ROZA SHOMER-BATSHELIS

ROZA SHOMER-BATSHELIS (February 12, 1882-February 26, 1966)

            The daughter of Shomer (Nokhum-Meyer Shaykevitsh), she was born in Odessa.  In 1891 she joined her father in New York.  She graduated from high school and completed Eastman Business College.  She worked in commercial and philanthropic associations, and she was an active Zionist.  In 1929 she settled in Los Angeles.  From time to time, she wrote for Tog (Day), Yidishe kultur (Jewish culture), and Kalifornyer yontef bleter (California holiday sheets) on her father, her brother Avrom Shomer (Abraham Schomer), and other well-known Jewish personalities.  In book form: Unzer foter shomer (Our father Shomer), with her sister Miriam (New York: IKUF, 1950), 251 pp., in Hebrew translation by Aharon Vaysman as Avinu shomer (Jerusalem: Aḥiasaf, 1953), 200 pp.; Vi ikh hob zey gekent, portretn fun bavuste idishe perzenlekhkeytn (How I knew them, portraits of well-known Jewish personalities) (Los Angeles, 1955), 154 pp.  She published poetry by her father in Hebrew: Shire shomer vezikhronotav (Poems of Shomer and memoirs) (Jerusalem: Aḥiasaf, 1952), 232 pp.  She authored a drama entitled Vayb oder mame (Wife or mother) and completed Shomer’s play Der zindiker rov (The sinner rabbi) under the title Dos kol fun gevisn (The voice of conscience).  Together with her sister Miriam Shomer-Tsunzer, she composed several plays which were staged: Eyne fun folk (One of the people), Di makht fun gezets (The power of the law) which was initially dubbed Di hent fun gezets (The hands of the law), Di tsirkus meydl (The circus girl) which was initially called Ver iz di meydl (Where is the girl), Der zingendiker ganef (The singing thief), and Der apashe-tants, oder libes-tants (The apache dance or the dance of love).  She also wrote for English-language periodicals.  She died in Los Angeles.

Sources: Zalmen Zilbertsvayg, Leksikon fun yidishn teater (Handbook of the Yiddish theater), vol. 3 (New York, 1959); B. Grin, in Morgn frayhayt (New York) (June 12, 1955); Yankev Glatshteyn, in Idisher kemfer (New York) (November 4, 1955); Yeshurin archive, YIVO (New York)

Beyle Gottesman