Yvonne Cort and her brother, Bob, grew up in Glen Cove, on the North Shore of Long Island. Their parents were Holocaust refugees from Germany who instilled in their children a commitment to Jewish life and community.

Yvonne’s parents were active members of North Country Reform Temple – Ner Tamid, in Glen Cove, and there, Yvonne’s mother, Susan Cort, became president of the Sisterhood and then went on to make history in 1978 as the first woman to serve as the president of a synagogue on Long Island. She was known to many as “the mitzvah lady,” according to Yvonne, who adds that her warmth and kindness left an enduring legacy.

Summers at a Jewish sleepaway camp, and involvement in LIFTY, the Long Island Federation of Temple Youth, in high school, nurtured a strong Jewish identity for Yvonne, as did a college semester living with a Lubavitch family near Paris, France.

At Melville Jewish Center, Yvonne has taken on many roles in Sisterhood and for the synagogue. For Sisterhood, as a board member for over 20 years, these positions include Religious School Liaison, Education VP, Corresponding Secretary, Torah Fund VP, and Social Action Chair.

 
She has also served on the shul’s board since 2011, and has been involved in many projects and events, from Yom HaShoah observances to an Israeli Film and Jazz Festival, and too many others to mention here. She founded and chaired an “Engagement Committee,” which kept the congregation connected during the height of the pandemic through virtual events and outdoor gatherings. She is currently the Co-VP of Programming.

Yvonne and her husband, Dennis Cohn, were married 38 years ago in Glen Cove at her family's synagogue, before settling in England for eight years. Their children, Bronwen and Philip, were born there. After moving back to Long Island, the family joined the South Huntington Jewish Center, now Melville Jewish Center. Bronwen currently works as a data scientist in cybersecurity and lives in Virginia, with her husband, Jason. Philip lives on Long Island and works as an Android engineer for Nuuly. 

Yvonne majored in linguistics at the University of Rochester and then went to the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. She is admitted to the bar in New York, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Tax Court.

She is a partner at the law firm of Capell Barnett Matalon & Schoenfeld LLP and leads its Tax Controversy Department. When she finds time, she enjoys the arts, especially going to the theater and taking dance classes. 
 
Yvonne is truly honored to receive the Woman of Achievement Award and thanks Melville Jewish Center Sisterhood for this meaningful accolade.