Atlanta Jewish Times, XCIV No. 15, April 12, 2019

NEXT WEEK: PASSOVER

VOL. XCIV NO. 15 | HOME & GARDEN

APRIL 12, 2019 | 7 NISAN 5779

Our Jewish Atlanta Home

EMORY EVICTION TURMOIL PRO-PALESTINIAN STUDENTS CALL TO BOYCOTT JEWISH ORGANIZATIONS.

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MICHAEL A. MORRIS

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Contributors This Week BOB BAHR DAVE SCHECHTER FRAN PUTNEY JAN JABEN-EILON MARCIA CALLER JAFFE MAX RIPANS PATRICE WORTHY RACHEL STEIN RABBI JOAB EICHENBERG-EILON SHAINDLE SCHMUCKLER SOPHIA WEINSTEIN WILL STANWICK

Putting Down Roots The roots of Jewish Atlanta sprouted in Savannah and branched out from there. How did the community begin here and what makes Atlanta stand out?

Our cover story about Jewish Atlanta lays the groundwork for this week’s Home and Garden issue, along with other stories that will help you plant your spring garden and make home improvements. We gather tips from the pros, from experienced gardeners to decorators, that should give you the tools for gaining a green thumb and let you organize your home in an efficient way in time for Passover.

From there, we take you to the growing Jewish community in North Fulton county and share with you why this Jewtopia is a thriving locale about an hour north of Atlanta where many Jews have chosen to put down roots.

In other news, we continue to follow the controversy at Emory University. Aside from the Jewish community’s response to and support of, Jewish stu-

dents, the leader of an Emory pro-Israel group shares her views on the campus debate. Somewhat related, students who attended the recent American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference wrote for us about their experiences.

We also cover the closing of the Whole Foods in Toco Hills, which sent area residents scrambling to find a new kosher food source. One such option was the chain’s new Midtown store, believed to be the largest in the Southeast.

Demonstrating the Jewish community’s diversity, we highlight the secondannual Latin American Film Festival at Congregation Or Hadash last week and the Jewish influence in that region.

Someone who knows a few things about arts and culture is Lois Reitzes, who gives us The Lowdown about the distinctive voice and personality easily recognized on WABE/National Public Radio.

The people and places that make our Atlanta Jewish community exceptional.

Each week we bring you the movers and

THIS WEEK shakers, some larger than life celebs and some your neighbors. All planting seeds in the hopes that something wonderful is cultivated. ■

CONTENTS LOCAL NEWS ���������������������������������� 4 OPINION ������������������������������������������� 9 ISRAEL NEWS ������������������������������� 12 HOME & GARDEN ������������������������ 14 CALENDAR ������������������������������������� 22 ARTS ������������������������������������������������ 24 THE LOWDOWN ���������������������������� 25 COMMUNITY ��������������������������������� 26 BRAIN FOOD ���������������������������������� 31 TRIBUTE ������������������������������������������ 32 OBITUARIES ���������������������������������� 33 CLOSING THOUGHTS ����������������� 34

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LOCAL NEWS

The overall talent winner was Morgan Rossi, an aerial silk artist and contortionist.

Talent contenders Taal Tadka, Georgia Tech’s Asian fusion a cappella group, which performed spiced up rhythm medleys

Congregation Etz Chaim rabbis Daniel Dorsch and Shalom Lewis stole the comedy show.

Hillel presented the Radows with this unique original mosaic.

Hillel leaders at the event included: Roey Shoshan, director of UGA Hillel, Hillel Executive Director Rabbi Russ Shulkes, and event cochairs Lynn Oves and Steve Oppenheimer.

Hillel Campus Top Talent Honors Radows

By Marcia Caller Jaffe More than 450 gathered at the new Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center in City Springs for Campus Top Talent 2019 to support Hillel’s work on campuses around Georgia. Also impressive was that $577,00 was raised in conjunction with the event.

“Fifteen years of growing funding in Atlanta has enabled Hillel’s leadership

4 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

to establish a firm platform of operation that fosters vibrant Jewish life on campus and cultivates the skills for today’s campus leaders, who will be the leaders in our communities tomorrow,” said event co-chair Steve Oppenheimer.

For the show, five finalists performed in an exciting live competition.

This year’s acts came from Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Kennesaw State University and UGA.

They performed for a panel of industry judges: Joe Alterman, Jen MacQueen, Eric Mendenhall, and Nick Arapoglou.

Morgan Rossi, an aerial silk artist and contortionist was crowned Campus Top talent and received $5,000. An audience favorite was Emory freshman, Panamanian Sofia Cohen, who had opera training in Italy and sang a poignant “Yerushaliyim” (Jerusalem).

The upbeat and energetic emcee, Hillel board member Mark Silberstein, jogged around the stage in black sneakers and was a lively, cohesive addition to the program. He related that “Hillel puts students on the path forward.”

This year’s Billi and Bernie Marcus Visionary Award went to Lindy and Norman Radow. Unfortunately, Norman was recovering from back surgery and was available only by remote video. Lindy recognized his absence by singing “Close to You” (an old Carpenters song) to an anonymous man wearing a mask of Norman. He got the biggest audience reaction by lamenting, “Percoset [pain medication] makes my day.”

Another video showed the Radows opening their home for Shabbat dinners to students, their involvement in AIPAC and pro-Israel affairs, and seeing the potential for Hillel and Jewish life at Kennesaw State University.

The “ham award” – excuse the expression – went to Rabbi Shalom Lewis from the Radows’ synagogue, Congregation Etz Chaim. He “put over” a lengthy, hard-to-believe but possible saga about Lindy Radow’s relationship with very famous people. We almost fell for it – until it included the Pope.

Rabbi Russ Shulkes, Hillels of Georgia executive director, explained that the signs with Hebrew phrases floating from the stage ceiling represented the five pillars of Hillel: community outreach, Zionism, leadership, religious life, and social

activism (plus tzedakah).

University of Georgia Hillel Director Roey Shoshan said earlier in the evening he was proud to have returned from the recent American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference with top honors.

“This is my eight-year anniversary in Atlanta [having moved from Israel] and I couldn’t be happier than at Hillel.

In Athens, we have made great changes in rebranding Hillel as a cool place to be. We have restructured our board and expanded participation, incorporated Greek life, and hosted a Shabbat dinner for 225. At AIPAC we claimed the 2019 Duke Rudman [Leadership] Award for the top campus.”

Author and mega businessman Michael Coles said being president of Hillels of Georgia is his most important job. “Over the past few years with the expansion of anti-Semitism on campuses, students get support from Hillel to not run away.”

In a follow-up interview, Oppenheimer elaborated, “News reports of Jewish students facing increased anti-Israel and anti-Semitic activity on virtually every campus are accurate. Hillel and its professional staff provide a safe space for students to gather, share experiences, become more educated about Judaism and Israel so they are resilient contributors on their campuses and proponents of Israel.

“Campus life today is not merely a reflection of society today, rather it can be an amplification of the discordant voices of our society. Who would think that on some campuses student government candidates are forced by pro-BDS, anti-Israel groups to declare if they are pro- or anti-BDS when, in actuality, these student leaders are unfamiliar with the history, the complex political situation and likely couldn’t locate Israel on a world map?” ■

LOCAL NEWS

Whole Foods Closes Briarcliff Location

By Eddie Samuels

at the old location,” Werzberger said.

“They said as long as there was enough Following months of concern by the business to support it, they’d be happy to Toco Hills Jewish community, the Bri- do it.” arcliff Road Whole Foods closed April Greenberg explained that the fish 2, leaving many in the neighborhood cutting would continue at Whole Foods scrambling to replace the store’s wide va- uninterrupted. riety of kosher options.

“I have begun cutting kosher fish at “I shopped there nearly daily, several the Whole Foods location on Peachtree times a week,” Leslie Mallard said. “I was Boulevard on Wednesdays, starting this disappointed because it’s such a good re- week, [April 2],” he said. source for the people in the community, The newest location, in Midtown, a lot of whom live in the immediate area opened April 5, and is just under six miles and like to shop nearby.” from the Briarcliff location. It is the AmaMallard, who is the office manager zon-owned chain’s largest location in the at Young Israel of Toco Hills, explained Southeast and is the 500th Whole Foods that alternatives for kosher grocery to open, according to the Atlanta Journal shopping in the area are more limited, Constitution. following the prior closure of the Fresh The 70,000-square-foot store next to Market less than a year ago. the Icon Midtown high rise apartments “That was very disappointing, because has four floors, featuring several eateries, we do have a great a pub, a microbrewmany people who live ery, rooftop bar and in this area and don’t cooking lessons. drive,” she said.

“We will continThe Chamblee ue to offer the great store, which opened selection of Kosher in 2017, is more than and Kosher for Passsix miles from the over items that our Briarcliff location, customers appreciwhich Mallard said ated at the Briarcliff would be a challenge location,” Heather for many in Toco McCready, Whole Hills.

Foods executive comBernice Wermunications and zberger said that corporate reputation when she first heard coordinator said in a the Toco Hills Whole statement to the AJT. The Passover section has matzot, Foods was closing, Mallard, howmacaroons, candies, Terra chips and she was concerned ever, has been ungrape juice from brands: Kedem, Empire, Yehuda, Manischewitz, Streit’s, about other options satisfied with the Gefen, Glicks and Harrison’s. available. responses she and “About three or four months ago I others from Toco Hills have received found the next closest one, which is in from Whole Foods in the past.

Midtown, and I don’t want to go there.

“It’s not anywhere close. A lot of peoParking is terrible and it’s not in the saf- ple in the apartments in the area walk,” est area,” she said. she said. “I don’t know that they’re going After investigating the alternatives, to go to Peachtree or the Midtown store. she settled on the Peachtree store, and … There were several people who tried to was immediately impressed by it. reach out to corporate management, in“It really is very user-friendly, even cluding myself, but by that point it was more so than the store we had over here,” a done deal.”

Werzberger said. “Everyone there really is Now the most accessible grocery very nice and kind and happy to help me stores are the Kroger and Publix further out, and that’s really important to me.” down Lavista Rd., and community memA major concern for both Mallard bers such as Mallard are reevaluating and Werzberger was the lack of kosher their options for shopping. fish cutting.

“I’ve been doing more shopping at a “I spoke to them at the Peachtree Publix where I live and at the Publix over Boulevard [Chamblee] location and asked here,” she said. “It’s not the same selecif they’d be willing to bring in Meyer tion in terms of produce and the store Greenberg, who cut fish on Wednesdays brands that I really liked.” ■ ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 5

LOCAL NEWS

Emory Pro-Palestinian Students Call to Boycott Jewish Organizations

By Dave Schechter

the group that posted the fake notices on dormitory doors on the Emory ClairEmory University is trying to lower mont Campus, at the Woodruff Residenthe heat under a stew of emotions fueled tial Center, and at the off-campus Emory by acrimony between pro-Israel and pro- Point apartments.

Pro-Palestinian students, contendPalestinian students. ing that “right-wing University officials extremist groups are have walked a tightsmearing student activrope in their public ists,” called for the unistatements, in effect versity community to acknowledging that boycott several Jewish both sets of students organizations on the feel aggrieved and hopEmory campus. ing that the “eviction “We call on Emory notice” incident that ocUniversity to cease curred April 2 will lead validating the bigoted to dialogue, rather than smear campaign and further vitriol. to discipline students But as last week and other Emory comended, no party to the munity members that dispute seemed satisare complicit in the fied with the univerScreenshot from Twitter of mock eviction notice posted on Emory ongoing harassment. sity’s response, which students’ dorm room doors. A We further call on all the Anti-Defamation disclaimer at the bottom advised community members League called “slow and that the eviction notice was not real. to avoid endorsing or inadequate.”

Jewish organizations on- and off- co-sponsoring events and activities with campus urged the university to punish Emory Hillel, the Zionist Organization Emory Students for Justice in Palestine, of America, EIPAC [Emory Israel Public

6 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

Initial reports that Jewish students Affairs Committee], Emory Eagles for Israel, Emory Chabad or others complicit alone were targeted proved unfounded, acin this activity until they rescind and cording to the university and other sourccurtail their ongoing harassment cam- es. An estimated 17 percent of Emory’s unpaign,” said a statement by the Emory dergraduate students and 10 percent of its Students for Justice in Palestine on April graduate students are Jewish, according to the Hillel International 5, which was followed website. by the names of dozThe university said ens of supporters from that multiple departinside and outside the ments were investigatuniversity. ing the incident. The The flyers apstudent newspaper, The peared during an anEmory Wheel, said that nual Israel Apartheid included campus police.

Week protest on camIsrael Apartheid pus. Similar flyers have Week coincided with appeared on campuses Emory Israel Week, around the country whose organizers, the in recent years. The Emory University President Emory Eagles for Israel, official-looking notices Claire E. Sterk complained that proadvised: “We regret to inform you that your suite is scheduled Palestinian protests, including a symbolic “die-in,” took place adjacent to their for demolition in three days.”

The flyer said that “Palestinian events. homes are destroyed as part of the state The university’s response was comof Israel’s ongoing attempts to ethnically plicated by the flyers initially having cleanse the region of its Arab inhabit- been approved by the Emory Residence ants and maintain an exclusively ‘Jewish’ Life office, which later ordered them character of the state.” removed because they violated a policy

LOCAL NEWS

Cheryl Dorchinsky and Tova Shraga with a carload of signs proclaiming “We Stand With Jewish Emory Students.” The signs were distributed

by Beth Jacob Atlanta and Young Israel of Toco Hills.

against posting on doors without student just receive a slap on the wrist for putting consent. The management at Emory up a flyer in the wrong place. They purposefully flouted their responsibilities of Point also had the flyers removed.

Emory University President Claire an Emory club in good standing. … SJP’s E. Sterk, in a statement issued April 5, ac- Emory University adviser should resign, knowledged that “this week’s events ex- or be asked to resign and the university posed several flaws in our process for the should assign another adviser. … SJP approval, authorization, and distribution should, at the very least, be on probation for at least one year.” of flyers.”

A statement endorsed by seven com“Emory’s commitments to creating an environment where all members of munal organizations said: “The Atlanta the community feel safe and protected Jewish Community stands with Emory’s and to upholding free speech and vigor- Hillel, which has stated emphatically ous debate remain unquestioned. Emory that what happened is more than a policy infraction. The nastands firm against all ture and language in the forms of racism and intolnotices was threatening, erance,” Sterk said. potentially violating stuThe university presidents’ fundamental sense dent went on to say, “I of safety. The content is apologize for any part that unambiguously hateful Emory has played in causwith clear anti-Semitic ing pain to members of our overtones. We call upon community and those beEmory University to apply yond our campus. That is serious consequences and the last thing I would want strongly demonstrate that for anyone who visits, lives, works, or studies at our Rabbi Russ Shulkes, executive it will take steps to prevent university. … As we have director of Hillels of Georgia similar actions in the future.” done in the past, I hope we Those organizations were the Jewcan agree that the complex issues facing our world today summon us to be citizens ish Federation of Greater Atlanta, Jewish of reason and respect, of rational debate Community Relations Council, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Comand compassion.”

Sophia Weinstein, co-president of mittee, Israel American Council, Hillels Emory Israel Public Affairs Committee, of Georgia, and the Atlanta Rabbinical told the Atlanta Jewish Times, “There Association.

Meanwhile, two congregations, Beth hasn’t been much dialogue” between the Jewish student groups and the pro- Jacob Atlanta and Young Israel of Toco Palestinian students, who have become Hills, distributed 300 yard signs that read more organized in recent years. “We’re “We Stand With Jewish Emory Students!”

“This project is a simple message completely up for dialogue. We’ve asked for dialogue. We want dialogue. It’s fun- of support from individual Jews to each other expressing solidarity. It is comdamental to being a college student.”

The chances for dialogue may not municating to students that even if they have been enhanced by statements is- feel intimidated by their peers and disappointed by their school administration, sued April 5 by the opposing factions.

In his statement, Rabbi Russ Shul- they still can count on hundreds of their kes, executive director of Hillels of Geor- neighbors who they may have never even gia, outlined “What we at Hillel would met who are willing to publicly stand shoulder to shoulder with them,” said like to see, …”

Among those items were: “The Emo- Rabbi Yitzchok Tendler, Beth Jacob’s exry SJP chapter punished. They should not ecutive director. ■ ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 7

LOCAL NEWS

“A Kiss to This Land” is a documentary that pays tribute to the Jewish immigrants of Mexico.

“God’s Slave” is set against the backdrop of the terrorist attack that killed 150 in Buenos Aires in 1994.

The closing night film, “The Last Suit,” is about an elderly Holocaust survivor in Argentina who returns to Europe to find his friend who saved him after Auschwitz.

Synagogue Film Festival Highlights Latin American Jews

By Bob Bahr The rich cultural and historical tradition of Latin America’s diverse Jewish population was the focus of the second annual Latin American Film Festival at Congregation Or Hadash last week.

The festival at the Sandy Springs synagogue featured five critically acclaimed and often emotionally moving films from Argentina, Brazil and Mexico that highlighted how Jews have woven their stories into the rich cultural fabric

8 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

of the region.

Both of the congregation’s rabbis, Analia Bortz and Mario Karpuj, were born, raised, educated and married in Argentina. They were ordained at the Conservative movement’s seminary in Buenos Aires, which was part of an extensive network of Jewish schools and synagogues in the country.

The film series was part of an effort by the congregation and their rabbis to pay tribute to a region that they feel often doesn’t get the attention it deserves.

“The Jewish population has been very, very active in the history of the South American countries,” Rabbi Bortz pointed out. “They have always done something that made their country very proud, whether it was in economic life or medicine or in scientific research. Although we are a very small part of the population, we have accomplished a lot.”

Only about 400,000 Jews live in the 25 countries of the region that over the last 150 years have made not only a key contribution to the development of Jewish life there, but, in many places, have played an important role in economic and social life.

Bortz, whose is both a physician and a rabbi, and whose parents were both doctors, pointed out that when she went to medical school in Argentina, 40 percent of the students were Jewish.

“We felt very, very much identified with the country and, at the same time, we have never, ever hidden our Jewish identity.”

One of last week’s films, “A Kiss to This Land,” was a documentary about the gratitude that Jewish immigrants expressed about the refuge they found in Mexico.

The film, which was released in 1996, has been called “beautiful and deeply moving” by the Los Angeles Times, and is distributed by the prestigious The National Center for Jewish Film at Brandeis University. It was introduced by a synagogue member, Jackie Levi, whose mother and father appear in the film.

“People are not aware that outside the American Jewish community there are communities that are very alive and very well and very healthy and very solid in the Latin American countries,” she said.

For her it was a community that, as she put it, embraced Jews, including her grandfather when he immigrated there from Eastern Europe. He was also interviewed for the film, which was produced

by Levi’s cousin.

Although she has not lived in Mexico for many years, she remembers life in a community that always seemed vibrant and full of life. In introducing her cousin’s documentary last week, she spoke of the extensive web of community institutions that Jews established in Mexico.

“Jews are involved in almost in every aspect of Mexican life. Yet they live in what my children would call ‘a bubble.’

There was hardly any intermarriage; we all attended the Jewish day schools. In Mexico City, there were 10 of them to accommodate the different communities within the community, from kindergarten to high school.”

And yet there has been a dark side to living in some parts of Latin America. In recent years Jews in Venezuela, who have experienced the turmoil there and the sting of anti-Semitism, have fled in significant numbers for the United States.

In Argentina, which has nearly 300,000 Jews, they have experienced the ups and down of anti-Semitism compounded by terrorism.

In 1994, a bomb blast leveled the social service headquarters building of the Jewish community in Buenos Aires in what was considered the worse case of terrorism in the country’s history. In the explosion, 84 people were killed and 150 were injured.

The attack was said to be the work of foreign agents from Syria and Iran, but in February an Argentine court found the judge for the original court case, two prosecutors, a police commissioner, the head of Argentina’s intelligence service at the time of the attack and two top intelligence officials guilty of covering up a Syrian connection and paying off witnesses to influence the investigation.

Just last Friday, a homeless couple threatened worshippers at a Shabbat evening service in a Buenos Aires synagogue, yet another incident in the recent uptick in anti-Semitic hate speech and violence there. ■

OPINION Archbishop Leaves Atlanta a Legacy of Jewish Dialogue say they are good, they’re thriving. I wish The first thing that comes to mind they were richer. Because it’s one thing for when I think of Archbishop Wilton Daniel me as the archbishop to speak with my diaGregory is the Chicago White Sox. logue partners in the Jewish community.

A few years ago, I interviewed Gregory It’s another thing for the local communiabout the 50th anniversary of the Nostra ties, for the local pastor and the local rabbi aetate (Latin for “In our time”), the landto know each other and to be friends. So, mark document that officially removed the the dialogue exists on that official level of Jews from blame for the death of Jesus and the official authorities and then on the lorejected any support of anti-Semitism from cal level of the neighbors and the local paschurch doctrine. tors.”

Before I asked about the past, present Dave Gregory acknowledged that there reand future of Jewish-Catholic relations, we Schechter mained bumps in the road, despite the “sol– a journalist raised in Chicago’s northern From Where I Sit id foundation” laid by his predecessors and suburbs and a priest hailing from its South Side – talked about the baseball team we had followed their Jewish interlocutors.

“I think it would be our evaluation of the situation growing up.

Now, after 14 years, Gregory is leaving the Archdio- in Israel with the Palestinians and the Israeli governcese of Atlanta to shepherd the troubled Archdiocese of ment, because many of the Palestinians, or some of the Washington, D.C., which covers the nation’s capital and Palestinians, are Christian. And so we’ve got to keep talking to each other about how we can respect Israel’s several Maryland counties.

Troubled because Gregory is replacing Cardinal right to a national identity as well as the rights of the Donald Wuerl, who resigned after a grand jury report Palestinian people to a homeland. That’s a big bump,” alleged that Wuerl protected sex abusers in the clergy he said.

As the interview concluded, Gregory said, “I am while he was the bishop of Pittsburgh.

Troubled because Wuerl’s predecessor, Cardinal very proud … and very encouraged by the level of diaTheodore McCarrick, was defrocked in February over logue, friendship, interaction, collaboration that we in Atlanta have with our Jewish brothers and sisters. It accusations of sexual abuse as he rose in church ranks.

If, in the future, Pope Francis elevates Gregory, the could be strengthened; it should be strengthened; I hope first African-American to lead the Washington archdio- it will be strengthened, but I give great thanks for its incese, to cardinal, he would be the first African-American to hold that position.

The 71-year-old Gregory was installed as Archbishop of Atlanta in January 2005, coming from Belleville, Ill., where he had been bishop of that diocese.

Gregory’s three years as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, beginning in November 2001, included the burgeoning scandal of sexual abuse of minors by priests.

[Note: The Atlanta archdiocese in November released the names of 15 priests and other religious figures accused of sexual abuse of a minor, in the years since Atlanta became a diocese in 1956.]

Dov Wilker, regional director of the AJC in Atlanta, called Gregory “a great friend to the Jewish community of Atlanta and a real leader in the Atlanta community.”

“Together we have spoken about immigration, racism, anti-Semitism and the need to strengthen unity within our community. While we are sad that he will be departing Atlanta, we couldn’t be happier for him and for the Archdiocese of Washington,” Wilker said.

In our conversation about the deicide charge that had plagued the Jewish people for two millennia, Gregory referenced his dual identities.

“I sit here talking to you as a Jew, as a Catholic. But I want to switch hats. I’m an African-American man and you’re a Caucasian man. My people endured slavery and so the question of how do we look at our past, acknowledge it and what constitutes an appropriate ‘mea culpa.’ … We certainly do have to apologize,” he said.

Gregory also served for three years as the moderator of Jewish affairs for the Bishops’ conference.

Asked about Jewish-Catholic relations in Atlanta, Gregory said, “From my humble experience, I’d like to

Archbishop Wilton Daniel Gregory

tensity and its vibrancy today.”

Washington’s Jewish community can look forward to Gregory’s desire for dialogue. ■

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 9

OPINION

Setting the Record Straight Now that Israel Apartheid Week has come to an end and some of the tension has been mitigated, I believe a personal statement is necessary.

EIPAC (Emory Israel Public Affairs Committee), of which I am co-president, has been called a group of white nationalists, right- Sophia wing extremists, and a Weinstein group trying to use certain “Jewish” and pro-Israel rhetoric to advance our cause. We were told that we were lying about the eviction notices being placed on rooms with mezuzahs, despite reports received from Jewish students. A fellow member of the pro-Israel community was publicly humiliated and laughed at when asking to meet with members of SJP (Students for Justice in Palestine). We were told that EIPAC and Jewish organizations should be expelled until we rescind our statements.

So let me tell you my personal story and encourage anyone who wants open dialogue to come speak to me or EIPAC, as I can tell you with confidence that peace and dialogue are values our club cherishes.

I grew up in both a liberal/progressive AND Zionist home. Unlike what most people believe, especially in an increasingly polarized society, these concepts ARE NOT mutually exclusive. I spent high school protesting for progressive causes and came to college with a desire to learn more about the world and change it in a positive way.

After visiting Israel with Emory, I learned quickly that such a beautiful country has many nuances and incredible aspects, but also flaws. My interest led me to declare a major in international studies with a focus on the Middle East.

I spent a semester at Hebrew University interning at a think tank and now work with Dr. Ken Stein at the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel.

I also spent a summer working at Ameinu in New York City to help Palestinians get much needed health care through Israeli donations and donations throughout the United States. I spoke with many Palestinians and visited their homes in the West Bank. I also spoke with a diverse range of Israelis from all spectrums of religious and cultural life.

Israel is a complicated place. Those who accuse EIPAC of being ignorant and not seeing both sides are wrong.

We criticize the Israeli government and seek ways to find peaceful alternatives in many of our sessions and presenta10 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

tions. We encourage people of all political backgrounds to come to our events.

EIPAC will always stand for a two-state solution. We stand with Palestinians and Israelis and work with a bipartisan audience to ensure these goals are met. I would have never joined a club that didn’t have a firm stance of advancing peace and working with both sides.

This is where issues stem from: If you take a look at the world beyond Emory, anti-Israel and anti-Semitic rhetoric is rampant. It’s everywhere. With no homeland for the Jewish people after the Holocaust, Israel was the only safe haven for Jews to go to. She has been attacked with terror, rage, stabbings, shootings and more. The media portrays it as an inhumane country and the Emory Wheel has even compared it to Nazi Germany. SJP has been a known anti-Semitic organization guided by terror tactics.

But what most don’t know is the incredible things Israel has to offer. The humanitarian work of IsraAID. One of the largest pride parades in the world.

Medical help for Syrian refugees. Even Israelis constantly fighting for Palestinian rights. This is what EIPAC and EFI (Eagles for Israel) seek to show. The positive side – without hiding the negatives.

So the next time you want to critique us for this and that please come to our events and speak to us as individuals. ■ Sophia Weinstein is a senior at Emory University and co-president of Emory Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Screenshot from twitter of mock eviction notice posted on Emory students' dorm room doors.

OPINION

The AIPAC Experience To me AIPAC [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] served as a break. It was a break from the partisan arguments between the Democrats and Republicans.

It was a break from false and negative news about Israel. It was a break from worrying about the future of Israel. The power of over Max 18,000 people from different Ripans religions, ethnicities, races, colors and political beliefs all sharing the same love and support for Israel gave me hope (tikvah) for the future of Israel.

It was speaker Dr. Arthur Brooks who made me realize that contempt was not always a bad thing. He said, “You are supporters of AIPAC. You are supporters of Israel. And you’re supporters of America. And you will be treated with contempt for these things. Thank G-d for that contempt. Because this day forward you can answer that contempt with love and warm-heartedness, changing your own heart.”

Israel’s existence has always been met with controversy as its enemies try to eradicate it. In recent days this too has been the case at the AIPAC conference.

My friends and I tried hard to respond with love and kindness and not engage in counter arguments as protesters bashed Israel and lied about Jewish history. We simply walked away smiling. In fact, we did what Dr. Brooks said to do. We used the protesters’ hate and negative opinions as inspiration to work harder and to continue to stand up for what we believe in.

We are committed to the strong bonds between America and Israel and are willing to do everything we can to protect them.

The most powerful moment for me was when my fellow friends, teachers, rabbis, and neighbors from the state of Georgia went together to Capitol Hill to lobby our representatives in Congress.

Lucy McBath, a member of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia’s 6th congressional district, accepted our requests and shared her strong support for Israel. She also shared her excitement for her first trip to Israel

later this year, where she wants to “touch, feel, and taste Israeli culture” and learn more about how she can be a partner in peace for Israelis and Palestinians.

At the end of the meeting, I was able to stand up and thank her for her support for Israel. I spoke of the Jewish concept of tikkun olam, which in English means “to repair the world.”

I told her that repairing the world, according to Jewish values, was not only recycling, planting trees and reducing our carbon footprint, but also having good relationships and making peace with others. I encouraged her to reach across the aisle and do everything in her power to support legislation in the future which would strengthen the U.S.-Israel bond and pave the way for peace between Israel and her surrounding neighbors.

In conclusion, AIPAC continues to work on its mission to strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship. Speakers ranging from Conservative Republicans to progressive Democrats and everything in between spoke about their appreciation, love and support for Israel and their understanding that Israel must thrive as a nation and defend itself. Additionally, the audience applauded President Trump and his administration for recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and just recently, officially recognizing the Golan Heights as part of Israel.

While AIPAC gave me hope that there will be a time when Israel will not be in war with her neighbors, I know it will take hard work to get to that point.

I will continue to do everything I can with AIPAC and other organizations to promote peace between Israel and her neighbors and strengthen the U.S.-Israel bond because I, Max Ripans, STAND WITH ISRAEL! ■

After capping off my third year of attending the AIPAC policy conference as a high school student, my experiences thus far have left me with a sense of responsibility. While the 2019 policy conference was conducted similarly to the years I have attended in the past, something about this year felt dif- Will ferent. The conference is al- Stanwick ways overwhelming at first.

Within a single convention center is a microcosm of Israeli innovation, politics, culture and society, all at the disposal of myself and 18,000 other delegates. However, while walking around in between sessions, I could not help but notice how many other delegates appeared to be of similar age to me. At past conferences I would occasionally notice other teens my age, but the overwhelming sense was that I was much younger than the majority of the other delegates. There was something heartwarming about seeing so many other people my age who had traveled from all over the country to advocate for Israel. I do not know if the large teen attendance is a product of new high school engagement efforts by AIPAC, or if I am simply closing in on the age of responsibility as an advocate of Israel, the age of action.

Every year the other delegates of The Weber School and I attend AIPAC’s student breakout session. The session is typically led by young adults around the age of college students who bring together a promising lineup of speakers and presentations, which cater to the inter-

ests and lives of my generation. I walked into the session, sat down among 4,000 other student delegates, and prepared to jot down specific quotes and ideas that I liked. I ended up locking into what the speakers said so intensely that I left the session with only one quote, a quote which perfectly encompassed and reinforced what I quickly discerned while being at the conference.

After all of the innovators, philanthropists, and advocates who were arranged to speak had finished their pieces, the head of the breakout session, a bearded man whose name I did not capture, left the audience with this idea: “How do you make a change? It is written in our constitution: participate. You have made it as far as a policy conference, why stop here?”

I sat and reflected on this call to action, and simply appreciated how the AIPAC experience has prepared me for the next level of political advocacy. Because of AIPAC, I have seen firsthand that people from all walks of life, and all ends of the political spectrum, can be united on a single important issue. And it is apparent to me that it is now my turn.

From that point on, when I saw the other delegates of the conference, I did not recognize them as old and young, rather as the past, current, and future leadership of Jewish America. ■ Will Stanwick is a junior at The Weber School.

Max Ripans is a junior at The Weber School. This was his first AIPAC policy conference. It was held last month in Washington, D.C.

The AJT welcomes your letters. We want our readers to have an opportunity to engage with our community in constructive dialogue. If you would like your letter to be published, please write 200 words or less, include your name, phone number and email, and send it to editor@atljewishtimes.com.

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 11

ISRAEL PRIDE

News From Our Jewish Home

Courtesy of Special in Uniform // Shachak

Shriki poses with his family at an event hosted by Special in Uniform on World Autism Awareness Day.

Israel Celebrates World Autism Awareness Day As part of the international World Autism Awareness Day on March 31, Israel recognized Special in Uniform.

A joint program between the Israel Defense Forces, Lend a Hand to the Special Child and the Jewish National Fund USA, Special in Uniform integrates more than 400 young adults with special needs into Israel’s military.

The program focuses on providing its participants with pride, independence and a sense of purpose in their contributions to society. It incorporates those with special needs into service at 25 bases across the country.

One soldier in particular, Shachak Shriki, diagnosed with autism at the age of 15, shared the story of his journey into the IDF and Special in Uniform. At 17, most of his classmates were receiving news about their impending service.

“I was exempt from military service,

Today in Israeli History April 12, 1951: The Knesset passes a resolution establishing the 27th of Nisan as Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Memorial Day. The date, suggested by Holocaust survivor Rabbi Mordechai Nurock, was chosen because of its proximity to the start of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising (whose actual beginning date, 14 Nisan, couldn’t be used because it’s the start of Passover). Because of a desire in Israel to focus on resistance, the commemoration originally was called Yom HaZikaron l’Shoah v’Mered HaGetaot (Holocaust and Ghetto Revolt Memorial Day).

April 13, 1971: Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir meets with leaders of the Black Panthers, a Mizrahi activist group unaffiliated with the U.S. group of the same name. Israel’s Black Panthers, whose name was inspired by their American counterparts as a way to scare the establishment, protest the social injustice and discrimination felt by nonAshkenazi Jews. A threat to hold a hunger strike at the Western Wall won them the 12 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

but I wanted very much to enlist,” he said.

Shriki, after much effort and research, found Lt. Col. Ariel Almog, who chairs the program, and was recruited.

Special in Uniform aims to make the most of each and every one of the 400 volunteers’ talents and teach them invaluable skills and maximize their potential. It also provides a support structure to help those it recruits with any problems they encounter along the way and keeps them in touch with the program’s commanders regularly.

On World Autism Awareness Day, former President Reuven Rivlin, who is a supporter of Special in Uniform, noted that there were over 25,000 Israelis on the autism spectrum, and that their integration was an important undertaking that every Israeli could facilitate.

“We need to go beyond the familiar, to try to meet and appreciate the wonderful people hidden beneath the label ‘autism,’” Rivlin said.

On May 16, a delegation from Special in Uniform will be visiting Atlanta to tell their stories firsthand.

Photo courtesy of Times of Israel // Jamaica

Kincaid speaks to The Times of Israel.

and the hymns she sang as a child, including about the “white hills of Dover.”

“I remember the first time I saw the cliffs of Dover, I was shocked that they were not white. … We were longing for something we had never seen,” she said.

Ohio, Israeli Students United Through Microgreens Projects

In Israel for her sixth trip, Antiguan-American novelist and professor Jamaica Kincaid spoke as part of the National Library of Israel’s Global Forum March 17-19, according to The Times of

Israel.

Best known for her novels “A Small Place” and “Lucy,” the Harvard professor also made time to expound upon a number of topics, including identity, education and home.

In a panel discussion about migration at the library, she addressed Eurocentric notions of immigrants altering societies that had previously come up at the forum and criticized them in the wake of centuries of European colonization.

She addressed her exasperation at the theme of identity, especially given the complexity of hers.

“You know, supposedly, according to one of those tests, I’m 3 percent Ashkenazi, … my children are 40-something percent Ashkenazi and only 30-something sub-Saharan, … but aren’t Jews not exclusively an ethnic group? There must be people like me,” she said.

Kincaid converted to Judaism in 1993 so that her children would have two Jewish parents. She discussed ongoing questions about the whiteness of Jews in the U.S. She also spoke about growing up Methodist

meeting with Meir, who, after a protest by 6,000 Black Panthers in Jerusalem a month later resulted in clashes with the police, declared them “not nice people.”

That comment haunted her Labor Party, which Mizrahi votes helped replace with Likud in 1977.

Arab violence against Jews and the British across Palestine, and Arab workers strike for six months. The uprising leads the British to float the idea of Jewish-Arab partition in 1937 and to shift away from support for a Jewish homeland toward pro-Arab policies in Palestine.

aded since February. The convoy arrives four days after an Arab ambush of a medical convoy bound for Hadassah Hospital on Mount Scopus kills 80 Jews, most of them doctors and nurses. Arab forces regain control of the roads to Jerusalem on April 20, again cutting off the city.

April 14, 1871: Germany is established as an empire under Prussia’s Wilhelm I, making possible the expansion of the civil and political rights granted to Jews in 22 German states in 1869. Those rights cover all German Jews on April 22 when the German Constitution, adopted April 16, is extended to Bavaria. Despite emancipation, Jews are still barred from some high-profile positions, so conversion to Christianity continues. Emancipation also inspires more virulent anti-Semitism, a term coined in Germany in 1879.

April 16, 2007: Organized by author Aharon Applefeld and politician Natan Sharansky, the first Kisufim conference for Jewish writers around the world opens in Jerusalem. The name Kisufim comes from the Hebrew acronym for Jewish Conference of Jewish Writers and Poets. The largest-ever gathering of Jewish writers in part celebrates the 40th anniversary of S.Y. Agnon receiving the Nobel Prize for Literature. Sessions are held in 10 languages, including Russian, German and Serbian.

April 18, 1955: Physicist Albert Einstein, who had declined an offer in 1952 to serve as Israel’s second president, dies at age 76. Einstein opposed militant forms of nationalism, but after witnessing attacks on Jews, he was drawn to Zionism after World War I. He wrote in 1921 that “Jewish nationalism must be developed both in Palestine and everywhere else.”

He joined a U.S. fundraising tour for Hebrew University that year and spoke at the university’s planned site in 1923 in his first visit to the Land of Israel. ■

April 15, 1936: An Arab uprising begins when 10 cars are attacked and three Jews are killed in what appears to be a robbery near Tulkarm. The Irgun underground kills two Arabs connected to the attack the next day. Events escalate into

April 17, 1948: Commanded by 24-year-old Yitzhak Rabin, the Harel Brigade delivers a convoy of supplies to Jerusalem despite coming under fire from Arab guerrillas. The supplies bring relief to Jewish residents who have been block-

Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (www.israeled.org), where you can find more details.

Renowned Author Jamaica Kincaid Speaks in Israel

Students at a Dayton, Ohio, middle school are learning about sustainability, food justice and nutrition in a hands-on way, all with Israeli roots at the core of the project.

Making indoor farmers of its fifthand sixth-grade students, Hillel Academy worked with a registered dietitian nutritionist to begin growing and harvesting microgreens with the help of an Israeli hydroponic farming educational initiative, Start Up Roots.

The students are growing arugula, kale, parsley, radish, mustard, broccoli and more.

Start Up Roots is a nonprofit founded four years ago to bring hydroponic farming to girls in impoverished Charedi neighborhoods in Jerusalem. Starting with just one school, the initiative has expanded to three, and soon a fourth.

“Entrepreneurship, life skills and nutrition – those aren’t taught in schools – and that’s such a growing problem,” said program founder Robin Katz. ■ Compiled by AJT Staff

ISRAEL NEWS Barkan Industrial Park Challenges BDS Movement

By Patrice Worthy At Twitoplast, a factory in what is known as the West Bank, Israel Twito gives the AJT a tour. His is one of 146 factories in the Barkan Industrial Park that provides work for Palestinians.

“Peace can only be achieved through economics. We leave religion and politics out of it,” Twito says. “To us it’s about the people.”

Twito employs Palestinians, Druze and Israelis. Palestinian workers make about 5,000 shekels a month, the equivalent of about $1,060. It’s not a lot of money, but it’s a start compared to the $200 to $300 a month the Palestinians get paid under the Palestinian Authority, he said.

It has been reported by Kav LaOved, an Israeli workers’ rights organization, that Palestinian workers make $2 to $4 per hour, well under the $5.75 Israeli minimum wage.

Despite that, there are workers who have been employed with Twitoplast for more than 20 years. Many of the Palestinian workers who work for Twito told the AJT that most of their neighbors want to come work for him.

The factories allow Palestinians, many of whom live in multi-generational homes, to increase their standard of living. “A Palestinian worker has about 10 mouths to feed,” Twito said. And working in one of many factories in the industrial zone is very beneficial to a family.

As he tours the facility, he introduces the AJT to a Palestinian man whose son was just hired last week. For them, working in what many call the West Bank and what is now being referred to as Judea and Samaria or the “Somorom” region, is the beginning of economic mobility for Palestinians in the region. It is part of a strategy embraced by many businessmen who work side-by-side with members of the Arab community and say they see the progress firsthand.

George Schaeffer, founder of OPI nail polish and major donor to Bnai Zion Foundation, an organization that funds capital projects in Israel, said he supports an economic strategy that includes Palestinians because when everyone eats, everyone wins.

“There is a golden harvest here that can benefit everyone,” Schaeffer said.

“That is why I support Bnai Zion and the economics because it’s about taking care of Israelis no matter race, religion, or economic status; we leave the politics out of it.”

But Twito worries the BDS movement, or Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions

Israel Twito with Palestinian worker and his son.

Inside the Twitoplast factory in the Barkan Industrial Park.

movement, will successfully put an end to what he says is more progress in Palestinian-Israeli relations than what has been made in the past. The BDS movement specifically targets Israeli products and projects as a way to discourage and end Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

As a response to what some call the Israeli massacre of Palestinians in 2014, BDS has stopped production of a light rail from Jerusalem to the West Bank following a seven-year boycott of French corporation Veolia.

According to www.BDSmovement. net, “The 400,000 Israeli settlers who moved there “act largely with impunity” even if they are caught torching Palestinian fields and olive groves and damaging crops and property or hurling Molotov cocktails or using live fire against Palestinians.

Israel has come under fire by the EU for creating more settlements in the West Bank in Area C, which is 60 percent of the region and contains its most fertile soil.

Area C was also reserved as the primary land for Palestinians.

But Twito said the BDS movement is showing one side of the argument. According to him, more than 100,000 Palestinians walk to work every day and the light rail could have helped.

“We are creating more peace here in the industrial zones than anywhere else in Israel, because we pay Palestinians salaries,” Twito said. “If you want peace, you have to start with economics.”

Palestinians are some of the most educated in the Arab world, ranking number three in literacy. However, many also live in extreme poverty in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. It’s a crisis Yuli

Edelstein, speaker of the Knesset, wants to see come to an end as Israelis look to the future. Edelstein said the industrial zones are creating peace and it’s not sitting well with others who take advantage of the conflict.

“The industrial zones are achieving peace and you know who else knows that? Hamas. They have started attacking the industrial zones because they know that’s where Israelis and Arabs are working together,” Edelstein said.

In October of 2018 two Israeli workers were stabbed by a Palestinian, but that is the only reported attack in the Barkan industrial zone, which many say is a testament to Israeli-Palestinian relations.

Benny Kashriel, mayor of Ma’aleh Adumim, believes it’s a matter of meeting the needs of the people. When the town was established it caused controversy due to its location in the West Bank. Now, Ma’aleh Adumim is a prime destination for young professionals to settle down.

Many Palestinians work and live in the city and Kashriel said he’s proud to have peace in his region.

“We have no fences and no walls,” he said. “When you talk to the people and not the leaders then you can achieve peace.” ■ Patrice Worthy is an AJT correspondent reporting from Israel.

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 13

HOME & GARDEN Our Jewish Atlanta Home The Roots of the Community In 1968, about 26,000 Jews lived in Georgia. By 2001, this figure had risen to 93,500 and showed no sign of abating, with the overwhelming majority, about 92 percent, of the state’s Jews concentrated in the metropolitan Atlanta area.

The Atlanta Jewish community is now estimated at about 135,000.

But the roots of the Jewish community actually can be traced back to Savannah.

Gen. James Oglethorpe settled there in February 1733. Two shiploads of Jews, about 90 people, arrived during the same year and were permitted to stay because of Oglethorpe’s personal influence. This group brought a Torah with them and soon established the colony’s first synagogue, Congregation Mikveh Israel, in 1735. The first settlement failed. By 1741,

or more persons in all but three or four seven cities, with conJewish families had gregations in Atlanta; moved north. Most Rome, established in returned during the 1871; Athens, 1872; and 1750s, prospered, and Albany, 1876. Groups reestablished the confrom Eastern Europe gregation in 1786. Its began to arrive in the first president was 1880s, settling primarPhilip Minis. His faily in Atlanta, Savanther, Abraham Minis, nah and Brunswick, probably was the first which had a congregawhite male born in tion by 1885. In 1900, Georgia. there were 6,400 Jews There were 400 The Atlanta Jewish community is in Georgia.

Jews in the state by currently estimated at 135,000.

Organized Jewish 1829; a few families lived in Augusta and isolated areas, while communities existed in the early 21st the majority were in Savannah. By 1877, century in 15 Georgia cities, the major there were Jewish communities of 100 ones in Atlanta, 85,900; Savannah, 3,000;

Rabbi Jacob M. Rothschild with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the latter's Nobel Peace Prize recognition dinner in Atlanta in 1965.

Augusta, 1,300; Columbus, 750; Macon, 1,000; and Athens, 600.

The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum was opened in Atlanta in 1996 and preserves and displays the history of Jews in the state. There is a Hillel at Emory University in Atlanta and at the University of Georgia in Athens, and several Anglo-Jewish newspapers are published in Atlanta, including the Atlanta Jewish Times and The Jewish Georgian.

Jewish Studies programs are also found at local universities, with Emory featuring such scholars as David Blumenthal and Deborah Lipstadt. ■ Source: Jewish Virtual Library: www. jewishvirtuallibrary.org/georgia-jewishhistory. Encyclopedia Judaica.

Compiled by AJT Staff

Sherry Frank, who helped establish the Black-Jewish Coalition, poses with Congressman John Lewis.

How Jewish Atlanta Stands Out

By Jan Jaben-Eilon The Yiddish word “heimish” means cozy or homey, but it’s also used to express a feeling of welcoming. It’s a word that could be used to describe the Atlanta Jewish community.

Other words that come up in conversations about the community here are: inclusion, pluralism, cooperation, supportive, unity and yes, unique.

The Atlanta Jewish community is “unlike any other community in the country,” emphatically stated Congregation Etz Chaim Senior Rabbi Dan Dorsch.

His words are echoed by The Temple’s Senior Rabbi Peter Berg. “Of all the com14 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

munities I’ve lived in, the commitment to giving back to the wider community we live in is strongest here,” he said.

Nowhere is this more notable than in the relationship between the Atlanta Jewish community and the Atlanta black community. “This relationship goes back to the Civil Rights movement,” Berg said.

Sherry Frank recalls Atlanta’s motto: “the city too busy to hate.” Even before she was executive director of the Atlanta regional office of the American Jewish Committee and helped establish the Black-Jewish Coalition, Frank recalls the late Jewish architect Cecil Alexander “reaching out to (now Congressman) John Lewis. When African-Americans

couldn’t meet in public places, they met in his house,” Frank said.

And when blacks came to Atlanta to participate in the funeral of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., they slept in the downtown hotel owned by Jewish community leader Marvin Goldstein.

Frank has long had personal ties with Atlanta black leaders. Her uncle Joe Zimmerman owned a clothing store downtown. “Zimmerman’s was one of the few places where blacks could try on clothes,” she said, adding that “Daddy King” – MLK’s father – preached the eulogy at her uncle’s funeral.

The genesis of the Black-Jewish Coalition was a meeting of 20 Jews and 20

blacks, headed by Alexander and Lewis.

“We came together to advocate on behalf of renewing the Voting Rights Act and then decided to continue (after it was renewed),” said Frank, an Atlanta native.

“Generation after generation, people have wanted to build on that history,” she added, underlining the deep relationships that have continued. “John Lewis is like my brother,” said Frank, who just completed writing her memoirs, including stories about these relationships.

To this day, clergy from The Temple and King’s Ebenezer Baptist Church preach in each other’s congregations, to full houses every year.

The internal Jewish clergy relation-

HOME & GARDEN ships are also highly unusual in Atlanta. respectful, listening and understanding.

“It goes back to the generation of rabbis When we came back from that trip, interfaith relations were never the same.” before us,” noted Berg.

But Gold believes that the Atlanta Rabbi Dorsch credited The Marcus Foundation for providing financial sup- Jewish community stands out in other port to the Atlanta Rabbinic Association. ways as well. “There’s a legacy of philan“The rabbinic community, from Reform thropy and giving of service. In our community, there are a strong to [Congregation] Beth number of families who Jacob, is close here. We support the community study together. We learn financially and by being together. It’s very special,” in the room and rolling up he said, comparing it to his their sleeves.” previous pulpit in LivingsBerg said the comton, N.J., where the rabbis munity “stands on the were highly competitive. shoulders of the people In some cities, says before us, with (the late) Berg, “The synagogues don’t Erwin Zaban chief among talk to each other. In AtlanRabbi Dan Dorsch them.” Certainly Zaban, ta, there’s a spirit of unity, who contributed the land in the name of not of competitiveness.”

A good example of that coopera- his parents for the building of the Martion is the joint selichot services held by cus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, the Conservative synagogues in Atlanta was among the most notable of his genevery year, said Margo Dix Gold, imme- eration. But that sense of responsibility diate past president of the United Syna- to the community didn’t end with his generation. Nor did it end with his, and gogue of Conservative Judaism.

“There’s a collegiality in Atlanta and his daughters’ leadership at the Jewish a cooperation that’s really unique,” said Federation of Greater Atlanta.

Nearly two years Gold, who grew up in Deago, the Jewish Federatroit, where the rabbinic retion launched a program, lationships are competitive. known as The Front Porch, “Maybe it’s because to better serve the Jewish we’re in the South, or maycommunity. Among the be because so many Atlanmany changes initiated by tans grew up in small comthe Federation is its methmunities and they all went od of allocating the funds to camp together.” that it raises. Chief Impact Atlanta is special, howOfficer Jodi Mansbach now ever, not just for the cooperRabbi Peter S. Berg oversees grantmaking, ation between the 40-plus Jewish synagogues, the extraordinary re- which used to be called allocations.

Today the Atlanta Jewish commulationships between the city’s Jewish and black populations and the large number nity “is known throughout the country of regional offices of the AJC, the Anti- in the amount of support it gives for any Defamation League and the American Jewish camper,” Mansbach said. The JewIsrael Public Affairs Committee – not to ish Federation is also known for providmention the Israeli Consulate. Gold points ing extensive grants for teen education to the unusually close relationships in the and involvement. “There’s a recognition interfaith world. that the experience Jews have as teens She remembers when is important for remainretired minister Wayne ing Jews. We are funding Smith received a grant programs that are already from the Robert Wood working with teens and Johnson Foundation to helping them work better.” bring together representaOne of those teen protives from the interfaith grams supported by the world, “people who had Jewish Federation is the outreach capacity,” among Jewish Kids Group, which them Gold. “It was onewas established in 2012 third Jews, one-third Musby founder and execuMargo Dix Gold lims and one-third Christive director Ana Robbins. tians, and we went to Turkey for 10 days Providing both an after-school program in 2002. We sat with a different person and a Sunday School program, JKG now on the bus each day and swapped room- serves more than 300 students in five mates. It was about getting to know each sites around Atlanta. Robbins plans to other, and we wrote principles of being open two more after-school programs

existing Jewish organizaand seeks to serve 450 stutions around the country dents. have also been flocking to As she notes, indepenthe Atlanta area, including dent after-school programs Moishe House residential such as JKG is “a nascent program for young adults, and emerging field” in the OneTable Shabbat dinners, country. “Atlanta is a highly Honeymoon Israel couinnovative city that supples’ trips, and, the latest, ports young entrepreneurs,” Repair the World volunteer she said, providing examprogram. ples of that support.

Ana Robbins These groups join Early fellowships given to JKG and the Atlanta Jewish Music other organizations that have long made Festival “provided us with a hechsher the Atlanta Jewish community stand [kosher designation] and made it so I out, such as the MJCCA’s Book Festival, could raise money from the communi- and the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, both among the largest in ty,” Robbins recalled. “We the country. were also allowed to have According to Mansa mailbox at the Federabach, Atlanta has transition, which gave us needtioned “from a community ed credibility.” where everyone knew each JKG is just one of the other to a community with distinct programs that the highest mobility rate, have raised the national where we don’t know each profile of the Atlanta Jewother.” Strong leaders help ish community. There’s to unite the dispersed comalso In the City Camp, Jodi Mansbach munity, she said.

SOJOURN (Southern JewFor Rabbi Berg, “it’s meaningful to ish Resource Network for Gender and Sexual Diversity), JScreen genetic testing, be a part of a community that wants to and JumpSpark teen programming. Pre- work together.” ■

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ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 15

HOME & GARDEN

Photos courtesy of the city of Alpharetta // Big Creek Greenway is one of the natural

features of North Fulton that make it an appealing place to live.

Special events such as Alive After 5 in Roswell Square add to the cultural mix in North Fulton.

Jewtopia

Community Feel and Jewish Connections Found in North Fulton Many move to North Fulton County for the schools and larger, more affordable homes, but a thriving Jewish community is also alive and well in the area.

Realtor Stacy Lampert, an area resident who works with Red Team Realty, a sales group of Keller Williams Realty Consultants of Roswell, says buyers are drawn to North Fulton because they can get bigger homes on larger lots for less than inside the perimeter. Home prices range from Fran M. $250,00 to more than $1 million in old and Putney new neighborhoods, most of which have pool and/or tennis facilities, Lampert said.

The median home sale price for the North Fulton area west of Georgia 400 is $452,500, with an increase in value of 4 percent in the past year, according to data provided by Keller Williams.

For families with children, the public schools have a great reputation and are known for very active parent participation, Lampert said. A number of private schools are also in the area. Jewish day schools The Davis Academy (which next school year will begin bus service from North Fulton), The Epstein School, The We16 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

ber School and Atlanta Jewish Academy are just south in Sandy Springs.

North Fulton also boasts new retail centers such as Avalon, large entertainment venues such as Ameris Bank Amphitheatre and community events such as farmers markets. Alive in Roswell, a free family-friendly festival is held in downtown Roswell every third Thursday beginning in April starting at 5 p.m.

“What you used to go downtown for, you can do here,” Lampert said.

Parks, greenways and trails, including along the Chattahoochee River, give residents and visitors beautiful natural areas to enjoy. The Chattahoochee Nature Center in Roswell and Autrey Mill Nature Preserve in Johns Creek offer recreational and educational programming for all ages.

Lampert has lived in North Fulton since 2003 and notes that while development has caused the area to get busier and busier, “it still has that community feel.”

Stacy and husband Craig are members of Temple Kehillat Chaim in Roswell, where their twin sons Andrew and Jason celebrated their b’nai mitzvah ceremony on

March 23.

Rabbi Hirshy Minkowicz has seen the area grow since he and his wife Rashi first came to start Chabad of North Fulton in summer of 1998, a time when many young Jewish families were moving northward to find affordable starter homes. The couple established worship and educational programming, operating out of trailers on Chabad’s Jones Bridge Road property.

While Jewish families are still attracted to North Fulton, Minkowicz says that many more traditionally observant families have moved back inside the perimeter to be closer to the Orthodox day schools. At the same time, Minkowicz observes more retirees moving to North Fulton to live near their children and grandchildren. It has also become home to a large Israeli population, thanks to the many technology companies based in the area.

“The vibe has changed,” but North Fulton “continues to be a dynamic place for Jewish families,” Minkowicz said.

Last month, Chabad of North Fulton celebrated a milestone when it finally replaced its trailers with a 23,000-square-foot campus, including worship space, the reopening of its preschool, a mikvah, and swimming

HOME & GARDEN

Closets, pantries, garages, offices and more!

BEST OF JEWISH ATLANTA

North Fulton synagogue Congregation Dor Tamid celebrates Purim: Adeline, Dylan, Nathan, and Evan Young with cousins Sadie, Rachel and Jacob Harris.

pool. Called Rashi’s campus, it is named connected to the Dor Tamid community, in memory of Minkowicz’s wife, who where she in turn shares her love of Isdied in 2014. rael.

In addition to Kehillat Chaim and “I teach our students at CDT to supChabad, other well-established syna- port and love Israel and understand that gogues in the North Fulton area include Israel is their second home. It is our duty Reform congregation Temple Beth Tik- to protect Israel in any way we can. Every vah in Roswell, Conservative congrega- Sunday we end the day with ‘Hatikvah,’ tion Gesher L’Torah, and tears come down in Alpharetta, and my face every time,” Congregation Dor Tashe said. mid, a Reform synaFor the younggogue in Johns Creek. est Jewish children in Molly Peled, eduNorth Fulton, PJ Lication director for brary Connectors is a Dor Tamid, was born program for infants to in the U.S, but her 7-year olds funded by family made aliyah to the Jewish Federation Israel when she was of Greater Atlanta. It 10. She returned to the is very active in the U.S. eight years ago area thanks to orgafor husband Sharon’s nizers such as Abbey tech job. Their chilAdler. Since its start dren are Maya, Omri just 1 ½ years ago, and Itai, ages 6, 12 and Adler has led a num14. The family first lober of well-attended cated to Dunwoody holiday-themed Stacy Lampert, who lives and sells where the two oldest events, including one homes in North Fulton, believes the attended The Epstein called Jump into Shabarea maintains a community feel.

School.

Then they bat at a local trampomoved to their current neighborhood in line park, as well as a monthly sing-along Alpharetta near Johns Creek to take ad- with the senior residents at The Cohen vantage of the good public schools and Home in Alpharetta. join an estimated 15,000 Israelis who live “It has been very rewarding to have in North Fulton. an impact in the [North Fulton] commuAlthough Peled laments that many nity and watch the friendships, knowlof her fellow Israelis aren’t accustomed edge, and love of Judaism grow,” she to joining synagogues, she feels very said. ■

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ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 17

HOME & GARDEN

Gardening Tips from a Couple of Green Thumbs

By Eddie Samuels Growing up in Ohio, Judy Lipis’ parents always kept a well-stocked vegetable garden. So when it came time for her and husband Allen to buy their first home, it was only natural to start a garden of her own.

“I’ve always loved vegetable gardening,” she said. “I still, to this day, will not eat a store-bought tomato, because I’ve been so spoiled by being outside and picking mine right off the vine, rinsing it and eating it.”

Now 50 years after that garden in the couple’s first home together, the two veteran gardeners shared some of their tips and tricks with the AJT. “I usually start the year in January by taking a soil sample and sending it off to the Dekalb County Extension Office,” Judy said.

The office works with the University of Georgia and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide useful information, advice and soil testing to residents.

“They tell me what I need to add to my soil to supplement it and then I can go ahead and get ready to grow,” she said.

From there, her planting season begins, though, she’s always careful with more delicate tenders, even when it feels like spring outside.

“I never put anything tender in the ground before Easter or Pesach,” she said. “There is always one cold snap right before then that will knock out basil, dill or anything tender.”

And while tenders can present some unique chal-

18 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

Allen and Judy Lipis in their garden.

Judy in front of blooming flowers at their previous home.

lenges, Judy shared her favorite plants for beginners dipping a toe into the world of gardening.

“Tomatoes are easy, but what’s really, really easy are peppers,” she emphasized. “We stuck one chili pepper plant in the ground several years ago that provided enough hot peppers for everybody in the area.”

She also recommended lettuce and cucumbers as other starting points for beginners who reap the fruits — or in this case, vegetables — of their labor.

“We had a zillion cucumbers. I couldn’t give them away fast enough,” she said.

As for plants to stay away from, Judy cautioned that even with a large outdoor space in her previous house, corn was one that she stayed away from.

“It was the only thing I didn’t grow that I thought

about,” she said. “It’s just not worth it. You only get two or three or four ears a year from it, and that’s just not a good use of space.”

One thing Judy said to be cautious of is wild (or not so wild) life in the area.

“We live in a neighborhood with a lot of cats, and that means sometimes they want to use my vegetable garden as a litter box,” she said. “Last year I grew only plants like tomatoes and cucumbers because they tore up where I had carrots, lettuce and radishes.”

Raised boxes, if space permits, were also on Judy’s list of tips. She explained that they were helpful both in terms of not having to bend down as far and also with the vegetables’ growth.

“Where we are in the Northeast part of the city the soil is primarily red clay,” she said. “Unless you have a raised garden or really well amended soil, you’re going to get the weirdest looking carrots because they have to grow around the chunks of clay.”

She also advises those just starting out to rotate crops from year to year in each area, and complete extensive research before their first year gardening, which will create less work down the line.

“The first time should take a good amount of research because figuring out how much sunlight you get can really have a big impact on what you can get to grow,” she said.

As for why she gardens, Judy explained that the quality cannot be matched.

“I like to eat,” she joked. “But I really prefer my food to be clean and organic, so gardening really is an automatic thing for me. It’s what I love to do every year.

Here are Allen’s top 10 tips for future green thumbs: 1. Put tall bushes near the back of the yard to give more privacy.

2. Build garden boxes to hold the soil.

3. Use metal supports for tomatoes and peppers.

4. Buy top soil to mix with Georgia red clay to allow for better vegetable gardens.

5. Don’t plant in a straight row, but plant in clusters for a grander display.

6. Plant bulbs in the winter or early spring.

7. Japanese maple trees are beautiful and colorful in the fall.

8. Plant lots of herbs to use in the kitchen, such as rosemary and parsley.

9. Chimes hanging somewhere will make the garden sound lovely.

10. Label your plants so you know and can explain what you have to others. ■

HOME & GARDEN

Make Your Closets Look Like ‘Eye Candy’ and Rainbows

By Marcia Caller Jaffe

too much of a coincidence, so we ended up meeting up for coffee. Four hours later, we were business partners. That same night, we came up with our company name (The Home Edit), designed our logo, bought our domain, and registered our LLC. Organizers are nothing if not efficient. Looking back, it’s probably illadvised to essentially get married after a matter of hours, but when it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.

Millennials are gushing, for good reason, over “designing Jewish women” Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin, who wrote “The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals.”

Riding on the crest of the wave promulgated by Marie Kondo’s popular Asian style KonMari organization and storage solutions, “The Home Edit” authors were to appear April 11 Jaffe: How did at the Marcus JCC. growing up JewThe Instagram ish affect your enstars have the ergy? winning formula Shearer: I because the book don’t want to cais easy to read ter to stereotypes and use. Open by any means, but any page and get a being raised by a function, solution, Jewish mother (Rophoto and sumberta) definitely mary. bred my tendency The dreaded for detail. There’s junk drawer, hansomething to be dling the emotion said about that, of getting rid of but in the best way things, labeling, possible. the utility room, dealing with kids’ Jaffe: Did the clutter are all covinitial buzz about ered in 247 magaMarie Kondo zine-like pages. somehow lay the So how did Joanna Teplin and Clea Shearer became groundwork for two Nashville business partners soon after meeting and what you created? moms make the realizing their common backgrounds and goals.

Teplin: Orleap to organizing stars’ homes such as Gwyneth Paltrow ganization has definitely been growing and Mandy Moore? You can view their buzz over the past few years, and we couldn’t be more thrilled. It allows us to spaces in the book.

The book flap description delivers showcase our passion and change peowhat’s inside: “It’s like having your best ple’s mindset about what it takes to crefriend at your side to help turn the chaos ate and maintain an edited space. into calm, … a master class and lookbook Jaffe: Expound on your organizain one.”

This is a signature approach to de- tional “code” ROYGBIV? Shearer: ROYGBIV stands for red, cluttering. And how does one organize “Jewish stuff?” Find out what Shearer orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and and Teplin have to say: violet — aka the rainbow. We don’t use this method of color-coding just because Jaffe: Connect the dots … How did it looks aesthetically pleasing. It also haptwo women from Tennessee get together pens to be a pattern that our brains inand make this leap? nately recognize and helps us make sense Shearer: When I first moved to Nash- of where things belong. ville from LA in 2015, I knew absolutely no one except my husband and my two Jaffe: Your demographic is women kids. I ended up meeting a new friend on 25 to 40?

Instagram (Yes, I know!) named Leah and Teplin: We definitely consider our we quickly decided to get breakfast to- demographic to be women from 25 to 40, gether. As we talked, she mentioned that but at the same time, an organized home she had a friend named Joanna who, like is beneficial for any age group or genme, was new to Nashville from Califor- der. We strive to change the way people nia, has two kids, a husband in the music think about organizing and show how industry, is Jewish, and wants to start an when you have a system in place, an eforganizing company, too. It seemed like ficient and aesthetically pleasing space

is attainable for anyone. But we’ll admit that our demographic is a direct result of using Instagram as the perfect tool to visually explain, share and promote our exact kind of business. We were the first to really use social media as a strong tool to grow our business and quickly came to realize that pictures of beautifully organized spaces seem to elicit a visceral sense of calm. When Instagram stories came along, which documents our “surviving not thriving” lives as moms, business owners, etc., it gives us a chance to show a clear, honest contrast from our beautifully curated Instagram feed.

Teplin: Our rule of thumb is that you can have the item or you can have the space, but you can’t have both. For sentimental items, it comes down to how important it really is to you. For instance, there may be a difference between your grandmother’s china and a piece of artwork your preschooler made you at school. It’s okay to hold onto things that are sentimental, as long as it’s not taking up your everyday living space. If it is, then it’s time to make the decision about whether it should be donated, tossed, or stored elsewhere. It’s okay to get rid of things that no longer serve you.

Jaffe: Balance aesthetic versus Jaffe: How organized, you are can we do cardio each other’s right by getting orgaand left brains? nized?

Teplin: I am Shearer: One the function; Clea of the biggest mistakes people make is the form. We balwhen organizing ance each other in is stopping and terms of style and restarting a projutility, especially ect. It’s how peobecause we both “The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing ple tend to lose believe in how and Realizing Your House Goals” is the interest and confiimportant being work of “designing Jewish women” and dence —and then organized is for a Instagram stars Teplin and Shearer. give up altogether. home to operate efThe key to success is just keep moving. By fectively and efficiently, and how crucial the end of it, you’ll have an edited space it is for peace of mind. We also keep each you are proud of, and because of the calo- other in line. Whenever I get frustrated, ries you burned by moving and purging Clea yells at me. If Clea starts getting disitems, you’ll have an excuse to pour that tracted, I yell at her. You know, just your extra glass of champagne or handful of typical business partners! candy.

Jaffe: In your wildest dreams: Jaffe: What do you mean by “an exShearer: We’re excited to finally tra layer of pixie dust?” share that we will be launching an excluShearer: We believe that organizing sive collection of products we designed spaces shouldn’t just be about putting with iDesign, which will be available things in their place. Nor should it just ONLY at The Container Store in May! be about how the space looks. The magic happens where form meets function, Jaffe: Have you even been to Atlanta when spaces are efficient, user-friendly, before? How would you describe our and aesthetically pleasing all at once. The vibe? extra layer of pixie dust, such as colorTeplin: We love Atlanta, and always coding in ROYGBIV and labeling in our look forward to going to AmericasMart signature script, not only makes sections together. It’s similar to Nashville with its of the home more enjoyable to look at, friendly vibe, delicious food, and beautibut we’ve also found that it inspires peo- ful neighborhoods. So we feel at home ple to maintain their organized spaces, there! ■ which is the whole point!

Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin were to Jaffe: What lessons can we learn talk and sign their book 7:30 p.m. April 11 at about letting go of emotionally attached the MJCCA. things that take up space?

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 19

HOME & GARDEN

Learn from the Pros: Do-it-Yourself Home Ideas and Projects

By Eddie Samuels Home design and décor can be daunting tasks for even the handiest people. Luckily, Atlanta has some well-versed professionals who know where to start. A few of Jewish Atlanta’s favorites spoke to the AJT and shared their do-it-yourself tips and tricks, as well as what to watch out for when taking your home into your own hands.

Kitchen Fronts' refinished cabinets, before (left) and after.

Allan Apple

Kitchen Fronts of Georgia’s Allan Apple unsurprisingly focused much of his advice on what one can do in their kitchen to liven up their home. He explained that the current trend was shifting away from darker colors and toward white cabinetry.

“If people are happy with the layout of their kitchen, the best bang for the buck is refaced new doors and changing cabinet colors,” he said. “White is definitely the most popular, but gray and blue are also big trends.”

When someone is looking to modify their cabinets, he explained that often changing the door can result in a totally new look.

“Hidden hinges are really popular, and things like rollouts or self-closing doors

TAKING AN ORDINARY SPACE AND CREATING EXTRAORDINARY PLACES THROUGHOUT THE SOUTHEAST BEST OF JEWISH ATLANTA

are all things that can be done to existing cabinets, they’re not limited to new cabinets,” Apple said.

He also added that having a process for seeking out supplies and help with your renovations and refurnishing was important.

“Make sure you get more than one quote,” he said. “Look at the structure of the cabinets. Doing a refacing is the best way to update your cabinets without a high cost, because when you rip everything out, you’re often locking yourself into redoing your countertops as well.”

A crucial piece of advice Apple shared from his experience in the industry is working with a reputable business.

“Deal with a company that stands behind their work and that’s going to be around in five or 10 years,” he said. “You need someone that can deal with a problem if it comes up. Find someone who is in the business. It’s more important what happens after you’ve paid for the kitchen than before.”

Rick Moore

Few are better versed in the world of closet design than Rick Moore of Atlanta Custom Closets. In discussing his thoughts with the AJT, he cited the importance of a well puttogether closet space.

“What’s done by the builder tends to be very rudimentary so there isn’t often a lot to work with,” he said. “We try to make sure, as the saying goes, ‘A place for everything and everything in its place.’ Without a good closet, it’s difficult to stay organized.”

He added that the closet is often the last place people get to when considering sweeping changes to their home.

“It’s often put on the back burner and left there,” he said. “People are busy with work and family. You would not believe how many times someone has been in a home for 15 years and are just getting around to their closet.”

Moore explained that while he occasionally sees well done DIY closets with good storage space and elegant designs, there are costs associated with spacing it out and doing it yourself.

“People often piecemeal their closet, so they’ll get some hanging shelves here and there, and some clip-on units, but the cost can really add up over time,” he said. “Before you know it, you’re spending close to or more than what a professional would cost to redesign your closet.”

He explained that the piecemeal approach, with the right design instincts, can work out, but can also lead to an expensive and disjointed process, and so approaching it with an idea of what the needs are is a big first step.

Julie Rotenstreich

Julie Rotenstreich | 750 Glengate Place, Atlanta, GA 30328 404.641.0521 | julieroto@jmrinterior.com 20 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

A good plan is key for Julie Rotenstreich of JMR Interiors, and the first question she asks is: Is it just one room, is it the whole house or something in between?

“Start by taking the room down to nothing, so it’s just an open space, and then build it up from there,” she said. “The room is a canvas and you can define it to fit your vision. Is this the space everyone hangs out? Is this a family room?”

In terms of cost-effective changes, Rotenstreich always recommends painting as a good starting point.

“Paint is always an easy, inexpensive way to make a room more current,” she said.

HOME & GARDEN “Painting trim and doors is an easy thing that you can do at home.”

For those looking to do it themselves, Rotenstreich recommends learning by watching YouTube videos and speaking with those who have more experience.

“YouTube really is a great source for finding out how people are doing things on their own,” she said. “There are steps and it is a process, so seeing someone else do it first can be a useful guide.”

As for what rooms she recommends starting with, bedrooms and family rooms were her focus.

“A kitchen is a big undertaking and very expensive process that can really be challenging and risky to do yourself,” she said.

Foyers were also on her short list as projects that can be showed off.

“Everyone who comes in the doors sees it, and it can really have a big impact,” she said. “Changing light fixtures or changing wall colors or wallpapers isn’t too difficult.”

An on-trend living room.

Good lighting and exciting cabinets and handles were on Alexis Solomon's short list for DIY kitchen projects.

Contrast and weight were her recommendations when looking to accent a kitchen.

Alexis Solomon

Starting simple with a quick tip for brightening up your room, Alexis Solomon of A+T Interiors emphasized that changing light bulbs can have a huge impact on your creative process.

“I always suggest before painting that you change lightbulbs out for LED bulbs, especially in recessed cans and under-cabinet lighting,” she said. “The light level in your house is so much greater that it can really change the appearance of everything, so before you paint, change those bulbs.”

Her focus was on a time-tested standby of kitchens and bathrooms, areas where she said small changes can make a big difference.

“Using new hardware and light fixtures can have huge impact,” she said. “Think about things that will provide interest or shine, things that will contrast with what’s going on. Instead of the tiny little light fixtures of the 90s, bring in something with a little weight to it.”

She also focused on greenery as a way to brighten up a room.

“Adding plants is a really big thing, and people are scared because they don’t want to kill the plants,” she said. “They don’t cost that much and if you just throw one or two in, you learn how to handle it and can always get another. They just make a space feel bright and healthy.”

Another area plants can be useful is in the entryway of a home, another focus for Solomon.

“Consider the entrance to your house,” she emphasized. “A lot of times that means front doors, which are not inexpensive things, but a lot of houses have really old doors that make the entrance feel dead.”

As for what to change for those older entrances, flowers, a good mat and wellplaced sconces can do a lot to brighten the entrance.

“Make sure to carry that atmosphere into the foyer as well,” she said. “A lot of people forget about the entrance because they spend a bunch of money on kitchens and bathrooms, and it can get lost in the shuffle.”

She also said that even if someone is dead set on a DIY approach, it can be beneficial to speak to a designer and get their thoughts with the planning process. ■ ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 21

CALENDAR FRIDAY, APRIL 12

Shabbat, Me & Rabbi G @ the JCC – Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Atlanta, from 5 to 6 p.m. Activities and crafts followed by songs and blessings with Rabbi Brian Glusman concluding with a visit from the popular “Weinstein School Shabbat Dinosaur.” Challah and grape juice will be served. Free and open to everyone. For more information and to RSVP, www.bit.ly/2BwiaoZ.

Acoustic Shabbat Café – Dunwoody – Alon’s Bakery & Market, 4505 Ashford Dunwoody Road, Atlanta, from 7 to 9 p.m. Join Rabbi Brian Glusman, Drew Cohen and teen musicians from The Weber School for an evening of music and Shabbat prayers. Food and wine available for purchase. This interactive Shabbat themed experience is sponsored by Atlanta Jewish Music Festival and The Weber School. Free. For more information, www.bit.ly/2nVTxbJ.

Friday Night Live – Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Atlanta, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Shearith Israel’s monthly, spirited, song-filled Friday evening Service followed by a lovely oneg and socializing. It’s a wonderful way to welcome Shabbat.

CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES Metzora: Friday, April 12, 2019, light candles at 7:48 p.m.

Saturday, April 13, 2019, Shabbat ends at 8:45 p.m.

that you can do using items you have around the house. By summer’s end you’ll be a regular Houdini. Free for members, regular admission for nonmembers. For more information, www. bit.ly/2FRA3yP.

Pesach: Friday, April 19, 2019, light candles at 7:54 p.m.

Saturday, April 20, 2019, Shabbat ends at 8:51 p.m.

Sunday, April 21, 2019, Yontiff ends at 8:52 p.m.

Free. For more information, www.bit. ly/2Gp5SRI.

SUNDAY, APRIL 14

The Classic Film Club - “The Music Room”– Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Atlanta, from 1 to 3 p.m. Ever wanted to know what goes into the films you watch? Join the monthly film club! This season, it’ll be watching classics from around the world and discussing the techniques and themes that went into producing them. Free for members, $5 for the community. For more information, www.atlantajcc.org.

SATURDAY, APRIL 13

Casino Night – Congregation Dor Tamid, 11165 Parsons Road, Johns Creek, from 7:30 to 10 p.m. Food, fun and fundraising. Cash Bar. Babysitting available.

Free. To register, www.bit.ly/2FOxsWu.

Tager Music Concert: 9 String Theory – Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Atlanta, from 2 to 4 p.m. Enjoy a Tager Music Series performance at Shearith Israel by 9 String Theory, a duo presenting folk and world music on domra and guitar. For more information, www.bit. ly/2HTur9n.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17

MJCCA Day Camps Summer Tours – Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Atlanta, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Tour MJCCA Day Camps and see where the magic of summer happens. Whether you want to visit camp for the first time or want your children to get reacquainted before the summer starts, a tour with the camp directors is a great opportunity to learn about camp and ask questions.

Please come prepared with comfortable shoes and camp questions. For more information and to register, www.bit.ly/2HRVB0q.

SUNDAY, APRIL 28

Hunger Walk – The Home Depot Backyard, 1 Backyard Way, Atlanta, from 1 to 4 p.m. Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and represent as the Jewish community comes together to end hunger and raise funds for the Atlanta Community Food Bank.

Free. For more information, www.bit. ly/2VcvcNR.

MONDAY, APRIL 15

MONDAY, APRIL 29

Magical Mondays – William Breman

Earth Day @ MJCCA – Marcus JCC,

Jewish Heritage Museum, 1440 Spring St. NW, Atlanta, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

For children ages 6 to 12 years old and their families. Do you want to learn some magic? This summer at The Breman you’ll have your chance. Every week a staff member or a visiting guest magician will perform and teach magic

5342 Tilly Mill Road, Atlanta, from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Get your hands dirty during activities and speaking events that will help you appreciate the environment we all share! Activities include container gardening, earth-based art and a plant-based cooking class. $25 for members, $30 for the community. ■

Find more events and submit items for our online and print calendars at:

www.atlantajewishconnector.com

Calendar sponsored by the Atlanta Jewish Connector, an initiative of the AJT. In order to be considered for the print edition, please submit events two weeks in advance. Contact community relations director, Jen Evans, for more information at jen@atljewishtimes.com.

22 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

Happy Passover COMMUNITY SEDERS: FRIDAY, APRIL 12

Women’s Seder – Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs, from 12 to 2:30 p.m. This Women’s Seder will consist of all the symbolic seder foods plus dessert. The ritual itself follows the format of the regular Passover seder, with discussions centered around women’s issues and food as part of the celebration.

Free. For more information, www.bit.ly/2UcafFz.

SUNDAY, APRIL 14

Congregation B’nai Torah Men’s Passover Seder – Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway NE, Sandy Springs, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Join the Brotherhood of B’nai Torah for a steak dinner and premium cocktails in celebration of Passover. Vegetarian option available. Raffle tickets will be sold. $54 per person.

Contact stephenkardon@gmail.com with questions.

TUESDAY, APRIL 16

Congregation B’nai Torah Women’s Passover Seder – Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway NE, Sandy Springs, from 7 to 9 p.m. Join the Sisterhood of B’nai Torah for an exploration of the true meaning of the Feast of Freedom, by women for women. Seder includes appetizers, dinner, dessert and drinks. $18 per person, women ages 12 to 21, free. Contact sisterhood@bnaitorah.org with questions.

FRIDAY, APRIL 19

First Night Passover Seder – Congregation Etz Chaim, 1190 Indian Hills Parkway

APRIL 12-29

at an inspirational seder complete with original hand baked shmurah matzah, four cups of kosher wine, and a gourmet Passover dinner. $50 per adult. $25 per child.

For more information and to register, www.chabadnf.org.

SATURDAY, APRIL 20

Community Passover Seder – Congregation B’nai Israel, 1633 GA-54, Jonesboro, from 5 to 8 p.m. Enjoy an interactive seder, buffet-style meal catered by Broadway Diner, festive songs and stories, and much more. $30 for CBI members, $40 for nonmembers and $20 for children 10 and younger. For reservations, www.bit.ly/2UdUvTc.

Passover Second Night Seder – Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Atlanta, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Read the haggadah with Rabbi Sam [Shabman Trief] and enjoy a family style meal. Families, singles and couples are welcome to attend this intergenerational, congregation-wide event. For pricing and more information, www.bit. ly/2FtpVLk. TKC Family Passover Seder – Temple Kehillat Chaim, 1145 Green St., Roswell, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Join Rabbi Jason Holtz and his family for the second night of Passover. Join them for music, games, arts and crafts, storytelling and a delicious dinner. Special youth programming by ISJL [Institute of Southern Jewish Life] fellow Hannah Klegon. For pricing and more information, www.kehillatchaim.org/ passover-seder.

2nd Night Seder – Temple Emanu-El, 1580 Spalding Drive, Atlanta, from 6 to 9 p.m. Led by its clergy and open to the public. $25 for children 13 and younger, $35 for adults. For more information and to register, www.bit.ly/2FBZep5.

NE, Marietta, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. First night seder led by Rabbi Daniel and Amy Dorsch. Open to the community. $36 per adult 21 and older, $24 for ages 13 to 20, $18 per child and $18 additional per family, for non-synagogue members. For questions, contact Marty Gilbert at mgilbert@etzchaim.net or call 770-973-0137. To register, www.bit.ly/2TWqg2Z.

Temple Beth Tikvah Community Seder – Temple Beth Tikvah, 9955 Cole-

Annual Seder Led by Rabbi Lebow – Temple Kol Emeth, 1415 Old Canton Road, Marietta, from 6 to 8 p.m. This interactive seder will have you singing, praying and laughing with all your TKE friends. Dogwood Catering will have all your favorite Pesach dishes to enjoy. $40 per adult. For more information, www.bit.ly/2OFpZvH.

Second Seder – Shaarei Shamayim – Congregation Shaarei Shamayim, 1600 Mt.

Community Seder – Congregation Bet Haverim, 2074 LaVista Road, Atlanta, from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Join CBH on the first night of Pesach as it gathers for its community seder. All are invited but encouraged to reserve a seat, as they fill up quickly and seats are limited. To register, www.bit.ly/2CEslpM.

40s Plus Passover Seder – Chabad Intown On The BeltLine, 730 Ponce De Leon Place NE, Atlanta, from 7:15 to 11 p.m. If you are unmarried and like fine wine, this seder is for you. $50 per person includes dinner, drinks, matzah and all the haroset you can eat. A minimum of 40 reservations are needed to conduct this seder. For more information and to register, www.chabadintown.org/40s-passover-seder.

Community Passover Seder – Chabad of North Fulton, 10180 Jones Bridge Road, Alpharetta, from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Enjoy the Holiday of Freedom with your family

man Road, Roswell, from 6 to 9 p.m. Participate in the retelling of the Exodus from Egyptian slavery, through readings and songs from the haggadah. A kosher farmto-table Passover meal will be served. For pricing and more information, www.bit. ly/2U9xccG. Mariah Road NE, Atlanta, from 7:15 to 11 p.m. Seder will begin immediately after the service. $32 per adult, $18 per child. For more information, www.bit.ly/2uIPjHM.

TUESDAY, APRIL 23

HAMSA Sober Seder – Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Atlanta, from 7 to 9 p.m.

Anyone in recovery, people who support them and their allies are invited for the festive meal, friendship and celebration. $10 per person, which includes a full seder including dinner and dessert. To register, www.bit.ly/2U6J0wc.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24

9th Annual Hunger Seder – Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave. NW, Atlanta, from 6 to 9:30 p.m. This year’s theme is “Hunger, Nutrition and Health.” During the meal you will hear stories about hunger in the Atlanta community and learn more about becoming an advocate for change. $36 per person includes a fully catered, kosher meal. To register, www.bit.ly/2UeP6dS. ■

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 23

ARTS

Jews on Set

Pen 15 Makes Teen Awkwardness Look Hilarious

By Patrice Worthy

selves, Maya Ishii-Peters and Anna Kone, have also been applauded for handling It has all the makings of a pre-pu- delicate subject matter with humor. At SCAD aTVfest in bescent hell. The Atlanta two months first period, the first ago, the three talked crush, social anxiabout the popularity ety, bullying. Only of the show. it’s happening to Zvibleman said two adults. the roles were excitPen 15, Hulu’s ing for both Erskine latest series co-creand Konkle. ated and executive“What we keep produced by Sam realizing is it’s much Zvibleman, Maya easier to laugh with Erskine and Anna adults playing midKonkle, has been dle schoolers and lauded as genius going through these and intelligent. The experiences, than show aired Feb. 8 if actual 13-year-old and garnered a cult girls went through following that finds getting [their] periits portrayal of midods for the first time dle school hilarious.

Erskine and Konkle, Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images // Director or an awkward first kiss or being picked who play 13-year-old Sam Zvibleman attends the "Pen15" press versions of them- junket during SCAD aTVfest 2019 in Atlanta. on because of their

24 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

race. … Then it might just be sad,” Zvible- that,” Zvibleman said.

The stage where kids are trying to man said. “And we wanted to be able to laugh at how much of a nightmare it is, figure out who they are and growing into so it made it much easier with grown their adult bodies is great for material, women being able to evoke that.”

Zvibleman admitted. Pen 15 is very honThe name of the show, Pen 15, is based est about the cruelty many young people on a prank in which kids ask someone if show towards one another and he said they’ve heard of the Pen 15 club. If the un- navigating that world is a big part of each suspecting person answers ‘no,’ they are character’s journey. inducted with the word penis written in “I think one of the things I went gigantic letters on their arm or hand in through is being in the cafeteria at school ink. It’s a silly joke, but enough to capture and where you sat determines your hierthe humiliation middle schoolers face on archy. And these characters are at the a daily basis, Zvibledorky table, and man said. in middle school “The show is your mission is to about fitting in and always get to the surviving and havcool table, and that ing your group of could mean throwfriends to get by,” ing away your Zvibleman said. friends, but you “It’s very immanever get there,” ture, which is kind Zvibleman said. of the point. You “But it’s also still would feel embarbeing interested in rassed because you toys, being a kid have the word on and trying to preyour hand. So that tend to be a man, idea of humiliation and that’s a big and prank very part of it.” much sums up the The three theme of the show.” friends came up Zvibleman, with the idea six who grew up in St. years ago and they Louis, said he can wrote the script relate to not quite together.

Zviblefitting in. As a Jew man said writing who comes from 10 episodes in nine a mixed marriage months was a very Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images // Actors (his father is Jewish intense experience Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine and his mother, a when you’re going attend the "Pen15" screening during non-Jew), Zviblethrough it with SCAD aTVfest 2019 at SCADshow. man said he stradclose friends. dled both worlds, especially once he hit “This time last year we just started bar mitzvah age. writing. We wrote it for 10 or 12 weeks.

“What you get is an interesting dy- We wrote it, shot it, edited it and we namic. I went to a middle school with a were done by December. They’re my best fairly large Jewish population. I had my friends, so it was kinda a magical thing, bar mitzvah and I wasn’t fully accepted even when they were fighting like family by the Jewish community, even though I members because there’s a lot of love,” he went to Hebrew school and got bar mitz- said. vahed, and I still was sort of an outsider It wasn’t an easy process and workwith the majority population because I’m ing closely proved trying, but he said the Jewish,” he said. finished product was well worth the effort.

Though there are no characters “It was a lot of long hours and a lot who are explicitly Jewish on the show, of staying up until 3 a.m. working on it.

Maya and Anne’s carpool friend, Sam, Now that it’s out and people are connectis a character influenced by Zvibleman’s ing to it, all the painful memories can dischildhood. He described Sam as “a bit sipate and you can enjoy it,” Zvibleman neurotic.” said, laughing. “Every time we look at “Sam is based on me. He is a little each other we’re like: ‘Oh that got a little more awkward and I sort of exaggerated hairy there.’” ■

The Lowdown I Bet You Didn’t Know …

Lois Reitzes Our readers have enjoyed The Lowdown column we rolled out in 2018 spotlighting local “movers and shakers” – some bent on creativity, empire building, activism and/or just celebrating what it’s like to live the good life. Lean in to hear some off the cuff remarks as to what makes Lois Reitzes tick.

Lois Reitzes is director of arts and cultural programming for WABE-FM 90.1, the National Public Radio affiliate in Atlanta. She began working at the station in 1979 as a music programmer and announcer and was program director from 1992 to 2007. Before that, she pursued graduate studies in musicology at Indiana University in Bloomington.

Weekdays at 11 a.m. she hosts “City Lights,” WABE’s arts and culture program and presents morning music on WABE’s classical stream.

Reitzes serves as commentator and interviewer for WABE’s Atlanta Symphony Orchestra broadcasts and hosts “Spivey Soiree.”

Reitzes’ lighter side touts her favorite philosopher as Mel Brooks and her dreams of Chicago deep dish pizza.

Get to know her better right here.

How did you develop such distinctive and deliberate diction?

I was born with an unusually low voice and register, as was my brother. I had no training in drama, but as a child I was called Tallulah Bankhead [actress known for her husky voice] because of it.

David Foster or Beethoven?

Mozart is my fav composer, if that’s the question.

How would you spend a day off?

I read a lot, now into “Rules of Civility” by Amor Towles. He also wrote “A Gentleman in Moscow.”

You’ve interviewed a lot of famous folks. By whom were you most awestruck?

I have been so privileged. Yo-Yo Ma, Robert Battle (artistic director for Alvin Ailey), film director Barry Jenkins, authors Salman Rushdie and Richard Russo. Locally [director and playwright] Susan Booth and Pearl Cleage.

What’s the best advice you’ve proffered?

Be over-prepared and an especially good listener.

My biggest pet peeve is …

Overall rudeness and humor at someone else’s expense.

My comfort foods are …

Rich chocolate brownies are the perfect food. Non sweets would be Chicago deep dish pizza. Oh, I love gelato. … must be the food of the gods. ■ Reported by Marcia Caller Jaffe

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 25

COMMUNITY

Attendees gather outside of the massive outdoor tent.

The pre-Shabbat sushi social featured drink options, including the signature Jewdriver.

Students play music before Shabbat begins.

Chabad of Tech and State Goes Global with Shabbat 360

By Eddie Samuels

Shabbat 360 brought a global atmosphere to Chabad of Georgia Tech and Georgia State University April 5, uniting diverse students, staff and faculty members for a night of outdoor fun.

Now in its fourth year, the event — formerly Shabbat 250 — attracted increased numbers each year. With 300 in attendance in 2018, this year 360 felt like a fitting goal as a multiple of chai, said Shifra Sharfstein, co-director of Chabad at Downtown Universities.

The theme was around the world (360 degrees) and began with a sushi social featuring pre-event snacks, games, activities and drinks, including the signature Jewdriver. Jewish music was performed by students and a photographer

True to its name, the event brought together about 360 diverse people from the Georgia Tech and Georgia State communities.

gave those in attendance the red-carpet treatment.

Sharfstein, who runs the Chabad with her husband, Rabbi Shlomo Sharfstein, said that the evening attracts more attendees each year than any other program.

Recognized for their chess skills were Dovid Estrin, Dovid Pinson and Ben Vayner

“We invite all the faculty, but it’s mostly undergraduates and graduate students and a few alumni who love the event and can’t help but want to come back,” she said. “The only thing that we all have in common is that we’re Jewish.

Boys and girls participating in the tournament from CMCH were Adiel Livnat, Meir Kornfeld and Sarah Bari.

Chaya Mushka Takes Home the Gold Years ago the students of Chaya Mushka Children’s House asked to participate in the Georgia Independent School Association chess tournament.

That year, they brought home the silver 26 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

trophy. Considering the students had no formal training, the win convinced the school to enlist a chess coach.

Last year, as a result of the coaching, the CMCH students brought back gold

We come from such diverse backgrounds and this year we wanted to celebrate that.”

Shifra also explained the importance of uniting the Georgia State and Georgia Tech communities in one place.

“It gets everyone excited to come together, and the common phrase we hear people say is, ‘I didn’t know you were Jewish,’ to people they know from their classes,” she said. “The goal really is for everyone to feel proud of who they are and that they are a part of this community.”

Following the sushi social kickoff at 6:30 p.m., everyone headed into a massive tent, where there was seating for all and the classic Shabbat traditions were the name of the game, with a candlelighting, challah and a Shabbat meal. ■

CMCH students took away several trophies at the GISA tournament: Ari Bari, Gilad Livnat, Dov Chazanow, Dovid Estrin, Dovid Pinson (front), Moshe Kornfeld (back), Dov Kornfeld, Ephraim Estrin, Ben Vayner, Sholom Sollish, and Malachi Freedman.

for middle school and silver for elementary divisions.

“We knew 2019 would be a rebuilding year given that some of our chess students had graduated,” said Tova Isaacs,

the school’s director of advancement.

Still, at this year’s tournament March 14, the students won the gold for elementary school and bronze for middle school divisions. “We are so proud of our students' hard work and effort!” she said. ■

COMMUNITY

CAMP BLUE RIDGE SPRING OPEN HOUSE Tour Dates: April 7th-12th Between 10:00 am-3:30PM April 24-May 2 Between 10AM-3:30PM Meet the Owners/Directors and Head Counselors Enjoy a tour of our beautiful facility Purchase camp clothing (cash only please)

President & CEO Harley Tabak with The Jewish Tower team members (from left) Gal Fonseca, Lee Pratt, Marianna Fuller and Marla Feld.

Prospective campers, new campers, returnees & their family members are welcome

Jewish HomeLife Adds The Jewish Tower to Family of Services

Location: 355 Playhouse DR. Clayton, GA 30525

After 40 years of sharing the same campus but operating independently, The Jewish Home Tower, also known as The Jewish Tower or simply The Tower, has become part of the Jewish Home Life Communities senior care services. The boards of both nonprofit organizations voted Jan. 30 to approve the arrangement, which became official April 1.

The 200-apartment high-rise shares the same campus as The William Breman Jewish Home.

The Tower provides affordable housing to older adults with low to moderate incomes. Rent is subsidized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for those who meet the qualifications.

As part of Jewish HomeLife, The Tower will continue to offer both HUD-subsidized housing for low income seniors who qualify, as well as market-rate rent for adults ages 62 and older. The Tower will continue to operate as a nonprofit organization under the Jewish HomeLife umbrella.

Following the retirement of The Tower’s first and only executive director, Myron Golub, The Tower board of directors believed the new arrangement made sense given the objectives of the organization and the Jewish community. The board of Jewish HomeLife unanimously agreed to assume ownership and management, enabling the organization to expand its independent living footprint.

Lee Pratt, who has served as the Tower’s occupancy and compliance director, moved into the executive director role as of Jan. 1.

Jewish HomeLife Board Chair Deborah Maslia acknowledged that many in

the community assumed The Tower had always been part of Jewish HomeLife.

“There has often been a misconception that The William Breman Jewish Home managed The Tower, but it has been independently operated since it opened.

For those of us who grew up in Atlanta, The Tower is as much a part of our tradition as The Home, and we have fond memories of visiting relatives over the last 40 years. We are excited to bring this wonderful community into our family.”

Jewish Tower Board Chair Stephen M. Berman, who is also a past chair of Jewish HomeLife, was actively involved when the original Tower board saw a need for a quality housing option for low- and moderate-income seniors. “Our founders had the foresight to locate on a campus where residents could get additional support if ever needed. Our proximity to The William Breman Jewish Home makes it a perfect option to age in place.”

One of the first orders of business after becoming part of Jewish HomeLife is examining the possibility of refurbishing the 40-year-old building.

Pratt is also looking forward to upcoming technology enhancements and additional upgrades that Jewish HomeLife can help provide for the residents. “History shows us that the larger the community, the tighter the support system. This coming together of our resources makes us all stronger.” ■ To learn more about The Jewish Tower, the public is invited to visit during the Resident Art Show this weekend. For more information, contact The Tower at 404-351-3536 or visit www.JewishHomeLife.org.

To schedule your tour, please contact us at campblueridge@gmail.com | 954-665-8686 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 27

COMMUNITY

MJCCA’s Gorsetman Honored with National Leadership Award

By Eddie Samuels Talya Gorsetman, director of the Lisa F. Brill Institute for Jewish Learning at the Marcus JCC, was recognized at the 24th Annual International Melton Directors Conference in Boca Raton.

The Director’s Award for Sustained Growth and Innovation recognized Gorsetman’s guidance at the head of the Brill Institute, Jewish Atlanta’s largest adult education program. It offers classes to more than 450 students at 15 locations, including the MJCCA, several synagogues and Chabads, and day schools.

“It was truly a thrill to receive an award from Melton for innovation and sustainability,” Gorsetman said. “I am blessed to be working in a job that gets

a daily dose of appreciation for what we do.”

The program’s educators include respected scholars, rabbis and educators, and classes are flexible, with a range of daytime and evening options.

“Talya was specifically lauded for the work she has done to sustain the growth of her Melton community of learners

Photo courtesy of the MJCCA // Rabbi Rachel Bovitz presents award to Talya Gorsetman, recognized at an international conference for her commitment to adult Jewish education.

and the innovative ideas she brings to her work,” Rabbi Rachel Bovitz, executive director of the Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning, said in a release.

MJCCA Chief Program Officer Hope Chernak also praised Gorsetman for her passion for education and her awareness of the impact it has on her students.

“She continues to develop new ideas to reach different audiences of Jewish adults and bring them into her learning community,” Chernak said in the release.

“Talya and her staff provide the community with exciting courses taught by gifted teachers.”

Gorsetman very proudly explained how education at the Brill Institute enhances its students’ connection to Judaism.

“Ninety-nine percent of our students reported that their identification with Jewish traditions, values, ideas and experiences has been enhanced by the classes they take with us,” Gorsetman said. “Our students are constantly sharing with us how committed they have become to Jewish education through text study.” ■

Schlesinger Wins ‘Marketer for Good’ Award

By Eddie Samuels Heather Schlesinger, chief marketing officer of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, was recognized by the American

28 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

Marketing Association’s “Marketer For Good” award at its 62nd annual ceremony on March 21 at The Fairmont in Atlanta.

The food bank, which was founded in 1979, is among the largest hunger re-

Schlesinger has launched several lief organizations in the Southeast. Now celebrating its 40th birthday, more than “Day of Service” events, including Sum61 million meals were distributed to fam- mer Dish, Noche Buena Dish, and Lawilies in metro Atlanta and North Georgia. makers’ Dish, which invite leaders from Schlesinger is a native Atlantan and different communities to come together a member of Congregation Beth Shalom and serve.

While she was the one recognized, in Duwnoody and Shalom b’Harim in Dahlonega. She has been with the food she was sure to share the praise with the 167 food bank coworkers bank for two years and who inspire her. said she was completely “We change lives evcaught off guard by the ery single day with our award. work, and being the per“I actually did not son who gets to lead the even know that I’d been team that educates, adnominated,” she said. “I vocates and markets our am so incredibly honored brand story is incredibly and grateful. … To me it is rewarding,” she said. “I tikkun olam – the entire actually love being out in reason I left corporate the community where I America.” can see the impact of our She added that, as a work.” mother, it was unfathomAs for what to expect able that children in her in the future from the Atlanta community go ACFB, Schlesinger said it hungry, especially when Heather Schlesinger receives was a very exciting time hunger is “completely the Marketer for Good award. for her, citing the food solvable.”

With 7-year-old twins, she said that bank’s new campus, which will allow just two years ago they would have said triple the volume of food. She also shared that their mother, “‘creates yummy food her team’s newest project, “The Hunger like milkshakes and fries and does those Monster.”

“It is a wonderful animation project TV commercials with the songs.’”

But today, her children see her work that we have been working on for over a year and a half with two amazing agena little differently.

“They will tell you that, ‘Mommy cies: Awesome Inc. and 22squared,” she feeds children just like us that do not said. “They both donated their time and have food to eat,’” she said. “When I got resources. … The villain in the animated home from the award ceremony and they campaign is a monster called Hun Ger saw my ‘trophy’ as they call it, it showed and we are excited to share this campaign with the community!” ■ that their mommy’s work mattered.”

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Engagement

Goldman – Darwin Elizabeth Anna Goldman of Jacksonville, Fla., will marry Grant Ryan Darwin of Scotch Plains, N.J. on Saturday, April 13, 2019, at the Omni Amelia Island Plantation Resort in Fernandina Beach.

Rabbi Joel Abraham of Temple Sholom in Scotch Plains will officiate.

The bride, 28, is the daughter of Diane Datz Goldman and Nathan Goldman of Jacksonville. She is the granddaughter of Barbara and Albert Datz and Helen Goldman and the late Joseph Goldman, also of Jacksonville.

Elizabeth is a merchandiser with Lafayette 148, a New York-based women’s fashion company. She is a 2012 graduate of Brandeis University with a Bachelor of Arts in art history, manga cum laude.

Grant, 30, is the son of Jodye Leaf Darwin and Gary Darwin of Scotch Plains. He is the grandson of Florence Leaf and the late Victor Leaf of Atlanta, and Natalie Darwin and the late Sidney Darwin of Plainfield, N.J. Grant is a private equity/mergers & acquisitions associate with Proskauer Rose LLP in New York City. He is a 2011 graduate of Vanderbilt University with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, cum laude. In 2014, he received his law degree, magna cum laude and Order of the Coif, from University of Pennsylvania School of Law. The newlyweds will live in Brooklyn. ■

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COMMUNITY OY VEY! HAVE I GOT A PROBLEM... rked so ge that we’ve wo Dear Rachel, enjoying this sta e ar I d ulating an m ife sti w y tending Newly retired, m nts to the gym, at jau ts, as kf e gruea th br ed ly Leisure ids have replac hard to achieve. kids and grandk n ow t our f-t Bu t-o it! ou d r s to ou recommen classes, and visit schedule. I highly rk wo -5 to r.

9te us let g this r previo eling grind of ou reason for writin brings me to the ich wh h your grandchilg, tc in wa or m to nt cla kids are Don’t you wa ? ay aw r fa so e liv “Why should you tions ?” e intense conversa up dren grow other one of thes an t ye r ey’re te th af e; es se ey u nspiracy, yo My wife and I lock children. It’s a co t ul nt ad wa ur d fo an r ou em e of we love th between us and on sured: Of course as st at Re th s. es ck do ta at tly ching at exac taking turns laun , we think. But wh um , des an liv Gr eir ith th w lved in ve the kids to be more invo ctations? Let’s lea pe t ex n’ g es tin do sit at by th ty? Ba be honest, mean? Carpool du can get away? To we so of t d se en e ek on we d e de for th we’ve en ma and Grandpa e. It sounds like nse. tirement packag re a of h be even more inte uc m ay e m sound lik sibilities that on sp re ds is r an fo gr d em th an ange children jobs only to exch The love for our e. m t for nd ou sta g er in go nd ays, or just Please don’t misu e beach, school pl th to e alps W tri e. , sid rk p pa the ere’s the fli there. Sundays at aling. But then th pe eak ap br ite a qu ve d ha un er so g. Can’t we ice cream togeth ling and babysittin oo we rp e ca ar of s Or . ar be ye any at it used to ready put in so m certainly not wh is r, a se in clo m be sta r to t Ou ars? cision no in our golden ye and regret our de ck ba ok lo ? ily we m ill fa e? W than making a mistak is more important id and done, what sa is l al en wh e becaus Sincerely, Gramps Hi, Gramps, What a dilemma! You sacrificed years of your life to raise your family, and now you want some time off to do the things you never had time for while you were busy working, nurturing your marriage, and guiding your children towards independence.

Jewish Joke of the Week Vive La Difference Mrs. Levy was talking to her neighbor. “Oy vey, my daughter-in-law is just so lazy! She sleeps until after 10 o’clock every single morning! My poor son, Solomon, wakes up at the crack of dawn and has to make his own breakfast. The house she won’t clean; she made my Solomon get her a maid so she wouldn’t have to lift a finger. Then, when he comes home after a long, hard day at work, Solomon has to make dinner because she can’t be bothered even with that!”

The neighbor sighs and asks, “Oy... and how is your daughter?”

“Oh, now my daughter Rivka has an absolute gem of a Jewish husband. He insists my Rivka pamper herself by sleeping late in the morning. He hired help so she shouldn’t have to work so hard, and he even comes home from work and tells her to relax while he takes care of dinner!”

Joke provided by David Minkoff www.awordinyoureye.com 30 | APRIL 12, 2019 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES

The list of activities that overtook your younger years is unending: shopping, paying bills, doctor appointments, babysitting. … Who wouldn’t want a breather?

And yet, your heartstrings are pulled. You want to be an involved parent and grandparent; your love and caring for your family shine through every word of your letter. While you want to be intimately involved with the myriad details of your children’s and grandchildren’s lives, you also want to enjoy some of the privileges that accompany this new stage of life – unhampered. So, what’s a Grandpa to do?

I’m going to suggest a compromise, and perhaps it can work in your situation.

Can you and your wife plan several extended trips per year during which you spend quality time with your family? Perhaps you can even rent an apartment in their city, providing you can handle that financially?

Based on my own experience, may I also suggest the following? Even during these family visits, it can be therapeutic for you and your wife to carve out a little chunk of time for yourselves. Take a walk, read a book, give yourselves a chance to get in touch with your deepest selves so that you don’t completely deplete your reserves while performing grandparent duty.

I think these visits may ultimately shed light on your dilemma. Perhaps, after spending weeks with your family, you and Grandma will want to take the plunge and move closer. The closeness may generate a yearning for more of the same and tearing yourselves away will hurt. Or, it may work the other way. After weeks of “employment” as a full-time Grandma and Grandpa, it may become clear that these segments are the time you can handle, and your hearts may crave solitude and independence.

Follow your heart, my friend. I don’t believe there is a right or wrong way to go on this journey. I think each person is an individual with his or her own strengths, talents, desires, and needs, and he or she must be truthful to him or herself. Because ultimately, if Grandpa and Grandma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.

Best of luck, Grandpa!

Warmly, Atlanta Jewish Times Advice Column Rachel Stein ■ Got a problem? Email Rachel Stein at oyvey@atljewishtimes.com, describing your problem in 250 words or less. We want to hear from you and get helpful suggestions for your situation at the same time!

Yiddish Word of the Week Búbbe and Záyde Búbbe ‫עבאָב‬, (Pron. bóo-beh) grandma / old woman.

From Russian/Polish/Ukrainian, bába, old woman.

Záyde ‫עדייז‬, (pron. zéy-deh) grandpa / old man. Also from Slavic languages e.g. Polish dziadek (jyá-dek).

Two of the best preserved Yiddish words and among the most frequently heard in English are the Búbbe and Záyde. For most Jews elsewhere, notably in Israel, they sound antiquated and foreign. People use mostly terms borrowed from the languages of their native country.

My paternal grandparents were German, and we called them Omama and Opapa (terms of endearment for Oma and Opa). Even my neighborhood friends, most of whose families came from Arabic-speaking countries, called them by those terms.

Increasingly, the modern Hebrew terms for grandparents, sávta ‫( סבתא‬granny) and sába ‫( סבא‬pop). The irony is that these are also loan words from another language - Aramaic.

Having more than one set of terms can sometimes diffuse the argument — the grandparents on one which get to be called Búbbe and Záyde? Especially when the parents come from different linguistic origin.

Búbbe and Záyde are the subject of many Yiddish stories, songs and popular sayings. Example: “If the grandma had a beard, she would have been grandpa.” .‫װאלט זי געװען ַא זײדע‬ ָ ,‫בארד‬ ָ ‫געהאט ַא‬ ַ ‫װאלט‬ ָ ‫באבע‬ ָ ‫אױב די‬ Rabbi Joab Eichenberg-Eilon, PhD, teaches Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic at the Israel Institute of Biblical Studies, eTeacher Group Ltd.

BRAIN FOOD

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8. Zion and Theodore Roosevelt, 55. Kind of insurance e.g.

58. Something to flip 13. 3-D hosp. exam 59. Exam for a budding atty.

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Grace Adler?

18. Adam and Eve’s lack, theoreti65. Dodgers great Pee Wee cally 66. ___ Refaim 19. “Move over” 67. Eavesdropping org.

20. ___ Harabanim (Kosher supervi68. Ultimately arrive sors, often) 69. 1040 IDs 22. CCC divided by C 70. Rank for Gantz: Abbr.

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63-Across 9. “Bleak House” girl 42. Item in a drive 10. Fourth portion read in a Parsha 43. Wail 11. Big name in fashion 44. Use an eye 12. Former baseball commissioner

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Events included a civic observance at the Georgia State Capitol on April 8 with Dr. Leon Bass, a concentration camp liberator; a community observance at Greenwood Cemetery the morning of April 10 sponsored by Eternal Life-Hemshech and the Atlanta Jewish Federation; and a sculpture dedication at the Zachor Holocaust Center that evening.

15 Years Ago//April 9, 2004 ■ Emory University sophomore, 19-year-old Andra London, sang Celine Dion’s “I Surrender” and won the Campus SuperStar competition April 1 sponsored by Hillels of Georgia. In addition to London, judges selected four other finalists: Nicole Boddington, Hakim M.A. Ziyad, Brenton Brown and Han Oh. London’s prizes included $5,000 and performances at both Music Midtown and an Atlanta Falcons game.

■ Jewish Atlanta girls and women got haircuts for a cause. Michelle Heidt, an eighth-grader at Greenfield Hebrew Academy, donated a ponytail of 10 inches to Locks of Love, a national not-for-profit organization for financially disadvantaged children and teens in the U.S. and Canada who lack hair because of alopecia or other medical reasons.

Other donors included Samantha Westheimer, 10; Miriam Sokolow, 11; Esther Sokolow, 9, and Staci Covin, 26.

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■ The Atlanta Jewish Federation Women’s Division honored women who volunteered with the Atlanta Jewish community at the Women of Achievement event April 28 at The Temple. Honorees were from area sisterhoods and Jewish women’s organizations, as well as Federation beneficiary agencies.

50 Years Ago// April 11, 1969 Holocaust remembrance events were held April 8 at the Georgia State Capitol.

■ Mr. and Mrs. Edward R. Weitz of Miami Beach announce the engagement of their daughter, Laurel Ann Weitz, to Malcolm Hugh Ringel, son of Herbert A. Ringel of Atlanta and the late Mrs. Sara F. Ringel.

■ David Schwartz, the humorist, historian and columnist whose weekly report is syndicated by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency to scores of newspapers around the country and ■ Atlantans commemorated the Holocaust with a week of ceremonies and speeches. abroad, has created a 285-page volume of wit and humor.

25 Years Ago// April 15, 1994

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 31

TRIBUTE Cigars and Practical Jokes:

Tribute to a Generous Family Man

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was McDonald's!

A good friend and menAbove all, I learned tor passed away just a few from Sam that family alweeks ago, Sam Werbin. He ways came first, always. was an attorney, judge and Practical jokes, however, real estate investor. He took were a close second. I am his business obligations not sure which was funnier: seriously and was extraorWhen Sam would move one dinarily successful in all of his children’s cars to a of these endeavors. It was, different parking place or however, his personal life, when Jeff, his son-in-law, his family, wife, children Michael A. Morris stumbled upon Sam’s car and grandchildren, that Publisher in long-term parking after gave him reward, satisfaction, enjoyment and as we say, naches. He a flight and moved his car to a differworked to live and he lived for his fam- ent space! One of Sam’s practical jokes ily. Something I suspect we can all learn has withstood the test of time. Sam hid under his daughter Robyn’s bed when from.

Sam was a partner at Blandford & she was a young child for an inordiWerbin. He was also the sole practitioner nate amount of time, just to be a monfor the last 27 years, but never took the ster and scare her and a friend during name of his partner, Jack Blandford, off a sleepover one night. I won’t share the the door. It was Jack that initially hired little girl’s name since she didn’t make it him and taught him the ropes, and even to the bathroom.

On a serious note, Sam passed away though Jack passed away decades ago, Sam wanted to keep his partner’s mem- one day shy of his 72nd birthday and a little over a year ory alive. away from his 50th As judge of the wedding anniversamunicipal court of ry. Sam was the conChamblee, Sam was summate husband. respected and trustHe shared his life ed by virtually all entirely and fully city employees, but with his wife Renee. none as dear to him They traveled toas those in the pogether at least once a lice department. He month over the past had a close relationtwo decades that I ship with its leaders have known them. and chief, but more They enjoyed dintelling, he had a ner together about close personal rela360 days a year tionship with each and operated their and every officer. It businesses about was not uncommon 50 feet away from to see police officers each other. They in his offices asking were inseparable, for advice and counand that is the way cil on everything The late Sam Werbin. he wanted it. Robyn from work issues to and his sons Stuart, a rabbi and attorney personal problems at home.

For me, I will fondly remember in Manhattan, and Ian, a rabbi at Consmoking cigars with Sam, sometimes on gregation Beth Jacob, are close seconds. a deck overlooking trees and a stream, Sam would do anything for his children, and sometimes in a garage, close enough and often did – with and without Reto the entrance so the smoke would waft nee’s blessing and sometimes knowledge. away from the house, but far enough in His patience, generosity and good spirit so that the torrential downpour wouldn’t knew no bounds with his family. leave us soaking and our cigars extinTo Renee, Stuart, Ian and Robyn, guished. We would talk about politics, Sam was their patriarch, their rock, their work, and of course, family. He was a consul and consigliere, but most imporgenerous man to a fault. I wish he would tantly, he was their best friend. I am truly have let me pay for even one dinner dur- grateful to have been part of Sam’s exing the entire time I knew him, even if it tended family. ■

OBITUARIES

Leonard Allen Sedell 91, New Jersey

It is with great sadness that the family of Leonard Allen Sedell announces his passing on April 2, 2019 at the age of 91 after a long and courageous battle with dementia. Leonard was the son of Phillip and Lee Sedell.

He is survived by his devoted wife of 63 years, Miriam Sedell; daughter and sonin-law, Susan and Steve Sadow; son and daughter-in-law, Alan and Karen Sedell; grandchildren: Robert Sadow and fiancée, Jessica Palay, Jonathan and Michelle Sadow, Robyn Sedell and Jason Sedell; and great-grandchildren, Hannah Sadow and Ezra Sadow.

Leonard attended Lincoln High School in Jersey City, N.J. He received his Bachelor of Arts from New York University and his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from NYU College of Dentistry. He was a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi and Alpha Omega fraternities. Leonard interned at the New York Polyclinic Medical School and Hospital. He served in the United States Army and was stationed in Germany during the Korean War. He was passionate about dentistry, loved helping fellow dentists, and founded Endodontic Associates in Englewood, N.J., where he practiced for more than 60 years.

In 1971, Leonard received a special distinction when he was awarded a fellowship in the International College of Dentists. He also served as a trustee of the Bergen County Dental Society and as co-chairman of the postgraduate committee. He was a diplomate of the American Board of Endodontics and a clinical assistant professor of endodontics at the New Jersey College of Medicine and Dentistry.

Leonard was outgoing with a great sense of humor and a true zest for life. He loved sports, children and animals and placed his family above all else. He was an avid golfer and tennis player, a terrific bowler and basketball player in his younger years, and a proud member of Montammy Golf Club in Alpine, N.J. He travelled extensively and was a skilled photographer.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Society or the Atlanta Humane Society. Funeral services were held Thursday, April 4, at Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care. Interment was at Cedar Park Cemetery, Paramus, N.J. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, Atlanta, 770-451-4999. ■

‫זיכרונה‬ ‫לברכה‬ Obituaries in the AJT are written and paid for by the families; contact Managing Publisher Kaylene Ladinsky at kaylene@atljewishtimes.com or 404-883-2130, ext. 100, for details about submission, rates and payments. Death notices, which provide basic details, are free and run as space is available; send submissions to editor@atljewishtimes.com.

ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES APRIL 12, 2019 | 33

CLOSING THOUGHTS The Silver Comet Trail heading to my land of denial upon hearing I did not see the Boy Scout coming. something I would rather not know about.

He ran directly in front of me as I Try it, you may want to join me in this was riding my bike down the Silver Comet peaceful, brilliant, beautiful place.

Trail. By the time I saw him, it was too late Two months ago, I had a complete to move out of the way. I slammed on my shoulder replacement. My surgeon and his brakes, and flew directly over the bike’s hannurse were angels from heaven — kind, dle bars, landing like a rock on my left side, compassionate and intuitive. Remembermy shoulder enduring the bulk of the fall. ing I live in denial, they did not suggest I At the hospital, as I lay writhing in check out the stunning implants which pain, X-rays showed two fractures in my make me the first bionic in my family. No left shoulder. Months later, at a follow up Shaindle worries; I am well on my way to recovery. visit, my doctor informed me I was healing Schmuckler Shaindle’s Shpiel I was, and still am, basking in the light nicely. No surgery required. of the kindnesses extended to my family Speed time along, and not so many years later, I was once again writhing in pain. Many while I was incapacitated. I can tell you, without excepshots later – those who’ve experienced shoulder or knee tion, we ate the most fabulous meals. Respecting my pain know the shots to which I’m referring – I was in- exhaustion, telephone calls were kept short and sweet. formed the shots stopped working because there was no Visits, the same. (I was so drugged, I cannot be held remore space in my shoulder. Really? What does that even sponsible for what I may have inadvertently divulged).

My four girls, my sons-in-love, my 10 grandchildren mean?

I was experiencing the effects of bone on bone. I de- are the pillars of my life. Although my girls are working veloped traumatic arthritic something or other. I could moms, they organized themselves so that each evening one of these four beautiful women would arrive to prebarely hear any words after I heard traumatic.

Here’s my truth: I have a highly developed talent for pare and serve the dinner meal to my hubby and myself,

and a lunch meal for the following day. They cooked and cleaned and loved on us.

I thank the Boy Scout for providing me with yet one more opportunity to remember how blessed and grateful I am, for my family of 18 (chai), who are the wind beneath my wings. ■

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