To the names Sid Goldstein, Samuel Rosen, Harriett Wieder,and Jacob and Sarah Stern, all of whom have Orange County parks or facilities named after them, we now add Bea Shapiro. Shapiro, who lived in Irvine with her husband Ralph, was very involved in the local community; she served on the Woodbridge Board of Directors, payed an active role in the development of the Mike Ward Community Park and the Woodbridge Association’s tennis program, and was an active member of the Orange County chapter of the Anti-Defamation League. She and her husband were awarded the Hellwig Award in 1998, given to those who have contributed outstanding volunteer service toward the betterment of Woodbridge over the years. Following her death in 2001, the city of Irvine dedicated a plaza at the 23-acre Mike Ward Community Park in Woodbridge in her memory. A county supervisor was quoted in a local newspaper saying, “If I were to nominate a first lady of Irvine, she would be the one,” to which a city councilman added: “No one has worked harder or more tirelessly to ensure that Irvine is a great place to live.”
Dalia Taft, archivist of the Orange County Jewish Historical Society, highlights images from the archives every month. For more information, please visit www.jewishoc.org/history. You can also contact Dalia at history@jffs.org or at (949) 435-3484, ext. 167. The Orange County Jewish Historical Society is a program of Jewish Federation & Family Services and is fully funded by the Jewish Community Foundation of Orange County.