January 8, 2016 by Jewish Press

Endowed by the Benjamin and Anna E. Wiesman Family Fund AN AGENCY OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF OMAHA January 8, 2016 27 Tevet 5776 Vol. 96 | No. 17

Return to Rivesaltes

This Week

by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor The Holocaust happened many years ago in places far from here, and to many modern American teenagers, that may make it into a story that doesn’t truly touch them. Survivors like Bea Karp understand the danger in turning real life terror into myth, and it is why she has tirelessly spoken to audiences everywhere about her experiences. In her book, My Broken Doll, which she cowrote with her daughter Debby Pappenheimer, who also painted the illustrations, she spoke about her father, who received a raw egg during extreme hunger in the concentration camp Gurs. Noticing it contained a spot of blood, he hurled it against the wall, rather than eating it. “I later came to understand what my father might have been trying to teach us. God gave humans a brain to choose between right and wrong. My Papa’s actions demonstrated that while he had no control over what the Nazis did to him physically, he still had a choice. The choice of not eating the egg was my father’s way of maintaining his Judaism and his humanity despite being treated as sub-human.” That choice between right and wrong, and the responsibility to make that choice, is at the center of Bea’s life. Like her father before her, Bea is first and foremost a teacher to the rest of us. In 1942, Bea, together with her mother Rosa and her sister Susie, was moved from Camp Gurs to Camp Rivesaltes. The camp was used as a transit center starting in August of 1942, before becoming the assembly camp for Jews deported from the Southern part of France. Rivesaltes illustrated the extent of political exclusion: internees included refugees from the Spanish Civil War, foreign Jews, and Gypsies who were deported from the Alsace. There was never just one camp at Rivesaltes, according to the Memorial’s brochure: “a Continued on page 2

Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group Page 5

Community open house at Friedel Jewish Academy Page 6

Alan Gross opens up about surviving Cuban prison Page 12

Eye on the Israeli Inside health care system Point of view Synagogues In memoriam

This Month The Women’s Issue See Front Page stories and more at: www.jewishomaha.org, click on Jewish Press

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by ELIAD ELIYAHU BEN SHUSHAN Community Shaliach Of the many reasons to be proud of Israel, its health care system is at the top of the list. After only 67 years of independence, the State of Israel receives worldwide recognition because of its achievements in the medical field. Israel is held in esteem for its medical innovations that benefit the entire world, for being one of the

most helpful nations in conducting humanitarian aid missions and, most recently, for providing medical care to Syrian refugees of the ongoing civil war. Israel is also recognized for treating family relatives of the Hamas leaders. As always, in Israel everything is controversial. While these highlights above can bring a lot of respect and positive recognition to the state of Israel, there are many opinions and many questions being asked. Many people ask how it is that a young state with everyday existential threats, with social and economic challenges, can contribute so much to the world and give medical help even to its worst enemies. In the upcoming session of Eye on Israel, we will talk about the medical health care in Israel. We will learn Continued on page 2

PJ Library fun

Mike Ginsberg and his daughters. by NANCY RIPS Saturday night I dined with the elite. I met a Russian beauty, chatted with an aspiring neonatologist, and

Credit: Mark Kirchhoff admired a young professor and his wife. The evening featured giveaways, a “Whiz Bang Science Show”, Continued on page 3

2 | The Jewish Press | January 8, 2016

Return to Rivesaltes Continued from page 1 as an adult validated those memories.” Spanish refugee camp, a camp for Vichy France’s undesirBea was also curious about whether other survivors would ables, a camp to assemble Jews before deportation, and a show up, and if she would recognize them: transit camp for Harkis after the Algerian War.” “There aren’t many of us left; after all, it has been 70 years Conditions in the camp were reflected by the desolate since I was there. All in all, about a dozen showed up. My landscape. daughter Jeany was “That area of with me, and we were Southern France is walking around when naturally that way,” Bea this woman looks at said. “They didn’t have me, and says: ‘You, I to create it -- it’s destiknow you, your name tute, dry land. The is Beate. You haven’t camp had separate changed.’ Sadly children’s barracks, enough, I didn’t recogand so we didn’t see the nize her.” adults much. They Bea and Jeany met at would take us on long the museum with the walks, and I would Prime Minister of walk until I had holes France, Manuel Walls. in my shoes. When she “There were other had the chance, my prominent people,” mother would stuff my The barracks at Rivesaltes are, at least partially, standing to this day. Bea remembers. “I shoes with rags, paper Many were in use until the 1960s. spoke at length with and grass. In the afternoon we played board games, and the director of the museum, a lovely lady by the name of there was this woman who would yodel and sometimes Agnes Sajalili. The president of the OSE came to the occabring us small triangles of cheese. We would fight over what sion from Paris and we talked briefly. Our two days spend at she brought. At night, we would be sent back to the barracks the museum will always be an emotional and never forgotand sometimes I would see my mother then.” ten experience for my daughter Jeany and me. The two days Rivesaltes, as Bea described it, was a horrid place, where we spend there felt more like a week. There was so much to disease was rampant and food scarce. It was also the last see and absorb!” place she saw her mother, when she left with OSE, (Oeuvre First Susie, then Bea eventually left Rivesaltes via the OSE: de Secours aux Enfants), a French Jewish humanitarian “Saying goodbye to my mother was the hardest thing I did organization that saved many refugee children during the up to that point in my life,” Bea wrote. “I climbed into the war, and her father, when he came to say goodbye before truck reluctantly, as my mother watched and finally the being moved to Camp Les Milles. truck drove away.” When earlier this year, the Camp Rivesaltes Memorial Bea and Jeany spent two days at the Museum. opened its doors, invitations were sent to survivors, includ“I am glad I went,” she said, “because it is important to ing Bea. She was contacted by the Holocaust Museum in support the Museum and what they have tried to create. I Washington D.C., about three weeks before the opening. Bea left a part of myself there, and I wanted to make sure I was had heard about the Memorial’s creation: still telling it right.” “Someone had been in touch with Liz Feldstern, Executive “Wars have not stopped in the 21st century,” the Rivesaltes Director of the Institute for Holocaust Education,” Bea said. Memorial’s brochure states. “They even come in new forms “I was surprised the invite came so late, and I had just gone with the emergence of international terrorism. Massacres through some surgery, but I decided to go anyway. I wanted and genocides have not ceased. There are still waves of disto see Rivesaltes again, because for all these years, I had been placed persons.” telling my story from a child’s point of view. It was important And so it remains essential that Bea keeps telling her story, to see that place again with adult eyes. I questioned my mem- and that we listen. So that, like Bea when she saw her father ories from time to time, which really bothered me; seeing it throw the egg, we are continuously reminded of our humanity.

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Eye on the Israeli health care system Continued from page 1 briefly about the Israeli health insurance law, the Israeli medical innovations, and about the health system during times of conflict, like the one we experience now in Israel during the current “knife intifada”. The special guest for this session will be Zoë Riekes, President of the American Friends of Galilee Medical Center. The mission of the group is to promote and support the hospital by broadening its capability to provide the highest quality of Zoë Riekes medical care and services to over 600,000 people -- Jews, Christians, Muslims and Druze -- living along Israel’s northern border. Zoë will share her knowledge and experience about the medical center with all of its uniqueness. This uniqueness starts with the location and the mixed population and continues with many other areas of one of the most recognized medical centers in the Middle East. “The work done in the hospital is quite simply remarkable,” commented Zoë. “I look forward to the opportunity to talk about this extraordinary center and its impact both in the Western Galilee and far beyond.” Her involvement with the medical center started through her involvement with Partnership2GETHER. She is the immediate past cochair of the Partnership Central Area Consorium of which Omaha is a part, a role she served for many years. As always, the session will start with a short Israel update, in which we will compare different media resources from Israel and the world related to the latest news in Israel. The session will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 12 at noon in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. Eye on Israel is sponsored by the Henry and Dorothy Riekes Donor-Advised Fund of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation and is administered by the Center for Jewish Life, whose mission is to maximize involvement of Omaha’s Jewish community in imaginative, compelling and meaningful Jewish experiences.

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PJ Library fun Continued from page 1 and museum activities. The dress code was casual but chic. I spotted jeans, Uggs, cozy sweaters. Scattered in the hall were tutus and a few kippahs. Where was I Saturday evening? Oslo, Sweden you ask? New York City? Perhaps The Kennedy Center Honors? Au contraire. I attended the grand finale event of Omaha’s Jewish Book Month titled “An Evening of PJ Library Fun”. It took place at the Omaha Children’s Museum and was masterminded by Mary Sue Grossman and Mark Kirchhoff. This fun evening, along with yearlong PJ Library events in Omaha, was made possible with support from the Morton Richards Youth Fund, the Murray and Sharee Newman Supporting Foundation, the Special Donor Advised Fund, and the Esther K. Newman/Carolyn Kully Newman Memorial Fund, all funds of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation. Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was no PJ Library. To hear its founder, the unassuming Harold Grinspoon tell it, “One day in 2005, I’m in the car listening to public radio. I hear that gal by the name of Dolly Parton is giving away free books to disadvantaged families. I immediately called Parton’s Imagination Library and arranged to sponsor her program in the Springfield, MA, area where I live.” That same spring, Mr. Grinspoon attended a seder at his son’s home. During the evening he watched his daughter-inlaw pass out picture books to each child attending. He was mesmerized because he didn’t know such children’s books even existed. Grinspoon was surprised by the quality of the stories and the illustrations. He realized his grandchildren cherished these books as much as they did classics from their childhood like Goodnight Moon. He gave his daughterin-law $500 and asked her to purchase a crate of her favorite books for him to explore. He devoured them. His next step was to send an assistant to consult with Jewish educators, Ms. Parton’s Imagination Library, and packing companies. He then asked them to submit a report whether and how a Jewish version of Parton’s project might work. Fast forward to December 2015: • There are now 200 active communities participating in PJ Library (Omaha being one). • 175,000 children are enrolled as subscribers at no cost.

• It is available to families across North America raising Jewish children between the ages of 6 months and 8 years. • Boys and girls come from varied backgrounds. Many attend a synagogue and celebrate Jewish holidays while some have little or no formal Jewish training. Other children may be unfamiliar with Jewish practice all together. • To register, all that’s needed is a call to visit pj library.org. Since it began, over 5,000,000 free books have been mailed to delighted families. They’ve ranged from A is for Abraham to Z is for Zum Gali Gali with the likes of Sadie’s Almost Marvelous Menorah and Tikkun Olam Ted in between. The PJ Library book selection committee is hard at work year-round, devoted to making book choices that represent the Credit: Mark Kirchhoff broad spectrum of today’s Jewish families. They work with authors, editors, agents, and publishers to ensure the finest Jewish books for children find their way in the mailboxes of all PJ Library families. Many PJ Library selections have won prestigious awards, including the Caldecott Medal which recognizes the most distinguished illustrations in juvenile books, and the Sydney Taylor Book Award presented annually by The Association of Jewish Libraries. This prize showcases books that “authentically portray the Jewish experience”. And coming soon to a PJ Library near you, is the “PJ Our Way” program for kids ages 9-12. It will be kid driven with pre-teens choosing their own books. They will create an experience based on their own interests and higher reading levels. A festive Saturday night featuring kids, books, giveaways, food, and activities. It’s my idea of a pretty glamorous night on the town. More Jewish kids reading more Jewish books. All it took was one quiet but determined generous donor to make Judaism fun while enriching bedtime reading for children of all ages. Nothing could be better in my book. Omaha’s PJ Library program is presented through the Center for Jewish Life, an agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha and sponsored by the Dorothy and Myer S. Kripke Institute for Family Literacy. For more information, please call 402.334.6463. Nancy Rips is the author of Seder Stories, High Holiday Stories, Hanukkah Stories, My First Berkshire ABC, and the forthcoming Noah and the Eight Trucks of Hanukkah.

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Get an Afterlife with Rabbi Zohn by RABBI YAAKOV WEISS Schedule of the weekend talks Beth Israel Synagogue • Friday, Jan. 8, approximately 7 The community is invited to join p.m. - Bridge to Eternity: Get a Life and an Beth Israel Synagogue this weekend Afterlife for multiple opportunities for mean• Saturday, Jan. 9, approximately ingful learning about Jewish burial 10 a.m. - The Power of Chessed customs and beliefs. Presentations (Kindness): The Greatest Investment will be given by the founder and • Saturday, Jan. 9, 7 p.m. - Not Yet president of the National Association Gone but Already Forgotten of Chevra Kadisha (NACK), Rabbi • Sunday, Jan. 10, 10 a.m. - Death in Elchonon Zohn. Throughout this Jewish Life Cycle – Our Laws and Customs Scholar-in-Residence weekend, through a Tahara Procedures and Review Rabbi Zohn will give presentations office 402.556.6288 on different topics related to end-of-life questions. All sessions are open to the public. Members of the omaha.org.

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Does a healthy lifestyle begin just in the kitchen? by MARINA SADOFSKY Ripped (Kathy); Totalbarre (Claire); A healthy lifestyle and preventMat Pilates (Amy); Go Time ing excess weight gain or main(Stephanie); Hatha Yoga (Larisa); taining weight loss does not Master Fitness (Mary Lou). always begin in the kitchen. Exercises in these classes are genFitness is the mainstay of a erally grouped into three types healthy lifestyle. Physical exercise depending on the overall effect they is the performance of some activhave on the human body. Flexibility ity in order to shape our body exercises, such as stretching, and develop or maintain physical improve the range of motion of fitness and overall health. muscles and joints. Aerobic exercisMy husband, Mike Sadofsky, es, such as walking and running, is a great inspiration and motifocus on increasing cardiovascular vation for me in understanding endurance. Anaerobic exercises, that exercise training leads to such as weight training, functional more active and healthier years, training or sprinting, increase and will establish reference valshort-term muscle strength. Marina Sadofsky with Jen Freeman, Assistant ues for several important measI am bonded by my love for this Health and Fitness Director and Group Exercise ures, such as fitness level, daily program and our instructors who Coordinator. physical activity, muscle encourage, inspire, provide strength, pulmonary function, cognitive function, “mental accountability and motivate each and every one of us. The health,” quality of life and balance. strength we gain in class translates to everyday living where Searching to find a program that works and I can stick life’s challenges can be faced head on. with was one thing I had struggled with up until two years It is never too late for maintaining physical fitness, ago when I joined some activity classes at the Jewish including healthy weight; building and maintaining healthy Community Center. As members of the JCC, we are lucky: bones, muscles and joints; promoting physiological wellwe have wonderful trainers and instructors who are united being; reducing surgical risks; and strengthening the by their belief that exercise is an important aspect of living immune system. the best life we can. I admit, staying dedicated to a workout program isn’t easy, I would like to mention the Free Group Exercise classes but it is becoming a healthy habit. Dear JCC trainers and offered by the JCC that I attend almost every day: Morning instructors: thank you for your support. It really means a lot Mix and Totalbarre (Kim L.); Ripped, Sunday Stretch and to many of us. Being a part of a devoted group that strives Pound (Jen); PyYo, Master Fitness and Interval Stretch (Ellen); for quality of life makes staying committed to fitness not Strength on Step/Cardio Combo (Kim M.); Tai Chi (Nikole); only possible, but a blast.

Grants awarded by Goldstein Supporting Foundation by LINDA POLLARD Endowment Assistant/Staff Writer Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation The Jewish Federation of Omaha (JFO) Foundation announced that the Shirley and Leonard Goldstein Supporting Foundation Board of Directors awarded 24 grants during their December 2015 semi-annual meeting. Since the Goldstein Supporting Foundation’s inception in 2003, the board has allocated over one million dollars to charitable causes throughout the country, particularly to Jewish institutions and causes in metropolitan Omaha. According to Howard Epstein, the JFO Foundation’s Executive Director, “The Goldstein Supporting Foundation Board carefully considered applications from many worthwhile organizations. They awarded grants to the programs that they believed were likely to make the most impact and were well-aligned with the Goldstein Supporting Foundation’s mission.” The Goldstein Supporting Foundation considers requests for funds that support local projects and programs of the JFO and its agencies, synagogues and Jewish service organizations. They also consider applications from local and national Jewish and secular charities in the areas of medicine and medical research (with an emphasis on kidneyrelated diseases), education and current events of Jewish content, and human rights. The following organizations and programs were awarded grants at the December meeting: • Anti-Defamation League/Community Relations • Committee – Prejudice Elimination Workshop • Curriculum Updating • Anti-Defamation League – Facilitator Training • Beth El Synagogue – Youth Weekend Shabbaton 2016 • Beth El Synagogue – Youth Scholarship Concert • B’nai Israel Synagogue – Connecting the Future with • the Past • Center for Jewish Life – Community Shaliach Program • Center for Jewish Life – CornerStones Fund • Chabad of Nebraska – Chesed Program • Chabad of Nebraska – Camp Gan Israel • Creighton University – Jewish Studies Research Fund • Friedel Jewish Academy – Fine Arts Program • Halachic Organ Donor Society – Educational Material • Institute for Holocaust Education – A Week of • Understanding • Institute for Holocaust Education – Art and the • Holocaust • Jewish Family Service – Financial Assistance • Jewish Federation of Omaha – Dennis Ross Event • Jewish Federation of Omaha – Team Building-JFO • Management Program • Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation – LIFE & • LEGACY Program-Year 3 • Jewish Press – Annual Conference

• Jewish Senior Outreach – Older Adult Program • Nebraska Jewish Historical Society – Oral History/ • Education Program • Omaha North High Magnet School – Learning • Through Experiences Holocaust Trip • PKD Foundation – PKD National Convention • Young Jewish Omaha – Jewish Conversations Program “A supporting foundation is a separate legal entity with its own board of directors, which is created by a donor or family,” explained Epstein. “The Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation manages and invests the funds, administers operations and makes disbursements as directed by the supporting foundation board. This offers the board a level of independence to determine where to allocate donations to non-profit organizations it wishes to support. We truly appreciate the generosity of the Goldstein Supporting Foundation.” To learn more about establishing a supporting foundation with the JFO Foundation, contact Howard Epstein at 402.334.6466 or hepstein@jewishomaha.org.

Marriage STEP-PASSER Drs. Sonia Step and Joel Passer were married on Sept. 6, 2015 at 4 p.m. at Temple Emanuel in Newton, MA. The ceremony was officiated by Rabbi Mike Uram, Executive Director, Hillel at the University of Pennsylvania. The bride is the daughter of Drs. Julia Rashba-Step and Eugene Step of Newton, MA, and the granddaughter of Dr. Emmanuel and Erna Rashba of Brookline, MA, and Mrs. Credit: Angelina Rose Ludmila and the late Nathan Photography Step of Los Angeles. The bride graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry in 2009 and a PhD in Biochemistry in 2014. She is a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group. The groom is the son of Dr. Jeffrey and Sandra Passer of Omaha and the grandson of the late Stanley and Edith Passer, Omaha and the late Richard and Dorlene Graham, New Market, Iowa. The groom graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Biology in 2009 and from the University of Nebraska College of Medicine, Omaha with a Medical Degree in 2013. He is currently a third year Neurosurgery Resident at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. The couple resides in Philadelphia.

January 8, 2016 | The Jewish Press | 5

She Matters: Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group by MARK KIRCHHOFF Administrative Assistant, The Center for Jewish Life She Matters: A Life in Friendships is the January selection of the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group which meets on Thursday, Jan. 21 from 1-2 p.m. in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. Susanna Sonnenberg’s work has received high praise from newspapers and critics across the country, including being a New York Times editors’ choice, and about which critic Susan Chira wrote, “She Matters lingers with you, inviting you to construct a patchwork quilt of your own life and salute the many women who helped you along the way.” In this 2013 work, Sonnenberg examines the varying relationships women establish over the course of a lifetime in a deeply insightful and highly-nuanced manner. She illuminates her friendships that have come and gone; have influenced, nourished or inspired; have haunted her and sometimes

pulled her apart. Out of such examination and reflection come lessons that beg to be fully understood. NPR’s Meg Wolitzer of All Things Considered writes, “Sonnenberg, who’s aware of her passions and ambivalences and doesn’t hide from them, made me think about what friendship is, anyway... She’s written something that interests, exhausts, moves, perplexes, impresses, and yes, matters.” In an interview for Simon and Shuster in which she discusses She Matters, Sonnenberg shares that “I came from a family full of women where the women were slightly dangerous. We reviewed everything, we revealed everything, but all of those things were used against us.” She draws upon this sometimes tumultuous past as part of her examination of her friendships with women. Sonnenberg is the daughter of Ben Sonnenberg, an American publisher and founder of the literary magazine Grand Street. She was born in London and raised in New York. She currently lives in Montana with her family. Her prior work, Her Last

Stephen Center Christmas dinner

Temple Israel volunteers served dinner at the Stephen Center on Christmas evening. This is an annual tradition for members of Temple Israel.

Death, reached #11 on the New York Times Best Seller List. The Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group meets on the third Thursday of each month from 1-2 p.m. in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. New members are always welcome to join in the discussion. Contact

Library Specialist Shirly Banner, at sbanner @jewishomaha.org or 402.334.6462 with questions. The discussion group is supported by the Center for Jewish Life whose mission is to maximize the involvement of Omaha’s Jewish community in imaginative, compelling and meaningful Jewish experiences.

January at Temple Israel by SCOTT LITTKY Program Director, Temple Israel Winter has its grip on Omaha and for many, cabin fever is upon them. At Temple Israel, we have a full month of programming to help us get through the heart of winter. This week we will share events that will take place during the first two weeks of the month. On Friday evening, Jan. 8, we will have our annual monthly Shabbat Dinner. The evening begins at 5:30 p.m. with the lighting of Shabbat Candles and Kiddush. Shabbat services follow at 6 p.m. and will include participation from our First Friday Shabbat Band. After services is dinner. The menu for this month is beef and noodles, green salad, roasted vegetables and apple pie. Please call the Temple office today at 402.556.6536 to RSVP. Next, on Sunday, Jan. 10, our religious school Sunday classes resume after winter break. For Adult Learners, we will offer an Introduction to Hebrew Class with Eliad Eliyahu, our community Shaliach. If you’re interested in learning a little Hebrew or brushing up on your basic Hebrew, then this class is for you! The class will meet Sundays from 11 a.m.-noon January through March. For more information or to sign up for the class, please contact Program Director Scott Littky at 402.556.6536. Our monthly Book Club will also meet Sunday, Jan. 10 at 11 a.m. This month’s book is Hill of Secrets by Michal Harstein. If you are interested in joining our monthly book club, please contact Scott Littky. The club is open to all and is always looking for new members. Finally, on Sunday, Jan. 10 will be our Toddler and Parent Program at 10:30 a.m.

in the Social Hall. This Sunday morning the program is geared for children ages two-three. Dani Howell, a Temple member and educator, will facilitate activities, games and songs for toddlers with their parents. This program is a wonderful opportunity to meet other families with young children and connect with our Temple Israel community. For more information, please contact Interim Religious School Director Sharon ComisarLangdon, 402.556.6536. During January, our Wednesday evening Adult Education class from 6:30-8:30 p.m. and Thursday morning class from 1011:30 a.m. will be All the News That is Fit for the Jews with Scott Littky. The class will examine the question, “Is it good for the Jews?” Each week the class will look at controversial news events and articles and analyze how they relate to us as Jews. New this month for families will be Family Game Night, Havdalah and Potluck Dinner on Saturday, Jan. 16, 5-8 p.m. Our program will begin with Rabbi Josh Brown leading us in Havdalah; followed by dinner. We will provide mac and cheese, hot dogs and grilled chicken salad for adults for dinner. We are asking that those attending bring a dessert to share. After dinner, we will play bingo. To RSVP, please call Temple Israel, 402.556.6536. As you can see, the first two weeks of January are full of programing for all ages. Next week we will share the rest of our programs and classes for the second half of January. If you would like more information on any of our events at Temple Israel, please contact us at 402.556.6536. All our programs are open to the public, and we always love welcoming new people into our Temple Israel family.

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6 | The Jewish Press | January 8, 2016

Voices of Beth El: Sophie and Jimmy Friedlander Community open house at Friedel Jewish Academy

by SHERRIE SAAG to a Birthright trip to Israel, became connected to the comfor Beth El Synagogue munity and religion.â&#x20AC;? This week the Voices of Beth El Speaker Series shares the Jimmy describes his formative years at Beth El; â&#x20AC;&#x153;I grew up story of Jimmy Friedlander and his bride Sophie Ambrose. at Beth El synagogue. My family has been active for as long They married at Beth El as I can remember. My father broke ground on on Sept. 1, 2013. Together, the new synagogue and served as President. My they have made a home, a sister (Andee Scioli) and I became Bat and Bar family and are sharing Mitzvah at Beth El. My sister was also married at their lives and community Beth El. Beth El is a part of our lives and our at Beth El Synagogue. identity as Jews.â&#x20AC;? Jimmy grew up in the â&#x20AC;&#x153;I joined years before meeting Jimmy, actually. Omaha Jewish community, I like that conservative Judaism allows me to keep the son of Bruce and Pam strong ties to the rituals and traditions my grandFriedlander. He attended parents followed decades ago, while also recogcollege at the University of nizing that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve moved forward and allowances Pennsylvania and then are made for necessary changes and adaptations worked for a few years in to meet the needs of our current community,â&#x20AC;? New York City before Sophie added. attending medical school. They enjoy taking their 15-month old son Will, After a residency at to Tot Shabbat, a new favorite family activity. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mercy in Kansas enjoy taking our son to Tot Shabbat, where he can City and a fellowship in interact with other young Jewish children, crawl allergy and immunology at Jimmy Friedlander and Sophie Ambrose around with his plush Torah, and clap along to Boston Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hospital, he moved back to Omaha. Shabbat tunes,â&#x20AC;? Jimmy said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sophie also enjoys taking him Jimmy joined Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology to Babies and Bagels and getting to spend time with other Associates and his practice covers children and adults with adults while he plays.â&#x20AC;? environmental allergies, food allergies, asthma, and those Their enjoyment and commitment to Jewish Omaha with immunodeficiency disorders. extends beyond Beth Elâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s doors. Those who may not have Sophie had quite a different path. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Growing up in known before, are now aware that Jimmy can carry a tune Arkansas, my parents were hippies who were part of the and then some! He just finished participating in the Jewish â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;back to the landâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; movement. We were raised in the Ozark Federation of Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Campaign Cabaret, singing a duet Mountains in a community of likeminded people who were with his sister that deeply moved those in attendance. Sophie also living off the land,â&#x20AC;? Sophie said. has participated in Federationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Young Jewish Omaha group At the age of 11, Sophie moved to subsequently larger in the past and is well known for hosting Shabbat dinners towns and then, a few years later, moved away to attend a that bring young adults in the community together. public boarding school, college, graduate school in Kansas, Sophieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most recent volunteer effort is serving as Beth Elâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and on to Los Angeles for her dissertation work and clinical representative for the Federationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new effort, the Kids practicum. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I moved to Omaha for a postdoctoral fellowship Campaign. at Boys Town National Research Hospital. I intended to To say that Beth El will always hold special meaning for leave after three years, but met Jimmy just before taking a this couple is an understatement. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had our wedding at position elsewhere.â&#x20AC;? Beth El -- one of our most special memories -- and Willâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s She now has her own research lab at Boys Town, studying Bris -- a slightly more traumatic memory for Sophie, but still communication development of infants with hearing loss. a very special memory,â&#x20AC;? Jimmy said. While Jimmy grew up at Beth El, Sophie was raised withThey intend to remain in Omaha as they love being near out a connection to Judaism; despite her mother having family. They both agreed, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Beth El is a wonderful, diverse been raised in a Conservative Jewish synagogue in community, including a vibrant group of young families. We Louisiana. She said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;In graduate school, through my own are so fortunate to be part of such a wonderful institution exploration, I learned about Judaism and, in large part due with such dynamic leadership.â&#x20AC;?

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by SARA KOHEN for Friedel Jewish Academy Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated that â&#x20AC;&#x153;[i]ntelligence plus character -- that is the goal of true education.â&#x20AC;? Students at Friedel Jewish Academy develop both their intelligence and their character, and now the community has a chance to find out how it happens. On Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, Friedel Jewish Academy will be hosting an open house for the entire community. In addition to being Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only Jewish day school, Friedel boasts a 12:1 studentâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;teacher ratio, an individualized approach to teaching each student, second-language immersion, a warm communal atmosphere, and access to all of the JCCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s facilities. Families from all of Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s synagogues, as well as unaffiliated families, have found a home at Friedel. This is a great opportunity to come and see what everyone has been talking about. Scheduled tours will begin at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m., followed by light refreshments. Attendees at the 10 a.m. tour will get to see our students and teachers in action, but the 7 p.m. tour is a great alternative for those who canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get away in the middle of the day. Private tours can also be scheduled by calling the office. This event is open to all adults in the community, not just parents. If you have questions or wish to reserve a spot, please call 402.334.0517 or email friedelacademy@fjaomaha.com.

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January 8, 2016 | The Jewish Press | 7

As the granddaughter of Holocaust Survivors, I can’t stay silent about this

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Bill Cutler III

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Credit: Shutterstock by WENDY WISNER (Kveller via JTA) -- When I was growing up, my father’s parents lived half a world away in Israel. I only met them a handful of times. Back then there was no Internet, so we sent letters and made the occasional phone call. Once, when I was 12 or so, my dad sent his parents a couple of recent photos of me. A few weeks later, he received a phone call from his mother to tell him that I looked just like one of her sisters. It was a big deal to her -- not just because she didn’t see me that often, or that she was moved by the family resemblance -- it left a profound mark on her because her sister had died when she was the age I was then, and it shocked her to see her sister’s face so accurately represented in mine. My grandmother’s entire family was killed by the Nazis in the Holocaust. The same was true of my grandfather’s family -- he lost his parents and siblings, and also his first wife and daughter. Both of my grandparents fled the Nazis, hiding out in locations across Europe, and ultimately rebuilding their lives in Israel. I remember looking in the mirror at my father’s house, examining my facial features, as teenage girls do. But now I wasn’t just looking at myself. I was looking at the face of a girl whose youth was frozen in time, cut off suddenly in the most inhumane way imaginable. The idea sent chills down my spine. As an almost-teenager, it wasn’t something I could consider for very long. I liked how seeing my picture made my grandmother happy. I liked that she said I was beautiful like her sister. But I didn’t like having to consider what happened to her sister, to her family -- to my family. The burden was too heavy to bear. My grandparents lived long lives and passed away many years ago. Only now, in the past few years, have I been trying to piece together how the traumas of their lives have shaped me, my father, and our family. The answer is deeply, and in ways that I don’t feel I’ve even scratched the surface. My grandparents were kind, loving people, but they were significantly scarred, and in many ways their scars have been passed on. Still, most of the time, I can go through my life not really thinking of this part of my family history. I am married. I have two sons. I have rent to pay, lunches to make, tears to wipe, messes to clean. I have been lucky in this life. In many ways, I live a life of privilege. And although I care deeply about those less fortunate than myself, it isn’t every day that I feel personally impacted by it all. But with the current news and world events -- with so much hate spewing from the mouths of politicians and my fellow citizens -- I have been thinking more and more

of my grandparents, the Holocaust, the lives lost and the lives of those impacted forever. When politicians talk about blocking Syrian refugees from entering the United States, I think about my grandparents making their way through Eastern Europe, hiding and taking refuge, relying on the kindness of strangers who saw them as human first and foremost, not as Jews or any race unworthy of food, shelter, and safety. When Donald Trump said recently that he would ban Muslims from entering our country, and supported the establishment of a database to track all Muslims in the United States, I couldn’t help but think of Eastern Europe in the Nazi era -- the yellow stars Jews were made to wear in public so they could be identified (and eventually rounded up) and the ID numbers tattooed on their arms in the camps. In my corner of America, I basically blend in. I have white skin, I dress like other average Americans. Maybe I “look Jewish” -whatever that means -- but I never feel that my race or ethnicity makes me a target for mistreatment. Yet my face will always be the face of my grandmother’s sister. I will always be her. And I will never forget. And so, when you single out an entire race, religion or ethnic group, and say they are not welcome in your country -- when you say you will be monitoring an entire race of people who are trying to live normal, peaceful lives -- you are talking about me. I am the face of a minority. I am the face of someone who was isolated, victimized and killed for nothing other than fear, racism, bigotry and cruelty. I hope enough Americans are feeling as upset, offended and terrified as I am. I hope love will be able to light a fire and burn the hate that is building in our country. As my other Jewish grandmother would say: “Enough already!” We owe it to our children to make a world based on kindness rather than hate. We owe to the world’s children to protect them. We owe it to ourselves to be on the right side of history. And we owe it to history never to repeat it. Wendy Wisner is a mom, writer, and lactation consultant (IBCLC). She is the author of two books of poems, and her essays have appeared in Brain, Child Magazine, Huffington Post, The Washington Post, Scary Mommy, Role Reboot, and elsewhere. She writes at wendywisner.com; you can follow her on Facebook and Twitter at @wendywisner. This piece was originally published on Kveller, a 70 Faces Media property. Kveller is a thriving community of women and parents who convene online to share, celebrate and commiserate their experiences of raising kids through a Jewish lens. Visit Kveller.com.

...when you single out an entire race, religion or ethnic group, and say they are not welcome in your country -- when you say you will be monitoring an entire race of people who are trying to live normal, peaceful lives -- you are talking about me.

8 | The Jewish Press | January 8, 2016

Point of view

American Jewish Press Association Award Winner

Nebraska Press National Newspaper Association Association Award winner 2008

Local reading by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Jewish Press Editor I recently read Claire Flatowicz’ book, Seeing the World through Rose-colored Trifocals. After only a few pages, I already noticed a massive problem. As Claire speaks about getting older, being retired, having grandchildren... well, she’s obviously not talking to me. I am only 44 years old, so I cannot relate. I refuse. I still have a child in elementary school, for goodness sakes. And I’m certainly not in need of putting a dry erase board next to the shower to write down all my brilliant ideas before I forget them. Never mind that I keep a pen in my car so I can write things on the back of my hand when I’m at a red light. Never mind that I can no longer function without reading glasses, or have to ask my 14-year-old for help when my smart phone acts up. Or when Netflix doesn’t work. Or, well, anything technological, really. “It seems that everything needs to be written down for me,” Claire writes. “Here are a few questions I get asked regularly by my husband: Did you get my prescription at Walgreens? Did you get me milk/fruit/bread at the store? Did you deposit my check at the bank? “Did you write it down? is always my comeback.” So what if that sounds just like me? Yes, I write everything down. And yes, send me to the store without my list and I will come back with 20 things we don’t need, forgetting the three things we do, but that happens to everybody. Doesn’t it? Then, she writes: “It’s wonderful being at the age that the only one I really have to please is myself!” I definitely can’t relate to that. I have kids, and kids need things. They need packed lunches and rides and doctor’s appointments and help with science projects. They need to be reminded that they own a toothbrush, and that dirty

plates don’t walk themselves from the table to the dishwasher. They grow out of their clothes at a dizzying speed and can never remember where they left their homework or wintercoat or swim bag. But I keep reading, because I can’t seem to put that book down, and I slowly start to realize: this is not about being older, it’s about getting there. Age is not a number; it’s a

process. And whether I like it or not, I am on that treadmill just like Claire, just like all of us. Once I reach the end of the book, I have learned that there is great value in listening to someone who is approximately two decades ahead of me.

Rather than fight it, I can tell myself: I’ll get there someday, and that’s okay. Not everything Claire writes has to do with aging. In the below column, which was previously published in the Omaha World Herald around Thanksgiving, she addresses the 2014 shootings in Overland Park: “I was in Overland Park almost two weeks ago and attended the Interfaith Service of Unity and Hope at the JCC. Over 1,300 people of all religious denominations attended. Clergy from different faiths along with Eric Holder, US Attorney General, spoke. “The service focused on the power of love and unity to combat hatred and evil. (...) I remembered my father telling me how he was taken away on Kristallnacht, and taken to the Dachau concentration camp. I thought of my father-inlaw who was in four different concentration camps, including Auschwitz and Bergen Belsen. (...) I am typically apolitical. I generally don’t care much about the politics around the world. But when it comes to human rights, I do care.” Perhaps the best way to summarize Claire’s book is to call it a conversation. A conversation that is familiar, that covers a number of topics that are all important to us at different phases in our lives, and a conversation that the reader is welcome to join any time. Of course, a book written by someone familiar always reads a little differently and seems more accessible. We know the places as well as the people she mentions, and that leaves less to the imagination. The author isn’t talking at us, she is talking with us. It’s why it totally works when she writes about flabby arms in one chapter, and about Auschwitz in another. She can go from her shoe-addiction to funerals, from getting pulled over on her way to a grandchild’s birth to her own children’s medical challenges. That’s how conversations are supposed to work, we sit down with a cup of coffee and cover the heavy stuff that happens in our lives, as well as the hilarious.

Artificial wound of Palestinian refugees has festered too long by DANNY DANON nities that had lived in peace with their neighbors for generNEW YORK (JTA) -- Every time Palestinian leaders sit ations. Facing murderous anti-Jewish riots and government down at the negotiating table, or give a public speech, they confiscation of wealth, nearly 1 million Jews were forced to never fail to raise the plight of the 700,000 Arab-Palestinians flee the places their families had called home for generadisplaced when they refused to accept Israel’s existence in 1948. tions, leaving behind everything they had. For too long, the State of Israel and the global Jewish community have done too little to memorialize and honor the other side of that story -- the 850,000 Jewish refugees from Arab countries. For many Jews, these are personal stories, family accounts told around the Shabbat table. It is now our duty to ensure that the world finally recognizes the stories of these forgotten refugees. For over 2,000 years, places like Algiers and Aleppo, Tunis and Cairo, Aden and Tripoli and so many others across the Arab world were vibrant centers of Jewish life. The Jews in these communities did not always have much in the way of material possessions, but they were rich in culture and in the spiritual heritage of our people. Palestinian refugees line up for food at a camp in Amman, Jordan, in 1955. They gave us the greatest of Jewish leaders, Credit: Three Lions/Getty Images magnificent synagogues, great works of scholarship -- treasures of our tradition that we still carry with us Yet these hundreds of thousands of families did not end today. These Jews contributed immensely to the broader up in refugee camps isolated from the rest of society. They society, in the fields of Arab art and literature, in medicine, do not have a special U.N. agency lobbying on their behalf. in government and in commerce. And the reason is simple: Unlike the Arab countries that It is important to note that despite all this, when Israel was refused to absorb the Palestinian refugees, the State of Israel established in 1948, the Arab governments not only fought opened its doors to fellow Jews. There was, and always is, the new state, they also turned against their Jewish commu- more that could have been done to smooth the absorption of

(Founded in 1920) Eric Dunning President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Thierry Ndjike Accounting

Jewish Press Board Eric Dunning, President; Andy Ruback, Past-President; Andrew Boehm, Scott Farkas, Sandy Friedman, Paul Gerber, Alex Grossman, David Kotok, Debbie Kricsfeld, Abby Kutler, Pam Monsky, Paul Rabinovitz, Nancy Wolf and Barry Zoob. The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to build and sustain a strong and vibrant Omaha Jewish Community and to support Jews in Israel and around the world. Agencies of the Federation are: Community Relations Committee, Jewish Community Center, Center for Jewish LIfe, Jewish Social Services, and the Jewish Press. Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page sto-

ries and announcements, can be found online at: www jewishoma ha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’ Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole. The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment. Editorial The Jewish Press is an agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Deadline for copy, ads and photos

is: Thursday, 9 a.m., eight days prior to publication. E-mail editorial material and photos to: avandekamp @jewishomaha.org; send ads (in .TIF or .PDF format) to: rbusse@jew ishomaha.org. Letters to the Editor Guidelines The Jewish Press welcomes Letters to the Editor. They may be sent via regular mail to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154; via fax: 1.402.334.5422 or via e-mail to the Editor at: avandekamp@jew ishomaha.org. Letters should be no longer than 250 words and must be single-spaced typed, not hand-written. Published letters should be confined to opinions and comments on articles or events.

these new Israelis, but the fact is that today they are integrated into all levels of Israeli society. Today, these Jews who came from many places go by many names -- Jews of the Arab lands, Sephardic Jews, Mizrahi Jews -- but no one ever refers to them as refugees. As they shouldn’t. Their most important name today is the name they share with the Jews around the world: Am Yisrael, the nation of Israel. We are one people, and this presents us with the obligation to remember where we come from: from Warsaw and from Damascus, from Berlin and from Baghdad. Together, as one people, we have an obligation to ensure that the stories of the Jews from the Arab countries are not forgotten. We must strive to keep the memory of these communities alive, and most importantly, to give them the recognition they deserve. But we must do more than just remember. We must ensure that others see the light, and hear these stories, so that the plight of the forgotten refugees will become known across the world. As Israel’s ambassador, I pledge to represent the right and just path of the State of Israel in the parliament of nations. Israel is a stronger country today because of the unique contribution that each Jewish community made to the world’s greatest start-up at its founding. We have proven to the world that when nations act responsibility, there is absolutely no reason for a refugee crisis to last for more than a few years. Now is the time for the community of nations to enact fair and practical solutions for the rest of the world’s refugees and put an end to the artificial wound of Palestinian refugees that has festered for way too long. Ambassador Danny Danon is Israel’s permanent representative to the United Nations. News items should not be submitted and printed as a “Letter to the Editor.” The Editor may edit letters for content and space restrictions. Letters may be published without giving an opposing view. Information shall be verified before printing. All letters must be signed by the writer, but the name can be withheld at the writer’s request. The Jewish Press will not publish letters that appear to be part of an organized campaign, nor letters copied from the Internet. No letters should be published from candidates running for office, but others may write on their behalf. Letters of thanks should be confined to commending an institution for a program, project or event, rather than personally thanking paid staff, unless the writer chooses to turn the “Letter to the

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January 8, 2016 | The Jewish Press | 9

Proposed Israeli NGO law is hypocritical attack on left by NAOMI PAISS is a freebie to its readers, funded by American billionaire WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Yet again the Israeli Knesset is Sheldon Adelson and faithfully parroting the Likud line. considering legislation to single out and punish progressive Israel permits its politicians to receive foreign funding for nongovernmental organizations, particularly the human rights groups that are such a thorn in the side of those who favor the continued occupation of the West Bank. Carefully constructed to evade the inevitable legal challenges it would face if passed, the legislation approved by a Knesset committee this week would require representatives of organizations receiving foreign government funding to identify themselves as such in every public venue, including the Knesset, the media, and in all printed and online materials. Failure to do so would trigger huge fines. That every human rights An activist protesting a proposed NGO law outside the Tel Aviv residence of Israeli Justice organization in Israel is Credit: Tomer Neuberg/Flash 90 Minister Ayelet Shaked, Dec. 26, 2015. already required to make its funding sources public is apparently irrelevant. Justice their party primaries, and nearly all the money donated to Minister Ayelet Shaked and her Likud and Jewish Home allies Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign in the last designed this nakedly political maneuver to further delegit- election came from overseas, according to government imize progressive organizations, especially those opposing records. And many of the neoconservative and ultranationalthe occupation and its inevitable human rights abuses. ist think tanks and political NGOs in both Israel and the The legislation, purportedly for transparency, comes as United States share donors, staff and volunteer leadership. new reports are surfacing about the millions of foreign dollars flowing to the settlements, the NGOs that defend them and allied institutions on Israel’s ultranationalist right. The new reports make a mockery of the right’s stated objective of transparency, not to mention its self-righteous disdain for foreign funding. In a series of investigative reports for Haaretz, Uri Blau by BEN SALES has shown how American donors gave the settlements more Reform leaders recently sent an open letter to Prime than $220 million over the past five years -- donations that Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that would have been next went through tax-exempt American nonprofit organizato unthinkable just last year. tions. Despite the longstanding American government view Along with decrying a “worrying escalation of incitethat settlements are impediments to peace, at least 50 ment,” the leaders praised a man they only recently conorganizations from across the United States are involved in demned: Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. raising funds for settlements and settlement activities, “The president’s personal commitment to the values of according to Haaretz. democracy and Judaism are a source of strength for Blau found that American donations fund everything Israel,” the letter said. “We look forward to your strong from air conditioning for settlers to payments to the families defense of the role of NGOs and Israeli presidency generof convicted Jewish terrorists. Among the recipients of taxally and a condemnation of incitement against President exempt American donations is Honenu, a right-wing legal Rivlin specifically.” aid group that has provided stipends to Yigal Amir, Prime That Reform leaders oppose incitement against the presMinister Yitzhak Rabin’s assassin. The yeshiva whose rabbis ident is no surprise. That they lavish him with warm words wrote the The King’s Torah, a book purporting to demonis a major shift. strate when it is legitimate to kill non-Jews, also benefits Ahead of Rivlin’s election last year, Reform leaders voiced from tax-deductible contributions from the United States. indignation over Rivlin’s past statements denigrating Yet the proposed legislation would exclude these organiReform Judaism. In 1989, Rivlin described an American zations and their funders. Only money from “foreign politiReform service as “idol worship and not Judaism.” In the cal entities” are targeted, a formulation designed to ensnare past, he had declined to refer to Reform rabbis as rabbis Israel’s human rights community, which receives significant and derided non-Orthodox approaches to Judaism. funding from European governments motivated by shared “He’s a traditional Jew who isn’t sympathetic to Reform,” values and an interest in protecting the millions of former president of the Union for Reform Judaism Eric Palestinians living under military rule. Yoffie told JTA last June. “That hasn’t changed. But I do Longtime observers of the growing power of the Israeli expect candidates for president to act in an appropriate and right and its links to a network of mostly foreign millionaires respectful manner to all elements of the Jewish world.” are not surprised by this. After all, Israel’s leading newspaper

We at the U.S.-based New Israel Fund, ourselves a partnership of Israelis and Jews worldwide with program and grant recipients in Israel, take no issue with overseas dollars funding Israeli organizations and institutions. But the manipulation of Israel’s political process to single out organizations of the left for obloquy is both wrong and dangerous. Selectively deciding that foreign funding for human rights must be shamed and labeled, while millions of dollars flow unimpeded to neutral and right-wing institutions, is not just a matter of stigma. It tells Israelis that those who criticize the occupation on the grounds of human rights need not, or must not, be heeded. The current governing coalition, the most hard line in Israel’s history, has made it clear that it will do everything possible to stifle dissent. At a time when Israel’s relationships with its most important partners, the United States and the European Union, are already shaky, the signals sent by the government’s arrogant defiance of supposedly shared democratic values also further damages Israel’s international standing. Let’s be clear. B’Tselem, Yesh Din, Rabbis for Human Rights and other beleaguered protectors of human and civil rights will do their jobs even if they have to wear neon deely boppers to visit the Knesset. No amount of harassment will shut down these organizations, short of the sorts of measures used by police states like Russia and China. But the treatment of organizations with unpopular missions and activities is the canary in the coal mine of democracy. We who defend Israel as a liberal democracy must make clear to our counterparts in Jerusalem that we see through the hypocrisy and double-dealing, and take a stand for an honest, free and democratic Israel. Naomi Paiss is the vice president for public affairs at the New Israel Fund.

How Israel’s president learned to love Reform Judaism, and vice versa

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So what changed? According to Gilad Kariv, CEO of the Israeli Reform movement, Rivlin has spent the past yearplus as president reaching out to non-Orthodox Jews and speaking out against discrimination. Rivlin met with Rabbi Rick Jacobs, Yoffie’s successor, in Israel last year and followed-up with a phone call, addressing the Reform leader as “rabbi.” He lit the menorah with St. Louis Reform Rabbi Susan Talvie at this year’s White House Hanukkah party. He met with Reform and Conservative leaders on his trip to the U.S. this month. In July, he held a study session with Reform and Conservative rabbis. “We must not forget for a moment that fierce debates are the sincere and genuine expression of a concern for us all - Orthodox, Reform, Conservative and secular -- for the present day, and for the future of the Jewish people,” Rivlin said at the study session. The gestures have convinced Kariv that Rivlin is as sincere in his desire to reach out to Reform Jews as he is in his quest to reconcile Jewish and Arab-Israelis. Moreover, Reform leaders appreciate that their anti-racism fight now has the vocal backing of Israel’s head of state. “Since he became president, he adopted a very respectful and embracing approach to us,” Kariv told JTA. “We very much support his stance against extremism from all sides. We are very impressed that, since he entered the role, he’s taken on the mission to connect the different communities. We see him playing a very positive role in Israel.”

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Synagogues B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE 618 Mynster Street | Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 |712.322.4705 email: BnaiIsraelCouncilBluffs@gmail.com Join us for our Monthly Shabbat Speakers Series on Jan. 8, at 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker, Ted Zetzman of Noddle Development. He will describe the company’s plan to develop the old Playland Park land into an exciting and new mixed-use project. Oneg to follow service. Please join us! Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel! Larry Blass will officiate the Speaker Series Service. For information on our historic synagogue, or to arrange a visit, please contact any of our board members: Mark Eveloff, Rick Katelman, Carole Lainof, Marty Ricks, Sissy Silber, Nancy Wolf and Phil Wolf. Tribute cards for any occasion are available. Contact Sissy at 311 Oak Ridge Ct., Bellevue, NE 68005 or 402.292.8062.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California | Omaha, NE 68154-1980 | 402.492.8550 www.bethel-omaha.org Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman. FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbat Services/Have a Cup of Coffee with

B’nai Mitzvah Daniel Oscar Denenberg, son of Tippi and Steve Denenberg, will become a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 16, at Beth El Synagogue. Danny is a seventh-grade HonorRoll student at Brownell Talbot. He is the 2015 winner of the Modern Woodmen of America State and National Speech Contests. He received the Theater Arts Guild (TAG) award for Best Youth Actor of 2014-15. His interests include piano, theater, vocal music, math, science, exercise, nature, and Family Guy. He has two sisters, Sasha and Sima, and two brothers, Michael and Solomon. Grandparents are Carolyn and Bernard Magid, and Eunice and Norman Denenberg. Leo Truman Ray, son of Shayna and Matthew Ray, will become a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 16, at Temple Israel. Leo is a seventh-grade Honor Roll student at Lewis and Clark Middle School. He is a Duke University Talent Identification Program participant and student of the month. His interests include cross country and track, reading about psychology and neurology, and robotics. He also volunteers to help Columbian Elementary’s Robotics team. For his mitzvah project, Leo volunteers at CASA-Douglas County. CASAs are Court Appointed Special Advocates for children who are abused and neglected and in the foster care system. He has a sister, Chloe, and a brother, Bennett. Grandparents are Jennine and Marvin Goldberg of Omaha, Carol and Harlan Rimmerman of Kansas City, KS, Linda Ray of Omaha, and Janell and Mike Ray of Reno, NV. Great-grandmother is Reva Oruch of Omaha. Orion Michael Shnayder, son of Dr. Michael and Andreea Shnayder, will become a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, Jan. 16, at Beth Israel Synagogue. Orion is an eighth-grade Superior Honor Roll student at Kiewit Middle School. His interests include reading, playing the cello, base guitar and with his band with School of Rock. For his mitzvah project, Orion is making various donations to 15 charities both local, domestic and internally to help improve and aide various non profit organization both Jewish and secular. He has two sisters, Kayla and Natalie, and a brother, Aidan. Grandparents are Sofya and Igor Shnayder, and Violeta and Gigi Jordache. Great-grandparents are Sarah and Nukhim Shnayder, and Olga and Mikhail Ticos.

God, 9:30 a.m.; Shabbat’s Cool (Grades 3-7), 10 a.m. followed by lunch; Junior Congregation, 10 a.m.; MiniMinyannaires, 10:45 a.m.; Kiddush Lunch is sponsored by Rabbi Steven and Shira Abraham in honor of their wedding anniversary and Shira’s birthday; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 4:45 p.m. WEEKDAY SERVICES: Sundays, 9 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.; weekdays, 7 a.m. & 5:30 p.m. SUNDAY: BESTT Classes, 9:45 a.m.; Torah Study, 10 a.m.; Torah Tots, 10:30 a.m.; Adult B’nai Mitzvah Class, 11 a.m.; Sunday Speaker Series, 11 a.m., with Oliver Pollak on Navigating Family History on Four Continents: Taste, Memory and Documentation; BESTT Kibbutz Chaverim, 12:15 p.m. Lunch followed by bowling at Maplewood Lanes. TUESDAY: Who Wrote the Bible? Lunch and Learn, noon with Rabbi Abraham. WEDNESDAY: BESTT Classes, 4:15 p.m.; Hebrew High, 6:45 p.m. THURSDAY: Shanghai, 1 p.m. USY Winter Shabbaton in Minneapolis,MN, Friday, Jan. 15-Sunday, Jan. 17. No BESTT Classes, Sunday, Jan. 17. Men’s Club Jews ‘n Brews, Sunday, Jan. 17, 6 p.m. All classes and programs are open to everyone in the Jewish community.

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street | Omaha, NE. 68154 | 402.556.6288 www.orthodoxomaha.org Office hours: Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Ari Dembitzer. FRIDAY: Mincha/Ma’ariv & Kabbalat Shabbat, 4:55 p.m.; Friday Night Shabbat Dinner, 6 p.m. followed by presentation by Rabbi Zohn, Bridge to Eternity: Get a Life and Afterlife and concurrent kids program and babysitting. SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Torah Parade and Shabbat Classes, 9:45 a.m.; 15 mins after Kiddush -- Mishna L’Neshamah and Teen Class; Insights into Weekly Torah Portion, 4:10 p.m.; Mincha/Seudah Shlishit, 4:40 p.m.; Havdalah, 5:59 p.m.; Rabbi Elchonon Zohn Reception and Presentation, 7 p.m. SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Bagels and Beit Medrash, 9:45 a.m.; Rabbi Elchonon Zohn: Death in Jewish Life Cycle, 10 a.m.; Shavua Tov with Yaldei Beit Yisrael, 1 p.m.; Caffe Ivrit, 2:30 p.m. WEEKDAYS: Shacharit, 7 a.m. MONDAY: Rosh Chodesh Shacharit, 6:45 a.m. WEDNESDAY: Monthly Kids Learning Chabura (Grades K-2), 3:30 p.m. THURSDAY: Women’s Class, 9:30 a.m.; Scholar’s Club for 6th Grade, 3:30 p.m.; Avot U-Banim, 7 p.m.; Talmud Learning, 8 p.m.

CHABAD HOUSE An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street | Omaha, NE 68144-1646 | 402.330.1800 www.OChabad.com | email: chabad@aol.com Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m. FRIDAY: Minyan and Meditation, 7 a.m SATURDAY: Minyan and Meditation, 9:30 a.m. SUNDAY: Minyan, 8:30 a.m. WEEKDAYS: Minyan and Meditation, 7 a.m. TUESDAY: Dynamic Discovery with Shani Katzman, 10:15 a.m. A class for women based on traditional texts with practical insights and application. RSVP by calling the office. WEDNESDAY: Personal Parsha class, 9:30 a.m. with Rochi Katzman. RSVP by calling the office; The Development of the Oral Tradition, 7 p.m. with Rabbi Katzman. RSVP by calling the office. In memory of Forrest Krutter -- Efrayim Menachem Ben Avraham Yitzchak. THURSDAY: Women’s Study at UNMC with Shani Katzman, noon. RSVP by emailing Marlene Cohen at mzcohen@unmc.edu. All programs are open to the entire community.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN South Street Temple | Union for Reform Judaism 2061 South 20th Street | Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 | 402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org Services conducted by Rabbi Craig Lewis. FRIDAY: Shabbat Evening Service, 7:45 p.m. with oneg following hosted by Pam Ganz. SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. on Parashat Va’era. SUNDAY: LJCS Gan through Grade 7, 9:30 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; Hallah High, 9:45 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel.

Candlelighting Friday, January 8, 4:55 p.m. WEDNESDAY: LJCS classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel. THURSDAY: Intro to Yoga, 6:30 p.m. with Barbara Barron. Game Night/Potluck, Saturday, Jan. 16, 6 p.m. All ages welcome! Questions? Contact Deborah Swearingen. 23rd Annual MLK “Freedom Fund Breakfast”, Friday, Jan. 15, 2016 at 7 a.m. at Embassy Suites Hotel, 1040 “P” Street. The Keynote Speaker: Dr. Marilyn Moore, President, Bryan College of Health Sciences. President’s Office Hours, Sunday Mornings, 10 a.m.–noon at SST. If you have any Temple business you would like to bring before the Board of Trustees, potential programs, or new ideas, please let us know! Call for an appointment at the Temple or just to chat any time at 402.513.7697. Or if you prefer, just email David Weisser at president@southstreettemple.org.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE Capehart Chapel 2500 Capehart Road | Offutt AFB, NE 68123 | 402.294.6244 FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m. every first and third of the month.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME 323 South 132 Street | Omaha, NE 68154 SATURDAY: Services, 9:15 a.m. led by Steve Riekes. Services will be held in the Chapel. Members of the community are invited to attend.

TEMPLE ISRAEL Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive | Omaha, NE 68144-1206 | 402.556.6536 http://templeisraelomaha.com FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to You at Remington Heights, 4 p.m. led by Cantor Shermet; January First Friday: Candle lighting and Kiddush in the Community Court, 5:30 p.m. Service, 6 p.m., led by Rabbi Azriel and Cantor Shermet, and dinner immediately following. The First Friday Band will be participating in services. Cost is $5/person, max of $20 per family. Reservations are required. SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Service, 10:30 a.m. Emilie Sacks, daughter of Jamie and Scott Sacks, will celebrate her Bat Mitzvah. SUNDAY: Grades K-6, 10 a.m.; Madrichim Meeting, 10 a.m.; Parent/Toddler Program, 10:30 a.m. for children ages 2-3. Dani Howell will facilitate activities, games and songs for toddlers with their parents; Introduction to Hebrew Class with Eliad Eliyahu, Omaha's Community Shaliach, 11 a.m. and Sundays, Jan. 24 and 31, Feb. 7 and 21, March 6 and 20. If you’re interested in learning a little Hebrew or brushing up on your basic Hebrew, then this class is for you!; Temple Israel Book Club with Scott Littky, 11 a.m.; Religious School Steering Committee Meeting, noon; OTYG Board Meeting, 12:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY: Grades 3-6, 4 p.m.; Chapel for School Service, 4:30 p.m. with Rabbi Brown; Grades 7-12, 6 p.m.; School Dinner, 6 p.m.; All the News that is Fit for the Jews, 6:30 p.m. with Scott Littky. THURSDAY: All the News that is Fit for the Jews, 10 a.m. with Scott Littky; Kol Rina Rehearsal, 7 p.m. at St. Paul. Family Game Night, Havdalah and Potluck Dinner, Saturday, Jan. 16, 5-8 p.m. We will be providing Mac & Cheese and Kosher Hot Dogs for dinner. Please bring a dessert to share! We will also be playing bingo during the evening. Please RSVP to Temple Israel, 402.556.6536. Shabbat Shira, Friday, Jan. 22, 6 p.m. Temple Israel’s Kol Rina and the St. Paul United Methodist Church choir are combining voices under the direction of Cantor Shermet and Jerry Brabec. On Sunday, Jan. 24, the choirs will be performing again at St. Paul United Methodist Church at 11 a.m. Poker Tournament, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 6 p.m. Cost is $50 and includes dinner and tournament. For more information and to RSVP, please contact Program Director Scott Littky, 402.556.6536.

TIFERETH ISRAEL Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard | Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 | 402.423.8569 www.tiferethisraellincoln.org Services conducted by lay leader Nancy Coren. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. FRIDAY: Services, 6:30 p.m. SATURDAY: Morning service, 10 a.m. followed by a Kiddush lunch. SUNDAY: LJCS Gan through Grade 7, 9:30 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; Hallah High, 9:45 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel. Continued on page 11

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January 8, 2016 | The Jewish Press | 11

In memoriam MIRA MALYNA ETUS Mira Malyna Etus passed away at age 98 on Dec. 20, 2015 at Rose Blumkin Nursing Home of natural causes. Services were held Dec. 22, 2015 at Beth El by Hazzan Michael Krausman. She was preceded in death by her husband Leonid Etus. She is survived by her daughter, Mania; sons and daughters-in-law, Marat and Valentina Etus and Grisha and Olga Etus; grandchildren, Igor, Lucy, Slava, Kostya, and greatgrandson, Allan Muinov. Born in 1917 in a small shtetl of Parichi, Belarus, to a large religious family, she lived almost a century to witness and be part of many historic events that shook Russia. Mira was one of those young Jewish enthusiasts who welcomed the Revolution and took an active part in establishing the new life. She graduated from a Jewish school, took a pedagogical program and became one of the first pioneer leaders for school children. In 1939 Mira married Leonid Etus who was soon after drafted into the Red Army to the Russo-Finnish war. When WWII came to Russia in June of 1941, Leonid was drafted again to fight the Germans. Mira, being a party activist, was evacuated together with her baby daughter Mania and her younger sister Luba. They ended up in Siberia at lake Baikal, where Mira worked at a militarized food plant as a shift manager. For her work she was awarded a medal for “Dedicated Work during the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945”. There, in Siberia, she joined the Communist Party Organisation to show her allegiance to the country at war. In 1945 she reunited with her husband straight from Berlin. The family moved back to their home shtetl to find instead a field of ruins and ashes and a mass grave with all shtetl Jews, 26 members of their own family among them, killed by the Germans. Mira and Leonid started a new life and added two sons to the family - Marat and Grisha. In 1993 the extended family moved to Omaha. Mira Etus embraced life, all aspects of it. With her bright mind and outstanding memory, she remembered all events of her long life and would pass it on to the new generation of the family. Her favorite word in life was “rachmones” (compassion). Recalling her Siberian experiences, Mira was always perplexed that everything at the plant was somehow American - from work clothes to all the food ingredients necessary to produce the canned fish. It was only once she came to America, that Mira learnt that these “American presents” were actually a part of the Lend-Lease WWII program. From her birth to the end of her long life, Mira was honest, humble and humane. She was also loyal to country, to family and friends. She was one of the old guard - true to the core. Memorials may be made to an organization of your choice.

where she received honors in French. In later years she earned a Masters Degree in Educational Administration at UNO. Following her graduation from college she accepted a job at the American Embassy in Paris. While in Paris she attended the Alliance Francais as a foreign student. Upon her return to Omaha she married and began a life time career teaching French except for 24 years during which she remained home with her children. When they were all in school she returned to teaching French. In her final years at Central she not only taught but also served as chair of the International Language Department. Bev also served as president of the Central High Alumni Association and was an original member of the Central High Foundation Board of Directors. During her career Bev received the prestigious Buffett Award. In 2007 she was inducted into the Central High Hall of Fame. Bev led many student summer trips to France; she received a National Humanities Fellowship for study in Caen of France in World War II, she earned a fellowship which included a summer in southern France, and she was honored as the outstanding teacher of French in Nebraska. She was appointed by Gov . Ben Nelson to the Nebraska Educational Television Board and served a term as its chair. In recent years she served on the Board of Beth El Synagogue and a two year term as synagogue president. Memorials may be made to the Central High School Foundation or to Beth El Synagogue.

DONALD L. HOBERMAN Donald L. Hoberman passed away Dec. 23, 2015 at age 85. Services were held Dec. 27, 2015 in the Chapel at Beth El Cemetery, 84th and L Street Omaha, Nebraska. He was preceded in death by his son, Michael; brother Robert and sister, Mary Kay. Donald passed away on his and his wife’s 64th Anniversary. He is survived by his wife Nancy; daughter and son-inlaw, Diane and Steve Kohler; grandchildren: Alexandra and Adam Kohler, Joel, Sarah, Jacob and Gabrielle Hoberman. Memorials may be made to Make a Wish or Project Pink’d.

HARVEY LIPSMAN Harvey Lipsman passed away Jan. 3 at age 88. Services were held Jan. 5 at Fisher Farms Cemetery, 8600 South 42 Street, Bellevue, NE. He was preceded in death his parents and six bothers and sisters. He is survived by his wife Marcia; daughter and son-inlaw, Sandra Lipsman and Stu Sweetow; and son, Dr. Rocky Lipsman and girlfriend, Jane; and many many nieces and nephews. He was a loving husband and father. Memorials may be made to Beth Israel Synagogue or Rose Blumkin Jewish Home.

BEVERLY B. FELLMAN

RUTH ORUCH

Beverly B. Fellman passed away Dec. 31, 2015 from cancer after a lengthy illness. She was 74 years old. Private burial services for family members was held Jan. 3 at Beth El cemetery at 84th and “L” followed by a service for the community at Beth El, 14506 California Street. She was predeceded in death by her parents, Dina and Harold Bloom, and her brothers, Dr. Bruce Bloom and Dr. Bernard Bloom. She is survived by her husband, Richard Fellman; daughter and son-in-law, Drs. Susan and Isaac Witkowski; daughter, Deborah Fellman of Los Angeles; sons and daughters-in-law, Jon and Michelle Fellman of Wilmette IL and Rabbi Daniel and Melissa Fellman of Syracuse, NY; eight grandchildren: Gabby and Julian Witkowski, Anna, Samantha, and Andy Fellman of Wilmette, IL and Zachary, Jacob, and Elizabeth Fellman of Syracuse, NY; brother and sister-in-law, Brent and Rebecca Bloom; sisters and brothers-in-law, Arlene Bloom of Potomac, MD, Naomi Bloom of Dallas,TX. Jane Pickus of Highland Park, IL, Tom and Darlynn Fellman and Nancy Rips. On Jan. 12 she would have celebrated her 52nd wedding anniversary. Bev graduated from Omaha Central High School where she was a National Merit Finalist, attended Ohio State University and graduated from the University of Omaha

Ruth Oruch passed away on Jan. 1. Services were held Jan. 3 at Beth Israel Cemetery, 78th and Crown Point Avenue. She was preceded in death by husband, Harold; sister, Pauline Handleman; and brother, James Kahn. She is survived by daughter and son-in-law, Patricia and Jack; son, Michael; son and daughter-in-law, Richard and Teri; grandchildren: Jennifer, Adam and Leah, Jason and Ryan, and great-grandchildren: Benjamin and Harry. She was a beloved wife, mother and preschool teacher. Memorials may be made to the Pennie Z. Davis Child Development Center or the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home.

Synagogues Continued from page 10 WEDNESDAY: LJCS classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel. 23rd Annual MLK “Freedom Fund Breakfast”, Friday, Jan. 15, 2016 at 7 a.m. at Embassy Suites Hotel, 1040 “P” Street. The Keynote Speaker: Dr. Marilyn Moore, President, Bryan College of Health Sciences. Havdalah Havurah Group, Saturday, Jan. 16, 6 p.m. at Brenda Ingraham’s home, 3901 S. 72 St #13. Please RSVP to Nava in the office as appetizers and snacks will be provided.

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Alan Gross opens up about surviving Cuban prison by SUZANNE POLLAK (Washington Jewish Week via JTA) -- Since being imprisoned in Cuba six years ago, Alan Gross says his life has been “surreal.” He feels disassociated from the causes of his five-year incarceration and from the resulting fame. He was locked up largely because of U.S.-Cuba relations, he says, and he is a public figure thanks to the people who followed his story in the news or advocated on his behalf. “It never was about me,” Gross said in an interview in his Washington, D.C., condominium. “My life became surreal the night I became detained, and it still is today. I don’t quite understand the celebrity function.” That doesn’t mean he isn’t grateful to the people who signed petitions or gave media interviews demanding his release. Gross credits them with bringing him back to the United States, via Andrews Air Force Base, on Dec. 17, 2014. When he was arrested in 2009, Gross was working as a U.S. government subcontractor setting up Internet access for Cuban Jews. “It is illegal to distribute anything in Cuba that is funded in full or in part by the U.S. government. That’s why they detained me initially,” he said, insisting that his Jewish background or work had nothing to do with it. Gross says once the Cuban government realized he could be used as a bargaining chip in its diplomacy with the U.S., he was stuck. While he wasn’t physically tortured, he suffered in other ways. “They threatened to hang me, pull out my fingernails,” he said. “They told me I would never see the light of day.” Gross stayed busy by walking around the cell he was locked in 23 hours a day, drawing pictures and creating word puzzles. During his incarceration, he said, he often recalled a scene from the television show M*A*S*H in which one character taunts another, who

Alan Gross at home in Washington D.C. was confined to his tent as a punishment, by stepping in and out of the tent. “I thought about that almost every day, the ability to step in and out,” Gross said. “The freedom, that’s what I missed every day. Freedom is an incredible thing to lose.” For the first several months, Gross wasn’t allowed reading materials. Later, visitors brought newspapers and his family sent books and the Economist magazine. He rarely saw fresh fruits and vegetables, eating a lot of chicken and rice -- as well as potatoes, yucca and malanga. Due to poor nutrition, he lost several front teeth, which he keeps in a small container in his office. “I think I lost about 70 pounds the first year, and the next three years, another 40 pounds,” Gross said. He had limited contact with his family. His

wife visited about every seven months. One daughter, who lives in Oregon, came about six months before his release. His other daughter, who lives in Jerusalem, he never saw. For the first 3.5 years in jail, he didn’t know people were working for his release. He was amazed to learn of the Washington Jewish community’s weekly vigils for him during a visit from his wife and attorney. When he was finally given access to a phone, Gross called Ron Halber, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington. They didn’t know each other. But Gross was desperate, and Halber was willing to help. Gross let it be known that he was in failing health, emotionally despondent and unwilling to see anyone but his wife. He went on a nine-day hunger strike in April 2014, which

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he said alarmed the Cubans. But it was a ploy, he reveals. “I wanted to turn the heat up. I was never despondent. I never wanted to take my life,” he said. Soon after his release, Gross met supporters at a homecoming party at Temple Beth Ami in Rockville, Maryland. He described the evening as “very confusing.” When a young man came up and asked to take a selfie with him, Gross had no idea what he was talking about. He has since had selfies explained to him. Now that the celebrations have dwindled, Gross says he does a lot of “walking, thanking people and smoking Cuban cigars.” No longer confined to a cell, he walks for miles, often around his neighborhood near the National Zoo. He also likes to play his collection of 10 mandolins and is excitedly awaiting the birth of his first grandchild. Gross misses his work on behalf of the U.S. Agency for International Development, which took him around the globe, including to Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. He’s happy to tell the stories behind the colorful weavings, tribal masks and other world art covering the walls of his home. But he’s afraid to leave America again. Despite his ordeal in the Communist island nation, Gross still has special affection for the Cuban people, including the Jews he tried to serve, whose numbers he says have dwindled to about 1,000. Recalling the largest synagogue, in Vedado, a Havana suburb, Gross said, “It’s just like many Jewish community centers around the world.” He says Shabbat dinners are well attended, partly because the meals supplement the little food people have. Gross is working on a book about his experience in Cuban prison. The working title: “It was never about me.”