L IFESTYLE /C ULTURE
Jewish Sports HOF to Induct Two Classes Sept. 29
S P ORTS
JARRAD SAFFREN | JE STAFF
THE PHILADELPHIA
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame has
had a tough year-and-a-half.

In 2020, the pandemic forced
the hall to cancel its annual
induction ceremony. Now,
aft er Hurricane Ida fl ooded the
Jewish Community Services
Building on Sept. 2, the hall is
temporarily homeless.

But come Sept. 29, the
organization will, at long last,
have something to celebrate.

Starting at 5:30 p.m. at
Congregation Rodeph Shalom
in Philadelphia, two years’
worth of classes, 2020 and
’21, will be inducted. Aft er
missing last year’s ceremony,
the museum wanted to honor
eight legends of Philadelphia
Jewish sports instead of the
usual fi ve.

Th e 2020 class consists of
Emmy Award-winning sports-
caster Carl Cherkin, former
Bucknell University basket-
ball standout Bryan Cohen,
ex-Philadelphia Phillies
pitcher Erskine Mayer, former
Philadelphia Eagles owner
Jerry Wolman and Carol B.

Polis, the fi rst female profes-
sional boxing judge.

Th e 2021 class includes
discus Olympian Samuel
Mattis, ex-NFL player Steve
Shull and former NCAA
fencing champion Adam
Feldman. A trio of awards will also
be given out that night: Th e
Philadelphia Sports Spirit
Award to Alan Horwitz, a
passionate, front-row fan of
the Philadelphia 76ers; Th e
Pillar of Achievement Award
to William Yale Saltzman, the
founder of Camp Canadensis
and the fi rst Jewish football
captain at Franklin & Marshall
College; and The Simon
Gersh Award to the Junior
Jewish Basketball League, the
Montgomery County-based
intramural league that has run
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM Attendees at the Philadelphia
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame’s 2018
induction ceremony. Chairperson
Stephen Frishberg is second from
right. Courtesy of Stephen Frishberg
for 35 years.

Retired Sixers announcer
Marc Zumoff , a class of 2011
inductee, will host the event.

Every hall of famer and
award winner has a Jewish
background and a connection
to Philadelphia, according
to hall Chairperson Stephen
Frishberg. “Th e recipients are thrilled
and humbled when I call,” said
Frishberg, referring to the calls
he made to inform people of
their selections.

LEGAL DIRECTORY
Th e RSVP list backs up
the chair’s claim. Every living
inductee plans to attend.

Wolman died in 2013, but a
family member will represent
him at Rodeph Shalom. Mayer
died in 1957, and Frishberg had
trouble tracking down a family
member for him. But the
chairman and board of direc-
tors agreed that the old righty,
who posted a 2.96 career ERA,
deserved a spot in the hall.

Living class members are
not just excited about their
selections; they are excited to
come to the ceremony, too.

Cherkin, a retired television
reporter for Philadelphia’s Fox
affi liate and a founding execu-
tive of the MLS’ Philadelphia
Union, said he views the honor
as recognition of his life’s work.

Cohen, who was an
Abington Friends standout
before Bucknell, said the
achievement was “surreal”
because he grew up playing
basketball in the area. He’s also
still only 32.

“Th at I got inducted at such
a young age means a lot,” he
added. Polis was appointed as the
winning streak.

“We’ll bounce back,” he
said. “It’s just a process.”
After the
induction ceremony, the process will turn
back to the harsh reality of the
day-to-day. Since the hall was in the
basement of the Jewish
Community Services Building,
it saw 7 feet of water rush
in during the Sept. 2 fl ood.

Physical cabinets, televisions
and lockers were all lost,
Frishberg said.

But the artifacts can all be
cleaned and remediated, he
said, so the hall will try to do
that. Frishberg and the board
need a new location and about
$30,000 to rebuild the tribute
to Philadelphia’s Jewish sports
icons. Th e hall has a GoFundMe
campaign with the goal of
raising $36,000: gofundme.

com/f/help-rebuild-our-mu- seum. You can also call
215-900-7999 to buy tickets to
the ceremony. ●
jsaff ren@jewishexponent.com;
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fi rst female pro boxing judge by
the governor of Pennsylvania
in 1973. She called that the
biggest honor of her career ...

until now.

Th e Jenkintown native, who
judged 27 title fi ghts in nine
countries, is traveling from
Florida for the ceremony.

“It takes a lot of guts to walk
up those steps and get into the
ring,” she said of why she loves
boxing. Even though the COVID
era continues with the delta
variant, the hall of famers
will not give their accep-
tance speeches to an empty
sanctuary/virtual audience.

About 125 Philly sports
community members and fans
have bought tickets for the
event, according to Frishberg.

All attendees will be
required to show vaccination
cards at the door and wear
masks while inside. Rodeph
Shalom’s sanctuary can hold
up to 1,500 people, so attendees
can social distance if they
want, Frishberg said.

Frishberg is confi dent that
the hall can pull off a COVID-
safe event and start a new
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