Family

Content type
Collection

Freema Shapiro

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Emily Mehlman and Fran Putnoi interviewed Freema Shapiro on July 25, 1997, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Shapiro reflects on life after her husband's passing, her pursuit of personal passions, and her journey toward self-discovery through meditation and holistic health practices.

Jake Kupperman

Project
Katrina's Jewish Voices

Rosalind Hinton interviewed Jake Kupperman on July 18, 2007, in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the Katrina’s Jewish Voices Oral History Project. Kupperman reflects on his experiences during Hurricane Katrina, including volunteering at a hospital, the aftermath of looting, and how his parents protected him and his siblings, highlighting the importance of friends, routine, and returning to New Orleans in their recovery process.

Ida Mae Kahn

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Betsy Abrams and Bobbie Burstein interviewed Ida Mae Kahn on July 11, 1997, in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, as a part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Kahn talks about her Jewish upbringing, meeting her husband, starting a family, and her extensive involvement in volunteer work, including leadership roles in various organizations and serving on the board of Public Welfare.

Anne A. Jackson

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Pam Goodman and Fran Putnoi interviewed Anne A. Jackson on February 4 and May 19, 1997, in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Jackson recounts her personal journey, including her close relationship with her sister and the impact of her death, her experiences during the war years, raising her children, and her lifelong passion for art.

Helen Hirsch

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Betsy Friedman Abrams interviewed Helen Hirsch on August 8, 1997, in Falmouth, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Hirsch discusses her childhood in Boston, her father's involvement in founding a synagogue and tailoring business, her education, her work during the Great Depression, her participation in religious and community organizations, and her love for music and family.

Marion Guttentag

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Emily Mehlman interviewed Marion Guttentag on June 4, 1996, in Needham, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Span the Century Oral History Project. Guttentag reminisces on childhood memories of her family, school, and Jewish holidays, as well as her experiences working as a stenographer, reflecting on her career and cherished relationships.

Irene Goldman

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Helene Bailen interviewed Irene Goldman on December 20, 1997, in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Goldman discusses her upbringing, her parents' business, her education at Mt. Ida Junior College, raising a family, her involvement in volunteerism, and their Jewish customs and affiliations.

Hulda Gittelsohn

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Betsy Abrams and Bobbie Burstein interviewed Hulda “Bubbles” Gittelsohn on June 20, 1997, in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Gittelsohn discusses her family heritage, childhood religious customs, experiences at Temple and Wellesley College, family tragedies, finding support in Temple Israel, her travels around the world, and her life in a retirement community.

Bernice Frieze

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Rochelle Ruthchild interviewed Bernice Frieze on January 16, 1997, in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Frieze shares stories of her family's immigration to the United States, her upbringing in Boston during the Great Depression, her family life, Jewish practice, and involvement in charitable work.

Martha Finn

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Ellen Meisel interviewed Martha Goldstein Finn on January 13th, 1997 in Boston Massachusetts as part of the project Women Whose Lives Span the Century. Finn discusses her early life in Dorchester, her college experience in the 1920s and 1930s, the challenges faced by women in the workforce at the time, her family life, including adopting a child, and her involvement in volunteer and community work, particularly with ORT and Temple Israel.

Barbara Cole

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Rachel Alexander interviewed Barbara Cole on August 20, 1997, in Lexington, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Span The Century Oral History Project. Cole discusses her upbringing, Jewish cultural background, thoughts on religion, experiences at Smith College and work at Filene's, as well as her travels to the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia.

Harriet Cohn

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Helene Bailen interviewed Harriet Segal Cohn on January 9 and January 16, 1997, in Westwood, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Harriet shares her family's immigration to Boston, her childhood experiences, education, encountering antisemitism, meeting her husband, experiences volunteering, and reflects on her life as a widow.

Anna Castleman

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Frances Godine interviewed Anna Castleman on December 17, 1996, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Anna Castleman discusses her upbringing in New England, her marriage and family life, her community involvement in Boston, and her experience as a Jewish woman at Wellesley College and in various Jewish organizations.

Beatrice Biller

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Emily Mehlman interviewed Beatrice Biller on February 25, 1996, in Ipswich, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Biller shares her family history, and involvement in various volunteer activities, reflecting on her experiences living through significant historical events such as the World Wars and her contributions to the Jewish community in Temple Israel.

Outlined drawing of high heels and Jewish stars on bright purple background

Finding My Hineni

Rosie Yanowitch

Hineni invites you to confront your own presence, and its unique and vital impact it has on any given point in time.

Noa Karidi at her bat mitzvah collaged on a blue watercolor background

Honoring the Women of the Wall With My Tallit

Noa Karidi

By choosing this tallit, I am honoring the hard work of other women that allowed me to go through this process.

Outlined drawings of New York City skyline, Star of David necklace, and subway cars

Wearing My Star of David Necklace, Loud and Proud

Nora Auburn

The thought of wearing something that declared my Judaism felt strange.

Needlepointed tallit bag with hamsa on orange background

Stitching My Tallit Bag, Stitching My Identity

Clara Sorkin

With my grandmother and my mom in mind, I chose a design for my tallit bag that represents the influence that women have had throughout my life as a proud Jew.

Black and white checkered stars and photo of folded napkin

Oma Irene's Napkin

Aviva Schilowitz

Particular emphasis is put on setting the table for these occasions. So much of my Jewish and familial identity is tied to these meals.

Letter from Nāzuk bat Yosef

A Millennium of Jewish Women’s Voices

Sarah Bunin Benor
Abby Graham

HUC-JIR's Jewish Language Project shares their recent exhibit highlighting Jewish women’s voices throughout history in twenty Diaspora Jewish languages.

Blue kiddush cup on dark blue patterned background

How My Kiddush Cup Inspired Me to Celebrate

Maya Viswanathan

Even though Kiddush has traditionally been done by men and I was just a girl, I took it upon myself to make Kiddush each week. 

Collage of shelf and candles on blue background

L’dor V’dor: How Ritual Plays into Grief

Judy Ruden

This is how we grieve: crying, laughing, brisket and Yahrzeit candles. Again and again and again.

Photographs of Miriam Niestat, her family, and a loom collaged on woven green background

Weaving My Asymmetrical Jewish Identity

Miriam Niestat

My uncle had the idea that maybe I could weave a tallis of my own. But I didn’t want it to somehow invalidate my bat mitzvah.

Topics: Crafts, Family, Ritual

Ruth Salmonson Krasnoff

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Miriam Smulow interviewed Ruth Salmonson Krasnoff on January 18, 1983, in Brookline, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Span the Century Oral History Project. Krasnoff shares her family's immigration history, her upbringing in Dorchester, her career in the business world, and her deep connection to Temple Israel.

Photo of wall covered in hamsas, on a yellow patterned background.

Unity through Symbolism: The Hamsa

Leila Nuri

As a teen with a Muslim-Palestinian father and a Jewish-American mother, the hamsa has always meant a lot to me.

Topics: Crafts, Family, Palestine

Donate

Help us elevate the voices of Jewish women.

donate now

Get JWA in your inbox

Read the latest from JWA from your inbox.

sign up now