Jane Sherman, Part I
Interviewed by Ruth Broder
May 25, 2005
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit
Jane Sherman, Part I
Video 01:18:13
Jane Sherman, Part I
Audio 01:18:13
Abstract
In this oral history interview, Jane Sherman talks briefly about her childhood growing up in a Jewish home, but not religious. It was not until after getting married that she got heavily involved with the Jewish community and joined the Jewish Federation’s Junior Division in Florida. She explains how a young leadership mission to Israel changed her life and she became very passionate about Israel and Jewish Education.
Sherman mentions she wanted to make Aliyah, but it never happened, so she continued to be very actively involved with Federation, and when she moved to Detroit, became involved with the Women’s Division. From here, she speaks about her family and Shabbat dinners at her house. She mentions a family mission to Israel and how she became campaign chairman and started the Worker Training Program.
Sherman talks about her involvement with the creation of the Young Women’s Leadership Cabinet. She also discusses her time as the president as well as her time as campaign chairman of the Women’s Division. She mentions becoming the first woman to become a chair or the general campaign and talks about the reception from men from whom she had to solicit.
Sherman talks at length about her missions with large groups to Israel, Soviet Union, and Poland. She speaks about Miracle Missions she headed, and how she wrote a book on how to organize one.
History of Narrator
Jane Sherman has spent her adult life involved in Jewish communal work. She is particularly interested in children at risk in Israel, Jewish education, and working to train, educate and involve the next generation of Jewish leaders.
Sherman has held numerous top leadership roles in the Detroit’s Jewish Federation, including Women’s Department campaign chair and president, first woman chair of the general campaign, and vice president of the Federation. She was a member of the board of governors of the Jewish Agency, chaired the Israel Department, Youth Aliyah and Allocations and she was the first chair of Project Renewal.
Sherman and her husband Larry have led over fifty missions to Israel. Sherman also co-chaired and professionally ran Detroit’s first two Miracle Missions. Sherman was a chair of the Max M and Marjorie S. Fisher Foundation, board member and campaign chair of the Birthright Israel Foundation, and served on the boards of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Aspen Music Festival and School.
Sherman has won numerous awards including Federation’s Fred M. Butzel Award. She is a recipient of the Herb Garon Young Leadership Award, Israel Bonds Leadership Award, Sylvia Simon Greenberg Young Leadership Award as well as having been made an honorary citizen of Ramle, Israel.
Transcript
Important Subjects
Important Names
Credit as: Leonard N. Simons Jewish Community Archives. Jane Sherman Oral History Interview, May 25, 2005.