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September 8, 2017 | 17 Elul 5777
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Candlelighting 7:22 p.m. | Havdalah 8:19 p.m. | Vol. 60, No. 36 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL Hadassah Pittsburgh turns 100 Past presidents take a look back at the local branch of Zionist women’s movement.
Federation’s annual meeting highlights volunteer contributions
$1.50
Apples, honey and all things sweet to start the new year
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LOCAL Scientific wonders Allderdice grad studies at Weizmann Institute for the summer. Golden Delicious apples are always a favorite. Photo by Francis M. Squires By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
Page 4 Woody and Nancy Ostrow congratulate Chuck Perlow, recipient of the Spector Award, as Perlow gets a hug from Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh President and CEO Jeff Finkelstein at the Federation’s 2017 annual meeting.
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Photo by Joshua Franzos
Houston ties
By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
C Texas-born medic returns from Israel to aid relief effort. Page 8
apping a year of changes, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh provided an overview of past accomplishments and a continued vision for the future at its annual meeting last week. “This year, our Annual Campaign of $13.7 million leveraged our ability to give away over $26 million,” Cindy Shapira, chair of the board, announced to the more than 200 guests at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh’s Levinson Hall in Squirrel Hill. “The presence of Federation as a convener assists and supports our agencies to move toward greater collaboration and synergy, and when appropriate, even toward merger, to better serve our community.” The topic of aging was addressed at the nearly 90-minute meeting, with several speakers mentioning AgeWell Pittsburgh’s ability to assist area seniors and its recent receipt of a $150,000 grant, known as the Collaboration Prize, from the Lodestar
Foundation. Other communal activities had their share of the spotlight as well. “Our relatively new Jewish life and learning department is working to make Jewish learning a part of our everyday lives,” noted Shapira. Each day, the Federation helps “create and sustain high-quality Jewish educational programs and experiences so that every Jewish Pittsburgher can be meaningfully engaged in Jewish life and learning.” In his speech, Federation president and CEO Jeff Finkelstein pointed to strides made in the effort to better secure communal institutions. Just this year, Brad Orsini was hired as the Federation’s first-ever community security director. This staffing demonstrates a new reality, said Finkelstein. “This is certainly not the type of need we want to fund, but one we have to fund.” “A profound paradigm shift” is underway and the Jewish community is changing, said Shapira. “The Federation system
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he Jewish new year is signified by many symbols, though perhaps none more pleasantly than apples and honey. On tables in homes, synagogues and centers throughout Western Pennsylvania, the sticky sweet combination marks the promise of a year of blessing, prosperity, well-being and good wishes. From bags and bottles to saucers and jars, apples and honey get packaged and plated in myriad ways. But for those pondering which dish best suits the soon-to-be gooey globs of fruit and nectar, time may be better spent actually considering which apples to serve. “It depends whether you prefer sweet or tart,” said Jan Simmons, manager of the market at Simmons Farm in McMurray. Relying upon more than four decades in the orchards, the trained horticulturalist recommends Golden Delicious, Red Delicious or Jonagolds for those interested in tasting sweeter apples. However, “if you like a tarter apple” try Empire or Idareds, she said. It is not uncommon for people in these parts to take to the fields this time of year for apple picking, said Simmons.
Please see Meeting, page 15
Please see Apples, page 15
keep your eye on PittsburghJewishChronicle LOCAL
High Holiday movies
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Galilee enjoys the spotlight
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West Va. U gets kosher food
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CELEBRATE THE HIGH HOLIDAYS WITH
Joan Nathan & Whole Foods Market! This September, “the queen of American Jewish Cooking” is partnering with us to bring you some favorites from her latest cookbook, King Solomon’s Table. Our chef’s cases and hot bars will feature special ready to serve holiday dishes: COD WITH TOMATOES, DRIED PLUMS, ONIONS AND PINE NUTS SLIGHTLY SWEET AND SOUR CABBAGE SEVEN SACRED SPECIES SALAD WITH WHEAT BERRIES, BARLEY, FIGS, GRAPES AND POMEGRANATE SWEET AND CRUNCHY KUGEL TAHINA COOKIES
Receive a free copy of King Solomon’s Table when you place a High Holiday order of $100 or more at shop.wfm.com.*
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Headlines Hadassah members reflect on the organization’s 100 years in Pittsburgh — LOCAL — By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
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ext week, Hadassah will celebrate its 100th anniversary in the Steel City with an event honoring several local citizens. Prior to the Oakland-based gala, four past presidents of the women’s Zionist organization gathered to reflect on their decades of involvement. Lifelong friends Mimi Ginsberg, Roz Markovitz, Marlene Silverman and Bernice Meyers sat down at a coffee shop in Squirrel Hill to reminisce on fundraising luncheons and trips to Israel. While the memories were sweet, more serious were the women’s hopes, as each one pondered and projected Hadassah’s next century in Pittsburgh. “Hadassah has changed, but some things remain the same,” said Silverman, of Churchill. Founded in 1912 by Henrietta Szold, Hadassah initially “focused on raising funds to provide health care, education and professional training for Jewish women and girls living in Palestine.” However, within five years of the organization’s inception, Hadassah’s Pittsburgh Chapter “had grown to over 500 members whose work helped support four hospitals, several clinics, visiting health care services, nursing schools and two infant welfare programs in Palestine,” according to materials from the Rauh Jewish Archives at the Senator John Heinz History Center. From its early days, Hadassah’s Pittsburgh presence continued to expand. By the time that the four past presidents, who each served in succession to one another during the
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BOARD OF TRUSTEES David Ainsman, Chairman Evan Indianer, Vice Chairman Gayle R. Kraut, Secretary Andrew Schaer, Treasurer Richard J. Kitay, Immediate Past Chairman Jonathan Bernstein, Gail Childs, Elizabeth F. Collura, Seth Dresbold, Milton Eisner, Malke Steinfeld Frank, Tracy Gross, Catia Kossovsky, Andi Perelman, Amy Platt, David Rush, Charles Saul GENERAL COUNSEL Stuart R. Kaplan, Esq.
1970s and 1980s, became involved, regional membership had grown to more than 4,000. “When I was president we were very concentrated on membership. Even though we only had 40,000 Jews [in Pittsburgh] at that time, we had 4,800 members, which per capita was amazing,” said Meyers, whose tenure as chief ran between 1984 and 1986. Increasing membership to 5,000 was critical as it ensured a presence on the organization’s national board. “We wanted to become recognized on the national board because we wanted a say for how things were taking place. We never made it to 5,000, but they gave us observer status, and from that time on we have been represented on the national board,” said Meyers. But apart from meetings or policy making, Hadassah provided a forum for friendship. Ginsberg became active around 1950 “as a newlywed” after moving to Squirrel Hill. In 1951, shortly after becoming a mother, Ginsberg received a visit and gift from the local leader of Hadassah. She then increased her involvement and eventually became president of the group. “I had a lot of fun,” she said. Back then, “our biggest project was the blintz project.” While stationed at the Three Rivers Art Festival, the volunteer corps sold thousands of the thin pancake-like creations. “We raised $35,000 the first year in 1974,” said Ginsberg. Other efforts followed, said Markovitz, who succeeded Ginsberg as president. “There were fashion shows of Israeli designs,” where talented students from the Alice L. Seligsberg Vocational High School for Girls, which was later known as the Seligsberg-Brandeis Community College, showcased their creations.
Similarly, local groups hosted regular bingo games or sold cards. “They were always raising some sort of money,” said Markovitz, who dates her membership in Hadassah to 1959. Silverman, who became involved in Hadassah in 1960, recalled luncheons so large that the legal capacity would be exceeded. “There were so many people who came to the Hilton we had to have it on two days because the Hilton couldn’t fit,” she said. “We had like 1,000 people,” echoed Meyers. Helen Ohringer, Gertrude Hoffman, the Ratner family and Fan Eggleston “were all major fundraisers” for Hadassah, noted Markovitz. And while Hadassah provided a framework for friendship, it was also about the cause, she added. “I think you have to understand we grew up before Israel was a state. I remember when it became a state and I remember at that time you just didn’t go to Israel. … You couldn’t; it was the early 1950s, and the only way you could express yourself, the only way I could express myself, was through Hadassah, which was a very powerful way for me to feel connected.” Membership in the organization is “something which people held close to them,” explained David Schlitt, director of the Rauh Jewish Archives. “Every significant collection that I have brought in with women who were involved in the Jewish community, Hadassah has played a prominent role.” That is part of the reason why next week’s award is so significant, said Nancy Zionts, an honoree at the centennial celebration. “I was raised in a Hadassah family in Montreal and married into a Hadassah family in Pittsburgh.” Receiving such recognition from Hadassah is “really quite meaningful. It
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allows me to think of my mother, my grandmother and great-grandmother. And it goes up the chain on my husband’s side as well,” as his mother, grandmother and great-grandmother were members of Hadassah. Moving forward, the connection to Hadassah remains, she noted. It is “something I share with my children as well. My children are life members of Hadassah. My husband is a lifetime associate of Hadassah; it’s part of a family business.” “You can tell the strength of Hadassah in Pittsburgh by the amazing, strong women leaders that Hadassah played a part in Please see Hadassah, page 17
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p A historical document reflects the early days of Hadassah’s presence in Pittsburgh. Courtesy of Roz Markovitz
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SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 3
Headlines Before beginning Harvard, Allderdice grad spends summer in Israel
You’re Invited! Final Event in Our Memory Care Series with Dr. Zeisel, Founder of The Hearthstone Institute
A Life of Purpose & Joy for Those Living with Memory Loss
p This year’s U.S. delegation to the ISSI program poses for a photo on the Weizmann Institute’s campus. Natalia Hajlasz is seventh from the right, behind the young man in the blue T-shirt who is holding the American flag; she is holding the right corner of the flag. Photo courtesy of Kate Schmier
Wednesday, September 13 • 11 a.m. Location: 200 JHF Drive, Pittsburgh On the JAA Campus in Squirrel Hill
Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
Dr. John Zeisel, internationally renowned memory care expert, will share details about Hearthstone’s unique I’m Still Here® philosophy and its fundamental premise: Everyone deserves a life worth living. Learn how this innovative approach engages residents in new and interesting activities, enhances self-esteem, and encourages meaningful relationships. At AHAVA Memory Care Residence, our residents enjoy lives ƥKKDC VHSG OTQONRD INX @MC KNUD
Kindly RSVP to Amy Dukes, Memory Care Liaison. 412.521.8295 • adukes@jaapgh.org www.AHAVAJAA.org/events/stillhere
Community. Purpose. Hope.
www.AHAVAJAA.org 200 JHF Drive | Pittsburgh, PA 15217 4 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
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atalia Hajlasz, a 2017 Pittsburgh Allderdice graduate, recently completed four weeks of research at the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot, Israel. For the Harvard-bound budding scientist, the monthlong program was “amazing,” she said. “I really like the country and the people.” Hajlasz was one of 19 teenagers from across the United States selected to participate in the Dr. Bessie F. Lawrence International Summer Science Institute (ISSI) at the Weizmann Institute, explained Kate Schmier, assistant director of marketing communications at the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science. “This prestigious program, which accepts only one in five applicants and provides full merit-based scholarships to all participants, affords students the opportunity to conduct research with world-renowned scientists in biology, chemistry, mathematics and computer science,” she added. While most of the Americans were from the East Coast, student participants journeyed from as far away as “Switzerland, Germany, France, the Netherlands, the U.K., Australia and South Korea,” said Hajlasz. “It was incredible how people can get together and get along very well and discuss differences between cultures and growing up in different countries,” explained the Pittsburgher on the diverse populace. In total, nearly 80 international students participated in ISSI. “It is an incredible science program,” said Hajlasz, not only because of the “immersive” work performed in the labs, but also because of the researcher-provided oversight. “People
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really want to work with the students. My mentor spent a lot of time talking about the resources, answering my questions about the research itself and about being a scientist and an Israeli.” While Hajlasz plans on focusing on mathematics, and perhaps chemistry as well, when she begins Harvard this fall, her Weizmann work was related to electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). “It’s basically a method in which you can find radical species in samples and determine structural properties,” she said. “The research was primarily to explore certain techniques to determine better ways to study certain types of reactions.” Opportunities such as these rest at the heart of the ISSI experience, said Lowell H. Lustig, executive director of leadership giving at the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science and a coordinator of Weizmann-related activities in the Pittsburgh area. Because of ISSI, young adults such as Hajlasz are given “the opportunity to work in the laboratories of one of the world’s leading research centers. The students deepen their passion for science and broaden their worldview by experiencing life in Israel alongside an international group of peers.” Hajlasz agreed: “We had a lot of culturally integrative experiences where they brought in people to talk about what is Israel. It definitely gave me a different perspective from what you usually hear.” Though she is currently slated to spend time in Cambridge, Mass., Hajlasz is eager to reprise her recent journey. “I really liked my time there. I would definitely like to go back.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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Headlines Movies can spark the High Holiday spirit — LOCAL — By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
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or some, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. Whether it is a commitment to reflection and introspection or taking care to extend greetings and well wishes for the days ahead, various approaches to the High Holidays are quite familiar. But priming the High Holiday mindset may need nothing more than a movie or two. “I would suggest to readers to check out this streaming site out of the JCC in Manhattan, israelfilmcenterstream.org,” said Kathryn Spitz Cohan, executive director of Film Pittsburgh. The easily navigable page allows users to browse by subject. After selecting “Jewish Holidays,” relevant titles emerge: “After all you are just a guest,” “Kaparot Sababa C’est Tout” and “GOAT TO HELL.” No worries for viewers with only a tad of time on their hands, as the aforementioned films require roughly two hours for seeing screens. The first in the list, “After all” (1999), is a 50-minute documentary from director Ron Ofer of the annual pre-Rosh Hashanah trip of haredi Orthodox Jews to the village of Uman, Ukraine, to visit the gravesite of Rabbi Nachman
by Roi Calvo, relates the story of an adolescent who steals his father’s car on the holiest day of the year and the events that follow. For those seeking “heavy meditation on sin and guilt, but with a somewhat unsettling ending,” check out “Crimes and Misdemeanors” (1989), said Adam Shear, director of the Jewish Studies program at the University of Pittsburgh. If it’s “classic Kol Nidre scenes” you’re after then “The Jazz Singer,” is a good choice, he added. “I like both the Al Jolson and Neil Diamond versions. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend p Moviegoers attend screenings of Jewishthe 1959 TV special with Jerry themed movies in Pittsburgh. Photo courtesy of Film Pittsburgh. Lewis — besides the blackface being hard to take these days of Breslav, an 18th-century Chasidic leader. (also a problem with the original of course) The other two films on the list, “Kaparot but also they don’t do much of Kol Nidre Sababa” and “GOAT,” concern Yom Kippur. — just a few moments. I assume because The former is a 50-minute long 2011 docu- they had to fit the whole story into 1 hour.” mentary, in which the director, Ehud Segev, Finally, “The Frisco Kid” with Gene Wilder chronicled a decade of Yom Kippur obser- offers “wonderful reflections on different vances. The latter, a 28-minute film with ideas of God and also the rabbi grappling English subtitles from 2014 and directed with the Torah as symbol vs. the doctrine
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of pikuah nefesh. Can’t say more to avoid spoilers,” said Shear. Keeping with Yom Kippur, in a 2014 post, the Jewish Book Council listed a few films that impart the liturgy of the holy day. These pictures include “Keeping the Faith” (2000), “Kissing Jessica Stein” (2001) and “The Believer” (2001). Fans of big-name stars should enjoy any of the early second millennium movies, as “Keeping the Faith” pairs Ben Stiller and Edward Norton as dueling clergymen, “Kissing Jessica Stein” features Jennifer Westfeldt and Tovah Feldshuh in an unexpected romantic comedy, and “The Believer” presents a young Ryan Gosling as Danny Balint, a conflicted character who ultimately encounters a Kafka-esque conclusion. Yes, apples, honey and the High Holidays are coming. But whether this time of year, or a Tuesday in June, movies stills have an ability to arouse. “For those of us that are visual learners, watching a movie can be as meaningful or more than other traditional types of learning,” said Spitz Cohan. “I think, or hope, that if the message of a film is powerful or inspirational that it can change lives and make the world a better place.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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Calendar SUNDAY, SEPT. 10 Congregation Dor Hadash invites the community to a 10 a.m. lecture by Anna Fisher of Fair Districts PA, a nonpartisan coalition of citizens and organizations seeking to reform Pennsylvania redistricting rules. Fisher will examine the problem and discuss solutions to help make fair districts a reality. Dor Hadash is located at 5898 Wilkins Ave. at the corner of Shady Avenue in Squirrel Hill. RSVP is appreciated but not required. Contact admin@dorhadash.net or 412-422-5158 for more information.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 8 Rodef Shalom invites congregants and the community to meet and welcome the next executive director, Barry Weisband of Tucson, Ariz., at a special oneg at 6:30 p.m., following the 5:30 erev Shabbat service. Moishe House will hold a 21+ Night at the Carnegie Science Center, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. September’s theme is Game Night. Admission tickets will be subsidized, but attendees must pay $5 to reserve a spot. Register at https://goo.gl/forms/ MfmaXwOkFvO0MrLV2. Meet at the house at 6:15 for rides or at
the Carnegie Science Center. Contact moishehousepgh@ gmail.com for more information. Beth Samuel Jewish Center in Ambridge will hold a Shabbaton Friday and Saturday, “Mussar: Set Your Soul on Fire,” with guest speaker Rabbi Judith Edelstein. Mussar is a Jewish approach to spiritual insight and practical selfdevelopment. A reception will follow the 7:30 p.m. introduction on Friday. After the 9 a.m. workshop on Saturday, there will be a kiddush luncheon at noon. There is an $18 charge. RSVP requested by Sept. 5 at bethsamueloffice@comcast.net or 724-266-5238. Beth El Congregation of the South Hills will hold a musical Shabbat “kick-off event” at 6 p.m. New York based artist Sheldon Low will perform with Rabbis Alex and Amy Greenbaum. Beth El’s Friday Night Live is for people of all ages and is open to all, including a complimentary barbecue at 7 p.m., with meat and vegetarian options. Visit bethelcong.org for more information. To RSVP for dinner in advance, call 412-561-1168.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 10
A limited number of tickets, at $18, are available on a first-come basis for the program. Those wishing to attend should respond by Sept. 5 with a check payable to Young Peoples Synagogue, P.O. Box 8141, Pittsburgh PA 15217. If the event is sold out, checks will be returned to their mailing address. Contact Marshall Hershberg at mhershb100@aol.com or 412-421-9266 for more information.
Hadassah Pittsburgh’s 100th Anniversary and Myrtle Wreath Award Ceremony will be held at 11:30 a.m. at the University Club, 123 University Place. Honorees are Dr. Yoel Sadovsky, Bill Strickland Jr., Cynthia Shapira and Nancy Zionts. Visit hadassah. org/regions/greater-pittsburgh/ for more information and to register or contact 412421-8919 or pittsburgh@hadassah.org. The 7th Annual Apples and Honey Fall Festival will be held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Waterfront. The free event, a project of Shalom Pittsburgh, will feature balloon animals, a bounce house, shofar making and more. Contact 412-992-5204 or mfranzos@ jfedpgh.org for more information. New Light Congregation will hold its annual picnic at 5 p.m. at 1700 Beechwood Blvd. in Squirrel Hill. Cost is $15 per person. Contact Janet Cohen at 412-512-0949 or janet. cohen@gmail.com for more information.
MONDAYS, SEPT. 11, 18, 25 Babyccino: A Chic Meet for Mod Moms & Their Tots. Explore the High Holidays in pint-size proportions via music, movement, sensory stimulants and expressive arts. Threeweek session from 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. $7 per class; $18 for the whole session. Contact Chabad of the South Hills, Mt. Lebanon at mussie@chabadsh.com for more information. TUESDAY, SEPT. 12
Pre-High Holiday lunch for seniors at noon at the South Hills Jewish Community Center, 345 Young Peoples Synagogue (YPS) will Kane Blvd. Shofar presentation, High Holiday celebrate the 10th anniversary of Cantor music, raffles and honey cake. $5 suggested Moshe Taube’s leading YPS’ High Holy donation. Wheelchair accessible. Call Barb at Day services with a special program at the 412-278-2658 for more information. synagogue at 7 p.m. Two of Taube’s former students, Cantor Henry Shapiro and Jack Squirrel Hill Historical Society with speaker Mostow, will perform cantorial musical selections and share personal reflections at the Michael Young, senior vice president and celebration. Douglas Levine, pianist, composer, music director and owner of Levine Music in Pittsburgh, will accompany the cantors. HR_102101_Eartique(DA)JewishChronicle_Sept2017_1(3)_V1 8/30/17 AM Page 1 page 7 Please10:15 see Calendar,
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Calendar Calendar: Continued from page 6 Pittsburgh market manager, KDKA Radio, at 7:30 p.m. at Church of the Redeemer, 5700 Forbes Ave. Contact historysqhill@hotmail.com, call 412-417-3707 or visit squirrelhillhistory.org for more information. q WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 13 AARP Squirrel Hill Chapter 3354 has moved and is now meeting at Tree of Life*Or L’Simcha at 5898 Wilkins Ave. To start the new year, it will have entertainment for the first meeting at 1 p.m. Johnny Fontaine, a Las Vegas-style entertainer, will be performing; you can view his video on YouTube. Everyone is invited, including nonmembers. Refreshments will be served after the meeting. Contact Ilene Portnoy at 412-6837985 for more information. Chabad of the South Hills presents Torah & Tea for Women: A Taste of the High Holidays in the Far East at 7:30 p.m., hosted by Deb Levy with guest Gilah Moritz. Moritz’s mother was born in Calcutta, India, to Baghdadi Jewish parents. Sample some traditional Rosh Hashanah dishes and hear about Far Eastern Jewish life. There is no charge. Contact batya@chabadsh.com or 412-5122330 for more information and to RSVP. NA or NarAnon meetings are held every
Wednesday evening at Beth El Congregation from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at 1900 Cochran Road. Use the office entrance. Contact Karen at 412-563-3395 for more information. Note that Wednesday, Sept. 20 is a holiday and the meeting will not be held that day. TEDxMoishe will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. at Moishe House. Are you an expert in dream interpretation, artificial intelligence, or zoology? Do you have a super cool story that you just have to tell? Then sign up for TEDxMoishe. Fill out the form at https:// goo.gl/forms/WiTpbaUJ6PpW0I2g2 with a synopsis of your 5- to 10-minute talk by Sept. 9 to get on the list. Contact moishehousepgh@gmail.com for more information. Repair the World will hold its kickoff fundraising event to bring PeerCorps to Pittsburgh at Shadyside Nursery from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 510 Maryland Ave. Food from Revival Chili and PGH Halal Truck will be available, along with music from Angela Autumn. Visit eventbrite.com/e/food-funand-fundraising-tickets-36909594591 to purchase tickets. q FRIDAY, SEPT. 15 Join a Young Adult Shabbat dinner with J’Burgh Pittsburgh, Moishe House Pittsburgh and Shalom Pittsburgh from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Chatham University, University Mellon Ballroom, first-floor, on Woodland Road.
RSVP on ShalomPittburgh.org by Sept. 13 to ensure there is enough food and wine. q SUNDAY, SEPT. 17 Kids Honey Cake Bake including baking your own honey cake, entertainment, hands-on holiday crafts and more at 4 p.m. at the South Hills Jewish Community Center. q MONDAY, SEPT. 18 Shape and bake your very own Rosh Hashanah challah at Challah & Yiddish Night from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Moishe House. Dough and some classic add-ins will be provided. While the dough is baking, nosh and learn a bisl of Yiddish with community member David Andrews. Contact moishehousepgh@gmail. com for more information. q SUNDAY, SEPT. 24 Moishe Gets Moving: Tashlich Hike, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Racoon State Park. Moishe House will provide a picnic lunch.Sign up at https://goo.gl/forms/zQ8DK5dKEb4fK8X83. Contact moishehousepgh@gmail.com for more information. q THURSDAY, SEPT. 28 Carol L. Tabas will be the recipient of 2017 Shore-Whitehill Award, awarded annually by the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and Jewish Residential Services to volunteers who promote the inclusion of people with disabilities in the fabric of Jewish life.
Tabas will be honored from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Pittsburgh Golf Club. Keynote speakers will be Nancy Thaler, deputy secretary of the Pennsylvania Office of Developmental Programs, and Al Condeluci, CEO of Community Living and Support Services. RSVP at megan-grabski@unitedwayswpa. org by Sept. 20. Moishe House will hold Crafts Night from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Message facebook.com/ events/239020443287588/ or contact moishehousepgh@gmail.com for more info. q SATURDAY, SEPT. 30 Break the Fast with Moishe House Pittsburgh and J’Burgh from 8:30 to 10 p.m. Full kosher meal provided (lox, bagels and so much more) at no charge. RSVP is required by Sept. 27 to attend at https://hilleljuc.wufoo.com/forms/ supei151aee35e/. Contact moishehousepgh@ gmail.com for more information. q SUNDAY, OCT. 1 Pittsburgh J-Fest on Darlington is for the teens, by the teens and will be held from noon to 3 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill. The first year of this free street festival will celebrate Jewish teens in Pittsburgh with activities like Zumba in the street, a Steelers big screen watch party outside, 100 percent kosher food, games, programming, community service and more. Contact Andrew Exler with any questions at aexler@bbyo.org. PJC
NEW LIGHT CONGREGATION 1700 Beechwood Blvd | Pittsburgh, PA 15217 | 412-421-1017 | newlightcongregation.org
Brighten Your Life!
Rabbi Jonathan Perlman
JOIN NEW LIGHT FOR THE 2017 HIGH HOLY DAYS Friendly, Egalitarian, Conservative ROSH HASHANAH SERVICES
Kehillah La La A Community for Living Judaism
Wednesday, September 20 th ................................................7:30 PM Thursday, September 21st .................................................. 8:45 AM Friday, September 22 nd....................................................... 8:45 AM
YOM KIPPUR SERVICES
Friday, September 29th - Kol Nidre ..................................6:30 PM Saturday, September 30th (includes Yizkor) .................. 8:45 AM Saturday, September 30th - Minchah/Neilah ...................5:30 PM
Newcomers Always Welcome Ticket Information: Dan Stein - 412-512-5231 Affordable Membership: Debi Salvin -724-444-6324
ADATH JESHURUN CEMETERY
HOLIDAY VISITATIONS Sunday, September 10 Sunday, September 17 Sunday, September 24
9 a.m. - 1 p.m. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. 9 a.m. - Noon
Limited Time – Plots available at $850 Grave-side prayers provided…Lovingly maintained by on-site caretaker
For more information, visit www.adathjeshuruncemeterypgh.org Questions, Reserve a Plot or Need a Ride call 412-508-0817
• • • • • • • •
Participatory and engaging High Holiday Services — At the JCC, Katz Auditorium Tiny Treasure programming for our precious TOTS — Including Jazz for Jewniors B’nai Mitzvah Training and individual tutoring Study opportunities with the Rabbi A full range of Life Cycle Events Rabbinic ‘House Calls’ Interfaith Programming Reasonable dues and much, much more…
UNAFFILATED and no where to call home?
KEHILLAH LA LA is looking for a few good members to help build this ‘sacred’ community! (No experience necessary!) Contact Rabbi Chuck at ravchuck@yahoo.com or 412.335.0298 For High Holiday Ticket information or for more details.
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SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 7
Headlines Haredi medic pioneered psychological first aid in Israel, helping in Houston — NATIONAL — By Andrew Tobin | JTA
J
ERUSALEM — Jerusalem therapist Miriam Ballin is the kind of person who takes the initiative. Despite resistance from her haredi Orthodox community, she became a medic. Then she launched a pacesetting psychological first aid unit. Clearly she was not just going to stand idly by while Tropical Storm Harvey flooded her native Houston. Last week, Ballin left her husband to watch their five young children and headed to southeast Texas, where she and six other Israeli mental health professionals helped locals cope with the flooding. Their work was guided by hard-won experience responding to local emergencies, including dozens of terrorist attacks. “I just feel it’s necessary and needed, and simply the right thing to do,” she said. “When we have 150 people who have been trained to deal with exactly this, not to send them to Houston to help out is I think wrong.” In addition to her day job as a family therapist, Ballin, 33, is the head of the Psychotrauma Unit of United Hatzalah, a mostly haredi
BETH HAMEDRASH HAGODOLBETH JACOB MEMORIAL PARK
volunteer emergency service based in Jerusalem. She spearheaded the creation of the unit last year amid a wave of Palestinian violence to provide psychological support to those experiencing potentially traumatic events. The unit’s 200 or so members include medics, psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers who are trained by some of Israel’s leading experts on the psychology of crises. They have responded to dozens of terrorist attacks, as well as forest fires, car accidents and other medical emergencies. Harvey was their first experience with flooding. For five days, the storm deluged southeast Texas, including Houston, the fourth-largest American city, with record rains. Rising floodwaters forced thousands of people from their homes and caused at least 30 deaths, according to local officials. Dov Maisel, United Hatzalah’s vice president of international operations, said the message he has received is that plenty of medical and first responders are on the ground, but that with many people displaced and looking for loved ones, psychological support is much needed. “As a small organization from a small country, we found we could make the biggest Please see Medic, page 17
of David site in Jerusalem. She is a professor of archaeology at Hebrew University.
— WORLD — PRESIDENT
Ira Michael Frank | 412.281.4064
VICE PRESIDENT AND CEMETERY CHAIRMAN
Sherman Weinstein | 412.352.5212
Rabbi Stanley J. Savage | 412.471.4443 CEMETERY CARETAKER
Robert McKivitz | 412.417.8636 100 Rosamond St. McKees Rocks, PA
Photo courtesy of Miriam Ballin
Today in Israeli history
PRE-HIGH HOLIDAY CEMETERY VISITATION Sunday, September 17, 2017 10:00 a.m. to I:30 p.m.
p Miriam Ballin poses for a photo with her baby daughter at the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem.
A Happy and Healthy Rosh Hashanah and Good Wishes to All for the Entire Year.
Items provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.
September 11, 1921 • Moshav Nahalal is founded
September 8, 2010 • Major General Israel Tal passes away
Major General Israel Tal passes away at the age of 85. Tal is best known for heading the 1970 committee that designed and developed the Israeli-made Merkava tank.
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8 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
Shimon Peres becomes Israel’s eighth Prime Minister. He moves swiftly to form a coalition government.
September 10, 1956 • Eilat Mazar is born
SENATOR
OFFICES TO SERVE YOU
September 13, 1984 • Shimon Peres becomes prime minister
After nine months of secret contacts mediated by Norwegian diplomats, the PLO and Israel recognize each other’s existence.
Jay Costa
September 12, 2009 • ‘Lebanon’ wins film award
For the first time since the award was introduced in 1949, an Israeli film, “Lebanon,” wins the Golden Lion Award at the 66th annual Venice International Film Festival.
September 9, 1993 • PLO and Israel recognize each other’s existence
New Year
Nahalal, the first moshav ha’ovdim (workers settlement), is founded in the northwest Jezreel Valley, about halfway between Haifa and Afula.
Eilat Mazar, a third-generation Israeli archaeologist, is most well known for her work at the City
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September 14, 1948 • Palmach integrates with IDF
Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion summons dozens of Palmach commanders for a conference. There he announces a plan to dismantle the elite, underground fighting unit and integrate it into the newly established Israel Defense Forces. PJC
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Headlines Former Pittsburgher and current Yeshiva students help with hurricane relief efforts
“ Sunday night we found out that 30
— NATIONAL — By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
A
lthough Rivka Fishman has been living in Houston for 20 years, she still retains her Pittsburgh connections. Apart from growing up in Pittsburgh, Fishman’s son is a graduate of Yeshiva Schools, and two of her daughters are currently enrolled at the educational center. Though the girls were slated to start school this past week, they “missed their first week from school,” because of Hurricane Harvey. “They could not get back because all of the airports were closed,” Fishman said. Much of Southwest Houston, where the Fishmans reside, has been submerged, said the former Pittsburgh resident. “Our neighborhood near Chabad was pretty much the only Jewish area that didn’t flood. We had roof leaks and water in the windows. The water came up to about 5 feet from our front door and thank God it receded.” An area “10 minutes away from our house” flooded, which is where the JCC and Federation are located, said Fishman. “Right
people were staying in a hotel. We quickly put meals together for all of them. My husband and my daughter drove and tried to find roads that
”
weren’t flooded to bring them food.
— RIVKA FISHMAN
away we knew people who needed help and reached out for help.” Fishman and her older children have been manning the hotline for Chabad Harvey Relief. Such activities have enabled them to assist scores of residents in immediate need. “Sunday night we found out that 30 people were staying in a hotel. We quickly put meals together for all of them. My husband and my daughter drove and tried to find roads that
weren’t flooded to bring them food.” Another effort involved “an older woman who refused to leave her home. She hadn’t eaten for probably 30 hours,” said Fishman. Fishman’s husband waded through “almost waist high water to bring her food.” “It is all hands-on back here,” said Fishman. For example, one of Fishman’s daughters “planned and ran a camp for about 50 kids — either whose houses flooded or whose
parents were working on other relief efforts.” In another demonstration of communal support, “our entire community emptied their freezers and stashes on Sunday and Monday,” and cooked everything that they could find. The meals were then delivered to those lacking access to food. “We just cooked anything we had, we cooked rice, we cooked potatoes; whatever we had we prepared and we sent it.” Apart from working with Chabad Harvey Relief, Fishman is part of a whatsapp group of 24 people who are coordinating relief efforts in the Houston area. “The amount of help that is coming out of such a small group is crazy. “We had teams of people, my daughter included, who cooked as of Wednesday 600 meals. “We coordinated a bake day that first day. We stocked the freezer with pastries and challah rolls,” Fishman said. “We didn’t know how we were going to get it all done, we still don’t know. God got us into this and He’ll get us out.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
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SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 9
Murray Avenue Kosher Headlines 1916 MURRAY AVENUE 412-421-1015 • 412-421-4450 • FAX 412-421-4451 PRICES EFFECTIVE SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 - FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017
— WORLD —
Candle Lighting Time Friday, September 8, 2017 • 7:22 p.m. MEAT SPECIALS
Rokeach Shabbos Candles
6
$
09
Rice • Salad
3
Serves 4
$28.99
43.99
$
TUESDAY DINNER SPECIAL
2.75 OZ
39
1 Kugel • 2 Pints Salad • 2 Mini Challahs
Serves 4
Pereg Bread Crumbs $
2 Roasted Chickens 1 Qt. Chicken Soup 4 Matzo Balls
Chicken Paprikash
Goodman’s Onion Soup Mix
1
SHABBOS SPECIAL
MONDAY DINNER SPECIAL
72 CT BOX
$ 89
From JTA reports
TAKE-OUT SPECIALS
STORE HOURS Sun. • 8 a.m.- 6 p.m. Mon.- Wed. • 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. Thurs. • 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. Fri. • 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Ziti with Meat Sauce Salad • Garlic Bread
Serves 4
$27.99
9 OZ
WEEKLY SPECIALS
VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP $ 59
9
.
QT
U
EMPIRE HONEY SMK TURKEY BREAST $ 75
7
.
LB
MOUSSAKA
899 LB
$
STUFFED CHICKEN LEGS $ 89
6
.
MEAL MART TURKEY ROLL $ 59
7
.
LB
.
.
6
LB
SPANISH EGGPLANT $ 25
6
APPLE CRANBERRY CRUMBLE $ 09 . LB KRINOS ZESTY GARLIC OLIVES $ 99
5
LB
.
LB
We are now taking your Holiday meat and poultry orders: 412-421-1015. APPETIZERS Chopped Liver Gefilte Fish Teriyaki Salmon
SOUP Chicken Broth Mushroom Barley Chicken Noodle Matzo Balls Kreplach
ENTREES BEEF Whole Cooked Beef Brisket Single Cooked Beef Brisket Stuffed Cabbage CHICKEN Whole Roast Chicken Sherry Mushroom Boneless Breast Chicken Roast Chicken Legs Roast Chicken Breast Stuffed Boneless Chicken Breast Honey Mustard Glazed Leg Honey Mustard Glazed Breast
KUGELS Potato Kugel Noodle Kugel Apple Kugel Broccoli & Cauliflower Kugel Zucchini Kugel
TURKEY Roast Turkey Leg Roast Turkey Breast Whole Roast Turkey with Stuffing
SIDE DISHES Kasha & Bows Carrot & Prune Tzimmes Candied Sweet Potatoes Bread Stuffing Farfel & Mushrooms Wild Rice w/Cranberries 4X6 SMALL • SERVES 4 9X12 1/2 STEAM • SERVES 15 9X16 FULL STEAM • SERVES 40
Orders for cooked foods must be placed by Friday, September 15th and picked on Tuesday, September 19th, or Wednesday, September 20th.
TO OUR VALUED CUSTOMERS WE WISH YOU A HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR. HOMEMADE SALADS & SOUPS DELI PARTY TRAYS
We Prepare Trays for All Occasions UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF VAAD OF PITTSBURGH
10 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
CATERING SPECIALISTS DELICIOUS FRIED CHICKEN WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO LIMIT QUANTITIES.
Court: Gov’t. must reinstate Western Wall deal or explain why it won’t Israel’s Supreme Court has ordered the government to either reinstate the Western Wall agreement with non-Orthodox groups or explain why it should not force the state to honor the deal. “One can’t help but ask ‘What exactly happened here?’” Chief Justice Miriam Naor said at a hearing last week. “There was an agreement, they were working on it. But then the government came and said there isn’t one. It raises some questions.” The hearing was in answer to a petition filed by the liberal Jewish movements in Israel and the Women of the Wall calling for the implementation of the agreement to expand and upgrade the egalitarian prayer section at the southern end of the Western Wall. The agreement puts the upgraded section on equal footing with the single-sex sections; it would be run by a special committee with no input from the Chief Rabbinate. In June, the Cabinet suspended the deal passed in 2016 negotiated by the Reform and Conservative movements, the Women of the Wall, the Jewish Ag the Israeli government. The government’s ency for Israel and haredi Orthodox coalition partners pressured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to scrap the agreement. The government has said it plans to go forward with the expansion of the egalitarian section despite the freeze. “The court sent a clear message to the government that it is their responsibility to reconsider their position about freezing the Western Wall agreement,” Rabbi Gilad Kariv, executive director of the Reform movement in Israel, said in a statement. “We continue to be committed to the compromise and hope that the Prime Minister will understand the message of the Supreme Court judges.” Women of the Wall chair Anat Hoffman said, “As we were negotiating the agreement we felt at times that we were making history. Today proved that feeling to be right. That feeling proved itself right today. The Agreement is the guiding light in the Court’s path to a just solution to the Kotel dispute.” Israel’s Chief Rabbinate said in a brief filed with the Supreme Court that the court lacks the jurisdiction to rule on the “intrareligious” struggle involving egalitarian prayer at the Western Wall. Iran is adhering to nuclear deal limits, inspectors say The International Atomic Energy Agency reported that it found no evidence that Iran is breaching the 2015 nuclear agreement. A report released Aug. 31, the second anniversary of the deal, said that Iran’s supply of uranium fuel and heavy water were well within the allowed limits of the agreement reached with the United States and five other world powers, according to The New York Times. President Donald Trump has indicated that he would like to scrap the agreement, which traded sanctions relief for brakes on Iran’s nuclear program. Two weeks ago, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations,
PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE
Nikki Haley, met with IAEA officials and pressed them to be more aggressive in their inspections, according to reports. Haley issued a statement suggesting that the administration would push for inspections of Iranian military sites, which Iran has declared off-limits and the IAEA has been hesitant to demand. “If inspections of Iranian military sites are ‘merely a dream,’ as Iran says, then Iranian compliance with the JCPOA is also a dream,” she said. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the formal name for the Iran deal. Stoudemire will not return for second season with Israeli team Amar’e Stoudemire announced that he will not be rejoining Hapoel Jerusalem to play a second season. The 34-year-old former NBA All-Star did not indicate in his Instagram post Sept. 1 what his exact plans are for the upcoming basketball season, but he said he will become a shareholder in the Israeli team again. “Although I would have liked to return for another season, the team, coach and I could not find a role that I felt would allow me to meaningfully contribute in the way I have always been accustomed to play,” Stoudemire wrote. “I feel it is my time now to return to the shareholder’s position and help make this team even better.” Although he noted in his post that the team with his help won Israeli championships and reached the semifinals of the EuroCup tournament, the past season was at times tumultuous for the star forward. The Israeli media reported that he had a rocky relationship with the Hapoel Jerusalem coach and his son was barred from playing on a local team because he is not an Israeli citizen. He also had to apologize for making a joke about what he would do if he had a gay teammate. In June, Stoudemire said a return to the NBA for a team that needs “quality veteran leadership” was an “option” for him. Stoudemire identifies with the Hebrew Israelites, African-Americans who believe they are connected to the biblical Israelites. Holocaust survivor celebrates bar mitzvah 80 years late Better late than never, right? A 93-year-old Holocaust survivor celebrated his bar mitzvah in the Israeli city of Haifa a mere 80 years after he was supposed to have the coming-of-age rite. But Shalom Shtanberg, whose ceremony was Aug. 31, was living in the Warsaw Ghetto when he was 13, Reuters reported. Unlike most of his family, he survived the Holocaust. His skills as an electrician made him a valuable worker. “In the beginning I did not speak,” Shtanberg told Reuters of his time in the Warsaw Ghetto. “I said and told nothing because I stayed a child, aged 13, 14, and [living in the] Warsaw Ghetto was extremely difficult, every day.” Local police officers brought Shtanberg and his wife to a synagogue in Haifa, where he was greeted by a cheering crowd. As a video on Ynet News shows, Shtanberg had quite the time dancing at the ceremony after reading his Torah portion. Last year, the then-oldest man in the world, 113-year-old Yisrael Kristal, celebrated the bar mitzvah he never had 100 years late. Kristal passed away last month. PJC
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James and Rachel Levinson Day Camp Noar and Bogrim Travel Camps Performing Arts Camp For information: Lewis Sohinki lsohinki@jccpgh.org 412-697-3520 To register: Ethan Copperman ecopperman@jccpgh.org 412-697-3540
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Emma Kaufmann Camp For information: Rachael Speck rspeck@jccpgh.org 412-697-3539 To register: Stephanie Buzza sbuzza@jccpgh.org 412-697-3550.
SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 11
Opinion How to help Houston — EDITORIAL —
T
he size and devastation of Hurricane Harvey came as a surprise. The scenes of catastrophic flooding were barely comprehensible as one of the nation’s largest cities appeared to sink beneath unrelenting rainfall. Four feet of rain fell on Houston, the greatest amount of precipitation from a tropical system in the continental United States. Houston is home to some 63,700 Jews. According to the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston, 71 percent of the community lives in areas that have experienced high flooding. That includes 12,000 seniors. The water that submerged the city significantly flooded three of Houston’s five major synagogues, and the Evelyn Rubinstein Jewish Community Center of Houston, the city’s only JCC, was flooded with 10 feet of water. Jewish schools remain closed, with some experiencing major flooding. It may take years to recover. If the severity of the storm was a surprise, the immediate response of assistance and
The umbrella Jewish Federations of North America’s Emergency Committee is working with local federations to aid recovery and ensure that urgent needs are met, with priority given to Houston’s Jewish community. compassion from the rest of the country was not. The Jewish community is no exception. In the Houston area, local Jewish camps are housing refugees forced to evacuate their homes, and the Israeli humanitarian group IsraAID is coordinating an aid campaign, including sending volunteers to Houston. Local Jewish federations quickly set up relief funds to take donations from the public. The umbrella Jewish Federations of
North America’s Emergency Committee is working with local federations to aid recovery and ensure that urgent needs are met, with priority given to Houston’s Jewish community. To that end, the organization announced late last week the approval of a first grant of $500,000 to assist displaced families and to help repair the estimated 1,000 homes in the Jewish community that sustained severe damage.
The Jewish religious movements have their own relief initiatives, as does B’nai B’rith international. Chabad has mobilized forces, sending personnel and supplies to Houston. And the Rabbinical Council of America and Orthodox Union, in addition to raising funds, are organizing volunteers to recite psalms. Once the area is safe for volunteers, the Nechama relief organization is planning to spend at least six months in the cleanup effort, and is looking for volunteers who aren’t afraid to get dirty. What the soaked and shell shocked residents of the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country need most right now is money and plastic — gift cards from major national retailers that residents can use to buy clothing, toiletries, household items and school supplies. We wish those hit so hard in Houston a swift and complete recovery and urge our readers to assist in any way they can. As Rabbi David Lyon of Congregation Beth Israel in Houston wrote: “Hurt has no shame and no label; we just need to heal one another.” PJC
Victimhood no longer defines us Guest Columnist Mitchell S. Bober
I
n the wake of recent events in Charlottesville and with the backdrop of growing protests and demonstrations against discrimination and injustice, many American Jews are asking themselves whether they too should have a place in this social justice queue. After all, doesn’t the current climate of anti-Semitism represent a pervasive threat to our civil liberty as well, an alarm to be sounded alongside those of other self-identified victims in the struggle for justice, peace and equality? The answer to this question is No. For while standing up for these principles is indeed a duty that belongs to all of us, we need not include ourselves among the victims in this struggle. Because we aren’t. While this view may be unpopular among those clamoring for their share of de rigueur victimhood status, the reality is that Jews in the United States and around the world have never been more blessed. We have known the face of oppression and victimization. It was our face. But it is no longer, and we owe it to ourselves and to the memory of those who lived through those horrors to never forget this. After 2,000 years of persecution during which interludes of peace and tranquility amounted to mere respites among centuries of deadly pogroms and state-sponsored violence, Jews for too long knew the pall of struggle and tragedy. Today, these visions are known only through history books. Through the creation of an independent Jewish state in 1948, and as a result of the innumer-
12 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
Today, we are visibly represented in legislatures, judiciaries and governing bodies in the most powerful countries in the world and enjoy prominent positions of leadership and trust in every facet of modern life. able sacrifices made during courageously defended wars in the quarter century that followed, a generation of Israelis and Jews around the world have grown up never having to ponder the kind of existential questions of survival that plagued previous generations for millennia. For a scant 50 years following the emergence of Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor in the 1960s and victory in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Jews have been conferred with the blessing of an independent state capable of defending itself from all enemies. And while these last 50 years may have been long enough to allow a people to largely forget what it feels like to pray on a daily basis for one’s very survival, in reality it represents but a precious sliver of time: a mere 2 percent of the Common Era. Five precious decades among a thousand-year period in which an estimated one out of every two Jews born into the world was murdered. Today, we are visibly represented in legislatures, judiciaries and governing bodies in the most powerful countries in the world and enjoy prominent positions of leadership and trust in every facet of modern life. In every industrialized country on Earth, Jews are free
to practice their faith openly, proudly and without fear. And notwithstanding a recent spate of highly publicized and disturbing acts of anti-Semitic vandalism, statistics published by the Anti-Defamation League confirm that Jews living in the United States are far more likely to be struck by lightning than to hear about — much less personally experience — an act of anti-Semitic violence. Indeed, according to the ADL’s most recent statistics, our country has seen a downward trend in this regard in recent years: 56 assaults in 2015; 36 in 2016; only six in the first quarter of 2017. Acts of anti-Semitism in our children’s schools are also, thankfully, exceedingly rare: 235 events reported nationwide in 2016 according to the ADL, comprised almost entirely of acts of graffiti and name calling. In virtually every instance, these incidents triggered swift, resolute and effective responses by school administrators and educators, consistent with districtwide educational programs and zero tolerance protocols mandating diversity, inclusion and sensitivity training. Where Jews were once forced to live under the tyranny of openly anti-Semitic leaders
PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE
and laws, today such views are extinct among mainstream political discourse, with political wrath and condemnation now being reserved for politicians and leaders who fail to denounce such views fast enough. Hate groups such as the KKK, whose membership once numbered in the millions, today comprise between 5,000 and 8,000 individuals nationwide according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, existing solely on the outermost fringes of society, and wielding no discernable power or influence on our daily lives. Indeed, as recent events have shown, whatever limited exposure these groups do receive remains largely a function of the vocal and vociferous community opposition being expressed to them. So, as we examine our standing in the current social-political landscape, rather than viewing recent instances of anti-Semitism as symptoms of our victimization, let’s instead pause to consider the speed in which these acts are now condemned, in striking contrast to the many centuries in which unspeakable acts of violence were routinely committed against Jews with nary an eyebrow being raised. Such days must never be allowed to return, so it remains incumbent upon us all to combat anti-Semitism wherever it exists and always endeavor to protect and defend the civil rights of every citizen regardless of their race, religion, gender or sexual preference. These are, after all, quintessentially Jewish values. But as we wage this important campaign, let us resist the urge to include ourselves among the “oppressed” or “victimized.” Baruch Hashem, thank G-d, those titles no longer apply. PJC Mitchell S. Bober is an attorney and an adjunct professor at the University of Pittsburgh.
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Opinion From Rome to Charlottesville, a statue is never just a statue Guest Columnist Steven Fine
F
rench historian Pierre Nora spent his life describing and explaining “places of memory,” sites commemorating significant moments in the history of a community that continue to resonate and transform from generation to generation. For the French Republic, the Arc de Triomphe is one such “place of memory.” Begun by Napoleon and completed in 1836, the Arc is a place of French pride and memory, where war dead from the Revolution to the present are recalled and military triumph exalted. Part of the power of this central place of memory resides in the architecture itself. The Arc de Triomphe is a larger version of another triumphal arch, the Arch of Titus. This arch, located on the Sacred Way in the ancient center of Imperial Rome, commemorates the victory of the Roman general Titus in the Jewish War of 66-74 C.E. Built circa 82 C.E., its deeply carved reliefs show the general, soon emperor, parading through Rome in a triumphal procession. The spoils of the Jerusalem Temple, including its menorah, are borne aloft by Roman soldiers. Napoleon and those who came after him borrowed the design of this Roman triumphal arch, transferring the glory of Rome to the French nation. Subsequent events have complicated the meaning of the arch, which was intended to commemorate French military prowess. French victory in World War II, for example, was hardly unequivocal. Hitler did, after all, celebrate his own victory there, and France
did not exactly emerge victorious by its own power. One of the more enduring photographs of the liberation shows American troops marching under the arch. The Arch of Titus, too, is a complex monument whose meaning shifted over time. Titus had not defeated a foreign power but put down a pesky rebellion by a small province. For Christians, the Arch became a place to celebrate Christian triumph over Judaism and the imperial power of the Catholic Church. For Jews, the arch was a symbol for their own defeat and exile, even as some took solace by claiming that its magnificence was proof that Israel had once been a “powerful nation” and formidable foe. In modern times, the Arch of Titus became a symbol both of newfound Jewish rootedness in Europe and a place of pilgrimage where Jews, religious and not, could proclaim, “Titus you are gone, but we’re still here. Am Yisrael Chai.” Or as Freud put it, “The Jew survives it!” Where once Mussolini had celebrated the Arch as part of the heritage of fascism, Jews after the war assembled there to demand a Jewish state. Others imagined exploding the Arch and thus taking final retribution against Titus for his destruction of Jerusalem. Instead, the State of Israel took the Arch back unto itself, basing the design for its state symbol on the menorah carved into its surface. I tell these stories of Paris, Rome and Jerusalem as parallels to debate that has been intensified following the horrible events in Charlottesville. The sculptural tributes to the Civil War, North and South, are still living places of memory. Whether in the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in Brooklyn, also modeled on the Arch of Titus, or in the thousands of statues across America, the Civil War is very much with us. Each place and time since then has thought
about and reimagined the war — “The War of the Rebellion,” to many Northerners, “The War of Northern Aggression” to some in the South — in complex and differing ways. The meanings of these places of memory are not stable. They shift and transform as essential elements of our social fabric and civil religion from generation to generation. Conflicting visions often inhere in the same sculpture, much as Jews and Classicists often “see” very different messages in the Arch of Titus. In a pre-civil rights era, a statue of a Confederate general was seen by many as a tribute to military bravery and regional loyalty. Today the tide has shifted, and a consensus regards them as reminders of a racist past and an ignoble cause. Tearing down a place of memory is a serious matter. The act of iconoclasm, of tearing down or transforming a place of memory, is never neutral. The list of such events is long and includes the Maccabees’ destruction of idols in the second century BCE; the midrashic account of Abraham breaking the idols; late antique Christians and Muslims smashing Roman religious images (and burning synagogues); Orthodox Christian iconophobes destroying sacred icons during the eighth century; Protestants ravaging Church art during the Reformation; Nazis torching synagogues during Kristallnacht; the Taliban destroying giant sculptures of the Buddha; or Eastern Europeans tearing down sculptures of Lenin and Stalin after the fall of communism. Such transformations of our visual cultures mark major transitions and often culture wars. They are attempts to change our memory by obliterating or shifting what we see and expect on our social landscapes, to change how we relate to our places of memory. The ceremonial — the liminal — moment of removing a place of memory is always
laden and significant. It is a shorthand, a summary statement and dramatic enactment of the ways that those present understand the place and encode its memory. The march of the neo-Nazis, the texts they recited, the torches and flags they carried, and the violence they instigated are essential to understanding who these people are and what values they see in the statue of Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville. Reading this event, one can tease out their entire worldview — and it is horrifying. In the meantime, each community and locale will act and respond as we play out this distressing drama and rehearse the repercussions of this tragedy in our lives. Some Confederate statues will come down — as in Baltimore and at the University of Texas, Austin. Some will be contextualized or moved. Others, alas, will be left undisturbed and continue looking down on us contemptuously. These once mostly forgotten monuments are again potent and complex places of memory. Faced with similar provocations, Talmudic rabbis would avert their eyes from Roman imperial sculpture, placed in the cities of ancient Israel as tools of control. Some would spit in their imperial faces. When they could, others would tear down the statues of the hated emperors and their colonial regime. In modern times, Jews avoided walking beneath the Arch of the Evil Titus. Charlottesville is now a place of bloodshed. Perhaps it will begin to heal once the statue of Lee comes down. Nevertheless, the statue will continue to cast a shadow for decades, perhaps centuries, to come. PJC Steven Fine is the Churgin professor of Jewish history and director of the Center for Israel Studies at Yeshiva University. He is director of the Arch of Titus Project.
— LETTERS — The height of chutzpah It was disconnecting and ironic to find a large and credulous article about J Street featured in the Sept. 1 Chronicle. It isn’t often that one finds a group touting itself as “a voice of conscience in the community” and twice lecturing the community on “core Jewish values.” One wonders how an organization that is supported by George Soros has the temerity to invoke such concepts. J Street’s website has nothing to say about Rasmeah Odeh, the convicted terrorist, or Linda Sarsour and her ilk, proressives who exclude pro-Israel Jews from the movements that incredibly have granted them places of power and approval. Evidently, J Street’s “core Jewish value” has no place for Jews who don’t hold to its extreme view of what Jews may support in terms of Israel’s policies and values What J Street has been is a voice for vigorously supporting the Iranian nuclear agreement, even if a significant number of its fellow Jews in Israel find it dangerous. What “core Jewish value” would that be? J Street is disingenuous when it presents itself as a legitimate supporter of Israel. And it’s the height of chutzpah for it to assume the mantle of representing of “core Jewish values.” Ann Sheckter Powell Pittsburgh We invite you to submit letters for publication. Letters must include name, address and daytime phone number; addresses and phone numbers will not be published. Letters may not exceed 500 words and may be edited for length and clarity; they cannot be returned. Mail, fax or email letters to: Letters to the editor via email: letters@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org Address & Fax: The Jewish Chronicle, 5915 Beacon St., 5th Flr. Pittsburgh, PA 15217 Fax 412-521-0154 Website address: pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
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SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 13
Life & Culture After Conan, new Israeli hotel aims to make Sea of Galilee luxury destination — TRAVEL — By Andrew Tobin | JTA
S
EA OF GALILEE, Golan Heights — Conan O’Brien is checking in this week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already been a guest. So have celebrity TV show hosts Assi Azar and Rotem Sela. “There’s nothing else close to this hotel on the Kinneret,” said Roger Attias, the Setai Sea of Galilee’s project manager, using the Hebrew name for the lake. “It’s going to be No. 1 in Israel.” Since its “soft opening” in June, the $250-million Setai has put a new sheen on the low-key Sea of Galilee. Both the hotel’s supporters and detractors expect the hotel to help transform the area by bringing in wealthy tourists like O’Brien, who is staying while filming a special Israel episode of his TBS talk show. The Setai, which means “south beach” in Thai, stretches along 15 acres of remote lakeside like a modern hut village. Its dozens of white wood and glass buildings are connected by winding walkways lined with grass and palm trees. At the center of the complex, sunbathers lounge around an edgeless pool with a sweeping view of the lake. Other guests feast on fine cuts of meat in the dining room, sip top shelf cocktails in the lounge or indulge in hot stone massages in the spa. Back in their rooms, some slide into personal edgeless pools, each with a slightly different view of the lake. According to Attias, the Setai was a “dream project” for the Israeli-American Nakash brothers, who brought the brand to the Sea of Galilee from Miami, where they own the flagship hotel in an art deco tower on the beach. He said they envision the project as an investment in Israel. “They wanted to build something that will
stand for a generation,” Attias said. “Nobody else would have thought to do something like this here, on this end of the lake.” Although a major tourist destination, the Sea of Galilee area offers little that could be considered high end, or even stylish. Most visitors stay in the biggest city, Tiberias, a working-class community of around 40,000. Others, especially Israeli vacationers, opt for bed-and-breakfasts or guesthouses in the local kibbutzim and villages. Some camp and barbecue at the public parks on the shore. The major draws are the religious and archaeological sites and outdoor activities, especially water sports on the lake that Jesus is said to have walked on. Despite its particularly remote location on the opposite side of the lake from Tiberias, in the Golan Heights, which Israel de facto annexed from Syria, the Setai is already attracting new, high-end tourism. Its 110 rooms, which cost approximately $500 to $900 a night, have been sold out for much of the summer and are filling up for the High Holidays. Many of the guests, some 80 percent of whom are Israeli, come to the hotel despite turning up their noses at northern Israel, Attias said. “These people love the lake, but they don’t come to the Kinneret for vacation. They think it’s tents and karaoke on the beach — or Tiberias, which unfortunately has a stigma,” he said. The owner of a tennis school in Tel Aviv who was at the hotel with his wife and three young children last week said his family opted to come to the Setai over a trip to Europe. Last summer they vacationed in Vienna, Austria. Asking not to be identified to protect his privacy, he said his children loved the Sea of Galilee, but the public parks on the shore were “too loud.” “There’s no other place like this in the North,” he said approvingly, despite some complaints about the lack of amenities on the beach. “We Please see Hotel, page 16
p A woman sunbathes at the Setai hotel on the shore of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. Photo by Andrew Tobin
14 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
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Headlines Please see Meeting, page 1
must remain relevant by understanding and keeping ahead of these trends, and by shifting its own way of doing business.” A slight distraction took place at the beginning of the event. Some representatives from IfNotNow, which has targeted Jewish federations across the country, attempted to disrupt the annual get-together. Their efforts were swiftly met with a dismissal from the building, and a group of roughly 15 protesters positioned themselves on the corner of Murray Avenue and Darlington Road. Many attendees didn’t even notice the disruption. Inside, Shapira had the honor of introducing the night’s awardees. Given its more than 100 years of existence, the Federation, she said, has learned that its “achievements are possible only because we have dedicated community members, passionate leaders and generous donors.” Within this group, several notable volunteers were singled out for recognition through the Federation’s Volunteer of the Year program. Nominated by local Jewish nonprofits, these individuals have “devoted significant time and energy to the nominating organization, served in a variety of capacities within the organization and demonstrated dedication to Pittsburgh’s Jewish community as a whole,” according to the Federation. “Volunteering is something that makes me feel good,” said Alex Speck, who was nominated by the Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh. There is a realization that occurs through volunteering by seeing how much “the people and the organizations we work with” get out of it. Joining Speck, nearly 40 other volunteers
“ Chuck [Perlow’s] many years of service to the Federation and the Jewish community reflect two of his biggest passions: Jewish continuity
”
and Jewish learning.
— CINDY SHAPIRA, FEDERATION BOARD CHAIR were celebrated for their dedication to the community. A booklet providing photos and bios of volunteers was available at the Aug. 31 evening meeting. In addition to the volunteers, Chuck Perlow and Alexis Winsten Mancuso were feted with Federation awards. For his “exemplary service to the community,” Perlow, a local philanthropist and business leader, was given the Emanuel Spector Memorial Award. “This is our Federation’s most prestigious volunteer-leadership award, and there couldn’t be a more deserving recipient than Chuck Perlow,” said Shapira. “Chuck’s many years of service to the Federation and the Jewish community reflect two of his biggest passions: Jewish continuity and Jewish learning.” “I am so blessed,” said Perlow, before adding that no matter what he returns to Federation and the Jewish community of Pittsburgh, it “could never repay what I’ve been given.” Mancuso, who received the Doris &
Leonard H. Rudolph Jewish Communal Professional Award, described her journey from teenage user of the JCC to eventual adult employee. “The JCC was a place that was really important in my life, and I found my way back when I needed them most,” she said. Mancuso is responsible for the JCC’s human resource management as well as oversight of services to older adults, including the AgeWell Pittsburgh program. Receiving such recognition is “incredibly humbling,” she said. “I have watched as professionals in the community have received this award.” Those people were “icons. This is the most humbling honor I can think of in my 20 years as a professional.” In an interview prior to the annual meeting, Meryl Ainsman, incoming chair of Federation’s board, spoke of challenges that lie ahead. “As the central address for the local Jewish community, I think it’s very important that
Apples: Continued from page 1
If you’re looking to pick apples now, there’s “Ginger Gold, Gala, Honeycrisp and Fuji,” said Valerie Kirkman of Triple B Farms in Monongahela. But for those willing to wait, they’ll have “six or seven more varieties of apples to come.” As for when those apples will be ready for plucking, it “depends on ripening and weather, and the weather is horribly unpredictable.” Regardless of what you pick or prefer, there are “different apples for different purposes,” said Kirkman. “If I were dipping it in honey, I would go with a Mutsu or Suncrisp,” both of which will soon be available for picking at Triple B. And as for the traditional Rosh Hashanah accompaniment, “we have our own hives, and we extract the honey.” Currently available for purchase at Triple B is strawberry honey, raspberry honey, peach honey, blueberry honey, orange honey, honey mixed with nuts, honey mixed with herbs and also raw honey, said Kirkman. While apples dipped in honey are quite the norm, other holiday additions may take the cake (so to speak). In the coming weeks, Linda Joshowitz plans on making apples and honey challah. “I make it every year,” said the Squirrel Hill resident. Deb Scheimer, a frequenter of Beth El
p Golden Delicious and Empire apples are cause for celebration.
Photos by Francis M. Squires
Congregation in the South Hills, shared her recipe for making apple kugel. “It’s a very basic recipe,” she said. “I got it from my mother and have been making it for 30 years, and of course Deb Scheimer’s apple kugel
Serves: 12-16 Ingredients: 1 pound wide noodles 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced thin 1/2 cup golden raisins 6 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup sugar and extra for sprinkling 1/3 cup and about 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 1 teaspoon cinnamon
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my mother made it for years before that.” Maxine Kisilinsky, of Squirrel Hill, similarly plans on making apple chocolate chip cake with a recipe that she received from a Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil noodles in 4 quarts of rapidly boiling salted water until al dente according to package directions (about 10 minutes). Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Put about 2 tablespoons oil in 9-by-13-inch baking pan and place in oven. Combine eggs, sugar, cinnamon, 1/3 cup oil, and vanilla in a large bowl. Stir in raisins and sliced apples. Add noodles and mix until all is combined. Remove
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we respond to and deal with the ramification of negative events that may occur both locally as well as around the world,” said Ainsman. Shapira, likewise, kept an eye on the future in her departing charge to the organization and its supporters. “We need to recognize that seismic changes have taken place,” Shapira said. “Young Jews affiliate less with legacy organizations and synagogues; they exhibit, in general, weaker loyalties to Israel and organized religion. “Although I believe more has to be done — and we need to move faster — I applaud the efforts we’ve started in focusing on how we’re approaching young adult engagement on a grand scale,” she added. “Let’s move this initiative forward, as well as the work begun last year to really examine our business model and bring it into the 21st century, so that our niche remains relevant and our promise for our community fulfilled.” While that charge will now largely rest on Ainsman’s shoulders, it is a task that she has been prepping for nearly three decades. Accepting the two-year position of chair of the board is “a culmination of about 30 years of volunteer work at the Federation,” said Ainsman, who has previously served as a campaign chair, community building chair, planning and funding chair and Partnership2Gether co-chair at Federation. Accepting the new role represents a “culmination of many, many years of doing many different roles both in the planning and the fundraising arm of the Federation, and I feel really poised in this point of my volunteering career to take on this major responsibility.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
friend; however, another mix recently caught Kisilinsky’s attention. “Just saw this,” she said, while referencing the ingredients, instructions and notes for caramel apple sangria. With so many apples and recipes to choose from, this time of year could make you want to climb a tree. Something to keep in mind though is that if you are going to cut your apples for later serving, best go with Golden Delicious, said Simmons. “Golden Delicious will keep its color for several hours after being cut,” she explained. “It’s nice for salads or other types of dipping.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org. pan with oil from oven and swirl oil gently so it covers bottom of pan. Pour noodle mixture into hot pan (using a hot pan prevents the kugel from sticking to the pan) and compress slightly with the back of a spatula or spoon. Sprinkle kugel with additional sugar and bake for 1 hour or until nicely browned. Note: I combine the egg mixture with the raisins before I slice the apples. I then stir the apples into the egg mixture as I slice them so that they don’t brown. PJC SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 15
Hotel: Continued from page 14
didn’t want something with all the people. We wanted to pay more to have more things.” Lucy Castro and her husband traveled to the Setai from London, where they live when not in their native Paris. They made the trip because they had been impressed by a previous stay at the Setai in Miami. Although they had some issues with the service and the food, they were awed by the new Setai’s “magnifique” view and accommodations. “The Setai in Miami is more elegant than this one, but they are making progress,” Castro said. Attias said the Setai would not reach its full luxurious potential until the end of next year. A conference center and 47 new rooms with private pools and lake views are under construction, and the hotel has yet to win oversight of the beach it sits on. When that
happens, Attias said, there are plans to bring in white sand, a helipad, a seaplane dock and facilities for windsurfing and parasailing. In the meantime, Attias said, his main focus — and biggest challenge — has been training the hotel’s 180 employees, who mostly come from small local communities and are unfamiliar with the standards of world-class customer service. “We have a big problem with getting all the staff to say hello to the guests,” he said. “I tell them, say good morning. What does it cost you?” But he is optimistic. “The service here can be even better than in the Setai in Miami,” he said. “You know why? Because my people aren’t robots. They have feelings. It’s not going to be easy, but it will happen.” Beyond the employment it offers, government officials hope the Setai will boost economic growth across the Galilee. The
region has long had relatively high unemployment, poverty and low wages. Outside of Tiberias, the residents — about half of whom are Arab — live in kibbutzim and villages. Tiberias Mayor Yosef Ben David said the Setai is “a beautiful part of a coming change.” While the hotel is outside his municipal boundaries, he noted that four other luxury hotels are under construction in Tiberias and the Galilee. He said he is working with local and national officials to expand the kinds of tourism in the Galilee. “Even though the Setia isn’t paying taxes to me, I’m very happy about it,” he said. “After two decades of economic stagnation, this is the start of a new dawn. It’s only the first hotel like this. We’re going to encourage more and more.” Some locals have pushed back against the development of their area. During the Setai’s construction, which started in 2010, protesters repeatedly gathered on the beach to demand it be preserved as a
natural habitat and well-known kite surfing spot. Compromises were reached eventually, including allowing continued public access. Campers have been known to pitch a tent directly in front of the hotel’s swimming pool. Yotam Stienberg, a resident of the nearby Maagan kibbutz who is engaged to marry the Setai’s public relations director, said he expects more of the Sea of Galilee shoreline to be developed in the coming years. While he knows that could affect the laid-back local lifestyle, he has seen bigger changes in the past three decades — like the end of communal childrearing on his kibbutz and when its dining hall was turned into an office for an insurance company. More development could be good for his myriad family businesses, which include a pizza restaurant, a bicycle rental service and a maintenance company. Plus, Stienberg said, “It gets boring around here sometimes.” PJC
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Headlines WVU dining services expand kosher dining — LOCAL —
W
est Virginia University will have access to a wider variety of kosher meals thanks to a new campus partnership with the Rohr Chabad Jewish Center. The partnership will give students, faculty, staff and guests greater access to kosher items at three locations on the Evansdale campus. In addition, students with WVU
Hadassah: Continued from page 3
developing — leaders who are now chairing boards of directors for all kinds of both Jewish and secular charitable organizations in Pittsburgh,” observed Adam Hertzman, director of marketing at the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and a third-generation life member of the organization. These days, membership in Hadassah’s Pittsburgh region is around 3,500 people, said Meyers. “Like many other women’s organizations, Hadassah has had to change with society. We don’t look exactly the way we did 100 years ago. ... The way we connect today is different
Dining Plans will be able to use their plans at the Chabad Jewish Center’s weekly lunches and dinners, regardless of religious observance. Drew and Rhea Shervan of Las Vegas, parents of WVU senior Brittany Shervan, funded the project. Drew is the CEO of Desert Kitchens Las Vegas, and donated the funds, equipment, and time to personally oversee the project. Visit WVUkosher. com or facebook.com/wvukosher for more information. PJC with emails and other electronic means, but the need to know you are connecting with others who share your value systems and concerns is something that you will always need.” The organization’s foundation remains sturdy, said Jeff Finkelstein, president and CEO of the Federation. “Even a century ago when discrimination against women was rampant, women leaders in Pittsburgh played a critical role in supporting the most vulnerable communities and in supporting Israel,” he said. “Pittsburgh’s Hadassah women were and continue to be an important part of that support.” PJC Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz @pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
Medic: Continued from page 8
impact by mobilizing our Psychotrauma Unit,” Maisel said. “The provision of psychological support in the acute stages of trauma, from incident to seven days, is something we’re leading the world in.” Ballin and her six team members, all drawn from the Psychotrauma Unit, met in Dallas before making their way to Houston. They will coordinate with the local and federal officials on the ground there, as well as leaders of the Jewish community, which has been especially hard hit. If more help is needed, a couple dozen more members of the Psychotrauma Unit can be deployed from Israel. American Jewish donors, many of them based in Houston, are funding the trip. Ballin’s group won’t be the only Israeli rescue workers in Houston. Ten members of the IsraAID nongovernmental organization were meeting in the city to focus on relief work. For Ballin, the effort is personal. She was born and raised in Houston’s Reform Jewish community and still has family and friends there. But she has since taken a very different path. After becoming more observant in high school, she met and married an Australian haredi man while she was attending college in New York. They immigrated to Israel in 2011. Soon thereafter, while earning a certif-
icate in family therapy from Bar-Ilan University, Ballin became the first woman medic for United Hatzalah, whose leadership she said embraced her ambition. The service now has over 150 female volunteers. However, not everyone in the haredi community, where religious observance is strict and men and women have sharply delineated roles, was supportive. “We definitely did get a lot of flak from the rabbis,” Ballin recalled. “But the way that I went about it and I dealt with it was showing time and time again the sensitivity to those that it doesn’t kind of sit well with. For example, I would never go to a call in the middle of [the haredi neighborhood] Mea Shearim.” In April, Ballin again worked with United Hatzalah leaders to start the Psychotrauma Unit. Her husband, Adam, a 35-year-old family physician at Hadassah Medical Center, is also a volunteer medic and member of the unit. They and their children live in the Rehavia neighborhood of Jerusalem. “Instead of getting baby sitters at night to go out to restaurants, we get baby sitters to go out and [scan] calls in and around Jerusalem,” she joked. Being a woman haredi medic has its challenges, Ballin acknowledged, but she compensates by always being prepared. In addition to her blonde wig and fluorescent orange medic’s vest, she has packed kosher canned food to keep her going in Houston. “I’ll be there with my head cover on, in my skirt, doing the work I do,” she said. “I’ll roll up my sleeves and get the job done.” PJC
To our friends in the Jewish community we would like to extend our best wishes for a healthy and sweet New Year. From the Ryave Family & Staff of Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc.
Sharon Ryave Brody, Licensed Funeral Director & Supervisor 5509 Centre Avenue • Pittsburgh, PA 15232 412-621-8282 • 1-888-621-8282 • Fax 412-621-5225 • www.schugar.com PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG
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SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 17
Celebrations
Torah
B’nai Mitzvah
Thank you. For real Jonah Allan Hertzman, son of Monica Neal Hertzman and Adam Jack Hertzman, will become a bar mitzvah at Adat Shalom during the Shabbat morning service on Saturday, Sept. 9. Grandparents are Rhoda and William Neal and Rebecca and Marc Hertzman.
Rabbi Mendy Schapiro Parshat Ki Tavo Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8
“Thank you!� “Okay, thanks� “TY� “Wow! I really appreciate that!� n our American culture, giving thanks and showing appreciation are, thankfully, an important part of most people’s normal behavior. Yet, as indicated in the quotes above, not every “thank you� is created equal. So what is the secret to an authentic thank you? There are many well-known expressions of thanks in Judaism. There is even a special prayer of thanks offered each day upon awakening (the Modeh ani) and the Amidah we recite three times each day includes an additional prayer of thanks (Modim). In this week’s Torah portion of Ki Tavo, the Torah introduces an entire ceremony and procession of gratitude. I’m referring to the commandment known as bikkurim (lit. “first fruits�). In the agricultural society of Temple times, Jewish growers would tie ribbons over the first fruits to appear in their orchards as the harvest season began. When they ripened, they’d be picked and placed in designated baskets and then brought to the Temple to be presented to the priests. The Mishnah in Tractate Bikkurim describes: “All residents of small villages would first assemble in the nearest big city. In the morning, an announcement would be called out: “Arise! Let us go up to Zion, to the House of G-d!� A complete march would follow. At its head would march an ox with horns overlayed in gold. As they approached Jerusalem, messengers would be dispatched to notify its inhabitants that the march was nearing the gates. The city’s residents would come out to greet them with great honor. When they would arrive at the Temple Mount, each farmer would put his fruit basket on his shoulder and enter the Azarah, the Temple’s courtyard. There, he would give thanks to G-d for all the good He gave: a portion in the Holy Land, and the merit to see the product of his own labor.� The commentator Rashi in our Torah portion quotes the Midrash with this interesting addition: “After one fulfilled the mitzvah of bringing Bikkurim, a Heavenly Voice would bless him, saying, “You brought Bikkurim today — you shall repeat it next year� (Devarim 26:16). Maybe this Midrash goes to the very core of the mitzvah of Bikkurim and the essence of gratitude in general. An authentic “thank you� is something you want to repeat, as opposed to something you want to get over with.
I Samuel Leo Shear (Sammy) will be called to the Torah to celebrate his becoming a bar mitzvah on Saturday, Sept. 9, Parshah Ki Tavo, at Congregation Beth Shalom. Family and friends will join the celebration with his parents, Shoshanna and Adam Shear; grandparents, Sharon and Ben Liptzin of Stockbridge, Mass.; Natalie and Henry Lewis of Chevy Chase, Md.; and sisters Daniella and Aliza. Sammy is in the eighth grade at Pittsburgh Sci-Tech Academy. He is interested in many things, including computer programming, football (the kind with the spherical ball), Jewish humor and politics.  PJC
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Let me illustrate this idea with a brief anecdote. Growing up in Brooklyn one of the well-respected rabbis in my neighborhood was Rabbi Yosef Nimotin. He had been exiled to Siberia by Stalin’s regime for his involvement in activities related to spreading and upholding Judaism. Even after his release, he returned to his clandestine “criminal� activities until he emigrated from the Soviet Union in 1981. Nimotin was not the only such character in our Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, yet the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, OBM, showed him much more personal attention than was his custom. The reason was simple: Nimotin had been one of the only people who assisted one of the greatest Torah giants who had been arrested and exiled. His name was Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson (1878-1944) and he was the Rebbe’s father. Even after he had succumbed to his sickness, Nimotin remained in Almaty,
Bikkurim is not about a dry thank you. It’s a perpetual recognition of a good that goes on forever. Kazakhstan, to take care of the upkeep and decorum of Rabbi Levi Yitzchak’s gravesite. It is told that at one of the occasions during which the Rebbe publicly expressed his gratitude to Rabbi Yosef, he added “I owe him a lot for his assistance to my father and I don’t want to pay it off.� When you really appreciate something, you want to thank again, and again, and again. Bikkurim is not about a dry thank you. It’s a perpetual recognition of a good that goes on forever, a concept that is underlined in the blessing “you shall repeat it next year.� As we approach the High Holidays I humbly suggest that we bring our own Bikkurim this year. What are our Bikkurim? Just as the farmers brought the fruits of their labor let us bring our most treasured “products� — our children — to our own miniature Holy Temple, the synagogue. Let us offer to G-d another one of our most prized possessions — our time — by taking it upon ourselves to attend a Torah class. And may we all repeat it next year.  PJC Rabbi Mendy Schapiro is spiritual leader of Chabad of Monroeville. This column is a service of the Greater Pittsburgh Rabbinic Association.
Cneseth Israel Cemetery HOLIDAY VISITATION*
Sunday, Sept 10th | 9am - Noon
Contact: Helene Burke 412-521-1050 | Anchel Siegman 412-362-0928 *There will be someone to assist with prayers.
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Obituaries AMERICUS: Bruce Americus. After a valiant effort to prevail against the odds, Bruce died peacefully on Friday, September 1, 2017. Born in Pittsburgh in 1946 to beloved parents, the late Norman and Pauline Americus. Bruce spent his undergraduate years at Ohio University. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, first in his class, and joined Buchanan Ingersoll where he became and remained a distinguished partner for 46 years. He was a member of the Duquesne Club, member of the Energy Mineral Law Foundation and other civic associations. Bruce had friends and long-standing clients from all over the world who he loved almost as much as his dogs. An avid sports fan, reader, traveler and student of the world. Bruce is survived by wife Cheryl Americus, stepsons Brett and Corey Gerson, adored brother and sister-in-law, Robert and Patti Americus, sister Cathy Breig (Jack), cherished nephews Scott (Lauren), Brian (Ruthie), Teddy, Paula and great-nephews and niece, Zachary, Jordan and Marnie. Services were
held at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. Interment Beth Shalom Cemetery. Contributions may be made to Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Pittsburgh, 5743 Bartlett Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217, jfcspgh.org. KATZ: William M. Katz of Squirrel Hill, on Monday August 28, 2017. Beloved husband of Phyllis Daniels Katz of 64 years, son of the late Hanna and Abe Katz and stepson of Harry Berkowitz. Dear father of Ellen Wiener (Raymond), Jayne Solomon (Noal) and Michael Katz (Roni); grandfather of Laurie Wiener, Elisa (Austin) Kaplicer and Adam Solomon, Richard, Daniel, Jason and Emily Katz; and great-grandfather of Asher Maxwell Kaplicer. Mr. Katz was a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, and a member of Pi Lambda Phi Fraternity at Pitt. He was a proud captain in the United States Air Force and Reserve. Mr. Katz was owner and president of Atlas Travel Service for 54 years in the Kaufmann/Macy’s downtown location and four other branches of the Kaufmann/
Macy’s stores. In his business he was fortunate to be able to travel the world with his wife Phyllis and children. His business was dear to his heart. Graveside services and interment were held at Homewood Cemetery. Contributions may be made to a charity of the donor’s choice. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. LAUTMAN: Louis S. Lautman, on Monday, August 28, 2017. Beloved husband of the late June Lautman. Beloved father of Merna (Lowell) Merklin and Marcy Wagner. Brother of Gerald (Sherry) Lautman. Brother-in-law of the late Paul Helfer (surviving spouse Flossie). Grandfather of Michael Sonne, KC and Nikki Waannanen, Katey and Mitchell Wagner. Great-grandfather of Sydney June Waannanen, Aviva June and Naomi Lou Wagner. Uncle of Rick and Barb Helfer, Bob and Denise Helfer and Mitchell, Mark and Helene Lautman. Graveside service and interment were held at Beth Shalom Cemetery. Contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, 1 Station
Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15205 or a charity of the donor’s choice. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. MERITZER: Anne (Liebling) Meritzer, age 87, of Stanton Heights, died peacefully on Wednesday, August 30, 2017. Wife of the late Manuel “Jay” Meritzer Jr. Devoted mother of Richard Meritzer of Stanton Heights and Fran Jolly (husband Alton) of Plum Boro. Proud Granny Annie of Tamara and Sarah Jolly. There will be no visitation. A Celebration of Anne’s life was held on Sunday, September 3, 2017. Memorials can be sent to ALS Association of Western PA, 416 Lincoln Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15209 or the 365 Hospice, 2549 Mosside Blvd., Monroeville, PA 15146. Arrangements are under the direction of the Healy-Hahn Funeral Home, Inc. (412-821-2940) where condolences may be offered healyhahnfuneralhome.net. Please see Obituaries, page 20
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years I have anticipated what I call the Death of the Stretch IRA and worked to devise new strategies to counter its terrible impact on families who have invested so much in their IRAs and retirement plans. This legislation that the Bipartisan Senate Finance Committee voted 26-0 in favor of recommending to Congress would, subject to exceptions, accelerate the income tax on your IRA or retirement plan five years after your death—one important point is that your spouse is excluded from this restriction. The five-year time restriction for sustaining money in inherited IRAs will put an enormous chunk of your heirs’ (most likely your children) inheritance in Uncle Sam’s pocket. Talk about a death tax! It could make the difference between financial security for your children when they are old, and running out of money. Most beneficiaries will suddenly have more money than they had before. Our government is counting on them being content with their higher bank balance, and resigned to the fact that an enormous chunk of their inheritance will end up in Uncle Sam’s pockets. Many people will never understand just how much they are giving up.
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I have a petition on change.org and a private Facebook group in order to both educate IRA and retirement plan owners and ask them to sign a petition demanding Congress say No! to the Sneaky Tax. The information available on these sites is the most current and it is more specifically focused than my regular website. I intend to solicit information from 15 other IRA experts on the topic and share their recommendations and observations.
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Website to sign the petition: www.stopthesneakytax.com From the website you can click a button that will automatically send letters to Senator Bob Casey and Senator Pat Toomey to influence their vote. Please consider going to www.stopthesneakytax.com to add your name to the list of people who are dismayed by the Senate Finance Committee’s recommendation and to send our Senators an email to say No! to the sneaky tax.
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time, joining the Facebook group will entitle you to a free Advance Reader Copy of my newest book—The 5 Greatest Tax-Saving Strategies for Protecting Your Family from the New Tax Law. Please share this information with everyone you know who has an IRA. Soon, I will be sending a request similar to this to my 10,000 email subscribers, my roughly 3,000 clients, and all 15 of the top IRA experts in the country (they have all been on my radio show and they all have their own email lists). I don’t know if we can make a difference, but it is worth trying. If all else fails, at least you will be among the educated and able to take the appropriate actions to protect your family. If you are interested in more financial information (we have written 5 best-selling financial books, many peer-reviewed articles, have 185 hours of our radio archives, etc.), we encourage you to visit our website, www.paytaxeslater.com. It has a wealth of valuable free material of special interest to IRA and retirement plan owners, or please call (412)521-2732 for a free copy of The Ultimate Retirement and Estate Plan for Your Million-Dollar IRA or to see if you qualify for a free second opinion consultation.
The foregoing content from Lange Financial Group, LLC is for informational purposes only, subject to change, and should not be construed as investment or tax advice. Those seeking personalized guidance should seek a qualified professional.
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Obituaries Obituaries: Continued from page 19
RUBEN: Sol H. Ruben, on Thursday, August 31, 2017. Longtime men’s clothier Sol H. Ruben will be remembered as a loving family man and a hard worker for numerous nonprofit organizations and volunteer organizations. But, most of all, he will be remembered by his friends and former employees as one of Pittsburgh’s original “super salesman,” a man with an incredible knack for sizing up and meeting every customer’s needs. A Columbus, Ohio, native born April 1, 1915, he purchased a Brooks Menswear store in 1945 at Fifth and Court Place in downtown Pittsburgh and later renamed his store, Stylebrook Store for Men. Years later, he moved the store to Fifth Ave near Smithfield, and, subsequently, renamed it American Discount Corp. In its incarnation, he carried top men’s national name brands at discounted prices. His customers came from as far away as Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio and Washington, D.C., and they even included men working at the White House under President Harry S. Truman. Mr. Ruben once said he had no hobbies, yet his “spare” time was spent by
his involvement with a large number of social and charitable organizations. He served as chairman of the board of the Tri-State Zionist Region; president and board member of the Jewish Home and Hospital for the Aged (now the Charles Morris Center); board member of Israel Bonds; volunteer with the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh; vice president, board member, and trustee of the Jewish Assistance Fund; 25-year board member of the Pittsburgh Hearing, Speech and Deaf Services, Inc.; 50 year member and vice president of the Downtown Lions Club; member of the Downtown Businessmen’s Association; and member of Rodef Shalom Congregation and its brotherhood. In return for some of his efforts he received the Israel Service Award from the Zionist Organization of America, and in 2001, the Jewish Association on Aging included him as one of the “Eight over 80” whom the group honored for donating his time to its work. In 2011, Mr. Ruben moved to Weinberg Terrace, a personal care home in Squirrel Hill, where he was a member of the food committee. Every morning he awoke promptly at 5:50 a.m. to start his daily exercise regime and have breakfast. He was always on time for any activity and gave his honest opinion about
performances. Mr. Ruben was preceded in death by his first wife Florrine Silberstein Ruben and his second wife Ethel Cohen Heller Ruben; his stepson Mark Heller; his stepgrandson, Dr. Richard Lehman; his brothers Alvin Ruben and Bernard Ruben; and his brother-in-law, Murray Ebner. He is survived by his two daughters Barbara (June Roy) Ruben of Middletown, Conn., and Judy (Dr. Barry) Alpert of Pittsburgh; his sister Sylvia Ebner of Columbus, Ohio; his sistersin-law Faye Ruben and Florine Ruben of Columbus; his stepdaughter Clare Lehman of Scottsdale, Ariz.; nine grandchildren and stepgrandchildren and many great-grandchildren and stepgreat-grandchildren and nieces and nephews. Services were held at Rodef Shalom Congregation. Interment West View Cemetery of Rodef Shalom Congregation. The family suggests that contributions be made to the Sol Ruben Scholarship Fund at Rodef Shalom Congregation, 4905 Fifth Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 or to the Jewish Assistance Fund, P.O. Box 8197, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. Arrangements entrusted to Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc. TAUBE: Myron Taube, on August 31, 2017. Beloved husband and friend of the
late Marion Cohn Taube, Beloved father of David Mark (Michelle) Taube of Eugene, Ore., Ethel Marie (Glenn) Harmon of Pittsburgh, Deborah and the late George Simon (Deborah) Taube of Pittsburg, and Martin Gene Taube of Pittsburgh. Brother of Jack Harris Taube of Los Angeles and Frances Pearl Lederer of Rockville, Md. Grandfather of Rachel Hana and Benjamin Kai Taube, Sasha Leah, Dmitry (Dima) Yitzchak, Rena Sophia and Shimon Gustav Harmon, Gabrielle Shana, Lyla Felice and Elaina Anna Taube, and Rachel Leah, Foster Nicholas and Sarah Jane Taube. Also survived by nieces and nephews. Writer and retired professor of English, the University of Pittsburgh. Army veteran of the Korean War. Lived a life full of kindness, caring and friendship to all he met. Services at Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., 5509 Centre Avenue, Shadyside on Sunday, September 3, 2017, at 11 a.m. Visitation one hour prior to services (10 - 11 AM). Interment Mount Lebanon Cemetery/ Temple Emanuel Section. Contributions may be made to the Myron Taube Award for Fiction Writing, University of Pittsburgh, Development Office, 300 Craig Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15260. PJC
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Jewish Association on Aging gratefully acknowledges contributions from the following: A gift from ...
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～ FOR SALE ～ ～inFOR BonitaSALE Springs, ～ Fl.
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(approx 1810 ft.) In a Bundled Golfsq. Community In a Bundled Golf Community 3 Br's/2 full baths, over sized kitchen with office stainless steel sized appliances,custom wood 3 space, Br's/2 full baths, over kitchen with office n Hilton Head’s most cabinetry, granite tops,master bathroom space, stainless steelcounter appliances,custom wood ntion, Hilton Head’s most “Sea Pines”. completegranite w/ duel sinks, custom mirrors cabinetry, counter tops,master bathroomand ion, “Sea Pines”. lighting, w/ lrg. duel stall shower, lrg. walk-in closet with complete sinks, custom mirrors and hen; w/d; deck; sleeps 6; lighting, stall shower, lrg. walk-in closet with custom lrg. shelving. hen; w/d;tennis deck;on sleeps 6; ool and property; custom shelving. and tennis property; 2nd. bathroom has new cabinetry,quartz, custom kolfrom beach on and golf. 2nd. bathroom has new cabinetry,quartz, custom k from beach SQUIRREL and golf. HILL/NORTH lighting and mirror. OF FORBES • $975,000 eeks (II and RCI) lighting and mirror. Great room with lanai which looks Formal out ontoliving a lakeand dining rooms, first floor family eks (IIApprox. and RCI) Fees: $750 5529 Dunmoyle: Spectacular 8 bedroom, 4½which bath looks home. Great with lanai with outsunset onto aviews. lake and room the golf course, gorgeous Approx. $750 wonderful rear porch wFees: Living in Florida. room, thatgolf is course, the expanse of this sunset grandviews. home. Beautiful architectural features — and the with gorgeous Living in Florida. woodwork, windows, high ceilings and much more. FFF —One Dollar!!! —One sing feesDollar!!! FFF ng fees CLASSIFIEDS OF FORBES SELL IT FAST IN THECLASSIFIEDS -781-1212, NORTH if interested. SELL IT FAST IN THE 781-1212, if interested.
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NEW LISTING! Designed by premier architect FOR SALE David Ross of Design Alliance. FORThis SALEhome has 4 bedrooms, 3½ baths, open concept kitchen, a sunken dining room with 6 foot windows, a large sunken living room with 10 foot ceilings. Great room/kitchen. The living room and master bedroom FOX CHAPEL MEWS - $349,000 haveEXQUISITE privateFOX deck spacecondo-Completely with extraordinary views of CMU, Oakland CHAPEL MEWS - $349,000 3 bedroom renovated with magnificent built-ins. Inand Downtown from this lovely private EXQUISITE 3 bedroom condo-Completely renovatedhas with magnificent built-ins. In unit balcony,great room, in-unit laundry.Building many amenities -pool,guest location. Thelibrary,party lower level beautiful den opens to a private patio. Just installed is a heated driveway and unit suites, balcony,great room, in-unit laundry.Building has many amenities -pool,guest room and much more. High end unit ready for move-in. suites, roomLower and much more. Highhas end unit ready for move-in. walkway tolibrary,party front steps. level also radiant heat. This home is truly a treasure with many more MURDOCH FARMS - $525,000 MURDOCH FARMS - $525,000 amenities. FIRST TIME OFFERED! Great 4 bedroom 2 bath and 2 1/2 baths home with integral
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Community A Celebration The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh held its 2017 annual meeting on Aug. 31 at the Jewish Community Center, Squirrel Hill. President and CEO Jeffrey Finkelstein addressed the 300-some attendees at the organization’s annual meeting, and in addition to celebrating Jewish Pittsburgh’s accomplishments through the Federation, he provided a preview of the next stage of community development. Cindy-Shapira-Annual-Meeting1
p After receiving the Emanuel Spector Memorial Award, Chuck Perlow delivers an acceptance speech. The Spector Award, the highest honor presented by the Federation, is given to acknowledge exemplary service to the community.
p Jeffrey Finkelstein highlighted the achievements of Alexis Winsten Mancuso, assistant executive director of the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, as he presented her with the 2017 Doris & Leonard H. Rudolph Jewish Communal Professional Award. The Rudolph Award recognizes a Jewish communal professional’s exceptional personal and professional commitment.
p Jewish Federation Volunteers of the Year stand as annual meeting attendees acknowledge their service to the community. Shown here are a few of this year’s 41 Volunteer of the Year honorees, each of whom was nominated by the organization he or she serves.
p Outgoing board chair of the Federation Cynthia D. Shapira greets attendees.
p The children at Beth Shalom’s Early Learning Center are welcoming Shabbat, giving tzedakah and wishing everyone Shabbat Shalom.
Photos courtesy of Beth Shalom Early Learning Center
Photos by Josh Franzos
Fun for all p Twenty-six campers and counselors attended Camp Young Judaea Midwest this summer, making friends from around the country and around the world while enjoying beautiful Lake Stratton, Israeli scouting and camp activities and sports.
Photo courtesy of Young Judaea Midwest
22 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
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Community At Yeshiva t Yeshiva faculty spent a full day getting trained and certified by Dr. Eli Shapiro from The Digital Citizens Project on a curriculum to teach students safety and proper use of social media. Shapiro also lectured for the parent body as well as for the high school students.
q Students at Yeshiva Girls School were excited to be back in school.
Photos courtesy of Yeshiva Schools
At CDS New and returning Community Day School families kicked off the 2017-2018 academic year on Tuesday, Aug. 29. Voices of children filled the CDS hallways and classrooms on the first day of school, as students reconnected with their friends and teachers and jumped into another year of learning, growth and discovery. Students returned to a new health curriculum, additional school-based counseling services and expanded STEM learning opportunities.
p Erin Klein, left, and Gabriela Berger
p From left: Paul, Sasha, Simona, Sylvia and Mara Svoboda
Photos courtesy of Community Day School
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u Naama Balass with Jacob and Maya Capezzuto
PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE
SEPTEMBER 8, 2017 23
• Variety of deli meats and franks • All-natural poultry — whole chickens, breasts, wings and more • All-natural, corn-fed beef — steaks, roasts, ground beef and more Available at select Giant Eagle stores. Visit GiantEagle.com for location information.
Empire Kosher Chicken or Turkey Franks 1 lb. pkg.
2
59 ea.
Save with your
Price effective Thursday September 7 through Wednesday September 13, 2017
Available at 17AD31336_PJC_0907.indd 1
24 SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
and PITTSBURGH JEWISH CHRONICLE
8/28/17 11:44 AM
PITTSBURGHJEWISHCHRONICLE.ORG