By Lina Broydo

Meet the Northern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame (NCJSHOF) Class of 2026 Inductees which includes Debbie Spander, sports executive, Founder and CEO of “Insight Sports;” Russ Critchfield, U.C. Berkeley basketball legend and All-American; Josh Steinharter, Founder of Maccabbi Sports Camp and Chief Operating Officer of the Jewish Community Center of the East Bay; John Poch, “Mensch Award” winner and Executive Director of San Jose Sports Authority.

I asked Tad Taube, the Honorable Consul of Poland to Northern California and one of the 50 most influential Jews in America, “What is a mensch?” Taube answered without a second of hesitation: ‘’The superb human being.’’ Taube was a member of the Class of 2008 inductees to the Northern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in tennis.

The 19th Annual Induction Dinner Gala will take place on Nov. 22 at the world-renowned Olympic Golf Club in South San Francisco, the stunningly picturesque site to a number of the past U.S. Open Golf Championships. Cocktails are at 4:30 p.m., hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction at 6 p.m., dinner and awards ceremony follow with radio personality Ted Robinson as the master of ceremonies. The nearly sold-out banquet attracts many Bay Area luminaries in sports, media and the business community, whose sponsorship and generous support is very vital to the NCJSHOF Youth and Scholarship Fund. Elected by the executive committee of educators, the extraordinary athletes are being honored for their athletic achievements and for their continued support for the community at large.

“In addition to this year’s superb induction class, the NCJSHOF will also celebrate and award 10 local youth with scholarships for their upcoming college careers,“ announced Steven Sockolov, the NCJSHOF President. “The funds raised from this event provide scholarships, mentoring and assistance for Jewish high school seniors participating in sports, community service and a high level of academic excellence. In addition, the organization educates the public on the contributions Jewish sports figures have made to their community and it forges positive relationships with diverse organizations and individuals promoting the value of sports in our daily lives. The NCJSHOF also partners with the UCSF Sports Medicine Program to study and protect student athletes from the detrimental effects of concussions incurred through participation in contact sports.”

To learn more about the Northern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame visit ncjshof.org. For tickets contact: Robert Arenson at  415-516-3060; robertarenson@comcast.net. Your tax deductible contribution supports the student scholarship and concussion prevention program.