Obituary: Stanley Brickman - Atlanta Jewish Times

Stanley “Perry” Brickman, DDS, the first oral and maxillofacial surgeon in Decatur and a beloved leader in the Atlanta Jewish community, passed away in Atlanta on Jan. 26, 2025, at age 92.

Born in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Dec. 23, 1932, his parents, Ida Siskin Brickman and Paul Myer Brickman, gave their son the Hebrew name, “Simcha Peretz,” in memory of his maternal grandfather. “Simcha” means joy, and throughout his life, he brought bright light and happiness to his wife, children, and grandchildren, modeling integrity, generosity, and gratitude.

In retirement, he achieved international recognition for uncovering virulent antisemitism at the Emory School of Dentistry from 1948-1961. His investigative research and Emory’s public apology brought long overdue resolution to more than half of Emory’s Jewish dental students during that time whose career dreams were derailed.

At age 16, he enrolled at Emory University and joined Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity. As Emory only admitted male students, high school girls often attended fraternity events. Perry’s life changed in his sophomore year when he met 15-year-old Grady High student Shirley Berkowitz at a fraternity football game. They married on June 26, 1955, and enjoyed a beautiful life together for close to 70 years.

One of only four Jewish boys admitted to Emory dental school in 1951 due to restrictive quotas, Brickman was shocked to receive a letter from the Dean the next summer, flunking him without any cause or notice. Despite this reputational blow, Dean James Ginn at the University of Tennessee in Memphis offered Brickman a second chance. He graduated fourth in his 1956 UT dental school class with high honors. Forever grateful, he later established the Dean James T. Ginn Scholarship at the UT School of Dentistry.

More than 50 years later, the Brickmans attended a 2006 celebration of Emory’s Judaic Studies program and the premier of Dr. Eric Goldstein’s exhibit on Jewish life at the university. They froze in their tracks in front of a trifold display with a bar graph confirming that 65 percent of the Jewish dental students at Emory from 1948-1958 had been flunked or made to repeat years. This was the first they learned that so many other young students had suffered – no one had spoken out.

Determined to uncover the painful and untold stories behind these statistics, Brickman signed up for Apple Store lessons on how to create laptop videos, then meticulously identified, located, and interviewed every living victim. After six years of research, he presented Emory with his heartbreaking documentary, “From Silence to Recognition,” leading to the formal and sincere apology by Emory’s president at an Oct. 10, 2012, standing room only event. Circulated worldwide, this was the No. 2 article emailed by New York Times readers for three weeks. Dr. Brickman received the 2012 Emory University Maker of History Award and the 2016 Emory Medal, the highest Emory alumni award for service and philanthropy. He then continued research to document dental school discrimination on a national scale, and his book “Extracted: Unmasking Rampant Antisemitism in America’s Higher Education,” was published in 2020.

Dr. Brickman enjoyed 42 productive years (1962-2004) at his Decatur oral surgery office, along with partners, Drs. Edwin Green, Charles Rosenberg and Harvey Silverman. He was the first dentist to receive the 1992 Dekalb County Medical Society Julius McCurdy Award for outstanding community service by a DeKalb County physician. He was founding member and president of the Georgia Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, president of the Alpha Omega Jewish dental fraternity, Chief of Oral Surgery at several Atlanta area hospitals, and a founding member of Northside Hospital, West Paces Ferry Hospital, and Decatur Hospital. In 1994, Gov. Zell Miller appointed Dr. Brickman to the Georgia State Board of Dentistry where he served for seven years.

Dr. Brickman was a member of Congregation Ohr HaTorah and Beth Jacob, and previously a member of Ahavath Achim. The Atlanta Jewish Federation’s 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award honored his community commitment, which included president of the Atlanta Jewish Federation, board member of Marcus Jewish Community Center, Atlanta Jewish Academy (lifetime trustee), William Breman Jewish Home, GILEE, Ben Massell Dental Clinic, AEPi (Chapter Advisor 1965-1985), and Jewish Family Services. He received the 2013 Anti-Defamation League’s First Centennial Champion Award and the 2013 State of Israel Bonds Atlanta Community Award.

He conquered Word Jumble, Wordle, Spanish Wordle, Yiddish Wordle, Dental Wordle, Phrazle, and Jewish Wordle on a daily basis.

Dr. Brickman is survived by his loving wife, Shirley, his daughters, Lori Freeman (Joe) and Teresa Brickman Finer (Paul), his son, Jeffrey Brickman (Susan), and his six grandchildren, Jason Morse, Jessica Morse (Jake Stoll), Elena Fishkin (Jason), Talia Finer, Joseph Brickman, and Anna Finer. He was predeceased by his younger sister, Rita. Graveside services were held at 11:00 a.m., Jan. 28, at Crest Lawn Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Atlanta Jewish Academy, Congregation Ohr HaTorah, or a charity of your choice. Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

comments