Samuel D. Turtletaub Post 237 of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States scrapbooks

Established by L. Leroy Silverstein (1897-1987) in 1940 and named after a World War I Jewish lieutenant from Charleston, the Samuel D. Turtletaub Post 237 of Charleston, South Carolina, was the first National Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America Post to be established in the Carolinas. At the first regular meeting of the new post, L. Leroy Silverstein was elected as the first commander of the original thirty two charter members. Other first officials included Jack Meyers, first vice commander; Edwin Pearlstine, second vice commander; Max Turtletaub, adjutant; Benjamin Hirsch, quartermaster; and Hyman Rephan, judge advocate. Silverstein served as commander of Post 237 from 1941 to 1946.

With the start of World War II, the activities of the post were significantly reduced, as members were occupied with military and business duties. When the post was reactivated in 1947, membership grew to more than eighty members within the first year of its renewed activity. By 1958, membership totaled 175. During its time, Post 237 provided services to hospitalized veterans and servicemen as well as organizing and participating in numerous community projects. Services to hospitalized veterans and servicemen included monthly visits to the Veterans Administration Hospital and the Naval Hospital, dances and shows for stationed service personnel, and Veterans Day parades and memorial services. In addition, Post 237 hosted regular membership dances and an annual regional JWV convention, drawing representatives from Virginia, Georgia, and North Carolina. Community service projects consisted of various annual events, including Thanksgiving food drives; staging road blocks on the Ashley River Bridge for the March of Dimes; collecting pantry items for the American Cancer Society; and visiting local children's hospitals.