Shirley Lamm, NIJH President, receives distinguished service award
At the Neshama Association of Jewish Chaplain’s annual awards dinner in Orlando Florida, Rabbi Maurice z”1 and Shirley Lamm, NIJH President, were awarded the Anita and Dr. Barry Kinzbrunner Distinguished Service Award in recognition of their trail blazing work in Jewish hospice. When Rabbi Maurice Lamm and Shirley Lamm became involved in Jewish Hospice 35 years ago, the idea of hospice was not known in the United States. Recognizing the needs of the Jewish terminally ill, a disadvantaged minority, they began speaking, writing and forming hospice commissions in many cities teaching the values of Jewish hospice. The idea was enormously received. They started NIJH at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles in 1985 teaching families, patients and the medical community what’s Jewish about Jewish Hospice. Through its publications, conferences and hospice accreditations, NIJH has made Jewish hospice a mainstream idea and brought hope and solace to thousands of people. NIJH has made Jewish hospice a mainstream idea and brought hope and solace to thousands of people and has accredited hundreds of hospices in the United States.