Enabling a Digital Transformation: The Crown Goodman Family
The vision to see a future of possibilities, and the tenacity to make it happen are characteristics that have defined the Crown Goodman Family across four generations. So it was not surprising that in the 1980s, when the idea to put a Holocaust memorial on the National Mall began to gain traction, the Crown Goodman Family of Chicago stepped forward as founding investors. They understood the timeless lessons of the Holocaust — the fragility of freedom, the dangers of hate, the consequences of inaction — and the importance of passing them along to future generations.
To understand this family’s relentless drive to create positive social change — for their community, country, and world — it helps to understand its humble beginnings. Like so many who immigrated to America at the end of the 19th century, Arie and Ida Crown came from eastern Europe with very little beyond the hope of providing a better life and opportunities for their children. While struggle and challenge filled their early years here, their Jewish values guided their children not only to do well but also to do good.
After the family settled in Chicago, three of Arie and Ida’s sons, Sol, Henry, and Irving, founded Material Service Corporation in 1919, a construction supplies company that made the family a renowned American success story — not only in business but also in philanthropy.
While not directly impacted by the Holocaust (although Arie lost siblings and extended family members), the Crowns recognized the harsh contrast between their own experience and that of Europe’s Jews.
“My late great-grandfather, Irving Crown, and all his brothers sponsored as many Jewish refugees as possible during the 1930s,” said Jordan Goodman.
Reflecting on the family’s ongoing major support to the Museum, family patriarch Lester Crown adds, “Like many who have been involved from the beginning, I’m thrilled at how the Museum has assumed such an important role in American society and has grown to exert its influence globally. But our job is still not done.”
If their founding gift helped build the museum, the family’s latest gift is helping to write its next chapter as a global educator with powerful digital outreach. “You only have to look around the world today to understand the timeless relevance of this history,” Lester said. “People are still susceptible to hate propaganda, whether it comes through speeches, the written word, or social media. Through the use of digital outreach, the Museum is creating global awareness.”
The digital transformation of society is changing every aspect of our lives. Ensuring the permanent relevance of Holocaust history is our single biggest challenge — and opportunity. With partners like the Crown Goodman Family, the Museum is developing new digital tools that will strengthen future generations’ understanding of the Holocaust.
“My involvement with the Museum has been in process my whole life,” said Jordan. “As a fourth-generation member of the Crown Goodman Family, we are proud to deepen our commitment at this critical juncture.”
An Intergenerational Commitment
The Crown Goodman family recently became members of the Chairman’s Circle of the Founders Society, which recognizes cumulative giving at the level of $10 million and above. In addition to their annual giving and this recent gift for digital education, they have funded the endowment and the new David and Fela Shapell Family Collections, Conservation and Research Center. Jordan Goodman, with his cousin Lester Crown, helped launch the Museum’s campaign, NEVER AGAIN: WHAT YOU DO MATTERS, at the 2013 Chicago Luncheon. Lester, a national campaign co-chair, currently serves on the Strategic Advancement Committee; Jordan, a founding member of the Chicago Next Generation Board, serves on the Museum’s governing council.
This article was first published in summer 2018.
