Social hall at Florida synagogue to be named for DiMaggio

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) The social hall of Congregation Judea in Hollywood, Florida, will be named for Joe DiMaggio during a ceremony on Sunday.

Rabbi Joseph Bronstein says the orthodox synagogue wants to honor DiMaggio, an Italian Catholic, because “he is a symbol, a hero and role model to the past, present and future to all.”

Morris Engelberg, the lawyer who is the trustee of DiMaggio’s holdings, said Friday it is just the fourth license granted to use DiMaggio’s name since the Hall of Famer’s death in 1999.

The others are Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and Joe DiMaggio Park in Hollywood, Florida, and the Joe DiMaggio Foot & Ankle Center at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.

DiMaggio played his entire 13-year career with the New York Yankees, and his 56-game hitting streak in 1941 still stands.