Happy Chanukah - The Jewish Georgian

November-December 2011 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN Page 29
Aaron Cohn
From page 25
and duty. Their middle child, Aaron, took
those lessons and uses them as the road map
to guide his actions every day of his life.
Judge Cohn is a proud citizen of
Columbus, Georgia. As dear to his heart as
Columbus is, I would venture to opine that
Athens, Georgia, is equally as important.
Cohn was a graduate of the University of
Georgia in 1936 and received his law
degree from Georgia in 1938. He also was a
member and captain of the university tennis
team. A great athlete and scholar, Cohn was
the embodiment of what the University of
Georgia continues to symbolize today.
Aaron Cohn enlisted in the United
States Army and was stationed at Camp
Gordon in Augusta, Georgia. The Army was
determined, due to his education, to send
Aaron into the JAG corps. But Cohn had
other ideas and was insistent about being a
member of a fighting unit. An accomplished
horseman, Cohn became a member of the
3rd Cavalry. He was at the Battle of the
Bulge and was instrumental in the eventual
liberation of one of the most diabolical Nazi
concentration camps, in Ebensee, Austria.
Cohn reached the rank of colonel and,
upon returning to the practice of law in
Columbus, continued to serve in the
Reserves. He was a practicing attorney in
Columbus until 1965, when he began his
service as a juvenile and family court judge.
Realizing that he could not give his
optimum attention to the justice system and
the Army, Cohn chose to focus his efforts
on those he felt needed his assistance
most—children. For almost 50 years, Cohn
exercised his sense of justice, discipline,
The judge and his court—his children:
(front) Judge Cohn and Leslie
Cohn; (back) Gail Cohn and Jane
Kulbersh
and compassion. In addition to discipline,
he sought to instill pride and self-respect in
those who had drifted off course. With all of
the awards and accolades bestowed upon
Aaron Cohn, one might be surprised by
what he finds to be his greatest reward. “I
love going out to lunch or to dinner and
having someone approach me that I do not
necessarily recognize,” he says with a
smile. “Then they will say, ‘Hey Judge
Cohn, you remember me? I came before
you in court, and you told me I needed to
straighten up and do right, or you’d have to
send me out to the ranch. I can’t thank you
enough for pointing me in the right direction.’”
Judge Aaron Cohn, surrounded by family,
friends, and colleagues, stepped down
after 46 years of service to the juvenile justice
system and retired as the oldest and
longest-presiding juvenile court judge in the
United States. A retirement ceremony was
held for Judge Cohn on September 27,
Edelstein was a lifelong leader
BY
Gene
Asher
Asher Leon Edelstein, one of the
greatest basketball players old Atlanta
Boys’ High School ever had and one of
the first Jewish boys to receive a basketball
grant-in-aid to attend Georgia Tech,
is the subject of The Book of Asher, by
Sonia Usatch-Kuhn of Fuguay-Varina,
outside Raleigh, North Carolina.
Although he grew up in Atlanta,
Asher lived most of his life in Raleigh,
where he was a star salesman for DeWitt
Chemical Company and Zep
Manufacturing Company.
But Usatch-Kuhn writes that he was
more than an athlete and star sales rep—
he was the pillar of the Jewish community,
a role model for all human beings, and
an avid amateur golfer. She writes, “He
was the most fun-loving, outrageously
funny, over-indulgent grandparent any
kid could hope for.”
Asher was a vital part of Beth Meyer
Synagogue, where he was involved in
many facets of congregational life,
including serving as president and, for
more than twenty years, a tutor at the
religious school. Usatch-Kuhn writes,
“Asher was a mentor as well as a mensch.”
In her book, 67 people share their
stories, telling of the influence Asher had
on their lives and how much they loved
and appreciated him.
Asher died in May of 2010.
Although he was the first “Dead
Eye” Edelstein, Asher had a brother,
Ben, also known as “Dead Eye.” On the
basketball courts, both Edelsteins would
look in one direction and shoot in another
direction. They seldom missed.
I had the pleasure of seeing both
Edelsteins play high school basketball—
Asher in the late ‘30s and Ben in the
‘40s. I haven’t seen a more accurate
shooter since.
The judge and his jury—his grandchildren:
(front) Seth Cohn, Judge
Cohn, and Leslie Lipson; (back) Al
Cohn, David Rosenberg, Howie
Rosenberg, and Eliot Rosenberg
2011, at the Columbus Convention Center.
Not one for much fanfare, Cohn thanked the
crowd for their participation and kind
words. When it was over, he quietly
announced he had to get back to work.
Judge Aaron Cohn can still be found at
the Government Center or speaking to
young military troops at Fort Benning or
addressing police and sheriff’s officers or
spending time at the National Infantry
Museum. At 95 years young, Cohn still considers
his 69-year marriage to Janet Ann
Cohn to be one of his greatest accomplishments.
He freely admits that nothing he has
done over the last 70+ years would have
been possible without the love and support
of his family.
The Honorable Judge Julia
Lumpkin, president of the
Columbus Bar Association, and
Judge Cohn confer on a major legal
matter: How does he stay so active?
So, as Judge Cohn sits back in his
recliner, wearing his grey shirt with the
word “ARMY” across the chest, watching
his beloved Bulldogs for another football
season, I can only sit and watch him in awe.
In awe of the man he is, in awe of the sacrifices
he’s made, in awe of all his good
deeds, in awe of his greatness, in awe of his
humility, and in awe of the fact that I am
blessed to call him my grandfather.
“A hundred years from now, it will not
matter what kind of car I drove, what kind
of house I lived in, how much money I had
in the bank…but the world may be a better
place because I made a difference in the life
of a child.”— Forest Witcraft (on the desk
of Judge Aaron Cohn)