Atlanta Jewish Times, No. 29, August 7, 2015 by Atlanta Jewish Times

LEVEN SAYS

Columnist Al Shams draws lessons on leadership from a chat with hospitality legend Mike Leven. Page 10

MUSIC MAN

Sammy Rosenbaum talks about his mix of Jewish and secular music and his upcoming debut album. Page 23

FUN RIDE

To learn more and request an at-home screening kit, visit JScreen.org

Hymie and Sukey Shemaria explain their thriving marriage as their 60th anniversary approaches. Page 28

Atlanta VOL. XC NO. 29

Netanyahu: Better Deal Is Possible

Global LGBTQ Forum Picks Medwed

he rejection of the Iran nuclear deal would clear the path to a better deal through tougher sanctions and reduce the risk of war, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu argued in a live webcast Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 4. The address gave Netanyahu a chance to tell Americans why he and 70 percent of Israelis oppose the agreement. The prime minister repeated many things he has said before, including his No. 1 point: “The nuclear deal with Iran doesn’t block Iran’s path to the bomb; it actually paves Iran’s path to the bomb.” He denied that the only alternative to the deal is war or that Israelis want war. He said Israelis seek a better deal because they are on the front lines and want to avoid war, but this deal increases the danger by promising to set off a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. “That’s a real nightmare,” he said. He also denied that congressional rejection of the deal would destroy international sanctions. While rejection would lead to some erosion of the sanctions, he said, they would come back stronger once companies faced the reality of choosing between the U.S. market and an Iranian economy one-fortieth as big. ■ IDF major criticizes deal, Page 6

HOOKED ON FISH

Owner/chef David Silverman explains why he opened a seafood restaurant in Woodstock and his vision for the culinary future. Page 25

AUGUST 7, 2015 | 22 AV, 5775

WWW.ATLANTAJEWISHTIMES.COM

A Helping Hand Photo courtesy of ORT America

ORT Atlanta is raising money for the Hodayot Youth Village, a religious boarding school in Israel’s lower Galilee that succeeds in preparing many at-risk students for college. Read more about Hodayot on Page 20, part of a college-focused education special section, Pages 11-21.

SELF-STYLED

Sara and Armand Harris’ personal touches and design expertise create a home where even their poodle likes to strike a pose. Page 26

INSIDE

Calendar 2 Arts 23 Candle Lighting

3 Food 25

Israel 6 Simchas 28 Opinion 8 Obituaries 29 Business 10 Crossword 30 Education 11 Marketplace 31

OJOURN Assistant Director Robbie Medwed is going to Salzburg, Austria, this month to participate in a global think tank addressing LGBTQ issues in the Jewish community. He is one of 60 LGBTQ leaders and allies selected from applicants in 30 countries to attend Eighteen:22 from Aug. 11 to 13. No one else is from Georgia. Eighteen:22, whose name comes from the Leviticus verse banning gay male relationships, is a new group connecting Jewish LGBTQ activists worldwide to facilitate improvements in lives. To that end, the application focused on local work for equality and its fit into a global approach, Medwed said. “There are things that we’re doing really well in Atlanta that we can teach to others and tactics and programs I’m sure we’ll be able to learn from others. I hope that Eighteen:22 will be a chance for those of us involved in grassroots education and activism to combine all of our efforts to create change across the world.” The think tank’s first forum will convene less than two weeks after the stabbing attack on the Jerusalem March for Pride and Tolerance. Yishai Schlissel killed a 16-year-old girl, Shira Banki, and wounded five others. “I’ve never been one to sit back and hope that someone else will step up and make things better for LGBTQ Jews,” Medwed said. “It’s up to those of us who are willing to put ourselves out there to help create change around the world.” Eighteen:22 wants to be a model for LGBTQ inclusion for other faith groups. ■

CALENDAR

A Spoonful Of Sugar

Photo by Jennifer Bienstock

M Let’s Table Alzheimer’s July 1 - September 1, 2015

ary Poppins (Meghan Dresdner) runs into medical resistance from the Banks children, Jane (Leah Dresdner) and Michael (Avi Kaplan), in a scene from the musical “Mary Poppins,” which opens at 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, at the Marcus Jewish Community Center’s Morris & Rae Frank Theatre, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. The show, directed by Levi Kaplan, runs through Aug. 16 for a total of seven performances. Tickets are $15 to $28. Visit www.atlantajcc.org/boxoffice or call 678-812-4002 to purchase tickets or get more information.

THURSDAY, AUG. 6

Belmont Village Buckhead 5455 Glenridge Dr., N.E. Atlanta, GA 30342

Join Belmont Village in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease this summer. A donation of $20 will earn a chance to win the elegant table setting displayed on our Table of Hope between now and September 1. All raffle proceeds will go to the Alzheimer’s Association to help with research and programs benefiting individuals and families who are struggling with this devastating disease.

FIDF talk. George Birnbaum speaks to the Friends of the IDF Young Leadership group about the challenges of supporting Israel at 7 p.m. at Hudson Grille, 942 Peachtree St., Midtown. Admission, including one drink and free parking, is $18. RSVP required; www. fidf.org/birnbaum806 or 678-250-9027.

FRIDAY, AUG. 7

Dive into Shabbat. The Marcus Jewish Community Center invites the community to celebrate the approach of Shabbat from 5 to 7 p.m. at the outdoor pool at 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Free; www.atlantajcc.org/pldb-live/26037 or 678-812-4161.

SUNDAY, AUG. 9

Back-to-shul cookout. Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Morningside, welcomes interim Rabbi Melvin Sirner to Atlanta and helps kick off the school year with food, Israeli dancing and Atlanta Jewish Music Festival music from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Free; RSVP by Aug. 3 to 404-873-1743.

All donations/entries must be submitted in person by visiting our community between July 1 & September 1. We will notify the winner by Monday, September 7.

For more information, please call 404-252-6271.

MONDAY, AUG. 10

Leo Frank lecture. Part 2 of the lecture series former Breman archivist Sandy Berman delivered at Georgia State University is televised by Atlanta Interfaith Broadcasters at 9:30 a.m. For additional showings, visit www.aibtv.com.

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

THURSDAY, AUG. 13

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Love story. Author Jennifer Weiner discusses her new novel, “Who Do You Love,” with Holly Firfer at 7:30 p.m. at the Marcus Jewish Community Center, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Tickets are $24 for JCC members, $29 for nonmembers, and include a signed book and a glass of wine; www.atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4002.

7/31/15 4:19 PM

Leo Frank discussion. Steve Oney, author of “And the Dead Shall Rise,” and Georgia Historical Society senior historian Stan Deaton discuss “The Ghosts of Leo Frank: Reckoning With Georgia’s Most Infamous Murders 100 Years Later” at 8 p.m. at the Earl Smith Strand Theatre, 117 North Park Square, Marietta. Free; georgiahistory.com.

FRIDAY, AUG. 14

Dive into Shabbat. The Marcus Jewish Community Center, Congregations Shearith Israel and Bet Haverim, Jewish Kids Groups, and PJ Library invite the community to celebrate Shabbat from 5 to 7 p.m. at the outdoor pool at the Emory Student Activity & Academic Center, 1946 Starvine Way, Atlanta. Free; www.atlantajcc.org/pldblive/26038 or 678-812-4161. Shabbat in the park. Congregation Etz Chaim holds its annual musical Shabbat service, starting with fun and games at 5:30 p.m. and a grilled meal at 6:15, in East Cobb Park. Admission is $5 per person or $20 per family; RSVP at www.etzchaim.net/SITP by Aug. 10.

SATURDAY, AUG. 15

ADL speaker. Jonathan Greenblatt, the new national director of the AntiDefamation League, will speak at Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs, during Shabbat morning services, which start at 9:15.

SUNDAY, AUG. 16

Grand opening. The Kuniansky Family Center at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, celebrates its opening with arts and crafts for children and adults, dance workshops and performances, and cooking demonstrations by chefs such as Eli Kirshtein and Todd Ginsberg from noon to 4 p.m. Free; www.atlantajcc.org.

CALENDAR CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES

Parshah Eikev Friday, Aug. 7, light candles at 8:15 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 8, Shabbat ends at 9:12 p.m. Parshah Re’eh Friday, Aug. 14, light candles at 8:07 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, Shabbat ends at 9:04 p.m.

Leo Frank commemoration. Congregation Etz Chaim, 1190 Indian Hills Parkway, East Cobb, marks the centennial of Frank’s lynching with a memorial event at 2 p.m. Free; etzchaim.net. Persian picnic. The Sixth Point’s Persian SPIN holds a picnic at 2 p.m. at Piedmont Park in Midtown. Bring a snack to share. Free; fmoosazadeh86@ gmail.com or thesixthpoint.org.

MONDAY, AUG. 17

Leo Frank exhibit. “Seeking Justice: The Leo Frank Case Revisited” opens to the public at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History, 2829 Cherokee St., Kennesaw. The exhibit runs through Nov. 29. Museum admission is $7.50 for adults, $6.50 for seniors, $5.50 for children ages 4 to 12, and free for children 3 and under; www.southernmuseum.org. Leo Frank discussion. The Anti-Defamation League plays host to new ADL National Director Jonathan Greenblatt at 10 a.m. at the Georgian Club, 100 Galleria Parkway, Suite 1700, Cumberland area. Free; RSVP by Aug. 13 to cwilliams@adl.org; 404-262-3470.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 19

Accessories exchange. Mount Scopus Hadassah at 6:30 p.m. holds a pizza and swim party that features the opportunity to exchange scarves, hats, gloves, pocketbooks or jewelry you no longer wear for items others bring in. The costs is $10. RSVP by Aug. 12 to Edie Barr at embarr1@bellsouth.net or 404325-0340 for location details.

FRIDAY, AUG. 21

Dive into Shabbat. The Marcus JCC invites the community to celebrate the approach of Shabbat from 5 to 7 p.m. at the outdoor pool at 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Free; www.atlantajcc.org/pldb-live/26037 or 678-812-4161.

SUNDAY, AUG. 23

Holocaust workshop. The Atlanta History Center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road, Buckhead, hosts a free workshop for educators from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on film and archives of World War II. Free; mwilson@atlantahistorycenter.com or www.atlantahistorycenter.com.

MONDAY, AUG. 24

Film screening and lecture. Christian Delage, the curator of the “Filming the Camps” exhibit at the Atlanta History Center, will screen and discuss his latest film, “From Hollywood to Nuremberg,” at 7 p.m. at the center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road, Buckhead. Tickets are $10; www.atlantahistorycenter.com.

SUNDAY, AUG. 30

Bowling kickoff. The Atlanta Jewish Bowling League, an adult mixed league, holds a reception, to be followed by bowling, at 6:30 p.m. at Brunswick Zone Roswell, 785 Old Roswell Road. The Sunday night league starts play Sept. 20. For information or reservations, call Roz Brotman at 678-393-6339 or Alex Schulman at 404-667-7752.

FRIDAY, SEPT. 4

LimmudFest. The Labor Day weekend celebration of Jewish learning starts with arrivals between 2 and 6 p.m. and runs through midday Monday, Sept. 7. Registration fees range from $199 to $799 per person, depending on accommodations; www.limmudse.org.

ONGOING

Holocaust exhibit. Kennesaw State University’s “Parallel Journeys: World War II and the Holocaust Through the Eyes of Teens” is on loan at the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, 5920 Roswell Road, Suite A-209, Sandy Springs, through Aug. 25. Free; holocaust.georgia.gov. History of Jewish Atlanta. The Breman Museum, 1440 Spring St., Midtown, presents “Eighteen Artifacts” through Dec. 31. Admission is $12 for adults, $8 for seniors, $6 for students and educators, $4 for children 3 to 6, and free for members and younger children; thebreman.org or 678-222-3700.

Send items for the calendar to submissions@atljewishtimes.com.

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

Leo Frank commemoration. Temple Kol Emeth, 1415 Old Canton Road, East Cobb, hosts a yahrzeit service and call for a full pardon for Frank at 2 p.m. on the 100th anniversary of his lynching. Free; ravlebow@aol.com.

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LOCAL NEWS

Local Briefs

Gesher Renews Rabbi Congregation Gesher L’Torah Rabbi Michael Bernstein recently signed a 10-year contract renewal with the Conservative synagogue in Alpharetta. In an announcement, Gesher L’Torah said the renewal “ensures longterm stability for the congregation as well as continuation of our unprecedented growth trend.” The congregation’s membership has grown 40 percent since Rabbi Bernstein arrived in July 2009.

Photos (Broadway cast): Joan Marcus and Chris Callis

i l l a V e i k n a r f f o y The sTor s n o s a e s r U o f e h T &

October 6-11 AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

The Fox Theatre

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Ray’s Rio Bravo Opens Jewish restaurateur Ray Schoenbaum opened his “new old” Tex-Mex concept, Ray’s Rio Bravo, for dinner at 4 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3. Photo by Marcia The opening Caller Jaffe Ray Schoenbaum followed a week of private events for has reopened Rio Bravo in friends and family Sandy Springs. at the former site of Peter Chang’s Chinese restaurant along the Chattahoochee River at 6450 Powers Ferry Road in Sandy Springs. The restaurant is just east of Schoenbaum’s Ray’s on the River. The new restaurant is meant to re-create the Rio Bravo that was a huge success for Schoenbaum more than 30 years ago until he sold it. It features the same dishes and fresh tortillas made on “The Machino.” Schoenbaum performed a colorful overhaul and reconstruction on the building, including a spewing fountain.

Hershberg holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Kennesaw State University and worked for the law firm of Heskia-Hacmun in Tel Aviv. He was a 2013 Zionist Thought and Statesmanship Jerusalem Fellow, a 2013 graduate of the Anti-Defamation League’s Glass Leadership Institute, and a recipient of the American Zionist Movement’s Helyn B. Reich Memorial Scholarship. His new boss, AJC Atlanta Director Dov Wilker, was academic and community affairs director at the consulate from 2005 to 2007. Film Entry Deadline Nears The regular deadline for entries for the 2016 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is Aug. 21. The 16th edition of the largest Jewish film festival in the world will run from Jan. 26 to Feb. 17. Executive Director Kenny Blank said, “The 16th annual festival promises to be our best year.” The entry fee is $15. The fee rises to $20 for late entries, due Sept. 18, and $30 for filmmakers taking advantage of the extended Oct. 9 deadline for submissions through Withoutabox. Entry requirements and forms are available at ajff.org/callforentries. Hadassah Visits Rights Center During the three weeks leading to the 9th of Av, which fell on July 25 this year, the Jewish people remember the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem and the resulting struggles for Jewish civil rights. That period was an auspicious time for Greater Atlanta Ha-

Hershberg Joins AJC The ties between The Greater Atlanta Hadassah group gathers in the lobby the American Jewish of the Center for Civil and Human Rights on July 19. Committee’s Southeast office in Buckhead and the Israeli dassah (www.hadassah.org/atlanta) to Consulate to the Southeast in Midtown organize a group trip to the Center for have gotten a bit closer with the hiring Civil and Human Rights at Centennial of Harold Hershberg as AJC Atlanta’s Olympic Park in Atlanta. assistant regional director. The visit Sunday, July 19, started at Hershberg, who is replacing Jeff the Martin Luther King National HisSchoenberg and is focusing on inter- toric Site and continued with a ride on ethnic and interreligious affairs and the new streetcar to the park. The tour domestic diplomacy, moves to AJC At- of the rights center began after lunch lanta from a post with the consulate at the CNN Center food court. as the director of economic and trade The Center for Civil and Human affairs. In that position, he developed Rights includes not only Atlanta’s role and executed a strategic vision for eco- in the civil rights movement, but also nomic and commercial diplomacy. the fight for human rights worldwide.

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LOCAL NEWS Atlanta

home of a member. The congregation is unaffiliated with any religious movement. UGA faculty members make up the core of the congregation, but it also attracts students.

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10 Years Ago Aug. 5, 2005

■ Heide and Paul Dranove of Marietta will celebrate the bar mitzvah of son Jason Eric Dranove at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 18, at Etz Chaim synagogue.

■ Chabad of Georgia is launching a Montessori school. The preschool will offer the first program in Georgia that combines Montessori methods with Judaics. Chabad expects 65 children to be enrolled when the school year begins Aug. 25. The preschool is open to the community and is on Chabad’s Sandy Springs complex. It will accept 2-year-olds through kindergartners.

50 Years Ago Aug. 6, 1965 ■ An announcement was made that Ronald T. Cahn of Indianapolis was appointed as director of District 5 of the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization and that headquarters in Atlanta will be created. The BBYO office will be in the 805 Peachtree St. building and will open Aug. 16. Cahn will assume overall responsibilities for BBYO activities from Maryland to Florida.

■ Stuart and Wendy Leaf of Dunwoody announce the birth of a daughter, Jamie Victoria, on April 7, 2005. She weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces and was 20½ inches long. 25 Years Ago Aug. 10, 1990

■ Mr. and Mrs. Marcus Danneman of Atlanta announce the marriage of daughter Lynda Joyce Danneman to Alfred M. Rubenstein, son of Mrs. F. Rubenstein and the late Harry Rubenstein of Anniston, Ala., on July 18 at Ahavath Achim.

■ With the closing of the University of Georgia’s Hillel House in April, Congregation Yad Shmuel is meeting at the

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ISRAEL

‘The Mess Just Got Messier’ IDF major calls Iran deal a disaster By Ariel Pinsky

he Iran nuclear deal and “aggressive, expansionist, fascist systems” in the Middle East were the hot topics Monday, July 27, in an address on “Israel: What Now?” by Maj. Elliot Chodoff, the Israel Defense Forces’ Home Front Command deputy chief of staff for the northern population and a political and military analyst. The lecture was hosted at the Marcus Jewish Community Center by the Southeast Region of Friends of the IDF, which promotes the well-being of Israeli soldiers and their families. Security was tight at the lecture, attended by about 175 people. Israel’s new consul general to the Southeast, Judith Varnai Shorer, made her first public appearance and praised FIDF. Chodoff was introduced by Garry Sobel, FIDF’s Southeast chairman, and Seth Baron, FIDF’s regional executive director. Chodoff, who made aliyah in 1983, jumped into the nuclear deal and its regional implications, saying “The mess just got messier” in the Middle East.

“It was said no deal is better than a bad deal. This isn’t a bad deal — it’s a disaster,” said Chodoff, who reminded the audience that Iran was sanctioned because it violated the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1970. Chodoff likened the new agreement to a block of Swiss cheese — more holes than cheese. Criticizing the deal’s wording, he said one provision could obligate the United States to protect Iran from any attack on nuclear facilities, including cyber attacks by Israel: “America Photos by Ariel Pinsky Left: Maj. Elliot Chodoff says the Middle East is breaking into a series of quasi-empires. has essentially become an ally Right: FIDF Southeast Executive Director Seth Baron introduces the speaker. of Iran against Israel.” Chodoff said a common “We’re moving into a time of eminvestment, economic stability and humisconception is that nuclear damage man capital as people, fearful for their pires once again — Persian, Ottoman, from an Iranian attack would result in safety, flee the country. Egyptian and Russian,” he said. These the destruction of Israel and its people. Chodoff also said that Iran, the “wannabes” are a result of the void left Instead, he said, an Iranian nuclear ar- world’s greatest state sponsor of terror- by failed states such as Syria, Iraq and senal could destroy Israel by making it ism, won the negotiations with ballis- Libya that have disintegrated one by a “nonviable state.” tic missiles, nuclear weapons potential, one, shifting the fundamental balance Nonviable means Israel could re- and hundreds of billions of dollars to of power in the Middle East. vert back to Stage 1 after years of prog- finance terrorism throughout the MidBorders, armies and governments ress, suffering losses in infrastructure, dle East. are meaningless in today’s “fiction of

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He questioned Iran’s credibility in international politics: If the West agrees to a treaty with Iran, giving it permission to violate a previous treaty, what makes anyone think it won’t violate this one? He cited Albert Einstein’s famous observation that insanity is, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” In that sense, Chodoff sees a historical connection between the Iran deal and the Munich agreement of 1938, in which British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain succumbed to Adolf Hitler’s demands by giving Germany the Sudetenland. “You cannot appease fascists because they keep moving forward nonetheless,” Chodoff said. He said he described the Iranian regime as fascist because its Muslim foundation is overstated and its primary goal is to undermine democracy. He said fascist regimes are perpetual expansionists that perceive the classic elements of democracy such as free speech as inherent weaknesses in the system. Chodoff, who serves 90 to 130 days of active reserve duty per year, can see from his experiences along the northern Israeli border that any “semblance of an orderly, organized Middle East is now gone.”

the Middle East,” which has reverted back more than 100 years into an imperial system from the system of Arab states that emerged from the rise of pan-Arabism, he said. Using hand gestures with his fingers interlocked, Chodoff explained that in a system of states, the borders interlock perfectly — it is clear when you leave one state and enter another. Spreading his fingers, he illustrated that in an imperial system, gaps result from hubs of concentrated power and create jagged edges and unclear borders. That is where he said the Middle East is heading. As for the Iran deal, Chodoff would not answer when or if Israel will strike Iran — “Even if I knew, I wouldn’t tell you” — or why he thinks President Barack Obama pushed the deal through. But when asked his advice on the title of the lecture — What now? — he said: “First of all, standing up to them. Sometimes regimes like that will back down. I’m not hopeful, but be prepared for the reality that if they don’t, they’re on a collision course.” Chodoff concluded the hour-long lecture by saying, “I wish I could give you something more optimistic, but the truth is I cannot because the situation is dire.” ■

ISRAEL

EyeControl speaks for ALS patients. Israeli entrepreneurs have started a crowdfunding campaign to support EyeControl, a device that enables people with ALS or other paralyzing conditions to control a computer with their eyes. An infrared camera attached to glasses tracks eye movements and transfers movements into commands that are interpreted by a microcomputer. The campaign exceeded its goal and has raised $41,825 to date. Grab-and-go booster seat gains traction. Ra’anana-based entrepreneur Jon Sumroy recently opened his new booster seat design, Mifold, to crowdfunding. Using Israeli mechanical engineers, material scientists and marketers, Sumroy designed the Mifold to be simple and portable. It is one-tenth the size of the average booster seat, so many can be stored in a glove compartment. The campaign raised $217,333 in the first five days of funding. Breastfeeding reduces childhood cancer. Researchers at the University of Haifa conducted a meta-analysis and found that nursing for at least six months reduces the risk in children of developing leukemia or lymphoma by 19 percent. Dr. Efrat Amitay of the University of Haifa’s School of Public Health said the inverse association between breastfeeding and childhood rates of leukemia and lymphoma is substantial. The study found other benefits to breastfeeding, including an improved immune system and a lower risk of infections. Doctors heal peacekeeping dog. Sevenyear-old Dano, a highly trained Belgian shepherd dog, sniffs out explosives in the Sinai and elsewhere. He was wounded in action in Afghanistan, suffering a fractured upper left fang. After receiving a root canal, Dano returned to duty, only to refracture the tooth. Because of an exposed nerve, Dano needed urgent medical attention. Dr. Yoav Bar-Am treated Dano with a composite filling, enabling Dano to return to his heroic duties. NBA stars visit Israel. Eight NBA players, including Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins, forward Omri Casspi and forward Caron Butler, paid Israel a visit recently. Instagram photos

depicted the NBA stars happily covered in Dead Sea mud. The trip was an opportunity for the other players to learn about the homeland of Casspi. The players held two camp workshops and took part in NBA charity events. Tel Aviv rail breaks ground. Tel Aviv workers recently broke ground on a light-rail project. The ambitious project will take an estimated six years and will create eight distinct lines of transportation, extending through Rehovot to the south and Kfar Sava in the north.

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Vets save lion. During a routine checkup at the Zoological Center of Tel AvivRamat Gan, zookeepers discovered a large growth on the belly of Samuni, an 8-year-old lion. Rather than risk complications, doctors decided to remove the tumor in a two-hour operation July 29. The operation was a success, and samples are being tested to determine whether the tissue was malignant. Biotech fast-tracks treatment. Tel Aviv-based biotech company BioBlast recently received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to develop Cabletta, a protein stabilizer, to treat oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy. Currently in Phase 2 trials in Canada and Israel, Cabletta is the only FDA-approved treatment for OMPD. OPMD appears most often in certain geographic areas and ethnic populations, including French-Canadians and Ashkenazi Jews in Israel. Pfizer acquires commercial rights to drug. Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer recently acquired exclusive commercialization rights in the United States to glatiramer acetate, a potential treatment for multiple sclerosis. Petah Tikva-based Teva Pharmaceutical developed the drug, known as Copaxone. Liver cells from stem cells. Scientists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have created large amounts of functioning liver cells from stem cells. Most liver treatments rely on donated or purchased organs. By creating liver cells from stem cells, the researchers have introduced an important avenue in the treatment of liver disease. Compiled courtesy of israel21c.org and other news sources.

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Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home

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Jewish Terror

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

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hou shalt not murder. Those words from the Ten Commandments are part of the Torah portion we read Aug. 1, the first Shabbat after Tisha B’Av. It’s supposed to be a day of consolation after the mourning of Tisha B’Av, the day we lament the Jewish disunity that led to the destruction of the Temples and other disasters. But it was hard to move past the mourning after what happened in Israel days before Shabbat. On Thursday, July 30, Yishai Schlissel stabbed six people at a gay pride parade in Jerusalem, repeating a crime from 10 years earlier for which he recently was released from prison. One of the six victims, 16-yearold Shira Banki, died three days later. Early Friday, July 31, someone threw Molotov cocktails into two homes in the Arab village of Duma and left Hebrew graffiti nearby. An 18-month-old, Ali Dawabsha, burned to death, and several of his family members were fighting for their lives at press time. The killers are believed to be Jewish settlers. “The Torah of the Jewish people is the Torah of life, and the value of life is above everything,” said Moshe Gafni, the head of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, according to The Jerusalem Post. He was addressing the parade stabbings, but his words could just as well apply to the firebombing. The Torah does not ban the murder of Jews; it bans murder, period. Killing a toddler, an innocent child merely sleeping in his home, is murder. Both acts of violence are stains on Israel and on the Jewish people. They already are being used by those who hate us as evidence that Israel should be eliminated. Israel cannot prevent such verbal attacks but can take action to undermine them. We are heartened by the widespread condemnation in Israel of both attacks, especially by President Reuven Rivlin and his immediate predecessor, Shimon Peres, at two of several rallies held Saturday night, Aug. 1, in response to the attacks. “We must put out the flames, the incitement, before they destroy us all,” Rivlin said, according to the Times of Israel. “We will not be zealots. We will not be bullies. We will not become an anarchy.” Peres said Israel must “wage a war of liberation — to liberate the state of Israel from madness and madmen.” We join with many others in making this point: Terrorists are terrorists. Those who would burn a sleeping Arab family because of extreme nationalism or a twisted vision of Judaism are no better than those who behead Jews and Christians out of a twisted vision of Islam. The parade stabber is in custody and should expect to spend the next couple of decades in prison. But the stain on Israel will remain until the people who firebombed Duma are also brought to justice. The same Israeli security apparatus that found the killers of the three Jewish teens last summer must find the killers of Ali Dawabsha. If those who committed this crime think their violence was justified, let them come forward, make their case and face punishment. If they hide, their cowardice reveals their knowledge they did wrong, and anyone who can identify them must do so. ■

Photos by Michael Jacobs

Left: Riding American Pharoah, Victor Espinoza smiles at the supportive crowd before the Haskell. Right: The crowd cheers as American Pharoah eases up past the finish line.

Going Up to See Pharoah

Adding to the confusion and the refugee feel spent Sunday, Aug. 2, with an American hero and was Long Branch. more than 60,000 of his closest friends. All passengers must change trains at Long I went to Monmouth Park in New Jersey to Branch, just one stop from Monmouth, because see the first post-Triple Crown race for American someone couldn’t make the state’s rail lines play Pharoah, arguably America’s greatest Jewish athlete nice together. The tracks south of Long Branch serve of 2015. (He’s owned by a New Jersey Jewish family, diesel-powered trains, while the tracks north of Long the Zayats.) Branch are for electric trains. And ever the twain do The 3-year-old colt did not disappoint. Running meet at Long Branch. at odds of 1-10 — people People who rode one who risked a standard train for the better part of a $2 wager won 20 cents half-hour from Point Pleasif they didn’t just keep Editor’s Notebook ant or Bradley Beach had to the betting tickets as By Michael Jacobs disembark at Long Branch, souvenirs, as I did — mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com wait five minutes for another American Pharoah train, then settle in for a ride breezed to victory of three to five minutes to after letting speedster Monmouth, where the “station” is just a rail crossing Competitive Edge set the pace for the first half of the less than half a mile from the racetrack. 1 1/8-mile Haskell Invitational. It was all conducted in good humor on the way It was quite a spectacle. It was the largest crowd ever to attend the Haskell, there to see the first Triple to the track. It turned into a nightmare on the way home. Let’s just say my odds of making a 10:30 p.m. Crown winner to run at Monmouth. Comedian flight out of Philadelphia weren’t helped by the two Bill Murray turned out to see Pharoah, as did New hours it took to make the half-hour ride from MonJersey Gov. Chris Christie, taking time away from his mouth to Belmar. Republican presidential campaign. The hassle of the Haskell was worth every I was hanging with the railbirds instead of the wasted minute at a train depot and every dime lost fancy folks in the boxes. Even though I didn’t have betting on the horses, however, because of the main much luck with my betting, I was lucky just to be attraction. American Pharoah lived up to his hype there. My New Jersey cousins in the Toms River area and did something rarely seen in American sports: have simchas almost every summer, and Aug. 1 was He united all of the 60,000 people in the crowd. Phillip Fried’s bar mitzvah celebration. I figured They applauded in anticipation of his arrival. any family that would throw a baseball-themed bar mitzvah party wouldn’t mind if I skipped the Sunday They cheered his every appearance on the track. They roared when he took the lead and kept getting brunch/pool party to hit the track early and get one louder as he cruised down the stretch. of the Haskell hats given to the first 20,000 fans. Most of them came out of nowhere to see him. I took the NJ Transit train to the track to avoid The crowd around the paddock and the track was traffic before and after the race. It was a good choice good but not overwhelming as late as 3 p.m., just for entertainment value. under three hours before the Haskell. By 5, the place The train north along the Jersey Shore was like an evacuation of refugees from a UGA football game, was packed. Some of the fans had spent the earlier hours in the air-conditioned main building or on the albeit with different accents. There were families, picnic grounds, but others got to the track after 4. young singles, old singles, couples and groups of They just wanted to see American Pharoah in person buddies dressed in everything from T-shirts and because none of us knows if we’ll ever have another short shorts to blue blazers and khakis. Some carted chance to see a Triple Crown winner in person. along folding chairs; more lugged beer coolers. Just in case it was a once-in-a-lifetime experiConfusion was common because many were riding ence, I’m glad I gave cousin Phillip a gift in multiples the commuter rail line for the first time in years, if of chai. ■ not ever.

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OPINION

Make Us a Nation of Peace Seekers Throughout my life I have always felt that I owe a certain degree of loyalty to Israel, its history and its people. The values that I derived from the Torah and prophets were instrumental in the formation of the infrastructure of my spiritual existence. I have always believed that I am a part of a people whose moral and

One Man’s Opinion By Eugen Schoenfeld

spiritual system is rooted in the social concern explicated in the Torah. I am an adherent of Isaiah’s and Mica’s rejection of ritual cultism and in the pacifism of Jeremiah. These values were more important to me after my Holocaust experiences. As a teenager before and during the Holocaust, I was committed to the militancy of Rabbi Akiva and Jabotinsky, whom I met. I believed in our need for vengeance, the ideal expressed in the haggadah prayer Shefoch Chamatch, when we invite Elijah to enter our home and we ask God to “pour out your wrath on the nations who deny you.” Now, at my advanced age, I agree with Stephan Zweig’s view of the ideals of peace seeking as reflected in the great pacifist prophet Jeremiah. I still believe in the values espoused by Herzl in his dream, outlined in the book “Old New Land,” for coexistence. For the most part, our traditional philosophical teachings were not concerned with power, but with the ideal of humanism — for a life in which people could live without fear. The prophet Zachariah knew this, and he taught us that real might comes from the spirit, as he declared: “Not by might, not by power, but by My spirit.” That spirit, the spirit of G-d, is manifest in the search for justice, humility and peace. The founders of Zionism were Jews who hoped that we and the world could realize the Herzlian dream of peace and wished for Israel to become the model of a moral country serving both Jews and Arabs. Similar views were expressed by Ahad Ha’am in his collection of essays titled “Al P’rashat D’reachim” (On the Cross Roads). Israel will never become a large country in which there is room for all Jews to reside. Therefore, its function is to the model of a moral and ethical so-

ciety. The fate of Israel is not to become a great territorial empire. Its function is to become the great moral society — the great humanitarian society. This is what I liked about Ha’am, Simon Dubnow, Bialik and others who taught me to dream for peace. I agree with Ha’am and Dubnow that the rise of moral-cultural Judaism is based on Jewish philosophy from the Torah time until the present. That is the glue that has and will continue to unite Israeli Jews with Jews michutz laarets and create the universal Klal Yisrael. I understand Israel’s concern for survival, but survival based on a quest of power will disunite Judaism. We must return to the humanistic, universal principles for the dreams that were central to our tikvah, our historic hope. We never were, nor should Israel become, a seeker of vengeance. Vengeance is a slippery slope that leads only to continual hatred and the rejection of peace. My problem with the present state of affairs in Israel is its elevation of vengeance and hatred over our belief to become a rodef shalom, a seeker of peace. ■

Israel Bonds’ H’s

Here are the 10 H’s for why we should buy Israel Bonds: 1. Help Israel financially. 2. Help show solidarity with Israel. 3. Help ourselves with a good rate of return. 4. Help continuity of Jewish culture and religion. 5. Help promote a strong image of world Jewry. 6. Help Israel to combat the Iranian threat. 7. Hasten peace. 8. Hasten Israel’s continued strength militarily. 9. Hinder the opponents of Israel. 10. Haverim Kol Yisrael. We will not forget that the state of Israel was born after the ashes of the Holocaust. “If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand cease to function. May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth.” ■ Mort Aronson, past chairman of Atlanta Israel Bonds and current member of its executive committee

You can sit on your couch to watch a game on Sunday, August 16... Or you can come to Marietta, to stand up for justice! Leo Frank Memorial service Sunday August 16, 2 pm Rabbi Steven Lebow Founder and Chair

Timothy and Joanne Cole Associate Chairs

Guests: Chief Justice, Georgia Supreme Court, Hugh S.Thompson (Retired) Chief Justice, Georgia Supreme Court, Norman Fletcher (Retired) Chief Justice, Georgia Supreme Court, Leah Sears Senior Assistant Attorney General of Georgia, Van Pearlberg Chief Judge, Cobb Superior Court, J. Stephen Schuster Chair, Cobb Commission, Tim Lee State Representative, Michael Smith Counsel, Anti-Defamation League, Dale Schwartz And many, many others...

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AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

friend recently sent me a brief excerpt of a study by Shmuel Rosner, who cautions us that a schism undermines Jewish unity. Mr. Rosner, a journalist and senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute, writes: “A sense of crisis has emerged in many Jewish communities regarding their relationships with Israel, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to discuss Israel because of the bitter political disputes these discussions spark. This difficulty may lead to the exclusion of Israel from Diaspora community agendas and is an obstacle to communicating Israel’s actions and policies to the Jewish public within a sympathetic communal framework.” I was greatly disturbed by Mr. Rosner’s own bifurcation of Jews — between the Israeli Jews and, as he calls us, the Diaspora Jews. Calling Jews who live outside Israel Diaspora Jews is not merely nonevaluative nomenclature. To refer to us as Diaspora Jews displays his own value perspective. Diaspora is a sanitized version of the Hebrew word galut. The galut Jew is a ghetto Jew, one who, unlike Israeli Jews, is weak and does not stand up for himself and his rights. Such Jews are powerless and cower before Christians or Arabs; their motto is “Keep quiet and make no waves.” The Diaspora Jew is one described by Haman: a people different from all others in the land and unworthy of the trust of the true citizens of a country. Is this how Mr. Rosner or perhaps all Israelis see the non-Israeli Jews? A great many Jews lived outside Israel even during Temple times. The Jews of Alexandria, who settled there in the third century B.C.E., were highly productive in crafts and in Torah and Hellenistic wisdom. They were not known as galut Jews but as Jews michutz laarets (Jews outside Israel). We must accept one reality: Israel is not big enough to absorb all Jews; therefore, many Jews (perhaps the majority) always will live outside Israel. Alas, I lack the data that would let me respond whether and to what degree there is a separation between Israeli and non-Israeli Jews. I can respond only from my personal experience and state of feeling about presentday Israel. I must admit that, at least from my perspective, the values that I believed in and that were fundamental to Zionism have been lately altered.

Letter to the Editor

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AJT 10

• Is all about behavior, vision and everal weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending 90 minutes with empowering others; it is not about poMike Leven. We had an amicable, sition, money or fame. • Is about effective, honest commuwide-ranging discussion on several nication with team members. topics, with a focus on leadership. • Knows there is great strength in While the focus of this article is leadership principles, it would be help- unity. Strength flows both ways, from ful for our readers to have some insight leaders to the team and vice versa. into Mike’s background. Mike grew up as an only child in a middle-class BosBusiness Sense ton family. He attended public schools and was active in By Al Shams many extracurricular activities, often in leadership roles. Mike graduated from Tufts University and earned • Knows it is OK to admit mistakes. a master’s from Boston University. • Makes his own faults known to His entire career has been in the hospitality industry. He has held senior team members, who will be forgiving if management positions at Days Inn, faults are honestly admitted. • Realizes that to deny a wellU.S. Franchise Systems (Microtel Hawthorn), Holiday Inn Worldwide, Las Ve- known mistake is to lose trust. • Is quick to recognize the achievegas Sands, and the Georgia Aquarium, ments of others but does not seek recwhere he is the CEO. ognition for himself. His Mike has also satisfaction comes from founded several hospithe success of the team. tality trade groups and • Is attentive to the has served the public in needs of the team. numerous capacities. Examples of leaderTime and space ship: do not allow us to cite • When I was in the Mike’s many contribuCoast Guard, the ship’s tions to the Atlanta Jewcaptain had a policy of ish community, the city, making sure his men the state and others. He Mike Leven had enough to eat before has been a significant he would eat. philanthropist on many • The U.S. military, especially in levels. We are all lucky to have Mike combat, has produced many examples and his family in our community. During our discussion, the follow- of great leaders inspiring their men to incredible feats of courage; think ing principles of leadership emerged: • Great leaders are completely George Washington and Dwight Eisencommitted to the success of the team; hower. Mike believes that many of the any other consideration is secondary leadership principles that have guidor nonexistent. • A leader leads from the front, ed his life were gleaned from the exleads by example, takes risks person- amples set by his parents and grandally for the benefit of the group, and parents. His active participation as encourages others to take balanced, a young man in sports and AZA were good learning experiences. intelligent risks. In the area of public policy, Mike • Great leaders know that each team member could do better and be believes that we are all aware of the more productive. The leader seeks to major problems. A good leader formumotivate, inspire, encourage and uplift lates and communicates a solution, team members. These team members then seeks to implement that solution. Mike Leven is a tremendous huknow that with effective leadership man being. I thoroughly enjoyed my they can reach greater heights. visit with him. He has been a great A good leader: • Sets examples, embracing and benefactor to the Jewish community promoting good values, and seeks to and his fellow man. Mike’s insights have a positive impact on his team and and actions should inspire us all to lead more productive, empowered lives. ■ society.

Education Briefs

Hillel Adds Israel Fellow Hillels of Georgia has hired its first Israel fellow, Moran Shaboo, who has joined the Hillel staff at the University of Georgia. She will share her experiences with and knowledge of Israel. Shaboo worked at the University of Oklahoma last year. Ohio State Band Criticized The marching band at Ohio State University has come under criticism for adding a Holocaust-inspired parody song to its repertoire in 2012. The song, called “Goodbye Kramer” and performed to the tune of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’,” was discovered in the band’s updated songbook during an investigation into the band’s culture in 2014. The song references Nazis searching attics for Jews, as well as Jews traveling by cattle car to their deaths at Nazi camps. B’nai B’rith International criticized the trivializing of Holocaust imagery. In a statement Thursday, July 30, the Jewish fraternal organization also praised the Ohio State administration for its commitment to eradicating the band’s “vile culture.” Ben Franklin Co-Founder Dies Wood Smethurst, a co-founder of Ben Franklin Academy in 1987, died July 14, just weeks after retiring as the school’s headmaster and being named headmaster emeritus. Martha Burdette, the other cofounder and the dean of studies, was named head of school when Wood Smethurst Smethurst retired. Smethurst saw mastery learning with individualized instruction as the way to teach many high school students. He helped establish Holy Innocents’, Galloway and Paideia schools. Before he died, Smethurst received the Jane and Dameron Black III Service Award for his service to the school. Ballet Registration Open The Bush Centre for Ballet in Sandy Springs is offering 50 percent off registration for students ages 3 to adult who sign up before the center holds its annual open house Saturday, Aug. 15. Classes will begin the following week. Pre-registration may be done at www.bushballetcentre.com. The center’s annual performance has taken place at the Marcus Jewish Community Center the past nine years.

On August 11 We need to Elect J. Max Davis J. Max Davis is strong supporter of the Jewish Community and a friend of Israel.

As a State Representative, he will support the continuing purchase of Israeli Bonds by the State of Georgia.

He opposes the Obama Administration’s dangerous deal with Iran.

He will continue support of the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, and keeping the Anne Frank in the World Exhibit in Sandy Springs.

“As your State Representative, I will fight for inclusion and diversity. We need to stand firm against the growing threat of anti-Semitism.” “I’ve known J. Max and his father before him for years. He will do a great job in the State House.” Endorsed by Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul

Endorsed by State Representative Joe Wilkinson

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Atlanta native Veronica Beskin is excited to come home By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

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he first day of fall classes at Georgia Tech and Georgia State is a few weeks away, but new Campus Hillel Director Veronica Beskin has been preparing for the fall semester since July 1. The Atlanta native comes back to Georgia after serving as Jewish student life coordinator at Texas A&M Hillel in College Station. “I’m most excited to meet all my students as I’ve only met 10 so far from both schools,” Beskin said. “I’m looking forward to providing them with fun, educational Jewish programing and opportunities to find a Jewish identity while in college.” Beskin grew up attending The Temple, where she studied with Cantor Deborah Hartman and Rabbi Alvin Sugarman. She is a 2007 graduate of Tulane University, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in vocal performance and Jewish studies. She said her first goal is to increase student numbers at the Georgia Tech and Georgia State Hillel programs. According to hillel.org, Georgia Tech has around 900 Jewish students, while State has Veronica Beskin says Georgia roughly 550. State has a lot of room for Hillel “I’d like to expand participation in different growth, but it’s a hard school types of community service events and also expand to find the Jewish students. participation in our weekly programming,” Beskin said. “I think we can definitely grow at both schools, specifically Georgia State. There’s a lot more room to grow there programwise. Studentwise, it’s harder to find Jewish students on that campus.” Besides wanting to return to Atlanta, Beskin was interested in the position because of the large Jewish community here and an opportunity to have more challenges and responsibility. One of those challenges is the lack of a dedicated Hillel building at either school. “Maybe one day we will have a building of our own,” she said. “That way we won’t have to reserve space for events. There’s definitely a lot of room for growth.” ■

QB Rosenberg Enters Third Season at Hamilton

Chase Rosenberg, a 2009 Davis Academy graduate and an All-Region player at Centennial High, is entering his third season as the quarterback at Hamilton College, one of the Little Ivies in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. The finance major was a summer intern on Wall Street for Dabroes, Quarterback Chase Rosenberg runs for a touchdown then worked for Atlanta’s for Hamilton. He had four rushing touchdowns Hansberger & Merlin and 11 passing touchdowns last year. Group at Morgan Stanley. The junior returns to Hamilton after completing 230 of 420 passes for 2,293 yards in 14 starts last season. He was fourth in the NESCAC in total offense. ■

EDUCATION

Experience Wanted: Camp Counselor campers to eat their lunches, throw their garbage in the bin, and prepare for their upcoming activity. I watched these counselors put aside their social impulses and personal insecurities in the powerful realization that they were truly responsible for caring for and develop-

Guest Column By Noa Bejar noa@collegeboundjews.com

Noa Bejar helps Jewish students navigate the college search process at www.collegeboundjews.com.

Atlanta History Center Film Screening and Conversation with Christian Delage Monday, August 24, 2015 J 7:00

An evening with director Christian Delage, historian, curator of Filming the Camps - John Ford, Samuel Fuller, George Stevens: From Hollywood to Nuremberg exhibition, and filmmaker whose earlier credits include the documentary Nuremberg, The Nazis Facing Their Crimes. Admission is $5 for members; $10 for nonmembers. Reservations required, call 404.814.4150 or visit online.

AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Lectures

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

ing their young charges. Yes, teenagers were still socializing and enjoying being with one another at work, but they understood their role and were able to put themselves aside to nurture and strengthen their campers’ identity, independence and ability to collaborate with their peers. The counselors’ commitment was unwavering, and their dedication to their campers was palpable. This is clearly not a poorly paid summer job filled with free field trips around the city; camp is an intensely rewarding, albeit exhausting, summer of giving almost completely of yourself. What a humbling experience for today’s teens, and that’s just a day camp! Can you imagine how much more intense an overnight staffing experience is, dealing with homesick children, bed wetters, sleepwalkers, cabin conflicts, hygiene and adolescent antics I don’t want to think about? I hope college admissions officers take the time to read between the lines when they see a student’s résumé that reads “Camp Counselor” because these young adults are selfless, mature leaders who are challenging themselves in new ways every day and working tirelessly for an experience they believe in. College freshman class dynamics will be better off with camp counselors who understand the impact of contributing and collaborating, and campus activities need these enthusiastic and engaged young people to help their campuses thrive. We need camp counselors, our children need them, and I am in awe of them. ■

Stevens and his crew filming in France, n.d. © Courtesy of the Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Beverly Hills, CA

got it wrong. We have all seen camp counselors lounging by the pool, flirting with each other, texting on their cellphones while children swarm around them. I have seen “Camp Counselor” on résumés and have quickly disregarded it. I know the description: underpaid, overworked teenagers rising a few heads above a sea of animated children, loosely shuttling groups from activity to activity. I often advise students to participate in internships or specialty programs that capitalize on their interests, demonstrating to colleges their initiative and commitment to a certain field of study. I made light of working at summer camps even when I saw a flicker of hurt blink through students’ eyes. Strive for more! Define yourself! Set yourself apart from your peers! Until I was completely immersed in it. I volunteered at a day camp for three weeks this summer. I did not work hard, and I did not work directly with the campers. Still, I was exhausted — “crawl up in the fetal position on the lobby couch” exhausted. I watched the high school, college and post-grad counselors fully engage with their campers in a display of boundless energy and patience that has long since escaped my middle-age body. I put aside the obvious, incredible camper experience of action-packed days with friends and activities and looked at the personalities that were implementing, troubleshooting, conflict-resolving, nursing and engaging with these campers. What I saw was the unquestionable ability these young people have to motivate and inspire others, but that’s little kids loving big kids. What impressed me the most about the counselors was their work ethic and maturity. They arrived early to work, embracing and warmly welcoming their campers each morning. The time and energy counselors invest in their summer job many times exceeds adult expectations for our own work environment. Mia coaxed a young camper to participate. Ryan talked his boys through a disagreement. Daniel sweated in a Zumba class, encouraging his campers to participate. Adam let the girls swing and twirl on his long arms. Sydney patiently reminded her

AJT 13

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Enlightening Educators

CIE workshop spreads knowledge about modern Israel By Leah R. Harrison

hey came from Florida and Minnesota, Washington state and New Jersey, British Columbia and Illinois, Ohio and Texas, Ontario and California. The educators hailed from more than 25 schools, 14 states and three countries to attend the 14th annual CIE/ISMI Teacher Enrichment Workshop on Modern Israel. Running from June 21 to 26 at the Atlanta Marriott Perimeter Center, the Center for Israel Education/Institute for the Study of Modern Israel workshop convened for the purpose of “getting teachers trained,” institute President Kenneth Stein said. “Most people in Atlanta don’t really know about the teacher workshop. We’re making a difference in Jewish schools.” Primarily for fifth- to 12th-grade Jewish day, supplemental and congregational school teachers, the workshop benefits other educators as well. Spots are limited. Aspiring attendees must submit an application well in

advance explaining why they should be considered. Attendee Tamara Weaver from Congregation Shaarai Shomayim in Lancaster, Pa., found out about the training from her rabbi. In addition to teaching fifth grade in religious school, Weaver instructs a literature-based Holocaust unit in public high school and “The Holocaust Through Literature” at Harrisburg Area Community College. Weaver said many of her community college students, who come from 37 countries, had never heard of the Holocaust. Weaver wrote in her application: “I found that my students do not have an understanding of modern Judaism or the state of Israel, and therefore (this unit) must provide background on all levels to allow for proper literary analysis. This workshop will provide me with additional source materials for improved instruction.” As for her high school curriculum, she wrote that her Holocaust unit “includes information on the formation of Modern Day Israel; this workshop

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will better round out my background ence she ever attended. “There was so knowledge and hopefully give me more much information that will be valuresearch topics to explore with my stu- able for passing on to my students, but also to the adults in my congregation dents.” The CIE sessions provide the con- — other teachers, the rabbi, other context for the history of how the Jewish gregants.” She said the workshop prepared state came into being and why it reher to be an ambassador for Judaism mains essential. In the opening session, Stein ex- and the Israeli people. Rabbi Stephen plained that the goal of Berger is collaborating the workshop is to proon a new Israel awarevide a comfortable and ness program for his vast working knowlpre-college students edge of modern Jewish at King David High history and modern School in Vancouver, Israeli society, politics British Columbia. He and culture. “We want said: “It was so much you to walk away with information in such a new tools and methodshort period of time! ologies that make you They gave us a lot of better as an educator tools and knowledge for conveying to your to be able to go back students what Israel is to our communities all about and why does and be able to answer it matter.” questions about why Fresh off the Photos by Leah R. Harrison plane from Israel, Re- Rich Walter (left) listens as Kenneth Israel is important. uven Hazan, the chair- Stein asks a question during the They did a very good opening workshop session. job of communicating man of the political that.” science department at Rabbi Berger praised the workthe Hebrew University of Jerusalem, addressed Israeli government, politics shop for offering many perspectives on and political institutions. He spoke of Zionism, including music and literathe dynamics of Israeli politics and ture. “I wish there was a follow-up to how vastly Israel’s parliamentary de- see how we’re integrating it. Trying to mocracy varies from U.S. presidential figure out how to use all the information is the dilemma.” democracy. The AVI CHAI Foundation sponThe ensuing sessions included Israel’s foreign policy, the Arab-Israeli sors the workshop. Participants subconflict, Israeli literature and music, mitted a $150 application fee, but they and a simulation of the first Zionist received a stipend for their travel and Congress. Breakout sessions covered had all meals (kosher food provided targeted discussions and curriculum by For All Occasions and More’s Jodie Sturgeon), accommodations and maand lesson development. At breakfast the final day, three terials paid for. Those items included Jewish college interns provided insight a large binder containing resources into their experiences on campus, in- culled from past workshops for curcluding manifestations of the boycott, riculum development, lesson planning divestment and sanctions movement; and classroom use, as well as books to the discord among Jews regarding Is- support the information covered and rael, the lack of respect and communi- to augment school libraries. Over the years the workshop has cation among Jewish factions and organizations, and the struggles between trained 89 Atlanta-area educators and those organizations and others, includ- touched just about every local school ing student government and university that offers Jewish or Israel education. In 2000, the inaugural year, teachers administration. The interns encouraged the edu- from Congregation Beth Shalom, The cators to help their students develop Temple, Davis Academy, the Epstein School, Temple Beth David, Congregaopinions and dialogue about Israel. “Coming home was such a let- tion Or VeShalom and Congregation down! I felt like I needed to be back Shearith Israel participated. This year there soaking up more knowledge,” only five of the 61 slots went to local Weaver said, calling it the best confer- educators. ■

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EDUCATION

Center Spreads Israel Literacy as regional director of the Union for Reform Judaism in Washington and he seeds for what is now the interim executive director of the AssoCenter for Israel Education were ciation of Reform Zionists of America. Since touching down in Israel for sown in 1998 when two teachers asked Emory University’s Kenneth his first trip, to study at Hebrew Union Stein to teach some sessions on Zion- College in 1971, when he first thought ism at Greenfield Hebrew Academy. to himself, “I’m home,” he has felt an He consented with the stipulation that obligation to bring back to adults and they make it a regular offering. A two- children in the United States an understanding of what Israel means to the day workshop ensued. The AVI CHAI Foundation later Jewish people. His collective experience and became involved, supporting the workmany trips to Israel shop as a vehicle have made Rabbi for educators and Sperling even more learners of all resolute that “your kinds about modobligation is to ern Israel so they speak from knowlcould knowledgedge, to speak from ably teach others. a passion about Stein now the Jewish right to calls it “transferraself-determination, ble learning about and to speak from modern Israel.” a position of direct In the opening experience.” session of the cenHe said he is ter’s June teacher CIE workshop participants listen “passionately comworkshop on Israel, intently to Reuven Hazan. mitted” not just to educators faced this question: What would be a philo- CIE and the Institute for the Study of sophical or intellectual connection to Modern Israel, but also to “the way in Israel or to the idea of Zionism or cre- which Dr. Stein has created a fiercely ating a Jewish state? After several re- independent, fact-oriented … base of sponses from educators, Stein zeroed knowledge and advocacy.” He said he knows of no other inin on one answer, self-determination, and asked who else had fought for self- stitution doing the crucial work “to provide high-quality, readily accessible determination. information that … is fact-based, is obAmerica was the obvious answer. Stein asked a final question: Why jective, and provides the kind of histornot teach the history of Zionism in ical and analytic basis for people to be terms of people struggling against able to read and to gain a broader unsomeone else who tells them what they derstanding from which they can rencan’t do? That was the connection he der their own decisions about where was trying to make: Like the United on the political spectrum they want to States, Israel has rights to existence, find themselves.” CIE has gained an international self-preservation and self-defense. As written in the mission state- reputation. Eight teachers from Cenment for CIE: “Anti-Semitism catalyzed tral America attended last year’s worksurvival and self-determination; state- shop; this year five came from Canada seeking, state-making, and state-keep- and one from Mexico City. The Jewish ing was a potential pathway to a more Agency in Mexico City has invited CIE to conduct a 1½-day workshop. secure Jewish present and future.” “When we started off, the reach The CIE website (israeled.org) offers a wealth of information, including was narrow, in just Jewish educational “Today in Israeli History” posts, histori- settings in North America, and then cal texts, readings, weekly Torah por- we went to Jewish educational settings tions, curricula, books, and details on across the world,” Stein said. “Now we’re going to focus on Israel literacy, grants, workshops and courses. In addition to Stein, the CIE board and that can be for Jews and non-Jews.” In addition to the weeklong teachis composed of 14 activists and supporters from six states plus Israel. Board er workshop in Atlanta in June, CIE in member Rabbi Scott Sperling of Beth the past year has presented at: • A session on Israel as a Jewish El Congregation in Winchester, Va., describes himself as an Israel advocate and democratic state for 170 teens at for over 40 years, including eight years BBYO’s Summer International Kallah

at Camp Perlman in Lake Como, Pa., in July 2014. • A one-day workshop for 40 educators in Princeton, N.J., in September. • A two-day workshop for 32 teachers in Mexico City in October. • The Boston University Hillel about Israel on campus and the BDS movement in February 2015. • The San Diego Hillel chapter about Israel on campus and how to

combat myths in March. • The Melton Center at Ohio State University about Israel, the United States and the changing Middle East in April. • The BDS Think Tank held by Hillel International in Washington in June. The center achieved nonprofit, tax-exempt status in 2008 and is supported by private donations and foundation grants. ■

Your GO TO Specialists for all YOUR REAL ESTATE Needs RE/MAX AROUND ATLANTA David Shapiro Jon Shapiro DShapiro@remax.net JonShapiro@mindspring.com 404-252-7500 404-845-3065 404-845-3050 www.jonshapiro.com

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

By Leah R. Harrison

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EDUCATION

Launching A glance at some options for Atlanta students A Jewish College Search

Jewish Campus Life School Undergraduates

Jewish % Hillel? Chabad? Jewish Studies Undergrads

Kosher Options?

University of Maryland*

26,658

5,800

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

University of Florida*

33,168

5,000

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Indiana University*

36,862

4,200

Yes

Minor, Major, Certificate Yes

University of Texas*

39,979

3,500

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

George Washington University* 10,357

3,000

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Tulane University*

8,352

2,250

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Emory University*

7,836

2,100

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

University of Colorado*

25,981

2,000

Yes

Major

Yes

University of Georgia*

26,278

2,000

Yes

Other

Yes

Washington University*

7,336

1,500

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Vanderbilt University*

6,835

1,050

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Georgia Tech

14,682

900

Yes

College of Charleston

10,488

800

Yes

Minor, Major

Yes

Duke University*

6,471

700

Yes

Certificate

Yes

University of Alabama

36,155

700

Yes

Minor

Georgia State University

32,842

550

Yes

Minor

Kennesaw State University

32,500

400

Yes

Auburn University

25,912

100

Yes

Most of the data (indicated by *) come from Hillel International, which ranks the top 60 public and private universities for Jewish students each year for publication in the Hillel College Guide. You can search for information for any university at http://www.hillel.org/college-guide.

Films and Archives of WWII and the Holocaust

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

A free workshop for teachers and educators Sunday, August 23, 10am–5pm Atlanta History Center

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A workshop by the Mémorial de la Shoah, Paris, France, in conjunction with the exhibition “Filming the Camps, from Hollywood to Nuremberg: John Ford, Samuel Fuller, George Stevens” on view through November 20, 2015. Presented at the Atlanta History Center - 130 West Paces Ferry Road, NW, Atlanta, GA 30305 Please RSVP at: contact@memorialdelashoah.org

Photo by the SPECOU at Dachau Camp, May 1945 © Courtesy of the Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Beverly Hills, CA

By Anna Streetman

he start of school means new high school seniors are looking for colleges that will provide the Jewish experience they want. Joanne Max and Sharon Karpel of Your College Direction have years of experience in clinical psychology, clinical neuropsychology, and guidance and career counseling. In workshops last school year on conducting a Jewish college search, they discussed common mistakes and showed students how to find schools that fit their expectations. “The most important thing to consider when applying to schools is what you want,” Max said. “Do you want a Hillel on campus? Is there any Greek life? Would you want to take any Judaism-related courses? Every student’s needs and expectations are different. You have to figure out what’s most important to you.”

Your Guide

This issue marks the Atlanta Jewish Times’ first step into creating a college guide for Jewish high school graduates in the Atlanta area. We hope that in the years to come this annual issue will help jump-start college searches. For our first year, we are relying on the invaluable campus statistics compiled by Hillel International for its semiannual college magazine. The starred universities in the chart on this page appear in the top 60 lists Hillel publishes in its magazine; for other schools, we compiled data. We are grateful to Hillel for allowing us to use their numbers. The selected universities represent a sample of perennially popular choices and others that seem to be drawing increasing numbers of local Jewish students or making stronger efforts to attract those students. Online, you will find more in-depth information about several of the listed universities, including observations from Jewish students. For the AJT college guide to become a valuable, viable resource, it has to be a living thing with continual additions and changes. We need your comments and insights (and those of your children and grandchildren) to benefit future high-schoolers. Send comments to mjacobs@ atljewishtimes.com or, better yet, post them at www.atlantajewishtimes.com.

EDUCATION In an interview, Max cited several who visits the high school, and take a common mistakes that seniors make. tour of the college campus. They include procrastinating, missing Max and Karpel said certain color misreading deadlines, having an leges have become more popular with unprofessional Jewish stuemail address, not dents in regiving teachers cent years, inadequate time to cluding Elon write recommenUniversity in dations, and forNorth Caroligetting to clean up na, the College their social media of Charlesaccounts. ton in South She encourCarolina, the ages students to University of Left: Joanne Max Right: Sharon Karpel limit résumés to South Caroone page and recommends that stu- lina and Indiana University. dents have an open dialogue with their Charleston has a well-developed parents, including “the money talk.” Jewish studies program, Max said. Max and Karpel agree that showSome colleges have tried to encouring interest in a school is necessary age more Jewish students to attend. In and beneficial. Max recommends read- 2010, Washington and Lee University in ing through a university’s website to Lexington, Va., built a Hillel chapter in get a sense of what the school is look- the hope of attracting Jewish students, ing for. She said smaller schools tend and the University of Alabama in 2012 to care more about student demonstra- rechartered Sigma Alpha Mu, a historitions of interest. cally Jewish fraternity. “You have to show them that they Applying to college is difficult and want you and that you don’t just want time-consuming, especially if you are them,” Max said. searching for a school with a Jewish Karpel has suggestions on how to presence. But with patience and a little show extra interest in a college: attend bit of guidance, every student can find a college fair, meet with a college rep a college that is right for him or her. ■

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AJT 17

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EDUCATION

Don’t Fear Non-Jewish Greek Life

“S

o you’re an SDT?” is the question that usually follows when I mention that I’m a member of a Greek organization at UGA. My response is always the same: “No, I am actually a Tri Delt.” I wait for the shock and mild contempt to fade from the person’s face before I proceed into my standard explanation for why I chose a nonJewish sorority and how I maintain Jewish traditions and relationships as a college student. I’m not sure why I feel obligated to give this response. Is it my imagination that members of the Jewish community automatically oppose my decision, or do I have some explaining to do? Three Jewish sorority members are in my Tri Delt pledge class (Class of ’17). Two of us went to synagogue together on the High Holidays last year. Our sorority is next to Hillel and down the street from Chabad. Every semester we have several social events with the fraternities on campus, including one Jewish fraternity. This is the extent of my Jewish life at UGA, but it doesn’t have to be. There are several ways for people like me, a Jew in a non-Jewish Greek organization, to increase their

involvement in the community. I have options, including Dawgs for Israel, a multi-ideological group that celebrates Israeli culture; Hillel at UGA, a Jewish body that offers Hebrew lessons, Shabbat dinners and charity events; the UGA chapter of Students Supporting Israel, a pro-Israel international campus movement; and the Jewish Law Student Association.

Guest Column By Ariel Pinsky

It’s disappointing to hear from several of my Jewish friends that their parents were unwilling to even discuss these alternatives before college. Instead, they narrowed their children’s options from the 61 sororities and fraternities at UGA to just three: Sigma Delta Tau, Alpha Epsilon Pi and Tau Epsilon Phi. Whatever happened to Jewish people being open-minded? The summer before I left for UGA, my mother said she wanted me to meet new people in college and try not to limit myself. She didn’t elaborate, so I never

understood what she meant until that August, when I found myself sitting at the SDT house in the third round of rush and I could already name nearly every person in the room. In that moment I decided to take my mother’s advice because I could not justify pledging myself to an organization that would limit my opportunities and interactions to my Jewish bubble. After I accepted a bid into Tri Delta at the start of my freshman year, the fears of what might happen from joining a non-Jewish Greek organization came to fruition. I dated a non-Jewish guy. I attended only one Shabbat service at Chabad. I spent Yom Kippur studying for a chemistry test. I rarely returned for the holidays, and I ate the nonkosher dining hall food. The thrill of a whole new world proved irresistible as I was hurled into all these exciting, uncharted territories. I expected my mother and father to react negatively to this nightmare scenario for most Jewish parents. But their response was the opposite: Instead of pulling me from the sorority, as I feared they might, they embraced my initiative to experience things outside the lifestyle in which I had been raised. My dad said it took chutzpah

(both kinds — boldness and rudeness) to do so, but he admired me for it nonetheless. He explained to me that if he did his job correctly in giving me a Jewish education, one day I would return to the community. And here I am. This past year, more accustomed to college freedoms, I better integrated into both worlds. I now come home for every major Jewish holiday. I attend synagogue as often in Athens as I did before. I worked this summer for the Atlanta Jewish Times, where I’ve learned much about the Jewish community. So what is your fear? Is it that your child won’t fit in with a primarily Christian group? That he or she will be unable to keep up with Jewish traditions? That your son or daughter will not make the kind of lasting connections that occur only within the Jewish community? While I can’t promise that your child will be a model Jew on campus if he or she chooses to join a Greek organization outside the Jewish Trio, I can assure you that making lifelong friends while staying involved in the Jewish community is possible. You’ve done your job; now let your sons and daughters step out of their comfort bubbles and experience the world so that they can grow. ■

Jewish Grant to Battle Sexual Assault UGA students will help decide how to use $7,500 By Rebecca McCarthy

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

hanks to a $7,500 grant from the Jewish Women’s Fund of Atlanta, Jewish Women International is teaming up with Hillel at UGA to help raise public awareness of sexual assault and violence on campus. Both JWFA and JWI are committed to promoting social change for Jewish women and girls, especially by engaging students on college campuses. “The goal is to change the culture on the campus,” said Deborah Rosenbloom, the vice president of programs and new initiatives for JWI. “Whatever we do will be student-driven and will be appropriate to the Georgia campus.” JWFA Executive Director Rachel Wasserman said the group was “impressed by the difference JWI is already making on campuses with both healthy relationship and financial literacy workshops. We are thrilled that 18 this work will not only help create saf-

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er campuses for all women, but, with the expert guidance of JWI, will allow our Jewish students to be the ones to create that change.” Mara Price, the Jewish life coordinator for Hillel at UGA, said that as classes begin, she will assemble an advisory group and steering committee of students. Rosenbloom will work with Price and the University of Georgia students. Price said the money will go to specific programs for things like speakers, space rental, ads and educational materials. Rosenbloom said she doubts that the Jewish students can reach everyone on campus, but the written materials could help spread the message. “I feel like sexual assault is something that college campuses across the country are dealing with,” Price said. “We want students to know that it’s OK to stand up for yourself and for others. For some of them, it’s their first time

Left: Mara Price Right: Rachel Wasserman

being independent, and they need to know they have a voice.” Rosenbloom said that after the Georgia students decide how they want to proceed, she and Price will help them create materials for distribution. JWI has worked on other campuses, talking to students about violence and healthy relationships through the Safe Smart Dating program, which involves a primarily Jewish sorority,

Sigma Delta Tau, and a primarily Jewish fraternity, Zeta Beta Tau, to spread the message of healthy dating through peer-led discussions and good conversations. “We provide Jewish students with a chance to interact and engage with their peers,” Price said. “This new initiative will allow our students to step up as leaders in what is one of the most important issues on campuses nationwide.” There will be faith-based discussions for Jewish students at Hillel during Shabbat services and holidays such as Purim, Rosenbloom said. The awareness program is scheduled to last through the academic year, but Rosenbloom’s goal is to make the UGA program sustainable. “We’re going to widen the program out to others on the Georgia campus,” she said. “And we hope to partner with other groups and organizations on campus.” ■

Israel Impresses Morehouse President By Zach Itzkovitz

ohn Silvanus Wilson Jr., the president of Morehouse College, recently returned from an eye-opening, weeklong educational tour of Israel, where he met with leaders in higher education, government and business. While he was the Israeli consul general to the Southeast, Ambassador Opher Aviran extended an invitation to Wilson, whom President Barack Obama appointed to head the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in 2009. Several of the people Wilson spoke to in Israel stood out. Among them: • Liat Maoz, a leader on the Israeli Council of Higher Education who Wilson said addresses the needs of groups and subgroups from Ethiopian Jews to ultra-Orthodox Jews. He was fascinated by whether Israel should develop small institutions with unique missions, like Morehouse. • Mahrata Baruch-Ron, the deputy mayor of Tel Aviv. She was brought to Israel in 1984 during Operation Moses, when Ethiopian Jews were evacuated from Sudan during a famine. Wilson was intrigued by the journey from African famine to Israeli prominence. “What a fascinating story about the power of transformation in Israel

and the possibilities,” he said. • Fadi Swidan, who, as the director of the Nazareth Business Incubator Center, reinforces Israeli Arab technology and business ventures. Wilson said Swidan understands the entrepreneurial culture in Israel as a pathway for Arab citizens to acquire influence. • Abraham Nov, a Latvian Holocaust survivor whom Wilson found inspiring. The Morehouse president said Nov learned to play the violin at a young age and became the protégé of a Nazi officer, who protected him. After the war, Nov traveled to Jaffa, where he taught Arab Christians. George Deek, an Israeli diplomat, was one of Nov’s students. Wilson met Deek and Nov together to hear their stories. Wilson’s trip included a visit to Yad Vashem. He was struck not only by the stories of destroyed lives, but also by the building’s architecture. “They’re not focused on the past and a grievance narrative,” Wilson said of the people he met. “They’re focused on the future and a kind of agency narrative — they have agency as players to create the future rather than being aggrieved by the past. At Morehouse College, we see ourselves as a powerful institution bent on creating the future, and when we do that, we will correct the past.” ■

Oglethorpe’s Schall Drives for Uber

glethorpe University President Lawrence Schall made a confession July 29 in The Washington Post: He has been moonlighting this summer as an Uber driver. Schall, who is Jewish, said his goal was to get a glimpse into the sharing economy, but instead he got to see the inadequacies of public transit in Atlanta: Most of his fares have been to or from MARTA. In limited driving time, he earned less than $100 during his first three weeks on the job, all of which he is donating to Oglethorpe’s scholarship fund. His first passenger was an Oglethorpe student. His full post is at wapo.st/1OPKWgE. ■

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Join us at one of our prospective member events Prospective Member Shabbat Services August 14 & 21 | 7:30 pm Dunwoody/Sandy Springs Prospective Member Wine and Cheese August 25 | 7:30 pm Alpharetta Prospective Member Wine and Cheese August 26 | 7:30 pm For more information and to RSVP for events, call us at 770-395-1340 and visit us at templeemanuelatlanta.org

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

EDUCATION

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EDUCATION

ORT Atlanta Adopts Israeli School

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

hile Atlanta’s Jewish day school students prepare to return to modern facilities with top-of-the-line technology, the students at the ORTaffiliated Hodayot Youth Village in Israel’s lower Galilee aren’t so lucky. In cooperation with World ORT Kadima Mada, ORT Atlanta has adopted the Hodayot Youth Village and is raising money to support a myriad of programs and capital upgrades. Founded in 1950, Hodayot is a religious boarding school on a rural campus that serves more than 200 seventh- to 10th-graders. Many are new immigrants from troubled home situations with families who rank low on the socio-economic scale. The immigrant population in Hodayot is 60 percent Ethiopian and 30 percent from the former Soviet Union. When children enter the school, many are far below the average educational level for their age because their daily reality is exposure to violence and poverty, making their priority survival, not study. The youth village’s first task is to bring the students up to a basic level. “I didn’t know English, didn’t have any friends. When I came to the youth village, I started learning, and in a way, the school saved me from being a helpless 14-year-old in the streets because my parents weren’t there for me,” one student said about the school. Despite such difficulties, more than half the students at the school are able to pass the matriculation exams when they finish. “At the beginning it wasn’t easy, but I have learned discipline. My matriculation exams are going to be fine,” another student said. “Now I want to become an educator and help other children like me.” One of the special tracks offered by the high school is a police studies program with classes in 20 criminology, sociology and crime-

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solving. A life sciences and agriculture track involves growing medicinal herbs based on the teachings of Maimonides

in the school’s greenhouses and exploring new techniques. Extracurriculars include plays and discussions on themes chosen to help the students learn about important societal issues and give them the tools to integrate into society after school. Hodayot Youth Village graduates have a 100 percent army and national service rate, indicating that the school succeeds in teaching the students about values and pride in Israel. To ensure that the school continues to provide a relevant, modern education, it must prepare students for today’s workplace and needs access to the latest teaching technology and equipment. ORT Atlanta has raised more than $240,000 for the youth village, half of which will go to renovate and refurbish the dining hall and kitchen, to be renamed the Joe Cohen Family Social Hall after an ORT alumnus and former Atlanta resident who was ORT America’s president. The Atlanta region has raised $70,000 for several smart classrooms and is collecting $45,000 to provide a smart classroom for students with disabilities. But Hodayot needs much more. The school’s computer lab requires at least $30,000 as part of Kadima Mada’s High Five program. The lab’s expansion will allow the school to generate income by repairing computers for the community. Future phases of Atlanta’s partnership include raising $1 million to rebuild the 1950s-era dormitories, which are in severe disrepair, and adding modern air conditioning. When the project is complete, ORT Atlanta hopes to have created an oasis of learning, making it possible for the students to become respected and productive members of Israeli society. ■

Koonin To Help Give JELF a Boost By Ariel Pinsky

ou can hear Atlanta Hawks CEO Steve Koonin while supporting the Jewish Educational Loan Fund on Wednesday, Aug. 19, at Maggiano’s Buckhead off Peachtree Road. Event co-chair Joanne Birnbrey said Koonin, who has retained his position through the NBA team’s ownership change this summer, was chosen to speak because he is a “dynamic and very interesting speaker — the quality of what you’re going to hear him say is going to be worth coming to the event.” Atlanta-based JELF provides interest-free loans to Jewish students from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia for college and graduate school. The fundraiser will start with a cocktail hour, to be followed by Koonin’s presentation. Rivka Jacobs, who received money from JELF to attend Georgia Tech, will share her experience with the agency, which she said makes a positive impact. “I plan on speaking about how JELF has helped me grow not only academically, but grow as a person as well through my experiences interning at a chemical plant and studying engineering abroad for a summer,” Jacobs said. “I also will be focusing on how their generosity has helped ease the stress on my family so they can rest assured I am getting the best educational experience possible.” Birnbrey, co-chairing with husband Eddie and with Dawn and Eric Tresh, said the program will serve as an outreach event. JELF wants to grow contributions and membership “so that we can allocate more and more money to students that need our help.” Erin Tresh, a former teacher, said she is thrilled to be co-chairing the event. “I fully understand how important education is and try to support it at every age level.” ■

Photos courtesy of ORT America

Top: The girl on the right says she would have been a helpless 14-yearold living on the streets if not for the Hodayot Youth Village. Middle top: The Hodayot Youth Village succeeds at making productive Israeli citizens out of children from troubled backgrounds. Bottom two: The youth village programs include traditional classroom courses and an agricultural track.

What: JELF fundraiser Who: Hawks CEO Steve Koonin When: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19 Where: Maggiano’s Buckhead, 3368 Peachtree Road Tickets: $54 general admission or $36 age 40 and under until Aug. 13, then $60 and $45; www.jelf.org/stevekoonin or 770-396-3080

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

‘Turducken’ Twins Take Pace Honors to College By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

we fit right in.

Jaffe: As fraternal twins, do you feel any exceptional telepathy? Or are you competitive? Maria: We can understand and predict each other’s jokes. Being competitive is exhausting. No room for that. Iakov: Maria is adept in languages: Spanish and English. Also math and science. Mark, especially math and science.

Jaffe: What was it like being Jewish in Russia? Iakov: Not easy. Being Jewish in the former Soviet Union was treated as an ethnic origin, not a religion. I recall hiding in the alleys getting to the hidden synagogue to kasher a chicken for my grandparents. I had to be very careful not to be seen because I could have been expelled from school. I would indeed fight for my Judaism if it became necessary. Here we belong to Temple Sinai, where the twins were b’nai mitzvahed. Jaffe: Did you notice that your children as infants were particularly bright? Iakov: I recall when they were infants that they had a good understanding of instructions and were obedient when told not to get into anything, for example. Jaffe: So Maria, what was it like being at Pace? Did you fit into the debutante society crowd? Maria: We started in pre-first and found very cordial, accepting groups. Pace has a large Jewish population, so

Robert Downey Jr. was a prominent guest at the Pace Academy graduation ceremony for Mark and Maria Grenader in May.

Jaffe: Was being valedictorian a goal or surprise for you? Mark: It was not a conscious goal, but I put a lot of effort into it and knew I was in a good position to finish at the top. I got the call from the head of Upper School seven days prior to graduation. Thus, I had a week to create the speech.

ert Downey Jr., the highest-paid actor in America, as your commencement speaker? Mark: His journey from addiction and prison to move forward is inspiring. The talk, however, was all over the place. He spoke extemporaneously but made it local by referring to a recent

Jaffe: What do you do for fun? Maria: We like to stay active and hang out with friends, though this summer we are working at different pizza restaurants. Mark: I’m a foodie and love the Food and Travel channels. I’m enjoying seeing the kitchen from behind the scenes.

Jaffe: What’s your favorite in Atlanta? Mark: Co’m on Buford Highway. Maria: Yakitori Jinbei on Cobb Parkway. Jaffe: You are indeed international. ■

Jaffe: What was the topic? Did any book influence you? Mark: Change! That is the nature of the world in which we live. Do not underestimate how much things change, make your own change, and savor every moment because things will change. My favorite book was “Brave New World,” but it didn’t really influence my speech. Jaffe: What about you? Maria: My favorite books were “One Hundred Years of Solitude” and “White Oleander.” I am entering Northwestern in liberal arts/premed, so I plan to land as a physician. But I also LOVE to write and hope to create a screenplay one day. Jaffe: Why do you think you were voted class clown by your peers? Maria: I am very lighthearted and love to joke around. I feel like I have a pretty unique perspective on many things. My college essay reflected this topic: “I’m a Turducken,” a humorous term for a Thanksgiving hybrid turkeyduck-chicken.” Jaffe: What was it like to have Rob-

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tlantans were buzzing in May about Pace Academy, a private school on West Paces Ferry Road in Buckhead, for two reasons: Robert Downey Jr. surprised the student body as the commencement speaker, and the Grenaders, local Jewish twins with Russian parents, graduated with major recognition. Maria Grenader, heading to Northwestern University as a premed student, was elected the class clown by the student body. Mark Grenader, a rising freshman at the University of Pennsylvania in the Jerome Fisher Program (dual degrees in business management and technology), was the valedictorian. Both are bright, well-spoken, welladjusted and, of course, multilingual. Maria is a vibrant brunette with a radiant smile. Mark has rock-star good looks that would put Justin Bieber to shame. Proud father Iakov, a native of Moscow who immigrated at age 37 in 1992 with not much cash but with savvy technological and business ideas, sat in on our interview. He has doctorates in metallurgy and computer science.

Atlanta Business Chronicle article about Pace. Maria: He was funny but hard to focus. He was in a fancy suit along with studded sneakers and graciously took a picture with every graduate.

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EDUCATION

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ARTS

Jewish Jams on a Mission

Sammy Rosenbaum’s debut album blends Jewish, secular music By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

or 25-year-old singer-songwriter Sammy Rosenbaum, music is life. From an early age, the South Florida native was exposed to everything from Latin jazz to classic rock and learned to play guitar, drums and piano before middle school. After 13 summers at Camp Ramah Darom as a camper and member of the music staff, Rosenbaum became en-

musical influences, and his mission to spread Jewish-inspired music in the Southeast. Did we mention he’s a mensch? AJT: So your debut album comes out Aug. 11. How thrilled are you to finally release it? Rosenbaum: This is my debut solo album. It’s been about a year in the works, and it’s been such an exciting, incredible, stressful and fulfilling project. It’s amazing to finally see it come to fruition, and I’m so

excited release it world.

t o the

Sammy Rosenbaum’s debut solo album, “We Are the Ones,” is due to be released Tuesday, Aug. 11.

tranced with Jewish music. Now the Atlanta resident is set to release his debut solo album, “We Are the Ones.” Rosenbaum stopped by the AJT offices Tuesday, July 21, to talk about his blend of upbeat, positive jams, his

AJT: How did you settle on the title, “We Are the Ones”? Rosenbaum: So the title itself comes from an experience I had in a sweat lodge here in Atlanta. We were all sitting, sweating, detoxing in this really enclosed environment together.

There were about 15 of us, and the leader of the group started saying, “Repeat after me: We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” He kept saying that, and it just resonated with me. Who are we, and why have we been waiting for us? What does that mean? To me, I think that means it takes all of us, it takes you and me, to change the world. AJT: Let’s talk about the actual music. What inspired you while you were putting this album together? Rosenbaum: Trying to put yourself in a genre is tough sometimes. My musical influences span from Latin jazz to ska to some good old funk, and I try to bring that in through my music. My mission is to spread this album, get the music out there and get people listening. The music is fun. It’s upbeat and catchy, as it should be. I like to explore and experiment with different styles of music and fuse them together. Hopefully everyone will enjoy it. AJT: How did you make the transition to Jewish-inspired music, and how do you see Jewish and secular music converging? Rosenbaum: I spent pretty much every summer of my childhood at Camp Ramah Darom. While I was there, there was a music culture. People would sing in Hebrew and even sometimes in English. We would clean the

bunk singing or finish the day out with tunes like Rad HaYom. I started seeing that the feeling I was getting from secular music was not so dissimilar from the feeling I would get from Jewish music. So to me music is a universal thing. The message can be put across in any sort of way. AJT: Are you involved with anything here in Atlanta that combines Judaism and music? Rosenbaum: I’m involved with a couple of things actually. I work with a community called First Fridays at The Temple. It’s a young-adult and millennials crowd of really awesome, intelligent people that come out. We’ve created this really cool experience of spiritual music to bring in Shabbat. I’m also involved with the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival; this is my second year on the board with them. Our goal is to support Jewish music in Atlanta and the region. If there’s a way to help Jewish music grow in any shape or form, we are there to help. AJT: So how can people get your album? Rosenbaum: The album is going to be on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby, Bandcamp, Google Play, and it will also be on my website, sammyrosenbaum. com. It comes out Tuesday, Aug. 11, for the world to listen. ■

Softball Playoffs Begin gin Aug. 9 with No. 1 seed Congregation B’nai Torah looking to capture the title for the ninth consecutive year. ■

Aug. 9 Schedule

A Division #1 B’nai Torah vs. #8 Chabad #4 Dor Tamid vs. #5 Beth Tefillah #3 Sinai vs. #6 Temple #2 Or VeShalom vs. #7 Ahavath Achim B Division #1 Ariel vs. #2 Young Israel #3 Beth Tikvah vs. #7 Beth Shalom #5 Gesher L’Torah vs. Beth Tikvah-Beth Shalom winner #4 Emanu-El vs. #8 Dor Tamid #6 Etz Chaim vs. Emanu-El-Dor Tamid winner C Division #1 Kol Emeth vs. #2 Or Hadash #3 Beth Jacob vs. #4 Beth Tikvah 2 #6 Temple 2 vs. #7 Bet Haverim #5 Sinai vs. Temple 2-Bet Haverim winner

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he first round of the Atlanta Synagogue Softball League playoffs saw C division No. 1 seed Temple Kol Emeth and No. 2 Congregation Or Hadash move on to a semifinal matchup Aug. 9. Congregation Beth Jacob, Temple Beth Tikvah 2, Temple Sinai 2, Congregation Bet Haverim and The Temple 2 all fell into the loser’s bracket in the double-elimination tournament. In the B division, No. 1 seed Congregation Ariel defeated Congregations Dor Tamid 2 and Gesher L’Torah to advance to the semifinals Aug. 9 and second-seeded Young Israel of Toco Hills, which took down Congregations Beth Shalom and Etz Chaim to advance. Dor Tamid 2, Gesher L’Torah, Etz Chaim, Beth Shalom, Temple Emanu-El and Beth Tikvah 1 are all in the loser’s bracket and will play Aug. 9 for a second chance to make the finals. The playoffs in the A division be-

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ARTS

Love, Judaism and Jennifer Weiner Popular author discusses her latest novel By Leah R. Harrison

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

ringing her book count to an even dozen, New York Times best-selling author Jennifer Weiner is releasing “Who Do You Love” two days before returning to Atlanta on Thursday, Aug. 13, for a Page From the Book Festival event at the Marcus Jewish Community Center. The wildly popular fiction writer will discuss her new novel about chance meetings, differences that separate, ties that bind, and love that endures. Weiner grew up in a small town outside Hartford, Conn. She was one of the few Jewish students in her high school. Her Reform synagogue served four towns, so “it also had to make a lot of the Conservative people happy,” Weiner said. She had a bat mitzvah, was confirmed, and went to Israel at age 15. “Being in the minority, being such a minority, … it gave me a very strong sense of my identity, and that it was different, but different was OK,” she said. During the 10 years before the 2001 debut of her first novel, the English major and Princeton graduate was a newspaper reporter. She credits that time for giving her a strong education in how to tell a story. Since then, the women’s fiction writer’s fan base has grown exponentially, bringing her to over 9 million copies in print in 36 countries. Her second novel, “In Her Shoes,” was made into a motion picture directed by Curtis Hansen and starring Cameron Diaz and Shirley MacLaine. On a visit in 2008, Weiner charmed her audience at a Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta Women’s Philanthropy event while promoting her sixth novel, “Certain Girls.” In a recent phone interview, she spoke about her work and maturation as a writer, how her Jewish roots and ethics inform her writing and character development, and emerging themes in her new novel. “Who Do You Love” begins with an accidental encounter between two 8-year-olds in a hospital emergency room: Rachel Blum, a Jewish girl with a congenital heart defect, born to two affluent, protective and adoring parents; and Andy Landis, the son of a busy and preoccupied single mom struggling to make ends meet. Because they come from such dif24

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Jennifer Weiner has published a dozen novels.

ferent backgrounds, the two leave lasting impressions on each other. The story follows them through the twists and turns of their lives over the next 30 years. It tells of the similarities and differences between Rachel and Andy, the situations that later bring them together (including a synagogue youth service trip to build a home in Atlanta), and the dynamics that come to drive them apart. According to the author, the book “is a romance, it’s a love story, but I think it’s also very much a story about figuring out where you’re supposed to be in the world and what you’re supposed to do there.” Weiner said her central characters are often, if not always, Jewish women. She spoke of those characters being on journeys to reach their intended places. “I think there’s always the sense of tikkun olam, which I talk about specifically in this book, about healing the broken world, like ‘OK, what are we here for?’ ” she said. “Rachel and Andy both have to answer that question.” She said her Jewish values naturally affect her writing and her characters. “I think it’s part of who I am, and it comes through in the books. It informs my life, and it necessarily informs my writing,” Weiner said. “Sometimes it’s much more explicit than others. Rachel

Photo by Tamara Staples

is a very explicitly Jewish character. … She has a bat mitzvah. She has a seder. And in both of those cases … there are things that come through that are, that speak to her Jewish values. And that’s always there in my books, I think.” The Jewish aspects of Weiner’s characters aren’t forced but are woven into the story. “I think people really like that about my books because I think for Jewish readers it’s very familiar,” she said, “and it’s very comfortable, and I also think that for some readers … I’ve been like Jewish 101.” Of her readers who are not Jewish, Weiner said: “I think they like reading about it. I think it gives them a taste of a culture that maybe they don’t know a

Who: Jennifer Weiner What: Conversation with CNN correspondent Holly Firfer about the novel “Who Do You Love,” followed by a book signing Where: Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13 Tickets: $24 for JCC members, $29 for nonmembers (includes a first-edition copy of the book and a glass of wine); 678-812-4002 or atlantajcc.org/bookfestival

lot about, and it’s sort of an interesting facet of the books. You know, they’re learning something.” Race is another issue that Weiner artfully broaches. The son of a mixed marriage, the light-skinned Andy grows up without a true sense of belonging. Although it is a factor that greatly influences his adolescence and hovers at the back of the reader’s consciousness, the author rarely makes reference to race. She is thoughtful and careful with her physical descriptions, often omitting skin color. Weiner treats quality of character as much more of an issue than race. It is a nonfactor in Rachel’s relationship with Andy, and it becomes the same to the reader. As in real life, Weiner’s characters are messy and imperfect, yet they develop. They mature emotionally and chronologically during Weiner’s intentional journey. They have redeeming qualities and formidable inner strength, enabling them to triumph over the speed bumps that life throws in their way. Quite possibly a key to her success, Weiner confessed to having a penchant for happy endings. She said, “As a reader, I like … being able to put a book down, even if it’s not all tied up perfectly in a neat little bow, even if not everybody’s happy, at least knowing that things have ended, that there’s a completion that you never really seem to get in real life, which just keeps sort of bumbling on forward.” Her thoughtful, comfortable writing style and the hope of that happy ending keep Weiner’s fans coming back for more. ■

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FOOD

Silverman Hooks a Fresh Take on Seafood

Woodstock resident hopes to make an even bigger splash in the restaurant world

hef David Silverman’s history in and around restaurants led him to opening his own place, Reel, on Main Street in Woodstock in May 2014. Silverman’s 30-plus years in the culinary arts began at age 14 when he lived in Marietta. His introduction into the business came soon after his mother returned home one night with a job application after eating at a restaurant in the neighborhood. “She had spoken to the owner — basically ‘My son’s looking for a job.’ It started that way. I had gotten into some trouble and had to pay for something,” Silverman said. “I went up there and talked to the owner and basically started washing dishes. “I was prying and showing interest in what was going on, always stuck my head on the line, watching the guys cook. One day, one of the cooks just gave me a spatula and let me get up there on the line and start cooking some steaks. That’s pretty much how that interest became.” Silverman moved on to a culinary apprenticeship when he was 19 and worked under a New Orleans chef for a year and a half. “By the time I was 21, I was a corporate trainer” in the restaurant business. His career has taken him to Atlanta-area restaurants such as Ray’s on the River and Prime. He has also cooked at the James Beard House in New York. He has learned nearly every aspect of the restaurant business and has opened restaurants for several groups. His longest tenure was with Here to Serve Restaurants, whose establishments include Prime, Aja, Coast and Smash. With his wife and partner, Karen, who manages the front of the house, Silverman opened Reel (reel-seafood. com; 770-627-3006) in the city where they live. The restaurant is his first solo project as an owner. “I’ve been doing this a long time. I’ve had my hand on every type of food,” he said. “When we were looking at different restaurants to do, different concepts to do, after seeing what has already been here and who else has already beaten me to it, so to speak, seafood made sense because, one, there was a void. Two is when we go out to eat, when we took our kids out, Sunday night was our dining night, and nine times out of 10 … whether it was sushi,

fish concepts, we were going out for seafood. There are very few choices.” He said a good seafood restaurant was something he was craving, and the idea grew into a concept (a nonkosher one) he was sure would succeed. “Every neighborhood should have a good fresh-fish, chef-driven concept,” he said. “I think as a chef, and I can speak for other chefs, we kind of have a little bit of pride in making things ourselves, seasoning it well, handling

east region (influence),” he said. “It’s not a thematic restaurant. The only theme is seafood, fresh fish.” He said some of his New Orleans dishes, such as gumbo, lead people to think he’s from that city, “but I like to think that I’m broad in what I bring to the table.” Since opening, the restaurant has added a patio, more seating, and a broadened lunch menu, including entrees only available at lunch. Silver-

Reel chef/owner David Silverman’s creations at his Woodstock restaurant include (from the top) grilled swordfish on Asian risotto, spinach salad and tuna poke.

the fish well, making sure it’s fresh, and that’s really my biggest thing: This is a fresh concept, and that’s what I’m sticking to. If I can’t get it fresh, it’s not on my menu.” Silverman offers what he calls the staples of the seafood restaurant — crab cakes, mussels, tartare — but those looking for bold flavors have plenty of choices as well at Reel. “I like to think there’s a little bit of Asian influence in some of the things I do. There’s a little bit of Boston and New England influence in some of the things I do, and of course there is a Southern and New Orleans and South-

man said he plans to continue to grow the menu. Reel recently started doing wine dinners, and special events are in the works to “engage the neighborhood,” Silverman said, but regulars won’t see their favorite menu items go away, such as salmon, flounder and fritters. “I believe in changing the menu when you have … piqued interest from people who want variety. That’s where the wine dinners and your specials come in,” he said. Despite his extensive experience, Silverman has little formal culinary education. He said he has picked up a

lot from watching his co-workers, especially those who fed him opportunities to do key parts of their jobs. When he is not cooking in the kitchen, he is on the computer, usually late at night, examining food costs and other restaurant numbers. Industry magazines help him stay current on cooking trends. He also takes time to speak to the restaurant’s vendors. “If you have a good relationship with your vendors or your purveyors, they keep you abreast of things that are new, new cuts of meat, trendy fish, trendy things, ingredients, sauces,” he said. Customers, he added, are also key sources. “With Food Network and all the TV cooking that’s going on, and as many people who are enthralled in that, you hear from them what’s new, up and coming. To keep them interested, you have to give them a little bit of what they’re looking for that’s new and different.” Feedback from customers after their dining experiences seem to show that Silverman has been serving many of them well. Reel seems to be pleasing customers, earning an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars from 122 reviews on Facebook as of July 10 and 4 out of 5 stars based on 57 reviews on Yelp. Those endorsements could help Silverman pursue a second restaurant. “There are a lot of different foods that I’d love to try. I’d love to do a bakery down the road. I’d love to do a sushi concept. I’d really love to do a New Orleans concept, which is at the top of my list. A noodle house, I’d love to try something like that,” he said. “There are a lot of little niche concepts that I’d love to do.” But he has to find the right spot in the right neighborhood, plus “an investor or a partner or someone that shares my vision of it.” Before he opens a second restaurant, Silverman will make sure his first is running smoothly and won’t suffer from his divided attention. “Even with multiple restaurants, I’ll never just be a restaurateur,” he said. “As long as I can physically do it, no matter what, no matter how many I have, I’ll always be somewhere in the building.’ He added: “Me being a kitchen guy, it starts with the food. It starts with the kitchen and how we operate. For a while, at least for the foreseeable future, I intend to be still in a chef coat 25 and in the kitchen.” ■ AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

By Jon Gargis

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HOME

Tailored, Understated Glamour in Buckhead

ara and Armand Harris are a vibrant couple who brilliantly showcase their carefully curated Mid Century furniture collection with modern fine art. A total renovation of the 1960s home maintained its architectural footprint. Armand, a commercial Realtor, said: “There was nowhere to expand outside the existing footprint. We were fortunate to have our friend Bill Stewart consult on the architectural details and seek out special pieces for our newly designed space, maintaining the integrity of the era.” Sara, who has an M.F.A. in sculpture, is a double entrepreneur in a creative agency (Quadras Integrated) and jewelry (Deux Filles). Because her eye is so trained, she selected every detail, from the colors of the hand-painted butterflies on the de Gournay silk curtains to her favorite collections of rare, colored, vintage Murano glass. “I take the most pride in seeing all of my treasures gathered lovingly A over the years artfully arranged on every tabletop throughout. … I am a stylist at heart,” she said. Entering the house feels like taking a time machine into “Mad Men,” and I envisioned Diana Vreeland sitting on the curved sofa amid the Andy Warhol, zebra rug and life-size Barbie Polaroid. The stark white spiral staircase gives a Guggenheim feel and provides the perfect gallery backdrop for a modern 2015.

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

Jaffe: This foyer sets a playful yet soigné tone. Sara: Our music room surrounds the piano. The Carolyn Carr painting was commissioned for the space. The furniture is by Platner for Knoll — seen throughout the house. The blue Post26 Pop relief (Robert Melee) is positioned

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under a vintage Venini crystal chandelier. The wood floors are cerused, indicative of the Mid Century era. You can feel the texture contrasting the liquid marble “Smurf” (a folded swirl) by German artists Venske and Spänle. Jaffe: The living room is spectacular — intimate yet light and open.

Chai-Style Homes By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

Sara: We treasure Robert Rauschenberg’s “Star Quarters,” a

Sara: When traveling I try to return with a coveted keepsake like these jade pieces (India and China). All are displayed on vetted vintage furniture in its original state and not refinished. I feel as if the patina on the Maison Charles et Fils of Paris lamp tells its own tale that I am not the first owner; the Tommi Parzinger buffet from the ’50s evokes my Hollywood Regency fantasy when there were real movie stars. The Matt bone china from Rosenthal fits the period. The pastel dot painting is by Damien Hirst.

that makes this kitchen mine since a little jewelry makes everything better. The overall look of the space was collaborated with my friend and esteemed kitchen designer Matthew Quinn. Jaffe: The loggia (sunroom) overlooking the pool portends an Architectural Digest shot from old Hollywood. Armand: Friends pile onto the Edward Wormley reissued Dunbar sofa covered in a family-friendly boucle, since we actually use everything. This is our real TV room, and the pair of Barcelona chairs were originally designed for the Mies van der Rohe (1929 Knoll) German Pavilion International Exposition. Nothing is off limits, including the Harvey Probber side tables, which hold beers for Georgia games! Everything

Jaffe: The ram’s head on the wall is startling. You could blow your own shofar! Sara: A few of my favorite pieces in here are the Warhol “Kimiko” (the

B serigraph on mirror-coated Plexiglas, along with John Baldessari’s “The Studio,” a black-and-white offset lithograph with color screen printing. The bronze LaVerne cocktail table is Asian in feel (1960s). Jaffe: Did you incorporate any sentimental family pieces? Armand: The living room sofa was my mother’s (by Gilbert Rohde, a great example of American Modernism). The bronze poodle sculpture resembles Paris (the family’s black standard poodle, who tried to photo-bomb every picture). The driftwood lamp is from my family’s Tybee Beach house, which Sara reinvented with silver leaf on Plexiglas. Jaffe: This sideboard tablescape covers many continents and periods.

wife of the most comprehensive Pop art collector, John Powers) and Herb Ritts’ “Male With Tumbleweed.” The Barbie Doll large Polaroid format is by David Levinthal. The dining room furniture is by Saarinen (Knoll 1950s), the silver-leaf breakfront with carved bamboo by James Mont. Jaffe: Quite a glamorously tailored, pristine kitchen! It reeks of mise en place. Sara: I cook for my family mostly. … People always stop on the way to dinner, as we are geographically desirable! The backsplash is stainless steel positioned between the two vintage glass trees (1940s). The cabinets are stained gray matte, accented with basket-weave stainless insets. The German crystal chandelier (Moss NYC) adds just the right amount of bling

here is beige, grey and taupe. Sara thinks it works visually with the colors she wears and finds it relaxing amidst all she is juggling. Jaffe: Your master suite brings baby-boomer memories. Sara: The photograph over the bed is from the original set of “Valley of the Dolls” I found in Palm Springs. “Three Stepsisters” is from Wegman’s “Cinderella Suite” (he’s famous for photographing Weimaraners in costumes). The chair is from Armand’s mother — transformed in a pale blush leather, adding a Pucci scarf pillow for impact. The lamp is vintage Tommi Parzinger (and a rare color). Armand: “Marilyn” by Bert Stern — look closely to see the scar from her gallbladder surgery. The chandelier is Mercury glass from the 1920s.

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HOME

Jaffe: Who is the fetching lady in the guest powder room? Sara: 1960s French actress Anouk Aimée (William Klein) we purchased in Paris. Jaffe: You both explode with cre-

ative energy. What’s next? Armand: We bought an historic place on a square in Savannah and will utilize our French antiques currently in storage, which will be perfect there, and we’ll mix classic modern pieces for a “twist,” as Sara would say. Growing up there, I have roots, but it’s not the same place. It became a creative mecca; we have friends there who share our passions for collecting and the arts. Jaffe: Armand, after all these years with Sara, what say you about her taste?

Armand: Sara has the most impeccable sense of style and is the epitome of good taste. Sara: Armand has al- G ways been ultrasupportive. He exudes his own of style: Levi’s, white shirt and leopard Stubbs & Wootton slippers. Jaffe: I’m aggravated I didn’t save my parents’ 1941 LaGrange furniture. ■

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Jaffe: The long, narrow view into the master bath is breathtaking. Sara: Bill designed the custom furniture for the space; the vanity mirror is mint 1940s. The Murano glass pieces are atypical in lilacs and mauves.

Photos by Ivan Ivanov

A: The Harris living room features John Baldessari’s “The Studio” (left), centerpiece panels from Robert Rauschenberg’s “Star Quarters,” a Gilbert Rohde sofa that belonged to Armand Harris’ mother, and a LaVerne coffee table. B: The master dressing area is itself well dressed. C: Andy Warhol’s “Kimiko” dominates the entrance to the home, which also welcomes visitors with Robert Longo dancers and a Smurf floor sculpture at the base of the staircase. D: The loggia includes an Edward Wormley reissued Dunbar sofa and Mies van der Rohe Barcelona chairs. E: Highlights in the dining room include a Damien Hirst dot painting, a Maison Charles et Fils lamp, and Rosenthal bone china atop a Tommi Parzinger buffet from the 1950s. F: The dining room is visible from the kitchen, where a crystal chandelier from Moss NYC adds the right amount of bling. G: Paris, the Harrises’ standard poodle, poses next to bronze poodle. H: Bert Stern’s “Marilyn” photo looks over the master bedroom.

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SIMCHAS

Six Decades of Love

Hymie and Sukey Shemaria having fun By April Basler abasler@atljewishtimes.com

years.” She has traded letter writing for email and writes to friends in Australia, England, Spain, Japan and Canada, ymie and Sukey Shemaria of as well as all over the United States. Northeast Atlanta will celHymie, born in 1932, is a native of ebrate their 60th wedding an- Atlanta, and his parents, who imminiversary Saturday, Aug. 8. grated to America from Rhodes, were Members of Congregation Or Ve- founding members of OVS. His father, Shalom, the Shemarias plan to spend Bennie, started a shoe repair shop in their diamond anniversary with a fam- 1916 that later changed its focus to sellily weekend celebraing men’s shoes. Bention and a brunch. The nie’s Shoes is one of couple, who met at the best-known longGrady High, married time Jewish family at the Jewish Progresbusinesses in Atlanta. sive Club in 1955 at a Hymie owned ceremony officiated the business with his by Rabbis Jacob Rothtwo brothers, but he schild of The Temple recently retired. The and Joseph Cohen of store is now owned Or VeShalom. by his nephews. HyHymie and Sukey mie still goes into honeymooned in Daythe store three days a tona Beach, Fla., and week to look over the go back every August books, write checks for their anniversary, and perform other adjust the two of them. ministrative duties. They will continue the While he has no tradition this year. plans to fully leave the After 60 years, business yet, Hymie the Shemarias are still said about his nephvery much in love. ews: “One day I really “She’s so good need to teach them to me. She’s wonderhow to do the secreful. She’s a lot of fun. tarial work so that I We do a lot of things Top: After 60 years together, Hymie can retire full time together. I love those and Sukey Shemaria are enjoying and I won’t have to family, travel and each other. things that we do worry about the busiBottom: Sukey and Hymie together. I couldn’t ness at all.” Shemaria were married by imagine living withHe’s enjoying his Ashkenazi and Sephardic rabbis. out her,” Hymie said partial retirement, about his wife. however. “It’s wonderWhat keeps their marriage strong? ful. I get to do what I want to do,” he “I think we have good communisaid. “I play golf and can go on trips.” cation, and we don’t argue or fuss a The Shemarias love to travel. Their lot and don’t stay mad if we do,” Sukey favorite vacation spots are Daytona said. “We have respect for each other, Beach and Hilton Head Island, where and that’s important. Sixty years is a the family goes every Fourth of July. long time. It takes a lot of adjusting, Sukey and Hymie have traveled all and it’s always changing.” over the United States and Europe as Born in Baltimore in 1936, Marian well as Australia, New Zealand, Hong Sue Hoffman — known all her life as Kong and Mexico. Beautiful photoSukey — moved to Atlanta at age 4, and graphs of their travels adorn the walls her family attended The Temple. After of the basement in the home they built she married Hymie, Sukey was a hometogether in Atlanta in 1957. maker and raised three daughters at Or The Shemarias have three daughVeShalom, serving two terms as Sister- ters, two sons-in-law, and four grandhood president of the Sephardic synachildren — the oldest born on their gogue even though she is Ashkenazi. anniversary, the youngest on Sukey’s Sukey enjoys reading, doing jigsaw birthday. puzzles, making family photo albums “We’re very proud of them,” Sukey and keeping up with correspondence. said of her children. “I think they have “I write to a lot of people,” she all turned out beyond our expectasaid. “We’ve been friends for almost 50 tions.” ■

Honoring traditions,

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OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING

A Life Well Lived

Jewish arts community remembers Theodore Bikel for his work in Atlanta

fter actor-singer Theodore Bikel died July 20 at age 91, several members of Atlanta’s Jewish arts community shared personal stories and memories of the stage and screen legend. “The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival was deeply honored to host Theodore Bikel in February for one of his final public appearances. Even as age slowed Theodore Bikel him, his charm and sense of humor were undiminished. Audiences were enthralled by Theo’s remembrances of his versatile career and singular contributions to Jewish culture. The consummate performer, it was clear that he relished these interactions with admiring fans and was truly energized by them.” — Kenny Blank, executive director, AJFF “Theodore Bikel wasn’t just an artist, but an activist as well. Someone who was fiercely passionate about theater and music and Jewish life and culture and community … the very things that I am passionate about. And when he played his guitar and when he sang — whether it was for a theater full of hundreds of people or for six rapt Atlanta actors in a small theater green room — he did so with such joy for the art. And while I’m certainly not saying he was without ego, he performed for the love of the art. For the love of great music. For the love of beautiful language. For the joy that it brought to him and the joy that it clearly brought to others when he shared it with them. This is a special quality, and I believe it is what made him one of the greats. And I felt honored to be in a room with him and to be on the receiving end of that sharing, and, for a brief time, take part in that creative theater-making process with him. — Mira Hirsch, founder, Jewish Theatre of the South “I was of course very sad when I heard of his passing, but he lived a full and remarkably honorable life. I just remembered that first moment when he walked into the room in San Francisco in July of 2000 and was wearing a pin of a black Jewish star with a red AIDS awareness ribbon in it that was designed here in Atlanta by JF&CS. I recognized the pin and walked up to him and said, ‘I like your pin; I know where it’s from.’ He was gracious and helpful as well as an enthusiastic supporter of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival’s growth. If he found out that Atlanta became the largest Jewish film festival, he would have been beyond delighted.” — Judy Marx, founder and 2015 film selection co-chair, AJFF “I was fortunate enough to moderate a Q&A with him last February during the film festival. He was here promoting his film ‘Theodore Bikel: In the Shoes of Sholom Aleichem.’ We were fortunate enough to be treated to a song. I am honored to say I was able to share the stage with him, however briefly. He was an eloquent, gentle man who gave many gifts to the American theater.” — Brian Kimmel, director of arts and culture, Marcus Jewish Community Center

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tute. A graveside service was held Friday, July 31, at Crest Lawn Memorial Park with Rabbi Neil Sandler officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Kenneth Stone 88, Atlanta

Kenneth Stone, age 88, of Atlanta died Tuesday, July 28, 2015. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., he was a World War II veteran. Ken never met a stranger. His motto was “Find something to laugh about every day,” and he did. Survivors include his loving wife of 67 years, Lillian Stone; daughter and son-in-law Janice and Steve Levetan of Sandy Springs; daughter Nancy Stone of Atlanta; grandson Joshua (Lauren) Levetan; great-granddaughter Bailey Rebecca Levetan; and sister-in-law and brother-in-law Elaine and Bill Baum. He was the beloved uncle of Janie Stone (Jerry); Hank Stone (Maggie); Michelle Stone (Teiji); Robin Stone McNutt (Dennis); Karen Baum (Ed); Joanne Baum (Michael); and many great- and great-great-nieces and -nephews. Kenneth was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Rebecca Kogen Kamensky; brothers Ivan, Al and Fred; nephew Lewis Stone; and niece Jill Stone Rice, of blessed memory. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Weinstein Hospice, 3150 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta, GA 30327, or to the Lewis Stone Youth Fund at Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive NE, Atlanta, GA 30306. A graveside service was held Thursday, July 30, at Arlington Memorial Park with Rabbi Pamela Gottfried officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Death Notices

Gregory Bangiyev of Atlanta on July 28. Reuben Fier of Atlanta on July 27. Dorothy Kaufman, 76, of Atlanta, sister of Temple Sinai member Larry Weiner, on July 30.

Margaret Kinsler Shainker Margaret Kinsler Shainker, age 89, of Atlanta died Wednesday, July 29, 2015. Survivors include her loving husband of 26 years, Charles “Buddy” Shainker; son and daughter-in-law Harlan and Sherrie Kinsler; grandchildren Rebecca Kinsler and Staci and Jesse Gelbaum; great-grandson Natan; daughter Sharon Karlan; grandchildren Adam and Hali Karlan; great-granddaughter Alyse; and son-in-law Howard Rosner of Los Angeles. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Norman Kinsler, and a son, Michael Kinsler, of blessed memory. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Cancer Society or the Winship Cancer Insti-

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

89, Atlanta

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CLOSING THOUGHTS OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING

Living the Dream

ama and Papa (my grandparents) arrived in this country with four children plus one

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

in tow. They brought with them all the worldly possessions they could stuff into their satchels and valises. One of the children was not actually theirs. No, they did not find a stowaway who happened to be going their way. They did, however, bring Mama’s young niece along, filing papers as if they had five children. This family of seven headed to the Goldeneh Madenah (the golden land of the USA). After a long, arduous journey — ships were not as tricked out as they are today — they were happy to arrive at Ellis Island and thrilled to see the Statue of Liberty. Azoi grois (so big) azoi shain (so beautiful) was Mama’s reaction to Lady Liberty. In Poland such a lady did not exist. Mama and Papa did not run from Hitler. Hitler was a young child whose mind was not yet infested with hatred when they became immigrants. Mama and Papa simply dreamed of a better life as Americans. Their first priority: All were to enroll in English classes in preparation for completing their citizenship applications. They were so proud to raise their hands and take the oath officially making them Americans. My Uncle Zaidle, Mama and Papa’s youngest child and only son, served with pride in the Army of his adopted country. As soon as they were able, they opened a fish stall in a market on Tremont Avenue in the Bronx. My cousin Loretta and I worked in that fish market as young teens. It took me until just a few years ago to believe that my hands and arms did not smell like fish, feh, and that it was OK to eat a piece of fish. Mama and Papa and their children were living the American dream. Mama and Papa’s kinder (pronounced k-in-der), or children, all went to school and worked to contribute to the family. The whole family, including a boarder, lived in one apartment and shared one bathroom with little blood being spilled, as hard as it is to believe. When I was a child, the apartment seemed huge, especially when I had to walk down the long, dark hallway to open the door for Eliyahu Hanavi on Passover. I am still afraid of the dark, 30 but I’ve come a long way: I was terrified

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of the dark for most of my life. As their kinder grew and married, they each brought their spouses into Mama and Papa’s apartment. Their bedrooms became their honeymoon suites. And there they resided until they could move to their own love nests. My Aunt Ruthie (the oldest daughter) and Uncle Joe and their two

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CROSSWORD “Minority Report” Editor: DavidBenkof@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Easy

Shaindle’s Shpiel By Shaindle Schmuckler shaindle@atljewishtimes.com

children lived with Mama and Papa to the end. Respecting our elders was paramount. Besides, a kosher Jewish assisted-living facility did not exist. The mere thought of a goyishe home was not even suggested — G-d forbid, poo, poo, poo! Soon, Mama and Papa had 10 grandchildren. We, the grandchildren, were taught by word and example to honor and respect our elders. We were always reminded how blessed we were to have Mama and Papa and how lucky we were to live so close to them. Their apartment was like a clubhouse to us. My first piano lessons were in Mama and Papa’s apartment on my cousin’s piano. Now that I think about it, none of us remembers Mama and Papa ever smiling. Oy, I hope we were not the reason for their somber faces; perhaps it was my exquisite piano playing. Accepting the responsibility of leading by example, we were always generous in showing love and respect for our own parents and indeed for our children. My hubby and I are living the American dream, revealed to us by our grandparents and parents. We are blessed to have all our children and grandchildren living in Atlanta. How can I be sure our children got it? How do we know they feel blessed to be part of our family tree? I see their humanity every day. I am witness to the kindness and love they show others. I feel it from their children, my grandchildren. Our grandparents and parents are kvelling, as we all are now living the American dream, a dream Mama and Papa believed in and worked so hard to make a reality. ■

ACROSS 1 Nickname of the ninth prime minister of Israel 5 The raid on Entebbe was an impressive one 9 Symbols of the Kach party showing a clenched body part 14 Shmaltz Brewing Company products 15 It preceded the old shekel 16 Religion that believes Jerusalem is holy 17 Black Jew famous for her role on “The Cosby Show” 19 Black Jew from Canada who rapped the song “Best I Ever Had” 20 How a Jew of the Pletzl in Paris may have been occupied 21 “Feh! Barely...” 23 With 29-Down, Israel’s largest city 24 Another time, in Al Capp’s “Li’l Abner” 26 Worst latke, from a caloric perspective 28 Black Jew who played Ann Perkins on “Parks and Recreation” 32 Adolf’s other 33 Neck part that tefillin straps may touch 34 Hamentashen, e.g. 38 Eurovision-winning song by Dana International 40 Many Jewish residents of 5-Down: Abbr. 42 Jacob’s sibling rival 43 Lay on the guilt a little too heavily, perhaps 46 Puts the knish in the microwave 49 Hebrew “third day”: Abbr. 50 Black Jew who plays more than a dozen instruments and won six Grammys 53 Dorothy Parker comeback 56 Kosher fish 57 Her character dated a nice Jewish boy in “Prime” 58 Some kibbutz residents 60 Shabbetai Zevi was this kind of Messiah 64 Black Jew whose rapping career was halted by his imprisonment for a 1999

shooting 66 Black Jew who plays blues, folk, soul, reggae, and rock music and has won three Grammys 68 One kind of marketing campaign for Burger Ranch 69 Phrase on a Dershowitz memo 70 To be, to Dreyfus 71 Grain that can be used to make matzah 72 State of Marcel Marceau 73 Puts on a yarmulke DOWN 1 “Is there no ___ in Gilead?” (Jerem. 8:22) 2 “Would ___ to You?” (French film about interdating) 3 “___ in Show” (2000 movie directed by Christopher Guest) 4 The Biblical book named after him says he saw things “concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah” 5 U.S. state with the thirdlargest number of Jews 6 ___ Keloheinu (Shabbat prayer) 7 The Old City’s is less than one kilometer square 8 One Adam Levine’s body decorations 9 Musician on the roof in a Chagall painting 10 It’s south of Leb. 11 Web site founded by Michael Kinsley 12 Versions of a Woody Allen scene 13 Kosher fish 18 Israel’s first Likud prime minister 22 “It ___ Necessarily So” (Gershwin song about the Bible) 25 Shabbat refreshers 27 Comment from a Freudian doctor 28 Make a new set of tablets, for instance 29 See 23-Across

30 Act like a righteous gentile during the Holocaust 31 “Being There” novelist Kosinski 35 Kind of Bartenura kosher wine 36 Like Joan Rivers’ face after each lift 37 Mideast canal 39 Folksinger Guthrie 41 Businessman Andrew who founded a massive department store 44 Motion away from Jerusalem, both physically and spiritually 45 Not shnookered by 47 4-Down, e.g. 48 Latin alternative to the hora 51 Greenhorn 52 Went off the derech 53 What a steel kiddush cup does if left untouched for years 54 “Sababa!” 55 Tzedaka recipient, sometimes 59 Made someone a shaliach 61 Scheming like Haman 62 66-Across’s non-Jewish wife Laura 63 Products of King Solomon’s mines 65 Bupkis 67 Org. that’s pro-Uzi

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Fran Eizenstat and Eizenstat Family Annual Lecture at Ahavath Achim Synagogue presents

Vice President

Joe Biden

Thursday | September 3 7:30 p.m.

“Challenges Facing the U.S. and the World in the 21st Century”

AUGUST 7 ▪ 2015

A free public lecture drawing on Vice President Joe Biden’s experiences at the center of domestic and foreign policy and politics.

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Open to the public. No tickets and reservations required. Additional parking with shuttle service available at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Howell Mill Road. Ahavath Achim Synagogue | 600 Peachtree Battle Ave. NW | Atlanta, GA 30327 404.355.5222 | aasynagogue.org

Young Adult Tick