AJCommittee is looking good — and doing good — at 100

Louis Heilbron will soon mark two big centennials. One is for the 100th anniversary of the American Jewish Committee, for which he served a term as chapter president.

The other is for him.

At 99, Heilbron remains amazingly hale and hearty. He still goes to work three times a week at Heller Ehrman, the venerable San Francisco law firm he first joined in 1934.

As proud as he is of his law career, he is equally proud of his service to the AJCommittee. Though the organization usually works behind the scenes, hitting the big 1-0-0 is cause for celebration.

The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter in the Northern California region will kick out the jams at its 2006 Distinguished Leadership Awards event honoring 24 past presidents and one president. The event takes place Tuesday, Oct. 17, in San Francisco.

Formed in 1906 in the wake of brutal Russian pogroms, the AJCommittee has dedicated itself to fighting anti-Semitism, promoting pluralism and human rights, and strengthening Jewish life here and abroad.

Today the local chapter has 1,000 members, and engages in programming and community outreach all year long.

"It was the most liberal and effective lay organization dealing with local, national and international issues," says Heilbron, who served as president from 1956 to 1958. "Particularly in San Francisco, a liberal city, [AJCommittee] made a good and successful contribution."

Heilbron remembers a time when Jews were barred from the better law firms, social clubs and other American institutions. He says the organization worked hard to combat the "gentleman's agreement" of old.

"Ours was one of the only law firms in San Francisco that admitted associates irrespective of religious issues," he adds. "The situation has substantially changed throughout the profession."

Heilbron is now a retired partner with his firm, which he points out was founded by Jews and was the only one locally to employ Jews back in the 1930s. Born fewer than 18 months after the 1906 earthquake and fire, Heilbron also remembers attending services at San Francisco's Congregation Emanu-El in the prewar years.

That's pre-World War I.

Heilbron's much younger successor, Steven Kornetsky, is the current chapter president, a 15-year veteran of the AJCommittee, and he is similarly gratified to serve the organization.

"We're seen as the State Department of the world Jewish community," says the Piedmont resident. "What's nice is we have partnership arrangements with communities around the world. We try to build coalitions with the ethnic communities so we can help each other when an issue arises."

Kornetsky says among the most important issues tackled by his chapter include the "Zionism equals racism" debate from the last 10 years, as well as the virulent anti-Israel sentiment found on some local college campuses. He thinks both firestorms have receded, thanks in part to the organization.

He also has high praise for longtime AJCommittee's executive director, Ernest Weiner. Says Kornetsky: "Ernie has been wonderful. He has an incredible talent for knowing how to address an issue, and knowing who in the community should be involved."

As for the upcoming event, Kornetsky says it will provide a forum to thank those who served in the past. "We will be honoring the sacrifice and effort put forth by all the past presidents," he notes, "and remembering some of the important issues that have occurred over the years. Now we can look forward to what the next 100 years will bring."

There's no way to know exactly what they will bring, but if the past is a prologue, then there's a chance Heilbron might be around, getting ready to celebrate his 200th birthday.

That, and the 200th anniversary of the AJCommittee.

The organization, he says, is all about "equal opportunity and a just social system. We're the institution to talk about."




The American Jewish Committee's San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, Northern California region, celebrates "A Century of Leadership," 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 17, at the Four Seasons Hotel, 757 Market St., S.F. Tickets: $125. Information: (415) 777-3820.