The Louis and Hedwig Sternberg Chair
in Plant Biology at Penn State

Louis Sternberg was born in the Franconian city of Bamberg, Germany, January 2, 1874. His wife, Hedwig Sternberg (née Nebel) was born October 20, 1888. Louis was from an established family that dates back to the 1750s in the area. He was a hops merchant in this hub of the German beer industry. The Sternbergs were part of a vibrant Jewish community that largely thrived in early 20th century Germany. With their daughters Martha and Ilse, they lived a comfortable life in their large flat near the center of the city.

Recognizing the growing danger from the rise of Germany’s Nationalist Socialist Party, Louis secured a visa in 1937 for Martha, then 21, to go to the U.S. A year later, Louis, Hedwig and Ilse left for the U.S., departing just before Kristallnacht. The Sternbergs settled in Fort Washington Heights, a German-Jewish enclave, in upper Manhattan. This was close to daughter Martha, who by then was married. Soon the Sternberg’s spare bedroom became the warehouse for their son-in-law Karl Kohn’s nascent wholesale hardware business.

Louis Sternberg died in 1942 from complications following routine surgery. His death was a shock that Hedwig struggled to overcome. Louis was the light of her life, a partner in an earlier, better life and in a difficult escape. Now, without her husband, and being in a new country with a new language, she had to learn to cope. Hedwig did cope, with the support and comfort of her daughters. Nonetheless, the toll taken by the Nationalist Socialist Party in Germany with its brutal policies, separation from the cultural underpinnings that defined her life, and the loss of her husband left a void difficult to fill.

With the end of World War II, Karl and Martha Sternberg Kohn moved from Fort Washington Heights to a predominantly Irish-Catholic neighborhood in Middle Village, Queens, to provide their three young children a safe neighborhood and the opportunity to attend good public schools. Hedwig moved with them to help with the children while Karl and Martha built the family business. For her, this move was likely another impediment to her finding her place in the U.S.

For the remaining 17 years of Hedwig Sternberg’s life, she was present for the Kohn children, as they left for school in the morning and returned home in the afternoon. Their needs came first, and hers second. The children were raised in the tradition and customs of European households of the time. There were expectations for the children, which they understood, and intuition largely guided their interaction with the adults. Little was open for debate. Similarly, Hedwig’s actions rather than her words reflected her beliefs. For the Kohn family, discussions of substance only emerged slowly and those mostly around politics and baseball. From these, Hedwig largely refrained. Likely her command of English and the American passion for discourse was a bridge too far to cross. Nonetheless, through her smiles and her silence, Hedwig cared and provided. In her quiet reserve, she cooked for the family, tended her flower and vegetable gardens, made the world’s best cakes, cookies and challah, and displayed her talents for häkeln (crochet) and embroidery. She remained steadfast in her faith and ultimately became a U.S. citizen. In spring 1965, Hedwig suffered a paralyzing stroke that left her unable to speak. She passed away that summer.

The Louis and Hedwig Sternberg Chair in Plant Biology at Penn State celebrates the lives and honors the memories of Harold Kohn’s grandfather, who he wishes he had been able to know, and his grandmother for her unwavering support of her family in difficult times and caring for him and his sisters through their childhood. The Kohn Charitable Trust endows this position in recognition of Louis Sternberg’s connection to the land, Louis’s and Hedwig’s respect for education and knowledge, and the importance of plant biology for our future.