REMEMBRANCE OF HERBERT H. GLASSMAN
Jack Glassman

March 25, 2003

Herb Glassman was a gentleman, sensitive and generous, devoted to his family and friends. Herb grew up in Boston’s Dorchester-Mattapan neighborhood. Everyone in the household did their part to help his mother Jennie, who had a physical disability resulting from a childhood accident. Herb’s father Jacob, in whose memory I was named, was a carpenter and the son of a cabinet-maker. “Jack” taught Herb many “tricks of the trade,” skills and wisdom that he would later endeavor to pass on to me. If nothing else, I learned to “measure twice, cut once.” To “measure twice”:
I think that Herb was that way with people too: thoughtful, slow to anger, interested in hearing all sides of an issue before drawing conclusions.

Determined to study architecture, Herb enrolled at Georgia Tech. However, he had to return to Boston at the end of his first year, after his father came down with pneumonia. Unable to afford tuition for the next academic year, he followed a professor’s advice and enrolled at the BAC (Boston Architectural Club). While at the BAC, Herb entered the MIT design competition and won a full, senior-year scholarship to MIT. But graduation was delayed by America’s entry into World War II after the attack on Pearl Harbor, because the MIT graduating class was “adopted” by the US Government to aid in war efforts. With his drafting skills, Herb ended up in Washington DC as a cartographer with a “Top Secret” classification, preparing defense maps. He then enlisted in the Army Air Force, applying his cartography experience to spotting drop zones for paratroopers and training to be a glider pilot. Unfortunately – or, perhaps, fortunately – he “cracked up” during a training flight and was recuperating when his unit shipped out, bound for Burma.

After the War, the BAC administrative network helped Herb land a job in the architectural division of H.P. Hood Dairy. This intervention resulted in the dismantling of a long-standing ethnic barrier at the company, and Herb was proud to have played a part. While at Hood, his boss took ill, and Herb found himself in charge of the design of what was then the largest cottage cheese and sour cream plant in the world.

Dad will live on in our memories, not only for his love of family, but also for his wisdom, patience, sense of humor, knowledge of history, and – above all – his commitment to education, exemplified by his undying loyalty to the BAC, or as my Mom would call it, his “other wife.” One can’t even imagine the number of volunteer hours he donated, over 60 years, his way of thanking the school that provided him an affordable education.

Our Dad was a survivor, not only from his glider crash but also much later, from the first heart attack in 1971 to other, subsequent health problems. We were so blessed that he bounced back each time, with the same, quiet strength of purpose. Of course, adjustments needed to be made along the way: from his favorite hickory-wood pipes to vitamins; from sour cream to low-sodium. His real secret to long life was, of course, our Mom, who decided she’d “keep him around” despite his idiosyncrasies and educated herself in the latest nutritional and holistic health theories.

Last fall, I asked Dad if he had accomplished everything he wanted to in life and he answered, yes, he had. He had had the chance to travel the world with Mom and with wonderful friends, touring Haiti, Mexico, South America, Israel, Greece, Italy, England, Spain, Portugal, Egypt, Turkey, Prague and Budapest, to name a few adventures. He had enjoyed the thrills and strategies of sailboat racing in Marblehead. And he had run a successful architectural practice concentrating on the design of buildings that make a real difference for people: school buildings (99 in all) and synagogues. He was the most proud of his development of the “Educational Park” concept and of the completion of the state-of-the-art Brockton High School, the largest school east of the Mississippi River. Nonetheless, he once confided to Cris that, if he could start all over again, he would be a full-time educator; he simply loved teaching!

Many of you know that Herb designed Temple Isaiah; he always considered his creation of the building one of the most meaningful experiences of his career. Dad incorporated many biblical references and symbols throughout the original building, collaborating with his BAC mentor and dear friend Arcangelo Cascieri on the design and fabrication of the beautiful Ark of the Covenant. Its bas-relief carving depicts the 12 Tribes of Israel, of course, but an unintentional symbol found its way into the design. See, at the upper left corner of the frame, a knot in the wood trim? Arcangelo discovered this problem when the Ark was being assembled and was preparing to replace the flawed component when Dad said, “No, leave it in place. Let it represent our belief that God created an imperfect world, which it is our job to repair.”

Out of our love and respect for Herb Glassman -- as a brother, cousin, uncle, husband, father, friend, mentor, and teacher -- let us endeavor to continue this work, each in our own way.