Tillye Levy Papers

Tillye Shulman Levy was one of the Denver Jewish community’s most dedicated and effective volunteers. Born in Central City in 1895, she first became involved in philanthropic charity work as a young woman, after meeting Fannie Lorber, the longtime president of the Denver Sheltering Home for Jewish Children. As a teenager, Tillye worked at the Denver Trunk Factory in downtown Denver, located next door to the Lorber Shoe Company. Mrs. Lorber interested Tillye in the children and soon she was spending Sundays at the Home, visiting and playing with the young charges. After her marriage, Mrs. Levy became a member of the Sheltering Home Board. She later recalled, “Mrs. Lorber really started me off on a career of social service,” which was to include the boards of the Allied Jewish Federation, National Council of Jewish Women, and the Jewish Family and Children’s Service. She spearheaded a number of organizations that helped refugees. The Rocky Mountain Jewish Historical Society Oral Histories, B098, have a number of audio recordings of Tillye Levy, including one in which she relates the history of the Jewish Family and Children’s Service, in rhyme.