Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service
Edward Ginsberg Center exterior. Image courtesy of campusinfo.umich.edu
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How a Life Became the Foundation of a Campus Building
How a Life Became the Foundation of a Campus Building
by Ethan Verlin
“Don’t give until it hurts; give until it feels really good.” This quote, which Edward Ginsberg’s son William is fond of repeating, applies to community service and the power of giving (Swanson). Ginsberg was an international activist for the Jewish people.
As a child who went to Hebrew school, I was taught the importance of tzedakah, or charity, through the use of a small box where we would give change. Edward did more than take the insight of a rabbi, he dedicated his life to it. The legacy of Edward Ginsberg and his wife Rosalie continues to live on with student involvement at the Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service at the University of Michigan.
Edward Ginsberg. Photo courtesy of ginsberg.umich.edu
"Left to Right: Max M. Fisher, Sam Rothberg, Edward Ginsberg, Yitzhak Rabin, Golda Meir and Abe Fineberg" ("Max M. Fisher with Golda Meir and Others"). Photo courtesy of Camera Arts Studio.
The Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service was created from a donation by his son William Ginsberg and his wife Inger in commemoration of Edward in 1999 (“About Edward Ginsberg”). Although the enrichment building might have been erected from a financial contribution, Edward Ginsberg attended the University of Michigan in 1938, where he received his Bachelor of Arts (“About Edward Ginsberg”). This was the beginning of a journey that included receiving his Juris Doctor from Harvard University and practicing law for 50+ years (“About Edward Ginsberg”). Following World War II, both Edward Ginsberg and Rosalie were actively involved in improving the lives of Jewish people around the world. Ginsberg worked with Golda Meir and Yitzhak Rabin who were notable prime ministers in Israel (“A Little Ginsberg Family History”). Ginsberg was then involved with the United Jewish Appeal, a major Jewish charitable organization, where he was chairman for four years and then president from 1971-74 (Burkhart).
Ginsberg spearheaded a campaign during his first year as chairman in 1969 where he vowed fifteen million dollars to assist Jewish people. In a New York Times article Irving Spiegel states, “This year the appeal has a two-fold drive; an emergency fund to carry out programs in Israel among an expected 30,000 immigrants and to aid some 350,000 former immigrants. The other is to aid 400,000 Jews [from Eastern Europe, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia]” (Spiegel). Ginsberg’s activism, as well as the founding of the Cleveland Jewish News, (“About Edward Ginsberg”) led him to be granted the prestigious Charles Eiseman award from the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland (Burkhart).
The name Edward is derived from Edward the Confessor who ruled in early England. It signifies affluence and a defender (“Edward Family History”). The defender characteristic can be attributed to Ginsberg’s work for the Jewish people. His last name Ginsberg is an alternative spelling of Ginsburg which means a “fortress walled town” and has Swabian roots (“Ginsburg Family History”). Although the Center might not be a walled town, it is a hub for volunteerism.
The Ginsberg Center is a place where University of Michigan students can involve themselves with initiatives, both communal and personal, dedicated to making a difference. The center currently resides in Madelon Pound House, which is under renovation (Swanson). The Pound House was built in 1898 and obtained by the university in 1951 (“Bentley Historical Library”). Inside the building, both indoor and outdoor spaces are available to facilitate casual discussion and collaboration (“Spaces”). The center formulates its own strategic plans every three years (“Strategic Plan 2020-2023, The Ginsberg Center”). Recently, the Ginsberg Center has been enhancing connections between the university and the community by meeting with professors to possibly add community service components to courses (Fair).
Community service is much more than an action. It is an endless civic duty. Ginsberg completed numerous philanthropic contributions to the Jewish community that laid the foundation of the Ginsberg Community Service Center on U of M’s campus today.
Interactive map of the Madelon Pound House. Photo courtesy of Google Maps.
Works Cited
“About Edward Ginsberg.” The Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, The Regents of the University of Michigan, ginsberg.umich.edu/article/about-edward-ginsberg.
“Bentley Historical Library.” A Chronology of University of Michigan Buildings, 1840-1999, The Regents of the University of Michigan, bentley.umich.edu/legacy-support/campus_tour/chronology.php.
Burkhart, Ford. “Deaths.” The New York Times, 7 Jan. 1997, www.nytimes.com/1997/01/07/classified/paid-notice-deaths-ginsberg-edward.html.
“Edward Family History.” Ancestry, www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=edward.
Fair, David. “Washtenaw United: U-M's Ginsberg Center Increasing Equity Through Partnership And Collaboration.” WEMU, 13 Jan. 2020.
“Ginsburg Family History.” Ancestry, www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=ginsburg#:~:text=Jewish%20(Ashkenazic)%3A%20habitational%20name,Compare%20Ginsberg%20and%20Ginzburg%20.
“A Little Ginsberg Family History.” YouTube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpOIaSCaCSE.
“Madelon Pound Building.” Google Maps, Google, www.google.com/maps/place/Madelon+Pound+Building,+1024+Hill+St,+Ann+Arbor,+MI+48104/@42.271746,-83.736029,16z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x883cae48ac5dfc73:0x44b8333b9710d1fa!8m2!3d42.2718276!4d-83.7360589?hl=en.
“Max M. Fisher with Golda Meir and Others.” The Max M. Fisher Archives, Camera Arts Studio, maxmfisher.org/resource-center/photo/max-m-fisher-golda-meir-and-others.
“Max M. Fisher with Golda Meir and Others.” The Max M. Fisher Archives, maxmfisher.org/resource-center/photo/max-m-fisher-golda-meir-and-others.
“Picture of Edward Ginsberg.” About Edward Ginsberg, The Regents of the University of Michigan, ginsberg.umich.edu/article/about-edward-ginsberg.
“Pound Madelon House.” Campus Map, The Regents of the University of Michigan, campusinfo.umich.edu/campusmap/92.
The Regents of the University of Michigan, 2020, Strategic Plan 2020-2023, The Ginsberg Center, drive.google.com/file/d/1N68Nc1S8HmIylFWekcnzPbGtQqeyi4nL/view.
“Spaces.” The Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, The Regents of the University of Michigan, ginsberg.umich.edu/spaces.
Spiegel, Irving. “$15-Million Pledged to U.J.A.; Ginsberg Heads '69 Campaign.” The New York Times, 16 Dec. 1968, timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1968/12/16/76917725.html?pageNumber=6.
Swanson, Madeline. “$10M Gift to Support Construction of New Home for the Ginsberg Center.” The Edward Ginsberg Center for Community
Service and Learning, The Regents of the University of Michigan, 2022, ginsberg.umich.edu/article/10m-gift-support-construction-new-home-ginsberg.
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