Lenora Garfinkel

Lenora Garfinkel (12 Apr 1930 – 29 Apr 2020) was an American architect, specializing in the design and construction of Jewish ritual buildings.

Childhood and education Born Lenora Fay Josephy on April 12, 1930, in the Bronx, Garfinkel attended the High School of Music & Art in Manhattan and was among the first women to enroll in Cooper Union’s architecture program in the class of 1950. She took the Cooper Union entrance exam on a Sunday instead of Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath; she tested under a pseudonym to increase her chances of admission.

Career Garfinkel maintained an architecture office in Monsey, New York, for more than 50 years. The business was ranked in the top 8% of New York licensed contractors.

She designed the Atrium, an Ultra-Orthodox events space in Monsey, the Viznitz Synagogue, and the Masores Bais Yaakov school in Brooklyn.