Treasure Chest Thursday: Julius Reitman's Yiddish essay in the 1949 FLPBA anniversary publication

The 1949 anniversary publication of the First Lubiner Progressive Benevolent Association [a landsmanshaft organization in New York City for immigrants from the town of Labun (Lubin in Yiddish), Russian Empire] included pages of both Yiddish and English language essays by then recent past President Julius (Zine) Reitman. This week I will present the Yiddish essay; next week, the English one.

Special thanks to Emma Karabelnik and Bill Liebner who each provided their takes on English translation. I had posted an image of the essay on JewishGen's ViewMate - a wonderful application for, essentially, crowd-sourcing translations and other questions about images. Translation is an art. Since there were sometimes differences in translated wording, I had to make choices. Errors as a result of these decisions, are, of course, my own.

Dear compatriots
 
I Zineh and my wife Sarah Reitman, natives of Lubin, took it upon ourselves to to congratulate our compatriots and their families on the 40th anniversary of our society.[1] We hope that all of us will live to celebrate the 50th anniversary.
 
We came to America in 1921.[2] Three days later, we became members of this Society. My late father Moshe Reitman was one of the most devoted members in this organization.[3] I follow in his footsteps, being devoted to all our fellow members. Time and money do not prevent me from actively participating in the activities on behalf of the society.[4] I consider it a pleasure to be active in the society. 

In honor of this special holiday, we congratulate all our Lubin friends and we wish us to have a lot of joy and "nakhes" from all of you.[5]

Mr and Mrs. Zine Reitman
Mr. and Mrs. Israel Berman[6]
Levi Yitzhak, Yossef and Rachel Reitman[7]
 
Notes:
1. Louis (Zine) Reitman married fellow Lubiner Sarah Sherman in Manhattan on 31 December 1922. New York County, New York, Manhattan marriage certificate no. 252, Julius Reitman and Sarah Sherman, 31 December 1922, Municipal Archives, New York City.
2. Manifest, S.S. Kroonland, arrived 9 August 1921, stamped p. 119, line 11, Zyna Chajtman, age 23; images, "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 December 2010). I have been unable to locate a manifest record for Sarah Sherman Reitman.
3. Moshe Reitman arrived in the United States in March 1913 (less than two years after the 1911 founding of the First Lubiner Progressive Benevolent Association). He passed away on 7 January 1935 and in buried in the FLPBA plot in Montefiore Cemetery.
Manifest, S.S. Prince Friederich Wilhelm, arrived 31 March 1913, stamped p. 79, line 15, Moische Chajtmann, age 43; images, "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 December 2010).
New York County, New York, Manhattan Death certificate no. 688 (1935), Morris Reitman, 7 January 1935, Municipal Archives, New York City.
4. Julius and Sarah operated Roosevelt Glass in the Jackson Heights area of Queens. Julius was a skilled carpenter and Sarah was a glazier. "Julius Reitman, 96, was carpenter, Jewish leader," obituary, Boston Globe (Boston, MA), 14 May 1994, p. 74.
5. Nakhes - is a Yiddish word translated as taking great pleasure in the success of another.
6. Mildred Reitman, one of Julius' and Sarah's daughters, married Israel Berman. 
7. These are, likely the Hebrew names of Julius and Sarah's other children: Irving, Jerome and Rhoda. 1940 U.S. Census, Queens County, New York, population schedule, Queens, enumeration district 41-186, sheet 12B, household 273, Julius and Sarah Reitman family; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 23 December 2015); citing NARA microfilm publication T627, roll 2734.