The Dayton Jewish Observer, May 2020

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THE DAYTON Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton

May 2020 Iyar/Sivan 5780 Vol. 24, No. 9

OBSERVER

The Miami Valley’s Jewish Monthly • Online at daytonjewishobserver.org The Ohio Channel

1st Covid-19 survivor to donate plasma in area is son of Chabad rabbi

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Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton gives an update at Gov. Mike DeWine’s daily press conference, April 10, with certified deaf interpreter Marla Berkowitz (upper R)

Ohio’s physician-in-chief

Mendel Mangel

Med student volunteers with health dept.

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Dr. Amy Acton Jessica Sokol

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Rotations on hold, med student volunteers for public health dept.

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With hospital rotations on hold because of the coronavirus this semester, Jessica Sokol, a third-year student with Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, is volunteering as assistant to Dr. Michael Dohn, medical director of Public Health — Dayton and Montgomery County.

“I’m helping out with projects that he works on,” said Sokol, originally from San Antonio. She began at the health department March 23. “I attend a lot of meetings and conference calls within the health department and with the state: getting updated, making sure we know what other counties are doing. I occasionally help with the hotline that people call into when they have questions or report businesses that are not complying with the state orders.”

She works with the team that establishes procedures for public health employees and first responders about what to do if they get sick, and what personal protection equipment they should wear.

She’s also assisted on a weekly Facebook Live event, Ask the Doc, with Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley and Dohn, who answers viewers’ questions.

Sokol knew Dohn from his guest lectures in some of her classes; through the medical school’s Physician Leadership Development Program, she received her master’s degree in public health as part of her five-year medical degree program.

Two months ago, she reached out to Dohn to set up an elective with him for spring 2021.

“And then, when all of this craziness happened, he reached out to me,” Sokol said. “He asked me if I was free to come and volunteer with him now, since I’m not working in a hospital, which is what

Contributed

Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine third-year student Jessica Sokol

I would be doing right now.”

Sokol’s understanding is that hospitals don’t want to use their limited personal protective equipment on medical students. “Someone else has to see the patients that we see anyway. We don’t want to be a drain on the supplies.”

Along with her three nine-hour days each week with the health department, Sokol keeps up with her medical school classes, all online this semester.

“They were calling it fourth-year boot camp, sessions to get us ready for our fourth year of medical school, for applying for residencies. I’ll go more to the health department once I have more free time, in May.” She plans to practice family medicine.

The health department also has her organizing other medical students to come for monthly volunteer rotations there. Sokol helps coordinate their work too.

“We want students to have learning opportunities, and they can’t be in the hospital,” she said.

— Marshall Weiss

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

DAYTON Contributed

First Covid-19 survivor to donate plasma in Dayton area is Chabad rabbi’s son

By Marshall Weiss The Observer Mendel Mangel and his brother Lazer of Crown Heights, Brooklyn drove to their hometown of Dayton in mid-March to get away from the Covid-19 surge about to hit the New York area.

He had no idea it had already hit him.

But by the time the Mangel family sat down for its Passover seders, Mendel was in the clear from the coronavirus — and had become the first person to recover from Covid-19 to donate plasma in Montgomery County.

Mendel donated his plasma April 6 at the Community Blood Center under the auspices of the new Dayton Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma Project, comprising the Dayton area’s hospital systems, working with the federal government.

Rabbi Nochum Mangel, who directs Chabad of Greater Dayton with his wife, Devorah, described the three weeks leading up to Pesach in their home as “an emotional roller coaster.”

He had already brought his parents, ages 86 and 81, from Crown Heights to live in his home in Oakwood on March 15 in fear for their health. Mangel’s father, Rabbi Nissen Mangel, is a survivor of Auschwitz. Both, Mangel said, have no underly-

ing health issues.

“This was before they closed anything in New York,” Mangel said.

The next day, Mendel and Lazer called him. “My kids said, ‘We’re going to be locked in our homes, everybody’s working from home, and it’s going to be quite lonely, so we would like to come home too.’ We told them, ‘You guys can come home, but understand that you’re going to be quarantined because you were exposed to people that have been found to be infected.’”

Before there were coronavirus preventative measures in Crown Heights, Mangel said, Mendel and Lazer had celebrated Purim and Shabbat there. Crown Heights is the epicenter of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

“Everyone in New York was just assuming they were exposed,” said Mendel, 20, who works in marketing for an online skin care company.

After arriving at his parents’ house, Mendel started getting mild symptoms: a headache and some aching. With the grandparents in the house, the Mangels took Mendel and Lazer to be tested March 19 for Covid-19 at the University of Dayton.

Four days later, the results came back that Mendel and Lazer were both negative.

Bark Mitzvah Boy

Thou shalt not COVID ANYTHING that is thy neighbor’s.

c O Menachem

Mendel Mangel, 20, son of Devorah and Rabbi Nochum Mangel of Oakwood, donates plasma at the Community Blood Center, April 6 as part of the Dayton Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma Project

“The thinking was there’s no real reason that they have to remain quarantined,” Mangel said. So the brothers came upstairs and joined the family.

But after three days, on March 26, the Mangels’ family physician, Dr. Martin Schear, called. The testing lab had just called him; Mendel was positive for Covid-19.

“What do you do now?”

Mangel said. “Now, he was around all of us, but he had no symptoms already for a week.

We sent him back to the basement.”

The whole family went under quarantine. All took the test for Covid-19 at UD. All came back negative April 6.

While making the rounds calling people connected to Continued on Page Four

From the editor’s desk It’s remarkable how quickly the world has retooled to provide even more virtual programming for our shelter-in-place warfare against Covid-19.

The Observer is part of this “spring Marshall blossoming” too. Give a listen to The Observer’s new weekly podcast, The Weiss Jewish News Hour. Well, it’s not exactly new. For 18 years, I’ve been recording The Jewish News Hour for Radio Reading Service, now a program of Goodwill Easterseals Miami Valley. This free service broadcasts 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is also available via the web. RRS is designed for people who have visual impairments or other disabilities that cause them to be unable to read printed material. Thanks to Goodwill Easterseals Miami Valley, we are now able to offer this program as a weekly podcast. You’ll hear an update on the week’s Jewish news from around the world — and in our backyard. Just search for The Dayton Jewish Observer in Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, or your favorite podcast app and subscribe.

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Rabbi’s son

Continued from Page Three Chabad, Mangel learned of an opportunity for Mendel to help save lives of patients severely ill from the coronavirus.

He spoke with a Jewish physician who happened to be associated with the Dayton Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma Project. The doctor told Mangel of an obstacle facing the plasma project: the doctors hadn’t yet identified anyone in Montgomery County who had Covid-19 and was cured.

“I told him I think I have one in my basement,” Mangel said.

As it turned out, Mendel’s blood type is AB+, the universal plasma donor.

Mendel went to Miami Valley Hospital’s emergency room to get tested April 6. About two and a half hours later, they told him he was negative for Covid-19.

That afternoon, Mendel arrived at the Community Blood Center to donate plasma.

“I was told that it’s going to two people and that they started (giving the plasma to them),” Mendel said. “All the doctors here are working so hard. Every single doctor and nurse that I’ve come across since this thing started is absolutely doing the hardest work to make this as fast as possible.”

Plasma has been used in emerging viral infections for which a treatment hasn’t been identified. The plasma of the person who has recovered from a virus has antibodies to fight the virus; with FDA authorization for this project, Covid-19 survivors’ plasma Rabbi Nochum Mangel is infused into people who have severe Covid-19, to help battle the infection.

In a statement, Community Blood Center Medical Director Dr. James Alexander announced the Covid-19 Convalescent Plasma Program was fully up and running for public donations on April 10.

“The No. 1 criteria is that someone has tested positive for Covid-19 and has been clear of all symptoms for two weeks,” Alexander explained.

“Their physician must determine they meet the criteria before they schedule an appointment to donate.”

According to the Community Blood Center, The Mayo Clinic confirmed that Premier Health is the first health system in the nation to enroll a Covid-19 positive patient in this therapeutic treatment using that institution’s protocols.

Mangel said the rabbi in him sees all of this as a lesson in Divine providence.

“Hashem (God) orchestrates everything, and we are all pieces in God’s master plan,” he said. “It teaches how vulnerable humanity is, and really, how little we know. So all of the frustration, all is used for a positive that now Mendel can help someone’s life.”

“Thank God our immediate family is safe,” Mendel said. “My family’s not even close to the worst of this, but I have plenty of friends with parents that were in the hospital, grandparents that were in critical condition. One of my friends had an uncle pass away, another one of my friends, his grandfather. We’re nowhere near the epicenter of it here.”

Covid-19 survivors interested in donating plasma may sign up for the convalescent plasma registry or the Community Blood Center registry at GivingBlood.org.

THE DAYTON

OBSERVER daytonjewishobserver.org Editor and Publisher Marshall Weiss MWeiss@jfgd.net 937-610-1555 Contributors Scott Halasz, Masha Kisel, Candace R. Kwiatek Advertising Sales Executive Patty Caruso, plhc69@gmail.com Proofreader Rachel Haug Gilbert Billing Sheila Myers, SMyers@jfgd.net 937-610-1555 Observer Advisor Martin Gottlieb Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton Bruce Feldman President David Pierce Immediate Past Pres.

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Beverly Louis Secretary Dan Sweeny VP, Resource Dev. Mary Rita Weissman VP, Personnel/ Foundation Chair Cathy Gardner CEO The Dayton Jewish Observer, Vol. 24, No. 9. The Dayton Jewish Observer is published monthly by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, a nonprofit corporation, 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459.

Views expressed by columnists, in readers’ letters, and in opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinion of staff or layleaders of The Dayton Jewish Observer or the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton. Acceptance of advertising neither endorses advertisers nor guarantees kashrut.

The Dayton Jewish Observer Mission Statement To support, strengthen and champion the Dayton Jewish community by providing a forum and resource for Jewish community interests.

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

DAYTON Chabad

Navigating the pandemic

first responder personal protective equipment, continues to hum along at its Dayton and Kentucky manufacturing facilities, according to Andy Schwartz, Lion’s secretary, corporate counsel, and chief procurement officer. Safety steps are in place at Lion as outlined by the CDC. The Dayton site was rebuilt after much of the new structure was destroyed in the tornadoes on Memorial Day 2019.

Sara and Gus Stathes, owners of The Barrel House, hope their situation will get better.

“When it was ordered that bars and restaurants were to close except for carryout, we decided we would stay open for carryout but take it a day at a time,” Sara said. “After one week of operating on carryout alone and discussing options every day, when the stay at home order was issued, we made the difficult decision to close altogether.”

Sara and her full-time employee are both immunocompromised. “Besides the concern of ourselves, our families or our staff potentially getting sick, we couldn’t live with ourselves if we unknowingly got any of our customers sick.”

Sara and Gus, known for giving of their bar proceeds to help non-profits, applied for a Paycheck Protection Program loan. They were notified the funding already had been fully allocated. They’ve started selling gift certificates online to get a bit of money coming in.

“We ourselves are now a household completely without income,” she said. “We have to worry that if this goes on long enough, our small business will run out of money and be unable to reopen, ending our dream and losing everything we have. This is definitely an intensely terrifying time on so many levels.”

Updates from across the Miami Valley’s Jewish community

By Marshall Weiss The Observer Along with local Jewish organizations and congregations’ quick changeover to virtual programming and thorough outreach to their constituents, here is a roundup of how the pandemic is playing out across the community.

with her husband, Todd. With community support, JFS also provided homes with 18 seder meals from Bernstein’s and 12 Seder to Go kits from Chabad.

If you need assistance from JFS or would like to volunteer to connect with seniors, call JFS Administrative Assistant Theresa Clyburn at 937-401-1551.

Kosher for Pesach meals from Chabad Leveraging its Shabbat In A Box program, Chabad of Greater Dayton distributed nearly 70 seder meals and 60 Seder To Go kits April 8 for people to observe Passover amid social distancing.

SBA loan for Federation brings early childhood staff back on payroll The Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton received a loan April 20 from Key Bank through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, which was included in the $2 trillion stimulus package the U.S. Congress passed in March.

“The majority of the loan will be used to pay our staff salaries (about 49 employees) for up to eight weeks,” Jewish Federation CEO Cathy Gardner said.

“We are not required to pay back this portion of the loan, which is fantastic news, as we have faced some serious financial burdens due to Covid-19.”

The Federation laid off its 17 JCC early childhood employees April 3 and now brings them back on the payroll. “The things they are able to do from home with virtual learning are very meaningful,” Gardner said. She lauded Key Bank’s customer service for helping the Federation through the process, as well as guidance from Jewish Federations of North America.

A boost for Bernstein’s Adam Baumgarten — owner along with his wife, Lauren, of Bernstein’s Fine Catering — and a pared down staff of four prepared more than 1,000 Passover meals for the Dayton and Cincinnati areas, including at-home seders for members of Temple Beth Or and Temple Israel, and Jewish Family Services clients. These orders and Bernstein’s new takeout/delivery service brought the caterer back from freefall.

“Our business was one of the first to get hit,” Adam said.

“We have lost 98 percent of our events through May. Fortunately, we’ve had more postponements than cancellations.”

Bernstein’s has partnered with several local nonprofits including JFS and Kettering Backpack to reach families and people in need.

“This hasn’t been easy. But I feel very confident of our survival and eventual continued growth.”

Making, distributing masks Rachel Estep — who runs a business sewing children’s JFS

clothing — and her friend, Valerie Reid-Thorn, have launched Brookville Sewing Masks.

So far, they’ve produced and distributed 5,000 masks at no charge for nursing homes, first responders, home health aides, and other essential personnel.

“We’re focusing mainly on places that have little to no personal protective equipment,” Rachel told The Observer. “What we are making are 100-percent double layer cotton mask covers. They are not medicalgrade masks, but they can be used over an n95 to extend its lifespan. If no n95 is available, the masks have pockets that you can put any HEPA filter into.” Brookville Sewing Masks has about 60 volunteers cutting, sewing, and distributing the masks.

“I’m from a long family line of first responders,” Rachel said. “I know what the front lines are like and I can’t imagine going into this without proper PPE. I can’t give them that. But I had something I could offer.”

Women’s mikvah open Chabad of Greater Dayton Co-Director Devorah Mangel, who oversees the Miami Valley Mikvah, tells The Observer the women’s ritual bath is open, with changes in the prepping room including extra cleaning precautions “based on recommendations from a meeting I was part of with mikvah attendants around the world.”

The Miami Valley Mikvah asks women with any possible symptoms of Covid-19 to “be honest about her health on

Chaya Simon packages Chabad Seder To Go kits and meals

behalf of others” and forgo the mikvah that month.

“We ask that women prepare in their homes and only come to immerse,” Devorah said.

On the business scene Sandy Mendelson, owner of Mendelson’s, is giving away his inventory of personal protective equipment to local police, firefighters, and first responders. Sandy, whose iconic warehouse is set to close at the end of the year, told the Dayton Daily News, “Dayton has been great to the Mendelson family and I want to give back.”

At the end of March, in the face of closures of sit-down business at area restaurants, Premier ProduceOne donated its remaining produce in Dayton to Access to Excess, which distributed it to sites that feed those in need, including St. Vincent de Paul and House of Bread. Premier ProduceOne, with roots in Dayton through the Pavlofsky family, has also pivoted to successfully focus on selling produce boxes directly to the public with contact-free curbside pickup.

Lion, which manufactures

Contributed

Contributed

Bernstein’s Fine Catering

JFS delivers for clients Jewish Family Services, which also provides delivery of meals from Bernstein’s and Chabad, distributed 94 Passover outreach bags to its clients. The bags included Mixtiles, ornamental tiles, with photos of flowers from Israel. The photos were taken by Jody Sobol, who provided financial support for the project

JFS Social Worker Aleka Smith with one of the tile ornaments JFS distributed to its clients as part of its Passover outreach

So, what do you think?

Rachel Estep’s project, Brookville Sewing Masks, has made and distributed about 5,000 protective masks, free for the community

Maryann Bernstein is one of dozens of volunteers making masks for the Brookville Sewing Masks project

Send letters (350 words max.) to The Dayton Jewish Observer, 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459 • MWeiss@jfgd.net

Adam Baumgarten (back) and his pared down team at Bernstein’s Fine Catering prepared more than 1,000 meals for Passover

Views expressed by columnists, in readers’ letters, and in opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinion of staff or layleaders of The Dayton Jewish Observer or the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 5

Turn Oy Vey Into Mazel Tov.

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THE REGION

‘It’s this long, slow struggle of patience and perseverance’ The Ohio Channel

An interview with Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton

By Jane Kaufman, Cleveland Jewish News Dr. Amy Acton, director of the Ohio Department of Health, called her first virtual seder a “healing” experience with family and friends in which she had new insight on the Exodus story.

“That journey is a journey we’re all on collectively,” she told the Cleveland Jewish News April 9.

“The symbolism is there for me. And in the Haggadah last night, there were a few parts that took me by surprise…that I’ve interpreted anew.”

She said she found new meaning in lyrics of songs that spoke of “the need to persevere in spite of the fact that you aren’t being understood.”

Acton spoke to the CJN just after participating in a daily press conference with Ohio Gov. Mike Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton gives an update DeWine. She is among those taking center stage at Gov. Mike DeWine’s daily press conference, April 10 during the Covid-19 pandemic that has rocked That’s another thing I haven’t shared. My matzah ball the world. soup is the best, just saying. But, you know, my friends At the April 8 press conference, she spoke of Passcooked for me, they dropped it off on my doorstep and over and of her religiously blended family. Her huswe’re going to be together talking about the story of the band, Eric Acton, is Episcopalian, she said, as are his plagues of which have very poignant meaning as we children. go through what we’re going through.”

“Chag sameach to all my friends,” she said. “I am She said she has finger puppets depicting the Jewish. Even my background was a mixed background growing up, and my children were raised in the Jewish plagues from when her children were in preschool at the JCC of Greater Columbus, where she was a board faith.” member, and that she still uses a children’s Haggadah dating from when her now adult children were young.

In the time of a plague “It was probably a month ago when I said something She appealed to religious leaders to find ways to about locusts and firstborn sons because...there was a celebrate without congregating. period at which every single thing you could think of “One of the worst things we can do is congregate in was happening,” she said. “And this was a while back, any way that puts our population at risk,” she said. but I remember thinking of the plague puppets ...for Then she spoke of her own observance and tradiour seder. And sort of the importance of the fact that tions.

“We are doing a virtual seder tonight in my family,” you do have these dark shadowy times but can emerge she said. “My friends dropped off — I couldn’t cook — together as a people, and I see that same story and they’ve dropped off the foods I love, and I love to cook. metaphor in other traditions.”

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

THE REGION whom I knew, so some of the people that have passed “It’s never stayed inside the lines of work or volunaway were also largely influential in my career.” teerism because I think the social justice threads are Acton, 54, has taught at The Ohio State University there. And the same things are, you know, playing out in the social determinants work and this homelessness in Columbus, where she also received her master’s in public health. She received her medical degree at work and things I’ve worked on in philanthropy.”

Northeastern Ohio University College of Medicine in Prior to taking on her current job, Acton worked Rootstown. at the Columbus Foundation. There, “she served as Acton’s early and frank advice to Ohioans to help community research and grants management officer flatten the curve and her frequent promises to tell and focused on community leadership and nonprofit Ohioans “what we know when we know it” have ineffectiveness,” according to her biography on the spired compliance from residents across the state, even Ohio Department of Health’s website. In addition, the as the virus has spread.

Youngstown native “has more than 30 years of experiIn reflecting on the pandemic, Acton said, there have ence in medical practice, government and commubeen many difficult decisions. nity service, health care policy and “It has been truly a gauntlet,” she advocacy, academic and nonprofit ‘Our very success is said. “I mean I don’t want to sugaradministration, consulting, teaching, begetting a different coat any of it. I know there’s a lot of and data analysis.” social media things out there. But it She drew parallels with her previ- set of problems has been — I think probably the most ous work and her current work in her where folks... difficult thing for me was recognizconcern regarding the disproportionsometimes don’t ing early on that something was not ate impact of Covid-19 on African right.”

Americans and Latinos. At the April even believe that She suspected Ohio had commu9 press conference, she invited Dr. A concern for humanity this virus is real.’ nity spread prior to having tools to Anthony J. Armstrong, president of Social justice work in Israel — and more broadly — head off the virus. the Ohio State Medical Association, has been a part of Acton’s life and work.

“And that’s when I realized that there wasn’t a “I had the opportunity, more in the 1990s, to spend a to speak on the issue. perfect playbook for this outbreak, that it was going to Acton previously served on the boards of Congrelot of time in Israel, pre-intifada times, where there was be so huge and unprecedented in our lifetime, and that gation Beth Tikvah in Worthington, where she was a a lot of coexistence work going on,” she said. “I was our infrastructure throughout our country had really able to spend time in Palestine and had the opportunity member, and Columbus Jewish Day School in New been neglected in terms of this work, in terms of public Albany, where she sent her children. She noted the to see children being educated and learning both Hehealth,” she said. “The blessing in that is that I have a brew and Arabic, and people being on the same soccer school was founded on the teachings of Rabbi Abragovernor that’s very deeply committed to the health team and being able to coexist, so some of those things ham Joshua Heschel, who was famous for his civil and well-being of Ohioans, and he really digs deeply, rights activism. really influenced me.” asks the hard questions and was able to really learn “That was a great home for me,” she said of Beth She draws little distinction between volunteer and from the science and really think proactively to protect Tikvah. “It is a Reform synagogue, but one that was professional commitments. started by a group of university professors, many of “My work has always sort of morphed,” she said.

Continued on Page Eight The festival of freedom came at a particularly trying time for Acton, who has been at the forefront of DeWine’s efforts to protect Ohioans from Covid-19.

“You know this was when the weather got better and people feel because we’ve done such a good job in Ohio,” she said, “we’re not seeing the horrors that others are living. There are horrors going on in Ohio. I must admit that. I think people are paying attention to the news, but they’re not seeing...sort of the scale of Italy or New York, and then they sort of feel that this was all for naught or a hoax. And it’s quite the opposite. It’s this long slow struggle of patience and perseverance that we have to have, and our very success is begetting a different set of problems where folks... sometimes don’t even believe that this virus is real.”

During the April 9 press conference, shouting could be heard outside the statehouse by protesters who objected to Acton’s stay-at-home order. It was her March 16 late-night order that superseded a judge’s decision and blocked Ohio’s primary election from taking place the following day.

Seventy-one years after Israel fought for its independence, Magen David Adom is helping the country battle a different enemy.

The coronavirus pandemic is indeed a war. Even if Israel can keep mortality rates for those infected to 1 percent, it will still mean the death of more than 30,000 people — more than all of Israel’s wars combined.

Magen David Adom has been on the front lines against the coronavirus, but the fight has taken an extraordinary toll on MDA’s resources.

We need your support to keep saving lives. Observe Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s independence day, by keeping the people of Israel strong.

Give today to our Coronavirus Emergency Campaign at afmda.org/corona-campaign

afmda.org/corona-campaign THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 7

THE REGION The Ohio Channel

Dr. Amy Acton Continued from Page Seven Ohioans.”

She also said he has tremendous energy.

“I mean he pushes all of us,” Acton said. “He’s 73 years old and I’m exhausted at 54. I can’t keep up with him. That’s no joke. And I went to Haiti with him and (his wife) Fran because they do a lot of work in Haiti on behalf of their daughter who died, Becky. And I could not keep up with him.

“He just so does not want to see anyone get hurt or one doctor have to make a difficult decision like we see all around the world. And so that compassion I think is very authentic. I hope people can see that. And people have all different views and all different politics, but that kind of thing definitely falls away and that is maybe one of the gifts of this moment.”

Acton said Ohioans’ efforts have paid off — flattening the curve so that health care workers have time to respond and hospitals have adequate beds and ventilators during the surge.

“The good news is, we bought some extra time to build up our hospital system, our nursing homes, our prisons, to really be more prepared and have the best outcome possible,” she said.

At the April 9 press confer-

Columbus deaf interpreter, colleagues amass social media following

By Abby Cymerman Columbus Jewish News For Marla Berkowitz, Ohio’s only certified deaf interpreter and one of three featured in Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s daily press conferences about the Covid-19 pandemic, her profession and responsibility at a time of crisis are sacred.

“The responsibility is enormous when it comes to interActon worries that because of preting for the public, especially early successes, Ohioans will during crisis times,” Berkowitz let up on safety measures and explained via email. “Deaf the state will see spikes and resurgences people who use American Sign Language deserve to have firstence, Acton spoke of an emerghand information at the same ing plan that will lead Ohio out time as their hearing counterof the crisis, but said she still parts about their health (and) has deep concerns. safety.”

“It’s going to be a long jourBerkowitz, who is deaf, lives ney, a year to two in length... in Columbus and is a senior before we really have immulecturer at The Ohio State nity in our whole population,” University in Columbus. She she said. “So my worry is this is married to Charisse Heine, quick success we’ve had, this who is also deaf. They’re not enormous success we’ve had, members of a local synagogue, that with the good weather, or but Berkowitz was an active with just our exhaustion with member of B’nai Jeshurun in it — and that’s known, that’s Manhattan for 20 years before been studied too — that people she moved to Columbus. let up and that we’ll see spikes She has a master’s degree and resurgences. So, you know I in deaf studies from New York worry that people will have the University and another in Jewfaith, the trust to kind of carry ish studies from Jewish Theoon through this period. It’s a logical Seminary in New York. war, but it’s a silent enemy.”

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Certified deaf interpreter Marla Berkowitz

Berkowitz interprets for Gov. DeWine’s daily press conferences

“When I lived in NYC, I did some interpreting work within the Jewish community,” she said “Being Jewish (affects my work) because I’ve always loved learning, being inquisitive, and being a cultural bridge between deaf/ hearing worlds.”

In 2008, she was president of the Jewish Deaf Congress, which serves people who are Jewish and deaf, primarily in North America. She also cowrote a book with Judith A. Jonas, Deaf and Hearing Siblings in Conversation.

Berkowitz said she was chosen to be an interpreter for DeWine’s press conferences because she has experience in high-profile work.

“I’ve done conferences internationally, nationally, statewide and (on) local levels,” she said.

“In addition, I’ve done courtrelated work which includes a murder trial.”

For Ohioans, watching press conferences with Berkowitz and the other two interpreters — Christy Horne of Deaf Services Center in Worthington and Lena Smith of Opportunities for Ohioans With Disabilities, both of whom are hearing — has become a daily ritual, full of information and fascination.

“Some of us deaf people are native ASL users; language is clear and accessible to those who use the language, too.

Other deaf people, who rely on English, spoken and/or print, can use closed captioning to stay informed, whereas other deaf people who are ASL users do not have an equivalence with access to information to make informed decisions in their lives,” she said, adding that “deaf audiences culturally can relate more to deaf interpreters.”

Viewers often comment on her dramatic facial expressions, which she said is part of ASL. “In addition to the emotions/ affect, we also have grammar

markers which indicate whether the speaker is authoritative, calming, sarcastic, etc. All of these are heard as vocal intonations which deaf people do not hear. In other words, it adds nuance,” she said. “To convey a message such as ‘stay home’ requires a stern face to emphasize it.”

Hearing people have told Berkowitz she’s a “theatrical” sign language interpreter.

“It is our language, not the performance part, that makes us seem theatrical,” she said.

“I think people just have never seen us in the spotlight (and) assume it’s a performance, but we are just doing our jobs.

“Deaf interpreters and hearing ASL interpreters are part of a close-knit community where respect for ASL and deaf perspective, humor and willingness to communicate openly and honestly were our best practices for the deaf-hearing team to work efficiently,” she said.

Because the press conferences run at least an hour — sometimes more — and the messages relayed are complex, the three interpreters generally take turns. When Berkowitz is interpreting, Horne and Smith listen to the governor and other speakers, and then sign the information to Berkowitz who conveys it on camera to viewers.

Some viewers refer to the three interpreters as “a social media phenomenon,” which Berkowitz said gives her a great feeling. She never imagined there would be a Facebook page dedicated to their work: Covid-19 Marla Berkowitz (and other amazing interpreters) Fan Group.

“People are having fun, feel inspired, sense the calm in (the) midst of the storm, and are feeling less scared for what they need to know to protect themselves,” she said. “To me, if that’s what it takes, I can sleep at night knowing I have made a difference.”

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

DAYTON

Even with semester in Israel cut short, Oakwood sophomore experienced ‘some of the most amazing weeks’ of her life When Rebecca Blumer first heard about a semester in Israel program with the Reform movement’s high school there, she knew it was for her.

“I wanted to learn more about my Jewish identity and about the history of the Jewish people,” Rebecca, an Oakwood High School sophomore told The Observer in an email interview. “I wanted to meet lots of other Jewish kids that were interested in the same things that I am.”

But because of Covid-19 social distancing measures and shutdowns in Israel and around the world, the semester — which began Jan. 27 and was to run through May 27 — ended March 17.

Even so, Rebecca, the daughter of Molly and Jeff Blumer, said her seven weeks in Israel made for a meaningful experience.

“It was some of the most amazing weeks of my life and I wouldn’t trade it for the world,” she said.

Rebecca learned of the URJ Heller High in Israel program at her summer camp, Goldman Union Camp Institute in Zionsville, Ind. Heller High and GUCI are both programs of the Union for Reform Judaism.

To make the $20,000 semester in Israel a reality, she and her family raised money through the Jewish National Fund Plant Your Way to Israel program.

She also received scholarships from her congregation, Temple Israel; the Reform movement’s

youth group, NFTY; and the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton.

“I paid extra to earn college credit for my Jewish history and Hebrew classes,” she added.

The first sign of trouble came when Heller High’s weeklong trip to Poland to learn about the Holocaust, scheduled for the Contributed

Oakwood High School sophomore Rebecca Blumer overlooking Jerusalem’s Old City

end of March, was cancelled.

“In February, all travel for students to Poland from Israel was cancelled,” Rebecca said.

By week six of the semester, Kibbutz Tzuba, where the students lived, adjusted the number of people who could eat in its cafeteria until only 10 guests could be there at a time.

Ultimately, the students would eat outside or in their apartments, Rebecca said. The students knew what was coming, “even though we tried to deny the inevitable.”

It was March 16 when Heller High Principal Rabbi Loren

Sykes told the 87 students they would return to the United States on a chartered flight 24 hours later, along with students from other programs in Israel with various Jewish movements in the United States.

“No one took the news well,” Rebecca said of the end of their time in Israel. “Some people cried as soon as we were told the news and for others it took more time to settle in. We embraced and tried to spend all the time that we had left together thinking positively.

“We know the people in charge really thought through everything, trying to figure out what was best to keep the students safe. When the (Israeli) government ordered all tourists to leave Israel, there was nothing else to do but send us home.”

For the students, the departure from Israel went smoothly.

Rebecca said staff spent a few sleepless nights coordinating with other Jewish youth groups to get the flight together.

Rebecca’s father picked her up from JFK and drove directly home, where she spent the next two weeks under quarantine.

“None of the students have shown symptoms since our return,” she said.

didn’t get to Poland.

“My relatives were from Poland and some of them died during the Holocaust. I was also disappointed to miss out on the Sea to Sea hike (Sea of Galilee to Mediterranean Sea).”

Rebecca intends to return to Israel when she’s older.

“I had an amazing experience even though it was cut short.”

— Marshall Weiss

Rebecca continues with her Heller High classes via Zoom: Biology, English, U.S. History, Algebra II, Hebrew, and Jewish History: Land, Culture, People.

“This was my first time in Israel,” she said. “We got to go to visit the Old City of Jerusalem, the City of David, Eilat…

Masada and the Dead Sea, and Tel Aviv for Purim.”

She was disappointed she

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Be strong, Be resilient, Let us be strengthened together. We pray that God will give us the courage to stand as one, and come to a day of good health and well being for all.

We are here for you. To learn more about our virtual minyans, services or hear Rabbi’s Reflections, please visit bethabrahamdayton.org or our Facebook page.

Beth Abraham Synagogue

Assisting you every step of the way!

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 9

May JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON & ITS AGENCIES

A MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD PRESIDENT We have heard the phrase “unprecedented times” more often than we can count in these last months. When you pause to think about these times, a flood of thoughts and emotions come to mind. We feel sad, anxious, frightened. It is natural to feel this way and to be overwhelmed with the immense magnitude of what is going on in our world today. Thankfully, we also have the blessing of time- time to be grateful and hopeful.

Connect with us at JewishDayton.org/virtual-community for free films, Summer Camp activities, JCC Preschool Teacher videos, The Dayton Jewish Observer Podcast, Daily P2G connections to Israel, and more!

JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES IS HERE FOR YOU and is stronger than ever. Even through the stay at home order, Jewish Family Services is serving the community and those in need. Our staff are working from home and staying connected with clients and the community.

During times of crisis, it’s normal to feel sad, stressed, confused, scared or angry. It is normal to grieve the loss of our normal routines. Talking with people you trust, such as friends and family or your fellow community members, can help. Even though social distancing creates the physical distancing needed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, we need to support each other as a community to overcome the social isolation many of us are experiencing.

If you need assistance, please call 937-401-1551. This is the number for Theresa Clyburn, JFS Administrative Assistant. Theresa is checking her voicemails regularly and is directing calls to our social worker, Aleka Smith, and to Tara Feiner, JFS Director. Please leave us a message and we will return your call as soon as possible within our regular working hours of 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM.

Yes – we are in unprecedented times of fear from the unknown; but we are also in unprecedented times of neighbors helping neighbors and loved ones coming together, even from afar. We are in an unprecedented time of witnessing what we can do when we are put to the test. The Jewish people have faced hard times before – we undoubtedly will again. As in the past – we will survive and persevere – together.

BRUCE FELDMAN

PRE SIDE N TS

D I N N ER 2020

In light of this unprecedented time in our world, and in the interest of public health and safety, we have regretfully made the decision to cancel the 2020 Presidents Dinner.

We want to thank you in advance for your continued support of the Jewish Federation and its agencies, and look forward to celebrating with you in the future as we fulfill our mission of caring for those in need, strengthening Jewish life, and creating connections among Jews - locally, in Israel, and around the world.

Even though we won't be together on May 17th for the Presidents Dinner, we are together in spirit and community every day. We will get through this together.

Sincerely, BILL & MELINDA DONER - Event Chairs LARRY & MARILYN KLABEN - Event Co-Chairs

Want to help us reach out? JFS is teaming up with BBYO and the Jewish community to connect volunteers with seniors during this time of social distancing. Sign up to make or receive calls at JewishDayton.org/jfs-connects.

JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES of GREATER DAYTON PAGE 10

BILL & MELINDA

LARRY & MARILYN THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

May JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON & ITS AGENCIES Wednesday, April 29 @ JCCDayton Celebrate Israel's 72nd Birthday with us and people across the United States, Israel, & the world as we join in virtually for an amazing day of interactive streams!

COMMUNITY ISRAEL INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION

A VIRTUAL LOCAL CONVERSATION SERIES

DAY TO N

11:45AM JCC kicks off Yom Ha'Atzmaut with a local greeting from Yossi Naor, Israel Defense Forces representative at Wright Patterson AFB, followed by programs for the whole family presented

by Parternship2Gether and the Jewish Federations of North America. Highlights include appearances by entertainers Matisyahu, Shuli & Moshe Dayan, Josh Malina, Ben Platt, and a special closing with President of Israel, Reuven Rivlin.

JCRC Jewish Community Relations Council

Conversations will be held Wednesday evenings from 7-8PM via Zoom.

April 29 – "My Writing Life: Swim, Float, Thrash" Martha Moody, Author May 6 – "Mysteries of Dayton Jewish History" Marshall Weiss, Editor & Publisher, The Dayton Jewish Observer and Project Director, Miami Valley Jewish Geneology & History May 13 – "The Jewish American Archives" Gary P. Zola, PhD, Executive Director, The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives and the Edward M. Ackerman Family Distinguished Professor of the American Jewish Experience and Reform Jewish History, HUC-JIR Check the calendar on JewishDayton.org for Zoom registration!

Jewish Community Center OF GREATER DAYTON

THANK YOU!

June 1 - July 17 We're counting down the days for Camp Shalom Gadol to start! Check out the activities and messages from our Camp Counselors at jewishdayton.org/ virtual-community to stay in touch until camp starts!

Haven't registered yet?

Registration is open online now!

Extending a Special Thank You and Congratulations!

We especially thank Economy Linen and Premier ProduceOne for their generous Night in Vegas contribution with a $1200 value. They contributed a Dragons Box that includes admission for 15-20 people and $500 towards food. Congratulations to the Kahn Family (Neil, Gina, Samuel and Daniel), they were thrilled to win the first place prize.

Legacies, Tributes, & Memorials FEDERATION

LINDA RUCHMAN FUND IN MEMORY OF › Sam Forman Judy and Marshall Ruchman DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER IN MEMORY OF › Nagi Ahmen-Nasr Harriet and Don Klass

JCC

JOAN AND PETER WELLS AND REBECCA LINVILLE FAMILY, CHILDREN AND YOUTH FUND IN MEMORY OF › Brother of Mary Rita Weissman › Donald Green Joan and Peter Wells EARLY CHILDHOOD FUND IN MEMORY OF › Louis Levy Edward Webman Malka and Neil Webman Pam McPeak

FOUNDATION

SAMMY’S RAINBOW BRIDGE FUND IN HONOR OF › Speedy recovery Tim Sweeny Robin and Tim Moore

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

Would you like to honor or memorialize someone in your life, all while making a meaningful impact on the Jewish community? Consider making a donation to a Jewish Foundation of Greater Dayton Fund. Tribute and memorial donations can be made for a variety of reasons. Contact us at 937-610-1555 for more information.

PAGE 11

S

‘Be strong, and let us strengthen ourselves’

ince we began publishing in 1996, our advertisers have stood solidly with us, giving The Dayton Jewish Observer the strong support we need to bring you award-winning coverage of the area’s Jewish community.

And we are proud to stand in support of our advertisers, many of whom face drastic financial challenges at this time of social distancing and business closures amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

As much as possible, we encourage you to support our advertisers, help each other, lift people’s spirits, and continue to be Dayton Strong.

— II Samuel 10:12

Marshall Weiss Editor & Publisher

Marshall Weiss

Patty Caruso

Patty Caruso Advertising Sales Executive

Advertisers with The Dayton Jewish Observer American Friends of Magen David Adom The Antioch Review Arrow Wine & Spirits Bernstein’s Fine Catering Beth Abraham Synagogue Bethany Village, Graceworks Lutheran Services Beth Jacob Congregation Brady, Ware & Company CPAs and Business Advisors Bubbles & Bows Pet Grooming Butter Cafe Breakfast & Lunch Camp GUCI Camp Wise Chabad of Greater Dayton CJ Chan Command Roofing Crowne Plaza Dayton Dayton Art Intstitute Dayton Contemporary Dance Company Dayton History Dayton Live Dayton Optometric Center Dinsmore & Shohl LLP Legal Counsel DNA Computers Dorothy Lane Market Dr. Angela DeMoss, DMD, Pediatric Dentistry

Economy Linen and Towel Service, Inc. Elizabeth Diamond Company The Flower Shoppe Friendship Village Retirement Community Furst Florist and Greenhouses The Law Office of Alan D. Gabel Glickler Funeral Home & Cremation Service Glo Juice Bar + Cafe Grace Brethren Village Hillel Academy Houser Asphalt & Concrete The Human Race Theatre Company Israel Bonds James Free Jewelers Candice Karsch-Jacobs Licensed Massage Therapist Katie’s Hallmark Leeli & Lou Mark Feuer, Attorney at Law, Taft Marker & Heller Funeral Homes, Inc. Meadowlark Resturant

THE DAYTON

PAGE 12

Morris Home MRI Network, Management Recruiters of Dayton, Noble Staffing The Oakwood Florist Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton One Lincoln Park/Lincoln Park Manor Pasha Grill Pediatric Associates of Dayton, Inc. Premier Produce One PSE Law Rachel’s Million Dollar Lips Second Time Around Space Three Barre-TRX-Dance Spoonful: The Edible Cookie Dough Place TCStorc, Commercial HVAC & Refrigeration Temple Anshe Emeth, Piqua Temple Beth Or Temple Israel University of Dayton ArtsLIVE Performance Series Walnut Creek Senior Living Campus Linda Weprin Realty Wheat Penny Oven & Bar Wright Memorial Public Library Wright State University Dept. of Religion/Ryterband Symposium

OBSERVER

Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

Note: Because

of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are not publishing worship service schedules this month. For the latest information, check with the organizations below via their websites, Facebook pages, and by calling them directly.

CONGREGATIONS Beth Abraham Synagogue Conservative Rabbi Joshua Ginsberg Cantor/Dir. of Ed. & Programming Andrea Raizen 305 Sugar Camp Circle, Oakwood. 937-293-9520.

BethAbrahamDayton.org Beth Jacob Congregation Traditional Rabbi Leibel Agar 7020 N. Main St., Dayton. 937-2742149. BethJacobCong.org Temple Anshe Emeth Reform Rabbinic Intern Caroline Sim 320 Caldwell St., Piqua.

Contact Steve Shuchat, 937-7262116, AnsheEmeth@gmail.com. ansheemeth.org Temple Beth Or Reform Rabbi Judy Chessin Educator/Rabbi Ari Ballaban 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 937-435-3400. templebethor.com Temple Beth Sholom Reform Rabbi Haviva Horvitz See Web site for schedule.

610 Gladys Dr., Middletown.

513-422-8313. thetemplebethsholom.com Temple Israel Reform Senior Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz Rabbi/Educator Tina Sobo 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton.

937-496-0050. tidayton.org Temple Sholom Reform Rabbi Cary Kozberg 2424 N. Limestone St., Springfield. 937-399-1231. templesholomoh.com

ADDITIONAL SERVICES Chabad of Greater Dayton Rabbi Nochum Mangel Associate Rabbi Shmuel Klatzkin Youth & Prog. Dir. Rabbi Levi Simon, Teen & Young Adult Prog.

Dir. Rabbi Elchonon Chaikin.

2001 Far Hills Ave. 937-643-0770. www.chabaddayton.com Yellow Springs Havurah Independent Antioch College Rockford Chapel.

Contact Len Kramer, 937-572-4840 or len2654@gmail.com.

RELIGION

May

For authorities of Jewish Iyar/Sivan law, coronavirus has caused unprecedented flurry of questions Stephane de Sakutin/AFP via Getty Images

been anything like

By Ben Harris, JTA this because of As the coronavirus panthe proliferation demic forced Jews around the of questions and world to navigate a Passover because of the exin which large family gathertraordinary means ings were all but impossible, an unusual question posed to a of communicagroup of Israeli rabbis led to an tions,” said David Berger, a historian extraordinary answer. and dean of the The question was whether Graduate School it might be permissible for families to use internet-enabled of Jewish Studies at Yeshiva Univervideoconferencing to celebrate sity. the Passover seder together Among the even as they were sequestered questions rabin separate homes. bis have had to Orthodox Jewish practice confront during normally prohibits the use of the corona crisis: electronics on the Sabbath and Is it permissible to Jewish festivals, but might the unprecedented restrictions sud- constitute a Jewish prayer quorum denly thrust upon billions of French Rabbi Philippe Haddad prepares for over internet-en- a Shabbat service via videoconference at the people permit an exception? abled videoconfer- Copernic Synagogue in Paris, March 28 Remarkably, 14 Sephardic rabbis answered in the affirma- ence? Can married to be buried immediately couples be physitive. presented Chief Rabbi Rafael cally intimate if the woman Some conditions were atcannot immerse in a ritual bath Shaffer with a tortuous dilemtached. The computer would ma: What if a Jewish person because they are closed for have to be enabled prior to the died on Shabbat? Burying the public health reasons? How onset of Passover and remain body immediately would have should burials be handled if untouched for the duration of resulted in a clear violation of authorities prohibit Jewish the holiday. And the leniency the Jewish Sabbath, but allowrituals around the preparawould only apply to the curing the body to be cremated is tion of bodies? Can synagogue rent emergency. also a severe violation of Jewservices be livestreamed on But given the unique imporish law.

Shabbat? tance of the seder ritual and “The burial should be done Rabbis are also beginning the extreme conditions now in on Shabbat if necessary,” Shafto consider some agonizing effect, the rabbis wrote, the use possibilities. Several Conserva- fer told the Jewish Telegraphic of videoconferencing technolAgency after consulting with tive movement ogy is permitted ‘Once this is all rabbinic authorities in Israel. authorities “to remove sadness from adults over, this is going have published “If it’s the only possibility to avoid cremation, then it should papers about and the elderly, be done on Shabbat by nonwhat Jewto give them the to be a really Jews.” ish ethics has motivation to interesting case For the moment, that situato say about continue to fight tion remains in the realm of the medical triage, for their lives, and study of how theoretical. But other halachic anticipating a to avoid depres- halacha evolves questions are of urgent necesmoment when sion and mental quickly when it sity. Many of the recent opindoctors may weakness which ions have explicitly invoked have to make could bring them needs to.’ difficult choices the principle of she’at had’chak to despair of life.”

— literally time of pressure, a about who gets treatment.

The coronavirus pandemic concept in Jewish law that per“This has been yomam valayhas upended so many parts mits a reliance on less authorilah — it’s been day and night,” of life that it’s perhaps little tative opinions in emergency said Rabbi Elliott Dorff, the surprise that it’s also having a situations. co-chair of the Committee on significant impact in the field of “No one thinks you can Jewish Law and Standards, the Jewish law, or halacha. permit biblical violations for a Conservative movement’s auThe sudden impossibility of pressure that doesn’t amount to once routine facets of observant thority on questions of Jewish threatening lives,” said Rabbi law.

“Once this is all over, this Jewish life has generated a Aryeh Klapper, the Orthodox is going to be a really interestsurge in questions never condean of the Center for Modern ing case study of how halacha sidered before — and modern Torah Scholarship. “But maybe technology means that Jews the evolves quickly when it needs you can rely on less authoritato.” world over are more able than tive understandings of what In Romania, the governever to ask those questions and the biblical prohibition is.” ment’s recent declaration that share their answers. any coronavirus fatalities had Continued on next page “I don’t think there’s ever

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

Candle Lightings Shabbat, May 1: 8:13 p.m.

Shabbat, May 8: 8:20 p.m.

Shabbat, May 15: 8:27 p.m.

Shabbat, May 22: 8:33 p.m.

Erev Shavuot May 28: 8:38 p.m.

Shabbat, First Eve Shavuot May 29: 8:39 p.m.

Torah Portions May 2: Acharei-Kedoshim (Lev. 16:1-20:27) May 9: Emor (Lev. 21:1-24:23) May 16: Behar-Bechukotai (Lev. 25:1-27:34) May 23: Bamidbar (Num 1:1-4:20)

Lag B’Omer

33rd Day of Omer May 12 • 18 Iyar The 33rd day of the Omer breaks up the seven weeks of semi-mourning between Passover and Shavuot. It marks the end of a plague among Rabbi Akiva’s students and a victory of Bar-Kokhba’s soldiers over the Romans 2,000 years ago.

Celebrated with picnics and sports.

Shavuot

Festival of Weeks, Giving of the Torah May 29-30/6-7 Sivan Marks the end of the counting of the Omer, a 49-day period that begins on the second night of Passover, and recalls the giving of the Torah at Sinai. In Israel, it falls at the end of the spring harvest. An all-night study session called a tikun, originally a mystical practice, is held at some synagogues.

PAGE 13

RELIGION

Questions

ing contact only after immersion in a mikvah.

But the committee posted a letter on Continued from previous page its website from Rabbi Joshua Heller asserting that under certain circumstancThe Conservative movement, which es, and only for the period of the corotends to take a more flexible line on navirus crisis, a woman could resume matters of Jewish law than Orthodox sexual relations with her husband after authorities, has supported a number showering in 11.25 gallons of water — a of leniencies under the rubric of she’at rough approximation of the Talmudic had’chak. measure of 40 kabim.

In March, Dorff and his “I think we are learning law committee co-chair, Rabbi from earlier historical epochs Pamela Barmash, issued an of crisis and taking inspiration opinion permitting a prayer from the flexibility that our prequorum to be constituted over decessors showed,” said Rabbi internet-enabled videoconferDaniel Nevins, a committee ence. That opinion, which member and the dean of the temporarily suspended a rabbinical school at the Jewish nearly unanimous 2001 ruling that such a quorum was not Rabbi Elliott Dorff Theological Seminary.

To be sure, not all rabbis permissible, would enable have accepted these leniencies. the recitation of the Mourner’s KadAfter Rabbi Daniel Sperber, a liberal dish by people isolated in their homes.

Orthodox rabbi in Israel, issued an Common practice is that the mourner’s opinion permitting some forms of physprayer can only be said if 10 Jewish adults are gathered in one physical loca- ical touch between married couples should ritual baths become inaccessible, tion. another Israeli Orthodox rabbi, Shmuel The law committee also has exEliyahu, called the opinion a “complete pressed support for loosening various mistake.” restrictions around physical touch Israel’s two chief rabbis, David Lau between married couples should Jewish and Yitzhak Yosef, said the opinion perritual baths be forced to close. Couples mitting videoconferencing at the seder that closely observe Jewish law tradiwas “unqualified.” tionally refrain from any form of touch And Rabbi Hershel Schachter, a for the period of the woman’s menleading Orthodox authority at Yeshiva struation and for a week after, resum-

‘Within

our hearts, the Jewish soul sings.’

be permitted.

University, wrote recently that a prayer Many rabbis have expressed concern quorum could not be constituted by participants standing on nearby porches that such loosening of the rules, even if expressly done only to address a press— even if they could all see each other. ing (and presumably temporary) need, “The 10 men must all be standing in might nevertheless create new norms the same room,” Schachter wrote. of behavior that will outlast the current But Schachter, who has personally published no less than a dozen opinions crisis. If so, it wouldn’t be the first time.

According to a recent article by Rabbi on matters related to coronavirus, has Elli Fisher, during the 19th-century shown flexibility in other areas. cholera epidemic, there were Schachter has ruled that so many mourners that Rabbi a patient discharged from a Akiva Eger, who led the Jewish hospital on Shabbat can be community in Poznan, Poland driven home by a family memruled that it was permissible ber because it’s dangerous to for many mourners to recite the remain in the hospital longer Mourner’s Kaddish simultanethan necessary and taxis carry ously. At the time, the practheir own risks of coronavirus tice was that only one person transmission. He has said that recited Kaddish at a time. isolated individuals who suffer Rabbi Hershel Given the numbers of the from psychological conditions Schachter dead, that practice would have that might endanger their lives left people with few opportunities to if they were unable to communicate recite the mourner’s prayer. The pracwith family may use phone or internet tice of reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish to communicate on a Jewish holiday. as a group remains the dominant one in And in a ruling that had wide apsynagogues today. plicability when many people prepared “I do think that our people are wise to host Passover meals for the first enough and insightful enough to undertime, he suggested a workaround for stand the difference between this crisis the obligation of immersing utensils in situation and normal situations,” Bara ritual bath before using them. Since baths are now closed for such purposes, mash said. “I think in some sense that fear is giving in to a low opinion of our Schachter ruled that one could use the people. And I think that our people are utensils without immersion by first wise and insightful and do recognize declaring them legally ownerless — a the distinction.” workaround that would normally not

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

A BISEL KISEL

Empathetic imagination during the pandemic clustered on the street corner, shake hands, groups of high school students run in tight formations. With utter disregard for human life, some religious congregations are still holding services.

The invisibility of the novel coronavirus makes the pandemic feel prosaic. For many, days are dulled by genteel boredom.

Hours are filled with homeschooling, Netflix, baking Masha projects, and walks around the Kisel block as we wish each other to “hang in there!” from 6 feet away.

We try to spice up the blandto outpace the pandemic’s devness of this existence. I pour astation. extra hot sauce on my breakfast For the good of all, we need eggs. I feel an urge to take a to bridge the distance between risk. these experiences. During this What if I were to burst into time, an exercise in empathetic imagination is just as important song and dance during my as government-issued mandates Zoom lecture for English 100?

What if it goes viral? I imagine to stay at home.

It’s human nature to shut out the humiliating zing of internet everything beyond the bubble embarrassment. of our personal circumstances during a time of fear and uncer- How would that feel? tainty, and it’s easy to be lulled And what if on into a delusion that the danger isn’t real if we don’t personally my daily walk, I press the button see it or feel it. at the stop light As infectious disease spewith my finger cialist Dr. Emily Landon from instead of my University of Chicago has put it, “A successful shelter-in-place elbow and then touch my face? I pinch the skin means you’re going to feel like it was all for nothing, and you’d on my wrist to prevent myself be right: Because nothing means from doing something stupid.

The small pain is an event. that nothing happened to your My self-destructive thoughts family. And that’s what we’re try to break me out of my going for here.”

But at a time when every hu- still-life cocoon. Maybe all of man fate depends on actions of us stay-at-homes will discover the collective, I see a rupture in some latent masochistic tendencies in quarantine? understanding the importance Locked in place, I travel of social distancing. through time. I could be living Every day I see examples out my sunset years, I could of reckless behavior around be 5 and lost in play or I could my neighborhood: people chat One of the strangest things about living through this pandemic is that those who shelter at home and those on the front lines occupy two different realities.

For some it feels like time has slowed down to a crawl, while others rush at breakneck speed

Wikimedia Commons

and until we have a better be 16, daydreaming to Sonic solution, social distancing is Youth’s Goo blasting on my the only option we have. headphones.

Ohio is lucky to have a Some days, a gauzy governor with foresight. serenity wraps around our DeWine’s early shelter-inhomelife. In those moments, place order has already when my kids are quietly saved many lives; I hope and immersed in books, I am pray that local governments filled with gratitude for this continue to reason wisely and wrinkle in time. But I know ignore the president’s foolish that this peaceful pause is a insistence to end social dismirage of privilege. tancing measures too early, For those on the front lines condemning hundreds of of the pandemic, especially thousands to death. healthcare professionals in Illustration created at the Centers for A stimulus plan focused hotspots, time is a killing Disease Control and Prevention revealing on helping workers and promachine. viding universal healthcare Doctors and nurses spend ultrastructural morphology exhibited by coronaviruses would make this closure toltheir days in fevered calculaerable for the most financially tions. How many hospital Those of us who feel far away vulnerable among us. beds are left? How many venti- from this horror all play a role Unfortunately, right now lators? How many people have in perpetuating the tragedy or we cannot rely on the federal I touched today? How many helping to stop it. government to protect us from days before I get sick too?

We know now that this the pandemic or from economic Behind protective gear, like disease is primarily spread by devastation. astronauts on a spacewalk, their asymptomatics. You might be Here in the Miami Valley, lives are tethered a carrier and not even know many families will need help to chance. it. We may not all be essential putting food on the table. Our The essential workers, but we are all essenempathetic imagination must workers forced tial in slowing the pandemic’s extend also to those who live into heroism spread even as it gets progreswithout a paycheck or savings. in hospitals, sively harder to stay at home.

Some politicians might claim pharmacies, and Sure, there are compelling grocery stores reasons to “reopen” the country that they are acting compassionately by calling to reopen did not sign up and allow people to go back the economy, but telling people for this level of to work. Landon’s statement that they will avoid destitution risk. that “nothing will have hapby risking deadly infection is a Their safety pened to your family” ignores depends on reducing the numthe millions who have lost their horror film trade-off.

Our country has enough ber of infected patients, infected sources of income. money to help its citizens safely customers. It may not feel like My own job as a univerweather the pandemic. it, but our split-screen realities sity professor is uncertain if But until we can elect leaders are an interconnected system students don’t come back to with an empathetic imaginathat can preserve life or cause campus in the fall. But the tion, we must become those more death. truth is that unemployment is leaders ourselves and do what Imagine seeing the fear in temporary, and loss of life is we can, whenever we can, to your patient’s eyes, hearing irreversible. get through this difficult time them beg to see their loved ones We need to stay the course before they die, watching them because, currently, there is no al- together. deteriorate. You are unable to ternative. The United States did Masha Kisel is a lecturer in English help. You know you or your not act quickly enough to halt loved one might be next. the spread of this deadly disease at the University of Dayton.

Until we have a better solution, social distancing is the only option we have.

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 15

JEWISH FAMILY EDUCATION

A heritage of hope Our Dual Heritage

unable to get her Passover groceries delivered in time, used the Nextdoor neighborhood app to ask for help. Everything from horseradish to flowers showed up on her doorstep, and her hoped-for seder became a reality.

What is hope? In the Jewish worldview, hope isn’t an instinct; it’s a value and therefore Candace R. a choice.

“Hope is the faith that with Kwiatek our efforts, we can help make things better,” explains Rabbi Michael Marmur. This unique perspective is founded in the began delivering seder meals, Hebrew Bible. offering website-based PassIn contrast, English dictionover prep tutorials, coaching aries often equate hope with Passover cooking from home kitchens via YouTube, and using optimism, a positive but passive mental attitude that outcomes technology to create seder experiences, offering hope to both of events or experiences will be favorable. the inexperienced and those Interestingly, there is no nacelebrating alone. tive Hebrew word for optimism; A Raleigh, N.C news station the Hebrew word optimiyoot is featured a couple who rose to a loanword from English. In the challenge, inviting a largerHebrew, there is only hope. than-usual crowd of 40 friends According to Marmur, there and family in six time zones around the world to their virtual are different opinions about the origin of the word hope (tikPassover seder. vah), journalist Jeffrey Goldberg In Bluffton, S.C., dozens of non-Jewish neighbors respond- notes. “Some say it comes from ed when a sequestered woman, mikvah, a ritual bath,” with hope Prevented from gathering — or even extensive shopping — for Passover seders this year due to Covid-19, Jews across the country were at first despairing.

But hope doesn’t die so easily.

Synagogues, caterers, Jewish organizations, and individuals

envisioned as “a resource, a pool, a solace, and a support.”

An alternate view suggests its origin is the cord (tikva) of scarlet thread that saved Rahab and her family during Joshua’s destruction of Jericho.

“If the first meaning of the word looks to sources of support,” Goldberg concludes, “the second kind of hope is symbolized by a thin thread leading from a complicated present to a possible future.”

Hope’s origins are not only linguistic; the very notion of hope originates in the Torah.

The ancient world believed history was cyclical, a neverending repetition of determined events like the seasons, with no meaning or goal.

Individual lives were controlled by nature, the gods, or fate, offering little possibility of human influence over the future.

In such a world, hope didn’t exist.

Until Abraham. By heeding God’s call to leave his land, his birthplace, and his father’s house, Abraham repudiated the notions of cyclical, unchangeable history and human fatalism — the very foundations of ancient history, culture, and identity.

By doing so, he opened up the possibility for choice and change, linear history with an as-yet undecided future, and — as a result — hope. This hope that individual efforts can make a difference in the course

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Library of Congress

Sheet music from 1907 featuring Hatikvah, The Hope, which would become Israel’s national anthem

of one’s life, the community, or history altogether is a notable theme that runs through the rest of the biblical story and beyond.

As a result, Judaism itself is infused with hope. Each calendar day begins with darkness followed by light, an inspiration to always look forward.

Similarly, Chanukah candlelighting increases the number of candles by one each night to bring ever more light to the darkness.

Morning blessings are reminders to bring hope to the world around us.

The High Holy Days bring the hope of forgiveness and new beginnings. Israel’s national anthem is Hatikvah — The Hope.

And the Talmud suggests one question asked during judgment in the afterlife will be, ”Did you live with hope?”

In the words of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, “Judaism is the voice of hope in the conversation of mankind.”

Solidly rooted in the Bible from its founding, America instinctively adopted the biblical notion of hope. The Founders

encoded hope into the very DNA of America, with the Declaration’s recognition of the equality of humans before God and of its citizens’ unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Inspired by the Exodus story, Abraham Lincoln pursued liberty for America’s slaves.

To the Pilgrims and Jews, America was the hope of freedom from religious and political persecution.

To dispossessed European peasants and artisans, it offered the hope of land and economic opportunity.

Across the globe, America meant hope for individual liberty, adventure, refuge from wars, pogroms, and massacres, and the possibility of being judged on character rather than class.

This heritage of hope is reflected in the titles of recently published books: Land of Hope, Still the Best Hope, and The Last Best Hope.

And it was unexpectedly acknowledged on the popular television show America’s Got Talent by a Kyrgyzstan dance crew, the South African Ndlovu Youth Choir, and the Ukrainian Light Balance Kids.

During their pre-performance interviews, each group independently expressed the same sentiment: America is the land of hope. “(Hope) is a struggle...against the world that is, in the name of the world that could be, should be, but is not yet,” Sacks writes.

“But we can only know the beginning of the story, not the end.”

The Bible. Judaism. Israel.

America. Each holds hope as a value, each is actively engaged in improving the world. But as yet, we only know the beginnings of their stories.

Literature to share Invisible as Air by Zoe Fishman. This memorable tale follows the trajectory of a couple and their son suffering the stillborn death of a long-awaited daughter. Unable to come to terms with their grief, each looks for an escape, compounding their tragedy and nearly destroying their family. Although it has a positive ending, this story’s title is foreshadowing: when we don’t let others into our lives, we become invisible as air. And being invisible can have disastrous consequences. Realistic and gripping, its message will remain with you. I couldn’t put it down.

Searching for Lottie by Susan Ross. As part of an ancestry school project, Charlie discovers her great-aunt lived in Europe in the 1940s, but it’s all a bit of a mystery. Lively and inquisitive, the very relatable Charlie sets out on a quest to unravel it.

Set mostly in the present, the story is interwoven with details about European life during World War II and the history of the Holocaust in an appropriate and accessible manner for middle school readers. It’s a novel that invites discussion about the Holocaust and family histories and the storytelling that keeps the memories alive.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

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By Melissa Klurman The Nosher My grandmother, Mama Pearl, was 99 when she passed away last February. She was my baking buddy and Crisco guru.

She taught me to make apple pie when I still had to stand on a stool to reach the counter, and I’m now the keeper of her index box full of sweet recipes for everything from Passover apple fritters to pecan chocolate pie.

One thing I never learned to make, though: her blueberry blintzes.

No restaurant, diner, Jewish food emporium or synagogue has ever served me a blintz that looked like Mama Pearl’s. The dough was so thin it was nearly transparent, and the whole blueberries in the filling — never jam — pushed up almost to the point of breaking through. Forget any tightly folded blankets of barely filled dough, these looked more like children’s sharp elbows poking up under the sheets.

How do I remember what they look like so clearly? I’ve got the last one in my freezer.

She made it as part of a batch in the summer of 2018, and I held on to it thinking I’d wait until she made more. Now I’m too emotionally attached to either eat it or throw it away.

The only thing I can think to do is to master her recipe and create more to keep the “one” company, so I don’t have to continuously check to make sure no one has eaten it or defrosted my freezer in the night.

But how to go about making a blintz that’s mostly a memory?

To the recipe box I go. Only there’s no recipe here, and I’m not really surprised. A blintz is the kind of instinctual comfort food women of her generation made simply by the memories in their hands.

So, to the internet I head, but as with my restaurant quest, I can only find “fresh blueberries”

that have been cooked down into jam.

Then my mom saves the day with a recipe she wrote down by watching over my grandmother’s shoulder, and it’s exactly how I remember it.

I head back to my own kitchen and pull out my frozen keepsake, which I’ve been too emotional to do before now. The blueberries have shriveled from being in the deep freeze so long, and there’s a layer of frost on one side that nearly brings me to tears.

Everything about my blintz project makes me verklempt. I don’t want to be the only holder of the last blintz. What I truly desire is impossible: for my grandmother to make me a cup of coffee from her 50-year-old percolator and ask me to take out the garden furniture while she fries up her sweet summer specialty.

But a funny thing happens as I pour and swirl the batter in the frying pan: my own “hand memories” start to kick in. I can picture mama in the kitchen, and I know I’m going too slowly. The only way to get a thin, lacy blini is to make the pan hotter, pull it away from the heat quicker, and swirl it more deftly, like she did.

In the end, my pancakes are a bit thick, but my blueberries are lemony and delicious, bursting with flavor and still whole.

The first batch was good, but there’s room for improvement.

And that, I think, is the best part of resolving to eat more blintzes: I’m going to get it right.

Here’s Mama Pearl’s recipe for blueberry blintzes, a treat for your Shavuot holiday table.

For the blintzes: 3 eggs 1 cup milk ½ cup water 1 cup all-purpose flour unsalted butter, for frying sour cream, for serving

For the blueberry filling: 2 pints blueberries ½ Tbsp. all-purpose flour 1-2 Tbsp. granulated sugar 2 tsp. lemon zest lemon juice (about 1 tsp.)

Blitz all the blintz ingredients in a blender (consistency of the batter should be smooth with no lumps).

Heat a nonstick skillet on medium heat until hot, and lightly grease with butter.

Pour about 1/8 cup (or 2 Tbsp.) batter into the pan and tilt the pan in a circular motion until the batter coats the entire bottom of the pan in a large, thin circular shape.

Cook 60-75 seconds until the edges of the blintz are brown and the bottom is lightly golden. (You can tell it’s ready by touching the center of the pancake’s surface — it should be dry and slightly tacky to the touch.) Do not flip the blintz to cook the other side.

Place the blintz on a plate lined with parchment or wax paper. Repeat the process until all batter is cooked — this should yield around 18 blintzes.

(Keep the blintzes separated by pieces of parchment paper, wax paper, or paper towel. This will help keep them from sticking together.)

Combine all ingredients for the blueberry filling.

To wrap blintzes, place 1 Tbsp. blueberry filling just off center.

Fold the top down and the sides up over the filling, then roll down to the bottom (because the blueberries are lumpy, go slow and try and to stretch the dough over them without tearing it).

You can either serve the blintzes at this point or freeze them for later use. When you’re ready to eat them, fry them on all sides in butter in a nonstick pan until golden. Serve with sour cream.

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2020 Does your son or of

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The Observer is happy to offer you a FREE announcement, including a photo, in our June graduation issue.To receive a form for this free announcement, contact Marshall Weiss at MWeiss@jfgd.net.

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 17

Netflix

Arts&Culture

Netflix’s Unorthodox is just what we need now Shira Haas plays Esty Shapiro in Netflix’s new series, Unorthodox

By Lior Zaltman, Kveller Back in 2012, when Deborah Feldman’s memoir Unorthodox came out, several people recommended I read this tale about a young woman leaving the Chasidic Satmar sect.

I didn’t follow the advice, but I should have. It’s an important and engrossing autobiographical work.

Unorthodox has inspired an incredible new Netflix miniseries by the same name. Starring Shira Haas of Shtisel, this is reverent and beautiful television.

Haas plays Esther “Esty” Shapiro, a woman struggling to find her place in the same Brooklyn Satmar community

where Feldman grew up. Like Feldman, who wrote in secret, Esty has a secret passion: music. Like Feldman, her father is incapacitated, her mother has left the community, and she is raised in part by her bubbie.

But Esty’s story isn’t a carbon copy of Feldman’s. It’s more of an amalgam of the many high-profile tales of those who left ultra-Orthodoxy, such as Shulem Deen, Jericho Vincent and Abby Stein, who has a small role in the show.

Haas brings a powerhouse performance, and Esty’s character is powerful and specific. Yet it’s a universal tale found in the stories of Chasids who

raeli show about haredi Jews, this show have gone “off the path” — those who centers on someone who rejects their feel like a square peg in a round hole in their restrictive and tight-knit communi- religious community. But the portrayal of Orthodoxy is handled with utmost ties. In each instance, for every chunk sensitivity and care. of freedom sought, there is a price — For a start, the show is partly in Yidultimately, the dissolution of the reladish — a novel choice that feels very tionship with your family and the only respectful and very right. Both Haas community you’ve ever known. That is and her co-star, Amit Rahav, learned the a heavy and constant price to pay.

Jewish tongue spoken by the Satmar In the show, Esty keeps searching community for the show. It was diffor her happiness — in clandestine ficult for both actors, entailing hours of piano lessons, in a marriage that she lessons from Eli Rosen, the rabbi in the hopes will bring her freedom (spoiler: show and himself an ex-Chasid. Rosen it does not), and then by escaping from Brooklyn to Berlin, where her ex-Chasid and actor Jeff Wilbusch, who is also exSatmar, helped make sure every minute mother lives. While she finds a new detail in the show was accurate, down community of musicians in the German to the length of the socks. capital and a way to follow her love for It’s striking to see a show in which music, it’s safe to say there is no way to neatly tie this story in a happy-ever-after Yiddish is front and center. I found myself admiring the show for its beauty, knot. There is no place in the world that musicality, and warmth. will be a square hole for this One scene that features a square peg. Just a place that The portrayal song in Yiddish is breathperhaps feels a little less of Orthodoxy taking. And the choice of painful, a little more right.

Yiddish helped engross me Many do find their place is handled in the community being and happiness within with utmost portrayed — a complex one, ultra-Orthodoxy: It offers them faith, community, and sensitivity and like all communities, with villains and heroes and comforting rituals. But for care. everything in between. those who grow to feel out Esty’s husband, Yanky, played by Raof place, the exit is arduous and incredhav, is a particularly strong and complex ibly painful and, in some ways, never truly complete. Unorthodox portrays this character. His love and devotion — his desperation for her to remain with him journey with emotional eloquence.

— is heartwrenching.

If you are worried that this show Yanky offers to love Esty, quirks and contains a two-dimensional portrayal all, and at first she is thrilled by the of ultra-Orthodoxy, let me assuage concept. On their wedding day, the your fears. Sure, unlike Shtisel, the Is-

Temple Beth Or

✡ offers thanks for the medical professionals—doctors, nurses, and health care workers on the front lines of the pandemic; ✡ pays tribute to those caring for the disabled, infirm, chronically-ill and elder population; ✡ honors those putting their lives on the front lines—police, fire, ambulance, and sanitation workers; and those providing for our basic needs, grocery workers, pharmacists, delivery people, and other essential services.

May we find ways to support and comfort one another, continue to pray for healing, and work to mend the world!

Blessed are You, O Eternal our God, Ruler of the universe, who has given us the opportunity to mend the world!

Visit Templebethor.com to view a variety of virtual and in person events (when possible).

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Today...and for Generations THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

exhilaration on Esty’s face is intoxicating — you see that she truly believes that in marriage she will find freedom. But it all sours as the couple works to consummate their marriage.

Esty feels oppressed by her husband’s sexual desire and her physical inability to return it.

The marriage scenes are the most intimate. A journey to the mikvah before the wedding shows Esty dipping in the ritual bath, impatient and giddy with excitement. As a viewer, the scene felt even more shocking than the lovemaking scenes of the two — they entail no nudity but can be stomach-churning because of Esty’s discomfort.

But intimacy and sacredness are communicated in the show, and nothing feels salacious.

Yanky is distraught when Esty leaves him without saying a word. And he follows her to Berlin — a complex place for the Satmar community.

For Esty it’s where her mother sought freedom from her community, and where she comes looking for her own. But the Satmar community was started in Europe and re-established itself in New York in the wake of World War II, on the ashes and trauma of the Holocaust.

The show really drives home that point — in a way that sometimes feels a bit didactic, but still powerful.

Motherhood is an important part of the show — both the void that Esty’s absent mother created as well as Esty’s fear that she will not know how to be a mother because of it.

It is never addressed in the show, but undergoing the journey to find her own happiness is not only something that Esty does for herself, but for her future children and their wellbeing. She does not want them to grow up with an unrealized, angry or absent parent, as she did.

Unorthodox is a beautiful show, and Esty is a magnificent character. Her harrowing coming-of-age tale is universal, and I feel like many of us, religious and secular, will see ourselves in certain moments of the portrayal.

A show this profoundly human is exactly what we need now, in days where we all feel so lonely and so detached from our communities — and so scared that things will be this way forever. Unorthodox reminds us that life is a constant search, that happiness is not always the end goal, and that sometimes you just have to work through some really tough times before you come through on the other side.

Jewish War Veterans plans to place flags at graves for Memorial Day

OBITUARIES Charlotte Hannah Ross Bloom, age 96, formerly of Dayton, passed away April 9 in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., where she had been living.

Mrs. Bloom was preceded in death by her husband, Jerome Bloom; parents, Abraham and Francis Ross; and brother, Matthew Ross. She is survived by her children, Barbara (Jim) Markwell and Stuart Bloom (Nancy Mahlin); two grandchildren, Jon (Amy) Bloom and Jerry (Eva) Markwell; great-granddaughter, Opal Markwell. Interment was at Riverview Cemetery in Dayton.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, 322 Eighth Avenue, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001.

Asher Bogin, devoted husband, father, grandfather, and brother, died April 10 at his home in Oakland, Calif. Born to Norman and Selma Bogin, April 23, 1927 in New York, Mr. Bogin and his family moved to New Haven, Conn.; Gulfport, Miss.; and New Rochelle, N.Y. He met Janet (Schmier) at New Rochelle High School, where they were both active in civic and social clubs.

After graduation in 1944, Mr. Bogin served in the Navy, attended college, and graduated from Syracuse Law School in 1950, after a stint in the Air Force judge advocate’s office in Alabama. He and Mrs. Bogin were married in 1950 and lived in White Plains, N.Y. while Mr. Bogin worked for a law firm and Mrs. Bogin taught school. In 1952, Mr. Bogin was invited to take a position in Dayton as in-house counsel at United Aircraft Products. The couple joined Temple Israel and were active members of the Jewish community. Their children, Jim and Wendy, were born in Dayton where Mr. and Mrs. Bogin developed many lifelong friendships that continue to this day. Mr. Bogin was a founding partner of Goldman, Bogin and Fox, and later Bogin and Patterson, now known as Bogin, Patterson, Ellis, Slaton and Stump. In the 1960s he opened a law office in Yellow Springs, the only attorney in the village at that time. Mr. Bogin had a passion for civil rights and social justice, and became active in the American Civil Liberties Union, donating his time and skills representing victims of discrimination and student protestors, and supporting efforts toward school desegregation in Dayton. He was a longstanding member of the Dayton Bar Association and served on the Dayton Area Regional Transportation Authority. In retirement, the Bogins split their time between Dayton and Aptos, Calif., within easy distance of his sister Elaine, and Wendy’s family in Berkeley. The Bogins traveled frequently to visit Jim and his family in upstate New York. Mr. Bogin was known for his infectious smile, his kindness, his humor, his wit, and intelligence.

He could recite classic poems from memory well into his 80s. He was a lifelong student of history and could engage in thoughtful debate on many topics. He was an avid

runner, running several marathons in the 1980s. Mr. Bogin’s love and devotion to his wife were inspiring to family and friends. After her stroke in 1977, he helped with her rehabilitation and, with his support, she regained her independence.

Many remember their daily walks, arm in arm, on the beach in Aptos.

In 2013, the Bogins relocated permanently to Oakland. Mr. Bogin is survived by his wife of 70 years, Janet; son, Jim; daughter, Wendy (Scott Kane); sister, Elaine Herman; grandchildren, Rachel Hodges, Kenneth Goodrich (Rachael), Angela Goodrich, Nomi Kane and Ben Kane (Alice); and great-grandchildren Brooke, Lila, Celia, Luke, Sophia, Oliver and Willow, along with nieces, nephews and cousins with whom he remained close throughout his life.

He will be greatly missed by all.

Donations can be made to ACLU of Ohio, 4506 Chester Ave, Cleveland, OH 44103 or acluohio.org.

Jerry S. Cohen, age 81 of Vandalia, passed away peacefully March 28. Dr. Cohen served in the Army Reserves and was a podiatrist for over 35 years. He is survived by his wife, Jacque; a daughter and son-in-law, Halle (Dan) Saperstein; a son and daughter-in-law, Robert (Amy) Cohen; seven grandchildren, Jacob, Ellie, Ryan, Ari, Eli, Sophie and Lela. Interment was at Royal Oak Cemetery.

Sandra Lee Schoemann, née Recht, age 74, passed away April 1 at Hospice of Dayton. Our dear Mrs. Schoemann was born Aug. 11, 1945 to the late Jack Recht and Edith Haberman Recht Aberte.

Mrs. Schoemann had a long and loving marriage of 41 years to Steven M. Schoemann, who passed away July 27, 2019. In addition to her parents and her husband, Mrs. Schoemann was preceded in death by her brother, Barry Recht, and her brother-in-law Philip Friedman.

Mrs. Schoemann is survived by her sister, Carol Splaver, brother-in-law Harvey Splaver, nephew Elchanan Splaver, niece Nechama Weingart and Scott Weingart, sister-inlaw Linda Recht; nieces, Stacey Recht and Philip von Zweck, Melissa Recht and Brian Boyd, Leah Recht and Ben Rockwell and their families; sister-in-law, Carol Friedman; niece, Elana and Andre Carnevale; nephews, Aaron and Christy Friedman, Reuben Friedman and Teresa Lowder and their families; aunt, Shirley Oppenheimer, and many cousins including Bonnie and David Parish, Barbara and Ian Rosenthal, Paul and Marilyn Haberman, Mark and Cheri Richman, Joel Richman and Jill Blumberg, Randy Richman and Marilyn Trinz, Jeanne and Gary Newman, Betsy and Steven Rosenman, Martin and Joan Holzinger and their families, as well as many beloved relatives from both the Recht/Haberman and Schoemann families. Mrs. Schoemann graduated from Barberton High School and earned her bachelor of arts degree at Ohio University.

She taught at Meadowdale High School in the Dayton Public

Schools district for three decades.

After her retirement, she and her husband taught as substitute teachers at Lehman Catholic High School in Sydney. Her impact on thousands of students was one of her greatest legacies. She loved teaching Spanish and kept in touch with many of her former students. Mrs. Schoemann was the family genealogist and spent many tireless hours gathering family history, researching both sides of the family tree, connecting with long-lost relatives, writing the Recht and Haberman family history, contributing information about the Schoemann family history for a book published in Germany by Marie-Luise Conen, and meeting other genealogists at conferences and remotely on the internet. It was one of her passions and a true gift to the family. Mrs. Schoemann loved to travel, garden, read, bake legendary cheesecakes, and go out with the members of the Lunch Bunch & Coffee Club, whose friendships she treasured.

Mrs. Schoemann was a member of Beth Abraham Synagogue and was actively involved in Miami Valley Jewish Genealogy & History, formerly known as the Jewish Genealogical Society of Dayton, and was a board member of Hadassah and enjoyed participating in its Stock Club and Book Club for many years. Her family and friends will miss her warm, kind eyes and her bright smile. She was incredibly brave and positive even as cancer took her energy and health and as she dealt with the sudden loss of her husband. Her family is grateful for the doctors and nurses who cared for her during her battle with cancer and for the caring staff of the Hospice of Dayton, and for the many friends who reached out to help her during this difficult year.

A special thank you to her dear friend and cousin, Bonnie Parish, and to her friends Paula Gessiness and Chaya Vidal. Memorial contributions may be made in memory of Mrs. Schoemann to Miami Valley Jewish Genealogy & History, 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459, the American Cancer Society or to the charity of your choice. Interment was at Beth Abraham Cemetery.

If current Ohio Department of Health Covid-19 restrictions are lifted, Jewish War Veterans Post 587 invites volunteers to help place American flags at the graves of Jewish veterans for Memorial Day weekend.

JWV will place flags at Beth Jacob Cemetery on Friday, May 22 at 10 a.m., at the Temple Beth Or section of David’s Cemetery at 1 p.m.; and at Beth Abraham Cemetery and Temple Israel’s Riverview Cemetery on Sunday, May 24 at 10 a.m.

Post 587’s bugler will play Taps at all the cemeteries where it will place flags. Other veteran and civic groups will place flags at other cemeteries.

JWV places a metal flag holder beside each Jewish veteran’s grave. To have a flag holder placed at the grave of a Jewish veteran in time for Memorial Day, call Post Commander Steve Markman at 937-886-9566.

Our Family Serving Your Family For More Than 90 Years

Funeral Homes, Inc.

Pre-need Arrangements Pre-paid Funeral Trusts Cremation Services • Transfers North Main Chapel 1706 N. Main Street Huber Heights Chapel 5844 Old Troy Pike

For Both Locations Call 937-275-7434

L’dor V’dor.

From Generation To Generation.

GLICKLER FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICE Larry S. Glickler, Director Dayton’s ONLY Jewish Funeral Director 1849 Salem Avenue, Dayton, Ohio 45406-4927 (937) 278-4287 lgfuneralhome@gmail.com

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MAY 2020

PAGE 19

DAYTON JEWISH

Celebrate 20 years of Dayton’s Jewish Film Festival with Opening Night at the Dixie Twin Drive-In*!

HEADING HOME: A TALE OF TEAM ISRAEL Tuesday, June 9 Doors open at 8:30PM, film begins at 9 @ the Dixie Twin Drive-In (6201 N Dixie Dr., Dayton 45414) Our Film Fesitval is a home run staring with the feel-good documentary Heading Home: A Tale of Team Israel. Follow Team Israel – including a few former major leaguers – as they visit Israel to find their roots and discover Judaism on a whole other level.

*Film will be available to stream from home in the event of an extension of Ohio’s Stay at Home/non-essential business order.

Crescendo

Love in Suspenders

Prosecuting Evil

Tel Aviv on Fire

The Keeper

Those Who Remained

Join us for an exciting experience this year for our 20th anniversary Jewish Film Festival! We’re going VIRTUAL, you can watch from the comfort of your couch! Check back for our dates in June as well as a listing of guest speakers and streamed events, including Zoom interactive discussion sessions!

Interactive zoom film discussion session for these films 2 0 2 0

S P O N S O R S