Bet Tzedek Honors Lawyer for Work on Behalf of Poor

Gerald Stern took a vocational detour when he left public-interest law to go into the oil industry, but his heart always stayed with helping the poor, elderly and disabled.

Stern, 54, outgoing president of the board of directors for Bet Tzedek Legal Services, was honored for his lifelong commitment to justice at a Jan. 25 dinner-dance in Century City.

His concern for the downtrodden began as a boy when he lived in Memphis, Tenn. He recalls with distaste the segregation and discrimination he witnessed there and says he vowed to fight against such things.

After graduating from Harvard Law School, Stern became a civil rights attorney for the U.S. Justice Department during the 1960s, where he worked for black voting rights. Later, he formed his own law firm that specialized in the area of public-interest law in Washington, D.C.

But when the late Armand Hammer offered Stern a position with Occidental Petroleum, he couldn’t pass it up. He moved to Los Angeles 10 years ago to become executive vice president and senior counsel for the company. At the suggestion of a college friend, Stern in 1984 joined the board of directors for Bet Tzedek Legal Services.

“Bet Tzedek does what I used to do as a public-interest law partner,” said Stern, who lives in Westwood. “Bet Tzedek finds the cases, which we then funnel to volunteer lawyers here in Los Angeles.”

Bet Tzedek, which means “house of justice” in Hebrew, has 48 staff employees, 17 attorneys, nine paralegals and 400 volunteers. They offer free legal representation to more than 7,000 poor, elderly and disabled persons each year.

Dr. James Meyer of Santa Monica was presented with the 1991 Partners in Research Award by the Arthritis Foundation of Southern California Chapter at the organization’s recent annual meeting.

Meyer and his brother George sponsor the Meyer Young Investigator Grant for the chapter in memory of their parents. The grant supports one physician each year in arthritis research.

Yeshiva of Los Angeles and Yeshiva University High School of Los Angeles awarded its Distinguished Public Service Award to Rep. Mel Levine (D-Santa Monica).

Levine was honored at a dinner Jan. 14 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.

Bruce Konheim was installed as president of the Guardians of the Jewish Home for the Aging at the organization’s 53rd annual installation dinner held at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel on Jan. 14.

Konheim served as chairman of the Guardians’ 1991 Adopt-a-Parent campaign, which provides support for the Jewish Home and about 800 elderly individuals.