Atlanta Jewish Times, February 13, 2015, No 5

SPECIAL ABILITY

Nonverbal autism won’t stop Dalia Cheskes from becoming a bat mitzvah at Beth Shalom.

Page 4

POWER OF ONE

Federation honors the many individuals who make the community more inclusive.

Page 8

DIGGING IN

Trees Atlanta gets a lot of help to celebrate Tu B’Shevat in Poncey-Highland.

Page 32

Atlanta VOL. XC NO. 5

WWW.ATLANTAJEWISHTIMES.COM

Welcome To The Future

Honest Tea CEO Seth Goldman brings a message of corporations as change agents to Emory business students.

Page 3

SCARY WORLD

Anti-Semitism isn’t simple, which means there are no simple solutions to the problems facing European Jews.

Page 7

Local News 2

Diamant To Help Launch Community Mikvah

By Suzi Brozman sbrozman@atljewishtimes.com nita Diamant, best known as the author of “The Red Tent,” is coming to Atlanta to make two public appearances this month.

Her latest book, “The Boston Girl,” will be the focus of her visit Feb. 23 to the Marcus Jewish Community Center. But the night before she will help local organizers plunge into a new project, an alldenominations mikvah at Congregation B’nai Torah in Sandy Springs.

Diamant’s discussion of reimagining ritual for the modern age will be free and open to the public at The Temple in Midtown to launch the Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah (MACoM) into the consciousness of Jewish Atlanta.

MACoM is an independent nonprofit that plans to start construction of the community mikvah in May and finish before the High Holidays. The project will involve a renovation of the existing facilities at B’nai Torah and has the support of more than a dozen synagogues and other organizations.

MACoM’s board reflects diverse support, including three rabbis and representatives of Reform, Conservative and Orthodox streams of Judaism.

Diamant helped establish the model for a nondenominational community mikvah the past 10 years at Boston’s Mayyim Hayyim (Living Waters).

“People responded to the idea of a place that was welcoming and beautiful, for happy occasions and sad, a way to mark life’s changes,” Diamant said.

See more about her thoughts on the modern mikvah on Page 6. ■

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Nearly 3,500 leading Jewish teens come to Atlanta to chart personal and communal paths forward.

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BEST POLICY

FEBRUARY 13, 2015 | 24 SHEVAT 5775

INSIDE

Education 27

Israel 10

Obituaries 28

Opinion 12

Simchas 29

Arts 15

Sports 29

Calendar 16

Crossword 30

Travel 26

Marketplace 31

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LOCAL NEWS

Kehilla Fest Gets the Joint Jumpin’ to young adults.

Rabbi Ingber performed several of his own songs with his amplified acoustic guitar and harmonica (the latter every bit as good as Bob Dylan).

As the aisles filled with swaying and dancing, Michelle Garland, who was in town from Iowa, said, “The Moshav Band helped me write my doctoral dissertation, and I love their music.”

Other comments included “creative,” “original,” “joyful,” “eclectic,” “more than entertainment,” and “five ebullient, optimistic troubadours with the energy of a youthful heart.”

The Atlanta Jewish Music Festival, a co-sponsor of the celebration, scored a hit with this kickoff to next month’s festival. ■

By Marcia Jaffe mjaffe@atljewishtimes.com

A

tlanta Jewish Academy posed as Midtown’s hip Masquerade Club as an audience of nearly 500 paid tribute to Rabbi Karmi David Ingber’s fifth anniversary with The Kehilla in Sandy Springs on Feb. 8.

The internationally acclaimed Moshav Band ignited Kehilla Fest with exotic sounds, blending reggae and Mediterranean harmonies with its own interpretation of Israeli folk music.

The audience rose to its feet to the strains of Eastern musical phrasing set to conga percussion, blaring electric lead guitars, an eight-string lute — higher, faster, higher, faster — a recipe for a musical frenzy.

Then suddenly the music was meditative and soulful.

After several numbers, Moshav paused while Kehilla members paid tribute to Rabbi Ingber and his wife, Elisheva, who have built a warm congregation with special outreach

Top: Rabbi Karmi David Ingber joins the Moshav Band onstage.

Left: Michelle Garland, in from Iowa for the show, says the Moshav Band’s music helped her earn her Ph.D. Photos by Marcia Jaffe

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PRAYER AND STUDY

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INSIDE

3 Education 9 Simchas 10 Business 10 Obituaries Candle Lighting 12 Cartoon Calendar 19 Classifieds Shaindle’s Shpeil

Israel Pride Opinion Editorial

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Jewish Music Festival Goes International

Je Suis Juif! T

Midtown A silent march through solidarity Atlanta on Jan. 11 shows days of terror. with Paris after three

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By David Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com Music Festival he Atlanta Jewish onal music to is bringing internati event. town for the sixth annual will feature IsThe Spring Festival um and Diwan Saz raeli Yael Deckelba Jump Babylon. and Montreal-based g young, attractin on eye With an will put on 10 events intown Jews, AJMF The festival will in 12 days in March. band Red Heifers include Macon-based (Hannah) Zale, and Atlanta-area artists and Tony Levitas.

Sammy Rosenbaum about this “We are really excited ” said Russell Gottyear’s Spring Festival, founder and direcschalk, the festival’s onal performtor. “We’ve had internati our opening at never but past the ers in focused entirely night, and we’ve never specifically peron international artists, main event. at our formers from Israel, r Yael DeckMain event headline a ed since age 16 as elbaum has perform an album this releasing is solo artist and member of the Israeli spring. She is also a a. folk trio Habanot Necham seven Jews, of consists Diwan Saz s who perform Muslims and Christian Central Asia, Turkey ancient music from g peace and underand Israel, promotin music. standing through their y, March AJMF6 kicks off Thursda with Jump Baby12, at Steve’s Live Music inspired ska/roots/ lon and its klezmervenue will also rock. The Sandy Springs party March 14. host Zale’s album release at will produce a stage festival The 22 Community Food 31st annual Atlanta 25 the Hunger Walk/Run on March 15.

Bank be March 21 at 26 The main event will se.

27 the Variety Playhou Festival inAdditions to the Spring 31 showcase at Temple clude a cantorial a closing Ho31 Emanu-El on March 22 and March 23. concert locaust remembrance Photo credit: Jon Gargis

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LOCAL NEWS

Honest TeaEO: ‘Business Is an Agent for Change’ Seth Goldman serves as keynote speaker for Emory undergrads

By David Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

D

oing business the right way can change the world.

Just ask Seth Goldman, co-founder of the nation’s top selling organic bottled tea, Honest Tea.

Since the company’s inception in 1998, Goldman has done things differently — or, as he likes to call it, “honestly.”

Goldman was the keynote speaker Feb. 5 at Emory University’s Undergraduate Business School Leadership Conference and relayed his inspirational message to the next generation of business professionals.

“Business done the right way can be a really effective vehicle for change,” he said.

As far as change in an industry, few can say they have accomplished more than Honest Tea (www.honesttea.com).

Last month Beverage World magazine named Goldman the No. 1 beverage disruptor in the industry.

By bringing all-natural, organic and fair-trade ingredients to the mainstream, Goldman and cofounder Barry Nalebuff have created a beverage that is healthier for the body and the planet.

“We market drinks with less sugar,” Goldman said. “We changed sourcing so our products are all organic, and we have a fair-trade certification. We are even changing the way that large corporations think about change.

Now we are part of the Coca-Cola Seth Goldman has changed the landscape of the beverage industry by creating a socially responCompany, and many times when sible company and product. Honest Tea now produces a full line of low-calorie drinks, including a big company buys a smaller one, tea, juice and soda. they get involved in a way that make a significant positive impact. company: to create great-tasting and almost dilutes what the brand is

“I think for me the surprise was heathier organic beverages with honfor. I think that we have continued to that business could be a substantial esty, integrity and sustainability for be a mission-driven company.” vehicle for change,” Goldman said. all.

What is the mission of Honest “I didn’t fully appreciate that when

As keynote speaker for the 16th Tea? I was in school, and I thought that annual UBSLC at Emory, Goldman

In 2013, Goldman and Nalebuff it was more of a dry, numbers-based called for a more responsible way released a book, “Mission in a Bottle field.

That’s what has been such a of doing business, a message that — The Honest Guide to Doing Businice surprise and what has been so fit well into the conference’s goal of ness Differently — and Succeeding.” gratifying.”

■ empowering students with the skills True to form, it was a comic book and detailed the ongoing mission of the to return to their home schools and

Because this issue is so heavily focused on youths, we’re going with an interesting contrast from social media this week. From Facebook, we have the well-dressed mock trial team from the Weber School, which advanced to the district competition after finishing second Feb. 9 in District 16. Kudos to Best Attorney winners Talia Katz and Zoey Weissman and Best Witness winners Marni Rein, Jeremy Shapiro and Max Franco. That night, somewhat more casually dressed, Jewish songwriters warmed up for next month’s Atlanta Jewish Music Festival with an event at Red Light Cafe, celebrated on Hannah Zale’s Instagram account via Twitter. Want to be Seen on Social Media? Just tag us on Facebook (facebook.com/atljewishtimes) or Twitter (@ atljewishtimes).

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

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LOCAL NEWS

A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Prayers

B’nai mitzvah tutor’s nonverbal daughter ready to become a bat mitzvah

By Cady Schulman cschulman@atljewishtimes.com

R

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

ebecca Cheskes has helped many Jewish youths plan their coming-of-age celebrations through her years as a b’nai mitzvah tutor. But nothing prepared her for her most special and challenging bat mitzvah yet — that of her autistic daughter, Dalia.

As a nonverbal autistic child, Dalia relies on a device similar to an iPad to communicate, something Cheskes knew she had to incorporate into the service. It took five years of research and one year of planning to create the program for Dalia’s bat mitzvah, scheduled for Feb. 16, Presidents’ Day, right in the middle of Jewish Disability Awareness Month.

“I would just talk to my friends all the time,” Cheskes said. “I did come up with it, but it was like I needed help. I needed to be able to bounce the ideas off of people. I did not want it to be ‘Kumbaya,’ let’s all sit at Dalia’s service. I wanted her to be involved and active and invested and not just a picture on the wall. I wanted her to actually participate and do something in it.”

What Cheskes came up with is a modified version of a bat mitzvah service. It includes elements adapted for Dalia, such as prayers in English.

Every Hebrew portion of the service is transliterated for her.

“She has about 40 pages in English printed out in her binder,” Cheskes said. “Her service is some English, some Hebrew.”

Cheskes created a flipchart with pictures to represent each prayer, a learning technique for nonverbal children. For example, the picture for praise has a face and a speech bubble with hearts and music.

“It pictorially describes what you mean when you say the word,” she said. Dalia “was very interested in the pictures. I started by singing the prayer and showing her the pictures, and I sang it as I went. She was interested. She’s very musical.”

Cheskes eventually found a way to put prayers on Dalia’s communication device so that when she pushes each of the phrases, the device reads the prayers. The person voicing the prayers is the daughter of one of Cheskes’ friends, who helped Chesk4 es with Dalia when the b’nai mitzvah

AJT

Rebecca Cheskes

Pictures have helped Dalia Cheskes learn the service for her bat mitzvah celebration.

tutor was on the bima with students.

“I wanted to honor my friend by having her daughter be Dalia’s voice,” Cheskes said. “I wanted to bring special touches in to be unique to her but stay true to tradition. It really does stay true to that.”

The whole point, Cheskes said, is that you don’t have to have a big party to have a bar or bat mitzvah.

“You just have to turn 13 and be called to the Torah,” she said.

Rabbi Mark Zimmerman of Con-

gregation Beth Shalom in Dunwoody, where the Cheskes family attends, said his synagogue is very inclusive of people with disabilities, having created a ramp to the bima in 1988 and offering devices for hearing-impaired congregants.

“It’s always been part of who we are that we’re a completely inclusive community,” Rabbi Zimmerman said.

“We’ve done several b’nai mitzvahs like this. Other people facing Down’s syndrome or dyslexia. That happens

very commonly. Those kinds of challenges are just there, and we always find a way to work it out.”

Rather than officiate, Rabbi Zimmerman will attend as a witness and will explain to the audience about the service and how it differs from a traditional bat mitzvah.

“I’m very proud of our community,” the rabbi said. “It would have been much easier to simply say, ‘The challenges are too great. We can’t handle this.’ That’s not a question.

We’re going to find a way.”

Rabbi Zimmerman said he expects a crowd for Dalia’s bat mitzvah.

“I think it’s going to be a very moving, powerful service for everybody there, specifically for the challenges Dalia is facing,” he said.

“When you have this level of challenge and seeing their daughter get up there and function through those challenges, this is going to be a very emotional event. There won’t be a dry eye in the house.”

Cheskes said she hopes parents of special-needs children will look at Dalia’s service and realize their children can participate in Jewish traditions, no matter what they’re facing.

“I think a lot of parents may wonder, ‘What am I going to do when my child becomes that age?’ ” Cheskes said. “I thought the same thing.

You kind of have to look into your child and find out, ‘What are their strengths? What do they like?’

“The rubric I created is a fun service. It’s educational. It really levels the playing field in our community to say, ‘Look at what we’re doing for people with special needs.’ We can all benefit from it. It’s an amazing, layered experience.” ■

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LOCAL NEWS

Garon Berenson Makes Eagle Scout

Atlanta

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ongregation Or Hadash member Garon Berenson has been awarded the rank of Eagle Scout. He served as patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader for service, assistant senior patrol leader for camping, senior patrol leader and troop guide for Troop 463 and has earned 21 merit badges.

Garon is the son of Gloria Ana and Frank Berenson of Sandy Springs. Since the Eagle Scout rank was introduced in 1911, it has been earned by more than 2 million young men.

Wayne Miller, the Scoutmaster of Troop 463, is also Jewish.

EDITORIAL mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com Associate Editor

DAVID COHEN

david@atljewishtimes.com This Week’s Contributors

APRIL BASLER NOA BEJAR DAVID BENKOF SUZI BROZMAN JORDAN GORFINKEL MARCIA JAFFE PHILIP A. KAPLAN BENJAMIN KWESKIN KEVIN MADIGAN REBECCA MCCARTHY SHAINDLE SCHMUCKLER CADY SCHULMAN ANNA STREETMAN

Scoutmaster Wayne Miller of Troop 463 presents new Eagle Scouts (from left) Jack Monahan, Hunter Whitney, Garon Berenson and Ian Hughes. Photo Courtesy of Troop 463

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Mikvah Reimagined

Diamant helps spread healing waters we should do something about this.

By Suzi Brozman Boston is a creative, groundbreaking sbrozman@atljewishtimes.com city, so it wasn’t hard to n coming weeks find interested particiyou’re going to pants.” hear a lot about a

Her vision, as she new ritual phenomenon described it in an essay, coming to Atlanta, the was to provide a place Metro Atlanta Comwhere people could celmunity Mikvah, or MAebrate a personal rituCoM, which in Hebrew al. She foresaw a place means “place.” where people could cel The mikvah is imebrate; share gifts, canportant in Jewish law dles, songs and blessand tradition but one ings; and savor new often limited in use beginnings. A bride or outside the observant Anita Diamant groom could pray, recite community. Yes, it ema psalm and reflect on phasizes aspects of sexthe life-changing events to come. uality, but its waters do much more

Intrigued by her ideas, a small — revitalizing the spirit, nourishing group of people got together in Bosthe soul, providing a connection beton, raised money and got commutween Jewish history and the hectic nity assent. secular world we inhabit today.

A mikvah is a pool of water with “We opened in 2004 and are now strict rules on size and the way the concluding our 10th year,” Diamant water is gathered. Its traditional said. “We see Mayyin Hayyim, Living uses include purification, most com- Waters, as a real jewel in the crown monly for a woman’s monthly use of Boston’s Jewish community. It’s an international model of what a comand before a wedding.

Today, those uses are expanding munity mikvah can be — enhancing to include life changes, divorce, new Jewish life and expanding it.” beginnings and any time a person Diamant said some 2,500 people feels the need for cleansing and a a year visit the mikvah’s campus.

Half are children, brought on school new start.

This redefinition has expanded or camp trips. The mikvah has been the mikvah’s community presence used for some 2,500 conversions, and its use by men and women from each with participants having time and space to share the occasion with all Jewish streams.

That growth is in large part be- family, friends and rabbis. cause of the imagination and efforts Guides, male and female, are of famed novelist Anita Diamant. available to help. A modern educaShe recently spoke about the ancient tion center provides a world of inforhalachic practice of immersion and mation at mayyimhayyim.org. ■ how she got involved in developing a communitywide mikvah center.

“I was writing a book on conversion,” the “Red Tent” author said.

“The last stage of conversion is imHear Diamant mersing in the mikvah. There is limited access to the mikvah for the Anita Diamant is making two appearliberal Jewish community in Boston, ances in two night. She’ll appear free at where I live. Non-Orthodox Jews can The Temple, 1589 Peachtree St., Midtown, on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. to support only use it one afternoon a week. I MACoM. Visit www.atlantamikvah.org went one day — there was a line out for more about MACoM. the door. I was dismayed that these people had to wait in line.”

Diamant will speak at the Marcus JCC, Married to a man who converted 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody, the next night at 7:30 to discuss her latest book, years ago, Diamant was dismayed “The Boston Girl.” Tickets are $10 for JCC at the situation. “Conversion is powmembers and $15 for others. Visit www. erful, and it deserves respect. … It atlantajcc.org, or call 678-812-4002. wasn’t a very welcoming experience.

So I started talking to people, saying

I

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LOCAL LOCAL NEWS NEWS

‘Anti-Semitism Is Multidimensional’

AJC official: Daily pressures, not violence, drive Jews from France

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ombating anti-Semitism is a full-time job.

Just ask Rabbi Andrew Baker, the American Jewish Committee’s director of international Jewish affairs. Baker visited Atlanta on Feb. 4 to lead a lunch-and-learn session at Congregation Etz Chaim and to introduce and discuss “The Prime Ministers” at Merchants Walk for the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. He talked with the Atlanta Jewish Times about anti-Semitism in Europe, the United States and the world.

Jan. 27 marked the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. How has European Jewry changed since then?

Seventy years ago, we ended the worst chapter in Jewish history. If you go back 10 years before that, you had such a sizable Jewish community centered in Europe. That ended and will never return. What you confront today certainly builds on and learns from the legacy of what happened then. Jewish communities in Europe today are mere shadows of what once was.

What can you say about the recent rise of anti-Semitism in France and the rest of Europe?

Anti-Semitism is multidimensional, and we see it manifest in a number of ways. What we’ve seen recently in France is twofold. First, there is an issue of security, specifically the threat of murder coming from this admittedly limited segment of radicalized Islamists. Twelve hundred foreign fighters have returned from Syria and Iraq in France. Others are self-radicalized that want to go there, and Jews are targets. That’s also true elsewhere, in Belgium, the Netherlands and even in Denmark.

So we have this problem. One of the days when I was in Paris recently, the front-page, above-the-fold story in Le Monde was titled “French Jews, the temptation to leave.” So this is a national story in France, but it’s not because of the threat of these violent Islamic terrorists. It’s because of the day-to-day experience of verbal and sometimes physical

harassment that Jews are experiencing.

Did anti-Israel demonstrations during Operation Protective Edge encourage harassment of Jews and let extremists know that if they acted out there would be few repercussions?

Photo by Dov Wilker That’s a good ques- Left: Rabbi Andrew Baker is the American Jewish Committee’s director of international Jewish affairs. tion. In a way, it’s possiRight: About 50 people attend a lunch-and-learn session with Rabbi Andrew Baker at Congregation Etz Chaim on Feb. 4. bly true because governMuslims in France. They’re not going will find pockets in places where it ments should have been prepared this summer. It wouldn’t be away, so the challenge here is how do can be pretty unpleasant. I think we the first time that an incident in Isra- you make them French? How do you have long passed the point in the el has triggered anti-Israel and anti- inculcate in them these republican South or North where anti-Semitism is systemic. We have mostly made it Semitic demonstrations. It happened values? out of bounds here. The more time I more quickly this summer because social media plays a significant role What about anti-Semitism here in spend in Europe, the more I appreciate the fact that I raised my children in all of this. As we saw in France, the Southeastern United States?

I’d be hard pressed to find plac- in America. In Europe, I think you the police weren’t prepared. es where there is no anti-Semitism. are always self-consciously Jewish.

When the French prime minister Anti-Semitism in America is very In America, you can be un-self-consays that “France without Jews different than Europe, although you sciously Jewish. ■ isn’t France,” is that a popular view in the country, or is he trying to lead the country in that diPERSONAL CARE • RESPITE CARE • COMPANION CARE • MEDICAL CARE • HOME MANAGEMENT • DEMENTIA CARE rection?

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Maybe for many French citizens who also believe in these same traditions it could be a statement that should be self-evident that Jews have found a full home in France and that it shouldn’t have to be stated. The reality is, French Jews have been attacked because they are Jews, and everyone knows it. In this case the FREE IN-HOME ASSESSMENT prime minister wants to lead the We have the expertise to care for country, and he wants to reassure medically complicated individuals French Jewry. Ultimately, if a Jewand individuals being discharged from ish community wonders about its fuhospitals or rehabilitation facilities. ture, that also says something.

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LOCAL NEWS

Federation Honors Inclusiveness Heroes

Power of One ceremony helps kick off Jewish Disability Awareness Month

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com wo years of work by the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta to assess and enhance the Jewish community’s inclusiveness for people with disabilities culminated Feb. 8 in the first Power of One reception at the Selig Center in Midtown.

“This is the Super Bowl,” Federation Chairman Howard Feinsand told an overflow crowd of more than 150 people.

The event recognized people doing important work for inclusiveness who were nominated by synagogues, camps and other community organizations. It resulted from the work of Federation’s Jewish Disability Task Force, chaired by Sheryl Arno and Ina Enoch, and helped kick off Jewish Disability Awareness Month in Atlanta.

The evening started with a reception and included a video, “Caring for the Disabled,” featuring Enoch; Natalie Weintraub, a special-needs adult; and Jessica Goldberg, the mother of a boy with autism who has thrived at Jewish overnight camp and at JCC soccer through inclusiveness initiatives with the dedication of a facilitator.

“One person can make a huge difference,” said Jaime Russo, Federation’s community disabilities coordinator. She and Gena Rosenzweig, Federation’s inclusion coordinator for synagogue religious schools and preschools, were hired as a result of the task force’s work.

The following are the Power of One honorees, some of whom did not attend the ceremony: • Ellen Zucrow, Camp Coleman.

• Janna Zwerner, Camp Judaea.

• Chai Davis, Sammy Feinstein, Daniel Travis and Michael Kurland, Camp Living Wonders.

• Perry Birbrager, Camp Ramah Darom.

• Jay Kessler, Congregation Beth Jacob.

• Rebecca Cheskes, Congregation Beth Shalom.

• Janice Nodvin, Congregation B’nai Torah.

• Stacy Cohen, Davis Academy.

• Janet Schatten, Epstein School.

• Roz Reiss, Congregation Etz Chaim.

• Ruthie Tanenbaum, Friendship Circle.

• Susan Berch, Jewish Family & Career Services.

• Sheryl Arno and Ina Enoch, Federation.

• Rabbi David Silverman, Atlanta Scholars Kollel.

• Linda Danzig and Jessica Goldberg, Marcus JCC. • Jerry and Elaine Blumenthal, Atlanta Jewish Academy’s Matthew Blumenthal M’silot Program.

• Lois Malkin, Temple Beth Tikvah.

• Ben Stone, Temple Emanu-El. • Caroline Figiel and Jeanette Oppenheimer, Temple Kehillat Chaim.

• Sari Earl and Jan Epstein, Temple Sinai.

• Stacy Levy, The Temple.

For more photos, visit atlantajewishtimes.com. ■

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

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B

C

D

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H A: David and Jessica Goldberg react to seeing the development of their autistic son on Federation’s “Caring for the Disabled” video at the Power of One awards presentation.

B: Camp Ramah Darom Director Geoff Menkowitz (left) and the camp’s honoree, Perry Birbrager C: Sheryl Arno and Congregation Beth Jacob honoree Jay Kessler D: Congregation Beth Shalom Education Director Nina Yeske with honoree Rebecca Cheskes E: Congregation B’nai Torah Rabbi Eytan Kenter with honoree Janice Nodvin F: Epstein School Rabbi Scott Shafrin and honoree Janet Schatten G: Congregation Etz Chaim Education Director Debbie Deutsch and honoree Roz Reiss H: The Friendship Circle’s Mendel Groner and honoree Ruthie Tanenbaum

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

LOCAL NEWS

Atlanta Gets Second Moishe House Moishe House Atlanta Decatur opened with a Shabbat celebration the weekend of Feb. 6.

The second local location of Moishe House has four residents ages 22 to 25 who will host weekly programs to reach more than 1,000 young adults within a year: Tyler Brown, who works for the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta, a Moishe House funder; Sarah Lashinksy, an Atlanta native and a recent Georgia Tech grad who works for a startup company designing toilets for the developing world; Samantha Morton, an Atlanta who went to the University of Georgia and worked with Adamah Adventures; and Sammy Rosenbaum, a University of Florida grad and professional musician.

The first Atlanta Moishe House, in Toco Hills, opened in June 2013.

Moishe House has 75 locations in 17 countries and is trying to double its presence by 2017.

“After two years of funding and collaborating, we are thrilled that Moishe House is thriving and opening a second house in our community,” said Amanda Abrams, Federation’s senior vice president of strategy, planning and impact.

“It is so important for our community to embrace and help support young adults in their 20s, encouraging and ensuring that they can live Jewish lives and have meaningful Jewish experiences.”

Lewis to Skip Netanyahu Speech Rep. John Lewis plans not to be in the audience when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint session of Congress next month.

The Atlanta Democrat will skip the speech to protest House Speaker John Boehner’s decision to invite Netanyahu without consulting the White House, The Associated Press reported Feb. 5.

Lewis’ action is aimed at the Republican leader, not at the Israeli, a spokesman told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Sneiderman Challenges Conviction The other shoe has dropped in DeKalb County prosecutors’ efforts to punish both Hemy Neuman and Andrea Sneiderman in connection with Neuman’s fatal shooting of Sneiderman’s husband outside a Dunwoody preschool in November 2010.

On Jan. 20, DeKalb Assistant District Attorney Anna Green Cross argued before the Georgia Supreme Court that Neuman’s murder conviction and sentence of life without parole should stand in part because Sneiderman’s perjured testimony wasn’t a decisive factor in his trial. Exactly two weeks later, Cross argued that Sneiderman’s testimony about her relationship with Neuman was important enough for her perjury conviction to stand.

meanwhile, is challenging the judge’s instructions to the jury.

Kol Emeth Teen Wins Presidency Temple Kol Emeth member Zoe Light, who is this year’s social action vice president for NFTY-SAR, the Southern region for the Reform youth movement, was electZoe Light ed the region’s 2015-16 president without opposition at a regional kallah in January.

“I will strive to see each participant leaving an event with an even deeper connection to our movement, our religion, and themselves,” she wrote in her

candidate statement.

As the NFTY-SAR social action vice president, Zoe is one of the two youth organizers for this year’s Camp Jenny project. She is a junior at Walton High School in East Cobb.

Send local announcements and story ideas to submissions@atljewishtimes. com.

Corrections and Clarifications • In a Feb. 6 article on Temple Beth Tikvah’s hiring of Rabbi Alexandria Shuval-Weiner, the name of congregation President Ron Swichkow was misspelled.

• The Atlanta Jewish Academy basketball photos in the Feb. 6 issue should have been credited to Harold Alan Photography.

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FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Local Briefs

The problem for prosecutors is that Sneiderman’s perjury conviction depends on her testimony being important to the Neuman case, but Neuman’s conviction is imperiled if it relied on perjured testimony.

Sneiderman went to prison after being convicted in 2013 of lying on the stand and during the investigation of husband Rusty’s murder. She is out on parole and is seeking a new trial.

Neuman, who admitted shooting Rusty Sneiderman but claimed insanity sparked by an affair with Andrea Sneiderman, is awaiting the Supreme Court’s ruling on his appeal.

Both appeals also address issues beyond the importance of Sneiderman’s testimony. Based on the Supreme Court hearing, Neuman’s best hope might be the prosecution’s questionable use of defense consultants’ notes. Sneiderman,

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ISRAEL

JNF Photo of the Week:

Creating World of Green Thumbs

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Jewish National Fund is dedicated to encouraging the growth and development of the Central Arava and sharing the ways in which Israel makes the world a better place.

JNF’s partnership with the Arava International Center for Agriculture Training (AICAT) brings agricultural students from developing countries to Sapir to learn Israel’s innovative agricultural techniques through high-quality professional training. Students live on farms in moshavim (farming communities) for a 10-month agricultural season and develop skills and professional know-how through hands-on training.

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Fired Up for 4th in Israel

Beth Shalom trip to include IDF base

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com f the synagogue trips to Israel we told you about Feb. 6 don’t fit your timetable, your itinerary or your general needs, Congregation Beth Shalom has another option.

It’s a chance to spend the Fourth of July celebrating Shabbat in Tel Aviv.

Rabbi Mark Zimmerman and his wife, Linda, are leading a one-bus

I

trip to Israel from June 23 to July 6 through Israel Tour Connection because “the best way to stand with Israel is to stand in Israel.” The trip is open to anyone in the community, but you have until only March 1 to sign on.

The trip includes elements for travelers of all ages, regardless of how many times they’ve visited Israel.

“The best thing about our trips is igniting a love for Israel among first-time visitors, understanding the complex makeup of the land and its people, and creating a strong bond with our fellow travelers,” Rabbi Zimmerman said.

The Zimmermans usually lead a trip to Israel every other year, with the last one taking place in 2013.

Rabbi Zimmerman estimates that he has led 250 Atlantans to Israel over the years. Each time, he adds something new, such as, Golan wine tastings and visits to a Druze village.

The exact itinerary for the trip will be finalized at a meeting of the full travel group, but it will include a visit to an Israel Defense Forces base (most likely in the Golan), a Shabbat in Jerusalem in addition to July 4th in Tel Aviv, and an overnight by the Dead Sea to allow people to get an early-morning start if they want to ascend Massada by foot.

“We have an incredible, friendly guide joining us who has an extensive background in archaeology as well as a passionate love for the land and people of Israel,” Rabbi Zimmerman said.

The trip is priced at $3,495 per person without airfare or $5,385 with it. You can email rabbi@bshalom.net or LindaZimmerman314@gmail.com or call 770-399-5300 to get more information or sign up. ■ As a reminder, the other trips reported Feb. 6 are with Temple Emanu-El, Congregation Or Hadash and The Temple; read about them at atlantajewishtimes.com/2015/02/travelatlanta-synagogues-prepare-summerisrael. Send information about other synagogue Israel trips to mjacobs@ atljewishtimes.com.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

LOCAL ISRAELNEWS

Israel Pride: Good News From Our Jewish Home

Making it easier to remember your meds. Haifa-based MediSafe is opening an office in Boston. It will help market MediSafe’s medication reminder app, which has been promoted mainly by word of mouth but still has been downloaded 1.3 million times and is used regularly by hundreds of thousands of people.

Two Israeli Arabs develop app to treat ADHD. Aziz Kaddan and Anas Abu Mukh began at Haifa University when they were 16 years old. They were 19 when they thought up Myndlift, an app that teaches children and adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder to concentrate by using brain waves to display a bright image.

Female cancer survivor becomes IDF officer. Rotem Chiprut made aliyah and joined the Israel Defense Forces as a lone soldier, only to discover she had cancerous cells in her thyroid gland.

After surgery and treatment, she completed her officer’s training and has become a second lieutenant.

Haiti five years on. Five years after the devastating earthquake, Israel has not abandoned its work in Haiti. Humanitarian organization IsraAID is running a medical facility, an agriculture program, a youth empowerment center and a gender violence prevention program for Haitian women.

Solar energy to Rwanda. Israelis have helped install the largest solar field in East Africa. Gigawatt Global, with its Israeli research-and-development center Energiya Global, has built an 8.5-megawatt facility in Kigali, Rwanda, at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village, a kibbutz-style orphanage for victims of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Detecting cancer with the SniffPhone. The NaNose cancer breath detection technology, developed by Hossam Haick of the Technion, will soon be installed in a mobile phone — to be called, appropriately, the SniffPhone.

Using a tiny, smell-sensitive sensor, the phone will be able to detect cancer on a user’s breath.

Music Messenger an instant hit. Israelis invented the first instant messaging system, ICQ. Now the Israeli startup

Music Messenger, based at Kibbutz Glil Yam, allows friends to send music to each other. Recent investors at a company valuation of $100 million include such music celebrities as David Guetta, Nicki Minaj and will.i.am.

Connecting Israel to Asia. Startup East is the first Israeli-Asian accelerator aiming to connect startups in Israel and East Asia. In addition, it is launching a startup adventure boot camp program in Israel for Asian entrepreneurs, students and graduates.

Don’t leave this site. Jerusalem-based startup Curiyo subtly persuades users to stay on a particular website. It places links to text on a site that tempt the user to click to discover useful information. But those links don’t take the user to an external site. Curiyo has just raised $1 million in new funding.

Find out whether your website clicks.

Ramat Gan-based ClickTale analyzes the success of companies’ websites. It shows how users behave when they use the site and whether it generates enough business. ClickTale has just raised $35 million in new funding.

Samsung invested in eight Israeli startups in 2014. Korean giant Samsung’s revenue from TVs last year was little changed from 2013. That’s why it is seeking Israeli startups — to explore new business areas.

Two fruitful acquisitions. Appropriately on the Jewish new year for trees, Haifa-based Fruitarom announced it was buying two foreign companies.

Spain’s Ingrenat produces natural plant extracts. Britain’s FoodBlenders manufactures savory solutions for the food industry.

rabbi of Aspen, Colo., has set up Golshim L’Chaim-Ski to Live. The program brings wounded Israeli veterans and victims of terrorism to Aspen to learn how to ski and boost their spirits.

are 2 nanometers in size, the StoreDot technology can charge cellphone batteries in seconds and electric-car batteries in minutes, Good News From Israel reports.

1,000 Israeli kids pick excess fruit for Tu B’Shevat. On Feb. 4, in honor of Tu B’Shevat, the Jewish holiday that marks the new year for trees, thousands of Israeli youths volunteered with Leket Israel’s Project Citrus Rescue by picking excess fruit on trees in private gardens to donate it to the poor.

Record year for startups. A total of 688 Israeli high-tech and life-science startup companies raised a combined $3.4 billion in 2014, an increase of 46 percent from the $2.3 billion 659 companies raised in 2013, the Israeli business newspaper Globes reports.

Chinese-Israeli cooperation soars.

Beijing hosted the first meeting of the Chinese-Israeli government innovative cooperation joint committee. Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both sent their congratulations. Meanwhile, China’s largest private airline, Hainan, is starting three flights round trips a week between Tel Aviv and Beijing to service a 76 percent increase in Chinese tourists visiting Israel since 2012. And Chinese investors have created a $102 million fund to invest in Israeli startup companies.

High-tech room for all. The Israeli Economy Ministry has granted 10 million shekels ($2.5 million) to two groups, Tsofen and ITworks, to help train and integrate Arab, Druze and Circassian academics into the nation’s booming high-tech sector.

You’ll get a charge out of this. Ramat Gan-based StoreDot has received a Geek Award for best Israeli hardware startup for its nanodot battery-charging technology. Using extremely selfassembling, biological nanodots that

Raise your glasses at kosher wine festival. The fourth annual Jerusalem Kosher Wine Festival was due to take place Feb. 11 and 12. More than 40 wineries were scheduled to exhibit their products, and some of Israel’s top chefs were running sessions on cooking with kosher wine.

Not slowing down in 2015. Israeli startups raised $910 million in seven days in January — $140 million in funding and $770 million in acquisitions — Israel21c reports. The deals ranged from Amazon’s purchase of Yokneam-based Annapurna Labs for $370 million to $5 million in seed money raised by Tel Aviv-based Insert, which provides a software platform for mobile apps.

House always wins. The United Kingdom’s biggest bookmaker, William Hill, is in advanced talks to buy Israeli online gaming company 888 for $1.14 billion, The Times of London and Israel’s Globes newspaper report. Two families, the Shakeds and the Ben-Yizhaks, control 60 percent of 888’s shares.

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

By the rivers of Babylon. Jerusalem’s Bible Lands Museum is exhibiting a never-before-showcased collection of 100 2,500-year-old clay tablets detailing the lives of Jews exiled from Judaea by the Babylonians under King Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C.E. The Al-Yahudu tablets even contain the family name Natanyahu.

We’ll drink to that. Israeli wines are winning worldwide competitions and are worth almost $40 million a year in exports, Agence France-Presse reports.

Out of 350 wineries in Israel, more than 320 are classified as boutiques, and they are driving the popularity of Israeli wines in France, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Wounded Israelis learn to ski. The initiative of Mendel Mintz, the Chabad

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Building muscle after hip replacement. Haifa-based Pluristem Therapeutics has announced that the improvement in muscle force of hipreplacement patients treated with its PLX-PAD cells was 40 times better than in those who received a placebo.

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

Our View

Winning JF&CS

W

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

e hope you read Feb. 6 about the transition at Jewish Family & Career Services.

Gary Miller, after 24 years atop the most important Jewish social service agency in Atlanta, is handing control to Rick Aranson on July 1.

What Miller has accomplished at JF&CS is astounding. He took an agency, Jewish Family Services, operating out of the basement of a shelter in Atlanta with 27 employees, $1 million in revenue and $8,000 in annual fundraising, merged it with Jewish Vocational Services, moved it to Dunwoody, and expanded it to 269 employees, $14 million in revenue and $3.2 million in fundraising while serving more than 30,000 clients in 2014.

But as JF&CS President Lynn Redd said in announcing the transition, those numbers tell only part of the story.

Under Miller, JF&CS has opened a new Ben Massell Dental Clinic, which provides nearly $3 million a year in free services to patients, most of them not Jewish. JF&CS has been at the forefront of the effort to develop and sustain naturally occurring retirement communities (NORCs). JF&CS has become a trusted brand in Atlanta, earning a management award from the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta and bringing reality to its slogan, “your tools for living.”

The biggest accomplishment, the one for which we all owe Miller a major debt of gratitude, is that JF&CS has survived and thrived, through booms and busts, through times when donors were flush and when more people than ever needed help.

Recent news out of New York shows just how impressive that accomplishment is.

FEGS, an 80-year-old, 2,000-employee agency that, like the Jewish Vocational Services from which JF&CS grew, was founded to help Jews prepare for and find good jobs and expanded over the decades to provide health and disability services to Jews and non-Jews, has shut down.

FEGS dwarfs JF&CS, with 135,000 clients and an annual budget of $250 million, making it one of the nation’s largest social service agencies. It should have been too big to fail, but after losing $19.4 million in its last fiscal year, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, it wasn’t.

Now tens of thousands of New York Jews have lost their support system, and another Jewish agency they could turn to, the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, is in danger of going under after its CEO was arrested in 2013 on embezzlement charges.

We’ve avoided that kind of drama because of the steady, fiscally responsible leadership of Miller. The work hasn’t been easy, and many of the decisions have been difficult and even unpopular, particularly regarding staffing.

But JF&CS is still going strong.

We don’t expect Aranson to remain CEO through 2039, but we trust that whenever his tenure comes to an end, he will live up to Miller’s example and hand over a stable agency we all can 12 count on to be there when we need it. ■

AJT

Applause for All of You

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police have — the crowd broke out in applause. ’ve had a lot of personal highlights in a

Applause for me, for my being back. journalism career that, to my amazement,

I was surprised, and I was touched. It meant is approaching a quarter-century, but few topped what happened at the Atlanta Jewish Film a lot to know that so many people, including rabbis, other community leaders, and others who are Festival on Feb. 2. involved and committed to the community, have

The festival’s Dina Fuchs-Beresin was kind noticed and support the new direction for the or desperate enough to invite me to introduce a AJT. screening of “24 Days” on Smart people don’t get my East Cobb home turf into the newspaper busiat Merchants Walk. I ness to become famous or was honored and pleased EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK important or to get attento accept, although if I’d

By Michael Jacobs tion. We’re most comfortknown the quality of the mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com able on the sidelines and presenters at the other behind the scenes, reportthree screenings of the ing on other people doing film — Georgia State and saying important things. professor and security expert Robbie Friedmann,

Because my phone calls and email messages Anti-Defamation League Southeast Director come from the Atlanta Jewish Times, people will Mark Moskowitz and American Jewish Commitrespond; I like that. I like that within 48 hours tee Atlanta Director Dov Wilker — I might have I can talk to AJC anti-Semitism expert Rabbi declined, to be fair to the sold-out audience at my Andrew Baker, NCSY President Rabbi Micah screening.

Freedland and French Consul General Denis

I also had second thoughts about agreeing to Barbet, not because those meetings make me feel the introduction on a Monday night, typically an important, but because I learn from them. intense period to meet the Jewish Times’ Tues I’ve worked at bigger newspapers, all the way day deadline. (Note for anyone who wants to chat up to USA Today, but I doubt the editor of USA about the newspaper: Mondays and Tuesdays are Today would have received the response I got Feb. not ideal.)

2 because, while people might like USA Today,

But none of that mattered when I introduced myself to the crowd and said, “I’m back as the edi- they don’t care about it.

The applause in that movie theater reflected tor of the Atlanta Jewish Times.” how much those people care about the AJT. They

Before I could continue with a discussion want and need this newspaper to thrive because of “24 Days” — how director Alexandre Arcady it is their newspaper covering their community. suggests more than shows the violence against

I thank them all for cheering me on, but I Jewish kidnapping victim Ilan Halimi; how thank them even more for caring so much. That Arcady barely introduces us to Halimi before his concern, more than anything Publisher Michael abduction, leaving us no time to build up an affinA. Morris and I do, will keep the AJT going for ity for the victim and instead giving us the same the next 90 years. ■ knowledge of Halimi as his kidnappers and the

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

A double blow to our family

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ave you ever seen glacier calving? Glacier calving occurs when a massive glacier breaks apart, and the piece that breaks off disappears from the world, quickly.

Recently, a glacier the size of Manhattan calved, and it was captured on video. It is an astounding, memorable and impactful sight (you can view it on YouTube).

My family has just experienced a calving.

My aunt and uncle Beatrice and Martin Smith were married for over 70 years, a noteworthy accomplishment. Their crowning achievement is surely the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and extended family they raised and nurtured through the decades of their lives. Notwithstanding the love and care that emanated from them, a love that was felt the moment you were within their presence; one defining characteristic of their marriage is that they did not argue.

Not one family member can remember a single argument, with each other or with a family member.

Not one, ever. A marriage like this comes few and far between. It is something to be cherished.

On Sunday, Dec. 28, Beatrice Smith did not wake up. The matriarch of the Smith and Marcus family passed quietly in her sleep. Our family calved.

Forty days later, from a chapter reminiscent of “The Notebook,” Martin took his leave. There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that my uncle was merely following my aunt as soon as possible. After 70 years, not only did he miss her, but he knew he needed to be by her side, whatever her task might be.

They both passed as they had lived, peacefully, with no regrets and with family by their side. Again, the family calved. An enormous piece of the bedrock of our family quickly and quietly slid from our everyday lives.

To their children, Larry Smith and his wife, Linda; Debbie Smith and her husband, Joel Lobel; and Mindy Landau and her husband,

David, I am honored to reflect upon your parents. As role models to our entire family, your parents will live with us for many more decades.

PUBLISHER’S LETTER

By Michael A. Morris michael@atljewishtimes.com

To the grandchildren, Jason (and Allison) Smith, Sara (and Evan) Loft, Brian Smith, Marisa Landau and Alex Landau, you are entrusted with their legacy. You are in the unique position to ensure that the values you learned from Poppy and Nanny will continue in the family from generation to generation.

To the great-grandchildren, Abigail and Jordan Smith and Dylan and Emerson Loft, it is your job to think of your great-grandparents often, and every time with a big smile, as you did when you were with them, because they will be with you always.

To the extended family — that would be the cousins, the surviving brothers on both the Smith and Marcus sides, nieces and nephews, and, yes, more cousins — let us look forward to keeping the family together through frequent gatherings at weddings, births, b’nai mitzvah and cousin reunions — as we have in the past — knowing that we will be celebrating, in spirit, with our beloved Bea and Marty.

As emotional as the past week has been, a glimmer of an idea has emerged (no doubt, a seed planted by my aunt and uncle as we sat shiva).

Our paper is a community resource for news, information and simchas. I invite any family who is celebrating an anniversary of 50 years or more to share with us. We would be proud to herald an announcement to the community.

Not only does such an anniversary merit recognition, but such declarations send positive ruach rippling through the community.

It is both sad and uplifting when l’dor v’dor physically enters our daily life. Shalom. ■

The Jewish Approach To the College Search

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xploring colleges, you can easily check off the items that are important to you on a college campus: close to a major city, check; affordable tuition, check; liberal arts, check; large athletic department, check; Hillel, check.

Let’s take a closer look at that last one. As a Jewish student, ready to embark upon your first major journey of independence, self-growth, and academic and social pressure, you probably want to make sure you’re not the only Jew on campus.

With over 2,800 four-year colleges and universities in the United States, Hillel (the largest Jewish student organization in the world) is servicing 550 campuses. Annually, over 200,000 Jewish college students have some level of involvement with Hillel. That’s a pretty impressive reach, considering there are approximately 400,000 self-identifying Jewish students attending four-year traditional colleges across the country. It appears as though the Jewish population is pretty wellrepresented.

Every campus is unique, and Jewish student organizations offer different activities to meet the needs of their constituencies. A cluster of nearby campuses may be serviced once a week or once a month by a single Jewish engagement professional, or you might by overwhelmed with the amount of programming on any given night.

Jewish life on campus can include free Shabbat dinners, Thursday night pizza-and-a-movie socials, a myriad of social justice activities, Israel programs, Jewish education and holiday services.

Is there a diverse enough pool of Jewish students to date? Do various of programs and events attract enough students? Is there a campus Chabad or a Jewish Student Union?

If so, what kinds of programs do they offer students? How do you feel about the Jewish fraternities and sororities on campus tailgating to the homecoming game on Yom Kippur?

What about the Jewish groups that support Palestinians? What about those that don’t? Do you want to try yoga and mediation services, or do you prefer peer-led traditional ones?

Are you looking for kosher food, students who know about the holidays and value their Jewish identity, or a particular way in which students support the state of Israel?

It is not enough simply to look on a website and check “Jewish life” on

GUEST COLUMN

By Noa Bejar noabejar@bellsouth.net

your list of college criteria. Students need to understand that they are inherently and inevitably evolving, growing and maturing socially and intellectually. They need to position themselves on a campus that will give them the best tools to embark upon their journey.

Here are the top 10 questions to ask when choosing a college from the Jewish perspective: 1. What kind of relationship do the Jewish campus organizations have with other cultural and religious campus organizations?

2. How do your campus and the Jewish student body deal with religious tensions?

3. Hillel — is there professional staff on campus?

4. How many Jewish students are on your campus? Is it enough?

5. Is kosher food available — daily, weekly, fresh, packaged, vegetarian only?

6. Are there Shabbat services?

What kind and how often? Followed by free dinner?

7. Do students value their Jewish identity or tend to disregard it?

8. Are the Jewish student organizations strictly social, or do they offer a variety of events?

9. Do the faculty and administration work with students who miss class for religious holidays?

10. Can you truly see yourself, as a maturing and spiritually evolving Jew, on a particular campus? ■ Noa Bejar is a college guidance counselor helping Jewish students in South Florida and Atlanta navigate the college search and application process for over seven years.

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

70 Years Together, Then 40 Days Apart

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

OPINION

Charity Begins at Home In Kitchen and Bedroom

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rom the Jewish Daily Forward comes the story about recent scientific studies that determined donating to charity made people feel good by activating the area of the brain known as the mesolimbic network, which also is stimulated by food — and sex.

There must be some tasteful ways for Jewish organizations to raise money by exploiting this revelation.

I couldn’t think of any. But I came up with frivolous, impractical ideas.

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

1. Most married couples occasionally disagree. That’s when romance sometimes is scratched from the refrigerator list of activities for the day. To the rescue arrives Jewish Family & Career Services, the fount of all wisdom regarding human relationships. JF&CS could conduct conflict resolution seminars at a Motel 6, the atmosphere there being more conducive to a romantic reconciliation than, say, a Marriott. The next step is to tell the rejuvenated couple of the new scientific evidence that their joy could be enhanced through the therapeutic check writing of a donation — the larger the check, the greater the relief and happiness.

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2. Dear Mortimer:

We understand there is a certain week of the month when your loving wife is indisposed to participate in the physical pleasures of your marriage. In the event you’re feeling a little grumpy at such times, we recommend a temporary remedy.

Studies indicates that an area of the brain stimulated pleasurably by food and sex is likewise stimulated by donations to charity. Realizing it is not quite a comparable substitute, nonetheless we respectfully request a donation, scientifically confident it will ease your discomfort. The level of satisfaction is not bad for a week, and the benefit to the institute lasts a lot longer.

Respectfully,

Your friends at the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science 3. Israel is winning the race for military superiority in the Middle East, but it’s losing the one for offspring.

According to the CIA, the estimate for 2014 was that the Gazans would birth 32.2 babies per 1,000 people, and the Palestinians in the West

GUEST COLUMN

By Philip A. Kaplan

Bank would produce 23.41. Israelis?

A paltry 18.41. No charitable Jewish-American organization is more involved in the daily lives of Israelis than the Jewish National Fund. To close the gap, JNF could sponsor romantic fertility clinics appealing to prospective parents. The atmosphere so created would motivate the patriotic duty to up the reproduction rate.

Financial donors would likewise be inspired to multiply their donations.

4. The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta could launch a fundraising dinner honoring Dr. Ruth with a lifetime achievement award for encouraging pleasurable brain stimulation.

The special dinner would feature foods advertised as enhancing libido.

All are purported to flood the body with endorphins and serotonin, increase testosterone and body energy, increase dopamine levels, absorb environmental contaminants, strengthen the heart, and increase blood flow to the right areas.

Here’s the menu: • Salad of spinach, lettuce and arugula, topped with oil and vinegar and sprinkled with flax, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

• Beef or salmon seasoned with ginseng, saffron, ginger and garlic, with avocados, asparagus, broccoli, kale and more spinach as side vegetables.

• For dessert, a fruit salad of bananas, black raspberries, figs, watermelon, apples and strawberries garnished with cloves, conceived to send participants home in the mood.

At evening’s end, Federation is hopeful donors’ joy will prove fruitful in multiplying donations, and the old adage “give till it hurts” will be turned on its head and become “give till it feels better.” ■

Letters to the Editor Unite vs. Radical Islam Now is the time for Klal Yisrael to unite, mobilize and be strong in confronting an existential threat to our existence — militant, radical Islam, be it Sunni or Shia. They must not be allowed to be on the verge of nuclear weapons, or soon Armageddon will be upon us.

It was a monumental error for the majority of the Jewish community to help re-elect Barack Obama, who is unwilling and incapable of recognizing and confronting the threat. Our adversaries know this and are emboldened.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is coming to alert the American people before it is too late. We must stand with him regardless of political affiliation. He must succeed in making the case for doing whatever is necessary to eliminate the possibility of these evil forces obtaining nuclear weapons.

Even Russia must be persuaded to confront the danger before it cannot be reversed. They are at risk from Muslim extremists.

Now is the time to stand up or suffer the dire consequences that endanger our survival. It is the year 5775. We have come too far to turn back. This is our moment of truth.

Gail K. Ripans, Sandy Springs

Both Sides Aren’t Equally to Blame Dave Schechter (“Not in My Lifetime,” Feb. 6) stressed that there is little likelihood of peace between Israelis and Palestinians in his lifetime. Unfortunately, he seemed to suggest that both sides are equally responsible for the failure to reach an accord.

Are they? There could have been a Palestinian state alongside Israel in 1948, and many times since. At every stage, Palestinian and other Arab leaders have rejected any resolution that allows a permanent Israel behind any boundaries.

Much is made of the “moderation” of Mahmoud Abbas, in contrast to his predecessor, Yasser Arafat.

Yet it is Abbas who walked away from workable peace plans offered in 2010 and more recently and is seeking unilateral statehood without peace. He may feign acceptance of Israel to Western politicians, but his rejection of Israel as a Jewish homeland and his demand that Arab

refugees and all their descendants be resettled in pre-1967 Israel (and not the West Bank) make a mockery of a two-state solution. His recent public statements that Jews “contaminate” the Temple Mount by visiting and his calls for days of rage belie his supposed moderation.

Unfortunately, Palestinian belligerence has been encouraged by the hostility of the current administration not only to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but also to Israel’s vital interests. Contrary to what Shai Robkin writes (“Netanyahu, GOP Endanger U.S. Ties,” Feb. 6), it is President Obama who early on told Jewish leaders that he sought to distance the United States from Israel and who began the public spat with Netanyahu. Moreover, it has been counterproductive to condemn “settlements” while largely ignoring the Palestinian refusal to compromise and to end incitement and violence, let alone to educate for coexistence. It would be so refreshing to have a return to a less hostile policy.

Doron Lubinsky, Atlanta

A Presidential Disaster Barack Obama is an unmitigated disaster not only for our nation, but for Israel.

He has proved the Peter Principle is lamentably alive and well.

His “lead from behind” approach to foreign policy has proved disastrous and has created a vacuum that has been filled by Islamist terrorists.

The fact that he cannot identify and define the enemy of world peace remains incomprehensible, frightening and dangerous.

As a proud Jew and an active supporter of Israel, I find Obama’s attitude toward this besieged nation not only wrongheaded, but woefully naive and arrogant.

It is the right of every citizen to dissent, and though I have respect for the office this incompetent leader of the free world occupies, my respect ends at the desk.

Dick Berkowitz, Savannah

Write to Us

We want to hear what you have to say. Send letters to the editor and possible guest columns to Editor Michael Jacobs at mjacobs@ atljewishtimes.com. Please include a phone number, email address and city of residence for confirmation.

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

ARTS

Gallery of Comedy and Movie Arts

Film festival’s Art Party zooms in on Jewish comedians

A

tlanta artists played their work for laughs in tribute to Jewish comedians at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival’s second annual Art Party.

It’s the one event of the 23-day festival that doesn’t feature a film screening, but the movies had a presence in the art pieces on display at the Mammal Gallery during the party Feb. 7. The Jewish comedy allstars who were honored included film veterans Ben Stiller, Jerry Seinfeld, Adam Sandler and Sarah Silverman, and one of two large, interactive displays paid tribute to the Mel Brooks movie “Spaceballs.”

The other large display was devoted to Johnny Carson’s “The Tonight Show,” which was a frequent showcase for Jewish comedians.

Faith Powell helped design the Carson set by creating a red turban.

Powell was enthusiastic about her contribution to the display. “When I was asked to help, I said, ‘Outstanding!’ ” she said.

She also recruited a friend to help.

Artists Catlanta, Blockhead ATL, Clunky Robot and Crazy Monkey Trucker had their work on display at the party, co-sponsored by Creative Loafing and aimed at a Gen-Y audience.

A raffle for prizes such as tickets to the Fernbank Museum of Natural History benefited the film festival.

The Art Party provided some supplies for making art on site and some promotion for a new service for making connections throughout Jewish Atlanta, GrapeVine.

GrapeVine is a mobile app that was launched in Washington, D.C., in 2011 and was made available for Atlanta in September 2014. The app provides events and other community opportunities that fit users’ preferences. Besides Atlanta, GrapeVine is active in New York City, Los Angeles, Portland, Ore., and Rhode Island.

Food at the event included Cotton Cravings’ kosher cotton candy, provided by retailer Modern Tribe.

The Alfred & Adele

Davis Academy

“This Art Party is a great way to stay connected in the Jewish community,” said Shellie Schmals, program coordinator for the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. “You get to meet people from all walks of life and be involved with so many talented artists.

It’s a rewarding experience.” ■ Photos by Anna Streetman

Two great community events to support one great school!

2015 Community Celebration Honoring Barbara and Marty Pollock March 28, 2015

17th Annual Golf Tournament New Location: Atlanta Athletic Club April 20, 2015

For more information, contact Lori Zelony 678-527-3293 or lzelony@davisacademy.org www.davisacademy.org

Proud Affiliate of:

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

By Anna Streetman

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ARTS

Lights, Camera, Pastrami?

‘Deli Man’ and General Muir make mouths water at film festival

By David Cohen david@atljewishtimes.com

T

he Atlanta Jewish Film Fest i v a l brought in a pre-movie snack a bit more filling than popcorn Feb. 8 at Lefont Sandy Springs.

Deli meat.

The two screenings that night of “Deli Man” were preceded by a tasting sponsored

by Emory Point deli The General Muir. The contemporary deli brought new tastes and smells to the theater, including pastrami, chopped liver and black-and-white cookies.

“Deli Man” is a journey across

the United States, saluting 160 years of the Jewish deli experience. The film explores the roots of the American Jewish deli from Eastern Europe to the Lower East Side of Manhattan and beyond.

“We just felt really connected to this event,” General Muir partner Shelly Sweet said. “When we had the opportunity to come and be a part of this, it was a perfect fit. We are all about the deli.”

Along with traditional deli fare, General Muir executive chef Todd Ginsburg served a contemporary twist on a deli staple to the capacity crowd: house-made pum-

pernickel bread topped with Nova lox, horseradish crème fraiche and a salmon roast salad.

Hungry? “Deli Man” has two more showings, Feb. 16 and 17 at

Tara Cinemas, although those in attendance will have to bring their own pastrami and corned beef. General Muir won’t be providing more samples. ■

Left: The General Muir puts a contemporary twist on traditional deli fare.

Above: General Muir executive chef Todd Ginsburg serves pastrami to moviegoers Feb. 8.

Photos by Duane Stork

CALENDAR ONGOING

Critical Minds • Compassionate Hearts • Committed Leaders

Through Feb. 22. The comedy play “Bad Jews” runs Wednesdays through Sundays at Actor’s Express, 887 W. Marietta St., Suite J-107, Atlanta. Tickets are $26 to $46; actors-express.com or 404-607-7469.

Through Feb. 23. The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival offers 65 films at half a dozen locations. Most tickets are $13 for shows after 4 p.m. and $9 for earlier shows; ajff.org or 866-214-2072.

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Featuring Students in Grades 1-8

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Sunday, February 22 @ 2:00 pm Wednesday, February 25 @ 4:00 pm Thursday, February 26 @ 7:00 pm 5200 Northland Drive, Atlanta GA 30342 For tickets, please visit www.showtix4u.com www.atljewishacademy.org

Through March 31. EthiopianIsraeli artist Hirut Yosef presents “Chalom Yashan — A Journey Back Home” at the Marcus JCC’s Katz Family Mainstreet Gallery, 5324 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. Admission is free; www.atlantajcc.org or 678-812-4071.

THURSDAY, FEB. 12 SOJOURN discussion. Parents and other family members of LGBTQ-identified children of any age are invited to join the Southern Jewish Resource Network for Gender and Sexual Diversity at 7 p.m. in Dunwoody for the regular meeting of the parent discussion group, which is not a support group but a

chance to create meaningful relationships; sojourngsd.org/calendar.

FRIDAY, FEB. 13 Family Shabbat at JCC. Rabbi Brian Glusman and the Weinstein School Shabbat Dinosaur help families with young children enjoy a Shabbat-related activity and story at 5 p.m. at the Marcus JCC’s Srochi Discovery Center at Zaban Park, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody.

The event is free and open to the community; www.atlantajcc.org/ pldb-live/23240, 678-812-4161 or Brian.Glusman@atlantajcc.org.

Scout Shabbat at Ner Tamid.

Services at 7 p.m. celebrate Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts from Congregation Ner Tamid in West Cobb and surrounding areas. Scouts and Scouters (adult volunteers) attending this service in uniform receive a special patch; ritual@mynertamid. org or 678-264-8575.

SUNDAY, FEB. 15 Carter protest. Shalom International holds a rally for Israel and a protest of former President Jimmy Carter’s statements about Israel at 2 p.m. outside the Carter Center on Freedom Parkway in Atlanta; www.

CALENDAR

MONDAY, FEB. 16 Basketball clinic. The Marcus JCC and the Atlanta Hawks coaching staff present a clinic in the style of the NBA Draft combine for boys and girls in first through eighth grades from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Zaban Park, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody. The fee is $65 for members, $80 for nonmembers; www.atlantajcc.org.

TUESDAY, FEB. 17 Budget basics. Jewish Interest Free Loan of Atlanta and Private Bank of Buckhead holds a free “Budgeting 101” seminar at 6:30 p.m., starting with kosher refreshments, at the bank, 3565 Piedmont Road, Building 3, Suite 210, Buckhead.

RSVP to Edie Barr at embarr1@ bellsouth.net or 404-325-0340.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 18 Italian cooking. Women can taste and learn to make Italian kosher cuisine from Tal Baum at 7:30 p.m.

Chabad of Cobb, 4450 Lower Roswell Road, East Cobb. Cost is $15; www. chabadofcobb.com or 770-565-4412, ext. 300.

THURSDAY, FEB. 19 Young-adult happy hour. The free monthly third-Thursday happy hour at Smash Kitchen & Bar, 804 Town Blvd., Brookhaven, starts at 6:30 p.m.; 678-812-4055 or roey.shoshan@ atlantajcc.org.

FRIDAY, FEB. 20 Disability awareness Shabbat.

Eric Jacobson, the executive director of the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities, discusses “Creating a Welcoming Community for All” during Jewish Disability Awareness Shabbat at Temple Kehillat Chaim, 1145 Green St., Roswell, at 7:30 p.m.; tkcrabbi@gmail.com, 770641-8630 or www.kehillatchaim.org.

SATURDAY, FEB. 21 Bet on the IDF. Friends of the Israel Defense Forces holds its youngleadership casino night at 8:30 at

the Westside Cultural Arts Center, 760 10th St., Midtown Atlanta. Tickets are $50 in advance, $70 at the door; 678-250-9027, Jamie.perry@ fidf.org or www.fidf.org/Southeast.

SUNDAY, FEB. 22 Virtual dementia tour. Stop by the Cohen Home, 10485 Jones Bridge Road, Johns Creek, between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. to experience what having dementia feels and sounds like. This interactive experience helps improve care and communication with those who have dementia; 770-475-8787 or info@ cohenhome.org.

Kicking for Autism. The teen-run nonprofit group offers free soccer clinics from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. for children ages 7 to 14 who have highfunctioning autism or Asperger’s at the Norcross Soccer Academy, 4541 S. Berkeley Lake Road. Pizza, water, snacks and other supplies are provided; kickingforautism@gmail.com.

AJA grad brings “Son” home.

Atlanta Jewish Academy graduate David I. Stern attends the 2 p.m. opening performance of AJA’s winter musical, “Disney’s My Son Pinocchio Jr.,” which he wrote, for a post-show discussion. Additional performances will be Wednesday, Feb. 25, at 4 p.m. and Thursday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m., all at the AJA auditorium, 5200 Northland Drive, Sandy Springs; www.showtix4u.com for tickets and tcarmona@atljewishacademy.org or 404-843-9900 for information.

Mikvah kickoff with Anita Diamant. The “Red Tent” author speaks at 7 p.m. about reimagining ritual in the modern age at the inaugural event for the Metro Atlanta Community Mikvah (MACoM). The free event is at The Temple, 1589 Peachtree St., Midtown; info@atlantamikvah.org or www.atlantamikvah.org.

Send all your items for the What’s Happening calendar to submissions@atljewishtimes.com. Good photos will increase the chance for your item to be highlighted.

CANDLE-LIGHTING TIMES

Parsha Mishpatim Friday, Feb. 13, light candles at 6:02 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 14, Shabbat ends at 6:58 p.m.

Parsha Terumah Friday, Feb. 20, light candles at 6:08 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 21, Shabbat ends at 7:04 p.m.

RASHI’S LEGACY, PLEASE JOIN US IN HONORING

SALUTING HER INSPIRATION AND CELEBRATING THE GROWTH AND ACHIEVEMENT OF OUR COMMUNITY DURING THE YEAR SINCE HER PASSING.

SUNDAY, MARCH 8TH, 2015 • 1:00PM 17 ADAR , 5775 10180 JONES BRIDGE ROAD JOHNS CREEK, GEORGIA

YAHRTZEIT

GROUNDBREAKING

Join us in observing Rashi’s first Yahrtzeit (anniversary of passing) with reflections by her family and friends.

Laying of the cornerstone for the new ‘Rashi’s Campus’ which will be on the site of the Chabad center she co-founded.

OBSERVANCE

CEREMONY

TORAH

COMPLETION

Completion and dedication of a newly written Torah scroll in memory of Rashi which will be housed at the new center.

office@chabadnf.org | 770.410.9000 | www.chabadnf.org

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FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

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COVER STORY

Future Jewish World Leaders Congregate in Atlanta

M

ore than 3,000 Jewish teen leaders from

around the world will spend Presidents’ Day weekend in Atlanta for Jewish learning and fellowship at the NFTY and BBYO conventions. The two youth movements planned to be here at the same time to learn from each other and collaborate on the future of Jewish youth.

The conventions, while separate,

will have some shared programming at the neighboring Hyatt Regency and Marriott Marquis hotels downtown, and when the teens are all together, it will be the largest gathering of Jewish youths in North American history.

More than 50 additional Jewish

teens will gather for Young Judaea’s national midwinter convention an hour away from the city at Camp Twin Lakes — Will-A-Way, near Winder.

The nearly 3,500 Jewish teens are

arriving only seven weeks after some 750 teens came to Atlanta for USY’s International Convention. All these gatherings also draw some of the leading Jewish speakers, educators, professionals and philanthropists to the city.

The Atlanta Jewish Times in the

following pages previews the conventions and reviews why they chose FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Atlanta. ■

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COVER STORY

→ BBYO Charges Into 91st Year

By April Basler abasler@atljewishtimes.com

B

David Hoffman the movement, followed by an awards gala. Convention delegates elect the BBYO international board for the 2015-16 programming year. No one from Atlanta Council is running, but Melanie Ourhaan of Savannah is one of four candidates for the No. 2 BBG post, s’ganit.

Teens also sightsee at such attractions as the World of Coca-Cola, Fernbank Museum of Natural History and Georgia Aquarium. The weekend concludes with a concert by multiple guest musical artists.

The planning and execution of the convention involve not only the national office of BBYO, but also the local BBYO team at the Marcus JCC, local teens on the steering committee and a committee of parents of teens active in the movement.

Michael Cohen, 18, is vice president of programming for the Atlanta Council of BBYO and is on the IC steering committee. His assignments include the opening ceremonies, where he will speak to all the participants.

“I’m writing a script about the impact that we’ve had through the community,” Cohen said.

Cohen is a Limmud leader at IC and will assist one of the teachers during the day of learning. He also helped plan one of the discussion programs during the oneg after Friday night services.

“One of the discussion programs I helped plan is on expanding the people you know in the Jewish community. It’s basically like speed dat-

ing, but everyone meets everyone,” Cohen said.

“The other program is based on Jewish musicians and how they have influenced pop culture.”

Emma Peters, 17, is vice president of her BBYO chapter in East Cobb and is on the steering committee for IC. Hosting the IC in her hometown means a lot to her.

“To me, it’s really amazing that we get to open our arms to thousands of people from dozens of countries

Enjoy the Show

and show them that the Jewish community in Atlanta is very excited and very focused to celebrate the fact that we’re all young and we’re all Jewish,” Peters said. “We want to show everyone that we’re interested in helping the world and the Jewish people as a whole.” ■

Aside from those who registered for the convention for $895, locals have become involved with IC by volunteering in many ways. Parents have been given guest passes to attend specific programs. If you haven’t registered but want to follow what is going on with guests such as Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, you can watch the live stream (bbyo.org/azabbgic/live).

BBYO and a group of 14 youth correspondents also will producing blog posts, tweets and Facebook updates, all of which can be found at bbyo. org/azabbgic and on social media with the hashtag #AZABBGIC2015.

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

BYO, the leading pluralistic Jewish teen movement, is expecting more than 2,200 teens from Feb. 12 to 16 at its International Convention, a 24 percent increase from last year’s convention.

The teens will come from 500 communities, 40 states and 20 countries to meet at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta downtown on Peachtree Street. In the week leading up to the convention, Atlanta-area families hosted 125 international teens and adult youth leaders from around the world for additional programming.

“Before the convention, the international teens are all being homehoused across the Atlanta community,” said Ian Kandel, the IC director and director of AZA/BBG and the teen movement. “It’s been stellar.”

BBYO, which is celebrating its 90th year, also is hosting numerous pre-IC summits, including a Jewish enrichment institute, a song-leading workshop and a global partner summit at which teens will discuss issues facing the world Jewish community.

BBYO kicks off IC with opening ceremonies the night of Feb. 12.

Teens and adult leaders make remarks, and a live surprise musical performance concludes the evening.

“Opening ceremonies is one of the biggest moments of the whole convention. Every region dresses the same, and there’s a lot of spirit,” said David Hoffman, the BBYO director at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. “There’s a lot of excitement because it’s the first time all 2,200 teens are together.”

Throughout the weekend, a wide variety of programming will center on leadership, service and Jewish learning. One program, BBYO Leadership Labs, lets teens choose among 20 tracks to learn about topics such as globalization, philanthropy and political engagement. BBYO provides 25 pluralistic, teen-led services so teens can celebrate Shabbat as they choose. BBYO Limmud offers nearly 200 sessions led by program educators, guest speakers and leaders in the business world.

IC programming also includes an address from the international presidents of BBYO’s two constituent groups, Aleph Zadik Aleph (AZA) for boys and B’nai B’rith Girls (BBG) for girls, about the state of

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COVER STORY

→ NFTY Convention Marks 75th Anniversary assistant teaching.

The Temple is presenting at several workshops for the NFTY ore than 1,000 teens are ex- and BBYO conventions, including pected to attend the NFTY two workshops on the history of the convention in Atlanta from Midtown synagogue and the Atlanta Feb. 13 to 17. The 75-year-old North Jewish community, with a focus on American Federation of Temple civil rights and the Temple bombing Youth, the Reform youth movement, of 1958. Another workshop will disholds the convention every other cuss The Temple’s work to combat year but has never held it in Atlanta. the human trafficking of minors.

The convention opens with an The Southern Jewish Resource Network for Genintergenerationder and Sexual al Shabbat serDiversity (SOvice composed of JOURN) is inmusic, worship volved in the and dancing.

NFTY and BBYO One of the main conventions and programs at the is a significant convention is partner with about Israel and USY. SOJOURN includes a pleuses education, nary session that advocacy and celebrates the outreach through connection NFTY a Jewish lens members have to promote unwith the progresderstanding and sive community acceptance of in Israel. Teens people across the at NFTY-EIE, a spectrum of genhigh school proder and sexual gram in Israel, SOJOURN’s Robbie Medwed orientation. Roband a perforbie Medwed, the assistant director mance from Israel’s version of “The for SOJOURN, will present workVoice” television show will connect shops at the NFTY convention about with NFTY through a live video feed.

Other highlights include sight- Judaic texts and homosexuality.

“We will look at all of the variseeing in the Atlanta community at ous texts from every angle, including locations such as Emory University, strict biblical plus more modern inthe Georgia Capitol and the Martin terpretations and traditional interLuther King Jr. Center for Nonviopretations,” he said. lent Social Change. NFTY will also hold a general board meeting to elect He will also present a workthe 2015-16 NFTY North American shop on how youths can be allies to LGBT and will lead a session for board.

Other programming includes NFTY staff on how to create a safe training sessions focusing on song space in youth group chapters and

By April Basler abasler@atljewishtimes.com

M

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

leading, social justice advocacy and

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accommodate all people to make everyone feel safe and welcome.

“It’s been fantastic working with all of the youth groups because they really are all committed to becoming open and welcoming places for Jews of all types,” Medwed said. “They really want to learn and do better to improve the world around them to make everyone feel safe and included.”

The weekend ends with the fullday celebration of NFTY’s 75th birthday.

The birthday bash includes recognition of F.L. Stanton Elementary School in Atlanta, whose students attend Camp Jenny, a program that provides inner-city kids with a summer camp experience Memorial Day weekend at Camp Coleman. Camp Jenny is a social action program for NFTY, and the teens serve as the camp counselors.

The convention concludes with a musical celebration with Rabbi Daniel Freelander and Cantor Jeff Klepper performing “Shalom Rav.” Teens aren’t the

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

COVER STORY

only ones who can take advantage of the programming at NFTY’s convention. Under the theme “my self, my community, my world,” a concurrent youth summit will bring together nearly 200 adults — congregational leaders, community leaders and donors — who work with youth. The summit will strengthen the profes-

sionals’ networks, and the programming will explore the most pressing issues in Jewish youth engagement. The summit will include keynote speeches from the head of the Union for Reform Judaism, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, and the president of Hebrew Union CollegeJewish Institute of Religion, Rabbi Aaron Panken; programs where the professionals and teens interact; Shabbat worship by region; and learning sessions.

In addition to NFTY’s interna-

tional office, locals who helped organize the convention including Rabbis Peter Berg of The Temple, Fred Greene of Temple Beth Tikvah and Ron Segal of Temple Sinai, who are all on the rabbinic steering committee. Mark Silberman is the lay chairman of the stakeholders group.

Debbie Rabinovich, 18, of Charlotte is the NFTY North American president and is from Atlanta’s Southern Area Region (NFTY-SAR).

She played a major role in the planning and execution of the NFTY convention since taking office last spring.

“I’ve been involved in a lot of the teen experience aspects of the convention, such as making sure that our programs and speakers and workshops are things that teens appreciate and relate to,” Rabinovich said. “Also, making sure that we have a convention that really fits the needs of teens who function in different ways. We want to make sure that their experience fits people with different learning styles.”

Rabbi Berg said it means a lot to have the convention in Atlanta.

“We are thrilled to have the convention here, and we believe Atlanta lends itself to some tremendous learning opportunities,” he said. “We are an exceptional Jewish community that takes pride in cooperation.” ■

Enjoy the Show

Full registration for the NFTY convention was $985 for teens, including the hotel, and $1,425 for adults at the convention hotel, the Marriott Marquis downtown. NFTY also offered a $725 option for adults without the hotel and a $735 option for local teens who slept at home. Also for Atlantans, the NFTY convention has a one-day registration for $175 for most days, although you can use that option only once; to attend more than one day, you must register for the whole convention. But you can experience much of the convention excitement from home through the live stream at www.nftyconvention.org/live, cable channel JLTV and the JLTV mobile app. The convention website (www.nftyconvention.org) will provide blog posts, photos, videos and social media highlights throughout the weekend. Follow the hashtag #NFTYCONVENTION for the convention and #NFTYYS for the youth summit.

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FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Miss Vice President?

NFTY’s Southern Area Region has the current NFTY North American president, Debbie Rabinovich of Charlotte, and an Atlantan, Hailee Grey of Congregation Etz Chaim in East Cobb, was elected USY’s international president in December.

NFTY won’t repeat the trick of electing a Southern president this weekend, but one local girl could make good.

Jordy Frankel, 18, a senior at Sprayberry High School in East Cobb who is a member of Temple Sinai and tweets @jordofthejungl3, is running for NFTY membership vice president for 2015-16 in a crowded field of seven. Her letter of intent and candidate speech use the poetic metaphor of dandelions blowing in the wind.

You can check out her candidate video at vimeo.com/118190604.

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COVER STORY

→ Teens Work Together → Young Judaea Gets to Promote Jewish Life Away From City

By April Basler abasler@atljewishtimes.com

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

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BYO and NFTY planned their conventions to be in the same city on the same weekend so they could collaborate on programming and create a more meaningful experience for the teens. It was a coincidence that USY chose the same city for its International Convention in late December.

USY did not want its convention to overlap with NFTY’s or BBYO’s, nor does it consider having a separate convention to be a disadvantage.

“The advantage for us is that we can continue to host this convention at the time when the change of our youth leaders occurs in the business aspect of the operation,” said Lisa Alter Krule, USY’s director of regional engagement and director of the International Convention. “We do it at a time in which our students are all off school. There’s no conflict in terms of missing school. The entire country has the opportunity.”

The elections for USY leadership resulted in Hailee Grey from Congregation Etz Chaim in East Cobb becoming the international president.

Coincidentally again, both USY and BBYO will have their next international conventions in Baltimore.

USY members will be in Atlanta this weekend for the Coalition of Jewish Teens, which brings together teens from the five major Jewish youth movements (BBYO, NCSY, NFTY, USY and Young Judaea) for 24 hours to strategize ways Jewish teens across the world can work together to build a stronger, united Jewish community.

BBYO is hosting the summit from noon Feb. 12 to noon Feb. 13.

“We’re really honored to host it, and we hope that this begins a tradition of each of our youth movements having delegations at each other’s annual conferences,” said Ian Kandel, IC director and director of AZA/ BBG and the teen movement. “We’re hoping that when the teens go home, it will allow for their communities and synagogues wherever Jews live to be able to celebrate together, pray together and take action together.”

The youth movements have great expectations for the coalition

summit. Even the professional staffs will meet to collaborate with their colleagues across the movements.

“We will learn about one another with fact and not assumption,” Alter Krule said. “To see what we do and how we can share. To see what those intersections might be and how we can work together. We can create things together and see what the opportunities in front of us are.”

One goal for all the youth movements is to increase the number of teens in youth groups and reach out to those teens who are not engaged.

“I think one of the things that we have seen in the past couple years is the shift from the different youth movements competing for numbers to a realization that as long as Jewish teens are being engaged with other Jewish teens, we are fine with whoever they choose to identify with as long as everybody’s numbers are growing,” said David Hoffman, the BBYO director at the Marcus JCC.

In addition to the CJT summit, NFTY and BBYO will share a large amount of programming. Every day of the conventions, at least some teens will have the opportunity to attend joint programming, such as BBYO Limmud and sightseeing.

At BBYO Tech Talk, select teens from BBYO and NFTY will be joined

by Google, Code for America and others for a technology boot camp at the Center for Civic Innovation.

Rabbi Peter Berg of The Temple is preaching Sunday morning for an interfaith service at Ebenezer Baptist Church that 200 teens from both youth movements will attend.

Even though Atlanta isn’t New York, and even with Young Judaea gathering at nearby Camp Twin Lakes — Will-A-Way, the influx of more than 3,000 teens and thousands of adult convention staffers and participants isn’t straining Atlanta’s Jewish resources. The youth movements had no trouble finding the food, facilities, tourist venues and, most important, people. These conventions could not happen without the participation of countless volunteers and business leaders to help the teens planning the conventions, the teens’ parents, the youth directors in Atlanta and the directors of the movements’ national offices. ■

from Young Judaea will join young people from the North American Fedoung Judaea’s board of direc- eration of Temple Youth, BBYO and tors and advisers were trying other youth organizations Feb. 12 in to pick a place for the organi- downtown Atlanta for the 24-hour zation’s midwinter convention. The Coalition of Jewish Teens.

The next day, the Young Judaea event moves to different parts of the country every year “to celebrate dif- members will go to Winder with 50 ferent areas,” said Sharon Schoen- or so other teenagers. All are memfeld, the director of year-round pro- bers of Young Judaea’s leadership grams for Young Judaea, “and to community, taking part in projects around the county. This weekend, spread around the cost of airfare.”

They wanted to hold the conven- they will elect new members to the tion in the Southeast, where Young national board.

Rather Judaea memthan meet in Atbership has lanta with the risen, so they other groups, focused on the Young Judaea area between prefers to be Atlanta and separate for Hendersonville, one main reaN.C. Young son: With the Judaea has a help of advisers, camp office in Young Judaea’s Atlanta and a national board summer camp builds the profacility in the gram for the North Carolina midwinter gathmountains. ering, Schoen W h e n feld said. “The group leaders teenagers focus learned about on what’s going the availability of Camp Twin Current Young Judaea member Matan Berman, on with them in Lakes — Will- who is attending the midwinter convention in their world.”

Winder, hangs out with David Medoff during a After the A-Way in WindYoung Judaea sukkah building in the fall. demonstraer, they decided tions against police erupted in recent it would be the perfect location.

The camp serves children with months in Ferguson and New York, disabilities, serious illnesses and the board wanted to explore the other challenges. It offers weeklong role of Jewish teenagers in fighting summer camps as well as year-round racism and to discuss what’s going weekend retreats at three campsites, on with civil rights in America and each fully accessible and medically the world. The teenagers “want to supportive. It also hosts day camps have tools for dealing with racism,” and hospital-based Camp-To-Go pro- Schoenfeld said.

Dov Wilker, the head of the Atgrams.

“We loved the idea of giving lanta office of the American Jewish money to a camp like that,” Schoen- Committee, is the featured speaker. feld said. “While we’re meeting, we’re A former member of Young Judaea, also helping sick and disabled chil- he will talk about current events and anti-Semitism. dren.”

Schoenfeld contacted people in Young Judaea alumni are inAtlanta to find someone to help with vited to attend a concert Saturday the preparation of kosher food, which night featuring Dov’s brother, Noah isn’t readily available in Winder. Wilker, a musician and Young JuRabbi Avraham Horovitz, a military daea staff member, in collaboration chaplain who grew up as a member with another musician. of Young Judaea, will supervise the On Feb. 16, the teenagers will head to a community garden in Atkitchen.

On the 12th, Nine teenagers lanta, near Hartsfield-Jackson At-

By Rebecca McCarthy

Y

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

COVER STORY

→ NCSY Skips Mega-Gatherings for Now

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

N

CSY is the only one of the five major Jewish youth groups not to hold an international convention in the Atlanta area since late December, but that’s not a reflection of the Orthodox Union youth movement’s attitude toward the South.

NCSY doesn’t have a massive convention equivalent to the NFTY and BBYO gatherings this weekend.

“It’s very hard, unwieldy, I would say, to actually accomplish things programmatically with such a large group,” said Rabbi Micah Greenland, the international director of NCSY, so his predecessor decided to end NCSY’s big convention about 15 years ago.

lanta International Airport, to mulch and do other work before boarding planes to go home.

Atlanta resident Matan Berman, a ninth-grader at North Springs High School, is an active member of Young Judaea and plans to attend the convention.

He said he’s looking forward to seeing friends he met in New Orleans during Alternative Winter Break

dent at a national con Instead, the orgavention in New York. nization holds more

He said NCSY is focused national gathrethinking the decision erings, such as a leaderto scrap the national conship boot camp for 200 vention and might bring teens and a kallah for it back if the organization about 350 kids interestbelieves it can conduct efed in an intensive Jewfective programming. ish learning experience.

Rabbi Greenland But Rabbi Greenand about 10 national land acknowledged the and regional NCSY leadpower and excitement ers, as well as national of bringing 1,000 to Rabbi Micah Greenland and regional teen board 2,000 Jewish teens together, something NCSY sees each members, will get to see how effective summer at Yom NCSY, when 1,100 such mega-gatherings can be when participants in the group’s many they come to Atlanta for the Summit summer programs in Israel gather on Youth and the Coalition of Jewfor one day of celebration. It’s also ish Teens preceding the NFTY and something the rabbi saw himself as a BBYO conventions. high school student in 1993 when he “I’m appreciative that BBYO was elected NCSY’s national presi- is convening such a forum,” Rabbi

Greenland said. While it won’t be the first time the youth groups get together, this gathering is bigger than others, and it includes many of the top funders of youth programming.

Having those philanthropists there will help ensure “that if we have some ideas as a group, that we’ll be better positioned to help make them happen.”

He said the Jewish youth groups increasingly are seeing one another as collaborators, not competitors, as they work toward the common goal of ensuring an engaged Jewish future in North America through connections to Israel, serious Jewish learning and leadership development.

“I think that our mutual goals,” Rabbi Greenland said, “have never been more closely aligned as organizations than they are today.” ■

brother was in the Israel Defense Forces, and a cousin just joined. Alost everyone has spent a year in Israel with Young Judaea, as Matan plans to do.

“I hope that people from all over know how strong Atlanta has become,” Matan said. “We haven’t been active for a while, but I hope they see how active we are getting.” ■

in December. He and other teenagers participated in community service projects such as making homes more energy efficient, repairing ailing buildings, and working in community gardens and greenhouses.

Young Judaea runs in Matan’s family. His mother, Lauren, and father, Daniel, were members, as were his brothers, cousins, aunts and uncles. His

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Top: Eitan Berman, during his time as an IDF lone soldier, gets a hug from his mom and fellow Young Judaea alum, Lauren Berman.

Bottom: Alice and David Berman, who lived in Israel for 1½ years, gather with the next two generations of Berman Zionists, who, except for a couple of spouses and those too young, have been part of Young Judaea, gone on its Year in Israel program and, in most cases, lived in Israel beyond that year.

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FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

BLACK

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www.atlantajewishtimes.com

COVER STORY

Lisa Alter Krule

→ Youth Movements Plan to Return to Atlanta

By April Basler abasler@atljewishtimes.com

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

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AJT 24

hy has Atlanta become the place to go for Jewish youth movements? BBYO, NFTY and USY all had similar reasons. Atlanta has a dynamic and diverse Jewish community.

This is the third time BBYO has held its International Convention in Atlanta, which is part of a regular rotation. IC will be back in Atlanta in 2019.

“Atlanta is a top-tier BBYO program. It’s a huge and very active and vibrant BBYO community. It has generations of alumni and multigenerational BBYO families. As a convention setting, it’s geographically convenient and has a huge number of our most active members,” said Ian Kandel, the IC director and director of AZA/BBG and the teen movement.

“The brands that are local allow us to really amplify the content that we have in the program. We think that Atlanta is an important city to be in as a community-building place, as an educational platform and as a fastgrowing Jewish community.”

BBYO has a multifaceted selection process for choosing the cities for IC.

“It’s a result of a big team operation. We work closely with our field’s colleagues to explore who can host in a powerful and meaningful way,”

Kandel said. “We want to make sure we have great partners on the ground to help build the experience.”

Although this is the first time NFTY has held its convention in Atlanta, the youth movement knows it will be back. NFTY, like the other youth movements, rotates host cities for its convention so that a teen does not go to the same city twice during high school.

“Atlanta is an ideal place. We do plan on coming back in the future,” said Rabbi Bradley Solmsen, the Union for Reform Judaism’s director of youth engagement. “We wouldn’t come back for our next convention, but down the road, absolutely.”

The leaders at the national office of NFTY make sure that the convention happens in different locations, and Atlanta is the city that made sense to them for 2015.

“Atlanta is a great city that has been very excited about hosting,” Rabbi Solmsen said. “Atlanta has an amazing Jewish community, and we wanted to highlight all that’s going on with the Atlanta Jewish community, so it’s been a great match.”

NFTY looks at a number of factors in choosing a host city for the convention.

“We have a team of people who evaluate things,” Rabbi Solmsen said. “It’s a pretty complicated decision that brings into account finances, numbers, enough hotels, etc.

There are senior leaders who make these decisions.”

USY had a wonderful experience when it held its convention in Atlanta seven weeks ago and plans to keep the city in the regular convention rotation.

“Once this cycle is done, I am certain we are going back to Atlanta, maybe in 2019,” said Lisa Alter Krule, USY’s director of regional engagement and director of the International Convention. “I would go back in a heartbeat.”

USY, like the other youth movements, has a selection process for choosing the convention locations.

“When we go into a city, we look at it with many lenses,” Alter Krule said. “What can we do educationally?

How can the community support us?

What can we do to help leave the community to make it better than what it was when we got there? Who are our partners? What are the logistics? All of those questions are on that checklist in site selection.”

Before the International Convention in December, USY had brought the event to Atlanta only one time, during the 1970s. But Atlanta was Alter Krule’s top choice for USY IC 2014.

“There is so much richness in Atlanta as both a Jewish community and as a city in the U.S. It’s a major city,” she said. “I fought very hard. I had some convincing arguments in

order to get other powers on board for Atlanta. I wanted to take chances and look at new opportunities. Atlanta just came up. People were surprised when we did that.”

The Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta is a supporter and sponsor of the youth groups and helps them not only financially, but also by providing volunteers, hosting events for the teens and including convention events on Federation calendars.

“The Federation supports all three youth groups, BBYO, NFTY and USY. Michael Horowitz, our CEO and president, is the driving force behind that,” Federation spokeswoman Melissa Miller said. “His priority is Jewish continuity. That’s the best way to continue to build Jewish community, is through our teens and the future leaders.”

Miller said the youth movements’ decision to host their conventions in Atlanta says a lot about the city and community.

“We have a vibrant Jewish community with a lot of involved teens that are involved in all of those organizations, and Atlanta is a welcoming community,” Miller said. “The conventions were planned in Atlanta because we have all the resources.

All of the agencies and schools support all the youth groups, and we have so many teens that participate in the youth groups, some even in more than one.” ■

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

COVER STORY

By Michael Jacobs mjacobs@atljewishtimes.com

T

he teens attending the BBYO and NFTY conventions will get to see the diverse face of the Israel Defense Forces.

Israel advocacy group StandWithUs is bringing its Israeli Soldiers Tour to Georgia for the conventions and for stops at Emory University, Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia and Atlanta Jewish Academy.

The tour is bringing in two Israelis who are on reserve status while in school after completing their activeduty military service: Gal and Yehuda (only their first names are being used).

Gal, 24, who was born in Lima, Peru, is a second-year law student in international criminal law at BarIlan University and a Tel Aviv resident after serving as a basic training commander at an intelligence base for the IDF. She was with the Israel Scouts as a teenager and is the granddaughter of the paratrooper colonel who established the IDF’s paratrooper school.

Yehuda took a different path to the IDF. A native of Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, he immigrated to Israel in 2009 at age 21 and volunteered with the IDF, where he served in a border police unit at West Bank checkpoints and at holy sites in Hebron and Jerusalem. He lives in Jerusalem and is studying political science and communications at Hadassah College in Jerusalem.

Both IDF veterans spoke to the Atlanta Jewish Times by phone from Jerusalem, where they were training for their U.S. tour.

The tour will not be Gal’s first time working with North American youths. She delayed military service for a year after high school to serve as a Jewish Agency emissary in Toronto, where she helped connect children in day schools and synagogues to Israel, and she worked as a counselor at the Alexander Muss High School in Israel after the army.

She said her time in Toronto exposed her to the misconceptions spread by the news media, which show “the face of a soldier that I’ve never seen before. It’s important to go and show them the true soldier.”

She sees each of the teens at the BBYO and NFTY conventions as a young ambassador of Israel, and she

wants to arm them with the facts to defend Israel from the hatred they will find on college campuses and the advances of the boycott, divest, sanction movement. “They’re protecting me. They’re protecting my family, my friends.”

That protection goes both ways, she said, because the IDF provides defense not only to all Israeli citizens, regardless of religion, but also to all Jewish people everywhere by showing the world that Jews aren’t weak anymore.

abuse he suffered from Egyptian soldiers on his way to Israel.

One of the payoffs for Gal was an invitation to her co-worker’s sister’s Christian Eritrean wedding. “I looked different, but I was so welcome. Everyone hugged me and came to speak to me, and I felt like I belonged...”

She said the diversity of Israel, which like the United States is made up of immigrants from many countries, is crucial to the beauty of the nation. She sees it in the different

Yehuda

Gal

It’s important for the Jewish teens to understand that Israel applies that strength ethically through a 10-part code that includes a unique standard on the “purity of arms,” Gal said.

“We won’t use a weapon if we have a less extreme solution,” she said. “That shapes who I am as a person and a soldier.”

It’s a rule she applied along the Egyptian border while providing relief to the regular border troops. In the middle of the night, three men dressed in black were spotting crossing the barbed-wire fence dividing the countries.

As the commander in the field, it was her call how to respond. She decided to hold fire, secure the perimeter, call for backup and try to capture the intruders, who turned out to be asylum-seekers from Eritrea.

The morality of the situation was driven home two years later when Gal went to work at a cupcake shop and became friends with an Eritrean co-worker, who told her about the

skin colors of her university classmates and in her own family tree, which includes Morocco, Iraq and Egypt.

“There are so many different countries that form what it is to be Israeli. I can’t imagine Israel without this community,” Gal said. “This is my everyday reality. This is what I experience. This is who I am.”

Yehuda, as an immigrant from Ethiopia whose English (his third language at best) isn’t as fluent as Gal’s, is an example of that diversity.

“We are growing up hearing about Jerusalem since childhood,” he said. “My dream and all the Ethiopian Jewish community dream of coming to Jerusalem one day to be a part of it.”

He had culture shock in a couple of ways when he arrived in his dream city, Jerusalem. First, the tiny size of Israel, in terms of geography and population, was a surprise for someone who grew up in a city of 6 million people, three-quarters of Israel’s entire population.

He also was caught off-guard by the very diversity of which he is an example. He got to sample so many different kinds of food, music and culture and to hear 15 languages spoken on a single bus.

“It’s difficult to come to a new way of life, a new society, a new culture,” Yehuda said, so it’s natural for immigrants from particular countries to build a community together.

Yehuda came to learn that Israel’s diversity is what makes the country strong. He said Israel’s neighbors should learn that lesson. “It’s very important to have different kinds of people.”

Israel’s embrace of diversity makes a joke of the charge that it’s an apartheid state, he said. That apartheid charge is the kind of misleading information he wants to correct for his American audiences.

Yehuda has firsthand knowledge because he manned checkpoints between Palestinian territory in the West Bank and Israel. He said that work, providing protection from terrorists, was good because it was an effort to bring peace to the holy land.

Yehuda hopes that the Jewish teens in Atlanta learn two things from him. “I want them to know how much is important the unity and diversity of the people. … Second is the threat of extremists in the Middle East.”

Both Gal and Yehuda see their enemy not as a particular country or ethnicity or religion, but extremism.

“I don’t think the true solution is to become the extremists that we’re fighting,” Gal said. “We’re against them. Using their techniques and being more violent are not the right tools.”

“People here want peace like every other people,” Yehuda said.

“We’re fighting against extremism like every other country.”

And like citizens of other countries, they are proud of theirs.

“People who are judging this country without knowing things exactly, they cannot know those things from a different perspective,” Yehuda said. “They should come to judge the country in person.”

People should talk to the diverse range of Israelis, including the Druze, not just Jews, Gal said. “I want the world to see it and know it. I think there’s a place for every person to come to Israel.” ■

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

→ IDF Vets Hope Jewish Teens Stand With Them

AJT 25

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

TRAVEL

Connected With the Kurds

Don’t confuse Iraq’s views with those common in Kurdistan Editor’s note: This is the second installment of Benjamin Kweskin’s account of his 10 months in Iraqi Kurdistan. In the first part Feb. 6, the Charlotte native and Decatur resident discussed the appeal of the region for Jewish tourists.

By Benjamin Kweskin

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

M

AJT 26

ore than a handful of people thought my wife, Whitney, and I were insane when we shared that we were going to live in Kurdistan, technically part of northern Iraq, a country officially in a state of war with Israel, and were moving a mere five days after our wedding.

“Honeymoon in Kurdistan!” my sister opined.

Kurdistan is an amazing destination and has a great deal of Jewish-related aspects.

By coincidence, the day before we married, I met a Kurdish man who works at a local camp as a mashgiach (kosher supervisor). I told him that in six days my bride and I would be moving to Kurdistan for 10 months.

He assured my parents and me that we should not worry because he was confident we would be treated well.

Kurdistan, also known as the Kurdistan Region of Iraq or Iraqi Kurdistan, is roughly 500 miles from Israel, and though there are no direct flights between the countries, you can fly via Amman, Jordan, or Istanbul, Turkey, or from Europe.

You need not fly to Baghdad or any other part of Iraq proper to enter Kurdistan; the identification cards we were issued by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) stipulated we were free to travel anywhere within the recognized KRG but not the rest of Iraq.

While only 6 million of the estimated 40 million Kurds live in northern Iraq, the Kurdistan Region is the closest they have come to attaining complete political and economic independence.

Kurdistan is a semiautonomous region, and the Iraqi army is not allowed to set foot within the KRG. The Kurds maintain their own armed forces, the peshmerga.

The Kurdistan Region operates as a state within a state with its own regional parliament, police force and education system. The Kurds’ social norms, political views and general

values are significantly different from those in the rest of Iraq. Sharia (Islamic law) is only one of several influencing legal codes, unlike many Muslim-majority countries, and religiously conservative Islamic political parties do not receive many votes in elections.

As the fourthlargest ethnic group in the Middle East, Kurds have a history that spans thousands of years. Their culture is rich and diverse, and religions that predate Judaism persevere despite the many The bazaar in Erbil is one sign of how the Kurds have thrived as a semiautonomous region centuries of hardwithout interference from Baghdad. Photo by Benjamin Kweskin ships.

Entire Kurdthough overwhelmingly Muslim, colorful cloth; to the imposing, snowish communities were eradicated stress “Kurdishness” or Kurdish capped mountains that overlook during Al-Anfal campaign, in which identity over religion. For example, forbidden Iran; to the small town of Saddam Hussein’s forces killed the centerpiece of their national flag Barzan, surrounded by lush green 180,000 Kurds and destroyed 4,500 is a golden sun with 21 rays — a Zo- valleys crisscrossed with a fast-rushvillages, considered a genocide by roastrian and Yezidi symbol. Though ing river forded by many over several Kurds.

Kurds are mostly Sunni Muslim, they millennia.

Kurdistan also had been the include Christians, Yezidis, Jews and Traveling was easy, and though home to a remarkable and often others. Jews who made aliyah from there are some public buses, we thriving Jewish community for near- Kurdistan, starting in the 16th cen- mostly traveled in shared or private ly 3,000 years. Many villages and tury, are estimated to number nearly taxis. towns featured a great deal of mutu- 100,000 in Israel. The majority live Kurds are renowned for their al respect and friendships, and some in or near Jerusalem, though several hospitality; on countless occasions villages were inhabited entirely by kibbutzim and moshavim are largely strangers asked where we were from Jews, such as Sindur Yahud (Jewish populated by Kurdish Jews. and invited us into their homes — Sindur), northeast of Dohuk, Kurdis- Whitney and I had jobs teaching perhaps a strange custom to Westtan’s third-largest city. the children of Kurdistan’s elite and erners but a sign of honor and respect

I first learned of the Kurds and nouveau riche, some of whom came to to Kurds and many other Middle their vast, beautiful, largely moun- school with burly bodyguards toting Easterners. tainous country in a place with Hello Kitty book bags or had person- Many times our tea was free, slightly smaller mountains: Boone, al drivers escort them from sprawl- and at restaurants our meals were N.C., home of Appalachian State ing suburban mansions in the latest discounted — just because we were University. One of my assigned books Range Rover or Escalade. guests and the proprietors wanted us included a small paragraph on these We taught English and history to feel welcome in Kurdistan (never non-Arab, non-Persian, non-Turkish, and lived in an on-campus apart- did anyone say Iraq). non-Jewish people living in a coun- ment, which was convenient and On one occasion in Amedi, a city try that does not officially exist but roomy — we had two bedrooms and built atop a beautiful plateau, a midspans almost all of eastern Turkey three bathrooms along with a full dle-aged man visiting his family from and includes northern and eastern balcony and central heating and air Germany overheard my wife and Syria, nearly a third of Iraq in its conditioning. me speaking and invited us into his north, and a portion of northern and Though we were often in town brother’s home for lunch. Though we western Iran. during the week, we had all the free- did not accept this offer, it highlights What began as a purely aca- dom we wanted and often took off the fact that people always treated us demic interest grew into something during the weekends, from visiting respectfully and were excited to exmuch greater and larger than I an- the ancient Yezidi village of Lalish, pose foreigners to their culture, histicipated. I learned that these people, with its ancient, conical shrines and tory and country. ■

www.atlantajewishtimes.com

EDUCATION

Berger: Critical Thinking Crucial for Jewish Education

By Kevin Madigan kmadigan@atljewishtimes.com

W

hat is critical thinking?

How does it affect education? Rabbi Michael Berger raised these and other weighty issues during a Feb. 1 lecture at Atlanta Jewish Academy in Sandy Springs.

Rabbi Berger, an associate professor of Jewish studies at Emory University and the former head of school of Yeshiva Atlanta High School, which is now part of AJA, said the Greek philosopher Socrates first raised the necessity of rational deduction about 2,500 years ago. His approach to the analytical dissemination of ideas became known as the Socratic Method.

“The unexamined life is not worth living,” Socrates famously declared, but Rabbi Berger added, “It doesn’t mean examining other people’s lives,” drawing laughter from the audience. “It means thinking about what you do, how you relate, how you respond. To be a human means by definition to strive to be rational. If you don’t, you’re not a complete person.”

The Greeks considered it a sign of immaturity when reflexive people gave knee-jerk, automatic responses to mandates or concepts without

analyzing or questioning their merit.

The Greeks “came at the world teleologically,” Rabbi Berger said. “There was a goal to everything, to develop your rational capacities. Otherwise, how are you unique from animals?

To be human is to be selective about what you do and how you arrive at your conclusions.”

Rabbi Berger’s students at Emory are advised to use what he calls logical consistency. He tells them that if they can’t think clearly, they can’t write clearly. They are required to provide credible sources for their assertions and must not believe something is true “just because it’s on the web.”

Students should not “take them as givens but analyze basic concepts.

Everything is based on those, so how can you develop without them?” Rabbi Berger said. He would like his students to rely more on the 10-volume Encyclopedia of Philosophy and less on Google.

The evolution of critical thinking took time. Rabbi Berger called it “a remarkable revolution that doesn’t happen overnight. It takes centuries to increase critical inquiry.”

Critical thinking was used primarily in the Middle Ages to sort out weak and faulty arguments from good ones and was “a sorting tool to

reconcile what seemed to be different sources of truth,” he said. “How do we know what we know? Just because the pope or someone in the third century said something, does that make it true? We have to rely on society, not authority, for truth.”

Socrates said you have to seek evidence, according to Rabbi Berger, who then invoked “Monty Python’s Flying Circus,” citing the comedy group’s frequent forays into dogmatic inquiry. Critical thinking establishes veracity Rabbi Michael Berger speaks about critical thinking at Atlanta Jewish Academy. Photo by Kevin Madigan and must be used to question not only government, but also cialization,” he said, and ideally Jewlaw, science, politics, economics, soci- ish students should be “religiously ety, religion and education. adept.”

Jewish education in particu- Yossi Ovadia, sitting in the front lar has an added challenge, Rabbi row, plans to send his grandchildren Berger said, addressing the many to AJA. He said Rabbi Berger “proteachers in the audience. “Integrat- vided extremely important tools for ing Jewish and secular existence is educators to know what these skills a very difficult thing because they are and how they can develop them (Jewish children) want to be part of to be used for a successful career.” both. We need basic education plus Rabbi Berger concluded: “There’s Jewish education to create successful so much passing now for Jewish auadults.” thenticity. We need our kids to be He added that Jewish students much more discerning consumers. need to be knowledgeable about their There’s a tidal wave of informahistory and their community, as well tion, and we need them to be critical as ethics, pride and identity. “It’s so- thinkers for that alone.” ■

Education Briefs

4 Locals Make American Hebrew Academy Honor Society

Four of the 50 eighth- and ninth-graders recently inducted into the American Hebrew Academy Honor Society are from the Atlanta area.

The international honor society recognizes excellence in academics, athletics, the arts, leadership and community service.

The four students are Isabel Berlin of Dunwoody, a Congregation B’nai Torah member and straight-A student at the Epstein School who has finished first six consecutive years at the North Atlanta Jewish Students’ Technology Fair while also playing soccer and doing theater; Sarah Jeffres of East Cobb, an eighth-grader at Dodgen Middle School with a 4.0 GPA who is in the school band, plays the piano, is a Girl Scout and volunteers as a madricha; Jared Rakusin of Dunwoody, an athlete in karate, basketball and golf who also participates in school plays and volunteers with Open Hand and the Ronald McDonald House; and Leo Sachs of Sandy Springs, a member of his

These are the Epstein School’s 10 winners from the North Atlanta Jewish Students’ Technology Fair: back row (from left) Micah Reich, Maya Kahn, Galya Fischer, Sean Lewis and Isabel Berlin; front row (from left) Ella Colker, Zack Naturman, Nolan Goldklang, Amir Dressler and Gavriella Mamane.

school’s baseball, basketball and cross-country teams who took mentored younger students as a JCC junior counselor.

First Place for 10 Epstein Students

Ten Epstein School students won first-place ribbons at the North Atlanta Jewish Students’ Technology Fair on Jan. 25 and thus qualified for the state competition in Macon on March 7. For third- and fourth-graders: Gavriella Mamane, digital photography; Ella Colker, multimedia applications. For fifth- and sixth-graders: Zack Naturman, 3-D modeling; Amir Dressler and Micah Reich, animated graphic design; and Nolan Goldklang, technology literacy challenge. For seventh- and eighth-graders: Maya Kahn and Galya Fischer, animated graphic design; Sean Lewis, digital photography; and Isabel Berlin, multimedia applications.

For Isabel Berlin (inset), the win was her sixth in the multimedia category at the North Atlanta Jewish Students’ Technology Fair, making her the first six-time winner at the fair from Epstein and perhaps from any school.

27 FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

Torah Day Adds Almost-Kindergarten

Torah Day School of Atlanta is introducing a transitional kindergarten program, K for Kids, in the 2015-16 school year for children who turn 5 between Sept. 2 and Dec. 31 this year.

The new program comes amid debate in the Georgia General Assembly about whether to move the cutoff date for starting elementary school from Sept. 1 to Aug. 1 or event July 1.

“We will be able to offer those children the gift of an extra year to grow, blossom and develop,” said Rabbi Joshua Einzig, TDSA’s head of school. “I’m so very thrilled to be offering this new program.”

The program will be limited to 10 children in its first year. TDSA is building a space for K for Kids with age-appropriate learning materials, games and toys.

For more information, contact admissions director Leslee Morris at 404-9820800, ext. 100, or lmorris@torahday.org.

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OBITUARIES – MAY THEIR MEMORIES BE A BLESSING

Dennis Gelb 64, Atlanta

Dennis Gelb, 64, of Atlanta passed away Sunday, Feb. 8, 2015.

Born in Cape Town, South Africa, on April 22, 1950, he grew up playing tennis and represented his province in youth tournaments across South Africa. Dennis started his career with his father in the family’s grocery store in Springbok, a small town in the countryside of South Africa. Later, he owned a factory, Lamp Land in Cape Town, manufacturing lamps for Woolworth’s department stores. The family immigrated to America in 1988. Dennis started a company, Action Fax, providing fax machines and communications services for travelers in airports across the country. Dennis also had a love of music and enjoyed playing the piano.

He is survived by his loving wife of 42 years, Ada; a daughter, Stacey Rothberg (Mark); a son, Hylton (Stephanie); and granddaughters Layla and Hadley Rothberg. A devoted husband, he cared for Ada’s mother, Freda, who has lived with them for the last eight years. His grandchildren were everything to him; spending time with them was his greatest joy.

An online guestbook is available at www.edressler.com. Graveside services were held Tuesday, Feb. 10, at Arlington Memorial Park in Sandy Springs with Rabbis Analia Bortz and Mario Karpuj officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the Rylan Gelb Memorial Scholarship Fund to provide assistance to families with galactosemia. Donations can be made directly at www.galactosemiamidwest.com/rylan-gelb-memorial-scholarship; note “Rylan Gelb Scholarship” in the comments section. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Bert Gurwitch 75

Bert Gurwitch, age 75, died on Dec. 22, 2014. He was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Jane, and parents, Rebecca and Ike Gurwitch. He was born in Mobile, Ala.

He is survived by an older brother, Harry Gurwitch and a younger sister, Phyllis Gurwitch Wizig; by three loving children, Michael, Mindy (Farrell) and Michele (Friedenberg), and their spouses; many nieces, nephews and cousins; and his loyal dog, Annabelle. He also has four grandchildren, Alexa, Zack, Finn and Maevyn.

Bert graduated from Vanderbilt University. He went on to serve in the U.S. military. He lived and worked in Atlanta for many years and was a longtime member of Ahavath Achim Synagogue.

A memorial gathering will be held Sunday, Feb. 15, at 10 a.m. at 1585 Peachtree Battle Ave. NW, Buckhead. In lieu of flowers, gifts can be made to your local Humane Society.

Carol Lobman Hart

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

90, Atlanta

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Carol Lobman Hart, age 90, of Atlanta, formerly of Montgomery, Ala., died on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2015.

She was an integral part of her community and a friend to everyone she met. A 1946 graduate of Wellesley College, she returned to Montgomery with her husband, Van, when he joined her family’s business, Steiner-Lobman Wholesale Dry Goods. She was a life member of the National Council of Jewish Women and former president of the Montgomery chapter, a life member and former board member of the Southeast Alabama Girl Scout Council, a former president of the Sisterhood of Temple Beth-Or of Montgomery, and member of the Southern Jewish Historical Society, Mother’s Circle of Montgomery, and the Needlework Guild, Montgomery, Ala. Carol loved entertaining, attending cultural events, reading, needlework, making pickles and preserves, traveling, and visiting with her family and friends. She was a treasured confidante of many, including her children, grandchildren, and friends of her children and grandchildren. She was open-minded, curious and generous with her time and energy, her spirit, and her resources. She loved and was deeply loved by all who had the privilege of knowing her. She was, in her later years, as graceful about aging and dying as she was about living. She continues to be a role model for us all. She will be missed for her generosity of spirit, her insight, and her loving, forthright personality.

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She is survived by her daughters, Michal Hillman (Jack) and Alice Wertheim (Brian), both of Atlanta; sons, Julian Hart (Gail) of Burke, Va., and Van E. Hart Jr. (Jeri) of San Francisco; eight grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; her brother-and sister-in-law, Ellis and Reva Hart of Winona, Miss.; and multiple nieces and nephews and their families. She was blessed to have dedicated and loyal caregivers in Melissa Williams, Tanya Thomas, Tabitha Brown, Shirley, and Cora, with special thanks to the caregivers at The Piedmont and the Weinstein Hospice for their role at the end of her life.

An online guestbook is available at www.edressler.com. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Carol’s memory may be made in care of the Carol L. Hart Fund, Temple Beth-Or, 2246 Narrow Lane Road, Montgomery, AL 36106, or in care of the Van E. Hart Memorial Fund, Jewish Children’s Regional Service, 3500 N. Causeway Blvd., No. 1120, Metairie, LA 70002, or to a charity of one’s choice. Graveside services were held Thursday, Feb. 5, at Oakwood Cemetery in Montgomery with Rabbi Elliot Stevens officiating. A memorial service followed at Temple Beth-Or. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Martin Smith 94, Atlanta

Dr. Martin Smith, 94, died Feb. 6, 2015, in Atlanta.

He was the son of the late David Smith and Minnie Rosen Smith. He was beloved by his children, Larry (Linda) Smith, Debbie (Joel Lobel) Smith and Mindy (David Landau). He was adored by his grandchildren, Jason (Allison) Smith, Sara (Evan) Loft, David Ognibene, Brian Smith, and Marisa and Alex Landau, and his great-grandchildren, Abigail and Jordan Smith and Dylan and Emerson Loft. In addition, he is survived by his brothers, Marvin Smith and Sam Levine.

He was preceded in death by his wife of more than 70 years, Beatrice Marcus Smith, and brothers Leon Smith and Stanley Smith.

“Poppy” was born in South Fallsburg, N.Y., and rose from humble beginnings to become a World War II veteran, an accomplished podiatrist and a handyman extraordinaire.

Graveside services were held Sunday, Feb. 8, at Arlington Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Ian’s Friends Foundation (IansFriendsFoundation.com) or the Marcus Autism Center (www.marcus.org). Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770-451-4999.

Samuel Tourial 55, Atlanta

Samuel Tourial, age 55, of Atlanta died Feb. 6, 2015.

He is survived by his uncle and aunt, Ralph and Frances Capouya; aunt, Regina Tourial; and many cousins and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Eli and Mathilda Tourial.

Sam was born and raised in Atlanta. He was a graduate of Briarcliff High School, the University of Georgia and Emory Dental School. He practiced dentistry in Atlanta for more than 20 years. He was a member of AEPi Fraternity and Alpha Omega Dental fraternity, where he was past president, and a member of Congregation Or VeShalom. He collected Georgia Bulldog memorabilia and classic cars and loved photography, trivia, music and animals. He cared deeply for his family and friends.

Sign the online guestbook at www.edressler.com. Graveside services were held Sunday, Feb. 8, at Greenwood Cemetery with Rabbi Hayyim Kassorla officiating. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Congregation Or VeShalom. Arrangements by Dressler’s Jewish Funeral Care, 770451-4999.

Death Notices Phillip B. Peskin of Atlanta, Ahavath Achim Synagogue member, husband of Betty Ginsberg Peskin and father of Brenda Cox, Jody Peskin, Shelly Barton and Scott Peskin, on Jan. 31.

George Schaffer, 84, of Sandy Springs, a Temple Sinai member and father of Michael Schaffer, Bryan Schaffer and Keren McCord, on Feb. 2.

Lillian Schindler on Feb. 6.

Janet Sorkin, 85, mother of Dana Summerbell and Bruce Sorkin, on Feb. 4.

SPORTS

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Basketball Briefs Weber Girls Finishing Region Play Strong The Weber School’s girls basketball team has won two of its last four games.

Punctuated by a 41-7 victory over Dominion Christian Jan. 29 and a Feb. 5 win over Griffin Christian 42-36, the Rams have two more games left before the Region 1-AAA tournament Feb. 16. Led by top scorer Karin Videlesky (61 points in the last four games) and senior Emma Popowski, the Rams were looking to finish on a high note with matchups against Bethlehem Christian Academy (Feb. 10) and Atlanta Girls School (Feb. 12).

Epstein Boys Fall Just Short The Epstein School’s Division 1 MAAC boys basketball team fell just short of the championship Feb. 5, losing in a close game to host Ridgeview Charter.

Epstein was the top seed in the tournament and earned a spot in the championship game with a four-point win over Holy Spirit Prep in the semifinals.

AJA Wins D2 MAAC Championship The Atlanta Jewish Academy boys basketball A-team won the Division 2 MAAC championship Jan. 29 over Torah Day School of Atlanta. The AJA squad is coached by alumni Gavi Abraham and David Frankel.

The boys B-team did not finish in the top three of the tournament after a 32-15 opening win over McGinniss Woods. The AJA girls squad finished in fourth place.

“We stressed the family aspect of playing and doing it collectively as a team,” Abraham said. “A successful season is determined not by wins and losses, but how we improved, both as a basketball team and individuals on and off the court. In my opinion, we had a very successful season.”

Hawks Coaches to Run JCC Clinic Like Combine

First- through eighth-graders can learn from the coaching staff of the best basketball team in the NBA’s Eastern Conference on Presidents’ Day.

The coaching staff of the Atlanta Hawks, who have the best record in the Eastern Conference and second-best in the league and will be in the middle of the All-Star break, will run the Marcus Jewish Community Center’s annual Presidents’ Day basketball clinic from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Feb. 16, at the JCC’s Zaban Park campus, 5342 Tilly Mill Road, Dunwoody.

The clinic is open to boys and girls, center members and nonmembers.

The D2 MAAC champion boys A-team from Atlanta Jewish Academy consists of (back row, from left) Adam Cohen, Elye Robinowitz, Nathaniel Robinson, Danny Sanders, Nathan Posner and Coach Gavi Abraham and (front row, from left) Jacob Saltzman, Jacob Leiberman, Micah Frankel, Avi Price and Datiel Dayani. Photo by Harold Alan Photographers

For the first time, the clinic will be run like an NBA Draft combine, said the center’s sports and camps director, Ryan Pollard. “Players will be issued a draft card, and they will complete a variety of combine drills, including wingspan measurement, vertical leap test, dribble tests, target passing and various shooting challenges.”

The players then will be divided into teams for games and other competitions.

The clinic fee is $65 for members and $80 for nonmembers. You must register in advance at www.atlantajcc.org.

SIMCHAS

B’not Mitzvah Gabriella and Colette Lowy

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

T

wins Gabriella and Colette Lowy will be called to the Torah as b’not mitzvah March 7, 2015, at Temple Beth Tikvah in Roswell with Rabbi Fred Greene officiating. Gabriella and Colette are the daughters of Lisa and Hadley Lowy of Dunwoody and the granddaughters of Dr. Robert Sharkis of Canton, Ohio, and the late Marilyn Narduzzi (Louie) of Canton, of Benita Lowy of Atlanta, and of Stephen (Rosalie) Lowy of Birmingham, Ala. Gabriella and Colette are seventh-graders at Peachtree Charter Middle School.

Gabriella plays oboe for the school band and competes in triathlons. Colette sings in the school chorus and runs track for the Peachtree Charter Patriots. Both girls have been involved with 2nd Helpings, delivering food to those in need, leading up to their b’not mitzvah, and they look forward to continuing to volunteer for the food-insecure. Gabby and Colette spend summers at Camp Barney Medintz, which they love, and are very involved at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, including junior counseling and BBYO. Colette and Gabby are excited to share this milestone with so much family and so many friends and to continuing their Jewish education.

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CLOSING THOUGHTS

Lucky Me

FEBRUARY 13 ▪ 2015

I

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was one of the lucky ones.

My dad (z”l) was one of the very few dads who owned a car.

Most of my friends’ dads took the bus or train to work.

My dad worked far from home, deliberately. He believed you should not live where you work.

We lived in the Bronx; he worked way out in Queens. He and my cousin Kenneth co-owned a kosher butcher store.

He had to have a car to get to work.

Lucky me.

He also co-owned, with my uncle Joe, a bungalow colony up in the New York mountains in a town called Highland Mills, just a few stones’ throws from the booming city of Monroe, N.Y. Just to be clear, these towns only boomed in the summertime with all the New York families escaping the summer heat of the city.

He loved his Desoto and later his Chevy. Up in the mountains he drove around in an old green Chevy pickup truck.

Lucky me.

My family went to an Orthodox shul. Girls did not have a bat mitzvah. So when I was 12 and 13 years old, there was nothing much happening to celebrate entering my teen years. Well, unless you count the beautiful ID bracelet my boyfriend gave me and the fact that in my summer overnight camp I finally entered the coveted senior girls division.

Then I turned 14.

Lucky me.

My family drove up to the bungalow colony where they would reside for the summer months. I would be there for the first few weeks of summer, at which time I would take my trunk filled with clothes and move to camp.

However, the summer I turned 14, before I left for camp, my dad taught me to drive. Yes, 14! He had such total trust in me, I am still in disbelief.

He drove the truck to the top of the hill of a two-lane road, turned the truck motor off, and told me we would switch seats after he taught me all about the motor, how it works, why, when and how to change the oil, why not to go to an old gas station (old gas!), how

CROSSWORD “The Great Director” to change a tire, and more. Lesson completed, I moved to the driver’s seat, and he moved to the death seat, otherwise known as the passenger’s seat.

Once I wasn’t so lucky.

Let me digress by admitting I

By Stuart Ockman Editor: DavidBenkof@gmail.com Difficulty Level: Manageable

SHAINDLE’S SHPEIL Shaindle Schmuckler shaindle@atljewishtimes.com

had already tried my hand at driving. It was in the parking lot of a beach. My sweet boyfriend finally got his own car. A two-door, babyblue-and-white Chevrolet. I was dying to get my hands on the leathercovered steering wheel. I wanted to feel the power of a car.

To my utter surprise, he took me out to learn to drive. It did not matter that the beach parking lot was pretty full. There was plenty of room to maneuver. Until I hit another car, I was doing very well.

I just did not see the car when I was backing up. The blue-and-white Chevrolet received its first booboo.

It was not a good day. Of course, it could have been worse. I don’t know exactly how, but I needed to believe it could have been worse.

My dad was completely unaware of this earlier incident, and I sure as shootin’ wasn’t going to tell him.

These were my dad’s exact instructions: “(a) Don’t look down at the hood, look straight ahead as if you were riding a bike; (b) when backing up, don’t turn around, use your mirrors, they are your friends; (c) don’t get into an accident.”

I felt a newfound confidence. A feeling of control I’d never experienced before. It was wonderful. My dad outdid himself. He was not by nature a patient man; however, he rose to the occasion, and I proved his trust was not misplaced.

Lucky me, my dad had a car. I was the only one of my friends who could drive. Of course, I had to wait until I turned 18 to make it all legal, but in the meantime, he let me practice with him at my side.

All that practice, and his instructions, came in very handy as I taught my sisters to drive. A story for another day. ■

ACROSS 1 With 71-Across, 1968 Neil Simon play directed by 62-Across 6 Thirteen, for men 11 1964 Murray Schisgal play directed by 62-Across 14 Wife of Abram 15 Access “Hot,” e.g.

16 “Dances ___ Gathering” (Jerome Robbins ballet) 17 1967 movie with songs by a Jewish folksinging duo directed by 62-Across 19 Few, at the Rothschild villa on the CÙte d’Azur 20 Disparage, as antiSemites do 21 “Ol’ Man River” composer 22 “A ___ Brief” (Old Yiddish advice column) 25 2005 musical with the song “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway (If You Don’t Have Any Jews)” directed by 62-Across 27 A king of Judah 28 Sababa 30 Rebecca and Rachel, e.g.

31 Clown created by Alan Livingston 33 “You Don’t ___ with the Zohan” (2008 comedy starring Adam Sandler) 36 Nation with an embassy in Ramat Gan 40 Best Actress for “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

(Directed by 62-Across) 43 Plastic wrap brand Orthodox Jews tear before Shabbat 44 It’s between the Torah and the K’tuvim 45 Verdi opera that debuted across the Suez Canal 46 Part of a Provision-ISR DVR? 48 Lee or Bedford (pt. of the Hasidic Williamsburg Walking Tour) 50 Actor Efron of “Neighbors” 51 1983 movie co-written by Nora Ephron and directed by 62-Across 56 Like the Dome of the Rock 58 Mai ___ (Drinks featured at Mike’s Place in Jerusalem on Mondays) 59 Baked goods business founded in 1949 by Charles Lubin 61 E.R. staffers at ALYN Hospital, e.g.

62 He was born Mikhail Igor

Peschkowsky in Berlin (19312014) 66 Ax-like tool used in constructing the Old City 67 “And my hand found the wealth of the peoples like ___” (Isaiah 10:14) 68 Adjusts, with the aid of a 66-Across, perhaps 69 2001 TV movie directed by 62-Across with a character named Dr. Posner 70 Like acacia wood 71 See 1-Across DOWN 1 Clock setting for the Russian Jews who immigrated to West Hollywood 2 Hebrew infinitive prefix before asot (to do) and chalom (to dream) 3 “All the Things You ___” (song popularized by Artie Shaw) 4 Tim and Nina ___, co-founders of a popular restaurant guide 5 Like some I.D.F. rescues 6 “Ye ___ Testament”?

7 Numerically, how the seder is structured, with “in” 8 Condition after being dunked in the Sea of Galilee, perhaps 9 Cheer at the Maccabiah Games 10 Benz follower, at a Bazan refinery 11 Place for a Flag of Israel pin 12 Pre-bris location 13 Boast, like the little horn in Daniel’s vision 18 Characteristic of Abba Eban 21 Kind of question 22 “___ in Arms” (Rodgers and Hart musical) 23 Sicily, to Modigliani 24 Talmudic treatise 26 Krav ___ (self-defense system) 29 Like a Zealot 32 Locale of the Moshe Safdiedesigned Crystal

Bridges Museum of American Art 34 Part of an Italian ma shlomcha 35 : 37 Joyful girl?

38 Bid silently to a Matsart auctioneer 39 ___ to the finish, like the Tiberias Marathon 41 “___ Leaf” (1971 movie directed by Elaine May) 42 Gardens located 10 minutes from the Danish Jewish Museum 47 Technion ratio 49 Builds, like the Moshe Aviv Tower 51 “Both ___ and fodder are plentiful with us” (Genesis 25:25) 52 Redundant, egotistical track on Bob Dylan’s “Infidels?”

53 Franz ___ Chamber Orchestra (Group that recorded with Isaac Stern) 54 Like some Israeli furniture 55 Inbal Dror creation 57 Indian Prime Minister who expressed support for Jewish behavior in Palestine 60 Chip at a Steve Wynn hotel 62 American humor magazine founded by Harvey Kurtzman 63 Ken, en franÁais 64 Call at the Negev Israel Open 65 Haifa-to-Jerusalem dir.

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LOCAL NEWS

Good Time for the Trees

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u B’Shevat, the new year for the trees, was Feb. 4, and its arrival brought celebrations and more than a little planting. At the Marcus JCC’s Zaban Park in Dunwoody on Tu B’Shevat itself, Rabbi Brian Glusman and young families did some singing and welcomed a visit from the towering TreeMan. On Feb. 8 in the PonceyHighland neighborhood of Atlanta, Trees Atlanta conducted its annual Tu B’Shevat planting with the help of dozens of volunteers and organizations, from the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta to The Sixth Point and Limmud Atlanta + Southeast.

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A: Rabbi Brian Glusman leads young families in singing Tu B’Shevat songs and telling holiday stories at the Marcus JCC. Photos: Courtesy of the Marcus JCC of Atlanta

B: Melissa Jakubovic finds a friend for her sons in the TreeMan at the Marcus JCC family Tu B’Shevat celebration.

Photos by Michael Jacobs

C: Danny Glusman, Miriam Burmenko (center) and Mira Glusman prepare a hole for a tree beside Linwood Avenue.

D: Rael Glusman jumps onto a shovel to put all her body weight into digging a tree hole by Linwood Avenue.

E: Amelie Craver keeps an eye on an earthworm that emerged from the digging of a tree hole.

C

D

E

F: Lilah Perry (left), Jessel Martin and Colin Dorfman work the mulch pile by the Poncey-Highland Playground.

G: Katie Vogin is intent on her task of filling a bucket with extra dirt.

H: Gary Vogin digs the hole while Jill Vogin prepares the tree’s root ball and Katie Vogin minds the bucket of dirt.

I: Congregation Bet Haverim members Jose (left) and Marco Caldas plant a tree beside Linwood Avenue.

J: Judah (left) and Howie Krisel shovel out a tree hole while Maddie Talbot and Julie Rosenberg watch.

G

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H

I

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