The Member Communities, staff and lay leaders of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation mourn the loss of Felice Yeskel, a member of JRF affiliate Jewish Community of Amherst, longtime activist for social justice causes and founder of the University of Massachusetts' Stonewall Center for gay students and staff, who died Jan. 11 at 57.Yeskel grew up in New York, lived in San Francisco and moved to the Amherst area in the 1980s, where she worked to start the university's gay center. "I really think of campus life for the LGBT community as 'Before Felice' and 'After Felice,' " said Pat Griffin, a former UMass professor. Yeskel was an adjunct professor in the university's social justice education program and co-authored "Economic Apartheid In America: A Primer on Economic Inequality & Insecurity," among other works. She was a founder and co-director of Class Action of Northampton, Mass. Longtime friend Betsy Leondar-Wright wrote on the group's website that "Felice was a tireless activist working to bring about social change. Through fearlessly sharing her personal story, first as a lesbian and later sharing her working-class history to help break down the walls of classism, she touched the lives of thousands of people."Felice was also a presenter with Rabbi Shawn Zevit of JRF's past workshop on Money and Jewish Values, and led mini-courses in class and economics at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College at various times- an area she paid great attention to. Yeskel was remembered at her funeral and memorial service as "a champion of the underprivileged, a challenger of the status quo, a devoted mother and life partner … who touched the lives of many with her energy, compassion and commitment to social justice." Rabbi Ben Weiner, rabbi of JCA, officiated at the funeral.Rabbi Julie Greenberg of Philadelphia said Yeskel "could engage so many people, and from community she created social change" and that she was a "great mom" to her 11-year-old daughter, Shira, whom she was raising with her "awesome life partner".Full JTA article for the above:
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2011/01/13/2742537/the-eulogizer-chasidic-musician-social-activistArticle from Amherst Bulletin:
http://www.amherstbulletin.com/story/id/195133/