Atlanta Jewish Times, Vol. XCI No. 14, April 8, 2016 by Atlanta Jewish Times

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INSIDE: HOME & GARDEN, PAGES 15-20 GREEN GUIDE

ZIKA SEASON?

L.A. VIBE

Hadassah Ezoory is cultivating gardening as part of the curriculum at Torah Day School and Chaya Mushka. Page 15

Warmer weather will bring mosquitoes. Matt Brill tells whether that means the Zika virus as well. Page 19

Dentist Farid Toub and wife Hedi Abaei have brought the West Coast and Persia with them to Sandy Springs. Page 16

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INSIDE

Ma Tovu ��3 Remember When ��5 Calendar �� 6 Candle Lighting ��7 Opinion �� 9 Israel News ��13 Finance �� 15 Arts �� 24 Obituaries �� 27 Simchas �� 29 Crossword �� 30 Cartoon ��31

VOL. XCI NO. 14

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APRIL 8, 2016 | 29 ADAR II 5776

State Stalls On Shoah Ed

SYRIAN AID

The director of Safed’s hospital tells how and why he welcomes war wounded. Page 8

RIGHTS RALLY

rotests of the de-emphasis of the Holocaust in Georgia’s curriculum largely succeeded, only for the process to be postponed because of politics. The Georgia Commission on the Holocaust reacted positively to the final draft of the proposed Georgia Standards of Excellence for Social Studies. The Education Department made changes that, “for the most part, will provide the content, context and rigor necessary for successful teaching and learning,” the commission said. It cited the restoration of Holocaust elements for fifth grade and the clarification of sixthgrade standards. The proposal also largely follows the commission’s recommendations for high school world history. The draft does not restore the Holocaust’s impact on Georgia to the eighthgrade curriculum. It becomes an option. The State Board of Education on Thursday, March 31, delayed action until at least May after teachers complained about last-minute changes in other standards under legislative pressure. ■

With this year’s religious liberty bill dead, LGBT activists begin the fight for a civil rights measure. Page 13

A few of the more than 400 people who ran or walked the Daffodil Dash 5K or mile Sunday, April 3, observe the post-race awards ceremony at Brook Run Park in Dunwoody. In addition to recognition for the teams that had the most participants (the Marist School) and raised the most money (the Epstein School), the ceremony featured speeches from Holocaust survivor Ben Walker and National Center for Civil and Human Rights head Derreck Kayongo. More, Page 14

STARRY NIGHT

AJA Makes Matzah Mission to Azerbaijan

Hillel celebrates the success of Campus Superstar and the service of Mike Leven. Page 22

BIG DOWNTOWN

Central Atlanta Progress honors the contributions of Bernie Marcus and Andrea Videlefsky. Page 25

Photo by Michael Jacobs

our Atlanta Jewish Academy highschoolers are delivering matzah to Azerbaijan to help the heavily intermarried Jewish community do Passover. Juniors Brooke Ratner and Zoie Wittenberg and sophomores Jonathan Nooriel and Maayan Schoen left Atlanta for the Azeri capital, Baku, on Tuesday, April 5, after raising $10,748.50 to defray the cost of matzah. Joining them are AJA Judaics teacher Rabbi Reuven Travis and AJA parent George Birnbaum, a political

consultant who conceived of the mission after visiting Azerbaijan at Sukkot. The four students, known as the Baku Crew, were selected from the many trip applicants, who had to write essays about the importance of connecting with fellow Jews around the world. The trip will include a Passover program with Baku’s Jewish day school, which has nearly 200 students, and time with government officials. You can follow the crew’s exploits

at ajaazerbaijantrip.wordpress.com and contribute to the matzah gift at www. gofundme.com/matzahforamitzvah. “As Jews in the United States, we tend to think of the Jewish people as a presence only here in North America or in Israel,” Wittenberg said. “We must remember that Jewish communities in other places, even if they don’t need help, still need love and support. We’re trying to create a connection with our own people halfway across the world.” ■

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

MA TOVU

Friend’s Business Offer: Minefield or Miracle?

“I

say: NEVER do business with a friend or relative. So what am I thinking? But where is my trust in our friendship? We have a solid foundation, and anything that comes up could certainly be sorted out and remedied. Lori and I? We’re sisters. Nothing could come between us.

Shared Spirit By Rachel Stein rachels83@gmail.com

It seems like a hand is propelling me in this direction. Nathan came home in a pensive mood yesterday, and his eyes were shuttered. “What’s wrong?” I asked at dinner. “I lost my job,” he confessed, lifting his eyes to gaze sadly into mine. Omigoodness, this can’t be happening. Nathan has worked as a fulltime teacher for 10 years. What will we do? How will we manage? I shivered, picturing a pile of bills spilling all over our living space. “They said they’ve always liked me,” he said. “No one ever complained about my work. It’s the economy, so they’re cutting back. Instead of having two sixth-grade classes, they’re merging them into one. So that’s it.” He shrugged and speared a piece of salmon. My heart contracted; poor Nathan! What a blow to his ego! Yet while I sympathized with him, I was worried, very worried, about us and our future. I had suddenly lost my appetite. This might be the last time I splurge on salmon for an ordinary weekday meal. We’re going to have to tighten our belts and accept our new reality. And then a surge of hope sprang forward, like a rosebud bursting into bloom. Lori’s call, the generous opportunity she offered: No question about it — heaven-sent, right? Definitely would boost the income while we’re living off my salary and Nathan’s unemployment checks. Am I walking into a minefield if I accept her proposition? Well, friends, what would you do? Do you have any sage advice? Should I go into business with my very best friend, or look elsewhere in more tranquil waters? ■

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Shared Spirit is a forum in which readers share their dilemmas. Acting as mediator, I pose the issues to my readers, and the following column prints responses with helpful solutions. have a proposal,” Lori said. “Sounds interesting,” I replied, wondering why my heart was hammering nervously. Perhaps it was woman’s intuition, whispering that if I accepted this proposal, my life’s trajectory would be changed. Lori and I go way back. Best friends since high school, we know each other almost as well as ourselves. “How would you like to become a master coach for us?” Wow. I was honored. I’m self-employed as a social worker; life coaching certification would improve my credentials. Lori and her husband run a successful life coach training academy, flying all over the United States and abroad to give seminars. She is fully aware that I am struggling to build up my clientele; I’ve been working on my own for only a little over a year now. I’m told that this struggle is typical when you’re self-employed, especially the first few years until you’ve built up a reputation. Clients move on once their issues are resolved, which means I succeeded in helping them — that is incredibly gratifying. But then it’s a scramble to fill the vacated slots. So I wonder: Is pity Lori’s motivation, or does she feel confident of my skills and want me on board? “I’m asking you because Abe and I decided you are amazing with people. You have this way of digging straight to the root of a problem, and then you help people unearth their own solutions, gently guiding them in a purposeful direction. We would be honored for you to join our network.” Didn’t I tell you we were close? She even reads my mind. Wow. This sounds like a heaven-sent opportunity. So what’s my hesitation? “I’m really touched,” I told Lori. “Let me talk to Nathan (my husband) and get back to you. Thank you so much. You made my day.” “OK,” Lori said in her sing-song, chirpy way. “I’ll be waiting.” Will partnering with Lori do anything to diminish or, G-d forbid, destroy one of my most meaningful relationships? You know what they

Email your suggestions by Monday, April 11, for inclusion in the next column.

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10 Years Ago April 7, 2006 ■ The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta in March laid off eight employees, almost 12 percent of its staff, because of a drop of more than $400,000 in grant money for the upcoming year. A ninth employee was going to be laid off but was reassigned, leaving Federation with a staff of 61.

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Contributors This Week RABBI RICHARD BAROFF MARK FISHER JASON FRIEDMAN JORDAN GORFINKEL LEAH R. HARRISON MARCIA CALLER JAFFE BENJAMIN KWESKIN KEVIN MADIGAN MINDY RUBENSTEIN EUGEN SCHOENFELD TERRY SEGAL RACHEL STEIN DUANE STORK

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

POSTMASTER send address changes to The Atlanta Jewish Times 270 Carpenter Drive Suite 320, Atlanta Ga 30328. Established 1925 as The Southern Israelite Phone: (404) 883-2130 www.atlantajewishtimes.com

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THE ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES (ISSN# 0892-33451) IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY SOUTHERN ISRAELITE, LLC 270 Carpenter Drive, Suite 320, Atlanta, GA 30328 © 2016 ATLANTA JEWISH TIMES Printed by Gannett Publishing Services MEMBER Conexx: America Israel Business Connector American Jewish Press Association Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce Please send all photos, stories and editorial content to: submissions@atljewishtimes.com

■ Mr. and Mrs. Bert Romberg of Dallas announce the marriage of their daughter, Leah, to Mark Harrison, son of Elizabeth Arnold of Atlanta and Sanford Harrison of Boca Raton, Fla., on March 23.

■ The bat mitzvah ceremony of Haley Laura Zagoria of Atlanta, daughter of Marvin and Janis Zagoria, was held Saturday, Feb. 4, at Ahavath Achim Synagogue.

50 Years Ago April 8, 1966 ■ The Israeli Ministry of Education and Culture ruled that Reform rabbis are permitted to participate in “Welcome to Sabbath” exercises held at Ramat Gan.

25 Years Ago April 5, 1991 ■ Six months into the federal fiscal year, which began Oct.

■ Dr. and Mrs. Bert Sobelson announce the engagement of daughter Elaine Sobelson to Cary Edward Rubin, son of Mr. and Mrs. Elliot Rubin. A June wedding is planned.

ONGOING

Greek history exhibit. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, hosts “Synagonistis: Greek Jews in the National Resistance,” an exhibition in the Katz Family Mainstreet Gallery of photos and documents telling the story of Greek Jews who fought with resistance movements against the Nazis. Free and open to the public when the center is open; www.atlantajcc.org.

Associate Editor david@atljewishtimes.com

1, only 70 of the expected 512 Soviet immigrants have arrived in Atlanta, prompting the Atlanta Jewish Federation to look at scaling back its resettlement apparatus.

THURSDAY, APRIL 7

Startups for women. Our Crowd Vice President Audrey Jacobs and CareCam Health Systems founder Shannon Pierce speak to Conexx Women about startup opportunities at Carter’s, 3438 Peachtree Road, Buckhead, with dinner and networking at 5:30 p.m. and the program at 6:30. Admission is $20 for Conexx members, $30 for nonmembers; www.conexx.org or 404-843-9426. Game night. Games & Dames, a night of drinks, desserts and various games for women, is the Jewish Fertility Foundation’s first fundraiser, being held at 7 p.m. at Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs. Admission is $30 online or $36 at the door; www.jewishfertilityfoundation.org/gamesdames.html. Israel at college. Emory professor Ken Stein leads a discussion, particularly appropriate for college and pre-college students, about “Challenges to Israel on Campus: Causes and Responses” at 7 p.m. at Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs. Free; RSVP to dlee@or-hadash.org.

FRIDAY, APRIL 8

Scholar in residence. Rabbi Bradley Artson, vice president of American Jewish University, begins a weekend stay at Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs, with a presentation on his installation of the first chief rabbi in Africa at 6:45 p.m.,

between services at 6 and dinner ($20 for adults, $12 for children) at 7:45. He speaks about religion and science at 12:45 p.m. Saturday, about Alexander the Great and African female warriors at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, and about synagogue inclusion at 9:30 a.m. Sunday. Details at www.bnaitorah.org/scholarin-residence-weekend-april-8-10.

SATURDAY, APRIL 9

Jazz show. Israeli jazz guitarist Amos Hoffman performs at Churchill Grounds, 660 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15; www. churchillgrounds.com.

SUNDAY, APRIL 10

Holocaust documentary. The Georgia Commission on the Holocaust’s “Anne Frank in the World: 1929-1945” exhibit, 5920 Roswell Road, Suite A-209, Sandy Springs, shows “Liberation and Return to Life,” about the liberation of the camps through the eyes of U.S. soldiers, at 1 p.m. Free; holocaust.georgia.gov. Performance art. Weber School students perform a dance showcase, “Elevate,” then join Tri-Cities High School students to perform “Cinderella: The Enchanted Version” (hosted by Shrek) at 4 p.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Tickets are $10 ($5 for those 60 and older, free for students and for Weber faculty and staff); weberschool.org/arts.

MONDAY, APRIL 11

Performance art. Weber School students perform a dance showcase, “Elevate,” then join Tri-Cities High students to perform “Cinderella: The Enchanted Version” at 6 p.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Tickets are $10 ($5 for those 60 and older, free for students and for Weber faculty and staff); weberschool.org/arts.

TUESDAY, APRIL 12

Grief support. AJT contributor Nancy Kriseman speaks at 2 p.m. to the grief support group at the Renaissance on Peachtree, 3755 Peachtree Road, Buckhead, on getting on with your life. Free; 404-240-7811. Theater auditions. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, holds tryouts for Spotlight, its new, yearround theater company for adults with special needs, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Free; schedule an audition by emailing auditions@atlantajcc.org or calling 678812-4073. Millennials in the workplace. Andrea Hershatter, the senior associate dean at Emory’s Goizueta Business School, talks about the newest generation of employees during the monthly meeting of the Sinai Business Alliance at 7 p.m. at Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs. Admission is $8 in advance, $12 at the door; templesinaiatlanta.org. Benefit concert. Colin and Gabi Schachat, accompanied by Raymond Goldstein and such locals as the Atlanta Jewish Male Choir and Atlanta Jewish Academy students, perform a benefit for Israel’s Operation Lifeshield and AJA at 7:30 p.m. at the school’s Sandy Spring campus, 5200 Northland Drive. Tickets are $36 or $18 for students; secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=1b467a.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13

Jewish Breakfast Club. The AJT-sponsored business breakfast with kosher food begins with networking at 7:30 a.m. and features a great speaker at 8 a.m. at Greenberg Traurig, 3333 Piedmont Road, Suite 2500, Buckhead. Admission is $15; RSVP to JBC@atljewishtimes.com.

Send items for the calendar to submissions@atljewishtimes.com. Find more events at atlantajewishtimes.com/events-calendar.

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CALENDAR Corrections & Clarifications

• An article April 1 about Conrad Jacobson incorrectly attributed a Vogue cover to him. The photography on that cover was taken by John Rawlings. The AJT can’t confirm other elements of the story. • In an article April 1 about Atlanta Jewish Academy’s participation in the Weizmann Institute’s Shalheveth Freier International Physics Tournament, the team role of Jonah Queen (assistant coach) and the amount the school raised ($5,000) were incorrect, as was the name of the competition. History tour. The Breman Museum conducts a tour of The Temple, 1589 Peachtree St., Midtown, at 10 a.m. Free for museum members, $10 for nonmembers; thebreman.org or 678-2223700. Concert. The Weber School chorus and band ensembles perform a spring concert twice, at 5 and 7 p.m., at Steve’s Live Music, 234 Hilderbrand Drive, Sandy Springs. Free; weberschool.org/arts. The Tasting. Jewish Family & Career Services’ annual fundraiser for the Zimmerman-Horowitz Independent Living Program offers dishes from many of Atlanta’s best restaurants, along with fine wines and spirits, from 7 to 10 p.m. at Mason Fine Art Gallery, 415 Plasters Ave., Atlanta. Tickets are $100 in advance, $125 at the door or $50 in advance, $75 at the door for people under age 35; www.thetasting.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 17

Running from Egypt. Congregation Ner Tamid, 1349 Old Highway 41, Suite 220, Marietta, holds its first Exodus 5K/1 Mile Fun Run, including a costume contest, with an 8 a.m. start for the 5K and 8:15 start for the mile. Entry is $20 for the mile and $25 for phantom runners and is $25 for the 5K until April 16 and $30 race day; 678-264-8575 or www.mynertamid.org.

CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES

Parshah Tazria Friday, April 8, light candles at 7:46 p.m. Saturday, April 9, Shabbat ends at 8:43 p.m. Parshah Metzora Friday, April 15, light candles at 7:51 p.m. Saturday, April 16, Shabbat ends at 8:49 p.m. 1:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 for JCC members and $15 for nonmembers; bit. ly/1VR4A0X. Bearing Witness Series. Hershel Greenblat, who was born in hiding in Ukraine, then lived in a displaced persons camp for five years until moving to Atlanta in 1950, talks about his experiences at 2 p.m. at the Breman Museum, 1440 Spring St., Midtown. Free; thebreman.org or 678-222-3700.

Aging well. Registered nurse Sarah Kagan presents a program on ditching the “shoulds” in life to chart your own path to aging well at 11 a.m. at the William Breman Jewish Home, 3150 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta. Free; www.JewishHomeLife.org or 404-351-8410.

Art show. The Jewish Tower, 3160 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta, in conjunction with Jewish Family & Career Services, holds the Art Out Loud art show from 2 to 4 p.m. with nearly 100 pieces created by artists ages 58 to 91. Free; 770-6779344 or ddollinger@jfcs-atlanta.org.

Film screening. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, working with the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, is showing “Havana Curveball” at

Barbecue reception. After Atlanta Jewish Academy’s Jerry Siegel Legacy Golf Tournament, an awards reception

MONDAY, APRIL 18

honors David and Danny Frankel and offers barbecue and bluegrass by the Cohen Brothers at 6 p.m. at the Dunwoody Country Club, 1600 Dunwoody Club Drive, Dunwoody. Tickets are $36; secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=c50ee4. Genocide talk. Am Yisrael Chai, the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust and the Georgia Commission to Prevent Genocide present “Witness to Genocide: An Evening With Carl Wilkens,” who was in Rwanda in 1994, at 6:30 p.m. at Heritage Sandy Springs, 6110 Bluestone Road, Sandy Springs. Free; RSVP required at bit.ly/1SGMdZL. Israel at college. Emory professor Ken Stein leads a discussion, appropriate for college and pre-college students, about “Learning, Owning & Telling Israel’s Story: Generation to Generation” at 7 p.m. at Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs. Free; RSVP to dlee@or-hadash.org.

THURSDAY, APRIL 14

Concert. Texas musician Joe Buchanan performs at 7:30 p.m. at Rodeph Sholom Congregation, 406 E. First St., Rome. Tickets are $5; www.garodephsholom. org, rodephsholomrome@gmail.com or 706-291-6315.

FRIDAY, APRIL 15

Sober Shabbat. Jewish Family & Career Services’ monthly alcohol-free dinner and service travel to Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb, at 6:30 p.m. Free; RSVP to HAMSA@jfcsatlanta.org or 770-677-9318.

SATURDAY, APRIL 16

PJ Havdalah. Temple Kol Emeth, 1415 Old Canton Road, East Cobb, marks the end of Shabbat with a potluck dinner, a service and music for ages 4 to 10 at 5:15 p.m. Free with a meatless potluck item; RSVP to www.tkehavdalahinpajamas. eventbrite.com.

“You can learn public health anywhere. At Rollins, you do public health.” Looking to make a difference, make a change or advance your career? Have you considered public health? Did you know that we have one of the top schools of public health here right in Atlanta and you can get your Master of Public Health (MPH) degree while you maintain your career? The Executive MPH Program at Emory University is a distance-based program geared to the needs of busy, mid-career professionals. Executive MPH students attend a leading school of public health and learn from top academics and practitioners in the field of public health. Students specialize in one of three major areas: Applied Epidemiology, Applied Public Health Informatics, or Prevention Science.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Addiction workshop. Caron Treatment Centers and Jewish Family & Career Services’ HAMSA hold a workshop featuring Rabbi Yosef Lipsker and Ike Dweck on treating alcoholism and other substance abuse in the Jewish community at 8 a.m. at the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Contact atKGrant@caron.org for details.

Learn more about the Executive MPH Program at Emory at www.sph.emory.edu/emph.

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ISRAEL NEWS

Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home Preventing lung collapse. Another innovation from Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s BioDesign students: ThoraXS, a one-handed thoracic portal opener that shortens the time for a chest-tube insertion from minutes to less than 30 seconds. It is timely for saving victims of terror stabbings. How bacteria escape their enemies. A joint team of scientists from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Netherlands have discovered that the common E. coli bacteria play hide and seek to avoid detection by the predatory B. bacteriovorus bacterium. The work extends research into combating antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Enhancing insulin production. Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem have discovered that the gene p16 enhances insulin secretion in beta cells of mice that suffer from diabetes, thereby partly reversing the disease. Similar results in human cells are expected. A Parkinson’s cure. The focused ultrasound brain surgery of Tirat Carmelbased Insightec has been used 500 times around the world. In its first procedure in Israel, surgeons at Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center cured an Is-

raeli woman of her uncontrollable Parkinson’s shaking.

Hadi after a Druze Israel Defense Forces officer who helped deliver the boy.

The integration of Haredi Jews. More young ultra-Orthodox Israelis lead pious lives while embracing technology, the modern workplace and their fellow Israelis. Employment of Haredi men, just about 30 percent in 2003, has passed 50 percent, and the Haredi-focused nonprofit KamaTech has helped launch 220 Haredi startups.

Surviving drought. A NASA study shows that the 1998-2012 eastern Mediterranean drought was the area’s worst drought in 900 years. But wastewater recycling, seawater desalination and a major water conservation campaign have made Israel nearly drought-proof.

Promoting Arab startups. Former Israeli soldiers are helping Arab tech startups in Nazareth. The government and the 8200 Alumni Association, representing graduates of the top tech unit in the Israel Defense Forces, have introduced the Hybrid Program at the Nazareth Business Incubator Center.

Israeli security stops ATM attack. The first mass attempt to steal from Israeli cash machines has been foiled. Israeli cybersecurity expert Ido Naor led international cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab to uncover the ATM zombie attack, inform authorities and prevent the spread of the attack.

Tunnels tell stories. Israel has finished digging the tunnels for the Tel AvivJerusalem rail line, which will help all Israelis dramatically cut the travel time between the two cities. The rail tunnels in Israel are quite a bit different from the tunnels Hamas is digging in Gaza.

Trump brothers invest in Israeli math teachers. Eddie and Jules Trump (no relation to Donald) have invested over $150 million in improving math instruction in Israel. The money trains 35- to 45-year-old technology professionals with knowledge in math who are tired of their jobs and are seeking new challenges as math teachers.

Dubai woman honors IDF officer. A woman from Dubai who went into labor while traveling to the Palestinian Authority named her newborn son

Phresh keeps produce fresh. Phresh, a Chinese startup using Israeli biotechnology, has unveiled an organic solution that triples the shelf life of fruit

and vegetables for consumers. Phresh relies on a nontoxic powder that dissolves into the atmosphere and is based on 12 years of research. Phresh just raised 150 percent of its $30,000 funding goal on Kickstarter. Lockheed Martin’s Israeli cybersecurity system. Less than a year after investing $25 million in Boston-based Cybereason, founded by members of Israeli intelligence’s Unit 8200, Lockheed Martin has officially released a cybersecurity solution based on the Israeli technology. It includes Cybereason’s market-leading endpoint threat detection and response mechanism. 20,000 homes for Ghana. Ghana’s State Housing Co. has signed a contract with Rehovot-based IDM International to deliver 20,000 housing units in Ghana. The project will ease the massive housing problems facing Ghanaians. Protecting wildlife. The eco-bridge over Highway 1 between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv is being constructed. Wildlife such as deer, gazelles, boars, foxes, jackals, hyenas and porcupines will soon be able to cross in safety. Compiled courtesy of verygoodnewsisrael. blogspot.com and other news sources.

Arava Environmentalist Sees Hope in Water By Michal Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

srael and the Palestinians seem a long way from face-to-face peace talks, let alone from any kind of resolution. But Shmuel Brenner sees a way forward by stepping back from a comprehensive agreement. Instead of trying to resolve all four big obstacles to peace at the same time — refugees, borders, Jerusalem and water — Brenner wishes the Palestinians would be willing to tackle just that last issue, an area where “it is possible to do things” now that Israel has largely solved its own water problems through conservation, recycling and desalination. Brenner, the director of the Center for Sustainable Development at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, knows about Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. He was the lead Israeli professional on an environmental committee created under the Oslo Accords in 1995, and he has maintained 6 contacts for environmental and water

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discussions through the years, including those developed at the Arava Institute. He said desalination plants for the Palestinians, supported with privately operated wastewater treatment plants that would not have to change hands based on where the final borders run, would be the core of a workable, scalable water solution. Such a resolution to one major issue could build trust for tackling the other areas of dispute, but Brenner said neither side’s leadership seems interested in an incremental approach. “The chances are very, very, very small, but why not try?” he said. Brenner told a small group about his 13 years with the Arava Institute as well as his involvement with Oslo and with Jordanian and Palestinian environmentalists during a brief visit to Atlanta on Wednesday, March 30. The gathering was part of the continuing observance the 20th anniversary of the institute, which was one of many nongovernmental organizations that formed amid the optimism of the Oslo

Photos by Morris Maslia

With the gathering at his Sandy Springs house, Alan Lubel introduces his guest from the Arava Institute.

Accords and is one of the few to survive the Second Intifada and the failure to make any peace progress since then. But while the official peace process doesn’t exist, the Arava Institute has built multiethnic cooperation and environmental leadership among Israelis, Palestinians and Jordanians, and Brenner’s center within the institute has developed solutions that offer impoverished communities sustainable solutions for progress.

Brenner spoke at length about a biogas system that serves as a simple, scalable, relatively inexpensive, healthy approach to convert waste into energy. Demonstration systems have worked at the level of schools and individual families to improve conditions and raise people’s dignity among the Bedouin and in Ghana. Now, Brenner said, it’s a matter of finding leaders willing to “see there is a hope and things can be done.” ■

Shmuel Brenner reflects the relaxed nature of his meeting with Arava Institute supporters March 30.

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Safed Hospital Saves Hundreds of Syrians By Kevin Madigan kmadigan@atljewishtimes.com

“F

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

or the last three years, an Israeli hospital near the Syrian border has quietly become a sanctuary for wounded Syrians,” Israeli Consul General Judith Varnai Shorer said at Young Israel of Toco Hills on Thursday night, March 31. Ziv Medical Center in Safed, just west of the Golan Heights in the eastern Galilee, is run by Dr. Salman Zarka, the first Druze to lead an Israeli hospital. Zarka, who served as a colonel in the Israel Defense Forces and most recently commanded military health services before his IDF retirement in 2014, was the guest speaker at the program, sponsored by Young Israel, American Jewish Committee’s ACCESS young professional group, the consulate, and American Healthcare Professionals and Friends for Medicine in Israel. Ziv has treated some 800 of the more than 2,600 Syrians who have received medical care in Israel the past three years, Zarka said, including a 15-year-old girl who gave birth to twins in February.

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More than 70 percent of the Syrian medical community has fled the country since the war began in 2011, Zarka estimated, and most of its care facilities are damaged or destroyed. “The internal conflict that started at the center Photos by Michael Jacobs Ben Shamir is the executive Elie Wolfe welcomes the of Syria had extended Salman Zarka acknowledges director of American crowd on behalf of ACCESS. by 2013 to the area right having doubts about the policy Healthcare Professionals to treat Syrian wounded. and Friends for Medicine in next to our borders,” he Israel, which is supporting Ziv said. “After an evaluaMedical Center’s efforts. tion of the new situation, a decision Zarka said patients, often with had to be made: to close the border or vide medical support.” Zarka also referred to the “histori- complicated injuries, are treated soleprovide medical support.” The precedents are troublesome, cal imperative of the Holocaust” and ly in accordance with their medical Zarka said. “Thinking about Syria, we his own medical code of conduct as needs, regardless of whether they are have in our minds the painful wars reasons for assisting the wounded of civilians or combatants. “Their names that were conducted between our two an enemy nation. “I am a physician, and identities are not so important for us. We just want to treat them. We do countries, especially Yom Kippur, with and I am sworn to save lives.” According to the Syrian Center for not ask about religion or which party thousands of casualties. If it’s your Policy Research, the war has directly they belong to.” sworn enemy, it is legitimate to close and indirectly killed 470,000 people There is only one standard of care, the border.” He said that even now, and caused casualties among 11.5 pernot two, Zarka said. “Israelis and Syrmost Syrians hate Israel and want to cent of the population. Zarka put the ians are treated the same at our hospierase it from the map. number of wounded at almost 2 miltal.” “But in our tradition, we are orAs an example, he showed photos dered to try to save lives,” he said. “For lion. The United Nations ceased collecting statistics on the war 19 months of a little girl’s shattered lower leg and religious reasons, yes, we need to proago because of its precarious sources said that the quick, easy, cheap treatwithin Syria. ment would have been amputation. InZiv’s inclusive policy has faced stead, Ziv conducted more than half a criticism. “There is a debate about dozen surgeries, committed to months treating Syrians at Ziv. It is not a rich of hospital care and fitted the girl with or a big hospital,” Zarka said. “I’ve been an expensive device to save the leg. told, ‘You need first of all to treat your “Some are afraid that the fact citizens, not the Syrian people, and they were treated in Israel will become if there are only seven operating the- known,” Zarka said, so the staff takes aters, and you need to operate on Syr- precautions such as writing patients’ ians, it seems that sometimes you will release letters in English and Arabic inpostpone an Israeli citizen.’ They do stead of Hebrew before sending them not like it. I can understand that. Sec- back to Syria. “We cannot predict their ondly, who will pay for that? Treating future. We are doing our best to proan Israeli is less expensive than treat- vide them with solutions that will help ing a Syrian. The government pays us them survive — drugs, treatments and the same amount for each, so it’s not equipment — and to make their lives enough.” better.” ■

ISRAEL NEWS

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Gilad Pasternak says the IDF fights for the Jewish people in general.

Jonathan Adelman of the University of Denver says Israel and Russia can work together in the Middle East.

Mideast Today: Iran As Foe, Russia as Friend By Benjamin Kweskin

ran is Israel’s biggest existential threat in a region where even the Saudis appear to be warming up to Israel and the Russians’ attitudes seem to have changed, said Jonathan Adelman, a University of Denver professor who spoke Wednesday night, March 30, at Temple Emanu-El in Sandy Springs during a Friends of the Israel Defense Forces event. Temple Emanu-El Rabbi Spike Anderson welcomed the crowd to a “fiercely Zionist Reform congregation that has a cogent history of activism.” The congregation sent 34 people to the AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington in March, reportedly the largest synagogue delegation in Georgia. The rabbi began with a midrash about how the Israelites engaged in battle with the Jewish people’s eternal enemy, Amalek, after their release from slavery. “The soldiers in the IDF are doing the physical battle,” the rabbi said, “while we (Diaspora Jews) are the ones holding up Israel.” A visiting IDF speaker, Gilad Pasternak, is one of 30 international students at the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation and the grandson of an Auschwitz survivor. He was wounded in the leg during Israel’s 2014 war in Gaza, while a close friend was killed. He thanked FIDF for its physical, psychological and emotional support. “We in the IDF are not only fighting for Israel, but for the Jewish people in general,” he said. Garry Sobel, the chairman of FIDF Southeast, outlined FIDF’s mission and 35-year history in supporting Israel’s soldiers, then introduced Adelman, who said the Saudis have softened their

views on Israel not necessarily because of ideological shifts, but because they also view Iran as their biggest enemy. Predominantly a Russia specialist, Adelman focused on Russia’s role in the Middle East and reminded the audience that Israel was founded by secular socialists who came from the Russian Empire. He said Israel has warmed up to Russia because of the apparent semiwithdrawal of the United States from the Middle East. Adelman said Russia today is not the Soviet Union, and its re-emergence in the region is more calculated after its quagmire in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Today, Russia seems to respect Israel. Adelman said that after the United States, the place Russian diplomats want to be stationed is Israel. When he asked Russian diplomats why, they said, “Israelis are not Jews.” Briefly touching on a wide range of issues within the Middle East, Adelman said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at militarily assisting Israel’s eastern neighbor if ISIS comes closer to threatening Jordan. Adelman said Syria is no longer a threat to Israel because of the Assad regime’s weakened status and preoccupation with the ongoing civil war. Asked about the future relationship between Israel and Syria, Adelman said Syria could be partitioned into three to five statelets, with the regime likely maintaining control of coastal areas as well as the three largest cities. He added that there could be a small extremist state and a Kurdish entity in the north (Syrian Kurds declared a federal region in March). Adelman said such a partition would “serve Israel and Russia’s interests.”■

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

Our View

Border Medicine

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

srael’s enemies love to use lies, distortions and double standards to cast it as the source of all evil. The University of Georgia community has gotten a taste of that venom during the annual Israeli Apartheid Week staged by Athens for Justice in Palestine and Christians United for Palestine to teach “how to combat Zionism in your communities.” We’re certain that several thousand Syrians, however, are thankful every day that the anti-Zionists (usually indistinguishable from anti-Semites) haven’t succeeded in wiping Israel off the map. Those Syrians can thank Israeli generosity and basic goodness for saving their lives and the lives of their loved ones. During a meeting at Young Israel of Toco Hills on March 31, Salman Zarka — an Israeli Druze, a 25-year Israel Defense Forces veteran, a physician and the man in charge of Ziv Medical Center in Safed — laid out the difficult choice facing Israel in February 2013 when Syria’s civil war crept ever closer to the border. For much of the past 40 years, Syria has posed the greatest threat to Israel. Generations of Syrians have been raised to believe that Israelis are devils. Syria has helped arm and prop up Hezbollah. The Syrian fighting since 2011 has occasionally lobbed shells onto northern Israel. So Israel had every reason to see the shooting a few miles away as a security threat and to respond by driving away any Syrian who came near the border. Instead, Israel did what any nation in its position should do but few would: It welcomed in all those needing medical care — male and female, young and old, civilian and combatant. More than 2,600 Syrians have received treatment in Israel the past three years with no questions asked and no payments requested. That’s not slapdash, fix-them-up, ship-them-out care. As Zarka showed during an often harrowing presentation of photos from his hospital, Syrians are receiving the same standard of care as Israelis. When they have recovered, they are free to go home. The Israelis even provide instructions in Arabic and English to help protect the Syrians from retribution at home. Why does Israel treat sick and wounded Syrians as people in need of help and not as enemies? Zarka explained the decision from the perspective of a hospital administrator forced to spend his limited resources: It’s a reflection of Jewish principles. It’s a determination to live the lessons learned from the Holocaust. It’s a fulfillment of the medical staff’s oath to provide care when and where it is needed. Remember that Ziv, which has treated more than 800 Syrians, is the first Israeli hospital led by a Druze. Like hospitals across the country, it has a diverse staff, and, typical of the population in the Galilee, it treats patients of all religions and ethnicities. And just as Israel is often first to respond to disasters in countries from Haiti to Nepal, Israeli doctors and nurses at home couldn’t turn their backs on their neighbors. (If you can’t turn your back on Ziv, consider a donation to the hospital at www.friendszivmedicalcenter.org.) Those students spreading the lie that Israel is an apartheid nation no doubt would downplay the care Israelis — not Jews or Muslims or Christians, but Israelis — are providing, but they can’t hide the simple truth: Compassion and basic humanity in the face of 10 disaster are the Israeli way. ■

AJT

Rick McKee, The Augusta Chronicle

Mowing Down a Dream

or this Home & Garden issue, I have a confesthis particular slice of the American dream. sion: I’m the neighbor of your nightmares. None of my failures as a homeowner, however, I realized that fact again while doing my changes another realization: Lawns are silly. impression of yardwork for the first time this spring. According to an article posted in 2010 at the It was a sunny, cool, pleasant day, and the last thing I website of Columbia University’s Earth Institute, we wanted to do was spend it with my lawn. Americans use as many as 40 million acres as lawns. I appreciate a lush, perfectly green patch of To maintain that greenery, we spend billions of dolgrass on a baseball diamond or a golf course. But lars a year, use 10 times the fertilizer and pesticide home lawn care leaves me cold. per acre as farmMost of my East Cobb neighers apply to crops, bors hire professionals to fertilthus contribute to Editor’s Notebook ize, weed, mow and otherwise environmentally By Michael Jacobs maintain their manicured front poisonous runoff, mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com yards. A few do-it-yourselfers sprinkle and spray are out there every weekend for away 30 percent to hours at a time, seeming to take 60 percent of the great pleasure in yardwork. fresh water used in No one will mistake my yard for anything cared urban areas (either exacerbating drought shortages for by professionals. Generously, you could use the or overwatering in areas with adequate rainfall), oxymoronic term natural or wild landscaping to spill 17 million gallons of fuel trying to refill lawn describe the yard. Lazy would be more accurate. and garden equipment, and contribute 5 percent of The grass is often overgrown, at least in compar- the nation’s air pollution with our mowers. ison with the buzz cuts the neighboring lawns get. All to get just the right shade of sun- and Of course, you can’t see the grass most of the time drought-resistant green so we can waste more time because of the thriving weeds and years-old leaves. from March through October cutting grass that At least some of the neighbors are unamused, grows like weeds. We could be growing vegetables calling the county with annoying regularity to and herbs. We could be growing flowers (ideally complain about the state of the yard, most recently perennials). We could have trees or mulch or rocks claiming (inaccurately, in my opinion) that the grass or any number of other low-maintenance uses. and weeds on more than 10 percent of the property Instead we have grass — great if you have room topped 12 inches in height. So I spent three hours and need for a baseball diamond or a croquet court, ripping out and weed-whacking the greenery in the a nuisance otherwise. front yard and pushing around the manual rotary I’m not on the cutting edge of environmentalmower for the first time this year. ism, but I’ll never understand why a person would Again, I’m a lousy neighbor if you judge neighdrive a Prius, Volt or Tesla to work, then come home borliness on the beauty of the yard. Or the exterior to the environmental horror of an exquisite lawn. of the house. Or the life in the trees. So maybe my naturally sloppy yard makes me It took me two decades of homeownership, with a lousy neighbor. At least I can convince myself I’m almost 28 years left on my mortgage, to realize that being a good friend to nature while I float in my some people, myself included, aren’t meant to share chemically balanced pool all summer. ■

OPINION

100 Years of Einstein’s Supreme Achievement scientist — the relatively new science of economics. Those who believed in him and called themselves Marxist maintained that his theories were also proved empirically — every bit as much as Einstein’s or Freud’s theories. Unlike Einstein or Freud, Marx

Guest Column By Rabbi Richard Baroff

lived only in the 19th century. But his explosive impact occurred in the 20th century. Like Freud and Einstein, Marx did not profess Judaism. Like Freud, Marx was an atheist. But unlike Einstein and Freud, Marx was not proud of his heritage (both his grandfathers were rabbis). He had a low opinion of both Jews and Judaism — and in fact all religion. Most of the 20th century was profoundly influenced by these three seminal thinkers: Einstein the mathematical scientist, Freud the speculative scientist, Marx the pseudoscientist. All came from Jewish backgrounds. None practiced Judaism directly or believed in the G-d of the Bible or rabbinic literature. Freud and Marx were atheists. Freud and Einstein identified with the Jewish people. Einstein was an active Zionist who was offered the presidency of Israel. In this century Einstein is largely celebrated by the Jewish people. Our pride regarding Freud’s accomplishments and influence is ambivalent and complicated. As for Marx, his seismic, and largely negative, effect on world politics has made him by far the most controversial thinker of the three. That none of the three found Judaism appealing as a religion is an indication of the challenges of the modern age and its rampant secularism. Indeed, secularism is itself fructified by Einstein’s theories, as well as by Freudian and Marxist ideas. The centenary of general relativity is a milestone in intellectual, scientific and Jewish history to be sure. Yet ironically it is one of the milestones of our secular age that have undermined the religion of Judaism itself. ■ Rabbi Richard Baroff leads Guardians of the Torah.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

ast year and this year we celebrated the centennial of one of the greatest intellectual achievements in the history of humankind: the publication of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity, which is in essence his theory of gravitation. It is a testament to his greatness as a scientific figure that his conception of gravitation is universally accepted within physics and astronomy. The theory has been verified many times. First published near the end of 1915, it was in 1916 that this new theory was widely discussed and examined by physicists. One prediction of general relativity that had not been verified until this year was the existence of gravitational waves. This discovery occurred in the centenary year of the theory. General relativity was of course an expansion and continuation of the special theory of the decade before. Taken together, the special and general theories revolutionized humankind’s ideas of time and space and of matter and energy. So far, all of it has been scientifically verified. The general theory was published in the midst of the Great War, during the dark time of the Battles of the Somme and Verdun. But Einstein was only celebrated by the general public after the war in 1919, when the prediction that a beam of light would bend around the sun was shown to be true. In the 1920s Einstein and his somewhat older contemporary Sigmund Freud became scientific celebrities. Their revolutionary ideas remain central to science and important in human culture. But they are different. Whereas Einstein’s theories have been verified, Freud’s have not and indeed cannot, at least in the same way. Freud and Einstein were proud to call themselves Jewish. Neither was a practicing Jew. Freud was an atheist. Einstein believed in G-d, but in Spinoza’s G-d: G-d as the structure of cause and effect within the cosmos, making human understanding possible. This pantheistic vision of divinity lies outside the Jewish tradition. (Spinoza himself was excommunicated.) One other figure of Jewish background who would also have a tremendous effect on world culture and history after World War I was Karl Marx. He also professed to be a

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OPINION

Dear Mr. Sanders: A Response on Israel

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

nable, perhaps unwilling, to appear before AIPAC like the other presidential candidates, Bernie Sanders issued a brief explanation about his relationship with Israel and his views on Israeli-Palestinian problems. His essay raised doubts about his claim to have a personal commitment to that land. Sanders spent a few months in his youth on a kibbutz, but time on a kibbutz doesn’t make anyone an expert on a hostility that has almost a two millennia history. Moreover, while he proposes to speak of the Israeli-Palestinian issue, most of his essay deals with the Middle East in general. If someone is directing his comments to AIPAC, I would assume he would focus on issues directly concerning Israel. Right at the onset in his paper, Sanders sought to appear as an evenhanded judge of Arab-Israeli issues. His statement reminded me of an old tale about a Hasidic rebbe. His fame as a great judge spread over the land. As usual in a Hasidic tale, there

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always is one person, a mitnaged, who opposes Hasidism, its spirit and the learnedness of the rebbe. This story has a mitnaged who doubts the greatness of the rebbe and decides to see him in action. He wishes to see whether the rebbe merits the praise for his jurisprudence. He writes the rebbe, invites himself to his house

One Man’s Opinion By Eugen Schoenfeld

and receives permission to be present when the rebbe judges a case. After spending Shabbat in the rebbe’s home, on Sunday morning he visits the beit din (Jewish court). Two litigants appear in court. The rebbe turns to one and tells him to present his case. The man does as instructed. Immediately after his presentation, the rebbe turns to the first litigant and proclaims, “You are right.” The other litigant becomes upset.

“Rebbe,” he says, “you haven’t heard my side yet, and you already made a judgment? Is that fair?” The rebbe agrees to the objection and patiently listens to the second litigant’s statement, then turns to him and proclaims, “You are right too.” Now the guest observing all this tells the rebbe: “This is very interesting. How can you proclaim both litigants to be right? This is unheard of.” To which the rebbe responds: “You know something — you too are right.” This is essentially Sanders’ view on the Arab-Israeli conflict. In his desire to be evenhanded, he accomplishes nothing. He wishes both sides to be right, but that is not the case. The main problem is that Sanders does not differentiate between what he hopes Palestinian leaders should be and what they are. Instead of looking at reality, he imposes his own hopes and declares that both sides are wonderful and well-intended people. I am unsure how Sanders comes to this conclusion. Do well-intended people maintain a philosophy that continues to threaten another people’s existence? Hitler did it, and in no way can anyone call him a well-intended person. Sanders sees the Palestinian leaders as reasonable people with whom Israel can negotiate. Really? Israel has successfully negotiated treaties with two countries with which it has maintained a working peace. Israel has shown its willingness to give up land for peace. Negotiation requires the ability to be able to change views, to alter and bargain. Negotiations that are based not on give and take but on a dictatorial perspective will never lead to solutions. So far Palestinian leaders are dictatorial in their view: They believe in the adage “my way or the highway.” To begin with, they reject the idea of Israel’s

legitimacy or the right of Jews to live in peace in their own state, which is a sine qua non to peace. Sanders proposes that Israel give up new settlements. Well, OK. What did Israel get in return for pulling out of Gaza? As I remember, Israel’s population got more rockets. Sanders proposes that Israel stop its economic blockade of Gaza. But free access to goods merely increased Gaza’s facility for acquiring weapons. Isn’t Sanders aware of the tunnels and of their purpose? Of course, water is the most precious commodity in Israel. There is enough water if Lebanon would agree to give access to its unused rivers. But even pre-Syrian Lebanon believed in the philosophy of hatred and deprived Israel of water that could have benefited Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories: the Litani River. Let me clearly state: I am not a believer in Benjamin Netanyahu’s political philosophy. My commitment to Israel, like my father’s before me, was rooted in Herzl and the early Zionist leaders, who were adamant believers of the Palestinians’ rights as citizens. But, Mr. Sanders, only reasonable people can reason together. So far, unlike you, I do not see a reasonable Palestinian leadership who will reject rigidity in favor of collective human existence. I do not deny that there are unreasonable persons on the Jewish side, but the history of the last 67 years has shown that Israel is willing and able to negotiate a lasting peace if given an opportunity. It is time, Mr. Sanders, to face reality and not be influenced by a sophomoric idealism. Until the time that Palestinians become reasonable, Israel must have unquestioned help in a world that seeks to devour it. ■

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LOCAL NEWS

Equality Advocates Celebrate Veto, Push for More By Elizabeth Friedly elizabeth@atljewishtimes.com

eorgia Equality supporters gathered on the sunny lawn across from the Georgia Capitol midday Tuesday, April 5, to celebrate the veto of House Bill 757, as well as to address new goals. H.B. 757 sought to legalize faithbased entities’ refusal of service and employment based on sincerely held religious beliefs — a measure that responded to the legalization of same-sex marriage. The bill passed the General Assembly in March in spite of established First Amendment protections. Gov. Nathan Deal’s announced veto of H.B. 757, the Free Exercise Protection Act, has led legislators to vow to try again in 2017. The legislature for several years has been a battleground between advocates of LGBT rights and those, led by Christian conservatives, who insist religious freedom is threatened. Georgia rabbis across the denominations have opposed religious liberty legislation for potentially enabling discrimination; none has publicly sup-

SOJOURN Executive Director Rebecca Stapel-Wax talks of the responsibility from one generation to the next.

Photos by Elizabeth Friedly

ADL Southeast Regional Director Mark Moskowitz calls for antidiscrimination legislation in Georgia.

ported such measures. The April 5 rally’s theme was one of thanks: to voters, legislators and lobbyists — present or otherwise. Speakers acknowledged the recent Georgia victory while citing ongoing legislative battles in other states, such as North Carolina and Mississippi. Among the featured speakers, Jewish leaders Mark Moskowitz, the Southeast regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, and Rebecca Stapel-Wax, the executive director of

SOJOURN, expressed relief at the veto of H.B. 757. Stapel-Wax spoke of l’dor vador, or the responsibility from one generation to another, for our children and their children. Moskowitz, sporting a brightly lettered “No Place for Hate” T-shirt, called for a push for comprehensive anti-discrimination laws throughout the state. Georgia employees are protected from discrimination on the federal level, but no analogous rights exist at state

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Supporters of Gov. Nathan Deal’s veto of H.B. 757 display some of their motivations.

level. As a right-to-work state, Georgia allows private employers to fire employees without providing a rationale. Workers could be let go based on sexual orientation or religious beliefs. Deal has expressed opposition to enacting new rights laws. The rally ended with calls to vote May 24 in the state and local primaries to continue the momentum into the next session. ■

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LOCAL NEWS

NAVIGATING THE JOURNEY FROM CHILD TO CARETAKER 2-PART WORKSHOP

Photos by Michael Jacobs

Laura Millard and daughter Mary have plenty of energy to run around at Brook Run Park after the 5K Daffodil Dash on April 3.

Led by Jenifer Firestone, LMSW & Rabbi Ilan D. Feldman • • • • • •

What to Expect in the Caretaking Years Halachic Perspective on Medical and End-of-life Issues Making Informed Caregiver and Housing Decisions Advanced Directives Implications of Medical Intervention with the Elderly Federation Tools & Resources to Assist in the Journey

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Derreck Kayongo jokes about how much better dressed he is than the hundreds of runners in front of him.

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Partners Holocaust survivor Ben Walker shares his experiences and his gratitude, as well as his guilty pleasure: a glass of cocoa every day.

Sunday, May 15 & 22

Daffodil Dash and Am Yisrael Chai founder Andrea Videlefsky (right) leads the post-race ceremony. Three days earlier, Central Atlanta Progress recognized her efforts with the Daffodil Project, Page 25. Two- and fourlegged runners near the top of the final hill before the Brook Run Park finish line.

10am - 12pm | Beth Jacob Atlanta

Daffodil Dash Keeps Growing and Teaching

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

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m Yisrael Chai’s annual Daffodil Dash drew more than 500 people to Brook Run Park in Dunwoody on the brisk but bright morning of Sunday, April 3. Most ran or walked the full 5K course. Others chose the 1-mile walk or run. Some just came out to support the effort to memorialize the 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust by planting an equal number of daffodils worldwide and by opposing genocide and supporting threatened children in Africa today. Two speakers presented the impact of genocidal efforts on children and the hope of surviving and thriving. Ben Walker, who was 6 years old when his Romanian family was taken from a farm and shipped off to a ghetto in the Transnistria region, thanked the crowd, largely composed of students and families, for attending the dash. “I’m so glad you are here,” he said. “I’m so glad I am here.” He shared the hardships he experienced during the Holocaust, such as

waking up on a pile of straw one morning to find his father dead beside him. Walker’s 3-year-old sister also died; only he and his mother survived the war. “My sister has no grave, and these daffodils really represent the memory of my sister,” he said. Derreck Kayongo, the director of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, survived a different homicidal dictator, Idi Amin, in a different country, Uganda, but, like Walker, he reached Atlanta and made himself a success. “I am so hopeful every time I see people such as yourselves,” Kayongo said, later adding, “There is hope. There is hope. There is hope. There is hope everywhere.” Leading the way in producing hope April 3 were the Marist School, which had the largest team in the dash with more than 120 participants, and the Epstein School, which raised the most money, led by top individual fundraiser Shane Bernstein. ■

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HOME & GARDEN

Growing Up Green

Horticulturist develops school garden programs

everal Atlanta schools are incorporating gardening into the curriculum, thanks to a local expert. “Kids today live in a world where their food magically shows up clean and neat at the grocery store,” said Hadassah Ezoory, a horticulturist specializing in food gardens. She now oversees the gardening programs at Torah Day School of Atlanta, Chaya Mushka Children’s House Preschool, and CMCH Elementary and Middle School. Through her programs, hundreds of children experience the process, from planting to watching the growth to eating the results. “She’s just fantastic with the kids,” said Linda Rabinowitz, the general studies principal at TDSA. Children recently grew lettuce, which they brought home in a cup. Kindergartners could be seen nibbling on the small, dark green leaves like they were candy — proud that they had grown the treats. The impetus for the TDSA garden came from a group of parents and grandparents who thought it would be a great thing to have, Rabinowitz said. The garden was started in 2008 and was revived in recent years, she said. The children go out for scheduled times, and it’s a regular specialty, like art or physical education. The program incorporates multiple subjects, Rabinowitz said, as the children learn about insects, planting, soil, the amount of water needed and what can grow together. They also check the lettuce for bugs, wash and cut it up, then eat it. “They have been able to eat the fruits of their labors,” she said. Dassie New, who directs Chaya Mushka Children’s House Preschool and CMCH Elementary and Middle School, thought the program would be a good complement to the Montessoristyle curriculum. “The children look forward to their hands-on science-inthe-garden class each week,” she said. “Being healthy and natural is a focus at CMCH, so to complement the fresh produce ordered each week for snack, the children can grow some of their own produce.” Ezoory said she teaches students that “gardening is a good deal.” “Every time we grow something, there is enough to eat plenty and enough to replant to create a whole

new crop,” she said. Many do not notice, for example, all the seeds within a pepper. “When we plant a packet of pepper seeds, we may be able to harvest 100 peppers. Then it takes only two of those peppers’ seeds to grow another 100 peppers — and we have still eaten all 100 peppers,” she said. During each hour she is in the garden with the kids, she tries to have them be part of the process so they can experience its success and realize “it’s Hadassah Ezoory helps children at Jewish schools grow not magic.” their own lettuce and other produce. She uses the hands-on time with the children to teach them the science ter college, she started a potted plant She works four days a week at the behind their experience. She does ex- business for people’s porches. The schools, getting the kids out into the periments, investigations and critical Israelis realized that growing things fresh air and into their flourishing garthinking exercises to help them under- like cucumbers in pots beautified their dens. stand the ecosystem of their garden. “I really love working with the porches and was less expensive than They learn to keep a balance of healthy children in the gardens,” Ezoory said. buying them, Ezoory said. organisms while gardening organiThe program has been so well reShe was trained as a doula in Isracally. ceived that TDSA is working on a plan el and worked for several years helping “It also entices them to eat healthto upgrade the garden this year. “We women deliver babies naturally. Now fully,” she said, noting that they harvest salad vegetables, wash them and often she is busy working with the fruits of just think it’s a really great experience for the kids,” Rabinowitz said. ■ her labor in gardening. enjoy eating them raw. Ezoory grew up in Phoenix, an area known for its desert climate. “People think it’s not the best place to garden,” she said, but she discovered otherwise. “Add water. It’s the best place to grow: a warm, sterile envi- “Drink more water!” “Stop eating sugar!” “Meditate!” ronment.” “Exercise more!” “Care for your parents!” One day, around age 14, she started to dig at the pure rock in her back yard. She added soil and planted some corn, cucumber, tomato and carrot seeds there, and they Presented by grew. From that moment, she Sarah H. Kagan, PhD, RN was hooked. University of Pennsylvania “For years in my back yard I was gardening as a hobSometimes the pressure of doing what “they” say “you should” can by,” said Ezoory, whose yard be an impediment to making the changes that are right for you. Join is full of all sorts of fruits and us to learn how to stop giving in to artificial assumptions about vegetables. She has pomegranhealthy aging and embrace your own path to living well. ate, fig and apple trees, as well as a vegetable garden that she tends with her husband, Ron, and their children. She attended the University of Arizona, where she The William Breman Jewish Home started as a premed major. 3150 Howell Mill Road, NW, Atlanta After shadowing a doctor, she realized that was not the caThis event is free and open to all! reer path she wanted, so she switched to plant sciences in No matter what your age and perspective on health and well being, the School of Horticulture. you’ll want to join the conversation. “The plants were so pleasSpace is limited  RSVP Today  404.351.8410  www.JewishHomeLife.org ant to work with,” she said. 15 While living in Israel af-

How to Drop the “Shoulds” On Your Path to Living Well

Sunday, April 17th 11:00 am — 12:30 pm

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

By Mindy Rubenstein mrubenstein@atljewishtimes.com

AJT

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HOME & GARDEN

Young Persian Family Creates L.A. Vibe

or years I have walked my dog on a lovely Sandy Springs cul-de-sac and noticed a vacant behemoth, overgrown, Alhambra-style house on a marvelous flat lot. A bulldozer arrived, and 14 months later a modern Mediterranean manse bloomed. Dr. Farid Toub, a native of Vancouver, British Columbia, with his California wife, Hedi Abaei, watched over all the details to produce a 7,400-square-foot, wideopen-space family home. They spent six months getting approval for the title. Dr. Toub, the chief clinical officer and executive vice president of Georgia Dental Group, tells of meeting his petite wife through mutual Persian friends. Hedi, ever glamorous in her Louboutin heels, eschewed interior decorators and trusted her own ingenuity and style. Jaffe: Since you were your own designer, what mood were you trying to create? Hedi: I wanted a resort, almost hotel feeling in here — open, serene, with a neutral palette. Actually, I would call it a masculine palette with blue accents. I like beige, brown and gray tones with no colored walls. The darker doors are a bold accent to stark white walls, and I love the contrast of the dark brown to chalk white. We really wanted a Southern Californian vibe. So we chose to go with a contemporary Mediterranean/Spanish build. We also carried out the same concept throughout the house. Farid has a very modern taste, and I am a bit more transitional. … So we really had to work hard to meet in the middle. Jaffe: How do you use your dining room? Hedi: Many Shabbat and Passover seders will be enjoyed here. The furniture in here is from Z Gallerie. I’m sure everyone recognizes the oil as inspired by Gustav Klimt.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Jaffe: Do Persian rugs have a special place in your décor? Farid: Yes, some have been in my family for three generations. Our Persian rugs each are from different cities in Iran (Tabriz, Esfahan) and date back from 40 to 70 years ago. They are very sentimental to us, as they have been passed down from our parents and 16 grandparents.

AJT

Jaffe: Your kitchen looks very efficient. Hedi: I am very meticulous about work spaces. The kitchen is Poggenpohl with engineered wood that had to be shipped from Germany. It took forever. The appliances are Wolfe, and the surfaces are quartz. I wanted a simple, clean look.

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

Farid: She’s a fine cook also. Her best dish is Persian stew ghaimeh with beef shank, yellow lentils and dried lemons with a tomato base. I myself came as a bachelor who can only boil water. Hedi: But we still like to dine out. Rumi’s Kitchen is our go-to local favorite. Jaffe: Your lighting is very dramatic. Hedi: Many of my chandeliers were ordered online. The entrance piece is from Jonathan Adler. I did a lot of research. The tiles and stone throughout are Spanish from Porcelanosa. Our master bedroom chandelier and office piece are from Modani.

Jaffe: I see your wife likes fashionable clothing. What’s the closet situation like? Farid: Yes, we share this master closet that could be its own cottage, but she has three-fourths of the space. Especially the rows of shoes! Jaffe: How do you use the privacy of your outdoors? Hedi: We have a Weber grill in the gazebo adjacent to the pool and love to entertain out here. We also enjoy the walk-out courtyard from the basement. We love to have guests and had a big affair recently for our son’s 1-yearold birthday. We have another 3,500 square feet of unfinished basement next to the gym. Jaffe (to builder): How would you weigh in? Jay Eskandari (Tuscany Homes): The Toub home is unique in that the exterior has a Mediterranean aesthetic, but the interior structure and

B design are a blend of modern and contemporary elements. This allows for a trendy design while maintaining the comfortable feeling of a home. Farid and Hedi were an ideal pair to work with. They knew exactly what they wanted but were easygoing and open to suggestions. When there is trust between a builder and a client, the process of building a home together becomes much easier. What I have always enjoyed is watching someone’s dream home become a reality. There are many fine details that go into building a functioning home.

The customizing process really is like creating a work of art. Jaffe: Hedi, will you admit that you miss Rodeo Drive? Hedi: L.A. will always be my home, and I truly miss the sunny ocean every day. Atlanta has many great aspects that L.A. does not. It’s a rapidly growing city with innovative ideas, businesses, restaurants and even the evolving culture here. I love how green the city is and how friendly everyone is. It’s a wonderful place to raise a family. Yes, I miss Rodeo and its Urth Caffé! ■

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HOME & GARDEN

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Photos by Duane Stork

A: Hedi Abaei and Farid Toub cuddle Miso, the family dog. B: A glamorous pool serves as a backyard entertainment venue. C: Z Gallerie furnishings in the dining room show the neutral palette accented in blue. D: The dramatic high ceiling in the great room shows off a chandelier found online. The oil painting was a gift. E: Hedi Abaei’s Poggenpohl kitchen features engineered wood from Germany. F: The guest bathroom features Spanish tile by Porcelanosa. G: The Toubs’ master bathroom contributes to the home’s resort hotel feel. H: A Tabriz rug passed down through generations of Farid Toub’s family is at the center of the comfortable family room.

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HOME & GARDEN

Moe Mernick is helping foster a DIY revolution as the head of business development for Hometalk, where people ask and answer questions about home projects and share projects of which they are proud.

Hometalk Spurs Online DIY Revolution By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

AJT 18

New York-based web startup with ties to Israel is leading the way for a new generation of doit-yourselfers. Launched in 2011, Hometalk.com is the largest home and garden information hub online and is the place to go for inexpensive, DIY projects to freshen up your living space. “Hometalk is a DIY community of people that are looking to save money and be creative,” said Moe Mernick, who heads up business development for the startup. “It’s people that are looking to make their homes their own. The community has really taken on a life of its own.” Mernick, who was in Atlanta for the Home & Garden Digital Marketing Summit in March, took some time to speak with the AJT about Hometalk, its recent growth, and its connections to Israel and the city of Atlanta. Hometalk shares a research and development center in Jerusalem with a lead generation company in Atlanta. Sandy Springs-based Networx is one of the leading networks of home improvement contractors in the United States. “We are a New York-based company, but a lot of the team does sit in Jerusalem,” Mernick said. “When we talk about Hometalk, our staff is really a microcosm of the great community online. In Jerusalem, we have men and women, Haredi and secular, working side by side.” Mernick, an Orthodox Jew born in Toronto, splits time between New York and Ramat Gan, where his wife and children live. Now in its fifth year, Hometalk’s website boasts more than 6 million unique visitors and 50 million page

views per month. The company also has an impressive following on social media with nearly 1 million Facebook likes and more than 440,000 followers on Pinterest. So what’s behind this revolution in DIY enthusiasts? Mernick said Hometalk has been able to capitalize on people’s propensity to love what they create and their desire to share it with others. “It’s very easy to take out your checkbook and hire an interior designer,” he said. “But what people feel more proud of is when they actually have a hand in creating something themselves. When we build something ourselves, we love it more.” Hometalk is laid out in a similar manner to Pinterest, but instead of focusing on fashion and recipes, the site is a place to share home and garden projects such as making a coffee table out of wooden crates and using pallets to make raised garden beds. Users upload around 90 new DIY tutorials every day. Hometalk also is similar to Pinterest in its niche demographics: 95 percent of Hometalk’s 6 million monthly visitors are women, and 85 percent live in the United States. Moving forward, Mernick said his company is exploring ways to provide more value to the Hometalk community. “Our users want to be able to buy products at Hometalk,” he said. “They don’t just want to see great content, but they want to be able to buy it. We need to have products available to them that are true to the Hometalk brand. In addition, we want to provide the world’s most authoritative destination for product reviews in the home and garden space.” ■

HOME & GARDEN

Now that the warm weather has arrived, you’ll be seeing these signs all around town.

Is the Zika Threat Real?

A chat with mosquito expert Matt Brill

s the summer approaches and with it the annual onslaught of mosquitoes, some Atlantans are concerned about an outbreak of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in Georgia, but is it something we should be worried about? One of Jewish Atlanta’s mosquito experts, Matt Brill, co-founder of Mr. Mister mosquito control, talked to the AJT about the virus and its connection to microcephaly in infants born in Brazil and elsewhere. AJT: So the big question on everyone’s mind here in Georgia: Should we be afraid of Zika and its connection to babies born with birth defects? Brill: Afraid? Not necessarily. But concerned and aware? Yes. I think we’re going to see an increase in cases as the temperatures go up. We haven’t seen a ton of mosquito activity until the last week. Once that happens, someone can get a travel-related case and come back here. Now there’s a higher chance of getting bitten by a mosquito and that mosquito biting someone else. AJT: Are people currently trying to have children be the only ones we’re concerned about? Brill: Well, there’s also a suggestion that Zika could be causing Guillain-Barre syndrome, which is a neurological disorder, so there are other things that go along with that. Zika is not just a cold that will go away. No one ever has permanent damage from a cold, whereas some of the associated illnesses with Zika are very permanent. There is cause for concern, but I’m not an alarmist, and we don’t sell fear. AJT: Should Zika be an even bigger concern because of the Olympics this

summer in Rio? Brill: Well, I just read somewhere that there’s a local U.S. shot-putter who is thinking of not competing in the Olympics this summer because he and his wife are trying to get pregnant. People are worried. AJT: Will mosquitoes be worse than usual this summer due to the fairly mild winter we had here in Atlanta? Brill: Mosquitoes’ eggs can survive very harsh winters, so it doesn’t really matter how cold it gets or for how long. If you go to a place like Minnesota, they get a permafrost, and it’s one of the worst mosquito habitats in the world. The temperature in the winter doesn’t really have an effect. AJT: Atlanta recently got ranked No. 1 in Orkin’s list of worst mosquito cities for the third year in a row. Why are the mosquitoes so bad here? Brill: In terms of metropolitan cities, Atlanta is terrible. We are a heavily wooded city, and knowing that certain mosquitoes can breed in an upsidedown bottle cap, just think about all the places that can hold water in your yard. That’s everything from gutters and drain boxes that are clogged up to even knots in trees. My guys when they’re out treating will throw larvicide in all those areas. AJT: What can people do this summer to protect themselves from mosquitoes? Brill: People ask me all the time what the best mosquito repellent is if you want to go outdoors. I don’t like DEET because it’s toxic and it can ruin your gear, but there’s a company called Sawyer that makes a repellent with an active ingredient called picaridin. It has the same effectiveness as DEET, but it’s less toxic. ■

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

AJT 19

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

HOME & GARDEN

Property Brothers Living the Dream By Leah R. Harrison

elebrate, HGTV aficionados: The Property Brothers are coming to the Marcus Jewish Community Center on Wednesday, April 13. Twins Jonathan and Drew Scott are promoting “Dream Home: The Property Brothers’ Ultimate Guide to Finding & Fixing Your Perfect House.” Regardless of whether you’re a fan of HGTV’s “The Property Brothers” and “Buying and Selling,” the book shows that the Scotts are knowledgeable, hardworking, principled and thorough. They grew up on a ranch, and by age 16 Jonathan built a house with his father. The twins were creative, had keen eyes for detail and often rearranged the furniture when their parents were out. They pursued interests in acting and directing (Jonathan is even an illusionist) but decided real estate was the way to make big money. They began their first investment and renovation projects while students at the University of Calgary, and Drew went through a program to be a licensed Realtor to save them the commission. Jonathan studied business,

then construccal real estate tion and design, agents, subconand their vision tractors, designers and vendors for a one-stop to expedite projshop took shape. ects and get the Scott Real most expertise Estate, providand best prices ing renovation, for their clients. design and stagThey haming services in mered out 35 addition to real projects in 10 estate buying months in Atlanand selling, was ta for two shows founded on the in 2014. They principle that Jonathan and Drew Scott, each 6-foot-4, worked with no matter what, worked with Realtors Robin Blass (5-foot-2) and real estate agent they would never Lauren Blass Solomon (5-foot-1) in late 2014. Robin Blass on cut corners. two listings. Blass said it was a great The brothers dabbled in acting and hosting, and in 2009 they were experience and called them “the nicest picked by the W network in Toronto people.” After learning how many projects to shoot the first full season of “Property Brothers,” showcasing their work the 35-year-old brothers juggle, I wonfinding fixer-uppers and transforming dered how they had time and energy to them into the ultimate dream homes write “Dream Home,” let alone answer some questions by email. for clients. Now with four shows and millions of viewers in 140 countries, the Property Brothers generally go to a city for months at a time, working with lo-

AJT: You must be so busy with the demands of the shows. What made you want to write “Dream Home”? J&D: For years our fans have been asking us to write a book. If they couldn’t have us in person to help them with their property, this would be the next best thing. It took two years of compiling everything we’ve learned in our 15-plus years of real estate. “Dream Home” is the best resource for anyone looking to buy, sell or renovate their home. Even if you just want to make some simple design choices without a big budget, our book can help you transform your space. AJT: What are the most prevalent trends you’re seeing? J&D: Technology and multifunctional spaces are two of the biggest trends. … Furniture pieces that also function as storage. Garages that are also workshops or man caves. You name it! And with new smart home apps, we can be anywhere in the world and control anything in our home from a cellphone. Right down to turning on the coffee pot.

that with a little imagination, amazing transformations can be done. AJT: What is a typical day on the job? Jonathan: Many think that I’m the only one who does any work, but in reality Drew does just as many hours. It just so happens that MY hours are on a dirty construction site while he’s mostly in a suit. Drew: We like to divide and conquer any initiatives so that we’re not doubling up and wasting time. This is one reason we can accomplish so much in a day. Jonathan will bounce between three to four construction sites in a day while I will be doing showings throughout the city. Then we have meetings, press and more meetings. We’re typically up by 6:30 a.m. and finish the workday around 9 p.m. No rest for the weary! AJT: What are the two most memorable things from the 10 months you spent in Atlanta? J&D: The people! Everyone was really welcoming, which always makes being in a new city more enjoyable. And during one day of filming in front of a store we were shopping at, Usher passed by on a bicycle. Lol. Proof that Atlanta has a great music scene. AJT: Is it true that you played basketball and worked out at the JCC? I hope we comped your membership. Drew: I did play basketball at the JCC. I always look for somewhere to run when I’m in a new city. It is a great facility. AJT: I know you have an older brother as well. Describe the family dynamic. Jonathan: We call our older brother, JD, the Brad Pitt of the family. He’s the good-looking brother. The three of us are as thick as thieves. JD is also a TV host and has had shows on HGTV and GAC. Drew: I’d say Jonathan is the goofball, JD the romantic and me … I keep everyone working so much they don’t get personal lives! ■

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Who: Drew and Jonathan Scott

AJT 20

AJT: You designed a kosher kitchen for homeowners Liat and Zack. What stands out about that experience? J&D: This was one of our favorite episodes. It was a great challenge to fit everything they needed into such a small kitchen space — two prep spaces, two fridges, etc. But it worked. It shows

When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 13 Where: Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody Tickets: $10 members, $15 nonmembers, $65 premium package (includes signed copy of book and VIP access to photo line); www.atlantajcc. org or 678-812-4002

EDUCATION

What Can We Afford for College? and ZIP code of a student could be required, but the college could ask whether you want to be called for further discussion. Some NPCs are easy to find on college websites. You have to go fishing for others. But the NPC must be there.

Guest Column By Dr. Mark L. Fisher drmarkfisher@bellsouth.net

By using the NPC, you can determine what the college might cost you. A scary sticker price isn’t always a reason to reject a college. I have been researching colleges for a client whose family financial situation might enable spending no more than $20,000 a year. But some colleges’ average financial aid packages are around $30,000. Average means just that — some packages are more, some less. Does that include loans? It could; all packages are different. A few schools eliminate loans if your family contribution is below a particular figure. The NPC should take between 15 and 20 minutes to complete on a college website. Afterward, parents will realize that some colleges to which their students were accepted could be affordable. The estimates are primarily for the first year of college. The College Board estimates that about one-third of students pay the sticker price. More than 80 percent of the students at private institutions receive financial aid. If you choose to use the NPC for a given college, the college will look at its costs and your family financial information and some student data. Then the calculator estimates the student’s potential financial aid and subtracts the aid from the sticker price, and out comes your potential net price, the amount a student would pay and/or borrow to enroll. The NPC probably won’t be perfect, but it is certainly better than not knowing anything. You may be pleasantly surprised. ■ Mark Fisher is a college and career consultant at Fisher Educational Consultants (www.fishereducationalconsultants. com) and a consultant for the College Planning Institute (www.GotoCPI.com).

PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE MONTHLY MEETING OF

The Jewish Breakfast Club with featured speaker DOUG ROSS

Wednesday, April 13th 7:30 am – 9 am

7:30 am Reception • 8:00 am Program

Being held at Greenberg Traurig 3333 Piedmont Rd NE #2500

Reservation Required RSVP at JBC@atljewishtimes.com

$15.00 cash payment at the door

We require a reservation because the breakfast is catered and we need to be able to plan. Kosher dietary laws observed.

JBC

Jewish Breakfast Club

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

or many high school seniors, March was a key month for their college decisions. For those who applied early decision, early action or at an earlier priority date, the decision may have already been taken care of. For other students, including those whose applications were deferred from early admissions programs, March brought word of acceptance, denial or wait list. Parents have an additional concern: Can we afford the total cost of the college? The Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 required all postsecondary institutions in the Title IV federal student aid program to become more transparent about the cost of college. While the student has counted on that dream college for a long time, the parents are giving more and more thought to the tremendous cost. Surely, it would have been preferable if the parents had let the student know about any monetary problems long before the student’s dream was shattered. In other words, parents need to be upfront with their children from the beginning. We know that in many cases the student will receive need-based financial aid and perhaps a merit scholarship or a HOPE grant in Georgia. To the rescue, possibly, comes the federal mandate that forced colleges and universities to make their pricing transparent. Since Nov. 1, 2011, the Net Price Calculator has been required on every college website. Colleges had three years to get ready. Vendors came on the scene, including the College Board, and the colleges listened to the various pitches. The first problem is that the NPC may be a little different, depending on the design of the website. So beware in comparing the NPC of each college. Colleges wondered whether some families would immediately bypass them because the potential financial aid didn’t compare to that of other colleges. The admissibility of a student and the fit of a particular college for a student could unfortunately become lesser issues. My advice is to use the NPC. The whole idea was to make college costs transparent. The government let it be known that only the first name

AJT 21

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Leven’s Way Helps Hillel Raise $300K

ommunity leaders walked the red carpet at the Buckhead Theatre on Tuesday, March 29, to honor the Leven family, see an uplifting show featuring past Campus Superstar winners, and raise money for Hillels of Georgia. “I consider Hillel to be my most important job ever. I’m into the fourth year of a two-year term,” Hillels of Georgia President Michael Coles said. While the organization’s spring Campus Superstar topped out at raising about $210,000 in past years, “tonight we are striking just over $300,000. And I am so proud of how the young people here shared how Hillel has affected their lives.” Veronica Beskin, the director of Georgia Tech Hillel, estimated that the university has 600 Jewish students, 70 of whom attended a bagel lunch that day. “Hillel allows us to bring together Jewish students on campus.” The Buckhead Theatre event, Night With the Stars, mimicked the opening night of a major movie with stars walking the red carpet and was meant to wrap up the successful Campus Superstar format. “This is the last year of branding this format; thus, we are saluting the superstars of past years competing against each other,” Coles said. “The format in 2017 will be totally different.”

Steve Oppenheimer, a member of the sponsorship and host committee, said: “I share the community’s response to tonight’s honoring the Leven family as over-the-top enthusiastic.” He said Mike Leven has been a

Jaffe’s Jewish Jive By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

key part of Hillels of Georgia’s growth and success, including helping secure the Emory campus location for the Marcus Hillel Center and serving with Jody Franco as co-chairs of the capital campaign to build the center in 2006. “Hillel provides a place for kids of any opinion or bias to have a venue for open discussion with other Jewish kids,” Leven said before the show. “The future of the Jewish people is in their hands.” Leven’s three sons served sequentially as the emcees to introduce the five competing stars — Iris Kelly, George Lovett, Christy Clark, Sam Burchfield and Sandie Lee — who praised Hillel for providing financial support for them to complete their education or begin music careers. Leven’s wife, Andrea, read a heartfelt poem about his generous spirit. “Leven has been a community builder, and I am proud to be mea-

Georgia Tech Hillel Director Veronica Beskin (right) is joined at the Buckhead Theatre by students (back row from left) Tommy Eichenblatt, Kevin Sloan, Scott Shapiro and Will Finklestein and (front row from left) Leah Giverz and Sarah Jane Lowenblitt.

Lori Simon and Steve Oppenheimer attend the fundraiser.

Contestant Iris Kelly performs a showstopping medley featuring the Natalie Cole hit “This Will Be.”

Linda and Steve Selig show support for Hillel and the Leven family.

Photos by Marcia Caller Jaffe

Alliance Theatre casting director Jody Feldman, who stunned the audience with her rendition of “A Mother’s Prayer,” attends the benefit with sons Kevin (left) and Brett.

sured among his friends,” Eliot Arnovitz said. Two sentimental favorites brought down the house with their performances: • Jody Feldman, who was instrumental in putting together the Campus Superstar concept, harmonized with sons Kevin and Brett in a performance

of “A Mother’s Prayer” that would have given Celine Dion a run for her Vegas show. • Leven himself took the microphone to close the evening, crooning the Sinatra favorite “My Way” as the audience leapt to its feet. He is still doing it his way, thank goodness for Atlanta. ■

Emory Hillel Takes Mission Trip to Cuba On March 5, 13 Emory University students went on a trip to Cuba with Emory Hillel to interact with and perform service projects for the Jewish community in Havana. here is nothing quite like getting on an airplane in Miami, a city with a robust Jewish community, and landing in Havana, a city whose Jewish population today numbers only 1,100. Upon arriving in Cuba’s capital, I was not surprised to learn that over 90 percent of the Jews who used to live in Cuba immigrated to the United States to escape the oppressive regime of Fidel Castro. I was surprised, however, by the fact that the Jewish community that remains Cuba is, against all odds, full of joy and life. 22 Traveling to Cuba for the first APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

AJT

time, I was somewhat uncomfortable at the notion of negotiating a land with a foreign language and a foreign system of government. However,

Guest Column By Jason Friedman

walking through the doors of Havana’s Beth Shalom Jewish Community Center felt like coming home. We were greeted with smiles and hugs by an elderly yet energetic group of “Jubans,” or Jewish Cubans, who proceeded to sing and dance to “Hava Nagila” with our group. At first it felt a little bizarre to hear the Jubans speak Yiddish and

kvell about their grandchildren, but I realized this is standard practice for Jews around the world. After making lunch and chatting with the Jewish seniors of Beth Shalom in a mix of broken Spanish and Hebrew, we had the opportunity to interact with the Cuban Jewish youth. We helped lead an English language class and an arts and crafts project for the children. Their energy and enthusiasm were truly infectious. Although spirits were high as we rejoiced together as one global Jewish community, it is important to remember that it is still a community in need. We arrived at the synagogue with suitcases packed to the brim with supplies to meet the community’s dire needs. Medicine, soap, socks and other essentials are in short supply not only for the Jewish community, but also for the country as a whole.

Emory students visit the Cuban Jewish community in early March.

In the spirit of Judaism, the synagogue works to provide support for all members of the community regardless of religious background. Although the Jewish community in Cuba is thriving spiritually, materially it is not. It was a rare privilege to be able to support fellow Jews in this way and help build a stronger Jewish community around the world. ■ Jason Friedman is an Emory College junior.

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EDUCATION Teens Grant $15K

This year’s members of the Atlanta Jewish Teen Foundation, a Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta program, completed seven months of work Monday, March 21, by announcing three grants totaling $15,000: • The Zaban Couples Center, $8,000 for its health and wellness program. • The Jerusalem Rape and Crisis Center, $4,000 for support groups for survivors of rape and incest. • ZAKA, $3,000 for the You Belong program, which trains mentally abused teenagers as dog handlers for the ZAKA Canine Search and Rescue Unit. The teen board members sort through more than two dozen applications reflecting roughly $170,000 in requests. They made their decisions based on a mission statement they created over the course of 12 sessions at which they learned the tools of strategic philanthropy and explored Jewish values and teachings. That mission: “The Atlanta Jewish Teen Foundation (AJTF) strives to positively impact the Jewish community by funding organizations that focus on the fields of educational assistance, medical research and mental illness. We give special consideration to those that promote the therapeutic usage of animals in the cases of education assistance and mental illness.”

Davis’ Circle of Life

In a display of color, creativity and talent, the Davis Academy staged four exciting performances of “The Lion King, Jr.” on March 20 through 22. The production featured nearly 200 Davis students as cast and crew, ranging from 5-year-olds to eighth-graders. “The Lion King” also has served as a learning theme all year, including a Middle School visual and performing arts day a month before the show’s opening, and inspired student art from every grade that formed a gallery leading into the show. It was the 13th and last Davis Academy musical to be presented in the Middle School gymnasium. Next year’s show will take place in Davis’ Performing Arts Center, now under construction.

The Davis Academy was named to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Top Workplace list for the second consecutive year in rankings based on employee feedback in a survey conducted by an independent research firm. “Our faculty and staff are the heart and soul of the Davis Academy,” Head of School Amy Shafron said. “Our satisfied employees ensure that the Davis Academy is a warm and inspiring learning environment.” Davis faculty and staff gave the workplace high marks for a range of factors, including establishing an atmosphere that encourages new ideas, supporting professional growth, creating a setting where jobs exceed expectations, and feeling as if they are a part of something meaningful. The AJC published the list Sunday, March 27. Two other Jewish nonprofits, Jewish Home Life Communities and the Marcus Jewish Community Center, also made repeat appearances among the 165 honored employers. Schools on the list included Woodward Academy, the Schenck School, St. Martin’s Episcopal School, Pace Academy, Cornerstone Preparatory Academy and Clayton State University.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Davis Still a Top Workplace

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PASSOVER

JCrafts Taps Top Voice

Crafts Georgia head Rabbi Levi Mentz is always trying to upgrade the educational workshops available to schools and synagogues to learn about Jewish holidays and rituals, and those changes are usually most noticeable with better visuals or additional hands-on projects — things you can see and often feel. This spring, you’ll also be able to hear the difference. Rabbi Mentz, who grew up amid show-business people in Los Angeles, called on one of his California connections, Gerald Blum, to increase shows’ dramatic impact with narration from a pro. “I’ve known Levi since he was

literally a little kid. I used to go to his dad’s house around the corner from me,” said Blum, whose vocal credits include the voiceovers for “Judge Judy.” “He’s Gerald Blum grown up and become quite a young man.” He said he used a “Disney tour guide” kind of voice to provide the narration for the Passover program “Back to the Exodus,” which appealed to him with its combination of the entertainment world (inspired by “Back to the Future”) and tradition.

He gave all the credit to Rabbi Mentz for writing a script that could appeal to children and “translate fun and learning together.” They never had to be in the same state, let alone the same room, to work together on the Exodus story. Rabbi Mentz emailed the script to Blum, who printed it out and took it to a nephew’s computerized home studio to record his parts. Rabbi Mentz was full of excitement about landing Blum, who used to do projects for his father, including a weekly phone recording about the Messiah. Blum said the Chabad philosophy of not judging people on how much they know and of starting small

and building up appeals to him, and JCrafts fits that approach by making learning fun and age-appropriate. Rabbi Mentz can be reached at jcraftsga@gmail.com to get information about or book “Back to the Exodus” or the other JCrafts workshops and programs. You should be able to catch Blum’s voice again in the yearround Great Kosher Chocolate Factory workshop. The JCrafts work is extremely satisfying, Blum said. “I’ve always worked under the adage that what you do is not who you are. If you can combine the two in a project as worthy as this, it’s so much more satisfying than commercial work.” ■

SUNDAY, APRIL 10

tinues its “Prepare for Pesach” series with a class on side dishes at noon. Admission is $25 for JCC members, $45 for nonmembers; www.atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4152.

Family program. The Children’s Museum of Atlanta, 275 Centennial Olympic Park Drive, downtown, in cooperation with the Marcus JCC, is hosting “Matzah at the Museum” with crafts, storytime, sing-alongs, science experiments and Rabbi Brian Glusman from 2 to 5 p.m. Admission is $14.95; childrensmuseumatlanta.org/calendar/matzahat-the-museum or 404-659-5437.

Sandy Springs, offers a four-course meal during a seder led by Rabbi Ron Segal at 5:30 p.m. Admission is $25 for adults, $15 for children ages 5 to 12, and free for children 4 and under (non-Sinai members are $5 more each); RSVP by April 19 at templesinaiatlanta.org.

Prep course. Rabbi Laurence Rosenthal leads a class on engaging the young and young at heart in your seder at 9:30 a.m. at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead. Free (bring a family haggadah to take notes); aasynagogue.org or 404-355-5222. Special needs seder. Congregation Shearith Israel, 1180 University Drive, Morningside, holds a seder for those with special needs and their caregivers at 5 p.m. Free; RSVP by April 6 to rkrjr2@comcast.net or 678-305-9401. The Man Seder. Young Israel of Toco Hills, 2056 LaVista Road, and the Hebrew Order of David mix pre-Passover Torah learning with a four-course steak dinner, craft beers and bourbon, as well as a collection of gently used business clothes for donation, at 8:15 p.m. Admission is $54 for members, $60 for nonmembers; www.yith.org.

TUESDAY, APRIL 12

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Tot holiday class. Chabad of North Fulton, 10180 Jones Bridge Road, Alpharetta, focuses on bread at Passover during its weekly Babyccino class, led by Jeannette Sinasohn, for children through age 2½ and their moms at 11:30 a.m. Admission is $12; hs@chabadnf.org. Lunch and learn. Rabbi Joshua Heller’s weekly study session, with lunch at noon and learning at 12:20 p.m., tackles “Passover University” at Congregation B’nai Torah, 700 Mount Vernon Highway, Sandy Springs. Lunch is $6; RSVP to sarah@bnaitorah.org.

AJT WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13

Food preparation. The Marcus JCC,

24 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, con-

THURSDAY, APRIL 14

Chocolate Seder. The Marcus JCC’s Rabbi Brian Glusman leads a decadent twist on the seder for adults at 7:30 p.m. at Congregation Etz Chaim, 1190 Indian Hills Parkway, East Cobb. Admission is $25; etzchaim.net/chocolateseder.

FRIDAY, APRIL 15

Pre-Pesach dinner. The Kehilla in Sandy Springs, 5075 Roswell Road, is holding a community dinner at 8:15 p.m., after services at 7, so you don’t have to cook in your clean kitchen. Dinner is $18 for Kehilla members, $23 for nonmembers, and $5 for children ages 2 to 12; www.thekehilla.org/communitydinner or 404-913-6131.

SUNDAY, APRIL 17

Running from Egypt. Congregation Ner Tamid, 1349 Old Highway 41, Suite 220, Marietta, holds its first Exodus 5K/1 Mile Fun Run for all ages, including a costume contest and prizes for the first finishers, with an 8 a.m. start for the 5K and 8:15 start for the mile. Entry for the mile is $20, for phantom runners is $25, and for the 5K is $25 until April 16 and $30 race day; www. mynertamid.org, events@mynertamid or 678-264-8575. Prep course. Rabbi Neil Sandler facilitates a class on how to lead a meaningful seder at 9:30 a.m. at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Ave., Buckhead. Free (bring a family haggadah to take notes); aasynagogue.org or 404-355-5222.

Freedom Seder. David Broza, Peter Yarrow and other performers participate in City Winery’s pre-Passover celebration at 6:30 p.m. at Ponce City Market in Midtown. Tickets are $145 and $100 ($25 more for glatt kosher); www. citywinery.com/atlanta.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20

Food preparation. The Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, concludes its “Prepare for Pesach” series with a class on desserts at noon. Admission is $25 for JCC members, $45 for nonmembers; www.atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4152. Steakhouse seder. The Brotherhood of Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs, holds a men’s dinner featuring Passover learning and community at 6 p.m. Tickets are $20 for Brotherhood members, $40 for nonmembers; RSVP by April 15 at templesinaiatlanta.org.

FRIDAY, APRIL 22

Seder. Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb, holds a mystical seder at 7:30 p.m. after optional services at 6:30. Tickets are $56 for adults, $8 for children ages 4 to 12; RSVP by April 14 at www.chabadofcobb.com/seder.

SATURDAY, APRIL 23

Seder. Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive,

Seder. Guardians of the Torah is holding a second seder at the Lodge at the River Club, 1221 Riverside Drive, Roswell, at 6 p.m. (doors open at 5). Free, but participants are encouraged to bring a dish for at least 10 people and to make a donation to the organization; RSVP to richardbaroff@yahoo.com. Seder. Congregation Ner Tamid, 1349 Old Highway 41, Suite 220, Marietta, holds a seder at 6 p.m.; bring your own matzah and grape juice. Tickets are $10 per person or $40 per household for members, $18 for those 10 and older and $12 for ages 2 to 9 for nonmembers; RSVP by April 17 at www.mynertamid.org, ritual@mynertamid.org or 678-264-8575. Seder. Temple Kol Emeth, 1415 Old Canton Road, East Cobb, holds a catered seder led by Rabbi Erin Boxt at 6 p.m. Admission is $36 for adults and $22 for children 10 and under for members, $47 for adults and $32 for children for nonmembers; register by April 15 at www.kolemeth.net.

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.

BUSINESS

Downtown Group Honors Marcus, Videlefsky

LINE UP YOUR PASSOVER DESSERT OR PURCHASE A GIFT BOX FOR YOUR HOST

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

Photos courtesy of Central Atlanta Progress

Above: Central Atlanta Progress President A.J. Robinson (left) and Chairman Dave Stockert (right) surprise Bernie Marcus with the announcement that the organization’s annual Downtown Economic Impact Award is now named after him. Below: Am Yisrael Chai head Andrea Videlefsky, the founder of the global Daffodil Project, accepts the Turner Downtown Community Leadership Award on March 31, three days before one of Am Yisrael Chai’s signature events, the Daffodil Dash (coverage Page 14).

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don’t know if I can do that.” It was the second time the Home Depot co-founder and aquarium philanthropist took center stage (or tank) at the ceremony. Marcus’s friend Pete Correll earlier presented him the first award of the morning, the Dan Sweat Award for his lifetime of achievement and contributions to the city and especially downtown, where the aquarium has drawn more than 22 million visitors since opening in November 2005. Marcus said the aquarium and everything else he has done for Atlanta are blessings of Home Depot, so “if you ever shop anywhere else, may your toilets run forever. You should be ashamed of yourself.” The third Jewish community member to step into the spotlight was Andrea Videlefsky, an Urban Family Practice physician who leads the Holocaust remembrance and genocide prevention organization Am Yisrael Chai. For creating the Daffodil Project to memorialize the 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust and thus bringing a 180,000-flower ribbon of remembrance to the area between the King Center and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, she received the Turner Downtown Community Leadership Award from Turner CEO John Martin. ■

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

n a day of change and celebration for Central Atlanta Progress, three Jewish leaders stood out at the annual meeting Thursday, March 31, at the Georgia Aquarium. A.J. Robinson, the president of CAP and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, oversaw the proceedings, starting on a catwalk above the tank for the new dolphin show. Robinson, who played a key role in brokering the deal that resulted in the aquarium being built at Centennial Olympic Park instead of another part of Atlanta, got to have some fun while celebrating CAP’s 75th anniversary and the aquarium’s recent 10th birthday. Not only did he compare himself to the dolphins jumping through hoops, but he also was shown with a sea lion nose and whiskers — the look being used to market the aquarium’s new sea lion show. Tasked with presenting 75 years of CAP impact in three minutes, Robinson first offered a few photos from history, including a streetcar featuring a “Staggered Hours Help Traffic” sign. Even then, Robinson said, CAP was concerned about downtown traffic. The new Atlanta streetcar, running between the park and the King Center, was one of a flood of accomplishments that flashed across the screen during a three-minute video, along with such additions the past 75 years as MARTA, Trees Atlanta, tax-advantaged districts and the Ambassador Force. The meeting featured a milestone that could be part of the centennial montage in 2041: the renaming of the thriving tourist area around Centennial Olympic Park from the Luckie Marietta District to the more meaningful Centennial Park District. But the biggest moment for Robinson may have come when he surprised the morning’s host, Bernie Marcus, by announcing that CAP’s Downtown Economic Impact Award now bears Marcus’ name. The first winner of the Bernie Marcus Downtown Economic Impact Award is Centennial Olympic Park, marking its 20th anniversary. “That’s a wow,” Marcus said. “I’m a little speechless.” The only problem: Robinson conditioned the renaming on Marcus’ getting up early once a year to attend the CAP annual meeting. Marcus said, “I

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FOOD

Taste of Atlanta Founder Bites Into Sandy Springs

ne of Atlanta’s mainstays behind the entertainment scene, Dale Gordon DeSena, will head to Hammond Park in Sandy Springs on Saturday, May 14, for the first Food That Rocks, a celebration of decade-old city. DeSena, a Savannah native and marketing guru, has secured the soccer field (under a huge tent for all weather conditions) to line up over 20 favorite restaurants to supply yummy and varied dining experiences endemic to Sandy Springs.

Jaffe’s Jewish Jive By Marcia Caller Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

Pre-Passover Splurge for a Cause

Little more than a week before we put aside chametz for eight days, foodies and supporters of Jewish Family & Career Services’ Zimmerman-Horowitz Independent Living Program will gather for The Tasting, co-chaired by Lani Preis and Mindi Sard, from 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, at Mason Fine Art, 415 Plasters Ave., Atlanta. The event offers a selection of wines, bourbons and beers, as well as food from some of the area’s best restaurants. Tickets are $100 in advance or $125 at the door; those under age 35 get a $50 discount. Visit www.thetasting.org for tickets or information.

Better Know a Bagel: Sunny’s Bagel & Deli

Jaffe: Why Sandy Springs? DeSena: I live and work here, and I’ve seen Sandy Springs mature into a fantastic dining market. It’s no longer just fast food on Roswell Road. Jaffe: How did you get involved in these types of events? DeSena: After the University of Florida, I came to Atlanta, where I began my career in advertising and publishing. In 1993 I published the official Chastain Park concert program for Alex Cooley and Peter Conlon. I then got into festival sponsorship sales and marketing with the original Music Midtown, which then led to the Atlanta Dogwood Festival, Atlanta Jazz Festival, to name a few. Ten years later, after I got experience doing everyone else’s festival, I started Taste of Atlanta.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Jaffe: Yes, I was at the first Taste of Atlanta you coordinated in 2002. DeSena: Yes, you were. And this year we will celebrate our 15th year. Atlanta has evolved (to an extent like Manhattan) into choice neighborhoods with unique dining experiences. Atlantans also decide where to eat by geography — if they are in the mood to dress up to go to the symphony or picking up Korean hot pots on Buford Highway. Our neighborhoods are very important to our cities — thus, the reason I want to do smaller VIP events in outlying cities and neighborhoods around Atlanta. Jaffe: You also tie into charities? DeSena: Yes, every event I do has one or more charitable partners. Food That Rocks is working with Second Helpings, based out of Temple Sinai, where I’m a member, to recover food 26 that can be donated to people in need.

AJT

Taste of Atlanta founder Dale Gordon DeSena’s next venture is Food That Rocks in Sandy Springs.

I like to volunteer with my son to show him how we can help our community. They’re always looking for more helpers; join us. Our other partners are Ian’s Friends Foundation and Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance. Jaffe: What’s the price point for your Food That Rocks event? DeSena: This all-inclusive party with a purpose is $55 in advance, $65 at the door if tickets are available. We will have food, wine, beer and cocktail tastes on Saturday, May 14, from 7 to 11 p.m. Go to FoodThatRocks.org for specifics. We will also have live local music by Tony Levitas and the Helpers, Tommy Dean Trio, and Ed Roland & the Sweet Tea Project. This event is sure to be the best party Sandy Springs has ever seen. Some of the restaurants participating are il Giallo Osteria & Bar, Maya Steaks & Seafood, Cibo E Beve, Under the Cork Tree, Buttermilk Sky, just to name a few. Jaffe: Everything sounds so delicious! I think I won’t eat for 24 hours prior to May 14 to gear up for this smorgasbord. ■ What: Food That Rocks Where: Hammond Park, 705 Hammond Drive, Sandy Springs When: 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, May 14 Tickets: $55 in advance, $65 at the door (ages 21 and older); www. foodthatrocks.org

By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

n my quest to unearth every bagel shop Atlanta has to offer, I often discover some truly unusual destinations. But this week I may have found the rarest bagel bakery of them all. Sunny’s Bagel & Deli on Barrett Parkway in Kennesaw is run by a Venezuelan family in a space formerly occupied by a Manhattan Bagel shop. As such, it’s one of the only places in the city where you can wash down a bagel and schmear with a piping-hot cafe con leche. So how does Sunny’s stack up to Atlanta’s best? Find out in this week’s edition of Better Know a Bagel. Atmosphere As a former Manhattan Bagel, Sunny’s might be one of the last remaining places in the United States that has the same classic tables, countertops and wall decor as the Manhattan Bagels of yesteryear. Take a peek in the fridge and you might even find a Dr. Brown’s Cream Soda sitting next to a Colombian Postobón Apple drink. The furnishings may be straight out of 1997, but the nostalgia makes for a great place to enjoy a warm, toasty bagel. Verdict: Bagels The bagels at Sunny’s are boiled and baked on location in classic style. I found them to be a bit heavy on the seasoning but adequately filled and

not too dense. Sunny’s version of a lox bagel was good but nothing to write home about. The real crown jewel at this bakery is the variety of traditional Hispanic food, including arepas, tequenos and empanadas. When I arrived at the deli for a late breakfast, patrons were already ordering the fried, cheesy delicacies. Verdict: Spreads Sunny’s spread options are slim, but we enjoyed the regular cream cheese. It was light and creamy but dense enough to satisfy. If you make it out to Sunny’s, I recommend one of the signature egg bagel sandwiches or a simple bagel and cream cheese. Verdict: Overall This bagel joint is both a true throwback and an impressive fusion eatery. You wouldn’t think Venezuelan cuisine could go so well with bagels and coffee, but Sunny’s makes it work. I recommend a visit to this old-school bagel cafe in Kennesaw. Verdict: Next time: Hoboken Bread & Bagel in Marietta ■ Previous Ratings • Brooklyn Bagel Bakery & Deli: 5/5 • Art’s Bagels & More: 4.5/5 • The New Broadway Cafe: 4/5 • Bagelicious: 4/5 • Soho Bakery and Deli: 4/5 • Goldberg’s Bagel Co.: 4/5 • The General Muir: 3.5/5 • Brooklyn Water Bagel: 3/5

SPORTS

Book Relives Braves’ 14-Year Winning Run

AJT: The big knock on the Braves is that they won only one World Series. Why didn’t they win more? Schlossberg: Well, I can give you a different reason every year. In 1991 Otis Nixon stole 72 bases and then got suspended in September for cocaine abuse. Had he been available, there’s no doubt in my mind the Braves would have won that World Series. There are lots of other reasons as well, but I don’t want to dwell on excuses. The fact is that over the Braves’ run, they finished with 166 more wins than any other team in the major leagues. AJT: What were the Braves missing to get them over the hump? Schlossberg: The bullpen wasn’t up to par. Had they had Craig Kimbrel or even John Smoltz earlier on in the run coming out of the pen instead of over-the-hill guys like Jeff Reardon, it would be a different story.

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AJT: Do you have a favorite story about the Braves that you included in your book? Schlossberg: Bobby Cox once told me that he hated how Leo Mazzone would rock in the dugout, but he never said anything because Leo was too good. AJT: How do you see the Braves’ 2016 season playing out? Schlossberg: One thing I’m very excited about is the return of Jeff Francoeur. Jeff is the only current player in a Braves uniform who was part of the run. He was actually a rookie in 2005. I think that the Braves added some good young players this past offseason and hope they’ll be a better hitting team in 2016. ■

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AJT: Bobby Cox, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz have now all been elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame. Besides Chipper Jones, who seems like a lock to be elected on his first ballot in 2018, who else from the Braves’ 1991-2005 teams should be elected? Schlossberg: I’m glad you brought up the Hall of Fame. Fred McGriff, Gary

AJT: Why were the Braves so good for so long? Schlossberg: I think continuity in the front office and management. Schuerholz, Cox and Mazzone were there for the whole time. There was only one player who wore a Braves uniform for the whole 15 years, and that was John Smoltz.

Serving Atlanta for Over 65 Years!

When the Braves Ruled the Diamond By Dan Schlossberg Sports Publishing, 304 pages, $24.99

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APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

he Atlanta Braves are in a rebuilding year, but not long ago they accomplished something no other pro team has ever done: From 1991 to 2005, 14 seasons in a row, the Braves finished first in their division. Braves fan and sportswriter Dan Schlossberg covers that magical run in “When the Braves Ruled the Diamond.” He details each season and highlights the accomplishments of such legendary Braves as Chipper Jones, Terry Pendleton, Javy Lopez, and Hall of Fame pitchers Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. Schlossberg, a New Jersey resident and Braves fan since they won the World Series in Milwaukee in 1957, will sign books at Turner Field on June 11 and 12 and hopes to speak about the book at a synagogue while in town. To mark the start of another season of Braves baseball in Atlanta, the AJT chatted with him about the glory days.

Sheffield and Andruw Jones all deserve to get in. Sheffield and McGriff played for a lot of teams during their careers, which might be hurting their chances, but Sheffield has over 500 career home runs. McGriff is close with 493. Andruw Jones had 10 consecutive gold gloves as a center fielder and hit over 400 home runs. He’s also the only Braves player to hit over 50 home runs in a season with 51 in 2005. Two other guys are worthy as well. John Schuerholz won titles with two different organizations as a GM, and pitching coach Leo Mazzone was one of only three men to wear a Braves uniform throughout the entire 15-year run.

By David R. Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

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ARTS

Leshnoff Takes ASO on a Spiritual Journey By Kevin Madigan kmadigan@atljewishtimes.com

he Atlanta Symphony Orchestra will present the world premiere of Jonathan Leshnoff’s oratorio “Zohar” this month at Symphony Hall before moving on to New York for the composer’s debut at Carnegie Hall. The work is based on one of the pillars of Jewish mysticism and is a commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah, Leshnoff said. ASO chief Robert Spano will conduct at both locales. Soprano Jessica Rivera and baritone Nmon Ford will be featured. Also on the program is Brahms’ “Ein Deutsches Requiem.” Leshnoff, prolific at 42, is having a busy 2015-16 season. The Philadelphia Orchestra will introduce his new clarinet concerto the same week as the Atlanta concerts. His “Symphony No. 3” is launching in Kansas City in May, and a new violin concerto featuring soloist Gil Shaham is on tour. Just last November, Spano and the ASO premiered Leshnoff’s “Innerspace” composition. “I work hard,” Leshnoff said in an

interview. “I take every minute as an opportunity and a gift. I like to use my time productively. We don’t own a TV; we have books. That may have something to do with it.” A husband and a father of young children, Leshnoff is professor of music at Towson University and composer in residence with the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra. “Zohar,” co-commissioned by Spano and Carnegie Hall, was created as the antithesis to the more somber, hour-long requiem in the evening’s program, Leshnoff said. “All I was told was ‘We’re going to do the Brahms requiem; can’t you do a piece that gives the soprano a little bit more to do?’ That got me thinking; I designed the piece to be a purposeful contrast to Brahms.” His 25-minute oratorio is “just long enough to be legit and not too long to be massive,” he said. The difference between the two is thematic as well. “Where Brahms is a comfort, a solace to the bereaved, mine is an ecstatic embrace of the living. Brahms has a secular perspective on the New Testament; mine is from ancient sources.”

The work is based on the spiritual text known as the Zohar, the foundation of Kabbalah. “The Zohar is extremely profound, dealing with the most basic and Photo by Erica Abbey deepest issues Photography of Judaism Jonathan Leshnoff has and life,” Leshfive pieces premiering noff wrote in in six months. an email to the AJT. “I barely understand its surface level, but even that inspires me to the core of my being. My composition straddles the ecstatic mystical experiences that I glean from the Zohar itself and balances such heightened moments against the human, ‘down to earth’ elements of existence.” To study the Zohar properly, a student must first undergo years of preparation and be guided by a qualified teacher rooted in the tradition, said

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

What: “Zohar” oratorio with Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Where: Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree St., Midtown When: 8 p.m. Thursday, April 14, and Saturday, April 16 Tickets: $25 to $94; www. atlantasymphony.org or 404-733-4800

Kenneth Cohen

Sharon Corin

Kenneth Conrad Cohen, 81, died in Atlanta on Friday, April 1, 2016. Devoted husband to Dede, loving father to Jeffery and Julie and Mark and Holly, beloved brother to Susan, Morey and Larry, dedicated grandfather to Benjamin, Lauren, Douglas and Charlie. Predeceased by his parents, Dolly and Arthur. Grew up in Manhattan. A sports and theater lover, led a dynamic life that spanned acting, art, writing and sales. Donations: Lung Cancer Research Foundation. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. A graveside service was held Sunday, April 3, at Arlington Memorial Park. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Sharon Paula Corin, who died Thursday, March 31, 2016, was born Sharon Paula Zierler to Isadore and Rosalyn Zierler in Hartford, Conn., on June 23, 1949. She attended Bradley University from 1967 to 1971 and received a bachelor’s degree in international studies. On July 4, 1971, she married Alan Corin at Temple Emanu-El in Providence, R.I. The next 23 years of her life were spent raising their four children in Warwick, R.I., and volunteering her time to various organizations, such as ORT America and Temple Am-David. In 1994, Sharon received a master’s degree in library and information sciences from the University of Rhode Island. During the next 15 years, she worked as the children’s librarian for the Sandy Springs Public Library, where she was in charge of Storytime.

81, Atlanta

Who: Jonathan Leshnoff

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OBITUARIES

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Leshnoff, who wishes he could master it. He said during an interview that he knows enough to be able to evaluate the Zohar’s basic framework. “Even that is so deep, so majestic, so inspiring, it’s just so beautiful. It’s a whole technical system that’s so magnificent; it just makes music in my head.” Leshnoff aims to take the audience on a journey. “Where they go, I don’t know, but I need to be the conduit, the means to have them go somewhere. And if I can provide that bridge, then I’ve done my job. My aesthetic is that music needs to do something to us. It needs to affect us. That’s why the music that lasts through centuries is there.” ■

66, Dunwoody

OBITUARIES She is survived by her mother, Rosalyn; her sister, Hollis; her four children, Joshua, Heather, Seth and Noah; and her four grandchildren, Benji, Abby, Natalie and Oliver. Donations in her memory should be made to the Friends of Sandy Springs Public Library. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. A private service is being held. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770451-4999.

Valerie Fiedel 71, Johns Creek

Valerie Howitt Fiedel, 71, of Johns Creek passed away Friday, April 1, 2016, of complications from scleroderma. She is survived by her loving husband of 48 years, Richard; daughter Jessica (Peter) Lutz and grandson Jack of Roswell; brother Dr. Jack (Harriette) Howitt of Rochester, N.Y.; and brother-in-law Fred Tucker of Rolesville, N.C. She is preceded in death by her sister, Brenda Tucker. She also leaves behind many loving nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and -nephews, and cousins. Valerie was born and raised in Stroudsburg, Pa., and received her teaching degree from West Chester University in Pennsylvania in 1966. She followed Richard through several job relocations, and they settled in Fanwood, N.J. In 1995 they relocated to Atlanta to follow the warmth and be closer to their daughter. Through her many vocations and hobbies — teaching, retail, being a business owner, Scouting, traveling, cooking and finding good restaurants — she made many lasting friendships. She will be greatly missed. Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. Graveside services for Valerie were due to be held Wednesday, April 6, at Green Lawn Cemetery in Roswell. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of one’s choice. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Linda Rubenstein Linda Herman Rubenstein passed away Friday, March 25, 2016. She was preceded in death by parents Harvey and Frances Herman. Linda was born in Boston in 1938. She moved with her parents in 1941 to Miami Beach, Fla. She spent most summers as water safety instructor at Camp Blue Star in Hendersonville, N.C., where she created memories to last a lifetime. Linda graduated from Miami Senior High in 1956. She graduated from the University of Miami with a degree in fine art and Florida International University with a degree in art education and later taught in the Dade County school system. Linda started her art career working in ceramics in her studio in the garage of her Miami home. She fell in love with the feel of clay using the slab roller and creating tactile objects. After moving to Atlanta, she became the well-known Judaic artist Linda Appleby, creating numerous Judaic and religious pieces while using clay as her preferred medium. In 1989, Linda met the love of her life, Al Rubenstein. They retired to the mountains of Hiawassee in 2000. She honed her skills as a noted impressionist artist using ceramic bas relief, water colors, and eventually oil with brush and palette knife. Linda has her work in several galleries. Linda’s passion was being an artist — not only creating it, but being an active part of the art community — and she loved to study under other artists and loved going to art shows. She was the proud founder and first president of the Mountain Arts Association. She was always looking for a new painting class and loved to knit and stitch needlework. Linda will be missed by her regular mah-jongg group and book club, her friends at Congregation Bamidbar Mountain Synagogue, and Rabbi Yossi New’s monthly lunch-and-learn group. She and Al loved to travel and did. Linda was vibrant, passionate about every endeavor, and fiery. She was loyal and loving. She also had a strong passion for the music of Garth Brooks, Barbara Streisand and lately Adele. Most of all, Linda loved her family, especially her grandchildren. Linda is survived by her husband, Al; sister Bonny Herman; children Michael Steinberg, Vicki Fox and husband Spencer, and Nanci Soble and husband Jeffrey. She is also survived by Al’s children, Lee Rubenstein and Heidi Thompson; her grandchildren, Robyn Fox, Olivia Fox, Jillian Soble, Hannah Rubenstein, Ezra Rubenstein, Zoe Rubenstein and Makayla Thompson; and furry kids, her adorable dogs, Sammy and Suzy. Please make donations to ArtWorks, 232-B Chatuge Way, Hiawassee, GA 30546, in Linda’s name. A retrospective show of Linda’s work that will be curated by the Mountain Arts Association will be announced soon.

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

Atlanta

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CLOSING THOUGHTS OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING

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CROSSWORD “Tribal Men” Nisan Delivers A Clean Sweep of the Soul

By Yoni Glatt, koshercrosswords@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Manageable

APRIL 8 ▪ 2016

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osh Chodesh Nisan begins Saturday, April 9. The first day of Nisan is a historic day, commemorating the two weeks before the Exodus when G-d showed Moses the sliver of the crescent moon and instructed him about the mitzvah of observing a new month. From that time, we have followed the commandment to sanctify the new moon. This gift of mastery over time has allowed our holidays to fall within the same season and phases of the moon each year. Nisan marks the beginning of months for the year. It also contains Passover, which falls on a full moon in spring, on the 15th of Nisan, corresponding to April 22 this year. Ancient practices remain relevant as we take our cues from each month to enrich the way we incorporate Judaism into our lives. The Zodiac sign is Aries; Hebrew letter, hey; ruling planet, Mars; tribe, Judah; sense, speech; and controlling limb, right foot. Our task during Nisan is to use the energy of increased light for new growth and beginnings while clearing ourselves from negative, warring influences. Nisan, at the head, controls and directs everything that is to come for the remainder of the year. We must be in charge of ourselves, aware of the forces of others and the universal energies. Although we’ve just come out of eclipse season, which shakes us up with unexpected events, we’ve been experiencing a volatile time. We’re challenged to keep our focus. Eclipse season is the only time in which an eclipse can occur. It lasts about 34 days and returns again in just under six months, with two full eclipse seasons each year. Each of those seasons has two to three eclipses. A solar eclipse occurs on the new moon, and the lunar eclipse happens during a full moon. In the zodiac’s fire sign of Aries are the qualities of being enterprising, spontaneous, daring, active, courageous and energetic. We must guard against the negative impulses to be

impatient, impetuous, vain and egotistic, which can translate to others as selfish, ruthless and even violent. This is where we set the stage for the two weeks of preparation from the new moon until Passover. We’re not only cleaning our homes and sweeping away the hidden crumbs, but also

Dr. Terry Segal tsegal@atljewishtimes.com

Meditation focus: Quiet yourself and consider the ways in which you’re still enslaved and those in which you are free. Do you base your decisions each day from a place of love or fear? Declare your intentions, speak your gratitude, gain your balance, and walk in the direction of love and peace.

20 23

24 30

26 31

55 59

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ACROSS 1. National park 8 km west of Jerusalem 7. Singer Elbaz 10. Eshkol of note 14. Singer Solomon or Green 15. Where an Aussie might go after graduating Mount Scopus Jewish day school 16. Caesar and Magilla Gorilla 17. Esther might have worn one on her head 18. Tref digs 19. Early biblical survivor 20. Wicked Judean king 22. “Tell ___ About It” (Joel hit) 23. Carlebach’s ___ Einai 25. Many Jews in Boynton Beach, Fla. 26. It can be high or low on Hapoel Tel Aviv 29. Start of the new year? 31. Rivlin who is Israel’s current president 34. Kind of lithium battery manufactured by Israel’s Meircell 35. Hip-hop artist Roth 37. Bake in Eilat? 38. Concern of many an Israeli car buyer: Abbr. 39. Rabbi Frand with many lectures available online 43. Harrison’s breakout role 46. ___ date (planned a simcha) 47. Tried for the Knesset again 51. “I ___ Rock”: Simon and Garfunkel hit 52. Maggie’s “The Dark Knight” co-star, and others 55. What Ivanka Trump has along with her fortune 56. Lenient with, like Jacob to Joseph 58. Tree that grows in Israel 60. ___air 61. What you might get when you 37-Across 62. Israeli politician and war

51 56

36 39

doing a clean sweep of our souls to remove any trace of hatred, intolerance or doubt about our neshama, or pure soul essence. These acts allow us to truly be free. The Hebrew letter hey is a whisper on an outbreath that we can use in meditation to release negativity. With this letter, Hashem spoke the world into being. Mars, the red or warring planet, rules at this time, so from the new moon to the full moon on Passover, our wars and conflicts are also determined for the coming year. External wars occur in the physical world when our internal wars burn out of control. Especially at this time of political change, it’s important to use this fire to fuel creativity and connection as opposed to destruction and divisiveness. Nisan’s tribe is Judah, the first of the tribes, whose name means “to give thanks.” The sense of speech is highlighted, and kings rule by the power of their speech. It’s the essence of leadership. On Passover, we are commanded to fulfill the mitzvah of telling the story of our people. Haggadah means “telling.” This is the one time each year when we also perform the mitzvah of reciting the blessing when we first see the flowering trees. The controlling limb is the right foot. We can’t just walk on one foot and expect to move forward or be graceful. Only in combination with our left foot, which is featured in the month of Sivan, can we progress. ■

New Moon Meditations

hero Orlev 65. “Maher!” 67. “A Bridge Too ___” (William Goldman adaptation) 68. One looking for the Ark, perhaps 71. “Kosher” eatery 72. Uris hero ___ Ben Canaan 73. Like Jacob and Rachel 74. Commotion 75. Steely of music 76. Poker Hall of Famer Erik

sub 33. Device that might be used before Shabbat, for short 36. A kohen should receive it 40. Had some shidduch dates with 41. “Come ___?” (Italian for “Mah shlomech?”) 42. “Zebra” on the court with Casspi 43. “Elvis ___ left …” 44. Say “I love” to an original Sephardic jew 45. Politician Bennett 48. Baal was considered this kind of false deity 49. Tefillin hrs. 50. See 3-Down 53. Lane for a big mishpacha 54. They don’t let Israelis in 57. Tref Brazilian animal with a real 22-Down 59. “Dave” star 62. Avodah ___ 63. Winkler’s “Happy Days” co-star Moran 64. Jamaican fruit similar to a citron 65. They power this paper 66. Match part for Dudi Sela 67. Furbys or the Israeli Army Diet 69. Former rib 70. Theology subj.

Down 1. Charisse who danced with Gene and Fred for MGM 2. Davening vowel sequence? 3. Notable Chanukah 50Down 4. Chutzpah, for short 5. Paradises 6. Actress Hedy 7. Notable hesder school 8. Some chips for 76-Across 9. Inits. for making a sukkah alone 10. Kirk might shoot one 11. Rav Buchwald who founded AJOP 12. English letter at the start of many parshas 13. Suffix with Marx 21. Lakewood, Pa., to Lakewood, N.J., dir. 22. Schnozzola LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION 23. Koufax’s 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 was lowest the S T E A M W E R E C S I S 14 15 16 last year he A I S L E I M A M O H E L 17 18 19 pitched U S H E R N E W P S H I R E 24. Letters for 20C H E S S 21S E T 22E L O P E D 23 24 25 a savior? E A T T A R A R I S 26 27 28 29 30 26. Material for D E F Y N O T T I N G 31 32 33 34 35 some tzitzit M A G G I E S I R K O L 36 37 38 39 27. Cut O C E A N H A M J D A T E 40 41 42 off (willow A L A A A S S O I R E E 43 44 45 46 branches) C O H N B U R M I N G 47 48 49 50 51 28. Lang. A N T S R U N A M S 52 53 54 55 56 often heard in V I E N N A G A L G A D O T 57 58 59 Ra’anana A N T A S C H E N R U D D Y 60 61 62 30. “Yo!” I O N E I N T E L A G A G 63 64 65 32. German D A N E D N A S S T O L E

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