Meet our 2009 award honorees
Volunteer of the Year: Dr. Marc Dollinger
Volunteer of the Year is given to a volunteer committed to Jewish values, whose contributions of time, creativity, energy and resources sustain and enrich the Jewish community.
Dr. Marc Dollinger has volunteered, advised and taught at a multitude of various academic and educational projects and boards, working tirelessly for the betterment of the Jewish community. With his intelligence, compassion, respect for others, and tireless energy, Marc is committed to every task. His model for effective decision-making paired with his respectful approach of others' knowledge and skills uniquely enables him to bring people together. Seeing the commonalities, he builds consensus, often where none seemed possible. Marc never leaves a conversation with the person feeling undervalued -- a rare gift. He allows others to take the lead and, with his guidance, find their own articulate voices, making those he works with feel better at what they do. Currently, he holds the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Endowed Chair in Jewish Studies and Social Responsibility at San Francisco State University and is immediate past president of Brandeis Hillel Day School, vice-president of the board of governors for the Bureau of Jewish Education, and sits on numerous boards.
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Agency Staff Person of the Year: Dr. Jehon Grist
Agency Staff Person of the Year is given to an exceptional staff member or executive of an agency or organization who strengthens the Jewish community.
Admired and beloved by staff and lay leaders, Dr. Jehon Grist is regarded as a brilliant teacher, innovative program-designer, and, above all, an effective institution-builder. As Executive Director of Lehrhaus Judaica, the Bay Area’s largest school for adult Jewish education, Dr Grist manages with quiet competence an enormous workload that includes the supervision of 150 part-time faculty members and the enrollment of 4,000 students at 30 sites throughout the Bay Area. During his twenty years with Lehrhaus, the school has become a national leader in Israel education, intergenerational learning, digital educational technology, and overseas study tours. A veteran of excavations and field research in both Israel and Egypt, Dr. Grist has published articles and presented papers on a variety of topics. He received his doctorate in Near East Studies and a California State Teaching Credential from the University of California, Berkeley. Before taking his position at Lehrhaus, Dr. Grist was on the faculty of UC Berkeley and Fresno State Universities. Dr. Grist is a model father of four and grandfather of two and is an active member and volunteer at his synagogue.
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Jewish Community Federation Staff Person of the Year: Lisa Kron
JCF Staff Person of the Year embodies the highest values and ethics of Judaism and makes contributions towards the enhancement and quality of Jewish life.
In her 11th year working for the Federation, after 4 years with the Orange County, CA Federation, Lisa is what we affectionately refer to as a JCF “veteran.” Having worked with Business & Professionals, Donor Relations, Leadership Development, the Community Campaign, LGBT Alliance and Major Gifts, Lisa’s accomplishments were recognized in 2007 with a promotion from Campaign Assistant to Development Business Operations Manager. Her coworkers attest to her incredibly strong work ethic and positive attitude. Lisa multitasks as a way of life and is the go-to for all things campaign-related. Whether it's crafting a solicitation letter, making a budget work, dealing with inter-department issues, creating statistics reports or overseeing communications with our largest donors, Lisa's talents are endless. She is always on-call and routinely works long hours to accommodate other’s needs while maintaining her sense of humor and goodwill. Lay leaders speak very highly of her and her coworkers are consistently in admiration of her kindness and unfaltering commitment to her community.
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Robert Sinton Extraordinary Leader Award: Richard N. Goldman
The Sinton Award for Distinguished Leader of the Year is given in honor of volunteer leadership in the Jewish community, as exemplified by Robert Sinton, a businessman and community leader whose dedication to the Federation and many other Bay Area organizations spanned more than five decades. It embodies his concern for Jewish communal volunteer involvement and includes a financial stipend to a Jewish agency or organization chosen by the recipient. Watch the video on Richard Goldman and the Robert Sinton Award.
Richard N. Goldman is a forward-thinking San Francisco philanthropist dedicated to supporting the Bay Area, environmental causes, population issues, Jewish affairs, and Israel. Born and raised in San Francisco, he attended the University of California at Berkeley and spent a year in law school before serving in the United States Army from 1942 to 1946. Subsequently, he founded, and was the chairman of, Goldman Insurance Services. In 1951, he and his late wife established the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund. Since then, the Goldman Fund has distributed over $550 million dollars, with more than $175 million donated specifically to San Francisco Bay Area projects. In 1990, Richard and Rhoda Goldman established the Goldman Environmental Prize, which annually awards $125,000 to six grassroots environmental heroes, one from each of the world's inhabited regions. The Prize has been called the most prestigious environmental award by the New York Times. Both organizations are headquartered in the historic Presidio of San Francisco, part of the National Parks system. Mr. Goldman has served on a variety of boards including the San Francisco Ballet, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the World Affairs Council of Northern California and the Commonwealth Club, among others. Mr. Goldman has received numerous civic honors and awards, including the Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship from the Woodrow Wilson International Center, the Chairman Award from the National Geographic Society, the UCSF Medal, the Teddy Kollek Award from the Jerusalem Foundation and the Heinz Award. He and his wife, Rhoda, who died in 1996, raised four children in San Francisco. He has 11 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. The Goldmans’ three living children are all active community leaders and philanthropists and also serve on the Goldman Fund and Goldman Environmental Prize Boards.
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Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award: Debbie Togliatti
The Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award is a national award presented to up to 65 teachers throughout the USA based on significant contributions to classroom teaching and carrying with it funds for professional development and a cash award.
Debbie Togliatti has been in the ECE field for more than 25 years, the past 22 years teaching at T'enna Preschool of the OFJCC (formerly the ALSJCC) in Palo Alto. She feels very fortunate to be able to combine her 2 passions: working in the garden and teaching young children. Through hands-on gardening/nature activities, Debbie is able to present children opportunities to explore and experience the natural environment. Whether it is giving respect to worms or snails or sharing the bounty of the school garden, Debbie is ever mindful of incorporating Jewish ecological values. In the T'enna Times school newsletter, Debbie writes a monthly article titled Kavod Ha Teva: Honoring Nature. Geared towards educating parents, she addresses such topics as home composting, buying local, reducing waste and planting a havdalah garden. She is presently writing a book called Growing Jewish Values: How to Cultivate Your Jewish Roots in Your Own Backyard. This fall Debbie will complete her coursework at Gratz College and receive her graduate certificate in Jewish ECE.
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Lloyd. W. Dinkelspiel Award for Young Leadership: Kevin Waldman
Honoring the first president of the Jewish Community Federation, the Annual Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel Award for Young Leadership, inaugurated in October of 1959, recognizes an outstanding young leader in the local Jewish community. Watch the video on Kevin Waldman and the Lloyd W. Dinkelspiel Award.
Kevin Waldman, a valued and active Federation lay leader, has served on the Federation Board and Executive Committee as well as YAD president from 2005-2007. In that capacity, he not only led the Tel Aviv One Young Adult Mission to Israel but also helped make it a success by securing a large number of subsidies, ensuring 65 people from our community a spot on the trip — subsequently recruiting much of YAD’s leadership today. An effective solicitor, Kevin is described by volunteer colleagues and board members as “having a strategic focus with a tendency to take a step back and look at the big picture. While definitely a ‘doer,’ he is also a ‘thinker’." A Club Fed and Federation Fellow alumni, Kevin currently serves on the JCF’s Israel & Jewish Peoplehood Commission and on the Board of Trustees at Brandeis Hillel Day School. Sensitive to others' needs and quick to reach out and help, Kevin does a stellar job devoting 110%. His intelligence and dedication solidify his reputation as being a respected leader in the Jewish community.
