Ilene Bass

Recollections and Dreams of the First Woman President of Oak Park Temple

In 2009 Miriam Gevinson, as part of an intergenerational recording project of Oak Park Temple Religious School interviewed Ilene Bass, my wife. Ilene had been the first woman president of Oak Park Temple from 1989-1991. In this interview Ilene shared contributions she had seen in the congregation moving toward greater Hebrew skills and Jewish learning. It is amazing to hear Ilene speak so fluidly, as the interview occurred four years after Ilene had been diagnosed and treated for a brain tumor located near her verbal center. Her insights in this interview were prescient and wise during her presidency, when she gave the interview in 2009, and even today she offers ideas about being proactive and respectful to congregants and to Oak Park Temple’s building as a holy space. Ilene died this August and her voice will be missed.

Sincerely,
Michael Bass

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