Board of Directors
| Member | Location |
|---|---|
| Michael Berenbaum, PhD | Los Angeles, CA |
| Gesher Calmenson | Santa Rosa, CA |
| Ruth P. Goldberg | Bryn Mawr, PA |
| Samara Hutman | Santa Monica, CA |
| Harry Pelz | Milwaukee, WI |
| Barbara Tobin | Sebastopol, CA |
Staff Biographies
Paula Simon, Executive Director. Paula joined Remember Us in December 2009 as the Associate Director and assumed the position of Executive Director in July 2010. Prior to joining Remember Us, she served for twelve years as the Executive Director of the Milwaukee Jewish Council for Community Relations. Paula was instrumental in conceptualizing, implementing and securing funding for the Wisconsin Educators U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Trip and Educational Seminar, designed to provide middle and high school teachers with the resources and knowledge to effectively teach about the Holocaust and the universal implications of this tragic historical event. More than 400 teachers from the state of Wisconsin have had the opportunity to participate in a one–day trip to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, as well attend pre and post–seminar workshops.
Paula has more than twenty five years of experience in Jewish communal service. and will use her expertise and knowledge of the systems and structures, as well as her nonprofit management skills, to develop relationships with national organizations, denominations and affiliate groups for Remember Us as well as oversee the organization’s operations and staff.
A Los Angeles native, Ms. Simon received her undergraduate degree in Social Welfare from the University of California, Berkeley. She earned a Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California, with an emphasis on Community Organization, Planning and Administration, and a Master of Arts in Jewish Communal Service from Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles. In 2004, she received an honorary doctorate in Jewish Communal Service from Hebrew Union College, recognizing her 25 years of service to the Jewish community. After living in the Midwest for nearly thirty years, Paula is thrilled to be returning “home” to California.
Gesher Calmenson, Founding Director and Director of Special Projects. Gesher retired in 1995 from a 30–year career in publishing to work in Jewish education. In 2003 he founded the Remember Us Project. In July 2010 Gesher transitioned management responsibilities to Paula Simon in order to focus energy on international outreach, donor development and regional partnerships.
He is the Education Director Emeritus of Dor Hadash Religious School, Congregation Ner Shalom, Cotati, California, and completed a Fellowship in Jewish Family Education (1999–2002). Gesher served as Chairman of the Regional Educators Council, Bureau of Jewish Education, San Francisco (2001–2002), and was a leader in Jewish Family Room, a multi–generational home–based family education program (2002–2005). He served as a school assessment specialist and member of the coordinating committee of NESS, a program to encourage excellence in synagogue schools. In his home community he serves as the chairman of the Sonoma County Yom Hashoah Commemoration Committee, mentors bar/bat mitzvah students, and tutors special needs and gifted students in Jewish studies.
Elly Cohen, Project Administrator. Elly was formerly the Outreach Coordinator for the seniors program at the Sonoma County Jewish Community Center. A longtime active volunteer in the Jewish community, her involvement includes serving as a cantorial soloist and music coordinator for her congregation, serving on the board of directors of several Jewish organizations, and teaching religious school and adult education classes.
Barbara Tobin, MPA, Names Database Manager. Barbara has a background in Jewish communal work, nonprofit administration, and human resources management. She has held the positions of Program Director for the Sonoma County Jewish Films Series, and Coordinator for the Bureau of Jewish Education’s Feast of Jewish Learning for Sonoma County. Ms. Tobin has a personal connection to the Holocaust: her great–aunt, Cora Berliner, chose to stay in Berlin in 1930, rather than join her family in the United States, so that she could continue her work with the Kindertransport. She is believed to have died at Bergen Belsen.