Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 8-13-21

AUGUST 13, 2021 | 5 Elul 5781

Candlelighting 8:02 p.m. | Havdalah 9:02 p.m. | Vol. 64, No. 33 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

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Cautious optimism: Day schools Delta variant hopeful for ‘more regular year’ complicates High Holiday planning

NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Breaking new ground

By David Rullo | Staff Writer

Affordable housing and more at former B’nai Israel site

opportunities for academic and social-emotional growth, Bails said.

CDS, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year, will continue to prioritize outdoor eating, with students sitting 6 feet apart. If the weather is too cold, or inclement conditions arise, Bails said, kids will eat indoors, but always with 6 feet between them.

Where distancing requirements will change, she explained, is during non-eating times: Instead of students and staff keeping 6 feet apart as they did last year, that distance will be decreased to 3 feet.

Mask wearing remains required for all students and staff regardless of vaccination status, and Bails said that 100% of CDS staff are vaccinated. Moving forward, vaccination will be required for all new employees.

Bails believes that, as parents have not asked as many questions about CDS’ COVID-19 strategies as they had at this time last year, they are confident in CDS’ ability to protect students and staff.

“I think families really trust us to keep their children safe and healthy,” she said.

When asked about plans for the High Holidays, most congregational leaders begin their answer the same way: “What we currently have planned is…”

The emphasis on “currently.”

Executive directors, shul presidents and rabbis, cautious of the COVID-19 variants and remembering the nimbleness required at this time last year, acknowledge that plans may need to be changed based on CDC guidelines and recommendations.

Take Squirrel Hill’s Temple Sinai.

Beginning Aug. 5, the congregation moved from a relatively relaxed “Phase II” plan to a more vigilant “Phase III,” said Drew Barkley, its executive director.

The Reform congregation now requires all congregants attending in-person services to wear face masks, and vaccinations are required for all members aged 12 and up, with the exception of those unable to be vaccinated for medical reasons. The congregation is operating on an honor system and is not requiring vaccinated members to register their status. That policy is expected to continue through the High Holidays, Barkley said, but Temple Sinai will finalize its plans by Aug. 16. They will also offer livestreamed services.

It’s not ideal, but “This is where we are today,” Barkley said.

Several blocks away, Chabad of Squirrel Hill is planning to host in-person services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, with outdoor shofar blowing services on Rosh Hashanah for those not comfortable indoors, Rabbi Yisroel Altein said. All CDC guidelines, including masks when required, will be followed.

“Things are moving quicker than anyone imagined, though,” Altein said, “so we’ll see over the next month what happens.”

The Orthodox Shaare Torah Congregation

Please see Schools, page 14

Please see Planning, page 14

Page 2

LOCAL Small but mighty

Carnegie Shul perseveres through COVID Page 3

LOCAL ‘Healing Ink’

Free tattoos offered to those affected

by Pittsburgh synagogue shooting Page 4

 Enjoying outdoor recess at Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh

Photo courtesy of Rabbi Sam Weinberg via Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

W

ith the start of the school year quickly approaching, administrators at Pittsburgh’s three Jewish day schools are optimistic about the months ahead. Following a 2020-21 academic year largely dictated by evolving COVID-19 concerns, school officials are keeping abreast of new pandemic mandates while preparing for an educational experience that, they hope, will be more akin to pre-pandemic days.

As of Aug. 3, Community Day School had not released its COVID-19 plan for the school year, which begins on Aug. 24. Jennifer Bails, CDS’ director of marketing, said administrators were continuing to examine the COVID mitigation strategies that were effective last year, including podding and distancing.

“We were successfully able to have in-person school from August to June with very limited interruptions,” Bails said.

Last year, CDS students were divided into pods, or cohorts. They will be podded again this year, but more children will be included in each group in order to increase

keep your eye on PittsburghJewishChronicle LOCAL

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Headlines Groundbreaking celebrates B’nai Israel’s redevelopment as affordable housing — LOCAL —

By Sarah Abrams | Special to the Chronicle

C

onstruction has begun on the transformation of the former B’nai Israel Synagogue at 327 N. Negley Avenue into 45 mixed-income apartments, an urban farm and a water-reclamation system.

A ceremonial groundbreaking event on Aug. 6 drew a host of project supporters, including Robin Weissmann, executive director and CEO of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency; Molly Onufer, the assistant communications director for Mayor William Peduto, on behalf of the mayor; and Kevin Malachi Pugh, legislative assistant to Pennsylvania Rep. Ed Gainey.

“We think it’s very important to recognize all of the effort it’s taken to get here,” said Michael Polite, executive vice president of Beacon Communities, which is heading the project.

“After the last 17 or so months, we have the opportunity to come together with our friends and neighbors to celebrate something.”

The adaptive-reuse project will cost $18.5 million and is financed through a mix of state, local and private funding sources.

The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency provided financing through a low-income housing tax credit allocation, first mortgage loan and other funds. Other funding came from the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh, the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh and BNY Mellon.

B’nai Israel was founded in the early 1900s and opened its synagogue in 1923.

Attendance boomed as many Jews moved from the Hill District into parts of Pittsburgh, then referred to as “East End suburbs.” In the 1970s, the congregation’s membership began

p Supporters of the 327 North Negley Residences project at the Aug. 6 groundbreaking

to decline as the Jewish population moved further into neighboring suburbs, and in 1995 B’nai Israel closed. The building was most recently used by the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh Charter School.

The synagogue will be transformed in four parts, according to officials. First, the school building will be repurposed to build a 45-unit mixed-income environmentally focused housing community. Second, the sanctuary (also known as “The Rotunda”) will be transformed into a 10,000-squarefoot multi-use space with a focus on performing and visual arts, as well as a community-centered space. Next, the front lawn will be transformed into a regenerative

farm. Finally, a microgrid — a battery that stores solar generated electricity — will be installed on the residential building, allowing the site to be energy self-sufficient.

Reverend Ricky Burgess, who serves on Pittsburgh’s City Council (District 9), spoke at the event of the miracle of God’s presence, referencing how the children of Israel walked on dry land after the splitting of the Red Sea as an example.

“This showed that God would meet the needs of its people,” Burgess said. “This facility will also be a place which meets the needs of its people.”

Following the groundbreaking ceremony, attendees were invited to take guided

Photo by Sarah Abrams

tours inside the building where work is already underway.

Beacon Communities does not usually hold groundbreaking ceremonies, said Beacon Communities CEO Dara Kovel, but an exception was made at 327 North Negley Residences because of the anticipated impact of the property’s repurposing.

“This groundbreaking makes community building truly aspirational,” she said. “We are excited for 327 Negley Avenue to be one of the next great accomplishments in Pittsburgh.” PJC Sarah Abrams can be reached at sabrams@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines Despite its small size, The Carnegie Shul remains optimistic — LOCAL —

By David Rullo | Staff Writer

I

n its heyday in the 1960s, Congregation Ahavath Achim — or, The Carnegie Shul — counted between 100 and 200 families as members and enrolled close to 120 children in its religious school, according to the congregation’s vice president, Rick D’Loss.

But as families moved from the more urban neighborhood of Carnegie to newer suburban communities in nearby Scott Township, Mt. Lebanon and Greentree, membership began to decline.

Part of the attrition was due to younger families joining Beth El Congregation of the South Hills, which moved from its previous location in Beechview in the early 1960s to its current home on Cochran Road, and Temple Emanuel of South Hills on Bower Hill Road, whose membership was rapidly growing “Things started to tail off and we were left with a lot of parents and grandparents whose kids left to go to college or wherever,” said D’Loss, who sits on the Borough of Carnegie Council.

Membership losses continued through the 90s but leveled out in the new millennium.

“It doesn’t matter if you have 200 members Please see Carnegie, page 18

p The Carnegie Shul

Photo by David Rullo

Thank you

to our JCC members, JCC leadership and our community partners for your continued support.

Together we will grow stronger—happy, healthy and whole.

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AUGUST 13, 2021 3

Headlines Healing Ink offers free tattoos to those affected

by Pittsburgh synagogue shooting — LOCAL —

By David Rullo | Staff Writer

C

raig Dershowitz is an ardent Zionist.

He doesn’t eat pork or shellfish, runs a successful nonprofit and plans to move to Israel next month. But for the tattoos that cover his entire body except his face, palms and the bottom of his feet, he is what your bubbe might call “the perfect Jewish boy.”

Dershowitz is the co-founder and president of Artists 4 Israel, an organization that works to prevent the spread of anti-Israel bigotry through art and aims to help communities and people affected by terrorism and hate.

The nonprofit was created during 2009’s Operation Cast Lead, or the Gaza War, when Dershowitz was alarmed by “anti-Israeli forces using modern contemporary art forms, particularly in marginalized communities, to talk about Israel in a negative light,” he said.

When he met with leaders of various Jewish legacy groups to explain there was an antisemitic problem in art forms like hip-hop and graffiti, he said, “they laughed us out of their offices.”

Please see Tattoos, page 15

4 AUGUST 13, 2021

 Healing Ink, a project of Artists 4 Israel, provides free tattoos to those injured in terrorist and antisemitic attacks.

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

Photo by Dillon Meyer

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Headlines Local artist takes messages of CHUTZ-POW! comics worldwide — LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

A

few days ago, Marcel Lamont Walker was interviewed by a Spain-based podcaster. Two weeks earlier, Walker delivered a presentation for the National Library of Israel. During the past year, he’s spoken with reporters, educators and students worldwide. Although he doesn’t have any other international talks scheduled at the moment, Walker — a comic book aficionado, Superman devotee and project coordinator of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh’s CHUTZ-POW! Series — is OK with that.

“I need a little bit of a mental breather, just to regroup,” he said.

Throughout the pandemic, as offices shuttered and people retreated indoors, the world grew smaller, Walker said, and it became easier to connect with distant audiences. Very quickly, the Pittsburgh-based artist found himself giving presentations about the CHUTZ-POW! project and the narrative power of comic books to audiences not only across the commonwealth, but in California and Texas, as well.

Since the start of the year, in addition to his work at the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, Walker has given about eight presentations, each ranging from 60 to 90 minutes, he said.

 Marcel Walker

Photo courtesy of Marcel Lamont Walker

To prepare for each talk, he reinvestigates connections between the Holocaust and comics, or trauma and art.

His audiences are varied, he said, but they also have a lot in common.

“It’s a big world, and it’s a small world all at once,” Walker said. “There’s certainly variations in audiences, but not as much as one might think.” Whether the audience is comprised of students in a virtual classroom or a group of museum-goers or educators, “the same kind of inquisitiveness exists.”

Regardless of the composition of the audience, Walker often gets similar questions

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— like why are comics a good means of teaching about the Holocaust, or, aren’t doodles and graphic designs just for kids?

His standard response, he said, is that comics are perfectly suited to convey life’s most difficult subjects. Because they can combine literature and art, comics become a double-powered medium. What’s on the page can be accessed immediately and there’s no pretense, delivering “a unique learning opportunity that you only really get when you use comic books.”

Cara Buchalter, school programs manager at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, described the power of comic books prior to introducing Walker at a virtual talk last February. The Jewish illustrators who created many of the most recognizable characters in comics, she said, were able to deliver “a touchstone for those feeling alienated, lost and separated from their true identities.” The art, she continued, became “an anthem for survival, trauma and loss.”

Although Walker and CHUTZ-POW! have received great praise, there have been some people who have denigrated the work.

Walker cited several online comments following a Haaretz article, published in July. One post referred to CHUTZ-POW! as “pointless.” Another comment called mixing the Holocaust and the comic book subculture a “particularly repulsive American move.”

Walker said those comments and others, which were made prior to his recent

presentation with the National Library of Israel, left him a bit “intimidated.” Even so, the virtual talk went well.

“It was a lovely experience and I’m very glad that I did it,” he said.

As CHUTZ-POW! has grown from one volume to four, and international attention has increased, Walker understands there will be some people who aren’t necessarily on board with the artistic and educational endeavor.

But, as he continues delivering virtual presentations worldwide, he keeps learning more, he said. What’s been most eye-opening, he added, is international audiences are using CHUTZ-POW! as a language learning aid.

When Walker began working on the CHUTZ-POW! series in 2014, he never anticipated people would read stories about upstanders or young survivors as means to better understand the English language.

But that pleasant surprise is in line with the project’s goal, he said.

The aim is getting CHUTZ-POW! in front of readers, “because ultimately, even with all of these programs, the purpose isn’t fulfilled until the books are actually in people’s hands.”

Lauren Bairnsfather, director of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh, agreed.

Since the start of the pandemic, she has presented alongside Walker in several online Please see CHUTZ-POW, page 15

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AUGUST 13, 2021 5

Headlines After earning a degree in music and psychology from the University of Rochester, Greene took choral-related coursework at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign before receiving her master’s in vocal performance from North Park University. From there, she began her cantorial studies at HUC-JIR. Although music had initially drawn her to Judaism, she discovered a passion for textual study, she said. While working with younger students and adults, she found meaning through the exploration of traditional Jewish texts and helping fellow learners gain new understandings.

This realization was underscored during the pandemic. In the process of leading Temple Ohav Shalom’s services on Zoom, Greene recognized that participants needed to be muted in order to prevent a digital cacophony. But she found the resulting collective silence disheartening, as a melding of voices during prayer is such a powerful means of connection. Through weekly study during the pandemic, Greene found solace, she said, by exploring Jewish texts — specifically the commentaries of Nechama Leibowitz, a 20th-century Israeli bible scholar — with others.

Moving forward, Greene believes similar explorations of Torah, Talmud and other

— LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer

C

antor-in-training Stefanie Greene is ready to sing a new tune. The fifth-year student at Hebrew Union College — Jewish Institute of Religion is the new senior Jewish educator at Hillel Jewish University Center.

Greene, who officially began her post with the campus organization on Aug. 2 and replaces outgoing senior Jewish educator Danielle Kranjec, said she’s looking forward to working with students and helping to spark the next generation of Jewish leaders.

With a background in music and years of cantorial internships, Greene is hoping to make prayer a central focus of her work on campus. She said she’s interested in how students at Hillel JUC connect with prayer and how the organization incorporates it within its vast programming.

As a cantorial intern at both Temple Ohav Shalom in Pittsburgh’s North Hills and at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City, Greene has combined music and prayer to create meaningful experiences for people of all ages, she said. Now, she added, being able to work with college students as they explore either Jewish music or texts is a natural fit for her.

 Allison Bloomberg

 Sarah Chalmin

 Jared Stein

 Stefanie Greene

Please see Hillel, page 15

Families, Traditions, Connection These are what make the High Holidays so important.

During this time of limited visiting, gatherings, services, and traveling, you can bring warmth and smiles to your family, neighbors, friends and community by sending New Years greetings through the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle.

l’Shanah Tovah 5782!

The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle will be deeply discounting ad space (for these greetings) in our High Holiday Issues, August 27, September 3, 10.

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To place your Rosh Hashanah Greeting, call Kelly Schwimer at 412-721-5931 or email Kschwimer@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Photos courtesy of Dan Marcus

New Hillel JUC hires primed to enhance Jewish campus life

Calendar Submit calendar items on the Chronicle’s website, pittsburghjewishchronicle. org. Submissions also will 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

SUNDAYS, AUG. 15, 22

The Book of Job is one of the most powerful pieces of writing in the Hebrew Bible. Focused on the question of “Why do the righteous suffer?” this book has universal significance. In this course, Rabbi Danny Schiff will offer a journey through the core themes raised by the Book of Job. $70. 10 a.m. foundation.jewishpgh.org q SUNDAYS, AUG. 15, 22, 29;

SEPT. 5, 1 2

Join a lay-led Online Parashah Study Group to discuss the week’s Torah portion. No Hebrew knowledge is needed. The goal is to build community while deepening understanding of the text. 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org. q MONDAYS, AUG. 16, 23, 30;

SEPT. 6, 13

Join Congregation Beth Shalom for a weekly Talmud study.

9:15 a.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org. q

TUESDAY, AUG. 17

but not required. Use code W243 at donateblood.centralbloodbank.org.

Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh on Zoom to learn more about the Mega Mission 2022. The mission will take place in Israel June 13-21, 2022.

This is your chance to hear the details and ask all your pressing questions.

RSVP required to receive Zoom link.

7 p.m. jewishpgh.org/event/21-megamission-2022-general-informationsession-7-11-2021 q WEDNESDAYS, AUG. 18, 25;

SEPT. 1, 8, 15

Bring the parsha alive and make it personally relevant and meaningful.

Study the weekly Torah portion with Rabbi Mark Asher Goodman. 12:15 p.m. bethshalompgh.org/life-text q THURSDAYS, AUG. 19-

JUNE 30, 2022

The Alan Papernick Educational Institute Endowment Fund presents Continuing Legal Education, a six-part CLE series taught by Foundation Scholar Rabbi Dr. Danny Schiff. Earn up to 12 CLE credits. Each session is a stand-alone unit; you can take one class or all six.

8:30 a.m. With CLE credit: $30/session or $150 all sessions; Without CLE credit: $25/session or $125 all sessions. For a complete list of dates and topics, visit foundation.jewishpgh.org/continuinglegal-education.

From the recent conflict with Gaza to the internal political upheaval in Israel, there is a necessity to get an educated view from the “inside.” Classrooms Without Borders is offering an opportunity to hear from in-house scholar Avi Ben-Hur as he helps us navigate and understand what is happening with the cease-fire with Hamas and the change of leadership of the Israeli government.

2 p.m. classroomswithoutborders.org/ israel-update-2021

q SUNDAY, AUG. 22;

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Yeshiva Schools invites you to attend their annual dinner honoring the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and community builders Rabbi and Mrs. Yosef and Nechoma Itkin. All proceeds benefit academic excellence. 1100 Liberty Ave. 6:30 p.m. To register, visit yeshivaschools.com/dinner

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 18

Join New Light Congregation for a weekly examination of Maimonides’ Mishna Torah Book on Repentance led

by Rabbi Jonathan Perlman. Examine the journey of the soul, sin, forgiveness and the meaning of the High Holidays.

7 p.m. To register, email janet@ newlightcongregation.org.

Donate needed blood during the Jewish Association on Aging’s blood drive in cooperation with Vitalant (aka the Central Blood Bank) at the JAA’s Squirrel Hill campus location, 200 JHF Drive, 15217. Free parking and a Vitalant insulated lunch bag. 10 a.m.

Appointments recommended

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THURSDAY, AUG. 29

“It Couldn’t Happen Here,” a documentary-style play about the Pittsburgh synagogue shootings, is available for screening on Zoom.

Two performances: Aug. 22 at 2 p.m. and Aug. 26 at 7 p.m. Presented by Congregation Dor Hadash. Tickets will be available at dorhadash.net/calendar. q

TUESDAY, AUG. 24

Join Moishe House Pittsburgh in learning Hebrew at Aleph Bet 101. Meant for the beginner, learn in a low-pressure environment with residents Charlie and Sam as teachers. 7 p.m. facebook.com/ moishehouse.pittsburgh q

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 25

The Butler family invites you and a few hundred of their closest vaccinated

friends to the 29th or 30th NCSY Garden Sizzler: A vaccinated adults-only gastronomic extravaganza. 7:30 p.m. centraleast.ncsy.org/sizzler

an Orthodox Jew and vice president at IBM. This event marks the first yahrzeit of Rabbi Ephraim Rosenblum, OBM. $8.

7 p.m. chabadsh.com/event

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FRIDAY, AUG. 27

Join Moishe House Pittsburgh in bringing together long-time community members with new friends during Shabbatluck.

Enjoy a phone-free, homey gathering.

Contributing food is optional, but making a toast is mandatory. Your toast can be as simple as “L’chaim” or as comprehensive as sharing a goal for this community. 7 p.m. facebook.com/ moishehouse.pittsburgh q

SUNDAY, AUG. 29

Join Classrooms Without Borders, The Ghetto Fighters House, South Africa Holocaust and Genocide Foundation for a discussion with Loung Ung, author of the bestselling memoir and the critically acclaimed 2017 Netflix original movie directed by Angelina Jolie, “First They Killed My Father.” For more information, visit classroomswithoutborders. org/loung-ung.

Chabad of Greenfield invites you to attend their Pre-Rosh Hashana Family Fun Day. Enjoy a shofar factory, crafts, food rides, Kona Ice truck and more.

Fun for all ages. Suggested donation $18 per family. Magee Park. 12 -3 p.m. chabadofgreenfield.com Have you been frustrated on dating apps this summer? Maybe it’s because your pandemic dating skills are rusty, or just because conversations never seem to go anywhere? If so, join Moishe House Pittsburgh for their “dating app clinic.” They’ll help edit your profile, take a new photo if needed, give advice about matches and share favorite dating app stories. 2 p.m. facebook.com/ moishehouse.pittsburgh q

MONDAY, AUG. 30

Join Beth El Congregation for its Speaker Series with guest Seth Kibel.

Kibel will present “The Jews of Tin Pan Alley,” exploring the lives and music of celebrated Jewish songwriters, whose achievements would come to dominate that body of work known as the “Great American Songbook.” Classic recordings, rare video clips, and “live” performances from the instructor will make this program as exciting as the music itself.

12 p.m. bethelcong.org Chabad of the South Hills welcomes Yosef Hashimi, who will share his fascinating story, “From Mohammed to Zion.” Born to an Afghani Muslim father, a direct descent of Mohammed, and an American Jewish mother, Yosef is now

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 1

The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh invites you to attend their 126th Annual Meeting.

Broadcast live via Zoom and in person with limited seating at Levinson Hall.

Seating limited with advance registration required. 5:30 p.m. RSVP at ralley@ jccpgh.org. jccpgh.org/event/jcc-126thannual-meeting. q

SUNDAY, SEPT. 12

Join the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh for its 2021 annual meeting “Open Windows.” This year’s honorees are Meyer “Skip” Grinberg and Rabbi Moishe Mayir Vogel. 5:30 p.m. jewishpgh.org/annual-meeting Avi Ben Hur unpacks the causes and core issues that relate to the Arab Israeli Conflict. The goal is to make the subject accessible to educators and give them the tools with which to grapple in the classroom with the subject and with breaking news. Each section will be accompanied with suggestions for further exploration.

2 p.m. classroomswithoutborders.org/ arab_israeli_conflict q

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 14

See Israel with the one you love.

Honeymoon Israel is open to couples of all cultural, racial, religious, gender and sexual identities who are looking to create connections with each other and to Jewish life. Open to couples with at least one Jewish partner. Each trip includes 20 diverse couples from the same city. Learn more at one of three information session: Aug. 11 at 6 p.m.; or Sept. 14 at noon or 6 p.m. jewishpgh.org/ honeymoon-israel q

THURSDAY, SEPT. 23

In cooperation with Tali Nates, founder and director of the Johannesburg Genocide & Holocaust Centre, Classrooms Without Borders begins a new innovative Museums and Memorial series. Alongside CWB scholars, travel with museum historians, experts and contemporary witnesses to 10 different regions to explore the history behind the exhibits, discuss the nature of memory and memorials, and discover how the world remembers the Shoah and honors the lives we lost. 2 p.m.

For more information and to register, visit classroomswithoutborders.org/ holocaust_museums_and_memorials_ around_the_globe. PJC

AUGUST 13, 2021 7

Headlines Home of Jewish artist Henry Koerner adorned with historic landmark plaque — LOCAL —

By Justin Vellucci | Special to the Chronicle

A

Pittsburgh-bred preservationist has a new pet project on her hands: getting the Henry Koerner house in Squirrel Hill listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Caroline Boyce, who previously led the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia, grew up just four or five blocks from the South Negley Avenue home, which many passersby might associate with its decorative stone cherub, or “putto,” statues. Boyce purchased the home in March for $595,000, Allegheny County records show; this year the county assessed the home and property’s value at $307,100.

Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation is placing a plaque at the Koerner home, and Boyce said she is working for further recognition on the national level.

“Pittsburgh preservation is my background, and it was one of those moments where the stars aligned,” said Boyce, who currently heads the Ryan Shazier Fund for Spinal Rehabilitation.

Boyce said the process of seeking historic designation for the home, whose high ceilings and wooden floors beautifully frame professionally mounted artwork on the white, gallery-like walls, “opened up a whole world for me that I never would have imagined.”

“And I do consider my role as owner of the

p Floating stairway in the Koerner house

8 AUGUST 13, 2021

p Exterior of Henry Koerner’s house in Squirrel Hill

house to be a steward of the house,” she added.

The Viennese-born Koerner, who died 30

years ago, became an artist of some renown after fleeing the Nazi regime in Austria in 1938.

Initially arriving in New York and making his way to Pittsburgh in 1952, he painted large canvases that darted between surrealism and magic realism. But he was also a highly sought illustrator and book-cover artist and was commissioned for scores of illustrations of famous people, like President John F. Kennedy, for Time magazine covers. Each person he illustrated sat for him while he drew.

In 1966, Koerner, who was living on cobblestone-strewn Murray Hill Avenue, designed the South Negley Avenue property with local architect Richard B. Righter.

Koerner’s son, Joseph, was 7 when he and his sister moved into the house that year.

“My father wanted to have a home that was a beautiful place to live but also a beautiful gallery space — a white cube, if you will,” said Joseph Koerner, an art historian at Harvard University. “The funny thing about it is this mix of gallery space and domestic setting … and also self-expression. It was a home as self-expression, an artist’s home.”

Joseph Koerner recalls the impact of living on the steep pitch of South Negley Avenue as it linked Squirrel Hill with Shadyside.

“One of my memories is of it frozen up in winter, especially before there were snow tires,” he told the Chronicle. “It was a terrifying sight to see the cars sliding down the hill — I’d look out the window in disbelief.”

Henry Koerner sold his own work out of the house, which came with some responsibilities for his young family, his son said.

“It meant it had to be kept clean,” he laughed. “You always felt somehow you needed to accommodate your life to this

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

Photos courtesy of Caroline Boyce

public display that would intrude … You lived with his pictures, some of which were ceremoniously displayed in my room.”

Joseph Koerner wrote and directed a film in 2016, “The Burning Child,” which, in part, explored the gilded Vienna of his father’s upbringing, as well as his art.

Some people have suggested that, though Koerner was Jewish, he did not see himself first as a Jewish artist. That remains unclear.

“I think it’s hard to tell this story without going back to the point where he discovers his parents and his brother were killed by the Nazis,” Boyce said. “It has influenced his art and his art is a central part of the National Historic Register application.”

“I don’t think he thought of himself as a Jewish painter, per se, but he did see himself as Jewish,” said Arnie Gefsky, who moved to Squirrel Hill in 1949 and never left.

Gefksy, who also is Jewish, was a friend of Koerner’s and a regular visitor to the South Negley Avenue house.

Koerner’s paintings inside the home “were voluminous,” Gefsky said. “It definitely felt like a home but it was designed around his needs for his art. It was modern and the lines were clean.”

Gefsky also has memories of the illustrious, stained glass front door Koerner installed at the house. Originally, Gefsky said, the woman on the door was nude but people in the neighborhood objected, so Koerner painted a bathing suit on her.

“He was a very sensitive guy,” Gefsky said.

“And it was a very nice house.” PJC Justin Vellucci is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

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Headlines — WORLD — From JTA reports

Jewish funeral planned for Dick Farrel, prominent COVID skeptic who died of the virus

The Florida shock radio host and former Newsmax anchor who died of COVID-19 after spending months telling his followers not to get the vaccine was a Jewish man from Queens.

The Aug. 4 death of Dick Farrel, who was 65, has made global headlines because his friends said he urged them to get the vaccine after he fell ill. The private messaging was in stark contrast to his extensive public statements on the virus and vaccines.

On a Facebook page that has since been set to private, Farrel railed against coronavirus protocols, the Daily Beast reported, including U.S. government urgings to get the vaccine. He referred to the virus as a “scam demic” and masks as “face diapers.”

He also promoted misinformation about the vaccines, saying that he knew people who got vaccinated and were hospitalized as a result.

Farrel’s death comes amid a surge of COVID-19 cases in the United States fueled by the more transmissible delta variant.

Florida, which has few restrictions and a relatively low vaccination rate, has been especially hard hit.

Farrel’s real name was Farrel Austin Levitt.

Born to Max and Norma Levitt in Queens,

New York, in 1956, he graduated from Queens College before beginning his radio career in New York. A service will be held at Beth Israel Boynton Beach Chapel, which first announced Farrel’s death, according to its website.

A host on multiple talk radio stations in Florida, Farrel was also a fill-in host for Newsmax, the conservative cable outlet that is a favorite of former President Donald Trump, although it is not clear if Farrel was employed at the time of his death. He is survived by his partner, Kitty Farley.

Hezbollah fires 19 rockets at Israel in worst fighting since 2006 war

Israel and the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah are engaged in their heaviest fighting since the 2006 Lebanon War. Last week Hezbollah fired 19 rockets at Israel. Ten were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system and caused no injuries or damage.

Israel responded with artillery strikes, and videos circulating on social media appear to show Lebanese Druze villagers scuffling with Hezbollah forces transporting a mobile rocket launcher.

This appears to be the first time since 2006 that Hezbollah has openly claimed responsibility for an attack on Israel, according to The Times of Israel. That war between Hezbollah and Israel, which took place 15 years ago in the summer, lasted about a month and claimed the lives of more than 150 Israelis

and more than 1,000 people in Lebanon.

Israel also fought a war against Palestinian terror groups in Lebanon in 1982, and its military occupied a strip of Southern Lebanon from then until 2000.

Friday’s fighting is the latest round in a series of clashes that began on Israel’s northern border. Earlier last week, Palestinian militants fired three rockets at Israel from Lebanon. Israel shelled the area in response, and the following day carried out airstrikes in Lebanon.

Militants in Lebanon also fired rockets at Israel in July, as well as during the conflict with Hamas in Gaza in May. “We have no interest in escalation but we will continue to work to ensure that the northern border does not become a line of confrontation,” Israeli army spokesperson Ran Kohav said, according to The Jerusalem Post. “No side wants war, but on the other hand we will not accept that this continues, that every two to three weeks there is firing towards the north.”

18 Orthodox Jewish girls pulled off New York-bound flight in Amsterdam in dispute over COVID protocols

Dutch police at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport removed 18 Orthodox Jewish girls from a Delta-KLM flight bound for New York on Friday allegedly because they failed to comply with COVID-19 measures about eating at proscribed times.

The girls were part of a group of about 50 people traveling from Kyiv, Ukraine, with a layover in Amsterdam, the NIW Dutch Jewish weekly reported. On the Amsterdam-New York City leg of the journey, which was operated by Delta Airlines in partnership with KLM, some of the girls began to eat their own food outside the designated meal time, allegedly because the flight did not carry food that complied with their community’s strict kosher standards.

When the girls failed to comply with requests to put away their food, flight attendants called police to remove the passengers.

“A group of passengers declined to follow the instructions of our staff and were escorted out of the airplane,” Delta told NIW. The group also was denied in its request to board a later flight that would have still gotten them to New York before the start of Shabbat, when observant Jews are not allowed to travel by airplane.

Rabbi Yanki Jacobs of the Chabad on Campus in Amsterdam provided the girls with some glatt kosher food.

Relatives of the girls said the flight attendants were rude and impatient. Herman Loonstein, a prominent lawyer from the Dutch Jewish community, volunteered to represent the girls in talks with Delta.

For Shabbat, the girls were transferred to Antwerp, a Belgian city with many Orthodox Jews. They returned to the United States on Sunday on a United Airlines flight. PJC

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REVOCABLE LIVING TRUSTS UPDATE This is one in a series of articles about Elder Law by Michael H. Marks., Esq.

and for winding up your affairs and inheritance by your chosen beneficiaries when you are gone.

Michael H. Marks is an elder law attorney with offices in Squirrel Hill and Monroeville.

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

In fact you play all three roles that are involved in the creation of the Trust: you are the Trust creator (also known as settlor or grantor); you are the Trustee(s) of the Trust in charge of your own money; and you are the beneficiaries of your Trust during your lifetime, entitled to use and enjoy your money. (You can name coTrustees along with you, such as children or even make others Trustee in your place.)

Estate planning means making arrangements in the case anything bad happens to you. You get to say who will help you during your lifetime if needed, how the assets of your estate will be distributed after you are gone, and who will be in charge then.

The simple option is to prepare and use a Last Will and Testament. It only comes into effect when you die. However, upon your death (or upon the death of the second spouse to pass away), probate estate administration may be necessary, requiring otherwise avoidable court paperwork, reporting and filings.

An alternative to an estate plan based solely on a Last Will and Testament, is to use a Revocable Agreement of Trust (or so-called “Living Trust”) combined with a special kind of Will (called a “Pour-over Will”). A lifetime agreement of trust is intended to avoid probate costs and hassles. It offers peace of mind knowing that you have done as much as you can now to minimize the burden imposed on those who will wind up your affairs for you. No one has to go downtown or be officially appointed as an Executor, and certain filings are therefore not required.

A Revocable Agreement of Trust is created during your lifetime as the controlling instrument to provide for handling assets now -

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beneficiary. Qualified retirement plan assets can also be included in the Trust if necessary, but require special handling.

creates a risk of unintended income tax costs for the beneficiaries. Special “Qualified Trust” provisions are required for these assets.

Setting up a lifetime agreement of trust costs more up front. It is more complex and substantial undertaking than just preparing a new Will in part because the process of funding the Trust can actually require a lot of time and office resources. The additional upfront cost now can lead to much greater efficiencies and savings later. Unfortunately, a revocable trust won’t reduce or avoid Pennsylvania inheritance tax.

Tax code changes can have a significant impact on trusts and on qualified funds in or outside of a trust. For example, prior to the SECURE Act of 2019, a “stretch IRA” allowed beneficiaries to “stretch out” taxdeferred growth for decades. Now, inherited IRAs must be distributed within 10 years (with some exceptions). The difference to the beneficiary is dramatic.

During your lifetime, you have the same freedom and flexibility over the assets assigned to the trust that you have now. The income tax Qualified retirement plan assets and accounts treatment of assets and income is also ordinarily like IRA’s, 401K’s, etc., have lots of complicated unchanged. If you are unable to continue as tax rules. Putting such assets into a Trust Trustee, someone you choose can step in as successor Trustee(s) in your place. When you are gone, the trust acts like a Will, directing that the bills, debts, taxes and expenses be paid, and the remainder distributed to your beneficiaries e.g. your kids.

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 and your family.

helping you plan for what matters the most

Under a Revocable Trust you transfer the ownership of clearly identified assets into the Trust. In effect, you no longer own those assets as an individual or as husband and wife, but as Trustee(s) of your Trust. We always perform this final “funding” step to implement the Trust for or on behalf of our clients, to make sure that the process is completed properly.

Certain kinds of assets become actually owned by you as Trustee such as real estate, bank deposit accounts and non-qualified investments. Life insurance typically will still be owned by you individually but become payable to the Trust as

With the increasing costs of long-term care, having the help of a legal professional when planning for your family’s future can help you make better decisions that can result in keeping more of your money.

We help families understand the strategies, the benefits, and risks involved with elder law, disability and estate planning.

www.marks-law.com

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

412-421-8944

Michael H. Marks, Esq. michael@marks-law.com member, national academy of elder law attorneys

4231 Murray Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15217

AUGUST 13, 2021 9

Headlines Did a pro-Palestinian campus group actually call for the ‘defunding’ of Hillel?

— NATIONAL —

By Ben Sales | JTA

F

or the past several months, American Jews concerned about antisemitism on campus have had their eyes trained on Rutgers University.

In May, the chancellor of the school’s flagship New Brunswick campus condemned antisemitism — then apologized for doing so after the campus chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine complained.

The next month, unions representing lecturers at the university issued statements calling Israel’s actions “apartheid.”

The school’s longtime Hillel director stepped down at the end of June, warning that “the college campus has been, for as long as I’ve been at Hillel, the fount of antisemitism in America.”

So when social media posts began popping up last week accusing the Rutgers chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine of calling to “defund Hillel,” it seemed to confirm many people’s fears. Jewish activists on Twitter echoed the accusation, and condemnations poured in from sources including an aide to Sen. Ted Cruz and the group StopAntisemitism. In a statement, the

p A student-led group, Jewish on Campus, wrote on Instagram that the Rutgers University branch of Students for Justice in Palestine had called to defund Hillel. The accusation spread across social media.

Photo illustration by Grace Yagel/Photo by Emmanuel Dunand/ Getty Images via JTA

Anti-Defamation League said the demand to “halt funding for the Hillel” was “outrageous.”

There was just one catch: The call to defund Hillel never happened.

Nearly two dozen organizations, including

JEWISH CEMETERY BURIAL ASSOCIATION O F G R E AT E R P I T T S B U R G H RESTORATION ✡ PRESERVATION ✡ CONTINUITY

A Notable Personality • Joseph Denmark-Steubenville

Joseph G. Denmark was born in 1893 in Russia. He was trained as a tailor and in 1925, he and his wife Sarah Small Denmark founded Denmark’s Fur Shop in Steubenville, Ohio. The store prospered and evolved into a full service women’s fashion destination. He was joined in the business by his sons Morris and Meyer, who were later joined by their children. Denmark’s grew to three locations. Joseph was a member of the New York Stock Exchange and the Chicago Board of Trade.

He was an active philanthropist in the Jewish community and throughout the Ohio Valley. Joseph was a past president of B’nai Israel Synagogue, a founder and past president of the Steubenville Jewish Community Council, and a lifelong member of ZOA and B’nai Brith. After his retirement, he lived in Miami Beach for many years. He passed away on December 14, 1989 at the age of 97. A long life well lived. He and Sarah are buried in the B’nai Israel Cemetery in Steubenville.

For more information about JCBA cemeteries, to volunteer, to read our complete histories and/or to make a contribution, please visit our website at www.JCBApgh.org, email us at jcbapgh@gmail.com, or call the JCBA office at 412-553-6469 JCBA’s expanded vision is made possible by a generous grant from the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Jewish Community Foundation

All are Welcome All are Welcome &ƌŝĞŶĚůLJ͕ ŐĂůŝƚĂƌŝĂŶ͕ ŽŶƐĞƌǀĂƟǀĞ &ƌŝĞŶĚůLJ͕ ŐĂůŝƚĂƌŝĂŶ͕ ŽŶƐĞƌǀĂƟǀĞ Rabbi Jonathan Perlman Rabbi Jonathan Perlman

5915 Beacon Street • Pittsburgh, PA 15217 • newligthcongregation.org 5915 5915 Beacon Beacon Street Street •• Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA PA 15217 15217 •• newligthcongregation.org newligthcongregation.org

JOIN NEW LIGHT CONGREGATION FOR THE 2021 HIGH HOLY DAYS JOIN NEW LIGHT CONGREGATION FOR THEEntrance 2021 HIGH HOLY DAYS Services to be held in the Ballroom and on Zoom. on Shady Avenue.

Services to be held in the Ballroom and on Zoom. Entrance on Shady Avenue.

Rosh Hashanah

Monday, September 6th: Rosh Hashanah th: Monday, September September 76 6thth Tuesday, :: Monday, September th Tuesday, September 7 Wednesday, September Tuesday, September 7th:: 8th: th Wednesday, September September 8 8th :: Wednesday,

7:30 P.M. 7:30 A.M. P.M. 8:45 7:30 P.M. 8:45 8:45 A.M. A.M. 8:45 A.M. A.M. 8:45

Yom Kippur

Wednesday, September 15th: 7:00 P.M. Yom Kippur th Wednesday, September 15 7:00 P.M. P.M. Thursday, September 16th15 : th:: 8:45 A.M./5:30 Wednesday, September 7:00 th Thursday, 8:45 Thursday, September September 16 16th:: 8:45 A.M./5:30 A.M./5:30 P.M. P.M.

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th ĞŵĞƚĞƌLJ sŝƐŝƚĂƟŽŶ Sunday: August 29 & September 5th, 10:00 A.M. - 12:30 P.M. th th Sunday: August 29 29th & September September 5 5th 10:00 A.M. A.M. -- 12:30 12:30 P.M. P.M. Sunday: August & ,, 10:00 EĞǁ >ŝŐŚƚ ĞŵĞƚĞƌLJ͗ ϳϱϬ ^ŽŽƐĞ ZŽĂĚ͕ WŝƩƐďƵƌŐŚ͕ W ϭϱϮϬϵ EĞǁ >ŝŐŚƚ ĞŵĞƚĞƌLJ͗ ϳϱϬ ^ŽŽƐĞ ZŽĂĚ͕ WŝƩƐďƵƌŐŚ͕ W ϭϱϮϬϵ EĞǁ >ŝŐŚƚ ĞŵĞƚĞƌLJ͗ ϳϱϬ ^ŽŽƐĞ ZŽĂĚ͕ WŝƩƐďƵƌŐŚ͕ W ϭϱϮϬϵ

For Non-Vaccinated Individuals For Non-Vaccinated Non-Vaccinated Individuals Masking and Social Distancing Enforced For Individuals Masking and and Social Social Distancing Distancing Enforced Enforced Masking

10 AUGUST 13, 2021

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ũĂŶĞƚΛŶĞǁůŝŐŚƚĐŽŶŐƌĞŐĂƟŽŶ͘ŽƌŐ ZĞŐŝƐƚƌĂƟŽŶ ZĞƋƵŝƌĞĚ͗ ũĂŶĞƚΛŶĞǁůŝŐŚƚĐŽŶŐƌĞŐĂƟŽŶ͘ŽƌŐ Or Call: 412-421-1017 ũĂŶĞƚΛŶĞǁůŝŐŚƚĐŽŶŐƌĞŐĂƟŽŶ͘ŽƌŐ Or Call: Call: 412-421-1017 412-421-1017 Or

Students for Justice in Palestine, or SJP, had published an extended statement on July 26 criticizing a New Jersey congressman’s pro-Israel stances. It also called Zionism one of the “real threats to Jewish safety today.”

One line of the statement criticized Hillel’s support of Israel. But the word “defund” (or any of its variations) does not appear in the Please see Hillel, page 11

This week in Israeli history — WORLD — Items provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.

August 13, 1942 — Composer Nurit Hirsch is born

Nurit Hirsch, a musician and composer, is born in Tel Aviv. With Ehud Manor’s lyrics, she writes Israel’s first Eurovisionwinning song, “A-Ba-Ni-Bi,” performed

by Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta in 1978.

August 14, 1910 — Writer Nathan Alterman is born

Nathan Alterman, a poet, journalist, translator, author and playwright, is born in Warsaw. He makes aliyah in 1925. His second book of poems, “The Joy of the Poor” in 1941, is his masterpiece.

August 15, 1096 — First Crusaders set out for Holy Land

The armies of the First Crusade officially embark from Western Europe to capture the Holy Land. European Jews suffer pogroms amid the fervor. The crusaders capture and pillage Jerusalem on July 15, 1099.

PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE

August 16, 2015 — Physicist Jacob Bekenstein dies

Physicist Jacob Bekenstein, whose theory that black holes emit radiation won over Stephen Hawking and advanced work toward a theory of quantum gravity, dies of a heart attack at 68 in Finland.

August 17, 1949 — Herzl’s body reburied in Israel

The body of Theodor Herzl, buried in Vienna in 1904, is reburied with those of his wife and parents on the Jerusalem hill that now bears his name, fulfilling a directive in his will.

August 18, 1994 — Intellectual Yeshayahu Leibowitz dies

Yeshayahu Leibowitz, who courted controversy and argued for a strict separation of religion and state, dies in his sleep at 91 in Jerusalem. He taught sciences at the Hebrew University for almost six decades.

August 19, 2003 — 23 killed in Jerusalem suicide blast

A suicide bomber kills 23 people and injures more than 130 others by detonating an explosive packed with ball bearings on a bus in the Orthodox neighborhood of Shmuel Hanavi in Jerusalem. PJC

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5” W x 13.75” H�The Frick Pittsburgh�Jewish Chronicle

Headlines Hillel: Continued from page 10

statement, nor is there any other call for Hillel to lose financial backing. The statement does support two specific calls for divestment from Israel; neither of those documents references Hillel or its finances.

“Our statement does not call to defund Rutgers Hillel, and we have also never in the past called to defund Rutgers Hillel,” Students for Justice in Palestine told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Rutgers Mutual Aid, another group that spearheaded the statement, sent JTA a similar response.

A call from pro-Palestinian activists to divest from a center of Jewish campus life would demonstrate for many a textbook case of anti-Zionism crossing over into antisemitism. But it didn’t happen. So how did the misinformation take hold on social media?

The first social media account to amplify the “defunding” call was Jewish on Campus, a student-led group launched last year that shares largely anonymous accounts of antisemitism at schools across the country and world. The group pointed to a sentence in the SJP statement that juxtaposes the Rutgers endowment with a mention of Hillel. The sentence argues that pro-Palestinian activists at Rutgers are at greater risk than Jews.

“Moreover, considering Rutgers’ own endowment investments in apartheid Israel, and prominent campus Zionist organizations such as Hillel, with its history of falsely conflating Palestine advocacy with antisemitism, it is pro-Palestine union members, instructors, students and organizers who are at most risk of harassment and least likely to receive support against it,” an Instagram post of the statement said.

Julia Jassey, one of the founders of Jewish on Campus, said that she thought the sentence looked like it was saying the Rutgers endowment funds Hillel — it does not. Because Hillel supports Israel, and SJP’s statement pushed Rutgers to divest its endowment from Israel, she inferred that the statement was calling for Hillel to be defunded.

“They call on the university to divest from ‘oppression and injustice’ and ‘apartheid Israel,’ and they label Rutgers Hillel as a ‘prominent campus Zionist organization’ complicit in oppression and injustice in the very same sentence,” Jassey told JTA. (The statement’s mention of Hillel and the discussion of divestment are in fact separated by several paragraphs.)

“They end by requesting an SJP-led audit of Rutgers’ endowments,” she said. “The implication is quite clear.”

One pro-Israel activist who posted several tweets about the “defunding” accusation, Hen Mazzig, said that in light of SJP’s history, he stands by his interpretation. Mazzig has 56,000 followers, and his tweets about the accusation have collectively been shared hundreds of times.

“The way that I saw it, it was connecting the dots,” he said. “For me, it made sense that this is what they’re talking about, knowing they’re about divestment and promoting divestment, and mentioning Hillel as one Zionist organization the university is investing in, and knowing that one of the PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

actions [endorsed] in the full statement was divestment.”

David Schraub, a professor at Lewis & Clark Law School who comments frequently about antisemitism online, said he had deleted his tweets about the Rutgers episode after reading the SJP statement more closely and determining that it had not called to defund Hillel. He said the statement was confusing and noted that activists had sought to eject Hillels from other campuses.

But he also said the episode pointed to deep-seated dynamics in Jewish social media activism.

“Anytime anyone comes after Hillel, there is going to be a spinning up of the outrage machine,” he said, adding, “Certainly there are plenty of people who, anytime they have the opportunity to take shots at SJP, they are going to be happy to take them without thinking too carefully.”

The Anti-Defamation League, perhaps the most prominent antisemitism watchdog, was among the groups that reacted quickly, tweeting its statement alongside Jewish on Campus’ post on the same day it went up.

One day earlier, it had announced a partnership with Hillel to track antisemitism on college campuses.

“ADL is shocked by this outrageous statement suggesting that Rutgers blacklist and halt funding for the Hillel, which represents Jewish life at Rutgers,” said Scott Richman, who directs the group’s New York and New Jersey office, in the statement.

But when Hillel International, the umbrella group for individual campus Hillels, put out a statement declaring support for Rutgers Hillel, it did not mention “defunding.” That’s because the accusation “may not have been entirely accurate,” a Hillel official told JTA. A statement by the Hillel chapter at Rutgers likewise doesn’t mention “defunding,” though it does lament that “campuses have become increasingly hostile to Jewish life.”

The Hillel’s interim executive director, Rabbi Esther Reed, told JTA that she had no further comment.

Five days after his initial remarks, Richman told JTA that the full SJP statement “certainly makes it clear they’re not focused on defunding or halting funding to Hillel.”

He is still concerned that the statement’s criticism of Hillel “points toward ostracizing a Jewish institution and Jewish students on campus.” That concern is echoed by Hillel spokesperson Matt Berger, who said the most important takeaway from the Rutgers controversy “is that Jewish students and Jewish institutions are being targeted.”

But Richman suggested that he regretted commenting so quickly about the saga on Twitter — even as he said social media remained an important arena for combating antisemitism.

“As always, ADL needs to be very careful with the language it uses,” he said. “As an organization that people in the community pay attention to, with a strong brand and a strong reputation, we have to be very, very careful with how we use that bully pulpit and the responsibility that we have.”

He added, “You have the opportunity to get information out there, to get points of view out there, to raise questions, to raise the issues of the day very, very quickly. The problem is when it devolves into hate and misinformation, that’s not helpful.” PJC

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Center: Vanessa German, nothing can separate you from the language you cry in (detail), March 2021.

Bottom: Spirit of Ecstasy, Charles Sykes for Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Salamanca Town Car, 1923.

Gift of William Penn Snyder, III.

Sporting Fashion: Outdoor Girls 1800 to 1960 is organized by the American Federation of Arts and FIDM Museum at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, Los Angeles. Support for the national tour is provided by the AFA’s Gold Medal Circle: Elizabeth Belfer, Stephanie Borynack Clark, Ashleigh Fernandez, Lee White Galvis, Stephanie R. La Nasa, Merrill Mahan, Clare E. McKeon, Jennifer New, Angela Timashev, and Victoria Ershova Triplett.

Major exhibition program support is provided by the Richard King Mellon Foundation.

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AUGUST 13, 2021 11

Opinion Remembering Ilan Naibryf, Jewish Surfside victim anyone would be lucky to meet Guest Columnist Josh Satok

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’m writing this from Miami, 10 minutes from the beach. There are many reasons to be here — the beach, the sun, the culture. And there are many reasons not to be here. As my grandma keeps calling to tell me, COVID rates are skyrocketing in Florida, and maybe it’s not the best place to be right now. But none of these considerations really mattered to me. I came for a reason nobody should have to come for: to be at the shiva of a former student of mine, Ilan Naibryf, who was one of the victims of the Surfside building collapse in late June.

I came to see his sister Tali, another former student of mine, to be able to give her a hug, and to show up to synagogue as his sisters and parents said the Kaddish, the mourner’s prayer, for Ilan. I came to remember Ilan, to provide some tiny modicum of comfort to his family, and ultimately, to remember what’s really important.

From 2014-2015, I spent a year working at a Jewish boarding school in Greensboro, North Carolina, the American Hebrew Academy. The school no longer exists, but for a year, I lived on the campus, doing a little bit of everything as a “fellow”: planning student activities; organizing Jewish life; coaching the cross country team; working with admissions; serving as a house parent living in the 10th and 11th grade boys dorm; even taking over the classes of the rabbi who was the head of Judaic Studies when he left midway through the year.

I’ve worked with lots of Jewish teenagers in my life, through years as a camp counselor, section head, program director and assistant director. But there’s something special about

What can we take away from this unthinkable tragedy? I hope we can be a little more grateful for what we have, that we can hold onto our loved ones a little tighter, that we can give our grandmothers another call, send our friends another text to see how they’re doing. the bonds you create in spending an entire year living on campus with students, where not only did I teach and coach them, but ate with them in the dining hall, went to Shabbat services together, and spent hours and hours on Sundays driving them back and forth to Target in big white school vans.

Ilan was, simply put, a good kid. Even as a freshman, he was a star soccer player and a laser-fast runner. His smile lit up the room, and he was kind, curious and had boundless energy. After the year we both spent at AHA, Ilan finished high school in Hawaii and then went to the University of Chicago, where he was the student president of Chabad and would have been entering his senior year this fall.

Ilan was in the Surfside building with his girlfriend Deborah, in her family’s apartment, to go to the funeral of someone they knew from their time at Camp Judaea in North Carolina. He was the kind of kid that anyone who works with teens is lucky to get to meet, to teach, to spend time with. And so is his sister Tali, who was the madricha (senior who lived in a house with younger students) for the house of 11th grade girls right next to my 10th/11th grade boys house. My heart breaks that he’s gone at only 21, way too early.

From the moment I heard he was missing, I felt a compulsion that if the worst came

to pass, if I could make it work, it felt like I needed to go down to Surfside. If there’s one important lesson I’ve learned in my 30 years of life, it’s that when you can, if you can, always try and show up for people, especially in their moments of pain. I’ll never forget a few years ago, when my beloved grandfather passed away, and I went home to Toronto for his funeral and shiva. One afternoon, my boss at the time showed up at the door of my parents’ house where the shiva was. She had flown in from New York without telling me, arriving on our doorstep with all the ingredients to make her famous guacamole.

From her, more than anyone, I learned that being there for someone — whether they expect you, whether they know you well, no matter how far the distance — matters. It was clearly a lesson Ilan himself had already learned, being there in the Surfside building in order to pay his respects to a fellow member of his community.

Especially after our last year and a half, when so many have been separated from the people we care for, unable to be physically present with them in their joys or in their sorrows, I couldn’t stop thinking that just being there, even for a brief moment, mattered.

And I hope it did. After finally leaving Canada for the first time since COVID

started, I made it down in time to be at the synagogue for the final services before the family got up from shiva — my first time back in a shul since COVID. I saw Tali for the first time in seven years. I got to give Ilan’s parents and his other sister, Mica, a hug, and say something about how special Ilan was, how much of an impression he left on me. And I got to walk to Surfside, to see the empty space where the building stood and the memorial to the victims now is. It was a lot. It was intense. And it was important.

Let me be clear: I’m not the protagonist in this story. Ilan is. This is about Ilan and the 97 other victims who were in the Champlain Towers. It’s about his sisters, Mica and Tali, his parents, Carlos and Ronit, and all the other families who had to endure the horrible limbo of not knowing if they’d see their children or their parents or their husbands or their wives or their brothers or their sisters alive again. Who held onto hope when not much remained, and who, at least now, have some closure and the ability to properly mourn their loved ones.

What can we take away from this unthinkable tragedy? I hope we can be a little more grateful for what we have, that we can hold onto our loved ones a little tighter, that we can give our grandmothers another call, send our friends another text to see how they’re doing. So many have lost so much this past year, and it’s important to put it in context. The fact that I missed out a year of going on dates or traveling to new places or going to movies is tiny compared to losing a person, especially one so young, forever.

So let’s be there for each other, through the good, and especially through the bad. And let’s remember Ilan, a shining star taken from us way too soon. PJC Josh Satok is the senior planning executive at UJA-Federation of New York. This piece originally appeared on Alma.

When ‘work’ becomes unhealthy Guest Columnist Sid Schwarz

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he decision made by Simone Biles, America’s premier gymnast, not to compete at the Tokyo Olympics in most of the events that she trained for, set off a firestorm of commentary. We are a country that lionizes our athletes. The better the athlete is, the greater the pressure exerted on them to compete and to win. Again and again and again. So, it was not surprising that the initial reaction to Biles’ decision was shock and disappointment. Pundits predicted that Biles would win, not just one, but several gold medals. More than one commentator noted how Kerry Strug won an Olympic gold medal at the 1996 games in Atlanta, completing her final jump on a broken ankle!

12 AUGUST 13, 2021

To her great credit, Biles explained to the press that she has been battling with some mental health issues and a specific condition — the twisties — which rob gymnasts of their ability to control their aerial rotations.

Given the heights and difficulties of the jumps at this level of the sport, Biles would risk serious injury if she competed. Within a matter of days, commentary on Biles’ decision went from critical to laudatory.

I work with many rabbis and Jewish communal professionals who are physically and mentally exhausted from their yearlong attempt to work in the midst of the pandemic.

Many eagerly looked forward to a summer break. Now these professionals return, only to find a delta resurgence of the virus.

Of course, COVID is an extraordinary event. Nobody could have predicted it. But America’s addiction to work is a well-documented phenomenon. Studies show that Americans work more hours than any other nation in the world. We are the only industrialized country that does not

have a law requiring a minimum amount of annual leave. And Americans take less vacation time than any other industrialized country in the world.

To state the obvious: This is not healthy.

Judaism introduced to the world the idea of Shabbat, a day of rest that mandates that we abstain from work and all commerce so as to learn the value of nature, friendships, conversation, reading, community and much more. Next month we usher in a shmita year, a year when the Bible tells us that even the land must rest and not be planted. Both concepts embody the notion of a healthy work/life balance.

In recent years, we’ve seen the start of some long overdue conversations in Jewish communal organizations about diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) as well as the hostile work environment that women often face and which has not been adequately addressed. Let’s add to the list the unrealistic expectations set by Jewish organizations on their employees, from the executive suite to

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the maintenance staff. Employees who are able to spend time with their families, pursue leisure time activities, volunteer with civic organizations, spend time in nature, read a book, etc. are happier and more fulfilled people. Their productivity in the workplace will be far greater than if they regularly work until 10 p.m. or get in the habit of working through an entire weekend just to finish off a given work project.

We pay lip service to the idea that every person is to be respected as an image of the Divine. It is time that we put that principle into practice. PJC Rabbi Sid Schwarz is a senior fellow at Hazon where he directs Kenissa: Communities of Meaning Network as well as the Clergy Leadership Incubator (CLI), a program that trains rabbis to be visionary spiritual leaders.

He is the author of several books, most recently, Jewish Megatrends: Charting the Course of the American Jewish Future. This first appeared on The Times of Israel.

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Opinion Civil marriage now Guest Columnist Dan Perry

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srael’s “change government” has already brought some change: Its members are well-mannered and the prime minister and his alternate do not behave like autocrats who think they are the center of the universe.

But after two months some people are asking: Where is the fundamental change?

The government recently passed a national state budget. That corrects an extraordinary situation in which Israel operated without one at the height of a terrible economic crisis.

This is very important and conveyed welcome sanity, but it is not a systemic change.

Some will say that the ideological diversity of the government prevents systemic change.

This is true about the Palestinian issue: The West Bank occupation will have to become more painful for Israelis before public opinion moves enough to cough up a government that feels partition is imperative. But it’s not the case on all aspects of the second issue bedeviling the country, and that is religion and state.

Every change-seeking manager knows it’s best to start with change that is right, logical, popular and possible. And such a candidate exists, right before our eyes: civil marriage.

Marriage is a fundamental right. Most will agree that it’s reasonable to deny it in certain cases — to minors, close relatives and so forth. But Israel goes much further.

• It denies marriage to anyone who wants to

wed members of another religion, even though the state is home to citizens of many religions.

• It denies marriage to Jews who are not considered Jews by the Rabbinate.

• It denies marriage to those who object to a religious wedding due to atheism or any other reason.

The above groups must either not marry at all, marry abroad and hope that the Interior Ministry recognizes their marriage, or settle for a marriage-like legal contract that seeks to formalize similar rights but without official recognition as a “marriage.”

This doesn’t seem right.

Apologists for the status quo will argue that “marriage” is ipso facto a religious construct.

That’s reminiscent of U.S. conservatives’ argument that marriage is by definition the union of a man and a woman; the lesbian and gay community rejected this, insisted that words have consequences and argued that justice must be seen — and they won.

In Israel, the state is in effect telling its citizens that marriage is a purely religious matter. But this does not reflect how most people think of it.

I am married despite little if any religious sentiment, and I certainly seek no validation from the Rabbinate, dominated as it is by extremist bureaucrats from the rather rigid Orthodox Jewish stream, which is a minority among the rest of the Jews of the world. My view is the lot of many and probably most of the secular Jews in Israel.

The problem was starkly illustrated this week with the rise to prominence of Israel’s first Olympic gymnastics champion.

Artem Dolgopyat was Jewish enough to

immigrate from Ukraine at age 12, Jewish enough to serve in the military and Jewish enough to proudly wear the Star of David in Tokyo. He brought great honor to Israel and caused the anthem “Hatikva,” with the wellknown verse about the “Jewish soul,” to be played for only the second time in history at the Olympics. But he is not Jewish enough to marry in Israel, because only his father is Jewish, displeasing the Rabbinate and its Orthodox apparatchiks.

There are many hundreds of thousands of people in Israel with this same issue, and many more would join them had ancestors not slipped through the cracks in a more forgiving and rational time. It’s a significant portion of the adult population. This is the fruit of awkward compromises in the early days of the state, when Haredim did not dominate the religious establishment as they do today. In the current circumstances, it does not seem logical.

Few if any countries in the developed world give religion such a monopoly on marriage. Even Iran does not do this (it has civil courts with authority over marriage, although Islamic rules do apply widely, such as the requirement that brides of all ages secure permission from the father).

This situation brings misery to multitudes and disgrace to all, and provides ammunition to the enemies of Israel. It helps those who denigrate the country as a theocracy.

It plays into the hands of those who claim that the Jews are merely a religion and not a people and therefore do not deserve a state.

It is, indirectly, a gift to the BDS movement, which would love to see Israel destroyed.

What Israelis think this a good idea? The

answer seems to be not many. Poll after poll shows that a strong majority of around three-quarters — a rarity in this divided land — would welcome the introduction of a civil marriage option. Such a move would be popular.

And it is also possible. Among the rightwing parties in the coalition, the secularist Yisrael Beiteinu will be eager to do so, and the responsible-nationalist New Hope won’t stand in the way. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s Yamina party may wobble a little for fear of angering the Haredim (and angry they certainly would be, even if their monopoly on Jewish rites, with its hostility to Conservative and Reform Jews, is maintained for now); but Yamina’s position is fuzzy, considering the bond between Bennett and secularist incoming PM Yair Lapid.

Such a move would confront Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud with a difficult choice between supporting a reform so obviously right and just or opposing it for fear of the Haredi political parties, without whom Likud is more or less doomed to opposition.

They will probably oppose it, outraging many of their own supporters and providing voters with some clarity.

The establishment of civil marriage in Israel would correct a truly absurd situation and signal that the “change government” is worthy of its nickname. PJC Dan Perry is the former Cairo-based Middle East editor and London-based Europe/Africa editor of the Associated Press, and served as the chairman of the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem. This piece first appeared on The Times of Israel.

Chronicle’s Olympic survey results

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ast week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an electronic survey if they were actively following the results of Team Israel and other Jewish athletes at the Olympic Games. Of the 171 people who responded, more than a third (38%) said they were following the Jewish and Israeli athletes.

Another 46% said they were following the games, but not specifically the Jewish or Israeli athletes. Forty-two respondents submitted

written comments. A few follow.

“The fact that an Israeli gold medal winner is a Jew who can’t get married in Israel is a helluva story with so many angles. Get to work, folks!”

“I’m disappointed but not surprised at the athletes refusing to compete against Israelis for purely political reasons.”

— LETTERS — Jewish Assistance Fund is essential community resource

We have an amazing, caring, and supportive community! Especially during this unusual year, as the pandemic has had such a pervasive grip on our lives, support from and engagement with the community and organizational partners have been essential. We’d like to expand on the information in the article “JFCS critical needs support is stopgap to downward spiral” that appeared in the July 26 edition of the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and share information about additional community resources.

Since 1985, the Jewish Assistance Fund has provided the Western Pennsylvania Jewish community with emergency financial assistance. These are grants, with no repayment, for immediate and pressing day-to-day expenses such as housing, food, clothing, utilities, transportation, and necessary household repairs, medical, dental and other essential needs.

We are the Jewish community’s assistance fund, and we receive referrals from community members as well as Jewish and non-Jewish institutions and organizations including schools, synagogues, social service and medical providers.

We are a warm voice on the phone for everyone who contacts us, sharing information about community resources, and referring callers for emergency food distribution, critical PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG

“I am so not interested in the games that I actively avoid any news about them.”

“I am always proud of Israeli accomplishments but frankly I am focused on our American athletes.”

“The world and country have more important issues.” PJC

Are you actively following the results of Team Israel and 16.27% other Jewish athletes at the Games?

For sure!

No, although I am following the Olympics in general.

37.95%

45.78%

Are the Olympics going on now?

needs, employment, assistance accessing unemployment, financial coaching and a variety of other financial and mental health resources. JAF is a point of contact as people maneuver a new and confusing landscape of needs and services, very often for the first time. The Jewish Assistance Fund values and works closely with our JFunds partners, Hebrew Free Loan, JFCS Squirrel Hill Food Pantry, JFCS Jewish Scholarship Service, Jewish Federation Israel Scholarship Program and Passport to Israel program. In these ways we are a warm embrace to the Jewish community As we share in other forms on the pages of the Chronicle, we invite you to help us increase our visibility and connect our Western Pennsylvania Jewish community members with much needed financial assistance. Jewishassistancefund.org Gean K. Goldfarb, president of Jewish Assistance Fund Cindy Goodman-Leib, executive director of Jewish Assistance Fund

Correction

In “Small local shuls get an assist from Jewish Community Legacy Project” (Aug. 6), we incorrectly reported that Temple Beth Israel sold Rodef Shalom Congregation sculpted figures.

The figures were actually donated to Rodef Shalom. The Chronicle regrets the error. PJC

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AUGUST 13, 2021 13

Headlines Schools: Continued from page 1

“We take that responsibility very strongly and will do whatever it takes to uphold that.”

Hillel Academy of Pittsburgh parents are also asking fewer questions about COVID-19 this year, according to the school’s principal, Rabbi Sam Weinberg, who believes the 2020-21 school year and the recent sessions of Camp Hillel gave parents an appreciation of the school’s seriousness with regard to health and safety.

Although Hillel Academy had not finalized its newest COVID-19 plan as of Aug. 2, school officials were continuing to evaluate its past practices. For example, the safety protocols for Camp Hillel, which concluded July 30, were very successful, according to Weinberg, allowing more than 220 campers to “engage socially and have an enriching summer experience.” As Hillel Academy heads into the fall, he said, “we’re looking to build on that.”

One means of doing so will be the return of the Sherut Leumi program. As part of the annual program, operated in partnership with the Israeli government, two Israelis between the ages of 17 and 24 come to Hillel Academy for a year of service. But due to the pandemic, the school was unable to run the program last year. Sherut Leumi is primarily — but not exclusively — comprised of women, or Bnot Sherut.

“Their presence was sorely missed,” said Weinberg. “Students of every grade really enjoy working with and befriending the Bnot Sherut. We’re excited that they’ll be able

Planning: Continued from page 1

in Squirrel Hill is planning for a “normal” High Holiday season, according to its president, Jonathan Young.

“That probably means masks,” he said, “but at least, as of today, we’re planning for what used to be typical High Holiday services.”

Shadyside Reform congregation Rodef Shalom’s services will be held indoors mostly, according to its president, Matthew Falcone, although there will likely be some outdoor options, such as in its Biblical Botanical Garden. The synagogue, Falcone said, features a large main sanctuary with good airflow.

“We’re very fortunate, not a lot has changed in our planning,” he said.

Like Temple Sinai, Rodef Shalom is planning for a hybrid High Holiday celebration that will include streaming services on YouTube.

The biggest change for Rodef Shalom is that it will not require tickets so as to avoid having to refund their cost if CDC guidelines foreclose in-person services, Falcone said. Instead, the congregation has extended invitations to the wider community to attend its services; anyone interested just needs to call for details and preregister.

“We’ve had a lot of people join us over Zoom who now feel like they’re part of the congregation even though they haven’t had the opportunity to worship with us in person,” Falcone said. “So we wanted to figure out how we could accommodate everyone.”

14 AUGUST 13, 2021

 Yeshiva Schools representatives visited the St. Rosalia site months ago.

Photo courtesy of Masha Shollar via Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh

to instill in our students a love of Israel.”

Hillel Academy’s early childhood program begins on Aug. 16, and kindergarten through high school students will return to class on Aug. 30.

Weinberg said the school is continuing to monitor CDC recommendations when it comes to masking, and that as of now, Hillel Academy does not have a mandatory vaccination policy for its employees.

Rabbi Yossi Rosenblum, CEO of Yeshiva Schools, said Yeshiva is “strongly encouraging but not mandating” vaccinations for those who are eligible. As for masking, “we’re waiting to hear instructions from the various organizations, after which … we will react

and respond accordingly.” Yeshiva Schools officially begins Aug. 26.

Yeshiva staff has worked closely with its medical advisory team since the start of the pandemic and will continue to do so throughout the school year. For now, the big question is what to do about the school’s upcoming dinner. Scheduled for Aug. 24, the in-person event, with a digital option, is expected to draw 300-350 people.

Rosenblum noted that considerations regarding the dinner are different from those pertaining to school.

“The dinner is all adults, and just about all of them are vaccinated,” he said.

Even so, he and the medical advisory team

Conservative Congregation Beth Shalom will also offer services both in person and online. All attendees over 12, except for children 2 and under, are required to be vaccinated and wear masks to attend in person. Children under 12 are not yet eligible for the vaccine and so must wear masks, said the congregation’s president, Alan Kopolow.

Members will be required to prove their vaccination status before attending.

Rabbi Yitzchak Goldwasser said Chabad of Greenfield will hold in-person services.

“Where and what it’s going to look like, though, I’m not sure,” he said. “Is it going to be smaller crowds? Masked? Those are things we’re still taking into consideration.

Making a decision now seems pointless because who knows what it’s going to look like tomorrow, let alone in three weeks.”

One event already planned by the rabbi is a “Pre-Rosh Hashanah Family Fun Day” on Aug. 29, featuring food, events and crafts in Magee Park.

A Torah completion celebration on the same day will begin the High Holiday celebrations at Chabad Jewish Center of Monroeville.

That event will take place in a tent outdoors.

“This is an opportunity for everyone to feel safe and comfortable,” said Rabbi Mendy Schapiro of Chabad of Monroeville.

The tent will also be used for an outdoor Rosh Hashanah dinner. Those interested in attending must register in advance so the rabbi can be certain he has enough space.

“We’ll see what the next couple of weeks bring,” the rabbi said, echoing the concerns of other area congregational leaders.

Temple David, a Reform congregation in Monroeville, is also planning to hold in-person services, according to Randy Boswell, the congregation’s ritual chairperson. All attendees are encouraged to wear masks and practice social distancing, especially those who are unvaccinated, Boswell said, acknowledging that not everyone — including children under 12 — is eligible for the vaccine.

“We don’t want to discourage kids from coming, but we do have to practice some precautions,” he said.

Boswell stressed that any plans in place now could change based on CDC guidelines, and he has already put contingency plans in place.

“We’re proceeding like it’s the beginning of June or mid-June, that everything’s opened back up, but we’re cognizant of the fact that there are some problems coming,” he said.

Temple Emanuel of South Hills will follow the same procedure for the High Holidays it has followed since it welcomed members back in person several months ago.

Attendees will be required to wear masks and the congregation will offer a virtual option for those who prefer to worship from home, according to Leslie Hoffman, the congregation’s executive director.

However, the two services will be “very different,” according to Rabbi Aaron Meyer, spiritual leader of Temple Emanuel.

“We want to craft an experience for both, rather than attempt to play to an in-person group and a livestream group and miss both,” he said. “The livestream experience is made for the media” and will be shorter, while “the in-person service will feel more familiar.”

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are monitoring CDC recommendations and COVID-19 counts in Allegheny County.

The pandemic, Rosenblum said, has included many iterations, which he expects to continue. One welcome change, he noted, was that last week Yeshiva held its first in-person board meeting in nearly a yearand-a-half to discuss the school’s operational plan, finances and student care. Speaking of student care, Rosenblum was excited to share that, as part of its strategic plan, Yeshiva is continuing to develop its wellness division.

As part of that initiative, employees are being trained in trauma sensitivity, and the school is implementing a new curriculum regarding social-emotional learning as well as a schoolwide classroom-management program.

“We’ve always kept our eye on how to move forward, on how to build and revitalize,” he said. “We’ve tried very hard not just to react to COVID, which of course we did, but to think about the future.”

He said that was one reason why it was important for Yeshiva to go ahead with the purchase of the St. Rosalia site in Greenfield.

Although Yeshiva closed on the property July 19, students and staff won’t begin using the space until the 2022-23 school year.

Rosenblum said he’s optimistic about the days ahead, despite a constantly evolving pandemic.

“Last year we were clearly set up for a COVID year,” he said. This year, he added, while acknowledging that conditions can change any moment, “we’re hopeful it will be a much more regular year for the kids.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Services at Chabad of the South Hills will be mostly in person and indoors, but there will be outdoor options, possibly including the blowing of the shofar at various South Hills locations, according to Rabbi Mendel Rosenblum.

And while Rosh Hashanah plans are set, he said it’s too early to commit to a plan for Yom Kippur.

“I’m aware of what’s happening,” Rosenblum said. “We really don’t know what the response is yet.”

Members of the Reform Temple Ohav Shalom in Allison Park will be required to wear masks, have proof of vaccination and register in advance to attend High Holiday services in person, according to the congregation’s president, Yuval Kossovsky. The strict requirements, he said, are an unfortunate byproduct of COVID’s recent surge.

“You can say we have individual liberty, [but] unfortunately, the reality is the way a virus works is it either replicates or evolves, unless it doesn’t have enough hosts,” Kossovsky said. “So, we insist on vaccinations because it isn’t just about us, it’s about the community.”

While everyone’s plans may change based on COVID-19 variants and CDC guidelines, there are two things one can expect: High Holiday services will be offered for Pittsburgh’s Jews in some form or another, and somewhere in the city, at least one rabbi’s sermon will be titled, “People plan. God laughs.” PJC David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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Headlines So, Dershowitz, a Brooklyn-born, Los Angeles-based Jew, launched Artists 4 Israel, bringing graffiti and street artists to paint murals on bomb shelters in Israel.

The project found its place, he said, by collaborating with non-Israeli artists on humanitarian aid projects.

“That became the entry point for them to learn about and advocate for Israel,” he said.

In 2016, Artists 4 Israel launched another, more controversial, project — Healing Ink, which provides free tattoos to cover the scars of survivors of terrorist attacks, and of IDF soldiers injured in combat.

Dershowitz said the tattoos help survivors reclaim their bodies and continue to heal physically and mentally.

On Oct. 3 and 4, Artists 4 Israel is bringing Healing Ink to Pittsburgh, offering free tattoos to those affected by the massacre at the Tree of Life building. Approximately 15 different Pittsburghers will receive tattoos on each of the two days. The location for the event is yet to be announced, but tattoo artists may be available to visit someone’s home should an individual prefer to get inked privately.

Participants don’t have to be Jewish, but they must apply for a tattoo in advance. In addition to members of the

Jewish community, Dershowitz said he has a soft spot for first responders and a passion to help them.

Sharon J. Serbin is a longtime attendee of Congregation Dor Hadash, one of the three congregations attacked in the Tree of Life building. She has deep roots at the congregation, including as a teacher in its religious school, and although she wasn’t in shul on Oct. 27, 2018, she said the attack affects her tremendously.

“I knew some of the people who died and others who were injured,” Serbin said.

“I was in that building every week, teaching my students the joy of being Jewish. This was personal. This was home. This was an invasion and attack on my community.”

Serbin wrote in her Healing Ink application that she was surprised to discover that she is still traumatized by the massacre.

“I knew how I felt for the first year after it happened, but I thought I had boxed it up and moved forward,” she said. “I hadn’t.”

The Pittsburgh project will use local artists as well as a few “heavy hitters” in the tattoo world, Dershowitz said. All the artists donate their time.

Despite his confidence in the benefits of Healing Ink, Dershowitz, 44, understood the project would have its critics. Prior to launching the initiative, representatives from Artists 4 Israel spoke with several Conservative and Orthodox rabbis, and

the group has included conversations with various rabbis about tattoos and Jewish tradition on its Facebook page.

According to Jewish law, tattooing is “unacceptable,” said Rabbi Danny Schiff, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Community Foundation scholar.

The prohibition against tattoos, Schiff said, can be found in Leviticus 28: “You shall not make a laceration for the dead in your flesh. And the imprint of a tattoo you shall not place upon you. I am the Lord.”

“Placing permanent markings in the flesh is forbidden and the inverse of holiness,” Schiff said.

Our bodies, he added, don’t belong to us, therefore we have a duty to keep them whole, unblemished and intact.

Rabbi Alex Greenbaum, a Conservative rabbi and the spiritual leader of Beth El Congregation of the South Hills, agreed with Schiff that tattoos are forbidden according to the Torah — and still a “no-go” in the Conservative movement — but noted that there is a misconception that someone with a tattoo cannot be buried in a Jewish cemetery.

“We bury people that eat cheeseburgers, and we bury people that have tattoos,” Greenbaum said.

Despite the positions taken by Schiff, Greenbaum and other rabbis, Dershowitz came to a different conclusion. He recalled the Talmud precept, “Whoever saves a life, it

is considered he saved the whole world.” In his opinion, that salvation isn’t strictly physical.

“We knew we were entering provocative territory, but we said, if this is a healing modality that can help, who would have the chutzpah to tell someone that jumped on a terrorist bomber as he entered a public space that he can’t get a tattoo if it’s going to heal him?”

“We’re not out there with a gun protecting people from terrorists, but we’re saving them,” he said. “They’re coming out of their houses — some of these people haven’t left their houses alone, they haven’t worn shorts, as silly as that might sound, in 10 years. They can’t hold their children because of PTSD, they’re afraid they’ll drop them if they hear a loud sound. These stories are horrific. I don’t want to seem immodest, but I’m proud that we’ve helped turn peoples’ lives around.”

In some ways, Dershowitz sees Healing Ink as a religious calling.

“I feel like I’m doing the best work I’m capable of and the organization is doing as close to God’s work as we can find,” he said.

“When we get up to the Pearly Gates, I don’t think anyone is going to doubt what we did and that our intentions were right.”

Anyone interested in applying for a tattoo through Healing Ink can do so at healingink.org. PJC

CHUTZ-POW:

Hillel:

meaningful opportunities.

Joining Greene in the quest to help students achieve sustainable Jewish connections are several other hires, Marcus said, as Hillel JUC recently welcomed Allison Bloomberg, Sarah Chalmin and Jared Stein to its leadership team.

Bloomberg and Chalmin will both serve as Springboard Fellows at the University of Pittsburgh. Bloomberg graduated from the University of Michigan with degrees in psychology and Judaic studies and a minor in community action and social change; Chalmin graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s in human services. As part of their two-year fellowships, they will work with students to create vibrant Jewish communities, according to

Hillel International.

Stein, who graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a degree in social work, will serve as IACT Coordinator for Israel Engagement and help build pro-Israel connections with students across Pittsburgh’s college campuses.

Marcus praised Greene, Bloomberg, Chalmin and Stein, and said their arrival will help Hillel JUC develop a robust series of programming and activities this year.

“These new hires,” Marcus said, “will allow us to continue to meet our mission and vision of engaging every Jewish student in meaningful and relevant Jewish campus life.” PJC

while driving innovation, employee spent 13 years in various positions engagement, academic excellence and at Thomas Jefferson University in research across all of our hospitals Philadelphia, including vice presand practices.” ident of clinical affiliations and Davis replaces outgoing president ambulatory programs. Following her and CEO Jeffrey A. Romoff, who in work at Thomas Jefferson University, p Leslie his 48-year span with the organizashe served as chief operating officer Davis tion led UPMC to become the largest of Presbyterian Medical Center and Photo courtesy of UPMC non-governmental employer in the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, as well as the chief marketing Pennsylvania and a fully integrated $23 billion and planning officer for the University of global integrated health care delivery system.

UPMC Board Chair G. Nicholas Beckwith Pennsylvania Health System.

Davis, in a prepared statement, said she III praised Romoff ’s accomplishments.

“Under Jeff ’s leadership, UPMC has was honored to lead UPMC and work alongprovided excellent and unmatched health side so many dedicated professionals.

“I am confident in our organization’s future care across our tri-state service territory and and look forward to continuing to serve our internationally,” Beckwith said in a prepared patients, our members, our employees and our statement. “He has led UPMC in developing communities as UPMC soars to even greater new models of care and supported advanced heights in the future,” she said. “I look forward research that has benefited our patients. to continuing to ensure that health care is Jeff ’s contributions are numerous in helping accessible and affordable to our communities to build UPMC into the global health care

leader that it is today.”

Romoff said he was proud to have served the organization for so many decades.

“We are now in a well-earned period of stability and success, having overcome challenges and grown into a fully integrated health care system,” Romoff said in a prepared statement. “We now have a clear path to continue UPMC’s extraordinary and unique trajectory with new leadership.”

Praising the board’s choice of Davis as his successor, Romoff said, “It has been clear to me for quite some time that Leslie has the right skillset to lead the organization forward. I am confident that she will continue UPMC’s track record of success as CEO.” According to UPMC, Romoff will be named president emeritus and continue to serve as a resource to Davis and UPMC until Oct. 1, 2021. PJC

Tattoos: Continued from page 4

Continued from page 5

Continued from page 6

fora. And like her colleague, Bairnsfather said the goal is getting materials into people’s hands, but she also credited him and his recent presentations with helping to make that happen.

Walker has a “a deep commitment to keeping the stories of Holocaust survivors alive and engaging for readers of all ages and abilities,” she said. “His presentations about CHUTZ-POW! convey so much heart.

Audiences can’t help but be drawn in.” PJC

rabbinic and Jewish writings will prove meaningful to college students who are often seeking connections.

“The reality is that college is a time of so much social and emotional development, growth and understanding,” she said.

Hillel JUC president and CEO Dan Marcus said he’s confident Greene’s varied talents will enable her to connect with a range of students, and he is looking forward to seeing her impact on the Jewish student community.

He added that Greene’s skills — be they musical or pastoral — will be a boon to Hillel JUC and provide students with many

Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

Leslie Davis takes helm of UPMC

F

ox Chapel Jewish resident Leslie Davis was named president and CEO of UPMC, effective Aug. 1, following a unanimous decision by UPMC’s board of directors on July 28.

Davis comes to the position with more than 30 years of health care experience.

She most recently served as both executive vice president of UPMC and president of its Health Services Division.

Since joining UPMC in 2004, Davis’ role with the organization has grown. Following her role as president of Magee-Womens Health and vice president of UPMC Women’s Health, she became president of UPMC’s Health Services Division as well as UPMC’s executive vice president.

Prior to joining UPMC, Davis was president of Graduate Hospital in Philadelphia, part of Tenet Healthcare Corp. She began her career at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York City, serving as an assistant controller. She then

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— Adam Reinherz AUGUST 13, 2021 15

Life & Culture Albóndigas: A Mexican twist on Sephardic meatballs — FOOD —

By Jessica Grann | Special to the Chronicle

Albóndigas: Meatballs in tomato chile sauce Makes about 24 large meatballs and serves six to eight people Ingredients

For the sauce:

4 cloves garlic, skin intact 5 serrano chiles, or your favorite chile pepper ¼ cup neutral vegetable oil, like avocado oil 1 cup water 1 ¼ teaspoon sea salt A very large can of tomatoes, about 6 pounds. I prefer the Cento brand of whole peeled tomatoes but you can use any equivalent of smaller cans. You could also use canned diced tomatoes since they will be blended down into a sauce.

For the meatball mixture:

2 pounds ground beef 1 cup cubed white bead, crust removed (about 4-5 pieces) ¼ cup water 2 teaspoons sea salt 3 cloves garlic, minced Half of a small onion, finely chopped (about ⅓ cup) 5 Roma tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped (about 1 cup) 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 teaspoon dried mint, or 1 tablespoon of fresh mint, finely chopped 2 large eggs To prepare the meatballs:

Any kind of white bread can be used for this recipe. I happened to have semolina 16 AUGUST 13, 2021

Photo by Jessica Grann

I

love meatballs. I think I’ll say that again.

I love meatballs.

Every food culture has its meatball.

This is my Mexican twist on Sephardic meatballs, which are called albóndigas in Spanish.

When I traveled in Mexico I came to know the flavor of serrano chiles and tomato sauce that I combined for this recipe. Serrano chiles have a smoky flavor that add a lot of depth to the sauce when mixed with onion, garlic, oregano and mint. The mint creates a cool contrast to the spice of the chile.

While I would not call this recipe spicy, there is a little kick. I believe that cooks should make a recipe their own, and you can add or take away spice, just as you can use more or less salt. It should be to your taste.

I use real bread instead of bread crumbs for this recipe, which — along with boiling the meatballs in the tomato sauce — creates a superior meatball that is soft and delicious.

These meatballs are best served over steamed white rice. You can make plain rice or cook the rice with a cup of sautéed onion to add a bit more flavor to the dish.

I tend to save this recipe for the weekend or for Shabbat since it has a few more steps than the dishes I typically prepare after work.

bread, so I used that instead of white sandwich bread. It can be old but not stale or dry.

Cut the crusts off before cutting into cubes.

This will measure about 1 cup if you put it into a measuring cup and press down quickly. The bread will spring back up as you take the pressure of your hand away, and that’s just fine.

Put the bread into a large mixing bowl. Stir in ¼ cup of water and let the bread soak for about 10 minutes.

Chop the onion and the tomatoes. To seed the tomatoes, simply slice in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and dice the flesh that is remaining.

Using the back of a fork, mash the bread and water mixture into a paste. Add the onion, tomato salt and spices into the bowl and mix. I usually let this sit for another 10 minutes while I’m making the sauce, allowing the flavor to really seep into the bread crumb mixture.

Mix in 2 pounds of ground beef by hand.

Do not overmix because that will create hard, dense meatballs.

Make a well in the meat mixture and add the eggs. Gently mix the egg into the meat mixture until just combined. The mixture will feel very wet compared to how you usually prepare meatballs or meatloaf. That’s OK — this is part of the secret to how these cook up so perfectly. Form about 24 meatballs, each about the size of a golf ball. I set them on a baking sheet as I’m making them. You can also do this a few hours in advance and refrigerate until it’s time to add them to the sauce.

To prepare the sauce:

Cover a heavy-bottomed skillet with foil — I often just tear a piece of foil, fold it into a square and gently press it over my skillet.

This keeps the flavor of the chiles and garlic from seeping into your pan.

Place the 5 whole chiles with stems on, and the unpeeled garlic cloves, onto the foil and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, turning the chiles and garlic several times until the skin is blackened and blistering. You should feel the chiles softening as they blacken.

Turn off the heat and, using tongs, place the garlic and chiles into a small paper lunch bag, fold the top and set aside. (You may want to start chopping and preparing the meatball mixture while the garlic and chiles are cooking.)

After the garlic and chiles have cooled for about 10 minutes, remove them from the paper bag and place them onto a cutting board.

With a sharp knife, cut and peel the skin off the garlic and slice the stems from the chiles. Slice the chiles in half and devein 2 of them so that some seeds will get mixed in with the sauce for a mild heat. If you’re afraid of spice, start the sauce with only deveined chiles. You can set the seeds aside to add in later if you need them. If you know you like very spicy food, you don’t need to devein any of the chiles — just put them whole (without stems) into the mixture.

Using a blender or food processor, mix about 3 batches of canned tomatoes, chiles and garlic until well blended. You will see small, charred pieces from the skins, which is normal.

Add ¼ cup of oil to a heavy-bottomed pot like a Dutch oven or soup pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat.

Add the tomato sauce mixture and sauté in the oil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add in the water and salt and bring to a gentle boil.

Gently drop in the meatballs one at a time, using a wooden spoon to help find a spot to

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drop them. The meatballs need to be fully immersed into the sauce in order to cook correctly. If for any reason the sauce is not covering them, add a little bit of water until they are covered.

After adding all of the meatballs, you may need to let them cook for a few more minutes over medium heat until the sauce is bubbling up. At this point, turn the flame to low and cover the meatballs.

Cook for 25 minutes, uncovering once and gently stirring to make sure that nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pot.

After 25 minutes, remove the lid and continue to simmer for 15-20 minutes uncovered, allowing the sauce to thicken, creating more flavor and a better consistency.

For the rice:

You can make plain rice the traditional way. I typically steam rice, but for this dish I sauté 1 cup of finely chopped onion in 2 tablespoons of avocado or a neutral vegetable oil over medium heat for 5 minutes before adding 1 ½ cups of white rice.

Stir the rice into the oil and onion mixture and simmer for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, before adding 3 cups of boiling water. I have found adding a few sprigs of parsley or cilantro at this point really adds to the overall flavor.

Bring to a boil, cover, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes.

Remove the lid, stir, and continue to cook uncovered on low for another 5 minutes.

If you added parsley or cilantro sprigs, remove the stems before serving.

Ladle the meatballs and sauce over the rice and serve. Enjoy! PJC Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.

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Life & Culture New book takes close look at Jeff Goldblum, ‘Hollywood’s Most Enigmatic Actor’ — BOOKS —

By Justin Vellucci | Special to the Chronicle

I

t was 2018 and culture writer Travis M. Andrews was speaking with his peers at the Washington Post about the release of the first LP by jazz ensemble Jeff Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra.

“I said, ‘Why is Jeff Goldblum so popular right now? I understand, in the 90s, but he’s still ubiquitous,’” Andrews told The Chronicle. “So, I wrote this piece and I started to get more and more interested in him. This guy’s career makes no sense — you couldn’t plan this career. And I think that’s why people relate to him.”

The product of Andrews’ curiosity is a new book about the man who might be the most famous Pittsburgh Jew in popular culture: “Because He’s Jeff Goldblum: The Movies, Memes and Meaning of Hollywood’s Most Enigmatic Actor.” Plume, an imprint of Penguin Random House, published the 320-page hardcover tome in May. Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum was born Oct. 22, 1952, and lived his childhood in the Mon Valley suburb of West Homestead. After appearing in plays and an unlikely film turn in 1974’s “Death Wish,” he went on to star as a journalist in “The Big Chill” and played the leading role in David Cronenberg’s “The Fly.” His became something of a household name in the 1990s as he took on prominent roles in some of the highest grossing films of the decade, including 1993’s “Jurassic Park”

p Travis Andrews Photo by The Washington Post

Photo courtesy of Penguin Random House

and 1996’s “Independence Day,” and later their respective sequels.

Andrews did not conduct new interviews with Goldblum for the book, he said, but among the themes he tackles is the actor’s adversity and longevity — from art house performer to blockbuster superstar to internet sensation.

Andrews was also taken by the actor’s relationship with Judaism, something he said Goldblum typically does not discuss in interviews. Goldblum, who was born to

Jewish parents and attended an Orthodox shul, has said he decided he wanted to become an actor while practicing reading Torah for his bar mitzvah, according to the Jerusalem Post.

“One of the things to note is that he’s talked a lot about growing up in West Homestead and growing up without knowing another Jewish family,” Andrews said. “He felt a little like an outsider and poured himself into the arts.”

Pittsburgh, recently at least, also has been central to Goldblum’s identity. Garfield tattoo artist Matt McKelvey has started an annual Jeff Goldblum Day, an iconic (and, true to the person it emulates, often quirky) celebration in Goldblum’s hometown.

Pittsburgh City Council has formally recognized the day, and, in 2019, Goldblum himself got in on the action, appearing at a local tattoo parlor as someone was getting inked with a Goldblum tattoo.

Andrews said he thinks Goldblum “pretends to be mystified” about the attraction of Jeff Goldblum Day, “But I think he knows why people are embracing him in that way. He’s talked about kind of loving it.

“It seems he’s tickled by it.”

Much of Goldblum’s love for Pittsburgh became apparent in the 2000s, Andrews said.

In 2006, he starred in “Pittsburgh,” a mockumentary comedy that follows Goldblum, playing himself, as he attempts to get a green card for his Canadian girlfriend by appearing with her in a regional production of “The Music Man” in Pittsburgh. And, not insignificantly, Andrews said Goldblum is a self-professed Steelers fan.

Andrews understands the Pittsburgh draw.

Though raised in New Orleans, Andrews lived for a while in Birmingham, Alabama, sometimes referred to as “The Pittsburgh of the South” because, like Pittsburgh, it underwent an industrial boom after the Civil War in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century.

Andrews visited the Steel City about two or three years ago for the first time and was taken with its charm.

“I liked it very much,” he told the Chronicle. “I felt very at home there.” PJC Justin Vellucci is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.

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AUGUST 13, 2021 17

Celebrations

Torah

Birth

Elul: A refuge in time Anna Lisa Silberman is pleased to announce the birth of Levi Mark Kinkela.

His joyful parents are Shelby Silberman Kinkela and Christian Kinkela of Point Breeze. Levi was born on Aug. 27 and came into this world weighing 5 pounds, 13 ounces. Levi’s proud grandparents are Anna Lisa and the late Mark Silberman, and Carol and Gary Kinkela, all of Pittsburgh. PJC

Carnegie: Continued from page 3

or 20 members if you aren’t making minyan,” D’Loss said. “That’s the big thing for us. We have Shabbat services each week and every once in a while, we don’t have enough.”

The Conservative congregation, which leans Orthodox in practice and is lay-led, has made allowances to accommodate modern needs. They now count women for a minyan and allow them to be called to the Torah.

Due to COVID-19, they streamed services on YouTube, which allowed out-of-town and home-bound members to participate. They have since returned to meeting in person.

The congregation first celebrated the High Holidays in 1896 before it had a regular site, meeting at the Husler Building, now owned by the Historical Society of Carnegie. The shul was incorporated in 1903 and moved to a building on Main Street. That building burned in 1934, and the congregation moved to its current home on Chestnut Street in 1937. Today the building is too large for the congregation’s needs, which has prompted D’Loss to practice creative problem solving, including renting the shul’s bottom floor to the Carnegie Performing Arts Center, a dance and theater studio.

Becoming a landlord enabled the congregation to begin planning building repairs it had postponed due to cost, D’Loss said.

“Over the decades, you need a new this or a new that — a new HVAC or windows — and the contractor says, ‘That’s going to be $18,000 or $25,000,’ and you’re thinking, ‘That’s a bit of an issue,’” he said.

The CPAC’s rent, according to D’Loss, will be used to do renovations on the building’s second floor.

The congregation is also working on attracting new members, according to Rosalyn Hoffman, a board member of the shul. She hopes members of Beth Israel Congregation in Washington County, which won’t be hosting its own High Holiday services this year, might consider giving The Carnegie Shul a try.

The board is also working on developing programming that might attract unaffiliated members of the South Hills Jewish community, Hoffman said, including younger families and students who may not even have noticed the synagogue, which sits across the street from the borough’s CVS and GetGo. While she’s generally optimistic about the shul, Hoffman admits she’s concerned that COVID-19, and its new variants, might make outreach more difficult.

“It’s like, is this the time to try and increase membership, when people are forced back into their homes?” she asked. “We know, though, that there are a lot of people who might not be able to get to Jewish centers or services, and we’ve talked about reaching out to them.”

The Carnegie Shul, with its welcoming community, leadership that doesn’t push visitors to become members and “nominal” dues, could be attractive to many people, Hoffman said.

Both D’Loss and Hoffman agree that the High Holidays might be a nice introduction for potential members. The congregation, which held its 125th High Holiday services last year, will once again welcome Cantor A.J. Edelman, an American-born Israeli athlete. He is a fourtime Israeli National Champion in skeleton and the first Orthodox Jew to compete in the Winter Olympics. He’ll take time out from his training for the 2022 Beijing Olympic Games and serving as the program general manager for the Israel bobsled team to help lead services in Carnegie for the fourth time.

“He’s just great and he loves Carnegie,” D’Loss said. “He’s practically a part of the congregation and we think people would want to be a part of that.”

D’Loss believes there are plenty of Jewish options in the South Hills, with each organization fulfilling particular needs.

“We’re not duplicating efforts,” he said.

“I think everyone’s offering something that makes a nice, full plate in the South Hills. I’m hopeful we can maintain that. We’re setting up for the next 125 years.” PJC David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

www.pittsburghjewishchronicle.org 18 AUGUST 13, 2021

Rabbi Yossi Feller Parshat Shoftim Deuteronomy 16:18 - 21:9

A

fter a 40-year sojourn in the desert, the Jewish people were almost ready to enter the land of Israel. Before handing the baton over to Joshua, who would lead the nation to the Promised Land, Moses addressed the Jewish people. In his weeks-long talk, Moses exhorted the people to remain loyal to God and the teachings of His Torah, and reviewed mitzvot contained in the preceding books.

In this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Shoftim, one of the mitzvot Moses reiterates is the City of Refuge: “You shall separate three cities for yourself in the midst of your land, which the Lord, your God, is giving you to possess… Whoever strikes his fellow [to death] unintentionally… he shall flee to one of these cities, and live.”

(Deuteronomy 19) We have just entered Elul, the final month of the Hebrew calendar. During this month we take stock of the past year, its ups and downs, and resolve to improve our future actions. This is in preparation for the start of the new year — Rosh Hashanah — and the following month of holy days and festivals.

Our sages teach that the Hebrew word “Elul” is an acronym for “Ina Leyado Vesamti Lecha” (Exodus 21:13), a verse referring to these cities of refuge.

Everything in Torah is divinely significant, down to a word’s spelling. The month of Elul is a “city of refuge” in time. Regardless of one’s negative actions over the past year, Elul is a refuge for all who desire to return to God. This is accomplished by firmly resolving to better oneself, immersing in Torah study and increasing in mitzvot.

Actually, Elul is an acronym for a few more passages in scripture. One of them

appears in the Song of Songs, where King Solomon describes the love between God and the Jewish people, using the metaphor of the love between husband and wife. The verse (6:3) states: “Ani Ledodi Vedodi Li,” “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine.”

The first letters of each word in this passage spell out the name of this month, Elul.

Elul’s acronym signifies the intense love between God and the Jewish people, which comes to the surface during this month.

The first Chabad Rebbe, Rabbi Shneur Zalman, illustrated this time period with the following parable: “Before a king enters his city, its inhabitants go out to greet him and receive him in the field. At that time, anyone who so desires is granted permission [and can] approach him and greet him. He receives them all pleasantly, and shows a smiling countenance to all…”

A field is an uninhabited place, bereft of human presence; a city is the very symbol of habitation. A person in a field is free of the inhibitions imposed by the presence of others and therefore sometimes conducts himself there improperly. A field thus symbolizes a low spiritual level. Yet in Elul, the King goes out to the field: God is present regardless of a person’s spiritual standing. A Jew can thus make a proper reckoning knowing that God’s mercy is shining at this time. He has faith that he will be pardoned and accepted back.

Elul, then, is the time when a Jew, as he is, can come close to God, for God has made the first step and come to him. At such a time every Jew can grasp Godliness. All that is necessary is that he desires to do so: He must go out to the “field” to welcome the king. When he does so, he is assured the king will receive him “pleasantly and with a smiling countenance” — and a good and sweet year results. PJC Rabbi Yossi Feller is the co-director of Chabad of Cranberry Township. This column is a service of the Vaad Harabanim of Greater Pittsburgh.

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Obituaries COHEN: Zelda Paymer Cohen, age 92, died peacefully in her home on July 31, 2021. She was preceded in death by her husband, the Hon. Jerome S. Cohen in 2014 after 62 years of marriage. She is survived by three children: Jeffrey Cohen, MD (Ellen Stewart, MD), Lisa Cooper (Lyndon DDS, PhD), and Bryan Cohen. She was a devoted grandmother to Paige, Elizabeth DMD, MD, Benjamin and Henry Cohen, Austin and Alex Cooper, and Jonathan and Jack Cohen. Services and burial were held on Aug. 2. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Tree of Life Synagogue, PO Box 5273, Pittsburgh, PA 15206, or a charity of your choice. A service of Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., family owned and operated. schugar.com FIDOTEN: Marsha A. Fidoten, 93, of Pittsburgh passed away on Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021. Born in Greenwich Village in downtown New York City, she was a lifelong artist and 25-year esteemed art educator at Taylor Allderdice High School and media supervisor for Pittsburgh Public Schools. She held her master’s degree from University of Pittsburgh,

her bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University, her certificate in interior design f rom Pr att Institute, and she also attended NYU, Pratt, Harvard, the New School and Boston Museum School. She exhibited with and served on committees of many arts organizations, including Three Rivers Arts Festival, Pittsburgh Center for Arts and Media, Carnegie Museum and the National Society of Arts and Letters. Surviving are her beloved husband of 73 years, Dr. Robert E. Fidoten; two sons and their spouses, Douglas and Beth Fidoten, Eric and Sharyl Fidoten; five cherished grandchildren, Aaron, Hannah, Annie, Jacob and Daniel. She is also survived by her brother and sister-in-law, Irwin and Gerri Abrams. She was preceded in death by parents Mary and Joseph Abrams. Marsha was a creative dynamo who will be missed greatly by all her life touched. Contributions may be

made to Pittsburgh Center for Arts and Media (https://pghartsmedia.org/). Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel Inc., family owned and operated. schugar.com.

SILVER: Phyllis Silver, on Friday, Aug. 6, 2021. Beloved wife of the late Harold Silver. Loving mother of Jill Silver Fine, Scott (Marie) Silver and Michael (Rivka) Silver. Sister of the late Charles Kirshner.

Daughter of the late Harry and Berdie Kirshner. Grandmother of Nohar (Liad) Hamay, Tahel Silver, Salit (Liran) Shomer, Zack (Lindsay Wein, partner) Fine, Ben (Will Marrow) Fine, Emily (Andrew) Huff and Colin (Ellie) Silver. Great-grandmother of Shaya, Elroie, Yahli, Tomer, Aviv, Inbal, Zohar and George. Also survived by nieces and nephews, Fran (Stan) Barg, Meryl (David) Ainsman, Judy (Bob) Danenberg, Miles (Cheryl) Kirshner and their children and grandchildren. Phyllis enjoyed world

news JEWS CAN USE.

travel, family gatherings, golf and walks on the beach. She was active in the community and a philanthropist. A curious and bright lifelong learner, she attended classes throughout her life. She was a member of the Tree of Life Congregation in the early years and later joined Temple Sinai. She was a Bridge Silver Life Master and an avid reader. She worked for many years at Reuben Donnelly as sales representative and was a successful real estate agent. Phyllis will be remembered by her many friends and family members as a very strong, proud, courageous, independent, vibrant and beautiful woman with her silver hair always perfectly coiffed.

Services were at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., 5509 Centre Avenue, Shadyside on Monday at 1 p.m. Interment Tree of Life Memorial Park. Contributions in Phyllis’s memory may be made to Americans for Ben-Gurion University, P.O. Box 7410310, Chicago, IL 60674-0310, or call, 212-687-7721, americansforbgu.org/donate-in-memory-of/. (For donations by phone or mail, please indicate that the donation is in memory of Phyllis Silver). schugar.com PJC

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“ Tax-loss harvesting can lead to permanent tax decreases or increased tax deferral. Either way, it will save you money. ” or retirement plan. Most of our clients tend to accumulate the majority of their wealth in their retirement plans, but this is still an important strategy to understand.

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Tax-loss harvesting can lead to permanent tax decreases or increased tax deferral. Either way, it will save you money.

There is an important limitation — you can’t sell a stock, deduct the loss, and buy the same stock back the next day. The government knows that stocks fluctuate in value; they don’t want people selling to get a tax deduction when investments

go down to immediately buy back the same investment so that they can benefit when it goes up in price. When you sell a stock or fund for a tax loss, you have to wait 30 days before you can buy back the same security in a taxable account.

This is known as the wash rule. However, you can work around this rule, to some extent, by buying a different stock or mutual fund that is similar to the security you sold for a loss.

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For higher-income taxpayers, lowering current year investment income by loss harvesting will generate even greater savings. These taxpayers

For your free copy of my book, The IRA and Retirement Plan Owner’s Guide to Beating the New Death Tax, simply email your mailing address to: requests@paytaxeslater.com.

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The foregoing content from Lange Financial Group, LLC is for informational purposes only, subject to change, and should not be construed as investment or tax advice. Those seeking personalized guidance should seek a qualified professional.

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AUGUST 13, 2021 19

Life & Culture A dilapidated Bulgarian synagogue will become a cultural center — and lifeline for a dwindling community — CULTURE —

By Jonah Goldman Kay | JTA

V

IDIN, Bulgaria — For 40 years, the central synagogue in this port city has resembled the town’s Jewish population — barely existent and rapidly aging.

The synagogue, which was built in the 19th century, is quite literally a shell of its former self. Vines creep up the side of the stone walls and the intricate painted designs on the building’s columns have faded from years of exposure to the elements. One of the domes is missing entirely, the result of a World War II bomb. The roof over the sanctuary is missing, too — not that the city’s Jews have use for it. With about a dozen members, the Jews of Vidin can barely form a minyan.

But over the next six months, the synagogue will undergo a massive transformation, gaining a new life as a $6 million cultural center and community hub — for both Jews and non-Jews.

The Vidin municipality is hoping that the project can do more than restore an old building. The city is nestled in a crook in the Danube River, part of a small chunk of northwest Bulgaria that juts out into a gap

p The exterior of the central synagogue in Vidin, Bulgaria, features the outlines of windows in the shape of the Ten Commandments.

It was designed by the famed Austrian architect Friedrich Grünanger to rival the synagogue in Vienna. Photo by Jonah Goldman Kay via JTA

between Romania and Serbia. It’s also located in the poorest region in the European Union and, not coincidentally, one of the continent’s fastest-shrinking population centers.

(Bulgaria itself holds the ignoble title of the

world’s fastest-shrinking country.)

It wasn’t always this way.

When the synagogue was built in 1894, Vidin was rapidly industrializing. The Austrian architect Friedrich Grünanger

designed the synagogue to be a majestic monument: The two-story building featured a turret on each corner, making it visible Please see Synagogue, page 22

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Life & Culture Synagogue: Continued from page 20

from far away. Delicate stained glass and intricate murals covered the interior.

Grünanger modeled his efforts on the Great Synagogue in Vienna, hoping that Vidin would one day become as large and powerful as the Austrian capital. At that time, the Jewish community numbered around 1,500 people, or about 10% of Vidin’s population. By the eve of World War II the number had grown to a quarter, or some 2,000 Jews. Vidin’s Jewish community accounted for about 5% of Bulgaria’s overall Jewish population. Sofia, the capital, was home to 50%.

Unlike its neighbors, Bulgaria did not deport its Jews during the Holocaust (though it did deport the Jewish population of neighboring Macedonia, which the country occupied during the war). However, after Israel was founded in 1948, Bulgaria strongly encouraged its Jewish population to immigrate to the new Jewish state. Most of Vidin’s Jews acquiesced and left for Israel, leaving behind their war-torn synagogue.

By 1949, there were just 17 Jewish families in Vidin, many of whom intermarried and assimilated into the population.

Today that number has dwindled even more. Rosa Marinova, the president of Vidin’s Jewish community organization, estimates that there are around a dozen

Jews in town, half of whom regularly attend community events.

“We don’t have a synagogue anymore,” Marinova said. “We’ll get together on Rosh Hashanah and some of the other holidays and do something small, but it’s nothing formal.”

A few years ago, Vidin erected a small monument in the city’s central park to commemorate its once-vibrant Jewish community.

With no rabbi and nobody to use the space, the battered synagogue fell into disrepair. In the 1980s, the city attempted to renovate the synagogue with help from Bulgaria’s Ministry of Culture and National Institute of Monuments. But the fall of communism stunted that plan, leaving the synagogue without a roof.

Fully exposed to the elements and abandoned, the already decrepit synagogue fell into complete disrepair. Grass grew over the tiled floor, the iconic metal columns rusted and the walls filled with graffiti from local teens. Although the synagogue was returned to the Bulgarian Jewish community organization in the mid-2000s, the few remaining members had no use for the tottering structure.

“We’d heard for years about how we should be putting effort into restoring this synagogue because it’s considered to be one of the most beautiful in Bulgaria,” said Maxim Delchev, the director of education at Shalom, Bulgaria’s Jewish community umbrella organization. “But, to be honest, we couldn’t put

a ton of money into a synagogue in a city that probably won’t have a Jewish community in 20 years.”

So when the Vidin municipality approached Shalom in 2017 with a proposal to turn the synagogue into a cultural center, the Jewish organization was apprehensive but excited. After all, it had just gotten back the synagogue, and the city had already proven itself a negligent steward of the property. However, the fact that the city took initiative and had a concrete plan for restoring the synagogue gave Shalom hope.

So did the $6 million in EU funding that had been set aside for the project, part of a larger $1.6 billion project meant to accelerate development in Bulgaria.

For many in Vidin, the effort to rebuild the local synagogue is their last chance at creating a tourist destination that will revive the cash-strapped region.

“While it’s not going to be used for religious practice anymore, it’ll get a new life as a cultural space,” said Yordan Tsenov, the project’s architect.

Throughout Europe, small towns and cities have turned dilapidated synagogues into cultural spaces, museums, even restaurants, via adaptive reuse. These spaces are usually not designed to be exclusively Jewish. While the Vidin municipality shows genuine interest in preserving Vidin’s Jewish history, it also sees a unique opportunity to bring foreigners — Jewish and non-Jewish — to the city.

Over the next few years, the plan has

slowly taken shape. Named after a Jewish artist from Vidin, the Jules Pascin Cultural Center will be home to a museum, performance space, library and cafe. There are plans as well to install a permanent exhibition dedicated to the history of the Jewish community here.

Tsenov said that the city plans to restore most of the original architectural features.

Most of the early work will involve stabilizing the initial structure, including laying a new foundation and filling in the hollow metal columns with concrete.

In late June, Vidin hosted a groundbreaking event with the mayor and several Jews from the community in attendance.

Construction began last month, and the center is expected to open by the end of 2022, barring delays.

“It’s a wonderful building and an important part of our town’s history,” said Shelley Vladeva, another member of the Jewish community. “Everyone in Vidin — Jew and non-Jew alike — wants to see it restored.”

Even after it opens, the Jewish community doesn’t have any plans to use the synagogue for services. The members will continue to have Shabbat dinners, Rosh Hashanah services and Passover seders at their new community space, a small room near the city’s monument to its Jewish community.

It’s much humbler than the synagogue, but it fits their community much better.

Plus, Vladeva adds with a smile, this one is next to the park. PJC

Chronicle launches Facebook group to share news and views

T

he Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle invites its readers to join Chronicle Connects: Jewish PGH, a new Facebook group that provides a forum for sharing news and engaging in discussions relevant to Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.

The launch of the group is part of the Chronicle’s ongoing effort to provide avenues

of connection and serve as a resource for the open exchange of information and opinions.

Join us, and make sure to follow us on Instagram (pittjewishchronicle), Twitter (@PittJewishChron) and our Facebook page (@PittsburghJewishChronicle). PJC — Toby Tabachnick

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Community Staying busy at Temple Emanuel

Good food, good fun Chabad of South Hills held a BBQ on July 27.

p Jonathan Fischer, Carrie Fischer and their baby, Shoshana

p Members of Temple Emanuel’s Larry and Brenda Miller Memorial Caring Community bake apple cakes for High Holy Day care packages.

p Mark and Eileen Sappir and Paula Altschul relax after donating blood at Temple Emanuel’s Give Blood & Give Back blood drive. In addition to collecting blood for the Pittsburgh community, the drive raised more than $300 dollars for SHIM (South Hills Interfaith Movement).

Photos courtesy of Leslie Hoffman via Temple Emanuel of South Hills

Back (packs) to school t Anne Witchner Levin, Lissa Guttman and Leah Kamon join nearly 50 other volunteers to pack and distribute backpacks to 22 community agencies. The NCJW Back 2 School Store Backpack Program distributes 1,000 backpacks and supplies for children going back to school in the fall.

p Ashlee Thompson and mom, Brittany Kendall

Photos courtesy of Mussie Rosenblum via Chabad of South Hills

That’s classic(al)

p Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Young Adult Division hosted a tent with coffee, donuts and friendly conversation at Bach, Beethoven and Brunch Classical Music Series on Aug. 8. The outdoor summer program occurs at Mellon Park and is sponsored by Squirrel Hill Urban Coalition and WQED-FM 89.3.

Photo by Jim Busis

Hello from Waupaca t Staff and campers from Pittsburgh enjoy their summer at Camp Young Judaea Midwest in Waupaca, Wisconsin.

Photo courtesy of Elana Clavner via CJY Midwest

Photo courtesy of Sarah Altomari via NCJW, Pittsburgh Section

Machers and Shakers Evan H. Stein and Tanya Koul Strausbaugh are among this year’s freshman class of the Jewish Federation’s National Young Leadership Cabinet.

National Young Leadership Cabinet is Federation’s premier young leadership development program that educates and connects the next generation of global Jewish leaders and philanthropists.

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p Evan H. Stein

p Tanya Koul Strausbaugh

AUGUST 13, 2021 23

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