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Legally Speaking: What happens when an owner doesn’t pay contractors

Jewish Family Service presents bestselling author Michael Gurian for three separate speaking events Jewish Family Service is excited to present New York Times bestselling author Michael Gurian, MFA, CMHC, as he discusses three distinct topics to help parents, professionals, and those ages 50 and up.

Michael Gurian is a marriage and family life counselor and a New York Times bestselling author of 26 books printed in 21 languages.

He is one of the world's leading authorities on gender psychology and is the co-founder of The Gurian Institute, which conducts research internationally, launches programs, and trains professionals. Gurian and the Institute team have trained more than sixty thousand professionals in more than two thousand agencies and schools. Gurian has appeared on many television programs and has had his work featured in various media.

Parents will enjoy an inspirational and humorous presentation, The Minds of Boys and Girls: Helping Children Succeed in School and Life, 7-8:30 pm, Wednesday, November 12. Because boys and girls experience their home and school life differently, Gurian will Michael Gurian explore how a child’s learning mind grows, how girls’ and boys’ learn and grow differently, how acculturation influences boys and girls, and how crucial school success has become to life success. This is based on twenty five years of research in brain science, education, and practical parenting.

This keynote is sponsored by the Alan

R Mack Parents Center of Jewish Family Service and PJ Library. There is an admission fee, and 1.5 Social Work CEs can be earned.

Professionals can earn 6 CEs when Jewish Family Service presents Helping Boys and Men in Therapeutic Settings Thursday, November 13 from 8:30 am – 4:45 pm. Gurian and co-

presenter Adie Goldberg will teach professionals new evidence-based strategies to effectively provide clinical care for boys and men based on their specific gender needs. “No matter the helping profession we work in, gender powerfully influences our clients. Depending on the gender of the child or adult, some interventions

will work, some will not work. Especially with boys and young men, many of our traditional interventions do not work, and males tend to leave our therapy practices too early, or gravitate towards prisons and other punitive institutions, in crisis numbers,” says Gurian. The registration fee for this program for professionals includes 6 CEs in a wide variety of disciplines and a choice lunch.

Aging successfully is the topic of the third keynote. With an optimistic outlook on life, Gurian will use a lighthearted approach to share how life can get better and richer with age during Aging Happens: Embracing Life After 50 Thursday, November 13 at 7-8:30 pm. Gurian sees life after fifty as an enormously fruitful, exciting and fulfilling time.

“During this event, Michael Gurian will explore everyday issues that unfold as we grow older and teach us new ways to handle them in a way that is positive and life-enriching,” says June Ridgway, Manager of Your Experts in Aging, a Geriatric Care Management program offered by Jewish Family Service.

This keynote is free.

Each event is open to the community and will be held at Cooper Creek Event Center. Book signings are available.

Register online or contact JFS for more information.

LOCAL • 3

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

Access helps get young professionals get connected during the High Holidays From working and networking, to working out and just hanging out, today’s young professionals (YPs) don’t have a lot of extra hours in the day to devote to much else, so it’s easy to let their connection to Jewish life take a backseat. However, not being affiliated with a congregation means that when holidays like Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur roll around, they don’t have a place to go, or a way to feel part of the larger Jewish community when it matters most.

Thanks to the generosity of each of the congregations in Greater Cincinnati though, it just takes a simple click of a mouse, or a quick phone call, for any Jewish YP to have a place to go at no cost and with no strings attached. Through this program, Access offers a “one stop” way for Jewish young professionals, 21-35, to obtain High Holiday tickets to the congregation of their choice.

This year, the deadline to make reservations is Monday, September 8th.

“I’m not originally from Cincinnati and don’t have family or a synagogue here, so I am very grateful that Access provides High Holiday tickets,” explains Jamie Dalin, one of the hundreds of Jewish young professionals who have taken part in Access’ annual High Holiday Ticket initiative over the years.

YP Holiday tickets

“I've been able to attend services at a few different synagogues, which makes me feel like a real part of the Jewish community.”

“The High Holiday ticket initiative is made possible through the generosity of 14 local congregations ranging from Reform, Humanistic and Conservative to Orthodox and Traditional,” says Briana Landesberg, Access’ Event Coordinator. “We started this program nine years ago as an experiment to see what would happen if some of the hurdles that seemed to be keeping young

professionals from going to services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur were taken away, such as cost and confusion about how to even go about getting tickets,” she adds. “Without this program, it is likely that the majority of participants wouldn’t attend High Holiday services otherwise.”

This program is open to Jewish young professionals, 2135 years old. Non-Jewish significant others are always welcome. To participate in the High Holiday ticket initiative or learn more, please contact Access.

Hadassah opening meeting/installation dinner: Imagine! Ignite! Inspire!

On Sunday, September 21st, Cincinnati Chapter President Bonnie Juran Ullner will pass the gavel to Ghita Sarembock at a festive Installation Dinner at Trio Bistro in Kenwood starting at 5:00 pm. New and retiring Board members will be honored, and three members of Cincinnati Chapter (Pilar Samuel, LeeAnne Galioto, and Beth Kotzin) will speak about their experiences at the Annual Hadassah Convention, "Imagine, Inspire, Ignite!", in Las Vegas in July. Ali Bernstein, Tracy Levine and Jennie Juran are co-chairs for the event.

Incoming president Ghita Sarembock was born in Cape Town, South Africa, and trained as an esthetician. She moved to the United States with her husband and two children in July of 1986, beginning a new life in Connecticut. She first joined Hadassah there in order to befriend others in the Jewish community. Two years later, the

Ghita Sarembock, incoming President of Cincinnati Chapter of Hadassah

Sarembocks moved to Virginia and stayed for 19 years. After coming to Cincinnati about seven years ago, she has become an active and vital member of the

Hadassah Cincinnati Chapter Board, serving as Donor Chair for the past five years. Her husband, Ian, is a cardiologist at The Christ Hospital, and they are active members of Adath Israel Congregation. Her son, Craig, his wife Anna and their three young children live here in Cincinnati, and her daughter, Kerri, lives in Northern Virginia.

Asked about her vision for Hadassah, Mrs. Sarembock replied, “Along with many seasoned members, as well as new younger members and my board, we will strive to IMAGINE the future, IGNITE the flame and continue to be INSPIRED. I urge you to come along with me for the exciting ride to a better future for our fellow Israelis who count on us to achieve these goals.”

There is a cost to attend, with different levels of giving available.

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UC Hillel welcomes students back to campus River.

“Hillel understands how important it is to bring students in the door with events where they have fun with other Jewish students,” said Hillel board president Ronna Schneider. “These events have helped bring new students to Shabbat dinners, trips to Israel and leadership roles. This is building our Jewish future.”

Young families prepare for a special Rosh Hashanah celebration at Wise Temple and grandparents) to experience joy and community at this High Holiday season. YoFI stands for “Young Family Involvement.”

On Thursday September 5 young families are invited to Wise Center for a brief age-appropriate service which includes music, storytelling, prayer, and the shofar blast! In addi-

tion, children will be invited to participate in one, two, or three pre-service holiday crafts—each with an endproduct your child will take home and treasure. The crafts will have elements accessible to all ages, even those youngest babes. Post-service, there will be a variety of sweet and savory apple snacks, including a

take-home apple dessert. Doors open for meeting and activities at 3:30pm.

The brief service begins at 4:00pm.

Wise Temple is proud to invite members and non-members to come together on this first and special occasion of the New Year. There will be many more young families events this 5774. L’Shanah Tovah!

Adath Israel prepares for the High Holy Days Adath Israel invites you to participate in three special programs to help usher in the High Holy Days: High Holy Day Adult Education Class with Rabbi Wise, Sunday, September 7: These classes are presented by Rabbi Wise to enhance the meaning of the High Holy Days for us, and to deepen our experience of them. The Rosh Hashanah class will meet from 10:30 – 11:30 am, and the

Yom Kippur class will meet from 11:30am – 12:30 pm. Learn the order, purpose and meaning of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur prayers, and the laws, customs and symbols of each Holy Day. No reservation is required for these classes. All are welcome.

Selichot, Saturday evening, September 20: Join us at 8:45 pm for a beautiful Havdalah service, fol-

lowed by a dessert reception featuring the music of renowned artists, Yael Senamaud-Cohen (violinist) and Sonya Szabo-Reynolds (pianist.)

The traditional changing of the Torah covers will follow, along with an inspirational service led by Rabbi Wise, Mitch Cohen, and the Adath Israel High Holy Day Choir, at 10:00 pm.

Cemetery Memorial Services

before Rosh Hashanah, Sunday, September 21: It is a long-observed tradition to visit the graves of our dear ones before Rosh Hashanah. The love and respect of this custom both comfort and encourage us, and give us hope for the year ahead. This short service is intended to enhance our High Holy Day experience. Join us at Price Hill Cemetery at 12:30 pm, or at Montgomery Cemetery at 1:30 pm.

Chabad Blue Ash to feature Rabbi Yehuda Shemtov at a “happiness” lecture Do you want to know what makes us happy? Is happiness a real thing? Or an imaginary one? How can we create a happy environment?

Would you like to learn about “Pink Cookie Theory?” How can one be happy in light of all the negativity that surrounds us?

Come take part in an exciting and dynamic experiential presentation that will shake up the common conceptions of what brings us happiness.

This groundbreaking seminar will help you discover the 5 most important steps on the road to happiness!

Rabbi Yehuda Shemtov, will be speaking at The Chabad Jewish Center Goldstein Family Learning

Academy on Sunday, September 14, 7:00 – 9:00 PM at Chabad Jewish Center.

Rabbi Shemtov, a fourth generation Rabbi, born in Philadelphia, PA, draws on life’s experiences to teach the relevance of the Torah in today’s fast paced technologically developed world. Yudi is involved in many trend-setting programs and activities focusing on transmitting the ancient teachings of Judaism and the complex spiritual teachings of Chassidut and kabbalah to the contemporary mind and experience The interactive presentation “Are you happy? The happiness seminar” will include exciting exercises and

practical tools. The tools will help identify and focus on the happiness elements in our lives and help strengthen those areas to create a stronger and happier person in their home, work and social environments.

WARNING: You may ACTUALLY leave the seminar a little bit happier than when you came.

“We invite young and old alike, regardless of background or affiliation, to take this opportunity to get insight into the things that bring us happiness,” said Rabbi Yisroel Mangel director of Chabad Jewish Center “Yudi will discuss fresh ideas that will help you create new channels for personal joy long after the

evening is over,” he continued. A question and answer period will follow, to allow audience participation in this fascinating discussion.

“This presentation promises thought-provoking conversations and, most of all, smiles” says Academy patron Eddie Goldstein.

Tickets can be purchased in advance, or at the door for a slightly higher cost. For reservations and more information, call Chabad Blue Ash. The lecture is open to the public.

No religious background or experience is necessary.

VOL. 161 • NO. 7 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014 9 ELUL 5774 SHABBAT BEGINS FRIDAY 7:46 PM SHABBAT ENDS SATURDAY 8:47 PM 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 production@americanisraelite.com RABBI ISAAC M. WISE Founder, Editor, Publisher, 1854-1900 LEO WISE Editor & Publisher, 1900-1928 RABBI JONAH B. WISE Editor & Publisher, 1928-1930 HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher, 1930-1985 PHYLLIS R. SINGER Editor & General Manager, 1985-1999 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher BETH KOTZIN SAUNI LERNER Assistant Editors YOSEFF FRANCUS Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor ROBERT WILHELMY Dining Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM IRIS PASTOR ZELL SCHULMAN PHYLLIS R. SINGER Contributing Columnists JENNIFER CARROLL Production Manager BARBARA ROTHSTEIN Advertising Sales

arrived,” Reed said. “She made a lot of good things happen. She’s leaving Cedar Village in a much better place than when she started.”

Reed added, “The rest of Cedar Village’s strong leadership team and staff will continue to provide our residents and patients with the highestquality services. The board has the utmost confidence in them. Our residents and patients will be in good hands.”

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Carol Silver Elliott

part of this wonderful organization, to have had a chance to help it grow and to have been a member of the Cedar Village family.”

Cedar Village’s Board of Trustees has taken action to ensure a smooth transition, including preliminary steps to search for a new president and CEO, said Barbara Reed, board chair. Elliott’s last day will be Oct. 24.

“Carol certainly addressed challenges Cedar Village faced when she

“LET THERE BE LIGHT” THE OLDEST ENGLISH-JEWISH WEEKLY IN AMERICA - EST. JULY 15, 1854

JULIE BROOK Office Manager

Carol Silver Elliott to leave Cedar Village Carol Silver Elliott, who has led Cedar Village Retirement Community through a period of strong growth, has decided to leave her position after more than seven years. Elliott has accepted the role of President and CEO of the Jewish Home Family in Rockleigh, New Jersey.

Elliott says that she is excited about her new opportunity but that she leaves with mixed emotions. “I feel very privileged to have been a

The American Israelite

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Your children may not be ready for full High Holiday services just yet, so are you seeking an age-appropriate meaningful experience for your family? At Isaac M. Wise Temple, a YoFI Rosh HaShanah service and celebration is for young families (those with children ages 05 and their older siblings, parents,

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and Hillel committees.

“Going to the Hillel BBQ was a lot of fun,” observed UC freshman Deborah Levin, from Louisville, Kentucky, “and a great way for me to meet Jewish students on campus.”

This year Sky Zone was a popular new venue for fun with friends and on September 3rd Hillel is bringing back the all-time favorite Schmooze and Cruise on the Ohio

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The Jewish undergraduate and graduate students who attended the Welcome Back BBQ in Hillel’s back yard enjoyed kosher hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken, and more. They joined old friends and new friends in the ball pit to answering probing questions. They played corn-hole, ping pong and foosball. They signed up for the High Holiday services, Schmooze and Cruise, Birthright

r in Am ape er sp i

Hundreds of University of Cincinnati students lined up on campus to visit Cincinnati Hillel’s Ice Cream Social Tent during Welcome Week. The next day, from 10:00 pm to midnight, they enjoyed kosher grilled cheese sandwiches. During the first week of school, students ate bagels and cream cheese on campus, as well as freeze-pops on those very hot days.

THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $44 per year and $1.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $49 per year and $2.00 per single copy elsewhere in U.S. by The American Israelite Co. 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE, 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037.

The views and opinions expressed by the columnists of The American Israelite do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.

NATIONAL • 5

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

Henry Waxman’s retirement ends era in L.A. Jewish politics

By Anthony Weiss LOS ANGELES (JTA) – When Rep. Henry Waxman, who will turn 75 in September, retires at the end of this year after 46 years in elected office, it will mark more than just the end of a storied career as one of the most prolific lawmakers in Congress.

It will also draw the curtain on a generation of Jewish politicians in Los Angeles.

In 2012, Waxman’s longtime friend and ally Rep. Howard Berman lost his reelection battle to fellow Rep. Brad Sherman after redistricting left them competing for the same seat. This is also the final year in office for L.A. County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who has been a dominant figure in local politics since 1975.

“It is the end of an era,” Yaroslavsky told JTA. “We’re all parts of the same generation. We can all finish each others’ sentences.”

When Waxman, who is a Democrat, announced his retirement from Congress in January, President Obama hailed him as “one of the most accomplished legislators of his or any era.”

Waxman established a national reputation for shepherding landmark legislation like the Affordable Care Act and the 1990 revisions to the Clear Air Act and leading dramatic congressional hearings on such matters as tobacco and AIDS policy.

“He became probably the greatest warrior in the last 50 years for federal social policy, and probably

the most remarkable member of the House of Representatives to serve since the Johnson era,” said Raphael Sonenshein, executive director of the Pat Brown Institute at Cal State Los Angeles, a nonpartisan public policy institute.

Neither Waxman’s person nor his personality are outsized. His modest height – he stands 5 feet, 5 inches tall – and his soft, precise manner of speaking belie his giant political stature and the bulldog reputation he attained on Capitol Hill.

Now he’s winding down his career in relative quiet, collecting awards and sorting through the papers he has accumulated since he was elected to Congress in 1974.

“When I think about the things I wanted to do, so much of that has happened,” Waxman told JTA in an interview in his office, ticking through a laundry list of policies for which he has pressed: health care reform, tobacco regulation, nutrition labels, the Clean Air Act. His spare district office on Wilshire Boulevard sits a few miles west of the once-Jewish Boyle Heights neighborhood where he was born. It’s also on the edge of West Los Angeles, where Waxman and much of the rest of the city’s Jews moved as they prospered. The area has served as the base for his political career.

Waxman was born to the children of Jewish immigrants from Bessarabia. When he was relatively young, his family moved from Boyle Heights to South-Central Los Angeles, an increasingly AfricanAmerican neighborhood where his father opened a grocery store.

Ohio Jews mourn death of IDF lone soldier (Cleveland Jewish News/Exclusive to JNS) – The Columbus, Ohio, Jewish community is mourning the loss of one of its lone soldiers as the Israel Defense Forces continues to investigate the death of Cpl. David Menachem Gordon, whose body was found Aug. 19 in central Israel with gunshot wounds.

Gordon, 21, had been missing since about noon Aug. 17, when he was last seen at a military base in central Israel. His army-issued assault rifle was by his side, according to the IDF. Lane Schlessel, director of the Ohio chapter of Friends of the IDF, said he did not have any information about the cause of Gordon’s death.

“I’m extremely sorry for the loss of the family’s loved one,” Schlessel said. “My support and thoughts and prayers are with them always. As a lone soldier (with no immediate family in Israel), his service was greatly appreciated.”

Bob Lane, vice president of Jewish community relations for the Jewish Federation of Columbus, said that Gordon’s family has lived in Columbus for less than one year.

Lane said he did not know the family personally, and he was not sure where Gordon was from originally.

“This certainly is a tragedy, and the Columbus Jewish community mourns with his family,” said Lane.

“David and his family are in our thoughts and prayers as we move through this very difficult and tragic time.”

Gordon, who entered the Israeli army in August 2013, was a member of the Givati Brigade. According to his Facebook page, he completed basic training in January and served in the 424th Shaked Infantry Battalion. He will be buried with full military honors at Mount Herzl, Israel’s national cemetery in Jerusalem, according to the Jerusalem Post.

“I always felt that living in an area that wasn’t solid Jewish made me even more Jewish,” Waxman said.

Politics ran in the family bloodlines. His uncle, Al Waxman, published a pair of local newspapers, including one that opposed Japanese internment during World War II, and was appointed to L.A.’s first committee on air pollution – then promptly was kicked off when he fingered major local industries as culprits. Waxman’s parents brought him up with liberal values and an allegiance to the Democratic Party.

“We always talked about politics,” Waxman said. “My parents imbued me with an attachment to the Democratic Party and to the fact that government is essential to the role nobody else would play to make this a more just society.”

Waxman and Berman met as members of the Young Democrats at UCLA and began their careers battling against the city’s conservative establishment. They were part of the political reform coalition between blacks and white liberals (many of them Jews) led by future mayor Tom Bradley.

The two rising Jewish politicians also took on the state Democratic machine led by State Assembly Speaker Jesse Unruh, building their own political operation (along with Berman’s younger brother, political consultant Michael Berman) that came to be known as the Waxman-Berman Machine.

Using then-innovative political tactics such as targeted direct mail, slates of favored candidates, and tapping Waxman’s affluent base in

West Los Angeles for campaign funds, they helped elect an entire cohort of like-minded politicians to office in California. Many, though certainly not all, were Jews.

They initially opposed Yaroslavsky in favor of a Bradley ally, but Yaroslavsky subsequently became a close political partner.

“They really represented the high water mark of Jewish political officeholding in Southern California, and then it spread their influence to Washington,” Sonenshein said. “From the city to state to county to the U.S. Congress, these guys were at the forefront.”

In 1974, Waxman was elected to an open seat for Congress. For the next 40 years, Waxman used his secure perch in western Los Angeles – aided by friendly districts drawn by Michael Berman – to become one of the most influential domestic policy legislators in the country. The walls of his district office feature framed front pages from the Los Angeles Times commemorating the passage of the Affordable Care Act, one of Waxman’s capstone achievements.

His secure perch wobbled in 2012 when an independent redistricting commission redrew his district, making it less Democratic and less Jewish. Waxman survived the closest race of his career against a self-funded independent, Bill Bloomfield, who spent millions of dollars of his own money in the race and came within eight points of Waxman.

Though he’s stepping down, Waxman says he is confident he could have kept winning. But he

says he didn’t want to spend a year raising money and campaigning only to return to the minority in the House of Representatives.

Besides, he said, 40 years in Congress “was a good, round number.”

The Republican candidate to replace Waxman, Elan Carr, is also Jewish, but Waxman has endorsed Democrat Ted Lieu, whom most political observers believe will win the seat.

The retirement of Waxman and his cohort by no means spells the end of liberal Jewish politicians in Los Angeles. The city’s three citywide elected officials -- Mayor Eric Garcetti, City Attorney Mike Feuer, and Controller Ron Galperin – are all Jewish. And though Jews are shrinking as a percentage of L.A.’s population and other minority groups like Latinos are growing fast, Jews’ reliability as voters makes them an important political bloc in low-turnout elections.

Still, the departure of the older generation marks the demise of the concentrated clout that Waxman and his allies represented in state and local politics. Yaroslavsky notes that the Jewish population has dispersed, and the number of Jewish elected officials in Southern California has declined overall.

“It’s not a tragedy, but it’s a fact,” he said.

As our interview winds up, Waxman is quick to return to work: There are still more boxes of papers to sort, and less time than ever to sort them.

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Finding the Goldbergs: A Catskills mystery unraveled aBy Uriel Heilman MONTICELLO, N.Y. (JTA) – The moment I kicked in the door of the abandoned house in the heart of the Catskills, I felt like I was in an episode of “The Twilight Zone: Borscht Belt edition.”

In some corners it appeared as if the residents were just out for the afternoon. Pictures and tchotchkes adorned the walls. A mezuzah with the parchment still inside was affixed to a doorpost. A working upright piano sat in one corner. Ironing boards were open.

Mattresses lay on beds; in one room the beds were still half-made.

But elsewhere, things were in a state of advanced decay. The roof over the kitchen had caved in. The sink was overflowing with rotting leaves. In a bedroom, vines poured in through the window and spread over much of the ceiling. Mold was having its way with the walls.

I had come to the Catskills hoping to get one last look at Kutsher’s, the last of the great Borscht Belt resorts, after hearing the news that its demolition was imminent. For much of the 20th century, Kutsher’s and other Jewish hotels like it helped make the Catskills the summer destination of choice for New York Jews.

But when I reached the mountains a few days later, I found the roads leading to Kutsher’s blocked by chains and sawhorses posted with warnings against trespassing into the hard-hat zone. I tried to make my way on foot, wading through wet, overgrown grass, but three burly construction workers spotted me and I was forced to beat a hasty retreat.

Which is how I found my way into

National Briefs Football broadcaster suspended for Jewish joks (JTA) – San Diego Chargers radio analyst Hank Bauer was suspended from announcing the team’s final preseason game for invoking a Jewish stereotype in an exchange with his on-air colleague.

“Although we know Hank had no ill-will behind his remarks, we agree the comments were inappropriate.

Bauer apologized on Tuesday on Twitter.

“I made a hurtful insinuation that I regret and I would like to express how sorry I am. I hope you accept my apology,” Bauer wrote.

Joan Rivers on life support (JTA) – Comic and talk show host Joan Rivers reportedly is on life support.

The family will have to decide whether to keep Rivers, 81, on life

Courtesy of Uriel Heilman

This Catskills house near Kutsher’s, in the old Borscht Belt, once was home to a vibrant communal summer home called a kochelein – Yiddish for “cook alone,” because while living and cooking space were shared, each family was responsible for its own meals.

a crumbling bungalow colony at the edge of Kutsher’s 1,500 acres.

Aside from the main house with 10 bedrooms and side building with a dining room and kitchen that I had broken into, there were a handful of bungalows, a pool and a lake. The buildings all were vacant, in varying states of disrepair and overcome by nature.

One room had half a dozen ovens and refrigerators. Opening one fridge, I half expected to find a cold can of Tab. No dice. In the corner of what appeared to be the living room, there was a public telephone. I picked it up.

No dial tone.

Most of the bedrooms were disheveled or empty, but in one I found toiletries and a shoeshine kit carefully arranged on the dresser, three drab but clean dresses hanging in the closet, and a shelf filled with unused legal

pads and blank paper.

Then I spotted the first clue to who may have lived here.

Tucked into the mirror was a photograph of four happy-looking elderly couples posing in front of the lake out back now obscured by foliage. Their names were carefully inscribed on the back: Nat & Sylvia, Herman & Eleanor, Milton & Norma, Jack & Charlotte. There was also a date: August 2001.

Who were these people and why did they leave? What purpose did this odd house serve? Were the people in the photo still alive? When was the house last occupied?

This being the age of the Internet, it took less than an hour of sleuthing, a credit card and $3.95 to unravel the mystery of this strange Catskills time capsule.

The simple part was figuring out

support in the coming days, the website TMZ reported over the weekend.

The “Fashion Police” host was undergoing throat surgery on Aug. 28 at a clinic when she stopped breathing. Rivers was rushed to Manhattan’s Mount Sinai Hospital.

“The family remains hopeful that if they do decide to turn off the machines, she will make a turn for the better and fight through it,” according to TMZ. The New York Daily News reported Sunday that Rivers’ daughter, Melissa, is “in denial” over her mother’s condition.

Palestinian Authority officials. They also will tour an Iron Dome battery, according to a statement from the House committee.

In a statement, Royce said the lawmakers “are traveling to Israel to show bipartisan support at a critical time.”

“Engel said in a statement that the two lawmakers “are making this trip to deliver a clear message: the Congress and the people of the United States stand with Israel.”

Foreign Affairs Committee’s Royce and Engel to visit Israel (JTA) – Reps. Ed Royce and Eliot Engel of the House Foreign Affairs Committee will visit Israel this week.

Royce (R-Calif.), the committee’s chairman, and Engel (D-N.Y.), its ranking member, are scheduled to meet with Israeli officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon, as well as

Pew poll: More U.S. sympathy for Israel than Palestinians (JTA) – More Americans express sympathy for Israel than for the Palestinians, according to a new survey.

A poll released last week by the Pew Research Center for People & the Press found that 34 percent of Americans sympathize with Israel “a lot,” as well as 32 percent who sympathize “some,” versus 11 percent who sympathize “a lot” with the Palestinians and another 35 percent who sympathize with them “some.” Thirty-seven percent sympathize with both sides, while 18 percent sympathize with neither.

who lived there. An address label affixed to some shelves in the bedroom with the shoeshine kit read Goldberg. That matched the name on a Jewish National Fund Tree-in-Israel certificate posted on the wall in another room. Along with the photograph I found, I had my target couple: Nat and Sylvia Goldberg.

Combing through online directories and death notices, it didn’t take long to locate family members. Soon I had Nat and Sylvia’s daughter, Judy Viteli, on the line.

She almost cried when I told her where I had been.

“Ah, the kochelein,” she said wistfully.

The what?

“The kochelein,” she said. “It’s a Yiddish word.”

Over the course of several conversations, including one in which we went through old pictures at her kitchen table, Judy and her sister, Paula Goldberg – now 60 and 63, respectively – told me the story of what had transpired half a century ago in that house, why it represented the best years of their lives and how it all came to an end. This is their story.

The kochelein The kochelein – a term that literally means “cook alone” – represented a particular kind of bungalow colony: a place where several families shared a house but where everyone was responsible for their own food. That’s why there were half a dozen fridges and ovens in the kitchen: Each of the 10 families was allotted half a refrigerator and a shared oven to prepare meals.

A pharmacist from the Bronx, Nat Goldberg began bringing his family to Appeals court hears claims in Adelson v. NJDC lawsuit (JTA) – A federal appeals court heard arguments in a bid by casino magnate Sheldon Adelson to reinstate a defamation lawsuit against the National Jewish Democratic Council and two of its formal principals.

Arguments in the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on Aug. 28 focused on whether a hyperlink in an online NJDC news release constituted adequate attribution to a source, which would protect the NJDC and its former chairman, Marc Stanley, and president, David Harris, from charges that they were peddling the allegedly defamatory claims, according to a report by the Courthouse News Service.

The federal judge who dismissed the case last year said hyperlinks provided even stronger protection than footnotes.

Obama administration targets array of Iran entities with sanctions (JTA) – The Obama administration sanctioned a broad range of

this kochelein, called Fairhill, in 1953, when Judy was still in diapers and her sister Paula was 5. The rest of the house was filled with cousins and close friends, all from the same working-class Bronx neighborhood.

Everybody, of course, was Jewish.

There was practically no privacy: Parents and their children slept in the same room, all the families shared only two bathrooms and everyone ate their meals in the shared dining room.

From a kid’s perspective, the summers were idyllic. Days were spent hiking in the woods, swimming in the lake, picking wild blueberries, playing hide-and-seek, trying to sneak into the resort at Kutsher’s and waging endless girls vs. boys wars. On rainy days they’d pack into the dining room with their parents to play mah-jongg or a variation of rummy, gambling for split peas. After the rain stopped, the kids would run outside to hunt salamanders.

Once the Goldberg kids turned 10, they were allowed to hitchhike into Monticello; their mother would wave goodbye as they climbed into strangers’ cars. On weekends they might catch rides with their father en route to the racetrack.

On Saturday nights, when the adults went out, the kids left to their own devices smoked, played kissing games and did whatever else they could think of that their parents had forbidden.

“Every one of us will tell you it was the best time of our lives,” Paula said of those summers. “Our mothers never knew where we were and didn’t care.”

GOLDBERGS on page 22 Iranian companies, banks, individuals and institutions.

The sanctions highlight what the administration says is its determination to maintain pressure on Iran while nuclear talks are underway.

Among the entities targeted in statements released simultaneously last Friday by the Treasury and State departments were shipping lines alleged to have bypassed existing energy sector sanctions, banks that violated financial sector sanctions and airlines said to have transported weapons to Iran.

It added that the terms governing the talks, which in July were extended to November, provide “Iran with limited, temporary, and targeted sanctions relief in return for important steps Iran took to constrain its nuclear program.”

The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations praised the new sanctions.

“This action by the Department of State and Treasury will put companies and individuals on notice and block assistance to Iran’s nuclear and terror activities or avoidance of sanctions,” it said in a statement.

NATIONAL • 7

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

Yiddish tango links time, space and musical styles

By Anthony Weiss LOS ANGELES (JTA) – The music that packs the Skirball Cultural Center’s stately courtyard – Yiddish tango – is a musical hybrid twice over.

On the tango side, it is a blend of African-born rhythms and a potpourri of European music styles. On the Yiddish side, it combines

mournful liturgical melodies with folk songs.

Tango, too, is famous for its sensual dance, while Yiddish music is rooted in the festive freylekhs of traditional wedding bands.

In combination, the two prove irresistible, as the concert crowd stands and sways to the tangled rhythms.

For Gustavo Bulgach, 47, band

leader of Yiddish Tango Club — the star attraction at the Skirball on Aug. 21 — the music is also a reminder of his childhood in Buenos Aires in the 1970s and ‘80s. Born to a family of Russian Jewish immigrants, Bulgach grew up in Argentina learning Jewish folk music at the feet of his grandfather, a passionate music lover, and in the synagogue founded by his grandfa-

ther.

At the same time, he says, “Tango is more than the music you hear in Buenos Aires, it’s something you breathe.”

Bulgach is far from the first to combine Jewish music and tango in a heady combination. Tango music was born in late 19th-century Argentina in communities of newly arrived European immigrants, many

of them Jews.

As Jewish musicians learned to play in the increasingly popular style, they added their own musical and linguistic flourishes — not only joining major tango orchestras, but also composing new tangos in Yiddish. Max Zalkind, for one, composed both in Yiddish (“Odesa Mama”) and Spanish (“Mi Quinta in Castelar”).

In shadow of Ferguson, group builds ties across racial and cultural lines

By Anthony Weis (JTA) – On the evening of Aug. 12, after two consecutive nights of clashes between police and protesters in Ferguson, Mo., Mikal Smith rose to address a community meeting in the neighboring city of Florissant.

In front of Gov. Jay Nixon, Obama administration officials and community leaders, Smith spoke off the cuff about his own experiences as a young black man — the constant need to be aware of his surroundings, for example, and the indignity of being questioned by the police for no apparent reason.

At the end of his speech, Smith, an incoming freshman at Saint Louis University, received a standing ova-

tion.

Smith, 18, is a recent alumnus of Cultural Leadership, a St. Louis-area organization that educates high school students about discrimination and social injustice through an intensive, yearlong study of Jewish and African-American history and culture.

The program, which this month is celebrating its 10th anniversary, teaches how to work across racial and cultural boundaries to address social inequalities.

With Ferguson now a flashpoint in the wake of the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, Cultural Leadership’s curriculum is being played out in the national headlines. Meanwhile, its

alumni are on the front lines in organizing a response.

“Our students are trained to be what we call ‘troublemakers of the very best kind,’ “ said Holly Ingraham, the executive director of Cultural Leadership. “They have been taking action, standing up and speaking out before, during and after Michael Brown was shot in Ferguson.”

Aaron Johnson, a Cultural Leadership alumnus from its class of 2010, was organizing a training session for voter registration on Saturday in St. Louis and will lead a registration drive in Ferguson. Mary Blair, a member of the incoming class of 32 students, organized a walkout and silent protest at Metro High School in

St. Louis that made the local news.

Other alumni, who now number in the hundreds, have acted as runners for the community dialogue portion of the meeting in Florissant.

“I don’t think I would be the person I am today had I not experienced Cultural Leadership,” said Johnson, an organizer for Grassroots Organizing in Columbia, Mo., who is working toward a master’s degree in public policy at the University of Missouri. “It was fundamental for becoming a social activist in this way.”

Cultural Leadership recruits many of its students through local houses of worship, as well as schools and youth groups. The organization has close ties with St. Louis-area rab-

bis, ministers and school administrators, and those leaders often identify talented students and connect them with Cultural Leadership.

The program was founded by Karen Kalish and modeled after a similar initiative, Operation Understanding, in Philadelphia and Washington D.C. Cultural Leadership was designed originally to bring together black and Jewish students to revive the historic black-Jewish alliance, which was particularly strong during the civil rights movement. It has since been expanded to include students of all faiths and backgrounds, though a significant number continue to be black and Jewish.

Nearly lost Yiddish language increasingly popular among Jewish college students

By Robert Gluck (JNS) – For those who try to get in better touch with their Ashkenazi Jewish heritage by studying Yiddish at the college level, there are challenges—but those can be outweighed by the nakhes (pride or pleasure) of rediscovering the nearly lost language.

“The most exciting thing about learning Yiddish is that it opens the door to the fascinating world of Yiddish culture that has flourished for over a thousand years and awaits explorers, researchers, translators and educators,” Agi Legutko—director of the Yiddish language program in the department of Germanic languages at Columbia University in New York—tells JNS. Many American colleges— such as Columbia, the University of Maryland, and New York University (NYU), to name a few—have Yiddish programs.

The language, which today is most commonly spoke by Jews whose ancestors hail from central and Eastern Europe, was spoken by about 13 million people before the devastation of the Holocaust.

Yiddish’s origins date back to the 11th century, when Jews settled in German-speaking lands.

They came to speak a language that fused elements from German dialects with Hebrew-influenced

Aramaic and Romance languages.

With the eastward migration of Jews during the Middle Ages, Yiddish was transplanted onto Slavic soil, adding Slavic to the mix of languages that shaped the structure and form of Yiddish.

For many centuries, Yiddish defined Jewish existence in central and eastern Europe, and also in in New World countries to which Jews immigrated. It was the language not only of the home, but also of a rich literary culture, which like Yiddish itself combined Jewish motifs and content with European form.

Classics of Yiddish literature include the works of Sholem Aleichem (the pen name of Sholem Rabinowitz, 1859-1916), whose stories on the protagonist Tevye the Dairyman are known to a general audience as the basis for the musical “Fiddler on the Roof,” and Isaac Bashevis Singer (19041991), who became the only Yiddish writer to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1978.

The most challenging aspect of studying Yiddish is overcoming stereotypes, Columbia’s Legutko believes.

“Many students come to class with preconceived notions about Yiddish, such as it’s not a real language, it’s a dialect, it doesn’t have grammar, it’s a language of jokes and curses,” she says. “It’s a full-fledged language, and I place

a lot of emphasis on grammar in my teaching, so the students are often surprised that they have to

learn grammatical rules and concepts that are entirely foreign to English-speakers, such as dative

and accusative cases; or to memorize lists of irregular past participle forms of verbs.”

8 • INTERNATIONAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

The anatomy of a cease-fire

By Dmitriy Shapiro

Courtesy of Flash90

ption: IDF soldiers rush injured Israelis to Soroka Hospital in Beersheba after evacuating them by helicopter on Aug. 26, 2014, following a mortar attack on Kibbutz Nirim near the Gaza border. Two Israeli men died from wounds they sustained in the incident, which took place shortly before the latest Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal went into effect.

(JNS) – After at least 11 failed attempts at achieving a lasting ceasefire between the Hamas terrorist group and Israel, negotiators in Cairo on Tuesday announced that they reached an indefinite cease-fire deal. But will the agreement hold up this time around? Some experts are skeptical because the talks leading up to the deal lacked the three major elements they believe are required for a successful cease-fire: negative leverage, positive leverage, and a credible third-party broker.

Before Tuesday, a delegation of Israeli officials had shuttled between Israel and Egypt for weeks to partici-

pate in indirect talks with Palestinian Authority officials representing Fatah, Hamas, and the Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, with minimal success.

Israel believed Hamas’s demands were unrealistic. But according to observers, both sides will need to go through a process that will necessitate gains and losses.

“If you reach an agreement based on quiet-for-quiet, it is bound to be short-lived, because what concerns the people of the Strip and Hamas is that there is a blockade,” said Shlomo BenAmi, Israel’s former minister of internal security, minister of foreign affairs, and ambassador to Spain.

But according to the Middle East Media Research Institute, Hamas

spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said this week that “it is not only the blockade which is rejected by our people. Our people refuses to accept the defiling of the land by the occupier (Israel).”

“The time has come for us to say that the true war is not aimed at opening border crossings,” added Abu Zuhri. “Our true war is aimed at the liberation of Jerusalem, Allah willing.”

Israel has previously accepted quiet-for-quiet cease-fires, in which both sides agreed to end hostilities and default to the status quo without resolving any of the larger, underlying causes of the conflict. It is a strategy Israelis have favored, even if it leaves ANATOMY on page 19

Prague’s longtime chief rabbi leaves colorful and controversial legacy

By Jan Richter PRAGUE (JTA) – When the novel “Altschul’s Method” hit the shelves in Czech bookstores this March, it was hailed as a brilliant political and psychological thriller combining elements of science fiction, alternate history and Jewish mysticism.

But it became a true literary sensation when it was revealed a week later that the book’s supposed author, Chaim Cigan, was a pseudonym for Karol Sidon, the longtime chief rabbi of Prague.

Sidon had explained that he was writing under a pseudonym mainly to

International Briefs Thousands rally against escalating anti-Semitism in Britain (JTA) – Thousands gathered in central London to protest rising anti-Semitism in Britain.

The rally Sunday outside the Royal Courts of Justice was organized by the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, a grassroots group formed in response to the increase in attacks against Jews in Britain and throughout Europe following the start of the Gaza conflict in July.

“A threat to Jews is a threat to our society,” Mirvis said. “We are not alone.”

Signs in the crowd read “Zero tolerance for anti-Semites” and “prosecute hate before it’s too late.”

British Jews, Muslims issue joint statement for peace and toleranc (JTA) – Jewish and Muslim leaders in the United Kingdom

draw a distinction between his literary work and his duties for Prague’s Jewish community.

“Such writing does not befit a rabbi,” he told a Czech news website.

“Being a rabbi has its limits,” Sidon explained in the interview. “I won’t lie; I wanted to quit some time ago and it will happen sooner or later.”

But it was more than a passion for literature that led Sidon to step down as chief rabbi in June, earlier than he had planned.

His resignation came amid reports that he had separated from his third wife and become engaged to one of his former conversion stu-

dents.

Sidon’s departure marks the end of an era for the Prague Jewish community.

The first post-communist chief rabbi of Prague, Sidon, a former dissident, symbolized the revival of Czech Jewry following decades in which religion was suppressed.

“His arrival at the post was crucial for the community,” said Charles Wiener, a former executive director of the Prague Jewish community who lives in Geneva, Switzerland. “All institutions in then-Czechoslovakia were in the shadow of communism and collaboration, and suddenly someone came who had not been col-

laborating but was in fact thrown out of the country by the communist authorities.”

But Sidon leaves behind a divided community struggling to overcome a conflict in which he played a prominent role.

The combination of a generational gap, religious disagreements, accusations of cronyism and personality conflicts contributed to intracommunal tensions during his tenure.

A decade ago, Sidon was even removed from his post when a new communal leadership took charge, only to be reinstated when his allies regained control of the community.

In the wake of Sidon’s resigna-

issued a joint statement, calling for peace in the Middle East and “constructive dialogue” between the two groups in Britain.

“In spite of the situation in the Middle East, we must continue to work hard for good community relations in the UK. We must not import conflict. We must export peace instead,” read the statement issued Wednesday by the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Muslim Council of Britain.

The statement condemned “any expression of AntiSemitism, Islamophobia or any form of racism,” including during rallies and on social media.

It also called for a redoubling of efforts “to work together and get to know one another.”

Minden Hills, which has a population of 5,600, the Toronto Sun reported.

According to the Star, Beattie remains in contact with rightwing activists and still espouses right-wing propaganda.

In August, former Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was elected as the country’s president. Erdogan was a harsh critic of Operation Protective Edge in Gaza this summer, saying that Israel “surpassed Hitler in barbarism” and committed “genocide” against the Palestinians.

Canadian Nazi Party founder running for Ontario township post JTA) – The founder of the Canadian Nazi Party, John Beattie, is running for deputy head of the town council in an Ontario community.

Beattie, who led violent Nazi rallies in Toronto 50 years ago and painted swastikas on the lawns of its prominent Jewish residents, is a candidate in the Township of

Artists in Brazilian exhibition protest Israeli funding (JTA) – Most of the artists participating in a major Brazilian art event protested funding for the show from the Israeli government.

Sixty-one of nearly 70 artists in the 31st Sao Paulo Biennial have signed an open letter calling on the event’s board to return the funds from Israel due to its recent Gaza operation.

Three Israeli artists are participating in the biennial, which led to funding from the Israeli consulate.

New Turkish PM: no normalization with Israel if Gaza blockade remain (JNS) – New Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Monday that there is no hope of his country “normalizing” ties with Israel unless the Jewish state ends the blockade of the Gaza Strip, Reuters reported.

France: 2 teenage girls planned to attack synagogue (JNS) – French police arrested two girls aged 15 and 17 last week due to suspicions that they belonged to a group planning to bomb the Great Synagogue of Lyon.

According to French reports, the girls were charged with conspiracy to commit terrorism. A French official said that the two girls did not know each other personally, but they were in contact via social media.

“These teenaged girls were part of a network of young Islamists who were being monitored by security services,” the official said.

The group the girls belong to consists of some 60 people who are under investigation for suspicion of terrorism.

tion, his friends have been notably quiet. Sidon and several other community leaders declined JTA’s interview requests.

Jakub Roth, 41, who served as the Prague Jewish community’s deputy chair between 2005 and 2008 and has been a Sidon supporter, said the rabbi’s resignation had long been anticipated. But he would not comment on the circumstances surrounding Sidon’s decision.

Prague Jewish leaders have chosen Rabbi David Peter, 38, to succeed Sidon. A native of Prague, Peter is an Orthodox rabbi who returned to the Czech capital in 2011 after 13 years of studies in Israel.

Palestinians demand ‘clear’ timetable for Israeli withdrawal from West Bank (JNS) – The Palestinian Authority’s (PA) commissioner for international relations, Nabil Shaath, told Palestinian media on Thursday that the PA would turn to the U.N. Security Council and General Assembly on Sept. 15 to request that Israel be forced to provide “a clear and defined timetable for withdrawing from the Palestinian territories.”

Shaath emphasized that PA President Mahmoud Abbas issued a directive to prepare an organized plan of action for the Palestinians to turn to the International Criminal Court and demand that it try Israel for war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated against the Palestinians, if the international community fails to act toward a resolution of the Palestinian territories issue.

In an interview on Palestinian television, Abbas stressed his determination to “bring the Israeli occupation to an end” and establish a Palestinian state that would exist alongside Israel in peace.

ISRAEL • 9

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

During combat and after, lone soldiers look to each other for support

By Ben Sales TEL AVIV (JTA) – When Shir Kleyman, an infantry instructor for the Israel Defense Forces and a Los Angeles native, found out that someone named Sean had died fighting in Gaza, she knew the army had lost a fellow lone soldier.

The official announcement came soon afterward as Kleyman, 19, was sitting in a Tel Aviv cafe on furlough:

The fallen soldier was her friend, Texas native Sean Carmeli.

“I asked Sean’s last name and said ‘please don’t be Carmeli, please don’t be Carmeli,’“ Kleyman said. “You find this out and don’t know what to do with yourself. I didn’t know how to handle it. You feel it because you know that you’re one of them.”

Kleyman, who joined the IDF in January, knew both Carmeli and fellow Californian Max Steinberg, who died

alongside each other in Gaza on July 20. Though Steinberg and Kleyman grew up in the same Los Angeles neighborhood, they met only when serving kitchen duty together in the army.

At Steinberg’s funeral, Kleyman stood in the honor guard across from Steinberg’s parents. She called the funeral “the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with in my life.”

About 2,800 soldiers are serving in

the Israeli military despite not growing up in the country, according to the Lone Soldiers Program, which provides them with social and other services. Three have died in the current conflict with Hamas: Along with Carmeli and Steinberg, French immigrant Jordan Bensemhoun was killed on July 20.

Most native Israelis, for whom army service is both a national obligation and a rite of passage, have net-

works of family and friends who served before them to help handle the deaths of comrades in war. But military volunteers whose families remain abroad say their strongest support is each other.

“They become your second family,” said Ron Gordon, who joined the IDF in 2012 after stints growing up in Europe, Atlanta and east Asia. “You don’t have anyone else here. You live with your friends.”

Bibi’s approval ratings, buoyed by war, are now plummeting – but why?

By Ben Sales TEL AVIV (JTA) — Israel’s war is over, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s fight may only have just begun.

The past month has seen Netanyahu’s approval rating plummet, according to polling by Israel’s Channel 2. On July 23, about a week after Israel launched its ground invasion of Gaza, the television station reported his approval rating as 82 percent. Given the fractious political climate in Israel, it was an impressive achievement.

It wouldn’t last long. Two weeks later his approval rating was 63 percent. By Monday, on the eve of the cease-fire going into effect, it was at 38 percent, with a full half of the country disapproving of his performance. And a day after the truce it was down to 32 percent with 59 percent disapproving.

The steep drop may reflect a measure of public disappointment in Netanyahu’s handling of the conflict. Throughout the fighting, his supposed allies on the right lambasted Israel’s indirect negotiations with Hamas and accused the prime minis-

ter of being unwilling to depose the organization. Meanwhile, the left called for a broader diplomatic initiative to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace.

“When you want to beat a terror organization, you defeat it,” Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, head of the hawkish Jewish Home party, said on Aug. 19. “When you hold negotiations with a terror organization, you get more terror.

Sooner or later Israel will have to defeat Hamas, there’s no way to avoid it.”

But political analysts say that

despite the criticism, Netanyahu’s job is probably safe, noting that no other Israeli politician is strong enough to build a rival coalition.

Plus, they say, a leader’s approval ratings often fall in the aftermath of conflict. Case in point: At the beginning of the Second Lebanon War in 2006, then-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had a 73 percent approval rating. By the war’s end it was at 29 percent.

“It’s always this way in war,” said Gideon Rahat, a political science professor in Israel. “In the beginning everyone is supportive,

and then the support falls. This is not exceptional. Strategically he goes to the center. That may help him unless there’s an alternative to the right.”

Throughout the 50 days of conflict, Netanyahu aimed above all to project strength, determination and measured stewardship of the fighting. The goal, as he told his Cabinet on Sunday, was “to restore quiet and security to you and to all Israeli citizens.”

In July, it seemed, most Israelis thought he was succeeding.

BIBI on page 21

Cease-fire marks end to Israel’s longest, bloodiest war in Gaza

By Ben Sales TEL AVIV (JTA) — A rocket barrage fell on Israel, a boom sounded over Tel Aviv and then it was over — at least for now.

After 50 days of missiles, airstrikes, ground operations, tunnel incursions, truce talks, cease-fire proposals, death and destruction, Israel and Hamas agreed to an open-ended truce on Tuesday.

The cease-fire announced by Egypt stipulates that Israel and Egypt will open all border crossings to allow international humanitarian aid and construction materials to enter the Gaza Strip.

The agreement requires Israel and Hamas to cease hostilities but, according to reports, does not include commitments to allow an international airport and seaport in Gaza. After a month, should the quiet hold, Israel and Hamas will restart indirect negotiations in Cairo on easing Israel’s blockade of the coastal strip and disarming the enclave.

The end of the operation should not include “any significant political achievements for Hamas, which is a terrorist organization which doesn’t accept our existence here,” said Tzipi Livni, Israel’s justice minister. ?Livni added that the truce should be “part of an overall accord with those who seek peace.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel had not spoken publicly or released a statement about the cease-fire as of press time. Two days prior, though, during a Cabinet meeting, he said: “We embarked on

Operation Protective Edge in order to restore quiet and security to you and to all Israeli citizens. The more determined and patient we are, the more our enemies will understand that they will not succeed in wearing us down.”

The agreement is the culmination of Egyptian-led cease-fire efforts that have been ongoing throughout the conflict. Earlier this month, Israel and Hamas had agreed to a string of temporary cease-fires. The lull ended with Hamas rocket fire on Israel last week.

The fighting is Israel’s third major conflict with Hamas since 2008, following conflicts in 2008–09 and 2012. This one, however, was the longest and costliest between the sides since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

More than 2,000 Palestinians and 70 Israelis died in the latest conflict, which wounded more than 10,000 Gazans and 500 Israelis, according to Israel’s Foreign Ministry. Also, 20 Palestinians died in protests in the West Bank against Israel’s operation, according to a report in the Guardian.

The fighting created ghost towns across Israel’s South and devastated Gaza, destroying thousands of homes. Israeli forces delivered a punishing blow to Hamas during the conflict, with airstrikes destroying thousands of rockets and ground troops eliminating much of its tunnel infrastructure both under the Israel-Gaza border and across Gaza.

Last week, an Israeli airstrike killed three senior Hamas command-

ers. The chief of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif, may have been killed in a separate attack last week.

Israel’s aggressive military tactics, along with a high Palestinian

civilian death toll, drew widespread international criticism. Last month, the United Nations Human Rights Council said it would send a factfinding mission to investigate possible war crimes committed during the

fighting. Israel has indicated that it likely would not cooperate with the investigation, alleging anti-Israel bias.

CEASE-FIRE on page 19

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This is the class that will help you master reading, writing and speaking. Taught by Mrs. Zahava Rendler Rockwern Academy 8401 Montgomery Rd. • Cincinnati, Ohio 45236 For more information contact Mrs. Zahava Rendler at zrendler@fuse.net or publisher@americanisraelite.com or call 513-721-2220

10 • ISRAEL

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Reporting on Gaza zoo ignores affected Israeli animals

By Alina D. Sharon

Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Zebras at the Ramat Gan Safari near Tel Aviv.

(JNS) – This week, a number of outlets have reported about the danger faced by animals at the Gaza zoo during the Israel-Hamas conflict.

But as Hamas breaks cease-fire after cease-fire and the conflict persists, animals on the Israeli side of the border are also affected, in some cases severely.

Just as the human casualties in Gaza are higher due to Israel’s investment in the Iron Dome system, which prevents most Hamas rockets from landing in Israel, animals too are more affected by the conflict on

the Gaza side. But animals, much like people, are often the casualties of war on either side of a conflict.

Unlike humans, in Israel wild, farm, and stray animals do not have bomb shelters to turn to when an alarm sounds. Despite the Iron Dome, some rockets are not being intercepted and fall in open areas.

While those open areas might not have people, animals may be present there.

In some cases, the rockets are able to hit more serious targets. For instance, in early July, when Operation Protective Edge was just getting underway, a rocket hit a cow

shed in the Be’er Tuvia Regional Council, causing severe damage and killing 11 cows. Later in the month an owl was injured from rocket shrapnel and was brought to a veterinary clinic for treatment. The owl eventually died.

Tnu LaChayot Lichyot, an Israeli association for the protection of animals, and other similar groups, has been working to assist and remove stray dogs and cats, especially in the south.

“Animals have strong sense and they are frightened not only by the ZOO on page 19

Using seismic vibrations, Israeli tech firm aims to detect Gaza tunnels

By Ben Sales OR YEHUDA, Israel (JTA) – Something that looks like a can of soda could be Israel’s high-tech answer to the network of tunnels that Hamas has created under the Gaza border.

A sensor known as a geophone can detect underground movement based on the sound generated by the movement, the Israeli defense firm manufacturing the device says. The firm, Elpam Electronics, says the geophone is capable of finding the location of a person crawling as far down as 32 feet.

Israel has grappled with the danger of the Gaza tunnels for years, but the threat has gained greater urgency in the wake of Protective Edge, the

Israel Briefs Body found in Jerusalem Forest reportedly confirmed that of missing N.J. yeshiva student JERUSALEM (JTA) – Israel Police reportedly confirmed that a dead body found in Ein Kerem near the Jerusalem Forest is that of Aaron Sofer, a yeshiva student from New Jersey who went missing in the area a week ago.

The body was found in a shallow ditch a the side of the road in the neighborhood, and that his hat and glasses were found nearby. The body reportedly has decomposed, making identifying the cause of death difficult.

Sinai terror group beheads four accused of spying for Israel JERUSALEM (JTA) – Four Egyptian men were beheaded by a Sinai-based terror group for allegedly spying for Israel.

Members of the Ansar Bayt al-

military operation launched last month. A ground invasion of Gaza that started five weeks ago had the stated aim of neutralizing the tunnels, 32 of which were subsequently destroyed, according to the Israeli military.

Now the mission is continuing in the research labs of Israeli defense firms. Both Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and, according to several Israeli reports, Elbit Systems are at work on systems to detect tunnels. Neither company would comment on their research.

But Elpam agreed to provide JTA with a look at the technology it’s been working on for decades and is now adapting to address the current threat.

Iky Koenig, Elpam’s CEO, wants Israel to bury hundreds of sensors in a

constellation around the Gaza border.

By next year the company hopes to have developed a monitoring system that can locate tunnel activity and differentiate it from other subterranean noise.

“Let’s say there’s a suspicion of activity from military intelligence or [the sound of] spoons digging,” Koenig said. “You put these things in the ground and if someone hears spoons, we’ll hear it like a bulldozer.”

In 1988, Elpam created its sensors to assist in search-and-rescue operations. The sensors were designed to detect sound frequencies in the ruins of destroyed buildings.

Rescuers could hear people trapped under the debris and the trapped could respond. Dozens of the kits, which can fit inside a lightweight

vest, were sold to the Israel Defense Forces.

Elpam also developed and sold two tunnel detection systems to the IDF in 2005 and 2006. One was intended to detect tunnels along the Philadelphi Corridor on the EgyptGaza border, but the company could not say whether the system was ever deployed.

In a statement to JTA last week, the IDF said it had considered two tunnel detection systems in 2005 and 2006 that were not effective. The IDF said it is now combining those systems and readying them for field testing.

The military expects deployment of the system to take one year and cost between $424 million and $565 million. The IDF would not confirm

whether those systems were developed by Elpam.

The sensor concept is not without its critics.

Yiftah Shapir, a military technology expert at Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies, said rows of sensors cannot detect tunnels that turn or intersections between multiple tunnels.

Shapir also said the sensors do not have the ability to detect tunnel openings, which was among the key goals of the ground invasion.

“You think a tunnel starts in one place and ends in another,” he said.

“There are three or four entrances. In the middle there are junctions. It’s never just in one place. [The IDF] went in essentially to look at where the other openings are.”

Maqdis said in a video released Thursday that they killed the men because they had been spying for Israel’s Mossad agency.

The headless bodies were found in the Sinai earlier this month, Reuters reported citing security sources.

The video shows men in black masks beheading the accused collaborators as they kneeled on the ground, according to Reuters.

The terror group said that the men provided intelligence to Israel used in a July airstrike on northern Sinai, in which three Ansar Bayt alMaqdis fighters were killed. The Egyptian army said at the time of the strike that no Israeli aircraft had been in Egyptian airspace.

reportedly are troops from the Philippines.

There are 1,223 peacekeepers from six countries: Fiji, India, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands, and the Philippines – serving in UNDOF.

to investigate them for war crimes in Gaza.

Malki sent a letter to the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Canada, South Africa and five Latin American countries on Tuesday, as well as to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Kimoon, reminding the countries that under international law they are required to investigate their citizen’s alleged violations of international law, the British newspaper The Guardian reported Wednesday.

going clinical trials in the United States.

43 UN peacekeepers kidnapped on Israel-Syria border JERUSALEM (JTA) – Some 43 troops from the United Nations peacekeeping force on the border between Syria and Israel were kidnapped by rebels fighting against Syrian government-backed troops.

The peacekeepers, who were abducted Wednesday during a period of increased fighting between the rebels and the Syrian army on the border at the Quneitra crossing,

Report: Netanyahu, Abbas met secretly in Amman JERUSALEM (JTA) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met secretly in Amman days before the current cease-fire with Gaza, a Jordanian daily reported.

The meeting reported by the independent Amman-based Arabic newspaper Al-Ghad was part of a gathering of senior Israeli and Palestinian officials, held at the invitation of King Abdullah II. No Israeli officials have confirmed the report.

PA wants foreign nationals serving in IDF investigated for war crimes JERUSALEM (JTA) – Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riad Malki called on foreign governments whose citizens serve in the Israel Defense Forces

Israeli company ReWalk going public JERUSALEM (JTA) – The Israeli company ReWalk Robotics, which builds exoskeletons to help people with spinal cord injuries stand and walk, is going public.

The company, which changed its name recently from Argo Medical Technologies to the name of its signature product, announced this week that it will be listed on the NASDAQ exchange next month. with minimal exertion.

ReWalk is already in use in Europe and was featured in 2010 on the popular television drama “Glee” while ReWalk was under-

Report: SodaStream mulling departure from West Bank plant JERUSALEM (JTA) – The Israeli firm SodaStream, which has been a target of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, is considering closing its West Bank factory.

CEO Daniel Birnbaum told the Israeli economic publication The Marker that the company, which makes home soft drink machines, will make a decision in the next two months.

Birnbaum said the decision would be based solely on economics.

The company is expanding its operations at a new plant in Lehavim, a Negev community near Beersheba in Israel’s South.

SodaStream has already fired between 100 and 200 workers at the Maale Adumim plant. There are now 1,100 employees there, of whom 850 are Israeli Arabs or Palestinians, according to the Marker. The plant is expected to employ a significant number of Bedouin Arabs at its Negev plant.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

YOM HAATZMAUT AT THE JCC On Tuesday, May 6, the Mayerson JCC became “celebration central” as nearly 500 people gathered together in the “Jewish community’s neighborhood” to mark Israel’s 66th birthday! The JCC partnered with the Israel Programs Department of the Jewish Federation to present this joyful party in honor of Yom HaAztmaut, Israel Independence Day. From young families and young professionals, to teens and seniors and everyone in between, guests were treated to a fun-filled night featuring falafel, hands-on kids’ activities, as well as an adults’ only event starring stand-up comedian, Avi Liberman! Plus, a video showcasing some of Cincinnati’s own who have made aliyah was shown just before Avi took the stage, helping to illustrate our city’s extra special connection with Israel!

Photos continued on Page 12

SOCIAL LIFE • 11

12 • CINCINNATI JEWISH LIFE

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CINCINNATI JEWISH LIFE • 13

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

HAVE PHOTOS FROM AN EVENT? Whether they are from a Bar Mitzvah, Annual Meeting, School Field Trip or Your Congregation’s Annual Picnic, spread the joy and share them with our readers in the Cincinnati Jewish Life section!

MAIL: MAIL Send CD to The American Israelite, 18 W 9th St Ste 2, Cincinnati, OH 45202 or E-MAIL: E-MAIL production@americanisraelite.com Please make sure to include a Word doc. that includes the captions, if available, and a short synopsis of the event (date, place, reason, etc.).

If sending photos by e-mail, please send them in batches of 3-5 per e-mail (16MB MAX). All photos should be Hi-Res to ensure print quality.

THIS IS 100% FREE. For more information, please contact Jennifer at (513) 621-3145.

All photos are subject to review before publishing.

14 • DINING OUT

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Walt’s Hitching Post steaks a 7-to-1 favorite with diners

By Bob Wilhelmy A little over a year ago, when Walt’s Hitching Post reopened, the new guys wanted to build on the legacy of the rib and chicken smoked barbecue that people raved about in the restaurant’s former heyday.

Owner Bronson Trebbi and managing partner Donny Arnsperger expanded the menu to include a full section of steaks and more seafood. The thinking was that the expanded menu would give diners more reasons to patronize Walt’s.

Also, within those added menu choices would be more entrée options attractive to women, who often make or influence the destination decision for dining out.

The strategizing worked—and then some! “Today, the steaks are being ordered seven-to-one over our ribs,” Arnsperger said. “People come in and they see the steaks on our menu (or maybe see one come from the kitchen for a nearby diner) and they just go for a steak.

Happens all the time,” he said.

Arnsperger looks at that as evidence Walt’s is one of the premier steakhouse destinations in the Greater Cincinnati area, even though there is a broader menu, with many items specifically appealing to women diners. “When you are filling the place with diners and you get that kind of interest in the steaks, you know you are building a great reputation as a steakhouse,” he said.

So what is at the head of the pack in the steak derby at Walt’s? The steak pictured leads all others in popularity; the 18-ounce rib-eye.

This hearty beefsteak is more than an inch thick and is huge.

My rib-eye was nicely crusted on the outside, with a wonderful flavor (we’ll get into that flavor in a minute). The steak was perfectly cooked to order: rare, in my case.

The meat was juicy and tender, not fork tender, but tender in the way a good steak should be tender; easy to cut and tender to the teeth. All that is perfectly aligned with my measures for an excellent steak, prepared exactly right. And Chef Brian Loschiavo came out to make sure of all that. He got rave reviews all round.

Now, the flavor is a harmony between an excellent cut of beef and a carefully guarded mix of spices that are put on the meat before grilling. The eponymous Donny’s Dust is the spice mix. Arnsperger related his effort in arriving at the mix, working more than a year on variations until he hit the right combination. “I went through a lot of spices and a lot of steaks on my grill at home before I got what I wanted.

But the work was worth it, and our success with our steaks shows that, I think.”

Arnsperger said the 6-ounce filet mignon is a cut that was put on the

Walt’s entryway at the restaurant.

The rib-eye steak, fresh from the grill.

menu for the women diners, as was the BBQ salmon. The steak is grilled, of course, and to order. The salmon is pan seared, finished in the oven, and served over Walt’s raverevued home fries.

Arnsperger emphasized affordability in fine dining, and especially in steakhouse fine dining. “We want people who maybe have not been here before to know you get more for your dining dollar. Other places you get the steak only and everything else is ala carte. Here, our 18-

The Derby Room, set for a private party and accommodating up to 100.

ounce rib-eye, for $39, you get the steak, a big steak, grilled to order, and you get your choice of a salad or hot slaw, and your choice of our home fries, which the community has been going nuts over, or mashed or baked potato. So, you get a meal, instead of only the steak and then a lot of ala carte charges if you want a salad or potato.”

Also, he emphasized friendliness: “At Walt’s, we want our guests to feel like they’re dining with friends, dining at a friend’s house.

We take pride in the fact that Walt’s is a friendly place where you find a sincere interest in your whole experience. The food has to be excellent.

But that’s not all. We work to make sure that every aspect of your dining experience with us meets your expectations for excellence.”

Having had hundreds of finedine restaurant experiences over time, allow me to echo what Arnsperger said. Walt’s is a friendly place. And it’s not fake friendly, either, as is the case in many eateries,

fine or not. What I sense, simply, is a collection of people who enjoy what they do, take pride in their product, and have fun delivering a fine-dining experience to every guest who chooses Walt’s.

Walt’s Hitching Post 3300 Madison Pike Fort Wright, KY 859-360-2222

DINING OUT • 15

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

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9701 Kenwood Rd

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16 • OPINION

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After Gaza war, helping traumatized Israelis heal

By Chelsea Polaniecki (JNS) – “You know what’s worse than being stabbed 13 times? Being stabbed 14 times. It can always be worse.”

In 2010, Kay Wilson, a Jerusalem tour guide who had emigrated from London, was brutally attacked by a terrorist in the Jerusalem Forest.

After being stabbed 13 times, she fooled her attacker into thinking that she had passed on, and he left her for dead.

In the moments that followed, Kay watched in horror as he murdered her best friend, Kristine Luken, right before her eyes.

Four years later, Kay has a new lease on life and an impossibly positive attitude.

She truly feels that “it could have been worse,” and she motivates others with those words.

This summer, I interned at OneFamily, Israel’s leading national organization solely dedicated to the rehabilitation of victims of terror attacks and their families. In a few short weeks on the job, I met hundreds of victims of terror, most of whom appeared courageous and strong.

Slowly, I learned that they— like Kay—underwent a slow and painful process that brought them peace, clarity, and ultimately, strength.

The road from trauma to resilience is a long and arduous journey that requires extensive therapy and the constant support of a family, whether biological or one born out of tragedy. My experiences at OneFamily this summer taught me that caring goes a long way. In fact, becoming the “family” that a victim of terror needs to heal can make all the difference— without a strong support system, the victim may never find strength.

Over the course of the summer, I did everything I could to empower these brave but broken individuals.

I held a mother’s hand as she called home to check that her husband and children were alright after several sirens had sounded in their hometown.

I played with children who had not been out of their local bomb shelter for days.

I sang and danced with bereaved mothers as they taught me how to prepare the recipes that their children— fallen soldiers and victims of terror—had enjoyed the most.

I listened to story after story, provided unlimited hugs, and gave away as much of my own strength as I could muster so that those affected by terror could find their own.

As the war in Gaza reaches its conclusion and the plight of the victims of terror and their families once again fades into the background, it is our responsibility to stand with these individuals so that they can begin to heal. We must help them develop the positive outlook required for true recovery, and enable them to realize that “it could have been worse.”

Due to the extreme devastation brought about by war, thousands of injured and traumatized Israelis require our support. We must help them come to terms with what they have lost, and prepare them for what still lies ahead. We must share their trauma and help shoulder their burdens in order to keep them moving forward.

This summer, I learned that one should never underestimate the power of love and support. When someone’s life is changed forever by a violent act, there is no telling how long it will take for that person to find peace and regain strength. But one thing is clear: the involvement of a loving family is a crucial element of the healing process.

As I return home, I will continue to do everything I can to empower these traumatized individuals, and I encourage you to do the same.

We cannot allow them to get lost in the shuffle simply because the news cycle has moved on to other things. We must always be there for them because they are our family.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Do you have something to say? E-mail your letter to editor@americanisraelite.com

Dear Editor, In response to the drastic increase in anti-Israel and antisemitic sentiment over the summer—both globally and locally—the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati has developed resources to strengthen our community.

Anticipating a tense fall semester for Jewish students, the JCRC’s materials address possible anti-Israel and antisemitic situations on campus and give advice for effectively speaking out for Israel and the Jewish community.

While the resources are aimed at

college students, many scenarios and suggestions are equally beneficial for high school students. In fact, everyone may find them useful in discussions about the conflict with friends and acquaintances, both in person and online.

The information is divided into three parts: 1) Possible scenarios and how to respond 2) Answers to common questions about the conflict 3) Additional resources Special emphasis is placed on social media, particularly how it is being used to spread anti-Israel / antisemitic messaging, along with

response strategies. While previous Israel-Hamas conflicts were discussed online primarily through Facebook, the current platform of choice is Twitter. To this end, the materials also include a list of suggested Twitter "handles" to follow.

All materials are available free of charge on the Federation’s website. We hope you find this information useful, and we welcome your feedback.

Sincerely, Jewish Community Relations Council

Losing patience with Students for Justice in Palestine’s anti-Semitism

By Elliott Hamilton (JNS) – A grand paradox exists within Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). The group markets itself as a movement to “restore the self-determination of Palestinians” while simultaneously denying the self-determination of Jews.

Operating under the premise that the Jewish state is “illegally occupying Palestine,” SJP tries to spread awareness of the hardships faced by Palestinian-Arabs claiming that Israel treats them unfairly compared to Jewish citizens.

By showing images of the security fence that was built out of necessity—to limit the number of Palestinian-Arab terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians—SJP claims that Israel is an “apartheid state” and holds Israel to a higher standard than every other country in the Middle East. But SJP is far from the “social justice” movement it claims to be, as it partakes in some of the worst instances of anti-Semitism on college campuses.

SJP activists shouting Jew-hating slogans such as “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” highlight the hypocrisy that surrounds the organization. Some activists associated with the group contend that the slogan does not call for Israel’s destruction, but rather that “Palestine” will be “free from colonialism.” Such arguments, however, do not hold true when members of the same SJP chapter call for the “Zionist state” to be torn down. In an attempt to save face, SJP activists will immediately go on the defensive and argue that what they say is not anti-Semitic, and then go on to criticize those who “cry anti-Semitism” as old-fashioned.

The reality that SJP refuses to

acknowledge is that the U.S. State Department considers any demonization and double standards against the Jewish state to be antiSemitic. This would include comparing Israeli policy to the Nazis, something that Vassar College SJP did when posting a Nazi-era cartoon on its Tumblr page. Pro-Israel students are often referred to as “baby killers,” which demonstrates a modernized incarnation of the ancient blood libel that has targeted the Jewish people for millennia. The blood libel claim says that Jews killed non-Jewish babies to bake their matzot for Passover. By arguing that all Zionists “kill babies” and making ridiculous claims that Israel is committing “genocide” against Palestinian-Arabs, SJP continues to enable such vitriolic Jew-hatred to continue onward in the name of “social justice.”

This is why it comes as no surprise that an SJP-affiliated student, on Aug. 20 at Temple University in Philadelphia, shouted anti-Semitic insults and punched a pro-Israel student in the face during an orientation event. SJP historically bullies proIsrael students and invites vehemently anti-Semitic speakers to campus under the pretense of “dialogue.” But SJP activists have done far more than just harass Jewish students. In addition, they use the false language of “human rights” and “social justice” to get various student groups to assist their struggle for such causes. SJP deliberately misleads the LGBTQ, feminist, and African American communities, as well as many other minority groups, claiming that it sympathizes with their struggle for legitimacy against “white, cis-gendered male” communities that stand in their way. Thus, these groups take part in SJP events and call out any

pro-Israel student who offends them.

What many of these minority groups fail to recognize, however, is that the “Palestine” that SJP defends is not only anti-Semitic, but also misogynistic, homophobic, racist, anti-Christian, and fascist. SJP defends a place where women are subject to honor killings, where members of the LGBTQ community face persecution, torture, and death, and where Jews are not allowed to live, build homes, or purchase land.

SJP does not discuss these injustices, nor do they care when Hamas murders opponents and drags them through the street. In SJP’s mind, none of this matters, because “Israel is the oppressor.” Such deception, manipulation, and lies have led to the collegiate community tolerating SJP. The pro-Israel community has had enough with SJP’s Jew-hatred.

Zionist college students cannot allow this organization to continue bullying the Jewish community under such socially unjust premises. What they stand for bastardizes those who truly fought for freedom and those who actually fight oppression. To continue defending a fascist entity while demonizing the only country in the Middle East where Arab citizens are free to express themselves however they please only highlights the true nature of SJP’s hypocrisy.

Pro-Israel students should refuse to be subjected to SJP’s bullying, which seeks to ensure our silence.

We will spread the truth about the group’s malicious purposes. We will tell the story of who is causing problems for Palestinian-Arab self-determination. We will no longer be controlled by fear. SJP’s days of harassing the Zionist community are numbered.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

become staggering. Rav Moshe’s ruling frees the overwhelming majority of those offspring from any stigma or taint.

It may well now behoove the Israeli religious establishment to welcome civil marriages: given the great dissatisfaction with the way the religious court system treats women in need of a religious divorce; the fewer women who require religious divorces, the fewer cases of women chained to impossible marital situations which the Israeli courts will have to adjudicate.

The Talmudic Tractate Kiddushin explains the Biblical word kiha by two different but complementary terms: kinyan and kidushin. Kinyan is usually translated as acquisition, but in this context it clearly means commitment. In the Book of Exodus, the Bible outlines the responsibility for guards, “When a man gives his friend money or vessels to guard” (Exodus 22:6)- and the Talmud stipulates that from the moment of his acceptance (taking) of the object, commitment and responsibility (kinyan) devolve upon the guardian even though he is clearly not the owner. (B.T. Bava Metzia, Chapter Hamafkid). Now this commitment or responsibility does not include any kind of ownership; indeed, if the guardian claims that the object in his trust was stolen, he will only be freed of culpability if he takes an oath that “he did not extend his hand to use the object in any way”. (Exodus 22:7). In this context, as well as in the context of betrothal-marriage, the kinyan (acquisition) is one of commitmentresponsibility and not ownership.

Even more to the point, the second interpretive term for kinyan in the context of betrothal-marriage is kidushin, which literally means sanctification. The Talmudic discussion links this to hekdesh, that which belongs to G-d (B.T. Kidushin 2a,b).

From a Rabbinic perspective, this means that one’s spouse belongs to G-d; it also means that G-d is a partner in every Jewish marriage.

Indeed, the laws of family purity express this truth when they mandate that physical contact between the couple can only be enjoyed when both marriage partners desire it and only during those times in the month when Divine Law gives permission for sexual relations. The

groom verbally declares his acceptance of the Divine Partnership in his betrothal formula: “Behold, you are consecrated to me in accordance with the laws of Moses and of Israel”; Talmudic law invokes this principle by insisting that “whoever consecrates his bride does so in accordance with the conditions established by the Torah Sages”.

(B.T. Gittin 33a) God as well as the religious-judicial establishment are partners in every religious marriage; it is precisely this partnership which clears the way for rabbinic judges to abrogate (annul) a marriage if a husband is acting as a scoundrel, a measure which was taken five times in the Talmud by Religious Courts.

Rav Moshe Feinstein argues that a halakhic divorce is necessary only when the marriage ritual expressed a union which had initially been accepted as a menage a’ trois - the husband, the wife, and the Almighty G-d or his faithful deputies.

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Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi – Efrat Israel

T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK’S PORTION: KI TISA (DEVARIM 21:10-25:19) 1. What two things can a person have and love one and hate the other? a.) Parents b.) Wives c.) Servants 2. How is a wayward son punished? a.) Exile b.) Sent to a yeshiva c.) Stoned 3. Which two nations can never enter the community of Hashem a.) Ammon b.) Moav

4. A 23:19 5. C

EFRAT, Israel - “When a man takes a woman and has relations with her...” (Deut. 24:1) As a very young Rabbi I had the privilege of visiting one of the most revered halakhic scholars; Rav Henkin, already near-blind but still possessed of a razor-sharp mind. I shall never forget the last words he said to me, gently but firmly: “I told Rav Moshe that after a civil marriage the woman still needs a get (religious divorce)” - he repeated this several times.

I left Rav Henkin profoundly inspired; it was amazing how this elderly sage, remained so preoccupied with a point in Jewish law. The issue he raised related to a dispute between himself and Rabbi Moshe Feinstein as to whether the parties to a common-law, civil or any other non-halakhic marriage, who wished to separate required a religious divorce (get). Rav Henkin maintained that they would since they had presumptively consummated their union; they were living together, and were publicly considered to be husband and wife. One of his proof- texts was our Torah reading of Ki Tetze, which defines marriage; “When a man shall take (Ki Yikah) a woman and have sexual relations with her...” (Deuteronomy 24:1).

Rav Moshe disagreed, claiming they would not require a get. His logic was that a get is a necessity only for a halakhic marriage; the very concept of marriage is unique to the halakhic context - and therefore the halakhic obligation of a get applies only within the unique rubric of an halakhic marriage.

Rav Moshe Feinstein’s ruling has been widely accepted - and this has greatly minimized the problem of mamzerut -or children considered to be the offspring of an adulterous relationship and who themselves are Biblically prohibited from marrying regular Jews. Before Rav Moshe’s path-breaking decision, a woman who received a civil but not a religious divorce and then re-married would still be considered “married” to her first husband - any children she might conceive with her second husband would be considered mamzerim. Given the high divorce and re-marriage rate of Jews throughout the world, and the relatively small amount of gittin (halakhically validated divorces) which are issued, the number of potential mamzerim would have

God as well as the religious-judicial establishment are partners in every religious marriage...

c.) Edom d.) Egypt 4.Which prohibition involves a dog? a.) One can purchase an animal with a dog to use as a sacrifice to Hashem b.) To leave the waste of a dog in the street c.) To eat before feeding one's pet 5. How does the Torah describe a bill of divorce? a.) Final settlement between man and wife b.) Annulment of a marriage c.) Breaking of the relationship between man and wife

2. C 21:21 He did specific sins which indicate he will commit more severe crimes later.

3. A,B 23:4 They attempted to make Jews sin.

by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin

SHABBAT SHALOM: PARSHAT KITETZE DEUTERONOMY 21:10-25:19

Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise

ANSWERS 1. B 21:15 The marriage is hated for halachic reasons. Talmud

Sedra of the Week

JEWISH LIFE • 17

18 • JEWZ IN THE NEWZ

JEWZ

IN THE

By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist At the Movies, On TV “The Last of Robin Hood” opens in very limited release during late August and early September. Early reviews indicate it is just charming enough to make a mental note, now, to rent it when it hits “rentable media”.

The film tells the story of the swashbuckling actor’s affair, in the last year of his life, with aspiring actress Beverly Aadland (Dakota Fanning). Kevin Kline, who is now 67, is aptly cast as Flynn, who died in 1959, age 50, of a heart attack. By 1959, Flynn was, as one commentator said, “a parody of himself with heavy alcohol use leaving him prematurely aged.” Flynn thought Aadland to be 18 when he met her, but quickly learned that she was about 16. The affair was encouraged by Aadland’s mother (Susan Sarandon) who thought it would aid Beverly’s career.

Director STANLEY KUBRICK (Max Casella) appears as a character in one scene. “Last” was cowritten and co-directed by RICHARD GLANTZER, 50.

By the way, the story that Flynn was a fascist and secret Nazi spy has been completely debunked.

The fifth and final season of HBO’s hit show, “Boardwalk Empire,” premieres on Sunday, Sept. 7. TV Guide recently caught up with SANDRA LANSKY LOMBARDO, 76, the daughter of gangster MEYER LANSKY, who is a big “Boardwalk” character. She is unhappy with the way her father is depicted and contends her father didn’t deal drugs and that, “personality-wise”, the character is unrecognizable to her. She said, “I got sick watching it. It was so much fiction. They should've done what they did with Nucky Johnson and changed his name.”

The Esquire cable channel, which can be seen nationally on Direct/Dish TV and on AT& T cable, has a new talk show called “My Friends Call Me Johnny”.

It’s hosted by Jean “Johnny” Pigozzi, an Italian rich guy. We are told he will travel the globe to ask celebs tough questions. The premiere episode aired on AT&T on Sept. 3 (9 PM), but you can catch a repeat on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 10PM (DVR it). The two guests are Hebrews with a bad boy reputation: fashion designer DOV CHARNEY, 45, and director BRETT RATNER, 45. The Sept. 10 show (9PM/12AM) features MICHAEL DOUGLAS, 69, and chef Mario Batali (whose wife is Jewish). Future interviewees include CALVIN KLEIN, 71, Rolling Stone publisher JANN WENNER, 68, and

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“SNL” creator LORNE MICHAELS, 69.

This heads-up is a little late— but not too late: Turner Classics Movie station or TCM, a “basic” cable station which can be found on all cable/satellite providers, is having a Jewish film festival of sorts every Tuesday in September. Called “Projected Image: The Jewish Experience in Film”---Jewish-themed films (19 in total) will air from 8PM Tuesday night until about 6:00AM the following morning.

The films are introduced by regular TCM host Robert Osborne and Dr. ERIC GOLDMAN, a film scholar who really knows this subject. The Sept. 9 films relate to the Holocaust, and include “The Juggler,” a rarely screened 1953 film set in Israel and starring KIRK DOUGLAS as a Holocaust survivor. The Sept. 16 films relate to Israel and all but one is an early Israeli cinema film. The Sept. 23 films address anti-Semitism and the Sept. 30 flicks relate to “coming of age” themes (like “The Chosen”).

Diane Sawyer, 68, who resigned last week as the anchor of the ABC evening news, has been married since 1988 to famous director MIKE NICHOLS, 82. The couple have no children; but Sawyer does have a step daughter-in-law still in the news biz—RACHEL ALEXANDER NICHOLS, 40, who wed Mike's son, MAX NICHOLS, also 40, in a Jewish ceremony in 2001. Rachel Nichols is a familiar name to ESPN viewers... she covered NFL and NBA games until 2012.

Now she has her own show on CNN (“Unguarded”, airs Friday at 10:30PM.) Last year, she also did NCAA basketball coverage for CBS. Celebs for Israel A couple of hundred Hollywood notables signed a petition that, while expressing their hope for peace, condemned the anti-Semitic ideology of Hamas and its rocket attacks. It is posted on the website “Creative Community for Peace.”

Signatories include Emmy winner SARAH SILVERMAN, 43, TOM ARNOLD, 55, MAYIM BIALIK, 38, JOSH CHARLES, 42, Minnie Driver, JAMI GERTZ, 48, Bill Maher, SETH ROGEN, 32, and Sylvester Stallone (his maternal grandfather was Jewish). Nice to note: Charles and his wife, SOPHIE FLACK, 31, who wed last year, are expecting their first child.

FROM THE PAGES 150 Y EARS A GO

75 Y EARS A GO

S. Bainebach, teacher of the German, French, Hebrew, and English languages, is prepared to give private lessons. He will devote special attention to the Hebrew. For particulars apply at the office of the Israelite, 32 Sixth Street, Cincinnati.

Messrs. Karlsruher & Adler, wholesale dealers in woolen and paper stock, and all kinds of metals, will remove on the first of October next, from their old stand, No. 344 Walnut Street, to No. 17 Sycamore Street, between Front and Columbia. Messrs. Karlsruher & Adler are enterprising gentlemen, fully deserving of the confidence reposed in them. – September 30, 1864

Louis Levenson, 58, of 1015 Redway Avenue, passed away Friday, Sept. 8th, after a short illness.

Born in Europe, Mr. Levenson had lived in Cincinnati 40 years.

He was former president of the Queen City Petroleum Products Co. He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Anna Stillpass Levenson; a son, Irven Levenson; three daughters, Mrs. Jack Itkoff, Mrs. B.H. Schaeffer and Mrs. Hyman Moskowitz and nine grandchildren.

Services were held Sunday from Weil Funeral Home.

Mr. and Mrs. A.B. Wise and sons, 823 Blair Avenue, wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

A fish dinner fro the benefit of the Jewish Hospital Kosher Kitchen was given by Young Israel on Sunday night at the Washington Avenue Synagogue.

A bridal shower was given Sunday, Sept. 10th, at Mrs. Redman’s Tea Room by Mrs. A.J. Strikman and Mrs. Sam Mendelson, in honor of the coming marriage of Miss Sarah Strauss, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Strauss, of Hamilton, O., to Mr. Bert Steinau, of Nashville, Tenn. – September 14, 1939

125 Y EARS A GO Congregation Bene Yeshurun held its annual general meeting last Sunday evening. Aside from the election of officers only routine business was transacted. The present officers were re-elected, viz: Louis J. Goldman, president; Fred Rauh, vice-president; Bernhard Bettmann, treasurer; Max B. May, secretary. The new members of the board are Jonas Frenkel and Charles Schohl.

The Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Miss Clara Baur, directress, has resumed its work. This excellent music school is the oldest in Cincinnati and has a staff of teachers that is the equal of any on the continent. Miss Baur has an international fame for voice culture, and Mr. Theodore Bohlmann, pianist, and Chevalier Pier Adolfo Tirindelli, violinist, are also well known. The school has an excellent reputation and is recommended by many of well known men of the city, Dr. Wise among them.

Dr. Grossmann preached to the inmates of the Home for the Jewish Aged and Infirm at their services for the second day of Rosh Hashanah. – September 14, 1889

100 Y EARS A GO The engagement of Ida, daughter of Mrs. E. Rothstein, to Mr. Aaron Simmons of this city has just been announced. Reception will be held on Sunday, September 6, at 2531 Park Avenue, Walnut Hills.

Joseph Lazarus returned to Cincinnati from New York last Monday, having been a passenger on the France. Mr. Lazarus was traveling with his wife and daughter on the continent, and was in Austria at the time of the murder of the Crown Prince and his wife. – August 27, 1914

50 Y EARS A GO Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Levy (Sue Charkins), 7973 Stillwell Rd., announce the birth of a son, Howard Samuel, on Thursday, Sept. 3rd.

The grandparents are Dr. and Mrs. A.J. Charkins and Mr. and Mrs. Albert Rindsberg and the late Mr. Henry Levy. The paternal great grandmother is Mrs. Ruben Galfond. The infant has a sister, Faye Hannah.

Miss Harriet Lois Gettleman, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Gettleman, 2629 St. Albans, and Mr. Jerome David Geller, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Geller, 6641 Meadowridge Lane, were married Sunday, Aug. 16, at Ohav Shalom Synagogue.

Rabbi Hyman Cohen officiated.

A reception followed.

Mrs. Geller graduated from UC Teachers College and will teach at Evanston Public School.

Mr. Geller graduated from Ohio State University and is in the life insurance profession.

After a wedding trip to Florida, Mr. and Mrs. Geller reside at 2503 Vera Avenue.

Mr. and Mrs. Ernst L. Kahn, 1559 Shenandoah Avenue, announce the forthcoming Bar Mitzvah of their son, Jeffrey Josef, Sept. 12th at 9 a.m., at New Hope Synagogue, 1625 Crest Hill Avenue.

All relatives and friends are cordially invited to worship with the family and attend a Kiddush luncheon following the morning services. No cards.

Jeff is the grandson of Mrs. Moritz Kahn and the late Mr. Mortiz Kahn and the late Mr. and Mrs. Josef Eichberg. – September 10, 1964

25 Y EARS A GO Mike and Shari (Statman) Poff announce the birth of a daughter, Olivia Belle, Aug. 15.

Grandparents are Patty and Norman Statman and the late Belle Poff.

Great-grandparents are Eunice Davis and Charles Statman.

William, Andrew and Marianne Green and Susan and Larry Bergman are pleased to announce the forthcoming Bat Mitzvah of their mother, Audrey Green, on Sept. 22, at the Isaac M. Wise Center. No cards.

Dan and Bonnie Juran Perrin announce the birth of a daughter, Toria Layn, Aug. 26.

Grandparents are Robert and Sue Juran of Cincinnati and Eugene and Jane Perrin of Huntington Woods, Mich.

Great-grandparents are Jerry and Josephine Juran and Claude Schutter.

Betty Marx, 81, died Sept. 7.

She was a retired employee of Jewish Hospital.

She is survived by two cousins and a brother-in-law, Bert Frank.

Miss Marx was the sister of the late Trudy Frank.

Services were held Sept. 10 at Weil Funeral Home, Rabbi Mark Goldman officiating. Remains were interred at Hillside Chapel. – September 14, 1989

10 Y EARS A GO A homemaker’s unit was dedicated recently at the Yesodot School for Special Education in Beersheba, Israel. This unit, named Birkat Leah, is in memory of Leah Karp Rabenstein, z”l, who was the school counselor from the time she and her family made aliyah to Israel.

Rabenstein was born and raised in Cincinnati, and taught at the Cincinnati Hebrew Day School and the New Hope Hebrew School.

She was the daughter of Phyllis T. Karp and the late Gilbert Karp of Cincinnati.

The homemaker’s unit is specially designed for the needs of the students of Yesodot School to help them learn how to use kitchen utensils. Included are major appliances such as a washing machine, dryer and stove, plus a mixer, microwave oven, ironing unit and other kitchen gadgets. – September 9, 2004

COMMUNITY DIRECTORY / CLASSIFIEDS • 19

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS ORGANIZATIONS Access (513) 373-0300 • jypaccess.org Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc.

(513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7258 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Chabad (513) 731-5111 • campchabad.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 •camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 754-3100 • cedarvillage.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Cincinnati Community Kollel (513) 631-1118 • kollel.shul.net Cincinnati Community Mikveh (513) 351-0609 •cincinnatimikveh.org Eruv Hotline (513) 351-3788 Fusion Family (513) 703-3343 • fusionnati.org Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (Miami) (513) 523-5190 • muhillel.org Hillel Jewish Student Center (UC) (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati 513-961-0178 • jcemcin.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 • jewishcincinnati.org Jewish Foundation (513) 214-1200 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 JVS Career Services (513) 936-WORK (9675) • www.jvscinti.org Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556 Shalom Family (513) 703-3343 • myshalomfamily.org

CEASE-FIRE from page 9 Even the United States, an Israel ally, issued harsh criticism following an Israeli airstrike that hit a United Nations school on Aug. 3, and tightened its controls on weapons shipments to Israel.

American assistance to Israel continued during the conflict, though, as the U.S. approved an added $225 million for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system.

On Tuesday, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. “strongly supports” the ceasefire.

“We view this as an opportunity, not a certainty,” Psaki said, according to reports. “Today’s agreement comes after many hours and days of negotiations and discussions. But certainly there’s a long road ahead.

And we’re aware of that and we’re going into this eyes wide open.”

Hamas saw many of its attempted attacks on Israel frustrated. Iron Dome intercepted nearly all of the rockets Hamas aimed at city centers, and the Israel Defense Forces stopped Hamas’ infiltrations into Israel close to the border.

The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Fund (513) 899-1836 • workum.org YPs at the JCC (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org CONGREGATIONS CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net B’nai Tikvah Chavurah (513) 284-5845 • rabbibruce.com Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Congregation Ohav Shalom (513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org Congregation Sha’arei Torah (513) 620-8080 • shaareitorahcincy.org Congregation Shevet Achim (513) 426-8613 • shevetachimohio.com Congregation Zichron Eliezer (513) 631-4900 • czecincinnati.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

Nevertheless, Hamas killed 64 Israeli soldiers in Israel’s ground invasion of Gaza -- the highest death toll for Israel since the Second Lebanon War in 2006 -- in addition to six civilians.

Despite being ineffective, Hamas rockets proved to have an increasingly long range — mortar fire reached nearly all of Israel for the first time. While residents of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem were able to largely carry on with life under the protection of Iron Dome, they found themselves running for shelter daily at the sound of warning sirens, an experience that had previously been largely confined to southern Israel.

And Hamas rocket fire last month on central Israel led a number of international airlines to cancel flights to and from Israel for two days, leaving Israelis feeling isolated. The U.S. Federal Aviation Authority instituted a 24-hour ban on flights to Israel, which some criticized as unwarranted. Hamas celebrated the cancellations in a statement Tuesday as an “air blockade.”

The conflict began on July 8 following a barrage of Hamas rock-

EDUCA EDUCATION Chai Tots Early Childhood Center (513) 234.0600 • chaitots.com Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com Cincinnati Hebrew Day School (513) 351-7777 • chds.shul.net HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Kehilla - School for Creative Jewish Education (513) 489-3399 • kehilla-cincy.com Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Kulanu (Reform Jewish High School) (513) 262-8849 • kulanucincy.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org Sarah’s Place (513) 531-3151 • sarahsplacecincy.com Yeshivas Lubavitch High School of Cincinnati (513) 631-2452 • ylcincinnati.com ORGANIZATIONS 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 BBYO (513) 722-7244 • mayersonjcc.org Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati.hadassah.org Jewish Discovery Center (513) 234-0777 • jdiscovery.com Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (937) 886-9566 • jwv.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org ORT America (216) 464-3022 • ortamerica.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com

ets on Israel. Tensions between the sides had risen after Hamas operatives in the West Bank kidnapped and murdered three Israeli teens on June 12. Israeli troops swept the West Bank in the ensuing weeks, arresting hundreds of Hamas members, according to Israel. The July 2 kidnapping and murder of a Palestinian teen, who was burned alive by a group of Israeli extremists in a likely revenge attack, further stoked the flames.

Israel began its campaign with airstrikes across Gaza, targeting Hamas weapons and infrastructure but also killing hundreds of civilians. But following Hamas attempts to infiltrate Israel by tunnel and sea, Israel launched a ground invasion of Gaza on July 17 that lasted two weeks.

The ground operation ended as Israel and Hamas agreed to the first in a string of temporary cease-fires.

During the calm, the sides engaged in Egyptian-mediated negotiations begun early in the conflict on a long-term truce. But the talks ended Aug. 19 without an agreement as Hamas resumed rocket fire.

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(513) 531-9600 ANATOMY from page 8 open the possibility of future hostilities.

In exchange for an end to hostilities, Hamas has continually put forward the same list of demands—an end to the naval blockade of Gaza, a reopening of the Rafah border crossing between southern Gaza and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, the opening of a Gaza seaport and airport, freedom of movement between Gaza and the West Bank, and an end to the targeting of Hamas officials.

Israel is unlikely to move on these demands without the assurance of both negative and positive leverage—military or economic pressure combined with “carrot and stick” diplomacy, said Natan Sachs, a fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Center for Middle East Policy.

“The cost of continuing [to fight] for both sides,” or at least one side, should be “too high,” Sachs told JNS. The lack of negative leverage is the biggest obstacle to sealing a long term cease-fire with Hamas, according to Sachs.

“Hamas has its back to the wall right now, severely,” he said, “not just because of Israel, but also because of ZOO from page 10 (rocket) alarms but by the strong explosion noises, all that in addition to the existential challenges without safe shelter or food,” Yael Arkin, the CEO of the association, told Yedioth Ahronoth earlier this month, as translated from Hebrew.

Aspokesperson for the Ramat Gan Safari near Tel Aviv told JNS in an email that although the suffering of the Israeli safari animals is not comparable to the suffering of the animals in Gaza due to the nature of this conflict, some animals like monkeys get very frightened by the alarms, and the lions run into their night houses. At the safari’s animal hospital, many animals also get agitated by the alarms.

One heartwarming incident was particularly notable. During the initial rocket alarms in central Israel, the safari’s elephants were seen gathering around the baby elephants in order to protect them. They even called over an elephant that was previously considered inferior by the pack to join them.

At the Negev Zoo in Beersheba, “animal injuries [from rockets] have not been documented thus far” even

intra-Arab politics. The opposition of Egypt and Saudi Arabia to Qatar’s support for Hamas results in Hamas having little to lose and therefore being more prone to fighting.”

Despite Israel dealing massive damage to Gaza’s infrastructure and the deaths of some 2,000 Gazans, as reported by the Palestinian Health Ministry, Israeli bombardment may not be enough of a negative incentive to end Hamas’s rocket barrage.

“Hamas doesn’t have enough of a negative incentive partly because it doesn’t care enough about what happens to the people of Gaza,” said Sachs.

Nevertheless, Ben-Ami believes that the current situation provides Israel with an opportunity to push for its primary goal—the demilitarization of Hamas.

“I think that Israel is right not to give in outside of the broader context, which is demilitarization,” he told JNS. “I think this is an opportunity for Israel also to get what it wants, not just Hamas. I think that it is in Israel’s interest that Gaza be opened to the world, that there is prosperity, wellbeing, stability. But they have to pay and paying means demilitarization.” though several grad rockets did fall in the area, many of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome. This “led to the falling of many shrapnel pieces all over the zoo, including on animal exhibits,” Ziv Reshef, the zoo’s director, told JNS in an email translated from Hebrew.

When the alarms sound and zoo workers must enter shelters, “we cannot do very much because we have one minute of notice in the best scenario and this is barely enough for us to seek shelter, so all we can do is pray that nothing falls on the zoo because the damage could be catastrophic,” he said.

Regarding the situation at the Gaza zoo, Israeli sources told CNN that there may have been several Hamas rocketlaunchers near the zoo. CNN’s journalists saw “several charred and mangled metal cases that looked like destroyed rocket batteries.”

Hamas has also reportedly mistreated some of its own animals. The IDF said in mid-July that terrorists in Gaza approached Israeli soldiers on a donkey wired with explosives, which then exploded.

20 • LEGALLY SPEAKING / FIRST PERSON

What happens when an owner doesn’t pay contractors?

Legally Speaking

by Marianna Bettman In July, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down an interesting contracts case decision. The case involves the question of what happens between a general contractor and a subcontractor when the owner doesn’t pay for a job.

A.E.M was the general contractor on the construction of a swimming pool at a Holiday Inn in Maumee, Ohio. A.E.M. entered into a subcontract with Transtar to perform electrical work on the project. Transtar fully performed the work under the contract, and was paid $142,620. A.E.M. did not pay Transtar the remaining balance of $44,088 because A.E.M. contended the owner failed to pay it for Transtar’s work. So, the question is what happens to that $44,088? This issue was covered in the contract between the parties, but they disagreed on what that contract meant.

There are two types of contract provisions between general and subcontractors. A pay-when-paid provision is one in which a general contractor makes an unconditional promise to pay the subcontractor, within a reasonable time, whether the owner pays the general contractor or not.

By contrast, a pay-if-paid provision is a conditional promise by the general contractor to pay the subcontractor only if the owner has paid the general contractor. Under a pay-ifpaid contract, the risk of the owner’s nonpayment is shifted to the subcontractor.

The issue in the case is which kind of contract provision was this one?

Section 4 of the subcontracting agreement in the contract between A.E. M. and Transtar included this provision, which was in bold and in capital letters: “RECEIPT OF PAYMENT BY CONTRACTOR FROM THE OWNER FOR WORK PERFORMED BY SUBCONTRACTOR IS A CONDITION PRECEDENT TO PAYMENT BY CONTRACTOR TO SUBCONTRACTOR FOR THAT WORK.” (condition precedent means something which has to happen first, before an obligation arises).

A.E.M. argued that the contract provision in this case was a pay-ifpaid provision. Section four clearly and unambiguously transferred the risk of nonpayment by the owner to

the subcontractor. Such provisions are common in the industry, and both parties to the contract were sophisticated business people, familiar with industry custom. If the subcontractor didn’t want to accept this boilerplate language, it should have crossed it out. But it is settled law that contracts making provisions contingent on certain events are valid and enforceable.

Transtar argued that a contingent payment clause is enforceable only if a subcontractor expressly accepts the risk of the owner’s nonpayment for a specific reason, based on a review of the entire contract. No subcontractor would sign a contract intending not to be paid. There was never any meeting of the minds about the allocation of the risk of owner nonpayment in this case. General contractors want these boilerplate provisions in contracts so they can just walk away if the owner doesn’t pay. This is totally unfair to subcontractors, who have no control over any of this. The subs cannot sue the owners, because they aren’t the ones who have the contract with the owners.

In a 5-2 decision written by Justice Sharon Kennedy, the Court found this to be a pay-if-paid provision that clearly and unequivocally shows the intent of the parties to transfer the risk of the owner’s nonpayment from the general contractor to the subcontractor. The language in the contract made it clear that payment by the owner is a condition precedent to payment by the subcontractor. Additionally, use of the term “condition precedent” clearly expresses the intent to transfer this risk, and no other language in the contract is needed to do so.

Additional redundant language-such as “in agreeing to this condition precedent, subcontractor assumes the risk of owner’s insolvency”- is unnecessary.

Justice Bill O’Neill, joined by Justice Paul Pfeifer in dissent, would find the language in this particular contract inadequate as a matter of law to transfer the risk of nonpayment by the owner from A.E.M. to Transtar.

He thinks the wording was ambiguous, and thinks a jury should sort out the intent of the parties in this matter.

Justice O’Neill also finds it fundamentally unfair that Transtar completed all of its work, but cannot sue the project owner for breach of contract because of the lack of privity of contract between them.

“Taken to its logical conclusion, the majority decision implies that the contractor can take its profit from the venture, pull up stakes, and wish the subcontractor well as the subcontractor embarks on the task of wrestling with the owner over money owed on a contract to which the owner is not a party,” he wrote.

As harsh as this all sounds, there are mechanics lien laws in place that can protect subcontractors, but apparently none was filed in this case.

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Seeking kin: Unraveling the mystery of a watery headstone

By Hillel Kuttler BALTIMORE (JTA) – Howard Schoenfeld and his teenage daughter Zahava set out for a stroll along a Long Island beach in New York on a recent Sunday morning.

Zahava likes to collect shells, so after parking at Oak Beach, a popular spot for vintage-car enthusiasts, they walked along the inlet.

Eyes cast downward, they stumbled upon an unlikely find – a gravestone. It read: Our beloved daughter Hannah Schnur Died Nov. 30, 1924 Age 27 Years Above the English appeared eight lines in Hebrew, each of the first letters spelling out the deceased’s first and middle Jewish names, Hinda Rachel. The middle of the stone had her name and her father’s, Simcha Asher.

Neither Schoenfeld nor his daughter knew what to make of the sight. Why would a gravestone be lying in the water, nowhere near a cemetery?

Turns out the Schnur gravestone wasn’t the only one. Schoenfeld said an “uncountable” number of flatlying gravestones combined to form the jetty they encountered that day.

All but two – the other didn’t seem to be for a Jewish person – faced down, he said.

“They couldn’t have washed up somehow,” Schoenfeld said. “They BIBI from page 9 After Hamas either rejected a series of cease-fire proposals or broke actual truces, Netanyahu sent ground troops into Gaza to destroy the Hamas tunnel network — something many Israelis saw as a critical threat to the country. Two days after the July 23 poll showed 82 percent support, Netanyahu rejected U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s cease-fire attempt, which did not include Israel’s core demand to disarm Hamas.

By Aug. 5, when Netanyahu registered the 63 percent rating, Israelis were becoming more skeptical.

Israel was withdrawing troops from Gaza and entering a three-day ceasefire with Hamas — even negotiating with it (albeit indirectly) in Cairo.

Yes, Israeli soldiers were back home and tunnels had been destroyed, but nothing was in place to stop Hamas from firing again.

Hard-line members of Netanyahu’s coalition continued to call for a much stronger Israeli attack on Hamas. The left, meanwhile, wanted Netanyahu to reengage with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in broader Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Netanyahu did neither.

“The diplomatic agreement

had to have been put there.”

But by who, and why? And who was Hannah Schnur?

Schoenfeld, a computer salesman from nearby Queens, used his smartphone to record the water splashing onto the graves. He posted the video on the Facebook page of Dan’s Deals, a Web-based bazaar popular in the modern Orthodox community, and asked for assistance.

It drew the attention of “Seeking Kin,” which asked Rabbi Avidan Milevsky of Baltimore to read and decipher the elegy’s blurry Hebrew words. Milevsky said they came not from Scripture but apparently from a distraught father whose daughter led a hard life. It read: Woe, treasured soul Our forefathers will cry bitterly Their crown has fallen Knowledge she learned [unintelligible] She chose the straight path She endured many pains She lived in pain and bitterness In anguish she left her forefathers A subsequent article in the New York Post newspaper didn’t mention the Schoenfelds or Schnur, but said the town of Babylon, where Oak Beach is located, had utilized gravestones to reconstruct a jetty damaged during Hurricane Gloria in 1985.

A town official said the granite stones were solicited from monument companies and cemeteries,

which donated those containing misspellings or other flaws and apparently were going unused. The jetty’s gravestones were supposed to be placed face down, the article said.

Schoenfeld, meanwhile, also posted an appeal on FailedMessiah.com, another Jewish website. One reader wrote that he learned of Babylon’s using more than 800 gravestones for several jetties.

Another FailedMessiah reader found in researching Hannah Schnur that she was buried in Brooklyn’s Washington Cemetery. The reader, who logged in as Mee-Samcha?, said he visited the cemetery the morning of July 22, several days before the Post story, and went to the gravesite, confirming through the death date and the Hebrew names of the daughter and father chiseled on the stone that it was the same Hannah Schnur. The only discrepancy appeared to be in one letter of her Hebrew name.

The present-day marker, the writer added, covers Hannah and her mother, Ester, who apparently died in 1962. Mee-Samcha? posited that “when Ester Schnur passed away, the existing (and in my opinion beautiful) stone was discarded and was replaced by a modern, simple joint stone.” Hannah’s sister Fannie, who died in 1967, is buried nearby.

Her grave, too, states in Hebrew that she is the daughter of Simcha Asher, Mee-Samcha wrote.

shouldn’t be with Hamas,” Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who heads the center-left Hatnua party, told Channel 2 on Aug. 8. “It should be against Hamas. We do want to get to an agreement, but not with those who shoot at us — [rather] with those who don’t use violence.”

And by Monday, when the 38 percent approval rating came out, weeks of negotiations with Hamas had yielded nothing. Meanwhile, rocket fire from Gaza had restarted and a 4-year-old boy from Israel’s embattled South had been killed.

Far from acquiescing to demands from right or left, Netanyahu held a news conference to tell them all to be quiet.

“There’s opposition from the left that we need a comprehensive agreement rather than having small wars, and there’s opposition from the right that says he should have made broader military moves to conquer Gaza,” Rahat said. “He’s in the middle.”

For Netanyahu, rivals pushing him in different directions is nothing new.

In the first year of his coalition government, his coalition partners to the right and left — Bennett and Livni, respectively — had taken the lead on many of the government’s major initiatives. Livni, for example,

led the first substantive talks with the Palestinian Authority since 2008, while Bennett pushed a series of parliamentary measures on religionstate reforms.

If the present calm holds, Netanyahu’s poll numbers may rise again. But politically, it’s a particularly bad time for him to be unpopular. His Likud party split with the nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu in the period leading up to the war, then lost another Knesset seat when a lawmaker who left to be ambassador to UNESCO, the cultural and scientific arm of the United Nations, was replaced by a Yisrael Beiteinu member.

Likud now has 19 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, tying it with the centrist Yesh Atid and making it the smallest ruling party in Israeli history.

But as long as Netanyahu stakes out centrist positions, said Bar-Ilan University political science professor Shmuel Sandler, he shouldn’t have to worry.

“In any democracy, you can’t come to lead without the center, so that’s the best place to be,” Sandler said. “The course he has taken was very centrist, not right and not left.

And from that perspective he’s the only candidate that can hold a coalition that can govern.”

AUTOS • 21

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

Range Rover Evoque combines high style with modern connectivity

2015 Range Rover Evoque.

The Land Rover Range Rover Evoque is a compact, stylish, and surprisingly adept SUV that shares its underpinnings with the Land Rover LR2. It receives the Range Rover badging, due to its luxurious interior and design.

The Evoque touches all the right surfaces, for those who don't lean toward the rugged-chic SUV aesthetic. It's also drawing in admirers who want the Land Rover cachet but don’t want a big vehicle or large fuel bills. Some crossovers start as SUVs to the eyes and become softer in the details and the drive, but the Evoque starts as a car and gets just a few rugged touches into its look.

The roofline itself could be mistaken for that of a sports coupe, and its backward slope and blacked-out A-pillar make it especially distinctive from afar, but it’s the tall, rugged stance, really, that make the Evoque what it is.

Powering the Evoque is a 240hp, 2.0-liter turbocharged fourcylinder engine that’s a bit coarse in character but works well with the six-speed automatic transmission and altogether feels quick.

With a version of Land Rover’s Terrain Response all-wheel-drive system, as well as an excellent magnetically controlled suspension on many models, the Evoque feels as much in its element on potholed city streets and curvy mountain roads as it does on a for-

est trail. Acceleration to 60 mph happens in just over seven seconds, with a top speed of 135 mph, and in its initial year the Evoque earned EPA ratings of 19 mpg city, 28 highway.

Interior appointments for the Evoque are on the mark in every respect—warm and inviting, with a soft padded dash, earthy (Prestige models) or colorful (Dynamic models) tones and contrasting trims, and in general it feels more luxury coupe than offroader.

As a true compact model (it’s only 172 inches long), the Evoque shines in the city, with precise electric power steering and excellent maneuverability and parking ease. Yet the interior is large enough for four adults—even in coupes, although getting in and out is a little more daunting in that case. All versions are equipped for those who are accustomed to seamless connectivity, too, with Bluetooth, USB, and a touchscreen-based system all standard, with a great Meridian audio system and optional hard-drive nav system.

In 2013, a new Pure model ditched the panoramic glass roof and some of the interior leather (replaced by synthetic suede) to shave $2,000 off the entry price to the range. A new Park Assist automated parking feature was also made available for 2013, and off-

road navigation is now included in the standard navigation package.

For the 2014 model year, a new nine-speed automatic trans-

mission was fitted to the Evoque, offering smoother shifts and closer ratios. The result is a slight but noticeable improvement to gas

mileage, from last year's 20 mpg city, 28 mpg highway, and 23 mpg combined to this year's ratings of 24 mpg combined (21 mpg city, 30 mpg highway). Also new for the 2014 model year was the Active Driveline system, with active differentials and torque vectoring, which is equipped standard in all models. The new system aims to reduce drag on the drivetrain by de-coupling the fourwheel-drive system automatically at speeds above 22 mph, then reenabling it within 300 milliseconds whenever it's needed.

For the 2015 Range Rover Evoque, the Autobiography trim has been applied to the standardoutput model, as well as the newly available 285-hp Dynamic version. Both feature enhanced body styling, 20-inch forged alloy wheels and premium leather interior details. The Dynamic also benefits from a chassis that’s been optimized for sharper handling, larger brakes and a more responsive transmission.

In addition to the new Autobiography trim, the 2015 Range Rover Evoque also debuts Land Rover’s new InControl apps system, which enables popular smartphone apps to be displayed and controlled from the vehicle’s touchscreen. The system is designed for the latest Apple and Android based smartphones and simply requires the driver to connect the phone to a dedicated USB port.

22 • OBITUARIES D EATH N OTICES STAMLER, Isabelle, age 82, died August 28, 2014; 3 Elul, 5774.

BARACH, Philip George, age 84, died August 31, 2014; 5 Elul, 5774.

O BITUARIES BARACH, Philip George Philip George Barach was born on April 29. 1930 in Boston, GOLDBERGS from page 6 For the adults, the bungalow colony was both an extension of and a break from their lives in the crowded Jewish enclaves of the Bronx. It was mostly the same people, but there was cleaner air, less privacy and less testosterone: The men, who worked Monday to Friday, came up only on weekends; the women and children stayed all summer.

“It was a total matriarchy,” Paula said.

It was the 1950s, before three major factors destroyed the Jewish Catskills: air conditioning, which made staying in the city more palatable; declining discrimination against Jews, which opened up previously unavailable summertime alternatives; and the rise of the working woman, which made moving away for the summer untenable.

The bungalow colony was not for the wealthy. Accommodations were simple. Water came from a well. When it went dry one summer, the families went days without showering and walked around with divining rods. The swimming pool – now cracked, overgrown and shrouded by trees – wasn’t built until sometime in the late ‘50s.

With the exception of Nat Goldberg, none of the men at the kochelein had gone to college, and they all worked blue-collar jobs.

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Massachusetts. He graduated from Boston Latin School, Boston University, and Harvard Business School. In 1955 he married Sheila Brown of Newton, MA and in 1962 moved to Cincinnati, Ohio after joining the US Shoe corporation.

In 1968 Mr. Barach was appointed CEO of US Shoe Corporation and served in that role until 1990. From 1990 to 1993 he continued to serve as the Chairman of the Board of US Shoe Corporation. Mr. Barach grew US Shoe Coporation from a

$68 million business to a $2.2 billion business with 25,000 employees.

His son Michael said that his father was “like a rabbi who ended up in business.” Mr. Barach cared deeply about his company’s employees and had his first heart attack at the age of 48 shortly after having to close his first factory.

His priorities outside of work were his family and philanthropy.

His son recalls that despite his busy schedule Mr. Barach managed to attend 250 of 260 of his childrens’ high school basketball

games. He served on the board of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Union Central, and Cincinnati Country Day School. He was also given an award by the State of Israel, in 1976, for his efforts and contributions to Israel Bonds.

Philip George Barach, age 84, passed away on August 31, 2014.

Phil is survived by his wife Sheila; three sons Michael, David and Daniel, and 13 grandchildren.

Private services on Thursday, September 4 at 11:00 AM at the Stanetsky Memorial Chapels, 1668 Beacon Street, Brookline,

MA. with interment at Mishkan Tefila Memorial Park, Centre Street, West Roxbury. Shiva will be held at his home in Bedford, from Thursday after 3pm, Friday from 12 to 3pm, and Sunday noon to 3pm. A Memorial Gathering will be held Friday at 5pm, at Hampton Place, 77 Florence Street, Chestnut Hill, MA. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be donated to the charity of your choice.

Jewish families with more money went to resorts like Kutsher’s, where meals, entertainment and a wide range of recreational facilities were included. At Kutsher’s, residents of bungalow colonies like the Fairhill kochelein were referred to derisively as “bungees.”

Entertainment at the kochelein was mostly homemade: Someone would play the piano or the adults would hold silly parties where everyone wore their clothes backward or husbands and wives swapped clothing or held mock weddings or soup-eating contests.

The men were constantly pranking each other. In the mornings, the first thing everyone would do was get in line for the bathroom, toothbrush and soap in hand. With as many as 40 people sharing just two bathrooms, dillydallying was severely frowned upon – not least by your stern, socially conscious mother.

“Everything happened in front of everybody else – all the babying, all the disciplining,” Judy recalled. “There was no private place to yell at anybody.”

One morning when she was 11, Judy had to conceal a hickey she said a boy had forced on her neck the night before.

“It was the summer, you couldn’t wear a scarf,” she said. “So I put on makeup before I came out from the top of my head down to my neck thinking

nobody would notice.”

To no avail. As soon as she walked into the dining room, a girl named Arlene spotted it and broke into peals of laughter. Judy was humiliated; her mother made her wear pancake makeup until the hickey subsided.

The food was kosher – to some degree. At home in the Bronx, Sylvia would let her kids have milk after meat, but at the bungalow colony she was stricter because Aunt Faye was sitting at the next table.

“We used to pretend to be kosher,” Judy said. “It was shameful if you weren’t kosher. But people were different degrees of kosher.”

Because the ladies didn’t drive, the mothers would list the groceries they needed in a spiral notebook hanging from a hook in the dining room, and the Polish Catholic family that owned the property – Alex and Mary Chicko – would go to town every day to buy the provisions, adding a penny or two to each item as a delivery fee.

The families all shared a single public telephone. If Milton should phone from the city to speak to his wife who was down by the lake, whoever answered would get on the P.A. system and make the announcement, summoning Norma to the receiver.

If the kids misbehaved, the parents would punish them by dragging them along to Kutsher’s shows instead of leaving them behind with their boyfriends and girlfriends.

For Paula, one kochelein relationship proved to have special staying power: with Mark Goldberg, a boy whose family had been coming to the Fairhill kochelein since the 1920s. She was 5 and he was 6 when they met, and they began “going together” in the summer of 1959.

That was when 13-year-old Mark asked Paula to a movie theater in town to see “Journey to the Center of the Earth,” and the two kissed during the film – with their eyes open, Paula says.

He was fresh; he was a bad boy,” Paula said with a mischievous smile.

The two broke up at the end of every summer and then got back together the following July. Some summers Mark’s family didn’t go up to the mountains, but Mark always came – even if it was in the care of someone else’s parents. That is, until the summer of ‘66, when Mark’s father collapsed at the kochelein of a heart attack and died. Mark was 19.

When Mark was 22 and Paula was 21, they married. The couple recently

celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary.

obstructed by illness, death or retirement to Florida.

By the 1990s, most of the kochelein’s rooms were empty.

But not the Goldbergs’; they were diehards. Even when Nat and Sylvia took a place in Florida for the winter, they would return to Monticello for the summers. Sylvia kept three separate bottles of moisturizer so she could travel lighter: at her bedside at the kochelein, in Florida and in Yonkers, where the couple moved when they left the Bronx. (Snooping around the abandoned property, I spotted Sylvia’s bottle of moisturizer.)

With the surrounding area growing shabbier every year, the Goldberg kids tried to convince their parents to stop going to the kochelein – or at least get a room for the summer at Kutsher’s, which by now they could afford. But Nat and Sylvia wouldn’t budge.

“To me it was depressing to go up in those later years,” Judy said. “My mother’s sister used to bring up all her money for the summer and hide it in her room. When she had a stroke in the middle of one summer, her son asked us to find the money and we couldn’t.

Eventually someone found it.”

The last few summers the Goldbergs spent at the bungalow colony, they were the only couple there.

“It was eerie,” Judy said. “You would go upstairs and all the other rooms were abandoned looking.” Nat and Sylvia would spend their days at Kutsher’s – Sylvia in pottery classes making tchotchkes that she’d take back to the kochelein and hang on the walls, Nat outside organizing shuffleboard games. At the end of the day they would go back to their big, empty house at the bungalow colony to eat and sleep. Though there were half a dozen refrigerators, they still confined themselves to the same half-fridge they always used.

“It felt like the ‘Twilight Zone’ to me,” Paula said. “Dad was 92. We were scared already. They were living alone in that big house and crossing over to the dining room for meals.

They were anachronisms.”

Finally, in the summer of 2002, after 50 years of summers at Fairhill, the Goldberg kids managed to convince their parents to forego the kochelein for the following summer, and they booked rooms at Kutsher’s for 10 weeks starting in June 2003.

The later years By the 1960s, things had begun changing at the kochelein. A pool had been built. Two more bathrooms were added to the main house. There had been three or four bungalows onsite at least since the early ‘50s, but in the ‘60s the owners decided to build several more, enlisting the summertime kids to help.

Most significantly, the owners cut a deal that traded the use of part of their land to Kutsher’s in exchange for nightly passes to the resort’s shows.

Kutsher’s eventually bought the bungalow colony outright.

“That changed our lives,” Paula recalled. “Our parents could get dressed up and go every night and see all the Borscht Belt comedians. They could go dancing on the stage. Our little bungalow colony had very special power based on the land.”

Judy says she enjoyed the shows, except for one thing: “The comedians would tell their joke, and then the punchline would be in Yiddish. I’d ask Mom what he said and she’d say, ‘I’ll tell you later.’ “ When she was old enough, Judy began working summers at Kutsher’s as a camp counselor. It was hard work, she says: 12-hour days, six days a week, for just $15 per week. At the kochelein, the traditions continued.

At summer’s end, when each family finished packing up the car to leave, the remaining families would assemble for a parting ceremony. They’d all bang pots and pans and sing a song to the tune of the “The Farmer in the Dell”: We hate to see you go We hate to see you go We hope to heck you never come back We hate to see you go The Goldbergs were usually the last to leave.

“We left a day later than everyone else because God forbid we should get stuck in traffic,” Paula recalled.

As they graduated high school and college, the number of kids at the bungalow colony dwindled. Some went up only for weekends, some not at all.

Even as the Catskills fell into decline in the ‘70s and ‘80s, the adults kept going to the Fairhill kochelein – relishing the space without kids, according to Paula. They stopped only when they couldn’t physically do it,

2014 Rosh Hashanah Cover

COLORING

CONTEST SIZE:

Art must be no larger than 8.5" Wide x 11" High.

MATERIALS:

Anything that shows up bold and bright, such as markers, crayons, paint or cut paper.

AGE CATEGORIES:

Open to children of all ages.

All entries must be received by FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 19TH THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE 18 WEST NINTH, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OH 45202 Entries must have a completed entry form attached to the back. Please print clearly.

2014 Rosh Hashanah Cover Coloring Contest Entry Form