Women Raise Record Sum in Final ‘Life-Saving’ Drive
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 26, 1957, Pages 1, 3
An outstanding national record has been made by San Diego Women’s Division of the 1957 United Jewish Fund Campaign as they exceeded their goal of $51,150, according to a statement from the National United Jewish Appeal.
Jewish women of San Diego contributed $51,177 as of this date with $34,940 for the Regular United Jewish Fund Campaign and $16,237 for the Emergency Rescue Fund, according to Mrs. Lewis Solomon, Women’s Division Campaign Chairman.
This was a 55% increase over the 1956 figure of $33,000, Mrs. Solomon said. It is reported to be the outstanding increase of any Women’s Division in the United States. “At the same time,” Mrs. Solomon continued, “there are still approximately $2,000 worth of women’s gifts that the committee anticipates will come in before the end of the year.”
Aiding Mrs. Solomon as her co-chairmen in the country’s most dynamic campaign were: Mrs. Irving Alexander, Mrs. Morton J. Cohn, Mrs. Herbert Eber, and Mrs. E.A. Slayen. Mrs. Gabriel Berg and Mrs. Milton Y. Roberts, past presidents of campaigns, also aided in the leadership of the drive.
The overall campaign has raised of $282,000 to date, as against $206,000 in 1956, or an increase of 37%–one of the highest increases in the country, Dr. Walter Ornstein and Victor Schulman, Co-chairmen, reported. However, there are still 200 families who have not made contributions who made them in 1956 and whose gifts amount to enough to bring the total to a high of $300,000.
“These 200 families must be contacted again for their gifts,” the chairmen said. “This is a year when every Jew must help get their Co-religionists out of Poland and Egypt. WE cannot tell when the curtain will fall and further immigration out of Eastern Europe will stop. We must get them out while we can.”
Contributions may be sent the United Jewish Fund, 333 Plaza.
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Allocations Committee To Hold First Hearing August 7
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 26, 1957, Pages 1, 5
Allocations Committee Chairman
Seventeen major overseas, Israel and national organizations and agencies have been invited to present their request directly to the Allocations Committee on two different meeting nights, according to Robert Spiegel, Committee Chairman.
These national organizations are in the field of Community Relations, Religious, Cultural and Education, Service, and Health and Welfare.
“The decision to do away with the one day open hearing and to have several hearing meetings was made at the first meeting of the Committee, which was held last week,” Spiegel said. At that time the committee workbooks containing all the necessary material needed by committee members, including the Budget Digests of all the requesting agencies, were distributed to the members.
The Allocations Committee is made up of a cross-section of the Jewish community, both in giving, organizations representation and Congregational membership. Spiegel said that in order to make it a representative group, the By-Laws of the Fund provide that only ten members shall be Directors of the Fund, and the other sixteen shall be selected from the community at large.
First agency to be invited to be heard on Wednesday, August 7, 1957, will be the United Jewish Appeal, which receives the greatest percentage of the money raised in San Diego. Allocation to the JUJA is from the regular campaign. The money raised for the Special Emergency Rescue Fund goes totally to the United Jewish Appeal, and is not involved in the allocation.
Other agencies invited to be heard on Wednesday, August 7, are: Hebrew University-Technion Joint Campaign; American-Israel Cultural Foundation, United Hias Service; Union of American Hebrew Congregations; and the Jewish Theological Seminary.
On Tuesday, August 20, 1957, the following organizations have been invited to present their requests: American Jewish Congress, Joint Defense Appeal; Jewish War Veterans; Jewish Labor Committee; and the National Community Relations Advisory Council, all in the field of Community Relations.
Other agencies to be heard on this date are: City of Hope; Jewish Committee for Personal Services; B’nai B’rith Youth Service Appeal; National Jewish Welfare Board.
Spiegel said that both of these meetings will be open to any interested individuals who are not members of the committee.
“Responsibility of the Allocations Committee,” Spiegel said, “is to determine an equitable distribution to non-local agencies of the funds raised in the 1957 campaign. It is hoped that the report and recommendations of the committee will be ready for the Directors of the United Jewish Fund by the time of their September meeting.”
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Is Sandor Vidor Guilty?
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 26, 1957, Page 1
Sandor Vidor fled across the Hungarian borders into Austria when the Hungarian Revolution was put down by Russian tanks. Sandor Vidor was interviewed in Austria by an American official when he told that he was not a Communist. Sandor Vidor was brought to America by the United States Government through United Hias Service.
Today the United States Government, through the Attorney General and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, has terminated the “parole” of Sandor Vidor on the grounds that he lied in order to gain admission to the United States and that, not only was he a member of the Communist Party, but that he was a spy in the employ of the Secret Police.
Sandor Vidor, Hungarian revolutionary escapee–a parolee in the United States–is now to be deported. Sandor Vidor and his wife would have been in Austria by now if Mrs. Vidor had not been ill. A two week extension has been granted by our Immigration Department.
As a “parolee” Sandor Vidor has no rights under our laws. He doesn’t even have the rights of one who is admitted to this country as a visitor. He is not entitled to a hearing of any sort. Whether he may appeal to the Federal Courts is still untested. The law, as it is written, leaves very little room for mistakes, vindictiveness or revenge. An anonymous letter may be the cause of the ruination of a family’s life.
It just does not seem to be the American idea of justice. If Sandor Vidor is telling the truth a great injustice has been done him. It has been proven conclusively that there are two Sandor Vidors who have come to the United States under the Hungarian escapee program; it has been conclusively proved that there has been a mix-up in records in the office of the United Hias Service; and that it might be conceivable that the Attorney General’s records are based on the second Sandor Vidor.
We cannot say that San Diego’s Sandor Vidor is innocent or guilty, but we can say that we in the Jewish community must withhold our judgment and not be stampeded into abandoning someone who deserves our greatest sympathy and help.
This is the third time–first the Nazis–then the Russians–and now in free America–that the Vidors have been forced to pack their bags and wander again. Let us all hope and pray that American justice and sense of fair play will triumph, and that Sandor Vidor and his wife will be given the opportunity to prove his protestations of innocence–and that they will be able to continue to have a true haven and a new home with us in San Diego.
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Center Officials Push Building Job
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 26, 1957, Page 1
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Agency Gets Worker
Southwestern Jewish Press, July 26, 1957, Pages 1, 4
Mrs. William Colt, President of the Jewish Social Service Agency, announced that Miss Ayleen Kodmur has been added to the professional staff of the Jewish Social Service Agency, a Community Chest, Red Feather Agency.
“With the addition of Miss Kodmur,” Colt said, “the agency, a member of the Federation of Jewish Agencies, will now be in position to expand its services in the field of family counseling for the Jewish community of San Diego.” Miss Kodmur is a native Californian and has lived, been educated and worked in Los Angeles all of her life.
She came to San Diego one year ago to work as a case worker with the California Children’s Home Society. She was educated at the University of Southern California, from which she received her Masters Degree in Social Work.
Services of the Jewish Social Service Agency are available to all members of the Jewish community of San Diego. The agency works with both families and individuals helping them to solve both individual and family problems in their day to day life. It carries on counseling in the field of marriage relations, parent-child conflicts, and emotional difficulties of both adults and children. Agency services are available to assist in planning for care in time of illness, both physical and mental, old age, and many other problems in family life.
Besides this primary function the agency works in the field of immigration, does the social studies for admission to the Hebrew Home for the Aged, to the City of Hope at Duarte, los Angeles; and acts as a referral agency to other resources where services not offered by the Jewish Social Service Agency may be given.
“The expansion of the Jewish Social Service Agency,” Colt said, “was carried out with the cooperation of the Community Chest after a Community Welfare Council survey indicated the need.” Anyone needing the services of the Jewish Sojcial Service Agency can make an appointment by calling BE-2-5172.
Mrs. Henrietta Rubenstein is the Executive Secretary of the JSSA.
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Adventures in San Diego Jewish History” is sponsored by Inland Industries Group LP in memory of long-time San Diego Jewish community leader Marie (Mrs. Gabriel) Berg. Our “Adventures in San Diego Jewish History” series will be a regular feature until we run out of history. To find stories on specific individuals or organizations, type their names in our search box, located just above the masthead on the right hand side of the screen.