May 12, 2017

thejewishpress AN AGENCY OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF OMAHA

this week

phil and Terri schrager spirit of Federation awards MAY 1 2 , 2 0 1 7 | 1 6 IY AR 5 7 7 7 | V O L . 9 7 | NO . 3 1 | C a Nd LELi g h Ti Ng | FRID AY , MAY 1 2 , 8 : 1 5 P. M.

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aNNETTE vaN dE KaMp-WrighT Editor of the Jewish Press onday, June 5, marks the Jewish Federation of Omaha Annual Meeting. On this night, awards will be given to community members who went above and beyond, volunteering their time and efforts to making this community better.

Recipients of this year’s Phil and Terri Schrager Spirit of Federation Award are Sharon Kirshenbaum and Jon Meyers.

Sharon and Jon were selected for this honor because their work in our community exemplifies the qualifications of the award. Those qualifications include a demonstration of personal commitment, dedication and leadership to the Jewish Federation of Omaha, as well as serving as a role model for others.

“Through their professional and personal accomplishments,” JFO President Bruce Friedlander said, “they have earned this recognition, and we are very proud of their association with our Federation.”

Twenty-three years ago, Sharon Kirshenbaum was working at First National Bank. She had see spirit of Federation page 3

Yom HaShoah ceremonies page 5

Yom Ha’atzmaut gallery pages 8 & 9

Emerging Voices: Stranger in a strange land page 16

Teen Leadership Awards

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spoNsorEd bY ThE bENJaMiN aNd aNNa E. WiEsMaN FaMiLY ENdoWMENT FuNd

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Mikayla Langdon

NaTE shapiro Director of Development, Jewish Federation of Omaha The Robert and Ellen Gordman Jewish Teen Leadership Award honors a Jewish teen who demonstrates leadership ability in

sharon Kirshenbaum and Jon Meyers

Young Leadership Awards

Emily Kutler

a youth group and who has contributed to strengthening the organization and developing future leadership. Honorees are nominated by professionals and lay leadership of the Jewish Federation of Omaha (JFO) and its Agencies, the JFO Foundation, the synagogues, or other Jewish organizations. Honorees are chosen from the pool of submissions by a select committee of lay leaders and professionals and will receive a $1,000 stipend to participate in their choice of a convention, conclave or summer camp under Jewish auspices or a recognized Israel experience. The honorees will also have their name engraved on a plaque, which is permanently displayed in the JCC lobby.

The Jewish Federation of Omaha is proud see Teen Leadership page 2

Jamie and Troy Meyerson

NaTE shapiro Director of Development, Jewish Federation of Omaha The Jewish Federation of Omaha (JFO) is exceedingly proud to announce the recipients of both the Bruce Fellman Memorial Young Leadership Award and the Lois Jeanne Schrager Memorial young Leadership Award to Troy and Jamie Meyerson, respectively. Interestingly, this is the first time in JFO history that these awards have been given to a married couple.

Both of these honors are presented annually to a woman and a man under the age of 45 who demonstrate personal commitment, dedicated involvement and exemplary leadership and service to the Jewish and general community. These awards will be presented at the JFO annual Meeting on Monday, June 5, at 7 p.m. in the Jewish Community Center Theater.

Jamie is not only the mother of 3 children; she spends a lot of her see Young Leadership page 4

Listening with sensitive ears: Parshat Emor

2 | The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017

community

Young Leadership

Continued from page 1 to present the Robert and Ellen Gordman Jewish Teen Leadership Award to two very deserving Omaha teens, mikayla Langdon and emily Kutler.

Mikayla and Emily will be presented the awards at the annual JFO meeting, held on June 5 at 7 p.m. in the Jewish Community Center (JCC) Theater. mikayla Langdon is the daughter of Sharon Comisar-Langdon and Randy Langdon. She is a senior at Millard West High School. Mikayla is serving her fourth year on the Omaha Temple Youth Group (OTYG) board. She fills the roles of Ruach (spirit) Chair, Communications and Visual vice President, and the JUG Liaison. She’s an active member of the Reform movement’s national youth group, National Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY). She is not only an active member of youth groups, Mikayla has served as Madricha/Teacher’s assistant at Temple Israel from 2011 to 2017. She also has done volunteer work at the Western Galilee Medical Center in Israel and has bagged food for homeless folks in Israel as a part of the Omaha Teen Mission to Israel in December of 2015.

Mikayla is actively involved and holds a leadership role in the Millard West Show Choir, is on Student Council, and a member of the Tri-M Honors society.

She is involved with the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), a co-curricular organization. She also has childcare experience.

Mikayla has a passion for music. She participated in Band and orchestra at Rohwer Elementary School and was involved in show choir and student council at Russell Middle School. At Millard West she has been academically successful. She maintains a 3.7 GPA. She received an academic letter her freshman and junior year. Mikayla has earned the KU excellence

Award and will attend the University of Kansas.

Mikayla cites her older sister as a huge influence for her. Her sister is a social worker, and Mikayla is interested in following in her footsteps. Mikayla has been active in the community because she enjoys the opportunities she’s been given and wants to give back and ensure that other teenagers and children have the same opportunities.

Aliyah Lasky, Director of Youth and Young Adult Engagement at Temple Israel, said “ Growing up, Mikayla has always been very involved with Temple activities.

She has served on the youth group board all through her high school career. Through this, she has helped innovate and instill dynamic and relationship-building programs for the youth group. Over the past two years, I have seen her build strong relationships not only with her peers, but has become a strong mentor for the youth: inspiring them to take on similar leadership roles, as she has done. As a Madricha, she goes above and beyond her regular duties by taking on a multitude of different role when needed. Last year, she also served on our committee for youth group elections. She was a positive role model, had true impact on the organization and the ability to develop future leadership among her peers.” emily Kutler is the daughter of Pam and Bruce Kutler and is a sophomore at Westside High School.

She has been very active in BBYO. She is on the Council Board for Aym HaChaverot (New Member Educator) for 2016-2017. She served as the Winter Regional Convention Community Service Chairperson for 2016.

She also served as the Shlichim (emissary) Coordinator for the Winter Regional Convention. Emily was the MIT Class Organizer and served on the Beau and Sweetheart Committee in 2016. She received the

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Leon Fellman Emerging Leader Award Recipient in 2016. In addition to her BBYO leadership, Emily has been involved with United Synagogue Youth (USY), Kadima (7-8th at Beth El) and Hebrew High.

Rachel Martin, BBYO Director, said: “Emily meets all of the leadership criteria (Ability to develop future leadership among peers, ability to interest peers to participate in the group’s activities, willingness to accept major responsibilities and see them through to conclusion, being an innovator of programs, being a positive role model, having a positive impact on the organization) through her everyday interactions, as well as through her long term goals. She is consistently encouraging others to attend BBYO programs or meetings, looks up to older members for guidance, and leads by example when working on a committee or team. Emily is always smiling and receptive to feedback, constructive criticism or others’ ideas. Whether I delegate a simple task or an entire project to Emily, I know it will be done thoroughly and correctly, with check ins along the way. Emily brought back the important tradition of hosting MIT (Member-in-Training) courses for new BBG girls in BBYO to learn about what we do in the organization. Emily took it upon herself to form the curriculum for our local chapter based on multiple resources from other BBYO cities.

She produced a packet of information that the members were able to take home, review and reference during their time in BBYO. I couldn’t imagine a more thoughtful or compassionate person to be the new member educator for the new girls in BBYO.” In addition to being a role model herself, Emily appreciates the role models she’s had in her life. “My role models are the many educators in my life.

See Young Leadership page 3

According to the rabbis, the Hebrew months correspond to the tribes of Israel. This month, Iyar, corresponds to the tribe of Shimon.

The word “Shimon” comes from “shema” or to listen. When Rabbi aRi we look at the world DembitzeR with our eyes, we Beth Israel Synagogue can see things clearly. However, it gets tricky when things are not clear. This is when the skill of listening with sensitive ears can help. During Passover and through the Hebrew month of Nissan, we saw open miracles and our faith was not tested. It was obvious to all who experienced open miracles that there is a creator. The month of Iyar is about seeing godliness in hidden ways. We commemorate Yom HaShoah, Yom Hazikaron, Yom Ha’atzmaut, Lag B’Omer plus Pesach Sheni and Yom Yerushalayim. The common denominator with all these is the hiddenness in which G-d is revealed on those days. On these days, it is how we listen that determines their value. The point of having faith is to sense the creator when it is not obvious. G-d wants us, as his people, to cover our eyes during the “Shema” to be able to listen more deeply. To listen with sensitive ears. Then we can share this with the world.

Shabbat Shalom.

The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 3

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Beth Cohen Head of School, Friedel Jewish Academy n Monday, May 1st, the 5th & 6th grade students at Friedel Jewish Academy led a beautiful Yom haZikaron commemoration service to honor fallen Israeli soldiers and victims of terrorist attacks. the next day, students celebrated Yom ha’atzmaut – Israel Independence Day – with games, art projects and Israeli dancing.

Spirit of Federation

Continued from page 1 moved to Omaha after marrying husband Jeff; the couple have two daughters, Alyssa and Lauren.

“Jan Goldstein came and talked to me about changing jobs,” Sharon remembered. “What I was doing at First National wasn’t exactly a good fit and Jan knew that. She suggested I make the move to the Jewish Federation. I ended up working with Mary Fellman and Dottie Rosenblum at the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society.”

It was the perfect job for the native New Yorker, who at that point had only lived in Omaha for three years.

“I learned so much about the Omaha Jewish community,” she said. “Next, Jan wrote a grant for a Young Leadership position. She asked if I was interested, and of course I said yes. The grant-funded position eventually turned into a full time job. We started Young Jewish Omaha (YJO), and from there I progressed to working on the Annual Campaign, eventually becoming Campaign Director.”

Sharon left her position in 2015, but has morphed her dedication into volunteer positions. She sits on the Board of the Omaha Public Schools Foundation and fundraises for Burke High School. She continues to give her time to the Jewish Federation of Omaha’s Annual Campaign as well.

“To me, the Jewish Federation of Omaha means community; we do what we do for the benefit of that community.”

That community, according to Sharon, “means everything.”

When she moved to Omaha in 1992, “the community just immediately adopted me and made me feel like I belonged,” she said.

“My in-laws, Maxine and Joe Kirshenbaum, have been great mentors throughout the years. This is an amazing place with a great future. I would not be who I am right now had it not been for the Omaha community.”

Sharon belongs to both Beth El Synagogue and Beth Israel.

“It’s a testament to this community that one can comfortably belong to both; in fact, the community encourages it.

In Jewish Omaha, you get to draw from different perspectives and different teachers, which is a major blessing. If we all felt forced to attend one synagogue only, we’d limit ourselves and wouldn’t learn as much. Widening the synagogue box is a healthy thing.”

Bruce Friedlander added: “I remember transitioning from volunteering at Beth El to the Jewish Federation; and whenever I walked into the office, she was the first person I’d see.

Every time, she was on the phone with community members, talking about supporting the Federation. Sharon does what she does with a smile, every time.”

Jon Meyers currently sits on the JFO Board of Directors and has been involved with the Budget and Allocation Committee since the early 1990s.

“Back then, Forrest Krutter was JFO President; it was my only involvement with the Federation at the time.”

Jon is married to Denise. Jon has three kids: James, married to Beth; Tamara, who is married to Jared Draeger, and Shaina. James and Beth have two sons, Jacob and Benjamin; Tamara and Jared are parents to Stockton, Macklin, and Darien. Denise has two kids, Shelia, married to Clarence Brown and Stacy, married to Dave Tonniges. Grandchildren are Keyshon Brown, and Alece, Jackson and Tori Tonniges.

Jon was born and raised in Omaha and attended Westside high school. He attended college in Kansas but came back

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“My connection to the Jewish Federation was mostly through the JCC. My grandparents were at the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, as were my parents. I’ve always given to the Annual Campaign, but my real volunteering started in 2013.”

From 2007-2009, Jon was the President of Temple Israel’s Board of Directors.

“Jan Goldstein kept asking me to be more involved at the Federation; but after my Temple presidency ended I became immediate past-President for three years, after which Sally Kaplan, then President, asked me to stay on Temple’s Board for two additional years. I really didn’t get done until 2013.

At that point, I became involved in the Jewish Federation, when Jay Noddle asked me to join the Board of Directors.”

Jon’s biggest focus at the Federation has been the Rabbis and Presidents meeting, where local clergy sit down with the JFO President once per month.

“Those meetings are so important,” Jon said, “because we really need to keep those lines of communication open at all times. We all have a need for community, and this is one more building block” “We have dinner on a weekly basis,” Bruce Friedlander said, “and in addition to that, we meet as often as possible.

Jon’s vast knowledge of Jewish communal life is astounding.

He has deep roots in our community and he ‘gets’ it.”

Another thing Jon cares deeply about is mission-based budgeting: “We talk about the Annual Campaign, but budget talk at a non-profit such as our Federation is much more than simply balancing the numbers. Money comes from and goes to many different places. Understanding our organization as a whole, understanding the missions of the individual departments and agencies and understanding the importance of our programming are all essential in deciding where those dollars go. Everything we have starts with the word ‘Jewish.’

We need to go beyond naming it; we have to live it.”

Sharon and Jon will be recognized at the JFO Annual Meeting on Monday, June 5 at 7 p.m. in the Jewish Community Center Theater. The entire community is invited; refreshments will be served.

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Young Leadership

Continued from page 2 Whether that be my youth directors, my teachers or my parents, I have learned from so many people that everybody is capable of making the world a better place,” Emily said. Emily, being a sophomore, still has a couple of high school years ahead of her. She will be going on the teen mission to Israel in December and will hopefully continue to be a positive force in the Omaha Jewish Community. Emily finds a lot of personal fulfillment by volunteering and being engaged. She says “Staying involved in our community, whether it be through BBYO, USY or my synagogue has helped me to learn so much about myself. It motivates me in many different ways and it’s rewarding to know that my involvement can help other people.”

The Jewish Federation of Omaha is proud of Mikayla and Emily. We want to wish Mikayla lots of luck and success at the University of Kansas. We also are thankful that we get to keep Emily a little bit longer and look forward to seeing her on our teen mission in December.

Sarit Hovav, M.D. Board-Certified Psychiatrist Diplomate, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology

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Young Leadership

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Continued from page 1 time volunteering for agencies, organizations, and causes that work to make the world a better place. She has been actively involved with Omaha’s Jewish community, as well as the broader Omaha community.

Jamie has been serving the Jewish Federation of Omaha (JFO) in a formal volunteer capacity for the past decade. She started by serving on the Jewish Press Board of Directors for five years, while simultaneously serving on the JFO annual Campaign Committee. She then served as the Pennie Z. Davis Child Development Center (CDC) Teacher Appreciation Co-Chair from 20082014, while taking on the additional work of serving on the Jewish Community Center (JCC) CDC board from 2012-2014. Jamie looks back at her time with the CDC fondly.

“I am so proud of our CDC. I was on the board several years while my girls attended preschool there. I feel extremely grateful I was able to be a part of the growth the CDC had during that time.” Jamie said.

Former Lois Jeanne Schrager Memorial Young Leadership Award recipient Stacey Atlas has worked with her on both the JCC board and the CDC board and said that “Jaime is extremely easy to work with. She’s very flexible and open to hearing what people have to say. I admire Jamie and her leadership. She doesn’t volunteer for recognition or to see her name in print; she truly wants to make a difference. Her dedication to our community has gone under the radar for too long.” Louri Sullivan, Director of Community Impact and Special Projects, echoed that sentiment by simply saying “These two leadership awards are long overdue for Troy and Jamie Meyerson.”

Jamie is currently serving her fifth year as a member on the JCC Board of directors. In addition to her dedication to the Jewish Federation of Omaha and its member agencies, she has also served on the National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section Committee for eight years. She’s been an active congregant at Temple Israel and volunteered to serve on a B’nai Mitzvah Guidelines committee which worked to review guidelines and update policies to ensure that B’nai Mitzvah luncheons maintain the crucial and simple focus of a child -- leading services and chanting from the Torah.

Jamie’s work is not limited to Jewish organizations. She has been very involved in the Omaha Children’s Museum. She served on the Omaha Children’s Museum Guild Board for five years, as well as the Omaha Children’s Museum for the Kids Benefit Committee for four years.

When asked about her role models, Jamie mentioned not only her friends and family, but in particular her own mother, Penny Endelman, saying: “She made her community a priority, even while working full-time during my entire childhood.”

The Meyersons are emerging leaders and they are already encouraging those who follow in their footsteps to get involved. Regarding the next generation, Jamie said, “My biggest advice would be to try volun-

teering in different ways and for different organizations. Find what truly fulfills your own heart. It can be a struggle at first to figure out exactly what area is most important to you. If you are taking time away from your family, then that time needs to be shared in a way that makes you feel like you are truly making a difference.”

The Meyersons are both Omaha natives.

They take a lot of pride in our community.

Jamie said, “The older I get, the more I realize how important and unique our Jewish community is. The outpouring of support in both good times and bad is amazing. It’s not something you will necessarily find in other communities. I want to do all I can for the community so it will continue to thrive.”

Troy Meyerson is an attorney at Fraser Stryker and is no stranger to communal service. He serves as the secretary of the Temple Israel Board of Trustees, as well as the Personnel Practices committee. He is on the by-laws committee and served as a member of the Senior Rabbi Search committee. As security concerns for Temple Israel and the broader Jewish community increased, Troy stepped up and led a task force to review safety and security practices. Based on this committee’s recommendations, security measures were added and have been received positively. Not only did Troy lead the safety charge, but he helped find the additional funds needed to cover the costs.

“As president of the Temple Board of Trustees, I have come to rely on Troy Meyerson for his wise counsel, sense of humor and calm approach to every situation. Troy has emerged as a true leader. He is truly my ‘go to’ and I am thankful to have him on the Executive Committee” said Rosie Zweiback.

Beyond his Temple Israel work, Troy has been very involved in his local school district. He has served on the District 66 Budget Committee and the District 66 Oakdale Design Committee. He coached YMCA Basketball, and served as a Board Member for Ted E. Bear Hollow, an organization that offers free grief support. Troy has also served on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Funding (JDRF) Board and was cochair for the JDRF Walk. In addition to supporting various non-profit organizations in the community, Troy was a member of Class 32 of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce leadership.

What’s next for the Meyersons? They will no doubt continue to be cornerstones in the Omaha community. Jamie mentioned that “with the recent uprising of Anti-Semitism, I am empowered and committed to work hard to fight the hatred we face. There are not many Holocaust survivors left. It is so very important that we continue sharing their stories. I want our children to be proud of who they are and never live in fear.”

The Jewish Federation of Omaha would like to extend its heartfelt and sincere thanks to the Meyersons for their commitment to the community. It’s people like Troy and Jamie who keep our community strong and special. Join us on June 5 and help us honor this deserving couple.

Organizations

B’nai B’rith BreadBreakers

david alloy, an Omaha businessman, has restarted a Jewish fraternity on the UNL campus and will discuss his success and other goals on Wednesday, May 17, noon. For more information or to be placed on the email list call 402.334.6443 or bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.

Visit us at jewishomaha.org

The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 5

community

Yom HaShoah

Clockwise from above: Three generations of Holocaust survivors - Bea Karp lights a candle, assisted by Steve Wees (child of a survivor) and Ariel Fried (grandchild of survivors); Many lives and deaths are remembered. Sculpture

by Annette Fettman; Omaha Commemoration at Beth Israel; Yom HaShoah program for Omaha Jewish teens and survivors; NE State Commemoration in Lincoln; Holocaust Remembrance Day service in Lincoln at Wyuka.

Tribute to the Rescuers Essay Contest winners

LIz FELDSTERN Institute for Holocaust Education Executive Director he 2017 “Tribute to the Rescuers” High School Essay Contest received over 400 essays from 13 different schools in Nebraska and Iowa.

The winners were recognized at the May 1 Awards Ceremony:

Student winners with Carl Frohm Foundation representative Kathy McGauvran.

Student Awards: 9th-10th Grades: First Place: Caroline Connolly, Skutt Catholic High School, Omaha; Second Place: Hayley Weeder, Skutt Catholic High School, Omaha; Third Place: Caleb Burbach, Mount Michael Benedictine, Elkhorn; 11th-12th Grades: First Place: Katie Williams, Marian High School, Omaha; Second Place: Carmen Miller, Marian High School, Omaha; Third Place: Gwendolyn Johnson, Marian High School, Omaha.

Teacher Awards: 9th-10th Grades: First Place: Kristen Deane, Skutt Catholic High School, Omaha; Second Place: Eileen Sullivan, Mount Michael Benedictine, Elkhorn; Third Place: Jenny Razor, Burke High School, Omaha; 11th-12th Grade: First Place: Megan Piernicky, Marian High School, Omaha; Second Place: Aleecia Cotton, Marian High School, Omaha; Third Place: Tracey Larson, D.C. West High School, Valley.

The “Tribute to the Rescuers” High School Essay Contest is sponsored by a generous grant of the Carl Frohm Memorial Foundation, and organized by the Institute for Holocaust Education and the Plains States ADL.

See full digital issues of the Jewish Presss: https://issuu.com/jewishpress7

B

13 Reasons Why

6 | The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017

community

Annette vAn de KAmp-Wright Editor of the Jewish Press may 24 will mark the annual Omaha Gives! event, the day that everyone in our city has the opportunity to donate to one or more favorite causes. You can find instructions online at www.omahagives24.org; once you make a donation, you can tag yourself through social media and invite your friends to give as well. You can even schedule your donation ahead of time; however, the actual event takes place within 24 hours, from midnight to midnight.

Omaha Gives! is a year-round online giving platform organized by the Omaha Community Foundation to grow philanthropy in Douglas, Sarpy and Pottawattamie counties. The goal is to inspire the community to come together for 24-hours to give as much as possible to support the work of public 501(c)(3) nonprofits in the metro area. The minimum donation is $10 and there is no maximum. Prizes and challenge funds amplify charitable donations to make each dollar go further. Search profiles of participating nonprofits and track progress during the event on our leaderboard.

Last year, the community raised nearly $9 million for local nonprofits.

Organizations in the Jewish community participating in Omaha Gives! are the Jewish Federation of Omaha, Friedel Jewish Academy, the Institute for Holocaust Education, the Anti Defamation League/ Community Relations Committee, the Nebraska Jew-

ish Historical Society, Beth El, Beth Israel, B’nai Israel, Temple Israel, Chabad and the National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section.

The Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation has made arrangements to assist community members who wish to give directly from their donor advised funds. Please contact Laurie Peatrowsky at lpeatrowsky@jewishomaha.org or Howard Epstein at hepstein@jewishomaha.org or call 402.334.6498 if you need assistance.

Omaha Gives! Is an initiative of the Omaha Community Foundation as part of a nationwide effort to increase charitable giving. For more information, visit www.omahagives24.org, or contact Steve Levinger at the Jewish Federation of Omaha by calling 402.334.6433 or emailing slevinger@jewish omaha.org.

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KAren gustAfson JFS Executive Director y now most educators and school counselors have not only heard of the popular Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, they are experiencing some resulting consequences of a good idea gone awry.

The Netflix series, produced by Selena Gomez and based on a book by the same name, Thirteen Reasons Why

by Jay Asher (2007) was intended, according to Gomez, to de-stigmatize mental illness and to get people talking about the topic of suicide more openly.

An article written on May 3, by CNN’s Mark Henick, quotes Albert Camus as saying, “Good intentions may do as much harm as malevolence if they lack understanding.” I am not in a position to say that Gomez lacked understanding when producing this series; and, in fact, it has made very public a topic that is sadly on the rise with our teens. The positive result is that people are talking about it.

The disappointment is that the show’s content didn’t come with enough information for those Netflix viewers to know how others solve their problems or that dying by suicide does not provide vindication... you’re not here to know that. You’re dead.

It’s permanent.

Here is my advice to parents: • Watch the series WITH your child (they probably want to watch it anyway

since everyone is talking about it) • Go to www.save.org or www.jed foundation.org to find Talking Points in order to have a healthy discussion with

your child about the T.V. series • Have the discussion about the many options we all have to solve problems • Don’t be afraid to talk about it. If your child is considering suicide, your addressing the topic is not going to “make” them do it; they are already at risk and avoiding the talk is more dangerous.

• Be open with your children about suicide being on the rise, but that it is still a rare, and permanent, solution to a problem... there is just not a series that shows someone actively seeking those other options and having a positive outcome.

• Give your child resources, such as texting “START” to 741741 or calling 1.800.273.TALK (8255).

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The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 7

Grandchildren remember shirley Goldstein

Deb We are: Becca, Deb, Emily, Ben, Molly (and Zak is in Sri Lanka) ...but Grandma called all of us “Cookie.”

To you, she was Shirley Goldstein -bold, brave, activist. And you’ve heard a lot of those stories over the years.

To us, she was Grandma. And we want to share our memories with you today.

Shirley Goldstein, our grandma, was FUN! A typical visit to Grandma’s began like this: a walk up her porch where two stone statues were outfitted in whatever holiday garb was appropriate for the season... And two human-sized dolls (the “people”) sat on a bench, dressed up in real clothes.

Once opening the front door, there was a jar of red licorice in the hallway to entice you into the living room where orange and green candy slices sat in jars on the coffee table. And then finally, Grandma herself, waiting for you with her contagious smile as she chanted, “Hi Cookie!”

Molly She filled our lives with love and warmth (and food) - and taught us the importance of family. Grandma and Papa gave us Shabbat dinners every Friday night, gingham tablecloths, needlepoint, licorice, and love. Her kitchen welcomed us with cabbage soup, vidalia onions and baked apples with those little cinnamon red hots at the bottom. And she had the most impressive marshmallow peep collection, aged to stale perfection and organized by year of production in her kitchen cabinet. She loved the animals, too: the squirrels scratching at the back door were well fed, and she always kept stale bread for us to throw to those lucky ducks in the backyard pond. And then we would sit on the couch and she would tickle our feet. When we went to college, she sent us packages of 2 lb. bags of animal crackers and clean socks to make sure we felt at home.

Her partnership with Papa was strong and admirable - and an example we all aspire to. They were a true team. They prioritized family. They stood strong for human rights. And most important, his taste test was always the secret ingredient in most of her recipes. eMily She taught us the importance of travel and learning about other cultures. She was warm and kind to everyone that she met. And she always wanted to learn - and understand their stories.

She showed us how to welcome others into our family - and into the com-

Reflections on Shirley Goldstein

AlAnA KinArsKy I was eight years old when I met Shirley Goldstein. After leaving Belarus, my family spent three years in Detroit before settling in Omaha. We were trying to get our bearings yet again and were desperate to regain a sense of stability, security, and comfort.

Shirley was so warm and kind when I first met her. She was not put off by our “otherness”, like many others were, but instead welcomed us into the Omaha Jewish community with open arms.

While she will always be remembered for her warmth, it is her dedication to praying with her feet that makes her unforgettable.

In the 70s, Shirley learned of how harsh life in the Soviet Union was for Jews and took action. She organized her peers, first locally, then nationally. She marched in the largest US rally on behalf of Jewish issues, the Free Soviet Jewry rally, held in Washington, DC, in 1987. She risked Soviet imprisonment by making repeated trips to smuggle documentation of the systematic oppression of Jews. These first-hand accounts were used to win the hearts and minds of Americans which eventually led to significant policy shift. By the late 80s, laws in the US and in the Soviet Union were changed and thousands of families like mine were given an opportunity to flee. In other words, she risked everything to give me a chance at having something.

When I shared with my mom that Shirley passed away, she summed up the profound impact Shirley had on our family by noting that, “We are living our lives, because of how she chose to live hers.”

Shirley is an example of what the Jewish community is at its best: Intelligent. Dedicated to fighting injustice anywhere. Funny.

Advocating for those that don’t have a voice. Welcoming. Willing to learn from and about the other. Righteous.

Her life has been a blessing in my life.

May the memory of this righteous one be a blessing for us all.

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munity. She and Papa built a big tent and welcomed everyone they met into it with open arms. There was always someone new and interesting to meet when you went to dinner at Grandma and Papa’s house. As we got older and traveled, she always had a list of people for us to call in whatever city we were visiting - yes, clearly before cell phones. And if Grandma wasn’t calling people, they were calling her. She answered every phone call, many times international calls from Israel, making time to share her life, laughter and friendship. ben She had a biting sense of humor that was witty, playful and feisty. You never had to worry about whether grandma would share her opinion with you.

She made us proud - and inspired us all to give back to the world and to our communities, to stand up for what you believe in - and to give a voice to others. She brought us to protests and marches. She inspired our interests in social justice. Grandma was humble, but didn’t need to be: after all, she did play a major role in an entire Soviet Jewry movement, traveling back and forth to Russia, giving a voice to Jews that were repressed in their own home country. She never backed down. Not even the Soviet Union’s KGB could stop her. Whether she was smuggling blue jeans to refuseniks - so they could sell them for the money they so desperately needed -- or resettling new immigrants in Omaha and taking them on their first trip to our giant grocery stores, she demonstrated that one person can make a difference in the lives of thousands around the world. beccA As most of us know, her memory -at almost age 95 -- was slipping. When we were all here just three weeks ago, for the Shirley and Leonard Goldstein Lecture on Human Rights, she noticed all the “hoopla,” and the crowds of people to see her, and quietly turned to Gail and said, “What am I so famous for?” Yes, it was a question she asked near the end of her life ...but it was also a question she asked throughout her life, as people praised her accomplishments and heroic actions. To Grandma, she was always just doing the right thing. Speaking up. Taking action.

Recognizing that she was in a position to help. So, she did. Certainly never for the awards or the recognition -- or “fame” in her words. Simply because she cared - and because she felt strongly that it was the right thing to do.

She leaves that legacy for all of us to learn from.

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The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 9

yomha’atzmaut

Monday, May 1, brought countless families to the Jewish Community Center’s gym. In spite of the chilly weather, which forced us indoors, the party was a big success. Food from Star Catering, a jumpy castle and slide, endless games to play and crafts to enjoy all made sure the gym was bustling. Simultaneously, the B’nai B’rith Bible Trivia Quiz was held in the Social Hall upstairs and an Israeli movie was shown in the JCC Theater later that night. A big thank you to everyone who worked hard to make this happen, a big thank you to all who came; let’s do this again next year!

new Grant sofware Program

10 | The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017

community Women’s Philantropic Event features speaker Janice Kaplan Wednesday, June 7 at 7 p.m. there will be a wine and cheese reception at One Pacific Place Clubhouse, 1365 S. 101st Street. is Jewish Federation of Omaha Women’s Philanthropic Event is chaired

by Lisa Lucoff, Jamie Meyerson and Melissa Shapiro. e event features speaker Janice Kaplan, author of 13 popular books including her latest New York Times Bestseller, e Gratitude Diaries.

Kaplan is past-Editor in Chief of Parade Magazine and the Executive Producer of the Janice Kaplan TV Guide Television Group,

where she created and produced more than 30 primetime network television specials.

“What started out as an intriguing idea,” Kaplan wrote, “to spend a year living gratefully, became a life-changing experience. I ended up having the best year of my life.”

Now, Kaplan wants to share her experience of gratitude: “Research proves that gratitude makes us healthier and happier, improves sleep, lowers stress and lessens depressions. No matter how grumpy you may be feeling today, you can be more grateful tomorrow.”

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from Janice Kaplan directly how being grateful impacted her life. Cost to attend is $36; if you RSVP to Louri Sullivan at lsullivan@jewishoma ha.org by May 26, you will receive a free copy of e Gratitude Diaries.

JTA news sTAff Texas lawmakers are set to vote on a bill that would allow statefunded or private faith-based adoption agencies to reject couples seeking to adopt children if they are Jewish.

The state House proposal also would allow potential adoptive couples to be rejected if they are Muslim, interfaith, gay or single, according to reports.

A vote on the bill in the Republican-controlled House scheduled for May 6 was pushed off until May 8, CNN reported.

Proponents say the measure will support the religious freedom of adop-

tion agencies and foster care providers. Opponents say it violates the Constitution’s requirement of equal protection under the law.

The bill also could require children in the foster care system to comply with a family’s faith-based requirements, including sending gay children for “conversion therapy” or denying them access to birth control.

Five other states have approved similar laws protecting faith-based adoption organizations that refuse to place children in families based on religion or lifestyle. South Dakota’s law is the most similar since it also covers agencies that receive state funding.

Texas bill would allow adoption agencies to deny couples based on religion

T

he Jewish Federation of Omaha is pleased to announce the launch of a new way to apply for grants through the Spectrum Portal soware program. e program was provided through a generous donation from Michael Staenberg. All Jewish Federation agencies as well as other non-profits within our Omaha Jewish Community can now apply for grants through an online portal that will make applying for grants easier, faster and with less paper waste.

Writing grants is for many, a time consuming and complicated process. e new soware not only allows one to quickly enter information, it streamlines the process by funneling all grant requests through the same channel. Once a profile is set up (it takes less than five minutes), that profile can be accessed any time grant requests through the Jewish Federation of Omaha and the Foundation are due. “is is a tremendous gi,” Louri Sullivan, Senior Director of Community Impact and Special Projects, said.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Staenberg Family for underwriting the cost of this soware. It will benefit everyone who requests grants and through those grants will benefit the community as a whole.” e initial grant for which the Spectrum Portal was used were the “Anything Grants,” for which the Staenberg Family Foundation provided $25,000. “Anything Grants” will provide a broad range of support for Jewish organizations and synagogues in the Omaha Metro Area. ese special one-time matching grants range from $1,000 to $5,000, equal to 50% of the project budget.

During the first round, 21 applicants requested “Anything Grants” funds through the Spectrum Portal. Applications were closed May 8 and recipients will be announced in June of this year.

Future grant requests of the Jewish Federation of Omaha as well as the Foundation will be processed through the Spectrum Portal.

Father’s Day Coming

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Contact our advertising executive to advertise in this very special edition.

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The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 11

Kaplan Book Group to discuss The Boston Girl MARK KIRCHHOFF Program and Communications Assistant On Thursday, May 18, at 1 p.m. in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library, the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group will meet to discuss Anita Diamant’s historical novel, The Boston Girl. The book is a story about family ties and values, friendship and feminism told through the eyes of a young Jewish woman growing up in Boston in the early twentieth century. Protagonist Addie Baum was born in 1900 to immigrant parents who were unprepared for and suspicious of America and its effect on their three daughters. Growing up in the North End, then a teeming multicultural neighborhood, Addie’s intelligence and curiosity take her to a world her parents can’t imagine--a world of short skirts, movies, celebrity culture and new opportunities for women. Addie wants to finish high school and dreams of going to college.

She wants a career and to find true love. Now, the 85-yearold Addie tells the story of her life to her 22-year-old grand-

daughter who has asked her, “How did you get to be the woman you are today?”

Author Anita Diamant has published five novels, The Boston Girl being her most recent. She is best known for her 1997 novel, The Red Tent, a New York Times best seller. She has also written six guides to contemporary Jewish practice: The New Jewish Wedding, The New Jewish Baby Book, Living a Jewish Life, Choosing a Jewish Life, How to Raise a Jewish Child, and Saying Kaddish. A collection of her personal essays, Pitching My Tent, is also in print.

The Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group meets every third Thursday of the month at 1 p.m. in the Kripke Anita Diamant Jewish Federation Library.

This vibrant group formed in 1974 and has been in continuous existence ever since. New members are always welcome.

The Community Engagement and Education arm of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is proud to provide support to this group. To have your questions answered contact Shirly Banner at 402.334.6462 or sbanner@jewishomaha.org.

TONI ROSEN

CERTIFIED RESIDENTIAL SPECIALIST

402.630.8664

Toni.Rosen@cbshome.com

The Holy Rashbi; or: Lag Ba’Omer in Meron Lag Ba’Omer, the most minor of Jewish holidays in the diaspora, is a major event for hundreds of thousands of Israelis. These are the people who make pilgrimage to Meron in northern Israel to be near the grave of the great (second century) kabbalist Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (known by his acronym Rashbi). It is said that Rashbi died on Lag Ba’Omer and that TEDDY by praying at his grave, his soul will WEINBERGER intercede to grant a request. Those especially enthused with this custom set up camp nearby well before the onset of the holiday, which this year is on Saturday night May 13.

While Judaism traditionally frowns upon the use of intercessors in one’s prayers to God, the custom of “prostrating oneself upon the grave of a Tzaddik” is practiced to some extent by many Jews. Unfortunately, some Jews in Israel, like some people worldwide, want to hedge their bets further and will avail themselves of magical incantations, potions and charms--and there is no shortage of purveyors of this magic. My friend and teacher Rabbi Lior Engelman argues that if one understands who Rashbi was, then the celebration at his grave on Lag Ba’Omer is a statement against superstition. He writes (I freely translate): Precisely now we are desperately in need of a true Lag Ba’Omer celebration. At a time of “kabbalah for the masses,” when apparent mystics--who trade in amulets, who are often just money hungry, who sometimes are not even personally observant of the mitzvot, take advantage of the misfortunate and sell them secrets that are supposed to bring them good luck and success--we need Rashbi’s celebration like cool water upon a tired soul. At a time when cheap mysticism presumes to substitute for the internal depths of the Torah, when magic potions and worthless tricks try to quench the thirst for the “water of life,” we need to take advantage of Lag Ba’Omer in order to reacquaint ourselves with the figure of Rashbi, a true divine mystic.

The Midrash tells the story of a childless couple who had been married for 10 years. They come before Rashbi in order to divorce. He says to them: “Just as you were married with food and drink, so you shall not be separated except with food and drink.” The couple does as Rashbi asked and “made for themselves a holiday and had a great feast and the man drank too much.” At this point the man says to the woman: “Take every good thing that I have in this house and carry it to your father’s house.” After the man falls asleep, the woman has her servants carry the man to her father’s house. In the middle of the night, the man wakes up.

Now sober, he asks the woman “Where am I” and she tells him “In my father’s house.” He asks, “What am I doing in your father’s house?” She says to him: “I do not have anything more dear to me in the world than you.” They went to Rashbi, he stood, he prayed for them, and they conceived.

Rashbi does not view his role as being a source for magical charms and blessings. Had he thought this way, when the couple first came to him, he would have immediately prayed on their behalf or given them a reliable charm for fertility and pregnancy. Rashbi understands that in the special case before him, the infertility is a result of a kind of spiritual infertility. He identifies the problem as an internal weakness, as faulty desire, and he brings the couple to a mutual declaration: I don’t have anything in the world more dear to me than you.

After the couple in the story has discovered love anew, after they are prepared to work for their love, Rashbi will pray for them, for now there is something upon which the blessing can take hold. The blessing of a Tzaddik is not a magic solution and is not intended to relieve someone from personal responsibility. The true kabbalist turns inward and teaches his followers to walk in the ways of God. Happy Lag Ba’Omer!

Teddy Weinberger made aliyah in 1997 with his wife, former Omahan Sarah Ross, and their five children. Their oldest four, Nathan, Rebecca, Ruthie and Ezra are veterans of the Israel Defense Forces; Weinberger can be reached at weinross@netvision.net.il.

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B’nai B’rith Triva Contest winners

The annual B’nai B’rith Bible Trivia Contest posed a fun challenge for a number of teams during Yom Ha’atzmaut. In the end, it was the Beth El Team that took home the honor (and not for the first time!). From left: Aviva Shukert, Nate Schwalb, Ben Shapiro, Dick Fellman and Ophir Palmon.

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The freedom to “say good?”

ANNETTE vAN DE KAMP-WRiGHT Editor of the Jewish Press hursday May 4, president Trump signed the latest Executive Order, reversing a 1954 regulation called the Johnson Amendment. The order affects the separation between church and state. Technically, the Amendment is still on the books, but the I.R.S will now officially not enforce it.

To grasp the consequences, we have to ask: what exactly is the Johnson Amendment?

In short, it is a provision in the United States tax code that prohibits non-profit organizations from endorsing or opposing political candidates. The most common among such non-profits are section 501(c) (3) organizations, which include universities, charitable foundations and religious institutions.

Then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson initiated this amendment in 1954, long before he became President. Here is where it gets tricky: without the amendment, non-profits are not only allowed to enter the political stage (clergy can tell congregants how to vote), donors can put pressure on said organizations to pull their gifts if clergy doesn’t endorse their favorite candidate.

With this amendment, would clergy or other non-profit representatives endorse or oppose political candidates, taxexempt status can be revoked. Not that that has actually happened in the past; the I.R.S. is notorious for not following up on complaints regarding non-profits ignoring the Johnson Amendment. Still, the fact that the amendment existed kept many institutions safe from outside pressure to speak out in favor or against any specific candidate. All in all, it has always been a bit of a gray area.

Without the Amendment, there is nothing stopping religious institutions, universities and other charitable organizations from speaking out and joining the campaign trail.

Your rabbi can tell you whom you should vote for. Your biggest donors can tell said rabbi who to endorse from the

pulpit lest they cancel their donations. I know; I’m engaging voice. I don’t find that a comforting thought. in a little fear-mongering here, but here’s the other part: with The notion that the Johnson Amendment has served as the Johnson Amendment neutralized, mega churches can a “gag order” to clergy, which is an argument often used in now write large checks to political campaigns, hold political trying to neutralize said amendment, is faulty. This is not fund raisers and become a very strong voice in Washington. an issue of free speech; this is an issue of separating church In addition, any religious organization is exempt from the Affordable Care Act. “At the signing ceremony, [President] Trump invoked the history of church-driven social change movement in America, referring to the activism of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights movement. He called the amendment “very, very unfair” and told clergy that “you’re now in a position where you can say what you want to say, and I know you’ll only say good and you’ll say what’s in your President Donald Trump greeting clergy members, including Rabbi Marvin Hier, right, in the Rose Garden at the White House, May 4, 2017. heart.” (JTA.com) Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images I am not so sure clergy everywhere will ‘only say good.’ In fact, I’m convinced it’s a and state. Allowing religious institutions to interfere in poslippery slope, for who decides what is ‘good?’ My rabbi does litical campaigns will only serve to divide this nation further. not interpret ‘good’ the same way the Catholic Priest down To have our clergy speak their minds: I’m all for it. In fact, the street does. That Catholic Priest in turn does not agree I’ve never felt that to be the real problem. The real problem with the Evangelicals three blocks over, never mind the mega is that when money comes into play, and candidates become church pastors, the Mormons, Muslims, Jehova’s Witnesses beholden to religious institutions who have more money and or Hindus. And when dollars are at play, flowing from religious a louder voice than those of us who belong to various miinstitutions directly to political candidates’ coffers, those in- norities, our minority voices will ultimately be drowned. stitutions with the biggest bank account will have the loudest That’s not more freedom to say “good,” that’s less.

The war never ended for poor, elderly Jews in the former Soviet Union example, when the Germans invaded the Soviet DAviD ScHizER Union in the spring of 1941, Reuven’s father was JTA drafted and sent to the front. A few days later, We Americans use the phrase “the greatest the family left their home in Bobruisk to stay generation” to describe those who grew up during the Depression, prevailed in World War II and contributed to America’s postwar prosperity and influence. But on a visit last week to Jewish communities in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and Belarus’ Minsk and Bobruisk, I came to realize that elderly Jews in the former Soviet Union deserve this recognition as well.

In many ways they are the other “greatest generation,” whose quiet heroism is inspiring and humbling. While their American Jewish counterparts have mostly enjoyed unprecedented security and comfort, elderly Jews in the former Soviet Union have confronted five almost Afim and Emma A. are clients in need of assistance from the unimaginable challenges.

Hesed social welfare in Rustavi, Georgia.

First, many are Holocaust survivors.

Credit: Sarah Levin of the American Jewish Joint Take Maya, who I met at a Holocaust meDistribution Committee morial service in Minsk. She talked about ahead of the advancing German army. Shortly the day the authorities took her mother away “to thereafter, Reuven’s father returned to help his fill out paperwork for the family.” Although family escape, but all he found was a crater Maya offered to join her mother – not knowing what would happen on that fateful day – her little where the family home had been. He returned to the front and eventually died in battle. Seventybrother vetoed the idea. Because he asked Maya six years later, Reuven cried telling us that his fato stay with him, their sister went instead. ther perished without knowing whether his Tragically, Maya’s mother and sister never refamily was alive. turned.

Third, after the war ended, although proudly Maya found her mother’s body hanging in the town square and never learned what happened to victorious in defeating Nazism, this generation of Jews continued to endure persecution in the her sister. While the barbarity of what happened Soviet Union. The regime enforced strict quotas to them is hard for us to imagine, the family dyto limit the access of Jews to education and pronamics she describes are familiar. In any family, fessional opportunities. In addition, because of the youngest child might insist that one of his the regime’s hostility to religion in general, and siblings should stay with him, so the other ends to Judaism in particular, Jews were not allowed up going on an errand instead. In so many ways, to study Jewish texts, observe Jewish holidays, the Holocaust’s victims were just like us. pass on Jewish traditions to their children, join A second challenge is that many of these eldsynagogues or operate other Jewish communal erly Jews lost fathers in the war, among the milinstitutions. lions of Soviet men who never returned. For

Fourth, because of this discrimination, as well as the lack of economic opportunity more generally in the region, elderly Jews in the former Soviet Union are the poorest Jews in the world despite their advanced education and wellknown appetite for culture and the arts. A retired engineer or doctor in Ukraine has a pension of approximately $2 per day, and her counterpart in Russia has a pension of perhaps $5 per day. I visited an elderly woman in Bobruisk who lives in what once was a stable. She has no indoor plumbing and relies on a small wood stove – with fuel for only a couple of hours a day – to combat the effects of a Belarus winter.

Thousands of elderly Jews live in this sort of poverty throughout the region. The conditions are hard to imagine for those who have not seen them firsthand.

Finally, many of these elderly Jews are alone in confronting these harsh conditions. In the past quarter century, a million Jews have left the former Soviet Union for Israel, and hundreds of thousands have gone to the United States and Western Europe. Obviously, this emigration has been a great success for the immigrants themselves, and for the new communities they now call home. But those left behind have had to fend for themselves. Unlike their Christian neighbors, who depend on their children for care, elderly Jews often are on their own.

These Jewish heroes deserve our help, and improving their lives is much easier than you might think. Today, the organization I lead, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, helps care for 110,000 elderly Jews, including 50,000 victims of the Nazis. With partners such as the Claims Conference, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews and Jewish federations, we provide food, medicine, home care and other forms of critical support. The cost of home care averages about $4 per hour. For those of us who arrange care for relatives in the U.S., this number See The war never ended for the poor page 13

The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 13

Why radiohead’s israel show matters GAbe FriedMAn JTA It may be the 20th anniversary of Radiohead’s seminal album OK Computer, but for some Jewish fans of the band, like me, all is not OK. You might even say I’m feeling Let Down.

Here’s why: In February, the British band announced that it was playing Tel Aviv in July as part of their world tour.

These days it’s a big deal whenever a band of that stature decides to play in Israel amid the political climate in the Middle East, and as a supporter of both the band and the country, I was excited.

But earlier this week, an open letter to Radiohead signed by dozens of high-profile artists was published, urging the band to cancel the show.

“We’d like to ask you to think again -- because by playing in Israel you’ll be playing in a state where, UN rapporteurs say, ‘a system of apartheid has been imposed on the Palestinian people,’” the letter reads. (The U.N. report it cites has since been retracted and criticized by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.)

Reading the letter was like a punch in the gut. It was signed by many artists I respect, such as the director Mike Leigh and the screenwriter James Schamus, but it was the first signatory that hit me the hardest: Tunde Adebimpe, the lead singer of TV on the Radio.

TV on the Radio may be one of my all-time favorite bands. Radiohead may actually be my No. 1 all-time favorite band. Having them pitted against each other is like watching my best friends get in an afterschool scuffle.

The letter was the most recent action in a long series of cultural boycotts called for by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, which seeks to exert economic and political pressure on Israel for its policies toward the Palestinians. Roger Waters, the former frontman for Pink Floyd, who also signed the letter, has become a poster boy for the cultural boycotts -- or attempts to discourage artists from performing in Israel and working with Israeli institutions.

Other famed musicians, such as Lauryn Hill and Elvis Costello, have followed his lead.

Adebimpe’s signing of the letter is a big win for the BDS backers. While Waters may be an old-timer whose music hasn’t been particularly relevant since the 1970s, Adebimpe’s band -- which arguably hit its peak with its 2008 album Dear Science -- is still a cultural force and the object of adoration for millennials.

Which is why his critique seemed particularly damning.

After all, what if you support Israel’s right to thrive -- culturally, at least, whatever you think of its current right-wing government -- and love TV on the Radio? (Or, for that matter, Waters’ recent music?) Boycott attempts like this one pose uncomfortable dilemmas for Jewish music fans of all ages.

If this were a letter criticizing Israel’s current government, or even an impassioned plea to bring about a two-state deal that would meet the legitimate aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians, liberal Zionists and even casual supporters of Israel’s right to exist would not be so put off.

But the BDS movement has long denied Israel’s very legitimacy, and it calls for Jewish withdrawal from Palestinian “lands” -- not just the territories that came under Israeli control after the Six-Day War, but presumably the entire country established in 1948.

The letter offers shallow accusations, comparing Israel to apartheid-era South Africa and calling out Radiohead for ignoring a call to “stand against the denial” of Palestinian rights -- painting the Jewish state as the only side to blame in the conflict. It fails to mention the decades of Palestinian

radiohead’s singer thom Yorke performing at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in indio, Calif, April 21, 2017.

Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Coachella terrorism that has helped swing Israel’s populace to the right, the rejected peace deals that turned hopeful Israelis cynical, or even the robust Israeli NGO human rights sector that advocates for Palestinian rights.

As for the efficacy or justice of a cultural boycott, the people who would actually be affected by a Radiohead concert boycott are young, liberal Israelis who are most likely to sympathize with the Palestinian cause. Rather than engage with Israel’s cultural sector, whose members can actually bring their tools and talents to bear on shaping public opinion, boycotts leave them ever more isolated.

Furthermore, boycotts strengthen the very forces in Israel who are least likely to support an accommodation with the Palestinians.

“See?” they say. “Our enemies grow by the day!”

With those frustrations in mind, should I look at TV on the Radio any differently? A pro-Israel colleague of mine, who used to be a big Pink Floyd fan, now says Roger Waters is as good as dead to him (he often uses less family-friendly language). So should I not listen to TV on the Radio’s music? Should I boycott its concerts?

The awful part of this whole ordeal is that the decisions of these artists are breeding bitterness and divisiveness -- the opposite of what music should be doing today (something I’m sure Adebimpe would agree with).

Radiohead has yet to comment on the letter. If the group keeps its concert on the tour schedule, I’m not sure how I’ll feel about TV on the Radio, but I’ll probably end up loving Radiohead even more. That’s because its Tel Aviv performance gives some love to their fans in Israel and helps culti-

vate the culture scene there.

The band, which has garnered critical acclaim for over two decades and won multiple Grammy Awards, is also bringing along two Israeli acts on its world tour, which has taken them from Europe to Mexico and many places in between. Both Israeli bands promote cross-cultural expression. Shye Ben Tzur, who collaborated with a band of Indian musicians and Radiohead’s lead guitarist Jonny Greenwood on the album Junun -- a collection of songs with Hebrew lyrics inspired by Muslim prayer music -- will open for some of Radiohead’s upcoming shows in Europe.

Dudu Tassa and the Kuwaitis, led by the Iraqi-Jewish Tassa, revives music written by his grandfather and greatuncle, the Al-Kawaiti brothers. As The Times of Israel noted, Haifa-born Muslim Nasreen Qadri, who sings in Arabic, will join the group on the U.S. leg of Radiohead’s tour.

“You may think that sharing the bill with Israeli musicians Dudu Tassa & the Kuwaitis, who play Jewish-Arabic music, will make everything OK,” the BDS letter reads. “It won’t, any more than ‘mixed’ performances in South Africa brought closer the end of the apartheid regime.”

Well, no one act will make everything OK. But if music is about building bridges, Radiohead is on the right track.

The war never ended for poor

Continued from page 12 is astonishingly low. The cost of our daily cappuccino is enough to change the life of one of these Jewish heroes.

It is no secret that the American Jewish community is divided about many important issues today. But there can be no disagreement about the sacrifice and heroism of this generation, or about the life-saving impact we can have assisting them. Indeed, by helping them, we find the profound satisfaction of putting into action the sacred values and obligations that unite us as a people.

David Schizer is the CEO of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee [JDC].

Letters to the editor

Dear Editor, I found it interesting that on Yom Ha’Atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day, the committee chose a movie about the Palestinians of Israel. There are so many relevant films with Jewish themes, I thought this film was inappropriate for the occasion. As much as I enjoy coming to all the things this community has to offer, I think I will sit this one out!

Lynne saltzman

Dear Editor, Condemning Israel’s superior human rights record while ignoring dozens of countries whose record is exponentially worse is the very essence of anti-Semitism. Jihad takes many forms; defeat them all.

- Anonymous

14 | The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017

synagogues b’nai israeL synagogue

618 Mynster Street Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 712.322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com

beTh eL synagogue

Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Street Omaha, NE 68154-1980 402.492.8550 bethel-omaha.org

beTh israeL synagogue

Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street Omaha, NE. 68154 402.556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org

chabad house

An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street Omaha, NE 68144-1646 402.330.1800 OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com

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

offuTT air force base

Capehart Chapel 2500 Capehart Road Offutt AFB, NE 68123 402.294.6244

rose bLumkin JeWish home

323 South 132 Street Omaha, NE 68154

TempLe israeL

Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive Omaha, NE 68144-1206 402.556.6536 templeisraelomaha.com

TifereTh israeL

Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 402.423.8569 tiferethisraellincoln.org

b’nai israeL synagogue

Join us for our monthly Shabbat Speakers Series on may 12, at 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker Dick Fellman, he will offer reflections on his recent trip to Paris to celebrate his granddaughter’s Bat Mitzvah. Oneg to follow service. Everyone is always welcome at B’nai Israel!

Our services are led by lay leader Larry Blass.

For information on our historic synagogue, please contact any of our board members: Scott Friedman, Rick Katelman, Carole Lainof, Marty Ricks, Sissy Silber, Nancy Wolf and Phil Wolf.

beTh eL synagogue

Services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman. friday: B’nai Mitzvah of phoenix and sophia mavropoulos, son and daughter of Karen Klingberg and Dimitrios Mavropoulos; USY Pre-Neg, 5 p.m.; USY Installations, 5:30 p.m.; Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. saTurday: Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. B’nai Mitzvah of phoenix and sophia mavropoulos, son and daughter of Karen Klingberg and Dimitrios Mavropoulos; Junior Congregation, 10 a.m.; Mini-Minyannaires, 10:45 a.m.; Mincha/ Ma’ariv, 8:15 p.m.

Weekday serVices: Sundays, 9:45 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.; weekdays, 7 a.m. & 5:30 p.m. sunday: No BESTT Classes; Torah Study, 10:15 a.m.

Wednesday: BESTT Classes, 4:15 p.m.; Hebrew High & USY Program, 6 p.m.

Annual Meeting, sunday, may 21, 12:30 p.m. We'll elect our new board members, thank our outgoing board members and honor our wonderful volunteers. Cost for lunch: $13 for adults, $6.50 for children ages 7-12, no charge for kids ages 6 and under, and no charge for new members. Please register by May 12 at www.bethel-omaha.org.

All classes and programs are open to everyone in the Jewish community.

beTh israeL synagogue

Services conducted by Rabbi Ari Dembitzer. friday: Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv & Kabbalat Shabbat, 7:30 p.m.; Candle Lighting, 8:15 p.m. saTurday: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Insights in the Weekly Torah Reading, 7:15 p.m.; Mincha/Seudah Shlishit, 8 p.m.; Havdalah, 9:21 p.m. sunday: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Bagels & Beit Medrash, 9:45 a.m. monday: Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Reb Nachman Class, noon with Rabbi Shlomo; Hebrew Class, Level II, 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday & Wednesday: Shacharit, 7 a.m.

Thursday: Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Ethics Class with Rabbi Ari, 7:45 a.m.; Woman’s Class with Rabbi Ari, 9:30 a.m.; Lunch and Learn with Rabbi Shlomo, noon at UNMC.

chabad house

Office hours: Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. friday: Shacharit, 7 a.m. followed by coffee, treats, study and shmoozing. saTurday: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. followed by a festive kiddush luncheon. sunday: Shacharit, 8:30 a.m. followed by Sunday Secrets: Jewish Fun Facts class at 9:15 a.m.

Weekdays: Shacharit, 7 a.m. followed by coffee, treats, study and shmoozing. monday: Personal Parsha class, 9:30 a.m. with Shani.

Tuesday: Women’s Workshop: Three Parenting Tips, noon.

Wednesday: New Tanya Series -- The Anatomy of Your Soul: Who Are You?, 9:30 a.m. with Rabbi Mendel Katzman.

Thursday: Advanced Talmud Class, noon with Rabbi Mendel Katzman; Women’s Workshop: Three Parenting Tips, 7 p.m.

All programs are open to the entire community.

Tuesday: Ladies Lunch Group, noon at The Eatery, (2548 South 48th St.) Please let Deborah Swearingen (402.476.7528) know if you’re planning to attend, so she can get an accurate count, or if you have any questions; Kochavim Rehearsal, 6:45 p.m.

Thursday: Trope Class, 7 p.m. with Michael Boekstal.

Class participants will need The Art of Torah Cantillation by Marshall Portnoy and Josee Wolff; Choir Rehearsal, 7 p.m.

Game Night and Potluck Dinner, friday, may 20, 6 p.m.

South Street Temple is partnering with "We Can Do This" to provide weekend meals to the children of the F Street Community Center. Join us as we provide lunch on the third Sunday of every month. Food/monetary donations, meal preparation and assistance with setting up, serving, and clean-up are needed! We will serve our next meal on may 21 at 2:30 p.m. For more information, email Sarah Beringer at sarah.m.beringer@gmail.com.

Please help us fund our Annual commitment to Clinic With a Heart. The funds we contribute help to pay for clinic supplies and prescription medications for the patients. Your tax deductible contribution to Clinic with a Heart can be made with a check to the Temple, designated for the clinic.

Help in our Temple Gardens! Help us get ready for a beautiful summer garden! How can you help? Tending the flower beds during the summer: We can also use help with routine weeding and trimming during the spring and summer. Help us keep a beautiful garden to enhance our Temple! Contact: Ellin Siegel at ellin7@aol.com or 402.525.4022 or the Temple Office and let us know you would like to help in the gardens.

LJCS CAMP ISRAEL, July 10–July 21, 9 a.m.–2 p.m. at TI. Kosher lunch and snack provided. LJCS enrolled students entering. Tuition for each week is $75 and if you are enrolling two or more children, the cost is $50 per child, per week. This program is open to children entering kindergarten through sixth grade.

Please send tuition checks payable to LJCS to Andrea at TI no later than July 1. Camp registration is required through LJCS.

offuTT air force base

friday: Services, 7:30 p.m. every first and third of the month.

rose bLumkin JeWish home

saTurday: Services, 9:15 a.m. led by Alan Shulewitz.

Services will be held in the Chapel. Members of the community are invited to attend.

TempLe israeL

friday: Shabbat Comes to You at Remington Heights, 4 p.m.; Shabbat Service/10th Grade Confirmation, 6 p.m. Our tenth graders will share a private moment with our Clergy to affirm their commitment to the Jewish people. Everyone is invited to share in this poignant rite of passage as we wish our students well in their continuing Jewish education. Confirmation families are invited to share Shabbat dinner with the class following the service. Reservations are required for dinner. saTurday: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Services, 10:30 a.m. Bar Mitzvah of Zev gordman, son of

Danielle and Jeff Gordman.

Tuesday: Executive Committee Meeting, 6 p.m.; Board of Trustees Meeting, 7 p.m.

Thursday: Music of Today as Prayer and Prayer of Today as Music: What’s it all About? 10 a.m. with Scott Littky.

Annual Meeting, Tuesday, may 23, 6:30 p.m. Please join us for the Annual Meeting to honor Rabbi Darryl Crystal for his great service and leadership as our Interim Rabbi during this year of transition. We will also be voting on the Bylaws and the Board of Trustees 2017-2018 slate. Afterwards, we will enjoy a wine and cheese oneg.

Holy Smokes, Tuesday, may 23, 7:30 p.m. with Rabbi Steven Abraham. This men’s only (21+) evening features cigars, spirits, beer and philosophical discussions of men’s issues and perspectives from Jewish texts.

Erev Shavuot Study & Dairy Dinner, Tuesday, may 30, 6 p.m. Shavuot is the holiday when the Jewish people accepted the Torah and Mount Sinai. Please join us as we explore the kindness and devotion of this sacred text. RSVPs are required for the dinner. Please contact the Temple Israel office, 402.556.6536.

Shavuot Service and Yizkor, Wednesday, may 31, 10:30 a.m. If you would like to have the names of your loved ones read during Yizkor, please contact Temple Israel, 402.556.6536,

by Thursday, May 25, with the names.

TifereTh israeL

Services conducted by lay leader Nancy Coren. Office hours: monday-friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. friday: Services, 6:30 p.m. saTurday: Shabbat Morning Services, 10 a.m. followed

by Kiddush lunch.

Tuesday: Ladies Lunch Group, noon at The Eatery, 2548 South 48th St. Please contact Deborah Swearingen with have any questions.

LJCS CAMP ISRAEL, July 10–July 21, 9 a.m.–2 p.m. at TI. Kosher lunch and snack provided. LJCS enrolled students entering. Tuition for each week is $75 and if you are enrolling two or more children, the cost is $50 per child, per week. This program is open to children entering kindergarten through sixth grade.

Please send tuition checks payable to LJCS to Andrea at TI no later than July 1. Camp registration is required through LJCS. Tifereth Israel Annual Meeting, sunday, may 21 at 3 p.m.

Please mark your calendar and plan to attend.

To submiT announcemenTs

Announcements may be e-mailed to the Press at jpress@jewish omaha.org; faxed to 402.334.5422, or mailed to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154.

Readers can also submit announcements -- births, b’nai mitzvahs, engagements, marriages, commitment ceremonies or obituaries -- online at the Jewish Federation of Omaha website: www.jewish omaha.org. Click on “Jewish Press” and go to Submit Announcements.

Deadlines are normally eight days prior to publication, on Thursdays, 9 a.m. Please check the Jewish Press, for notices of early deadlines.

Esther Wax sensory room dedication

congregaTion b’nai Jeshurun

Services conducted by Rabbi Craig Lewis. friday: Pre-neg, 6 p.m. hosted by Laura French and Philip Cantu; Friday Night Live! Shabbat Evening Service and Confirmation Service, 6:30 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:17 p.m. saTurday: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. on Parashat Emor; Havdalah (72 Minutes), 9:48 p.m.

The esther Wax sensory room at the rose blumkin Jewish home was officially dedicated sunday, may 7 in the presence of esther and Jim Wax’s extended family. on the day of the unveiling of esther’s stone, friends and family visited the space that was created in her honor and shared their personal memories. esther was a volunteer for L.o.V.e for over 17 years.

The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017 | 15

lifecycles B’NaI MITzvaH

CHaRLES MICHaEL BLuM

Charles Michael Blum, son of Rachel Blum and Mike Blum, will become a Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, May 20, at Temple Israel.

Charlie is a seventh-grade honor roll student at Davis Middle School. He has received awards for his grades and attendance at Davis Middle School.

Charlie LOVES basketball! He enjoys playing the game, watching the game, playing NBA 2K, and even helps coach a third grade instructional league. He enjoys all sports and being active, likes listening to music, and loves shopping for shoes, especially when it’s with his friends.

For his mitzvah project, Charlie volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club North Omaha unit, where he spent his afternoons with the kids in their program. He played basketball with them, worked on projects and helped serve snacks to all participants on a weekly basis.

Grandparents are Phoebe Shkolnick of Omaha and the late Dave Shkolnick, and Mary and Paul Blum of Omaha.

BENJaMIN KuTLER

Benjamin Kutler, son of Pam and Bruce Kutler, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on Saturday, May 20, at Beth El Synagogue.

Benjamin is a seventh-grade honors student at Westside Middle School, and is a member of the National Junior Honor Society.

Benjamin plays baseball for Hosey’s Heroes and is a member of Westside Connection Show Choir.

For his mitzvah project, Benjamin volunteered with the Special Olympics.

He also participated in the Holocaust Remember Us Project, and will be honoring a child of the Holocaust in his Bar Mitzvah.

He has a sister, Emily.

Grandparents are the late Ben and Harriet Kutler, Myrna Myers and the late Mark Myers of Arizona, Donna Stern and the late Harvey Stern of California.

Temple Israel happenings

Picture from top to bottom: The Relief Sculpture Dedication was held last weekend in the Chapel. Rabbi Crystal and Ben Brodkey lead the group in Oseh Shalom; OTYG Lock In and Elections were held last Shabbat. Our senior youth group spent Shabbat together learning, eating and enjoying being together with their friends; Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman founder and leader of Congregational Kol HaNeshama in Jerusalem teaching about the sources of Interfaith work found in the Torah.

Friedel Jewish Academy is seeking a part-time Music Teacher.

Email inquiries only to bcohen@fjaomaha.com.

BIRTH

OLIvER RHODES NaTHaN

Lauren and Jeff Nathan of Orlando, FL announce the March 28 birth of their son, Oliver Rhodes.

He is named for great-grandmother, Rhoda Davis Blatt.

He has a sister, Lila Esther Nathan Grandparents are Carol and Ira Nathan of Omaha, and Lisa and Lenny Frazer of Ormond Beach, FL. Great-grandparents are Lois and Barry Kalin and Diane and Sidney Frazier, both of Ormond Beach, FL.

Prince Charles will not be visiting Israel

JTA news sTAff Prince Charles of Britain will not be visiting Israel, despite media reports citing senior officials saying he would.

Charles, the heir to the throne, would have been the first member of the royal family to make an official state visit to Israel since its founding.

“Her Majesty’s Government makes decisions on Royal Visits based on recommendations from the Royal Visits Committee, taking into account advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office,” a Foreign Office spokeswoman said. “e Committee never proposed a royal visit to Israel for 2017. e British tabloid e Sun reported May 7 that the decision made by the Foreign Office may have been taken to avoid upsetting Arab nations in the region. ough the visit was not officially announced, senior officials had been cited in the British and Israeli media in recent weeks saying that Charles or another member of the royal family would travel to Israel to mark the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, which stated the British government’s support for “the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.”

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin extended an invitation for a royal state visit to Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson at a meeting in Jerusalem earlier this year. e Sun reported that the invitation never officially reached the royal family.

In October, Charles made a private trip to Israel to attend the funeral of former Israeli President Shimon Peres. While there he visited, in secret, the grave of his grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, who is buried in the Church of Mary Magdalene on the Mount of Olives. Princess Alice died in 1969 in London and was transferred to a crypt in the church in 1988 in accordance with her wishes.

In general, the British royal family refrains from official visits to Israel except for state funerals; it does not recognize eastern Jerusalem as part of Israel. e few royal visits to Israel have been defined as private. Prince Philip visited in 1994 for a ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial to honor his mother. Prior to the ceremony, Philip and his sister, Princess Sophie, visited their mother’s coffin.

Fidget spinner invented to stop kids from throwing rocks

JTA news sTAff Do we have Palestinian rock throwers to thank for the fidget spinner? e inventor of the ubiquitous stress-reducing toy says she came up with the idea during a trip to Israel in the 1980s, during the First Intifada, as a way to distract the “young boys throwing rocks at police officers.”

Catherine Hettinger told CNN Money last week that she first brainstormed the gadget while visiting her sister in the Jewish state and hearing about the clashes between Palestinian youth and Israeli security.

She first considered designing a “so rock that kids could throw,” according to CNN Money.

“It started as a way of promoting peace,” Hettinger said.

But soon aer, upon returning home to Orlando, Florida, Hettinger put together the first fidget spinner -- a propellerlike toy that spins around a center bearing.

Hettinger secured a patent for the device in 1997, but sales languished for over a decade, and Hasbro declined to market it. Hettinger did not have the money to pay the $400 fee to renew her patent in 2005.

It was not until last year that the fidget spinner became a sensation, appearing everywhere from office cubicles to elementary school classrooms. Some tout the toy as a stress reliever, but others find them disruptive and distracting.

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Stranger in a strange land

emergingvoices

16 | The Jewish Press | May 12, 2017

It’s not easy being different. Except for going to preschool at the CDC, I have gone to public school my whole life--I have for nine years and I will for the next four. So far, I have been the only kid in my grade and school for a few years that has been Jewish. Growing up with that one difference has definitely been interesting, to say the least; but at the end of the day, I believe it strengthened my love for Judaism in a very unique way.

For most of the kids, and some of the teachers, they have never met a Jewish person. This means that I am the example. When classmates and teachers think about their experience with Judaism, they will think of me as what it is all about. This, of course, is not true; but for them, it is. I need to be as good as possible to set a positive example for this beautiful religion. For example, if the only Jewish kid in the school is mean, constantly gets detentions and is just a bad person in general, then that is what most of the people at that school will think of Judaism. But, if the only Jewish kid in school is nice, respectful, a great leader and an all around mensch, then people will have positive views towards Judaism. This means that I, and many people in the same situation, have to be great so as not to tarnish others’ views towards Jewish people. For some kids, having one more difference in middle school is the last thing they want; but the sooner we acknowledge that difference, the easier it is to love it. You need to be confident in yourself to love that difference. It takes some chutzpah to be comfortable about it, but the feeling of acceptance is a total relief.

With all differences, there follows curiosity. People will ask me questions about almost anything regarding Judaism, and I always enjoy hearing and answering these questions. Some

Linda Hartough

are easy like: “Do you read the New Testament?” “Do you celebrate Christmas and Easter?”

“Why do you always eat that weird cardboard cracker in spring?” But some questions require more intricate answers. A frequent question that I am asked is, “Do you believe in Jesus?” My short answer is no; Spencer Gordman but there are always more questions, mostly in the “Why?” category. Some questions I don’t really know the answer to. One of my friends asked me what the Jewish belief is about the afterlife -- is there one and what is it? I genuinely had no idea, so I went to Rabbi Abraham and asked him the very same questions and got exactly the answers I was looking for. That is why I love the questions; it makes me want to learn more, so I can be well informed when the time comes for a hard question.

Jonathunder via Wikimedia commons

Jewish holidays are always an interesting time during the school year. My favorite Jewish holidays for school are Hanukkah and Pesach. This winter, I decided it would be fun to show my classmates why Hanukkah is awesome, so I brought dreidels. I cut up some gold coins out of yellow paper and taught my friends how to play. I showed them how the game worked and told them the story of Hanukkah

Aldo Luongo

Cheryl Kelley

William Phillips

while we played. Soon, there were multiple games going in my homeroom and study halls. People started catching on to the letters, their names, and what they meant in the game. I had a blast, and I’m glad that my friends had as much fun as I always do.

During Pesach, I took a more culinary route. My family made charoset for a seder, so I took the leftovers. I grabbed a box of matzah and the charoset and brought it to school.

During homeroom and lunch, classmates would ask what the weird cracker and apple dip was, so I let them try it.

Needless to say, there were mixed results. Some people took one bite and were not fans, but others loved it and kept coming back for more. There were even a few kids who liked the plain matzah, to which I responded with, “You do you.” For a week, I lived off of matzah PB&J at school, so of course, my friends waved pizza and corn dogs in front of my face. I love to show the fun side of Judaism to people; it gets them to ask questions and want to learn more.

At the end of the day, I love being the only Jewish kid in my grade. Being different makes me want to learn more, and have fun with my friends. It isn’t always easy; there is bound to be some anti-semitism anywhere you go. I learned to celebrate this difference and be proud to be Jewish; not everyone is as fortunate. I feel stronger about being Jewish in a way that only being different can teach you. Once you accept that you are different, who knows where that confidence will take you.

Spencer Gordman is an 8th grade student at Elkhorn Grandview Middle School and the son of Allison and Jay Gordman. He is a Rotary Honor Roll recipient and enjoys writing and math. He also enjoys leading Shachrit and reading Torah at Beth El Synagogue.

Spencer goes to Camp Ramah in Wisconsin during the summer and will be a freshman at Elkhorn High School.

He shares his story as part of the emerging Voices series. Emerging Voices invites Jewish writers between the ages of 13 and 25 to share their thoughts and opinions about any topic they choose. If you are interested in writing for this series, please email the editor at avandekamp@jewishomaha.org.

Emerging Voices is supported by the Joanie Jacobson Jewish Cultural Arts Fund at the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation.

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Ted Williams

Don Demers

MON-FRI 9 to 5 SAT 12 to 4 or by appointment 402.399.9555

Rod Chase

R. Tom Gilleon

A Woman Owned Small Business