né
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth reg ...
Berkowitz; 10 October 1922 – 5 October 1985) was a Belarusian-born American real estate investor and developer. At the end of his career, he owned over 4,000 apartments, houses, and properties.
Biography
Kushner was born Joseph Berkowitz on 10 October 1922 in
Navahrudak
Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus.
In the Middle A ...
(Polish: Nowogródek), in what was then eastern Poland. His parents were Chana and Moshe Berkowitz. In August 1945, he married Reichel "Rae" Kushner (27 February 1923 – 2004) in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
. Rae Kushner was also from the city of Navahrudak, and is remembered for accompanying her brother and up to 360 others to escape through a tunnel from the
Navahrudak Ghetto
The Navahrudak Ghetto was established in December 1941 in Novogrudok, Navahrudak, in the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Byelorussian SSR (present-day Belarus), during the Holocaust. Almost all of its residents were killed - only 350 s ...
. Joseph took his wife’s last name upon marriage. Charles Kushner was the chief benefactor of the Museum of Jewish Resistance. In the aftermath of the war, Navahrudak was transferred from Poland to the
Byelorussian SSR
The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, or Byelorussian SSR; be, Беларуская Савецкая Сацыялістычная Рэспубліка, Bielaruskaja Savieckaja Sacyjalistyčnaja Respublika; russian: Белор ...
of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement (german: Potsdamer Abkommen) was the agreement between three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union on 1 August 1945. A product of the Potsdam Conference, it concerned th ...
. Rae Kushner and her spouse immigrated to the United States as
Sh'erit ha-Pletah
Sh'erit ha-Pletah is a Hebrew term for Jewish Holocaust survivors living in Displaced Persons (DP) camps, and the organisations they created to act on their behalf with the Allied authorities. These were active between 27 May 1945 and 1950–51, ...
from the Soviet Union in 1949.
Kushner worked as a carpenter in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
eventually running his own business which was funded by the
G.I. Bill
The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...
and later by the
Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956
The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, also known as the National Interstate and Defense Highways Act, was enacted on June 29, 1956, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill into law. With an original authorization of $25 billion for t ...
.
The
Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy
The Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy is a coeducational Modern Orthodox Yeshiva Day School located in Livingston, New Jersey. The Academy is dedicated towards developmental education and religious growth, for both boys and girls from Pre-Kindergart ...
and the
Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School
Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School / Yeshivat HaTichonit Beit Yosef is a four-year private Modern Orthodox yeshiva high school located in Livingston, New Jersey, United States. The school serves students living in areas ranging from Livingston, We ...
, both in
Livingston, New Jersey
Livingston is a township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 29,366, reflecting an increase of 1,975 (+7.2%) from the ...
, are named in their honour.
Family
Kushner was the father of Esther Schulder, Murray Kushner and
Charles Kushner
Charles Kushner (born May 16, 1954) is an American real estate developer, former federal inmate, and disbarred former attorney. He founded Kushner Companies in 1985.
In 2005, he was convicted of illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, a ...
, and the grandfather of
Jared Kushner
Jared Corey Kushner (born January 10, 1981) is an American businessman and investor. He served as a senior advisor to 45th U.S. president Donald Trump, his father-in-law. Since leaving the White House, Kushner founded Affinity Partners, a pri ...
,
Joshua Kushner
Joshua Kushner (born June 12, 1985) is an American billionaire businessman, heir and investor. He is the founder and managing partner of the venture capital firm Thrive Capital, co-founder of Oscar Health, and the son of billionaire real estate ...
Kushner family
The Kushner family is an American family involved in real estate development. The family originated from Novogrudok, Second Polish Republic, Poland, and is based in the New York metropolitan area. After surviving the Holocaust and settling in th ...
Joseph
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...