Atlanta Jewish Times, Vol. XCI No. 16, April 22, 2016

Atlanta VOL. XCI NO. 16

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APRIL 22, 2016 | 14 NISAN 5776

Happy Passover

Celebrate with the wise, wicked, simple and silent INSIDE Remember When ������������������� 4 Israel News ������������������������������ 5 Calendar ����������������������������������� 9 Candle Lighting ���������������������� 9 Opinion ���������������������������������� 10 Passover ���������������������������������20 Education �������������������������������44 Simchas ����������������������������������49 Health & Wellness ��������������� 50 Business ��������������������������������� 53 Obituaries ������������������������������60 Crossword ������������������������������ 61

SOLDIERS’ STORIES The head of Friends of the IDF explains FIDF’s aid to lone soldiers and success in the Southeast. Page 5

HISTORIC CRIME UNESCO takes U.N. bashing of Israel to an extreme by wiping out the Temple Mount’s Jewishness. Page 10

ORGANIC GROWTH A love of the land drives Farmer D (Daron Joffe) to sustainable business growth. Page 53

GOLDEN BOY Harry Golden’s reign at the Carolina Israelite was just part of a remarkable life. Page 55

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TABLE OF CONTENTS are kosher for Passover after all, meaning corn and beans could be on the menu. Page 35

MUSIC & MATZAH

TASTY FUNDRAISER The Tasting piles up good food and good cheer while raising big money for JF&CS’ ZimmermanHorowitz Independent Living Program. Page 18

CREAMY ADDICTION Many people dread the bread of affliction, but Ilana Danneman can’t wait for the perfect excuse to go wild with a particular kosher-for-Passover, perfectfor-matzah cream cheese. Page 20

PASSOVER FLAVORS It might be too late to affect your seder menu, but four pages of recipes from Hadassah and other sources should help fill the eight days of chametz-free eating. Page 22

HOLIDAY TIPS What’s new, what’s exciting, and what should you look out for during Pesach?

The Atlanta Kashruth Commission offers guidance. Page 28

SLICE OF HISTORY A century ago, Irish rebels used the Easter holiday to try to break British rule. It was also Passover, and the king’s top representative in Dublin was Jewish. Page 30

GRITS BLITZ The Conservative rabbinate has ruled that kitniyot, those grainlike legumes,

HUNGER SEDER While we may be a bit obsessed about which foods to eat during Pesach, a special seder April 27 serves as a reminder than many of our neighbors worry about getting any food. Page 39

‘MU ASAPRU’ “Who Knows One?” isn’t always done in English or Hebrew; for some people, Yiddish is still a part of the seder, as are other languages from millennia of Jewish wandering. Page 42

TREE OF LIFE Torah Day School of Atlanta honors Phyllis and Joseph Tate and celebrates 30 years of nurturing the roots of the Orthodox community. Page 44

SPECIAL STAGE The Marcus Jewish Community Center launches the Spotlight Theatre Company, providing an ongoing place for actors with special needs to hone their craft.

Page 57 On the cover: Artist Arthur Szyk, a Polish Jew working in Lodz as World War II approached, created this version of the Four Sons around 1934 for his contemporary, lavish, highly politicized haggadah. In Szyk’s vision, the wicked son is a German Jew who is so assimilated that he sports a Hitler-style mustache, while the wise son is a traditional yeshiva bochur. The simple son is oblivious to the coming storm, while the son who doesn’t know how to ask looks as if he was plucked from a Soviet collective farm. The Szyk haggadah is part of an exhibit of historic and artistic haggadot at Emory’s Pitts Theology Library. More, Page 32

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CENTER OF ATTENTION Derreck Kayongo grabs attention with his personal story and style, but the substance of what he’s doing at the Center for Civil and Human Rights is key. Page 14

City Winery’s Freedom Seder, one of several special pre-Passover events, sweetens the meal with local, national and international performers, including Peter Yarrow and David Broza.

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Shared Spirit is a forum in which readers share their problems. Acting as mediator, I pose the issues to my readers, then print helpful responses. ilemma: My best friend offered me a job as a life coach with her agency. Since my husband lost his job, this position would be a miracle for us. Yet I’m nervous; will my working for her destroy our friendship?

Dear Worried, Take it from me: Bite the bullet and accept your friend’s magnanimous offer. Your concerns are valid and understandable, so allow me to explain my opinion.

I was once in your predicament.

Fresh out of college, I pursued leads in my chosen career of special education. Bright-eyed and filled with rosy dreams, I interviewed and filled out applications, already imagining how I would change lives by reaching out to educationally challenged children. But my dreams began to dissipate as door after door was slammed in my face.

“Come back after you have experience,” I was told by principals with shuttered eyes and plastic smiles. “And good luck to you.”

Yeah. Well.

A few weeks later, my dear friend Debbie and I were talking. I launched into my difficult situation, and Debbie responded with an unexpected offer.

“You know I run a play group in my home during the day, right? I’ve been looking desperately for an assistant. How about …”

An assistant in a play group?

Conflicting emotions roiled within me.

D

Is that why I slaved and lost sleep until I earned my master’s? On the other hand, at least it would put money in my pocket. And it certainly would be

Shared Spirit Moderated By Rachel Stein rachels83@gmail.com

only a temporary step until I could find a real job. As an added advantage, I knew I would enjoy working with my good friend. So really, I asked myself, what could possibly go wrong?

A lot. The salary she offered was a pittance. I wound up doing much of the work she didn’t want to do. My duties included cutting in preparation for projects, staying late when a parent was delayed, cleaning up — yep, you got it: I got stuck with the dirty work.

My resentment bubbled from a simmer to a boil and came to a head one day when Debbie was under the weather. From morning until dismissal, I shouldered the entire brunt of responsibilities on my own. Glancing at my paycheck that week, I expected to see remuneration for my additional efforts, yet my check showed the same amount as usual. This has to be a mistake, I fumed, advancing toward Debbie with fire in my eyes.

“You thought I would give you more?” she chuckled. “Sweetie, if I did that, there would be nothing left for me. I wish I could, but, well.”

I gaped, feeling my eyes widen in disbelief as she threw up her hands helplessly. I knew she was making

Remember When 10 Years Ago April 21, 2006 ■ Temima High School for Girls will use its annual fund­ raising event April 30 to honor Holocaust survivors Pola Arbiser, Cantor Isaac Goodfriend, Benjamin Hirsch and Bert Lewyn. The activities will include speeches by Temima students, a performance by Cantor Goodfriend and a speech by renowned storyteller Rabbi Paysach Krohn. The students and survivors also will interact on Yom HaShoah, April 25.

■ The bat mitzvah ceremony of Sydney Lea Rosenberg of Atlanta, daughter of Mark and Ruth Rosenberg, was held Saturday, March 11, at Temple Emanu-El. 25 Years Ago April 19, 1991 ■ Rabbi Emanuel Feldman, whose convictions and tenacity revived Orthodox Judaism in Atlanta, will be feted on the eve of his retirement at a citywide dinner May 5 at the Wes-

more than double the amount she paid me. I almost walked out on her right then and there. But I inhaled deeply and took myself in hand.

Never do anything in the heat of the moment, I cautioned myself. Allow yourself some time to think and figure out the best way to handle this. There’s more than just a job at stake. She’s your good friend. Are you willing to throw your friendship away?

That evening I called Debbie.

“Can we talk?” I began.

“Sure,” Debbie agreed.

We met at Starbucks, and I explained my expectations and disappointment. Debbie listened and heard me out, and we wound up creating an effective compromise. My salary would be slightly increased, especially on days when I was given increased responsibility. And she agreed to pitch in with some of the work that was getting my goat, including cleaning up together at the end of each day.

Long after our lattes were finished, I felt a warm, soothing feeling lapping at the shores of my soul. It was comforting that Debbie and I had been able to work out our differences, come to a meeting of the minds and retain our friendship. In some ways, we even grew closer.

So go ahead and accept Lori’s proposition. Learn from my experience and sit down with her before you begin. Clarify the job description and salary in writing. And be committed to open communication and preserving your friendship, no matter what.

Wishing you the best of luck in your new job! ■ Suzanne Rubin, special education teacher and certified life coach

tin Peachtree Plaza Hotel. In his 39 years at Congregation Beth Jacob, he has built the shul up from 40 nonpracticing members into a thriving community of 500 observant families that is drawing adherents from around the country.

■ Sara and Robert Franco of Atlanta announce the birth of a daughter, Dena Rae, on Feb. 1.

50 Years Ago April 22, 1966 ■ The issue of whether the Coca-Cola Export Corp. bowed to the Arab boycott of Israel by denying a franchise to Israel’s Temp Soft Drinks Co. was settled when Coca-Cola announced that it had granted a franchise to Abraham Feinberg, a noted Jewish business executive and the president of the Israel Bond Organization, whose associates in the venture will be Israeli citizens. Feinberg first received approval to bottle Coke in Israel in 1949.

■ Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Friedman of Atlanta announce

the engagement of their daughter, Lynn Carol, to Stephen Barry Geller, son of Mr. and Mrs. Milton Geller of Atlanta.

A June 26 wedding is planned.

Atlanta Supplies, FIDF Supports Lone Soldiers

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

T

he annual Atlanta gala dinner of the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces will pay tribute to the Lone Soldiers, those individuals from other countries who volunteer to serve in the IDF. That’s appropriate because Atlanta sends so many Lone Soldiers to Israel, said Maj. Gen. Meir Klifi-Amir, the CEO and national director of FIDF. “As a major general, I salute Atlanta,” Klifi-Amir said during a visit to Atlanta on Wednesday, April 13. “For me, it’s a noble act when those kids decide to leave all that they have and they come to serve as part of the chain of protectors who come to Israel year after year.”

He said those volunteer soldiers understand their own history and that of Israel, which is a tribute to their parents, who never complain about their children leaving to serve in one of the world’s most tense areas. FIDF provides support services to the soldiers and to their families.

For example, FIDF makes arrangements and pays for the Lone Soldiers to fly home for visits. An FIDF-built weekend home for Lone Soldiers offers them a place to go on leave for a bed and meals.

Working with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, FIDF distributes 500-shekel ($130) gift cards at Passover and Rosh Hashanah to Lone Soldiers and regular IDF troops — more than 13,000 soldiers in all.

Some of the Lone Soldiers stay in the army to become commanders, and others make aliyah. But those who complete their service and return to Atlanta and other parts of the United States are crucial as living answers to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement and others who want to the delegitimize Israel, Klifi-Amir said.

“When they come back, I believe they become the best ambassadors not only for Israel, but for the IDF itself.”

FIDF works with more than Lone Soldiers, of course. Klifi-Amir said the

group, the largest support organization for the IDF, touches at least 70,000 soldiers a year. “When we support the soldiers, we are not dealing with Maj. Gen. Meir ammunition, not Klifi-Amir with weapons, not with anything that has any connection with the battlefield or anything that has to do with war,” Klifi-Amir said. “We are taking care only of the soldiers.”

FIDF committed to building all of the morale-boosting support facilities, such as gyms, synagogues and health clinics, when the IDF decided to move eight bases from the center of Israel to the less populated Negev. That was a commitment of $45 million to $50 million, but it was worth it because nothing is more important for the troops than keeping up morale, the general said.

Largely thanks to the leadership of Chairman Garry Sobel and Executive Director Seth Baron, Klifi-Amir said, the Atlanta chapter has grown rapidly the past several years to become one of the strongest of the organization’s 16 U.S. chapters and to raise more than $1 million last year.

For Sobel, part of that heart goes into sponsoring a former Lone Soldier from Kazakhstan through FIDF’s Impact scholarship program. For $4,000 a year, a donor can send a former IDF soldier to college.

Sobel committed to the program after participating in his first FIDF mission to Israel three years ago. During that trip, the organization presented a check for $16 million for the project, and he felt as if he was missing something by not being one of the Impact sponsors.

Now, because he is sponsoring a specific ex-soldier, has gotten to know her and sees her like family.

“That’s an impact. That’s an immediate return,” Sobel said. “That’s where this takes us to a higher level.” ■

What: FIDF Atlanta gala dinner Who: Keynote speaker Col. Richard Kemp, former British commander in Afghanistan Where: InterContinental Buckhead, 3315 Peachtree Road When: 6 p.m. Monday, May 2 Tickets: $250 ($118 for 35 and under); www.fidf.org/ATLGala16 or 678-250-9030

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

ISRAEL NEWS

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ISRAEL NEWS

Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home Preventing hospital infections. Two Israeli companies have partnered to cut the risk of patient infections dramatically in 10 hospitals in the United States, Switzerland and Israel. Hyginex wristbands, sensors and beacons use Atomation’s Internet of Things platform to capture data on staff handwashing and vibrate to remind them before and after patient contact.

First hybrid nuclear imaging. Patients at Haifa’s Rambam Hospital will be the first in the world to enjoy a hybrid nuclear imaging scanner. Doctors can map tissues and bones and identify cancer, heart and kidney diseases, broken bones, infections, and more.

Printed jaw. Doctors at the Poriya hospital near Tiberias treated a patient with a large tumor in the back of his jaw by replacing the damaged part with a titanium copy made using a 3-D printer. The patient started to eat normally only a few hours after his surgery.

Abbas’ brother treated in Israel. The brother of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is being treated for cancer at Tel Aviv’s Assuta Medical Center. Abu Luay, 76, who lives in Qatar, decided to seek treatment at the Tel Aviv hospital, where other members of Abbas’ family have been treated.

Sick lion rescued from Gaza. A lion in declining health was rescued from a zoo in Gaza and transferred to a zoo under Palestinian Authority control in a joint effort by Israel’s Office of the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories and the Gaza and PA agriculture ministries.

A joint farm with Jordan. A model farm is to be established in Jordan, to

be managed by Israeli and Jordanian experts. Its goal is to eradicate the threat that the housefly poses to agriculture on both sides of the Jordan River and to promote advanced and efficient agriculture in Israel and Jordan.

Treating wastewater in Mexico. Herzliya-based Aqwise has opened a wastewater treatment plant in Durango, Mexico. It employs Aqwise’s Attached Growth Airlift Reactor process, which uses biofilm grown on carrier media to aerobically degrade organic pollutants in sewage. Aqwise has built over 400 plants in 35 countries.

Artificially intelligent cybersecurity.

Tel Aviv-based Deep Instinct has filed five patents covering the only technology that applies deep learning to cybersecurity. Deep Instinct is the first company applying deep learning to detect malware in real time. It can therefore detect threats that no one has seen.

Stopping Locky. Many companies and people have paid blackmailers who have used a computer ransomware program called Locky to encrypt data files. But Givatayim-based IronScales blocked an attack on one of Israel’s largest defense companies before an infection could take place.

Waterless carwash. With the new app from Petah Tikva-based startup Bonshine, you can order a waterless car cleaning at any location in Israel. Bonshine’s crew comes to you with a liquid produced from plants and five types of wax. The process saves time, money and environmental resources.

Record numbers travel by rail. March was a record month for passengers on Israel Railways. Some 225,000 Israelis

Israel Photo of the Week Special Delivery

Photo courtesy of Eran Moshe, United Hatzalah

Eran Moshe, a volunteer ambucycle driver and emergency medical technician with United Hatzalah in the Negev city of Netivot, holds his newborn daughter after delivering his sixth child himself early April 13 when his wife unexpectedly went into a quick labor several days before the due date. Moshe was preparing to drive his wife to the hospital, but “at some point we realized that we weren’t going to make it in time. I called for an ambulance and then put all of my energy into helping my wife give birth. By the time the medics got here, the only thing left to do was cut the umbilical cord.” Mother and daughter are healthy after being taken to Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon.

used the railway on an average workday, with a total of 5.4 million rides during the month. The reasons for the increase include more frequent trains, more seats and new stations.

The world’s source for Medjool dates.

Israel exports 30,000 tons of Medjool dates each year —65 percent to 75 percent of all Medjool dates exported globally. Most are grown in the Arava and the Jordan Valley. The Medjool date is becoming more popular because its quality is superior to other varieties.

Wizz from Riga to Tel Aviv. Low-cost airline Wizz Air will operate a new route from Riga, Latvia, to Tel Aviv on Mondays and Fridays starting June 20.

Wizz Air already flies to Tel Aviv from Budapest, Bucharest, Warsaw and Katowice, Prague, Sofia, Vilnius, and Lviv.

Ready to take chance on Israel. Singersongwriter Barry Manilow is set to perform his first concert in Israel on June 30 at the Yad Eliyahu Arena in Tel Aviv.

Judo in Rio. Netanya’s Yarden Gerbi is the world’s top female judoka. She won a gold medal at the 2013 world championships, so she figures to be a contender at the Summer Olympics in Brazil.

Woman’s seal discovered. A 2,500-yearold seal inscribed with the name of Elihana bat Gael in ancient Hebrew letters was unearthed at the City of David in the Jerusalem Walls National Park.

The seal, found in a building from the First Temple period, showed the high legal status of the woman.

Compiled courtesy of verygoodnewsisrael. blogspot.com and other news sources.

JNF Breakfast to Honor Special in Uniform

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

ewish National Fund will honor the director of the Special in Uniform program at the 13th annual Jack Hirsch Memorial Breakfast at The Temple on Thursday, May 12, Yom HaAtzmaut (Israeli Independence Day).

Reserve Lt. Col. Tiran Attia will receive the Cantor Isaac and Betty Goodfriend Community Service Award during the program, which will run from 8 to 9 a.m. Registration will open at 7:30.

Special in Uniform is a new JNF partner that integrates people with disabilities into the Israel Defense Forces, 6 then helps program graduates enter

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the workforce and play meaningful roles in Israeli society.

Attia is a far less controversial speaker than First Baptist Church Atlanta Senior Pastor Charles Stanley, who was scheduled to be one of two honorees last year until pulling out of the event a few days in advance.

The Jack Hirsch breakfast “brings our entire community together to celebrate Israel and the Jewish people,” said Shelley Kaplan, who is chairing the breakfast with husband Scott. “It is especially wonderful to honor and recognize Lt. Col. Attia for the efforts he

and Special in Uniform have made to include and empower those with special needs and disabilities into one of the world’s greatest militaries.”

Attia also will be saluted during the third annual Yom HaAtzmaut celebration luncheon held by JNF Southeast’s women’s division. That event will start at 11 a.m. at Congregation B’nai Torah in Sandy Springs.

The luncheon will provide Sandy Springs, which last year launched a Sister Cities relationship with the Western Galilee Cluster, and JNF, which opened a Western Galilee tourist center in

Akko on March 8, to celebrate their shared connection with the region.

Melissa Bernstein and Roni Wolk are chairing the luncheon.

Tickets for the luncheon are $54.

Women can register by visiting www. jnf.org/about-jnf/events/2016/3rdannual-yom-haatzmaut.html or by contacting Marcy Friedland at mfriedland@jnf.org or 404-236-8990, ext. 852.

The breakfast is free. Registration is open at jnf.org/hirsch2016, or contact JNF Southeast Director Beth Gluck at bgluck@jnf.org or 404-236-8990, ext.

851. ■

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ISRAEL NEWS

Christian Zionists Stand Up for Israel

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hristians United for Israel sold out the 2,500-seat RiverCenter for the Performing Arts in Columbus at $20 a ticket for a Night to Honor Israel on Tuesday night, March 29.

The keynote speaker was televangelist David Jeremiah, the senior pastor of Shadow Mountain Community Church, who made the biblical case for Israel to exist and have U.S. support.

Pastor Jay Bailey of Solid Rock Church in Midland, the regional director of CUFI, served as the host of the event.

Congregation Etz Chaim Rabbi

Shalom Lewis delivered an updated version of his speech warning of the advance of Muslim extremism.

That speech, which gained notoriety through misrepresentation after he first presented it at Rosh Hashanah in 2014, has only gained strength with examples such as the terrorist attacks on Paris in January and November 2015 and the recent bombings in Brussels.

Christian Zionists were set to gather again at CUFI’s Eastern Regional Stand With Israel Forum on Thursday, April 21, at the Church at Chapelhill in Douglasville. ■

C

A

B

D

E Photos courtesy of Solid Rock Church

F

G

A: Rabbi Shalom Lewis of Congregation Etz Chaim shares his dire warning about Muslim extremism with the Christians United for Israel crowd.

B: Pastor Jay Bailey of Solid Rock Church is the CUFI director for Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas.

C: The choir of First Baptist Church Atlanta performs at the Night to Honor Israel.

D: The crowd responds to the message coming from the stage at the RiverCenter in Columbus.

E: Rabbi Brian Glusman from the Marcus Jewish Community Center speaks at the Night to Honor Israel.

F: Ambassador Judith Varnai Shorer, the Israeli consul general to the Southeast, attends the Christian Zionist event in Columbus.

G: The Rev. David Jeremiah delivers the keynote address at the Night to Honor Israel.

Group Aims to Develop Young Pro-Israel Leaders

By Michael A. Morris michael@atljewishtimes.com

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

he Sderot-based Israel Leadership Institute held its first meeting in Georgia recently so founder and Executive Director Eeki Elner could share his vision of a Georgia-Israel Leadership Network.

Hilik Bar, the deputy speaker of the Knesset, was the keynote speaker for the meeting, which drew 60 or so participants.

Hosting the lunch were two prominent Jewish Atlantans, Doug Ross and Jay Davis, and a Christian, Tim Williams.

Williams has worked with Elner for eight years to develop the Israel 8 Leadership Institute of North America,

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Tim Williams discusses his support for Israel and involvement with the Israel Leadership Institute.

which has run programs in Ohio for two years, is beginning to create programs in Alabama and is looking at Georgia for its next growth opportunity.

The ILI trains young Jewish and

Christian leaders, in Israel and America, to combat anti-Semitism; antiZionism; the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement; and the myriad of propaganda the Arab world uses to attack the integrity of Israel and Jews

around the world.

Bar said threats to Israel cut across all lines in Israel, hitting secular, Haredi, Christian, Druze, Bedouin and Muslim Israelis.

In America, he said, BDS is nothing more than a front to delegitimize Israel and to take advantage of a knowledge vacuum on college campuses.

The ILI equips young leaders with knowledge, tools, understanding and commitment to support and defend Israel.

More than 300 young leaders have attended classes and seminars in Ohio.

Elner’s vision for a Georgia chapter would include not only classroomstyle workshops in Georgia, but also one-week trips to Sderot to meet and work with young Israelis. ■

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CALENDAR THURSDAY, APRIL 21

Mikvah dip. The Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah is open for pre-Pesach immersions without appointments from 10 a.m. to noon today and 9 a.m. to noon Friday. For fees, contact MACoM­at immerse@atlantamikvah. org or 404-549-9679.

WISH meeting. Wo/Men’s Infertility Support Havurah talks about donor eggs, sperm and embryos and surrogates during its monthly meeting at 7 p.m. at Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs. Free; RSVP at www.wishatlanta.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 24

Engaging the Christian Bible. Rabbi Thomas Liebschutz at Congregation Ner Tamid, 1349 Old Highway 41, Suite 220, Marietta, addresses “The Christian Apocalypse: How Do Jews Fit In Christian End-Time Scenarios and How Do We Neutralize Missionary Activities?” at 3:30 p.m. To register, email Kristine Goldstein at kgoldstein_4@yahoo.com.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27

Hunger Seder. Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead, plays host to the annual seder at which discussions about hunger in Atlanta are woven into the meal. Admission is $36; RSVP by April 25 to bit. ly/1LEz4eG or 404-355-3848.

to the Six Million at Greenwood Cemetery, 1173 Cascade Circle, Atlanta. Free; eternallifehemshech.org/events/yomhashoah-2016 or 678-222-3700.

Paint time. Hadassah’s Mount Scopus Group holds an afternoon of painting and sipping kosher wine for women and men from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at Sips n Strokes, 3019 North Druid Hills Road, Toco Hills. Admission is $30, with reservations required; friedjmelissa@ gmail.com or 678-372-4452.

Other’s Day. Leslie Greenberg hosts a fun afternoon for kids ages 6 to 15 who lack a mother, a father or both at home, permanently or temporarily, at 2:30 p.m. at the Concourse Athletic Club, 8 Concourse Parkway, Sandy Springs.

Free; RSVP by April 22 to 404-520-0190 or OthersDayRSVP@gmail.com.

Film screening. Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs, shows the documentary “Above and Beyond,” about the founding of Israel’s air force, at 5 p.m. Free; www.or-hadash.org.

Shul birthday. Congregation Bet Haverim, 2074 LaVista Road, Toco Hills, celebrates its 30th anniversary with

CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES

Start of Passover Friday, April 22, light candles at 7:57 p.m.

Saturday, April 23, light candles after 8:55 p.m.

Sunday, April 24, yontif ends at 8:55 p.m.

End of Passover Thursday, April 28, light candles at 8:01 p.m.

Friday, April 29, light candles at 8:02 p.m.

Saturday, April 30, Pesach ends at 9:01 p.m. the presentation of a live, one-time documentary, “In the Beginning,” at 7 p.m., with a champagne reception to follow.

Free, but seating is limited; RSVP at congregationbethaverim.org/cbh30.

MONDAY, MAY 2

gala dinner of the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, honoring lone soldiers, at 6 p.m. at the InterContinental Buckhead, 3315 Peachtree Road. Advance registration for $250 ($118 for those 35 and under) is required; www.fidfse.wix. com/atlgala16 or 678-250-9030.

FIDF gala. British Col. Richard Kemp is the keynote speaker for the Atlanta

Fed Talks. The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta honors former Chairman Marty Kogon with its Lifetime of Achievement Award and hears from JSwipe’s David Yarus, JScreen’s Randy Gold and Focus on a Jewish Tomorrow’s Susan Jackson at 7:30 p.m. at the Buckhead Theatre, 3110 Roswell Road, Buckhead. Tickets, available to 2016 Community Campaign donors, are $36; www.jewishatlanta.org/fedtalks or 678-222-3723 (Kesavi Miller).

Senior Day. The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and Jewish Family & Career Services join the Marcus JCC to sponsor a day of activities at the center for people ages 65 and older from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Each attendee gets to choose three activities and gets a kosher lunch, and transportation is available from eight locations, ranging from Toco Hills to East Cobb. Admission is $5; www.atlantajcc.org/seniorday.

THURSDAY, MAY 5

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

Find more events at atlantajewishtimes.com/events-calendar.

SUNDAY, MAY 1

Community run. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, holds the 23rd annual Harris Jacobs Dream Run 5K road race and 1-mile special-needs walk at 8 a.m. Registration is $30 until April 30 and $35 race day ($15 for those 12 and under and for the special-needs walk); www.atlantajcc.org/HJDR.

Car show. Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs, holds its Kosher Kar Show from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to benefit a homeless shelter project. Entry fee is $18 per car; bit.ly/ kosherkarshow. Admission is free; call Ted Marcus at 404-808-3241 or Paul Flexner at 770-833-0891 for details.

Yom HaShoah. Hungarian Holocaust survivor Robert Ratonyi speaks at 11 a.m. at the annual community Holocaust commemoration at the Memorial

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Blood drive. Jewish War Veterans Post 112, Ahavath Achim Synagogue and the Red Cross hold a citywide blood drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead. Free; reserve a spot at www. redcrossblood.org, sponsor code JWV.

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

Our View

History Rejected

T

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

he U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s Executive Board sent an early Passover present Friday, April 15: a resolution that acknowledges no Jewish connection to the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, or, for good measure, the Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel’s Tomb.

People who know nothing about history — from typical American schoolchildren to anyone educated in Palestinian Authority schools — could be forgiven for thinking Israel has no more connection to Jerusalem than the United States has to the Galapagos.

References to Israel in the UNESCO resolution are followed by “the occupying power.” The Temple Mount is never mentioned; every reference to the holy site uses “Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif.”

UNESCO never calls that massive Herodian structure in the Old City the “Western Wall,” although it does use “Western Wall Plaza” twice as an alternative for Al-Buraq Plaza. Even UNESCO has to admit that “Al-Buraq Plaza” is too obscure for most people.

UNESCO made up for that bit of moderation by condemning Israel for driving the cycle of violence and allowing extremist aggression against Palestinians. Don’t bother looking for any mention of Israeli civilians slain by Arabs.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s response: “This is yet another absurd U.N. decision. UNESCO ignores the unique historic connection of Judaism to the Temple Mount, where the two temples stood for a thousand years and to which every Jew in the world has prayed for thousands of years. The U.N. is rewriting a basic part of human history and has again proven that there is no low to which it will not stoop.”

If anything, Netanyahu didn’t go far enough.

The U.N. agency supposedly dedicated to historic and cultural preservation did more than wipe out thousands of years of Jewish history. It fed into Muslim paranoia and Palestinian lies — the same kind of conspiracy theories and propaganda that sparked the outbreak of Temple Mount rioting and lone-wolf terrorism around the High Holidays.

Israel already was reinforcing troops deployed around the Temple Mount in response to rising tensions with the approach of Passover. The UNESCO resolution, with its charges of Israeli incitement and limitations on Muslim worship (when, in fact, only Jews face a standing ban on Temple Mount worship), seems calculated to inspire further violence.

“Your decision only serves to extend this current wave of terror and will only lead to the deaths of more innocent people,” former Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid, the head of the Yesh Atid party, wrote to UNESCO. “You cannot evade this responsibility.”

We expect no better from UNESCO, whose rec­ ord of anti-Israel obsession stands out from the United Nations’ general bias against the Jewish state.

But we had hoped that recent terrorist attacks would open European eyes to the danger of ignoring reality.

Instead, France, Spain, Sweden, Russia and Slovenia were among the 33 nations voting for the resolution. Only Estonia, Germany, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Britain and the United States voted no.

We supporters of Israel and believers in histori10 cal truth won’t soon forget friends and foes. ■

AJT

Bob Englehart, CagleCartoons.com

The Case for a Smaller Exodus

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Israel from the time they arrived, quite possibly, as he Exodus happened, but probably not with 2 million ex-slaves wandering for 40 years.

Abraham’s story tells us, from Mesopotamia. The University of Georgia professor Richard people who dwelled in Egypt, then returned to the Elliott Friedman made the case for a smaller but still Promised Land were the Levites. They were welcrucial Exodus during a post-service speech Friday comed as kinsmen and, in part because of the lack of night, April 15, at Congregation Shearith Israel. available land, were made the priests and teachers.

If you believe every word of the Torah is literal Over time, as those Levite teachers taught their truth dictated by G-d at Mount Sinai, you probably own story to everyone, all of the tribes accepted it as shouldn’t waste your time with this column. But if their history. The conquest story and the exaggeryou’re willing to entertain scholarly theories that the ated numbers developed as a result.

Torah is a compilation of the work of several writers The textual support for the theory includes: working over several centuries • The two oldest (which doesn’t rule out divine parts of the Bible are guidance), Friedman’s ideas offer the Song of Miriam Editor’s Notebook an exciting possibility for how we and the Song of came to be the Jewish people.

Deborah. The Song

By Michael Jacobs The professor rejects of Miriam doesn’t mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com archaeologically based claims say anything about that the Exodus never happened.

600,000 men, and He acknowledges that 2 million the Song of Deborah Israelites (an estimate based on the Torah’s report of doesn’t mention Levi in recounting the tribes Debomore than 600,000 men leaving Egypt) would have rah rallied for war. left an immense amount of archaeological evidence • The ancient meaning of Levite was an attached over 40 years of wandering. person — an outsider who joins those already there.

But the lack of artifacts doesn’t disprove the Regardless of their ancestor, the people who arrived Exodus. The desert is good at hiding things; Friedfrom Egypt would have been known as Levites beman noted that an Israeli jeep lost in the Sinai in cause that’s who they were in Egypt and Israel — an 1973 was found 50 feet under the sand a few years alien group joining the others but staying distinct. ago. And contrary to anti-Exodus claims, he said, the • Every person in the Torah with a recognizably Sinai has not been subject to thorough excavation.

Egyptian name was a Levite.

The lack of archaeological finds does argue • The portions of the Torah that provided the against the numbers in the Exodus story, but proof details of life in Egypt, emphasized fair treatment for of a smaller Exodus could lie hidden in the desert. A slaves and strangers, and drove home the imporsmaller movement of people fits the archaeology in tance of retelling the Exodus story as if every generation had been redeemed were recorded by Levites.

Egypt, which has strong evidence of Semitic foreignThose new arrivals from Egypt brought crucial ers for 400 years, and in Israel, which lacks evidence elements to pull together the Israelite religion into of a great conquest but does have ample signs of Judaism, including the four-letter name of G-d, Israelite occupation before the 13th century B.C.E. which was unknown to the patriarchs, and those The theory the author of “Who Wrote the commandments the Egyptian-named Moses brought Bible?” presented at Shearith Israel uses the Torah down from Mount Sinai. text to fill in the blanks of the archaeological record.

Just a little something extra to talk about at In short: Most of our ancestors never went your seders. ■ down to Egypt and instead lived continuously in

OPINION

Letter To The Editor

Palestinians Block Peace

Write to Us

The AJT welcomes your opinions.

Letters should be 400 or fewer words; guest columns may be longer. Send submissions to editor@atljewishtimes. com. Include your name, the town you live in, and a phone number for verification. We reserve the right to edit submissions for style and length.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Eugen Schoenfeld is absolutely correct (“Dear Mr. Sanders: A Response on Israel,” April 8). Palestinian intransigence is the main obstacle to finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; it is beyond shameful that the Palestinian leadership claims the Palestinian people have the right to “violently resist the occupation” when the leaders could have settled the matter diplomatically years ago.

The truth is that terrorist attacks on Israel did not begin in 1967. Terrorists were infiltrating from Gaza and the West Bank even when those areas were illegally occupied by Egypt and Jordan from 1948 until the Six-Day War. Yasser Arafat flatly rejected leftwinger Ehud Barak’s proposal for a Palestinian state in all of Gaza and 97 percent of the West Bank, with shared governance in parts of Jerusalem (2000/2001). Mahmoud Abbas did the same when centrist Ehud Olmert made a slightly more generous offer (2008).

Evacuation of all Jewish communities from Gaza (2005), under the government of right-winger Ariel Sharon, did not result in the formation of a Palestinian state but led to thousands of rockets being lobbed at Israeli population centers and tunnels being dug under Israeli communities to facilitate the kidnapping and murder of Jews.

When Benyamin Netanyahu outlined a vision of a demilitarized Palestinian state living peaceably beside the nation-state of the Jews (2013), Abbas’ response was that he would never accept the existence of a Jewish state in the Middle East. Abbas also stated that the signing of a peace treaty would not mark the end of the conflict and that he expected Israel to rehabilitate the third- and fourth-generation descendants of Arabs who fled the 1948 Arabinitiated war against Israel.

Clearly, peace will not come until the Palestinian leadership stops trying to destroy Israel and starts building a future for its people.

— Toby F. Block, Atlanta

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OPINION

Reflections on Our Foundational Holiday

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

he Megillah was read, the hamantaschen were eaten, and some persons, I am sure, followed rabbinic recommendations to imbibe until they did not know the difference between Mordechai and Haman. I hope for those who had a seudah that the banquet was as sumptuous as I and my family enjoyed in Europe.

Back in my shtetl, as a teen, I would have already climbed the stairs to the attic and retrieved the multigallon blue-and-white enameled pessadik pot. Each year this routine marked the beginning of our Passover preparation.

At the vegetable market Mother bought the many pounds of boorakes (red beets), which were peeled, quartered and placed into the big pot to ferment for four weeks and become the stock for the wonderful borsht, a staple for the week of Pesach.

Each day, a part of the house was cleaned, repaired and painted, as though we were to welcome the most important guest of our lives; in

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this instance, it was the holiday of the spring, Pesach.

To me, this holiday — Passover — was and continues to be the most significant commemorative holiday, even more significant than Shabbat. I

One Man’s Opinion

By Eugen Schoenfeld

consider this holiday to be the infrastructure of the Jewish moral system.

It’s the raison d’être because, I believe, it is symbolically the most important event in Jewish history.

Of course, I deviate from the rabbinic perspective, which elevates Shabbat above all holidays.

I also deviate from the perspective held by most Jews that Yom Kippur is the holiest day — the Sabbath of all Sabbaths. Yom Kippur is the only holiday that propels most Jews to attend synagogue, based on a lingering fear associated with human life: that our

life events are determined and sealed on that day.

While Yom Kippur is indeed an awesome and fearful day, it does not have an impact on the moral ideals that affect interpersonal and social life. That impact arises out of our interpretation of the experience of slavery.

Today archaeologists and historians challenge the reality of the Jewish experiences in Egypt as well as the history of the departure from Egypt.

Their argument is that no physical evidence has been found that would support the biblical story.

Be that as it may, even if the Egyptian experience is merely an aggadah — a nation-building legend — the social-psychological dictum still applies to it. If we believe that the experience is real, its consequences are also real.

So what is important, to me at least, are the consequences of that reality: the establishment of a statehood founded on morality. And for that reason I consider Passover to be the most significant holiday.

It is a holiday that commemorates an event that compelled a nation, a people, a religion to establish a socialmoral perspective. No other event in Jewish history (real or not) stresses the memory that we were slaves in Egypt and the resulting necessity to adhere to a worldview based on social equality and justice.

Jews, and for that matter Christians, claim that Shabbat was ordained by G-d as a day of rest because He rested on that day from his labors.

If we accept this view, we continue to perceive G-d in anthropomorphic terms: G-d worked, tired and rested, so we must not only rest, but also must elevate this day and call it holy.

But the Torah itself, on another occasion, attributes the existence of Shabbat not to the creation experience, but to the Egyptian experience.

Deuteronomy 5:12, which repeats the Decalogue, explains the commandment to observe the Shabbat not because G-d rested, but because we remember the inhumanity of the Egyptian slavery.

The Torah states that we shall observe Shabbat, and none of our household should work — us, our children, our female and male slaves, our oxen and donkeys, our cattle, or any stranger in our settlement — so that our slaves may rest as we do.

Why should we do this? “Remember you were slaves in the land of

Egypt, and therefore G-d commanded you to obey the Sabbath day.”

The memory of our own slavery, we are told, should propel us to become a humane people and not to treat others as we were treated as slaves.

Indeed, here we find the roots for our hallowed ideal of the dispensation of justice to all: the brotherhood of mankind under G-d.

Even more important, Passover establishes our moral ideal of tzarbaal-chai, the idea of not causing pain to living things.

Unlike religions that exclude the idea of treating animals with human empathy, Passover, at least as it is stated in the Ten Commandments, clearly ordains that we should treat all living things from a humanistic perspective.

My grandfather, for instance, rose at dawn even on Shabbat. Before he put on his Shabbat clothes — the fur hat and the caftan — he donned his working clothes to carry a washtub full of water with salt and vegetables to the cow, climbed the hay loft and spread hay before her, and performed the most menial task, cleaning the stall. After all, as he put it, “The cow must not suffer just because it is Shabbat.”

If we do all this for a cow, how much more important is it that we treat all human beings from a humanistic, moral perspective, one whose roots lie in our Egyptian experience?

We must learn from the slavery story that all human beings were endowed by the creator with an inalienable right for justice.

But at the same time we must learn that justice is not unidirectional; it is reciprocal. The fundamental essence in human relationships is the principle of reciprocity: Your right is my duty to you, but in turn my right is your duty to me.

It took my parents and grandparents four weeks of preparation for Passover, and most, if not all, of that effort was the physical labor of cleaning and cooking.

But this holiday, if we are to observe it in its totality, also requires that we fully understand its moral meaning.

The Passover experience, at least to the Jewish people, contains the fundamental ideal of morality, so its observance should include a discourse on how the teachings of the holiday should serve as the infrastructure for present-day morality in politics. ■

AJT

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

LOCAL NEWS

Bringing Style to Civil Rights Substance

Kayongo combines a refugee’s story and an entrepreneur’s spirit

By Dave Schechter dschechter@atljewishtimes.com

W

hen you meet Derreck Kayongo for the first time (and every time thereafter), as this tall, 46-year-old native of Uganda smiles and extends the long fingers of his right hand to shake yours, you might eye him from head to toe in amazement.

Kayongo, the chief executive officer of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, has a unique sartorial style, as members of the Jewish community have seen recently at such events as Am Yisrael Chai’s Daffodil Dash and City Winery’s Freedom Seder.

Sitting for an interview, he wore black shoes, gray socks with large circles of pink and yellow, red plaid pants, a form-fitting dark-blue jacket with brass buttons and epaulets, a flourishing pocket square, a dark-blue tie with pink figures on it, and a pink-checked shirt with a white collar. He sported rings on his pinkies, one a distinctive oval of copper and the other an animal head.

Derreck Kayongo brings energy to any event he attends.

His mother, Miriam, is a seamstress who used her little boy as a mannequin. Shortly before the interview, he had talked with her on the phone.

“If she showed up and saw me with my pocket and my socks, she’d be very elated,” he said, laughing.

Kayongo laughs easily and generously. When he speaks, whether the

subject is human rights or table tennis (not “pingpong”), passion and enthusiasm are clear in his voice.

Less than a month before Passover, the conversation focused on the holiday’s theme of liberation, his personal liberation story, his perspective on the Jewish community and his vision for the center.

Kayongo grew up in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, in East Africa. His father, Thomas, operated a printing business and manufactured soap as that product became scarce.

Seeking to escape the brutal reign of dictator Idi Amin (as a boy, Derreck witnessed an execution in the street), Derreck’s mother and sisters fled to Kenya. Thirteen-year-old Derreck followed, while his father joined antiAmin forces.

“The story has gone viral, so everyone tells it their own way without talking to me. So the impression is that I was in a refugee camp,” Kayongo said.

“I was never in a camp. I was just a regular refugee.”

In Nairobi, young Derreck was befriended by an American missionary, a

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woman who inspired him to “demand excellence out of yourself.” After studying in Kenya, he came to America at age 22. Three years later, in 1995, Kayongo graduated with a degree in business administration from Messiah College, a private Christian college in Pennsylvania.

In 2014 he added a master’s from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in Boston.

When the downfall of Amin made a return to Kampala possible in 1987, his mother opened a bridal shop (the second largest in the country, her son boasted). His father became a parliamentarian and an official of Uganda’s secret service.

Once ensconced in America (he became a citizen in 2005), Kayongo learned the ways of nongovernmental organizations, working for the American Friends Service Committee, Amnesty International and CARE. The experience gained with those organizations helped Kayongo bring to fruition in 2009 the Global Soap Project, an idea born when he arrived in Philadelphia and was shocked to learn

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that American hotels routinely disposed of millions of bars of soap while populations in Africa suffered from hygiene problems.

Kayongo’s partner in creating the Global Soap Project was his wife, Sarah. Sarah Namukasa, a fellow Ugandan, met him when they were students at Daystar University, a Christian liberal arts university in Nairobi. After graduating from Messiah College, she earned a master’s degree from Eastern University, near Philadelphia.

Several months ago she left her position as country director in Malawi for the global logistics firm DHL and is studying for a doctorate in economics at Georgia State University.

The project began with the couple collecting soap from hotels around Atlanta and recycling and reforming it in the basement of their home in Lawrenceville. As it grew, the operation moved to a warehouse in Norcross.

Kayongo made the first delivery, of 5,000 bars, to an orphanage in western Kenya in 2010.

The reprocessing now takes place near Las Vegas. No longer managed by the Kayongos, the Global Soap Project has distributed soap in 32 countries.

The Kayongos have two children: Kevin, 16, at 6-foot-4 slightly taller than

his father and a budding basketball star, and Lauren, 11, a piano player. Kayongo wants them to appreciate their parents’ journey. “The legacy of war is that it impacts not only us as parents, but also as children, and I have to do a better job of telling the story of the goodness of Uganda. Their father and mother contributed to this country as Ugandans. … So what I’m doing now is growing a Georgia peach in both Kevin and Lauren that will be so delicious and so kind and so accommodating that it will add value to this country, the value that this country has fed from to become what it is. It has fed from those kids that have been born here.”

Kayongo was named in December to succeed Doug Shipman, the founding CEO of the Center for Civil and Human Rights.

The 43,000-square-foot center, which opened on Memorial Day two years ago, shares downtown green space with the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke. Its architecture guides visitors from the history of race relations in Atlanta to an examination of civil and human rights globally (including a life-size cutout of Idi Amin).

Also displayed are papers and memorabilia from the life of Martin Luther King Jr., a rotating exhibit from the

Morehouse College Martin Luther King Jr. Collection.

The center does not release figures on the number of visitors, not wishing that to be the metric by which its success is measured.

The center’s mission is “to inspire people to go out and change the world,” said A.J. Robinson, the president of Central Atlanta Progress and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District and vice chairman of the center. “Those involved in the creation always felt like the story of Atlanta being the birthplace of the civil rights movement was a story that had national and international connotations and implications.

“When the center was conceived, we wanted to pay tribute, in a way that hadn’t been done, to our past and what occurred here. But we also wanted to launch us into a discussion about how that past is a great foundation to talk about human rights issues around the world.”

Kayongo is an evangelist for the American dream and an entrepreneur who wants to reframe that discussion.

He does not discount examining civil and human rights from a moral standpoint, but “you don’t liberate people through morality most of the time.”

He offered a different perspective.

“In addition to morals, the narrative is around this idea of the marketplace. If you decide to exclude people because of a particular compunction you have, that shrinks the marketplace,” Kayongo said.

“I’m selling a notion that discrimination is expensive,” he said. “We fear that immigrants are taking our jobs.

So how do you liberate yourself from that particular fear? Someone has to give you a new narrative, that actually when you look at it, very few jobs go to immigrants compared to citizens.”

Segregation in Uganda was based on tribal affiliation, not race. “Human beings will always find a reason to discriminate,” Kayongo said. “It’s not about color. It’s about being human.

And so, for me, coming to the U.S. and being allowed the opportunity to do what I’m doing right now, to create business, to head the Center for Civil and Human Rights, it’s a metaphor for the rest of the country to understand that you can allow an immigrant, and you’ve always allowed immigrants in the U.S., and they’ve done remarkable things.”

Kayongo believes in America as only an immigrant can. “What is forgotten right now is that all of us have

Continued on the next page

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

LOCAL NEWS

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LOCAL NEWS

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

come here and somehow have built a country in less than 400 years because we’ve been allowed, we’ve been included, we’ve been given a chance. So when you take away that idea of what America has been, what Ellis Island is, you’re actually sabotaging the very essence of what this country is about,” he said.

“People are selling us snake oil. We are forgetting what the American dream is all about. It’s about hard work. It’s about self-actualization. It’s about determining to be American. And that means learning the language, learning the culture, being part and parcel, assimilating. That’s what it means. And then contributing.”

The conversation included the intersection of Kayongo’s homeland and the Jewish people.

In 1903, at the time of the pogroms in Russia, Theodore Herzl considered a proposal to create a temporary refuge for oppressed Jews in Uganda. The idea was rejected two years later at the Seventh Zionist Congress.

In the early years of the 20th century, a community that became known as the Abuyudaya (“People of Judah” in the Luganda language) broke away from the Christianity brought to Uganda by missionaries. Their leaders adopted the rudiments of Judaism, as they understood them from the Old Testament.

In 1926 a Jewish trader known as Joseph stayed for six months, teaching the followers Jewish prayers and customs. Over the decades, the Abuyudaya became rigorous in their observance.

Today there are believed to be some 2,000 Abuyudaya in Uganda.

With Passover approaching, Kayongo recalled attending a seder several years ago at the home of a CARE colleague who is now the Southeast director for Jewish National Fund, Beth Gluck.

“You have to go through that particular ceremony to understand what they’re trying to do, which is remembering hard facts … reciting these old stories of what it means to have repression around you, dogma around you, exclusion around you, and yet, as the story goes on, it starts to talk about self-actualization and fighting back and staying the course and staying alive, so for me I think that I identified with it,” he said.

“Derreck is an extraordinary man with whom I had the privilege of working and befriending,” Gluck said. “His spirit carries forth a vision of hope, of mercy and of a true commitment to the greater good. I loved having Derreck’s family at our seder table because of his 16 deep connection to his heritage of sto-

AJT

www.atlantajewishtimes.com “My single prayer is that both com- munity played a huge role in the civil rytelling and struggles for freedom.”

Kayongo’s contacts bridge what he munities will wake up one day and rights movement, and she wants us to recognizes to be “several Jewish com- remember that they’re brothers and remember that. She’s the last vestige munities” in Atlanta, but he has par- sisters.” When a guest expresses pessi- of our connection between each other ticular affection for one member of the mism about seeing a resolution in his and not always appreciated that way community. own lifetime, Kayongo replied, “You by the younger generation.”

“Her ability to collaborate with so “Perhaps for me the most impor- bring tears to my eyes. … Someone has many parts of the Atlanta community tant Jewish person, if there is anyone to articulate hope.” like that in the city, is Cedric Suzman,” About the role the center can play is really what the center is recognizing; Kayongo said. against prejudice, specifically anti- things like the Black-Jewish Coalition Suzman, the recently retired ex- Semitism, Kayongo said: “We’re here … have had a tremendous effect on the ecutive vice president of the World Af- at the center to serve as a reminder of Jewish community and the community fairs Council of Atlanta, stands out in a what it looks like when you don’t ac- at large,” Robinson said. “The center way that an African immigrant might commodate and move from wider ac- recognizes that one person can make understand commodation that difference, and I think that she more quickly to allow and embodies a lot of what changing the than an Atmove from the world in a positive way through collablanta native. word ‘allow’ oration and partnership really means.”

Frank said: “I am so proud to be Suzman’s aunt, to realize that the recipient of the National Center for Helen Suzman, people have the Civil and Human Rights’ Power to Ina white Jewish right to be here. spire award.

The center does a magnifiwoman, from Our job is to cent job of telling an important story 1961 to 1974 remind people and has become an important gatherprovided the that we have ing point for educating the community lone consistent seen struggles and facilitating dialogue among Atvoice in the from Nelson lanta’s diverse populations. Derreck is South African Mandela, from an extraordinary activist and has been Parliament opDerreck Kayongo jokes that his attire puts Gandhi, from enthusiastically welcomed as our new to shame all the running gear people are posing that naMalala, to wearing at the Daffodil Dash on April 3. director.” tion’s system of Martin Luther In keeping with that admonition racial separaKing. We’ve seen all of them use nonto “demand excellence out of yourself,” tion, apartheid. violence to arrive us at a place of recKayongo has lofty goals for the center.

Kayongo admires the Zionist efognition and reckoning. So the center “Accomplishments can become fort to re-establish the Jewish culture serves as a place for you to remember. rather normal. But an exceptional beand the Hebrew language in what be“No. 2, the center’s role is to proing is one who understands that the came the modern state of Israel. He voke, not to take sides, but to provoke stakes are high, that talent cannot just acknowledges that Zionism has critics. the idea and the notion that, you know be normal talent. It has to be crafted “They associate some of the hard-core what, it is OK to question the other, but into a skill set that is beyond, that can positions that have been taken in the it’s not OK to lambaste and denigrate imagine things that are unimaginable,” creation of a Jewish state, either rightand restrict the other’s ability. And last- he said. fully or wrongfully, but what is behind ly, the center’s role is to create new narThe center has a mission to rethat particular facade, if you want to ratives into the idea of civil and human member and educate, Kayongo said. call it that, is a sociological need to exrights. What are the new narratives for “The center is a gift by the state of ist by the Jewish state,” Kayongo said. our children? For us at this point, it’s to Georgia to the rest of the world to talk “For us to even begin to question look at the marketplace.” about this idea that they gave us, the the existence of the Jewish state is to The Center for Civil and Human fight around civil rights. The home of question our very existence. … If we Rights will hold its second annual trib- the civil rights movement is Atlanta, can’t protect the idea of the Jewish state being a state and a people, then ute dinner on Thursday, May 5, hon- and the fact that we don’t understand we should all question ourselves. It oring Sherry Frank, former regional that all the time is painful.”

He noted that part of the civil sets precedents, dangerous precedents. director of American Jewish Committee in Atlanta, and the Rev. Joseph Lowrights movement took place outside Just like I would like to see Palestinians ery and his late wife, Evelyn, who was the United States as civil rights leaders have self-actualization … and be rightamong the civil rights veterans who went abroad to focus on human rights. fully protected as human beings, beconceived the center.

“The role and the reason of the Center cause they have a right to be here, and “She’s trying to bring the Africanfor Civil and Human Rights is to bring a right to call something home.”

American community and the Jewish those two worlds together because, Asked how to reconcile two peowith those two worlds fighting, togethcommunity together, which is not an ples with competing narratives about er you get validity internationally as easy thing to do sometimes,” Kayongo the same land, Kayongo said: “Both you do locally.”

■ said about Frank.

“The Jewish comcommunities need to determine that. I think the rest of us are weighing in, but What: Power to Inspire Tribute Dinner what do they want? The center’s role is Who: Honorees Sherry Frank, Joseph and Evelyn Lowery, and Sussan Tahmasebi to convene those voices, to determine what they want. So we are here to use Where: Center for Civil and Human Rights, 100 Ivan Allen Jr. Blvd., downtown a reference point, an anecdote, a footWhen: 6 p.m. Thursday, May 5 note,” referring to the civil rights moveTickets: $750; www.civilandhumanrights.org/events/event/power-to-inspire-tributement in the United States. dinner Ever the optimist, Kayongo said:

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

LOCAL NEWS

650 Enjoy Taste of a Good Cause

A

beautiful spring evening Wednesday, April 13, ushered in the Tasting, the main annual fundraiser for Jewish Family & Career Services’ Zimmerman-Horowitz Independent Living Program, at Mason Fine Art. The ZimmermanHorowitz program offers nonsectarian services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their families, and their caregivers so they can work, live and thrive in their communities.

Every dollar raised at the benefit goes to serving clients.

JF&CS sold over 650 tickets and raised more than $226,000 at the Tasting, said Susan Metz, a special events coordinator.

Michelle Horowitz, whose parents, Pearlann and Jerry Horowitz, endowed the program more than 15 years ago, is an ILP client.

“Each year this gets more exciting, especially since there are so many young people taking over,” Pearlann Horowitz said. “The government seems to be cutting backing aid for the developmentally disabled. We need the new generation’s help to survive.”

Lani and Spencer Preis and Mindi and Mike Sard co-chaired the event for the second consecutive year.

“The Tasting is a multigeneration event that draws attention to a truly important cause. We are so proud of the vendors who continue to understand the importance of JF&CS’ work,”

Lani Preis said. “The food is fabulous, the environment is festive, and it makes it even more special to see our clients participating in the event. …

This year they were greeting guests and handing out wineglasses. It is just a true joy to work with JF&CS to play a role in educating the community

Jaffe’s Jewish Jive

By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

about its work.”

Mindi Sard said: “My greatest inspiration for my commitment to the Tasting is the cause. Watching those we serve — our adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities — come through the doors of the gallery all dressed up and smiling is so very rewarding. The highlight of my evening was receiving a big hug from one of our clients. As a community, we should be extremely proud of the generosity and support of all of our sponsors who make this event possible.”

“Tonight is my birthday, and I can think of no better way to spend it,” Steve Labovitz said. “JF&CS does so much for our community. I support them all the way.”

Judy and dentist Ron Goldstein said they were enjoying the art and noted that Ron’s father and uncle founded the Ben Massell Dental Clinic, which is part of JF&CS. Josh Kornblum, with mother An-

netta, said: “My wife, Tara, and I volunteer any way we can. We have been here most of the day setting this up.”

Ever inspirational and energetic, Eric Miller, who coordinates the JF&CS anti-addiction program, HAMSA, was on hand to promote sobriety by offering nonalcoholic drink options.

Boutique and restaurant gift cards, art, vacation getaways, and sports memorabilia were part of the silent auction.

The autographed guitars formed a fun lineup, from Taylor Swift’s $3,400 bubble-gum-pink acoustic, for which bidding started at $900, to a Van Halen guitar.

Several Steve Penley paintings were sold.

In addition to wine, bourbon and beer, vendors offered gourmet food samplings. Some of my favorites were the tuna poke on quinoa from Buckhead Diner, the house-cured citrus salmon from Dantanna’s Tavern in Sandy Springs, and the cold asparagus trout soup from Fifth Group Restaurants’ South City Kitchen Midtown.

Brezza Cucina’s kale salad was “killer good.”

An entire back area was dedicated to desserts — lots of creamy gelato, even one anchored with banana pudding. As always, the colorful, layered macaroons from Corso Coffee were a popular option.

If I can ever determine how to balance my one dedicated wineglass with multiple plates of food, I’ll look forward to 2017’s event for such a worthy cause. ■

Photo by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Event co-chair Mindi Sard welcomes sponsor Jennifer Leff.

Photo by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Michelle Horowitz (left) and Pearlann Horowitz visit with Karen Smith, part of the direct support personnel in the Zimmerman-Horowitz program.

Photo by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Manny Fialkow (left) helps Steve Labovitz celebrate his birthday.

Photo by Laurie Sermos

Photo by Laurie Sermos

Marcia Caller Jaffe socializes with Annetta Kornblum and her son, Josh Kornblum.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Luscious samplings of strawberries and cheese are lined up for guests.

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Photo by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Temple Sinai Rabbi Brad Levenberg (second from left) joins two of the event founders, Joan and Donald Brown, and their son, Mark (left).

Photo by Laurie Sermos

Star guitars are up for auction, including a Taylor Swift instrument in pink.

Photo by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Judy and Ron Goldstein enjoy the art and ambience at Mason Fine Art.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

LOCAL NEWS

An anti-Muslim demonstration outside the Georgia Capitol on Monday, April 18, drew swift condemnation from American Jewish Committee’s Atlanta Chapter and the Muslim-Jewish Dialogue and Social Committee.

The demonstration was organized

by James Stachowiak and Pastor Terry Jones, who tore apart a Quran.

AJC Atlanta, whose mission is to safeguard the welfare and security of the Jewish people and promote democratic values worldwide, said it “stands with the Muslim leaders of metro Atlanta against all forms of bigotry, ignorance and discrimination, including this perverse display of hatred and intolerance.”

The Muslim-Jewish Dialogue, part of AJC Atlanta, is led by Azizah Kahera and Murray Goldman.

$68K to Fight Breast Cancer

Atlanta’s A Cure in Our Lifetime spring breakfast raised more than $68,000 for breast cancer research Wednesday, March 30.

Geralyn Lucas, a breast cancer survivor and the author of “Why I Wore Lipstick (To My Mastectomy),” delivered the keynote address at the event, which Jennifer Fink, the daughter of a breast cancer survivor, and Jody Goldstein, a breast cancer survivor, organized at the Cherokee Town and Country Club in Buckhead.

The two women met while participating in the Atlanta 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer, an annual event produced by local breast cancer nonprofit It’s the Journey. They decided to create the Atlanta chapter of New York-based A Cure in Our Lifetime.

The money raise March 30 will go to It’s the Journey and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

“One in eight women in the United States will develop invasive breast

cancer in their lifetime,” Fink said.

“Groundbreaking research is critical in helping to find ways to prevent and cure breast cancer.”

Members of the Friendship Circle teen leadership board gather at the annual benefit: (back row from left) Naomi Balaban, Ari Stark, Simon Schoen, Avi Greene and Ethan Robinson and (front row from left) Rose Karlin, Ashley Spector, Daniella Sokol, Brooke Ratner, Maya Allen and Friendship Circle Director Rickelle New. Spring and Tom Asher

AJC to Honor Ashers American Jewish Committee’s Atlanta Regional Office will honor Spring and Tom Asher with the Selig Distinguished Service Award on Wednesday, May 18, at the Atlanta History Center in Buckhead.

National AJC Chief Executive Officer David Harris will be the featured speaker at the event, which includes dinner after cocktails at 6 p.m.

“We are thrilled to honor the Ashers, whose lives, leadership and work in the Atlanta Jewish and civic communities reflect AJC’s global mission,” said Dov Wilker, the AJC Atlanta regional director.

A former chapter president and national board member of AJC, Tom Asher spent his career in the investment business, primarily with Robinson-Humphrey and Smith Barney. He is the president of the Rich Foundation and a trustee of the Atlanta History Center and the Woodruff Arts Center.

Spring Asher is a past co-chair of the Breman Jewish Heritage Museum and is the vice chair of the AJC-founded Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. She is a board member of The Temple and the High Museum. She co-founded

Speechworks, now owned by son Joey Asher.

Eliot Arnovitz received the Selig Award in 2015, and Robert Arogeti was the honoree in 2014.

Benefit Celebrates Friendship Circle More than 250 attended the annual Friendship Circle benefit brunch, which honored the organization’s 150 volunteers, Sunday, March 13.

“I left feeling inspired and proud that my daughter volunteers for such an incredible organization,” Jodie Schiff said. Every volunteer of Friendship Circle is dedicated to creating an inclusive community and works toward that goal with people with special needs.

Brad Cohen, who overcame ridicule aimed at his Tourette syndrome to become an acclaimed educator, was the featured speaker. “It’s nice to take time out of our busy days to recognize those who make a difference in our community,” he said. “This was a great event to celebrate our differences and embrace our challenges.”

The event featured the performance of an original song created for Friendship Circle and a testimonial by participant Mindy Friedman, who

Above: Mindy Friedman touches the crowd by explaining how important Friendship Circle is to her.

Below: Brad Cohen tells his story at the Friendship Circle brunch.

said, “What I enjoy most is being able to talk to the volunteers because they allow me to express myself.”

“Our volunteers are the backbone of Friendship Circle, and their evergrowing numbers indicate a bright future,” said Rickelle New, the director of the program.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

AJC Condemns Anti-Muslim Rally

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PASSOVER

Cream Cheese Addiction

I

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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must confess: I am hoarding cream cheese. It’s an addiction. I’m sure there is a 12-step meeting somewhere for people like me.

It’s not just any cream cheese. I am hording Breakstone’s Temp Tee Whipped Kosher for Passover Cream Cheese. It shows up in the grocery store before Passover.

For about five minutes.

I grew up sneaking spoonfuls into my mouth. When it comes to Passover, my sister and I talk about cream cheese more than we do about matzah. Like somehow the commandment to eat matzah has a Rashi (commentary) “must be smeared with cream cheese.”

It’s like this …

“I still need to get my cream cheese.”

“What? You didn’t get it yet? You better hurry.”

“Where did you get yours?”

“Kroger, but they were almost out.”

And then …

“They’re out.”

“What? They had 50 on the shelf yesterday. I only took eight of them.”

“Eight?”

“Well, there are six of us, and we each go through at least a container during the week, and then we have guests. I can’t risk running out.”

My niece, who has inherited the cream cheese addiction, then says, “Well, if they are out, I’m coming to your house to get cream cheese.”

Panic. What if she shows up?

I’d hate to be the Breakstone deliveryman. I think they sneak him into the store in the middle of the night to avoid any injury.

My mother called the other day: “Did you get your cream cheese yet?

Can you pick me up two containers?”

Oy! Back to the store.

She’s 83 and doesn’t cook anymore. How can she go through two containers? I guess it’s hereditary.

It’s like if we don’t have cream cheese, we don’t have Passover. We eat it with matzah and smear jelly on top.

I’ve tried it during the year with bread, and a bagel does it justice. But neither is anywhere near as tantalizing as the cream cheese with jelly and matzah.

And don’t dare use it with matzah during the year. That is sacrilegious.

Now there are backups and replacement cream cheeses, such as the $8 cholov Yisroel (for the Super Jews who eat only extra-supervised dairy items), but I’m telling you now: It does

not come close to the whipped Breakstone Temp Tee cream cheese.

My kids will eat it for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner and snack.

Which brings me to why I feel compelled to hoard the other grocery items I’ve purchased before Passover, such as those golden (that would be their cost) macaroons, chocolate almonds, and enough meat, eggs and cake mixes to feed a small army.

Guest Column

By Ilana Danneman

Thank G-d for Costco. Now I can buy three times what I need at four times the cost.

My husband and now two of my boys are non-gebracht (as is my dog), so they won’t eat the foods that have the five grains mixed with water (plus eating cream cheese on handmade shmura matzah is not the same), but my daughter and her four guests (“Mom, can I bring four guests home?”) and my other son and I are not. So that means I need those overpriced cake mixes that they love. “And, Mom, be sure to have the muffin mix for us.”

I have three of the golden muffin mixes.

The sad thing is that if I wait until Passover is over, I can buy them at a fifth of the cost and save them for next year. Now that should make us all wonder — and feel a bit leery.

Anyway, back to the cream cheese. It is safely tucked away in my fridge, and once I make it through an amazing seder that will catapult me into freedom nirvana, I will wake up spiritually in sync — but craving matzah with cream cheese and jelly.

Oh and the jelly? That’s up for discussion and personal preference, but I can tell you the kosher jelly companies aren’t doing too bad either.

As I’ve told my kids, “Consider selling kosher food or toilet paper. We can’t live without either.”

Breakstone can thank me and thousands of others who can’t go one week without cream cheese.

Such a delicacy.

Have a meaningful and kosher Passover. ■ Ilana Danneman is an author, wife and mother who blogs about her Orthodox life at www.marriedtoayid.com.

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Tasting and Telling

Ketura Hadassah shares Passover recipes

T

he Ketura Group of Greater Atlanta Hadassah gathered Wednesday, April 6, for a taste and tell event, at which members shared their favorite Passover dishes and the stories behind them.

The meeting featured a few true confessions:

Despite not being Amy Jampol’s first choice for a Passover recipe to share, her mandel bread proves to be delicious.

Magical Mandel Bread Amy Jampol, the Ketura Group’s president, would have contributed a brownie recipe that was published in the Southern Israelite years ago, but she couldn’t find it.

She baked the brownies years ago

for a family seder she didn’t attend because she was in the hospital giving birth to her daughter. To her surprise and delight, the entire family got up from the seder and came to the hospital to visit that night.

Because the brownie recipe has been lost, Jampol brought mandel bread from a friend’s recipe instead.

Hand-Me-Down Brownies Helen Ehrlich did bring brownies, based on a recipe contributed by her sister, Adele, and taken from the Rochester Hadassah Cookbook.

“For many years in Atlanta, we got together for seders with four other families,” Ehrlich said. “One year we were going to be out of town for Passover, and my friend who loves these brownies said it was OK for my husband and me to not attend seder, but please send the brownies.”

Not Lost in Translation Much of Fran Redisch’s family lives in Israel, and she brought a chocolate mousse from a recipe written entirely in Hebrew in an Israeli cook-

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Attendees at the Ketura Group’s taste and tell event April 6 choose from a mouthwatering selection of Passoverkosher kugels, salads, vegetables and desserts.

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book. Her daughter and niece stayed up until 1 in the morning to translate for her. The dessert was delectable in any language.

More information about Greater Atlanta Hadassah and the Ketura Group is available at www.hadassah. org/atlanta. Some of the star recipes from the April 6 event follow.

My Friend Nancy’s Mandel Bread Contributed by Amy Jampol Ingredients 2 cups sugar 2 sticks unsalted butter 5 eggs 2¾ cups Passover cake meal ½ teaspoon salt ¾ cup potato starch 1 large package chocolate chips 1 teaspoon cinnamon plus 3 teaspoons sugar (mixed together) Greased cookie sheet Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the sugar with the butter. Add the eggs one at a time.

In a separate bowl mix together well the cake meal, salt and potato starch, then fold that mixture into the egg mixture. Add the chocolate chips and mix together.

Shape the batter into two loaves on a greased cookie sheet. The batter is very sticky, so use wet hands. Sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cut into approximately ½-inchwide pieces while still warm.

Jampol said: “My family loves this Passover dessert! This mandel bread is moist and delicious. Thanks to my

friend Nancy for sharing this recipe with me more than 20 years ago.”

With the help of family, Fran Redisch makes a successful translation of this chocolate mousse cake from an Israeli recipe.

Chocolate Mousse Cake Contributed by Fran Redisch Ingredients 2 tablespoons matzah meal 7 ounces dark chocolate 3 tablespoons boiling water 1 tablespoon instant coffee 6 eggs (at room temperature) Pinch of salt 1/3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla (or rum) extract Spring-form pan Enough margarine to grease pan Grease the pan with margarine.

Spread the matzah meal over the bottom and sides of the pan, making sure that the bottom and sides are completely covered.

Break the chocolate into squares and add the boiling water and instant coffee. Melt the chocolate mixture in a double boiler. After the chocolate mix-

PASSOVER ture is soft, remove it from the heat and let it cool.

Separate the eggs. Whip the egg whites in a large bowl with a pinch of salt. Add ¼ cup of sugar gradually, alternating between adding the sugar and mixing, until the egg whites are firm but not stiff.

In a small bowl whip the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until they become whipped and firm. Add the chocolate mixture to the egg yolk mixture and whip them together.

Combine that mixture with the beaten egg whites, mixing gently and alternating egg whites and chocolate, adding some chocolate to the egg whites and some egg whites to the chocolate. Stir gently until the mixture is creamy.

Put 2/3 of the mixture into the baking pan. Put the rest (at least 3 cups) into the refrigerator to chill.

Bake the mousse in the pan at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes; the cake will rise during the baking. After removing the cake from the oven, allow it to cool completely on a wire cooling rack; the center will sink.

Fill the center of the cake with the chilled mousse. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours; for a more solid center, the cake can be frozen for a short time.

Before serving, remove the cake from the pan and decorate it if desired.

Makes 12 servings.

Adele’s Passover Brownies Contributed by Helen Ehrlich Ingredients 1 cup oil 2 cups sugar 6 eggs 1 cup matzah cake meal 2/3 cup cocoa 1 cup chopped nuts, optional Powdered sugar, optional Mix all ingredients in the order listed in a bowl, using a mixer. Pour the mixture into a greased 9-by-13-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Sprinkle powdered sugar on top if you desire.

Makes 24 brownies. ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Helen Ehrlich’s brownies come from Rochester, N.Y., through her sister, Adele.

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Recipes for When Seder Leftovers Run Out

I

n the belief that, in lieu of manna in the desert, we can never have too many recipes for the eight days of Pesach, here are some more Passoverfriendly recipes. They come from Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart’s “Mastering the Art of Southern Vegetables” (Gibbs Smith, $25) and from Kayco/Kedem and Pereg Natural Foods.

Puree the bisque with an immersion blender. The bisque will be thick.

If you prefer a thinner consistency, add more vegetable broth.

For a nice presentation, sauté sliced mushrooms in olive oil for 2 to 3 minutes, and garnish the bisque with the sautéed mushrooms and crumbled chestnuts when it is served.

Stuffed Squash and Zucchini Boats From Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart; serves 6 No vegetables are consistent in size. It is better to have extra stuffing than not enough, and the extra can be refrigerated or frozen for another time or baked in a ramekin for a cook’s treat.

You can save this recipe for after Passover and use it for those canoe-size, end-of-season zucchini; just be sure to cook them longer.

Ingredients 6 small zucchini or yellow squash or a combination 6 tablespoons butter, divided 1 onion, chopped 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1 cup grated cheese, preferably Gruyère and fresh Parmesan

Chef Gabe Garcia’s Beet and Apple Salad From Kayco/Kedem Ingredients 8 ounces butternut squash, diced 4 red beets 2 tablespoons oil 2 green apples 1 ounce baby kale 2 ounces feta ¼ cup Roasted Shallot and Chive Vinaigrette Salt and pepper to taste Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Toss the beets with salt and oil in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, toss the squash with oil and salt. Roast the butternut squash and beets in a baking pan for 6 to 8 minutes. Allow to cool 5 to 10 minutes and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

Cut the apples and beets into wedges. Assemble the salad by layering the beets, apples, squash and kale on a plate. Crumble the feta on top, and finish with a light drizzle of the vinaigrette.

Stuffed Squash and Zucchini Boats from “Mastering the Art of Southern Vegetables”

2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, oregano or basil, optional Salt Freshly ground black pepper ½ cup matzah meal Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Halve the squash lengthwise and scoop out the pulp, leaving the inside walls of the vegetable intact to form boats; set aside. Chop any broken squash and add to the pulp as necessary to fill the other boats. Cook the boats in the microwave until soft, just a few minutes, or add to a pot of boil-

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ing water and cook until soft, approximately 10 minutes, and drain.

Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion and any chopped squash and cook until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Cool slightly and add the cheese. Taste for seasoning. Add the herbs, and season with salt and pepper.

Move the boats to a rimmed baking sheet and fill with the mixture. Top the boats with the matzah meal and dot with the remaining butter. Bake 15 minutes or until heated through. Serve hot.

May be refrigerated or frozen, wrapped well. Defrost and reheat until heated through, approximately 15 minutes.

Chestnut and Mushroom Bisque From Kayco/Kedem Ingredients 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus 1 tablespoon, optional) 1 medium onion, chopped 3 cups mushrooms, chopped ½ teaspoon thyme 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper ½ cup white wine 1½ cups roasted and peeled chestnuts (plus extra for garnish) 3 cups vegetable broth Thinly sliced mushrooms (for garnish) Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, mushrooms, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, 5 to 7 minutes or until the onions and mushrooms have softened. Stir in the white wine and cook until the liquid is almost completely evaporated. Add the chestnuts and vegetable broth.

Bring the bisque to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer.

Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Roasted Shallot and Chive Vinaigrette From Kayco/Kedem Ingredients 4 ounces roasted shallots 1 ounce fresh chives 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 2 tablespoons maple syrup ¼ teaspoon salt 1 cup vegetable oil Combine all the ingredients but the oil in a blender and blend until smooth. With the blender running, slowly add the oil until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Use the vinaigrette for the beet and apple salad.

Quinoa Almond Cookies From Pereg Natural Foods; yields 16 cookies Ingredients 1 cup quinoa flour ½ cup granulated sugar 1 cup almond flour ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon salt

PASSOVER

Quinoa and almond flour keep these cookies kosher for Passover.

Spinach and Goat Cheese Quiche From Pereg Natural Foods; serves 6 Crust Ingredients 2 cups almond flour ½ teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil, plus more for greasing the pan 1 large egg, whisked 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary Quiche Ingredients 1 medium shallot, diced 1 cup fresh spinach 1 tablespoon coconut oil 6 large eggs 1 cup milk ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes ½ cup goat cheese, crumbled Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Grease a 9-inch pie pan and set it aside.

In a large bowl combine the almond flour and salt, then add the remaining ingredients and mix into a shaggy ball.

Press the dough into the bottom and sides of the 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

Cool.

For the filling, heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until translucent. Add spinach and sauté just until slightly wilted, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt and red pepper flakes. Stir in the cooled spinach mixture and goat cheese.

Pour the mixture into the crust and bake for 35 minutes or until the quiche is firm and just barely jiggles.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

One Bowl Flourless Cashew Butter Double Chocolate Cookies From Kayco/Kedem; yields 24 cookies Ingredients 1 cup cashew butter ½ cup light-brown sugar ¼ cup white sugar 1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped 1 bar dark chocolate, chopped 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon baking soda Pinch of salt 8 ounces white chocolate chips Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Mix the egg and sugars. Add the vanilla, cashew butter, salt and baking soda. Mix well. Add the chocolates and chopped nuts, and mix to combine. Drop tablespoons of batter onto the parchment-lined pan. Bake 12 to 14 minutes. ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

2 tablespoons oil such as grapeseed oil 2 eggs, whisked 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 tablespoons milk ½ cup chocolate chunks Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: quinoa flour, sugar, almond flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Add the oil, eggs and vanilla, and combine until a dough starts to form.

Start adding the milk, and mix with clean hands until a dough forms. You may not need all the milk. If the dough gets a little too sticky, add a little more quinoa flour.

Mix in the chocolate chunks.

Shape into 1-inch balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake on the middle rack 12 to 14 minutes until golden brown. Let cool on the cookie sheet.

The cookies can be kept in an airtight container for 3 days or frozen.

AJT 25

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Changing the World by Starting at Home

O

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

n the first night of Passover we will sit with our family and friends as we participate in and hopefully enjoy the long-awaited seder.

It is a wonder that although we are so far removed from the events we are remembering through our festive meal, we continue these traditions year after year as a people, as a community.

A full 70 percent of Jewish people will sit down to a seder meal; that is amazing. Though customs run the gamut, from pouring water on the ground to simulate the crossing of the Sea of Reeds to re-enacting the Exodus with matzah on our shoulders, at the crux of it we are all celebrating the same event for the same reason: G-d commanded us so (“Remember this day in which you left Egypt,” Exodus 13:3) some 3,327 years ago.

Yet somehow as we enjoy our freedoms in 2016, the world seems to be in as much chaos as when Pharaoh was a world leader and was abusing the Jewish people. Has anything changed?

The news is full of sad and depressing stories — some far away in

AJT 26

Ukraine, Israel or Syria and some closer to home involving political candidates making obscene statements or the real threat of Islamic State and

Guest Column

By Dena Schusterman

suicide bombings. The world we live in is daunting, big and hard to imagine or understand or explain away.

Many are criticized for living under a big rock called “my life” and not dealing with (or standing paralyzed from) all the traumas that are happening around us.

I have recently been accused of this sort of denial, criticized by my family in our group chat, for living in my own fantasy world and for not knowing the details of the latest sordid tale out of cable news. Perhaps it’s escapism of sorts, even self-serving, to be so completely shut off to the world, sometimes capable of only live-streaming into the

brain the goings-on in my immediate surroundings.

But as I look around and hear the conversations about Pesach, the preparations among friends, the intown families, my colleagues at work and in the community, everyone getting ready, preparing excitedly, sharing recipes, snatching the last Manischewitz off the shelf of Costco, and giving shout-outs to local Passover sale items on Facebook, I realize that it really is all about yourself and your sphere of influence.

This is a good thing. We realistically cannot set out to make global changes. We are most likely unable to change the front-runners in this election, stop Islamic State in its tracks, write code to crack open an Apple iPhone, bring peace to the Middle East or vote on whether Iran should get a deal.

Similarly, the Jewish people were not asked to petition Pharaoh, create advisory boards, “come to the table” with their slave masters or even engage in peaceful protest. Moses alone was sent for those tasks.

The Jewish people were called upon to personally prepare their families for the Exodus. They were told to

tie a sheep to their beds, partake of the sacrificial lamb and be ready to leave Egypt, no matter how scared, anxious or terrified they were, at the go. What was required from them was a personal awakening, to be prepared to leave the only place and lifestyle they ever knew. I think this was hard enough.

And I think this still is hard enough.

Today we celebrate Passover in our homes with the steps of the seder, the charoset, the matzah balls, the wine, the newfangled plague bags and maror as a commemoration of this journey so long ago. Thereby we are taking ancient history and old customs and thinking up creative ways to make that history more exciting and relevant.

Besides the narrative of how it all happened, the underlying message of Passover should be treated the same, with a connection and application to life in 2016. We are not simply celebrating the ancient past of a people shackled and whipped or of mortar, bricks and pyramids. We are celebrating ourselves, our personal slavery, our personal obstructions, and, as the saying goes, “The deeper I go into myself, the more I realize I am my own worst enemy.”

What the message of Passover is about is leaving that servitude, constraint and tie-down of life behind.

All of the things that hold us back — the preconceived notions about life, the anxieties we allow to blossom, the prejudices we germinate, and the negative stories we have built up as facts of our life — let them go, as in “Let my people go.”

And ultimately it is not so easy to live under a rock (I know this firsthand); it is dark and hot and full of creepy crawlies.

In this Passover season we have the difficult task of getting out from under our own burden, adjusting ourselves and helping those around us grow. Through this self-effort we effect change. It is hard work, but we are up for the task.

So join yourself, be the master of your destiny, leave your personal slavery, and watch the positive outcomes and impact you leave on your children, family, community. This might be “all” that is expected of us, but ultimately we become a global force for true world transformation. ■ Dena Schusterman is a mother of eight, the rebbetzin of Chabad Intown, the director of the Intown Jewish Preschool and a wife and spends her time writing and interacting with, teaching and mentoring the people in her community.

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APRIL 22 â–Ş 2016

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AJT 27

2016 AKC PASSOVER

Passover Guide The following information is based on the kosher-forPassover guidance offered in this year’s holiday guide from the Atlanta Kashruth Commission and Rabbi Reuven Stein.

Stock Up On Essentials These grocery and specialty stores sell more than just matzah:

• The Spicy Peach, 404-334-7200.

Kosher Gourmet, • The 404-636-1114.

•

Kroger Toco Hills, which has a Passover store within a store near the front, 404-633-8694.

•

Publix Toco Hills, which places special Passover products near the front, 404-638-6022.

•

Other Kroger and Publix stores in the area also have special Passover sections.

Be on The Lookout

• Joyva and Irene’s products, even

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

with the Pesach certifications they have, are not recommended.

AJT 28

• Even though some produce may

have a wax coating, the AKC policy is that it can be used without peeling.

• Double-check labels. Many

Pesach brands have similar year-round products that are not

kosher for Pesach. These products can get mixed up on the shelves.

• Not all wines are kosher for

Passover. Some companies produce the same types of wines for Pesach and not for Pesach (e.g., Manischewitz). The bottles look almost identical.

• Items such as raisins & dried fruits should have reliable supervision for Pesach.

• The following medicinal ingredients are not kosher for Pesach: avina sativa, beta glucan, prolamine, secale, sodium lauroyl oat amino acids and triticum vulgare.

• After Pesach, one may not eat

chametz that was in the possession of a Jew who did not sell it according to Jewish law.

• There are some matzahs and

wine that are KFP but should not be used for the seder. Some gluten-free matzahs are made from tapioca starch not flour.

Some wines are made from berries not grapes. One does not make Hamotzi or Hagafen on these products.

Passover Shopping Guide The following items may be purchased from the regular supermarket section.

Baby Food and Formula The following baby foods and

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2016 AKC Passover Guide

formulas are not certified kosher for Passover but are acceptable for infants or those who are ill.

• Baby food — Gerber carrots, green beans and peas.

• Formula — Similac, Enfamil and Isomil.

• Baking soda.

• Bottled water.

• Brown sugar — Domino.

• Chili Peppers — Dried without additives.

• Dairy — Acceptable only with the

• Frozen fruit — All frozen (some

pieces need a KFP.

checking of berries for infestation),

excluding some ground meats and deli

authorities require additional

whether whole, sliced or balled, as long as unsweetened, additive-free, without added syrup, citric acid, ascorbic acid or vitamin C.

•

Herbal Tea — Bigelow marked with

Kof-K P.

• Herbs — All fresh.

• Juice — Fresh Tropicana juices with OKP marking; Kroger brand orange

juice without calcium bearing plant No. 13-250 and the letters “AKC-P” on

OUP mark are Breakstone sour cream,

the inkjet of the container; frozen,

butter and cottage cheese, as well as

100 percent pure orange or white

Kroger cream cheese and Publix heavy cream.

• Eggs — Preferably purchased before Pesach, as well as Kroger break-free

liquid egg whites marked with an OUP.

•

Fish — Frozen fish may be used if

washed.

grapefruit from concentrate with no sweeteners, additives or preservatives; and ReaLemon and ReaLime juices.

• Nuts — Raw almonds, filberts, pine nuts and walnuts without

preservatives BHT or BHA, but no peanuts or midget pecan pieces. Pecan

• Meats — All raw meat and poultry, that require a special KFP.

• Milk — Preferable to use KFP milk,

but any milk may be used if purchased before Passover.

• Quinoa — Ancient Harvest (white

quinoa, Inca red quinoa and harmony quinoa).

• Raisins — Kroger, Publix, Dole and Trader Joe’s raisins.

• Salt — Noniodized.

• Seltzer — Any unflavored.

• Spices — Whole (ground spices require certification).

• Sugar — Pure white cane and turbinado.

• Tea — Pure black, green or white (flavored, instant and decaf require KFP).

Kitniyot There are many products called kitniyot that are not eaten on Pesach

by Jews of Eastern European descent.

The AKC, unlike the Conservative movement, has not changed its position on these items.

The following are considered kitniyot: beans, buckwheat, caraway, cardamom, corn, fennel, fenugreek, lentils, millet, mustard, peas, chickpeas, green beans, poppy seeds, rapeseed, rice, sesame seeds, soybeans (tofu) and sunflower seeds.

• This year there will be a large number of kitniyot retail items available. Manischewitz has introduced a Kitni line. All products are clearly marked Ochlei Kitniyot and require acceptable certification.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

PASSOVER

AJT 29

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PASSOVER

The Man Who Missed the Irish Rising

A Jewish administrator took the fall for failing to see the signs

By Tom Keating

W

hile Jews around the world are celebrating the Exodus more than 3,000 years ago at Passover, Jews with a connection to Ireland also have their minds on a fight for freedom 100 years ago.

The uprising that began in Dublin on Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, the seventh day of Passover, failed to expel the British but unleashed revolutionary fervor and new leadership that soon led to Ireland’s partial freedom.

The crucial events are still shrouded in the mists and myths of history, revisionism, contradictions and archival documents even as Ireland commemorates the rising with speeches, ceremonies and other centennial moments.

One person who may not receive the examination he deserves for what happened at Dublin Castle, the center of British rule in Ireland, is the Jewish undersecretary for Ireland, Sir Matthew Nathan.

Since the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, Nathan had been the No. 2 person in charge of Irish affairs

Sir Matthew Nathan bounced back from his Irish resignation to end his career as governor in Queensland, Australia.

under the Home Rule Act of that year.

But that fateful Monday in 1916, with his boss in London, Nathan was the main man, the head diplomat-soldier. Facing contradictory information about the size, location and timing of an insurrection by disparate groups, he failed to put together the pieces, including the seizure of a shipment of arms from the Germans, and concluded there was “no indication of a rising.”

Until that point in his military-for-

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This is the proclamation the leaders of the Easter Rising read outside the General Post Office at midday Monday, April 24. All seven signers were among the 15 people executed after the rebellion.

eign affairs career, Nathan had exemplified a man who rose the ranks of the empire amid numerous postings.

In March 1899, Queen Victoria appointed Nathan, then a major, to temporarily administer Sierra Leone. He was named governor of the Gold Coast 18 months later — the first time Victoria made a Jew a colonial governor.

A series of commissions as a citizen of the empire gave him experience in Hong Kong and Natal, secretarial positions in England, a knighthood, and recognition that he was a top-rate administrator, especially hardworking, an effective public servant and a bachelor with appropriate social tastes.

Writer Leon O’Broin said he was “upright, square-shouldered, powerfully built with a finely shaped head and strong jaw while his blue-grey eyes and his resonant voice revealed a forceful pleasant personality.”

A thorough look at Jews in England during the first third of the 20th century in the 2008 dissertation by Stephanie Chasin characterized him as the epitome of political life in, and loyalty to, the British Empire. He was Jewish, English and British. Perhaps his motto, “Never ask, never refuse,” best explained his career rise.

It also seems that the continuously conflicted Irish situation produced too much weight, so he practiced the stance of “lay low, do nothing” until the rising was upon him. Maybe he had not been at the ready while his superior, Chief Secretary Augustine Birrell, was in London that spring fortnight.

Perhaps Dublin Castle was too relaxed and understaffed during the national bank holiday. The mood of many was more about picnicking or enjoying the Fairyhouse horse races.

The British administration was certainly not prepared to repel a sus-

Above: The heart of the rebellion was based in the General Post Office on Sackville Street (now O’Connell Street), which was left a pockmarked shell surrounded by debris.

Below: People visit the ruins of what was the Dublin Bread Co. in the weeks after the rising.

tained attack. But most of Ireland, including most of the Irish Volunteers, the main force staging the uprising, did not rally to the rebels, who surrendered by Saturday, April 29, after the British poured in fresh troops from across the Irish Sea and pounded Dublin with heavy artillery.

Almost 500 people, more than half of them civilians, died in the six-day uprising, and more than 2,600 others were wounded.

Whatever prevented Nathan from making the right call, both he and Birrell were required to make the right loyalty statement, and they resigned by Thursday of that fateful week.

Nathan became known as “Nathan the Unwise” to many.

The subsequent Royal Commission headed by Lord Harding found: “Sir Matthew Nathan … carried out with the utmost loyalty the policy of the Government … but that we consider that he did not sufficiently impress upon the Chief Secretary … the necessity for more active measures.”

Nathan did continue his career in Queensland, Australia, as governor. He later wrote a substantive book on the property background of generations in West Coker, England. After his death April 18, 1939, he was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Willesden, London.

While history has brought troves of material on the rising, new insights on Nathan’s relation to Judaism and the influence of his Jewish background on his career, specifically this nadir moment, are still forthcoming.

Suffice it to say, my personal interest in some things Irish-Jewish, even English-Jewish about Easter Monday 1916, will continue. ■ Educator Tom Keating is a member of The Temple and an Irish citizen.

PASSOVER Top: This Hebrew inscription in a Huqoq mosaic offers a blessing for those who follow the commandments.

Left: Jodi Magness thinks this is a portrayal of a Greek king, possibly Alexander the Great.

Far left: This mosaic elephant is part of the earliestknown nonbiblical story depicted in a synagogue.

By Rebecca McCarthy

A

rchaeologist Jodi Magness wanted to find an ancient synagogue in Israel, where she had worked for years. She searched the southeastern Galilee, three miles west of Capernaum and Migdal (Magdala), and zeroed in on Huqoq.

The agricultural village had been abandoned in 1948 by 244 Arabs and bulldozed. But aerial photos showed a mounded area. When Magness and her team started excavating, they gradually found what she calls “the mother of all synagogues,” an elaborate structure she dates to the fifth century C.E. Bit by bit, year by year, Magness is revealing the setting where Jews under Christianized Roman and Byzantine rule would have worshipped and celebrated festivals such as Passover.

Magness’ team includes students and experts from her own University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as well as folks from Baylor, Brigham Young and the University of Toronto. Huqoq is an excavation site and a field school for students. With a wall more than 20 yards long, the Huqoq synagogue is larger than the better-known ancient synagogue in Capernaum. The floor is covered with mosaics filled with figures. Unlike some ancient unearthed synagogues, the mosaics were intact.

Magness in March described her work and findings at Congregation Children of Israel in Athens at an event sponsored by the Sanford and Florence Schwartz Symposium Fund.

The team works only one month each year. By then, Magness said, the close contact among team members and the detailed, round-the-clock labor have taken their toil.

So one year they may find a section of a mosaic that fills in the story of the village and the artist when seen

with its neighbor — and an even better sense when it’s part of a much larger whole. They dig, see what’s there, photograph and describe it in great detail in notebooks, then cover it up to protect it from any disturbance.

When the archaeology team members found the southwest corner of the synagogue, they saw a scene depicting what Magness believes to be Samson and several pairs of foxes — although Samson isn’t presented warmly in rabbinic literature.

She said the scene comes from Judges 15. Samson is said to have caught 300 foxes, tied their tails in pairs with a firebrand between them, then released them in the Philistines’ fields to burn their crops and olive groves. There’s also an image of Samson carrying the gate of Gaza on his back.

In 2013, the team found a mosaic that shows an elephant with battle armor, though Magness remains convinced the artist never saw an elephant.

The story the artist conveys doesn’t occur in the Hebrew Bible, which never mentions an elephant, so the mosaic is the earliest example of a nonbiblical story depicted in an ancient synagogue, Magness has said.

Also found were images of a bearded elderly man and several younger men in ceremonial robes with daggers.

The next year, Magness and her team uncovered a figure she believes to be a Greek king with a phalanx of soldiers. The battle elephants belong with him, she said, and that king could be Alexander the Great, conqueror of the world. Legends have come down about Alexander meeting with the Jewish high priest Jaddus of Jerusalem.

Last summer the team unearthed theater masks, held aloft by plump cupids, possibly satyrs, who were Dionysian figures. There are also scenes of dates being harvested and processed. ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Ancient Israeli Shul Reveals Its Secrets

AJT 31

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Pages Through Time

T

he exhibit “Reading the Telling: The Passover Haggadah Across Time & Place” is on display at Emory University’s Pitts Theology Library through June 30. In addition to the image of the Four Sons on this week’s front page, here are examples of some of the haggadot. (All images are courtesy of the Pitts Theology Library.) ■

Avraham Hai Morpurgo’s L’Haggada Illustrata from 1864 shows the Israelites crossing the Red Sea.

Anton Shmid’s 1794 Ma’aleh Bet Horin haggadah, whose illustrations reproduce those of an Amsterdam haggadah from a century earlier, shows the destruction of the Egyptian army. The haggadah also offers seder instructions in a Judeo-German dialect that is different from Yiddish.

Artist Raymond Moretti turns the word Yerushalayim into the mast of a ship transporting Jews back to Jerusalem in the Haggadah de la Va Coupe from 1983.

Artist Joseph Antoine offers a map of the Israelite route from Egypt to Israel in a 1767 haggadah.

A visitor checks out some of the younger haggadot.

The exhibit includes information that puts the Passover books in context.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

This haggadah from the early 1700s is an example of one featuring Yiddish. (For more on Yiddish at the seder, see Page 42.)

AJT 32

The Pitts Theology Library

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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passover Fun 5776

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EDUCATION

On the first day of Passover, we read the following from Parshat Bo: Moshe commanded the people to prepare for the Passover offering by taking one of the flock and putting blood on the lintel and on the doorposts. The Jews were also commanded not to leave their houses until the morning as HaShem will see the blood on the doorposts and pass over each house. Moshe also told the people to tell their children that the Passover offering is to remember that HaShem saved them. At midnight, HaShem brought the last plague upon every firstborn in Egypt. Pharoah arose and told the Jews to leave, even with their sheep and cattle. The Jews left with their matzah, vessels and garments from the Egyptians.

They went from Ramses to Sukkot with about 600,000 men. Passover was established as a night HaShem protects the Jewish people.

spot the difference Which one is different?

(Hint: Blessings made at the seder)

WINE KIDDUSH

BIRKAT HAMAZON

MATZAH

SHEHECHEYANU

AFIKOMEN

CROSSWORD Complete the crossword by translating each Hebrew

word into English. Use the reference from Parsha Bo for help.

2 1 3

5

7 4

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

6

AJT 34

ACROSS 2. ‫( חצי‬12:29) 3. ‫( דם‬12:22) 4. ‫( עבד‬12:30) 6. ‫( קרא‬12:21) DOWN 1. ‫( צאן‬12:21) 3. ‫( ברך‬12:32) 5. ‫( לילה‬12:42) 7. ‫( משפחה‬12:21)

WORD FIND

Can you discover the Secret Message? Find and circle the bold, italicized words from the Torah summary in the Word Find. Write the unused Word Find letters in the spaces below to spell the Secret Message.

Good luck!

R E

A D

I

D

E

V

A S

P

T

U H W M

F

S

A E G Y

R

F

L

O C K U K

O

Z

V

E

M T

O H

I

I

E

E

T

A H K N U

E

N

E

A O P G

T

P

T

S

A A A

I

T

O

E

L

S

A

L

R

Z

L

A S

H

A

E O N

P

A

T

I

N

L

D

E

E

L

S O M L

F

O W M P

T

T

E

S

S

S

J

O V

S

T

V

T

T

U O H E

R

H G

SECRET MESSAGE

__ __ _ _______ __ ___ ______ __ ________

gematria

‫ פסח‬and ‫ סכת‬have this...

‫ק‬ ‫כ‬ ‫מ‬ ‫מד‬ ‫ג‬ ÷ ‫ ל – יא‬+ ‫ ג‬x ‫לה – ב‬ ‫ע‬

‫כז‬ +‫ג‬

‫ס‬ ‫ד‬ ÷ ‫ י‬x ‫ּב‬ ‫ח‬

‫א ב ג ד ה ו ז ח ט י כ ל מ נ ס ע פ צ ק ר ש ת‬ 400 300 200 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10

9

WORD CMRLESAB

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

(scramble)

ZAAMTH

DRSEE

NGPISR

TGEPY

SINNSA

EIWN

(Hint: Passover)

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PASSOVER

Conservative Rabbis Reverse Stand on Corn, Beans

M

embers of the Conservative movement now have the option of eating rice, beans, corn and other kitniyot during Passover under opinions issued by the Rabbinical Assembly’s Committee on Jewish Law and Standards in December.

Kitniyot (legumes, corn, rice, etc.) are items that aren’t the five grains that can become chametz when exposed to water — wheat, oats, barley, rye and spelt — but are grown and can be used in similar ways. By Ashkenazi custom, they have been barred for eight centuries, although Sephardi Jews have allowed them, creating one of the most visible differences between the groups.

Reform Judaism has allowed kitniyot since 1810, but the Conservative and Orthodox stuck with the traditional ban, leading to such familiar sights as yellow caps on corn-syrup-free CocaCola each spring.

In Israel, where Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews increasingly mix, the small Conservative movement made a similar decision more than a decade ago, said Congregation B’nai Torah Rabbi Josh Heller, who serves on the Rabbinical Assembly’s law committee.

“This is something that has been brewing for a long time,” he said, citing the increase in vegetarians and vegans, for whom legumes are an important alternate source of protein; a rise in dietary sensitivity; and people visiting Israel and seeing a different attitude toward kitniyot there.

Rabbi Heller said the continuing ban on kitniyot created both practical and spiritual concerns: • On the practical side, specialty products for Pesach are increasingly expensive, and clearing the use of sunflowers, buckwheat, beans, lentils and chickpeas (including hummus) opens the way for lower-cost, healthy eating.

• On the spiritual side, “we really want people to focus on the actual commandment not to eat leavened grain.”

People who spend too much time worrying about kitniyot might violate the core rules of Passover or not observe the holiday in a joyful way.

Even though grits swell in contact with water, they are allowed under the new Conservative position, Rabbi Heller said.

The committee actually produced two opinions against the traditional ban. The more extreme position, written by Rabbi David Golinkin, argues that the anti-kitniyot custom was a

mistake and people should abandon it.

It passed 15-4 with three abstentions.

The more moderate position, produced by Rabbis Amy Levin and Avram Israel Reisner, grants permission to eat kitniyot, “but we’re not going to force you to eat your veggies,” Heller said. It passed 19-1 with two abstentions.

Rabbi Heller voted yes to both opinions.

While the Orthodox-led Atlanta Kashruth Commission has not responded to the Conservative ruling, its director of supervision, Rabbi Reuven Stein, said he personally was disappointed by the decision and hopes that “nobody abandons important Jewish customs because of it. I personally am

proud to keep an over-800-year-old unbroken tradition and have failed to see any case for tampering with our beautiful Passover holiday.”

A dissenting Rabbinical Assembly view endorsed by five members of the law committee echoed Rabbi Stein.

“We do not see the need to overturn this custom for all Ashkenazim.

We feel it would accustom people to do something they feel instinctively is ‘wrong’ and we fear it would lessen their respect for other laws and customs, even if rationally they are in a different category, and even if the kitniyot stringency is excessive or even illogical,” the dissenting opinion reads.

“The Ashkenazi custom not to eat kit-

niyot remains relevant and compelling and remains in force.”

Rabbi Heller said the openness on kitniyot has its limits. He counsels against eating tofu, even though soy is now allowed, because most producers of tofu include a chametz solvent that is not necessarily listed in ingredients.

An emulsifier used in peanut butter causes a similar problem.

It just may take the market a while to catch up, he said.

“Passover is such an important holiday, and avoiding leavened products is such an essential part of the observance, that if we can avoid things that distract from that, we are doing people a favor,” Rabbi Heller said. ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

AJT 35

PASSOVER

A

B

C

“Star of David” Agamagraph

“Esther”

“Passover”

Embellished Giclee On Canvas

Lithograph

“Chai to Life”

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Mixed Media 6 Layer Original Painting

AJT 36

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Freedom Rings At City Winery Seder

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he Freedom Seder is an annual tradition for City Winery founder Michael Dorf, and on Sunday night, April 17, the New York-based entrepreneur hosted the first such event in Atlanta at Ponce City Market, where his latest City Winery is due to open in June.

With a focus on celebrating freedom and the civil rights movement through a Passover lens, the Freedom Seder featured musicians and speakers who had unique connections to the proceedings.

Headlined by Jewish folk singer

and activist Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary and Israeli singer-songwriter and activist David Broza, the seder showcased a wide variety of musical talent. Atlanta musicians Doria Roberts and Ricky McKinnie performed lively versions of civil-rights-inspired tunes, and local Jewish artists Beth Schafer, Sammy Rosenbaum and Prodezra Beats delivered Passover-themed performances.

The festivities were held just 1½ miles from the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr., leaving all who attended just a bit more inspired. ■

PASSOVER

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A: Atlanta’s Freedom Seder on April 17 is one of three seders held at City Winery locations.

B: City Winery founder Michael Dorf and AJT Publisher Michael Morris are all smiles after the Freedom Seder.

C: Jewish Atlanta comedian Jerry Farber says he has been to 78 years’ worth of seders and been coherent at around 70 of them.

D: Jewish hip-hop artist Prodezra Beats inspires the audience with an extended Passover-themed rap.

E, F & G: Peter Yarrow and David Broza team up for a short set in the highlight of the evening. Joined by Yarrow’s daughter Bethany, they performed Peter, Paul and Mary’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “If I Had a Hammer” and Broza’s “East Jerusalem West Jerusalem” and “Mitachat Lashamayim.”

H: Derreck Kayongo, the CEO of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, tells his personal story of freedom and escape from war-torn Uganda in the early 1980s. (Kayongo shares his story and his thoughts about Atlanta on Page 14.)

I: Atlanta musician Doria Roberts gives the first musical performance of the evening.

J: Local Jewish artist Sammy Rosenbaum performs his original tune “Alpha Lion” just before the final cup of wine.

K: Ricky McKinnie of the Blind Boys of Alabama performs.

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PASSOVER

Wild Evening of Chocolate Fun

By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com For the third year in a row, Congregation Etz Chaim played host to Atlanta’s most decadent adults-only Passover seder.

A twist on traditional seders, the Chocolate Seder on Thursday, April 14, was put on by the Etz Chaim Sisterhood and Marcus Jewish Community

Center and featured the JCC’s Rabbi Brian Glusman as the seder leader.

Rabbi Glusman began by encouraging guests to fill their glasses to the top with wine and their cups with Vincent Van Gogh Rich Dark Chocolate vodka.

From there, the evening evolved into a wild and sometimes educational pre-Passover celebration.

In place of karpas (usually pars-

Photos by David R. Cohen Rabbi Shalom Lewis models his matzah kittel for Rabbi Brian Glusman.

ley) dipped in salt water, a strawberry was dipped in chocolate fondue. The matzah was covered in chocolate, and the maror (bitter herb) was bittersweet chocolate.

Throughout the night, Rabbi Glusman led songs on his guitar while guests sang along. From Passover standards such as “Avadim Hayinu” and “Go Down, Moses” to more contemporary tunes like “If I Had a Hammer,”

Women dance around the Etz Chaim social hall to “Miriam’s Song” with tambourines and other instruments.

the crowd joined in loudly, no doubt with the assistance of the sweets and the vodka.

Etz Chaim Rabbi Shalom Lewis joined in the festivities and put on a matzah kittel (linen robe) that he said he breaks out only for the Passover seder and Yom Kippur lunch.

After the seder, guests agreed that they appreciated the fun take on the 3,000-year Passover tradition. ■

Rabbi Shalom Lewis joins in the chocolate decadence with Etz Chaim members Denise Gelernter and Barry Riesenberg.

Happy Passover!

The seder plate is a cookie cake topped with a strawberry, a white chocolate Reese’s egg, green mint M&M’s, a Scooby snack shank bone, bitter chocolate chips and chocolate-covered matzah.

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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AJT 38

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Above: Rabbi Brian Glusman and his green friend, tzvardeah, pose for a photo before moving on with the seder.

Below: Alan Silverman gets the personal touch from the giant green frog during the seder.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

It Takes a Community to Fight Hunger individuals. It serves as the safety net for those in our community who are struggling to meet basic needs, making its Jewish clients feel confident that

Guest Column

By Harold Kirtz

pantry items meet kashrut standards.

Other programs or organizations on display at the seder will include Second Helpings, MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, Food Security for

America and Helping Feed Atlanta.

The Hunger Seder is a training ground for advocates for those and other hunger and food programs.

Using this year’s theme of “Small Actions/Big Impact,” we will provide several activities through which individuals can provide food for local homeless people and influence food policy at the national and local levels.

In terms of direct service, one of this year’s activities will be immediately after the seder. Any participant who would like to do so will package the leftovers from the Passover meal and caravan to an area of town with a homeless population. We will distribute food directly to those in need.

In terms of food policy, we will have the opportunity to advocate for the child nutrition bill winding its way through Congress. The Older Americans Act, which includes food and nutrition programs, is also in need of advocates to get it over the finish line.

Please join us for the Hunger Seder. Strengthen your advocacy vocabulary and techniques. We are taking reservations through Monday, April 25. Go to the Ahavath Achim website (aasynagogue.org) and find the Hunger Seder link (under Events, The Hunger Project, Hunger Seder). ■ Harold Kirtz is a member of the Hunger Seder planning committee.

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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arvesting fruit trees throughout the city of Atlanta. Serving as the grocery for shelters, agencies and programs. Providing kosher food for Jewish community members in need.

Those are several of the initiatives that will be celebrated and assisted at the fifth annual Hunger Seder at Ahavath Achim Synagogue at 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, April 27, the sixth night of Passover.

While itself a full Pesach meal celebration, this is a seder that puts the lack of food at the heart of the evening.

The Jewish tradition commands us to action against hunger: • Leviticus: “And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corner of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleaning of thy harvest; thou shalt leave them for the poor, and for the stranger: I am the Lord your G-d.”

• Isaiah: “Is it not to share your bread with the hungry?”

• Psalms: “May the ruler champion the cause of the poor among the people, give deliverance to the needy and crush those who wrong them.”

• Ben Sira: “A small bit of bread may be life to the poor; one who deprives them of it sheds blood.”

Concrete Jungle provides food programs with fruit and nuts harvested from hundreds of trees all over Atlanta — in yards, on the side of the road, next to buildings. Most of these trees are untended and ignored, with their bounty being wasted to wildlife within miles of people struggling to include any fresh produce in their diet.

Concrete Jungle organizes volunteers to pick fruits, nuts and vegetables and donate as much as possible to groups serving the poor and hungry.

The Atlanta Community Food Bank is the grocery store for hundreds of shelters, agencies and programs in the metro area. In its 37 years, the ACFB has become a model for the nation. Bill Bolling, its founder and first executive director, just retired.

With new leadership, the food bank is looking for additional ways to serve a continuing critical need in the community. Its paid staff and many volunteers now distribute 60 million of pounds of food every year.

The Kosher Food Pantry is a program of Jewish Family & Career Services. Last year it gave out over 19,000 pounds of food to more than 2,000

AJT 39

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Photos by Michael Jacobs

Davis Academy students get an assist from Marist School peers while singing for the Black-Jewish Seder on April 5.

Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder and the Rev. Angela Harrington Rice share a reading thanking women through history for holding their families together.

Rabbi Mario Karpuj, the Rev. Joya Abrams and Rabbi Loren Filson Lapidus take up the fourth cup of wine.

Two surprise vegetables, okra and an artichoke, join the table next to the seder plate.

Hank Thomas, who was a Freedom Rider in 1961, talks about the long friendship between the black and Jewish communities.

Seder co-chairs James Bailey (left), Jonathan Grunberg and Lauren Linder Grunberg welcome the crowd to the Black-Jewish Seder.

Black and Jewish, Okra and Artichoke

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he sold-out, biennial BlackJewish Seder packed the social hall at The Temple on Tuesday, April 5, for a celebration of separate and shared struggles for freedom in the past and present.

The crowd of about 300 people, gathered under the auspices of Atlanta’s Black-Jewish Coalition and American Jewish Committee, maintained a level of excitement from the performance of the Four Questions

by a choir of Davis Academy students supplemented by Marist School students, through gospel songs by the Mount Zion Second Baptist Church Choir, to the night’s climax: remarks by 1961 Freedom Rider Hank Thomas.

Thomas emphasized that throughout the civil rights movement, Jews stood side by side with blacks.

The full seder meal, including matzah ball soup and brisket, was

catered by the General Muir, recently rated the nation’s sixth-best deli in a study by Foursquare.

Each table had a mix of Jews and non-Jews, providing ample opportunities throughout the seder for teaching and learning, including questions about the orange on the seder plate (a story about same-sex marriage provided the explanation this time) and about the okra and the artichoke also on the table.

The okra was there to represent black food heritage, but based on its origins in Ethiopia centuries before the Exodus, it’s possible Moses enjoyed an Egyptian version of gumbo during his days in Pharaoh’s household.

The artichoke proved to be a mystery for the Ashkenazi crowd but was a call back to Sephardic culture in Spain before the expulsion in 1492 and after the expulsion in Italy. ■

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AJT 40

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PASSOVER

As the Seder Turns

Adjustments for the holiday reflect changes of life all the symbols of oppression, applied not to the Israelites but to me.

The kitchen was cleansed of all chametz. Sterilized with boiling water, feathers, a candle and a wooden spoon. Everything that was upstairs went downstairs. Everything down-

Guest Column

By Rabbi Shalom Lewis

stairs came upstairs. Pots. Pans. Bowls.

Utensils. Trays.

It was an exhausting undertaking.

The delicacies all made from scratch.

Nothing boxed or packaged (except matzah and almond kisses) was served. Shortcuts were sacrilegious, prohibited and a betrayal of tradition.

But as the years passed, I noticed a subtle shift in the Pesach prep from those exhausting days of yesteryear.

As my parents aged, shortcuts became kosher lePesach, and tradition became

more flexible. Cabinets weren’t emptied but taped shut. The countertop housed the stuff from the basement.

Manufactured food was permitted.

And then, as the gait slowed and the energy diminished, disposables graced the Pesach table, and the food, purchased from caterers, was served in tin pans.

I marveled at the mutation and simplification of Passover as the years accumulated. The change told a story beyond the narrative in the haggadah.

But the shift went beyond the culinary to the sacred ritual meal.

Sunrise, sunset, swiftly fly the years from asking the ma nishtana to answering it. From hiding the afikomen to paying for it. From grape juice to Manischewitz. From falling asleep at the table to leading the seder. Through the prism of Pesach I observed the seasons come and go and was reminded that we are ephemeral beings, changing, aging, and moving, unavoidably, toward the end.

And yet in the midst of this melancholy confession, there comes a gem that offers comfort and cheer as we

confront a wrinkly, wobbly Pesach.

In the last pages of the haggadah we chant Chasal siddur Pesach — the seder has now ended — and yet there are still more pages that follow. And on those pages, significantly, are songs and melodies.

When we think it’s over, we must realize that there are still songs to sing and melodies to compose. The end is an illusion. A tease, followed by lovely sentiment.

But what if the text is gently, softly teaching us about life itself — that finality is a myth, followed by more beauty, and we need not despair in the dusk? Pesach is a holiday and a metaphor. The seder is a meal and a message. The end is a moment and forever.

From infancy to dotage we are witness to the cadence of life. It twists and it turns, but it takes us, always, to a place of music. ■ Rabbi Shalom Lewis, the senior rabbi at Congregation Etz Chaim, will transition to emeritus status this summer.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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s the years pass, there are constant reminders that we are aging. At first, we ignore the gentle signs of a receding hairline and crow’s feet. But as time progresses, the omens pile up with an unforgiving relentlessness. Huffs and puffs. Aches and pains. Social Security.

Medicare. Black balloons and cemetery plots.

Nature is remote yet alerts us every moment of every day that we are closer to the final gasp than we are to the first breath. We all know this instinctively and manage a chuckle as the pages tumble from the calendar, confident that our fate is still decades away.

As I ponder such markers with the approach of Pesach, I realize that this labor-intensive holiday also serves to inform us of the direction and destiny of our lives.

As a child, though I was taught Pesach was Zman Cheruteinu, the festival of liberation, I found myself pressed into unwilling servitude. The maror, the salt water, the charoset —

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More Than A Touch of Yiddish

Meena Viswanath honors a tradition of multilingual seders going back to India

By R.M. Grossblatt

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t the end of the seder, my husband, Jerry, would always sing “Echad Mi Yodea” (“Who Knows One”) in Yiddish (“Mu Asapru”), just as his father and grandfather sang before him.

For the past eight years, since Jerry passed away, my son-in-law has made sure to add that touch of Yiddish to our seder. No matter how tired I am, I always perk up when This sample page from “300 Ways to Ask the Four Questions” includes a photo I hear the Yiddish words mu of Meena Viswanath at age 7. asapru. ther Mordkhe Schaechter is professor Meena Viswanath, a member of Young Israel of Toco Hills, of Yiddish at Columbia University in sings all the songs in Yiddish at her New York. Her aunt Rukhl Schaechter recently became the first female editor seder.

Because her father is from India, heading the Forverts, the Yiddish verMeena’s seders while she was growing sion of the national Jewish newspaper up were partly in Yiddish and partly in known as the Forward.

Growing up, Meena attended a Tamil, the language of southern India.

She and her husband, Jamie Con- play group and then Sunday school way, will join her family in Teaneck, in Yiddish. When she was 8, 9 and 10 N.J., for a seder in Yiddish. She said that years old, she learned Yiddish gramif she had a seder in Atlanta, she would mar, practiced reading and writing, like to conduct it in Yiddish but prob- and read Yiddish literature.

“There’s a rich literary culture (of ably wouldn’t in deference to EnglishYiddish) in Europe with hundreds of speaking guests.

When Meena, a civil engineer, met writers,” she said.

When she and her classmates got her husband, he showed an interest in learning Yiddish. Now at home they older, they turned their Yiddish-speakspeak to each other and their 10-month- ing Sunday school into a choir called old son only in Yiddish. Meena hasn’t Pripetshik. “There are lots of Yiddish found much of a Yiddish community songs about Pesach,” she said, “not just in Atlanta, but at Young Israel she en- the ones at the back of the haggadah, joys speaking with Miriam Udell, who like a song about Moses in the basket going down the Nile.” teaches a Yiddish class at Emory.

Her choir made a DVD singing Although observant, Meena considers herself part of the secular Yid- some of these songs.

In addition to sharing songs dishist movement, which is devoted to the preservation of the Yiddish about Pesach, Meena told me the title language. It’s especially popular with of a book, “300 Ways to Ask the Four Jewish college students and children Questions.” At my seder, I’m looking of survivors of the Holocaust, she said, forward to hearing my grandchildren explaining that the language brings a recite the Four Questions in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino and maybe even Japafeeling of national pride.

The Workmen’s Circle, a big part nese, as they’re taught at Torah Day of the Yiddish world, exhibits this na- School of Atlanta.

At the end of the seder, maybe tional pride right before Pesach. Meena said the organization holds what is some of them who are still awake will known as a third seder, at which hun- sing “Mu Asapru” along with my sondreds of people read through the hag- in-law, just as their beloved grandgadah together in Yiddish. father, great-grandfather and greatMeena has a strong connection great-grandfather sang the Yiddish to the Yiddish language. Her grandfa- words at their seders. ■

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

PASSOVER

Youngest Generation Goes Back at AJA

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tlanta Jewish Academy preschoolers and first-, second- and third-graders went back in time to ancient Egypt, then baked their own matzah as some of the more than 2,500 children to participate in JCrafts’ Back to the Exodus program in the weeks leading up to Passover.

A mad scientist’s time machine took the children back to Egypt at the time of the Exodus to meet Moses, who told them G-d was sending him to instruct Pharaoh to “let My people go.” AJA pupils were delighted by the show, which incorporated their teachers as Jewish slaves and Egyptian overseers.

Then the children moved into the model matzah bakery. They examined wheat and ground the kernels into flour. JCrafts representative Eli Steinhauser demonstrated the special care needed to make matzah that is ritually approved for the seder, with complete separation of flour and water until the last possible moment.

The children rolled the mixture into thin circles, puncturing it all over with a special tool, and had a great time working the dough. The rounds were quickly baked in a special oven, then the students snacked on their crispy, freshly baked matzah. ■

Photos courtesy of AJA

Kindergartner Maayan Gal pokes holes in her matzah to make it crunchier.

Kindergartners Jonah Newman and Siena Joel roll out their matzah dough.

Pre-kindergartner Henry Stein pats the dough.

Lev Geller, 3, rolls out his matzah.

JCrafts’ Eli Steinhauser oversees the grinding of the flour.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

First-grader David Knafo shows off his matzah, ready for the oven.

Third-graders Pace Kaplan and Jordan Schulman roll out their dough.

AJT 43

EDUCATION

Photo by R.M. Grossblatt

Rabbi Shmuel Fields attends the Torah Day School main event with his mother, Donna Krombach, and his sister, Malkie Fields.

TDSA Celebrates Roots of Its Tree of Life

By R.M. Grossblatt

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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sellout crowd of 350 people celebrated three decades of Torah Day School of Atlanta’s growth as Jewish Atlanta’s tree of life Sunday night, April 3, in Heritage Hall at Congregation Beth Jacob.

The school’s annual main event, called “30 Years of Inspiring Generations,” carried through the theme of the tree of life from the moment guests walked into Beth Jacob’s foyer to the tables where they sat, applauded the honorees and enjoyed videos by Blue Orchid Productions.

Joseph and Phyllis Tate received the 2015 honorees award. Guests were served Indian food catered by Bijan’s because Joseph Tate’s mother was born in India.

Beth Jacob Rabbi Ilan Feldman, the rabbinic adviser to TDSA, introduced the Tates as being among the founders and dedicated supporters of the school.

He spoke of their commitment to the community and acceptance of others.

“Everyone feels comfortable in their home,” he said.

Featured on a PBS documentary as a religious OB/GYN, Tate is the recipient of the REAL Award for newborn and mother care. He has delivered over 7,000 children, including 71 who currently attend TDSA. A grandfather, Tate also established and continues to monitor the eruv in Toco Hills, often climbing trees to check that the eruv is in place before Shabbat.

After a d’var Torah by fifth-grader Elchonon Hiller, grandson of another one of the honorees, master of ceremonies Shimon Kaminetzky introduced Joel Marks, representing the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, which supports Jewish day schools in Atlanta.

“I have been blessed with knowing many TDSA students. I’ve witnessed the TDSA mission statement come to life through these incredible young

men and women,” Marks said.

Kaminetzky talked about the Southern Association of Independent Schools accreditation team that visited Torah Day this year. He attributed the team’s positive report to the atmosphere of love and kindness created by Rabbi Joshua Einzig, the head of school.

When two members of the SAIS team observed Morah Dena Friedman’s kindergarten, Kaminetsky said, they told the others, “You’ve got to go in there.”

Guest speaker Rabbi Shmuel Fields, the head of Torah Day School in Phoenix and an alumnus and former teacher at TDSA, thanked the teachers and principals who planted in him the seeds of faith and love of learning.

He gave a special thank-you to Rabbi Moshe Hiller, who along with his wife, Leah, received the Distinguished Educator Award for their 22 years of teaching. “You were an unbelievable mentor,” Rabbi Fields told Rabbi Hiller, “and that mentoring I gave over.”

The Sadell Soan Volunteer Award was presented to Yacov and Rachelle Freedman for their creative efforts in producing an annual musical with the middle school girls. Yacov, a film producer who works for Turner Classic Movies, writes the scripts with Rachelle, a former student at Torah Day School. “Madame Director,” as she’s affectionately known, directs the musicals and volunteers to help other classes with their dramatic presentations.

One of the student actresses, seventh-grader Avigayil Landman, shared a d’var Torah in honor of her director.

General Studies Principal Linda Rabinowitz made a surprise presentation to retiring teacher Susan Krohn, who has taught at the school since its beginning in 1985. “She made a difference” was Rabinowitz’s refrain in a speech that highlighted Krohn’s time at the school.

Rabinowitz added, “I’m so proud to be her colleague.” ■

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Photo by Harold Alan Photographers

A crowd of 350 people fills Congregation Beth Jacob’s Heritage Hall for the TDSA main event.

Photo by R.M. Grossblatt

Photo by Leslee Morris

Rabbi Moshe Hiller, honored for being a distinguished educator, sits with his father, Benjamin Hiller, a Holocaust survivor.

Rabbi David Kapenstein, the executive director of Kollel Ner Hamizrach

Photo by Leslee Morris

Rabbi Joshua Einzig, the TDSA head of school, with wife Rena

Photo by R.M. Grossblatt

This tree of life represents the theme of the evening.

Photo by Harold Alan Photographers

Seventh-grader Avigayil Landman pays tribute to honoree Rachelle Freedman.

Chabad Intown Rabbi Eliyahu Schusterman

Photo by Leslee Morris

Photo by Leslee Morris

Congregation Anshi S’fard Rabbi Mayer Freedman and his wife, Shani

Congregation Ariel Rabbi Binyomin Friedman (left) and Jewish Student Union Rabbi Chaim Neiditch talk during the cocktail hour.

Much of the focus at the TDSA celebration is on honorees Phyllis and Joseph Tate.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Photo by Leslee Morris

AJT 45

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Photo by Andria Lavine Photography

Weber senior Rebecca Adler is surrounded by (clockwise, from bottom left) Weber sophomore Abby Goldberg, Tri-Cities junior Kaylan Fox, Tri-Cities junior Denzell Walker and Tri-Cities senior Ma’Kayla Nolan during “Cinderella: The Enchanted Version.”

‘Cinderella’ Connects Weber With Tri-Cities

The Weber School and the visual and performing arts magnet program at Tri-Cities High School in East Point launched a collaboration with their performance of the musical “Cinderella: The Enchanted Version” as part of Weber’s Arts in April celebration of literary, visual and performing arts.

Students from the two schools performed two shows at the Marcus Jewish Community Center and one for Epstein School seventh-graders.

“As a freshman, I was nervous. Not only was this partnership new to Weber, but I was new to Weber,” Anna Rose Barrack said. “I can honestly say that the ex-

perience was amazing and I learned so much. I’m so excited that this is just the beginning of working together with my new friends at Tri-Cities.”

Rabbi Ed Harwitz, Weber’s head of school, said the high school’s learning is enhanced by having artistic professionals teach fine and performing arts.

“Arts in April showcased how working directly with professional artists elevates our students’ true artistic abilities,” said Amber Singleton, a professional artist who serves as Weber’s director of fine and performing arts. “Weber’s program is unique in its intent to expose our students to the broader Atlanta arts community.”

Weber’s arts team includes Hilda Willis, the performing arts director in residence and a working actress and director; Cheryl Myrbo, the visual artist in residence and project director of the Atlanta High School Art Exhibit; Jai McClendon Jones, a dance specialist and founder of Atlanta’s Resource for Entertainment & Arts; and Drew Cohen, the music director and an Atlanta Jewish Music Festival board member.

“Partnering with Tri-Cities High School is the next step in the growth of our program, allowing our students to collaborate and build rich, meaningful relationships with other talented and

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dedicated young people in Atlanta,” Rabbi Harwitz said.

Rabbi Mordechai Danneman explains the use of tefillin to Chaya Mushka middle school boys.

Writing and Reciting At Chaya Mushka The 60 students at Chaya Mushka Elementary and Middle School had two special opportunities to celebrate their religious heritage recently: a visit from sofer (scribe) Rabbi Mordechai Danneman for a middle school class on sofrut (scribing) and a second-grade brachot (blessings) bee.

“How many Torahs do the Jewish people possess?” Rabbi Danneman asked the students, one of whom quickly provided the right answer: two, one written and one oral. The written Torah gives us the mitzvah, and the oral Torah explains the what and the how.

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He taught the students that the Hebrew letters they know are the same as those given to Moses, and one small change to a letter can alter the meaning of a word, sentence or intention.

For example, a drop of ink can change a yud and a nun into a tzadi or a kaf and a vav into a mem.

The students were allowed to touch kosher parchment and the quills he uses and to see kosher ink and learn how it is made. He showed them fake and nonkosher mezuzot, such as those with water damage or with improperly written letters, and they got a close look at a nonkosher Torah. The students also learned the ins and outs of tefillin with two 150-year-old sets — one tiny and one huge.

A few weeks earlier, Chaya Mushka second-graders held a brachot bee to test the pupils’ success at studying the blessings recited before and after eating certain foods. During the bee, a food was named, and the students had to identify the proper bracha.

Epstein Fourth-Graders Swim With the Sharks

Epstein School fourth-graders recently dived into the “Shark Tank” with the Break Into Business program to show their entrepreneurial skills.

Four sharks — GreenSky Financial CEO David Zalik, Land of Eden owner and Chief Branding Officer Rachael Abt, Epstein Chief Operations Officer David Levy and library media specialist Michelle Epstein — evaluated 12 business presentations, which included budget analyses, marketing strategies, posters, slogans, T-shirts, and prototypes or demonstrations.

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

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Your child will learn how to: • Transition • Tolerate more than one sensory stimuliv Motor plan •Organize • Prioritize •Decrease frustration • Tolerate unfamiliar situations •Co-operation • Increase endurance • Increase problem solving abilities• June 27-28-29-30 • Time 5:30-6:45 Pick up and drop off at LOL @ 230 Hammond Drive ATL. GA 30328 Individual therapy/evaluations/screenings also available

AJT 46

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The Schiff Preschool at Temple Emanuel 1580 Spalding Drive • Atlanta, GA 30350

(From left) Jesse Berzack, Dalai Shaw and Maya Clayman pitch their Cardboard Arcade concept to the Epstein sharks.

The projects included Pro Pops, healthy, protein-based ice pops; Covercro, Epstein logo fabric overlays that attach with Velcro to cover logos on socks that do not meet uniform standards; Food Fun, a board game that allows finicky eaters to play their way to Dessert Mountain; and Cardboard Arcade, an affordable, easy-to-assemble arcade kit to entertain children while reducing screen time.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

Rabbi Micah Lapidus joins Edye Summerfield (center) and Jamah Maman at the ECE-RJ conference in Memphis.

Reform Preschool Leaders Meet in Memphis

Rabbi Micah Lapidus, Edye Summerfield and Jamah Maman were among the locals who attended the Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism’s 16th annual conference April 7 to 9 in Memphis, Tenn.

ECE-RJ represents professionals in all fields of Jewish early childhood education, serving as a voice for educators, providing synagogue leadership with national trends, offering resources for best practices, and facilitating collegial sharing and support.

The kallah, Soul Purpose: Elevating Early Engagement Through Social Justice, Literacy and Leadership, featured Rabbi Gary Zola, the executive director of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives and a professor of American Jewish history and Reform Jewish history at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati.

Rabbi Zola led an analysis of historical documents regarding minority rights under President George Washington, followed by a discussion of ethical wills, moral legacy letters and moral lessons for the next generation.

Summerfield, the assistant director of Dunwoody Prep and communications vice president for ECE-RJ, and Maman, the interim director of Temple Sinai’s preschool, said they were deeply moved and inspired to learn about the moral trials and tribulations of the past and see how people struggle with the same issues today.

The ECE-RJ kallah attendees visited the National Civil Rights Museum and, led by Cantor Mark Horowitz, vice president and director of the Sheva Center of the JCC Association, looked at their own moral legacies on personal and professional levels.

The group toured the Memphis Jewish Community Center’s Reggio Emilia-inspired early childhood program and was welcomed by Rabbi Micah Greenstein to Temple Israel, where the educators attended services.

Rabbi Lapidus, the director of Jewish and Hebrew studies at the Davis Academy, was one of three national

scholars running sessions. He led a constructivist approach to the Saturday morning service called “Giving Voice to the Spirit.” Kallah attendees were so moved by Rabbi Lapidus that they moved to a larger room to keep working together rather than break into small group sessions as planned.

The three-hour workshop drew on Rabbi Lapidus’ doctoral research into spirituality and his experiences at Davis to help the preschool directors at the conference better understand the importance of childhood spirituality and how they can nurture it.

Cobb, has earned the top three-star rating from the Quality Rated program of the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning.

“The MJCCA is pleased that the Sunshine School has been recognized by the state of Georgia as a top earlycare provider,” CEO Jared Powers said.

“We are committed to offering early childhood education of the highest quality.”

More than 2,300 child care programs are Quality Rated participants, and more than 800 ratings are posted at www.qualityrated.org.

3 Stars for Sunshine School

Conference Set for Chicago

The Marcus Jewish Community Center’s Sunshine School, a preschool housed at Temple Kol Emeth in East

NewCAJE, an international and pluralistic organization dedicated to excellence in Jewish education and

support for Jewish educators, will hold its seventh annual conference July 31 to Aug. 3 at North Central College in Naperville, Ill., outside Chicago.

A Shabbat program July 29 and 30 will lead into the conference.

The conference will include presenters from across the Jewish educational spectrum on such topics as Israel, Hebrew, special needs inclusion, early childhood teaching techniques and day school issues. Experts from across the country will lead five-hour workshops on critical topics for educators, and educators are welcome to submit workshop proposals.

Registration is open at www. newcaje­.org, and scholarships are available. Early-bird rates, good through Thursday, April 28, begin at $750.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

EDUCATION

AJT 47

EDUCATION

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

College Debate Justifies Anti-Israel Terrorism

AJT 48

The Anti-Defamation League on Thursday, April 14, criticized the U.S. Universities Debating Championship’s use of a prompt supporting Palestinian terrorism against Israeli civilians.

As reported by The Tower and Tablet magazine, college students participating in the sixth of eight opening rounds at the tournament, held April 9 to 11 at Morehouse College in Atlanta, had to argue for or against the proposition “This house believes that Palestinian violence against Israeli civilians is justified.”

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict and terrorism are frequent topics at college debate tournaments. Tablet reported that a competition the same weekend in Scotland asked whether civilians are legitimate targets in conflict, and the semifinal of the Israeli championships in 2015 used the proposition that “deliberate attacks on civilians, by the weaker side, are a justified tactic in asymmetrical wars.”

But The Tower reported that this is believed to be the first time that debaters were asked to defend terror attacks against specific civilians.

Under the debate format, students were given 15 minutes to prepare to argue their assigned side after hearing the proposition. The full emotional impact didn’t hit some of the competitors right away because they were focused on getting ready, The Tower said.

Jessica Weiss, a debater from Willamette University who has spent time in Israel, told The Tower that though she and her partner were arguing against the proposition, she was shocked and spent most of the prep time crying.

Because of the time limit, debaters weren’t able to make knowledgeable arguments about the complex region.

A student judge from Claremont McKenna College, Jordan Trafton, told Tablet he was surprised nobody immediately protested the proposition. He tried to get the round canceled; instead, he was barred from judging the round.

“It is outrageous and deeply offensive that students participating in the debating championship, some of whom were Jewish, were essentially forced to choose between losing points in the national championship or advocating for violence against Israeli civilians,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said. “While the Israeli-Palestinian conflict provides plenty of issues that may be worthy of debate, asking students to argue in defense of terrorism against civilians is insensitive and abhorrent. It says enough that some students started cry-

ing during their presentations because they were so deeply unsettled.”

He said it’s hard to imagine a similar prompt justifying the 9/11 attacks.

“While ADL is a fierce advocate for freedom of speech and the role of debate in the public square, whoever devised the question exercised extremely poor judgment.”

The ADL called on the U.S. Universities Debate Association to apologize and to avoid questions that require the defense of immoral positions that have no place in reasonable, rational debate.

Facebook Fraud Targets Hillel Staffer

A fake Facebook profile purporting to be the account of the engagement director for Hillel at UGA was used to spread antiIsrael propaganda at the University of Georgia.

The fake Hillel at UGA’s Mara Price profile for dons her camel costume Mara Price during the Israel Festival at UGA on April 6. was spotted when another Hillel at UGA staffer, Jeremy Lichtig, received a friend request even though he and Price already were Facebook friends, according to Hillels of Georgia Executive Director Rabbi Russ Shulkes.

The fake profile included a burning Israeli flag and a Moroccan flag flying from the world’s tallest minaret in Casablanca.

Price contacted Facebook and had the profile removed, but Rabbi Shulkes said it was the third time within two months that the pro-Israel community at the university felt unsafe, attacked or harassed. For example, members of Athens for Justice in Palestine shouted at Israel Defense Forces veterans brought to UGA by StandWithUs, then staged a walkout from the Dawgs for Israel event.

Price, who recruits for and staffs Birthright Israel trips, dresses up in a camel outfit, and works at Israel information tables, is “our most high profile Jew on UGA’s campus,” Rabbi Shulkes wrote in an email message about the incident. “Additionally, we just had our most successful Israel Festival ever at UGA, and I suppose the anti-Israel community at UGA wanted to punish and intimidate us for our success. So, we are sadly not surprised that Mara was singled out to be attacked.”

SIMCHAS

Birth Lev Chanan Gryngarten

Leandro Gryngarten and Bela Jacobson joyously announce the birth of their son, Lev Chanan Gryngarten. Lev was born Nov. 20, 2015, and joins the family with his big brother, Shai Avram. The proud grandparents are Ed and Gloria Jacobson and Gabriel and Silvia Gryngarten. Great-grandparents are Berta Gryngarten and Martha Jacobson.

Lev Chanan is named in memory of his great-grandfather Henry (Chanan) Jacobson.

Birth Walker Meyer Rosenthal

Engagement King-Gershkowitz

Kevin and Claire King of Atlanta announce the engagement of their daughter, Lauren, to Bryan Gershkowitz, son of Daniel and Harriet Gershkowitz of Gainesville.

Lauren graduated from Indiana University with a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications and earned a master’s degree in media studies from the New School in New York City. Lauren is the senior ecommerce manager at Spanx.

Bryan graduated from York College of Pennsylvania with a bachelor of science degree in behavioral science, from New York Law School with a juris doctor degree, and from the University of Miami with a master of laws, specializing in real estate and property development. He is a member of the bar in New York, New Jersey, Florida and Georgia. Bryan is vice president and general counsel for the Radco Cos. A fall wedding is planned in Atlanta.

Photo by Joseph Stevens Photography

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Jennifer and Fred Rosenthal of Atlanta proudly announce the birth of their son, Walker Meyer Rosenthal, on Feb. 15, 2016. Walker was born at 10:17 a.m., weighed 8 pounds 11 ounces, and was 21 inches long.

The grandparents are Reba and Bennett Herzfeld of Dunwoody; Alice and Al Rosenthal of Stockbridge, formerly of Augusta; and Sherry and Don Spindel of Alpharetta.

Walker will be given the Hebrew name of Meir in memory of maternal greatgrandfather Meyer Kreisberg of Augusta at a naming ceremony at a later date.

AJT 49

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Whatever the Age, Healing Proves Elusive

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

E

AJT 50

ighty-eight. I’ll take it.

That was the prophecy proffered by a tell-your-fortune game on Facebook. I usually ignore that silliness, especially since one called me a “bloviator.” Nonetheless, according to cyberspace, I am to live to age 88 — better than expected. People say I look so healthy at 66, but I am pretty sick.

In an idle moment, I did an anatomical review.

Every organ in my body has been smitten: kidney stones, gout, ulcers, and the real baddies — atrial fibrillation, a pacemaker, a bum aortic valve, diabetes, TIA, pancreatitis and kidney sepsis that almost killed me (“There’s nothing more we can do for him”).

Last year in Montana, I fell into the bathtub nekkid, and 911 was summoned to lift me out. I was strapped to a plywood board, still nekkid, with a huge hematoma and exquisite pain, back to Greenville, S.C., two days early.

Thank G-d, so far I have dodged the bullets. So far.

Which brings me back to the sepsis and spooky thoughts about my mortality. I was visited by a constant flow of specialists and a cavalcade of itinerant “hospitalists.”

Having my doom sealed by one of those pop-in hospitalists was especially disconcerting. I was a pretty sick boy. The doctor took a glance at my charts and announced, “Well, you’re not going to live beyond 70 anyway.”

You can imagine my terror and sinking heart. Later, my daughter the doctor poked her head in, and I related the unexpected anathema. She pronounced the whole thing “crazy.” My son the surgeon, inclined to greater candor, simply called it “bull****.”

But the damage was done. Dread hangs over me. “Seventy.” Four years from now. Not much time. Too much to miss. Linda. My kids. My grandbabies. My prayers and Psalms flow. But still I am haunted: “70.”

However specious Facebook might be, a prediction of 88 brings a glimmer of reassurance. I’ll take it.

Nope, that’s not the end of the story. My urologist has discovered a malignancy in my kidney, about the size of my thumb. Not “that” dangerous, he says. “Rarely” metastasizes. But I have a chunk of cancer in me.

Let’s take it out, I beg. Not so easy, he says. The growth is in a precarious

place, within a network of veins. Complicated. No, the specialist says, let’s just do “watchful waiting” for a year and see what happens.

“Watchful waiting.” I’m sure he’s right, and my kids concur. Still, I am watchfully waiting with a tumor in my gut, and it is doing a terrifying number on me. Seventy or 88? We shall see.

Guest Column

By Rabbi Marc Howard Wilson marcwilson1216@aol.com

An enlightening spot of redemption has emerged from this petrifying quagmire. I have relearned the childhood lessons that a loving mom and pop imparted. Be kind. Turn down the volume and static. Speak honorably and softly to each other. Even if the news is bad or anger overwhelms you.

Choose words carefully. Bring comfort.

See what one thoughtless comment from an anonymous doctor did to me? Do not act indifferently.

Med students and seminarians must be taught a more sensitive way to discuss a dire prognosis. Don’t just say “70 years” and disappear. Whatever the illness, physical or social, can we also say, “No matter how long, we will treat you with dignity, honor your humanity, assuage your pain”? How about “A time may come when we cannot cure you, but we can heal you”?

What a missed opportunity it has been for candidates who should be speaking peaceably, disagreeing respectfully, criticizing thoughtfully.

No time for a shouting, mocking, cursing free-for-all. What enduring lessons might we and our kids learn, not only from a candidate’s positions, but from the way she or he represents them?

Good Lord, so many jumbled veins. Maybe we can untangle them with compassion. Has our watchful waiting not gone on too long? Is it time to excise these dreadful tumors?

Guide us, Lord, and we promise to do our best to respond with love. Help us heal each other, before it is too late, at 70, 88, whenever. ■ Rabbi Marc Howard Wilson is a writer, community organizer, and founder of MeetingPoint, a united interfaith community in Greenville.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HEALTH & WELLNESS

8 Steps to Exodus From Your Bondage burning building. But chronic stress is responsible for 80 percent of primary care visits to the doctor, though only 3 percent receive stress management counseling. Stress and its sidekick, fear, can bind you and prevent you

Guest Column

By Mache Seibel

from trying new things. The future can be brighter if you simply move toward the light. As Joseph Campbell said, “The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” What are you avoiding that could set you free?

• Sleep more — Some 70 million adults don’t get the seven or more hours of sleep they need each night.

That leads to poor memory, poor

performance on the job, poor family dynamics, obesity, diabetes, heart disease and more. If you feel bad and sleepy, you are much less likely to risk seeing things differently. You have to be alert to find the path to freedom.

• Organize — Are you surrounded by piles of work? No time to try different things? Organizing can change that. Clear the stacks that clutter your home and office. You may find the unopened letter offering you a new position or the recipe you misplaced.

Organizing your day with blocks of time to try new things opens the door to opportunity.

• Vocalize — Think of this in two ways. Sing to free your spirit to move to a new place, and speak what is on your mind. Verbalizing what you want to achieve or where you want to be makes it real and makes it possible.

• Exercise — Poor health and obesity are a type of bondage. You can’t do

the things you want to do or the things that bring you joy. Make exercise a habit, one you do every day. Start with just five minutes daily and work up to 30 or even 60 minutes. Your brain and body will work better and for longer.

• Resolve — As Helen Keller once said, “Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.” This Passover as you sit at the seder reading about the Exodus from Egypt, take a moment to reflect on the things that bind you. It’s the perfect time to begin the exodus from your bondage.

Physician Mache Seibel is a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and author of the national best seller “The Estrogen Window.”

For women’s health and more health and wellness information, visit www.

DrMache.com.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

D

uring Passover we remember the Exodus from 400 years of bondage to freedom. While we no longer have Pharaoh to bind us, bondage remains a metaphor for relinquishing your freedom.

Modern-day bondage takes many forms: overworking; overeating; being overstressed, overanxious or overweight. All represent beliefs we internalize and allow to bind us to unhappiness.

If you feel immobilized, stuck or captive or if you feel you do not control your life, you can live free. It just requires reframing your beliefs to release the shackles that bind you.

Because Passover lasts for eight days, here are eight steps to your personal exodus: • Permission — This is the first step and one of the most challenging.

If Moses didn’t believe freedom was possible, the Hebrews would have stayed in Egypt. What beliefs immobilize you? It is said that people who live in the past feel depressed and those who live in the future feel anxious.

What can you do to live in the present and experience this moment joyously? Visualize where you want to be or what you want to happen and move toward that place.

Give yourself permission and freedom becomes possible.

• Associations — Dan Buettner, author of “Blue Zones,” found that people who socialize live longer, healthier lives. Whether you are spending time with friends or family or in a connected group such as your congregation, doing so regularly helps provide beliefs, behaviors and perspectives that are liberating and that contribute to happiness and longevity.

• Stress reduction — People have always known stress. A little of it allows you to prepare for a lecture or a sporting event, avert a car accident, or run out of a

AJT 51

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Winship Cancer Care Connects With Community

By Carol Gelman

T

he Winship Cancer Institute’s community oncology center at Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital is bringing Emory Healthcare’s innovative cancer care to people who live in and near Sandy Springs.

The center, directed by oncologist Stephen Szabo with the help of colleague Robert Klafter, offers access to clinical trials and provides a safe, costeffective outpatient alternative to hospital care and individualized treatment plans that enhance convenience and lower overall costs.

At a time when doctor’s visits often seemed rushed and impersonal, the community oncology center fits within a countertrend toward more personalized health care where it’s possible.

“This is a powerful model of care,” Szabo said, “not a patchwork of oncologists. The new program combines the best aspects of community and academic oncology by providing seamless patient care within one medical system.

The community oncology practice, which opened in May 2015, enables pa-

Oncologists Stephen Szabo and Robert Klafter have been friends for 16 years.

tients to experience the Winship model of care — “Exceptional care, support and an individualized plan utilizing the most advanced treatment possible” — without driving to Clifton Road east of Atlanta in DeKalb County.

The center consists of generalists, oncologists and a range of subspecialties to provide a continuum of care.

The inclusion of generalists in an oncology practice helps streamline the process of medical care and prevent duplication of services.

All of the physicians are employed

by Emory Healthcare under the umbrella of Woodruff Health Services.

“Our patients have the advantage

of receiving state-of-the-art treatment right in their own community with the resources of a nationally recognized university system,” Szabo said.

“This program provides great depth of care to our patients, ranging from a compassionate team of nurses, nurse practitioners and social workers to the technical expertise of very specialized physicians.”

Szabo, an Atlanta native, and Klafter, who is from New York, have been friends for 16 years. They have teamed up to create a state-of-the-art community medical practice fully integrated within Emory.

The two board-certified oncologists have much in common besides both completing their fellowships at the Winship Cancer Institute. Both gave up private practices before joining Winship. Both are assistant professors in the hematology and medical oncology department at the Emory University School of Medicine. Both have records of being named top doctors in their states in a variety of publications: Atlanta Magazine and U.S. News & World Report for Szabo; New York Magazine and other New York-area

lists for Klafter.

Winship at St. Joseph’s, 5665 Peachtree-Dunwoody Road and 678843-7001, has become their oncology program of choice to provide cuttingedge and compassionate care in Sandy Springs that’s the equal of the Emory Winship Cancer Center. Cancer care at the Winship Cancer Institute has been ranked by U.S. News & World Report as first in Georgia and in the top 25 nationally.

Szabo and Klafter emphasize compassion, dedication and the return of old-fashioned values as key components of their practice. They said they are willing to take the time to provide that additional level of comfort so often forgotten in medicine today.

“We are here for our patients in a way that other doctors are not,” Klafter said. “We give out our cellphone numbers. We are available and committed to the caring and the well-being of our patients.”

Their goal is simple: to provide lifelong compassionate care. How will they do it?

“One patient at a time,” Szabo said.■

Wish your special graduate

Mazel Tov

with a tribute in the Atlanta Jewish Times!

Submit your tribute today for the

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Graduation Issue May 20th 1/8 page ad for $54

AJT 52

Mazel Tov

Ben Cohen on your Graduation!

Love, Mom & Dad

Mazel Tov SARAH COHEN

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BUSINESS

For the Love of Land

How to Dig In

Farmer D helps spread organic green thumbs

By Logan C. Ritchie lritchie@atljewishtimes.com

F

Left: Farmer D Organics offers a selection of plants that are appropriate for the Atlanta climate and soil.

Center: For those interested in starting a garden, Farmer D Organics recommends beginning with easy-to-grow herbs.

Photo by Leslee Morris

Right: Farmer D Organics herbs make an appearance at the Torah Day School of Atlanta honor dinner April 3.

Farmer D’s store sprouted from a discovery that Whole Foods was discarding food waste. He teamed up with engineer Mike Smith and the produce team leader for Whole Foods, Alex Rilko, to create Farmer D Organics Biodynamic Blend Organic Compost.

In addition to hearty plants and compost, the store sells wooden gardening boxes crafted by Farmer D’s father and chief everything officer, Stan-

ley Joffe, a woodworking hobbyist.

Designers on staff at Farmer D’s store work on projects from planting backyard vegetable gardens to converting golf courses into community farms, a trend in community development.

CEO Joffe said: “Kids don’t resist farming with food, and they have great synergy. Parents come in, buy a small planter box and come back because the other kid wants one.” ■

Happy Passover!

  

Ask about our new Intown Atlanta transportation option!

Schedule your visit today with Rise Arkin, Director of Admissions 404-917-2500 ext. 117 · risearkin@weberschool.org

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

rom shemitah, allowing the land to rest every seventh year of harvesting, to pe’ah, leaving one corner of the field to the less fortunate, Judaism is rooted in farming.

Using the land to connect to faith, spirituality and lunar cycles is fundamental. Sukkot, Shavuot, Tu B’Shevat and Passover call for reflection on how the earth serves the Jewish people.

That connection drew Daron Joffe, a.k.a. Farmer D, to work the land with his hands, to promote community farming, and to study and employ ancient practices to grow food — all roles for which the Sandy Springs native has become famous. Farmer D’s organic efforts include a retail garden center at 2154 Briarcliff Road in Toco Hills.

“What inspires me is that what we see as innovative concepts are actually in the Talmud and the Torah, like seder zeraim, the order of seeds. It’s the Jewish farmer’s almanac,” Farmer D said.

As an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin in 1995, Farmer D explored biodynamic farming when he set out to grow a sandwich. His first apprenticeship at Prairie Dock Farm in Wisconsin led him to organic farming and community-supported agriculture, also known as farm shares.

His passion for sustainable agriculture drove him back and forth across the country for 10 years. He created gardens and farms, fed the homeless, lived in a chicken coop overlooking the Pacific, and became a cheese­monger in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

In 1998, during a push for urban children to learn about growing food, he started a pizza business that delivered to Madison Waldorf School. Shortly after, he was recruited to launch an organic garden at a youth correctional facility near San Francisco.

After college, Farmer D launched Gan Chaim at the Marcus Jewish Community Center to provide innovative youth programming through therapeutic gardening. His gardens are growing around Atlanta, including Chaya Mushka Children’s House, Temple Sinai, the Epstein School, the Davis Academy and the Shepherd Center.

In the early 2000s Farmer D was serving on the board of Georgia Organics, which links farmers, consumers and the food industry. The city was ripe for a brick-and-mortar store that carried organic seeds, plants and compost.

Farmer D Organics CEO Stanley Joffe said anyone can get started with gardening. If you run into a problem, the staff at Farmer D’s can offer advice. The store offers classes and is the only local place to buy everything you need to grow your own organic garden. And all of the plants are kosher!

Joffe’s beginning tips: • Grow something you love to eat.

• Plant something easy, like herbs. Herbs grow virtually any time of year and are low maintenance, and you can always use them in cooking.

• Buy a small bed to start. Plant 70 percent herbs and one or two veggies you like.

• Tomatoes are popular but are not the easiest to cultivate (hello, squirrels), and they grow for only a short period of the year. Lettuces, radishes and cucumbers are good choices. Squash is easy but requires a lot of room to roam. Blueberries are easily grown in Georgia; plant them and hope the birds leave enough for you. ■

AJT 53

BUSINESS

Photo by Ben Rollins, Georgia State University Magazine

Buckhead Coalition President Sam Massell

Massell: Embrace Renters

Happy Passover

Thanks so much Ralph for taking good care of me as I fulfilled my dream of owning a Subaru! Ralph made buying easy-and I LOVE my new car!

Buckhead needs to evolve from an enclave of homeowners to a community that welcomes young renters, Buckhead Coalition President Sam Massell said in early April.

Calling the millennial generation, which outnumbers the baby boomers, the rising “profile of power,” Massell said, “We will need to be their friends as they will bring fresh thinking and new ideas.”

Part of being millennial-friendly is expanding rental housing. Massell said 48 complexes in Buckhead offer 14,953 rental units, up from 12,704 in 2012, but that growth is just a start. “We will be more than doubling the number of rental units in five years.”

Enabling young professionals to move into Buckhead through rental housing will increase the demand for such businesses as groceries, restaurants, dry cleaners, gas stations, doctors, furniture and hardware stores, gift shops, and more, Massell said.

Rabbi Brad Levenberg, Temple Sinai

Detail Salon in Peachtree Corners on March 15.

Andrew Marcus, who had worked with Mammoth CEO and President Jimmy Tester for a year and a half, is the director of operations for the new carwash facility, which has 15 employees and uses the Mammoth processes, software and procedures under a licensing agreement.

Mammoth has two locations in Alpharetta.

The Marcuses took over and remodeled an existing carwash operation at 4050 Holcomb Bridge Road to turn it into Mammoth. “The traffic count is high, and the demographics are great,” Ted Marcus said. “We are very excited.”

Brickery Goes Out on Top

Bruce and Sally Alterman closed the Brickery for good in late December, but the Sandy Springs Perimeter Chamber of Commerce made sure they had one final award to take into retirement, naming the Brickery its Restaurant of the Year at the Chamber’s annual awards gala March 5 at Chastain Horse Park.

The venerable Brickery remained popular until the end and even won a contest sponsored by Hellmann’s Mayonnaise in the fall for the best hamburger in Atlanta with its Caesar Burger, but the Altermans decided to retire rather than start again in a new location when the restaurant’s strip mall at Roswell Road and Hilderbrand Drive was redeveloped.

The Brickery wasn’t the only Jewish-owned business honored at the Chamber awards. The Sandy Springs Gun Club and Range, owned by sisters Cara Workman and Robyn Marzullo, was named the Small Business of the Year.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Instrument Maker Honors Goldstein

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Andrew (left) and Ted Marcus offer free washes for police cars at Mammoth in Peachtree Corners.

Marcuses Hold Mammoth Opening

The father-son team of Ted and Andrew Marcus opened their own location of Mammoth Hand Car Wash &

Dentist Ronald Goldstein of Goldstein, Garber & Salama was recently recognized by Hu-Friedy as a key opinion leader in dentistry.

Hu-Friedy is a world leader in dental instrument manufacturing and recognizes as key opinion leaders those who have affected instrument shapes, designs and innovations.

Goldstein has created over 60 instruments for Hu-Friedy. His signature products include a series of instruments used in cosmetic dentistry.

“I have a true passion for dentistry, so I’m very grateful to be recognized by Hu-Friedy for something that I love doing,” he said.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ARTS

Living by the Golden Rules

Charlotte newsman went from Ukraine to prison to national celebrity

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riter and humorist Harry Golden liked to say the Jewish community in Charlotte thought he was a nut because he was the only Jew who didn’t open a store after moving there from New York in the early 1940s.

Instead, he created and ran a Jewish newspaper, The Carolina Israelite, for almost four decades, writing about everything from hot dogs to politicians to his childhood in the Lower East Side of New York to civil rights. He also wrote best-selling books, including “A Little Girl Is Dead,” which reopened the Leo Frank case after half a century.

He also enjoyed the friendship of Carl Sandburg and Billy Graham and became a strong civil rights advocate and a regular celebrity guest on latenight television shows.

He was funny, irreverent and intelligent, always advocating for the underdog.

Journalist Kimberly Marlowe Hartnett of Portland, Ore., recently visited the University of Georgia Richard Russell Special Collections Libraries to tout her book, the first complete biography of the cigar-chomping, bourbonloving writer, “Carolina Israelite: How Harry Golden Made Us Care About Jews, the South and Civil Rights.”

She talked about Golden and showed snippets from a documentary, made by UGA filmmakers in the 1970s, about Golden, his life and his work.

The Walter J. Brown Media Archives has made the documentary available to everyone.

The 1966 UGA movie shows Golden to be a droll, charming wit. He takes us to his old neighborhood and into the apartment building where he lived as a child with his parents and siblings. The names on the mailbox had been Irish, he says, then became Jewish and are now Hispanic. He turns to the camera and says such changes are American and signal mobility.

Hartnett, who has worked as a reporter for newspapers in New England and the Northwest and is the communications manager for a Portland nonprofit, told the UGA audience that Golden wanted the movie audience to believe the stories he told on camera were spontaneous, but he was relating stories he told well and regularly.

Golden was born Herschel Goldhirsch in Ukraine and came to New York with his parents in 1907. His older

Harry Golden was known for his quick wit.

sister worked on Wall Street as a stockbroker in the 1920s, when everyone in America, it seemed, was a speculator.

Harry followed her and made lots of money buying, selling and promoting stocks until the 1929 crash.

Afterward, he was convicted of mail fraud and sentenced to five years in prison in Atlanta. When he got out, the Depression was in full swing, and he had a wife and three sons to take care of. He traveled the East Coast, selling advertorial copy to newspapers to keep grits and gravy on the table.

In 1940, he landed in Charlotte and never left, though his wife and sons stayed in New York.

Though G o l d e n never talked about his incarceration, it came up after he published “Only in America,” with a foreword by Sandburg.

He was contacted by someone who knew of his prison sentence and threatened to go public if Golden didn’t pay him.

B u t instead of giving in to the blackmailer’s demands, G o l d e n owned up to his past, and sales of “Only in America” went even higher. Richard Nixon

later pardoned Golden.

Golden “would have been a good blogger,” Hartnett said. She said Golden wrote briefly, simply and eloquently about the day’s topics. In doing so, he introduced blacks to whites, Jews to gentiles, Yankees to Southerners.

His tongue-in-cheek solution for segregated waiting rooms, segregated schools — any segregated setting where white people didn’t want to sit near black people — was to remove the chairs, an arrangement termed “the Golden Vertical Negro Plan.” His reasoning was that people would stand in line with anyone but sit only with someone of their own race. That solution has echoes of Jonathan Swift’s satirical “A Modest Proposal,” which advocated that Irish parents sell their babies as food to the British.

Golden didn’t have a James Bos­ well keeping track of his pithy conversation, but he became famous for witty one-liners to newspaper and magazine

reporters and radio and television talkshow hosts. And his essays often sparkled.

He called intellectuals “smart people with no charm.”

Referring to Barry Goldwater in 1964, Kimberly Marlowe he said, “I always Hartnett has knew the first Jewwritten the first ish president would comprehensive biography of be an Episcopalian.”

Harry Golden.

Golden could be serious as well: Life magazine chose him to cover the beginning of the 1960 trial of Nazi leader Adolf Eichmann in Jerusalem.

Hartnett wrote a college thesis on Golden. When she was researching her biography, she learned that her mother really had worked for him in the 1950s, a story she had thought her mother exaggerated. ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

By Rebecca McCarthy

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ARTS

Jewish Actors Save Day in ‘Batman v Superman’

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

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assover often overlaps with Easter, so, unlike Christmas, there’s no great Jewish tradition of seeing movies on Christianity’s big spring holiday. Which is a shame because this year brought the perfect Jewish alternative to Easter brunch: “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”

Zach Snyder’s effort to bring “Dark Knight” grimness to the lives of Super-

man, Lois Lane and Perry White has been shredded by the critics.

Many of the criticisms are fair: The movie is too long at 2½ hours, too lacking in comic relief, too weighed down by the burden of launching a universe of DC Comics movies, and too hard to follow through a mix of unexplained technology, unbelievable emotional shifts and bizarre dream sequences.

But superhero movies always depend on an extreme suspension of disbelief. They’re pure escapism, and the

bottom line is entertainment. By that measure, “Batman v Superman” is a success, thanks largely to the Jewish actors in the two most important supporting roles: Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman.

Gadot has received the prince’s share of the positive notices from the film, and the Israeli model/actress is stunningly effective as the Amazon.

She saves the title duo when they put aside their personal fight to battle an almost unbeatable abomination, and

in the process she gets credit for saving the film and perhaps the entire DC film series with the soaring anticipation for next year’s “Wonder Woman.”

But Eisenberg shouldn’t be overlooked. Much like a James Bond movie, a superhero film is only as good as the villain, and Eisenberg’s manic, moody, psychotic Luthor ranks among the best of the bad. He’s not just a superrich guy putting America and the world at risk to stroke his ego and maybe cash in; we get enough of that in the real world. ■

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ARTS

New Spotlight Shines on Special Needs Actors

By Marcy J. Levinson

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Photo by Jennifer Bienstock

Actors with special needs will find a year-round home in the Spotlight Theatre Company.

have to take extra training time because there’s a learning curve, and we lay out challenges.”

The lineup of shows Spotlight will present will not be simplified for the actors, Kimmel said.

“Guys and Dolls,” “The Wizard of Oz” and “Shrek” are among the works he mentioned as possibilities for the troupe.

“We pick difficult material so they can rise to it,” Kimmel said.

For the auditions April 12, each ac-

Jared Brodie as Donkey, Margaret Whitley as Princess Fiona, Bess Winebarger as Dragon and Luke Davis as Shrek appear in this winter’s Habima Theatre production of “Shrek the Musical, Jr.” The Marcus JCC’s new Spotlight Theatre expands the stage training and performance opportunities for special needs actors.

tor had one song and one monologue prepared. By contrast, no auditions are necessary for Habima Theatre, although Kimmel said some of the troupe’s actors have participated in Habima for years.

“Theater for some of them, it’s their life; it’s what they are constantly obsessing over,” Kimmel said, adding that it is a far greater experience than sitting indoors to get electronic screen time (e.g., computer, smartphone and TV).

He said the intention of the Spotlight launch is to develop a creative and sustainable program. “It’s the kind of thing we’re going to build over a fourto-five-year span.”

Jennifer Lieb, the Marcus JCC’s director of inclusion, said: “Through these hands-on theatrical experiences, participants will gain increased selfconfidence, self-esteem, social skills, discipline, motivation — life skills that are useful long after the final curtain call.” ■

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

he Marcus Jewish Community Center just held auditions to select the 12 actors for its first theater troupe composed of adults with disabilities.

The Spotlight Theatre Company is not taking the place of Jerry’s Habima Theatre, which includes special needs performers with other actors for one show a year and in February and March presented “Shrek the Musical, Jr.” Habima will be back for its 24th season next winter.

Brian Kimmel, the Marcus JCC’s arts and culture director, said Spotlight is a supplemental program added to the Blonder Family Department for Special Needs through a gift from the late Helen Marie Stern.

“This is an intensive, audition-only theater group for special needs adults that meets weekly,” Kimmel said.

“There are technical aspects — lighting and sound and things like that.”

In a statement announcing the company, Marcus JCC CEO Jared Powers said, “This new theater company is unique because participants will be trained in both the performing arts (plays, musicals, improv, storytelling, etc.), as well as behind-the-scenes production support (set design, lighting, sound, costumes, makeup, box office, ushers, etc.).”

The program is free for the actors, each of whom is at least age 18 and has one or more disabilities as defined by the Americans With Disabilities Act. The troupe will meet at the JCC’s Dunwoody campus every Friday from late August until April 30, 2017, and will serve as a social connection beyond the performing arts for the dozen participants, Kimmel said.

Participants will train together, take trips to local arts organizations and participate in master classes with professionals in the field.

When professionals visit the Marcus JCC to talk to the troupe about behind-the-scenes theater operations, such as lighting and sound, Kimmel said, the relevance might be portrayed through an experience the actors could relate to, such as experiencing the lights at Walt Disney World.

Because the troupe is limited to 12 actors, Kimmel said, each member of the company will have ample opportunity to learn.

“This is going to give everyone the perfect amount of training and time,” he said. “Everything takes time. We

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ARTS

Plexiglas, Paint Chips and Spiritual Inspiration

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andy Springs creative gem Beth Shapiro, who moved here from San Antonio in 2009, has worked decades to hone her craft. Actually, “crafts,” as I most respect artists whose work transcends a uniform medium and style. Hers includes wood and plaster sculpture, stripe painting, charcoal, Plexiglas, and Judaica.

Shapiro’s work bounces back abstract expressionism into bursting sprites of boomeranging, bleeding, singeing colors that are spilling, merging and dancing.

Then there’s a cool, calculated, black-and-white number where tiny Hallmark logos are barely discernable, engineered among the ribbons.

Jaffe: How would you describe your technique and style?

Shapiro: I take my personal inspiration from mid-20th-century art: the abstract expressionists like Jackson Pollock and the color field painters (Barnett Newman, Helen Frankenthaler). I use modern materials to achieve a purity of color in my paintings.

Believe it or not, some of this intensity is found only on the computer. By using Plexiglas as my “canvas,” the light passes through my translucent paint and glazes and comes back through again, making it look as if the painting is almost backlit.

Jaffe: Were you talented as a youngster growing up in Queens, N.Y.?

Shapiro: As a child I used to burn matches underneath paper or cardboard to get a black carbon coating on the paper, and then I’d scratch out charcoal drawings. I have a practical side with an M.B.A. in marketing communications; I went back for formal art education after I had a family and took seven years to get a bachelor’s in fine art. Both skills require a keen eye for design. My work has been represented at Mason Murer Fine Art, but I currently operate out of my house, doing what I enjoy along with commissioned pieces.

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Jaffe: You are an observant Jew. How does this weave into your work?

Shapiro: I have done the Modeh Ani (morning) prayer for my own house and created a commissioned piece called “Aishet Chayil” (A Woman of Valor) for someone in the communi58 ty. I have also painted custom hamsas

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for people in the community to give as bat mitzvah and wedding gifts.

Then I have this “Ajna” piece over the fireplace. Although Ajna is not a Jewish concept, I felt it spoke of spirituality. Ajna is the sixth primary Hindu chakra or energy point in the body. I felt the title conveyed an idea representing emanations from the soul.

Chai-Style Art

By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

A Jaffe: How long does it take to complete a piece, and how much do they sell for?

Shapiro: The largest piece I have done is 5 feet by 5 feet, which goes for around $7,000. It takes a month or so.

It’s hard to pin down. … I spent three months on a smaller piece and sold it for $3,000. I work full time in marketing design for a commercial real estate firm, so I’m only in my studio about 10 hours a week.

Jaffe: You work in different media?

Shapiro: Yes, but I am primarily focused now on painting. But one of my favorite pieces is a wooden sculpture called “Full of Yourself.” I am now experimenting with different ways to manipulate my paint. This piece I am doing for a doctor’s office requires different panels (yellow, orange and green), then they have to be precisely synchronized and layered over each other. The lines are rigidly formed, but the paint is poured and spread with gravity, allowing chance to play a valid role in art making (like Dada, an avant-garde movement in the early 20th century that embraced chaos and rejected logic). I want people to react to the layers. The piece will serve as a screen to separate the entry area from the patient area.

Note this triptych of my collie, Luna, in action, which I did in charcoal.

Also the black-and-white piece over the Yamaha piano is a graphiteand-charcoal drawing titled “Ribbons and Bows.” Black and white has a certain indescribable energy to me.

Jaffe: Describe this large piece inspired by Hans Hofmann.

Shapiro: This piece is like a mo-

B

C saic of the acrylic glazes I use, only the pieces have been collected over time from many paintings and put together in this mosaiclike structure. To me, it is very much inspired by Hofmann, who was a major influence on the abstract expressionists and taught many of them.

Jaffe: What goes on in your studio downstairs?

Shapiro: Some of that is proprietary, but what you do see are a lot

of shattered paint chips and X-Acto knives. I love their color range and texture. My biggest challenge is keeping the chips from separating from the main body. I’m working on that. The earth-toned one in the guestroom has the effect of onyx and marble.

Jaffe: What advice would you give to budding artists?

Shapiro: Try to pull the most out of your media, and don’t be afraid to fail. Not necessarily in that order. ■

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ARTS

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Photos by Duane Stork unless otherwise noted

A: Beth Shapiro poses with Luna under a charcoal triptych of the collie.

B: Luna relaxes near Shapiro’s “Ajna,” representing the sixth Hindu chakra.

C: Beth Shapiro and her cutout of JFK stand in front of her Plexiglas “Spring Sonnet.”

D: This mosaic reflects the inspiration of Hans Hofmann, who influenced many of the abstract expressionists.

E: The sculpture “Full of Yourself” is composed of stacks of wooden dowels.

F: Beth Shapiro shows a multilevel piece commissioned by a doctor’s office to separate the patient area and provide positive energy.

G: “Ribbons and Bows” is a graphite-and-charcoal drawing embedding Hallmark logos.

H: The earth-toned paint chips in “Ode to Jerusalem” produce the effect of onyx and marble.

I: This example of Beth Shapiro’s Judaica features the Modeh Ani prayer.

J: Beth Shapiro’s vertical stripes decorate the family’s kitchen.

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OBITUARIES

Howard Banner 81, Atlanta

Howard Banner, 81, loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and uncle, passed away Thursday, April 14, 2016.

The son of Mose and Dinah Banner, both of blessed memory, Howard was born and raised in Conway, S.C., where his family owned a department store. He attended The Citadel in Charleston, S.C., and served in the U.S. Army. After military service, he moved to Charlotte, N.C., where he met and married his loving and devoted wife, Joyce Ashkenazie.

In addition to his wife, survivors include children David (Nancy Camishion), Stewart and Susan (Neal Estroff); grandchildren Skye and Adam Estroff and Alexandria and Nicholas Banner; and his sister, Teresa (Bernard Solomon), and her children and extended families.

Sign the online guestbook at www.eddressler.com. Charitable donations may be made to Temple Beth Tikvah, 9955 Coleman Road, Roswell, GA 30075. A graveside service was held Sunday, April 17, at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs with Rabbi Alexandria Shuval-Weiner officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Vita Leo Brown Atlanta

Vita Leo Brown lived her life to the fullest. She met challenges dealt to her in her own way, in her own time.

The baby who was told she would be confined to an institution instead went to college, traveled in Italy and Israel, was on the board of Relay for Life at Georgia State, and worked at the Midtown Art Cinema. She was bat mitzvahed and read from the Torah.

She was born with Noonan’s syndrome and survived liver cancer and five major operations. She danced at the Decatur School of Ballet, was on the Renfroe cheerleading squad and went to California twice with the Decatur High School news team. Vita was a lifetime baseball fan. She went to her first game when she was 2 and went to Braves games for the last 22 years. She was an avid reader, especially of the Harry Potter series.

She loved her family — her extended family, her cousins, aunts and uncles.

She was very close to her grandparents. She had close friends from kindergarten through college. She received a B.A. in film and photography, maintaining the HOPE Scholarship throughout. She was a videographer and photographer and worked freelance. She interned at the Atlanta Community Food Bank for two summers and interned at Atlanta Video. She was a member of Congregation Bet Haverim and a recipient of the Eddie Cohen Award.

She is survived by her parents, Anna Leo and Robert Brown, and a grandmother, Irene Brown.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the ALS Association, Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 6051, Albert Lea, MN 56007 (alsa.org), or No Kid Hungry, P.O. Box 75475, Baltimore, MD 21275-5475 (nokidhungry.org). A private graveside service was held.

A memorial service will be held in the Cannon Chapel of Emory University, 515 Kilgo Circle, Atlanta, on Sunday, April 24, at 3 p.m. with Rabbi Joshua Lesser officiating. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Hal Hubschman APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

56, Atlanta

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Hal Hubschman, 56, died unexpectedly Sunday, April 17, 2016.

Originally from Brooklyn, N.Y., he moved to Atlanta in 1992. He spent his career working in information technology. His passion in life was to champion the underdog and to help those in need. He was a member of the Masonic Lodge and an active volunteer in the local Jewish community.

Survivors include his wife, Barbara; his children, Adam and Julie; his mother, Loraine Hubschman; and a sister, Holly Cerame.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. A memorial service was held Tuesday, April 19, at Temple Sinai with Rabbi Ronald Segal officiating. Memorial donations may be made to the charity of one’s choice.

CLOSING THOUGHTS OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING

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t was Last-Monday-of-the-Monthjostled and snatched with the best of Half-Price Day at my favorite thrift them. Then, tired and fulfilled, I paid store, a festivity I make every effort and left. to attend. Of course, I’m not the only I wheeled my bounty to my car one in Atlanta who appreciates Judy and reached into my purse for my Tenuta T-shirts for 50 cents and handkeys. I was in a hurry because I knew tinted photographs of somebody else’s that there were at least a dozen people ancestors for a dollar. The parking lot waiting for me to bring the cart back. is always full, and the aisles are cart Oh, no! My car keys weren’t in to cart. the purse pocket where I always keep As I pulled up, I saw a circle of them. I methodically went through my women standing in the lot. I learned entire handbag several times, removthat one of their children had been hit by a car as it backed up. The boy was Chana’s Corner sitting in the center of the

By Chana Shapiro group, apparently shaken cshapiro@atljewishtimes.com but not injured.

As I got closer, I heard singing. The boy began to move his limbs along ing each item and placing it on the with the gospel melody, and after a hood of my car. No keys. few minutes, he stood and joined the I pushed my full cart back to the singing. store, maneuvered to the cashiers, and I was so intrigued that I inadverasked whether anyone had turned in a tently moved into their circle, and, inset of keys. No one had. stead of challenging Two men were sitme by asking, “Who There were two rea- ting on a bench in the are you, and why are you butting in?” they sons to assist me. First, vestibule of the store. continued swaying I was holding on to They saw me exit, and they saw me return. and singing. Finally, a valuable shopping These fellows are often one of the women cart, and second, if in that strategic spot, turned to me. waiting to help customResisting the they helped me, I ers with heavy items. urge to inquire would surely cross They came up to me whether a doctor was their palms with cash. when they realized on the way, I asked, something was amiss.

“Were you praying?”

There were two reasons to assist “Yes. That’s my boy, and it was me. First, I was holding on to a valumy friend who bumped into him. He able shopping cart, and second, if they wasn’t hit hard,” she said. “But maybe helped me, I would surely cross their he’s hurt and doesn’t feel it yet, so this palms with cash. is what we do.”

“What’s wrong?” one of them “Are you healers?” asked.

“Jesus is the healer,” she said. “We “I lost my keys, and I’ll never find were reaching out because we might them with this crowd and all the kids need divine help. You saw it yourself.” running around.”

She spread her arms and shouted, “We’ll find ’em! We’re experts!”

“Thank you, Jesus!” the other man declared. They instincWith that, she and her son got into their car, the group dispersed, and tively began their search and-rescue by examining my cart.

I went inside.

“There they are!” the first man So many people were scouting the shouted.

“They’re hanging on the wires clothing and examining the houseunder all your stuff. They probably fell wares that I couldn’t find an empty in when you went to pay.” cart, so I started gathering treasures The men escorted me to my car in my arms, and, finally overloaded, I and helped me unload my purchases. headed to checkout.

Before they left, I offered a reward, but A man who was completing his they wouldn’t take it. transaction at the register noticed my “Just thank Jesus,” the second man situation and motioned that I should said. “Thank Jesus that we were here!” take his cart. I gratefully dumped the “Baruch Hashem!” I sighed as I cumbersome items into the cart and drove off. ■ plowed back into the masses, where I

CROSSWORD “Monotonous Monikers”

By Yoni Glatt, koshercrosswords@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Challenging

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5. Lag B’Omer is one 9. Summer camp of CNN’s Jake Tapper 14. Mossad intel 15. David’s was originally in Bethlehem 16. It makes kosher Bazooka 17. Comic with a very popular podcast but not as popular IFC show 19. Tree on Lebanon’s flag 20. Gasteyer of Lorne Michael’s “SNL” 21. “___ of Exodus” (artistic seder plate) 22. Recites the “Kel Male Rachamim” graveside, often 23. Observe shiva 24. Dead ___ 25. Word before Tovu in the morning 26. German lyric poet who left Judaism at age 28 32. “___ Care About” (Kander/Ebb song from “Chicago”) 33. Chain letters?

34. Robert who played Cooper on Wiener’s “Mad Men” 37. Adjusts one’s tefillin 39. Light seven candles on the last night of Chanukah, e.g.

40. A shamash has two 41. Skhug is a hot Israeli one 42. Actress Dennings, and others 44. “___ above” (apt slogan for a mohel) 45. 18th century Yeminite Kabbalist known as the Rashash 48. Network for Bochco’s “Murder in the First” 50. Rabbinic abbreviation in the Commonwealth 51. Yente quality, often 52. “Cultural pluralism” pioneer Kallen 54. “And G-d ___” 56. Sleep stage for Freud to

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26. Bowlers with kippot?

27. Kazan who made “Gentleman’s Agreement” 28. Make like Maurice Sendak 29. Anton Yelchin played him in “Star Trek” 30. ___ al-Sharif (Arabic term for the Temple Mount) 31. Words before “done” (nezikin related) 35. Pauly Shore got one at the Oscars every year in the 1990s 36. Israeli model Ginzburg 38. Uses Page’s engine 43. Yiddish relative you might not be thrilled to see Down 46. Levi’s alternative 1. Elevated locale 47. Monica Lewinsky, once 2. Sinful son of Judah 48. Koufax did it with his left 3. Singer Haza hand 4. Eden ___ Miami Beach, 49. Morbid Purim prop hotel with Passover meals 53. Got a perfect score on 5. Like Earth, as described in the Bagrut the Torah’s second verse 54. Talmudic academy on the 6. One of two Michelangelo Euphrates sculpted on “Moses” 55. ___ Hu 7. First prophet to write down 56. Goldberg of contraptions his prophecies fame 8. Two before Lev. 57. Improve the Australian 9. Takes prewar art out of Jewish news Germany, e.g.

58. Midrash, perhaps 10. Way to turn the Altalena 60. Don Rickles joke, often 11. Locale of Skokie Yeshiva 61. Shortest book in Tanakh? and Hebrew Union College 12. Name that means “crown” 13. Pulitzer winner Seymour LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION 18. Kahane of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 R I N G O F A S T G E M S note 14 15 16 A C E R B A R I A I L I E 22. Seinfeld 17 18 19 M E N U L A N A W H E R E once voiced 20 21 22 S H E A S T A D I U M one 23 24 25 26 27 S T E R E O D A N T E 23. Complainer 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 E L I S H A E E N T E L E whom the 35 36 37 38 M I R S U N C A P S E “Lamalshinim” 39 40 41 42 P A U L M C C A R T N E Y prayer is 43 44 45 N E U R A L S O L A R complaining 46 47 48 49 50 51 A R S U S E N E T W I R Y about 52 53 54 55 F E A S T E S S E N E 24. They were 56 57 58 59 60 F I F T H B E A T L E being made 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 O N E A R A K E A B R A M when the 68 69 70 R E L Y A S I S M A N I A Triangle fire 71 72 73 T E N T S T A R R D R Y S happened

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

Praise the Lord!

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When it comes to finding your perfect home, it’s important to have options. The same is true when deciding on your mortgage. That’s why we offer a wide variety of mortgage options to fit your particular needs:

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COMPUER HOUSE CALLS

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As Seen On

It’s Time to Call for Help! event SERVICES

JUDAIC & HEWBREW TEACHERS

LANDSCAPE SERVICES

Sunday Morning Judaic and Hebrew Teachers The Temple in Midtown seeks Sunday morning Judaic & Hebrew teachers for 2016-17 school year. Please email resume & cover letter to srau@the-temple.org.

CAREGIVER/NURSE

APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

MAHJONGG TOURNAMENT

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The Lake Chatuge Mahjongg Tournament will be held at the Ridges Resort & Marina in Young Harris, GA. $50 entry fee. For more information, contact Sheryl Waddington at 770 826-0077 or sewdww13@yahoo.com.

Tenth Series Jubilee Bonds ($25,000 minimum) for 10 Years

3.33

Jacinta KIbichoi - (770) 875- 8002 Dependable, Honest Caregiver. Excellent References.

Experience with ALS and Alzheimer’s Patients

Tenth Series Maccabee % Bonds ($5,000 minimum) for 10 Years

FOLLOW THE ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES ONLINE.

3.18

Seventh Series Mazel Tov % Bonds ($100 minimum) for 5 Years

2.76%

Seventh Series eMitzvah Bonds ($36 minimum) for 5 Years

2.76%

(404) 817-3500 Atlanta@Israelbonds.com Development Corp. for Israel Member FINRA Effective through April 30, 2016

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APRIL 22 ▪ 2016

APRIL 22 â&#x2013;Ş 2016

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Have a joyous Passover. And share what it means to you. #PassoverPublix