Lemonade dreams

Marina Berkovich, JHSSWF President

I understand that turning sour lemons into deliciously satisfying lemonade is all about the quantity of sugar. Ex-Soviet Jews know too well how to make something out of nothing; how to turn last year’s snow into this year’s harvest. They’ve survived decades of supply deficits. The latter, perhaps, is an exaggeration. But it’s a perfect segue for what I am about to explain.

Because of COVID, JFGN took measures to cancel all February 2022 live events, so we moved our Never Again fundraiser to Jan. 29, 2023. We are joined by the Holocaust Museum & Cohen Education Center in this, and will have the same brunch at the Hilton, just later.

In addition to honoring Jack Nortman, as we planned all along, we will also celebrate Florida Jewish History Month and commemorate next year’s anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the International Holocaust Memorial Day, which will be two days prior to our event. We sincerely appreciate your understanding and hope to see you there.

Now, back to that sugar! In my recent interview with WGCU, I once again went over the very unpleasant reality of antisemitism in 20th-century Southwest Florida. Because there were so very few Jews here then, the stories of antisemitism are rare, and mostly have to do with the inability to obtain residence in one of the buildings marked “Club” or to join some other private clubs. But no story we captured has upset me as much as the one that Doris Reynolds, who had been a respected Naples Daily News writer and realtor, shared with us of her early days in Naples.

When she arrived in the 1960s, she hid the fact that she was a Jew — otherwise, she could not get employment or be able to sustain her child. It seemed like a minor sacrifice to this woman, who was born and raised in an orthodox setting in Brooklyn, but it turned into a lifetime of pretending to be someone else and had a very damaging effect on Reynolds. She undoubtedly had to hear many offensive words spoken against Jews by people who either were antisemitic or did not know any better — like the Jewish teen from the 1990 Agnieszka Holland’s film, “Europa, Europa,” who ends up in Hitler Youth and finds love with beautiful Leni, a fervent antisemite.

But the time and place for survival were very different, you might say. Yes, in post WWII, we have better means of receiving information. Does it follow that our current generation is better off, or are we forever doomed to walk the line between this and the next holocaust?

Was it much different in fourth century BCE, when Esther was forcibly taken to the king’s palace, refusing even to beautify herself for the selection contest? When Haman, a descendant of the notoriously antisemitic nation of Amalek, used any opportunity to humiliate Jews, who were already stripped of many of their former privileges?

“Why are you recording Jewish History?” asked Reynolds during her interview. “Everything should be hidden. It always turns against us.”

History is written by victors. Always remember that!

Join The Jewish Historical Society of SWFL

We need your help in our mission of historical preservation and education. We need volunteers. Please join us as members.

Family membership is $54; individual membership is $36; student membership is $18; and corporate sponsorship is $300.

Please join us online by entering the appropriate amount or mail checks to The Jewish Historical Society of Southwest Florida, 8805 Tamiami Trail North, Suite # 255, Naples FL 34108.

We can be reached at 833-547-7935 (833-JHS-SWFL), www.jhsswf.org or office@jhsswf.org. The Virtual Museum of SWFL Jewish History is located online at http://jewishhistorysouth westflorida.org/.

The Jewish Historical Society of Southwest Florida is a section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Contributions are deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.