Although the Maccabi world movement was founded some twenty-five years ago and now has organizations in over thirty-three countries, the United States Maccabi Association was incorporated in February of this year. Despite its infancy in America an intensive drive for a nation-wide Jewish youth movement has already begun.
Last Tuesday night at the Hebrew Institute of University Heights the first chapter of the American Maccabi division was officially installed. The laurel wreath goes to Milton Magid for his hard work. Self-sacrifices and ambition in organizing and developing a group of over one hundred Maccabi members in the Bronx as the premier unit.
‘A DREAM THROUGH THE YEARS’
The story of Magid’s athletic career among different non-Jewish clubs and his hopes and prayers for the time when he could align himself with a purely Jewish athletic organization, reads like a chapter from a Frank Merriwell story. Magid’s club at the Hebrew Institute is the culmination of twelve years of activities on the athletic front of the metropolitan sector.
The Maccabi leader says: ‘This association is the answer to my prayers. I hope that I shall be able to interest every Jewish boy and girl in it. There is no reason in the world why any Jew should represent an organization other than one of his own kind.
It was this hope that spurred Magid on in his search for an ultimate goal. Groping his way from one athletic organization to another in his struggle to realize an athletic ideal, Magid knows the vicissitudes that a Jewish, athlete, man or woman, must face when participating for non-Jewish groups.
AN ALL-ROUND ATHLETE
The young man who is now in charge of the first American Maccabi chapter has had a long and diversified career as an athlete on the gridiron, the cinderpath, the swimming pool, the indoor boards and the cross country lanes. In fact up until 1922 he participated in all seasonal sports. In the fall of the year he played football on a team that averaged 145 pounds. They were a champ eleven their class and went undefeated for two years. However, tragedy stalked the last game of their second season. For most of the boys it proved the last game that they would ever play on the football field. One of the ends was injured in the last scrimmage and died two days later. The shock to the boys blasted the spirit of the team.
MADE TRACK AND CROSS COUNTRY HIS SPECIALLY
Notwithstanding his excellent ability at water polo or on the tennis courts and despite his form and speed over the hurdles and in the high jump, Magid decided to concentrate on track and cross country running.
He entered into competition for the Knights of St. Anthony some twelve years ago. His first practice session on the road proved a mere eight mile race. Milton finished twenty-eighth in that race from a field of over 100 entrants on December 8, the coldest day in 1922 he ran in a nine mile grind around Central park. this race was held under the auspices of the Finnish American A. C. and Magid surrendered his novice standing in this, his second road test. he finished thirteenth, collapsing in the arms of Willie Ritola and Ilma Prim, who were directly behind him.
WITH MANY ORGANIZATIONS
From the time he participated under the banners of the Glencoe A. C., the Brooklyn Evening High School, the New York Prep School, the Holy Name Athletic Club, and the German-American Athletic club.
It was during the time when he was a student at the New York Prep school that Magid pitched a shut-out game to win from the George Washington High baseball nine. Washington that year had won the inter-city championship in the Chicago-new York series that were held until 1925.
When he joined up with the Holy Name Club he became a teammate of many other famous Jewish athletes who were national champions at the time. Pinky Sober, the great City College athlete who was the national half mile champ in 1926 and Dave Adelman, intercollegiate shot put king while at Georgetown University and a member of the first Maccabiad team in Palestine, were two clubmates of his.
In 1928 he attached himself to the German-American A. C. at the time when that organization was getting many well-known Jewish athletes to participate under its banners. Magid was appointed coach of their track and field and cross country teams and remained with this club unto 1933.
SAW REALIZATION OF HOPES IN MACCABI
Magid also says: “In all these years it had been my ambition to join and represent some Jewish organization-but it seemed impossible to affiliate myself with the proper club.
The United States Maccabi Association, chapter one, of which I am the leader, enables me to accomplish all that I have planned in my many years of athletic competition.”
Magid has an enrolled membership of 110 people, forty of whom are women. He has planned an athletic program to include both men and women and has been able to secure quite a number of very capable assistants.
Ernie Kozlan, N. Y. U., ’35 is the tennis coach; Sidney Bernstein, Cornell ’29, wrestling; Lou Williams, c. C. N. Y. ’26, football Hal Kramer, City ’32, swimming and Magid coaches the track and field and cross country enthusiasts.
With the assistance of Miss Roslyn Schossburg and Miss Miriam Diamond, he has been able to do more than he had expected from the women’s group in the beginning.
The cultural program of Maccabi Chapter Number One will begin in the fall. It will include public speaking courses, art and dramatics, and also offer instruction in the “true meaning of Maccabi and Palestine.”
“Eventually-Why Not Now? Join Maccabi!”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
