The Asheville JCC lost a most cherished friend and long-time supporter when Fred Kahn left the world on February 19, 2016. The following is excerpted from the tribute that was written about Fred and his wife, Jan, when they received the JCC’s 2013 Outstanding Service Award:
The connection that Fred Kahn had to the Asheville Jewish Community Center was deeply rooted through a family tree of leadership and support that goes back to the JCC’s earliest days. Fred’s parents, Mortimer and Adelle Kahn, were integral to the founding of the JCC more than 75 years ago. Adelle served as a Vice President when the JCC was incorporated, and after the house on Charlotte Street was purchased to establish the center of Jewish life in Asheville, Fred’s parents paid for the addition that became the JCC’s social hall and auditorium. Even Fred’s grandfather, Fred Nachman of Chicago, who held the patent on the coil spring, stepped up to provide funding to establish the JCC’s library. Fred’s family set the example, planting an eagerness to care for this community in Fred’s heart when he was just a boy.
At the same time, and miles across the Atlantic Ocean, Jan was evacuated from war torn London and sent to stay in New York City for a time with her mother, Elsie. Jan also learned at a young age that every person can make a difference in the lives of others. While in New York Jan had the incredible experience of singing with Ethel Merman to help raise funds in support of “Bundles for Britain.” Jan returned home to London, and couldn’t have guessed that she would one day find her destiny back in the United States.
In 1956, Jan and Fred’s mothers had both come to live in New York City. On a visit with her mum, Jan was told by a family friend about a very nice young man who would take her out on the town. Jan told the woman, “If he’s as nice as you say he is, I will marry him.” Fred, a student at UNC Chapel Hill, was so nice that Jan did in fact agree to marry him. They were wed in 1958, and Jan left behind her cosmopolitan lifestyle for the little city of Asheville in the far reaches of Western North Carolina.
Fred returned to work in the family business, along with his brother Bud. Jan soon became pregnant with Stuart, who was born in 1959, and Lauren arrived shortly after in 1960. Jan and Fred were completely immersed in the JCC – both as supporters and as participants in the dances, parties, bridge games and other activities that brought so many Jewish families together. The JCC was the hub of their social life. Even as new parents, the Kahns never hesitated to support the JCC in whatever ways they could.
Fred and Jan’s involvement in the community was not limited to the JCC. In the 1970s, Jan volunteered with the Junior League – before Jewish women were even accepted into the organization – to provide trainings in the Asheville City School system to help ease tensions during desegregation. Her pioneering spirit soon led her into the work force, and, according to Lauren, Jan was the first mom she remembers that went to work. Jan started doing voice work in radio for local station, WLOS, and in 1972, she was hired by WISE to write commercials. Jan was so incredibly talented, that she was later promoted to run the entire advertising department at KISS FM. Fred is an avid collector of historic Asheville postcards, and these became the basis for two books that Jan and Sue Greenberg, wrote and published in the 1990s, titled “Asheville: A Postcard History;” Volumes 1 and 2.
Throughout the years, Fred and Jan provided significant financial and volunteer support to the JCC at every turn. Both served many terms on the JCC board of directors, and they have stood by the JCC in the best times and the most challenging circumstances. Jan was instrumental in supporting the creation of the Elder Day Club, and in addition to enrolling her mother, Elsie, and step-father, Victor, she also volunteered in the program. Even while not serving on the board, Fred continued to regularly attend board meetings, providing perspective, wisdom, and sound counsel.
All of us at the JCC were saddened by the news of Fred’s illness this winter, and we feel the loss of his passing so deeply. He will be terribly missed by all of us who had the joy and honor of calling him friend.
By Lael Gray, Executive Director
