Southern Jewish Life, Deep South, October 2020

Southern Jewish Life

October 2020

Volume 30 Issue 10

Southern Jewish Life P.O. Box 130052 Birmingham, AL 35213 Rosh Hashanah at Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Photo by Audrey Nicole Photography

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

shalom y’all When I was in elementary school, a local computer company had a conference room that didn’t really look like a formal conference room, with its 1970s vibe. A plaque on the door said “Big Deal Room.”

Back then, not familiar with the corporate world of big deals, I assumed it was an office joke — big deal, as in “so what.”

It seems that dichotomy of opinion has colored reaction to the recent normalization agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, and with Bahrain. Big Deal or big deal?

Many, including the ever-accurate Washington Post, have insisted that this round of diplomatic relations isn’t a big deal, because Israel has never met The United Arab Emirates or Bahrain on the battlefield. They see this as normalization between countries that never went to war with each other. In other words, some great achievement, huh?

Yes, Israel never met either of those countries on the battlefield of war. However, both the UAE in Bahrain have long been soldiers in the economic, diplomatic and philosophical war against the world’s only Jewish state.

They have been part of the solid wall of Arab rejectionism of Israel’s very existence, which goes back to the Arab League’s rejection of a Jewish state in any borders since Israel was established.

When Bahrain and UAE became independent of British rule in 1971, they joined the Arab League and were part of the solid anti-Israel Arab-Soviet voting bloc at the United Nations, at a time when it was said that the Arabs could introduce a resolution stating the world is a cube with a green tassel hanging from each corner, and it would pass 187-2, with the U.S. and Israel being the two.

Bahrain and the UAE were huge supporters of the ongoing Arab boycott of Israel, which not only extended to all products made in Israel, but products of international companies that did business in Israel. People forget that for a long time you could find Coca-Cola only in Israel and not in Arab states, while Pepsi was available in Arab states, but the only way

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commentary

MESSAGES

Maccabi USA leader praises Birmingham Games

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

Why to vote No on Louisiana Amendment 5

I feltNov. honored to come tovoters Birmingham for on the first in love with nottaxes, just the city the ate time whatand theyfellpay in property while On 3, Louisiana will vote but the people.

Youthe have taken Southern to hospitality level with kind and caring us pay what theyour law requires. whether to amend state constitution cre- resttoofa new approach to the JCCtax Maccabi Games.

Together Louisiana, a not for profit organiate a new corporate exemption for industry. whose mission is to give and comThe voters see your on their ballots zation Led language by the Sokol andwill Helds, hard-working volunteers were wonderful.

Theyfaith partnered munity-based organizations an opportunity to is: “Do you support an amendment to authorize with your outstanding staff, led by Betzy Lynch, to make the 2017 JCC Maccabi games a huge hit. affect change on a larger scale than they could local governments to enter into cooperative enI want to take this opportunity as executive director of Maccabi USA to say thank you on behalf deavor ad valorem tax exemption agreements alone, launched an educational campaign about of everyone involved. with new or expanding manufacturing estab- the negative impact that will result from this I had just from the of 20th World games inand Israel a U.S.todelegation amendment howwith we plan defeat it. of lishments forreturned payments in lieu taxes. ” Maccabiah over who joined 10,000 Jewish athletes from 80This countries. in July the of the entire is why IBack am joining witheyes Together LouiThe1100, ballot language was engineered to inJewish world were on Jerusalem and the Maccabiah.

This past month with 1000 athletes 5 — the tentionally confuse the average voter, so let me siana in working to defeat Amendmentand coaches from around the world being in Birmingham, you became focal point.

Corporate Welfarethe Amendment clear up the confusion.

For the previous three years,abills nearly idenOur teachers are among the most underpaid Everyone from the Jewish community and the community at large, including wonderful ticalgotodown Amendment by industry in the nation.

Our are torn to These pieces.games Our will police force, are to roads be commended. in history5aswere beingfiled a seminal presented such to Louisiana legislators. water systems areJewish barelycommunity holding on.as Our moment for the webridgbuild to lobbyists the futureand by providing wonderful Jewish They were all defeated by citizen testimony. es are falling apart. memories.

Amendment 5 would defund public edu- Amendment 5 won legislative approval in 2020 Jed Margolis cation, pull money away from roads, bridges, only because citizens were at a stay at home orExecutive Director, Maccabirecovery, USA healthcare and hurricane and shift der due to Covid.

The largest tax loophole in the history of Louthe tax burden to working families and small supremacists to see back — one would of the like biggest in pushed the entire counbusinesses. And this is because Amendment 5 isiana On Charlottesville into—a corner made feel lesser.

We stand is beingand closed astocitizens are re-gaining would allow industrial corporations to negoti- try with andover praytheir for the family of Heather Heyer, control own property tax base.

So, Editor’s Note: This reaction to the events in who was there standing up to the face of this of industry set out to create new loopholes.

One Charlottesville, written by Jeremy Newman, hate. the biggest of those loopholes is Amendment 5.

Master of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Theta Colony AatPrayer for Temple Sinai, Lake Charles Amendment would allow major corporaWe recognize5the essence of the American Auburn University, was shared by AEPi tions to negotiate by contract what they In this time of need… narrative as a two-century old struggle topay rid in National, which called it “very eloquent” and local property taxes and whether theythose pay them May“our the energy prayers ourselves of such corners, and allow in praised brothersofatour AEPi Thetasomehow Colony at at all. the Instead paying approved fillthe theleadership they them seat atofthe table the thattax theyrate so deserve.

Auburn Universityhelp and…

In This Time of Need

Void campus. of no electric power. display on their ”

It is the struggle to fulfillcontinued the promise the 24 onofpage Declaration of Independence, that “all men are In this time of need… created equal… endowed by their Creator with White has been a cancer on May thesupremacy depth of our good wishes somehow certain unalienable rights.” We know our work ourHelp country since its beginning, threatening replenish your wells of hope when is far from finished, but we know we will not Kudos to Dr. Bruce Samuels of New Orleans its hopes, its values, and its better angels.

Water is absent. move backwards. for being correctly on point in fully identifying The events that took place in Charlottesville When andMarxist women,organization fully armed,(Letters, take BLM as anmen openly represented the worst of of thisneed… nation. Those In this time to the streets in droves with swastikas and who marched the streets with tiki torches September 2020). The three founders have adMay our onto continuing thoughts of you other symbols of hate, it is a reminder of how mitted this openly. and Morning, swastikas did so to provoke violence and noon and evening somehow relevant the issues of racism and anti-Semitism That BLM does not have antisemitism in their fear. Those marched onto thesense streets Help who strengthen your own of did are today.

It is a wake-up call to the work thator organizational platform should not assuage so to profess anFaith ideology harkens back to and that Trust. needs to be done to ensure a better, more dilute their true intent. This organization is a bleaker, more wretched time in our history. welcoming it should not come the avowed country. enemy ofBut both Israel and the UnitA time when men and women of many creeds, May all this and so much more within without a reflection on how far we’ve come. ed States.

Malcolm X was critical of liberals races,Our andhearts religions were farassure from you equal and far somehow that as being the first to abandon blacks and the America was born a slave nation. A century from safe in ourare own borders.

A time Better days ahead for each and where every civil rights struggle.

His opinion of in thepart Black into our history we engaged in a war Americans lived under a constant cloud of Temple Sinai member and family, for would balance Golda to ensure weorganization would not continue as one. We racism, anti-Semitism pervasive hate. The LivesMatter Our beloved Lakeand Charles Calcasieu Meir’s factual opinion of Yasser Arafat. events that took place in Charlottesville served found ourselves confronted by the issue of civil Region. rights, and embarked on aHenderson mission to ensure as a reminder of how painfully relevant these Marriott the fair treatment of all peoples no matter their issues are today.

Lt Col-U.S. Army-Ret Blessed Are You O G-D, skin color.

Although we’ve made great strides, U.S. Dept of State-(Ret) Who Alpha Gives Strength the weary.

Auburn’s Epsilon Pitostands with the it is a mission we’re still grappling with today.

Northport, Ala. Jewish community of Charlottesville, and Blessed Are You O G-D, America was also born an immigrant with the Jewish people around the country All.stand with the country. As early as the pilgrims, many and around the Protector world. Weofalso Amen. by the hate that groups and families found in the country the minorities who are targeted Send your letters to editor@sjlmag.com, or opportunity to plant stakes, chase their future, was on display in Charlottesville. We stand mail to P.O. Box 130052, Birmingham, AL 35213 Rabbi Barry, Linda and Amy Weinstein and be themselves. Few were met with open with the minorities of whom these white

letters

What do you think?

4 October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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Southern Jewish Life PUBLISHER/EDITOR Lawrence M. Brook editor@sjlmag.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/ADVERTISING Lee J. Green lee@sjlmag.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR Richard Friedman richard@sjlmag.com V.P. SALES/MARKETING, NEW ORLEANS Jeff Pizzo jeff@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 2179 Highland Ave., Birmingham, AL 35205 205/870.7889 NEW ORLEANS OFFICE 3747 West Esplanade, 3rd Floor Metairie, LA 70002 504/249-6875 TOLL-FREE 888/613.YALL(9255) ADVERTISING Advertising inquiries to 205/870.7889 for Lee Green, lee@sjlmag.com Jeff Pizzo, jeff@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 attend events

Chabad at the University of Alabama set up Sukkot activities for students

Federation ushers in new era with first virtual annual meeting Isa Dorsky, Fran Godchaux this year’s honorees As with many other organizations this year, the Birmingham Jewish Federation held its first-ever virtual annual meeting, noting that while the world went into shutdown in March, the Federation remained active.

Part of it was a quirk of schedule: The new Federation CEO, Danny Cohn, arrived in Birmingham just days before the state went into lockdown, and most of his work in the community is still done virtually.

Nevertheless, Federation President Lisa Engel remarked that she goes to sleep with gratitude and wakes up with amazement over how the community is responding during a time of isolation and social distancing.

Engel said the community responded to the Covid emergency campaign that helps community institutions deal with the pandemic, raising over $150,000, and “you are turning out to volunteer where it is safe, for all of our agencies and synagogues.”

Cohn said “this has been a busy year,” though “One would think a pandemic would be a detractor in our efforts.”

When the pandemic struck, the Federation “instantly became the convener of our Jewish institutions and agencies,” starting with daily group calls that have since turned weekly, discussing “how can we best support each other.”

He went through various numbers to describe the summer, from one new CEO to the $2 million target for the annual campaign, which he said was at 75 percent of its goal with a 5 percent card-for-card increase and a 40 percent increase in next generation giving., with 635 donor families thus far.

The Federation has a new Instagram handle and a weekly newsletter, which Cohn hopes “have let you get to know me better, and I look forward to when we can sit together.”

Three programs have been revitalized. The Women’s Philanthropy group will have quarterly programs, the Jewish Community Relations Committee has returned after a 10-year hiatus, and there is a special emphasis on You Belong in Birmingham, on retaining young adults in the Birmingham area. Sarah Weinberger has been hired to coordinate YBIB, which has 150 members and has held three virtual programs and a picnic in recent weeks.

Cohn also mentioned that with 170 PJ Library families receiving free Judaic children’s books in the mail each month, Birmingham has the highest per-capita concentration of any community in the program nationally. A Grinspoon grant is enabling the continuation of the monthly “In The Bag” series of virtual activities.

Cohn also announced a new enhanced Isa Dorsky (top) and Fran community calendar and website, the Godchaux first strategic plan in over two decades and efforts for more collaborative programming.

The Aug. 30 event also included the Federation’s annual awards, as Isa Dorsky received the Joanie Plous Bayer Young Leadership Award and continued on page 33 October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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agenda Jewish-Multicultural Center officially launches with several events The Goldring Family Foundation Center for Jewish-Multicultural Affairs, one of two new “Centers of Excellence” at the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, officially launched on Oct.1.

The Center, which fosters relations between the local Jewish community and the local African-American, Latin-American, and Multi-Faith communities as well as enhancing opportunities for the LGBTQ Jewish community, announced several programs for its initial couple of weeks.

The Center is continuing the Federation’s partnership with WBOK radio (1230-AM) to highlight and explore Jewish/African-American relations, with “Shalom: A Cross-Cultural Conversation,” co-hosted by Federation CEO Arnie Fielkow and Oliver Thomas. On Oct. 8 at 8 a.m., they will welcome Anthony Bean of the Anthony Bean Community Theater to preview an episode of his show “Reality Teen Talk TV.” The sixth episode of the seven-part series, airing on WUPT-TV (Channel 54), will feature six Jewish teens and six African-American teens engaging in an honest discussion on issues of race, culture, bigotry, anti-Semitism, and their communities’ commonalities and differences. It will air on Oct. 11 at 12:30 p.m.

On Oct. 12 at 5:30 p.m., the Center will host a virtual event in partnership with Puentes New Orleans, “Crossing Bridges: the Latinx and Jewish Immigration Experiences,” recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month. Thie virtual story-telling event will include Latinx students who recently arrived in the United States, a brief historical overview of Jewish immigration, and a presentation from New Orleans’ own Anne Levy, a Holocaust survivor.

A virtual Civil and Human Rights Mission, geared toward middle and high school students but open to the entire Greater New Orleans community, is planned for December, with topics including: the Holocaust;

6 October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

Jim Crow and the Civil Rights Movement; ongoing humanitarian crises around the globe; and the uptick in hate crimes targeting vulnerable populations, from the Latinx experience to the LGBTQ community.

The Center is led by an advisory council, chaired by Bradley Bain and Ina Davis, and Executive Director Mithun Kamath. The Center was made possible by a gift from the Goldring Family Foundation, which has funded it as a three-year pilot program. The other Center is the Sherry and Alan Leventhal Family Foundation Center for Interfaith Families.

SJHS holds online history programs

The Southern Jewish Historical Society will have a series of SJHS@ Home events in October, digitally hosted by the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life in Jackson. The programs are free, but registration is required.

The series starts with “A Virtual Southern Jewish Museum,” with Anna Tucker, co-sponsored by the Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience, Oct. 12 at 5 p.m. Central. Register at tinyurl.com/sjhsmuseum.

On Oct. 19 at 5 p.m., “Distinctive or Typical: Baltimore and the Writing of Urban Jewish History” will feature Eric Goldstein and Deb Weiner, winners of the 2019 SJHS Book Award. Register at tinyurl.com/sjhsurban.

Marcie Cohen Ferris and Margaret Norman will lead “SJHS in the Kitchen: A Southern Jewish Cooking Demo,” Oct. 26 at 5 p.m. Register at tinyurl.com/sjhskitchen.

Barbara Tahsler, president of SJHS, said “since we are unable to hold our conference in Charleston, S.C. this year, we decided to schedule these weekly programs just to give a taste of exploring Southern Jewish history and culture together.”

agenda Florida approves pro-Israel specialty plate, pre-orders start soon Supporters of Israel in Florida can show their drive, thanks to legislation authorizing the issuance of a Florida Stands with Israel specialty license plate.

The bill was signed by Governor Ron DeSantis on Sept. 18 as part of a bill that authorized 32 new plate designs, including university plates for Georgia, Alabama and Auburn, the “Divine Nine” Black fraternities and sororities, the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Special Olympics, “In God We Trust,” “Don’t Tread on Me,” “Beat Childhood Cancer” and Fallen Law Enforcement. The bill also caps the state’s specialty tags at 150 and establishes procedures for phasing out underperformers.

New plates must have 3,000 pre-orders for production to begin. A portion of the revenue from the Israel tags will go to the first-responder group Hatzalah of Miami-Dade.

In Florida, most specialty tags are an extra $25 per year, and gift certificates are available for specialty plates.

The overall bill was sponsored by Rep. Jamie Grant, and incorporated a separate bill for just the Israel tag, sponsored by House Minority Leader Kionne L. McGhee and Rep. Scott Plakon.

In a joint statement, McGhee and Plakon said “this shows that our relationship with the State of Israel touches upon many of Florida’s most vital interests, values, and ideals. Accordingly, the overwhelming majority of Floridians support this special relationship and now have a wonderful way to celebrate it.”

Plakon added that he couldn’t think of a sweeter way to wish Florida’s Jewish community “a Shana Tova – Happy New Year!”

The Israeli-American Council thanked DeSantis and the legislature “for this heartwarming expression of solidarity, which affirms the strong bond between the State of Florida’s citizens and the Jewish State of Israel.”

The IAC will oversee a 30-day contest for the design of the plate, coordinated by Artists 4 Israel. After a panel of judges decides on the winner, the IAC will embark on a campaign to promote pre-orders.

IAC Board Member and IAC for Action Board Chairman Shawn Evenhaim said “this kind of warmth is why Florida has always been a leading destination for Israeli-Americans. This gesture celebrates a long and close relationship.”

In 2019, DeSantis took a highly-touted trade mission to Israel.

South Carolina also has an Israel license plate available.

MSJE hosts program on Jewish Home The Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience will have an online conversation with Marlene Trestman, “The New Orleans Jewish Orphans Home,” Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. Trestman, who previously wrote about Home alumna and Supreme Court advocate Bessie Margolin, is the author of the forthcoming “Most Fortunate Unfortunates: New Orleans’ Jewish Orphans Home 1855-1946.” Her biography of Margolin was just released in paperback by LSU Press.

She and Museum Curator Anna Tucker will discuss the Home’s history and some of the artifacts that were selected for the museum’s opening exhibitions. She also will discuss Margolin’s legacy in light of the recent death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The program is free, but registration is required for the Zoom broadcast. It will also be available on the museum’s Facebook Live, facebook. com/msjenola.

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agenda Kathy Lovitt, who has served as executive director of the Mobile Area Jewish Federation for the past three years, is retiring from the position. The Federation is currently looking for a successor for the part-time position.

The board of Temple Beth Or in Montgomery announced that its annual Jewish Food Festival and Treasure Market, scheduled for Feb. 28, will be cancelled, with an eye on coming back in 2022. The event is the congregation’s largest fundraiser of the year.

Kol B’Seder, the well-known duo of Cantor Jeff Klepper and Rabbi Dan Freelander, will kick off its 50th anniversary tour with an Oct. 25 virtual concert for B’nai Zion in Shreveport. The duo were song leaders in the Reform movement and started infusing Jewish texts with contemporary music influenced by Bob Dylan, Pete Seeger, and Simon and Garfunkel. B’nai Zion Rabbi Jana De Benedetti has been friends with them almost from the beginning. The concert will be at 5 p.m., and B’nai Zion will have access information closer to the date.

The Threefoot Marriott, a new hotel that is resurrecting the Jewish-built landmark in downtown Meridian, has pushed its opening to January or February, due to shortages brought on by the pandemic.

Previously, the plan was to open in November or December.

The Huntsville string ensemble Consort L’Ancienne will present a special concert of Jewish Liturgical and Traditional Music at Etz Chayim on Oct. 25 at 4 p.m. to benefit the Food Pantry and First Stop. Monetary donations can be made on the Etz Chayim website through Oct. 23, and food and hygiene items are being collected at 3 p.m. on Oct. 18 and 4 p.m. on Oct. 25 at Etz Chayim. A Zoom invitation will be sent to donors.

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Hadassah Birmingham is hosting an evening to support Hadassah Medical Organization, through a cooking lesson from James Beard Award-winning chef Alon Shaya, Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. Shaya, owner of Pom Hospitality in New Orleans, with restaurants Saba in New Orleans and Safta in Denver, will teach some of his Israeli favorites over Zoom.

Those participating can sign up for $54, or there is a $125 option which includes a meal box that will be shipped for the event, or can be picked up by participants in New Orleans or Denver. The box includes pita, whole roasted cauliflower with whipped feta, hummus with tahini and lutenitsa. Those ordering the box must reserve by Oct. 9. Reservations and orders can be made at pomhospitality.com/Hadassah.

Birmingham’s Jewish Community Relations Council will host a virtual Conversation with Rabbi Daniel Gordis, “Understanding American Jewish-Israel Relations,” Oct. 18 at 11 a.m. Gordis is senior vice president and the Koret Distinguished Fellow at Shalem College in Jerusalem, and author of numerous books on Jewish thought and Israeli politics. His latest book is “We Stand Divided: The Rift Between American Jews and Israel.”

The monthly joint Shabbat service between the two Baton Rouge congregations will be Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. B’nai Israel will host in their Zoom room, and Beth Shalom Rabbi Teri Appleby will deliver the message.

It’s that time of year — Temple Beth Or Sisterhood in Montgomery is selling Carnegie Deli cheesecakes. Four-inch cheesecakes are $15 and 8-inch cheesecakes are $40. Orders must be received by Oct. 31, and pickup is on Nov. 17 and 18. The flyer is available here: templebethor.net/tbosisterhood2020cheesecakeflyer/

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Temple Emanu-El Rabbi Adam Wright and Cantor Robert Wittner will host Noah’s Ark at the Birmingham Zoo, Oct. 24 at 2 p.m. The family continued on page 38

Rabbi Mendel Danow of Chabad of Pensacola brings their large outdoor Chanukah menorah inside as Hurricane Sally approaches

Hurricane Sally puts damper on Rosh Hashanah along the coast “Minor leaks” at Pensacola congregations, but many community members face rebuilding Sixteen years to the day after Hurricane Ivan hit the Gulf Coast of Alabama and Florida, Hurricane Sally slowly made her way ashore in Orange Beach on Sept. 16, bringing flooding and a lot of wind to the same areas.

The storm, with sustained winds of around 100 miles per hour, was a category 2 storm, but because it moved slowly, the winds persisted for hours, along with torrential rain that caused massive flooding, such as in downtown Pensacola.

Pensacola had over 24 inches of rain and its third-highest storm surge, at over 5 feet. Orange Beach had 30 inches of rain, and Mobile had 5 inches.

The Jewish institutions in the region had little damage, but as the storm came ashore less than three days before Rosh Hashanah, the already-unique plans had to be altered in many cases. Planned virtual services, due to Covid-19, were more difficult due to power outages and spotty Internet in some areas.

Jerry Gordon, president of B’nai Israel in Pensacola, said they had “easily fixable” damage in the foyer, but no leaks in the sanctuary, hallway and auditorium. With a curfew imposed for three days starting on Sept.

17, and no power at the shul, Gordon said they would not be able to have Rosh Hashanah evening services under their planned protocol.

Temple Beth El, just up the hill from Pensacola’s flooded downtown, did not flood. Rabbi Joel Fleekop said there were some “minor leaks, nothing that can’t be repaired,” but the congregation’s cemetery had significant damage. “Institutionally, that has been our biggest blow,” with many majestic old trees being felled in the storm. A tree service had to go in and make the site safe before damage could be assessed.

Many members “had a lot of damage to their homes” and will be rebuilding for months, Fleekop said. “Some had wind damage, some had flooding, a lot of trees down.”

Another challenge for Beth El will be the damage to Bay Bridge, which connects Gulf Breeze to downtown Pensacola. Many Beth El members, along with the Fleekops, rely on the bridge, which will be out for a couple of months. “In terms of community, that is a big fracture,” Fleekop said, as “people are cut off from each other.” The 15-minute commute is now over an hour.

Last year, a bad wreck shut down the Bay Bridge on the afternoon leading into Rosh Hashanah, causing Fleekop to take a boat across the bay to get to services on time. “It has been a very adventurous 5780.”

Because of widespread power and Internet outages, “it didn’t make sense to do a full service,” even virtually, he said. They did 30-minute

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miniature services on Facebook and the Beth El website “so people can watch them as they get power.”

The services were done with “partial power” at Beth El, and relying on Fleekop’s phone for Internet access. Several members helped with recording service segments on Sept. 18, and Fleekop said it was inspiring to see “the level and commitment and service” by those who “put the community above their personal needs.”

Not all of the Shanah Tovah bags for Beth El members could be delivered before the storm, and they hoped to have the rest delivered by Yom Kippur.

After the storm, Rabbi Mendel Danow of Chabad of Pensacola said “our distribution center is preparing to help people who need water, food, generators and basic needs. Our volunteers will be helping many with the overwhelming tasks of cleaning and restoration.”

The new Chabad center had parts of the roof blown off, leading to leaks throughout the house. An online campaign was launched to raise the $70,000 it will take to fix the roof and the rest of the house, and provide a temporary place for the Danows to live.

Chabad had planned to hold outdoor Rosh Hashanah services in a new tent, and power was restored during Rosh Hashanah. Before the holiday, they delivered dozens of Rosh Hashanah boxes around the community, despite the lack of power.

In Mobile, Springhill Avenue Temple — which was damaged in a 2012 tornado — did not have significant damage by Sally, but according to Larry Miller, who tends the congregation’s garden, the figs, pomegranates and pears blew away.

Because of power outages, Rosh Hashanah services were delayed until Sept. 21 at 7 p.m. and Sept. 22 at 10 a.m. on Zoom. Rabbi Natan Trief came in from Atlanta to do the online service at the congregation’s sanctuary, though congregants were not attending in person.

Ahavas Chesed in Mobile held its online services, though they had “a power sputter in rehearsal damaging the new audio system and streaming computer.”

At Chabad of Mobile, they were grateful for “the tree that did not fall on our house” and were preparing for a Rosh Hashanah dinner for just the four of them, without electricity, but still holding in-person outdoor services over the weekend.

In Panama City, which was hard-hit by Hurricane Michael in October 2018, Robert Goetz reported that B’nai Israel had no visible damage and the Torahs were secure. There was some flooding in the parking lot.

Similarly, there was no damage reported at Beth Shalom in Fort Walton Beach.

community

Aid programs seek to assist those affected by Hurricane Laura Jewish Family Service of Greater New Orleans has set up an online page detailing relief availability for those in Lake Charles and Alexandria who were affected by Hurricane Laura.

Hurricane Laura came ashore near Cameron around 2 a.m. on Aug. 27, with winds of about 150 miles per hour, making it a Category 4 storm and the strongest to hit the state since the mid-19th century.

Temple Sinai in Lake Charles was heavily damaged in Hurricane Laura, and many members had severe damage to their homes. There was also widespread damage in Alexandria, with Gemiluth Chassodim having numerous leaks and windows blown out.

Applications are being accepted for the Jewish Louisiana Hurricane Laura Relief Fund, which will provide need-based grants to eligible households in the two communities.

The assistance is available as grants to reimburse residents for paid expenses.

Jewish households around Lake Charles may also be eligible for a stipend.

To be eligible, one must have been a resident of the affected areas on Aug. 27, have been affected by hurricane Laura, be a member of a

Jewish household, complete an application with documentation of expenses, and participate in an intake call with a JFS case manager.

The one time grants are for uninsured repairs, replacing destroyed furniture, providing food and assistance for temporary housing. There is no automatic entitlement to the aid, and a committee will review each application.

The Lake Charles stipend of up to $750 is available for every adult in a Jewish household in the greater Lake Charles area. Applications are due by Oct. 30, but may be extended as Internet access is still sporadic. Stipend applications can also be done over the phone.

The Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans has raised over $200,000 so far for Hurricane Laura relief, with a large portion going to JFS for allocation. The New Orleans, Baton Rouge and North Louisiana Federations are continuing the fundraising effort.

JCRS Launches Disaster Aid Program With the help of a matching gift through the end of the year, the New Orleans-based Jewish Children’s Regional Service is establishing the Disaster Relief Emergency Aid Matching Pro-

Henry S. Jacobs Camp Development Director Jacob Fijman and Operations Director Nadav Herman volunteer with Nechama gram to assist families experiencing extreme financial challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters, flooding and other crises.

Michael Goldman of New Orleans, who is treasurer of JCRS and as a longtime member of Temple Sinai in Lake Charles, said “this relief program is vitally important as so many families have been impacted by the economic downturn caused by the pandemic and in the wake of recent extreme weather events. I know many

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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community Jewish families that can use some financial relief. Who better than JCRS to step in and bridge the gap?”

In addition to funding camp scholarships for Jewish youth in its seven-state region and providing college aid, the agency works with families that have ongoing special needs.

Lorne Abony of Austin, Tex., has agreed to match total donations made to the DREAM Program through the end of the year, up to $36,000.

With the matching gift challenge, JCRS hopes to raise a minimum of $100,000 to provide aid and relief to Jewish children and families experiencing hardship during periods of extreme economic challenges, unemployment, natural disasters, and social isolation.

Disaster Relief funds will be approved for families Drying out Temple Sinai in Lake Charles with minor children who demonstrate need from within the region. They will be given as direct monetary grants, reimbursement for extraordinary expenses in relation to the crisis, or in the form of gift cards to retailers such as Wal-Mart. Financial assistance within this program will be time-limited and support to families may be one-time or carried out over a period of months.

Some families in the Lake Charles area have already received gift cards from JCRS following Hurricane Laura.

To make a qualifying matching gift or for more information about the program, contact Mark Rubin or Ned Goldberg at the JCRS office. They can be reached at (800) 729-5277.

Nechama in Lake Charles Nechama Jewish Response to Disaster mobilized to Lake Charles on Sept. 1, assessing needs and starting to work on relief efforts. Through the end of September, the agency had assisted 23 Lake Charles families with gutting their homes, along with debris and tree removal. They have logged over 800 volunteer hours, with 20 additional homes assessed and requesting assistance.

The team was initially housed at First Presbyterian Church of Lafayette. Missions on Wheels recently provided two RVs to house the Nechama teams. They had to pause work when Hurricane Sally and Tropical Storm Beta threatened the area.

Nechama volunteer Sabine Taras Thompson said “the pandemic has reshaped the ability of disaster relief organizations have to responsibly take on large numbers of volunteers, and with the lack of media attention this disaster has gotten, many homeowners are facing longer wait times to receive help.”

Nadav Herman and Jacob Fijman from the Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica went to Lake Charles to assist. Volunteers “learn real-life skills in the field and do some fantastic work AND regain your faith in humanity,” Herman said. “The days can be dark in the world right now – Nechama is the light in the world.”

According to Nechama, “there is a need for us to be in the Lake Charles area for at least a couple of months,” but how long they are able to stay 12

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

community depends on donations they receive.

The Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans will be coordinating volunteers with Nechama as needed, with the first effort scheduled for Oct. 18, depending on what happens with Hurricane Delta. “If not that Sunday, then the Sunday after,” said Tana Velen.

Velen said the young professionals group, JNOLA, and the New Orleans area congregations will have a bus for up to 20 volunteers, leaving Metairie at 7 a.m. and returning by 7 p.m. It will be a school bus so the windows can be down as part of the social distancing protocol. Breakfast and lunch will be provided for the volunteers.

Volunteers will help with “high priority cases,” including clearing yards, mucking homes and small demolitions.

The group had previously volunteered with Nechama after the 2016 flooding in Baton Rouge.

The Federation is also coordinating local volunteerism, working with organizations like NOLA Ready Volunteer Corps and Second Harvest Food Bank that help evacuees who are now in New Orleans.

Rebuilding in Lake Charles Goldman said initial repairs are underway at the Temple Sinai’s historic building. High-power dryers are working in the sanctuary while repair work begins elsewhere in the building.

The library was “torn apart” by the storm, with books and papers everywhere. Classroom windows were blown out, and a new roof is needed.

They had been working on a new ceiling, which was two-thirds complete and now will likely need to be redone.

The congregation is facing an insurance deductible of around $66,000 for the building itself, not including furnishings.

In response to Hurricane Harvey in October 2017, JCRS delivered 115 Chanukah boxes for Greater Houston children, families and special needs adults. Pictured are Melanie Musser, JCRS Houston area service coordinator, Ned Goldberg, JCRS executive director, and Lu Dorfman, former Beth Yeshurun executive director.

Rabbi Barry Weinstein, who had just been named resident rabbi at Temple Sinai after commuting from Baton Rouge as visiting rabbi for a decade, said the congregation’s damaged books are being gathered for eventual burial. The Torahs had been removed and are now being housed at Touro Synagogue in New Orleans.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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community

Beth Israel, Jackson

Distanced, yet social: Birmingham’s Beth-El takes High Holy Days to the gardens

By Marc Rice

Special to Southern Jewish Life

Touro Synagogue, New Orleans

Beth Or, Montgomery

Beth El, Pensacola

B’nai Zion, Shreveport

Temple Sinai, New Orleans

14 Chesed, October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life Ahavas Mobile

Along with the prayer, reflection and repentance that traditionally mark the Jewish High Holidays, innovation has now become an imperative. With online services the norm during this time of pandemic, many wondered how to overcome the resulting lack of social interaction as Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur approached.

Birmingham’s Temple BethEl, a Conservative congregation, met the challenge by figuring out how to create a safe, outdoor in-person experience to celebrate the Jewish New Year 5781 when medical experts advised against having any form of in-person services at the synagogue.

Dalia Abrams does parts of the traditional morning Rabbi Stephen Slater, who service at the first stop on the Rosh Hashanah walk at the conceived this approach, said Birmingham Botanical Gardens the past six months made it clear to him and his staff that there is no substitute Bethany Slater, Beth-El’s director of programfor physical presence. But he was stuck on how ming and Jewish education, said the organizers to bring people together without endangering drew on both the ancient Jewish pilgrimage tratheir health. dition and the Hasidic practice of “hitbodedut,” “Then I realized I just needed to lean into the a prayerful walk in nature. pandemic, to work with it instead of against it,” “It reminded me of the days when I lived in he said.

Jerusalem, when I would walk to services and Slater also took inspiration from the words see other Jews, walking to or from their synaof Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who partic- gogues. We had a profound feeling of togetheripated in the March 21, 1965, Selma to Mont- ness,” she said. gomery civil rights march, describing it as a way She noted that congregants were joined by to “pray with his feet.”

Christian clergy, including the Rev. Terry ElliThus, the “Praying With Our Feet” services son from Montgomery, and Birmingham Mayor were held for Rosh Hashanah at the Birming- Randall Woodfin, symbolizing a broader comham Botanical Gardens, drawing about 440 mitment to the welfare of the community. people for holiday prayers. A similar approach Adding to the beauty of the occasion, the secwas taken for Yom Kippur services. ond-day Rosh Hashanah service included the Planned with creativity, care and commit- sounding of the shofar, which could be heard ment by the Beth-El staff, and supplemented by across the park. online elements, the program enabled congreAny anxiety over whether coronavirus congants to gather in a meaningful way at a time cerns would diminish this year’s holiday were when traditional synagogue services are not thus overcome. As the hot Alabama summer possible because of the dangers posed by the waned, mild temperatures in the mid-70s didn’t pandemic. hurt, either.

“I feel I haven’t lacked for anything in regard to spiritual fulfillment this holiday,” said attendOn the cover: Alejandra Colon Lopez and ee Bernard Axel.

Yihsrael Velez Alicea do the shofar service “I was dreading this holiday because I just at Birmingham’s Botanical Gardens on the wasn’t feeling it,” added Esther Schuster. “Until second day of Rosh Hashanah. Photo by I got to the Botanical Gardens. The thought, the Audrey Nicole Photography. details, the relevance of every piece from begin-

ning to end overwhelmed me and grabbed me.

You gave me Rosh Hashana in all its beauty and meaning.”

The family-oriented Botanical Gardens services included a three-quarter-mile walking path with a series of stations allowing for prayer and reflection. The program book provided prayers, poetry and prompts that formed the basis for the reflection at the gardens. Stations included traditional elements like Torah reading, holiday songs and Kaddish. There were eight stations on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, then two — shofar blowing and a visit to the Garden beehives — were added for the second day.

As plans were formulated, there was a desire to have the usual open-ark experience at the end of Yom Kippur, but even that was deemed inadvisable. Instead, the congregation’s portable ark was brought to the Gardens and those on the walk could have a moment of private contemplation in front of the ark.

There were also unique elements like reflections with the aid of Bonsai trees, provided by congregant Doug Unkenholz, and “intention stones” to carry and help focus one’s thoughts.

Throughout, social distancing was observed, with masks required and admissions staggered to minimize crowding.

For those unable to do the walk, there was a livestream of the service, followed by parts of a more traditional morning service that can be done without a minyan, pre-recorded in the sanctuary.

Rabbi Slater’s sermon for Rosh Hashana summed up his intentions.

“We need to walk into a new year, a fresh beginning. For this reason, I wanted us to gather together, and to include our neighboring ministers from outside of our tradition, to join in this

ISJL, Jackson

B’nai Israel, Florence

The Ivker family led Torah reading at the Gardens, giving everyone the opportunity for a distanced aliyah at the foot of the stairs. prayer walk. Let heaven hear us say, that we are throwing out the sins and the sadness of the past year. We want to begin again together.

“May we begin again, with dedication, and love, and deeper unity. As we walk our way through this pandemic, may God give us the fortitude, and the inspiration to keep reaching out, to keep connecting, to keep listening and learning. Here in Birmingham, Alabama, we live in a holy place. A place where a holy community can walk together with God. Let us bring our hearts and thoughts back to our city and prepare ourselves to walk together with all her citizens, to walk in prayer, and in peace and in justice with our fellow man.”

Alabama joint Selichot service Zoombombed with antisemitic, racist messages For most of the pandemic, congregations in Dothan, Auburn, Montgomery, Mobile and Tallahassee have held a joint musical Zoom Havdalah that has been a time of respite and comraderie.

That calm was shattered during a Havdalah Selichot gathering on Sept. 12 as a couple of unidentified individuals “Zoombombed” the service with racist, homophobic and antisemitic slurs.

Visitors identifying with screen names such as “Jack Greenberg” and “Abba” posted Hitler imagery, wrote comments like “kill all faggots jews n--- monkeys” in the chat, and repeatedly interrupted the event with obscenities, “shut up Jew” and “take a shower.”

Rabbi Scott Kramer of Agudath Israel-Etz Ahayem in Montgomery, one of the organizers, said the incident stunned and shook the participants, and he had never experienced anything like that.

Footage was forwarded to the FBI and Secure Communities Network, along with the Anti-Defamation League.

The Jewish Federation of Central Alabama said they were “sickened” by the incident, which is a reminder “that antisemitism and bigotry are not threats of the distant past, but a harsh reality that we must vigilantly guard against every day.”

Federation President Phillip Ensler said people have targeted Jews throughout history.

“We have not only survived these traumas but continue to thrive because we stick together as a community. We will do the same this time and focus on making the world an even more accepting and loving place in the new year.”

As for the Havdalah sessions — they continue, but the links are sent only to those who are known to the organizers, and additional safeguards have been put in place.

Beth Shalom, Baton Rouge

Agudath Israel/Etz Ahayem, Montgomery

Beth Israel, Metairie

Springhill Avenue Temple, Mobile

Temple Shalom, Lafayette

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

15

community Avodah honorees focus on addiction recovery, voting rights

P R O S E C U T O R . P U B L I C S E R VA N T. Chris Cox is well-prepared for the bench. He served as the Jefferson Parish Executive Assistant District Attorney, an Assistant United States Attorney, the Chief Operating Officer of Jefferson Parish, and an Adjunct Professor at Tulane Law School. He is a principled attorney who will preserve the rule of law. Chris Cox will be a disciplined jurist who thrives on legal precision. Jefferson Parish will be safer and stronger with him as Judge.

Despite a double hurricane bearing down on the area, Avodah New Orleans took time to celebrate activists in addiction recovery and voting registration, at its annual Partners In Justice awards.

Because of Covid, the event was held online on Aug 23. Honorees were Walton and Jeff Goldring, Sylvia Finger and Jill Israel.

Local board chair Gail Chalew thanked the 80 or so on the Zoom call for taking time from their preparations for Hurricanes Laura and Marco to “focus on social justice for an hour” and “honor the passion and commitment” of the honorees and the 11 young people who spend a year in New Orleans, working at anti-poverty organizations.

Avodah recruits young Jewish adults to live in a communal setting for a year, matching them with non-profits, having a “significant impact on the well-being of the greater New Orleans community.” Each organization benefits by having “an amazing corps member as staff, at an annual savings of $20,000.”

Chalew added that two-thirds of the participants “fall in love with New Orleans and stay, enriching the New Orleans Jewish community in the process.”

Avodah National CEO Cheryl Cook said she missed not being able to make the annual trip to New Orleans for the event.

When Avodah expanded into New Orleans after Katrina, “we found a community committed to overcome,” Cook said. With Covid and the fight for racial justice across the country now, “the resilience and care we saw in New Orleans is the resilience and care we need in our country right now.”

Dani Levine, former New Orleans director of Avodah and now the national service corps director, said it is “deeply meaningful to see how the community in New Orleans shows up, even in the midst of a pending double hurricane.”

Half-way through the year for this class of corps members, “all of a sudden everything changes” with Covid and the racial demonstrations. The anti-poverty issues the corps members work on “didn’t go away, in fact they became even more pressing… a matter of life and death in many cases.”

Despite the pandemic, a new group of corps members was preparing to arrive. “They are coming to serve our community,” Levine said, “learning what it means to be a Jewish justice leader.”

Temple Sinai Rabbi Daniel Sherman and Rabbi Emeritus Edward Cohn spoke of the “selfless dedication” of the Goldrings in supporting those in recovery. They noted that a translation for Avodah is “worship,” and “surely the two of you, by pointing out the importance of a higher power, are helping change people’s lives for the better.”

The Goldrings spoke of their struggles with addiction and their “long-

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

Avodah New Orleans corps members from 2019-20

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

17

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH community H H H H Restoring H H recovery.” Jeff GolH term H dring said his addiction Rebuilding H started at age 15 and he H H didn’t get sober until he H 33. He originally felt H Renewing H was “because I graduated from H high school and college H H and went to work every H Healing H day and put on a suit, evH was okay. I found H erything H out it wasn’t. It took two H Louisiana and Our Nation H treatments and me going H through a lot of pain and H H consequences, a lot of H Lee Ann Dugas H prodding from my family.”

H He tells his story in the Congressional District 1 H hopes H that “it helps get H Phone: (504)466-9105 Manager: (504) 430-4394 H rid of the stigma that is H put on drug addicts and H Facebook: Dugas 4 Congress ” Because of the H alcoholics.

H stigma, people don’t want Top: Walton and Jeff Goldring. Lower left, Twitter: @LeeDugas2001 H to talk about the subject, Sylvia Finger. Right, Jill Israel.

H Donations via Paypal.com with Ldugas2001@cox.net H but relating his story allows him to help other people.

H Email: Ldugas2001@cox.net H Walton Goldring said people approach her because they know she is H and broussardhhh@yahoo.com H sober. “They know I am willing to talk to someone and if they have a H in their family, they can talk to me.” She said arresting addicts Website: COMING SOON!!!

H person H “doesn’t stop anything. It just perpetuates it” and society should give HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH them a chance by showing what recovery is.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

She said sharing about their recovery matches Avodah’s values. “Removing stigmas and letting people know there is a chance to get better is vital.”

In honoring Finger and Israel, the partnership between the National Council of Jewish Women’s New Orleans Section and the League of Women Voters was celebrated.

Judge Miriam Waltzer, who was an honoree in 2019, said Finger and Israel are “both most deserving recipients… their strength of character and their unwavering service to our community and our country is an example to us all, how we have to repair a broken world.”

Waltzer said she was inspired by young adults who rallied after the massacre at Stoneman Douglas School, and felt “we need to encourage youth voter registration.”

A partnership emerged between the organizations, with Finger chairing NCJW’s voter rights and mobilization efforts, while Israel chairs the league’s voter services committee. The two created a coalition of nonprofit groups, Engaging New Voices and Voters. The coalition has registered about 9,000 new voters as of August.

“Our vote is our voice, and we must work to ensure nothing can silence it,” said Waltzer.

Finger said she was born in South Africa when the nationalist party came into power and instituted apartheid. “The right to vote is the absolute foundation of any democracy,” she said.

The coalition aims to register voters, educate them and help them get out and vote. She spoke of an 89 year old who had never voted because no one had ever reached out to help him register.

“Voting is the most concrete thing we can do to participate in our democracy,” Finger said.

In addition to the voting effort, Israel serves on numerous community boards and shares the ADL development committee where she expanded the reach of the No Place for Hate program.

community Study: Low Holocaust awareness among young adults in the region

A commitment to care.

From SJL and JNS reports Several states in the region were among the bottom of the rankings when Millennials and Generation Z members, ages 18 to 39, were asked about the Holocaust.

The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, also known as Claims Conference, commissioned the firm Schoen Cooperman Research to conduct the first-ever nationwide survey on Holocaust knowledge and awareness among millennials and Generation Z in each of the 50 states.

Schoen Cooperman Research conducted interviews in March with a total of 11,000 Millennials and Gen Z in all 50 states to determine which states had higher rates of awareness about the Holocaust.

“Holocaust Knowledge Scores” were assigned based on the percentage of those who met three criteria: They have “definitely heard” about the Holocaust, can name at least one concentration camp, death camp or ghetto, and know that 6 million Jews were killed in the Holocaust.

Wisconsin had the highest level of awareness, at 42 percent, followed

by Minnesota, Massachusetts and Maine.

At the bottom of the rankings, Arkansas came in last with 17 percent.

Mississippi was next with 18 percent, then Florida at 20 percent. Georgia, Hawaii and Louisiana tied for 45th with 21 percent, and New York was among four states tied at 41st.

Alabama and Tennessee were among those tied at 32nd with 24 percent.

Nationally, 63 percent could not identify from a list of six options ranging from 25,000 to 20 million that 6 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust. Thirty-six percent selected 2 million or fewer.

“The survey is the beginning of a conversation we must all have, not the end,” Matthew Bronfman, who chaired the Claims Conference task force behind the survey, told JNS. “It raises many questions and highlights many areas where scholarly and empirical research is required.

Having said that, we are now eight decades past the Holocaust. The world has made a promise to Holocaust survivors to ‘never forget,’ but perhaps inevitably, the world has moved on.”

He added that “it’s understandable that people might focus on their immediate concerns. But the lessons of the Holocaust have eternal value—not only for the victims and their families, not only for the Jewish community, but for humanity.”

“The dual crisis of critical knowledge gaps, plus broad exposure to distortion and denial on the social-media apps that young Americans frequent, was the most alarming finding of the survey,” Arielle Confino, senior vice president at Schoen Cooperman, told JNS. “Social-media platforms and apps like Facebook and TikTok are undoubtedly serving as platforms for this and are clearly having an impact.”

Nationally, 12 percent said they have not heard, or did not think they had heard, the word Holocaust before. About 15 percent said it is acceptable for someone to have neo-Nazi views.

Mississippi had the highest percentage of those who could not identify Auschwitz as a concentration camp, death camp or forced labor camp, at 56 percent. In addition, Mississippi was highest in those who could not name a single concentration camp, death camp or ghetto, at 60 percent.

Florida was third in those unable to identify Auschwitz, with 50 percent, Louisiana fifth at 48 percent and Alabama ninth at 44 percent.

Florida was third in the highest percentage of respondents who believe either that the Holocaust is a myth or that the numbers have been exaggerated, at 21 percent, tied with California. The highest Holocaust denial percentage was in New York, at 28 percent. Louisiana, home to Holocaust

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community denier David Duke, tied for eighth at 16 percent.

New York also topped states where respondents said that Jews caused the Holocaust, with 19 percent. Louisiana came in second with 16 percent, along with Tennessee. The question was open-ended with multiple responses allowed, and as an example, the Alabama responses were Hitler with 72 percent, the Nazis at 60 percent and Germany at 41 percent.

A few respondents said the United States, Israel, Palestine or President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In all, there were 30 questions about the Holocaust.

Questions included what war the Holocaust is associated with, and the Civil War and Vietnam received responses. Other questions listed figures associated with the Holocaust to assess whether respondents had heard of them, how the Holocaust happened, whether one had seen Holocaust denial material on social media, whether people talk too much about the Holocaust, and whether something like the Holocaust could happen again.

In general, just under 60 percent of respondents said there is antisemitism in the United States today, with around 10 percent saying there isn’t.

Most first heard about the Holocaust at school, generally middle school or junior high, with Anne Frank as the most common method.

A total of 80 percent agreed with the statement that “It is important to continue to teach about the Holocaust, in part, so it doesn’t happen again”; 64 percent believed Holocaust education should be compulsory at school; and 50 percent agreed that the lessons about the Holocaust are “mostly historically accurate, but could be better.”

In the Louisiana survey results, 52 percent said Holocaust education should be compulsory in school, while 7 percent disagreed. At a forum on Louisiana-Israel business ties last year, Governor John Bel Edwards was asked about Holocaust education in the state, and he said “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.”

Rev. Melissa Patrick, executive director of the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center, said results like this “are certainly related to the reason why we work so hard to train Alabama teachers in the history of the Holocaust, giving them tools to build their curricula, and engaging our Holocaust Survivors and their stories.”

In Alabama, over 1,500 teachers have undergone training in teaching the Holocaust, and 100,000 students exposed to those efforts. “These are students who – like this Claims Conference study reveals – might not otherwise learn about the Holocaust, and who most definitely encounter Holocaust denial via social media and other outlets,” she said.

Alabama has held a state commemoration since the George Wallace administration in the 1980s, reportedly the first state to do so. Held initially at the Governor’s Mansion each year, it moved to the State Capitol two decades ago.

The Alabama Holocaust Commission was established in 1999, and there is also a Gulf Coast Center for Holocaust and Human Rights Education.

The Tennessee Holocaust Commission is one of the oldest and bestknown in the country, established in 1984.

The Arkansas Holocaust Education Committee holds a one-day educational program in a state where there is no mandate to teach about the Holocaust.

The Mississippi legislature approved a Holocaust commission in 2004.

There was a controversy when a “messianic” pastor was named to the commission, but after Hurricane Katrina struck the state in 2005, efforts to get the commission going waned.

Louisiana also does not have a state commission, but there are highly-visible Holocaust memorials in New Orleans and Alexandria, and upcoming expansion of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans will expand its exhibits dedicated to the Holocaust.

Honoring our healthcare heroes

The Touro Infirmary Foundation is privileged to present this year’s Judah Touro Society Award, recognizing courage and compassion, to the entire Touro staff for their heroic efforts in caring for our patients and the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We’re celebrating – and we’re asking you to join us. Support our efforts by purchasing a Gala ticket or making a contribution to this year’s Gala initiative: Community Health and Equity Fund.

Virtual Gala, Thursday, November 19

For tickets and more information on the Touro Infirmary Foundation Gala, visit

touro.com/gala October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

21

community La. legislator tweets mural at center of antisemitism controversies

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A Louisiana State Senator who was criticized this summer for a Holocaust comparison in protesting against mask mandates has drawn attention for tweeting a mural that has been at the center of international antisemitism controversies. He quickly deleted the retweet.

On Sept. 2, Rep. Danny McCormick tweeted a version of “Freedom for Humanity,” a mural by American left-wing artist Kalen Ockerman, which showed a group of bankers drawn as Jewish stereotypes playing a game reminiscent of Monopoly with the board resting on the backs of hunched-over naked figures. The mural had been on a wall in east London and caused a controversy before it was removed.

Jeremy Corbyn, former leader of the Labour party, opposed the mural’s removal in 2012, saying he could not see how the imagery could be construed as anti-Jewish. During the Labour antisemitism scandal in 2018, he apologized for those remarks, saying he had not looked closely at it.

Even the artist confirmed the intent, saying “Some of the older white Jewish folk in the local community had an issue with me portraying their beloved #Rothschild or #Warburg etc as the demons they are.”

The version tweeted by McCormick included the slogan “All we have to do is stand up,” and he commented that “public opinion controls politics.”

Rep. Mark Wright of Covington, also a Republican, tweeted that “Antisemitic imagery and language have no place in Louisiana politics.

I hope my House colleague did this unintentionally, but it needs to be taken down and repudiated.”

After being criticized for the tweet, McCormick removed it the next afternoon.

The South-Central Region office of the Anti-Defamation League said after two disturbing incidents, McCormick needs to “make clear he rejects these views. Now.” The ADL called on him “to use his elected office constructively, rather than as a platform to make hateful statements that target vulnerable communities and further the divide in our community.”

McCormick has been highly critical of mandates dealing with the Covid-19 situation, and launched Operation Golden Arrow “to re-open our state and restore liberty to Louisiana.” On Sept. 5, he posted a video asking for signatures on a petition to keep the state from mandating a Covid-19 vaccine “against your will.”

His previous controversy came when he posted a video to his Facebook page in early July. McCormick emphasized that “Masks aren’t bad. Mask mandates are.”

He said that the mandate was shredding the Constitution and individual liberty, and made the statement while firing up a chainsaw that he then directed toward a mask hanging next to him. “This isn’t about whether you want to wear a mask or you don’t want to wear a mask. This is about your right to wear a mask, or not,” he said.

Saying “government needed a villain,” he added, “People who don’t wear a mask will be soon painted as the enemy. Just as they did to Jews in Nazi Germany. Now is the time to push back before it is too late.”

At the time, he told KTBS that he was not talking about Jews, but about demonization and painting people as villains, “not that this is equal to the Holocaust.”

McCormick has not commented about the mural controversy.

community Jerusalem Post names Elaine Luria to 50 Most Influential Jews list Rep. Elaine Luria, a Birmingham native who represents Virginia’s second district in Congress, was named to the Jerusalem Post’s 2020 list of the 50 Most Influential Jews in the world.

Luria, who also has family in New Orleans, narrowly defeated incumbent Scott Taylor in 2018. A Democrat in a Republican-leaning district, she faces Taylor again in her re-election bid this year.

The list is actually 50 categories, some with two or three individuals named. Luria shares the Military Vets in Congress listing with Rep. Lee Zeldin, a New York Republican who saw four years of active duty in the U.S. Army, including time in Iraq.

The list is topped by “the peacemakers” who delivered the recent peace accords with United Arab Emirates and Bahrain — Special Adviser to the President Jared Kushner; Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen; Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer; Special Envoy for International Negotiations Avi Berkowitz; and US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.

Second on the list are top Jewish scientists working toward the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, Tal Zaks, chief scientist at Moderna, Inc.; Alexander Gintsburg, head of Moscow’s state-run Gamaleya Institute; and Shmuel Shapira, head of Israel’s Institute for Biological Research.

Also listed at No. 12 in the year of COVID are a group of Israel’s pandemic decision makers: Coronavirus Commissioner Prof. Ronni Gamzu; Health Minister Yuli Edelstein; Chairman of the Board of Assuta Medical Centers Shuki Shemer; and Hadassah Medical Center Chief Zeev Rotstein. And, at No. 13, are the two Israelis with senior positions at the World Health Organization: Dorit Nitzan and Sinaia Netanyahu.

Despite the pervasive nature of the pandemic in this year’s news, the Post “strived to create a list showcasing the diversity of the Jewish nation and highlighting people from all walks of life – government, art, medicine, literature and science.”

No. 50 is “Our Man in the NBA,” Deni Avdija, a Maccabi Tel Aviv star who is projected to be selected in the top 5 of this year’s NBA draft.

An Indian Springs alumna, Luria graduated from the Naval Academy in 1997 with a degree in physics and history. In 2019, Indian Springs named her alumna of the year.

After being commissioned, she served aboard the USS O’Brien, based in Yokosuka, Japan. When she entered the academy, women were not allowed to serve on combat ships, but that ban was lifted in 1995, and she became one of the first women able to serve her entire career on a ship.

When she retired in 2017 after 20 years of service, she was commander of Assault Craft Unit TWO. Under her command, the unit deployed to operations in Honduras, Panama and Norway, and humanitarian and disaster relief operations following Hurricanes Joaquin and Matthew.

In 2013, she also became a small businesswoman, establishing the Mermaid Factory in Norfolk, and later a second location in Virginia Beach.

Luria has been vocal about her support of Israel, calling out antisemitism “within our caucus” after fellow Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar tweeted antisemitic tropes about support for Israel. Citing her 20 years of service and sacrifice in the U.S. Navy, she addressed the dual loyalty charge from the House floor, not quite believing that this would have to be the topic of her first such remarks. Detailing her story, she repeatedly asked, “Is that not enough to prove my loyalty to our nation?”

Her first visit to Israel was with five other incoming representatives a few weeks before they were sworn in.

In July 2019, Tablet magazine did a profile, asking if Luria is “the Democratic Party’s next great Jewish hope.”

In a late 2019 video explaining her position on the impeachment of President Donald Trump, she held the Tanach that she had been given at her 1991 Confirmation at Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El.

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community Area JCCs partner with Atlanta Jewish Book Festival The Marcus Jewish Community Center in Atlanta always has a huge Jewish book festival for several weeks each year, with numerous authors making in-person appearances. This year, due to Covid-19, the “Live in your Living Room” festival is taking place online, with Birmingham’s Levite JCC and the New Orleans JCC as partners.

A complete list of programs is available on the calendar at the respective JCC websites, bhamjcc.org and nojcc.org, with links to sign up for individual events. Through the JCC Literary Consortium, participating local JCCs are supported when the local links are used for purchasing tickets.

There are options for just a virtual ticket, or in combination with a book that will be shipped after the individual event. Event recordings will be available for ticketholders for a limited time.

On Oct. 13, Brad Meltzer and Christopher Eliopoulos will feature the latest in their long series of children’s biographies, “I Am Anne Frank” and “I Am Benjamin Franklin.” Previous biographies in the series include Helen Keller and Rosa Parks. Meltzer is former host of the television series “Decoded” and “Lost History.”

The program will be at 5:30 p.m.

On Oct. 15 at 7 p.m., CNN journalist Holly Firfer will interview shoe entrepreneur Steve Madden about his book, “The Cobbler: How I Disrupted an Industry, Fell From Grace, and Came Back Stronger Than ever.” Madden built his company into a billion-dollar brand, but he had to battle addiction and shortcuts that landed him in prison. In the book, he shares what he learned along the way and how he bounced back.

Comedy veteran Judy Gold presents “Yes, I Can Say That: When They Come for the Comedians, We Are All In Trouble,” Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. She pres-

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by voters, they would be able to pay whatever amount they’re able to negotiate through special agreements called “cooperative endeavor agreements.” This new option would exist for a pretty select group – fewer than 1 percent of the state’s businesses.

Last year, a Louisiana corporation in Cameron Parish paid only about $38,000 in property taxes on its $12 billion in property. That’s 99.98 percent tax exemption, amounting to a tax rate of 0.0003 percent. A single refinery has more property exempted from taxation than the total of all the property exempted for every single business in the entire state of Texas. That’s a single facility out of 897 facilities exempted under this Industrial Tax Exemption Program.

Amendment 5 has no guardrails or restrictions on the tax exemptions that could be ap-

ents 10 essays framing comedy as a tool of empowerment, a way to reclaim hateful rhetoric and battle the democracy-crushing plight of censorship.

In a rescheduled event, New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben presents “The Boy From the Woods,” Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. He is also creator and executive producer of “The Stranger” on Netflix.

Television personality Nancy Grace will discuss “Don’t Be A Victim: Fighting Back Against America’s Crime Wave,” Oct. 27 at 7 p.m.

Natan Sharansky and Gil Troy will present “Never Alone: Prison, Politics, and My People,” Nov. 8 at noon. The book explores how Sharansky’s nine years as a political prisoner in the Soviet Union prepared him for public life and shaped his moral clarity and honesty in politics and as head of the Jewish Agency.

At 7 p.m. on Nov. 8, Joan Lunden will present “Why Did I Come Into This Room? A Candid Conversation About Aging,” which has been described as a later-in-life version of “What To Expect When You’re Expecting.”

On Nov. 9 at 6:45 p.m., Esther Safran Foer presents “I Want You To Know We’re Still Here: A Post-Holocaust Memoir.” The child of survivors, Foer eventually learns that her father had a previous wife and daughter, both of whom were killed in the Holocaust. The book is her journey to learn about what was never discussed.

In remembrance of Kristallnacht, Rabbi Brian Glusman will lead a memorial prayer at the beginning of the event.

Two novelists will present at the noon program on Nov. 10. Rachel Beanland will discuss “Florence Adler Swims Forever,” and Kristin Harmel presents “Book of Lost Names.”

Numerous additional programs are available through the end of November. continued from page 4 proved for industrial corporations. Corporations would not be required to create jobs to get tax exemptions. Exemptions could even go to businesses that were laying off their workforce.

There’d be no limits for polluters or dirty industry.

Amendment 5 puts no time limits on the duration of its “cooperative endeavor agreements.”

That means a corporation could be exempted from taxation for 25, 50 or even 100 years.

Amendment 5 is going to raise your taxes because it’s going to create special deals for powerful interests that the rest of us will pay for.

The bottom line is that if Amendment 5 passes, it’ll undermine the progress we’ve been making and create another way for Louisiana to defund its schools, roads, and other public services. Vote NO on Amendment 5!

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Gala for the times: Hadassah New Orleans does Mask-erade With large face-to-face gatherings impossible and masking in public part of the current landscape, Hadassah New Orleans is adapting to the times with its annual fundraiser.

Unable to have an in-person event, the chapter instead is throwing a Virtual Mask-erade, and everyone is invited to the 4 p.m. virtual event on Oct. 18.

Mexican-Canadian singer-songwriter Monika Schwartzman will headline the event.

Chaired by Marcela Totah and Charisse Sands, the event will include a mask contest, with prizes given for the funniest and fanciest masks, as well as to children under 12, music and videos, and other surprises.

“The regional office has asked me if they can obtain the invitation, to share with other chapters in the Southern Region,” said President Briann Shear.

Any amount, starting at $18, gains entry to the Mask-erade. Donations may be sent to: Carrie Pailet, 215 W. Brooks St., New Orleans, LA 70124, and need to include an email so a Zoom link can be sent.

To participate in the contest, photos of participants modeling their masks can be sent to BriannShear@gmail.com.

Born in Mexico City and later moving to Vancouver, Schwartzman’s passion for music developed at a very early stage in her life. She has performed in many different venues in Canada and Mexico, including various festivals such as Carnaval del Sol and Make Music Vancouver.

One of her career highlights is being invited to compose and share her music for the first two seasons of the Mexican TV series “Bienes Raices” (“Real Estate”).

Schwartzman, whose music has a pop-acoustic sound with a Latin influence, hosted two radio shows in Mexico and was part of the cast of the musical “Spring Awakening” in Mexico City.

Schwartzman says, “I invite everyone to join me in my happy place. There is always light and always joy in every adventure, miracle, hard moment and in life itself.”

Proceeds from the event will help fund research and development projects at Hadassah.

Currently, Hadassah is conducting research into Covid-19, stem cells, ALS, MS, macular degeneration, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and liver disease.

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1in 5 At some point in our lives, one in five of us will have a serious mental health issue.

If you are suffering, there is help.

The Jewish Mental Health Initiative is a community-wide collaboration sponsored by Collat Jewish Family Services and the Birmingham Jewish Foundation.

For more information, call 205.879.3438 or visit https://cjfsbham.org/ jewish-mental-health-initiative-.htm

community JCCs plan “Amplifying Voices” series Discussions on intersection of Jewish, Black identity The Levite Jewish Community Center in Birmingham has partnered with the Tucson JCC in Tucson, Ariz., and other Jewish institutions in Arizona to host a Zoom series, “Amplifying Voices,” on the intersection of Black and Jewish identities.

The first event is on Oct. 18 at 6 p.m. with author Marc Dollinger. He will discuss his book “Black Power, Jewish Politics: Reinventing the Alliance of the 1960s.”

On Nov. 8 at 6 p.m., Tamar Manasseh will present “They Ain’t Ready For Me: Black and Jewish on Chicago’s South Side.” A rabbinical student, Manasseh is the center of a recent documentary, “They Ain’t Ready For Me,” which chronicled two years of her work in combating gun violence as founder of Mothers Against Senseless Killings.”

On Nov. 18 at 2 p.m. there will be a lunch and learn with Ilana Kauffman, “Jews of Color and Jewish Community Diversity.” Kauffman is executive director of the Jews of Color Field Building Initiative and also works to increase visibility of LGBTQ Jews in Jewish institutions.

A panel on Dec. 6 at 12:30 p.m. includes April Baskin, racial justice director at the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable; Gamal Palmer, senior vice president of leadership development at the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and founder of Global Eye Entrepreneurs, a development and mentoring network for male entrepreneurs of color; Oklahoma City native Evan Traylor, rabbinical student and associate director for college engagement at the Union for Reform Judaism; and Candace Manriquez Wrenn, director of Marketplace Morning Report, discussing “Stories of Exclusion, Stories of Change.”

Birmingham activist T. Marie King and LJCC Executive Director Samantha Dubrinsky will lead a virtual tour of important Alabama civil rights sites, Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. The series concludes with an Afro-Semitic Musical Freedom Seder, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m.

To register for the program, email Shaina Wolinsky at swolinsky@ bhamjcc.org.

Israel education program available for high school students After over a decade of experience with Jewish pre-collegiate teachers, the Center for Israel Education in Atlanta has found that “for Jewish teens to fully understand the value of Israel in their identity, they need to grasp it before their college years.”

For the fourth year, the group is partnering with the Emory University Institute for the Study for Modern Israel for the Teen Israel Leadership Institute, which will be held on Nov. 8 and 15 from 1 to 4 p.m. Eastern.

Applications are being accepted from students in grades 10 to 12 from across the country.

The interactive online sessions offer educational activities and experiences that acquaint and deepen knowledge about Israel’s place in Jewish history and enable students to answer how Jews sought, made and are sustaining a state. Topics include Israel’s changing borders, the connection between Jewish identity and Israel, Israel in the media, Israeli culture and politics, and what to expect about Israel on college campuses.

After the institute, with the guidance of CIE staff, each participant is asked to deliver an Israel learning program for a community, synagogue, school or youth group, whether a one-time event or an ongoing series.

Projects can be collaborative efforts.

The simple application is available through israeled.org/teens. Applications are due Oct. 25; because they are reviewed on a rolling basis, teens are encouraged to apply as early as possible. Participants pay a $54 fee for the program, which is heavily subsidized by donors.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

community Israel Lacrosse in World Games Israel is officially coming to Birmingham.

The World Games 2022 Birmingham Organizing Committee announced on Sept. 7 that Israel will be among the eight nations participating in Men’s Lacrosse at the World Games 2022 in Birmingham.

Israel will be joined by Australia, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, the Iroquois Nationals, Japan and the United States.

Originally, the Iroquois were declared ineligible because they were not seen as a sovereign nation. However, the International World Games Association ruled they are eligible to compete in the games.

The Iroquois are ranked third in the world, and when they were declared eligible, Ireland Lacrosse voluntarily withdrew from the tournament to make space for the Iroquois, who are credited with inventing lacrosse.

The selection of teams is based upon the final placement of eligible teams from the 2018 Federation of International Lacrosse (now known as World Lacrosse) World Championship in Netanya, Israel.

The men’s lacrosse competition will be July 8-12, 2022 and will feature the new World Lacrosse 6 v 6 discipline.

“This is a very good day, and outcome, for the sport of lacrosse,” said World Lacrosse President Sue Redfern. “We have arrived at an outcome that will create a true showcase for lacrosse at The World Games 2022 in Birmingham. This was achieved by our organizations coming together, listening carefully and working constructively to reach a shared goal.”

“We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the leadership of the International World Games Association, The World Games 2022 Birmingham Organizing Committee, Ireland Lacrosse and the Iroquois Nationals for their partnership and support in working toward an outcome about which we can all be pleased,” added World Lacrosse Chief Executive Officer Jim Scherr. “International sport has the power to unite and that has never been more evident than in how our organizations and the lacrosse community came together to find a solution.”

Nick Sellers, CEO of the World Games 2022 Birmingham, welcomed the Iroquois, saying “Birmingham, Ala. has long been an epicenter of America’s civil rights struggle, and we are proud that The World Games 2022 will usher in a new era of progress where our strength comes from mutual respect and our commitment to inclusion. The actions taken today reflect those values.”

The women’s teams will be based on final placement in the 2021 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship, which will take place July 7 to 17, 2021 in Towson. Originally, Israel qualified when the World Games were to have taken place in 2021, but the Games were postponed by a year after the 2020 Summer Olympics were delayed to 2021 because of Covid-19.

Last year, Birmingham players represented Israel in three women’s divisions — Olivia Mannon on the national team in the Women’s European Lacrosse Championship, Ella Duvdevani in the U19 World Championship and Ilana Touger in the U15 World Lacrosse Festival.

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community Bama student stands tall for Israel, but not alone

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Rebecca Gilbert stands tall. For Israel. Against antisemitism. Engaging others. But the 21-year-old University of Alabama senior does not stand alone.

That is because she is part of a U.S.-based organization, StandWithUs. The organization has developed a network of student leaders, including Rebecca, on college campuses throughout the U.S., Canada, Israel, the UK, Brazil and other countries. The students stand together on behalf of Israel and motivate others to do the same.

The group, known as the SWU Emerson Fellows, was founded in 2007 by philanthropists Steve and Rita Emerson. The Fellows educate Jewish students and their broader campus communities about the true nature of Israel as well as growing antisemitism. “Throughout the year, Emerson Fellows create interesting Israel programming designed to engage others, including bringing in speakers and creating educational and cultural events. They also monitor and respond to anti-Israel and antisemitic actions,” the organization explains.

Rebecca’s devotion to Israel took hold while she was growing up in Kennesaw, Ga., 45 minutes outside of Atlanta. She attended a Jewish day school and Jewish summer camp, and participated in Jewish youth programming. From those experiences and other influences, her pride in being Jewish and dedication to Israel deepened. The turning point was going to Israel on a Birthright Israel trip her freshman year of college.

This led to her staying in Israel two months beyond the trip. After that, there was no turning back.

“I fell in love with Israel,” she recalled with a broad smile during a recent FaceTime conversation. “Israel became something I was super-passionate about. I wanted to share my experiences with everyone around me.”

Not only did she begin vesting herself in Israel intellectually and emotionally, but her journey led her to go back to Israel during a time of need.

Last December, she was in Sderot for a children’s Chanukah celebration assisting as a volunteer. For years, Sderot has been the target of deadly rockets fired from the nearby Gaza Strip. Rebecca’s job was to distribute backpacks filled with school supplies, toys and hygiene products for children ages 2 to 12 suffering with PTSD as a result of the attacks.

This was one more experience that prepared her for her Emerson Fellow role. Being there and witnessing both the trauma and resilience of the Israelis first-hand, vests one even more deeply and helps them become a more determined and effective advocate.

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Rebecca, a psychology major with a 4.0 GPA, is the first SWU Emerson Fellow at the University of Alabama. Despite the obstacles Covid has created, she has embraced the opportunity full-throttle. Table displays, one-on-one conversations and Zoom calls are just three of the ways she has reached out to her fellow students. She wants to excite them about the Israel she loves, and help them realize that through their actions and words they have the potential to advance Israel’s well-being.

Emerson Fellows receive a stipend along with training, mentorship, access to a network of other student leaders, and the opportunity to attend two conferences. Applicants go through a process with approximately 50 percent accepted.

The training Emerson Fellows receive is rigorous. In the August training program held virtually this year that Rebecca and her colleagues went through, “Students learned how to create their personal ‘Israel story,’ and

community how to present it to different groups. They took a deep dive into Israel’s history, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and went across the spectrum to the dueling narratives of both sides for the context necessary to have insightful conversations about Israel. They grilled experts and also learned when legitimate criticism of Israel crosses the line into antisemitism.”

Emerson Fellows are encouraged to reach out to various student groups, including ones that aren’t Jewish, to engage them in supporting Israel and combating antisemitism. This is something Rebecca wants to do and believes such students will be receptive. In general, she feels that while things at Alabama are not perfect all of the time regarding these two issues, the Tuscaloosa campus overall is very welcoming toward Jews and supportive of Israel. She has encountered no resistance or pushback regarding SWU’s presence and the work she wants to do.

The Alabama senior first encountered SWU in high school. In 2012, the organization created the StandWithUs High School Internship, developing a network of interns. Rebecca was impressed and motivated by the Southeast High School director she heard speak. Since then, the high school program has grown to 125 throughout North America. There are no

interns in Alabama, Mississippi or Louisiana this year, though there are a record number in Florida.

There also are Emerson Fellows on college campuses throughout Florida, including Saint Leo University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida State University, University of South Florida, Nova Southeastern University, the University of Florida and the University of Miami.

Talia Lerner, SWU’s senior Southern campus coordinator, works with students throughout the region, including those at Tulane University, where there have been Emerson Fellows.

At Florida State University there have been some challenging antisemitism issues. Last year’s Florida State Emerson Fellow, Lioz Grunberger, was heavily involved in these issues. For his work he received SWU’s first annual “Movement Builder Award for Strategy and Impact.”

Sweet Spot SWU is involved in a broad array of strategies and programs, but students from middle school through college are the organization’s “sweet spot.” For Rebecca, getting to know Rabbi Adam Wright, of Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El, last summer, as part of a Hillel program connecting Jewish college students to the Birmingham

Jewish community, was another turning point.

Rabbi Wright, a strong proponent of StandWithUs, encouraged her to apply for an Emerson Fellowship.

“StandWithUs is on the front lines, fighting for Jewish students, Jewish values and Jewish rights, especially on the college campus. StandWithUs is a cutting-edge nonprofit that contin-

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ues to have numerous victories against BDS (an anti-Israel economic initiative) and school systems that aim to delegitimize Israel. If any antisemitism arises, StandWithUs is my first and only call,” Wright explained.

“Having Rebecca as an Emerson Fellow will ensure the training and mentorship of future leaders who know how to respond to those who seek to harm the Jewish People and their unquestionable and undeniable homeland, Israel,” added Wright.

Rebecca explained that the core responsibilities of an Emerson Fellow include enhancing the work already being done on campus in the areas of Israel education and combating antisemitism. The work is often done in coordination with existing campus organizations, such as Hillel, AIPAC and Chabad, all three of which Rebecca has been involved in. On Aug. 20, for example, Bama Hillel hosted its annual Jewish Life Fair for freshmen. Rebecca represented StandWithUs and explained the resources it can provide to Jewish and pro-Israel students.

Technically, Rebecca is only responsible for the University of Alabama, but because there are no other fellows in Alabama, she is available to assist students at any of the state’s campuses, together with Talia Lerner.

The SWU Emerson Fellowship lasts one year, and Rebecca’s goal is to recruit someone to follow her so that the program continues at Alabama.

In terms of her own future, she would like to attend law school and Alabama is one of her top choices.

A year from now, when she looks back on the academic year she spent as a SWU Emerson Fellow, she hopes to have created a dynamic presence for the program and high visibility, especially to enhance the chances of it continuing. Rebecca encourages anyone connected to the campus community who is interested in educating about Israel, fighting antisemitism or learning more to contact her at swubama@gmail.com.

“We just want to be here for the entire campus community,” she emphasizes. “You don’t need to be Jewish to be part of StandWithUs. If you want to help Israel, we would be happy to show you how and to assist you.”

In other words, StandWithUs.

Swastika spree in downtown Chattanooga The Walnut Street Bridge in Chattanooga was defaced by spray-painted swastikas, as well as locations in the Bluff View art district.

On Sept. 13, Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke, who is Jewish, said “Early this morning, I learned that the Walnut Street Bridge and portions of the Bluff View Art District, two of our city’s most beloved and beautiful public spaces, had been defaced with swastikas… The Chattanooga Police Department is investigating and I have every confidence that the vandals will be identified and brought to justice soon.”

City crews were working on Sept. 14 to remove the graffiti, and the Chattanooga Police Department is investigating, looking for any camera footage that might exist from the area.

“It’s a surreal feeling to see acts of antisemitism in my hometown,” said Michael Dzik, executive director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Chattanooga. “I take this and any act of antisemitism and all forms of hate very seriously. I have always known that the Nazi swastika and white supremacy go hand in hand.”

Rabbi Craig Lewis of Mizpah Congregation in Chattanooga thanked the city for taking swift action to make repairs and ensure security for the community. Noting the proximity to the High Holy Days, he said “as we enter into a period of reflection and atonement, we invite the entire community of Chattanooga to join us in considering how to foster an environment of acceptance and equality for all.”

Austin Center, chair of the Federation’s Community Relations Committee and a life-long Chattanoogan, said “We, as a Jewish community, spoke out when the Rock on University of Tennessee’s campus was painted with Anti-Semitic remarks. We spoke out when Nashville’s Holocaust Memorial was desecrated. And today, in my hometown, we speak out.”

community

Pensacola students head to Israel and volunteer as Lone Soldiers While this year’s group of high school graduates entered the summer uncertain what the fall would look like, given the uncertainty of whether universities would have in-person classes, two Pensacola area teens knew exactly what they would be doing.

At the end of July, Maytal Baurberg of Milton and Eliana McCulley of Gulf Breeze headed off to Israel to serve as Lone Soldiers in the Israel Defense Forces. Lone Soldiers come from around the world to serve in the IDF, often without any family support structure in Israel.

With Covid restrictions, the two had to undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival in Israel. Baurberg was assigned to a kibbutz near Gaza, while McCulley is on a kibbutz in the western Galilee.

Raised in Queens, N.Y. as the daughter of an Israeli father, Baurberg grew up around many in the Israeli ex-pat community. Life changed when she moved to Milton and was often the only Jew, and had to answer questions such as why she isn’t eating pork, she said.

She would visit Israel and admired the soldiers, but joining the IDF “was not my first choice of deciding what I where I want to go after high school.”

She learned about the Garin Tzabar program and “started to fall in love with the idea of being an Israeli soldier,” and felt it would be a “once in a lifetime opportunity that I simply do not want to miss.”

McCulley spent the first four months of 10th grade on Kibbutz Tzuba in the hills just west of Jerusalem through a National Federation of Temple Youth program. As part of the program, she spent a week with the pre-IDF Gadna military training. “As soon as we got off the bus at the base they were yelling at us in Hebrew, and my Hebrew was not good at

Maytal Baurberg and Eliana McCulley all,” she said. They marched in formation, crawled in the mud, learned how to camouflage — “I thrived in that pressured environment,” she said.

“I am absolutely in love with Israel’s way of life, the culture and the people, especially the family I have there,” McCulley added.

Back in Pensacola, she was also influenced by the community Shlichim, emissaries from Israel who live in Pensacola for a year. When she graduated from Gulf Breeze High School, she was a Lt. Col. Cadet, second in command of the Air Force Junior ROTC program.

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31

community After quarantine, their assignments will be based on physical, Hebrew language and personality tests.

McCulley explained that Israel wants to give soldiers “a job that fits your personality, so you can grow in it.”

Baurberg and McCulley met when the religious schools at Temple Beth El and B’nai Israel combined for a couple of years starting in 2010, then continued to see each other through youth group activities in the community.

On July 5, the Pensacola Jewish community held a farewell event at Bayview Park, led by Jerry Gordon, past president of B’nai Israel, to “honor two amazing young Jewish women, for their commitment to the Jewish nation of Israel.”

Gordon and Rod Bryant of Israel News Talk Radio interviewed the women on their show, calling them At Newark airport “extraordinary, articulate, passionate with their love for Israel, who felt an obligation to protect its people.”

Lori Ripps, president of the Pensacola Jewish Federation, told them that the community was “extremely proud of you both… Who could imagine that your Jewish experience in Pensacola would lead to this noble and admirable, life-changing decision?”

She referenced the Shaliach program that the Federation has hosted for 20 years, saying they “bring their love of their country, Israel, to the communities in which they serve, and form lasting connections to Israel.”

Ripps said there have been several women from the Gulf Coast who have made Aliyah over the years. In 2004, Becky Feinberg moved to Israel, and in 2008, Carrie Voit of Mobile, cousin to Ripps’ husband Barry, moved to Israel.

That same year, Lisa Bowling of Fort Walton Beach moved to Israel, joining the IDF a year later, and is now married to a former Shaliach to Pensacola, Erez Shilon.

Simcha Antar of Fairhope made Aliyah in 2015 and became a lone soldier, and in 2016, “our daughter, Hannah,” made Aliyah to become an archaeologist, Ripps said.

“You are about to embark on an incredible journey,” Ripps told them.

“You are going to make a difference in Israel, and therefore, in the world.”

Ray Engel, president of Beth El, said “it is really amazing to see people like Eliana and Maytal, that give me faith that there may be improvement in the world.”

Beth El Rabbi Joel Fleekop told McCulley that her first name means “God has answered,” and “you’ve been an answer to our prayers as well.

Your passion for Judaism, your joy in all things Israel, all things Jewish, they have been an answer for me and my daughters.” He said the congregation was making a donation to the JROTC at her high school in her name, and also presented her with “some coffee money.”

Vikki Goldstein, former religious school director at B’nai Israel, said “knowing both young ladies through religious school, whether through Yachad or B’nai’s religious school, it is hard to put into words how proud I, and the community, are of them.”

She said Baurberg was dedicated to the religious school, “even when she was often a class of one,” and presented her with a kiddush cup from the congregation. She also presented both students with keychains that have the traveler’s prayer on them.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

community >> Federation

continued from page 5 Fran Godchaux received the Susan J. Goldberg Distinguished Volunteer Award.

Susan Greene introduced Dorsky, who she said is “known for graciousness, hospitality and care for others.” She served on the You Belong in Birmingham board for many years and cochaired the Jewish Food and Culture Festival for four years. She also was “instrumental in revitalizing the Bama Hillel program” and served on its board for a decade.

As a member of the CEO search committee she planned candidate visits, and “helped sell our community in a generous and loving way.”

Dorsky spoke about how, in Birmingham, she has to “act intentionally about my Judaism.” At Alabama Hillel, she and several friends “were intentional about trying to rebrand and rebuild it.”

She urged everyone not to skip what would be a virtual High Holy Days, and “make an intentional effort to be present and connect to your Judaism… forget the insanity of 2020 and remember the positive things that have happened in this time.”

Scott Godchaux spoke about his mother’s career in economic development, including time as senior vice president and interim president of Operation New Birmingham, president of Collat Jewish Family Services, co-chairing the Mayor’s Diversity Task Force, serving on the boards of the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center, Hillel Connections and Temple Emanu-El. A New Orleans native from a family known for its eponymous department store that closed in 1988, Godchaux arrived in Birmingham in 1998 when “it was not yet cool to be in the city center.” Many of the risk-takers were in the Jewish community, she noted.

After career life, she decided to “volunteer and pay it forward,” and her first stop was Hillel Connections, to help Jewish students at the University of Alabama keep the state, and Birmingham in particular, on their radar after graduation. “It unlocked the why of my long development career,” she said.

With recent strategic thinking and new professionals in the community “we are squarely at the intersection of where status quo meets creativity.”

Covid prompted the community to “reexamine how we conduct business, personally and professionally.” Cohn, she says, has four c’s: communicaton, convention, collaboration and creation. To that, she adds four of her own — connection, children, consensus and community.

“Let us be change agents together,” she said.

As part of the program, different constituent agencies spoke about how they benefit from Federation allocations, especially in providing services during the pandemic.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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Soaring: Dani Loeb becomes first Alabamian on U.S. National Ski Team Seeing snow in Montgomery is like finding a Jewish girl playing with her pet pig — unusual, but not unprecedented.

What is unprecedented is the unique path that Dani Loeb, who grew up on a farm near Montgomery, is forging as the first Alabamian to make the U.S. National Ski Team.

Dani is training in Utah with the hopes of making the 2022 Winter Olympics in a different sport than her initial dreams, which were gymnastics.

She grew up on a farm in Pintlala, just south of Montgomery, with her parents, Ricky and Jamie. The exuberant Dani spent a lot of time outdoors, climbing anything she could reach.

By age two, she was doing gymnastics and taught herself how to swim.

“She ran and jumped off the pier,” said Jamie. “Before we could get to her, she figured out how to swim.”

Dani “always pushed every boundary you could get away with pushing,” she said.

To channel her energy, Jamie enrolled Dani at age 6 for regular gymnastics classes at United Gym Stars in Montgomery. “After the first couple classes she was in, they immediately put her on level 4 teams.” She won state competitions and placed at regionals, and at summer camps would win talent awards.

Her achievements came despite a major health scare when she was 6. A water moccasin bit her, and she had to be airlifted to Children’s Hospital in Birmingham. It took two years for her immune system to restore itself, and she still has lingering effects in her leg muscle.

Seeking to expand on her obvious talents, when she was 12 they moved to Coppell, Tex., and she trained at Texas Dreams, the gym of national champion Kim Zmeskal. While her skills increased, she realized she wasn’t going to be the next Simone Biles, but still had a great future in college gymnastics.

That’s when a recruiter for the U.S. national ski team heard about her and suggested she try aerial skiing.

Dani said she had to go look up what aerial skiing was. She decided it was a good time to go ahead and try another sport, as “I’d only ever done gymnastics.” Aerial skiing “was kind of like gymnastics, but it was also skiing.”

Her only experience with skiing was the “typical Southern spring break” when her family would go skiing, but she hated ski school and would hang out in the gym, so she wasn’t particularly experienced. Even her experience on the water was with wakeboarding rather than water skiing.

A friend showed her video of the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team’s Aerials De34

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

velopment program tryout camp. When Jamie saw it, she said “these people have to be just crazy,” going down the mountain and then up a ramp that throws them 40 to 50 feet in the air, where they do twists and flips before landing on a hill with a 40-degree slope.

Her parents decided to let her try out and see what happens. They went to Liberty Mountain in Virginia, where prospects went down an artificial ski hill onto a big air bag. When Dani did it, Jaime said “muscle memory took place,” as she did a flip and landed perfectly, then skied off the bag.

She wowed the crowd, as “no one ever does that.”

Dani said she was supposed to just jump onto the airbag but “accidentally” did the backflip. “it kind of came natural.” The next time they did ask her to do a backflip but she tried too hard and landed on her head, much to the alarm of her parents.

Dani said aerial skiing “came easier than it would to a lot of people because I am a gymnast, I have air awareness… It’s a lot easier to teach someone how to ski than teach someone how to flip.” For years, the former Soviet states, China and Australia have recruited aerial skiers from gymnastics.

Dani was chosen from the 35 trying out for one of 12 slots on the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team’s Aerials Development program, and at age 14 was the youngest female member. When she made the program, she received a congratulatory message from Biles.

Rather than have her live by herself in a training center, the Loebs then moved to Lake Placid, N.Y., where the weather was far colder than Central Alabama. Along with the different accents, another element of culture shock came on Saturdays in the fall, where initially, nobody else there realized the importance of Alabama football. Ricky was a walk-on at Alabama, while Jamie is a life-long Bama fan despite being an Auburn alumna. Dani’s passion for the Tide became a curiosity for the other athletes, and before long, football Saturdays were major events at the Loeb home, with dozens of bobsledders, skiers, gymnasts and other athletes hanging out — and getting fed.

The bobsledders, who adopted Dani as their mascot, “eat a lot of food,” Jamie said.

In that atmosphere, Dani grew up fast, “getting exposed to all these wonderful personalities” from around the world.

After two years of training in New York, they moved to Park City, Utah, so she could be on a club team. By age 18, she had placed in the top 10 in the North American Cup Series six times, then had six top-three finishes, including two gold.

In 2018 she was top American female in the World Cup held before the Winter Olympics. In 2019 she was hampered by a minor knee injury, but still competed in Italy and became the first American to win a Europa Cup. This May, she was named to the national aerial team. She’s working to make the 2021 World Cup team. Dani had just made the U.S. team for the Junior Worlds when Covid ended the season.

The Loebs spend eight or nine months each year at the city where Dani is training, then return to Alabama for the rest of the time. When the Covid pandemic hit in March, they isolated at their home on Lake Martin, and she volunteered with a group delivering lunches to Wetumpka Middle School students who would otherwise be missing meals when the schools shut down for Covid.

Her rank in the top 30 in the world and No. 4 ranking among American women led to her being named to the U.S. team through 2022. Though she is on the team, that does not guarantee an Olympics spot.

Being an Alabamian on the national ski team “is a good message to people that even though you might not be in the right part of the world to do something, it doesn’t mean that one day you can’t get to that spot and achieve something big like this,” Dani said.

She has also found greater comfort in her Jewish identity. Jamie said

that when Dani was outside the community and the Temple in Montgomery, “she wasn’t quite as sure whether she wanted to share” about being Jewish. “Now she is completely open to share” something that she finds unique.

When it came time for her Bat Mitzvah, she didn’t want to have a big party, but liked the idea of putting that money toward a trip, so she decided the family would go to Israel for two weeks. She could take one friend, so she selected Rabbi Elliot Stevens of Temple Beth Or. Stevens died of cancer in 2017, and this was his last major trip.

Her bat mitzvah was supposed to be at the top of Masada, but they wound up doing it at the Western Wall. “I was one of the first to do it there,” in the section that had just been opened for egalitarian ceremonies. Israel “felt very homey, I felt very safe and like I was in the right place.”

She really wants to go back for another visit. “I loved it there.”

Dani is also passionate about Kenya. She works with Start With One, an organization that provides clean water, education and health care. She went on a trip to Kenya with a church group, “passing out water filters, food, clothes, building a school and things like that.”

After her skiing career, she is thinking of becoming a marine biologist or veterinarian, working with large animals. “Ever since I was little, I’ve loved animals,” she said.

And that includes her pet pigs. Her first was a birthday present when she turned 11, and she named him Mordechai, Morty for short. “He was our first pig, so he should have a Jewish name,” she reasoned. A year ago, she got Wiggly, “just this goofy little pig” that is “a ray of sunshine.”

Wiggly isn’t in Utah with her, though. He is back in Alabama, living on a friend’s farm. “He was rooting up the grass,” she explained.

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Safety precautions: Debra Abolafia, Head of School at Birmingham’s N.E. Miles Jewish Day School, does a temperature check at drop-off. The school has been doing in-person classes, keeping grades isolated, going outdoors as much as possible and doing wellness checks every morning.

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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community >> Agenda

continued from page 8

event features an up-close visit with animals, singing and dancing, learning about Noah, crafts and a scavenger hunt. Reservations are $10 per person, $40 family maximum. Open to members and non-members.

Ahavas Chesed in Mobile will have a Krispy Kreme Roundup outside the shul, Oct. 11 and 25 at 10:30 a.m. Bring a chair.

Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El Sisterhood will host its annual Sharsheret Pink Shabbat, Oct. 23 at 5:45 p.m., online. Breast cancer survivors will be honored, and those lost to the disease will be remembered.

The Levite Jewish Community Center in Birmingham will have a Red Cross blood drive, Oct. 29 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Reservations are required.

The Latest News… www.sjlmag.com Open for Catering and Socially-Distanced Events On-Site

The Jewish Federation of Central Alabama will host an online evening with the Los Angeles-based Jewish Women’s Theatre, Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. They will perform “The Matzo Ball Diaries,” which shares the secret stories of food and home, with comic and poignant stories about the power of food to nourish, heal or move people to action. From learning the secret to the best brisket to personal stories of eating disorders to the fascinating history of how the International House of Pancakes was started, the show explores myriad aspects of food, culture, and community — with plenty of humor throughout. Last November, they toured the region through the Goldring/ Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life.

The Atlanta-based Jewish Educational Loan Fund, which serves the financial needs of Jewish college and grad students, is hosting a no-cost virtual game night for young professionals in their 20s to 30s. JELF serves Georgia, Florida, the Carolinas and non-Washington areas of Virginia. JELF Director of Development Josh Schaier said “With this being such a stressful time, JELF’s Virtual Game Night will be a fun way to enjoy meeting new people.”

Registration for the 7 p.m. (Central) event on Oct. 22 is available at JELF.org/events.

The University of South Alabama’s McCall Library will host director Roberta Grossman and hold an online screening of “Who Will Write Our History.” The talk will be on Oct. 15 at 6 p.m., and a link will be available to watch the film online through Oct. 17. The film is about the secret band of journalists and scholars in the Warsaw Ghetto who established and hid an archive chronicling what the Nazis did, so the information would survive even if they did not. Registration is required for the talk.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

Food and Dining a semi-annual special section

Piggly Wiggly has the hometown touch As a neighborhood grocer, locally owned and operated by folks in your hometown, Piggly Wiggly keeps a keen eye on what their customers want and need.

“It is inherent in who we are to make sure our stores are stocked with products that meet the community and our neighbors where they need us to be,” said Andy Virciglio, whose family has been operating Over the Mountain Piggly Wiggly stores in the Birmingham area for 42 years.

“Our in-store kosher selections continue to expand and we encourage each store manager to listen closely to what our customers want,” he said.

“We try hard to have the right product mix.

“If there is a kosher product not currently on the shelves at their Vestavia, Mountain Brook, Homewood, Dunnavant Valley or Forest Park locations, they can order it to have it in, usually within a week or so,” he added.

Piggly Wiggly is locally focused, hiring local people and filling the stores with locally produced products so that freshness is a priority. From fresh chickens, fresh gulf seafood selections, certified angus beef, special cuts of beef, locally sourced produce selections and many more local products, customers know they can count on their Piggly Wiggly to provide what they need every day.

And, Piggly Wiggly is proud to have been the first grocer in the country to coordinate a community-support program for non-profits and charitable organizations through a relationship with Planet Fundraiser. By using their app, any non-profit can earn dollars for their organization through their own purchase power at Piggly Wiggly. “Planet Fundraiser allows us to be more involved, centralize our giving and offer ways for organizations to grow their giving level each day,” Virciglio added. Piggly Wiggly also partners with SHIPT for home delivery for customers.

“Through community and our great customer base, we work every day to make our stores and the shopping experience better, grow our selections and try hard to meet the need of each and every customer,” Virciglio said.

“We have been fortunate for 42 years, and my father, as well as my sons, all who work in stores every day, appreciate the opportunity to serve this community well.”

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Murphree’s a family tradition since 1976 Supporting farmers in Alabama and across the region, and providing customers with fresh produce as well as other groceries has proven fruitful for Birmingham’s family-owned Murphree’s Market and Garden Center.

“We enjoy serving our customers with the freshest fruits, vegetables and foods,” said Brad Murphree, who owns Murphree’s with his father, Gene, and mother, Kathy. “If it’s on our racks, it’s the best we could find.”

In the summer of 1976, Gene Murphree started selling fruits and vegetables out of a truck in Cahaba Heights. His father had worked in a grocery store produce section and Gene grew to love the business. In 1978, they opened a permanent location.

Brad Murphree grew up in the business and at the age of 15, he started working summers there. He would later go on to working there full time and he became an owner in 2010.

A few years ago, they expanded the store with the addition of a garden center. The center sells seasonal flowers, gardening tools and supplies, and gift items. “We just thought it was a natural complement to what we were

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(205) 823-1505 October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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food and dining

already doing,” he said.

They’ve also added some casseroles, fresh take-home meals and frozen foods.

When Covid 19-hit, Murphree’s Market & Garden Center initiated several safety protocol to keep customers and employees safe.

They’ve limited the number of people who can be in the store at one time.

Everyone must wear gloves and masks, with the store being cleaned regularly during the day.

“Customers can also call us ahead of time or do curbside ordering and we’ll bring it out to them,” said Murphree.

He said portions of the store’s stock are seasonal. For the fall and the holidays, Murphree’s will carry more acorn squash, root vegetables, eggplant, 20 different varieties of pumpkins and mixed floral basket arrangements.

The Murphrees say the most rewarding part of the job is interacting with customers and helping them find everything they are looking for. “This isn’t just a job or a business, it’s the life I love,” said Brad Murphree. “We’re a family-owned business and our customers are like family to us.”

Publix committed to quality, kosher items — and customer safety

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Publix Supermarkets continues to increase its vast kosher products selection while making sure its customers and associates are well taken care of.

“As an essential service provider, the health and well-being of our customers, associates and communities are our top priority,” said Publix Media Relations Manager Nicole Strauss. “We are proud of how our dedicated associates are taking care of our customers and each other through this unprecedented and challenging time. And, we thank our customers for continuing to trust us with providing them with the goods and services they need,” she added.

All Publix stores include dedicated space for kosher food products, including brands such as Manischewitz, Streit’s, Osem, Gold’s and Kedem.

The Publix on Overton Road in Birmingham includes a 10-foot kosher products display and is the largest in the Southern Jewish Life magazine’s coverage area.

The launch of the GreenWise Market organic grocery concept in 2019 and the opening of the Mountain Brook GreenWise that June allowed Publix to enhance its organic kosher product selection. That 23,000-squarefoot-store in Lane Parke includes eight feet of space devoted to organic, kosher frozen foods.

Publix Supermarkets’ meat departments offer a variety of kosher beef provided by Alle and Aarons, along with poultry from Empire. They feature plenty of kosher staple items such as grape juice, matzah, gefilte fish and tea biscuits as well as some kosher-for-Passover wines.

A variety of kosher recipes can be found at www.publix.com/pages/ kosher/recipes including pineapple dream cups, sweet-and-spicy meatball lo mein, vegetable lasagna, mojo pepper fish over rice, lemon-coriander whole-roasted chicken and spiced apple salad (below).

Publix Spiced Apple Salad Recipe Ingredients 2 large sweet, crisp apples (Honeycrisp, Gala, Fuji) 1/3 cup apple cider vinaigrette 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper 1 bag baby arugula (4-5 oz.)

1 (3.5-oz.) package cranberry walnut topping Instructions Cut apples in half and remove core; cut apples into small bite-size pieces (3 cups). Whisk in vinaigrette, cinnamon and red pepper in bowl.

Add apples, and toss to coat. Add greens and nut topping; toss and serve.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

New Orleans

Fall Dining Guide

Kosher Cajun

3519 Severn Avenue, Metairie (504) 888-2010

Southern Jewish Life

Copper Vine Wine Pub

1001 Poydras St. (504) 208-9535

Kosher Cajun New York Deli & Grocery has authentic New York specialties — all Kosher certified. Enjoy classic eats like Reubens and matzah ball soup, plus kosher grocery staples too.

Wine and tropical charm overflow at Copper Vine in the CBD. The restaurant and wine pub boasts a lush courtyard and menus full of inventive Louisiana cuisine with wine pairings.

English Tea Room

Riccobono’s Peppermill

734 E. Rutland Street Historic Downtown Covington (985) 898-3988

The Windsor High Tea, comprising sandwiches, mini-savories, mini desserts, two chocolate dipped strawberries, two scones with house-made clotted cream, lemon curd or preserves.

3524 Severn Ave. Metairie (504) 455-2266

Bringing classic New Orleans dishes as well as Riccobono family Italian recipes to the city in a comfortable, casual atmosphere.

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The decor, menu and wine selection at Acropolis On Freret is a dining adventure that features only the best, freshest and most authentic dishes from the Mediterranean region.

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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Southern Jewish Life

The Bright Star

Fall Dining Guide

304 19th Street North, Bessemer (205) 426-1861

612 22nd Street So., Birmingham (205) 322-3330

Founded in 1907 in downtown Bessemer, the Bright Star is Alabama’s oldest family owned restaurant and is a James Beard American Classic, known for Greek-style seafood and great steaks.

A Birmingham classic, The Fish Market on Southside offers the freshest seafood around, live music and an oyster bar. Private and semi-private dining available, along with catering.

Bistro V

Pies and Pints

521 Montgomery Highway, Vestavia (205) 823-1505

125 20th Street So., Birmingham 7216 Eastchase Parkway, Montgomery

Located in Vestavia, Bistro V serves lunch, dinner and weekend brunch, with a menu that includes fresh seafood and local and organic meats and vegetables, much of it with a New Orleans nod.

Enjoy an array of craft beers on tap (including many Alabama selections), specialty pies, delicious salads and more. Our signature pizzas are hand-stretched and baked directly on a stone hearth.

Taj India

Homewood Classic Wine Co. 1831 28th Avenue So., Ste 110, (205) 871-9463

2226 Highland Avenue, Birmingham (205) 939-3805

Taj India, Birmingham’s original Tandoori Grill and Curry House, will remain in its current location through next year, serving authentic Indian dishes with a lunch buffet and extensive dinner menu.

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The Fish Market

Birmingham

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

A wine retail shop and wine bar in the heart of Homewood, with wines from all over the world and at all price points. Special Star Power wine tastings every Friday from 5:30 to 7 p.m., in person and on Zoom.

community Bama Professor Uncovers Hidden Jewish Past — and Israeli Relatives

By Richard Friedman Heritage. Holocaust. Homecoming.

These three words course through the unusual story of Marysia Galbraith, a thoughtful and engaging University of Alabama anthropology professor. In fact, her saga is the kind of narrative that academics in her field and other disciplines can learn from and teach, as she has done with her own UA students.

Galbraith has navigated two discoveries in her life which have helped shape who she is today. In her 20s, despite being raised in what she calls a “secular Christian” home, she learned almost by accident that her family on her mother’s side had been Jewish before they became Catholic.

Then in 2013, thanks to the Internet and a website that connected them, Galbraith by chance discovered that she had a Jewish cousin living in Israel. This was another turning point that, depending on your point of view, unlocked a whole new world for Galbraith or brought her life full circle. In fact, it probably did both.

As a young woman in Poland, her maternal grandmother left her Jewish faith and converted to Catholicism, Galbraith explained in a recent interview. She had divorced a Jewish man and would marry a Catholic man. “I believe my grandmother’s religious conversion was sincere.

But I think it also was motivated by what she saw as the constraints of her traditional Jewish family.” Also, Jews at that time were converting to Christianity because they began to see the handwriting on the wall for European Jewry.

Jews throughout Europe already were facing persecution. But the sit-

Photo, taken in Poland around 1916, that connected Marysia Galbraith to her Jewish heritage and her Israeli relatives. Her grandmother is seated on the left, with her parents, siblings, and nephew. uation began to darken considerably in the 1930s as Adolf Hitler and his Nazis ascended to power. Within 10 years, Hitler, the Nazis and their

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

43

community collaborators would murder 6 million Jews, one of every three Jews in the world at that time, in what came to be known as the Holocaust.

Galbraith’s research suggests that upon her grandmother leaving her Jewish heritage behind, the family, as was not uncommon in that era, rejected her, not unlike the portrayal in “Fiddler on the Roof.” This created a breach that was never repaired in that generation’s lifetime.

Nonetheless, her grandmother and her well-connected Catholic husband still helped her sister and her sister’s daughter escape from the infamous Warsaw Ghetto where the Nazis had imprisoned large swaths of Poland’s Jewish population. They got them false identification papers and found a place for them to live outside the ghetto, then eventually forged papers to let them escape to Switzerland, after which they went to Israel in 1949.

Astonished Cousins

This UA professor’s research and journey — and, in particular, her reunification with Jewish relatives in the United States, Canada, Europe and Israel — has been widely covered in the media recently. Publications such as People magazine and the Jerusalem Post have told her story, focusing in particular on her relationship with a Jewish cousin who lives in Israel who has embraced her warmly and played a role in connecting Galbraith with her larger family.

She and that cousin, the grandson of Galbraith’s grandmother’s sister, became connected through an ancestry website when they discovered that a picture of their grandmothers’ families was identical. They were astonished to realize that both of their grandmothers were pictured in the photo.

Galbraith grew up on Long Island, sensing there was a hidden secret within her family. She remembers vividly when she first learned it. “I was in my 20s and at my parents’ home for Christmas. One of my cousins

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

who was there had a little too much to drink.

After dinner, the cousin said to the family, ‘I don’t know why you are celebrating Christmas — you are all Jewish’.” What she also remembers is the reactions of her mother and grandmother. “My grandmother was furious; my mother was devastated because we were being told.”

Learning her family’s secret made a profound impression on Galbraith. Yet, she didn’t pursue it at that time but filed it away, thinking about it off and on over the years. “Why? That’s a good question,” she answers. “I have wondered myself. I think it was because people I loved didn’t want me to explore it and I didn’t want to hurt them.”

In 2011, as she was moving into her late 40s, Galbraith began thinking about it differently. She was traveling to Poland frequently as part of her academic research. “I was working on my book (“Being and Becoming European in Poland: European Integration and Self-Identity”) and it finally just struck me that if i wanted to know anything about my heritage, I needed to ask questions about what I had been told.”

On her way home to Tuscaloosa from one of her trips to Poland, she stopped at her mother’s house in Long Island. “At that point my mom had what appeared to be dementia, and for some reason that gave me ‘permission’ to begin inquiring — me knowing more about our family history wasn’t going to hurt her.”

Her brother mentioned that he had seen some old photographs at their mom’s house, and the way her brother described the people in the photographs seemed to indicate they were Jewish. “The photographs clearly were of a Jewish family.” One of the people in the pictures, for example, had on a head covering and a long black coat and had a beard, markings

community of religiously-observant Jews.

“For me, seeing the photographs was a connection with the past that I hadn’t had before. They were proof of the hidden past, which compelled me to pursue it further.” Thus began a kind of a homecoming which Galbraith believes has enriched her life immeasurably.

Alabama Spring Day

Embracing her Jewish heritage also has added a dimension to the life she leads in Tuscaloosa — a life that began on a spring day in 1998. She vividly remembers coming to Alabama as a young academic for her job interview. UA New College professor Ed Passerini, who picked her up at the airport, was driving a convertible, Galbraith recalls, smiling as she recollects a great memory. Now 57, she remembers clearly that “it was a beautiful spring day, the sky was a glorious color, the afternoon sun was shining brilliantly. I felt at home right away.”

Growing up on Long Island, outside of New York city, she was constantly among Jews and her best friend was Jewish. So she feels as if she always has been on the “periphery” of Jewish life. However, since being in Alabama she has become even more deeply engaged in Jewish life without being a practicing Jew. She has been to the synagogue in Tuscaloosa and a Bar Mitzvah in Birmingham, and clearly has developed a deep attachment to her Jewish roots.

As this interview came to a close, Galbraith was asked if she felt that her narrative reflected tragedy or triumph. She paused, pondered the question then answered deliberately.

“It’s both — absolutely,” she said. An expert on Poland as a result of her scholarly research, she laments the Holocaust’s destruction of the rich and vibrant Jewish life that was a hallmark of the country for 1000 years.

At the same time, though uprooted, many members of her Jewish family did survive. Yet, even these reconnections are bittersweet because she came to discover that, unbeknownst to her, she had Jewish relatives living 20 miles from her as she was growing up.

She also discovered that she lived near a cemetery where a lot of her Jewish family members had been buried. Though saddened that she never knew any of those who were buried there, “it fills me with a sense of connection and joy to know the descendants of the people in the cemetery,” she says.

Over the years, she has asked herself why this was such a well-kept, deep secret within her family. “I think my family was trying to protect my generation. They believed that if we didn’t know, we wouldn’t inadvertently say something that would expose us to possible persecution.” Adds the anthropology professor, “I think this is in part a reaction to trauma — not only the Holocaust, but also the prejudice they experienced in the 1920s and 30s.”

One of the highlights of connecting with her family came in 2015 when she visited Israel for the first time. “My cousins embraced me from the get-go. I was moved by a visceral sense of being embraced. Plus Israel is one of those places where there is so much, there are layers. Even though I was only there for a week, I keep thinking about it and coming back to that time.” Before the Covid pandemic, she was planning a trip to go back. “I fully intend to go back.”

Heritage, Holocaust, Homecoming: Delving into her Jewish heritage and embracing her family’s history has brought this UA professor a sense of contentment and completeness. “My ancestry odyssey has been very fulfilling. When you live in a family where there are secrets, you know you are not being told something, even if you don’t know what it is. Learning this history has filled in this place of absence for me. It has helped me to have a fuller sense of who I am.”

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For more information and updates on her family’s Jewish heritage and her journey of discovery, see Marysia Galbraith’s blog at https://uncoveringjewishheritage.com/ October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

45

community Tulane webinar: Ancient hatreds drive today’s antisemitism

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

There was an Internet before there was an Internet. It was called the printing press.

This simple truth was at the heart of one of many interesting observations made during a Sept. 9 webinar, sponsored by Tulane University, that probed contemporary antisemitism.

Three panelists — the national head of the Anti-Defamation League and two prominent academics who have studied antisemitism — offered an array of insights, triggered by a new ADL publication, “Antisemitism Uncovered: A Guide to Old Myths in a New Era.” ADL is considered to be the world’s leading monitor of antisemitism.

In May 2020, ADL reported that in 2019, the American Jewish community experienced the highest level of antisemitic incidents since tracking began in 1979, with more than 2,100 acts of assault, vandalism and harassment reported across the United States.”

All three webinar participants worked on this new ADL publication, which is designed to help people better understand the historical roots of anti-Jewish attitudes and behavior and how, despite its recent upward surge, there really is nothing new under the antisemitic sun.

The program, moderated by Tulane assistant professor of Jewish Studies Golan Moskowitz, featured a conversation among Jonathan Greenblatt, executive director of the ADL; historian Jonathan Sarna of Brandeis University; and Magda Teter, professor of history and Shvidler Chair in Judaic Studies at Fordham University.

The event was sponsored by the Tulane Department of Jewish Studies.

An important aspect of the discussion focused on the Internet and how social media empowers and promotes antisemitism, though it was noted, importantly, that mass spreading of antisemitism did not begin in the 20th century with the Internet. Rather, it began in the 1400s with the advent of the printing press — which not only provided an unprecedented tool for sharing anti-Semitic tropes and propaganda via the printed word, but also for anti-Jewish illustrations.

It was an intriguing comparison intellectually and an important comparison tactically, suggesting that those who want to ascribe the current upsurge in antisemitism to the Internet risk missing some of the more subtle factors.

These factors, as identified by the panelists, included Jews and others not fully recognizing the problem of antisemitism today; the politicizing of antisemitism, which diminishes its impact by turning it into a political issue; leaders in government, entertainment and sports not speaking out quickly and decisively enough to condemn antisemitism; and personalities and celebrities with broad and influential platforms not realizing the full implications and history of their anti-Jewish remarks and actions.

Prevalent Myths “Antisemitism Uncovered,” according to ADL, “is a comprehensive resource with historical context, fact-based descriptions of prevalent antisemitic myths, contemporary examples and calls-to-action for addressing this hate.”

A goal of “Anitsemitism Uncovered,” according to Greenblatt, is to sensitize as many people as possible to the thematic areas covered, so that

community they have a greater understanding of the insidious background and harmful effects of antisemitism. A cornerstone of “Antisemitism Uncovered” is the belief that by educating about the hatred and violence against Jews through these age-old stereotypes generated over the centuries, people today will become more attuned to combating what may seem to be random and potentially harmless antisemitic remarks.

The specific anti-Jewish myths that the new ADL publication explores include Jews have too much power; Jews are disloyal; Jews are greedy; Jews killed Jesus; Jews use Christian blood for religious rituals; The Holocaust didn’t happen; Anti-Zionism or criticism of Israel is never antisemitic. Each section includes historical and contemporary context and strategies for responding.

“We are operating in a moment right now where antisemitism unfortunately is on the rise,” Greenblatt told the webinar audience. Compounding it is Covid, Greenblatt added, with some elements of society irrationally blaming Jews for the pandemic and, in some cases, suggesting they are profiting from it. Jewish greed, it was noted, is a classic anti-Semitic stereotype going back centuries.

Historian Sarna said, “I think we can see a large generation gap in the way recent events have been seen. For young people, it was a complete surprise to see antisemitism. What they had heard was American Jews had become ‘white folks’ and they had come to believe that antisemitism had ended.” History shows that antisemitism is cyclical, and often is a reflection of larger social problems, which helps explain what is going on today, said Sarna. For older people, the reappearance of antisemitism was less surprising, he added.

Three Sources Today, many observers believe that antisemitism is coming from three sources that otherwise have little in common ideologically — the far right, far left and radical Islam. “They are certain their problems are caused by the Jews,” said Sarna.

Panelist Teter recently wrote a book on the blood libel — the false accusation that began centuries ago, claiming that Jews use the blood of Christians, and Christian children in particular, for ritual purposes. When she started on the book, Teter thought she would be mainly doing historical research. Today, because of what she sees as behaviors reflecting ancient anti-Jewish myths and attitudes, she says, “I find myself in the twilight zone” — in a surreal and unimaginable situation.

She envisioned her book focusing on the 15th to 18th centuries, yet it begins with ADL calling on Facebook to shut down a site promoting the

myth of Jewish ritual murder. In 2019, she notes almost in disbelief, white supremacists are referencing accusations made in Italy in the 1400s to justify their hatred of Jews. “My book, sadly, is very relevant to what’s happening in America today.”

Those who have enlisted in the fight against antisemitism face two obstacles, Greenblatt observed. “I think we live in a charged moment where everything is politicized, and we shouldn’t be surprised that antisemitism is a

partisan tool, whether it comes from the left or right. And when it becomes a political cudgel, the Jewish people lose.”

The second obstacle, the ADL director said, is that given the heavily-publicized prejudices that other groups face, such as Blacks, people downplay antisemitism, asking, “Is it really a problem?”

Clearly, from this thought-provoking webinar and the conversation among these three experts, the answer is yes. It is really a problem.

Sol Gothard Lifetime Achievement Award (2012) National Organization of Forensic Social Work

Judge Richard Ware Award for Child Abuse Prevention (2014) Louisiana Children’s Trust Fund Board

Louisiana lawyer since 1978 Child abuse/domestic violence victim advocate — 42 years B.S. Tulane 1974 • J.D. Loyola Law ‘78 • LL.M. (advanced law degree) Loyola Chicago Law 2011.

Earned law degree while a probation officer in the Jefferson Parish Juvenile Court Created program to give lawyers to abused kids Appointed special assistant DA in 19 parishes Tried cases in 50 Louisiana courts Argued in every LA appellate court Tried cases in 45 other states Admitted also in PA, the U.S. Supreme Court; the U.S. 3rd , 4th, 5th and 9th Circuits Courts of Appeals; and the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern, Midwest and Western Districts of LA, the Northern and Eastern Districts of TX, the Northern District of OH, the District of CO, and the Western District of PA Wrote over 25 laws for child abuse/family violence victims, and to prevent infanticide

Trained lawyers, judges, police and psychologists at national and state programs for the ABA., the U.S. Dept. of Justice, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma, domestic violence coalitions, child welfare agencies, and law schools Honored by Justice for Children, The Northern Plains Tribal Inst., The National Association of Social Workers, the Young Lawyers Division of the ABA, The LSU School of Social Work, the Louisiana Foster Parent Association, and the United Way Preeminent “A-V” highest rating from lawyers and judges for ethics and ability — 30 years U.S. Supreme Court win for sexually abused kids Adoption and foster care reform work Defended state in roadway suits Proud father of 4 and grandfather of 3 Cases and writings cited in legal textbooks Staunch defender of due process and First Amendment rights Extensive civil, criminal, and appellate experience nationwide.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

47

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

New film highlights cooperation, challenges and Israel “Shared Legacies,” a new documentary highlighting the relationship between Blacks and Jews during the Civil Rights era, and how Jews supported the Black community during their time of struggle, was the focus of an online program Aug. 27, sponsored in part by the Atlanta-based Israeli Consulate to the Southeast.

Included on the program, which was oriented toward students, were former Civil Rights leader, Congressman, Atlanta Mayor and U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young, and former American Jewish Committee Director for the Southeast Sherry Frank, who are both featured in the documentary. Also on the panel was basketball great Isiah Thomas.

Spill the Honey Foundation and Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College partnered with the Consulate. Shari Rogers, founder of Spill the Honey Foundation, wrote, directed and produced “Shared Legacies.” Rev. Lawrence Edward Carter Sr., dean of the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel since its founding over 40 years ago, is playing a pivotal role in the partnership as well. The Aug. 27 program was one in a series of offerings commemorating the rich legacy of collaboration between Blacks and Jews.

One moderator of the program was Wendell Shelby-Wallace, a 27-year-old Black man who works for the Israeli Consulate. His questions were probing and thought-provoking, and played a role in Young and Frank sharing highly-relevant insights, looking back on the Civil Rights movement and forward regarding Black-Jewish relations. His co-moderator was Blake Weissman, a Jewish student at the University of Michigan who is Spill the Honey’s national youth president.

Young was asked how he managed to work with people of differing points of view throughout his career and what advice he could give when it comes to negotiating differences of opinion with others, especially in today’s tense and divisive environment. To answer, the former U.N. Ambassador reached back to his childhood. “I was born in New Orleans in 1932, 50 yards from what served as the Nazi party headquarters, which was the German American Bund. In 1936, when I was four years old, my father had to explain to me what Nazism and white supremacy were.” His dad called them a “sickness” and then gave his son some advice, which Young has carried to this day.

His father told him, “You don’t ever get angry at sick people. Don’t get mad, get smart. Always be polite, never show fear. You know that God

made all the nations of the world of one blood, but they don’t want to admit that and that is their problem with God. You are going to have to learn to live with people who are different and don’t like you, but the one thing you should never do is never get upset, emotional or angry.”

Young’s father was a dentist in New Orleans, and the dental suppliers he used were largely Jewish. Through those business relationships, friendships were formed. “So I grew up in a community that was bound together by common beliefs.” He recalled that one of the first integrated meetings he attended, when he was 12, was a gathering of the National Conference of Christians and Jews. He also said that he would not have become mayor if people such as Sherry Frank, his fellow panelist and a long-time Atlanta Jewish leader, had not helped him.

The former mayor was asked how to have important conversations with people despite disagreements. He said, “The challenge is simply to listen to each other. Let people air their differences and then at the end after they share their differences… you create a situation where people realize no opinion is set in stone. People are constantly growing and by listening to differences, you learn more about yourself and… learn to admit the weaknesses of your own position.” This approach, which is not only applicable to tension that sometimes arises in the Black-Jewish relationship, but in other relationships as well “keeps you flexible and enables you to grow.”

Frank, a now-retired long-time director of the American Jewish Committee’s Atlanta-based Southeast office, recalled forming the

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“Henderson Park Inn is one of the most unique places in the country in that it matches modern luxury with classic, coastal charm for a romantic getaway like nowhere else,” said Owner Representative Shannon Howell. “It’s a property that’s designed with no detail of a stay overlooked.”

Initially designed to replicate all the best features of the classic-style coastal inns in New England, Henderson Park Inn continues to capture the hearts of visitors and locals. Each thoughtfully-decorated suite distinguishes itself from others, boasts breathtaking views of the Gulf ’s emerald-green water, and is designed for total pampered privacy, featuring sumptuous bedding, a flat-screen TV and concierge service for any additional flights of fancy.

The attentive staff caters to each guest’s every need from the moment he or she enters. Rooms greet guests with romantic music, a bottle of wine and two glasses, a vase of roses, as well as a special house-made treat.

But, there’s no limit on the romantic experiences offered at Henderson Park Inn. Couples can grab a picnic lunch provided by the Inn, claim a spot for two on the powdery beach where complimentary beach chairs ensure there’s ample room to find some relaxing seclusion, or explore the area like a local on bikes provided by the hotel.

“From a made-to-order breakfast to a complimentary happy hour at our tiki bar, the Inn provides everything you need for a perfect romantic beach vacation,” said Howell.

For the full romantic effect, couples are encouraged to dine al-fresco on the terrace of Henderson Park Inn’s on-site restaurant, Beach Walk Café, as much for the atmosphere as for the exquisite food, which is expertly crafted

by Executive Chef Daniel Peters. For pure seclusion, couples can arrange a “Toes in the Sand” dining experience. Guests can toast to their love by the light of tiki torches at this private dinner on the beach. The romantic, rose-petaled excursion pairs fresh-caught seafood with glasses of bubbly.

“Being nestled within one of the most romantic inns in the country and having unique dining experiences like Toes in the Sand definitely sets us apart as one of the premier places for a romantic evening,” said Beach Walk Café’s Food and Beverage Manager, Jessica Ferreira.

With numerous accolades like Best Outdoor Dining on the Emerald Coast,

Beach Walk Café remains Destin’s only fine dining restaurant located on the stunning beaches of the Emerald Coast. But, the atmosphere and unique dining options of the restaurant aren’t the only features dinner guests keep coming back for.

“Chef Daniel’s food is absolutely incredible,” said Ferreira. “We’re blessed to have a chef of his caliber leading our kitchen, and our guests see that when they dine here.”

A Destin native, Peters harmonizes fresh, locally-inspired ingredients and flavors with culinary skills he perfected while living in Napa Valley and studying under world-renowned chefs like James Beard Award Winning and Michelin Star Chef Douglas Keane and Top Chef Contestant Sang Yoon, among others.

“Chef Stephan Barber, of Farmstead in Napa, really pushed an ingredient-forward approach to food,” said Peters.

“And, I’ve really started pushing that myself at Beach Walk. These chefs taught me everything I know, and I think our guests can see their influence in the food we put out here.”

Peters explained that he’s working to bring about a gulf-to-table concept at Beach Walk, adding daily features like pan seared snapper with roasted fingerling potatoes, and sautéed haricot verts topped with lump crab and Mediterranean artichokes, cherry tomatoes and capers.

“The features Chef puts out are some of the most creative and delicious dishes I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating,” said Ferreira.

Even with Peters’s new additions, Beach Walk’s menu still holds the classic crowd favorite dishes that people from around the country have been enjoying since the restaurant first opened years ago.

“With dinner being the only part of our guests’ stays that is not included, having this award-winning restaurant on site is just another perk for our guests,” said Howell. “It’s definitely a must-do for all of our guests.”

And if guests are looking for additional activities or dining experiences, they have access to the all the amenities at the Inn’s sister property, The Henderson, a Salamander Beach and Spa Resort, including a resort-style pool and spa, and restaurants.

“But you won’t want to miss the sunset on the back patio of the Inn,” said Howell. “To see the sun sink in the Emerald Coast waters is absolutely stunning and one of the most romantic moments our property can offer.”

For more information about Henderson Park Inn or to book a room, visit www.hendersonparkinn.com or call 866.398.4432.

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

49

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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Atlanta Black-Jewish Coalition in 1982. From the beginning, she said, the late Congressman John Lewis was an inspiration, serving as co-chair. The work of the coalition continues today and is “alive and thriving.”

She also was asked what are effective tools for breaking through differences when the parties might not see eye to eye. “I believe the way to build coalitions is to get to know each other one to one on a personal level.”

People need to feel comfortable talking to one another honestly and be encouraged to understand one another’s key issues, stressed Frank. She referred to “creating a table to hear each other” and again praised Lewis because of his ability to reach out to others and understand their histories.

Thomas, a legendary collegiate and professional basketball figure, reflected on his youth growing up in Chicago. “The Black and Jewish communities have always been together, particularly connected to sports,” he said. “In basketball, there were important figures” and, in particular, he mentioned with fondness Abe Saperstein, the Jewish owner of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Thomas said that in basketball Blacks and Jews have always interacted, noting that in the 1940s and 1950s there were outstanding Jewish players who others wanted to emulate, and today Jews are among NBA team owners. Through this mutual involvement in sports, the values that Blacks and Jews shared became evident, on issues such as voting rights and human rights, and especially both groups “wanting to be the best that people can be.” Thomas, who grew up poor in Chicago, eventually became part owner of an NBA team himself.

Worth Watching

The film “Shared Legacies,” which was the catalyst for this online discussion, is an outstanding production well worth watching.

Parts of the film focus on the Civil Rights movement in Alabama and Mississippi. Highlighted were long-time Birmingham rabbi Milton Grafman’s out-front push for Civil Rights and excerpts from a famous Rosh Hashanah sermon he gave calling on his congregants to stand up and be counted in the wake of the 1963 Birmingham church bombing that killed four young Black girls.

The film also highlights the 1964 murder of two young Jews, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman, who had come to Mississippi to help Black citizens register to vote. Black activist James Chaney was also was murdered with them, in one of the most memorable and violent racial crimes of that time. The murders of Goodman, Schwerner and Chaney are often invoked to reflect the courageous willingness of Jews to stand with Blacks on the front lines of the Civil Rights struggle.

The film “Shared Legacies” also suggests that the Black-Jewish alliance that was forged during the Civil Rights era began to fray in the early 1970s, in the wake of the deaths of the two leaders seen as most pivotal to the partnership — King and Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.

In addition, the film suggests that urban tensions, which have sometimes pitted Blacks and Jews against each other, played a role. The film also didn’t shrink from the tensions that have been caused more recently as some Black activists link the struggles Blacks face today with the plight of the Palestinians, portraying Israel in a harsh and unfair light.

These are all complex issues, though the words spoken during the program offered inspiration and advice. Especially pertinent were the welcoming comments from the Israeli Consul General to the Southeast, Anat Sultan-Dadon. She said, “I look forward to the discussion of the history, present and future of Black-Jewish relations.” To that, Shelby-Wallace, the Consulate’s Director of External Affairs, who is responsible for outreach to the African-American, Hispanic, LGBTQIA+, Christian and Muslim communities, added, “Tonight we are focusing on ally-ship and talking about what that means.”

(To view the film “Shared Legacies” and/or view the discussion highlighted above, contact pr@atlanta.mfa.gov.il)

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Richard Ducote Judge, 22nd Judicial District, Division J While Richard Ducote has extensive experience in the courtroom and sees being a judge as “the culmination of everything I have done in my life,” his motivation is “to do good in the world” because of “tremendous blessings I needed to return.”

When he was 12, his father suddenly died and his mother was pregnant with their sixth child. His father’s boss asked his mother what bills the family had, pulled out his checkbook and continued to pay his father’s salary for the next 18 years.

Pediatrician Hyman Tolmas “never sent us another bill… we had 6 kids who had free pediatric care for 18 years.” His mother had known Tolmas since she was in nursing school, and “he saved my niece’s life” from a premature birth at a time when that had a high fatality rate.

At Tulane, he read a book on children in foster care and knew that is what he needed to pursue. In 1975, Judge Sol Gothard hired him as a juvenile probation officer in Jefferson Parish, and he was on his path, becoming an attorney in 1978.

“I’ve been very blessed,” he said, with “the opportunity not only to make an impact on the lives of abuse victims and those in foster care… but also just simply in a professional sense in terms of legal scholarship and the development of trial skills, and hopefully the teaching I’ve done for judges, lawyers, physicians” has made an impact.

Being a judge is the next step in that progression. “The power of an attorney is to ask questions,” he said. “The power of a judge is to affix his signature to a judgment.”

In the 1990s, Gothard and Tolmas did a series at East Jefferson General for adolescents, discussing every type of issue in a frank and open manner.

Later, at a conference where Tlmas spoke, Ducote “got to go and surprise him and tell the story publicly about what he did for our family.”

He said Gothard referred to him “as his illegitimate son,” and he was known for being “very direct and not afraid of speaking truth to power.”

It was particularly meaningful for him in 2012 when he received the Sol Gothard Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Organization of Forensic Social Work.

He has tried cases in 46 states, a rare number for an attorney. He won a case in the U.S. Supreme Court, 9-0, for two children who were sexually abused, and laws he has written have been enacted in Louisiana and around the country.

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Donald “Chick” Foret Judge, Jefferson Parish 24th Judicial District, Division H For Chick Foret, this is his first and last campaign for judge. At age 67, he will reach the mandatory retirement age and not be eligible to run for re-election, but he is ready to “put my heart and soul into being a judge” and “do the right thing every day, no matter what the consequences are or who the parties are.”

Foret has practiced law since 1977. While at Tulane Law School, Professor Robert Force told him that a good way to get two credit hours is to work for the district attorney’s office, and “I just fell in love with criminal law, with being a prosecutor.”

As an assistant DA, he prosecuted some of the city’s most notorious criminals, and was appointed to Vice President George H.W. Bush’s elite special task force to combat drug trafficking in America.

He tried well over 200 jury trials in state and federal courts across multiple jurisdictions, and after the BP oil spill, helped over 100 business owners recover over $70 million and get back on their feet.

He was preparing to run in 2009, but the time wasn’t right for him. Now, he points to his life experiences and legal experience as background to deal with “class actions, mass torts, auto accidents, child custody — which many October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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2020 candidates people will tell you is the most important cases a judge hears.”

He has an astounding 525 lawyer endorsements, including Harry Rosenberg and Morris Bart. “Who would think anyone would have both of them on the same side?” he asked. He also has a broad base of support from Jefferson Parish officials.

Because of his political run, he recently left WWL-TV after 19 years as a legal analyst. “I loved it, as much as I loved being in the courtroom.” He said the best feedback was people commenting that he gave both sides and then explained what the law is, not what he thought the outcome should be.

He said “nobody wants to play in a rigged game, everyone wants to be sure the judge has the highest integrity… when the law is applied to the facts, what is the proper result?” In his courtroom, he will ensure “every party has an equal opportunity to present their case, to be treated with respect.”

The criminal justice system should provide safety and dignity for everyone. As judge, Meg Garvey will ensure fairness for all.

Piper Griffin Justice, Louisiana Supreme Court, District 7

COMPASSION - TRANSPARENCY - EFFICIENCY Vote Meghan Garvey for Judge, Municipal and Traffic Court, Division A, New Orleans

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Judge Piper Griffin acknowledges she could have simply gone for re-election to her current position as judge of the Orleans Parish Civil District Court, Division I, where she has served since 2001. Three years ago, that is what she planned.

But as she continued to serve, she realized that “who replaced Chief Justice Bernette Johnson” on the Louisiana Supreme Court “was important,” and the skills she has gained are a perfect fit for the position.

Griffin graduated from LSU School of Law in 1987, saying that a law degree was a way to follow her “desire to help people and make a difference in my community.” She quickly made a name for herself, and in 1997 was recognized as one of the 50 most distinguished Black graduates of Notre Dame, where she received her undergraduate degree.

She was the first African American Chair of the Young Lawyer’s Section of the New Orleans Bar Association, and is past president of the 4th and 5th Circuit Judges Association, and the Louisiana Judicial Council of the National Bar Association.

In recent years, she has worked on numerous Supreme Court committees. While serving in roles such as the budgetary control board and the committee on judicial ethics, she realized “I was being given valuable skills and valuable insight as to the administrative responsibilities of the Supreme Court,” and how that affects not only the Supreme Court but the entire judicial system in Louisiana.

Along with her experience working with judges and lawyers from across the state, “I’m prepared to serve.”

Part of the preparation is that she has run “a very fast-paced and effective docket,” and “the Supreme Court is not a place where you have time to sit.”

She said some have asked why she did not go for an appellate position, but she points out that the last two Supreme Court judges came directly from the district court level. Her work on that level “keeps me in tune with the public and the legal community,” and “prepares me to continue in that fast-paced process, to do the things that are necessary on the Supreme Court.”

Griffin would become the only Black and only female on the court.

Chris Cox Judge, Jefferson Parish 24th Judicial District, Division B Chris Cox, who has spent virtually all of his legal career in public service, has wanted to become a judge for quite some time, even before he attended law school at Tulane.

One of his mentors, Judge Walter Rothschild, told him he wished he had pursued the bench sooner, because he found it very fulfilling.

With two open seats in Jefferson Parish this year because of age limits, Cox said it is time for him to take this next step. Eight years ago, many people wanted him to run, but “it is very difficult to run against an incumbent judge and win” in the parish.

This race, he said, is about trial and courtroom experience, and he has done 52

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

2020 candidates close to 120 jury and judge trials, and handled countless motions in state and federal courtrooms. “That is one thing that really sets me apart,” he said.

His undergraduate work was in accounting, and he was a CPA for a few years — now inactive — before going to law school, which was the path he always intended. But tax law didn’t excite him, and clerking for a judge in federal court for a year “reaffirmed in my mind that the prosecutors have a really interesting and good job.”

He became an assistant district attorney, then a prosecutor. “Although you see some horrible things… it is very easy to get motivated to do the job, knowing you are doing the right thing.”

He found helping victims to be very rewarding, and said that “sometimes the victims get lost in the process” when talking about criminal justice reform.

In 2010, Cox became chief operating officer for Jefferson Parish, then in 2014 became executive assistant district attorney to Paul Connick., representing the parish office at the Louisiana District Attorneys Association and developing policy for our state’s top prosecutors.

“Public service is a calling,” he said. “That is just who I am and that is my motivation.”

David Alvarez Orleans Parish School Board District 6 A frustrating experience with local government prompted David Alvarez to run for the Orleans Parish School Board. The founder and director of community coalition La Voz de la Comunidad, Alvarez was part of a neighborhood group that assembled a proposal in 2015 to purchase and revitalize the long vacant Alfred Priestley school building in Carrollton, establishing a community hub and multipurpose center.

He said the plan had very capable local experts volunteering “to do what needs to be done. It had all the markings of democracy in action.” But when the group approached a couple school board members, “they looked at us like we were crazy, like we didn’t have any type of standing since we weren’t a formal 501(c)3.”

The proposal “was crushed,” and as he processed what happened, he woke up three days before qualifying deadline, determined to run for school board. With a grassroots campaign that was especially popular among teachers, he got “really close” with 47 percent of the vote.

Now, he is running again, with “the same desire, the same fire to get on the school board and make some real changes” to make the board more responsive to the community.

The state says charter schools must have boards of at least 60 percent residents. Alvarez wants to see that become 100 percent. “You wouldn’t vote for me if I didn’t live in New Orleans so why would you have non-New Orleanians on the charter boards?”

He also wants to establish a grading system that is local, not the state’s, saying the metrics and standardized testing currently used “snooker urban districts” and favor wealthy suburbs. If standardized tests were so valuable, “it wouldn’t have been the first thing they got rid of when Covid hit.”

He also wants to see schools rewarded for opening their facilities to after-school activities and non-profit groups.

His community work includes a lot of coalition building and strategic planning to improve the lives of youth, working with school and business leaders, government officials, law enforcement and faith based groups.

Eric Skrmetta Public Service Commission, District 1 Eric Skrmetta, who has served as chair of the Public Service Commission twice, takes pride in being accessible and in fighting to keep rates low for Louisianans.

When he joined the commission, Louisiana was 26th in the nation in utility rates. Now, the state has the lowest residential utility rates in the country, and the lowest industrial rates. Having a stable energy policy and rate structure leads to billions in industrial growth. “That translates to more jobs, and good paying jobs in our state,” he said.

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2020 candidates

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During college, Skrmetta was an aide to Gov. David Treen, and decided to go to law school afterward. Interested in politics since high school, he felt “I felt at some point when I became seasoned enough as an attorney and as an individual, that I had something to offer, I would put myself up for office.”

When mediation was introduced in Louisiana, he underwent training early on. After Katrina, when Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon instituted mediation between homeowners and insurance companies, Skrmetta mediated about 900 cases in 16 months “and was very successful in putting a significant amount of money back into the hands of homeowners.”

His legal experience and mediation skills translated well when he was first elected to the PSC in 2008, working with different parties to “narrow the issues.” If litigation is necessary, “we will do it,” but the goal is to keep costs down, for the benefit of ratepayers.

Under his leadership, when Cleco Power was acquired by a private entity, he created a list of 77 conditions that included an immediate $136 million in rate credits for customers. The PSC also developed a storm charge mechanism that has saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.

The power grid is being strengthened, and in Hurricane Laura, just the older sections were destroyed, so they are being rebuilt to the new standards.

The PSC also approved three new Entergy power plants that are highly efficient, to replace inefficient older ones without affecting the rate structure.

While some parts of the country have capacity issues, “We’re going to make sure in Louisiana there is not going to be a situation where people don’t have access to electricity.”

Lee Ann Dugas

U.S. Congress, Louisiana First District Lee Ann Dugas, a disabled Gulf War veteran, wants to go to Congress to “restore, rebuild, repair and heal.” She explained, “to see a state that I love and a country I love being destroyed and torn apart… sometimes you just gotta say ‘enough is enough’.”

Dugas ran against Rep. Steve Scalise in previous election cycles. After four years of the Trump administration, she is ready to see that Scalise retires.

“Scalise and his fellow Congressional Republicans have remained silent. They have stood by and watched as the reputation” of the United States, and “NATO — our allies, are just being cast to the side,” while “siding with our enemies.”

“I took an oath many years ago to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the nation. When I see it being shredded and disrespected and dishonored, that gets me wound up,” she said. “We deserve better than that and we are better than this.”

Her four-word goal for Congress starts with restoring the Constitution and rule of law; then rebuilding governmental departments and the relationships between the U.S. and its allies.

Repairing also needs to be done in “a bunch of topics,” including women’s rights, criminal justice reform, police reform, LGBTQ rights and the Affordable Care Act. She also wants to see alternative energy expanded. “We have so many beautiful spaces we can’t build on but we can use for solar or wind farms,” and that would also make the country healthier.

The healing will come by bringing the diversity of America together, she said. Diversity “is how our nation was founded, that’s what makes America great, and it is being destroyed, it is being divided.”

“You can come to America and become an American, and that’s why people come here for that better life, to love who they want, pray how they want, for education and to raise a family,” Dugas said. “That’s what America is about, and I see it being torn up.”

After the election, she wants to see a joint ethics hearing, modeled after the joint Sept. 11 commissions, with House and Senate members “holding Trump, Barr, Pompeo as well as the Congressional Republicans accountable. I take that seriously.”

Dugas wants to be open to constituents, saying they can contact her any time.

“I’m old school,” she said. “You shake hands and sit on the porch and have a glass of sweet tea, and I listen. That’s what representing people is about.

They’ve forgotten how to listen to us.”

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

2020 candidates Keva Landrum Orleans Parish District Attorney After graduating from Tulane Law School, New Orleans native Keva Landrum started at the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office, becoming the first female district attorney in the state when she became acting DA in 2007. She tried over 100 jury and bench trials, prosecuting homicides, felonies and sex crimes, and heading the juvenile division and the screening division.

In 2008, Landrum was elected to the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, Section E. In 2018, she became the first African American woman to serve as chief judge, the court’s highest office, overseeing the administrative functions of the court.

Landrum said her background as DA and a judge gives her the unique experience “to deliver real reform while protecting public safety,” working to “heal the divisions in our community.” While fighting violent crime, she wants to expand diversion programs and strive to end mass incarceration, connecting youth to job, educational and rehabilitative opportunities.

“For too long the District Attorney’s Office measured success by seeking high conviction rates and pursuing harsh sentences instead of focusing on reducing crime in our community,” Landrum said. “We can do better.”

Meghan Garvey Judge, Orleans Parish Municipal and Traffic Court Meghan Garvey says it is time for a change at Municipal Court, and she has 700,000 reasons why — that is the number of open cases at the court, including many on charges that are unconstitutional or past the statute of limitations.

Garvey started her legal career right after Katrina, representing 100 people trapped in jail without access to courts. She has advocated for public defense, bail reform and raising the age of criminal liability to keep children out of jail.

In college, she worked as a case manager for the homeless and those with severe mental illness. A founding member of Orleans Public Defenders in 2006, she received a fellowship from the American Bar Association Commission on Homelessness and Poverty.

While at Tulane Law School, she saw at the Orleans Municipal Court “masses of people, nearly all black, many old and suffering from mental illness, chained together and pushed through the system without due process.” She also helped represent homeless people who were arrested for standing on the sidewalk.

She said the system needs to ensure justice, safety and dignity for everyone, and she will bring “compassion, transparency and efficiency” to the court. “Sunshine is the best disinfectant.”

Dennis Moore Judge, Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, Section A Dennis Moore came back to the legal profession — and his native Louisiana — after a time as a software engineer. In 1994, he decided to pursue his passion for studying law, graduating from Tulane Law School in 1997.

After clerking at the Orleans Civil District Court, Moore was staff attorney for the Orleans Indigent Defender Program. He also was an adjunct professor at Tulane’s A.B. Freeman School of Business while opening a solo practice, handling cases in criminal defense, personal injury, family and domestic law, real estate and civil litigation.

Since 2010, Moore has worked as a staff attorney with the Capital De-

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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2020 candidates fense Project of Southeast Louisiana. For the last 10 years, he has handled multiple first-degree murder cases as a certified Second Chair Attorney.

Saying that much of the court’s systems are in the 19th century, not even the 20th, Moore’s main goal is to make the court system much more efficient, working with the clerk to incorporate new technology, reduce open case files, implement an electronic filing system and a monthly calendar so cases can be followed by the public.

He also wants to expand the drug court program and the reentry program, and help those who are eligible for expungement with the application process.

While the race is for the Section A seat, he looks at the court as a system where the 13 judges have to work together for the entire court to run efficiently.

Mike Hall Judge, Orleans Parish Civil District Court, Division I Mike Hall cites his experience of over 17 years as a trial lawyer and over 7 years as an Orleans Parish Civil District Court family court mediator in running for judge. His practice focuses on family law and general liability defense.

A New Orleans native, he earned his law degree from Southern University. He started as a law clerk for the Orleans Civil District Court, then started with Weiss and Eason, doing medical malpractice defense, professional and general liability defense, and other areas.

Having represented individuals, businesses and governmental agencies “on both sides of the aisle provides me with a distinct ability to appreciate and understand the law from various viewpoints.”

“The citizens of New Orleans deserve a judge who will provide consistency, efficiency and effectiveness from the bench,” Hall said. “Consistency in rulings and judgments; effectiveness in the manner in which the law is enforced, and efficiency in the manner in which the office is run.”

He added, “my ability to relate to all members of the community that presents to Civil District Court is of significant importance.”

Gary Wainwright Judge, Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, Section K “Constitutional rights mean nothing if judges do not protect them,” says Gary Wainwright, who brings three decades of experience in his campaign to be “a judge for the people.”

After graduating from the Southern Law Center, he joined the Orleans Indigent Defender Program before going into quasi-public defense private practice. He has conducted 750 jury trials, two death penalty cases and thousands of plea bargains over three decades in the Criminal Court.

“Every accused person is entitled to a fair trial, conducted by a judge who knows the law and the rules of evidence,” he said.

An advocate for the re-legalization of marijuana, Wainwright regularly lectures at Loyola Law School on the drug war and its effect on the nation.

While dangerous individuals who harm others must be held responsible, and for some jail may be the only thing that saves them from death on the streets and gives a chance to choose a better path in life, Wainwright has worked for criminal justice reform, especially when it comes to hundreds of millions of dollars spent on imprisoning minor drug offenders.

Because he is 66, his independence is “guaranteed,” as he can serve only one term before aging out.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

2020 candidates Nandi Campbell Judge, Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, Section G Nandi Campbell was inspired by the Sixth Amendment’s promise of counsel and a speedy trial for the poor and disenfranchised, serving as a member of the criminal defense clinic at the University of Georgia Law School.

A Brooklyn native, Campbell had a varied career before pursuing law.

After a program in business management and law, she was in the New York banking industry for a decade, then was a manager at the New York City Teachers’ Retirement System.

After receiving her law degree, she moved to New Orleans in 2008 to work in public defense of residents still dealing with the after-effects of Katrina, managing a huge case load in the Orleans Parish Public Defender’s office.

She started her own firm, handling many high-level cases. She also launched mentoring programs for young students and young lawyers, and founded My Sister’s Keeper, a mentoring program for young girls in need of stable adult role models.

Campbell is a graduate of the Loyola University Institute of Politics and the Norman C. Francis Leadership Institute, an associate professor of law at Tulane University and an adjunct professor at Loyola University School of Law. She is a contract conflict attorney for both the Orleans Parish and federal Eastern District of Louisiana’s public defender’s offices.

She advocates Flexcourt to reduce the time parties, witnesses and jurors spend in court; greater transparency in sentencing; alternatives to incarceration and organizing one-stop expungement. Addicts need rehabilitation, she said, because incarcerating them for violating parole is “putting a bandaid over a gaping wound.”

“Our courthouse belongs to the people of New Orleans, and we need to start acting like it,” Campbell said.

DeWayne Williams

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Judge, Orleans Parish Civil District Court, Division I Aside from earning a degree in business administration at LSU, DeWayne Williams has never wanted to live anywhere else but his native New Orleans. He earned his law degree at Loyola in New Orleans in 2001, then despite calls urging him to start over elsewhere after the post-Katrina flooding inundated his home with over 10 feet of water, he returned to the city as quickly as possible, to contribute to its revitalization.

Now a partner in Aaron and Gianna, Williams has served as counsel in numerous complex and high profile trials, appeals, and writs before a variety of state and federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court.

He was on the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions as the Constitutional Law Bar Examiner, and the Attorney Disciplinary Board.

He co-founded Infinite Blessings, a non-profit that focuses on investing in the lives of New Orleans area youth to empower them to create a lasting change in their community.

While he cites his extensive legal experience, he cites his experience as single father as making him the best choice for the position, as “I work every day to set an example for my son and to bring about a future where he can thrive,” and he understands “the unique issues facing our community.”

He seeks to make the court more efficient, “so that justice can be served in a more timely manner.”

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commentary >> Editor’s Note to find one in Israel was to go to an Arab village, where it had been imported.

They were also part of the Arab oil embargoes in the 1970s, when OPEC decided to punish the West for its support of Israel.

The Emirates have also been huge diplomatic and financial supporters of the Palestinians, and it has been standard wisdom for a long time — erroneously — that the source of instability in the Middle East has been Israel and the lack of a resolution with the Palestinians. Former Secretary of State John Kerry insisted in 2016 that the only way any Arab state would ever have relations with Israel is if the Palestinian situation were finally resolved.

But with Iran growing as an existential threat to regimes throughout the region, along with the realization that the Palestinian leadership has no interest in running a state but is stuck in the mode of anti-Israel revolution while the leadership enriches itself through siphoning off foreign aid, much of the Arab world has come to realize that Israel is not a threat to them, and that waiting on the Palestinians to come to their senses is like waiting for Vanderbilt to win the College Football Playoff.

With the green movement worldwide and American energy independence, economies built solely on oil are no longer sustainable long term, and these Gulf countries need to figure out a way to diversify their economies. They see Israel’s Start-Up Nation and want to be part of it, for their own futures.

It is also interesting to see how this process is playing out within the UAE and Bahrain. The peace accords with Egypt and Jordan were done by leaders, without selling it to the people. Anti-Israel incitement is still very common in both countries, and you don’t see Egyptian or Jordanian tourists coming to Jerusalem to visit Muslim holy sites — or anything else.

These agreements are completely different,

continued from page 3 as there is great enthusiasm on both sides.

Business deals have been announced virtually from day one. The UAE told its hotels to provide kosher dining options. It was a scramble to see which national airlines would be first to announce direct flights to and from Tel Aviv.

Israelis are already seeing ads to purchase real estate and condos in the UAE, and it is expected that there will be a lot of tourism back and forth.

The rhetoric has not been a begrudging acknowledgement that Israel is here to stay, it has been that Israel and the Jewish people are part of the Middle East. Contrast that with the jihadist vision that Jews or any non-Muslim can’t rule over what is seen as Muslim lands, a sentiment that has been the philosophical underpinning of the Arab war against Israel from the beginning.

Instead, in the UAE there is now a chief rabbi for the Jewish community, and the Abrahamic Family House is currently under construction and will include a mosque, a church and a synagogue at the same location.

It may seem hard to fathom, but a very convincing argument can be made that it is much easier and safer to walk down the street visibly as a Jew in the Emirates than on the streets of Paris, Brussels or Stockholm.

And other countries in the region will be coming on board soon. Speculation is that Sudan will be one of those countries. Sudan of course, is known for the famous “three noes” meeting after the 1967 war, when Israel was looking to make peace and a united Arab League insisted that there would never be peace with Israel, or even recognition of Israel’s existence.

Because of Sudan’s hostility, the rescue of Ethiopian Jewry that took place partly in Sudan in the 1980s had to be done in a highly secretive manner, lest the Sudanese government find out.

These accords herald a huge shift in the Middle East. When you have the King of Saudi Ara-

bia at the United Nations calling for the disarmament not of Israel, but of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, something has definitely changed.

Some who are critical of the recent accords slam Israel for even signing them, because those Gulf countries are autocratic regimes. Israel is making deals with dictatorships, they say. Of course, most other countries in the world, including the United States, Britain, the European Union, the rest of the Arab world… have relations with UAE and Bahrain. Only Israel is expected to meet some purity test in who they can have diplomatic relations with.

Besides, how exactly would one describe the regimes ruling over the territories and Gaza, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas? Yet Israel is supposed to make a deal with them first.

For those who are laser-focused on the Palestinians and oppose Israel out of habit, this agreement is being portrayed as a betrayal. It is comical to watch organizations that claim to be for peace and harmony condemning a peace agreement. It goes to show where their true heart lies, and that is in a Middle East that is still trying to get rid of Israel.

There are others who support Israel but disparage these accords because of where they came from — the Trump administration. Had this happened under Obama, many of these same individuals would be turning cartwheels in the streets and calling for a second Nobel Peace Prize for Obama instead of scoffing at the notion that Trump might deserve one.

In fact, the Obama/Biden administration does deserve credit for this. By trying to prop up and strengthen the Iranian regime, Obama demonstrated to the rest of the Middle East that they need to come together to work against the Iranian threat, and not rely on the U.S. having their back — or being on the same side.

Of course, some have also said that Trump’s unpredictability added to the determination of these Arab countries to come to an agreement with Israel, in case this new alliance has to go it alone because the U.S. under Trump does not want to get involved in any eventual conflict.

Regardless of the reasons, it is clear that the sands have completely shifted in the Middle East, and the UAE announcement, which took so many by surprise, may turn out to be one of the most significant developments in Middle East history.

If this whole exercise results in the Palestinian people getting a reality check that seeking the destruction of Israel will continue to get them nowhere, and convinces them that it is time for a new approach, so much the better.

Who knows, this could wind up being the one bright spot of 2020.

Lawrence Brook, Publisher/Editor 58 October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

community Kurtz writes about family, love, life and loss

By Lee J. Green Author Dara Kurtz believes that the written word can elicit great emotion and can connect “L’dor V’dor” — from one generation to the next.

The Winston-Salem, N.C., resident who graduated from the University of Alabama in 1993 had her second book published last month.

“I Am My Mother’s Daughter: Wisdom on Life, Loss and Love” starts each chapter with an excerpt from a letter she received, mostly from her mom and two grandmothers, from the first time she went to sleep-away camp at Blue Star when she was 9 years old until she graduated college, and goes into the relatable life lessons these strong women taught her.

“My mom passed away a few weeks after I had my first daughter,” Zoey, now 20, said Kurtz, who also has lost her grandparents. “It was devastating and I spent many years pretending everything was okay. Though I knew where the bag of letters was, I didn’t have the courage to open it and reread the letters.

“Then one day not too long ago because of an unexpected occurrence, I finally opened the bag. I thought the letters would bring too much grief and pain, but they brought me unanticipated peace, love and a renewed connection to them. I really felt like I was having a conversation with them. I wanted to pass this on to my daughters.”

Kurtz said the bag not only contained letters, but as also artwork, heirlooms and Shabbat recipes. “I wanted to write something personal but I also wanted to share life lessons. I hope that through the book, readers can think about their own families and traditions. It’s a memoir and a self-help book all in one,” she said.

“There is so much relevance and timelessness in letters,” added Kurtz.

“That gets lost in this world of emails, texts, tweets and social media.”

The author grew up in Richmond, Va., and met her husband, Jon, while at Alabama. They would move to Winston-Salem, where he is from, so he could start his law practice.

Dara worked for 20 years as a financial advisor. Then just over six years ago, she went to the doctor to get a lump on her right breast checked out.

The biopsy results confirmed the diagnosis of breast cancer.

Thankfully the cancer was detected early and was aggressively treated.

“Going through all of that changed me. I found myself questioning what I was doing with my life and my time,” said Kurtz. “It also brought memories back from when my mom was sick,” also with cancer.

Kurtz quit her job at a large bank to start Crazy Perfect Life — her website, blog and podcast.

She also wrote her first book, “Crush Cancer: A Personal Enlightenment From a Cancer Survivor.”

“I wanted to provide insight and inspiration for patients, survivors and loved ones who have been affected by this scary, unpredictable disease,” said Kurtz. “Like with ‘I am My Mother’s Daughter,’ the book helped me heal and I hope it has helped others.”

The books are available from Amazon and through www.crazyperfectlife.com. Kurtz said she is also happy to do Zoom session talks with Jewish community groups throughout the region.

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Sexton’s Seafood

White Flaky Fish

3164 Heighs Village Birmingham 205.967.3437

Ingredients: 12-16 oz. white flaky fish (2 portions) Blended cooking oil for cooking (canola or vegetable blended with olive oil) 1 shallot, thinly sliced Zest from 1 lemon Juice from ½ lemon 2 Tbs capers One half cup dry white wine 1 tbs minced parsley Salt and pepper for seasoning fish and to taste for sauce Directions: Season fish on both sides. Begin heating a searing pan to medium high heat. Gently add fish to pan to begin searing.

Sear to a rich golden brown and flip. Reduce heat to medium and cook through but moist. Remove the fish from the pan.

Add shallots to the same pan and cook until translucent. Put in the wine, lemon juice and zest. Cook until slightly thickened.

Remove from heat and add capers, parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce on top of fish and serve immediately.

Sexton’s Seafood

By Lee J. Green Everything has gone swimmingly for Sexton’s Seafood, which has built a reputation on providing a wide variety of the freshest seafood for more than 34 years.

“We’ve had one of our best years ever,” said Sexton’s Seafood owner Roger Schroeder, who co-owns the Cahaba Heights seafood market with his wife, Paula. “I’ve noticed a significant increase in people cooking at home (due in part to Covid-19) and we’ve benefitted from that. Plus, customers know they can count on us to have a selection of approximately 20 different kinds of fish on a daily basis. Our bottom line is freshness and quality.”

Sexton’s opened in Homewood in 1986 before moving to its current location in 1999. “It’s gratifying for us to see multiple generations of families coming in to the shop,” he said.

Schroeder said in the fall, fish such as flounder and halibut are very popular. Sexton’s usually offers three or four different varieties of wild salmon and they carry some rarer fish including scamp, trigger and tile.

“When the water temperature drops, we see the more pristine fish,” he said. In the winter, they usually get in more varieties of tuna and swordfish.

Sexton’s also sells seasonings, sauces, olive oils and breading. “We’re talk to our customers like they are our own family and we’re having dinner with them,” said Schroeder. “We’ll share recipes with them. It’s something we enjoy doing every day.”

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community >> Rear Pew Mirror

continued from page 46

Adoniyah. That is, until Batsheva and Nathan persuaded David to name his younger son Solomon instead. This smooth transition featured Solomon replacing most of the government with his friends, as he prepared to satisfy his edifice complex with the construction of the fatefully named First Temple and various other projects across the land.

After Solomon’s own serving of the Biblically popular number 40, his son Rehoboam became king. Of the southern kingdom. Ten northern tribes rejected him, named Jeroboam their king, and the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah were never united again. Each had its lineage of kings (and even one ruling queen), with numerous leadership transitions that would dominate the nightly news even though there were no televisions yet.

So, as the Bible clearly teaches, why can’t we all just get along?

Doug Brook approves of this column. To read past columns, visit http:// brookwrite.com/. For exclusive online content, follow facebook.com/rearpewmirror

PJ Library has learning “In the Bag”

For families with young children in Birmingham’s Jewish community, learning is “in the bag” this year. PJ Library, the Birmingham Jewish Federation and the Birmingham Jewish Foundation are delivering free monthly educational events with goodie bags and home-based activities, tied around a Zoom class. Each month, there will be an announcement of when bags are ready to be picked up at the Federation office, and when the Zoom sessions will take place.

The first session was held on Sept. 30, with Miriam Friedman presenting the first in a series of Conscious Parenting sessions, “Would You Like Some Whine With That?”, for parents of children from newborn to age 2.

A Sukkot program followed on Oct. 4.

The November program will be “Mitzvah: It’s In The Bag,” where bags can be picked up to be filled with items for the Collat Jewish Family Services food closet.

December’s “In The Bag” will be Chanukah, with items to create cards for family, friends and seniors in the community. January’s Tu B’Shevat bag will have a planting kit and a Zoom yoga session.

The February program will continue the Conscious Parenting series, with Friedman leading a session for parents of children ages 3 to 5. As with the first session in the series, the bag will include wine.

March’s Passover bag includes ingredients to make Passover granola, and the April bag for Israel Independence Day will have Israeli snacks, with the Zoom session devoted to Israeli dancing.

The Conscious Parenting series will conclude in May with parents of ages 6 to 8.

To sign up for the series, contact the Birmingham Jewish Federation.

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Eagles Wings to honor Israel in Huntsville Alabama Celebrates Israel 2020 will be held in person at The Rock Family Worship Center in Huntsville on Oct. 25 at 6 p.m.

The event brings Christians together for an evening of solidarity with the Jewish community, celebrating Israel. Members of the Jewish community will be in attendance.

Izzy Ezagui, who received one of Israel’s highest military honors from former President Shimon Peres, will be guest speaker. A decorated squad commander, Ezagui lost an arm in combat but refused to let that stop him, and he returned to the battlefield.

Also speaking will be Robert Stearns, founder of Eagles’ Wings, and Rusty Nelson, pastor of The Rock. Eagles Wings organizes the worldwide Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem.

There is no charge to attend. An offering will be taken to support groups feeding the hungry in Israel.

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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The Bible provides many timeless lessons. They’re timeless because they can apply to any time throughout history — past, present, future, or pluperfect — just as much as they can feel like time stops when learning about them.

These lessons are well known to everyone who’s read the Bible; which is to say, almost nobody. People who don’t believe in the Bible can’t be expected to read thousands of pages that they don’t believe in. People who do believe in the Bible, at an alarming rate, defend and proselytize based on it in manners that clearly demonstrate they haven’t read it, either.

If one did a study, one might find that The Best-Selling Book Of All Time (tm) might also be The Least Read Best-Seller Of All Time (tm).

Perhaps the best one can hope for is to emulate the tribal chief in the Hollywood classic “The Frisco Kid” who held up a Torah scroll and proclaimed to his tribe, “I have read this book!” and then to Gene Wilder’s rabbinic protagonist said, “I didn’t understand one word.”

Nonetheless, the blessed lessons are there. In this month’s exciting episode, the Bible demonstrates the universal necessity for peaceful transitions of leadership. For the sake of avoiding an argument, a peaceful transition is one where, rather than crudely telling one’s successor where they can go, they amenably provide directions for how to get there along with instructions for cleaning the breakroom espresso machine.

The (spoiler alert!) Torah-ending leadership transition from Moses to Joshua is heralded, by at least several links found via Google, as one of the greatest examples of a positive, peaceful leadership transition ever recorded. While those recordings are still being sought by archaeologists, it is known that this handoff was planned for a long time, was the clear will of the electorate (of one, the Big G), and that it was ultimately unprotested despite it rendering the incumbent unable to enter the Promised Land — perhaps the ultimate thing for which to protest at the time.

Even when the leaders involved are the antithesis of Moses or Joshua, the people need an unquestioned, unadulterated handoff no matter how questionable or adulterous either indiWhat happens vidual might be. Societies have collapsed, empires have fallen, and sitcoms have when transfer been cancelled over less.

For many generations after the Torah of power goes ended, the Jewish people were led by prophets. Well, really by the Big G, but awry? The the prophets were divine consiglieres.

Eventually, the people wanted a king.

Bible says.

Since Larry King wasn’t quite old enough yet, the prophet Samuel named Saul the first king of Israel.

Given the eventual rabbinic tradition of three opinions for every two rabbis, it’s not surprising that some weren’t happy that Saul was anointed.

However, right after taking the throne, Saul banned retribution against anyone who had contested his ascension.

The transition from Saul to David was more piecemeal. Saul was killed in battle, along with three of his sons. His remaining son, Ishboshet, was named Saul’s successor, but the tribe of Judah seceded by naming Saul’s former son-in-law David to be king.

Ishboshet’s northern kingdom lasted about two years until David’s southern kingdom prevailed. David reunited the kingdoms and returned to the regularly scheduled history they actually teach in religious school.

After 40 years and 40 nights, David’s reign was reined in. The third king of the united kingdom of Israel was to be David’s famous son… continued on previous page

October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life

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October 2020 • Southern Jewish Life