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THE CHARITY WE NEED NOW

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contents

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March 2019 • www.lchaimmagazine.com

COVER STORY The Charity We Need Now: The Bus Station Project serves migrant families at the border..........................................

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1000 WORDS ‘Dancing with the fishes … ’ How a young, inspiring entrepreneur is making old-fashioned herring hip again........................................................

FOOD Gluten free Hamantaschen for limited diets...................................................................................

PURIM Pirate? Princess? A ‘Wonder Woman’ Purim? Israelis Party Like It’s 358 BCE...........

Jewish Interactive Education in San Diego schools.................................................................

Book Review.......................................................................................................................................................

OUR TRIBE

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FEATURES How Israel's water expertise can meet the needs of an increasingly thirsty world.........................................................................

Krav Maga in North County.......................................................................................................................

DANCING WITH THE FISHES

22 26 28 30

ISRAELI'S PARTY

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Community News and Events..................................................................................................................

COLUMNS

06 08

35 37

My Comic Relief................................................

JewishMom.com........................................

Torah: Of the Book..........................................

Mazel and Mishagoss............................

PUBLISHERS Diane Benaroya & Laurie Miller

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO, LLC (858) 776-0550 San Diego, CA 92127

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CREATIVE DIRECTOR Laurie Miller Daniel Bortz, Donald H. Harrison, Steve Horn, Stephanie Lewis, Salomon Maya, Mimi Pollack, Sharon Rapoport, Eva Trieger, Deborah Vietor, Chana Jenny Weisberg

ADVERTISING & SALES Diane Benaroya (dianeb@lchaimmagazine.com), Sharon Buchsbaum (sharonbux@gmail.com) 4

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SUBSCRIBE ONLINE: www.lchaimmagazine.com/shop Copyright ©2019 L’Chaim San Diego LLC. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator” to: publisher@lchaimmagazine.com Published in San Diego, CA • www.lchaimmagazine.com

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RANDOM RANTS l BY SALOMON MAYA

my comic relief

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I

got yelled at by my toddler earlier this week. I believe the fit came from my unknown placement of his favorite Spider-Man toy. Last time I checked I put it in a box and the damn action figure just walked away. For all I know, it was gone.

“Dada, where is my Spider-Man?” “I dunno buddy, in that box over there.”

Said toddler walked over to the box and couldn’t find it. Cue the fit.

Somewhere between the words “SpiderMan” and “ruining my life” I finally looked over to him with my typical dad look and stopped the emotional explosion before it escalated to his now infamous todderlesque nuclear meltdowns which include lots of appendage thrashing.

I asked myself, “what the hell did I do to warrant such a reaction? It’s just a toy.”

Flashback to: six months ago. The wife and I are in a local electronics department store.

The type of store that causes her to break out in anxiety filled hives and question the moment she said “I do.”

So, I walk by the wearable tech area (which for the unknowledgeable of you means smart watches) and spot the new one I want. I pick it up carefully, as if it were a priceless work of art. It’s perfect. The silicon watch band, the beautiful color palette emitted from the tiny screen. The operating system. Uggggh.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

It’s the closest I’ve been to falling in literal love with a piece of technology. It’s around that time that I hear the now infamous wife throat clear. I turn around to catch the end part of her eye roll and hear the phrase “you’re not getting that.”

But why? Why can’t I have it? I work hard.

I earn my (cough) our (cough) money. This is what I want. This is what I deserve. Look at the colors! It tells me how many steps I have or haven’t taken. It can call my mother (although I might disable that feature). I can literally charge my debit card at a local Starbucks without ever taking out my wallet!

I can’t not not take this home with me. I want this. I need this!

That’s what I thought. But all I was able to utter when told that “I’m not getting that” was a simple yet powerfully manlike “why?”

“Because you already have one!”

You see this is a true story. I currently have an Apple Watch. It’s the series 1 though. It’s slow. And yes, it’s roughly the same tech as the series 4 that I was fondling over but if anyone knows anything about tech is that you’ll never have enough. Tech will always be outgrown. And if you’re anybody in this world you know that you need to keep updating.

And keep buying. And keep adding. And keep getting newer. This is just the way it is. You don’t question Apple why. You just accept the terms of agreement without ever reading them! This, my wife, just does not

and will not understand. I mean c’mon, she only has an iPhone 8. She still have a home button. Ha. Such an old soul.

So, as I pleaded my case and came close to developing an excel spreadsheet spotlighting the pros and minimal cons of owning the newer watch she again rolled her eyes. Said something about going home and that I could just uber home if I don’t leave right now.

So, I had a decision to make. I could buy this watch. She literally can’t stop me. I can just be like “hey you! You evil, evil person.

I want this. I need this. Gimme.” But I also like sleeping in my own bed and the couch is just so damned uncomfortable so I put on my big boy pants. And didn’t buy the watch.

I walked out of Best Buy with nothing. Not even a Coke Zero. Nothing.

I didn’t say anything on the ride home.

We rode in silence. But inside of my brain and soul. All of my appendages with flaying widely about.

Today, my son finally found another toy in another box. It was an older toy, one he had probably forgotten about. A Paw Patrol “pup”.

He started to play with it. And the missing Spider-Man was nothing but a memory.

SALOMON MAYA IS A LOCAL ACTOR AND PLAYWRIGHT. FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER @SALOMAYA OR EMAIL HIM AT SALOMONM@LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM.

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TORAH l BY RABBI DANIEL BORTZ

of

the book Hamantaschen

W

hen Jewish holy days come around, my taste buds start tingling.

True, matzah doesn’t always rock my boat, but the latkes and doughnuts of Hanukkah do. So does and my Mother’s famous chocolate challah bread and a chilled cup of moscato wine from Ralph’s on a Friday night. All of the Jewish minhagim — traditions — including the foods we eat, are deeply intentional and play a significant role in connecting to the unique spiritual theme of the day Two loaves of challah hearken back over three thousand years ago to the double portion of manna the Jewish people received from above on Friday for Shabbat. Today, we too cease from working for our bread on Shabbat and recognize that ultimately our blessing for success comes from above. Wine has endless symbolism. One is that it’s one of the only physical things on earth that actually gets better over time. This reminds us to value that which betters with age: wisdom, spiritual growth, refinement, good deeds — these we take with us as we age and into the next world, not the transient things. While the body may deteriorate, the soul can shine greater as we grow in years and wisdom.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

On Purim, we eat hamantaschen, a triangular shaped cookie with a hard exterior but a sweet filling on the inside. What’s the deeper significance here beyond the delicious sugar and carbs? And why name this food after the villain of the time, Haman?

The Purim story is incredibly unique within Judaism. Being saved by G-d from annihilation by anti-Semites is (sadly) nothing new, but this happening in what seems like a natural order of events without any miracles is truly unique. Megillat Esther is the only one of the twenty-four books of Tanakh where G-d’s name is not mentioned even once!

Our essence transcends the names we have.

A name is the way in which we reveal and connect ourselves to others. Of course during the Purim events G-d was running the show, just as He is now. But unlike today’s social media influencer, G-d is more of a puppetmaster behind the scenes, guiding the show hidden from the public eye. Nameless. This fundamental Jewish tenet of reality is woven throughout every element of the Purim story. “Megillat Esther” — Scroll of Esther, can also be read as: “Megaleh ha’hester” — Revealing what is hidden.

The hamantaschen we eat on Purim is the

story of our lives: As tough and unsavory as an event may seem to us on the surface, there is always a sweet inner reason beneath it.

Like on Purim, G-d Is hidden but intimately involved in our lives. As the prophet Jeremiah said: ‘Evil does not descend from above.’

With this understanding we can withstand the greatest of hardships. The Purim cookie is named after the wicked Haman to remind us that behind the very worse things in life is a deeper plan within. Haman was hung on the very gallows he built for Mordechai.

In destruction was redemption waiting to manifest.

Just as we wear Purim masks and costumes, G-d’s mask is this world and the laws of nature. By taking the Purim story to heart and recognizing the One behind the mask of reality, the mystics say we can cause a reciprocal lifting of the veil of secrecy above.

Your life too is a Megillah scroll. As you bite into your gluten free, non-Gmo, sugar free, organic hamantaschen this year, remind yourself of the sweet Divine intention behind every detail of your life’s journey.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

L’CHAIM

1000

WORDS DANCING WITH THE FISHES

Y

ou never know when something heimishe, something many Jews may associate with old-fashioned, staid Jewish fare, like herring and crackers, will somehow turn high-end and hipster. One millennial, barely out of his teens, is putting herring out there for all the Internet to see.

And he’s got a heck of a story to tell.

It all started in late 2014, when Queens, N.Y.-teen Naftali Engel was in Israel for post-high school gap-year study. He spent some Shabbats away from his Judean Hills yeshivah with his brother who lives in Tzfat, the “holy city” famous for its more Chassidic or Kabbalah-influenced-artists’ colonies and spiritually creative enclaves.

One Shabbat, Engel tasted a particularly delicious homemade herring, and, perhaps nonchalantly, asked the maker for his recipe.

The answer he got was not quite traditional.

Engel’s version of what he heard from this unusual pescaphile was something like the following: “’First, you have to dance with the fish; then say Tikkun Haklali [a traditional Breslov set of psalms geared toward repentance] with the fish, after that sit down and say some Shemios Hatzadikim (names of the righteous) to the herring. If you can, go to the mikvah [ritual bath] before you prepare the fish … ,’” it went on like this,” Engel told The Jewish Link.

“I mean, the herring tasted really good, but this was an interesting method to say the least. The man continued, ‘When you spice the fish, make sure to have the proper kavanos [intentions]. After you finish making it, make sure to learn with the herring and say tehillim [psalms] for it,’ “ recalled Engel.

At that point, Engel gave up on getting an actual recipe out of the man, but succeeded in getting a basic herring recipe from his brother, Menachem. “Although I altered the

original recipe I was given a bit, it came out great. But what this man gave me was an idea: That I could take the herring and spice it based on what inspires me.”

One millennial, barely out of his teens, is putting herring out there for all the Internet to see.

A BUSINESS IS BORN

Five years later, Engel, 22, is a busy entrepreneur distributing his own original herrings nationwide under the label, The Rebbe’s Choice — all inspired by that single interaction. From Vietnamese sriracha to smoked Hungarian paprika to Israeli za’atar, he has fused spices from his millennialmodern kitchen with that most modest fish, bringing new life to that old boring herring.

And millennials intrinsically see, to know a thing or two about branding. In what has seemed like a blink of an eye, a community of 800 enthusiastic followers have popped up on Instagram and are even buying products emblazoned with the company catchphrase — “Heimishe meets high end” — and “the rebbe” on the label, who happens to look quite a bit like Engel’s new father-in-law.

But back to 2014. How did this business get started?

Engel’s first culinary effort — a jalapeño matjes (matjes is a younger, fattier herring perfect for pickling) made on Engel’s dormitory porch at Yeshivat Ohr Yerushalayim — was met with clamors for more from his friends. Soon, students from other yeshivahs heard about it. “I would make herring for Shabbos and ask if people wanted it, and soon I was selling it out of my dorm room,” he explained.

“My herring started to become well-known in the American yeshivahs in Jerusalem.

Everyone knew about it. By the next summer, I had a name: The Rebbe’s Choice.” While he was home in the States, he hired a graphic designer on Fiverr to illustrate “The Rebbe” who adorns his labels, wearing a fur streimel, smiling and holding a whole fish. He sold his labeled products in Israel to friends the next year.

Returning home to Queens in 2016 after a year-and-a-half, his began his business in earnest, manufacturing his unique herring recipes out of his shul’s basement in Kew Gardens Hills, Queens. His product had been certified kosher by the O-K. Fast-forward to today: Engel’s herrings are distributed nationwide by Quality Frozen Foods, a large kosher foods distributor. More than 1,500 units of herring are produced every week, and it’s available in kosher WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

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L’CHAIM

supermarkets in communities nationwide.

Engel explained that while he has no prior background in the food industry, he comes from a family full of entrepreneurs — all of whom have found new ways to present items to the public.

His grandfather, Engel related, sold postal products and was apparently the first to sell envelopes in packages of multiples.

His father and brother had launched their own pet-supply businesses. Engel’s new wife, Remi, also helps him in the business, bringing with her design ideas and her own millennial flair, even launching the hashtag #womenwhoherring.

EACH FLAVOR COMES WITH INSPIRATION

Marketing aside, what truly sets Engel’s herrings apart (there are currently six varieties, and a seventh one will be released soon, he said) is that the flavorful, modern fusion-cuisine-take-on-classic-flavors are made from recipes using all kinds of sweet and savory spices, sauces and herbs, and are inspired by a Chassidic “Rebbe,” the teachings of whom Engel has learned. A story about each rebbe and how he edified Engel adorns each box of herring. For example, The Rebbe’s Choice’s sweet black-pepper herring is inspired by Reb Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev, who went to tremendous lengths and had great enthusiasm towards finding 12

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

the good in people, no matter how evil or criminal they were. “Rabbi Levi’s fresh perspective and ardor are the inspiration for this savory and deeply flavored herring,” Engel writes on the label.

Engel has so far singled out rebbes from Lelov, Kotzk, Rimanov, Ropshitz and Zusha, and written inspirational vignettes about their teachings and why they inspired a particular flavor.

Future plans include two types of highquality smoked salmon, plain and with pastrami flavoring, and a line of flatbread kichel (a Jewish type of cookie), inspired by the Hungarian Kerister Rebbe, a rabbi from the Tokay region of Hungary known for his incredible hospitality towards strangers. The kichel is not dipped in sugar like the kichel many Americans know, but it is savory and cracker-like and more typical of old Europe.

It’s meant to be eaten along with the herring, of course. Engel reported that he had recently returned from Budapest, where he drove multiple hours to visit the kever (grave) of Reb Shayale of Keristir to gain inspiration for the kichel.

But it’s not just about inspiration; Engel is serious about business as well. He and his production team, which includes one fulltime manager and several part-timers, take pride in a set of common-sense principles for food safety and sustainability. Their fish

products are made from Atlantic Herring, primarily matjes, sourced from the Atlantic Ocean from either Europe or Canada, and are bought from fisheries that practice sustainable practices so that ocean-dwellers other than herring aren’t caught in the nets and the supply isn’t depleted.

Engel said he benefited from studying for his ServSafe NYC food-safety handler licenses, finding them instructive in making safer choices regarding fresh ingredients and preparation methods. “Stored properly, our cured and pickled herrings are good for six weeks, as per the label on the package. You can tell our herring is fresh by how firm it is. Herring that is soft or mushy is usually frozen, whereas our product is fresh,” he explained.

Competitors eyeing the success of Engel’s branding have already begun making attempts at copying the products of this quick-growing company, though Engel has taken this gesture of his competition in stride and even with some cheer. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and if I made big enough waves that the largest fish and appetizing companies want to copy me, I know I’m doing something right.”

Still, it’s unlikely that any impersonator can hope to match the inspiration and success of the brand, as it’s very clearly rooted in and growing from Engel’s personal interests and experiences.

The 12-ounce boxes of herring are handpackaged out of its 1,000-square-foot facility in Long Island City, N.Y. They are made without artificial ingredients or color, and several of the herrings are made without sugar in order to be suitable for those following diabetic diets. All herrings are gluten-free; several contain sesame or egg ingredients, but are clearly marked as such.

The products are now available in select locations in Los Angeles; Minneapolis; Glendale, Colo.; Evanston, Ill.; Southfield, Mich.; Cleveland Heights, Ohio; Dallas; Atlanta; and Boston and several cities in Florida. Since 2018, they have become widely available in kosher stores and supermarkets with kosher sections in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

13

COVER STORY l BY DONALD H. HARRISON

THE CHARITY WE NEED NOW The Bus Station Project serves migrant families at the boarder 14

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

COVER STORY

W

hile the political situation for asylum seekers who come to the United States’ southern border seemingly changes day by day, Mimi Pollack, 65, and Paula Sassi, 71, are among the few constants.

Twice a week since last July, the two women have driven from Pollack's storeroom/ garage in the suburb of La Mesa to the Greyhound bus station in downtown San Diego to bring food, water, blankets, toiletries, U.S. maps, and children’s toys to weary migrants who are en route to the homes across the nation of their temporary sponsors.

Pollack is a retired English-as-a-Second-Language teacher of American birth who grew up in Mexico City before returning to the United States. Sassi also taught ESL, but is better known as a graphologist

result all that more appreciated.

The Bus Station Project — as Pollack’s and Sassi’s endeavor has been called — is one of the last steps in a process that saw the migrants travel to San Diego’s border with Tijuana, Mexico, and there ask Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials for asylum in the United States.

Once they made such a request, at least up until recently, the would-be asylees went through identification processing, and, if they had people living in the United States willing to sponsor them, they were sent on their way — wearing electronic ankle bracelets — to the homes of the sponsors. Once at their destinations, they were instructed to contact immigration officials immediately to begin their court proceedings.

The Bus Station Project is one of the last steps in a process for migrants seeking asylum in the United States. who examines people’s handwriting for prospective employers and other clients.

Using their own money and that of donors, Sassi and Pollack assemble in Pollack’s garage numerous sets of two bags packed with such supplies as water, juices, and various snacks, including peanut butter and crackers, cheese, nutritional bars, cookies, and potato chips filling one bag; and toiletries including soap, shampoo, conditioner, tissue packets, toothbrush and toothpaste stuffing the other. In addition, the two women put into the trunk of Pollack’s car some blankets and stuffed animals — in short, everything that will make a long bus ride to an unknown destination more tolerable for the migrants, most of whom speak little or no English.

When they greet the migrants at the bus station and explain in Spanish what they have brought for them, huge smiles brighten the faces of both parents and children. Their kindness is unexpected, and as a

When a large flow of asylum seekers started arriving at the Mexican border last July, ICE first processed them, and then dropped them off without further ado at the Greyhound bus station, often with no more than a bus ticket and $10 for expenses. Not speaking English, the migrants often were quite confused about what they were supposed to do next.

Learning of this situation, Pollack and Sassi decided to help in any way that they could. Realizing that in some cases the migrants hadn’t eaten for several days, Sassi and Pollack made sandwiches or bought food for them at a nearby convenience store.

As luck would have it, the store closest to the Greyhound Bus Station is operated by Iraqi Christians (Chaldeans), who themselves were refugees not so very long ago. Pollack taught many Chaldeans in her ESL classes at Grossmont College in El Cajon, a city that boasts the nation’s second-largest concentration of Chaldeans. When the store managers learned of WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

15

COVER STORY

the asylees’ situation, they donated corn dogs and other food stuffs to help feed the hungry families.

After a few months, social service agencies in San Diego, including Jewish Family Service and Catholic Charities, combined to create the San Diego Rapid Response Network.

Rapid Response opened temporary shelters for the migrants so that they could shower, eat, sleep, and get a change of clothing before embarking on their bus or plane trips to their sponsors’ homes. Sassi and Pollack told me that they have noted a big difference in the moods of the traveling families ever since.

Whereas before they seemed sad, depressed, and scared, now they seem happier, aware that big-hearted people in America welcome them — no matter what might be said on the news about immigrants.

Laurie Hall, a therapist with a master’s degree in social work, volunteers at the Rapid Response shelter on a pro bono basis, filling in wherever she can. A Spanish-speaker, Hall, who like Pollack is Jewish, says she 16

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

particularly enjoys being in the playroom at the shelter, where the children can enjoy simply being kids. On a recent night, she was assigned as an escort, driving three migrant families from Guatemala in a van to the Greyhound bus station where, with money provided by the Rapid Response Network, she purchased tickets for each of the families.

One was headed for Corpus Christi, Texas; another to Houston, Texas; and the third to Sacramento.

The Greyhound tickets are difficult to decipher, particularly so for people who have no real working knowledge of English. Hall patiently explained the bus routine to the families, telling them about transfers and the rest stops along the way. She confided, “I have a master’s degree and I find the tickets hard to understand; imagine what it’s like for people who don’t read English or are completely illiterate.”

After Hall purchased the tickets and briefed her temporary wards, Sassi and Pollack opened their bags of goodies.

“Fruta!”, exclaimed one of the four children as he espied the small tangerines in the bag.

Pollack said whereas American children seem to gravitate toward baked goods like cookies, the Guatemalan children seem to prefer the fruit. Causing an even bigger stir, and the broadest of smiles, were the stuffed animals that the American twosome bestowed upon the children. As for the parents, they gratefully accepted blankets, knowing that riding in a bus at night sometimes can be quite cold.

In addition to the three families transported by the Rapid Response Network, on that evening there was another family from Cuba and two families from Haiti who were awaiting Greyhound transportation to sponsors’ homes. Pollack went to the trunk of her car and delivered bags of goodies to them as well.

The Cuban father, Dennis, told Pollack in Spanish that he and his wife Jaisi and daughter Mia left Cuba because of their opposition to Communism and because

COVER STORY

Mimi Pollack delivers goods to asylumseekers and their families at the border to make their travel a little easier.

“there is lots of poverty and no jobs.” He had saved money to fly from Cuba to Mexico, and from there made it to the U.S. border by bus and by foot. His hope is to “resolve our immigration status, find jobs, and go to school.” He said that all along his journey, in Mexico and thus far in the United States, he had found people to be friendly and welcoming.

Iliana, a Guatemalan who was traveling with her daughter, said that it took her 20 days to travel by bus, car, and by foot to get to the American border. In Houston, she has a friend who has agreed to be her sponsor. How has she been treated by U.S. authorities? she was asked. In reply, she gave a big, enthusiastic thumb’s up.

The Greyhound bus station at 1313 National Avenue in San Diego is surrounded by a homeless encampment. Men and women in sleeping bags line the sidewalks adjacent to the outdoor seating area where people wait for the buses. On occasion, homeless people will ask Sassi and Pollack if they too can have some food, or a blanket — requests with which the generous-hearted ladies always comply.

The two benefactors over the months also have made friends with the Greyhound bus station employees, bringing for their families boxes of candy and other presents. On a recent night, one of the security guards was suffering with a cough, and Sassi immediately retrieved for him a package of cough drops from her car.

After learning about the situation that asylum-seekers at the border were in, Pollack and Sassi decided to help in any way that they could, and the Bus Station Project was born.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Late in January, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that henceforth people seeking asylum would be required to wait on the Mexican side of the border until their cases are ready for adjudication. On appointed dates, the applicants for asylum are expected to present themselves to U.S. officials at the border, and from there be driven to the federal courthouse in downtown San Diego, where a judge will hear their case.

There was immediate talk of a court challenge to this procedure, and HIAS (which was founded in 1881 as the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society) initiated a letter-writing campaign to Congress to repeal the Remain in Mexico policy. HIAS said the policy “violates the rights of those seeking safety in our country by making it nearly impossible for asylum seekers to access the legal protections available to them under both U.S. and international law.”

Whether the change in procedure will end the need for programs by the Rapid Response Network and the Bus Station Project on the American side of the border is, at this date, still an open question.

Pollack said in February that there were numerous families still “in the pipeline” who needed assistance as they traveled to their sponsors’ homes.

“As long as people keep coming, we will be there!” Pollack vowed.

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

17

FOOD

GLUTEN FREE HAMANTASCHEN Eight gluten-free flour varieties offer delicious baking options for restricted diets

F

or holiday baking, Pereg Natural Foods (www.pereg-gourmet.com) offers up a complete line of eight gluten-free flour varieties providing consumers on restricted diets with more and better cooking and baking options. Choose from: almond, banana, buckwheat, chickpea, quinoa, teff, plantain and coconut.

If you are planning on baking Hamantaschen - the traditional Purim cookie — for friends and family, Pereg’s gluten-free flours work individually or mixed as a great substitute for traditional flour. Each variety of gluten-free flour adds its own unique flavor to baking.

Says Pereg’s Brett Fuss, “Coconut flour will give a neutral, slight coconut flavor, which goes great with chocolate and fruit

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

fillings, while quinoa offers a slightly nutty, earthy flavor to baked goods. If you like banana, use gluten-free banana flour for a slight banana flavor. Whichever you use, you’ll find the texture and consistency are as good as it gets when it comes to gluten-free baking and cooking.”

GLUTEN FREE HAMANTASCHEN

Recipe courtesy Esther Anzaroot from @glutenfree.sy.

Yields 1 1/2 dozen Hamantaschen INGREDIENTS For Filling 2 cups water 1 cup poppy seed (or other filling of choice)

1/3 cup raisins Finely grated zest of 1 small orange 1/2 cup orange juice 1/4cup honey 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1/4tsp ground cinnamon 1/8 tsp salt 1 egg, beaten lightly 1/3 cup chopped toasted almonds FOR GLUTEN FREE HAMANTASCHEN COOKIE DOUGH

3/4 cup butter, softened (or, use Earth Balance for dairy-free) 2/3 cup granulated sugar 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 cups Pereg Natural Foods Gluten-Free

FOOD

Each variety of gluten-free flour adds its own unique flavor to baking.

Coconut Flour 1 cup Pereg Natural Foods Gluten-Free Almond Flour 1/4 cup orange juice 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 TBLSPN milk (or dairy-free milk substitute) for glaze DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325°Ff. 2. Combine all the ingredients together, 3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

except for the filling ingredients, using a food processor.

Transfer the dough to a bowl and start adding the coconut flour while kneading the dough until you get a play-dough consistency.

Put the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper and flatten the dough with a rolling-pin.

Make circles using a cookie cutter about 5 inches wide Fill center of each cookie circle with filling mix and squeeze corners to make triangle Refrigerate for 15 minutes before baking about 20 minutes or check to see that bottom does not burn. Take out of oven to cool. Taste and enjoy.

TIPS FOR USING GLUTEN-FREE FLOUR

Buy or make a gluten-free flour mix. If you just need to coat something in flour before you saute it, you can get away with a single-grain gluten-free flour. But for baking, gluten-free flours work better when used in combination. For thickening sauces and gravies, use cornstarch or potato starch rather than gluten-free flour. Start with a gluten-free flour mix that can be substituted one-for-one for wheat flour in recipes.

Bake breads and rolls in containers with walls. Without gluten, bread loaves and rolls don’t hold their shape. Bake bread in loaf pans or Bundt pans, and use muffin tins for rolls.

Add gums to your gluten-free flour.

The sticky effect created by gluten can be simulated to a certain extent by adding gums, such as guar gum or xanthan gum.

These “gums” are only added to recipes in small amounts (such as 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon per cup of flour) and are already included in many commercial gluten-free flour mixes.

Add some protein when you use glutenfree flour. Because gluten is a protein, it can help to add some protein to baking recipes when you’re substituting gluten-free flours for wheat or white flour. For instance, try replacing half a cup of water in your recipe with egg or liquid egg whites.

Read gluten-free cookbooks and blogs for new ideas. Many great gluten-free cookbooks are available. As gluten-free cooking becomes more common, you will find new tips and innovations.

Experiment with some old favorites.

Don’t be afraid to work with your favorite old

recipes, adapting them to gluten-free. It may take several tries to figure out exactly what to do. Set aside time to experiment and see if you can recreate something you like in a form you can eat.

Remember to protect against crosscontamination with gluten. For example, never prepare gluten-free foods on the same surface used to prepare foods with gluten unless it’s been thoroughly cleaned. You’re much safer to have separate sets of utensils for gluten-free food preparation. Always use different sifters for gluten-free and regular flours.

Store gluten-free flour in the refrigerator or freezer. This advice is particularly important if you buy your flours in bulk. If you store your flours in the freezer, let them come to room temperature before you use them.

Be sure the flour you are substituting is gluten-free.

All eight varieties of Pereg Natural Foods Gluten-free flours are certified gluten-free, non-GMO, 100% natural, non-dairy and certified OU kosher. They are packaged in 16 oz. re-sealable stay-fresh bags, retailing for about $4.99. All Pereg products are kosher certified by both the Orthodox Union (OU) and CRC, are dairy and lactose-free as well as all natural, with no additives or preservatives.

Many products are also certified gluten-free and non-GMO. Pereg Natural Foods products are available at select retailers throughout the US and Canada, and on their website, www.pereggourmet.com.

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

19

PURIM

Pirate?

Princess?

Israeli's Party like it's 357 BCE!

By Deborah Fineblum | jns.org

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

PURIM

Q

ueen Esther and Uncle Mordechai, King Ahasuerus and that rogue Haman. All of them (and even poor old deposed Queen Vashti) would be flummoxed by the sheer volume of lunatic finery donned by Israelis on their holiday.

On it, we mark a somewhat serious chapter in Jewish history, when Haman’s villainy was a force that nearly wiped out all the Jews of the vast Persian empire in 357 BCE. And he would have succeeded in his evil plot had Esther and Mordechai’s courage—and the unseen hand of G-d—not saved the day at the last moment.

Nowadays, Purim in Israel is a day when the natives let down their hair, or more often someone else’s, and assume another identity altogether.

Over at Brurya Costumes on the second floor of Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Center, all is ready for mass insanity. For starters, check out the 67 costumed mannequins—from the gruesome to the goofy to the glamorous—all lined up alongside the shop.

But to be admitted to the store’s inner sanctum, where hundreds of costumes await, you’d better be prepared to stand for a while behind the red velvet rope.

Long waits aside, Purim is a unifying force in Israel. Religious and secular, Ashkenazi and Sephardi, Likud and Labor, rich and poor, young and old come out to party in the streets, march in parades and show off their costumes at school. For the adults also comes the injunction to drink to the point where they can’t distinguish between “Blessed be Mordechai” from “Cursed be Haman.”

Meaning, they may get a little snookered, too.

(The other holiday commandants include hearing the Megillah, or book of Esther;

sending gifts of food to friends and neighbors; giving to the poor; and partaking in a festive meal.)

Indeed, Purim is especially beloved by Israel’s young adults, who tend to take the holiday as an annual invitation to party on a national scale. “This is great, I’m going to get it,” said Tamar Buzaglo, admiring her reflection in a pirate costume at Brurya’s.

When asked about the best part of Purim, the 20-year-old from Jerusalem’s Ramat HaGolan neighborhood answered without hesitation: “Well, it’s the parties.” (Parties tend to overflow into the streets of cities and towns, from Israel’s north spanning all the way down to the south).

On the other side of the room, Tzach Makiri and her husband, Barre, were likewise decked out in “his” and “her” pirate garb. This was an opportunity for Tzach to get back into costume again since last Purim she was dressed as a pregnant woman (the “costume” was convincing, and the baby daughter who resulted will be decked out for her first Purim as a yellow chick).

But what exactly is it about those pirates?

“Pirates are our number-one costume for the last 20 years for a reason,” says Brurya manager Rami Patimer, whose parents opened the shop three decades ago. (A possible second: “Wonder Woman” ever since last year’s hit movie featured Israeli actress and former Miss Israel Gal Gadot). “Pirates are classics,” says Patimer. “They’re dark and they’re bad . . . so we find them fascinating.”

The cost of a typical Brurya costume hovers around 200 NIS ($57), whereas a “Wonder Woman” get-up will set you back 349 NIS ($99). At the top of the pricing heap this year is the leering clown from another 2017 release: the horror film Circus Kane.

That costume has an equally scary price tag: 699 NIS ($198).

But whether you buy a costume or throw one together from your parents’ old clothes, dressing up is a way to dramatize the victory of good over evil, says Rabbi Binny Freedman, dean of Orayta, a yeshivah in Jerusalem’s Old City. And since we live in fractious times, on Purim “it’s about an evil everyone can agree on,” he adds. “So the nature of the day provides a release.”

And, as the masks are donned, explains Freedman, Jews are reminded that G-d “masks Himself in our lives, but we can understand that, beneath the illusion, Hashem is always running the world.”

If you are in Israel during Purim, prepare to have reality turned upside down those first couple days of March. “It’s the time to go a little crazy and change your identity,” says Molly Buzaglo, Tamar’s mom. “When you’re young, you have big dreams, and you end up settling into a routine and accepting that life isn’t the way you dreamed it would be. Purim is the one day you can live your dream. It’s the day you can fly.”

Plenty of Israelis are happy to take advantage of this opportunity, no matter how long they wait in line or how much money it winds up costing. “This is just the beginning,” Brurya’s Patimer says with a sigh, surveying the crowds queuing up behind the red velvet rope for their chance to choose their Purim persona for 2019/5779.

“In the next two weeks, we’re going to see that line stretch across the mall, and that’s because when it comes to Purim, we’re not selling costumes,” he adds with a cheeky grin. “We’re selling fantasies.”

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

21

Feature Story

THE WATERING HOLE

by Nati Shohat | jns.org



How Israel's Water Expertise can Meet the Needs of an Increasingly Thirsty World

A

s people everywhere turn on their taps, most are not aware that by 2025, at least half the globe’s population of 7.6 billion is expected to be living in waterstressed areas. And according to the World Health Organization, as of 2017, more than 2 billion people in the world lack access to safe drinking water.

What is the reason for this looming water crisis? According to the World Resources Institute, a global nonprofit that focuses on sustainable development, the crisis is the result of seven problems: climate change and its effects on a region’s aridity, water demand, depleted groundwater, water waste, poor water infrastructure, lack of healthy ecosystems, and the price of water for investors and the general public.

But there is one country that has solved its own water problem and has expertise to share with others. That country is Israel, and it is 22

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

today what is perhaps the world’s only water superpower.

THE ROAD TO HYDROLOGICAL INDEPENDENCE

Israel is no longer reliant on the weather or its neighbors for its water needs. It achieved this by combining all available technologies to save as much water as possible. While the country is 60 percent desert, in 2013 it announced it had achieved water independence through smart planning and innovative thinking: desalinizing seawater, reusing treated sewage for agriculture, creating software that warns authorities about leaks, implementing drip irrigation techniques and accounting for every drop of water. Some of the techniques Israel uses today were developed at home, others abroad.

DESALINATION:

In 2018, Israel’s fifth

desalinization plant went online. Collectively, the country’s desalinization plants provide about 600 million cubic meters of water annually, which represents approximately 55 percent of Israel’s domestic water supply.

Experts expect that desalination plants will provide 70 percent of Israel’s drinking water by 2050. Much of the credit for the plants goes to IDE Technologies, an Israeli desalinization company established in 1965, which has built 400 plants in 40 countries over the last four decades. This technology was originally developed in the United States by Sidney Loeb in the early 1960s and perfected after Loeb moved to Israel in 1967.

Israel purified almost 90 percent of its wastewater and uses it in irrigation — four times more than any other country. Spain, which ranks second in the world, recycles only about 20 percent, WASTEWATER RECYCLING:

Feature Story

while the United States recycles less than 10 percent. In other words, human waste is now potentially extraordinarily valuable. Israel’s recycled wastewater is predominantly used for agricultural irrigation. Approximately 10 percent is used for environmental purposes, such as increasing river flow volume and fire suppression, and only 5 percent is discharged into the ocean. The emerging field of reclaimed water has created vast new business and economic opportunities for Israel. For example, Aqwise, which is active in more than 20 countries, has become a global leader in the field with more than 150 installations around the world.

to check water infrastructure and detect leaks and burst pipes, saving millions of gallons of water. This groundbreaking technology is now being adopted by major cities around the world.

This toilet has two buttons or handles to flush different amounts of water, cutting water usage in half.

Originally proposed in 1976 by American industrial designer Victor Papanek, the dual-flush toilet has since become almost universally adopted in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Israel.

DUAL-FLUSH TOILET:

Perhaps above all, the secret of Israel’s success in becoming a water superpower is directly tied to charging users the real cost of water and mandating that authorities spend 100 percent of all water and PRICING:

In the mid-1960s, Israel’s Netafim invented the world’s first modern drip irrigator, which helps farmers, cooperatives and governments conserve more DRIP

IRRIGATION:

water refugees. In Iraq, engineers are warning that the Mosul Dam could collapse at any minute, killing 1.5 million people. The picture looks especially bleak.

Many will be surprised to learn that this trend holds true for the United States as well.

Experts predict that by 2022, 42 million Americans will be unable to pay their water bills, as the cost of water increases because of poor infrastructure and an expectation that this resource will be free — or at least, heavily subsidized. In fact, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, over the next 10 years, 40 out of 50 states will have at least one region with a water shortage because of a lack of fresh water in lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and aquifers. Over the course of the next four years, at least a third of U.S. households will lack potable water.

Americans are also generally unaware that

There is one country that has solved its own water problem and has expertise to share with others. That country is Israel. water. Netafim is a global powerhouse, with more than 30 percent of the global dripirrigation market, and sells its products in more than 110 countries. Irrigation is crucial to the global food supply: Only 18 percent of the world’s farmland is irrigated, and that yields 40 percent of the global food supply.

It is estimated that less than 4 percent of the world’s irrigated land is equipped with drip irrigation, so clearly, this revolution has a long way to go.

In 2008, Amir Peleg created Takadu, a robust platform that marries big data and the cloud to monitor water networks to prevent leaks. Takadu gives cities, municipalities and countries the ability BIG DATA:

sewage fees on water-related infrastructure maintenance.

AN EXPANDING CHALLENGE

Global policymakers are beginning to wake up to the reality that Israel isn’t the only country to have faced a water challenge. The entire Middle East is headed towards massive water shortages, which in some places will likely lead to disasters of biblical proportions.

The United Nations predicts that by 2025, Egypt will approach a state of “absolute water crisis.” Jordan is also set to run out of potable water in the coming decades. Iranian government officials predict that in less than 25 years, over half the population of Iran will need to be relocated and become effectively

most of their water utility companies either lose money or just break even. Between government subsidies and household water bills, water providers collect just enough revenue to conduct their business and handle ongoing infrastructure projects.

But this reality is changing fast. According to Elizabeth Mack, assistant professor at Michigan State University and author of a recent, forward-thinking study on water, utility companies are now spending approximately 80 percent of their revenue to maintain the infrastructure that was built primarily in the 1930s and 1940s. Mack believes that updating aging infrastructure will cost more than $1 trillion over the next 25 years, and that water prices will increase WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

23

Feature Story

to four times their current levels over the next few decades.

U.S. policymakers are already looking to Israel to help solve their domestic problems. In 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency signed a memorandum of understanding with Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection to cooperate on a number of challenges, including water. Two years later, California signed a memorandum of understanding with Israel to help fight drought. Israel’s IDE has now designed and built the Western Hemisphere’s largest desalinization plant in Carlsbad, Calif. — a facility capable of producing 54 million gallons of fresh water daily. That same year, Chicago signed a water research agreement with Ben Gurion University to develop solutions for improving water quality in surface and below-surface water, groundwater, streams, ponds and lakes. Massachusetts is another state that 24

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

has embraced Israeli water technology, and hundreds of Israeli water-technology startups are domiciled there.

U.S. lawmakers are not the only ones taking note. According to water experts, Israel’s water technology is being used in more than 150 countries, including some that have no formal ties with the Jewish state. For example, IDE has built the largest desalinization plants in China and India.

“Water is one of the biggest challenges humanity is facing,” says Oded Distel, director of the Israel NewTech program at the Ministry of Economy and Industry. “Israel’s holistic approach can serve as a model to overcome the global water crisis.”

FUTURE HORIZONS

By 2050, the world’s population will balloon to roughly 9 billion. The result will likely be a surge in demand for food. In addition,

in 15 years, experts say, half of the world’s inhabitants could be living in areas where there isn’t enough safe water to drink. Both these things mean that the world will need to grow more food with less water.

To meet this need, humanity will have to find innovative ways to use existing land and water resources, which are already under heavy stress. “Water isn’t just water,” says Seth M. Siegel, water expert and author of Let There Be Water. “In the case of Israel, it’s also an inspiring example of how vision and leadership can change a nation and transform the world.”

Israel has figured out a way to leverage technology to improve the lives of billions of people. If the world can put current politics aside and turn over a new leaf, it will certainly look to Israel and its innovators to help effectively address this emerging challenge.

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Feature Story

SELF-DEFENSE

by Eva Trieger



Caliber 3 USA brings Krav Maga to North County

P

rior to my recent visit to Caliber 3 USA in San Marcos, my only encounter with Krav Maga was through the fictional NCIS character, Ziva David, a former Mossad agent. The training provided here comes directly from the world-renowned Israel Defense Forces, and is intended to teach individuals, corporations, and law enforcement officers self-defense that is effective and instinctual. Wow, did I get an education!

Krav Maga borrows from many other martial arts and self-defense practices including: boxing, savate, Muay Thai, Wing Chun, Judo, Jiu Jitsu, wrestling , and grappling. It was developed in the 1930s by Imi Lichtenfeld in order to help members of the Jewish community protect themselves from brutal Nazi forces. Over time it has expanded in scope to train individuals in hand to hand combat, home invasions, active

26

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

shooters and terrorist attacks.

The training is both physical and psychological, enabling even a smaller person to gain the upper-hand with effective, instinctive movements that will overpower an attacker regardless of size, strength or weaponry. Caliber 3 teaches a combat mindset, meaning flipping the switch from 0-100 in the time an incident takes place.

The most important thing is to engage the attacker as quickly as possible and not give them the chance to harm others.

The practice requires a great deal of discipline and by employing the entire body and mind, provides an incisive response to any threat to safety.

Colonel Sharon Gat, a counter-terror expert and member of the IDF, is the founder and creator of Caliber 3 academy in Israel.

He teaches that “preparedness is the key to emerging from a shooting attack unscathed.”

Citing the fact that the Israeli response has resulted in far fewer fatalities from mass shootings, Gat identified the need for Caliber 3 USA. The colonel has vast operational experience in both guerrilla warfare and counter-terrorism, and has commanded units in special operations in Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. In 2003, Col. Gat was selected by the Defense Ministry and the IDF to head a special counter-terrorism project in high risks areas. He has established and commanded security and anti-terror units for the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the IDF. Yonathan Farber is the Chief Training Instructor at Caliber 3 USA. He served as sergeant in the IDF for the paratrooper unit . After the army he served as a security guard for Israel Ministry of Defense as one of Ehud Barak’s security details, along with other high ranking officers, and VIP delegations.

Feature Story

Following his security guard experience, Yonathan served many years in a special undercover unit for the Israeli government where he performed over 200 operations a year in both combat and intelligence. After his service, Yonathan joined the Caliber 3 team, and trained security guards and police In Israel.

Philip Moore, General Manager has ten years of experience with Pacifica, Caliber 3’s managing partner. In addition, he has ten years of handgun experience, and in the last five years, has participated in seminars with Colonel Sharon Gat and Eitan Cohen at the

fig, pomegranate, olive and date palms.

I noted a mezzuzah affixed to the right hand doorpost, as I entered the building, before Philip pointed out a retail area, and a large training areas. One is for intense circuit training, and the other is designed for target shooting and combat shooting and tactical drills. To the right, behind a glass wall, there is a classroom where several security cameras survey different parts of the building’s interior, upper level, exterior and lower level.

Behind the first classroom, is a smaller one, where the instructor can give more individual review or practice as needed.

instantaneous decisions while undergoing severe mental and physical stress. Farber explained that the goal is to learn to assess a situation quickly, decide on a course of action and execute it, all while incurring the least amount of harm. Again, the notion of preparedness and training is key.

Caliber 3 USA offers a number of leveled courses: Combat Fitness, Krav Maga and Combat Shooting. Progress is tracked and classes are offered a number times each week with combat seminars on weekends. The center was created for “Jews and friends of Israel.” It is open to the entire community,

Krav Maga borrows from many other martial arts and self-defense practices; and requires a great deal of discipline.

Caliber 3 Israel facility. Currently, Moore is a member of San Diego County Honorary Deputy Sheriff’s Association.

Caliber 3 sits atop a slight incline, just north of the 78 and about 8,000 miles from Jerusalem. From the exterior the building resembles a large two-story warehouse, set on lot with ample parking. However, there is nothing remotely free-form or unplanned about this structure.

In an effort to bring a bit of Israel to San Marcos, the building is landscaped with a park-like theme. A running trail encircles the building, and is used for warm-ups before the workouts. The same trail marker that demarcates the Shvil Yisra’el (Israel National Trail) is painted on a rock at the trailhead.

The seven species of Israel, as mentioned in Deuteronomy, are in evidence on the property. These include wheat, barley, grapes,

Perhaps the most fascinating, and not a little disturbing, aspect of Caliber 3 USA, is the model home. A perfect replica of a home, replete with kitchen, kids’ playroom, living room, and wide screen television is used to simulate home invasions. Here, participants learn how to anticipate and respond to an attack where it is least expected and where the risk of harm to loved ones is greatest. Moore and Farber demonstrated this by enhancing the simulation with the aid of a sound system. Using a laptop Moore elicited glass breaking, a woman’s scream and a gunshot.

These scenarios are intended to give clients the genuine experience of an invasion, so that they learn to react instantly and protect themselves and their families.

By employing the IDF’s fitness checklist as well as weapons training and Krav Maga, clients learn to make these important and

and is intended to prepare everyone in the event of any terrorist attack. According to one counter-terror expert, “the ability to remain calm and think clearly during an attack often makes the critical difference between life and death.”

While it is hardly pleasant to consider that we need to take a more aggressive and proactive stance against terrorism, it is comforting that Caliber 3 USA and highly qualified individuals such a Moore and Farber, are in San Marcos, and not in Eretz Yisroel.

TO REGISTER FOR CLASSES AT CALIBER 3 USA, EMAIL INFO@CALIBER3USA.COM OR CALL (760) 660-4473.

WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

27

Feature Story

Implementing the element of play and bridging innovative advancements in technology with Jewish values and thought is what Jewish Interactive calls JSTEAM.

FUN LEARNING

by Carina Rock



Gamify Your Learning!

Jewish Interactive at San Diego Schools

J

ewish Interactive has been in San Diego less than a year and has been working hands on with students and teachers.

Students at both the San Diego Jewish Academy and at Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School have been engaged in learning how to create online educational games with this program.

In September, students were introduced to the project and partnership; in October and November, they attended workshops on how to use the Ji Tap creation tool and on the Pedagogy of Gamification and Design Theory. By December, they were working on game creation, and by the end of the month, all participating students had experienced creating an interdisciplinary Ji Tap game.

Implementing the element of play and bridging innovative advancements in technology with Jewish values and thought is what Jewish Interactive calls JSTEAM. The blending of the pursuit of knowledge, truth and “Tikkun Olam”, the betterment 28

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

of the world, flows with the development of technology. Technology is used in medicine to save lives and in education to ease the process of learning and teaching. Jewish Interactive has brought the technology of community and social learning and sharing for the purpose of Jewish education to the Jewish world. Through participating in this project, San Diego students were able to experience JSTEAM. Involved in a game creation project, students spent time exploring how to deliver information with the “player” in mind. Students synthesized the research they acquired by applying their creativity to a medium that prepares them for their futures and they learned how Jewish themes and topics are related to the other subjects they are studying.

Having the opportunity to see Judaism as part of today’s world, deepens Jewish Identity and relevance, rendering interdisciplinary JSTEAM curriculum essential to the success of today’s Jewish education.

Moving forward, Jewish Interactive is working with local congregational schools to rethink congregational school education.

Today’s technology allows for personalized learning, and congregational schools are looking to Jewish Interactive to infuse JSTEAM and Jewish educational games into their curriculum and school structure.

Jewish Interactives individualized approach helps bring learning home so that teachers have time to synthesize information through art, togetherness programming and hands on experiential activities. In turn Jewish values and learning infuses daily living and current issues, creating a relationship to Judaism and its teachings which speaks to the student’s experience of life.

With all of these initiatives San Diego is becoming a leader in JSTEAM education; paving the way for a continued future of vibrant Jewish Life and a community with an integrated Jewish Identity.

Students at San Diego Jewish Academy and at Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School, along with Kellman Brown Academy in Voorhees NJ, elected to take part in a nationwide study on interdisciplinary game design using Ji Tap. Student participants all created games about Chanukah. Visit jitap.net and search “IGDP” to see the games the San Diego students created.

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Feature Story

LIFE OF REFLECTION

by Deborah Vietor



"Memories, Miracles & Meanings - Insights of a Holocaust Survivor" by Fanny Krasner Lebovits

A

lthough most of us are all too familiar with the atrocities and genocide that took place at the hands of the Nazis during World War II, Fanny Krasner Lebovits leads us on a painful, yet inspirational and extraordinary journey of faith, hope and resilience in her new book.

Born Feiga-Chase, “Fanny” Judelowitz, 30

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

spent her youth in the port city of Libau, Latvia. Her early life was filled with family Shabbat dinners and Jewish holidays spent singing with her mother playing piano, while Fanny danced with her adoring father, Herman. But life changed dramatically for Fanny first the Russians invaded Latvia in 1939 and then in mid-1940 Hitler’s army

attacked Libau. In her book, the reader travels with her as she most eloquently describes the surreal and horrendous acts committed at each of the five concentration camps where she survived, alongside her sister. Facing overwhelming challenges, she recalls vividly how she rebuilt her life over many years on three continents.

Feature Story

Fanny’s father was taken by Nazi soldiers one week after the Germans gained control and told he would be transported to a work camp along with her uncles and hundreds of other men from the town. They later learned the men were lined up and shot, many digging their own graves. Over the years, Fanny was to lose nearly 80 relatives through the war.

At the age of 19, Fanny was pulled from a line, then let go during Channukah in 1941, one of many miracles, as she refused to leave her mother and sisters behind. Sadly, her

Although there were atrocities, too many to mention, she was to find freedom after the war. Following the emancipation, Fanny traveled to Sweden, working with the World Jewish Congress in Stockholm, securing the United Nations vote to establish the State of Israel. She moved to South Africa in 1949 and then San Diego in 1979. Fanny became President of the entire Southwest Region of Hadassah, attending more than 30 national conventions. She continues to support many Jewish organizations today, illustrating her love of family and support of

all people were bad and that above all odds she would survive. Through her lens, we see humanity at every level, as she illustrates how she became the light, through love and faith in G-d, commitment to family and community during the most devastating and fractious of times.

As Fanny often says, “Hate is never good and love is never bad.” Her mantra to her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren has been, “When we are flat on our backs, we can only look up.”

Selwyn Isakow, co-founder of Shabbat

Fanny Krasner Lebovits leads us on a painful, yet inspirational and extraordinary journey of faith, hope and resilience in her new book. grandfather, aunt and 2 small cousins were killed. Over the course of the war, frequent “selections” occurred, with Nazi soldiers removing younger children from their families. In 1943 Fanny and her remaining family were transported by cattle cars to the Kaiserwald concentration camp in Riga, a place she describes as a “living hell.” Only 1% of the Jews from Libau survived the war.

Fanny and her younger sister, Jenny worked as housekeepers for the Gestapo who at times left them bread wrapped in paper in trash baskets.

Later, Fanny was transferred to the RigaReischbahn labor camp in Latvia, where she worked as a nurse. In 1944, on Erev Yom Kippur she and her sister were piled once again like cattle onto a ship en route to Danzig.

Israel. An accomplished public speaker, she has been honored and received awards by many organizations, including the Woman of Distinction Award, Book of Builders Award, President’s Award, and Citation for Distinguished Leadership and Service to the Jewish People.

Additional honorary awards include: Congregation Beth El, Woman of Valor Award, 2017, Fanny Krasner Lebovits Appreciation Day, San Diego City Council, 2017 and an honor from the California State Assembly on Holocaust Memorial Day, 2013. She has visited Israel over 35 times and is proud to have celebrated her 90th birthday in Israel.

A remarkable, amazing woman of valor with an incredible story of survival, transcending hatred, as she never believed

San Diego and Partners in Torah San Diego, wrote the foreword for this amazing book and states that through Fanny, he is a better person. As he has spent time with Fanny, and listened to her stories at Temple Beth El over the years in La Jolla, he became enraptured by her story in overcoming tremendous challenges. Her success in love, caring for family, business and leadership inspired him to encourage her to document her memories, meeting with her for more than two years on Saturdays, researching and documenting all he learned.

MEMORIES, MIRACLES & MEANING …

INSIGHTS OF A HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR”

BY FANNY KRASNER LEBOVITS IS AVAILABLE NOW WHEREVER BOOKS ARE SOLD.

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OUR TRIBE

THE INDIAN WELLS ARTS FESTIVAL

B

TRIBE

OUR

IMPACTING THE COMMUNITY

THE COMMUNITY PLACE

eyond the colorful aesthetic of paint on canvas and the finely honed skill of transforming raw materials into masterpieces, festival-goers of the 17th annual Indian Wells Arts Festival will be treated to hands-on experiences with art. In tandem with the top-30 fine arts show in the nation presenting 200 juried artists across 30 mediums and categories, non-profit organizations serving the Coachella Valley will be leading free art activities for all ages and abilities as a means to strengthen community connections.

A casual stroll under the festival’s shaded activities pavilion will lead attendees to an immersive experience in creating art without sight, led by the Braille Institute – Rancho Mirage, while Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert teaches block print art. SafeHouse of the Desert returns with the ever popular rock painting and Old Town Artisan Studio keeps the wheel spinning with pottery throwing, and Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital Foundation gives art-lovers the chance to color their own version of the festival’s commemorative poster. Desert Arc, Coachella Valley Volunteers in Medicine, Alzheimer’s Association Coachella Valley, and CREATE Center for the Arts Palm Desert will also be leading fun activities.

“Our hope is to bring together members of our community with these invaluable organizations in a setting that allows people to learn more about how to support and connect with one another,” says the festival’s volunteer Community Champion, Mario Hernandez, owner of Mario’s Tilecare and Concrete Cleaning and founder of Desert United Luncheon.

Held at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, in Indian Wells, Calif., March 29–31, 2019, from 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Children’s tickets are free, adults: $13. To purchase tickets online, visit www.indianwellsartsfestival.com.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

OUR TRIBE

TRIBE

OUR

JEWISH SUMMER CAMP UPDATE

THE COMMUNITY PLACE

FRIENDSHIP CIRCLE TO HOST SENSORY FRIENDLY PURIM PARTY

C

amp Hess Kramer and Gindling Hilltop Camp, the camps of Wilshire Boulevard Temple, will operate their full summer program on the scenic campus of CSU Channel Islands, the newest campus in the Cal State system. “We are energized to keep fostering life-changing experiences in this new chapter of our camps’ history,” said Camp Director Seth Toybes.

The announcement assures campers and families that the 67th season of summer camp will open on time in a modern location in Camarillo, just fifteen minutes north of the camp grounds that were devastated by the Woolsey Fire in November 2018. Registration for Summer 2019 is open, and sessions are starting to fill up!

Go to wbtcamps.org for details and Open House dates!

The scenic, warm and inviting site enables the camps to retain their outdoor programs and traditional activities while also embracing the state-of-the-art facilities that a college campus offers. “A combination of private access living and activity spaces and large-scale natural settings gives the camps an exciting opportunity to bring the magic of camp to a new, yet similarly coastal home,” said Toybes.

The camps will bring all the classics to create unforgettable summers in a new home. The choice-based structure of the schedule will, for the most part, look the same, with chuggim (electives) and age-specific experiences that have defined this camp for decades.

Camp is a place where lifelong friendships grow, kids can discover who they really are, and a community that loves each individual for their true self is built.

The Friendship Circle will serve a family friendly Purim luncheon buffet on Sunday, March 17, 2–4 p.m. at Dan’s Place, 16934 Chabad Way in Poway.

Guests of all ages will be entertained by magicians from Abbie & TJ Productions. Participants are invited to wear their costumes (no scary costumes please) and bring the whole family for an afternoon of magic, music, hamantaschen making and shalach manos.

Tickets at $5 for individuals or $18 for a family of 4. Learn more at www.friendshipcirclesd.com.

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OUR TRIBE

AT 2019 HEART & SOUL GALA

J

TRIBE

OUR

JFS CELEBRATES

THE COMMUNITY PLACE

ewish Family Service of San Diego (JFS) will host its annual Heart & Soul Gala at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla at Aventine on Saturday, April 6 at 6 p.m.

At its signature benefit gala, JFS will share stories and successes from throughout the year, highlighting the nonprofit’s work to provide resources and support to more than 20,000 San Diegans of all ages, faiths and backgrounds. The event will also celebrate the contributions of its 2019 Mitzvah Honorees: Ilene Mittman and Aviva Saad, and ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties.

Ilene Mittman and Aviva Saad are being celebrated for their inspiring work and dedication at JFS’s Balboa Avenue Older Adult Center, which provides a safe, uplifting environment for individuals and families impacted by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Partnering with Honorary Chairs Evelyn and Ernest Rady, Gala Chairs Jamie Carr, Erin Combs Pearl and Scott Schindler will host an evening of dinner, dancing and a silent auction to encourage awareness and philanthropy throughout the year.

Underwriting packages are available and tickets are $360; both can be purchased at www.jfssd.org/gala or by contacting Dana Levin, director of signature advancement events, at danal@jfssd.org or (858) 637-3013.

All proceeds from the gala will benefit JFS’s ongoing efforts to help people in crisis move forward, while developing innovative strategies to break cycles of poverty and strengthen the San Diego community.

Chai Five sponsors "Our Tribe" Community pages. Chai Five is part of L’CHAIM, but not supported by advertisers. Instead, Chai Five depends on donations to run stories by aspiring writers and photos by young photographers.

SERVING SENIORS' ANNUAL GALA

Please see www.lchaimmagazine.com/ chaifiveprojects/

Serving Seniors will host its sixth annual Experience of a Lifetime Gala on Thursday, May 2, 5:30–9 p.m. at the Del Mar Country Club in Rancho Santa Fe. The theme of this years’ Experience of a Lifetime fundraiser is “Stories for the Ages,” celebrating the organization’s clients’ moving journeys of transformation and hope.

Chaired by Serving Seniors’ board member Ted A. Lange Sr., the event will feature a cocktail reception, gourmet dinner, live and silent auctions, and the popular wine grab.

Attendees will enjoy delicious hors d’oeuvres made with locally-sourced ingredients while perusing enticing auction items. Live and silent auction items will include luxury travel packages and exclusive, can’t-be-bought experiences to help guests create their own “stories for the ages.”

Individual tickets to “Experience of a Lifetime: Stories for the Ages” are $350. Tables of ten are $2,500. Premium tables are $3,500. Qualcomm has generously sponsored the gala. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.servingseniors.org/events/experience-of-a-lifetime.

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L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

WHAT IS CHAIFIVE?

Chai Five gives a voice to our local Jewish population to share their perspective of Jewish life. We do this through free submissions celebrating local Mensches, JPIX, and Our Tribe which offers free lifecycle event announcements.

This page is brought to you

by Chai Five Projects. Please submit your lifecycle events to info@lchaimmagazine.com Visit lchaimmagazine.com/ chaifiveprojects for more info.

FAMILY | BY CHANA JENNY WEISBERG

jewish

mom.com The Problem with Me (Me, Me)

I

was up late last night dealing with lots of important yet boring and irritating stuff. And I went to sleep in a really crummy mood.

But G-d bless mornings!

When evening’s grumbling is replaced by “Modah Ani” and the miraculous potential of a brand new day!

But this morning wasn’t actually a morning like that…

This was a morning that I woke up feeling as depressed about my existence as I had been the night before.

So, like every weekday morning, I got my kids up and ready and out. And then I looked at my calendar and remembered that in a few hours I would be attending Yaakov’s siddur party with Rav Shmuel Eliyahu, the Chief Rabbi of Tsfat.

And that, despite my funk, made me smile.

Because I’ve seen Rav Shmuel a bunch of times, at various events and classes, and the most striking thing about him, at least for me, is his amazing, unwavering smile. He always looks SO HAPPY! And that’s a total mystery to me. Especially since Rav Shmuel Eliyahu is a major public figure here in Israel, and he must face ongoing pressures and stresses and disappointments–both personal and public.

And while I was considering this mystery, my phone twinkled with my daily text from Sivan Rahav Meir.

And when I read it, I realized it provided the explanation for Rav Shmuel’s mystifying smile…

Last week, Sivan visited my hometown of Baltimore, and she had the honor of meeting with Ner Yisroel Rosh Yeshiva, 87-year-old Rabbi Aharon Feldman.

“During our meeting,” she wrote, “I asked what, in his opinion, is the most important educational message our generation needs to hear. And this was his answer: “A human being’s greatest enemy is the inner voice which says: You, and you alone, are in the center…This is something with which

every person must do battle.

“People must know that they are part of something bigger. They need faith, ideals…

“Human beings were not created for their own sake, and sometimes it is hard for people to grasp that fact.

“People might act solely in accordance with their desires…but people become human and noble when they succeed in devoting themselves to other interests beyond their own self-gratification.

“This is our ongoing struggle over the definition of what it means to be truly human.”

Oy, did I need to hear that.

There is more to life than just me me me. And that isn’t something that comes naturally to me (me me).

I’m almost always thinking about myself and what I want and what I feel. Taking my emotional pulse constantly.

So, I decided this morning to spend some time translating what Sivan had sent, from Hebrew into English, so I could more fully absorb this message that is so distant from how I actually currently function. And then I spent some more time tweaking my translation, here and there. And something amazing and completely counterintuitive happened.

After a morning spent with the message that my happiness isn’t the center of the universe, I felt much, much happier.

CHANA JENNY WEISBERG, THE CREATOR OF JEWISHMOM.COM, IS A STAY-HOME MOTHER OF 8 CHILDREN LIVING IN JERUSALEM WITH HER HUSBAND, RABBI JOSHUA WEISBERG. ORIGINALLY FROM BALTIMORE, CHANA JENNY HAS DEVOTED HER NONMOM TIME OVER THE PAST DECADE TO PROVIDING INSPIRATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT FOR OTHER JEWISH MOMS THROUGH HER POPULAR BOOKS EXPECTING MIRACLES AND ONE BABY STEP AT A TIME. WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

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PRESIDENT OF JNF'S WOMEN FOR ISRAEL CAMPAIGN and ideologically—with the common goal of changing lives in Israel and supporting the ongoing development of the Jewish homeland.

As mothers, daughters, aunts, and friends, JNF-USA’s work touches the hearts of JNF-USA’s female philanthropists and inspires them to give in many ways.

With the help of volunteers across the United States, Fleischer will oversee the fundraising goal of $26 million for Jewish National Fund’s 2019 campaign year. She has been an active member of Jewish National Fund’s Board of Directors since 2010, and previously served multiple terms as its regional president.

“I am very much looking forward to working with this dynamic group of female philanthropists who do so much for this incredible organization and to help raise the necessary funds that support so many worthy programs,” said Fleischer.

“Myra is not only a wonderful asset to JNF, but she is an active humanitarian in her community – we are so fortunate to have her as part of our team,” said Jewish National Fund National President Dr. Sol Lizerbram.

Community service is in Fleischer’s DNA. She has served in multiple community leadership roles, including serving as vice president of Congregation Beth Am’s Board of Directors. She has also been an active member of the San Diego Volunteer Lawyers Program, the region’s oldest and largest pro bono legal services program. Additionally, Fleischer has served as a volunteer legal counselor with the Project SARAH Domestic Violence Clinic, a program of Jewish Family Services of San Diego, and as a board member of the Women’s Leadership Institute in San Diego.

With expertise in civil litigation and family law, Fleischer is Myra Chack Fleischer to Spearhead $26 Million a certified family law specialist. She holds a B.B.A from Temple Fundraising Goal University and a J.D. from the Thomas Jefferson School of Law.

Attorney Myra Chack Fleischer, lead counsel and founder of Carlsbad-based Fleischer & Ravreby, has been named national JEWISH NATIONAL FUND IN SAN DIEGO IS HOSTING A WOMEN president of Jewish National Fund’s (JNF-USA) Women for Israel FOR ISRAEL TEA ON MAY 19, FEATURING CELEBRITY CHEF JAMIE Campaign. In her new position, Fleischer will call upon her many GELLER. KNOWN AS “THE QUEEN KOSHER” AND “THE BRIDE WHO years of involvement with JNF-USA to lead the Women’s Campaign KNEW NOTHING,” GELLER FOUND HER NICHE SPECIALIZING IN FAST, FRESH FAMILY RECIPES. THE COST TO ATTEND IS $36 AND through the next year.

THE EVENT IS OPEN TO ALL WOMEN WHO MAKE A MINIMUM Fleischer is leading the energetic and highly motivated group ANNUAL GIFT OF $360 TO JEWISH NATIONAL FUND. FOR MORE who share a passion for building a prosperous future for the land INFORMATION, CONTACT JNF’S SAN DIEGO DIRECTOR JAMES and people of Israel. Through JNF-USA’s Women for Israel, women KIMMEY AT JKIMMEY@JNF.ORG OR 858.824.9178 X988, OR VISIT connect with each other on many levels—professionally, emotionally, JNF.ORG/SDWFITEA. 36

L’CHAIM SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE • MARCH 2019

BY STEPHANIE LEWIS | HUMOR

mazel

& mishagoss Purim Appeal... More than a Spiel!

M

y brother recently became engaged to a woman who plans to convert to Judaism before their wedding.

Our family voted me as the one to educate her about the Purim holiday so she’d feel more comfortable and familiar with our synagogue’s approaching carnival and parade.

I took this task quite seriously and emailed her a list of terms, including a brief synopsis of the festival, even suggesting costume ideas so she’d feel more at home with our particular set of customs and traditions.

The problem? I dictated it using my voice recognition app and never had the time to proofread what I sent. The first clue that some words had been grossly misconstrued was her showing up dressed as a cute bunny rabbit wearing a crown, accessorized with a basket full of green cellophane grass, decorated eggs, and yellow marshmallow chicks. As I raised my eyebrows questioningly, she announced proudly… “Look! I’m the Queen of Easter.”

Oh no! Immediately I clarified that females dress up as Queen Esther and men usually dress up as the other Purim hero . . .

“Mortify, “ she interrupted. “And please don’t rub it in. I’m already feeling totally Mortified as it is.” I wisely chose to let the Mordechai mix-up go, but secretly wished she would hush up for the rest of the afternoon because my brother was already giving me dirty looks regarding my messed-up teaching abilities.

I needn’t have worried so much because immediately she began booing Haman very enthusiastically along with the rest of us every time his name was called out. So far, so good! But then she had to go and ruin everything by loudly inquiring, “When do we boo the evil Bacon and Shrimp-an and all the other non-kosher foods? Or is it only Ham-an we hate?” I tried to subtly shush her by casting my sternest look, but she only replied “Amen” for the umpteenth time that day and mercifully fell silent. However, her quiet demeanor only lasted for a fleeting moment because she was eager to show off what (she thought) she knew in front of our entire family.

And that’s why it came as no surprise to me when the ushers passed around a pushka box, (and told everyone to give what they could for Tzedakah) that my sister-in-law made a big display donating ten dollars while sweetly explaining, “Amen! So that’s five bucks for Tze Doctah, and also five more for Tze Dentist.” My brother gently ignored that weird faux pas and instead complimented her doing a “mitzvah” -- to which she briefly hesitated, but then confidently stated, “Oh yum! I hoped we’d get to eat those oversized square crackers today!”

Could this day get any worse? At least for now she seemed to be behaving more normally, except when it was time to read the Megillah and she broke into an “I Love

Lucy” comedy routine. I realized she must’ve thought it had something to do with Lucy’s maiden name mentioned often on the show and similarly pronounced “McGillicuddy.”

Vowing never again to use voice recognition when sending important correspondence, I grabbed the printed email out of her hands to see what else could possibly have been typed incorrectly. And it was then I realized why she’d been throwing out a random “Amen” every so often, even when no prayer or blessing had been chanted. It made perfect sense that “Hamantaschen” had been transcribed into “Amen Tossing.” Of course!

When at last it was time to depart, I yanked her away from the synagogue before she could do any more embarrassing damage -- I shuddered to hear how she might mispronounce “Mishloach Manot.”

“Well, did you enjoy your first Purim?” I prodded my sister-in-law before hugging her goodbye. Please only answer with a simple Yes or No! “Oh yes! I even want to incorporate it into our wedding vows.” My brother looked more confused than ever at his fiancé’s statement.

So she continued, “For better or for worse, for richer or for Purim!”

Amen! And Happy Purim, my dear readers.

STEPHANIE D. LEWIS WRITES COMEDY FOR THE HUFFINGTON POST AND PENS A HUMOR BLOG ONCEUPONYOURPRIME. COM WWW.LCHAIMMAGAZINE.COM

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