Selma L. and Harold B. Yudkin Fund

This fund was established by Selma l. Yudkin in memory of her husband, Harold B. Yudkin and will support students and organizations in his hometown of Derby. Harold Yudkin was a truly unique and energetic man who was actively involved throughout his entire life in his beloved community of Derby. He loved his family, his friends and coworkers, and his chosen profession of law which he successfully practiced with distinction for more than 60 years.

Harold chose capable and determined associates, including the late Appellate Court Justice JoAnne Kiley Kulawiz, and Superior Court Judge Barbara Coppeto,who along with his brother George, became his partner in the firm known as Yudkin, Yudkin, and Coppeto. Though his law practice kept him in the spotlight for a number of years, Harold was also an active real estate developer. When returning veterans came home from World War II, Harold's foresight and ingenuity transformed hundreds of acres of land (forever known as the Yudkin development) into affordable housing for them, and helped to make him a wealthy man. A portion of this wealth is now entrusted into several Funds at the Valley Community Foundation.

"Harold was a proud and loyal member of his community," said his wife Selma Yudkin. "He was generous with both his time and his money, giving to both local and national charities. We were also fortunate to travel extensively throughout the world. No matter where we went, Harold always said that he was glad to be home because there was no place in the world quite like Derby." Mr. Yudkin was an avid historian, and spent many hours as a young man reading and researching local and national history in the Derby Public Library which was just a few steps away from his Seymour Avenue boyhood home.

Upon Harold's passing in 2004, Selma established the Harold B. Yudkin Fund at the Valley Community Foundation, to ensure that his tradition of generosity and dedication to his community would continue for years to come, and made a significant contribution to the Derby Public Library to support the Library's new Historic Preservation Fund. The Library's Board of Directors has since changed the name to the Harold B. Yudkin Historic Preservation Fund indicating they wanted to "honor Harold's love of history and the people of Derby. Many historic treasures will now be displayed for all to enjoy as a result of this generous donation." Additional gifts have been made to another VCF Fund established by the Valley Bar Association, of which Harold was a member for over 50 years, and to the Harold B. Yudkin Fund at the Valley Community Foundation.

"There was no one else like Harold," said Mrs. Yudkin. "He was a wonderful and giving man who valued his family, friends, and clients alike. I know he'd be pleased to be helping his treasured Derby and so many other worthwhile causes that he had supported all through his life."

Note: Selma l. Yudkin died on September 13, 2017.