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.
Moving Image
Note with photograph: This Material is Sent to You Courtesy of the Folks at McCarran International Airport (Las Vegas, Nev.), with business card from James J. Balk Community Relations Director; stamped Received September 22, 10:25AM, 1983
Harry Wallerstein (?-1971) was a Las Vegas, Nevada businessman who owned Tinch Furniture on South Main Street with Max Goot. Wallerstein served as president of Temple Beth Sholom from 1963 to 1964 and helped come up with the idea of holding a gin rummy tournament sponsored by local casinos to raise money for the temple.
"Former leader of LV Jewish community Wallerstein dies." Las Vegas Sun. July 2, 2003. Accessed July 25, 2016.
Person
Minnie Perchetti was born on June 26, 1920 in Tonopah, Nevada to Yugoslavian parents. She married Tony Perchetti in June 1937 in Hawthorne, Nevada when she was seventeen. She lived in Manhattan, Nevada for a brief period before returning to Tonopah. Her father, brothers, and husband worked in the Belmont and Mizpah mines in Tonopah. As of 2020, Minnie Perchetti lives in Tonopah, Nevada.
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Person
Sharon Maurer-Schwartz was born May 15, 1939 in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was raised in a Jewish household, yet she has belonged to various types of synagogues. She met her partner, Edna Rice in the 1980s, but were not able to legally marry each other until 2008 in California. They moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1999 to raise Maurer-Schwartz’s daughter Julie. She dedicated her life to being a life coach and owning her own business, Growth Unlimited.
Person
Irene Fisher was born in New York, New York; October 14, 1940. Fisher moved to Nevada in 1971 following her husband Barry Fisher, who was stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. It was the early 1970s and as a young mother she found the best path to being a part of the community was to connect with the Jewish community. She joined Temple Beth Sholom, was active in Sisterhood and served on the Clark County Public Library Board (1975-1983.) Her children are Stacey Fisher and Scott Fisher.
Person
The Southern Nevada Home Builders Association (SNHBA) records represent the residential construction industry organization's activities from 1974 to 2015. The collection is primarily comprised of copies of SNHBA's newsletter,
Archival Collection
The Burrell C. Lawton Photograph Collection on the Hoover Dam depicts the construction of the Hoover (Boulder) Dam on the Colorado River near Las Vegas, Nevada from 1931 to 1934. The photographs primarily depict workers, construction equipment, and the progression of the dam's concrete structures. The photographs also depict construction of diversion tunnels, bridges, the gravel plant, the intake towers, and the concrete mixing plant.
Archival Collection