H eadlines
He would really ask people what they were interested in and try to
tailor stuff to people’s interests.”
JOHN BONAVITA-GOLDMAN
From left: Harold Bonavita-Goldman with Betsy and Richard Sheer at a
Jewish Federation event 
Courtesy of John Bonavita-Goldman
to Philadelphia. During the
AIDS epidemic, like many gay
couples, the men rejected the
sexually open gay culture of the
1970s in favor of a relationship.

John Bonavita-Goldman
was with Harold Bonavita-
Goldman through his JFCS
years and his time at Jewish
Federation. During Harold
Bonavita-Goldman’s presidency
with the latter, John Bonavita-
Goldman got to accompany
his husband to almost nightly
fundraising dinners during the
week. “He would really ask people
what they were interested in
and try to tailor stuff to people’s
interests,” he said.

While leading
Jewish Federation, Harold Bonavita-
Goldman updated its strategic
plan to allow donors to desig-
nate their dollars to programs; he
established an open culture that
made area synagogue leaders
comfortable about coming
to him; he also ran two Israel
campaigns and established
Netivot as Philadelphia’s sister
city in the Holy Land.

“He was a very special
person. Brilliant. Terrific
problem solver,” Adelman said.

“But his best part of him was his
relationship skills.”
After Harold Bonavita-
Goldman’s tenure with Jewish
Federation, he moved to his
husband’s native home, New
York City, so the latter could
take a job with New York
University’s Department of
Radiology. Harold Bonavita-Goldman
initially called himself retired.

But he quickly came out of retire-
ment to lead B’nai Jeshurun. It
turned out the synagogue needed
him; he helped it survive by
raising $25 million to buy back
an old building.

And at long last, this
mainstream organizational
leader was able to enter the
mainstream on a personal level,
too. In 2011, New York passed the
Marriage Equality Act, joining
the rising tide of states opening
up to same-sex marriage.

The week the law went into
effect that summer, Harold
Bonavita-Goldman and John
Bonavita-Goldman got married
on a Friday morning at City
Hall. A CBS News cameraman
captured the moment. On the
subway back home, “everyone
was congratulating us,” John
Bonavita-Goldman said.

The couple
enjoyed collecting art and compiled
more than 100 pieces to hang
in their home. Sometimes,
they would hit as many as 40
galleries in a weekend.

“He was fun and really solid
to be with,” he said. l
jsaffren@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0740
Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too
Wednesday, February 23
5 pm
Come learn about auction houses, letting go of items and preserving
family stories. Enjoy a tour and take home a dinner to go. Presented by
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FEBRUARY 17, 2022
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