Celebrations Milestones

Fairfield couple to be honored

Joel and SusanFAIRFIELD – Susan and Joel Lichtenstein of Fairfield will be honored as 2012 Couple of the Year by Congregation Beth El on Saturday evening, April 6.
“We have been incredibly fortunate to have Susan and Joel as members of Beth El for the past 27 years,” said Steven N. Robifker, president of the Fairfield synagogue. “Their longstanding service to the synagogue and to the greater Bridgeport community is inspirational. Joel is a stalwart attendee of study sessions at Beth El, while Susan
remains a busy grandmother of nine, keeping a traditional house that, in the spirit of her own mother, welcomes all with warmth, generosity… and chicken soup.”
Raised in the Bronx, N.Y., Joel Lichtenstein has been a practicing attorney with the Bridgeport-based law firm of Koskoff, Koskoff  Bider for 39 years. He met Susan, who grew up in southern New Jersey, while the two were attending college in Boston. The couple moved to the Fairfield area in 1969, where they quickly became immersed in the local Jewish community. They immediately joined the Bridgeport Jewish Community Center and became increasingly active within the Jewish Federation of Greater Bridgeport. Joel chaired Super Sunday fundraisers and eventually served a term as president of the Jewish Federation. Currently, he serves on various committees at Beth El and is co-president of the shul’s Men’s Club.
The Lichtenstein’s massive, impromptu Independence Day block party in 1976 in celebration of the successful raid on Entebbe was emblematic of the community’s Jewish spirit in that era. In the 1980s, the couple marched for the release of Soviet Jews. Subsequently, Susan took a central role in the resettlement of Soviet Jews who reached Connecticut.
“I am still a newcomer to this country,” said Rabbi Marcelo Kormis, who left his native Santiago, Chile, and became Beth El’s spiritual leader last August. “But no matter where you live, there are certain people who stand out for their warmth and leadership. It is very apparent to me that choosing Susan and Joel as Couple of the Year was a wise decision. They are devoted to our synagogue and are well loved by their many friends for the good works they have done and continue to do.”
The Couple of the Year gala celebration will include a formal dinner, live music and dancing. For more information on the Couple of the Year event call (203) 374-5544.

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