[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 78 (Wednesday, May 20, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E767-E768]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING RABBI HERMAN AND LOTTE SCHAALMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 20, 2015

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate 
Rabbi Herman and Lotte Schaalman, an internationally-renowned and 
beloved couple, on their 99th and 100th birthdays. Rabbi Schaalman 
celebrated his 99th birthday on April 28, 2015 and Lotte Schaalman 
celebrated her 100th birthday on January 13, 2015.
  Rabbi Schaalman was the Senior Rabbi at Emanuel Congregation in 
Edgewater, in my district, for 32 years, and is in his 28th year as 
Rabbi Emeritus. The Schaalmans will be honored at a special event on 
May 31, 2015 at Emanuel Congregation, which is establishing the Rabbi 
Herman and Lotte Schaalman Fund, to assure that their remarkable legacy 
of service will continue.

[[Page E768]]

  Rabbi Herman and Lotte Schaalman have devoted their life for the good 
of their fellow Jews and for humanity. Rabbi Schaalman fled Nazi 
Germany in 1935. He became known as one of America's foremost leaders 
in American Reform Judaism, serving as Rabbinical leader and President 
of the Reform Rabbis Association. Lotte Schaalman has exemplified the 
heart of Congregation Emanuel. Together the Schaalmans are the epitome 
of a thriving and wonderful life partnership.
  After his retirement as Senior Rabbi at Emanuel Congregation, Rabbi 
Schaalman continued his active involvement in many educational, civic 
and religious organizations. He has participated in education programs 
at many institutions, including at Barat College, DePaul University, 
North Park Seminary, Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary and 
Northwestern University. He served three terms on the Board of 
Directors of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, was 
President of both the Chicago Board of Rabbis and the Chicago 
Association of Reform Rabbis, and was a member of the National Jewish 
Communal Affairs Committee. He was President of the Jewish Council of 
Urban Affairs and served in leadership roles on the Council of 
Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago and the Edgewater Association 
of Clergy and Rabbis.
  Rabbi Schaalman also served as a member of the Education Committee of 
the National Holocaust Memorial in Washington, DC. As part of his 
commitment to interreligious understanding and the promotion of a 
peaceful world, he has been a Trustee on the Board of the Millennium 
Institute and a member of the Executive Committee of the Council for 
the Parliament of World Religions.
  Rabbi Schaalman's list of distinguished awards and honors is many 
pages long. His awards include the Julius Rosenwald Memorial Award from 
the Jewish Federation of Chicago, the Order of First Class Merit from 
Germany, the Order of Lincoln Award from the Lincoln Academy of 
Illinois, the Interfaith Gold Medallion from the International Council 
of Christians and Jews, being elected to the Hall of Fame for the 
Jewish Community Centers, and having a park on Sheridan Road in Chicago 
named ``The Herman and Lotte Schaalman Park'' in their honor.
  Rabbi Herman and Lotte Schaalman are a remarkable couple and I am 
proud to honor them today.

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