April 1, 2022 | 29 Adar II 5782
Candlelighting 7:27 p.m. | Havdalah 8:27 p.m. | Vol. 65, No. 13 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL One man’s trash is another man’s treasure
Pittsburgher’s train — and rabbinical students — shepherd Ukrainians to safety
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JFCS clarifies Ukrainian immigration protocols By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
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College is used to addressing an audience, but not like this. Since March 8, he has traveled across Germany, delivering food, translating and offering thousands of Ukrainian refugees whatever he can. Some days, Kovtun stands for hours on a railway platform in Frankfurt distributing water. On the day he spoke with the Chronicle, he boarded a train, helping refugees determine where to head next. Almost 239,000 Ukrainians have entered Germany since Feb. 24, according to the German Interior Ministry. As welcoming as Germany is, there’s a
uring the past several weeks, many Pittsburghers have contacted JFCS (Jewish Family and Community Services), a resettlement agency, asking when Ukrainian refugees will arrive in the U.S. and how they can help. As thoughtful as the concerns are, the questions are driven by an erroneous conflation of the Afghan crisis and what’s transpiring in Eastern Europe, said Jordan Golin, JFCS’ president and CEO, at a March 23 press briefing. “The way in which Afghan refugees were sent to our community, and the speed with which it happened, was not typical of the usual way that refugee crises are handled,“ Golin said. “The Afghan response was an expedited process that the U.S. government created to assist as many Afghan people as possible, as quickly as possible, under very unique conditions.” The U.S. government has not responded similarly to Ukrainians, or their situation, said Jamie Englert, JFCS’ director of immigration legal services Between Feb. 24 and March 23, more than 3.6 million refugees fled Ukraine, according to the United Nations. “Unfortunately, at this time, there are very few pathways legally for Ukrainians, who have been displaced, to arrive and enter the United States,” Englert said. Three options exist, but none are immediately promising, JFCS staffers explained. First, Ukrainians who arrived in the U.S. before March 1 may apply for temporary protected status, which will allow them to work and live in the U.S. for 18 months without deportation. Second, Ukrainians with an immediate family member in the U.S. may seek participation in the U.S. family reunification program. Immediate family members are defined as an unmarried child under the
Please see Train, page 14
Please see Immigration, page 14
Chabad rabbi finds spiritual mementos in dumpster Page 4
LOCAL Cyril Wecht on JFK, Jeffrey Epstein and Bob Saget World-renowned coroner to tell tales at local theater Page 5
NATIONAL The complicated world of Jewish philanthropy
Henry Posner III (second from left) joins RDC-D staff and helpers in Frankfurt/Oder on March 12. Photo courtesy of Henry Posner III By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
Jewish Funders Network gathers for first conference since pandemic Page 9
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lex Kovtun returned to his dorm an hour ago. He still hasn’t showered. It’s almost 10 p.m. in Potsdam, Germany, and by the time he finishes speaking with the Chronicle, there will be just five hours before he wakes and returns to the train. Kovtun, 31, apologizes for the sound of his voice. Its hoarseness isn’t due to cigarettes, he said. “I don’t smoke, but I’ve been speaking so much.” The yarmulke-clad Ukrainian-born rabbinical student at Abraham Geiger
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FOOD
Passover kugel