SOCIAL JUSTICE COUNCIL

SOCIAL JUSTICE COUNCIL | HISTORY

History of Temple Emanu-El Social Action

From the early days to the present, members of Temple Emanu-El have demonstrated a strong concern for public education, health care for the indigent, and other critical community needs. A brief history compiled by Syl Benenson follows:

1872: The Dallas Hebrew Benevolent Association, forerunner of Temple Emanu-El, was formed by 10 young Jewish men to help the sick and distressed, give money to the needy, and bury the dead.

1873: The Dallas Herald acclaimed the Benevolent Association for caring for victims of yellow fever, both Jewish and non-Jewish.

1875: Temple Emanu-El established.

1885: As there were no public schools at that time, Temple Emanu-El opened a congregational school, first for Jewish children and then for all children whose families could not afford private tutors. When public schools were established, the space was used for Sunday School classes.

1900: Rabbi William Greenburg and his wife Blanche helped organize the Dallas Free Kindergarten Association, which operated free kindergartens in poor neighborhoods.

1910: Blanche Greenburg asked her friends at Temple to donate milk to the nursery at the Free Kindergarten Day Nursery in East Dallas.

1911: Rabbi Greenburg urged the formation of the Federated Jewish Charities, later to become the Jewish Welfare Federation.

1913: Blanche Greenburg established the Dallas Infants Welfare and Milk Association which distributed free milk to indigent mothers and sold milk at cost to other distressed citizens. It also operated a free medical clinic, which treated 881 children in the first year. A nurse was also engaged to make home visits to the poor and teach them good health care procedures.

1916: Temple Emanu-El raised large sums of money for war relief, and many of its female members volunteered at the local Red Cross.

Early 1920’s: Rabbi David Lefkowitz became a strong voice against the Ku Klux Klan, joining other city leaders such as George B. Dealy, publisher of the Dallas Morning News, who opposed everything the Klan represented. Rabbi Lefkowitz was also an effective proponent of separation of church and state, especially in the public schools.

1934: Rabbi Lefkowitz’s wife Sadie founded the Visiting Nurse Association.

1941-45: The congregation engaged in many philanthropic activities to help with the war effort. Henry Jacobus, Sr. headed the USO where volunteers, many from Temple, entertained and counseled servicemen; Temple women worked at the Red Cross making bandages and other necessary articles; Mrs. Carlyn Hohenberg, grandmother of Temple Emanu-El’s current Executive Director Rick Rosenberg, headed the Red Cross Canteen; volunteers met trains and planes to offer servicemen hospitality while in Dallas.

Early 1960's: Rabbi Levi Olan challenged the Board of Trustees to establish the Community Affairs Committee whose purpose was to create a community service project supported by the entire congregation as part of the Temple’s 90th birthday observance. The result was the Rhoads Terrace Project, a free kindergarten located at a Dallas Housing Project in South Dallas. When Dallas Public Schools incorporated kindergartens (1971), the Rhoads Terrace Project became a premier pre-school and child care center supported by Temple until a United Way Agency took over. It later became a Head Start Center which continues to operate.

1970: The Community Affairs Committee became the Social Justice Council, supporting such noted programs as Adopt-A-School and the Visiting Nurses Association’s Meals-On-Wheels program, and advocating for social change at all levels of government.

1982: The final segment of our three-part look at the history of the Temple Emanu-El Social Justice Council follows with a brief description of the group’s most recent accomplishments.

1982: East Dallas Health Coalition - In response to a critical need to provide basic health care services to Southeast Asians and other disenfranchised groups who could not access health care due to language, cultural and transportation barriers, the Social Justice Council, with full Board approval, helped create a part-time primary health care clinic in Old East Dallas. The clinic opened in October 1984 at the Health Professions High School on Ross Avenue. Parkland Hospital has been a strong supporter of the clinic since its inception and agreed to assume full responsibility for its operation and management in May 1989. The clinic was renamed the East Dallas Health Center, becoming the first in a series of neighborhood Community Oriented Primary Care clinics run by Parkland.

1986: Dallas Jewish Coalition for the Homeless - To address the plight of the growing homeless population in Dallas, the Social Justice Council appointed Doris Budner to join Thelma Vogel of Congregation Shearith Israel and a few other Jewish leaders to determine how the Jewish community could best serve these desperate people. The most glaring need was a safe, secure childcare center for children of families living in shelters, so the parents could be free to seek job training or employment. The Dallas Jewish Coalition for the Homeless, a cooperative group of 26 synagogues and Jewish organizations was formed, with Thelma and Doris as co-presidents. The child care center, first known as the Alcove and later the Vogel Alcove, is now located in an outstanding facility at Akard and Griffin. As many as 102 young children are cared for there by professional staff and volunteers.

1987: The first counseling program for HIV positive women begins at Temple Emanu-El. As the AIDS epidemic progressed, it became evident that a program was needed for HIV-positive children and/or children of HIV positive parents. Bryan’s House was created to meet that need, and Temple Emanu-El member Stephanie Held was its first director. The Temple Brotherhood has prepared meals for Bryan’s House residents for many years, and other Temple groups provide support.

1988: Temple Emanu-El becomes a member of North Dallas Shared Ministries. Temple Emanu-El is the only Jewish congregation supporting this worthy organization of congregations that sponsor a major food bank and offer financial assistance, job training, and ESL classes to the poor in Northwest Dallas County. Temple volunteers are active in NDSM’s various programs.

1980-present: Temple Emanu-El provides funding and volunteers for numerous programs throughout the city including DISD Adopt-A-School, Visiting Nurse Association’s Meals-on-Wheels Program, Senior JFS Medication Fund, Association for the Mentally Ill, Greater Dallas Community of Churches Summer Reading Program, Children’s Hospital, Dallas Jewish Coalition for the Homeless, Music Therapy at CHAI House, Family Gateway, Family Place, Vickery Meadows After School Program, Coat and Blanket Collections, Diaper Drives and Common Ground’s Credit Union where the Temple has invested $6,000 to help provide loans to low-income families who cannot borrow from traditional sources.

Social Justice Council
Mission of the Council
History of Temple's Social Action