Zeidman honored with Mensch of the Year award

May-Ronny Zeidman received the Sy Dill Mensch of the Year award from the Rhode Island Coalition for Israel (RICI) during a virtual program on April 24.

Zeidman, a former executive director of the Sandra Bornstein Holocaust Education Center, in Providence, received the 2021 award from Judi Dill, the widow of Sy Dill, for her critical role in guiding the SBHEC through the adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance Working Definition of Anti-Semitism.

After the award presentation, Zeidman spoke on the topic of “Back to the Future. Holocaust Education: Where Have We Been? Where Are We Going?” She addressed such issues as whether Holocaust education centers should make fighting antisemitism part of their core mission – which she believes they should.

Zeidman spoke about the rise of Holocaust education during her 16 years working with the Holocaust center. “Education must continue to remind people” of what can happen, she said. “People have short memories.”

“It is time to see into the future and change the paradigm,” she said. “We must fight Jew hatred and antisemitism. We cannot stop it, but we must speak out and say ‘this is not OK.’

“We must tell the stories of Jews protecting Jews and Jews supporting the state of Israel.”

A robust question-and-answer session followed the presentation.

RICI initiated the Mensch of the Year Award in 2019 to reward extraordinary effort by ordinary Rhode Islanders in the fight against Jewish hatred and in support of Israel.

In 2020, the Mensch of the Year Award was named in memory of Sy Dill, a founding member and supporter of RICI who passed away that year. Previous awards have gone to Lt. Col. Joe Philbin of the R.I. State Police, now retired, and Brian Goldman, CEO of Big Blue Bug Solutions, in Providence.

FRAN OSTENDORF (fostendorf@jewishallianceri.org) is the editor of Jewish Rhode Island.