The collected papers of
Mendel
Kaplan
1972 – 2009
DOCUSTORY TEASERS
These short animated videos give you a first glimpse into our docustories – stories drawn from archival records about key communal moments involving Mendel. On the full docustory pages, you can read the narrative alongside the original letters, reports, and other records that shaped it.
Browse and watch the teasers below:
The Sincerely Mendel Collection brings together, for the first time, a virtual historical record of Mendel Kaplan’s career as a Jewish communal leader.
From the early 1970s until his passing in 2009, Mendel was an eminence grise in South Africa and beyond. His career left a substantial mark on South African Jewish life and on global Jewish philanthropy and leadership.
He did not, however, preserve a record of his varied activities. Since 2023, the Kaplan Centre for Jewish Studies at the University of Cape Town has worked to recover this history. The result is a remarkable digital collection of more than 12,000 items — letters, speeches, minutes, reports, and photographs — brought together from archives around the world.
This website offers a curated introduction to that collection: stories told through documents, a timeline that traces Mendel’s communal journey, and glimpses into one of the richest resources on Jewish communal life and leadership in South Africa.
- 1972
- 1973
- 1974
- 1975
- 1976
- 1978
- 1979
- 1980
- 1981
- 1983
- 1987
- 1989
- 1991
- 1995
- 1996
- 2009
Mendel’s milestones
1972
May
Mendel co-opted to the internal management committee of the Oxford Shul, Johannesburg as youth convenor, and to the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) Executive Council. The SAJBD serves as the representative body for South African Jewry, addressing communal needs and safeguarding Jewish interests across the region.
1973
June
Mendel appointed Co-Chairman of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies Finance & Administration Committee.
1974
May
Mendel appointed National Chair of the United Communal Fund (UCF), the fundraising arm of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.
1975
October
Mendel appointed Vice President of the South African Board of Jewish Education (SABJE).
November
Mendel becomes involved in the Israel United Appeal (IUA), the fundraising arm of the South African Zionist Federation (SAZF), as organiser for Johannesburg’s top donors.
1976
June
Mendel elected Vice-Chairman of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies Executive Council alongside Dr Israel Abramowitz.
October
Mendel appointed as chair of the Johannesburg Israel United Appeal (IUA) campaign.
1978
October
Mendel elected National Chairman of the Israel United Appeal (IUA).
1979
May
Mendel made a member of the World Board of Trustees of the Keren Hayesod, the global fundraising body for Israel.
December
Mendel appointed International Cash Chairman for the Keren Hayesod.
1980
May
Mendel elected as one of two Vice Presidents of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies.
Mendel appointed a Senior member of the World Jewish Congress (WJC) Executive and co-treasurer of that body. The WJC is an international federation representing Jewish communities and organisations in over 100 countries.
1981
February
Mendel appointed Treasurer for the World Jewish Congress.
1983
March
Mendel elected Chairman of the Keren Hayesod World Board of Trustees.
November
Mendel elected to the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) Executive (first South African ever). JAFI is an agency focussed on immigration to Israel and the integration of Jewish immigrants.
1987
October
Mendel is elected Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) Board of Governors.
1989
Mendel elected a vice-president of the World Jewish Congress.
1991
Mendel appointed co-Chairman of the World Jewish Congress Governing Board alongside Isi Leibler.
June
Mendel re-elected as Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel Board of Governors.
1995
June
Mendel appointed Honorary President of the Keren Hayesod.
Mendel appointed Chairman of the Jerusalem Foundation (serves until 1998). The Jerusalem Foundation develops, funds and oversees socio-cultural initiatives in Jerusalem.
1996
Mendel appointed Chairman of the World Jewish Congress Executive Committee.
2009
November
Mendel Kaplan passed away.
Key to acronyms
| SAJBD | South African Jewish Board of Deputies |
| UCF | United Communal Fund |
| SABJE | South African Board of Jewish Education |
| IUA | Israel United Appeal |
| WJC | World Jewish Congress |
| JAFI | Jewish Agency for Israel |
| WZO | World Zionist Organisation |