Aaron Feuerstein (December 11, 1925 – November 4, 2021) was an American industrialist, philanthropist, and the third-generation owner and

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

Malden Mills Malden Mills Industries is the original manufacturer of Polartec polar fleece and manufactures other modern textiles. The company is located in Andover, Massachusetts and has operations in Hudson, New Hampshire. History Malden Mills was foun ...

Lawrence, Massachusetts Lawrence is a city located in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, on the Merrimack River. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 89,143. Surrounding communities include Methuen to the north, Andover to the southwest, and Nort ...

Early life and education

Feuerstein, a Jew, was born in

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...

, on December 11, 1925. He attended

Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...

and graduated from

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a private Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City."About YU
on the Yeshiva Universit ...

in 1947, majoring in English and

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

Career

When the Malden Mills factory burned down on December 11, 1995, Feuerstein used his insurance money to rebuild it, and to pay the salaries of all the now-unemployed workers while it was being rebuilt. Feuerstein spent millions keeping all 3,000 employees on the payroll with full benefits for ninety days. He came to prominence globally by going against common business practices, especially at a time when most companies were downsizing and moving overseas. Feuerstein said that he could not have taken another course of action due to his study of the

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...

and the lessons he learned there: This cost Feuerstein $25,000,000, his CEO position, and a November 2001 filing of

chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...

. The company achieved

solvency Solvency, in finance or business, is the degree to which the current assets of an individual or entity exceed the current liabilities of that individual or entity. Solvency can also be described as the ability of a corporation to meet its long-ter ...

again with the help of creditor generosity and government subsidies. Malden Mills later garnered some lucrative

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philippin ...

(DOD) contracts for "smart" products that interweave fiber optic cabling, electronic biosensors, and USB ports into

polar fleece Polar fleece is a soft napped insulating fabric made from polyester. Uses Polar fleece is used in jackets, hats, sweaters, sweatpants, cloth diapers (nappies), gym clothes, hoodies, pajamas, blankets, and high-performance outdoor clothing. ...

fabric. Malden Mills was awarded a $16 million DOD contract in 2006. In January 2007, however, Malden Mills filed for bankruptcy again and ended production in July. The company's underfunded (by 49%) pension was abandoned due to sale of corporate assets.

Personal life

Feuerstein was an alumnus of

Camp Modin Camp Modin is a Jewish summer camp in New England. It was established in 1922 in what is now Lake George Regional Park in Canaan, Maine. In 1992 the camp moved to Salmon Lake in Maine's Belgrade Lakes region.Amy Calder"Revering Lake George Regio ...

in Belgrade, Maine, and the keynote speaker at the 75th annual reunion in 1997. Feuerstein was also a member of Young Israel of Brookline. Feuerstein died of pneumonia on November 4, 2021, in a Boston hospital at the age of 95.

Honors

An industrialist and philanthropist, for setting the standard for commitment to employees following a devastating fire at his Malden Mills manufacturing plant, he was awarded the

Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

on March 13, 1998.Courage of Conscience Award Recipients

References

External links