Celia and Mauricio Dulfano Papers
Scope and Content Note
The bulk of the collection contains official documents such as passports, identity cards, university diplomas, and certificates of membership in different scientific societies. The documents were issued by government agencies and other institutions in Argentina, Israel, and the United States. The collection also contains several photographs of Celia and Mauricio from their early years in Argentina and Israel to old age in the United States. Highlights of the collection include the couple’s ketubah from 1946 in Cruz del Eje (Argentina), Teudat Oleh (immigrant booklet) from the Jewish Agency for Israel, and a photo dedicated to Mauricio by the renowned cardiologist William Dock.
Dates
- undated, 1937-1998
Creator
- Dulfano, Celia (Person)
- Dulfano, Mauricio (Person)
Language of Materials
This collection is in English, Hebrew, and Spanish.
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for researcher use. Please contact us to request access or to make an appointment to view this collection at jhcreference@nehgs.org.
Conditions Governing Use
There may be some restrictions on the use of this collection. For more information contact jhcreference@nehgs.org.
Biographical Note
Mauricio Dulfano was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1919. After serving in the army, he received an M.D. from the University of Cordoba in 1944. He married Celia Beneditkis in 1946 and two years later they immigrated to Israel. According to Mauricio’s own testimony, their reason for emigration was anti-Jewish discrimination in Argentina (“My personal solution to discrimination was emigration”). In Israel, the couple lived in Kibbutz Ga’ash while Mauricio was serving a physician in the Israel Defense Forces. In 1951, he was sent by the Israeli Public Health Services to the United States to study various aspects of pulmonary diseases, first at the National Jewish Home for Tuberculosis in Denver, Colorado, and later at the Boston City Hospital as research fellow of Tufts College Medical School. After returning to Israel in 1953, Mauricio worked at the Tel HaShomer Hospital near Tel Aviv. In 1959, the couple moved to Boston again, and later to New York City. In addition to his career as an expert of chest and lung diseases, Mauricio was a prolific commentator on antisemitism in his home country of Argentina. He died in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2009.
Celia Dulfano was born in 1922 in Cordoba, Argentina, as Celia Beneditkis. She received a B.A. from Cordoba University School of Law, and worked as a public school teacher and later as a public notary. In 1957, after serving several years as a nursery school teacher, she started a career in social work by becoming a youth examiner for Israel’s Department of Justice. She received a Master of Social Work from Boston University in 1962 and held several teaching positions in universities in Boston and New York City. An expert on the influence of alcohol abuse on family life, she worked as a consultant and authored a book and numerous articles on the subject, including about the “Impact of Alcoholism in Jewish Life.” She was a member of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the Alcohol and Drug Problems Association of North America, and a Task Force on Jewish Alcoholism at the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies. She died in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2013.
References
- Materials from the collection.
- Dulfano, Mauricio J. "Antisemitism in Argentina: Patterns of Jewish Adaptation." Jewish Social Studies, vol. 31, no. 2, 1969, pp.122-144.
Chronology
- 1919
- Mauricio Dulfano is born.
- 1922
- Celia Beneditkis is born.
- 1938
- Mauricio enlists in the Argentinian army.
- 1946
- Mauricio and Celia marry.
- 1948
- Mauricio and Celia immigrate to Israel.
- 1951
- Mauricio receives a research fellowship in the United States.
- 1953
- Mauricio and Celia return to the Israel.
- 1959
- Mauricio and Celia immigrate to the United States.
- 1962
- Celia receives a Master of Social Work from Boston University.
- 1963
- Mauricio becomes a licensed physician in the United States.
- 1968
- Mauricio and Celia are naturalized.
- 2009
- Mauricio dies.
- 2013
- Celia dies.
Extent
0.5 linear feet (1 manuscript box)
Abstract
This collection contains personal documents belonging to Celia and Mauricio Dulfano, a Jewish scholarly couple who emigrated from Argentina to Israel and later to the United States. The collection consists primarily of official documents such as government-issued identity cards and academic certificates that detail their migratory life between the three countries as well as their professional success in the fields of social work and pulmonary medicine, respectively.
Physical Location
Located in Boston, Mass.
Acquisition Information
Donated by Isabel Dulfano, October 2018.
Processing Information
Processed by Amir Zelinger, 2019.
- Title
- Guide to the Celia and Mauricio Dulfano Papers, JHCP-008
- Author
- Amir Zelinger
- Date
- 2019
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center at American Ancestors Repository