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Southeastern Virginia | Vol. 59 No. 16 | 20 Sivan 5781 | May 31, 2021
CONFLICT IN ISRAEL • Cease fire holds • Iron Dome keeps Israel safe • Reactions from local connections in Israel • Acts of anti-Semitism rise
2 UJFT/Simon Family JCC Biennial Meeting Tuesday, June 15
15 Strelitz brothers inspire generations
24 Lisa Novick Goldberg Monday, June 14 Zoom
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Dads Supplement to Jewish News May 31, 2021
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | Dads | Jewish News | 13
Fishing Derby at Lake Sandler reels in fun
Celebrate Community 2021
Biennial Meeting & Installation of Officers
Tuesday, June 15
6:30 pm: Reception | 7 pm: Program Outside on the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach
Nomination and Election of New UJFT President _ Laura Geringer Gross Recognition of Outgoing President _ Amy Moss Levy Awards to Outgoing Leadership • General Campaign Chair,
2019 – 2021 _ Jodi Klebanoff
• Young Adult Division (YAD) Chair,
2019 – 2021 _ Danny Rubin
Special Community Awards • Joseph H. Strelitz Community Service Award
presented collectively to volunteers who went above and beyond during the pandemic • Harry Graber Award for Outstanding Achievement in Jewish Communal Service _ Lorna Orleans
Acknowledgment of Outgoing Board Members and Welcoming New Board Members
RSVP required to Wynston Hammack: whammack@ujft.org or 757.965.6124 Kosher hors d’oeuvres served at reception • Covid safety protocols will be in place 2 | JEWISH NEWS | May 31, 2021 | jewishnewsva.org
LETTER
UPFRONT
UJFT opens Israel Emergency Fund
T
he brutal 11-day attack by Hamas on Israeli citizens demonstrated to the world just how fragile peace is between Israel and its neighbors. It also was a reminder for United Jewish Federation of Tidewater to unequivocally reaffirm its support of the State of Israel’s right to defend itself. The loss of life, destruction, disruption, and wounds—physical and emotional—that resulted from this conflict were all reasons to mourn. But UJFT did and does more than mourn, worry, and make statements. As always, Federation is working with its global partners such as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), and others, to ensure that those impacted by this violence receive urgent, critical help. To enable that help to arrive, UJFT opened the Tidewater Israel Emergency Fund. To give, go to JewishVa.org or https://tinyurl. com/IsraelFund. All gifts to this Fund will go towards meeting immediate needs. In addition, UJFT’s Jewish Community Relations Council, which serves as a resource to the community, offers a resource page (https://tinyurl.com/IsraelResources) with current updates, expert analysis, educational opportunities, official statements, and more to help navigate the complexities of the region and context surrounding the current escalation. UJFT will keep the community apprised of its efforts. Thank you in advance for your contributions and expressions of support for Israel.
JEWISH NEWS jewishnewsva.org
To the Editor:
I
was appalled and offended by Joe Baur’s article: “This Hungarian coffee cake is even better than babka.” Such an obscenity has never been seen on the pages of the Jewish News, and hopefully never will again. How can anyone who knows anything about confectionery suggest that babka is not at the top of the sweet yeast bread pyramid? Evidently this author knows nothing of these things. Baur refers to aranygaluska as a ”Bundt cake without the doughnut hole.” You know what you call a Bundt cake without a hole? A cake! And a boring one at that! That’s what the aranygalusaka is—just a cake—as is any combination of flour, egg and sugar when compared to the superior babka. Baur said he found the recipe in a Betty Crocker cookbook. Let’s be honest—how can any Jewish baked goods recipe be worth its weight in flour if it came out of a Betty Crocker cookbook? Does Betty sound like someone who grew up on Erzsébet körút? Consider this: do you know who popularized this dessert? Nancy Regan. Need I say more? And coffee cake? Really? What kind of Jewish dessert can be eaten with coffee? Let’s be honest, if you’ve eaten a properly made chocolate babka, your fingers will be in no condition to hold a coffee cup. When done right, each translucent tendril of babka is a piece of moist cake infused with, and covered by, a chocolate ganache-like concoction. It’s as if you subjected a unicorn made out of dough to an inhuman fudge gavage until it exploded over a chocolate syrup sea and then twisted the flotsam into double-helix loaf. And then ate it in one sitting. And Baur’s deconstructed cinnamon roll is better? If you keep printing articles like this, I can think of only one food-related use for your publication: wrapping fish.* Regards, Joel Nied
About the cover: Iron Dome interceptions of Hamas rockets in Ashdod, in southern Israel.
Upfront: Israel Emergency Fund. . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Letter to Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Briefs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Rep. Luria asks President Biden to fight anti-Semitism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Thank Congressional leaders for supporting Israel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 What is the Iron Dome? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Israel and Hamas agree to ceasefire . . . . . . . . . . 7 Life in Israel from people in Israel with local connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Anti-Semitic acts in US increase. . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Congregation Beth El helps homeless. . . . . . . . 11 Special Section: Celebrating Dads. . . . . . . . . . . 13
Neal Bascomb to speak on his book about a racecar story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Leonard and Joseph “Buddy” Strelitz make lasting imprint on family and community. . 15 Rubins sign the Jewish Future Pledge. . . . . . . . 20 A fond farewell to TJF’s Kaitlyn Oelsner. . . . . . 21 Women’s Cabinet spring event inspires . . . . . . 22 JCC Camp is hiring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 What’s Happening. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Mazel Tov . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Fishing derby reels in fun. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
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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 Terri Denison, Editor Germaine Clair, Art Director Lisa Richmon, Staff Writer Sandy Goldberg, Account Executive Ronnie Jacobs Cohen, Account Executive Marilyn Cerase, Subscription Manager Reba Karp, Editor Emeritus United Jewish Federation of Tidewater Amy Levy, President Alvin Wall, Treasurer Stephanie Calliott, Secretary Betty Ann Levin, Executive Vice-President jewishVA.org 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. ©2021 Jewish News. All rights reserved. Subscription: $18 per year
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Upcoming Deadlines for Editorial and Advertising
*Editor’s Note: How about Gefilte Fish?
CONTENTS
Published 20 times a year by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.
June 14 Healthcare June 28 June 28 Seniors June 11 July 19 Guide to Jewish Living July 2 August 23 Rosh Hashannah August 6 Sept. 6 Yom Kipper August 20 Sept. 27 Legal August 20
CANDLE LIGHTING
QUOTABLE
Friday, May 28/17 Sivan Light candles at 7:58 pm
We also reject comments from Members of Congress accusing Israel of being an “apartheid state” and committing “act[s] of terrorism.” —page 5
Friday, June 4/24 Sivan Light candles at 8:03 pm Friday, June 11/1 Tammuz Light candles at 8:06 pm Friday, June 18/8 Tammuz Light candles at 8:09 pm Friday, June 18/8 Tammuz Light candles at 8:09 pm Friday, July 2/22 Tammuz Light candles at 8:10 pm
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | JEWISH NEWS | 3
BRIEFS ISRAEL IS ENDING ITS COVID RESTRICTIONS AND STARTING TO ALLOW TOURISTS BACK Israel will end its coronavirus restrictions on businesses and allow small groups of foreign tourists to visit within weeks in the wake of the world’s quickest vaccination program. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein said that he will not renew any coronavirus limitations in June. According to Reuters, the country saw only 12 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, May 22, in contrast to a high of 10,000 per day in January. “The economy and the citizens of Israel will get extra room to breathe,” Edelstein said. The requirement to wear facemasks indoors could be lifted within two weeks, as well. Israel is also preparing to let 20 groups of tourists enter the country in mid-June. The first groups will be five to 30 people at a time from Great Britain, the United States, and Germany. The hope is to allow more groups and eventually individuals in the following weeks. The visitors will be tested for COVID upon their arrival. Meanwhile, three large U.S. airlines that had suspended flights to Israel amid the military conflict with Gaza said that they are resuming the service, The Associated Press reported. The airlines are Delta, United, and American Airlines. Israel has vaccinated about 55% of its total population. (JTA) BBC PALESTINIAN JOURNALIST SHOWN TO HAVE TWEETED #HITLERWASRIGHT IN 2014 A journalist for the BBC based in Ramallah in 2014 tweeted “#HitlerWasRight” about Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza. Honest Reporting, an Israeli organization whose mission statement is “promoting fairness and accuracy in media coverage of Israel,” offered a screen capture of a tweet by Tala Halawa, whose account on the LinkedIn social network lists her as a “Digital Journalist at BBC Monitoring,” a position she began in 2017. Halawa was credited on the BBC website for participating in the writing
of an article titled Israel-Gaza violence: The children who have died in the conflict between Hamas and Israel, which reached a ceasefire following 11 days of fighting. In 2014, she was working for 24FM, a Palestinian radio station. Reacting to earlier hostilities between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, she wrote on Twitter: “#Israel is more #Nazi than #Hitler! Oh, #HitlerWasRight #IDF go to hell. #prayForGaza.” “These tweets predate the individual’s employment with the BBC, but we are nevertheless taking this very seriously and are investigating,” a BBC spokesperson said in response to a query by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Halawa had worked for six months as a researcher for The New Yorker, according to her LinkedIn account, before taking up a position with the BBC. (JTA)
NATIONAL JEWISH GROUPS URGE BIDEN TO CALL OUT ANTI-SEMITISM INSPIRED BY GAZA CONFLICT An array of national Jewish groups called on Joe Biden to speak out against what the Anti-Defamation League has described as a recent spike in anti-Semitic attacks linked to the latest Israeli war in Gaza. Biden had yet to address the incidents, and did not mention them on Thursday, May 20 when he welcomed the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. The attacks have included assaults on Jews by pro-Palestinian protesters. “Use your bully pulpit to call out anti-Semitism,” said the letter sent Friday, May 21 jointly by the Jewish Federations of North America, the ADL, the American Jewish Committee, Hadassah, and the Orthodox Union. “Harness the authority of the Presidency and the United States Government to speak out loudly and clearly against anti-Semitism.” Biden was outspoken as a candidate in denouncing the spike in anti-Semitism during the Trump administration, and specifically called out President Donald Trump for equivocating in denouncing white supremacists and anti-Semites. The letter also called on Biden to name a liaison to the Jewish community and to nominate a State Department
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anti-Semitism monitor. Biden has been slow to fill key posts in his administration as he tackles the coronavirus pandemic and seeks to resuscitate the economy wounded by the pandemic. The letter also called on Biden not to rescind Trump’s December 2019 executive order defining Jews as a protected class and combating anti-Semitism. That order is controversial because it adopts a definition of anti-Semitism that a number of groups on the left says is too broad in describing forms of Israel criticism as anti-Semitic. The letter also called on Biden to further increase security funding for nonprofits, which Congress substantially increased last year.
PRESIDENT BIDEN: ATTACKS ON JEWISH COMMUNITY ‘MUST STOP’ President Joe Biden on Monday, May 24 condemned attacks on Jews in the United States and overseas, saying “they must stop.” His pronouncement on Twitter came days after leading national Jewish organizations urged him to speak out. (See previous Brief) “The recent attacks on the Jewish community are despicable, and they must stop,” Biden tweeted. “I condemn this hateful behavior at home and abroad— it’s up to all of us to give hate no safe harbor.” Attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions in the United States appear to have spiked since the launch of hostilities between Israel and Hamas. The Biden administration helped Egypt broker a ceasefire, but the attacks on Jewish communities abroad have continued. (JTA) 30 YEARS SINCE OPERATION SOLOMON Last week, The Jewish Agency for Israel marked the 30th anniversary of Operation Solomon. To date, it’s the largest-ever individual Aliyah mission undertaken from any country in the world. More than 14,300 Ethiopian Jews were airlifted on 35 aircrafts from Addis Ababa (Ethiopia’s capital) to Israel in less than 36 hours during this historic military operation.
The Jewish Agency and the government of Israel led in planning and executing Operation Solomon, working alongside JAFI partners, including Israel Defense Forces, the American Joint Distribution Committee, the American Association for Ethiopian Jews, the Jewish Federations of North America (then UJA), and more. JAFI teams handled the required documentation, managed transportation and logistics on the ground in Ethiopia, and provided housing upon arrival in Israel. To support the operation, American Jewry raised $35 million in just hours to cover the payment demanded by the Ethiopian government to allow the Jews to leave the country.
FITNESS ENTHUSIASTS VOLUNTEER TO ESCORT LA JEWS TO SHABBAT SERVICES Remi Franklin thought about his two communities and realized there could be a match: His pals at the gym might want to volunteer to walk with Los Angelesarea Jews who were fearful of attending services on Shabbat following attacks on Jews in the city during the latest IsraelHamas war. The Los Angeles Times interviewed Franklin while he was greeting congregants at an Orthodox synagogue and asking them if they wanted a walk home. Franklin, a jiujitsu practitioner who according to the Forward is coordinating his volunteer effort with Magen Am, a security service for the Jewish community, told the Times a lot of friends signed up. He said his effort has recruited Jews and non-Jews, including practitioners of jiujitsu, boxing and mixed martial arts. “We have ladies who are former dancers and gymnasts,” he told the Times. Earlier this month, pro-Palestinian attackers threw punches and bottles at diners at a sushi restaurant in Los Angeles. Among the volunteers Franklin recruited was Jonathan Lipnicki, who starred as a child in Jerry Maguire and is now a Brazilian jiujitsu black belt. He said he attends Shabbat dinners hosted by Franklin. “It’s a scary time for the Jewish community,” Lipnicki, who is Jewish, told the Times. (JTA)
UPFRONT
Congresswoman Elaine Luria joins group asking President Biden to fight anti-Semitism
A
group of moderates, including Congresswoman Elaine Luria, sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Tuesday, May 25, condemning a series of comments they deem as anti-Semitic. They write: “We are deeply disturbed by the recent surge of antisemitic incidents in the United States. We appreciate your Administration’s commitment to combat antisemitism in all its forms by continuing to work with us to address this scourge. We also know that this issue is deeply important to you and your family. “We believe we need a united, all-of-government effort to combat rising antisemitism in this country.” The letter then details incidents across the country. The letter continues: “It is undeniable that this increase in antisemitic incidents has coincided with recent conflict in the
Middle East. It must be made clear that there is simply no excuse whatsoever for harassing or targeting people because they are Jewish. Blaming Jews for conflict in the Middle East or seeking to hold them collectively responsible for Israel’s government policies is antisemitic, and it is wrong. Given that Jews in Europe and around the world have faced a similar increase in threats in recent weeks coinciding with the conflict, we also urge you to swiftly nominate an experienced and qualified United States Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.” Without using specific names, the letter calls out members of Congress of both parties: “At the same time, elected officials have used reckless, irresponsible antisemitic rhetoric. These include repeated, unacceptable, and blatantly antisemitic
statements made by a Member of Congress comparing facemasks and other COVID-19 public health measures to “what happened in Nazi Germany” during the Holocaust. “We also reject comments from Members of Congress accusing Israel of being an “apartheid state” and committing “act[s] of terrorism.” These statements are antisemitic at their core and contribute to a climate that is hostile to many Jews. We must never forget that less than eighty years ago, within the lifetime of our parents and grandparents, six million people were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust because they were Jews. Israel has long provided the Jewish people with a homeland in which they can be safe after facing centuries of persecution. “Sadly, we have learned from our history that when this type of violence and
inf lammator y rhetoric goes unaddressed, it can fuel increasing hatred and violence, and lead to unspeakable acts against Jews. That is why we Congresswoman Elaine Luria need a united, bipartisan, national-level commitment to confront and address the threat of antisemitism head-on. Antisemitism is wrong, and it deserves to be unequivocally condemned by all.” The letter is signed by Representatives Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), Kathy Manning (D-N.C.), Elaine G. Luria (D-Va.), and Dean Phillips (D-Minn.).
JEWISH COMMUNITY RELATIONS COUNCIL It’s always a good time to say thank you Rabbi Batya Glazer
I
t is important to thank members of Congress who have spoken in support of Israel’s right to self-defense and condemned Hamas rocket attacks. This is an opportunity to let Congressional leaders know that their support for Israel matters and is appreciated. Several members of Tidewater’s Congressional delegation made statements standing with Israel and condemning the attacks. Read their statements below and then take a minute to call each office to say ‘thank you’ for standing with America’s ally, Israel, and for taking a stand against terrorism. It is imperative for the United States to stand with Israel as it defends itself from Hamas, an Iranian-backed terrorist organization. Over 11 days, Hamas and other Iranian-backed Palestinian terrorist groups in Gaza indiscriminately fired more than 4,000 rockets at Israel—killing and injuring innocent Israeli and Palestinian civilians. Rocket attacks on innocent civilians must be condemned. Representatives want to hear from their constituents and the Jewish Community
Relations Council knows from experience that a thank you goes a long way. Thank YOU for taking the time to engage in this important civic action. Activism is essential for encouraging elected officials to stand with the Jewish state and support policies that ensure the safety and security of both the United States and Israel. “The U.S. has a moral obligation to stand with our ally Israel, and Israel has an unequivocal right to defend itself against rocket attacks. Leaders on both sides need to take responsibility for their role in escalating this needless violence—before more innocent lives are lost.” —Senator Mark Warner, (757) 441-3079 “The right of Israel to defend its citizens cannot be questioned.” —Rep. Donald McEachin (757) 942-6050 “The United States must always stand alongside our Israeli allies.” —Rep. Rob Wittman (804) 443-0668 “My heart is with the Israeli people as they
shelter from rockets fired by terrorists in the Gaza strip. The current situation highlights the importance of American security assistance to Israel, as Iron Dome is intercepting many of these rockets and saving lives. As a sovereign nation and our strongest democratic ally in the Middle East, Israel must defend itself from terrorist attacks and Hamas must end their deadly assault.” —Rep. Elaine Luria (757) 364-7650 “Throughout history—the Jew has never been safe. People have demonized, ostracized, and murdered Jews for millennia. From the ashes of the Holocaust, the massacre of 6 million of our brethren, Jews returned to their ancestral homeland to build an oasis in the desert— a democracy of their own. Jews, persisted, even in the face of the ultimate evil. And today—in their rightful homeland, they are attacked from within. Some call them villains for defending their homes and their families; for not turning a cheek and a blind eye to terror and bombings and missiles raining down. Who would turn a cheek when their mere
right to exist is questioned? Or turn a blind eye when history has been so unforgiving? Not you and not the Israelis. And we—as Americans, and me—as an American and a Jew—must stand for what is right. Must declare: That Israel has a right to exist. That Israel has the inherent right to defend itself. That we have a duty, as Americans, to stand by the side of Israel in the face of attacks from terrorists and suicide bombers and malign regimes—who again, have the same goal in mind: to kill Jews. That now is the time to stand with Israel.” —Rep. Elaine Luria Remarks on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives (757) 364-7650 United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Jewish Community Relations Council shares current updates, expert analysis, educational opportunities, official statements, and more to help navigate the complexities of the region and context surrounding the current escalation on their resource page, JewishVA.org/IsraelMay21. To learn more about the JCRC’s work or to get involved, visit JewishVA.org/JCRC or email Rabbi Batya Glazer, director, at BGlazer@ujft.org.
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | JEWISH NEWS | 5
ISRAEL
What is the Iron Dome? All about the missile defense system that changed how Israelis experience war Ben Sales
( JTA)—Overnight between Thursday, May 13 and Friday, May 14, an arresting image appeared on social media: On the right, streaks of fire shot out into the night sky—rockets heading for a group of buildings illuminated in the darkness. But on the other side of the photo, another cluster of lights, spread out like the tentacles of a jellyfish, was there to meet each of the rockets and knock it down before it could cause any damage. The photo captured the Iron Dome, a missile defense system introduced in Israel a decade ago that has fundamentally changed how its wars are fought. The Iron Dome is a radar-guided tool that allows Israel to pinpoint and intercept missiles headed for its civilian areas, which enables ordinary Israelis to survive, and even live their lives, in the midst of an unending barrage of rocket fire from militant groups in Gaza. Twelve Israeli civilians died in this month’s fighting, and Israelis still needed to run to bomb shelters when under fire. But, the Iron Dome has intercepted 90% of Gaza rockets that were headed toward populated areas, rendering the vast majority of the more than 4,000 rockets fired by militant groups ineffective. Here’s what the Iron Dome is, how it works—and why its success has sparked criticism of Israel. Iron Dome uses radars to stop incoming missiles. On the ground, the Iron Dome looks like a set of beige columns arranged in a box, tilted onto their side and placed on wheels. But the technology that makes it so valuable is a radar that is able to pick bombs out of the sky. The Iron Dome’s radar technology, manufactured in the United States, works in four steps: First, it identifies projectiles in the sky. Then, it determines whether the projectile is a bird, an airplane, or a bomb. Then comes the most crucial part: It determines
the arc of the missile, which allows it to find both the target and the missile launcher. Then, if the missile is headed toward a populated area, the system directs its own bomb to intercept the missile and explode it before it Iron Dome launcher at the Israeli Air Force exhibition at Ramat David AFB on Israel’s 69th Independence Day, May 2, 2017. lands. The entire process is automatic and takes a couple War in 2014, the Obama administration minutes, an Israeli weapons manufacturer provided $225 million in aid to fund the told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency in system’s continued operation. In 2018, the 2013. The batteries can be moved around Trump administration provided another or stationed permanently in one location. $705 million. It isn’t foolproof. Hamas has sent barrages of more than 100 rockets in a short It means Israelis can (kind of) continue span of time at individual cities, which to live their lives during a war. means that, even if Iron Dome is 90% Before the Iron Dome, Israelis had to rely effective, some bombs get through. And on warning sirens and bomb shelters to even when the system catches the rockets, protect them, which gave them, in some shrapnel still falls to the ground. cases, a matter of seconds to find shelter. That’s why Israelis still run to shelAs Palestinian militants’ missiles ters every time sirens go off, warning of became more precise and traveled farther incoming missiles. distances, targeting not just Gaza border cities but Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, the Iron It was built and maintained Dome played an increasingly essential with U.S. funding. role for a growing number of Israelis. The Iron Dome was built and has been It was first deployed in 2011, and was maintained with billions of dollars in used constantly in Israel’s conflicts with funding from the United States. It was Gaza in 2012, 2014 and since. first approved in 2007, and shot down While Israelis still run for cover every its first missiles in 2011. Each Iron Dome time a siren wails, and while civilians are interceptor costs an estimated $40,000, still killed, the Iron Dome has allowed and in prolonged conflicts with Hamas, society to continue functioning at a lower Israel uses it hundreds of times. risk. But as Hamas’ missile technology As of 2018, the U.S. spent more than improves, it’s possible that the Iron Dome $6 billion on missile defense aid to Israel, could become less effective. which covers Iron Dome and other, simAs of now, though, Israelis are grateful. ilar systems. In the middle of the Gaza During the 2014 war, Israelis could buy a
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t-shirt in the “I love NY” style that replaced “NY” with a picture of an Iron Dome battery. Gaza does not have an equivalent system for its population. While Israelis love the Iron Dome for protecting them from bombs, Palestinians and their advocates have said that the system creates a disparity in the fighting: Gaza residents have no such protection from Israeli airstrikes, such that Palestinian death tolls are consistently far higher in Gaza during conflicts. During this conflict, more than 200 Palestinians and 12 Israelis died. In the 2014 conflict, more than 2,100 Palestinians and more than 70 Israelis died. But in the previous war in Gaza, fought in 2008–09, before the Iron Dome was developed, the death toll was similarly lopsided: nearly 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis. Still, along with accusing Israel of targeting civilians in its strikes, critics of Israeli actions say that the lack of protections in Gaza leads to an unjust divide. Rep. Ilhan Omar called Israeli airstrikes “terrorism” and lamented on Twitter this month that Palestinians did not have Iron Dome. “Israeli air strikes killing civilians in Gaza is an act of terrorism,” she tweeted. “Palestinians deserve protection. Unlike Israel, missile defense programs, such as Iron Dome, don’t exist to protect Palestinian civilians.” Israeli officials say the fact that Israel has invested in alliances and technology that protect their citizenry should not be cause for blame. “The fact that there aren’t more casualties in Israel does not mean that Hamas isn’t trying to kill Israeli civilians,” the Israel Defense Forces tweeted. “It simply means that the IDF is preventing them from doing so at an incredible level.”
ISRAEL
Israel and Hamas agree to ceasefire after 11 days of bloodshed Gabe Friedman, Ben Sales
(JTA)—After 11 days of fighting, Israel and Hamas agreed to a “mutual and simultaneous” ceasefire on Thursday, May 20 that began at 2 a.m. Friday Israel time. Israel’s security cabinet unanimously approved the truce, after military officials presented what they deemed the successful outcomes of their campaign. A Hamas official confirmed the news to Reuters. Israeli forces “achieved military goals unprecedented in their strength, accuracy and strategic significance in their fight against terror organizations in the Gaza Strip” tweeted Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. “The reality on the ground will determine our course of action.” The ceasefire was mediated by Egypt and supported by the United States and other countries. On Thursday, May 20, Vice President Kamala Harris tweeted that she spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah about “our intensive diplomatic efforts to support the path to a ceasefire in Gaza.” President Joe Biden had added to the international pressure on Wednesday, May 19, stating on a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he expected “de-escalation” within a day. Speaking from the White House Thursday, May 20, Biden reiterated the United States’ support of Israel’s right to defend itself, and thanked Egypt for its work on the ceasefire. He said the U.S. would work with the Palestinian Authority, but not Hamas, to deliver funds to rebuild Gaza. “I believe the Palestinians and Israelis equally deserve to live safely and securely and to enjoy equal measures of freedom, prosperity and democracy,” Biden said. “My administration will continue our quiet, relentless diplomacy toward that end. I believe we have a genuine opportunity to make progress and I’m committed to working for it.” About 230 Gazans and 12 Israelis died in the exchange of fire that began on May 9 with Hamas launching rockets into Israel. Since then, Hamas and other groups in
Gaza have fired thousands of rockets at Israeli cities. Israel has responded with hundreds of airstrikes in Gaza. In addition, widespread unrest took place in Israeli cities with large Jewish and Arab populations. Arabs and Jews were assaulted in the street, with some hospitalized for their wounds. Arab Israelis burned synagogues, stores and cars while crowds of Jewish protesters likewise vandalized Arab businesses.
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Widespread unrest took place in Israeli cities with large Jewish and Arab populations. The fighting in Gaza and Israel, and the unrest, followed weeks of protests in eastern Jerusalem and Jerusalem’s Old City. Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli police multiple times on the Temple Mount, Judaism’s holiest site, which Muslims revere as the Noble Sanctuary, and which is the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. There were also protests in the eastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, which some Jews refer to as Shimon Hatzaddik, over the pending eviction of Palestinian families from homes owned by Jews. Jews claim ownership over the houses of the Palestinians based on deeds Jews held before Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, after which Jews who lived in the houses were expelled from eastern Jerusalem. The Palestinian families who live there now, descended from Palestinians who were expelled or fled from Israel in the 1948 war, say that their eviction is part of a campaign of ethnic cleansing. Hamas had said its bombing campaign was in protest of the pending evictions, and a Hamas official said, according to Haaretz, that the group received “guarantees that Israeli aggression at Al-Aqsa Mosque and Sheikh Jarrah will stop.” Israel said that claim was false and that the ceasefire was unconditional.
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jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | JEWISH NEWS | 7
ISRAEL
LIFE IN ISRAEL DURING CONFLICT Perspectives from people with local connections Lisa Richmon
S
everal Tidewater Jewish community members have friends and relatives who live in Israel and were candid in talking about the current situation. When asked how their lives have been affected and how they feel about the ongoing conflict, this is what they said:
ARLENE STRELITZ The former Norfolk resident and John Strelitz’s mother built a home in Israel in 1979. She first visited in 1961. I have been in Israel the last few weeks and am still here. The war was terrible and a waste of human lives on both sides. The problem is difficult and will take excellent leadership and extreme good will to ever be resolved. Fighting will not do it. I am appalled how antisemitism has reared its ugly head. I believe that this is not the time for Jews to lay low and hope for the best. Rather, we must stand tall and let it be known that we will not accept such behavior. We cannot remain silent. ELISHEVA GLIKMAN Virginia Beach resident Chen Glikman’s mother moved from the south to Givat Olga, a neighborhood next to Hadera last summer. Their friends and family members still live in the South. The past weeks were stressful and frightening even though this time we were not in the missile range. We thought about all our friends and family who had to run to the shelters and fear for their lives. lt woke up our own experiences with those situations. The most frightening were the inner conflicts between extremists of both sides in our country. We think that the solution is a Palestinian country. We don’t want any responsibility over them. Let them have their country. And then let them try to take our own. I’m sure they will regret it. This solution should have happened a
long time ago. Still, we live in a democracy and our chosen leaders have failed to find a non-violent solution to the problem. We still hope for a better future and think this place is the best for our people.
ORTAL LEDER A friend of Carly Glikman, she lives in Shoval, a kibbutz between Gaza and Beersheva. We are running to the shelter twice a day. After three COVID quarantines for two months each, and now this, 14 days at home, we Barbara Westbrook and her family. just want a normal life with our children back at school! for working parents. We curtailed many of our usual activiBARBARA WESTBROOK ties and did not travel to Jerusalem to visit Erinn Foleck Portnoy’s aunt. our other grandchildren as non-essential We are a retired couple living in the travel was discouraged. coastal city of Netanya about 20 miles On a more psychological level, the north of Tel Aviv. But remember, this is a violence between some Jews and some small country. Israeli Arabs in mixed cities was much On a personal and physical level we more upsetting. This sort of violence had were not impacted greatly by the recent not been seen on Israeli streets for many bombardment from Gaza. We had two years. There are a number of such cities sirens on one evening and had to stay in where different religions have tolerated our safe room for about 10 minutes each each other and lived together for decades. time. This is in our apartment so was not In Netanya, we have many Israeli Arab a great physical inconvenience. This and workers—doctors, pharmacists, teachother measures like the development of ers, nurses, and often Arab families take the Iron Dome show positive steps that advantage of our beautiful beaches withIsrael has taken to protect its citizens. out incident. Hopefully, this peace will Our daughter who lives nearer to Tel return soon. Aviv had to take her three sleeping chilAs English expats we were very disdren down three flights of stairs into their turbed by the blatant anti-Semitism on the safe room. Schools in certain areas were streets of London and on social media. I closed which caused childcare problems feel that many of these so-called “celebs” or
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“influencers” are totally uninformed about the situation in the region but jump on the anti-Israel bandwagon at any opportunity.
LIZ DOVRAT Barbara Dudley’s daughter, Liz lives with her family on Kibbutz Yiftah in the north. I’m happy to share my perspective on the current situation. In a single word—it’s complicated. I’m angry that politicians on both sides have taken advantage of the situation to improve their political standing (Hamas demonstrating its strength, power, and influence beyond Gaza and Benjamin Netanyahu and other Jewish right-wing leaders using the conflict to save their political careers) at a high cost to the Israeli and Gaza citizenry. I’m thoroughly disturbed by the blatant anti-Arab and anti-Jew hatred seen on the streets of Israel, through violent protests in Israeli cities—making the divides in the society deeper and even more
ISRAEL difficult to bridge. Arabs in Israel, even as citizens with equal rights, do face discrimination at all levels of society— poorer education, fewer job opportunities, and racial profiling. They have legitimate reasons to be angry, frustrated, and furious. However, Arab leadership, both in and outside of Israel, still refused to accept the existence of Israel and the rights of Jews to live in Israel, breed- Lior and Liz Dovrat with twin daughters, Lia and Nofar, and son, Noam. ing hatred towards Jews from an early age. to at least a sense of normalcy and to stop While I hate that women and children the destruction in Gaza. Unfortunately, I in Gaza are suffering from the detedon’t think any of the basic problems have rioration of living standards that were been solved. It is just a question of how already extremely low, I support Israel long the next round has been delayed. I in defining herself. Israel has spent the don’t see Hamas making any fundamentime and money in creating an effective tal changes in their approach to Israel or civil defense infrastructure to protect citaccepting Israel’s right to exist, especially izens from rockets. There is a system of since they are declaring victory among the sirens across the country warning about ruins of Gaza. In Israel, the right has been incoming rockets. Every Israeli citizen strengthened by this round, which will has access to a bomb shelter, most houses lead to more discrimination and mistrust built in the last two decades have to have of Arabs. a bomb shelter as a room made with douI wish I could end on a more hopeble-enforced concrete (I’m sitting in our ful note. I’m pessimistic about any real bomb shelter, it is our office). The Israeli chance of peace happening soon, but I do army developed the Iron Dome, which see glimmers of hope in places where Jews can intercept incoming rockets with and Arabs work together, like in hospitals breathtaking accuracy. The army also uses and higher education. a combination of drones and high-tech My personal life was not directly missiles to pinpoint the exact locations of affected since I live in the north away terrorist targets, in an effort to minimize from the fighting. The only major effect civilian casualties in Gaza. Hamas, on was that I had to cancel a vacation to the other hand, locates rocket launchers Caesarea with my family because of the near or in houses, schools, and hospifighting and the difficulty of describing tals. Civilians are used as shields. Also, the situation to my five-year-old twins. Hamas has invested money and materials They understood there was a war, it into building an arsenal of rockets and caused our vacation to be canceled, and an elaborate set of underground tunnels that people were hurt. It was heartbreakinstead of using the money to build infraing not having a good answer to their structure, housing, and generally raise the question, “If we stop fighting, they’ll have standard of living for the citizens. to stop shooting rockets at us, right?” I see the ceasefire as necessary to return
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ANIT-SEMITISM
Anti-Semitic acts in US soared 80% in a month, Jewish security group reports
Jewish News Digital Edition See the paper 3 days before the cover date:
JewishNewsVa.org/digital. To have the paper emailed, send your email address to news@ujft.org.
Ron Kampeas
(JTA)—The organization that advises U.S. Jewish communities on security matters says it recorded an 80% spike in anti-Semitic acts in the last month amid Israel’s 11-day war with Hamas. One of the causes, according to the Secure Community Network, was disinformation spread on social media during and since the exchange of rocket fire. “There may be foreign actors spreading information and disinformation, often tied to anti-Semitic tropes,” Michael Masters, its CEO, says. “We’re seeing a clear rise in the calls for violence against the Jewish community and an uptick of attacks of violence.” Masters ticks off some of the anti-Semitic incidents: “Acts of vandalism from Oregon to Virginia, synagogue
10 | JEWISH NEWS | May 31, 2021 | jewishnewsva.org
desecrations from Illinois to Arizona, reports of people having bottles thrown at them, children’s playgrounds being daubed with swastikas in New York and Tennessee.” He says there has been a commensurate intensification of anti-Semitism on social media during the hostilities between Israel and Hamas that ended with a ceasefire early Friday, May 21. A feature of the attacks was to link Jews and Israel to the coronavirus pandemic, in some cases by blaming Jews for the virus, in others by likening Israel to the virus. A hashtag, #COVID1948, using Israel’s founding to identify Israel as a deadly virus, seems to have had its origins in Iran, Masters says. Many of its initial uses were in Farsi, he says. The Network Contagion Research Institute, which tracks disinformation on
social media, traced a sudden massive spike in #COVID1948 usage on May 12, the third day of the war. It also tracked spikes in uses of phrases like “Hitler was right,” “Zionazi” and “Kill all Jews.” Masters says other foreign actors, including states, also may have spurred incitement. “We’ve seen misinformation and disinformation from a number of actors overseas over the last years and it will not be surprising if some of those actors are related to the current conflict,” Masters says. Other than Iran, Masters did not want to name any specific country, but U.S. intelligence agencies have said that the Russian government and nongovernment actors in Russia have peddled conspiracy theories in recent years as a means of destabilizing the United States.
Bernard’s Legacy Lives Forever
TIDEWATER
Reaching out to the homeless Patti Wainger
T
he pandemic has presented unfathomable difficulties for Norfolk’s homeless population. With every bed in local shelters full, street homelessness has roughly doubled, according to Sarah Paige Fuller, director of Norfolk’s Community Services Board. This thought hit Gabi and Richard Rosenblum especially hard when in December they became aware of a group of people living in tents that had been pitched on Norfolk’s 19th Street across from the UP Center and the Salvation Army. The couple immediately swung into action with Gabi cooking meals that she and Richard started delivering to the people at the site every Sunday. The Rosenblums learned that many of the residents went to work each day, but for most of them, their minimum wage salaries didn’t provide enough to afford housing. As time passed, Gabi started an Amazon Wish List for her new friends. She was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from donors who sent Amazon items that included everything from toiletries and socks to tents and tarps and folding chairs. Inspired by the Rosenblums, in January, Jill and Brian Wainger and their daughters began delivering homemade meals on Saturdays to the 19th Street folks living at the tent city. Like the Rosenblums, the Wainger clan also deliver to the homeless in Virginia Beach before coming to Norfolk to drop off their food and supplies. With 19 homeless in Norfolk plus those at Virginia Beach, the Rosnblum and Wainger teams deliver about 30 meals on Saturday and 30 on Sunday. Following Jill Wainger’s and Gabi Rosneblum’s Face Book posts and listening to the exciting stories the Wainger girls were sharing about their food project, people started to wonder if there might be something Beth El congregants could do to help those in need in Norfolk. On May 3, Beth El volunteers started delivering hot meals prepared and donated by Mercy Chefs to the 19th
Street residents. Mercy Chefs provides dinners Monday through Thursday and Beth El helpers meet the driver to distribute the hot dinners to the appreciative recipients. Soon after this project began, Beth El volunteers learned that on May 1, the city of Norfolk opened a temporary shelter at the Greyhound Bus Station on Monticello Avenue. Eighty tents are safely situated in the bus station parking lot with breakfast and dinner being served by a team from First Presbyterian Church’s Urban Renewal volunteers. Those seeking shelter may be in their tents 6:00 pm until 7:30 am, and may stay inside the Greyhound Station during the day if they have nowhere to go. It is anticipated, but not known for certain, that the city will at some point close down the 19th Street tent site and will try to relocate everyone from there to the Greyhound site which has 24/7 security and bathroom and shower facilities for all. Fuller says that the Greyhound site is a temporary shelter with the hope that a permanent placement will occur in Norfolk by October. To lend support to those running the Greyhound shelter, Beth El members created a food pantry in the synagogue’s lobby. On Monday, June 14, as part of the Beth El Feeds Tidewater project, the synagogue, along with area churches, will launch a drive collecting non-perishable food items and toiletries. Donors may drop off boxes Monday–Thursday that week, 10 am–3 pm at Beth El at the office entrance, 422 Shirley Avenue, Norfolk. If help is needed to unload a car, call the office at 625-7821. Please put the donor’s names on boxes. Suggested items for boxes include athletic style socks, men’s and women’s underwear, t-shirts, hats, wash cloths, shower gel, soap, deodorant, razors, tooth paste, tooth brushes, wipes, rain ponchos, drawstring bags or backpacks, face masks, lip balm, hand sanitizer, sun block, shaving cream, band-aids, or feminine hygiene products, etc. Nonperishable food might include water, juice boxes, individual sized items such as applesauce or fruit cups, cereal or
protein bars, peanut butter or cheese crackers, pop tarts, chips, protein items (not needing a can opener) such as a tuna snack pack, crackers, peanut butter and jelly packets, granola bars, small packages of dried fruit or trail mix, etc.
Norfolk architect Bernard Spigel died in 1968 leaving an enduring legacy of homes, schools, theaters and commercial buildings he designed. In 1983 Lucy Spigel Herman honored her dad by creating a scholarship for future architects administered by the Hampton Roads Community Foundation. Dozens of past Spigel Scholars are busy today designing buildings for us to enjoy while the scholarship continues to help future architects pay for their education. Design your own view of a better future by ordering the free Leave Your Mark guide. Learn how easy it is to honor a family member or create your own lasting legacy.
To lend support to those running the Greyhound shelter, Beth El members created a food pantry in the synagogue’s lobby.
Other ways to support the project include helping sort the items collected or helping deliver the items to the shelter. An Amazon Wish List for folks who would like to donate on-line is also available. To volunteer or get information about the wish list, email pattiwainger@ gmail.com. The shelter is also in dire need of financial support for feeding its residents; therefore, checks made out to Beth El to help in this way, are welcomed. Please note on the check that this is for the homeless shelter. Checks may be mailed to Congregation Beth El, 422 Shirley Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia 23517. In addition, if anyone wants to sign up to volunteer at the Greyhound shelter, log in to https://www.signupgenius.com/ go/60b0444aaa62ca7158-nest.
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Dads Supplement to Jewish News May 31, 2021
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | Dads | JEWISH NEWS | 13
Dads In Faster, three unlikely heroes come together to beat the Nazis at their own game: racing Author Neal Bascomb will speak as part of the Jewish Book Festival Wednesday, June 9, 7:30 pm, Zoom, Free, pre-registration required
R I S T O R A N T E I N S P I R E D
B Y
I T A LY
they saw Germans using racing as a propaganda tool hen Neal Bascomb and they decided to take heard the story of a them on and beat them at racecar called the Delahaye their own game. I thought 145, which was built in the that was an inspiring mes1930s and had been restored sage,” Bascomb says. by an American millionaire The story takes place in and had a fascinating backEurope before World War story, he was hooked. II, at a time Three unlikely heroes: when people Rene Dreyfus, Jewish race are trying to Meryl Schenker car driver, Lucy Schell, take stock of the adventurous daughter Neal Bascomb. what’s happenof an American millionaire, and Charles ing, trying to Weiffenbach, the head of down-on-its luck understand automaker Delahaye—team up to take how their on the German Silver Arrows right before world is changthe start of World War II. They banded ing, and trying together to challenge Hitler’s dominance at to adapt to it, trying to decide what to do the apex of the motorsport: the Grand Prix. and what’s right, what’s wrong and how The tale of this trio is told in Bascomb’s to resist, how to fight. “And that in and of novel, Faster. How a Jewish Driver, an itself, I think is just kind of utterly fasciAmerican Heiress, and a Legendary Car Beat nating.” he says. Hitler’s Best. Bascomb will speak as part Bascomb spent years traveling to do of United Jewish Federation of Tidewater research in Europe, interviewing people, and Simon Family JCC’s Lee & Bernard and doing detective work to gather all the Family Jewish Book Festival. pieces. He says he enjoys that process— Bascomb calls it a David and Goliath the “hunt and discovery” as much as the story about racing and says he wanted writing. to tell the story because the people are It took him about three years, from fascinating. first hearing the story to when it was “Rene Dreyfus, his father was Jewish, finished. Approximately two-thirds of the his mother was Catholic. His only religion time was spent researching, and the last really, was racing, and yet he was inspired bit writing. to become a symbol for the Jewish people. What we can learn from this story, So, that was interesting to me,” he says. Bascomb says, is that not all of us can be Lucy Schelll was interesting to world leaders or politicians or “Masters of Bascomb because she was a very rich the Universe,” but we live in our communiAmerican only child, who became one of ties, we have our worlds—much like Lucy the first female racecar drivers and speed and Rene—they stood up in theirs and queens who used almost half her fortune similarly, people can do the same in their to start a race team and build Formula own communities, in their own worlds. One cars and take on the Germans. All of which, no woman had ever done. To purchase Faster: How a Jewish Driver, “It’s a story about people sort of taking an American Heiress and a Legendary Car the fight within their communities to Beat Hitler’s Best and register for the event, what they think is right. So, Lucy and visit JewishVa.org/BookFest or contact Jill Rene, their love was racing, their world Grossman, director, Arts+Ideas at jgrosswas racing, but they saw this injustice and man@ujft.org or 757-965-6137. Robyn Sidersky
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DadsJoseph This is the first in a series on generations of families in Jewish Tidewater.
Twas the year the Christmas lights went out for good Joseph “Buddy” and Leonard Strelitz
trying to establish a Jewish homeland after the Holocaust. That epiphany led to oseph “Buddy” Strelitz honored his an affinity for Israel and a sense of permother’s single dying wish and became sonal obligation to enlist others to raise a trailblazer for the Jewish tribe in her funds along with them.” memory. John’s cousin, Brian Strelitz, is the son Buddy’s son, John Strelitz, says that of Joyce and Leonard, and brother of EJ his grandmother’s only regret in life was Strelitz and Bonnie Brand. “I would have that she never went to Israel. Spending loved being at dinner with my parents time with Buddy in Switzerland before after hearing of Buddy and Arlene’s trip,” her death in 1956, Minnie Strelitz looked says Brian. “Not sure how the dinner far into the future, and put her heart on went, so for future generations, I am callthe line. ‘Promise me you will go to Israel ing their plan to follow Buddy and Arlene for me.’ on that first trip to Israel, a joint decision. 1961 was the year of the Eichmann As kids, Bonnie and I still talk about how trial, also the year Buddy fulfilled that the Christmas tree (lights, tinsel and a promise. 5 point star on top—and the wonderful “My dad took my mother to Israel pine smell with presents on the floor) in kicking and screaming. At that time, our family room got smaller the December Israel was a third-world country and my after their trip, then the next year was mother wanted to get out on day one. By a plastic table top tree, and then, the the end of the trip, both of my parents next December, and despite our strongest had fallen in love and couldn’t wait to lobbying and opposition, the tree disaptell everyone at home about this special peared. POOF, forever. place,” says John. Going to Israel changed the arc of In a short time, ‘How do I get out of Buddy and Leonard’s lives in many more here’ upgraded to ‘what can we do to get ways and shaped them as future leaders. everyone we love to come here?’ The brothers became national figures who As new Zionists, Arlene and Buddy’s left their jobs at Haynes Furniture, where first move was tagging Buddy’s brother they were business partners who made Leonard, and his wife, Joyce. “My parents significant cash contributions and travsaw what the Jewish immigrants faced elled around the world to raise funds for Israel, eventually kicking off what became the United J e w i s h Appeal and United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. Other Jews jumped on board, while some resisted. “Leonard and Buddy Strelitz, along with men like Joseph “Buddy” Strelitz, Yitzhak Rabin, and Leonard Strelitz in September 1968. Sam Sandler, Lisa Richmon
J
Mickey Kramer, Marvin Simon, Arnold Leon, Ron Dozoretz, and many more were men of action,” says Annie Sandler, JDC vice-president. “They knew that they
must make support of a fledging, isolated, poor, and new nation whose existence was threatened—an imperative. ‘Give until continued on page 16
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it hurts,’ ‘deny pleasures for yourself in order to do more for the Jewish people.’ By those words and their deeds, they demanded support from themselves and strongly encouraged the community to follow their lead.” The Strelitz name has been associated with Haynes Furniture for four generations. It triggers images of signature television ads and a presence at the intersection of philanthropy and innovation. Leonard Strelitz was an influencer before there was Instagram, or a word for people who leverage their brand identity to raise awareness for good causes or sell products. Nathan Strelitz is Leonard’s grandson, and EJ and Randi Strelitz’s son. “’Pa’ was a larger-than-life character and stellar businessman who also had a knack for inspiring friends and strangers to campaign for important causes. His benevolence coupled with his influence helped build the Strelitz Diabetes Center in Norfolk, the first single source of diabetes-related care in Hampton Roads.” Jewish parents in particular pray to see their sense of charitable purpose and passion carried out by their children and grandchildren. Younger generations might not show their philanthropic side until later in life, if at all, but when it does stick, there is no more potent form of parental pride and bliss.
“My father EJ demonstrates the same devotion to his community, family, friends, and business as his father. He has kept up the promise of my grandfather’s legacy through his support of Jewish causes and organizations, including United Jewish Federation of Tidewater, The Strelitz International Academy, and The Holocaust Memorial Museum. And through his leadership, EJ has grown his family’s furniture business into a national chain, while employing over 1,200 people.” Nathan left law school in 2012 and joined the family business the next year. “I put aside the disagreements or ups and downs of working in a family business and focus on how much my father, EJ cares about the business and carrying on his family’s legacy.” When children are given a road map and encouraged to express themselves as individuals, a new breed of Jewish heroics is free to emerge. “There are many paths and many options we have to express, fulfill and live our Judaism and our love of Israel. As an adult, I had to find the path that was best for me. Israel-related organizations have been a part of my activities as an adult for years. Hebrew University, AIPAC, Jewish Federation(s), and others less well known, but each personally fulfilling. Those activities over the years have become part of
Dads my DNA,” says Brian. “My childhood was filled with memories related to Israel and Am Yisrael that followed a timeline beginning with the 1967 war. I clearly remember, even at 11 years old, a significant transition that year in my attitude and feelings about being a Jew,” says Brian. “My identity as a Jew had always been clear, and was always “there,” almost taken for granted. But the whirlwind of June ’67 brought a higher level of pride in that Judaism, allowing me to willingly and confidently “wear it” more publicly. That personal growth as a Jew in ’67 repeated itself, albeit in different ways, over and over with the parade of events of the next 20 years. This process was a direct result of my father’s (and mother’s) activities and leadership in our Jewish world that stretched from Tidewater across the USA and to Israel, of course. The significant relationships that they formed are etched in my mind: Golda, Rabin, Peres, Begin,
Motta Gur. As I watched and experienced his involvement, passion, and leadership in action, it all trickled down to our household, and I became the beneficiary in so many ways that helped make me become the Jew I am today.”
J
ohn Strelitz and wife Renee Dozoretz Strelitz have three children. Julia, Jacqueline, and Joseph Strelitz were blessed with two entrepreneurial grandfathers who both blazed new trails on behalf of the Jewish and medical communities. “I definitely see my father’s leadership ability as a core trait he got from his dad,” says Julia Strelitz. “He’s the first to step up in a time of crisis, like when the JCC was moving its campus and he became president.” Julia and sister Jacqueline both admire their father’s compassion as a business owner who treats his employees with deep respect. “He has employees who have been with him for 20 years. That loyalty
is a testament to his understanding of their needs and willingness to help. He’s loyal to them and they are loyal back.” Joseph Strelitz inherited more than a name from his father’s father. “Everyone loves Joseph. He was elected to several leadership roles, not just BBYO, for Joyce and Leonard Strelitz with Golda Meir (center). a reason. He got his composure from gene from his father. Buddy,” says Jacqueline Strelitz. “He’s just “Joseph reminds me of my dad,” says like Buddy, even-keeled. He’s a calming John. “He has his personality. My father force in every situation.” was introspective and an intellect. He John says he’s the reactive one, which could sit down and read a 400-page book explains why he’s been taking yoga classes by Abba Eban. Joseph is also very kind for 20 years. He didn’t inherit the calm continued on page 18
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Dads continued from page 17
and sensitive in a way I’m not.” Julia and Jacqueline see their dad through a loving father filter. “He’s the best father and has always been there for us. He never missed a game or event and is so young at heart. Because he’s outspoken and very high-energy, people might not know that he’s also very sensitive. He sees the best in everyone.”
I
f a younger generation is guided by the strong character and deeds of parents— and grandparents they never met—when they get that gift is not as important as how they get it. “My children are very aware of and have heard many of the countless stories of their grandfather’s passion and involvement,” says Brian. “And they have grown up with parents that wear their Jewish/Israel “flags” high and proud—at home and in their communities. I could say that it has all already been baked into their DNA as well. Now will come the exciting part for me—and that is watching how they (Sasha, Matthew, Talia, Joshua, and Aryeh) chart their way and find their own special path to express themselves as Jews and to live as Jews, and moreover as Jews that are passionate about the miracle of modern day Israel.”
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oseph and Leonard Strelitz were founding ‘brothers’ who made their mark on the mid-size Tidewater Jewish community. Based on impact across the world, Tidewater’s community size is deceiving. “The Strelitz brothers, along with men of their generation through our Federation, made support of Israel and overseas Jewish needs preeminent in our annual campaign,” says Sandler. “Their early support of Israel drove our community to be a leader in the national organized Jewish community. Anytime I attend national or international meetings and identify myself as being from “Tidewater” it immediately draws respect and admiration.” The future of the Jewish tribe and this community is in the hands and hearts of altruistic late bloomers and never-toolate bloomers. “My kids still need to learn about philanthropy and involvement,” says John. “The best thing I can do is lead by example. Right now I’m happy to see both of my girls headed into careers that serve others. Jacqueline is a speech pathologist who always wanted to do something meaningful. Julia just left a big sales job to become a registered dietician, because she realized she wanted to help people. Joseph is still in college, but he has a very strong connection to Israel and is currently saving money to take his girlfriend there. “My kids will have to create their own philanthropic paths. We’ll just have to see what’s next for them. I think the best is yet to come,” says John. Brian Strelitz takes pride in his family’s transition. “Some ask if we are embarrassed that we even had Christmas trees. NO,” he says. “We are proud of how our family found its way, and of course, we love the destination.”
Leonard Strelitz with Moshe Dayan.
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The Jewish history of Bazooka bubble gum Joanna O’Leary
C
hew on this: One of America’s most iconic gum brands was originally a Jewish-owned tobacco business. In 1891, Morris Chigorinsky emigrated from Russia to the United States, where in the early 1900s he assumed control of the American Leaf Tobacco Company. But by 1938—by then Chigorinsky had changed his surname to Shorin—the business was flailing. His four sons decided to save the family from certain penury by starting a new penny candy business, Topps Chewing Gum Inc., with the name borrowed from an eponymous Chattanooga candy company they purchased. Following the end of World War II, the Shorin brothers—Abram, Ira, Joseph and Philip—aggressively set about supplanting their then-dominant competitor, Dubble Bubble, manufactured by Fleer, through the launch of Bazooka Bubble Gum. The gum cleverly capitalized on the nation’s postwar patriotic pride in the wake of their recent victory, not only via its name (derived from the rocket-propelled weapon invented and deployed by American troops) but also through its red, white and blue packaging. The product sold well, but in 1953, Topps made an alteration to the design that proved to be a game changer: the inclusion of small comic strips starring Bazooka Joe, a swashbuckling kid who donned a black eyepatch and got into scrapes and adventures with his crew of streetwise companions. The wrappers— ultimately there were more than 1,500 manufactured—also featured fortunes and immediately became collector’s items among consumers and candy enthusiasts, who still vigorously buy and sell vintage strips on online auction websites. While the original flavor continues to be the bestseller, Topps has also introduced variations, such as Grape Rage, Cherry Berry, and Watermelon Whirl. In 2012, Bazooka discontinued the inclusion of comics in favor of “brainteaser” wrappers and subsequently found itself in a sticky situation. Loyalists
were displeased and chewed out corporate honchos for the most unwelcome change. In 2019, Topps responded to the call to adhere to the original look by issuing a Throwback Pack intended to be “inspired by the brand’s iconic original packaging” with “nostalgic 1980s graphics and Original flavor Bazooka Bubble Gum wrapped in classic comics.” Testaments to Bazooka’s enduring popularity have bubbled up over the years in sitcoms such as How I Met Your Mother, Seinfeld, and King of Queens. The candy made a particularly sweet cameo in an episode of 30 Rock, in which NBC exec Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) erroneously and hilariously claimed Bazooka’s founder inherited a quarry of pink rocks, then baked them to transform them into gum. While Bazooka continues to be cherished in many countries, the gum has amassed a particularly unique cult following in Israel. In the 1960s, Islico Ltd. began making Bazooka in Tel Aviv, which was taken over by Lieber Co. in the 1970s, then assumed in the 1980s by the food conglomerate Strauss-Elite, which continues to manufacture the candy today, in addition to snack mashups like Bazookaflavored marshmallows and even milk. “So culturally iconic are the strips in Israel,” The Jerusalem Post reported in 2017, “that they even inspired one local artist to assume “Bazooka Joe” as his pseudonym because “he naturally connected with the colors and simplicity of the comics.’” Chomping at the bit to get a glimpse of some of these crazy toons but still hesitant to travel because of COVID-19? Those interested in Israeli Bazooka historiography can visit a virtual museum dedicated to displaying the cartoons over the decades. This article originally appeared on The Nosher.
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | Dads | JEWISH NEWS | 19
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y son, Niv, knows the layout of the Simon Family JCC like the back of his hand. He’s only five, but can already point out the best kickballs on the whitetop behind the building, the dogleg on the 6th hole of the mini-golf course, and how to reach max speed on the Noah’s Ark water slide next to the outdoor pool. And, not far behind, Niv, Shikma, Shai, and Danny Rubin. you will often spot Niv’s two-year-old brother, Shai, as he waddles I think back on my formative years and along and does his best to keep up. all the memories intertwined with Jewish I tell you these minute details to life. To name a few, I learned to swim at express what the JCC—and by extension, the “old J,” rode my bike in the social hall our Jewish community—means to our behind the chapel at Beth Sholom as my family. Our kids roam the halls with ease dad read the Torah, bounded between the because, for them, the JCC is a place of sanctuary, Brody Auditorium, and Sandler comfort—much like my experience with Hall at Temple Israel, goofed off with the “old J” on Newport Avenue. And I friends in BBYO (many I still goof off with believe a life immersed in Jewishness cretoday), pledged AEPi with my soon-to-be ates a bond that never breaks. fraternity brothers, traversed Israel on a It’s hard to imagine a reality where Birthright trip, and the list goes on. mainstays like a JCC, synagogue, day I took advantage of so much Jewish school, and cultural programming don’t programming simply because the orgaexist. But I also know the future is not nizations had the financial wherewithal guaranteed and that we must safeguard to operate. And I doubt I would have what we hold dear. That’s why my wife, the same connection to Jewish life had I Shikma, and I are proud to sign the spent all those years exclusively in secular Jewish Future Pledge, which states that 50 spaces. percent or more of our assets left for charThat’s why we must ensure similar itable purposes will be directed to efforts Jewish experiences for the coming gento strengthen and serve the Jewish people erations. I hope my contemporaries will and/or the State of Israel. join the Jewish Future Pledge initiative We hope other young couples follow and also demonstrate their commitment. behind and recognize it’s not just the role It’s a pledge we owe our kids. of senior lay leaders to “sign the pledge” and preserve the future. The initiative For more information about how to help requires young adults to step up, too. secure a Jewish future in Tidewater, conMany of us have children who have begun tact Naomi Limor Sedek, Tidewater Jewish their own relationships with the Jewish Foundation president and CEO, at nsedek@ community, so the time to act is now. ujft.org or 757-965-6109.
TIDEWATER
A
A fond farewell to Tidewater Jewish Foundation’s Kaitlyn Oelsner
fter two years of serving the Tidewater Jewish community, Kaitlyn Oelsner, Tidewater Jewish Foundation’s director of Philanthropy, is leaving the organization. “I’ve decided to put a pause on my professional career to fully focus on being a mom,” says Oelsner, who is expecting her first child later this year. “I’m incredibly grateful for my time at Tidewater Jewish Foundation and the many co-workers and community members that I’ve had the privilege to work with in this role. I look forward to keeping in touch and thank everyone for their support as I start this next chapter.” Oelsner joined TJF in March 2019 as TJF’s development associate and LIFE & LEGACY coordinator. From the onset, she quickly became vital to the organization’s philanthropic efforts with her energy and passion for philanthropy.
“Right after we hired her, Kaitlyn quickly and fully jumped into the LIFE & LEGACY program and our development position,” says Randy Parrish, TJF vice president and CFO. “On her first day with us, she was thrust into the preparation for that evening’s LIFE & LEGACY celebration and interacted with dozens of community leaders, agency representatives, and staff. And her second day was a board meeting with an introduction and presentation to our leadership!” After the departure of Scott Kaplan, TJF president and CEO in August 2019, Oelsner took on more duties as TJF’s new director of Philanthropy. She was at the forefront of outreach and new fund cultivation processes, supervised all marketing and development efforts, pushed to restructure external marketing services to bring more work in-house, helped onboard
Naomi Limor Sedek, the new TJF president and CEO, and oversaw the successful completion of the four-year LIFE & LEGACY program. “Kaitlyn was vital to my transition serving as an ambassador connecting me with leaders, community members, and donors allowing for an easier transition into the Tidewater Jewish community,” says Limor Sedek. “Her commitment and dedication to TJF were apparent in her care and concern for all teams participating in LIFE & LEGACY. She was passionate about making sure they all were able to hit their goals even in the midst of the pandemic and secure their future through legacy giving.” Oelsner’s shepherding of the LIFE & LEGACY program resulted in 339 donors making 578 legacy commitments and $21.5 million in current and future gifts committed. Of those gifts, 88% ($18.1
Kaitlyn Oelsner.
million) have been formalized, exceeding community-wide goals. Moreover, despite a global pandemic, 55 commitments were secured in 2020, also exceeding community-wide goals. Over the past two years, Oelsner has served the Tidewater Jewish community beyond what was expected of her and with the utmost professionalism. The leadership and staff of TJF are sad to see Oelsner leave, yet “wish her and her family the best,” says Limor Sedek.
An evening with author Neal Bascomb, Faster Wednesday, June 9, 7:30 PM FOR FANS OF THE BOYS IN THE BOAT AND IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS, A PULSE-POUNDING TALE OF TRIUMPH BY AN IMPROBABLE TEAM OF UPSTARTS OVER HITLER’S FEARSOME SILVER ARROWS DURING THE GOLDEN AGE OF AUTO RACING. FREE & Open to the community, taking place on Zoom, with pre-registration required.
JewishVA.org/BookFest This event is held in coordination with the Jewish Book Council, the only organization in the organized American Jewish community whose sole purpose is the promotion of Jewish books.
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | JEWISH NEWS | 21
TIDEWATER
Women’s Cabinet Spring event offers unexpected inspiration Amy Zelenka
U
nited Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Women’s Cabinet held its first ever virtual Spring Lunch and Installation on May 13. Mona Flax, Cabinet chair, having completed a two-year term in office, made the unusual announcement that she would not be stepping down as planned, but rather stepping “to the side,” as she spends the coming year co-chairing the Cabinet with new chair, Barbara Dudley. In her opening remarks, Flax said, “Despite all we were able to accomplish together as a Cabinet, including a full year of meetings, virtual missions, and an outstanding campaign, I felt, quite frankly, like I had missed a year. So, rather than stepping down this year, I’ll be stepping over just a bit to make room for Barbara Dudley. Or maybe it’s more accurate to say that she has graciously agreed to make room for me!” Flax and Dudley will co-chair the Cabinet for the 2022 campaign year, as it emerges from the pandemic and transitions back to in-person meetings, programs, and events. “And I feel very lucky to have this extra year to continue to strengthen one another and this amazing Jewish community that we share,” said Flax. In announcing the members of the 2022/2023 executive committee, Flax explained that since she is staying on as a co-chair, the Cabinet will wait until next spring to name a chair-elect. Flax then installed executive committee members: Barbara Dudley—co-chair Mona Flax—co-chair Robin Mancoll— education committee chair Janet Mercadante—leadership and nominating committee chair Kim Fink, Amy Lefcoe, and Deb Casey—at-large members Stephanie Calliott, past chair, will move onto the Women’s Cabinet Honorary Board, where she will serve alongside her fellow, past Women’s Cabinet chairs. In her first action as Cabinet co-chair, Barbara Dudley thanked those members
of Cabinet whose terms were ending for their years of dedicated service to the campaign and the community. These women served a combined 48 years on Cabinet: Elyse Cardon (6 years); Shira Itzhak (6 years); Lynn Sher-Cohen (6 years); Charlene Cohen (15 years); and Ilana Benson (15 years). Dudley then installed the new and returning Cabinet members. Returning to Cabinet for an additional term: Susan Alper Leora Drory Kim Fink Alicia Friedman Cindy Kramer Stacie Moss Stacey Neuman Judy Rosenblatt Sara Jo Rubin New Cabinet members, installed for their first term: Carol Brum Susan Cohen Faith Jacobson In laying out her vision for the next two years, Dudley shared stories of her personal Jewish journey, recounting her experiences—good and bad—growing up in a committed Jewish and Zionist family, in the small town of Martinsville, Virginia (where hers was one of 40 Jewish families). Her parents were deeply committed to Judaism, the Jewish people, and to Israel. She recalled painful memories of feeling excluded and “other” because of her Jewish faith. She spoke of having to sit in the hallway with a handful of other Jewish kids while the other students took part in her public school-mandated Christian Bible study class. “When you’re sent to the hallway,” said Dudley, “It usually means you’ve done something bad.” It was one stigmatizing experience among several, that stayed with Dudley throughout her youth and into adulthood. But not all of her early memories were bad ones. She recalled her father’s leadership with the local United Jewish Appeal and remembered distributing white pledge cards with him each year on Kol Nidre. And she remembered her parents’ first Federation Mission trip to Israel;
22 | JEWISH NEWS | May 31, 2021 | jewishnewsva.org
how they came back inspired and energized by the magical quality of the young Jewish state. In 1974, Dudley joined her mother on a UJA women’s mission. She fell instantly in love with Israel and has remained so all her life. In fact, she went back to Israel the following summer and worked on a kibbutz. She must have passed that love along to her daughter Liz, who now lives with her family in Israel, including Dudley’s three adorable grandchildren! Dudley talked about the values that her parents imparted to her—through their words and deeds. They instilled in her a “sense of humanity and a need to protect all people and to demand equality and fairness for all.”
“There’s a reason we do what we do. Our work through Federation and its partner organizations is a bulwark against those who would see our destruction. But it’s also a fulfillment of our shared valued to take care of one another and to repair a broken world.” And so “in August of 2017,” recalled Dudley, “I watched with horror, the ugliness and bigotry taking place at a so-called rally in Charlottesville. My visceral reaction was one of anger…but also fear. The
same anti-Semitism that I experienced as a child in Martinsville, Virginia—which I had thought was well behind me—was on full display in Charlottesville…just as it was on January 6 in Washington DC.” Dudley went on to say that these events “reminded me once again about our ever-present vulnerability as Jews, even in America in 2021. And the rockets falling in the suburbs of Jerusalem reminded me that Israel too, despite its amazing advances in science, technology, medicine, and agriculture…and despite its generosity in sharing those advances with the world…is still incredibly vulnerable. Our support for Israel and for the Jewish people remains a priority.” In closing her remarks, Dudley reminded the Cabinet members: “There’s a reason we do what we do. Our work through Federation and its partner organizations is a bulwark against those who would see our destruction. But it’s also a fulfillment of our shared values to take care of one another and to repair a broken world.”
G
uest speaker Michal Barkai Brody is a ‘Super Woman.’ Barkai Brody was in Tidewater about six years ago, discussing the ALMA Women’s Pre-Army Leadership Academy that she had founded in Israel (which was subsequently taken over by the Jewish Agency for Israel). The last time she was in Tidewater, Barkai Brody was newly engaged and looking forward to marrying the love of her life. Today she is married to that love, and they have a beautiful, energetic, and inquisitive daughter. Barkai Brody is a self-describd ‘Women’s Leadership Master’ and ‘serial Social Fem-trepreneur.’ After leaving ALMA, she embarked on a variety of Women’s Empowerment programs, and today she is speaking all over Israel to groups and politicians, alike, to address the scourge of domestic violence and to seek solutions at every level in society. Barkai Brody appeared on Zoom screens (three days post-op from larynx surgery) with her trademark smile and a level of passion and energy that could be felt in every pixel. Her passion for her
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TIDEWATER cause was palpable. But she touched on that only briefly. This day she wanted to show a photo of her daughter (who she sincerely hopes will one day be Prime Minister of Israel), and to talk about the rockets from Gaza and the violence in the streets of mixed Arab-Jewish cities throughout the country. “Heartbreaking” is how she described the situation. The rockets from Gaza were far less shocking, she said (despite their number and ferocity) than to see Arab and Jewish neighbors turn against each other like street gangs, and set fire to their own neighborhoods. Hearkening back to Barbara Dudley’s personal story, Barki Brody said that growing up in Israel she had no concept of anti-Semitism. She’s lived through clashes with Gaza and other military operations on Israel’s borders. But she’d never known
a sense of threat in her own home in her own neighborhood. This time was different. Between the rockets from Gaza and the violence in the streets, Barkai Brody was feeling for the first time ever—hatred directed toward Jews—not Israelis, but Jews. And with real emotion in her eyes and her now-hoarse voice, Barkai Brody said that being with the Jewish women leaders in Tidewater (even via Zoom), was like a lifeline for her—keeping her hopes afloat, for a better tomorrow for herself, her daughter, and for all Israel. For more information about UJFT Women’s Cabinet or how to get involved in volunteer fundraising for the Federation, contact Amy Zelenka, UJFT Campaign director at azelenka@ujft.org.
JCC Camp staff positions Calling all Grads! “W
e want you (all graduates—high school and/or college) to embark on a leadership role with us at Camp JCC,” says Dave Flagler, director of Camp and Teen Engagement at the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC. Camp JCC is hiring senior counselors and specialists to connect with campers, mentor young staff, and make an impact in the lives of others. Counselors will gain real world leadership experience while refining skills sought by all employers. “You will analyze and assess situations, make decisions and implement solutions—all while making friends (and developing a great tan)—at our beautiful outdoor aquatics complex,” says Flagler. “As you celebrate this momentous occasion and reflect on your post-graduation journey, consider this opportunity for you to be a true influencer in someone else’s life, here at Camp JCC,” says Flagler. Camp JCC begins June 21. For more information or to apply, visit CampJCC. org or email Dave Flagler, director of Camp and Teen Engagement, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC, at DFlagler@ujft.org. Dave Flagler.
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WHAT’S HAPPENING The apple falls just far enough from the tree in Lisa Novick Goldberg’s book about her family’s ties to the Mafia Monday, June 14,12 pm, Zoom Free with pre-registration required at JewishVA.org/BookFest Robyn Sidersky
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hen Lisa Novick Goldberg was a child, she was often around Mafia figures—Venero Frank “Benny Eggs” Mangano was her father’s best friend. She also knew Johnny Barbato and others associated with the Genovese crime family. But she didn’t know her father, Hebert “Big John” Novick, was their “money man” and deeply involved until much later in life. The realization came with a grand jury subpoena. The experience, growing up in that environment, and then learning what was really going on, profoundly shaped her life. Goldberg writes about her family, and their impact on her life, in her book, The Apple and The Shady Tree: The Mafia, My Family and Me. She will speak about it as part of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Lee and Bernard Family Jewish Book Festival. “I have been telling these crazy stories about my family and the characters I grew up with to my friends, and they said ‘this is wild, this is something that should be developed into a book or screenplay,’” Goldberg says, in a phone interview from her home in Florida. So when her husband was receiving cancer treatments and they had to take a break from their active social life in 2015, she buckled down and wrote the book. It took four years and a lot of encouragement from her therapist, she says. At the beginning of the process, she had nightmares about reliving the trial and the aftermath, finding out the truth from the FBI, and other fears she had.
But by the end, it was better and provided catharsis. “It really has freed up a lot of the fears I have had over the years,” she says. She didn’t fear retaliation because she “didn’t throw anyone under the bus” and didn’t want to do anything to harm anyone. It also didn’t hurt that many of the main players are either dead or in jail. Growing up, she straddled two worlds: one with Ivy League schools, elite friends with movers and shakers as parents, and this secret struggle at home. Goldberg’s relationship with her father changed over time and it was not until the year before he died, 2009, that they got everything out in the open with each other. As a young child, she could never get enough of him because he was always gone, she says. His relationship with her mother was also contentious. Goldberg says in retrospect, both suffered from mental health issues. “Through analysis, I can see he was far from perfect,” she says. In December 1988, everything changed when she appeared before a grand jury in a trial that brought down the five families involved in the Mafia in metropolitan New York. It sent Goldberg into a deep depression, she lost 20 pounds, and could not function. She started taking a drug new at the time called Prozac. Through the 1990s and 2000s, Goldberg looked at her father differently, more critically. When she researched the book, she learned through a Freedom of Information Act request that the FBI had 27,000 entries on her dad, the extent of his involvement, and rise in the Genovese crime family.
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Her father and her first husband hated each other, and she says that contributed to her divorce. Her second, and current husband, is a retired circuit court judge. Goldberg’s relationship with her mother, now 88, is also complicated. But the two are close and talk on the The author’s parents. phone every day. “The reason I’m not in an insane asylum or a drug addict or alcoholic is because of certain adaptive techniques I was able to do very successfully,” she says, quoting her therapist. “Very early on, I knew the house I grew up in was crazy,” she says. “What I would do is seek out people who were sympathetic to me, who I could learn from, who were mentors to me.” Goldberg modeled herself after them, and when raising Herbert “Big John” Novick and Lisa Novick Goldberg. her daughter, Maggie, she tried to do the opposite of what her parents did Jewish Federation of Tidewater & Simon with her. She’s also supportive of Maggie Family JCC’S Lee & Bernard Jaffe Family and her own mental health issues. Jewish Book Festival, purchase The Apple The title of the book is a double entenand the Shady Tree: The Mafia, My Family dre. It references the famous saying “the and Me, and register for the event, visit apple doesn’t fall far from the tree”— jewishva.org/bookfest or contact Jill something her parents used to say to her Grossman, director, arts+ideas at jgrosswhen she acted like the other parent, as a man@ujft.org or 757-965-6137. criticism. But also, Goldberg is the apple, and her father is the shady tree, and his United Jewish Federation of Tidewater & murky business background. Simon Family JCC’S Lee & Bernard Jaffe Among the book’s themes are a Family Jewish Book Festival is held in coorfather-daughter relationship in the shadow dination with the Jewish Book Council, of the Mafia, mental health, and a discovthe only organization in the organized ery of Judaism. American Jewish community whose sole To find out more about the United purpose is the promotion of Jewish books.
Local Relationships Matter
WHAT’S HAPPENING AJC’s Global Forum goes virtual June 6–9 Rabbi Batya Glazer
T
he American Jewish Committee’s annual Global Forum will be virtual this year, making it possible to participate from home. This conference delves into the substantive topics and concern of the worldwide Jewish community, offering an opportunity to hear policy makers, experts, analysts, and global leaders discuss and give context to complicated issues. This year’s issues include restoring and renewing a deeply divided America, promoting Israel’s place in a reimagined Middle East, enhancing U.S. leadership on major geopolitical issues, and combating rising anti-Semitism and other forms of hate. AJC’s mission is to enhance the well-being of the Jewish people and Israel, and to advance human rights and democratic values in the United States and around the world. AJC’s offices are found worldwide, including in Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific, the United States, and Israel. These offices raise awareness of anti-Semitism, and engage and challenge officials to stand up against it. By calling out the myths about the violence in Israel, the hostile campus atmosphere in the U. S., and the international travesties of justice when anti-Semetic violence is
excused, AJC is committed to demanding justice for Jews and the Jewish people, and ensuring that leaders in America and around the world are aware of this inexcusable hatred. Through their work bringing faith communities together, AJC builds relationships and deepens understanding, while working to oppose all hatred and bigotry. Highlights from the 2020 Global Forum included Angela Merkel’s reflections on the vital importance of remembering the Holocaust and combating anti-Semitism in all its forms and standing up for Israel’s security. Benjamin Gantz spoke on the importance of bipartisanship, and Mike Pompeo emphasized the dangers of anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism as an expression of anti-Semitism, and sending a firm message to Iran. Other United States and world leaders and opinion leaders included Dr. Anwar Gargash. Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates. To learn more about the Forum and to register, visit the Virtual Events tab at AJC.org. To get involved or for more information about United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s Jewish Community Relations Council, contact Rabbi Batya Glazer, director, at bglazer@ujft.org.
Bringing To Life back to life Elka Mednick
T
he Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is in the process of updating To Life: Stories of Courage and Survival, a collection of 67 personal stories published in 2002. With most of the individuals in the book now deceased, the Commission seeks any additional information to update and/or add to their original story, including photos of those individuals either alone or with family members. In addition to updating the existing stories, the Commission is interested in adding stories they may not have been aware of when the book was originally published. Stories of rescuers and Righteous Gentiles are also welcomed. To share information, contact Elka Mednick at elkamednick@gmail or 757-636-2317.
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WHAT’S HAPPENING Timeless Jewish classic, Keeping Up with the Steins is finale for this year’s film festival Thursday, June 24, 8 pm, Sandler Family Campus, socially distant family-friendly cookout, 6:30 pm TICKETS: $12 PER PERSON, CHILDREN AGES 12 AND UNDER ARE FREE RESERVATIONS BY JUNE 17 Robyn Sidersky
T
he Bar and Bat Mitzvah experience is one most Jewish boys and girls will never forget—whether it’s because of all the work that goes into preparing for it, the milestone and its meaning, or the great big celebration that accompanies it. The classic film that takes this monumental occasion and adds a dose of humor, Keeping Up With the Steins, is the centerpiece of the final showing in the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Patricia & Avraham Ashkenazi and Alma & Howard Laderberg Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, in partnership with the Simon Family JCC Summer Camp. “When I think about classic films with a Jewish theme, Keeping Up With the Steins is top on my list,” says Anne Fleder,
co-chair of the film festival. “With the Bar Mitzvah theme, it goes without saying that it resonates with all Jews who have had this experience.” First released in 2006, the film has themes that resonate widely in the Jewish community. “At the end of the day, if you take away the fluff, the theme, the band, the flowers, the giveaways, the food—what really matters is being true to yourself and being genuine,” Fleder says. “I think this movie does a really good job of that and it doesn’t matter whether it was the 1990s, the 2000s, or 2021, it still resonates with audiences today.” The film stars Jeremy Piven, Garry Marshall, Doris Roberts, and others. It is directed by Scott Marshall. Families are invited for a socially distant cookout before the film begins.
“It’s just a really good feelgood movie for people of all ages and it sends a powerful message that at the end of the day, relationships matter and family matters and it’s how you treat others and how you make other people feel that really determines good character,” Fleder says. Find more information at JewishVa.org/ FilmFest or contact Jill Grossman, director, arts + ideas at jgrossman@ujft.org or 757-965-6137.
GOT BAR AND BAT MITZVAH PHOTOS TO SHARE? Remember braces and voice changes? Memorizing your Torah portion? Giving
a speech? Your Bar or Bat Mitzvah was probably one of the most memorable days in your Jewish life. We want to see your favorite (and awkward!) pictures from the occasion. Send photos, including your name and the year, to Jill Grossman at jgrossman@ ujft.org. We will post a picture a day on social media leading up to our outdoor cookout and screening of Keeping Up with the Steins, with an opportunity for the community to take a guess!
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26 | JEWISH NEWS | May 31, 2021 | jewishnewsva.org
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Have fun this summer while enriching the lives of the youth in our community! Now hiring senior counselors, activity specialists, swim instructors, lifeguards, and more. Staff orientation begins June 14. For more information, contact Camp JCC Director Dave Flagler at 757-452-3186 or dflagler@ujft.org.
5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach
CALENDAR JUNE 6, SUNDAY Toras Chaim Annual Dinner. Tribute memorial in honor of Rabbi Reuven Bauman z’l. Tent event. COVID guidance for outdoor events will be followed. 6:30 pm. Dinner reservations $75. 3110 Sterling Point Drive, Portsmouth. For reservations, contact www.rayze.it/ toraschaimdinner. JUNE 8, TUESDAY JFS Biennial Meeting and Installation of Officers. Outside on the Sandler Family Campus. Ellen Rosenbaum’s end-of-year report on the status of Jewish Family Service of Tidewater, Inc. and the installation of Anne Kramer as the 2021–2023 president of JFS, along with the new executive committee. 6–7:30 pm. To RSVP or for more information, contact Sue Graves at sgraves@jfshamptonroads.org or 757-321-2238 or www.jfshamptonroads.org. JUNE 9, WEDNESDAY Faster: How a Jewish Driver, an American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Beat Hitler’s Best. Join a conversation with national award-winning writer and New York Times bestselling author Neal Bascomb. Presented by the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Lee and Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival. Free and open to the community with pre-registration required. 7:30 pm. For more information and to register, visit JewishVA.org/BookFest or contact Jill Grossman, Director, Arts + Ideas, at jgrossman@ ujft.org or 757-965-6137. See page 14. JUNE 15, TUESDAY UJFT Biennial Meeting and Installation of Officers. Outside on the Sandler Family Campus. Recognition of Amy Moss Levy, outgoing president and of Laura G. Gross, incoming president. Presentation of Community Awards, including the Harry Graber Award for Outstanding Achievement in Jewish Communal Service and the Joseph H. Strelitz Memorial Award for Distinguished Community Service. Kosher hors d’oeuvres served. 6:30 pm, reception; 7 -8 pm, program. RSVP required. To RSVP or for more information, contact Wynston Hammack at whammack@ujft.org or 757-965-6124. JUNE 14, MONDAY It is said that, “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” In Lisa Goldberg’s memoir, The Apple and the Shady Tree: The Mafia, My Family, and Me, she explores the veracity of this proverb by examining her complicated relationship with her father, whose closest friends happen to be bosses of the Genovese crime family. As part of the Simon Family JCC’s Book Club Series, and presented by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Lee and Bernard Jaffe Family Jewish Book Festival.12 pm. Free and open to the community with pre-registration required. For more information and to register, visit JewishVA.org/ BookFest or contact Jill Grossman, director, Arts + Ideas, at jgrossman@ujft.org or 757-9656137. See page 24. JUNE 24, THURSDAY Considered one of the quintessential Jewish coming-of-age films, Keeping Up With The Steins offers a unique experience in true retro style—a multigenerational bonding experience the entire family will enjoy. In partnership with Simon Family JCC Summer Camp, as part of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Simon Family JCC’s Patricia & Avraham Ashkenazi and Alma & Howard Laderberg Virginia Festival of Jewish Film. 8 pm. Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community. Tickets are $12 per person, children 12 and under, and camp families, free. Kosher cookout dinner begins at 6:30 pm, included with pre-registration required by June 17. For more information on the 28th Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film, and to register, go to JewishVA.org/FilmFest or contact Jill Grossman, director, Arts + Ideas, at jgrossman@ujft.org or 757-965-6137. See page 26. 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.
MAZEL TOV TO ACHIEVEMENT Dr. Julie Forman-Kay, on being named a Fellow of the highly prestigious Royal Society. The Royal Society’s fundamental purpose is to recognize, promote, and support excellence in science and to encourage the development and use of science for the benefit of humanity. Scientists of the Royal Society continue to make outstanding contributions to science and Julie Forman-Kay exemplifies this. Forman-Kay is program head and senior scientist in the Molecular Medicine Program at the Research Institute of The Hospital for Sick Children and a professor in the Biochemistry Dr. Julie Forman-Kay Department at the University of Toronto. The daughter of Vivian Forman and Rabbi Lawrence Forman, Julie is an international pioneer in her field and the foremost Canadian expert in developing and applying tools to study the dynamic structure, interactions and functions of disordered proteins of significant biomedical relevance. Disordered proteins are those that don’t have stable structures, and Forman-Kay’s work overturned the common view that protein function always relies on stable structure, providing a new understanding of the biophysics of disordered protein interactions that regulate essential cellular processes. Her ongoing work in the Forman-Kay Lab continues to break new ground. Very few scientists are inducted into the Royal Society. Julie joins her husband, Lewis Kay as a member. Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg on receiving her Honorary Doctorate on Thursday, May 27 from Hebrew Union College—Jewish Institute of Religion for 25 years in the rabbinate. Rabbi Israel Zoberman for having Congresswoman Elaine G. Luria insert his article on the 73rd anniversary of the State of Israel into the Congressional Record. In addition, Congressman A. Donald McEachin inserted his poem on George Floyd into the Congressional Record.
BIRTH Avi and Chana Horowitz on the birth of their daughter. Chana’s parents are Amy and Jeffrey Brooke and her grandparents are Bina and Herb Zukerman and Elli and Leonard Brooke. Avi’s mother is Linda Horowitz.
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.
Need a ride…JFS is ready to drive
F
or those who need assistance getting to medical appointments, Jewish Family Service’s transportation program is available to help. JFS’s driver transports residents in the Norfolk/Virginia Beach area to local doctor appointments for a minimal charge. Call the JFS transportation coordinator at 459-4640 for more information.
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OBITUARIES LOUIS BRENNER PORTSMOUTH—Louis Brenner, 98, died on May 14, 2021. He was born and raised in Richmond, Va. After graduating from the University of Richmond in 1943, he joined the U.S. Navy. Upon completion of his military service, he obtained his law degree from the University of Virginia and thereafter practiced law in Portsmouth for approximately 50 years. Among his many activities, he was president of the Portsmouth Bar Association and president of Tidewater Legal Aid. He served as president of Portsmouth Child and Family Service; president of Portsmouth Health and Home Care; president of Portsmouth Kiwanis Club, Tidewater chairman of the DuPont Scholarship Committee for the University of Virginia; member of the Portsmouth Civil Service Commission; board member of the Portsmouth American Red Cross, Friends of Portsmouth Juvenile Court, and Friends of Chevra Thelim. He was a participant for many years in the Paired Reading and Bear Program at John Tyler School. While chairman of the Portsmouth Public Library Board, he was instrumental in establishing the Second Tuesday Forum Series. He also served as a volunteer at the Portsmouth Public Library. While president of the Portsmouth Tennis Association, he was instrumental in establishing the Portsmouth Bankers Tennis Tournament. He was involved in the establishment of Temple Sinai and was a past president and long-time member of its board. He was president of the Portsmouth Jewish Community Council; chairman of the Portsmouth United Jewish Appeal and the Portsmouth representative to Beth Sholom Home of Virginia. He was a member of Ohef Sholom Temple. Louis was predeceased by his wife of 73 years, Isabel; parents, Israel L. and Ida R. Brenner; sister, Ellen B. Sherman; and two brothers, Samuel H. Brenner and Phillip Brenner. He is survived by three children, Douglas (Sharon) of Colleyville, Texas, Claire Marks ( Joel) of Florence, Oregon, and Daniel (Dale) of San Mateo, California;
and four grandchildren, Alexa, William, Ari, and Kira. A graveside service was held in Olive Branch Cemetery with Rabbi Rosalin Mandelberg officiating. Sturtevant Funeral Home.
STANLEY GRABER VIRGINIA BEACH—Stanley Graber, MD, Capt.(ret.) USPHS, passed away on May 12, 2021. He was born in Brooklyn N.Y. to Hyman and Bertha Graber. He went to Brooklyn College, Downstate Medical School, with a residency in Staten Island and Baltimore. He was a Captain in the US Public Health Service and Navy. Pathologist extraordinaire—when his colleagues were stumped, they would slip their specimen slides into his stack to interpret, which he always did graciously. He was the Chief Pathologist at Sentara Bayside Hospital, Virginia Beach, where he set up and ran their laboratory. Grandpa was an avid fisherman who never met a fish (or Chinese buffet) he didn’t like. Infinitely curious, he was a world traveler with his beautiful and talented partner in life, Selma. He was a gifted tenor and avid chess player (until Mark started winning). He was also a painful punster. He always made family ties his priority— this included many (mis)adventures in the family Winnebago, family Passovers in New York, New Jersey, Orlando, and Virginia Beach, and a 50th wedding anniversary cruise. He always looked forward to the weekly Friday calls from the grandkids, of whom he was immensely proud. He also looked forward to visits from his grand dogs Coco and Eddie (of blessed memory) and loved sneaking them treats. He will be dearly missed by his beloved children, their spouses, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Graveside Service were held at Woodlawn Memorial Park. Altmeyer Funeral Home Southside Chapel. HILDA “HONEY” VERSCHLEISSER BALTIMORE, MD—Hilda Rose Verschleisser (nee Peck), of Baltimore,
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Maryland, passed away on Friday, May 14, 2021 at the age of 76. She is survived by her children, Elka (Yosef ) Shereshevsky, Reuven (Yocheved) Verschleisser, Yocheved (Michael) Glaser, Rena (Yaakov Moshe) Gelb, Chaim (Nili) Verschleisser, Mayer Verschleisser; siblings, Stanley (Nancy) Peck, David Peck, and Aaron (Carol) Peck; and many grandchildren. She was predeceased by her parents, Bess and Julius Peck. Funeral services will take place in Israel.
CHARLES GRODIN, JEWISH COMIC ACTOR KNOWN FOR THE HEARTBREAK KID AND BEETHOVEN Gabe Friedman
( JTA)—Charles Grodin, the deadpan Jewish comic actor who starred in such blockbuster films as The Heartbreak Kid and the children’s movie, Beethoven, died Tuesday, May 18 at his home in Wilton, Connecticut. He was 86, and the cause was bone marrow cancer, according to reports. Grodin was raised in an Orthodox Jewish household in Pittsburgh, but became less observant in his adult years, although he and his second wife—in his words, “a nice Jewish girl from Kansas City”—observed holidays at home. “In Hebrew school,” he told J. the Jewish News of Northern California in 2004, “we’d recite the Hebrew written on a blackboard. I annoyed the rabbi so much he threw me out of class. I was thrown out of class in high school as well, not for being rude, but for being persistent with my questions. That makes for a good talk show host. Persistence annoys the heck out of people.” Following a series of supporting roles in late 1960s films such as Rosemary’s Baby and Catch-22, Grodin’s big break came with his lead role in The Heartbreak Kid, an acclaimed black comedy about a Jewish sporting goods salesman who falls for a college girl played by Cybill Shepherd. Critics praised the film as an early example of a mainstream exploration of Jewish identity, and some likened it to Philip Roth’s work.
Grodin would go on to feature in several other major comedies, notably Warren Beatty’s Heaven Can Wait, Seems Like Old Times (which like The Heartbreak Kid was penned by Jewish writer Neil Simon) and Midnight Run alongside Robert DeNiro. He also starred in the 1992 smash Beethoven, a family film about a lovable St. Bernard dog. In 1995 and ’96, Grodin hosted an eponymous news talk show on CNBC and then became a political commentator on 60 Minutes II. He also won an Emmy in 1978 for co-writing the Paul Simon Special variety show with Simon, Lorne Michaels, Chevy Chase, and Lily Tomlin. After a long hiatus from acting, he had a late career renaissance, playing a doctor on Louie C.K.’s Louie and a documentarian in Noah Baumbach’s 2014 film While We’re Young. He also played the defrauded Jewish investor Carl Shapiro in the 2016 Madoff miniseries about the late Ponzi schemer. Grodin added in the 2004 interview that he tried to live “in a way my rabbi would be proud of me.” “I try to live by religious principles, even if I don’t do the ritual,” he said.
FORMER CONGRESSMAN LESTER WOLFF, KNOWN FOR SURVIVING ASSASSINATION THREATS AND SUPPORTING ISRAEL Asaf Shalev
(JTA)—Lester Wolff, who served eight terms as a Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives and was an important player in American foreign affairs in the 1960s and ’70s, has died. At 102, the New York lawmaker was the oldest former member of Congress. Wolff died Tuesday, May 11 at a hospital in Syosset, New York. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency profiled Wolff in 2018, painting a picture of a man who was five times targeted for assassination for his actions and political positions on controversial international issues, including Israel. Wolff won his first congressional election in 1964 to represent part of Long Island, in suburban New York City, and during the ’60s he worked closely with
OBITUARIES Robert Kennedy and President Lyndon Johnson, and met Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir. He stayed in Congress until 1981. At a time when support for Israel in Congress was not as widespread as it is now, Wolff fought successfully to approve the U.S. sale of technologically advanced fighter jets to Israel. The former Jewish lawmaker spent his later years writing books, collecting art and attacking Donald Trump.
FAYE SCHULMAN, HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR WHOSE PHOTOGRAPHS DOCUMENTED THE PARTISAN RESISTANCE Shira Hanau
(JTA)—Faye Schulman, a Holocaust survivor who lost most of her family to the Nazis but joined a group of partisan fighters and documented their work in photographs, died Saturday, April 24, The Washington Post reported. She was 101 years old. Schulman’s photographs often depicted the smiling faces of young partisan fighters, with Schulman at times at the center in a stylish leopard print coat. Michael Berkowitz, a professor of Jewish history at University College London, told the Post that her photos were “extremely important in documenting the history of the resistance.” Schulman was born in Lenin, Poland, a town that bordered the Soviet Union. Her family was killed in 1942 when the Nazis liquidated the ghetto there, marching most of the town’s Jews to trenches outside the town and shooting them. Schulman was saved due to her occupation—she was put to work photographing Nazi officials and developing prints for records. She joined the partisans after escaping to the forests and became a nurse to wounded partisan soldiers. She developed her photographs by night. She was liberated by Soviet troops in 1944 and later that year married a fellow Jewish member of the partisans, Morris Schulman. They lived in a German displaced persons camp after the war until moving to Canada in 1948, where Schulman lived until her death.
In 1995, Schulman published a book, A Partisan’s Memoir: Woman of the Holocaust, that included many of her photographs.
FIVE ISRAELIS FROM ONE FAMILY AMONG 14 DEAD IN CABLE CAR CRASH IN ITALY Cnaan Liphshiz
The grandparents were visiting Italy, where the family was living. Biran was studying at the university of Pavia, near Milan, and had been involved in the Jewish community of Milan, according to La Republica. The cable car, which connects the resort town of Stresa to a nearby Alpine ridge, crashed down onto the mountainside halfway
(JTA)—Fourteen people, including five members of an Israeli family, were killed Sunday, May 23 in a cable car accident in northern Italy. The accident near Lake Maggiore claimed the lives of husband and wife Amit Biran, 30, and Tal Peleg-Biran, 26; their 2-year-old, Tom; and two of PelegBiran’s grandparents, Barbara and Yitzhak Cohen, aged 71 and 81, from Tel Aviv. Another son, Eitan, 5, was one of two surviving children airlifted from the scene to a hospital in Turin. The older child, about 9, later died, the BBC reported.
through its descent. Its cabin dropped 60 feet, crashing to the ground, and rolled over repeatedly as it barreled down the slope before crashing on some trees.
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TIDEWATER
Fishing Derby reels in fun…and fish Tom Edwards
A
fter a COVID-induced one-year absence, the Simon Family JCC Catch-and-Release Fishing Derby was held Sunday, May 23 on the Sandler Family Campus.
This was the fourth time the Derby was held on Lake Sandler, but the first time it was held in the spring, which may have had a hand in the fantastic fishing for the 50 participants that practically perfect afternoon. Anglers of all ages enjoyed abundant
catches under sunny skies. More than 40 prizes and raffle items added to the excitement of landing big largemouth bass, sun fish, and cat fish. JCC member Taylor Reynolds reeled in the largest catch of the day with a 4 lb. 8 oz. largemouth bass.
Caleb Bailey.
Please join us as we show our appreciation to Board Members and update you on the services and needs we are meeting in our community.
65th
Biennial Meeting
Taylor Reynolds.
Recognition & Appreciation: Ellen Rosenblum, Outgoing President Marcia Samuels, Past President Kim Gross, Vice President
Tuesday, June 8 Outside on the Sandler Family Campus
6 pm:
Reception
6:30-7:30 pm:
Josh Rivera and Jacob Berkovich.
Welcome & Installation: Anne Kramer, President Scott Flax, Vice President Stephanie Peck, Vice President Jody Greason, Secretary Meril Amdursky, Member Karen Gershman, Member
Kevin and Fischer Collier.
Presentation of special board & community awards
Meeting
RSVP to 757-321-2238 by Friday, June 4 Eli and John Lomogda, Kevin and Fischer Collier.
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Zane Josi.
TIDEWATER
Leo Gottlieb.
Jack and Jason Trompeter.
jewishnewsva.org | May 31, 2021 | JEWISH NEWS | 31
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help others thrive and succeed. Deeply rooted in the Hampton Roads community for 57 years, Checkered Flag is devoted to giving back to the thousands of loyal customers in our community. To that end, we partner with over 65 local educators, charities and community services to create economic opportunity, improve public health, education, and perhaps most importantly of all, inspire civic engagement and service. We’d like to help everyone in our community live their best life.
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