MuseumMay 10, 2006
PRESIDENT BUSH APPOINTS NINE MEMBERS TO UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL COUNCIL
WASHINGTON, D.C. — President George W. Bush has named 9 members to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, the governing body of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The Council consists of 55 Presidential appointees in addition to 10 Congressional representatives and three ex-officio members from the departments of Education, Interior and State.
“President Bush has named an outstanding group of appointees who bring a wealth of experience and commitment to the Museum,” said Fred S. Zeidman, Chairman, United States Holocaust Memorial Council. “I look forward to working with these accomplished local and national leaders to ensure the lessons of Holocaust history remain meaningful to new generations in the 21st century.”
Council members serve the remainder of five-year terms that will expire in January 2011.
Debbie Abrams, Boca Raton, FL, is Vice President for Public Affairs and Public Relations for Sabre Technical Services/BioONE, a partnership with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s company, Giuliani Partners. She has extensive experience in campaign media relations on the local, state and national level. She is active on a number of community boards, including the Junior League. She is married to Boca Raton Mayor, Steven L. Abrams.
Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis, New York, NY, is a Holocaust survivor and Founder and President of Hineni, an international movement to inspire Jewish people to return to their faith. A teacher and prolific writer, the Rebbetzin writes a weekly column for The Jewish Press, and is the author of Jewish Soul on Fire, The Committed Life and The Committed Marriage.
Norma Lerner, Hunting Valley, OH, is a long- time civic leader in Cleveland. She serves on the Boards of the Case Western Reserve University and The Cleveland Orchestra. She also serves as Trustee for the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and is a Founding Member of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation Museum. Mrs. Lerner, and her late husband Alfred, founded the Cleveland Clinic Lerner School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University. Mr. Lerner was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MBNA and the owner of the Cleveland Browns.
Marvin A. Pomerantz, West Des Moines, IA, is Chairman and CEO of Mid-America Group, Ltd. A successful entrepreneur, he has started many businesses and has led three major corporations. A long-time supporter of education, from 1987 to 1993 and from 1995 to 1996, he was President of the Iowa Board of Regents. Because of his commitment to education and philanthropy, two buildings at the University of Iowa are named in his honor: The Pomerantz Career Center and the Pomerantz Family Pavilion. In 2001, he received the Horatio Alger Award.
Alan Neil Rechtschaffen, New York, NY, leads The Rechtschaffen Institutional Group at UBS Financial Services. As a Professor at Fordham University and New York University Schools of Law, Professor Rechtschaffen created J.D. and L.L.M. courses on derivatives, risk management, and corporate governance. He currently serves as a New York State regulator, and is one of Governor Pataki’s appointees to the New York State Real Estate Board. Previously he served as a Commissioner/Member of the New York City Campaign Finance Board. He is active in his community and a backgammon champion.
J. Philip Rosen, New York, NY, is a Senior Corporate Partner and co-head of the Property practice at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP. In 2002, Governor Pataki named him to the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation Professional Firms Advisory Council. He is Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Yeshiva College of Yeshiva University in New York, a member of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish American Organizations and a Wexner Heritage Foundation scholar.
Bradley D. Wine, Bethesda, MD, is an attorney with the law firm of Dickstein Shapiro Morin & Oshinsky LLP, advising clients on matters involving government contracting, regulatory compliance, homeland security, defense, intellectual property rights, and finance. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Center for Excellence in Education and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington. He is also actively involved with the Republican Jewish Coalition and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Elie Wiesel, New York, NY, is a Holocaust survivor, Nobel laureate, author, teacher, and Founding Chairman of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council. Wiesel served as Chairman of President Carter’s Commission on the Holocaust which proposed the establishment of the Museum. He is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities at Boston University. For his literary and human rights activities, he has received numerous awards including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the rank of Grand-Croix in the French Legion of Honor. In 1986, he won the Nobel Prize for Peace.
Judy Yudof, Austin, TX, is the Honorary International President of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. She is a board member of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the University of Judaism and is on the executive boards of both MERCAZ USA and Masorti Olami. A recipient of several awards, Ms. Yudof was described in The Forward as “as an important voice within Conservative Judaism.”
Situated among our national monuments to freedom, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is both a memorial to the past and a living reminder of the moral obligations of individuals and societies. The Museum fulfills its mission through a public/private partnership in which federal support guarantees the institution’s permanence and hundreds of thousands of donors nationwide make possible its educational activities and global outreach. More than 23 million people – including more than 8 million schoolchildren – have visited the Museum since it opened in 1993, and through its Web site, traveling exhibitions and educational programs, the Museum reaches millions more every year. For more information, visit www.ushmm.org.
