ERLIN, Jan. 27 — When Arthur Obermayer, an American Jewish entrepreneur, traveled to Germany in 1997 to learn about the towns where his grandparents were born, he found that he was not the only one who was interested in the prewar history of German Jewish life.
In the places where generations of his family had lived, he met Germans who were preserving local Jewish history. Many were quick to help him in his own genealogical research, and he was grateful.
He created the Obermayer German Jewish History Awards, which carry a small stipend, to acknowledge the contributions of such people. Today, he presided over the second annual presentation of the awards, honoring six Germans.
Among the recipients was Dr. Heinrich Schreiner, the former president of the Central Bank of Rhineland-Palatinate. After his retirement, Dr. Schreiner raised $2 million and oversaw the restoration of the sole remaining synagogue in Mainz, which had been the medieval center of Jewish study in Germany.
The synagogue was badly damaged in 1938 on Kristallnacht and was forgotten after the war until its decrepit state was brought to public notice in 1977. After Mr. Schreiner's efforts, the synagogue was reconsecrated in 1996, on the 900th anniversary of a pogrom in Mainz during the first Crusade.
Monica Kingreen was honored for her books on German history, including a biography of Moritz Daniel Oppenheim, a 19th-century Jewish painter. She developed an interest in Jewish history after she learned that her family home in Windecken, near Frankfurt, had been the residence of Jewish families for over 200 years.
She said today that after discussions with other award winners, it was "noteworthy to some of us that this recognition was an initiative of an American." Other recipients said they had worked for a long time without recognition in Germany.
Günter Boll, a schoolteacher from Steinenstadt, in Baden Württemberg state, was honored for his research on the Jewish communities in the border region of Germany, France and Switzerland. Olaf Ditzel, a roofer from Vacha in Thuringia, was honored for founding a historical society and documenting local Jewish history. Josef Motschmann, a theology teacher, received his award for writing numerous works on Jewish life, particularly in his region of Upper Franconia. Mr. Motschmann also initiated a project to restore an 18th- century synagogue in his hometown, Altenkunstadt.
A special commendation was awarded to Gisela Bunge who successfully fought to have local Jewish history included in the school curriculum in Saxony-Anhalt state.
Mr. Obermayer established the awards partly as an act of reconciliation. "There are now generations of Germans born after the war," he said in an interview. "They were not involved in the Holocaust, but many feel a responsibility to the Jewish people."
He said he wanted such members of the postwar generations to be recognized by their communities, their country and other nations. "In the U.S., a lot of people are uncomfortable about what I am doing," he said, "but I find that these stories resonate and then people usually understand."
