KOL HADASH . new voIce
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MAY/JUNE 2011 • NISAN/IYAR/SIVAN 5771
Remembering Memorial Day
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We as Americans and as Jews must stay connected to carrying the burden of our nation and the memory of those who have fallen.”
Teen Trip to New Orleans
RABBI FELICIA L. SOL
Situated in between two essential Jewish holidays, Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel Independence Day) and Shavuot (the reliving of the giving of Torah at Sinai) this year, is Monday, May 30, Memorial Day. When I was a child, this was the long weekend we used to go camping, the first hope for a taste of summer fun, often showered with rain. But had the trajectory of my life and those who came before me been different, this last Monday in May might have felt distinct in other ways. Both my Grandpa and my Zadie were drafted to serve in World War II. My parents were infants at the time, so they lack the memories of fathers serving their country overseas, and for me their identity as servicemen was never central. They rarely spoke about it—it was an earlier stage in their lives, one that they survived on many levels. The greatest insight into my Grandpa’s time away was his almost daily letters to my Grandma, letters that she gave to my brother and me when she was in her late eighties. My Baubie speaks only sparingly about my Zadie’s experience as a photographer in “the service.” The one thing she did say was that he never forgot the smell at a concentration camp that he was assigned to photograph. My father, though he was the age of those drafted for Vietnam, had a 2S, a student deferment, and then a 2A deferment for occupational reasons and therefore was spared the ravages of the Vietnam War. I am the granddaughter of two Jewish servicemen in World War II who survived. I am the daughter of a father who wasn’t drafted due to his pursuit of education and his critical skills, and I am a grown adult who knows no active soldiers in the military. Memorial Day could stay a three-day weekend because I have had the privilege to live this story. I imagine many in our community have similar stories. However, after over eight years at war in Iraq, almost 10 years at war in Afghanistan, and 5,885 American servicemen killed in duty, this day, set aside for us to remember those who served our country and died for it, deserves more than a window into summer fun.
PHOTO: JASON FRUITHANDLER
See pages 10-11 for more about recent teen trips to New Orleans and the Dominican Republic.
The wars we are fighting are thousands of miles away, and despite the great financial cost of these wars (over 1.12 trillion dollars), we have not been asked to sacrifice as citizens of this country the way previous generations did during wartime. I would venture to say there are many Jews, like myself, who know more soldiers serving in the Israeli Defense Force than in the American military. An article in the Forward on February 9, 2011, notes that 1,500 Jewish soldiers are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, 1% of the total of those deployed there, and 37 Jewish soldiers have died in these wars. The article “Profiles of our Fallen” shares the stories and pictures of the 37 Jews who have died in service of our country. It is profoundly moving to get a (continued on page 4)
Social Action/Social Justice . . . . . .2-3 Executive Director’s Desk . . . . . . . . .4 High Holy Days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Member Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . .6, 13 Shavuot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Israel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8-9 Youth & Family Education . . . . . .10-11 The BJ Musicians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Announcements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Contacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
inside: Becoming Attuned to Agricultural Rhythms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Honoring Roly’s 25 Years of Spiritual Leadership. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Membership Renewal and High Holy Day Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 At Sinai ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Loving Israel, Debating Israel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Building the San Luis Community Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
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