Bill Text: VA HJR277 | 2010 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Celebrating the life of Rabbi Richard Sternberger.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2010-03-01 - House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ277ER) [HJR277 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2010-HJR277-Enrolled.html
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WHEREAS, Rabbi Richard Sternberger of Falls Church, a respected citizen, a civil rights advocate, and a beloved leader and rabbi of Temple Rodef Shalom, died on January 11, 2010; and WHEREAS, Richard Sternberger grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was ordained as a rabbi in 1952, and served his country as a chaplain, first on active duty from 1952 to 1954 in the United States Navy and then for 30 years with the Navy Reserve; and WHEREAS, Richard Sternberger served as assistant rabbi of the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation and then was appointed as rabbi of the Jewish Community Center of White Plains, New York, which is now Congregation Kol Ami; and WHEREAS, a passionate civil rights activist, Rabbi Sternberger helped register African-American voters in Mississippi during the summer of 1964, and he participated in marches in Washington, D.C., in support of equal rights for all citizens; and WHEREAS, in 1967 Rabbi Sternberger joined what became the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), serving as the assistant director of the New York Federation of Reform Synagogues and later was appointed regional director of the URJ Mid-Atlantic Council from 1970 to 1991; and WHEREAS, Rabbi Sternberger moved to the capital and served as an adjunct rabbi at Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church, as well as helped found Temple Bat Yam in Ocean City, Maryland, becoming the congregation's first rabbi when he retired from the URJ; and WHEREAS, Rabbi Sternberger became fully retired in 1999 and moved to Falls Church to be among his friends at Temple Rodef Shalom, and in his honor the congregation established the Rabbi Richard Sternberger Social Justice Award, which is given annually to a group or individual working on social justice issues; and WHEREAS, Rabbi Sternberger will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by his loving family, his many close friends, and the members of Temple Rodef Shalom; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly mourn the passing of an outstanding Virginian, Rabbi Richard Sternberger; and, be it RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Rabbi Richard Sternberger as an expression of the General Assembly's respect for his memory. |
