No matter where they went on family vacations, whether it was a national park or tiny little town, if there was a Jewish community nearby George I. Hoffman would have to call. “Wherever we were, he looked up the local temple, just to say ‘Hello, how are you?'” recalled his son, Ted Hoffman of San Francisco. “It was like his extended family.”
And Hoffman developed some close relationships with outlying congregations. At one, they made him an honorary member, and he even bought another a Torah, his son said.
A San Franciscan who served as president of several Jewish organizations, George Hoffman died Friday, Aug.12. He was 92.
Hoffman was a highly successful litigator and general practice attorney who also devoted countless hours to the Jewish community.
A member of San Francisco’s Congregation Sherith Israel, he served as its president from 1965 to ’66.
“He cared deeply about the Jewish tradition and inspired our congregation to affirm many traditional aspects of the Jewish service which had not been basic to earlier Reform Judaism,” said Martin Weiner, rabbi emeritus of Sherith Israel. “He was the most generous and visionary congregational leader. He came to me early in my career and asked me for worthy projects that he might help to fund, which was so helpful to a young rabbi.”
But he was far from the type to only write a check, said his son.
He also served as president of the Hebrew Free Loan Association and was a co-founder of Jewish Vocational Service in the 1970s. Abby Snay, executive director of JVS, said Hoffman’s big push was to get JVS working with youth, which was why she was hired 30 years ago.
“I had the utmost respect for him,” said Snay. “He really steered the agency in a direction of having a focus on youth, to help them prepare for their future careers, as well as working with adults who were in immediate need of work.”
From 1981 to 1984, he served as president of Sinai Memorial Chapel.
In addition to his son, Lee Hoffman and wife, Sophie Hoffman of San Francisco; he is survived by daughter Carol DeCanio of Santa Barbara and three grandchildren.
Donations can be made to the California Pacific Medical Center Foundation, Dementia/Memory Clinic, Attn: Jana Cuneo, P.O. Box 45902, San Francisco CA 94145.