The Eleanor Kretzer Kavod Awards

WRJ Pacific District established the Eleanor Kretzer Kavod Award to recognize and honor innovative programming projects and significant contributions to social action exemplifying the spirit of tikkun olam. These special awards are presented biennially at the Pacific District Convention to the sisterhoods whose projects and programs best meet the rigorous selection criteria.
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This award was named for Eleanor Kretzer, an extraordinary woman with a great sense of humor, from Temple Beth Hillel in Valley Village, California. Eleanor was a sisterhood president, who went on to become very involved in NFTS, National Federation of Temple Sisterhoods, as a vice president. She served for 18 years on the national board, in the 1970’s and 1980’s. 

She was a mentor to many of our district presidents, a great leader, and made women’s rights and social action her priorities. She was beloved as a friend and articulate business woman, working as a lawyer for one of the large movie studios. Eleanor helped write our district bylaws and worked on many district committees, helping to shape our district. When Eleanor resigned from the national board, she was named honorary district president, and this Kavod Award was created and named in her honor.

The next Eleanor Kretzer Kavod Awards will be presented at the 2026 WRJ Pacific District Convention which will be held in Pasadena, CA on March 12-15, 2026.