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INSIDE
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Southeastern Virginia | Vol. 53 No. 7 | 30 Kislev 5775 | December 22, 2014
Simon Family JCC’s
7 Ira Forman on anti-Semitism Thursday, Jan. 8 Presented by Alma* & Howard Laderberg *of blessed memory
January 17 – 25, 2015 10 Mark Dubowitz in Tidewater
14 —page 12
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Jewish Tidewater 2014 a recap of the year
Education Matters
supplement to Jewish News, December 22, 2014
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Upfront
2014: An active year
P
rimarily because of all of the activity of Tidewater’s Jewish community, 2014 has been particularly eventful for Jewish News. (In fact, speaking of busy, check out a wrap-up of the year on page 14.) As we near the close of the calendar year, I’d like to mention four areas of special note to the paper. First, we’re still publishing and growing. We all know what’s happening with newspapers around the country, not to mention in our own hometown. Our advertisers, readers, contributors and account executives keep these pages filled. Thank you all! Second, we produced our first magazine in nearly 10 years, a commemorative issue marking the Tidewater Jewish community’s 75th year of organization. We hope it will stand with previous publications as a record of the community’s history and vibrancy. Third, our digital archives are almost complete. Thanks are due to Hal Sacks who pushed for the project, and along with Tidewater Jewish Foundation, managed to raise the funds to make it happen. To access the archives, go to www.jewishnewsva.org. And, finally, speaking of www.jewishnewsva.org, reports indicate that more and more people are using our website. In fact, the day prior to going to press with this issue, we received this message through the site: Hi, I just moved here from New York and found your wonderful paper. I was wondering if you know of any good Chinese or other Asian restaurants in Norfolk that will be open on Christmas Day. Thank you! Ben It seems our work is never done. The Jewish News staff offers you best wishes for a bright end to your Chanukah celebration and a happy and peaceful entry into 2015!
Published 22 times a year by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
Remember UJFT in end of year giving
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A
s 2014 draws to a close, we look back over the past 12 months and can positively say that the Tidewater Jewish community is filled with caring, committed and inspirational individuals who truly exemplify the strength of our people and act together to demonstrate the power of a community. Through support and attendance at events such as the community-wide learning weekend in March, Tidewater Together, participation in September’s first annual Mitzvah Day VA, and by responding to crises in 2014 in the United States, Ukraine, and Israel, it is evident: this community yearns to thrive, to nurture and to help others. You feed, clothe, comfort and rescue people throughout Tidewater, in Israel and in Jewish communities worldwide with your donations and pledges to the UJFT’s Annual Campaign. Unfortunately, the need for your help never goes away, and as we saw last summer during the Israel-Gaza War, we can’t always anticipate when or where, it will be needed. With your gifts—of financial support, of time and of resources—the UJFT will continue to provide more help and offer more programs to enrich our community and others’, in 2015. Before we head into 2015, as you think about your year-end, tax-deductible donations, please consider making a gift to the UJFT. Please give generously—you may be surprised at just how much you get in return. Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2015,
Terri Denison, Editor Germaine Clair, Art Director Hal Sacks, Book Review Editor Sandy Goldberg, Account Executive Mark Hecht, Account Executive Marilyn Cerase, Subscription Manager Reba Karp, Editor Emeritus Sherri Wisoff, Proofreader United Jewish Federation of Tidewater Miles Leon, President Stephanie Calliott, Secretary Harry Graber, Executive Vice-President The appearance of advertising in the Jewish News does not constitute a kashrut, political, product or service endorsement. The articles and letters appearing herein are not necessarily the opinion of this newspaper. © 2014 Jewish News. All rights reserved. Subscription: $18 year For subscription or change of address, call 757-965-6128 or JewishNewsVA email mcerase@ujft.org.
Upcoming Deadlines for Editorial and Advertising January 12, 2015 Super Sunday December 26 January 26 Mazel Tov January 9 February 9 Winter Options January 23 February 23 Retirement February 6 March 9 Camp February 20 March 23 Passover March 6 April 6 Home March 20
Miles Leon Harry Graber President Executive Vice-President United Jewish Federation United Jewish Federation of Tidewater of Tidewater
Terri Denison Editor
contents Upfront. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Torah Thought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Rabbi Mandelberg on anti-Semitism. . . . . . . 6 Ira Forman to speak on anti-Semitism. . . . . 7 Chabad attack shows importance of preparedness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Lessons from Mark Dubowitz on Iran . . . . 10 Virginia Festival of Jewish Film . . . . . . . . . 12 Jewish Tidewater 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Jewish groups address campus sexual assault. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Kirk Douglas’ poetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Business & Legal Society’s briefing on Iran. . 31 Super Sunday committee has mini-mission. . 32
Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Suite 200 Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462-4370 voice 757.965.6100 • fax 757.965.6102 email news@ujft.org www.jewishVA.org
quotable Scott Kaplan joins TJF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ohef Sholom’s Tikkun Olam. . . . . . . . . . . . Arnold Lind’s Wimple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wine tasting at Beth El . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HAT’s Revolutionary lesson. . . . . . . . . . . . . A HAT Chanukah project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . YAD helps PAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Grandparents Day at HAT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . JFS helps community during holidays . . . . What’s Happening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mazel Tov. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Special Section Education Matters
33 34 34 36 37 37 38 39 39 40 43 44
candle lighting Friday, December 29/Tevet 4 Light candles at 4:36 pm
“The party that is willing to walk away from negotiations
Friday, January 2/Tevet 11 Light candles at 4:41 pm
is the party that will win
Friday, January 9/Tevet 18 Light candles at 4:47 pm
these negotiations.”
Friday, January 16/Tevet 25 Light candles at 4:54 pm —page 10
Friday, January 23/Shevet 3 Light candles at 5:02 pm Friday, January 30/Shevet 10 Light candles at 5:02 pm
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 3
briefs Alan Gross credits Jewish efforts for his release from Cuba Newly released from prison in Cuba, Alan Gross thanked his wife, his lawyer, the Jewish community, President Obama and numerous others in helping secure his freedom. Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, Dec. 17 in Washington, Gross opened his statement with a Chanukah greeting and a thank you to the president. “Chag sameach,” he said. “What a blessing to be a citizen of the United States of America. Thank you President Obama for everything you have done today.” He credited the advocacy by his wife of 44 years, Judy Gross, and his lawyer, Scott Gilbert, for getting him out of prison. He also thanked the Jewish community. “To the Washington Jewish community, Ron Halber in particular and his staff at the Jewish Community Relations Council, all of the executive directors, staff and volunteers of participating JCRCs, federations, synagogues, schools and other Jewish, Christian and Muslim organizations nationwide, God bless you and thank you,” Gross said. “It was crucial to my survival knowing that I was not forgotten. Your prayers and actions have been comforting, reassuring, and sustaining.” In a deal that American officials said was technically separate from Gross’ release, the United States and Cuba agreed to exchange the three remaining incarcerated members of the “Cuban Five,” a Florida-based spy ring, for an American spy held in Cuba for 20 years and whose identity remains a secret. It came, too, as the United States and Cuba agreed to re-establish full diplomatic ties that were severed in early 1961. Gross, a Jewish-American who had been in detention in Cuba for five years of a 15-year term for crimes against the state, originally went to the island nation to do contract work for the U.S. government and help connect Cuban Jews to the outside world. He suffered health problems during his imprisonment, and in his statement referenced his significant weight loss and the loss of some teeth. “Ultimately, the decision to arrange for and secure my release was made in the Oval Office. To President Obama and the NSC staff, thank you,” Gross said. “A judi-
cious lesson that I have learned from this experience is that freedom is not free.” Gross expressed fondness for the Cuban people, saying they were not responsible for his ordeal and that he is pained “to see them treated so unjustly as one consequence of two governments’ mutually belligerent policies.” He hailed Obama’s announcement that Havana and Washington now would resume diplomatic relations. (JTA)
Thousands of writings of Albert Einstein available online Thousands of documents including the scientific research and personal writings of Albert Einstein have been put online as a free searchable database. Five thousand documents from the first 44 years of the scientist’s life opened online Friday, Dec. 5 via Princeton University Press. The database, called the Digital Einstein Papers, is part of the Einstein Papers Project. Princeton University Press is collaborating with the California Institute of Technology and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where the Albert Einstein Archives are housed, on the project. Tens of thousands of articles and letters still remain to be sorted and scanned, the Inside Higher Education website reported. Thirteen volumes have been published of The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein, the ongoing publication of his massive written legacy comprising more than 30,000 unique documents. The volumes are presented in their original language version with English language annotation, according to the website. Links are also available to English language translations of most documents. (JTA) Eilat oil spill twice as large as initially estimated The Dec. 4 oil spill in Eilat was nearly twice as large as initially estimated. New figures released by Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry indicated that 5 million liters of crude oil spilled from a damaged Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company pipeline, the Times of Israel reported. The environmental ministry expressed concern that heavy rainfall and flooding will spread the oil pollutants to additional
4 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
areas in southern Israel and possibly into the Gulf of Eilat, whose protected coral reefs are at risk of major damage. The spill already has damaged the Evrona nature reserve in the Arava Desert. State Comptroller Yosef Shapira ordered an immediate investigation into the disaster, and the environmental ministry ordered the pipeline company to stop operating the line until it receives a new permit. Meanwhile, an Eilat resident filed a class action lawsuit for $95.5 million in the Tel Aviv District Court against the pipeline company, accusing it of environmental damage and negligence. (JTA)
Likud’s Limor Livnat says she’s done with politics Limor Livnat, Israel’s culture and sports minister, said she is quitting political life. Livnat, 64, a Likud Knesset member since 1992 and the party’s highest-ranking female member for many years, made the announcement this month. She served as education minister from 1996 to 1999, and headed the Knesset Committee on the Status of Women. She told Israel’s Channel 2 news that she wanted to move in “new directions,” the Times of Israel reported, but stressed that “the Likud remains my home.” According to Haaretz, Livnat has been marginalized within her party in recent years because of her moderate positions. She has criticized the controversial Jewish nation-state bill and was the only Likud minister not to vote for it. In a November interview with Army Radio, she criticized Likud’s move to the right. “The Likud was always a right-center party and that’s what it needs to be,” she said. “Unfortunately, there are people in the Likud who are not moderate and are pushing the party to places I don’t want to see it.” (JTA) Hallmark pulls gift wrap with design resembling swastika Hallmark Cards Inc. ordered a gift wrap with a pattern resembling a swastika to be removed from U.S. stores. The company issued an apology Dec. 9. “As soon as we were made aware of the situation, we began taking steps to remove the gift wrap from all store shelves and we will ensure the pattern is not used on any product formats going forward,” Hallmark
said. “We sincerely apologize for this oversight and for any unintended offense.” Hallmark said the silver and blue wrapping paper’s intricate design was meant to represent vessel, and that any embedded swastika design was not intended. Walgreens announced that it would remove all rolls of the wrapping paper from its shelves nationwide after a woman from the Northridge community of Los Angeles complained about the swastikas in the design. (JTA)
Kerry: U.S. committed to boosting Palestinian economy The Obama administration remains committed to growing the Palestinian economy in the absence of a peace process, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said. “The ultimate barrier to opportunity is the absence of peace,” Kerry said Monday, Dec. 8 in an address to the Middle East Commerce Center, a regional grouping of private business groups that has as an affiliate the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “There is no more obvious a victim of regional tensions than the Palestinians,” he said. “Despite the fighting this summer in Gaza and recent violence in Jerusalem, the United States remains hopeful about growing the Palestinian economy and creating more jobs for its people.” The conference, held at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce building in downtown Washington, included a session on bolstering the Palestinian economy, and Kerry said that the U.S. consul general in Jerusalem would meet at the conference with U.S. and Palestinian businessmen to discuss investment. He said the State Department had studied the prospects for growing the Palestinian economy. “We looked at infrastructure. We looked at education. We looked at housing. We looked at the communications, at energy, at agriculture,” Kerry said. “And above all, we looked at tourism, the remarkable possibilities of this unbelievable area, all of it—Jordan, Syria, Israel, the West Bank, a future Palestine, Egypt, all through the region. Imagine if that were free and open to the tourists of the world.” Delegations from Egypt, Israel, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority and Turkey were represented at the dinner. (JTA)
Torah Thought
Everything they ever told you about Chanukah was a lie
Y
ou remember the old story, right? The evil Syrian Greeks sought to destroy Judaism by outlawing the practice of the mitzvot. The valiant Maccabeean freedom fighters fought back and won a great victory, recapturing Jerusalem and rededicating the holy temple. Miraculously a single jar of oil burned for eight days, confirming God’s hand in saving the Jewish people. The true story of Chanukah is very different. In every part of their empire, the Syrian Greeks promoted religious freedom alongside Helenistic culture, because happy productive subjects generate good tax revenue. What went wrong then in Judah? We’re missing an important part of the story: this was a Jewish civil war. The Syrian Greeks promoted a universal culture that included education, philosophy and physical health. In each of their provinces, this universal culture melded with the local religious culture to produce a hybrid. This is precisely what happened in Judah. Many Jews wanted to integrate the best of secular culture with their ancient religious heritage. The civil war began when zealous Jews, who opposed any compromise with Greek culture, began a violent campaign to kill or intimidate those who suggested compromise. The Jews who favored compromise called the authorities to their aid, and thus this unusual conflict began, as the Syrian Greek forces cracked down on zealots and eventually upon traditional Jewish practices too. When we truly understand the Chanukah conflict, many of us come to a startling realization: had we lived in that era, we would probably have fought against the Maccabees, not for them.
There are two detailed historical sources that describe the Maccabean revolt. Each was written within a few decades after the war, one from the Maccabees themselves and one that was written from the diaspora. What is especially strange is that neither source mentions the miracle of the oil lasting eight days. That story is first told in the Talmud more than six centuries later. After zealotry had brought about two catastrophic defeats at the hands of Rome, the early rabbis must have felt that a change of emphasis was required. Why then the festival of lights? Is it really a coincidence that Chanukah falls in mid-December when there are so many other festivals of light—Yule, Diwali and Chawmos to name but a few—that congregate around the time of the winter solstice? I believe that the desire to light up the dark is a holy human impulse—one that transcends religious and cultural boundaries. The Talmud tells the story that Adam, the first human being, saw the days growing shorter, and was terribly afraid. He worried that his sin had resulted in the destruction of the world. After eight days of fasting and prayer, the winter solstice arrived and the days began to lengthen. In the years that followed he celebrated the eight days prior and after the solstice as a festival. Underneath this story about Adam lies a profound human fear: darkness. The Talmud sees this story as the origin of non-Jewish solstice festivals, but the connections to Chanukah cannot be ignored. This story of Chanukah is a human story that remembers the long dark nights of winter huddled together against the cold and the light of fire that kindles our hearts. So, if our Chanukah isn’t about freedom fighters and oil, what are we celebrating? Perhaps religious pluralism and recognition that we draw our values from the culture around us and from the deep-seated needs that characterize all human beings. Chanukah sameach! —Rabbi Marc A. Kraus, Temple Emanuel
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Global surges of anti-Semitism
Am Yisrael Chai, The Jewish People Lives: Why today’s anti-Semitism is not the anti-Semitism of 1938 by Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg
O
n September 21st, as the summer phase of the war with Hamas was coming to an end, respected author and The Times of Israel correspondent Yossi Klein Halevi published a column for the upcoming High Holidays entitled, “At Rosh Hashanah: Grief, fear, hope.” In it, he wrote: “I am fearful for the future of Jews around the world. In this terrible summer, many Jews rediscovered the meaning of exile, of living in acute uncertainty, in dread. I fear for the future of the great Jewry of France, a creative and diverse community of Sephardim and Ashkenazim that is now questioning its long-term viability. I fear for the future of the Jewry of Turkey, a magnificent repository of intact Jewish life in a Muslim country, now under assault by a lunatic leader who demands that “his” Jews repudiate Israel, commit an act of public apostasy, as the price for remaining citizens in good standing. I fear for the future of Jews in Venezuela and South Africa, where public figures close to the government have called for violence against Jewish fellow citizens.” Halevi’s fear in not unwarranted. For perhaps the very saddest lesson we learned this summer in Israel’s war against Hamas, is that, just like the terror tunnels deep beneath Gaza, there is still an ignorance and hatred amongst some buried below the surface of society in Western European cities like Berlin and Paris and Brussels and London; in other westernized countries like Japan and Canada and Turkey and Venezuela and South Africa; and even festering here in the United States in San Francisco, Seattle and Chicago. Like you, I never thought I would live to see virile and violent anti-Israel protests around the world, in which anti-Semitism would rear its ugly head just 70 years after Hitler was defeated. Once again, we heard “death to the Jews” or the new slogan, “Hamas, Hamas, Jews to the Gas.” Once again, we witnessed nights of broken glass
as Jewish-owned shops were destroyed. Once again, we saw the beaten, bloodied and dead bodies of Jews who dared to stand up for themselves. But this time, the Jewish people and the world did not, and do not, sit idly by. Thankfully, we also learned this summer that this is not 1938 and that governments, including ours, as well as citizens of many of these countries have said, “enough,” and made their voices heard too - that the disease of anti-Semitism, no matter how deep it is buried, no matter what guise it takes, no matter where it rears its ugly head, will not be tolerated. On Sept. 18, in the midst of Israel’s struggle, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed House Resolution 707 condemning all forms of anti-Semitism and rejecting attempts to justify anti-Jewish hatred or violent attacks as an acceptable expression of disapproval or frustration over political events in the Middle East or elsewhere. In so doing, our government unmasked these vicious protests and attacks for what they really are—nothing but thinly veiled efforts to persecute the Jewish people. Other governments and peoples, and not only Jews, have done the same, gathering as 600 of us did in Tidewater this summer, proudly standing with Israel and affirming her right to exist and obligation to defend herself. The largest pro-Israel demonstration in the world happened not in New York or Toronto, but in a city without Jews—Calcutta—where thousands of Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs
6 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
affirmed Israel’s right to self-defense. In China, social media was reportedly overwhelmingly pro-Israel. This summer, Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel, expressed one of the most powerful condemnations of the link between Jew-hatred and Israel-hatred at a rally in Berlin; among the protesters were thousands of Kurds, Syrian Christians and Africans. And just last month, German Foreign Minister FrankWalter Steinmeier warned against growing anti-Semitism in Europe and called for stronger efforts to combat discrimination against Jews. Making the remarks on Nov. 13 at the international Anti-Semitism Conference organized by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Steinmeier said: “Anti-Semitism is a stab in the heart of our society. It stands against our civilization, against everything we believe in.” We may have many enemies, but we also have many more active friends. But most of all, the greatest difference between what we are presently experiencing and 1938 is that today we have Israel. In the midst of the conflict with Gaza, when Israel was under siege and it seemed that all the world was against us, the people of Israel were cohesive, resilient and responsible; their behavior under fire was remarkable and they continue to exhibit courage and resolve in the face of a new phase of Hamas’ violent war against us in the streets of Jerusalem. Thank God also for Israel’s brilliant minds and constant ingenuity; were it
This
is not 1938
because, thank
God, there is a
Jewish state that
proves to the world,
over and again, that
we Jews are not sheep that will be led to
slaughter anytime anywhere.
Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg
not for the effectiveness of Iron Dome, and the brilliant engineers of Raphael Advanced Weapons Systems, hundreds, if not thousands, of Israelis would have been killed. And if it weren’t for the technical achievements of the IDF, who successfully eliminated Hamas’ fighting force and its terror tunnels, who knows what might have been. This is not 1938 because, thank God, there is a Jewish state that proves to the world, over and again, that we Jews are not sheep that will be led to slaughter anytime anywhere. We could not have been prouder of the way Israelis handled this horrifying summer, courageously, with fortitude and continued optimism, with the resolve of “we’ve been here before,” “this too shall pass,” “life will once again resume to normal,” “we will not only survive, but we will thrive and prosper.” This is not 1938 because today the Jewish people has a Jewish nation state, who along with our many friends throughout the world, can proudly and determinedly say: Am Yisrael Chai, the people of Israel lives. —Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg serves as president of the Board of Rabbis and Cantors of Hampton Roads. She is also senior rabbi of Ohef Sholom Temple in Norfolk.
Global surges of anti-Semitism
Ira Forman to discuss Global Anti-Semitism Thursday, Jan. 8, 2015, 7:30 pm Sandler Family Campus
T
he increases in anti-Semitic acts taking place around the world have sounded alarms in both the Jewish and secular communities. Consider that just last week, Spanish prosecutors were investigating the actions of an imam from a town near Madrid who called for the destruction of Jews; Swastikas were found spray-painted on a Tufts University building for the third time in nearly two years; and a Jewish man found a swastika drawn on his Chanukahdecorated Florida home. And these are but a few of the reports. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism for the U.S. State Department, Ira N. Forman will address the Tidewater community on the The Rising Tide of Global Anti-Semitism, A Resurgence of Evil, at the Sandler Family Campus. Presented by the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, the event is open
Hugs corners. Cuts none.
Ira Forman
to the community. RSVP to Samantha Golden at sgolden@ ujft.org or 757 965-6124.
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At French rally against anti-Semitic attack, gov’t minister vows national fight
F
rance’s interior minister vowed to make the fight against anti-Semitism a “national cause” during a rally near Paris protesting the brutal attack of a Jewish couple. Hundreds of Jews gathered Sunday, Dec. 7 in Creteil, the site of the Dec. 1 break-in at the couple’s apartment by three men. A 19-year-old woman was raped while another suspect guarded her 21-yearold boyfriend and a third withdrew money from a cash machine. The assailants told the male victim that they targeted the Jewish couple living there because they believed that Jews always have some money. “We need to make the fight against racism and anti-Semitism a national cause by getting all bodies concerned involved,” Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told
the rally. “The republic will defend you with all its force because without you, it would no longer be the republic.” Cazeneuve confirmed the “anti-Semitic nature” of the attack following the incident. Roger Cukierman, the president of France’s umbrella group for Jewish organizations, CRIF, told the rally that Jews in France feel endangered. “Some are already leaving France,” he said. “We feel that something has changed. It’s no longer just graffiti or minor incidents; these are death threats. It cannot go on like this.” From Jan. 1 to July 31, the SPCJ security service of the French Jewish community documented 527 anti-Semitic incidents compared to 276 in the same period of 2013. (JTA)
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French Jewish leaders rip theaters for scheduling Dieudonne show
he umbrella group of French Jewish communities condemned 20 theaters that plan to host the overtly anti-Semitic one-man show of comedian Dieudonne M’bala M’bala. The CRIF umbrella issued the condemnation on Tuesday, Dec. 9 in connection with the show by Dieudonne, who has been convicted multiple times for inciting hate against Jews. He intends to take his newest act, titled The Impure Beast, on the road later this month. Among other anti-Semitic references, it features dirty jokes about Ilan Halimi, a French Jew who was tortured and murdered in 2006 because he was Jewish. “CRIF deplores the many theaters that chose to offer him a podium to disseminate to an instrumentalized audience his hatred of Jews and of those who dare criticize him,” CRIF said in a statement about the six-month tour, which is due to begin on
Dec. 27 at the Zenith Nantes Metropole, one of the largest event halls in western France. CRIF singled out for criticism the Fimalac event hall operator, which owns Zenith. Approximately one-third of Dieudonne’s 20 bookings across France are in theaters owned by Fimalac, CRIF said, and called on Culture Minister Fleur Pellerin to “remind the firms of their obligations, moral and otherwise.” Dieudonne is the inventor of the quenelle gesture, which echoes the Hitler salute and has become a preferred greeting in anti-Semitic circles across the French-speaking world, but which Dieudonne says is a gesture of discontent with the establishment. He wrote The Impure Beast after many French mayors banned his previous tour in their municipalities at the request of then-interior minister Manuel Vals, who is now France’s prime minister. (JTA)
Spanish university takes down exhibit misquoting Ariel Sharon
A
public university in Spain dismantled an exhibition that attributed false quotes about killing Palestinian children to Ariel Sharon. Following complaints from Spain’s Jewish community, the exposition in the economics department of the Autonomous University of Madrid was dismantled. The Federation of Jewish Communities in Spain, or FCJE, complained to the university’s administration that the display was “incompatible with academic principles,” an FCJE spokesman told JTA. The exhibition featured a number of posters, including one with an undated quote attributed to Sharon, Israel’s late prime minister. “I don’t recognize such a thing called international principles,” the poster quoted Sharon as saying. “I swear I will burn every Palestinian child who could be born in this area. The Palestinian woman and child are much more dangerous than the man.
8 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Because the existence of a Palestinian child ensures future generations while the man causes more limited damage.” The FCJE spokesman told JTA that it was particularly disturbing that “this exposition of falsehoods under a pedagogic pretense” was being held with taxpayers’ money. The posters carried the logo of the nongovernmental organization Solidarity for Development and Peace, or Sodepaz, which in recent years has received frequent funding that comes from the Spanish Foreign Ministry. Another poster at the exhibition showed a map of Israel emblazoned with the words “Israel = aggression” and a swastika connecting four red arrows pointing from Israel’s territory outward, ostensibly to suggest expansionism. The university did not immediately reply to questions about faculty and administration involvement in the exposition. (JTA)
Global surges of anti-Semitism To security officials, Chabad attack underscores importance of preparedness by Ron Kampeas
WASHINGTON (JTA)—The stabbing of a rabbinical student at Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters in New York underscores three things that Jewish security officials have been urging in recent years: Be alert for copycats, cooperate with law enforcement and don’t stay away from shul. American Jewish community officials have been on the lookout for an attack on a synagogue ever since terrorists killed four worshippers and a policeman in Jerusalem last month, says Paul Goldenberg, the director of Secure Communities Network, which coordinates security for Jewish institutions. It’s not yet known if the Jerusalem killings inspired the suspected assailant in the Brooklyn attack in which a man entered the Chabad synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway in the Crown Heights section and stabbed Levi Rosenblat, 22. In an encounter with police that was captured on video, officers shot and killed the suspect, identified as Calvin Peters, after he refused their order to drop his knife. At press time, Rosenblat was upgraded from critical to serious but stable condition, though confused about why he was in the hospital. His mother arrived in New York on Dec. 10 to visit her son—the first time she has set foot in the United States in 25 years. Goldenberg urged communities to take several steps to address threats to Jewish facilities: Be prepared For several years, SCN has aimed to harden potential Jewish targets by running security seminars throughout the country, including attack simulations that test communal preparedness. At the seminars, Jewish community leaders meet with state and federal law enforcement officials and undergo training sessions that include instruction on how to secure a facility,
evacuate a building and identify suspicious activity. Such preparedness measures are credited with minimizing further carnage from an April attack on a Jewish community center in suburban Kansas City, Kan. In that incident, the assailant was discouraged from entering the center because of a locked back door and a front entrance staffed by a guard. Instead he opened fire in the parking lot and at a nearby Jewish home for the elderly, killing three people. Name a police liaison Goldenberg urges communities to name a liaison to the local police force, as is the case in New York, where cooperation between the NYPD and local Jewish groups is close. Deena Saleenfreund, the New Jersey director with Community Security Service, which sends unarmed security volunteers to synagogues in the metropolitan New York area, says alerting police to the first sign of suspicious activity is critical. “The members of a facility know their facility really well, so they have a knowledge that others don’t have and are able to notice things before they happen,” she says. News reports say a Chabad security guard had turned Peters away earlier in the day. In optimal circumstances, Saleenfreund says, the earlier incident with Peters would have been reported to the police. Get back to normal Goldenberg says attackers consider themselves successful when they lead communities to alter their routines, so returning to normal as quickly as possible after an attack is an important component of preparedness. He urges American Jews to resume their normal business this week—but with heightened awareness. “We want folks to be vigilant in the days ahead,” Goldenberg says.
The Rising Tide of Global Anti-Semitism A Resurgence of Evil
Ira Forman
Ira Forman
Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, U.S. State Department
Thursday, January 8, 2015, 7:30 pm Fleder Multi-Purpose Room Sandler Family Campus RSVP by December 31 to Samantha Golden at Sgolden@UJFT.org or 757-965-6124 Sponsored by The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
Lee’s will said a lot about him. What does your will say about you? Virginia Beach attorney H. Lee Kanter loved the arts and always leaped to his feet to shout “bravo” after cultural performances. Before he died in 2001, Lee arranged for a bequest to the Hampton Roads Community Foundation to provide grants for performing arts in Hampton Roads. anter grants have helped Virginia Arts Festival, Kanter Todd Rosenlieb Dance and the Virginia Symphony. Thanks to Lee’s generosity he will forever bring great performances to his home region. Connect your passion to the futuree by ordering a free bequest guide. Learn how easy it is to leave a gift for charity. Call 757-622-7951 or visit leaveabequest.org.
•
www.leaveabequest.org. (757) 622-7951
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 9
Kanter Ad 2014 – Jewish News: 4.875” x 5.375”
Terror from Tehran: Iran as an international threat by Arthur Rosenfeld
O
n the evening of Wednesday, Dec. 3, the Community Relations Council and community partners presented the second of its Israel Today lecture series to a packed audience on the Sandler Family Campus. While additional chairs had to be set up just before the program began, it’s a shame that the entire community couldn’t have heard this very important and very disturbing message
about Iran from Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Dubowitz leads projects on Iran, sanctions and nonproliferation for this nonpartisan policy institute. He is a recognized expert on sanctions and has testified before Congress and advised the U.S. administration, Congress and numerous foreign governments on Iran and sanctions issues Among others, he has written for The
Mark Dubowitz at the Sandler Family Campus.
Israel Today audience thanks Dubowitz for his comments and asks further questions.
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New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and Forbes, and appeared on the CBS Evening News, CNN, Fox News, NPR, PBS and the BBC. His timely speech was filled with facts about the complicated negotiations with Iran Mark Dubowitz on CBN News with George Thomas. and he terrified his audience with his clear presentation. He expressed his opinion that Iran’s nucle- that will win these negotiations. Sadly, ar development represents an existential America seems unwilling to walk away threat to the continued existence of Israel because it has already declared that war and that Iran is the key supporter and anywhere in the Middle East is no longer supplier of arms to Hamas, Hezbollah an option, so talks are the only remaining and most, if not all of the terrorist orga- choice. Dubowitz noted that Iran responded nizations in the Middle East and around the world. In addition to Iran’s threat to positively to both the use of force and Israel, Dubowitz clearly stated his opinion economic sanctions in the past, but the that Iran is directly or indirectly respon- current U.S. administration seems to have sible for the death of more than 50% of taken both of these powerful forces off all American soldiers killed in Iraq and the table, which has drastically reduced its power to influence them today. Iran Afghanistan. He expressed his opinion that the entered into negotiations with the West in current negotiations with Iran are going 2003 because they saw how easily the U.S. very badly for the West because the West brought down Saddam Hussein and they very badly wants a negotiated deal, almost were afraid that George Bush would do the any deal, while Iran’s Supreme Leader same to them. Their chief negotiator at that Ali Khamenei has steadfastly refused time was Hasan Rouhani, who is now Iran’s to even discuss his long-range ballistic president. In speeches and a book that he missiles program, reduce the number of wrote about his life, Rouhani boasted that their centrifuges or allow inspection of by his intransigence and bluff, he was able any of the underground facilities run by to gain most, if not all of his negotiating his Revolutionary Guards. He has also goals while giving away almost nothing to refused to accept intrusive U.N. or other the other side. The economic sanctions imposed on inspections, balked at dismantling the heavy-water nuclear reactor at Arak and Iran in 2009 brought their economy almost declined to discuss their past weaponiza- to a halt and was on its way to providing tion research that was consistently denied the nuclear reversals desired by the West by Iran until its existence was finally dis- when Iran agreed to another round of negotiations. Rather than maintaining the covered by the West. Dubowitz’s clearly stated position on crippling economic pressure, the adminnegotiations is that the party that is willing istration eagerly entered into negotiations to walk away from negotiations is the party and agreed to an immediate partial lifting
Chuck Berk and Mark Dubowitz.
Brad Bangel and Bob Lehman.
Mark Dubowitz and Professor Carol Pretlow, along with Norfolk State University students, at NSU.
of sanctions while talks were in progress. With both military threats and economic sanctions completely off the table, things have degenerated into a standoff while their centrifuges keep spinning and their R&D continues in an almost unrestricted and unsupervised manner. It seems to Dubowitz that President Rouhani is about to get his same positive results from 2003 again in today’s negotiations. His final point was that all of this Iranian negativity makes the nuclear negotiations more “complex,” requiring considerable American ingenuity to explain how it is possible to verify Iranian compliance. This is why the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency, General Michael Hayden, is on record that he could not, if he were still in office, be able to verify the intelligence integrity of any final agreement produced by current negotiations. The Iranians’ refusal to countenance effective verification all by itself would, if the administration were serious, collapse these talks. His simple and potentially effective solution is that America, rather than extending these fruitless negotiations, should encourage Iran to carry out its threat to walk away from these negotiation if they wish, but to clearly understand that this will immediately result in crippling sanctions being imposed on this terrorist state. This will force Iran to choose between its economy and its nuclear ambitions, and if this still doesn’t produce results, America’s longrange bombers and bunker-busting bombs are always available to use as a last resort. He ended his talk by encouraging everyone to become more aware of this critical situation and then to actively contact members of Congress and advise them of our strong concerns. To follow his suggestion, visit the web site of Dubowitz’s think tank at www.defenddemocracy.org, access one of his Washington Post articles at http://defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/senior-fellow-iran-ignores-alucrative-deal-over-its-nuclear-activities/, or read his Nov. 20 press release at http://defenddemocracy.org/media-hit/dubowitz-mark-fddexecutive-director-calls-on-congress-to-defend-sanctions/.
Mark Dubowitz and Greg Zittrain.
Mark Dubowitz at Norfolk State University.
Mark Dubowitz in Tidewater The goal of the Israel Today series is to help build relationships for Israel in the general community, as well as to educate within the Jewish community. While in Tidewater, Mark Dubowitz spoke to a variety of groups, including these listed below, which were not open to the public. • Tallwood High School Global Studies and World Languages Academy • Norfolk State University International Relations Classes • U.S. Navy • District directors for Congressman Scott Rigell and Senator Tim Kaine • Business and Legal Society of the UJFT • Virginia Wesleyan College Model UN • UJFT YAD
Mark Dubowitz at Tallwood High School.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 11
Simon Family JCC’s
Presented by Alma* & Howard Laderberg
January 17 – 25, 2015
With multiple venues and times, there’s a show for everyone
W
by Leslie Shroyer
hen the Virginia Festival of Jewish Film presented by Alma* and Howard Laderberg opens next month, it will celebrate its 22nd year, one of the longest running festivals of its kind in the nation. In an effort to bring the Festival to the audiences, six venues instead of just one, are being utilized. The main feature movies will be shown at The Sandler Center, The TCC Roper Performing Arts Center, Beach Movie Bistro and the Naro Expanded Cinema. The Simon Family JCC and Beth Sholom Village will each screen one free movie. Since some Virginia Beach residents want to see a weeknight film closer to home, the Tuesday evening show will be held at Beach Movie Bistro. The Opening Night movie and reception will again be screened at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. In Norfolk, The Naro Expanded Cinema, which was the Festivals’ original home, will show the Thursday night film. “We are happy to once again partner with the Naro,” says Mark Robbins, Festival chair. The festival has a long-standing relationship with Tidewater Community College, where it will show three films. TCC began a new Intercultural Learning program spearheaded by Dr. Jeanne B. Natali several years ago. The Virginia Festival of Jewish Film has again been selected as one of the cultural events for their students and it will be incorporated in the TCC curriculum. With school out on Monday, Jan. 19 for Martin Luther King Day, the JCC will screen a free children’s movie at 10:30 am, An American Tale. For more information, visit Virginia Festival of Jewish Film’s facebook page. Go to www.SimonFamilyJCC.org to purchase a Festival pass or buy individual tickets. *of blessed memory
Opening Night Film and Reception Above and Beyond Saturday, Jan. 17, 7:30 pm Sandler Center for the Performing Arts 201 Market Street, Virginia Beach Directed by Roberta Grossman Produced by Nancy Spielberg 2014, USA, 89 min. English & Hebrew w/ English subtitles
Above and Beyond is the first major feature-length documentary about the foreign airmen in the War of Independence. Just three years after the liberation of Nazi death camps, a group of Jewish American pilots answered a call for help. In secret and at great personal risk, they smuggled planes out of the U.S., trained behind the Iron Curtain in Czechoslovakia and flew for Israel in its War of Independence. This ragtag band of brothers turned the tide of the war and embarked on personal journeys of discovery, sacrifice and renewed Jewish pride. Director Roberta Grossman will lead a brief discussion after the film and before the reception. Opening Night film and reception sponsored by Patricia and Avraham Ashkenazi. Opening Night reception décor by Leslie Siegel. Heavy hors d’oeuvres and desserts catered by Village Caterers.
50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. & Mrs. Kraus Sunday, Jan. 18, 2 pm TCC Roper Performing Arts Center 340 Granby Street, Norfolk Directed by Steven Pressman 2013, USA, 64 min., English
Film Festival tickets and passes Full Festival Pass — $80 (includes 7 days of movies and receptions) Opening night film and reception — $35 January 17 at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach. Catered by Village Caterers.
Closing night film and reception — $18 January 25 at the TCC Roper Performing Arts Center in Norfolk. Catered by TCC Culinary Arts Students.
Individual film tickets — $10 Per film for adults (does not include opening or closing night films). All students and faculty are FREE (with valid ID) for all TCC Roper Performing Arts Center showings.
Purchase tickets and passes online at SimonFamilyJCC.org, at the JCC Customer Service Desk, or by calling the JCC at 757-321-2338
12 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
A Philadelphia couple managed to transfer unused visas to Jewish children trapped in the Third Reich in the spring of 1939. Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus embarked on a risky and unlikely mission, traveling into the heart of Nazi Germany, rescuing 50 Jewish children from Vienna and bringing them to the United States. Director Steven Pressman will lead a discussion after the film, where he will also present his same titled book. Post film discussion will be facilitated by Elena Baum, director of UJFT’s Holocaust Commission.
The Lady in Number 6 Sunday, Jan. 18, 2 pm
Cupcakes Saturday, Jan. 24, 7 pm
Beth Sholom Village 6401 Auburn Drive, Virginia Beach
TCC Roper Performing Arts Center 340 Granby Street, Norfolk
Directed by Malcolm Clarke 2014, Poland, 37 min., English
The Lady in Number 6 is the inspirational and uplifting story of 109-year-old Alice Herz Sommer, who at the time, was the world’s oldest pianist and Holocaust survivor. She shares her story on how to achieve a long and happy life, discussing the importance of music, laughter and how to have an optimistic outlook.
Zero Motivation Tuesday, Jan. 20, 7 pm Beach Movie Bistro 941 Laskin Road, Virginia Beach Directed by Talya Lavie 2014, Israel, 100 min. Hebrew w/ English subtitles
The Human Resources office at a remote desert base serves as the setting for this cast of characters who bide their time pushing paper and battling in computer games, counting down the minutes until they can return to civilian life. Amidst their boredom and clashing personalities, issues of commitment—to friendship, love and country—are handled with humor and sharp-edged wit in this zany, dark and comedic portrait of everyday life for a unit of young, female Israeli soldiers. To guarantee seating, arrive by 6:30 pm. Dinner and drinks available for purchase. Kosher meals available upon request by contacting mgoldberg@simonfamilyjcc.org.
24 Days Thursday, Jan. 22, 7 pm Naro Expanded Cinema 1507 Colley Avenue, Norfolk Directed by Alexandre Arcady 2014, France, 109 min. French w/ English subtitles
24 Days is the gripping, shocking tale of modern-day anti-Semitism based on the 2006 kidnapping of Ilan Halimi, a Parisian Jew, by a suburban gang who, believing all Jews are rich, demanded a huge ransom. This taut French drama follows the police and the frightened Halimi family for 24 days on the track of the kidnappers. Discussion after the film with area rabbis.
Directed by Eytan Fox 2013, Israel, 92 min., Hebrew w/ English subtitles
When a group of best friends in Tel Aviv gather to watch UniverSong, they are less than impressed by the official Israeli entry. Believing they can do better, they spontaneously create and record their own song on a mobile phone. Little do they know their performance is seen by the UniverSong judges and soon they are reluctantly thrown into the spotlight as Israel’s next official entry. With a soundtrack provided by Babydaddy from Scissor Sisters, this hilarious comedy is a refreshing ode to music and friendship. Cupcakes donated by Carolina Cupcakery.
Closing Night Film and Reception The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz Sunday, Jan. 25, 5:30 pm TCC Roper Performing Arts Center 340 Granby Street, Norfolk Directed by Ted Kotcheff 1974, USA, 120 min., English The younger son of a working-class Jewish family in Montreal, Duddy Kravitz yearns to make a name for himself. This film chronicles his short and dubious rise to power, as well as his changing relationships with family and friends. Along the way, the film explores the themes of anti-Semitism and the responsibilities, which come with adulthood. An Oscar-nominated film, this is the annual selection by esteemed local critic Mal Vincent, who will lead a lively discussion before the film. Be sure to come at 5:30 pm to enjoy the reception, which precedes the film, catered by TCC Culinary Arts students.
Free Movie Extra! An American Tale Monday, Jan. 19, 10:30 am Simon Family JCC School is out, so come see this film with the kids! This critically acclaimed full-length animated triumph chronicles the immigrant experience with the adventures of a courageous little mouse named Fievel Mousekewitz.
Get more information and the trailer for each film at www.SimonFamilyJCC.org under the Cultural Arts tab. Simon Family JCC is a constituent agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 13
Jewish Tidewater 2014
A look back at some of the notable activities of Tidewater’s Jewish community in 2014 Saturday, January 18
The Simon Family JCC’s Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, presented by Howard and Alma* Laderberg, held its Opening Night at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. More than 350 people attended to see The Zigzag Kid. The festival ran through Jan. 26.
Sunday, January 19 More than 175 people filled Broudy Hall at Temple Israel for the annual Seaboard Region Federation of Jewish Men’s Club’s Blue Yarmulke Man of the Year breakfast. Local honorees were Ron Gladstone of Congregation Beth El; Stan Glasofer of Rodef Sholom Temple in Hampton and Andrew Rabiner of Temple Israel.
was cancelled due to a snowstorm that dumped about 10 inches of snow in some area neighborhoods on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. Also cancelled were Troy’s visits to area high schools, universities, television stations and community meetings. Quick thinking on the part of Robin Mancoll, CRC director, led to a hastily organized telephone call-in session with Troy at the same the time he would have appeared in the Forum.
February 5 Tidewater’s Community Relations Council’s delegation to the statewide Jewish Advocacy Day in Richmond, also known as Date With the State, addressed issues such as prayer in schools, Jewish Family Service funding, Medicaid Expansion, Israeli business opportunities and more. Approximately 180 people from across Virginia participated.
Thursday, February 20
Sunday, January 26 An outpouring of community support made the 2014 Super Sunday phone-a-thon one of the most successful in recent years. The annual event raised more than $100,000 from more than 320 donors, many of whom were making gifts to the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater for the first time.
Tuesday, January 28 Virginia Beach was the fourth stop on Gil Troy’s six city speaking tour. The McGill University History professor, prolific author and Zionist activist arrived for an appearance the next evening in UJFT’s Community Relations Council’s Israel Today Forum. The Forum
Tidewater was included in the StandWithUs Israeli Soldiers’ Stories tour. Forty teens from BBYO, NFTY, USY and the Jewish Teen Leadership program of the Simon Family JCC and their parents came out to hear the soldiers at Bite restaurant in Norfolk in an event organized by the Community Relations Council of the UJFT.
Friday, February 21 Ohef Sholom Temple held its annual Men’s Club Shabbat with Men’s Club members leading the service. Jefferson C. Harrison, chief curator of the Chrysler Museum of Art, spoke on “Nazi-Era Provenance Research and the Chrysler Collection.”
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Saturday, February 22
Thursday, March 13
Temple Israel celebrated Education Shabbat and the leadership of Kathryn Morton, who retired in the summer, after 16 years as director of the synagogue’s Sunday school.
The 6th Annual Latke-Hamantaschen Debate took place at the Simon Family JCC. The All-Tidewater Invitational Debate is held to raise hunger awareness. Admission is free, but all who attend are urged to bring donations of canned or dried goods or to make a contribution to Jewish Family Service or the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia.
Tuesday, February 25 In anticipation of the Virginia Arts Festival performance by the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra on April 2 in Virginia Beach, UJFT’s Community Relations Council presented a screening of Orchestra of Exiles with UJFT’s Holocaust Commission and the Simon Family JCC as partners. The film reveals the fascinating story of the Philharmonic’s beginning, chronicling the story of celebrated Polish violinist Bronislaw Huberman’s efforts to save the lives of Jewish musicians and European music from extermination by the Nazis during World War II.
Monday, March 3
Friday, March 20– Sunday, March 23 Approximately 1,000 people attended Tidewater Together, a collaborative weekend presented by UJFT, SynagogueFederation partnership of the Tidewater Jewish Community, and the Milton “Mickey” Kramer Scholar-in-Residence Fund. Rabbi Brad Artson was the scholar-in-residence.
Saturday, March 22
Congregation Beth El’s trip to Israel arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport. Twenty travellers, mostly Beth El members, were on the week-long adventure.
Two of Tidewater’s Masorti/Conservative congregations, Kehillat Bet Hamidrash (KBH) of Kempsville and Temple Israel of Norfolk, celebrated the 13th year of their partnership with the feeling of a Bar Mitzvah.
Saturday, March 8
Thursday, March 27
Larry Ferber, the former cultural arts director at the Simon Family JCC, entertained as the second of the Performing Arts at the J Series. His “COULD THEY TALK!” lecture included video clips and anecdotes that gave an inside look at the TV industry. A three-time Emmy nominee, Ferber is a 30-year television veteran who has produced, executive produced, and consulted in all forms of broadcast media, with such personalities as Regis Philbin, Dinah Shore, Mike Douglas, Sally Jessy Raphael, and Joan Rivers.
The Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities presented the 50th Annual Humanitarian Awards at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott. Michael Glasser was one of the award recipients. Jerry Kantor was the event’s chair.
Monday, March 10 BINA High School held its first Grandparents & Grandfriends Day.
Wednesday, April 2
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra performed at the Sandler Center. The concert was presented by the Simon Family JCC, in partnership with Virginia Arts Festival, as part of
the JCC’s Celebrate Israel series presented by Charles Barker Automotive.
Saturday, April 12
Thursday, April 24 Tidewater Jewish Foundation celebrated its 30th anniversary, acknowledged the members of the Simon Family Legacy Society and honored Philip Rovner on his retirement from the Foundation after 18 years of service. Approximately 150 people attended the festive evening, which included a welcome by the Foundation’s chair, Ron Kramer, a brief history of the Foundation by Hal Sacks, TJF’s executive director emeritus, and remarks by Kim Simon Fink on behalf of the Simon family, as well as remarks by Philip Rovner.
Sunday, April 27
oceanfront for JFS’s 10th Annual Run, Roll or Stroll. The event included an 8K run, 5K run/ walk and 1-mile run/walk. Ohef Sholom Temple’s Men’s Club presented the annual Henry B. Kaufmann Award to Lawrence L. Steingold. The award is given to a congregant for extraordinary service to the temple and the community at large. The third annual Tikkun Tidewater took place on the Sandler Family Campus.
Tuesday, May 13 More than 100 people gathered for Jewish Education Night. Presented by the Simon Family Jewish Community Center, it is sponsored by the Jewish Education Council of the UJFT, and underwritten by the Lee A. and Helen G. Gifford Jewish Education Council Fund of the Tidewater Jewish Foundation. Zohar Ben Moshe, Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s Judaic studies teacher, was named Jewish Educator of the Year.
Sunday, May 18
The annual Yom THE W hite Rose PROJEC PROJECT T Hashoah pro T gram, sponsored H C by UJFT’s Holocaust Yom H ashoah Commission took place at Ohef Sholom Temple. Featured speaker Werner Reich, a survivor of Gestapo beatings, prisons, and four concentration camps including Auschwitz, let the audience know right away that he could still laugh. HE
OLOCAUS T
OMMISSION
Teaching Tolerance, Justice, & Moral Courage
The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater
On the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community
HANS AND SOPHIE SCHOLL, young and idealistic German students, were appalled by what was happening around them in 1943. They formed a resistance group called “The White Rose,” and heroically protested the policies and actions of the Nazi regime. Hans, his sister Sophie, and many of the students and teachers who made up the group were eventually arrested and executed. The Tidewater Jewish Community honors the memory of Hans and Sophie Scholl with our White Rose Project. Using your donation to the White Rose, we provide educational material on the Holocaust each year to Tidewater schools and institutions. In addition, your donations to our Red Rose Project enable us to continue other important initiatives sponsored by the
Holocaust Commission. Recent White Rose Project gifts have included educational materials such as the Paper Clips video and book, the book, Beyond Courage, a compilation of stories of Jewish resistance, Tell Them We Remember, from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and A Lost Youth and My Name is Anne Too, memoirs written by our own former Speakers’ Bureau survivors whom we’ve recently lost, David Katz and Anne Friedman. Red Rose Project programs include Yom Hashoah, What We Carry, the Elie Wiesel Writing and Visual Arts Competitions, The Goldman and Kroskin Educator Awards, presentations of Through the Eyes of a Friend, and the Biennial Educators’ Conference for Hampton Roads Educators.
Sunday, May 4 Jewish Family Service wrapped up its 10th Annual Week of Healthy Living with more than 450 runners and walkers who gathered at 24th Street Park at the Virginia Beach
Monday, May 19
An afternoon filled with praise, warmth, dance, song, speeches, proclamations and a packed house, commemorated the 40th anniversary of Rabbi Israel Zoberman’s ordination at Congregation Beth Chaverim.
The Simon Family JCC held its 61st Annual Meeting, recognizing Terri Sarfan for her successful two-year term as president, welcoming Marty Einhorn as incoming president, and bestowing awards on several groups and lay leaders.
Monday, May 26 Continuing Sunny Werth’s work, the local JWV held a fundraising program. For a $25 donation, the Norfolk JWV Post 158 maintains a United States Flag at the grave of a Jewish Veteran in Tidewater. The Post ensures every Memorial Day that the flag is in good repair and still attached.
Tuesday, May 27 Guest speakers Ken Young, Norfolk Tides owner, and Jeff Cogen, CEO of the National Hockey League’s Nashville Predators, spoke to members of UJFT’s Business & Legal Society event held at Harbor Park. A dinner at Hits at the Park with a lively discussion preceded the game where Jacob Levy threw out the ceremonial first pitch of the game.
June A publication co mm e m o rating Tidewater’s Jewish community’s 75 organized years included a time-line, historical articles, reflections from children about the leadership of their parents, lists, lots of photographs and more.
75
5000 Corporate Woods Drive Suite 200 Virginia Beach, VA 23462-4370 (757)965-6100 Fax(757)965-6102 www.holocaustcommission.org
Temple Sinai of Newport News approved hiring Severine Sokol as its new rabbi. Sokol had been rabbi and cantorial soloist at Congregation B’nai Chaim in Morrison, Col., a Denver suburb, since 2011.
worked for 10 heads of school, five general studies directors, and 17 board presidents. Throughout this period, I also gave birth to my son Adam, married off my older son Jason and became a savta to two gorgeous baby girls. I am counting my blessings, including the fact that Ron and I both still have our parents, who range in age from 84 to 94.”
Commemorative Issue
Bagels and Bluegrass took place at the Jewish Museum and Cultural Center. Performers included Simcha Klezmorim, the popular local Klezmer ensemble led by Warren Weiss and the legendary Bob Zentz and Jeanne McDougall, who performed traditional folk and bluegrass music, entertaining listeners with unique instruments and stories.
president of Rafael USA, the company that makes the Iron Dome, was the featured speaker. The event was presented by Charles Barker Automotive, and was organized in partnership with UJFT’s Community Relations Council. In addition, Gordon Robertson, CEO of CBN, introduced a brief screening of the Christian Broadcasting Network’s Made in Israel series.
Tidewater Jewish Community 1947–2013
The Simon Family JCC’s Annual Israel Fest, presented by Charles Barker Automotive, was the biggest to date, with about 1,800 people enjoying the many activities. JCC’s Celebrate Israel series concluded with the Iron Dome program at Regent University Theatre. Gideon Weiss, vice
Sunday, June 1 Alene Kaufman was honored for her 36 years of devotion and service to Hebrew Academy of Tidewater and the Strelitz Early Childhood Center preschool. She retired that month. “Looking back,” Kaufman said, “I’ve
Monday, June 2 Hebrew Academy of Tidewater class of 2014 held its graduation ceremony with awards at the Sandler Family Campus.
Monday, June 9 Jewish Family Service held its 62nd Biennial Meeting to install the new board president and officers. Dr. Marcia Samuels, outgoing president, welcomed Lawrence Steingold, president for the 2014–2016 term.
Tuesday, June 10 Rep. Cantor (R-Va.), the only Jewish Republican in Congress, was defeated in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District’s Republican primary.
Wednesday, June 11 The 12th Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning graduation ceremony took place at the Simon Family JCC. Nine graduates received their certificates, joining 180 adults in Tidewater who have completed the first two years of the school.
Thursday, June 19 Seventeen members of the UJFT Summer mission to Israel left for an action-packed and highly emotional visit. The adventure began in Jerusalem, with a panoramic view of the city atop of the Tower of David. Mission co-chairs were Bonnie and David Brand and Jodi Klebanoff.
Thursday, July 24 In the midst of Israel’s war in Gaza, Stand Strong for Israel, a gathering planned by leaders of the Tidewater Jewish community and supported by synagogues and Jewish agencies, was held in the gym of the Simon Family JCC. More than 550 people attended.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 15
Wednesday, August 6
Tuesday, September 9
Monday, October 20
Laura Miller was a 2014 recipient of the prestigious Kipnis-Wilson/Friedland Award presented at The Jewish Federations of North America’s International Lion of Judah Conference(ILOJC) in Manhattan.
The community had the opportunity to hear the 2nd Congressional District of Virginia candidates share their views. Rep. Scott Rigell (R) and challenger Suzanne Patrick (D) met with a crowd of about 200 people.
Monday, September 15
Tuesday, October 21
A relaxing and spiritually moving Shabbat service at the oceanfront for four synagogues: Congregation Beth El, Temple Emanuel, Temple Israel and KBH took place.
Saturday, August 9 Sigma Omega Pi Sorority, Sigma chapter, held its 50th+ reunion in Norfolk. Former SOPS members came from Texas, Ohio, North Carolina, Maryland, Northern Virginia, Richmond, Williamsburg, Suffolk and Newport News.
Thursday, August 14 The 5th Annual Bringing Israel Home event attracted approximately 50 local Jewish college students at Azar’s Restaurant at Hilltop. Matt Weisbaum, managing director of Jerusalem U, was the guest speaker. Beneath the Helmet: From High School to the Home Front, a Jerusalem U film in its final stages of production at the time, was shown.
Thursday, September 4 A lecture on Religion, Ethics and Dying: Controversies and Perspective, took place on at Old Dominion University. Representing the Catholic and Jewish approaches to death and dying, Dr. Gerard Magill, a tenured professor in the center for healthcare ethics at Duquesne University in Pittsburg and Dr. Jonathan Crane, a professor of bioethics and Jewish thought at Emory University in Atlanta, spoke to a packed house.
Thursday, October 30
The 26th Annual Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Golf Tournament, more affectionately known as the Bob Josephberg Classic, took place at Bayville Golf Club.
Hunger Feast, a two-part experiential event organized and led entirely by young people, took place at the Sandler Family Campus. Nearly 200 people participated. Hannah Moss brought the event to Tidewater, where 21,972 meal bags were packed in just one hour that would feed more than 130,000 people.
Friday, August 8
(Thank you), one of the Tidewater Mitzvah Day VA projects.
Thursday, October 23
The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater inaugurated its 2015 Annual Campaign by showcasing the words and deeds of two relatively contemporary Jewish role models, Theodor Herzl and Golda Meir. Karen Jaffe, Campaign chair, spoke about the year’s theme, ‘It all starts with one.’
Hundreds of people in Tidewater were recipients of the insights and opinions of former Knesset member and Israeli advocate, Dr. Einat Wilf. She was the first presenter in the Israel Today Forum, a speaker series presented by UJFT’s Community Relations Council and corporate and community partners.
Sunday, September 21 Led by chairs Karen and Matt Fine, the 1st Annual Mitzvah Day VA included these projects: making paracord bracelets for and writing letters to U.S. and Israeli soldiers through Operation Gratitude; cleaning up Beach Garden Park with Lynnhaven River Now Project; visiting residents of Beth Sholom Village; supporting juvenile diabetes research at the JDRF Walk at the Oceanfront; and handcrafting blankets and assembling lunches for the homeless with Blankets for the Homeless.
Wednesday, October 8 Thirty-two members of UJFT’s Business & Legal Society attended a discussion with the president of the North American and Caribbean branch of the Israeli company, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services at ZIM’s local headquarters. President Lea BogatchGenossar, the first woman in ZIM’s history to hold this top executive position was an honest, witty and educational host.
Monday, November 3 Nearly 100 Tidewater women gathered at the 2015 UJFT Women’s Lion–Tikva–Chai Luncheon to honor the community’s newest major donor women and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of UJFT’s overseas partner, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. The guest speaker was Merri Ukraincik, a writer and lecturer, and a former JDC executive. Working closely with JDC archivist Linda Levi, Ukraincik’s latest project is a beautiful hardcover book, I Live. Send Help, which chronicles JDC’s first 100 years of service and tells the intertwined history of the agency and the Jewish people.
16 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Tuesday, November 11 Tidewater Jewish Foundation honored veterans at its annual Veterans Day service. Approximately 70 people attended—including a local group of Ukrainian immigrants.
Thursday, November 20
Wednesday, October 29
Tuesday, October 14 Close to 90 men filled Congregation Beth El’s sukkah for the third annual Steak and Scotch in the Sukkah.
Rabbi Joseph Telushkin was the keynote speaker for the Lee and Bernard Jaffe* Family Jewish Book Festival, presenting his latest work, Rebbe, to a group of nearly 200.
An Israel Defense Forces soldier visiting the United States visited the Sandler Family Campus to pick up paracord survival bracelets and handwritten letters that were created by volunteers for Todah Rabah
An audience of about 600 attended the premier of the new documentary, Beneath the Helmet: From High School to the Home Front at the Regent University Theatre. This event was such a success in large part due to the partnership between UJFT’s Community Relations Council, the Christian Broadcasting Network and Regent University. *of blessed memory
At 98, Kirk Douglas finds his poetic muse by Tom Tugend
LOS ANGELES (JTA)—Kirk Douglas, born Issur Danielovitch, the son of an immigrant Russian Jewish ragman, marked his 98th birthday on Dec. 9 by launching his 11th book. The legendary star of 87 movies (who can forget Spartacus?) can look back, in happiness and grief, on countless onenight stands with filmdom’s most beautiful women, a helicopter crash in which he was the only survivor, a stroke, two bar mitzvahs and the death of a son. He has written about these and many other parts of his life in previous works. But there is something special about his latest, Life Could Be Verse. “I have expressed my personal feelings and emotions more than in any other of my books,” says Douglas, sitting in his artfilled Beverly Hills home. In the slim volume of poems, photos and anecdotes, Douglas is no longer the swaggering Hollywood star and serial philanderer of the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s. His trademark dimpled chin and bright blue eyes are still there, but his blond hair is now fastened into a gray ponytail, and he walks carefully and speaks with a slur, a legacy of his stroke. What he has not lost is his sharp sense of humor, his pride as a Jew and his love for Anne, his wife of 60 years. The cover of Life Could Be Verse shows an early photo of Douglas and Anne fondly kissing and the subtitle Reflections on love, loss and what really matters. In his previous 10 books, Douglas’ prose is marked by the artlessness of a man whose casual conversation has been surreptitiously taped, and his poetry as well makes no pretensions to Shakespearean loftiness. But there is no doubt of his deep devotion when he serenades his wife on their 50th wedding anniversary in Please Stay in Love With Me. Does fifty years together Seem so long to you? The older the violin, the sweeter the music It is often said, and it’s true. To me, it seems like yesterday We met in gay Paree. Now Paris is sad, but I am glad You chose to marry me.
A lesser-known side of Douglas is expressed in For Eric, an elegy for the youngest of his four sons from two marriages, whose drug-induced death still haunts his father. I sit by your grave and weep, Silently, not to disturb your sleep. Rest in peace my beautiful son It won’t be long before we are one, While I lie down by your side. And talk, no secrets to hide. Tell me, Eric, what did I do wrong? What should I have done to make you strong? Now I sit here and cry, Waiting to be with you when I die. Neither Anne nor Douglas’ first wife, actress Diana Dills, are of Jewish descent. But Anne converted to Judaism 10 years ago, explaining, “Kirk has been married to two shiksas, it’s time he married a nice Jewish girl.” The conversion did not change the couple’s relationship except for one ritual: Anne has taken over the Shabbat candle lighting on Friday nights that Kirk handled in their first 50 years together. During an hourlong conversation, Douglas looked back on the lessons of a full and long life. On God and religion: “I grew up praying in the morning and laying tefillin. I gave up much of the formal aspect of religion…I don’t think God wants compliments. God wants you to do something with your life and to help others.” Douglas celebrated his first bar mitzvah at the Sons of Israel congregation in his hometown of Amsterdam, N.Y., and his second at 83, after the traditional biblical lifespan of 70 years, at Sinai Temple in West Los Angeles. He skipped his third bar mitzvah at 96, and plans to do the same at 109, when he would be entitled to his fourth bar mitzvah. After the interview, Douglas emailed a final thought on a more serious topic. “In the Jewish tradition, a birthday gives a person special power,” he wrote. “And if he issues a blessing, this blessing becomes true. So on my 98th birthday, I bless all people in the Land of Israel that the current conflict resolves itself, that no more people die or are hurt and that you can continue your lives in peace.”
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Highlighting campus sexual assault, Jewish groups have taken a lead by Ron Kampeas
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (JTA)—Jewish campus groups were ready for the painful national dialogue that took place in the wake of murky rape allegations at the University of Virginia. That’s because organizations like Hillel and historically Jewish Greek houses such as Alpha Epsilon Pi, Zeta Beta Tau and Sigma Delta Tau had been having the conversations for months before the explosive Rolling Stone story made national headlines—first for the brutality of the alleged gang rape detailed in the magazine and then for the subsequent evidence of flawed reporting on the part of Rolling Stone. Zeta Beta Tau last year joined Sigma Delta Tau and Jewish Women International in launching a workshop called “Safe Smart Dating.” Hillel International is a partner in the White House’s It’s On Us campaign against sexual violence, and the network of Jewish campus centers has also dedicated to sexual violence a stream of its Ask Big Questions program, which organizes lectures and salons on topics of Jewish interest. Meanwhile, Alpha Epsilon Pi features sessions on consent at its conclaves and a fraternity brother, Matthew Leibowitz, launched the Consent is So Frat movement this year at Wesleyan University in Connecticut. “The prevention of suffering is what we do as Jews, and making pathways for people to heal if they’ve been traumatized is also what we do,” says Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, the editor of the anthology The Passionate Torah: Sex and Judaism and the director of education for Hillel’s Ask Big Questions program. “We need to take care of our own in creating a world in which consent is non-negotiable.” The Rolling Stone story has begun to unravel. The magazine revealed that it had not reached out to the alleged assailants in the attack that was the article’s centerpiece, and friends of the alleged victim have since told the Washington Post that they had been misrepresented. Revelations of the article’s problems had just begun to trickle out during a JTA reporter’s recent visit to the campus, but students and Jewish officials say the broader issue of whether women were safe on campus remained a preeminent topic
of conversation among students at the school. Weeks earlier, in the wake of the article’s publication, students took part in large-scale protests in front of the fraternity where the alleged crime had taken place. Since 2011, the university has been under federal investigation for allegedly not treating adequately complaints of sexual misconduct, and the Rolling Stone article broadly addressed the complaints. Madison Orlow, 19, a first-year pre-med student, says the school’s initial reaction to the allegations did not reach far enough and led her to question its honor code. The code, first formulated in the 1840s, mandates permanent dismissal if a student lies, cheats or steals. “The honor code does not encompass all of the things that are needed,” says Orlow, volunteering at a Challah for Hunger booth on a chilly Thursday afternoon on the university’s fabled lawn, which was designed by the school’s founder, Thomas Jefferson. “It doesn’t cover sexual assault,” offers her fellow volunteer, Patricia Garvey, 20, a student of environmental science. Volunteers for the group bake and sell challahs to students just before Shabbat; the proceeds go to the needy. “There was an initial sense of ‘this needs to be dealt with,’ ” says Jake Rubin, the director of the university’s Hillel, the Brody Jewish Center, describing reactions by university administrators to the article. “It certainly is a problem at the University of Virginia, but it is not only a problem at the University of Virginia. It has moved to what do we do, how do we fix this issue— being absolutely committed to really taking a hard look at the community and trying to figure out steps forward.” The University of Virginia is not a destination university for students who want deep Jewish involvement, although in recent years the school has increased its Jewish profile. This year it added graduate courses to its Jewish studies program; three years ago a new Hillel building opened. Among the 21,000 students at UVa, there are 1,200 to 1,400 Jewish undergraduates and 400 to 600 Jewish graduate students, according to Rubin. The modern Hillel building is on University Circle, a street just off Rugby Road, the leafy winding causeway where many of the elegant Victorian fraternity
18 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
houses are situated and ground zero for what the Rolling Stone article described as an out-of-control culture of drinking, sexual aggressiveness and worse. Rubin says venues like Hillel provided a homey refuge for students dealing with what has been a traumatic semester, including the alleged kidnap and murder of a student and two suicides, in addition to the allegations described in Rolling Stone. “Frankly, students are overwhelmed,” he says. “To have a resource for them that’s comforting in a sense, just to be there for them, that’s been our first priority.” Jewish fraternities are among those taking the lead nationally in addressing sexual assault on campus. Leibowitz, a 22-year-old recent Wesleyan graduate, started Consent is so Frat this year in part because of reports of fraternity-related sexual assaults at Wesleyan during his undergraduate years. AEPi chapters at other campuses, including Rutgers, have spread the program. The initiative developed and distributes a curriculum on consent that is aimed at members of fraternities and sororities. Ruttenberg says the notion of sexual consent is rooted in Jewish texts. “It’s deeply embedded in our tradition,” she says. “In the Talmud, consent is one of the great non-negotiables in any sexual encounter. The Talmud forbids marital rape, which is astonishingly forward-thinking, considering it took until 1993 for North Carolina to ban it. The Talmud says that if a woman is raped and has an orgasm, she is still raped.” Jonathan Pierce, a past president of AEPi International, says the fraternity solicits advice on sexual consent from groups such as Jewish Women International, inviting its experts to speak at its annual conference, and from its own board of rabbis. The AEPi website links to broad restrictions mandated by the Fraternal Information and Programming Group, to which it is affiliated. According to the guidelines from the national risk management association, fraternities “will not tolerate or condone any form of sexist or sexually abusive behavior on the part of its members, whether physical, mental or emotional. This is to include any actions, activities or events, whether on chapter premises or an off-site location which are demeaning to women
or men, including but not limited to verbal harassment, sexual assault by individuals or members acting together.” Jeffrey Kerbel, the president of the University of Virginia’s AEPi chapter, says its consent education begins with pledges and is sustained throughout the brother’s university career. “This responsibility and this education are also stressed to our probationary members—first through formal trainings and then through further emphasis within the chapter,” he says. “Our aim is to emphasize these points consistently and frequently; otherwise we risk growing vulnerable to the social and cultural influences that can diminish the value of consent and the place it must have in society.” The “Safe, Smart Dating” workshop was scheduled before the Rolling Stone article for a UVa appearance in April. The two-hour presentation starts with students texting their encounters with sexual assault, firsthand or otherwise. The texts are projected on a screen, prompting discussion in smaller groups. Case studies also are included, inclding the 2010 murder of University of Virginia lacrosse player Yeardley Love by George Huguely, also a lacrosse player at the university, as well as more ambiguous outcomes, such as the acquittal of Taylor Watson, a Minnesota man who had sex with a friend who was in a drunken stupor. Jurors accepted the defense’s argument that the woman had deliberately intoxicated herself before asking to sleep at Watson’s apartment. Zeta Beta Tau and Sigma Delta Rau train campus facilitators to run the program. “It’s starting conversations that people are often uncomfortable with and unwilling to have,” says Dana Fleitman, the director of prevention for Jewish Women International. Laurence Bolotin, the national director of Zeta Beta Tau, says the program does not “reinvent the wheel” but guides students on how to use existing resources, including sexual assault responders on campuses. A focus of the program, like the programs that Hillel directs, is how to be an “active bystander,” or to intervene when witnessing what appears to be sexual assault. “It’s not a Greek issue, it’s a college issue,” Bolotin says.
Education Matters
Supplement to Jewish News, December 22, 2014
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Education | Jewish News | 19
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Walk-ins are welcome! 20 | Jewish News | Education | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org VA Jewish News_Ed Issue_2014DEC22.indd 1
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Education Matters Dear Readers, Education matters. Whether a toddler entering a two-
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of all ages. Within these pages, we highlight some of these local schools. We also have articles about trends across the country in Jewish Day School enrollment and about these schools’ teachers. Eric Fingerhut, president and CEO of Hillel International, writes about Hillel’s role on college campuses and its dedication to its support of Israel. Hillel has been in the news lately about which other Jewish groups it will partner with.
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Chesapeake Bay Academy At Chesapeake Bay Academy, all members of the community are valued as individuals and appreciated for the unique gifts they bring. Nothing is standardized, beginning with the school’s mission: The mission of Chesapeake Bay Academy is to educate students with an academic program individualized to address their learning differences, and to empower our students with the skills and confidence for success in higher education, careers and life. Individualization is key to supporting the students’ success at CBA. Each child has an Individualized Instructional Plan and curriculum based on strengths and challenges. The student’s learning style and cognitive and social skill levels are factored into the development of these plans, which are updated whenever the student’s needs change. Highly skilled teachers with empathy and understanding of their students’ needs and motivations provide just the right level of support, while maintaining high academic standards. Students are encouraged to participate in sports programs, no matter their skill level. CBA’s regulation gymnasium is ideal for basketball and volleyball, while its soccer field is full of activity during the warmer months. Every aspect of the 50,000-square-foot facility was designed with CBA’s students’ needs in mind, including special non-flickering bulbs, oversized windows, carpeted flooring and sound absorbing acoustical ceiling tile. Students and families feel comfortable and safe at Chesapeake Bay Academy.
Strelitz Early Childhood Center and Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Konikoff Center of Learning For nearly 60 years, Strelitz Early Childhood Center and Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Konikoff Center of Learning have served the educational needs of families in Tidewater. As the area’s only Jewish Community Day School, its students receive advantages from a remarkable facility and faculty and advanced technology. The strengths of traditions, outstanding dual curriculum and dedicated faculty are just part of what defines the school’s continued success. Graduates are confident, prepared and have a rich and secure Jewish identity resulting from the spirit and ethics they are infused with throughout their years there. The school’s rigorous educational programs shape the moral fiber and values of students who depend on these midot (character traits) for a lifetime. By fifth grade, graduates are well prepared to meet the challenges of the modern world, evidenced by their acceptance and seamless transitions into the best private, IB and public school academies around. They’re also accepted into the most well-respected colleges and universities in this country and abroad.
22 | Jewish News | Education | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Education Matters PJ Library, Jewish kids’ books provider, expands to Arab sector by Julie Wiener
NEW YORK ( JTA)—A Religion News Service article about the PJ Library is headlined “Free books—10 million of them —help keep Jewish kids Jewish.” Now the foundation behind the widely lauded nine-year-old program—which distributes free books to more than 130,000 Jewish children in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Australia—is also helping keep Arab Israeli kids engaged in reading. This year, the Massachusetts-based Harold Grinspoon Foundation launched Maktabat al-Fanoos, Arabic for Lantern Library, which provides Arabic children’s books to Arab Israeli children in kindergarten and pre-K. The program, funded in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Education (which is paying approximately 75 percent) and the San Diego-based Price Family Charitable Fund will give 45,000 children monthly books “based on universal values,” according to a press release issued by the Grinspoon Foundation. Matkabat al-Fanoos comes four years after the Grinspoon Foundation launched Sifriyat Pijama, PJ Library’s “sister program” distributing Hebrew-language books for Israeli Jews. What are two American Jewish foundations—Price was established by Sol Price, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants —doing distributing Arabic books? It’s in the interest of the State of Israel, says Galina Vromen, director of the Grinspoon Foundation’s Israel operations. “In many cases the Arab population is the poorest and the least likely to have books at home,” she says. “It behooves the Jewish state to promote the well-being of all its citizens.” Branching out into the Arab community “seemed the logical and right thing to do, in the sense that the Arab population needs books, too. They also need to have parents and children reading together, and we want to instill a love of books in them as well.” Price also funds Arab early childhood programs in Israel. And other American
Jewish foundations, as well as federations, have donated money for social service programs in the Israeli Arab sector. While the Arabic books, unlike the Hebrew and English ones the foundation distributes, won’t have Jewish content, Vromen says there “isn’t such a stretch between Jewish values and universal values: whether it’s respecting parents, inviting strangers into your home or visiting the sick, these are just as relevant for Arab kids.” “We very much wanted to keep the part of the program that really stimulates parents to talk to their kids about things that matter,” she adds. “It’s about creating a generation that loves to read and knows how to behave.” One challenge, however, is the dearth of Arabic children’s books available to the program, a combination of the turmoil in the Arab world limiting its children’s literary scene and “there not being relations [between Israel and] most of the Arab world that would allow for free trade of books,” Vromen explains. A number of Arab publishers have refused to sell reprint rights to the Israeli publishers that create special imprints of the books, with parents’ guides, for the program. “When Arab publishers don’t want to work with us, the only people ultimately harmed are Israeli Arab children and their families,” Vromen says. “We hope publishers will understand this and will decide to make their books available to Arab children in Israel, enhancing the children’s access to Arabic culture and heritage.” PJ Library has influenced the American Jewish children’s book-publishing industry, committing to use manuscripts if published and spurring publishers to bring back out-of-print books. It has also pushed Hebrew-language publishers to produce more books that can serve its diverse population of both religious and secular Jews. Given the limited selection of Arabic books on the Israeli market, Vromen says it may “play a similar role in Arabic literature,” encouraging not just free trade but the emergence of more Arab Israeli authors.
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757.455.5582 jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Education | Jewish News | 23
Education Matters
Jewish school enrollment up 12 percent, fueled by haredi Orthodox growth by Uriel Heilman
NEW YORK (JTA)—Jewish day school enrollment in the United States is up 12 percent from five years ago, primarily due to growth in haredi Orthodox schools. Nearly 255,000 students are enrolled in 861 Jewish day schools from the pre-K level through 12th grade, according to a new census of the schools conducted by the Avi Chai Foundation. The survey, which has been conducted every five years since 1998-99, found 59 more schools and 26,437 more students since the last study, in 2008-09. Previous surveys found enrollment growth rates of
about 11 percent in each five-year period. The primary drivers of growth have been Hasidic students, whose enrollment has increased by 110 percent since the first census 15 years ago, and yeshivish (haredi non-Hasidic) schools, which have grown by 60 percent since the 1998-99 survey. The challenge is “whether there will be sufficient [financial and infrastructure] resources to provide for the growth in these two sectors,” says Marvin Schick, who conducted the survey for Avi Chai. Overall, 60 percent of Jewish day school students in America are haredi Orthodox. By contrast, enrollment in non-Orthodox schools is declining. Reform day
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24 | Jewish News | Education | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
school enrollment fell 19 percent from five years ago, to 3,704 students nationwide; enrollment in the Conservative movement’s Solomon Schechter schools is down 27 percent from five years ago, to 9,718 students; and nondenominational community day school enrollment has slipped by 2 percent to 20,413 students, according to the census. Together, the non-Orthodox schools have just 13 percent of day school students. In 1998, the proportion was 20 percent. The number of centrist or modern Orthodox students has stayed flat since 1998 at about 46,000 students. The survey divided those into two groups: modern Orthodox schools, which are generally coeducational and have about 27,000 students across 83 schools, and centrist Orthodox, which generally are gender segregated and have about 19,000 students in 77 schools. Since Avi Chai’s surveys began in 1998, Conservative day schools have taken the largest tumble. The number of Solomon Schechter schools has dropped to 39 from 63, and the number of students has shrunk 45 percent to 9,700 students from 17,700. Some of the departing students were lost to community day schools, which since 1998 have grown by 22 schools and increased enrollment by about 5,500 students (though community day school enrollment has been relatively flat over the last five years). The figures were self-reported by every known Jewish day school in the United States, according to Avi Chai. In all, 37 states and Washington, D.C., have Jewish day schools. The primary concentration of Jewish schools is in New York and New Jersey, where day school students number 190,195—approximately 75 percent of the nationwide total. The states with the next-largest day school populations are California (15,270 students), Florida (9,248), Maryland (7,556) and Illinois (5,248). No other state exceeds 3,200 day school students.
The day school numbers are not a reflection of American Jewry overall. Last year’s Pew Research Center survey of U.S. Jewry found that only 23 percent of American Jews said they attended a yeshiva or Jewish day school. Sixty percent of respondents said they had some kind of formal Jewish education. For many families, Jewish day school is not a K-12 experience. In the 2013-14 school year, enrollment peaked in kindergarten, the Avi Chai census found, with declining enrollment in each of the subsequent grades. There were about twice as many day school kids in kindergarten (24,077) as in the 12th grade (11,927). The study ascribed the trend to non-Orthodox dropoff in day school enrollment as students age and to high fertility rates among the Orthodox, which translate into more students in the younger grades. The Avi Chai survey counted about 82,000 students in 137 Hasidic schools; about 76,000 students in 282 yeshivas; about 46,000 students in 160 centrist or modern Orthodox day schools; about 20,500 students in 97 community day schools; about 12,600 students in 80 Chabad schools; about 9,700 students in 39 Schechter schools; about 3,700 students in 13 Reform schools; about 2,400 students in 19 immigrant/outreach schools; and about 2,100 students in 34 special education schools. A few of the schools counted in the survey include non-Jewish students. The majority of the immigrant/outreach schools and special education schools are under Orthodox auspices. While Chabad is a Hasidic sect, it differs from other sects in that its institutions often serve a diverse population of Jews. The Avi Chai Foundation, which is spending down its endowment, likely will do one more day school census in another five years before its scheduled closure in 2020. According to the study, the day school population in America is expected to reach 300,000 around that time.
Education Matters
At American Jewish day schools, unions are rare—and becoming rarer by Julie Wiener
( JTA)—Just before classes started in September, the teachers union at Barrack Hebrew Academy in Bryn Mawr, Pa., successfully negotiated a new contract with the administration. Five years earlier the pluralistic middle and high school’s teachers had gone on strike, forming a picket line outside the school after contract negotiations broke down. But since then, the school board and faculty have been meeting monthly to smooth relations, and union leaders report that the administration negotiated the current contract in good faith. But with its strong union, Barrack is an outlier among American Jewish day schools. Unions exist in only a handful of schools, all of them Conservative movement-affiliated or pluralistic, and the number is dropping. Over the past year, three Conservative Jewish day schools have effectively eliminated their teachers unions. Perelman Jewish Day School, an elementary school just a few miles away from Barrack, and the Solomon Schechter School of Greater Boston have both declined to negotiate with their teachers unions. According to one source, a third East Coast Conservative day school has done the same, but the source asked JTA not to name the school for fear of disrupting efforts to reverse the policy. In 2005, the Hillel Day School of Greater Detroit successfully shut down its union. And several people involved in the matter said that eliminating the union was one factor in the 2012 closing of the Reuben Gittelman Hebrew Day School in New York’s Rockland County. A new and non-unionized school, Rockland Jewish Academy, opened just months later with many of the same board members and faculty. The moves come as public school teachers unions are increasingly finding themselves on the defensive, often
portrayed by reformers as obstacles to innovation and as putting the needs of teachers before students. Jewish schools have many of the same concerns in dealing with their unions, but their hand has been strengthened by the reluctance of the National Labor Relations Board, which enforces national labor laws, to intervene. In August, in a move that could have implications for all parochial school teachers unions, the Philadelphia office of the NLRB dismissed a complaint from Perelman’s teachers, saying it lacked jurisdiction because the school is a religious institution. The union has appealed the decision to the board’s Washington headquarters. Dennis Walsh, the board’s Philadelphia regional director, says that while not all religious institutions are automatically exempt from the National Labor Relations Act, many are, adding that there is a complicated set of criteria that the national agency is “in the process of reconsidering.” Leaders of recently de-unionized schools declined JTA’s requests for interviews about the labor issue. Pro-union teachers say the moves have hurt morale and created a climate of fear. “People are kind of worried,” says a longtime Boston Schechter teacher who asked not to be identified for fear of retribution. “The new handbook says people can be let go at any time with no notice. It’s very stark language. They’ve done a good job of making people look over their shoulders.” Anti-union efforts in the public school world are often portrayed as initiatives to improve educational outcomes, allowing school districts to eliminate ineffective teachers who under many union contracts are difficult to fire. Flexibility in hiring and firing is also an issue at Jewish day schools, but according to Harry Bloom, the strategy manager for financial sustainability at the Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education, the
current pressure on unions is driven by economics. Since 1998, the number of Schechter schools in the United States has dropped from 63 to 39 and the number of students has shrunk 45 percent, to 9,700 from 17,700, according to data from the Avi Chai Foundation. “Those schools are now half their previous size and people are struggling to pay tuition after the recession,” Bloom says. “What happened is that work rules and staffing and benefits that used to be affordable when you had a school of 1,000 students is now hard to support when you have a school half that size or less.” That all the schools enmeshed in recent labor conflicts are affiliated with the Conservative movement (Detroit’s Hillel was a Schechter school in 2005, but later became a community school) has not escaped the notice of Jill Jacobs, a Conservative rabbi who authored the Conservative Rabbinical Assembly’s 2008 legal ruling supporting the right of workers to unionize. The R.A.’s Committee on Jewish Law and Standards approved the ruling by a vote of 13 to one, with three abstentions. “I think halachah is extremely clear on this point that you’re not allowed to bust a union,” says Jacobs, the executive
director of T’ruah, formerly Rabbis for Human Rights of North America, adding that when it comes to labor laws, Jewish institutions should “be doing more than the law requires.” Leaders of the Schechter Network, which represents Conservative day schools, and RAVSAK, which represents community schools, declined to comment on recent labor conflicts. Jon Mitzmacher, executive director of the Schechter Day School Network, referred JTA to an Aug. 29 blog post that takes no position on unions while noting that “genuine debate has broken out within the Jewish community (as in the larger American community) about the balance between protecting the rights of teachers and serving the needs of students.” Marc Kramer, RAVSAK’s executive director, says that the network has no position on teachers unions. “We obviously want schools to be in the best position possible to keep students focused and to retain the best educators possible,” Kramer says. “Likewise, we believe that day school educators are professionals who should be treated as such …and we do not think that these two commitments need to be in opposition to one another.”
Rowling confirms: Anthony Goldstein, Harry Potter’s classmate, is Jewish J.K. Rowling confirmed that one of Harry Potter’s classmates in her famed series is Jewish. “Anthony Goldstein, Ravenclaw, Jewish wizard,” the novelist said Tuesday, Dec. 16 on Twitter, responding to a query as to whether there were Jews at Hogwarts, the wizard school. Ravenclaw is one of four houses at Hogwarts. Fans of the series had speculated that Goldstein, who fights alongside Harry Potter as part of “Dumbledore’s Army,” was of Jewish origin, but Rowling’s tweet is the first confirmation. (JTA)
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Education | Jewish News | 25
Education Matters Cape Henry Collegiate
The B’nai Mitzvah Revolution by Kitty Wolf, Temple Educator, Ohef Sholom Temple and
Cape Henry Collegiate provides an excep-
former Regional Educator for the Union For Reform Judaism
tional college preparatory education through engaged, active classroom and field experiences. These rigorous academic and meaningful experiences, facilitated by an educated and professional faculty, promotes a greater global understanding while supporting students’ awareness of self and community. Cape Henry Collegiate values student wellness and regularly engages students, faculty and families in conversations and opportunities rooted in authentic relationships that foster a lifelong commitment to learning, serving and leading.
Ohef Sholom Religious School Serving students age 3 through 10th grade
• Promoting a strong sense of Jewish identity • Curriculum includes art, music, field trips and Hebrew • Program for children with special needs
Come check us out! Oh ef Sholo m T e m p l e
530 Raleigh Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 For information Call Kitty Wolf, Temple Educator 757-625-4295
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26 | Jewish News | Education | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
It seems that, for far too many Jews, B’nai Mitzvah has become the goal of Jewish education, marking the end, rather than the gateway to a new life of Jewish inquiry and learning. Many Jewish educators agree that there needs to be a reevaluation of the relationship between Jewish education and B’nai Mitzvah. The Reform Movement has done just this with their new program, the B’nai Mitzvah Revolution (BMR). The BMR is a national project aimed at reversing the trend of young people ending their Jewish education after their big day on the bima. Engaging and retaining youth has become a top priority. The project is looking at ways to engage children and their families in the B’nai Mitzvah earlier and continuing beyond the ceremony. There are a number of congregations working as “cohorts” on the project and Ohef Sholom Temple is one of them.
At Ohef Sholom, students will be asked to choose a mitzvah project beginning in the fifth grade and to commit to working with this project for at least a year after the actual B’nai Mitzvah—making Kitty Wolf at least a three-year commitment that will help build lasting community and continued learning opportunities. A number of Conservative and Reconstructionist congregations have also committed to the B’nai Mitzvah Revolution with a variety of different projects aimed at changing the B’nai Mitzvah culture and encouraging youth to stay engaged in the synagogue even after these coming-of-age ceremonies. For more information about B’nai Mitzvah Revolution, visit bnaimitzvahrevolution.org. or contact Kitty Wolf at kitty@ohefsholom.org.
The Williams School The Williams School works with each child to build an enduring foundation for academic, moral, and social success. Williams School students embody integrity, confidence, discipline, and a love of learning. The Williams School grounds its mission on five key concepts: a child-centered environment, a community of inclusion, an emphasis on integrity and responsibility, an environment for learning, and a partnership with parents. The size of the school, along with a small student to teacher ratio, creates an environment in which teachers are committed to educating and nurturing the whole child. Recognizing that students have a variety of learning styles, the school believes the curriculum should be flexible enough to allow for innovative instruction. Students value the teachers’ investment in curriculum goals as is evident in their participation and attitude towards learning and classroom instruction. The Williams School views parents as partners in the greater Williams School family, integral to the effective education and development of their children as well as valuable resources in the school community.
Education Matters Tel Aviv University Business School awarded top ranking alongside Harvard, Yale New York—Last month Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Management–The Leon Recanati Graduate School of Business Administration, was ranked the best in Israel; second in Eurasia and the Middle East; and in the same “universal” category as the top business schools around the world, including North America and Western Europe. Eduniversal, a global ranking and rating agency headquartered in Paris, released its annual ranking of the world’s top 1,000 business schools in November, classifying the institutions according to “Palm leagues” of excellence—5 Palmes (strong global influence), 4 Palmes (significant international influence), 3 Palmes (reinforcing international influence), 2 Palmes
(strong regional influence), and 1 Palme (considerable local influence). TAU’s Recanati Business School received 5 Palmes and ranked in the top league as a leading “universal” business school along with Harvard, London Business School and Yale. It was also rated the top business school in Israel, followed by business programs at Hebrew University (3 Palmes) and University of Haifa (3 Palmes). Dean of TAU’s faculty of management Prof. Moshe Zviran says the prestigious ranking was “another acknowledgment of the quality of research, faculty, programs and worldwide reputation Recanati has enjoyed for years.” “Why did we receive it out of all the Israeli schools? First and foremost, the
quality of our research and the quality of our programs, which are geared toward entrepreneurship and innovation,” says Zviran. “In addition, we have a wide global outreach in teaching and research. In teaching, we have more than 100 student exchange programs with leading business schools across the world. In research we host international workshops and conferences in various functional areas, and our faculty members are invited to contribute to international research collaborations and share their knowledge with peers at top schools around the world.” Recanati’s MBA program placed 11th out of the top 25 MBA programs in the world for alumni who became successful entrepreneurs, according to a global survey
of some 13,000 entrepreneurs conducted last summer by PitchBook, a Seattle-based venture capital research company. “Being identified with Israel, the StartUp Nation, we are now restructuring both our local and international MBA programs in entrepreneurship and innovation to adapt to the rapid changes in MBA education and to ensure our global leadership in this area,” says Prof. Zviran. A leader in the pan-disciplinary approach to education, TAU is internationally recognized for the scope and groundbreaking nature of its research and scholarship—attracting world-class faculty and consistently producing cutting-edge work with profound implications for the future.
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jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Education | Jewish News | 27
Education Matters
Op-Ed: Hillel is an open forum by Eric Fingerhut
WASHINGTON (JTA) — Once again the love affair between the Jewish people and higher education is back in full bloom. The start of a new school year, and the Jewish New Year, marked the beginning of robust programming for Jewish college students across the globe. And, now, those students are celebrating Chanukah and returning home for Winter Break. As students dug into their studies, the events in Israel and Gaza this past summer were a hot topic on many campuses. In response, Hillel International, the largest Jewish student organization in the world—its growing network now serves some 550 campuses in North and South America, Europe, Central Asia, Australia and Israel—is drawing on its expertise in promoting deep and thoughtful discus-
sion. Hillel is sponsoring a broad range of programs to help students understand the issues and how they will affect Israel and its neighbors in the future. Hillel professionals have heard presentations from both the Israeli ambassador to the United States and the leader of the opposition in the Knesset. Hillel student leaders have organized interfaith gatherings and intercultural dialogues. Hillel educators have offered seminars and discussions for students to learn about contemporary Israeli society and culture, to reflect on their own relationships with Israel and to develop skills as dialogue facilitators. Hillel students have also modeled what respectful discourse looks like: At Cooper Union Hillel in New York City, students countered an effort to boycott a speech by the leader of the Palestinian Authority,
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Mahmoud Abbas, and encouraged Jewish students to attend and listen respectfully, which they did. And, of course, the tens of thousands of students who attended High Holiday services at Hillel joined Jews all over the world in praying for a year of peace for all people. What all these activities have in common is they welcome and include students of all backgrounds, all political positions and who have an exceptionally wide array of relationships with their Jewish identities and with Israel. They do so within an environment that is intellectually rigorous, respectful of difference and committed to honest conversation. Hillel is among the most religiously, intellectually, culturally and politically pluralistic organizations in the Jewish world— a testament to both the diversity of Jewish experience and of the college campuses we serve. Inclusivity and broad-mindedness are part of our core values. All students are always welcome at Hillel. And these values guide all of our work. That work includes listening to all student voices including those of the activists behind the “Open Hillel” campaign and other campus groups. At the same time, Hillel is deeply dedicated to Israel. From the tens of thousands we’ve led on Taglit-Birthright Israel trips, to the nearly 100 Israelis who serve as Israel Fellows on our campuses, to the many efforts of our professionals to engage and educate students, Israel is a vital part of our mission. For some, those simultaneous commitments to openness and pluralism on the one hand and to passionate support of Israel on the other may seem contradictory. For Hillel, there is no contradiction. Our Standards for Partnership, which were developed in close consultation with local Hillels, are designed to ensure that our efforts uphold these commitments to openness and pluralism and to Israel. Hillel will not partner with organizations that espouse anti-Semitism, apply a double standard to Israel, spout racism or promote Islamophobia. Such viewpoints do not represent the values of Hillel International nor
the overwhelming number of Jewish students and professionals everywhere. Hillel’s programming decisions are made by thousands of local student leaders, professionals and lay leaders who are dedicated to engaging the largest number of students in Jewish life on their campuses. In doing so, these leaders are guided by their knowledge of the local environment and by Hillel’s vision of encouraging students to build an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning and Israel. Hillel International stands by its Standards of Partnership. More importantly, Hillel International will always back the dedicated student leaders, professionals and lay leaders who are supporting vibrant Jewish life on campus. We work every day to help students find their connection to the Jewish people and live the Jewish values that make this a better world for all people. As we grow, Hillel will continue to hold firm to the values that define the Jewish community worldwide—peoplehood, nationhood and faith in the future. —Eric Fingerhut is the president and chief executive officer of Hillel International.
Friends School Friends School is a vibrant community where students are empowered, enriched and affirmed as they experience a Quaker education. The school integrates the Quaker values of equality, integrity, simplicity, peace and environmental stewardship in a nurturing community of academic excellence that encourages mutual respect, personal responsibility and the fulfillment of each person’s potential, based on the Quaker belief that there is that of God in everyone.
Education Matters Boston U. Hillel votes to accept J Street U as affiliate must be united for Israel, and Hillel must be the place to foster this kind of dialogue. We hope that all of us can find a way to see this change as a positive step for our community to grow for the future.” Some Jewish students do not welcome the inclusion of J Street U under the Hillel umbrella, the statement reportedly acknowledged. Open Hillel, a network of student groups that object to the Hillel guidelines, in a statement sent to JTA said that it “applauds the decision by the Boston University Hillel community to welcome BU’s J Street U chapter. We are pleased to see that BU Hillel is opening up to a diversity of perspectives on ways to approach the Israel/Palestine conflict.” Open Hillel expressed “concern,” however, over the emphasis placed on the guidelines, which it said could lead to “policing the activities of the J Street U chapter.” J Street, which calls itself “pro peace, pro Israel,” advocates an end to Israeli settlements and an assertive U.S. role in brokering Israeli-Palestinian peace. (JTA)
The Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning With its international headquarters at Hebrew University Jerusalem, The Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning is offered in Tidewater through the Simon Family JCC. The school provides an opportunity to attain a level of Jewish literacy through
the study of Jewish texts in an interactive, pluralistic and non-denominational environment. There are no exams, no quizzes and no homework. The only prerequisite is a commitment to learn. In June, the 12th class held their graduation ceremony, with nine students receiving their certificates, joining 180 Tidewater adults who have completed the first two years of the school. For information, contact Miriam Brunn Ruberg, director of Jewish Life and Learning at 757-321-2328.
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The Boston University Hillel student board voted to approve J Street U as an official student affiliate group. The decision on Dec. 4 came several months after J Street U, the campus affiliate of the liberal Jewish Middle East policy group J Street, was turned down, the Boston University student newspaper, The Daily Free Press, reported. J Street U was new on the campus at the time of the original decision. The B.U. Hillel based its approval on the expectation that J Street U would follow Hillel International’s Guidelines for Campus Israel Activities, which rejects partnerships with groups or hosting speakers who deny Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish and democratic state; delegitimize, demonize or apply double standards to Israel; support boycott, divestment and sanctions efforts against Israel; or foster an atmosphere of incivility, the statement said, according to the student newspaper. “At the present time, it is critical for our students to set aside their differences and come together under the idea that we, in the end, are pro-Israel,” B.U. Hillel said in a statement in The Daily Free Press. “We
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jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Education | Jewish News | 29
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Business & Legal Society gets special briefing on Iran The Business & Legal Society will host a pre-event reception on Thursday, Jan. 8 prior to ‘The Rise of Anti-Semitism: A Resurgence of Evil’ presentation featuring Ira Forman, the State Department’s Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. For more information, visit www.
by Samantha Golden
S
taring into Syria from the border of Israel’s Golan Heights last summer, Mark Dubowitz encountered an unnerving sight—the black flag of ISIL, also known as ISIS or the Islamic State. With civil war and humanitarian atrocities raging just a few clicks away in Damascus, Dubowitz took a 360 degree turn to consider some of Israel’s other neighbors: the home of Hezbollah in Lebanon to the North; the constant threat from Hamas in Gaza to the South; to the East, Jordan, Israel’s once strategic asset now offering tension and uncertainty at best; and reaching further to the East, across Iraq and the havoc of ISIL, perhaps Israel’s most ominous threat of all—Iran. This is how Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington D.C.-based foreign policy think tank, set the stage for his talk at the Business & Legal Society of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s luncheon on Thursday, Dec. 4. Dubowitz spoke to a boardroom filled to capacity at Davenport & Company LLC in Virginia Beach. Forty Business & Legal Society members attended this exclusive event to receive an expert analysis of Iran’s nuclear threat, the strategy of negotiations and economic sanctions, and the future for America and Israel in the face of a nuclear Iran. “While the subject matter was sobering,
Mark Dubowitz was remarkably informative, interesting and passionate as he shared his insider’s knowledge of the global implications of a nuclear Iran to a packed room of captivated Business & Legal professionals,” says Society co-chair, Faith Jacobson. “I think the question and answer portion could have gone on all afternoon. Everyone was so interested in learning the real story from Mark. It was also wonderful to see so many new faces,” Jacobson says. Deborah Casey, Society member, says, “I’m so glad that I took the time from a busy business day to attend the Iran briefing. The subject matter is serious and important, and he did a great job of giving us current, relevant information. My understanding was enhanced.” Society members David Calliot and Byron Harrell, volunteered their Davenport & Company office to host the luncheon. The presentation was held in collaboration with the Federation’s Community Relations Council, the host of a community-wide presentation that took place the previous evening, as part of its Israel Today series. The luncheon with Dubowitz was one of many events offered by the Business & Legal Society, an increasingly active and flourishing hub for Tidewater Jewish business and legal professionals, providing more than 115 current members with engaging and relevant programming and opportunities for networking.
JewishVA.org/BusinessAndLegalSociety or contact Alex Pomerantz at apomerantz@ ujft.org. The Business & Legal Society offers networking, social and philanthropic opportunities for Jewish professionals. ‘LIKE’ the Business & Legal Society on Facebook at fb.com/businessandlegalsociety.
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Mini-mission brings home importance of Super Sunday success Super Sunday, January 25, 2015 • 9 am–1 pm • Volunteers needed for two shifts some of the UJFT’s affiliate organizations and meeting some recipients, explained lanning a successful fundraising Weinstein. The group traveled first to Jewish event often involves many hours spent strategizing and meeting inside Family Service of Tidewater, where executive director Betty Ann Levin met them boardrooms or offices. In the case of Super Sunday, the largest, and led a guided tour of the facility. single Tidewater Jewish community-wide The next stop was Beth Sholom Village, fundraising day of the year, that’s the norm where weekend nursing supervisor Katia Guerrier walked the young adults through as well, for most of the meetings. There is an exception, however, for the Berger Goldrich Home and the Terrace the committee members who volunteer to and introduced them to some of the Home’s gain experience, knowledge and leadership residents. The mini-mission concluded with a skills as part of the Young Adult Division of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s return trip to the Sandler Family Campus where Deb Segaloff, development direcSuper Sunday steering committee. One scheduled meeting each year is tor of the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater reserved for a field trip, or, in a name bor- Konikoff Center of Learning and the Strelitz rowed from some of the Jewish community’s Early Childhood Center, met them. Segaloff showed them around HAT and Strelitz, most memorable trips, a mini-mission. Eliot Weinstein, 2015 co-chair, and, as a former Super Sunday chair and explained the mini-mission concept to committee member herself, discussed the the 10 committee members who boarded intricate and important eco-system of the a small bus on the morning of Sunday, Tidewater Jewish community. The response from committee memDec. 7, preparing to embark from the bers to the field trip was overwhelmingly Sandler Family Campus. One of the best ways to learn about who positive; a spirit of determination to make is helped by funds raised on Super Sunday, this year’s Super Sunday phone-a-thon where the community’s donations go and successful, meaningful and memorable was why the event is so important, is by visiting palpable. The group’s consensus was that, through this mini-mission, there was a greater Volunteers are needed to make phone calls understanding of what the UJFT does and provide other support. and how contribuarticle and photos by Laine Mednick Rutherford
P
Super Sunday Essential Information
Shifts are: 9 am–11 am or 11 am–1 pm. Everyone is welcome.
Josh Mallenbaum, Morgan Bober, Meryl Mulligan, Sean Mulligan, Eliot Weinstein, Jade Rouzeau, Samantha Golden, Eric Miller, David Calliot, Joash Schulman and Benyamin Yaffe at BSHEV.
tors to the UJFT’s Annual Campaign—of which Super Sunday is a vital part—make lives better through their donations. Observations and comments from committee members:
B
eth Sholom Village has grown and matured beautifully since I last visited over a decade ago. It was heartwarming to see our community elders playing ball during our visit. In fact, it was so much fun, our YAD leaders had to join in! I felt we were there to show that we understand that neither our seniors, nor their care, or our Jewish tradition, are things to take for granted. Their wisdom is embodied in us. Joshua Mallenbaum
T
he mini mission really underscored the critical roles that organizations like JFS
and Beth Sholom Village play in our community. Whether it’s a child whose family can’t afford a Chanukah gift or who is coping with the loss of a parent, an older person in need of a place to call home or who is no longer capable of managing their own affairs—funding from the UJFT is essential to help these important programs continue to make meaningful differences in peoples’ lives. Joash Shulman
K
nowing that the Hebrew Academy and Strelitz Early Childhood Center are available resources in our community is a wonderful feeling as expectant parents. A Jewish education is so important from an early age and we are lucky to be able to utilize these programs. The community’s continued support of HAT and Strelitz is vital, and will help build the next generation of leaders in our community. Meryl and Sean Mulligan
• T akes place at the Sandler Family Campus, 5000 Corporate Woods Dr., Virginia Beach • Visit JewishVa.org/SuperSunday, or call 757-965-6136 to sign up for a shift, make a donation now, and to get more information. • Super Sunday is a community-wide phone-a-thon, which raises funds and awareness to improve lives in the Tidewater Jewish community and in vulnerable Jewish communities around the world. • Share your Jewish story, or at least a page from it, on Facebook, at FB.com/UJFTidewater #shareyourstory757 Betty Ann Levin, far right, talks about the JFS Chanukah gift program.
32 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Committee members look at children’s artwork on their tour of JFS.
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A bright road ahead at Tidewater Jewish Foundation
by Scott Kaplan
I
am thrilled to join the outstanding team at the Tidewater Jewish Foundation and to have the honor to serve this community as its president and CEO. With a rich history and longevity of professional leadership in this position, I hope to build upon our success while bringing a fresh perspective to this role. I come from a broad background of work experience in the fields of human services as a case manager, human resource management at MassMutual Financial Group and development (planned giving) in the Federation world. For the past seven years I served as the director of the Jewish Endowment Foundation, a division of the Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts. On a personal note, my family just moved from a relatively small Jewish community in western Massachusetts (Springfield/Longmeadow), and we are excited about engaging with a vibrant Jewish community here in Tidewater. My wife, Erica, is a speech-language pathologist and we have two beautiful girls, Liora (age 10, fourth grade) and Eden (age six, first grade), both at Hebrew Academy of Tidewater. We also have a 12-year-old yellow Labrador retriever named Buddy. Professionally, I view this as a wonderful opportunity to work in partnership with the Federation and with all of our Jewish organizations in the region. My goal is to help people (and our Jewish communal organizations and synagogues) reach and achieve their philanthropic potential. That may sound a bit cliché, but I am truly interested in learning what people are passionate about and helping them figure out how they can turn that passion into a reality to build a brighter future. I seek to understand and appreciate our history and at the same time figure how we can build stronger bridges together as a community
for an even brighter future ahead. In my brief tenure on the job (less than one month), I have grown to appreciate the multi-generations and inter-connectedness of those who are from this Scott Kaplan area and the diversity of people who have moved to the region for one reason or another. This is a small Jewish community within a much larger general community. The ties which bind us together are strong and we need to stay inter-connected as a people. I see the role of TJF as the organization of the future and to truly operate as the “Jewish” community foundation to support the Federation, its affiliates and other agencies. I look forward to working directly with individual donors, agencies and affiliates in partnership with our strong professional advisory community to put together philanthropic plans which make sense. I have been impressed by what I have seen thus far, but I need your help and input. I write this article asking for your assistance. I need and want to hear from you. I want to know what you think is going well. I also want to know what your hopes, your dreams and your aspirations are for this community and for the Jewish people in Tidewater, in Israel and around the world. We are here to help support what currently exists, to fill the voids and potentially to create what does not exist. Please feel free to call me and tell me what you think. I would love to sit down with you to listen and discuss your thoughts and ideas. I can be reached at skaplan@ ujft.org or 757-965-6109. I look forward to building a bright future together.
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jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 33 CHESAPEAKE
it’s a wrap Ohef Sholom Temple takes Tikkun Olam to heart
OST congregant Alan Troy and Chesterfield Academy student building an Outdoor Learning Laboratory.
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n any Sunday when Ohef Sholom’s Religious School is in session, tzedakah is given, and mitzvah projects are set in motion. The Sunday prior to Thanksgiving,
OST Religious school students sorting donated food for holiday food baskets.
however, was unique because each of the 12 classrooms collected canned foods to be part of a larger community effort to provide a holiday meal for 50 families who are clients of Jewish Family Service and students at Chesterfield Academy Elementary School, a public school in Norfolk. Ohef Sholom Temple (OST) committed to provide a complete meal with all the trimmings to these needy families for the holidays. In addition to traditional marketing efforts within the temple, OST Caring committee co-chairs Dorianne Villani and Alyssa Muhlendorf contacted businesses to host their own Thanksgiving drives. An enthusiastic group of nurses at Sentara Princess Anne Hospital, for example, raised enough money among the staff to purchase almost half of the 550 items needed and nine turkeys! Bruce Frieden at the Frieden Agency and Ron Spindel at the Spindel Agency marketed the food drive and collected nonperishable food. Andy Kline and Jeffrey Kline encouraged the staff at Payday Payroll to give generously, and produced boxes of food and winter clothing. Creating the holiday food baskets became a true community effort and is an example of the impact that can be made when individuals, businesses and organizations work cooperatively. Betty Ann Levin, executive director of Jewish Family Service of Tidewater says, “The JFS/Ohef Sholom Temple partnership is great
ADVERTISING SALES Jewish News seeks an account executive to sell advertising for the newspaper. Sales experience a must, media sales a plus. Basic computer skills (ability to use email) required. Flexible hours. Call 965-6100 for additional information or email resumes@ujft.org.
34 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Jody Laibstain from JFS receiving the Thanksgiving baskets for their families in need.
The Payday Payroll staff with their food and clothing donations.
and a model for what partnerships should be in the community.” Ohef Sholom Temple prioritizes ongoing community outreach. Four years ago, the temple began opening its doors on the last Monday of each month to serve a hot, nutritious lunch and to distribute toiletries and clothing to its homeless neighbors. Two years ago, OST became one of the few community sponsors of the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia’s Child Nutrition program to fund, package and deliver bi-weekly food back packs so children in poverty have food to eat over the weekends with their families. The Caring Committee also organizes quarterly multi-genera-
tional community mitzvah opportunities called, “Tikkun Olam Together,” serves meals multiple times a year at the JudeoChristian Outreach Center in Virginia Beach, and co-hosts a week of NEST (Norfolk Emergency Shelter Team), which provides people without a home a warm place to eat a hot dinner and breakfast and to sleep out of the elements. Through outreach, Ohef Sholom strives to repair the world and demonstrates with actions that Judaism is a religion of peace and commitment to the larger community. To learn more about Ohef Sholom’s community outreach programs, contact Linda Peck, director of Congregational Life, at 625-4295.
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abbi Israel Zoberman of Congregation Beth Chaverim displays the Wimple of Arnold Lind at the Annual Veterans Day Service at the Sandler Family Campus, on Nov. 11, 2014. The Wimple was a German Jewish custom of turning the swaddle with which the baby boy was wrapped into a beautifully decorated Torah binder to be used at the child’s Bar Mitzvah. On Nov. 10, 1938, in Mullheim, Germany, during Kristallnacht, Arnold Lind raced into his burning synagogue to retrieve his Wimple that already had caught on fire. He was just 10 years old. Lind served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He and his wife Etta, both of blessed memory, were members of Congregation Beth Chaverim in Virginia Beach.
Help write the powerful story of our Jewish community...
Volunteer for Super Sunday • Two Volunteer Shifts Available: 9am – 11am & 11am – 1pm
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SUPER SUNDAY
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• All community members are welcome to help! • Caller training provided. • Babysitting available. This community-wide event benefits everyone, young and old, in the Tidewater Jewish Community.
Register to volunteer now. Be part of the ongoing Tidewater story on Jan. 25.
Share Your Story The story of the Tidewater Jewish Community is one of traditions—for generations, its plot inspired by taking care of others. With gifts pledged during the UJFT’s annual phone-a-thon, you’ve improved the lives of those here at home and in Jewish communities around the world. With your help, the Tidewater story will continue.
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For inspiration and instructions on how to share your story, go to www.JewishVA.org/SuperSunday
SIGN UP TODAY • MAKE A DONATION • GET MORE INFORMATION Visit www.JewishVA.org/SuperSunday or call 757-965-6136. At the Sandler Family Campus • 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 35
it’s a wrap Congregation Beth El Sisterhood paid up dinner 2014
Wine tasting event proves relaxing and informative for Beth El congregants
by Helene Rosenfeld and Helene Smith
by Dorothy Zimmerman
ongregation Beth El Sisterhood held their annual paid up dinner on Nov. 17 in Myers Hall under the chairmanship of Sonia Stein. The evening’s guest speaker was Homer Babbitt of the development department of the Chrysler Art Museum Foundation. With the aid of a power point presentation, he discussed the history of the Chrysler Museum, its present and exciting future offerings.
“Fifty Shades of Pinot,” was a provocative title and the focus of a great Congregation Beth El HAZAK event. More than 40 people gathered at the home of Helene and Bernie Grablowsky on a sunny Sunday afternoon in November to participate in a wine tasting featuring the Pinot family of grapes descended from the Vitis Vinifera varietal called Pinot Noir. It is one of the oldest domesticated vines in the recorded history of wine growing. Genetic research indicates Pinot Noir-based wines being made more than 2,000 years ago. And, it is known that Pinot Noir vines were planted in Burgundy by the 4th century C.E. The group also learned that the Pinot Noir grape is prone to mutation and has given rise to many of the more commonly known varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot Gris/ Pinot Grigio, (they are the same grape, but differences in where each is grown results in different tastes from light and dry to sometimes sweet), Melon de Bourgogne (Muscadet), Pinot Blanc and Gamay Noir. Furthermore within each varietal, there are many “clones” that have gained renown for their singular character and distinction. David Hollander, a sommelier-level teacher without official credentials, and affiliated with Republic National Wines, and his assistants Jerry Kantor and Jack Drucker met with members of the HAZAK committee to choose a theme and then recommended the wines to purchase for the event. Friends of HAZAK were the underwriters of the event. Yanni’s worked closely with HAZAK to make sure the selections were available. The afternoon at the Grablowsky’s began with a meet and greet and a sparkling wine from Napa, Sophia,” from the Francis Coppola vineyard. Guests were treated to snacks prepared by the hostess and Carol Smith and then the official tasting began as participants were seated at tables with the required accessories. Bread was provided to cleanse the palate, along with water for rinsing glasses and bowls for disposing of excess wine. All the while, Hollander and his assis-
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Hilde Deutsch, Helene Grablowsky and Sonia Stein.
Sanctions issue spurs conversations at YAD’s special Schmooze
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he Schmooze, a popular program of the Young Adult Division of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, provides the opportunity for guests to participate in Google’s definition of the word: talk, mingle, hobnob, network. Topics tend to focus on current events, viewed through Jewish participants’ lenses. YAD presented a “special” Schmooze on Thursday, Dec. 4 at the home of Jennifer and David Adut in Norfolk. Young Jewish adults listened and spoke with “guest schmoozer” Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the non-partisan policy institute, Foundation for Defense of Democracies. In the area to speak at the Community
Relations Council of the UJFT’s Israel Today Forum, Dubowitz engaged those who attended with an insider’s view of Iran’s nuclear program and the United States’ response to it with the use, or nonuse, of sanctions. The discussion was interesting, intriguing, and, at times, intense. Attendees appreciated the chance to have an in-depth discussion with an expert in a casual setting. UJFT YAD events are open to young Jewish professionals, ages 22–45, in the Tidewater Jewish community. Interested in getting involved in YAD or coming to future events? Contact Benyamin Yaffe, byaffe@ ujft.org, and get updated information by liking YAD on Facebook: fb.com/yad.ujft.
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Warren Aleck, Linda Drucker, Jerry Kantor and Jack Drucker.
Jerry Kantor, Janice and Rick Foleck.
tants poured and taught about the varietals the group tasted. Two Pinot Gris wines—one from Oregon and one from Alsace—were compared. And then, two Pinot Noirs from Carneros and Oregon were compared. The final tasting was Domaine Candon “Riche” from Napa. Tasting notes and comments relative to each wine were produced by Hollander and Linda Drucker and all guests had material to take home for future reference. The afternoon was a great success. “What a relaxing and informative Sunday afternoon we spent with friends old and new, experiencing wine in a lovely, casual setting. A discussion and appreciation of wine brings people together, in a positive way, and this event was no exception. We gained an appreciation of the varietals leading to a comfort level in talking about that which was being tasted. This is the first time Jack and I have attended one of Beth El’s HAZAK gatherings, and we look forward to the next,” says Linda Drucker.
it’s a wrap
2015 UJFT Mission to the
A Revolutionary lesson
Jewish Community of Argentina October 14 - 21, 2015
by Deb White, Hebrew Academy fifth grade general studies teacher
Mark your calendars. Space is limited! Itinerary in final stages of construction.
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tudying the Revolutionary War actually proved to be fun for Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s fifth graders. They recently displayed their creative talents for the fourth grade with an artful performance of The Boston Tea Party play. They enjoyed it so much that they followed it up with an encore of Paul Revere’s Ride. To prepare for the plays, the class created a charter and wrote a paper on an important person during that time. Another exciting part of this history lesson included Meyer Chovitz who visited the fifth grade class in character as Ben Franklin. Through the use of many fun props and Q & As, students were treated to his life story, including details about his childhood, involvement in the Revolutionary War, his printing business
$5,250* per person (From Norfolk) HAT fifth graders show off their artistic talents with a display of Revolutionary War characters, including Nathan Hale, Paul Revere, Esther de Berdt, Abagail Adams, Deborah Sampson, Benjamin Franklin, Mad Anthony Wayne, Henry Lee and Thomas Jefferson.
and his many inventions. In fact, they learned he invented some pretty significant things, such as the lightning rod, the rolling chair, bifocal glasses and a glass piano, to name a few. Chovitz makes an annual visit to HAT to bring this important history lesson to life.
* Based on double occupancy and coach class air. Covers all lodging, most meals, all air and ground transportation in Argentina, tour bus, guides, speakers, admissions, and all other program costs. A MINIMUM OF 25 PARTICIPANTS NEEDED TO MAKE THE MISSION A “GO!” Email or call Amy Zelenka at azelenka@ujft.org or 965-6139 to add your name to the list of 2015 UJFT Argentina mission participants!
Charity project right on target
Third graders hope this successful shopping adventure will make the children of one local family in need very happy. by Rashi Brashevitzky, Hebrew Academy third grade Judaic studies teacher
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zedakah, giving charity, is an integral part of Jewish life—yet many children never have the opportunity to see what happens with the money that fills the tzedakah box and how it is used to help those in need. To make this year’s Chanukah mitzvah have added meaning and relevance for Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s third graders, the students raised money to purchase items for a local family in need. The class received a Chanukah wish list from Jewish
Family Service, and each morning added up their daily donations and wrote the total on the chalkboard in clear view. Students reviewed the list and discovered that many of the items the children in this family wished for
were basic needs. When the time came, they headed to Target to purchase as many items as they could from the list. Using their funds wisely, students ensured that they could provide this family with a proper balance of necessities, as well as fun things in honor of Chanukah. After all, it is a wish list and kids deserve to have some fun. Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Konikoff Center of Learning and the Strelitz Early Childhood Center is a constituent agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 37
it’s a wrap Young adult volunteers add helping Hands to Helping Hearts project
Singing along with Congregation Beth El’s Cantor-in-Residence program by Linda Samuels
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ongregation Beth El hosted the second of three “Cantor/ Musician-in-Residence” programs on Nov. 14 and 15. The Cantor/ Musician-in-Residence is designed to share different cantorial and musical styles with the community to help explore the variety of ways that music can be part of the spiritual life of the synagogue. “What a great opportunity for the congregants to hear new and different styles of singing and melodies. I am looking forward to hearing and singing along at the next Cantor in Residence,” says Jodi Dobrinsky. Beth El’s November guest was Hazzan Joanna Dulkin of The Jewish Center of Princeton, N.J. Dulkin davened with the congregation for both Shabbat evening services and for the Shabbat morning
service. Her beautiful voice and warm, inviting style led the congregation to join in almost immediately. Dulkin has been called a “rising star in the national arena,” and Hazzan Joanna Dulkin currently serves as secretary of the Cantors’ Assembly. Among her previous positions, she served as cantor at Shaare Zedek Synagogue of St. Louis and was the founding music director at Camp Ramah Darom. A published writer and composer, she was joined on her weekend visit by her husband, Rabbi Ryan Dulkin and their two sons. They are long-time friends with Rabbi and Tami Arnowitz and this was their first trip to Tidewater.
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luffing teddy bears may sound like easy work, but when there are more than 1,000 of the small plush stuffed toys that need sprucing up, the job can be daunting. The Personal Affairs Management program of the Jewish Family Service of Tidewater was in luck on Wednesday, Dec. 9, when nearly two dozen volunteers came to its offices on the Sandler Family Campus to fluff and stuff and help assemble holiday packages for PAM’s annual Helping Hearts project. Along with the bears, snacks and other goodies were packed in ribbon-tied cellophane bags that the PAM program distributes as holiday gifts to clients, residents and patients of area hospitals and other care facilities. Among the group helping PAM pack bags were participants of Hands on Tidewater, one of the ongoing programs sponsored by the Young Adult Division of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Hands on Tidewater offers volunteer opportunities to area Jewish young adults. The time commitment is minimal, but the rewards are huge. Ross Kantor and Rebecca Bickford co-chaired the annual event during which volunteers stood in front of long tables, assembly-line style, working non-stop for several hours until the last assigned bag was filled and placed in a larger bag for delivery. Kantor and Bickford called the event a true success, and were gratified to see how many YAD members were will-
Ross Kantor and Rebecca Bickford.
38 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Beth Gerstein shows off the donated teddy bears for the gift bags.
Whitney Woods.
Greg Rouzeau.
ing to give time and energy to help others have a brighter holiday. YAD has an ongoing calendar of events—social, philanthropic, networking, and informative—planned for all young Jewish adults in Tidewater, ages 22–45. Contact Benyamin Yaffe at byaffe@ujft.org for more information, or visit JewishVA.org for more information.
Jade Rouzeau joins dozens of other volunteers packing gift bags.
it’s a wrap Who smiles more during Grandparents’ Day?
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he last day of school before Thanksgiving break is always an exciting one, and not just because it kicks off the start of a long holiday weekend. It is also when all the students at Hebrew Academy and the Strelitz preschool host Grandparents’ Day, a cherished tradition packed with fun, family and lots of love. This year’s Grandparents’ Day was no exception, marked with a strings performance by fourth and fifth graders and singing performances by preschoolers and kindergarten through third grade students. There’s nothing like watching grandparents watching their grandchildren perform. It’s debatable who smiles more—the adults or the kids. Patti Seeman, HAT co-development director, addressed the audience after the performance, reminding everyone of the value of a Jewish Day School education. This year, a special giving opportunity was offered to honor the 60 years that Hebrew Academy and the preschool have served as a Tree of Life for the community. Beautiful, commemorative candles were displayed and offered to donors who made a onetime gift to the 60th Campaign, co-chaired by Leora Drory and Bonnie Brand, past HAT parents and current board members. Contact Patti Seeman or Deb Segaloff, co-development directors, at 424-4327, for more information about giving. Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Konikoff Center of Learning and the Strelitz Early Childhood Center is a constituent agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
JFS reaches out during the holidays
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Four generations! Ari Simon, age four, smiles along with grandparents Joan and Eric Joffe, and great-grandmother, Hilda Deutsch.
Betsy Karotkin with grandchildren Gabe and Orli Adut, Kindergarten twins.
Kaylah Walker’s T-shirt “Love and Laughter” represents the theme of Grandparents’ Day. Kaylah with her grandmother, Barbara Walker.
or the past 10 years, Jewish Family Service of Tidewater has provided holiday gifts to adults living in area nursing facilities as part of the annual Helping Hearts project. The project is coordinated by JFS’ Personal Affairs Management program. The generosity of area donors and helpers makes it possible for 1,400 individuals to receive a holiday gift. JFS will deliver 800 bags filled with a teddy bear, snack, hygiene item and candy cane to six area nursing and assisted living facilities. Plus, 600 PAM clients will receive gifts of beautiful knitted blankets, scarves, hats and gloves provided by the JFS Knitters Club or a hand-selected item left under the HomeInstead Angel Tree. On Monday, Dec. 15, 55 PAM clients and their caregivers were treated by Altmeyer Funeral Home to a holiday lunch at Outback Kemps River. Entertainment was by Bobby the Clown and a singer. Every client received a scarf. JFS thanks all of the community sponsors and helpers, including: Altmeyer Funeral Home Beach Ambassadors HomeInstead JFS Knitters Club JFS staff and families Outback Steakhouse Pepperidge Farms Amy and Bobby Sasser Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau Patti Wainger, JFS board member YAD Hands on Tidewater The JFS Personal Affairs Management Program provides guardian and conservator services to more than 600 incapacitated adults age 18 and over in Southeastern Virginia who have no willing or able family member to assist them. Jewish Family Service is a constituent agency of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
Four aspiring young novelists sign up for private writing classes with Leonard, an international literary figure. Under his recklessly brilliant and unorthodox instruction, some thrive and others flounder, alliances are made and broken, sex is used as a weapon and hearts are unmoored. The wordplay is not the only thing that turns vicious as innocence collides with experience in this biting Broadway comedy. Seminar is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC Contains Strong Language and Adult Situations
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Order tickets online at LTNONLINE.ORG
or, call 757.627.8551 Joel and Gail Flax, Nancy Bangel and Mark Robbins with grandson Abe Flax.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 39
what’s happening If it were 2014 they’d be CNN heroes: Holocaust film at Festival spotlights an otherwise ordinary couple Sunday, Jan. 18, 2 pm, TCC Roper Performing Arts Center by Leslie Shroyer
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n their comfortable home in Philadelphia, attorney Gilbert Kraus and his wife Eleanor were far removed from Hitler’s tightening of control over Europe in 1939. Yet this young couple brought 50 children to live permanently in the United States on the eve of the Holocaust, when restrictive immigration policies made it all but impossible for more than a handful to find freedom here. 50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. and Mrs. Kraus, this year’s Holocaust movie at the Simon Family JCC’s annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, presented by Alma* and Howard Laderberg, tells a dramatic story for the first time. Its creator and director, Steven Pressman, will be at the screening to lead a discussion after this HBO award-nominated film. Elena Baum, director of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Holocaust Commission, will introduce Pressman. Narrated by actor Alan Alda, 50 Children is punctuated by numbers—600: the number of parents of Jewish Viennese children
who applied to the Krauses, and 50: the number of spots available, 25 for girls, 25 for boys. Pressman, learned of this rescue mission from his wife, whose grandmother was the young Eleanor Kraus. Before she died, Kraus typed her memoir—a history about this life altering experience. As a busy investigative reporter, Pressman sat on this remarkable story and didn’t immerse himself in it until several years ago, when he could devote more time to making it into a full documentary. He has also written a book of the same name. The Kraus’ were secular Jews who sent their children to a Quaker school, and unlikely candidates for the mission they assigned themselves. But Gil Kraus felt compelled to do something for these children and persuaded his wife to travel with him to bring some to America. “They had to make the decision that they were going to do something terribly dangerous, maybe risking leaving their (own) children behind as orphans if something went wrong,” says Pressman’s wife Liz Perle, of her grandparents.
“People ask me how two Jews from the United States could march right into Vienna,” says Pressman. “It’s not that kind of story. At the end of the day, Gil and Eleanor did everything above board, and the Nazis were happy to have the Jews leave in large numbers.” The challenge, and what turns into an equally important story, was how to get the children into the U. S. when the climate was less than amenable. Most Americans—including President Franklin Roosevelt—opposed a bill in Congress to increase immigration quotas for thousands of Jewish children living under Nazi rule. “Even some Jewish American leaders, fearful of a backlash and of escalating anti-Semitism, tried to dissuade the couple from their mission,” Pressman says. The 50 children turned out to be the biggest unaccompanied group of minors allowed into the U.S. during the Holocaust. A total of about 1,000 were ultimately let in.
“Compared with the 10,000 kinder transport to England, it’s a sort of depressing figure,” says Pressman. “On the other hand, 50 lives are 50 lives.” An investigative journalist, Pressman tracked down the surviving rescued children, now in their 70s and 80s. He worked with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and archives in Israel to find footage and photos of them, and of rarely shown street scenes from Nazi Germany and Austria. Nine appear in the film, though Pressman believes about two dozen may still be alive. The children safe, Gilbert and Eleanor Kraus resumed their lives in the 1940s, and rarely spoke of what they had done. True heroes, they would be worthy of a CNN Hero of the Year award if the rescue had taken place in 2014. * of blessed memory
Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day 2015: A chance to meet elected officials Date with the State: Wednesday, Feb. 4 Bus departs Sandler Family Campus at 8:45 am, returns by 6 pm CRC Briefing on Date with the State: Wednesday, Jan. 28, 6:30 pm
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ix civic responsibility, democracy, political action, Jewish values and history with a healthy dose of elbow rubbing with powerful people and you’ll get an idea of what it’s like to participate in Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day. Held annually at the General Assembly in Richmond, the event brings representatives from Jewish communities throughout the Commonwealth to hold meetings with their city, county or regional delegates and senators, and to join in a communal lunch. As in years past, the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General have been invited to speak during the lunch hour and
all are expected to attend. In face-to-face meetings, small teams of community members will visit their elected officials’ private offices to share concerns about legislative decisions affecting the community, relay information about crucial programs and agencies and create visible, tangible evidence of a vocal, voting and informed citizenry. The Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater coordinates the area’s delegation. Each year, Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day leaves attendees feeling energized and empowered upon their return to Tidewater
40 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
at the end of the day. The CRC’s Insiders’ Briefing on Wed., Jan. 28, will provide all registered attendees with detailed talking points and lobbying tips for Tidewater Delegation meets with Senator Frank Wagner their Date with the at Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day in 2013. State. It takes place at the Sandler Family Drive, Virginia Beach, VA, 23462, att: CRC— Date With the State, confirms a seat on the Campus at 6:30 pm. $36 helps defray the cost of bus transpor- bus. For more information, or to reserve tation, kosher lunch and materials. A check a seat by Jan. 28, visit www.JewishVA.org/ mailed to UJFT, 5000 Corporate Woods CRCDateWithTheState.
what’s happening Author to speak about his book
Relating the past to the present: Holocaust Commission announces 2015 student competitions
Midnight At the Pera Palace Sunday, Jan. 13, 3 pm, Temple Sinai
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eorgetown University professor Charles King will speak at Temple Sinai about his new book, Midnight at the Pera Palace at Temple Sinai in Newport News. When the Ottoman Empire collapsed after WWI, so many spies mingled in the lobby of Istanbul’s Pera Palace Hotel that the manager posted a sign asking them to relinquish seats to paying guests. As the multi-ethnic empire became a Turkish republic, Russian emigres sold family heirlooms, an African American impresario founded a jazz club, Miss Turkey became the first Muslim beauty queen, a Boston professor unveiled the lost treasures of the Hagia Sophia and desperate refugees arrived on their way to Palestine—one of the largest efforts to rescue the embattled Jews of Europe during the Holocaust. In a sweeping portrait of multicultural Istanbul—Islamic, Christian and Jewish—King re-creates an era when an ancient city became a global crossroads, a forgotten moment
when Europe’s closest Muslim metropolis became its vital port of refuge. At the center of it all was one of the world’s grandest hotels and the untold story of espionage, Charles King jazz and Jewish rescue that unfolded in its hallways and lounges. King is a professor of international affairs at Georgetown University. A frequent media commentator on global issues, he is the author of the highly praised history Odessa: Genius and Death in a City of Dreams, which won the National Jewish Book Award. King’s appearance is the second of four author events presented by Temple Sinai through the Jewish Book Council network. The programs are also made possible by a grant from the UJCVP. For more information or to RSVP, call Temple Sinai 757-596-8352.
Super Sunday Community Phone-a-thon Be Part of Our Next Chapter! Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015, 9 am – 1 pm
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nited Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Annual Super Sunday Community Phone-athon takes place at the Sandler Family Campus. Volunteers are needed for two shifts: 9–11 am and 11 am–1 pm. Sign up at JewishVA.org/SuperSunday, or call 757-965-6111.
Switch Day at Beth Sholom Thursday, Dec. 25, 7 am–3 pm
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ach year on Christmas, Beth Sholom Village’s employees are able to spend the day with their families because of Switch Day. The day is always a “win-win.” Volunteers have a good time, employees get to celebrate Christmas at home and the residents enjoy the change and activities. To volunteer, call Sarah Incheck at 757-961-3054 or e-mail her at sincheck@ bethsholomvillage.com.
E
arlier this month, the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater announced the official start of its 2015 Elie Wiesel Student Writing & Visual Arts Competitions. This is the 18th year the Commission has invited students to enter the writing competition and the 13th year for visual arts. The contests’ namesake is a Jewish Holocaust survivor, Nobel Laureate, and author of 57 books, many with powerful Holocaust themes. Each year the commission receives more than 1,500 entries from area students, and, more recently—thanks to an online presence, out-of-state and foreign entries. Open to middle and high school students, competition categories include poetry, essay, two and three-dimensional art and multimedia. Winners in each category receive cash prizes, recognition at the annual community Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Day of Remembrance program, and, if an art winner, a place in the annual Holocaust Commission student art exhibition. Educators, too, can be winners in the competitions. Teachers who submit a certain percentage of student entries receive incentives, such as classroom sets of books and gift certificates. Sponsored by the Simon Family Foundation (writing) and TowneBank (visual arts), the 2015 Elie Wiesel competitions ask students to frame their entries in response to a series of thought-provoking questions connecting lessons of the Holocaust to present day situations and moral decisions. The Holocaust Commission believes that by learning about the Holocaust and applying its lessons to their lives, students can gain an understanding of the true nature of moral courage. They will realize the dangers of all types of prejudice, peer pressure, and unthinking obedience to authority, and are aware of what happens
The Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater
THE
THE
2015 ELIE WIESEL WRITING COMPETITION
2015 ELIE WIESEL VISUAL ARTS COMPETITION
Sponsored by
Sponsored by
FOR STUDENTS
The Simon Family Foundation
FOR STUDENTS
There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. – ELIE WIESEL
Additional entry forms can be found online through the Elie Wiesel competition link at www.holocaustcommission.org
when there is indifference to the suffering of others. In addition to its Elie Wiesel Competitions, the Holocaust Commission announced the return of Through the Eyes of a Friend, with a limited run from February 2-13. The acclaimed multimedia theatrical presentation is based on Anne Frank’s brief, yet famous, life. Last year a Norfolk teacher saw the show for the first time, and said the incredible performance inspired the students, who “went back to their Elie Wiesel writing contest pieces to ‘tweak’ things after their experience!” Schools pay only a minimal fee for Through the Eyes; Amy Goldberg and the Helen G. Gifford Foundation provide underwriting to offset costs. Early booking is recommended; contact info@holocaustcommission.org to reserve now, or for more information. Remind teachers and students to enter the 2015 Elie Wiesel Student Competitions. Can’t find the forms? Download them at www.holocaustcommission.org. Individual students may enter without a sponsoring teacher. For more information, contact info@holocaustcommission.org.
jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 41
NEED BLOOD WORK? WE COME TO YOU!
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Tidewater Mobile Phlebotomy Service supplies all services of a conventional lab at your location. You never have to go to the lab. Blood drawn where ever you are most comfortable.
December 25, Thursday Breakfast at the Simon Family JCC. Juice, eggs and fresh pancakes made by JCC chefs with special toppings. Eat, create crafts, play games, enjoy inflatables, and have fun with family and friends. 9:30 am–noon. $7 per child; $10 per adult; $34 per family. Members: $5 per child; $8 per adult; $26 per family. A free family friendly movie will be shown at noon. Open 9am–5 pm.
We verify your name, birth and diagnostic codes with our physician’s staff. We deliver specimens to a lab compatible with your insurance
Switch Day at Beth Sholom Village. 7 am–3 pm. Volunteers needed. Call 757-961-3054. See page 41.
DECEMBER 28, SUNDAY Brith Sholom will have a Pre New Year’s Eve dinner at Beth Sholom Village. Entertainment provided by Christopher Jay. $10 for members; $20 for guests. Call Gail for reservations at 461-1150. Reservations and payment must be received by Dec 23.
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January 8, Thursday Ira N. Forman, Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism for the U.S. State Department, will speak on The Rising Tide of Global Anti-Semitim, A Resurgence of Evil at the Sandler Family Campus. 7:30 pm. Call 965-6124. See page 7.
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Tikkun Sunday for Middle School students at the Simon Family JCC. Helping with a community service project, have snacks, see friends and feel good about volunteering.1– 3 pm. Free. 321-2338
Eric Kline Business Development
JCC Membership Open House. Enjoy fun filled activities, inflatables, fitness demonstrations, healthy snacks and more. 12–3 pm. Members: refer a friend and receive $25 off of programs or membership dues. 321-2338.
Danny Kline President
Andy Kline CEO
January 25, Sunday Super Sunday, 9 am–1 pm. Save the date for Tidewater Jewish community’s annual phonea-thon.
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Contact us today at 757-523-0605 or www.paydaypayroll.com 42 |PD-ad-JewishNews-QtrColor-110614.indd Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org 1
JANUARY 11, SUNDAY Discussion: What do Jews do, and what do Jews believe? Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill will facilitate a discussion on Jewish belief and Jewish practice, including examination of which is more important and how they inform Jewish identity. 4661 Priscilla Lane, Virginia Beach, 2 pm.
11/6/14 7:39 PM
February 4, Wednesday Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater travels to Richmond for the annual Jewish Advocacy Day. 8:45 am–6 pm; leaving from the Sandler Family Campus. $36 includes kosher lunch and helps defray transportation. For more information about how to join this year’s Date with the State delegation, or to RSVP (required) by Wednesday, Jan. 28 visit www.JewishVa.org/CRCDateWiththeState. An Insiders’ Briefing, providing all attendees with detailed talking points on the issues and lobbying tips, takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 6:30 pm at the Sandler Family Campus. See page 40. Send submissions for calendar to news@ujft.org. Be sure to note “calendar” in the subject. Include date, event name, sponsor, address, time, cost and phone.
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Achievement Rabbi Israel Zoberman who delivered the opening prayer on Thursday, Dec. 11, of the U. S. Senate session. Jeffrey A. Swartz, a partner at Swartz, Taliaferro, Swartz & Goodove in Norfolk, who was selected for Virginia Business magazine’s “Virginia’s Legal Elite” for 2014 in the category of Criminal Defense. Swartz was selected by his peers and U.S. Senator Mark Warner, Rabbi Israel Zoberman and members of the Virginia Bar Dr. Barry Black, Chaplain of the U.S. Senate. Association. Swartz specializes in Criminal Defense in both State and Federal Courts. Eve Sacha Burton-Poteet, RN, BSN, BSHCM, on her promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Commander, USN. Her father, Commander Joshua Jacob Nelson, (Retired), promoted her. Married to Scott Poteet, they have two children, Josh 11 and Leah 7, who both attended Strelitz Early Childhood Center at the Simon Family JCC.
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Engagement Charlene and David Cohen on the engagement of their daughter, Donna to Asher Kells of Northern Virginia. Donna received a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the University of Maryland, College Park and a MA in mental health from New York University. She is a licensed clinical professional counselor and works with elementary school children in Maryland. Asher received a bachelor of science degree in computer engineering at the University of Arizona and a Juris Doctorate at UCLA. He currently works as a patent examiner for the federal government. A June wedding is planned.
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Mazel Tov submissions should be emailed to news@ujft.org with Mazel Tov in the subject line. Achievements, B’nai Mitzvot, births, engagements and weddings are appropriate simchas to announce. Photos must be at least 300k. Include a daytime phone for questions. There is no fee.
209 34th Street
at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront parking behind building jewishnewsva.org | December 22, 2014 | Jewish News | 43
obituaries Gertrude “Trudy” Jacobs Friedman Norfolk—Gertrude “Trudy” Jacobs Friedman, 82, died Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014 in her residence. She was a New York native and was the daughter of the late Aaron Jacobs and Sophia Freeman Sutton and was preceded in death by her husband Gilbert Reuben Friedman. She graduated from Wilson High School and attended the College of William and Mary. She was vice president of M&G Sales Co., Inc. She was an active member of Temple Emanuel for many years and was a member of its Sisterhood and was a former Sunday School Teacher. She was a member of the B’Nai Brith Women, the League of Women Voters, was a board member of the Norfolk Crime Line, the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce and was a volunteer with the Virginia Beach Law Library and played the piano for the residents of Beth Sholom Home for 17 years. She is survived by her loving children, Laura Buzard of Norfolk and Larry R. Friedman and his wife Carol of Virginia Beach; grandchildren Aaron Friedman and Rachelle Chapman and her husband Chris; and one great grandson, Jeremiah Wycoff. Although she was an only child, she was a mother to many and very close to her dearest relatives, Lois and Barry Einhorn and their children. She had a host of loving friends and acquaintances who will miss her greatly. The family is very grateful to the staff and residents of Beth Sholom Village for their outpouring of genuine love and support.
Two adjacent plots available. David’s Garden Forest Lawn Cemetery $3,000 FOR BOTH (SAVINGS
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The funeral service was held in the Norfolk chapel of H.D. Oliver Funeral Apts with Rabbi Marc Adam Kraus officiating. Burial was in Forest Lawn Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be sent to the Rachelle E. Friedman, Special Needs Trust, P.O. Box 1943, Norfolk, Virginia 23501. Online condolences may be sent to the family at hdoliver.com.
Harry Polay Virginia Beach—Harry Polay, 93, died Dec. 3, 2014. Mr. Polay was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. to the late Rubin and Eva Kramer Polay. He was a member of Norfolk Masonic Lodge #1 for over 50 years and the Khedive Shrine, where he served as the director of the Shrine Golf Club. He is survived by his beloved wife, Gloria Cooper Polay; children, Barbara Clemons, Richard Polay, Rick Cooper (Kimberly), and Lissa Baumann (David); grandchildren, Sara, Jennifer, Alyson, and Hayley; and numerous nieces and nephews who loved him very much. He was predeceased by his first wife, Sue Braun Polay; brother, Ben Polay; and a sister, Honey Gallin. Services were private. Memorial contributions may be made to Shriners Children’s Hospital.
Solomon Ponizovskiy Norfolk—Solomon Ponizovskiy, 82, died Nov. 28, 2014 in Sentara Norfolk General Hospital from multiple myeloma. He was born July 8, 1932 in Kiev, Ukraine. In 1941 when Nazis advanced to occupy Ukraine, his family was fortunate to be evacuated to Ural Mountains because his father worked at the Kiev Arsenal, the largest armaments factory. His father died during WWII in Ural from pneumonia. After the war, Solomon graduated from Kiev Polytechnic Institute. He moved to Moscow, Russia in 1961 and for the rest of his career worked as chief electrical engineer for the city water supply/ water treatment plant. He immigrated to the U.S.A. in 1995 and lived in Norfolk
44 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Granby House. Solomon loved his family and he was strongly dedicated to his work and enjoyed the company of many friends. He loved books, cultural events and his automobile. Solomon lived in the times of Stalinism, World War II, the Holocaust, and statebacked anti-Semitism, but he always was an unwaveringly Jewish man. It was the core of his identity and only in America could he openly be who he truly was. Solomon was predeceased by his parents, Tsilya Sigalova and Abram Ponizovskiy, his brother Isai Sigalov and his sister Lilya Rozhenko. Solomon leaves behind his wife of 53 years, Marina Ponizovskaya, his daughter Yuliya Dobrydneva and her husband Boris, his brother Mikhail Ponizovskiy (Germany), nephew Mikhail Solomonik (Irina), and the apple of his eye, his only grandson, Ilya Dobrydnev. Burial was in Forest Lawn Cemetery with Rabbi Michael Panitz officiating.
Marion Bette Segal Norfolk—Marion Bette Segal passed away peacefully in her home on Dec. 5, 2014 in Long Grove, Ill. She was born in Atlantic City N.J. on Jan 9, 1922 to Israel and Augusta Brown of blessed memory. Bette lived in Philadelphia as a child before the family moved to the Tidewater area and graduated from Maury High School. She retired in the mid 80’s after many years of self-employment as owners of The Garden Lounge & Segal’s Catering. Bette is predeceased by husband Meyer (Mickey) Segal, daughter Nancy Beth Goldstein and sisters Rose Mensh and Leah Abramson, all of blessed memory. Bette is survived by sons Alan (Martha) Segal and Stewart (Renee) Segal, sonin-law Gary Goldstein, Grandchildren Robin Reichert, Ryan Goldstein, Erin (Tim) Whaley, Jeremy (Allyson) Segal, Lisa (Steve) Paul and Alli Segal, Great Grandchildren Rachel Petersen, Jackson and Hannah Whaley, and Riley Segal, brother Oscar Brown, brothers-in-law Joe Segal and Irving Simonoff and a host of nieces and nephews.
Graveside services were held at Forest Lawn Cemetery. Donations to Temple Israel (templeisraelva.org) or to Camp Ramah Darom (www.ramahdarom.org).
Phil Stern, photographer to the stars Photographer Phil Stern, known for his candid shots of Hollywood stars and jazz musicians, has died. Stern died Saturday, Dec. 13 in Los Angeles after an extended hospital stay. He was 95. Stern worked as a combat photographer for the Army newspaper Stars and Stripes during World War II, where he served as a U.S. Army Ranger in the North African and Italian campaigns. He settled in Los Angeles after the war and became a staff photographer for Look magazine. He also worked as one of Life magazine’s top Hollywood photographers. Among the iconic stars he photographed were Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Sammy Davis Jr., Judy Garland, James Dean and John Wayne. He also shot album covers for Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Dizzy Gillespie, among others. Stern, the son of Russian Jewish immigrants to the United States, grew up in New York. He did not believe that he or other photographers should be considered artists. “Matisse I ain’t,” Stern was widely quoted as saying. His work has been displayed for decades at the Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles. (JTA)
Steven Sotloff’s parents light public menorah in his memory The parents of Steven Sotloff, the Jewish journalist who was beheaded by a member of ISIS, lit a public menorah in Miami in his memory. Arthur and Shirley Sotloff lit the first candle of Chanukah on Tuesday, Dec. 16 at the Chabad center. “Steve was a proud Jew who always
obituaries enjoyed the holidays,” Arthur Sotloff told Chabad.org. “It was one of his defining characteristics. “Chanukah is a time we commemorate the vanquishing of our enemies who tried to deprive us of our right to live with Torah. The Maccabees fought for Judaism, and Steve fought for the values they endowed us with.” The directors of the Chabad center in Miami, Rabbi Yossi and Nechama Harlig, got to know the Sotloffs during the shiva period for their son and decided Chanukah would be the appropriate time
to honor the slain journalist, “who sought to bring a little more light and truth to the world,” according to Chabad.org. On Sept. 2, ISIS released a nearly three-minute video showing the beheading of Sotloff. He had been abducted on Aug. 4, 2013, after crossing the Syrian border from Turkey. Sotloff, 31, who grew up in Miami, had articles from Syria, Egypt and Libya featured in publications including Time. com, the World Affairs Journal and Foreign Policy. He also freelanced for The Jerusalem Post and the Jerusalem Report
magazine. It was revealed after his death that Sotloff held Israeli citizenship. His connections to Israel and the Jewish community reportedly had been sanitized from the Internet and social media in order to keep the information from his radical Islamic captors. Sotloff, a grandson of Holocaust survivors, made aliyah in 2005. His parents have established The 2Lives Steven Joel Sotloff Memorial Foundation to provide scholarships for journalism students. (JTA)
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appreciation
Award-winning yet humble, Jewish culinary expert Gil Marks nourished food lovers by Hillel Kuttler
BALTIMORE (JTA)—Gil Marks baked. He cooked. He authoritatively discussed culinary traditions—traditions, period—of Jews from seemingly every culture. Trained as a rabbi and social worker, he earned prestigious awards for writing cookbooks yet remained supremely humble. He had a slightly high-pitched voice. I knew none of this five years ago when I came upon his name, overwhelmed like a pinch of salt in a bowlful of ingredients, amid the prodigious clan produced by Harold and Beverly Marks. “Gilbert Stanley Marks, born in 1952 in Charleston, W.Va., unmarried, no children” was his one-line entry on a 19-page family tree prepared by our cousin in Washington state. His brother, a Baltimorean, referred me to Gil, a resident of Manhattan’s Upper West Side, when I sought information for research on our extended family. That
led to our long conversation that night, two meetings when Gil visited Baltimore, occasional phone calls, periodic emails and multiple Facebook messages. Many people consider fourth cousins— our common great-great-great-grandfather, Zeev Alkovitzky, of Lithuania was born in about the 1830s—distant relatives. But Gil and I connected immediately. We reveled in genealogy and Jewish history. We emailed our articles to each other. We both enjoyed cooking, I deign to state in the manner of someone painting by numbers proclaiming that he, like Monet, is an artist. Gil won the James Beard Foundation Award, for goodness sake, for authoring Olive Trees and Honey: A Treasury of Vegetarian Recipes from Jewish Communities Around the World, and contended for a second with The Encyclopedia of Jewish Food, a masterpiece. “There were so many books in him and
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46 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
a lot more he could’ve contributed to the world,” says Rita Rosenkranz, his agent of more than a decade. Gil’s death Friday, Dec. 5 at 62 hardly shocked those who knew him, given his three-year fight with lung cancer and his public sharing of the ordeal. While not a smoker, he didn’t bemoan his affliction, just presented it matter-of-factly. Numerous Facebook posts on his medical treatment or pharmaceutical regimen all began thus: “The Saga Continues.” Far more posts kvelled over his beloved nieces and nephews regularly visiting Alon Shvut, where Gil lived in an apartment at his parents’ home during extended stays in Israel. So many more posts covered food: the Shabbat dinner menu he’d just prepared, Passover desserts he baked, magazine articles, cooking lessons given as bat mitzvah presents. Last summer, as Gil’s condition worsened, some posts overlapped. On Sept. 1, he began taking medical marijuana: dissolved in olive oil in the afternoon, in a capsule at bedtime. “For weeks before starting the marijuana, I was unable to eat or function. Overnight—with a single drop—my condition changed and subsequently I have been able to eat and actually enjoy food.… The improvements in my life since I was introduced to marijuana cannot be overstated,” he wrote. An ailing foodie appreciating taste once more, dayenu—that would’ve sufficed. But Gil couldn’t resist shifting to culinary-educator mode. “By the way, for those of you who asked about marijuana brownies, here is the story”—he began in a fascinating paragraph covering Alice Toklas and a Peter Sellers film involving pot brownies. About the only thing missing was the baking temperature. Gil enthralled, too, during a weekend’s scholar-in-residence stint at my synagogue in June 2012, highlighted by a Saturdaynight tasting that paired chocolates and wines. Los Angeles-based food writer Tori Avey, whose website includes recipes inspired by
the past, enticed Gil to contribute monthly columns. He wrote on American cakes and their background—the subject of his last book, which Rosenkranz is shopping to publishers. “I thought it was a fantastic idea, and my readers agreed,” Avey says of Gil’s cake columns, the last two of which (on Black Forest Cherry Cake and on Molten Chocolate Cake) will run in January. “They brought up a lot of nostalgic feelings for people who have grown up cooking and eating these treats.” Somehow, Gil performed his culinary magic on a tiny stove in a small kitchen “where you couldn’t sit down,” says Barry List, a longtime friend, who saw pots stored in the living room and platters cooling on the couch in Gil’s Manhattan apartment. In a telephone conversation last spring, Gil told me he’d begun giving away choice cookware to New York-area nieces and nephews. He understood that experimental drugs were a long shot and said, convincingly, “I’m not afraid of dying.” He seemed gratified that loved ones desired the tools of his trade. Last week, a friend visited Gil at a Jerusalem hospice and had him autograph her Olive and Encyclopedia books. She posted a photo showing Gil signing while in bed wearing a hospital gown and a skull-encompassing kipah. The autograph request pleased him, she wrote. As I penned this article, a pot of soup bubbled on my stove. There was no recipe—just flanken bones, chopped carrots, green beans, onions and potatoes; and lentils, barley, peas and beans, a winter’s staple my mom used to make. I lowered the flame, and as it simmered I discovered some old emails from Gil. One carried the subject line “Hillel’s soup question”—about this very soup. I’d asked what spices would provide richer flavor. Gil offered a paragraph each of suggestions for Italian mixed-herb, Yemenite, basic and sweet-spiced flavors. “I hope,” he wrote, “this has been of help.” The soup, Gil, is comfort food.
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PHOEBUS AUCTION GALLERY
TWO NEW YEARS DAY AUCTIONS Exotic, Elegant, and Extravagant Thursday, January 1, 2015 • 10:00am Sunday, January 4, 2015 • 10:00am Wonderful Collection of Venerable Treasures for Your Home. WILD & WOOLY: CHIHULY 2 PC. PERSIAN, 7’ ALASKAN GRIZZLY BEAR, SWEDISH BIEDERMEIER SECRETAIRE A ABATTANT (1825-1850), MIRROR BALL 60” RECUMBENT DISCO BULL, DELFINO QUAD-CYCLE BEACH CRUISER FOR 6+2, RUSSIAN BRONZE TROIKA S/E LANCERE, ELCO WORKING SLOT MACHINE, Fire Hydrant from Ft. Monroe, 6 1/2’ Nutcracker, Concrete Garden Pagoda Lamp, Hermes Scarf in Box, Time Crisis Video Game, Contemporary Bronze Sculpture by Monk, Black Memorabilia, Hand Carved Navajo Dolls, Unusual Pendleton Wool Blankets, 1915 National Cash Register Candy Store Register. ASIAN: Antique Bridal (Opium) Bed, Gold Leaf Buddha with Jewels, Coll. Signed Wood Block Prints, Various Sizes, Styles, and Ages of Tables, Stands, and Accessories, 6 Panel 18th C. Korean Painted Screen, Pottery, Ceramics, Baskets, Four Piece Large Altar, Coromandel Screen. FURNITURE: 19th C. Rosewood Barley Twist Chair, Marble & Carved Wooden Blackamoor Center Table, 19th C. Tudor Revival Figural Bedroom Set, Maitland Smith Inlaid Table, 19th C. Painted Desk & Chair, Two Pc. Mahog. Secretary-made in Iowa-Built 6 only 1941-1942, Late 18t C. Slant front Desk, Pa. House Chairs, Pr. Heywood Wakefield Wicker Rockers, Pr. Inlaid Side Chairs, Va. Galleries Queen Cherry Bedroom Set, Northern Furn. Chest., Microfiber Chaise, Maddox Leather Top Desk, 7 Pc. French Style Inlaid Bedroom Suite, Chair From 1st Class SS United States, Louis XV Style Pedestal, Desk, Tables, Cabinets, 19th Pillared Library Table, M.T. Tables, 19th C. Center Tables, our collection of Mid-C. Modern Furniture incls. Douglas Deeds Table & Chairs, Herman Miller Cabinet. POTTERY: Rookwood, Weller LaSa & Louwelsa, Marta Ramirez, Amphora, Roseville, More. GLASS: Chihuly, Steuben American Flag, Daisy & Fern Cranberry Jar, Coll. Swarovski Figures, Set Cobalt Glass Dinnerware, Paperweights, Mirrored Room Divider, Various Clear Crystal Table Items. PORCELAINS & CERAMICS: Two KPM Plaques, Royal Worcester Flower Bowl, Lladros, Meissen Figure, Dresden, Sets of Dinnerware Include Hand Painted Artist Signed Floral , Castleton, Lenox “Tuxedo”, Noritake, More, Monumental 57”T Fragonard Covered Urn, Architectural Shelves, More. LIGHTING: Fulper Lamp with Arts & Crafts Slag Shade., Pairs of Table Lamps, Millefiore Jester Lamp, Metal Rose Sculpture Floor Lamp, Collection of Mid Century Modern Lamps and Chandeliers. FINE ART: C. Kello O/C, Tess, O/C, S. Giolitti, “Nude”, R. Sechrist, O/C, Matching A. Villanieiua O/C, Three John Alan Stock Watercolors, 10’x7’ Ruben-eske Political Bacchanalia Cartoon CA 1930, Janner 1915 Litho “Castle”, E. Forbes Litho “Going into Action”, Hibble Crayon “Flower Seller”, Luigi Di Giovanni Watercolor, New Mexican Penitente Sect 4 Panel Chalk Decorated Screen, Pair of Kazarian O/C, Many Japanese Woodblocks, Modern and 19th C. Tapestries, Oriental Screens, Print by Yaakob Agam. FINE JEWELRY: Gold and Diamond Jewelry Incl. Nearly Flawless 1 ct. Diamond Ring, 18K Gold Tiffany Pocket Watch, Tiffany 18 K Charm, Rings, Necklaces, Sapphires, More. MAN CAVE: Sonoma Grill, Lionel Trains, Ship Models, Masonic Regalia, Weapons, Defender 12 GA. Shotgun, Pistols & Swords, Silver Coins, Power Tools, CRAFTSMAN Planer, Drill Press, Radial Saw, Specialty Tools PLUS: Mirrors, Oriental Rugs (Vintage & Modern), Sterling Silver Tablewares, Backgammon, Bakelite Mah Jong & Figural Chess Set, MORE STILL COMING IN EVERY
Preview 11am-5pm, December 26 until auction, it’s a must.
PHOEBUS AUCTION GALLERY
18 East Mellen St, Hampton, VA • 757-722-9210 Exit 268 off 1-64, Left at light, Right on Mellen St.
“We Recycle the Finest”
Catalogue with pictures at www.phoebusauction.com & www.liveauctioneers.com Terms: 17% BP, MC, Visa, Discover, 2% Discount Cash/Check Day of Auction Only
48 | Jewish News | December 22, 2014 | jewishnewsva.org
Vaar #1597,Vaaf #733