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INSIDE: EYES ON ISRAEL, PAGES 20-25 ALIYAH AGAIN
Thirty years after giving up their first effort at becoming Israelis, Edie and Mort Barr try again. Page 20
NOT ALONE
TEEN TIME
Shani Weinmann may be a lone soldier when she joins the IDF this summer, but she feels right at home. Page 21
High-schoolers can apply to follow Carlie Ladinsky and Tyler Schwartz in spending a semester at Alexander Muss. Page 25
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INSIDE Calendar �����������������������������������4 Candle Lighting ����������������������4 Opinion ���������������������������������� 10 Sports �������������������������������������� 15 Education ������������������������������� 16 Arts ������������������������������������������ 18 Cartoon ����������������������������������� 18 Israel News ��������������������������� 20 Home ��������������������������������������26 Simchas ����������������������������������28 Obituaries ������������������������������29 Crossword ������������������������������30
VOL. XCI NO. 22
WWW.ATLANTAJEWISHTIMES.COM
The annual Eizenstat Lecture becomes a conversation with Michael Bloomberg. Page 7
SUPER EFFORT
Doug Hertz discusses making the pitch to NFL owners that won Atlanta the 2019 Super Bowl. Page 15
GOOD START
Flame On Photo by Michael Jacobs
GROWING SCENE
Take a tour of the backyard beauty three homeowners have nurtured this spring. Page 26
Schuster, Lopez Win; Alembik In Runoff
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EIZENSTAT CHAT
A $1 million gift helps the Epstein School revive an endowment initiative. Page 16
JUNE 3, 2016 | 26 IYAR 5776
Lag B’Omer, the 33rd day of the counting of the Omer between Passover and Shavuot, offered a break Thursday, May 26, from weeks of mournful practices with celebrations across the Atlanta area involving outdoor games, picnics, cookouts and bonfires, including these flames rising from two steel drums behind the Chabad Israeli Center Atlanta in Brookhaven. Congregation Beth Tefillah joined the Brookhaven festivities, attended by outgoing Israeli Deputy Consul General Ron Brummer and his successor, Anat Tsin. More from Lag B’Omer, Page 6
ewish judges held off challengers in DeKalb and Cobb counties, while Ahavath Achim Synagogue member Gary Alembik advanced to a runoff for a Fulton County Superior Court seat in Georgia’s primaries Tuesday, May 24. Eric Dunaway was the leading votegetter in the three-way race to replace Fulton County Superior Court Judge Wendy Shoob with 47 percent. He will face Alembik in a runoff July 26. Alembik received 29.2 percent, while fellow Ahavath Achim member Andrew Margolis was third with 23.8 percent. In DeKalb County, State Court Judge Dax Lopez cruised past Roderick Bridges, who made Lopez’s Judaism an issue. Lopez received 62.9 percent of the votes. Also in DeKalb, State Court Judge Mike Jacobs was re-elected unopposed. In Cobb, Chief Superior Court Judge J. Stephen Schuster won re-election against JoAnne Elsey and Cindie Alter. Congressmen Tom Graves, Barry Loudermilk and Doug Collins all had victories in Republican primaries. Loudermilk will face Democrat Don Wilson in the 11th District. Graves and Collins are assured re-election. In the race to succeed Congressman Lynn Westmoreland in the 3rd District, Angela Pendray won the Democratic nomination and in November will face either Mike Crane (26.9 percent) or Drew Ferguson (26.8 percent), who advanced to a Republican runoff July 26. • Judicial reactions, Page 9
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MA TOVU
Passing Over on Holiday Togetherness Whatever would make you more comfortable.” My jaw dropped, and for once in my life, I was speechless. “Well, um, thanks for letting me know, Davy. I’ll speak to Daddy and get back to you, OK?”
Shared Spirit Moderated By Rachel Stein rachels83@gmail.com
Clicking “End,” I let loose, thunderous rumble and all. My tears were fast and furious, a maelstrom of pain, fury and indignation. “So maybe,” I choked when I related the story to my husband, Rick, “we shouldn’t go this year. I just don’t feel very welcome.” Rick studied me uncertainly, folding his arms across his chest and tapping his shoe against the shiny parquet floor. I leveled an angry glare straight at my unsuspecting husband, needing somewhere to vent. A surge of sympathy spiced with regret gurgled even as I made him my target. I wasn’t being fair, and I knew it. I clenched my fists while waves of anger rushed over me. Can’t you say something? Do something? My eyes begged him to join me. “Do adult grandchildren’s needs really come before grandparents?” I continued, my eyes smoldering. “I’m just a little confused. A lot, actually. I always thought the older generation is to be venerated, not cast aside. I mean, isn’t that Judaism 101?” “I’m not sure what to say,” Rick finally spoke up. “I totally hear what you’re saying. But maybe they’re afraid to rock the boat with their new son-inlaw. Or maybe Rachel’s really not up to walking.” “It’s revolting,” I spat. “I’m going to hang up my stuff and pull out the pots. We can make Passover here and save on travel expenses. Do you want to call Dave and tell him?” ■ Although our Passover dishes are long packed up, this is likely to be an ongoing problem for Rick and Debby. How they should handle their dilemma going forward? Send your comments to rachels83@gmail.com by June 6 for publication in the next column.
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
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heady aroma of hibiscus and daisies wafted through my window, and my heart danced with excitement and anticipation. The very air seemed to herald the celebration of our freedom, translating into one harmonious and beautiful picture: family togetherness. Missing our longdistance children, I could hardly wait to spend Passover with them. Hm, I mused, what gift should I bring each of them? The faces of my son and daughter-in-law and our three precious grandchildren flitted through my mind. I trekked up to the attic and pulled out my flamingorange suitcase. Feeling childlike as I skipped down the stairs, I flung the suitcase onto my bed and began the process. Should I take the black skirt or the multicolored one for the first night? I’ll just take both, I decided. “Hi, Ma.” It was my eldest son, David, calling. “David, so nice to hear from you! I was just starting to pack.” “Oh, that’s nice.” If there was hesitation in his voice, I didn’t pick up. “Is there anything you need that I can bring?” I offered, already planning a gift that was sure to put a smile on his face. Dave, my absent-minded, brilliant professor, was always putting his phone down and forgetting where, spending inordinate time searching every room. I planned to buy him a cute stand attached to a charger that would pop into his vision the moment he entered the room. For my daughterin-law, Judy, some monogrammed towels would be perfect. “Well, it’s like this,” David said. “You see, now that Rachel is married with a baby on the way, they kind of made a request.” My hands paused in their folding and packing. “Yes, honey?” “Well, they want to stay with us and use our guest room.” If a fist had slammed into my abdomen, I couldn’t have been more shocked. For 20 years, the guest room had been allocated to us. The lovely little basement suite with its own bathroom suited us. We always felt so wanted whenever we came. “So I figured you could stay in the hotel nearby,” David said. “Or, if you prefer, we have a neighbor around the block who offered his guest room.
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THURSDAY, JUNE 2
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Eagle Star Awards. Conexx: America Israel Business Connector holds its awards gala at 6 p.m. at Twelve Atlantic Station, 361 17th St., Midtown. Tickets are $125; www.eaglestargala.com. Business networking. Sid Kirschner speaks at the inaugural meeting of YAD, a networking group for young Atlanta professionals, at 6:30 p.m. at the William Breman Jewish Home, 3150 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. Free; ahahn@wbjhome.org or bit.ly/1TngsJ5.
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Bachelorette’s wisdom. Andi Dorfman, who starred on “The Bachelorette,” speaks about her book, “It’s Not Okay: Turning Heartbreak Into Happily Never After,” at 7:30 p.m. at Big Sky Buckhead, 3201 Cains Hill Place, Atlanta. Free; RSVP requested via atlantajcc. org/bookfestival or 678-812-4002. As of Yet show. As of Yet, Ahavath Achim Rabbi Laurence Rosenthal’s blues band, performs its last show at Steve’s Live Music, 234 Hilderbrand Drive, Sandy Springs, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $8 in advance online and $10 at the door; www.steveslivemusic.com.
FRIDAY, JUNE 3
Carlebach service. Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb, holds its first Carlebach-style Friday night service at 7 p.m. Free; www. chabadofcobb.com or 404-252-8777.
SUNDAY, JUNE 5
Pre-Shavuot women’s event. The Chabad of North Fulton Women’s Circle holds a walk on the Greenway, starting at the Kimball Bridge Road entrance in Alpharetta, at 9:30 a.m., then meets for refreshments and a floral workshop led by Joan Rubenstein at the Chabad campus, 10180 Jones Bridge Road, at 11. $10, with RSVP requested by May 26; admin@chabadnf.org.
CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES
Bechukotai Friday, June 3, light candles at 8:27 p.m. Saturday, June 4, Shabbat ends at 9:29 p.m. Bamidbar Friday, June 10, light candles at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, June 11, Shabbat ends, Shavuot starts at 9:32 p.m. Sunday, June 12, second day of Shavuot starts at 9:33 p.m. Monday, June 13, Shavuot ends at 9:33 p.m. Brought to You By Joe Houseman
Corrections & Clarifications
• An article in the May 27 issue about Eagle Star Award winner TIBA Parking Systems referred to Erez Ezra as CEO and Michael Bigbee as CEO for the Americas in the Tucker office. Both have left TIBA. Information technology veteran Moshe David was named CEO of the whole company in February and, with no one in the role of CEO for the Americas, is overseeing American operations as well on an interim basis. • A photo caption with the article in the May 27 issue about the American Jewish Committee dinner honoring Tom and Spring Asher misidentified Lon Neese.
Memorial tour. Architect Ben Hirsch leads a guided visit to the Memorial to the Six Million at Greenwood Cemetery, 1173 Cascade Circle, Southwest Atlanta, at 10 a.m. as part of the Breman Museum’s Historic Jewish Atlanta Tours series. Free for Breman members, $10 for others; bit.ly/1RABTit. Pool day. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, invites the community to Dunwoody Pool Day at the J from noon to 2 p.m. Free; 678-812-4161 or rabbi.glusman@atlantajcc.org. Israeli documentary. To mark Yom Yerushalayim, Young Israel of Toco Hills screens “Mekonen: The Journey of an African Jew,” the story of AfricanIsraeli Mekonen Abebe, at 5 p.m. Free; www.yith.org/event/mekonenfilmscreening.
MONDAY, JUNE 6
Shared society discussion. Mohammad Darawshe of Givat Haviva, a non-
profit organization working toward a cohesive Israeli society, speaks at a New Israel Fund event at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation B’nai Torah, Free; RSVP to mordy@nif.org
TUESDAY, JUNE 7
Babyccino. The mom-and-tot classes at Chabad of North Fulton focus on creation each Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. through June 21. This week’s topic is animals. $12; j1sinasohn@aol.com Federation meeting. The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta holds its annual meeting, including awards and an appearance by incoming CEO Eric Robbins, at 5:30 p.m. at the Selig Center, 1440 Spring St., Midtown. Free; www. jewishatlanta.org. Pre-Shavuot bake sale. The Congre gation Beth Jacob Sisterhood sells gourmet cakes, pies and nondairy cheesecakes from New York bakeries in Heritage Hall. 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. For more information, call 678-677-9492.
Send items for the calendar to submissions@atljewishtimes.com. Find more events at atlantajewishtimes.com/events-calendar.
Remember When
10 years ago June 2, 2006 ■ The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta unveiled results from a survey that estimates 120,000 Jews in Atlanta, a 56 percent increase in the Jewish population since the last community study in 1996. The Jewish community’s growth basically mirrors the growth of Atlanta. The study shows that once Jews move to Atlanta, they usually stay. It also shines light on the problem of a low affiliation rate. ■ David and Dori Kleber of Dunwoody announce the birth of their daughter, Naomi Lynn, on Dec. 15, 2005. 25 Years Ago June 7, 1991 ■ Temple Beth Tikvah will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for its first synagogue at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 23. Services
are currently being held at St. David’s Episcopal Church. Greenburg Farrow Architecture Inc. designed the building, and the community is invited to attend the groundbreaking ceremony. ■ The bar mitzvah ceremony of Matthew Isaac Wollner of Marietta will take place at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, June 8, at Congregation Etz Chaim. A congregational Kiddush will follow. 50 Years Ago June 3, 1966 ■ The Hebrew Academy of Atlanta’s seventh graduation will take place Sunday, June 5, at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium. The graduating class will present a cantata, “In Freedom’s Light.” After the program there will be a reception honoring the graduates. ■ Mr. and Mrs. Allan H. Cohen announce the birth of a son, Jeffrey Adam, on May 23.
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LOCAL NEWS
A little bit of candy and a lot of powdered sugar contribute to the fun at Ner Hamizrach.
The Chabad of North Fulton event shows that a bonfire isn’t the only way to bring flames to Lag B’Omer. A Crickets Mobile Petting Zoo goat gets up close and personal with a guest at the Chabad of Atlanta event.
The facilities of Newtown Park enhance the Chabad of North Fulton experience.
Ner Hamizrach Rabbi Shmuel Khoshkerman and son-in-law Rabbi Shmuel Yisrael Fakheri enjoy Lag B’Omer with a first-timer.
Face painting is a do-ityourself activity at the Chabad of Atlanta celebration.
A young girl dances to fill the time before the lighting of the Chabad of Atlanta bonfire.
The traditional bows and arrows of Lag B’Omer give way to Street Gamz laser tag outside the Chabad Israeli Center.
Girls let their imaginations go to work personalizing colorful baseball hats at Ner Hamizrach.
Chabad Israeli Center Rabbi Mendy Gurary toasts a marshmallow for one of the children.
Hamburgers, hot dogs and corn are among the treats cooking on the grills at the Chabad Israeli Center.
DeKalb County Fire Rescue lets the children explore a fire engine at the Chabad Israeli Center.
Fun in the Sun and Rain
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ag B’Omer, the 33rd day of the counting of the Omer between Pesach and Shavuot, provided an opportunity for games, picnics, cookouts and bonfires at synagogues and parks around the Atlanta area, despite some light showers that moved through in final hours before dark. 6 Shown on this page are three examples
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of the festivities: the Chabad of Atlanta celebration at the Chabad Israeli Center Atlanta in Brookhaven (photos by Michael Jacobs), the Congregation Ner Hamizrach festivities in Toco Hills (photos by Rabbi David Kapenstein) and the Chabad of North Fulton picnic (photos by Chana Frankforter).
Even if a game of bumper soccer doesn’t get going at the Chabad Israeli Center, the inflatable, wearable ball provides a fun place to relax.
LOCAL NEWS
Eizenstat Picks Bloomberg for Lecture By Paula Baroff
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Photo courtesy of Bloomberg Philanthropies
Michael Bloomberg, shown in April at the Bloomberg Future of Energy Summit, is prepared to talk about a range of topics at Ahavath Achim Synagogue on July 19.
like to be the mayor of the biggest city in the U.S. He will talk about all of it,” Eizenstat said. Another change this year is the timing. Because of Ahavath Achim’s planned sanctuary renovation, the lecture cannot take place during the fall, when Eizenstat said he would have preferred it and when it usually occurs. September before the renovation is too close to the holidays, and they wanted to stay away from Congress’ August vacation, so they settled on July. Eizenstat was able to work around the hitch with the timing, and Bloomberg was able to schedule it amid his busy schedule as entrepreneur, political figure and philanthropist. Eizenstat noted Bloomberg’s philanthropy as one of his major accomplishments: “He has given more than a billion dollars to Johns Hopkins University alone, particularly in the medical and science research areas. He has supported climate change initiatives and gun control initiatives with his philanthropy.” All of that could be brought up in the lecture, along with Bloomberg’s political career and “very close” run for president. Besides Bloomberg’s accomplishments, a major reason he was chosen this year is his general personality, Eizenstat said. “He is a wonderful family person, and he is an extraordinarily good speaker, as people will find out — strong opinions strongly stated.” Bloomberg’s strong opinions about an array of issues are a reason for the change from a lecture format to a conversation because he would like to cover as much ground as he can. Eizenstat, who will be onstage with Bloomberg, said he is looking forward to people hearing Bloomberg in this manner. The event is free and open to the public. ■
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year after featuring a man who was mulling a Democratic run for president, Ahavath Achim Synagogue’s Eizenstat Lecture will feature a Republican who toyed with a third-party presidential campaign. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg will be the speaker at the 28th annual lecture Tuesday, July 19, at 7:30 p.m. Vice President Joe Biden, at the height of speculation over his presidential campaign plans, delivered the 27th lecture in September. “Michael Bloomberg is one of the most remarkable and accomplished people that we’ve had, in the sense that the breadth of what he’s done in his business and public career is really unmatched by anyone,” said Stuart Eizenstat, the Atlanta native and former ambassador to the European Union who sponsors the lecture in memory of his wife and parents. He cited the Bloomberg financial media company, market data machine and news source. “The name Bloomberg for anyone in the business and financial community is associated with these remarkable products.” Previous lecturers include Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, and Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer. Eizenstat, who is friends with Bloomberg, was enthusiastic in a phone interview Wednesday, May 25, about his personal accomplishments and what the Boston native and Johns Hopkins University alumnus will bring to the lecture. “He’s served three terms as mayor of New York City and is widely credited with rejuvenating the city, remarkably lowering its crime, leading economic growth and development, and without any shade of scandal and a complete model of integrity,” Eizenstat said. Rather than the usual lecture format, this year will feature a conversation style; more informal, it will enable the speakers to be more open and cover many subjects. Instead of talking to the audience about a single topic, as a lecture normally would, Bloomberg and Eizenstat will hold a conversation about many issues. “He has strong opinions of all the issues of the day, and we will talk about his remarkable career and what it was
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LOCAL NEWS
Transitions, FitLine Win JCC Biennial Awards By Joel Arogeti and Jared Powers
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he Marcus Jewish Community Center received two JCCs of North America Excellence Awards during the JCCs of North America Biennial in Baltimore from May 15 to 18. The biennial was the first for us as the Marcus JCC board chairman and CEO, and the Atlanta JCC was well represented with a 10-person delegation among more than 500 biennial attendees representing JCCs from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Israel and other countries. The conference provided the opportunity for volunteer leaders and senior professionals to learn how to further the JCC’s mission to inspire, invigorate and involve our members and stakeholders’ Jewish lives with enriching programs and events. Our delegation met with officers, key committee chairs and community leaders from other JCCs whose ideas and innova-
tions, combined with our own, will lift our JCC to greater heights. The biennial connected us with thinkers and innovators from around North America and the world. The experience was inspirational and motivating because we met leaders who are so passionate about the Jewish community, its values and its people. Our programs that received JCCs of North America Excellence Awards, honoring exceptional institutional efforts and holding them up as examples so that all JCCs may learn from them, are the following: • Transitions, a new initiative for adults ages 18 to 25 with mild to moderate autism or other social or communication issues. Transitions aims to foster independence, community contributions and personal growth in a safe and supportive environment. • FitLine Functional Fitness, small group coaching, team training, and targeted fitness programs and classes designed to make you feel better, look
better and perform better. We are thrilled that Transitions and FitLine received the recognition that they deserve. Both programs received awards in the category of Kol HaKavod (Honor to You), demonstrating that they are considered to be exemplary initiatives that can be adapted by other JCCs. The success of these programs is reflected in the lives that each of
them continues to affect in Atlanta. In addition to us, the other Atlanta leaders at the biennial were Lisa Brill, a JCC Association board member who is the chair of the JCCs of North America centennial celebration over the next two years and hosted a “Celebrating 100 Years” kickoff event; Ron Brill, a Marcus JCC board member and past board co-chair; Steven Cadranel, a Marcus JCC past president and JCC Association board member; Staci Graff, assistant Director of BBYO in Atlanta and part of the Merrin Teen Professional Fellowship; Doug Kuniansky, a Marcus JCC board member and past chair and interim CEO; Josh Rosenberg, a Marcus JCC Esther Leah Ritz emerging leader; Ken Winkler, the Marcus JCC vice chair; and Janice Wolf, the Marcus JCC chief financial officer. ■ Joel Arogeti is the chairman of the board of the Marcus Jewish Community Center. Jared Powers is the CEO.
• Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Morningside — Shearith Israel and Limmud Atlanta + Southeast combine to provide a variety of learning options Saturday night, including environmental sustainability, beekeeping, yoga, cheese making and food justice, with such presenters as Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder, Ross Mansbach and Howie and Ari Slomka. The schedule starts with Mincha at 7:30, then a dairy meal, Ma’ariv at 9, study at 9:30, dessert at 10:30 and more study at 11. Free; bit.ly/1sGMZxE. • Congregation Etz Chaim, 1190 Indian Hills Parkway, East Cobb — Allnight Shavuot study begins at 8:45 p.m. Saturday, with services at 9:30 a.m. Sunday and Monday (including Yizkor). Free; etzchaim.net. • Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs — Rabbis Joshua Heller and Eytan Kenter talk with legal experts about the intersection of Jewish and American law Saturday night. Mincha is at 7:30, and, after light refreshments, a session on the rights of the accused starts at 8:15. After Ma’ariv at 9:15, breakout sessions are at 9:30, followed by ice cream at 10:30 and the closing session at 10:45. Free; www.bnaitorah. org/shavuot-events-june-11-13. • Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb — “Late Show With Rabbi Silverman” on Saturday
night starts with two political hot topics: Rabbi Ephraim Silverman with a Jewish perspective on firearms at 10:30 and Rabbi Tzvi Kilov on the chassidus of the populist political movements led by Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders. Then study until you drop from 12:30 a.m. on. Free; www.chabadofcobb.com/ Shavuot2016. • Congregation Beth Jacob, 1855 LaVista Road, Toco Hills — Saturday night learning sessions include lessons from Rabbis Ilan Feldman, Yechezkel Freundlich and Binyomin Sloviter. For details, www.bethjacobatlanta.org/ shavuos. • Young Israel of Toco Hills, 2056 LaVista Road — Two Yeshiva University scholars, Rabbi Jeremy Wieder, the rosh yeshiva, and Chaviva Levin, an expert on medieval Jewry, lead the allnight learning at Young Israel, which starts with a dairy dinner. For details, www.yith.org. • New Toco Shul, 2003 LaVista Road, Toco Hills — The all-night learning starts at midnight Saturday with sessions led by Rabbi Michael Broyde, Rabbi Jake Czuper, Nachi Friedman, Rabbi Eric Levy, Rabbi Shlomo Pill and Rabbi Don Seeman. newtocoshul.com. • Congregation Ner Hamizrach, 1858 LaVista Road, Toco Hills — Allnight learning begins at 12:30 a.m. Sunday. Free; www.nerhamizrach.org/ times.html. ■
The Atlanta delegation to the JCCs of North America Biennial consists of (from left) Doug Kuniansky, Janice Wolf, Steven Cadranel, Staci Graff, Jared Powers, Ken Winkler, Lisa Brill, Josh Rosenberg, Ron Brill and Joel Arogeti.
Study Up for Shavuot
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havuot, the holiday celebrating the giving of the Torah, is traditionally celebrated by studying all night (to make up for our oversleeping at Mount Sinai) and eating dairy products (for at least seven possible reasons). Here are some of the study options open to the community this Shavuot, which starts June 11, and ends June 13. Check with your own synagogue for plans that might be limited to that community. • Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead — AA is working with the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival, American Jewish Committee and ACCESS for all-night education and cheesecake from 6:30 p.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Sunday. With such presenters as Steve Chervin, Paul Root Wolpe and Sunmoon Pie, topics include Jewish spiritual music, Catholic-Jewish relations and the BDS movement against Israel. aasynagogue.org/ worship/holidays.html. • The Kehilla, 5075 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs — The Ten Commandments are the focus throughout the night as the keys to unlocking your greatest inner self. After the Ma’ariv service at 9:30 p.m. Saturday, the first class is at 10 p.m., followed by dinner at 10:45 and classes from 11:30 until 5 a.m. The cost is $15 for members, $18 for nonmembers and $5 for children ages 8 2 to 12; www.thekehilla.org/shavuot.
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Sunmoon Pie, which was part of the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival in March, is participating in the AJMF’s Shavuot program with American Jewish Committee, ACCESS and Ahavath Achim Synagogue at AA.
• Congregation Beth Shalom, 5303 Winters Chapel Road, Dunwoody — Beth Shalom is employing a rapid-fire approach to all-night study with a series of 30-minute sessions. The first class is at 8:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by Havdalah, then more learning. A Kiddush lunch will follow services at 9:30 a.m. Sunday and Monday (including Yizkor). Free; bethshalomatlanta. org/shakin-up-shavuot. • Congregation Bet Haverim, 2074 LaVista Road, Toco Hills — Bet Haverim holds a Spiritual Summit on Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The day begins with a silent breakfast before a service involving sacred text, prayer, meditation, chant and other spiritual practices. Free; bit.ly/1XZrc0y or 404315-6446.
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LOCAL NEWS
Alembik Warns of Risk of No Jewish Judge in Fulton
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wo three-way Superior Court elections, each involving a pair of Jewish candidates, resulted in one winner and one runoff May 24. Gary Alembik and Andrew Margolis, both members of Ahavath Achim Synagogue, ran against Eric Dunaway in Fulton County to succeed Wendy Shoob, who is retiring. Dunaway and Alembik advanced to a runoff July 26, while Margolis was 3,000 votes behind Alembik in third. Alembik underscored the importance of Jewish turnout, given that Shoob is Fulton’s only Jewish judge. That makes no sense considering the demographics of the county, he said. “The absence of a Jewish judge would be concerning. This is not about religion, but it is about making sure every demographic is represented in our courts,” Alembik said. “A population of 150,000 Jews, and there is a possibility we might not have a Jewish face in Fulton County. I hope that’s something the Jewish community pays attention to.” He said the voter turnout in North Atlanta and Midtown disappointed him, and he expects the runoff turnout to be even lower than the 20 percent who voted statewide May 24. “That’s a big concern of mine.” Alembik’s main plan for the runoff is to increase turnout by motivating people to vote. By voting July 26, he said, people “can make a difference to ensure their Jewish representation is perpetuated.” Judicial elections are extremely important, he said, and he wants people to know the impact he could make. “I’ve identified where we can grow and improve our courts,” Alembik said, highlighting judicial reform and accountability courts that focus on rehabilitation for nonviolent offenders rather than incarceration. Margolis said he was disappointed by the results but proud of his campaign. “We all worked very hard,” he said. “I was able to do as well as I did with half the budget of Mr. Dunaway and less than half of Mr. Alembik.” Margolis, who has his own Atlanta law firm, said he was pleased with the election experience. Just being a candidate, he said, opened many doors for him in Fulton. He formed excellent relationships that he plans to grow, and he said he learned a lot. Having two candidates from the same synagogue was tricky, but he said he doesn’t regret anything. “I think I made the best choices that I could.”
Margolis is prepared to try again to win a judgeship. “A lot of successful candidates are not successful their first time,” he said. “I still have a lot of support and will be back.” In Cobb County, Chief Superior Court Judge J. Stephen Schuster retained his seat by winning 60 percent of the vote against a pair of challengers, Juvenile Court Judge Joanne Elsey and lawyer Cindie Alter, a Temple Kol Emeth member. Alter extended a “heartfelt thankyou to all those who supported me and voted for me.” Schuster was surprised when two people decided to run against him on the last day of qualifying, but he said
he’s leaving behind any controversy over their motivations. Regarding the three-way results, Schuster said: “I am very humbled by the 60 percent, don’t get me wrong. But I’m very pleased with it. The people who ran against me had every right to. These are not seats you get for life.” Schuster decided that the best way to campaign was by not engaging his opponents. “I totally ignored them,” he said. “If they would throw a zinger at me, I just totally ignored it.” As the incumbent, he said, he needed to run on his record. His campaign focused on voter outreach, especially direct mail. “This is my fourth election, and, G-d bless them, they keep
sending me back.” Schuster said there are many plans for the court as a whole, but the major problem is treatment courts. Like Alembik, he emphasized the importance of criminal justice reform. Georgia is progressive, he said, when it comes to handling people with drug addictions and mental illnesses. “I think we all believe on the bench that we cannot incarcerate people like that, and I think that’s very forward,” he said. “The governor has led the charge for criminal justice reform, and we support what the governor’s been doing. The governor has given us tools to work with, and we’re taking full advantage of it.” ■
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
By Paula Baroff
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OPINION
Our View
Bibi’s Way
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
ith the latest shuffling in his coalition, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again proved he is a remarkable politician, but only time will tell whether his acumen is good or bad for Israel. When Netanyahu formed his fourth government with a 61-vote coalition in the 120-member Knesset last year — matching David Ben-Gurion’s record for the most terms as prime minister — we were counting the days until it all fell apart and forced new elections. Instead, more than a year later, the Likudled coalition keeps going despite constant turmoil, reflecting Netanyahu’s ideological flexibility in all things except his place at the head of the government. He nearly reached a deal in May with the leader of the Zionist Union opposition, Isaac Herzog, to create a unity government and position Israel for a serious push for some kind of agreement with the Palestinians, whether through the initiative of France, Egypt, the United States or the two parties themselves. Instead, that deal fell apart, and Netanyahu jumped in the opposite direction, bringing his junior partner from a previous government, Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beitenu party, into the coalition, with Liberman as defense minister. The other members of the coalition approved the deal Monday, May 30. While Liberman is saying the right things about a two-state solution, State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the rightward shift of the coalition raises “legitimate questions” about Israel’s commitment to peace with the Palestinians. The United States shouldn’t get involved in the composition of the Israeli government. The American concern should be limited to Israel’s actions, not its actors, and with our forthcoming Trump-Clinton presidential election, we’re not in the strongest position to criticize political leadership. A bigger concern is the response within Netanyahu’s government. Moshe “Bogie” Yaalon, the highly respected retired general who was serving as defense minister during the prime minister’s negotiations with Liberman, not only quit the Cabinet, but resigned from the Knesset. A member of the Kulanu party, Avi Gabbay, then quit his post as environmental protection minister, similarly warning that the government has become increasingly extremist and risks Israel’s destruction. Another coalition member, Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett, threatened to block the Liberman appointment over the sharing of security information. If only Netanyahu could negotiate with foreign powers — friends and foes — as successfully as he navigates internal politics. Last year he threw everything into an unsuccessful effort to stop the Iran nuclear deal. In the process he undermined support for Israel among U.S. liberals and ended any doubts that he and President Barack Obama just don’t like each other. But in six months Obama will be an ex-president, and Netanyahu is all but certain to remain in the office he seems destined to hold longer than anyone else in Israeli history. We can only hope at some point he is able to make national diplomatic history to 10 match his personal political history. ■
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Cartoon by Nate Beeler, The Columbus Dispatch
Keeping a Kosher Community
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n Orthodox Atlanta rabbi sent an interesting More on the Study email in early May. He was disappointed that Our May 27 article about the community survey the Israeli Consulate’s invitation-only Yom launching online June 6 wasn’t on our website an HaAtzmaut reception May 12 at the High Museum hour before I got a complaint from the Jewish Fedwas using a nonkosher caterer. eration of Greater Atlanta. There was some displeaAs a result, this rabbi did not attend, though the sure that we had noted that the Federation-funded, consulate did offer kosher options. It’s his policy to Federation-contracted, Federation-directed study skip Jewish organizational events that are not kosher was being conducted by Federation, rather than a because he doesn’t think accomcoalition of Atlanta modating observant Jews with Jewish organizaone section of the hors d’oeuvres tions. Editor’s Notebook table or with plastic-wrapped Apparently, By Michael Jacobs meals represents true inclusion. because of less-thanThis is not an issue about mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com positive opinions the consulate, whose event didn’t about Federation, involve a full meal and which in people in some comany case is not unique in facing munities have hesitated to respond to such surveys the decision about whether serving the Jewish comwhen they heard that their local Federations were munity means serving kosher. behind them. The AJT struggled with this decision when we I understand not wanting to do something that relaunched the Jewish Breakfast Club (next meeting could make you a target for Federation fundraising, is June 15; email JBC@atljewishtimes.com). We chose but this community survey is not about fundraising to be kosher, but our initial caterer let us down. or Federation. It’s about making our Jewish commuWe figured it would just be bagels, lox, fruit and nity stronger and more responsive. such, so it wouldn’t be a big deal if we went kosherIf you are a part of this community and care style instead. We soon heard from people for whom about it or any organization within it (and why else it was a big deal, and the JBC is now a kosher event. would you be reading the AJT) you should take the Kosher catering does not sacrifice quality, and survey, which will benefit all of us. price usually isn’t an issue if kashrut is a priority. It’s also sad that we’ve reached a point at which We do perhaps have a capacity problem in Atlanta, anything associated with Federation is tainted. Conbut if you plan early with determination, you can be ducting a community study every 10 years is exactly kosher. the sort of community-building project we need and Communal gatherings often involve conflicts which we should be thankful for Federation. Who over levels of observance, and it’s understandable else has the resources, the connections, the database that more liberal denominations won’t accomand the neutrality to organize something like this? modate those most observant in areas such as the Federation should be able to promote the survey mechitza. But kashrut is a Torah-dictated practice as one of the invaluable things it does for Jewish that has adherents in all streams of Judaism. Atlanta. Its resistance to having its name associated The bottom line is that, whatever the difficulties, with the survey is a sign of how much work Eric Robbins has ahead of him when he becomes CEO. ■ a Jewish communal event should be a kosher event.
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OPINION
2-State Solution: A ‘Fantasy’ Worth Pursuing River and the Mediterranean. • It could do neither of the above and instead attempt to “manage” a rapidly deteriorating situation. It’s easy to draw a trajectory for each of these three choices. The first entails great promise for Israel, along
Letters To The Editor
Federation. Moreover, I observed on a daily basis how Michael, along with his wife, Barbara, worked tirelessly, devoting their time, energy and considerable talents to a myriad of worthy organizations throughout our Jewish community. To be clear, it was Michael Horowitz who identified the significant unmet demand for financial assistance to allow needy families throughout metro Atlanta to enable their children to enjoy an overnight Jewish camping experience. Under Federation’s leadership and through the generosity of its donors, the number of Atlanta’s Jewish youth attending Jewish overnight camp this summer will no longer trail other major North American communities by 50 percent. It was Michael Horowitz who educated me and our Federation leadership as to the vital role that Federation could and should play in supporting Birthright Israel, enabling greater numbers of Atlanta teens to enjoy a fully subsidized, life-changing 10-day trip to Israel.
Horowitz Deserves Praise
As the chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta’s CEO search committee, I was obviously pleased to read of the Atlanta Jewish Times’ support of Eric Robbins as our next Federation CEO (“Our View: Good Choice,” May 13). However, I must take exception to your characterization of our past Federation CEO, Michael Horowitz, as someone “whose move into nonprofit leadership was an alternative to semiretirement, and he made that move with a personal style that could rub people the wrong way.” I found this characterization to be misguided, untrue and totally inappropriate. As immediate past chair of Federation (July 2012 to June 2014), I witnessed firsthand Michael’s deep commitment to our Jewish community, to Israel and to strengthening our Atlanta
Guest Column ByDaniel Arnon
with some risk. The second entails the loss of either Israel’s democracy or its Jewishness. The third, as Rudoren avidly pointed out, leads down a path similar to Option B. Precisely because the Palestinians are a proud and educated people, as the editorial board noted, they recognize that time and demographics are on their side. However unpleasant Israeli control over the Palestinians is (to put it as mildly as possible), they may be acting in their best interest in allowing Israel to wait it out. The current government, which is one of the most right-wing in Israel’s history and has been in power in some configuration or another for the past seven years, has chosen
Option C. While the Middle East has changed markedly in this time and will undoubtedly change more in the near future, Israel too has changed in the process. After the hopeful years of hundreds of thousands of Israelis gathering in Rabin Square and encouraging the government to “give peace a chance,” Israel’s peace activists are now chased down the streets of Tel Aviv to screams of “death to the lefties and the Arabs.” This kind of incitement has become so common in Israel that I don’t even wince when it rolls down my Facebook feed nowadays. Even more disturbing are the quality and character of senior national leaders in key roles. Israel’s representative democracy now features a defense minister who has made racist calls to behead disloyal Arabs and has signed on to a bill demanding Israeli Arabs pledge their loyalty to the Jewish state. The ongoing conflict has taken its toll on Israelis in a way that goes beyond the impact and cost of terror itself. Fear, as Americans have also learned so well in this election cycle, is a powerful tool for mobilization — and an extremely dangerous one. Israelis have been living in fear for too long, and they are scared to make a bold choice that could greatly benefit them but that is also fraught with risk.
Yes, striving for peace has its downsides and its potential pitfalls. But ask yourself: Are the alternatives better? If you like Israel’s increasingly flagrant racism, as Rudoren pointed out, or if you believe that sending its cadre of 18-year-olds to administer military rule over almost 4 million people will have no effect on them, then you are more than welcome to support the other options. I want to be able to return to an Israel that continues to strive and take risks for peace. I want to return to an Israel that doesn’t allow its morals and standards to falter even in hard times. Jeremy Ben-Ami shares my concerns and my hopes for change, and that is why he continues to make a plea for American Jews to embrace peace, to embrace the two-state solution, and to encourage and support Israelis in making the right choice. Call this vision of a better future a fantasy if you wish. The question is, can Israel afford not to fantasize about a peaceful future when the alternatives and the current reality are so bleak? ■
It was Michael Horowitz who stood up without waver and compelled Federation leadership to provide emergency financial support to the Amit Program so that enrolled Amit students and their families could complete their academic year without interruption. Coming out of the 2009-10 recession, our Federation was in a bad way. Prior executive leadership had allowed Federation to atrophy. Michael restored vitality to the organization and refocused Federation lay leadership on the needs of our community. There’s a lengthy list of Michael’s many accomplishments that should not be diminished. Both our Federation and our Jewish community are in a better place because of the leadership of Michael and his wife, Barbara. As we enthusiastically welcome Eric Robbins as our next Federation CEO, let’s not overlook the fine work and commitment of our past CEO, Michael Horowitz. Michael deserves our deep gratitude.
Thanks for the Coverage
— Gerry Benjamin, Sandy Springs
Daniel Arnon is an Israeli doctoral student in political science at Emory University. His studies focus on American-Israeli relations and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Conexx Eagle Star Awards gala is Atlanta’s premier event that showcases the collaboration of Israel’s innovation and entrepreneurship with businesses and academic institutions throughout the Southeast. At a time when most media coverage of Israel focuses on elements of the conflict in the region, your advanced coverage of the award winners of the 2016 Eagle Star Awards (“Conexx’s Eagles Landing Soon,” May 27) clearly exemplifies just a smattering of the positive influences the tiny nation of Israel has had on the well-being of the citizens of Georgia and the Southeast, our nation, and the world at large. Thank you for devoting the four pages of your paper to convey a perspective of Israel not often enough highlighted.
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
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n Yom Ha’Atzmaut I attended the conversation between Jodi Rudoren, formerly The New York Times’ Jerusalem bureau chief, and Jeremy Ben-Ami, the president of J Street, that took place at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. During their discussion, which touched on the complex and difficult challenges that Israel faces today, Ben-Ami offered realistic hope for a pathway forward for Israelis and Palestinians. In an editorial (“Our View: J Street Fantasy,” May 20), the AJT described Ben-Ami’s vision for a peaceful solution as a “fantasy” but offered no alternative vision other than making the case for more inertia and inaction. For as long as I can remember, Israel has tried to balance between fighting for survival and hoping for peace. But Israel today is at a crossroad, refusing to make a bold move in one direction or the other. It faces three distinct options: • It could choose to persevere in the face of an inadequate partner and seek out a solution nonetheless that includes two states. • It could choose to annex (in some form or other) portions or all of the West Bank and create de facto or de jure one state between the Jordan
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— Mark Spiegel, chair, 2016 Conexx 11 Eagle Star Awards
www.atlantajewishtimes.com
OPINION
Israel’s Slide Toward Religious Oligarchy
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t was early May in 1948, and I was on my way to the United States. For two years I had worked for the United Nations as a welfare officer in a displaced persons camps in Germany, helping survivors immigrate to various countries, and I had been granted a visa to come to the United States to attend a university and try to rebuild my own life, which had been shattered by the Holocaust. While I waited for my departure, the Jewish dream of two millennia was coming true: to have a national home, Israel. What kind of country would it be? For sure, it would be a country conscious of social justice and a democratic state. What else could a Jewish state be? The return to Zion had been on our collective Jewish mind since our expulsion from Judaea in 74 C.E. For millennia we prayed, “May our eyes behold when G-d will bring the remnant of Zion back to their homeland.” For a long time we believed that the return to Zion, like the departure from Egypt, would be accomplished through G-d’s intervention — a miraculous event. But the yearning for Zion became secularized and independent from our wait for the Messiah. Most, if not all, Zionists shared a new tikvah — a new hope that was not a principle of our faith but was a return to a secular Jewish state, one rooted in Jewish history and experi-
ences and not associated with the Temple and sacrifices. We Zionists, even the religious Zionist Mizrachi, whose motto was “Torah and work” (Torah v’avodah), did not yearn to rebuild the Temple and resume animal sacrifices. It would
One Man’s Opinion By Eugen Schoenfeld
not be an atheistic state, but one in which Jews could chose their identity, be it secular or religious, and worship accordingly. Over two or more millennia, we Jews had spread all over the world and become culturally and even racially heterogeneous and multilingual with a variety of racial physiognomy and historical experiences. This new Israel, we hoped, would become the common denominator for a collective Jewish identity. After the Holocaust we could not conceive of this new Israel becoming a totalitarian state. Unfortunately, religion is subject to the forces behind the “iron law of oligarchy.” Robert Michel, an early sociologist, proposed that with time all organizations develop an elite leadership assuming the power of decisionmaking. In all organizations, religious or secular, the leadership develops a vested interest to maintain power.
A Fearful Political Tone
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arm Springs is approximately an hour and a half south of Atlanta but feels a generation removed. The pace is slower, the air is cleaner, and hospitality prevails. I walked through the quaint downtown and visited the summer home of FDR, also known as the Little White House. The Roosevelts spent many warm, restful days here away from the hubbub of Washington. Franklin D. Roosevelt was one of our nation’s most active presidents. During the Great Depression and the dawn of World War II, FDR implemented New Deal programs including the Tennessee Valley Authority and 12 the Public Works Administration.
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Thousands of jobs were created, and, for better or worse, the role of the federal government was expanded. In
A Fresh View By Jordan Barkin
the midst of this great change, FDR tried to expand the role of the executive branch. After FDR won unprecedented third and fourth terms in office, his political adversaries drafted the 22nd Amendment, limiting presidents to two elected terms. The most impressive exhibits at Roosevelt’s Little White House Historic
Before the Holocaust, as a mode of maintaining their power, most Orthodox rabbis denounced the idea of establishing the state of Israel. Wait till the Messiah comes and legalizes our return, they argued. Unfortunately, Israel has again become dominated by the Orthodox rabbis. In the beginning, this power came as a reaction to the Holocaust and a desire to rebuild the ancient religion. This sentiment gave rise to religious politics, at the center of which was the accumulation of power and the exercise of it against other modes of Judaic expression. It was there that Orthodoxy again fostered political power. It was there that the Orthodox rabbis became politically active and managed even in a nonreligious, Zionist country to corral enough support to re-establish a form of theocracy. In a fractured parliamentary system, the price extracted by Orthodox politicians for their support of the right wing was to wrest power from the secular government. The rabbinic organization usurped the right to define who is a Jew and thus control the right of return, the right to marry and where one may be buried. In a similar manner, the rabbinate in Israel recently declared that it alone has the right of conversion and will endow that right to a certain limited number of rabbis worldwide. Of course, no Reform, Conservative or Reconstructionist rabbi was included among those licensed to perform acts
of conversion. Orthodoxy could not tolerate the rise of Jewish denominations that vary in their definitions of who and what is a Jew and thus vary in their views of what knowledge one must acquire before conversion. The rabbis in a deliberate mode embarked on a political quest to wrest more power and more control over Jews and Judaism. Their aim, as I see it, was the development of a theocracy. A small oligarchy, constituted by Orthodox rabbis, began usurping the state’s power to claim the authority that had been vested in each rabbi to form a beit din, a religious court, and grant the right of conversion. Rabbinical independence was annihilated. We are again faced with the dictate of a “my way or the highway” oligarchy. Again we are confronted with a great schism, one that separates Israel from the rest of world Jewry. The leaders of Israeli Judaism cannot tolerate Judaic diversity. Rather than embrace evolutionary changes and thus rejuvenate Jewry, they respond out of fear — rooted in and associated with the loss of their oligarchy. They fear their loss of power more than they desire to provide a modern faith. If we are to survive, Israel and Jews outside it must solve the discord as it is being created. It must be averted so we can develop a modus vivendi based on the principle of kol Yisrael chaverim. ■
Site are FDR’s letters and speeches. I have taken the liberty of presenting some of the 32nd president’s notable quotations below. I have juxtaposed them with remarks of some 2016 presidential candidates to show how the tone in D.C. has become less civil. • FDR, April 1945: “We seek peace, enduring peace.” Sen. Harry Reid, February: “Donald Trump is the standardbearer for the Republican Party. Republicans created him by spending seven years appealing to some of the darkest forces in America. … It’s time for Republicans to stop the Frankenstein they’ve created.” • FDR, October 1940: “Wherever men and women of good will gather to serve their community, there is America.” Donald Trump, July: Sen. John McCain is “not a war hero. He was a war
hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.” • FDR, October 1940: “Human kindness has never weakened or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel in order to be tough.” Sen. Marco Rubio, February: “I don’t understand why (Trump’s) hands are the size of someone who is 5-foot-2. … And you know what they say about men with small hands.” Civil discourse appears to be declining. But I will end this piece on a positive note by observing that FDR overcame his struggles by maintaining optimism. Let’s hope the only thing we have to fear this election is fear itself. ■ Jordan Barkin, a freelance writer for various publications, is a former associate editor of Veranda, a Hearst magazine.
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LOCAL NEWS
Atlanta Women Answer Shabbat Call By R.M. Grossblatt
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
hen Devora Farrell from Passaic, N.J., flew to Atlanta on May 18, she had no idea that about 40 women in the community would help her make Shabbat at the Sheraton for herself and 12 other women of different Jewish affiliations. It all started late that Wednesday afternoon when Farrell, at the National Association of Professional Organizers conference, searched online for kosher restaurants in Atlanta. She contacted Uber and was soon at Pita Palace. Standing in line near her, Brian Spaner asked Farrell about the ladder of ribbons she was wearing. She said she forgot to remove them, but the ribbons identified her as a professional organizer. Some indicated places she had lived or visited, including California, New Jersey and now Georgia. Others were personal messages such as “No whining,” “Plays well with others,” “I love to volunteer,” and “OCD,” appropriate for a professional organizer with a sense of humor. Spaner connected her with his wife, Suzanne, who invited Farrell to her home for Shabbat. But Farrell declined because she was staying at the conference and celebrating Shabbat with two other observant organizers. When she got back to the hotel, Farrell started receiving text messages from a “Join us for Shabbos” notice she had tacked up on the bulletin board in the lobby. “I’m Reform; can I come?” one person wrote. “I don’t keep kosher,” another text read, “but I’d like to light Sabbath candles.” Several others wrote, “I’m only staying 5 minutes.” Already, 10 people had committed to joining Farrell at 6:45 p.m. Friday (when NAPO was serving dinner so as not to conflict with their program) to light candles in her room. Then she realized that she had only grape juice and matzah to feed them. Thursday night at 10, she called Suzanne Spaner and asked whether she thought she should contact Chabad for help. “I can help,” Suzanne said. She sent an email to the 300 women on her Atlanta Tehillim (Psalms) list. She created a menu and listed all the foods and items such as tablecloths, paper plates and plastic ware that the group at the Sheraton would need for a memorable Shabbat. “On Friday morning about 40 Atlanta women walked in and out of my house,” Suzanne said. One came 14 with a cholent stew, another a potato
AJT
kugel. Othprofession. “I reers dropped ally love organizoff chicken, ing,” she said. “It rice, salads, makes me happy desserts and, to help others of course, and to attend challah. It conferences.” was enough Today, Farfood for 15 rell speaks, people for three Shabbat writes articles meals. and teaches. Friday afRecently, she ternoon, Trutaught a class dy Robbins of for Sharsheret, Chai Peking, an organization who donated helping Jewish a good porwomen with tion of the food, helped cancer. Suzanne Spaner (left) responded to pack the van She gave Devora Farrell’s call for help. for delivery to organizing tips the Sheraton. for those in medical crisis, including After Shabbat, late Saturday night, showing the women how to organize Uber picked up Farrell from the Sheraton and drove her to the home of the their medicines. Herscovici family in Toco Hills, where some of the women who had made the Shabbat food gathered. She wanted to show her appreciation. “I’ve lived in a lot of communities,” Farrell told the women, “and, yes, this is the kind of thing we do. But this level on erev Shabbos, when none of you even know me!” She thanked everyone and told them how Shabbat turned out. Because she didn’t have a roommate at the conference, she used the extra queen-size bed for a table. “None of this food is from me,” she told the women sitting around the makeshift table. “People did this without knowing us.” Farrell said she and the women who knew how helped the others recite the blessing over the Shabbat candles. And for multiple generations in the room, “we showed them how mothers could bless their daughters and granddaughters.” Kiddush and Hamotzi were recited, and everyone enjoyed the food. During the meal, whoever knew a “Jewish” song started singing. “It was Jewish women joining together without the distance of denominations,” Farrell said. Farrell also told the Atlanta women about her personal struggles. Five years ago she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. She has had treatment and relapses and takes injections and oral chemo daily. After the diagnosis, she decided to turn a hobby, organizing, into a
Speaking to the group in Toco
Hills, she opened a square plastic container of her daily meds. The numerous pills were arranged and labeled in multiple sections to help her remember when to take them. Because she experiences some memory-related side effects of chemo, she can help others with similar issues. Farrell deals with her illness through
medication
and
emunah
(faith), which she learned from Rabbi Leib Kelemen. She doesn’t understand why she has her illness but knows there’s a reason. “Sometimes, we have to cry,” she said. “We’re not supposed to be robots. … Only through struggling can we move forward.” Before the end of the evening, Farrell advised everyone to move forward. “Get rid of the stuff that isn’t working for you. Fix it, or let it go,” she said. “And ask each other for help.” That’s what she did to make Shabbat for a group of women at a conference downtown. She asked for help, and the women of Atlanta responded. Then those women were inspired by Farrell, battling a terminal illness, who said, “I get up in the morning and thank Hashem for allowing me to get up.” With a twinkle in her eye, she added, “It’s about being engaged in life, relying on friends — and chocolates.” ■
5 Million Pounds of Food Saved by Second Helpings
Second Helpings Atlanta rescued its 5 millionth pound of nutritious food Saturday, May 21. To mark the milestone, representatives from involved organizations met at Costco at Cumberland Mall as SHA, which started at Temple Sinai and became an independent nonprofit organization in 2013, to acknowledge their contributions in serving those who need relief from food insecurity. SHA has built partnerships with nearly 60 food donors, including Costco, Whole Foods, Target, Publix, Cox Enterprises, Trader Joe’s and Sprouts. More than 470 volunteer drivers use their own vehicles and SHA’s refrigerated truck to pick up excess nutritious food that otherwise would be thrown away and deliver it to 30 partner agencies serving people who are food-insecure in the Atlanta area. Most of the food is fresh or prepared food, which SHA provides to partner agencies at no charge. SHA is rescuing more than 100,000 pounds of food a month. About 20 percent of Georgians don’t know where their next meal is coming from, and almost 30 percent of Georgia’s children live in food-insecure households, defined as households whose economic and social conditions result in limited or uncertain access to adequate food. Tamara Carrera, the CEO of the Community Assistance Center, a partner agency, said: “SHA’s contribution has been enormous. The amount of food SHA brings to CAC has allowed us to go from providing food once a month to doing so once a week.”
Last Call for Steve’s
Steve’s Live Music is hosting its last show on Hilderbrand Drive on Sunday night, June 12, exactly four years and more than 2,000 shows after Steve Grossman opened the Sandy Springs venue. Leading up to that date, Steve’s is featuring artists who have performed there the past four years. Steve’s Live Music is becoming a music promotion business, bringing live music to other establishments. Shows have already been held at 5 Seasons Brewing in Sandy Springs, and Steve’s has planned a lineup for shows at various locations in the area. Steve’s Live Music will wind up operations with its Sandy Springs International Music Festival from June 9 to 11, then welcome Jewish Atlanta artist Michael Levine for the last show at 7 p.m. June 12.
www.atlantajewishtimes.com
SPORTS
Hertz to NFL Owners: Atlanta’s Ready
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fter Atlanta was awarded the 2019 Super Bowl on Tuesday, May 24, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell sent a letter to Saints owner Tom Benson explaining that New Orleans lost out to “unusually strong and unique competition” for the right to host the game. That competition came in the form of The Temple member Doug Hertz, who served as the Atlanta bid committee co-chair and was a key part of the team responsible for bringing the Super Bowl back to Atlanta for the first time since 2000. Hertz, the CEO of United Distributors and one of the Atlanta Falcons’ limited partners, was invited by Falcons owner Arthur Blank to serve as co-chair with Rick Smith, the CEO of Equifax. He addressed all 32 NFL team owners at the close of Atlanta’s bid during the NFL spring meetings in Charlotte. What did he say that swayed the owners Atlanta’s way? “I told them we’re ready,” Hertz
The $1.4 billion Mercedes-Benz Stadium is due to open in time for the 2017 Atlanta Falcons season.
said. “We have everything in place. We have a large financial budget. We have a huge public-private partnership. We have more hotel rooms within walking distance to the stadium than any other city in the country. We have a major airport. We have a 2-million-squarefoot World Congress Center adjacent to the stadium, and we have four worldclass tourist attractions within walking distance to the stadium in the Georgia Aquarium, World of Coke, College Football Hall of Fame and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. “On top of all that, the crown jewel is a brand-new, spectacular stadium.” To secure the Super Bowl, Atlanta
had to make it through four rounds of ballots against bids from Tampa, Miami and New Orleans. Tampa and Miami’s bids were eliminated after the second round of voting. Atlanta fell short of the threequarters majority required in the third round, then beat New Orleans by a simple majority in the fourth round. Atlanta’s bid committee was led by the Atlanta Sports Council, the Falcons, the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority. The under-construction MercedesBenz Stadium, due to open in 2017, is now scheduled to host the college foot-
ball national championship game in 2018, the Super Bowl in 2019 and the NCAA Division I men’s basketball Final Four in 2020. “It was a very gratifying but nerveracking experience,” Hertz said. “When you realize that we are now going to have the national championship in 2018, the Super Bowl in 2019 and the Final Four in 2020, that’s pretty good for the city of Atlanta and the state of Georgia.” Five of the last six Super Bowls have been awarded to cities with recently built stadiums. Atlanta hosted the Super Bowl in 1994 and 2000, but the big game hasn’t been back since an ice storm shut down the city on the Friday before Super Bowl Sunday in 2000. Hertz said he did his best to convince owners that bad weather wasn’t likely to be an issue. “They have strengths and weaknesses listed in each bid,” he said. “Our only listed weakness was the possibility of bad weather, so of course we talked about how the weather here during this past Super Bowl was in the high 60s.” ■
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com
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EDUCATION
Performing an Israeli dance at their graduation ceremony are (back row from left) Zoe Rosenberg, Galya Fischer and Vanessa Greenstein and (front row from left) Amy Kowalsky, Maya Kahn, Rayna Fladell and Elaine Berger.
(From left) Nadav David, Elijah Medwed, Brandon Sherman and Asher Fitterman sing the national anthem at their graduation ceremony.
Enjoying a moment of camaraderie at their graduation are (from left) Shira Brown, Zoe Rosenberg, Sylvie Kershteyn and Galya Fischer.
Graduating eighth-grader Tal Brill speaks about his journey and memorable experiences at the Epstein School. Tiffany Salzberg and Josh Peljovich perform a skit about growth, development and feelings at the Epstein School’s 2016 graduation ceremony.
Alexa Silberman shares a moment of pride with Epstein Head of School David Abusch-Magder as he presents her with the eighth-grade graduation gift.
Mazel Tov to Epstein Class of 2016
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he Epstein School’s 41 eighth-graders graduated from the Conservative day school Tuesday night, May 24, with a few words of reflection, hope and advice from Head
of School David Abusch-Magder, Principal Myrna Rubel, former Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta Chairman Marty Kogon and Congregation Gesher L’Torah Rabbi Michael Bernstein.
The eighth-grade Knesset co-presidents, Sydney Fialkow and Carly Judenberg, also offered eloquent parting words to their fellow members of the Class of 2016.
After receiving her diploma, Knesset Co-President Sydney Fialkow gets a high-five from Epstein Head of School David Abusch-Magder.
$1M Gift Kicks Off Epstein Endowment Drive By Paula Baroff
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
he Epstein School is revitalizing an old initiative called Imagine Epstein in a new push to secure the future of the school. “It’s really the rebirth of the endowment campaign from a few years ago with the same name that had been put on hold,” said Ronette Throne, the chief advancement officer for the Conservative day school. Fundraising and legacy are always important for Epstein, Throne said, but Imagine Epstein is the beginning of an effort to focus on ensuring the school’s success for decades to come. The endowment campaign includes a new scholarship fund started by the Orkin family, who recently donated $1 million to endow the Barbara & Sanford Orkin and Family Chai Scholarship Fund. “We decided to make this gift to Epstein because of our belief in the 16 importance of the history of the insti-
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Epstein School President Darrin Friedrich (left) and Head of School David AbuschMagder join Sanford and Barbara Orkin as they donate $1 million to endow a student scholarship fund at the school.
tution,” Sanford Orkin said in a press release issued by the school. “I am very pleased with the current direction and accomplishment of the school. With this gift, we wanted to continue to honor the work of the past and plant the seeds that will be bearing fruit 40 years from now.” Throne views the endowment campaign in the same way as the Orkins — through a personal lens. “The way I look at it, I was kid at Epstein benefiting from this amazing educa-
tion. And now I get the chance to play a role in making sure that in 30, 40 years from now we leave the school better than it was today,” she said. “Someone thought about that for me when I was a kid. And now I get to do the same. I have kids at the school, second-generation Epstein.” The endowment campaign has five areas of concentration, said Tali Benjamin, Epstein’s marketing coordinator: affordability; the maintenance of the campus; inspiring programs and experiences; technology and learning environments; and extraordinary faculty and leadership. The Orkins’ donation falls under the area of affordability. Families requiring financial assistance will go through the normal financial aid process, and now the school has another scholarship fund to draw from. When students receive money from the Orkin fund, the families will be notified where the aid came from. Benjamin and Throne reiterated
that the Orkin donation is only the beginning of the endowment initiative. “Our head of school started last summer, and the conversations began immediately, but we really finally have all the pieces in place,” Benjamin said. “We’re really focused on our future as a school and as a staple in our community. We have a renewed effort on this, and hopefully it will continue and continue.” Throne said the Epstein administration, school families and other members of the Atlanta Jewish community want to see the 43-year-old school continue to thrive for another 43 years. “The goal is to create stability and allow us to be innovative and grow our programming and to focus on professional and leadership development as well as grow opportunities for students.” About the Orkin donation, she said: “It was an amazing gift — it really is. Hopefully it will inspire some people.” ■
Best of Jewish Atlanta
Just as Federation is launching a survey to find out who we are in Jewish Atlanta, the Atlanta Jewish Times is kicking off a survey to find some of our favorite people, places and things. This is an unscientific survey, and, although we’re calling it Best of Jewish Atlanta, we’re not claiming that the winners are the best at what they do. We’ll leave it to you, our readers, to judge whether they’re the best, the most popular or just the best known. We want this to be fun, not a source of bitterness. We have listed nominees for each category, but you are welcome to write in your own pick. If you don’t have an opinion on a category, just skip it; we ask that you vote for at least half the categories if you submit a ballot.
ELECTED OFFICIAL (CURRENT) Andy Bauman Mike Bodker Michele Henson Philip Goldstein Sam Olens Renee Unterman Other: _________ ELECTED OFFICIAL (FORMER) Mitchell Kaye Liane Levetan Elliott Levitas Kevin Levitas Sam Massell Other: _________ JUDGE Mike Jacobs Dax Lopez Stephen Schuster Marvin Shoob Wendy Shoob Other: _________ MUSICIAN OR BAND Joe Alterman Baal Shem Tones Paz Sammy Rosenbaum Zale Other: _________
BAGEL Art’s Bagels Bagelicious Broadway Cafe Brooklyn Bagel Bakery Goldbergs Other: _________ SLEEPAWAY CAMP Barney Medintz Blue Star Coleman Living Wonders Ramah Darom Other: _________ DAY SCHOOL Atlanta Jewish Academy Davis Academy Epstein School Temima Torah Day School Weber School Other: _________ NON-JEWISH PRIVATE SCHOOL Galloway Pace Paideia Walker Westminster Woodward Other: _________ PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL Dunwoody Grady North Springs Riverwood Walton Other: _________
FESTIVAL Atlanta Jewish Film Festival Atlanta Jewish Music Festival Book Festival of the Marcus JCC Kosher BBQ Competition Or VeShalom Chanukah Bazaar Other: _________ KOSHER RESTAURANT Broadway Cafe Chai Peking Fuego Mundo Pita Grille Pita Palace Other: _________ JEWISH-OWNED NONKOSHER RESTAURANT Bagelicious The General Muir Napoli Pizza Reel Seafood Souper Jenny Yalla Other: _________ KOSHER CATERER Added Touch Avenue K Dolce Catering For All Occasions and More Kosher Gourmet Spicy Peach Other: _________
KOSHER GROCERY SHOPPING Dunwoody Kroger Fountain Oaks Kroger Spicy Peach Toco Hills Kroger Toco Hills Publix Other:
LOCAL NONPROFIT Breman Museum Jewish Federation Jewish Home Life Communities JF&CS Marcus JCC Other: _________
KOSHER TREATS Ali’s Cookies Bruster’s Krispy Kreme Menchie’s Other: _________
SIMCHA VENUE Atlanta History Center Georgia Aquarium Grand Hyatt Wyndham Atlanta Galleria InterContinental Buckhead Westin Atlanta Perimeter Other: _________
COFFEE SHOP Crema Dancing Goats Dunkin’ Donuts Krispy Kreme Octane Starbucks Other: _________ SPORTS OWNER/EXEC/ COACH Sara Blakely Arthur Blank Steve Koonin Josh Pastner Tony Ressler Other: _________
NEIGHBORHOOD Buckhead Dunwoody East Cobb Sandy Springs South Atlanta Toco Hills Virginia-Highland Other: _________
LOCAL/REGIONAL AFFILIATE OF NATIONAL NONPROFIT ADL AIPAC AJC FIDF Hadassah Israel Bonds JNF ORT Other: _________
You can vote online at atlantajewishtimes.com or fill out this ballot and mail it or bring it to our offices:
Atlanta Jewish Times Attn.: Best of Jewish Atlanta Suite 320 • 270 Carpenter Dr NE • Atlanta, GA 30328 The deadline for ballots is Friday, June 10, at 5 p.m.
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
MEDIA PERSONALITY Matt Chernoff Mara Davis Holly Firfer Steak Shapiro Larry Wachs Bert Weiss Other: _________
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ARTS
DeKalb Orchestra Pays Tribute to Jewish Themes By Benjamin Kweskin
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
he DeKalb Symphony Orchestra paid homage to two Jewish conductors, as well as Mozart and Brahms, at a concert Tuesday, May 24. The DSO’s conductor, Fyodor Cherniavsky, born in London and educated at Cambridge and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, hails from a line of musicians: his great-grandfather Avrum was an orchestra conductor in Ukraine during the late 1800s. Cherniavsky presented a short lecture before the concert at Georgia Perimeter College’s Marvin Cole Auditorium. Briefly touching on the evening’s four pieces, he shared historical background and anecdotes about the music. Occasionally playing piano to highlight certain points, the maestro made it clear that the selections were labors of love. The first piece in the program was
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Serge Prokofiev’s “Overture on Hebrew Themes, Op. 34,” previously performed by the DSO. The modernist yet neo-classical style of Prokofiev is part “satirical,” part “acerbic, with crunchy melodies,” Cherniavsky said. Commissioned by the clarinetist for the U.S.-based Russian-Jewish Zimro Ensemble while on tour in 1919, the overture incorporates vignettes of klezmer throughout. In 1934, Prokofiev composed an orchestral version that is “both fun and accessible,” though he is better known for his difficult, textured and layered pieces. Mozart’s “Jupiter Symphony,” his last, was the second performance of the night. Also known as “Symphony No. 41 in C Major,” this modern, “highly constructed but exciting and happy” piece consists of various themes that are combined at the end of a long, complex symphony. The third movement from Brahms’
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Photos by Benjamin Kweskin
Members of the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra prepare to play.
“String Quartet No. 1, Op. 51” led the second half of the evening. The piece was arranged by Marty Matteson, a DSO viola player, and had never been played by the DSO for an audience. The final piece was Ernest Bloch’s “Schelomo: Hebraic Rhapsody,” which Cherniavsky called an “extraordinary and extremely challenging piece, especially for soloists.” It’s dark and dramatic and is rarely performed. Cherniavsky said the Jewish, Swiss-born Bloch wrote the piece in 1915 and 1916 when he was searching for his musical and national identities. The music engages the audience and performers and reflects Bloch’s struggles with his faith and ideals. “Schelomo” comes from the Hebrew word for Solomon. The solo cellist takes on the persona of King Solomon, while the orchestra personifies the world at large. The tension between them can be heard in the dramatic and at times obviously Middle Eastern composition, which the conductor said is “fragmented but organic.” Reviewed by a famous critic in 1921, Bloch “reached the perfection of his music. … The violoncello with its ample breadth of phrasing, now melodic and with moments of superb
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Fyodor Cherniavsky, the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra’s conductor, discusses the music at a Jewish-themed concert May 24.
lyricism, now declamatory and with robustly dramatic lights and shades, lends itself to a reincarnation of Solomon and all his glory. … The orchestral palpitates in all colors of the rainbow; from the vigorous and transparent orchestration there emerge waves of sound that seem to soar upward in stupendous vortices and fall back in a shower of myriads of iridescent drops.” Cherniavsky said that when the orchestra finished playing the Bloch piece for the first time, the response was a collective “What is this?” because it seemed like a different language. Even Cherniavsky did not initially know what to make of it, he said. “At first it did not move me, but now I recognize it is an amazing piece.” He asked the featured cellist, Charae Kruger, what she wanted to perform and she said that the Bloch piece was always on her bucket list. Though the maestro initially hesitated, the DSO’s maiden performance was well received: Kruger’s rendering was effortless, and she and the orchestra received a standing ovation by the nearly full auditorium. ■ (404) 817-3500 Atlanta@Israelbonds.com Development Corp. for Israel Member FINRA Effective through May 31, 2016
ARTS
Icon Award Celebrates Kasdan’s Film Adventure By Kevin Madigan kmadigan@atljewishtimes.com
A
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Usually working behind the scenes, Lawrence Kasdan is the center of attention as the first Icon Award recipient.
University of Michigan in Ann Arbor with Kasdan, is one of the students on whom he based characters in “The Big Chill.” “There’s something so deeply encompassing about the ethos and sensibility of Jews, and I think it’s in everything I’ve ever worked on,” Kasdan said. “The movies have been very receptive to a Jewish temperament, and it has continued in these movies. It probably has to do with setting as the priority the relationships between people and how people are meant to interact and what is the priority in terms of kindness and generosity and imagination about other people’s plight.” He said being Jewish comes through in a shared heritage, a sense of humor and morality despite the conflicts of daily life. “Sometimes it’s even harder being a Jew. It’s a struggle every day to do that which you think is right and have that be an issue in your life, not something you just ignore, so it’s an examined life with a certain flavor to it. So in that way, I’m a big Jew,” he said with a smile. In addition to the Han Solo script, Kasdan has a couple of premium cable projects in the works. The TV and film industry “is actually having a lovely kind of rebirth because of premium cable,” he said. “Studios gave up making the kind of movies I’ve been making for 30 years, and it looked like for a while no one would make them. Instead, there is all this money now for serious and complicated adult drama and comedy on premium cable. And that changes everything. We watch ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Silicon Valley.’ You can’t get better than that.” ■
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
n actor dressed as Indiana Jones presented Hollywood writer, producer and director Lawrence Kasdan the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival’s first Icon Award for Contributions to the Cinematic Arts on Sunday, May 22, at the Woodruff Arts Center. Like the archaeologist/adventurer he helped create, a decades-long career in the film industry is one of his finest achievements, Kasdan said in an interview before the ceremony. “I sold my first script 39 years ago, and I can still make a living,” the 67-year-old said. “It’s hard to have a long career. It’s very competitive. There are ups and downs, but you keep doing it. That to me is the achievement.” The award was presented to Kasdan after a lengthy career retrospective that included clips from many of his movies, among them “Body Heat,” “The Big Chill,” “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and three of the “Star Wars” films. Having written the acclaimed fifth and sixth episodes of the “Star Wars” saga, “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi,” Kasdan was entrusted with penning last year’s “Episode VII — The Force Awakens” and is working on a Han Solo movie. Asked whether he feels pressure writing something as culturally significant as a “Star Wars” movie, Kasdan said: “You know you have an audience, and you don’t want to disappoint people. That’s all. You’re hoping in the case of a series that it’s an installment people like because there are some that people don’t like. You want to rectify that.” Kasdan spoke at length about the influence of Jewish lore in his work. “I’ve been influenced by some of the great folk tales of all cultures. When I got involved with Lucasfilm, first with ‘Star Wars’ and then ‘Raiders,’ you’re sort of steeped in it. … What are the recurring themes and tropes, and what are the satisfactions of epic storytelling? In my other work I’ve been driven by other things, but there’s no question being a secular Jew very much influences all my work. Hopefully without ever preaching about it, it’s there.” Kasdan expanded on that theme during the award ceremony, moderated by Catherine Cox, co-founder of ArtsATL and a former art and architecture critic at The Atlanta JournalConstitution. Cox, who attended the
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ISRAEL NEWS
Our Aliyah Adventure Begins By Edie and Mort Barr
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
ur efforts to live in Israel to help build the Jewish homeland began in 1982. Edie was the president of a Hadassah chapter in New Jersey and a delegate to the Hadassah national convention in Jerusalem. Mort decided to accompany her and research job opportunities in Israel. While Edie was happy being an armchair Zionist in the United States and helping build the land through her work in Hadassah, Mort was determined to be part of the ingathering of the Jewish people. When we returned home after the convention, we started an Aliyah Club. Our little group had meetings each month with guest speakers arranged through the Jewish Agency for Israel and an organization called the North American Aliyah Movement, affiliated with the Association of Americans and Canadians in Israel. Each time we concentrated on a different aspect of life in Israel, from school systems to housing to health care. By 1984, we were ready to go with our daughters ages 1, 4 and 6. Both of us had found employment in Beer Sheva: Edie in computers as the assistant director of the computer lab in the mathematics department of Ben Gurion University; Mort in chemical marketing at Bromine Compounds, a subsidiary of Israel Chemicals. We had friends from graduate school who were living in Omer, a little town outside Beer Sheva with beautiful private homes. They helped us find a home to rent and settle in. Israel gave us A1 temporary resident status, a special status provided to Americans because at that time you could forfeit your American citizenship when overtly accepting Israeli citizenship under the law of return. With this status, you passively received Israeli citizenship after three years, enabling dual citizenship. We loved the lifestyle in Beer Sheva. The weather was pleasant all year. Bureaucracy was tolerable, and the full workday was 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., including time for lunch and aruchat esser (late breakfast). We had Friday and Saturday off. Because we both had good jobs, we did not suffer from the typical financial woes of new immigrants. We made one big mistake, however, which caused us to return to the United States after only two years 20 and never become Israeli citizens: We
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This view of the Judean Hills is taken from one street up from the Barrs’ apartment.
did not live among other Anglo immigrants. Living with other English speakers would have provided us with a natural support group. Instead, we did not integrate well because of language, religious and cultural barriers, creating emotional difficulties. We weakened and returned to New Jersey in 1986. We decided that we would try aliyah again when we retired, having learned from our mistakes. In 2002 we heard about a community being built in the center of the country where many Anglo immigrants were settling. It was in Ramat Beit Shemesh (Beit Shemesh Heights), which is midway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. We bought an apartment in anticipation of moving there when we retired. In the interim, two of our daughters (and their families) lived in it for periods. In 2008, two years after moving to Atlanta, we fully retired. We started coming to Israel four to five months each year: two to three months for the fall holidays and two to three months for the spring holidays. But our elderly mothers in Atlanta needed our help, and we were unable to make the full move. Still, the extended visits enabled us to get acquainted with the community, make friends and adapt before making aliyah again. Our Ramat Beit Shemesh neighborhood has many immigrants from South Africa, and they are a warm, friendly group with a culture remarkably similar to ours. There are also im-
migrants from Australia, England, Canada, the United States and even India. Our synagogue, which is directly across the street from our apartment, has a rabbi from Far Rockaway, N.Y. Divrei Torah are delivered in English, as are most announcements. Many retirees live in our neighborhood, and we belong to two senior social groups: the Maor Seniors (we live on a street called Nachal Maor) and the 55Plus Club. There is also an English-speaking women’s senior group called Oleh B’Gil. All of those groups run social events, lectures and trips, and the local government runs special programs for seniors. The local joke is that “here in Ramat Beit Shemesh, one can hop on a bus and in five minutes you are in Israel.” Beit Shemesh is in the foothills of the Judean Hills about 1,000 feet above sea level. That’s similar to Atlanta, although the views here are more breathtaking and offer a sense of holiness. The winters are milder and shorter, and the summers, while brutally hot, are less humid. Beit Shemesh is rooted in Tanach and is first mentioned in the Book of Joshua as a city in the territory of the tribe of Judah on the border of the tribe of Dan. Later, in Joshua 21, Beit Shemesh is mentioned as having been set aside as a Levite city. We overlook the Elah Valley, where David slew Goliath. You can imagine the battle scene as described in I Samuel 17: Saul and the men of Israel mass-
Edie and Mort Barr stand in their garden in Ramat Beit Shemesh, where they moved at the end of March.
ing on one side of the valley, the Philistines stationed on the opposite hillside, and the ravine between them. Beit Shemesh is mentioned in I Samuel as the city to which the ark of the covenant was returned after the Philistines captured it in battle. We are a short drive from an area near Latrun where the Maccabees defeated the Seleucids en route to the miraculous victory of Chanukah. In 2010 one of our daughters and her family made aliyah to Ramat Beit Shemesh. Now we had family in Israel as well as friends and community. After our mothers died, we started thinking about making the move. We had been involved in many charitable communal organizations in Atlanta, and we passed our responsibilities along to others. This year marked exactly 30 years from the time we left Israel in 1986. It was time to return. ■ Edie and Mort Barr made aliyah from Atlanta on March 30. Mort, who retired as the director of technology at Colgate Palmolive, is a former executive director of Congregation Beth Jacob and the founder and former CEO of the Jewish Interest Free Loan of Atlanta. Edie, who retired from a career as an activities director in assisted living and volunteered at the Naturally Occurring Retirement Community, Berman Commons and at the Carlton, is a former president of the Mount Scopus Group of Greater Atlanta Hadassah, served on the GAH Board and was active in the Beth Jacob Sisterhood. Next week: the experience of making aliyah again.
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ISRAEL NEWS
With the IDF, I’m Coming Home bus home. I see them again on Sunday trudging back to base. They know nothing of their future but just live day to day, doing their service to the country. I see in my head a mirror image
Guest Column By Shani Weinmann
of myself, but in uniform. Next year at this time I will be standing in the exact same position as I am now — facing the grave of a dead hero — but it will be as part of what that person died for. In the span of a few months, the day has become more emotional than ever, and I feel a weight on my being as I walk through the day. I cannot help the tears from falling randomly as I think about what Israel means to me and why I have chosen this path. I could be just crazy, as my cousin said. Or maybe I have just realized that a life without a mission isn’t much of
a life at all. If a simple girl from Georgia can join the IDF and make a difference, then why can’t anyone else? This country is too important to lose, and I am reminded of that every day, but especially on Yom HaZikaron. I step into the shoes of someone who gave up life because of the knowledge that living without Israel is an existence that would lack meaning to the Jews and, quite frankly, to the world. I heard a man on the train the other day speaking to an Israeli woman about how his visit changed his perception of Israel. “Before I came, I was frightened of this country because of what I saw on the news, but now I see a country vibrant with life.” These soldiers have given their
lives so this country could create life. Without the sacrifice, there would not be the bright culture we see today or the ability to improve the world with technological advancements. Yom HaZikaron has become a harder day for me, but also a more hopeful one. It’s time for me to accept my place so the heroes on Mount Herzl will not have died in vain. It’s time for Israel to be my home. ■ Atlanta native Shani Weinmann grew up in Toco Hills and attended Torah Day School of Atlanta and graduated from the Atlanta Jewish Academy Upper School in 2015. After her gap year at Midreshet Harova, she is joining the IDF. This column originally appeared as a Times of Israel blog post.
Aid for Sri Lanka
Israel has responded to recent severe flooding in Sri Lanka by providing $20,000 worth of immediate disaster relief, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Wednesday, May 25. The relief includes water pumps and filters, solar lighting kits and LED flashlights, and 50,000 tablets for water purification. The Israeli Embassy delivered the aid to the Disaster Relief Management Ministry of Sri Lanka. At a later stage, based on the needs of the Sri Lankan people, Israel will send water experts and offer other long- and medium-term cooperation.
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
Y
om HaZikaron. A day of remembrance for fallen soldiers and victims of terror. I’ve always connected to this holiday, even at school, where the ceremony was only a small part of the day. At night, though, I really felt the connection as the Atlanta Jewish community gathered together at Ahavath Achim Synagogue to lay the wreaths, sing the songs and tell the stories. As a member of Bnei Akiva, I got to participate in flag waving during “Hatikvah,” and I will never forget the pride I took in wearing my Bnei Akiva uniform. Now, however, everything has changed. I think maybe a small part of me has always known that I would be standing where I am on this Yom HaZikaron — on the brink of entering the Israel Defense Forces with so many questions as to what the next two years of my life will entail. I hear the word “soldier,” and my shoulders straighten. I walk down the streets of Jerusalem on Friday and see soldiers bustling around to catch the
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ISRAEL NEWS
Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home Incentives for direct flights. Israel will provide subsidies to airlines that launch new nonstop gateway flights to Israel. To be eligible, the flight must be from an airport more than 74 miles from an airport that already offers direct flights to Israel. Atlanta hasn’t had direct flights to Israel since 2011. Transmitting the Olympics. Kfar Saba-based LiveU will provide Internetbased live video transmission solutions for more than 80 broadcasters and online streaming businesses during the Summer Olympics in Rio this year. LiveU transmitted the London Olympics in 2012, the FIFA World Cup 2014 and British election results. Minutes from the cloud. Herzliyabased Stratoscale has won a Red Herring Europe 2016 award for its software-defined data center solution. Whatever hardware your business uses, Stratoscale says it can get you up and running in a few minutes.
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
Cybersecurity award winner. Ramat Gan-based LightCyber won the 2016 Cybersecurity Excellence Award as the best solution in the category of intru-
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sion detection and prevention. The company also launched attack detection metrics to measure the accuracy and efficiency of security solutions in detecting stealth attackers.
Wireless recharging for hearing aids. Kfar Saba-based Humavox uses proprietary radio frequency to recharge hearing aids. Humavox’s flexible hardware platform, Eterna, includes the smallest power receiver available on the market, enabling it to fit into the tiniest of hearing aids. Photos from the edge of space. Students and parents from Yigal Alon Elementary School sent a meteorological balloon up 15 miles and collected images and complete flight data. The 42.3-ounce box contained two GoProtype cameras, a flight data recorder, a locator and a radio transmitter. Cutting fuel costs and emissions in half. Rosh Ha’ayin-based Aquarius Engines has redesigned the internal combustion engine. Its horizontal-moving cylinder powers two electric generators with much less waste energy than current four-, six- or eight-piston en-
gines. With the smaller engine, cars can travel 1,300 miles on a single tank of gas.
Israel’s largest solar array. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls inaugurated Israel’s largest solar energy array at the Zmorot solar park in the northern Negev during a May visit. France’s EDF and its local partner, Solex, installed 207,000 photovoltaic panels to generate clean energy. Facial recognition of character traits. Tel Aviv-based Faception uses facial recognition software to identify the character of a person. The company says that personality is determined by DNA and reflected in the face, providing a kind of signal. The technology could have massive security applications. Body armor for British troops. The British army is testing and rolling out the Israeli-made Virtus body armor system to its infantry. The new gear weighs half as much as the existing Osprey system but offers the same protection, thanks to Virtus’ innovative dynamic weight distribution system and
scalable tactical vest.
Automatic diagnosis from radiology images. Tel Aviv University professor Hayit Greenspan has developed a wide variety of deep-learning tools to facilitate computer-assisted diagnosis of X-rays and CT and MRI scans, freeing radiologists to attend to complex cases that require their full attention. Trauma study abroad. Social work students from Yeshiva University’s Wurzweiler School of Social Work traveled to Israel to attend an intensive course on trauma, emergency response and recovery. The course features workshops on trauma intervention and realtime emergency response simulation. Allies against cancer. The Technion and New York University’s Langone Medical Center have begun a research project targeting metastatic melanoma and mesothelioma. They will test the ability of a nanotechnology based on nanoghosts, using stem cells to home in on cancer cells. Compiled courtesy of verygoodnewsisrael. blogspot.com and other news sources.
ISRAEL NEWS
13 Atlantans Visit Israel on Bonds Mission
M
ay 9 marked the beginning of an Israel Bonds mission to Israel. Our 13-member Atlanta delegation, consisting of board members, spouses, family and friends, joined others from throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the United Kingdom and France. Over seven days, the 125-person mission visited the Haifa naval base, the Technion, Latrun, the Israel Museum, the Emek Haela Winery and the Tzora forest for tree planting. The visit coincided with Yom HaZikaron (Memorial Day) and Yom HaAtzmaut (Independence Day). Both occasions were emotional, from somberness to celebration. It was a new experience for most of the group when the sirens blasted at exactly 1 p.m. on Yom HaZikaron, bringing the entire country to a standstill. Traffic halted, businesses ceased operations, and all Israelis paused in remembrance of the more than 24,000 Israelis who lost their lives in combat or by acts of terrorism. In contrast, the following morning our group marched along the beach in Tel Aviv, adorned in our Israel Bonds Tshirts, waving flags and playing hand instruments. Beachgoers all along the route stood and applauded. Returning to the promenade at our hotel, we, along with millions of Israelis, were treated to a spectacular demonstration by the Israeli air force. As most bond missions include a military component, all hands were on deck at the Haifa naval base for a tour of a cruiser led by a naval officer. Before we left the base, two of the new Dolphin class submarines were pointed out to us as they prepared to embark on their missions. Along the same lines, we spent a few hours attending a memorial service and talking with Israel Defense Forces men and women at the Latrun Armored Corps Memorial. There is an amusing saying in Israel that the national bird is the crane. Never has that been so true. Wherever one looks, especially in Tel Aviv, the sky is crowded with construction cranes. In an attempt to address the enormous housing shortage, high-rise buildings, some of which are comparable to the tallest structures in Atlanta, are rising everywhere. New three-bedroom condos in Tel Aviv begin at a selling price of $1.5 million. Over the course of the visit we
were joined by the mayors of Haifa and Jerusalem, a leading member of the Knesset, the director general of the Prime Minister’s Office and the accountant general of Israel. But the highlights had to be the visits with the president and the prime minister. The meeting with the prime minister concluded the mission, and a feeling of accomplishment and joy was pervasive among the delegation. We also felt a heightened connection to Israel while having the importance of Israel Bonds’ contribution to our Jewish homeland reinforced. ■ Cary Rosenthal is a past chairman of the Atlanta board of Israel Bonds.
Joining the Israel Bonds mission from Atlanta are (standing from left) Jenna Rosenthal, Atlanta board Chairman Arthur Katz, Southeast Director Brad Young, past Atlanta Chairman Lowell Fine, past Atlanta Chairman Cary Rosenthal, past Atlanta Chairman Chuck Berk, national board member Adrian Grant and national Chairman Richard Hirsh and (sitting from left) Atlanta board member Bonnie Berk, Atlanta board member Ed Goldberg, Susan Sherman, Arlene Katz and Laraine Fine. Not pictured is Raanan Pritzker.
DISTRICT 3 SPECIAL ELECTION RUNOFF
ADVANCE VOTING INFORMATION Saturday, June 11, 2016 • 8:00 a.m - 5:00 p.m. Monday-Friday, June 13-17, 2016 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Hammond Park, Round Program Building 6005 Glenridge Drive The following families Support Joe Houseman and Endorse his campaign Mr. Chuck and Bonnie Berk Dr. Bruce and Carol Greene Mr. Jeff and Elizabeth Langfelder Dr. Ron and Maxine Rosen
Mr. Dale and Susan Schwartz Mr. Eric and Lisa Vayle Mr. Andrew and Shawn Tavani Mr. Roger and Vicky Frysh
JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
By Cary Rosenthal
www.joehouseman.com | joe@joehouseman.com
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ISRAEL NEWS
Wanted: Elite Jewish Athletes Tryouts being held for U.S. Maccabiah Team By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com
the opening ceremonies in 2013,” Silverboard said. “When they started ith opening ceremonies for singing ‘Hatikvah’ with the 20th Maccabiah Games 40,000 people in that in Israel just over a year stadium, it was spineaway, the U.S. delegation is scouring tingling. It doesn’t get any the country for elite Jewish athletes to better than that.” compete in the third-largest sporting He added: “Everyevent in the world. body wanted our Team In 2013, 30 athletes from Georgia USA jackets. We could represented the United States at the have traded them for 19th games in 16 sports, including soft- gold.” ball, basketball, swimming, volleyball, Silverboard is Atlansoccer, tennis and rugby. Those games ta’s unofficial connection brought together 7,500 athletes from with Maccabi USA, based 77 countries to compete in 34 sports. in Philadelphia. He reguTryouts for many of the 2017 U.S. larly communicates with squads are scheduled for this summer. Program Director Shane To find a listing of sports and tryout Carr about teams looking dates, visit maccabiusa.com. for athletes. Silverboard Kenny Silverboard, who works at said the U.S. delegation’s Kenny Silverboard and fellow Atlantan Megan Light take a photo with the sign for the delegation from the former the Jewish Federation of Greater At- current need is for high Soviet republic of Georgia at the opening ceremonies at lanta, served as an accommodations school baseball players Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem in 2013. Light competed in open manager for the U.S. delegation in 2013. born from 1999 to 2002 women’s softball and won a gold medal with Team USA. He’s quick to talk about how being at and softball players of all held every four years in Israel. Since the games affected him. ages. the fourth games in 1953, the event “I had goosebumps walking into The World Maccabiah Games are has been held each summer after the Summer Olympics. The Maccabiah Games are open to Jewish athletes from PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE MONTHLY around the world and to Israeli athMEETING OF letes regardless of religion. Competition is split into four divisions: juniors, open, masters and disabled. An athlete selected to a team has a financial commitment that varies for each group. Team USA brought 1,106 athletes to Israel in 2013 and won 196 medals (77 gold, 60 silver, 59 bronze), and was second only to Israel’s 411 (153 gold, 135 silver, 123 bronze). The 20th Maccabiah Games will take place from July 2 to 18 next year. ■ 7:30 am Reception • 8:00 am Program
W
The Jewish Breakfast Club Wednesday, June 15th 7:30 am – 9 am Being held at Greenberg Traurig 3333 Piedmont Rd NE #2500
Reservation Required RSVP at JBC@atljewishtimes.com
$15.00 cash payment at the door
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We require a reservation because the breakfast is catered and we need to be able to plan. Kosher dietary laws observed.
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JBC
Jewish Breakfast Club
Georgia at the Games
Since 2005, 94 athletes from Georgia have represented the United States at the World Maccabiah Games. In 2013, the Georgian delegation consisted of 30 athletes and accommodations manager Kenny Silverboard. 2013 Games
Noa Allen, juniors fencing Ariel Allen, open fencing Michael Berger, masters triathlon David Cohen, men’s open rugby Joshua Doman, juniors tennis Stephanie Falcon, open tennis Samantha Findling, women’s open softball Halle Friedman, open swimming Benjamin Glauser, open track and field Johanna Goldblatt, juniors swimming Rachel Goldblatt, juniors swimming Scott Holtz, masters triathlon Morgan Kosterlitz, open beach volleyball Ryan Landy, masters triathlon Elias Levy, juniors swimming Itzhak Levy, masters table tennis Megan Light, women’s open softball Joshua Merlis, men’s open basketball Jenna Nurik, open tennis Danielle Paz, women’s open soccer Meryl Romeu, open 10-pin bowling Benjamin Rothschild, open cycling Warren Russ, men’s open soccer Nicholas Salinger, open futsal Ryan Salmon, open swimming Ronen Schechter, boys’ juniors soccer Eyal Schechter, men’s open soccer Garett Schwartz, juniors ice hockey Aaron Shiffman, boys’ juniors soccer Aaron Simon, men’s youth basketball Kenny Silverboard, accommodations manager
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
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ISRAEL NEWS
Birnbrey Grant, Muss High Connect Teens to Israel
Walton High’s Carlie Ladinsky and Milton High’s Tyler Schwartz visit the Kotel in March as part of their Israel experience through Alexander Muss High School.
group, but because we have been able to experience Shabbat in different cities all over the country,” Tyler wrote midway through the semester. “We
have celebrated on a kibbutz near Eilat, as well as in Ein Gedi, Tzfat, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. I am fascinated that Shabbat is celebrated so differently in different parts of Israel.” Rabbi Sinai said high school students often tell him they learn more in their four months at Alexander Muss than during all their years in religious school or Jewish day school. “Here, they’re living in history,” Rabbi Sinai said. “They’re using Israel as the classroom.” That effect applies to the experience in Poland as well. After that trip to explore Jewish heritage and the Holocaust, Carlie wrote: “I am glad that
I went and now believe that everyone should go to Poland at least once in their life. It is unforgettable and not in a way that most people think. Stepping back into Israel gave me a new appreciation for a Jewish state as my teacher proclaimed hundreds of times: ‘Never forget, we are still here.’” Rising Atlanta-area juniors may apply now for the Birnbrey fellowship for spring 2017 at www.amhsi.org. Applicants must submit essays, educational information and recommendations and must meet with the Atlanta impact committee, which will select four students for the four-month semester abroad. ■
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s two Atlanta-area teens are wrapping up a semester at Jewish National Fund’s Alexander Muss High School in Israel, two others are preparing to leave for a six-week summer session at the school. A grant is enabling Emily Pollack and Carolyn Friedman to head for Israel on Wednesday, June 22, for the summer program, which provides a similar educational experience to what Carlie Ladinsky and Tyler Schwartz are completing this month after spending the spring semester of their junior year in high school at Alexander Muss. “At AMHSI, we teach history from the time of Abraham and Isaac, Sarah, and Rebecca to present-day Israel, all while traveling throughout the land,” said Rabbi Leor Sinai, co-executive director of Alexander Muss. The school helps students experience history, he said. “This means doing whatever possible to provide a wellrounded, complete opportunity for their learning experience. For example, when studying World War II and the Holocaust, students travel to Poland, receive an in-depth educational and emotional experience that provides them with an unparalleled understanding of the time period.” The educational experience comes together at the high school’s Hod HaSharon campus, Rabbi Sinai said. JNF launched the Impact Fund Fellowship Program in 2014 to help send American teens to Alexander Muss. The fund is offered in Atlanta and four other cities. The Atlanta fund, the Shirlye Kaufman Birnbrey Alexander Muss High School in Israel Impact Fellowship Program, provides merit-based grants to high school juniors. Carlie, a Walton High School student, and Tyler, a Milton High School student, are the first two students from the Atlanta area to take advantage of the Birnbrey Fellowship Program. “One of the many reasons why I wanted to spend a semester in Israel was to explore my Jewish identity. I definitely have started to find out who I am as a Jew and look forward to continuing the discovery process,” Tyler wrote.” Tyler, who passed on the opportunity to celebrate becoming a bar mitzvah at age 13, has decided to have the ceremony at the Western Wall at the end of the semester this month. “By far my favorite time of the week is Shabbat, not only because we are able to spend time together as a
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HOME
Well-Cultivated Atlantans Share Outdoor Abundance
K
etzel Levine in her book “Plant This” begins, “My life has been charmed by botanically possessed friends.” We hope you feel the same after seeing some gorgeous gardens. Atlanta native Dr. Charles Gershon, a Buncombe County (Asheville, N.C.) Extension master gardener, said, “I love to dig in the dirt and see the fruits of my labors. When I see my garden, it reminds me to look in the mirror and tell myself how lucky I am to be alive. My favorites are multiple colors of hostas, hydrangeas and dinner-plate hibiscus.” Gershon’s favorite hosta varieties are Blue Ivory, Fire Island and Alligator Alley. His hydrangeas of choice are City Line Rio and Mopheads. “They are herbaceous,” he said, “so they disappear in winter but come back this time of the year with splendor.” Take the AJT garden tour with us. Serenity in Morningside Kathy Ash and her husband have lived for five years in their traditional Tudor built in 1935. The home has been renovated to give the inside a modern, spacious feeling while maintaining the original period character. The back gardens were featured in Better Homes & Gardens in fall 2004. Jaffe: When you moved in, were the gardens much the same as they are now? Ash: No, they had not been kept up. It has been a labor of love to restore. Both the front and back gardens are completely landscaped with no lawn. This gives both a unique look.
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Jaffe: How would you describe the lushness of the yard? Ash: The front is landscaped with a variety of azaleas, rhododendron, hydrangeas, Japanese maples, crepe myrtle and ground cover for a textured feel. Bulbs add a splash of color in the spring, and we alternate between petunias in the spring/summer and pansies in the fall/winter. The back garden is highlighted by an extensive pond system that is home to several koi. The pond is surrounded by flagstone walkways and landscaping that includes maples, conifers, large old oaks, azaleas, viburnum, hydrangeas, rhododendron and cala26 diums. We also added many hostas,
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as they are interesting and easy to maintain. Jaffe: How do you use your garden? Ash: We love to sit in the many nooks that have been created for just that purpose. The waterfalls from the pond lend such a serene feeling that we forget we are in the city. We also
Chai-Style Gardens By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com
enjoy the outdoors from the screened enclosure that overlooks the gardens. The seasons provide such dramatic contrasts that we enjoy the view yearround. Jaffe: Do you have professional help? Ash: We enjoy gardening, but due to work constraints, we have landscapers maintain the front. We spend our time working in the back. Kathy grew up in Colorado, and her husband hails from Iowa, where the weather is harsher and the gardening season is much shorter. “Atlanta gives us the opportunity to spend much more time enjoying the gardens,” Kathy said. “Unfortunately, we may transfer cities soon and put the house on the market. Someone lucky will inherit our Eden.” Professional’s Practical Advice Eugene Cohn, owner of Deckscapes, grew up in Durban, South Africa, where her family tended a tropical garden of lush orchids and anthurium. “I absorbed my parents’ love of plants but quickly realized that here in the U.S. I couldn’t re-create Miami lushness in Atlanta weather,” she said. “Thus, 20 years ago I converted my hobby of growing lavish pots of flowers and herbs into a profession.” Jaffe: What is your niche? Cohn: I observe how people live. … They want their whole yard to be attractive but easy to maintain without too much fuss. My philosophy is: Create focal points that you will notice when you drive in from work or look out the window having morning coffee. I plant huge flowerpots or perennial beds with rocks and ground cover
A dish of succulents outside the Cohn home leads to the garden focal point, visible from all living areas.
that are easy to maintain. Jaffe: How do you begin a plan? Cohn: I find out what delights people … memories they might have. Did they love travel to Italy or England? Do they want a resort feel? We make a huge investment in our homes; we don’t take chances on the inside. On the exterior, we can have more pizzazz with the yard. If you get tired of it, we change! Instead of an interior decorator, I am an exterior decorator. Jaffe: Give us some tips. After you set it up beautifully, how will we maintain it? Cohn: I go for the biggest bang for the buck. You have to start with understanding the degree of sun and shade. You cannot fool Mother Nature in Atlanta. People waste money and time
on the notion that large areas have to be grass. Grass doesn’t grow in wet or shady areas. So we use alternatives like flat rocks and mini mondo grass. I suggest tough perennial shrubs. In full sun, I like Double Knockout roses, Limelight hydrangeas and Dragon Wing begonias — very heat-resistant. And end with a classic finished look with all these shrubs behind a Boxwood hedge. Dog Haven and Heaven Lynne and Tom Greenfield, referring to their enclosed, trilevel, threequarter-acre back yard, said, “Other than the professional creations of the three levels using berms, railroad ties and brick steps, everything was either put here by our hands or Mother Nature.” The vibrancy of magenta and
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HOME
A curved stucco wall helps creates a colorful Mexican hacienda look at the Cohn home.
white azaleas, gardenias, and Japanese maples spill out amid metal and ceramic sculptures of flamingos, roosters, frogs, sun bursts and a huge white wood “welcome” sign.
Jaffe: Is there a lot of upkeep? Lynne: We do have a professional gardener mow. Luckily our three original maples on the top berm have spawned several more, adding to the back ridgeline. My husband, Tom, installed and maintains the fountain. Jaffe: There is frivolity among your collectibles. What are their origins? Lynne: We love shopping for yard décor in Maine, Highlands and Cashiers, North Carolina. But I’ll admit to buying a Home Goods item. Jaffe: I just love the three distinct play levels. There’s even room for humans to relax amid the loveseats. ■
Lynne Greenfield’s back yard is in three tiers.
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Jaffe: The best thing about your land is that your dog has the safety and freedom to roam. Lynne: Harvey Maxwell is a rescued bearded collie who thinks he’s in the New Hampshire woods back here. Note that he has a red mark on his nose from being kissed so often when he comes indoors. On a more serious note, we have three previous dogs, mostly all rescued terrier mixes, buried along the fence line as you see the flat tombstones covered in English ivy.
Lynne Greenfield swings near bearded collie Harvey Maxwell among the fountains and art of her yard.
Above: The Ash back yard offers a network of koi ponds with overpasses. Right top: The back yard of the Ash home features maples. Right bottom: Granite stones and Japanese maples form a welcoming entrance to the Ash home.
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FOOD
SIMCHAS
Kirshtein Illuminates French, Southern Food By Patrice Worthy
E
with the talent and see chefs and hang out with them. If you go to a restaurant in Midtown, you’re going to see all of them sitting around. It’s unique compared to other festivals for sure.
li Kirshtein, owner and chef of The Luminary, is a fan of culinary experiences that encourage a sense of engagement. He prefers to connect with the people eating AJT: Krog Street his food, and that’s why Market gives you the he has been a staple of same freedom to be the Atlanta Food & Wine intimate with visiFestival since its launch tors. Is that part of the in 2011. reason why you chose As a Jewish Atlantan, this location for The Photo by Austen Risolvato he is known for creatLuminary? Eli Kirshtein says Birthright Israel led him to embrace ing dishes with a unique Kirshtein: I alJudaism in his mid-20s. identity. The Luminary, ways try to be availa French-American brasable whenever I can serie in Krog Street Market, combines be. We love Krog Street Market because the familiarity of the United States first of all I live in the neighborhood. with the relaxed elegance of Paris. His We love this neighborhood and love offerings include cocktails such as the this part of town and this community. Meghan Royale, a rosé slushie. I’m an Atlanta native. I’ve always lived Kirshtein talks about how The Lu- in the city. I’m not an OTP guy. I was minary and the food festival — being born at Piedmont Hospital. So we reheld from Thursday to Sunday, June 2 ally like being down in the middle of to 5, in Midtown — combine his love the city. We all have the activity of the of French food, conversation and the BeltLine and Ponce City Market, and South. we love being a part of the community. AJT: You’ve been involved with Atlanta Food & Wine Festival since the beginning. Tell me why you choose to come back every year. Kirshtein: I kind of have been in a lot of different facets. I’ve done everything from classes to streetcar latenight kind of things. I’ve done brunches. I’ve done the whole gambit of it. I’ve always been appreciative to be part of it. I think the community is fantastic. I’ve always been really happy to be around friends and cook in a communal setting. AJT: What will you be cooking at the private dinner this year? Kirshtein: We’re going to be doing a foie gras au torchon with smoked catfish rillettes, pecans and peaches. I’m doing one course with Justin Devillier, Isaac Toups and Kelly Fields cooking with us.
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AJT: What do you like most about AF&WF? Kirshtein: I’m always looking forward to eating good food, seeing good friends and having a good time. Having done a lot of festivals across the country, I think it’s a unique festival because 28 of how intimate and close you can be
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Engagement Berger-Strelzik
Sherri and Harold Berger of North Potomac, Md., announce the engagement of their daughter, Sarah Michelle Berger, to Dr. Jeffrey Alan Strelzik, son of Holly and Steven Strelzik of Atlanta. Sarah received a B.S. from Ithaca College and an M.A. from the University of Baltimore. She is currently the production manager at Landscape Architecture Magazine. Jeff graduated from the University of Maryland and the Medical College of Georgia. He completed his residency at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington and is now in a pediatric neurology fellowship at the same hospital. A May 2017 wedding is planned.
Birth Clara Lynn Glatzer
Larry and Judy Glatzer of Bethlehem joyfully announce the birth of their first grandchild, Clara Lynn Glatzer, on April 13 in Falls Church, Va. Clara’s proud parents are Dania Liebergesell and Michael Glatzer. Her maternal grandparents are Dr. Matthias and Astrid Liebergesell of Pennsylvania. Clara’s maternal great-grandparents are Mahmoud and Ellen Mohtadi of Germany. Clara also is the greatgranddaughter of the late Morris and Hannah Bernhardt and the late Marvin and Ruth Glatzer, who were all residents of Atlanta.
AJT: So you like to keep it local and in the neighborhood. How is The Luminary influenced by the South? Kirshtein: The Luminary is a French-American brasserie; it’s regionally influence and updated. We work directly with local farmers for pretty much every product we purchase. It does get a little Southern influence. AJT: How does the Jewish culture influence your cuisine? Kirshtein: I came to embrace Judaism much later in my life, in my mid20s, specifically through Birthright. I was consulting at a kosher restaurant in New York, and then I went on Birthright at the tail end of that. I think it just gives you a different perspective. … I’ve been back to Israel. I’ve taken my wife there. I feel like especially around the holidays it’s very exciting for me take the way I cook and to incorporate it into traditional Jewish fare. For Passover, we don’t just do a brisket; we do a barbecue brisket. We use the charoset as a condiment for the brisket. We do gefilte fish fritters as opposed to just boiled gefilte fish. We’re able to change up and modernize a lot of it. I find that some of these ingredients transcend genres. ■
50th Anniversary Schneider
“I do, I really do.” From the very beginning until now and all the time that is yet to come, I love you. Happy 50th anniversary, Carol Ed and Carol Schneider married on a whirlwind Saturday, June 11, 1966. At 8 that morning Ed graduated from Georgia Tech. After 9 that night, they wed at Congregation Beth Jacob. They left Atlanta in 1967, but with their children and grandchildren here, they are back for good.
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OBITUARIES
Dena Mendelson Dena Mendelson of Atlanta died in her home Monday, May 23, 2016. She was 97 years old. Dena is survived by her children, Maureen O’Connor of Potomac, Md., and Jerry Fisher of Walnut Creek, Calif., and four grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Ben Mendelson; her brothers, Sam and Izzie Isenberg; and her sister, Goldie Jacobs. Dena was born in Philadelphia on April 9, 1919, to Morris and Bessie Isenberg. She spent most of her growing-up years in Milwaukee, where the family settled after her father found work there. It was the Depression era, and times were tough. But all the kids pitched in, and they endured. Eventually the family of six moved to Atlanta, where Dena and her siblings married and raised families. Dena will be remembered for her ageless beauty (“You can’t possibly be 95!”), quiet charisma, unceasing energy and givingness toward many. She weathered a
Death Notices Solbert L. Barth, 79, of Atlanta, husband of Mollie Barth, on May 28. Brenna Dawn Segal, 43, of Sandy Springs, daughter of Jill and Joseph Segal, on May 24. Martin Frank Willen, 66, of Suwanee, father of Kelly Whitman, on May 23.
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JUNE 3 ▪ 2016
97, Atlanta
lot and made mistakes, but she fortified herself and soldiered on — a Steel Magnolia to the end. The family would like to give special thanks to her caregivers, Rosetta, Cheryl, Danyetta, Sheena and Gena, for their warm and loving attention over the last few months. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Weinstein Hospice, www.weinsteinhospice.com. Graveside services were held Thursday, May 26, at Greenwood Cemetery with Rabbi Philip Kranz officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.
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CLOSING THOUGHTS OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING
Looking for Purpose
I
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’m sitting at a table outside the Corner Cafe at Lenox Square. I ordered a coffee and picked up a complimentary copy of USA Today. I had this big realization that I’ve become a lapsed journalist. I used to be a news junkie, reading The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times daily. My car was usually tuned to NPR. At home I always watched CNN. When anything happened anywhere in the world, I knew. That was before Dan fell of a bike in Fernandina Beach, Fla., more than 3½ months ago. I canceled my subscriptions to the newspapers except the Sunday New York Times. My Times newspapers are still in their blue plastic bags. I tell myself I’ll get to them eventually, but I probably won’t. As I was reading the free USA Today, I got a bit alarmed when I saw that the Metro system in Washington might be shut down this month. My daughter, Michelle, depends on that transit system to get to and from her position with the Department of Justice. I read about ongoing issues with Donald Trump and Muslims, storms in Oklahoma creating a state of emergency, bullies in school, and the CDC mishandling pathogens. The opinion page had a column about millennials and socialism. Headline: “Millennials don’t get socialism.” I don’t get millennials. And I don’t care too much about that. As a baby boomer, I’m accustomed to my generation setting trends. Who are these millennials anyway? Why has so much been written about them? Who do they think they are? Don’t tell me. It doesn’t matter. I got a text and a phone call from my husband’s close friend Mark Rosenhaft. He was widowed 10 years ago and has promised to keep in touch. He asked how I was. I told him I was OK. I’ve become weepy, but I know that’s normal. If I weren’t sad and crying, that wouldn’t be normal. I loved Dan. We were supportive of each other no matter what. Without him, I have to create a new routine. So I’ve been leaving my house early to attend 12-step meetings. People in 12-step programs are usually recovering from one thing or another. They take pride in being 30 sober and make a commitment to take
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care of themselves. I like the honesty and integrity of the people who share their experience, strength and hope. That’s one of the slogans: Share your experience, strength and hope. People at these meetings aren’t reluctant to reach out. Helping others is another value in these groups. A man in his 60s stood next to me
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By Arlene Appelrouth
during the closing prayer. He asked how I was, and I said fine. He didn’t believe me. “You look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders,” he said. “Is anything wrong?” I thought for a moment before answering. “My husband died on April 7,” I said. “I’m getting accustomed to living alone and being a widow.” He didn’t shy away from me. He asked whether I knew Mary, who was standing across the room, and said, “Let me introduce you.” I didn’t know his name, and he never told me. But he walked me over to Mary and said her husband had died unexpectedly two weeks earlier. Mary and I talked about handling the loss of a husband. She began crying. We exchanged phone numbers, and she invited me to call any time. Today, when I left my house earlier than any of my neighbors had picked up their newspapers from their driveways, I packed a bunch of things: my laptop, in case I wanted to write; my phone; the chapter of a book I have to edit; a book about someone’s Holocaust experience I want to read before the meeting of the Holocaust book club, where Dan was a regular. The book club leader came to Dan’s funeral and paid me a shiva call. Then she emailed me, issuing an invitation to participate in the club. I ordered the book from Amazon and will probably read it and go. Am I carrying on Dan’s tradition? I don’t know. I’m looking for meaningful things to do to fill my time. I hope you spend your day doing something enjoyable and meaningful. And if there are people in your life whom you love, be sure to let them know. You never know when they might fall off a bike. ■
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aappelrouth@atljewishtimes.com
“Melts in Your Mouth, Not in Your Hands”
By Yoni Glatt, koshercrosswords@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Easy
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According To Arlene
www.atlantajewishtimes.com
64. Adumim locale? 65. Like Jake Gyllenhaal’s physique in “Southpaw” 66. Pre-9 Av dip 67. Some Jerusalem Hills trees
calls the next level of edu. 37. They need to be shown at Ben-Gurion 38. Kind of korban 39. It might be used on one with a nivul peh issue 40. Rahab ran one in the Book of Joshua 42. Chris on Micky Arison’s “Heat” 43. Mean without saying, like the written Torah 45. Steinfeld of “True Grit” and “Pitch Perfect 2” 46. Made like Schindler’s accountant Itzhak Stern 47. 1986 Woody Allen title character 48. Kind of band that might play at a small simcha 49. Piece of kosher “Hot” candy since 1950 53. Some are decorated in synagogues (and churches) 54. Make like a Marx 55. Jerusalem kosher wine event 56. Caution (like Jeremiah to Judah) 57. Solomon de Medina and Ellis Kadoorie, e.g. 58. Word before Brith or Yisrael 60. “Just Give ___ Reason” (No. 1 hit by Pink) 61. Sound blaster at a Kiss show
DOWN 1. What Maccabi Tel Aviv must complete before the finals 2. Hebrew worlds 3. What some might do to the wine at a seder 4. Possible sounds made seeing G-d’s wonders 5. YU’s boys high school 6. Eighth century B.C.E. prophet with a book 7. One might be used for lechem mishneh 8. “___ in the Family” 9. What a student should be before learning tractate Kiddushin 10. Nora who wrote “When Harry Met Sally …” 11. Press often used before Shabbat 12. James Franco’s “___ of the Planet of the Apes” 13. Go downhill at Mount Hermon 18. “Fiddler” song with “maker” 22. Move off (an El Al flight) 24. Direction Jews pray in New York 25. Mideast title (for a non-Jew) 27. Bubkes 28. Work ___ 1 2 3 4 R I N A (value displayed 14 O M A R by many Israeli 17 S P R Y settlers) 20 21 S A R A H 29. Brother of 23 I L A N A Naftali 27 28 N E T J 30. Item on a 34 35 I D E A seder plate 39 40 L E 31. “The,” to 42 43 44 C H A T A Dreyfus 50 35. One of 12 on 55D E B O R S R S the high priest’s 60 61 62 M A I D breastplate 65 V A L O R 36. What a grad 68 N O N E I of Melbourne’s 71 E S M E S Yeshiva College
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