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Federation Star
Celebrating Jewish Life in Collier County, Israel and the World
Federation Star
JEWISH FEDERATION
May 2022
Happening this month
Published by the Jewish Federation of Collier County serving Naples, Marco Island and the surrounding communities
Published by
2500 Vanderbilt Beach Road, Suite 2201 Naples, Florida 34109-0613 Phone: 239.263.4205 Fax: 239.263.3813 www.jewishnaples.org Email: info@jewishnaples.org Officers Board Chair: Jane Schiff Vice Chairs: Karen Deutsch (Chair Elect), Marc Saperstein, Beth Wolff Secretary: Rosalee Bogo Treasurer: Elliot Lerner Immediate Past Chair: Alvin Becker
Board of Directors
Frank Baum, Patti Boochever, Harvey Cohen, Marcia Cohodes, Amanda Dorio, Paula Filler, Cheryl Ginsburg, Larry Israelite, Tammy Katz, Merlin Lickhalter, Robin Mintz, Les Nizin, William Petasnick, Joel Pittelman, Stuart Price, Nat Ritter, Michael Rubenstein, Steve Strome, Jay Weiss, Jeff Zalasky, Board Member Emeritus: Phyllis Seaman
Past Board Chairs
Gerald Flagel, Dr. William Ettinger, Ann Jacobson (z”l), Sheldon Starman, Bobbie Katz, Rosalee Bogo, Judge Norman Krivosha (z”l)
Synagogue Representatives
Stan Alliker, Cantor Donna Azu, Rabbi Ariel Boxman, Steve Chizzik, Rabbi Ammos Chorny, Rabbi Mendel Gordon, Rabbi Mendy Greenberg, Rabbi Mark Gross, Rabbi Howard Herman, Rabbi Adam Miller, Charles Flum, Rabbi James Perman, Dr. Arthur Seigel, Len Teitelbaum, Rabbi Fishel Zaklos
Staff
Jeffrey Feld: Federation CEO/President Reneé Bialek: Program Director Alicia Feldman: PJ Library Coordinator Marcy Friedland: Capital Campaign & Planned Giving Director Janine Hudak: Admin. Coordinator Kirk Wisemayer: Annual Community Campaign Director Teresa Zimmerman: Finance & Operations Manager
Federation is the central Jewish community-building organization for Greater Naples, providing a social service network that helps Jewish people locally, in Israel and around the world. As the central fundraising organization for Jewish communal life in our area, strength is drawn from organized committees of dedicated volunteers. Programs include: • Annual Campaign & Endowment Fund • Celebrate Israel • Educational & Cultural Programs • Israel Advocacy Committee • Israel Scouts • Jewish Book Festival • Jewish Community Relations Council • Jewish Young Professionals • Jewish Russian Cultural Alliance • Men’s Cultural Alliance • PJ Library • Publication of the Federation Star, Connections and Community Directory • Women’s Cultural Alliance • Women’s Philanthropy • Youth Activities Committee – sponsoring youth education and scholarships for Jewish Summer Camp and Israel Experience
Reneé Bialek Program Director
“S
hould a Catholic become a Jew? Or a Jew become a Catholic? If so, when, and why? Decisions made under extreme pressure define a person’s character and set in motion consequences that create the heroes and heroines in “Ari’s Spoon,” a novel based on real people and events that took place during the World War II Warsaw ghetto uprising and its aftermath.” Everyone is invited to attend the Author Book Talk discussion of “Ari’s
Spoon” on Wednesday, May 18 at 1 p.m. (ET) via Zoom. Register for this free event, brought to you by Jewish Federation of Greater Naples and Men’s Cultural Alliance, at www.jewishnaples.org. I will be attending the virtual Book Council Conference at the end of this month with Gayle Dorio (Chair of JBF), Jan Goldman, Carol Hirsch and Emily Berkowitz, where we will vet over 200 authors. We will let you know in the coming months what the Greater Naples Jewish Book Festival schedule will look like. PJ Library and Jewish Families with Young Children are invited to the park for activities and fun on Sunday, May 15 at 3 p.m. Please make a reservation with Alicia at programs@ jewishnaples.org
If you have an idea for a program or want to be a guest speaker or facilitator, please contact me at rbialek@ jewishnaples.org. Please read our weekly Monday e-blast for any changes to these programs and, of course, to the additional programs being offered to the community. We have a variety of groups and committees at Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, such as PJ Library, Jewish Families with Young Children, Cardozo Legal Society, Catholic-Jewish Dialogue, Israel Advocacy Committee and Jewish Community Relations Council. Please join the group and/or committee that best fits your needs. A taste of each one can be found throughout our website, www.jewishnaples.org.
An oasis of hope in a desert of madness By Douglas P. Zipes, MD
T
he security metal detector screeches when Gabe Goerner carries his infant daughter into Saint Luke Catholic Church for her baptism. The cause is a mysterious silver spoon engraved with Ari Holmberg, 27-2-1943, Warsaw, concealed in the thick, double-layered hem of her silk baptism gown, a family heirloom. The shocking discovery spirals Gabe’s life through a series of unforgettable events that lead him from contemporary Indianapolis to the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II, from underground bunkers to operating rooms, and from the safety of home to
Douglas P. Zipes, MD
the Treblinka death camp. What he finds on his mission forever transforms him. “Ari’s Spoon” depicts unflinching parallels between antisemitism then and now, and heroic acts that defy explanation. Jewish children smuggled under, over and through the ghetto wall, hidden in caskets, ambulances and garbage trucks, are raised as Catholics on Warsaw’s Aryan side, where they are provided an oasis of hope in a desert of madness. Some parents decide it is better for their children to die in gas chambers as Jews than live as Catholics. Amazon’s five-star reviews have praised “Ari’s Spoon” as “Absolutely spellbinding historical n ov e l d e a l i n g w i t h
state of the federation...continued from page 3 each other. We all moved here from May and finished by the end of this calensomewhere else. We have all made wondar year. Supply chain issues, manpower and other delays are possible. So far, the derful new friends through the Federation, including our programing and our delays have been manageable, but no one knows what may or may not happen. wholly-owned subsidiaries, WCA and MCA. We are not like any other FederaThe building is going up, thanks to the entire community. Well over 500 donors tion. We are a very special Federation — a have donated nearly $13 million at this place to make our philanthropic goals a point. There are still wonderful naming reality, a place to make friends, a place to opportunities available. We are now sellgrow culturally and intellectually, and a place to feel part of a community. ing pavers, a wonderful way to remember a loved one, celebrate a simcha or just With COVID starting to recede, we let the world know you support this opened our doors fully March 1. We had new phase of Jewish community. Please partially reopened in December, but then the omicron variant made a brief visit and contact Marcy Friedland at mfriedland@ we closed in-person programming. So, it jewishnaples.org or call her at 239-2634205 to become part of this effort. has been a hybrid programming year. We all There is no way to properly acknowlhope and pray that we will continue to be fully open as we transition into our brandedge Marc Saperstein for his diligence, new Nina Iser Jewish Cultural Center. perseverance, guidance and many thousands of hours he has invested in the planning and execution of the Nina Iser Our new home Jewish Cultural Center. There have been Construction of the Nina Iser Jewish many hiccups as we have moved forward, Cultural Center is rapidly moving along. The plan calls for it to be under roof in and each time, his cool and thoughtful
both the Warsaw Ghetto uprising and contemporary antisemitism. Relevant, emotional and eye opening.” Everyone is invited to attend the Author Book Talk discussion of “Ari’s Spoon” on Wednesday, May 18 at 1 p.m. (ET) via Zoom. Register for this free event at www.jewishnaples.org. This program is brought to you by Jewish Federation of Greater Naples and Men’s Cultural Alliance. AUTHOR BOOK DISCUSSION
“ARI’S SPOON” BY DOUGLAS P. ZIPES, MD When: Wednesday, May 18 at 1 p.m. (ET) Where: Zoom
Register for this free program at www.jewishnaples.org.
approach has gotten us past the moment. As the building rises, there are decisions, large and small, that are made daily, and it is Marc who makes them. His team, and it’s a big team, has worked with him every step of the way. Merlin Lickhalter, his co-chair (or wing man, as Marc calls him), deserves special acknowledgment. Lickhalter is heading the Art Acquisition Committee. This group of artists and knowledgeable art lovers are deciding what art will be hung in the Nina Iser Jewish Cultural Center. It is a laborious task, but their knowledge is important to make sure the inside of the building will be filled with beauty. Thank you to all of you on the building committee. And thank you for reading this very long, very fact-filled article. Thank you for being a valued and valuable member of our community. Thank you for all you do for our community. Thank you for caring!
