SJL Deep South, February 2019

Southern Jewish Life

Feb./March 2019 Volume 29 Issue 2

Southern Jewish Life P.O. Box 130052 Birmingham, AL 35213 February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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4 February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

shalom y’all The recent Angela Davis controversy in Birmingham (comprehensive coverage is on our website, sjlmag.com) should be seen as part of the greater context of uneasiness in the Jewish community with rising anti-Semitism, often masquerading as anti-Zionism, among those who had been assumed to be natural allies. There are numerous attempts to exclude Jews from feminism and other social action movements because of “intersectionalism” with the Palestinian struggle, and a new tendency to paint Jews not only as white, but as key oppressors of people of color, and as such, unsuited to give opinions about oppression.

As an illustration, though the majority of Jews in Israel have Middle Eastern origins, activists claim with a straight face that Israel is a white supremacist endeavor.

One of the best explanations of this unease in the Jewish community came from Rabbi Susan Silverman, an activist with Women of the Wall, and co-founder of Miklat Israel, which protects African asylum-seekers in Israel. She is the sister of comedian Sarah Silverman and wife of Yosef Abramowitz, known as Captain Sunshine for his promotion of Israel solar energy technology, particularly in Africa.

She wrote: “Someone asked me incredulously if the anti-Semitism on the left really upset me more or made me feel the need for a Jewish state more than (the Tree of Life murders in) Pittsburgh. And then went on to describe the evils of Israel.

“Oh yes, the anti-Semitism on the left DOES hurt and scare me more. Not that it’s worse. Just in terms of how I feel able to function in the world, it is much more impactful. Trump-types’ hatred of me means there are people I do not identify with who don’t want me. But when the people who are my refuge, who I want to make

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I n s u r a n c e s February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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opinion

MESSAGES

Maccabi USA leader praises Birmingham Games I have had the honor of attending many Maccabi competitions around the world. From Israel to Australia to South America, Europe and the JCC Maccabi games around the United States and Canada, I have logged many miles seeing how sports can be a vehicle to help build Jewish identity, especially in our young.

Care for the oppressed? Anti-Zionist groups ignore story of Jews who were forced to flee Arab countries feltSuissa honored to come to Birmingham for the first time andtofellIslam. in loveNon-Muslims with not just the city converted frequently byILea but the people. You have taken Southern hospitality to a new level with your kind and caring suffer such indignities in the Arab world.

In In the name free speech,Games. the anti-Zionist approach to the of JCC Maccabi fact, when I recently traveled to Morocco, I visJewish movement IfNotNow — which vows that the grave of wonderful.

Suleika, a Jewish woman who by thegeneration Sokol andofHelds, hard-working volunteers were They partnered theLed current youngyour American Jews ited was martyred because she refused toa huge leave hit. the with your outstanding staff, led by Betzy Lynch, to make the 2017 JCC Maccabi games “will be the generation that ends our commufaith of her ancestors and marry a Muslim.

To Inity’s wantsupport to take this opportunity as executive director of Maccabi USA to say thank you on behalf for the occupation” — criticizes this day, she serves as an inspiration for Morocof everyone involved. the Democratic Party leadership for supporting can Jewish women, with many pilgrims from bipartisan I had justanti-BDS returnedlegislation. from the 20th World Maccabiah games in Israel with a U.S. delegation of around the world visiting her grave. My relative They callwho for joined boycotting

by Israeover 1100, 10,000speeches Jewish athletes from 80 countries. Back in July the eyes of the entire her entire life as a hostage, unable to join liJewish Ambassador to on theJerusalem United Nations Danny spent world were and the Maccabiah.

This past month with 1000 athletes and the rest of our family in Israel. Many MorocDanon New Orleans), citingbeing his “racist” recoaches(in from around the world in Birmingham, you became the focal point. can Jewish girls got married young just so they marks on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Everyone from the Jewish community and the community at large, including would not face a similar fate. a wonderful They initiated a campaign urging young Jews police force, are to be commended. These games willGiven go down inmy history assuffered, being a seminal what family it is highly disto ask questions about the “occupation” on their moment for the Jewish community as we build to turbing the future bythe providing such wonderful Jewish that young Jewish American activists Taglit-Birthright Israel trips, and then to extend memories. of IfNotNow demonstrate complete ignorance of their visits in Israel so that they can go on anmy Middle Eastern history.

While the epicenter Jed Margolis ti-Israel tours.

Executive Maccabi USA Yet whileDirector, they rant about the injustices of the of their mission is combating Palestinian sufferso-called occupation, claiming that American ing, they mention nothing on their website about injustices suffered by the Jews of the Arab Jews care deeply about “oppressed” peoples, the supremacists would likemention to see pushed back world for a brief of the economic On Charlottesville IfNotNow members and other like-minded an- into a except corner and made to feel lesser.

We stand injustices we faced.

There is no mention of the ti-Zionist Jewish activists have absolutely noth- with and pray for the family of Heather Heyer, horrors Arab countries inflicted upon Jews.

Editor’s Note: This reaction to the events in ing to say about the oppression experienced by who was there standing up to the face of this I am an olive-skinned, marginalized Jewish Charlottesville, writtenin by the Jeremy Newman, their Jewish brethren Arab world. They hate. woman from Morocco. When my son particiMaster of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Theta Colony ignore my story. pated in a Birthright tour as an Israeli, he repreWe recognize the essence of the American at Anti-Zionist Auburn University, was shared by AEPi Jews prefer to invoke the Palestinsented our voice and did everything he could narrative as a two-century old struggle to rid to National, which called it “very eloquent” and ian “Nakba” — Arabic for the “catastrophe” that share Moroccan Jewish culture with the Amerourselves of such corners, and allow those in praised “our brothers at AEPi Theta Colony at was the State of Israel’s establishment, accompaicans on the trip.

On the same tour, Americans them the seat at the table that they so deserve.

Auburn University and… the leadership they nied by more than 700,000 Arabs fleeing their exposed to to Druze culture It is the struggle fulfilland the Bedouin promise of the as display(or on as their ” narrative alleges, get- were homes thecampus.

Palestinian well as other aspects of Israel’s diverse landscape Declaration of Independence, that “all men are ting expelled from their homes) during the 1948 — far more than rehashing IDF talking points, created equal… endowed by their Creator with war. But as a Moroccan Jew who was compelled White supremacy has been a cancer on IfNotNow accuses Birthright of doing.

Jews certain unalienable rights. ” We know our work to immigrate to Israel when I was nine years old, I as our country since its beginning, threatening from the Arab world are invisible to IfNotNow is far from finished, but we know we will not grew up in the shadow of the Jewish Nakba. its hopes, its values, and its better angels. radical leftist groups in the U.S. moveother backwards.

During this Nakba, more than 850,000 Jews and The events that took place in Charlottesville For anti-Zionist Jews, the story of the Israewere forced to flee the Arab world. Jews from When men and women, fully armed, take represented the worst of this nation. Those li-Palestinian conflict violent, white, “coArab countries arrived in Israel as refugees to the streets in drovesentails with swastikas and who marched onto the streets with tiki torches lonialist” Jewish settlers fighting against poor, with no more than the clothes on their backs. other symbols of hate, it is a reminder of how and swastikas did so to provoke violence and dark-skinned, oppressed Palestinians.

Yet there Nonetheless, rather than identify with their own relevant the issues of racism and anti-Semitism fear. Those who marched onto the streets did are plenty of impoverished Jews of color people, anti-Zionist Jews lament the plight of are today. It is a wake-up call to the work whose that so to profess an ideology that harkens back to narrative they blatantly ignore.

Palestinian refugees. needs to be done to ensure a better, more a bleaker, more wretched time in our history.

Palestinian teenager Ahed Tamimi — the While Morocco did not expel its Jews like welcoming country. But it should not come A time when men and women of many creeds, blonde-haired, blue-eyed terror advocate and countries such as Egypt and Iraq did, Moroccan without a reflection on how far we’ve come. races, and religions were far from equal and far media darling who participated in violent riots Jews still suffered from an intense wave of anAmerica wasanborn asoldier slave nation.

A like century from safe in our own borders. A time where and smacked IDF — lives a ceti-Semitism from the moment French rule was into ourgoing history we engaged into a war in part the Americans lived under a constant cloud of lebrity, on world tours champion declining, until the day my family left the counto ensure we would not continue as one. We racism, anti-Semitism and pervasive hate. The try. In the 1950s, a wave of terror attacks targeted Palestinian cause. ourselves confronted the issue of Midcivil events that took place in Charlottesville served found Simultaneously, peaceful by dark-skinned the Jewish community. It was just as bloody as the rights, and embarked on a mission to ensure as a reminder of how painfully relevant these dle Eastern Jewish refugees, who want nothing Second Intifada. While there was a decrease in the fair treatment of all peoples no matter their issues are today. anti-Jewish terror attacks after Morocco attained more than to be compensated for their suffering skinto color.

Although madecan great strides, and move on with we’ve their lives, only dream Auburn’s Alpha Pi stands with the independence, JewsEpsilon still feared for their future. it is a mission we’re still grappling with today. of garnering the public spotlight that Tamimi Jewish community Charlottesville, and had By the 1960s, theof bulk of our community America was also born an immigrant with thedeparted Jewish people around and the country already the country, we were cut receives.

It is time for this charade to end.

If not now, country.

As early as the pilgrims, many and around the world.

We also stand with the off from those dearest to us. At the same time, when? minorities who areintargeted by the hate that we remained Jews a Muslim-majority nation, groups and families found in the country the stakes, chase theirnews future, was on isdisplay Charlottesville.

WeOne stand The writertoisplant a contributor to the and which a veryindifficult situation. of my opportunity and bepolicy themselves.

Few were met with open with the minorities of whom these white group Haym Salomon Center. relatives was abducted, raped and forcefully public 6

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

February 2019 January 2019

Southern Jewish Life PUBLISHER/EDITOR Lawrence M. Brook editor@sjlmag.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/ADVERTISING Lee J. Green lee@sjlmag.com V.P. SALES/MARKETING, NEW ORLEANS Jeff Pizzo jeff@sjlmag.com ADVERTISING SPECIALIST Annetta Dolowitz annetta@sjlmag.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR Ginger Brook ginger@sjlmag.com SOCIAL/WEB Emily Baldwein connect@sjlmag.com PHOTOGRAPHER-AT-LARGE Rabbi Barry C. Altmark deepsouthrabbi.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Rivka Epstein, Louis Crawford, Tally Werthan, Stuart Derroff, Belle Freitag, Ted Gelber, E. Walter Katz, Doug Brook brookwrite.com BIRMINGHAM OFFICE P.O. Box 130052, Birmingham, AL 35213 14 Office Park Circle #104 Birmingham, AL 35223 205/870.7889 NEW ORLEANS OFFICE 3747 West Esplanade, 3rd Floor Metairie, LA 70002 504/432-2561 TOLL-FREE 866/446.5894 FAX 866/392.7750 ADVERTISING Advertising inquiries to 205/870.7889 for Lee Green, lee@sjlmag.com; Jeff Pizzo, jeff@sjlmag.com; or Annetta Dolowitz, annetta@sjlmag.com Media kit, rates available upon request SUBSCRIPTIONS It has always been our goal to provide a large-community quality publication to all communities of the South.

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agenda interesting bits & can’t miss events

Opher Aviran, former Consul General of Israel to the Southeast; Laura King, co-chair of the Alabama-Israel Task Force; Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Tom Parker and his wife Dottie Parker; Lior Haiat, Consul General of Israel to Alabama; and AITF co-chair John Buhler, watched the inaugural parade in Parker’s office on Jan. 14 as Kay Ivey was sworn in as governor of Alabama.

Southern Style: JCRS Gala explores Jewish Roots of Fashion

Longue Vue celebrates artists who benefited from Rosenwald Fund

The Jewish Roots series of galas for Jewish Children’s Regional Service continues with this year’s theme, the Jewish Roots of Fashion.

Betty Kohn will be the honoree at the March 30 gala in New Orleans, and over two dozen merchants and owners from the soft goods and fashion industries in the region will be highlighted in the evening’s program book. The stories will include well-known names including Rubensteins, Krauss, Haspel, Perlis, Sadies, The Hollywood Shop, Katz’s, Weiners and many more.

The evening will be at the Marriott on Canal Street, with a cocktail hour and silent auction starting at 6:30 p.m. There will be a seated dinner and a style show presented by Dillard’s.

There will also be a drawing for a $5,500 sapphire and diamond bracelet from Lee Michaels. Tickets are $20, or six for $100, and one need not be present to win.

The hors d’oeuvres will be provided by Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts, and drinks are being provided by St. Michelle Vineyards, RNDC and Sazerac.

Tickets are $250, $100 for ages 35 and under. Sponsor levels start at $1,000.

Proceeds go toward the programs of JCRS, which serves Jewish youth in a seven-state region, with summer camp scholarships, college tuition assistance, special needs funding and the regional PJ Library program.

While in recent years there has been increased awareness of Rosenwald Schools, Longue Vue in New Orleans is highlighting an even lesser-known but also highly significant aspect of Julius Rosenwald’s legacy.

“An Artistic Heritage: The Julius Rosenwald Fund” opened on Feb. 1 and will be displayed through July 28 at the historic home. Rosenwald, a Jewish philanthropist who headed Sears, Roebuck and Co., established the fund in 1917, and by the time it closed in 1948, it had made grants to 862 “individuals of exceptional promise” who needed assistance getting to the next steps of their careers.

Of those recipients, 190 were for arts in such diverse fields as metalworking, language, literature, and fashion design, along with traditional media of painting, sculpture and music. The exhibition highlights 20 of those recipients.

Before the fund was established, Rosenwald started a partnership with Booker T. Washington, providing seed money to build community-supported schools for African-Americans. Over 5,300 Rosenwald Schools were built throughout the South from 1914 to 1932, and a small fraction of the buildings still exist.

With a philosophy of “give while you live,” Rosenwald started his fund, which was unique for its time because recipients were not discriminated by race or field of study. Among the recipients were Jacob Lawrence, James Baldwin, Pearl Primus, Shirley Graham and Conrad Alfred Albrizio.

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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agenda

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While Temple B’nai Israel in Panama City did not have major damage in Hurricane Michael on Oct. 10, the building suffered “minor damage,” according to president Mike Starkman, with an insurance estimate of $32,000 for repairs. The congregation has a $24,000 wind and hail deductible and has been fundraising for the repairs. As of early January, about $13,000 had been collected. While no congregants were injured, some had significant property damage, and at least two families have moved away.

On Jan. 22, Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El officially announced that Rabbi Adam Wright has signed his agreement and will begin at the state’s largest Reform congregation on July 1.

Springhill Avenue Temple in Mobile announced that Rabbi Howard Kosovske, currently serving the congregation monthly as “transition” rabbi, has been signed for that role through the summer of 2020.

The Jewish Council for Public Affairs, based in New York, is leading a civil rights tour of Atlanta, Selma, Montgomery and Birmingham, April 29 to 30. The mission is aimed at re-engaging the Jewish community in the modern civil rights movement. Registration is due by Feb. 18.

Temple Beth El and Christ Episcopal Church in Pensacola are partnering on a day of learning and fellowship, traveling to Montgomery on March 9 to visit the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, the Rosa Parks Museum and other civil rights sites. With support from the Robert H. Kahn Jr. Family Foundation, registration is $25 for adults and $15 for children. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

As part of the “Stitching History from the Holocaust” exhibit at the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts in Birmingham, there will be a presentation on March 5 at 6 p.m., “Immigration Then and Now,” by Janek Wasserman, associate professor at the University of Alabama Department of History.

The Bais Ariel Chabad Center in Birmingham will have a Creole-inspired Shabbat, with Chef Josh Haynes, on Feb. 15. Services are at 5:30 p.m., with the dinner at 6 p.m. Reservations are $20 per adult, $10 per child, with a $54 family maximum.

Temple Beth El in Anniston will hold its annual Neighbors Night, an interfaith worship service in memory of Bette and Hank Saks, Feb. 22 at 7:30 p.m. A reception will follow.

Hebrew Union Congregation in Greenville kicks off deli luncheon season with its annual Corned Beef Deli Luncheon on March 7, from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. The congregation’s Sisterhood has been putting on a fundraising luncheon since 1880, with the corned beef format for about 40 years. With the help of non-Jewish friends and neighbors, the small congregation serves roughly 1,500 lunches. Tickets are $12 and can be purchased from congregation members or the HUC office.

Several other congregations in the region will have similar events midmonth.

Rabbi Tamara Miller will visit Beth Shalom in Auburn the weekend of Feb. 15. Living in Washington, Miller specializes in Jewish life cycle events and non-denominational, multi-faith spiritual counseling.

There will be a potluck dinner at 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 15, followed by the 7 p.m. service. On Feb. 16, there will be a service at 9:30 a.m., then a 6 p.m. social and Havdalah at a member’s house. She will also visit the religious school on Feb. 17.

Mehnaz Afridi will present “An Islamic Perspective on Current Antisemitism,” Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. at the University of South Alabama Student Center’s Terrace Room. Afridi teaches contemporary Islam and the

agenda Holocaust at Manhattan College, and is deeply invested in interfaith work both in her scholarship and as director of the Holocaust, Genocide and Interfaith Education Center. Her presentation is sponsored by the Mobile Christian-Jewish Dialogue, the University of South Alabama History Department and Jewish Studies and Holocaust Program, and The Trialogue (Muslims, Christians and Jews Together) of Mobile.

Beth Israel in Jackson will have a free Hebrew reading crash course starting on Feb. 20 at 6:15 p.m. Wendy Farley will lead five weekly sessions.

Mobile’s Springhill Avenue Temple announced that the musical scholar in residence program originally announced for March 9 has been moved to April 28. Terry Maddox will lead a choral exploration of Jewish music through the ages.

Temple Beth Or in Montgomery will hold its annual Huntingdon College Night on March 8. Rabbi Scott Looper will make a presentation to the students at 5 p.m., then Shabbat services will start at 6 p.m.

Beth Shalom in Fort Walton Beach is holding a family Shabbat potluck dinner the first Friday of the month, starting March 1. The dinner will start at 6:30 p.m., followed by Shabbat services around 7:15 p.m.

On Feb. 22, Temple Beth El in Pensacola will host the Pensacola Opera’s artists in residence for a 7 p.m. Shabbat service. Rabbi Joel Fleekop, Greg Watson and Victoria Adamenko will lead a musical service, after which the artists will perform a collection of arias and show tunes. A reception will follow.

Beth Israel in Jackson will have a Disney singalong oneg, led by the Shirim choir, following the 6:15 p.m. Shabbat service on Feb. 15.

Costumes are encouraged.

The North Louisiana Jewish Film Festival series continues on Feb. 27 at 6 p.m. at the Robinson Film Center in Shreveport. “The Last Resort” follows two photographers that capture the community of Jewish retirees in Miami Beach of the 1970s. There will be a pre-show beach blanket bingo with prizes, and free popcorn for anyone wearing a Hawaiian shirt.

Lee Kansas of New Orleans, past Hadassah Southern regional president, will give “A Hadassah Update” at a joint meeting of the Temple Beth El, Pensacola, Sisterhood, women from B’nai Israel and Hadassah.

The catered luncheon will be Feb. 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Beth El, and reservations, which are $15, are required by Feb. 18.

The Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica will do a presentation during religious school on Feb. 24 at B’nai Zion in Shreveport.

Chabad of Mobile will have a Ladies Night Out, “Spa for the Body and Soul,” Feb. 19 at 6:30 p.m. There will be customized massage, personalized fashion advice, fresh-squeezed juices and healthy treats, and thought-provoking discussion. Reservations are $10.

Dothan’s Temple Emanu-El will have its annual Neighbor Night Shabbat, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m., led by student rabbi Taylor Poslosky.

Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El will have Diversity in Judaism Shabbat, Feb. 22 at 5:45 p.m. Tarece Johnson of Atlanta will speak about how Jews come from all walks of life. She is creater of the Global Purpose Approach, founded Global Purpose Academy and co-founded Peninsula International Academy and Jewish Diversity.

Monroe’s B’nai Israel held a Taste of Judaism class on Jan. 26, with over two dozen in attendance. Rabbi Judy Caplan Ginsburgh said the congregation is starting a conversion class, with 10 students enrolled.

They will study during the year with the goal of having their conversion ceremonies next February.

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

9

agenda OFFICE OF INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY

THIS IS AUBURN. “This wonderful country of ours allows us to gather together, to be Jewish and be free… I’m grateful I can be Jewish and a basketball coach in the SEC.”

— Auburn Head Basketball Coach Bruce Pearl, at the 2017 JCC Maccabi Games Opening Ceremony

Beth Or’s food festival on Feb. 24 The annual Jewish Food Festival and Treasure Market at Montgomery’s Temple Beth Or will be on Feb. 24 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

This highly popular event has drawn thousands over the years, featuring a wide range of traditional Jewish foods, most of which were made

by Temple members. Among the offerings are kugel, latkes, beef brisket, cabbage rolls, corned beef sandwiches, matzah ball soup, strudel, mandel bread, rugelach, quajado (spinach pies), challah and the ever-popular praline matzah.

Carnegie Deli cheesecakes are imported from New York and sold by the cake or the slice.

This year, the festival will see the addition of live music by Dahlia Road.

It is also an opportunity for members of the greater Montgomery community to learn more about the Jewish community, through tours of the building and talks.

CCAR president to visit Baton Rouge

WE ARE COMMUNITY. Hillel, Auburn University’s Jewish student organization, was the recipient of the 2015 AU Student Involvement Award for Overcoming Adversity. diversity@auburn.edu www.auburn.edu/diversity

Rabbi David Stern, senior rabbi of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas and president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, will be the scholar in residence at Beth Shalom in Baton Rouge the weekend of Feb. 15.

His congregation is the third largest Reform congregation in the country. In 2008 and 2009, he was listed among the 30 most influential rabbis in America by Newsweek. He has served the Dallas congregation since 1996, and is the third generation in his family to head CCAR. On Feb. 15, he will deliver the sermon during the 6 p.m. service, “Landscapes of Challenge and Hope: Reform Judaism in the 21st Century.” A Shabbat dinner will follow.

On Feb. 16, he will lead “Covenant and Conversations” at 9 a.m., followed by the 10 a.m. service. B’nai Israel members will also be in attendance for the service and luncheon. After lunch, he will lead a learning session, “Semi-Circles, Tent Pegs and Traveling Bones: Jewish Lessons in Leadership.

Reservations are requested for the dinner and lunch.

>> Commentary

continued from page 5

a home with me, meaning a home in the world, who I long to celebrate for and with when they succeed and build, see me, Israel, Jews (except their approved Jews, maybe, relishing this potential division from each other) as uniquely evil and worthy of being pointed out Haman-style, whether we are relevant or not to the issue at hand. I fear that I have no home in the world at large.

“I will always, I pray, hold onto my values for human rights and justice and compassion and fight for them in the U.S. and in Israel, and many of those values are shared with these same people. But they don’t want flawed-but-trying-hard me, us, and in fact see us as worthy of more hatred, less deserving of existence, as anyone else in this world. Just as generations have not wanted us before, have seen our sins as the whole of us and uniquely powerful and cruel.

“I guess I can understand now the disbelief when we read about how Jews’ friends, neighbors, compatriots turned against us in the past. I always thought now is different. It’s not.

“Please don’t respond to this with any unkindness. Right now I just need support. I don’t claim to be the first of anyone to feel this way. Or that people of other groups, especially people of color, have not also felt this way forever, and I hope I have lived a life of empathy and sisterhood in that regard.

“But right now, I am so very heartbroken and afraid.”

Lawrence Brook, Publisher/Editor 10

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

community

Jackson event in April to celebrate Macy Hart’s legacy For decades, Macy Hart has been an advocate for the Southern Jewish experience, and a celebration of his career will be held on April 6 in Jackson.

The founding director of the Goldring/ Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life, which provides services to Jewish communities in a 13-state region, Hart’s influence has been statewide in Mississippi, regional and national.

Growing up in the only Jewish family in Winona, Miss., Hart became the president of the National Federation of Temple Youth. He became involved in the regional push for the establishment of a Jewish summer camp, which opened in the summer of 1970 as the Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica, where he was camp administrator that first summer, being groomed to take over as camp director, a role he would have for 30 years.

For countless campers from tiny Jewish communities in the region, Jacobs Camp became a Jewish refuge, where they could strengthen their identity and have the unusual experience of being in the majority.

As the camp attracted donations of artifacts from small-town Jewish communities when their synagogues closed, Hart established the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in 1986. Those experiences led him to establish the Institute in 2000, which he then headed until transitioning to a new position last February, focusing on special projects, as Michele Schipper became CEO. Hart has also served as president of Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, and the Council of American Jewish Museums. He also co-founded Parents for Public Schools.

The Institute has developed a standardized curriculum for religious schools, provides rabbinic services to small or isolated congregations with traveling rabbis, cultural and historical programs, and promotes social action and historic preservation.

The celebration will be at the Mississippi Museum of Art, starting at 6 p.m. with a cocktail hour, and followed by Havdallah, music, dinner and festivities. All are welcome, and tickets are $100. Additional donations are encouraged toward the official announcement of the Susan and Macy B. Hart Fund for the Institute. Dress is tie-less cocktail, with seersucker optional.

SUPPORT QUALITY, INDEPENDENT, ORIGINAL SOUTHERN JEWISH JOURNALISM Visit sjlmag.com to find out how to contribute

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

11

What’s better than flowers on Valentine’s Day?

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Israeli Consul General Gilad Katz presents Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards with photos from the state’s Israel mission, as Bill Hess looks on, before the Jan. 28 panel in New Orleans

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

Over two evenings, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards touted successes from the recent Louisiana trade mission to Israel.

On Jan. 28, Edwards spoke following a panel discussion at the University of New Orleans, and at a similar event on Jan. 29 at the Estuary at the Water Campus in Baton Rouge. Each night, the panel was comprised of participants in the October mission.

Edwards said the trip will result in “a new level of cooperation and collaboration… that will make us stronger.”

About two dozen went on the mission, which left Louisiana on Oct. 27. Participants emphasized how it was a working trip, with 22 meetings over the course of four days.

The mission had its origins in a May 22 ceremony at the Governor’s Mansion, where Edwards signed an executive order forbidding the state from signing contracts with companies that participate in boycotts of Israel.

Israeli Consul General Gilad Katz, from the Houston consulate, attended the event and invited Edwards to visit Israel. Edwards told his economic development team to make it happen, and the trip took place five months later. Edwards commented that for a trip of that type, “that was lightning fast.”

He added that he returned from Israel in time for the LSU-Alabama game, but “I wish I’d stayed a couple more days” given the game’s result.

Katz, who accompanied Edwards in Israel, attended the New Orleans event, presenting Edwards with framed photos from the trip — and an invitation to return.

While Edwards said they got to see a lot of Israel, they did not get to see all of it, so “I have every intention of going back.”

There were three panelists each night, with two of them — Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne and Water Institute of the Gulf President Justin Ehrenwerth — speaking each night.

Ehrenwerth said both Israel and Louisiana deal with water “as an existential crisis.” It was stated repeatedly that Louisiana has too much, and Israel has too little, leading many of the Israelis they met with to joke that Louisiana just needs to build a long pipeline to Israel.

“We didn’t spend a lot of time saying how different we were,” Ehrenwerth said, but discussed collaboration and how Israel was able to solve their water challenges.

Now that Israel is finally in a good place regarding water supply, they are able to start working on other aspects of water policy, such as stream sustainability. “That is an area we know a lot about in Louisiana.”

Because of how streams transcend borders, they discussed how restoration efforts can also be part of a peace dialogue.

He also mentioned “remarkable technology” that Israel has developed for pipes and other liquid infrastructure, detecting leaks well before what

community is currently possible. “We have some old infrastructure in New Orleans,” he commented.

Ehrenwerth called it “a very important trip from a professional perspective,” adding that there is limitless potential in the partnership.

This was his seventh trip to Israel, but he said this was “completely different.”

Edwards said the vision for the Water Institute of the Gulf is to have a world-wide impact, with Louisiana as a global leader in water management.

Dardenne spoke about Israel as the start-up nation, saying the government invests in startups and risky ventures knowing that many of them would fail, but others would succeed tremendously. He said that is a different culture than the United States, where state governments are not in that type of position and are much more risk averse.

The group repeatedly heard the expression that Israel “lives in a bad neighborhood,” Dardenne said.

Robert Landry, chief commercial officer for the Port of New Orleans, spoke at the New Orleans event. He noted that one of the largest shipping container lines using the Port of New Orleans is Zim, which is an Israeli company.

Landry and many of the participants met with the president of Zim during the trip.

Grain and frozen chicken are exported to Israel through New Orleans, while imports from Israel include food products and a lot of furniture for Rooms To Go. A major concern for the shipping industry is cyber security, and Landry noted that a hacker attack had previously shut down the port in Mobile for three days. “Cyber security is increasingly important, and we put a high priority on that.”

In Baton Rouge, Maj. Gen. Glenn Curtis, co-chair of the Louisiana Cybersecurity Commission, noted that he had served in Iraq and Afghanistan, “some pretty tough areas,” so he didn’t know what the “threat environment would be visiting Israel.” He quickly realized this would be a different experience, as he “never felt threatened,” and he was “amazed to see the different religions, different nationalities” throughout Israel.

With everyone in Israel focused on national survival, “they have to be masters of the cyber world,” including the realms of government, oil and gas, transportation and water.

Cyber-security is a major emphasis for Edwards, who noted that 40 percent of private sector investment in cyber security takes place in Israel. He said there will be a national cyber-security conference with officials from all 50 states invited, this May in Bossier City, and he anticipates a lot of representation from Israel.

“It’s my goal for Louisiana to be a national

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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and international leader in cyber security, and there is so much we can learn from Israel on this front,” he said. He also mentioned that the only cyber security degree in the U.S. is granted at Louisiana Tech.

He also touted a new partnership with Israeli cyber-security firm CheckPoint (see sidebar, page 15).

Another area of emphasis is Israel’s development of gas fields in the Mediterranean, a field where Israel doesn’t have much experience, but Louisiana does.

Edwards said a highlight of the trip was meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the type of visit that Edward said is usually perfunctory and done as a courtesy, but “it was obvious… that this was going to be more than that” as the 20 minutes allotted for the visit stretched into almost an hour and a half.

While being a governor isn’t easy, Edwards said that “compared to his job, I’ve got it made over here.”

Though the schedule was packed, there were many personal moments on the trip.

The first full day of the mission was a Sunday, which Edwards noted is a work day in Israel. They got up at 4 a.m. to attend the 5:30 a.m. Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. He said it was a “special time” for many on the trip.

The morning included a visit to Yad Vashem, where like so many other dignitaries, he and his wife placed a wreath at the memorial. But since it was the day after the Tree of Life massacre in Pittsburgh, that “transformed it to more than a ceremonial thing you do because you’re a governor.”

A Pittsburgh native, Ehrenwerth said he knew some of those who were killed at Tree of Life. In Israel, he was inspired by “the resilience they conveyed, the understanding of what going through a trauma like that meant.”

After being asked in New Orleans about the relative lack of Holocaust education in the state, Edwards commented in Baton Rouge the next night that “we’re not doing a very good job of making sure people know,” and the fact that it is an uncomfortable subject “is probably more reason it needs to be taught, not less.”

This was Dardenne’s first trip to Israel, and he admitted that he had never really expected that he might ever make that journey. For him, it was especially “poignant” to be at the Western Wall, because his brother died in June, and the night before the delegation headed to Israel, his brother’s youngest son died of cancer.

The group visited an Iron Dome outpost at night and had a briefing from IDF soldiers, after which two of the soldiers asked for a ride to Tel Aviv. Being able to talk with the two soldiers “really reminded me how young they are, the position they are in and how much responsibility is on their shoulders,” Ehrenwerth said.

After visiting the Golan Heights and seeing into Syria, they had an unexpected break due to Israel’s municipal elections, giving them the oppor-

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

Justin Ehrenwerth, Jay Dardenne and Maj. Gen. Glenn Curtis share their Israel experiences in Baton Rouge

community tunity to tour sites in the Galilee. Edward said it was particularly meaningful to be on the Sea of Galilee, and to read the Beatitudes where Jesus gave that sermon.

Donna Sternberg, who was credited with helping make the trip possible, speculated as to where Edwards’ affinity for Israel comes from.

Perhaps, she said, it was when he studied Israeli military strategy at West Point, or “perhaps he recognizes a true friend when he sees one.”

Henry Miller, president of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, said “we are excited about the future of the Israel-Louisiana alliance under the governor’s leadership.”

Edwards said “I want to be a good, reliable partner for the Jewish community in Louisiana,” and “The best days of Israel, the best days of Louisiana and the United States are ahead of us.”

The New Orleans event was co-hosted by the Anti-Defamation League, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Greater New Orleans Inc., Israel’s Consulate General to the Southwestern United States, National Council of Jewish Women: Greater New Orleans Section, the New Orleans Business Alliance, the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce, the Port of New Orleans, Tulane University and the World Trade Center New Orleans.

Research agreement a tangible mission result On Jan. 15, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards announced the signing of a research agreement between Check Point Software Technologies of Israel and the Stephenson Technologies Corp., the applied research corporation at Louisiana State University, which serves U.S. federal markets.

Check Point will work with Stephenson to commission the partnership’s Innovation and Integration Lab, dedicated to developing next-generation cybersecurity solutions for industry and government clients. The partnership agreement was signed by Julie Mitchell, Check Point strategic account manager, and Jeff Moulton, president of Stephenson Technologies Corp.

“I am happy to welcome Check Point Software Technologies to Louisiana as we continue to expand our role as a U.S. leader in cybersecurity innovation,” Edwards said. “Cyber threats are always evolving, and new partnerships such as this one with Stephenson Technologies Corp. at LSU represent a critical effort for protecting vital assets, both public and private. This agreement is a direct result of our meeting with Check Point officials in Tel Aviv during our trade mission to Israel last fall. We look forward

to a rewarding relationship that will build Louisiana’s strength and leadership in cybersecurity.”

Check Point is an international network security vendor with 4,300 employees who protect over 100,000 global businesses and organizations from cyber attacks. Edwards met with company leaders during the October 2018 trade mission to Israel, laying the groundwork for this venture.

One element of the new partnership is designed to develop cybersecurity training scenarios at the Joint Cyber Training Lab in LSU Innovation Park, with the LSU-based team integrating, customizing and testing a variety of Check Point products and technologies. The Joint Cyber Training Lab has worked extensively with the Louisiana National Guard’s cybersecurity specialists and has led the Cyber Shield training exercise involving National Guard cybersecurity teams from all 50 states.

Moulton, who was also on the October mission, said “The evolving challenges we face in cybersecurity – particularly around critical infrastructure and resilience – need new ways of thinking, and we’re excited about working with a company of Check Point’s technical caliber to develop new technologies.”

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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community Hadassah Southern celebrates achievements in Baton Rouge

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Hadassah Southern Region held its Mid-Winter board meeting and celebration in Baton Rouge on Jan. 26 and 27, with a highlight being Baton Rouge’s own Maria Kemeny being installed as regional president and Susan Smolinsky as regional Organization vice president (right). This is the first time that members from the same chapter have held those positions.

Briann Shear, below left, was recognized as Hadassah New Orleans Woman of the Year, and co-presidents Betty Bloch Moore and Helen Stone celebrated the chapter being named Chapter of the Year for large chapters in Hadassah Southern Region. The regional conference was held on Jan. 26 and 27 in Baton Rouge.

Mindy Cohen and Bridget Sikora, below right, celebrate Hadassah Birmingham being named Star of the Region and placing second in fundraising for large chapters.

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ISJL hosting Reform, Conservative movement seminary leaders at Houston weekend

cjfsbham.org 205.879.3438 16

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life in Jackson is bringing two of the foremost leaders in the Reform and Conservative movements, Chancellor Arnold M. Eisen of the Jewish Theological Seminary, and Rabbi David Ellenson, interim president and chancellor emeritus of Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, to two of Houston’s largest congregations, the Reform Congregation Beth Israel and Conservative Congregation Beth Yeshurun, for a weekend of thought-provoking conversations surrounding the future for American Jewry.

The Institute is presenting this event in partnership with its sponsors as an investment in

the growth and future of the Houston Jewish community and Southern Jewry.

On March 15, there will be a 6:30 p.m. Shabbat service at Beth Israel, followed by dinner and a talk on “The State of Our Union: Jews and Judaism in America Today.” The dinner is free but reservations are required.

On March 16, the 9:30 a.m. service will be at Beth Yeshurun, followed by “The Future of American Judaism” at the luncheon. Reservations are required for the lunch, and are $20. At 6 p.m., Beth Yeshurun will host Havdalah and a discussion on “Who We Are, What We Stand For, How We Lead.”

Chai Vision: American Hebrew Academy celebrating 18th year Eighteen years ago, the American Hebrew Academy opened in Greensboro, N.C., as the realization of one man’s dream for a high-caliber Jewish boarding high school.

Glenn Drew, the academy’s chief executive officer, said his uncle, Chico Sabbah, “would be ecstatic at what his vision has become.”

He would also be “perhaps a little bit surprised, as how the vision has been expanded beyond his imagination.”

One major unanticipated development was how the school has become a magnet for international Jewish students, “unlike any other school in the world,” Drew said. Over the years, the student body has represented 38 countries and 31 states.

“That has created a Jewish learning environment that is unique,” he said.

Sabbah was born and raised in New York, with a Sephardic father and Eastern European mother. He was an irrigation specialist in the early days of Israel and served in the Israeli army, then served in the U.S. military in Korea.

He worked in the reinsurance industry, and in the early 1970s he moved to Greensboro and his business “grew beyond his wildest expectations.”

He started a legacy of quiet, behind-the-scenes philanthropy.

When his parents died in 1995, he said kaddish each day, with students from the local Jewish Day School leading weekday services. He realized the local school went only through eighth grade, and he set out to establish a quality Jewish high school. But with just a few dozen Jewish high school students in the area, it had to scale larger and attract students from elsewhere, as he wanted the school to rival the famed New England prep schools.

Drew explained that Jewish high schools around the world are generally Day Schools. They depend on the enrollment of students from the immediate area. For a lot of places, “that means the options for Day School either don’t exist or are limited.”

He purchased 100 acres and started developing the concept in 1996.

Ground was broken in 1999, and the first students were welcomed in 2001.

The lakefront campus includes state of the art facilities, with the world’s largest closed loop geothermal heating and cooling system.

The dual curriculum provides integrated Judaic studies and college preparatory classes.

While students come from around the world, North Carolina still has the highest number of students, and the greatest proportion overall come February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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from East Coast states.

For those families committed to long-term Jewish education, the academy provides an opportunity for students in communities where there is no Jewish high school. Almost 90 percent of the students board.

Because Jewish boarding schools at the high school level are almost all Orthodox, Sabbah wanted to establish a school for all segments of the Jewish community, and when it opened, it called itself “pluralistic.”

That term was retired several years ago, as it was “misunderstood or misinterpreted” from both ends of the spectrum. Instead, Drew said, “American Hebrew Academy is a school that welcomes all Jews. Period.

Without the need for any descriptive definitions.”

The school “continues to be diverse” in religious observance and perspectives among the students, beyond what Sabbah would have envisioned.

Drew said the religious diversity goes across the Jewish spectrum of denominational practices, including those who choose to identify beyond the traditional denominations. There are even a few traditional Orthodox students who have found the academy is able to fully serve their needs and make accommodations for them.

Drew said the goal is to demonstrate “that there is more we can do together as one people than by separating ourselves by denominational lines.”

Sabbah wanted to build an institution not only devoted to academic excellence, but “to fulfill a generational need to mentor young Jewish leaders, to aspire not only to academic success but also positions of leadership, either as communal professionals or lay leaders, who would serve Jewish communities around the world,” Drew said.

The school recently hosted the Jewish International Summit for Teens, and in April will host an international Moot Beit Din competition.

The school fields teams in swimming, basketball, track and field, volleyball and soccer. There is a wide range of extracurricular activities, including a campus television station, Cheesewagon Improv troupe, robotics team, music instruction, community service opportunities and a stuent-run tzedakah fund.

In January, Newsweek named it one of 14 top Private Schools of Distinction. Drew noted that among last year’s graduating class, 100 percent were admitted to a Top 100 university, 37 percent to a Top 50, and five percent to a Top 10 university.

That is especially important for families of international students, who send their children to the academy with the idea that they will pursue higher education in the U.S. Sabbah is remembered each year, as students plant trees for Sabbah’s birthday, which is around Tu B’Shevat, and hold an Erev Chico celebration on Shabbat.

“We’re elated to have reached the Chai anniversary,” Drew said.

The academy continues to work toward financial sustainability, making Jewish education “more readily available to a growing number of families.” Drew noted that the quality of Jewish education is “exceptional,” but schools worldwide struggle with making ends meet and need funding to succeed, and scholarship funds to help make Jewish education more attainable for families that want it.

For those who are interested in the American Hebrew Academy, there are two Open House weekends per year, one in the fall and one in the spring. The next Open House will be from March 22 to 24.

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

Temple B’nai Israel in Monroe dedicated a new piece of art outside their building, in honor of the congregation’s 150th birthday.

The sculpture was designed by Doyle Jeter, artist-in-residence at University of Louisiana-Monroe, with the fabrication donated by Sol’s Pipe and Steel.

senior life an annual SJL special section

CJFS CARES attracts national recognition, awarded grant The Alzheimer’s Foundation of America announced that it awarded a $5,000 grant to Collat Jewish Family Services in Birmingham, to provide respite care services for families affected by Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia-related illnesses.

CJFS was one of 15 organizations in nine states to receive grants as part of AFA’s Milton and Phyllis Berg Respite Care Grant program.

Grant funding will support the CJFS CARES, Caring for Adults through Respite, Enrichment and Socialization, program, which engages participants cognitively, physically and socially while offering caregivers relief from their everyday responsibilities. The program provides respite care to individuals living with dementia-related illnesses in a caring, stimulating and supportive environment. It offers activities such as music, art, cognitive games, exercise and pet therapy. The grant would enable CJFS to serve more families through the program.

“Respite care is a crucial service for families affected by Alzheimer’s disease because it improves quality of life for both the person living with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers,” said Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., AFA’s president and CEO. “Respite services provide engagement and cognitive stimulation for individuals living with Alzheimer’s and gives caregivers time to take care of themselves. CJFS is devoted to delivering this important care and services to families in their time of need, and we are pleased to support their work.”

“As the number of people affected by Alzheimer’s disease grows, so too does the need for these important respite care programs,” said AFA Treasurer Barry Berg. “CJFS offers a valuable service, and we are pleased to deliver this funding to help them continue their good work.”

Lauren Schwartz, executive director of CJFS, said, “CJFS is grateful for AFA’s support of our CARES program. CARES has created a community for families living with dementia that blends support, engagement, and fun. As a result, we have found that the program significantly improves quality of life for both the participant and caregiver. The Berg Respite grant from AFA enables us to continue to positively impact our families.”

The Milton and Phyllis Berg Respite Grants are awarded to organizations that share AFA’s mission of providing support, services and education to individuals, families and caregivers affected by Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias nationwide. They were created in response to the overwhelming need for respite care as a result of caregiving responsibilities. Funding is awarded twice a year.

The grants are named in honor of the deceased parents of Barry E. Berg, who has served on AFA’s Board of Trustees since 2004. Mr. Berg’s mother, Phyllis, lived with Alzheimer’s disease and his father, Milton, was her primary caregiver.

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senior life

With expanded facilities, Tulane promotes preventative heart health Tulane wants to help seniors — and everyone else — with heart health care and advice.

Recently, the Tulane Heart and Vascular Institute opened a new location in the heart of Metairie on Veterans Memorial Boulevard, (to add to the downtown and West Bank locations.

An uptown location is also planned in the near future.

“We focus not just on cardiovascular care but preventative medicine, education and research,” said Tulane Heart and Vascular Institute Director Robert Hendel. An involved member of the Jewish community who moved to New Orleans from the University of Miami School of Medicine two years ago, Hendel also serves as the Sidney W. and Marilyn Lassen Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine for the Tulane University School of Medicine.

As a trustee for the American College of Cardiology responsible for health care policy as well as how cardiology should be practiced, he has had the opportunity to travel around the world, bringing that knowledge and experience back to New Orleans.

“There have been some recent changes in the guidelines for treatment of high blood pressure,” said Hendel. “That is pertinent to seniors. Even modest levels of blood pressure increase can be detrimental. We’re also putting renewed emphasis into cholesterol checks and ways to lower cholesterol levels.”

As people get older, their metabolism slows down. Proper diet and exer-

cise are vital for heart health.

Hendel recommends the Mediterranean Diet, which includes lots of vegetables, nuts, limited, lean meats and low sodium.

As far as exercise, a minimum of 30 minutes per day of cardiovascular workout can go a long way toward heart health. “It can be playing a sport or working out in the gym or just walking the mall,” said Hendel.

The Tulane Heart and Vascular Institute considers a patient’s age, weight, family history, medical history and at-risk factors when advising them about diet as well as exercise.

Those who have chest pains, shortness of breath and increasing fatigue should seek immediate care, he said.

Hendel also said he is “very proud of the research we are doing and the advancements we have made here at Tulane.” Areas of research activities include seeking better blood pressure control mechanisms for diabetics and other at-risk patients; developing new stints, and better medications and treatments for those who have irregular heartbeats.

Hendel said he and the other medical professionals with the Tulane Heart and Vascular Institute are happy to be a resource to the community.

“I would be more than happy to speak about heart health and do screening programs at the Jewish Community Centers as well as the synagogues, as I did in Miami,” he said. “The way I see it, a good doctor treats patients and a great doctor prevents disease.”

Cahaba Ridge Retirement Community It’s the little things.

Throughout the years, we’ve learned the most important things in life are often the little things.

Small details matter.

Here at Cahaba Ridge, we take great pride in recognizing what brings a smile to your face every day in our all-inclusive community. That means our managers live on site to help with anything you need. It means we believe in making every meal a world-class, how-you-like-it experience, and it means we hire top-quality staff who provide top-quality service.

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

Vestavia Hills, AL 35243  CahabaRidgeRetirement.com

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Cahaba Ridge celebrates retirement living Cahaba Ridge Retirement Community seniors can enjoy all-inclusive, resort-style living in Vestavia and while traveling.

The Birmingham-area retirement community features fine dining options; its own 150-seat theater including regular movies along with weekly live entertainment, plus many planned activities, programs and amenities.

“We have everything here seniors could want in a community. They also get to play an active role in planning some of our programs and activities,” said Cahaba Ridge Retirement Community Co-Manager Susan Williams. “We also offer transportation to anywhere they want to go within reason, plus we have some organized outings such as our lunch bunch” and trips to the museums or symphony.

The community includes a few Jewish residents. Last December, Rabbi Barry Altmark led a Chanukah celebration that was attended by more than 40 seniors and staff. Altmark will lead a Passover event there in late April. On tap for February are Valentine’s Day and Mardi Gras celebrations.

Cahaba Ridge offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments in a variety of floor plans. Each apartment features window coverings, climate-controlled thermostat ceiling fans and ample closet space. Kitchens come equipped with a dishwasher, range, microwave, refrigerator and garbage disposal. Washer/dryer hook-ups are included.

The community’s signature Freedom Dining program includes flexible dining hours throughout the day. That includes a casual buffet, on-thego snacks, room service and fine-dining dinner menu options Monday through Friday.

Residents can access on-site banking, a salon, general store and pharmacy services. Cahaba Ridge is also pet-friendly.

Williams said popular activities and programs at Cahaba Ridge include Cornhole tournaments, bingo, senior fitness, happy hours, movies as well as some continuing education classes.

“We also have guest suites for visiting family and a travel program,” she said. “Our residents can stay for free at any of the company’s 26 communities across the country.” Adds her husband and co-manager Terry Williams, “that’s what is so great about Cahaba Ridge — it’s all-inclusive.

Our residents can live an active, fun life here.”

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Rabbi Barry Altmark leads Chanukah event at Cahaba Ridge February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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senior life

It’s All About Family “Jewish life is all about family,” said Lila Barton in the setting of her Methodist Home community. “As soon as we moved in, we felt like we had a whole new family.”

Lila, 85, and her husband Bernie, 89, moved just one year ago to Fair Haven in Birmingham, part of Methodist Homes of Alabama and Northwest Florida, and say they couldn’t be happier about their choice. When giving Lila and Bernie Barton directions to their apartment, Lila tells her guests, “It’s the one with the Mezuzah on the door.”

When asked about being Jewish in a predominately Christian community, Lila said, “It doesn’t make a difference. Some know about us and some do not, but it doesn’t seem to matter. Everyone is friendly and takes care of one another. If I need something, I can just knock on anyone’s door and say I need… and they know I would do the same for them.”

Both Lila and Bernie were born and raised in New York. They married there in 1953, but left New York about a year after the birth of their first child. Although they have lived in various places across the United States, including South Carolina, Ohio and California, they both proudly retain their New York accent. As for their own family, they have three children: two daughters, one currently living in Birmingham, and one living in Seattle, Wash.; and one son who had been living in Australia for 30 years.

While raising their family, Bernie spent 15 years with Ohio Department of Corrections, some of that time as the prison warden of the reformatory. Lila was a schoolteacher, owned a gourmet cookware shop, and even worked for a time for HealthSouth in California, organizing physicians’ files in the highly-regulated business.

One of the Bartons’ favorite pastimes is just being with other people. They also love playing bridge, local theater, and meeting new people. They have traveled extensively, and have found themselves particularly fascinated by places where the culture and lifestyle is markedly different from life in the United States.

On one such traveling adventure, Lila and Bernie found an unexpected family connection. While visiting a beautiful synagogue in Holland, they discovered the portrait of a man who had the same name as Lila’s mother’s surname. They took a picture of the portrait and reached out to their local historical society upon their return to the United States. The couple discovered that the man was indeed Lila’s great-great-(and many more greats) uncle who had been a rabbi in Amsterdam in the 15th century.

When Bernie became ill in January, he spent a short time in the rehabilitation building of Fair Haven, which is just a two-minute walk from his apartment. His friends and neighbors gave him a standing ovation in the Fair Haven dining room upon his return from rehabilitation. “If I had known the kind of attention I would receive, I would have been sick much sooner,” Bernie laughed, remembering the welcome and the many cards with “get well” wishes.

Now that Bernie is back home, Lila is making plans to make her matzah balls to share with her Fair Haven family. “My son-in-law says that my matzah balls are too big,” Lila said. “I told him, ‘Matzah balls can never be too big!’” Lila and Bernie are also looking forward to enjoying a traditional Passover meal with their Fair Haven friends in April.

(Interview by Sherri Easdon, Director of Public Relations, Methodist Homes of Alabama and Northwest Florida) 22

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

senior life Bloody Mary Bar Sundays 11a-3p

Navigating Medicare, long-term care Navigating the complicated world of Medicare can be a challenge, but it’s a journey seniors don’t need to take solo.

“It’s not easy understanding Medicare. Talking to a specialist is important. We can find the right plan for someone, and in many cases, get the same coverage for a lower premium,” said Milton Goldstein, an involved member of the Birmingham area Jewish community who offers clients a multitude of Medicare and long-term insurance options.

Goldstein said open enrollment isn’t the only time someone can make changes to a plan or switch plans.

Medicare does not cover long-term care needs beyond 30 days. It also covers care for only 20 days after a three-day hospital stay.

Getting long-term-care insurance can fill in the gaps for seniors as well as those who are younger and need it, he added.

“The sooner you get long-term-care insurance, the less expensive it is and the better the coverage is,” said Goldstein.

Seniors comprise approximately 60 percent of those with long-term-care insurance, but 40 percent are under 65.

“It’s a free consultation and I’m happy to talk about it anytime,” he said.

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Town Village retirement community offers special amenities Town Village Vestavia Hills is aptly named since community is at the heart of the retirement living facility.

“We believe in the power of community. The employees and the residents are like family,” said Town Village Vestavia Hills Marketing Director Desiree Soriano.

She said seniors are welcome to participate in Lifetime Enrichment Programs offered by Town Village as much as they want. “They not only get to participate in activities and outings, but they can let us know what programs they would like us to offer,” said Soriano.

Seniors stay active with senior fitness and enjoy live entertainment at least once a week. Card games, speakers and educational programs, and holiday celebrations are very popular.

Town Village Vestavia has a few Jewish residents and approximately 30 seniors attended last year’s Passover celebration led by Rabbi Barry Altmark. “Our seniors like to learn, share and celebrate,” said Soriano. A Passover event with Rabbi Altmark for 2019 is already in the works, with a date and time still to be determined.

Excellent dining options abound at Town Village. The main dining hall upstairs serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Newer offerings include a farmer’s market and a bistro.

“Both the farmer’s market and the bistro have really taken off,” said Soriano. “Some of our residents have gotten juicers” for the fruit in the farmer’s market. “We’re giving them a several options in our dining program. They can get whatever they want from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.”

One of the “more unique” services Town Village offers is Tech Time House Calls. Trained staffers work with seniors to help them use their computers and phones for everything from sending e-mails to shopping to paying bills online.

The community includes 222 one- and two-bedroom apartments. For visiting family, a few units are usually available for rent.

Late last year the community welcomed a new executive director, Steve Ragsdale.

“My experience in the hospitality industry has allowed me to transition those business skills and also apply the passion I have always had for taking care of my guests to the residents of Town Village,” said Ragsdale.

Senior Life section stories mainly by Lee Green

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Mending kids’ hearts

community Digging Israel: Magness speaks in Pensacola about discoveries The Pensacola Jewish Federation and the University of West Florida will host a series of lectures by Jodi Magness of the University of North Carolina. Magness last addressed the Pensacola community in 2015, where she first revealed her finding of an elephant mosaic from an early fifth century BCE synagogue in Huqoq, Israel.

On Feb. 17, she will speak at the Voices of Pensacola Multicultural Center, on “What Makes Jerusalem Special.” A reception will be at 6 p.m., with the lecture at 7 p.m.

On Feb. 18 at 11:30 a.m., she will speak at a luncheon at Temple Beth El, “More than Just Mosaics: The Ancient Synagogue at Huqoq in Israel’s Galilee.” Both events are free and open to the community, but reservations are requested for the Feb. 18 event.

Kindertransport talk ties in with “Stitching History” exhibit

It’s what we do best. Our team of more than 250 pediatric professionals is recognized for its excellence in providing world-class cardiac care in an environment best suited to the needs of our patients. From tiny babies to teens, we care for Skylar Wilson and every child like our own. l

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Judy Borisky Metzger, a board member of the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center, will present a Lunch and Learn on “Nicholas Winton: The Kindertransport and Czechoslovakia,” on Feb. 21 at noon at the BHEC. In 1939, Nicholas Winton traveled from London to Prague for a ski trip. Little did he know that once in Prague, he would respond to the invitation of his ski friend to answer an urgent need: Winton became the force behind the transport of small children from Czechoslovakia to England in order to save them from the coming perils of World War II. The program includes slides and film clips about the rescue of 668 children in 1939 due to Winton’s efforts.

This program is presented in conjunction with “Stitching History From the Holocaust,” an original exhibit created by and on loan from Jewish Museum Milwaukee, now on display at UAB’s Abroms-Engel Institute for Visual Arts through March 16.

Another program in conjunction with the exhibit is “Immigration: Then and Now” with Janek Wasserman, associate professor, University of Alabama Department of History, on March 5 at 6 p.m. at AEIVA.

cardiac surgeries performed in 2018

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24

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

On Jan. 19, Abraham Hausman-Weiss of Houston won the Crimson Hammer for “his tireless support of his team, both on and off the court” during the University of Alabama Wheelchair Basketball team’s 67-40 win over Shepherd at the Lakeshore Pioneer Classic in Birmingham. Hausman-Weiss grew up in Birmingham.

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

25

community New Workplay show honors legacy of Leonard Cohen

by Lee J. Green Fans of Leonard Cohen can rejoice with a “Hallelujah” as the United States’ only “unofficial” Leonard Cohen “cover band” makes its first live appearance at WorkPlay in Birmingham this month.

David Stegall and Reid Brooks with The Famous Blue Raincoats will perform “The Music and History of Leonard Cohen” on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m.

“People either know him and love him, or don’t know him but should,” said Stegall, who lives in Birmingham. “He was a remarkable artist and person — a true poet whose work explored love, religion, politics. Leonard Cohen had such an interesting life. I’ve read his books and listened to all of his 250-something songs. He was quite an influence on me and my music.”

Cohen was a Jewish Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist, born in 1934 in Montreal. He pursued a career as a poet and novelist during the 1950s and early 1960s, not launching his music career until 1967 at the age of 33.

A musical innovator, most of Cohen’s recordings were folk songs. But he would incorporate some spoken word, blending in jazz as well as even Asian and Mediterranean influences. He released a few albums in the late 1960s and through the 1970s.

Perhaps Cohen’s most famous song, “Hallelujah,” was first released on his studio album “Various Positions” in 1984. Later in the decade, he experimented with synthesized productions — a departure from his minimalist style. “I’m Your Man,” released in 1988, remains his most popular album.

His 1992 album, “The Future,” included dark lyrics and references to political and social unrest. Cohen took a 10-year hiatus, then returned to music in 2001 with an album that was a major hit in Canada and Europe.

After a successful string of tours from 2008 through 2013, Cohen released three albums in the final four years of his life. He died Nov. 7, 2016 in Los Angeles at the age of 82.

Stegall, 63, is an insurance salesman by day and musician by night. He had mostly played folk music on guitar and didn’t start singing until a year or so ago.

Stegall primarily played with Brooks, performing folk rock cover songs primarily, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young and few Cohen songs.

“About a year ago, Reid and I started talking about a show covering Leonard Cohen,” he said. “We don’t know of another one in the U.S. — just a few in Canada and Europe. His music tells so many stories, but we knew we needed to do a show that was also filled with narrative about Leonard Cohen and his amazing life.”

They assembled a group of professional musicians to back them up — The Famous Blue Raincoats, named for a popular Cohen song. The deepvoiced Stegall handles lead vocals and Brooks does the narratives.

“Reid is in his 30s and he became a Leonard Cohen fan through his parents,” said Stegall. “I have been a fan for much of my life. I knew a lot of his music, but in researching for this show, I learned several things about him not just as a musician, but as a person.”

Stegall said the show will primarily go in chronological order with a few exceptions. Popular songs such as “Suzanne” and “Chelsea Hotel” will be included alongside lesser known ones such as “I Can’t Forget” and the rocking “Closing Time.”

He hopes the WorkPlay show is successful and that they can take “The Music and History of Leonard Cohen” on the road.

“We want to carry on his legacy through music and stories,” said Stegall. “He touched on so many real things that are relevant today. I hope we can continue to let future generations appreciate what he gave to all of us.”

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

community “Beautiful – The Carole King Musical” comes to Alabama this month

by Lee J. Green Life is beautiful on and off the stage for Jewish actor/singer Jacob Heimer, who plays Barry Mann in “Beautiful – The Carole King Musical” coming to the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex from Feb. 26 to March 3 as a part of the Broadway in Birmingham series, then March 5 to 10 at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville.

“This has been such an amazing experience to be a part of,” said Heimer, 30, who been with the tour for a year and nine months. “I really connect with this show and with Barry on his passion for his art as well how much his partner inspires him.”

Heimer met his wife, Iris, eight years ago when they were both in “As You Like It” at a New Haven, Conn., playhouse. They were married two years ago this past September at that same playhouse. “My wife and I see each other at least once every three weeks, either on a tour stop or when I can take a day to go back to our home in New York City,” he said. “She is my love and my muse.”

Growing up in Westport, Conn., Heimer and his family attended a Reform synagogue, where he became Bar Mitzvah. His father is from Queens and would commute to New York City every day from Connecticut.

Performing and Judaism have played important roles in his life, Heimer said. His grandparents on his mother’s side survived the Holocaust. “My grandfather escaped from a few labor camps and my grandmother was on the Kladovo,” an ill-fated youth transport from Vienna to pre-state Israel from 1939 to 1941. “He spoke a lot about their experiences. I’ve learned so much from them and what they overcame,” he said.

Heimer said his favorite Jewish holiday is Passover, since his parents have always hosted a big (25 people or more), festive, fun Seder. “I was on the road with the production last year but flew to New York and back on a break day just so I wouldn’t miss it.”

“When I was growing up, we would go see some Broadway shows. I was always obsessed with music and singing,” he said. “I would do Elvis impressions in my middle school choir. The arts gave me meaning and focus.”

Heimer’s first professional theatre experience was just a few months before he became Bar Mitzvah – a production of “Falsettos.” “It made me realize that this was what I wanted to do with my life,” said.

He remained active in acting and singing through high school in Westport and would go on to earn a degree in acting at Syracuse University.

While there, he got to spend two semesters learning in noted venues – one in London with Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre as well as one semester working and learning on Broadway. “You can’t get a better education than being around these professionals and experiencing it with them,” he said.

After graduating Syracuse, he did some regional theatre in New York, Connecticut and Florida, even some puppetry work.

Heimer’s resume today includes theatrical productions including “Twelfth Night,” “Next to Normal” and “The Visitor” as well playing an agent’s assistant in the first season of the popular Netflix show “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.”

More than three years ago Off Broadway, he got to play a rabbi in “Soul Doctor,” a musical about the life, music and spiritual journey of continued on page 29 February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

27

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3144 Village Circle Ingredients: Cahaba Heights 1 six-inch slice of French Gambino bread wintzellsoysterhouse.com 1 pat of butter Also Fultondale, Leeds 1 eight-ounce whitefish filet Salt and pepper Two slices red tomatoes One cup shredded house and romaine lettuce blend 1 tablespoon olive oil 3 red onion slices 4 dill pickle slices Butter and toast the French Gambino bread. Season the whitefish filet with salt and pepper (Wintzell’s uses their special house-made spices).

Put olive oil in a pan. Grill the whitefish for three minutes on each side. Place on the bread then add the lettuce (60 percent romaine, 40 percent house at Winztell’s), tomatoes, onions and pickles. Enjoy.

Wintzell’s Oyster House

by Lee J. Green Wintzell’s Oyster House launched in Mobile in 1938, and has become a Southern tradition. In recent years, Wintzell’s has gone mobile across Alabama, including the opening of restaurants in Fultondale, Cahaba Heights and most recently, Leeds.

Franchise Owners Frank and Keith Hall opened Fultondale two-anda-half years ago, followed by Cahaba Heights this past October and Leeds at the beginning of this month.

“We’ve gotten a lot of support from the community and we’ve been pleased with the response,” said Donald Jones, director of marketing for the Halls’ Wintzell’s franchise. They will open two to four more locations in the Birmingham area in the next year or so.

“Wintzell’s is a tradition and these locations keep with that,” said Jones.

“We want people who might be from or who have visited Mobile to get that same experience at our restaurants here in the Birmingham area.”

That includes similar menus, walls adorned with old photos and signs with sayings and jokes, as well as warm, friendly customer service.

Though Wintzell’s specialties include oysters and shrimp, the restaurants have plenty of kosher-style items on the menu including whitefish po’boys, salmon salad, burgers, chicken salad, hushpuppies, a few sides continued on page 29 28

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

community • >> Rear Pew Mirror

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packages.

Unfortunately, this kind of glimpse at the human impact of the firmament shutdown — and the moments of humanity demonstrated during it — are often lost amid polarized bickering over the unanswerables: Who started it? Who owns it? Why it exists. When it will end. Will it just happen again? What was gained, by whom, from it? And what’s next?

Of course, these questions are often asked about heaven even in the best of times. Even in the days after the 1969 World Series. But they get a lot more attention in times like these.

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and desserts including Reese’s peanut butter pies as well as bread pudding.

Wintzell’s can do customized orders and catering at the three Birmingham area locations. The Leeds location seats 225 and Fultondale seats 200. Both have a room for private dining of up to 60.

The Cahaba Heights location is Wintzell’s smallest, with a capacity of 90, but it was selected since it was an ideal location and another restaurant was there previously, Jones said.

“The owners knew this was the perfect spot to serve the Vestavia and Mountain Brook communities,” said Jones. “Plus much of the infrastructure was there already so we were able to open in a short time after they took over the lease.”

Wintzell’s Birmingham area locations are open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

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continued from page 27

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. “That was an instance where theatre and Judaism came together. It helped me to learn more about my Judaism,” said Heimer.

During the production, he met the team from “Beautiful – A Carole King Musical” and started auditioning. After numerous auditions, he first landed an understudy role with the tour and then the role of Barry Mann in September 2017.

“Beautiful – A Carole King Musical” is primarily about the early life, career, passion and chutzpah of the legendary, groundbreaking Jewish singer/songwriter, born Carol Klein in Brooklyn.

The show tells the inspiring true story of King’s remarkable rise to stardom — from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin to her relationship with fellow writers Mann and his wife Cynthia Weil to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history. “Beautiful” features many beloved songs including “One Fine Day,” “I Feel The Earth Move,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” and the title song.

Heimer said getting to meet Mann and Weil helped him gain priceless insight. “You could really understand how their love and partnership influenced their writing as well as how they inspired each other,” he said. “They were good friends with (King and Goffin) but also fierce competitors at times regarding their songwriting and getting their work” published and recorded by artists.

“Beautiful – The Carole King Musical” will make its first appearance in Birmingham, as will Heimer. “That’s another wonderful thing about being a part of this production,” he said. “We get to travel around the U.S. and Canada, seeing new cities, meeting new people and sharing this show with them. I’m looking forward to our Birmingham visit.”

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rear pew mirror • doug brook

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The record-breaking shutdown of the firmament continues, resulting in the further prolonged heavenly non-influences of unanswered prayers, a lack of miracles, and another non-winning season for the New York Mets.

Rather than exploring the oft-debated questions of who started the firmament shutdown, who owns it, or why it even exists, it’s time to take an all-too-rate look at its impact.

Everyone is angry.

In conclusion, it’s plain to see that it’s hard to see even a hint of the presence of heaven in the past two months. It’s been hardest on those most directly affiliated with heaven, whose lives and wellbeing are normally fed by their cloud-based connection that’s now being withheld by people with their heads in the clouds (or in somewhere else entirely).

Then again, for most people, how different has it been day to day?

As Garth Brooks once sang, unanswered prayers happen all the time, sometimes for good reasons. Miracles have pretty much died off since The Great Second Date of 2008. And the Mets don’t need any help to not win. So how can one tell the difference if heaven is open for business or not?

There might be impacts that people wouldn’t see either way. For example, it’s possible that people don’t get into heaven during the shutdown.

Not that so many people are eligible to get into heaven these days anyway, but if the staff isn’t working there’s nobody at the entrance to check them off and let them in. It might also mean that there’s nobody there to stop just anyone from entering without any documentation.

This unheavenly shutdown raises important philosophical questions in many realms of society. Sports, for example. If heaven is shut down, are the Anaheim Angels of Los Angeles allowed to play? Are the New Jersey Devils free to go undefeated? Are the San Diego Padres still a Major League team? (That’s a question any time.)

Even the culinary world is affected. Unconfirmed reports indicate a sharp increase in the production of devil’s food cake relative to angel food cake. Of course, this could be attributed to chocolate being a heavier comfort food than vanilla, and people seeking greater comfort during these trying times.

How does the On the other hand, there are always other hands. One of them is pointing shutdown of to the fact that there are many signs of the presence of heaven even in the heaven affect absence of active interaction. There’s the “real world”? a world and all that’s in it. There are nearly three of you reading this. There are traffic lights that still stay yellow just long enough to get through the intersection without justifying the angst of cross-traffic.

One might, therefore, call this only a partial firmament shutdown. The sun rises every day, the sun sets every night, the world spins on its fittingly tilted axis, and people are pleased or displeased about these events at more or less the same rate as always.

People don’t always get what they seek from heaven, either during this life or once they take up residence in heaven after a process that, frankly, is the death of most people. In the absence of manna or womanna from heaven, people end up having to rely on each other. In an ironic twist of faith, some people put aside their angst and re-create themselves in the Big G’s image by bringing small miracles to each other. Or, at least, care continued on previous page

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February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

February 2019 • Southern Jewish Life

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