In 1976, Gene Greenberg decided to accept a job transfer with Donrey Media Group and relocated from Laredo, Texas to Las Vegas. Las Vegas was comfortable fit and for the next 30 years, he primarily worked in television ad sales. He rose to become executive vice president and general manager of KVBC-TV. Significant to Gene’s ties to Las Vegas have been his ties to the Jewish community. This oral history includes reminiscences of connecting with the Jewish community and meeting many of the Jewish leaders through Young Leadership, Jewish Federation, and being on the board for Temple Beth Sholom. The most poignant aspect to his Jewish roots is the survival of both his parents during Holocaust. Both Helen and Abe Greenberg were from Lodz, Poland and interred in concentration camps. Gene is a frequent presenter of their story for his commitment to Holocaust education and as a member of the next generation. Gene and his wife Melanie both spent their childhoods in Kansas City, Missouri and are graduates of the University of Missouri-Kansas City. They married in 1970 and have three children: Sari Mann, Elissa Burda, and Jaron Greenberg.

In this roundtable discussion video, members of Temple Beth Sholom discuss the history of the long-established congregation. Interviewees are Sandy Mallin, Oscar Goodman, Jared Shafer, Joel Goot, Arne Rosencrantz, Jerry Blut, Jackie Boiman, Gene Greenberg, and Flora Mason, with Shelley Berkley joining in later in the interview. Most of the interviewees have been involved in the leadership of the congregation. They discuss relationships with various rabbis over the years, and successful fundraising efforts to build the original synagogue. Other early leaders in the congregation were Edythe Katz-Yarchever, the Goot family, Stuart Mason, Herb Kaufman and Leo Wilner. Until the 1980s, Temple Beth Sholom was the only synagogue in Las Vegas, but after a dispute over the burial of a non-Jew, a new synagogue formed (Shareii Tefilla), and at nearly the same time, Temple Beth Sholom began investigating a move from their site on Oakey Boulevard. Most have nostalgia for the former location, but discuss the changes in the neighborhood that necessitated the move to Summerlin. Then they discuss the other initiatives that were borne out of Temple Beth Sholom, such as bond drives for Israel, B'nai B'rith, and the Kolod Center. They share other memories, and discuss the leadership and Sandy Mallin becoming the first female president of the temple. They credit Mallin with keeping the temple going through lean years, and helping to recruit Rabbi Felipe Goodman. The group goes on to mention other influential members of the Jewish community including Jack Entratter and Lloyd Katz, who helped integrate Las Vegas.

Booklet for the Wedding celebrations and vow renewals of couples at Temple Beth Sholom.