Long-Time JDC Staffer Donates Treasure Trove of Images to Archives

Stanley Abramovitch, a lifetime “Jointnik” whose career in Jewish humanitarian relief work began in the Displaced Persons camps in Europe after World War II and whose work with JDC took him to Europe, Iran, North Africa, Israel, and Central Asia, has donated to the JDC Archives his extensive personal photo collection including exquisite albums from his work with JDC. Abramovitch’s work for JDC has spanned over 65 years.

His North Africa albums include stunning black-and-white images of Jewish communities in Morocco and Tunisia where Abramovitch, in his capacity as Director of the JDC Education Dept., helped to develop Jewish schools and teacher training programs. His photos depict life in the mellahs (walled Jewish quarters), Jewish schools, and family life. The images of Iran in the 1950s and 1960s, where Abramovitch served as JDC Country Director, convey the health and welfare and education programs developed by the JDC in pre-revolution Iran, including the opening of over fifty schools across Iran.

The Abramovitch photo collection is presently being digitized for preservation purposes and will soon be accessible on-line to researchers and the public.