[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 108 (Tuesday, August 4, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1534]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RABBI AND MRS. MERVIN B. TOMSKY TO CELEBRATE THEIR 50TH WEDDING 
                              ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. HOWARD L. BERMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 4, 1998

  Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to my friend, 
Rabbi Mervin B. Tomsky, and his wife, Helen, who are celebrating their 
50th wedding anniversary on August 22, 1998. Though they are longtime 
residents of California, the story of the Tomsky's marriage actually 
begins in Minnesota. Mervin and Helen knew each other in Minnesota as 
children, attended the University of Minnesota together, and got 
married in Minnesota. A few years later the couple moved to New York, 
where Mervin attended the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He 
was ordained as a rabbi in 1956.
  Fifteen years later the Tomskys moved to Southern California, where 
they have lived ever since. I met Rabbi Tomsky after he became rabbi at 
Temple Emanu El in Burbank, California, and had the pleasure of 
speaking to his congregation on a couple of occasions. Today he holds 
the title of Rabbi Emeritus at Temple Emanu El, and he is the recipient 
of an honorary Doctor of Divinity Law from Jewish Theological Seminary.
  Both Rabbi Tomsky and Helen are extremely active people, which may 
well be one of the reasons for their successful marriage. Helen was a 
public school teacher for many years and has been heavily involved in 
literacy programs. Rabbi Tomsky is on the Board of Directors for the 
University of Judaism, where his duties include interviewing candidates 
who wish to convert to Judaism.
  For 22 years, the Tomskys have been active in Jewish Marriage 
Encounter, which stresses ways to enhance the marital bonds. It hardly 
needs to be said that the Tomskys are an ideal role model for younger 
couples who participate in the program.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in saluting Rabbi Mervin and Helen 
Tomsky on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary. I join their 
children, David, Sharon and Judith, and grandchildren, Andrew and 
Daria, in wishing them all the best in the years to come.

                          ____________________