Hunger Manifesto

2005-04-19T04:21:00.000-07:00

The launch of Sports Wrap! has motivated athletes and their teams to address the issues of hunger which plague the cities they play for. Food from clubhouses is recovered and delivered to shelters and pantries. Mike and his wife Brooke Maroth of the Detroit Tigers are the first of many who voices and actions will speak for the voiceless to help end hunger.

2005-04-19T04:16:00.000-07:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! Detroit volunteer Greg Fletcher's work was highlighted in Detroit Hours Magazine and inspired Brooke Maroth, wife of Pitcher Mike Maroth.

2005-04-19T04:11:00.000-07:00

2003 Rock and Wrap It Up! Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award winners, The Allman Brothers Band manager Burt Holman, Guitarist Warren Haynes, Jospeh and Lena Mandelbaum and Stephanie Scarmado Haynes

2005-04-19T04:00:00.000-07:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! Advisory Board Member Chip James with Warren Haynes receiving signed guitar from his successful silent auction bid.

2005-04-19T03:56:00.000-07:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! friends Dr Sanjay Kirtane and wife Dr.Yash Kirtane with Chef David Boulee

2005-04-19T03:54:00.000-07:00

2003 Rock and Wrap It Up! Bill Emerson Award recipient Pi Lambda Phi International Fraternity, President Paul Kaufman, 2003 Jay Magazine Award recipient Chef David Boulee, 2003 Lena and Jospeh Mandelbaum Award winner The Allman Brothers Band received by Warren Haynes

Sports Wrap! Drops Down from the Heavens, or Internet.

2005-04-19T03:35:00.000-07:00

Mandelbaum received the most unexpected e-mail on May 2nd 2003. “Hi, My name is Brooke Maroth and my husband Mike is a pitcher on the Detroit Tigers. We read about your organization in Detroit Hours Magazine and we were very impressed. Mike says that there is always leftover food in the clubhouse and we were wondering if we could help feed the hungry with the food. Please get back to us if you can help us.” Mandelbaum saw an amazing new opportunity come his way. The same way he knew that many peopled looked up to Rock Stars, equal numbers idolized sports figures. If sports arenas and stadiums could be harvested like backstage at rock concerts, there was no reason not to pursue it. Why not have sports stars sign Certificates of Appreciation to help grow Rock and Wrap It Up! and its programs? Within days, a plan was in place and Greg Fletcher the Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteer regional director met with Brooke and Mike Maroth. By July, the first pickups were arranged and Sports Wrap! was born. Greg and Brooke met with Coamerica Stadium clubhouse manager Jim Schmakel. He was completely in favor of helping with the logistical and security arrangements. The food was picked up at the end of each home stand and brought directly to a 24 hour walk-in shelter blocks away from Coamerica Stadium. What started as an interview in a local magazine would become a national movement to further empower star athletes to help fight hunger. By the end of 2003, over 1500 pounds of food that had been prepared but not served was recovered from the Tiger clubhouse, helping to feed over 2000 people in Detroit’s inner city. Mike Maroth signed Certificates of Appreciation to honor students who started programs and to help Rock and Wrap It Up! fund-raise.
The 2003 Tribute Dinner was held again at Pier Sixty. The honorees were the Allman Brothers Band receiving the Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award, Pi Lambda Phi International Fraternity would receive the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award and Chef David Boulee receiving the Jay Magazine Award. The Allman Brothers Band were early supporters of Rock and Wrap It Up! through their manager Burt Holman. Burt had also arranged for a guitar to be signed by the band for the first Tribute Dinner in 2001, where a silent auction helped to raise more funds. Warren Haynes, their extraordinary guitarist would receive the award and play an acoustic set. The band had already accepted a gig to play at Bonnero, an outdoor festival in Tennessee the same week. Warren agreed to stay, attend the Tribute Dinner and meet the band the next day. Pi Lambda Phi Fraternity became a beacon for all service organizations and their determination to expect community service from their chapters doing food recovery was amazing. Chef David Boulee had a relationship with Rock and Wrap It Up! through the tragedy of 9/11.
In 1999, Mandelbaum was donated 100,000 one pound boxes of pasta were donated to Rock and Wrap It Up! by Russo’s on the Bay in Howard Beach Queens. Mandelbaum’s friend Barry Mayer, President of Loeb and Mayer Wholesale Foods had a storage facility in which he had room to donate space to Rock and Wrap It Up! In the days and weeks following 9/11, there was a call for food donations to be given to Chefs who were cooking for the massive recovery and clean up teams. Mandelbaum contacted the City and was told to speak to Chef Boulee. Rock and Wrap It Up! then delivered the 10,000 pounds of pasta. Chef Boulee cooked millions of plates of food for another 8 months after the tragedy. The Tribute Dinner was poignant. When Warren began to sing his signature song Soul Shine, thunder and lightening lit up the sky behind him and could be seen through the glass windows of the room.

2005-04-14T08:15:00.000-07:00

President of the John F. Kennedy School of Politics at Harvard University and Former Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture Dan Glickman and Rock and Wrap It Up! CEO Syd Mandelbaum at United States Conference of Mayors annual meeting in Denver, CO, June, 2003.

2005-04-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

Dan Glickman and Syd Mandelbaum presenting to the Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee of the United States Conference of Mayors.

2005-04-14T08:09:00.000-07:00

Former Houston, TX Mayor Lee Brown. Mayor Brown co-sponsored the resolution supporting Rock and Wrap It Up! tactics. Brown serves on Rock and Wrap It Up!'s Advisory Board and works with the Mayors Initiative effort.

2005-04-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

Indianapolis, IN Mayor Bart Peterson, Chairman of the United States Conference of Mayors Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee who sponsored the resolution naming Rock and Wrap It Up! to help end hunger in cities.

2005-04-14T08:01:00.000-07:00

Fritz Edelstein and Syd Mandelbaum at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, CO. Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteers recover food from this arena to feed the hungry of Denver.

The Genesis of the Mayors Initiative

2005-04-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

In late 2002, Mandelbaum and Rock and Wrap It Up! received one of its most important phone calls. The possible implications could help RWU attain the goal of feeding all who hunger in the United States. Fritz Edelstein had left the U.S. Department of Education and took a position with the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) as Education Liaison to Cities. He asked Mandelbaum to come down to Washington to do a presentation to the USCM's Tom Mc Climon. Mandelbaum agreed and brought Rock and Wrap It Up! Board Member Bob Novello. They drove down and met with the USCM and had appointments with the National Hillel Foundation, and the National Association of collegiate Scholars. All the meetings were productive to help grow Rock and Wrap It Up! influence, but none more than the USCM. The meeting with the USCM answered questions about using RWU tactics to further feed the hungry. Two weeks went by and Mandelbaum was called by McClimon and Edelstein. A resolution was being crafted to be voted on at the National Meeting to be held in Denver, CO. Unbeknownst to Mandelbaum, there was a study just completed through the USCM and the results were devastating. There was a 9% grow in hunger in America from 1999-2002, and the Mayors of the USCM wanted to take action. In the resolution Rock and Wrap It Up! would be named as one of the agencies for cities to work with to help feed their indigent. It became a defining moment in the growth and direction of Rock and Wrap It Up! The organization would now be able to teach cities the successful tactics it had developed to help feed millions who hunger. The resolution would be presented through the Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee of the entire USCM. If it passed this group, it would have the support of the entire conference. Edelstein asked Mandelbaum to reach out to a rock star or supporter to introduce the resolution. Mandelbaum suggested Dan Glickman, the former Secretary of Agriculture and Director for the J.F. Kennedy School of Politics at Harvard University. He knew that the Kennedy School had a long relationship with the conference. Each Mayor was encouraged to attend a special two week "school" at Harvard through the J.F. Kennedy School Of Politics. Glickman was scheduled to fly to Denver to speak about the Kennedy School and he agreed to also address the A.P.E.S Committee about Rock and Wrap It Up!
The Committee was chaired by Bart Peterson, Mayor of Indianapolis. Mandelbaum attended a number functions on the first night he arrived in Denver. In the hotel, at the Texas Caucus, he met City of Dallas Administrator Mary Sohm, representing Mayor Laura Miller. He spoke to her at length about how Dallas could generate thousands of more plates of food by using Rock and Wrap It Up! tactics. Mandelbaum met the Mayor of Houston, Lee Brown. They spoke about the resolution as Mandelbaum heard that he was a member of the Committee. Brown said he would second the motion, which Peterson would make, putting it on the agenda. Brown had spent years in New York City as Police Commissioner before being called to join the Cabinet of President Bill Clinton as head of the D.E.A. Brown became instrumental in helping Mandelbaum launch the Rock and Wrap It Up! Mayors Initiative. He co-wrote a letter of introduction to the cities which would be contacted to offer to teach Rock and Wrap It Up! tactics and strategies.
On Saturday morning at the meeting of the Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee, Glickman followed by Mandelbaum presented Rock and Wrap It Up! tactics and strategies to the member Mayors. The A.P.E.S. Committee is the largest committee of the USCM and the discussion on the presentation was lively and supportive. After discussion they voted and approved the resolution to be presented for a full membership approval vote at the meeting on Monday morning June 8th 2003. Glickman and Mandelbaum were elated. It was exactly 22 years since Mandelbaum's epiphany in Jerusalem and exactly 61 year since the murder of his grandparents and family at Auschwitz.
There was much work to be done to launch the Rock and Wrap It Up! Mayors Initiative. Mandelbaum contacted Mary Sohm in Dallas and his Volunteer Regional Director Cristy Ecton. Cristy became a Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteer in 1996 after reading the article in Rolling Stone Magazine She had been one of the organizations most valued volunteers. Ecton worked as a blood bank administrator. In 2000, she joined the Peace Corp. and served for two years in Czechoslovakia, returning to the United States to volunteer again in Dallas. While in Europe she helped arrange food pickups and recovered food from a U 2 concert in Vienna. She met the same tour manager upon her return to Dallas while picking up food backstage from another U 2 concert there. Cristy worked with Mary and by December 2003, Dallas became the first city in America to implement Rock and Wrap It Up! tactics. The Mayors Initiative received additional support in March 2005. Mayor Manuel Diaz, the current Chairman of the Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee of the USCM sent out the follow letter to all Mayors in the United States:

Dear Mayor:
In 2003, the U.S. Conference of Mayors through the Arts, Parks Entertainment and Sports Committee guided by the leadership of Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson, endorsed the Rock and Wrap It Up! Program with a policy resolution in support of the program. This valuable program is geared to alleviating the hunger of those less fortunate members of our communities and serves their needs through safe, organized leftover food pick-up.

2004 was a year of innovation and successes for Rock and Wrap It Up. National support and partnerships with cities continue to grow. The programs strategies to combat hunger have been adopted by arenas and concert management teams throughout the country. Central to these strategies is that event contracts for activities taking place on our cities' properties, including sports and entertainment activities, include language that stipulates that leftover food from these activities will go to feed the hungry. The Rock and Wrap It Up program is a template to feed hundreds of millions more in our cities and represents the beginning of our potential to feed all those who suffer the effects of hunger.

The program has received major news coverage in The New York Times, Lifestyles Magazine, Venues Today and work continues to expand the Wrap It Up program with the organization of food recovery efforts at sporting venues and stadiums. Already the program has been implemented by the Detroit Tigers as well as the Texas Rangers in Dallas. The program continues to expand in Major League Baseball and is currently working with the New York Yankees for implementation at Yankee stadium. The Miami Heat is working to implement the program for the first food donations of the National Basketball Association. The New York Football Giants will be the first team in the National Football League to implement the Sports Wrap! program of clubhouse food recovery.
As Chair of the Conference's Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee I encourage you to support the program by including the programs suggested language in contracts related to appropriate public events and venues in your city. As we work for the inclusion of the template language in contracts for these activities as well as long-term leasing of arenas and other properties in our cities, we will significantly help alleviate the scourge of hunger in our cities that hold so much promise for our bountiful country.

Questions regarding the program and the rider can be directed to Syd Mandelbaum of Rock and Wrap It Up at (516) 295-0670 or via email at sydmandelbaum@worldnet.att.net

Sincerely,
Manny Diaz
Mayor of Miami
Chair, Arts, Parks, Entertainment and Sports Committee

2005-04-07T04:23:00.000-07:00

2002 Rock and Wrap t Up! Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne had donated, food, time and contributions to ensure the growth of the organization. Ozzy did the first TV interview by a Rock Star in 1995, Sharon was interviewed by the Boston Globe in 1996. Daughter Kelly Osbourne taped a Public Service Announcement with Sharon in 1998 through a grant by the Untied States Department of Agriculture.

2005-04-07T04:17:00.000-07:00

Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum, who's survived as teenagers, starvation through four years in Nazi Concentration Camps inspired founder Syd Mandelbaum to feed all who hunger

2005-04-07T04:13:00.000-07:00

Article in Pollstar with founding Rock and Wrap It Up! Tribute Dinner Honorary Co-Chairman, John Sykes, CEO of Infinity Broadcasting.

2005-04-07T04:10:00.000-07:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! 2002 Jay Magazine Award Winner, Chef Michael LoManaco has served on the Board of City Harvest to help feed New York's poor.

2005-04-07T04:08:00.000-07:00

2002 Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award winner, Syndicated Columnist Lis Smith with her guest, film producer Joel Schumacher sharing a moment.

2005-04-07T04:05:00.000-07:00

Darius Rucker, the lead singer of Hootie and the Blowfish, has been an important supporter of Rock and Wrap It Up! He performed at Pier 60 in NYC at the 2002 Tribute Dinner to honor the Awardees

Osbournes, Liz Smith and Michael LoManaco Help Rock and Wrap It Up! Grow

2005-04-07T03:54:00.000-07:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! had an active program in most major cities. In August 2002, Mandelbaum received a call from a reporter with Detroit Hours magazine wanting an interview. Mandelbaum suggested that he write about the Regional Director for the Detroit area, Greg Fletcher. Greg moved from New York to Detroit three years earlier and was a program manager for WGBN Superstation, out of Chicago. The article came out in the November issue of Detroit Hours Magazine and a dozen people called or e-mailed to become volunteers to help Greg.
It was a few months since 9/11, but Rock and Wrap It Up! Board of Directors began planning for a second Tribute Dinner. A new award was now in place, the Jay Magazine Award. The awardees for 2002 would be Chef Michael LoManaco receiving the Jay Magazine Award, syndicated columnist Liz Smith receiving the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award and Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne receiving the Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award. The committee selected Pier Sixty as the location for the event. Friend of Rock and Wrap It Up! Darius Rucker, lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish was the musical entertainment. MTV again took the lead in planning and designing the event. MTV VJ and newsman, Gideon Yago, would host the festivities.
Ozzy and Sharon were huge supporters of Rock and Wrap! They joined the organization in Europe while on tour in 1996 and started sending toiletries for distribution. In 1997, Ozzy was filmed for a program called Deco Drive in Miami discussing his work with Rock and Wrap It Up! In 1998, Sharon was interviewed in the Boston Globe about fighting hunger through Rock and Wrap It Up!. In 1999, Kelly and Sharon Osbourne were filmed for a video for distribution for schools, through a grant through the USDA. The month before the Tribute Dinner, the Osbournes informed Mandelbaum that they could not attend in person but would accept the award by video in Los Angeles. Sharon had privately started chemotherapy for colon cancer. The video which they made was shown at the Tribute Dinner. Liz Smith had written the first piece about Rock and Wrap It Up! in her column in 1995 which got a great response. She also supported hundreds of charities in her column, helping to raise awareness and funds. She was the recipient of the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award, given out by Abigail Emerson Gilhooley, daughter of the late Bill Emerson. Michael LoMonaco was the Head Chef at Windows on the World. He would have been killed on 9/11, but had to have an emergency repair of his glasses and was late getting to the breakfast event for the special event planners from the United Kingdom. He worked tirelessly for food recovery organizations including City Harvest and was a deserving recipient of the first Jay Magazine Award.
In 2003 Avril Lavigne, The Dead, Good Charlotte, managers signed their tours with Rock and Wrap It Up! Avril Lavigne and The Dead signed Certificates of Appreciation for Rock and Wrap It Up! in February of that year.

2005-04-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

Jay Magazine, Director of Catering of Windows on the World and Advisory Board member of Rock and Wrap It Up!

2005-04-05T07:34:00.000-07:00

Tom Freston, CEO of Viacom , with Dan Glickman, current President of the Motion Picture academy of America with Syd Mandelbaum, CEO and Founder of Rock and Wrap It Up!.

2005-04-05T07:31:00.000-07:00

Dan Glickman receiving his award from Abigail Emerson Gilhooley, daughter of the late Bill Emerson.

2005-04-05T07:27:00.000-07:00

MTV President Judy McGrath with Rock and Wrap It Up! CEO and Humanitarian Award Winner Leslie Leventman with Anna Devers Smith

2005-04-05T07:24:00.000-07:00

MC of the evening MTV newsman Gideon Yago

2005-04-05T06:50:00.000-07:00

Diane Mandelbaum, Mark and Bruce Becker, founders of Max and Mina's Gourmet Ice Cream at the Tribute Dinner. They helped organize the Help Lick Hunger Event at the Grammercy Park Hotel in 2000. In 2002 they were selected in the 50 most eligible men by People Magazine.

2005-04-05T06:45:00.000-07:00

An unknown Alicia Keys performs at the First Rock and Wrap It Up! Tribute Dinner. Her CD is released three weeks later and wins 5 Grammys.

2005-04-05T06:42:00.000-07:00

In Tribute to Jay Magazine

The First and last Tribute Dinner at the World Trade Center

2005-04-05T06:25:00.000-07:00

Mandelbaum met Magazine a year earlier at a fund-raiser for Rock and Wrap It Up! held at the Grammercy Park Hotel. Max and Minas Gourmet Ice Cream supplied the food for the event which was aptly named Help Lick Hunger. Bruce Becker, co-owner of Max and Minas with his brother Mark, came by the Rock and Wrap It Up! booth at Jones Beach Theater two year earlier and became a huge supporter. There were silent auction items donated by many supporters of the organization. Magazine was invited by Sheila Matefy, an employee of Viacom working as an event planner and a member of the Board of Rock and Wrap It Up! Matefy wanted Magazine to get active in the organization and thought the fund-raiser was a great place to meet the volunteers. Jay was married to Susan and had two children Melissa and Andrew. Melissa was a basketball player at her middle school and a fan of the NY Liberty. Mandelbaum met one of its stars, Rebecca Lobo six years earlier at an MTV Video Music Awards after party at Bryant Park. He arrived to recover the food with a crew. Ms. Lobo gave Mandelbaum her contact information and offered to help the organization. When Mandelbaum launched the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program in 1997, Lobo was one of the first sports stars to sign certificates of appreciation. When items for the fund-raiser were needed, Lobo arranged for a signed NY Liberty jersey to be donated to the event.
Magazine was high bidder and got the jersey for Melissa. He also became and integral member of the organization and offered to co-chair the first Tribute Dinner, which was held at Windows on the World.
The First Rock and Wrap It Up! Tribute Dinner was held on June 18th , 2001 at Windows in the World, on the 107th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Leslie Leventman, received the first Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award. Leslie , a Senior Vice President of Special Events at MTV Networks had joined the board of Rock and Wrap it Up! in 1996 and through her leadership, helped grow the mission of feeding all who hunger. Her devotion and professionalism helped feed millions. The first Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award was bestowed on Former Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman. The award is named after the late Congressman from Missouri, Bill Emerson. Through Emerson's vision, donors of food were covered from liability issues which had stopped billions of pounds of food from being recovered. Hundreds of millions of plates of food were now added to the tables of shelters and pantries through the passage of the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan act. The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award, given out by Abigail Emerson Gilhooley, daughter of the late Bill Emerson.
Under the leadership of Dan Glickman, dozens of more programs were implemented to serve the needs of the indigent. Glickman also was an early proponent of the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program and helped it grow.
MTV assisted in producing the Tribute Dinner. They suggested an unknown singer for the evening's entertainment. Alicia Keys performed for the over 400 in attendance. Her album was released three weeks later and 5 Grammys were garnered the following year. It was the most successful fund-raiser for Rock and Wrap It Up! to date and the organization was able to dramatically grow. It was also the last time most of the attendees visited the Twin Towers, provoking bittersweet memories of the evening. Jay Magazine did an amazing job making the dinner both informative and entertaining.
On September 11th 2001, Mandelbaum checked his bags at LAX at 5:30 am for a 7a.m. flight back to New York's Kennedy Airport. As he waited at the American Airlines counter after going through security, the announcement came that the flight was being delayed. Then, a cacophony of cell phones rang. Syd's wife called to say that a plane had just flown into the World Trade Center. That, Mandelbaum surmised was why the announcement came about the flight being delayed. Mandlebaum waited at the boarding area. Diane called back 15 minutes later to say that a second plane hit the second building. Within ten minutes Mandelbaum made a decision to leave the airport. He called Avis to see if he could get a car. He had just turned one in an hour earlier. He then called the hotel he just left to see if there were rooms available. They said there were. At about 6:45 am, an announcement came on to evacuate the airport. The only thing Mandelbaum had left to do was locate his bags. Many people just left without their belongings. Mandelbaum asked if any of the bags were coming off any carousels and he was directed to one. His bag was on a top of a pile of bags which were left unclaimed. Most of the baggage handlers had already left the terminal and the airport. It was just luck that his bag was visible and reachable by climbing the hill of baggage. Mandelbaum got a rental shuttle and his car was waiting for him. By then the news was reporting that a plane hit the Pentagon and another crashed in western Pennsylvania. The evacuation of LAX was on the way and Mandelbaum wanted to get as far a way as possible. He got on the freeway and drove to Amy Reiley's house after calling her. She would not let him go to the hotel yet. He stayed there and watch the drama unfold as he reached her home about 8:30 am.
Both buildings collapsed. Everyone was worried about Mandelbaum and phone service was swamped. Mandelbaum finally got through to his family and friends and assured them that he was fine. He immediately started to worry about Jay Magazine.
It took from Tuesday till Friday night for Mandelbaum to get a flight back to New York. He arrived on the first flight he could book; it was a flight of United Airline Pilots being flown to Kennedy from Los Angeles so that they could begin flying planes out of Kennedy. Mandelbaum arrived at 5:30 a.m. He and Diane cried.
While Mandelbaum was grounded in LA, Rock and Wrap It Up! board member Steve Bernstein was stranded in Mexico City. Bernstein and Mandelbaum spoke during the week. He had not heard from his older brother, Bobby, who worked for Cantor Fitzgerald. Bernstein was part of the younger pair of Bernstein twin brothers. He was sure his brother was dead. Bernstein finally got a flight to Dallas on Thursday and decided to drive back to New York. He arrived home Saturday.
To begin to have closure for the Magazine family, a memorial service was held at the Stephen Wise Synagogue on West 68th Street, New York off Central Park West. Mandelbaum was one of the speakers to eulogize Jay Magazine. Mandelbaum remembers the eeriness of not having a casket but to have one oil painting of Jay on an easel staring out with a wonderful grin to the thousand's who came to pay their respects. The painting was done four months earlier for Melissa's Bat Mitzvah. Mandelbaum decided to read a dozen of Jay's e-mails to him which described parts of his life which gave him joy, his wife, his children, friendships, working for Rock and Wrap It Up! It was one of the most difficult times for all who attended. There would be some closure six months, later when a casket was laid to rest in the ground, after DNA testing was successful.
In 2002 Creed, CSN&Y, Bob Dylan, Linkin Park, The Who, Usher, Brooks and Dunn, Paul McCartney, The Eagles, Phil Lesh, Korn, John Mellencamp and Alicia Keys managers signed up their tours to fight hunger. Usher signed Certificates of Appreciation for the Rock and Wrap it Up! School Program. Mandelbaum attended five winter regional conclaves with Pi Lambda Phi to get to all chapters to participate in College Wrap!, the university based food recovery effort. The cities were Miami, Ft, Wayne, Greensboro, Albany and Philadelphia. The College Wrap! Program was also growing through graduates of high school College Wrap Programs. In place were programs at University of VA, Biola College of Los Angeles, University of Pennsylvania and Duke. Hewlett Woodmere School District Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program had a program in place since 1997. in 1999, one of its student volunteers, Alan Schoenfeld, submitted the project to apply for a Coca Cola Scholarship from its foundation and won $25,000. He went to Yale University.

2005-04-03T05:04:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles Volunteers meet after work at Wm. Fox Theater at Fox Studios on September 10th 2001. This meeting and lecture saved Mandelbaum's life.

2005-04-03T05:01:00.000-07:00

Cal. Berkeley Pi Lambda Phi Chapter and friends receiving a powerpoint presentation on the College Wrap Program on September 8th 2001

2005-04-03T04:54:00.000-07:00

Pi Lambda Phi International Fraternity Selects Rock and Wrap It Up! as their partner on 47 college campuses throughout the US and Canada

College Wrap! Finds A New Audience and Saves A Life

2005-04-03T04:43:00.000-07:00

In September, 2000, Mandelbaum received an e-mail from one of his summer volunteers. Tal Hirshberg was a freshman at Duke University and was active in the Lawrence H.S. Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. He asked Mandelbaum if he could work to start a program in college. Mandelbaum reviewed scheduling and identifying shelters near the Duke campus. He also gave Hirshberg tips on how to approach the food purveyors for the school, which was Aramark. Within 2 weeks, the first College Wrap! Program was born. Food was picked up twice a week and Hirshberg recruited 4 others to help. That program was the spark for colleges to get on the band wagon.
Mandelbaum offered college students letter of reference for graduate school and employment. All graduate schools became much more competitive after the economy took a nosedive after 9/11/01. These letters became even more important to the admissions offices of medical, dental, law and graduate degreed programs. In 2001, the bands Weezer, Backstreet Boys, Eric Clapton, Madonna managers signed their tours with Rock and Wrap It Up! to help fight hunger.
Jeff Firestone read about Rock and Wrap It Up! in Rolling Stone Magazine in 1996 and contacted Mandelbaum about working Miami. Firestone owned a silk-screen printing company and immediately offered to print Rock and Wrap It Up! t-shirts at no cost. Mandelbaum required his volunteers to wear the shirts when picking up food and carry a laminated, numbered backstage passes. Firestone was delivering food from the Miami Arena to a shelter in downtown Miami. One of the directors of the program was Ezra Krieg. Firestone started delivering food from backstage in 1996. When the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program started in 1997, he approached and worked closely with Miami- Dade county Department of Education which began pressing their schools to donate food. In 2000, Mandelbaum received a phone from Ezra Krieg. Krieg was the Alumni Philanthropy Chairman of Pi Lambda Phi, an international Fraternity with over 40 Chapters in the United States and Canada. The Board of Directors of the Fraternity wanted to increase community services and felt that they wanted to partner with an organization to work with their chapters. Rock and Wrap It Up! along with 30 other organizations was asked to submit applications to compete for the honor and the potential expansion of their own programs through exposure. In April 2001, Mandelbaum received a call from Krieg informing him that Rock and Wrap It Up! was selected as a finalist for the community service partnership with Pi Lambda Phi. The Fraternity has an illustrious history. It was founded in 1895 at Yale University as the first Fraternity to include non- Protestants. Over the years its alumni would include, baseball great Sandy Koufax, Gold Medal Olympic Decathlon winner Rafer Johnson, ABA and NBA great Artis Gilmore, Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Spector, Baseball Commissioner Allan H. “Bud” Selig and the list goes on.
The only stipulation was that Rock and Wrap It Up! programs would be showcased at the Annual Meeting in Montreal Canada in July 2001 and be voted on by the representatives of the chapters in attendance. Mandelbaum arranged to do the presentation. Sheila Matefy, one of the Rock and Wrap It Up! board members volunteered to fly to Montreal to help with the presentation. Mark Fleming, the Montreal regional director before moving to New York, offered to turn a family visit to Montreal into a way to assist Mandelbaum in meeting the Chapter representatives. Fleming heard about Rock and Wrap It Up! through the Rolling Stone article.
Three other dynamic national programs were selected to present the work to the chapters; World Hunger Year, Share our Strength and National Coalition to fight Hunger and Homelessness. Rock and Wrap It Up! was going against great competition, anyone of which would have been a great partner with Pi Lambda Phi.
The Community Service Alumni Liaison for Pi Lambda Phi, Vince Marbury and Executive Director Alan Wunish had been to a Rock and Wrap It Up! Tribute Dinner in June 2001. They saw the organization first hand, how it operated, the support it had from strategic partners like MTV and Relix Magazine. The Tribute Dinner was held at Windows on the World, on the 107th Floor of the World Trade Center. MTV VJ and newsman Gideon Yago hosted the festivities. MTV Vice President Leslie Leventman was presented with the first Lena and Joseph Mandelbaum Humanitarian Award. Dan Glickman received the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Award. The entertainment for the evening was supplied by MTV, an unknown singer who they were showcasing over the summer named Alicia Keyes. The event was also highlighted by a video-produced by MTV about the organization. Its effect on the attendees was amazing. Its effect on the Pi Lambda Phi attendees, assured that quietly they would push for Rock and Wrap It Up! to partner with them. Little did anyone surmise the tragedy which would strike The World Trade Centers and Windows on the World less than three months later.
The decision was made by the chapters and unanimously Rock and Wrap It Up! was selected to partner with the fraternity. The Colleges would be encouraged to form College Wrap Programs. The brothers would also be recruited to do food recovery at concerts and arenas where Rock and Wrap It Up! did not have established volunteers. Mandelbaum traveled around the country with his staff and made presentations to the Chapters during their semi-annual conclaves. Mandelbaum’s first stop was the Pi Lambda Phi chapter at the University of California in Berkeley, Ca.
Mandelbaum had arranged to travel with his daughter Emily when she went back to college. She was entering her senior year at Stanford and had come back east for a short vacation. Mandelbaum realized that he could do a presentation to the Pi Lam chapter at Berkeley and arranged to get there on September 8th 2001. While on the west coast, Mandelbaum decided to fly down to Los Angeles on Sunday, September 9th to do a presentation to the Los Angeles Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteers and their Volunteer Regional Director Amy Reilly. Amy also set up a meeting at 2:00 pm on Monday, September 10th with Larry Vallon, Vice President of the House of Blues organization to discuss food recovery at their arenas throughout the United States and especially in California. A meeting was also set up that evening at Fox Studio’s, for Amy to use for their volunteers to show the video-tape MTV had produced for the Tribute Dinner and to hopefully get more volunteers. Both meetings, with House of Blues and the LA Volunteers went extraordinarily well.
The Director of Catering of Windows on the World, Jay Magazine,told Mandelbaum that he was going to a Special Event planners breakfast for event planners from England. Mandelbaum knew he would be away on the west coast but would have loved to have the opportunity to meet these people. Mandelbaum left on August 29 and was scheduled to return on September 11, 2001. Had Pi Lambda Phi not chosen Rock and Wrap It Up! to be their partner, Mandelbaum would have left for LA on Friday, finished his presentation and flew home. He would have attended the breakfast Jay had spoken about.
That breakfast, attended by Jay Magazine who normally never went into work before 11:00 am started at 8:00 am. The first plane crashed into the north Tower of the World Trade Center at 8.53 a.m. All those attending the breakfast were killed.

2005-04-01T03:29:00.000-08:00

After seeing CBS News segment, The American Dream, with Dan Rather, World Wresting Entertainment produces a Public Service Announcement featuring The Rock. This PSA is shown nationally on MTV and brings thousands of student volunteers to help fight hunger through The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program.

2005-04-01T03:22:00.000-08:00

Mandelbaum on CBS The American Dream March 1 2000 with Dan Rather. 50 million Americans hear about Rock and Wrap It Up! feeding the hungry

2005-04-01T03:19:00.000-08:00

Stone Cold Steve Austin signed Certificates of Appreciation for the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program

From Dan Rather to The Rock

2005-03-31T18:03:00.000-08:00

Media attention was something that Mandelbaum never went out of his way to find; it seemed to find him. In the summer of 1999, Mandelbaum received a phone call from Karen Daniels. She introduced herself as an Associate Producer of a TV show for a production company filming a special to be shown on FoodTV. Mandelbaum was intrigued by the phone call. He wanted to know how Daniels found him and called. Daniels lived in Knoxville, TN and was doing research for a special about what Rock Stars ate backstage when they traveled and who cooks for them. Daniels and the Producer, Jim Zarchin was doing background information with a number of stars at the Riverbend, the amphitheater outside Cincinnati, OH. They had already interviewed Sarah McLachlan and her chef. Opening up for Sarah was Hootie and the Blowfish. Their lead singer, Darius Rucker, had met Syd Mandelbaum the year before at Jones Beach Theater. Rucker told Daniels that no program on Rock Star food and backstage catering would be complete without a story on the amazing work of Rock and Wrap It Up!
Karen Daniels came to New York and interviewed, Mandelbaum, the volunteers at the Claddagh INN, the staff at Jones Beach Theater and the volunteers who donated their time to recover and deliver the food. Daniels wanted a Rock act to open the program. Mandelbaum contacted R.E.M. in Georgia and requested their cooperation. They agreed, and the program was shot and edited. They also put a link fpr motivated viewers to get in touch with Mandelbaum via the internet or phone. The program aired on FoodTV in January 2000. It was well-received but the section on Rock and Wrap It Up! was special. Karen Daniels had captured Syd Mandelbaum’s story of the genesis of the organization with incredible clarity and added poignancy by focusing on the relationship Mandelbaum had with his father, his parents holocaust experience and the epiphany which launched the need to change the world. It brought hundreds of e-mails which translated into more volunteers for Rock and Wrap It Up! and an important phone call from CBS News. An Associate Producer had seen the program and pitched it to Dan Rather. She called to ask Mandelbaum if he would accept the honor of being highlighted on the American Dream series that Dan Rather produced weekly. Mandelbaum was taken aback and agreed to accept. He realized that after six years of going backstage, the hundreds of volunteers now working with Rock and Wrap It Up! to feed the hungry needed to be recognized. This national exposure would help the continual lubrication of the backstage doors to the auditoriums, arena and stadiums across America for his volunteers. It could also add many more volunteers wanting to change their world by fighting hunger through Rock and Wrap It Up! The segment aired in March 2000 and was an immediate success. It stayed on the CBS website for over two years. The piece helped volunteers all over the country and reinforced how caterers and security people had pitched in to make an enormous difference. CBS Nightly News, with an audience of over 50 million viewers gave Rock and Wrap It Up! national exposure.
One of the people who saw the segment on CBS Nightly News was Andrea Denar of the World Wrestling Federation, (WWF). It soon became know as the WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment. After viewing the piece by Dan Rather, Denar knew that there must be a way for wrestling to help support the work of Rock and Wrap It Up! The next morning she found Mandelbaum’s phone number and called. She said that it might be possible to pickup food from WWE events but was there anything else that they could offer? Mandelbaum asked if the top wrestlers could sign certificates of appreciation to help honor students. Mandelbaum also questioned the possibility of any wrestlers to be video-taped for a public service announcement to help Rock and Wrap It Up! expand its School Program? She said she would get back to him.
The next week Denar called. Two of the hottest properties of the WWE, The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin had agreed to sign 100 certificates each for the School Program. The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) also agreed to tape a PSA if Rock and Wrap It Up! would supply the script. Mandelbaum agreed. Mandelbaum contacted one of the local Fire Marshals in the neighborhood and worked for the school district. Fire Marshall Brian Flax was also a huge wrestling fan and a bigger fan of The Rock. He agreed to help write the script in “Rock” language. Mandelbaum supplied the script and the PSA was shot in 15 second and 30 second format. The raw footage was given to Mandelbaum who arranged for one of his friends Ron Cesark and his assistant John Fletcher of Rivet Productions, to produce the PSA. It was a very successful PSA and is still shown on stations across the country.
Researching band tours was initially a challenge to Rock and Wrap It Up! In 1995, Mandelbaum wrote Pollstar in Fresno, CA about the work of the organization and Editor-in-Chief, Gary Bongiovanni, and Sales and Subscription Manager, Jeff Stone, came to give incredible support to the organization. Each year, Rock and Wrap It Up! was offered a ½ page ad to advertise to the band management or thank current bands for participating. Once a year, Stone would send a book with the private numbers to get to any band manager in the world. He also sent a current book of each venue and management contacts in every country in the world.
In 2000, blink 182, Jonny Lang, Smash Mouth, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera band managers joined Rock and Wrap It Up! Mark from blink 182, Smash Mouth and Britney Spears each signed Certificates of Appreciation for students who fought hunger through Rock and Wrap It Up! by starting food recovery programs in their schools. The School Program was beginning its third year and Mandelbaum was asked to conduct a workshop on food recovery efforts at the 2000 National School Boards Annual meeting in Orlando, FL. Fritz Edelstein represented the US Department of Education and Joel Berg represented the US Department of Agriculture. Newly appointed Executive Director Kathy Traystman presented the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. The workshop was a success, with over 50 school districts in attendance from across the nation.

2005-03-29T13:51:00.000-08:00

Kathie Stamou, Rock and Wrap It Up! Volunteer Regional Director for PA with Darius Rucker, lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards. Darius became of of Rock and Wrap It Up! staunchest supporters.

2005-03-29T13:46:00.000-08:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program featured in October 7th 1997, Time For Kids

2005-03-29T13:42:00.000-08:00

Peter Paul and Mary open the 1997 US Department of Agricultire Humger Summit. Rock and Wrap It Up! chaired workshop on School Food Recovery

2005-03-29T12:46:00.000-08:00

In September 1997, Mandelbaum was asked by Joel Berg from the USDA to chair a workshop for the National Summit on Food Recovery and Gleaning, A Call to Action. It was held in Washington DC at the USDA. Peter, Paul and Mary performed This Land is Your Land, Secretary of Agriculture introduced the Keynote Speaker, Vice President Albert Gore. The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program was presented by New York City Volunteer Regional Director Rachel Bayne. Bayne joined Rock and Wrap It Up! after seeing the first MTV spot in 1994.
In October 1997, The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program was highlighted in Time for Kids, a weekly reader for the Elementary Schools and In Time, a school magazine for middle school students. In October 1997 Mandelbaum was recognized by Mother Jones Magazine as Hellraiser of the Month.
In 1998, the tour managers for Santana, Styx, Alice Cooper, REO Speedwagon, Peter Frampton, Foreigner, Soundgarden, Phil Collins, Stone Temple Pilots, The Bo Deans, Metallica, The Wallflowers, Sheryl Crow, Fiona Apple, Counting Crows, U 2, Beck, No Doubt, The Lilith Fair, Boston, Ozz-fest, Supertramp, Jewel, Ani DiFranco, Fleetwood Mac, Janes Addition, Elton John and Billy Joel signed their tours to have leftover food recovered by Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteers. Jewel and Ani Difranco signed Certificates of Appreciation to help support the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. As a member of the Lawrence School Board, Mandelbaum applied to have the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program showcased at the service fair section of the 1999 National School Boards Annual Meeting. The presentation was accepted, and in May 1999, Syd and Diane Mandelbaum introduced the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program in San Francisco. It was well-received and highlighted in the NSBA monthly newsletter. The meeting in San Francisco brought another important leader into the organization. The United States Department of Education had a series of booths at the convention. Mandelbaum walked around the convention floor and invited many fellow conventioneers in booths to visit the Lawrence booth to hear about the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. At this point Mandelbaum met Fritz Edelstein, a director with the USDE. During a break, he came by the Lawrence booth and held and was told in-depth about the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. It intrigued him, not as much about the logistics, but where it had originated. Edelstein lived in Washington DC for twenty five years but was a geographic transplant. He was born in Woodmere, New York and attended and graduated from Hewlett High School. He was sold on the program! The relation with Edelstein would be fruitful for many years to come. Edelstein would stay with the USDE until 2002 and the move to the United States Conference of Mayors. Edelstein would play an important role in the establishing of the Rock and Wrap It Up! Mayors Initiative.
In 1999, Alanis Morissette, dcTalk, R.E.M., The Offspring, Journey, John Mellencamp, Cher, Bare naked Ladies, Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band and Bette Midler tour managers put Rock and Wrap It Up! in their contract riders. R.E.M. proved to be a huge asset to the organization. They allowed themselves to be shot for a TV spot for Rock and Wrap It Up! The Offspring signed Certificates of appreciation to help support the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program.

2005-03-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

Summit which launched the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program and College Wrap!

2005-03-27T20:44:00.000-08:00

Michael Boltan with Syd Mandelbaum, Founder of Rock and Wrap It Up! Boltan was one of the first bands to join Rock and Wrap It Up! in 1994. He introduced Mandelbaum to other performers at the Summit.

2005-03-27T20:42:00.000-08:00

LL Cool J interviews Oprah at the Summit for MTV News. LL Cool J signed Certificates of Appreciation for students who fight hunger through the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program.

2005-03-27T20:40:00.000-08:00

Mandelbaum explaining the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program to Sinbad and his brother Mark. Linda Shruggs, original School Program Adminstrator looks on. Sinbad signed Certificates of Apprciation for students who fight hunger through Rock and Wrap It Up!

2005-03-27T20:36:00.000-08:00

Tony Bennett performed at Summit

2005-03-27T20:35:00.000-08:00

Matilda Cuomo, wife of New York State Governor Mario Cuomo at floor of Summit

2005-03-27T20:30:00.000-08:00

Launching the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program, April 1997 in Philadelphia, PA at the Presidents Summit on Volunteerism with Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman.

The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program arrives

2005-03-27T14:36:00.000-08:00

Mandelbaum arrived by in Washington DC and went to the Department of Agriculture. His meeting with Joel Berg was brief, but pointed. The decision was that Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture and Syd Mandelbaum, founder of Rock and Wrap It Up! would announce a new initiative, The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program. Glickman knew that since 1991, the USDA had changed it’s policy requiring that there be a choice offered when serving food for the school lunch program. A choice meant that there would always be a leftover. Mandelbaum knew from his own school board experience that many school districts nation-wide averaged a 5-10% absenteeism rate. These ingredients together could potentially cook up a program that could feed millions more. Berg suggested a great venue and time to launch the program. Secretary Glickman was invited to The Presidents’ Summit For America’s Future, which was scheduled to be held in Philadelphia PA April 27-29 1997. Every living President participated in this summit to encourage involvement in the American experience of volunteerism. The theme of the Summit was: Mentor, Protect, Nurture, Teach and Serve. The Emcee of the event was Oprah Winfry. The entertainment included performances by Michael, Bolton, Tony Bennett, Sinbad, LL Cool J among others. Michael Bolton was one of the original groups who joined Rock and Wrap It Up! in 1994 and introduced Mandelbaum to the other performers backstage.
The Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program was launched jointly on the floor of the convention center at a press conference with Mandelbaum and Secretary Glickman. The goals of the program were to:
- Feed the indigent in the school-based community with leftovers from school lunch/food programs.
- Empower high school and middle school students to begin and grow Rock and Wrap It Up! School Programs
- Provide locations and contact people for shelters and kitchens if the school did not know of one
- Offer letters of reference and recommendation for students applying for college and employment
- Work with school nutrition coordinators to maximize their experience in providing information about nutrition to students
- Offer teachers hunger curriculum and lesson plans to discuss poverty and nutrition
- Encouraging volunteerism
The first school district to start a program in early May 1997 was the Hewlett/ Woodmere Public Schools, followed by the Lawrence Public Schools. Debrah Galimidi, a senior at Hewlett High School read about Rock and Wrap It Up! in Rolling Stone Magazine and had called Mandelbaum, not realizing that he lived 10 minutes from her home. She began volunteering to do food recovery with her friends and picked up food at Jones Beach Theater during the summer of 1996. Galimidi approached her school’s Food Service Coordinator, Emily Rein. Rein saw the merits of the program immediately. Her family always worked with the indigent through their church and Rein realized what a profound impact the Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program could have on the local community. The food was taken twice a week to the Five Towns Community Center in Lawrence, a 5 minute drive from Hewlett High School. Debrah and her friends took turns driving and the school cooperated. School employees picked up the leftover food from the middle school and brought it to the high school to save Galimidi a second trip. The Five Towns Community Center Executive Director was Jonathan Davis and the Director senior citizen’s program and Headstart program was Annie Reyes. Both understood the significance of having additional sources of food to assist the community using the services of the community center. Annie Reyes, a widowed mother of 8 children, began to offer families in need the food which was coming in with complete anonymity. Mothers and fathers would arrive in the late afternoon and take food for dinner for their families. The program did what it was supposed to do. And it flourished! Now, between Lawrence and Hewlett Woodmere schools, an at-risk community was being supported. This program continued to grow. In 1998, Hewlett Woodmere Public Schools and Lawrence Public Schools were awarded a Federal Food Recovery Grant through the USDA. The School Districts were awarded over $15,000 to purchase equipment and supplies, as well as develop a series of marketing and educational tools promoting food recovery efforts in schools. A total of $103,000 was given to thirteen school districts in an attempt to increase food recovery efforts by 33%.
Mandelbaum wanted to further honor the students who were changing their worlds for the better. He had access to the Rock Stars and decided that it would be appropriate to ask them to sign blank certificates with the Rock and Wrap It Up! logo. Mandelbaum then filled in the names of the students to be honored and gave the certificates to principals to give to the students at an assembly, school board meeting or graduation. He immediately received a hundred signed certificates from Dave Matthews, The Goo Goo Dolls and Anthony Kedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Many others would sign later. The Certificates were also used to honor donors who helped Rock and Wrap It Up! grow with financial backing.

2005-03-25T12:29:00.000-08:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! School Program can feed millions more.

Ozzy helps Rock and Wrap It Up! "clean up", YM motivates young volunteers

2005-03-25T12:09:00.000-08:00

Ozzy Osbourne was interviewed in Miami FL for a TV program called Deco Drive. “It either goes in the bin or it feed somebody, I would rather it feed somebody. I could put my head on my pillow tonight and know that I have done something to help someone.” Ozzy and Sharon became acquainted with Rock and Wrap It Up! by their management team Pat and Paul Chaverria. Sharon was later interviewed by the Boston Globe about the wonderful work of Rock and Wrap It Up! During the ‘Ozzy’ tour of Europe. the Chaverria’s had called Mandelbaum from Brussells. They had a wonderful idea. They asked if they could collect soap, shampoos and other toiletries which were unused from the hotels and inns they stayed at and send the items to Rock and Wrap It Up!? Within two weeks the first box was delivered. Sixteen boxes followed over the next six months, filled with soaps, shampoos, conditioners, hygienically sealed cotton balls ,Q-Tips and sewing kits. Labels were written in French, German, Dutch and English. Other than food, the most valuable other commodity that kitchens and shelters clamor for are toiletries.
Sue Shultz who wrote the great article about Rock and Wrap It Up! for the May 1996 issue of Good Housekeeping Magazine left to work for YM Magazine. A small article appeared in YM, December 1996 about going backstage to pick-up food at concerts. Over 600 girls between 10-15 years old, e-mailed Mandelbaum wanting to go back stage to do food recovery. This was not possible, but the outpouring of passion was not lost on Mandelbaum. As a former high school teacher, he had great respect for teenagers who wanted to change the world. Many of them needed direction, re-enforcement and an easy-to-accomplish goal. Mandelbaum was serving in his third three year term on the Lawrence Public School Board as Trustee. He spoke to the School Lunch coordinators in his school district and in a neighboring community, Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools. He found that schools were throwing out hundreds of pounds of food each week. Since catering is an inexact science and there was never a way to quantify attendance, there was potential to recover food from the school cafeterias. Food that was prepared but not served could be a great source to feed the hungry. Mandelbaum needed a way to match the passion of the young volunteers who contacted him with the leftover food in their prospective schools. He called Joel Berg at the United States Department of Agriculture and asked for a meeting. Berg obliged and a meeting was set in early 1997.
In 1997, AC/DC, Rod Stewart, James Taylor, Bush, Smashing Pumpkins, Neil Diamond, Tori Amos, Linda Ronstadt, The Further Festival, The Goo Goo Dolls, The Three Tenors, the Cure and Sting tour managers signed on with Rock and Wrap It Up! to allow recovery of their edible leftovers from back stage catering to be delivered to the needy.

2005-03-23T04:23:00.000-08:00

Republican National Committee joins Everyone Wins On Election Night! Through the efforts of Rock and Wrap It Up!, leftover food from President George W. Bush's Inaugaral Galas fed the hungry of Washington DC

2005-03-23T04:19:00.000-08:00

Democratic National Committee joins Rock and Wrap It Up!'s Everyone Wins on Election Night in 1996. It continues every congressional election year to heighten and spotlight hunger issues to all candidates for office as well as recover food from election night parties.

2005-03-23T04:02:00.000-08:00

Ambassador Phillip V. Sanchez became a life-long friend and advisor to Mandelbaum and Rock and Wrap It Up! Sanchez became the first Hispanic-American to service in a President's Cabinet in 1971 as Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity under President Richard Nixon.

Everyone Wins on Election Night!

2005-03-23T03:52:00.000-08:00

Mandelbaum established wonderful relationships with career politicians. His relationship with Ambassador Philip V. Sanchez is such as example. Mandelbaum had just graduated from Brooklyn College at the end of the summer session in 1972. By taking 18 and 19 credit semesters, he made up the two semesters he missed while serving in the United States Air Force Reserve and graduated on time. The 35th Medical Service Squadron was called to active duty and assigned to the Malcolm Grow Medical Center at Andrews Air Force Base, just outside of Washington DC. Mandelbaum was one of the few enlisted men with a college degree and when assignments were handed out, Sgt. Mandelbaum was assigned to the V.I.P. ward of the hospital. He was trained as a corpsman and he was needed to work the evening shift during his two week tour of duty. One of his patients was Mr. Philip V. Sanchez. Sanchez was in the hospital do to a kidney infection. As a member of President Richard Nixon’s cabinet, Mr. Sanchez received his care at the medical facility. Sanchez was the first Hispanic-American to hold a cabinet level post and one of the youngest at 42 years old. He was the Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, replacing Sergeant Shriver, who held in the position for many years. Sanchez took a liking to Mandelbaum immediately and spent hours talking about his life in Fresno CA. and Washington, DC. Mandelbaum shared his life stories with Sanchez and the evenings and work went quickly. One night during the evening shift, Sanchez asked Mandelbaum if he ever tasted tequila. Mandelbaum had not, so a bottle of El Toro was taken from a draw next to the bed and shots exchanged, with lime and salt. Mandelbaum was called out of the room by the head nurse and asked to go under the bed of a sleeping General and fix a problem with the electric bed. Sanchez noticed that Mandelbaum was not back quickly and walked into the sleeping General’s room and gently kicked Mandelbaum’s feet which were motionless and protruding from under the bed. He had manifested the full-effects of a first time tequila drinker. This thoughtful expression of friendship would be quietly spoken about between the two men for many years to come. Mandelbaum was saved from an embarrassing moment. When Sanchez’s hospital stay was over, they promised to stay in touch with each other and follow each other’s lives. Mandelbaum got married two months later. Sanchez left the Office of Economic Opportunity and was assigned to the White House. After two months he was named the American Ambassador to Honduras, a position he held for two years. Ambassador Sanchez and his wife, Juanita, gave so much back to the people of the countries they were assigned. He adopted a child in Honduras and another in Columbia which was his second Ambassadorship. When there was a devastating hurricane in Honduras in 1974, Mandelbaum was teaching at Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, NY. Mandelbaum helped raise funds through the student government at Lincoln H.S. and a check was sent to Ambassador Sanchez. The school was acknowledged with a certificate of appreciation. In 1975, with Nixon on his way out and Gerald Ford coming in, Sanchez was named American Ambassador to Columbia, a position he held until Jimmy Carter became President in 1977. Ambassador Sanchez went on to work as bank president with a number of banks and eventually became the publisher of Notica Del Mundo, one of the leading Spanish language publications in the country. Whenever Mandelbaum needed advice about working in the political arena, Ambassador Sanchez was his voice of reason and knowledge. Two of Mandelbaum’s mentors, Philip Sanchez and Paris Swoopes came out of his military experiences and contacts. Both were from minority backgrounds, both were successful and took Mandelbaum under their wings.
Over 75,000 pounds of food were collected nationally from the political parties. The Republican and Democratic Committees contacted their state chairs who delegated the job to their event planners who were working with caterers. All the contacts were sent to Mandelbaum and assignments were given out. This program was named Everyone Wins on Election Night and was conducted during each congressional year since: 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2004. In 2000, Rock and Wrap It Up! helped the Bush Inauguration teams direct leftover food from nineteen galas to soup kitchens around the Washington DC area. Congresswoman Caroline McCarthy of New York was the first elected official to arrange for leftovers from personal catering for her local staff to feed the hungry.

2005-03-21T08:42:00.000-08:00

Writer Duncan Moon interviews James Taylor for Chritian Science Monitor article on Rock and Wrap It Up!

2005-03-21T08:38:00.000-08:00

Writer Susan Schulz highlights the work of Rock and Wrap It Up! in Good Housekeeping and interviews Mary Chapin Carpenter. Many new volunteers call to work.

2005-03-21T08:35:00.000-08:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! launches Everyone Wins on Election Night in 1996. Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy is first politican to donate election night leftovers to feed the hungry.

2005-03-21T08:32:00.000-08:00

Costco loaned Rock and Wrap It Up! flatbed trucks to assist in the MTV VMA's food recovery efforts at Bryant Park, NY. Ex-UCLA basketball and NBA great Swen Nader wrote the piece as Community Outreach Vice President for Costco.

Rock and Wrap It Up! becomes a Media Darling

2005-03-21T07:43:00.000-08:00

The Rolling Stones article influenced other writers to do pieces on the work of Rock and Wrap It Up! In the May 1996 issue of Good Housing Magazine, Susan Shultz interviewed Mary Chapin Carpenter about the importance of food recovery. Shultz became a great friend in the media, writing many mores pieces about the work of Rock and Wrap It Up!
An article appeared in the April 1996 issue of Chronicle of Philanthropies by Domenica Marchetti. Another writer, Duncan Moon interviewed James Taylor for the Christian Science Monitor in the summer of 1997. All of these were done without a Rock and Wrap It Up! public relations person. Sometimes, a great idea needs very little pushing. With each article more volunteers came and more food was being recovered. Radio interviews followed. Mandelbaum was contacted in September 1996 by CBS Radio producers Dan Snyder and Eva Spiegel who worked for Charles Osgood. Rock and Wrap It Up! was highlighted on the Osgood File in December 1996. Costco Magazine highlighted Rock and Wrap It Up!. Mandelbaum began spreading the word of the organization internationally. He met Jeremy Jones, a British music promoter over the internet. Jones recovered food from an Aerosmith Show in London for his first pickup. Mandelbaum reached out to the World Food Bank in Rome and was introduced to the by phone to the United Nations Global Relief Agency. Mandelbaum met with Doug Coutts in NY representing the United Nations Global relief Agency and they exchanged strategies.
1996 proved to be a watershed year for Rock and Wrap It Up! The Allman Brothers Band, The H.O.R.D.E Festival Bon Jovi, Soul Asylum, Rusted Root, David Bowie Ozzy Osbourne, The Dave Matthews Band and The Red Hot Chili Peppers tours all signed with Rock and Wrap It Up! The media was beginning to pickup on the work of the volunteers and there were more interviews and articles. More cities were being opened.
Mandelbaum began to blue sky about how could Rock and Wrap It Up! could influence political and social change. He realized that like a rock tour, Election Nights festivities across the country were similar to rock concerts. The similarities were there; you knew in advance where the events were going to be held, contracts were signed with caterers and it was expected that there would be some leftover food at the end of the night. You could contractually obligate the leftover food not to be thrown out. All that was needed was to find a national tour manager. Mandelbaum did just that. He contacted the Democratic and Republican National Committees in Washington DC and was able to get Don Forman and Haley Barbour, the heads of their respective Committees to commit the food from the 1996 elections, nation-wide to Rock and Wrap It Up!

2005-03-20T04:31:00.000-08:00

Phil Rizzutto 1991

2005-03-19T08:49:00.000-08:00

While working with Phil Rizzutto and Bobby Mercer at Yankee Stadium, Rizzutto asked Mandelbaum measure the approximate spot on the facade in right field where Mickey Mantle hit a home run years earlier. Mandelbaum measured it to 456 feet from homeplate, 150 feet above the ground. It could have travel another 100 feet if it did not hit the facade. Mandelbaum worked with Tony Kubek and Jerry Coleman later in the season. They both asked for that measurement. At the Upper Deck Breakfast before the 1991 Old Timers game, Yankee legend Tommy Heinrich, who played with Mickey Mantle in 1951 told Mandelbaum a story where Mantle hit a homerun over 600 feet playing against USC in spring training in California.

2005-03-19T08:39:00.000-08:00

Working with Ralph Kiner and daughter Jill at Shea Stadium. Kiner had Mandelbaum teach a physics and earth science lesson on why homeruns travel further in warm, humid weather. Kiner was one of the most feared home run hitters for the Pittsburgh Pirates in his generation

2005-03-19T08:34:00.000-08:00

Mandelbaum worked with Ray Knight of ESPN Baseball and former MVP of the 1986 World Series Champs New York Mets. Knight had Mandelbaum measure a homerun hit 502 feet.Knight had hit it and had Shea groundskeepers measure with a tape-measure. The computer read the same measurement.

2005-03-19T08:19:00.000-08:00

Bringing use of computer imaging into baseball

2005-03-19T08:16:00.000-08:00

Homerun measurement introduced by Mandelbaum to MLB in 1991

Discoveries lead to inventions which changed the world

2005-03-19T08:07:00.000-08:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! was a small operation. Mandelbaum was now working full-time as a salaried scientist for the Coulter Corporation, selling expensive and hi-tech blood-analysis equipment to DNA and cancer researchers. Mandelbaum left his consulting position with CBRL at Harvard to work for Optech, a think tank in Princeton, New Jersey. At Optech in 1990-93, Mandelbaum developed medical and scientific applications using precise industrial micro-measurement system. He devised a mathematical algorithm which when used in a macro application using the same measuring system corrected for distances in baseball stadiums. He was one of the scientists to introduce homerun measurement to major league baseball. He spent the fall of 1990 and the spring and summer of 1991 showing his measure system to Major League Baseball. Mandelbaum did demonstrations at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, Shea Stadium and Yankee Stadium in New York. Seventeen different American and National League teams were shown the system and used it from their broadcast booths to enrich viewer and listener game appreciation. He introduced digital measurement to the teams in the NFL and NBA. In November 1992, working with CBS Sports and its top producer Chuck Wills, Mandelbaum introduced golf drive measurement at Greg Norman’s Franklin Funds Shark Shootout at the Sherwood Country Club in Agora Hills CA.
For the medical community, he also helped develop new techniques to measure the thickness of the lining around an unfertilized egg, the Zona Pelucida. This new application, used in In Vitro Fertilization helped thousands of infertile women conceive babies. In 1993, Mandelbaum was recruited by the Coulter Corporation. Coulter was one of the first companies to introduce electronic blood analysis and laser flow cytometry. After leaving Baxter in 1983, Mandelbaum was recruited by Johnson and Johnson’s Ortho Division which marketed laser flow cytometer systems to be used for cell analysis and DNA measurement. Mandelbaum was very successful and was named Salesman of the Year in 1984 and Regional Manager of the Year in 1986. He went on to become acting National Sales Manager before the division was divested in 1987. Coulter was a direct competitor to Johnson and Johnson. Mandelbaum was wooed away from Optech by the same sales man who Mandelbaum had bested 9 years earlier.
Mandelbaum traveled for Coulter and his travels became opportunities to recruit more volunteers to work with Rock and Wrap It Up! He was spending 20-30 hours a week growing the organization while working 40-50 hours for Coulter. Thousands were being fed. Mandelbaum wanted to feed millions.

2005-03-17T03:59:00.000-08:00

Friend of the organization Jann Wenner helped Rock and Wrap It Up! grow. The "Second Helpings" piece brought over 500 inquiries on how to join in the fight to feed the hungry. It also helped many writers pitch stories to their editors. In 1996, follow-up stories soon appeared in main stream media ie: Good Housekeeping, Christian Science Monitor and The Chroncile of Philanthropies.

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Phil Lesh on bass, Nassau Coleseum, 1990, Phil would tour as Phil and Friends after Garcia's death and continue the legacy of great music and a deep connection to Rock and Wrap it Up!

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The Grateful Dead join in 1995

The Dead connect Rock and Wrap It Up! to Newman's Own

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Many of the band managers using Rock and Wrap It Up! language in their riders went on to manage other bands and tours. The tour manager of Nine Inch Nails became the tour manager of Page and Plant, U 2, then Ozzy Osbourne. Each time he went from band to band, he took the concept of food recovery with him and included it in each new rider. Each performer agreed to participate. In 1995 Rock and Wrap It Up! added Page and Plant, Van Halen, Melissa Ethridge, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Queensryche, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Grateful Dead, Bonnie Raitt, Beastie Boys and Pearl Jam to their list of donors. The incorporation was completed and Mandelbaum was named President, David Angelo Allen an African–American inventor from Tacoma, Washington was vice president and Brenda Camarillo a Mexican American telephone worker from San Antonio, Texas was Vice President. Both Allen and Camarillo saw the MTV piece that aired 1994 and began setting up food recovery organizations in their regions of the country.
In the summer of 1995 the Grateful Dead performed what would be their last tour with Jerry Garcia, who died before the summer ended. Mandelbaum sat in good seats provided for him by Dead Management and in front of him was a woman with a child. Another volunteer was doing the food pickup so Mandelbaum was able to relax and enjoy part of the show. At intermission, the woman struck up conversation about the Rock and Wrap It Up! shirt and logo Mandelbaum was wearing. Mandelbaum told her what Rock and Wrap It Up! did and that someone was picking up food from the concert to feed the hungry. She asked him to contact her the next day. As coincidence and fortune would have it, she was Darice O’Mara the personal assistant to Paul Newman and Jo Anne Woodward. She was so impressed with the premise of the organization and its simplicity that she encouraged Mandelbaum to apply for a grant from Newman’s Own Foundation and forwarded the information that Mandelbaum sent to Paul Newman. On the day of the second night of Chanukah, 1995 an envelope arrived addressed to Syd Mandelbaum and Rock and Wrap It Up! In it was a check for $10,000. Mandelbaum, who had been in dire need of funding for the organization, cried. It was the best Chanukah gift he had every received. He knew that it was also his father’s birthday, which was celebrated on the second candle each year, since the day of his birth in 1922. Newman’s Own brand of products is one of the largest donors to new charities in the world. Rock and Wrap It Up! would now be able to continue growing.
The summer of 1995 was important to the growth of Rock and Wrap It Up! Mandelbaum met Jann Wenner a year earlier and Wenner was interested in helping Rock and Wrap It Up! grow. Wenner knew that Mandelbaum had a relationship with former Rolling Stone writer Dave Marsh and former editor Jim Henke through the Nassau County Human Rights Conference. He also knew the relation with his former CFO Les Zeifman. He assigned one of his staff writers, Eric Boelhert, to interview Mandelbaum and write a piece for the magazine. In late December 1995, the article ‘Second Helpings’ appeared. Mandelbaum received over 400 responses to the article and added 30 more volunteers throughout the country. More importantly, many other writers read the article and stories began to be pitched to other editors.

2005-03-15T08:34:00.000-08:00

In front of the Anastasia display of Mandelbaum's scientific papers, Steve Bernstein, Publisher, Relix Magazine and Rock and Wrap It Up! Board Member at the opening of The Genes We Share at the Dolan DNA Learning Center.

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October,1994 Anastasia Mystery Solved. First use of DNA to solve a historical murder case.

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Dr. James Watson at the 2003 opening of "The Genes We Share" exhibit at the Dolan DNA Learning Center in Cold Spring Harbor.

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In 1983, Elie Wiesel and Syd Mandelbaum in Washington DC attend a workshop on videotaping Holocaust survivors and camp liberators, which Mandelbaum chaired. They would stay lifelong friends.

Fighting hunger and Genetics do mix!

2005-03-15T06:32:00.000-08:00

Rock and Wrap It Up! immediately applied for 501 C 3 status as a recognized charity and began incorporating in New York State. Helene Frank Orescan volunteered her legal skills, pro bono, to help get 501 C 3 status and incorporate the organization. She was a family friend of the Mandelbaum’s and Rock and Wrap It Up!
Years earlier while in law school, Orescan had volunteered to help Mandelbaum research material for a book on the forensic uses of DNA. While working as a consultant for the Center for Blood Research at Harvard Medical School, CBRL, Mandelbaum decided to introduce DNA testing to the layman by writing a book about historical cases where the use of DNA could give final closure.
The consulting organization Odyssey Biomedical Corporation, which Mandelbaum consulted for, had taken Harvard on as a client to help market their services. Mandelbaum arranged a meeting with one of the lead research scientist from the lab, Dave Bing and Linda Fairstein, Assistant District Attorney for the Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau. Mandelbaum worked with Bing years earlier when they were both with Johnson and Johnson’s Ortho Division. Mandelbaum was hoping to have the lab (CBRL) do blood analysis for the criminal trials out of the Manhattan District Attorneys office. Through the plethora of newspaper articles, Mandelbaum was familiar with the Central Park Rape case and felt that they could be of assistance. The presentation to Linda Fairstein went very well but ultimately, the District Attorney’s Office choose to use the labs of the Federal Bureau of Investigation instead. Mandelbaum also helped organize the first DNA roundtable discussion with the District Attorney of Boston John Flanagan. They in turn used the researchers at CBRL for much of their genetics testing; Mandelbaum organized the first DNA roundtable for District Attorneys in New York City. Representatives came from each borough’s Office of the District Attorney’s crime unit which investigated murders and rapes. Now friend of Mandelbaum, future best-selling author Linda Fairstein came to the discussion as ADA of the Manhattan office.
Mandelbaum maintained 2 residences at this time., Thursday to Sunday in Cedarhurst, Monday through Thursday in Lexington MA. Lexington, his friend and mentor, Elie Wiesel had arranged for him to rent space in the home of his assistant, Martha Hauptman. Mandelbaum needed to establish residence in Massachusetts for his position with Johnson and Johnson as a regional manager. Hauptman was Wiesel’s full-time assistant at Boston University. Divorced, with two sons away at college, she had renters in the house. Mandelbaum will always be indebted to her for helping the Mandelbaum Family. Wiesel taught classes at Boston University and lived in New York and New Jersey. During this time, Wiesel was awarded the Noble Peace prize. He had befriended Mandelbaum during Mandelbaum’s work of introducing the video-taping of Holocaust Survivors and Camp Liberators. The importance of that project grew with time, as the only eye-witnesses to the Shoah began to die out. Mandelbaum lived in Hauptman’s house for 2 years.
Helene Frank Orescan researched both the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping and the Anastasia Romanov mystery. Mandelbaum wanted a sensational case to teach about DNA to the layman and felt both of these had that quality. He thought that the Romanov case would be harder to solve but a series of events fell in his lap.In October, 1994, Mandelbaum, as a scientist became world-famous for heading the American Team which solved the Anastasia mystery, disproving the relationship of Anna Anderson Manahan of Charlottesville, Virginia to the Czar and Czarina Nicholas and Alexandra Romanov. Mandelbaum acquired access to follicular hair samples from a hairbrush used solely by Anna Anderson Manahan. Mandelbaum arranged to have DNA genetic sequencing tests conducted at the Department of Genetics Anthropology at Penn State University. The testing showed no genetic match to the bones which had been unearthed and tested in Russia of the Czarina Alexandra. The case became the yardstick to which all other historical cases were compared to. Mandelbaum consulted on the Thomas Jefferson Case, solved by a pathologist who read about Mandelbaum’s work in a local newspaper, The Cville Weekly in Charlottesville, Virginia where Jefferson and Anna Anderson Manahan, the woman who claimed to be Anastasia lived hundreds of years apart. One of the Jeffersons had relations with the slave Sally Hemming, who worked on the Jefferson plantation. The historical significance of the solving of the Anastasia mystery was introduced by Prosecutor Marcia Clark during her opening remarks during the OJ Simpson trial. Mandelbaum’s influence was also felt on the defense side. In 1988, while working as a consultant at the Harvard Medical School’s Center for Blood Research, Mandelbaum met and spoke with Alan Dershowitz. Dershowitz was a Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and was keenly interested DNA forensic testing which he felt would have great impact on the law. Dershowitz was introduced to Mandelbaum through their mutual friend, Eli Wiesel.
The head of the lab at the Department of Genetic Anthropology at Penn State University, Dr. Mark Stoneking did the genetic sequencing for Mandelbaum on their sequencer. Stoneking would go on to become famous for his work solving the Jesse James mystery, which later aired on Nova as an educational documentary. Mandelbaum had sought Stoneking out after reading about his genetics work linking a 5000 year old primitive man found frozen in the glaciers of the Italian Alps to the village which still exists in the valley below. Stoneking did exquisite work and Mandelbaum felt that his results would stand the scrutiny of history.
In April 1995, Mandelbaum was asked to be a guest lecturer at Cold Spring Harbor Labs to discuss his solving of the Anastasia Mystery. Little did he know that in the audience was Dr. Robert Muratore. Dr. Muratore was the son-in-law of Reverend Harry Bentar, assisent Pastor at Trinity Saint Johns Church in Hewlett, NY, who volunteered with Mandelbaum and served as his vice president of the Claddagh INN Soup Kitchen in Rockaway Queens New York. Reverend Bentar had told Muratore about Mandelbaum’s DNA work and Muratore wanted to hear the talk. He was working at the time at the Cold Spring Harbor Learning Center. Dr. Muratore, who was trained as a physicist in Rocket Science, donates his time to Rock and Wrap It Up! He setup and maintained their internet site. It is a task he still continues after 10 years.
Mandelbaum eventually donated his scientific papers on a long-term loan basis, to his friend, Noble Prize winning scientist Dr. James Watson. Years earlier, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory acquired from Johnson and Johnson a unique double-laser cell sorter for its cancer and genetics work, and Mandelbaum met and worked with Watson. Watson helped Mandelbaum by introducing him to Cold Spring Harbors Assistant Director Dr. Jan Witkowski. Witkowski pointed Mandelbaum in the the direction of solving the mystery if he could acquire follicular hair which is what he ultimately did to solve the mystery. Knowing the historic relevance of Mandelbaums donation, Watson had encouraged the Dolan DNA Learning Center at Cold Spring Harbor to construct an exhibit to use the case to teach young scientists about DNA testing. The exhibit The Genes We Share opened in September 18, 2003, with Mandelbaum's work now displayed to educate and motivate future young scientists. Years earlier to commemorate the Anastasia project, Mandelbaum had a DNA double helix tattooed on his upper calf. At the exhibit opening, he approached Dr. Watson to sign the double-helix on his leg which Watson gladly obliged him. Later that evening, Mandelbaum had the signature permanently tattooed on his calf, right next to the double helix.

2005-03-13T05:14:00.000-08:00

James Wooley, keyboardist Nine Inch Nails loads food from MTV Video Music Awards Party in Bryant Park, NY, 1994

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Hornsby playing with Bob Weir of The Dead in Forest Hills Stadium

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Bruce Hornsby becomes Rock and Wrap It Up! National Spokesperson ,1994

Bruce Horsnby and MTV buy in

2005-03-13T04:39:00.000-08:00

In the summer of 1994, Mandelbaum began planning for the launch of Rock and Wrap It Up! He met with band managers over the past three summers and decided to reach out to them as they played Jones Beach during the summer of 1994. Eight bands initially agreed to put a sentence in their rider which would designate that leftover backstage food could not be thrown away but would be recovered to feed the hungry in each city they played. The Rolling Stones, Aero smith, Phish, Michael Bolton, MegaDeth, Bad Religion, CandleBox, and Bruce Hornsby. Nine Inch Nails joined later that summer. Mandelbaum told each manager that he would need a letter from the band which he could send to volunteers so that they could resolve security issues at the venues. Mandelbaum would find volunteers across the country and could not guarantee how many cities he could pickup from, but it was a good start. (Rock and Wrap It Up! would eventually grow to over 5,000 volunteers throughout the United States and Canada.) Even if only a few cities would participate, the amount of people potentially fed with wonderful quality, chef prepared food was staggering.
When Bruce Hornsby came back to play Jones Beach in the summer of 1994, Mandelbaum knew it was time to discuss Hornsby offer from years before. Rock and Wrap It Up! needed the voice of a musician who was articulate, passionate and well-respected in the music community. Hornsby was that voice and a Deadhead besides! Mandelbaum discussed with Hornsby the responsibilities, which were few and the time needed which was negligible. Hornsby accepted the position of National Spokesperson. Now was the time launch nationally.
Syd Mandelbaum decided that the best audience to reach out to would be music aficionados who could volunteer and donate 1 to 4 hours per month in the evenings to drive to where the band was playing, pick up the food, deliver it and be home in about one hour. Internal logistics needed to be handled to offer volunteers information on where to deliver the food they recovered if they did not have their own contacts. Mandelbaum was concerned about safe food handling and how to instill these concepts into a wide audience.
Mandelbaum had used the connections he developed while serving on the board of Long Island Cares to reach out to the US Harvest, a coordinating organization for foodbanks. They sent Mandelbaum a list of their foodbanks throughout the nation. Mandelbaum reached out to Food Chain, a coordinating organization for perishable food recovery programs and they sent contacts in their participating cities. Mandelbaum also contacted Chef and Child, an organization which taught seminars and developed video-tapes on safe food handling. Now everything was in place to get volunteers and give them the information and education they needed to recover food safely.
Mandelbaum had given MTV an exclusive on Branford Marsalis talk at Hofstra University in 1992. They covered it and broadcast it during their news segment. Mandelbaum contacted Kurt Loder and pitched a piece on this new organization, Rock and Wrap It Up!, which would be feeding people with backstage leftovers and would have the biggest names in music connected with it. Loder agreed and on Labor Day weekend starting September 2nd, 1994, a two minute segment was broadcast on national cable television. Phone calls began almost immediately and Mandelbaum was able to weed out those who just wanted backstage access as compared to those who were altruistic. If someone wanted to see a band play or meet celebrities, this would not lead to either. Volunteers picked up the food and left with it. They also realized that the only people they would see would be security guards, caterers and a rare roadie. They would feed anywhere from 50-200 people at a shelter with the food recovered from backstage.
Because of a glitch in on-screen graphics, MTV agreed to run the piece the following weekend as well. Mandelbaum contacted a friend who printed tee-shirts. Every person who went backstage had to have a laminated, numbered name badge and a Rock and Wrap It Up! shirt to they could be identified. Backstage security personnel were not full-timers and it was important for volunteers to be easily identified and establish relationships with many people. Familiarity was the key and a noticeable logo and catchy statement were necessary. The phrase Hunger Happens was placed over the logo on front of the shirt. The back read Rock and Wrap it Up! Serving the needs of the hungry by leftover food pickup and delivery.
Since deciding to leave teaching, Mandelbaum worked since 1976 in the world of high tech and high end medical science. His career started detailing pharmaceuticals to physicians and proceeded into genetics, DNA and cancer research. The internet was introduced to Mandelbaum in the early 1980s when it was used for communications by the U.S. Navy researchers at Bethesda Naval Hospital and the National Institute of Health. It would be years before it would be the daily communications tool of the masses. Mandelbaum already had an e-mail address and Rock and Wrap It Up! became one of the first internet-based charity. Mandelbaum used a land line for the first MTV piece and his phone was busy for the entire month of September. Ten cities were organized to begin food recovery and Rock and Wrap It Up! was launched.
The president of MTV, Judy McGrath, saw the piece and immediately called her Director of special events Leslie Leventman. Leventman was an original staff member with MTV and her group was the creative arm of the Network coordinating catering for all events nationally. The Video Music Awards were held in September and always generated leftover food which was discarded. The invited guests never ate much of the gourmet entrees, as there were snack food, drinks and entertainment. The leftovers were offered to Syd Mandelbaums Rock and Wrap It Up! through Beth Smith, Leventman s assistant. That year the event was Thursday night September 8th. Volunteers would be needed to work from1:30 to 3:00 a. m. Mandelbaum asked friends and employees of the local bakeries and bagel stores he developed relationships with if they were available to volunteer their time to help recover food from the MTV party. Natalie Mayo was a cashier at Zomicks bakery which donated breads and cakes to Mandelbaum and a college student at Brooklyn College. Sheryl Thomas was a catering assistant for Kitchen Magician, the caterer at Jones Beach Theater. Both agreed to go with Mandelbaum to the party. As Mandelbaum did not know what was in store, he viewed this first pickup as a pilot project to learn from. Mandelbaum had some experience with massive pickups at Jones Beach Theater. The second night of the Second Annual Lollapalooza concert was cancelled after lighting and severe storms moved in in August 1982. Mandelbaum and his volunteers recovered over 600 pounds of food which went directly to the waiting refrigerators of the Claddagh INN. That concert featured the Red Hot Chili Peppers with Pearl Jam, Sound Garden, Ice Cube, Ministry and Jesus and Mary Chain as some of the secondary acts.
The MTV Video Music Awards after party, where the food would be available, was held at Bryant Park; security was tight and arrangements were made for Mandelbaum to drive in with his van. After arriving at 1am, Mandelbaum and the volunteers mingled with the crowd. The entertainment was a Russian band called the Leningrad Cowboys. At about 2:30 a.m., Beth Smith said the food was ready to be picked up. It was wrapped in foil and each one of 100 trays was in a tent in the middle of the park, clearly a logistic nightmare for the three fledgling Rock and Wrap It Up! volunteers. Mandelbaum realized that he could not take all of the food, nor could he, Mayo and Thomas move them all. He quickly asked for both girls to use their wile and charm and try to recruit some able-bodied men to help. Within five minutes they come into the tent with two men and started filling the van. They worked for one hour and completely filled the vehicle. They loaded over 70 trays into the van. Fourteen hundred pounds of food, enough for over three thousand plates of food were recovered. One week was taken care of at the Claddagh INN.
One of the new volunteers was James Wooley a keyboardist for Nine Inch Nails. The band had a gig in Cleveland that evening and came to the party right from the airport. They had been nominated for Band of The Year. Trent Reznor, the leader of the band, saw Wooley carrying trays, came over and asked if he and some of the other band members could eat as they missed dinner. They ate out of the back of the van. James Wooley stayed friendly with Mandelbaum and Reznor put Rock and Wrap It Up! in their rider for future tours. Reznor once demanded that $300 be sent to Rock and Wrap It Up! from the Miami Arena when food was not saved for Rock and Wrap It Up! from a show there. The other volunteer was Ralph Cirella. Cirella worked as a hair dresser in the entertainment industry. He was known nationally as Howard Sterns best friend and was often a guest on Howards national morning radio show. Rock and Wrap It Up! finished its first major food recovery effort, fed thousands, and made new friends in the entertainment industry, solidifying its growing friend ship with MTV.

2005-03-11T07:08:00.000-08:00

Melba Tolliver, First Afro-American Anchor Woman for ABCNational News, 1995 Human Rights Awareness Day Key Note Speaker at Hofstra University

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Saxophonist and 1992 Human Rights Awareness Day Keynote Speaker Branford Marsalis at Hofstra University

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Al Franken, Saturday Night Live writer,actor ( and Deadhead) keynote speaker 1991 Human Rights Awareness Day Conference at Hofstra University. Human Rights Commssioner Syd Mandelbaum and Nassau County Commssion on Human Rights Executive Director James Rice.

Broadening the foundation of Rock and Wrap It Up!

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One night in the summer of 1991 at Jones Beach Theater, Mandelbaum arrived early for a food pickup. Herb Robinson invited Mandelbaum a chance to play basketball, with him. When Mandelbaum arrived at 6:30 pm, the backstage court was taken and Herb was busy. Bruce Hornsby and the Range were opening for Bonnie Raitt that night. Mandelbaum previously met Hornsby backstage at Dead shows and they recognized each other. He was playing with his drummer John Mollo and a young black man with a good outside shot. They asked Mandelbaum to play to make it a two on two game and Syd played with John against Bruce and the other player. History and Mandelbaum, do not recall the outcome of the games, but the other player was Branford Marsalis. After playing, they all sat down for water and Mandelbaum described what he was doing at Jones Beach, picking up leftover food. Hornsby said if he could ever be any help, please let him know.
Branford Marsalis came from a middle class family, educated in Catholic private schools in New Orleans. His father, Ellis, was a music teacher and all of the Marsalis children were encouraged to play. Branford played sax, Winton played trumpet, Defayo played piano and Jason played drums. Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead developed a friendship with Marsalis and he was asked to play with the Dead when they were in the same city. Garcia loved to jam and the band always played, in their second set, a signature experimental section. When Garcia knew Marsalis was visiting, the band would go into their song Dark Star with Branford playing a haunting tenor sax.
As coincidence would have it, Mandelbaum and Hornsby were huge Deadheads when they were teenagers. Hornsby shared with Mandelbaum what a great thrill it was playing with the Grateful Dead and he would do a song that evening. He then turned his attention to Marsalis. Mandelbaum told him about the Human Rights Conferences and asked if he would be their 1992 Keynote Speaker and Marsalis agreed. The Grateful Dead connection had already led to another Keynote Speaker. Mandelbaum met Al Franken at a Grateful dead Show in the fall of 1990 and Al Franken was the 1991 Keynote Speaker at the Human Rights Conference.
When it came time for Marsalis to speaker at Hofstra University at the 1992 Human Rights Awareness Conference, Mandelbaum wanted to get additional coverage. He remembered his friend Kurt Loder at MTV and made the call. MTV gave the event ample coverage. The linkages that Mandelbaum was forming would have great importance as Rock and Wrap It Up! and its vision grew. Mandelbaum saw that famous personalities could help carry the message, whether in human rights issues or later addressing hunger. The Executive Director of the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights, James, Rice and Associate Director Lumell Dawson saw the merits of the program. In 1992, the Nassau County Human Rights Awareness Day program for high school juniors won the National Association of Counties Achievement Award. The program still attract Keynote Speakers such as Cambodian Genocide Survivor Dith Pran, the first national African-American Anchorwoman, ABC’s Melba Tolliver, Third Bass vocalist and rap star MC Serch. Mandelbaum was harnessing the star-power to help facilitate change in local Nassau County communities. It would become a model for his hunger relief work.

2005-03-09T18:29:00.000-08:00

Jim Henke, former Editor of Rolling Stone, addressing, as keynote speaker, the 1989 Human Rights Awareness Day Conference Day at Hofstra University. Henke is now chief curator of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, OH.

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Bill Graham, child survivor of the Holocaust at The Harry Chapin Tribute at Carnegie Hall, 1987

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Dave Marsh, former Rolling Stone writer and biographer of Bruce Springsteen was keynote speaker at the 1988 Human Rights Awareness Day Conference at Hofstra University

Bill Graham, almost video-taped

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Mandelbaum’s video-taping experiences included reaching out to Bill Graham. Graham was a child survivor of the Holocaust and was rescued as a child traveling through Europe with his sisters. They were able to escape to London and eventually arrived in New York in the 1950’s. Graham’s assistant in San Francisco was Jan Simmons and Mandelbaum tried to coordinate a time when they could video-tape Graham. Simmons would later join the Grateful Dead Management Team, after the tragic death of Bill Graham in a helicopter accident. Bill Graham had acomplete collection of Fillmore East and West programs in a warehouse in San Francisco. Sadly, an arsonist, who was also anti-Semitic torched the building. After hearing about the collection’s destruction, Mandelbaum sent a program from the late 60’s from the Fillmore East, the auditorium which had given him more pleasure as a youth.
Mandelbaum initially met Bill Graham at a concert at Carnegie Hall on Monday December 1st 1987. They discussed Mandelbaum’s first concert at the Fillmore East, when he saw The Doors perform in March 1968. Mandelbaum had reminded Graham of a music video which opened the second act featuring The Doors first performance of The Unknown Soldier. Graham said that they never found the video, which could have been shown on MTV in the present day. The Harry Chapin Tribute was organized to give Chapin the Medal of Honor post-humously. Sandy Chapin invited Syd and Diane Mandelbaum to the concert which featured assorted artists performing Harry Chapin’s music. Harry Bellefonte was host and emcee. Sandy Chapin introduced Mandelbaum to Dave Marsh, a former writer for Rolling Stone Magazine who wrote a book about Bruce Springsteen, Glory Days. David’s wife, Susan Carr was also Springsteen’s co-manager, along with Jon Landau. Mandelbaum asked Marsh to be the 1988 Keynote Speaker for the Nassau County Human Rights Awareness Day, following Sandy Chapin (1987). He agreed. Mandelbaum developed a relationship with one of the financial managers of Rolling Stone, Les Zeifman. This relationship would continue to help Mandelbaum. After Dave Marsh spoke at the Human Rights Awareness Day, Zeifman introduced Mandelbaum to Rolling Stone Editor Jim Henke, who became the 1989 Keynote Speaker. Jim Henke went on to become the curator of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. Mandelbaum later met Jann Wenner backstage at Jones Beach Theater, the publisher and owner of Rolling Stone Magazine.

2005-03-07T12:46:00.000-08:00

Kurt Loder and a fan at the Joan Jett concert,1988. Loder helped Rock and Wrap It Up! grow.

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Mandelbaum approachs Mickey Hart to return to Lawrence Public Schools to thank former teachers and speak to current music students.

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Mickey Hart Speaking at Lawrence H.S.'s music classes about the effects of world music on his percussion work, October 1990

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Dale Sarro and Mickey Hart 1990

Growing the Network of Supporters, from MTV to Mickey Hart to Lawrence Public Schools

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By the summer of 1994, Rock and Wrap It Up! was a name Mandelbaum had come up with and a logo to go with the name. As he was inspired in Jerusalem, he wanted the logo to have universal religious meaning. The fish and clef conveyed a simple but unforgettable image and subliminal message. Getting the word out proved easier than expected.
Mandelbaum tried to see his favorite performers live when ever he could, even if he went to the concerts by himself. In 1988, Joan Jett, a Long Island raised rocker was performing on Broadway. Mandelbaum went to the show alone and was one of a handful of males in the audience. He met another Joan Jett fan and they hung out. Syd was offered an invitation to an after show party but was leaving the next day for a business trip. The other male was Kurt Loder, who was a fledging writer and new announcer on MTV. Over the years, they stayed in touch.
In 1989, Mandelbaum was encouraged to run for the Lawrence School Board. He was friendly with another Kiwanian, Pat Ferarro who was Board president. Mandelbaum’s next door neighbors Al and Frieda DiSibio was a younger brother to a political leader of Long Island Peter DiSibio. Al DiSibio had told the friends and relatives he had in the community about the work that Mandelbaum was doing to improve the community. “Uncle Pete” as he was known, was responsible for the careers of New York Senator Al D’Amato, Congressman Ray McGrath, Nassau County Republican Chairman Joseph Mondello, past Nassau County Legislature Chairman Bruce Blakeman, New York State Assembly Senator Dean Skelos and a host of other candidates on both sides of the aisle. Uncle Pete supported the candidacy of Mandelbaum and he was elected to the Lawrence Public School Board in 1989, running unopposed.
The goal Mandelbaum set for himself in his first year in office was to keep his mouth closed and his ears opened. Mandelbaum tried to learn as much as he could about the school district. He was a resident of Cedarhurst for 10 years and had 3 children in the public schools. The other parts of Mandelbaum’s education about the history of Lawrence Public Schools came from members of the Five Towns Kiwanis Club who had graduated from the district since the 1920’s.
Dale Sarro, Uncle Dale to Syd was an incredible help. Dale had been inspired to help Mandelbaum with his video-taping work. Dale was an employee of the School District for 30 years and his wife Florence gave piano lessons to the community. Sarro suggested that he try to get an old friend of his to come back to the school. One of the Grateful Dead’s drummers, Michael Hartman aka Mickey Hart attended Lawrence schools but never graduated. Hart was the most accomplished musician ever to attend Lawrence schools.
In the 1950’s the Hartman family lived in the same three-family building Sarro’ s lived in. The Sarro and Hartman families were very friendly. Leah Hartman, Mickey’s mother saved the life of Sarro’s infant son, Dale Jr. when he was choking during a bad cold and stopped breathing, Mrs. Hartman administered mouth to mouth resuscitation and brought him back to life. Sarro never forgot the miracle.
Sarro suggested that Mandelbaum approach the School Board to see if they would support an invitation to Hart to visit Lawrence. In the spring of 1990, Mandelbaum brought it up to the Lawrence Board of Education and they allowed him to proceed with the request. Mandelbaum purchased tickets to the July 10-11 shows at Giant Stadium and took his older daughters. After speaking to the Grateful Dead Management team in Santa Rosa, CA Mandelbaum was put in touch with Dennis McNally, the band’s tour manager. McNally arranged for a meeting to take place during the intermission. Mickey was surprised that no one had asked him before and he agreed with conditions. Hart wanted no publicity. He wanted all of his music teachers responsible for his music education to come to a luncheon so he could personally thank them. Mandelbaum agreed to look into the feasibility of that occurring since Mickey had attended Lawrence from 1957-60 and the chance of many teachers being reachable 30 years later was slim. In September the Grateful Dead came back into town. During the summer, the band’s organist Brent Midland passed away and was replaced by Bruce Hornsby. Mickey Hart maintained contact with Mandelbaum and Mickey came to Lawrence School District in October 1990 and met with his former music teachers and their family if they were deceased. Mandelbaum unfortunately was called out of town and his wife Diane ran the event. Hart was escorted to the high school accompanied by his best friend from high school, Rags Capabianco. where, after the luncheon, 5 random music classes were pulled so he could speak about his experiences drumming and about the new book he was writing, “Planet Drum”. Hart continued his relationship with Mandelbaum and would leave him backstage passes and tickets when the Grateful Dead were in town.

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Nassau County Executive Fran Purcell, Paris Swoopes, Chairman of the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights, newly appointed Commssioner Syd Mandelbaum in April 1986.

Appointment leads to Commissioning

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After the interview a story appeared in Newsday, Fran Purcell received a call from Paris Swoopes, Chairman of the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights. Unbeknowst to Mandelbaum, Swoopes and Purcell were good friends. Swoopes was the same mentor of Mandelbaum who Mandelbaum had met 16 year earlier when he enlisted in the Air Force in 1969. Mandelbaum had lost contact with Colonel Swoopes after being honorably discharged in 1975. There was an opening on the Commission and after Swoopes read the article, he suggested to Purcell that Mandelbaum fill the position representing the Five Towns Area. County Executive Purcell could not agree more and after a vetting process, Mandelbaum was appointed in April 1986 to serve on the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights. Mandelbaum kept video-taping through 1993. He helped organize video-taping projects through out the United States. Over 2,000 tapings were completed. Mandelbaum wanted to make sure that history would be remembered in the first person stories of Holocaust survivors and the United States military personell who liberated the Nazi death camps. His goal was to stop future Holocausts by making teaching of the subject matter assessable to teachers. The importance of this project could not be underestimated because of the passing of so many concentration camp survivors. Their ability to tell their story in front of a class work would now be available forever.

After video-taping for over 12 years, and inspiring the production of thousands of video-tapes, Mandelbaum flew out Los Angelas to Amblin Entertainment in August 1993 and gave the project he started to Steven Spielberg who continues it to this day under the Shoah Project. All of this came to being from one amazing ½ hour on a warm wonderful evening at the Kotel, the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem. There was much more to follow.

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Newsday January 1985

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Nassau County Executive and Buchenwald Liberator Francis Purcell being interviewed by Syd Mandelbaum at Lawrence High School's Little Theater, January 1985.

Fran Purcell, Nazi Death Camp Liberator, Nassau County Executive and almost Brooklyn Dodger

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In 1984, Mandelbaum heard that Nassau County Executive Francis Purcell was a liberator of Buchenwald when he served in the US Army from June 1941 through 1946. Syd contacted the County Executive and Mr. Purcell was taped in January 1985 at Lawrence High School’s Little Theater in Cedarhurst, NY. The director of the Audio Visual Department, Dale Sarro was a fellow member of the Kiwanis Club of the Five Towns and heard about Mandelbaum’s work. Sarro remembered stories heard as a child from immigrants coming to the Five Towns talking about their experiences in Europe. Sarro was moved by Mandelbaum’s passion and gave him use of the studio and supplied camera people for the taping of survivors and camp liberators. Purcell’s interview was thorough and in-depth. Parts of his own story was bittersweet. A promising talented baseball player, he was drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers as a catcher. Branch Rickey, owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers at the time, told him that if he went into the U.S. Army Reserves in June 1941, he would be out by January 1942 and could resume his baseball career. Unfortunately, as he was ending his six month commitment, Pearl Harbor and the start of World War Two ended his major league aspirations. Fran Purcell arrived in Buchenwald a day the Allies opened the gates. The sights stayed with him to this day, the horror, death, stench, and gaunt bodies of the few survivors. Copies of his tapes were send to the Fortunoff Collection at the Sterling Library of Holocuast Testimony at Yale University.

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Wailing Wall, Prayers for all of all faiths

Epiphany leads to mission- Change the world

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In May 1981, Mandelbaum’s mother called and asked if he could accompany his father to Israel for the first International Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors. His mother was emotionally unable to reflect upon those dark times and could not go with him. She has lost her 2 younger brothers, Joseph, 13 and David 12, who accompanied their mother to the gas chambers of Auschwitz on June 8th 1942. Joseph was tall for his age and could have survived as Lena had, but chose to not leave his mother and younger brother, as Lena and her older brother and sister did. This decision tormented her when it happened and still haunts her to this day. Syd and Diane had another daughter in December 1980 and it would a hardship on Diane to be left with 3 children under the age of 6 for 2 weeks. Lena offered to help and Diane allowed Syd to accompany his father.
The trip to Israel and the epiphany which took place between Mandelbaum and his father in Jerusalem at the Wailing Wall changed the world. On Monday June 8th 1981 at about 7 p.m. at one of the most holy and revered places for three major religions, something passed between father and son. It was a presence, an enlightenment, a connection from past to present and back. For thirty minutes neither Mandelbaum spoke. Then Syd Mandelbaum looked at his father and said, “I need to go back home and change the world.” And change the world he would. It was also thirty nine years to the day since his grandparents and young uncles were murdered by the Nazis in Auschwitz.
The first focusing of his experience in Jerusalem was to video-tape holocaust survivors and camp liberators so their stories could be used to teach future generations about the genocide of to the Jewish people and to motivate others to intercede and stop future holocausts. Mandelbaum was just beginning to work with video cameras and recorders to help better teach how to present to Endocrinologists. Mandelbaum felt that if this new medium, video, could be used to capture the voices and emotions of those who went through the holocaust, they would be very effective. The average age of survivors in 1981 was fifty eight. There were no holocaust movies or documentaries to cloud and embellish memories. Mandelbaum helped form an organization called Second Generation of Long Island, Children of Jewish Holocaust Survivors to do this project and other projects of remembrance. The first video-taping was done in early 1982. It was of Mandelbaum father Joseph Mandelbaum. Through the work of Second Generation of Long Island and the International Network of Jewish Holocaust Survivors, dozens of groups were organized and thousands of video tapes were made. Tapes were housed at Sterling Library at Yale University. When Mandelbaum returned from Israel, an article appeared in the New York Times about a psychologist named Dr. Dori Laub and a newscaster named Laurel Vlolk, who were doing research on survivors. Dr. Laub was interviewing them about their experiences. They started to work with an English Professor at Yale, Geoff Hartmann, who was a child survivor. Mandelbaum called him. Professor Hartman and Mandelbaum became friend’s and the Second Generation group from Long Island met in New Haven to see how best to work together. Professor Hartman wanted the tapes at Yale and Syd agreed. There was no U.S, Holocaust Museum or any video-documentation done at Yad Vashem, a Holocaust Memorial and study center in Israel, outside of Jerusalem. In 1983, Mandelbaum was asked to sit on the Outreach Committee of the Video Archives at Yale University. The Archive was named for the Revson Foundation for their support and the opening was hosted by Yale President Bart Giamatti, a good friend of Professor Hartmann. Mandelbaum insisted a statement was to placed on all Second Generation documents that all tapes stored at Yale were also to be copied and transferred to a future national holocaust museum, if one were to open. Mandelbaum had a notion that the US would one day open a national museum.