Joliet Jewish Congregation to Honor Lemont Couple

With years of charity work and devotion to their communities, Dr. Morton and Harriet Barnett of Joliet and Abe and Adeline Ordman of Lemont have shaped their towns’ history through their efforts.

That’s why, on Sunday, the Joliet Jewish Congregationwill honor the two couples for benefiting the Joliet and Lemont areas through their acts of humanitarianism and charity, as well as for their involvement with the congregation.

The Barnetts, after moving to Joliet in 1968, became co-chairmen of the congregation, with Morton serving as a board member for many years. Harriet founded the congregation’s couples club, is a member of the Joliet Jewish Congregation Sisterhood and chaired many Sunday School events. 

“We both wanted to be very active in our congregation,” Morton said. “The honor that we are receiving is a culmination of our affiliations with the synagogue and with the general community.”

As for the Ordmans, Abe, who goes by the name “Red” because of his hair color, and his wife, Adeline, were members of the congregation for 60 years, with Red serving on the board for 55. Adeline was also the president of the Joliet Jewish Congregation Sisterhood.

Both couples made an impact not only through their involvement with the congregation but through their work within their communities. 

In Joliet, Morton Barnett, a dermatologist, was awarded the “Practitioner of the Year” award from the Chicago Dermatological Society, for which he served as vice president. Harriet was a board member of the Joliet Junior Woman’s Club and served as president of the Twin Oaks West – Burr Oaks Homeowner’s Association.

In Lemont, Red and Adeline are well-known members of the community. Adeline was president of the PTA, successfully starting kindergarten classes in the Lemont public elementary school system and advocating for the building of the , for which she was a board member for 17 years.

While Adeline helped the schools, Red and his brother, Ralph, stimulated business in Lemont by starting and creating the supermarket, Ordman's Park and Shop, now a . His efforts led to him being named the Lemont Citizen of the Year in 1978.

“We wanted to bring some modernity to the town,” he said. “My brother and I had a lot of faith in what we were doing.”

Red said he has a connection to his town. After serving in Guam and Iwo Jima for the U.S. Navy and later, the Marines, during World War II, he said he vowed to devote his life to people in need. When a tornado destroyed much of Lemont in 1976, he donated truckloads of groceries from his supermarket to the victims.

“Everybody asked me why I did this and I had a very simple reason: my religious background tells me to help those in need,” he said. “I had so much to be thankful for so a few thousand dollars of groceries didn’t mean a thing to me.” 

He said he felt embarrassed to be considered a hero for his actions. However, the town continued to honor him as he became involved in various organizations, from the Lemont VFW Post to the Lemont Historical Society.

He was honored as “Man of the Year” by the City of Hope in 1983 and received the “Spirit of Life Award” from the Midwest Food Industry.

After 79 years of living in Lemont, working as a businessman and raising his family with Adeline, Red currently resides in Munster, Ind., to be closer to his family. Lemont has grown over time, as the Ordmans invigorated much of its initial expansion.

The Barnetts also spend time away, spending winters in Arizona. Although they are retired and no longer members of the congregation’s board, the couple said they would encourage more young people in the community to get involved and serve.

“I would hope that they would have an interest in their tradition to their religion,” he said.

Because the Barnetts and the Ordmans were instrumental to the development of their communities, it’s easy to see why the congregation chose to honor the two couples at the upcoming dinner. According to Dianne Parker, president of the Joliet Jewish Congregation, the recognition dinner will begin at 5 p.m. Sunday at the Jacob Henry Mansion Victorian Ballroom in Joliet.

To attend, call the congregation at 815-741-4600, as reservations are required.