Congregation Mickve Israel in Savannah. Although originally established in 1733, colonial wars interrupted the congregation's stability. Today, the congregation–one of the oldest in the country–still operates under this charter.
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MISSISSIPPI: November 24, 1967
Racists heavily damage Rabbi Perry Nussbaum's house in Jackson, MS, with a dynamite bomb less than two months after Jackson's Congregation Beth Israel is bombed. Nussbaum, who actively supported integration, and his wife were in the house at the time, but were unharmed. Six months later the synagogue in Meridian, MS, was also bombed.
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ALABAMA: November 26, 1899
Temple B'nai Sholom in Huntsville is dedicated. Coverage of the dedication in The Weekly Democrat included this assessment of the town's Jewish population: “The Jews of Huntsville are examples of industry and thrift…There are Jewish merchants who came to this town with little more than their clothes…and have become the leading merchants and desirable citizens.”
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End-of-Year Giving Opportunities |
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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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