"Mayor of Second Avenue" Abe Lebewohl cherished his Ukrainian roots (03/17/96)

"Mayor of Second Avenue" Abe Lebewohl cherished his Ukrainian roots

by Stephanie Charczenko

NEW YORK - The morning of March 4 marked a tragic day in the East Village in New York City. As the news of the brutal murder of the owner of the Second Avenue Deli, Abe Lebewohl - known as the "Mayor of Second Avenue" - started coming through the airwaves, grief-stricken members of this close-knit community started chattering on the corner of 10th Street and Second Avenue.

All of the local television and radio stations, as well as every newspaper in New York City, carried the news of the Ukrainian Jewish immigrant who was slain while depositing his daily receipts.

The news of Mr. Lebewohl's death sent shock waves not only throughout the East Village community, but through a network of people in all walks of life in New York who were touched by his benevolence - a network that included the Newspaper Guild (to whom he sent sandwiches every single day for the duration of their strike), former Mayor Edward Koch (who received a heart-shaped cake made of chopped liver when he won the mayoral election), Curtis Sliwa of the Guardian Angels (to boost the ratings for Mr. Sliwa's radio talk show, Mr. Lebewohl dreamt up a contest that was publicized on the show), and NBC union employees, to whom Mr. Lebewohl sent sandwiches for the entire 21 weeks of their strike in 1987.

Mr. Lebewohl was more than just a deli man who made the greatest pastrami sandwiches in New York City, the most delicious chopped liver this side of the Atlantic and the best chicken soup since Mama's "rosil." He was the quintessential "mensch" (a great humanitarian). A man who loved people and his business, he worked seven days a week, and still made most of his own deliveries in that famous white truck of his.

He was much too busy to linger, but never too busy to help the needy or commemorate a special moment in someone's life. He was a man for all people, a gender-blind, selfless human being whose generosity knew no boundaries. So, it is only appropriate that he be remembered through some of his thoughtful deeds.

The son of a local businessman who owned a lumber mill in western Ukraine, Abe Lebewohl was born in the town of Kulykiv, near Lviv, in 1931. In 1939, when the Soviets occupied western Ukraine and nationalized all businesses, the elder Lebewohl was arrested and exiled to Sibe-ria for 10 years of hard labor, and little Abe and his mother were banished to Kazakhstan, thus escaping the horrors of the Holocaust. After the war, the family was reunited and given the opportunity to return to western Ukraine and then to Poland. Escaping Poland illegally, the family traveled through Austria and settled in a refugee displaced persons camp in Rivoli (near Turin) and Barletta (near Bari), Italy, and finally in 1950 they arrived in America.

Working as a waiter in a 12-seat capacity coffee shop on Second Avenue and 10th Street for several years, Mr. Lebewohl and his family eventually pooled their resources and in 1954 bought the small shop. Abe or Abie (as everyone endearingly called him) and his Second Avenue Deli soon became legendary in the East Village (an area bordering First and Second avenues between Houston and 14th streets). Through the years Abie expanded his deli to accommodate 250 people. Although the restaurant was considerably larger than the original one, the ambiance was warm and friendly, and the food - kyshka, kasha, varenyky, goulash - just like a home-cooked meal at Babtsia's (grandma's) house. Among his customers were such luminaries as: Joe DiMaggio, Muhammad Ali, Jackie Mason, Bob Hope, Joan Rivers, Raoul Felder, Milton Berle and a list of famous celebrities all the way to Hollywood and back.

The population of this thriving downtown neighborhood was made up of the wave of immigrants arriving from Eastern Europe after the war, among them the Ukrainians and Jews. Taking on the flavor of a small village or "selo," the community was the hub of Jewish and Ukrainian life and, in fact, lower Second Avenue was known as the "Yiddish Broadway"; it boasted several Jewish theaters that attracted many affluent theater lovers from uptown. Mr. Lebewohl's love of these Yiddish theaters inspired him to build the "Walkway of Yiddish Actors" at the storefront entrance on Second Avenue. He also named one of the rooms in the deli the "Molly Picon" room after the famous Yiddish actress of the time, and was a philanthropist who made many very generous contributions to the theaters.

Ukrainian and Jewish business owners worked and lived side by side, among them the Kobasniuk Travel Agency at East 10th Street; St. George Church, Surma (the Ukrainian shop) and the Hebrew Actors Guild were all located on East Seventh Street. Mr. Lebewohl's deli existed in the midst of a blooming Ukrainian community: Plast and SUM-A, the Dumka choir, the Ukrainian National Home, all on Second Avenue, and many others.

Though Mr. Lebewohl was a very religious Jew who abided by all of the Jewish traditions and closed his deli for all of the Jewish holidays, he also respected the heritage of his homeland and often would not let a needy Ukrainian customer wait his turn in line because, he said: "It's your Christmas, you shouldn't wait...or pay."

So proud was Abe of his Ukrainian-Jewish heritage that he even traveled to Ukraine in the 1970s at a time when it was not quite so popular and not particularly safe. An advocate of small business and community cooperation, he made all of his travel arrangements through his neighbors across Second Avenue, the Kobasniuk Travel Agency.

True to form, when Ukraine declared its independence four and half years ago, Mr. Lebewohl was so elated that he immediately prepared a huge platter of deli goodies and sent them to his Ukrainian friends at the Kobasniuk Travel Agency across the avenue. On December 1, 1991, when the Ukrainians voted in a referendum for Ukrainian independence, Mr. Lebewohl once again cheered and repeated the celebration with another platter for his fellow Ukrainians at the travel agency.

When the Consulate General of Ukraine set up temporary quarters at 157 Second Ave., Mr. Lebewohl greeted them with an elaborate feast to welcome his new "susidy" (neighbors).

Andrew Lastowecky of the Anthony Shumeyko Insurance Agency Inc. recalls one occasion when a prominent Ukrainian dignitary arrived in New York. When he heard of the Jewish immigrant from Ukraine who owned the Second Avenue Deli he insisted that they dine at his establishment. Mr. Lebewohl was so thrilled that there was a Ukrainian diplomat in his deli that he literally rolled out the red carpet for the party of five. He closed off the Molly Picon Room in the back of the restaurant, prepared a banquet fit for kings...and refused to take a penny from them.

In another instance, the Society of Ukrainian Jewish Relations (SUJR) sponsored an evening in honor of Rabbi David Lincoln in May of 1995. SUJR appealed to several Ukrainian business owners and individuals to make small donations of sustenance for the function. The Second Avenue Deli was asked to contribute the kosher fare for the Jewish members of the audience. Mostly everyone contributed a platter of cold cuts or a plate of pastries, but Mr. Lebewohl (whose heart was as big as the sandwiches he prepared) went one step further - he delivered such a multitude of epicurean delights that suddenly everyone became kosher that evening. Although he was always invited to attend, once again he was just too busy and never stayed for the applause that he so much deserved.

Another event held by the Society of Ukrainian Jewish Relations was the Ukrainian Jewish Conference at the Shevchenko Scientific Society, just a few months ago in December. Not expecting such a large turnout, the society arranged to provide only coffee and cake for its audience. As the day progressed the numbers in the audience increased, and it was obvious there was a crisis at hand: not enough food. It was a Sunday, late morning - who could one turn to for a spur of the moment catering job?

A quick telephone call to Mr. Lebewohl; the telephone conversation went something like this: "Abie, we need your help! How much will a platter of food for about 50 people cost and can you deliver it within half an hour?" Mr. Lebewohl responded: "You worry about your conference, and I'll worry about the food." Mr. Lebowohl himself delivered the food in the white van he always drove around in (even to formal occasions, decked out in a tuxedo) within 20 minutes and refused to take any money, even though contributions were not solicited for this event.

Upon the arrival of Leonid Kravchuk, the first president of independent Ukraine, Mr. Lebewohl was among the few businessmen who attended a private meeting with Mr. Kravchuk. Although he had previously met with the foreign minister of Russia to discuss opening a deli in Moscow, he quickly abandoned that idea when he met with Mr. Kravchuk, and voiced his interest in starting a business in Ukraine. The president of Ukraine was so delighted at the prospect that he invited Mr. Lebewohl to Kyiv to start making arrangements for his new venture. Unfortunately, the difficulty of private enterprise in Ukraine at that time thwarted the project.

During Leonid Kuchma's first visit to the United States, St. George Church on East Seventh Street hosted an event in the president's honor to introduce him to the parishioners. So many people attended that it was difficult to get a front row seat, and many had to squeeze into the back pews to get a glimpse of Ukraine's second president. Displaying both his Jewish and Ukrainian heritage, there in the very front of the church, with a yarmulke prominently displayed on his head, was none other than Abe Lebewohl, beaming with pride at President Kuchma, the leader of his native country. Even though Mr. Lebewohl had left Ukraine more than 40 years ago, he never forgot his roots and still spoke Ukrainian fluently.

Funeral services for Abe Lebewohl were held at the Community Synagogue on East Sixth Street, which was cordoned off by the police department, causing a huge traffic jam all the way uptown. After the funeral services, attended by over 1,500 people from all walks of life, including many Ukrainians, as per tradition in Ukraine Mr. Lebewohl's casket was carried through the streets of his neighborhood with a procession of mourners who came to bid farewell to their beloved friend. A squad of police cars then escorted Abe Lebewohl's hearse up First Avenue to the cemetery.

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