Rockwern dinner Dalai Lama visit Kim and Gary honors outstanding inspires Jewish, Heiman to receive Buddhist viewpoints AJC award individuals The 2010 Rockwern Academy Tribute Dinner and Silent Auction, “Teach Them Diligently to Your Children,” honored three of our city’s finest devotees to Jewish education, Mary Lee Sirkin and Barry and Ellen Finestone. The impressive crowd of 450 guests were served a sumptuous kosher dinner and filled the Adath Israel reception hall with lively conversation and support for the honored guests, as well as for Rockwern
By Barbara L. Morgenstern Senior Writer
Honoree Mary Lee Sirkin and her husband Louis
In the parking lot of Hebrew Union CollegeJewish Institute of Religion in Clifton, Dr. David J. Gilner’s car bears two bumper stickers that might seem unusual for the director of libraries. “Save Tibet,” said one bumper sticker from the International Campaign for Tibet, which promotes
ROCKWERN on page 20
MONTGOMERY CO, MD. — A Silver Spring, Maryland Orthodox Jew’s claim that judges in the Montgomery County Circuit Court violated his religious rights by refusing to recess his medical malpractice suit over the Jewish holiday of Shavuos is now before the state’s highest court. Alexander Neustadter is charging that the judges considered the “efficiency of the docket” to trump his need to observe the Jewish holiday, which observance includes restrictions that prevented him from appearing in court. Agudath Israel of America filed a “friend of the court” brief in the Maryland Court of Appeals in support of Neustadter’s position.
Kim and Gary Heiman
their outstanding volunteer roles and civic accomplishments,” notes John Stein, AJC Cincinnati president. “Kim and Gary share three children,
DALAI LAMA on page 20
Maryland high court to hear religious freedom case By Rabbi Avi Shafran Guest Columnist
Courtesy of Emory University
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama is scheduled to speak here in October.
Kim and Gary Heiman will receive the Community Service Award of the American Jewish Committee Cincinnati at a reception benefiting AJC’s annual Appeal for Human Relations on Wednesday, Oct. 13, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Mayerson Jewish Community Center. Keynote speaker will be Rabbi Ed Rettig, acting director of AJC’s Jerusalem office. “We selected Kim and Gary for this honor because of
The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment’s protection of citizen’s free exercise of religion, the brief claims, well covers cases like the one being considered by the Appeals Court. It notes that Neustadter filed a number of motions calling the court’s attention to his inability to appear in court during the two days of Shavuos, and the similar inability of his lawyer, who would be acting as his agent, to attend the trial on those days. The motions were denied. Although the Agudath Israel brief makes clear that the organization takes no position on Neustadter’s malpractice suit itself, it takes strong issue with a contention made by the defendant in the suit that the holiday of Shavuos is strictly observed only by “a sub CASE on page 20
AWARD on page 19
Israel taking wait-and-see stance By Ron Kampeas Jewish Telegraphic Agency
inquiries into Israel’s deadly May 31 raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla of ships are likely to be released. Such a confluence of events, with its potential for anti-Israel invective, normally would invite a vigorous “best defense is an offense” approach from the pro-Israel community. Instead, organizations appear to be hanging back. The reason, insiders say, is that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sees the stakes as too high for nasty back-and-forths between Israel and its opponents to get in the way. Netanyahu is genuinely invested in the peace process and does not want to hand Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas an excuse to bolt. Netanyahu also wants the Obama administration to have room to maneuver as the prospect of a nuclear Iran looms larger.
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Heading into a period of intense diplomatic activity, Israel and the pro-Israel community are taking what may appear to be an atypical waitand-see approach. That sentiment and the Jewish holidays explain the relatively muted tone. Last week, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheik for their second round of direct talks. This week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is scheduled to deliver his annual address to the U.N. General Assembly — his first since the international community launched a major intensification of sanctions aimed at getting Iran to make its nuclear program more transparent. Also this week, two separate U.N.
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Jewish Family Service meeting filled with news The Jewish Family Service annual meeting was filled with news: a new board of directors, a new address, a new logo and branding, a resolution for a new merger and a dedication to its new office space. The annual meeting was held Aug. 29, 2010 at Rockdale Temple on The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati Campus, the same campus where Jewish Family Service relocated only two weeks earlier. Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and Mayerson JCC are also located on the campus. Jewish Family Service’s move was the featured topic in all opening statements. Steve Shiffman, president-elect of Mayerson JCC welcomed Jewish Family Service to “the center of our community.” Shep Englander, Jewish Federation of Cincinnati CEO, pointed out that the Jewish Family Service move to the campus was a “turning point for our community. We couldn’t be the community we need to be without what you do.” And Bruce Baker, outgoing president of Jewish Family Service board of directors, stressed “no matter where we looked to move, what was of utmost importance to us was confidentiality.” He also looked back on the year’s strategic planning, saying, “JFS knows who we are and who we are not. We are deliberate, focused and recognize our fiduciary responsibility to deliver programs and services to the community.” Following a nominating report by Marcie Bachrach, the new board of directors was installed. On the current slate of officers are Michael Schwartz, president; Danny Lipson and Andi Lerner Levenson, vice presidents; Mark Miller, treasurer; Mark Kanter, secretary, and Bruce Baker, immediate past president. New board members to serve a three-year term are Bruce Ente, Suzy Marcus Goldberg, Elaine Kaplan, Amy Pescovitz, Bonnie Rabin and Max Yamson. Marcie Bachrach and John Youkilis were re-elected to serve a new three-year term. Aaron Fritzhand, Lauren Scharf and Gary Smith were re-elected to a second three-year term. They join existing board members Gail Friedman, Jeff Harris, Sam Knobler, Rick Lefton, Greg Miller, Leslie Miller, Pam Sacherman and Susan Shorr. Sam Lobar rotated off the board. “Continuity and change is our focus,” said newly elected president Michael Schwartz. “Continuity is staying the course. Our programs must continue to meet our mission, purpose and identity. Yet we must also adapt to
changes in our community’s needs, the financial environment, and our location. Jewish Family Service must stay viable so we can make a difference. We provide services in ways that other organizations cannot.” “We are continuing. We are changing. We are relevant. We make a difference,” Mr. Schwartz concluded. As his first order of business, Mr. Schwartz introduced a vote on a resolution, which passed, to approve the merger of Big Brothers/Big Sisters Association of Cincinnati into Jewish Family Service. “The youth mentoring services offered by BB/BS are in perfect alignment with the mission and vision of JFS,” said Jewish Family Service executive director, Beth Schwartz. In her executive director report, Ms. Schwartz also talked about the recent move and how it never interfered with client services. She acknowledged the JFS staff for their remarkable dedication to their work of caring for clients. “Staff was still unpacking boxes, organizing new smaller office spaces, trying to find keys and printers. But through it all, the people we serve know that they’ll still have a roof over their heads; that there will be food on the table; that they’re not alone facing an unplanned pregnancy; that the baby they’ve always dreamed about will soon be their reality; that they can find assistance if in an abusive situation; and that being old and alone doesn’t mean disabled and lonely,” said Ms. Schwartz. The presentation of awards was one highlight of the meeting. Outgoing board member Sam Lobar, who is moving to a new city and adopted his children through Jewish Family Service, was given the mezuzah taken from the adoption program’s door in the previous office space. He recalled that he saw his “daughter’s face for the first time in the old building.” Outgoing president Bruce Baker was presented with a yad for “pointing Jewish Family Service in the right direction.” Longevity Recognition Awards were given to Lilly Narusevich for reaching 15 years of service with Jewish Family Service; Sherry Kaplan and Beth Schwartz for reaching 10 years; and Marge Reed and Danielle Sabarese for reaching five years. A $24,000 Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati Grant was awarded to Jewish Family Service by Janice Bogner, senior program officer. This grant will support a year-long effort to design therapeutic services for people with
severe mental illness. The final award of the afternoon was presented to Gary Smith, who was recognized with
the Miriam Dettelbach Award. This award is given in honor of the first executive director of Jewish Family Service as recogni-
tion of exceptional volunteer service to the agency. JFS on page 22
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HUC to host 135th anniversary celebration, announce new initiatives Event will honor Karen Hoguet (Macy’s) and James Miller (Bartlett & Company) On the occasion of the 135th anniversary of the founding of the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College, the Cincinnati Associates of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion will host a celebration and tribute dinner—Planting for Our Future—on Sunday evening, Oct. 24 at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom in downtown Cincinnati. Cocktails will begin at 5:30 p.m. followed by the dinner and program at 6:30 p.m. Karen Hoguet, chief financial officer and executive vice president of Macy’s Inc., and James A. Miller, chairman of Bartlett & Company—a Cincinnati-based
investment advisory firm—will be honored for their civic and philanthropic leadership and achievement. Dick Weiland is the dinner chair. “This event will be an opportunity for the entire Greater Cincinnati community to celebrate not only the lustrous achievements of the past 135 years of this esteemed institution—but its now promising future,” said Weiland. “With the Board of Governors’ affirmative vote in 2009 to keep the Cincinnati campus open— while wrestling with ways to manage the effects of the economic crisis — many new programs and community-wide, collaborative initiatives have been planned for the Cincinnati campus that will strengthen Cincinnati’s wellearned reputation as a center for Jewish and interfaith education. These programs will allow more people from Greater Cincinnati and
throughout the world to take advantage of the vast academic and cultural resources that exist on this storied campus.” The American Jewish Archives and the Klau Library, which together comprise the largest and most comprehensive collection of Judaica and Hebraica in the Western hemisphere, are located on the Cincinnati campus. A wide and varied range of new community outreach educational initiatives are planned that will bring people of all faiths, traditions and backgrounds to the campus for study, enrichment and dialogue. Newly renovated guest rooms and food service facilities in the former dormitory building will accommodate groups from around the world who wish to host conferences and seminars on HUC-JIR’s Cincinnati campus. A newly revitalized Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) program will train students as chaplains and sup-
port professionals—and dispatch them throughout the world in hospital, congregational and social service agency settings. “Hebrew Union College is the oldest institution of Jewish higher education in the western hemisphere and the academic center of Reform Judaism,” said Rabbi Kenneth Ehrlich, dean of the Cincinnati campus. “A bright, exciting future now stretches before us; and these innovative opportunities for outreach, community engagement, advanced learning and new inter-organizational partnerships will inspire a new level of awareness of this campus’ peerless academic assets and how they can be utilized for the benefit of all.” Event proceeds will provide scholarship support for the rabbinical and graduate students on the Cincinnati campus. RSVPs are requested by Oct. 11.
Local Jewish leaders to teach Melton Adult mini-school classes at the J The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School, known as the largest pluralistic (non-denominational) adult Jewish education network in the world, returns to the Mayerson JCC this October. Developed by a team of scholars and educators at the Melton Centre for Jewish Education of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, these public, university-quality classes will be taught by several local Jewish leaders on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at the JCC. The two-year Melton core program includes four different courses which are taken two at a time (each year), two hours/week for 30 weeks. The first two classes, “Rhythms of Jewish Living” and “Purposes of Jewish Living,” can be taken on Tuesday mornings or Wednesday evenings at the J starting Oct. 5 or 6. On Tuesdays at 9:30 a.m. (Oct. 5 – May 31), Rabbi Ilana G. Baden
of Isaac M. Wise Temple will lead “Rhythms of Jewish Living” and Rabbi Irvin M. Wise of Adath Israel Congregation will teach “Purposes of Jewish Living.” On Wednesdays at 7 p.m. (Oct. 6 – June 1), Rabbi Hanan Balk of Golf Manor Synagogue will teach “Rhythms of Jewish Living” and Rabbi Matthew Krauss of the UC Department of Judaic Studies will teach “Purposes of Jewish Living.” “Students will be able to enhance their own Jewish lives with what they’ll learn in Melton classes at the J,” said Rabbi Balk. “They’ll also gain a greater understanding of things they’ve heard about, but never really studied.” Many of the adults who recently attended the “Taste of Melton Mini-School” during the JCC’s “free try it” week have already signed up for the core classes. Lauri Harwood, a “Taste of Melton” attendee, signed up for two Melton
“Students will be able to enhance their own Jewish lives with what they’ll learn in Melton classes at the J.” Rabbi Balk classes at the J this fall. “I was amazed at how much I learned in the one-hour sample Melton class offered at the J,” said Harwood. “The instructors’ commitment and knowledge is extremely impressive, and I’m very excited to be a part of this high-level education program.” When students complete the two-year core course of study, they automatically qualify to enroll in the Melton scholars program, which consists of multiple courses. Two of these scholars courses will run 90 minutes/week for 10 weeks at the J starting this October. The classes are “Shivim Panim: Seventy Faces of Wisdom – Bereshit I (From Adam to Abraham)” and “Jewish
Denominations: Addressing the Challenges of Modernity.” Several students have already enrolled in both these classes because they already completed the core program when it was offered at the J between 1990 – 2002. On Thursdays at 10 a.m. (Oct. 7 – Dec. 16), Arna Poupko Fisher of the UC Department of Judaic Studies and Wexner Heritage Foundation will teach “Shivim Panim…” On Wednesdays at 7 p.m. (Oct. 6 – Dec. 15), Dr. Mark E. Washofsky of Hebrew Union Collage-Jewish Institute of Religion, will lead “Jewish Denominations...” The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School at the JCC is endorsed by the Greater Cincinnati Board of Rabbis and supported by the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, including contributions from Rosemary Bloom, Anne Heldman and other community members. For more information about the Florence Melton Adult MiniSchool at the Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson JCC on The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati Campus, contact Elizabeth Woosley, JCC community educator, or visit the JCC website. Advance registration is required for all classes. Space is limited and enrollment is on a first comefirst served basis. Financial assistance may be available.
LET THERE BE LIGHT
The oldest English-Jewish weekly in America Founded July 15, 1854 by Isaac M.Wise VOL. 157 • NO. 9 Thursday, September 23, 2010 15 Tishrei, 5771 Shabbat begins Fri, 7:12 p.m. Shabbat ends Sat, 8:11 p.m. THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE CO., PUBLISHERS 18 WEST NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OHIO 45202-2037 PHONE: (513) 621-3145 FAX: (513) 621-3744 publisher@americanisraelite.com editor@americanisraelite.com articles@americanisraelite.com production@americanisraelite.com HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher 1930-1985 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher BARBARA L. MORGENSTERN Senior Writer LEEANNE GALIOTO ELIJAH PLYMESSER NICOLE SIMON Assistant Editors ALEXIA KADISH Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor STEPHANIE DAVIS-NOVAK Fashion Editor MARILYN GALE Dining Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM RABBI A. JAMES RUDIN RABBI AVI SHAFRAN Contributing Writers LEV LOKSHIN JANE KARLSBERG Staff Photographers PATTY YOUKILIS Advertising Sales JOSEPH D. STANGE Production Manager ALLISON CHANDLER Office Manager
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B’nai Tikvah’s Sukkot workshops B’nai Tikvah’s commitment to “Living Judaism” continued over the summer through the generosity of Cincinnati’s Jewish Federation’s S.E.E.D. Grant. Part One of the congregation’s Sukkah Workshop started with a story about how the first sukkah came to be, told by Rabbi Donna Adler, the congregation’s educational director. Rabbi Adler then taught about the festival of Sukkot. She described the holiday’s biblical beginnings as an agricultural celebration and the evolution of the sukkah to serve as a reminder of the temporary booths the Israelites lived in while wandering through the wilderness until reaching the Promised Land. She noted that, in contemporary times, the sukkah has become a
reminder of our dependence upon the “One Who Provides All.” The reason for Sukkot being called HeChag, The Festival, became clear as customs and traditions were discussed. Part One of the workshop concluded with the actual building of a sukkah under the direction of congregational member, Mordechai Higgins. Having learned the background of the fall holiday and what makes a sukkah kosher, the attendees were ready to build their own. Part Two was the delivery of the sukkah kits that Mordechai had cut and numbered in preparation for assembly. Part Three of the Workshop will conclude on the different days of Sukkot, with a celebration in the sukkot now belonging to each family.
JCC fall programs start Sunday, Oct. 3 From dance and creative dramatics to soccer and basketball, the Mayerson JCC offers programs this fall for all ages and interests. To kick off the JCC’s fall program line-up, Playhouse in the Park will perform the play “Happy Worst Day Ever” on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. This award-winning, free family show (recommended for grades 3 and older) explores personal differences among kids through a story about a birthday party that doesn’t happen, an unexpected upset on a TV talent show, and an unlikely friendship between the most popular girl in the fourth grade and the nerdiest boy at school, who have more in common than they imagined. Thanks to a grant from the Jewish Federation, the JCC is able to offer this Playhouse in the Park production at no cost to families. Adults and children who are interested in learning more about acting and theater can attend classes taught by Playhouse in the Park at the JCC this fall. On Monday afternoons, children (grades K – 2) can participate in Creative Dramatics, and older kids (grades 3 – 5) can attend Children’s Acting. Adults (ages 18+) can work on their acting skills in the Acting Fundamentals class or Improvisation class, both held on Monday evenings. “My daughter, Hannah, really enjoyed taking the Playhouse’s free ‘try it’ class at the J, so I enrolled her for the full fall ses-
sion,” said Rachel Pauls. “I took drama classes as a child, so I think it’s great that the JCC offers programs like these!” Other creative arts programs at the J include the new “Glee” recreational singing program for adults and teens (ages 16+) on Tuesdays at 7 p.m., as well as Circus Skills for kids (grades K – 6) offered by My Nose Turns Red Theatre Company on Monday afternoons. To keep the whole family active through the fall season, new sports and fitness programs have been added to the JCC schedule. These include classes for J Member adults like Stroller Pump, a workout class for new moms and their children (ages 2 or younger) on Tuesday or Thursday mornings, and adult tap, also offered on Tuesday or Thursday mornings. There are also several fitnessrelated classes for kids, including the new Recess program for J Members (ages 6 – 9) on Sundays at 1 p.m. Another popular program is Girl’s Instructional Soccer (for grades 4 – 7) on Tuesday afternoons, and this class is open to the public. Registration for JCC fall classes is in progress, and classes are filling up quickly. Advance registration is required, and many JCC programs are open to the public. To register or for a complete list of JCC fall classes, contact the Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson JCC on The Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati Campus or visit their website.
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Jewish Federation wins national award The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati has been selected as a winner of the Jewish Communal Service Association of North America’s (JCSA) national CostSavings Contest. The contest sought to identify an organization that researched and implemented the most innovative optimization initiatives — measures that could be easily replicated among other agencies and organizations throughout the country. The Jewish Federation was chosen by JCSA for its “Community Efficiencies Group” (CEG) initiative — a process that included developing innovative collaborative strategies, generating new ideas for external partnerships and assisting partner agencies and congregations. In a letter to the federation announcing the award, JCSA’s
executive director, Brenda Gevertz, wrote that, “Your innovative idea to combine organizational support functions and physical space has made a big impact on your local community, both professionally and monetarily. “JCSA connects practitioners and leadership and provides opportunities to share knowledge and collaborate across fields of service.” “Realizing early on that the economic crisis would have a longterm impact and that the world in which we lived was changing, the lay and professional leadership of the Federation created a process through which we could collaboratively maximize our efficiencies as a community,” noted Harry Davidow, co-chair of the CEG. “Our task was to develop a
functional framework through which we could respond to our community’s needs — despite the difficult economic environment,” explained Bob Brant, CEG cochair. “The breadth and spirit of community cooperation we experienced throughout our process here in Cincinnati was certainly without precedent. So in many ways, this award validates the results of the extraordinary efforts the community put forth on this project. We want our donors to know that their contributions are being handled as efficiently as possible and that the largest percentage possible of every dollar goes to the intended beneficiaries.” In March 2009, the federation created a Community Efficiencies Group made up of 18 communitywide representatives with special skills. This group created 12 work teams to explore short-term and long-term strategies for maintaining a dynamic Jewish community in the
most efficient manner possible. Some outcomes to date of the work of the Community Efficiencies Group include: The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education (CHHE) and its exhibits have moved into the Rockwern Academy building. Jewish Family Service has moved into the Mayerson JCC and will be integrating Big Brothers/Big Sisters into its operations as of January 1, 2011. The Nielsen Company, the global market research leader, is providing pro-bono consulting to the JFS, JCC and Federation in the integration of their Finance, IT and HR Departments. Thirteen agencies and congregations have signed up for electric contracts with a potential community-wide savings of over $200,000; and/or gas contracts for a guaranteed savings of 14.5%. Several projects started by the Community Efficiencies Group remain ongoing.
“The integration of the finance, HR and IT functions of JFC, JCC and JFS are continuing,” explained Brant. “Also we are just getting started with a Banking Committee to oversee the banking services and relationships for all the agencies.” “The volunteers who stepped forward to serve on the CEG looked at every possible idea that would get us to the goal — which was helping the community emerge as a more efficient and effective community while continuing to provide critical lifeline services to those with the greatest needs,” said Shep Englander, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati. “No option was ever off the table, so as a result, we met with a great deal of success. The Jewish Federation is honored to have received this distinguished award, and we hope that the work of Cincinnati’s CEG will benefit other organizations throughout the country.”
Cinti Hillel hires student rabbi The University of Cincinnati Hillel is very excited to welcome student rabbi, Elana Dellal, to their staff for the 2010-2011 school year. Dellal joins Hillel with much enthusiasm, and expressed, “I believe strongly in the need for engaging and empowering young Jewish adults in fun and meaningful ways. College is a transformative time in an individual’s life and it is of the upmost importance that they have a place to go where they are accepted as they are.” According to Hillel director, Elizabeth Harold, “our Hillel students and staff are ecstatic to welcome Elana to campus and we know that the relationships she creates and the opportunities she will
provide will be meaningful not only to our center but to our students. In just a short time, I am impressed with her tenacity and creativity and know that we have made a good decision in hiring her.” One of Dellal’s goals for the upcoming year is to empower students to take on leadership roles. She is creating a religious and cultural committee that will organize services that speak to the college community. Encouraging student leadership in prayer is also very important to Dellal, in part because it was her Hillel rabbi at the University of Minnesota who encouraged her to lead services. She reflected, “While I knew from the age of 12 that I wanted to be a
rabbi, it was through Hillel that I began leading regular Shabbat services for the community. I vividly remember sitting down with my rabbi, Sharon Stiefel, as we read through the Torah portion and found the messages behind the text.” The Hillel community will benefit from the creative Judaic programming that Dellal brings. For Sukkot, she will be leading a text study and service project on the connection between the holiday and homelessness. For Simchat Torah, she is putting together a student band. Every Thursday Dellal will be offering a learning session on campus called HILLEL on page 22
B’nai Tikvah begins the New Year Congregation B’nai Tikvah’s school year began with a bagel breakfast. For, as our sages say, “Im ein kemach, ein Torah” – if there is no (literally) flour, there can be no study of Torah. The body must be fed before the mind can absorb the Torah’s teachings. Hence, first food for the body, then food for the soul. Each year at B’nai Tikvah parents form the “Living Talit,” a reminder of the days when a child’s first day of studies began by being wrapped in a talit and carried through the town to the House of Study. Parents holding talitot surround their children and lead them to tables with the letter bet written on a piece of paper, the first letter of the Torah. The children outline their own letter bet with skittles and
m&m’s. As children long ago used to eat honey on their first day of studies reflecting the sweetness of Torah, today’s students are directed to eat the sweetness of Torah, represented by the letter bet. But to make it more fun, they eat it with their hands behind their backs. The children then go to their classrooms, the day concluding with apples and honey. B’nai Tikvah’s children have found ways to get faster and faster eating their letter bet. This year was no exception as the children seemed to inhale the outline of each letter. With the congregation’s theme of “Living Judaism,” B’nai Tikvah’s students have always had opportunities for tikkun olam, making the world a better place.
From collecting food for the hungry for both two and four legged creatures, to preparing the homes of the elderly for winter, to collecting denim for insulation and shoes for those in need world-wide, B’nai Tikvahites, young and old, have seen Judaism in action. This school year, educational director, Rabbi Donna Adler, wants the children to be clear that “Living Judaism” isn’t only the rituals and large tzedakah projects, but is daily living. Beginning with a collection of items needed for The Jewish Food Pantry, children will deliver those items, as well as those collected from a three-year on-going partnership TIKVAH on page 22
LOCAL/NATIONAL
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010
B’nai Tikvah swears in new officers and board Congregation B’nai Tikvah, Southwestern Ohio’s Reconstructionist Center located in Deerfield Township, has sworn in its officers and board members for the 2010-2011 year. The ceremony took place on Aug. 22 at their synagogue during their annual congregational meeting and summer picnic. Members serving the congregation are Rabbi Donna G. Adler, Barry Austern, Mitch Balish, Judi Koff-Clark, David Fine, Joel Foreman, Dr. Stan Goodman, Gordon Horn, Cole Imperi, Robert Larson, Sue Miller and Stephen Siff. Rabbi Donna G. Adler is the educational director. Adler has an M.S.W. in Psychiatric Social Work, a Masters in Hebrew Language from Hebrew College in Boston and received ordination from Hebrew Union CollegeJewish Institute of Religion in Cincinnati in 1987. She is the wife of Rabbi Bruce Adler, the congregation’s spiritual leader.
Barry Austern, Ph.D. is serving as president. Austern is a graduate of Columbia University with a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Massachusettes. He is retired from being a research chemist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The vice president is Sue Miller. Miller is a project manager with IBM and moved to Cincinnati in 2007 with her partner, Jerrie Hinchman, because IBM really does stand for “I’ve Been Moved.” She holds a M.Div. in Theology from Colgate Rochester Divinity School and a B.A. in Journalism from Michigan State University. Mitchell F. Balish, Ph.D. was sworn in as secretary. Balish has a B.A. in Biology from Washington University (St. Louis), and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Emory University (Atlanta). He worked as a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Georgia for six years before mov-
ing to Oxford and taking a faculty position at Miami University in 2004. He is an associate professor in the Department of Microbiology and is currently serving as treasurer of the International Organization for Mycoplasmology. Acting treasurer is Gordon Horn. Horn has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo, an M.S. in Environmental Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology and an MBA from the University of Colorado at Denver. He is a registered professional engineer in four states and is a board certified environmental engineer from the American Academy of Environmental Engineering. He is currently the quality assurance manager at Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati. He and his family have lived in West Chester for more than 17 years. He has agreed to stay on as treasurer until he can be replaced.
Jewish groups sticking with Pearl in the face of scandal By Jacob Berkman Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — Bruce Pearl, a big-time college basketball coach and spokesman for Jewish causes, was a week or so early on his mea culpas during the Yom Kippur season. Pearl, the wildly popular men’s coach at the University of Tennessee, has orchestrated a major turnaround since taking over the program in 2005, leading the traditional football powerhouse to its first-ever No. 1 ranking in basketball last year. In the process he has taken up Jewish causes, including serving as coach of the gold medal-winning U.S. men’s basketball squad at the 2009 Maccabiah Games in Israel and speaking on behalf of local groups, including the Jewish Federation of Knoxville. In 2007 he rocked the house with a motivational speech at the Jewish federation system’s annual General Assembly in Nashville. These days, however, Pearl finds himself in the middle of controversy. At a news conference on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, a teary Pearl acknowledged that he had lied to NCAA investigators looking into alleged recruiting violations. Since then he has been skewered by the media.
But the Jewish charities he has helped are standing by their man. “We are supportive of him,” Jed Margolis, the executive director of Maccabi USA, told JTA in an interview Tuesday. “ make mistakes, and he has owned up and taken responsibility for them, and I feel very comfortable.” Pearl has become one of Maccabi USA’s most prominent faces along with former Olympians Lenny Krayzelberg, Mark Spitz and Kerry Strug. “His impact on the games was very positive, and not just because of the medal he won,” Margolis said. “He was a good role model and teacher, and had a wonderful experience in Israel. He was a real shining light for us.” The organization’s president, Ron Carner, also sent an open letter to the embattled coach offering his support. “In the past few days I have been contacted by many of our board members and executive committee as well as our athletes —all unanimously agree that I should write in an official capacity to reassure you that the entire Maccabi USA family is behind you during this trying time,” Carner wrote. Pearl was slated to speak to Maccabi USA funders in Greenwich, Conn., the day after Yom Kippur, and again next month in Florida.
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U.S. Jewish right muted ahead of possible extension of settlement freeze By Ron Kampeas Jewish Telegraphic Agency WASHINGTON (JTA) — Don’t expect a familiar American echo now that West Bank settlers are gearing up to fight the possible extension of Israel’s settlement freeze. Activists on the left and right in Israel usually get their allies in the American Jewish community to fight for the cause of the day with congressional lobbying and protests to Israeli and American officials. But with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sending signals that he might extend, at least partially, the West Bank construction freeze he imposed 10 months ago, American Jewish groups supportive of West Bank settlements do not appear to be gearing up for battle. At least not yet. The reason, activists say, is that American Jews on the right still support Netanyahu, and there is virtual unanimous support on Capitol Hill for extending the freeze if it will help keep the Palestinians at the negotiating table. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to withdraw from the talks if the freeze is not extended, and last week President Obama said he supports an extension. This week, Netanyahu suggested that he’s open to some sort of compromise. Morton Klein, the president of the Zionist Organization of America, which supports settlers’ rights to build, said that although he is chagrined, there is little his or other U.S. Jewish organizations can do. Last week he issued an appeal to Netanyahu not to extend the freeze. Klein said he also has sounded out members of Congress, and no one was ready to oppose an extension of the freeze. “If Obama and Israel both are doing it, it’s very hard for a congressman to take a position that both Israel and America support,” Klein said. “What’s in it for them politically?” In Israel, however, settlers are gearing up for a major effort aimed at embarrassing pro-settler parties into quitting Netanyahu’s government and thereby causing it to fall. “We can use the political leverage we have within the political system to make the extension of the moratorium impossible,” Danny Dayan, the chairman of the
‘Top Chef’ judge Gail Simmons serving up ‘Just Desserts’ By Devra Ferst The Jewish Daily Forward
Courtesy of Abir Sultan / Flash 90 / JTA
On Sept. 12, 2010, Israelis protesting an extension of the settlement construction freeze warn that Benjamin Netanyahu should not repeat the policies of the Sharon government, which removed settlements. Similar campaigns have not appeared in the United States.
Yesha Council, the settlements’ umbrella body. Dayan spoke to JTA earlier this month during a trip to the United States to rally opposition to the renewed talks. But with a prime minister in office who carries credibility with the American Jewish right, activists on the right said they are willing to give Netanyahu leeway — for now. Aaron Troodler, the spokesman for the National Council of Young Israel, which is strongly pro-settlements, said in a statement that his group would consider an extension of the West Bank construction freeze regrettable, but he did not outline any protest actions. “The National Council of Young Israel has friends, family and Young Israel synagogues in Yehudah and Shomron, and we are deeply concerned about their ability to enhance their communities while the moratorium remains intact and their growth is inhibited by virtue of the building freeze,” Troodler said, using the Hebrew for Judea and Samaria, the Israeli terms for the West Bank. “The residents of Yehudah and Shomron need a place to live and grow and should rightfully be permitted to do so, just as people in communities around the world are permitted to do. It would be unjust for their rights to be curtailed any longer.” But Israeli officials remain concerned about a possible backlash from the American Jewish right should the freeze be extended in some form. “The moratorium was very
unpopular with the American Jewish right,” Michael Oren, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, said recently in an interview with Jewish media. “I anticipate further, if we move down this road toward an agreement with the Palestinians, that’s just going to begin.” Jewish groups on the left also are watching developments. “The extension of the moratorium requires a proactive action by the government,” wrote Lara Friedman, director of policy for Americans for Peace Now. “The moratorium is set, under law, to expire automatically on Sept. 26. Absent affirmative action by the government to extend the moratorium, settlement construction will be able to immediately restart.” As many as 2,000 housing units are likely to start right away, Friedman told JTA, because infrastructure already is in place or money already has been invested by buyers and developers. Another 11,000 units could be built at anytime, she said. William Daroff, the Washington director of the Jewish Federations of North America, said Netanyahu’s approach to the peace process will continue to set the tone for the U.S. Jewish community. “Anytime there’s a story about the settlement freeze being nuanced, you see folks on the right being critical,” he said. “The vast majority of American Jewry believes that Netanyahu, as the democratically elected leader, is in the best position to determine what is best for Israel.”
NEW YORK (Forward) — Every reality competition with judges has a “mean one": Simon Cowell’s scathing remarks made plenty of “American Idol” contestants cry. For the first couple of seasons of “Top Chef,” the Emmy Awardwinning Bravo TV series now in its seventh season, that judge was Gail Simmons. But behind the scenes, the personality of the vivacious and fasttalking Simmons, who tap dances for the producers and refers to herself as the little sister of the show, stands in sharp contrast to her earlier television persona. And now she has a new role: host and consulting producer of “Just Desserts,” a Bravo show premiering Sept. 15 that will challenge pastry chefs. While Simmons, 34, a special projects manager at Food and Wine magazine, is perhaps one of the best-known food critics in the country now, at first she had no interest in pursuing a path in the culinary world, let alone one on television. “I kind of joke that I’m not a food critic but that I play one on TV. It has become a self-fulfilling prophecy,” said Simmons, whose sharp tongue has noticeably mellowed over the past couple of seasons of “Top Chef,” which pits young, talented, fame-hungry chefs against one another in grueling culinary challenges. “I always loved food, but in truth it never entered my mind as an occupation until college.” Few were raised in as epicurean a household as Simmons. Her mother, Renee Simmons, wrote a food column for the Globe and Mail, Canada’s largest newspaper, in the 1970s and ’80s, and she later opened a cooking school in the Simmons home in Toronto. “My mom built our kitchen as a teaching kitchen where people can sit around and watch you cook,” Simmons said. Her childhood home was a fairly traditional Jewish household, complete with hearty servings of Eastern European Jewish food, especially for the holidays. “We had Shabbat dinner every Friday night, without fail,” Simmons said. “There was always challah and my mother’s outstanding chicken soup.” Ask Simmons about her favorite Jewish food memories and she points to two foods:
Couresty of Bravo TV
Gail Simmons, a longtime judge on “Top Chef,” will be hosting “Just Desserts” on Bravo.
brisket and latkes. “My mom’s brisket is killer; so are her latkes,” she said. “They’re the standard by which I will forever hold all other briskets and latkes.” In college, Simmons shied away from comparisons to her mom, despite cooking often and reviewing restaurants for her college newspaper. “When you’re 20 years old, the last thing you want to hear is that you’re just like your mom,” she said. So she pursued degrees in anthropology and Spanish at McGill University in Montreal and planned to work for a nongovernmental organization in the developing world. After graduation, feeling a bit lost, Simmons took an internship at Toronto Life, a lifestyle magazine. “I loved it; I found myself drawn to the food editor,” she said. “And that’s when I realized, wow, there could be a job here for me.” Following stints at a couple of publications, Simmons moved to New York to attend the Institute of Culinary Education. After graduation, she cooked at some of the city’s most exclusive restaurants, served as an assistant to prominent food critic Jeffrey Steingarten and worked as events manager for chef Daniel Boulud’s dining group before joining the staff of Food and Wine in 2004. In 2006, when Bravo approached Food and Wine about a partnership for a new show called “Top Chef,” Simmons was chosen to represent the magazine as a judge. Her incisive remarks about the dishes of “chef-testants,” as they are called on the show, earned her the title of the “mean judge” by viewers.
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Dancing with stars on Simchat Torah Yitzchak, as well as my bar mitzvah portion. At 13 it seemed much longer.
By Edmon J. Rodman Jewish Telegraphic Agency LOS ANGELES (JTA) — Want to dance with Jewish tradition but don’t know the steps? Ask Simchat Torah to dance. Not a conventional dancer, it’s a star partner who will drag you off the sidelines and teach you the moves. Simchat Torah, coming at the end of Shemini Atzeret, is a holiday of rejoicing with the Torah, when Jews end the yearly cycle of reading the Torah and begin anew. The only major Jewish holiday not mentioned in the Torah, Simchat Torah is a night and day of joy and dance unique in the Jewish year featuring seven hakafot, circle dances with the Torah. Coming at the end of a season of sitting, both in the synagogue and the sukkah, the counter-conventional Simchat Torah dances you into the fresh circle of a Jewish New Year. It wasn’t always so showy. In the mid-16th century, Simchat Torah was a somber service of taking the Torah scrolls from the ark and piously circling the bimah, not the holiday we know today with singing, drinking and dancing with the Torah. By the mid-17th century, as a result of changes — many initiated from the kabbalists of Safed — Simchat Torah began to resemble what we might recognize today. The English diarist Samuel Pepys, who attended a synagogue on the night of Oct. 14, 1663, and not knowing it was Simchat Torah commented on the goings on: “But, Lord! To see the disorder, laughing, sporting, and no attention, but confusion in all their service ... I never did see so much, or could have imagined there had been any religion in the whole world so absurdly performed as this.” Adding to the freilich free-forall on Simchat Torah, know that you are dancing a couple of Yemenite lefts and maybe a moonwalk or two past several Jewish laws, and clapping your hands at several centuries of Jewish convention. So readers, enough talk. Grab hands and let’s dance with Simchat Torah; all seven hakafot. As we circle, let’s see where dancing off the usual beat for a couple of centuries has taken us. First hakafah: Dancing with the Torah In previous generations, it was mostly the congregation’s leaders who were allowed to carry the sefer Torah. Now it’s anyone who is willing and has the koach, the strength, to dance with the handmade 20 to 40 pounds of sacred parchment. Yes, the Torah does get heavy after the eighth round of “Sisu et Yerushalayim,” “Rejoice with
Sixth hakafah: Letting your spirits flag Except for Israel Independence Day, flag waving isn’t allowed in shul. Children waving a flag on a stick while circling is an Ashkenazi custom thought to be related to the banners of the encamped Twelve Tribes mentioned in the Torah. In earlier generations, the flags were topped by apples that were hallowed out to hold candles. Many versions now have Torah or Israel themes. By using a computer and printer, even the art-challenged can make their own.
Courtesy of Edmon J. Rodman
Simchat Torah, an unconventional holiday of rejoicing with the Torah, pulls out onto the dance floor and shows off some moves.
Jerusalem,” but somehow always gets lighter just before you pass it off. Second hakafah: Beaming from the bimah According to kabbalistic teaching, the Torah has its own light, and for many Jews this is the only night of the year when they can experience it after sundown. We read the final portion called “Vezot Habracha,” “and this is the blessing,” where Moses dies. I have chanted the last couple of verses, and though it sometimes saddens me, a ray or two of its light can’t help but fall on you. Third hakafah: Toasting in shul Raise a glass as we circle first clockwise, then counter, then completely off the clock. A shot of Slivovitz, plum brandy, gets my feet moving. For others, a cold He’Brew adds to the joy. At the Library Minyan of Temple Beth Am in Los Angeles, where I have joined the Simchat Torah morning service celebration, for some attendees it’s BYOB, as they discretely hand out shots. This seems to get the congregation in the mood to enjoy a Torah reading of the beginning of Genesis, accompanied by a pantomime of the world’s creation. Fourth hakafah: Calling all children The Mishnah states that even children younger than 13 are given an aliyah on Simchat Torah. Standing under the chupah of a tal-
lit, it gives kids a taste of reading the Torah. I remember my own children standing next to the reader’s table, nudging each other. I still get a little farklempt. Fifth hakafah: Unrolling the scroll
Scrolls are usually only seen a few columns at a time, but many congregations are kind to totally unwind a scroll on Simchat Torah. It’s all hands on as everyone takes an edge and, moving into a circle, the beginning meets the end. One year I found my Hebrew name,
Seventh hakafah: An equal opportunity aliyah Though group aliyahs on Shabbat have become common, the gabbai never tries to clear the pews — except on Simchat Torah. The gabbai must get creative in a bid to call up everyone. One year he called up “anyone who uses a PC or an Apple.” When I looked at the empty seats, it was as if someone had pushed “delete.” That was a lot of dancing; Simchat Torah makes quite the dance partner. Somebody get me a schnapps. Edmon J. Rodman is a JTA columnist who writes on Jewish life from Los Angeles.
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Artists fight over Israel: The sequel By Ami Eden Jewish Telegraphic Agency NEW YORK (JTA) — Bigtime Hollywood Jews sent a strong message last year to artists protesting Israel: Don’t mess with Tel Aviv. What’s the buzz these days following the release of a sequel of sorts aimed at the West Bank Israeli settlement of Ariel? It’s complicated. The fight in September 2009 was over the decision of the Toronto International Film Festival to spotlight Tel Aviv. More than 1,000 prominent filmmakers, actors and academics — including Jane Fonda, Danny Glover, Harry Belafonte, Julie Christie and Alice Walker — signed on to a statement asserting that by showcasing movies from Tel Aviv, the festival, “whether intentionally or not, has become complicit in the Israeli propaganda machine.” In response, the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto and the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles put together a counter statement criticizing the protest and defending the film festival’s focus on Tel Aviv. The pro-Israel statement was signed by a smaller but more prominent list of celebrities, including Jerry Seinfeld, Natalie Portman, Sacha Baron Cohen, Lisa Kudrow, Jason Alexander and Lenny Kravitz. This year’s brouhaha centers on the opening of a new cultural center in Ariel, built with more than $10 million of public funds. More than 50 Israeli theater professionals signed a petition in late August saying that they will not perform in the new cultural center when it opens in November. The boycott also has attracted the support of at least 150 Israeli academics and authors. But several major Israeli theaters are scheduled to stage productions there this year, and top Israeli governmental leaders have slammed the boycott. Jewish celebrities again are jumping into the fight — but on the side of the artists taking aim at Israeli policy. More than 150 American television and film artists have signed a letter in support of the Israeli artists’ boycott. Signatories include actor Ed Asner of “Lou Grant” and “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and Cynthia Nixon, who played Miranda on “Sex and the City,” as well as playwright Tony Kushner and actors Mandy Patinkin and Theodore Bikel. They praised the “brave decision” by Israeli theater professionals who “have refused to allow their work to be used to normalize a
cruel occupation which they know to be wrong.“ “Most of us are involved in daily compromises with wrongful acts,” the letter said. “When a group of people suddenly have the clarity of mind to see that the next compromise looming up before them is an unbearable one — and when they somehow find the strength to refuse to cross that line — we can’t help but be overjoyed and inspired and grateful.” To be sure, when it comes to attracting Hollywood A-listers, the recent letter does not match last year’s statement in support of the Toronto Film Festival. But many of the big names who weighed in last year on Israel’s side are absent from the debate this time. Observers on both sides of the issue said the different reactions to the two fights do not represent a weakening of support for the Jewish state, but simply reflect the deep divide among American Jews over the issue of Israeli settlements. Patinkin, star of the television drama “Chicago Hope” and the one-man ode to Yiddish “Mamaloshen,” supports Israel in a variety of ways, but says the settlements “ignite the situation” between Israelis and Palestinians. “The settlements are in direct violation of the Green Line and of international law,” Patinkin told JTA. “It is now the artists who are standing up and saying, we refuse to play in a new theater that you have built in an illegal settlement, and we are asking the world to pay attention. American artists who signed this two-paragraph piece are saying, we are with you.” Jay Sanderson, president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, draws a distinction between this campaign, which is directed against a settlement beyond the Green Line, and artistic boycotts directed against Israel in general. “This is not about delegitimization, it’s about an issue that Israeli and American Jews are divided on,” he said. “A number of the artists who signed [the current letter] are supporters of Israel.” But, he added, “most are not.” Sanderson tried to downplay the significance of the letter, saying it was spearheaded by “fringe artists“ who “are not major Hollywood performers or community leaders,” he said. The more well-known actors who signed on are “expressing their personal opinions, they are not representative of Hollywood,“ Sanderson said. “Many more celebrities in Hollywood want to have their voices heard in a constructive way, in support of Israel.”
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With wineries, tourism, settlers try to rebrand settlements for Israeli public By Dina Kraft Jewiah Telegraphic Agency PSAGOT, West Bank (JTA) – Inside the cool of a cavernous wine cellar stacked high with oak barrels of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, the tensions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict seem to fade away even at this Jewish settlement in the heart of the West Bank. This is precisely the message a stop at the Psagot Boutique Winery is meant to convey. It’s part of a new strategy by settler leaders to “rebrand” settlements, offering tours of settlement communities in a bid to win over an Israeli public they fear may have abandoned them either through apathy or outright hostility. “We have been feeling that enough is enough. Stop making us look like monsters,” said Yigal Dilmoni, who directs the newly created information office for the Yesha Council, the settlers’ umbrella organization, which is organizing the tours. “Most people don’t realize how regular our lives here are. People wake up in the morning, go to work and are not engaged in the world of politics,” Dilmoni said. The tours are meant to strike a stark contrast to what Dilmoni described as the common media image of settlers as violent radicals on the prowl for brawls with neighboring Palestinians. For the Yesha Council, the significance of not having the Israeli public behind the settlement project hit home in wake of the 2005 Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, when some 8,000 Jewish settlers were evacuated, some forcibly. It was a traumatic episode for the settler movement — not only because of the evacuation, but also because there was no broad Israeli uproar against it. It was a lesson, too, in the important role played by opinion makers — journalists, media personalities and business leaders — in shaping Israeli society’s views, settler leaders said. This is why the Yesha Council has decided to start bringing such opinion makers to settlements as the first phase of their attempt to improve their public standing. Avri Gilad, a well-known Israel media personality, told listeners on a radio show the day after he returned from such a tour
that it dramatically changed his view of the settlements. “I went on a tour that revolutionized my awareness of settlements in Samaria,“ he said on the show. “I visited places I was raised to detest. I returned in a state of confusion: confusion about the injustice done to citizens who were called on by the state to settle, given building permits and then frozen out. I was surprised to meet people with whom I had a lot to talk about, with great warmth and intimacy.” An earlier public relations strategy, an ambitious project of billboards and advertisements briefly launched in 2008 under the slogan “Judea and Samaria, The Story of Every Jew,” proved successful but too expensive to maintain over the long term, Dilmoni said. Dilmoni, 40, an earnest and energetic geographer and urban planner by training, believes that no one comes away unmoved from seeing the settler enterprise up close, even if their political opinions remain unchanged. About 320,000 Israeli Jews live in the West Bank. They believe the land is their biblical birthright, and successive Israeli governments have supported that notion. But the land also is territory that Palestinians claim as their future state. The settlements, viewed as illegal by much of the international community and a threat to the country’s long-term survival by critics inside Israel, have become one of the major issues of contention in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They also threaten to derail the recently relaunched direct peace talks between the two sides. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has declared that he’d pull out of the talks if Israel did not extend a 10-month freeze on construction in settlements that is set to expire Sept. 26. The message of the tours, Dilmoni said while driving visitors along a stretch of highway that cut through a valley surrounded by ancient terraced hilltops, is “Come here and see what has been built here and then decide what to think.” The settlement tours constitute a packed day. They begin early in the morning, end at sunset, and include stops and conversations at a range of settlements — large and
more urban ones like Ariel, and smaller ones like Kida, which have sweeping views of the desert unfolding into Jordan. They end with a return to the Israeli side of the Green Line — the pre-1967 border between Israel and Jordan that demarcates the West Bank. In the past, when settlers gave tours of Judea and Samaria — the biblical name for the West Bank — the focus was on security and the role of their homes as strategic buffers because they sit on the mountain range overlooking the Mediterranean coastal strip to the west and Jordan to the east. Now a “softer,” more humaninterest spotlight has been purposefully chosen, one in which visitors can do a wine tasting at the winery in Psagot, part of a new multimillion-dollar visitors’ center for the Binyamin region that is set to open over the Sukkot holiday. During a visit there last week, workers were rushing to finish building a room that will house more than a dozen touch-screen computer terminals offering information about the area. The center is a sleek new complex that also boasts event space and a small movie theater with plush orange seats that will show a short feature film about a young man who, on the verge of leaving the country for a job in London, “returns to his roots” to tend land on a settlement. The itinerary for the settlement tours also includes home visits. At the edge of the settlement of Eli, home to 700 families, a woman named Eliana Passentin, 36, stands in her backyard overlooking an expanse of sloping terraced hillsides and speaks of her passion for living alongside the history of the Bible. Explaining the view, she points out an Arab village whose name is mentioned in the Bible for producing especially fine wine. She also points to the ancient site of Shiloh, where the Ark of the Covenant was once housed, providing the central site for Israelite worship for 400 years. Passentin describes how her home, located in a neighborhood the Israeli Supreme Court recently ruled was built illegally and has ordered to be razed, was built with the area’s history in mind. “The dining room windows look out onto Shiloh,” she said, “and from the living room we can see the site of Judah Macabee’s first and then final battle.”
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010
SOCIAL LIFE
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A N N O U N C E M E N TS BAT MITZVAH laire Ruben was called to
C
the Torah as a Bat
Mitzvah on Shabbat Shuvah, Sat. Sept. 11, 2010 at Plum Street Temple. The tallit Claire wore during the service was designed in a collaborative effort with her maternal
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grandfather, Melvin Gallant. Mr. Gallant executed the
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joined her in the blessing as he placed it upon her before the service began. Claire is the daughter of Scott and Naomi Ruben, granddaughter of Marilyn Gallant, Lois Ruben, and the late Barbara Gallant. Claire’s paternal grandfather is the late Albert Ruben.
Claire Ruben at her Bat Mitzvah
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R E F UA H S H L E M A H Frieda Berger Fraida bat Raizel
Pepa Kaufman Perel Tova bat Sima Sora
Daniel Eliyahu Daniel ben Tikvah
Murray Kirschner Chaim Meir ben Basha
Mel Fisher Moshe ben Hinda
Alan Schwartzberg Avraham Pesach ben Mindel
Edith Kaffeman Yehudit bat B’racha
Ravid Sulam Ravid Chaya bat Ayelet
Roma Kaltman Ruchama bat Perl
Edward Ziv Raphael Eliezer Aharon ben Esther Enya
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Rudino’s—All American sports bar and restaurant By Marilyn Gale Dining Editor Cincinnati is a great sports town. Over 30 years ago, I knew it was the right place for a young professional Jewish woman to relocate to from the looming city of Chicago because of the power of the Big Red Machine. It is logical that a vibrant sports town needs dynamite dining under the backdrop of multiple large televisions proudly displaying the speed, skill and brawn of the best in the game. Of course, food and drink are welcome partners to having a good time with pals while watching our sports heroes compete, whether it is football, baseball, soccer, golf or basketball. Rudino’s, new in town, located in Montgomery, oozes with sports pizzazz, comfort food, drinks with old fashioned prices, and promises patrons a robust fun time. Tom and Tracey Rudd are the owners of this family franchise and both were raised in homes where sports were watched, analyzed and played. Tracey is the daughter of John Stofa, the first signed Bengals quarterback from the late ‘60s. Tom, a tall, well-built man, looks as if he must have been a quarterback in his youth. He was friendly and engaging. Walking into this jubilant sports bar, my eyes were immediately drawn to Carson Palmer’s jersey framed and hanging on the wall. Large 50-inch plasma televisions perched prominently on both sides of the long rectangular room created an action-packed ambience even in the middle of the day. The lighting was surprisingly delicate, not too bright as to be overbearing, yet pleasant enough to highlight the energy on the screens. Rudd’s father and brother opened the first Rudino’s in 1995 in Cary, N.C. Their restaurant concept THAI, SUSHI & PASTA
Lunch Special (M-F) Dine-In / Carry-Out / Catering Patio Dining Convenience free parking next to building (2 mins from Hyde Park Square)
513.351.0123 | 2912 WASSON RD. www.blueelephantthaisushi.com
Clockwise: Tom and Tracey Rudd welcome you to Rudino’s; Sports memorabilia decorate the walls of the restaurant; State of the art televisions and owner Tom Rudd’s hospitality are plentiful at Rudino’s.
is based on simple fresh baked pizza dough every day and generous toppings. Quality food spelled success and Rudino’s now has 11 restaurant locations in the Raleigh, Va. area alone. Expansion is continuous with sports bars in Maryland, Texas, Florida, Tennessee and now we are lucky to have one in the Tristate. Outside dining seats 40 with two huge televisions for ample viewing. Rudino’s has every sports package imaginable through Direct T.V.; major league baseball pack-
age, national football league, college game day, ESPN, basketball, golf, tennis and soccer, to name a few. Rudd chose “plasma style televisions” because the picture is clear from the side and provides customers with a larger, luminous viewing area. Groups pack the restaurant to celebrate a win or mourn a team’s loss. Rudino’s is a great place for game parties, after regular practice, or a tasty work day business lunch while getting a glimpse of major
league play or tournament action. Wi-Fi is available for the diner who can’t easily leave the office behind. Rudd purchases food from local suppliers. High school teens from nearby neighborhoods work in the kitchen; some servers are UC students. Rudino’s has daily drink and food specials and a long, friendly, happy hour from 3 - 7 p.m. with old fashioned drink prices; for example, on Mondays, margaritas start at $3.50. Thirsty Thursdays offer domestic pitchers
of beer for $5; Tuesday’s specials are martinis priced at $4.50. In addition to pizza, sports and bargain drinks, Rudino’s serves “grinders.” Not quite a submarine sandwich, nor a hoagie, a grinder, (also known as an ItalianAmerican slang phrase for a dock worker) —is a nine- or 18-inch size sandwich that takes a lot of chewing to eat the hard crust of bread. In parts of Pennsylvania, the terms grinder and hoagie are both used, with the term grinder referring to a sandwich that has been heated up. Rudino’s is the Tristate home of this crusty satisfying breadlover’s dream. All grinders are oven baked on your choice of white or wheat bread and served with a bag of chips. Select from meat, veggies, tuna; Rudino’s menu lists lots of choices for the hungry customer at only $6.15 for the nine-inch sandwich, and the 18- inch—easily shared between two— for $11.49. Rudino’s has a lite menu and multiple vegetarian options for the grinders, pizzas and salads. The Spinach Sophia pizza; spinach, fresh tomatoes, feta cheese and mozzarella on freshly baked dough, or a ricotta stuffed calzone are delicious entrees packed with protein and taste. But as for the meat eaters, biting into oven baked chicken wings while cheering on the home team would be a delightful way to spend Sunday afternoon with friends and pro football. Dipping sauces include mild to hot, sweet to tangy, and if the little ones are with you, these moist wings can be enjoyed with ketchup and a side of French fries. Drink specials exist on the weekends too; rum drinks on Saturday are $3 and on Sunday, Bloody Mary’s, screwdrivers and mimosas are only $4. Rudino’s menu is available for catering, parking is plentiful and the restaurant is open seven days a week. A new sports bar full of state-ofthe-art televisions, mouth watering food, sandwiches you can sink your teeth into, and a list of drink specials a mile long has arrived in our Tristate town.Visit Rudino’s and have a great time. Don’t forget to cheer for the home team. Rudino’s 9730 Montgomery Road Cincinnati, Ohio 45242 513-745-6753
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OPINION
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by Rabbi James A. Rudin
Were our eyes permitted to perceive the legions of destructive demons surrounding us, the Talmud divulges (Berachot 6a), we would be unable to handle the sight. The rabbis were referring to malevolent incorporeal beings, but the same might hold true about flesh-and-blood demons, some of whom occasionally slip into view. Like Faisal Shahzad, the Connecticut man who tried to detonate a bomb in Times Square in May. Or Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the one-time London college student who attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear on a plane to Detroit. Or Colorado resident Najibullah Zazi, who planned to plant incendiary chemicals on New York City subways last year. Or Virginia-born Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan, who opened fire at Fort Hood last November, killing 13 and wounding 30. Or Shirwa Ahmed, the college student from Minneapolis who drove a truck full of explosives into a UN building in Somalia, who was identified through his finger found at the scene. Or the four men accused of plotting to bomb synagogues in the Bronx. Imagine if we could suddenly see every would-be terrorist, brightly marked somehow as such. The sight would surely chase us off the street, if not out of our minds; the memory would keep us up at night. And then, of course, there are the big demons, the mullahcracy in Iran or the dementocracy of North Korea, and entities like Hamas and Hezbollah and Al Qaeda. The readily visible demonisphere, especially for Jews, is frightening enough. The thought of an invisible world of would-be destroyers skulking around to our rights and our lefts might well drive us mad. Yet it would be naïve to imagine any dearth of demons these days. Which is why there is Sukkot. If they haven’t appeared already, impermanent structures of varied materials, shapes and sizes will soon enough be sprouting like post-rain mushrooms across Israel and throughout Jewish neighborhoods in cities around the world. The holiday of Sukkot takes its name from those structures, which Jews are enjoined by the Torah to inhabit for a week each year. The walls of sukkot can be made of any material. But, in fulfillment of
Jewish tradition’s insistence that the dwellings be “temporary” in nature, their roofs must consist of pieces of unprocessed wood or vegetation, and the material may not be fastened in place. At first glance, living in sukkot – by definition vulnerable to wind, rain and pests – would seem only to compound any innate Jewish proclivity to worry; the delicate dwellings might well only intensify Jewish anxiety. And yet, at least for Jews who appreciate the holiday’s import, just the opposite is true. For Jewish tradition considers the sukkah symbolic of the divine “clouds of glory” that protected the ancestors of today’s Jews as they wandered in the desert after leaving Egypt. The miraculous clouds destroyed whatever obstacles or noxious creatures stood in the people’s path. Thus, the sukkah represents a deep Jewish truth: Security is not a function of fortresses; it is a gift granted, ultimately, from above. The Yiddish poem by Avraham Reisen (1876-1953) sung in countless sukkot well captures the idea. It paints the picture of a Jewish father sitting in his sukkah, as a storm rages. His anguished daughter tries to convince him that the sukkah is about to fall. He responds (rendered from the Yiddish): Dear daughter, don’t fret; It hasn’t fallen yet. The sukkah’s fine; banish your fright. There have been many such fears, For nigh two thousand years; Yet the little sukkah still stands upright. Sukkot, of course, have in fact succumbed to storms. Jews, too, have fallen at the hands of ancient and modern murderers alike. But, as Reisen’s metaphor so poignantly reminds us, there is timeless meaning in the fact that the Jewish people has survived. And the meaning lies in what the sukkah’s fragility implies – that true security, in the end, comes from only one place. So all the world’s craziness and evil, all the unreason and hatred and plotting and violence and demons, cannot shake the serenity of the sukkah. We have, if only we merit it, an impenetrable shelter. Beginning a month before Rosh Hashana, Psalm 27 is added to Jewish prayer services; it is recited twice a day, until the very end of the holiday when Jews live in sukkot. A verse in the Psalm, as it happens, even refers to one: “For He will hide me in His sukkah,” King David sings of the Creator, “on the day of evil.”
C O R R E C T I O N: The following names were omitted in the Rosh Hashanah issue. We sincerely apologize for the omission. LAZAR, Carol, age 91, died on March 6, 2010; 20 Adar, 5770.
EGHERMAN, William Philip, age 56, died on April 3, 2010; 19 Nissan, 5770.
DRESKIN, Betty Louis, age 62, died on March 21, 2010; 6 Nissan, 5770.
SCHAEFFER, Neil Joseph, age 76, died on April 5, 2010; 21 Nissan, 5770.
WERNER, Maxwell W., age 86, died on March 27, 2010; 12 Nissan, 5770.
SCHWARTZ, Stephen, age 69, died on April 6, 2010; 22 Nissan, 5770.
ROTHCHILD, Louis A., age 82, died on March 29, 2010; 14 Nissan, 5770.
FOX, Marlene, age 75, died on April 7, 2010; 24 Nissan, 5770.
STENCHENBERG, Mildred, age 88, died on March 29, 2010; 14 Nissan, 5770. KAUFMAN, Dr. Enrique, age 76, died on April 1, 2010; 17 Nissan, 5770. SCHNEIDER, Renate Strauss, age 86, died on April 1, 2010; 17 Nissan, 5770. GOTTESMAN, Rose Z., age 94, died on April 3, 2010; 19 Nissan, 5770. BERMAN, Bertram Isaac, age 86, died on March 30, 2010; 15 Nissan, 5770.
GOLDFARB, Doreen, died on May 9, 2010; 25 Iyar, 5770. OLMAN, Morton W., age 93, died on May 9, 2010; 25 Iyar, 5770 COLE, Edward H., age 86, died on June 2, 2010; 20 Sivan, 5770. SPRITZ, Jean, age 83, died on June 3, 2010; 21 Sivan, 5770. ZUBER, Bette R., age 85, died on June 3, 2010; 21 Sivan, 5770.
BANERJEE, Helen M. “Mitzi,” age 79, died on April 8, 2010; 24 Nissan, 5770.
GELLER, Lillian, age 80, died on June 4, 2010; 22 Sivan, 5770.
NINIO, Maurice, age 90, died on April 8, 2010; 24 Nissan, 5770.
BARRON, Norman, age 74, died on June 5, 2010; 23 Sivan, 5770.
LANE, Dr. Joseph A., age 88, died on April 9, 2010; 25 Nissan, 5770.
GRAFF, Jean, age 103, died on June 6, 2010; 24 Sivan, 5770.
OKUM, Vriginia F., age 89, died on April 10, 2010; 26 Nissan, 5770. DuCOVNA, Stanley M., age 79, died on April 17, 2010; 3 Iyar, 5770. SANDLER, Roslyn, age 86, died on May 8, 2010; 24 Iyar, 5770.
WILLIS, Norman, age 66, died on June 25, 2010; 13 Tammuz, 5770. NEDELMAN, Eva, age 92, died on June 29, 2010; 17 Tammuz, 5770. MOSKOWITZ, Libby, age 97, died on June 30, 2010; 18 Tammuz, 5770.
T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK’S PORTION: SUKKOT 1. Which patriarch had a Succah? a.) Abraham b.) Isaac c.) Jacob
the term Schach? a.) Covers on top b.) Cherubim c.) Curtains
2. When did Bnei Yisroel stay in Succot? a.) Soon after they left Egypt b.) By Mount Sinai c.) Before they entered Israel
4. Were both Holy Temples dedicated during Succot? a.) Yes b.) No
3. Which vessel in the Tabernacle uses 5. Who are the Ushpizin? Holy Ark and not lying on its side. 4. A 5. The “seven guests”: Abraham, Issac, Jacob, Moshe, Aaron, Joseph, and David represent the seven “sefirot” which Hashem runs the world. They also represent seven attributes of character which a person can emulate Hashem.
Point of View
ANSWERS 1. C Braishith 33:17 When Jacob returned to Canaan after living with Laban for twenty years, he lived in a place called Sukkot for 18 months. He built “sukkot” for his cattle. 2. A Shmot 12:37 3. B Shmot 25:20 The wings of the Cherubim were spread out over the
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Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010
JEWISH LIFE
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Sedra of the Week by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin
SHABBAT SHALOM: SUCCOT
Efrat, Isreal: What is the true symbolism of the succa? The Talmud (B.T. Succa 11b) cites a difference of opinion between Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Eliezer as to whether the succa commemorates the actual huts in which the Israelites dwelt in the desert, or the “clouds of glory” which encompassed us as a sign of Divine protection. Leviticus chapter 23 catalogs all the holy days of the Hebrew calendar, beginning with the Sabbath and concluding with Succot. The 33rd verse begins a description of Succot: “The 15th day of the seventh month shall be the festival of Succot, seven days for the Lord; the first day shall be a holy convocation, when you may not perform creative work...” The text goes on to mention the festival of the Eighth Day of Assembly (Shmini Atzeret), and then seemingly concludes the entire calendar sequence with the words: “These are the special appointed times of the Lord” (23:37). But just as we thought the description of the festivals was complete, the narrative inexplicably reverts to Succot. This time, however, the Bible stresses the connection to the Land of Israel, and the agricultural cycle: “But on the 15th day of the seventh month, when you harvest the grain of the land, you shall celebrate a festival to the Lord for seven days (Succot), with the first day being a day of rest and the eighth day being a day of rest” (23:39). Another curious feature of this second account is that having repeated the command to observe Succot in the context of the farmers’ work, the Bible now introduces other crucial themes of the festival, including the command to take up four species of plant indigenous to Israel (citron, palm frond, myrtle branch and willow), and rejoice on our holy days, wrapping up its description with a repetition of the command to dwell in booths, this time stressing the historical aspects of the festival: “You shall dwell in booths for seven days, so that your generations shall know that I caused the
“But on the 15th day of the seventh month, when you harvest the grain of the land, you shall celebrate a festival to the Lord for seven days (Succot), with the first day being a day of rest and the eighth day being a day of rest” (23:39). Israelites to live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God” (23: 42-43). It seems that the Bible is making a clear distinction between the significance of Succot before the Israelites entered the Land and the nature of the festival once we were living in Israel. Why is that? Outside Israel, the hut-like booths symbolized our temporary dwellings while we wandered across the desert and, by extension, throughout our long exile. Once we entered the country, “when they harvested the grain of the land,” we could celebrate the harvest with special blessings and rituals involving the four species—vegetation unavailable in the desert. In the Promised Land, the entire experience of the succa assumed a heightened significance. Now, the shabby, makeshift desert huts came to represent the sheltering wings of the Divine Presence, the clouds of glory with which God protected us so that we’d be able to fulfill our mission as His divine ambassadors. When we are living in the Diaspora, the succa can only teach us to be grateful to the Lord who preserves us under difficult and dangerous conditions; whereas living in Israel, we understand that as the people of God’s covenant, no matter how flimsy the walls of our temporary homes may seem, we constantly live under His protective grace. This essential difference in the significance of the succa prior to our inhabiting the Land of Israel and afterwards could also be seen when we returned to the Land after our Babylonian exile. Then, Ezra exhorted us to dwell in booths during the Festival of the Seventh Month, and to make our booths with “olive leaves and olive
branches, with myrtles, palms and willows” (Nehemiah 8:15). In the Land of Israel, the succa is adorned and uplifted by the local vegetation, the special fragrance of which symbolizes God’s shelter and fulfillment of the Divine covenant. Seen in this light, as the Vilna Gaon noted, Succot is the festival which celebrates our entry into the Land! God’s revelation and gift took place on the 10th of Tishrei, Yom Kippur. The following day, He commanded the building of the Sanctuary; and the Israelites collected materials for the next two days. Then, on the 15th of Tishrei, the work of building the Sanctuary began, marking the restoration of the relationship between God and the Jews. This is noted by the Ramban, who explains that this is why the Book of Exodus is indeed the Book of Redemption. “Then the Holy One Blessed be He returned and rested His Divine Presence among them and they returned to the exalted level of the patriarchs, which was the secret of God, with Clouds of Glory upon their tents, and they were considered to be redeemed. And so the Book of Exodus ends with the completion of the Sanctuary and with the Glory of God filling it always.” (Ramban – Introduction to Book of Exodus). Hence the succa, clouds of divine glory, symbolize the Sanctuary and the Holy Temple in Jerusalem – which will eventually bring the entire world to peace and redemption. “May the Merciful One restore the fallen succa of David, speedily and in our time.” Shabbat Shalom Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi — Efrat Israel
MODERN ORTHODOX SERVICE Daily Minyan for Shacharit, Mincha, Maariv, Shabbat Morning Service and Shalosh Seudas. Kiddush follows Shabbat Morning Services
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3100 LONGMEADOW LANE • CINCINNATI, OH 45236 791-1330 • www.templesholom.net Miriam Terlinchamp, Rabbi Marcy Ziek, President Gerry H. Walter, Rabbi Emeritus September 24 6:00 pm Shabbat Nosh 6:30 pm Shabbat Evening Service
October 1 6:00 pm Shabbat Nosh 6:30 pm Shabbat Evening Service
September 25 10:30 am Shabbat Morning Service
October 2 10:30 am Shabbat Morning Service
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JEWZ IN THE NEWZ
Jewz in the Newz By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist MORE NEW TV SHOWS, LATE ADDITIONS Here are a couple more Jewish actors in leading parts in new TV series that started last week. Sorry for not letting you know in advance of the premiere. In one case, I simply “missed” the actor. In another case, I had to dig a bit more to confirm that the actor was Jewish. The NBC action-drama “Chase,” began on Sept. 20, and it will regularly be seen on Mondays at 10PM. It’s produced by JERRY BRUCKHEIMER of “CSI” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” fame. The series centers on U.S. Marshal Annie Frost (Kelli Giddish), described in the show’s publicity as: “a cowboy boot-wearing deputy whose sharp mind and unique Texas upbringing help her track down the violent criminals on the run.” Her “elite team” includes COLE HAUSER, 35, a handsome fellow who has been in a lot of films and starred in the short-lived TV series, “K-Ville.” Hauser’s non-Jewish father, Wings Hauser, is a famous Hollywood stuntman. His Jewish mother, film producer CASS WARNER, is the granddaughter of HARRY WARNER, one of the founders of Warner Brothers. Cole is secular. Starting on Sept. 22 was the NBC series, “Undercovers,” a new show created by J.J. ABRAMS, the co-creator of “Lost” and “Fringe.” Abrams personally directed the show’s pilot. It airs Wednesdays at 8PM. “Undercovers” aims to be a stylish drama about an African-American married couple, Steven Bloom (Boris Kodjoe) and Samantha Bloom (Guju Mbatha-Raw), who are secretly top CIA agents. As the series begins, the Blooms are running a small catering business in Los Angeles and are five years retired from the CIA. But when one of their best friends, an active CIA agent, goes missing — they are re-instated to try and save him (which they do). This case plunges them back into the world of undercover espionage. Unlike “Lost,” the episodes will be “self-contained,” with each case concluding in one episode. BEN SCHWARTZ, a 20something Jewish actor, plays Billy Hoyt, one of the members of the CIA team supporting the Blooms. Schwartz is a comedy writer (“SNL,” “David Letterman”) who had a recurring acting role on “Parks and Recreation.” He also does funny web video interviews for ESPN.
The actors playing the Blooms are not actually AfricanAmerican—at least by birth. Mbatha-Raw was born and raised in England, the child of South African parents. Kodjoe, 37, has a more exotic background—he was born in Austria, the son of a black physician from Ghana and a German-born psychologist mother whom he describes as “Jewish.” My sense, from his one long interview about his religious background, is that Kodjoe’s maternal grandmother, in common parlance, was “fully Jewish” and that his mother is “half Jewish.” He made clear in the interview that he’s aware that he is Jewish as that term is defined by traditional Jewish religious law. Kodjoe’s parents split-up when he was very young and he was raised in Germany by his mother. He went to a Virginia college on a tennis scholarship and completed a pre-med degree. His striking good looks led to modeling offers, and his modeling career segued into a successful acting career (including a starring role in the Showtime series “Soul Food.”) Kodjoe says that he was raised secular. But when he came to the States, he “sampled” various Christian denominations and found his spiritual home in the United Methodist church. I wonder if his Jewish background inspired J.J. Abrams to give his “Undercovers” character the often Jewish surname of “Bloom”? I guess we’ll have to watch and find out. WALL STREET REDUX Opening Friday, Sept. 24 is “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps,” the film sequel to 1987’s “Wall Street.” MICHAEL DOUGLAS. 65, reprises his Oscar-winning role as Gordon Gecko, an amoral high-stakes financier. As the film opens, Gecko has just been released from a lengthy prison term and is looking to re-establish a relationship with his daughter. In this, he finds an ally in her daughter’s fiancé (SHIA LABEOUF, 24). The excellent cast includes Susan Sarandon, Josh Brolin, Frank Langella, Carey Mulligan, and ELI WALLACH, 94. Last week, Michael’s father, KIRK DOUGLAS, 93, posted this on his MySpace page: “I want to thank all of you for your kind thoughts and comments ... The other night he [Michael] appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman to talk about ‘Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.’ I think it will be even better than the first. He also talked with dignity and humor about his bout with cancer. I admire my son, he’s quite a guy.”
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FROM THE PAGES 100 Years Ago Dr. Sidney J. Rauh, 31 East Fourth Street, has returned from a tour of Europe. Mr. and Mrs. Louis Marx and daughter Stella and Bernice of Melrose Avenue, Avondale, have returned after a pleasant summer in Michigan. The latest run of the “Kronprincessin Cecilie” from Cherbourg to New York, was the fastest transatlantic voyage ever made westward. There were a number of Cincinnatians aboard, among them,
Mr. and Mrs. Louis T. Block, Miss Katherine Block, T. Block, Mr. and Mrs. J. Walter Freiberg, Mrs. J. Forchheimer, Mr. Henry Newburg, Dr. L. H. Newburg, Mrs. Henry Newburg, Miss Emily Newburg, Mr. Julius Reiss, Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Ransohoff, Miss Esther Ransohoff. Mr. Louis Heinsheimer, 76, a wellknown Cincinnatian, passed away. Born in Baden, Germany, he came to America with his parents as an infant. He was for many years associated in
the cotton brokerage business with Mr. George Seeman, and the late J.H. Goodhart, whose daughter Emma, he married. Mr. Heinsheimer was a member of the Plum Street Temple for over 50 years, and on the executive committee of Union of America Hebrew College ever since it was established in 1873. He is survived by his widow, two daughters, Mrs. J. Walter Freiberg, Miss Daisy Heinsheimer, and sons Edward L., Charles J., Norbert and Walter. — September 22, 1910
75 Years Ago On Sunday, Sept. 15th, at the Hotel Sinton, Miss Doris Sunshein, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M. Sunshein and Mr. David Moskowitz, son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Moskowitz, were married. Mr. Moskowitz and his bride, who are spending their wedding trip in New York, will reside in the Ridgeway Apartments on their return. Mr. and Mrs. Morris H. Tobias, of the Hotel Alms, will be the center of felicitation on the part of their many
friends on Monday evening Oct. 7th, their 50th Wedding anniversary. They will be at home informally at the residence of their son and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Tobias, 960 Redway Avenue. Besides Mr. Charles Tobias, Mr. and Mrs. Tobias have a son, Henry and four grandchildren, Miss Rosemary, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Tobias, and Charles, Jr., John S. and Paul, sons of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Tobias.
Isaac Aronoff, 780 Ridgeway Avenue, passed away at his home Wednesday, Sept. 18th. He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Mary Aronoff; three sons, Harry of Kansas City, and Nathan and Louis, of Cincinnati, and a daughter, Sarah, Cincinnati; five brothers, Morris, Hyman, Aaron, John and Isadore, and a sister, Mrs. Anna Rabkin, all of Cincinnati. Services were held at the Weil Funeral Home on Thursday, Sept. 19th.— September 26, 1935
50 Years Ago The 13th annual United Fine Arts Drive will be headed by Fred Lazarus III,. Mr. Lazarus is a director of the Centrel Trust Co. and Chamber of Commerce. He is an Honorary Member of the Board of the AntiTuberculosis League. Mr. and Mrs. Eugene M. Pfeifer, Jr., Little Rock, Ark., announce the engagement and approaching marriage of their daughter, Carolyn, to Mr. S. Roger Horchow of Dallas, son of Mrs.
Reuben Horchow, formerly of Arlington, Va., and now of this city, and of the late Col. Horchow. Miss Pfeifer, a great-granddaughter of Mr. Philip Pfeifer, a pioneer settler of Little Rock, graduated from Little Rock Central High School and Connecticut College for Women. Mr. Horchow was born in Cincinnati. He is a graduate of Hill School, Pottstown, Pa., and Yale University, where he was a member of the St. Elmo Society. During the
Korean conflict he served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He now is associated with Neiman Marcus of Dallas, and is a member of the Yale Clubs of New York and Houston. Mrs. Louis Bartel, 7700 Greenland place, passed away Thursday, Sept. 15. Survivors include her husband, Louis; two daughters, Barbara Bartel and Mrs. Charles Weiner; one sister, Mrs. Charles Cohn; three brothers, Louis, Jack, and Isidore Spiegel, and one grandchild.— September 22, 1960
25 Years Ago Helene Block, long active in the National Council of Jewish Women, has been elected chairman of the Workum Scholarship Fund. Serving with Mrs. Block are Minette Hoffheimer, vice chairman; Lynne Kanter, recording secretary; Peggy Stricker, corresponding secretary; Betty Wayne, treasurer. Completing the executive committee are the co-chairmen of contributions, Midge Selonic and Sue Teller. Mrs. Selonick is newly elected to
this position. Sylvia Albert of Miami Beach, formerly of Cincinnati, passed away Sept. 17. She is survived by three sisters, Selma Gallop of Miami, Hortense Betagole and Mildred Baker; and a brother, Dr. Alvin Nathan. Services were at the Weil Funeral Home. Rabbi Howard Simon officiated. Dedication of the Alan R. Mack Parents Center took place Sept. 22. More than 200 persons attended the
ceremony, which represented the culmination of a four-year dream for officers, board members and staff of Jewish Family Service, sponsors of the project. The center is named in memory of Alan R. Mack, president of Jewish Family Service from May 1984 until his death in March 1985. Mr. Mack, a member of the JFS board for eight years, had been particularly interested in the Parents Center project since its inception. — September 26, 1985
10 Years Ago The Pridonoff Duo, Eugene and Elizabeth Pridonoff, will present two duo-piano recitals at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music. The program will include Duettino concertante of Mozart/Busoni, Mars and Jupiter from Gustav Holst’s The Planets, La Valse of Ravel, Recuerdos (Three Traditional Latin American Dances) by William Bolcom, and Rachmaninoff’s 2nd Suite. The Pridonoff’s have been favorites of tri-state audiences for almost two
decades and have been described by the Cincinnati Enquirer as “Cincinnati’s favorite two-piano team.” Ben Richter, 85, passed away on September 8, 2000. Mr. Richter was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, to the late Tillie and Elias Richter. Mr. Richter is survived by his wife Lebell (Lee) Richter of Cincinnati. Other survivors include his children: Tillie November of Mayfield Heights, Ohio, and Eileen Rosen of North Miami Beach Fla. Mr. Richter was the father-in-law of the late Richard
November. Surviving grandchildren are Frank and David November and Jennifer and Rebecca Rosen. Mr. Richter was the brother of Hilda and Harry Bartel of Memphis, Tenn.; Esther and the late Julius Torf, Libby and the late John Moskowitz, the late Rev. Nathan Richter, the late Charles Richter and the late Celia and David Millstein, all of Cincinnati. Mr. Richter was also the godfather of the late Dr. Alvin Torf of Jerusalem, Israel. — September 21, 2000
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010
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RETAIL
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COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc. (513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Beth Tevilah Mikveh Society (513) 821-6679 Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7226 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 • camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 336-3183 • cedar-village.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Community Center (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org Jewish Community Relations Council (513) 985-1501 Jewish Family Service (513) 469-1188 • jfscinti.org Jewish Federation of Cincinnati (513) 985-1500 • shalomcincy.org Jewish Foundation (513) 792-2715 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 Jewish Vocational Service (513) 985-0515 • jvscinti.org Kesher (513) 766-3348 Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556 The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 335-5812 Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tikvah (513) 759-5356 • bnai-tikvah.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • bnaitzedek.us
Congregation Ohav Shalom (513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org Kehilas B’nai Israel (513) 761-0769 Northern Hills Synagogue (513) 931-6038 • nhs-cba.org Rockdale Temple (513) 891-9900 • rockdaletemple.org Temple Beth Shalom (513) 422-8313 • tbsohio.org Temple Sholom (513) 791-1330 • templesholom.net The Valley Temple (513) 761-3555 • valleytemple.com
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EDUCATION Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Reform Jewish High School (513) 469-6406 • crjhs.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org ORGANIZATIONS American Jewish Committee (513) 621-4020 • ajc.org American Friends of Magen David Adom (513) 521-1197 • afmda.org B’nai B’rith (513) 984-1999 Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati-hadassah.org Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (513) 459-0111 • jwv.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com Women’s American ORT (513) 985-1512 • ortamerica.org.org
a family business, devotion to Israel, and passion for making our community great.” Kim is a senior vice president of Standard Textile and manages the company’s Decorative Products Division and international business development activities in the Americas, the Persian Gulf and Japan. She is also president of SK Textile, a Los Angeles-based decorative products manufacturer serving the hospitality industry. Kim is past president of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and a Cincinnati Enquirer Woman of the Year. She is an executive committee member of Rockwern Academy and the American Society for Yad Vashem. She has also served as the Cincinnati campaign chair for Israel Bonds and on the AJC board. A recent philanthropic gift from the Kim and Gary Heiman Foundation will enable U.C.’s Judaic Studies Department to create a new Center for Jewish Cultures and Ideas. Gary is president and CEO of Standard Textile. A holder of dual citizenship, he served in an elite, search-and-rescue unit of the Israel Defense Forces. After serving in the Israeli army during the “Yom Kippur War,” he established Standard Textile’s first manufacturing facility in 1975, a plant in Arad at the edge of Israel’s Negev desert. The President of the State of Israel awarded him the “Industrialist of the Year” prize for his contribution to the country. Gary is a member of the board of trustees of the University of Cincinnati and president of the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati. He is also a member of the Cincinnati business committee. He previously chaired the boards of the Jewish Hospital and the
Keynote speaker, Ed Rettig
Jewish Community Center. Keynote speaker Ed Rettig was ordained at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, made aliyah, directs AJC’s Jerusalem Office, and writes AJC’s weekly Mideast Briefings. Bill Katz and Rick Michelman chair the tribute committee. Katz and his wife Arlene were AJC’s honorees last year. “The Initial Gifts Reception honoring the Heimans benefits the Appeal for Human Relations, the annual campaign to support AJC’s programs and activities, internationally, nationally, and locally,” said Katz. Rick Michelman added, “Generous donors make possible our global Jewish advocacy and our intergroup outreach.” For information about the fundraising reception honoring Kim and Gary Heiman and the AJC Appeal for Human Relations, please call the AJC office. Deadline for reservations is October 4. Founded in 1906, the American Jewish Committee seeks a secure Jewish future in a more just world. AJC has offices in the U.S. and overseas and partnerships with Jewish communities around the world.
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NEWS
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teacher, including 11 years as the preschool early childhood director, at Yavneh/Rockwern Academy. She has positively touched the lives of hundreds of children who have been fortunate enough to share their early years of Jewish education with her. “Mary Lee is the ideal of a Jewish educator and communal professional. She sets a high standard for those who follow her, and leaves a legacy that anyone would be proud to own. We hope that her association with our school, so important for so many years, will not be ended by her retirement,” said Peter Cline, head of school. Diane Rosenberg had the distinction of introducing Barry and Ellen Finestone. Ellen spoke about the unique spirit of community at Rockwern Academy. “Rockwern is a community within Cincinnati, AND Rockwern embodies community like no other place I know.” She spoke about the many layers of community encountered by those who step through the school doors
— the welcoming community of the staff, the invitations from families, being there in times of joy and need, and the community of students where there is a common camaraderie that transcends age or grade levels. Barry Finestone, the president of Rockwern Academy, passionately spoke about the gift of a Jewish education that his parents bestowed upon him, a gift that shaped him to become the person he is today. He is recognized in Cincinnati for his tremendous leadership of Jewish community institutions from both the professional and the lay sides, having worked for Young Judea and Wise Temple and having served on the board of the Mayerson JCC, as president of Rockwern Academy and on the endowment committees of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and Cedar Village. Together Ellen and Barry have co-chaired the My Israel Mission and Super Sunday. Both attended
Jewish day schools and are the proud parents of three Rockwern Academy students, Gabrielle, Ethan, and Mia. The Finestone family has since moved to San Rafael, Calif., where Barry is the president/CEO of the JCC. Rockwern Academy takes this opportunity to thank our honorees and their families: Mary Lee Sirkin, with her husband Louis, and Barry and Ellen Finestone. We would also like to thank the Jewish community for their continuing support. Rockwern Academy would like to give thanks to our logistics chairs, Adam Cohen and Julie Torem, the entire planning committee, Events by Andrea, others who donated their time, and those who donated items for the silent auction. A special thanks to Chrissie Blatt who did all the graphic design work for this event. All helped to make the evening such a success on so many levels, and supports us as we sustain our community and our children’s futures.
Buddhist.” The spiritual leader of six million Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama went into exile in 1959 in the face of the Communist takeover. He now lives in Dharamsala, India, and in 1989 won the Nobel Peace prize for his non-violent campaign for democracy and freedom in his homeland. He has spent his time in exile pushing for autonomy for Tibet. Twice Gilner attended events featuring the 75-year-old Buddhist monk, which accounts for his car’s bumper stickers. Gilner has studied Buddhism for many years, integrating certain non-sectarian practices of its philosophy into his life as a Jew.
Gilner said he also is drawn to the teachings of a non-sectarian form of Buddhism taught by Boston College Professor John Makransky, author of “Awakening Through Love.” Gilner points to the book’s forward: “John Makransky is a mensch. You’re in good hands with Lama John.” In anticipation of the Dalai Lama’s visit, Rabbi Rachel Gartner of the Hillel Foundation at Miami University said students will explore “the often less visible aspects of Judaism which share some features with the Buddhist experience, but are distinctly Jewish. Things like Jewish meditation, Jewish mysticism and the secrets of survival in the Diaspora.” Rabbi Gartner said she recommends her students read “The Jew in the Lotus.” In news reports, the Dalai Lama has said he is interested in the “Jewish secret” of survival — how the Jewish people have survived the Diaspora while preserving culture throughout nearly 2,000 years of exile. Perhaps Gilner’s nine-year service to a tiny congregation in Illinois, where he conducts High Holiday services, exemplifies this commitment to survival. Gilner said his sermons at Tikkun Olam in Woodstock, Ill., a congregation of a couple dozen families with no rabbi, reflect the richness his study of Buddhism
brings to his religion. For example, the Dalai Lama frequently says that his life is guided by the promotion of basic human values or secular ethics in the interest of human happiness. Through specific Buddhist practices, such as viscerally feeling the “significant acts of loving kindness” that “benefactors” have shown you — a relative, a stranger or a pet — Gilner explained that the commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself” becomes an “experience.” “You’re not groping with words and philosophy.” To highlight the Buddhist idea of loving kindness expressed by benefactors, Gilner cited the teachings of the Jewish sage Ben Zoma to the congregation: “How many exertions did the first humans make before they could eat a piece of bread? They plowed, sowed, weeded, hoed, reaped, gathered, threshed, winnowed, selected grain from chaff; then ground, sifted, kneaded, formed the dough into loaves, and baked — only then did they eat their bread. But I arise in the morning and find that all these preparations already performed and in evidence in the bread that is set before me.” As guardian of priceless books and manuscripts at the HUC-JIR’s libraries, Gilner can randomly pull an ancient Hebrew text from the stacks in the library’s rare book collection and translate Jewish
law regarding property transfers. He received his doctorate in 1989 at the College-Institute in Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and oversees the libraries in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, New York City and Los Angeles. So when asked which religion is older, Buddhism or Judaism, Gilner answered with a librarian’s precision: “That is both a simple and a difficult question,” he explained. “Jews claim Judaism goes back to Abraham, and have dated Abraham anywhere from 2000 B.C.E to 1600 B.C.E. Others have seen Judaism as starting with the Exodus and Sinai experiences. Others have dated it to during/after the Babylonian exile. There are still other opinions. “Buddhism could be viewed as beginning with the enlightenment and first teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, called Buddha (i.e., the Awakened One) circa 530 B.C.E. However, Buddhists aver that there were Buddhas before this Buddha—indeed, even before the cycle of creation we identify as having begun with the ‘big bang.’ This could be compared to Kabalistic teachings concerning those things, including the Torah, that existed before ‘creation.’’’ Gilner concluded with an understatement: “In matters touching on religion, it may be hard to give simple answers.”
tutes an abrogation of an American’s religious rights. Only a “compelling state interest,” the brief continues, can legally justify such an abrogation of a fundamental right – and the “efficient and orderly administration of justice” – which the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, the intermediate appellate court, ruled justified the lower court’s rejection
of Neustadter’s motions – does not satisfy that requirement. Although there are in fact scattered legal precedents for considering the efficient administration of justice to trump individual rights, the Agudath Israel brief cites the particular cases and explains how each of them is qualitatively different from the case before the court.
The Agudath Israel brief was authored by the organization’s Washington Office director and counsel, Rabbi Abba Cohen, Steven A. Loewy, a prominent Rockville, Maryland attorney, assisted by Agudath Israel legal intern, Jenny Figa. “The courts of our country are looked up to by the public as the guardians of the laws of our coun-
try,” the Agudath Israel submission concludes. “If a court can trample on an individual’s ability to observe his religion, as was done in this case, the message to employers, teachers, and all others in positions of authority over others is clear: interests of efficiency are more important than respecting an individual’s religious observances.”
ROCKWERN from page 1 Academy. This event was a success as a fundraiser, netting a sum that helps to bridge the gap between tuition and expenses, particularly in the area of making Rockwern affordable for more families. Speeches by the honorees, their presenters and others were poignant. Peter Cline, head of school, began by welcoming the community to the tribute dinner. Donna Mayerson introduced Dr. Marc Kramer, the executive director of RAVSAK (The Jewish Community Day School Network) as the keynote speaker. Kramer’s ardent words emphasized the critical importance of day schools in the formation of Jewish identity and developing the next generation of Jewish leaders. Mary Lee Sirkin’s daughter, Dr. Elizabeth Mason, introduced her mother to an adoring audience, many having been personally touched by being in her classroom
Honorees Barry and Ellen Finestone
or having children benefiting from her teaching. Sirkin put her heart and soul into teaching Jewish children over her impressive career as a Sunday school teacher at Wise Temple and 25 years as a preschool
DALAI LAMA from page 1 “human rights and democratic freedoms for the people of Tibet.” The other, written in the Tibetan alphabet reads, “Om Mani Padme Hum.” “This is the six-syllable mantra of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion, who is known as Chenrezig in Tibet,” explained Gilner, who oversees the College-Institute’s four-campus library system and serves as librarian of the Klau Library, Cincinnati. “The mantra is intimately connected with His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama,” said Gilner, 62, who has meditated daily using various practices for the last 40 years. His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is scheduled to visit Cincinnati and Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, next month. The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center will award the Dalai Lama the International Freedom Award at a luncheon on Oct. 20 at Duke Energy Center. On Oct. 21 the Dalai Lama will speak on “Ethics in a Modern World” to an already sold-out audience at Miami’s 10,000-seat Millett Hall. The university has scheduled many events in connection with his appearance including a panel discussion Oct. 7, “Funny you don’t look CASE from page 1 sect of the Orthodox Jewish faith” – an assertion Agudath Israel calls “completely untrue and legally irrelevant.” As to what is legally relevant, the Orthodox group’s brief cites U.S. Supreme Court rulings that being forced to choose between a religious obligation and a court penalty generally consti-
Courtesy of HUC-JIR
Dr. David J. Gilner of HUC-JIR is drawn to Buddhist philosophies that enrich his practice of Judaism.
AUTOS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010
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Land Rover’s compact SUV for on and off the road
2010 Land Rover LR2
The Land Rover LR2 is the only SUV in its class that can actually handle off-roading. The LR2 is Land Rover’s smallest and most affordable model. Its smaller size makes it perfect for day-to-day driving and maneuvering, but the offroad features are standing by ready for an adventure. Terrain Response is standard on the LR2. Terrain Response configures the engine, transmission and traction settings to match a variety of conditions: tarmac, grass, gravel, snow, mud, ruts and sand with the turn of the dial. The computer does the work for you. The 3.2-liter inline six-cylinder engine provides 230-horsepower and 234 pound-feet of torque. The SUV accelerates from 0 to 60 in less than nine seconds and can reach a top speed of 121 mph and delivers 15 mpg city and 22 mpg highway in EPA tests. It comes with a six-speed automatic transmission that features CommandShift and independent front and rear suspension. CommandShift allows drivers to manually select sequential gear change and a sports mode. Allwheel drive is standard. But how does it look? The LR2 is similar in appearance to Land Rover’s more expensive models but with an appealing, softer look. The LR2 is available in a range of colors. Of course, you can get it in Alaska White or Santorini Black, and it comes in Rimini Red, Ipanema Sand and Galway Green. If you like gray or blue, you’re in luck, because there are three shades of each: Izmir Blue, Biscay Blue, Bali Blue, Zermatt Silver, Stornoway Grey and Lago Grey. The LR2 features the latest alloy wheels, and you can get the standard 19-inch alloy wheels with a sparkling silver finish or upgrade to the split-spoke design and shadow chrome finish. The expected luxury is found in significant exterior features like the rear park distance control, rainsensing windshield wipers, front and rear fog lights, and headlamp
power washers. All of which comes standard. The high-quality interior includes Napoli leather seating with an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat and a six-way poweradjustable passenger’s seat. Other standard features include a keyless starter button, panoramic dual-panel sunroof with onetouch control, dual-zone climate control, a leather steering wheel with audio controls, an auxiliary iPod input and a six-disc in-dash CD changer. The rear seat split 60/40 design gives 59 cubic feet of luggage space when the rear seats are folded down. Optional features in the HSE LUX and HSE PLUS packages consist of a navigation system, memory seating, bi-xenon adaptive front lighting, Bluetooth connectivity and satellite radio. The 2010 LR2 comes with an Alpine ninespeaker audio system and a 14speaker surround-sound audio system is a plush upgrade. The Climate Comfort Package helps to keep bitter cold of winter on the outside and make the inside toasty and comfortable. The package includes heating the front- and second-row seats with two heating levels, a heated front windshield and heated windshield-washer jets. Safety features are many and include anti-lock brakes, Electronic Traction Control, Cornering Brake Control, Electronic Brake-force Distribution, Emergency Brake Assist, Roll Stability Control and Hill Descent Control. Dynamic Stability Control improves the vehicle’s handling when accelerating, cornering or when towing a trailer. The system constantly monitors the wheels and corrects any deviation from the chosen line by applying braking to the wheels that need it. The airbags are numerous and include driver and front passenger airbags, front seat side airbags, fulllength side curtain airbags & inflatable driver’s knee airbag. The 2010 Land Rover LR2 starts at $35,500.
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OBITUARIES
DEATH NOTICES SHOSTLE, Dorothy, age 95, died on September 15, 2010; 7 Tishrei, 5771. SCHEFFLER, Faye, age 91, died on September 16, 2010; 9 Tishrei, 5771. GOTTLIEBSON, Dr. William M., age 44, died on September 17, 2010; 9 Tishrei, 5771. DRESKIN, Ruth, age 87, died on September 17, 2010; 9 Tishrei, 5771. STERNWEILER, Josephine Y., age 85, died on September 17, 2010; 10 Tishrei, 5771.
OBITUARIES MOSKOWITZ, Libby We all know that being a Mom is the hardest, most rewarding job on Earth. A Jewish proverb says: “When G-d couldn’t be everywhere, He created Mothers.” My mother, Libby Moskowitz, must have been the prototype. She lived an exceptional, exemplary life full of giving and volunteering. Many organizations were fortunate beneficiaries of her years of dedication, involvement and commitment as a board member and hard worker—Chofetz Chaim Day School PTA, Roselawn Shul Sisterhood, Mizrachi Women, Hadassah and Israel Bonds. For Mom, life was all about helping others and giving selflessly, giving tzedakah and performing mitzvahs. She touched many hearts by giving a helping hand to those in need. She was a very special person not only because she was my Mother. She was a wonderful friend, a guidance counselor and cheerleader. She erased my fears, dried my tears and assuaged my hurts. She reveled in my joys and praised my achievements. With sensible advice on common sense, she kept me down to earth. But she also encouraged me to take wing and soar with my dreams. She was a visionary and always believed in planning ahead, having experienced the Great Depression. Mom took me weekly to the public library and encouraged my life-long love affair with reading books. She (and Dad) welcomed me and gave me a loving home and family when I arrived as a frightened 5-year old child after World War II from a French orphanage. Thanks to my parents, our house was a real home, always brimming with love, faith, warmth and lots of company. Holidays were special times because our door
was forever open for family and friends at the dinner table. Mom worked hard to promote Jewish life and keep the embers of tradition burning in our home. She kept a kosher home and was one terrific cook who could turn any simple meal into elegant cuisine; from brisket to corn pudding to French coffee cake. Summertime found our backyard full of guests who came for our old-fashioned barbecues. The Martha Stewart of her generation, she entertained in grand style. At formal dinners, she loved coordinating the events and using her crystal, bone china, sterling silverware and European damask. Mother made the kitchen the very heart of our home. It served as the source which provided nourishment and reinforced family togetherness. But it also was the focal point of inspiration and learning in our lives. For me it was “homework central,” the place where I studied and completed my school lessons. Always trying to broaden our minds and vistas, Mom brought geography lessons to our fingertips. Under the glass top of our kitchen table was a huge map of the world. Countries and cities came alive daily when we read or heard news from distant, exotic places. We merely looked at our table to see where events were happening. Alongside her cookbooks in the kitchen was the wellused house dictionary, always accessible and ready to demystify difficult, new words. Mother was courageous and possessed unshakable optimism. As a wife, she was full of love for Dad and never shirked responsibility. For over two and a half years while Dad was debilitated by a brain tumor, in Cincinnati and then at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, Mom was at his side every day. Although his health continued to decline, she kept lifting his spirit and never lost hope despite all the stress she endured. They both died early in the morning during the month of June, 47 years apart. Now they are reunited. Mom enjoyed the distinction of being one of the earliest residents of Cedar Village, which had been home for over 13 years. Even before Cedar Village was completed, she had chosen her apartment with care and planning. It was located ideally just across the hall from the original dining room and two doors down from the beauty shop. For the last four years, she was wheelchair bound and endured pain in her back from a slipped vertebrae. Yet she never complained. With all she suffered, she loved company and greeted everyone with a smile. At Cedar Village she participated in the Melton School, current events and lectures. She enjoyed attending the
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musical programs, creating beautiful things in the art class and jewelry making activity, as well as winning at bingo. She was strongly guided by the tenets of Orthodox Judaism, attending holiday services and fasting on Yom Kippur. Above all, she worked diligently to leave me an inspiring legacy of life’s greatest lessons: that success is a journey, not a destination; that if I have the will, no challenge is too daunting, no road is too long; that I should always aspire to do my very best in whatever I do; that my deeds and actions should be guided by conscience; that if I do the right thing, I will have no regrets; that education is the single best investment in life and the only one no one can take away; that learning should be a daily endeavor; that one must savor and enjoy each day to the fullest because it comes only once; that giving “tzedakah” is a Jewish priority; and that life is truly about giving of oneself and giving back to the community. With her positive outlook and charming personality, she easily made many friends, too numerous to count. She had class, character and carried herself in a regal manner. She was organized and efficient. She was very close with her sisters, brothers, nieces and nephews. As one who has enriched my life as well as the lives of so many through her efforts and deeds in our Jewish community, she was truly “Ayshesh Cha-yil,” a Woman of Valor. Mom has outlived her siblings, her doctors, her rabbis, her shul and most of her friends. She has been a remarkable Mom, Bubbe, great-grandmother, aunt, daughter, sister, friend and volunteer worker. I will miss my Tuesdays with her — lunching together and kibitizing about her grandchildren and great-grandchild. She showed immense pride in her family. Losing my extraordinary Mother leaves a big hole in my heart and my life. But she has left me with a priceless legacy. Libby Moskowitz, age 97, passed away June 30, 2010. She was the beloved wife of the late John Moskowitz, devoted mother of Cherie (Stuart) Rosenstein of Dayton, Ohio, dear sister of the late Rev. Nathan, Charles and Ben Richter, Hilda Bartel, Celia Millstein, and Esther Torf, loving grandmother of Johnny Rosenstein of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. and Shani (Dan) Kadis of Columbus,Ohio, and great-grandmother of Spencer Benjamin Kadis of Columbus, Ohio. Services were held at Weil Funeral Home on Friday, July 2 with interment at Shachnus Cemetery. The funeral was officiated by Rabbi Irvin Wise of Adath Israel Synagogue and Rabbi Benyamin Yudin of Cedar Village. Submitted by Cherie Rosenstein
JFS from page 3 The annual meeting continued with a short walk to the second floor of the Mayerson JCC building where Rabbi Sigma Faye Coran, spiritual leader of Rockdale Temple and current president of the Cincinnati board of rabbis, oversaw a mezuzah affixing ceremony. Past presidents HILLEL from page 6 “Learn a Little, Nosh a Lot.” These sessions will focus on different themes in Judaism and will be based on traditional and modern texts. These are just a few of the many programs Dellal has added to the calendar. Dellal comes to Hillel with much experience in formal/informal education and community leadership. She is currently a fifth year student at Hebrew Union College and has worked in varying communities (camps, synagogues, schools) in the last 10 years, helping to strengthen each through education, worship and personal connections. During her time as a rabTIKVAH from page 6 with Whole Foods, to the Jewish Food Pantry. Children of all ages will be able to help at the pantry. A visit to the Scratching Post will enable the children to care for the cats and kittens still needing homes. A trip to The Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati will help foster understanding and respect in the children for those different from STANCE from page 1 “The Israelis are saying this is real — Netanyahu wants to talk to Abbas one on one, and they will either move this ball forward or they won’t,” said William Daroff, the Washington director of the Jewish Federations of North America, who has been in close contact with Israeli officials. Netanyahu’s seriousness is underscored by what appears to be a shift on extending the partial settlement freeze he imposed 10 months ago. Abbas has threatened to quit the talks if the freeze is not extended past its Sept. 26 deadline, and last Friday President Obama said he also wanted it extended. The Israeli leader, who until this week had refused an extension, suggested to his Cabinet that there may be room for compromise. “Between zero and one there are a lot of possibilities,” Haaretz quoted Netanyahu as saying. Key to Netanyahu’s calculations is the improved relationship he has with Obama, a critical element in selling concessions to the
Jay Price, Barbara Rabkin, John Youkilis and Bruce Baker each took a turn to attach the mezuzah to the private door leading to the Jewish Family Service offices and confidential client meeting rooms. The afternoon ended with desserts and a tour of the new office space. A copy of the annual report is available on the Jewish Family Service website. binic student, she has served Temple Gates of Prayer in New Iberia, La., Congregation Ahavath Shalom in Bluefield, W.V. and most recently Valley Temple in Wyoming. Dellal took a year off of school to work in London, England as the education consultant for Liberal Judaism. She is excited for the students to arrive, and remarked, “Most of all I love working with and meeting people; I find it exhilarating, exciting and inexplicably rewarding. It is relationships which give our lives meaning and Hillel is one place where individuals can form relationships which will strengthen their Jewish identity and will bring more meaning to their college experience.” themselves. The children will continue to help the elderly prepare for the cold winter blasts by taking part in Prepare Affair. “In just the first few months of school, B’nai Tikvah students will be able to do their part in helping their world to be a better place while gaining knowledge of Jewish life in its many facets,” said Adler. “And isn’t that what ‘Living Judaism’ is all about?” Israeli public. At a news conference last Friday, Obama praised Netanyahu’s freeze. “The irony is that when Prime Minister Netanyahu put the moratorium in place, the Palestinians were very skeptical,” Obama said. “They said this doesn’t do anything. And it turns out, to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s credit and to the Israeli government’s credit, the settlement moratorium has actually been significant. It has significantly reduced settlement construction in the region. And that’s why now the Palestinians say, you know what, even though we weren’t that keen on it at first or we thought it was just window dressing, it turns out that this is important to us.” Another calculus for the Netanyahu government in its wait-and-see plan is the Obama administration’s success in drumming up Iran sanctions. Most recently, Japan and South Korea expanded sanctions over China’s objections, joining the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia and Norway in targeting the Islamic Republic’s energy and banking sectors.
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