Olga Koffman Memorial Fund
Olga Koffman, the wife of Maxwell Street Klezmer Band's Violinist and Musical Director Alex Koffman, passed away on March 22, 2016, after a long fight with cancer. Olga always wanted to see a new production of the Klezmer Music Foundation's family theater show, "Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins."
In her memory, the KMF is raising funds to stage this show in December 2020. Donations can be made by check, credit card, or via PayPal through the "Donate" button at the top of this page (please add "Olga Koffman Memorial Concert Fund" in the memo line). All donors will be listed in the program.
Checks may be made out to:
Klezmer Music Foundation
4025 Harvard Terrace
Skokie, IL 60076
Memo: "Olga Koffman Memorial Concert Fund"
More Information About the Fund
Back in the 1990s, Alex created original scores for Jewish family theater productions that were created and staged by Lynn Shapiro of the Yiddish Arts Ensemble, including “Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins,” “Ish Kabibble,” and others. These were very popular in the Chicago community, and were featured at the North Shore Center of the Performing Arts and other venues.
Olga had a dream that her daughters, Hannah and Sonya, would have the opportunity to sing and act in her favorite show, “Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins.” When her illness reemerged in 2015, Alex tried to revive one of these shows as a benefit for her fight against cancer, but it was too big a process to begin in the middle of a health crisis.
Now, the plan is to re-stage “Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins” with five shows in December 2020, as a memorial to Olga and a fulfillment of that dream (hopefully, with Sonya in the cast!). It also honors her and Alex’s commitment to bringing innovative and engaging musical theater to the Jewish community.
May Olga's memory be for a blessing and live on through the music that she loved.
For more information about the Yiddish Arts Ensemble, click here