With his dark, circular-rimmed glasses, and his standard accessories of a tape recorder, yellow notepad and pen, Robert A. Cohn has for many become the “face” of the Jewish Light.

Indeed, for more than 40 years, Cohn (now the Light’s Editor-in-Chief Emeritus) has chronicled the St. Louis Jewish community and written about events of local, national and international import.

Cohn’s seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of those events has become legendary among Light staffers.

Now, the Jewish Light has asked Cohn to share with our readers his amazingly detailed recall of history in a new online-only feature we’re calling “Cohnipedia.”

Twice a month, Cohn will share stories of the St. Louis’ rich and vibrant Jewish history – both from his lifetime and from his knowledge and research of events dating back to the city’s first Jewish residents.

As an introduction to our readers, excerpts of the first Cohnipedia feature are on page 9 of this issue.

However, there is a catch. At first, Cohnipedia will be open to anyone on the World Wide Web, at www.stljewishlight.com/cohn. But, after the first few columns, Cohnipedia will become an online feature available only to subscribers of the Jewish Light. We view it as an added bonus to the readers who support our publication and our mission to connect the St. Louis Jewish community.

In addition to receiving 52 newspapers a year and our quarterly Oy! Magazines, subscribers will have access to a unique online resource that complements our award-winning news, analysis and cultural coverage.

For readers who have not yet subscribed, there is still time.

A one-year subscription is $36 for Jewish Federation donors or $45 to the general public. And, there are further discounts for seniors, students and first-time donors to the Federation.

To subscribe, or for more information about subscriptions, see page 24 of this week’s edition, call 314-743-3660 or visit www.stljewishlight.com.