This article appeared in the Nov. 6, 2003 Jewish Advocate.

Pucker Gallery continues mission

With Project Search event

By Susie Davidson

Advocate Correspondent

BOSTON - Amid artifacts of multicultural beauty delicately crafted in stone, clay, porcelain, soapstone, precious metals, cloth and other natural and man-made materials, as well as remarkable paintings, photographs and graphic prints, friends and relatives of Holocaust victims spoke of finally receiving information about their long-ago, but never forgotten, loved ones.

Professionals, interested persons, community leaders and Holocaust survivors noshed and shared emotional stories on Oct. 29 as the Pucker Gallery hosted an event for Project Search, the Massachusetts Bay Chapter of The Red Cross’ Holocaust and War Victims Tracing and Information Services Center. Regina Szwadzka, a native of Poland who has directed the Red Cross’ International Social Services (ISS) Division and Project Search since 1997, who organized the event, and Mark Robinson, Chief Operations Officer for the Red Cross’ Mass Bay Chapter, began the evening. Voices broke as several attendees then recounted their learning that lost relatives had (mercifully, in a sense) never made it to the camps, were living elsewhere in the world, or had gone on to live full post-war lives in Europe. For many more, answers never came. But the support in the room was nonetheless vital and unwavering.

The group’s dedicated staff, mainly comprised of volunteers who include trained psychologists and grief counselors, search World War II documents and other resources; since 1990, over 30,000 inquiries have been recorded.

“It was a heartwarming evening listening to clients, with their scraps of old letters, pictures and stories,” said Szwadzka. “It was true group support. The Gallery, with its colorful exhibits and music, was very stimulating and welcoming.”

The gallery, located on 171 Newbury St., has long hosted events and exhibits of Judaic relevance. Its original mission, to show the work of Israeli artists, has grown to include high quality artwork from every region of the world.

Founded in 1967 by Bernard H. (“Bernie”) Pucker, the four-floor space features monthly exhibits in their main gallery and varied collections in its other rooms. Pucker, a Kansas City, Missouri native, came to Boston in 1961 to attend Brandeis, where he obtained a master’s degree in Modern Jewish History. He also holds degrees from Hebrew University in Jerusalem and Columbia College in New York.

A Past President of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston as well as the Newbury Street League and the Metropolitan Commission-Hillel Foundation, Pucker maintains high involvement in community affairs. A member of the Boston Art Dealer’s Association, the Saint Botolph Club and the Arts and Letters Council of the Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, he is currently an Overseer at the Boston Children’s Museum, a Trustee of Facing History and Ourselves, and is on the Advisory Board of the Terezin Foundation. On the Board of Directors of the Japan Society of Boston. Pucker also serves on the Advisory Committee of the Society of Arts and Crafts in Boston and is on Project Search’s Board of Directors. Finally, he is on the Board of Directors of both the Jewish Publication Society and Kehillath Israel Synagogue.

Pucker and his wife Suzanne, who also directs the gallery, have three sons: Michael, an attorney in Chicago, who has three daughters; Kenneth, who lives in Boston, has two daughters, and is with Timberland, and Jonathan of Boston, who has one son and is also with Timberland. Pucker is working on a book of contributors’ recollections, due out this year, of Rabbi Gershon Hadas, whom he studied with while growing up at Beth Shalom in Kansas City.

The gallery recently held an exhibition of the works of Holocaust artist Samuel Bak, who was present at the reception. Currently, new work by Mark Davis and “Artistic Equilibrium,” an exhibit by Zevi Blum, will be on display until Nov. 10. On Nov. 15, Makoto Yabe’s “Life Affirmed” will open, with a reception with the artist from 3-6 p.m., and show through Jan. 6, 2004. Hideaki Miyamura’s “Risk and Discovery” and Gunnar Norrman’s “Season's Memory” will open Jan. 10 with a 3-6 p.m. reception, and run through Feb. 10. B.A. King’s “The Seeing Spirit” will then be on exhibit from Feb. 14 (with a 3-6 p.m. reception) through March 16.

The Pucker Gallery is located at 171 Newbury St. (between Dartmouth and Exeter Streets), Boston. The gallery, which is closed on major holidays, is open Monday -Saturday, 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m., and Sunday, 1-5 p.m. One hour of validated parking is offered in the lot on the corner of Newbury and Dartmouth Streets (Fitz Inn, 149 Newbury St.). For more information, call 617 267-9473, email contactus@puckergallery.com or visit www.puckergallery.com.

For more information about Project Search or any Red Cross tracing services, call Regina Szwadzka at 1-800-564-1234, ext. 240, or email szwadzkr@usa.redcross.org