Authors Marlene Trestman and Rebecca Gratz to honor 60th year of JCC building

Authors Marlene Trestman and Rebecca Brandes Gratz will take lead a discussion regarding the Jewish Community Center building at 5342 St. Charles Avenue, the site formerly occupied by the Jewish Orphans’ Home, which later housed the first Jewish Community Center.  The talk, part of the Morris and Cathy Bart Jewish Cultural Series, will be held on Wed., November 11 at 6:30 p.m.

Authors Marlene Trestman, left, and Roberta Brandes Gratz. (Photo courtesy LSU Press)

Gratz, whose “Fearless Philanthropy: Edith Rosenwald Stern’s Campaigns to Better Life in New Orleans” was just published by LSU Press, will speak on her book, the seventh book she has published.

Trestman, who published a book on the history of the Jewish Orphans Home, “Most Fortunate Unfortunates,” will speak on the history of the building that was razed in order for the new Jewish Community Center to be erected in 1967.

Trestman’s history of the Jewish Orphans’ Home and its transformation into the JCC will speak to the history of the physical building.

Gratz’s take on Edith Rosenwald Stern, will focus on her philanthropy and civic dedication to the city of New Orleans and its infrastructure. Stern, whose father was Julius Rosenwald, the Sears and Roebuck magnate and philanthropist, originally hailed from Chicago. She became a resident of New Orleans following her wedding to Edgar Stern, Jr. in 1921.

The talk will reflect on the many generations of resilient Jews who have utilized the building and will touch on its architecture and the importance of the New Orleans Jewish community to the community at large.

Both books will be available for purchase and for signing by both authors following the conversation.  

To register for the event, click here.