Lenora Garfinkel

Lenora Garfinkel (1930-April 2020) was an American architect, specializing in the design and construction of Jewish ritual buildings.

Childhood and education

Born Lenora Fay Josephi in 1930 in the Bronx, Garfinkel attended the High School of Music & Art in Manhattan and was among the first women to enroll in Cooper Union’s architecture program in the class of 1950.[1][2] [3] She took the Cooper Union entrance exam on a Sunday instead of Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath; she tested under a pseudonym to increase her chances of admission.[4]

Career

Garfinkel maintained an architecture office in Monsey, New York, for more than 50 years. The business was ranked in the top 8% of New York licensed contractors.[5]

She designed the Atrium, an Ultra-Orthodox events space in Monsey, the Viznitz Synagogue,[6] and the Masores Bais Yaakov school in Brooklyn.[4] She became an authority on the religious regulations and design specifications for Jewish ritual institutions, including mikvahs and synagogues.

Personal

She was married to Sam Garfinkel, a pharmacist, in 1958. The couple had five children, 20 grandchildren, and over 50 great-grandchildren. Two of her sons are also architects.

Garfinkel died in April 2020 from the coronavirus. Her son and grandson died of the same disease within a week of her passing.[7]

References
  2. "Lenora Garfinkel, Monsey architect who designed Atrium, Viznitz synagogue, dies of COVID-19". www.msn.com. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  3. "Class Notes - Architecture". www.support.cooper.edu. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  4. Leland, John (July 3, 2020). "Lenora Fay Garfinkel, 90, Architect for Orthodox Jewish Communities, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  5. "Garfinkel Architects". www.buildzoom.com. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  6. Levine, Sara (May 22, 2020). "Trailblazing Female Architect Succumbs To Covid-19 & Other Orthodox Jews in the News". Jew in the City. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  7. "Lenora Garfinkel, 89, noted Orthodox architect who lost a son and grandson to COVID-19". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.


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