Oral History Interview with Dr. Alfred Neumann, 1978 July 19

Item

Identifier: B098.09.0009.00004

Staff Only

Abstract

Topics covered: Brief biographical information on Dr. Neumann, social work; working with other organizations; helping refugees, resettlement; services provided and available. In the interview, Dr. Alfred Neumann touches on his life in New York in 1938, where he received graduate training in social work. He discusses his marriage, family life, and positions in social work--most notably his directorship of the Jewish Family and Children's Service of Denver (JFCS) from 1948 to 1976. In this interview Dr. Neumann gives details about the founding of this agency, the various services it provided, and the ways in which Jewish European immigrants assisted by JFCS later contributed to the Jewish community in Denver. He also discusses the agency's staff and volunteers, the role that its board played, and funding of the agency. Dr. Neumann provides information about the resettlement of Jewish Europeans as well as their social lives and employment in Denver after World War II.

Dates

1978 July 19

Creator

Neumann, Alfred M. (Interviewee, Person)

Rights and Usage Statement

This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/

Biographical / Historical

Dr. Alfred Mayer Neumann was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1910. He came to the United States in 1938 after barely escaping deportation to Dachau concentration camp. Neumann received a doctorate in Vienna and later earned a master's degree from the Columbia University School of Social Work in New York in 1942. He married another Austrian refugee in New York in 1942, and they had two children. Dr. Neumann became the first professional director of the Jewish Family and Children's Service of Denver (the name would later be changed to the Jewish Family and Children's Service of Colorado) and served in that role until 1976. After his retirement from JFCS, he moved to Arizona. Dr. Neumann died in 2002.

Extent

2 Items (2 sound tape cassettes)

Additional Description

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

RMJHS Oral Histories comprises audio and video cassettes of oral history interviews recorded by the Rocky Mountain Jewish Historical Society. The recordings document Jewish history and culture in Colorado in the 19th and 20th century. The men and women interviewed for this collection are descendants of early Jewish pioneers in Colorado or were Jewish newcomers to the region at the beginning of the 20th century. Most of the interviewees were born between 1886 and 1927 and died in the 20th century. Many of them were founders and/or leaders of Jewish organizations, religious groups, medical and social centers, schools, and businesses in Colorado.