What better way to kick off another year of brotherhood than by getting outside, touching some grass and remembering where we came from?

On Sept. 6, Two’s AZA gathered at Meadowbrook Country Club in Overland Park for our chapter kickoff, appropriately dubbed “Two’s Touches Grass.” The afternoon featured plenty of competition and even more brotherhood, as the Alephs competed in doubles pickleball, spike ball and a spirited game of Ultimate Frisbee. And yes, we actually touched grass.

But the coolest part about our kickoff wasn’t just what we did. It was where we did it.

For Two’s, Meadowbrook has a special connection to our own history. The club was founded in 1953 by a group of approximately 100 Jewish businessmen, including Two’s alumnus Paul Berman, who served as Meadowbrook’s first president. Before the brothers headed to lunch at Strang Hall, Two’s advisor David Wexler took some time to tell the chapter about Berman and the important role he played in both the history of Two’s and the Kansas City Jewish community.

Berman was initiated into Kansas City AZA #2 in 1927 and later served on the chapter board as Shotare Godol. Decades later, he would help create an institution that became an important part of Jewish life in Johnson County.

When Meadowbrook opened in 1954, its significance went far beyond golf. At a time when discrimination against Jews remained common among country clubs in the Kansas City area, Meadowbrook had an open membership policy that welcomed Jewish members. According to the historical monument now standing at Meadowbrook Park, only one other country club in the Kansas City metropolitan area permitted Jewish membership at the time.

“As Jewish families increasingly moved from Kansas City, Missouri, into the growing suburbs of Johnson County, they faced a major problem: many local country clubs did not allow Jewish members,” Wexler said. “Meadowbrook provided a place where Jewish families could gather, socialize and build community.”

In many ways, Berman and his fellow founders were helping build the Jewish Kansas City that exists today, Wexler said.

Berman’s accomplishments extended well beyond Meadowbrook. He practiced law for more than 60 years and became a respected figure in the legal community. He was the first recipient of the Michael R. Rosner Award, recognizing excellence and achievement in bankruptcy practice. Berman died in 1998 at the age of 87.

Meadowbrook Country Club eventually closed in 2014, but its legacy remains. The former club is now Meadowbrook Park, an 80-acre park featuring two playgrounds, walking paths, four picnic shelters, three fishing lakes and a clubhouse.

So while “Two’s Touches Grass” may have been about being in the outdoors, the day also offered something more meaningful: a chance to stand in the footsteps of a Two’s brother who helped open doors for generations of Jewish families.