Max Stern (1898 – May 21, 1982) was an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist who established and built the

Hartz Mountain Corporation Hartz is a surname, and may refer to: *Donna Hartz, Aboriginal Australian midwife and academic * Harris Hartz (born 1947), U.S. federal judge *Harry Hartz (1896—1974), U.S. racecar driver * Jim Hartz (born 1940), U.S. television personality ...

Early life and education

He was born to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in

Fulda Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival. History ...

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, to parents Emanuel and Caroline Stern. He emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1926 fleeing the religious prejudice that he experienced in Germany.

Career

Stern founded the Hartz Mountain Corporation, a large pet products manufacturer and real estate development company. Stern was also the leader of

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

for 41 years.

Personal life

Stern was twice-married: *His first wife was Hilda Lowenthal (born 1922 in

Eschwege Eschwege (), the district seat of the Werra-Meißner-Kreis, is a town in northeastern Hesse, Germany. In 1971, the town hosted the eleventh ''Hessentag'' state festival. Geography Location The town lies on a broad plain tract of the river Wer ...

, Germany) who emigrated to New York in 1935. The couple had three children: Stanley, Leonard, and

Gloria Gloria may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Christian liturgy and music * Gloria in excelsis Deo, the Greater Doxology, a hymn of praise * Gloria Patri, the Lesser Doxology, a short hymn of praise ** Gloria (Handel) ** Gloria (Jenkins) ...

. All were reared in the Jewish tradition. *In 1950, he married Ghity Lindenbaum (née Amiel). They remained married until Max's death in 1982. Ghity was born into a

family in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

where she married her first husband, Nathan Lindenbaum in 1928. They had four children: Marcel, Maidy, Henry, and Armand. In 1940, fleeing

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, the family emigrated to the United States settling in New York City. Nathan died in 1946. Her father, Moshe Avigdor Amiel, was chief rabbi in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

, Belgium, and later became the chief rabbi of

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

Philanthropy

As a leading

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, he helped many charitable organizations both in the U.S. and

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. Stern founded the

Stern College for Women The Stern College for Women (SCW) is the undergraduate women's college of arts and sciences of Yeshiva University. It is located at the university's Israel Henry Beren Campus in the Murray Hill section of Manhattan. The college provides program ...

— the

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...

women's college Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women. Some women's colleges admit male stud ...

of arts and sciences of

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

, located in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, which is associated with

Modern Orthodox Judaism Modern Orthodox Judaism (also Modern Orthodox or Modern Orthodoxy) is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize Jewish values and the observance of Jewish law with the secular, modern world. Modern Orthodoxy draws on sever ...

— with a major grant, in honor of his late parents Emanuel and Caroline Stern. The

Max Stern Academic College of Emek Yezreel The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College (Hebrew: המכללה האקדמית עמק יזרעאל ע״ש מקס שטרן) is an academic college located in the Jezreel Valley (Galilee region) of Israel, between the cities Afula and Nazareth, and next ...

, located in

Jezreel Valley The Jezreel Valley (from the he, עמק יזרעאל, translit. ''ʿĒmeq Yīzrəʿēʿl''), or Marj Ibn Amir ( ar, مرج ابن عامر), also known as the Valley of Megiddo, is a large fertile plain and inland valley in the Northern Distr ...

, is named after him.

Religion

Stern was a communal

lay leader A lay leader is a member of the laity in any congregation who has been chosen as a leader either by their peers or the leadership of the congregation. In most denominations, lay leadership is not an ordained clerical office, and the lay leader's res ...

Death

He died in 1982, age 83 or 84, leaving his son,

Leonard N. Stern Leonard Norman Stern (born March 28, 1938) is an American billionaire businessman, and philanthropist. He is the chairman and CEO of the privately owned Hartz Group based in New York City. The company's real estate portfolio was owned and operat ...

, to carry on the family business. He is interred in the Sharon Gardens Division of

Kensico Cemetery Kensico Cemetery, located in Valhalla, Westchester County, New York was founded in 1889, when many New York City cemeteries were becoming full, and rural cemeteries were being created near the railroads that served the city. Initially , it was ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stern, Max 1898 births 1982 deaths American chairpersons of corporations American financiers American investors American Orthodox Jews American people of German-Jewish descent American real estate businesspeople Burials at Kensico Cemetery Businesspeople from New York City German emigrants to the United States German Orthodox Jews Jewish American philanthropists People from Fulda Yeshiva University Philanthropists from New York (state) 20th-century American philanthropists 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American Jews