June 6, 2014

Volume XX, Issue XXXII | www.thejewishvoice.org Serving Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts

OUTDOORS

8 Sivan 5774 | June 6, 2014

A path forward for Ukraine

WaterFire

PHOTO | SALLY OSTENDORF

QUALITY TIME WITH DAD Fun places to enjoy together

BY IRINA MISSIURO imissiuro@jewishallianceri.org

COURTESY| REP. DAVID CICILLINE

U.S. Rep. David Cicilline visits the Shrine to the Fallen Heroes on Institutska Street in Kiev during his recent trip to Ukraine as part of a congressional delegation to observe peacekeeping efforts in the region.

STORY ON PAGE 9

Putting life into living for seniors Jewish Seniors Agency installs new officers, honors Susan Bazar

BY DIANE DOWIOT “Putting Life into Living” was the theme of the Jewish Seniors Agency of Rhode Island’s annual meeting, which was held on May 22 at The Phyllis Siperstein Tamarisk Assisted Living Residence. Jeffrey Savit, Jewish

Alliance of Greater Rhode Island CEO and president, offered greetings, and Rabbi Richard Perlman gave the d’var Torah.

JSA Executive Director Paul Barrette, Treasurer and Funds Management Committee Chair Drew Kaplan, Director Susan Adler and To Life Campaign

Every parent knows that the best gift from a child is an offer to spend some time together.

If you stayed away from the tie rack this Father’s Day, don’t hesitate to ask your dad to keep his schedule open. We’ve done the legwork for you – read on

to discover 10 fun activities you can do with your dad this June.

We don’t guarantee that you will enjoy them, but he probably will.

Isn’t that what matters?

There’s something for the artsy dad, the geeky dad and the sporty dad. Oh, and nothing TIME | 12

Roberta Ragge, executive director of The Phyllis Siperstein Tamarisk Assisted Living Residence; Jeffrey Padwa, JSA president; Susan Adler, director of Jewish Eldercare of R.I., To Life Center Adult Day Services and coordinator of The Louis and Goldie Chester Full Plate Kosher Food Pantry; and Bonnie Sekeres, executive director of Shalom Housing Inc.

LIFE | 18

inspiration providing inspiration to providing the next generations to the next generations

2004-2014 CELEBRATING A DECADE OF JEWISH VALUES MAKING A GLOBAL IMPACT www.TheCharlesBronfmanPrize.com

The Charles Bronfman Prize is proud to announce our 2014 recipient, Sam Goldman, founder of d.light design. Dedicated to providing the most reliable, affordable and accessible solar lighting and power systems for the developing world, d.light is improving quality of life for 33 million people in 62 countries without access to reliable electricity. Sam’s even bigger goal: impacting the health, education, and environment of 100 million lives by 2020.

Sam Goldman | d.light | Founder + Chief Customer Officer The Charles Bronfman Prize celebrates the vision and endeavors of innovative humanitarians whose inspiring work benefits the world. We are committed to recognizing young, dynamic individuals whose Jewish values inform their work and inspire future generations.

2 | June 6, 2014

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The Jewish Voice

INSIDE

HIDDUR MITZVAH

Arts 28-29 Business 22-23 Calendar 10 Classified 27 Community 2-6, 1, 13, 15-18, 23 D’var Torah 7 Food 20-21 Nation 23-27 Obituaries 26 Opinion 8-9 Outdoors 11-14 Seniors 24-25 Simchas 30-31 We Are Read 30 World 7 JFS art: print by Mordechi Rosenstein, diversity poster and child’s drawing.

THIS ISSUE’S QUOTABLE QUOTE “The art… is like music to our eyes.”

Art at JFS reflects agency’s diversity

BY ERIN GISHERMAN MINIOR, LICSW Enter the Jewish Family Service office, and you immediately

notice a piece of art donated to the agency by past president Scott Libman and his wife, Angela. It is the creation of artist Mordechai Rosenstein

and reflects many of the values held by the agency; values that Libman, during his presidency, successfully articulated and formally noted in the strategic

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June 6, 2014 |

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Lunch and Learn how to be happy

BY IRINA MISSIURO imissiuro@jewishallianceri.org In December, I interviewed Rabbi Naftali Karp about the Chai Mitzvah program. This spring, he is continuing to facilitate two groups at the Dwares JCC. The rabbi believes the classes of the nine-part program, which he describes as “a crash course in Judaism,” to be invaluable for the beginner and a great reconnection for those more familiar with the texts.

The participants choose from two concurrent sessions – Chai Mitzvah night classes or Lunch and Learn day classes.

Intrigued by the stimulating opportunity to converse on elements of Judaism with a group of like-minded people, I attended the eighth class of the Lunch and Learn series. I must have been eager to feed my soul because I was the fi rst one at the gallery (401), the meeting place. While waiting for the other “students,” I explored the fascinating artwork on the walls of the “classroom.” After the three of us were seated, we readied ourselves for an hour of ancient wisdom to guide us.

Since Shavuot – the holiday that celebrates the anniversary of God giving the Torah to the Israelites – was only two weeks away, Rabbi Karp chose gratitude as the topic of the lesson.

The concept fits in nicely with the commandment to honor your parents. After taking turns sharing our defi nitions of the notion and pondering whether gratitude translates into happiness, we learned that the Hebrew expression for it is “the recognition of the good.”

The students read from the rabbi’s study guide that contained various illuminating quotations from Ethics of the Fathers – a tractate of the Mishna dealing with morality – and discussed the segments.

At one point in the conversation, Rabbi Karp suggested that gratitude can be seen as a selfish tool – if we value what we have, we will be happy. It’s that simple … almost. Of course, it’s difficult to be grateful for the horrible occurrences in our lives. When we wondered why God allows them to happen, the rabbi explained that, since God knows human beings, He believes that they can handle the challenges – His trust in us is His recognition of our value.

We, in turn, express our gratitude to Him by appreciating His gifts – our lives and the commandments Moses received on Mt. Sinai.

Since God created us with the concept of free will, we face adversity. Rabbi Karp clarified that God makes sure that everything balances out and makes sense in the end. In the meanwhile, we can fi nd happiness by choosing to recognize the good

Never too busy for story reading Jeffrey Savit, president and CEO of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, reads “Kindergarten Rocks” to students at the JCC Early Childhood Center on May 21. in any situation. By changing the state of our minds, we improve the quality of our lives.

The rabbi shared an example of the husband who stopped being jealous and asking for respect. Instead, he simply gave, and his selflessness saved his marriage. I thought about my early arrival to class. I didn’t bring my phone or any reading materials, but made the best use of the five-minute wait by looking at the wonderful artwork.

By the end of the hour, I learned that my appreciation of my surroundings and enjoyment of the time is called “recognizing the good” in my situation.

IRINA MISSIURO is a reporter and editorial consultant at The Jewish Voice.

Rabbi Karp’s classes (held at the Dwares JCC): LUNCH AND LEARN Remaining class: June 11, 12:15 p.m.

CHAI MITZVAH Remaining class: June 11, 7 p.m.

These groups are under the auspices of Chai Mitzvah (chaimitzvah.org), a national organization.

For more information: or if you’d like to attend, contact Rabbi Karp at 401-632-3165.

COURTESY | JCCECC

The 4- and 5-year-olds are part of the Pre-K class; their teachers are Morah Esta, Mr. Bob and Miss Edna.

Celebrating Yom Yerushalayim On May 28, a special assembly was held at the Providence Hebrew Day School to celebrate Yom Yerushalayim.

Rabbi Yaakov Zimmerman, second grade Judaic Studies teacher, began the program with an explanation of the Biblical source of the name “Jerusalem” and the pivotal role this special city should play in our lives.

After that, the students in Grades 1-3 created beautiful “stained glass” mizrach signs to remind us that we face east, mizrach, toward Jerusalem when we pray.

Students in Grades 4-8 used glass plates, Mod Podge and spray paint to create decorative glass plates in honor of Jerusalem. Students left the assembly excited about their beautiful creations and reminded of the significant role that Jerusalem plays in our lives.

PHOTO | PHDS

PHDS 7th-graders Shaul Golden and Yossi Picard work on their plates in honor of Yom Yerushalayim.

4 | June 6, 2014 FROM PAGE 2

COMMUNITY

The Jewish Voice

DIVERSITY

d by A painting donate .

RI ntio ec nn Co t Ar principles that both the staff and volunteers at JFS strive for each and every day.

These words are reflected in other locations throughout the building as a reminder of the values that drive all the agency’s actions.

There are numerous original pieces of art displayed throughout the agency. Some are donated

by The Art Connection-RI. Art Connection is a nonprofit organization that identifies artists willing to donate their art, and then donates the pieces to qualified public and nonprofit agencies.

These works of art then become the property of the agencies. The mission of TAC-RI is to make

visual art accessible to people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience art in their daily lives. JFS serves as a vehicle for individuals in the community and our volunteers to share this experience.

Clients at our 959 North Main St. offices generally meet with JFS staff in what is warmly referred to as the “clinical corridor.” The pictures displayed in this corridor were intentionally selected to create an atmosphere of peace and acceptance for our very diverse clientele who seek support from a Jewish agency. JFS’s acceptance and service of all individuals truly reflects our character and ideology and the posters on the walls in this part of our office are part of that character.

And fi nally, as the staff members are ready to sit back, take a brief reprieve from their work schedule and share in a few laughs in JFS’s lunchroom, they are greeted by brightly colored, original Judaic images drawn by children from the Jewish elementary schools in Rhode Island. These were created for JFS several years ago. The original pieces of art are a reminder to all of us of the need to renew, re-energize and be lighthearted.

The art at JFS is like music to our eyes. It communicates sensitive and thoughtful messages and calls to our higher insights and deepest feelings. If you would like to experience the JFS art, please call us at 401-331-1244, and we will arrange for a visit.

ERIN GISHERMAN MINIOR, LICSW, is CEO of Jewish Family Service.

PHOTO | LAUREL SILVERMAN

Judge Edward Sowa Jr. talks with the NEAT Mock Trial team.

Mock Trial team recognized at banquet On May 21, the Rhode Island Mock Trial team banquet was held in Warwick. Chrisanne Wyrzykowski, one of New England Academy of Torah’s coaches; Nancy Lee, the wife of NEAT’s senior coach, Jim Lee; Sorah Hinda Taitelbaum, the faculty advisor; and Laurel Silverman, General Studies principal, accompanied the team to the banquet. Judge Edward P. Sowa Jr. presided over the festivities.

In his remarks, he men-

tioned several teams and students by name, including the team from NEAT. He and Jennifer Minuto, the director of the statewide program, called up each team and its coaches to congratulate and present each participant with a certificate.

Judge Sowa then visited with the NEAT girls and shared a few anecdotes. He initiated the Rhode Island Mock Trial program 13 years ago; he is retiring this year.

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Midrasha graduates celebrate at Temple Emanu-El Many students honored for their service and dedication

On the evening of May 22, students from the Harry Elkin Midrasha Community High School celebrated with their families and friends at a graduation ceremony at Temple Emanu-El in Providence. In alphabetical order the graduates are: Jesse Brenman, Makenna Kobrin, Alexis Kutenplon-Rayess, Rachel Mernoff, Julie Penn, Candace Powning, Spencer Ruekberg and Kevin Sock. Jana Brenman, Director of Teen Engagement, welcomed the group and gave opening statements for the evening. Clergy of Temple Emanu-El hosted the evening with Rabbi Franklin welcoming everyone and Rabbi Babchuck delivering the D’var Torah.

Candace Powning, as the Nathan Resnik Memorial Award Scholar, gave the graduate’s address, and Spencer Ruekberg thanked the faculty.

Nathan Bresnick of Temple Beth- El, Noah Shea of Temple Habonim, Golda Taitelbaum and Adena Yudkowsky of the New England Academy of Torah were also honored as Nathan Resnik Memorial Award Scholars. The ceremony also

Midrasha graduates are (left to right): Spencer Ruekberg (North Kingstown), Alexis Kutenplon-Rayess (Barrington), Makenna Kobrin (Barrington), Julie Penn (Warwick), Candace Powning (Providence), Jesse Brenman (Pawtucket). Not pictured: Rachel Mernoff (Providence), Kevin Sock (Warwick) recognized all the students traveling to Israel during the year as well as the Maccabi

Games delegation.

Along with the Resnik Award, Midrasha present-

ed three additional awards.

This year, Spencer Ruekberg received the Al and Tina Si-

mons Award for excellence in Rabbinics. Makenna Kobrin received the Harry and Esther Elkin Memorial Award for commitment to the State of Israel and Rachel Mernoff received the Rabbi & Mrs. Israel S. Rubenstein Memorial Award for excellence in Contemporary Jewish Studies.

Along with Jana Brenman, Rabbi Josh Elkin, former Director of PEJE: Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education and the son of Harry and Esther Elkin (Harry Elkin was the former director of the Bureau of Jewish Education) addressed the graduates and distributed the certificates.

Jana spoke poignantly about the March of the Living trip, presented a video created by Elanah Chassen of the Jewish Alliance and recognized all the participants.

The evening of celebration concluded with Rabbi Franklin delivering the benediction.

All joined in singing “Hatikvah” with Cantor Mayer and enjoyed a reception.

Laurelmead employees awarded scholarships At Laurelmead Cooperative, a retirement community located on the East Side of Providence, 16 members of its staff (or their children) were recently awarded scholarships at its annual Laurelmead Employee Education Fund (LEEF) award ceremony.

LEEF is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that was founded in 2006 by Laurelmead residents who wanted to show their gratitude to the staff for their exceptional service. “Laurelmead is the wonderful place it is today because of our dedicated staff,” said Lester Keats, a Laurelmead resident and the president of the LEEF Board of Directors. “Supporting our staff through contributions to LEEF gives the resi-

dents and their families great satisfaction.”

David Lefebvre, an employee of Laurelmead for the past 15 years, commented, “I love my job and receiving scholarships for each of my three children has really made a difference over the past few years.”

Most of Laurelmead’s full-time employees have been with the organization for at least seven years and many become like family. “With programs like LEEF continuing to remind our staff how important they are to us,” said Jeff Freymann the Laurelmead Board President, “I am sure they will continue to enjoy many more years of employment.”

ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT Tricia Stearly tstearly@jewishallianceri.org 401-421-4111, ext. 160 EDITOR Fran Ostendorf CONTRIBUTING WRITER Irina Missiuro EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS Irina Missiuro | Judith Romney Wegner DESIGN & LAYOUT` Leah Camara

Karen Borger ksborger@gmail.com 401-529-2538 COLUMNISTS Dr. Stanley Aronson, Michael Fink, Rabbi James Rosenberg and Daniel Stieglitz MEMBER of the Rhode Island Press Association

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6 | June 6, 2014

The Jewish Voice

JEWISH WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

Teddy bear is an immigrant success story

BY TOBY ROSSNER Teddy bears suggest gentleness and security. Yet, for generations, American bears prompted fear, not affection, and Teddy bear’s namesake, Theodore Roosevelt, was a big game hunter. So – how did this ironic combination come about?

The story begins in 1902. The states of Mississippi and Louisiana disagreed over the location of their common boundary. The governors of both states invited President Theodore Roosevelt to arbitrate the dispute. Roosevelt, in turn, decided to combine his tour of the disputed territory with a five-day black bear hunt. The president’s activities attracted a large contingent of journalists, who reported little about the boundary dispute but plenty about the ability of the area’s bears to elude the president’s crosshairs for four full days.

On the fi fth and last day of the junket, apparently to redeem the president’s reputation, one of his hunting companions caught and tied a bear cub to a tree so that the president could shoot it. When the president came upon the cub, he refused to kill it, saying that he only took prey that had a sporting chance to defend itself.

America’s leading cartoonist, Clifford Berryman, published a cartoon showing Roosevelt turning his back on the

Theodore Roosevelt

COURTESY | TOBY ROSSNER

Theodore Roosevelt as Rough Rider with Clifford Berryman’s bear. young bear; public response to the president was overwhelmingly favorable, including that of New York immigrant notion store owners Rose and Morris Michtom. Morris suggested to Rose that she sew a replica of the cub to display in their shop

window along with the cartoon. He labeled the stuffed toy, “Teddy’s bear.” That very day, 13 people came into the shop asking to buy the bear. The Michtoms mailed the original bear to the White House, offering it as a gift to the president’s

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children and asking Roosevelt for the use of his name.

The president responded to the Michtoms that he doubted his name would help sales but they were free to use it.

Thus followed the dream immigrant success story.

The Michtoms gave up their store to manufacture teddy bears full time, founded the Ideal Toy Company and the teddy bear became the most popular toy of the 1910s. The original teddy bear, treasured and saved by Teddy Roosevelt’s grandchildren, is now displayed at the Smithsonian

Museum. German toy manufacturer Margaret Steiff also claims to be fi rst to manufacture the Teddy Bear, but it is well-documented that the Steiff bear appeared a year after the Michtom bear.

TOBY ROSSNER (tobyross@ cox.net) was the Director of Media Services at the Bureau of Jewish Education from 1978-2002.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the eighth in a series on the history of Jewish women entrepreneurs.

D’VAR TORAH | WORLD

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June 6, 2014 |

7

D’VAR TORAH

Channel the energy of cravings toward doing good in the world

BY RABBI ELYSE WECHTERMAN Sometimes I crave chocolate.

Or an ice cream cone. Or maybe a nice big slice of pecan pie.

Other people crave alcohol or cigarettes, new clothing or the newest electronics gear. We all know people, ourselves included, who want “it” (whatever the “it” is) right now! Some people have serious addictions and need treatment and help for those addictions. But a good number of us simply want what we want – badly.

When we focus on our cravings, trying to fulfi ll them, our “wants” are experienced as “needs.” “I’ll die if I don’t get another cookie!” says the child with the sweet tooth. Of course we know that the lack of a cookie is not life threatening. But try convincing her of that.

Focusing on our cravings, trying to fulfi ll them, or simply complaining about them takes a lot of energy. It takes so much energy, in fact, that it is impossible to do anything else while

in the midst of a craving. And in some cases, that striving so hard for what we want, beyond what we need, can kill us – just look at increased rates of heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses related to unhealthy diets, for example.

Maybe that’s why God gets so upset with the Israelites in this week’s parashah (Behalotekha, Numbers 8:1-12:16) when they start craving meat. They have been surviving on manna, a nutritious but probably tasteless gift from God for months now. Who can blame them for remembering the meat that they ate in Egypt and craving a little variety in their diet? Do they need the meat? No. But they want it so badly that their cries reach God as the whines of petulant children.

God, in a reaction that some parents might appreciate (“you want meat, I’ll give you meat!”), responds by inundating the people with quail – so much quail that they are stuffing themselves with the fresh meat, gloriously satisfying their crav-

ings until some of them start dying of a mysterious plague (not all that surprising when you consider that the meat they are eating has fallen dead from the sky).

In the story, the cravings of the people did destroy them, fi rst distancing them from God and the work of building and caring for the mishkan and then by allowing them to gorge themselves on meat until it was “coming out of their nostrils,” and making them sick.

God names this place where these events took place Kivroth Hata’avah meaning Graves of Craving. This is where the people who pursued their cravings are buried.

Should we take this as a warning? Those of us who try to fulfi ll our cravings will perish? Or is there some other way of reading this admittedly bizarre tale.

The B’aal Shem Tov, founder of Hassidut suggests in a commentary on this parashah that instead of reading the name as the “graves of those who craved,” he would read it more

literally as “the graves of the cravings themselves,” the place where the cravings themselves are buried and overcome. We are given many opportunities to focus our energies on good: pursuing our callings, using our skills to better the world around us; offering gratitude for the gifts of life and sustenance. If we focus on these then we will be able to overcome the more base desires we all carry within us. If we spend more of our time thinking about what we want, complaining about what we don’t have and plotting to get it, then we will become obsessed with those desires to the detriment of our own health and well-being.

When we fi nd ourselves crav-

Israel’s Security Cabinet: No negotiations

Greater Rhode Island June 20 .....................8:06 June 27 .....................8:07 July 3.........................8:06 July 11 ......................8:04

Netanyahu rips Palestinian unity government

JERUSALEM (JTA) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized European acceptance of a Palestinian unity government just hours before its new ministers were sworn in.

“It is surprising for me that European governments, which vehemently condemned the Brussels shooting, talk collegially or even in a friendly tone about the Palestinian unity government

with Hamas,” Netanyahu said June 2 at a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. “This is a terrorist organization which undertakes criminal attacks and boasts about them.”

The Palestinian unity government was sworn in June 2 by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the capital of the Palestinian Authority.

The ceremony was almost delayed by last-minute fighting over the configuration of the new Cabinet and a threat of boycott by Hamas.

Israel stopped actively looking for ways to continue American-backed peace talks with the Palestinians after the announcement that Abbas’ Fatah party had agreed to form a unity government with Hamas.

U.S. will work with Fatah-Hamas unity government

JTA – The United States plans to work with the new Palestinian unity government and will continue to disburse aid to the Palestinian Authority, the State Department said.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said June 2 that the U.S. “will be watching closely to ensure that [the Hamas-Fatah government] upholds principles that President [Mahmoud] Abbas reiterated today,” according to Haaretz.

The principles include recognizing Israel, rejecting terror and honoring agreements.

Israel’s Security Cabinet said it will not negotiate with the new government and will oppose Hamas participation in the Palestinian elections if and when they take place. The Security Cabinet also said it will hold the new government responsible for any rockets fired at Israel from Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that Israel would not allow the new unity government to hold any elections in eastern Jerusalem, the Times of Israel reported.

Abbas criticized Israel’s refusal to recognize the new government and said Palestinians would continue efforts to declare statehood, something that was put on hold during peace talks.

“We won’t stand with our hands folded in the face of punitive measures, and we will use every legal and diplomatic tool at our disposal in the international community,” he said, according to Haaretz.

RABBI ELYSE WECHTERMAN has been the spiritual leader of Congregation Agudas Achim in Attleboro, Massachusetts since 2001. She is a graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College and lives in Attleboro with her husband and two children

Candle Lighting Times

NEWS BRIEFS JERUSALEM JTA – Israel’s Security Cabinet unanimously decided not to negotiate with a Palestinian government that includes the terrorist organization Hamas.

The Security Cabinet met June 2 following the swearing-in of the Palestinian unity government.

“Today, Abu Mazen said yes to terrorism and no to peace,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement, referring to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

“This is the direct continuation of Abu Mazen’s policy of refusing peace.

“While Israel has carried out courageous and painful steps on behalf of the diplomatic process and continues to be committed to peace, Abu Mazen has refused to extend the negotiations, has rejected the American framework document, continues to incite against Israel, has unilaterally acceded to UN treaties and has now forged a pact with the Hamas terrorist organization.”

The Security Cabinet also authorized Netanyahu to impose additional sanctions on the Palestinian Authority, though it did not publicly disclose what the sanctions might be.

The statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said the Security Cabinet voted “to form a team to consider ways of action given the new reality that has been created and ahead of diplomatic and security situations that will be created in the future” and “to act, including in the international arena, against the participation of terrorist organizations in elections.”

The Security Cabinet said it would “hold the Palestinian Authority responsible for all actions that harm the security of Israel which originate in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip.”

Israel formally suspended peace negotiations with the Palestinians shortly after Abbas launched unity talks with Hamas.

ing that cookie or milkshake or any other vice that isn’t good for us, we can use that energy to do something good in the world and toward the task of living a whole and meaningful life.

Then we will be able to bury our cravings in the desert and move on to the promised land without our cravings holding us back.

Join us for an Extraordinary Evening of Spiritual Music & Erev Shabbat Worship at Temple Habonim Friday, June 13th at 7:30pm Noah Aronson, nationally acclaimed musician and recording artist, will bring his soulful music to Rhode Island for a unique and inspiring musical Shabbat. Noah is a powerful force in the world of contemporary Jewish music. He is an innovative and poetic composer widely recognized in both the United States and Israel.

We joyfully open our doors to the entire Rhode Island community to share in this wonderful evening of music and prayer.

www.templehabonim.org 401-245-6536 165 New Meadow Road

Barrington, RI

8 | June 6, 2014

OPINION

The Jewish Voice

Looking for a workable balance

FROM THE EDITOR

Warm weather and other thoughts Have you been listening to your friends and neighbors?

If so, I’ll bet you’ve heard this conversation over and over and over again lately: “I looked out at my garden one day and saw everything was just starting to come up. A couple of days later, it exploded.”

It seems as if our favorite springtime EDITOR pastime has caused an unusually big FRAN headache this OSTENDORF year. Too many cold days when we should have been weeding and getting the garden ready (ready for what, some might ask). Then, all of a sudden, a couple of warm, sunny days and boom: flowers and plants you’d forgotten about appear.

Last weekend, we fi nally went to our local nursery to buy some annuals for the pots around our house. When we returned to buy a few more flowers at the end of the weekend, the place was cleaned out. I guess everyone is operating on a delayed schedule this year.

And then the cold returned.

You just can’t depend on the warm weather yet. But it’s coming. And pretty soon, we’ll all be complaining about how hot it is outside.

And please do remember

to get outside and enjoy all that there is to do in our area.

Whether it’s a walk on Blackstone Boulevard, a meal at a local restaurant or even a stroll by the ocean, winter is over, so we should take advantage of living in such a beautiful place. And when the weather is a bit off, it’s still better without snow, isn’t it?

And (prepare for the shameless promotion) when you are out and about, please stop by some of our advertisers. While you are reading all the great news in the paper, don’t forget to take a look at the ads. Now seems like a pretty good time for us to remind you to patronize our advertisers. Remember to tell them where you saw their ads, too. And don’t forget our home, the Dwares JCC. JFitness is perfect when you don’t feel like exercising in the rain … or the heat and humidity.

As we slide into June here at The Voice, we just want to remind you that we have only one more edition after this one before we take our annual July break. Everyone slows down a bit in the summer, and so do we. So if you have news, calendar items and simchas to send us, please get them to us

by June 13 at the very latest for publication before our break.

We’ll be in the office in July, so keep sending us your news.

Just don’t look for a paper after our June 20 edition until August.

LETTER

Re: Story of the doll (May 23)

I read with interest the article

by Geraldine Foster about the doll. Although she was a member of the JWV Auxillary 23 – at that time there was also another active JWV Post and Auxillary #533, which was founded after World War II. There were several couples who founded #533, including my parents Phil and Becky Woled, Sayra and Louie

Weiner, and Rose and Phil Chernoff. I grow up with the JWV as a major part of my childhood. I believe that my mother was the first president of the auxillary, and my father was also active, selling poppies and being part of the color guard.

Ellen Gourse Warwick, R.I.

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This paper is only as vibrant and robust as our readers make it, with kudos, comments, criticisms and other contributions such as: online comments, letters to the editor and op-ed submissions.

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I was disturbed but by no means surprised by the Supreme Court’s May 5 decision, Town of Greece v. Galloway; the court ruled, 5-4, that the town of Greece, in upstate New York, did not violate the Constitution by routinely beginning its public meetings with a ceremonial prayer offered by the “chaplain of the month,” despite the fact that the prayers were almost exclusively Christian, and on occasion included such IT SEEMS clearly sectarian language TO ME as “the saving sacrifice of JeRABBI JIM sus Christ on ROSENBERG the cross.”

The plaintiffs in this case, Susan Galloway and Linda Stephens, both residents of the town of Greece, complained that such prayers “made them feel excluded and disrespected.”

In response, Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the conservative majority, argued that these prayers did not violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment. “Adults often encounter speech they fi nd disagreeable.

Legislative bodies do not engage in impermissible coercion merely by exposing constituents to prayer they would rather not hear and in which they need not participate.”

In rebuttal, Justice Elena Kagan, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor, wrote: “No one can fairly read the prayers from Greece’s town meetings as anything other than explicitly Christian – constantly and exclusively so… [The clergy] put some residents to the unenviable choice of either pretending to pray like the majority or declining

LETTER

to join in communal activities at the very moment of petitioning their elected leaders.

Echoing what I have written on other occasions, it seems to me that the wall between church and state “must be kept high and impregnable,” to underscore the words of Justice Hugo Black in his decision in the 1947 case of Everson v.

Board of Education. This metaphor of the wall of separation is by no means an invention of 20th-century jurists; the language goes all the way back to our third president, Thomas Jefferson, who in 1802 wrote in a letter to the Danbury Baptist

“I pray that all my colleagues will make a good faith effort to write inclusive prayers.”

Association: “…I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ [initial clauses of First Amendment] thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.” The fact that Town of Greece v. Galloway removes some bricks from this “wall of separation” makes me profoundly uncomfortable as an American citizen and as a Jew. Though I am close to an absolutist in my support of the First Amendment principle of church-state separation, I am also close to an absolutist in my support of the First Amendment principle of freedom of speech. Congress shall make no law “abridging the freedom of speech.” At times, the principle of churchstate separation is in confl ict with the principle of freedom

of speech, so that the First Amendment appears to be at war with itself!

While I am disappointed that Justice Kennedy provided the swing vote vindicating the use of sectarian prayer to open the public meetings of Greece, New York, I am sympathetic to his reluctance to have legislatures and courts as “supervisors and censors of religious speech.” Kennedy’s opinion, though I disagree with it, serves to underline our need as American citizens – and especially as American clergy – to fi nd a way to hold the sometimes competing values of church-state separation and freedom of speech in creative tension, a delicate but workable balance.

My colleague and friend, Rabbi Leslie Y. Gutterman, wrote an op-ed piece on Town of Greece v. Galloway in the May 16 issue of The Providence Journal. In it, he pointed out that “the court turned to larger matters concerning the role of faith in public life” – a role that calls for a mature sensitivity to the complex realities of our increasingly multicultural society.

In the wake of Town of Greece v. Galloway, it is clear that, like it or not, prayer in public places will continue to be part of our American experience for the foreseeable future. Rabbi Gutterman concludes his column with a prayer for making the best of our current situation: “…leading an offering of thanks or prayer in a pluralistic society is both a privilege and a responsibility. I pray that all my colleagues will make a good faith effort to write inclusive prayers.”

To this prayer, I respond with an all-inclusive “Amen!”

JAMES B. ROSENBERG, rabbi emeritus of Temple Habonim in Barrington, can be contacted at rabbiemeritus@ templehabonim.org.

Re: Pope’s trip to Israel (May 23)

Pope Francis is to be commended for keeping the Israel-Palestinian peace process from dying out by inviting the presidents of Israel and of the Palestinian Authority, Shimon Peres and Mahmoud Abbas, to the Vatican in June for “a prayer summit.” Although some say that this will be no more than a ceremonial oc-

casion, no stone should be left unturned in trying for a two-state solution that almost everyone says they support; there could be unforeseen positive consequences.

His travelling to the Middle East with leaders of both the Jewish and Muslim faith, calling for non-violence, mutual respect and honoring all the

OUR MISSION

COLUMNS | LETTERS POLICY

The mission of The Jewish Voice is to communicate Jewish news, ideas and ideals by connecting and giving voice to the diverse views of the Jewish community in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts, while adhering to Jewish values and the professional standards of journalism.

The Jewish Voice publishes thoughtful and informative contributors’ columns (op-eds of 500 – 800 words) and letters to the editor (250 words, maximum) on issues of interest to our Jewish community. At our discretion, we may edit pieces for publication or refuse publication. Letters and columns, whether from our regular contributors or from guest columnists,

victims of violence on both sides, is the right message and an example for people of goodwill everywhere. J Street Rhode Island, a group that seeks peace between secure Israeli and Palestinian states, thanks the Pope for his efforts.

Judy Kaye, Co-Chair, J Street RI Providence, R.I.

represent the views of the authors; they do not represent the views of The Jewish Voice or the Alliance.

Send letters and op-eds to The Jewish Voice, 401 Elmgrove Ave., Providence, RI 02906 or editor@jewishallianceri.org. Include name, city of residence and a contact phone number or email (not for publication).

OPINION

thejewishvoice.org

June 6, 2014 |

9

Support Jews staying in Ukraine

BY ALAN H. GILL AND PAUL ANTICONI JTA – At the end of “Fiddler on the Roof,” the classic musical celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, Tevye and his family flee their village of Anatevka for a better and safer life.

In reality, however, not everybody left.

Today, several hundred thousand Jews still live in Ukraine, where the fictional Anatevka was likely located. And despite headlines on mass evacuations, Ukraine’s ongoing political crisis and serious concerns about anti-Semitism, they are not leaving in great numbers.

Some might find that hard to fathom.

Ukraine, after all, has a long history of anti-Jewish acts and attitudes, economic turmoil, and was center stage to Holocaust atrocities. Add to that dim prospects for a quick solution to the protracted challenges fac-

ing the country and increasing need among the poorest elderly and families, and a future there seems bleak.

Yet two things are important to remember.

First, 2014 is not 1939. Jews in Ukraine and elsewhere today have the freedom to leave places that are dangerous or unfriendly to them; they can find safe haven in Israel or other countries around the world.

Additionally, Jews have developed strong voices and grassroots community groups, working with their governments and fellow citizens to valiantly challenge acts of anti-Semitism and xenophobia.

Second, Jews throughout the region have deep ties to the societies in which they live. They have families and friends. They are leading politicians, artists, businessmen, journalists and contributors to Ukrainian society. They also have enthu-

LETTERS

siastically engaged in Jewish communities revived after the fall of the Soviet Union – replete with scores of Jewish community centers, synagogues, nursery schools, Jewish day schools, after-school programs and summer camps.

So what are we to do in the face of this phenomenon?

Primarily, we must respect the decision of Ukrainian Jews to stay at home or emigrate.

Then we must do all we can to support those who choose to remain there and continue to live their lives. The global Jewish community, through a variety of philanthropic partners and institutions, has been at the forefront of these efforts.

Since the outbreak of violence in Ukraine, for example, our organizations have provided the neediest Jews with emergency aid, round-the-clock care and Jewish community connection through our network of Hesed

FROM PAGE 1

social welfare centers that reach more than 1,000 locations around Ukraine. Other groups such as the Jewish Agency have done a stellar job of providing immigration options to Israel.

Ultimately the fate of the Jews of Ukraine is not an either/or proposition. Like many others in crisis zones in the world today, they will seek out what they consider to be the best opportunity or path for themselves.

And right now, the choice of the vast majority of Ukrainian Jews is to stay where they were born and raised.

That sentiment was voiced in the aftermath of unprecedented violence in the port city of Odessa amid rumors of a communitywide exodus. Tania Vorobyov of the city’s Beit Grand Jewish Community Center told reporters, “Reports about evacuation are baseless rumors. Jews in Odessa are worried about the

violence like all other Odessans but have no special plans to leave as a community.”

This may be counterintuitive to the popular imagination, a la Tevye, which says Jews must flee Eastern Europe to find happiness and success.

Reality, however, often trumps our preconceptions.

ALAN H. GILL is CEO of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

PAUL ANTICONI is CEO of World Jewish Relief in the United Kingdom.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Alan Gill is speaking June 16 at 7 p.m. at the annual meeting of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island. Also speaking is Dov Ben-Shimon, executive director of Strategic Partnerships at the JDC.

UKRAINE

BY REP. DAVID CICILLINE

Re: Too young to learn about the Holocaust? (April 25) Reading JCDSRI teacher, Melissa Kranowitz’s, (The Voice, 4/25/14) story about her fourth-graders completing “Number the Stars” and viewing the DVD about the Paper Clips Project was déjà vu for me, as those same two teaching activities were the springboard for my initiating an ongoing Holocaust education initiative in 2009 at the Foxborough Regional Charter School.

On Nov. 25, 2011, The Jewish Voice and Herald was One of the stamp projects the first newspaper to publish a story about the school community’s ongoing effort to collect 11 million canceled postage stamps, one to honor each of the 6 million Jewish lives, as well as the 5 million other victims, tragically ended by the prejudice and hatred that resulted in the Holocaust. Shortly thereafter, the children were thrilled to receive a poignant, emotional letter from R.I. Holocaust survivor, Alice Goldstein, who recently visited the students at JCDSRI. Though I have retired from full-time teaching at FRCS, the Holocaust Stamps Project continues as part of the Community Service Learning curriculum under the leadership of Jamie Droste (jdroste@foxboroughrcs.org), student life advisor. Now nearing the end of its fifth year, the middle and high school students have used thousands of the donated stamps to complete 11 of 18 planned stamps collage artworks, each 18” x 24”, depicting what they have learned about the people, events and effects of the Holocaust. Two more student-designed collages are currently underway.

As of mid-May 2014, more than 3,745,000 stamps had been trimmed and counted. The students had hoped to reach 4 million by the end of the school year, but tens of thousands more stamps will be needed for that goal to be met. Many generous supporters from Rhode Island and the southeastern Massachusetts areas have made it possible for the project to get to this point, but the FRCS community would like to see many more people participating!

Please visit the website for more information and to see lots of photos, including images of the stamps collages along with the story behind each. http://www.foxboroughrcs.org/students-families/ frcs-holocaust-stamp-project/ Charlotte Sheer Founder, Holocaust Stamps Project EDITOR’S NOTE: Send stamps to: Foxborough Regional Charter School, 131 Central St., Foxboro, Mass. 02035

Last month, I traveled to Ukraine with a bipartisan congressional delegation. We met with Vice President Joe Biden, other U.S. officials and senior Ukrainian officials, including acting President Oleksandr Turchynov and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, to study the impact of Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and discuss ways the United States and our international partners can help stabilize and strengthen a free and democratic Ukraine. I recently hosted a community meeting at the Dwares Jewish Community Center in Providence to provide my constituents with an assessment of the current situation.

What I saw and heard during my trip to Ukraine confirmed many of my beliefs. Ukrainians overwhelmingly support a unified democratic country and are committed to free and fair elections. Russia, with a powerful and sophisticated propaganda machine, is intent on inciting unrest and instability. Rather than working to deescalate tensions, Russia has used its influence in the region to stoke violent rhetoric, support separatist groups and undermine Ukraine’s electoral process. I was especially revolted to read reports that pro-Russian activists are forcing Ukrainian Jews who are over 16 years old to “register” with the interim government or else have their citizenship revoked. This is appalling and reminiscent of tactics used by Nazis in World War II. According to the European Jewish Congress, Ukraine is home to a Jewish community of more than 360,000 people – the fifth largest in the world – and this particular type of intimidation, given the historical context, continues to have a chilling, frightening impact on the Jewish community.

Rep. David Cicilline met with Ukrainian leaders last month as part of a Congressional delegation to the region ahead of the recent presidential election.

There is a diplomatic path forward that will end this conflict and ensure the sovereignty and unity of Ukraine. This multipronged approach includes enhancing Ukraine’s energy security, promoting the rule of law, providing economic assistance and supporting Ukraine’s efforts to reform its political process and combat corruption.

At the same time, we must continue to ramp up international pressure and economic sanctions on Russia if they continue their aggressive posture in the region.

America and our allies have taken steps to achieve these results. Congress approved a $1 billion loan guarantee for Ukraine and imposed a first set of sanctions against Russia.

Already we are seeing an impact. In the first quarter of this year, Russia saw approximately $70 billion in capital flight exacting a painful toll on its fragile economy, and economic assistance packages are providing resources for Ukrainians to train their security forces and pursue political and economic reform.

While I was in Ukraine I had the opportunity to meet Mi-

chael Druckman, a Barrington native and the Ukraine Resident Country Director for the International Republican Institute, who is working to ensure the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine are free and fair. I was proud to see a Rhode Islander working far from home, and in a dangerous environment, to help advance democracy abroad.

As Ukrainians try to build their new democracy, Russian aggression in the region threatens to undermine and derail those efforts. Russia’s actions in Ukraine are an affront to well-established principles of self-government, sovereignty and the rule of law, and have broad implications for the region and the entire world. We must do all what we can to support Ukraine’s right to pursue a democratic future both for the Ukrainian people and to serve our own national security interests.

U.S. REP. DAVID CICILLINE represents the 1st District of Rhode Island. He is a former mayor of Providence.

10 | June 6, 2014

CALENDAR | COMMUNITY

The Jewish Voice

CALENDAR Ongoing

Alliance Kosher Senior Café. Kosher lunch and program every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Dwares JCC, 401 Elmgrove Ave., Providence. Noon lunch; 1 p.m. program. Know Your Candidates program through July: June 6, Jorge Elorza, candidate for mayor of Providence; Nellie Gorbea, candidate for secretary of state (at 1:30); June 18, Frank Caprio, candidate for treasurer; June 25, Daniel J. McKee, candidate for lieutenant governor; June 27, Ernie Almonte, candidate for treasurer. $3 lunch donation from individuals 60+ or under 60 with disabilities. Neal or Elaine, 401-421-4111, ext. 107.

Am David Kosher Senior Café. Kosher lunch and program every weekday.

Temple Am David, 40 Gardiner St., Warwick. 11:15 a.m. program; noon lunch. $3 lunch donation from individuals 60+ or under 60 with disabilities. Elaine or Steve 401-732-0047.

Continuing through June

Three area artists in three media.

Temple Habonim, 165 New Meadow Road, Barrington. Wednesday and Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and by appointment. For information, 401-245-6536, or email gallery@templehabonim.org.

Friday | June 6

Capturing Bialik’s Butterflies: Poet’s Voice Meets Camera’s Eye. Curator and photographer Henry J. Spencer.

An interpretive art project by JCDSRI students accompany the exhibit. Brown RISD Hillel Gallery, 80 Brown St. Providence Monday-Thursday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Friday 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Opening reception June 12, 4-8 p.m. with remarks by Rabbi Dr. Marc Mandel of Touro Synagogue. www.brownhillel.org United Brothers Synagogue “Songs of Light.” 7:30 p.m. Annual musical service, celebrating “Torah orah/The Torah is light” Oneg immediately following the service. All welcome. RSVP to ubsbristol@gmail.com. 205 High St., Bristol.

Annual Get S’mores Shabbat. Temple Sinai. 6 p.m. Brief service and a picnic on the temple lawn. Members are invited to bring their own suppers and chairs, and the s’mores will be provided.

30 Hagen Ave., Cranston.

Third Annual Gay Pride Shabbat.

Temple Habonim. 6:45 p.m. Celebrate Shabbat and LBGT pride. Max Chaiken will be song leader and guest speaker.

For more information, contact Temple Habonim at 401-245-6536 or www. templehabonim.org.

Sunday | June 9

Leisure Club Annual Meeting. 1 p.m.

Luncheon and program with entertainment by Amy Olson. Temple Emanu-El, 99 Taft Ave., Providence.

Wednesday | June 11

Cranston Senior Guild Annual Spring Installation of Officers. Noon. West

Valley Inn, 4 Blossom St., West Warwick. $21 includes, soup, salad, pasta, entree, dessert and beverage. Entertainment by Scotch and Soda Music. There will also be raffles. Men and women 50 years and up welcome. You do not have to be a Cranston resident to join. Reservations for the lunch and information, call Natalie Palla at 401-615-9483.

Friday | June 13

Services at Temple Sinai. 6 p.m. Oneg Shabbat afterward honoring Rabbi Peter Stein, who will be moving with his family to Rochester, N.Y., during the summer.

Erev Shabbat Services at Temple Habonim with Noah Aronson. 7:30 p.m., Cantorial associate and rabbinical student Noah Aronson leads singing during Shabbat service. Open to the community.

Wednesday | June 18

Jewish Women’s Inspirational Dinner.

6:30-9 p.m. “Infusing Your Daily life with Joy and Confidence” with guest speaker and performer Rus Devorah Wallen. Chabad of West Bay, 3871 Post Road, Warwick. Suggested donation $20, event sponsor $100. RSVP to 401-884-7888 or email mrslaufer@ gmail.com.

Sunday | June 22

Retirement Luncheon for Cantor Remmie Brown. Noon. Crowne Plaza Hotel, Warwick. Adults, $36, children 12 and under, $18. R.S.V.P. by June 5 to Dottie at Temple Sinai, 401-9428350 or dottie@templesinairi.org.

Tuesday | June 24

American Friends of Magen David Adom Reception. 7:30 p.m., Narragansett. Learn how MDA, Israel’s emergency medical and blood services saves lives in Israel. Free. No solicitation. Seating is limited; reservations required; dietary laws observed. For information/reservations, contact Burton Klein, New England representative for AFMDA, 617-916-1827 or burtonklein@gmail.com.

Upcoming

Shabbat Services at Barrington Beach.

6:15 p.m. One Friday night each month during the summer hosted by Temple Habonim. Join us on June 27, July 18 and Aug. 15. In case of rain, outdoor services will be canceled. Please check www.templehabonim.org as well as the Temple Habonim facebook page for cancelation information.

JCC Summer Canteen Reunion. Sunday Aug. 24, 7-10 p.m. at the Dwares JCC, 401 Elmgrove Ave., Providence.

Everyone who attended JCC Summer Canteen dances in the fifties and sixties is invited. Entertainment by the Ghost Riders (Roy Cohen, Richie Cohen and David Katz) and our DJ (Jerry Chorney). Wine, cheese and fruit will be served. Dress is summer casual. $20 per person. Send checks payable to “Summer Canteen Reunion” to Summer Canteen Reunion, Box JJ, Chepachet, R.I. 02814. Contact Mark Rechter at mrech48@cox.net.

Calendar Submissions June 20 issue, HEALTH & WELLNESS – must be received by June 13 Aug. 1 issue, BACK TO SCHOOL – must be received by July 16

Send all calendar items to: editor@jewishallianceri.org with the subject line “CALENDAR.”

PHOTO | AL WEEMS

Stanley M. Aronson, M.D. (left) with Patricia R. Recupero, M.D., J.D. (center) and Joseph H. Friedman, M.D. (right) at the celebration of Butler’s first endowed chair, The Aronson Chair for Neurodegenerative Disorders.

Butler Hospital and Brown University honor Stanley Aronson Endowed chair and fund to continue the legacy

BY IRINA MISSIURO imissiuro@jewishallianceri.org

This year is only halfway through, but Dr. Stanley Aronson – The Jewish Voice’s columnist, distinguished researcher, clinician and mentor – has already been honored by two institutions.

First, Butler Hospital recently held a dedication of its first endowed chair, The Aronson Chair, for Neurodegenerative Disorders. It not only honors the legacy of Dr. Aronson, but also invests in learning and discovering new treatments for neurological disorders.

Rather than draw attention to himself, Aronson chooses to emphasize the need to study diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, that still need to be conquered. In the May issue of Rhode Island Medical Journal, he says, “Let’s not celebrate the bottle of champagne that we used to launch the ship. It is the ship, not the champagne, that is our future, and it is the only purpose of the establishment of the Chair.” Aronson is hopeful that, through routine discussion among researchers from various disciplines, discoveries will be made to advance the care of those suffering from ailments of the brain.

Another major element of the endowment will allow medical students to devote themselves to a comprehensive study of movement disorders. Having hundreds of contributors, the Aronson Chair benefited from Dr. Aronson’s myriad admirers, as well as from the grateful patients of

Dr. Joseph H. Friedman, chief of the Movement Disorders Program at Butler and the first recipient of the Chair.

The Dean Stanley M. Aronson Fund for Research and Innovation is the second honor granted to Aronson this year.

Created to recognize Aronson and provide support for biological sciences, the fund was announced during a ceremony at the Warren Alpert Medical School in May. As its founding dean, Aronson helped establish the school four decades ago. Aronson, who served during the years of economic challenges, knows the importance of sources to finance innovation in education and research. He is pleased that the $3-million endowed fund

will be a considerable investment in faculty, facilities and programs that are essential for progress in medicine. The resources will allow for more flexibility, creativity and innovation.

To describe how he feels about the two honors bestowed upon him, Aronson shared with The Voice readers, “I’m pleased; I’m honored; I’m humbled.” Now it’s up to the students he mentored to continue his legacy of striving for medical advancements and dedicating as much time to people as to the causes.

IRINA MISSIURO is a writer and editorial consultant for The Jewish Voice.

Jeffrey G. Brier CLU, ChFC, CASL Licensed Insurance Agent of Genworth Life Insurance Company Brier & Brier 245 Waterman Street, #505 Providence, RI 02906 jbrier@brier-brier.com · www.Brier-Brier.com 401-751-2990 Long term care planning options for businesses and individuals

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OUTDOORS

thejewishvoice.org

June 6, 2014 |

11

A stroll down our collective memory lane

BY SHELLEY A. SACKETT BOSTON — The warm breeze, aroma of springtime earth and visions of buds on trees are like a sensory prize at the finish line of this year’s marathon of a winter. Surviving the winter deserves a party, and Alan Maltzman’s two-hour Jewish cultural walking tour of Boston is the perfect way to celebrate.

A high-tech retiree, Maltzman founded Boston CityWalks in 2006. His menu included tours of the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, downtown Boston, the Freedom Trail and Cambridge. After repeatedly hearing, “Where’s the Jewish tour?” he decided to add one to his roster in 2009.

Maltzman’s goal is to combine history and architecture, with anecdotes and humor. He delivers on all counts.

First, some tips: There are a lot of cobblestones and much of the walk is uphill, so wear comfortable shoes. Bring a snack and some water. And carry a map of Boston — it helps with orientation when roaming through back streets and alleys.

The tour covers a lot of ground, both literally and historically. We begin at the Milk Street Café, and end at the Holocaust Memorial. In between, we explore Old City Hall, Boston Latin School, Beacon Hill’s Back Slope, the Vilna Shul, the North and West End, and more.

Maltzman’s narrative thread on local Jewish immigration answers questions about our arrival as a people to Puritan Boston’s shores.

The knowledgeable Maltzman, 67, is a Northeastern University-trained industrial engineer. His professional niche was starting up new manufacturing plants for Digital Equipment Corp., HewlettPackard and Compaq; hence his interest in architecture. Born

in Chelsea, he grew up loving Boston.

“I thought I knew it all, but when I started these tours I realized how little I actually knew. I now have a library as big as the Library of Congress on the history and architecture of Boston,” he said.

The Famine Memorial (Washington Street/School Street corner), sculptor Robert Shure’s commemoration of the 1845 potato famine that brought the first Irish immigrants to Boston, was our first stop. The significance, explained Maltzman, was that acceptance of the Irish immigrants opened the doors for other groups, including Eastern European and German Jews.

As we meandered toward Beacon Hill, Maltzman peppered facts and figures with delightfully arcane tidbits. We learned, for example, that the Boston Latin student body was 25 percent Jewish until the first ethnic survey in 1920. After that, the percentage dropped to under 10 percent. Ho Chi Minh was a chef, Malcolm X was a busboy and the first recipe using chocolate (Boston Cream Pie) was created at the Omni Parker House Hotel. My favorite was the story of how Filene’s got its name. Willem Katz, its founder, was a German Jew who wanted to Americanize his name before emigrating. Not finding “katz” in the dictionary, he substituted “cats,” which led to “feline” and a retail dynasty.

The mid-1880s Back/North Slope of Beacon Hill was home to the poorest immigrants, including Jews, Italians and Irish, and other “undesirables” such as prostitutes. Maltzman pointed out the architectural differences between North and South Slopes: wooden houses (versus brick); tenement-type structures (versus single family, multi-storied homes); and

Alan Maltzman the presence of stores, noticeably absent to this day in the Boston Brahmin residential area of Beacon Hill.

The Vilna Shul, the former Vilna Congregation, was for me the highlight of the tour. It is now Boston’s Center for Jewish Culture, with a monthly Kabbalat Shabbat service and public programs and events. Of the 50 synagogues that existed within Boston city limits during the 1920s, this 1919 building is the only one still standing.

The second-floor sanctuary is an amalgam of Lithuanian Orthodoxy, New England classical Baroque, art nouveau biblical murals and pews salvaged from the 1840 Twelfth Baptist Church. Eclectic is an understatement. The first floor community room houses a small but densely informative “History of Jewish Immigration in Boston.”

On our way to the Holocaust Memorial, we stood across the street from the location of the pre-urban renewal West End House. The club was a cornerstone for West End youth for almost 70 years. In 1971, it moved to the Allston-Brighton area and, in 1976, it became one of the first to include female mem-

Boston’s Jewish walking tour includes the Holocaust Memorial

Vilna Shul bers. There is a West End museum, which was not included on this tour but is open to the public.

The 1995 New England Holocaust Memorial was the last monument we visited. It is no coincidence that it sits on the Freedom Trail. Architect Stanley Saitowitz designed the six, 54-feet high, luminous glass towers that sit above six pits.

The towers represent six concentration camps; the pits symbolize crematoria. Etched in the towers’ walls are the tattoo numbers of the six million murdered. Walking through the internally lit towers, past the engraved words of survivors, one is struck by the power of memory and impact of the evil that was World War II. Elie Wiesel, who spoke at the Memorial’s dedication, said at his 1986 Nobel Peace prize ac-

ceptance, “For us, forgetting was never an option. Remembering is a noble and necessary act.”

Strolling down our collective memory lane on a beautiful spring day in Boston felt like just such an act. Thank you, Alan Maltzman, for your Jewish Cultural Tour and for providing a means to perform the mitzvah of remembrance.

To sign up for a Boston Jewish Cultural Walking Tour, visit zerve.com/BostonWalks/ Jewish. The cost is $25 for a two-hour tour.

SHELLEY A. SACKETT (shelleya.sackett@gmail.com) is a native Rhode Islander. She writes from Swampscott, Massachusetts, This article originally appeared in the Jewish Journal, Massachusetts and is reprinted with permission.

12 | June 6, 2014

OUTDOORS

The Jewish Voice

One community.

Many voices.

FROM PAGE 1

TIME

bonds and moves you as much as music. We’ve got that covered – be prepared to sway along to the oldies! He’ll be kvelling, we promise.

Event: Festival of Historic Houses

Date: June 13-15 Cost: $40 per day in advance for non members; $45 purchased on the day of the event; $125 for the cock tail event.

Description: Explore 10 houses in the Cooke Street neighborhood on the East Side of Providence, the Pearl Street Lofts mill complex in South Providence, Studio Dunn, Keeseh Woodshop and DWRI Letterpress. The 35th annual festival kicks off with a cocktail party on Friday evening at the Joseph Cooke House, and wraps up with an open-house reception hosted by KITE Architects on Sunday.

Contact: 401-831-7440, ppsri.org

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Event: Providence Gallery Night

mansions and Hammersmith Farm.

Contact: 401-847-0000, sail-newport.com

Event: Green Hill Fishing Tournament

Where: Point View Marina, 11 Sherman Road, South Kingstown Date: June 14 Cost: $40 (includes a T-shirt and barbecue) Description: Join the 900 or so participants in “the biggest fluke tournament on the planet.” All donated catches will go to The Rhode Island Center Assisting Those in Need. As registered anglers, you and your dad will receive a copy of Coastal Angler Magazine, featuring an article about the tournament in its June issue. Enjoy the delicious foods and beverages at the award ceremony barbecue and try your luck at winning a 13-foot inflatable boat.

Contact: 401-243-7046, fluketilyapuke.com

Event: WaterFire Arts Festival Plaza

Where: Washington Street, Providence Dates: June 14, 28; 6-10:30 p.m.

Cost: free Description: At these two full lightings of WaterFire, you’ll also be able to stroll in an artisan market, appreciating the fi ne jewelry, glass, sculpture, ceramics, painting, prints and photography. Approximately 15 to 20 artists will offer their works for sale. What a great opportunity to support local artisans and spoil your dad with a tangible expression of love!

Contact: 401-273-1155, waterfi re.org waterfi re-arts-festival-plaza

Date: June 19, 5-8 p.m.

Event: Ringo Starr Cost: Free and His All-Starr Band Where: Providence Performing Arts Description: Relish not having to Center, 220 Weybosset St., listen to the passenger directing Providence the driver by taking an art bus Helpin preserve your VoiceRhode in the Greater Rhode Islandcommunity Jewish community beyond. serve your Voice the Greater Island Jewish and and beyond.

Date: June 15, 7:30 p.m. with your dad to explore the Your donation to The Jewish Voice will continue to provide a high-quality community newspaper to The Jewish Voice will continue to provide a high-quality community newspaper Cost: Tickets from $65 to $175 local “visual arts extravaganza.” both readersfind and beneficial, advertisers find beneficial, informative, reliable and enjoyable. h readers andthat advertisers informative, reliable and enjoyable.

Description: Wow, talk about a blast The complimentary bus will Help preserve your Voice in the Greater Rhode Island Jewish community and beyond.

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Help your Voice the Greater Rhodeand Island Jewish beyond. from the past! Starr has been deposit you community at galleries, and museums Your donation to The Jewish Voice will continue to provide a high-quality community newspaper Your donation to The Jewish Voice will continue to provide a high-quality community newspaper Your donation to The Jewish Voice will continue to provide a high-quality community newspaper touring with a rotating lineup and historic sites.

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Date: June 18, 7 p.m.

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Cost: Tickets from $25 to $65 hq Voice) my card (Visa, Discover, or Amex)Exp. Card Number Date - $500 Security Code Card Number Exp. Date - oradults Security Visa, MasterCard, Discover, orcredit Amex) q $18 q $36 q q $72 q $100 q $250 q $1,000 q Other $ City/State/Zip Phone Email Description: Two words – beer and Description: If Ringo alone is not ublished in an upcoming issue unless you previously indicated otherwise or doExp. so here: _____ Please do Security not list my name.

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Signature q $500 q q Other $ make payableExp. umber Date Security Code Card Billing Address aboard an 80-foot pilot the same as the real thing, but q $1,000 Check enclosed (please to The Jewish Voice) Charge my (Visa,Code MasterCard, Discover,Bay or Amex) Card Number Exp.q Date - credit card Security Donorindicated namesdo will belist published upcoming unless you not list my name. essso you previously otherwise do in soan here: _____issue Please do not listpreviously my name.indicated otherwise or do so here: _____ Please do do here: _____ Please not myorname. schooner.

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Security Code Address one is free) while you munch on journey through the life of, re Card Billing Signature arguably, the most famous band. ames will be published in an upcoming issue unless you previously indicated otherwise or do so here: _____ Please do not list my name. complimentary snacks and take Donor names will be published in an upcoming issue unless you previously indicated otherwise or do so here: _____ Please do not list my name.

Signature in the idyllic scenery, letting Catch this Broadway smash while Donor names will be published in an upcoming issue unless you previously indicated otherwise or do so here: _____ Please your do not list my sway name. in the breeze. hair it’s in the area and let it be.

Bond with your dad as you observe Contact: 401-421-2787, ppacri.org ted otherwise or do so here: _____ Please do not list my name. historic lighthouses, a 19th century military fort, waterfront PLACES | 13

OUTDOORS | COMMUNITY

thejewishvoice.org

June 6, 2014 |

13

Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Elbaum still working to change lives

BY GERALDINE. S. FOSTER “When you see how one person can influence a life, can change a life….”

Eleanor Dinaburg Elbaum was born in Harbin, China, where her parents, both from Siberia, had settled. By the mid1930s, their situation in Harbin had become precarious when exiled White Russian soldiers began waging pogroms and kidnappings for ransom. Her father was one of those kidnapped and ransomed. Others were not so fortunate. In 1940, the family moved to Kobe, Japan, where her father had established a business.

In China, Elbaum said, she had gone to school with other Caucasian children. Her schooling in Japan was rather sketchy due to the advent of World War II and the exodus of foreign teachers. “I really did not learn very much.”

FROM PAGE 12

PLACES Event: King Henry IV, Part I

Where: The Rhode Island Shakespeare Theater, Roger Williams National Memorial, 282 North Main St., Providence Date: Thursday – Sunday at 8 p.m. through June 15 Cost: free Description: Popular with the public and with the critics, the play might be a good one to see with your dad.

Considering how disenchanted King Henry is with Prince Harry, you might look like an ideal child all of a sudden. After all, at least you act in a manner that befits royalty, right? If so, bring some beach chairs or a blanket and submerge yourself in history.

Contact: 401-331-6118

Event: Earth, Wind & Fire

Where: Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut Date: June 21 Cost: $45.50 Description: To increase your chances of taking your dad to see a band he’ll appreciate, buy him a ticket to attend a concert

by Earth, Wind & Fire.

Their music combines a multitude of styles.

Starting out as jazz musicians, they incorporated influences from soul, funk, blues, rock and dance, among other movements, into their sound. Known for their excitement and energy on stage, the musicians sing about the universal themes of love and harmony.

Contact: 888-226-7711, ext.

27163, mohegansun.com

“Then,” Elbaum said, “after the end of the war came the opportunity that changed my life.”

During the American occupation of Japan, the U.S. military set up schools for the children of American army personnel and anyone connected to the services or government. A neighbor’s daughter was eligible to attend but had to register for high school in a nearby town.

The neighbor, worried about her daughter traveling alone by train in a strange country, asked Eleanor to accompany the young girl. Eleanor, who was fluent in Japanese, Chinese and Russian, agreed.

The girl provided the necessary documentation and registered. The principal then insisted Eleanor apply as well, even though she was ineligible.

Perhaps he sensed her longing for an education, saw some inkling of her potential. He found a loophole whereby she could enroll. He bent rules and saw to it that, despite her poor preparation, she was able to graduate in three years. “I had no math.

I had to take both algebra and geometry at the same time the same year. I passed, I believe,” she said, “only because the teachers were told they could not fail me.”

Then came Mills College and her dream of becoming a nurse.

Though stateless, she applied, was accepted and received a student visa. Once again, the kindness of others influenced her life. Though she would be arriving late for the start of the spring semester, she was allowed to begin the term.

Since Mills did not have a real nursing program, she transferred to the University of Toronto, where she received her coveted degree and met her husband Charles. While he was enrolled in a post-doctoral program at Harvard, she earned a master’s degree in human development from the same university. They moved to Providence in 1959. She was now headed for a career as a pediatric nurse.

Her nursing career began at the Potter Building of Rhode Island Hospital and advanced to teaching in schools of nursing. Then she returned to Potter as an administrator, ending as director of pediatric nursing.

When Hasbro Children’s Hospital was in the planning stage, her input proved invaluable and helped shape what the hospital became. She was appointed director of pediatric services, a position she served with great distinction.

Although Elbaum was always engaged in community organizations, her retirement allowed her more time for the volunteer work she loved. She was able, she said, to look for projects – ad hoc projects and lectures – where her expertise could be of help. On a continuing basis, however, in addition to committees of the Jewish Alliance, her main interest has been the

COURTESY |ELEANOR ELBAUM

Eleanor and Charles Elbaum National Council of Jewish Women and its dedication to the welfare of women, children and families. She is currently copresident with Nan Levine.

“There is so much for us to do,” Elbaum said, as she spoke animatedly of the seminars sponsored by NCJW. Open to the general public as well as the membership, they attract people who have no connection to NCJW. Issues discussed recently included bullying, human trafficking, and violence against women. One program dealt with violence in the Jewish home. “It aroused concern,” she said. “We were zeroing in on the Jewish home, but it [violence] is there, so we tackled it.

It was unbelievably successful.

All the temples participated.”

Elbaum also belongs to Moms Against Violence, a national organization of women who lobby for gun control, not guns used for protection or hunting, but weapons, such as assault rifles, that can fi re 50 rounds.

Last year, a group went to the State House when a gun limits bill was being introduced. “The terrace near the State House was fi lled with very large men.

I barely made their waists. We had to walk through them. It was very intimidating, and we were outnumbered. We could not get any bill passed that was in any way supportive of our issue.”

Elbaum concluded our interview with this thought. “I would encourage the younger generation to participate in the Jewish community but also to look outside. See what is happening and then work with Jewish values as representatives – official and unofficial – of the Jewish community in behalf of the others.”

And always with the memory of how an act of kindness can influence, can change a life.

Elbaum is a past president of the former Business and Professional Women’s Division of JFRI (now Jewish Alliance) and currently serves on several committees.

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OUTDOORS

14 | June 6, 2014

The Jewish Voice

Save time, prevent injury when doing yard work

STATEPOINT – While caring for your lawn can be pleasant, it needn’t take all day. Luckily, time-saving tools can also save your body some wear and tear: • Water plants with a heavyduty sprayer. Since gardeners are prone to knee injuries from repetitive pressure placed upon the area, a sprayer you can use standing up is a better choice.

• More than 38,000 Americans sustained raking-related injuries in 2012, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. For a more efficient collection of leaves, pine needles and grass clippings, consider using a highperformance lawn sweeper.

• Save your back and some

time by avoiding wheelbarrows and over-the-shoulder hauling.

Instead, move tools, soil, mulch and yard clippings quickly and with ease with a cargo carrier or utility cart.

• Shave hours off yard work while also avoiding the repetitive arm, elbow, wrist and hand movements that cause injury with a dethatcher that gently combs dead grass and roots to the surface where they can be swept up.

For more advice on injuryfree, efficient yard care, visit http://www.toro.com/z-versatility. This season, make more of your days outdoors by spending less time doing chores and more time relaxing.

Tips for lawn mower maintenance STATEPOINT – It’s the season for outdoor fun in your yard. It’s also the season for lawn mower maintenance.

Paying attention to lawn mower maintenance – particularly for riding mowers – can pay off in many ways. It increases your mower’s performance, reliability and durability.

Take care of scheduled maintenance before something becomes a major issue. Here are a few tips from the experts at Exmark Manufacturing, a manufacturer of commercial zeroturn mowers: CLEANING: Clean often but minimize use of water. Water can lead to corrosion, among other problems.

Use compressed air or blowers as much as possible. If you do use water, make sure you grease and lubricate afterward.

ADJUST NEW BELTS: Check the belt three times in the first 24 hours of use and adjust if necessary. During this time, the belt is fitting into the pulleys. If it is allowed to loosen, you may spin or burn it, drastically reducing its life.

SHARPEN AND BALANCE MOWER BLADES: Every eight to 10 hours of use, sharpen blades and replace damaged ones. Blade-balancing tools are inexpensive and readily available. Consider keeping an extra set of sharp, balanced blades.

June is Great Outdoors Month: Three tips to get going STATEPOINT – Summer is here, and, though cooler weather activities can be a blast, many experienced outdoor adventurers and weekend warriors alike look forward to warm weather to truly rev up their engines.

Ever since 1986, each June has been affectionately referred to as “Great Outdoors Month,” enticing thousands of adventurers to thaw out after a long winter and kick-start their summers with new excursions and activities. And there are plenty of great ways to get up, get out and get going.

I Was at Mom’s House Five Times a Day. Every Day. Now I’m Her Daughter Again.

Not a Caregiver.

TURN OFF YOUR PHONE It may sound blasphemous in today’s gadget-crazed world, but turning off your phone, tablet or laptop is a great way to create the impetus to go exploring.

Turning off your gadgets can help you turn on to the great outdoors – be it through camping, fishing, rock-climbing, cycling or even just enjoying a family walk at a local park.

You’ll be surprised where you end up when you cast aside the GPS and steer yourself.

GEAR UP If you’ve grown accustomed to your climate-controlled living room, you’ll need to remember that sweatpants and a tattered T-shirt aren’t always sufficient in the great outdoors.

While it’s easy to echo the Boy Scout motto and simply say “be prepared,” you don’t necessar-

COURTESY | STATEPOINT

ily know where the road will take you. That’s why it’s always a good move to invest in some versatile clothes made from durable high-tenacity fibers and rugged tools that can help you adapt as the environment changes.

GO PLAY Rule number one: Have a blast! Don’t treat recreation like a chore. Remember, human beings should feel at home in nature. Don’t let flat tires, broken oars or are-we-there-yets deter you.

One more thing to remember: While June happens to be Great Outdoors Month, you don’t have to put your adventure gear in the attic as soon as it’s over. Almost any day can be a good day to get outside and soak up some fresh air and sun or even some adventure-quenching precipitation.

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COMMUNITY

thejewishvoice.org

June 6, 2014 |

15

I scream, you scream, we all scream for Kenneth Schneider The Voice’s Man of the Year is SUNDAES’ best

BY IRINA MISSIURO imissiuro@jewishallianceri.org

PHOTO | FRAN OSTENDORF

Gloria Winston with her sister Dorothy Nelson, right, and Jane Nelson, left

Miriam Women gather for annual meeting

BY FRAN OSTENDORF fostendorf@jewishallianceri. org SEEKONK – Close to 100 women gathered at Ledgemont Country Club on an unusually cold and blustery May 28 for the 117th annual meeting of the Miriam Hospital Women’s Association. On the agenda: installation of officers and the board and the 30th annual recognition award honoring Gloria Winston.

Meeting chairman Sherry Cohen welcomed the group and opened the afternoon.

Rabbi Gutterman offered a pre-motzi tribute to Gloria

Winston in which he observed, “Who doesn’t love Gloria?”

He told the group that she has opened her home to his family on numerous occasions.

Outgoing Women’s Association President Robin Engle gave the annual president’s report on the many successes of the past year. Then the group heard from Miriam Hospital President Arthur Sampson, who reported good numbers for the hospital and continued good reports from U.S. News & World Report Best Hospital rankings.

In fact, Miriam scored No. 1 in the region in eight areas in this year’s report.

We received quite a few nominations from you, our readers, for our Man of the Year contest.

While it was no easy task winnowing the entries, we recognized the man who couldn’t be ignored. His name is Kenneth Schneider, and he’s “a true mensch,” according to Susan Adler, director of The Louise and Goldie Full Plate Kosher Food Pantry, and Paula Goldberg, a volunteer. Their letter to The Voice was so compelling that it made us want to learn more about the nominee.

The Facebook page for SUNDAES, the ice cream shop chain that Schneider owns, displays numerous posts about various blood drives, fundraisers and special discounts for deserving ice cream fans, including moms and veterans. It’s clear that Schneider is so much more than a businessman. He’s a humanitarian above all.

Schneider cites his father, Burt Schneider, as his biggest inspiration. As someone who’s always been involved in the Jewish community, his father taught him from an early age that those who are fortunate in life must give back. The son took the lessons to heart, liv-

Kenneth Schneider ing according to the values he absorbed growing up south of Boston. Despite his hectic schedule as the owner three shops, Schneider fi nds time to volunteer extensively.

Serving as the chairperson of The Louis and Goldie Chester Full Plate Kosher Food Pantry, Schneider oversees monthly committee meetings, guides two groups of volunteers and procures food for the pantry.

Always eager to lend a helping hand, Schneider has been known to purchase dog food for clients who couldn’t afford to feed beloved pets. When packing food, he takes great care to select items based on clients’

health concerns. While making deliveries, Schneider ensures the clients’ needs are met.

Besides his hours at the pantry, he volunteers with NECHAMA, Jewish Response to Disaster, helping to clean out and rebuild ravaged homes.

Also, Schneider volunteers at an Israeli army base, raises money for multiple sclerosis, donates blood and provides incentives for others to do the same by offering free ice cream to donors.

He is a current member of the Jewish Seniors Agency board; in the past, Schneider has served on the board of the Holocaust Education and Resource Center of RI and volunteered for The Jewish Voice as bill collector.

A devoted husband of Roberta and a father of three – Lindsay, Justin and Sarah – Schneider must make sacrifices to fi nd the time for everything on his agenda. He says that he’s always been good at juggling, “I get up early and go to bed late.”

We hope Schneider will fi nd the time to enjoy the prizes he’ll receive. They include PawSox tickets, wine from Town Wine, a party at Hope Street Pizza, a gift certificate to Aviva Bikes and a JCC membership.

MIRIAM | 23

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16 | June 6, 2014

The Jewish Voice

Panel offers American Jewish perspective to crowd at JCC

BY MARTY COOPER mcooper@jewishallianceri.org Only a few months ago, it seemed there was a glimmer of hope that peace negotiations with Israel and the Palestinian Authority would prove to be fruitful. The Kerry peace initiative, orchestrated by Secretary of State John Kerry, seemed to be on track when it suddenly became derailed. Each group blamed the other for the breakdown.

While the negotiations were taking place, the Jewish community throughout America had diverse views on the process. Upon the breakdown of negotiations, these views did not simmer. If anything, views became even more diverse with positions cast in stone.

Recognizing the need for dialogue, the Community Relations Council (CRC) of the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island gathered three recognized national Jewish authorities for a panel discussion on Israel issues. Panelists were David Bernstein, executive director of The David Project; Rachel Lerner, senior vice president for community relations of J Street; and Martin Raffel, senior vice president of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA). The David Project is a nonprofit Zionist organization that focuses advocacy efforts on reaching out to students on campuses nationwide to positively shape campus opinion on Israel. J Street is a nonprofit organization that advocates

for American leadership to help end the Arab-Israeli and Israeli-Palestinian confl icts peacefully and diplomatically.

It supports diplomacy over military action. JCPA is a nonprofit Jewish advocacy organization for social justice and Israel affairs. JCPA is an umbrella organization that includes CRCs across the country and several other national Jewish nonprofits such as National Council of Jewish Women, ADL, Hadassah and the Rabbinical Assembly. The panel’s moderator was Rabbi James Rosenberg, rabbi emeritus of Temple Habonim in Barrington.

Many more than 100 people attended the panel discussion at the Dwares JCC to learn more about American Jewish perspectives as they relate to Israel and peace in the Middle East. The attendees represented a cross section of viewpoints from left, center and right and included people wanting to learn more about the issues facing the Jewish community both here and in Israel.

It was obvious from the very beginning that all three panelists shared a love for Israel.

It was also clear that their differences for achieving peace in the region were really not too dissimilar. All three called for a two-state solution. All three condemned the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in the United States. They were also concerned about the strong BDS acceptance in Europe, where boycotts are being conducted.

Audience listens to panelists at the recent discussion on Israel issues.

All three also cautioned that the BDS movement in the U.S. might gain momentum if Israel is not careful regarding its position on a number of issues such as settlements.

The main differences were how and when peace should be achieved. J Street’s Lerner took a position of diplomacy over the military option, with the U.S. taking a strong and bold role in diplomacy. When asked about Iran, Lerner said that only after exhausting diplomacy should military action be viable. Bernstein suggested otherwise but did support diplomacy over a military action if possible.

Raffel shared concern with the U.S. role should Israel decide a military intervention is warranted.

The two-state solution, with the formation of a Palestinian state, was a concern of Bernstein’s. While he favored such

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a solution, he believed it to be more of a long-term solution with continued negotiation and diplomacy. There was also concern over the issue of trust. He feared a possible takeover by Hamas of the PA or a Palestinian state. This would possibly end with an invasion of Israel.

He said he hoped he was wrong.

Raffel, who is also a director of JFNA/JCPA Israel Action Network, agreed with Bernstein, but he also believed a shortterm peace might be achievable. However, Raffel did acknowledge that, while there is the need for peace, sometimes there are problems with no solutions. We have to tread wisely, he said. Lerner strongly opposed a “Hamas scenario” as an excuse not to negotiate a peace now. She said the timing for a lasting peace is now.

Rosenberg asked what attendees should take away from the

evening’s dialogue. Bernstein stated, “We should continue to care about Israel’s soul and its body. There is a threat to Israel, and we must all do whatever we can to keep Israel strong.”

Lerner suggested that we all have a role: “Don’t walk away from Israel. Be an advocate, and support Israel.”

Raffel stated, “The American Jewish perspectives are diverse. Just because we do not all agree on how peace can be achieved, we all share the same values and concerns for Israel to be a vibrant, Jewish democracy that will live on for centuries to come.”

The CRC hopes to continue the dialogue on this issue.

MARTY COOPER is the Community Relations Director for the Jewish Alliance.

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June 6, 2014 |

17

PHOTO | MICHELLE CICCHITELLI

Look what we did!

PHOTO | IRINA MISSIURO

Meet and greet

t s b J raising funds to raise the community 1. How does Jboost.org work?

Log on to jboost.org

3. Find ones you like and click “Fund this Project.”

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Happy Father’s day to the best Daddy!

I love to go fishing with him!

In June, Frank Caprio, Jorge Elorza, Daniel J. McKee, Nellie Gorbea and Ernie Almonte are expected to make an appearance. Michael Solomon met with the seniors May 28 to discuss his candidacy for mayor.

e

The Kosher Café seniors at the Dwares JCC mealsite enjoyed meeting Brett Smiley, who is running for mayor of Providence, during the “Know Your Candidates” presentation May 30 after lunch. Every week, a different candidate will visit the seniors to chat with the group.

Two very proud children after creating a project for Mother’s Day during drop-in crafting in the Alliance Family Room Parenting Center. Join in the fun again June 12 at 4 p.m. for Father’s Day drop-in crafting day.

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18 | June 6, 2014 FROM PAGE 1

The Jewish Voice

JSA

Co-Chair Jim Galkin presented reports.

Arthur Robbins, a member of the Board of Trustees of Home and Hospice Care of Rhode Island (HHCRI), introduced President and CEO Diana Franchitto. Franchitto spoke about how hospice and palliative care’s beginnings were run entirely by volunteers in church basements as compared with today’s 300 employees and 350 volunteers.

Franchitto explained that HHCRI takes some of the burden off the family members so they can interact with the patient as family members and not just as caregivers. One of the unique things about HHCRI is that in addition to treating the patient, it also provides services, such as counseling, support groups and bereavement services for the caregiver. Franchitto mentioned HHCRI also cares for ev-

Personal, Professional In-Home Health Services Since 1978 Skilled Nursing Care Alzheimer’s & Dementia Care Home Therapy

eryone – even those who cannot afford to pay for services. HHCRI is also a Jewish-certified hospice and ensures Jewish tradition at the end of life.

Jeffrey Padwa characterized his fi rst year as president as enlightening. He said that he learned even more about the many high-quality programs that JSA provides to Jewish seniors throughout Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts. “While others know what to do and how to do it, what makes JSA special is WHY we provide the services we do,” he said.

Padwa said JSA followed its mission statement during the past year by providing 40 tons of food from The Louis and Goldie Chester Full Plate Kosher Food Pantry and serving more than 100 families a month. In addition, The Kosher Food Pantry

PHOTOS | MATT ELLSWORTH

Jeffrey Padwa, Paul Barrette, JSA executive director and James Galkin, JSA board member. made 2,197 visits to nursing homes and held 217 Jewish programs, 118 Shabbat services, 25

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Seders and 25 Rosh Hashanah services.

Jim Galkin, a JSA board member, then introduced Susan Bazar, who received the Maurice Glicksman Award.

Summarizing Bazar’s many accomplishments from the installation of the wind turbine and the greening of Shalom Housing to the planning of the JSA’s Centennial Celebration, Galkin said it was no surprise that Bazar received this award. She brought her natural gift of a wonderful temperament, rolled up her sleeves and listened to varied opinions while showing style, leadership and passion that played perfectly into the fabric of the organization.

In accepting the Maurice Glicksman award, Bazar mentioned that everyone at JSA is passionate about providing a continuum of care to our seniors, especially now with senior needs at an all-time high.

“We identify a need, we strategize about how to meet it and then mobilize resources to see it through.” Bazar mentioned a common present-day mantra, “family fi rst,” and how grateful she was that her siblings lived close by when her parents were ill. Her family embraced them and each other, and she recognized that so many others are not as fortunate. Bazar dedicated her award not only to the memory of her parents, Irving and Phyllis Sigal, but also to JSA’s “family” of elders in need.

In his executive director’s report, Paul Barrette mentioned the new JSA “Honor Walkway.”

These pavers will be engraved in honor of loved ones and will grace Tamarisk’s beautiful landscape while providing much-needed funds to sustain JSA’s many programs for seniors. The “Honor Walkway” was launched by the family of Susan Bazar with pavers being installed in her honor.

Susan Adler spoke about the

Susan Bazar received the Maurice Glicksman Award. tremendous support of the JSA Women’s Association, through their beautiful knit shop and other revenue, provide to JSA’s Jewish Eldercare of Rhode Island (JERI) program. This support includes Jewish programming for seniors in nursing homes and assisted living residences as well as for homebound individuals. Adler also mentioned how the Women’s Association assists the To Life Center Adult Day Services by providing items such as computers, iPads and a billiards table.

State Sen. Gayle Goldin installed Marcia Cohen, James Goldman and Kenneth Schneider as new board members, along with Jeffrey Padwa as president, Dr. Jack Nassau as fi rst vice president, Bernice Weiner as second vice president, Drew Kaplan as treasurer and Rabbi Richard Perlman as secretary.

DIANE DOWIOT is Executive Assistant at the Jewish Seniors Agency of Rhode Island.

Thank you, and Happy Father’s Day to the most wonderful Father and Grandfather we have and love.

Sari and Aliya Thaler

June 6, 2014 |

thejewishvoice.org

A special invitation from the Jewish Alliance

Third Annual Meeting Monday, June 16 | 7pm Dwares JCC | 401 Elmgrove Avenue, Providence

Board Installations: Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island Jewish Federation Foundation Alliance Realty, Inc. Edward D. Feldstein, Installing Officer Presentation of Leadership and Community Service Awards Reception to follow

Hear from our overseas partner

Join us at 6pm as we honor Israeli Emissary Matan Graff

Celebrate 100 Years of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) Speakers: Alan Gill, Executive Vice President and CEO & Dov Ben-Shimon, Executive Director of Strategic Partnerships

The JDC is the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian assistance organization. Since 1914, JDC has exemplified that all Jews are responsible for one another and for improving the well-being of vulnerable people around the world.

Today, JDC works in more than 70 countries and in Israel to alleviate hunger and hardship, rescue Jews in danger, create lasting connections to Jewish life, and provide immediate relief and long-term development support for victims of natural and man-made disasters.

2014 - 2015 Proposed Slate of Officers and Board Chair Sharon Gaines Vice Chairs Mitzi Berkelhammer, Financial Resource Development Stacy Emanuel, Communications Vincent Mor, Community Development James Pious, Jewish Life & Learning Barbara Sokoloff, Governance Treasurer Richard Sutton Secretary Susan Leach DeBlasio

Board of Directors Sheila Alexander Melvin G. Alperin Neil Beranbaum, Leadership Development Rabbi Barry Dolinger Mark Feinstein Harold Foster Susan Froehlich Daniel Gamm Marc Gertsacov Alan G. Hassenfeld Hope Hirsch Robert P. Landau Scott Libman, Community Relations Council Rabbi Sarah Mack, Board of Rabbis of Greater RI Tina Odessa Ralph Posner Jay Rosenstein Steven Shalansky Robert Sherwin Lisa Shorr Robert Stolzman Cheryl Greenfeld Teverow Richard A. Licht, Immediate Past Chair Jeffrey K. Savit, President and CEO

2014 - 2015 Proposed Jewish Federation Foundation Board Melvin G. Alperin Diane Ducoff H. Jack Feibelman Mark Feinstein Susan Froehlich Sharon Gaines, ex officio David Hirsch Marilyn Kaplan Richard A. Licht Alan Litwin Ralph Posner Jay Rosenstein, Chair Steven Shalansky, Treasurer David Sheer Robert Sherwin Mathew Shuster Herbert Stern Cheryl Greenfeld Teverow Mindy Wachtenheim, Vice Chair Proposed Alliance Realty, Inc. Board Ronald C. Markoff, Chair Robert Stolzman, Vice Chair Sharon Gaines, Secretary/Treasurer Jeffrey K. Savit, President and CEO

19

20 | June 6, 2014

FOOD

The Jewish Voice

Time for lighter, easier-to-prepare foods Salad:

BY FRAN OSTENDORF fostendorf@jewishallianceri.org

1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound), trimmed 1 Persian (mini) cucumber, sliced into rounds 3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced 1/4 cup olive oil

It’s June, and we’re looking toward summer and outdoor activities although the calendar still “officially” puts us in spring. The weather’s getting warmer, and it stays light longer. It’s the time to start thinking about lighter foods with faster prep times. And the markets are featuring more fresh, local vegetables like asparagus, tomatoes and even herbs.

Outdoor farmers markets all around Rhode Island are opening again.

Here are some ideas for side dishes and salads just right for summer.

Vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar Squeeze of lemon juice 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon sugar Salt and pepper, to taste Shaved Parmesan cheese and lemon zest, for garnish (optional) Blanch the asparagus in a pot of salted boiling water for 4-5 minutes, until al dente (tender crisp). Transfer to an ice water bath to chill. Drain and reserve.

To make the garlic chips, heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a small saucepan on high heat. When oil is very hot, add the sliced garlic. Let cook for about 2 minutes, until crisp and browned.

Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels. Lightly salt if desired.In a small bowl, whisk PHOTOS | COURTESY KAREN AT TASTY-TRIALS.COM

Quinoa salad

Mediterranean couscous salad (Recipe courtesy Karen at Tasty-trials.com)

Salad:

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds Heaping 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper (red, orange or yellow) 1 cup deseeded and sliced cucumber 3/4 cup halved grape or cherry tomatoes 2 tablespoons chopped red onion, rinsed and drained (see notes) 1 green onion, chopped 1 tablespoon chopped parsley 1 tablespoon chopped mint 1 box Near East Roasted Garlic and Olive Oil couscous (see notes)

Dressing:

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar 1/4 cup olive oil 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/4 teaspoon sugar Salt and pepper, to taste In a large bowl, combine first 8 salad ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk dressing ingredients together and reserve.

Prepare the couscous according to package directions.

When couscous is ready and still warm, combine in bowl with produce. Immediately pour dressing over and stir lightly. (Use a fork to fluff the salad instead of packing it together.)

Salad is best if allowed to sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes to let the couscous absorb the dressing and flavors.

(Can also be refrigerated and served cold.)

Notes: I rinse the chopped red onion to subdue the flavor a bit.

If you like stronger onion flavor, skip this step. Plain couscous would probably work fine here, but I like what the roasted garlic and olive oil flavor adds to the dish.

Quinoa salad with honey-mint vinaigrette (Recipe courtesy Karen at Tasty-trials.com)

Serves 4 1 cup quinoa 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 1 can white beans, rinsed and drained 1 cup halved or quartered cherry tomatoes 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion 1-1/2 tablespoons thinly sliced serrano peppers 1/4 cup chopped basil, loosely packed 1/4 cup olive oil 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar 1 tablespoon honey 1-1/2 tablespoons chopped mint Salt Pepper Rinse quinoa in cold water and drain. Put quinoa in a saucepan with chicken broth.

Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Simmer for

about 15 minutes until broth is completely absorbed and quinoa is tender. Fluff with a fork and reserve in pot to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine beans, tomatoes, red onion, serrano peppers and quinoa.

In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, honey and mint. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour dressing over quinoa mixture and stir to combine. Stir in basil just before serving.

Serve room temperature or cold.

Asparagus salad with tarragon vinaigrette and garlic chips (Recipe courtesy Karen at Tasty-trials.com)

together the olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, tarragon, sugar, salt and pepper.

To assemble, lay cucumber slices on a plate and top with asparagus. Drizzle with vinaigrette, then sprinkle with garlic chips, shaved Parmesan and lemon zest. (Alternatively, cut the asparagus spears into shorter lengths and toss all the components together in a bowl.)

Note: Salad can be prepped ahead by chilling the cooked asparagus, cucumber and vinaigrette separately until ready to toss. Garlic chips can be made several hours ahead and left uncovered at room temperature.

FOOD

thejewishvoice.org

June 6, 2014 |

The start of an unforgettable night...

Fresh-baked pie features spring ingredients Fill your home with delicious, seasonal flavors.

STATEPOINT – There’s nothing more timeless than pie. Part of the appeal is its homespun essence. So rather than serve the store-bought variety, try baking one yourself. Not only will the aroma set the house astir, experts say you’ll taste the difference.

“One of the best things about homemade pie is using in-season ingredients,” says Teeny Lamothe, baker and author of the new, “Teeny’s Tour of Pie: A Cookbook,” a collection of 55 sweet and savory pies.

After traveling America to learn techniques and wisdom from the country’s best bakers, Lamothe is sharing her newfound expertise in this collection.

With seasonality in mind, she offers this great spring recipe.

Strawberry basil pie

Ingredients: 2 pints strawberries, hulled and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/4 cup quick-cooking tapioca, finely ground 1 cup all-purpose flour 1cup white whole-wheat or whole-wheat flour 2 teaspoons salt 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces 1/2 cup cold vegetable shortening 1/4 cup cold vodka 1/2 cup cold water, plus extra as needed 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, for rolling out crust Crust directions: In large bowl, thoroughly combine flour, salt and sugar. Add butter and shortening. Cut the mixture using a pastry cutter to form pea-size crumbs coated in flour.

Pour vodka evenly over dry ingredients, a few tablespoons at a time, using a rubber spatula to press dough together.

Similarly, add the water, and continue

pressing dough to form a large ball. If dough seems dry, add ice water slowly until everything comes together easily.

(Work dough as little as possible.)

Divide dough into two equal balls, press each into disks, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to 2 days.

Pie directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with rack in middle position.

Toss strawberries and basil in a medium bowl.

Stir sugar and tapioca in small bowl.

Sprinkle sugar mixture over fruit and toss gently with hands to coat. Set aside while you roll out the crust; fruit will begin to juice.

Prepare bottom crust: Place one dough disk on floured work surface and with a floured rolling pin, roll it into a rough 11-inch circle about 1/8 inch thick. Lay crust into a 9-inch pie dish, gently press it in, and trim excess dough from edge with a paring knife, leaving a 3/4-inch overhang.

Give filling one last stir, ensuring everything is evenly coated. Spoon it into crust.

Prepare top crust: On floured work surface with floured rolling pin, roll out remaining dough disk into rough 11-inch circle 1/8 inch thick. Carefully lay crust on top of filling, trimming excess dough, leaving a 3/4 inch overhang. Tuck overhanging dough under overhanging edge of the bottom crust, and crimp the two crusts together. Cut a few small slits in top crust with a knife.

Set pie on rimmed baking sheet and bake until filling is thickly bubbling and crust is golden brown (cover crimp with foil if it browns too quickly), 50 to 60 minutes.

Let cool to room temperature before serving.

MORE INFORMATION about Lamothe’s book can be found at www.Workman.com.

Sabra trying to establish U.S. hummus law

JTA – If Sabra Dipping Co. has its way, the use of chickpeas and tahini in making hummus will become U.S. law.

The hummus manufacturer, which is co-owned by PepsiCo and the Israel-based Strauss Group, has filed a petition with the FDA to create a standard for which dips are considered hummus.

The standard Sabra is seeking would mandate that hummus be comprised primarily of chickpeas and contain no less than 5 percent tahini. The 11-page proposal asks that hummus be defined as “the semisolid food prepared from mixing cooked, dehydrated or dried chickpeas and tahini with one or more optional ingredients,” according to a news release issued May 19.

Similar standards exist for other condiments, such as ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise.

“As the popularity of hummus has soared in the United States over the past decade, the name has been applied to items consisting primarily of other ingredients,” Sabra chief technology officer Tulin Tuzel said in the statement. “From black beans and white beans to lentils, soybeans and navy beans, everyone wants to call their dip ‘hummus.’ ” Sales of hummus have soared in the United States over the last decade, and Sabra controls about 60 percent of the market, according to Information Resources Inc., a Chicago-based market research firm.

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Philip Roth, onetime ‘enfant terrible,’ gets seminary honor

BY BETH KISSILEFF JTA – “What is being done to silence this man?” an American rabbi asked in a 1963 letter to the Anti-Defamation League.

He was talking about the novelist Philip Roth, whose early novels and short stories cast his fellow American Jews in what some considered a nonetoo-flattering light.

Fast-forward half a century.

On May 22, the writer whose works were once denounced as profane was honored by one of American Jewry’s sacred citadels: The Jewish Theological Seminary, Conservative Judaism’s flagship educational institution, awarded Roth an honorary doctorate at its commencement ceremony.

“From enfant terrible to elder statesman. Time heals all wounds,” Rabbi David Wolpe of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles remarked to JTA via email.

Early in his career, Roth drew outrage with sometimes stinging depictions of Jewish life, as well as his graphic portrayal in his 1969 novel “Portnoy’s Complaint” of the protagonist’s sexual desires. Some worried that his work would endanger American Jews, providing fodder for anti-Semites.

In one incident, Roth was shaken by a hostile reception he received at a 1962 literary symposium at New York’s Yeshiva University. Recalling being shouted at by hostile students after the event, Roth vowed to “never write about Jews again” – a promise, of course, that he did not keep.

“There is a certain amount of poetic justice, an aesthetically satisfying irony, in Philip Roth’s beginning his career

with a brouhaha at Yeshiva University and ending it with an honorary doctorate from the Jewish Theological Seminary – an honor perhaps more significant than the Nobel Prize that eludes him,” Michael Kramer, associate professor of literature at Israel’s Bar-Ilan University, wrote in an email. “Would Roth himself have imagined such a plot? His endings tend to the tragic.”

Now the 81-year-old Roth’s own career is itself at an end.

In 2012, Roth announced that he would not be writing more books. Earlier this month, he declared after a reading at New York’s 92nd Street Y that he was done with public appearances.

“This was the last appearance I will make on any public stage, anywhere,” said Roth, although on recently news broke that he will appear as an interview guest on Comedy Central’s “Colbert Report” in July.

Roth, in his books, poked fun at the wrath he incurred from some in the Jewish community.

One of his recurring protagonists, Nathan Zuckerman, is a novelist whose own writings have similarly upset many Jews.

After decades as one of America’s leading literary lights, the anger Roth once evoked has been eclipsed by acclaim.

In a phone interview, the seminary’s chancellor, Arnold Eisen – a sociologist and the only non-rabbi to lead JTS since World War II – called Roth the “greatest sociologist on American Jewish life, without doubt.”

Eisen said that in his previous job at Stanford University, he frequently assigned Roth’s books to students in his classes

on American Judaism. Eisen noted his admiration for the Roth novels that examined the relationship between Israel and the Diaspora, such as “The Counterlife” and “Operation Shylock,” as well as works that explored the American scene, like “The Human Stain” and “American Pastoral.”

“We are a community that treasures someone who holds up such a penetrating and insightful mirror to who we are and reveals the dilemmas and contradictions and aspirations of the community,” Eisen said.

“We are grateful for the mirror even if not everything you see in it is easy.”

Elisa Albert, a fiction writer and the author of an epistolary short story in which her alter ego offers to have a baby with Roth, called the JTS recognition “a small honorary justice.”

“I’d imagine it’s an irresistible offering: a major institution of the very community that once upon a time so narrowmindedly shunned him and his work now honors him, decades later,” she wrote in an email.

Roth, however, has not exactly been a communal pariah over his long career. Three of his books were honored with the American Jewish Book Award, and, in 1998 he won the Jewish Book Council’s Lifetime Literary Achievement Award.

The JTS honor seems to have elicited little controversy.

Though Roth has faced criticism from feminists over his depictions of women, a query from Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg to the listserv for female Conservative rabbis soliciting reactions to the honorary doctorate yielded no responses.

The president of the Philip Roth Society, Aimee Pozorski, said that Roth and JTS are not so different in their values.

“Ultimately, for the last 50 years, and despite opinions to the contrary, they have fought for the same ideals all along,” Pozorski added. “From the very beginning of his career, he has been deeply invested in representing the lives and fates of Jewish youth.”

Roth, however, has demurred when it is suggested that he should be defined as an American Jewish writer.

“I did not want to, did not intend to and was not able to speak for American Jews; I surely did not deny, and no one questioned the fact, that I spoke to them, and I hope to others as well,” Roth wrote in his essay “Writing About Jews.”

“If the Western world views itself through the lens of the modern Jewish experience, it is in large measure due to the novels, and short stories of Philip Roth,” wrote David Roskies, a JTS Jewish literature professor, in a note to the class of 2014.

He added that Roth “has done more than anyone to further the literary exploration of the Holocaust, in his own writings, and by promoting great works and writers throughout the world.”

At the JTS commencement, the honorary doctorate recipients received their hoods.

When Roth was given his hood, he received a sustained standing ovation.

And at the ceremony’s end, Roth walked off stage in the final procession, bareheaded among the kippah-clad crowd.

June 6, 2014 |

23

FROM PAGE 15

MIRIAM Chairman of the Miriam Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees Alan Litwin accepted gifts from various Women’s Association fundraising programs: the Gift Shop and Coffee Bar contributed $40,000; the Equipment Event donated $19,275 to purchase three pieces of equipment; the Brick Program donated $2,000 to the Comprehensive Cancer Center.

An original painting depicting the women of The Miriam Hospital was donated as well.

Jane Nelson, Winston’s friend of many years, gave a heartfelt and entertaining introduction to the honoree as she regaled the crowd with stories from their childhood and noting that “Gloria Markoff Winston arrived two days before me.”

She spoke about how they used to wheel the gift cart through the hospital together and how Winston was able to make a connection with the patients.

Then Winston’s son and daughter spoke about their mother’s passion for volunteering at The Miriam.

Finally Winston spoke about receiving the award and the meaning of the hospital and her more than 60 years of volunteer work. She recalled how her mother Ruth had donated linens to the original Parade Street hospital.

The afternoon ended as Engle installed the new board and officers, likening each officer to a candy bar in a meaningful and entertaining installation ceremony.

FRAN OSTENDORF is editor of The Jewish Voice.

24 | June 6, 2014

SENIORS

The Jewish Voice

Creating asylums for the refugees of the world “Freedom hath been hunted round the globe. Asia and Africa hath long expelled her.

Europe regards her as a stranger and England hath given her warning to depart.

OF SCIENCE O! Receive the fugi& SOCIETY tive and prepare STANLEY M. in time an asylum for ARONSON, M.D. mankind.”

Thus did Thomas Paine (1737– 1809), writing at the onset of the American Revolution, implore

these erstwhile colonies to provide a refuge.

Current dictionaries define asylum as an institution established expressly for the maintenance and welfare of the orphans, the blind or the insane. And thus, phrases such as “orphan asylum” or “insane asylum” come readily to mind when thinking of society’s established asylums. But the word now needs a broader definition – a geographically defined refuge, a secure retreat for those in peril.

The concept of asylum, as a right sought by fugitives, dates to a much earlier age. The Bible defines specified communities as cities of refuge representing a civilizing step beyond the “blood-avenger” privileges

proclaimed in earlier patriarchal societies (cf. Numbers: 35: 11-25).

The mass expulsion of the Jews from the Iberian kingdoms, at the end of the 15th century, created a new peril to humankind. On March 31, 1492, the rulers of Spain decreed that all of their resident Jews were either to convert or leave the kingdom. About 50,000 were baptized and another 200,000 hastily fled, seeking refuge mainly in the Ottoman Empire, especially the province of Thesaloniki. Others found homes in Egypt and the Islamic kingdoms of northern Africa.

Sanctuaries were also found in Christian Holland, England, the Caribbean islands and as far as the Duchy of Lithuania.

The right of asylum then assumed a broader, transnational meaning in the 17th century.

The protracted interreligious wars within France culminated in 1685, when Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes – a 1598 act granting civil and religious equality to the French Protestants – and then slaughtered or expelled those Protestants (called Huguenots) who refused conversion. More than 200,000 were granted sanctuary in England, and large numbers also settled in the Netherlands, Switzerland and even the English colonies in America, especially the city of New Rochelle.

The renewed flood of refugees fleeing the French Revolution ceased when Great Britain passed its Alien Act in 1793 to restrict immigration.

The 20th century, with its many global wars and the accompanying displacement or murder of millions of souls, witnessed a new level of inter-

national refugee movement.

The formation of the United Nations as a global entity was initiated in large part because of the many millions of displaced, stateless persons. Asylum was now to take on a still broader meaning.

In the late spring of 1980, a combination of economic stress and unyielding political oppression forced many Cubans to seek refuge beyond their island home. The demand for

“The formation of the United Nations as a global entity was formulated in large part because of the many millions of dispaced, stateless persons.” emigration swelled, and Fidel Castro finally declared that anyone who wished to emigrate may do so. And so, on April 15, 1980, a large number of Cubans sought passage out of the Cuban port of Mariel, and by the end of October of that year, 124,779 Cubans had entered Florida as their new home. President Jimmy Carter, who authorized the right of refuge for the Cubans, was condemned because some of those entering Florida had been intentionally released from Cuban prisons and hospitals for the mentally ill. Headlines questioned the wisdom of

offering political asylum to former dwellers of insane asylums.

The world’s greatest agency for the care of refugees, now numbering upwards of 60 million souls, is the International Rescue Committee (IRC), begun as a small committee in the early 1930s, convened by Albert Einstein, Reinhold Niebur, John Dewey, Eleanor Roosevelt and Amos Pinchot. Its purpose was simple: facilitate the escape of refugees from fascist-led European nations. Its mission has since broadened and now facilitates the safe passage of refugees from Kosovo, Cambodia, Eritrea, Rwanda, Somalia and many other nations in turmoil. Until his death in 2000, Leo Cherne, the son of refugee parents from Bessarabia, Russia, was the inspired leader of the IRC. Asylum had once meant a secure place for the unbalanced, a sequestered establishment primarily to care for the insane while simultaneously protecting the outer, allegedly sane world from the irrational acts of the mad. But when the insanity spreads beyond the gates of the insane asylums, when nations undertake irrational acts, when ethnic cleansing and genocide become deliberate national policy, then insane asylum dwellers may properly wonder on which side of their confining gates insanity dominates.

STANLEY M. ARONSON, M.D. (smamd@cox.net) is dean of medicine emeritus at Brown University.

Cranston Senior Guild bus trip

The Cranston Senior Guild is planning a bus trip to Foxwoods on July 9. The cost of the trip is $21 per person. The price includes round-trip motor coach bus, free buffet or $10 food coupon to any restaurant at the casino, and $15 of bonus slot play.

The bus will make two pick-

ups: 9 a.m. from the Dwares JCC, 401 Elmgrove Ave., Providence, and 9:15 a.m. from the Rhode Island Mall near Sears Auto Center. The bus will depart Foxwoods at 3:15 p.m. Payment must be received by June 24.

For more information call Sunny at 401-785-0748.

SENIORS

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June 6, 2014 |

25

Musings on movies and the end of the school year Quick, before summertime lowers my movie-going standards, I want to go on record as admiring a few remarkable recent film “essays.” By that, I mean the flicks were thoughtful, like an essay, and permitted me to write my own essays about them. One, I took in at the Providence Place Mall. Another, at the Avon. A third, at the Cable Car. Each also had a particular Jewish aspect.

It’s against the law, but beyond that, it will always, suddenly and unexpectedly, leave you – take off and rejoin the free world!” She said these things with wisdom and listened to my answers with amiable respect.

Off she went, and I was both happy and sad. Then the phone rang once more. It was the Audubon Society. I had described every detail of the plumage of each part of my lovely prisoner. “We think you had a Savannah Sparrow!” the

SKETCHBOOK MIKE FINK

First, there was “Noah,” which featured some strange, animated “nephilim.” I knew of “nephAlim,” which have a large boulder-like memorial stone at our Lincoln Park Cemetery, at the edge of its vanished pond. According to my source, Mr. Adler, the longtime ritual director at Temple Emanu-El and a former Israeli soldier, the term comes from a root meaning “fallen.” At our graveyard, the marker commemorates the brief lives of miscarried embryos that have fallen too early.

In Darren Aronofsky’s movie, on the other hand, they are the giant creatures, almost of stone themselves, which watch over the early evolution of biblical human beings. I thought the movie was vastly over-produced and overly long, but I respected it for its genuine research and quest for meanings.

“That bird is dying, you can read it in its bleary eyes. Let it pass.”

The second flick I want to pull back for comment was a masterpiece of the Cable Car offerings, although it was shown at odd, noncommercial hours. It was Alan Berliner’s superb and loving portrait of the longtime poet/professor Edwin Honig.

Titled “First Cousin Once Removed,” it was a documentary diary of the decline and fall of memory, a case of dementia and loss. Strangely perhaps, it was not depressing but, instead, inspiring because Edwin never really forgets that he is a poet.

My favorite scene was of the view from his chair, of a tree in the yard. He can find multiple metaphors in the leaves and the branches. He greets the filmmaker and the filmmaker’s son with smiles of affection. It is upbeat but never sentimental, loving but never smug And the third screening was at the Avon. I liked “Kill Your Darlings,” unexpectedly, because Alan Ginsberg was not my favorite poet. I’m a Robert

COURTESY | MIKE FINK

The bird in Mike’s office.

Frost fan; I’m of the generation that sought restraint and irony, dry and wry rather than emotional and confessional. Nevertheless, Daniel Radcliffe carries off the role of the freshman poet kicked out of Columbia even while impressing the faculty with his outrageous originality and with his brave artistic integrity.

Since this is a final sketchbook in the semester, let me add that our own recollections exist as invisible “movies” never distributed to cinema or television or even blog. I follow my account of the spring half of the academic year with an intimate souvenir scene that takes place on campus, in my cubbyhole “office” or “salon” here on College Hill.

I teach a course called “Birds in Books,” but since we are a visual arts school, I use a lot of movies, old and new. Well, I was enjoying a solitary cup of coffee at the nearby cafe when a student summoned me to the front sidewalk. She had picked up a wounded sparrow and wanted my counsel on what to do with it. The poor bird was clinging to her finger and would not budge to alight upon mine. A pedestrian stopped by to offer some sad words: “That bird is dying; you can read it in its bleary eyes.

Let it pass.”

I brought my student and the sparrow to my cluttered office next door. There, I called a variety of rescue organizations and clinics. Amazingly, one person at the other end of the line promised that she would send a rehabilitator at once, from another county an hour’s drive from College Hill and Benefit Street.

She arrived before noon and spoke gently and reassuringly to me and to my feathered friend. I must have done all the right things because, by now,

the female English finch, if that is what she in fact was, had gathered up enough strength to fly freely about my madcap salon with curiosity! Her admirable and knowledgeable rescuer had a tough time getting her competent hands upon it.

Once she had placed it within a protective travel cage, she spoke to me. I was by now reluctant to let my chum out of my life. “Not a good idea to make a pet from a wild thing.

voice declared. I at once picked up my miniature illustrated encyclopedia of birds and now no longer know who or what I had for a morning in mid-May. I felt like Noah! I wished I had more than a quick snapshot as a souvenir. My own memory is my last movie! Edwin Honig’s final proclamation was “Remember to Forget.” Well, at least I didn’t kill my darling.

MIKE FINK (mfink33@aol. com teaches at RISD.

26 | June 6, 2014 Joseph Ackerman, 99

BOCA RATON, FLA. – Joseph Ackerman died May 26 at the Boca Raton Regional Hospital on May 23, with his wife Dorothy (Green) Ackerman at his side.

He celebrated his birthday on June 4.

A son of the late Isaac and Eva (Nachbar) Ackerman, he lived in Providence before retiring to Boca Raton 28 years ago. After working in the Walsh-Kaiser Shipyard during World War II, he went into the wholesale clothing business.

He and his wife operated the J. Ackerman Co. for 40 years. He was the first president and a founding member of Crestwood Country Club, Rehoboth, Mass. In his youth, he was a professional singer.

Besides his wife, he is survived by his children, Marshall Ackerman of Stamford, Conn., Richard Ackerman and his wife Noreen, formerly of Woonsocket and Warren, R.I., and Phyllis Kochavi and her husband Doron, of La Canada, Calif.; grandchildren Jeffrey Ackerman and his wife Staci, Brian Ackerman and his wife Sandra, Jennifer Ackerman, Ari Kochavi, and Danielle Kochavi; great-grandchildren Jamie and Rachel Ackerman, and Isabella and George Ackerman. He was predeceased by his daughter-in-law Joyce Ackerman, sisters Anne Cohen and Frances Schwartz, and brother Irving Ackerman.

Contributions in his memory may be made to Alzheimer’s Community Care, 800 North Point Parkway, Suite 101B, West Palm Beach, Fla. 33407.

OBITUARIES Allan H. Feiler, 80

SUNRISE, FLA. – Allan Feiler formerly of Providence, passed away peacefully at home in Sunrise on April 13. Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., he was the son of the late Anna Feiler Labush and Max Feiler. He was the husband of Lois Kashnitz Feiler. He was the father of Debra Mahler (Seth) of Chicago, Sharon Rosenberg (Arnold) of Chicago, and Dr. Jeffrey (Lisa) of Florida. Loving brother of Glenda Labush (Dr. Leonard), and Paula Pabian of Plantation, Fla. He is survived by his grandchildren, Ali and Amy Rosenberg, Dr. Mara (Dr. Don) Radon and Scott Mahler, and Brandon, Adam and Julia Feiler. He was the great-grandfather of Miles and Isla Slye Radon.

He will be missed and always in the hearts of his loving nieces and nephews.

Linda Paley Franklin, 66

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Linda Paley Franklin died May 25.

She was the wife of Fred J. Franklin and the daughter of the late Lawrence and Jewel (Rost) Paley.

She was raised in Providence, and, after graduating from George Washington University and beginning a family in Washington, D.C., she returned to Rhode Island with her family in 1981 where she has lived since. She was an elementary school teacher at the Providence Hebrew Day School for 15 years and, thereafter, privately tutored young children.

As a spouse, parent, friend, teacher or acquaintance, she was beloved by everyone.

In addition to her husband, she leaves behind a son, Brian,

The Jewish Voice

and his wife, Regan, (Washington, D.C.) and their son, Sammi, the love of her life, and a daughter, Alison, of New York, N.Y. She also leaves behind two sisters, Joan P. Abramson of New York, N.Y., and her twin, Sandra P. Lichtenstein of Radnor, Pa. Contributions may be made in Linda’s memory to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute (Kindly note Dr. Soiffer Immunotherapies Research Fund), Attn: Nancy Downer, 10 Brookline Place West, Brookline, Mass. 02445-7226, The Miriam Hospital, 164 Summit Ave., Providence, R.I. 02906 or to the Temple Beth-El Endowment Fund, 70 Orchard Ave., Providence, R.I. 02906.

Donald M. Levine, 86

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Donald M. Levine died May 23 after a valiant nineyear battle with cancer. Born in Elmhurst, N.Y., he was the son of the late Ralph and Mildred Levine. Married to his wife Nan for 60 years, he was the father of Sheri Levine Singer, Marc and Carrie Levine and Neil Levine. He was the grandfather of Matthew and Scott Singer, Julia Levine and Connor Levine. He was the loving brother-in-law of Martin Goldstein and devoted uncle of David and Wendy Goldstein and Steven Goldstein, great-uncle of Emily and Rachel Goldstein.

Loving and dear friend of Irwin Schorr.

A graduate of Syracuse University, he served in the Korean War under the command of Gen. Douglas McArthur at the landing of Inchon.

As executive vice president of Hasbro Toys for 17 years, he was best known as the “Father of G.I. Joe,” an accolade that followed him throughout the world for more than 50 years.

Most recently the Chairman

of Kenya’s World LLC, he was considered one of the toy industry’s most creative visionaries. An avid tennis competitor all his life, he played in the Jr. Davis Cup and represented the U.S. Army in competitions throughout Asia during his military career.

One of his greatest joys was his passion for tennis with rising proteges. Despite the many accomplishments in his life, what he cherished most was the love of his family and the joys he received from his grandchildren. Donations in his memory may be sent to Temple Beth-El, Home and Hospice Care of RI/ Philip Hulitar Inpatient Center or JSA/Louis & Goldie Chester Food Pantry.

Milton J. Rosen

PAWTUCKET, R.I. – Milton J. Rosen died May 30. He was the husband of Dorothy (Miller) Rosen. Born in Central Falls, a son of the late Jacob and Rebecca (Miller) Rosen, he was a lifelong resident of Rhode Island.

A graduate of Bryant College, Rosen was the owner of the former Rosen’s Clothing Store in Pawtucket for decades. A member of the U.S. Army during World War II, he served in the South Pacific. He was a member of Temple Beth-El, the Jewish War Veterans and the URI Master Gardeners Program. Rosen was a former judge of the R.I. Dahlia Society.

Besides his wife, he is survived by his children, Carl Rosen and his wife Susan of Ashaway, R.I. and Karen Rosen of Providence; his sister Sylvia

Bloomberg of West Warwick; and his grandchildren Aaron and David. He was the brother of the late Leo Rosen.

Contributions in his memory may be made to Hadassah, 1150 New London Ave. Suite 3, Cranston, R.I. 02920.

Frances Z. Warren, 63

SEEKONK, MASS. – Frances Z. Warren died May 27. She was the wife of Benjamin Warren. Born in Oakland, Calif., a daughter of the late Dr. Mortimer and Evelyn (Prill) Falk, she had been a resident of Seekonk for 37 years.

A graduate of the University of Arizona at Tucson and Simmons College, Warren had been a special education teacher in Fall River for the last 11 years, and previously had been a real estate agent in Rhode Island for 10 years.

In addition to her husband, she is survived by her daughters, Jessica Howell and her husband Chris of Natick, Mass., and Alexandra Broomhead of Rumford, R.I.; her sister, Rosalind Kreiger of Boynton Beach, Fla.; and her grandson Thomas.

Contributions may be made to the Bing Center for Waldenstrom’s Macroglobulinemia at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, Mass.

02284 or the BU Amyloidosis Center at the Boston Medical Center, 840 Harrison Ave., Boston, Mass. 02201.

NATION | CLASSIFIEDS

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Mass. Jews look back at legacy of same-sex marriage

BY PENNY SCHWARTZ BOSTON (JTA) – Ten years ago, shortly after midnight on May 17, 2004, a jubilant Arthur Lipkin and his longtime partner descended the stone steps of Cambridge City Hall clutching a marriage license application.

It was a historic night of revelry and celebration, as Massachusetts became the fi rst state in the nation to allow same-sex couples to legally marry.

Outside Cambridge City Hall, where reporters and television cameras from around the world captured the festivities, some 10,000 well-wishers cheered on the hundreds of couples who had waited long hours in line to receive applications to marry.

Lipkin, a veteran gay rights activist, was fourth in line.

“We walked down, but it was really floating down those stairs. It just felt like a moment of immense joy and community celebration that we were part of in Cambridge,” recalled the now 67-year-old retired high school teacher.

A week later, he and his partner, Robert Ellsworth, were married by a member of the state legislature.

The following month, Rabbi Emily Lipoff stood with another couple under a chuppah in a backyard ceremony, marrying two Jewish women congregants from Temple Ohabei Shalom, a Boston Reform synagogue.

“It was wonderful, because they were celebrating each other and their marriage but also an important moment.

There was an extra dimension of meaning,” recounted Lipoff, who is now the synagogue’s rabbi emerita.

Ten years after the fi rst samesex marriages were performed in Massachusetts, the national legal and political landscape has shifted dramatically. Today, 19 states and the District of Columbia allow same-sex marriage. Two, Oregon and Pennsylvania, joined the list in May following federal court rulings striking down their bans on same-sex marriage.

“How much difference 10 years makes,” said Idit Klein, executive director of Keshet, a Boston-based national advocacy group for LGBT Jews.

Klein said that the shift is mirrored in the Jewish community.

A decade ago, same-sex marriage had the religious approval of the Reform and Reconstructionist movements, but the Conservative movement prohibited such unions. Today, Conservative rabbis have their movement’s blessing to officiate at same-sex marriages.

“It is woven into the fabric of Jewish community life, the way other simchot have always been,” Klein said, using the Hebrew word for joyous occasions.

A February poll by the Public Religion Research Institute found that 83 percent of Jews support same-sex marriage, the

highest level of support among any of the religious groups liste.

Rabbi Ronne Friedman, senior rabbi at Temple Israel in Boston, wrote in an email to JTA that he is struck by the “rapidity with which same sex marriage taboos have fallen, across the country.”

He estimates that he and his fellow clergy members at the Reform synagogue have officiated in at least 100 same-sex weddings in the past decade.

After same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, Rabbi Neal Loevinger officiated at his fi rst – and so far only – same-sex wedding.

“A February poll by the Public Religion Research Institute found that 83 percent of Jews support same-sex marriage, the highest level of support among any of the religious groups listed.”

Susan Jacobs and her longtime Jewish partner – who previously had a Jewish commitment ceremony in California – were members of Loevinger’s Conservative synagogue north of Boston and asked the rabbi to wed them While the wedding was not going to take place in the synagogue, Loevinger brought the issue to the synagogue’s board to see how they would feel about him officiating, given that the Conservative movement officially did not approve of samesex unions.

Loevinger, now a rabbi at Temple Beth-El in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., said he did not know what to expect from the synagogue board. But they were overwhelmingly in favor, he recalled, with only one vocal

opponent.

“We all grew together in that experience,” he said of his discussions with the board.

Being married legally was an important statement to make for the couple’s two children, Jacobs said.

“People fought for this, and we should be counted,” said Jacobs, now the editor of the Jewish Journal newspaper in Salem, Mass.

Since then, Loevinger said, he has not officiated at any other same-sex weddings. “Only because no one has asked,” he explained.

He said he had strongly supported the effort in New York to legalize same-sex marriage, which was approved by the state legislature in 2011.

“I was proud that I was able to advocate for that ... both within my synagogue and in our wider community,” he said.

Loevinger was not the only Conservative rabbi who blessed same-sex weddings prior to gaining the approval of his movement, which arrived at its current embrace of same-sex unions gradually.

In 2006, the Conservative movement’s Committee on Jewish Law and Standards adopted two contradictory teshuvot – or rabbinic responsa – on homosexuality and same-sex unions. One largely repudiated religious condemnations of homosexuality and endorsed the celebration of same-sex unions.

The other reaffirmed prohibitions regarding homosexuality and held that rabbis are prohibited from blessing same-sex unions.

Conservative rabbis could choose between the two positions, with some feeling empowered to now officiate at samesex unions.

In 2012, the movement gave same-sex marriage a more unambiguous embrace. The law committee by a vote of 13-0 with one abstention issued new guidelines for how rabbis could perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.

“There’s been a profound shift within the Conservative

movement, and there are pockets of openness in the Orthodox world,” Klein said.

Though same sex-marriage is not accepted within Orthodox Judaism, Klein said she sees rabbis and other leaders quietly supporting same-sex couples or parents whose children come out as gay.

“Over the past 10 years, suspicion and misgivings have given way to empathy,” said Rabbi Steven Greenberg, an openly gay Orthodox-ordained rabbi who in 2011 caused a stir when he officiated at what he called “a Jewish commitment ceremony and civil marriage” for two men. Greenberg married his own partner in a 2012 civil ceremony in New York.

Greenberg, who lives in Boston, found a religious home at Congregation Kadimah-Toras Moshe, a Modern Orthodox synagogue in Boston, where he said he and his partner and daughter feel welcome. He credits the synagogue’s rabbi, Yonah Berman, with encouraging an inclusive atmosphere.

Berman, who said he is expressing his own views and not speaking for the congregation, noted that Massachusetts is identified as a welcoming place for same-sex couples.

“While Orthodox synagogues and rabbis are bound to an interpretation of Jewish law that does not recognize these marriages as religiously valid, that does not change the realities that these couples and their children are part of the social fabric of our community,” he said. “We therefore have a responsibility, both religiously and ethically, to embrace them.”

Berman acknowledges that there is a spectrum of responses within the Orthodox community on this issue, but he said, “I don’t feel I’m an outlier.”

PENNY SCHWARTZ is a contributing writer to JTA.

June 6, 2014 |

27

The Voice Classifieds Assistance needed with new IPAD Air. Senior citizen looking for help with fundamentals.

Please call 401-932-9000.

Hawaiian Vacation Wyndham Ka’Eo Kai Resort Princeville, Hawaii, U.S. Length of Stay: 7 nights Available: Nov 22, 2014 Nov 29, 2014 Contact: Sharong956@ gmail.com Smoking: No– Pets: No Kitchen:Full Occupancy: 6 Bedrooms/Bathrooms: 2/2 Beds: 1 King, 2 Full/ Double, 1 Sleeper Sofa Amenities: BBQ, DVD Player, Deck or Patio, Internet Access, Jacuzzi Tub, Laundry , Refrigerator - Full Size, Stereo, TV, Telephone, VCR On the northern shore of Kauai, there’s a beautiful plateau overlooking romantic Hanalei Bay. Amidst this splendor, you’ll find the smaller and more private paradise of Ka’Eo Kai. A stroll along its winding paths takes you past waterfalls, streams, gardens and ponds that complement the beauty of this remarkable natural setting.

TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD: Contact Tricia Stearly, tstearly@jewishallianceri. org or 401-421-4111, ext. 160.

28 | June 6, 2014

ARTS

The Jewish Voice

A Lie of the Mind Trinity Rep closes its 50th anniversary season

BY KARA MARZIALI kmarziali@jewishallianceri.org Trinity Rep brings its 50th anniversary season to a close with Sam Shepard’s “A Lie of the Mind,” now playing through June 29. Shepard is a master at creating personalities that are complex, dramatic, compelling and dysfunctional. So the eight-member ensemble, directed by Brian Mertes, had their work cut out for them.

“A Lie of the Mind” is about two midwestern families connected by marriage. As the play begins, a bruised and beaten Beth (Britt Faulkner) is being cared for by her parents, Baylor and Meg, played by veteran Trinity actors Timothy Crowe and Anne Scurria. Beth’s husband Jake (Benjamin Grills), a chronic wife beater, believes “this time” he’s killed Beth and sends his brother Frankie (Charlie Thurston) to Montana to see if she’s dead or alive.

Although only Beth has been diagnosed with brain damage, all the characters suffer from a “lie of the mind.” For example, Meg seems to be the poster child for adult onset dementia, and Beth’s brother Mike (Billy Finn) is unquestionably fueled by revenge. Another notable role is Lorraine, played

by Janice Duclos. Lorraine is the quintessential helicopter parent, delusional about her children and playing the blame-game throughout the play. She coddles her son Jake, whom she uses as a surrogate husband, and she unforgivably dismisses her daughter Sally (Rebecca Gibel). Repeated acts of violence, love triangles, passion, denial and fabrications continue throughout the three-act production, which includes two intermissions.

In describing Shepard’s characters, Trinity’s artistic director Curt Columbus said, “[they] cling to seemingly fi xed objects like family, country and home, all while

Janice Duclos as Lorraine and Benjamin Grills as Jake.

PHOTOS | MARK TUREK

Britt Faulkner as Beth and Benjamin Grills as Jake the currents of life sweep them along, sweep them away. His people are caught in violent times without the tools to understand what is happening to them, and yet they must persevere.”

Well into the second hour of the play, audiences will understand that a constant theme is possessiveness and suffocating care. However, the audience is asked to “look deeper into the human heart and the destructive power of love.” If you can get beyond the length of the production, you will appreciate its humor and skillful acting. In fact, three of the performers are Brown University/Trinity Rep MFA actors.

Faulkner (’15), Finn (’15) and Grills (’14) are part of a threeyear professional training program. Both Brown and Trinity Rep are dedicated to the arts

and fostering a new generation of theater artists.

Columbus describes Trinity as “vibrant” in its 50th anniversary season. “We continue to challenge our audiences with new work and re-envisioned classics, we continue to expand the minds of our students, making them better thinkers and citizens, we continue to change the face of the American Theater, as well as our local environment here at home in Rhode Island.”

Buy tickets at trinityrep. com, by calling 401-351-4242 or at the theater’s box office at 201 Washington St., downtown Providence.

KARA MARZIALI is the Director of Communications for the Jewish Alliance and a theater aficionado.

CONGRATULATIONS LINCOLN SCHOOL CLASS OF 2014

Trinity Rep resident acting company members Anne Scurria as Meg and Timothy Crowe as Baylor

Boston College Chapman College Connecticut College Dartmouth College (2) Drew University University of Edinburgh Elmira College George Washington University (2) Hampshire College Harvard College Howard University Loyola University - Maryland Lynn University University of Massachusetts-Amherst University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth Mount Holyoke College (2)

New York University University of Pennsylvania Providence College Rhode Island School of Design (3) University of Rhode Island (2) University of Rhode Island - Pharmacy Roanoke College Salve Regina University Smith College University of South Florida University of Southern California Suffolk University Stonehill College (2) Wellesley College (2) Wesleyan University

ARTS

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The Strudel Lady

One woman’s journey to self-discovery

BY KARA MARZIALI kmarziali@jewishallianceri.org It has been said that Yiddish words often describe the foibles, quirks and the strengths of human character and teache us how to laugh more. If that is the case, then Shirl Solomon has taken Yiddishkeit (Jewishness) to a whole new level. Solomon, a handwriting consultant and author, has written a number of plays and musicals about Jewish life. Her musical comedy “The Strudel Lady” is an entertaining show about marriage, Jewish tradition, acculturation and one woman’s journey to self-discovery. Infused with Yiddish expressions and funny one-liners, “The Strudel Lady” was staged on June 1 at the Dwares JCC. Temple Am David requested the script and original music from Solomon in the hope of mounting the production as a fundraiser for the synagogue.

“I am happy to lend my play free for all good causes” said Solomon, a Florida resident.

The Rhode Island premiere, under the direction of Beth Veltri, starred Jeffrey K. Savit, President and CEO of the Jewish Alliance of Rhode Island, Sharon Sock, Micki Silverman and Harold LaBush.

The play introduces Chava,

June 6, 2014 |

The cast of The Strudel Lady: standing, Sharon Sock, Jeffrey Savit, Beth Veltri (director); seated, Micki Silverman, Harold LaBush an American-born Orthodox wife and mother played by Sock, who is dumped by her husband.

Embarrassed, she leaves the community and pursues her one talent – making strudel. La-

Laurelmead Cooperative

Bush plays Cantor Velvel, the much-put-upon husband of Faiga played by Silverman. With

a little coaxing from older and wiser Faiga, Chava flourishes, becomes independent and even has an affair. (Oy!) The audience seemed to find the humor in Solomon’s lampoon of Jewish laws of marriage, a subject that many people in the community take quite seriously. However, the spirit of the comedy was not meant to be disrespectful. Its wit lies in its rhythms, familiar cadences one finds in ethnic wisecracks reminiscent of Neil Simon or Woody Allen. Original and outspoken, “The Strudel Lady” prompted laughter, elicited conversations during intermission and warmed hearts. Speaking of intermission, during the break, theater-goers were treated to (what else?) unlimited strudel.

“This play has been a labor of love for all involved,” said Savit, who played Leonard Farber, Chava’s love interest. Veltri credits the dedication of the cast to the show’s success. “Even more importantly,” Savit added, “ ‘The Strudel Lady’ provided an opportunity for our West Bay neighbors to come to the East Side and spend an evening with one another. It bridged the ocean between Providence and Warwick and provided a night of laughs for our entire Jewish community.”

In the end, proceeds from ticket sales went to support Temple Am David … and the strudel served during intermission was geshmacht!

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30 | June 6, 2014

SIMCHA | WE ARE READ

The Jewish Voice

ON THE ROAD – Marjorie Yashar in Almaty, Kazakakhstan, at the beginning of a tour of “The Five Stans,” the ancient Silk Road trade route.

Grandpa Michael, For all of your stories, phonecalls, sideline cheers, and weekend adventures -- we love you!

Love, Logan & Leah

BIRTHDAY – Isaak Goman, seated center, is surrounded by his sons – (left to right) Boris, Sam and Yakov – while celebrating his youngest son’s 60th birthday at Cafe St. Petersburg in Newton, Massachusetts.

A Rich Inheritance Our community keeps reinventing itself, finding new ways to engage young people and adults, families and singles, in the rich fabric of Jewish life.

But some things never change. Like the way each generation plans and builds for the next, making sure the foundations of Jewish life are strong and can respond to evolving needs. When you leave a Jewish legacy, you join this chain of builders. You leave your children and grandchildren a precious inheritance, and a lasting testimony to your values.

To learn more about making a legacy gift, contact Trine Lustig at 401.421.4111 ext. 223 or tlustig@jewishallianceri.org

Milton Stanzler, an avid swimmer and past president of the JCC, circa 1961.

Archival image courtesy of Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association.

401 Elmgrove Avenue | Providence, RI

SIMCHAS

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WEDDING – Brahna Kessler and Meir Layman were married March 30 at Anthony’s Pier 9 in New Windsor, New York. Rabbi Tzvi Meir Sinensky officiated. The bride is the daughter of William and Linda Kessler of Pawtucket.

The bridegroom is the son of Laibel and Helene Layman of Monsey, New York.

The bride attended Midreshet Moriah in Israel and graduated from Stern College. She is

currently attending Hunter College Graduate School and teaching at Manhattan Day School.

The bridegroom attended Yeshivat Ohr Dovid in Israel and graduated from Baruch College. He is currently employed at Payam Diagnostics.

The couple celebrated Sheva Brochos in New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island. They are living in Riverdale, New York.

June 6, 2014 |

ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION – Sumner and Roberta Fox of Seekonk celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary May 23 with friends and family during lunch at the Alliance Kosher Senior Café at the the Dwares JCC. In addition to a delicious brisket lunch, there was a cake and entertainment by the Aristocats.

2014-2015 Guide To Jewish Living Be part of the only publication that reaches more than 20,000 Jewish readers in Southern New England for a full year.

This Guide will be mailed to every known Jewish household in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts with our September 26, 2014 issue of The Jewish Voice, the producer of this informative handbook.

Reservation Deadline: August 20, 2014 | Materials Due: August 29, 2014 Publication Date: September 26, 2014 Back cover glossy stock, 4-color .................... $1475 Inside front or back cover, 4-color ............... $1325 Full page 4-color glossy ..................................... $1010 Full page 4-color .................................................... $825 Full page b&w .......................................................... $790 Half page 4-color glossy .................................... $510 Half page b&w vertical or horizontal ......... $310 Strip 3x3 b&w ........................................................... $180

Full Page = 6.5” w x 9.5” h Half Page Horizontal = 6.5” w x 4.75” h Half Page Vertical = 4” w x 9” h

Contact our advertising sales representatives

Tricia Stearly

401-421-4111 ext. 160 tstearly@jewishallianceri.org

Karen Borger

401-529-2538 ksborger@gmail.com Custom Sizes: $20 per column inch Mechanical Info: 1 column width = 2”

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32 | June 6, 2014

The Jewish Voice

Caring and Social Responsibility: Helping our Local Community in Need

with your help, we can do more.

People of all ages need help these days – including seniors, many of whom are living alone and struggling quietly to manage life’s logistics and make ends meet.

Our Caring and Social Responsibility initiative is there for home-bound seniors – making it possible for volunteers to deliver more than 10,000 kosher Meals on Wheels, and some very welcome conversation and critical social support, to people who may not have other visitors or social support. We also partner with the Jewish Seniors Agency to send volunteers to nursing homes, assisted living residences, hospitals, and private homes – making 4,000 visits annually to keep elders company and help them celebrate Shabbat and continue other Jewish traditions.

Please support our 2014 Annual Campaign.

THE STRENGTH OF A PEOPLE. THE POWER OF COMMUNITY. 401 Elmgrove Avenue Providence, RI 02906 401.421.4111 jewishallianceri.org

Senior Café, a program of Jewish Family Service

Last year’s Annual Campaign $408,000 donor dollars helped support our local community including 10,000 Kosher Meals 4,000 Annual Visits

offering critical social support to those that need it most

more than 160 people received food and a sense of community from Kosher Nutrition/ Meals-on-Wheels

with your help, we can do more.