Countess, Jerome D.

Jerome Countess was born on December 22, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York. His mother raised him as a single mother, making ends meet with her job in a clothing factory. Countess's father rarely held a job, and his mother divorced him when Countess was three-years-old. Countess grew up in the borough's Jewish neighborhood, and he developed a reputation for being a skillful handball player and a great dancer.

Though he was not allowed to enlist in the United States Coast Guard due to colorblindness, Countess was eventually drafted into the army during World War II. With very minimal combat training, Countess was sent to North Africa as an infantryman, and was later stationed in Italy. After three years of service, Countess returned home and married his childhood sweetheart, Rachel, in 1945. Using the Government Issued (G.I.) Bill, he enrolled at New York University to study writing, though he quit just shy of graduation as his wife was expecting.

After briefly working in the television broadcasting industry, Countess landed a job with the United Jewish Appeal. He methodically analyzed effective fundraising strategies, and quickly achieved great success with and for the organization. In 1975, following in his desire to move west, Countess took the job of executive director of the Combined Jewish Appeal in Las Vegas, Nevada, what would soon be renamed the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.

At first, Countess was not thrilled with his new city or his new job. However, he soon discovered the immense possibilities for building community amongst Las Vegas's Jewish population, and making an impact through fundraising and providing services to those in need. He, along with this team, undertook fundraising efforts and developed new ideas for community-building and service. Under his leadership, the federation started the Jewish Family Service as well as The Jewish Reporter, a monthly publication to promote engagement of the Jewish community. Countess served as the executive director of the federation for many years. In 2005, Countess's book, “Letters from the Battlefield in Love and War,” was published, a memoir based on a collection of letters sent to Rachel during his World War II service in North Africa and Italy.