Bummy Burstein (1926-2018)

Gerald Burstein, who went by his nickname “Bummy”.  He was an ardent fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1940s. The MLB team later moved to Los Angeles in 1959.  The Brooklyn fans were called “bums,” which explains why Bummy adopted his modified nickname. Many people didn't know his real name. His nickname took precedence over his legal name for social interaction.

Bummy spent 37 years working at CSDR, starting in 1965 and retiring in 2002.  Bummy explained that Dr. Brill stole him from the Minnesota School for the Deaf, where he had taught math for 15 years.   Bummy went to CSUN for a fast-track master’s degree coursework in eight months. Dr. Brill was a visiting professor for the now-defunct National Leadership Training Program for Deaf Education there.

Bummy taught math at the Minnesota School for the Deaf from 1950 to 1965. He lived on campus and ate in the school cafeteria.

Upon completing his MA studies, Bummy obtained a teaching position at CSDR, teaching math in JrHS, and was promoted to supervisor of the newly formed Media Technology Services Center in 1969.  The Media Center provided various services, including TV technology, visual equipment loan, yearbook production, paper duplication, rolls of large-sized paper, library, film strips, 16-mm films, and VHS videos, totalling 2,500 titles.  

Dr Ken Randall remarked that Bummy came to campus early in the morning and stayed until evening. He also came to his office on Sundays. In 2002, Bummy finally called it quits after 52 years in the field of Deaf Education at MSD and CSDR, at age 76.

Besides his work at CSDR, Bummy remained active in the Deaf community at the local, state, national, and international levels for several decades.

Bummy was one of the most famous faces of Deaf America from his extensive involvement in deaf organizations and frequent traveling across the country. He was noted for wearing white pants.

Bummy served on the boards of the California Association of the Deaf, the Gallaudet University Alumni Association, the National Congress of Jewish Deaf and the California Public Utilities Commission for equal access for people with disabilities.

With Bummy’s expertise in parliamentary procedure, he led 200 workshops to train deaf organizations and schools across the country on running smooth meetings. He shared his knowledge as the author of “Basic Parliamentary Procedure,” “Bummy’s Successful Meeting Procedures,” as well as through an ASL video, “Bummy’s Basic Parliamentary Workshop.”

In a nutshell, for his educational background, as a Brooklyn resident, Bummy graduated in 1943 from the oral deaf program at PS 47 and in 1946 from Charles Evans Hughes High School. He attended City College of New York and then transferred to Gallaudet University, where he graduated in 1950.  Lastly, he earned a master’s degree from CSU Northridge in 1965.

In 1985, through the California Association of the Deaf, Bummy was credited for working with State Senator Robert Presley to establish the Inland Service Center for the Deaf (ISC), the forerunner of today’s Center on Deafness-Inland Empire (CODIE) for providing advocacy, interpreter, health, social, employment and other services to deaf residents in the Inland Empire region.

Bummy also holds credit for establishing the Mayor’s Model Deaf Community Committee under Mayor Ronald Loveridge.  The committee continues to stand and makes Riverside a more deaf friendly town.

In 1985, Bummy was selected as an ambassador for the US to attend Laurent Clerc’s 200-year birth celebration in France. Bummy was impressed with the way deaf French applauded. Instead of clapping hands, they raised their hands and waved. Upon his return to the States, Bummy encouraged Americans to follow suit. With his frequent travel across the country, Bummy was able to make a sweeping change nationwide in a short time. Bummy is the key for how we appaud in America today.

Bummy had his personalized license plate on his Cadillac in the 1980s and then his Toyota in the 2000s. There was only one Bummy in the whole state of California.

For his extensive involvement with many organizations for decades, Bummy has received numerous awards, including an honorary Doctor of Laws from Gallaudet in 1986.

Bummy lived a simple life and built his investments over decades so he could share his wealth with the Deaf community.  His favorite quote is "It is better to give than to receive." He donated his legacy funds to CSDR and Gallaudet University.

In 2010, the former faculty lounge in the 1950s and the former Media Center in the 1990s were christened as the Bummy Student Center for student leadership and meetings.

Bummy was characterized by vision, professionalism, wisdom, diplomacy and humor with both the deaf and hearing alike. Everybody loved him.

In the last two years of his life in the living-assisted home, Bummy stayed in touch with friends from all over the country on video phone. He also enjoyed visits when guests dropped by to say hello.

At 91 of age, Bummy departed from Earth on August 31, 2018.  He is buried at the Olivewood Cemetery, a mile from CSDR.

Kevin Struxness, ‘76, MA

Editor, CSDR Old Times

17 March 2026

Bummy, ‘50, and Kevin, ‘80, worked together as president and vice president respectively of the national Gallaudet University Alumni Association from 1998 to 2001. Both were Eagle Scouts and Alpha Sigma Pi fraternity brothers at Gallaudet. Bummy had mentored Kevin on many things from the 1970s onward.