Jacob Gurvis | JTA
In 1961, Alan Sherman was working as a pharmacist at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem when he saw an advertisement in the Jerusalem Post for English-speaking volunteers for the sixth Maccabiah Games, the international Jewish sports competition founded in 1932.
Sherman spent weeks driving the director of the event’s organizing committee to various ceremonies. His willingness to help was emblematic of his passion for sports and what would become a lifetime commitment to strengthening opportunities for Jewish athletes, particularly through U.S.-Israel relations.
Sherman would go on to co-found and lead the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and serve in numerous leadership roles with Maccabi USA and the global Maccabiah movement. Sherman died July 29 at his home in Potomac after a long battle with cancer. He was 87.
Jed Margolis, who now heads the hall of fame, called Sherman a “visionary.” The hall honored Sherman with a lifetime achievement award in 1997.
“He left an indelible mark on the hearts of so many, and we will miss him dearly,” Margolis said.
Much of Sherman’s work in sports came with the Maccabiah movement.
From 1973 to 1989, Sherman served on the International Maccabiah Committee. He led several U.S. delegations to the quadrennial Maccabiah Games, spent decades in leadership with Maccabi USA, founded the North American Maccabi Youth Games (now known as the JCC Maccabi Games) and in 1985 helped introduce the Jewish-Israel orientation program for all American Maccabiah athletes.
Jeff Bukantz, the president of Maccabi USA, called Sherman a “larger-than-life leader” and a mentor.
“Alan was one of the pillars of the Maccabi Movement and he leaves a lasting legacy. May his memory be a blessing,” Bukantz said in a statement.
Sherman’s involvement with U.S.-Israeli sports partnerships extended beyond Maccabiah. In 1978, Sherman organized an Israel trip for the NBA champion Washington Bullets, who played (and lost) an exhibition game against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Sherman also arranged for Israeli professional teams to play games in the U.S.
Sherman’s other passion project was supporting athletes with disabilities, particularly through the Israel Sport Center for the Disabled.
In the Washington area, Sherman was involved in numerous local Jewish organizations, including as chair of the physical education committee and a board member at what is now the Bender Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington. He also served on the board of the Hebrew Home of Greater Washington. According to an online obituary of Sherman, during Israel’s Yom Kippur War in 1973, he launched the “swim a lap for Israel” initiative, raising thousands of dollars for the Rockville JCC and other community pools.
A licensed realtor and experienced pharmacist, Sherman also enjoyed a number of sports, including skiing, volleyball and golf.
Sherman was born on Nov. 15, 1935, in Atlantic City, N.J. According to his family, he grew up to be exceedingly organized, even keeping the hospital bill for his birth: $35. At age 5, his family moved to Washington, D.C., where he attended Brightwood Elementary and Paul Junior High. On the walk home from Calvin Coolidge High School, he occasionally stopped to play pool at Louie’s pool hall on Georgia Avenue.
His first job was driving a truck for a chicken and egg vendor. They would arrive at customers’ homes where his boss would cut up the chickens and deliver the order. Later, he worked for the U.S. Post Office, delivering holiday packages in a large truck he had to double-clutch to drive. His early jobs as a driver gave him a life-long admiration for well-built cars.
He graduated from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Maryland, joining Peoples Drug Stores (now CVS) as a pharmacist at its Georgia Avenue store, next to the popular Hofberg’s Deli. In 1961, he volunteered to work in the pharmacy at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem.
While there, he saw the Jerusalem Post ad asking for English-speaking volunteers to assist at the 6th Maccabiah Games. Sherman had a car — a Fiat 500 he had shipped from Italy to Haifa — so he volunteered.
He is survived by his wife, Claire Feldstein, whom he married in 1962, along with their children, Gail Sherman Silverman, of Philadelphia, and Dr. Gary Sherman, of Hagerstown; five grandchildren, Brandon Silverman (Peri Chajet), Carly Silverman (fiancé Jason Fiderer), Jenna Silverman, Allie Sherman and Nicole Sherman; and a great-grandson, Chase Steven Silverman.
He was predeceased by his parents, Ernest and Marion (nee Engel) Sherman; and his sisters, Deborah (Debbie) Grant, of Chevy Chase, and Ruth Kroskin, of Norfolk.
Contributions may be made to the Israel ParaSport Center, 1 Northfield Plaza, Ste. 300, Northfield, IL 60093. ■