Ruth Kullman receives 2013 Hannah G. Solomon Award
By ALAN SMASON
It was a good day for Ruth Kullman on Monday. That was the day she was honored by her fellow National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) peers and by a procession of local officials, but most especially the man she watched grow up from a small boy into the mayor of the City of New Orleans, Mitch Landrieu.
Hannah Solomon Award recipient, Ruth Kullman, accepts the award from event chair Madalyn Schenck. (Photo by Alan Smason)
“I’m really not standing here as your mayor, but I’m here because Ruth is my friend,” an overjoyed Landrieu told the crowd of over 200 gathered in the Westin Hotel’s Grand Ballroom.”I can honestly say I would not be here as your mayor if it weren’t for Ruth!”
Landrieu spoke glowingly of Kullman’s “purity and goodness when other people see darkness.” Kullman, who has served as the mayor’s finance director for the past decade, was complimented by him on her courage to take a stand throughout a career as a consultant, a manager of non-profit corporations and an effective fund raiser. “She has the capacity to give rather than take,” he continued. “No one would be able to do all those things if she were a taker instead of a giver.”
Kullman, attended by her family members, also received high praise from New Orleans City Council vice-president Jackie Brechtel Clarkson and District A Council Member Susan Guidry. Clarkson presented Kullman with a proclamation from the city extolling her virtues and accomplishments. State senator Walt Leger, president pro tempore of the Louisiana Senate, read a proclamation in honor of Kullman on behalf of the State of Louisiana authored by state representative Jared Brossett.
New Orleans City Council vice-president Jackie Clarkson, left, and District A Council Member Susan Guidry flank award recipient Ruth Kullman. (Photo by Alan Smason)
Yet the major focus of the day was on Kullman’s acceptance of the coveted Hannah G. Solomon Award for 2013. The award, named in honor of the founder of the National Council of Jewish Women, has only been given out 45 times previously since it was instituted here in 1966. The list of award winners reads like a who’s who of civic leaders and community volunteers.
Kullman was presented with the award – a bust of Solomon that bears Kullman’s name and year of recognition – by event chairwoman Madalyn Schenck. “She’s an accomplished woman,” Schenck said in her introductory remarks about Kullman. Among the many accomplishments Schenck rattled off in rapid succession were Kullman’s work as the director of donor relations at Tulane University, the campaign director of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans and the director of family life education at Jewish Family Service, where she created the Teen Life Counts suicide prevention program.
State senator Walt Legier presents Ruth Kullman with a proclamation from the State of Louisiana. (Photo by Alan Smason)
Schenck recognized Kullman’s work with Planned Parenhood, especially given a personal crisis involving an unplanned and life-threatening pregnancy. She praised Kullman’s outreach in striving to improve public education within the Orleans Parish School system and aiming to better healthcare in her role as president of the Board of Trustees at Touro Infirmary.
Kullman was also spotlighted as the former president of Touro Synagogue, whose term of office coincided in 2005 with physical damages from Hurricane Katrina and a loss of membership. Her leadership at the time of the storm, repairing the physical structure and eventually hiring a new rabbinic leader at the Reform temple, were credited as quite influential and important in its recovery process.
“I was stunned that I had been chosen for this award,” Kullman said at her acceptance. She acknowledged the legacy that began with Solomon 123 years ago and how strongly she respected the list of previous recipients. Kullman went on to state that many of them had personally impressed her with their own strengths and leadership provided to the local NCJW chapter and to the city. “I truly am humbled to join their ranks,” she added.
In speaking to the crowd, Kullman challenged NCJW members to continue to make progress in being effective instruments for social change. She implored that NCJW members continue “to touch lives and make our world a better place.”
“We can do it. We are strong. All of us in this room can make a difference,” she continued. “I share this award with you.”
Before closing, NCJW chapter president June Leopold had several accolades to bestow upon Kullman. Leopold related her personal appreciation for the way Kullman had made her feel welcomed on a Touro Synagogue-sponsored trip to Israel during a time when she felt personally challenged. Leopold reiterated the incredible job of recovery Kullman had accomplished as Touro president and for her work with Teen Life Counts that has saved countless lives.
“Working with you has been a gift,” Leopold declared. “Your integrity and your passion to serve never ceases to amaze me.”
