New York Lincoln Award Winners

By Martin Smith · Originally published April 2016 · p. 12

NEW YORK, N.Y. — The Civil ed Doris Kearns Goodwin, Garry he was Chief Historian for the al organization with offices in Los

War Round Table of New York and The Lincoln Group of New York Present their annual Lincoln Awards to Jonathan D. Sarna and Benjamin Shapell for their book, Lincoln And The Jews. On February 10, 2016, at a special joint meeting of The Civil War Round Table of New York and The Lincoln Group of New York, Jonathan D. Sarna and Benjamin Shapell accepted the 2015 Barondess/Lincoln Award from the Round Table and were Co-Winners of The 2015 Lincoln Group Award of Achievement for their book, Lincoln and the Jews. The joint event was held at The 3 West Club in New York City and was attended by over 100 members and guests of both organizations. Harold Holzer, author, distinguished Lincoln scholar, Co-Chairman of The Lincoln Bicentennial Committee, historical consultant on the Lincoln film, and member of both the Round Table and The Lincoln Group of New York, acted as host and moderator for a lively hour-long conversation and question-and-answer session with Dr. Sarna. The 2015 Barondess/Lincoln Award from The Civil War Round Table of New York was presented at the Round Table’s 597st meeting by Paul Weiss, Civil War Round Table of New York President; and Judith Lee Hallock, Barondess/Lincoln Award Committee. The Round Table, which is in its 65th year, has presented The Barondess/Lincoln Award for the last 54 consecutive years. This special Lincoln Award was established in 1960. Dr. Barondess, for whom the award was named, was a distinguished charter and founding member of the club, along with Bruce Catton and Fletcher Pratt, and this award is presented in his memory. The award is given annually “to any person or institution and for any contribution to the greater appreciation of the life and works of Abraham Lincoln.” Previous distinguished winners have included Doris Kearns Goodwin, Harold Holzer, Craig Symonds, Stephen Oates, Gabor Boritt, William Gienapp, William C. Davis, Gary Wills, William Safire, Gore Vidal, Eric Foner and Sam Waterston, just to name a few. The 2015 Lincoln Group Award of Achievement from The Lincoln Group of New York was presented by Steven R. Koppelman, President of The Lincoln Group of New York; and John Bodnar, Chairperson of the Award Committee. The Lincoln Group of New York, which is in its 48th year, has presented The Award of Achievement since 1988. The award, in the form of a plaque, is presented annually for doing the most to encourage the study and appreciation of Abraham Lincoln.

Wills, Governor Mario Cuomo, David Herbert Donald, Gabor Boritt, Eric Foner, Dr. Edward Steers, Dr. Mark E. Neely, Jr., and, of course, Harold Holzer. Jonathan D. Sarna was born in 1951 in Philadelphia and raised in New York City and Boston. He attended Brandeis University, Boston Hebrew College, Merkaz HaRav Kook in Jerusalem, and Yale University where he obtained his doctorate. Dubbed by the Jewish Forward newspaper in 2004 as one of America’s 50

350th commemoration of the American Jewish community, and is recognized as a leading commentator on American Jewish history, religion and life. Currently, Dr. Sarna is the Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History and Chair of the Hornstein Jewish Professional Leadership Program at Brandeis University, as well as Chief Historian of the new National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. Benjamin Shapell is the founder of the Shapell Manuscript Foun-

Angeles and Herlizya, Israel, whose collection includes original documents of world-renowned individuals, including American presidents and Mark Twain. Mr. Shapell has initiated and overseen the creation of numerous publications, exhibitions, and films relating to the central themes of the collection. The Foundation has also partnered in exhibitions with major institutions, including the Library of Congress, the National Library of Israel, and the Smithsonian Institution. Mr. Shapell lives with his family in Israel.