Celebrating Waldheim: 150 Years of Chicago Jewish History
with Abby Schmelling
Sunday, April 21 @ 10-11 am in person at OPT
Sunday, May 19 @ 10-11:30 am in person at Waldheim Cemetery

More than 260 Jewish sections and 175,000 separate burials mark Waldheim Cemetery as “a Chicagoland Jewish tradition since 1873.” Those Jews who first came to Forest Park to bury their dead are gone, as are their congregations and burial societies. But Waldheim remains, our last visual connection to Chicago’s West Side, from Maxwell Street to Lawndale. Our April session will cover the history of Waldheim Cemetery; and in May, we’ll take a walking tour to see the history come alive, so to speak. Abby Cohen Schmelling has been, among many other things, a Jewish genealogist and family history researcher, ESL teacher, and writer. Since 1976, she and her husband Bill have been active members of Oak Park Temple, where Abby served on the religious education committee, taught Sunday School, and was a member for many years of the High Holy Day choir.