Newspaper Page Text
Friday, Feb. 28, 1969
THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE
Page An
A Jewish women’s organization
has stimulated creation of a fed
erally-funded program in north
ern Virginia to train Negro wom
en from poverty areas to serve
as well-paid skilled domestics.
The Alexandria section of the
National Council of Jewish Wom
en, which initiated the program,
described it as being based on
the premise that domestic work
can be skilled, dignified, protect
ed and decently paid. In its first
six months, the section has re
ported, the program has already
made “a crucial difference in the
lives of several dozen working
women.”
Joining with Church Women
United, the National Council of
Negro Women, the National
Council of Catholic Women and
the Urban League, the NCJW
section helped to create SURGE,
an acronym for Services United
For Responsible and Gainful
Employment. The project grew
out of an all-day forum on
household work held in Alexan
dria by ah NCJW-organized
Women On The Move School for
Community Action, with the par
ticipation of the four women’s
groups in November, 1966. After
a year of development, a proposal
for federal aid was submitted to
the Department of Labor, which
provided a $400,000 grant to the
Urban League to operate SURGE
for two "years, starting last Sep
tember.
The idea for SURGE is cred
ited to Mrs. Esther Person, for
mer Assistant Secretary of Labor.
It is seen by its sponsors as at
least a partial answer to twin
needs. On the one hand, house
hold work is performed through
out the nation who are among
the nation’s poorest. The aver
age full-time domestic worker’s
annual wage is $1,082 or about
$20 a week. Vacation and sick
leave are rare. Society Security
is often unpaid. The health plans
and other fringe benefits taken
for granted by most workers are
unknown to the domestic. On the
other hand, a growing number
of college-educated middle-class
women are eager to give up
housework for business, the pro
fessions and volunteer work.
They are frustrated by the in
creasing shortage of domestic
workers who naturally are
leaving such work for better
jobs.
The first step for a woman
taking part in the project is an
intensive eight-week training
course in modem housework
methods given by the Urban
League. While the woman is re
ceiving this training, she gets a
stipend from the Virignia state
employment commission. The
amount depends on her family
responsibilities, plus any couns
eling she may need from a
SURGE social worker.
When she completes the train
ing, SURGE finds her jobs, pro
vides transportation, withholds
Social Security and Workmen’s
Compensation taxes, guarantees
her paid legal holidays, one day’s
paid sick leave a month and one
week paid vacation a year. It
also ensures her payment of $18
a day, which is almost twice as
much as the usual payment to
domestic workers in northern
Virginia.
The question of whether em
ployers would pay such a high
price for such help has been ans
wered by Mrs. Joel Gerstle, an
NCJW member who coordinates
the volunteer phases of the proj
ect for the four women’s groups.
She has reported that the de
mand for SURGE-traincd work
ers is increasing steadily be
cause people are willing to
spend more for such skilled
workers.
One white professional home
economist and one black are the
Urban League teachers. They
give the students detailed instruc
tions in the different assignments
a domestic worker needs to
know. The course includes train
ing in technical skills, such as
care and operation of appliances,
care of metals and floors and
similar special skills. Mrs. Ger
stle and several other carefully
briefed volunteers take students
into their homes for field prac
tice. Volunteers also help take
students to electric companies to
see demonstration^ of the newest
appliances and on shopping trips
to study different cleaning prod
ucts. The volunteers also help h>
sell the service to neighbors.
At the end of its first year of
operation, the sponsors plan to
oonvert the operation into a co
operative run by the workers.
They also hope to find funds
to operate a day care center for
the young children of the work
ers.
... In Brief
NEW YORK (JTA)—The wi
dow of a Yiddish playwright and
poet has refused permission to
the Yiddish State Theater of War
saw to perform a work of her
late husband’s because of “the in
sults that the Jews must endure
at the hands of the Polish Gov
ernment.” The Yiddish State
Theater is sponsored by the War
saw Government.
LONDON (JTA)— Two Polish
Jewish poets, an American author
and a Dutch academician were
selected by an international jury
here to share in the $10,000 Re
membrance Award offered an
nually by the World Federation
of Bergen Belsen Associations for
the best book or other work of
literature on the Nazi holocaust
or on the rehabilitation of its sur
vivors in Israel.
The winners, each of whom
will receive $2,500, are the Pol
ish Jewish poet Stanislav Wig-
odzki, who published nine vol
umes on the holocaust; the Yid
dish poet and author Chaim
Grade who was bom in Vilna
and now lives in the United
States; Arthur Morse, author of
“While Six Million Died,” an ex
pose of world indifference to the
slaughter of European Jews dur
ing World War II, and Prof. Ja
cob Presser, of Holland, an his
torian who survived the Nazi oc
cupation of his homeland and has
written a book on the liquidation
of Dutch Jewry.
Another item on the agenda of
the meeting of the Bergen Bel
sen survivors was a protest
against the exhumation of mass
graves at the Bergen Belsen site
at the request of France. French
authorities are pressing a court
order for the removal of the re
mains of 139 French nationals
from the common grave. Jewish
groups all over the world have
protested. They pointed out that
apart from the desecration issue,
medical authorities concede that
it would be impossible to dis
tinguish the skeletons of the
French died from those of the
other victims.
SANTIEGO, Chile (JTA)—One
of the oldest Chilean Jewish in
stitutions here, the Circulo Is-
raelita, was hit by a molotov
cocktail at dawn Sunday. Damage
was estimated at $200. Police
were investigating the incident.
ATHENS (JTA)—Israel is one
of several countries that will sup
ply Grece with 560,000 tons of oil
fuel to alleviate an acute oil
shortage, it was disclosed here.
Israel will provide 45,000 tons of
diesel oil.
MONTREAL (JTA) — A na
tional conference on the Yiddish
language and cultural heritage
will be held here next May under
the auspices of the Canadian
Jewish Congress, it was an
nounced here by Dr. Joseph
Kage, chairman of the National
Conference on Yiddish. The
meeting will concern itself with
the facilities available for instruc
tion in Yiddish, the extent to
which the language is still used
and the preservation and ad
vancement of Yiddish culture,
Dr. Kage said.
SILVER ON SPORTS
Neal Walk is having another
fine basketball season at the Uni
versity of Florida. The 6-10 All-
American center from Miami
Beach started slowly, but he has
been coming on strong in more
recent contests. Despite his play
ing against double and triple
team defenses in every game,
Walk’s coach says that “he is
playing better basketball than
we have ever seen him play."
Captain of the Florida quintet,
Walk is looking forward to play
ing in the pros.
Walk has found some anti-
Semitism in the Southeastern
Conference. “Places like Missi
ssippi and Alabama are the
worst,” he said. “I just put it
down to ignorance. I’m very
happy to be Jewish. And I sort
of like the pressure. It’s a great
feeling to walk out and feel that
you beat the fans and the pres
sure.”
Hall of Famer Barney Sedran
experienced the same type of an
ti-Semitism 50 years ago. Sedran
died in January, two weeks shy
of his 78th birthday. Born in
New York’s Lower East Side, he
played basketball at the Univer
sity Settlement House, at CCNY
in 1908-11, and then turned pro.
Nat Holman called Sedran “the
greatest little man who ever
played the game.” He was voted
into basketball’s Hall of Fame
in 1962.
Only 5-4% and 118 pounds,
Sedran played pro ball until
1926. As a member of the Utica
team in the New York State
League in 1913, he set a record of
17 field goals in a game against
Cohes. Professional basketball
of the era was played in cages,
and without backboards for the
baskets. A great shooter, he was
By Jess Silver
extremely quick on the court
and proud of his defensive and
ball-handling ability. Since no
substitutions were allowed,
Sedran played 40 minutes of
every game.
Although Utica won the pro
fessional championship in 1913-
14, Sedran believed the N.Y.
Whirlwinds of the early 14120s
was the best team of all. His
teammates on the Whirlwinds in
cluded Nat Holman and his good
friend, Marty Friedman. After
he retired as a player, Sedran
coached basketball for 15 years
and then went into the real
estate business in New York
City.
A few years ago Sedran vas
very helpful to the authors of
the “Encyclopedia of Jews in
Sports." He and Marty Fri«d-
man generously recounted the
exploits of the early Jewish b»s-
ketball players. “I had friendly
contacts with all the old ball
players,” Sedran recalled when
asked about anti-Semitism,
“many of them are still my close
friends. However, I did en
counter anti-Semitism from sons
of the rabid fans.”
Sedran also remembered that
the players’ salaries were a little
different in his day: "I started
out at $200 per month, which
was considered very good at tke
time. However, I earned $12,010
in one season, although I had to
play every day in the week,
without a let-up. I played in
three different leagues at the
time, and finished the week by
playing every Sunday on the
Whirlwind club.”
February 1, 1969
This advertisement is neither an offer to sell, nor a solici
tation of offers to buy, any of these securities. The offering
is made only by the prospectus.
Copies of the prospectus may be obtained from the issuer;
OFFERED ONLY TO BONA FIDE RESIDENTS
OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA
175,000 Shares
Underground Atlanta, Inc.
COMMON STOCK
(Par Value $1.00 Per Share)
UNDERGROUND ATLANTA, INC.
36 Alabama Street, S. W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
404/524-0461
YOUR NAME
ADDRESS . . .
CITY
STATE.
GRAND OPENING
Thurs., Fri., Sat., Feb. 27, 28, Mar, 1, Thurs. Till 9:00
To Announce the opening of our new BERN-ART STUDIO
at 1945 Cheshire Bridge Rd., N. E.
Have your child's portrait made by
Atlanta's leading child photogra
pher for a . . .
‘PENNY-A-POUND”
A beautiful desk size miniature
portrait - in natural living color
PORTRAIT $12. 00 VALUE
YOUR COST EXAMPLE . .
.... IF YOUR BABY WEIGHS
18 lbs. _
18=
No appointment necessary during
Grand Opening Days . . . This of
fer may be used at any of the
other BERN-ART STUDIOS near
you, by appointment.
2062 Candler Rd.
655 W. Peachtree St
2066 S. Cobb Dr.
Offer may be used
during March by appointment
BERM - ART STUDIOS
1945 Cheshire Bridge Rd. (next to Nosh-o-Rye)
Only one advertising offer of any kind within 90 days
SPECIAL DISCOUNT OFFERS ALSO AVAILABLE TO OUR REGULAR CUSTOMERS
AMERICAN NEWS REPORT .... By Ben Callob
Jewish Women Initiate Program * j c
To Train Well-Paid Domestics World ot bpOttS
Co-author of “Encyclopedia of Jews in Sports’’