Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle 3-17-23

JCC announces transition plan for President and CEO Brian Schreiber

Local Israeli expats and others protest proposed judicial changes

By David Rullo | Sta Writer

As part of a planned transition, Brian Schreiber will step down as president and CEO of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh and assume a new role as chief external affairs officer and special adviser to the CEO.

Chief Program Officer Jason Kunzman will become president and CEO.

Schreiber, who has served as the organization’s CEO since 1999, will continue to serve as special adviser to JCC Association of North America President and CEO Doron Krakow, a position he began in 2018.

The JCC’s programs include early childhood development centers, J Line, Diller Teen Fellows, day camps, the Emma Kaufman Camp, AgeWell at the JCC, Center

for Loving Kindness and fitness centers.

Under Schreiber’s leadership, the agency has more than doubled its size and scope of services and its operating budget. It built a $20 million endowment fund while retiring $10 million in debt. The JCC has reinvested more than $32 million in its five owned and operated facilities located in Allegheny County and Morgantown, West Virginia.

Schreiber said the announcement, nearly six months before the transition, will provide time for the community to process the information and allow Kunzman to hit the ground running in September.

It also allows the JCC’s management team and board to talk about the agency’s vision for the future, he said.

By David Rullo | Sta Writer

About 70 Israelis living in Pittsburgh, along with other members of the Pittsburgh Jewish community, gathered on Sunday, March 12, on the corner of Forbes and Murray avenues to protest proposed changes to the Israeli judiciary by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies.

The demonstrators stood in front of the Carnegie Library in the afternoon chill for nearly an hour holding signs reading “Save Israel’s Democracy” and “Israel Must Stay a Democracy,” waving Israeli flags and chanting “What do we want? Democracy. When do we want it? Now.”

The gathering was the second in two

Merav Amos dressed in a costume resembling characters from the popular television show “The Handmaid’s Tale” while protesting proposed changes to Israel’s judiciary.

Photo by David Rullo

(right) will succeed him in the role.

Photo provided by JCC of Greater Pittsburgh.

Our Giving Kitchen hosts ‘pay what you want’ pre-Pesach pop-up store

 Fresh produce

—

LOCAL

By Adam Reinherz | Sta Writer

A

The one-day event, organized by Our Giving Kitchen, will allow registrants to “pay what they want” for produce, packaged and prepared food. In that way, people can acquire the same products, and nobody will know what anyone else is paying, said Rabbi Chezky Rosenfeld, director of Our Giving Kitchen.

Scheduled for Sunday, April 2, at Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh’s new Greenfield location, the program is designed to reduce stigma around food insecurity, Rosenfeld explained. Participants can pay what they’d like for $150-$200 worth of coupons, then redeem the coupons for holiday staples, including chicken,

kugel and meatloaf.

Rosenfeld expects larger families to use the coupons for produce, and singles or elderly couples to redeem the vouchers for cooked items.

communal venture is helping to offset the rising costs of kosher for Passover food.Established in 2021 as a response to the pandemic, Our Giving Kitchen relies on volunteer and donor support. The pre-Pesach pop-up store is no different, Rosenfeld said.

Produce will be bought or donated by nearby vendors, and cooked foods will be prepared at Chabad of Squirrel Hill by volunteers.

Rabbi Yisroel Altein, co-director of Chabad of Squirrel Hill, said he was happy to share his sizable kitchen.

Apart from the fact that the space will be cleaned and ready for the holiday well before any afikomen is eaten, Passover is a time where Jewish people are instructed to take extra care of those around them. There is a law, known as Maos Chitim, which dictates an “obligation on a community to provide food for all in the community,” he said.

Described as early as 1,600 years ago in the Jerusalem Talmud, Maos Chitim serves as a mechanism whereby Jewish communities collect money before the holiday, thus ensuring poorer members could still have matzah on Passover.

The concept of providing food for those less fortunate is important year-round, but “Pesach is the most appropriate time to focus on it,” Altein said.

A team of volunteers will begin cooking kosher for Passover food at Chabad of Squirrel Hill in the coming days. Until then, Rosenfeld is seeking additional help.

“We are still open for sponsorships and donations, as we don’t have full costs covered,” he said.

Our Giving Kitchen is not intended to “replace the other wonderful community organizations and programs,” Rosenfeld said. “This is just a supplement.”

Anyone who has recently scoured shelves for bargains or frustratingly perused a grocery store aisle knows inflation continues to be a problem.

Though the price of fruits and vegetables fell 0.5% during January, meat, poultry, fish and eggs rose by 0.7%. According to the same Feb. 14 report from the Labor Department, the price of eggs rose 8.5% from the previous month.

For food executives, the outlook is “grim,” as Passover food costs are expected to trump last year’s by 12%, Kosher Today reported.

“With rising food prices, and kosher food prices which have gone up more, we’ve seen that the need is great, Rosenfeld said. “There are families in Pittsburgh, even with steady incomes, where things have gotten rough. If we can provide a little relief and add to the joy of the holiday, then that’s what we’re here for.”

Registration for the pre-Pesach popup store is required. Information is available at ogkpgh.com/pesach or by emailing rabbi@ ogkpgh.com. PJC

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

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Photo by “patrick” via flickr  The only thing not sweet about this kosher for Passover kugel is how much it will cost to make this year.

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Local Israel advocate Julie Paris joins StandWithUs as Mid-Atlantic regional director

— LOCAL —

By Adam Reinherz | Sta Writer

Longtime Israel advocate Julie Paris is making her Zionist stance more official. The Pittsburgher recently became Mid-Atlantic regional director for StandWithUs, a Los Angeles-based nonpartisan organization that supports Israel and fights antisemitism through programming and education on six continents.

Paris is eager to share the organization’s resources with Pittsburghers and partner with local leaders to promote Israel and combat “the rising tide of hate,” she said.

According to a 2022 American Jewish Committee report, 89% of Americans believe antisemitism is a problem in the United States, and 82% of Americans think antisemitism has increased in the U.S. during the past five years.

StandWithUs has tools for helping students and adults respond to antisemitism. Curricula, conferences, social media use and missions to Israel are offered “at a very inexpensive price point or completely free,” Paris said.

Paris recently traveled to Los Angeles to gain insight into the organization and its offerings.

Between March 2-5, she attended “Israel in Focus,” a StandWithUs conference featuring discussions with educators, lawyers and students.

Paris hopes to bring several of these speakers to Pittsburgh and serve as “a resource for those who are struggling or have faced antisemitism,” she said. StandWithUs, she added, is a vehicle for “offering students and community members empowerment, pride, resources and engagement.”

Several local organizations are already committed to those efforts. StandWithUs isn’t seeking to displace any entities; rather,

the group aims to serve in a complementary role, Paris said. “Any other organization that feels as strongly as we do, or is doing this work and is looking to increase their engagement with Israel and with fighting antisemitism, we are there and we want to partner,” she said.

Paris is tasked with representing the organization throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia and portions of New Jersey. She manages a board in Philadelphia and hopes to create another board in Pittsburgh.

As much as Paris is looking forward to working with adults, and fundraising on behalf of the organization, she said some of the most critical work involves younger generations.

She is a parent of middle school-aged children and said she knows the pressure students are under — both within classrooms and online — when it comes to antisemitism and Israel. Paris wants to work with educators and young learners by providing access to experts, opportunities for travel and materials that include facts and figures about the Jewish state.

For Paris, past excursions to Israel and the recent visit to Los Angeles were valuable learning opportunities. Whether it was seeing the StandWithUs Israel education center in Jerusalem or hearing from high school and college-aged students, Paris said she was reminded of how imperative it is to invest in the young: “These are our future leaders.”

Other than quarterly trips across Pennsylvania, West Virginia and portions of New Jersey, Paris will be based in Pittsburgh — where she’s long been known as an Israel advocate. Years before accepting the position, she served as Western PA

regional director of the Jewish National Fund and received the Israel Service Award from the Zionist Organization of America-Pittsburgh.

“We are delighted to welcome Julie Paris to the international StandWithUs family. Her passion and expertise, as well as her engagement with so many wonderful organizations make her a perfect fit for the work of StandWithUs,” said Roz Rothstein, co-founder and CEO of StandWithUs. “With Julie’s leadership, we are certain to impact growing numbers of local middle school, high school

and college students, as well as the community at large.”

Joining StandWithUs is a chance to create new relationships, strengthen existing ties and work with and learn from “an incredible team,” Paris said. “I want people to know that we are apolitical and nonpartisan; we are an education organization. And I want to bring the tools and the resources of StandWithUs to the forefront of our community.” PJC

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

BOOK KEEPING/OFFICE ASSISTANT - REMOTE Part-Time/$20–$22 per hour

A small, growing non-profit organization is seeking a Book Keeper/ Office Assistant who wants to work flexible hours and remotely. We are seeking candidates with general office knowledge and a minimum of 3-5 years experience in book keeping.

Qualified candidates will have:

• Proficient Microsoft Office experience, creating letters,documents, and spreadsheets, etc.

• Solid book-keeping skills/experience; proficient knowledge of QuickBooks necessary.

• At least 3-5 years of general office experience and customer service skills.

• Own, reliable transportation. There is some errand work involved.

Responsibilities and duties include, but are not limited, to:

• Accounts Payables/Receivables

• Organizing, filing, and some phone work

• General assistance of Executive Director and Operations Manager as needed

Please respond, by sending your resume to: resumes81863@gmail.com, or mail to:

Book Keeper/Office Assistant P.O. Box 81863 Pittsburgh, PA 15217

 Julie Paris Photo courtesy of Julie Paris

 Julie Paris, Mid-Atlantic regional director; Ari Chesterman, Mid-Atlantic high school regional manager; and Dimas Guaico, Mid-Atlantic campus regional manager Photo courtesy of Julie Paris

Getting to know: Eli Kurs-Lasky

By Adam Reinherz | Sta Writer

Eli Kurs-Lasky sees beauty in garbage, puddles and Pittsburgh street scenes. His gift is helping others see the splendor as well.

The Squirrel Hill resident is a self-taught photographer whose Instagram account, “stillcityphotography,” is a salute to Pittsburgh. His photos often depict familiar buildings in Oakland, recognizable red buses and foliage from Schenley Park. Each image is paired with a two-word description: A collection of plastic folding chairs is captioned “performance anxiety.” A rusted love lock affixed to a bridge is titled “old promises.”

Kurs-Lasky told the Chronicle there’s an irony in eschewing verbosity.

Whereas a picture can spark conversation, the caption doesn’t allow for lengthy expression. As a result, certain topics, like being Jewish, are difficult to convey, he explained.

Kurs-Lasky, 30, grew up in Squirrel Hill. He was bar mitzvahed at Tree of Life and later attended Temple Sinai.

Judaism is central to his identity, he said, but as his public profile has grown — his work has appeared in Pittsburgh City Paper, The Incline and Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle — he’s encountering new dilemmas.

“I hate to say it, I feel like I’m navigating how open to be about being Jewish. And the only reason I say that is just because, unfortunately, the way that our society is right now, and the rise of antisemitism, it is just very scary,” he said.

Kurs-Lasky has grappled with this angst in essays for Public Source.

He told the Chronicle it’s harder to convey the unease on Instagram, however.

Each year, since Oct. 27, 2018, the Squirrel Hill resident has posted something related to the horrific event. Still, there’s a struggle, he said: “In a way, I’m not really sure how to get my Judaism across in my photos.”

Kurs-Lasky values expression. After attending Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts, he graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, where he studied English writing and sociology.

Focusing on poetry helped him prioritize the mundane, he said. “I like to take pictures of things that people would walk by, and not even notice, and make them question why they assume something very normal isn’t beautiful or isn’t noteworthy.”

Whether via words or images, generating new perceptions is critical, he continued, as considerable good could come from society pausing and taking time to correct misconceptions.

Kurs-Lasky addressed a similar topic on Feb. 17, when he delivered a Friday evening dvar Torah at Temple Sinai.

As part of a service celebrating Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance, and

Inclusion Month, he spoke about receiving an autism diagnosis later in life.

He told the Chronicle that although he’s written about being diagnosed in his 20s, last month was his first time articulating it in a public setting.

What made the Temple Sinai experience so frightening, he said, was not only watching people react but removing a veil that other expressive means afford: “It feels scary to publicly admit some of my limitations. Because even though I’ve written about something, there’s kind of a way that it still feels a little somewhat anonymous. But speaking it, it’s obvious that I’m the one who’s saying it.”

Kurs-Lasky said the dvar Torah “went well,” but he’s eager to continue expressing himself in other ways.

With the days getting longer and the weather growing warmer, there are increased opportunities to find unexpected scenes. For the Squirrel Hill resident, who regularly walks with a Canon DSLR in hand, those chance encounters are ripe for capture and development.

“It’s how I understand and interact with the things around me,” he said. PJC

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

 Eli Kurs-Lasky Photo courtesy of Eli Kurs-Lasky

 “Nature’s Mirror”

Photo by Eli Kurs-Lasky

 “Performance Anxiety”

Photo by Eli Kurs-Lasky

 “Pittsburgh Strong”

Photo by Eli Kurs-Lasky

“I like to take pictures of things that people would walk by, and not even notice, and make them question why they assume something very normal isn’t beautiful or isn’t noteworthy.”

In US, Smotrich walks back Huwara remark, touts unity, as hundreds protest visit

By Jacob Magid | The Times of Israel

WASHINGTON — Visiting a less-than-welcoming United States, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich appeared to embark on a charm offensive Sunday, telling American investors he was sorry for calling to “wipe out” the Palestinian town of Huwara and committing to “protect every innocent life, Jew or Arab,” as several hundred American Jews and Israeli ex-pats protested his appearance outside.

Smotrich spoke to some 150 leaders in the Israel Bonds organization at a private gala dinner, attempting to drum up continued support for Israel’s economy despite reports of investment money fleeing the country due to the upheaval around a judicial overhaul plan being pushed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-right government.

Midway through his English-language remarks at the gala Sunday night, Smotrich sought to address what he called “the elephant in the room.”

“As I have already said and written and repeat now with sincere regret, my comments about Huwara created a completely mistaken impression,” he claimed. “I stand before you now as always committed to the security of the state of Israel, to our shared values, and to the highest moral commitment of our armed forces to protect every innocent life, Jew or Arab.”

Less than two weeks earlier, Smotrich was asked why he had “liked” a tweet calling “to wipe out the village of Huwara today,” referring to the Palestinian town where a pair of Israeli brothers were gunned down in a terror attack and where hundreds of settlers carried out a deadly rampage hours later.

“Because I think the village of Huwara needs to be wiped out. I think the state of Israel should do it,” Smotrich replied, adding that “God forbid” the job be done by private citizens.

The comments sparked immediate international uproar, with the U.S. calling them “repugnant” and demanding that Netanyahu and other Israeli ministers repudiate them.

Three days later, Smotrich walked back his words, calling them a “slip of the tongue” made in a “storm of emotions,” and Netanyahu praised his clarification.

But for many — particularly in the American Jewish community — the damage was already done. Seventy-three liberal Jewish organizations signed onto a pledge against hosting Smotrich, three of whom called on the Biden administration to deny him the visa needed to enter the country. Several such groups organized a protest outside the Grand Hyatt Hotel Sunday where inside Smotrich addressed the conference for Israel Bonds, which sells Israeli government bonds to investors abroad.

For its part, the White House sufficed with announcing last week that no government officials would meet the finance minister while he is in town.

Among those to effectively shun Smotrich

were major mainstream organizations such as the Conference of Presidents, the Jewish Federations of North America, the American Jewish Committee, AIPAC and the Anti-Defamation League, though they avoided signing onto statements in support of boycotting Smotrich. The Republican Jewish Coalition and Christians United for Israel similarly confirmed that they didn’t have meetings scheduled with Smotrich.

the Grand Hyatt and positioning themselves on the west side of the hotel, just two police squad cars apart from the proIsrael demonstration.

Nearly a dozen members of the group managed to sneak into the building, seeking to disrupt Smotrich’s speech. They didn’t make it inside the ballroom, but If Not Now said seven of its members were arrested.

Speakers and participants at the rally of

Both groups made a point of criticizing Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians, though such chants at the Israel-flag-waving demonstration were not nearly as aggressive and were largely voiced by the liberal American Jewish speakers, not Israeli ex-pats, who focused their remarks on opposition to the judicial overhaul.

“I know you are joining today because you know that even here, in tranquil America ... as we all go about our business, at home, in our synagogues and [Jewish Community Centers] ... the government in Israel is executing an aggressive, violent, illegal judicial coup,” said Offir Gutelzon, an Israeli-American living in the Bay Area. Gutelzon and other expats recently formed the group UnXeptable to protest the Israeli government and helped organize Sunday’s protest.

“Demonstrating against the Israeli government for so many of our brothers and sisters here in America — I know it is unnatural, I know it goes against your DNA, but we all know that this is an emergency,” he added, ostensibly referring to a longstanding Israeli political tradition to not air dirty laundry while abroad.

Israeli protesters back home have also zeroed in on the coalition’s effort to radically restrict the Supreme Court’s power, castigating those who have shown up to their rallies brandishing Palestinian flags amid fears that they will scare away right-wing leaning Israelis from joining.

But the speakers at the Washington proIsrael rally against Smotrich demonstrated the more dovish nature of American Jews, many of whom aren’t willing to separate their support for Palestinian rights from their support for a strong Israeli democracy.

Smotrich said last week that he was supposed to meet with a director of the International Monetary Fund and representatives from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, but both of those meetings were canceled amid uproar over the Huwara comments, the Kan public broadcaster reported.

Only the Orthodox Union and the right-wing Zionist Organization of America announced plans to meet with Smotrich during his three days in Washington and New York.

As Smotrich spoke inside, several simultaneous protests against the finance minister took place outside the Grand Hyatt. On the west side of the building, several hundred Israeli ex-pats and American Jews waved Israeli flags and chanted slogans against Smotrich, the Israeli government’s judicial overhaul plans and the government’s policies toward the Palestinians.

On the north side of the building, the far-left Jewish Voice for Peace organization led a rally of over 60 people who called to boycott Israel and accused the country of maintaining an apartheid regime over the Palestinians.

A similar number from the like-minded If Not Now Jewish organization gathered near the White House before marching toward

Israeli ex-pats and liberal American Jews expressed their solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of anti-Netanyahu protesters who have taken to the streets across Israel to protest the government’s judicial overhaul plans. The Washington protesters adopted the “De-mo-cra-cy” chant that’s been heard over the past 10 weeks some 6,000 miles away.

“To our Israeli sisters and brothers, we say: ‘We are with you at every moment in your struggle against racism, against homophobia, against extremism and for democracy, tolerance, equality and human rights,’” declared Susie Gelman, who chairs the board of the center-left Israel Policy Forum. “We are here tonight because the racism, homophobia and extremism of Bezalel Smotrich do not and must not represent the values of Israelis and Jewish people worldwide.”

Smotrich has a long history of remarks against the LGBTQ community, Arabs, Palestinians and non-Orthodox Jews, some of which he has walked back.

His latest remarks about Huwara managed to unify both Israel-flag-waving Zionists and Palestinian-flag-waving anti-Zionists outside the Grand Hyatt on Sunday evening.

“When we talk about democracy, we also have to talk about occupation and Palestinian rights,” said Jill Jacobs, who heads the T’ruah rabbinic human rights group.

Despite political differences on the Palestinian issue, the Israeli ex-pats and liberal American Jews came together later that evening to protest together, as inside, Smotrich extolled the virtues of unity and struck a more conciliatory tone than he has to date.

“Judaism has always known controversies. We can even say it was built on controversies. Disagreement is not something that should scare us. On the contrary, it enriches us,” Smotrich said.

“There are among us religious and secular people, Reform, Conservative, unaffiliated, and others,” he continued. “In Israel, we have big differences, but for one moment we must not forget that we are brothers.”

“Despite all of the differences, despite the many colors that make up the Jewish mosaic, we are one,” Smotrich added, noting that they all had the same goal of “tikkun olam,” or repairing the world, a watchword for many progressive American Jews he once disparaged.

“Together I have no doubt that we will succeed,” he added. PJC

 Jewish Americans and Israeli ex-pats protest against Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich outside the Grand Hyatt hotel in Washington on March 12.

Photo by Jacob Magid/Times of Israel

Smotrich has a long history of remarks against the LGBTQ community, Arabs, Palestinians and non-Orthodox Jews, some of which he has walked back.

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.

SUNDAYS, MARCH 19 – APRIL 23

Join a lay-led online Parashah study group to discuss the week’s Torah portion. No Hebrew knowledge needed. The goal is to build community while deepening understanding of the text. 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.

SUNDAYS, MARCH 19 – DEC. 4

Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for its Men’s Tefillin Club. Enjoy bagels, lox and tefillin on the first Sunday of the month. 8:30 a.m. chabadpgh.com.

MONDAYS, MARCH 20 – APRIL 24

Join Congregation Beth Shalom for a weekly Talmud study. 9:15 a.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.

MONDAYS, MARCH 20 – MAY 15

Understanding the Torah and what it asks of us is one of the most important things a Jew can learn. But most Torah classes begin in Genesis and never finish the first book. If you want a comprehensive overview of the whole Torah, Torah 1 is the course for you. In the first year of this two-year Zoom course, Rabbi Danny Schi will teach Genesis, Exodus and the first half of Leviticus. In the second year, he will complete Leviticus and cover Numbers and Deuteronomy. $225. 9:30 a.m. foundation. jewishpgh.org/torah-1.

TUESDAYS, MARCH 21 – APRIL 18

Join Temple Sinai for a weekly Talmud class with Rabbi Daniel Fellman. Noon. On site and online. For more information and for the Zoom link, contact Temple Sinai at 412-421-9715.

TUESDAYS, MARCH 21 – MAY 2

In “Israel Literature as a Window to Israel Society,” Rabbi Danny Schi will facilitate an encounter with Israeli society through the pens of Israel’s leading writers, discovering voices that are original, contemporary and honest. This 10part Melton course takes you on a literary journey o ering a fresh examination of the ever-relevant issues faced by Israeli writers. Together, learners will read poetry and prose that is challenging and self-critical, gaining insights into the Jewish national psyche. 9:30 a.m. $160. jewishpgh.org/event/israeliliterature-as-a-window-to-israeli-society/2023-02-07.

TUESDAYS, MARCH 21 – DEC. 26

Led by a certified yoga teacher, yoga class at Temple Sinai is welcome to all levels. No experience necessary. 16 and older. $15. Register at templesinaipgh.org.

WEDNESDAYS, MARCH 22 – APRIL 19

Participate in weekly gentle yoga with a skilled and caring yoga instructor experienced in traumainformed care. Experience an hour of gentle and calming yoga and learn yoga you can do at home and in stressful situations, including while seated. 3 p.m. 10.27 Healing Partnership suite inside the Squirrel Hill JCC. Facilitated by Susie Balcom and open to everyone. Register here: forms.gle/ JQtgrutJyByaMM5K6.

WEDNESDAYS, MARCH 22 – MAY 24

In the new 10-part Zoom course, “Sacks: To Heal a Fractured World,” Rabbi Danny Schi will explore “To Heal a Fractured World,” Rabbi Jonathan Sacks’ book on the nature of Jewish responsibility for the broader world. Students will be invited to read this pivotal book and to discuss its contents in order to arrive at a better understanding of the views of Rabbi Sacks on the goals and vision of Judaism. 9:30 a.m. $145 for all 10 sessions. jewishpgh.org/ event/sacks-to-heal-a-fractured-world/2023-02-2.

WEDNESDAYS, MARCH 22 – MAY 24

Registration is now open for “Melton Core 1: Rhythms and Purposes of Jewish Living.” This 25-lesson course will take you through the year’s cycle — the life cycle traditions and practices that

bind us together. Explore not just the what is and how is of Jewish living, but the why is that go with them. 7 p.m. $300 per person, per year (25 sessions), includes all books and materials. Virtual. foundation.jewishpgh.org/melton-core-1.

WEDNESDAYS, MARCH 22 – DEC. 20

Join AgeWell for an Intergenerational Family Dynamics Discussion Group, geared toward anyone who has children, grandchildren, a spouse, siblings or parents. Family dynamics is a fascinating topic and whether you have family harmony or strife, these discussions are going to be thought-provoking and helpful. Led by intergenerational specialist/ presenter and educator Audree Schall. Third Wednesday of each month. Free. 12:30 p.m. South Hills JCC. jccpgh.org/app/uploads/2023/02/JCCSouth-Hills-Seniors-Newsletter-February-2023.pdf.

WEDNESDAYS, MARCH 22 – DEC. 27

Temple Sinai’s Rabbi Daniel Fellman presents a weekly Parshat/Torah portion class on site and online. Call 412-421-9715 for more information and the Zoom link.

THURSDAYS, MARCH 23; APRIL 13, 27

This bimonthly Refaeinu healing circle is led by Sara Stock Mayo, a spiritual leader, trained drama therapist, musician and poet. The space will be open to anyone who seeks to create community in shared healing rituals, Jewish texts and music, art making and embodied wellness practices. 10.27 Healing Partnership Suite, JCC of Greater Pittsburgh. 7 p.m. To register, visit forms.gle/pAJoXvNXSJ9Ks3ow9.

THURSDAY, MARCH 23

The Battle of Homestead Foundation presents “Steeltown Jews: History and Legacy at Work in Homestead, PA.” The program, presented by community historian Tammy Hepps, reviews the history of the Jewish community in Homestead and explores the interplay of labor, industry and ethnicity in America’s most famous steel mill town. 7:30 p.m. Zoom. Free, but viewers must register at evenbrite.com.

THURSDAYS, MARCH 23 – APRIL 27

Many are concerned that democracy is under threat. That reality raises a critical question: What does Judaism have to say about democracy? What is the attitude of Judaism to majority rule, to defending minorities, to the separation of religion and state, to kings and courts? In “Is Judaism Compatible with Democracy?” Rabbi Danny Schi will delve into what our texts have to say about the structure of government from a Jewish viewpoint. Co-sponsored and o ered in conjunction with Temple Sinai. $55. 9:30 a.m. Temple Sinai, 5505 Forbes Ave. jewishpgh.org/event/is-judaism-compatible-withdemocracy/2023-03-23.

FRIDAY, MARCH 24

Join the National Council of Jewish Women for MomsWork Career Day a free career afternoon with child care, Career Development Center workshops, professional headshots, resume review, mock interviews and more. This is a PPS half day, so pick up your kids and come spend the day with us. Optional paid lunch options for adults and kids. 1 p.m. 1620 Murray Ave. ncjwpghevents.org/ upcoming-events.

Join Temple Sinai for a special Shabbat dinner to begin a celebration in honor of the installation of Rabbi Daniel Fellman and Cantor David Reinwald. Kosher menu. $28 per adult. 5:30 p.m. Details at templesinaipgh.org.

Join Temple Sinai for the installation of Rabbi Daniel Fellman and Cantor David Reinwald. Rabbi Fellman will be installed by Rabbi Bennett Miller and Cantor Reinwald by Cantor David Serkin-Poole. 7 p.m. templesinaipgh.org.

SATURDAY, MARCH 25

Be Temple Sinai’s guest for Havdalah and Celebration Concert: Ha’tov v’Ha’meitiv—A Gathering of Goodness in Harmony, a celebratory concert directed by and featuring Cantor David Reinwald, clergy from our community and other special guests. 7:30 p.m. templesinaipgh.org.

SUNDAY, MARCH 26

The Jewish Genealogy Society of Pittsburgh presents “Once More Under the Clock: Remembering Kaufmann’s.” Marylynne Pitz, Laura Malt Schnedierman and Melanie Linn Gutowski will o er insights into Kaufmann’s Department Store and the Kaufmann family. They’ll also share some of their favorite discoveries from the vast collection of Kaufmann’s Department Store materials at the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center. 11 a.m. Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman St. heinzhistorycenter.org/event/once-more-under-theclock-remembering-kaufmanns

In honor of Rabbi Daniel Fellman and Cantor David Reinwald’s installation, Temple Sinai presents a community Tikkun Olam program on food insecurity. Volunteers will help pack bagged lunches for Light of Life Rescue Mission. 11 a.m. Lunch is included. templesinaipgh.org

MONDAY, MARCH 27 – SUNDAY, MAY 7

The Healing Garden is an exhibit of drawings by members of the Allegheny Highlands Botanical Art Society. Free and open to the public. Opening reception on Monday, March 27, at 6 p.m. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org.

Join Chabad of the South Hills for a pre-Passover Ladies Night Out and explore how the exodus from Egypt is relevant today while tasting international Passover dishes. 7:30 p.m. 1701 McFarland Drive. chabadsh.com.

TUESDAY, MARCH 28

Join Rodef Shalom Congregation Librarian Sam Siskind for wine, cheese and a discussion of the novel “How to Find Your Way in the Dark,” winner of the 2022 Association of Jewish Libraries Jewish Fiction. 6:30 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 2

What happens if you mix corn starch and water? How do volcanoes work? Can you make fireworks in a jar? Tot Science Night at Temple Sinai is dedicated to your curious, questioning kids with experiments for all ages. Come prepared to get messy. Questions? Contact Danie Oberman, community engagement director, at Danie@TempleSinaiPGH.org or 412-421-9715, ext. 121.

MONDAY, APRIL 3

Music at Rodef Shalom presents arias and duets from the world of grand opera featuring Walter Morales (piano and host), Kelly Lynch (soprano) and Raymond Blackwell (baritone). Music by Debussy, Ravel, Verdi, Puccini and selections from the Great American Songbook. 7 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5

Chabad of Squirrel Hill presents a first night of Passover Community Seder. Enjoy a gourmet Passover meal in the company of family and friends. $25/adult, $15/child. 7:30 p.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com.

Enjoy a first night elegant and delicious Community Passover Seder filled with insight, meaning and inspiration at Chabad of the South Hills. 7:30 p.m. $65 adult/$25 children. chabadsh.com.

THURSDAYS, APRIL 6; MAY 4; JUNE 1

Join local clergy from Jewish and Christian backgrounds for the Christian Jewish Dialogue, a monthly discussion exploring topics of similarities and di erences. Noon. Rodef Shalom Congregation. rodefshalom.org.

SUNDAYS, APRIL 9–30

The ten plagues. The Exodus. The splitting of the sea. The delivery of manna … Judaism has a long list of miracles. But do we really believe in miracles? How should rational minds think about the miraculous? In “Miracles - A Jewish Perspective,” Rabbi Danny Schi will consider the place of miracles in Judaism and how Jews might think about the miraculous today. 10 a.m. $55. Four sessions on Zoom. jewishpgh.org/event/miracles-ajewish-perspective.

MONDAYS, APRIL 10–MAY 22

We Jews have an array of texts and making sense of them is not easy. In the six-part series “The Jewish Text Puzzle,” Rabbi Danny Schi will put the pieces of the “text puzzle” into one coherent picture, so that the place of Torah, Tanakh, Talmud, Midrash, Responsa and Kabbalah, as well as many other sources, can be easily understood. Schi will provide a historical context that will explain the significance of our various texts to Judaism. 7 p.m. $85. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave. jewishpgh.org/event/thejewish-text-puzzle.

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

The Jewish Genealogy Society Pittsburgh Presents

“When Henry Silverstein Got Cold. How Terrible Enumerators Help Us Do Better Census Research with Tammy Hepps” is a collaboration between the Jewish Genealogy Society of Pittsburgh and the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Heinz History Center. Please register online. The program is free for JGS-Pittsburgh members as well as for the general public. 11 a.m. Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman St. heinzhistorycenter.org/event/jgs-pittsburghpresents-when-henry-silverstein-got-cold.

Scholar and activist Dr. Shula Mola, named one of Israel’s 50 most influential women in 2022 by Globes newspaper, will deliver the annual lecture of the Israel Heritage Nationality Room and the University of Pittsburgh’s Jewish studies program. The title of her talk is “Becoming Visible: Ethiopian Jews and the Formation of Black Identity” in Israel. 4:30 p.m. Free. Cathedral of Learning, room 332.

THURSDAYS, APRIL 20, MAY 18

Join the JCC Bu alo for monthly virtual readings as part of the Jewish Poetry Series. Hosted by Philip Terman and Baruch November. Each month will feature di erent Jewish poets reading selections of poems that include but are not limited to Jewish themes, values and ideas. 7 p.m. Free and open to the community. jccbu alo.org/events/2023/02/09/ arts-and-culture/virtual-jewish-poetry-reading-series.

FRIDAY APRIL 21

Do your kids like to sing and dance? Do you want them to get the Shabbat feeling? Are you looking for an informal, inviting way to teach your little ones about Shabbat and connect with other families? Join Temple Sinai for Tot Shabbat beginning at 5 p.m. with snacks, schmooze and fun. Service starts at 5:30 p.m. A complimentary and kid-friendly dinner will follow at 6 p.m. templesinaipgh.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 23

Jewish Veg welcomes Rabbi Akiva Gersh, aka The Vegan Rabbi, from Israel to Pittsburgh. A graduate of Brown and Yeshiva universities, Rabbi Gersh will show how our sacred texts and rabbinic tradition lead us to a plant-based diet. Kosher vegan hors d’oeuvres will be served. Free. 3 p.m. Boyce Park, Patrol Shelter, Plum Borough. jewishveg. org/Pittsburgh.

Join Rodef Shalom Congregation for Understanding Gen Z: How will the next generation shape our Jewish world?,” the 2023 Ruth and Bernard Levaur Contemporary Lecture with guest speaker Rabbi Debbie Pine, campus support director at Hillel International. This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited and reservations are encouraged. Reception to follow. 7:30 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org/levaur.

SUNDAY, APRIL 30

On your mark. Get set. Go! Israel is celebrating 75 years of statehood this April. Pittsburgh will celebrate with a community “Yom Ha’atzmaut: Run/Walk/Roll for Israel at 75.” Free for nonracers. Craft tables, bounce house, Israeli line dancing, photo booth. Register to run/walk/roll and receive a race kit. 9:30 a.m. $12 per person/$5 for kids. Schenley Oval, 1 Overlook Drive. jewishpgh.org/ event/run-walk-roll-for-israel-at-75. PJC

Investigation into Conservative movement’s youth group identifies ‘hypersexualized culture’

By Asaf Elia-Shalev | JTA

An investigation into sexual abuse and misconduct in the Conservative movement’s youth group programs over the past seven decades identified an “overly sexualized culture” and collected accounts of alleged abuse from 40 victims.

Most of the allegations included in the investigation took place between 1987 and 2019 in the New York City area, and the alleged perpetrators are no longer affiliated with the youth group, according to the report.

The investigation commissioned by the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, the movement’s umbrella organization for congregations, was based on documents and interviews with the victims. It turned up allegations of “wrongful sexual contact, reports of grooming, reports of an over sexualized culture, and other boundary-crossing behaviors” at programs run by the movement’s youth group, United Synagogue Youth, known as USY. (The Conservative movement’s network of Ramah camps is not under the United Synagogue’s auspices.)

One section of the 20-page report is dedicated to the culture of sexualization within the Conservative movement’s youth programs and includes reports of inappropriate games and pressure on teens to engage in sexual activity with one another. The report comes amid a time of reckoning over child sexual abuse in the Jewish world. It is the latest in a series of similar investigations commissioned by major Jewish religious organizations that examine sexual misconduct against teens in Jewish youth movements, camps, schools and other institutions.

The report urges USCJ to keep its current practices around protecting children in place. It also urges the organization to improve its implementation of safety measures and record-keeping, and to “advance a healthier culture for teens.”

The investigation did not corroborate the allegations and did not discover “widespread or systematic abuse,” according to the report, which was written by UCSJ and approved by Sarah Worley, the attorney hired to gather information and draft recommendations. No one implicated in the investigation currently works or volunteers at USCJ, according to Worley’s investigation. Every adult accused of sexual misconduct has been barred from future participation.

The report doesn’t name anyone, victim or perpetrator. At least one former employee of the youth group, former USY Nassau County, Long Island, divisional director Ed Ward, is the subject of multiple lawsuits accusing him of sexual abuse of multiple teens. He worked for a USCJ-affiliated synagogue until 2020.

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Following an initial report on one of the lawsuits in the Times of Israel in 2021, additional allegations against Ward emerged. USCJ and USY are named as co-defendants in that lawsuit. A second suit alleges that Ward’s abuse took place as recently as 2018. Days after those allegations were published, USCJ launched its investigation into misconduct at USY. The Times of Israel said Ward did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

“USY must ask itself what about its own identity allowed this to transpire, and what must it do to ensure that it can never happen again,” Rabbi Jordan Soffer, one of Ward’s alleged accusers, told the Times of Israel in 2021. Describing a time when he says Ward took him into a bathroom and masturbated in front of him, he said, “I came up with every excuse I could think of. I’m tired. I can’t. I’m embarrassed. I told him I wanted to leave. He told me to stay until he finished.”

Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal, CEO of the USCJ, said in a statement on Wednesday’s report, “We fully condemn past misconduct as reported to Ms. Worley and we remain committed to providing a safe and enriching environment for our Jewish teens without exception.”

The bulk of recent misconduct reported to Worley took place in the New York City area and was allegedly committed by two perpetrators, while the programs on the West Coast saw more cases in earlier decades.

Among the cases summarized in the report was a victim who said that an adult staff member threatened to blackmail them with a graphic photograph while at camp in the 1980s. In the 1990s, one unnamed adult staff member allegedly sexually assaulted teens across four separate incidents. Five reports to Worley said that a single staff member encouraged teen campers to masturbate as a group in the 2000s, an allegation that was made against Ward in 2021. Allegations in the 2010s included groping of a teen by a staff member and sharing of a graphic video.

The report also describes a culture in which teens felt pressure to engage in sexual activity with each other. In particular, the report describes the “Point System,” in which participants in USY activities received a certain number of “points” for “hooking up” with another USY member, based on that member’s position in the youth group. Similar systems exist in other Jewish youth

Please see USY, page 10

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Headlines

Holocaust novel by Jodi Picoult removed as Florida school district purges libraries to comply with state law

— NATIONAL —

By Andrew Lapin | JTA

AHolocaust-themed novel by bestselling author Jodi Picoult was among dozens of books removed from a South Florida school district library’s circulation last month, in the latest example of books with Jewish themes getting swept up amid a larger conservative-led effort to police potentially inappropriate material in classrooms.

“The Storyteller” was removed from the library last month at a high school in Martin County, a southeast Florida district, owing to a parental complaint. According to a list of removed books published by local media, the novel was among several others by Picoult that were taken off the shelves. Other removed books by Jewish authors include the coming-of-age novel “Forever,” by Judy Blume, and “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” by Jonathan Safran Foer, which is about a boy whose father was killed on 9/11.

Nationwide, book removal campaigns have sought to purge schools and public libraries of what opponents have deemed “critical race theory,” “pornography” and “gender ideology.” Notable instances of Holocaust-themed books getting ensnared in such efforts include Art Spiegelman’s “Maus” being removed from a Tennessee middle school curriculum; a graphic novel adaptation of Anne Frank’s diary being briefly removed from a Texas district; and several youngreader histories about the Holocaust also being briefly removed from a Missouri district.

Florida in particular has required additional scrutiny of the books that are available to schoolchildren. While Gov. Ron DeSantis has denied that the state is banning books, activists say his “Stop W.O.K.E. Act” encourage

parents and educators to take license in purging schools of material that could carry a hint of impropriety. Some districts have covered or removed their classroom libraries entirely to comply with the law, while other Florida districts have removed picture books that trigger concern, including one about Shabbat that was part of a diversity package and another about a Jewish family with two dads.

Anti-Jewish incidents

By Ben Sales | JTA

Anew FBI report found that antiJewish incidents increased nearly 20% in 2021 relative to 2020, but decreased relative to prior years.

The updated FBI statistics released Monday counted 817 anti-Jewish criminal offenses reported by local law enforcement agencies in 2021, up from 683 in 2020 — a year when people largely stayed off the streets for a substantial period due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021 numbers, however, represent a 15% decline from 2019, when the FBI reported 963 hate crimes, as well as a slight decline from 2018, when FBI

the Holocaust.”

First published in 2013, “The Storyteller” follows the Jewish granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor who learns that her neighbor is a former Nazi officer who served in concentration camps. Her neighbor also asks her to help him commit suicide.

The Post reported that most of the Florida district’s book complaints originated from one parent: the head of the local chapter of the conservative group Moms For Liberty.

“At this point, we believe we have challenged the most obscene and ageinappropriate books,” the parent, Julie Marshall, told the Post.

Blume’s and Foer’s books have been frequent targets of other school bans and removals, as have many other books on Martin County’s list — including Toni Morrison’s “Beloved” and Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale.” But Picoult, who grew up in a secular Jewish household, told The Washington Post that this was the first time, to her knowledge, that “The Storyteller” has been targeted. She said the removal was “shocking, as it is about

Marshall did not immediately respond to a Jewish Telegraphic Agency request for comment on why she sought to remove “The Storyteller,” but she previously told the school board that the vast majority of her challenges were based on what she deemed sexually explicit content. The book contains several sexually graphic scenes, including depictions of sexual assault by Nazi guards. PJC

jumped nearly 20% in 2021, FBI finds

statistics show 847 hate crimes.

Overall, the report showed a total of more than 10,800 total hate crimes — the highest number in decades. As in previous years, anti-Jewish incidents comprised the majority of the 1,590 hate crimes based on religion.

This is the second report the FBI has released regarding hate crimes in 2021. An initial report in December did not include data from law enforcement agencies in major cities such as New York and Los Angeles. That report said there were only 324 antiJewish hate crimes in 2021, a number Jewish organizations said was a massive undercount. Other tallies of antisemitic incidents — such as the Anti-Defamation League’s annual audit — had shown an increase.

The two reports on 2021 demonstrate the pitfalls of the FBI data, which relies

on reports of criminal offenses from local law enforcement agencies. An increasing number of cities are declining to share data outright. But the lack of data from major cities in the initial report, the FBI said, was due to a transition to a new reporting system. The transition, the FBI said in a statement on its website, “resulted in an inadequate representation of bias-motivated criminal incidents in the nation.”

The updated data released on Monday still has significant gaps. Data reported from Chicago, for example, represents only two quarters of 2021. The ADL called on Congress to mandate that state and local law enforcement agencies report hate crime data to the FBI in order to receive federal funding.

“Moving forward, law enforcement agencies must urgently commit to hate crime

data collection and reporting,” read a statement from ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt. “Absent comprehensive and inclusive data, policymakers will lack the critical information that is needed to address these concerning trends.”

The data is based on criminal offenses reported to the FBI by law enforcement agencies. In some cases, an antisemitic incident can include multiple criminal offenses. Not all incidents initially considered hate crimes are ultimately prosecuted that way.

For example, a San Francisco man charged with brandishing a gun inside a Jewish center there last month was initially charged with a hate crime, but a judge dropped the hate-crime portion during an early court hearing. It is not clear whether such an incident would be reflected in the FBI data. PJC

 Cover of “The Storyteller”

“The Storyteller” was removed from the library last month at a high school in Martin County, a southeast Florida district, owing to a parental complaint.

Albania to build museum to citizens who saved Jews during Holocaust

Albania’s prime minister announced plans to open a museum in Tirana dedicated to the stories of its citizens who saved Jews during the Holocaust, JTA.org reported.

The museum also will honor Jewish history and culture, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced on March 1 while on a state visit to Jerusalem.

The Besa Museum will be named after the strict neighborly honor code that Albanians say motivated them to protect their Jewish neighbors during World War II. Though Albania was occupied by both fascist Italy and later Nazi Germany, its Jewish population grew throughout the war, more than tripling as refugees flocked there from around Europe.

Albania’s embassy in Berlin issued false identity papers to Jews, and many locals hid them in their houses. Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust remembrance authority, has recognized at least 75 individuals as Righteous Among the Nations for saving Jews.

“The rescue of the Jews during World War II is one of the most beautiful pages in the history of the Albanians. Christians and Muslims sacrificed everything to protect them,” said Elva Margariti, Albania’s minister of culture. “For Albanians, this is BESA; it is a value that we will pass on to our children, telling them this extraordinary story.”

‘Boy Meets World’ star Ben Savage runs to succeed Rep. Adam Schi

Ben Savage, the Jewish actor best known for the 1990s coming-of-age series “Boy Meets World,” is running to replace Adam Schiff, the Jewish Democratic congressman from California who is running for Senate, JTA.org reported.

Savage, 42, is among at least four Democrats running in the primary to replace Schiff in his Los Angeles-area congressional district. His Instagram post on March 6 announcing the campaign focused on good governance.

“I’m running for Congress because it’s time to restore faith in government by offering reasonable, innovative and compassionate solutions to our country’s most pressing issues,” Savage wrote in the post. “And it’s time for new and passionate leaders who can help move our country forward.”

Alongside his acting career, Savage has some political experience. He graduated with a degree in political science from Stanford University and interned for Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, who was Jewish, in 2003, when Specter was a Republican.

Four Israelis inherit corneas of brothers killed in terror attack

The corneas of two Israeli brothers killed in Samaria on Feb. 26 were transplanted into the eyes of four Israelis at Beilinson Medical Center in Petach Tikvah on March 8, JNS.org reported.

Today in Israeli History

— WORLD —

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

March 17, 1992 — Knesset passes Basic Law on Human Dignity

The Knesset enacts Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty. Concerns about conflicts with Jewish law had long blocked such a statement of support for core human rights among the laws that operate as a constitution.

March 18, 1974 — OPEC lifts oil embargo

March 20, 1917 — General, archaeologist Yigael Yadin is born

Yigael Yadin is born i Jerusalem. After becoming the second IDF chief of staff in 1949, he retires in 1952 and turns to archaeology. His excavations include Masada, Hatzor, Megiddo and the Dead Sea caves.

March 21, 2016 — 17 Jews are flown from Yemen

The Jewish Agency secretly airlifts 17 Yemeni Jews to Israel, completing an effort in recent years to help roughly 200 Jews escape a civil war. Yemen is reduced to about 50 Jews who refuse to leave.

March 22, 1945 — Arab League forms

Esti and Shalom Yaniv, the brothers’ parents, said: “We were excited this morning to receive the news about Hallel and Yagel’s corneal transplants. We wish the donors to see the world with goodness and joy, as our sweet Hallel and Yagel saw it. The kind and beautiful eyes of Hallel and Yagel will continue to illuminate our world through [these] dear emissaries, and it fills us with satisfaction that even after their death they were able to do good to others.”

On Feb. 26, a terrorist opened fire on Hallel and Yagel Yaniv as they sat in traffic in the Arab village of Huwara in Samaria. They were evacuated to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead.

Educational youth trips to Poland to resume after three-year hiatus

Israel and Poland have reached an agreement on the resumption of Israeli youth trips to Poland for Holocaust education, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office announced on March 7, JNS.org reported.

However, a statement by the Polish Ministry for Foreign Affairs released the following day was more circumspect, stating that while no agreement had been reached yet, one could be signed “in the near future.”

“There are many ways to study the lessons of the Holocaust, but the best is with one’s own eyes,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a written statement. “I welcome our success in the resumption of our pupils’ trips to Poland in order to study

the horrors of the Holocaust from up close.”

Neither Netanyahu’s statement nor one by the Polish ministry addressed the issues that initially caused the breach between the governments, namely security for and the educational content of the visits, or explained how the matter was resolved.

Before the pandemic, some 40,000 Israeli students participated in the trips each year.

ADL records all-time high in propaganda incidents by

white supremacists

A new report by the Anti-Defamation League recorded more than 6,750 incidents of white supremacists distributing propaganda in 2022 — up 38% from the year before and an all-time high, JNS.org reported.

The acts included the dissemination of antisemitic, racist and anti-LGBTQ materials, such as fliers placed in yards and driveways; banners hung from overpasses; stickers and posters on stores; and laser projections on buildings and stadiums.

The number of white supremacist events increased from 108 in 2021 to 170 in 2022, per the ADL, while the number of times that antisemitic materials were distributed increased from 352 to 852.

ADL recorded the highest levels of such materials in Pennsylvania, Texas, Massachusetts, Virginia, Michigan, California, Utah, Florida, Connecticut and Georgia. PJC

— Compiled by Andy Gotlieb

The Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle invites you to join the Chronicle Book Club for its April 16 discussion of “Koshersoul” by chef Michael W. Twitty. The memoir was named Jewish Book of Year for 2022 by the Jewish Book Council.

“Chronicle Book Club” in the subject line. We will send you a Zoom link for the discussion meeting. Happy reading! PJC

 The shortages caused by the OPEC embargo led some people to run out of gas, such as this man standing in line with a gas can in Portland, Oregon, in December 1973.

OPEC lifts the oil embargo it had placed on the United States in the fall of 1973 for resupplying Israel during the Yom Kippur War. The embargo quadrupled U.S. gasoline prices.

March 19, 2012 — ‘Photoshop Law’ passes

The Knesset adopts the “Photoshop Law,” requiring adult fashion and commercial models to have a body-mass index of at least 18.5, as well as clear notification of any alteration of an image.

Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Transjordan sign the Arab League Constitution in Cairo. A Palestinian representative, Musa al Alami, participates in the talks but does not sign the document.

March 23, 1915 — Zion Mule Corps is created

From the Jewish Book Council: “Twitty’s book is a record of lives lived and meals cooked. Through a combination of interviews, oral histories, personal anecdotes, recipes, history, and advice, he details the ways that Black and Jewish food traditions perceived to be disparate have overlapped, influenced, and mirrored one another throughout history. He writes of how diasporic living, migration, oppression, marginalization, and movement shapes food.”

Your hosts:

Toby Tabachnick, editor of the Chronicle

David Rullo, Chronicle staff writer

How and when:

We will meet on Zoom on Sunday, April 16, at noon.

What to do

 A registration card shows the enlistment details for a Zion Mule Corps soldier.

A Jewish unit of the British army is formed in Egypt with about 500 volunteers, many of whom had been expelled from Palestine. It becomes known as the Zion Mule Corps. PJC

Buy: “Koshersoul.” It is available at area Barnes & Noble stores and from online retailers, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Several copies are available through the Carnegie Library system.

Email: Contact us at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org, and write

www.pittsburghjewishchronicle.org

Toby

Headlines

JCC:

Continued from page 1

Schreiber said he has done a lot of talent work in the field with organizations like Leading Edge, a not-for-profit that helps Jewish agencies improve their workplace culture and leadership,

“Best-practice models tell you to leave some transition time,” he said, “even in the case where the incumbent CEO is going to play a different role in the agency.”

While the day-to-day operations of the JCC will shift to Kunzman, Schreiber said that his focus will be external — he will oversee development efforts and the JCC’s special projects, including the 10.27 Healing Partnership and Center for Loving Kindness.

Over his near quarter-century with the JCC, Schreiber cited several accomplishments. Those include:

• Rebuilding the trust and credibility of the organization when there were some questions about its relationship with other Jewish agencies, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and the Jewish Healthcare Foundation

• Working with the JCC’s lay leadership

Rally:

Continued from page 1 weeks organized by Merav Amos, who relied primarily on WhatsApp to get the word out.

Thousands of others in Israel and around the U.S. have protested Israel’s proposed judicial changes in recent weeks.

The first Pittsburgh protest, which drew about 50 people, was held on March 5 and was comprised mainly of Israelis, Amos said. Before Sunday’s gathering, she told the Chronicle that she expected the March 12 event to draw non-Israelis as well.

“I’m very happy because we are supporting, inspiring and encouraging our friends, families and all other humans living in Israel,” Amos said. “They are very frightened by what is happening there. It’s terrible.”

Amos said the concern is “with the government trying to change the law in Israel and to restrict the power of the Supreme Court, essentially turning the country into a dictatorship.”

As an Israeli expat, a woman and mother of two girls, Amos said she is worried about the proposed changes in Israel. She wore a red robe and white bonnet, similar to those in the “Handmaid’s Tale” television show, to protest the possible judicial reforms.

The changes — which would limit the Israeli Supreme Court’s ability to review legislation and hand members of the coalition government more influence over judicial appointments — would give Netanyahu “unlimited power” while removing the checks and balances in place, Amos said.

She stressed that the demonstrations were

USY:

to pay down the organization’s debt and run a successful endowment campaign

• Rethinking what it meant to be a Greater Pittsburgh agency and rebuilding some of the Jewish infrastructure that helped the Jewish community to evolve

• Leading the organization over a rewarding and difficult four-year period that included both the mass shooting at the Tree of Life building and the challenges of COVID-19, which involved shutting down and restarting the agency while remaining financially sound.

“In the midst of all that, over the last eight or 10 years, we’ve really leaned into our internal talent and internal succession model, not just the CEO search,” Schreiber said pointing to several people who have moved into new roles in the agency.

The transition plan, Schreiber said, is a credit to the leadership of the JCC.

“Jason was a product of a national search. In many ways, part of the talent development isn’t a story of the last week: It’s a story of the last six or seven years.”

The agency’s board, he said, has been an incredible and thoughtful partner.

“The JCC is proud to be able to chart

its course of leadership succession and transition,” chair of the JCC’s Board of Directors Scott Seewald said in a statement announcing the transition. “The agency will continue to benefit greatly from the complementary skills of these two outstanding professional leaders ... with proven track records of service to our community, and for fostering a culture where employees, member and guests are treated with dignity and respect.”

The board, he said, enthusiastically supports the leadership succession.

Jeff Finkelstein, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, called Schreiber both a colleague and friend, that has partnered in building community for more than 25 years.

“Under Brian’s leadership, the JCC has thrived as an organization focused more than ever on connecting more Jews to their own sense of Jewishness. I know that Jason will do the same during his tenure,” he said in the JCC’s statement.

Jewish Healthcare Foundation President and CEO Karen Wolk Feinstein noted that five generations of her family have embraced the JCC.

“Jason will respect the amazing history

of the organization as he forges a new future that adapts to a changing environment,” she said in the same statement.

Kunzman said the organization’s vision of the future remains unwritten.

“That is what has me so incredibly excited about this wonderful opportunity,” he said. “Brian, through his remarkable leadership has obviously not only laid the foundation, but a platform, that the JCC of the 21st century can launch.”

The organization, he said, is committed to redefining what is possible for its members, staff and community — comprised of both the Jewish and Greater Pittsburgh Communities.

Kunzman said that he was honored to have the trust and confidence of Schreiber and the JCC board. He looks forward to upholding the JCC’s mission and core values and will work to magnify the impact of the JCC, which has served the community for 128 years.

“Stay tuned,” he said, “because it will be one heck of a story.” PJC

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

just the most egregious action that they’re taking now with the Supreme Court and the reform. I love the word ‘reform’ because it’s anything but.”

Fox added that he feels it is important to show solidarity with progressive minds in Israel.

Another attendee, Roz Becker, said that she has close friends in Israel, and she considers what has been happening there a disaster.

“I wish Netanyahu was in jail where he belongs and that there could be good people running the show,” she said.

Hanan Perlman said he was encouraged by the demonstration but was discouraged by the machinations of international politics.

“It’s still comes down to only a few people in a room, and that’s really disappointing,” he said.

Continued from page 7

groups as well. “Multiple victim/survivors and others reported their concern with the Point System and offered it as an example

“not political” and were organized solely to defend Israeli democracy.

“That’s the one goal,” Amos said. Despite that nonpolitical goal, Amos said that when she tried to promote the March 5 event on social media, the demonstration was deemed political and controversial.

In advance of the March 12 demonstration, Amos was contacted by UnXeptable about aligning with the organization. UnXeptable, which appears to have formed about one month ago, bills itself on its website as a “grassroots movement launched by Israel expats in support of a democratic Israel.” It originated in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Amos said the Pittsburgh demonstration

of the hypersexualized culture that they believe pervades USY and its programs,” the report says.

“Some explained that sexualized ‘traditions’ had been developed and passed down over generations, and in some instances, victim/survivors said they felt torn between

was one of more than 40 in cities across the globe under the UnXeptable banner. The Pittsburgh event was branded with the organization’s name in promotional material.

No speakers addressed the crowd.

Several people in attendance said they joined the demonstration because of the anxiety they felt regarding the situation in Israel.

“Israel is in distress,” rally attendee Richard Fox said. “It’s become more and more evident since Netanyahu has been reelected again. Now, with a solid majority, it’s almost impossible — forget about progressive legislation — it’s impossible to do anything called democratic with a small ‘d.’ This is

their reluctance to participate in these traditions and their sense that, as teens in the Conservative movement, their participation was expected,” the report says.

Only one of the allegations of sexual misconduct occurred since 2020. The misconduct involved an adult staff member

It was important for local Israelis to be present at the rally, Meir Aridor said, because “there’s a perception that if you speak out against what the Israeli government does, it’s against Israel or antisemitic. So, it’s good to show that it’s really not.”

A strong sense of solidarity was evident in the families and individuals that attended the demonstration. It was not, however, shared by all in the Pittsburgh Jewish community.

Passing the rally, a man with tzitzit hanging from his clothing asked his companion rhetorically, “So, the voters’ voice doesn’t matter?” She replied in agreement, “They should learn about democracy.” PJC

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

grooming a teen through text messages.

The Conservative movement’s investigation overlapped with a similar reckoning taking place in the Reform movement, which carried out three investigations into sexual misconduct, including one that was focused on Reform youth programs. PJC

 Local Israeli expats held signs in Hebrew and English at a March 12 demonstration in what was billed as an apolitical rally.

Photo by David Rullo

A speech, a sacking and a terror attack underline that Netanyahu must change course

Guest Columnist

David

Horovitz

Ignored for weeks by the Netanyahu coalition, President Isaac Herzog on March 9 resorted to apocalyptic terms to describe the existential disaster about to befall Israel.

The country, he said, was “at the point of no return,” about to “fall off a cliff.” Its political leadership needed to “take responsibility” and act now. “If you choose the path you have followed thus far, the chaos will be on you. History will judge you.”

Herzog was focused on the coalition’s program to neuter the judiciary and give itself all power, and in unprecedented language, he flatly told the government to “abandon” that goal, and right away.

The legislative package, which the coalition has declared it intends to blitz through the Knesset into law in the next three weeks, “is wrong, it is oppressive, it undermines our democratic foundations,” the president said. “And therefore, it must be replaced with another plan, one that has consensus, and immediately.”

But Herzog also happened to find himself speaking minutes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s extremist national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, had dismissed Tel Aviv’s police chief, apparently for not using enough force against

demonstrators who have for weeks, in growing numbers and with growing desperation, been protesting the overhaul.

The firing of Amichai Eshed was a step Ben Gvir formally has no right to take, but one that was cloaked in an ostensible police reshuffle, purportedly endorsed by the hapless national police commissioner Kobi Shabtai. “This is [part of the coalition’s] regime revolution,” fumed Tel Aviv Mayor

As often happened during the Second Intifada terrorist onslaught of the early 2000s, some Israeli news broadcasts resorted to split-screen to keep viewers abreast of everything that was playing out — divided, in this case, between the first footage of the Tel Aviv terror attack and Netanyahu, seated in a synagogue in Rome, being updated about the shooting on Dizengoff Street.

If the fast-widening, utterly destructive rift in Israel is to be healed, if Israel is to regain its internal cohesion, it is Netanyahu who must, to echo the president, “take responsibility immediately.” For we depend upon internal resolve and resilience in order to face down our external enemies — notably including the terrorists who relentlessly seek our demise.

Manifestly, that requires Netanyahu to dismiss the oft-convicted criminal and racist he shamefully appointed as minister of national security, Ben Gvir, before he causes still more harm to the police force and the citizenry.

Ron Huldai. “Crude intervention in the work of the police… that shows the political echelon’s determination to turn us all into its subjects.”

With utterly horrific timing, Herzog also happened to finish speaking minutes before a terrorist attack, in which three people were shot, one of them critically wounded, in central Tel Aviv. Needless to say, it fell to Eshed, whose dismissal had been announced with immediate effect, to nonetheless oversee his force’s handling of the incident.

In an immediate response to Herzog’s speech and before the attack, Netanyahu declared in Rome that he welcomes “all initiatives” to find agreement and common ground. “We must remember, especially in these days, days of argument and debate within Israel, that we are one nation with a common future,” Netanyahu said. “We are all brothers. Brothers and sisters.” But that, of course, was precisely what Herzog was imploring the ultra-divisive Netanyahu to remember.

Deepfakes, the media and the threat to democracy

Guest Columnist

Eric R. Mandel

Arecent Wall Street Journal essay

“The Deepfake Dangers Ahead” highlights the “dangers of AI-generated disinformation, especially from hostile foreign powers, as a growing threat to democracies based on the free flow of ideas.” Deepfake technology allows for “creating a convincing alternate reality” that threatens national security and endangers citizens’ financial safety. For example, “Soldiers might not trust actual orders, and the public may think that genuine scandals and outrages aren’t real.”

Indeed, the power of computers in the hands of malicious actors like Iran, China and Russia may be one of our primary future security threats.

The biggest deep fake, however, is not new. It is the media’s editorialization of news to advance an agenda. As New York Times Magazine writer Nikole HannahJones said, “All journalism is activism.” The media’s traditional role of informing the public has been compromised. Too many in the media think their job is to tell the

public what to think and portray their opponents as immoral.

Professor Lauren Wolfe of New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute should be applauded for her honesty.

“I’m a Biased Journalist, and I’m Okay with That” goes the title of one of her essays.

“I am biased, and consciously so, regarding certain subjects,” she says. “But when my

wonder 86% of Americans say the media is politically biased.

In 2020, New York Times Opinion Editor Bari Weiss resigned because of a “hostile work environment” created by her woke-oriented colleagues. “A new consensus has emerged in the press,” she said, “but perhaps especially at this paper: truth isn’t a process of collective discovery, but an orthodoxy already known

It requires removing a second Jewish supremacist minister in his government, Bezalel Smotrich, outrageously installed as finance minister and as a minister in the Defense Ministry. Smotrich last week called for the state of Israel to “wipe out” a Palestinian town where a terrorist had killed two Israeli brothers — comments that he belatedly walked back, but not before they sparked an ongoing mini-rebellion in the Israeli military.

And of course, it requires Netanyahu to heed the president’s call to abandon his government’s legislative assault on Israel’s foundational values of democracy and tolerant Judaism. Because Israel, day by day, is moving closer to the edge of that cliff. PJC

David Horovitz is the founding editor of The Times of Israel, where this first appeared.

The Guardian’s Nathan Robinson has said, “The Guardian is an explicitly left-leaning paper, and everybody knows it. By contrast, The New York Times is clearly inclined toward Democratic centrism, but it won’t admit it. The editor of the op-ed page says that they strive for ‘viewpoint diversity,’ but it’s clear that he doesn’t mean it.”

When I asked veteran Israeli journalist Akiva Eldar of the left-wing Israeli daily Haaretz if he had any qualms about his paper’s news section advancing a political agenda, he simply told me to read another paper.

work calls for me not to be, I work very hard to create unbiased journalism. … Being fair and having a point of view aren’t incompatible. Reporters at The New York Times and elsewhere shouldn’t have to disguise or suppress their views.”

This is the definition of doublespeak. No

to an enlightened few whose job is to inform everyone else.”

In 2021, National Public Radio’s public editor said that journalists are permitted to engage in political advocacy, ending the prohibition on journalists “personally advocating for controversial or polarizing issues.”

NBC news anchor Lester Holt said in 2021, “Fairness is overrated.” Like Wolfe, he deserves credit for his honesty. Three years before Holt’s statement, NBC published an opinion piece that admitted, “Media bias against conservatives is real and part of why no one trusts the news now. … In a recent Gallup poll, 62% of the country believes that the press is biased. … So, when CNN, NBC News, Fox News or another outlet breaks a hard news story, there is a good chance that a large swathe of the public won’t view it as legitimate news. And politicians, right and left, are taking advantage of this.”

During the riots following the death of George Floyd, The New York Times published

Whether from the right or the left, media bias has been with us for decades and is undermining democracies. The public knows politicians lie, but they still do not understand the manipulation of news reporting.

If the fast-widening, utterly destructive rift in Israel is to be healed, if Israel is to regain its internal cohesion, it is Netanyahu who must, to echo the president, “take responsibility immediately.”

Chronicle poll results:Spouses/partners of rabbinical candidates

Last week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an electronic poll the following question: “Should rabbinical seminaries accept candidates who have a non-Jewish spouse or partner?” Of the 262 people who responded, 58% said yes; 33% said no; and 9% said they were not sure. Comments were submitted by 55 people. A few follow.

In an increasingly interfaith world, it’s important for clergy to represent their congregants and the world at large. It allows them to see another side of services and programming that could actually help strengthen the Jewish community.

Absolutely. None of us knows what the future holds for the non-Jewish spouse.

Yes, but they should agree to keep a Jewish home.

How wonderful it would be for the many of us in interfaith relationships to have rabbis to look to for modeling how to sustain and nurture a vibrant Jewish family within that same circumstance.

Mandel:

Continued from page 12

an op-ed by Sen. Tom Cotton calling for the National Guard to quell the violence. Times journalists claimed without evidence that they were “endangered” by the article, staged a “virtual walkout” and forced the opinion editor to resign. This was the clearest signal that a red line had been crossed.

The issue on which this bias is most pronounced is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. For example, when Palestinian terrorists are killed, they are almost always referred to as “Palestinians” rather than “terrorists,” implying that they were civilians. But when a

Should rabbinical seminaries accept candidates who have a non-Jewish spouse or partner?

The rabbinical leader of a community should NOT live a lifestyle that tells his/her community that intermarriage is the norm. Although some rabbis do participate in mixed marriages, in no way should he/she demonstrate that such an event is preferable. And if the rabbi has a partner that is not a spouse, a similar message is being sent.

Palestinian terrorist recently killed two Israelis, the headline read, “Palestinian kills two Israeli settlers near Nablus.” Calling Jewish victims “settlers” is a transparent attempt to diminish their humanity. This is deliberate manipulation of the truth to advance an agenda.

Today, a generation of news reporters and writers have been indoctrinated in prestige journalism schools, where they are taught that promoting a “correct” narrative is acceptable.

As the Associated Press editor Julie Pace said, reporting must “quickly move to provide analysis,” a euphemism for editorialization.

Twenty years ago, William McGowan wrote the book “Coloring the News.” It was a prescient work that documented “how a

Response to ‘Have you seen enough?’

If those who signed the “Have you seen enough?” letter (March 10) would open their eyes — and minds — they might observe the following:

In democratic countries, the judiciary deals only with interpretation of the law, and laws are created only by the legislature. Voters can replace legislators, but voters cannot replace judges, who are appointed for life. Because Israel’s Supreme Court has actually arrogated into itself the right to set moral norms such as “reasonableness,” the Court severely curtails the autonomy of elected officials and thereby undermines Israel’s democracy. Israel’s Supreme Court is “recklessly co-opting the judicial system.”

Historically, Judea and Samaria, also called the West Bank by some, belongs to the Jewish people. There was never a Palestinian state there nor any political entity that belonged to people who call themselves Palestinians. The area can be said to be disputed, but it is not “occupied.” The writers do not offer any evidence for their dangerous claim that Israel is “denying civil rights to Israeli Arabs.”

The writers apparently have not seen facts actually relevant to current events in Israel and are therefore not in a position to enlighten us regarding same.

Julia Lutch Davis, California

When will our religious organizations get real about our demographic shifts? Look at the data. If we don’t embrace intermarriage, we will push many families away from engaging with Judaism.

Widen the net; don’t restrict it.

The world is changing. We have to include non-Jews as partners in Judaism.

That’s a toughie, but it breaks down to setting an example. We lose so many Jews to intermarriage and subsequent assimilation! We cannot pretend we don’t care, or we’ll be gone.

Don’t expect interfaith families to accept second-class citizenship in our synagogues. A rabbi in a similar family structure is a marvelous idea for engaged leadership,

Marrying a Jew is essential to avoid assimilation.

journalism slanted by good intentions has allowed a narrow multicultural orthodoxy to restrict debate just at the point when information about America’s changing national identity needs to be robust, knowledgeable and honest.”

The Wall Street Journal article on deepfakes cited a possible antidote. In Finland, media literacy programs have been created. Their goal is to help people recognize misinformation as early as preschool.

Whether from the right or the left, media bias has been with us for decades and is undermining democracies. The public knows politicians lie, but they still do not understand the manipulation of news reporting. Since fact-checking sources also tend to be biased,

It’s contradictory to accept a candidate who is not doing the things he is learning. And this is not a minor thing — this is the very foundation of the Jewish people.

Non-Jewish spouse yes. Non-Jewish partner no.

Intermarriage is likely to represent the dominant trend in the future of non-Orthodox Judaism. Restricting the rabbinic pool to only those who marry Jews means cutting off a large group of people who might be able to relate to these new family situations. It might not work, but maintaining Jewish isolation is much more likely to lead to a continuing diminution of the population actively affiliating with the Jewish community and institutions. PJC

Toby Tabachnick

Chronicle weekly poll question: Have you started getting ready for Passover yet? Go to pittsburghjewish chronicle.org to respond. PJC

the best temporary solution is to remind everyone to be skeptical of the media and make sure to read and watch multiple news outlets to get a spectrum of views.

Perhaps The New York Times’ motto should be changed to “all the news we think you should know.” That would be more honest. PJC

Eric R. Mandel is the director of the Middle East Political Information Network (MEPIN). He regularly briefs members of Congress and their foreign policy aides and is the senior security editor for The Jerusalem Report. Follow him on Twitter @MepinOrg. This column first appeared on JNS.

Israeli activists running with ‘panic playbook’

There have been letters and articles in the Chronicle recently on the current judicial reform issue in Israel that shout out that Israel will no longer be a democracy. How is the current Supreme Court, which is not answerable to anyone but itself, selects its own members and decides what is and what is not a reasonable law, with no checks and balances, a democratic function? The judges are not accountable to the public. This is a very complicated problem and the structure of the Israeli Supreme Court is not like ours or any other Western democracy. Is there a true democratic crisis or are these just scare tactics and rants from one group threatened by their loss of power in the left-leaning courts due to a new rightleaning government?

In the United States we have a similar situation with the all-too-often, end-of-democracy outcry from the extremes of our political spectrum. Israeli activists are running with that panic playbook.

Rocky Wice Squirrel Hill

Correction: In “Israeli dancer to perform work based on Jackie Kennedy at Beth Shalom” (March 10), we incorrectly reported the facts regarding Maria Caruso’s first meeting with Ori Lenkinski. In fact, they met in Israel in 2019 after Lenkinski interviewed Caruso when Bodiography was headlining the Karmiel Dance Festival. Caruso asked Lenkinsi for input as she was developing her dance piece “Incarnation.” For the complete story, visit pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. PJC

Life & Culture — FOOD — Sopa de Lima with fried tortilla

By Jessica Grann | Special to the Chronicle

When I was in high school, I was blessed to spend part of a summer with friends who lived in a Merida, a small city in the Yucatan province of Mexico. The food is exceptional in this region. It’s a wonderful mix of colonial Spanish and native Mayan cuisine.

This is my version of the chicken and lime soup that I remember from that time.

I cooked most of this recipe using leftovers. When I make chicken stock, I typically make a double batch so that I have something to work with if someone gets sick or if I don’t have the time to make soup for Shabbat. I had stock in the freezer that I wanted to use before Passover and a whole roasted chicken left over from Purim.

I even had corn tortillas in the freezer left over from the last time I made fish tacos, so I used those for the fried tortillas instead of buying a fresh pack.

My recipe calls for cinnamon and allspice, but both are used sparingly so it’s more aromatic than spiced. The soup itself is mild. I add in fresh avocado and sliced fresh jalapenos just before serving. If you’re not into spicy food you can omit the peppers or devein them before slicing so that you get a milder heat. The same goes for cilantro, which people have a love/hate relationship with. It’s a garnish, so if it’s not your favorite, simply leave it out.

If you’re a regular reader, you’ll notice that I add lemon or lime to a lot of my recipes. It’s easy and refreshing to have fresh citrus on hand, and there’s nothing that I won’t season with it.

Sopa de Lima with fried tortilla

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 quarts (12 cups) chicken stock, homemade or store-bought is OK

3 cups cooked shredded chicken

7 cloves of garlic, sliced

1 cinnamon stick

2 dashes allspice

2 avocados; use half an avocado per bowl

5 small limes, 3 juiced and 2 sliced, to garnish

Zest from 1 lime

Fresh washed and chopped cilantro, to garnish

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Yellow corn tortilla garnish

10 small yellow tortillas, stale is OK

¾ cup of neutral oil, like avocado oil

Sea salt

You can make the fried tortillas at any time, even a day ahead. I often prepare extra because they make a great salad topping, especially for a Mexican-style salad bowl. You will need to cook these in 2 or 3 batches because the oil is shallow in the pan.

Heat the oil in a small sauté or saucepan over medium heat.

Slice the tortillas into ¼-inch-wide strips.

Pan-fry in oil until lightly golden brown, about 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally before removing to a paper towel-lined plate to cool.

Sprinkle with sea salt while hot.

If you’re starting with pre-made soup cooked at home, first remove any vegetables from the broth.

Heat the soup over medium heat until gently boiling.

Add 7 cloves of sliced garlic, 1 cinnamon stick and 2 dashes of allspice before reducing the heat to simmer. Using a cinnamon stick as opposed to ground cinnamon will add more subtle flavoring.

Allow to simmer for a minimum of 30 minutes to get the garlic and spices infused into the broth. I usually simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

Shred about 3 cups of meat from a previously cooked chicken; the chicken could have been baked or boiled, as long

as the flavor is neutral.

Add the chicken to the pot, and simmer for 20 minutes until the chicken is warmed through.

Add salt and black pepper to taste, and remove the cinnamon stick from the broth.

Stir in the juice from 2 small limes, about 2 tablespoons, and the lime zest.

If you used store-bought broth, add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for a richer broth.

Ladle the soup broth and shredded chicken into a bowl. Add sliced or cubed avocado over the top, the cilantro and an extra slice of lime if desired.

Sprinkle the fried tortilla strips across the top; they will stay crispy until your last bite.

The avocado will not cook or fall apart; it just gets slightly warm and softens a bit.

Sopa de Lima is simple to throw together and is a great soup if you’re looking for something lighter to make going into the summer months. If you’d like to make this into a full meal, serve the soup over a bed of cooked white or brown rice.

I hope that this makes your weeknights easier and helps you to try something new while using up leftovers. Enjoy and bless your hands! PJC

Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.

 Sopa de Lima with fried tortilla Photo by Jessica Grann

 Sopa de Lima ingredients

Photo by Jessica Grann

Life & Culture

BOOKS — Idra Novey’s new novel explores familiar Pennsylvania

—

By David Rullo | Sta Writer

Scenes in a new novel by Idra Novey might seem familiar to many western Pennsylvanians.

“Take What You Need,” set in the fictional southern Allegheny Mountain town of Sevlick, is perhaps Novey’s most personal work.

“My grandparents lived in Altoona, and my grandmother grew up in Clearfield, and I grew up in Johnstown,” she said. “Three generations of my family, over 100 years, have been in that area of Pennsylvania.”

The novel‘s proximity to Novey’s past meant that some separation of time and distance was necessary before she could begin to write.

“I think it took me a while to write about other places I’ve lived before I could figure out what kind of distance, and what I could bring, to writing about art and Jewish women in Pennsylvania,” she said. “I think I needed to write some other things before coming back to it.”

Novey said her books’ protagonists have all been artistic Jewish women because that’s what she knows.

The author was inspired not only by

her family but by women in Johnstown’s Jewish community when writing the main, composite characters in “Take What You Need.”

“I wanted to think about the ways that Jean, growing up there, had experienced antisemitism, but nobody talked about it or they downplayed it,” she said. “And then, I wanted to recreate the way that she sort of minimizes it in her sense of self — the way that I think Jews who live in Appalachia tend to minimize it because they don’t talk about

it with anyone else.”

Despite living in New York, Novey said it wasn’t too difficult to recapture the connections of life in a small community. Her family still lives in the area, and she goes home often, she said, something encouraged by COVID-19 and urban living.

“During the pandemic, we went back a lot because we are in a one-bathroom apartment with two kids homeschooling and two parents working from home,” she said. “We were cramped, so we went back.”

The visits allowed Novey to see her children play in the creek where she once played, explore the local woods and ride bikes on empty streets. It also allowed her a fulfilling homecoming.

So, too, will be Novey’s upcoming talk on Tuesday, March 21, at the Carnegie Library Lecture Hall as part of the Pittsburgh Arts and Lecture series. The author did a residency at City of Asylum before the pandemic.

Novey counts the Mattress Factory and the Andy Warhol Museum as some of her favorite places in the city and recalled coming to Pittsburgh as a child to get bagels. Back then, she often visited one of her best friends, who lived in Squirrel Hill. So special were those times, a character in Novey’s first novel shares a surname with her friend.

“I would leave Johnstown because I craved things I couldn’t get there,” she said. “They were like my home away from home.”

Novey said that it was because of her time in Pittsburgh, and a talk she gave at the City of Asylum, that she decided to write “Take What You Need.” “In my last novel, I invented an island and I was explaining how I felt like I grew up on an island because not that many people came to Johnstown and not that many people left,” she said. “It was

Please see Novey, page 17

 Idra Novey Photo by Jesse Dittmar  Book Cover Image courtesy of Idra Novey

Chaim Topol, of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ fame, dies at age 87

By Philissa Cramer | JTA

Chaim Topol won a Golden Globe for his portrayal of an immigrant to Israel, stepped off the stage in London to fight for his country and had his sketches of Israeli presidents turned into postage stamps.

But the actor was, by far, best known for his embodiment of Tevye the Dairyman in “Fiddler on the Roof,” first in the Israeli and London stagings and then in the 1971 movie that brought the musical about poor shtetl Jews to the masses.

Topol died March 9 in Tel Aviv at 87, a day after his family announced that he was near death. He had suffered from Alzheimer’s disease for some time.

Born in 1935 in Tel Aviv, Topol served in the Israel Defense Forces entertain ment unit before embarking on a career on stage and screen that took him around the world. In 1967, he appeared as the lead character in London’s staging of “Fiddler on the Roof,” which had been a breakout hit on Broadway three years before. In his early 30s at the time, he wowed audiences and critics with his portrayal of an older character.

But it was when he turned his character

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Topol was called up as a soldier and returned to Israel to serve in what would ultimately be known as the Six-Day War. Israel’s swift defeat of an alliance of enemies caused the world to notice the young country and the actor who took part in its victory.

History of Fiddler on the Roof.” “‘Fiddler’ became a site for celebration, drawing Jews as well as gentiles to the theater — some for repeat viewings — to bask in Jewish perseverance and to pay homage to Jewish survival. The show didn’t change, but the atmosphere around it did.”

first Academy Award nominee in the foreign language film category and earned Topol a Golden Globe for best new actor. The casting of an Ashkenazi actor as a Mizrahi character — and one who embodied many of the stereotypes held at the time by Israel’s Ashkenazi elite — would prove controversial, although the film is still regarded as a touchstone.

Topol won Israel’s most prestigious

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In one sign of Topol’s breakout moment, his recording of “If I Were a Rich Man” hit No. 9 on the British charts — besting Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” in July 1967.

From there, Topol was cast in the film production of the musical, beating out Zero Mostel — who put an indelible stamp on Tevye as the star of the original Broadway production — as well as a host of Jewish and non-Jewish movie stars. Using only his last name — purportedly because his first name was easily mispronounced by non-Hebrew speakers — he ultimately starred in more than 30 films in both English and Hebrew, published two books and released multiple albums.

In Israel, Topol was perhaps best known for his breakout role as the lead character in the 1964 film “Sallah Shabati,” about the difficulties faced by a Mizrahi immigrant family. The Ephraim Kishon film was Israel’s

award, the Israel Prize, for his lifetime of achievement in 2013.

“From Fiddler on the Roof to the roof of the world, Haim [sic] Topol, who has passed away from us, was one of the most outstanding Israeli stage artists, a gifted actor who conquered many stages in Israel and overseas, filled the cinema screens with his presence and above all entered deep into our hearts,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on Twitter.

Herzog noted Topol’s contributions to Israel not just through the arts but through his service in the army and his dedication to a nonprofit camp for children with medical needs in Israel’s north. Topol was board chair of the Jordan Youth Village, modeled after Paul Newman’s Hole in the Wall Camp in the United States, until his death.

He is survived by his wife Galia, an actor whom he married in 1956; three children and their children. PJC

 Director Norman Jewison and actor Chaim Topol (“Tevye”) share a laugh on the set of the 1971 film “Fiddler on the Roof.”

Photo courtesy of Zeitgeist Films

“From Fiddler on the Roof to the roof of the world, Haim [sic] Topol, who has passed away from us, was one of the most outstanding Israeli stage artists, a gifted actor who conquered many stages in Israel and overseas, filled the cinema screens with his presence and above all entered deep into our hearts.”

–ISRAELI PRESIDENT ISAAC HERZOG

‘Fabelmans’ flops at the Oscars, but Hollywood’s Jewish history gets a nod

— FILMS —

By Andrew Lapin | JTA

With seven nominations for his most personal film ever, this could have been Steven Spielberg’s biggest year at the Academy Awards. But the hot-dog fingers had other plans.

“The Fabelmans,” the director’s highly personal dramatization of his Jewish upbringing, didn’t win a single one of the Oscars it was nominated for Sunday night. Spielberg’s film lost out on the biggest categories, including best picture, director, actress, and original screenplay, all to the same movie: chaos-theory multiverse comedy

“Everything Everywhere All At Once,” where the aforementioned hot-dog fingers play a starring role.

But while the most Jewish movie came up empty-handed, other Jewish stories played out on the movies’ biggest night. Here’s what you need to know.

‘Fabelmans’ follies

Spielberg’s autobiographical opus may have come up empty-handed Sunday, but it got a booby prize: “The Fabelmans” was host Jimmy Kimmel’s favorite punchline. Kimmel used his monologue to drop a series of jokes about the film, including dubbing Spielberg and star Seth Rogen “the Joe and Hunter Biden of Hollywood”; speculating that nominated co-star Judd Hirsch was actually absentee Tom Cruise in a mask; and warning anyone plotting to slap him Will Smith-style, “You’re gonna have to go through the Fabelman to get to me.”

Later, Kimmel kept up the bit, introducing Paul Dano and Julia LouisDreyfus to present an award. Kimmel billed them as “Steven Spielberg’s dad and Jonah Hill’s mom,” referencing not only Dano’s role in “The Fabelmans,” but also LouisDreyfus’ part as a clueless white Jewish mother in the much-maligned Netflix film “You People.”

Novey:

Continued from page 15

sort of like an archipelago of islands. Altoona was an island, Johnstown was an island and Windber was an island, and all those towns like Ligonier and Evansburg, where my dad saw patients on Fridays. People came up to

Getting loud for ‘All Quiet’

“All Quiet on the Western Front,” Netflix’s grueling drama about German soldiers on the front lines of World War I, ended the night with four Oscars: international feature film, original score, cinematography and production design. In addition to having a Jewish producer, the movie was also adapted from a novel and 1930 film that both met the ire of the Nazi party and were tarred as Jewish plots to destroy the German state.

Another anti-dictator winner on Sunday was “Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio,” which won the animated feature Oscar. Set in Fascist Italy, the Netflix film features a scene of Pinocchio mocking Il Duce himself, Benito Mussolini.

A Jewish ‘Goonies brother for life’

One of the most heartwarming moments of the evening was the best supporting actor win for Ke Huy Quan for “Everything Everywhere All At Once.” Quan, a former child actor, had abandoned his on-screen career for decades before his big comeback role last year. In his emotional acceptance speech, Quan gave a special shout-out to “my ‘Goonies’ brother for life,” Jeff Cohen — a Jewish former child star turned entertainment lawyer. Cohen and Quan appeared in “The Goonies” together in 1985, and when Quan landed his big “Everything Everywhere” role, Cohen negotiated the terms of his deal.

me and said, ‘I’m driving back to my island.’”

There was a hunger, Novey said, for talking about these isolated towns mixed with conversation about art.

The author will talk about the connection of “Take What You Needs” to Pennsylvania, as well as her connections to the characters and art during her talk with Pittsburghbased writer Angie Cruz on March 21.

Jamie Lee Curtis and Sarah Polley

There were a couple big-name Oscar winners with Jewish parents. Immediately after Quan’s big moment, veteran actress Jamie Lee Curtis picked up her first-ever Oscar, also for “Everything Everywhere.” It was also a big moment for the “Halloween” star. “My mother and my father were both nominated for Oscars in different categories,” Curtis noted during her speech. Tony Curtis, Jamie Lee’s Jewish father, was one of the biggest stars of Golden Age Hollywood yet received only one Oscar nomination, in 1959 for “The Defiant Ones.” Jamie Lee Curtis is involved in restoring the synagogue in her grandparents’ Hungarian hometown, where no Jews now live.

Another winner with a Jewish father: the writer-director-actor Sarah Polley, who won best adapted screenplay for “Women Talking.” Polley explored the secret of her biological parentage in her 2013 documentary “Stories We Tell.” “Women Talking” is set inside a different religious community: an isolated Mennonite society in which the women have been systematically, sexually abused by the men.

Navalny and the neo-Nazis

The winner for best documentary went to a profile of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, whose 2020 poisoning by KGB agents after he publicly criticized

She’ll also discuss some of the more outrageous things she did to explore her characters.

“I did all sorts of crazy things to write this book,” she said. “I learned how to weld. I took welding lessons in Johnstown.”

In the end, Novey said she wanted to write a book that would be enjoyed by those in her hometown, as well as her friends

Vladimir Putin was an international scandal. Navalny is currently imprisoned in Russian solitary confinement; the filmmakers dedicated the award to him. The documentary also details an aspect of Navalny’s campaign more controversial to Western observers: his onetime support of the “Russian march,” a gathering of Russian neo-Nazi organizations.

Diane Warren’s no-win situation

Did you know the songwriter Diane Warren is a 14-time Academy Award nominee? Singer Sofia Carson reminded everyone in the middle of the evening’s first performance for best original song. Warren, who is Jewish, joined in the performance of “Applause,” her composition from the feminist documentary “Tell It Like A Woman.” She has never won an Oscar and, unfortunately for her, the streak continued Sunday night as the viral sensation “Naatu Naatu,” from the Indian film “RRR,” took the prize. (As a consolation, Warren received an honorary Oscar at the Governor’s Awards preceding the telecast.)

Another Jew-ish shutout

Also drawing blanks was “Tár,” the cerebral classical-music psychological drama with somewhat inexplicable Jewish themes.

Hollywood’s Jewish history gets a nod

The broadcast included a promotional video for the Academy Museum, which opened last year to celebrate the history of Hollywood. In the video, a curator named Dara Jaffe explains that one of the museum’s roles is to “bring important film histories to light, from the Jewish immigrants who founded the Hollywood studios to the early innovators of African-American cinema.” The inclusion is notable because the museum drew steep criticism when it first opened for giving short shrift to the industry’s robust Jewish history; Jaffe was appointed to put together a permanent exhibition about that history in response. The exhibition has not yet opened. PJC

in Pittsburgh.

“Maybe this book will be the start of a conversation to see each other in a more nuanced way than, I think, our media often allows people who live in more rural places and urban places do,” she said. PJC

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

 Jamie Lee Curtis accepts her first Oscar Screenshot

Bar Mitzvah

Zachary C. Farber will be called to the Torah as a bar mitzvah on March 18, 2023, at 10 a.m. at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Zac is the son of Julie and Josh Farber, and the loving grandson of Zelda Curtiss and Nancy and Shelley Farber. Zac is a seventh grader at Dorseyville Middle School. He enjoys spending time with his siblings, Max, Jake and Samantha, especially skiing with them. He also plays golf, football, lacrosse and wrestling. When not busy with school and sports, he has a passion for exotic cars.

Feeling great about sharing in a communal effort

Rabbi Shimon Silver Parshat Vayakhel-Pekudei Exodus 35:1 – 40:38

Parshat Hachodesh Exodus 12:1–20

Bat Mitzvah

Arielle Jacobs is the daughter of Beth and Micah Jacobs, and sister to Eitan. She is the granddaughter of Karen and Michael Barson (South Euclid, Ohio) and Rhoda and Jerome Jacobs (Glenwillow, Ohio). Arielle is a seventh grader at Community Day School where she participates in Odyssey of the Mind and Middle School Student Council. When Arielle isn’t engaged in Pokemon-related activities, she’s practicing for her “future big moment” or creating imaginative scenes.

Arielle will become a bat mitzvah at Congregation Beth Shalom on March 18, 2023.

There were 603,550 Israelites who contributed their half-shekels. The silver was melted down and used to make the adanim — sockets for the Mishkan boards. This resulted in a surplus of 1,775 shekels. Those were used for the hooks, caps and bands of the pillars around the courtyard. The Midrash relates: Moshe never handled the materials. However, to show his honesty, he still volunteered to give an exact accounting of the used materials. He was shocked to discover that there was surplus silver and was concerned that he would come under suspicion of pilfering it. He had forgotten about the hooks, caps and bands. Hashem showed him that the surplus had been used for the hooks, etc., and he calmed down.

Indeed, this mistake was perpetuated through the Kohanim. There is a rule that a Kohen’s offering must be burned and may not be eaten. Some of the public offerings had to be eaten, such as the omer first-barley offering. The Kohanim refrained from donating their annual shekel based on the misconception that the public offerings were collective private offerings. They were mistaken. Once they donated, the money would become public. The offerings bought with it would not be considered partnership offerings in which Kohanim had a share, but communal public offerings.

A similar question arises regarding the practice of the Princely House of Raban Gamliel. The shekalim were collected and placed in a chamber in temple complex. Three times a year, some were scooped out — called Terumas Halishka — to use for the communal offerings. The remainder were used for more mundane needs.

Kylie Baran, daughter of Artie and Lori Baran, will become a bat mitzvah at Temple Emanuel of South Hills on Saturday, March 18, 2023. Grandparents are Darlene Mannheimer, Jack Mannheimer, Max Baran and the late Donna Baran.

Engagement

Noah Lewis Levin and Vina Uriarte are thrilled to announce their engagement. Noah is the son of Karen and the late Harry Levin, MD, of Squirrel Hill. Vina is the daughter of Kyong and Ray Uriarte of Murrieta, California. Noah grew up in Pittsburgh and is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University. Noah is the vice president of product design at Figma, and Vina is the global benefits manager at Notion. They both reside in San Francisco, where a wedding will be held late in 2023. PJC

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Meshech Chochma says no one really suspected Moshe of pilfering, nor did he worry about that. Rather, he suggests that those who thought that their shekels had not been used in the construction would be jealous of those whose shekels had been used. (We find something similar when the firstborn were redeemed by corresponding Levites. There was a surplus of firstborn, who had to redeem themselves with money, and there was a risk of jealousy.)

How would anyone know whose shekel was left out? Besides, didn’t everyone realize that the shekels would all be placed in a large melting pot and become public property? Everyone was equal!

The Torah says: “The [materials for the] work was exactly enough, and more! (36:7)” Which was it? Or Hachaim says there really was more than enough. Hashem knew that some people would complain that their donations were not used, so a miracle happened and there was exactly enough. This raises the same question: Didn’t everyone understand that when a donation is given it becomes public property and the Mishkan was constructed from this public property? It was not a collective private enterprise, with individual gifts to specific parts of the project. No one had the option of a plaque on the section that he donated. What was the concern?

The family of the prince would wait to donate their shekels until the designated trustee would come to scoop the Terumah. They would toss their coin toward the scoop and the trustee would shove it in. The Talmud asks: Why would they need to do this? All coins were equal! The answer is “To make them feel great (nachas ruach)!” It would give the appearance that they were privileged to have their personal coins used for the korbanos (see Shekalim 3:3).

This is what bothered Moshe. Some people would be upset — mistakenly, but nonetheless upset. He wanted to make everyone feel great. This is why Hashem made a miracle that there was no surplus. This is the extent that one must go to, to ensure that people who wish to have a share in a communal effort feel great about it. Even if their share really does help, but they do not feel nachas ruach, they must be accommodated. Something can always be done to make every individual feel great about his share in the effort. It may well be that the only way is through a miracle. The nachas ruach is so important that it is worth making a miracle and changing the laws of nature! PJC

Rabbi Shimon Silver is the spiritual leader of Young Israel of Greater Pittsburgh. This column is a service of the Vaad Harabanim of Greater Pittsburgh.

Something can always be done to make every individual feel great about his share in the e ort. It may well be that the only way is through a miracle.

BERGER: Joan L. Berger, of Atlanta, Georgia, formerly of White Oak, Pennsylvania, passed away on Monday, March 6, 2023, at the age of 86. Beloved wife of the late James Berger. She is survived by her two sons, Joel Berger and David Berger, along with her daughter-in-law Meredith, granddaughter Jordyn and grandson Noah. Sister of the late Rose Schwartz and Ed Lebowitz. She is also survived by many nieces and nephews. Joan received her bachelor’s and Master of Education from the University of Pittsburgh School of Education. At the beginning of her career she worked for many years as an elementary school teacher for the City of Pittsburgh School District and returned to teaching later in her career, working with special needs children at the Allegheny Intermediate Unit. She worked for many years with her late husband, James Berger, at their family-owned pharmacies, Slaton’s Pharmacy in McKeesport and Merit Drugs in Churchill. She had a passion for the arts and was an accomplished painter and enjoyed anything art-related, leaving behind many of her paintings to her children. A special place in her heart was working with children, both her own and her grandchildren, as well as all of the children she worked with over the years as an educator. She will be greatly missed and remembered for her sweet nature and love of her family. Joan was a longtime member of Temple B’nai Israel in White Oak and was active in Hadassah. Graveside services and interment were held at Tree of Life Memorial Park. Family is asking that memorial donations in her memory be made to Camp Yofi at Camp Ramah Darom at ramahdarom.org/donate. schugar.com.

KALSER: Dr. Sarah Chinn Kalser passed away peacefully on March 4, 2023, surrounded by her loving family. She was born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, in 1929, the youngest of four children. Sarah was the first women in her family to go to college. She studied biochemistry at Penn State (’51), then her love of science took her to Northwestern, where she was among the first women to receive an MA. In 1952, Sarah married Ben Kalser, a decorated D-Day veteran and computer engineer. They lived in Monroeville until a few years after earning her PhD at the University of Pittsburgh, when they moved to Bethesda, Maryland. That is where they built an amazing life together including a vibrant circle of friends, an adoration and love for their dogs, and a love of travel that took them on adventurous vacations all over the world. Dr. Kalser worked for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for 25 years where she became one of the first women administrators. She was the first female grants administrator at what was then the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Disease, and the first female program director at the National Institute of Arthritis, Diabetes, and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Her scientific contributions include foundational research on atropine metabolism and the effect of hypothermia and chronic cold exposure on drug metabolism by the liver. As a project officer, she monitored scientific aspects of research on gallstones that led to the licensure of oral bile acid therapy. She also planned an NIH consensus development conference that helped establish liver transplantation as a viable clinical therapy for end-stage liver disease. For these contributions, she received numerous honors including: Distinguished Service Awards from both the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the American Gastroenterological Association, the NIH Award of Merit and the NIH Special Achievement Award. At her retirement from NIH, esteemed UPMC transplant physician, Thomas Starzl, was quoted as commenting, “I doubt if anyone on center stage or behind the scenes has ever done more for the development of modern gastroenterology and hepatology than Sarah.” After Ben died in 1996, Sarah found comfort in her many friends and in Judaism. She became a member of Beth El Synagogue in Bethesda where she celebrated her bat mitzvah. She continued her vibrant social life, community service and travel adventures with her many friends. Her generosity to family and friends was boundless; she gave freely of her love, time and resources. Sarah is survived by five nieces and nephews (Jeff Chinn, Steve Chinn, Sue Chinn Messinger, Marcia Mendelson Siegel and Gary Mendelson); six great- nieces and nephews (Laura, Liana, Elise, Kim, Bryna and Miles); eight great-great nieces and nephews (Sam, Haley, Liam, Elliott, Theo, Ruthie, Reese and Eva). She will be greatly missed by her friends and family. Sarah’s legacies live on in each of the people she touched as they serve their own communities, make their own contributions to the public good and continue to embrace life. Following services at Beth El Synagogue, interment was at Anshe Neisen Cemetery, Rosedale, Maryland. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Association of Women in Science, your local women’s shelter or refugee organization.

KLEIN: Alfred William Klein (9/24/1920 – 3/8/2023) was born to Max and Gussie Klein in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Sept 24, 1920. He graduated from Atlantic City High School during the Depression. His storied employment history included selling popcorn on the boardwalk, delivering milk, prospecting for uranium, working in a gold mine and welding in the shipyards in Chester,

Pennsylvania. During WWII, he served in the Army Corps of Engineers from 1942-1945, starting in Australia, then island hopping all the way to Japan. He was then able to attend college on the GI bill, graduating in 1950 from University of Pennsylvania with a degree in metallurgical engineering. He worked at Westinghouse as a metallurgical engineer for his entire career, moving to Pittsburgh in 1955. He obtained several patents for his work on nuclear reactors. He married Gloria Berman in 1951. Their first children (triplets) were born in 1953, and a fourth child was born in 1959. Al embarked on many adventures, including winemaking, building a sailboat (then learning to sail it), taking violin lessons and creating stained glass pieces. He and Gloria traveled internationally and regularly attended classical music concerts and theater. After retirement in 1985, he became a perpetual Pitt student, auditing classes every semester for almost 30 years. He was an active class participant and even submitted assigned papers — in longhand. From his armchair, he pursued his burning interest in understanding relativity, the origins of the universe, genetics and history. He was reading a physics book the week of his death. Al, Gloria, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren vacationed together at the beach every summer. It was our great joy last year to have four generations of Kleins bobbing in the ocean together. When asked his secret for longevity, Al would cite three things: good genes, good fortune and great Pittsburgh doctors. We are indebted to Dr. Dennis Stull and Dr. Jennifer Lee, who cared for him with such skill and love. Al proclaimed himself a benevolent dictator, and enjoyed a long reign over an expanding empire, including children Michael (Louisa Barnhart) from China Village, Maine; Judy (Malcolm Dalglish) from Bloomington, Indiana; Carol (Michael Larter) from Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Terri (Daniel Gup) from Pittsburgh; grandchildren Naomi, Tema, Ben, Mia, Hannah, Sophia, Nathan, Emily and Noah; and great-grandchildren Miriam, Lila, Silas, Althea and Addison. He is survived by the above adoring subjects and his beloved wife of 72 years, Gloria. A memorial service was held at Temple Sinai. Interment private. If desired, a memorial contribution can be made in his honor to a cause important to you. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., family owned and operated. schugar.com.

MANDEL: Herbert Mandel, age 98. Herb passed away on Saturday, March 11, 2023, in Squirrel Hill. He was born on May 11, 1924, in Port Chester, New York, to Arthur and Rose Mandel, immigrants from Radom, Poland. He was the beloved husband of the late Charlotte F. Mandel; the loving father of Rosanne (Clifford) Levine, Elliott (Marlene) Mandel and Arthur Mandel (Claudia Nahson); the brother of the late Penny (late Nathaniel) Lash; the grandfather of Meredith Levine (Daniel Tsadok), Benjamin Levine (Dalila Boclin), Eric Levine, Becca Levine (Adam Koling), Jordan Mandel, Maia Mandel (fiancé Michael Anderson), Ariella, Nina and Julia Mandel; and the great-grandfather of Asher and Aaron Tsadok, Rafael Levine. Herbert was a renowned engineer. He worked as the project director of the Pittsburgh Light Rail Transit System, project manager for the Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge in Newport, Rhode Island, and led numerous other civil engineering projects including the General Assembly Building of the U.N., original studies for transit systems in Atlanta, Chicago and Los Angeles, and bridges throughout the United States. He often said, “I had the best career in the world; I feel like someone gave me a giant erector set to play with for my whole life.” Herbert participated in the liberation of the Langenstein-Zwieberge Concentration Camp in 1945 as part of the Eighth Armored Division, Battery C in the U.S. Army. Herbert was a highly ethical, positive and optimistic person who was deeply devoted to his family, friends, co-workers and caregivers. He put a tremendous value on education and encouraged his family and everyone he met in educational endeavors. He loved music and promoted the musical education of his children. He remembered virtually everything he had ever learned and shared his knowledge freely, yet humbly. He belonged to many congregations in his life, most recently Tree of Life Congregation and Congregation Beth Ami in Boca Raton, Florida. He identified strongly with Judaism and taught his children the value of Jewish continuity. Although he worked and lived in many locations, he adopted Pittsburgh as his home and explained that he loved Pittsburgh because of the people who live here. Services took place at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., 5509 Centre Avenue, Shadyside on Monday, March 13, 2023 at 1 p.m. with interment in Mt. Lebanon

Jewish Association on Aging gratefully acknowledges contributions from the following: A gift from ... In memory of...

Anonymous

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Ron & Larraine Bates

Claryne C. Berman

Claryne C. Berman

Cohen

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Obituaries

Obituaries:

Carl Katz

Harry Levy

Dorothy L. Fisher

Sanford W. Berman

Cemetery, Beth El section. Contributions may be made to Pittsburgh Promise, 1901 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 or Tree of Life, Inc., 0 Woodland Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15232-2899, designate for Remember. Rebuild. Renew. campaign or rememberrebuildrenew.org/donate. schugar.com.

RUBEN: Ann Moliver Ruben, a celebrated psychologist and author of two books — Ann of Squirrel Hill — died in her sleep Jan. 21. Just 12 days earlier, she had celebrated her 98th birthday. Her parents were Fanny (“Frima Landy”) and Max (“Moetel”) Moliver who came to the United States from Tulchin in the Vinnitsia Region in West Central Ukraine. Max and Fannie, along with Ann’s older sister Sonia, age 10, and Rosie, age 2, immigrated to the United States at Ellis Island in 1924 as they were fleeing from the Russian Revolution, famine and several pogroms. Max’s older brother, Dave, a house painter in Pittsburgh, sponsored them to emigrate. Max and Fannie arrived in the United States with two girls, Sonia, age 10 (deceased) and Rosie, age 2 (deceased). Ann was born in Pittsburgh on Jan. 9, 1925, the only member of the Moliver family that was born in the United States. Ann’s parents were proud to renounce their Russian/Ukrainian Roots and thanked God that they were able to become citizens of this Country.

Contact the Development department at 412.586.3264 or development@jaapgh.org for more information.

THIS WEEK’S YAHRZEITS —

Sunday March 19: Freda Benowitz, Alfred Cohen, Allen Cohen, Sonia Fogel, Verner William Friedman, Esther Glick, Max Glick, Anne Fierst Goldberg, Ann R. Klein, Joy Ellen Levin Le , Leona Levine, Leo Abraham Levine, MD, William J. Lewinter, Frank Mandel, Ethel Plesset, Julius Rosenfeld, Aaron Louis Shefler, Morris Simon, Anna Snitkin, Rose Lieberman Solomon, Sam Weiss

Monday March 20: Harry Birnkrant, Sara Esther Dickter, Joseph Eisenberg, Nathan Handelman, Mayer Handley, Sidney Jay Israel, Oscar K. Light, Rory Sue Melnick, Belle G. Meyers, Samuel Ostfield, Rowena M. Rosenthal, Mary W. Roth, Isadore Herbert Rudick, Moses J. Sadowsky, Rose Schultz, Milton Schwartz, Beltran Shine, Bertha C. Talenfeld, Geraldine Wald, Ida L. Weinthal, Ethel Zamsky

Tuesday March 21: Rabbi A.M. Ashinsky, Pearl Cohen, Henry Dentel, Rita Serrins Glazer, Morris Harris, Hannah Hershman, Joseph Kleinerman, Edward Kornstein, Bella Lencer, Meyer Levine, Lena R. Mallinger, Morris R. Mandelblatt, Gussie Marcus, Joseph J. Reader, Nettie Ripp, Gertrude Rosenberg, Helen R.B. Sand, Samuel Schwartz, Ralph Silverman, Jacob M. Stone

Wednesday March 22: Eleanor P. Backer, Louis H. Broudy, Sam Carti Adele Cherkosly, Edgar Danovitz, Maurice Gutmacher, Libbie Broida Hirsh, Sara Louise Le , Selma B. Leuin, Max Loefsky, Michael Lo er, Evelyn Selkovits Marcus, Eleanor Silverstein, Archie Steinberg, Anna Sarah Waldman

Thursday March 23: Edna Anish, Herman Berliner, Morris Bloom, Rose Edith Donofsky, Emanuel Epstein, Cecelia Feingold, George Fink, Audrey Green Frank, Joseph Glantz, Mary R. Goodwin, Bessie Halpern, Lilly Hirsch, Evelyn R. Johan, Marty B. Kaplan, Samuel Lichtenstul, Bernard Lieberman, Calvin Morgan, Hetty S. Numerosky, Sylvia Peris, Belle Pirchesky, Jacqueline Goodman Rubin, Alvin Schonberger, Anne Schwartz, Anne Simon, Judith V. Tucker, Benjamin Weiss

Friday March 24: Philip Blau, Birdye Brody, Mollie Bucaresky, Louis Engelman, Meyer Goldfarb, Charlotte Gordon, Morris E. Greenberg, Maurice Edward Jacobson, Charles Kaufman, William S. Miller, Gerald E. Moskowitz, Sanford A. Rogers, Trudy Rosenthal, Merle Arnold Sands, Fannie Singer, Ida Sissman, Morris L. Speizer, Eileen M. Swartz, Louis Weinberger, Celia Weiner, Samuel Weiner, Zelda Hilda Zamsky

Saturday March 25: William L. Birken, Belle Broder, Elsie Cohen, Dorothy Gross, Leon Hytovitz, Pearle N. Lenchner, Israel Marcus, Allan Jay Mellman, Joseph Melnick, Alvin Milligram, Celia J. Rubin, Leo I. Shapiro, Benjamin Thorpe

Ann’s ancestry was significant in the Jewish community. She was a direct descendant of Rabbi Samuel Mohilever of Vilna, the intellectual center of Lithuanian Jews. Rabbi Samuel Mohliver was among the first founders and leaders of the Hibbat Zion movement and served as the force behind the religious faction within the movement. His lifework planted the seeds which would later germinate into the Mizrachi movement under Rabbi Jacob Reines. In July of 1882, Rabbi Mohilever went to Paris to meet a young Baron de Rothschild and convinced him to take an interest in the struggling settlers in Israel. Baron de Rothschild became the single greatest benefactor for the Zionist movement in his generation.

Ann and her family grew up in the Hill District and were very poor. Her father was a peddler selling housewares door to door in Bloomfield and was barely able to support his family. Max gave people credit — a dollar a week and hopefully there would be a dollar payment next week. While

Please see Obituaries, page 22

Did You Know?

An important part of our mission is providing free burials for those in need.

e JCBA takes great care in ful lling the commandment of burying the truly needy with dignity, in accordance with our laws and customs, by working with our valued partners to provide a free funeral service, headstone, and unveiling ceremony. ese free burials are held at New Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery on Oakwood Street in Shaler Township, and we thank Ralph Schugar Chapel, and Urbach Memorials for their important service to the community.

e act of helping to bury our deceased is one of the greatest mitzvot we can perform because the ones bene tting from our e orts cannot thank us.

We invite you to be a part of this sacred mitzvah by supporting the JCBA.

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Obituaries

Obituaries:

Continued from page 20

living in the Hill District, they left in the middle of the night to avoid her father being arrested for nonpayment. Ann recalled that one day she came back from Holmes Elementary School and told her mom that she was hungry. Her mom pointed to the last egg in the refrigerator and told her she could have it, but had to eat it raw because the gas was cut off. It was at that time that Ann vowed that she would never be hungry again. When Ann talked about her challenging childhood living on Tannehill Street in the Hill District, she frequently quoted the famous comedian Rodney Dangerfield when he said, “We were so poor in our neighborhood, the rainbows were black and white.” Ann told her three sons that she went to eight different elementary schools because her parents and her sister had to move out in the middle of the night for non-payment of rent.

When Ann attended kindergarten at Holmes Elementary she only spoke Yiddish, but learned English quickly. Her father would constantly say to her, “Annala du bist klieg” — meaning in Yiddish that you are very smart. Ann attended Peabody High School in the East End and graduated at age 16, two years ahead of her class and with academic distinction. After graduation, she landed a job at 20th Century Fox as an assistant secretary to support her parents. While at Peabody High, she was smitten by Gershon Ruben, a neighbor, while watching Gershon riding a bicycle. It was love at first sight.

In 1943, Gershon attempted to enlist in the Army but failed the physical because of his eyesight. He volunteered in the Army Air Corp (now the United States Force) unbeknownst to Ann. Gershon’s closest friend, Hershel Hausman, told him that the Army Air Corp would take anyone with no physical required. Gershon signed up with Army Air Corp and packed his bags and went off with his newly-enlisted crew to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for basic training and to become a radio and radar operator.

Ann came to visit Gershon in his parents’ apartment on Phillips Avenue and was shocked to learn that Gershon had enlisted and was off to basic training in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. However, Ann was determined to see Gershon before he left for the European theatre and to get married. The problem for Ann was that she had no money to take the train, but her Aunt Lena, who was married to her father’s brother, Dave Moliver, gave her the money. When Aunt Lena asked why she was going to Sioux Falls, her answer was simple: “To marry Gershon.”

The next day Ann took the train to Sioux Falls and came to the base requesting to see Gershon. When Gershon saw Ann, he was taken back, and asked her: “What are you doing here?” Ann’s reply was simple. She asked Gershon: “Will you marry me?” and Gershon’s response was the classic line from Jack Benny: “I’m thinking.” Ann responded that she intended to stay at Sioux Falls for a week for an answer. Three days later Ann and Gershon were married by Judge Justin Tall of the Minnehaha Circuit Court who was Ann described as “sunk drunk” on June 23, 1943.

Gershon resumed his training with the Army Corp and was based in Croydon field in London, experiencing the relentless bombing with V-1 and V-2 rockets. Gershon never spoke about his military service — he was part of the greatest and silent generation. Gershon was honorably discharged with the rank of master sergeant, the highest rank for an enlisted man. He was highly decorated, receiving the distinguished service medal, and his squadron liberated Buchenwald. When he and his troopmates came into the camp the Germans had already fled. He came up to one walking skeleton of a man and Gershon spoke in German “ich ben ein Jude,” meaning that he was Jewish, and the man collapsed in Gershon’s arms and they both cried. Gershon returned to Pittsburgh after VJ day from London.

When Gershon returned from WW II, he returned to Duquesne University on the GI bill and the Rubens started a family with Stephen, Richard and David born during the boomer era —

all born and raised in Pittsburgh. Stephen serves as a Superior Court judge in Unified Family Court in San Francisco and is married to Dr. Marcia nee Teitelbaum; Richard is a trial attorney practicing in Miami, Florida (Marcy nee Kramer); David Ruben is founder of a bio-medical equipment company based in Weston and is married to Ann nee Hamilton of Weston, Florida. Ann has six grandchildren: Leah Deza of Encinitas, California; D. Aaron Ruben of Pittsburgh; Justin Ruben of Weston, Florida; Alexander Ruben of Weston, Florida; Zachery Ruben of Cummings, Georgia; and Melissa Rubenstein of Highland Park, Illinois; and three great-grandchildren, Elinor Ruben of Pittsburgh, Ari Ruben of Pittsburgh, and Eris Deza of Encinitas, California.

As her three sons grew older, Ann yearned to broaden her education. Her sons supported her, but Gershon was less sure in the beginning. Her son Stephen said that she was “really determined.” With a partial scholarship to the University of Pittsburgh, she earned her degree in elementary education in 1961, taught kindergarten in Pittsburgh’s Hazelwood District and where she served as community liaison for the President Lyndon Johnson administration.

Ann received her master’s degree in counseling at Pitt in 1965. She joined the psychology department at Pitt in 1966 and worked as a counselor at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital. In 1973, she was awarded a Ph.D. in higher education and psychology at the University of Pittsburgh. Ann received many awards for her leadership and her professionalism as a professor and marriage and family counselor. She was honored by the Association of University Women, Hadassah, “Who’s Who in America” and received a lifetime achievement award from her alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh.

Until her death, Ann actively promoted female leadership since she was 8 years old, and her cousin Irwin told her that a woman could never be president of anything. In 1993, Ann conducted a study with 1500 boys and girls in five different elementary schools in Miami. She asked if they ever thought about being president of the United States when they grew up. To her surprise, more girls than boys said that they thought about being president. To encourage female leadership, she self-published a 42-page illustrated coloring booklet entitled “How I Grew Up Feeling Some Day I Could be President of the United States,” which she read to hundreds of first and second graders. A few months later, her husband discovered a Dennis the Menace comic strip panel with Margaret proclaiming that “Someday a Woman Will Be President.” She received permission from famed cartoonist Hank Ketcham to use the image. She sold shirts to a South Florida Wal-Mart store, and after a customer complained, the shirt was banned because they said it violated Wal-Mart’s family values.

Throughout her lifetime, Ann Ruben tirelessly promoted women as leaders and particularly for a women to be president of the United States, often against very strong headwinds. Many national organizations, including the American Association of University Women, were her strong supporters in purchasing the Margaret T-shirt promoting a women to be president for their fundraisers. Ann Ruben proudly wore the shirt wherever she went, in elegant formal affairs. She never gave up on her dream and was convinced even at the time of her death that her dream would be fulfilled. As proudly expressed in the last version of the Margaret T-shirt, that “someday” is now! PJC

ESTATE NOTICE - Estate of omas E. Bauer

omas E. Bauer a/k/a omas Edward Bauer, deceased, of Pittsburgh, PA, No. 301313 of 2022, Sean P. Grubbs, Administrator, c/o David J. Slesnick, Esq., 310 Grant Street, Suite #1220, Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Community

Leaning toward democracy

Student Council members from Community Day School joined fellow civic-minded students

 The performance was preceded by a raucous Megillah reading led by Yitz Francus and a deli meal catered by Barbara and Harold Caplan. Photo courtesy of Beth Kissile

Jewish Association on Aging residents enjoyed Purim with costumes and a presentation from Rabbi Dovid Small.

 “As soon as the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she won his favor.”  “If it please Your Majesty, let a royal edict be issued by you.”

Photos courtesy of Jewish Association on Aging

 Civics are groovy.

Photo courtesy of Community Day School

First-grade girls at Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh performed a play based on their chumash studies.

 Rivka Hoexter and Chana Rittri

 Shelly Mash, Miri Saul, Esti Wexler and Mussia Zimbovsky

Photos courtesy of Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh

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