Philanthropist Mike Brener Dies Of Heart Disease At 85
05-06-1995 Times Picayune

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Mike Brener, a furniture executive who was also a philanthropist
and a prominent figure in the local Jewish community, died
Thursday at Touro Infirmary. He was 85 and had been ill with
heart disease for a long time.

Mr. Brener, best known for the television commercials he did as
the president of Universal Furniture, was passionate about his
religion and doing whatever he could to help others.

"He showed great generosity to all in need," said Rabbi Geoffrey
Spector of Congregation Tikvat Shalom. "I think that's what
he'll be best remembered for. Whenever there has been a crisis
or a need for contributions in the New Orleans Jewish community,
Mike was there, and he never wanted recognition for that. Often
his contributions were made without people knowing about it."

But there were public acts of generosity, most notably after
such calamities as Hurricane Betsy in 1965, Hurricane Camille in
1969 and devastating local floods in 1978 and 1982. After each
disaster, he canceled debts on destroyed, uninsured furniture
and carpets that customers had bought from Universal but hadn't
finished paying for.

The decision was "a spur-of-the-moment thing," Mr. Brener said
after the May 1978 flood. "I saw those people pulling furniture
out of their houses, and I saw the expressions on their faces,
and I told myself, 'This is the time to do something for my
customers.' . . . When your customers are in trouble, that's
when they need you most."

Each act, which cost him thousands of dollars, "showed that he
was not just a man out to make money but was there to serve the
community," Spector said.

"He's the most generous human being I know," said Margot Garon,
an official of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans.

Friends attributed his kindness to his deeply religious parents.

"They were the absolute best models for him," Garon said. "They
gave of themselves, not only to family but to those less
fortunate, and that's where he learned it. He has gone beyond it
because of his means. His goodness is steeped in his religion,
which demands that of him and his love for human beings."

Because of this legacy, "many people, particularly our young
people, saw him as the embodiment of Jewish tradition passed on
from generation to generation," Spector said. "He told me . . .
that he had no greater joy than to see young kids learning about
Judaism and its rituals."

Besides Jewish education, he was especially interested in
efforts to reach out to intermarried couples, said Deena Gerber,
Jewish Family Service's executive director.

Mr. Brener underwrote the outreach effort with an annual grant,
Spector said.

Mr. Brener, who never used his given name, Michel, started work
as a Universal Furniture shipping clerk shortly after he
graduated from Warren Easton High School in 1928. Except for
Army service in Europe in World War II, he worked there the rest
of his life.

For his charitable work, he was showered with awards from such
organizations as Hadassah, the National Council of Jewish Women,
the American Red Cross, the National Conference of Christians
and Jews, the Zionist Organization of America, the Jewish
Federation and the Institute of Human Understanding.

Survivors include a daughter, Anne L. Brener of Los Angeles; a
brother, Lazard S. Brener of Houston; and a granddaughter.

A funeral will be held Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Congregation
Tikvat Shalom, 3737 West Esplanade Ave., Metairie. Visitation
will begin at noon. Burial will be in Hebrew Rest Cemetery.
Tharp-Sontheimer-Tharp Funeral Home is in charge of
arrangements.