Beneath an overcast sky, a crowd of more than 400 invited guests gathered on Sunday, June 23, at the corner of Shady and Wilkins avenues to witness the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Tree of Life building.
Survivors, family members of some of the victims, first responders, interfaith religious leaders, politicians, dignitaries and other community members braved humid temperatures and strong winds to hear from a litany of speakers that included Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff.
With much of the building razed, the vacant lot continues to be surrounded by fencing but will soon be home to construction vehicles and contractors, as the work on the new building begins.
The ceremony began with a short performance by members of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra before survivors Audrey Glickman and Rabbi Jeffrey Myers blew the shofar along with local children wearing black shirts emblazoned with a yellow ribbon graphic in honor of the hostages kidnapped on Oct. 7 and still held in Gaza by the terrorist group Hamas.
By David Rullo | Senior Sta Writer
antor Kalix Jacobson remembered the advice given by a friend who learned of their decision to attend Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion’s Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music.
“Brush up on your Hebrew, read the sheet music, interpret it without embellishment, and, oh yeah, he said, ‘Be careful who you date,’” Jacobson recalled.
The friend warned, “If you are dating someone who isn’t Jewish, hide it.”
The groundbreaking took place on the site of the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history, where a gunman entered the building that housed three synagogues — Congregation Dor Hadash, New Light Congregation and Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha — and murdered Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil and David Rosenthal, Bernice and Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger.
Diane Rosenthal, sister of Cecil and David Rosenthal, then offered words that would become a theme of the event: remembering the victims and survivors while moving beyond the tragedy.
Cecil and David, she said, will forever be linked to the horror of their deaths but “we want them to be remembered for how they lived their beautiful lives. “
Her brothers thought of the Tree of Life as
Those remarks were offered as part of Jacobson’s d’var Torah at Temple Emanuel of South Hills just one day after HUC-JIR, the Reform movement’s rabbinic seminary, announced that it would begin admitting and ordaining students in relationships with non-Jews.
In a June 20 online statement, President
Lenda volorei ciendi non re nus
Fodictiumqui aut entis andae asimuss
Second gentleman Douglas Emhoff
Photo by Dale Lazar
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion has announced plans to accept students with non-Jewish partners.
Photo by ajay_suresh via Wikimedia Commons
Headlines
Local organizations unite for powerful screening of ‘Screams Before Silence’
By Toby Tabachnick | Editor
The evidence that Hamas used sexual violence as a tool of war on Oct. 7 is overwhelming and incontrovertible. Reading written reports of the eyewitness testimony of that violence is harrowing, but hearing multiple witnesses recount exactly what they saw that day is much more profound.
Sheryl Sandberg, former chief operating officer of Meta and founder of LeanIn.org, made the documentary “Screams Before Silence” for that very reason, and to counter the denial or justification of those atrocities by anti-Israel activists and antisemites.
Following a showing of the film to a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers at the U.S. Capitol last month, Sandberg told JTA: “Some pretty mainstream people are either ignoring or worse denying this happened. So this aspect, I think, gets to the heart of what people need to believe to understand what happened and what this kind of terror really is.”
The film is available online, but several organizational partners — the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, StandWithUs, the Jewish Women’s Foundation, the National Council of Jewish Women and Classrooms Without Borders — held a screening at the JCC in Squirrel Hill last week so that the community could bear witness together.
While efforts were made to invite a broad coalition of Pittsburghers, the majority of the audience was comprised of members of the Jewish community. Several local politicians were present including City Controller Rachael Heisler; Pittsburgh City Councilwomen Erika Strassburger and Barb Warwick; Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor; Allegheny County Councilmen Sam DeMarco III and Paul
Klein; and Zeke Rediker, Mayor Ed Gainey’s executive advisor on legal policy.
Representatives from Pittsburgh Action Against Rape and the 10.27 Healing Partnership were also in attendance.
Hamas’ premeditated use of sexual violence on Oct. 7 is well-documented, but there are still those who say it didn’t happen, especially on social media platforms which “have largely allowed Hamas apologists, Israel critics and others to spread and bolster the false narrative that accounts of sexual assaults, gang rape and other atrocities are either made up or wildly inflated,” The Times of Israel reported earlier this month.
That denial motivated the organizational partners to screen the film in Pittsburgh.
“It was really important for us to partner with other Jewish organizations to bring this film in for the community,” Laura Cherner, the director of the Federation’s Community Relations Council, told the Chronicle.
The organizations, she said, have “been unified in this moment around a number of goals, and two of those I see as making sure that we tell the story of what really happened on Oct. 7 and creating a society that does not allow nor tolerate something so horrific to ever happen
again. This film is one step of that bearing witness, and bearing witness we hope will translate into a commitment to action.”
The film was screened in Pittsburgh on June 20, just one day after the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence Against Women In Conflict, and days after the antisemitically motivated gang rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl in France.
In the documentary, Sandberg interviews attendees of the Nova Music Festival — where Hamas murdered more than 360 people and abducted dozens more — residents of the Hamas-ravaged Kibbutz Kfar Aza, former hostages and first responders, all recounting evidence of the sexual brutality that occurred that day in various locations.
While no graphic images are shown out of respect for the victims and their families, the details conveyed in the interviews are horrifying and heartbreaking.
The testimony includes that of a captured Hamas terrorist who admits to raping an Israeli woman during the attack.
One former hostage recounts facing terrorists at the music festival and calculating whether it would be better to be kidnapped, raped or shot. “What’s worse?” she wondered. “What’s better?”
Many women were sexually abused, then murdered, their bodies mutilated. Nails and other objects were found shoved into the female organs of deceased victims. Some were shot so many times that their faces were obliterated.
Witnesses told of the women’s screams they heard during the raid — piercing prolonged screaming while being sexually assaulted by terrorists. Then gunshots. Then silence.
Denial of the violence “has caused a massive spike in danger to Jews around the world,” Julie Paris, Mid-Atlantic regional director of StandWithUs, said before the screening.
“I think that showing films like this plays a critical role in making sure that we do believe all women — including Israeli women — and that we bear witness to what took place on that day and what continues to take place for women who are currently being held and have been held for over 250 days inside of Gaza.
“We believe that the women who remain captive are at risk of sexual crimes,” Paris added, “and so we want them to know we believe them. We want to stand up for them. We want to bear witness, and make sure to honor the memories of those who did not survive.”
Laurie Gottlieb, co-chair of the Jewish Women’s Foundation, stressed the imperative of getting the film out to a wider audience.
“We seem to live in a world where folks can see a circle and insist it is a square,” Gottlieb said. She suggested that universities might show the film “to their students in class, so it’s not optional.”
“If it can end up touching some of those uninformed pro-Hamas supporters, perhaps this stark and disturbing reality staring them in the face will change the dialogue,” Gottlieb added. “It is critically important to continue to let the world know we will not be silent or be passive bystanders.”
PJC
Toby Tabachnick can be reached at ttabachnick@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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Sheryl Sandberg at a memorial at the site of the Nova Music Festival Still from film
or his Jewish roots, died in his sleep on June 16. He was 75.
By Justin Vellucci | Special to the Chronicle
Sylvan “Sy” Holzer didn’t see himself as a titan of industry. But his resume might prove otherwise.
Born in Pittsburgh shortly after World War II — near the peak of the city’s international prominence — Holzer capped a 45-year career in southwestern Pennsylvania with PNC Bank as its regional president from 1997 until his retirement in 2017. Among other things, Holzer was key, several said, in the naming of the region’s new Major League Baseball stadium 23 years ago PNC Park.
After graduating from Taylor Allderdice High School in 1966, Holzer received degrees from Duquesne University, the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University and the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz Graduate School of BusinessManagement Program for Executives.
He was chairman of the board at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute. He served on the executive committee of the Children’s Hospital Foundation’s board. The state Supreme Court appointed Holzer to its judiciary advisory council.
But Holzer, when asked, simply referred to himself as a Pittsburgher.
“He was a really down-to-earth, engaging person,” said Brian Holzer, his son, a Penn State alum who runs a health care company in Louisville, Kentucky. “He talked the exact same way to professional athletes — Steelers, Pirates, Penguins — as he did to the parking attendant.
“He brought companies here, he brought executives here and he never once asked for credit for it,” his son added. “It was always all about the city and the people.”
Holzer, a powerful Pittsburgh executive who never lost touch with his humility
Holzer was born on Jan. 25, 1949, to Max and Charlotte Holzer, two Holocaust survivors who fled Europe after the war.
Holzer was raised in an Orthodox household in Squirrel Hill, his son said. Yiddish was spoken frequently.
Though Holzer was not deeply observant, his son said, Judaism and his cultural Jewishness were important to him. As he climbed the ranks in corporate America, he often was not surrounded by Jewish peers.
“He felt he needed to give a positive reflection on the Jewish community in everything he did,” Brian Holzer said. “I wouldn’t call it a burden. But I think he wanted to reflect a good impression of Judaism and of Jewish people.”
At PNC Bank, Holzer held executive positions in corporate and retail banking, with responsibilities ranging from financial services with large government entities to higher education institutions to health care organizations and labor unions throughout Pennsylvania.
Philanthropy was also important to Holzer.
He served on the board of trustees of the University of Pittsburgh and on the board of visitors for the Katz Graduate School of Business and Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. He also served on the Bethany Board of Trustees.
And with the Fred Rogers Foundation.
And with the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.
From 2011 to 2019, Holzer was a board member of the Pittsburgh Opera. The opera’s former board chair Michele Fabrizi — the retired president and CEO of Marc USA, one of the nation’s largest advertising
Happy of
Jason Kunzman, JCC President & CEO
Scott E. Seewald, JCC Board Chair Staff & Board of the JCC
— NEWS OBITUARY —
p Sy Holzer and his grandchildren
Photo courtesy of Brian Holzer
Headlines Headlines
By Adam Reinherz | Senior Sta Writer
Before most people had plumbing or electricity at home, the Ladies Hospital Aid Society was busy bettering the Pittsburgh Jewish community. Through committed and innovative means, the former Hebrew Ladies’ Hospital Aid Society advocated for Jewish patients at local hospitals.
As times and demands changed, the group evolved. Now, 125 years after its founding, LHAS honors its past by continuing its mission and establishing new legacies.
The group originated in 1898, driven by 17 women concerned with the needs of the poor and “troubles facing the immigrant population,” according to LHAS records. At the time, many local residents experienced poverty and homelessness. Without access to proper medical treatment, they suffered. LHAS arranged for their admittance to nearby hospitals, with costs covered by members, who each contributed 10 cents weekly toward patient care.
Among LHAS’ dedicated corps was Annie Jacobs Davis. Born in Russia in 1865, Jacobs immigrated to the United States in 1873 with her mother and two siblings. Along with marrying and raising 11 children, Jacobs performed “informal midwifery, nursing and social work throughout the Hill District,” according to the Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives at the Heinz History Center.
Davis’ seismic communal presence included volunteering for the Gusky Orphanage, the National Council of Jewish Women, the Pittsburgh Conference of
Jewish Women’s Organizations, Hadassah and the House of Shelter, as well as being an instrumental force in LHAS’ founding. She ensured the latter raised about $25,000 to build what became Montefiore Hospital.
The hospital’s opening in 1908 was prompted by communal realities. Jewish patients required a space that provided adequate care, and Jewish doctors needed somewhere to train and practice, according to the Rauh. Davis, and members of Pittsburgh’s Orthodox Jewish community, initially began the fundraising efforts. Non-Orthodox community members soon joined.
“Ladies Hospital Aid is best known for bringing Montefiore Hospital into existence. Few people fully appreciate how vast and complex its operation grew to become,” said Eric Lidji, director of the Rauh. “Thousands of volunteers were raising millions of dollars and giving countless hours to the hospital and the broader community.”
After Montefiore opened, LHAS members continued their efforts. And, as Montefiore’s services grew, so did LHAS. At one point, the group had 3,000 members, said Carole Kamin, LHAS president.
For many of those members, LHAS was a critical entity that not only facilitated a way to improve the community but connecting with like-minded women, Karen Wolk Feinstein, the president and CEO of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, said.
“Among women of my mother and mother-in-law’s generation, Ladies Hospital Aid Society was a magnet for educated Jewish women who wanted to contribute, socialize
Volunteers from the Ladies’ Hospital Aid Society “A Masked Ball” fundraiser at the home of Reggie Stern, 1980
Photo courtesy of Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives at the Heinz History Center
Headlines
Fox Chapel teens respectfully play it forward
By Adam Reinherz | Senior Sta Writer
Two teens are paying it forward with Playing it Forward.
Fox Chapel Area High School students Paige Solomon, 17, and Charlotte Rattner, 15, founded Playing it Forward after recognizing the exorbitant expense associated with sports equipment.
The considerable costs dawned on Solomon before the start of the lacrosse season. She wanted to play, she said, but wasn’t sure she was committed to the sport.
A starter kit, which includes a stick, helmet, gloves, pads and cleats, can run anywhere between $200-400. Tack on a bag, balls, uniform and other items, and the costs can easily climb another several hundred dollars, according to Lacrosse Balls Direct.
If trying out a sport requires spending several hundred dollars, many people will be prevented from playing, Solomon said.
Around the time that Solomon was mulling over the price of participation, Rattner, a fellow lacrosse player, heard about another friend who struggled to meet the sport’s financial barrier for entry.
Like good teammates, Solomon and Rattner got together and started talking.
They decided to create Playing it Forward, a school-based club that collects
and distributes sports equipment to anyone in need.
The club debuted last spring after Solomon and Rattner hung flyers in the neighborhood announcing the group’s objective.
The teens placed receptacles in the CooperSiegel Community Library and Lauri Ann West Community Center. Donations quickly arrived.
Gifts included basketballs, pickleball equipment, a badminton net, soccer balls, lacrosse sticks and baseball bats.
“We have hockey gear that the Fox Chapel hockey team donated to us,” Solomon said.
“My entire garage is filled with stuff.”
Rattner estimates the club has collected 50-70 new and gently used items.
The value ranges, as each item could cost $15-$150, she said.
For now, the two teens are still collecting equipment and have recruited classmates to help. Before the fall season, the group wants to find an area — not in Fox Chapel — for distribution.
“Ideally, it would be more towards the center of Pittsburgh, so multiple districts could come,” Rattner said. “If it’s too far then it’s hard for them to access it.”
The Fox Chapel teens told the Chronicle the project reflects their Jewish values.
“You want to give back to your community,” Rattner said. “People around us are less fortunate and I just feel like it’s my duty to help.”
Something else to consider, “which we talk a lot about at Emma Kaufmann Camp, is kavod (honor or respect),” Solomon said. “We want to respect our community members, and the best way to do that is help them out.”
Though Maimonides likely never saw a lacrosse player change planes or rip the duck, the great Jewish philosopher articulated the fundamental importance of providing for others.
Within Mishneh Torah, his 14-volume codification of Jewish law, Maimonides cites the biblical text: “You shall support him, the stranger, the resident, and he shall live among you.” That verse, according to Maimonides, means, “You should support him before he falls and becomes needy.”
Conducting oneself according to Jewish values is critical, Solomon said. Whether it comes to collecting gear or distributing it to future players, she continued, “respect is super important.” PJC
Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
Play it Forward is collecting sports equipment so more athletes can play. Photo by gyro via iStock
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.
SUNDAY, JUNE 30
Losing a loved one is hard. Join Rodef Shalom Congregation to hear from experts who will help find ways to understand and manage grief while continuing to live a full life. Free and open to the public. Advance registration is required. 9:30 a.m. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org/livingwithloss.
A memorial celebrating Cyril Wecht will be held on Zoom and at Temple Sinai, 5500 Forbes Ave., from 1-4 p.m. Relatives, friends and colleagues will share their recollections, with a short film and a musical interlude, followed by light refreshments. Open to all. Contact Ben Wecht at benwecht@aol.com or via Facebook Messenger for the Zoom link.
SUNDAYS, JUNE 30–DEC. 29
Join a lay-led online parshah 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.
MONDAYS, JULY 1–DEC. 30
Join Congregation Beth Shalom for a weekly Talmud study. 9:15 a.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org.
TUESDAYS, JULY 2, 16, 30; AUG. 13
Join Tree of Life congregants at the Schenley Park Oval as they meet to enjoy the outdoors, pet dogs and converse with one another. Free. Every other Tuesday, June through August. 6:30 p.m. treeoflifepgh.org.
WEDNESDAYS, JULY 3–SEPT. 4
Join Rodef Shalom Congregation for Biblical Garden Open Door Tours: docent-led tours of the congregation’s Biblical Botanical Garden the first Wednesday of the month. Free. Noon. 4905 Fifth Ave. rodefshalom.org/garden.
WEDNESDAYS, JULY 3–DEC. 18
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.
Bring the parashah alive and make it personally relevant and meaningful with Rabbi Mark Goodman in this weekly Parashah Discussion: Life & Text. 12:15 p.m. For more information, visit bethshalompgh.org/life-text.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 10
Animal lovers of all ages are welcome to join Rodef Shalom Congregation for Meet theAnimals: A Petting Zoo Experience in their Biblical Botanical Garden. Free. 10 a.m. rodefshalom.org.
Enjoy an hour of nourishment for the mind, body and soul as Chabad of Squirrel Hill explores words of wisdom for the month of Tammuz at its Ladies Lunch and Learn Noon. $18. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com/lunch.
Accessible to all fitness levels, chair yoga allows you to perform yoga poses while seated for balance. Chair yoga provides the same benefits as traditional yoga, such as improved strength, flexibility and mental wellbeing. Learn how to find the most common and beneficial yoga poses in a chair, while in a traumainformed setting that encourages mindfulness, body awareness and personal choice. Free. 1 p.m. No registration required. Room 316 of the Squirrel Hill JCC. 1027healingpartnership.org/event/accessible-chair-yoga.
WEDNESDAYS, JULY 10, 24; AUG. 7, 28
Join JFCS and 10.27 Healing Partnership for an artbased mindfulness program. The group will explore
ways making art can help regulate the nervous system, promote playfulness and imagination, and connect us more deeply to our bodies, emotions, thoughts and worldviews. Attendees will come together in community as we explore di erent art mediums, share our personal experiences and reflect on how art can influence us all. Free. 10 a.m. 10.27 Healing Partnership Suite, 3rd floor of the JCC in Squirrel Hill. Membership not required. Registration required. 1027healingpartnership.org/artin-community-3.
WEDNESDAYS, JULY 10, 24; AUG. 7, 28; SEPT. 4, 18
Chabad of Monroeville invites you to spend an hour playing mahjong and other games. Play, shmooze, learn a word of the Torah, say a prayer for Israel and, of course, nosh on some yummy treats. Free. 7 p.m. RSVP is required: SusanEBurgess@gmail.com, or text or call 412-295-1838. 2715 Mosside Blvd. jewishmonroeville. com/mahjong.
WEDNESDAYS, JULY 17: AUG. 21; SEPT. 18; OCT. 16; NOV. 20; DEC. 18
Join AgeWell for the Intergenerational Family Dynamics Discussion Group at JCC South Hills the third Wednesday of each month. Led by intergenerational specialist/presenter and educator Audree Schall. The group is geared toward anyone who has children, grandchildren, a spouse, siblings or parents. Whether you have family harmony or strife, these discussions are going to be thought-provoking, with tools to help build strong relationships and family unity. Free. 12:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, JULY 18
Join the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh for its Generations Speaker presentation with Melissa Marks, who will share stories about her mother, grandmother and grandfather. Free. 6 p.m. Chatham University’s Mellon Board Room, Chapel Hill Road, 15232. hcofpgh. org/event/generations-speaker-presentation-by-drmelissa-marks/.
Join Chabad of Squirrel Hill for a Women’s Farbrengen, an evening of Chassidic songs and stories on the topic of “Igniting Jewish Passion.” Enjoy hot drinks and desserts. 7 p.m. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. $10 suggested donation. chabadpgh.com/farbrengen.
FRIDAYS, JULY 19; AUG. 23
Join Tree of Life Congregation as they celebrate the welcoming of Shabbat. Meet before Shabbat begins to greet one another in the beautiful Rodef Shalom Botanical Gardens for Shabbat on the Rocks. Free. 6 p.m. 4905 Fifth Ave.
TUESDAY, JULY 23
Young children and their grownups are invited to join Rodef Shalom Librarian Sam Siskind for a story in their Biblical Botanical Garden followed by a crafty activity. 1 p.m. rodefshalom.org.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 24
Rendezvous in Rodef Shalom’s Biblical Botanical Garden for a live performance with Craig Davis Jazz. Join them for drinks and hors d’ouvres as they bring the swinging sounds of the Jazz Age back to life. Free. 6:30 p.m. rodefshalom.org.
THURSDAY, AUG. 8
Women are invited to join Chabad of Squirrel Hill and bake butterfly challahs at Loaves of Love 7 p.m. $12. 1700 Beechwood Blvd. chabadpgh.com/lol.
THURSDAY, SEPT. 12
Please join StandWithUs for its inaugural Pittsburgh Community Reception honoring Pittsburgh City Controller Rachael Heisler and featuring keynote speaker Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Conricus. 6 p.m. Early bird: $90; VIP: $250. Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Ave. standwithus.com/ pittsburgh-event-2024. PJC
Author Reuven Fenton to join Chronicle Book Club for discussion of ‘Goyhood’
Jewish man who discovers in middle age that he’s not, in fact, Jewish, and embarks on a remarkable road trip to come to grips with his fate; it’s Chaim Potok’s ‘The Chosen’ meets ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles.’”
Your hosts
Toby Tabachnick, editor of the Chronicle
David Rullo, Chronicle staff writer
How it works
We will meet on Zoom on Sunday, July 14, at 1 p.m.
“Goyhood.” It is available at area Barnes & Noble stores and from online retailers, including Amazon. There is also limited availability through the Carnegie
: Contact us at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org, and write “Chronicle Book Club” in the subject line. We will send you a Zoom link for the discussion meeting.
PJC
— Toby Tabachnick
Reuven Fenton Photo by Robert Miller
Headlines
Israel trip redefines JCC officer’s passion for community
By Adam Reinherz | Senior Staff Writer
Afellowship and visit to Israel transformed Fara Marcus’ understanding of community and Judaism.
Armed with insight from the Martin Pear Israel Fellowship, Marcus, the chief development and marketing officer of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, said she is still learning and determining how to implement best the life lessons she gained on her trip.
Alongside 10 North American colleagues, Marcus began the 18-month Israel education program on Oct. 1.
Administered by the JCC Association of North America, the fellowship introduces participants — Jewish and non-Jewish JCC professionals — to Israel’s “past, present and future.”
Though organizers intended to ease the cohort into a complex topic over 18 months, that plan changed when, six days after the fellowship began, Hamas invaded Israel. Two days later, on Oct. 9, cohort members took to Zoom for their first meeting.
“Obviously, there was a lot of uncertainty,” Marcus said.
Concerns were quickly allayed as educators and program administrators not only addressed questions but immediately modified the curriculum.
Instead of spending 18 months instructing fellows about Israel’s history, teachers realized there needed to be a “crash course on why the war is going on,” Marcus said, exploring “what’s happening right now,” while preparing participants for an immersive 11-day visit to the Jewish state.
Marcus returned from the “life-changing” trip weeks ago.
“I think that as we can see in the world, Israel is not only underappreciated but misunderstood,” she said. “Israel is a nation of love and strength, and it’s a promise of community and a promise of people who watch out for each other.”
Her beliefs, she said, were reinforced by visits with Jews, Arabs and Christians.
Regardless of faith, “people care for each other,” Marcus said. “They care for the person who’s walking next to them when they might be on the street in Tel Aviv, and they care as well about Israel.”
While at war Israel is in deep crisis and hurt, she said, “At the end of the day people are there for each other. They have to survive, and they have to rely on themselves to survive, literally.”
After returning to Pittsburgh, Marcus shared her thoughts during a talk with members of the JCC’s board, through an email to JCC staff and stakeholders and during brief remarks at a Bring Them Home vigil on the corner of Darlington Road and Murray Avenue.
Her learning, she said, is far from complete and she’s excited to see where it leads.
Cohort members are required to implement a project that brings Israel back to their JCC and community in a “purposeful and meaningful way,” Marcus said. “I’m not sure what I’ll do yet, but I think our community is already making change since the start of the war.”
Marcus pointed to a December program at the JCC when four Israeli visitors publicly lit a Chanukah candle and recounted the horrors of Oct. 7.
Six months after their visit, Marcus remains in touch with several of the travelers through WhatsApp. Along with checking in on each other, the group wishes each other Shabbat shalom every Friday. On an off night in Israel, Marcus went to dinner with one of the parties — Hila Fakliro, an Israeli who, during her visit to Pittsburgh, described the terror of being a bartender at the Re’im music festival.
Sitting together in a Tel Aviv restaurant, “felt like all worlds colliding,” Marcus said.
As a Jewish professional working in philanthropy, “I talk about community and the impact of a gift,” she said. “I understand it now on a higher level.”
Before last month, Marcus had never traveled to Israel. She “passed up” opportunities in her teens and 20s, and her earlier connections to Judaism weren’t particularly substantive, she said.
“I grew up in a Reform family. We went to
the High Holidays and I got bat mitzvahed, but being Jewish was always just kind of in my side pocket,” she said. “It wasn’t until I met my wonderful husband that I started to really explore my Jewish identity and what it meant to truly be Jewish. That just continued when we had children. Where I really started my Jewish journey is when I became a Jewish professional at the JCC, and that coincided with my children being of age to attend the ECDC here and then go on to Community Day.”
Though Jewishly engaged personally and professionally, a void existed, Marcus said.
“I kind of felt like an outsider,” she continued. “I work in a JCC where most of my colleagues, or in the Jewish community, have experienced Israel by this point in their life.”
Studying about Israel, and experiencing it firsthand, didn’t only alter Marcus’ relationship to the Jewish state, but to her colleagues and neighbors at home.
She credits the fellowship’s origins.
Named in honor of Martin Pear, a former CEO at Valley of the Sun JCC in Scottsdale, Arizona, Pear was “one of the field’s most beloved leaders,” according to JCCA. “He believed strongly that all Jewish professionals should anchor their practice in a passionate commitment to Israel.”
After Pear died, his daughter and son-in-law funded the fellowship, Marcus said.
“When I thought about this it struck me because this is my career,” she continued. “Every day I work in philanthropy and talk about the impact of a gift, but this time I wasn’t the solicitor, I wasn’t the donor, I was the recipient. And it really reinforced for me my purpose in our community, as the chief development officer for the JCC, that just one gift, one thoughtfully created gift, literally impacted and changed my life.”
Jason Kunzman, the JCC’s president and CEO, said he is “beyond thrilled that Fara had the opportunity to experience Israel for the first time through a program of the JCC Association. The trip’s powerful impact on both her professional approach and her Jewish identity is already evident.”
Months remain until Marcus concludes her fellowship. The Israel-based portion is now complete, but she isn’t thinking about finality.
“I don’t call it a trip,” she said. “It’s an educational journey.” PJC
Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
p Fara Marcus is participating in an 18-month fellowship with the JCCA.
p Fara Marcus, left, learns about inclusion and community during a dinner in Israel
Photos courtesy of Fara Marcus
In historic ruling, High Court says government must begin drafting Haredi men into IDF
By Jeremy Sharon | Times of Israel
In a landmark ruling on Tuesday, Israel’s High Court of Justice ruled unanimously that the government must draft ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students into the military since there is no longer any legal framework to continue the decadeslong practice of granting them blanket exemptions from army service.
The court ruled that a government decision from June 2023 instructing the army not to begin drafting eligible Haredi men — after the law allowing for blanket military service exemptions expired — was illegal, and that the government must therefore actively work to conscript ultra-Orthodox recruits to the IDF.
The justices did, however, state that they were not telling the state how many Haredi yeshiva students to draft, indicating that the process could be gradual, though they warned the government that the process must now begin.
The court ruling also permanently barred the state from funding ultra-Orthodox yeshivas for students who are studying in them in lieu of military service, asserting that those funds were bound up in the terms
of the IDF service exemptions which now no longer exist.
The High Court’s decision means that after decades of political and societal controversy and strife over the issue, there will be a legal obligation for young Haredi men to join their Jewish Israeli comrades and serve in the military.
This new reality has come about largely due to the confluence of two major events — the expiration of the original law allowing for blanket service exemptions and the
cataclysmic Oct. 7 Hamas attack and its aftermath, which threw into sharp relief the IDF’s need for more manpower.
Although the government could in theory re-legislate the exemptions, doing so would be politically difficult since several Likud MKs have already said they will not vote for them and since the country is engaged in active fighting on numerous fronts.
The ruling was made by all nine justices presiding over the case, including two hardline conservatives, Noam Sohlberg and David Mintz, both of whom are religiously observant, as well as Yael Wilner, a more moderate conservative who is also observant.
Noting the massive number of young Haredi men until now exempt from military service, some 63,000, the court wrote, “Non-enforcement of the provisions of the Security Service Law creates severe discrimination between those who are required to serve” and those who being exempted from army service.
“In these days, in the midst of a severe war, the burden of inequality is more acute than ever — and requires the promotion of a sustainable solution to this issue,” the court declared.
In June 2023, the clauses in the Law for Security Service allowing for blanket military service exemptions for ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students expired, meaning that the IDF was entitled to conscript anyone eligible for military service, including the ultra-Orthodox.
But the government passed a cabinet resolution immediately before the exemptions clause expired, telling the IDF not to begin drafting such men for another 10 months while it formulated and passed a new law reinstating the exemptions.
The Oct. 7 invasion, and the subsequent wars with Hamas and Hezbollah, meant that the government did not get around to passing that law. Legal campaign groups filed petitions against the government even before the outbreak of war, demanding immediate Haredi conscription.
In its decision, the High Court stated that the June 2023 resolution delaying the draft of Haredi yeshiva students had exceeded the government’s authority
and was unlawful.
“We determine that there is no legal basis for avoiding the recruitment of yeshiva students at this time; that the state must act to enforce the Law for Security Service on yeshiva students; that there is no legal authority to continue transferring the [financial] support for these students; and that government resolution 1724 was issued without authority and is void,” the court ruled.
As such, it stated explicitly in its ruling that the state is now obligated to draft ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students, writing that the government must “act to enforce the Law for Military Service on yeshiva students” now that there is no longer a legal framework to exempt them from mandatory conscription, meaning that state agencies must take active steps to draft such men into IDF service.
But although the court insisted that the state must begin drafting Haredi yeshiva students, it appeared to imply that this process can be gradual, as long as it begins immediately.
“It should be understood that even when exercising this authority for formulating a program for the gradual conscription of yeshiva students, the military authorities are obligated to act in accordance with the principles of administrative law,” the court said.
It pointed out that the IDF has itself stated in the framework of the court proceedings that it would be able to draft 3,000 Haredi yeshiva students in the 2024 enlistment year, which began in June 2024, out of the 63,000 such men who are now eligible for the draft.
This part of the court’s ruling therefore appears to accept the need for a gradual increase in ultra-Orthodox enlistment owing to the huge number of men from the community now eligible for the draft and the logistical difficulties of accommodating their religious lifestyle.
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, whose petition led to Monday’s High Court ruling, claimed that the decision meant the government must begin immediately drafting all 63,000 ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students eligible for military service.
“This is a historic victory for the rule of law and the principle of equality in the burden of military service,” said the organization.
“We call on the government and the defense minister to implement the decision without delay, to comply with the High Court’s order, and to work immediately to draft [ultra-Orthodox] yeshiva students,” the organization said in a statement.
MQG subsequently sent a letter to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara demanding that they begin drafting all eligible Haredi men and insisting that Baharav-Miara’s position of beginning with just 3,000 Haredi recruits should not be adopted. PJC
p Troops operate in the Gaza Strip in an undated photo released by the military on Feb. 24. Photo courtesy of Israel Defense Forces
Headlines
ADL faces Wikipedia ban over reliability concerns on Israel, antisemitism
Wikipedia’s editors voted to declare the Anti-Defamation League “generally unreliable” on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, adding it to a list of banned and partially banned sources, JTA.org reported.
An overwhelming majority of editors involved in the debate about the ADL also voted to deem the organization unreliable on the topic of antisemitism, its core focus. A formal declaration on that count is expected next.
The decision about Israel-related citations, made two weeks ago, means that one of the most prominent and longstanding Jewish advocacy groups in the United States — and one historically seen as the leading U.S. authority on antisemitism — is now grouped with the National Inquirer, Newsmax and Occupy Democrats as a source of propaganda or misinformation in the eyes of the online encyclopedia.
Moreover, in a near consensus, dozens of Wikipedia editors involved in the discussion said they believe the ADL should not be cited for factual information on antisemitism as well because it acts primarily as a pro-Israel organization and tends to label legitimate criticism of Israel as antisemitism.
In a written statement, the ADL said the decision by Wikipedia was the result of a ‘campaign to delegitimize the ADL” and that
editors opposing the ban “provided point by point refutations, grounded in factual citations, to every claim made, but apparently facts no longer matter.”
Protests, political action in France after alleged antisemitic rape of 12-year-old Jewish girl
A shocking incident in which two teenage boys have been charged with the rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl in a suburb of Paris has sparked a reckoning across France, with Jewish groups taking to the streets to protest rising antisemitism and President Emmanuel Macron pushing to address antisemitism in schools, JTA.org reported.
Macron reportedly condemned the “scourge of antisemitism” and tasked his education minister, Nicole Belloubet, with enacting education about antisemitism in French schools during a government meeting on June 19, a source told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
“The horror has no limits. Rape, antisemitism: Everything is abominable in this crime committed in Courbevoie against a 12-year-old girl,” Belloubet tweeted on Wednesday. She added, “Justice, School, Republic: a single response against barbarism.”
Two 13-year-old boys were indicted on June 18 on multiple charges including rape as well as because of the victim’s religious affiliation in connection to the incident, which took place on June 15. A third boy, aged 12, was charged with offenses related
Today in Israeli History
July 1, 1973 — Military attaché Is killed in Maryland
to witnessing the alleged crime.
Two of the teenagers accused of participating admitted to being motivated by the victim’s identity, according to the report, with one saying he had been angry that she had hidden her religion from him and another saying he had resented her comments about Palestine.
Synagogues in Dagestan, Russia, targeted alongside churches in terror attack
Two synagogues in the Dagestan region of Russia were attacked on Sunday amid a coordinated and deadly attack on houses of worship in two cities.
Gunmen attacked a synagogue in Makhachkala, while a 110-year-old synagogue in Derbent burned down during the attack. No one was reported to be injured at the synagogues, but a priest, several civilians and a number of police officers were reportedly killed during the attack.
The number and identity of the attackers was not immediately clear, and no group immediately claimed credit for the violence.
Police detained a local chief of police amid reports that his sons had been involved and were continuing to look for “foreign-trained sleeping cells,” according to the Russian state news service TASS.
Dagestan is a majority Muslim republic. In late October, hundreds of people stormed onto the tarmac at the airport in Makhachkala as a flight from Israel arrived, reportedly yelling antisemitic slogans and
forcing officials to shut the airport down.
“An attack on the rights of individuals to practice their faiths freely and openly is an attack on humanity,” the World Jewish Congress said in a statement.
Israelis believe themselves less divided than in 2023
Although Israeli society is divided in many ways, Israelis see themselves as more unified in 2024 than they were in the prior year in several areas, according to data from the Pew Research Center, JNS.org reported.
Many fewer Israelis (28%) see “very strong” conflicts between Israeli Jews and Arabs this year than did last year (46%), and Israelis are also less likely to see intense conflict between religious and non-religious Jews (18% compared to 29%) and among those on the political left and right (24% to 32%) in 2024, compared to 2023.
Pew surveyed 1,001 Israelis, all over 18, face-to-face between March 3 and April 4. It did so in Hebrew and Arabic but didn’t poll people in Gaza and Judea and Samaria “due to security concerns.”
In other ways, Pew reported significant divides between Jewish and Arab Israelis, including the belief that the national government is doing what’s in the country’s best interest. Some 61% of Jewish Israelis (up from 53% in 2017) had that trust in the national government, while Arab Israelis were less likely (23%) to do so compared to in 2017 (44%).
— Compiled by Andy Gotlieb
the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.
June 28, 1919 — Poland provides legal protections for Jews
The Republic of Poland, reconstituted as an independent state after World War I, adopts its Minorities Treaty, which, in addition to general assurances, specifically mentions cultural and civil liberties for Jews.
June 29, 1946 — British round up resistance fighters
The British military launches Operation Agatha, two weeks of raids against Jewish resistance fighters, on a day that comes to be known as Black Sabbath. Some 2,700 Jews are arrested.
p A British “wanted” poster from the 1940s features Jewish resistance fighters, including Yitzhak Shamir. British Palestine Police Force Archive
June 30, 2012 — Yitzhak Shamir dies
Israel’s seventh prime minister, Yitzhak Shamir, dies at age 96. Born in Poland during World War I, he made aliyah in 1935. He joined the Irgun, then the Stern Gang. He was first elected to the Knesset in 1973.
Col. Yosef “Joe” Alon, a military attaché at the Israeli Embassy, is shot five times in his driveway in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and dies within an hour. No one is ever arrested in the case, which some link to Black September.
July 2, 2010 — Benayoun signs with Chelsea Midfielder Yossi Benayoun leaves Liverpool for fellow Premier League club Chelsea, owned b y Russian-Israeli billionaire Roman Abramovich. In 2014, Benayoun returns to the Israeli league, where he started at age 16.
Yossi Benayoun plays for Chelsea during the 2010-11 season.
July 3, 1904 — Theodor Herzl dies Theodor Herzl, considered the father of modern Zionism, dies of cardiac sclerosis at age 44 in Edlach, Austria, seven years after he organized the First Zionist Congress. His body is reburied in Jerusalem in 1949.
July 4, 1975 — Refrigerator bomb kills 14 in Jerusalem
Fourteen people are killed and 62 others are wounded when a bomb built with mortar shells and hidden inside a refrigerator explodes in Jerusalem’s Zion Square. The PLO’s Fatah faction claims responsibility. PJC
p
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a second home and would regularly welcome those entering the synagogue, Rosenthal said, adding that she hoped the groundbreaking would be the beginning of a new chapter for Tree of Life, a building that would soon welcome everyone.
The first of three short films was then screened. “Our Resilience” featured reflections from several survivors, some of the victims’ family members and first responders.
Speaking before an interfaith prayer that included clergy from across Pittsburgh’s religious landscape, Myers said it would be easy to focus on the “unprecedented nature of what happened to us, but the events of Oct. 27 do not define us.”
“Our response does,” he said. “Today we announce loudly and clearly to the entire world: Evil did not win.”
CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer offered welcoming remarks that spoke of his connection to antisemitism — he is the son of Holocaust survivors, and all of his grandparents were killed, he said, because of hate.
“Today, we break ground on a new path to peace,” he said. “The new Tree of Life will not only be a tribute to those we lost and a home for the Pittsburgh Jewish community to come. It will also be a place to teach and share profoundly important lessons against hate.”
A musical performance from the Northgate High School Choir included the Louis Armstrong staple “What a Wonderful World.”
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Andrew Rehfeld, Provost Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss and Board Chair David B. Edelson wrote, “The religious identity of a student’s applicant’s partner will no longer disqualify students for admission or ordination.”
The decision, they wrote, came after a multi-year effort to reevaluate admissions and ordination requirements for rabbinic and cantorial students.
In the future, clergy students will be expected to “commit to meaningful and substantive Jewish choices, including maintaining an exclusively Jewish home and family, and will add a new provision that students with children are expected to raise them exclusively as Jews engaged with Jewish religious practice, education and community.”
Sharing the podium with Tree of Life, Inc.’s vice chair Jeffrey Solomon, the organization’s CEO Carole Zawatsky said it was no coincidence that the groundbreaking was taking place on the weekend of the summer solstice, “to celebrate our journey out of darkness and into light.”
“It is here, on this holy ground, that we seek to rebuild after a tragedy,” she said.
S olomon read remarks from Board Chair Michael Bernstein who was unable to attend the event.
“From college campuses and town halls to rural communities and urban centers across the country, people are experiencing antisemitism in ways they never have before,” Bernstein wrote.
The reimagined Tree of Life, he added, will be a place that tells the story of antisemitism as well as equip visitors with the tools and confidence to take a stand against hate in their own communities.
Echoing a familiar refrain from the days immediately following Oct. 27, Tree of Life Congregation President Alan Hausman said Pittsburgh is “stronger than hate.”
A second video, “Our Supporters,” included reflections from former Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto and other public officials.
Event Co-chairs Meryl Ainsman and Jeffrey Letwin offered remarks and introduced Shapiro.
In a lengthy address, the governor noted that he attended the ceremony as a proud member of the Jewish community and said he and his administration were dedicated to ensuring the memories of those murdered were not forgotten.
The decision, they continued, brings HUC-HIR into alignment with alumni who perform intermarriages for couples who agree to maintain Jewish homes and raise their children in the Jewish faith. It also aligns HUC-JIR with the Central Conference of American Rabbis and the American Conference of Cantors.
In an interview cited by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Rehfeld said the policy change reflected the school’s educational values, as well as recent data undercutting the idea that intermarriage is a death knell for Jewish identity.
“We’re not backing down from the statement that Jewish endogamy is a value,” Rehfeld said. “But we are saying that a prohibition around Jewish exogamy … is no longer rational because intermarriages result in engaged Jewish couples.”
The decision is also keeping with the movement’s conception of who is Jewish. Traditionally Jewish identity was conferred by
Shapiro recalled the lesson from the Talmud that no one is required to complete a task, but neither are they free to refrain from it.
Remembrance, he said, can not be a passive act.
“The task of remembering requires all of us to stand up, to speak out and to ensure that everyone in this country knows the stories of the 11 people that were murdered here and the dangers of antisemitism,” he said.
Shapiro’s remarks were followed by the video “Our Path Forward,” which included remarks from primary architect Daniel Libeskind and Daniel Rothschild, co-founder and CEO of the project’s local architecture firm, Rothschild Doyno Collaborative.
Author and Tree of Life Academic Advisory Committee member Eric Ward spoke before Emhoff.
Emhoff’s remarks told not only of the time he spent at the site and his bond with the Tree of Life — he and Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated Chanukah last year using a menorah loaned to them by Tree of Life and designed by Libeskind — but connected the events of Oct. 27, 2018, and the rise in antisemitism since Oct. 7.
“It is a crisis of antisemitism we are undergoing right now in America and the world,” he said.
“We’re seeing it on our campuses and schools, our markets, our neighborhoods, our synagogues and online. Students are terrified to go to class. People are living in fear, scared to wear their Star of David publicly.”
Emhoff drew a line in the sand, defining antisemitism.
matrilineal descent and conversion. Reform Judaism, however, considers a child Jewish if they have one Jewish parent and is raised exclusively as a Jew, and whose status is established through public and formal acts of identification with the Jewish faith and people.
For Jacobson, HUC-JIR’s decision falls in line with what is taught in Torah. Jacobson drew lessons from Parshat B’ha’alotcha in which Miriam and Aaron speak out against Moses for having an interfaith marriage. God calls the two to the tent of meeting and reprimands them for their evil speech.
The HUC-JIR decision, Jacobson said, is a welcome change that embraces the history of the movement.
“Reform Judaism was originally an assimilationist movement in Germany,” Jacobson said. “And while I am glad that there has been a return to tradition in the last 20 years, I am also glad that we embrace that there is a lot we can
“When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or identity or when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that is antisemitism,” he said.
The Tree of Life building, he said, will be a sanctuary from hate and will remind the world of what makes America great.
“And we must always, as Jews, live powerfully without fear and with joy,” he concluded.
Rather than break ground the traditional way, family members of some of the victims, survivors, first responders, a representative for the U.S. attorney, Hausman, former JCC CEO Brian Schrieber, 10.27 Healing Partnership Director Maggie Feinstein, Ainsman, Emhoff, Sen. Bob Casey and Gov. Shapiro joined Solomon and Zawatsky to break miniature glass houses.
The breaking recalled the tradition of smashing a glass at a wedding, and the shards will be used to create mezuzot that will be affixed to doorways in the building. The mezuzot will include a prayer to bless the community, Zawatsky said.
Blitzer closed the ceremony by saying he hoped to be offered an aliyah when he visited Pittsburgh after the building is finished.
The new Tree of Life building is projected to be completed in 2026 and will include a 10/27 Memorial, The Tree of Life Center of Jewish Life and Culture, The 10/27 Museum and Education Center, The Tree of Life Institute of Countering Hate and Antisemitism, the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh and the Tree of Life Congregation. PJC
David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
learn from non-Jews.”
Jacobson noted that the new policy will mean that many who felt unable to serve in Jewish leadership — those living in areas with less dense Jewish populations, people of color, gay, trans or converts, all of whom are far less likely to marry another Jew — will no longer have to hide their relationship for fear of being turned away by the school.
“We are a movement focused on inclusion, on welcoming the stranger, on tikkun olam,” Jacobson said, before concluding by welcoming with opening arms those who will join Jewish leadership who could not do so before.
The Chronicle reached out to several area Reform Jewish clergy who did not respond to requests for an interview or declined to comment. PJC
David Rullo can be reached at drullo@ pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
p Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro
Photo by Dale Lazar
p Tree of Life Congregation’s Rabbi Jeffrey Myers blows the shofar at the start of the ceremony. Photo by Dale Lazar
p Survivors, family members of some of the victims, community leaders and elected officials smashed small glass houses at the conclusion of the event. The glass shards will be made into mezuzahs to be fixed in the doorways of the new building, which is expected to be completed in 2½ years.
Photo by Dale Lazar
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firms — said Holzer left a big impression.
“To me, Sy was not only a gifted corporate leader, he was a gift to the community and to everyone he met,” Fabrizi said.
“People think of him as an excellent executive,” she added. “But Sy’s superpower was his ability to listen.”
Holzer was inducted into the Taylor Allderdice Hall of Fame in 2013.
His Jewish life also was an important piece of the puzzle that formed the man.
“Sy loved Pittsburgh — I saw it in his office at PNC, filled with Pittsburgh sports history,” said Jeff Finkelstein, who’s served as president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh since 2004. “He also cared about our Jewish Federation, and we worked together to launch our PNC Community Builders Award. His legacy of kindness will reverberate going forward.”
In 1998, right before Finkelstein joined the Federation, the agency’s community campaign exceeded $10 million for the first time in its history, Finkelstein said.
“Sy Holzer was the one who secured the
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and find distinction,” Feinstein said. “That they were helping Montefiore Hospital was some but not all of the reasons for belonging.”
Montefiore was eventually sold to UPMC in 1990, with the proceeds helping to create JHF.
Though Montefiore changed in status, LHAS continued advocating on behalf of Jewish patients and causes, as well as bringing people together, Kamin said.
LHAS recently distributed grants totaling $85,000 to entities including the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh and the Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh.
“When we gave out these grants we had it in a room at Montefiore, and the biggest takeaway wasn’t only giving the money but that the individuals from the organizations could talk to people from other organizations and work together,” Kamin said.
$100,000 gift from PNC Bank that put the campaign over the goal,” he said.
Holzer worked with Finkelstein to create the PNC Community Builders Award in 2004. Finkelstein presented the award to Daniel H. Shapira that year, with a
“Those values never changed,” Brian Holzer said. “He always had those values, Jewish values.”
Dr. Stanley Marks, chairman of UPMC Hillman, told the Pittsburgh TribuneReview that Holzer was a lifelong friend.
“To me, Sy was not only a gifted corporate leader, he was a gift to the community and to everyone he met.”
– MICHELE FABRIZI
$25,000 gift to the Federation from PNC accompanying the award in Shapira’s honor.
Holzer served on numerous Federation committees, including work on the Jewish Association on Aging, Riverview Towers and Montefiore Hospital, according to Adam Hertzman, the Federation’s associate vice president of marketing.
Holzer also served on the Jewish Federation of North America’s National Young Leadership Conference.
The gifts follow a rich history of supporting community.
“LHAS has remained responsive to the changing health care needs of the entire Western Pennsylvania community for more
They meet at age 5 on their way to classes at Hillel Academy.
“He never forgot his roots,” Marks told the Trib. “He always wanted to help people. Whether it was getting a job or an interview or just advice, he was always lending a hand, particularly to the people who needed it most.
“He was just a genuinely caring, compassionate person,” Marks added. “He loved his family, he loved his friends and he loved his community.”
but we’re continuing doing things that are good for the Jewish community,” Kamin said.
Since its founding, LHAS has raised more than $15 million and generated millions of volunteer work hours, according to
Holzer raised his children, Brian and Jodie, at Beth El Congregation of the South Hills, where both became a b’nei mitzvah. They later attended services at Temple Emanuel of South Hills.
Brian Holzer remembers little details about his father’s adherence to faith and ritual. When Brian moved back to Pittsburgh to work at Highmark from 2013 to 2017, he and his wife bought a home in the North Hills. The elder Holzer insisted that a rabbi bless the Wexford house; he mounted mezuzot in every doorway.
“There’s never going to be another person like this — the selflessness and the humility? You don’t see that anymore,” Brian Holzer said. “He just loved the city, and he just loved the people who lived there … He always found a way to do the right thing.”
Holzer is survived by his wife of 54 years, Cathy; his brother Dennis; his two children, Brian and Jodie; and five grandchildren.
Ralph Schugar Chapel in Shadyside handled services on June 20. Holzer was buried at Mount Lebanon Cemetery. PJC
Justin Vellucci is a freelance writer living in Pittsburgh.
building Montefiore continues, as LHAS is helping fund the new Presby tower. Spanning 900,000 square feet and 17 stories, the tower will have 636 private rooms. Of note, Kamin said, is that the tower will have a kosher kitchen and a spiritual center.
Details are still being determined, but the commitment to ensuring patients, families and staff have access to kosher food reflects LHAS’ commitment to the community, Kamin said.
LHAS plans to celebrate 125 years this summer. Looking back on its history offers a chance to see the organization’s growth and unwavering attentiveness, Kamin explained.
than a century,” according to JFCS Pittsburgh.
The social service organization touted LHAS’ support of JFCS domestic violence programs and its Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry.
“We’re different than we were in the past,
the organization.
Much of the money raised these days stems from LHAS-operated gift shops at UPMC Montefiore and Presbyterian hospitals, Kamin said.
The “monumental work” that went into
“We’re being respectful of our past and continuing our mission,” she said. “We are building the new Presby hospital while continuing to respect our past. And we’re still here after 125 years.” PJC
Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
Tree of Life’s mission to uproot antisemitism couldn’t come at a more critical time
Since Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel on Oct. 7, Jews around the world have been targeted by an alarming increase in antisemitic attacks —8,873 recorded incidents across the United States in 2023, representing a 140% increase from 3,698 incidents in 2022, according to the Anti-Defamation League. Most of those incidents — 5,204 — occurred after Oct. 7, and more than half of those incidents included references to Israel, Zionism or Palestine.
So far in 2024, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh has logged 145 antisemitic incidents, compared to 56 year-to-date in 2023, including anti-Zionist assaults and anti-Israel vandalism on both public and private property.
It is against this backdrop that Tree of Life, Inc. broke ground Sunday on its new building, an edifice that promises to be more than a memorial for the 11 beloved community members from three congregations who were murdered by an
antisemite on Oct. 27, 2018: Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Bernice Simon, Sylvan Simon, Daniel Stein, Melvin Wax and Irving Younger.
and lies of anti-Israel activists seeking to mask their Jew-hatred under the guise of anti-Zionism.
The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism
As antisemitism spreads — by the far-right, the far-left and anti-Zionist extremists — we applaud all efforts to root it out.
One of Tree of Life’s core missions is to uproot antisemitism and other identitybased hate through education, remembrance, celebrating the beauty of Jewish life and building bridges across diverse demographics.
Though catalyzed by a white supremacist attack at the Tree of Life building, that mission is even more critical now, as Jews worldwide face the assaults
— which has been adopted or endorsed by a majority of states, the Biden administration and many universities — includes “claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor,” “Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation” and “Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the State of Israel.”
Second gentleman Douglas Emhoff, in his
The anguished dilemma of a Reform rabbi
Guest Columnist
Mark Cohn
How long do I remain a Reform Jew if the institutions of Reform Judaism stray into territories that are untenable for me ideologically?
This past week, the Reform movement’s seminary, the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, decided to overturn a long-standing ban and barrier and ordain students who are in committed relationships with non-Jews. That decision was not surprising, given the growing tendency of the Reform movement to prioritize universalism over peoplehood and the needs of the individual over those of the larger community.
We, as a movement, have been justifiably embracing of interfaith families. But that does not mean the rabbi should be permitted to be in such a relationship. Rabbis hold a unique role in the community and ought to be models of Jewish commitment, reflecting the endogamous (in-married) custom and law of our people.
This decision by the HUC Board of Governors reflects a historic crisis in the Reform movement.
Judaism stands on a three-legged stool. If you remove one leg, the stool cannot stand. Those three legs are God, Torah and Israel (the people and the land).
I recently came upon an expression used in a fundraising letter for the Union for Reform Judaism: “Judaism your way.” It’s hard to imagine anything more antithetical to Judaism than “Judaism your way.” After all, it was in the first-person plural that our ancestors
stood at Sinai and said, “We will do and we will hear!” (Exodus 24:7). To live Jewishly is to be engaged with the Jewish people.
A product of the Reform movement and a practicing Reform rabbi for nearly 30 years, I owe the very basis of my Jewish education from childhood to graduate school and ordination to institutions in which Jewish history, theology, practice (both the do’s and the don’ts), and Hebrew were all central.
I learned that to be a Reform Jew meant
excelled because of its emphasis on the individual. Yet today, this more explicit call replaces the communal with the individual — and the individual is rarely expected to find ways to serve the community. Given the current crisis faced by half the world’s Jews living in our people’s homeland, this is precisely the moment to prioritize the needs of the communal over the individual and to return to the three-legged stool of Jewish life.
While visiting relatives in Israel recently,
Many of us who serve as Jewish professionals tend to spend more time worrying about providing “Judaism your way” than helping or even demanding that individual Jews work their way into normative Jewish life.
to be an informed Jew, a proud Zionist, and someone seriously engaged with our Jewish community.
“Judaism your way” — further demonstrated by HUC’s decision regarding rabbinical students — causes me to worry about the future of liberal Judaism: placing the ultra-individualism of American society above the essence of Jewishness.
Reform Judaism was founded to stem the tide of assimilation and to form a Judaism guided by Jewish law without always being beholden to it. Despite breaking from religious authority, Reform Judaism never rejected the importance of community and Jewish peoplehood. Although it gave the individual power to make informed choices, the goal was always to be connected to the Jewish people.
The movement has both suffered and
we discussed their granddaughter’s future army service. I was impressed that instead of entering the army for mandatory service immediately after high school, she, like many of her peers, had volunteered to serve the country in a social service capacity for a year and then begin her military conscription. For those who follow such a path, their total commitment to the country increases by three to five years, depending on gender and branch of service. Israeli teenagers assume that serving the state is part of life.
By contrast, we American Jews do not expect the next generation to consider how they will serve their community. Many of us who serve as Jewish professionals tend to spend more time worrying about providing “Judaism your way” than helping or even demanding that individual Jews work their
speech at the Tree of Life groundbreaking, specifically condemned the surge in antisemitism related to criticism of Israel.
“Let me be very clear: When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or their identity, or when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that is antisemitism, plain and simple,” Emhoff said. The crowd responded with resounding applause.
Ending the millennia-old scourge of antisemitism is a herculean task, and one undertaken by a plethora of organizations in addition to the new Tree of Life. But as antisemitism spreads — by the far-right, the far-left and by anti-Zionist extremists — we applaud all efforts to root it out. And we are proud that some of those efforts will be coming from Pittsburgh
At the event, Gov. Josh Shapiro quoted Rabbi Tarfon’s familiar edict from Pirkei Avot: “It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it.” We wish Tree of Life, Inc. the utmost success in its efforts. They couldn’t come at a more critical time. PJC
way into normative Jewish life. I grew up in an era of activism on behalf of oppressed Soviet Jewry. Counselors from my Reform summer camp who had moved to Israel were regarded as heroes. While I knew I was growing up in a Reform milieu, I also knew that being Jewish meant belonging to a people, feeling a connection to our ancestral land, and approaching Judaism with rigor and reflection.
But a shift has occurred in the past two decades. A few weeks ago, a younger colleague referred to me — or at least to my ideas — as “antiquated.” I have come to take that comment as a compliment.
We now live in an era in which many Jewish educators and rabbis highlight universal Jewish values and present them as the driving force of Jewish living — or sometimes even as its only purpose. And so, biblical concepts like “created in the image of God,” “love your neighbor as yourself,” and “justice, justice you shall pursue” become the rallying cry for a form of Judaism that seeks to advance a progressive vision of society. It became commonplace to break Shabbat for an AIDS walk or a solidarity march with Black Lives Matter. Given that progressive vision, permitting exogamy for rabbinical students becomes predictable.
Some years ago, I delivered a Rosh Hashanah sermon about the need to be better caretakers of the Earth. Given that the Jewish New Year celebrates the birthday of the world, I thought it perfectly appropriate to draw connections between Jewish text and the wisdom of grounding our responsible actions in those words.
I would not give that sermon today, not because the Earth doesn’t need attention (see:
Chronicle poll results: Visiting Israel post-Oct. 7
Last week, the Chronicle asked its readers in an electronic poll the following question: “Have you been to Israel since Oct. 7?” Of the 258 people who responded, 90% said no and 10 % said yes. Comments were submitted by 69 people. A few follow.
I haven’t gone because of airfare prices. I wouldn’t be worried about going.
I should try to go.
I would like to go and support the country, which has been so hurt by the war and lack of tourism.
Oct. 7 has made me want to make aliyah.
I was in Israel earlier in 2023, so I’m happy to wait until things settle down before I return.
Continued from page 12
Genesis 2) but because people are constantly hearing that message in their secular lives. Instead, Jews coming to temple need to explore the teachings of Torah, God, Zionism, and peoplehood. While I am not suggesting we abdicate our communal and universal obligations — after all, they are part of the 613 mitzvot — I urge Jews of all stripes to drill down to what keeps them Jewish, how they reinforce their connection to our people, and what can we do as individuals to uplift the whole.
Much the way the National Transportation Safety Board comes in after a train wreck
to assess the cause and the damage, Reform Judaism needs to assess what happened to allow our movement to “go off the rails.”
Today the Reform movement’s leaders will issue statements about a Supreme Court decision or a presidential executive order but say little if anything when antisemitic demonstrations threaten college campuses. In their silence, they fail to communicate to our congregations and youth — let alone the world at large — our commitment to Judaism, Zionism and the Jewish state.
The Jewish people are a particular people with a universal message. Our universal message promotes caring about the other and extending love and kindness. Yet our particularity keeps us engaged and informed, loyal
Tree of Life groundbreaking was clear statement against all forms of antisemitism
The Tree of Life groundbreaking was a historic declaration of resilience amidst the groundswell of anti-Jewish hate (“Tree of Life, Inc. breaks ground,” online June 24; this issue, Page 1). As painful as it was to make space in the face of one Jewish tragedy to remember another one, I was grateful to witness a sea of yellow ribbons in support of the hostages held in Gaza. Jeffrey Solomon, vice chair of the Tree of Life board, linked the two tragedies, reminding us that in our community, as at the site of the Nova Music Festival where concertgoers were brutally attacked on Oct. 7, “We will dance again.”
The powerful speakers did not shy away from connecting the myriad forms of extremism directed at American Jews. Second gentleman Doug Emhoff was direct: “When Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or identity, or when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that is antisemitism plain and simple and it must be condemned clearly, unequivocally and without context.” Gov. Josh Shapiro was also clear-eyed about leadership that equivocates when it comes to Anti-Jewish hate. He said, “On college campuses and in our town squares antisemitism is rising, and some leaders, at times, offer permission slips to hate.”
His comment named the trepidation I felt coming into the event. For months we have watched certain local leaders use their support for the Jewish community following the synagogue shooting as a defense of their support for the anti-Israel movement. The anti-Israel/ anti-Zionist hatemongers in the news today are animated by anti-Jewish conspiracy theories just as the synagogue shooter was in 2018; and some supporters of that movement were literally in our big tent at the groundbreaking.
And yet, the speeches and the yellow ribbons were exactly what the attendees needed to see: When the American Jewish community talks about antisemitism, we are talking about the events of five years ago, and we are talking about what is unfolding now. I was glad that Rep. Summer Lee, Mayor Ed Gainey and County Exec Sara Innamorato were there to hear top Democratic and Jewish leadership underlining what we have tried to explain for months. I was sorry that Lee, who has actively supported the very campus antisemitism condemned by Shapiro and Emhoff, left before the program concluded. There was so much she could have learned.
Eric Ward, executive vice president of Race Forward, said it best: “Antisemitism is not just an affront to the Jewish community, it is a poison that corrodes the very fabric of our society. From Pittsburgh to El Paso, from Buffalo to Poway, antisemitism has fueled violence and
I know that I should go and volunteer, but I am afraid for my safety.
I am not likely to go until they have a new government.
No plans to visit now or in the future. I lived there for several years and left as the country became more religious and less democratic. I am no longer a Zionist. I feel no attachment whatsoever to it.
We went in March and are going again in August. They appreciate our visits more than words can say! Everyone who can visit should visit now.
We were there for three-and-a-half weeks in April, and we are so glad that we went. As tourists, we were warmly welcomed and thanked for being there
and dedicated to the rituals, ideas, beliefs, and practices that reflect our 3,000-year-old covenant with God and one another. The three legs of the Jewish stool are the anchors by which Jewish individuals and families find meaning and bring our heritage to life.
Part of the strength of the Jewish people is believing that each generation could be the last. The 20th-century Jewish thinker Simon Rawidowicz called us “the ever-dying people.” Indeed, either because of forces from the outside or forces from within, we are seemingly forever on the verge of extinction.
A sense of preeminent individualism, disengagement from the Jewish people beyond one’s temple, and the notion that you can have “Judaism your way” — including for clerical
and supporting Israel at such a difficult time. More people need to go.
I don’t think my husband and I will ever go there. We are too scared it’ll never be safe again. I’m so glad I was able to visit 20 years ago.
My next trip to Israel will be a one-way flight. PJC
— Compiled by Toby Tabachnick
Chronicle weekly poll question:
Do you think our local elected officials are willing to effectively address antisemitism here? Go to pittsburghjewishchronicle.org to respond. PJC
leaders — all make for an increasingly thin Reform Judaism, let alone Judaism. I know that I am not alone among Reform Jewish professionals and lay people who share these concerns. Together, we recognize the imperative of embracing the “particulars” that define Judaism and making the Jewish people the centerpiece of our thinking and our behavior. Maybe we, Reform Jews, need to be a bit more antiquated. As long as we do, then a Reform Jew, I remain. PJC
Rabbi Mark Cohn serves as the director of Partnership Development for the Jewish Institute for Liberal Values and is the rabbi of Temple Sholom in New Milford, Connecticut. This first appeared on The Times of Israel.
division, targeting not only Jews but all who dare to be different in the eyes of those who preach hatred.”
We applaud the Tree of Life leadership and ceremony participants for making a clear statement that our community stands together against antisemitism, racism and bigotry in all its forms.
Jeremy Kazzaz, Beacon Coalition Pittsburgh
Jewish reasons not to question verdict in Trump fraud case
Rabbi Avi Shafran makes an interesting argument that you’ll miss if you stop at the Chronicle’s headline and subhead (“The Jewish problem with Trump supporters saying his guilty verdict was ‘rigged’,” June 14). He says that complaining that the trial of ex-President Trump was “rigged” is contrary to the Talmud, which says that the losing party in a trial should “sing a song and go happily on his way.” What a wonderful world that would be! What’s more, the subheading “There are legitimate reasons, by my lights, for Jews concerned with Israeli security to want to see Trump back in the White House” doesn’t just miss the gist, the “vital point” of his column, “that delegitimizing American courts out of personal or partisan sentiment is pulling not just the rug but the very floor out from under the republic.” It also distorts the secondary point, because he immediately says, “And there are equally legitimate reasons for Jews to want a second term for President Joe Biden.”
Arlene Weiner Pittsburgh
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Cohn:
Life & Culture
Chicken shawarma
By Jessica Grann | Special to the Chronicle
This recipe for chicken shawarma is one of my at-home inventions. I couldn’t get what I wanted around town, so I learned how to make it myself.
I found this incredible stainless-steel shawarma pan for about $20 on Amazon, and it’s one of the best things I’ve bought for my kitchen in a long time. The pan is wide with low, angled sides and has various size skewers to attach to the base. I’ve also been roasting whole chickens and Cornish hens in this pan with beautiful results.
This versatile pan has replaced my Bundt pan for my chicken recipe because its sides are much lower so that whole birds brown more evenly.
This recipe is simple. All you have to do is marinate the chicken in aromatic spices and olive oil — preferably overnight — stack the chicken on the skewer and bake it. The results are delicious.
I prefer to use boneless chicken thighs as opposed to boneless breasts because they stay juicy. Unlike real shaved shawarma, my version only gets the seasoning on the outer layer. You could say that’s a downside, but I see it as a good thing. Everyone likes a little something different, from the outer layer with full flavor and crispy edges to the inside which is juicy and
plain. If you want every morsel to be coated in flavor, just carve the entire mound of chicken and mix it together with the sauce that is left over at the bottom of the pan.
I start the base for the spices with Pereg brand shawarma seasoning, and then I add extra spices from my pantry to get the taste as I like it. If you prefer, you can double the amount of Pereg spice, add the salt and both peppers, and omit the extra spices listed below. As always if you love a certain spice, add it and experiment until you find what you’re looking for.
I made this to serve in pita with all the special salads and toppings, but the leftovers that I placed over a giant salad were equally satisfying. Add hummus, tahini, Israeli salad, cabbage salad, pickles — you can’t go wrong with this dish. This chicken is spiced but not spicy. If you’re looking for more heat, add a dollop of zhug.
Ingredients:
3 pounds boneless chicken thighs
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 rounded tablespoon Pereg brand shawarma spice
1 rounded teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or ½ teaspoon Aleppo pepper
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1½ teaspoons sea salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 large whole tomato
1 large onion, peeled and sliced lengthwise
Stack the chicken piece-by-piece over the skewer. Center the chicken, but alternate the direction every time you add a new piece so that in the end it looks like a nice, rounded mound. Add one half of the onion to the skewer, flat side down, and press it onto the chicken, then add the whole tomato and the other half of the onion.
Use a spatula or silicone brush to scrape any oil mixture from the marinade over the stacked chicken.
Place the pan in the oven, and pull the pan out and carefully tip it about every half hour to ladle any juice on the bottom back over the shawarma, which will help it turn a beautiful golden color. As this bakes, some of the edges get gently charred, which is what you’re looking for. The tomato and onion cook down and release moisture so that the chicken stays succulent and also creates more of a sauce in the bottom of the pan.
Bake for 45 minutes at 375 degrees, then reduce the oven temperature and bake for an additional hour and 15 minutes or until a thermometer probe reaches 165 in the very center of the mound. This may seem like a lot of time for chicken thighs, but it’s a very thick piece of meat when you place it all together. You can bake this a bit longer if you like but for no longer than 2½ hours total.
I marinate this in a 9-inch-by-13-inch Pyrex dish with the chicken in a single layer. Add the olive oil, salt, pepper and spices to the dish and mix well. Add the chicken to the dish and use a fork to dredge both sides of each piece of chicken so that it’s well coated.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours but preferably overnight. Turn the pieces one time while they are marinating.
When you’re ready to cook the chicken, set the oven temperature to 375 F. The skewer on the special pan is fairly tall, so you may need to put your oven rack one notch below the center position.
Wrap it loosely in foil after removing it from the oven, and let it rest for about half an hour. The foil acts like a steam tent and keeps the chicken tender and warm. Place the pan on a large sheet of foil and close the foil upward and around the shawarma.
When you’re ready to serve, carve the chicken off the skewer, turning the pan to carve a new layer as you go.
My kids loved this meal — they felt like we went to a restaurant, but it was even better because it was made at home with love and healthy ingredients. Enjoy and bless your hands! PJC
Jessica Grann is a home chef living in Pittsburgh.
p Chicken shawarma
Photos by Jessica Grann
Life & Culture
Rosé all day: discovering the diversity and delight of pink wine
In the realm of wines, there exists a drink that effortlessly blends elegance with accessibility, sophistication with approachability — the beloved rosé. This pink-hued nectar has carved out a special place in the hearts (and glasses) of wine enthusiasts worldwide, transcending seasons and trends with its versatile charm.
Rosé wine traces its roots to ancient winemaking traditions, where it was likely one of the earliest styles produced. Historically, it gained popularity in regions such as Provence in France, where it continues to flourish today. Traditionally made through a process of maceration, where red grape skins are left in contact with the juice for a short period, rosé wines vary in shade from pale salmon to vibrant coral, each hue offering a hint of what’s to come.
The making of the versatile rosé
While there are several methods to produce rosé, the most common involve limited contact between grape skins and juice to achieve the desired color and flavor profile. The result?
A wine that captures the essence of both red and white varietals — a delicate balance
of fruitiness, acidity and often a touch of floral or herbal notes, depending on the grape varieties used.
One of rosé’s most endearing qualities is its versatility. It’s not just a summer sipper; it pairs effortlessly with a wide array of foods, making it an ideal companion from picnics to fine dining. Crisp and refreshing, a chilled glass of rosé complements fish, salads and cheeses with equal aplomb. Its ability to bridge the gap between red and white wines makes it a crowd-pleaser at gatherings where preferences vary.
As I have written in the past, kosher wine adheres to specific production guidelines
supervised by a rabbi to ensure its purity and suitability for consumption. This meticulous process extends to kosher rosé, where the careful selection of grapes and precise winemaking techniques contribute to its quality and character.
A tour through pink wine’s diverse grape palette
Rosé wine, with its captivating pink hues and refreshing profiles, owes much of its charm to the variety of grapes used in its production. Each grape varietal lends its own unique characteristics, influencing the color, flavor and aroma of the final wine. Let’s delve into some of the most prominent grape varieties used to craft this beloved pink drink:
Grenache/Garnacha: Found in regions like Provence, Spain and Australia, grenache-based rosés offer crisp acidity, with the flavors of strawberries and citrus, perfect for festive meals and celebrations.
Capcanes Peraj Petita Rosat 2023
Syrah/Shiraz: Commonly found in Australia, the Rhone Valley and California, syrah-based rosés boast fuller bodies, red berry flavors and subtle spice notes, ideal for pairing with savory dishes.
Gilgal Rosé 2023
Mourvèdre: Predominantly found in Spain and Provence, mourvèdre contributes deep color and savory complexity to rosé, complemented by ripe red fruit and herbal nuances. C hateau Josephine Pink Semi-Sweet NV
Cinsault: Widely used in South Africa and Provence, cinsault rosés feature delicate pink hues and fresh fruity flavors such as watermelon and strawberry, with floral undertones. C hateau D’esclans Whispering Angel Kosher Rosé 2022
Pinot noir: Hailing from California, New Zealand and Champagne, pinot noir rosés are known for their elegance, showcasing aromas of strawberries, raspberries and creamy textures. Goose Bay Pinot Noir Rosé 2021
Sangiovese: Primarily from Italy, Sangiovese rosés offer bright acidity, cherry flavors and a hint of herbs, making them a delightful accompaniment to Mediterranean cuisine. Cantina Giuliano Rosato 2023
Zinfandel: Known as white zinfandel in California, zinfandel rosés are fruity with berry and watermelon flavors, appealing for those who prefer sweet wines. Baron Herzog White Zinfandel 2023
Merlot: Found globally, rosés made with merlot are smooth with flavors of ripe strawberries and cherries, balanced by gentle acidity. Merlot might be the most versatile grape used in the production of rosé. Yaffo Rosé 2023
Tempranillo: From Spain, tempranillo rosés showcase deep colors, red berry flavors, citrus notes and a structured profile, ideal for festive gatherings. Netofa Latour Rosado 2021 Cabernet sauvignon: Found worldwide, cabernet sauvignon rosés are robust with aromas of blackcurrant, cherry and hints of mint, offering complexity and depth. Dalton Estate Rosé 2023
Israel produces rosé in some capacity with all of these varietals.
Rosé wine is more than just a beverage; it’s a celebration of flavor, craftsmanship and conviviality. Whether you’re a seasoned oenophile or a curious newcomer, there’s a rosé waiting to be discovered — a testament to the enduring allure of this timeless pink drink.
So, the next time you raise a glass of rosé, take a moment to appreciate its journey from vineyard to table, and toast to the joy of indulging in life’s simple pleasures — sip by sip, in the company of good wine and even better company. L’chaim to rosé! PJC
Uriel Marcovitz is a former restaurateur in Pittsburgh. He studies wine with the Court of Master Sommelier and holds advanced-level sommelier status.
Uriel Marcovitz
p Rosé transcends seasons and trends with its versatile charm.
Photo by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay
The mitzvah of challah
While the spies receive considerable attention in this week’s parsha, there also is an essential mitzvah that holds profound life lessons for us: the mitzvah of challah.
What is challah? While it’s commonly known as the special bread we enjoy for Shabbat, often braided or rounded for Rosh Hashanah, what does the term “challah” signify?
In this week’s parsha, we are commanded to set aside a portion of dough, known as “challah,” and give it to the kohen.
This is one of the 24 gifts bestowed upon the kohen, who represents G-d in the service in the Temple. (In contemporary times, due to ritual impurity, we burn the dough instead of presenting it to a kohen.)
So, how did our Shabbat bread come to be known by this name?
According to the Code of Jewish Law, Laws of Shabbat chapter 242, in honor of Shabbat one is encouraged to bake one’s own bread and fulfill the mitzvah of setting aside the dough. Consequently, the remaining dough baked at home for Shabbat receives the name of the mitzvah performed with a small portion of the batch. Here are some insights and teachings from the Lubavitcher Rebbe regarding this mitzvah:
1 Elevating the physical: By separating a portion of dough and sanctifying it, we imbue holiness into our everyday activities, such as food preparation. While only a small portion is set aside, we refer to the whole batch as challah.
This highlights that the entire batch can be utilized for holiness, transforming the entire batch into challah.
2. First things first: The Torah refers to challah as the “first of the dough.”
The Hebrew word for dough, arisa , is similar to the Hebrew word for a cradle.
This serves as a reminder that upon waking each morning, our initial act should be expressing gratitude to G-d, demonstrated through reciting the Modeh Ani prayer.
3. Unity : Challah is set aside only after the dough is thoroughly mixed. Before mixing, the flour consists of separate specks. When water is added, it unites the specks, forming one cohesive dough. This symbolizes the unity we bring to the world by infusing it with the presence of our One G-d. Furthermore, giving away a portion teaches the importance of sharing with others and being mindful of the needs of the less fortunate. PJC
Rabbi Yisroel Altein is the spiritual
of Greater Pittsburgh.
102-year-old Shoah survivor is the cover star of Vogue Germany
Holocaust survivor would have every reason to hate, stands up for love.”
According to a biography on the website of Berlin’s Jewish Museum, Friedländer, née Bendheim, was born in the German capital in 1921, and apprenticed at a tailor shop after finishing school.
Her family tried unsuccessfully to emigrate to the United States before World War II broke out. While making plans to escape Germany, her brother was arrested by the Gestapo. Later, her mother and brother were deported to Auschwitz and murdered. “Try to make your life,” her mother wrote in a message she had left behind.
The 21-year-old went underground but was caught and deported to the Theresienstadt transit camp in Germanoccupied Sudetenland. She was the only member of her family to survive the camps.
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After the war, she moved to New York in 1946 with her husband, Adolph Friedländer, whom she met at the camp, only to return to Berlin six and half decades later in 2010 after his death.
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Margot Friedländer, one of the oldest and most prominent Holocaust survivors in the world, graces the cover of the July-August edition of the fashion and beauty magazine which has hit the newsstands in Europe.
The centenarian has given hundreds of talks about her life during the Holocaust under Nazi Germany.
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“Respect for life and the responsibility of being human are the core messages of #MargotFriedländer,” the magazine wrote on X promoting the story. “She, who as a
Two years ago, she was honored with a lifetime achievement award by the German president as she hit the century mark.
“We cannot change what happened, but it must never be allowed to happen again,” she said at the award ceremony in Berlin. PJC
leader of Chabad of Squirrel Hill. This column is a service of Vaad Harabonim
Rabbi Yisroel Altein
p Holocaust survivor Margot Friedländer, June 12, 2012.
Scott-Hendryk Dillan via Wikimedia Commons.
Obituaries
GREENWALD: Louis Greenwald. Surrounded by his loving family, Louis Greenwald, 80, of Pittsburgh (formally of White Oak), passed away on June 23, 2024. Son of Sylvia and Edward Greenwald, beloved husband of 57 years of Janice Caplan Greenwald, cherished father of Jodi Golomb (Zeb), Jason Greenwald and Marni Greenwald (Greg Carlson), and proud Papa of Jonah (Elena), Sophie, Caleb, Remmie, Harlow and Hannah. He is also survived by his sister Eileen Blatt and sister-in-law Francine Behrman. After graduating from McKeesport Area High School and Youngstown State University, Louis embarked on his life with his high school sweetheart. Truly one-of-a-kind, Louis lived by his own rules and built a life that exceeded even his own expectations. By purchasing Bell’s Market, Louis followed in his father’s footsteps and spent over 50 years in Braddock, Pennsylvania, running his meat business, embracing his community, and living each day with vigor. Louis fiercely loved his family, his animals, especially his dog, Cooper, and his bull, Chuck, and treasured living on his farm. He was committed to helping people — giving of his time and strong business acumen. As a result, others thrived from his wisdom. He was a member of B’nai B’rith, Temple B’nai Israel, Jewish War Veterans, and was a Hadassah associate. Louis will be incredibly missed. Graveside service and interment were held at Temple B’nai Israel Cemetery. Contributions can be made to Temple B’nai Israel, 2025 Cypress Drive, White Oak, PA 15131. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com
Robert Kushner, on Friday, June 21, 2024. Beloved spouse of Alice Kushner. Loving father of Donald and Audrey. Brother of Ninette Stiskin. Devoted grandfather of Sidney, Madeline, Kenneth and Samantha. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Mount Lebanon Cemetery-Beth El Section. Contributions may be made to Connecting . Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel,
Jewish Association on Aging gratefully acknowledges
Paula
Sherry
Phyllis
Jeffrey Kaiserman
POPPER: George Popper, age 84, on Sunday, June 16, 2024. Beloved husband of Phyllis Ellis Popper. Cherished father of Marissa and Janine Popper. Also survived by one sister. Pap Pap of Mason Popper. George was an exceptionally caring, compassionate person with a great sense of humor. He was completely devoted to his family. He will be greatly missed. George and Phyllis met in Israel, married and spent a year-and-a-half traveling around the world on a motorcycle. He worked for over 30 years for the Department of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining. He did photography and stained glass in his spare time. When he retired he was hoping to make challah and corn muffins with his grandson and never got the opportunity to do it. Services and interment were private. In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to StandWithUs (standwithus.com), Magen David Adom (mdais.org) or a charity of the donor’s choice. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com
RUBENSTEIN: Farrell Rubenstein, age 94, passed away on June 15, 2024. He leaves behind his loving wife of 68 years, Nancy (Gellman); two children, Judy (David Koff) and Bill (James MacDonald); and two grandchildren, Jennifer and Alison Koff. Farrell was born in Steubenville, Ohio, on March 4, 1930, to Lew and Bluma (Ginsburg) Rubenstein. He was raised with his sister Audrey (Simon) and cousin Sherwin Bosse. The family moved to Squirrel Hill in 1944, and Farrell graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School in 1948. He matriculated at the University of Michigan, where he was a member of the Zeta Beta Tau (ZBT) fraternity and received a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1952. After graduating, Farrell returned to Pittsburgh, earning a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Pittsburgh and passing the exam to become a Certified Public Accountant. Farrell then completed a two-year stint in the Army as a non-commissioned officer and Army audit agent. During that time,
Kaiserman
Jeffrey Kaiserman . .Daniel Shussett
Robert & Judi Miller .Mitz Miller
Susan Weiner Fannie Wolk
Contact the Development department at 412-586-2690 or development@jaapgh.org for more information. THIS WEEK’S YAHRZEITS —
Sunday June 30: Howard J Friedman, Benjamin Horne, Julie Katzman, Minnie Reich, Ida S Segal, Nathan Shaer, Ethel Silver, Irene Feldman Weiss
Monday July 1: Nathan Baum, Frank Bennett, Della B Berman, Marine Private Alan Bernstein, Sarah Bernice Fine, Judith Friedberg, Ike Friedken, Ida S Frieman, Samuel Gordon, Milton Samuel Horowitz, Evelyn Letwin, Morris I Lieberman, Isaac Lincoff, Janet Gutkowska Mirow, Sara Pollack, Barney Snyder, Eva Coon Solomon, Bertha Weinberg
Tuesday July 2: Eugene Bernard Barovsky, Norman L Berger, Bertha Broudy, Louis Cohen, Hyman Danovitz, Hattie Kaufman, Dr J Kalman Leon, Emanuel Samuel Levin, Miriam Levin, David Levine, Esther Levine, Julius Moskovitz, Ruth Perlmutter, Fred Rosen, John J Roth, Louis Siskind, Clara S Sniderman, Mollie Weiss
Wednesday July 3: Mollie Apter, Erwin Becker, Barry Birner, Lena Caplan, Abraham Fink, Sarah Friedman, Sarah “Sandra” Goldberg, Arthur Klein, Eva Miller, Hyman Moravitz, Donald L Samuels, Louis Shapiro, Barbara Lucille Solomon
Thursday July 4: Libbie Cohen, Benjamin Friedlander, Harold Goldstein, Diane Golbitz Hamilton, Louis Klein, Frank Kopelson, Lilian Miriam Krasik Kurtz, Max Marcovsky, Jean Smolevitz Marshall, Ethel Miller, Saul Oliver Neft, Maurice A Nernberg, Ethel Riesberg, Nathan Roth, Sarah Turk, Lawrence S Williams
Friday July 5: Celia Bergad, Rebecca Bluestone, Caroline Cooper, Tillie Gold, Shelton C Goodman, Henry E Hersh, Mollie Kramer, Celia Kweller, Martha Cohen Landy, Charlotte Leff, Helen Levin, Minnie Mendler, Morris A Robins
Saturday July 6: Esther B Alman, Beatrice Helen Amper, Sarah Rosenbloom Ronay, David Scholnick, Mildred Simon, Blanche Tarlo, William Wanetick
Candy-Rama and the Gerber Family
Who in Pittsburgh doesn’t remember Candy-Rama? The go to place for sweets Candy-Rama, started in the 1940’s by Isadore Gerber, was an institution for fiftyfive years Downtown. The stores started as an outgrowth of Gerber’s Northside fruit market. With locations on Liberty, Wood, and Fifth, the last store closed in 2007 to make way for redevelopment.
Candy-Rama brought generations of shoppers into the stores for both American and international candies. If you wanted it, they had it. The stores were a mix of nostalgia and personal service. It was simply a fun place to go. During the 1970’s Marian Pearson, Izzy’s niece took over the business.
The Gerber Family’s name lives on through the caring way in which their relatives’ final resting places are overseen. Seventeen members of the Gerber and Pittler Family, buried in four different cemeteries, are remembered annually through a clean-up effort at their graves. The Gerber Family planned well.
It is a privilege for the JCBA to be involved with the Gerber Family Trust.
Obituaries
Obituaries:
For more information about JCBA cemeteries, to volunteer, to purchase plots, to read our complete histories and/or to make a contribution, please visit our website at www.JCBApgh.org, email us at Office@jcbapgh.org or call the JCBA office at 412-553-6469.
JCBA’s expanded vision is made possible by a generous grant from the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh’s Jewish Community Foundation
Our success is the best revenge against hate.
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Farrell met Nancy, who was in school at Chatham College, and they married on Dec. 18,1955, at the old Schenley Hotel in Oakland. Farrell worked in the accounting profession for 35 years, first with Bachrach, Sanderbeck & Co., then with Touche Ross & Co. after the firms merged in 1970, and then with Deloitte & Touche following the merger of those firms in 1989. He was the managing partner of Touche’s Pittsburgh office, served as a regional managing partner in the national firm, and ultimately spent four years in New York City serving as the national director of tax, the associate managing partner of the firm, and on the firm’s national management committee. Farrell was the president of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs and a member of the governing council of the American Institute of CPAs. Farrell was very active in the Pittsburgh community, especially at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was on the Board of Trustees for 19 years, including a nine-year term as chairman of the Health Sciences Committee, before becoming chairman of the board for three years. Through his work at the university, Farrell was chairman of the board of various local hospitals, including Montefiore, Eye and Ear, and Western Psychiatric, and he was instrumental in the formation of UPMC. Farrell also served as the board chair of the Central Blood Bank and the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, as a board member of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and, for many years, as a board member of Giant Eagle. In 2013, Taylor Allderdice recognized Farrell’s contributions to the community in electing him to its Hall of Fame. In 2019, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh awarded Farrell its prestigious Emanuel Spector Award, which recognizes individual contributions to local philanthropy, with the Foundation’s then-chair stating, “We owe Farrell for our birth, our growth, and our successful existence.” Farrell and Nancy lived in the Park Mansions apartments in Oakland for more than 40 years, splitting their time between there and a second home in Scottsdale, Arizona, for several decades; they lived full time in Scottsdale in the past few years. They were lifelong members of Rodef Shalom Congregation. Farrell was a warm and loving husband, father and grandfather; an avid tennis player and bicyclist for many years; a great reader, particularly of history; and a lifelong University of Michigan and Pitt sports fan. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Farrell’s memory can be made to the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh or a charity of the donor’s choice. Services and Interment were private. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. schugar.com
SHRAGER: Daniel Shrager. Today, we gather to honor and remember Dr. Daniel Shrager, a beloved husband, devoted father, cherished grandfather and esteemed psychiatrist. For 60 beautiful years, Daniel was the loving husband to Marsha. Their bond was a testament to enduring love and unwavering companionship, a beacon of commitment and partnership that has inspired all who knew them. As a psychiatrist, Daniel dedicated his life to understanding and helping others. His work was not just a profession but a calling, one that he pursued with compassion, dedication and an unyielding desire to make a difference in the lives of his patients. He was the proud father of three wonderful children, each of whom carries forward his legacy of kindness, wisdom and integrity. His eight grandchildren brought immense joy to his life, and he often spoke of the profound happiness they gave him. Daniel frequently shared that he led a very lucky and happy life. His words remind us of the gratitude he felt for the love, joy and fulfillment he experienced. It is this gratitude and happiness that we will carry with us as we remember him. Though he is no longer with us, Daniel’s spirit, his love and his legacy continue to live on in our hearts and minds. We honor his memory by cherishing the lessons he taught us, the love he shared with us, and the happiness he brought into our lives. Lo nachat b’shalom, Dr. Daniel Shrager, you will be deeply missed and forever remembered. Services were held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment
B’Nai Israel Cemetery. schugar.com PJC
Real Estate
Life & Culture
Crowning glory: Serenity Wig Salon o ers solutions and compassion
so many different types of hair loss.”
By Kathleen Gianni | Sta Writer
What began as a wig salon to serve Orthodox women has broadened its reach to provide a needed service to cancer patients and others experiencing hair loss.
Chami Saks, the owner and founder of Serenity Wig Salon on Murray Avenue, launched her business with the Jewish community in mind — those Orthodox women who cover their hair out of modesty. She said she noticed a need for quality wigs after searching for one for herself.
With a cosmetology license and a love for hair, Saks transformed her basement into a small studio to start her wig salon. She opened her first storefront five years ago and has since relocated as the business grew.
Shortly after opening the salon, Saks realized that the demand for quality wigs extended far beyond the Jewish community.
“There was an even larger need than I expected,” Saks said. “I would say probably about 85% of our clientele are hair loss-related. That’s a huge amount, and it’s not just people going through chemo and alopecia. There are
Serenity Wig Salon prides itself on fostering strong relationships with its clients and creating an atmosphere where people feel comfortable and confident, regardless of what brings them into the salon.
“We love our clients,” Saks said. “We all talk about how much we love doing wigs in particular because everyone has a story. We can really build connections with people and they trust us, and it’s almost like it turns into more of a relationship.”
The rest of the team at Serenity Wig Salon, including manager Polina Neft, likewise values the connections they have with their clients.
“I think part of what keeps our clients coming back is that we’re really good at empathizing with what they’re going through,” Neft said. “We are genuinely just here to listen and help whenever they want help, and I think they really respond well to that. It’s like just having a team of support behind you.”
Alexandra Paes, a client since 2021, shares this sense of relationship.
After experiencing hair loss following her diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Paes said she visited multiple salons in search of a suitable wig. Through much trial and error, Paes said she eventually found Serenity Wig Salon after learning that many Jewish women wear wigs.
She said that she immediately felt the welcoming and warm atmosphere, and her positive experiences continued as she chose a wig.
“Not only did they take the time to know me, my story and why this was so important to me, but they did an absolutely phenomenal job matching me up with something that was truly going to make me feel beautiful,” Paes said.
“They helped me feel like I wasn’t a cancer patient, I wasn’t sick, I wasn’t whatever I had been all of these years. Instead, they took the time to ask who do you want to be and what do you want to be.”
Saks said that she and her team do everything they can to ensure their clients are happy.
“We really encourage people to come back if they have any problems,” Saks said.
“Because first of all, it’s an investment, and
second, it’s your hair and your confidence. For women to feel good with their hair is such a big deal, so we’ve basically begged clients to
Through her experience as a wig-wearer, Saks could understand what makes a quality
wig. Using her expertise, she began her own line, the Lola wig line, named after her grandmother who survived the Holocaust.
The wigs are made with real human hair and can be customized to the clients’ tastes through their choice of color and cut.
While wigs remain the salon’s primary specialty, Serenity Wig Salon offers an extensive list of services, including spa treatments and hair care. The business continues to grow, with new products and services anticipated shortly, according to Saks.
“I’m always wanting to do more and more with my business,” Saks said, “It’s all very exciting. I have an awesome team, so when you have a good team, you feel like you can do more.” PJC
Kathleen Gianni can be reached at
Chami Saks styles a wig at Serenity Wig Salon
Photo by Olivia Pasquarelli
Community
Emmy-nominated filmmakers Michelle Boyaner and Barbara Green, in association with UPMC for Life, offered a resource fair and free community screening of “IT’S NOT A BURDEN: The Humor and Heartache of Raising Elderly Parents.” The documentary features Pittsburghers Maxine and Sally Lapiduss, as well as other adult children and parents navigating the aging process. The June 15 event was moderated by award-winning news anchor Jennifer Antkowiaka and served as a culmination of UPMC for Life’s caregiver campaign.
They started the
Before beginning summer vacation, Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh Boys High School students celebrated Lag B’Omer with a bonfire.
The ties that bind University of Pittsburgh Jewish graduates received graduation cords from Chabad at Pitt.
fire
Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh went to Kennywood on June 2. The annual trip enabled members
