Chanukah Gift Guide Pages 14-17
Whether you’re shopping for a toddler or a teen, a drinker or a reader, or a Mensch on a Bench in need of a best friend, we can help you prepare for eight nights of presents.
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DECEMBER 1, 2017 | 13 KISLEV 5778
ADL Helps Students Apply Holocaust Lessons By Sarah Moosazadeh sarah@atljewishtimes.com How to confront racial prejudice and bigotry is one of many lessons Galloway School 11th-graders Eliza Frankel and Aden Simmonds brought home from the Anti-Defamation League’s 18th annual Grosfeld Family National Youth Leadership Mission to Washington from Nov. 5 to 8. The mission’s goal is for students to bring lessons back to their schools to help fight prejudice in their communities, said Shelley Rose, the ADL’s senior associate director in the Southeast Region. “We want the students to come back fired up and wanting to make a difference in the world.” With money from Jewish Atlantans Lynne and Howard Halpern, the ADL’s Buckhead office sent nine high school juniors to Washington — three from Collins Hill High School in Suwanee and two each from North Springs Charter High School in Sandy Springs, Galloway in Buckhead and the Marist School in Brookhaven. They were part of a racially, ethnically and religiously diverse group of 80 students, with others coming from New York and Albany, N.Y., Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, Calif., Denver, New Orleans, and Florida.
Aden Simmonds and Eliza Frankel are among 80 high school juniors who traveled to Washington in early November for the Anti-Defamation League’s Grosfeld Family National Youth Leadership Mission.
The core of the program was a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, where students heard from civil rights leaders and Holocaust survivors. “I was shocked by the brutality and
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the sick nature of the whole scheme,” Aden said after a tour of the museum. “They first took away Jews’ rights as citizens and then began to dehumanize them.”
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He, Eliza and the others also participated in sessions to learn leadership skills and techniques to fight hate. Aden said he hopes to teach fellow Galloway students how to confront hate and respect others even when you do not agree with them. “Hate is still around, even though it might not be in front of you. … Having a good, respectful conversation rather than an argument is important,” he said. “It will take a long time to get rid of hate, but the mission put the next generation in the right direction to help stop it.” Eliza recalled a film at the museum about the oppression of Jews throughout history and said that past is important to keep in mind when opposing bigotry. “Anti-Semitism didn’t occur all at once but was built layer by layer until it inevitably led to the Holocaust,” she said. “I sometimes hear people make insensitive jokes and then play it off, which can often lead to something much worse. We need to be able to tell these individuals that this is not OK.” Before the mission, Eliza said, she met a lot of Holocaust deniers, so it was important to learn about the Holocaust to bring the facts home. “I want to share with everyone in the community that the Holocaust did happen,” she said, “but does not have to again.” ■
70 YEARS LATER
The U.N. vote enabling the creation of modern Israel took place Nov. 29, 1947. Atlanta celebrated the decision eight days later, then raised $1 million to help make it a reality. Page 8
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MA TOVU
Why I Welcome Christmas Conversation where Jews got along well with their neighbors, such as Spain or India, the boundaries between Jews and other religious-ethnic groups were fairly well delineated both by law and custom. Chanukah, the only globally celebrated Jewish holiday without biblical origins, remained a minor holiday. Ironically, in the United States,
Taking Root By Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder rabbiruth@gmail.com
where the boundaries between cultures and communities are so open, we have done exactly as the Maccabees worried we might. We have modeled our Chanukah celebration after the traditions of others, and it has become a major Jewish festival. Yet I’m comfortable living with this particular irony. The Maccabees were religious zealots willing to kill for a purist approach and interpretation. The rabbis, by contrast, chose to frame the story and the holiday in religious terms, focusing not on doctrine, but on the ineffable, allowing for awe and ritual to come to the fore. Today, globalism has made cultural sharing more possible than ever before, not only in the United States. As boundaries between peoples and their traditions come down, it is no surprise that religious zealotry and cultural bigotry are on the rise again. Receptivity is challenging. It makes for difficult conversations and choices about identity and culture. Nonetheless, I prefer to have difficult conversations rather than embrace a narrow and zealous approach to Judaism. In moving away from the historic telling of the Chanukah story, the rabbis of old provided us with a model to reinterpret the meaning of the holiday to answer the deeper questions about the spirit and meaning of Judaism, its traditions and customs. This Chanukah, I’m taking a page from the ancient rabbis — in addition to frying latkes, singing songs and lighting candles, I am looking forward to leaning into questions about boundaries and what it means to be Jewish in modern times. ■
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
“I finally had the hard conversation with our son,” my friend lamented. Immediately I thought of sex or maybe politics. But no. The subject of the difficult conversation? Christmas. Having graduated the synagogue preschool, the boy was attending kindergarten at the local public school in a small city. As the only Jew in the class, he was wondering what kept the magic of lights, trees, cookies and Santa from their house. I had to laugh. When my children were small, we lived in New Jersey, and at Chanukah neighbors would pile into our home to light candles and spin dreidels. At Christmas we would head down the street, decorate the tree and hang our stockings. When we moved to Chicago, my daughter found friends who included her in decorating their tree and sent her home with a branch of greenery and a string of lights. The hard conversation came next as I explained that we would not set up this sad little collection in our living room. This time of year, many Jewish families are having this same hard conversation. In the context of modern American life, where Christmas is less about Jesus and more about sugar cookies, it can be hard to explain the reasons why Jews should not indulge in perfectly lovely, fun customs that are only tangentially religious. In the end, my friend did with her kindergartner as I did and as many Jewish parents do in America: She upped her Chanukah game. Candle lighting and dreidel were supplemented with presents, decorations, ugly sweaters and sugar cookies for eight days. No need for Christmas envy when we have an equally wonderful and elaborate celebration of our own. I doubt the Maccabees would approve. The historic story of Chanukah that emerges from the Book of Maccabees focuses on the triumph of a small group of religious zealots fighting the Greeks. The concern of these fighters was that the unique ways of the Jews would be compromised by assimilation into Greek culture and norms. Through most of Jewish history, assimilation was not a threat to the Jewish community. Even in places
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CALENDAR THROUGH DEC. 31
JELF exhibit. The Jewish Educational Loan Fund’s history is featured in “The Legacy of the Hebrew Orphans’ Home” at the Breman, 1440 Spring St., Midtown. Admission is $12 for adults, $8 for seniors, $6 for students and educators, and $4 for children 3 to 6; thebreman. org or 678-222-3700.
THURSDAY, NOV. 30
European conversations. Shelley Buxbaum speaks about 19th century European salons to the Edgewise group of the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, at 10:30 a.m. Free for members, $5 for others; www.atlantajcc.org/ knowledgewise or 678-812-4070. Women’s discussion. NCJW Atlanta, 6303 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs, hosts Frankly Speaking with Sherry Frank, a brown-bag luncheon discussion of current events through a Jewish lens, at noon. Free; RSVP by Nov. 29 to christineh@ncjwatlanta.org.
FRIDAY, DEC. 1
Scholar in residence. A wine and cheese reception at 5:45 p.m. kicks off events with Hebrew Union College Rabbi Rachel Adler at Congregation Or Hadash, 7460 Trowbridge Road, Sandy Springs, including a talk on sex and gender at 7:45 p.m. Friday (after services), a talk on ritual and metaphors at 12:30 p.m. Saturday (after services and Kiddush), and a talk over brunch about making points with stories at 10 a.m. Sunday. Free; RSVP at www.or-hadash. org/form/SIR-December-2017. Interfaith artists in residence. Temple Sinai, 5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs plays host to Jewish American composer Michael Ochs and Palestinian songwriter Alaa Alshaham for Shabbat, including a sermon in song during the 6:30 p.m. Friday service and a concert, conversation and dessert reception Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Free; RSVP at www.templesinaiatlanta.org.
SATURDAY, DEC. 2
USCJ Havdalah. The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism biennial holds a service and show featuring Joey Weisenberg at 8 p.m. at the Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Center Ave., downtown, in the first of three open-to-the-public music events, to be followed by Neshama Carlebach in concert at Ebenezer Baptist Church, 101 Jackson St., downtown, at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 3 and Nava Tehila at the Marriott Marquis at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 4. Tickets are $36 per show or $99 for all three; www. uscjconvention.org/concerts.
SUNDAY, DEC. 3
AIPAC mini-conference. Temple Emanu-El, 1580 Spalding Drive, Sandy Springs, hosts SpaceIL co-founder Yonatan Weintraub along with three breakout sessions on Israel at 9:30 a.m. Free; register in advance at aipac.secure.force.com/event/EV161142. Soupfest. Souper Jenny Westside, 1082 Huff Road, Atlanta, holds the second annual fundraiser for the anti-hunger Zadie Project from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tickets are $25; www.souperjennyatl. com/shop. Chanukah workshop. Chabad Intown helps children build their own menorahs while celebrating with latkes, doughnuts and music at Home Depot, 650 Ponce de Leon Ave., Midtown, with sessions at 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. Free; register in advance at www.chabadintown.org to get a gift. Amy’s Holiday Party. Creating Connected Communities holds the annual celebration for more than 800 children in need from 1 to 5:30 p.m. Visit www. cccprojects.org/ahp-registration to register and get more details. Genealogy in Belarus. Gary Palgon speaks to the Jewish Genealogical Society of Georgia about his research into the town of Lyakhovichi and how his
Remember When
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
10 Years Ago Nov. 30, 2007 ■ The Conservative movement could add an ethical component to kosher certification by next Thanksgiving after the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly received a $50,000 grant. Ahavath Achim Synagogue member Scott Kaplan is co-chair of the new Hekhsher Tzedek Commission. ■ The bat mitzvah ceremony of Jennifer Elyse Geller of Marietta, daughter of Michael and Robyn Geller, was held Saturday, Sept. 29, at Congregation Or Hadash. 25 Years Ago Nov. 27, 1992 4 ■ An Atlanta man arrested in Georgetown in South Georgia this month is sus-
CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES
Vayishlach Friday, Dec. 1, light candles at 5:10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, Shabbat ends at 6:09 p.m. Vayeishev Friday, Dec. 8, light candles at 5:11 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 9, Shabbat ends at 6:09 p.m. techniques can be applied elsewhere at 2 p.m. at the Breman Museum, 1440 Springs St., Midtown. Free for society members, while nonmembers pay museum admission; www.jgsg.org. Home decorating. Jewish Family & Career Services’ Zimmerman-Horowitz Independent Living Program decorates two homes in Tucker at 2 p.m. Free; register at form.jotform. com/72755151190151. Torah dedication. The Chabad Israeli Center Atlanta, 4276 Chamblee-Dunwoody Road, Brookhaven, dedicates a Torah and holds the grand opening of its Israeli community center at 5:30 p.m. Free; www.cicatlanta.com.
MONDAY, DEC. 4
Aliyah information. Nefesh B’Nefesh holds an aliyah fair from 5 to 9 p.m. at Young Israel of Toco Hills, 2056 LaVista Road. Free; www.nbn.org.il.
TUESDAY, DEC. 5
JELF annual meeting. The Jewish Educational Loan Fund’s year-end celebration, with Oglethorpe University President Lawrence Schall speaking, is at 6:30 p.m., including hors d’oeuvres. Free (RSVP by Nov. 29); jelf.org/event.
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 6
Candle making. The Sixth Point makes rolled beeswax candles and shares snacks at 7:30 p.m. at the Ashford Park community building, 2980 Redding Road, Brookhaven. The cost is $5 per box of candles; thesixthpoint.org.
THURSDAY, DEC. 7
Staying on the grid. Former FBI agent J. Britt Johnson, the vice president of corporate security for the Southern Co., discusses protecting the electric grid’s resiliency with the Edgewise group of the Marcus JCC, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, at 10:30 a.m. Free for members, $5 for others; www.atlantajcc.org/ knowledgewise or 678-812-4070.
SATURDAY, DEC. 9
Cholent cook-off. Congregation Beth Shalom, 5303 Winters Chapel Road, Dunwoody, is accepting entrants for its cook-off, with preparation Thursday, Dec. 7, and tasting and voting today at Kiddush after morning services. Free; linda@bshalom.net to enter.
SUNDAY, DEC. 10
Chanukah bazaar. The 42nd annual Chanukah bazaar at Congregation Or VeShalom, 1681 N. Druid Hills Road, Brookhaven, runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $3; orveshalom.org/ ovshanukkahbazaar or 404-633-1737. Menorah workshop. Chabad of Peachtree City helps children build their own chanukiot at 1 p.m. at Home Depot, 2715 Highway 54 West, Peachtree City. Free; RSVP to shternie@chabadsouthside.com by Dec. 3. Film screening. Congregation Beth Shalom, 5303 Winters Chapel Road, Dunwoody, shows the documentary “Above and Beyond,” about the birth of the Israeli air force, at 7 p.m. Free; RSVP by Dec. 7 at bit.ly/2z3PXjY.
Find more events and submit items for our online and print calendars at the Atlanta Jewish Connector, www.atlantajewishconnector.com.
pected of carrying out a string of home burglaries that occurred while families were out at b’nai mitzvah celebrations. The man had legal pads with the names and addresses of 8,000 Atlantans and directions to their homes, as well as a Standard Club membership directory, three b’nai mitzvah kippot and newspaper clippings with names circled. The AJT stopped publishing announcements in advance after the burglaries began. ■ Cheryl and Lawrence Rafshoon of Atlanta announce the birth of a son, Benjamin Skyler, on Oct. 9. 50 Years Ago Dec. 1, 1967 ■ The gravest threat to the survival of Israel is not from Arab nations, but the potential for Jews to become a minority in their own state, Lt. Col. Mordechai Piron, the deputy chaplain to the Israeli military, said during an Atlanta Zionist Council event. He said Israel needs Jews’ physical presence through aliyah, not just their money or their spiritual support.
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ISRAEL NEWS
Music Showcase Highlights Cultural Traditions I attended the Zolelet Jazz and World Music Showcase in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv in early November. Produced with the support of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Culture and Sport, the event presented some of Israel’s finest musicians to a diverse international group of invitees. Israelis have risen to elite levels of music genres all over the globe, especially in the world of jazz. While jazz music was certainly showcased, however, many of the performers presented traditional music from Jewish communities in the Middle East and North Africa. In the 1950s and ’60s, around 1 million Jews from Muslim lands came to Israel, broadening its cultural landscape. Today, the Judeo-Arabic folk music that many of the featured artists’ parents and grandparents brought to Israel is being revived by a new generation of Israeli musicians. One of the showcase’s headlining artists was Neta Elkayam, whose Moroccan Jewish-Arabic music was the centerpiece of the first day’s per-
formances. In a 2013 interview, Elkayam explained the roots of her musical background: “My grandmother … spoke Moroccan Arabic to me almost exclusively. … She came to Israel in 1956. … My parents spoke (Moroccan Arabic) so that we wouldn’t under-
Guest Column By Eli Sperling
stand, though we understood perfectly, and the children in the neighborhood peppered their Hebrew with Moroccan Arabic — it was part of the slang. … I developed an irresistible thirst and excitement for North African music. … The Jewish-Moroccan songs are accompanied by the never-ending conversation over the historical connection to the Jews — whether Moroccan Jews living in Israel are still part of the Moroccan nation.” Many artists in the showcase echoed Elkayam’s passion for reviving
Photo courtesy of Neta Elkayam
Neta Elkayam performs the music of the great Moroccan Jewish singer Zohra Al Fassia.
the music of her family’s past. The band Gulaza is composed of “four artists who came together to continue the natural evolution of Yemenite women’s songs, instinctive and mystical texts that have passed for centuries from mother to daughter.” Jazz trumpeter Itamar Borochov “connects Manhattan, North Africa, modern Israel and ancient Bukhara.” Yinon Muallem “comes together with Turkish singer Gülseven Medar … to take listeners on a musical odyssey with medieval Jewish and Sufi poets,” while Mark Eliyahu’s “mastery of his kamancha (a traditional Iranian bowed string instrument), which was constructed 150 years ago, has become a thing of international reputation.” Those were just some of the fea-
tured artists at this unique revival. Rock, pop, hip-hop, electronic, classical and jazz are pervasive throughout Israel, and this will not change. These modern interpretations of Middle Eastern and North African Jewish folk music are taking Israel’s impressive, high-caliber music scene by storm. They are widely embraced in Israel and abroad. The variety of Israel’s music provides the rest of the world with vivid tones about Judaism’s rich traditions, representing the cultural diversity that is Israel. ■ Eli Sperling is the Israel specialist and assistant program coordinator for the Center for Israel Education (www. israeled.org).
Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Spinal reconnection. Scientists at the Technion Institute and Tel Aviv University have reconnected the severed spinal cords of rats. Previously paralyzed rodents were implanted with cells induced into a neural phenotype and regained motor control. The research could lead to major advances in treating spinal cord injuries. Operation Blue Flag. One thousand pilots and crew members from India, the United States, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland and Israel took part in the 11-day Blue Flag exercise launched from southern Israel’s Ovda base. The goal was to simulate extreme scenarios and fly in coalition as realistically as possible. In addition to gaining skills and learning from Israel’s aerial expertise, the international pilots got a taste of Israel with some of the Jewish state’s most popular snacks.
Iron Dome of the sea. A year and a half after its first naval test, Israel’s Iron Dome system was declared fully operational for use on a gunship off the 6 Israeli coast Monday, Nov. 27, in what
the military described as a significant milestone in its efforts to counter the threat of ballistic missiles. The maritime interception system, designed to protect gas fields and shipping lanes from short-range missiles, added another layer to Israel’s multitier air defense, joining the long-range Arrow 3 system and midrange David’s Sling, which were each made operational earlier this year, said Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitch, the head of Israel’s Aerial Defense Command. In the 2014 Gaza war, terrorist groups tried to strike natural gas platforms in the Mediterranean. Though those attacks failed, they revealed the need to increase the protection of those strategic sites.
to provide the main computer system and boost our defense of the Falkland Islands.” The system will be called the Sky Sabre. The final British decision to buy came after France signed a deal to sell five Super Etendard combat jets to Argentina, which fought a war to try to take the Falklands from Britain in 1982.
Protecting the Falklands. The United Kingdom is buying the Iron Dome short-range missile defense system to protect the Falkland Islands. The system is produced by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems using software developed by Petah Tikva-based startup mPrest. A British Defense Ministry spokesman said, “We selected Rafael for a £78 million ($104 million) contract
Invisibility cloak possible. Scientists at Ben-Gurion University in Be’er Sheva have developed a material that deflects light from a viewer’s eyes. The next step is to use the material to produce a cloak that makes the wearer appear invisible, just like in the movie “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
Remote-control space lab. A miniaturized laboratory developed by SpacePharma, whose research and development operations are in Herzliya, has docked at the International Space Station. Experiments now can be conducted remotely by scientists on Earth without involvement by astronauts, thus vastly reducing costs and time.
Strong shekel. Deutsche Bank has
rated the Israeli shekel as the world’s second-strongest currency, after the Chinese yuan. The past 12 months the shekel has appreciated 6.1 percent against a basket of currencies composed of the U.S. dollar, the British pound, the euro and the Japanese yen. The Deutsche report recommends short positions for shekel investors — a technique used when investors predict the value of a stock or currency will decrease in the short term — because the Israeli currency is nearing historic highs. Mashugana train. Heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne is going to Israel next year as part of what he says is his farewell tour. He will perform with members of Black Sabbath, the English band he founded and fronted. The 69-yearold Osbourne will perform July 8 at Rishon Lezion’s Live Park. The last time he was in Israel was in 2010 for Ozzfest, the heavy metal festival he founded. Compiled courtesy of verygoodnewsisrael. blogspot.com, israel21c.org, timesofisrael. com and other sources.
ISRAEL NEWS
A brief funeral is held for David BenGurion on Dec. 3, 1973, two days after his death, before his body is buried beside his wife’s at Sde Boker in the Negev.
Items provided by the Center for Israel Education (www.israeled.org), where you can find more details. Dec. 1, 1973: David Ben-Gurion (born David Gruen in Poland), who led the modern state of Israel into independence, served as its first prime minister and was its dominant political figure for its first two decades, dies at the Tel Hashomer-Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv a few weeks after suffering a stroke at age 87. Dec. 2, 2010: The deadliest forest fire in Israel’s history breaks out in the Carmel Mountain Range near Haifa. It burns for four days, destroying an estimated 5 million trees across more than 8,000 acres and killing 44 people. Dec. 3, 1995: Matti Shmulevitz, a member of the underground Lehi and an adviser to Menachem Begin, dies at age 75, one day after collapsing during a chess game in Tel Aviv. He was born in Lodz, Poland, and made aliyah in 1938 with other members of the Beitar youth movement. Dec. 4, 2004: The Shinui (Change) party leaves the governing coalition because of a dispute over Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s proposed budget for 2005. Led by Israeli television personality Tommy Lapid, Shinui had won 15 seats in the January 2003 election. Dec. 5, 1897: Gershom (Gerhard) Scholem, the pre-eminent scholar of Jewish mysticism, is born in Berlin. He immigrates to the land of Israel in 1923. He becomes the first head of the National Library’s Judaic collection. Dec. 6, 1867: Raised in a traditional Jewish household, early Zionist activist Leo Motzkin is born in present-day Brovary, Ukraine. Dec. 7, 1921: Twenty-two women graduate from the Nurses’ Training Institute at Rothschild Hospital in Jerusalem. They are the first to receive nursing degrees in the land of Israel.
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Today in Israeli History
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ISRAEL NEWS
In the Center of It All: Nov. 29, 1947
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
The process leading to the United Nations’ approval of the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states Nov. 29, 1947, is important to understand. On Jan. 4, 1946, the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry was founded in Washington with American and British members. The goal was to study Jewish immigration and settlement in Palestine and the well-being of the peoples living there. The committee’s report was published in April 1946 in Lausanne, Switzerland. The main point was to admit 100,000 Jews to Palestine from displaced persons camps immediately. The plan was never implemented because Britain expected the United States to provide financial support in case of an Arab revolt. President Harry Truman said no to such funding, and that was the end of the report. On May 15, 1947, the U.N. Special Committee on Palestine was formed with representatives of 11 countries, but not the United States or Britain.
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In October 1946, Rebecca Affachiner, the Betsy Ross of Israel and one of my heroes, wrote a note that can be found in her archives in Jerusalem.
Guest Column By Rabbi David Geffen
“Although the British have been kind to me personally, I know that it is time for them to release Palestine to the Jewish people.” A friend to Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie and Britain’s former high commissioner in Palestine, Harold MacMichael, she had heard reports that the British had given up on making peace between the Jews and the Arabs and had decided to return the Mandate of Palestine to the United Nations. When the UNSCOP began to meet in Jerusalem, the sessions were held at the YMCA. Affachiner somehow obtained a ticket and observed a portion of the proceedings.
The UNSCOP issued its report Sept. 3, 1947. The termination of the British Mandate was to be completed as soon as possible. The key recRabbi Tobias ommendation was to Geffen divide Palestine into two states. That recommendation is the partition plan the United Nations took up for a vote Nov. 29, 1947. A friend of our entire family, Dr. Shulamit Schwartz Nardi, who lived in Jerusalem and was a special aide to the presidents of Israel beginning with Zalman Shazar, once explained to me how the American Zionists and their highly placed friends helped organize the campaign throughout 1947 to promote the passage of the partition plan. “I went to work in the early 1940s for the noted Zionist Dr. Abba Hillel Silver, a Cleveland rabbi who took a stronger position on statehood than the noted Rabbi Stephen Wise. Both were exceptional leaders, but each had his own philosophy,” Nardi said.
“Silver, a staunch Republican, saw to it that various publications were developed which would let the English-speaking world know about the land of Israel. Our most successful publication was (Walter) Lowdermilk’s book on how the Jews had developed the agriculture of Eretz Yisrael; 20,000 were printed and distributed throughout the world. We were one of the main lobbying groups to ensure the passing of the partition plan. We had great help from Herbert Bayard Swope, a noted journalist and financier, who had created a news service as a rival to JTA.” Swope wrote to Atlanta Constitution Editor Ralph McGill in the fall of 1945 to ask him to travel to the Middle East and get the real story. The letter is in the Rose Library at Emory. After the UNSCOP report, American rabbis were blanketed with materials that could be used in their High Holiday sermons. My grandfather Rav Tuvia Geffen (Rabbi Tobias Geffen) at Congregation Shearith Israel knew a lot about what was transpiring in Eretz Yisrael because he read the Tag Morning Journal
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daily after it arrived on the train from New York. The Yiddish newspaper had correspondents in Palestine who wrote with more accuracy than the secular daily papers possessed. Rabbi Hyman Friedman, the associate rabbi at Shearith Israel and a leader of Atlanta Mizrahi, on the first day of Rosh Hashanah gave a stirring speech in English about Eretz Yisrael as our homeland. Rav Geffen, the senior rabbi, gave his sermon in Yiddish. He stressed that “we have waited a long time for our own nation. G-d has promised us that we will return to Eretz Yisrael, and this seems to be the moment.” Recently, I watched a clip from a documentary by the Toldot Yisrael film company on the birth of Israel through the eyes of those who participated in this major event. I listened as Silver, in his eloquent manner, made the case before the United Nations for a Jewish state. His evidence stemmed from the divine promise of ancient days, the longing for the return to Eretz Yisrael from the Middle Ages and the great hope for a nation in modern times. Then he stressed the horrible deaths of 6 million Jews during World War II, and he pointed out that refugees were living in displaced persons camps throughout Europe. David Ben-Gurion had asked Silver to give this address, and he wonderfully rose to the challenge. What happened in Atlanta when the partition plan passed Nov. 29, 1947? The joyousness in Atlanta was memorable, according to The Southern Israelite (the AJT’s predecessor). McGill, who had seen Hitler march into Vienna and now saw the approval of the partition to establish Jewish and Arab states, wrote several articles in the Atlanta Constitution about why statehood for the Jewish people was so important. Announced throughout the city were two pro-partition events: a service at Ahavath Achim Synagogue and a joyous program at the Progressive Club, both on Dec. 7. AA Rabbi Harry Epstein, Rabbi Geffen, Rabbi Friedman and Congregation Or VeShalom Rabbi Joseph Cohen were all at the Ahavath Achim event. Rabbi David Marx of The Temple, who retired as senior rabbi in 1946, was not present, but the executive director of the Southern Zionist Organization, Temple member Adalbert Friedman, was. (It is amazing how Rabbi Marx’s successor, Rabbi Jacob Rothschild began the movement of The Temple
to have an interest in Israel. In 1950 he and Rabbi Epstein flew to Israel together, and they headed the Federation campaign that year.) “A moving service was held at Ahavath Achim,” The Southern Israelite reported about the Dec. 7 festivities. “The worshipers were invited to decorate their cars in blue and white and form a motorcade to the Progressive Club.” More than 1,000 people were there, and Sol Benamy, the Southern Zionist president, read a letter from the national president of the American Zionist Organization. The Southern Israelite indicated that members of Young Judaea were present. My only memory is that several members of Young Judaea,
including myself, were asked to sing Israeli songs and dance Israeli dances. All I recall, we danced while dressed in white. Whoever else was there, please let me know. A week later a national UJA emergency conference was held in Atlantic City, N.J. Representing Atlanta were Meyer Balser, Abe Goldstein, David Slann, Mendel Zaban, Edward Rothberg and Edward M. Kahn. The national fundraising goal to support Israel’s birth was $250 million. Atlanta’s share was $1 million. In a few weeks in December and early January, Atlanta Jewry reached that goal. I’m not sure how many rabbis’ diaries are out there from that period. In our family, we are fortunate that our patriarch, Rav Tuvia, kept a daily
diary in Yiddish from 1940 to 1965. His daughter Helen Geffen Ziff, of blessed memory, began to translate those diaries before her death in Jerusalem. His entry for Motzei Shabbat on Nov. 29, 1947, includes the following: “A good and healthy week for all Jewry and for us. Today we heard good news over the radio that the U.N. passed with a two-thirds majority to divide Palestine into two states, a Jewish one and an Arab one. This is very important news since it is the beginning of the revival of the Jewish people. We refer to it as the revival because now the Jewish people will begin the return to their own country in Palestine. Congratulations with the blessing of mazel tov for the Jewish people in the whole world.” ■
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
ISRAEL NEWS
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OPINION
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Our View
Blame Game
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
We’re 70 years past the historic U.N. General Assembly vote that approved the creation of the modern state of Israel on Nov. 29, 1947, but we keep being reminded of the elusiveness of world acceptance for the nation-state of the Jewish people. Putting aside the historical fact that a Jewish kingdom or commonwealth existed in the land of Israel for most of the 1,000 years before the Roman Empire took full control at the dawn of the Common Era, we in part blame Israel’s youth as a nation for its precarious diplomatic position and its place as the bogeyman for its Middle East neighbors and for hostile countries and people around the world. But although Israel is young in terms of working through basic political, religious, economic and ethnic issues — the same kinds of issues that bewitch the United States, the United Kingdom, France and many others — it is not young compared with most nations. Of 195 sovereign nations, more than half became independent states for the first time in the modern era after Israel’s birth May 14, 1948. We count 103 countries younger than Israel, and several others, such as India, Pakistan and Jordan, that are older but also were born after World War II. But Kenya isn’t forced to mandate military service and devote a huge slice of its budget to defense spending for fear that its neighbors will try to wipe it off the map. Slovenia doesn’t have to worry that its athletes will be shunned or its national anthem silenced at international sporting events. International organizations are not dedicated to the delegitimization and elimination of Jamaica. And the U.N. General Assembly doesn’t have 20 resolutions lined up this fall to smear Algeria or Papua New Guinea or the Republic of Ireland or Cambodia or Tuvalu or even North Korea. One thing about Israel stands out from all those other nations, and it’s not “the occupation,” as regrettable as that may be. So it was that a newspaper in Lebanon responded to the release of “Justice League,” featuring Israeli actress Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, by asserting in a front-page article that Gadot is a subversive Mossad agent. When Islamic State terrorists slaughtered more than 300 Egyptian Sufi Muslims at worship in a mosque in northern Sinai, many Egyptians were convinced that Israel was to blame, in the false certainty that Islamic State is something Israel created to kill as many Muslims as possible. And when a supporter of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement emailed the AJT to slander Israel, he called on “you and your murdering friends” to open the main port in Yemen to relieve the suffering of civilians caught in a civil war that’s a proxy fight between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Somehow, that Arab-Persian/Sunni-Shia battle is also the fault of Israel — that is, the Jews. Israel has made remarkable progress in 70 years. It’s amazing, for example, that some Saudis talk publicly of a day when their country has normal relations with Israel. But we must recognize after seven decades that grudging acceptance is the most the Jew10 ish state can ever hope for from most of the world. ■
Cartoon by Robert Rousso, France
Look, It’s Another Nazi The New York Times must have a pro-Hannah boycotts: Criticize The New York Times for the execuArendt bias because its recent “Nazi next door” tion of this story, but don’t cancel your subscription profile, “A Voice of Hate in America’s Heartland,” is (unless you plan to use a portion of the money saved at best a study in the banality of evil. to subscribe to the AJT). Through more than 2,200 words, Atlanta-based Fausset’s follow-up column defending the article reporter Richard Fausset takes us inside the life of reveals that he and his editor recognized his failure one white nationalist foot to fulfill a crucial part of soldier who was part of the assignment: the why. the ugly August rallies in Why does a middleEditor’s Notebook Charlottesville, Va.: Tony class white guy with By Michael Jacobs Hovater, 29, of New Carlno specific gripes — no mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com isle, Ohio, near Dayton. loan foreclosures, no lost Spoiler alert: If you college slot or failed job applow through to the end, plication he can blame on past the opening about the Target wedding regisaffirmative action, no factory shutdowns or bureautry with the muffin pan and the pineapple slicer, cratic nightmares — slide from left-leaning heavy through the pithy details about Hovater’s “Seinmetal drummer to fascist? feld” and “King of the Hill” fandom and his casual The why is key, but Fausset couldn’t get it. So, Holocaust denial and Hitler support, you learn that having invested his time and the Times’ money, he he and his new bride, Maria, think about going on a ran with what he had: a story rich in boring details honeymoon, moving with their four cats to a bigger and bereft of crucial context. home and having children. People with extremist views, those who look You won’t get a more boring payoff, so, yes, this and act like you and me, who have jobs and pets and bad guy defines banality. As The Atlantic’s James watch TV, have always lived all around us. That’s the Hamblin wrote in a pitch-perfect instant satire of way a free society works. People can have repulsive the New York Times piece, “Nazis Are Just Like You views and still eat turkey sandwiches at Panera. and Me, Except They’re Nazis.” For the most part, the Times article is harmless. For supporters of Fausset’s article, that’s the It’s not news that neo-Nazis don’t goosestep through point. We shouldn’t expect the emergent extremlife, but Holocaust denial, racism and anti-Semitism ists on the right to wear bedsheets or brown shirts aren’t more attractive served over homemade pasta. to work every day, so beware. That welder with the The danger is the paranoia explored in many “Twin Peaks” tattoo at the next Applebee’s booth episodes of “The Twilight Zone”: If we convince could be fantasizing about seeing you baked like a ourselves that anyone can be an enemy, we might cherry pie in an oven. find enemies everywhere. If we lack the context that For most of the vocal opponents of the article, people like Hovater are a tiny minority, albeit a loud that’s also one of the problems. The boring, everyday one worthy of cautious observation, we could find details of the Hovaters’ lives seem to normalize Nazis ourselves with the far-right equivalent of the 1950s as typical Americans, and little is done to challenge Red Scare, spotting fascists behind every copy of Ayn Tony Hovater’s offensive and false statements. Rand, Charles Murray and Robert Heinlein. Still, I’m sticking with my banal position against That’s a new normal we don’t need. ■
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OPINION
Enough With Israeli Insults of American Jews Hotovely did not serve in the IDF, but rather in the alternative Sherut Leumi program for girls from religious communities. She performed her national service as a museum tour guide in Jerusalem and, as an 18-year-old,
From Where I Sit By Dave Schechter dschechter@atljewishtimes.com
an emissary of the Jewish Agency for Israel — in Atlanta. Avi Gabbay, the chairman of the opposition Zionist Union coalition, called Hotovely’s comments “shameful and embarrassing” and sarcastically referred to her as “the great warrior, the moral sermonizer who spent her military service in Atlanta.” During World War II, Jews were 3 percent of the U.S. population and were over-represented in the armed forces. The military no longer includes religious identification among its demographic data, but Jews today
are believed to be underrepresented compared with their 2.3 percent of the U.S. population. The American Jewish troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan may “only” number in the dozens, but is that enough Stars of David on gravestones to satisfy Hotovely? Their names include Agami and Bernstein, Farkas and Green, Nuncio and Rosenberg, Shapiro and Taub, Yahudah and Zilberman. Hotovely might be interested to know that more than a dozen of the Jewish dead were Marines. Hotovely owes an apology to the families of every one of those men and women. For good measure, she should extend that apology to the families of every Jew serving in the U.S. armed forces. What’s particularly regrettable about Hotovely’s comment is that it repeats an anti-Semitic slander that dates to before World War I. Indeed, Hotovely’s comments were heralded by neo-Nazis. “An Israeli diplomat just admitted a very inconvenient fact,” the anti-Semitic
Daily Stormer website posted. “Few Jews living in the United States have ever served in the American military. Considering that America has been fighting all sorts of insane wars for Jews and Israel, this is not something they want people talking about.” (Less than 0.5 percent of the U.S. population is now in the armed forces; all told, roughly 7 percent of American men and women are veterans.) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who found Hotovely worthy of such a prominent position, condemned her remarks, declaring, as he has after similar embarrassments, that Diaspora Jews “are dear to us and are an inseparable part of our people.” Hotovely told Israeli television Channel 1, “I apologize from the depths of my heart if someone was upset by my words.” Israeli politicians have demonstrated an uncanny tendency to insult the same people whose support they want in lobbying Congress and financing various projects in their country. This gets tiresome, and, at some point, enough has got to be enough. ■
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Responding to slights against American Jewry by Israeli politicians is irksome but necessary. The latest insult came from Tzipi Hotovely, Israel’s deputy foreign minister, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party. The forum was a 20-minute interview with the English-language service of i24, an Israeli television news channel, in which Hotovely said that one of her goals is to “bring American Jews closer to Israel.” This excerpt won’t help: “People that never send their children to fight for their country, most of the Jews don’t have children serving as soldiers, going to the Marines, going to Afghanistan or to Iraq. Most of them are having quite convenient lives. They don’t feel how it feels to be attacked by rockets, and I think part of it is to actually experience what Israel is dealing with on a daily basis.” No, American Jews don’t face rocket fire. I lived and worked in Israel but would not dare suggest that I fully comprehend the psychological toll on Israelis of security concerns. What American Jews and Israelis don’t understand about each other was the subject of a recent article I wrote about Atlanta’s Israeli community for this newspaper. Tali Barel, a Haifa native who came to Atlanta more than a decade ago and now holds dual U.S. and Israeli citizenship, said American Jews “don’t know the history of Israel, and we don’t know the history here.” Hotovely should consider further study of American Jewish history before spouting off. We remember with considerable pride and gratitude the sacrifices by the forebears who bequeathed us those “convenient lives,” who uprooted themselves and immigrated to a country where they could worship without oppression, a country whose constitution (however imperfectly) erected a wall between religion and government. As to the crux of Hotovely’s ill-considered broadside, true, military service is not compulsory in the United States, as it is for most — but not all — men and women in Israel. You would be wrong to expect that an Israeli criticizing the military service record of American Jews would herself have served in the Israel Defense Forces.
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OPINION
Fighting Anti-Semitism Disguised as Israel Hostility I recently wrote about my experience at an interfaith event where a woman tried to use criticism of Israel as a disguise for her anti-Semitic views. She said that she hated “the Jewish state” for its treatment of the Palestinians and that terrorism against Israelis was justified. I set up a meeting to continue our discussion. When I told people I would be meeting with her, some praised my decision, while others were skeptical. They asked me why I would waste my time talking to someone with such extreme views who was most unlikely to soften her enmity toward Israel. I responded that I didn’t expect to change her mind, but I did hope to provide her with facts and a perspective she hadn’t heard. When we met, I thanked the woman for accepting my invitation and acknowledged that these are difficult conversations. She began by saying, “Israel’s wall and the checkpoints don’t seem conducive to a long-term solution.” I responded: “It’s certainly a shame that the wall and checkpoints are necessary. But for Israelis, the possibility that safety measures may impede a long-term solution is not as important as preventing their children from being murdered. Since the security fence has been built, terrorist attacks have been reduced by 90 percent.” She brought up the settlements: “I just don’t see how they can be justified.”
I replied: “I understand your frustration, and many American Jews feel the same way. But …” She interrupted: “Well, do the American Jews speak up about this issue?”
Guest Column By Julie Katz
I responded: “Some do, and some don’t. But stop and think for a second. You wouldn’t hold Chinese-Americans responsible for the actions of the Chinese government against the Tibetans. So how is it fair to hold American Jews responsible for the actions of the Israeli government?” I continued: “However, the settlements aren’t the reason that the peace process has stalled. The Palestinian leadership has refused to come to the negotiating table even though Israel has an open offer to resume peace talks. And Israel has little hope for peace because of Palestinian incitement — do you know about Palestinian incitement?” She shook her head no. “Both Hamas and Fatah teach their children that they will be martyrs if they kill Jews. It’s in their textbooks and even their children’s television programming.” She said, “I didn’t know that.” I continued: “Did you know that the Palestinian Authority pays convicted terrorists up to $3,400 per
month? The worse the crime, the more money they receive. In 2016 the Palestinian government allocated over $300 million towards paying terrorists. This is half of their foreign aid budget.” Her response shocked me: “Why don’t you guys publicize this more?” I replied: “Trust me, we try. But if you’re only looking at the conflict from one side, you wouldn’t be aware of these issues.” As we were wrapping up the conversation, she said: “You know, I still feel that the Palestinians are being treated unfairly. But you did teach me a few things, so thank you.” Was this meeting successful? Absolutely. She didn’t change her stance on the conflict, but I did educate her about several key issues and pointed out her prejudices and logical fallacies. The issue is straightforward: How can we have meaningful conversations with people who don’t realize that the hostility they express toward Israel is in fact anti-Semitic? • Educate ourselves. To confront those who are well meaning but ignorant about the conflict, Jews must themselves be educated about the conflict, Israel, Jewish history and the lines of attack used by those who hold anti-Semitic views. • Have an open mind. Jews must acknowledge legitimate criticism of Israel. Denying such criticism diminishes credibility when confronting a person who tries to disguise anti-Semitism as condemnation of Israel. • Understand the goal. The goal should not be to win every point, but
to make the person think. It’s unrealistic to believe that you can get a person to change his or her mind completely, but you can stimulate some questioning of fundamental convictions. In other words, the goal is to make them insecure about their irrational prejudices toward Jews and Israel. • Use analogies and statistics. Using analogies and comparisons is useful in illustrating bias and makes an immediate impact. With an effective analogy, the person feels the point instead of simply hearing it. Statistics are also crucial. By being able to cite them, you show that you are well informed with evidence about what is actually happening. • Make the conflict personal. If you have relatives in Israel who live in fear of terrorist attacks every day, talk about it. If you have been to Israel and have seen Israelis and Palestinians coexisting on a daily basis, talk about it. • Size up your audience. The choice of argument and strategy is important and should be tailored to the person and the points he or she raises. For instance, you would address a 60-year-old Protestant woman and a 20-year-old college student differently. Although it’s difficult to change an opinion, it’s worthwhile to have these discussions. If you listen carefully, understand your audience and know your facts, you can counter anti-Semitism disguised as criticism of Israel. ■ Julie Katz is the assistant director of American Jewish Committee’s Atlanta Regional Office.
Finding Hope as the Stranger
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Jewish tradition makes positive use of the Egyptian slavery experience. The holiest of Jewish celebrations and observances —Shabbat, the day of rest in our week — sanctifies the wine with the phrase Zecher leetzi-at Mitzrayim (remembering the exodus from Egypt). Our ancient rabbis have taught us that we must be sympathetic and understanding of those who are oppressed and those who are strangers in our midst, for we were strangers in the land of Egypt. That admonition is noted no less than 36 times in the last four of the five Books of Moses. Perhaps the greatest moral guides 12 for the Jewish people were the proph-
ets. Often criticized for harshness, they did not hold back on communicating what G-d wanted from them. For Jews, a prophet was one who could read the future and had the
Guest Column By Rabbi Ronald Bluming
ability to convey G-d’s expectations of human beings. The prophets lifted the Israelites beyond their despair. The prophets took no personal credit for their message. They saw themselves as important messengers of G-d who needed to impart what was right and
ethical. The prophets in ancient Israel were thought to be remarkable individuals, singled out to convey G-d’s message to the Jews and to the entirety of humanity. The prophets urged people to behave honestly and fairly toward one another. They preached a message of justice, mercy and equality for all G-d’s creations. Isaiah, whose name means salvation, was a major force in the consciousness of the ancient Jews. His message focused on the idea that all
people could and must live together in peace and harmony. We read in Isaiah 56:6: “As for the foreigners who attach themselves to the Lord, to minister to Him, I will bring them to My sacred mountain, for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” Jewish belief reflects Isaiah’s assurance that all are welcome, that the doors are open and that no obstacles will be placed in their way. Isaiah reached out to those in exile to come home. His words ring of hope for the Jewish people and all people, in those days and now. ■ Rabbi Ronald Bluming is the chaplain at the Renaissance on Peachtree in Buckhead.
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OPINION
BDS, NIF and the Race for Governor Hypocrisy knows no bounds! A recent column in the AJT (“Georgia Must Not Elect Pro-BDS Governor,” Nov. 24) by Steve Berman attacks then-House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams, a Democratic candidate for governor, for her vote against anti-BDS legislation that was passed by the Republican-controlled Georgia General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. Nathan Deal in 2016. In July, I contacted Abrams after it was widely reported that the family of George Soros, a self-hating Jew and Hungarian-American business magnate who is notorious for funding anti-Israel causes, held a fundraiser for her gubernatorial campaign. I pointed out and gave examples that perhaps she was unaware of Soros’ ties to many groups who target and falsely libel the state of Israel and demonize her soldiers. Funding through his Open Society Foundations of Adalah, a so-called “independent human rights organization,” is one example. According to NGO Monitor, Adalah accuses Israel and her soldiers of war crimes, encourages their prosecution and has called on governments to sever diplomatic relations with the Jewish state. Adalah was instrumental in the discredited Goldstone Report, a publication of the U.N. Human Rights Council concerning the 2008 conflict in Gaza.
Adalah input was cited 38 times in the report, which was pervasive with recommendations highly critical of Israel.
Guest Column By Mitchell Kaye
To Abrams’ credit, knowing that I am a Republican and do not support her candidacy, she at least responded, saying, “I respectfully disagree with the characterizations of his (Soros’) work.” She recently penned a column on these pages (“My Vote on BDS Bill Reflected Wider Implications,” Nov. 24) weakly explaining her BDS vote, which was typical wordsmithing and political double-speak. She is bright and knows exactly what she is doing. Perhaps if she returned the money, her words would not seem so hollow. Adalah also receives substantial funding from the New Israel Fund, a U.S.-based charity that benignly describes its objective as “social justice and equality for all Israelis.” While NIF does contribute to causes within the political mainstream, as Shai Robkin, the chair of the Atlanta Regional Council of NIF, wrote in a recent column (“NIF: The Path of Progress,” Sept. 15), it also crosses the line and funds many toxic
groups that seek to delegitimize, criminalize, ostracize and promote international pressure on Israel. (Berman is also on NIF’s Atlanta council.) NIF and the Soros family also fund Breaking the Silence, yet another nonprofit that promotes the criminalization and allegations of war crimes by members of the Israel Defense Forces to international bodies and claims that shooting or stabbing IDF soldiers by civilians is not terrorism. BtS often lies and fabricates crimes. Recently the Israeli state attorney closed a case into IDF abuse against Palestinians brought by an official of BtS “after the investigation revealed that the events he described did not occur.” Our local NIF friends further praise Soros as “the nation’s most prominent and largest donor to Democrats and progressive causes.” A major red flag to the pro-Israel community. While it is not a crime to justly or unjustly criticize Israel and her actions, it is highly disingenuous and hypocritical when one claims to be pro-Israel but supports funding groups virulently hostile to Israel and her existence, groups roundly criticized by Israelis across the political spectrum. In July, Knesset member Miri Regev, a former brigadier general in the IDF, said, “This is not the New Israel Fund — this is a fund that wants a new Israel, an Israel that gives a platform for the support and glorification of terrorists.”
Birthright Israel terminated its partnership with NIF three years ago, and the Israeli Supreme Court, in a landmark ruling in 2015, upheld the Law Preventing Harm to the State of Israel by Means of Boycott. This allows lawsuits against those who proliferate BDS against Israeli individuals, companies and institutions. It is no surprise that the losing pro-BDS petitioners were mainly NIF grantees, including Adalah. As the public learns the facts, contributions to NIF continue to drop — by almost 20 percent to $27 million in 2016 — while its donations to Israeli groups have plunged to $13.5 million. It is time to ask local NIF leaders where they stand. Besides Robkin and Berman, the Atlanta council includes Lois Frank, Leah Fuhr, Jan Jaben-Eilon, Robin Kramarow, Judy Lipshutz, Charles Miller, David Minkin, Glenda Minkin, A.J. Robinson, Harry Stern and Charles Taylor. Tell them to stop the hypocritical outrage and cease support for the unsupportable. Ask them if they stand with George Soros, Adalah, Breaking the Silence and many other toxic recipients of NIF or with our brave brothers and sisters in the IDF and the overwhelming majority of Jews in Israel and the Diaspora. You cannot stand with both! ■ Mitchell Kaye is a former member of the Georgia House of Representatives.
In Support of the Taylor Force Act ly half of the assistance under threat, amounting to only about $130 million,” the ZOA said. The following are some Jewish organizations’ responses in support of the House committee’s action: • Rabbi Joel Meyers, chair, World Jewish Congress United States — “The World Jewish Congress was at the forefront of advocacy for the Taylor Force Act, and we are very pleased that the House Foreign Affairs Committee adopted this legislation. The Palestinian Authority cannot continue to encourage and incentivize terrorism. U.S. taxpayer funds cannot go to paying salaries to terrorists who murder and injure innocent people. We applaud the House Foreign Affairs Committee for adoption of the Taylor Force Act, an important step in the efforts to combat terrorism and in the interests of peace.
Acts of terror undermine the hopes of achieving peace, which cannot be made in at an atmosphere poisoned with hatred and terror. We urge the full House to now help support and pass the Taylor Force Act.” • Nathan Diament, executive director for public policy, Orthodox Union — “Today’s unanimous approval of the Taylor Force Act is a major step toward ending the Palestinians’ heinous practice of ‘pay for slay.’ It sends a clear message to the Palestinians, and to the world, that the U.S. will no longer tolerate the diversion of its aid to fund a system that rewards terrorists for the murder of Israelis and Americans.” • Israeli-American Coalition for Action — “This vital piece of legislation advances prospects for peace by conditioning continued U.S. aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) on the PA
ending its repugnant policy of financially rewarding terrorists and their families. The bill is named for U.S. Army veteran Taylor Force, who was brutally murdered by a terrorist while vacationing in Israel last year. Under the PA’s current policies, the terrorist’s family members receive a stipend equivalent to several times the average Palestinian monthly wage because of his murderous act. The Taylor Force Act will ensure that U.S. taxpayers no longer subsidize these payments. The IAC for Action was proud to partner with a bipartisan group of members of Congress to ensure broad bipartisan support for this important bill. We are especially grateful to Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.) and Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), as well as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), for their 13 leadership on this important bill.” ■ DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
The House Foreign Affairs Committee passed a modified version of the Taylor Force Act (H.R. 1164) on Wednesday, Nov. 15. (The AJT has endorsed the legislation, which targets the Palestinian Authority’s program of paying terrorists and their families for attacks on Israelis.) Before the vote, the Zionist Organization of America offered reluctant support for the bill, lamenting that the current version is “not nearly as strong as it should be.” “The revised House bill, like the Senate bill, only cuts funds which, in the language of the convoluted political appropriations process, ‘directly benefits’ the anti-Semitic PA — even though every U.S. ‘indirect’ dollar given to this Nazi-like Arab regime is actually of direct benefit to them in real terms. So this revised bill now excludes rough-
Happy Chanukah
CHANUKAH
The Gifted Givers’ Guide Let our expert help you sort through a range of special Chanukah options We all can use a little gift-giving aid with Chanukah around the corner. At the heart of gift giving is a reminder that a gift is more than a present. It’s an opportunity to say thank you and I love you and to put a piece of yourself into the thought behind it. Here are some ideas to get you started before Chanukah starts Tuesday night, Dec. 12.
Terrific Toys Michael Aram Judaica Hours: Mon-Saturday 10:00-6:00 Sunday hours 12-5 thru Christmas
6235-B Roswell Rd, Atlanta, 30328 (in Sandy Springs Plaza, Near Trader Joe’s)
404-257-1323 - www.fragilegifts.com
Gift giving is easy at Learning Express (learningexpress.com/stores/ atlanta-buckhead), a customerservice-focused toy store (locations in Buckhead, East Cobb, Alpharetta and Woodstock) filled with a universe of gifts for all ages. Kids will love the Chanukah selection of stickers, books, dreidels and more. Other options range from Blankie Tails fish-tail blankets that are perfect for snuggling, to Mad Matter kits, in which you mold clay into bricks for building, to Creativity for Kids kits with rock painting to Rainbow Loom kits for making all sorts of bling. Enjoy this one stop shop with a complimentary gift wrap.
and Major Catastrophes,” which can help you dodge chaos amid the holi-
Guest Column By Robyn Spizman Gerson
days and year-round, and Rafi Kohan’s “The Arena: Inside the Tailgating, Ticket Scalping, Mascot-Racing, Dubiously Funded and Possibly Haunted Monuments of American Sport,” which examines stadiums across the country.
A Dog’s Life
From the people who brought you the Mensch on a Bench (www. themenschonabench.com), which was a World Baseball Classic sensation, comes the Dreidel Dog, an adorable, dreidel-spotted, cuddly Dalmatian that kids can adopt. A secret pocket in his bandanna provides a place for a kid to store a real dreidel. It’s available at retailers such as Target, Michaels and Amazon for $19.99.
The Dreidel Dog is the Mensch on a Bench’s best friend.
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Oh, Baby
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Learning Express meets the gift needs of everyone from snugglers to makers.
Book It
The Book Festival of the Marcus JCC featured an array of fantastic books that could make wonderful gifts. Two nonfiction options are Jeff Rossen’s “Rossen to the Rescue: Secrets to Avoiding Scams, Everyday Dangers,
Sleepy time is a gift for parents, and the Baby Oasis Sound Machine (www.soundoasis.com) helps your baby fall quickly into a deep sleep with soothing sounds. The uninterrupted, eight-hour tracks of soothing sounds serve as lullabies that will guide anyone to sleep. Proven to help babies and children, these recordings provide a sound environment for sleep.
In Focus
The Polaroid Pop (www.polaroid.
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CHANUKAH com/pop) makes it fun, quick and easy to snap, record, edit, print and share all your special moments via Bluetooth connectivity to the Polaroid app or the built-in instant printer. The Pop produces a 3.5-by-4.25-inch print with a classic white border. Go ahead and make your pictures pop. Include the Polaroid Pop suggested printing paper for a picture-perfect gift.
pear to light up. The included battery lasts seven years. Take it with you everywhere, and your kids will reinforce math and writing skills while learning to draw. The stencil package teaches basic skills and math tables. It’s great as a boredom buster for ages 4 and up. The deluxe kit is available online and at smarter retailers. The $29.95 kit grows with your child.
Draw to Learn
Tall Orders
Doodle and draw a with Magic Sketch (www.magicsketch.com), the no-mess, versatile erase board that comes with tools, patterns, stencils and more for countless hours of fun on the go. I had the pleasure of featuring this toy on a toy tour, and I love the liquid crystals that make drawings ap-
A Giraffe named Sophie (www. sophiethegiraffe-usa.com) has become a phenomenon and a must-have for little ones. Now a bedtime bath routine will help get your little one into relaxation mode. The Sophie Bath Set has everything kids need to make a splash at home and on the go. It comes with
Children can learn much more than how to draw with Magic Sketch.
a water-squirting Sophie floating bath toy and two small boats.
$36,000 Kippah ModernTribe.com, the online Jewish gift store founded by Atlantan Jennie Rivlin Roberts and sold last year to Texas cookbook author and food blogger Amy Kritzer, has aimed for headlines this year with what it calls the most expensive yarmulke ever made, a hand-crafted leather kippah decorated with white gold and 873 diamonds totaling 2.75 carats. But if you’re not in the market for a $36,000 skullcap, the store has plenty of creative ideas for innovative minds, spirits and style. From
fun bagel-and-lox earrings to Emoji dreidels to handmade silver menorahs, ModernTribe has cool products to fit your Jewish lifestyle.
Eco-Friendly
EcoHome (www.ecohomeatlanta. com) in Buckhead is a home furnishings and gift boutique offering luxury, sustainable products. Focused on eco-friendly and healthy gifts, it offers organic baby products, nontoxic pet gifts, the latest kitchen gadgets and cookbooks, beautiful glassware, and all-natural personal care products. Discover finds such as throw blankets, slate serving trays and recycled gifts. An eco-gift concierge service includes corporate gift delivery.
Home Cooking
This ModernTribe kippah is about as understated as a $36,000 yarmulke can be.
Hundreds of thousands of home cooks regularly turn to food blogger Miriam Pascal (overtimecook.com) to find recipes that are wholesome yet elegant, adventurous yet doable, and fun. Her latest cookbook, “Real Life Kosher Cooking” from Mesorah Publications ($34.99), features more than 160 recipes home cooks will want to make again and again. Each recipe
Continued on page 16
Lighting up Atlanta for 30 years! Your one stop shop for all your Chanukah needs.
Join us Saturday night
For a l’chaim to celebrate our 30th anniversary!
2185 Briarcliff Rd. • 404-636-2473
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
December 9 7-10 pm
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www.atlantajewishtimes.com
CHANUKAH is beautifully photographed and has easy-to-follow instructions. The categories include Breakfast and Breads, Salads and Spreads, Appetizers and Snacks, Soups and Stews, Meat and Poultry, Dairy and Meatless Mains, and Desserts.
L’Chaim
A fine bottle of kosher wine or premium spirits is an option for many adult friends and relatives. Tower Beer, Wine & Spirits (www.TowerWineSpirits.com), for example, offers such kosher classics as Rashi and Barkan, as well as popular vodkas including Absolut and Chopin. Sign up for the Tower Card list for monthly discounts. You can order online and pick up the bottles in store and enjoy Tower’s curbside service at locations in Buckhead and Doraville.
Go Bananas
Bananagrams (www.bananagrams.com) is one of the friendliest, fastest and easiest games for the entire family to play. The banana pouch is filled with tiled letters for on-the-go fun. See who can assemble words the quickest. Play this fabulous game one time and you’ll be hooked for life.
Formia Design turns a child’s Mommydedicated drawing into a pendant featuring hearts and roses.
Art to Jewelry Mia van Beek, the owner of Formia Design (www.formiadesign. com), is a certified master goldsmith. Through a labor-intensive process using hand tools in her Virginia studio, she captures the treasured details of a child’s original artwork and converts it into jewelry, guaranteed to be a huge hit and last a lifetime. Send the image of your child’s drawing, and van Beek will create a one-of-a-kind piece, from necklaces to charms and keychains. She uses only solid precious metals and genuine gemstones in her pieces,
Frecklebox is the place for books and other items personalized with your child’s name.
which can be ready in under two weeks.
Bright Idea
Create a tranquil environment for your little one at bedtime with Slumber Buddies (available at www. swaddleme.com), a clever, roomenhancing toy that casts a ceiling of stars. A calming display makes it fun to go to sleep. Kids will love the choices, including an elephant, a butterfly, a lamb, a bumblebee and a hippo.
Passion for Fashion
Rhinestones can colorfully spell out anything you like on hoodies, T-shirts and stylish apparel. Teens especially love personalized gifts, which can reflect a recipient’s love of a sport, city or even ZIP code. Get creative and add an infant’s name on a onesie. Enjoy the endless possibilities online at Just Jen (www.justjen.com).
More Personalization
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Frecklebox.com has a wonderful
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selection of personalized gifts for kids, from storybooks to puzzles and placemats. The coloring and activity books feature your child’s name on the cover and throughout. My latest Frecklebox books put your child into “The Hug Book” and “Colorful Counting Book.”
Don’t Forget Pets
Share the magic of Chanukah with your furry friends. Up Country (www.upcountryinc.com) offers Chanukah ribbon collars, leads and harnesses in a wide variety of lengths and in three widths. Made in America, these ribbon collars are stain- and fray-resistant and machine-washable, so your pets can partake in all the festivities. ■ Robyn Spizman Gerson (www. robynspizman.com) is the New York Times best-selling author of “When Words Matter Most.” She is also a communications professional and a well-known, seasoned media personality, having appeared often on “Atlanta and Company” and on NBC’s “Today” show.
CHANUKAH
Parenting’s ‘Joys & Oys’ Perfect for the Holiday “The Joys & Oys of Parenting” makes a Chanukah gift that’s useful and enjoyable. It’s a guide to effective parenting through a Jewish lens. Written by psychologist Maurice J. Elias and Athenians Marilyn Gootman and Heather Schwartz-Allen, the slim paperback book speaks to those with older children as well as to families welcoming new babies into their homes. The authors are parents and grandparents with decades of personal observation and professional experience. Gootman is an educational consultant, author, retired University of Georgia professor and Jewish educator. Schwartz-Allen works with academic issues for UGA student-athletes and has worked in nongovernmental organizations around the globe. “The book is a very positive affirmation of what Judaism has to offer,” Gootman said. “And Chanukah is a good time to think more about Judaism and Jewish values.” The book is organized in seven chapters. Each concludes with a brief summary called “From Oy to Joy!” that lets adults know when all their work has paid off through what their children are doing on their own. The book ends with a discussion guide. The book reads like an extended conversation with a trusted friend or relative, reassuring you that you can succeed in rearing children who value their Jewish faith and other humans. The first chapter talks about creating a peaceful home by learning to listen skillfully, communicate respectfully, express anger constructively and minimize sibling rivalry. Parents should remember that children are observing them and copying their behavior. “These four principles will benefit our children today, smooth out our daily routines, and help produce effective, competent people capable of shining light wherever they go in the world,” according to “Joys & Oys.” The authors use Proverbs — “A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention” and “One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and one whose temper is controlled (is better) than one who captures a city” — to suggest how parents and caregivers should think about handling their anger and modeling constructive methods for children. The next six chapters build on one
another. Parents, grandparents and caregivers receive tips on how to establish routines, foster resilience, promote responsibility, spark motivation, nurture kindness and cultivate gratitude. The language is accessible and applicable to children of all ages, Schwartz-Allen said. Setting routines leads to a more peaceful home, the book says. Having a set time for dinner, for television and computer, and for bedtime tells children that arguing is useless. Doing things in the same order each day lets children know what to expect — the world is chaotic to children, and predictability gives them confidence and helps them navigate it. Eating meals together helps bind family members to one another. Ending the day with the Shema reminds children of their connection to G-d and their Jewish faith. The book also tells how to “sanctify the passage of time through Shabbat.” Setting aside one day “offers us connection, continuity, and security in who we are and where we’ve come from.” Lighting candles, eating a Shabbat meal together, giving children ownership of the day and introducing a special activity for Saturday afternoon are all ideas for making the day special. There’s even a recipe for challah — a good way to give kids hands-on involvement in Shabbat. It’s also important to establish your own family’s traditions and practices around the Jewish holidays. Make up rules for playing dreidel during Chanukah. Create an “advent calendar” for the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot. You can adapt the ideas to your own family. “The Joys & Oys of Parenting” is available through Amazon. ■
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DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
By Rebecca McCarthy
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LOCAL NEWS
USCJ Adapts to the Future With Its Rebranding like nomads. “I don’t think we can reasonably expect that nomads are going to come into the rooted communities,” he said. “We have to be more like the Jews in the wilderness. We have to build a mishkan that can travel with them through those years rather than a beit mikdash that’s standing in Jerusalem.” Much of the effort toward building that agile Judaism focuses on the teen years “because we understand teen engagement to be critical for the success of the Jewish people,” the rabbi said. USCJ is committed to doubling its USY staff in the field and cutting the cost of participation to dramatically increase the number of teens reached.
USY Investigation
The new USCJ logo creates a Star of David by interlocking the organization’s initials.
USCJ also is emphasizing innovation. Rabbi Wernick cited Etz Chaim’s new outdoor sanctuary, bringing the camp experience to the shul, as an exciting example that needs to be followed and shared across the network. He said, “I want USCJ to be a reflective organization that’s constantly gathering data, asking questions about that data, struggling to understand what it means and therefore constantly adapting and growing.” ■
USCJ is looking into allegations of sexual misconduct in the 1970s by a longtime staffer of the USY youth group, USCJ revealed in the week leading up to its biennial. The allegations came to light through Facebook, USCJ CEO Rabbi Steven Wernick told The Jewish Week in New York. To help confirm or refute what was reported about its most prominent and successful program, USCJ has established a hot line (212-533-7813) and a dedicated email address (confidential@uscj.org) for the use of any USY participant who may have been a victim.
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
USCJ, the organization formally and formerly known as the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, is holding its biennial convention at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta from Friday to Tuesday, Dec. 1 to 5. The organization brings a new logo and a new focus on kehilla (community) over two of the core words of its name, synagogue and conservative. Rabbi Steven Wernick, USCJ’s CEO, visited member congregations Etz Chaim, Shearith Israel and Ahavath Achim in mid-September, and he and USCJ International President Margo Gold, an Ahavath Achim member, met with the AJT to discuss the changes in the 600-synagogue movement. Its rebranding is not about advertising, Rabbi Wernick said, but about aligning activities around the experiences of its partners and its primary audience — not the Jews in the pews or those who might be drawn into the pews, but those serving on congregational boards, “the people that are building local communities and are looking for the resources to thrive at a time of significant paradigm shift.” In business terms, he said, USCJ is a wholesaler, while congregations are the retailers of Conservative Judaism. While the word “conservative” causes problems these days, particularly for a community that is largely liberal in politics and religion, the Conservative Judaism name remains a vibrant path forward, Rabbi Wernick said. “An authentic and dynamic Judaism is a Conservative Judaism. It’s a Judaism that relishes the meeting point between tradition and change and understands that there’s tension there and needs to work through in thoughtful ways how we solve the problems of our generation and what’s the wisdom that our tradition can provide in doing that,” he said. “That’s Conservative Judaism. That’s still who we are.” USCJ also found that “synagogue” wasn’t the best label for its network of Jewish communities. Since crafting a strategic plan in 2011, the organization has preferred to use kehilla and its plural, kehillot, instead of synagogue. “Synagogue is a building; kehilla is a community. And we wanted to refocus people’s attentions on relationships and not on structures,” Rabbi Wernick said. Fixed buildings don’t fit the reality for non-Orthodox Jews today, who tend not to marry and start families until their 30s. From ages 18 to 35, Rabbi Wernick said, those Jews move around
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LOCAL NEWS
Vachon: Iran, Russia Pose Serious Threats to U.S. By Gail K. Ripans
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Reginald Vachon gave a sobering lecture on America’s foreign policy challenges Nov. 1 to my class at Senior University of Greater Atlanta. Given his extensive military and international business, academic and engineering experience, as well as his work with several U.S. government agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the information he shared was timely and highly credible. Beginning with an overview of the Middle East, the CEO and chairman of Direct Measurements focused on the regional and global interests shared by Russia and Iran. Their common objective is to expel the United States from the region, he said. The United States wants to persuade Russia to curb the Iranian regime’s ambitions to be the regional hegemon with nuclear weapons in the hope of undermining Saudi Arabia and destroying Israel. Russia wants to re-establish itself as a superpower and restore the multipolar world of the Cold War, at the expense of the United States and Europe In Syria, Iran and Russia support the Assad regime against its opponents, Vachon said. Iran wants a secure base from which to support Lebanese Hezbollah and conduct operations against Israel. Russia wants a long-term access to its air and naval bases on the Mediterranean Sea to challenge NATO. Vachon said Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei, views the continued reign of Bashar al-Assad as a matter of personal honor, but Putin does not. Iran and Russia also want the United States, especially the U.S. military, out of Iraq and Afghanistan, Vachon said. Tehran is using political parties and militias to pressure the weak government of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al Abadi to give way to a proIranian leader. In Afghanistan, Iran and Russia are working with the Taliban and Northern Alliance to establish a stable buffer state without any U.S. role. At the western edge of Asia, Russia and Iran seek to peel Turkey away from the United States and NATO, though they oppose Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s neo-Ottoman strategic vision to “reassert Turkish economic, cultural and military dominance over the Middle East,” Vachon said.
They have major economic interests in Turkey as a transit route for natural gas and as a buyer of energy resources. The United States and Turkey disagree over the role of the Kurds in Syria. Turkey sees the Syrian Kurdish YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which is considered a terrorist organization. Erdogan has shown interest in joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a NATO rival led by Russia and China. Vachon said Russia and Iran want to accelerate Egypt’s drift away from the United States, Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf states. He speculated that Russia likely wants new military bases on the Mediterranean and Red seas to give it control over the Suez Canal. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has voted for Russian initiatives on Syria at the U.N. Security Council and reportedly sent troops to Syria at the request of Russia and Iran, Vachon said. Russia and Iran diverge on just a few points. Russia does not “seek to usurp the regional and religious influence of Saudi Arabia and destroy Israel,” as Iran does, Vachon said. Russia seeks a regional balance among Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, as well as a positive relationship with Israel. But weapons Russia has given to Syria many times have been sent to Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Putin has not protested Iran’s behavior toward Israel. “Russia seems willing to accept increased tensions with Saudi Arabia and Israel in exchange for its partnership with Iran,” Vachon said He concluded that “both countries are building a military coalition that can operate across the region, including a potential anti-access, area-denial zone stretching from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf.” He said Iran is spending the money it has received with the lowering of international sanctions to buy military equipment, especially missiles, and is working with North Korea to advance its nuclear program. An Iranian proxy in Yemen, the Houthis, are firing on U.S. ships in the Persian Gulf, Vachon said. Noting the displacement of millions of people, he said more than 6 million people are waiting to move into Europe from Africa. ■
Congregation Or VeShalom (orveshalom .org) is holding its 42nd annual Chanukah bazaar from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 10. The fair will feature local vendors selling art, crafts, jewelry and other potential Chanukah gifts. The congregation will hold a used book sale, a 50/50 cash raffle and an auction of top-shelf liquor. An expanded art and game room will be available for children. The highlight of the bazaar, as usual, will be the authentic Sephardic and Mediterranean cuisine. Admission is $3. Or VeShalom is at 1681 North Druid Hills Road in Brookhaven. Parking is available by Cross Keys High School.
VaHi Moishe House Seeks Third Roommate
International nonprofit Moishe House is searching for a third resident for its house in Virginia-Highland. Each Moishe House is home to three to five Jews ages 22 to 30 who have outreach and networking skills. In exchange for subsidized living in a desirable location with a highly social atmosphere, residents plan, publicize and host monthly programs. Atlanta
has three houses, in Virginia-Highland, Toco Hills and Buckhead. Anyone interested should contact Moishe House’s regional director, Molly Cram, at molly@moishehouse.org.
Sixth Point Seeks Leader Michelle Levy plans to step down next year as the CEO of The Sixth Point, the community for Jews in their 20s and 30s that she founded in 2013. She and her husband, Rich, are expecting their second child in April. “I know that more change is ahead in the coming months and years,” Levy said in her announcement Nov. 9. “The time will soon come for me to transition out of my role as CEO and sole staff member of The Sixth Point.” She and the board of directors have launched a search for a part-time executive director, with the possibility that the job will grow to full time. The qualifications include three to five years of management experience, preferably with a nonprofit; experience in event planning, fundraising and budget management; and “knowledge and passion for pluralistic Judaism, Jewish culture and Jewish traditions.” Contact Levy at michelle.levy@ thesixthpoint.org to apply.
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Hochberg Now Leads Implant Dentistry Academy
David G. Hochberg of Colony Square Dental Associates is the newly elected president of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry. Hochberg became passionate about implant dentistry in the early 1980s, undertook extensive continuing education and became a fellow in the academy and a diplomate in the American Board of Oral Implantology. He has provided the surgical and restorative phases of implants for more than 30 years, and he founded Colony Square Dental Associates in Midtown in 1986. He became active in the AAID and served as editor of its newsletter for 12 years. Four years ago he was elected to the executive committee, and he assumed the academy’s presidency Oct. 14. Hochberg aims to advance the organization as it grows and educates dentists and to raise public awareness of the importance of selecting an AAIDcredentialed dentist. The graduate of the University of Florida and the Emory University School of Dentistry volunteers at Jewish Family & Career Services’ Ben Massell Dental Clinic.
GBC’s Miller Elected To State Banking Board
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Elliott Miller, the CEO of Georgia Banking Co. in Atlanta, was elected to the board of directors of the Community Bankers Association of Georgia as the Division 5 chair, effective Oct. 1.
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The CBA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping community banks throughout the state enhance their profitability and growth. Founded in 1969, the CBA is Georgia’s only advocate working solely for the interests of community banks and their customers. It represents 165 community banks and nearly 200 associate member companies. Board members are selected for one-year terms from 10 divisions across the state. Directors’ activities include responding to proposed rules and regulations, reviewing products and services that will benefit the industry and consumers, and weighing in on proposed legislation. “Our association continues to thrive due to the efforts and guidance provided by the community bank leaders that comprise our board,” CBA President and CEO Rob Braswell said. “The varied experience each board member brings to the table is an invaluable asset to our association and serves to strengthen the community banking industry in Georgia.”
Vintage Barbershop Expands Hours
Jewish barber Yury Abramov’s popular Vintage Barbershop in Sandy Springs is now open seven days a week and has added an online booking system for haircuts. The shop, which was closed on Sundays, is open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 6649 Roswell Road. The appointment booking system can be accessed via a redesigned website at vintagebarbershopatl.com. Walk-ins also are welcome. Abramov, who was born in Uzbekistan and grew up in Brooklyn, came to Atlanta in 1999. Vintage Barbershop opened in 2012 and recently celebrated five years in Sandy Springs.
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EDUCATION
The Clock Is Ticking for College Financial Aid Each school receives the same FAFSA as long as you put down that college to receive the form. Contact the financial aid offices at colleges with questions that you have
The Admissions Game By Mark L. Fisher
or circumstances that are unique to your family. You think you have completed your responsibilities regarding the FAFSA by filling out and submitting the form. Sorry, you are not finished. After submitting the FAFSA, you will receive a confirmation page. The government does not award you money; the colleges have that task. What is your EFC? That is a key number for colleges when figuring out if you are in need and, if so, the amount of financial aid. Some colleges meet 100 percent of need. Some meet 60 percent of need. Others meet everything in between or less.
Although many scholarships are available, it takes researching them and applying. Deadlines are crucial. Colleges have scholarships available. For some of them, you need not apply; the college keeps them in mind when reviewing your application. For others, you need to apply. All that takes a little research, but remember that most money comes from the colleges themselves. After submitting your application and FAFSA, when will you hear from a college with its decision? Because Oct. 1 is when the FAFSA application becomes available — pushed back from Jan. 1 — colleges should be able to make earlier financial decisions. But you never know when you will hear from a college. Some colleges make quick decisions; others wait awhile until they are ready. It’s November, and I counsel students who already have been awarded good financial packages from the colleges to which they have applied this early in their senior year. One or more of the colleges to which you applied wants the CSS/ Financial Aid Profile. Another form to
complete? This application is available at student.collegeboard.org/profile. You don’t complete this application unless the college wants it. Few public universities want the profile. A guideline, but not an absolute rule, is that the most competitive private colleges want this profile. The website for the profile lists the participating colleges. The profile can be completed at cssprofile.collegeboard.org. There is an initial application fee and a charge to send the report to each college. But if the college wants it, you have to pay up. Remember, the FAFSA is free all the way. But there is help available if you need it. The websites for the FAFSA and CSS/Financial Aid Profile also have information. Important telephone numbers are FAFSA, 800-433-3243, and the profile, 844-202-0524. ■ Mark L. 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).
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
The cost of college is high and seems to increase each year. In fact, some students don’t apply to certain colleges because of the sticker price, which includes tuition, room and board, activity fees, and personal expenses, along with a few other items. If you are the parent of a student who is a senior in high school, have you obtained your Federal Student Aid ID? Has your student obtained his or her FSA ID? If the answer to either question is no, you are already a little behind in the financial aid process. Remember that the student and the parent should individually get IDs. Otherwise, you could wind up with a problem. How do you receive an ID? Go to fafsa.gov. Beware of scams. Never get caught paying for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid via the Internet with a party whom you do not know or who has not been referred by a friend who used that person or firm. Look at the website carefully. There are competent advisers who can help you prepare the FAFSA and even assist you in maximizing your financial picture for aid. Know with whom you are communicating and working with in this process. What if you feel you can afford an expensive college? You should not bother to complete the FAFSA, right? Wrong. You never know what could happen with a particular college. Even families with six-figure incomes have obtained financial aid. Families have individual circumstances. Applicants this year will use your 2016 parent tax filing. The typical student is a dependent. If a high school student lives in a tent in his home’s back yard and does not talk to his parents, he is still a dependent. The good news is that parents can use the IRS DRT (Data Retrieval Tool) to transfer information from a 2016 tax return right into the FAFSA. For security reasons, the information will be transferred but will no longer be displayed. You will only know that the information was transferred. Eventually, after completing the FAFSA, you will receive a Student Aid Report. This SAR includes an expected family contribution. The EFC is a key to receiving financial aid. Let’s say you are not eligible for federal student aid. Don’t be sad, for that is only federal aid. The college has more aid available than federal aid.
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EDUCATION
The mechitzah carries through the theme of the ark in the Upper School’s new beit midrash.
Photo courtesy of Beth Intro Photography
Surrounded by supporters including Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul, AJA Head of School Rabbi Ari Leubitz cuts the blue ribbon in front of the new Upper School building.
High-schoolers can eat lunch or just hang out in the student commons.
The makers lab in the Upper School is part of a new STEM initiative. Photos by David R. Cohen except where noted
The Jaguar Games enable AJA students and families to celebrate the official opening of the Upper School building with contests and other activities.
AJA Celebrates New Building DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Atlanta Jewish Academy celebrated the opening of the $9 million, 19,000-square-foot addition to its Northland Drive campus in Sandy Springs with a ribbon cutting and the Jaguar Games on Sunday, Nov. 12. The building for the Upper School opened to students in late October, a couple of months into the 2017-18 school year. It’s the first year that the entire school, from early childhood through 12th grade, has been on one campus since AJA formed in 2014 through the merger of Greenfield Hebrew Academy in Sandy Springs and Yeshiva Atlanta High School in Doraville. The building features three state-of-the-art science labs, a beit midrash and a student commons with breakout rooms for study sessions. Outside, the new Upper School features a separate entrance and 24 parking lot, as well as a regulation soccer field. ■
The chemistry lab is on the second floor of the new building.
EDUCATION Chaya Mushka Aces MAP
The Chaya Mushka Children’s House Elementary & Middle School had good news in its fall Measures of Academic Progress testing: Students at the Chabad Montessori day school in Sandy Springs scored above the national average in math, English and science in every grade. Chaya Mushka, which runs through eighth grade, says it is the only school in metro Atlanta that administers MAP testing three times a year to continually measure students’ growth and adjust the curriculum as needed. The MAP testing program allows schools to exclude from their grade averages any students who have individual educational programs for special needs, but Chaya Mushka includes all students in its averages. “Well done to the teachers, students and parents for the partnership needed to achieve this amazing level of success,” said Rabbi Michoel Druin, the head of school.
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DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
High school students, college students and recent college graduates can apply for three programs at the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Mass.: the 2018 Steiner Summer Yiddish Program, the 2018-19 Yiddish Book Center Fellowship Program and the 2018 Great Jewish Books Summer Program. The Fellowship Program, which runs from September 2018 to August 2019, lets recent graduates with backgrounds in Yiddish and Jewish studies gain professional experience as fulltime center staff members receiving a $30,000 stipend and health care coverage. Applications are due Jan. 7. Visit yiddishbookcenter.org/fellowshipprogramfor more information. The Steiner Summer Yiddish Program, an immersive program in Yiddish language and culture with beginner and intermediate tracks June 3 to July 20, is open to college and graduate students ages 18 to 26. The program is worth six college credits. Applications are due Feb. 12. Visit yiddishbookcenter.org/steinersummer-yiddish-program. The Great Jewish Books Summer Program, for rising high school juniors and seniors, offers two one-week sessions: July 22 to 27 and July 29 to Aug. 3. Students study selections from important works of modern Jewish literature under the guidance of college professors. Applications are due March 5. Visit www.yiddishbookcenter.org/educational-programs/great-jewish-bookssummer-program.
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SPORTS
From the Marcus JCC to International Soccer
Riverwood student Josh Francombe plays on Wales’ under-16 national team By Patrice Worthy
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Getting called to play for the national team is soccer’s highest honor. But being an American and getting the chance to play for another country’s under-16 national team is the opportunity of a lifetime. That’s exactly what happened to Sandy Springs native Josh Francombe, who was called up to play with Wales’ U16 team this fall. “It was a surreal experience for me,” said the 15-year-old, who has played midfield, right back and left back for Wales. “I didn’t think I’d ever be able to play at a national level. I’m just a kid from Sandy Springs.” Josh qualifies to play for the United States, England and Wales because his father, David, was born in England and was raised in Wales, where his Welsh parents still live, before moving to the United States. It’s unusual to be eligible to play for three nations, and Josh, who has a Welsh middle name (Emlyn), is the first American and first Jewish American to play for the Wales U16 team. Josh, who says the Shema to himself with his eyes covered every time he takes the field for a game, said that playing abroad lifted the level of competition and sharpened his skills. His Wales teammates come from some of the most prestigious Premier League academies in Britain, including Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City. “I never experienced that kind of pace and passion,” Josh said. “It was a different level of speed and intensity. I feel like I have more confidence coming back.” He stands out because of his attitude and ability, said Tony Annan, the
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Photos courtesy of the Francombe family
Josh Francombe (second from left) is joined by his brothers and parents David and Stacie for a Wales under-16 match in Northern Ireland.
director of the Atlanta United Academy. Annan recruited Josh for the Atlanta United U16 team after watching him play as team captain for Georgia United. He said Josh had been on his radar for two or three years. “He has a hard work ethic and never-say-die attitude. It’s hard to find those kinds of guys nowadays,” Annan said. “He has the willingness to do the hard work, and he has good technical ability.” After playing for the Atlanta United U16 side, Josh was called up to the U17 team several times, including the Generation Adidas Cup U17 Tournament in Philadelphia and a Liga MX tournament in Mexico, where he caught the eye of the Wales talent identification manager, Gus Williams, and was invited to play. Annan said that when players get called up, most of the time it’s because “they deserve the chance to be challenged.” Josh played midfield for Atlanta United’s U16 team. He now has officially been moved
Josh Francombe is on the ball for Wales against Northern Ireland.
to the U17 squad and is playing right back as well as midfield, even though he never played in the back until his time with Wales. “I learned how to adapt to different styles of play and new positions,” he said of his time in a Wales uniform. Josh started soccer at the Marcus JCC when was 3 years old. His father came to the United States to play soccer in college, so you could say the sport is in his blood. His goal is to become a professional soccer player. In his first season playing with the Atlanta United U16 squad, Josh attends Riverwood International Charter School half the day, then trains with Atlanta United at 2 p.m. four or five days a week. He completes his schoolwork through online classes offered by Fulton County and has a 3.6 GPA. Josh said the experience has been incredible, but taking on that schedule was a major decision. The Francombes talked to Josh’s principal and school counselor before making the move, said Stacie Fran-
Before a game for the Atlanta United Academy under-17 team in Mexico, Josh Francombe covers his eyes and says the Shema.
combe, Josh’s mother. “We never force him to do anything. We say, ‘Do what you want as long as you’re having fun and being challenged,’” she said. She said the family is not going to sacrifice Josh’s education so he can pursue his soccer dreams at this point, but the Francombes, including two younger brothers, are his biggest supporters. They attend every game possible and traveled to Mexico and Northern Ireland to watch him play. “My in-laws, an uncle and his cousins watched him play in Wales,” Stacie said. “His grandparents came to watch him in Ireland.” Josh is a budding star and hopes to get a call from the U.S. U17 national team. He said he is thankful for the opportunity to play with Atlanta United because without the expansion MLS team, his professional dreams would be much further away. “Without Arthur Blank creating Atlanta United, it wouldn’t have been possible,” Josh said. “He made it possible for me and everyone else.” ■
SIMCHAS
Wedding Sevy-Roth
Julia Sevy and Alex Roth were married Aug. 19, 2017, in an outdoor ceremony at the Boulder Country Club in Boulder, Colo. The bride is the daughter of Jerry and Jorita Sevy of Johns Creek and Rod and Renee Hasterok of Dunwoody. The groom is the son of Adam and Penny Roth of Allentown, Pa., and the grandson of Jerry and Audrey Cylinder and Selma Roth of Allentown. The maid of honor was Nikki Roth, the sister of the groom, and the best man was Alex Sevy, a brother of the bride. The groomsmen were Shane Sevy, a brother of the bride, and Blake Campbell, a nephew of the bride. Julia is a 2010 graduate of the University of Georgia and is a communications and program manager at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder. Alex is a 2009 graduate of Chestnut Hill College and is a social media manager at EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit information technology association in Louisville, Colo. The couple lives in Boulder.
Wedding Larison-Suway
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DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Barbara and Wayne Suway of Marietta announce the marriage of their son, Ryan Alexander Suway, to Sarah Anne Larison, daughter of Gina and Michael Brown of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The wedding took place Aug. 6, 2017, at Rapid Creek Cidery in Iowa City, Iowa. It was officiated by Rabbi D’ror Chankin-Gould. The couple spent their honeymoon in Cancun and Cuba. They live in Chicago.
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OBITUARIES
A Stranger in the Strange Land of Addiction The following is excerpted from the eulogy Chabad Intown Rabbi Eliyahu Schusterman delivered at the Wednesday, Nov. 22, funeral of Garrett Kaufman, who died two days earlier at age 32. I met Garrett 11 years ago on the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta Centennial Mission to Israel. Garrett brought a beautiful energy to our bus. He was fun, generous and he befriended everyone. Much has happened in Garrett’s life since those enjoyable days. We’re gathered here to say goodbye to this fun, generous and beautiful soul. It has been said that the real pain of death is experienced by those left behind. Today’s gathering is a painful one. It is filled with pain and suffering, anger and hurt. Wendy said those powerful words that only a broken-hearted mother can utter: “I hope Garrett is finally at peace.” G-d knows that these last seven years Garrett has not been at peace. Since the passing of his father, Richard Kaufman, Garrett’s world has been in turmoil. When our great ancestor Aaron heard of the passing of his sons Nadav and Avihu, the Torah tells us, “Vayidom Aaron”: Aaron was silent. I’m sure he cried. I’m sure he was in pain. I’m sure he was broken-hearted. The silence the Torah refers to is the silence of faith. He didn’t question G-d. In his pain he knew something that only the soul of the Jew can know: G-d is the true judge, despite our limited comprehension. Monday night, Wendy blew me away with her own faith as she said: “G-d knows what He is doing. I won’t question Him.” I’d like to read something Wendy posted on Garrett’s Facebook page the week before his death. It captures the heart of this mother and a premonition
of things to come: I will always need my son no matter what age I am He has made me laugh He has made me cry He has made me proud He has hugged me tight He has cheered me up He has driven me crazy My son is a friend I will have forever. The family has encouraged me to share some thoughts I shared with them. Our society is suffering from an addiction epidemic. It’s important to continue to educate our community about addiction. Addiction is a real problem that doesn’t discriminate base on race, gender or social status. Addiction is a real problem that covers many behaviors, including drugs, alcohol, sex and gambling. It’s important to know that it’s OK to talk about addiction and not to feel ashamed. We live in a strong and supportive community. Professionals, multiple organizations and support groups can help. To that end, I thank Wendy for both asking and encouraging me to talk about this. These last few years Garrett suffered with addiction, including gambling and drugs. Trauma is a spark that can oftentimes ignite the disease of addiction or, more appropriately, uncover the disease of addiction. According to the teachings of Jewish mysticism, the arrival of our souls in our bodies on Earth is a traumatic event. The soul is torn from its heavenly home to enter a finite, fallible human being. No one is immune from this trauma, but certain people are afflicted with a greater propensity for addiction. Two people can experience the same
Jack Hillebrand 92, Dallas, Texas
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Jack Hillebrand, 92, passed away Friday, Nov. 24, 2017. Jack was born Nov. 7, 1925, in the Bronx but lived most of his life in Atlanta. He spent his last eight years living at the Legacy Willow Bend in Dallas, Texas. He is survived by his son, Cory Hillebrand (Minette); his daughters, Susan Schwartzman (Ron), Cindy Stanley and Wendy Stanley (Marc); grandchildren David Hillebrand (Elyse), Brett Unell (Joe), Megan Stanley, Brooke Hillebrand, Dustin Stanley, Daryl Stanley (Marshall Sosland), Paul Stanley and Mikey Stanley; and two great-grandchildren, Elam Unell and James Hillebrand. He was preceded in death by his parents, Bertha and Herman Hillebrand; his wife, Louise Neff Hillebrand; his brother, Robert Hillebrand; and his sister, Sabina Glick. 28 Jack was a World War II veteran and spent his career in the textile industry.
event or trauma, and one becomes an addict while the other does not. That is because addiction is a disease. It’s not a sign of weakness but of uniqueness. Those around the addict try to do everything they can to help the addict get better. They try tough love and warm love. They try intervention. They try detox and rehab. Sometimes the addict can find the Higher Power and get onto a healthy path. Oftentimes they don’t, and they spiral out of control with a sad ending as we are experiencing today. As with any disease, sometimes we win over the disease, and sometimes the disease wins over us. Think of two people suffering from cancer — may G-d protect us: One person succumbs to the disease, and the other defeats it. Today there is a deep sense of loss, sadness and pain for what could have been. There is also a lot of anger and pain for what has been. The anger will perhaps never leave fully, but it will dissipate enough to remember Garrett before addiction. Try to remember the happy, loving boy and man Garrett was, inside and out, before these years of pain and sadness. I was struck by the power of Garrett’s two Hebrew names: Gershon Binyomin. The first Gershon was Moses’ son, so named because ger hayisi bieretz nochria — a stranger I was in a strange land. Binyomin (Benjamin) is blessed by Jacob as Yedid Hashem — the beloved of the lord. Addicts are strangers in a strange land. They cannot find peace around them, so they turn to substances. Try as they might, they can’t feel less like strangers through normal, earthly channels. That is why a basic premise of the 12 Steps is surrender to a Higher Power. It is only in the Higher Power that
the addict can begin to find peace. For a Jew, that Higher Power, of course, is G-d. Our G-d. The one G-d. Garrett did not have peace. Painful as that sounds, it is also somewhat liberating for those who tried to be good friends and those who tried to help. You did your best. You could not save him. His disease was his own, and he now has peace. At the same time, Benjamin is the beloved of the Lord. Addicts are special people. The addict is someone whose soul yearns for a connection the rest of us are not sensitive to. They yearn to connect to G-d and to their purpose on Earth. In that yearning, fraught with bumps along the way, they bring a gift to those in their sphere of influence, even if their methods are not conventional methods of closeness. Sometimes it is at the end that the story just begins. I pray that in the coming weeks and days, all of you will be able to see the blessing that was Garrett and his belovedness to the Lord like his namesake Benjamin. I want to close with an anecdote that is too obvious not to mention. When Garrett’s dad died, as funeral arrangements were being made, they needed a tallit. They were going to use Richard’s tallit, but Garrett insisted that his tallit be used. Richard was buried with Garrett’s tallit. Garrett held on to Richard’s tallit and was buried in his dad’s tallit. Today Garrett is reunited with his dad. Today Garrett’s soul is reunited with G-d Almighty. We ask G-d to shelter him in the shadow of his wings. We ask G-d to provide comfort to Garrett’s beloved family. We ask G-d to bring comfort to all those who knew Garrett and mourn his loss. Garrett, Gershon Binyomin ben Reuven, rest in peace. ■
He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather and will be greatly missed. Sign the online guestbook at dresslerjewishfunerals.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Residence Assistance Fund, Legacy Senior Living Communities Inc., Suite 100, 6101 Ohio Drive, Plano, TX 75024. Graveside services were held Monday, Nov. 27, at Crest Lawn Memorial Park. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.
Garrett Kaufman 32, Atlanta
Garrett Benjamin Kaufman, age 32, of Atlanta passed away unexpectedly Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, and will always be remembered as a son, brother and friend with a kind heart, sweet soul and fun-loving nature.
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OBITUARIES Truly, he was one of those people everyone enjoyed being around. With a penchant for providing hospitality to others, Garrett spent most of his professional life as a chef, which allowed him the opportunity to serve some of the country’s finest restaurants and communities. Whether at Atlanta’s own Pricci, at the St. Regis Hotel in Aspen, with the leading caterers in Charleston, or even as a personal chef to Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, Garrett was most at home in the kitchen and used his creativity and empathy to ensure others had memorable and enjoyable dining experiences. Golf was one of Garrett’s favorite pastimes, and he considered himself fortunate that he was able to combine his personal and professional passions by lending his cooking talents to the world of professional golf. He counted the U.S. Open and PGA Championship as two of the favorite events he catered. Animals were another of Garrett’s great passions, and he genuinely felt that his dogs were man’s best friends. Garrett is survived by his mother and her husband, Wendi and Tom Lowry; sister Michelle Vizurraga and her husband, David; sister Lauren Kaufman; grandmother Mildred (Mili) Katz; and grandfather Richard Katz and his wife, Jean. He was predeceased by his father, Richard Louis Kaufman; a grandfather, George Kaufman; and a grandmother, Shirley Kaufman-Birnbrey. Sign the online guestbook at dresslerjewishfunerals.com. Graveside services were held Wednesday, Nov. 22, at Crest Lawn Memorial Park with Rabbi Eliyahu Schusterman officiating. Those wishing to make contributions may do so in Garrett’s honor to City of Hope, 1500 E. Duarte Road, Duarte, CA 91010, www.cityofhope.org, or to the Atlanta Humane Society, 981 Howell Mill Road NW, Atlanta, GA 30318, www.atlantahumane.org. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.
Jeanne Maslia 95, Atlanta
Jews at the banks of the Danube. “The water was red for days,” she remembered. After the war, she met her beau, who came back from the Russian labor camps in Siberia, and they married. Vowing not to be a victim anymore, she and her husband, Gyuri, tried three times to be smuggled across the border to Austria and were incarcerated for that. During her stay in prison, Eva had a miscarriage. Still, they were not daunted by their failure, and in 1950 they succeeded in boarding a moving train late at night that crossed into Austria. They boarded the train from two sides and were not certain, clinging to the train’s sides, that both made it across the border until they got well into Austria. They then were taken by a ship from Italy to Israel, where they were sent to the desert city of Be’er Sheva. Though she vowed never to return to Budapest, Eva relented when her daughter Judith was nominated to serve as Israel’s ambassador to Hungary, and she mourned that her husband, who had died a few years earlier, did not share her glee at seeing a full company of Hungarian soldiers presenting their arms before her daughter. “This is not my country anymore,” she said. In Israel, she revived her family business of crafting and marketing leather handbags and purses and ran a famous store in Tel Aviv until the age of 75. Until her last days she ruled the family with tight reins. She is survived by two daughters, Judith and Iris, and five grandchildren. She held herself together until her oldest granddaughter’s marriage ceremony three weeks ago, then just faded away.
Death Notices
Stanley Golden, 70, on Nov. 24. Nathan Libby, 104, of Great Neck, N.Y., father of Temple Sinai member Jim Libby, Susan Siegel, Jean Cartwright, Daniel Libby and Charles Libby, on Nov. 22. Khanon Zaretsky, 93, on Nov. 23.
Jeanne Maslia passed away peacefully Saturday, Nov. 25, 2017. Jeanne, the daughter of Anne and Samuel Carr, was born in London, England, on Oct. 4, 1922. She came to Atlanta as a war bride in 1946. Jeanne was a draftsman at General Electric, where she supervised an office of men, something almost unheard of in the 1960s. She took great pride in her career for her entire life. Jeanne was a union member of the IBEW and a Red Cross Grey Lady volunteer at the Veterans Affairs Hospital. She was also a member of the Congregation Or VeShalom Sisterhood and an active member of Temple Solel in Hollywood, Fla. While living at the Jewish Tower and then at the William Breman Jewish Home, she was known for making colorful and meticulously designed posters for all occasions. The posters brought great joy to so many. Her family thanks the staffs of the William Breman Jewish Home and Weinstein Hospice for the loving care they gave her. Jeanne was preceded in death by son Errol Bagen and daughter Jaye Bagen. She is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Laury and Terri Bagen; loving grandchildren Matthew, David and Ethan (Erin) Bagen; and brother John Carr. Sign the online guestbook at dresslerjewishfunerals.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Weinstein Hospice, www.weinsteinhospice. com, or the William Breman Jewish Home, www.wbjh.org. Graveside services were held Sunday, Nov. 26, at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.
89, Ramat Gan
Eva Szekely Varnai, the mother of Ambassador Judith Varnai Shorer, the consul general of Israel to the Southeast, died in Ramat Gan, Israel, on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2017. She was 89. Eva passed away 67 years after she left the ashes of what was, before World War II, a magnificent and rich Jewish assimilated community in Budapest that was devastated by the Holocaust. Eva had witnessed the atrocities of the Nazis and the dreaded fascist troops, who gunned down
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
Eva Varnai
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CLOSING THOUGHTS
Great Advice Comes From Many Sources
DECEMBER 1 ▪ 2017
For two years I was the president of Congregation Beth Jacob. At the end of the Shabbos morning service, Rabbi Ilan Feldman would announce various mazel tovs and other items related to the synagogue, then turn to me as president and ask if I had anything else to say. I decided I would make a short announcement on what the board of the synagogue was doing and end with a few uplifting quotations to end the service on a positive note. I love quotations and have a large library of them, and I read them often for fun and for inspiration. To end the synagogue service, I had to find the right ones to fit our membership that were in keeping with having just finished a traditional Jewish service. I often read hundreds of quotations to find the right ones to present to the membership. After doing that for two years, week after week, I produced a small pamphlet called “Quotations From the Pulpit,” which is available from the publisher. I found quotations from many different sources, so here are just a few of the gems I found: • From Carl Sandburg — “A baby is G-d’s opinion that the world should go on.” “You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can never fool Mom.” “If a mother gives her children one gift, let it be passion. And the most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother.” • One time I quoted Mother Teresa — “People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. “If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. “If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway. “If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway. “The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good today. “Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway. 30 “For you see, in the end it is
between you and G-d. It never was between you and them anyway.” A few days later, the rabbi said that since I had quoted Mother Teresa, members of the congregation had
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suggested to him that perhaps I was running out of quotes. He meant it in jest, of course. He went on say that I might even quote the pope. A week later, I followed up by reminding the congregation that the rabbi suggested that I had so few quotes left that I might even have to quote the pope. Well, I did have a quote from A. Pope. It goes like this: “He who serves his brother best — gets nearer G-d than all the rest.” The quotation is from A. Pope — that is, Alexander Pope, a well-known English poet who lived 300 years ago and wrote highly polished verse. He also wrote: Teach me to feel another’s woe, To hide the fault I see. That mercy I to others show, That mercy show to me. Because these quotes were pithy, uplifting and, I believe, appropriate, many members looked forward to hearing them and told me so. The only request I got from a few members was that they wanted to hear some quotations from Jewish leaders, and I tried to find them and did provide some of them. Some examples: • From the Baal Shem Tov — “The world is new to us every morning — this is G-d’s gift, and every person should believe he is reborn every day.” • From Shammai — “Say little and do much.” That is one of my favorite quotes in five little words. • From Hillel — “The more Torah, the more life. The more study, the more wisdom. The more counsel, the more discernment. The more charity, the more peace.” The bottom line: The world is full of great advice, if only we take it. ■
“Football Phraseology”
By Yoni Glatt, koshercrosswords@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Easy
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ACROSS 1. “Buona ___” (“Layla tov”) 5. Judges (to be) 10. Chutzpah 14. Mars, to the Greeks 15. (Knesset) topic 16. Cookie once labeled OU-DE 17. Begin minyan with only nine? 19. One finished with Hebrew U. 20. Chinese and Thai, e.g. 21. Like one hurrying to make it to shul 23. Lou and Willis 24. Went into the air 26. End of yom tov? 27. Maybe the most important letters in Israel 28. Like venison, some say 29. Make like Joseph with Egypt’s grain 31. Grape liquid some use for Kiddush 33. Refine, as metal 34. They create new Jews 36. These puzzles always have one 37. Jewish wedding fragments 38. Rebbetzin ___ Mushka Schneerson 39. Paper purchase 40. Dough machine? 43. Unlikely locale for Jewish remains 44. Involuntary wink, for example 46. (Jason) Schwartzman’s mom, Talia 48. Outer layer of notable treif 50. Those born in Israel
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Ramones 32. Expose, as a superhero 33. Where Anna met a king, in a musical 34. ___ teams (34-Across, essentially) 35. Grand hit for Ian Kinsler 36. “___ in Manila” (Ali/ Frazier bout) 38. Coffee measure 39. Didn’t have enough (oil for the menorah) 40. Windpipe, e.g. 41. Prophetic state, perhaps 42. Neatnik’s banes 45. Israeli breads 46. Like the tragic story of Chana and her seven sons 47. Mushroom cloud former, for short 49. Some Dead Sea resorts 50. “The Giving Tree” author Silverstein 53. “Mind Medicine” author Geller 54. Baseball legend Ripken
51. Go upside down, like Aly Raisman 52. Ben-Gurion landings 55. Tefillin area bone 56. Angelic glows 57. Defensive spray 58. Is far behind during services 59. “It’s ___ Rock and Roll to Me” (Billy Joel) 60. Shaloms DOWN 1. Expedition where one might see unique kosher animals 2. Removed, as chalk 3. Alleviation, to one on shpilkes 4. Syrian leader 5. Disrespect verbally, in slang 6. UWS time zone 7. Carlebach’s “___ Einai” 8. Bill of “Groundhog Day” 9. Shidduch arrangement 10. Vincent van ___ 11. 52-Across, essentially 12. Most skinny (like a cow in Pharaoh’s dream) 13. Skiers’ cottages 18. Naval D A V I rank; abbr. A N A C 22. “Fuller I N T H N A S I House” actor R John 24. Shoestring D E B O I R A 25. Rises to D A V K prominence A E L I Y 28. ___ T O G A tzedakah H A N K 30. Synagogue A N O section N E R E R E 31. One of the 1
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3
4
14 17 20
24
29
30
31
35 39
40 47
52 58
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LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION 5
6
D E E
25
T
15
7
E
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R
N
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A
T A
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N O N
A N A
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63
70
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74
75
77
78
S
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36
9
A M E
D
E
P
E
21
S
8
H
18
E
32
H
41
48
S
E
55
H U
59
A
P
64
27
L
42
49
I
E
P
N O N A P
28
L
I
B O
T
S
H
H
S
D U
E
G
L
43
50
E L
D
S
61
E
S
T
O P
R D
E
N
A
A
T
A
S
B
I
E
72
A
19 23
A
34
S O
65
A M
V
56
U
13
R
A
38
I
W O R
60
T
22
12
A G S
16
T
K
33
37
11
E
A
N O R M
10
73 76 79
57
44
A
51
45
Z
46
E
R O O
O M O N V
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E M M A
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D U M A
M O S
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