By Melissa Hunter
Assistant Editor
The American Israelite is proud to announce their 2023 People of the Year! These individuals have led by example, and we are happy to acknowledge their contributions to the Jewish community and the community at large.
Dianne Dunkelman
Dianne Dunkelman created Clever Crazes for Kids in 2006 after realizing the need to educate kids about improving their health and that of their families. This quickly grew to include not only health, but also STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) academics, ethics, and personal responsibility. Clever Crazes for Kids now reaches hundreds of thousands of young scholars and athletes in schools, homes, and after-school programs all across the country, using fun, free, interactive online games to instill in them a lifelong love of learning.
Prior to Clever Crazes for Kids, Dunkelman established the National Speaking of Women’s Health Foundation in 1996 with a mission to educate women about health, well-being, and personal safety for themselves and their families. The National Speaking of Women’s Health Foundation has impacted the lives of hundreds of millions of women and their families through conferences, websites, books, television, and other materials. The initiative was picked up by the Cleveland Clinic in 2008, furthering its impact. Dunkelman continues her involvement by serving as Chief Strategist for Speaking of Women’s Health.
David Gershuny
Local philanthropist David Gershuny is a fourth generation Cincinnati resident who is a leader in the Jewish community. He has volunteered countless hours with Jewish Education for Every Person (JEEP), and received the Jewish Federation’s 2021 Mesel Wieder Mensch Award. This year, he generously financed a once-in-a-lifetime trip for a cohort of Israeli teens to visit Cincinnati for an unforgettable summer experience. The students got their first taste of Cincinnati on Monday, July 10. During the morning, they attended a presentation by Rabbi Gary Zola and toured the American Jewish Archives on the campus of Hebrew Union College. That was followed by a service project at the Jewish Family Service and Heldman Family Food Pantry. Gershuny wanted to provide the teens with an educational component to their trip in addition to its volunteer component, so they “could get a true understanding of the need in our community.” They also toured Plum Street Temple and visited the Ohio River riverfront and Smale Park before ending the day at the Metropolitan Club for a buffet dinner and dessert. On Tuesday, the group spent the day at Kings Island.
Gershuny’s vision for sponsoring Israeli teens and providing them with this opportunity came about after the passing of his daughter in 2005, when, upon a trip to Israel, he met several of her Israeli peers whom she had befriended at Camp Livingston the year prior. On his trip, he witnessed for himself their unbreakable bonds of friendship and the impact they had on each other’s lives.
Gershuny’s work in the community means more than just accolades on his resume. In an interview with the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, Gershuny said, “I want to provide an example of ‘doing’ for my children. I want them to take my legacy and continue to pass it along to future generations. I want them to understand what their obligations are — as Jews we are obligated to serve others.”
Larry Neuman
Larry Neuman grew up in the tiny Jewish community of Lexington, Kentucky, where there were no other children his age in Hebrew School and there was no synagogue youth group. He was the first Jew that many people met in public schools, law school, and in the U.S. Army. Accordingly, he has appreciated being part of the Cincinnati Jewish Community since 1970. This appreciation for the community led him to do what he could to help maintain its vitality for future generations. Neuman has donated both time and treasure, thanks in part to the support of his family and his law firm, Strauss Troy Co., L.P.A.. For 53 years, they supported Neuman financially and granted him time to serve others.
Over the past five decades, Neuman served on a variety of local boards and committees including: Yavneh Day School, now Rockwern, (26 years, president), Jewish Home of Cincinnati, Inc. (14 years, treasurer), Cedar Village Foundation (12 years, chair [twice] and treasurer), Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati, Inc. (14 years, president and treasurer), Adath Israel Synagogue (6 years, president of its Brotherhood), Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, (3 years), Cincinnati Community Hebrew Schools (2 years, secretary), and Cincinnati Hillel (3 years). Neuman seldom missed a board meeting or an executive, finance or endowment committee meeting.
He was prepared for organizational work, having served as company commander of the 402d Transportation Company, a most vital support unit in Vietnam. Neuman rose to the rank of Captain and learned the importance of mission, teamwork, leadership, execution, delegation, and problem solving. He is most appreciative of receiving a bronze star for meritorious service in Vietnam from the U. S. Army.
He jumped right in to helping his new Jewish community in Cincinnati starting in the early 1970s. The highlights of his major achievements at various agencies in Cincinnati through the years started with the Jewish Federation. He obtained the Jewish Federation’s tax exemption letter from the IRS in 1971 and has been supportive of the Federation ever since. He had input on the merger of the Jewish Welfare Fund division and the Federation allocations division, was co-chair of Super Sunday when it ran for ten hours and raised over $600,000, served on the finance committee for the last 12 years and on the Create Your Jewish Legacy Committee for the past 7 years. He is also a member of the Abraham Moss Society.
Neuman became president of Yavneh right after its “dark days,” when it had lost a fifth of its student body. He decided to build the school from the bottom up by starting a preschool. He created a bingo program that raised over $3 million dollars in its first 20 years of operation, and he regularly worked bingo four to five times a month for most of that period. While the state of Ohio prohibited paying bingo workers, he determined that parents would pay Yavneh not to work bingo. Additionally, The Friends of Yavneh program in some later years generated over $60,000 from such parents and family members.
As treasurer of Jewish Home for six years, Neuman ensured that Cedar Village operations were always cash-flow positive and operated within budget. In 2010, Neuman did the legal work pro bono to split out the endowment from the daily operations by creating Cedar Village Foundation and serving as its first chair and later treasurer. After the Cedar Village facility was sold in 2018 and there was no full time executive director nor a controller, he served again as chair to handle the post closing matters, which included preparing a budget to fund continuing commitments to Cedar Village residents and creating a separate endowment fund for the sale’s proceeds.
While working on the Jewish Cemeteries board, Neuman conceived of the Bicentennial Celebration of the Chestnut Street Cemetery, which is the first Jewish Institution west of the Alleghenies. He also linked this celebration to Jewish Cemeteries’ first ever capital campaign. He spent many hours with David Harris on the development of the capital campaign. Neuman was privileged to be president of Jewish Cemeteries during the 2021 Bicentennial celebration.
Since his wedding to Carol Tobin in 1970 at Adath Israel, Neuman has been committed to helping Adath Israel congregants and others enjoy a meaningful Jewish experience. He has served as an aliyah gabbai distributing ‘honors’ for Shabbat morning and Yizkor services on the festive holidays for over 38 years. He has regularly attended morning minyan services for over 13 years to enable congregants to say kaddish. Similarly, he attended afternoon services at the Downtown Synagogue for over 25 years. To encourage adult Torah study, Neuman hosted a weekly downtown lunch and learn at his office with Rabbi Preis of the Cincinnati Kollel and various other rabbis for over 20 years prior to Covid. This weekly lunch and learn taught by Rabbi Preis continues today via Zoom.
Neuman believes in the teaching of Rabbi Zoma that one who honors others is also honored. He deeply appreciates the honors he has received from the Jewish community and others, which include Federation’s Mesel Wieder Mensch of the Year Award for his work on the Create Jewish Legacy Program, the Jewish Home/Cedar Village’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Greater Cincinnati Planned Giving Council Philanthropic Award, for which he was nominated by Jewish Cemeteries and the Center for Respite Care’s Transformation Award. Neuman joined the Center’s board, where he served as secretary for 12 years, because Marc Fisher, while president of the Jewish Federation, suggested that Jews should join non-Jewish boards to foster better relations between Jews and non-Jews.
His service and achievements would not have been possible without the good fortune of serving with so many talented, caring and wise board members and executive staff at various agencies.
Melanie Zadikoff
Due to a scheduling conflict, Melanie Zadikoff was unavailable for an interview prior to the release of this story. A brief bio and highlight of Zadikoff’s contributions will be featured in a future edition of the American Israelite.
