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STAR-K’s 11th Annual Kashrus Training Program Features NYS Kosher Enforcement Director Rabbi Aaron Metzger

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CONTENTS COMMUNITY Around the Community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Dear Readers, It has definitely been a long two months. It has also been a very long “Three Weeks,” as it feels like they have come almost a month early this year. Tisha B’Av is over and there is now an official ceasefire set in place in Israel. Let’s hope it lasts. As

JEWISH THOUGHT

horrible as everything has been, I think what is most shocking about the whole ordeal

The Courage to Move Forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

would have to be the anti-Semitism that has reared its ugly head around the world.

Shabbos Nachamu: Lasting Comfort . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

HUMOR & ENTERTAINMENT Centerfold. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Notable Quotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

The media, which is often biased, has been more anti-Israel than ever. You can watch the interviews or read the headlines and it can make you sick. It really drives home the point that no matter how complacent we may feel in today’s world, our nation has been—and still is—the nation of the wandering Jew. Throughout history we have been told time and time again that we’re not wanted. We’ve been expelled, murdered,

EDUCATION Forgotten Heroes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

prosecuted, and killed just because we are part of a holy and special people. Every year the Three Weeks and Tisha B’Av highlight those feelings of persecution and compel us to try to make sense of all the tragedies we’ve endured for thousands of years.

COVER STORY

So what is the silver lining in this whole situation? Maybe it’s the fact that the

Gaza’s Forgotten Jewish Past . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

IDF was able to destroy tens of tunnels. Perhaps thousands of lives were saved as a

Eating Diamonds for Bread

result, but it is all speculation, as we can’t know for certain. What is evident, though,

Irene Zisblatt’s Holocaust Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

LIFESTYLES In the Kitchen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 From My Private Art Collection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

is the achdus; the comradery between Jews. There are so many different types of Jews, yet they all came together to stand with Israel. It’s a beautiful thing, but it’s just unfortunate that such tragedies are what unify us.

We must realize we are part of a very special nation, which was tasked with the job of turning darkness into light and making this world a more just, moral, and kind

NEWS

place. Let us work hard to keep this achdus throughout the year. May the day of Tisha

Global News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

B’Av next year be filled with rejoicing instead of sorrow.

National News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 That’s Odd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Have a wonderful week,

Yaakov

The Baltimore Jewish Home is an independent bi-weekly newspaper. Opinions expressed by writers are not neces­sarily the opinions of the publisher or editor. The Baltimore Jewish Home is not responsible for typographical errors, or for the kashrus of any product or business advertised within. The BJH contains words of Torah. Please treat accordingly.

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Taking Happiness to a New Level: Twerski Wellness Institute Brings the Three Principles to Baltimore Over 2 years ago, I began a quest for happiness. I read, thought, wrote, spoke, and dreamt about happiness.

With the support of the Baltimore Happiness Club, which I founded and coordinate, I worked through just about every major idea out there about how to be happy.

Happiness is a cool topic these days, and lots of people have ideas about how to achieve it, from the mystical (Eckhart Tolle) to the psychological (Martin Seligman) to the religious (Rabbi Zelig Pliskin), and just about every stop in between.

Along the way, I’ve used myself as a living laboratory, trying out techniques and doing whatever the various authors recommended to become happier (positive thinking, exercise, meditation, breathing, humor, diet, nature, self-awareness, mantra, complimenting others, you name it). As I discovered new approaches, I tried them out on myself and the long-suffering Happiness Club (is there an irony there?).

In short, all these approaches really do work to produce more happiness in everyday life. Rabbi Pliskin’s book “Gateway to Happiness” is a treasure, an encyclopedic overview of anything you can think of that will make a person happy. Jon Kabat-Zinn’s mindfulness practice is an excellent approach for combating anxiety and depression.

The Dalai Lama’s “Art of Happiness,” based on both Tibetan Buddhism and modern research into the plasticity of the brain (yes, we can change the physical structure of our brains and it’s not even all that hard to do), is a beautiful primer on happiness written by one of the world’s happiest people.

Mathieu Ricard, officially the World’s Happiest Person based on scans of his brain, tells us to meditate (the Tibetan way) to achieve real, lasting happiness.

They’re all right, but they’re all a bit short of the mark.

Somewhere along the way in my happiness journey, I stumbled upon the work of Richard Carlson (remember “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff”?).

His book “You Can Be Happy No Matter What” really spoke to me, and I listened to him reading it on CD over and over and over again. His ideas were somewhat different from everyone else’s and I was intrigued as to where they came from. Doing a little research, I traced these ideas back through Roger Mills to Sydney Banks.

Sydney Banks, an uneducated Scottish gardener living in the Pacific Northwest, discovered that there is a paradigm of Three Principles underlying all of reality: Universal Mind, Universal Consciousness, and Universal Thought. The gist of it is that we create our psychological reality through thought, that our experience of life is not really based on outside events so much as on our thoughts about those events (rendering the context of our lives somewhat irrelevant to our level of happiness). We can experience reality only through thought, there’s no other way, but these thoughts (which are unavoidable) lead us astray much of the time and create much needless unhappiness and suffering (I have a bumper sticker: “Don’t Believe Ev-

erything You Think”).

Amazingly, all feelings come from thought, so the emotions we trust so fervently are just as likely to be inaccurate and untruthful as the thoughts that source them! As Carlson so aptly puts it, “We do it to ourselves.”

Feelings actually are symptomatic of thought that’s gone wrong, and that’s their purpose. Bad feelings are not natural to human beings, happiness is—our innate selves are joyful and happy (believe it or not; remember childhood?)—and the feelings are there to get our attention that we’re off track. Just an incredible, brilliant process that’s rarely understood.

As an example: I’m at the dinner table with a group of people. I start feeling uncomfortable and think, “I don’t belong here with these people.

As a matter of fact, they probably look down on me. Why on earth did I wear this dress? I’m WAY underdressed and don’t fit in here at all… etc.” It just goes from bad to worse, and pretty soon I’ve decided what everybody is thinking and can’t wait to leave. The feeling of uneasiness is by now acute discomfort bordering on depression.

What just happened? Did these people upset me? Not at all. It all started with a single thought, “I don’t belong here,” or some similar thought before that. Once I realize that the powerful feelings are coming not from the company but from my thoughts, I’m free to have other thoughts about the situation. Once the thought is suspect, it loses its power over me and may even disappear entirely, taking the lousy feeling with it. It’s kind of magical, really, when you realize how the process works.

Imagine the potential for alleviating lashon hara! Once you know the problem isn’t “out there,” talking about another person is just irrelevant

and purposeless, even boring.

The Three Principles approach to happiness, compared to other approaches, is akin to treating the disease rather than the symptoms. Although we can never, nor would we want to, be rid of thoughts, we can raise our consciousness about the role of thought in creating our reality.

The freedom that comes from this consciousness is just indescribable.

It’s like finding the mother lode of happiness, the keys to the kingdom.

One need never struggle with positive thinking, or spend hours meditating, or delve into one’s childhood in search of the source of our unhappiness. It’s all right there, in the moment, changing moment to moment, just like life itself.

Rabbi Michel Twerski and Rebbetzin Faigie Twerski were introduced to the Three Principles approach to mental well being years ago, while trying to find an approach to treat the ills in their community. They formed the Twerski Wellness Institute, with the mission of propagating this knowledge among the Jewish people.

Twerski Wellness Institute is bringing the Three Principles to Baltimore in a three-day seminar. If you’re intrigued by these ideas and would like to find lasting peace of mind, happiness, and inner wisdom, come to this seminar. You’ll be glad that you did and will probably find it to be a life-changing event.

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” With the Three Principles, you will know how to feed yourself with your own abundant happiness for the rest of your life.

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STAR-K’s 11th Annual Kashrus Training Program Features NYS Kosher Enforcement Director Rabbi Aaron Metzger

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

by Marge Pensak

The Eleventh Annual STAR-K Kashrus Training Program attracted attendees from the Catskill Mountains to Indianapolis, IN. This year, in addition to the STAR-K Kashrus Administrators who delivered presentations on everything from Foodservice Challenges to the Halachic issues of Appliances, Rabbi Aaron Metzger, director of the NY State Kosher Enforcement Bureau, addressed the participants. Rabbi Metzger, a resident of Monsey, NY, was appointed to his position by The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, in January. Part of his job is to protect consumers by ensuring compliance with the certification, record keeping and signage requirements relating to kosher food, and maintaining the Department’s online kosher databases.

“Being in this position is important to the Jewish community to maintain a sense of accountability in Kosher,” notes Rabbi Metzger.” Being able to present at the STAR-K conference has enlightened various rabbis from across the globe how important transparency and accountability is in this field.”

Program participant Rabbi Benzion Chanowitz has always had an interest in kashrus and has always been involved in shaalos in kashrus in his position as Rav of the Landfield Avenue synagogue, in Monticello, NY, for the past 20 years, and as director of Chabad of Monticello.

“I’ve gained a lot from the program, as well as respect for STAR-K as an organization; it’s amazing to see,” says Rabbi Chanowitz. “What struck me the most was the detailed policies that have been instituted, as well as the detailed instructions that they give to their Mashgichim. It was also beautiful to see that even in a pinch, the STAR-K will not compromise or look away from the high standards that they uphold.”

Rabbi Naftoli Eisemann, of Philadelphia, PA, joined the staff of Community Kashrus of Greater Philadelphia (Keystone-K), in June, as its Kashrus Administrator, after serving as the Sgan Menahel (Assistant Principal, Judaic Studies) of Torah Academy of Greater Philadelphia.

“In my new position, I found it very important to attend the STAR-K Kashrus Training Program,” says Rabbi Eisemann. “It was a very big and important piece of what I need to do for my position. Everybody from the STAR-K was very open and honest with challenges that they had. Especially being new to this field, it was reassuring to see that even those who are in the field for a very long time have challenges. I found that in addition to the practical and halachic issues, speaker after speaker stressed that developing a good relationship with business owners and staff, dealing with people who are basically principled, and maintaining best organizational practices, are key to

maintaining high standards of kashrus.”

One of the highlights of the seminar is its grand finale—“Kosher Questions: Ask the Rav”, when participants get the opportunity to submit questions to STAR-K Rabbinic Administrator, HaRav Moshe Heinemann. In addition to learning the Rav’s affirmative position on covering or removing knobs of a glass-top stove as a sufficient alternative to one’s inability of using an additional blech on Shabbos (glass-top would crack), and that the Rav holds that microwave cooking is not an issue of bishul akum, the participants enjoyed hearing the Rav’s eye-witness story about the halachic definition of “Yad Soledes Bo” (when one’s hand recoils due to the heat).

The Rav related that he was among the ten talmidim that participated in an experiment that his Rebbe, Rav Aharon

Kotler, zt”l, conducted to define the criteria of yad soledes bo. The Rav reminisced how each of the bochurim stuck his hand in large vat of water which was heated up gradually, and that it was at the temperature of 120 degrees that the first bochur recoiled, thus determining Rav Aharon’s position.

Rabbi Zvi Goldberg, STAR-K Kashrus Administrator and seminar coordinator, remarked: “The participants either are already, or are on the road to becoming, leaders in the Torah world. Our goal is to equip them with the knowledge they need to address the constantly changing kashrus landscape.

We are gratified to be able to continue to have a major impact in kashrus education.”

STAR-K’s 11th Annual Kashrus Training Program Attendees pictured with STAR-K staff (Front Row, L-R): STAR-K Kashrus Administrators Rabbi Dovid Heber, Rabbi Mayer Kurcfeld; STAR-K Rabbinic Administrator HaRav Moshe Heinemann; STAR-K Administrators Rabbi Eliyahu Shuman, Rabbi Baruch Beyer; and Rabbi Mordechai Frankel, STAR-K Director, The Institute of Halachah

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The Only Sailing Camp In The World Geared For Frum Teens, Located In Baltimore County In the summer of 2011, Rabbi Aaron Tendler, faculty member of Yeshivas Ner Yisroel in Baltimore, approached the Baltimore Country Sailing Center with an innovative idea. He wanted to start a sailing program geared towards Orthodox teens.

The Sailing Center was excited about this opportunity to fulfill their mission of introducing segments of the population that might not otherwise experience the joy and thrill of sailing, and agreed to customize a camp to the needs of the Frum community.

Originally geared for boys, last year a girls session was introduced as well, and became an instant success.

This year, for the first time, there will be sessions available for both boys and girls, ages 11-19. The boy’s

session will run from August 18th22nd, and the girl’s session will run from August 25th-29th.

The camp is located at Rocky Point Park in Baltimore County, a mere 25 minute drive from Park Heights! Each day starts with a 25 minute Torah study session, and the rest of the day is spent on the water. The boy’s camp will be led once again by Rabbi Yosef Ifrah, and the girl’s camp will be led

by Miss Miriam Birnbaum.

Past experience has shown that sailing offers teens the chance to master a skill, without having to deal with the competitive edge that is char-

acteristic of most sports. It fosters teamwork, builds self-confidence and maturity, is very self-motivating, and generates an interest that otherwise might go unnoticed - the love of being on the water and actually steering yourself in any direction you should so choose.

Terminology such as jibbing and tacking become everyday vernacular

to these young boys and girls, as they learn the ins and outs of sailing from certified sailing teachers, each day for an entire week.

Parents have expressed amazement at how over a few short days they witness a growth in self-esteem and confidence as their children master a unique skill, as well as an excitement about the life lessons learned from sailing.

To quote a satisfied former camper, “It’s great- it’s outdoors and based on Hashem’s natural world. Sailing is a combination of the natural forces of the wind, and one’s own control of the boat. We learn about all of the skills of sailing and wind patterns, and are constantly making decisions.

It’s a completely different experience you just don’t get otherwise! It’s truly amazing. The weather is great. You’re hanging out with great kids. If you like the water, it’s perfect.”

“Being able to open up our facility to the Orthodox Jewish community is truly rewarding to the instructors, myself and the sailors” said Baltimore County Sailing Center Programs Director, Eileen Fahrmeier. Learning to sail requires spatial awareness, teamwork and dedication. The participants from the past two years showed all of these characteristics and, as a result, were able to successfully navigate their boats where they wanted to go by the end of camp. I am extremely excited to be a part of this partnership and cannot wait to see the camper’s success this summer.”

The week caps off with a barbecue for the newly minted sailors on Hawk Cove Island, about two miles out on the Chesapeake Bay, as the skills these young adults have mastered are clearly able to be seen by one and all. Although campers do not need swimming skills, it would be difficult for campers who have a fear of being on the water to participate.

For further information, please contact sailing613@gmail.com, or call 484-477-2170.

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Kollel Bein Hazmanim at Khal Ahavas Yisrael Tzemach Tzedek Now in its fifth season, the Kollel Bein Hazmanim is well underway.

More than forty young men participate in this Torah learning program in the heart of the community, in Khal Ahavas Yisrael Tzemach Tzedek. The Kollel is in operation Monday through Friday in the summer for the first three weeks of the month of Av. The program starts with breakfast and continues with Torah study until the afternoon. Most of these young men study in Yeshivas Ner Yisrael, and choose to continue in-depth Torah study throughout the weeks of summer.

Originally founded by Rabbi Shalom Tendler, the Kollel has been under the directorship of Rabbi Yossi Rosenfeld for the last three years. Rabbi Rosenfeld commented, “It is a privilege to be involved in such a public display of Talmud Torah. I am inspired by the dedication of these young men who make Torah learning such an integral part of their lives. It is also important

to emphasize that the Bais Hamedrash is open to the entire community to come and join us.”

While the majority of those learning are young married men, there is also participation of Yeshiva Bochurim and members of the larger community. One community participant remarked, “It is a pleasure to see such a serious group striving for consistency in Torah learning. Such perseverance throughout the summer surely sets the tone of commitment to learning throughout the entire year”.

Besides for the regular Torah learning, the Kollel has a shiur on the day before Tisha B’Av, delivered by local Torah personalities. This year, the Kollel was visited by Rabbi Yonasan Tendler, who delivered a shiur on the Gemara in Taanis relating to events leading to the destruction of the Bais Hamikdash.

At the end of the Bein Hazmanim Kollel program, Rabbi Rosenfeld plans to discuss the topic of maximizing one’s

years that are involved in full-time Talmud Torah, and the hashkafa and practical issues of making the transition out of full-time learning.

Rabbi Rosenfeld also wanted to take the opportunity to thank all the sponsors of the Kollel. Stipends are paid to Kollel fellows participating in the program.

The budget is covered by sponsors who dedicate days of learning. Dedications are typically made in memory of loved ones, on the day of a yahrzeit, and for the merit of a Refua Shelama for the sick. This year a number of dedications were made toward the protection of the

soldiers who are fighting for the safety of our brethren in Eretz Yisrael. The vast majority of support comes from the local community, and on behalf of all Kollel members, Rabbi Rosenfeld wished to thank all those who showed their support for this community Torah program.

The Talmud Torah should serve as a zchus for the local community in particular and for all of Klal Yisrael at large, especially at this trying time for our brothers in Eretz Yisrael.

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Goldberg’s NY Bagels Awarded Certificate of Recognition From MD Comptroller Peter Franchot

By Marge Pensak

When Stanley (aka Yaacov) Drebin received a call from the State Comptroller’s office, in the middle of setting up for a bris, he imagined the worst: an audit. Instead, thankfully, State Comptroller Peter Franchotwas calling to say that he was awarding his business, Goldberg’s New York Bagels, a certificate of recognition.

“I thought it was a joke,” remarked Mr. Drebin. “And here we are.”

Those of you who have been to the popular Pikesville eatery, especially at noontime, can envision the scene when Mr. Franchot entered the back room, on Thursday, to make his presentation to Mr. Drebin, among

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Also present were Special Assistant to the Comptroller Craig Zucker (a big fan of Goldberg’s, who nominated Mr. Drebin for the award), Baltimore County Second District Councilwoman Vicki Almond, Baltimore County Clerk of the Circuit Court Maryland State Judiciary, Julie Ensor, and Register of Wills for Baltimore County, Grace Connolly.

After getting the crowd’s attention, Mr. Franchot read the certificate aloud and acknowledged Mr. Drebin’s birthday. “Thank you for recognizing all the work that I put into the store to make sure you have a very good meal every time you come,” was Mr. Drebin’s response. And then, true to form, he kibitzed with the Comptroller.

After the presentation, Mr. Drebin led a behind-the-scenes tour of Goldberg’s. During the tour, Mr. Franchot remarked, “This is a wonderful family business. Businesses like these are the backbone of the state of Maryland’s economy. We love big businesses, but it is the small businesses, like Goldberg’s New York Bagels, that employ the vast majority of our friends and neighbors and produce the wage growth needed for a healthy economy and the tax revenue to pay for our schools, roads, and environment. That is why I honored them.”

In 1998, Mr. Drebin opened his bagel shop employing eight people.

Today, it employs 30 people at its two locations in Pikesville and Timonium.

Mr. Drebin’s reaction to his birthday surprise was, “I’m overwhelmed that I was honored by the State of Maryland. Very few people merit such a recognition and I am humbled by the recognition.”

Chava Drebin, Mr. Drebin’s wife, noted, “All of our kids have worked in the business in their earlier years, trying to carry out my husband’s vision. We couldn’t have done it without everyone’s hard work, dedication, and love.”

Brett (Alexander) Weil, a son-inlaw of the Drebins, said: “We are so proud of Daddy, who successfully built this business from a faint idea in his head. Goldberg’s serves the community generous portions of delicious food, provides employment to many workers and serves as a preferred meeting place for numerous community, business and social purposes.

What a Kiddush Hashem!”

Howard Rosen, who has been a chavrusah with Mr. Drebin for 25 years, chuckled as he mentioned his connection with Mr. Drebin, “We feed the spirit before we feed the body,” referring to the fact that the two meet at Shearith Israel Congregation, Monday through Friday, at 5:50 a.m., to learn before the 6:15/6:30 a.m. Shacharis minyan.

Laura Egger, a native New Yorker who was in the eatery during the presentation, said: “I just moved from downtown Baltimore to Pikesville, but even if I still lived downtown, I would still drive to Goldberg’s, because these are the best bagels this side of New York. I just love Goldberg’s!”

Judging from Goldberg’s growing popularity, over the past 16 years, I would say she is not alone.

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Despite Rockets and Sirens, Dirshu Tests in Full Swing Across Israel An Update from Rabbi Avraham Schwartzman, Menahel of the Dirshu Testing Program

By Shimmy Blum The testing locations were equipped with accessible shelters in case of need, but none were moved to a particular safe zone. Other than the few Dirshu participants who abandoned the city during the turmoil, virtually all Daf HaYomi B’Halacha participants showed up to take the tests – many with their young children in tow – more eager and determined than ever.

Dirshu considered all the logistics necessary in order for the tests and proctors to make it to the war torn region in time – and, baruch Hashem, succeeded. Many had to be sent early. Several locations are not being

on schedule, in every location. Most notably, there was no change in location or schedule in Sderot, Ashkelon, Ashdod and other areas in the line of the heaviest Hamas fire.

Rabbi Avraham Schwartzman, Menahel of the Dirshu Testing Program, admits that even he and other Dirshu organizers were surprised.

“Initially, we expected to need to reduce the number of seats at the location, and/or move them to special protected locations,” he says. “When we received scores of phone calls asking whether the tests will be held as per plan, we realized that would not be the case.”

Insight

serviced by regular shipping services, and Dirshu needed to arrange its own special transportation.

Watching the yungerleit take the tests in spite of all that’s going on around them was a sight to behold, and an inspiration to all. “At this test, we saw that the true war we are fighting is the milchamta shel Torah,” says Rabbi Schwartzman. “Our response to the rockets and sirens is a strengthening of limud HaTorah – with lots of mesiras nefesh.”

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All of Israel – and the southern region in particular – has in recent weeks lived under the frightening reality of rockets, mortars, sirens and shelters.

However, none of that sufficed to dent the dedicated Torah learning of the thousands of participants in the Dirshu program across the country.

Last Thursday and Friday, Dirshu’s testing on the Daf HaYomi B’Halacha took place – serving as a refreshing beacon of light amidst the darkness.

At testing locations across the country, tests on the revolutionary daily halacha program took place –

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Bike 4 Chai Brings in Over 4 Million for Chai Lifeline

By Meir Raskas

WOW! Sometimes words cannot do justice to a moment that can only be experienced in person. Video’s and picture may be able to add some color and flavor, however until you are living in the moment it just can’t be described.

My last 48 hours began in Piscataway N.J. I was joined up by 340 other cyclists. As I looked around the hotel while checking in, it occurred to me that the only 2 things that we all had in common was that we loved cycling and we wanted to take that love and do something meaningful with that passion. We were all there to raise money and make a difference in the life of those that have been given a really bad medical diagnosis. The first night before the ride a lavish dinner was prepared. Several speakers got up to thank the numerous people who made the event happen. Awards were given out to the top donors, logistical announcements were made, all while everyone was meddling around to partake in the extravagant feast. It was a challenge to keep the crowd quiet during the presentations. All of a sudden our team honorary captain, Avi was brought up on stage. Avi is a 12 year old kid that suffers from Lymphoma/ Leukemia. He has lost a significant part of his voice due to a feeding tube, and he had to whisper. The room came to instant silence, and you could hear a pin drop. He spoke about how Camp Simcha was the highlight of his life not only for him but also for his new found cancer friends. He went on to say that the highlight of Camp Simcha is when the cyclists come riding into the camp at the end of our 180 mile ride. Immediately, in my mind the shift occurred from the many months of training, the long rides, the cliff bars, the new comradery that I have formed with 21 guys from Baltimore that joined this ride, to the real mission, of the important and holy work of making Camp Sim-

Baltimore Jewish Life.com/Jeff Cohn

cha the best and most fun and enjoyable place for kids & families that are going through some incredibly tragic and horrifying times.

Throughout the ride we were treated like rock stars, although I don’t believe that rock stars are woken up at 4:30 in the morning, for morning prayers. The ride began at 7am with

Allow me to digress from the unity and tell you how it was pretty awesome to ride up the hills and pass the riders from the 5 towns, NJ, and Brooklyn who have done a majority of their training on flat roads. As we ran up the hills and passed these folks, we were cheered with “GO BALTIMORE” with the thick Brooklyn and

the recitation of a prayer for the safety of the riders. The detail to attention and the coordination of all the logistics was something that I have never seen at this magnitude. The amount of food throughout the event was not to be believed. The volunteer support team throughout the ride and at the various rest areas was simply incredible.

The common love and respect throughout the ride by people that I most likely would not have much in common; due to age, religious background, geographic location, and social status etc. was felt throughout the ride by all.

The ride was rough and challenging although our Baltimore people represented really well since we have many hills throughout Baltimore & Carroll County that we have been training for.

Jersey accents.

At the end of day 2 we were gathered together in a staging field a mile outside of camp, where all of the riders were congregated to make the grand entrance into Camp Simcha together. Those that couldn’t make it up the hills were collected off of the roads by buses (each rider had their own GPS tracking device.) That was not a bus ride that I was taking.

As we pedaled up once last hill into camp as one large cohesive group, literally inches from each other (fortunately no one slammed on their brakes and caused a domino effect major crash, which was a big concern,) we could hear the music getting closer and louder.

Suddenly we crossed the finish line and as we entered into the camp, the roads were lined with people behind gates cheering us, music was

blaring, confetti was being shot up in the air and the campers were putting medals around all of the rider’s necks.

Tears began to well up in my eyes as I realized how backwards it was, that we were given the medals, when the true heroes are the kids who live with illness. On the lighter side, this morning when my 4 year old saw my medal on my bed, she said, “Daddy, I knew that you would win the race.”

A huge tent was set up. We were danced and cheered into the tent where we were greeted by the counselors, campers, and families. Children were tugging at our jerseys like we were celebrities. I guess this is what they mean by having your 5 minutes of fame. The level of unity, meaning, and purpose under that tent was something that could not be explained. The look on the sick children’s faces was indescribable The icing on the cake was my immediate reaction was to call my wife and share this moment with her, only to look down at my phone and see NO SERVICE. No cell phone signal, allowed a rare moment in today’s time, the ability to simply revel and live in the moment.

Speaking of my wife, I want to give her a major shout out for supporting me throughout this endeavor. Sarah studied the proper dieting methods, prepared the proper pre and post foods after a ride. She was home with the kids every Friday afternoon and the majority of Sundays while I was on training rides. She even made me believe that she was interested in all of my cycling stories, Strava (a cycling training app) stats, and oohing and awing at my new cool cycling gear. My medal will be given to her.

I want to give a huge thank you to all of you who donated and allowed me to experience this incredible event.

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The Week Global ISIS Enforces Severe Modesty Laws

Women have come under intense scrutiny as ISIS makes its way through the Mideast. Islamic State, the al Qaeda offshoot that seized large swathes of northern Iraq last month, has warned women in the city of Mosul to wear full-face veils or risk severe punishment. They also listed guidelines on how veils and clothes should be worn, part of a campaign to violently impose their radical brand of Islam. The Sunni insurgents have declared a caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria, and have threatened to march onto Baghdad.

According to the fanatic group, they are only forcing these standards of dress on the women for their own good. “The conditions imposed on her clothes and grooming was only to end the pretext of debauchery resulting from grooming and overdressing,” said the Islamic State in a statement.

“This is not a restriction on her freedom but to prevent her from falling into humiliation and vulgarity or to be a theater for the eyes of those who are looking.”

A cleric in Mosul told Reuters that Islamic State gunmen had shown up at his mosque and ordered him to read their warning on loudspeakers when worshipers gather. “Anyone who is not committed to this duty and is motivated by glamour will be subject to accountability and severe punishment to protect society from harm and to maintain the necessities of religion and protect it from debauchery,” said the Islamic State.

According to ISIS guidelines, hands and feet must be covered.

Shapeless clothing must be worn at

all times and perfume is strictly prohibited. Women have been told to never walk unaccompanied by a male guardian. The Islamic State even ordered shopkeepers to cover their store mannequins with full-face veils.

The insurgents, formerly called the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), have been systematically stamping out any religious or cultural influences they deem non-Islamic since their lightning sweep through the north.

U.S. military and Iraqi security officials estimate the Islamic State has at least 3,000 fighters in Iraq, rising towards 20,000 to include new recruits since last month’s advance.

In News from everywhere – including the United States. But despite the fun and games children are enjoying, of former North Korea leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Ill on the campgrounds, reminders that the camp is still located in the middle of a dictatorship.

The summer camp opened nearly 30 years ago. Its mission is to deepen relationships with other countries, and give children from those countries the chance to bond with kids from North Korea and explore a nation many people don’t know much about.

100M Filipinos Strong

North Korea’s Summer Camp When you think of summer fun and camp during the hot months of July and August, few would think of North Korea. But believe it or not, around 300 children from around the world flock to the Songdowon International Children’s Camp in Wonsan every year. The camp, which offers eight days of fun, opened on Tuesday and boasts giant water slides, a private beach, volleyball courts and – of course – statues of dictators.

“At the end there is a talent show,” said 19-year-old Linus Jamal Faustin, who came with a group of 16 from Tanzania’s Laureate International School in Dar es Salaam. “We are ready to show them all how to dance.”

Campers from Russia, China, Vietnam, Ireland and Tanzania sleep in air-conditioned rooms with video games and TVs. Songdowon is a popular beach destination on North Korea’s east coast, famous its clear waters and sandy, white beaches.

Officials say children are welcome

Last Sunday, the birth of a baby girl in the Philippines made headlines as she officially pushed the population of the country to 100 million. The child, Jennalyn Sentino, was one of 100 babies born in state hospitals all over the archipelago who received the symbolic designation of “100,000,000th baby.”

“This is both an opportunity and a challenge...an opportunity we should take advantage of and a challenge we recognize,” Juan Antonio Perez, executive director of the official Commission on Population, said.

While a growing population means a larger workforce, it also means more dependents in a country where about 25 percent of people are living in poverty, he said. The Philippines has to find a way to bring services to the poorest families while also curbing the population growth.

While celebrating the birth of the babies with cake and gifts of clothing and blankets, the government will also monitor each of the designated 100 children over the coming years to see if they are receiving the required health services, Perez added.

A Restaurant Run

by Convicts

When traveling to India, you may want to visit the Tihar Food Court in west Delhi. The food in the air conditioned restaurant is fresh and many love the traditional “thali” meal of flat bread, lentils, vegetables and rice served there.

What makes this eatery so unique is the people who work there. The waiter serving banker Gaurav Gupta lunch last week is actually a convicted murderer serving time in South Asia’s largest prison complex. The restaurant opened just a few weeks ago on an “experimental basis” and is a rehabilitation effort kicked off by the Tihar prison. It is located less than a mile from prisoners’ dormitories.

It’s hard to know that the eatery is part of a prison program. With a spacious interior lined with wooden tables and walls adorned with paintings done by prisoners, the 50-seat restaurant has been praised for the polite behavior of its employees, who were trained by a prestigious nearby hotel management school.

“The food is average,” said Gupta.

“But the hygiene factor is really good, very clean. And it’s a good thing they are employing prisoners.”

Restaurant manager Mohammad Asim said there are around 50 customers every day, with each worker paid 74 rupees ($1.20) for the day’s work.

“Those who come once to have our food come back again,” said Asim, who has spent 14-1/2 years in jail for murder.

But not all prisoners are deemed worthy to be serving foodstuffs. To be eligible to leave prison and work in the restaurant, inmates must have kept up an “unblemished record” through at least 12 years of imprisonment, and have a high school education. Prison-

The Toppling of the Tower of David Thousands of squatters lost the roof over their heads last Tuesday in Venezuela after they were evicted by officials from a haphazard community inside the semi-completed Caracas skyscraper known as the Tower of David, nicknamed after its financier David Brillembourg. The tower is a symbol of the country’s decay and was known world-wide as the largest “vertical slum.”

The government provided the squatters with apartments in the near-

by town of Cua. However, residents complained that they did not want to move so far away. They were concerned with losing the million dollar views, and their easy access to supermarkets, public transportation and, employment.

Understandably, these people did not want to move—even if they truly didn’t own their residences. Police came prepared to deal with the crowd in riot gear and soldiers with Ka-

lashnikov assault rifles stood on side streets as the residents boarded buses for the 23 miles trip to Cua. Ernesto Villegas, the government minister overseeing Caracas’ redevelopment, told reporters that the 45-story building is unsafe and residents cannot be allowed to stay indefinitely.

Sadly, Villegas reported that children have fallen from the tower and died since there are missing windows, walls, doors, and staircases. There was

very limited working plumbing and the skyscraper had a foul smell.

Initially, the tower was intended to be the crown jewel of a glittering downtown but it was abandoned amid a 1990s banking crisis. It quickly became a symbol representing failed capitalism. By 2007, the “invaders,” as they’re called in Caracas, had claimed the entire property. They turned on the electricity, opened stores, and created a sophisticated internal management

AUGUST 7, 2014

ers eligible to be released within two years are picked for the job to minimize their temptation to escape. They travel to work by bicycle or on foot, as authorities “trust them enough” not to need a security escort.

Once notorious for corruption, drug problems and prisoner abuse, the Tihar jail complex has ushered in several reforms, with vocational training and painting featured among the rehabilitation programs offered to its 13,552 inmates.

“The restaurant was set up to give employment to the inmates and project the positive aspects of prison work to the public,” said a spokesman. A similar experiment has run for more than two years in the southern state of Kerala, where prison inmates dish up food sold at a counter near the jail, or distributed by mobile vans.

Customers have few qualms dealing with the Tihar prisoners. “I think that Tihar authorities have observed them for years and have decided they can be placed in front of the public ... so I don’t think there is a need to be worried,” said first-time customer Atul Singh, who works with the Indian unit of South Korean electronics giant Samsung.

Bal Krishan Grover, 49, wearing the restaurant uniform shirt of red and white stripes, said he was an electrician before going to prison 13 years ago for “accidentally killing” someone in a quarrel. He says he enjoys working at the restaurant and plans to switch careers as soon as he is a free man. “My aim is to set up a branch of the Tihar restaurant,” said Grover.

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Last week, the surrounding neighbors were glad to be rid of the squatters. Retiree Antonio Farias looked on with delight, saying the slum had brought the constant threat of kidnapping, robbery, and crimes against woman.

As the squatters were evacuated, Maria Sevilla, manager of the 28th floor, looked longingly at the grimy

concrete skeleton that she called home, and wistfully intoned, “What I’ll miss the most is the community we built here.”

In News “I don’t know how I’ll be able to find a job out there,” said Yaritza Casares, 28, leading her 4-year-old daughter through a soaring courtyard.

“We were lucky to live here.”

Ukrainian PM Resigns; Interim PM is Jewish

Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk announced his resignation. This announcement opened the door for new elections, reflecting the country’s political instability after the overthrow of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in February.

Last Thursday, Ukrainian Prime

Yanukovych was replaced by elected President Petro Poroshenko on May 25. At the time, he said that “all opinion polls, and direct conversations with people, show that society wants a complete rebooting of the government.”

Yatsenyuk, a supporter of closer ties with Europe and a key participant in the protests that toppled Yanukovych, made the announcement from the dais of Parliament after two parties said they would pull out of the governing coalition. He said Parliament could no longer do its work and pass necessary laws.

Yatsenyuk has served as prime minister for just five short months and was supported by a coalition of pro-European parties that took power after Yanukovych was ejected from his office by months of street protests on Kiev’s Independence Square.

“I think this is a fully expected and planned development,” said Balazs Jarabik, visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

“The president and the government coalition looked for ways to clear the legal way for an early election, as they are under a lot of pressure from Maidan and the public.”

After the resignation of Yatsenyuk, Volodymyr Groysman, a deputy prime minister, was elected to be the acting prime minister in his stead. Groysman is Jewish. He joined the government in February as deputy prime minister for regional policy and is a former mayor of the city of Vinnytsia. Groysman will serve until lawmakers elect a prime minister prior to parliamentary elections early next year.

The government faces tensions with

National Protest against Anti-Semitic Performance at the Met

Facing crowds heading towards the Metropolitan Opera on West 62nd Street, two dozen members of Americans for a Safe Israel (AFSI) and JCC Watch gathered at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City last week to protest the upcoming performances of “Death of Klinghoffer” which is scheduled to open on Monday, September 22 at the Met. The protestors, who are calling for the cancellation of the program, held signs, distributed flyers to passersby and sat in two wheelchairs brought to the protest to symbolize the murder of Leon Klinghoffer who was thrown from the Achille Lauro cruise ship after its hi-

jacking by the PLO because he was a Jew. This was the second in four protests held this week. According to AFSI member and long-time activist Glenn Richter, the purpose of the protest was to “bring moral clarity to the management of the Metropolitan Opera that anything does not go, that giving a powerful operatic voice to murderous terrorists cannot be justified, even in the name of ‘art.’” Richter asked if the Metropolitan Opera would have staged a “similar production glorifying hooded Klansmen lynching an innocent black person.”

According to event organizer Helen Freedman, the executive director of AFSI, the opera “totally revises the history of the 1948 War of Independence fought by Israel against overwhelming odds. It emphasizes the displacement of the Arabs, blaming it on the Jews, when it was actually their own leadership that encouraged them to leave their homes as they were told that they would return.”

Richard Allen, the head of JCC Watch, addressed the crowd and stated, “The opera espouses incendiary anti-Semitic lies; celebrating the ‘humanity of the terrorists’ is totally unacceptable.”

One stanza from the opera from the mouths of the terrorists reads, “America is one big Jew...You are always complaining of your suffering.

But wherever poor men are gathered they can find Jews getting fat. They know how to cheat the simple, exploit the virgin, pollute wherever you have exploited. Defame those you cheated, and break your own law with idolatry.”

Allen suggested that concerned individuals contact management at the Metropolitan Opera, adding, “We must understand the importance of cancelling ‘The Death of Klinghoffer’ performances at the Met, especially in light of the onslaught of terrorism going on in the Middle East today.”

The groups are planning to continue protests until the opera is cancelled.

In light of the protests, a live HD broadcast to 2,000 cinemas around the world on November 15 has been cancelled. Peter Gelb, general manager at the Met, admitted, “I’m convinced that the opera is not anti-Semitic, but I’ve also become convinced that there

is genuine concern in the international Jewish community that the live transmission of ‘The Death of Klinghoffer’ would be inappropriate at this time of rising anti-Semitism, particularly in Europe.”

ing to the National Weather Service.

Poor Doors for the Poor: Can Separate be Equal?

Lightning Storms Kills 1 on CA Beach On Sunday afternoon, a freak lightning storm battered a California beach, killing a 20-year-old man with a blast of electricity and injuring 13 more along the coast. Beachgoers on Venice Beach didn’t realize that the storm that was rolling towards them would create such havoc and harm.

But when the lightning hit at about 2:20 p.m., it sounded like “just one big explosion,” a witness, Ruben Tumbaga, 36, said. “Right when I saw it hit the ground, I closed my eyes and flinched.”

When he opened his eyes, he saw the damage that was caused by the lightning bolts. A body boarder’s body was floating the water. Thankfully, the surfer was conscious but lifeguards had to drag him out of the water and start chest compressions to help him start breathing again.

A storm of such caliber has rarely been seen along the California coast. It was sparked by monsoon moisture and was described as very loud and bright by witnesses — and sent people scattering from the beach as lightning hit several people.

The storm managed to strike down another man, 57, at a golf course on Catalina Island off the coast, but he is in stable condition.

The 20-year-old who died from the lighting strike is the 16th person to die from lightning so far in 2014, accord-

There’s no city like New York.

Home to the rich and poor, educated and unschooled, privileged and unprivileged. We all share the same streets, subways, and buses. And some of us live in the same buildings—where those with more and less money in their bank accounts share the same address.

But the gaps between rich and poor in the Big Apple are becoming more and more visible, especially for some of New York’s low-income residents living in buildings that segregate them from their rich neighbors. So-called “poor doors” (or separate entrances for poor people, usually located in the back of the building, out of view from the upper-class tenants) are increasingly common among New York’s swanky residential buildings that house the super-rich alongside a handful of low-income people in order to get tax credits from the city.

The City of Happiness They say that happiness is in your state of mind, but sometimes it also helps to be in the right city. Researchers at the University of British Columbia and Harvard University used information from the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research for a study that ranked happiness levels in cities across America.

AUGUST 7, 2014

Russia which labeled Yanukovych’s ouster a coup, seized Ukraine’s Crimea region, and cut off natural gas supplies in a price dispute. It has also battled a pro-Russian insurgency in which rebels armed with heavy weapons such as tanks and anti-aircraft missiles have seized public buildings and battled government troops. The fighting was highlighted on the world stage with the recent downing of a Malaysia Airlines plane over the Donetsk region. The investigation over the bombing is still not completed, although most agree that it is most likely that the pro-Russia rebels shot down the airliner. Russia denies supporting them.

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The Week Where do residents have smiles plastered on their faces? Turns out that Lafayette, Louisiana, is the happiest city around. And speaking of Louisiana, if you know someone from that state, chances are they are probably pretty happy; 6 of the 10 happiest cities in America are in the Pelican State.

Corpus Christi, TX; Nashville,

TN; and Fort Walton Beach, FL, all made it to the top ten happiest cities around as well.

Perhaps the most shocking revelation of this study is the unhappiest city in the nation. Yes, residents of the Big Apple seem to have a large cloud looming overhead. They suffer from severe traffic, rough weather, and ex-

In News tremely high living expenses. Even so, cheer up, New Yorkers, you have so many job opportunities, a high average income, and rich culture, art, and entertainment to make you happy.

And you also have a great mayor!

Other cities that came out on the unhappy list include South Bend, IN; Detroit, MI; and Jersey City, NJ.

Nazi Dies before Extradition

Hours before being told that he was to be extradited to Germany to face trial, an 89-year-old Nazi war crimes suspect died in custody. Johann Breyer died at a Philadelphia hospital where he was being treated after a month in jail, his lawyer and the U.S. Marshals Service said. His death was disclosed just as U.S. Magistrate Timothy Rice approved the extradition request, which would have needed final U.S. government review.

Rice found probable cause that Breyer was the person being sought by German authorities over his suspected service as an SS guard at Auschwitz during World War II. “No statute of limitations offers a safe haven for murder,” he wrote in his ruling.

U.S. marshals had arrested Breyer in June outside his home in Philadelphia. He was facing charges of aiding in the killing of 216,000 Jewish men, women and children at a Nazi death camp. “As outlined by Germany, a death camp guard such as Breyer could not have served at Auschwitz during the peak of the Nazi reign of terror in 1944 without knowing that hundreds of thousands of human beings were being brutally slaughtered in gas chambers and then burned on site,” Rice wrote.

Breyer claimed he was unaware of the massive slaughter at Auschwitz and that he did not participate in it, but “the German allegations belie his claims,” the judge wrote.

German authorities in the Bavarian town of Weiden issued a warrant for Breyer’s arrest in June 2013 under

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The Week revised laws that allow Nazi guards to be charged with accessory to murder even without proof they took part in the killings, because the camps’ sole function was to kill people, especially those witnessing their crimes. The warrant accused Breyer of 158 counts of accessory to murder — one count for each trainload of victims brought to the Auschwitz death camp in occupied Po-

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Amish Learn about Outside World While Behind Bars When the Amish are forced to go

In News to prison, they get a real education.

Amish farmer Raymond Miller developed a taste for Mountain Dew soda, got his GED, and wonders if he should get a pool table after learning to play behind prison walls. His wife, Kathryn, who had never ridden a public bus before boarding one last year to go to prison for forcibly cutting the hair of her relatives, was introduced

to yoga and step classes while behind bars.

Their stint in prison may have changed the Millers forever. They are members of an Amish breakaway sect from eastern Ohio at the center of the shocking 2011 hair cutting attacks on other Amish followers. After sitting in prison for a year, they are now trying to settle back into life at home after being exposed in prison to a world their religion is focused on locking out.

The Amish shun modern technology and regard beards for adult men and uncut hair for married women as sacred. In Bergholz, where the Millers live, they are Old Order, which means no electricity or telephone lines are allowed into their house.

But Raymond, 29, is on probation and needs to place a daily call to his probation officer. He also wears an electronic ankle monitor while harvesting hay. “I’m ready to get rid of it,” Raymond said of the telephone installed in his home. “We get salesman calls about electric bills and they don’t believe that we don’t have an electric bill.”

The Millers were part of a group of 16 Amish from Bergholz who were convicted in late 2012 of hate crimes for the hair-cutting attacks. The victims included Raymond Miller’s parents. Prosecutors said the attacks were intended to humiliate and were carried out in retaliation for personal and spiritual disagreements that Bergholz’s bishop and leader Sam Mullet had with Amish in other groups. Mullet, who was portrayed as extremely authoritarian, is serving 15 years as mastermind of the attacks.

One thing both of the Millers had to get accustomed to in prison was the concept of free time, something the Amish do not have a lot of at home.

“I read, played softball and played pool. I liked pool and I was pretty good at it,” Raymond said.

“I think we could get a pool table

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The Millers said they do not regret going to trial but do not believe it was fair and are appealing their convictions. “We really didn’t have a jury of our peers,” Raymond said. “They don’t know about the Amish, the lifestyle.”

That’s Odd

A Yankees Fan and a Red Sox Fan’s Friendship Rings True

Despite the age-old conflict between the Yankees and the Red Sox, a Yankees fan found it in his heart to make a Red Sox fan happy last week.

On Thursday night, Manhattan

restaurant owner Luigi Militello could hardly believe his eyes when he found a shiny 2013 championship ring on a restroom sink at his Luke’s Bar and Grill. This wasn’t a cheap ring winking on the dark sink. It was the real thing, with diamonds and sapphires and rubies, set in 14-carat white gold, with the Red Sox emblem, a Boston Strong logo and an image of the team’s bearded ballplayers.

“I was like…it’s big. Who would leave this here?” Militello recalled.

“I’m a big Yankees fan. What are the chances of this happening?”

Drew Weber had dined at the restaurant earlier; it’s one of his favorite spots. Weber is a New York businessman and also owns the Lowell Spinners, a thriving Red Sox Class A minor league team in Massachusetts.

Big league teams often reward executives throughout their organization with World Series rings. The Red Sox

haven’t put a value on these pieces of jewelry — the rings they presented for winning the 2004 crown were worth about $30,000.

Because of its value, this was the first time Weber wore the ring outside. After noticing its absence, “I went looking around my apartment and started having palpitations. Sweat was pouring off my forehead,” he said.

“I’m looking at my finger and it’s not there.”

In desperation, he called Luke’s after midnight. Militello answered the phone and calmed him down. He told him he found the ring. “But this being Yankees-Red Sox, I started razzing him. I told him he wasn’t getting it so easily. I was playing with him, a lot,” Militello said.

Weber says, “I was like, ‘Who am I dealing with?’”

But despite differing allegiances, the pair quickly put aside their root-

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at Sam’s,” he said, referring to Mullet’s home, which has a large meeting room for church services. “I think it would be alright.”

Kathryn, 25, who also learned the game, shook her head ‘no’ in the background. “I like to play pool but we are not allowed to play pool here,” Kathryn said. “The girls in prison gave me a hard time that I was gambling.”

Raymond lost weight in prison because he did not like the food but says he did develop a liking for Mountain Dew. Kathryn said she wore a smaller head covering than her typical Amish bonnet while in prison, along with long brown dresses. She uses prison slang and referred to fellow prisoners as “cellies” and “bunkies” and talked about the SHU, or solitary housing unit. “I didn’t feel like I was Amish,” she admitted. She also discovered yoga and step classes behind bars.

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The Week ing interests, met the next day at the restaurant, returned the ring and spent 25 minutes talking baseball. Militello was insistent that he wouldn’t accept any money. As a reward, he tried to persuade Weber to call into a local sports radio show and disparage the Red Sox, but that didn’t work.

Instead, Weber and the Red Sox have invited Militello to make his first trip to Fenway Park for the regular-season finale on September 28.

That game is sure to be a real prize.

It’s also scheduled to be the final game for retiring Yankees star Derek Jeter.

“Going for his send-off, that’s pretty great,” Militello said.

“He asked if he could wear his Yankees paraphernalia,” Weber kidded. “I couldn’t answer him.”

“The ring and Drew Weber have learned their lesson,” he laughed.

“That ring is going on no more road trips.”

Speeding to Prison Ever get pulled over for speeding?

Well, here’s something you shouldn’t do if you are pulled over by a cop: call in a fake shooting.

Julius Lupowitz never got this

memo and when he was pulled over by a police officer on Thursday in Florida, the 52-year-old called 911 when the officer turned away.

In News same person that was making the 911 calls,” said Lt. Cordeau.

So, now, instead of a $200 traffic ticket, Lupowitz is speeding off to jail and facing a felony charge with a fiveyear maximum prison term.

Points are Flying from Sale of the Chicken Cup “There’s definitely someone going to get shot. Please, please. Wingate and Hollywood. Please,” he pleaded to the 911 operator. “There’s a man with a gun. I see him looking at me but I don’t think he sees I’m on a cell phone. I swear I’m so scared I might get killed myself. Please.”

After receiving the call, officers were dispatched to the scene, but Lupowitz’s scheme didn’t turn out as he wished: the officer who pulled him over for speeding stayed nearby and was alerted by other officers that Mr. Lupowitz was the one who placed the fake call.

“Our officer was standing at the door of Mr. Lupowitz’s vehicle and realized, at that point, that this was the

In April, Liu Yiqian, one of China’s richest men and most important art collectors, bought a rare Ming dynasty porcelain cup at auction from Sotheby’s in Hong Kong. The 500-year-old “Chicken cup” is one of only 17 in existence and fetched a record sum: $36 million.

Wondering how he footed the bill? He paid with his American Express Centurion Card, more commonly known as the Black Card, earning himself 422,860,000 rewards points.

Wonder how many times he can fly to Israel and back with those points.

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Janyl Jumadinova and Oliver Bonham-Carter chose an interesting venue for their July nuptials. The Nebraska couple got married in Forest Lawn Cemetery, the largest cemetery in Omaha. Of course, they were surrounded by their beloved family and friends, plus about another 100,000

souls buried in the 349-acre cemetery.

Janyl, the bride, is from Kyrgyzstan. In her culture, there is a strong belief in spirits.

Some of the groom’s ancestors are buried in the cemetery. The excited Oliver said, “It’s not at all creepy; we have thousands of witnesses — both alive and dead!”

The couple married earlier this year in a small ceremony in Pennsylvania. However, they wanted to hold another wedding affair so friends and family could bear witness. The ceremony took place in the Forest Lawn Cemetery chapel, an ornate 101-yearold chapel decorated with granite, marble, brass, stained glass and mosaic tiles. Guests traveled more than 6,000 miles from three different continents to attend the July 19th wedding.

This gives “till death do us part” a very raw meaning.

$20M Lotto Helps Family Ravaged

by Sandy

In a wonderful twist of fate, a large family that lived at the shore and suffered losses during Hurricane Sandy celebrated the news of a $20 million lottery win last week.

Members of the Endreson family, with 17 siblings ranging in age from 53 to 76, will share in the spoils of the win. The New Jersey Pick-6 prize will also be shared with three children of a brother who died a few years ago.

John Endreson, 69, became emotional when he described rebuilding his home after Sandy ripped through the area in October 2012. “The hardest part was seeing other people that were devastated,” he said. “I was able to redo my house and help my family and my brothers. I was quite fortunate.

I just feel so lucky. And this is just the icing on the cake.”

Another sibling described how

“It’s going to help the family; it’s going to help Ocean County,” Schiabor said. “It’s just a great pick-me-up for all of us.”

He Doesn’t Take His Job Sitting Down Robert Samuel is a stand-up guy.

In fact, he loves to stand—in lines, that is. The New Yorker is the founder of Same Ole Line Dudes (SOLD Inc.) and he’s waiting for you.

Samuel is a professional “line sitter.” He waits for anything—for Cronuts, for iPhones, for tickets for a show—for his clients. The price of waiting doesn’t come cheap. Samuel charges $25 for the first hour and $10 for each additional half hour. In one week, he can make up to $1,000.

Samuel got into this business two years ago, when he lost his job as an AT&T sales representative and needed a new way to make extra cash. When the iPhone 5 came out, he put an advertisement on Craigslist offering to wait in line for it for $100. Hours before he purchased the iPhone, Samuel’s original customer cancelled on him, but decided to pay him anyway.

Samuel was ready to leave the line, but decided to resell his spot.

By 8 a.m. the next day, after 19 hours of waiting, the entrepreneur had earned $325 from selling his spot, inviting his friends to come down and sell their spots, and selling milk crates for $5 a piece to people who were tired of standing.

After finding the cost of standing in line to be lucrative, Samuel founded SOLD in December 2012. He still keeps his day job—as a concierge for a luxury building in Brooklyn—but hopes that SOLD will eventually become more solid employment.

High-paying gigs began to roll in when the Cronut craze started last summer in New York City. For $60, Samuel and his line waiters offered to pick up two of the delicious pastries and deliver them straight to their clients. From this service alone, SOLD Inc. would make upwards of $240 per week.

Surprisingly, not all of Samuel’s clients are rich. “It’s all everyday people,” he says. “Sometimes I get a

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their late mother started playing the lottery regularly years ago and would always say that all her children would get a piece of the winnings.

Faith Schiabor related how she got the news from one of her sisters who had bought the winning ticket. “I got this frantic phone call,” she said. “She said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ I thought someone was hurt.”

Her sister Sigrid told reporters that she bought the tickets and then forgot about them for about two weeks before going down to a supermarket to check them. When one came back with the message, “see cashier,” she ran it through again before taking it up to the window and getting the good news. “I started to cry,” she said. “I called my sister to come get me. I didn’t think I was going to make it. I said, ‘I think I won the lottery.’”

The lucky family decided to take a lump sum payment of $14 million, which is worth about $10 million after taxes.

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The Week customer who can’t get out of work on time to wait for a movie premiere, or somebody on the Upper East Side who really wants a new Xbox but doesn’t want to stand in the cold for seven hours before it goes on sale. It’s a whole medley.”

In fact, the ever-moving Samuel works a line even when he’s not waiting on it. “I’m very grassroots,” he explains. “When there’s a line that goes around the block, I go and work the line.” When he approaches people, he asks them, “Are you hot, tired?

Don’t want to do this again? I’ll do it for you.”

Samuel believes there’s no such thing as over-promotion. “You have to consider everybody as a potential customer,” he says. “Even if they don’t take the card, I’ll tell them our name.

They can’t unhear it, so I’ll be as vocal as possible. That’s business for us in the long run.”

Samuel, we’re totally SOLD.

No Loud Americans Allowed

Despite a busy tourist season in Ireland, one café in the south displayed a sign prohibiting Americans from entering the Peter’s Place Café. “No bus/coach or, loud American’s [sic]. Thank you.”

“I was a bit taken aback,” Maurice Campbell said, after he posted an image of the sign on Twitter. “I mentioned it to them and said it was a very strange sign, and he [the owner] just sort of looked at me.”

Campbell was vacationing in Waterville, a village on Ireland southern coast below Killarney when he came upon Peter’s Place Café and the sign. “It seems like a guy who is running a place very much in his way, and he serves who he wants to and that’s the way of it,” Campbell said. “I would have thought if it said no Africans, it would have caused a very different sort of trouble. It’s a bit much.”

In News

The sign was especially surprising since the area relies heavily on tourism.

“What surprised me is that nobody from the local community had asked him to take it down, because, goodness, it’s not a very welcoming thing when people are traveling around,” he said. “We’re all very happy to see Americans come – so many of you have origins of some sort in Ireland – and we like you to come spend your dollars. You’re as welcome as are the flowers in May. So it’s not good to see somebody putting something like that up.”

Ireland hosted more than one million American visitors who spent about $1 billion in 2013, and American tourists tend to stay longer and spend more than the average tourist. “The United States continues to be one of the strongest markets for tourism to the island of Ireland. 2013 was a record year for American visitors to Ireland – even surpassing our previous best year of 2007,” Tourism Ireland CEO Niall Gibbons pointed out. “We are determined to ensure the success continues.”

Locals share that sentiment, with Niall O’Driscoll tweeting out in response to Campbell’s photo, “Sorry you had to see that. I’m from Cahersiveen, the town before Waterville, and we welcome all Americans loud or quiet.”

I’d say Americans better steer clear of Peter’s Place. I am sure there are pubs around that will welcome you—and your dollars.

The youngster’s father, Suresh Gavai, said that the family had been worried that Ashik’s swelling was a cancerous growth. “I was worried that it may turn out to be cancer so I brought him to Mumbai,” Gavai told the Mumbai Mirror newspaper.

Dhivare-Palwankar said the literature they had come across on the condition showed a maximum of 37 teeth being removed in such a procedure, whereas she and her team had counted more than 232 taken from Gavai’s mouth. “I think it could be a world record,” she said.

Gavai’s jawbone structure was maintained during the operation so it should heal without any deformities, the surgeon added.

Sounds like a mouthful.

232 Teeth Removed from Teen’s Mouth

The Garbage Gourmands

In a world record operation, surgeons in Mumbai have removed 232 teeth from the mouth of an Indian teenager.

Ashik Gavai, 17, sought medical help for a swelling on the right side of his lower jaw and the case was referred to the city’s JJ Hospital, where they found he was suffering from a condition known as complex odontoma, head of dentistry Sunanda Dhivare-Palwankar explained.

“We operated on Monday and it took us almost seven hours. We thought it may be a simple surgery but once we opened it there were multiple pearl-like teeth inside the jaw bone,” she said.

After removing those, they also found a larger “marble-like” structure which they struggled to shift and eventually had to “chisel out” and remove in fragments, she added.

Want a delicious meal? Have some garbage.

Although it may sound more than weird, a food-focused innovator and his chef allies are turning trash-bound ingredients into elegant meals, served to guests in a cleaned-up dumpster.

“If it’s edible and you can eat it, we should be using it to feed people,” said Josh Treuhaft, who created the Salvage Supperclub after studying how to reduce massive food waste.

The 30-year-old recent School of Visual Arts graduate partnered with Natural Gourmet Institute chefs in March to hold the first supperclub in a Chelsea studio. They’ve now run five dinners, the last two held in an industrial dumpster in Williamsburg.

The 16-person feasts showcase chronically unloved ingredients in gourmet dishes. Chef Celia Lam has mashed disgusting-looking black peel bananas with coconut milk for tasty custards, pureed the greens from rubbery carrots for pesto and juiced bruised apples for sorbets. Purple kale stems get pickled for garnishes. Cracked heirloom tomatoes are boiled, skinned and blended into a summer gazpacho.

“It’s not something that’s very complicated,” said Lam, who hopes to encourage people to use more of their food. “Pickling is easy to do. Pesto is easy to do.”

So how do you know when garbage really is meant for the trash and not your plate? The key is to realize there’s a difference between normal breakdown and the dangerous bacteria from mishandling that can make you sick, Treuhaft and Lam said.

The duo doesn’t just focus on what’s on the menu. The ambiance is key, too.

The dumpster dining room was designed to drive home the pair’s sustainability theme. Treuhaft uses materials donated

by Build It Green! NYC, a Gowanusbased building supply store that sells salvaged materials. Even the water glasses come from old wine bottles.

Although New Yorkers are generally blasé about most crazy things they witness in their city, the garbage gourmands have raised eyebrows and a few complaints from passersby, Treuhaft said, like the woman who thought it was an insult to homeless people who scavenge for food.

“I was taken aback since that was never an angle I had considered,” Treuhaft said. “But when I explained what the salvage supperclub was actually about, she totally lit up.”

“Anyone can do this,” Treuhaft said.

“You could get together with friends on a Sunday and bring things from your refrigerator and have a great meal.”

From garbage to gourmet…hmmm, I think I’ll pass.

31

A Fulfilled Life Rabbi Naphtali Hoff

R

The Courage to Move Forward rabban yochanan demonsTraTed ThaT no maTTer hoW bleak The presenT looks, There is alWays TomorroW. wishes satisfied. The sage asked for three things, all relating to Torah and the Jews’ spiritual preservation. “Give me Yavneh and its wise men, the family chain of Rabban Gamliel, and physicians to heal Rabbi Tzadok.” (Gittin 56a) Let us explore each of these appeals a bit further.

• Yavneh and its wise men – to preserve the Torah, Rabban Yochanan asked that the Torah academy in Yavneh be spared.

• The family chain of Rabban Gamliel – the nesi’im offered strong leadership for this tumultuous time, vital for national survival.

• Physicians to heal Rabbi Tzadok

– who had fasted for forty years to avert the destruction and was in ill health.

Vespasian granted all of his requests.

He even provided a safe escort for the Torah sages as they relocated to Yavneh.

Many of Rabban Yochanan’s contemporaries opposed his moving of the Sanhedrin from Yerushalayim. Still, Rabban Yochanan persisted. He understood that the most important decisions in history can also often be the more difficult and pursued his convictions despite the consequences.

Once at Yavneh, Rabban Yochanan passed numerous legislations designed to preserve the legacy of the Bais Hamikdash for subsequent generations, so as to keep the connection alive long into the exile period. These became known as “zecher l’mikdash.” Some examples include: • Maror – Eating maror on the first night of Pesach is mandated by the Torah only in conjunction with consumption of the Pesach sacrifice. With the abolition of sacrifices, the biblical obligation ceased. We eat maror today as a zecher l’mikdash. This also applies to korech, the combination of matzah and mrror.

• Shofar – During the Temple period, the shofar was sounded on Rosh Hashana that fell on Shabbos only in the Bais Hamikdash, not elsewhere. Rabban Yochanan now ordained that it be sounded on Shabbos in any locale that possessed a bais din.

(Rosh Hashana 4:1) • Lulav – Originally, the lulav was taken for all seven days of Succos in the Bais Hamikdash only; those outside of the mikdash only took it for the first day. It was later instituted that the lulav should be taken everywhere for all seven days. (Sukkah 41a) In addition to these legislations, a number of decrees were passed to ensure that the Jewish people would continuously remember the loss of the Bais Hamikdash. These became known as “zecher l’churban,” and include leaving an area near the front entrance of

one’s house unfinished, omitting an item or two when preparing a full-course banquet, and other restraints on joy and beautification.

There is much that we can learn from Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, such as: • See beyond the moment – Rabban Yochanan demonstrated that no matter how bleak the present looks, there is always tomorrow. Not only will the sun rise again on a new day, but we must plan for that eventuality to ensure an optimal outcome.

• Have faith in your convictions – It was easy for Rabban Yochanan to stay put in Yerushalayim and passively await his fate. Instead, he courageously orchestrated a risky plan to gain an audience with Vespasian. Later, he chose to pursue his minority agenda of relocating to Yavneh despite opposition from his peers.

• Hold on to the positive – Particularly in times of challenge, it is important to remember and draw inspiration from better days. By connecting to the mikdash, Rabban Yochanan sought to keep his nation focused on our days of glory and offer us something towards which to aspire.

• Remember what you are missing – Complacency can easily set in when we are satisfied with the status quo. Abstaining from full expressions of joy help to remind us that things are far from perfect and that we have to work diligently to better our situation.

Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai of-

fered strong, focused leadership at one of the most difficult times in our nation’s history. Hopefully, we can apply many of the lessons that our great leader taught us in order to live more fulfilling, focused and growth-oriented lives.

Rabbi Naphtali Hoff is an executive coach and president of Impactful Coaching and Consulting. He can be reached at 212-470-6139 or at president@impactfulcoaching.com.

AUGUST 7, 2014

abban Yochanan ben Zakkai is one of the great heroes in Jewish history and the leading sage at the time of churban bayis sheni. As the Jews and Romans were struggling for control of the Holy City, he managed to escape from the capital and engage the Roman commander Vespasian in a conversation which would have lasting effects for the Jewish people. Though his dialogue did not end the long, painful military campaign in which the Jews and Romans were engaged, nor was it successful in preserving autonomous Jewish life in their homeland, it did manage to set the stage for Jewish survival and rebirth in exile, an endurance that has defied all historical odds.

Rabban Yochanan opened the discussion with a declaration that the general had been appointed as Roman emperor.

His statement was soon confirmed by a Roman courier. Overjoyed at the news, the new emperor granted Rabban Yochanan a unique opportunity to have his

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A child playing on the beach had six 1/6 sand piles in one place and three1/3 sand piles in another. If he put them together, how many sand piles would he have?

Change just one letter in the word on either side of the parentheses to form a word that fits the definition within the parentheses.

(The letter you use will not necessarily be the same for each word.) For example, the answer to MATCH (month) DAY would be MARCH and MAY.

•

FIRE (tool) PINK

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CALL (toy) BAR

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REAR (fruit) REACH

Answers:

DULL (herb)MIST

CENT, DIME

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•

CAMP (fish)BIKE

BEECH, LARCH

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•

TOWN (garment)RODE

DUTCH, GREEK

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FILE (measure)ITCH

FELT, SILK

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•

FELL (material)SICK

MILE, INCH

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DITCH (language) CREEK

GOWN,ROBE

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BENCH (tree) LATCH

CARP,PIKE

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•

BENT (coin) DICE

DILL, MINT

Yankel passes by a pet shop and notices a parrot in the window selling for $1,500. He goes inside and asks why it costs so much. The salesman tells him the parrot speaks five languages.

“Five languages!” exclaims Yankel. “Does it speak Yiddish?”

“Sure it does,” says the salesman.

As his mother lives by herself, Yankel decides to buy her the parrot as a present. After all, it’ll keep her company.

So he pays the $1,500 and arranges for the shop to deliver the parrot to his mother.

The next day Yankel calls his mother and asks, “Mom, what do you think of the parrot I bought you?”

“Mmm, it was delicious!” she says.

“What do you mean‘delicious’?” Yankel asks.

“I made soup out of it; it came out great!” says his mother.

“But Mom, the parrot wasn’t for eating. It spoke five languages including Yiddish!” Yankel cries.

After a short pause, his mom replies: “So why didn’t it say anything?”

•

•

Kidding!

FILE, PICK

You Gotta be

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Answer on next page

BALL, BAT

T H E J E W I S H H O M E n MJ UAYLY2341, ,2012 2014

Mind Stretch

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AUGUST 7, 2014

Riddle!

PEAR, PEACH

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Think you can’t get through all of these books?

Well, it shouldn’t be all that difficult— they are some of the shortest books ever written:

AUGUST 7, 2014

• A Guide to Arab Democracies • A Journey through the Mind of Nancy Pelosi • Career Opportunities for History Majors • Detroit: A Travel Guide • My Allegiances to Israel

by John Kerry • French Hospitality • The Popular Lawyers Guide • The Wit and Wisdom of John Boehner • Ethics in Politics by [insert any politicians name here] • Things I Did To Deserve The Nobel Peace Prize

by Barack Obama • Things I Accomplished before Becoming Mayor

by Bill de Blasio • Things I Would Not Do To Get Elected President

by Hillary Clinton

• An Engineer’s Guide to Fashion • Fulfilled Campaign Promises, 423 BCE to 2014 CE • Great British Recipes • How I Keep My Figure

by Chris Christie • The Moral High-Ground

by Vladimir Putin • To Tell You the Truth

by Former President Bill Clinton • The Virtues of Humility

by Donald Trump • Being Articulate

by George W. Bush • The Hairstyles of Kim Jung Un

• Things that I Didn’t Create

by Al Gore

GO FUNNT Y?

Circles or Spirals?

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WIISSHH HHOOMMEE nn MJ UAYLY 2341, ,2012 TTHHEE JJEEW 2014

Your Summer Reading List

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Answer to riddle: One big pile!

34

Gaza’s Forgotten Jewish Past

by Aaron Feigenbaum Considering recent headlines, it’s hard to imagine that the Gaza Strip, a coastal region of modern Israel plagued by conflict and Islamic extremism, was not always the Jewish no-man’s land that it is today. In fact, Jews had a significant presence and rich culture in Gaza that dates to Biblical times. Gazan Jews out-lasted many empires throughout the centuries until they were evicted in the Disengagement of 2005 under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. This article will outline the course of Gaza’s Jewish history, providing a glimpse into one of the most under-appreciated and politically relevant chapters of our past.

Gaza (called Azza in Hebrew) is first mentioned in the Tanakh by name as one of the five main Philistine cities. The Philistines (also called Kaftorim in the Tanakh) had conquered the land from the Avvites (Devarim 2:23) who had made Gaza an important administrative center.

Gaza is best known in the Tanakh as the place where Shimshon performed his heroic feats of strength and where he was later betrayed and killed. Gaza was given to the Israelites and added to the territory of the tribe of Yehuda (see Yehoshua 15:47, Shoftim 1:18 and 2 Melakhim 18:5-8). While the political borders of Gaza have changed since Biblical times, many argue that most, if not all, of modern-day Gaza is indeed part of Biblical Israel.

In fact, the renowned authority Rabbi Yaakov Emden wrote “Gaza and its environs are absolutely considered part of the Land of Israel, without a doubt. There is no doubt that it is a mitzvah to live there, as in any part of the Land of Israel.” (Mor U’ketziyah) As for the Philistines, most scholars argue that they are long extinct as a people and thus bear no relation to the modern-day Palestinians.

After David’s defeat of Goliath and the subsequent downfall of the Philistines, Gaza entered a long period of political turmoil. The Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, and Ptolemean Greeks all laid claim to Gaza.

Notably, Gaza City was the only city that resisted Alexander the Great’s army.

until centuries later in 145 B.C.E. during the Hasmonean civil war. The conquest of Gaza came at the hands

Emperor Augustus gave the town to the infamous King Herod. However, the Roman governor Gabinius made

of Judah HaMaccabi’s brother King Yochanan the Hasmonean 22 years after Judah and his warriors claimed victory over the Greek pagan king Antiochus Epiphanies.

After the Roman invasion,

Gaza an exclusively Roman city in 61 C.E. and expelled the Jews. Jewish forces briefly held the town in the great revolt of 67-70 C.E. but were finally defeated by Rome.

The later defeat of Bar

Photo credits:Wikimedia

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AUGUST 7, 2014

Cover Story

Neve Dekalim

Collection of Qassam Rockets fired at Sderot

Though the land was awarded to the Children of Israel in the time of Yehoshua ben Nun, Gaza didn’t come into the possession of the Jews

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Cover Story

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Kokhba’s Second Jewish Revolt in 135 C.E. left the Jewish population in ruins with many sent to the Gazan slave markets (the Tanakh mentions slavery in Gaza in Amos 1:6-7).

In the 4th century, Jews returned to Gaza and made it a thriving commercial port and point of entry for Jews coming to the Holy Land.

Later in 635 C.E., the Romans (now called the Byzantines) were defeated by the conquering Arab army and the region was added to the

The forced evacuation of Kfar Darom

Menorah engraving, Great Mosque of Gaza

Islamic empire. Gaza was held by the Crusaders in the early 12th century until it fell once again to the Muslims at the hands of Saladin. The Jewish community declined until the Ottoman empire took over Gaza, along with the rest of Eretz Yisrael.

During the Ottoman period, several notable Jewish figures made Gaza their home. For example, we have Rabbi Yisrael Najara who served as Gaza’s Chief Rabbi and chief of the city’s beis din. He also wrote many beautiful poems and hymns including the famous Zemiros Yisrael and Kah Ribbon Olam which are now key parts of our tefillos. Another important Gazan was the Moroccan-born Rabbi Avraham Azulai, a famous Kabbalistic author who wrote Chesed le-Avra-

ham.

The Jews of Gaza suffered another brief setback when the French, with the help of the local Arab population, invaded in 1799 and set about persecuting the Jewish community.

All went well after that until August 1929 when Arab riots killed an estimated 135 Jews. As a result the British administration expelled the small Jewish population from Gaza both for their “protection” and to appease Arab sentiments. Despite British wishes though, a few Jews returned and established Kfar Darom, the first modern settlement, in 1946.

This settlement didn’t last very long as Egyptian forces conquered Gaza City and the newly created Gaza Strip during the War of Independence in 1948. The Egyptian occupation was made official as stipulated in the 1949 Armistice Agreement and many Arabs from the rest of Israel moved to Gaza during this peri-

od. Egyptian rule in Gaza lasted until the Six-Day War of 1967 when it was liberated by Israeli forces.

The settlement movement began with the re-establishment of Kfar Darom in 1970 and expanded greatly over the next three decades.

Before the 2005 Disengagement, there were a total of 21 Gazan settlements including the huge 17-settlement bloc of Gush Katif on the southern coast.

The Oslo Accords of 1993 preceded the Disengagement with Israel handing over control of some parts of Gaza to the PLO. The settlements sustained heavy rocket fire in the Second Intifada but still persisted. With the Disengagement plan, a total of 1,700 Jewish families were expelled at a cost of almost $900 million. These families included farmers who contributed millions to the Israeli economy every year. Many of the families were forced to live in refugee camps for several years and their lives were greatly disrupted. Meanwhile, Hamas

and Palestinian mobs looted settlements and bulldozed shuls with police looking on. A museum in the Mahane Yehuda Market section of Jerusalem commemorates the way of life that was tragically lost in the Disengagement. As of now, there are no Jews living in Gaza and most, if not all, physical evidence of Gaza’s Jewish history has been destroyed.

Some of this physical evidence includes a mosaic depicting David written in Hebrew found on the shore of Gaza’s harbor in 1965 by the Egyptian Antiquities Authority. Another notable discovery attesting to the Jews’ millennia-old presence in Gaza is an ancient shul, excavated by an Israeli archaeologist in 1967, that dates back to the 6th century C.E. Ironically, researchers also found a Talmudic-era relief on a pillar of the Great Mosque of Gaza depicting a shofar, menorah, and lulav. Tradition states that this mosque was the original site of the pagan Philistine temple which Shimshon destroyed. In addition to the numerous verses in the Tanakh, these and other archaeological finds provide proof of a Jewish presence in Gaza dating back to at least 1500 B.C.E. (Sources: Jewish Virtual Library, Jewish Encyclopedia, Victor Sharpe writing for American Thinker, Gary Fitleberg writing for Israel National News)

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Forgotten Heroes

Avi Heiligman

Military Inventions Close to Home Disclaimer: As with all articles of this nature the author reminds the reader that this is meant to be an informative article and not all-inclusive.

If I missed an item, please don’t place a claymore mine under my pillow. Yes, this has been done in combat before when Navy SEALs left a “present” for North Vietnamese troops. Oh, and if you’re wondering, claymores are a military invention and according to my research have no practical civilian applications other than a paperweight and are not meant for home use.

used weapons. Medical advances due to conflict have saved many lives that in some cases wouldn’t have been known if not for combat. Some pieces of technology and home items were created for military purposes but have found their ways into our daily lives. Some inventions have come from the military—like the Swiss Army Knife (raise your hand if you think a civilian invented it)—but some may surprise you.

The first item on our list of important military inventions that are used for civilian purposes is plastic surgery. The surgery had been performed way before WWI but modern plastic surgery had its roots during the war. A New Zealand doctor, Sir Harold Gilles, working for the British medical corps, performed 11,000 surgeries on men who had nasty looking wounds. Most of the cases were face surgeries, and after the war, Gilles and his team performed many more sur-

U

nless a person lives in a cave tucked away deep inside a Third World country, chances are that you benefit from military ingenuity on a daily basis. Not all military inventions are meant for destroying the enemy in a more efficient manner than previously

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geries. Reconstructive and cosmetic Ammunition cases needed to be kept surgeries have come from techniques dry as weapons could be corrupted used during WWI. Skin grafting was if they got wet. Permacell, a division first used during WWII to help burn of Johnson & Johnson, invented duct wounds heal.

Several advances in medicine saved countless lives during WWII. The invention of the penicillin antibiotic and the use of blood transfusions were first used on the battlefield. While the medical field was beginning to learn more about the human body way before the war started, it took the war to Trench coats were worn by men in the trenches during WWI convince companies to produce massive quantities of the an- tape and soon it was used to fix guns, tibiotic. Companies also found ways jeeps and even aircraft. The uses of the to make it more potent and wouldn’t tape are immeasurable and after the have done the research unless the sup- war it became a product that is found in nearly every home in America. (I love seeing duct tape wallets and the Mythbusters episodes using the adhesive are quite fascinating.)

The jeep is also a military invention that first saw use during WWII. As with many vehicles invented during the war, the army asked companies to come out with prototypes of a land vehicle that was light and The original 'walkie talkies' were used in WWII could traverse over most ply was needed. Sir Alexander Flem- terrain so it could be used for reconing discovered penicillin and received naissance missions. Two companies, a Nobel Prize for his work. Blood Willys-Overland and Ford, built a totransfusions also took a giant leap for- tal of 640,000 jeeps during the war. ward during the war as donated blood The jeep saw action in every theater poured in (pun intended) from volunteers and better ways of storage and implementation were found. Tetanus shots were also discovered, and it became standard for all servicemen to be immunized.

Now on to fun stuff like the invention of duct tape. There were other tapes out there before duct tape but most weren’t strong enough Duct tape was developed to keep ammunition canisters dry during WWII for military purposes.

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radio. The pack on the back was so but the truth is that they were invented cumbersome that another system by accident during WWII. American called the handy-talkie was created scientists realized that radar transbut its performance decreased. After mitters actually released enough heat to cook food and the war, the handysoon the microtalkie morphed wave was patentinto ham radios ed. Engineer Percy and walkie-talkies Spencer walked by are commonplace a radar transmitter on every Hatzolah member’s waist. with a chocolate Sometimes bar in his pocket the latest in fashwhich melted. He ion garments and then he deliberateaccessories come ly cooked my fafrom odd places. vorite microwave Sir Alexander Fleming developed penicillin in 1928 The origins of the food as his first extrench coat are disperiment: popcorn. puted, as there are both American and There are many other everyday British claims to the invention, but it items that started out in the military was first seen in public during WWI. but there is not enough space to print The name obviously comes from the all of them here. As you can see, the trenches that the soldiers had to live military is useful not just for protectin and the waterproof coat proved to ing us but for giving us some of our be perfect for those conditions. It was common comforts in life. lightweight, had button-closed pockets and went well below the knee. It kept the soldiers dry in wet and filthy Avi Heiligman is a weekly contributor to trenches. After the soldiers returned The Jewish Home. He welcomes your comfrom the frontlines, they brought the ments and suggestions.for future columns trench coats with them and it soon be- and can be reached at aviheiligman@ gmail.com. came popular with civilians.

You may be thinking, “What were microwaves doing on the frontlines?”

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dates to the 1960s. Over the next two decades, several satellites were launched into space including one that had an atomic clock aboard. Eventually, President Reagan allowed for GPS to be made available for civilian use.

The first handheld unit was available for military use in the late 1980s and was used to direct troops to their intended targets during the night or inclement weather. It is used in many functions including search and rescue missions and for reconnaissance missions. The most common civilian application is for navigation, maps and for cellphones.

While on the topic of new and improved technology, the walkie-talkie was invented during WWII. Usually nicknames for a military item don’t stick but calling it the Motorola SCR-300 wasn’t popular among troops.

The original system had 640,000 jeeps were produced during WWII a soldier with all the equipment including an do with GPS (global positioning sys- antenna strapped to his back while antems) can be traced back to the mili- other soldier (the pack-wearing soldier tary. In fact, the study of satellites in could use it too but it wasn’t designed orbit transmitting data back to Earth for that) would talk into the two-way

T H E J E W I S H H O M E n J U LY 3 1 , 2014

of the war and was put to many uses including as a medical transport, cable laying and even as an amphibious vehicle. (It wasn’t too good as an amphibious vehicle. The best water-land vehicle was the DUKW or the Duck Boat.) Famous author Ernie Pyle wrote about it: “[The jeep was one of the] most important pieces of noncombat equipment ever developed.”

There are many working examples of WWII jeeps that are still in use today.

As one could imagine, anything to

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In the Kitchen

Summer Fun in the Kitchen

by ESTHER ESTHER by OTTENSOSER OTTENSOSER

We got such great feedback from our last cupcake column; the readers were just clamoring for more. I’m ex-

cited to bring to you three more creative ideas for those super-hot days that you just can’t bear to be outside.

If you’re looking for a fun way to keep the kids entertained, try these easy ideas. Your children will be so proud to show off their masterpiece – and then eat it! (Don’t want to heat up the house by turning on the oven? Many bakeries sell plain cupcakes that would be perfect for this project.)

s e k a c p u C ” t a e r T a “Se

FISHING DAY CUPCAKE You will need: Cupcakes Frosting Blue Sugar Thin pretzel sticks Fish candy String

Put a dollop of frosting on each cupcake and cover with blue sugar crystals. Have fun placing the fish candies in the “sea.” Tie a string around the top of a pretzel stick and insert into cupcake.

SEASHELL CUPCAKE

You will need: Cupcakes Frosting Cookies (I used the Ostreichers) Seashell gummy candies Frost the cupcake. Place cookies into Ziploc bags and crush the cookies. You can use a rolling pin, a hammer, or even a bottle of seltzer. Sprinkle crushed cookies on top of the frosting and place seashells in the “sand.”

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Use either frosting or wonder melts to “glue” the cake pop into the cone. Melt Wonder Melts (in the color of your choice) and dip the cake pop into the Wonder Melt, coating it completely.

If desired, garnish with sprinkles, mini chocolate lentils or any topping of your choice. Allow to dry completely.

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You will need: Mini cones Cake balls Wonder Melts

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s e n o C m a e r C e c I No-Melt

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Notable

Quotes

Compiled by Nate Davis

“Say What?”

The New York Times is reporting that Montana Senator John Walsh actually plagiarized at least twentyfive percent of his master’s thesis in grad school. Walsh totally denies it and said: “I am not a crook” and “Ask not what your country can do for your, ask what you can do for your country.”

- Jimmy Fallon According to a new report, millennials view smartphones as more important than deodorant.

That makes sense. Nobody ever totals their car because they were staring at their deodorant.

- Seth Myers For the record, all the “villains” on Thomas and Friends are the dirty diesel engines. I’d like to think there was a good environmental message in there, but when the good engines pump out white smoke and the bad engines pump out black smoke – and they are all pumping out smoke – it’s not hard to make the leap into the race territory.

- Tracy Van Slyke in the UK Guardian writing about how the Thomas and Friends children's cartoon gives a bad environmental and racial message to children

If the US imperialists threaten our sovereignty and survival... our troops will fire our nucleararmed rockets at the White House and the Pentagon – the sources of all evil.

- Hwang Pyong-So, director of the North Korea military’s General Political Bureau, at a military rally This year’s box-office revenue is down 20 percent from last summer. I’m not sure why that is, but I’ll bet you there’s a documentary on Netflix about it.

– Jimmy Fallon

Jon Stewart did a controversial bit last week about how Israel has all the advantages in the conflict… with its warnings via app to its civilians about incoming rockets and its ability to neutralize those rockets with its missile defenses…Yes, how unfair. Israel invested in systems entirely devoted to protecting its civilian population from unprovoked attack. What dastardliness is the Zionist entity capable of next?

-Rich Lowry, National Review

Leaked comments from unnamed senior government sources to Army Radio, Channel 2 and other Hebrew outlets have described [Secretary of State Kerry] as amateurish, incompetent, incapable of understanding the material he is dealing with — in short, a blithering fool. But actually, it’s worse than that. What emerges from Kerry’s self-initiated ceasefire mission — Israel had already accepted the Egyptian ceasefire proposal; and nobody asked him to come out on a trip he prefaced with sneering remarks about Israel’s attempted “pinpoint” strikes on Hamas terror targets — is that Jerusalem now regards him as duplicitous and dangerous.

- Times of Israel Op-ed Look at the wreckage that Kerry has done in intervening in the Israeli/Gaza fighting. He decides he has to go, the Israelis did not invite him. The Egyptians didn’t want him. And he said he advanced a peace plan that was sort of building on the Egyptian one. It didn’t at all. It undermined it…Kerry goes over and then he negotiates in Paris with who? Qatar and Turkey and returns essentially as the lawyer for Hamas, hands Israel a proposition that is so outrageous that the cabinet votes 19-0 against it. Israeli cabinets have never voted 19-0 on whether the sun rises in the east.

- Charles Krauthammer on Fox News

I have two words for you: Get lost.

- Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni’s Facebook posting after United Nations Human Rights Council voted to investigate possible Israeli violations of international law in Gaza while giving a pass to Hamas When countries like Cuba, Venezuela and the like vote against us, it means we’re doing something right.

- Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman’s response to the UN Human Rights Council vote

This summer New Yorkers will be able to order delivery food to sunbathing spots in Central Park. Although if you have to order delivery to the place where you’re sunbathing, you probably shouldn’t be sunbathing.

- Seth Myers This crazy weather we’ve been having all over the country — it’s because the polar vortex is back. The polar vortex is causing the Midwest to experience falllike temperatures. I can’t tell if climate change is still a problem or if G-d just put the Earth on “Shuffle.”

- Jimmy Fallon

- David Letterman

Vegan meals take far less of a toll on the Earth’s resources… It takes about 2,500 gallons of water to produce just a pound of meat but only about 155 gallons of water to produce a pound of wheat.

- PETA’s explanation for their offer to pay the water bills of Detroit residents who go vegan

A company in the U.K. is making news for developing a new vegetable called Brussel-Kale, which is a hybrid of Brussels sprouts and kale. They said, “We got the idea from a child’s nightmare.”

- Jimmy Fallon

North Korea is negotiating to broadcast the Teletubbies.

They have to make changes for North Korean TV. For starters, every episode will end with one of the Teletubbies being executed.

– Craig Ferguson

I have to admit I’ve actually met that guy before. It was a couple years ago and he had the same line. He needs to update his material.

- President Obama when interrupted by a heckler during a rally in Los Angeles

This is probably the safest airport in the world; safer than any airport we have.

- Mike Bloomberg upon landing in Israel on an El Al flight while the FAA ban against American airlines flying to Israel was in place Today the prime minister of Ukraine announced his resignation. He said he wants to spend a little more time fleeing Ukraine.

– Seth Myers “The View” will be trying out new co-hosts this week.

That’s good news for "The View" and even better news for the company that sells noise-canceling headphones.

– Jimmy Fallon

I am familiar with your country, I love your country, and I understand the complications of so many languages and so many cultures and so many histories all rolled up in one. Anything I can do to make the relationship with India better, I’m willing and enthusiastic about doing so. Just as your capital is welcome here to produce good-paying jobs in the U.S., I’d like our capital to be welcome there… And I ask cooperation and commitment and priority from your government in so doing. Can I have that?

- Congressman Curt Clawson (R-FLA) to two U.S State Department officials who were testifying at a Congressional hearing and had Indian names and looked like they were from India I think your question is to the Indian government.

- One of the State Department officials in response I made a mistake in speaking before being fully briefed and I apologize. I’m a quick study, but in this case I shot an air ball.

- Congressman Clawson after the hearing

These huge white flags were placed on top of the Brooklyn Bridge. And late this afternoon, word came from the FBI that the New York Mets have surrendered.

- Craig Ferguson

Today, Secretary of State John Kerry traveled to Egypt and had to pass through a metal detector before he could meet with officials.

Which is ridiculous. Everyone knows he’s made of wood.

- Seth Myers

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is facing corruption charges. If the charges prove true, then Governor Cuomo will be forced to step down and become the governor of New Jersey.

– Conan O’Brien Forgive Us, Netherlands.

- Front page headline of antiPutin Russian newspaper, Novaya Gazeta

As much of world watches Gaza war in horror, members of Congress fall over each other to support Israel.

- Tweet sent out by the Associated Press

Comic-Con wrapped up over the weekend in San Diego. If you don’t know, Comic-Con is the world’s largest gathering of people who know the difference between a modem and a router.

– Jimmy Kimmel A new rumor has surfaced that the next iPhone will feature an all-glass exterior.

Because why should just the front be cracked?

– Seth Myers

I saw that Hillary Clinton visited the headquarters of Twitter and Facebook yesterday.

Hillary would also have visited LinkedIn, but she already knows what job she wants.

– Jimmy Fallon Yeah, yes, indeed.

- Hillary Clinton when asked on Fusion TV whether she is worth millions

AUGUST 7, 2014

Maybe that’s why the FCC just announced that it wants to overhaul the Emergency Alert System so President Obama would be able to interrupt any TV broadcast and address the country instantly…They want to make it so the president can instantly interrupt TV broadcasts whenever there’s breaking news. Then Obama said, “And I mean REAL breaking news, not that CNN stuff.”

- Jimmy Fallon

Breaking: Dutch military plane carrying bodies from Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 crash lands in Eindhoven.

- Awkward phrasing of an AP tweet which was quickly deleted

by AP

BALTIMORE JEWISH T HT HE THE LY 2341HOME 2014 EJ EJ W E WI SI SHHH HO OMME Enn JMUAY ,, 2012

Happy birthday to Ed Lowe, the man who invented Kitty Litter. Here’s what I admire about Ed Lowe. Here was a guy who was thinking inside the box.

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From My Private Art Collection Rebbetzin Naomi N. Herzberg

Do You Have a Fear of Drawing but Truly Want to be an Artist?

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any times an adult will confide in me, saying, “I cannot draw to save my life.” Each time I hear that statement I become extremely sad. My answer usually is “You probably never took an art class or if you did then you must have given up very quickly. It takes the three p’s to succeed. They are patience, perseverance and persistence.”

Where do you begin your journey as an artist? Is there anything you have to learn before beginning to paint with watercolor or oil paints? Yes, there is. Take a basic drawing class. Look to see who your heroes in illustration are. By searching through children’s picture books you will see what motivates you and which illustrators you relate to. Theses drawings are usually very clearly drawn as they are made for children’s eyes to focus on and understand the story. Many times these pictures even take the place of the written word. Get a handle on other artists’ work so that you can become inspired. You will learn so much from studying the work of illustrators of children’s books.

Make a study of the drawing techniques and colors being used.

Drawing is where you should start.

Drawing is the frame.

From drawing you see can easily see the structure. If the basic framing is crooked, the drawing will always be crooked. If the basic framing is straight, then the rest will follow. Are you unsure where to start or where to get your ideas from? Go to bookstores and look at the current storybooks that are being sold. Make a commitment to draw every day. Practice, practice and practice some more.

Always carry a sketchbook with you.

You never know when the inspiration to draw something interesting that you come upon will happen and you will be inspired. Sometimes the inspiration comes in the middle of the night so even keep a sketchpad and a pencil by

Girl with Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer

Take pictures or videos to tape your work so that you can see how you improve. Share your thoughts with family and friends and begin to speak the language of visual communication by sharing these ideas.

You will be surprised how easy it is to overcome these fears. Eventually you will develop your own style.

It takes some artists twenty years to feel comfortable with their work.

Do not think that all professional artists always worked on the level that they are at today. Art is hard work but extremely satisfying and can be a wonderful hobby or profession if you work at it.

Share your thoughts with creative thinkers The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali who you trust.

The encouragement that you will receive will help you in your endeavors. The tapestry of the world is an inspiration for all of us, as it is the ultimate artistic creation. Do not give up your passion even when it is challenging. Art is a present and we should take full advantage of this gift of visual communication.

er which do not make practical sense as this will whet your imagination.

Drawings do not have to be realistic.

They can be abstract and eclectic as well. Keep a collection of sketchbooks. Look back at your sketchbooks for ideas that will complement your new ideas. Try to copy other people’s work for practice. There is nothing wrong with this advice if you are

Waterlilies by Claude Monet

your bedside. You can then jot down the ideas as they come. In the morning, you will have the notes to remind you.

Creative people like to experiment with all different kinds of exciting things. They like to put objects togeth-

Self Portrait by Vincent Van Gogh

doing it for learning purposes. This is the drill of an artist. We practice the technical skills as a learning tool.

Rebbetzin Naomi N. Herzberg is a professional art educator, artist and designer. Among her known artwork is a floral sculpture presented to Tipper Gore, Blair House, Washington, D.C. Presently she is the Director of Operations at Shulamith School for Girls.

Please feel free to email nherzberg@ optonline.net with questions and suggestions for future columns.

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A Parsha Thought Rabbi Shmuel Silber

Rav Yosef Dov HaLevi Soloveitchik zt’l explains this dynamic in a profound way. After two thousand years of suffering and constant challenges one would assume that the Jewish people would have ceased to exist. After enduring the crusades, pogroms, the Holocaust, wars and terror attacks one would assume that even if we managed to survive our will to forge forward as a nation would have simply disappeared. But herein lies the awesome nature of the Jewish people – despite so

The first time we see the word “nechama” (consolation) in the Torah is at the end of Bereishis (Genesis) after man had experienced a spiritual and moral decline and God contemplated the destruction of mankind. “And the Lord regretted (va’yinachem) that He had made man upon the earth, and He became grieved in His heart (Genesis 6:6).” Rashi explains that the word va’yinachem means “nehepcha machshavto” – God experienced a change of heart.

God had high hopes, dreams and aspirations for man. But then, va’yinachem, God has a change of heart, a change of perspective. God is no longer proud of man, God is disappointed and let down. God must change His perspective and view of man. He must accept the frailties of His creations. God must accept man’s failures and shortcomings. God still knows what man can be, but He must accept that man will often not actualize that potential.

Thus, explains the Rav, nechama does not mean consolation; it means to experience a change in perspective. There are circumstances both national and personal that we would give anything to change – but we can’t. There are challenges that seem so overwhelming that I fear I will be swallowed up and enveloped by them.

There are tragic realities which we cannot change no matter how hard we try. The difficult reality is that often we do not get to choose our life circumstances – but we do have the great privilege and ability to choose our life perspective. I can do things to find meaning and fulfillment even in compromised circumstances. When I

encounter difficulty, I begin to realize that it is not the end of the road, there will be a tomorrow, I can make it. This is nechama. True nechama is not a result of everything being wonderful and perfect. This is not the reality of the human condition.

True nechama occurs as a result of a shift in thinking. True nechama occurs when I realize that the sun will rise no matter how dark the night before was. True nechama is actualized when I realize that I have the tools to rebuild no matter the scale and scope of the damage. True nechama is experienced when I realize that I have the ability to get up, dust myself off and continue to do great things.

changed since Tisha B’Av? Me. I have gone from feeling helpless, despondent and broken to realizing that although life is far from perfect – I have the ability to live a meaningful life, contribute to my people, and sanctify the name of God through my actions. I create the nechama of Shabbos Nachamu.

We hope and pray that we will experience the true nechama of complete redemption speedily in our days. But until that great day we will continue to find personal and national nechama through maintaining positive perspective in all that life brings our way.

This is Shabbos Nachamu. What has

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As I write these words, the tears of Tisha B’Av are not yet dry. We spent this past Monday night and Tuesday mourning two thousand years of collective loss.

We mourned the 2,500,000 Jews murdered during the destruction of the second Temple, we mourned the 6,000,000 who perished in the Holocaust, we mourned Gilad, Eyal and Naftali, we mourned our 64 precious soldiers who fell in Operation Protective Edge and in our hearts we mourned every man, woman and child we have lost throughout the years. But then something amazing occurs – we find comfort. This Shabbos is called, Shabbos Nachamu (the Shabbos of consolation). This name is taken from the opening words of the Haftorah, ‘Nachamu Nachamu Ami, be consoled, be consoled my nation,’ uttered by the prophet, Isaiah. We transition from profound mourning to a feeling of comforting consolation in just a matter of days. Yet, we must ask, what has actually changed? Has the final redemption occurred? Have the fundamental challenges of suffering and difficulty been alleviated?

Where is the nechama (consolation) of Shabbos Nachamu?

much tragedy and adversity – we are still here. And we do not simply exist – we thrive. Every time our enemies knock us down and try to trample our soul – we get back up and answer their derisive taunts and barbaric brutality with unbreakable resolve. On Tisha B’Av we cry because we are truly broken-hearted over what has been lost. On Tisha B’Av when reflecting on the scope of our personal and national tragedies we don’t know how we can go on. On Shabbos Nachamu we rejoice – because we have.

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Shabbos Nachamu: Lasting Comfort

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Cover Story

Eating Diamonds for Bread and Taking a Seat at the Heavenly Seder Irene Zisblatt’s Holocaust Story

By Brendy J. Siev

I

This year, Irene Zisblatt, author of the autobiography The Fifth Diamond, shared her Holocaust story with my students. She joined us a week before Pesach, and her final vision accompanied me to my own family’s seder.

I called Irene to share her story with us during this trying month of Av. Over the course of two hours, during which I was silent and spellbound, she spoke about her past:

was born in a country town in what was then Hungary. The town consisted of 63 families; a third of those families were Jewish.

I thought we had a great relationship with our neighbors. But it was not so.

I had two non-Jewish friends. We were very close. They even helped decorate our sukkah. But when I was ten years old, I noticed something different about them.

They didn’t like who I was. I didn’t get it.

It was anti-Semitism.

I spoke to my grandfather. What is it? He told me that they’re still believing that we killed their god. That’s what they were taught.

From that point on, I became more careful.

When my country became part of Germany, all the latent anti-Semitism came to light. The Jews were very careful, but we were hurt anyway. The local government carried out all German orders.

At first, Jews were not allowed in schools. The first day of the edict, the Jewish children arrived at school, and we were gathered by the door. We had to go home, and our teacher, a Ukrainian woman, told us to never come back.

I went home crying, and I told the other children, “My father will fix this.”

But he couldn’t. And so we were put into full-time Hebrew school—the girls with a teacher, the boys with a cheder rebbe. Eventually, they took the teacher away; she was not allowed to teach us.

Then, the businesses were taken away, we had to wear a Jewish star, and Jews had a curfew.

We couldn’t understand. We never did anything to them.

Without businesses, access to transportation, or community gatherings, we ran out of food and were confined to a dungeon that happened to be our home.

In 1944, all the Jews from the region were gathered into the local public school.

But my family feared what awaited us and arranged to have ourselves sealed into our home, as if no one lived there. My father and brother built double walls in the attic, a hiding place.

A gendarme in the Hungarian government, married to a Jewish woman, asked my father to take his wife in, to hide her. The gendarme then sealed the home to look as if we had left. We planned to escape from a window in the attic at night, if necessary.

During the day, we lived in the house; at night, we went up to the attic.

At times, I slipped out of the house through a back window. My father sent me through the meadows to the spa he once owned. One worker there, my father’s friend, gave me newspapers and food for the family.

One day, my father sent me with a message: “Tell my friend to go to the baker

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Between May 2 and June 9, 1944, more than 430,000 Hungarian Jews were deported to Auschwitz

AUGUST 7, 2014

Later, I learned that that man was Josef M e n g e l e .

Mengele conducted many experiments on me.

His first involved trying to change my eye color. And that was why Mengele had wanted my mother—because my mother had beautiful blue eyes, the ideal Aryan shade of blue. You saw the reflection of the whole world in her eyes. I was grateful that her mother was spared—through death—those horrific experiments.

I ended up with strangers in a big hallway separated by benches. We were instructed to take off our clothes and shoes and put our valuables in a bin. I pulled open my skirt hem and found four of the diamonds. Naked, I put the diamonds in my mouth. But then, as I approached the next section, I saw them opening people’s mouths and pulling out their gold teeth. I had no gold teeth, but I had diamonds in my mouth. Out of fear, I swallowed them.

We were tattooed and shaved and lined up in another section, where everyone was instructed to take clothing from a big pile and put it on. I took a man’s pajama top that covered my whole body.

And then we were taken to a big mirror and ordered to look at our reflection. And we did not recognize ourselves.

We were dehumanized.

In rows of five, we were marched into Birkenau, a place of evil. The skies were as gray as the mud under our feet. We were put into wooden barracks, 1,000 women in a barrack. I thought, we’ll never get out of here.

The smell was unbearable. And, as my mother did not show up, I decided to look for her—I knew she wouldn’t recognize me. But a kapo saw me and yelled at me. I told her I was going to find my mother. She pointed at one of the chimneys: go back to your bunk. Your mother is there and you’ll be there too if you don’t go back to your bunk.

My mother was only 30.

At night, I couldn’t sleep. I was squeezed into the top bunk, and I heard cries of children. I looked out of a crack and saw trucks arriving. Two babies fell out of one of the trucks: one was even swaddled, no more than six months old. The SS men picked them up and slammed the babies against the truck, spraying blood and killing them. I started to scream. The girl

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

Transport trains bringing Hungarian Jews close to the gas chambers

Poland. My father was involved with an underground, helping people get from Poland to Palestine. He helped those arriving in our town get to Munkacz.

One night, a man stayed in our home. I overheard him speaking to my father at night, begging him to take his family and come to Palestine. “The Nazis will take your children and kill them,” he told my father.

The next day, I asked my father about these haunting words. “Why?” I asked him. “What have the children done?”

My father answered, “That man doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

Now, in 1944, holding my two-year-old brother in my arms, I heard those haunting words again. My brother was sobbing the whole time on the train and begged me to take him home. I promised to take him home soon. And now I knew what I would do: I promised myself that no one will ever take him again from me.

I never saw home again.

The crying was so sad in this car. When the train stopped, there was no bathroom, no food, no water.

Just S.S. guards and dogs with the hugest teeth I ever saw.

The guards shouted, “Get out, you dirty Jews, and make it quick!” The train was high, and the people had to jump off. Older people were pushed off, and many died. The men and women were separated; the children went with their mothers. We were told to leave our belongings. And the women never saw their men or brothers or fathers again.

I saw the chimneys and thought, oh, these are the factories where we will work.

In the chaos, my mother tried to hold everyone together. She took my baby brother into her arms and instructed me to hold onto my four-year-old sister’s hand tightly.

A man came over to my mother.

“Give me the child; I’ll help you with the child,” he said.

“No!” my mother told him.

Then a handsome man pointing a stick, pointed at my mother. “Put the child down.”

My mother yelled back at him, “My children will go with me.”

He took his baton, and hit my hand, forcing me to let go of my little sister. I had to let go.

“Don’t cry,” called my mother. “I’ll come for you later.”

Those were her last words to me.

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and bake a lot of bread, to go to the farmer to get a lot of milk, and to bring it to the school” where the Jews were gathered.

When I arrived at the spa, my father’s friend met me. But he would not listen to my message. “Go turn around and run back home. It’s dangerous here.

If they’ll see you, they’ll kill you.”

I ran home and did not slip out again.

On the second day of Pesach, I helped my mother set the table for an early seder. As we set the table, there was banging at the door.

The Nazis had come for us.

We had minutes to pack and get out. But we were already packed for a quick escape that had not happened.

We were taken to the railroad with all the people from the school. Halfway to the Munkacs Ghetto, we disembarked and were marched the rest of the way. The elderly and infirm were taken by truck.

The ghetto was full of suffering. But there was no escape: the ghetto bordered a river, and across the river stood a heavily-guarded, medieval fort.

Boys and men went out daily to build a railroad.

Most returned bloody, hungry, and sick.

But the war was not going well for the Germans, and so they began to turn their attention to winning the war against the Jews.

At the end of April, those in ghetto were packed into cattle cars. We were told we were going to Tokaj, a place in our own country, Hungary, with vineyards. Everyone was happy to go.

At this point, I was 13. I dressed in all my skirts so that we would not have to carry them. And my mother took some diamonds and sewed them into the hem of one of those skirts. “We’re going to the vineyards, and we’re going to work there. We may end up working in separate places. If you are hungry, use the diamonds to get yourself bread.”

We boarded the train to go to Tokaj; the vineyard was not so far. A hundred people were pushed into each car with a single empty pail and no water. The Nazis bolted the doors, and the Jews stood in darkness like sardines in a can. We knew something was wrong.

My father stood by the wall. He knew the geography of the country well and watched the countryside passing through a crack in the side of the train.

But soon he saw that we were far from the vineyard.

“They lied to us,” he said. “We’re not going to the vineyard. We just left our country, and we have crossed the border into Poland.”

Back in 1939, some Jewish men had escaped Poland through the Tatra Mountains. This mountain range merges with the Carpathian Mountains, and our town was the first town with the most Jews near

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next to me covered my mouth; if I was heard, we could all be killed.

So I yelled at G-d in silence. I fought with Him. How could He do this?

He didn’t answer me.

With time, I realized that G-d didn’t create the Holocaust: men did.

But then, in my childish mind, I thought: He’s helping others. Then, He will come to us. I still had my faith.

I retrieved my diamonds during the time we were told to use the latrine. The Nazis did not enter the latrine, and I used a corner of the area. I washed the retrieved diamonds with a bit of water from a puddle and tied them in a corner of my garment. I made sure to tie the other corner as well so no one would suspect I had something hidden there.

Whenever I saw danger of my diamonds being found—a selection, an upcoming experiment—I swallowed them again, and retrieved them the same way. Thus I kept them throughout the war.

I suffered terribly under Mengele. I met a little girl from Vilna who had come into Auschwitz from the Warsaw Ghetto. She had escaped a mass grave there, because her father pushed her into the grave before she was shot. The grave was uncovered that night and so she was able to escape. She found a small grotto in a rocky hill and lived there for a year, seeking food from farms only at night. One day she emerged during the day and was found and sent to the Warsaw Ghetto, and then to Auschwitz.

Mengele conducted experiments on us at times alone, at times in groups of 5, or 2, or 3. We became very close. She told me, “You’re my little sister. I’m your big sister.” We became each other’s silent support. Because of each other, we survived the experiments.

Her name was Sabka.

One day she was taken, and I was sure she had been killed.

The next day, I was selected to be killed. But a nurse came and put me into a tuberculosis room. The Nazis would never go in there for fear of contamination. The nurse said, “You’re going to leave here.

Never talk about what happened today, because then

we all will go to the gas chambers.”

I was then sent back to my barrack, but then I was selected to go to the gas chambers. As I went into the gas chamber, I tried to get out. I pushed on the door and held it until my fingers bled. When the gas came, they couldn’t close the door, not only because of me but because of the people pushing me from behind. The chamber was too full. Because I was in the way of the door fully closing, they threw me out and closed the door.

I ran up the ramp and found a spot under the roof of the gas chamber that was mostly embedded underground. I thought, in a half hour, they’ll find me, but at this moment I have hope.

Hope arrived moments later in the form of a young sonderkommando.

The sonderkommandos were Jews forced to empty the gas chambers of bodies and dispose of them. Every three or four months, they were killed so that there would be no real witnesses to the wholesale murder of the Jews.

This sonderkommando, on his way to empty the gas chamber, pulled me out from my hiding spot. He took off his jacket and covered my unclothed body.

He told me about a train to a labor camp and that he would try to put me on it. He walked me onto the train and told me in Hungarian, “I only have three more days to live. If you make it, live a little for me too.”

At the labor camp, an ammunitions factory, I met up with Sabka, who had not been murdered, but had been transferred there. We worked together, until a forced death march, as the Allies were closing in on the Nazis.

On the death march, with pieces of blanket tied to our feet and a small bit of blanket around my shoulders, I tried to give up. But on the road, Sabka always came up with something to say to fight this feeling.

She said to me, “Why wait? We’re going to the library, to read books, to go home, have Shabbos dinner, and sleep in our own bed.” That pushed me forward. And even when I said to her, “We’re going to be shot and killed,” Sabka said, “No, we need to find real food first. We can’t go to heaven on an empty stomach.”

At night, we were bombed. We had no ammunition, no flashlight, and so Sabka pushed me into the forest where we escaped the others. We just kept going in the other direction. All night we ran or walked.

At daybreak, we reached an abandoned farm. I

ran ahead, looking for food in the mud of a tilled field. I found a small potato, our food to go to heaven.

Then we followed the sound of water to a small brook, where we drank and shared the potato. We needed to rest, and so we leaned against the mountain alongside the brook under our blanket.

I woke up to the jab of the back of a rifle.

Two soldiers stood there.

I have chills until today.

They wore strange uniforms and boots. They were talking, but I didn’t understand them. I tried all the languages I had learned in school. Then one of the soldiers bent down to help me up and his dog tags slipped out.

On the chain was a tiny mezuzah.

“Sabka!” I called out to her. “Come out from under the blanket! There’s a man with a mezuzah.”

I had thought that we were the last two Jews left in Europe.

The soldier helped me up, and I reached out and kissed his mezuzah.

Then I looked up to heaven for the first time since I had heard those babies crying, and I said, “Thank you, G-d, for watching us.”

Suddenly, it seemed like a whole army came; they all looked the same. They stared at us and brought over one German-speaking soldier. He was shocked and asked me, “Who are you hiding from, and why do you look like this?”

I told him, “The Nazis. The Nazis take children and make them look like me. Who are you?”

“We are Americans.”

I hadn’t known the Americans were in Germany.

“Why are you here?”

“We came to get Hitler. We’re going to get Hitler.”

We had run into Russian territory, and this unit, General Patton’s 3rd Unit, had been given the job to hunt for German snipers in the mountains.

The soldier continued, “We know what’s happening here. We’re going to stop the war. We will never let this happen again.”

Then he asked me what I wanted to eat. I told him scrambled eggs—Sabka’s favorite food—and a loaf of bread. So 200 men gathered debris for a small fire so they could make scrambled eggs in some helmets. And we ate eggs and crackers.

Then they put us into a Red Cross van, and our dream had become our reality.

Sabka and I talked a lot that day. We told each other things. We cried ourselves to sleep. We wanted to celebrate—but we had no one to celebrate with.

In the morning, Sabka was still sleeping. I tried to wake her, yelling, “Sabka, wake up! Today might

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The crematorium in Birkenau in 1943

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Since then I have spoken to so many groups and addressed the United States Congress. This is the first generation at a distance from Hitler. Soon no one will meet a survivor. My mission now is to teach the children so they’ll learn and pass it on.

I will not to be silent anymore.

I tell children that they will be the government one day. It is up to them to keep all people free.

And what about my diamonds?

They carried so much love and sacrifice. It would have been safer to have thrown them away, but G-d protected them with me.

When I came to America, I put them into a safe deposit box. But before my tenth anniversary, my husband, who was everything to me, wanted to give me something meaningful. He brought up the diamonds.

We took them out of the vault, and our friend, Michael, a jeweler, set them in the middle of a teardrop-shaped pendant with smaller diamonds around them.

I wear them now at times and events when I feel my mother’s presence, times she should be there with us, like a family birthday party or wedding.

I wore them to the premiere of the documentary about my life, The Last Days. But I slipped the pendant under my dress.

At the premiere, Steven Spielberg, noticing the chain around my neck, asked me if I was wearing my mother’s diamonds. I told him I was.

“Can I ask you a personal favor?” he said to me.

“Can I please hold them?”

He took the diamonds in his hand and kissed them like a mezuzah. “I want to be a part of that history,” he said. “Whenever you speak, wear them. Let the kids touch history.”

And so I do.

The diamonds will go to the firstborn girl of every generation in our family. They are never to be sold or traded, except, G-d forbid, if the girl is hungry and needs to buy bread.

Irene Zisblatt’s whole story, The Fifth Diamond, is available through her publisher on irenezisblatt. com or on Amazon. Her story is also highlighted on TJH Steven Spielberg’s documentary, The Last Days. ” 

THE BALTIMORE JEWISH HOME

Hungarian Jews arriving in Auschwitz in the summer of 1944

need someone to show them the truth.

My pain is so bad that it is here as long as I live. But my pain is not important: what’s important is that the children would know my pain.

I was shaking on the plane between Miami and Warsaw. But I made another decision: to open my mind and heart, to let things happen and not fight them.

When we got to Birkenau, I thought, oh, my G-d! They destroyed most of the evidence! They don’t want the world to know what they have done!

I was so angry that I wanted to kill someone. I most wanted to yell at Mengele. So I went into a barracks that is still standing, and I yelled, “Look at me! I am alive in spite of your experiments on me and Sabka! I am back with 5,000 healthy Jewish teenagers, and you cannot touch us.”

I went back to the gas chamber, now a pile of rubble. I wanted to see where my family died. I went into a hole there, a part of a room there, the one half that is not destroyed. The walls were still blue and green. The smell was still strong. The fear of death embraced me.

I sat on the ground. I took out candles that all those on the march carry. I took out all of my candles, and I lit them all.

I thought of my family. How they died and suffered. I felt relief that they hadn’t suffered too long.

I prayed for the ones who died horrible deaths.

As I left, I turned and looked back one more time, and I had a vision.

I saw a table set for a seder.

My whole family was sitting there. One chair near my sister was empty.

I knew it was for me.

I wanted to join them.

But my mother put out her hand. “Go back. Tell people what happened. And promise me, you’ll stop crying. Promise me, you’ll do what I ask.”

She said it as an order.

I looked up, and the vision was gone.

So I sat down, and I wrote her a letter. I promised her not to cry, to try and do what she asked me.

I told her that when I can’t do this anymore, I hope to sit at my chair at the seder and tell them that I’ve done what they asked.

Then, I came out and went over to the group of 5,000 teenagers, and I told them my story, like I’ve told you now, not forgetting anything, and for the first time sharing my story.

My mother initiated this.

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be the day we’ll be free! You must get up.”

Then the medic came in, and I asked him to wake her. He gave her an injection, and then he told me, “I can’t wake her up. She is sleeping in a beautiful place. She is no longer sick, and she knows you’re free.”

Sabka had had typhus. I guess she waited to make sure that I—her “younger sister”—was free, and then she had let go.

We buried her by the brook, and I was transferred to a field hospital full of wounded soldiers.

I too had some typhus, perhaps, and other ailments due to malnutrition. When I got stronger, I was sent to a DP camp in Austria. There I joined a group of 40 children destined for transport to Sweden.

Before I left, I received a letter from an uncle in the United States, a man I did not know. One of my liberators had put my name on a list with the Joint in New York to be printed in the newspaper. When my uncle saw my name, he wrote to the Joint to find me.

I gave up my spot to go to Sweden. It took two years to process the papers to get to the United States, and I arrived here in 1947. Here I saw a free world.

My family was good to me. They gave me an education. I went to work for RCA, and RCA sent me to college, to Rutgers, to take courses in engineering.

But I didn’t know where I belonged.

A cousin introduced me to a Jewish youth organization, and I found myself. I became very active, and also fundraised for the VA hospitals and the Hadassa Hospital.

Everything in silence—but I needed to give back.

I became who I am. I met my husband, the love of my life.

I am blessed with two children, no more than that, because of the experiments Mengele did on me and the chemicals I was exposed to. I have five grandchildren; each has two names for those who died, because I lost more than I got.

In 1992, a friend from New York, a leader of March of the Living, came to visit me. She showed me a video of a march and told me that I needed to go on the next march. I told her, “You want me to go back to that hell? What human being wants a child to go back to that horrible past? What can they learn from it?”

Eventually, the Broward County (FL) director of the March of the Living compelled me to attend a pre-march meeting with local teenagers who would be going on the march that year. During the meeting, the president showed the students a clip from Schindler’s List. I hadn’t seen it before, and I lost it. But the kids did not.

Then I knew that I really had to go. The kids

B”H

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PLAZA AUTO LEASING

IS THE ONLY PLACE YOU’LL HAVE TO CALL WE LEASE, SELL AND FINANCE ANY MAKE, ANY MODEL!

WE DELIVER TO BALTIMORE

ARE YOU A PAL YET? DCA # 1312589 DMV #7084665