In their parents’ honor

To honor the memory of their parents, Marian and Aaron Gural, Woodmere residents who were considered an extraordinarily charitable couple, Barbara Steinmetz, Jeff Gural and Jane Senders have made a substantial financial gift to the Jewish Community Center of the Greater Five Towns, and the Cedarhurst-based organization will be renamed the Marian and Aaron Gural JCC.
“They wanted this done in their parents’ honor,” said John Harrison, who spoke for the JCC. “The Gural family has a long history of being community-minded and compassionate about helping those in need. We recognize that commitment and pay tribute to their dedication to the JCC.” Harrison declined to disclose the amount of the donation.
An official renaming ceremony will be held at Temple Israel of Lawrence on Nov. 4.
JCC President Craig Spatz wrote in a welcoming letter that the Gural family will be thanked for their service to the community at the event. “We wish to thank Paula and Jeffrey Gural, Jane and William Senders, and Barbara and Tom Steinmetz for their transformative gift to this agency,” Spatz wrote. “We look forward to building our future on the legacy of Marian and Aaron Gural.”
Jane Senders said that the renaming is one way to encourage others to donate their time or money when they can to support causes or institutions that improve people’s lives.

“We chose to immortalize our parents through the renaming of the JCC as a means of not only acknowledging their generosity in supporting organizations like the JCC, but as a token of our deep appreciation for teaching us the importance of giving unto others,” she said. “It is our sincere desire that this legacy to Marian and Aaron will similarly inspire others to consider supporting causes that help improve the human condition and enrich the fabric of our community.”
Aaron Gural was raised in Washington Heights by a single mother who instilled in him the value of Jewish life and culture, Harrison said. In 1979, Gural was one of the founders of the JCC of the Greater Five Towns. “He lived the American dream,” Harrison said. “He started with virtually nothing and worked hard for 40 years in building a very successful real estate company.” The company is now Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, and Jeff Gural is the chairman.
Marian Katz Gural was the daughter of Jewish Russian immigrants who settled in upstate Binghamton. She came to New York City by herself at 18 to be a model at the furrier Alfred Reiner. She and Aaron met on a blind date, married a year later and decided to raise a family on Long Island, where they lived for more than four decades.
Marian died in 1990, and Aaron in 2009. It was their drive, determination and devotion to helping the needy that set them apart, those who knew them said.
The Gurals were “true New Yorkers,” according to Harrison. “Together, Aaron and Marian supported Jewish causes, especially the Jewish Federation. They were also very active at [Congregation] Sons of Israel [in Woodmere], where Aaron served as the president for several years. And yet, as philanthropic as they were, they also gave their time to volunteer at Long Island Jewish Hospital and help those in need.”