More than 1,000 leaders of the St. Louis Jewish community paid tribute tonight to former President Harry S. Truman at a dinner which officially launched the St. Louis 1962 campaign for Israel Bonds. Mr. Truman, in expressing his appreciation, lauded the progress made by Israel since its establishment in 1948 and its recognition by his Administration.
Israel’s Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion, in a cable to the gathering, hailed Mr. Truman as a leader of the free world “whose foresight and devotion to liberty have linked him eternally to the fulfillment of the ancient prophetic vision of the rebirth of Israel.”
Avraham Harman, Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, presented to Mr. Truman a silver breastplate for the Torah, or sacred scrolls of the Law, inscribed to the former President “whose name will be linked for all time with the rebirth of the State of Israel.”
Dr. Joseph J. Schwartz, vice-president of the Israel Bond Organization, cited Mr. Truman as “a world statesman, whom history will forever celebrate as an enlightened leader dedicated to world peace, to freedom and to human justice.”
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.
