Family File for David Saul MITTMAN - Person Sheet
Family File for David Saul MITTMAN - Person Sheet
NameJerome L KAUFMAN
Birth25 Apr 1933, Middletown, CT2707
Death10 Jan 2013, Madison, WI2707,2785 Age: 79
Burial14 Jan 2013, 2299 Spring Rose Rd, Verona, WI2707,2790,2785
MemoNatural Path Sanctuary Burial Ground
FlagsMITTMAN-1
Obituaries
From Jerome L “Jerry” Kaufman (1933-2013) - Find a Grave Memorial:2785,2791

Jerome (Jerry) Kaufman, our most beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, mentor, friend, and colleague, died peacefully at his home in Madison, Wisconsin, surrounded by his family, after a long, heroic struggle with cancer.

Jerry was born in 1933 in Middletown, Connecticut, and grew up in Corona, Queens, New York City, the son of immigrant parents from Eastern Europe. While living at home, he graduated from Queens College and later studied with the great urban planner Lewis Mumford at the University of Pennsylvania. He chose to become an urban planner, and his pioneering work on racial segregation, urban poverty, and urban agriculture has helped make the world a better place. From 1971 until his retirement in 2001, Jerry was a beloved professor at the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at UW-Madison, where his protean interests inspired generations of students in ethics, racial inequality, poverty, central cities, urban education, and food systems. In that last phase of his professional career, he proved instrumental in helping develop and shepherd the Troy Gardens community gardens project in Madison. From 2000 until weeks before his death, Jerry served as president of Growing Power, a Milwaukee-based grassroots organization led by the visionary urban farmer Will Allen, a group created to help people grow and eat healthy food in impoverished areas of Milwaukee, Chicago, and other American cities. Other passions throughout his life include a love of music, especially playing the recorder, singing with the Madison Yiddish Choir, and listening to (and singling with) the arias of the Swedish tenor Jussi Bjorling. He gained great sustenance and friendship through participating in the Shaarei Shamayin Reconstructionist Synagogue.

Jerry is predeceased by his father, Louis Kaufman, his mother, Norma Grant (Grantzitzy) Kaufman Gofberg, and his brother, Arnold Kaufman, who greatly influenced his interest in the civil rights movement and the pursuit of social and economic justice. He is survived by his life partner of 53 years, Judith Zukerman Kaufman; his two children, Ariel, of Madison, and Daniel, of Brooklyn, NY; their spouses, Michael Kissick and Juliette Mapp; his beloved grandsons Benjamin and Luca; and his sisters Elyse Zukerman and Betty Kaufman.

As Jerry lay dying, a friend remarked that his eyes always radiated humanity and kindness. Those eyes still burned brightly even when ill, revealing his gentle spirit, wisdom, and compassion for all people. He lives on inside all those who knew and loved him. Rest in peace, our sweet man…we love you so much.

The funeral service will be held at Monona Terrace on Monday, January 14, at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, you may donate to the Growing Power Vertical Farm, a project close to Jerry’s heart that will be named in his honor. Contributions may be made through the Growing Power website, www.growingpower.org, or by mailing a check to Growing Power, 5500 West Silver Spring Dr., Milwaukee, WI 53218, with "Vertical Farm" written on the memo line.
Spouses
Birthabt 1938, Chicago, IL
Death17 Mar 2017, Madison, WI Age: 79
FatherHerman Aron ZUKERMAN (1912-1987)
MotherDorothy SHACHNER (1913-1993)
Marriage14 Jan 1960, Cook County, IL2786
ChildrenAriel
Last Modified 25 Apr 2024Created 26 Oct 2024 using Reunion for Macintosh
Created 26 Oct 2024 by David Saul Mittman.
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