Nathan Kaplan
Nathan Kaplan was born in Fort Worth, Texas. His mother, Rose, died when he was young, and within a year his father, Sam Kaplan, remarried Ida Zimmerman, a woman known in Dallas for her kindness and for raising many family members. The family moved to Dallas so the children could be raised there, in an arrangement made after a short engagement. His father was a shoemaker by trade but also served as a cantor and baal tefillah, one who leads prayers for the congregation. To remain in his school district, Nathan lived for a time with his sister Ann and her husband Ike Silver, though he regularly attended services as a young boy.
Around 1948 or 1949, Nathan's parents were approached to work at the community's first Jewish home for the aged, located in a two-story house on South Boulevard that had originated as the Ohav Shalom synagogue. His mother did all the cooking, preparing fresh, kosher, traditional meals, while his father cleaned, cooked, took residents to doctors, and cared for them as if it were their own household. The home began with just a few residents and grew to about twenty. It was supported entirely by the community, with wealthy members like Mike Levine and the Kaufmans covering costs and local doctors caring for residents at no charge. Nathan recalled residents such as Mr. Siegel, the first resident, and Mrs. Gordon, the first lady president.
Nathan became a cantor and, encouraged by Cantor Cohen, came to serve at Golden Acres. After the death of Mr. Rubinette, who had led services there, Nathan took over in the early 1970s and continued for more than two decades. Following a heart attack that ended his career as a traveling auditor, he came to work full time at the home. As chaplain he served Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox residents, blending the services and bringing in music for the High Holy Days. He preserved memorial plaques, Torah covers, and ritual objects from the original home, and welcomed bar and bat mitzvah students to participate in services. His son, Joe, a lawyer and a baal tefillah at Shearith Israel, carries on the family tradition.
Full Transcript
Today is Wednesday, February 14, 1996. One, two, three. This is Wednesday, February the 14th, 1996. I'm speaking with Nathan Kaplan in the synagogue at Golden Acres. Nathan, I believe you're the chaplain here. I'm the chaplain. And how long have you been chaplain? I've been connected with the home, doing services for the home for 25 years. And let's go back to my childhood and we'll get here, okay? Okay, where were you born? I was born in Fort Worth, Texas. My mother rose, passed away when I was five years old. I actually I was six years old and my father remarried within a year according to the George Law and he remarried Ida Zimmerman who was a well-known person in Dallas for her kindness and goodness.
She raised many family members. And how I got connected with the home... Well, wait just a minute. Why did your father come to Dallas? Why? Because he was introduced to my stepmother, and she felt that Dallas would be more of a place to raise my sisters and I and this was the agreement that they had made being it was such a short engagement Rabbi Bromovitz from the old old days married them and so he moved here in the open he was a shoemaker by trade but he He was a cantor also, a bauxfilla. Bauxfilla is one that prays with prayer for people. And I was a bauxfilla for many years, and then all of a sudden I became a cantor And he started he and my mother my stepmother who I called my mother because that who raised me Oh, about ten years later, after we moved here to Dallas, was approached to work for the community in the first home for the aged on South Boulevard.
It was the Congregation of Shalom Synagogue at that time. Do you know what year that was? Oh boy, it was around 49, about 48, 49. So actually the home had been in existence. Well, in a way, yes, and they didn't go under Golden Acres, but it was the first Jewish age home that they were taking care of the people, and these were community people like like Mr. Polokoff, I mean Polokoff, who lived next door, and the Mike Levine, the Oakens, the Levingtons, who had, Levenson, Levenson, who had an iron and metal back in those days. These people, Mr. Creditor, Mr. Reiser, Felix Reiser, all these old, old people took these and they started with the first one man was Mr.
I'm thinking about his name, he was Ravine also. He was from Waco, Texas, and Mrs. Gordon was the First Lady, and she was one of the original lady that moved into this building after the Federation took over. And what happened was once they got up to around 20 people, it was a little difficult to handle. But the doctors used to come over and eat and they visit you know Did they take care of them Oh take care of the people And there was no cost you know naturally Everything was done as brothers and sisters. And the house was on South Boulevard was situated. Now can you describe the house?
Well, it was a two-story home. It's beautiful and it's to this day standing. Oh, is it? Yes. And it had a double downstairs was the living room, dining room, and the shul and what had in the kitchen. And upstairs was the bedrooms. But also in the back they converted the garage into apartments. It was a black apartment garage. They made two different apartments up on top, and they had three apartments down on the bottom part. How many bedrooms were in the house at South? I would think there was, back from my recreation, there was about four or five bedrooms. They had made, it was a tremendous large home.
Big front porch. big front porch where they'd sit up, and I remember they had a steep driveway, and Cantor Kaplan of the Sholem, that was Cantor at Sheriff Israel, he lived on the corner of that block, and he used to come every once in a while to our minions, but during the week, the mornings, it was difficult to sometimes have minions at the shul. So Sheriff Israel, who had a hard time at that time, even to this day, getting a minion back in those days, they used to come by and pick the men up and then take them to the shul that was by City Park, okay, near the old JCC, Pocahontas, near Pocahontas Street.
But one of the things that I recollect is the meals that were served to them are just like today. Kosher they were well they were the Jewish taste Right Your mother did all the cooking Yes, uh-huh. And my stepmother, which I called my mother. And I did a beautiful job in the cooking part. And everything was fresh. No canned gefilte fish. It was all fresh made. fresh-made. And the shul, which was on the bottom section, they held little banquets in there and they used to cook. Back in those days, we didn't have caterers. Right. So everybody pitched in and that was it. So, now... Let me ask you, you said that Ida, your mother did all the cooking.
Did she have help in any time? Eventually they got one Schwarzer to come in to help with the laundry and things of this nature. So you're saying... But for about a year they really, see they struggled with the first five people. Then it got up to around 20. Were they able to pay any fees, the people that were there? Do you recall? No. Most of them were all like the family service. No, in fact all of them were. So who paid? The men, the... The rich ones. Okay. The microbeens, the Revensons. Okay. They would fuss and fight with each other, but when it came down to say, this, we need this, and the monies were there.
You know, it's air conditioning, this, and that, repairs, what have you. Um... Now, I don't understand the, um, was the shul, Ohav Shalom, separate from the old age home, even though they were still in the same house, or was it all... No, it originated as a shul. Right. And then, all of a sudden, this became a... A need. A need. You got it. And... Did it just sort of... It wasn't like... You see, the congregation was built up off of members from the Goodest Offerum and the Remanish Shul. And the remaining ship was right next door to Park Road. On Park Road. Remember that one?
Yes. And, but it was like a, it was a need. It was a need. And, um, trying to think of the one, they were going back many years, of who really were there the most, you know. I'm trying to think of the Muramzik family were very active in it. And also, well, Mr. Stillman, who was here, Morris, used to come and help with the services. Oh, really? Rabbi Joseph, who was in Torsicana, used to come, and my father taught him before he became house of Dobbin. Oh, really? He came from China. Who? Rabbi Joseph. Oh, really? And he and his mother came, and then he married this Stillman girl.
So that was part of an upbringing from the home. It sprung. Rabbi Joseph really sprung from us because of his closeness to the synagogue. Then the Prinker got in there later, much later, into the shul bit. Okay? But not that much. You know, at first nothing, you know, naturally. They didn't get here until the 50s, late 40s or early 50s, you see. But from that, this is what happened here. Then you lived at the home. Is that right? No. I, uh... Did your parents, did your father live there? No they yes uh And then I really to stay in the school district that I was in I went to live with my sister Oh I see Ann Silver Ike Silver I don know if you remember all of them Yeah So but I used to go to services you know as a young boy and see this going on I do know that the Sabbath mills were gorgeous.
They would all set around a big table, it was a gorgeous big long table that, his name wasn't Levine, Siegel, Mr. Siegel. Which Siegel? He was from, from, from, from Waco. And Mr. Siegel was the, was the very first one, not Levine. The first resident? Yes. Okay. And Mrs. Gordon was the first lady president, okay? And they were not of any money at all. And it was really like a family, like we are here at Golden Akers. It's a continuance of love for our people. And I had Torah covers which were still from the old, old age home. From Mohawk Shalom. Yeah. That's interesting. And Torah is just them, too, also.
So now, I remember on a Friday night, back in those days, comparing to these days, we used to have, we're not counting the residents, we'd have at least 25 to 35 people used to come for services Friday evenings, and Saturday mornings we'd have more. place, the shul was from that wall to about us. About from this here to about that second that third chair wide It was two big double rooms Somewhere along the line If you could find that picture you could The orange Kodesh was written Now did you see these plaques that are on the wall over here On the outside, yes. Yeah, that's from the original...
Right. ...with Olaf Schollem. Mm-hmm. And I kept them. I found those in the basement down here. dust that thick and I said one day I said why in the world don't we preserve something like this so I brought them up and that's where they're at that's caused by me otherwise if not gone it's sold as beautiful grass you know now that is that is a vintage you might say or how would you say an antique, not an antique, but a memorial, memorandum. Yes, it's a memorial of the beginning days. So, that's a, now these here chairs, these chairs, I keep saying they came from our old place because they've been recovered and recovered and recovered and it's just a beautiful old, old, old, old piece.
They are beautiful. Excuse me. I'm not so sure about this also. If I found that picture, it would tell the story. Then there it could meet. Because when the shul was up in front, of the building. A lot of this came naturally from, because what was hanging on that wall was over in the other place too, you know, in front of the building. I remember the staircase staircase and the men walking up and down with their canes. Now once they got real real sick they did bring them back down to the back garage apartments and they so they wouldn have to go up and down the stairs And I remember We had so many different ones that they didn't, you know...
The oldest ones that really stayed the longest were... were Mr. Siegel and Mrs. Gordon. And they were the carryovers over here. Then from over here we got Dave, the singers, got me on the nice Rabbi Blumenthal, who you have pictures of and what have you. So we began to get really the names that we have now. Do you know how, did you ever hear the story of how it actually became a... Cozenacres? Yeah, an old age home from being primarily, it opened originally as a synagogue, is my understanding, as a shul. Well, all I knew was that the winds that were approached, and the shul didn't have a lot of money other than the ones supporting it.
They didn't need that kind of money that the shul needs nowadays. Exactly. And if you needed, they needed a hundred dollars, they had ten men to give ten dollars apiece, and there it was. You know? And the doctors the same way. I remember Dr. Katz, Dr. Gottlitch, who else did they have? They had Dr. Segal, who lived up on Forest Avenue. They had all the doctors who was a dentist. You know, the doctor, he was a dentist. No, no, I beg your pardon. He wasn't a dentist. Dr. Segal. Dr. Silverman. Silverman. Dr. Silverman, who lived up on Akard Street. I remember going up on Akard and Main Street, up on the second floor, across the street from A.
Harris and Company. I remember those days that my father used to take them and he'd sit in the car waiting for them to come down, you know. They'd come down sometimes with or to, sometimes without too. But these are, this was the thing that, and like today, I'm sure if we had a situation, he told us, well now they can do medicaid and this and that. But even the outside people, you know, if they say, hey, they don't have the money, then the doctors would want phone calls, you know, take care of them. But they were like on call as a community. Another thing is Dr.
Yulovich and Dr. Katz loved, Saul Katz loved the crepolis and the varnishes and the cheese blinches. And I mean, these were not frozen that you buy at Tom Thumb. You know, everything was made, you know. So even the Khaled, before they used to buy at New York Bakery, you know, up on Forest Avenue and what it is. But on holidays, my stepmother, my mother, or I had called it my mother, would make a big fresh cauliflower. Is that right? Yeah. I could just smell it to this day. And slice with butter, you know, and coffee. That was a dessert in the Flumin. I mean, they had the prunes and the apricots and the raisins.
and you know, all of the, all of the flumming was just, not like you, you, you eat, you know, they, we call it the chum, with, with, with meat in it, potatoes, you know what I mean? Yeah. So, uh, back in those, of course, I imagine the cholesterol didn't help them too much, but, but anyway, they were given their last days as a meaningful one, and they were taken care of by some beautiful families, you know, in the community. And I'm proud that my father, the Sholem, and my mother, the stepmother of the Sholem, was able to do their part. They were paid for their services.
Well, what exactly did your father do? In the home? In the home, yeah. He'd make sure he'd clean up and that he'd help cook. He'd take them to doctors, he'd go buy clothes. He'd do, he was doing like, like- Anything that needed- Right, right. If you said it had to be done, it had to be done, you know. I mean, they too run it granted. Okay. Like their own household Okay so they ran the It was ran by them And it was and they were paid for that that was their livelihood now but it was a livelihood plus a mystery, my business. Just like with me as a cosmoner, you know.
Even though, see, I've been here now seven years full time, needs to travel. But for previous time, over the weekends and the holidays, I was here. And just like on the holidays, they would take care of me just like I would if Tyler, Texas, or anywhere in the community. even one of the shuls bring in the chagin to do the service. How I got involved over here is I was singing with Cantor Cohen, and I had solos, you know. And on Yom Kippur one year, he said, your destiny is about to be set. He says, you're going to Golden Acres. I said, where is Golden Acres?
You know, just kidding them. He said, I said, I'm not that old. He says, you're going to do the services there. He said, you're meant to do it there. And they asked me if I knew anyone and you're the one that's going to do it. I said, well, I don't know everything all about it. He said, don't worry. He had Tantor Whiter. He had myself. We'll teach you as much as we want to know. So, I came over, and when Mr. Rubinette passed away, you know, they asked me if I would continue doing it. Was Mr. Rubinette doing the services? The same thing. He was the head cousin there.
Oh, I didn't know that. Yeah. And then when he was here for ten years. Oh, I didn't know that. And my father was ten years before him. He even came back to help out, okay? Now, let's go back. Your father started, you said, about 48. About 48, 49. And he worked for 10 years Well he worked for them but before I say before he came over here I say about seven to ten years, I would think. Now, he didn't come when they moved. No, no. He had moved to Savannah, Georgia to open a little business in Savannah, Duel Deli. Oh, okay. And when he came back, they didn't have a permanent person here, so he did it for maybe about four years.
And then Mr. Rubinette came. He was there about ten years. Was Mr. Rubinette a resident? No, no. He was like me. They had asked somebody, and here he came. Well, we used to stay here for the holidays, in the basement, sleep here. He used to, on a cot in the hall. Okay? Then, and they gave us our food. And then when he, when he, on one young kipper, I was, he, I was doing the first part of the service. He did the main part, like the cantor, okay? The main cantor. So, one day I saw him going out of the door and he didn't look right.
And I knew Mr. Rubinette didn't drive on Junk Kipper. And I didn't drive, but he got in his car and I took him off through my car. Well you know where I stopped him? In Lake Holland's area. And he stopped and I pulled my car next to him and got out and I saw yelling at him. And he kind of went like that and I said, you stay right here. And I took the keys out and went to a house and called his son up. Kenneth, may he rest in peace. And Kenneth said, bring him home in my car and I'll bring you back to yours.
This is what happened. And I went and came back and finished the service. And from that point on I've been here. He couldn't do it no more. He passed away in January of that year, in 1974. Okay? So I've been here since 1974. I'll be here 22 years. No 1972 24 years I been here So that how I got in over here So after a while after you know I traveled I mean I worked for McCroys you know learners and what have you I was their auditor And I used to go all over the country But I came here and after I got out I had a heart attack and they told me to get out of that business In fact, so Dr.
Shore asked me. He was looking for a security man, which I was versed in. I'm the director of security. I'm the chaplain. And I'm also the mishkiah of the home. All right. Plus the van driver. We work just like they did in the old days. Those who care. Those who, this is ours. You know, this is what it's meant to be. Yeah. So, since that time, when I first started, there was two of us doing the service. Right now I have a choir of 10 to 15 people that performs with me on the holidays. I did, we got my certificate as a cantor. That's another story.
And we're just one big team. We used to, activities, we all work together. Now we have hospice and I'm the chaplain of the hospice also. We have, we serve all three Reform, conservative and Orthodox. We are conservative by bylaw, but we put a lot of English to make it easier. I bring in for the holidays a choas or a violin for the Co-Midre for my reformed people. At one time, they're not so bad as they used to be, balked at it. But that's about the same talking. Like one of them says, you're the boss, we've got to do what you say. I said, well, you're my gaboyim, but I have to overrule you on this.
because we have all different parts of Judaism here, and we have to honor each one. Now on South Boulevard where the service is Orthodox. More Orthodox, yes. Yes. Do you feel the residents Orthodox? No, they're more conservative reform. Okay. It's a conservative reform, and the reformed services that I... I meant in the early days. In the early days it was Orthodox. The residents were Orthodox. of all it was 90 percent orthodox now it's reversed we're more reform and reform conservative orthodox and my books i reduced my reform book to one uh service even though i think i took it from the gates of prayer which has about five or six services but i took one so that they are used to doing the one and they enjoy doing that that way they know what they're doing and they're used to it the orthodox the conservative is saturday morning and well i have quite a bit of responsive reading and readings so that it makes it like a reform service also but the Torah
reading and what have you we go conservative instead of reading the whole Torah like the Orthodox you know the whole portion we only take one or two sentences and we rotate them around each year so that just like just like they do in at Sherif Israel you know yeah and one of the things we're doing here at Golden Acres now and we started this year this year is the temple manual and temple shalom and I got a call the other day from Sherif Israel their bar mitzvah and bas mitzvah boys and girls they have mitzvah deeds that they must perform so they've been I've already
had a couple come here Friday nights and Saturday to participate with us in the services and also do it and do their portion of the Haftorah. So instead of that particular week's Haftorah that we normally would do, they do theirs. What the difference We reading prophets And the purpose of this is so that they can not only give us a mitzvah of being here but to get the jitters out of their system That's true. You see, so we're doing them a mitzvah. And I have a beautiful letter from one of the kids that just got bar mitzvahed that he got up and he says, I must credit the residents and myself for giving him the opportunity to come out here.
And he really gave a, it was about a five minute speech just on us and how he loved our people. And you know this boy, all during the summer, came out here and came to the services on his own after his barn. We have a young man, Ray Israel's great-grandson, came out here for a year and a half before he went off to college. He came out here. He loved our people. He came on his own. And so we have a lot of young adult groups coming out now on Friday nights from the center, the young singles and what have you. And we're introducing them to what our life is here.
We're not the dead house, as you might say. We are a home that we can help people and let them live their life as best as they can. It sounds wonderful. I think that's great, especially with the Borin-Bot-Mitspa kids. That is just recently started this year. I mean last year and this year. And we're looking forward really in having these kids out. Why? Because it tells them we're here. It tells their parents that we're here. That we are, gee, we're just not an old age home. We're one of the best. I didn't say the best, but one of the best internationally. And other homes looked to us.
And what our people, not only, I mean all of us, we only have a handful of Jewish people who work here, but the family itself is what makes it We try to make this as nice as we can in here We hoping to We have a gentleman that We've got to do something in the synagogue. Either expand it, remodel it, do something. Let's do something for our people who make it a little bit more agressive. So this is one of my projects. We are seders. Have you ever been to one of our seders? No, I haven't. If you could spare one day, first day, or first night, the second night or later, you will see something unbelievable in here.
Not because I performed the first one and Dr. Linder performed the second one, you know. We go to each other home, the crossing, you know. But the residents participate. I'm having a new Haggadah revised. I'll be having it next month, I'll show it to you when I get it, that the residents participate. They just don't say, hey, we got a rabbi doing this or a cancer doing this. We let them participate as a family, like they would perform. We sing and what I do, food is great. I like Mama Mays or you, Mama Mays, you know. But it is good. It is good. Is this still called the Tawlowski Chapel?
Tawlowski Chapel. Yes, it is. This is the original picture thing. That was in the original first Indian person in our synagogue. This is what we sent out on the toilet. Yeah. The art, I made this my personal project, we used to have tours, and I said, you know, this don't look right. So I went and I had to show these, okay? And I decorated the different colors, these. By the way I going to have a new one that I did except the darkest colors in memory of Fanny Gold who was under two years old when she passed away You know the issue of Fanny. Right.
But the kai that she wore all her life is going to be on that toy. I have it in three silver, and it's going to be a beautiful piece. I'm going to have it right here in the middle. And I'm going to have two more little stories here. And I'll have that right in the middle with that silver piece and go along with these. Then I'm going to have two more. I've already had it. I had two more that's going to go here and here. Okay? So I think that we'll redo that. These great plagues, I started these to get them about 20 years ago.
And the first one I had was this one. And I have a few more down here that I used for the Russian Shunna and Yom Kippur. It has my brother-in-law's name and one of that history. And you remember my commitment for Phil Evans? Yes, people gave me this. Okay? This one was Mr. Golden. He was my real orthodox one. Okay? These are sectors. These were Stanley Kaufman and his wife. Well, his wife gave me these in memory of Stanley, the children. in the Hoffman my father my mother I gave this one I gave this one my sister's back away years ago this was the Gellis who was here and then we have memorial There were a flash back there, and those flash, those flash, those flash, actually I didn't saw Dr.
Short started, but everyone has done those names, the memorial and what's in the Yom Kippur and I split up the others during the year for Yisker. You can bet your last dollar. that I say the Yisker prayer for. What other shuls do, I don't know. Once you get them up there, you don't know what they do. Those lights go on, it's beautiful. This here is about, I'd say, this could have came from the old shul, because I got this here case about 20 years to do it. this is the Book of Esther. This is the Megillah. And this had a, this had a old shoestring to keep it together.
And it was kept in the ark. So I went and I went to Mrs. Glatzer and I asked her if she had a container. And she said, yes, she had one. And Mrs. Glatzer of the showroom gave me this for the showroom. about 20 years ago. I was a little surprised when you opened the ark to see these small torres, but I guess because it's easier for the residents to carry them. The reason why I have a lot of these small torres, these are my two kosher ones. Those are my non-kosher ones. But they have the scripture in there. kosher and oats kosher. But on Yom Kippur, I can't have these two people just hold a Torah where here's 10 men who are impious, you know, who have Torah on their heart, not to sit here and hold a little Torah.
It has a Shema in there. It has all the whole Torahs in there. You know? But it's just the idea that there is something that they're holding. And it's better for them to hold the little torch, you know, the little torch. If they can't hold that one, a resident made this cover for this one. A resident made this. This came off of an old piece that had wine on it and I took it and I cut off the fringes on he got he did the twine and everything That was the little and this is the little twine that they can hold So if this is, this means something to them.
That's right. You following? Yeah. So then, my... My, uh, this was given, here, you'll have tears in your eyes. This was one of my, my biggest supporters over here. And her mother was here. And, uh, she was so close to me, she was over to my house the day, no, the week before they got killed. Both her and her husband. My daughter, They loved my daughter. They came to our wedding. And they were over at my house the week before they got killed. This was in honor of Rose Vogel, Thelma and her husband. But they gave me this in honor of them. You're looking at a $500 piece there.
So community knows what, when I'm saying to you, Golden Acres is not only our family here as employees, it's community. And that's why no one will beat us. Very simple. But we've got too many people that love Golden Acres. Well, you certainly have community support, definitely. But you can see, one of the points I try to go to here is that, here, this right here. This is on Golden Acres. I couldn't hold this off. I couldn't have it in the next temple. So I went and had this made. Or people here made this for me. It's going to hold it down here. You know? So what I saying to you is where there a will there a way The picture here This was donated to us by a resident He did the Max Paxon Yeah, yeah.
You see? Yeah, I recognize his work. But you're saying that in the earliest days there was also community response. Oh, yes, sure. Oh, sure. It was naturally, it was a situation where as you would call me and say, Nathan, we got together, air conditioners went out, it's going to cost about $3,000 for all the units. Back in those days, you know, water coolers. They had water coolers, remember? Well, we got 30 men, rich men, Mike Levine, Grazier, the Kaufmans, the Levins. I'm just shooting people, the Hoplesteins. They're going, you know, all you had to do is call, you know. So the response was very good.
This was like Mr. Creditor. I love the man, you know. Well, how did he get involved? He was like a, he got involved with the, as part of the show. And the community, you know. Lived on the corner of Park Row and Oakland, across the street from John Henry Brown School. I mean, I'm just trying to think, you know, names, you know. The community response was fantastic. How long had a rabbi? Rabbi Rosen. Okay. Rabbi Rosen was a neat little person. In fact, he's at Dallas after the shul. They just didn have the show couldn keep up So he left okay Do you know how long That why the home took over They kept the home Do you know how long he was here Oh my gosh I saying five six seven years But what happened, he went to Chicago, then he went to Japan.
And how I know that is when I was in Korea, South, you know, in the war, I had an R&R, two-week R&R. And I went over to Tokyo, and it was Purim. Yeah. And I heard there was a synagogue there. So it's nothing like me, I went into the department store. I figured, well, they'd buy that for American-speaking, maybe, at cosmetics. I went to the cosmetic side, and I said, you speak English, you know, I need Jewish church, Jewish synagogue, church. She says, yes, we have a Jewish synagogue. We belong to it. This is a Japanese girl talking to me. Anyway, come find out. She said, she invited me to come to the services.
She said, won't you just wait until after I get off, and then you'll go home with me, and then you'll go with my family. Her father was a god-bye. Okay, the shul. I'm sitting there, and all of a sudden the rabbi comes out. I couldn't believe my eyes. He looked at me. He says, Sam Kaplan's boy. I said, Rabbi Rosen. He was corresponded with my father after that. And they both died. But that's a coincidence. See how the things from this to that, you know. It's amazing. But going back to the home, the things that I saw, I remembered the old books, the bookshelves full of the books that people gave us, you know, gave for the show, you know, where they studied.
and they had their Shalashutists and whatever. They just were four or five men, and they always argued with each other. This one got mad and went over it. Finally, they broke up after the rabbi left. But they still had the shul for Friday night services, Stillman used to bring all his people. Mr. Granzick, he used to go up on Coronio. Mr. Leach, he used to come to the Remainish. Then they got my father to diving over there too, you know. So, after the show broke up. So, but here again, from what you're getting is that it was a community, a small community support. And then when it was necessary to become a big community report, your chefs and and the people of this nature came in.
Well then the federation came in. Exactly. And it came into that. Yeah. Now you had mentioned Rabbi Abramowitz's brother. He even dove in over there during the, at the time he was a little rabbi over there for a while too. Rabbi Abramowitz's brother. I didn't realize that. How long was he in Dallas do you know? Not very long. Not very long. No. We also had Rabbi Fromm. The old man. We also had, uh, Rabbi Blumenthal came in once in a while. I do know one thing in my childhood, what impressed me the most was the love shown by those who were able to those who were unable.
Well, I can tell you, I mean, I do know that there was a lot of love, and the people that were involved cared, and those who were the residents appreciated it I remember Mr Segal to this day Did he come to the Golden Acres Out here or did he pass away before? Mrs. Gordon did. Her picture's in the archives. Okay. And, uh... Did these people not have families here? Or how did this... This Mr. Siegel got involved evidently. He, uh... You know, for a long time, people... He didn't have anybody. And evidently the Hopfistines probably knew something about that. And then he got in touch with the Abramovits.
Even the Abramovits who had gotten in touch with this one. And before you knew it, you weren't, it's in here, you know. Okay. And, uh... Because before that, there were no facilities for the ages. People took care of their own. That's right. Well, that's the way we were. I mean, this is what happened is that these people, uh, these people didn't have a place and it was, it happened in such a manner that it had to have be done. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Well, society changed after World War II, and I guess that was one of the changes that came about. It affected. They didn't have these big shindings at the Kopinski, at the Double Tree.
They had it in the Shoals. Right. And if they had to raise the money, a thousand, two thousand dollars in other money back in those days, they just threw a big dinner. you brought a pot, this one brought a pot, and they were the best cooks in the world, the Dotskys, and all these people, they all came with pots, and before you knew that, you had the pots in your pot. Very simple And money was never discussed among those who had a little wealth They were a little different nowadays The need was there It really was You know I don know if that isn such a good idea nowadays if we had enough to participate but now we don't have enough to participate.
The younger ones we have to teach. to teach. And even though the older generation, some of them have gone, and my generation, I'm teaching my kids. If we don't do it and we stop, we're in trouble. You know? Well, you have today, you have a lot of very active participation from the community. Do you feel that way? Oh, yes. Among the younger... Oh, yeah. Even the younger ones are coming in. Yes. And you can look at our board, you see where we have younger people. And I'm proud of them. I can just pick out a few names, like Donnelly Bell's people. Okay, his son Barry, Barry, all we have to do is give him a buzz.
And Donnie the same way to this day, you know. But I just picked that particular family. Or the Donskys, you know. The same thing, you know. We know the Pollocks, you know, and the Leigh Bleedies. We go right down the list, the whole smear, but it's still handed down. And as long as it continues saying, this is what it's all about, my children, then we are secure here. As a, what we have here, we're proud of. What percentage do you feel today of the residents take part in services? Well it varies some kinds of years but I say I say a third a third I guess I should have qualified my question because some are not able to.
No, but I'll give you a figure of what we get. We get about 65 to 70 people a Saturday. I don't think that's very good. And we get a Friday night about 25 to 30. It's reduced because we're doing, since we're doing construction out here. But in summertime it'll pick up. Holidays we get 250, maybe 300 people here. That sounds very good. Well, I want to thank you very much. I think it's very fitting that you are now chaplain. They're carrying on in your family. I hope I can continue. My son, oh, by the way. He was a lawyer, supposed to be a judge soon, hopefully.
Joe Ryken is his name. He's a spirit Israel bringer. In fact, I remember him when Cantor Coyne took him into choir, he was about seven years old. And I looked at Cantor Coyne and I said, you've got to be kidding. He said, no, he's coming on. You know, as of three weeks ago, I went to a strict Orthodox synagogue for a 15th anniversary, my sister. The rabbi came to me and he says, that young man does the Haftorah better than anyone in my congregation. He knows his business. And he helps me on a high holy day. And when I need to have a weekend off or something.
I'm not feeling good. He was beautiful during the tear period that I was down. He really, and our people love him too. And you ask her who's going to take my place? I'm willing, if he stick around, he would probably be a Saturday part-time, naturally, unless they want to hire him.