WOODBINE -- Stockton University has returned ownership of the Sam Azeez Museum of Woodbine Heritage to Woodbine Museum LLC after it was decided that it did not align with the school's future priorities.
Stockton President Joe Bertolino said that during the process of creating its new strategic plan and through conversations with civic leader and businessman Michael Azeez, it was mutually determined that the Azeez Museum, located at 630 Washington Ave., would be returned.
Azeez assumed control of the museum in 2001. He spent several years restoring the interior, exterior and grounds of the building, a National Historic Landmark, as close as possible to its original form.
The museum is a teaching center focused on preserving the history of Russian-Jewish immigration to that part of Cape May County in the late 19th century and working to reduce prejudice. The museum is housed in the historic Woodbine Brotherhood Synagogue, built by its congregation in 1893, according to Stockton.
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"I am deeply grateful for Stockton University's stewardship of the museum over the past decade and for our continued partnership moving forward. The Sam Azeez Museum of Woodbine Heritage and Stockton continue to share a common purpose to preserve history, educate future generations, and fight prejudice through knowledge," Michael Azeez said in a statement.
In 2003, Michael Azeez established the Sam Azeez Museum of Woodbine Heritage, honoring the memory of his father, a successful entrepreneur who grew up in the borough.
Stockton's Alliance Heritage Center celebrates Jewish farming history in South Jersey
Stockton University's Alliance Heritage Center holds a celebration of the reopening of the Alliance Colony Chapel in Pittsgrove Township.
Michael Azeez and the Azeez Foundation donated the museum and a $5 million endowment supporting its operations to Stockton in 2011. The university helped fund an addition in 2012 with two classrooms and two offices on the property. Over the years, the museum worked with Stockton and the New Jersey Holocaust Commission on education, teacher training and the collection of oral histories.
"We are incredibly proud of how the museum has thrived as a vibrant space for preserving Woodbine's unique heritage and fostering Stockton's commitment to preserving history in southern New Jersey," Bertolino said in a statement. "We eagerly anticipate deepening our long-standing partnership with Michael Azeez and the museum on new programming and activities, ensuring the museum's impactful mission continues to flourish for generation to come."
The museum contains a collection of historic photos, artifacts and documents detailing the story of the town's settlers who had been denied the opportunity to pursue agriculture in their native lands.
"We've been deeply invested in the museum's success under Stockton University's care, particularly through powerful programs about the Holocaust that brought world-renowned scholars, including those from Yad Vashem, the world Holocaust Remembrance Center, directly to the Cape May County community," Irvin Moreno-Rodriguez, director of the Sara & Sam Schoffer Holocaust Resource Center at Stockton, said in a statement. "I hope together we will continue to teach the public about Jewish immigration and settlement in southern New Jersey, and combat antisemitism and all forms of hate through education."
Contact Nicholas Huba:
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X @acpresshuba
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