Fred Friedman (1926 - 2008)

Dr. Fred Friedman, Austrian Honorary Consul for Buffalo and Rochester, New York 2002 to 2006, died on January 16, 2008 at the age of 81. A native of Salzburg, he left Austria in 1938 with his family at the age of 15 and graduated in 1950 with a B.S. in accounting and in 1954 with a Doctor Juris from Brooklyn Law School. In 1955 he established the law firm Friedman & Ranzenhofer where he had since been practicing. Among the highlights of his career, Dr. Friedman was strongly involved in the community, serving as President of the local Chamber of Commerce, for which he was chosen Citizen of the Year in 2006. He was also Director of the National Council for International Visitors and President of Kiwanis. In 1993 he served as Attaché for the Austrian teams participating in the World University Games and traveled extensively throughout the world. In 2004, he actively participated in the Holocaust education school project, "Letter to the Stars," involving more than 15,000 Austrian school children who researched and wrote about the lives of NS victims. His belief in the basic good of humanity inspired him to return many times to his native Austria in later life to engage older citizens and children in remembrance of WW II and the Holocaust.