Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 5/18/2018

P I T TS B U R G H

May 18, 2018 | 4 Sivan 5778

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Candlelighting 8:15 p.m. | Shavuot I 9:21 p.m. | Shavuot II 9:22 p.m. | Havdalah 9:23 p.m. | Vol. 61, No. 20 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

NOTEWORTHY LOCAL A piece of Pittsburgh’s Jewish history now a health clinic

Mission to Israel helps Friendship Circle chart future course

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Local Jews have mixed reactions as U.S. pulls out of Iran deal

By Toby Tabachnick | Senior Staff Writer

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The former home of the Hebrew Institute today houses a county reproductive health facility.

our members with varying special needs are becoming adults, and we want to be able to continue programing and support for them.”

“We’re focusing a lot on our adult population now,” echoed Rudolph. When Friendship Circle members age, there is a desire to “ensure that there is a continuum and interface” with their established and familiar community.

“We’re in the throes of that conversation right now so it felt like going there would open our minds to seeing some new initiatives and ways of doing things and hopefully get us out of our comfort zone in a way,” said the rabbi.

A chief component of the trip was the chance to see how agencies and organizations in Israel address the special needs of the 18- to 21-year-old demographic.

“The trip was designed to sort of explore the initiatives in Israel for accessibility and individuals with special needs in many

resident Donald Trump’s announcement last week that the United States would be withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal was praised by some segments of the American Jewish community, but drew criticism from others. Statements in support of the U.S. pullout were issued by the Anti-Defamation League, the Republican Jewish Coalition and AIPAC, while J Street labeled the move as “reckless” and the Jewish Democratic Council of America bemoaned the decision as isolating the United States.

Local reaction was likewise mixed, with many Pittsburgh Jews expressing concern that the reputation of America would be tarnished by Trump’s move, and that a more effective way of preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear state would have been to stay in the deal.

“I think [pulling out of the deal] is a horrendous thing from the perspective of U.S. foreign policy,” said Ross Harrison, a renowned expert on the Middle East and a professor at both Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and the University of Pittsburgh. Harrison spoke by phone from the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, where he had been meeting with Iranians in the aftermath of the U.S. pullout from the deal.

What Trump claims is problematic in the deal, Harrison said — the “sunset clause” providing for the ending of restrictions, as well as the fact that the deal does not cover missile technology development and Iran’s aggressive regional agenda — could have been handled better had Trump “stayed in the deal,” he said.

Because the deal is “narrow,” Harrison explained, Washington “had few constraints on trying to push back against Iran’s regional behavior.

Please see Friendship, page 20

Please see Iran, page 20

Page 2 LOCAL A ‘forbidden’ conversation J Street hosts one-man show tackling Jewish silence.

Page 4

 Rabbi Mordy and Rivkee Rudolph, Dr. Laura Marshak, Dr. Tracy Prizant Levy and Dr. Jon Levy prepare to take part in the “Feast of the Senses,” prepared

by Access Israel.

Photo courtesy of The Friendship Circle Pittsburgh

WORLD Israel celebrates U.S. Embassy

Historic opening came 70 years after President Truman recognized Jewish state.

Page 11

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

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ast month’s mission to Israel will provide staff and lay leaders from The Friendship Circle Pittsburgh a plan for moving forward, both in terms of an expanded audience and regarding the group’s newly acquired space, said executive director Rabbi Mordy Rudolph. The Friendship Circle specializes in providing engagement opportunities for children and young adults with special needs.

The April 22-26 journey, which was organized by Friendship Circle International and Friendship Circle of Michigan, was billed as “an important opportunity to bring leaders in your community on an exclusive trip and develop relationships that can be a game changer for your Friendship Circle.” Five participants from Pittsburgh joined the trip.

“We had specific goals in mind,” said Tracy Levy, The Friendship Circle Pittsburgh’s board chair. “Our current situation at the Friendship Circle is that many of

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LOCAL Israeli artist enjoys fellowship

LOCAL

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‘Mikvah lady’ Malka Markovic, 94 Local educators tour Israel

Headlines Reproductive health clinic shares same spot as old Hebrew Institute — LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

E

ducation was always at the heart of the Hebrew Institute, but the building is now home to an organization whose subject matter is worlds away from the Judaic instruction that first took place in its halls. Today, the Hill District location houses the Allegheny County Health Department’s STD-HIV/AIDS Clinic.

Located at 1908 Wylie Avenue, the health center “offers free and confidential examinations and treatment to anyone 13 years and older, regardless of immigration status,” a press release from Ryan Scarpino, ACHD’s public health information officer, announced. “Patients are treated on a first come, first serve basis. No appointment or insurance is necessary.”

A subsequent release specified the conditions that are routinely tested at the center: “HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis.

Patients can receive treatment on site, but

may also be offered additional testing, or referrals for medical care.”

For more than a century, the almost acresized space at 1908 Wylie Ave. has been a center for communal edification, noted Eric Lidji, director of the Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives at the Heinz History Center. Finally opened in 1916, “the Hebrew Institute was an attempt to modernize and centralize traditional Jewish education in the Hill District,” he said.

Originally erected as a locale to “teach Hebrew, Jewish history, ethics and literature to immigrant children,” the place would have never been built without the efforts of Rabbi Aaron Mordechai Ashinsky and a 1913 challenge grant of $25,000 by Louis I. Aaron, according to Rauh materials.

It was “one of many projects started by Ashinsky in the early 20th century,” said Lidji.

Although the school remained on site for several decades, in 1943 it followed its population to the East End. At that time “a new building opened on Forbes and Denniston avenues in Squirrel Hill,” and although the Hebrew Institute ultimately closed in 1991, its

“ Even if you’re born and bred here, you don’t know the whole story.”

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2 MAY 18, 2018

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Photo courtesy of Hebrew Institute of Pittsburgh Photographs, Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center

former Squirrel Hill residence at 6401 Forbes Ave. houses the Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh Girls School and Preschool Campus.

As the early to mid-20th Century brought a relocation of the Jewish community to other parts of the city, the period welcomed new life to the Hill District and its buildings.

At one point, the Wylie Avenue property, which still bears the Hebrew inscription “beit sefer ivri” on its facade, harbored the K Boys Club before eventually becoming

the Blakely Program Center, one of several structures on the Hill House Association’s campus, explained Lidji.

On February 14, 2018, ACHD held a ribbon cutting ceremony with County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Dr. Karen Hacker, director of the health department, outside of the historic red brick building.

Please see Clinic, page 21

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p Paul Drindell drives a Hebrew Institute bus carrying, among others, Dr. Solomon Abrams (left), future executive director of the Institute and his brother, Dr. Ellis Abrams (extreme right), c.1922.

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How We Pray When We Don’t Know How or We Don’t Believe

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Torah for Nurturing the Souls of Those Raising Young Children

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Israel’s Declaration of Independence and its Messages to the World

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Headlines ‘Forbidden Conversation’ facilitates dialogue — LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

G

ili Getz, a self-described “Israeli-American Jewish liberal Zionist,” performed a one-man play titled, “The Forbidden Conversation,” on Wednesday, May 9 at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh’s Katz Theater.

The 30-minute performance, which was hosted by J Street Pittsburgh, enabled participants to observe Getz’s scripted introspection on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as discuss personal connections to the topic.

With minimal props and merely gesticulations and vocal cadence as his tools, Getz offered a show that permitted observers to sense one man’s struggles with articulating the historical and present-day situations of Palestinians and Israelis.

As the 44-year-old photojournalist narrated, a familial moment of crisis ensued in 2014 when he and his father were no longer able to discuss the conflict because of their differing political views. Such inability to confer and debate birthed an artistic enterprise, he told the more than 50 attendees.

“I wanted to tap into it. What is that like not talking about Israel? How did we get here,” he said in a post-production interview.

In processing those questions, Getz spent 2015 working with LABA, the Laboratory for Jewish culture, at the 14th Street Y in New York City. He studied Talmud, spoke with rabbis and produced “The Forbidden Conversation,” which premiered at the Center for Jewish History in the spring of 2016.

Apart from crafting an act, seeking solace in art facilitated rapprochement between father and son, said Getz. “He was a part of the process. It allowed us to open a dialogue, not just about politics but about how we feel.”

Despite having staged “The Forbidden Conversation” close to 30 times at Jewish community centers, synagogues and Hillels throughout the United States, Getz’s 70-year-old Israeli father has never seen the show. Nonetheless, the elder Getz is familiar with the work.

“I read him the play,” said the son. “The whole process made us closer. We overcame something very deep.”

p Gili Getz

4 MAY 18, 2018

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

As Jews, “fighting we do very well, talking we do very poorly,” he added. “The main thing is allowing people to find space.”

But finding vacancies is easier said than done, said Getz, who in addition to documenting Jewish activism in New York City and Washington, D.C., has traveled the United States performing his show. For him, time on the road has demonstrated that “some families choose not to talk about Israel because of shalom bayit,” the Jewish concept directly translated as “peace in the home.”

The silence is furthered by communal leaders who have expressed, “We don’t do politics here,” said Getz. “What I have seen is that as opposed to holding open dialogues on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, many Jewish communities, synagogues and college campuses have deflected such matters to the handling of four major organizations: Jewish Voice for Peace, J Street, AIPAC and the ZOA. “Having only four perspectives, it really throws people off.”

Worse yet, without an ability to discuss the realities of contemporary Palestinians and Israelis, American Jews will become detached, he predicted. “The mass majority of Jewish youth is disengaged from this conversation.”

Prompted by questions such as, “What is the price that Jewish Americans pay for not being able to have this conversation?” “What does a healthy version of this look like?” and, “Who has had a hard time in their personal life discussing Israel/Palestine?” attendees at Getz’s Steel City show broke into groups.

After reconvening, volunteers recapitulated chats and shared strategies for progress.

“I think discussion is always a good thing and we need to have more discussions,” said Simon Weiss, of Squirrel Hill. “To get other people’s viewpoints is enlightening.”

Such was the goal of Getz’s visit, explained Malke Frank, co-chair of J Street Pittsburgh, as it granted an “opportunity to come together.”

Programs like these provide “a safe space for people in the community to share their experiences, to share their fears,” added Frank, “to share their hopes and to hear their thoughts for the future.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Photo by Basil Rodericks

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Headlines Israeli artist educates public with Children’s Museum residency — LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

M

erav Kamel, a Tel Aviv-based artist, educator and partner at Barbur Gallery in Jerusalem — an independent nonprofit space for art and artists — spent two weeks in residence at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh leading programs, aiding patrons and supporting staff as the museum’s F.I.N.E. Art Scholar.

The rotating residency, which lasted from May 7 to 17, is supported by the Fine Foundation. As an acrostic, its name refers to Fresh Innovative Nonstop Expression; visual artists specializing in various media have participated since 2009. “The goal of the program is to translate the artist’s studio practice and conceptual practice and bring it into the world,� said Zena Ruiz, program manager at the Children’s Museum. “It’s all about public engagement.�

Kamel, whose works have employed cloth, charcoal and etchings, praised the opportunity as having enabled a “connection beyond words.� “Art is so amazing, especially in a new place,� she said. “It is an amazing way to connect beyond language and even when you do speak the same language.�

Throughout her Steel City stay, Kamel

guided artists and teachers in creative exercises. In one setting she invited participants to sew cloth body parts for a future construction. At another juncture she requested pen holders to sketch internal self-portraits. “They did a drawing of what they felt, what their heart was made of, their brain,� she said.

Whereas some illustrators took to orange and red hues to denote fire, other artists sought cooler colors to connote water. “What Merav brings is an exploration of the body. Her work is very surreal,� said Ruiz, a former F.I.N.E. Art Scholar.

The directed activities have been informative, said Kamel. “It’s a great opportunity to check what stuff is universal and what stuff is more connected to myself.�

Back in Israel, Kamel, who collaborates with fellow artist Halil Balabin, regularly teaches children and young adults.

It is easy to see why her work is so impactful, said Ruiz. “As kids are growing up and trying to piece everything together,� they ask questions like “who they are in relation to other people and what does it mean to have a foot.� Kamel’s creations allow for a “playful manipulation of the human form.�

Kamel returned the praise by complimenting her hosts.

After thanking the Fine Foundation and Classrooms Without Borders for facilitating her visit, she called the Children’s Museum “beautiful� and said, “I wish I was a kid

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just sit on the porch and I had this Van Gogh book and I would make a lot of copies,� she explained. Paint would splatter everywhere, “but it was the best way to learn.�

It is like what happens at the Children’s Museum, she added. “They give the kids very good materials and let them find out by themselves.�

Having Kamel in residence is “a wonderful way to introduce culture and community and try to fight what the media tells us all the time, said Ruiz. “There are a lot of nuances and the issues are always more complicated than what we are fed.

This is an opportunity to talk with someone who lives there and hear p Merav Kamel works on a cloth doll. Kamel her experiences.� was F.I.N.E. Art Scholar at the Children’s Kamel’s awareness is central to her Museum of Pittsburgh. endeavors both in Israel and abroad, Photo by Toby Tabachnick said Tsipy Gur, executive director of growing up there. They allow children to Classrooms Without Borders. “Merav is a explore by themselves. They are not taking fantastic artist. She’s young, full of energy, them by the hand and showing them one loves working with children and is a pleaway. They give them the freedom, and I sure to learn from. Thanks to the Children’s think that this is the best way to learn.�

Museum and the Fine Foundation, this As it turns out, Kamel first got an inkling brings Israel to the greater community and into the power of art 20 years ago. provides opportunities for our families of all “When I was 10 years old I found the backgrounds to learn about Israel.�  PJC afikomen. My grandpa gave me this big amazing oil paint set, and my parents didn’t Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz JC Brain Hearing 2018_Eartique AM Page 1 really know what100x to do with it. So 5/15/18 I would11:52 @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines Malka Markovic was a guard and guide before spiritual waters — LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

M

alvina “Malka� Markovic, a woman whose rippling effect permeates Pittsburgh’s Jewish community, died Wednesday, May 9 at UPMC Shadyside Hospital.

The Holocaust survivor and supervisor of Pittsburgh’s mikvah was 94.

Throughout the sea of Jewish literature the sages state that before erecting a synagogue a community must build a mikvah.

Sourced with natural rainwater, regular visits to the ritual bath are necessary in the laws of family purity.

That reality was appreciated by few more so than Markovic, said those who knew her. For more than a generation the Czech and former McKeesport resident dutifully attended to brides, converts and observers of taharat hamishpacha (family purity) who at all hours sought a spiritual and physical connection between water and life.

Between 1987 and 2016, Markovic resided in a Shady Avenue apartment one floor above the sacred space. “I came to Squirrel Hill in 1987 because I got this job,� she told the Pittsburgh Jewish Please see Markovic, page 8

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6 MAY 18, 2018

This week in Israeli history — WORLD —

May 22, 1975 — Seventy-six senators urge president to stand with Israel

Items provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.

May 18, 1973 — Poet Avraham Shlonsky dies

Avraham Shlonsky, renowned Israeli poet, editor and translator, passes away in Tel Aviv at the age of 73.

May 19, 1950 — Airlift of Iraqi Jews begins

Following the passage of the March 1950 law allowing Jews to leave Iraq, the Ministry of Aliyah in Israel develops a plan to facilitate their immigration to Israel.

May 20, 2011 — Arieh Handler passes away

Handler moves to Israel in 1948, taking a leadership role in Hapoel Ha-Mizrahi. In 2006, at the age of 90, he makes aliyah to Israel for a second time.

May 21, 1963 – Zalman Shazar is elected as Israel’s third President

VCT DPN GT

Photo by Adam Reinherz

Shazar, a drafter of Israel’s Declaration of Independence who had helped Jews make aliyah from Russia in the 1920s, becomes Israel’s third President.

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

After a breakdown in diplomatic talks between President Gerald Ford and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, 76 senators sign a letter to the president stressing the importance of both military and economic assistance to Israel.

May 23, 1420 — Archduke Albert V orders Wiener Gesera (Viennese Decree) in Austria

Austrian Archduke Albert V ordered that all his Jewish subjects were to be imprisoned and their possessions confiscated following libelous accusations against an influential member of the Viennese Jewish community.

May 24, 1948 — First Battle for Latrun takes place

Going against the advice of some of his top military advisors, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion orders an assault on the fortress of Latrun, considered a key component of liberating Jerusalem.  PJC

PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

Headlines Area art teachers celebrate Israel, inspired by trip to Jewish state — LOCAL —

By Toby Tabachnick | Senior Staff Writer

A

lan Doe, an artist who teaches at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio, was not prepared for what he saw and experienced in Israel when he traveled there for the first time last summer with Classrooms Without Borders.

“I had no idea about the diversity there,” said Doe, one of 30 artists and teachers selected to explore the Jewish state on CWB’s first Arts and Culture Seminar in July 2017.

“I thought I was prepared — I had read a lot about it and watched videos. But none of that can prepare you for being there.”

Doe was particularly moved, he said, by the “good nature of the people,” and the diversity of the land itself. “The Dead Sea to the Mediterranean — it was unbelievable.”

After returning home from the 10-day tour of Israel, each participant created art shaped by what they learned and saw there, while spreading the word at their respective schools about the cultural richness of the country. The work they produced, which included photography, sculpture and paintings — was displayed at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh on May 9 at a celebration of the State of Israel hosted by CWB. It was called “Israel Night at the Museum.”

Poland, this particular seminar was especially meaningful to board member Hilary Tyson Porter.

“This trip holds a special place in my heart because we collaborated with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust,” said Porter, who accompanied the artists to Israel, adding that several leaders of the Trust, including President and CEO Kevin McMahon and Murray Horne, the curator of Wood Street Gallery, were also on the trip.

Many of the artists who were on the trip came out to enjoy Israel Night at the Museum.

Touring Israel “was such a rich experience, visually and culturally,” said Doe, p Alan Doe and his Israel-inspired a visual arts teacher who focuses on sculpture “Pigeon of Peace.”

Photo by Toby Tabachnick photography. “And to travel with other artists, and to share the way you perceive things in ways that other artists can underThe Israel-inspired art will also be exhibited at the Three Rivers Arts Festival in June stand, is a delight.”

Traveling to Israel with CWB broadened and will subsequently travel to many schools the worldview of Zena Ruiz, the Children’s across the region.

CWB, founded in 2011 by Zipora Gur Museum resident artist, noted the musein association with the Jewish Federation um’s executive director, Jane Werner. “The of Greater Pittsburgh, provides experien- trip changed her ideas, and enriched the tial professional development for teachers programs here.”

While in Israel, the participants were through study seminars that take place outside of the classroom. This was its first exposed to many Israeli artists, both Jewish and non-Jewish, who were exploring a diverse seminar to Israel focused on the arts.

Although CWB has sponsored many array of subjects. Some of those artists, said trips for educators, including travel to Ruiz, “are using art as a catalyst to have conver-

sations about the struggle, about politics.”

Nanci Goldberg, who teaches art in the Fox Chapel Area School District, had not been to Israel since her bat mitzvah, and was eager to travel there with CWB to get an adult perspective of the country.

“I wanted a clearer understanding of this complicated land,” Goldberg said. In addition to getting the chance to speak with both Arab and Jewish artists and visit their galleries, she appreciated the museum tours and learning “how they teach art in Israel.”

Likewise, Tabetha Morgan, an art teacher at John Marshall High School, said the trip was a “reawakening, being with other artists and seeing how art can change the world.”

“We went to a Muslim museum,” Morgan recalled. “It was very interesting. I wasn’t expecting to see that on the itinerary.”

The artists were housed with families in Karmiel/Misgav, Pittsburgh’s Partnership2Gether sister region.

“This was clearly a transformational experience for us,” Doe told the crowd gathered at the Israel Night at the Museum event. “I had heard the negatives about Israel, but when I got there, I found an astonishingly beautiful and welcoming country. And I saw the power of art to transform people; to be a part of that process was priceless.” PJC Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Monday, June 11 • 7:00-9:00 pm JCC Second Floor, Robinson Building Join Rabbi Danielle Leshaw, Senior Educator at Hillel International, for a two-hour course designed to help parents support their child in evaluating and responding to anti-Israel activity on campus.

This course is designed specifically for parents of college students, concluding gap year parents, and parents of rising high school seniors. Josh Sayles, director of the Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, will participate in the discussion.

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Calendar q SATURDAY, MAY 19 Tikkun Leil Shavuot, presented by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, is the communitywide Jewish learning program with local rabbis and thinkers from across the Jewish spectrum. This night of Jewish learning is free and open to the community from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh. Teen Tikkun 5778, Late Night Conversations on Revelation will also be held. Visit jfedpgh.org/Shavuot for more information and to register.

>> Submit calendar items on the Chronicle’s website, pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Submissions will also be included in print.

Events will run in the print edition beginning one month prior to the date as space allows.

The deadline for submissions is Friday, noon.

q TUESDAY, MAY 22

q SUNDAY, MAY 20

The Bridges Professional Series will hold its final session of the year with the discussion of the 2017 Greater Pittsburgh Jewish Community Study and its Impact on the Future of Jewish Pittsburgh, led by Raimy Rubin, Community Scorecard manager, from noon to 1 p.m. at Dinsmore & Shohl LLP, 1300 Six PPG Place. The $10 charge includes lunch; dietary laws observed. To attend this event, Jewish female professionals must have demonstrated a commitment to the community through a contribution to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s 2018 Community Campaign. Contact Rachel Lipkin at Rlipkin@Jfedpgh.org or 412-9925227 for more information.

Men, women and children are invited to celebrate Shavuot at 11 a.m. at Chabad of Pittsburgh, 1700 Beechwood Blvd. Hear the Torah reading of the Ten Commandments followed by a dairy buffet and ice cream for the children.

Tickets are now available for the Robinson Short Film Competition Awards Gala, a celebration of short filmmaking from around the globe and recognition of the best films and winning filmmakers. The event includes screenings of five short films, the

Markovic:

In those days she made whatever was the fancy food.”

A 1986 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette praised her “paper-thin strudel dough.”

But by 1987, Markovic, who had since relocated from McKeesport to White Oak, was ready for change, recalled Lenoff. “Her son had moved from White Oak to Pittsburgh, and she and her husband wanted to move to Pittsburgh.”

So Milch offered Markovic the professional post. At the mikvah, Beni, who had worked at Tube City Iron and Metal for 25 years, joined his wife in the upkeep.

“It paid $136 a month, but had a free apartment,” said Markovic. “My husband learned to be a handyman. We fixed everything ourselves.

“My husband liked to raise tomatoes,” she added. Her spouse died in 2002.

For years, the Markovics’ garden regularly included the sweet squishy fruit as well as kohlrabi, cucumbers, garlic and onions. And although mikvah visitors were often gifted plastic bags filled with fresh red treats, at the age of 92 Markovic explained that she was no longer distributing tomatoes.

“Now I’m giving out dishes,” she said.

Born on March 5, 1924, in Loza, a roughly 1.5 square mile village with a population numbering fewer than 300, Markovic was intimately tied to what is today Czech Republic land. “If it was a good year, we ate food. If it was not a good year we had no food. All you did on the farm was work.

There was no electricity, no water in the

q SATURDAY, MAY 19 Cheesecake for Shavuot from 2 to 4 p.m. at Moishe House. What better way to celebrate receiving the Torah than eating lots of dairy! Make your own delicious mini cheesecake to take home. Toppings will be available. Contact moishehousepgh@gmail. com for more information.

Continued from page 6

Chronicle in 2016.

When Faithe Milch, a past president of the Jewish Women’s League, sought to replace the retiring Sylvia Lenoff — Pittsburgh’s “mikvah lady” between 1975 and 1987 — Markovic was recommended.

“Margot Guttman suggested that we contact Malka, and since everybody in the community knew her because of her catering it was not an unknown,” said Lenoff.

“They wanted a European for the mikvah.

They’re better workers than Americans,” joked Markovic, who in later years frequently “fired plumbers on the spot” for shoddy practices.

She lacked formal education or training, but Markovic threw herself into the job.

Always industrious, the indefatigable immigrant survived Auschwitz and BergenBelsen, snuck into Austria in 1950 with her husband Beni and their infant son David, boarded a New York-bound boat that caught fire at sea and finally reached McKeesport in 1951, only to experience a professional passage of washing dishes and janitorial duties before entering food services.

“America was the best thing for us. I didn’t want to stay where I was born,” she said.

Decades prior to taking on the mantle of Pittsburgh’s “mikvah mother,” she catered countless occasions in the Jewish community.

“She did both of my boys’ bar mitzvahs,” said Milch. “Her catering was really good.

8 MAY 18, 2018

awards ceremony where three filmmakers will receive $18,000 in cash prizes, and a catered reception beginning at 7:30 p.m. at SouthSide Works Cinema. The competition honors the memory of Sanford N. Robinson Sr. Visit filmpittsburgh.org for more information and tickets.

Women) event, Food Sustainability and Urban Agriculture, with Grow Pittsburgh from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at Point Breezeway, 7113 Reynolds St. There is a $15 charge. Dessert and wine will be provided; dietary laws observed. Cotact Rachel Lipkin at rlipkin@ jfedpgh.org or 412-992-5227 for more information and to RSVP by Friday, May 18.

q TUESDAYS THROUGH MAY 29 The Ten Commandments in the 21st century with 10 rabbis offering contemporary perspectives will be held from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, Levinson B. There will be two rabbis per night. Each rabbi will present separately, and then there will be interaction between the two rabbis, as well as with the audience. Contact Jan Barkley at jbarkley@jfedpgh.org or 412-697-6656 for more information or visit jfedpgh.org/tencommandments for the complete list, cost and registration. q TUESDAYS, MAY 22-JUNE 26 The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh is hosting the workshop Better Choices, Better Health six consecutive Tuesdays, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. in room 202.

The workshop is free. Participants will actively be a part of brainstorming on key topics. Contact Amy Gold at 412-697-3528 for more information and to register. q WEDNESDAY, MAY 23 Women’s Philanthropy will hold its next E3 (Empowered, Educated, Engaged Jewish

The Lev Society of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Pittsburgh presents The Top 10 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Foundation Scholar Rabbi Danny Schiff will review his top 10 events of the past 70 years of Jewish history. Heavy hors d’oeuvres, desserts and beverages will be served. Dietary laws observed. There is no charge. This program is presented at no cost. RSVP at jfedpgh. org/lev-event. Contact Abby Apter-Rose at 412-992-5253 or arose@jfedpgh.org for more information. The Lev Society is composed of donors who have given to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh annual campaign for 32 years or more.

Joshua L. Sindler, Z”L, Creative Classrooms musical performances by Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh students will be held at 7 p.m. followed by browsing in the student art gallery. The gallery will include art pieces from students in grades 1-12. Contact dshaw@ hillelpgh.org for more information.

Please see Calendar, page 9

house, no toilets,” she said.

Although her mother made a sweet pizzalike dish topped with sugar and cinnamon laced cottage cheese, baking was an infrequent enterprise “because she had to heat from a wood stove. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t.”

Obtaining bread was similarly cumbersome, requiring a 90-minute trek to a neighboring city.

Shortly after Passover in 1944, Markovic, who was the youngest of nine siblings, and her family were rounded up by Nazi forces.

Following a one-week stint in Munkacs, the group endured a three-day ride to Auschwitz.

After exiting the open transport, the riders were divided into lines.

“I had two children in my arms, Rachel and Esther, and a guy came and took the children away from me and gave them to my mother, and said you have to go this way. And also my sister Lea, she also was with me, she also had a child, and they took it away and gave it to my other sister who went with the kids,” Markovic related in a 1999 recording with National Council of Jewish Women.

While Markovic’s family was immediately sent to the gas chamber, she and Lea spent a year in Auschwitz.

“I was always with my sister; we even went to the bathroom together,” she said. “I was afraid they would separate us.”

Markovic, her sister and two brothers survived. After liberation in 1945, while searching for relatives in Budapest, Markovic noticed her cousin Beni on a train. Two years

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

q THURSDAY, MAY 24

later, they were married. The Markovics remained in Czechoslovakia for three years and eventually settled in Teplice-Šanov, a locale regarded for its mineral springs.

There, she “took over the mikvah for a year.”

Milch estimated that “between three and four women” frequent Pittsburgh’s mikvah each night, with stays ranging from 30 minutes to an hour.

Records are imperfect, but Milch’s calculations suggest that Markovic was responsible for 37,000 mikvah visits.

Generations of admirers gathered at Shaare Torah Congregation last week to eulogize the fount of faith whose optimism never drained.

Following the funeral, Milch recalled that in 1975, a day after her son’s bar mitzvah, Markovic came to the house to collect an invoice.

“She was bending over, and I didn’t know what she was doing,” Milch said.

Markovic had deposited a few seeds.

Months later, tomatoes grew.

“They were the kind you can pick off and eat like candy,” said Milch, who still remembers what Markovich told her that Sunday morning decades ago: “I’m leaving you a memory.”

Malvina “Malka” Markovic (née Katz) is survived by her two sons, David and Saul, seven grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

Calendar Calendar: Continued from page 8 Moishe Gets Moving: Bowling Edition from 7 to 9 p.m. at Arsenol Bowling Lanes, 4310 Butler St. Contact moishehousepgh@gmail. com for more information. q SUNDAY, MAY 27 Goats Galore from noon to 2 p.m. at Threadbare Cider House, a grownup petting zoo at 1219 Spring Garden Ave. Come to drink cider, pet goats and eat local goat cheese. A portion of bottle sales will go toward Allegheny Goatscape to support the effort to mitigate invasive plants in an eco-friendly manner. The event is free, but register so Threadbare can plan for you at threadbarecider.com/event/goats-galore/.

Contact moishehousepgh@gmail.com for more information. q TUESDAY, MAY 29 Yeshiva Schools, entering its 75th year, will hold its annual dinner at 6 p.m. at the Westin Convention Center. Honorees will be Ed Goldston, Friend for Life; and Rabbi Yossi and Mrs. Chanie Rosenblum, recipients of the Community Builders Award. RSVP to the Yeshiva office at 412-422-7300, ext. 1217 or info@yeshivaschools.com. q WEDNESDAY, MAY 30 Chabad of Squirrel Hill will present the seventh annual Sound of Jewish Music at Bellefield Hall, beginning with a dessert reception at 6:30 followed by a concert at 7:15 p.m. The event features the talents of over 50 women in the community. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door and can be purchased online at SoundOfJewishMusic. com. Contact caltein@chabadpgh.com for more information.

The Pittsburgh Jewish Community Study: Where Do We Go From Here? A South Hills Conversation will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the South Hills Jewish Community Center. Rabbi Danny Schiff, Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh Foundation Scholar, will be joined by a panel of Jewish community leaders including Brian Schreiber, president/CEO, JCC of Greater Pittsburgh; Raimy Rubin, Community Scorecard manager; Jonathan Fischer; Stacey Reibach; and David Weisberg. The program is free an open to the community. Visit southhillsjewishpittsburgh. org/comstudy for more information. q THURSDAY, MAY 31 Take a trip to Phipps Conservatory: Garden of Sound and Motion from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

Look and listen as interactive soundscapes, visual art and kinetic motion installations bring the summer show to life. The $25 prepaid ticket includes transportation leaving from and returning to the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill and a one-hour guided tour of Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Contact Deborah Marcus at dmarcus@jccpgh.org for more information.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh will show its appreciation with a celebration from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Pittsburgh Opera,

2425 Liberty Ave. Entertainment will be provided by Kippalive, Israel’s a cappella group. The $18 per person includes strolling dinner and cocktails; dietary laws observed.

The PNC Community Builders Award will be presented to the Halpern Family. Contact Emily Richman at erichman@jfedpgh.org or 412-992-5217 for more information or visit jfedpgh.org/celebration. q SUNDAY, JUNE 3 Temple Emanuel hosts a monthly bereavement group for previous and newly bereaved adults, led by licensed clinical social workers at 10 a.m. RSVP to leonsteineresa@ verizon.net if you plan to attend. Contact Temple Emanuel at 412-279-7600 with questions.

Bet Tikvah will hold its 30th anniversary celebration of the founding of Bet Tikvah from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh. The community is invited for wine and dessert. There is no charge. Visit bettikvah.org for more information.

Temple Emanuel will hold An Evening of Celebration Gala at 6 p.m. to honor Rabbi Mark Joel Mahler upon his retirement after 38 years of dedicated service to Temple Emanuel and the community. The evening will include dinner and entertainment. Proceeds benefit the Rabbi Mark Mahler Rabbinic Chair Fund. Tickets are $100 per person. Visit templeemanuelpgh.org/event/gala for more information or call the office at 412-279-7600 for more information. q MONDAY, JUNE 4 Beth El Congregation hosts its monthly First Mondays program with Rabbi Alex Greenbaum from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., featuring author/teacher Charleton Young who will be discussing his book “Voices From the Attic: The Williamstown Boys in the Civil War.” There is a $6 charge. Visit bethelcong.org for more information and call 412-561-1168 to make a reservation. q WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6 The Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh will hold Generations Speaker Series with Lynne Ravas and Alison Brown Karabin from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at 826 Hazelwood Ave. Ravas will share one child’s experience in a Jewish orphanage in Germany during Kristallnacht. Karabin will tell the story of her grandmother’s survival in Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Volary death march. This event is free and open to the public, and will also be live streamed. Visit jfedpgh.org/generations-ravas-karabin for more information and to register. q THURSDAY, JUNE 7 The National Council of Jewish Women, Pittsburgh Section, along with the national organization, celebrate 125 years of service and advocacy in 2018. The evening will include a dinner and program spotlighting the people, projects and partners who have contributed to NCJW’s impact in the Pittsburgh community over the past 125 years. Past presidents will be honored and a new board president will be installed. The

Hannah G. Solomon Award will be presented to Susan Foreman Jordan. The event will be held at the University Club beginning at 6 p.m. There is a $50 charge. Visit event ncjwpgh.org/projects/125th-celebration for more information and to purchase tickets. q SUNDAY, JUNE 10 The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh is supporting the LGBTQ+ community by marching together in the Pittsburgh Pride EQT Equality March. If you cannot join the march, stop by the Federation’s booth during the festivities. The first 50 people to register for the march will get a free “Love is Kosher” T-shirt. Register at jfedpgh.org/pride.

New Light Men’s Club and Rodman Street Missionary Baptist Church will have a bus and walking tour of Pittsburgh’s Hill District with tour guides from the Hill House and the Heinz History Center. Highlights include Freedom Corner, The Lyceum, August Wilson’s Family House, The Crawford (Jazz) Grill, Kether Torah Congregation, Hebrew Institute, Logan Street, “Jew Town” and guest speakers. The tour will begin at 1:30 and end at 4 p.m. There is a $15 charge. Visit newlightcongregation.org/hillwalking-tour.html for more information and to purchase tickets. q MONDAY, JUNE 11 Women’s Philanthropy will hold a discussion on the opioid crisis in the Pittsburgh area from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Temple Sinai. Drinks and dessert will be provided; bring your own brown bag lunch. Featured speakers will be Rosa Davis, executive director, Pennsylvania Organization for Women in Early Recovery (POWER); Karen Hacker, director, Allegheny County Health Department; and Ashley Potts, licensed social worker, Allegheny Health Network. Charlene Tissenbaum will be the moderator. There is no charge but attendees are asked to bring a staple item such as toothpaste, toothbrush, deodorant, lotion, notebook and journal for clients who arrive at POWER. RSVP by June 8. Visit jfedpgh.org/ ladies-who-lunch to register.

Women of Temple Sinai will hold its next cooking class with a surprise menu led by Executive Director Drew Barkley from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Anyone age 16 and older is welcome. There is a $10 charge per person.

RSVP by Friday, June 8 to Carolyn Schwarz at 412-421-1268 or 4carolynschwarz@gmail. com or visit templesinaipgh.org/wotscooking-class-7.

Rabbi Danielle Leshaw, senior educator at Hillel International, will hold a two-hour course from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. designed to help parents support their child in evaluating and responding to anti-Israel activity on campus.

This course, at the Jewish Community Center Second Floor, Robinson Building, is designed specifically for parents of college students, concluding gap year parents and parents of rising high school seniors. Josh Sayles, director of the Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, will participate in the discussion.

Contact Rabbi Amy Bardack, director of Jewish Life and Learning, at abardack@ jfedpgh.org or 412-697-6654. The program is in partnership with the Jewish Community

q FRIDAY-SUNDAY, JUNE 8-10 Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha is celebrating the installation of Rabbi Jeffrey Myers.

Highlights include Friday’s “Shabbat On The Rocks,” cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception at 6 p.m. followed by services at 6:45 p.m. Saturday morning services at 9:30 a.m., followed by a Kiddush luncheon. Sunday is the installation ceremony at 2:45 p.m. followed by a concert by recording artists and cantors, Divas On The Bima at 4 p.m. Cost for the weekend is $25 per person or $100 per family. Contact the office at 412-521-6788 for more information.

Center of Greater Pittsburgh. RSVP at jfedpgh.org/israel-on-campus q WEDNESDAY, JUNE 13 Rabbi Barbara Symons of Temple David will lead two discussions of “The Gift of Asher Lev” by Chaim Potok in the Monroeville Public Library Gallery Space at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. The discussion is free and open to the public. Visit MonroevilleLibrary.org for more information.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh is supporting the LGBTQ+ community by marching together in the Pittsburgh Pride EQT Equality March. If you cannot join the march, stop by the Federation’s booth during the festivities. The first 50 people to register for the march will get a free “Love is Kosher” T-shirt. Register at jfedpgh.org/pride. q SUNDAY, JUNE 17 A motor coach will leave the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill for a trip to Fallingwater at 10:30 a.m. and will return at approximately 3:30 p.m. Visit the Frank Lloyd Wright masterpiece, nestled within the lush, wooded Bear Run Nature Reserve. Tickets are $75 prepaid and include transportation and one-hour tour of Fallingwater. Contact Deborah Marcus at arcus@jccpgh.org for more information. q THURSDAY, JUNE 21 Hadassah Greater Pittsburgh will have a Take Me Out to the Ball Game: A night with the Pirates at PNC Park event. The cost is $25 per ticket. Contact fsurloff@hadassah.org for more information. PJC

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PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

MAY 18, 2018 9

Life & Culture Front Porch takes its hat off to life in ‘A New Brain’ — THEATER —

By Toby Tabachnick | Senior Staff Writer

F

ront Porch Theatricals, the boutique theater company now in its seventh season, has been offering Pittsburgh audiences the chance to see socially relevant, lesser-known musicals since its first production, the locally written and composed “Only Me” in 2009.

Now, with “A New Brain,” which runs May 18-27 at the New Hazlett Theater, Front Porch is primed to continue its tradition of bringing to the Steel City high-quality, colorful shows, using local talent.

“A New Brain,” which was first produced off-Broadway in 1998, is a largely autobi-

what Gordon is going through, but I have had to experience having to make art while life is throwing you curveballs.”

“A New Brain” is about using “trauma to create something beautiful,” he added. “And I think by keeping these characters Jewish, William Finn is celebrating his own culture and how his culture has influenced him as an artist and a person.”

Actor John Wascavage takes the lead in the show as Finn’s alter ego, Gordon Schwinn, and recognizes that the musical covers rather unusual territory.

“I don’t think it is every day that someone goes to see a musical about someone having trouble with their brain and needing brain surgery,” he said. “It’s not ‘Oklahoma.’”

Yet “A New Brain,” he continued, still covers the “same kinds of topics and themes

“ I don’t think it is every day that someone goes to see a musical about someone having trouble with their

”

brain and needing brain surgery.

p Connor McCanlus

Photos courtesy of Leon S. Zionts, Esq.

p John Wascavage

Photos courtesy of Leon S. Zionts, Esq.

— JOHN WISCAVAGE

ographical musical by Jewish composer William Finn along with James Lapine (“Falsettos”). It sets to musical score the story of a composer’s brush with mortality resulting from an arteriovenous malformation — a tangle of abnormal blood vessels connecting arteries and veins in the brain — and the healing power of art.

Like Finn, the protagonist in the show, Gordon Schwinn, is Jewish, and the musical explores his brush with the possibility of death and his concerns that he may not live long enough to complete his work.

As with its previous productions, the creative team at Front Porch was intentional in selecting a show that features a multiplicity of character types, and was likewise intentional in its casting.

“There is a diversity of characters and cast in this show, which reflects our city and our society,” said Leon Zionts, who is a founding producer at Front Porch along with his wife, Nancy Zionts, and Bruce E.G. Smith. “We’re trying to be more mindful of that; it’s part of our mission of inclusiveness.”

The show is being directed by Pittsburgh native Connor McCanlus, who said “A New Brain” has been on his “bucket list” of directing projects.

“I have loved this show since later middle school or early high school,” McCanlus said.

“The reason why I connect to the show is it’s about an artist who is struggling to make art while living his life. I haven’t suffered from 10 MAY 18, 2018

as other theater: family, heart, relationships and dealing with one’s own mortality.”

Wascavage grew up near Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and attended Point Park University in Pittsburgh. After graduating in 2010, he moved to New York City, and has landed roles internationally.

“I always love coming back to Pittsburgh,” he said. “It feels so familiar.”

The role of Gordon Schwinn particularly resonates for Wascavage, who finds “so many wonderful parallels between this role and my life,” he said. A cancer scare following college forced him, like his character, to face his “own mortality.”

“That’s a heavy load to bear,” especially for someone in his early 20s, he said. “It was only a scare, but even having to slightly deal with your mortality” gives insight into an “intricate, delicate and part of humanity that is universal.”

Gordon, he said, reminds him of Charles Dickens’ Ebenezer Scrooge, as the show has him taking a “step back to look at his life and his choices.”

“At the end of the show, he has to decide, if he does live, will he continue to live life like he was, or treat it like the precious gift that it is,” said Wascavage. “All these themes are heavy, but there is so much heart and so much joy in the show.” PJC Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines Embassy opening spurs celebrations across Atlantic — WORLD —

By Joshua Runyan | Editor-in-Chief

W

ASHINGTON, D.C. — Ron Dermer might have been the least well-rested among the hundreds of people gathered to celebrate one of the most historic dates on the Jewish state’s calendar, but Israel’s ambassador to the United States had a crucial task in front of him.

After having been on hand for the much-anticipated May 14 opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem, the American-born Dermer was back in Washington, D.C., that night to give thanks to the American people and the chief executive who made the celebration possible, President Donald Trump. “Today, May 14, 2018, less than six months after President Trump made America the first country� to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, “the United States moved its embassy to Jerusalem,� a beaming Dermer said from the podium at the Israeli Embassy’s 70th Independence Day Celebration. “This historic day certainly calls for a shehecheyanu.�

Many in the bipartisan crowd, which included military attaches and officials from

the foreign diplomatic corps in Washington, joined Dermer in reciting the Hebrew blessing traditionally made when experiencing new events.

The timing of the event — weeks after Israel’s official celebrations of Yom Ha’atzmaut in accordance with the Hebrew calendar — had been set well in advance of the embassy opening, coinciding with the English date of Israel’s declaring independence. But the events in Jerusalem had a poetic ring to them, coming exactly 70 years after President Harry Truman was the first world leader to recognize Israel as a sovereign nation. “Today the alliance between the United States and Israel is stronger than ever,�

Dermer said. “The great alliance ‌ did not happen on its own.â€? It was, instead, the product of “countless individuals.â€?

Those honorees, whose accomplishments on behalf of Israel were written up in a commemorative book given to attendees, included such luminaries as the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, Elie Wiesel and Michael Steinhardt, former presidents and philanthropic families. Vice President Mike Pence accepted a medal on behalf of Trump, who couldn’t attend because First Lady Melania Trump was in the hospital.

The 70th honoree, Dermer said, was “the

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American people,� to whom “Israel owes a profound debt of gratitude.�

Turning to Pence, the ambassador lauded Trump and his administration. “Thank you for putting an end to the appeasement of the Iranian regime,â€? he said, pointing to the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement negotiated under President Barack Obama. “Thank you for unapologetically standing with Israel at the United Nations. ‌ Thank you for unequivocally backing Israel as we defend ourselves. ‌ Thank you for having the courage and the wisdom for recognizing Jerusalem as our capital.â€?

Relocating the embassy amounted to nothing less, Dermer said, than “one small step for peace, and one giant leap for truth.�

The remarks echoed those made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other speakers at the embassy opening, which was attended by a 250-strong U.S. delegation that included the president’s daughter and son-in-law, White House advisers Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.

In his address at the embassy, Kushner said that when Trump makes a promise, he “keeps it.� “While presidents before him have backed down from their pledge to move the American Embassy once they were in office, this president delivered,� he said.

For his part, Netanyahu thanked Trump, who addressed the embassy opening by video, for “having the courage� to move the embassy, which Congress had mandated in a law passed way back in 1995. “What a glorious day for Israel,� he said. “Remember this moment. This is history.

President Trump, by recognizing history, you have made history. All of us are deeply moved, all of us are deeply grateful.�

Back in Washington, Pence addressed the constant security challenges Israel faces in the Middle East, although he didn’t mention the attempted storming of Israel’s border fence by Palestinians in Gaza that claimed dozens of lives when Israeli soldiers opened fire. “Since Israel’s rebirth ‌ there has hardly been a day when the people of Israel have ‌ lived without war, or the fear of war or the grim reality of terror,â€? said Pence. “The United States and Israel have long stood together to confront the evil scourge of radical Islamic terrorism. And today, we renew our pledge to stand shoulder to shoulder as we drive that menace from the face of this Earth.â€?  PJC Joshua Runyan can be reached at jrunyan@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

JNS.org contributed to this article.

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The Lev Society of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Pittsburgh presents:

The Top 10 Thursday, May 24, 5:30pm Rodef Shalom 4905 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh 15213 Join Foundation Scholar

RABBI DANNY SCHIFF

As he reviews his top 10 events of the past 70 years of Jewish history Heavy hors d’oeuvres, desserts, & beverages will be served.

Dietary laws observed.

This program is presented at no cost.

RSVP today at jfedpgh.org/lev-event or by contacting Abby Apter-Rose at 412.992.5253 or arose@jfedpgh.org LEV SOCIETY Mina Kavaler, Co-Chair • Stanley Levine, Co-Chair

Lev Society donors have given to a Jewish Federation annual campaign for 32 years or more.

The full inclusion of people of all abilities is a core value of the Pittsburgh Jewish Community. If you have a disability or need an accommodation, please call or email us.

Today. Tomorrow.

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SPONSORED CONTENT

The Federation 2018 Volunteer Mission to Israel The Jewish Federation’s Volunteer Center Mission to Israel is an annual trip that consists of a week of volunteerism projects in the Karmiel/Misgav region and plenty of down-time to explore and experience all that the region has to offer. Karmiel and Misgav are Pittsburgh’s sister cities in Israel in the innovative Partnership2Gether (P2G) project, which builds people-to-people connections between Israeli and North American Jewish communities in the Diaspora, through an array of educational, cultural and economic initiatives.

PARTICIPANTS Lois Barron, David Berman, Patricia Burkett, Joan Charlson, Amy Cohen – Volunteer Center Manager, Martha LaBelle, Max Levine, Kay Liss, Martha Luzer, Karen Morris, Elisheva Reynolds Schreiber, Emanuel Schreiber, Lynn Snyderman, Hilary Spatz, JoAnn Sprague, Michael Sprague

Good Deeds Day is a global day of volunteering that unites people from 100 countries to do good deeds for the benefit of others and the planet.

This year, in Pittsburgh, more than 650 volunteers spread out across the community at 53 sites thanks to support from the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and their corporate sponsors and nonprofit partners.s

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MAY 18, 2018 13

SPONSORED CONTENT

The Federation Community Spotlight: Jerry Segal Jerome “Jerry” Segal is a long-time Pittsburgh resident who raised his family and built his business, Dormont Manufacturing Company, here. He is a Korean War veteran with a passion for Jewish causes in Pittsburgh.

Jerry is one of the earliest community members to establish an endowment that benefits multiple Jewish agencies through the Grinspoon LIFE & LEGACYTM program.

We spoke to him about why he created an endowment in the Jewish Community Foundation that will continue his giving to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Community Campaign after he is gone.

Jewish Federation: When did you start to get involved with Jewish causes in Pittsburgh?

JERRY: It was over fifty years ago!

JF: What influenced you to start contributing to Jewish charities here?

JERRY: My family was very involved with the community when I was young. It was more my mother than my dad, actually.

He worked, and she helped in the Jewish community. I was bar mitzvah’ed at

The Florence Melton School of Jewish Learning is the largest pluralistic adult Jewish education network in the world. Graduates of the adult learning sessions find that this education plays a significant role in their lives.

This program is generously supported by the Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation.

[Congregation] Poale Zedek, but my mother worked in the Temple Sisterhood at three synagogues—Poale Zedek, B’nai Emunah, and I think Temple Sinai as well.

JF: How were you involved?

JERRY: I’ve been involved through giving, and at one time I was also President of the B’nai B’rith local chapter and then the regional chapter.

JERRY: I have known Brian Eglash quite a while, and he is very knowledgeable about Jewish causes in Pittsburgh and about world Jewry especially. [JF NOTE: Brian Eglash holds a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy designation and is one of several experts on philanthropic giving at the Jewish Federation.] Brian asked me to think about the future of the Jewish community through an endowment, and I have already done so in my will.

“I appreciate all of the things I do within the Jewish community. I want all of those things to be there for my kids and their kids and for everyone else who comes after me.”

—Jerry Segal

JF: What causes do you care about most?

JERRY: I felt that there were a lot of causes that deserved my support. That’s why I started giving to the UJF [now the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh].

I care about a lot of things, so I give to the Jewish Federation, and they promote what they think is necessary.

That’s the role of the Federation—they look at the most important needs and figure out where is the best place for the money to go right now. I’m confident that when I give my money to the [Jewish Federation], the money will go to where it’s needed most.

JF: How did you decide to leave a gift to the Jewish Federation’s Community Campaign with an endowment?

JERRY: Get a professional to help. Speak to a lawyer. You can use the language that they [the Jewish Federation] provide to you, or you can just speak to a lawyer and they can create an endowment. Lawyers do this sort of thing all the time. It’s simple.

JF: Was it difficult to create an endowment?

JERRY: Why would it be difficult?

JF: Many people have the misperception that endowing their gift to the Community Campaign is complicated.

JERRY: It was not complicated at all. I had my own inspiration as to the Jewish causes I wanted to support. I set aside a certain amount for various Jewish causes I support including the [Jewish Federation]. My lawyer wrote up a clause for my will. All I had to do was to sign it.

JF: What would you say to people who think endowments are complicated?

JF: What do you want for the future of the Jewish community that made you decide to create an endowment?

JERRY: I want them to be healthy and happy. It [creating an endowment] is a personal decision. During my life, I want to do the right thing, and including the more important idea of Jewish charitable giving is part of that.

JF: You have a family. How did you balance creating an endowment with your family?

JERRY: Again, it’s a personal decision. I would say that you should recognize the needs of your own family in your will, then your friends or others you need to take care of and then the organizations you care about.

I’m inspired by Jewish values, and one part of doing the right thing in Judaism is helping the community. I say, “Take care of things the right way, the good way.”

JF: What would you say to people considering endowing their gift to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh?

JERRY: I appreciate all of the things I do within the Jewish community. I want all of those things to be there for my kids and their kids and for everyone else who comes after me. [Creating an endowment] is not hard to do, and it’s the right thing to do.

Mazel Tov to the Melton Jewish communal professional class on receiving your graduation certificates from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

MATTHEW CALLMAN

JENNIFER SLATTERY

The Edward and Rose Berman Hillel Jewish University Center of Pittsburgh

Congregation Beth Shalom

DAVID GUZIKOWSKI

Jewish Residential Services

Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

BILL STEIN

DEBBIE SWARTZ

KATE KIM

Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

RACHEL LIPKIN

The Edward and Rose Berman Hillel Jewish University Center of Pittsburgh

Joint Jewish Education Program of Pittsburgh Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

JODI TANDET

MARISSA TAIT

ELINA LIPOV

Joint Jewish Education Program of Pittsburgh

AVIVA LUBOWSKY

Rodef Shalom Congregation

HOPE NEARHOOD

The Edward and Rose Berman Hillel Jewish University Center of Pittsburgh

The Edward and Rose Berman Hillel Jewish University Center of Pittsburgh Hebrew Free Loan Association of Pittsburgh Rodef Shalom Congregation

LAUREN WOLCOTT ALEX ZISSMAN

KIMBERLY SALZMAN

Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh

14 MAY 18, 2018

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Did you know…

You can leave a gift to the Jewish community through life insurance, and the Jewish Community Foundation pays half of the cost?

Here’s an example: A couple, both age 59, wanted to endow their $5,000 commitment to the Community Campaign. The Jewish Community Foundation has an insurance program that pays half of all premiums for policies that create permanent endowments for the Community Campaign or for the Jewish Community Foundation’s Unrestricted Fund. Foundation experts explained that endowment funds use a 5% income formula, so they would need to establish a $100,000 endowment to perpetuate their $5,000 commitment to the Community Campaign. The couple discussed establishing the fund as a bequest but instead decided to fund it with an insurance policy for the following reasons:

• A $100,000 survivorship policy on the couple’s lives required just three premium payments of $11,200.

• Unlike a bequest, the couple’s premium payments generated a current income tax deduction.

• The Foundation paid half of all premiums, so the couple only needed to pay $5,600 each year for three years, ($16,800 total) rather than leaving a $100,000 bequest.

TOTAL GIFT TO THE JEWISH COMMUNITY: $100,000 ANNUAL PREMIUM

FOUNDATION PAYS

INSURED PAYS

1

$5,600

$5,600

2

$5,600

$5,600

3

$5,600

$5,600

Total premium paid

$16,800

$16,800

If a donation scenario like this one sounds appropriate for you, the Jewish Community Foundation has the experience and technical expertise to help. The Jewish Community Foundation can: • Simplify the process of contributing highly-appreciated assets that are not publicly traded • Help you realize the most favorable tax consequences with the greatest charitable impact • Work with you and your advisor to prepare and plan for contributions in advance of a business sale or other liquidity event Call 412.992.5224 or go to www.jfedpgh.org/Foundation to learn more.

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PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

MAY 18, 2018 15

You see a family.

We see a community.

Find out how your one donation to the Community Campaign can help more people at jfedpgh.org/impact

16 MAY 18, 2018

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MAY 18, 2018 17

Opinion A very big day for Israel from political allies, made the shehecheyanu blessing traditionally said in order to give thanks for a new or unusual experience. Yet even the realization of this historic dream n its struggle for international acceptance cannot obscure how much more needs to of its historic capital, Israel has a definitive be accomplished. champion in President Donald Trump.

At the top of the list is achieving peace, On Monday, the United States finally fulfilled an outcome that has been made all the more a promise made by the U.S. Congress more difficult with how Palestinians in Gaza chose than 20 years ago — as well as a personal pledge made by Trump throughout his to mark the embassy opening. In urging citizens to violently storm campaign — and turned a consular office Israel’s border fence, Hamas leaders in Jerusalem into the U.S. Embassy. condemned dozens to death at the The timing of the event — on the hands of Israeli military snipers.

70th anniversary of Israel’s indeBut there’s also the problem of pendence, at least according to the expanding the international recogGregorian calendar, and one day after nition of Jerusalem.

At least as Yom Yerushalayim, the date on the of now, it appears that only a few Hebrew calendar marking Jerusalem’s nations will follow the U.S. lead in reunification in 1967 — couldn’t have relocating their embassies. been more symbolic.

For all the jubilation attending The celebration surrounding the the opening, one might have grand opening was a study in hero thought that nothing less than the worship, with speaker after speaker Temple itself had been rebuilt. But lauding Trump as the greatest friend Israel has ever known, comparing him it clearly hasn’t, despite the minting of an Israeli commemorative coin to Winston Churchill and praising him comparing Trump to the Persian as “God’s messenger.” That last descripKing Cyrus, who allowed the tion came by way of the Orthodox construction of the Second Temple Union’s Mark Bane, indicative of the to proceed. Instead, as we rejoice, we heavy-handed euphoria that has swept need to remember that we still have up conservatives in both the Jewish and p Jared Kushner speaks while U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman looks on at the evangelical Christian communities. opening ceremony of the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem.

Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90 a long way to go. PJC

— EDITORIAL —

I

But Israel supporters across the political spectrum couldn’t help but be moved on the deepest of emotional levels to see the United States finally recognize what we’ve always known, that Jerusalem is as central to the Jewish people’s and Israel’s identities as Washington is to America’s. Rumor has it that the price for such presidential goodwill is just on the horizon — the abandonment of four Arab

neighborhoods in East Jerusalem is reportedly one of the conditions Trump will extract from Israel as part of his Israeli-Palestinian peace plan — but even were that to be true, it would not negate the symbolic message that the embassy’s opening sent the world.

In acknowledging the historic moment, both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin, far

Israel and China: bait and switch Guest Columnist Ben Krull

I

n the Jewish civil war over who gets to say what about Israel, apologists for the occupation frequently promote the fallacy that it is hypocritical to criticize the Jewish State without also protesting more egregious human rights violators. This strategy was employed against Natalie Portman, who declined to accept Israel’s Genesis Prize from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Her detractors — most prominently Rabbi Shmuley Boteach of the proNetanyahu World Values Network — excoriated Portman for attending a film festival in China. While Israel has a far better human rights record than China, the charge of hypocrisy is nonsense.

Saying that Portman — an Israeli citizen — is disqualified from criticizing Netanyahu, is akin to claiming that Americans who buy Chinese goods are hypocritical for criticizing President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

Portman’s disagreement with Netanyahu presumably concerns his policy toward the West Bank and Gaza — an issue that cuts deep for any Israeli with a pulse. Shouldn’t Israelis be more passionate about their government’s

18 MAY 18, 2018

Nothing makes me more pessimistic about Judaism’s future than encountering Jews who feel they have no stake in the course of the Zionist project. actions, than the actions of a foreign power?

The same could be said of diaspora Jews, such as myself. While I identify as an American, and am active in community organizations, I am equally bonded to Israel. I have numerous Israeli relatives and visit every year.

But I have a primal connection to Israel that is stronger than these tangible ties. I identify with Israel because it is the Jewish State and I am Jewish.

While perusing my morning newspaper, I turn to stories about Israel before reading anything else. When an IDF soldier dies defending Eretz Yisrael I feel it a hundred times deeper than the death of Syrian innocents or terror victims in London. My feel-

ings may not be logical, but they are real.

For me no issue resonates more than Israeli-Palestinian relations — the challenge that most defines Israel on the world stage.

For several years I was active in J Street, the lobbying organization that advocates for a two-state solution. Maybe I should be just as concerned with China’s occupation of Tibet, but Beijing’s misdeeds simply don’t motivate me to action.

I suppose Rabbi Boteach and like-minded defenders of the occupation would prefer that Jewish detractors of Prime Minister Netanyahu disengage from Israeli issues. But nothing makes me more pessimistic about Judaism’s future than encountering Jews who feel they have no stake in the course of the

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Zionist project — the most likely vehicle for uniting Jews of all backgrounds.

While I am unable to speak for Portman, I assume that she is more interested in Israel than China for the same reason that so many Jews prioritize Israeli issues — she is Jewish.

Those of us concerned about Judaism’s future should want all Jews to be passionate about Israel, no matter their political leanings.

There are, of course, legitimate criticisms that can be lodged against Netanyahu’s detractors. It is fair to point out that Israel has made at least two workable proposals for a Palestinian state and reasonable to question whether the Palestinians are viable peace partners.

Moreover, advocates of the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel with no apparent ties to the Palestinian issue should be made to explain why they pick on Israel rather than far worse state actors?

But criticizing Portman and other Jews for their alleged hypocrisy is simply a device by the political right to deflect attention from the occupation and monopolize public debate about Israel.

No Jew and certainly no Israeli need explain why they are focused on Israel. The Jewish State is part of every Jew’s psychic DNA, and all Jews should want to influence its future. PJC Ben Krull is a New York-based writer.

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Opinion Defending Jewish liberals Guest Columnist Richard H. Schwartz

R

ecent articles and letters in countless community publications have been critical of Jews who are liberals.

Somehow the word “liberal” has become a negative word for many Jews. However, there is much in Jewish history and teachings consistent with Jews being liberals and even radicals, in the best sense of that word.

Judaism has historically protested against greed, injustice and the misuse of power.

Abraham, the first Hebrew, smashed the idols of his father although his action challenged the common belief of the time (Genesis Rabbah, Chapter 38). He established the precedent that a Jew should not conform to society’s values when they are evil. Later he even challenged God, exclaiming, “Shall the Judge of all the earth not do justly?” when God informed him of His plans to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:25). As a sign of Abraham’s non-conformity, the Jewish sages assert that he was on one side of the river while the entire rest of the world was on the other side.

At the beginning of the Book of Exodus, the Torah relates three incidents in Moses’ life when he acted against injustice, before God chose him to deliver the Israelites from Egypt. They teach that Jews must be involved in fighting injustice and helping to resolve disputes, whether they are between Jews, Jews and non-Jews, or only non-Jews.

The greatest champions of protest against unjust conditions were the Hebrew prophets.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel summarized the attributes of these radical spokespeople for God: They could not be tranquil in an unjust world; they were supremely impatient with evil, due to their intense sensitivity to God’s concern for right and wrong; they were advocates for those too weak to plead their own cause (the widow, the orphan and the oppressed); and their major activity was involvement, remonstrating against wrongs inflicted on other people.

While Judaism has 613 mitzvot (commandments), there are only two things that Jews are to pursue: justice and peace. It is not liberals but the Jewish scriptures that

proclaim, “Justice, justice shall you pursue” (Deuteronomy 16: 20), “Let justice well up as waters and righteousness as a mighty stream” (Amos 5:24), and that we are to “do justly, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

Many other statements in the Jewish tradition emphasize the great importance placed on striving for justice. For example, the Psalmist exhorts: “Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute” (Psalms 82:3). The Book of Proverbs asserts: “To do righteousness and justice is preferred by God above sacrifice” (Proverbs 21:3).

Jews have a special obligation to actively work for peace. While there are many commandments that require a certain time and place for their performance, with regard to the mandate to “seek peace and pursue it” (Psalms 34:15), we are to seek it in our own place and pursue it in other places (Midrash Leviticus Rabbah 9:9).

It is significant that many of the most important Jewish prayers conclude with a supplication for peace. These include the Amidah — silent prayer also known as the Shmoneh Esrei that is recited three times daily — the Priestly Blessing, the grace after meals and the Kaddish.

While Judaism expresses the concept that Jews are a chosen people, this does not imply any special favoritism, but rather obligations and responsibilities — a call to greater involvement, of being a “light unto the nations” (Isaiah 49:6) in working to improve the world.

There is a commandment that is repeated in various formulations 36 times in the Torah, more often than any other mitzvah: “You shall not oppress a stranger, since you yourselves know the feelings of a stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 23:9, for example). Having been aliens in a foreign land, we should know what it is like to be oppressed and looked down upon simply for being foreigners.

Based on this frequent scriptural repetition, Rabbi Emanuel Rackman, former chancellor of Bar Ilan University in Israel, points out that Judaism teaches a special kind of justice, an “empathic justice” that seeks to make people identify themselves with each other’s needs, hopes and aspirations, as well as defeats and frustrations. Because Jews have

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known the distress of being slaves and the loneliness of having been strangers, we are to project ourselves into the souls of others and strive to improve their conditions.

To help the poor and hungry and to support communal purposes and institutions, Judaism places great stress on the giving of charity. The Hebrew word for charity, tzedakah, literally means “righteousness” and is derived from the same root as tzedek, “justice.” In the Jewish tradition, giving tzedakah is not an act of condescension by one person to another who is in need.

Rather, it is the fulfillment of a mitzvah, a holy commandment, to a fellow human being who has equal status before God. For this reason, many Torah laws are designed to aid the poor: The produce of corners of the fields are to be left uncut for the poor to take (Leviticus 19:9); the gleanings of the wheat harvest and fallen fruit are to be left for the needy (Leviticus 19:10); and during the sabbatical year, the land is to be left fallow so the poor (as well as animals) may eat of whatever grows freely (Leviticus 25:2-7).

Judaism is concerned with the proper treatment of non-Jews as well as Jews. The Talmud contains many statutes that require Jews to assist and provide for non-Jews as well as Jews, all “for the sake of peace.”

Judaism teaches that people must struggle to create a better society. The Torah frequently admonishes: “And you shall eradicate the evil from your midst” (Deuteronomy 13:6, 17:7, 21:21, 24:7). Injustice cannot be passively accepted; it must be actively resisted and, ultimately, eliminated. The Talmudic sages teach that one reason Jerusalem was destroyed was because its citizens failed in their responsibility to constructively criticize each other’s improper behavior (Talmud Shabbat 99b). They indicate that “love which does not contain the element of [constructive] criticism is not really love” (Midrash Genesis Rabbah 54:3).

While the essential elements of Jewish practice include devotion to Torah, study, prayer, performing good deeds and other mitzvot and cultivating a life of piety, Judaism teaches that to be considered truly pious, a person must also protest against injustice in society (Shabbat 55a).

Judaism stresses that we are to love other people as ourselves, to be kind to strangers,

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and to act with compassion toward the homeless, the poor, the orphan, the widow, even toward enemies, and to all of God’s creatures. The Torah also urges us to be activists and not “stand by our neighbor’s blood,” which means not allowing evil to happen to others while doing nothing to stop it. We are, as the account of Cain’s question in Genesis implies, “our brother’s [and sister’s] keepers.” The Prophets understood this, and so did our Sages throughout the centuries.

Of course, while it is essential for Israel and the world that these and other universal values be applied, this does not mean that Israel’s needs be ignored. As Hillel asked, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me?” But it is also essential that we do not consider only our own needs, because as Hillel continued, “If I am only for myself, what am I?” And, almost 2,000 years before Rev. Martin Luther King stressed “the fierce urgency of now,” Hillel added, “if not now, when?”

What about the attitudes of liberals toward Israel? One can love Israel and be critical of some of the policies of its government. The highest form of patriotism may be to challenge one’s country to live up to its highest ideals. There are times when the best thing a friend can do is to reveal an inconvenient truth.

An American who, for example, opposed the U.S. invasion of Iraq and opposes policies of the current administration to give major tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and to roll back regulations to decrease greenhouse emissions and other environmental safeguards does not hate the United States. Similarly, a Jewish liberal is not a hater of Israel if he or she, while recognizing the difficulties involved and the significant Palestinian responsibilities for the current situation, feels that Israel should be doing more to promote peace, because this is necessary for Israel to have a decent future.

Unfortunately there are people, liberals and conservatives, whose positions about Israel are wrong and based on prejudice and hatred, but to brand all liberals — or all conservatives — as hateful and evil is wrong and counterproductive. PJC Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D., is the president emeritus of Jewish Veg and is president of the Society of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians.

MAY 18, 2018 19

Headlines Friendship: Continued from page 1

different facets, so it was a very sort of quick but thorough survey of what’s going on over there,” said Levy.

The group heard from Yuval Wagner, founder and president of Access Israel, a nonprofit organization established in 1999, “whose main mission is to promote accessibility and inclusion to improve the quality of life of people with disabilities and the elderly.” They also networked with other leaders from Friendship Circles from around the United States and Australia, an experience Levy described as highly beneficial.

“It was definitely very productive,” added Rudolph. “It definitely got us thinking a little differently about ways that we are going to properly address this population.”

Also on the agenda was figuring out how to best utilize the new space that the

Friendship Circle acquired in September at 1926 Murray Ave., next door to its current Squirrel Hill headquarters. The Friendship Circle is currently redesigning the site.

“We recently purchased a new building next door to our current building and are trying to find the best uses of this, so we are bringing back some information, maybe not answers, but helping us along the way to figure out things,” said Levy.

Moving forward, The Friendship Circle Pittsburgh’s executive committee will meet prior to a larger board meeting where both the Israel experience and potential uses for the new building will be discussed, said Rudolph.

Rudolph was quick to emphasize that the future is bright.

“I think the number one takeaway that we all had,” he said, “was the amount of human potential that exists.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

p The group at the Kotel

p Laurie Eisenberg

p Ross Harrison

unrestricted and unmonitored.”

Laurie Eisenberg, professor of Middle East history at Carnegie Mellon University, also believes pulling out of the deal may have been a mistake.

“I would have supported staying in the agreement, while pressing every possible way to ensure the Iranians were complying, and that the inspectors had access to the sites necessary to confirm compliance,” she said.

While Eisenberg has “assumed all along that the Iranians were continuing with their weapons of mass destruction plan,” she also assumed that “the Americans and Israelis were secretly trying to sabotage that plan.”

“To my mind, the agreement was useful as an obstacle to the Iranians,” Eisenberg explained, adding that if the deal slowed the Iranian’s pursuant of nuclear weapons, the Americans and the Israelis would have more time to develop effective methods to disrupt its nuclear intentions.

Among those supporting the president’s move is Stuart Pavilack, executive director of ZOA: Pittsburgh. He believes that pulling out of the deal will make “the world a safer place.”

“Under the deal, Iran was getting the best of both worlds,” Pavilack said. “It was being

treated like a nation of the world while doing what it shouldn’t be doing both in Iran and around the world.”

The deal “never lived up to what it was supposed to be,” he continued. “The inspections weren’t ‘anywhere, anytime.’ Under the deal, inspections of the specified military sites were not allowed, and for other suspicious sites, the IEA (International Energy Agency) had to give 24 days’ notice before inspecting them. If you were going to schedule a drug bust, would you give 24 days’ notice? We know Iran has a history of cheating, and they certainly aren’t a peaceful player in the global arena.”

Ken Eisner, a local AIPAC supporter said he was “pleased we pulled out of the agreement,” but had two concerns: the integrity of the word of the United States in advance of a meeting with North Korea, and how Iran will “react to Israel.” He pointed to last week’s Iranian attacks on Israel from Syria as a case in point.

“I am encouraged by the fact that Germany is standing by Israel regarding the attacks from Syria,” Eisner said. “That makes me feel a little better.”

The Community Relations Council of the

Photo courtesy of The Friendship Circle Pittsburgh

Iran: Continued from page 1

“I’m not suggesting what we should or should not do with Iran regionally,” he added. “I’m saying that the U.S. under the nuclear deal was unfettered in dealing with Iran. We didn’t have to pull out of the nuclear deal to change Iran’s behavior.”

The only calculus in which “the desired outcome could only be achieved by renouncing the nuclear deal is regime change,” he said, stressing that regime change would be “a failed strategy for the U.S. and the Iranians.”

Harrison identified the perception of American integrity, warm relations with European allies and Israel’s best interest as all suffering because of Trump’s decision.

Nancy Bernstein, co-chair of J Street Pittsburgh, agreed.

“In the estimation of 26 former top-ranking Israeli military and security officials, the Iran nuclear deal was working to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons and the U.S. decision to pull out will ‘undermine Israel’s security,’” she wrote in an email.

“The Iran nuclear deal addressed Iran’s behavior vis a vis steps toward developing nuclear weapons,” Bernstein continued. “The deal makers were well aware of Iran’s other destructive regional policies and actions, its support for acts of terrorism, its presence in Syria and its ballistic missiles program. There was always the possibility of dealing with those issues outside the framework of the agreement, and U.S. allies who were partners in the deal (China, Russia, United Kingdom, Germany, France) were willing to do that.”

Now it’s a new ballgame, she surmised.

“Now that the U.S. has pulled out of the nuclear agreement, the U.S. has undermined the deal, and caused a division on a central question of Middle East security between the United States and Israel’s European allies,” she said, “it has further empowered the deal’s hardline Iranian opponents — and most importantly the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Now, Iran can resume the full scope of its former nuclear activities — or advance well beyond them ahead of time — 20 MAY 18, 2018

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Photos provided

p Josh Sayles

File photo

Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh is neither condemning nor supporting the U.S. pullout, but is instead emphasizing the need to prevent Iran from going nuclear.

“Whether or not we agree with the United States’ decision to withdraw from the JCPOA, moving forward we must make it a top priority to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear capabilities,” CRC director Josh Sayles said in an email, using the deal’s preferred acronym. “Iranian proxies surrounding Israel’s borders are also a threat that must be deterred. We were reminded of this only a few days ago when Iran launched 20 missiles at Israel from neighboring Syria.”

Sayles urged “our leaders to take a deliberate, nuanced, and bipartisan approach toward this complex issue.”

“We emphasize the importance of a multilateral approach with our allies who, like the United States, recognize that a nuclearized Iran is a serious threat to all who value democracy and Western ideals,” added the CRC director. PJC Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick at pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines Clinic: Continued from page 2

Transferring the Oakland based clinic to the Hill District allowed ACHD to operate within a scene that was “better suited to the services we provide, and was situated in a place that was accessible to residents who use the clinic,” Fitzgerald said in a statement.

“We’re delighted that we were able to make this move and provide this much-improved clinic space for our residents.”

“This new location will provide us with improved clinical and office space so that we can best serve all Allegheny County residents that need to utilize its services,” added Hacker.

Rachel Klipa, manager of Community Engagement for the Office of Public Art at the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council, found the story of occupant migration despite architectural permanence a fascinating window into this city’s past.

In 2016, Klipa had heard of a Hill District walking tour organized by Zack Block of Repair the World: Pittsburgh. Although she was ultimately unable to attend the 2016 iteration, Klipa participated in 2017 and “loved it,” she said.

So last weekend, after several months of planning, Klipa, through the Office of Public Art, offered the program again.

“The goal of the tour is to highlight the similarities in the historic experiences of the Jewish population and the African-American

experiences in the Hill District,” said Lidji, who along with Terri Baltimore, director of community engagement at the Hill House Association, has led previous versions of the trip. “Those similarities extend to religious, educational, economic and cultural institutions — synagogues that became churches, community centers that served one population and then another.”

Along with visiting the one-time Hebrew Institute, participants observed other posts including the former Irene Kaufmann Settlement House and current Hill House Association main building at 1835 Center Ave., former Congregation Kether Torah and current Zion Hill Full Gospel Baptist Church at 2043 Webster Ave., as well as former Congregation Anshe Lebovitz and current Enon Baptist Church at 110 Erin St. The tour allows participants to “celebrate shared stories of spaces [between] African Americans and Jewish Americans,” said Baltimore. “It’s a really nice way of breaking down barriers between black and white Pittsburgh.”

“The tour is unique in that it also connects history to the present by bringing people into a neighborhood that is alive and thriving today, while also being filled with some beautiful remnants of the past,” said Lidji.

“Even if you’re born and bred here,” said Klipa, “you don’t know the whole story.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Swastika displayed in West Mifflin

A

resident in West Mifflin drew criticism from some neighbors last week when he hung a Nazi flag from his home on Bluff Street, according to TribLIVE. The flag, which displayed a large swastika, was taken down after several neighbors complained, reported CBS Pittsburgh. After removing the flag, the flag owner “allegedly called West Mifflin Borough to apologize for any upset the flag may have caused,” the report noted.

“There were complaints from some of the citizens that they felt it was an offensive flag,” West Mifflin Mayor Chris Kelly told CBS Pittsburgh. “I explained to them it was within his constitutional right to freedom of expression or however he wants to do it. We don’t litigate wisdom or stupidity, anger or hatred. That’s individual beliefs.”

A confederate flag, which has been on the property for some time, continues to fly in front of the home.

“When the Nazi flag and the Confederate flag are flown, they send a distinct message to the Jewish community and to other minority communities that their presence is not welcome in that neighborhood,” said Josh Sayles, director of the Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh. “Brad Orsini, our director of community security, has been monitoring the situation and working closely with the West Mifflin Police Department to make sure that the situation doesn’t escalate, while also being mindful of First Amendment rights.”

Although the man displaying the flags has said publicly that he’s not racist, Sayles continued, “It’s unclear to me how else his actions could be interpreted. It’s a shame that this is taking place in Pittsburgh’s backyard. There is no place for such hate in our community.”

— Toby Tabachnick

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MAY 18, 2018 21

Celebrations

Torah

Wedding

The importance of the wilderness Rabbi Stacy Petersohn Parshat Bamidbar | Numbers 1:1-4:20

I

t seems like it was just a few weeks ago that the Israelites were packing up their lives in Egypt and set out on a new journey into freedom. And what a journey it has been so far. Attacks from the Amalekites, complaints about water and food, reaching Mount Sinai, receiving the Torah, building the Mishkan — and everything in between. The Israelites went through all of this as one community.

groups have more responsibility — and more access to the divine sphere — than others.

The overarching tone of the parshah is subsequently patriarchal and hierarchical.”

The Israelites have undergone an extreme shift, from the chaotic, yet cohesive, life as one single people, to the organized and fractured experience as separate tribes.

This is why the first verse of our parshah is so important. “God spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai in the Tent of Meeting on the first day of the second month in the second year since they went out from the land of Egypt” (Numbers 1:1). The wilderness is a biblical no-man’s land. At the same

The wilderness is a biblical no-man’s land. At the same time, it belongs to no one and everyone.

Goffredi/Holstein: Ide Holstein of Forest Hills and Adora and Stephen Holstein of Pittsburgh, and Susan Roth of Chevy Chase, Md., and Pam Myers and Donald Goffredi of Washington, D.C., announce the marriage of their children, Katie Goffredi and Daniel Holstein, at Temple Sinai. Rabbi James Gibson officiated. Family and friends celebrated the event in Washington, D.C., where Katie and Daniel reside.

Bat Mitzvah Gabriela Shannon Berger, daughter of Rachel and Adam Berger, will become a bat mitzvah on Saturday, May 19 at Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha. Grandparents are Alan and Marcia Berger, Sol Pardes and Joan Weinreich. Siblings are Jonah and Aaron.

Gabby is a seventh-grader at Community Day School. Her interests include playing cello and doing gymnastics.

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In this week’s Torah portion, Bamidbar, things start to rapidly the change for the Israelites. The able-bodied men are counted in a census. The tribes are divided and stationed around the Mishkan. The members of the tribe of Levi are given special positions and duties, apart from everyone else.

In “Torah: A Women’s Commentary,” Beatrice Lawrence writes, “Though all of the members of the community are traveling to the same place, they do so in a structured fashion in which boundaries of tribal units are carefully maintained, and in which some

time, it belongs to no one and everyone.

Sinai is specifically mentioned to remind us of the giving of Torah and the covenant established between God and Israel. Despite the new hierarchy that is established in the following verses, God and Torah belong to each of the Israelites as much as each of the Israelites belongs to God and Torah. PJC Rabbi Stacy Petersohn is the spiritual leader of Congregation Emanu-El Israel in Greensburg.

This column is a service of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinic Association.

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MAY 18, 2018 23

SPONSORED CONTENT

CASE STUDY: THIRD-PARTY SPECIAL NEEDS TRUSTS PLANNING FOR FAMILY MEMBERS WITH DISABILITIES – Part 1

“Supplemental Needs Only” special needs trust.

The trust would make sure that David would stay eligible for needed coverage, and still get the advantage of the inheritance from his mom. She named her daughter to be the Trustee with her son-in-law as the official backup or successor.

This is one in a series of articles about Elder Law by Michael H. Marks., Esq. Michael H. Marks is an elder law attorney practicing at Marks Elder Law with offices in Squirrel Hill and Monroeville.

Send questions to michael@marks-law.com or visit www.marks-law.com.

Minnie was a widow and had two adult children.

Her son David had autism and some health problems. He lived alone in his own apartment and functioned independently, but worked only minimally and had a small income. His mother helped out with necessities and with extra cash and of course assisted and took care of him in many other ways. David had long been covered

by Medicaid, a public healthcare benefit that paid for his very expensive prescription medications.

Minnie wanted to provide for him securely after she was gone, but if she left an inheritance directly to David, he would become ineligible for Medicaid. Medicaid is for people who don’t have much income or assets.

She could decide to leave David’s share of the inheritance to her daughter Sally instead, and she trusted Sally 1000%... But if something happened to Sally, she wasn’t as certain that she could rely informally on Sally’s husband to use the money for David (and she really didn’t trust her grandchildren to spend the money for their disabled uncle, either).

The solution for taking care of David was to create the right kind of special needs trust planning.

With our help Minnie wrote a Will that included a

When Minnie died the plan worked just as intended. David stayed eligible for health coverage to pay for his expensive prescription medications and Sally used his trust to buy him things that he needed, and that enriched his life. David got a much-needed new computer and TV, some furniture, new clothes to replace his old ones, and could still go out to a movie or a ballgame.

Here’s how the trust works to keep David eligible for needed public benefits. First, the trust is a “discretionary” trust: distributions are entirely within the discretion of the Trustee.

David has no right to make the trustee pay, and the trustee has no actual legal duty to support David. Second, the trust says that the money can only be spent in ways that will “supplement and add to, but never supplant or replace” other public benefits available for David’s basic need.

Sometimes, a family member is not a good choice as Trustee for a special needs trust.

For a disabled person with greater needs, a professional trustee organization is often a better choice. Not only does a nonprofit

charitable trust or private trust company help by managing the money and fulfilling the complicated compliance and tax reporting, they often also have great expertise in helping people with disabilities. They know what services and benefits are available and can make sure the beneficiary gets everything they need, more so than a private individual can.

In part two of this series and beyond, I’ll discuss First Party Trusts and additional strategies for disabled individuals.

At Marks Elder Law, we help people every day with issues like these. I invite your questions and feedback. Please let me know how I can help you or your family.

With these provisions, the Medicaid authorities agreed that the money was not owned by David individually or under his control; that it was not intended for his basic maintenance and support; and that overall it was not so closely tied to David as to be an “available resource” for him. If it were considered “available,” he would be ineligible for Medicaid.

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This kind of special needs trust is called a “Third Party Trust” because money for the trust came not from David himself, but from his mother, a third party. A “First Party Trust” is different: it’s created with the disabled person’s own money, such as from a settlement or an inheritance received directly. It’s rules are more stringent and less flexible. A Third-Party Trust like Minnie’s allows much more freedom in how the trust is created, who can administer it, and how the money can be spent.

Joyce Offerman.............................................Shirley Levenson George Pattak ..................................................... Aaron Pattak George Pattak ..................................................... Phillip Pattak Evelyn Rebb ................................................ Albert Kuperstock Ferne Rogow............................................ Rebecca Bluestone Barry Sadowsky ......................................Geraldine Sadowsky Goldie Samuels ..................................................Hannah Miller Goldie Samuels .................................................Scott Samuels Sally Santman .............................................. Simon Gastfriend Faye Pearl Schwartz ............................................ Arnold Pearl Karen K. Shapiro ............................................. Hyman Shapiro Don & Michele Soffer ...............Aunt Margaret (Margie) Levine Jerome Solomon................................................ Rae Solomon Freda Spiegel ........................................Sarah Perr Greenberg Mrs. Gail Stept ................................................Jacob Dickman Harold C. Weiss ................................................... Phillip Weiss

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Obituaries GOLDSTEIN: Harvey A. Goldstein, of Rockville, Md., formerly of Pittsburgh, suddenly on Friday, May 11, 2018. Beloved husband of Martha Goldstein; loving father of Abraham Goldstein; devoted son of Sandra and the late Morton Goldstein; brother of Lynne (and her husband Ted) Rudov. He is also survived by many other loving family and friends. Service held at Pumphrey’s Colonial Funeral Home in Rockville, Md. A graveside service will be held at Homewood Cemetery, Pittsburgh, at a later date. Memorial contributions may be made to Manna Food Center, 9311 Gaither Road, Gaithersburg, MD 20877. Please view and sign the family’s online guestbook at pumphreyfuneralhome.com.

GUSKY: Sheldon Gusky of Pittsburgh, on Wednesday May 2, 2018, passed away surrounded by his children and friends, with his best friend of 39 years to the day they met, his wife Karen by his side. Loving father of Jason and Raymond of Pittsburgh, Allison of Riverhead, Long Island, N.Y., and Ross of Pleasant Hill, Calif. Beloved son of the late Kathryn (Kitty) and Albert Gusky of blessed memory. Considerate son-in-law of Sandra Hirshman Robinowitz of Delray Beach, Fla., the late Raymond B. Hirshman, and the late Sandford Robinowitz of blessed memory. Sheldon was preceded in death by a sister Myrna Gusky Borman of Pittsburgh. Sheldon grew up in Squirrel Hill and attended Taylor Allderdice High School. He remembered all his teachers by name and shared many memories of those days, and would reminisce about where all his friends lived -- the exact house number and street name. Sheldon was always proud to say that he was in the Navy and had a great time flying under the radar. He was a member the US Naval Support Activities in Naples, Italy. While in Naples, he played baseball throughout Europe.

He was a petty officer third class radioman. He continued with the CB Radio family using the name “Battleship” when he came back to the states. Coming back to Pittsburgh he worked at Honus Wagner Sporting Goods Store; played baseball with the Bull Dogs and in the Federation League; rode with the Black Knights; and was a bouncer at night in many Shadyside establishments. He loved restaurants, and ate the best meals, until he met Karen. He was her biggest fan trying different foods that she would be making for the first time, i.e. salmon, duck, tuna tartare, and weekly matzah ball soup that he ate religiously. Sheldon worked for Westinghouse Plant Apparatus Division (WPAD), a prime contractor for the US Nuclear Navy for 35 years. At work, everyone knew Sheldon as Gus. WPAD was instrumental in the development and launching of the USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear submarine, and the entire US Nuclear Navy fleet that followed, and still operates today. Gus started in the WPAD TWX Room, where he used skills he learned while serving in the Navy for 4+ years. The TWX Room was where teletype messages were sent and received to all entities of the US Nuclear Navy Program. Gus was an extremely fast and accurate typist, and his outputs were legendary.

Gus advanced to become a maintenance specialist, where he performed a wide variety of tasks including classified document courier, records management, mail-related services and selected maintenance work. Gus served his country all of his life, and his worthy contribu-

tions are valued. Sheldon’s life revolved around his wife Karen and children: Raymond, Ross, Allison and Jason. He was a man who didn’t express himself with words, but shared his love through all the activities and time spent with his children: He loved baseball -- playing the sport himself, coaching all the boys, or just sitting in the stands. You could hear him helping the coaches from the sidelines, through little league, college ball and Frontier league (minors).

He was so proud of how far Ross has gone in baseball. He had a special relationship with each child, whether getting the latest electronic devices and having Allison show him how to use them; ice skating in Schenley Park, watching the Pittsburgh Marathon annually, and Sunday swimming at the Jewish Community Center Family Park. He loved to watch hockey and collect Nascar at flea markets with Jason. He enjoyed spending time with Raymond, mostly in the car, going to school, the park, to baseball and to work. He played Mr. Mom well. The time spent day to day, in moments of illness, Ray was there to help him get around and stay upright, with Jason’s help. Through all his life he shared his love of music -- Doo Wop/classics and the Jersey Shore with his children, taking them to Wildwood Crest for the last 34 years.

Sheldon was a gentle giant with a loud roar at times; a fierce, loyal, honest, had loads of integrity, and most thoughtful all the days of his life.

Services were held at Shaare Torah Congregation. Internment at Gemilas Chesed Cemetery, White Oak, Pa. Contributions may be made to GI Transformation Research Fund, ATT: Dr. Nathan Bahary, Hillman Cancer Center, 5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15232; Sheldon was a pancreatic cancer survivor; Shaare Torah Congregation, 2319 Murray Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15217; and Hillel Academy, 5685 Beacon Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217.

HINECK-STRAHL: Greta Hineck-Strahl, on Friday, May 11, 2018. Beloved wife of the late Saul Hineck and Milton O. Strahl. Loving and cherished mother of Joanie Hineck Reisfeld and Walter Van Hineck. Stepmother of Neil Strahl, Andrea (late Stuart) Cohn, Shelley (Randy) Piechowicz and Ira (Michelle) Strahl. Former mother-in-law of Jonathan Reisfeld. Sister of the late Ernie Simon. Grandmother of Zachary Reisfeld.

Stepgrandmother of Blake, Maurice, Shirley, Jason, Marcus and Hannah. Aunt of Susan Indovina, Leslie Mitchell, Stephen Kuznetsov and Susan and Vicky Simon. Also survived by caretaker and special friend Victoria Hodge.

The family wishes to extend their heartfelt appreciation to the staff at Charles Morris Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for their compassionate care. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Beth Shalom Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Charles Morris Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15217 or Jewish Residential Services, 4905 Fifth Ave # 3, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 or Jewish Family and Community Services,5743 Bartlett St, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. schugar.com HUMMEL: Linda Hummel age 70, of Squirrel Hill, formerly of Carnegie and West Palm Beach, Fla. died She died May 13, 2018.

Beloved wife of Mark Hummel; loving mother of Adam (Mindy) Zweig; grandmother of Cole Zweig whom she loved dearly; aunt of

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Wendy Crann; daughter of the late Milton and Dorothy (Bable) Klein. She had a remarkable mind — if she met you she always remembered your name. She had an impeccable sense of style and a great sense of humor, her jokes were always spot on with delivering the punch lines. Linda loved her son Adam and his wife Mindy. She loved the Pittsburgh Penguins and enjoyed competing with the on air contestants while watching “Jeopardy,” always taking pride in knowing the answers when the contestants didn’t. Service held at the D’Alessandro Funeral Home & Crematory Ltd. in Lawrenceville. Memorial contributions may be directed to wags4kids.org/blog/in-memorial-linda-hummel. dalessandroltd.com LABBIE: Herbert George Labbie passed away peacefully on Saturday, May 12 while holding the hand of his “only acknowledged” child. He was a funny, intellectually curious, and kind gentleman. Herb studied biophysics and chemistry undergrad at the University of Pittsburgh and then went to University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Over the course of his life, Herb was a medical researcher, personal injury lawyer, medical expert witness, money manager and certified market technician. He enjoyed writing a newsletter for institutions about the stock market and economy. Herb was proud to have correctly predicted the market crash of 1987 in his newsletter, “Technical Portfolio Strategies,” and saving his client’s money. He was a voracious reader; at one point perusing nine newspapers from around the world every day.

Also a bibliophile, Herb especially loved “The Joys of Yiddish.” Herb was a loving and devoted son, brother, uncle, husband to the late Martha K. Labbie, and father. He is survived by his daughter Barbra Lee Labbie and son-in-law Robert E. Bowman, nephews Jay B. Herman, Rick Steinweg, Bernd, Reiner and Peter Dankelman and nieces Beryl (Jonathan) Rosenberg, Blanche Bianca (Steinweg) Whiting, Brigitte (Schodel) Hemmerle, Sigrid (Schodel) Joswiak, many much loved grand nieces and nephews, in-law Mary Bowman, sister-in-laws Elisabeth Steinweg and Gertrude Schodel as well as dear friends such as Robert Cohen and Bill Simon.

Services at held at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Interment West View Cemetery of Rodef Shalom Congregation. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com LESSING: Ruth Lessing, born on July 18, 1918, in Gera, Germany, passed away peacefully at her home in Pittsburgh on May 4, 2018, at age 99. Beloved wife of the late Mark Lessing and the mother of the late Michael Lessing and grandmother of Amy (Beau) Lessing Thompson. She is preceded in death by her brothers Dr. Herman Birnbaum, Don Birnbaum and Alfred Birnbaum and sisters Yetta Birnbaum, Bertha Davis and Helen Lederer.

She is survived by nephews, nieces, great nephews and nieces, and great-great nephews and nieces. Ruth came to United States in 1938 with her sister Helen and was followed by sister Betha and her family in 1939. Her brother Herman was already in Pittsburgh and her brother Don settled in Israel earlier.

Her parents Juda and Rosa Birnbaum and younger brother Alfred died in the Holocaust.

The family wishes to thank her caretakers Eileen Stein, Helene Shessler, Iris, and Judy for

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their compassionate care. Contribution may be made to Congregation Beth Shalom, 5915 Beacon Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217.

STEINGART: Esther Krikstone Steingart, on Tuesday, May 8, 2018; preceded in death by husbands Bernard Krikstone and Sidney Steingart and her great friend Stanley Chotiner; loving mother of Phyllis and her favorite son-in-law Hobart Harris, Stephen Krikstone, and the late Barry (Ellen) Krikstone; precious grandmother of Kenny (Allison Tobey) Harris, Melissa (Alan) Borman, Jody (Dana) Mahoney, and David (Sarah) Krikstone; very proud great-grandmother of Malcolm Harris, Jonah Harris, Oscar Borman, Lucas Borman, Eve Borman, Lily Mahoney, Maya Krikstone and Simon Krikstone. Sister of the late Rose Hoffman and Julius Shulman. Esther was supported by loving, compassionate caregivers who helped her maintain her dignity and independence: Carla Magwood-Johnson, along with Shanasha, Tonya, Barbara, Starr and Jercara, as well as the staff of Sivitz Hospice: Nova, Shirley, Ricki, Ashlyn, Stacey and Emily. A lifelong Pittsburgher, Esther weathered the Great Depression, World War II, and other challenges of the “Greatest Generation,” with strength and dignity. She was the world’s biggest fan, first and foremost of her family, whom she adored, always following her grandchildren and great-grandchildren’s activities with great interest. She was an avid sports fan supporting every Pittsburgh sports team including even the University of Pittsburgh basketball and football teams. Last year, Esther celebrated her 95th birthday at PNC Park at a Pirates game with family and extended family from across the country. Esther believed in giving back, volunteering for numerous organizations and delivering Meals on Wheels well into her 70s, with her sister, Rose. Graveside services and interment were held at Beth Abraham Cemetery. Contributions in Esther’s memory may be made to the Jewish Association on Aging, 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., schugar.com WEINBERGER: Ruth Weinberger, on Sunday, May 6, 2018. Beloved wife of Joseph Divack.

Beloved mother of Hannah Weinberger-Beder (Daniel Beder), Rebecca Divack, Melissa (John) Peterson and Anders Divack (Gin Smith). Sister of Paul (Monice Rosenbaum) Weinberger. Grandmother of Jenna, Jared, Jordan, Josh and Sebastian. Graveside services and interment were held at Poale Zedeck Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Pittsburgh Interfaith Impact Network, 564 Forbes Avenue, Suite 808, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 (www.PIIN.org) or Temple Sinai, 5505 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217 or National Jewish Health (NationalJewish.org). Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com

Unveiling TABACHNICK: On Wednesday, May 23, 2018 (9 Sivan), at 3 p.m., family and friends will gather at Poale Zedeck Memorial Park in Gibsonia to unveil a monument in loving memory of Norman Tabachnick. We will also mark the third yahrzeit of Norman’s beloved wife of 64 years, Gladys. PJC MAY 18, 2018 25

Community The Book of Ruth

t Ruth (Delilah Picart) rejoices with her younger self (Mia Brewer) at the mikvah

“The Book of Ruth” communitywide Shavuot Shpiel held three performances, two at the Jewish Community Center Katz Theater and one free show at Community Day School for the entire student body. The intergenerational cast and musical team included more than 60 people from Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist and Orthodox congregations and independent minyanim, including local clergy. The show was produced by ShpielBurgh Productions, which was created by Elinor S. Nathanson and Sara Stock Mayo with their inaugural production of last year’s “Hadassah, A Persian Musical Purim Shpiel.”

All proceeds from “The Book of Ruth” will go to Jewish Family and Community Services Refugee and Immigrant Services and the Jewish Community Center of Puerto Rico’s Hurricane Maria Relief Fund.

p Ruth (Delilah Picart) dreams about the return of her husband, Machlon (Alan Friedman) along with the mohel bear (Peter Kogan) and their “baby bear” (Benjamin Kogan)

u Naomi (Cara Shuckett) and Ruth (Delilah Picart) after Ruth returns from Boaz’s field with barley for them to eat.

p Boaz (Leon Zionts) tells Ruth (Delilah Picart) and Naomi (Cara Shuckett) that he will be their redeemer.

p Several members of the cast tap dancing with the barley harvest

Chabad of Squirrel Hill’s Jewish Discovery Center

Outdoors with Temple David

Photos by Sara Stock Mayo

Temple David Weiger School students weeded the outdoor sanctuary to get ready for the congregation’s outdoor summer services

u Andrew Bright, Sarah Cohen, Isabel Bakaturski and Sara Pechersky take a break from weeding.

Photo courtesy of Temple David

p Students enjoy sweet times at Chabad of Squirrel Hill’s Jewish Discovery Center Photo courtesy of Chabad of Squirrel Hill

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Community Pride at Temple Sinai Thirty people participated in the first community Pride Seder Saturday evening, May 5, held at Temple Sinai and organized by Sinai’s Pride Tribe with support from Women of Temple Sinai and funding from the Simon Hafner Charitable Foundation through the PNC Charitable Trusts and the Fine Foundation. Taking from the traditional Passover seder, participants shared stories and hardships of LGBTQ life, celebrated freedoms achieved and explored freedoms not yet gained. The seder welcomed LGBTQ individuals beyond the Jewish community as well as Allies of the LGBTQ community, including members from the Sixth Presbyterian Church, Bet Tikvah, Temple David, Hillel Jewish University Center and Repair the World.

p From left: Temple Sinai members Carol and Rick Rosenthal, Rabbi Keren Gorban, Laura Fehl with Deb Scheib from Temple David

p From left: Lydia Bestul, Repair the World; Kate Passerarelli and Stefanie Wright, Temple Sinai Photos courtesy of Temple Sinai

At Temple David The Celebration of Learning at Temple David’s Weiger Religious School culminated a year of study about Jewish values. Throughout the year the students raised funds to support 10

local organizations. On Sunday, April 29 representatives of those organizations celebrated and received the donations.

p Kate Livingston (center), representing Beverly’s Birthdays, was part of Temple David’s Celebration of Learning. Natalie Keough, Josh and Nate Goldberg and Aidan and Sara Pechersky presented the organization with a check consisting of funds they raised throughout the year.

p Rabbi Barbara Symons, Max Wolper, Joseph Raithel, Henry and Sylvie Casher and Jake Carney discuss how to pay for things at the Braddock Free Store. The answer ... with hugs!

Photos courtesy of Temple David

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MAY 18, 2018 27

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