May 19, 2017 by Jewish Press

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SPoNSoreD bY tHe beNJaMiN aND aNNa e. WieSMaN FaMilY eNDoWMeNt FuND

NJHS presents: An Evening with the Heirloomist Page 6

The 2017 Jewish Community High School graduates Pages 8+9

How Liev Schreiber’s Jewish grandpa inspired him Page 16

inside Viewpoint Synagogues Life cycles

12 14 15

aNNette vaN De KaMP-WriGHt Editor of the Jewish Press r. Howard Gendelman will receive the Jewish Federation of Omaha Humanitarian of the Year Award. The community will honor him

Dr. Howard Gendelman during the JFO Annual Meeting June 5 at 7 p.m. The entire community is invited to attend. Howard is married to Bonnie Bloch; they are parents to Sierra and Jason Tobias and Lesley, Adam and Jennifer Gendelman and grandparents to Emma Ehrenkranz, Sacha Tobias

and baby boy Tobias. These words affectionately describe Howard, written by his daughter Sierra, on the occasion of his receiving a Life Time Achievement Award from the International Society for Neurovirology. See Humanitarian of the Year page 2

Oh, the places they’ll go...

Summer Programs

MaGGie CoNti tickets the day of Director of Activities and the show at Will Volunteer Services, RBJH Call. Make check Sunday, June 11, payable to Jewish 2 p.m. in the Jewish Community Community Center Center and send Theater. The JCC reservation with Musical: Rodgers & full payment to Hammerstein’s Jewish Social Oklahoma! Cost: $5 Services, c/o per person, a saving Maggie Conti, of 50% to Main323 S. 132nd Wayne Miller streeters. We must Street, Omaha, have your reservation by Monday, NE 68154. For questions call MagJune 5 – no tickets will be issued gie at 402.334.6521. after the deadline. Pick up your Monday, June 19. Enjoy a luncheon with the Wayne Miller, One Man Big Band: 12:30 p.m. in the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home Auditorium. With the advent of the electronic accordion, Wayne Miller precisely emulates all styles of music. His sound from the stage is equivalent to a five-piece band, without the aid of computer-generated background. His repertoire consists of the big band sound of the 40s See Mainstreeters page 3

Friedel 6th Grade Grads: Julian Witkowski, left, Mendel Wright, Sophia Mavropoulos, Peyton Kelln, Noah Shrago and Jack Cohen. ozzie NoGG Shrago, son of Michael and Six students will celebrate the Melissa Shrago, and Lesli Shrago; rite of passage from grade school Julian Witkowski, son of Isaac and to middle school during Freidel Susan Witkowski; and Mendel Jewish Academy’s Graduation Wright, son of Jeremy Wright and scheduled for Thursday, May 25, Annette van de Kamp-Wright. A at 7 p.m. in the JCC Theater. The dessert reception follows the gradFriedel graduates are Jack Cohen, uation ceremony and the entire son of Michael and Karen Cohen; community is invited to attend. Peyton Kelln, son of Mark and “Every class is unique,” said Mrs. Heather Kelln; Sophia MavropouDenise Bennett, a faculty member los, daughter of Karen Klingberg at Friedel for twenty-eight years, and Dimitrios Mavropoulos; Noah See Friedel graduates page 4

2 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

Humanitarian of the Year

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Continued from page 1 “For the past 32 years, I have seen my father’s endless commitment to progressing and innovating with his medical research. He has fought tirelessly for all patients to find discoveries to combat serious and often life-threatening medical ailments. His research offers hope to so many who cannot fight for themselves. He is a visionary. “This man is many things to many people. He is a mentor and teacher to his students, his fellows and his faculties. He is an approachable leader to his staff. He has healed and given hope to many of his patients. And he is a brilliant trailblazer who has succeeded in discovering how the brain’s environment is altered by disease, but can be repaired in ways that were unimaginable even five years ago. To my siblings, to me and my mother, he is simply a loving and devoted father and husband. If it is possible to be endlessly committed to your craft and to your family, that describes the father who raised me. He taught us to live life to the fullest, dream big and never forget the profound impact of the human connection, friendship and community.” It is that balance between making enormous strides in his professional life and simultaneously be utterly present in community life that sets Howard apart and makes him such a perfect example of what a Humanitarian ought to be. Being present, for others but also for one’s self means finding the joy in life -- being there for the weekly Shabbat home cooked dinner and connecting with the people in one’s life as thoroughly as being there in the lab, discovering, researching, being a role model and never giving up the endless quest for better medical treatment. How many of us would allow one or the other to take second place? Not Howard. Howard is the Margaret R. Larson professor of Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases, Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience and Director of the Center for Neurodegenerative Disorders at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. It’s a mouthfull, not to mention that when I called him to talk about this article, he shared he was in the middle of training for a marathon. Howard obtained degrees in Science and Russian Literature from Muhlenberg College, an M.D. from the Pennsylvania State University and received Clinical and Research Training in Internal Medicine, Neurology and Infectious Diseases at Montefiore Hospital, Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Johns Hopkins University Medical Center. He held faculty positions at Hopkins, the National Institutes of Health, the Uniformed Services University and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. Howard retired from the U.S. Army with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In March of 1993, he joined the faculty of UNMC. “Howie has a very keen, creative mind, matched only by his enormous drive for discovery,” said UNMC Chancellor Emeritus, Harold M. Maurer, M.D. “He attacks important scientific problems, where solutions would benefit millions of patients with dreaded diseases. In addition to his scientific prowess, he is a strong leader, a wonderful person who often speaks from the heart and has a refreshing sense of humor. I feel he has the ability to win the Nobel prize. As chancellor, I’ve always said “give me 10 more Howie Gendelmans.” During his 35-year-young career, he trained more than 50 students, fellows and junior faculties who are now Deans, departmental chairpersons, professors and leaders in the pharmaceutical industry and in healthcare. He built a department that was ranked in the bottom quartile when he took its reigns and now is among the top 10 in the nation. The community has honored him by establishing the Professorship in his name at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. That position is now filled by Dr. Shilpa Buch. His research is multifaceted and focuses on finding a CURE for HIV/AIDS and in improving the quality of life of those stricken with Parkinson’s disease. While seemingly very different diseases, Howard has connected them through his discoveries. He is highly respected worldwide for his scientific accomplishments and is ranked in the top one percent of all scientists by the citations given to his scholarly works. In the now third edition of the book the Neurology of AIDS, where Howard is the senior editor, a patient writes a tribute to how his research discoveries have translated into improving the well-being of those affected by HIV/AIDS. A patient writes, “Three days after receiving this undeniable death sentence, we received some much-needed good news. His name is Dr. Gendelman. In Dr. Gendelman, we found hope. “Apparently, the AIDS virus attacks people in differ-

ent ways. Dr. Gendelman told us that having HIV affects the brain in such a devastating way with no other signs of AIDS was rare. It is nothing short of a miracle that I am alive today. Just two months ago, my viral count was over one million and I was given two months to live. Today, my viral count is barely detectable. Dr. Gendelman always tells me I am medical history in the making.” You see, it’s a fairly typical thing for Howard to insert in a conversation: a real-life example this story so aptly makes. “I was seeing this woman who had lost consciousness at Creighton University hospital. I was asked to fashion a diagnosis and also suggest treatments. I saw that the patient was in the final stages of HIV and had AIDS dementia. It was more than 20 years ago so there weren’t the effective drugs now available. We got them directly through the companies who were testing their use, then ground them, placing them into a stomach tube. After several tortuous months, she finally made a nearly “miraculous” complete recovery. Yes, saving a life has an immeasurable effect in science, in treatment and in life.” “The essence of what I try to be and do, is what it says in the Gemara,” Howard said. “When you save a life, you save the world. To make a real difference is what drives most physicians and scientists.” Actors and community activists such as Elizabeth Taylor and Sharon Stone lauded and retold the story in the foreword they co-wrote for Howard’s book with Mathilde Krim, founding chairman and chairman of the board of the American Foundation for AIDS Research. Harris Gelbard, M.D., Ph.D. has known Dr. Gendelman (Howie to him) “since 1992, when I met him in the context of an NIH-funded program project.” Upon hearing of Howard’s Award, he said: “I am THRILLED that he is being named Humanitarian of the Year - his work has touched many, and offers the promise of changing the way we treat HIV-1 on a global level. He is my oldest and closest collaborator outside my institution and has been involved with helping me for the majority of my professional career. While our training paths and skill sets are very different, he has been a guiding force in my career. “But it is his ability to meet the insatiable demands of work with an endearing and at times brash attitude toward life, always tempered with the motive force of Tikkun Olam, that truly sets him apart and makes the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Omaha extraordinarily lucky to have him there.” While Howard has practiced medicine for 35 years, he says that teaching others is his most laudable accomplishment: “When it comes to science, I have to share ideas and communicate with other scientists and students. I have to not only impart information but also the importance of the work, the passion, the perspectives and the philosophy behind all we do. It’s why I enjoy spending time teaching. Whether you teach four-year-olds or advanced scientists, the sharing of knowledge transcends all.” Simultaneously, Howard and his colleagues have been researching Parkinson’s Disease for close to 18 years. Together with Dr. Pamela Santamaria and R. Lee Mosley, Howard reached a milestone in the effort to harness the immune system to slow or even halt the progression of Parkinson’s Disease. “In an early clinical trial in humans, Howard and his team used drugs to shift a population of white blood cells from destructive mode to a protective state that can help defend against brain injury. The results of the trial indicate that it is possible to go beyond treating symptoms to slowing or even halting the disease itself.” (OWH, March 27, 2017). “With teaching comes never ending learning,” Howard added. “Forty years ago, I received my Medical School acceptance letter. It said one thing that stuck with me: ‘We are committed to a lifetime of learning.’ It dawned on me how important that word was: ‘learning.’ It’s the key to everything I do. At my interview before being accepted into Medical School, one of the interviewers asked that perennial question: Where do you see yourself in 40 years? “I told him that this is really not the best question. A better one would be to ask me it in 40 years. The interviewer looked bewildered. I said, “Let’s meet again when I’m 60, and if I can just reflect back on the past 40 years and simply smile, that would be my greatest achievement but also the best answer.” Joel Alperson has known Howard for many years, but their friendship deepened when Howard was President of Beth Israel. “He asked me to join the synagogue board,” Joel remembered, “and we found we shared a passion for the See Humanitarian of the Year page 3

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 3

Continued from page 1 through the music of the 50s and 60s. Don’t miss it. Select one of the following entrées: grilled hamburgers, hot dog, veggie burger and a veggie dog. Entrees include coleslaw, potato chips, watermelon, a challah roll, and cookies for dessert with a beverage of your choice. Cost is $10 a plate. Make checks payable to Jewish Social Services and send full payment to: Mainstreeters c/o Maggie Conti, 323 So. 132 Street, Omaha, NE 68154. Reservations are appreciated by Monday, June 12. For transportation call Maggie at 402.334.6521 by June 12. Join Us at the Movies: La La Land: Friday, June 23 at 1 p.m. in the JCC Theater. Free film and unlimited bags of warm, delicious popcorn. No reservations necessary. Invite a friend. La La Land tells the story of Mia (Emma Stone) an aspiring actress, and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), a dedicated jazz musician, who are struggling to make ends meet in a city known for crushing hopes and breaking hearts. Set in modern day Los Angeles, this original musical about everyday life explores the joy and

pain of pursuing your dreams. Academy Awards – Best Picture Nominee, Best Actress in a Leading Role: Emma Stone and Best Director: Damien Chazelle. If you’d like to have lunch at the Star Deli before the show, call Maggie Conti at 402.334.6521 to reserve a table. Lunch is on your own. The Star Deli starts serving at 11:30 a.m. A Funny Thing happened on the way to the Forum, Sunday, July 16. 2 p.m. matinee at The Ralston Community Theater at Ralston High School, 8969 Park Street. Cost per ticket: $15. Sondheim’s joyous, musical romp through Rome has desperate lovers, scheming neighbors, and secrets behind every toga. We’ll meet in the theater lobby at 1:30 p.m. to pick up our tickets. Make your check payable to Jewish Social Services and send reservation with full payment to: Mainstreeters c/o Maggie Conti, 323 South 132 Street, Omaha, NE 68154. For information call Harry Alloy at 402.697.8709 Mainstreeters -- the fun-filled organization for Jewish residents of the Omaha area age 60 and older -- is keeping its promise to offer social events and learning opportunities that give participants the chance to meet new people, exercise their brains, take part in new activities and continue enjoying life to the fullest.

community Humanitarian of the Year

Continued from page 2 well-being of the synagogue. Howard is a fascinating man. People may know him through his work at UNMC and see a brilliant scientist who is extremely driven to reach his goals. Or they may know him from Shul, where he is passionate about its strength and viability. At home, you’ll see a man who is friendly and warm. How people see him is very much a product of the setting; in truth, he is all those things simultaneously. In Howard’s case, Shabbat is extra beneficial!” Joel added he doubts the Omaha Jewish Community has ever seen a more deserving recipient of the Humanitarian of the Year Award. “I say this as a friend, but also as an objective community member. He came here as one man. Nowadays, he has 150 people working in his department. Think of all the people he has educated over the years, who in turn are able to be a benefit to others; the ripple effect is astounding. When Howard told me he treated patients in addition to his research, I was surprised. He shared it’s essential to remember the human face of medicine.” UNMC Chancellor Dr. Jeffrey Gold shares: “Dr. Gendelman truly exemplifies our mission to lead the world in transforming lives to create a healthy future for all individuals and communities.” According to daughter Sierra, his accomplishments might tempt people to imagine Howard as a very serious man. That is not the case:

“The side we saw [growing up] was a fun, silly, spontaneous man who lives in the moment.” Beth Israel Rabbi Ari Dembitzer agrees: “Howie makes it a point to not take himself too seriously. He achieves so much, but he continues to show incredible humility.” “Environment is a key ingredient to having a successful life,” Howard said. “I have a great family, live in a great community and I work at a great University. Those three things are essential; if I lived somewhere else, things wouldn’t be this way. I am humbled when these worlds collide. Being named Humanitarian of the Year is both thought-provoking and joyful.” “It is an honor to recognize an individual in our community who, through their dedication and scientific experience, will have a lasting impact on the health and well-being of future generations.” JFO CEO Alan Potash said. “ In addition, Dr. Gendelman has recruited other great scientists and researchers to Omaha to the benefit of our Jewish community. This is a much deserved recognition for Dr. Gendelman.” “Curing Parkinson’s Disease during the day and putting together carts for the kids to play with at Beth Israel in his off hours perfectly illustrate Howard’s dedication,” JFO President Bruce Friedlander added. “He doesn’t stop when he leaves the office; he cares deeply about our synagogue life and takes care of our children. We as a community are very lucky Howard is with us.”

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4 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

Beautiful Life Family Home Care: Helping seniors continue a full, active and healthy way of life

community Friedel graduates

Continued from page 1 and current 5th and 6th grade General Studies teacher. “Each year it’s difficult to say good-bye to the special individuals graduating. Each of these sixth graders has a place in the hearts of the teachers.” When this year’s Friedel grads enter seventh grade in the fall, the path they’ve walked together for the past six years will lead them to different schools -- Jack Cohen, Lewis and Clark; Peyton Kelln and Julian Witkowski, Beveridge Magnet School; Mendel Wright, Millard North Middle School; Sophia Mavropoulos, Bennington Middle School; Noah Shrago, Kiewit or Davis Middle School. Though all six kids look forward to new experiences, they unanimously agree that the transition will be a bit emotional. “I’m excited for middle school,” Julian Witkowski said, “but sad because Friedel’s my second home. I’ve known everybody since preschool. They’re like my family.” For Mendel Wright, graduation is, “A mixture between excited and nervous and scared. I finally get to go to Middle School, but I am also leaving and saying goodbye.” Sophia Mavropoulos added, “I feel like I’m ready to explore something new and to take a bigger step in life. But I’m also a little sad because I’m going to miss everyone and the way we celebrated Jewish holidays.” This group of twelve-year olds is, by turns, goofy and serious. Peyton Kelln tells of his favorite Friedel memory (when Jack wore a tutu in class and smacked into things) and then switches gears to say, “I would describe the bond between us as unbreakable and inseparable, because we’ve been with each other so long, and we’re more sympathetic to one another’s pain.” Noah Shrago allows that middle school will be exciting because there will be “more girls” and then credits Friedel for “the life lessons I learned,” and thanks Mrs. Bennett because she “prepared us for the amount of homework we’ll have in seventh grade.” Jack Cohen describes the fun he had in Friedel’s Innovation Learning classes – designing, creating and then deconstructing a prosthetic leg made from cardboard tubing and tennis balls - then grows wistful as he admits, “Everyone says it’s not hard to adjust from a small school to a big school,” but there is a little worry in his voice as he talks about the transition. Still, the comfort of old friends will remain only a tweet away. The Friedel Class of 2017 grads plan to stay connected through texts and emails, a group chat on iMessage, plus synagogue and JCC activities. “We’ve

known each other since we were in diapers at the CDC,” Mendel Wright said, “We’re not going to lose touch now.” Seventh grade is months away, but the Super Six have already staked out their areas of interest in Middle School. Sports of all sorts, jazz band, math and physics, Chinese language studies, art classes, biology, debate team and extracurricular clubs are in the mix. “Friedel gave me a really good education and I know I’m going into middle school prepared,” Sophia said. “Friedel also taught me to be confident, which will help me a lot at Bennington.” While contemplating their future in middle school, the kids also considered their lives, 20 years from now. Jack plans to become an astrophysicist or neurosurgeon. Peyton sees himself as “a white hat, a good hacker that helps get rid of other hackers for good.” Noah dreams of life as “an engineer for NASA, living near Cape Canaveral, and starting a family.” Julian, a dedicated Harry Potter and Star Wars Universe fan, thinks his interest in Slytherin House could translate into a career as a designer-slash-inventor. Sophia isn’t sure. “I like a lot of things and I haven’t decided. I want to do something with my hands, something that creates things. I know I don’t want to work in an office sitting behind a desk.” Mendel, in his typical dead-pan delivery, said, “In 20 years I’ll probably be living in my mom’s basement playing video games and watching Youtube videos. But, you know, plans change. Honestly? I have no idea. What I do know is that in Friedel’s 6th Grade we were top dog. In Middle School we’ll be the bottom of the food chain.” A prediction which Jack tempered by saying, “Friedel provided us with an amazing education,” he said, “so we’ll be some of the smart ones.” “This group started Friedel together as kindergarteners,” said Head of School Beth Cohen. “Many of these graduates have an older sibling who also graduated from Friedel. And not only that, two of these graduates have parents who attended Friedel. Much of my work at Friedel is about looking forward to advance both the institution and the individual student. Graduation is a great night to look back and marvel at the growth of these students over the last seven years at Friedel. We are so proud of their accomplishments.” This band of brothers - and one sister - put their heads together to write a collaborative speech that they’ll deliver, as a team, during the graduation ceremony on May 25. You’ll want to be there to hear what these very savvy kids have to say.

Go to Friedel. It feeds your brain! Jack Cohen, 6th Grade graduate

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The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 5

Sokolof Merit Awards

May 9, the sokolof award recipients were honored in the rBJh auditorium. Pictured are karen sokolof Javitch, left, seth norton, alec Lerner, Jeremy Wright, david atri-schuller and Jody Malashock, chairman of the sokolof award committee. Not pictured: Josh Polack and Benjamin Bird.

Volunteer opportunities at the rose Blumkin Jewish home

their actions are ready to help where help is needed. Becoming a Volunteer is as easy as 1-2-3: 1. Complete the Volunteer application 2. Interview/Orientation 3. Placement and Training We need Volunteers in many different areas, such as giving our residents manicures, conducting friendly visits, assisting residents with the computer, and many more. If you are interested, contact me for an application by emailing sstrong@rbjh.com. Or call 402.334.6519. You can also pick up an application at the front desk of the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home any time. Please consider Volunteering with us, and have fun while you are here!

Temple Israel Annual Meeting scOtt Littky Program Director, Temple Israel Rosie Zweiback, President of Temple Israel, has called for the annual meeting of Temple Israel to be held on Tuesday, May 23, 6:30 p.m. During the Annual Meeting, a number of official business matters will be addressed. First, Rosie will recognize our amazing Temple Israel volunteers. During this past year, over 140 congregants volunteered to serve on 23 Temple Israel committees. From Membership, to Caring, to Tri-faith, to You Name It, our volunteers have been busy en-

hancing our programs, revising our policies, reviewing our books and finding us a new Senior Rabbi! The next business matter on the agenda will be to vote on the revisions to the Temple Israel By-Laws and then to approve the Board of Trustees slate, which includes four new trustees: Jessica Cohn, John Glazer, Lester Katz, and Hap Pocras. Finally, we will honor and thank Rabbi Darryl Crystal for his service as our Interim Senior Rabbi. Afterwards, we will enjoy a wine and cheese oneg.

Organizations

B’nai B’rith BreadBreakers

Speaker to be announced for Wednesday, May 24, noon. For more information or to be placed on the email list call 402.334.6443 or bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.

Live better with a cleaner car Better living is what we’re all about at Remington Heights Retirement Community. And no matter your age, there’s always room for improvement in your life -- and that includes a cleaner car! That’s why we’ve decided to team up with the Boy Scouts of America and hold a car wash event for the community. Because a sparkling clean car makes everyone feel better! We will hold the car wash at Remington Heights tomorrow -- saturday, May 20, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. For only $5 for cars and $7 for trucks and SUVs, you get a topnotch wash from honorable Scouts AND a tasty meal that includes a hot dog, chips and a drink. And the money you pay will go straight to the Boy Scouts of America organization, whose

chief mission has been to educate and empower male youths for over 100 years. While you’re here, feel free to stick around and learn more about the Boy Scouts and their numerous values-based programs. You can also take a tour of our retirement community and sample the premier senior living services and amenities we have to offer. Since rainwater isn’t ideal for washing cars, our rain date is saturday, June 10. We hope to see you and your car! Remington Heights Retirement Community provides quality senior living services designed to help you experience a more exciting, secure and fulfilling lifestyle. Call 402.493.5807 to learn more.

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saBine strOng Volunteer Coordinator, RBJH llow me to introduce myself: my name is Sabine Strong. I am the Volunteer Coordinator at the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home. I started here in February 2017. I am originally from Germany and I have lived in Omaha for 23 years. As the volunteer coordinator, I am always looking for volunteers to enrich the life of each and every resident at the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home. A Volunteer at the Home plays a key role in the delivery and quality health care service of our Residents. You can make a difference! Volunteers are people who give the gift of themselves and their time to do something which they believe, and people who by

6 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

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Alex and Zach Congratulations on your graduation and your future endeavors.

Love, Dad

Geordi We are so very proud of you in all that you have achieved personally, as well as scholastically by your character, kindness, intellect, and tenacity.

We love you, Mimi, Pa and Oma

NJHS presents: An Evening with the Heirloomist

he Nebraska Jewish Historical Society will honor and celebrate the history and community contributions of Jewish Omaha at its fall fundraiser, An Evening with the Heirloomist, Saturday, October 21, 2017. The Heirloomist is a project of world renown photographer and Omaha native, Shana Novak. Novak is an established still life photographer based in New York City. Her clients include wellknown brands in media, fashion, and design. She brings a background in publishing and advertising to her photography, ensuring that every client is expertly treated to the art of visual storytelling. Via the Heirloomist, Novak creates one-ofa-kind modern art Shana Novak, The Heirloomist photographs from prize possessions and family heirlooms. Novak’s work can be seen at www.theheirloomist.com. Novak, along with chairman Danny Cohn, will be digging deep into the archives of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society to select pieces to capture and highlight for the exhibit. All of Novak’s work will be available the night of the event to purchase via silent auction. Additionally, the public is asked to submit heirlooms that may be hiding in plain sight or tucked away in their homes that would evoke community nostalgia. To submit your heirloom for a chance for it to be photographed and featured at the event, please take a digital picture and submit along with a description of the heirloom and why you think it celebrates the Jewish history of Omaha to jewishomahaheirlooms@gmail.com no later than June 2, 2017. “Omaha has produced amazingly talented people and we are honored that Shana would come back and use her talents to help raise funds for the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society,” said Cohn. “I am personally excited to dust off pieces of Jewish Omaha’s hidden past and bring them back to the forefront to be enjoyed that evening by the community, and for a lifetime on the wall of someone’s home.”

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Cohn went on to add “The Jewish Historical Society has some one-of-a-kind heirlooms in our collection, but I do believe the stars of this show will be the ones submitted by our community that people don’t even know existed.” Shana will kick off the evening with a short talk on the importance of family heirlooms and how best to incorporate the heirlooms you love into everyday life through pho-

tography. She will discuss how she became interested in the subject and where she finds the inspiration for each piece she captures on film. “I was raised to be proud of where I came from. I’m so lucky to have been brought up in this community. One of the things The Heirloomist aims to do is shine a light on all that is great and special about where we come from. Turning my focus to the Omaha community is deep for me because they are my people. When I share their stories, I share mine, too.” A cocktail reception and silent auction will follow Novak’s talk. Proceeds from the evening will help endow the future of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society. More information on the October event including location and ticket prices will be announced later this summer. Mark your calendars now for an evening not to be missed. Stay up-to-date on this event, ticket sales and upcoming projects by liking the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society on Facebook.

Parshat Behar-Bechukotai and Shavuot, the bibical holiday that gets forgotten On Sukkot we have booths in which we sit and four species we wave in the air. On Pesach, we eat matzah, clean our houses, and have a seder. There is also a third holiday. That is rabbI arI the holiday of Shavuot. There is no DembItzer identifiable mitzvah Beth Israel Synagogue that is unique to the Shavuot. Hence, many people tragically brush the holiday aside. The rabbis tell us that the holidays of Sukkot, Pesach, and Shavuot are called “regalim” or legs. These three holidays as a unit form the foundation or the legs of our people. So, what is Shavuot? The Torah portion related to Shavuot is called Behar, which means “on the mount” and refers directly to Mount Sinai. Rashi comments that all de-

tails of our mission in this world were relayed to us at Mount Sinai. On Shavuot we experience the revelation that is the basis of all of our culture, history, tradition and mission. On Shavuot, we have a custom to spend the whole first night learning, to understand our mission in this world. “Talmud Torah k’neged kulam” - learning Torah - is equal to all other mitzvot combined. This is because how I do something is as important as what I do. When I understand the reasons for what we do, I do them with joy. I encourage you to not brush aside Shavuot this year. Join me at Beth Israel on Tuesday evening, May 30, beginning at 8 p.m., for a marathon Torah learning session. Members throughout the community will be a part of this amazing event. We will be going all night and everyone is welcome to come for all or some of the night. Remember, learning leads to connection which leads to joy, Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach.

ADL welcomes Resolution 120 SCott kurz Communications Director, Anti-Defamation League May 9, the Omaha Office of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) welcomed the passing of Resolution 120 in the Nebraska State Legislature celebrating Israel’s 69th birthday and the strong relationship between the State of Israel and the State of Nebraska. MaryBeth Muskin, ADL Plains States (ADL-CRC) Regional Director, called the resolution “a strong and

public affirmation of Nebraska’s appreciation of Israel’s contributions,” and, “a proud reminder of the economic policies and trade ties which have benefitted both Nebraska and Israel.” This resolution is an important demonstration of support for Israel by our elected leadership and will serve as an example to other states. Gary Nachman, ADL-CRC Board co-chair, adds that he “is proud Nebraska has recognized Israel as the only free and democratic country in the region.”

Congratulations, Aaron!

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 7

community Islam, Judaism and Christianity: The dreams we share

in Damascus, Syria, and graduated from SCott LIttky Program Director, Temple Israel Damascus University in 1988 with a BA in English Literature. He graduated with a BA In a few short weeks, Temple Israel will in Islamic Sciences and Arabic Language in officially have a new neighbor on the Tri1991 from the Islamic Call Faith campus. The AmeriCollege/Damascus. can Muslim Institute Imam Daoudi came to the building will open. There is United States in 1995 and much excitement about started his first position as being able to welcome our Imam at The Islamic CenMuslim brothers to the ter of North Valley, Lanneighborhood. Rabbi Darcaster, CA. He then moved ryl Crystal has invited to Charleston, WV, where Imam Mohamad Jamal he served The Islamic AsDaoudi of the American sociation of West Virginia Muslim Institute to speak at and achieved his “Doctor of Temple Israel on Friday, Ministry” degree from May 19, during Shabbat United Theological Semiservices at 6 p.m. Imam Daoudi nary, Dayton, OH, in 2005. According to Rabbi Crystal, “Judaism, Islam and Christianity are the That same year, he became a US citizen. Imam Daoudi specializes in the areas of Abrahamic Traditions. The faiths share common ideals from the teachings of Abra- Qur’anic interpretation “Tafsir,” Hadith, ham. The Tri-Faith Initiative is based on af- counseling and interfaith dialogues and activities. He has three children, a daughter firming the unique beliefs of each faith and the common values we share. I look forward and two sons, all in college. As always, services on May 19 are open to to our community welcoming Imam Moall who would like to attend. hamad Jamal Daoudi on May 19.” Imam Mohamad Jamal Daoudi was born

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8 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

thegraduates SALUTING THE CLASS OF 2017

Logan Armstrong

Spencer Arnold

Alex Belgrade

Zach Belgrade

Benjamin Gerald Chamberlin

Cali Epstein

Whitney Feidman

Andre Garivay

Parker Garivay

Nathan Robert Gendler

Bailee Gerber

Max Goldberg

Gayle Goldstein

Grant Goldstein

Geordana Morgan Gonzales

Hannah Lindsey Goodman

Josh Gordon

Jack Halperin

Rachel Hockfeld

Allyson Kavich

Emily Hannah Kazor

Nicholas Edward Kizlin

Adam Kohler

Samuel Gabriel Kricsfeld

Mikayla Langdon

Sophie Leopold

LoGAN ARMStRoNG Mindi Armstrong

SPENCER ARNoLd Brenda and Barton Arnold

ALEx BELGRAdE Robyn Belgrade and Jim Belgrade

ZACH BELGRAdE Robyn Belgrade and Jim Belgrade

Westside Iowa State University Westside University of Nebraska-Lincoln Westside University of Missouri-Columbia Westside St. Louis University

BENJAMiN GERALd CHAMBERLiN Millard South Jennifer Kay and Anthony Chamberlin University of Nebraska-Omaha CALi EPStEiN Laurie and Jeff Epstein and Ellie and Alexander Fields

WHitNEy FEidMAN Nancy Feidman and Ted Feidman ANdRE GARivAy Renee and Andrew Garivay PARKER GARivAy Renee and Andrew Garivay

NAtHAN RoBERt GENdLER Tami Field and Lawrence Gendler

Westside and Pinnacle Peak University of Arizona Millard North University of Nebraska-Omaha Gretna University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln Southwest University of Nebraska-Lincoln Papillion-LaVista University of Kansas

BAiLEE GERBER JoEll and Todd Gerber

MAx GoLdBERG Cindy and Bruce Goldberg

GAyLE GoLdStEiN Michael Goldstein and the late Debra Lyddon Goldstein GRANt GoLdStEiN Michael Goldstein and the late Debra Lyddon Goldstein

GEoRdANA MoRGAN GoNZALES Dana and Edward Gonzales HANNAH LiNdSEy GoodMAN Jennifer and Dr. Scott Goodman JoSH GoRdoN Tracy and Randy Gordon

JACK HALPERiN Katie Pocras and Lou Halperin RACHEL HoCKFELd Marla and Randy Hockfeld

Millard North Metro Community College Westside Carleton College Westside Furman University Westside University of Denver Millard North Washington University-St. Louis, MO Central University of Nebraska-Omaha Lincoln High Southeast Community College Lincoln East University of Delaware Burke University of Nebraska-Lincoln

ALLySoN KAviCH Nanci Kavich and Jeff Kavich

EMiLy HANNAH KAZoR Michelle and Stu Kazor

NiCHoLAS EdWARd KiZLiN Ronna Jo Kizlin and Daren Kizlin

AdAM KoHLER Diane and Steve Kohler

SAMuEL GABRiEL KRiCSFELd Debbie and Dr. Alan Kricsfeld MiKAyLA LANGdoN Sharon Comisar-Langdon and Randy Langdon SoPHiE LEoPoLd Lisa and Julian Leopold

Westside Colorado State University Millard North University of Nebraska-Omaha Millard South Atlanta School of Music and Media Millard North University of Nebraska-Lincoln Millard North University of Kansas Millard West University of Kansas Dakota Valley Savannah College of Art and Design

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 9

William McGauvran

Jake Meyerson

Joshua Militti

Aaron P. Noddle

Olivia Nogg

Seth Harry Norton

Lindsay Osborne

Jonah Bradley Payne

Josie Kathryn Platt

Josh Polack

Isabella Radler

Bennette Lincoln Ray

Asher S. Rosenquist

Phillip Schrager

Shoshanah Ruth Schreiber

David Atri Schuller

Karsyn Jeanette Shkolnick

Josephine Slovut

Jacob Aaron Spivack

Samantha Sullivan

Celia J. Vann

Josh Wax

Bennett Widman

Jacob Wigodsky

Andrew Wine WILLIAM MCGAuVRAN Kathy and John McGauvran JAKe MeyeRSON Jenny and Scott Meyerson JOSHuA MILIttI Jennifer and Dan Goaley and Dave Militti

AARON P. NODDLe Kim Platt Noddle and Jay Noddle OLIVIA NOGG Patty and Tony Nogg

SetH HARRy NORtON Susie and Mike Norton LINDSAy OSBORNe Ann and Don Osborne

The Jewish Press regrets it if some graduating seniors are not included. If parents would like to submit an announcement for ‘In the News’, we will run it when space is available. Please send via e-mail (with photo of at least 100K, attached as a .jpg) to jpress@ jewishomaha.org, or to the office at: Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154. Include: name of graduating senior, name(s) of parent(s), high school from which student graduated, and college which the student will attend. Westside University of Kansas Westside Indiana University Westside University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Westside Hastings College Millard North Wayne State College Westside University of Virginia Millard North University of Nebraska-Omaha

JONAH BRADLey PAyNe Lincoln Southwest Jodie Stein-Payne and Jeffrey Payne University of Nebraska-Lincoln

JOSIe KAtHRyN PLAtt Ellen and Jeff Platt JOSH POLACK Susan and Jim Polack

ISABeLLA RADLeR Gretchen and David Radler BeNNett LINCOLN RAy Shayna and Matthew Ray

ASHeR S. ROSeNquISt Julie Roffman and Thor Rosenquist PHILLIP SCHRAGeR Laura and Rick Schrager

Mercy Howard University Burke Berklee College of Music Westside University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Central Iowa State University Westside University of Nebraska-Omaha Creighton Prep Indiana University

SHOSHANAH RutH SCHReIBeR Lincoln High Michelle Schreiber and Allen Schreiber Peru State College DAVID AtRI SCHuLLeR Adina Schuller and Eduardo Atri

KARSyN JeANette SHKOLNICK Tami and Jack Lutzi and Marc Shkolnick

Westside Drake University Lincoln Southwest Northwest Missouri State University

JOSePHINe SLOVut Beth and Mitchell Slovut

JACOB AARON SPIVACK Marcie and Brent Spivack

SAMANtHA SuLLIVAN Louri Sullivan and Charlie Sullivan CeLIA J. VANN Wendy and John Vann JOSH WAx Bill Wax

BeNNett WIDMAN Julie and Larry Widman JACOB WIGODSKy Tereza Wigodsky and Andrew Wigodsky

ANDReW WINe Laura and Bryan Wine

Millard North University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Millard North University of Nebraska-Omaha Westside University of Arizona Brownell-Talbot University of California-Santa Barbara Elkhorn South University of Wisconsin Lincoln East University of Nebraska-Lincoln Westside University of Nebraska-Omaha Millard North Missouri Western State University

10 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

Mazel Tov, Geordi! We’re bursting with pride! Four years of Varsity soccer, National Scholar, State Champ and WashU admission! You can do it all, and you will! Love, Mom, Dad, Brooklyn & Brynlee

Congrats, Nate! We are so proud of you. Love, Mom, Dad and Max

Alex and Zach

Congratulations and best of luck! Love, Nanny

Mazal Tov, Spence! You did it this time! Football, Jazz Band, ATSB, CAPS, National Honor Society, BBYO, etc... Love you, Mom and Dad

Congratulations Josh! We are so proud of all your achievements. Have a great time in Boston and study hard. Love, Mom, Dad and Max

an individual essay on tri-Faith initiative’s Sacred Prism Retreat

JacKie GRau The opinions expressed in this article are the personal reflections of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of all Temple Israel members. nod in agreement as Rabbi Azriel talks about the similarities between Abrahamic faiths and how the Tri-Faith Initiative (TFI) was born. I always thought it was simple and logical. Being human is an undeniable connection. And more so, Jews, Muslims, and Christians all recognize a presence that cannot be seen. That alone was enough for me to support the TFI. But it turns out I was barely over the threshold of understanding, until a recent experience. And it’s an experience I need to share in an honest way, without shaving off the imperfections. Perhaps my words will resonate. I feel alive at Tri-Faith gatherings, where the chemistry is unique. I feel like a tuning fork for the group’s vitality and passion, and I feel a sense of purpose alongside people like myself -- individuals who know who they are and why they toil, and who don’t change direction when nervous people criticize them. So, because it was a TFI event, I attended “Sacred Prism Retreat” even though it conjured images of free love and tie dye. In a nutshell, I wanted to be with TFI people, welcoming Rabbi Shefa Gold from New Mexico, Imam Mohamad Bashar Arafat from Maryland, and Reverend Masud Ibn Syedullah from New York. I figured mysticism was a lure for feeling types, not me. I am, after all, a thinker and judger. When we gathered for the retreat I found myself on the same footing as the non-Jews, experiencing Rabbi Gold’s presentation in the style of Renewal Judaism. Her shruti box and chanting were so unlike what I’ve experienced in Reform Judaism. Yet I went with an open mind. But the second retreat day was the setting for a seismic change in me. I watched the clergy laugh together like old college friends, trusting one another with no regard for religious titles. I appreciated the humor acknowledging and challenging religious stereotypes. To my relief, my mind, too, was fed. I learned how St. Francis of Assisi met with the Sultan of Egypt in the 1200’s dark days, in direct contravention to the tenor of the inhumane, phobic, crusades. And I heard a metaphor so perfect and so on point that it sated my hungry brain. It was this: religions are like wells we’ve drilled into the earth. Spirituality (or quest for G-d) is the single body of underground water from which we all draw. I devoured this offering, and when my brain dozed off like a feaster after a meal, my feelings awoke. First, joy: from meeting the American Muslim Institute’s new Imam, Jamal Daoudi; then awe: from witnessing clergy receive one another religion’s prayers; and finally, love: from watching Temple Israel members interacting with their TFI counterparts. But everything came together in a moment. Imam Arafat began singing the arabic words of the Islamic Zikr, and then invited the group to join. I was some-

ADL hosts Jessica Reaves Scott KuRz Communications Director, Anti-Defamation League The Anti-Defamation League Plains States Region (ADL-CRC) will be hosting a springtime event at Rainwood Vineyard on Sunday, May 21 from 2 p.m.-4 p.m. The event will feature wine tasting and informal conversation with members of the community and includes the senior writer from the ADL National Center on Extremism, Jessica Reaves. Ms. Reaves has worked as the ADL’s Midwest Investigative Researcher where she

what hesitant. Actually, I was afraid of how appealing and beautiful the call to prayer sounded. I felt almost like a traitor. I didn’t want to sing but I didn’t want the song to end, and all while I tried not to give the words any meaning. But then Imam Arafat translated the prayers into English, and gates came crashing down in my mind. Fear yanked against love until my thoughts intervened. It dawned on me with the warmth of new light that the words reminded me of ones I say, in a different language, on Friday nights. There was nothing forbidden here. There were descriptions of a holy wonder, like that I know from Judaism. At the same time, Christianity’s Latin verses sounded foreign but also spoke of the unknowable divinity and infinite beauty of the world. Our wells were dug differently but we’ve been pulling from the same source. It was like comparing the most precious gemstones of different colors, making the world so colorful, vivid, and promising. Yes, we have been drinking the same water, from our unique wells. We’ve been reflecting on the same, unseen, singularity. My heart may have known this was the Truth, but my brain had resisted until that day -- that moment -- when finally it was convinced. In satisfying my head, in setting aside any rational doubts, I gave it my all. I basked in the hauntingly beautiful songs. Touched and exposed in a most rare fashion, I meditated beside my Muslim neighbors. Without hesitation. And when Reverend Syedullah’s beautiful baritone drew out my own voice, I sang next to Christians. Without fear. And I was still me. But would you believe, will you please understand, that I have never felt more Jewish? Nothing about me changed except my understanding of others. How long had I been the ignorant one engaged in conversation with wise people? I couldn’t see inside others but I felt a tentative awareness easing through my pores, warming itself in my belly, padding softly up my neck, and curling up to sleep in my mind. It was strange, new, and I hadn’t known I was missing it. This had all crystallized into my own prism by the time I left the retreat. But I wanted to check my own reality. This was about more than just me. So I asked others for their thoughts. And I learned even more. In this case, feedback will almost certainly create a more amazing future retreat that celebrates nuances in the Abrahamic faiths. Regardless, the high points were felt almost universally, and the “well” metaphor touched others, too. But the words of one TFI Board member brought it home for me. Nuzhat Mamood wrote: “Often, we make theology the summit of our religious life. This retreat was about slowing down, listening, feeling the true meaning of the words that we all say.” It was my own experience written back to me, beautifully. So while I’ve often started discussions about why we need TFI with: “Be rational about it...,” I’m thinking perhaps that should change. Echoing Nuzhat and the Sacred Prism clergy, I now challenge you to “Be spiritual about it.”

Jessica Reaves

was responsible for researching and monitoring extremist groups and individuals in the Midwest region, and served as an expert consultant to law enforcement agencies on cases involving anti-government extremist groups and white supremacists. Jessica is a graduate of Duke University and is a former reporter for TIME and the Chicago Tribune. The event is open to the community and has an $18 admission fee. Please RSVP to skurz@adl.org.

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 11

community scoTT Kurz Communications Director, Anti-Defamation League Omaha’s 5th annual 24-hour charitable challenge is set for next Wednesday. Every member of the community has the opportunity to stimulate interest in or garner support for their favorite local non-profits across Omaha. ere are many ways and times to give and your donations can stretch further if you plan them at the right time in the right way. To help you make the most out of your giving dollars, we have put together a little cheat sheet: • Visit www.omahagives.org to schedule your donation anytime between now and midnight on May 24. • If you donate ON THE DAY of the event, you help boost your favorite organization's chances at more money and prizes. • You can donate as little as $10 or as much as you like. • Diﬀerent organizations have Challenge/Matching Funds. Once they reach a certain dollar amount, a generous donor will match those funds-so your contribution can potentially make a greater impact. • Participating Jewish Organizations: Anti-Defamation League (ADL-CRC), Beth El, Beth Israel, B'nai Israel, Chabad, Friedel Jewish Academy, Institute for Holocaust Education, Jewish Federation of Omaha, National Council of Jewish Women - Omaha Section, Nebraska Jewish Historical Society and Temple Israel.

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.

Temple Israel happenings

Picture from top to bottom: Presentation of the Third annual brandon Thomas Pursuit of Passion scholarship to Jacob Wigodsky son of andrew Wigodsky and Tereza Wigodsky; old and new board of oTYG after installation of officers; Wishing all of the High school seniors from Temple israel a mazel tov on their graduation and best of luck as they move forward; students from our High school senior class spent a relaxing evening at the home of cantor shermet reflecting on their years together.

12 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

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(Founded in 1920) eric dunning President Annette van de Kamp-wright Editor richard Busse Creative Director Susan Bernard Advertising Executive lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Thierry ndjike Accounting Jewish Press Board Eric Dunning, President; Andy Ruback, Past-President; Sandy Friedman, Treasurer; Andrew Boehm; Paul Gerber; Alex Grossman; Jill Idelman; Mike Kaufman; David Kotok; Debbie Kricsfeld; Abby Kutler; Pam Monsky; Paul Rabinovitz 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 stories and announcements, can be found online at: wwwjewishomaha.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@jewish omaha.org; send ads (in TIF or PDF format) to: rbusse@jewishomaha. 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. 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 Editor” into a paid personal ad or a news article about the event, project or program which the professional staff supervised. For information, contact Annette van de Kamp-Wright, Jewish Press Editor, 402.334.6450.

Postal The Jewish Press (USPS 275620) is published weekly (except for the first week of January and July) on Friday for $40 per calendar year U.S.; $80 foreign, by the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Phone: 402.334.6448; FAX: 402.334.5422. Periodical postage paid at Omaha, NE. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154-2198 or email to: jpress@jewishomaha. org.

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Omaha Gives!

AnneTTe vAn de KAmP-wriGhT Editor of the Jewish Press e had a busy weekend: Confirmation at Temple Israel on Friday night, B’nai Mitzvah at Beth El Synagogue Saturday morning and the Dembitzer - Katzman Lag B’Omer barbeque Sunday. It’s not unheard of to have such a variety of destinations when you live in our community, but it is important to remind ourselves often why our community functions this way. Not to even mention the Shavuos that is planned at Beth Israel for may 29, where clergy from all three synagogues and Chabad will be studying and teaching together. How cool is that? Only in Omaha. When I hear the phrase “Omaha Gives,” I think of more than the annual day of giving. Scheduled for may 24 this year, it allows us to not only contribute with our dollars, but to realize how much this community has to offer, both in Jewish life, and in the world beyond. From midnight to midnight, all of Omaha is encouraged to donate to their favorite causes. The minimum donation is $10 and there is no maximum; full instructions as well as a list of participating organizations can be found at www.om ahagives24.org. Omaha Gives! is a year-round online giving platform organized by the Omaha Community Foundation to grow philanthropy in Douglas, Sarpy, and Pottawatamie counties. Each year, there is a 24-hour online giving event in May to celebrate nonprofits. 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. Last year, the community raised nearly $9 million for local nonprofits. Hourly drawings and prizes make your gift go even further, teaching us that giving is also something we do together and not in isolation. Participating organizations in our Jewish community include the Jewish Federation of Omaha, the Institute for Holocaust Education, the ADL-CRC, Beth El, Beth Israel, B’nai Israel, Chabad, Temple Israel, Friedel Jewish Academy

three kids; aged 12, 15 and 16, who very aware of what they believe in and what they care about. We’ll max our total at $100 because that’s the amount we’re comfortable with. We’re not big donors and that’s okay. This number still allows us to have every member of our family pick two causes they care most about. I know my son will pick Friedel Jewish Academy, because he’s graduating that same week and he misses it already. What his second pick will be, I have no idea. He will have to go on the website and shop around until he finds something

and the National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section. All non-profits are divided into three categories: small, for those with an annual operating budget of less than $100,000; medium for $100,000-$500,000 and large for any organization with a budget over $500,000. There is a leaderboard on the website where you can keep track of how your favorite cause performs during the day. So why do we participate? Allow me to take off my professional hat and put on my private one for a minute. With a minimum of $10, my husband and I can include the entire family in this event. In case you didn’t know, we now have

that’s near and dear to his heart (although I predict his school will end up with both picks). The other two will do the same. It teaches them not only the importance of giving, but the importance of researching, knowing what they’re giving to, making the decision by themselves. It goes beyond putting coins in the pushka on Friday night. It reminds them they are part of a community where there are so many great things happening, it often becomes hard to choose. That richness is the gift we get in return. While the city of Omaha gives dollars on this day, it also gives us a home. And that, at the end of the day, is the real gift.

politics, giving the right a cudgel with which to beat the left. As Bernie Sanders said of Coulter’s opponents, “What are you afraid of -- her ideas?” In some ways the debate has become a little

gender activist because it was being sponsored by the campus Hillel, to the University of Minnesota, where hecklers disrupted a speech by the Israeli philosopher Moshe Halbertal, Israel has become a flash point in the free speech debate. J. -- The Jewish News of Northern California had an important article last week on San Francisco State University and its “tepid” responses to various anti-Israel incidents, like the successful attempt by a pro-Palestinian group to shout down Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat during a Hillelsponsored appearance in April 2016. Not to be outdone, right-wing supporters of Israel are taking a cue from the left-wing protesters they profess to despise. Last week, a synagogue in the Detroit suburbs canceled a scheduled appearance by the Israeli singer and peace activist known as Noa after fielding threats from protesters presumably on the right. The synagogue explained it wasn’t able to guarantee security for the event, although it also pointed out, apologetically and unnecessarily, that the event was “not intended to reflect political viewpoints.” Noa, a member of the board of the New Israel Fund, has never made a secret of her left-wing views or her support of Jewish-Arab coexistence. But her concerts aren’t peace rallies; and even if they were, it is depressing to see how easily one side in a political argument is willing to support threats -- not arguments, not rival events, but physical threats -- to shut down the other. Take a look at the comment section in an article about the Noa cancellation in The Times of Israel and see how giddy her opponents are in seeing a synagogue event canceled for fear of a violent reprisal. The pro-Israel right also celebrated last month when Fordham University denied a request by Students for Justice in Palestine to form a club there on the grounds that its goals “clearly conflict with and run contrary to the mission and values” of the New York City school. SJP chapters See A little more free speech on page 13

Jewish life, like college campuses, could use a little more free speech Andrew Silow-CArroll JTA Sunday night in Teaneck, New Jersey, Daniel Kurtzer and Ruth Wisse spoke at separate synagogues, roughly at the same time, about a quarter mile apart. Kurtzer, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel and a professor of Middle East studies at Princeton, supports the two-state solution and doesn’t think the Israeli government is heading in the “right direction.” Wisse, a famed Yiddish scholar at Harvard, regards Jewish support for the peace process as “self-delusion” and planned to speak on the topic “Are American Jews their own worst enemies?” Kurtzer spoke at a Conservative synagogue, the majority of whose members, I can say from personal experience, are essentially on board with his views of the Middle East. Wisse spoke at a modern Orthodox synagogue whose members, it’s probably safe to say, tend to share her skepticism about the two-state solution, Democrats and liberal Zionism. I wish they had switched places. Efforts by protesters at the University of California, Berkeley, to shut down a speech by conservative Ann Coulter and at Auburn University to block an appearance by white nationalist Richard Spencer are being held up as examples of left-wing academia’s inability to tolerate -- or even listen to -- dissenting views. Right-wing sites condemn campus “snowflakes” who are willing to deny free speech to those with whom they disagree. Republicans in the Michigan State Senate have introduced a bill that would punish college students who “have converted our fundamental freedom of speech into a freedom from speech,” as a sponsor put it. It’s not just the right who are critical of the “shut it down” left: Liberals object that attempts to silence speakers are violations of a fundamental right to free speech, a perversion of the whole idea of a university education and simply bad

A sign reading “Fascist Free Campus” on the University of California, Berkeley, campus in the aftermath of the cancellation of a speech there by conservative political commentator Ann Coulter, April 27, 2017. Credit: Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images hysterical. As Jesse Singal noted in New York magazine, recent surveys at Yale suggest students there are about as likely as the general population to support free speech -- that is, by wide margins. On the other hand, Pew reported last year that 40 percent of students say the government should be able to “prevent people from saying offensive statements about minority groups.” Singal says that’s not far off from the number of Americans who say some forms of speech should be banned by the government. The idea that a small number of extremists can hijack an event and shut down a speaker in the name of what they deem “acceptable” speech is troubling -- a point pro-Israel activists on campus have been trying to make in recent years, with far less success than supporters of Coulter or even of Spencer. From Brown University, where protesters objected to a speech by a trans-

More than half of Israelis support marriage outside of Chief Rabbinate

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 13

College doesn’t turn Jews away from Judaism

LaUreNCe kohLer-Berkowitz especially to Jewish organizations. College-educated Jews JTA are more likely than their non-college educated counterIn a recent analysis of U.S. religious groups, the Pew Reparts to belong to synagogues and other types of Jewish orsearch Center reported that the most educated American ganizations, to make donations to Jewish causes, to travel to Jews are also the least religious. Israel, to hold or attend Passover seders, and to fast on Yom In considering these findings, it’s tempting to think that Kippur. Here, higher education may promote increased secular education leads to assimilation among American Jewish connectivity (which elsewhere I have called coheJews (I want to be clear that Pew, a leading source of data on sion), not assimilation. contemporary Jews in the U.S., Israel and globally and a These patterns intensify when non-Orthodox Jews are non-advocacy fact tank, did not put forth this reading of analyzed separately, as I (like Pew) did. Among the non-Orthe data). The reason this thodox, college education might make sense: In a dipromotes connectivity on verse, open society, education even more measures and ascan draw people away from similation on fewer. their particular group and its So yes, higher education ways of life. Highly educated appears to make Jews less cerJews, it seems, may be more tain about the existence of likely to distance themselves God, less observant of some from some traditional Jewish rituals, and less inclined to practices. say religion and being Jewish But that interpretation are very important to them. It would be narrow and incomalso appears to weaken Jewish plete. It turns out that somefriendship networks modtimes secular education is estly. In these ways, then, edlinked to assimilation, someucation may contribute to Barnard College graduates beam at the Columbia University com- assimilation. times to connectivity and mencement ceremony in New York, May 18, 2016. sometimes to neither. But taking a broader view Credit: Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images of the multiple connections Using data from its landmark 2013 survey of U.S. Jews, Pew showed that college-ed- Jews have to each other and Jewish life allows us to see a ucated Jews are less likely than Jews without a college fuller picture. Secular education often has no relationship to degree to believe in God with absolute certainty and less assimilation; Jews with and without college degrees are relikely to affirm that religion is very important to them. markably similar to each other on numerous Jewish behavPartly accounting for these differenes, Pew noted, are Oriors and attitudes. Meanwhile, those with college education thodox Jews, who are more religious and tend to have lower are sometimes more connected to other Jews, Jewish organlevels of secular schooling than non-Orthodox Jews. But izations and Jewish life -- that is, less assimilated -- than even when non-Orthodox Jews only are examined, the those with less secular schooling. more educated are less religious. Higher education, responsible for so much American My own analysis of the same survey data confirmed Pew’s Jewish achievement and vitality, has no consistent, straightfindings and more. Jews with a college degree are also less line relationship with assimilation. Instead, its association likely to keep kosher at home, to refrain from handling with assimilation and connectivity varies quite a bit. money on Shabbat, to report that all or most of their close Jews have a quip that conveys the complexity of Jewish friends are Jewish, and to say that being Jewish is very imlife: “Jews are just like everyone else, only more so.” As this portant to them. (Note: I analyzed Jews 30 and older beexample shows, Jews with a college education are no excepcause by that age most people have either gone to college or tion. The complexity of their lives demands close examinadecided not to). tion. It deserves a rich and nuanced understanding. And it These data points may be particularly troubling because defies easy interpretation. secular education has been one of the prime engines of JewLaurence Kotler-Berkowitz, Ph.D., is senior director of ish social, political and economic success in America. research and analysis and director of the Berman Jewish Could it be that higher education, that storied upside of DataBank, both at The Jewish Federations of North AmerAmerican Jewish life, has a serious downside, too? ica. He served as an adviser to the Pew Research Center on Fortunately, the answer is no. its 2013 survey of U.S. Jews. Jewish life is multifaceted. It encompasses religion, ethnicity and culture. It spans family, local community and Letter to the editor global peoplehood. It has attitudinal and behavioral aspects. By looking further at the Pew survey data, we can see that Dear Editor, in many cases college education has no association with asWonderful article about Shirley Goldstein’s life, which articulates just similation. In other cases, higher education encourages Jew- who she was and what she accomplished. Delighted to receive it via ish connectivity, the very opposite of assimilation. Murray Newman. I was a friend of Shirley’s until I left in 1974 and rarely The data reveal that Jews with and without college dereturned. grees display many similar attitudes and behaviors. The two Thank you. groups are just as likely to express pride in being Jewish, to Sincerely, have a strong sense of belonging to the Jewish people, to raqUeL h. “raCkY” NewMaN feel a special responsibility to Jews in need, to say it’s essenSan Francisco, CA tial to them to be part of a Jewish community and to be emotionally attached to Israel. In addition, they are just as P.S. After Shirley’s 4th trip to the USSR, the authorities told her when likely to attend Jewish religious services monthly or more, exiting never to return! They knew exactly what she was about... to be able to converse in Hebrew, and, among those who are married, to have a Jewish spouse. On these measures, college education and assimilation do not go hand in hand. The data also shows that in some circumstances, higher https://issuu.com/jewishpress7 education is associated with connections to other Jews and

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JERUSALEM | JTA More than half of Jewish Israelis are interested in having alternative weddings that do not involve the Chief Rabbinate, a new survey has found. Some 55 percent of Jewish Israelis are interested or quite interested in an egalitarian Jewish marriage alternative, according to a survey conducted for Hiddush, an organization that promotes religious freedom in Israel. Among those who identify as secular, 81 percent prefer that approach. The response to the survey conducted last month by the Smith Institute represents the first time that a majority of the Jewish Israeli public has expressed support for marriage outside the auspices of the Chief Rabbinate, according to Hiddush. The survey question was: “The State of Israel today recognizes and registers only marriages of Jews that are conducted within the framework of the Chief Rabbinate. A number of movements and organizations offer an alternative of Jewish egalitarian marriages outside the auspices of the Chief Rabbinate, which grant couples many rights and responsibilities that the State recognizes, just as it does for couples that marry via the Chief Rabbinate. To what degree would you be interested in such an alternative for yourself or your children who intend to get married?” Among those the survey termed “Zionist Orthodox,” 13 percent of respondents support marriage freedom, as well as 40 percent of “Traditional – close to religion” and 61 percent of “Traditional — not so close to religion.” Those who wish to marry outside the Chief Rabbinate, including those who are not recognized as Jewish or same-sex couples, and then be recognized as married by the state must travel to another country to be married. The survey was released Thursday ahead of Lag b’Omer, which traditionally is the start of wedding season in the Jewish community. It was conducted April 19-20 among what the poll called “a representative sample of Israel’s adult Jewish population.”

A little more free speech

Continued from page 12 are harsh and often dishonest in their attacks on Israel, and Fordham is a private university, but are we really comfortable with administrators deciding which causes are acceptable and which aren’t? And if we are, can we really say we value the right to free speech? But what about speech that is so reprehensible that it truly doesn’t deserve a hearing? (The First Amendment, by the way, doesn’t say anything about “deserving” the right to free speech.) One option is to ignore it and not give awful speakers the attention they crave. Another is to fight back with more speech, which is what the Founders evidently intended. The very worst option is to criminalize it or try to shut it down with a real or implied threat of violence. It’s easy to blame “kids these days” for a climate of political correctness or a narrowing of what is and isn’t acceptable thought on campus. But the university is merely reflecting a broader culture in which people are less inclined to listen to or tolerate opposing views. Thanks to technology and an explosion of narrow ideological media channels, they don’t have to. But the presidential campaign of 2016 was in part a reflection of the failure of each side of the political divide to hear the other. I wish Kurtzer and Wisse had crossed over to presumably less friendly venues precisely because of the possibility that one side might have something to learn from the other. Both are incisive intellects whose arguments cannot be dismissed as thoughtless or delusional. They may not have changed any minds, but they may have made each side more thoughtful in its own views and perhaps have established a small sliver of common ground.

14 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 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 June 9, at 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker Sandi Yoder, Director of the Iowa Jewish Historical Society. Our special guest Torah reader will be Noah Levine of the Jewish Community Legacy project. 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: Bar Mitzvah of Benjamin kutler, son of Pam and Bruce Kutler; Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. saturday: Morning Service, 9:30 a.m. Bar Mitzvah of Benjamin kutler, son of Pam and Bruce Kutler; 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: Rose Fine Last BESTT Day, 9:45 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:15 a.m.; Torah Tots, 10:30 a.m.; Annual Meeting, 12:30 p.m. wednesday: Omaha Gives! Beth El Synagogue Variety Show Hour, 4 p.m. Nebraska AIDS Coalition Lunch, friday, may 26, 11:30 a.m. Shavuot Learning, tuesday, may 30, 7:45 p.m. at Beth Israel, 12604 Pacific St. Beth El, Beth Israel, Temple Israel and Chabad are coming together for a night of learning with Rabbis Abraham, Dembitzer, Abramovich, Berezin and Katzman for all ages and abilities. Dairy treats will be served. 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.; Friday Learing Series with Rabbi Shlomo, 11:15 a.m. at the JCC Kripke Library; Mincha/Ma’ariv & Kabbalat Shabbat, 7:30 p.m.; Candle Lighting, 8:22 p.m. saturday: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; May Simcha Kiddush, 11:30 a.m.; Insights in the Weekly Torah Reading, 7:20 p.m.; Mincha/Seudah Shlishit, 8:05 p.m.; Havdalah, 9:29 p.m. sunday: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Bagels & Beit Medrash, 9:45 a.m.; Annual Meeting, 10 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. 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. All programs are open to the entire community.

Congregation B’nai Jeshurun

Services conducted by Rabbi Craig Lewis. friday: Pre-neg and Sha-ba-ba-bat Family dinner, 6 p.m.; Shabbat Evening Service/Final Sha-ba-ba-bat with Ariel Kohll, 6:30 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:23 p.m. saturday: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. on Parashat Behar-Bechukotai; Game Night, 6 p.m.; Havdalah (72 Minutes), 9:54 p.m. sunday: Jewish Book Club, 1-3 p.m. at Scooters on 84th

St. in Lincoln and will discuss The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman; 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 at 2:30 p.m. For more information, email Sarah Beringer at sarah.m.beringer@gmail.com. tuesday: Kochavim Rehearsal, 6:45 p.m. thursday: Trope Class, 6:15 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. Shavuot Dairy Potluck/Torah Study Session, wednesday, may 31, 6 p.m. at Antelope Park. Special Farewell Service for Rabbi Lewis: Services and Special Remarks, friday, June 2, 7 p.m. at Antelope Park. 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 Stan Edelstein. Services will be held in the Chapel. Members of the community are invited to attend.

temple israel

friday: Shabbat Service - Guest Speaker: Imam Mohamed Jamal Daoudi - Islam, Judaism and Christianity: The Dreams We Share, 6 p.m. Judaism, Islam and Christianity are the Abrahamic Traditions. The faiths share common ideals from the teachings of Abraham. The Tri-Faith Initiative is based on affirming the unique beliefs of each faith and the common values we share. Join us for Shabbat Service to meet Imam Mohamad Jamal Daoudi.

saturday: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Services, 10:30 a.m. Bar Mitzvah of Charles Blum, son of Rachel Blum and Mike Blum. tuesday: Congregational Annual Meeting, 6:30 p.m. Please join us 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, 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. Temple Tots Shabbat, saturday, may 27, 9 a.m. Shavuot Program, tuesday, may 30, 7:45 p.m. at Beth Israel, 12604 Pacific St. Beth El, Beth Israel, Temple Israel and Chabad are coming together for a night of learning with Rabbis Abraham, Dembitzer, Abramovich, Berezin and Katzman for all ages and abilities. Dairy treats will be served. Shavuot Service and Yizkor, wednesday, may 31, 10:30 a.m. If you would like to have the names of your loved ones

tifereth israel

read during Yizkor, please contact Temple Israel, 402.556.6536, by Thursday, May 25, with the names. 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. There will be no Kiddush lunch this week. sunday: Jewish Book Club, 1-3 p.m. at Scooters on 84th St. in Lincoln and will discuss The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman; Tifereth Israel Annual Meeting, 3 p.m. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend. Join us on Shavuot as members of Tifereth Israel and South Street Temple gather at Antelope Park on wednesday, may 31, at 6 p.m. Bring a dairy or vegetarian main dish, appetizer, salad, or dessert to share at our potluck dinner. Drinks, paper goods, cups, and cutlery will be provided. We will have two study sessions following dinner led by Nancy Coren and Rabbi Lewis. Approximate times of the sessions will be 7-7:45 p.m. and 7:50-8:35 p.m. Please RSVP 402-423-8569 to let us know you can join us. friday, June 2, Services and Special Remarks at 7 p.m. followed by Potluck Dessert Reception at The South Street Temple, 2061 S. 20th St, Lincoln. Please bring your favorite dessert to share as we celebrate this bittersweet occasion of Rabbi Lewis' departure for Mizpah Congregation in Chattanooga, TN. 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.

Fire damages historic Lower East Side synagogue

JTA news sTAff A fire seriously damaged a historic synagogue on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The Sunday evening blaze at Beth Hamedrash Hagadol burned for several hours and took at least two hours for firefighters to bring under control, according to reports. It burned for several hours afterward. It is not clear how the fire started, according to reports. An investigation will be led by the fire marshal, though the fire chief has said the blaze started inside the building, NBC New York reported. The Gothic-style building was empty at the time of the fire. Two firefighters reportedly were injured trying bring it under control. Built in 1850 as a Baptist church, the building

was purchased in 1885 to become the first Eastern European congregation founded in New York City and served Russian Jews. The congregation closed the synagogue in 2007 after determining it did not have the $3 million to $4 million needed for repairs. In 1967, the building was declared a city landmark, and in 2003 it was designated an endangered historic site. Local residents told the New York Post that another fire had broken out in the building last week, though it was not confirmed by the newspaper. The synagogue in recent years has sought to “de-landmark” the building, allowing for condominiums to be built on the site, with a small synagogue to be built on the ground floor.

The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017 | 15

lifecycles maRRiage

gReenSpan/gellman

Dana Erin Greenspan and Jay David Gellman were married on April 29, 2017, at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago, IL. The ceremony was officiated by Rabbi Alan Freedman of Austin, TX. The bride is the daughter of Roberta Greenspan and Ricky Greenspan, both of Highland Park, IL, and the granddaughter of Claire and Lee Greenspan of blessed memory and Rose and Maurice Unger of blessed memory, all of Chicago. Dana graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a concentration in Business, and she is a Senior Marketing Manager at Hyatt Corporation. The groom is the son of Lynne (Friedel) and Steven Gellman of Austin, TX, and the grandson of Phyllis and Leonard Friedel of blessed memory, originally from Omaha, NE, and Cele and Saul Gellman of blessed memory from Austin, TX. Jay is a graduate from the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a double major in Finance and Risk Management, and he is a Senior Portfolio Manager at BMO Private Bank. The couple resides in Chicago.

in memoRiam

HaRolD m. aBRaHamSon

Harold M. Abrahamson passed away on April 24 at age 90. Services were held April 26, at Beth El Cemetery, 84th & L Street. He was preceded in death by parents, Ben W. and Fannie Abrahamson; brother, Norman Abrahamson; and son, Bruce Abrahamson. He is survived by wife, Helen; son and daughter-in-law, Mark and Linda Abrahamson; daughter-in-law, Gaylene Abrahamson; daughter and son-inlaw, Ellene and Stan Edelstein; grandchildren: Amy Roseland, Julie Kestner, Kristopher Abrahamson, Danielle Bahls, Sarah, Sam and Julia Edelstein, and nine great-grandchildren. Memorials may be made to Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, American Cancer Society, Nebraska Humane Society, or the organization of your choice.

Things you didn’t know about the Six-Day War

Ron KampeaS JTA e three paratroopers casting eyes upward at the Western Wall. e troops reveling in the waters of the Suez Canal. e sweeping views of a Galilee no longer vulnerable to shelling from atop the Golan Heights. Not to mention Naomi Shemer’s anthem Jerusalem of Gold, reissued aer the Six-Day War with a new verse celebrating access to the Old City. Or the settlements, the Palestinians, the tensions, the violence. ese – and many others – are the images, memories and challenges that persist aer 50 years of triumph, soul searching and grief. But there are anomalies – small, telling wrinkles in what the war wrought – that, if not quite forgotten, have faded into the recesses of memory. ey are worth reviving to deepen our understanding of an event that changed Jewish history. For 20 years, Jews paid fees to a symbol of Palestinian pride. In the wake of Jerusalem’s reunification, its mayor, Teddy Kollek, was faced with a dilemma: Jewish neighborhoods were sprouting up in the eastern part of the city. Any attempt to extend electricity to them from the electricity provider in Israel would likely elicit local and international protest because the world did not recognize Israel’s claims to the city. Kollek’s solution: Allow the Palestinian-run Jerusalem District Electric Company, or JDEC, predating Israel’s establishment, to continue providing power in and around the Old City, including the new Jewish neighborhoods. So until 1987, Jews living in the Old City and the new neighborhoods received electric bills that seemed a mirror image of their other utility bills: First the text was in Arabic, then in Hebrew. e JDEC held exclusive rights to a radius of 50 kilometers, or 31 miles, around the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Old City site believed to be the site of Jesus’ burial. Aer 1948, Israel assumed responsibility for providing electricity to western Jerusalem.

Mondern Woodmen of America Oration Contest

Sophia mavropoulos, a 6th grader at Friedel Jewish academy, has won first place in the district competition of the modern Woodmen of america oration contest. She will compete in the state competition on may 23rd. mrs. Denise Bennett, Friedel’s fifth and sixth grade teacher, brought the contest to Friedel in 1998. Since then, Friedel students have won five state titles and one national title. Danny Denenberg, who graduated from Friedel Jewish academy in 2015, won the Heisman Trophy of speech contests when he took first place, out of over 90,000 competitors, at the national level. The contest is open to students in fifth through eighth grade, making Friedel’s successes over the years even more impressive as Friedel students are generally competing against seventh and eighth graders.

more things you didn’t know about the Six-Day War

Ron KampeaS at ancient church in Gaza? It was a synagogue. e Western Wall, Qumran, Shiloh, King Herod’s tomb – the Six-Day War was a boon for historians seeking evidence of ancient Jewish settlement in the Holy Land. Most of these sites are in the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem. But a team of archaeologists rushed to the Gaza Strip within weeks of its capture. Why? In 1966, Egypt’s Department of Antiquities announced the discovery of what it said was an ancient church on Gaza’s coast. Examining the pictures in the Italian antiquities journal Orientala, Israeli archaeologists immediately understood it was no church – it was a synagogue. Visible in one photograph was a Hebrew inscription, “David,” alongside a harpist – King David. According to an article published in 1994 in Biblical Archaeology Review, by the time the Israelis reached it a year later, the David mosaic had been damaged – evidence perhaps that the Egyptians understood that the biblical king’s depiction validated claims of ancient Jewish settlement and sought to erase it. ey set about excavating the site, which turned out to be one of the largest Byzantine-era synagogues in the region. ere are other dramatic markers in the history of the return of Jews to the areas Israel captured in the Six-Day War: e first homes reoccupied by Jews in the Old City’s Jewish Quarter, in 1969; the Jews, led by Rabbi Moshe Levinger, who moved into a Hebron hotel to mark Passover 1968 and would not leave until the government allowed them to establish the settlement that would become Kiryat Arba; the settlers who would not leave the area of Sebastia in the northern West Bank until the government in 1975 allowed them to establish Elon Moreh. But the first settlement? at would be Merom Golan, a kibbutz originally named Kibbutz Golan, when Israelis quietly moved in on July 14, 1967, just over a month aer the war. ese days, Merom Golan is a resort.

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16 | The Jewish Press | May 19, 2017

entertainment

How Liev Schreiber’s Jewish grandpa inspired him

Curt SCHLeier JTA iev Schreiber has trained as a boxer on and off for 18 years. He’s a fan of the sweet science and has played numerous tough guys on the screen -- notably the prizefighter Mischa in the concentration camp movie Jakob the Liar and, of course, as Ray Donovan, the enforcer on the eponymous Showtime series. So he seems a logical choice to play the title role in biopic Chuck, about heavyweight Chuck Wepner. For those thinking “Chuck who?,” you’re not alone. Not even Schreiber was entirely familiar with the boxer known as the “Bayonne Bleeder” -and that’s precisely what attracted him to the role. “As a fight fan, I was kind of surprised and a little embarrassed that I didn’t know Chuck’s story,” Schreiber, 49, said in a telephone interview with JTA. “It’s one that I wanted to tell for the last ten years, since I got the script.” “It is a cautionary tale of fame and celebrity,” he said. Wepner was a club fighter, a palooka who could take a punch. He managed a series of victories that got him ranked. After Muhammad Ali’s unexpected victory over George Foreman in Zaire, promoter Don King wanted the new champ to fight a white boxer. Suddenly Wepner had the opportunity he’d been dreaming of and an international stage. Ali was expected to dispatch Wepner quickly, but the New Jerseyan nearly lasted the entire 15 rounds, becoming the first fighter to knock down Ali (Ali claimed he was tripped), if not out. The champ got up and pummeled Wepner, earning a technical knockout with 19 seconds left in the fight. Wepner’s quick rise to fame started a downward spiral that was exacerbated when Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky movies, based on Wepner’s career, won accolades. He got caught up in the fast celebrity lifestyle that included willing women and cocaine. He lost his wife, Phyllis (played by Elizabeth Moss in Chuck) and daughter, and ultimately served 26 months of a five-year prison sentence for drug distribution. Celebrity is a heady mistress, and I wondered how Schreiber had avoided her siren call.

Linda Hartough

“I don’t know,” he said. “I think I was fortunate to have a gradual career. I started off on the classical stage, and people were just not interested [in classical actors]. Schreiber recalled “some pretty amazing reviews and unamazing reviews, too.” “I realized that if I believed the amazing ones, I’d have to believe the unamazing ones,” he said. “That led to a healthy kind of skepticism about fame. It’s an all-powerful, powerful pill. And I felt like Chuck’s years down the rabbit hole were as profound, if not more so, than the 15 rounds he spent in the ring with Ali.”

Liev Schreiber as Chuck Wepner in the film Chuck. Credit: Sarah Shatz/Courtesy of IFC Films

Schreiber also attributes his ability to avoid swallowing that pill to the grounding he received from his mother Heather and his maternal grandfather, Alex Milgram. Schreiber’s parents divorced when he was young; and Milgram, who was a meat distributor, spent his life savings to help Heather win custody. The actor once described his mother as “a hippie,” but now says “bohemian is a better word.” Schreiber and his mom moved to New York. “We lived in a squat on the Lower East Side, and she believed in teach-

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ing her children that money wasn’t the most important thing,” he said. “She did what she could to make ends meet.” Heather drove a cab, and at times they lived in apartments without electricity or running water. But there were always books, he remembers. Milgram was a huge influence on Schreiber’s life. “He pretty much raised me as if he was my father, and in many respects he was my dad,” Schreiber told JTA. It was through his grandfather, an “old-fashioned socialist Jew,” that Schreiber connected with his roots. He remembers annual seders at the Milgram house. “Those were some of the best times of my life,” he said. “We’d all get together, and me and my brothers would fight for the afikomen.” One time, Schreiber recalls, Milgram took him to visit a friend in the Lubavitch community in Brooklyn, where by chance he briefly met the Lubavitcher rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson, who was holding court in a crowded meeting space, “300 guys in a room that could only hold 100,” he said. “I had no idea who he was, just that he was a very holy man,” he added. I ask Schreiber about any other memories he may have of his grandfather. “I think what you’re reminding me of is that every role I’ve ever played is some extension of my daydreaming about my grandfather,” he said. Schreiber recently ended his 11-year relationship with the actress Naomi Watts, with whom he has two children. Their relationship is amicable enough that she stars in the film as Linda Wepner, Chuck’s second wife. Thinking about the good fortune he’s had, Schreiber understands how, like Wepner, he easily could have slipped down the rabbit hole. That he didn’t is, in part, due to the influence of Milgram. “There is, in my mind, a kind of no-nonsense, salt-of-the-earth thing I attribute to my grandfather that maybe came into play in my thinking about fame as I became a little more involved in films and TV,” Schreiber said. Chuck opens Friday in New York and Los Angeles, and the rest of the country in the coming weeks.

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