The Dayton Jewish Observer, March 2024 by The Dayton Jewish Observer

At 40thDavid yearMoss of service, manager designsBeth GraceAbraham After Mealsfacilities in comic book form retires p. 22 p. 5

THE DAYTON Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton

March 2024 Adar I/Adar II 5784 Vol. 28, No. 7

OBSERVER

The Miami Valley’s Jewish Monthly • daytonjewishobserver.org Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz

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Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton 525 Versailles Drive Dayton, OH 45459

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Through the valley of deepest darkness

By Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz Memorials to victims of the Oct. 7 Nova massacre affixed to poles at the site where 400 youths were killed or taken hostage outside Kibbutz Re’im, Israel.

DAYTON Hillel Academy

Chabad Mega Challah Bake

Chabad Women’s Circle will present its Mega Challah Bake at 7 p.m., Thursday, March 14 at Chabad, 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. The program is open to girls and women ages 12 and up and includes desserts. Participants will take home two braided challahs ready for baking. The cost is $36. R.S.V.P. at chabaddayton.com/CWC or call 937-643-0770.

Temple Beth Or corned beef lunch

Temple Beth Or's annual corned beef lunch will be held Tuesday, March 12 from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. For sale will be Carnegie Deli corned beef sandwiches and Mrs. Goldfarb's plant-based version at $20 a meal and $20 a pound.

Hillel Academy students and their principal, Anna Smith, visited the Mosaic Institute of Dayton in January to help cut and place tiles on the mosaic that will be part of the 8-4 Memorial in the Oregon District. The memorial is expected to be completed in time to mark the fifth anniversary of the mass shooting on Fifth Street.

Carnegie Deli cheesecake is also available at $5 a slice. Temple Beth Or is located at 5275 Marshall Rd., Washington Township. To preorder and for details including delivery options, go to templebethor.com/cornedbeef.

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Vicki Minor, Helen Halcomb, and Jese Shell prepare food for Beth Jacob Congregation's Tu B'Shevat seder and Shabbat dinner, Jan. 26.

Patty Caruso

It wasn't in Dayton but that's where all the memories came from. More than two dozen Jewish Dayton expatriates who live in Chicago held a meet-up Jan. 25 at Old Irving Brewing Co. Shown here behind Michelle Moses (L to R) are Roger Schoenfeld, Rob Miller, Karen Mellman-Smith, and Dan Klein. More meet-ups are in the works, and there's even a private Facebook group, The Dayton to Chicago Connection.

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Calendar..................................17 Family Education....................25

Food................................23 Obituaries........................... 26

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

DAYTON Marshall Weiss

Expressions of support for Israel amid protests

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Local updates connected to the Israel-Hamas war

By Marshall Weiss, The Observer After the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre, Kevin Kroos knew he needed to do more than write a check or attend a pro-Israel community event. Kroos, co-owner of Tool Tech in Springfield, volunteered for a week in Israel in January, packing boxes of food at an Israeli Air Force base for Israel Defense Forces soldiers in Gaza. He and a Jennifer Holman writes a card for an IDF soldier, Feb. 16 friend volunteered with the Sar-El program. at the Boonshoft CJCE during the Jewish Federation's A member of the Columbus Jewish comMorning of Community Advocacy. munity, Kroos has conducted business in Israel through the Dayton Region Israel Trade Alliance world, many of whom are not Jewish. A few years ago, Bar-Or connected Tool Tech and its trade representative, Hadas Bar-Or. to an Israeli defense company, ASHOT, to obtain DRITA is a collaborative program of Montgomery County, Dayton, and the Dayton Devel- a foreign military contract. "Much of the funding provided to Israel by the United States must opment Coalition. be spent in the states," Kroos noted. "DRITA "My family’s connection to Israel has always been strong," Kroos shared Tool Tech supports the Dayton regional economy by making these conwith The Observer. "One son nections." studied for a semester at BenWhile Kroos was in Israel in Gurion University, my other January, Bar-Or arranged for son participated in Birthright, him to meet with Tel Avivand my wife and I helped lead based Israeli defense manufaca mission of 84 people from turer Nidco. After his week of Columbus to Israel 20 years volunteering with Sar-El, Kroos ago." visited several IDF bases, three In the aftermath of Oct. 7, massacre sites, soldiers in a when Kroos learned that his hospital, and witnessed the friend's son had been the tarIron Dome missile-defense get of antisemitism, Kroos and system in action. his friend researched programs to meet their goals of "making Community advocacy a difference on the ground." Members of the Dayton Bar-Or highly recommendarea's Jewish community ed the Sar-El program. Kroos Kevin Kroos, co-owner of Tool Tech in and his friend joined Sar-El Springfield, volunteering with the IDF in and allies wrote cards to IDF January Continued on Page Four volunteers from across the

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Join us Thursday, March 14 from 1-3 p.m. as we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Celtic music, Irish beverages, a gift basket raffle, and delicious Irish food! RSVP to Dana Chesser at 937-913-8101. Now leasing 1 & 2 bedroom apartments. Please call Jonathan at 937-298-0594 to schedule your personal tour.

From the editor’s desk

Along with time-honored Purim traditions such as the Purim shpiel — in which members of a Jewish congregation act out and sing the Purim story in a way that's supposed to make you Marshall laugh — there's been a custom among Jewish newspapers to run a Purim secWeiss tion that's a spoof of the Jewish news in the world. Each year, there are fewer and fewer Jewish newspapers. I couldn't tell you if there's even one that does a Purim spoof section anymore. Maybe the Forward? I think they call it the Backward. A handful of times over the years, I attempted to put together a Purim spoof page, The Dayton Jewish Perturber. I don't recall much in the way of reaction one way or the other. I do remember some of my colleagues sharing that they stopped doing Purim sections because some of their readers believed those spoof stories were real. Maybe it's just as well. With the bizarre news we cover these days, it would be easy to believe they were Purim spoof stories even 15 or 20 years ago.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

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Local updates connected to the Israel-Hamas war ‘We feel a strong connection to our Jewish friends and family in Dayton.’ — Nat & Susan Ritter A native Daytonian now living in Bonita Springs, Fla., Nat Ritter lovingly calls his plots in Temple Israel’s cemetery the “only real estate I own in Dayton.” When Nat’s first wife, Wendy, died in 2008, both he and Wendy’s family wanted her to be buried in Dayton, where they found the cemetery to be peaceful and serene. Along with that came a commitment that she wouldn’t be left alone. But it was more than this commitment that motivated Nat to contribute to the Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Dayton campaign. With both of his parents buried in Beth Abraham’s cemetery, he felt it was his turn to care for the generations that came before him. As a child of Holocaust survivors, Nat knew how precious his family was. Etched on the back of his parents’ tombstone is a remembrance “for all our family lost in the Holocaust.” “No one knows when they died or where they are buried. For my family, Dayton’s Jewish cemeteries act as their final resting place. We need to make sure that they are taken care of properly.” Now married for 12 years to Susan, they feel “a strong connection to their Jewish friends and family in Dayton.” Even though they now live in Florida, they thoughtfully care for their Jewish heritage in Dayton.

Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Dayton is an endowment organization created to maintain our three Jewish cemeteries in perpetuity. Please join us as we strive to maintain the sanctity, care, and integrity of these sacred burial grounds.

Preserving our Past Ensuring Our Future

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Continued from Page Three soldiers, Israelis in the Western Galilee — the Jewish Federation's Partnership2Gether program region — and signed letters to members of Congress at the Jewish Federation's Morning of Community Advocacy, Feb. 16 at the Boonshoft Center for Jewish Culture and Education in Centerville. Participants took with them bracelets demanding the release of the hostages still held in Gaza, and blue ribbons to show their support for Israel in its war with Hamas. Dayton's Jewish Federation also funded kiddushes and onegs at local Jewish congregations over Shabbat, Jan. 19-20, an initiative of Jewish Federations of North America billed as a national Shabbat of Love, "to embrace the Jewish people, spreading love for who we are." To date, Dayton's Jewish Federation Israel Emergency Campaign has raised $854,000. To donate, go to jewishdayton.org.

Anti-Israel demonstrations

As reported in the Dayton Daily News, a small group of protestors who identified themselves as members of Codepink — Women for Peace demonstrated outside the Dayton Metro Library in Downtown Dayton on Feb. 14 in advance of Mayor Jeffrey Mims' State of the City address there. They called for the city and Montgomery County to end the Dayton Region Israel Trade Alliance, saying "it's wrong and unacceptable that the city and county support a trade alliance with companies in Israel that are involved with the country's military operations." The Village of Yellow Springs and Yellow Springs News have each denounced Israel with no mention of the atrocities committed by the Hamas terror organization in the village's cease-fire resolution and a newspaper editorial, respectively. "We believe we are witnessing the horrors of genocide, that it is wrong, and that we, as reporters — no matter how small we are — must stand on the side of truth in relaying this tragic reality," wrote Yellow Springs News Editor Cheryl Durgans in the paper's Jan. 26 editorial, Ceasefire now. The editorial also encouraged readers to join anti-Israel protests Jan. 26 and 27: "On the News' publication day, Friday, Jan. 26, Antioch College and Yellow Springs High School students, along with the organization YS Uproar, will participate in a walkout and signmaking event, in preparation for a march this Saturday, Jan. 27 at 2 p.m., beginning outside the Wellness

Center. The purpose of the march is to demand that the U.S. government and Village Council call for a 'ceasefire and end to the violence perpetuated by the Israeli military,'...Some members of the News will be there in support of this effort." The editorial did note that college campuses "should not and cannot tolerate antisemitism any more than they should tolerate the swatting of college students who support the Palestinian cause." The paper later reported that more than 100 pro-Palestinian protestors joined the Jan. 27 demonstration. The Yellow Springs Village Council unanimously passed a cease-fire resolution Feb. 5. Language in the resolution stops short of calling the situation in Gaza a genocide, referring to it as a dire humanitarian crisis. The resolution urges "the Ohio delegation, including Sens. Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance, Rep. Michael Turner and Gov. Mike DeWine, to join in support of House Resolution 786, which calls for an immediate deescalation and permanent cease-fire in occupied Palestine and Israel." The Yellow Springs Village Council's resolution also calls for an end to United States funding of wars and "military activity across the globe so we can focus our shared resources on addressing issues experienced by the people of the United States who hail from all over the world and who call this country home." The resolution specifically notes the village "strongly supports Palestinians," and condemns the loss of innocent lives in Israel and Palestine. However, it expresses moral equivalence between civilians Hamas kidnapped in Israel and terrorists held prisoner in Israel: "There are "still approximately 138 Israeli hostages held in Gaza and over 7,000 Palestinian men, children, and women being held captive without being charged with any crime in Israel." In addition, the village's resolution states that "according to the United States Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Yellow Springs residents' federal tax dollars have, since November 2023, contributed $68,965 to Israel's weapons, and use of these weapons against Palestinian civilians is entirely unacceptable and a violation of our humanitarian principles and international law." Village of Yellow Springs Council Member Carmen V. Brown told The Observer she was the resolution's primary writer and that "the document was completed after communicating with American Israeli writer Moriel Rothman-Zecher and Lebanese American attorney Albert Mohkiber."

OBSERVER daytonjewishobserver.org Editor and Publisher Marshall Weiss mweiss@jfgd.net 937-610-1555 Contributors Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz Candace R. Kwiatek Advertising Sales Executive Patty Caruso, plhc69@gmail.com Administrative Assistant Samantha Daniel, sdaniel@jfgd.net 937-610-1555 Billing Sheila Myers, smyers@jfgd.net 937-610-1555 Proofreaders Rachel Haug Gilbert, Steven H. Solomon Observer Advisor Martin Gottlieb Published by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton Mary Rita Weissman President Dan Sweeny President Elect Marni Flagel Secretary Neil Friedman Treasurer Ben Mazer VP Personnel Teddy Goldenberg VP Resource Dev. Dr. Heath Gilbert Immediate Past Pres. Cathy Gardner CEO The Dayton Jewish Observer, Vol. 28, No. 7. The Dayton Jewish Observer is published monthly by the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, a nonprofit corporation, 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459. Views expressed by columnists, in readers’ letters, and in opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinion of staff or layleaders of The Dayton Jewish Observer or the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton. Acceptance of advertising neither endorses advertisers nor guarantees kashrut. The Dayton Jewish Observer Mission Statement To support, strengthen and champion the Dayton Jewish community by providing a forum and resource for Jewish community interests. Goals • To encourage affiliation, involvement and communication. • To provide announcements, news, opinions and analysis of local, national and international activities and issues affecting Jews and the Jewish community. • To build community across institutional, organizational and denominational lines. • To advance causes important to the strength of our Jewish community including support of Federation agencies, its annual campaign, synagogue affiliation, Jewish education and participation in Jewish and general community affairs. • To provide an historic record of Dayton Jewish life. The Dayton Jewish Observer

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

DAYTON

At 40th year, Beth Abraham facilities manager retires Dennis Day remembers that when he started as a years. Dennis served in the Air Force and is considered custodian at Beth Abraham Synagogue in 1984, every a Vietnam vet: "I wasn't in Vietnam, but I got all the one of its 600-plus seats was full on the High Holidays. ribbons from Vietnam because I was in Thailand, and That included the bleachers he set up in the social hall we were in direct support of Vietnam." balcony, overlooking the back of the sanctuary. Along with his year in Thailand, Dennis was sta"I remember, for the High Holidays, everybody had tioned for a year in Turkey, a year in South Korea, and to have a ticket," Dennis, 76, said of six years in West Germany. Marshall Weiss his first years at the old building on It was when he was stationed at Wright-Patt Salem and Cornell in Dayton View. that he met and fell in love with a local girl, Patty. "They were lined up at the door They married, and are surrounded by their three waiting to get in. People had reserved daughters, six grandchildren, and seven greatseats. And if somebody else sat in grandchildren, who all live in the area. "That their reserved seat..." He laughed keeps me busy," he said. contemplating what might ensue. Dennis first connected with Beth Abraham That was when Rabbi Samuel when he worked as a security guard for two Press led services with Cantor Jerome years. His company would send him to guard the Kopmar. Rabbi Ernest Adler was synagogue. the shul's ritual director and Shirley "And then, I got to know the people, so they Frankowitz was its executive director. offered me a job inside," he said. "She was the one that hired me." Over the years, he learned to follow the HeDennis Day In December, Dennis retired as brew worship services and the ins and outs of Beth Abraham's facilities manager, a month after he ar- kashrut, the Jewish dietary laws. "Eva Rosenberg taught rived at his 40th year of service to the congregation. me," he said. When he began, he was on a team of two custodians, He shared with The Observer his famous adage: "The a housekeeper, and a part-time handyman. From about first thing I learned when I started was, you don't talk the time Beth Abraham moved to its smaller, current about anybody, because everybody's related to somefacility at Sugar Camp in Oakwood in 2008, Dennis body." handled the custodial work himself. Back when he started, Dennis recalled, women "I had a lot of people volunteer to help," he said. "If didn't count toward a minyan, the minimum quorum it has to be done, you do it. I did so much automatiof 10 people needed for public worship services. "You cally I didn't even think about it." could have nine men and a woman, and they wouldn't Dennis was born in Portland, Maine. His father was have services for minyan. And that changed." in the Army and his family moved every two or three Even in those days, the synagogue had its challenges

achieving a daily minyan. "And back then, you weren't allowed to take pictures on Saturday. You couldn't record anything. Now, we're streaming services." The biggest changes he's seen — along with fewer Jews in the Dayton area — have come about with social media and email. "When I started, everybody came in person and talked to you about what was going on. When they had an event, people would come in and go over what they wanted. Now, it's all email or messages. You don't have that personal connection." As the synagogue's caretaker, he's made it through two floods and two lightning strikes, United Synagogue Youth regional conventions, and the move from Dayton View to Oakwood. "When we moved from Salem to here, it was hard work: taking down all the plaques and everything that we moved out here and put back out here." He enjoyed working with and getting to know students, teachers, and staff of Hillel Academy from the time the Jewish day school moved to the third floor of Beth Abraham's building in Oakwood in 2010. "They would honor me on Veterans Day. One time, I went in the classroom, and they sang patriotic songs and gave me a card. And another time, they gave me cards from different classrooms. They did that, and during Covid, the kids would always write me thankyou notes for keeping them safe." When asked why he stayed with Beth Abraham for so many years, he said, "I just like the people. I like the way they treated me. They accepted me as part of the family. The job was like one big family." — Marshall Weiss

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DAYTON

New law requires DOD procedures for religious freedom complaints

Adversaries offer alternate postmortems on how, why it came to be

DaytonMetroLibrary.org PAGE 6

By Marshall Weiss, The Observer The Pentagon has a new policy for handling religious freedom complaints: objections to specific displays or expressions will automatically go up the chain of command to the Department of Defense and must be responded to within a set time. U.S. Rep. Mike Turner and Military Religious Freedom Foundation President/founder Mikey Weinstein both see it as a victory — against each other. Weinstein claims credit for the victory. So does Turner. The Dayton area's congressman, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, sees it as a way to keep Weinstein and his organization in check. Weinstein sees it as requiring the DOD to respond to his organization's complaints, and in a timely manner. And if the MRFF isn't satisfied with the results, it threatens to take the DOD to federal court. The requirement for these DOD procedures was a final amendment to the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, signed into law by President Biden, Dec. 22. It's a substitution for the amendment that Turner added to the version of the 2024 NDAA the House passed last June. Turner's House amendment prohibited the DOD from communicating with the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, its leadership, or its founder or " to take any action or make any U.S. Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH 10th District) decision as a result of any claim, objection, or protest made by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation without the authority of the Secretary of Defense." The amendment's inclusion and approval "without controversy" by the House was first reported June 22 by jewishinsider.com. Military Times covered the story June 26. The Forward wrote about it July 13. The Observer picked up and distributed the Forward's coverage in its August issue. Weinstein established the non-profit Military Religious Freedom Foundation in 2005. It grew out of antisemitism he says his two sons experienced at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado, where Weinstein himself graduated. "Most of our clients, by sheer numbers, happen to be Christians," Weinstein says. He says most cases brought to MRFF by military personnel involve "a fundamentalist Christian who is trying to impose and use the rank on their collar, whatever their rank is, as a force multiplier to force an otherwise helpless subordinate to adhere to their view." The subordinate, he says, can't fight back. "You are facing the dynamic of a military superior telling you in essence that your religious faith or lack thereof means that you lack intelligence, compassion, empathy, courage, honor, and honorability. Because under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, insubordination often is punished as a felony." Weinstein describes his MRFF as very aggressive, militant. "But it's always legal, ethical, and moral what we do. Because when you have your constitutional rights stripped away, you don't want to wait very long. You want the attention of the chain of command." Cases the MRFF has worked on recently according to Weinstein include shutting down a military unit's "Jesus Wants You To Be His Valentine" sermon and al-

tar call (inviting people to come forward and publicly announce their decision to commit their lives to Jesus) during normal duty hours, stopping a commander and his wife from offering "Christian Bible counseling" to service members, and the removal of a VA chaplain's anti-LGBTQ+ display at a VA Medical Center. "We only care about the time, place and manner in which a member of the military, the Defense agencies, believe they have the right to deploy their faith," Weinstein says. Turner tells The Observer it's Weinstein's tactics he objects to, not the MRFF's mission. "The principles of freedom of worship and religion are the most important principles of the foundation of our nation," Turner says. "Unfortunately, Mikey Weinstein has reportedly been abusive, attacking, unprofessional in the manner in which he has approached this issue with commanders at installations across the country. He is the poster child for bad behavior, and it has resulted in a patchwork of bad precedent." "We tried to be nice," the Albuquerque-based Weinstein says of MRFF's approach. "And we tried to follow the Marquess of Queensberry rules in helping our clients in the early 2000s," he says, referring to the boxing expert who codified the sport's rules. "It doesn't work. So we had to create the only civil Military Religious Freedom rights organization in AmerFoundation Pres. Mikey ican history and in the U.S. Weinstein Congress that has caused members of Congress like Mike Turner — who we view as weak, unintelligent, obviously very cowardly, very craven — to want to assassinate us by legislation." Weinstein claims Turner's amendment to the House version of the 2024 NDAA prohibiting the military from any interactions with the MRFF stems from a 2016 incident at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. He said he had received 31 complaints that spring about the inclusion of a Christian Bible on a Missing Man Table at the Wright-Patt Medical Center dining facility. Under pressure from the MRFF, Wright-Patt's installation commander removed the Bible from the POW display. At the time, Turner called it an act of censorship. In an April 13, 2016 interview with the Dayton Daily News, Turner said, "In this instance, we have staff of the Air Force making an independent decision about removing a religious symbol. We certainly have a number of religious symbols at the National Air Force Museum, and I would hate for this to become an overarching policy at Wright-Patt or at the Air Force. If we continue to have that, I'm looking for the answer from WrightPatt and of course the Air Force to ensure that we're not going to have the Air Force going through and censoring religious expression and religious symbols. And if we don't get the right response, we're certainly going to be looking to a legislative fix. Because this undermines what really goes to the basis of our heritage." Turner told The Observer in January that Weinstein's allegedly abusive, attacking behavior "cannot be the basis on which a commander says, 'I need to end this relentless interaction with Mikey Weinstein, so I'm just going to concede.' What we need is a coherent policy that's based upon principles and values." Turner says the final approved amendment — rath-

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

DAYTON House amendment as concerning. er than his House version against Weinstein and the "We were tracking the Turner Amendment and were MRFF — had been his aim all along. "It was my goal, which we achieved, that there be a consolidation in the shocked when it was included in the House-passed Department of Defense of this function of dealing with bill," said Michael Lieberman, senior policy counsel on hate and extremism with the Southern Poverty Law freedom of expression, freedom of worship, freedom of religion issues. What we achieved is the Department Center. "It was one of a great number of truly horrific House-passed provisions that were either stripped or of Defense is now going to consolidate the process so mitigated in the final bill." that if a commander finds himself in a situation where Maggie Garrett, vice president for public policy at he's being attacked or abused by the Mikey Weinsteins Americans United for Separation of Church and State, of the world, he's going to be able to put that at the bottom of his list and send it up the chain of command agrees that the original amendment was unconstituand respond, 'This is not within my jurisdiction. You're tional. "This targeted attack, based upon one representative's disagreement with the group, violated the going to have to deal with someone else.'" Constitution," she says. "The First Weinstein, who accuses Turner of 'No bill of Attainder Amendment guarantees us all the being a Christian Nationalist, claims or ex post facto Law freedom to petition the government, his foundation reached out to Demobut this provision would have denied crats on the Senate side to kill Turner's shall be passed.' MRFF the right to communicate original House amendment. "I cannot — U.S. Constitution with government officials and access go into the specifics with you. We were Article I, Section 9, information. The provision was also fortunate that we have contacts on Clause 3 an unconstitutional bill of attainder Capitol Hill, most of whom didn't want — the provision targeted the MRFF, to have their names utilized because singling the organization out for punishment without they're afraid of losing hard-right Christian votes or hard-right Christian money," Weinstein says. "We were due process." Garrett adds that Americans United is cautiously shocked by Turner's attempt to make it a felony under optimistic that having a process for responding to the Uniform Code of Military Justice for anyone to complaints "will add transparency and better protect even reach out to us by name." the religious freedom of service members." Weinstein says MRFF's backup plan was to sue in Weinstein says he's elated with the final approved federal court. "This would be viewed as a prototypiNDAA amendment. "Now, for the first time, If we cal bill of attainder. Congress is not allowed by our Constitution to pass a law that specifically punishes an reach out to a military commander with a specific complaint, she has only 10 calendar days to take the organization or entity," Weinstein says. "That's what complaint directly to the secretary of whatever branch the judiciary is there for. Separation of powers." they're in and the service secretary must coordinate Representatives of two national civil rights orgawith their top-level military lawyers — judge advonizations describe the language of Turner's original

cates — and the highest level chaplains and then send back a decision from their office in just 30 calendar days to that commander and to us. "The real advantage here is that I can whisper in the ear of a commander and say, 'Sir or ma'am, this is not an official complaint. Yet. This is an FYI that this is going on in your organization. If you don't stop it, you will get an official complaint. And then you will have 10 days — 240 hours — to make sure that the service secretary knows that you can't handle issues in your own command." Prior to the new law, MRFF couldn't sue in federal court until a client had exhausted administrative remedies. "That requires our clients to file an EEO complaint, which can take months and years. Now, this has a built-in administrative exhaustion device. In 960 hours, if you can rule against us, five little words I would simply say to the military: 'Tell it to the judge.'" Turner says he named Weinstein and MRFF in his House amendment to NDAA as examples. "It was a bill within legislation that never became law but starts the discussion, so people would be able to cite what has reportedly been the worst behavior that commanders are subject to at the local level, to focus the discussion on really the burden, the current situation that has been placed on commanders. "They have important things to do: to run their facilities and to protect our nation and our national security. They shouldn't be making national policy. The Secretary of Defense is now required to give the relief to those commanders by consolidating a process for handling these complaints. The Mikey Weinsteins of the world will no longer be able to pick on single commanders who perhaps aren't even well-versed in these issues."

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Cincinnati mayor dismisses calls for cease-fire resolution addressed the council were respectful, By Sam Fisher, cincyjewfolk.com With an overflow crowd of more than some Palestinian activist’s comments 250 people packed into a Cincinnati City veered into antisemitic tropes. Including an activist who exclaimed, “Jews are not Council public forum on Feb. 14, Mayor indigenous to the region." Aftab Pureval said he did not believe The majority of the remarks remained the city should take up the cease-fire peaceful. However, after some stateresolution many in attendance were ments, the crowd cheered or booed and calling for. even quietly stated insults. A standing-room crowd spilled out Many members of the Jewish commuof the council chamber onto the marble nity addressed the city council as well. staircase for the forum, which lasted According to Rabbi Ari Jun, director of more than four hours and over 100 the Jewish Community Relations Counpeople spoke for or against a possible cease-fire resolution on the war between cil, 170 members of the Jewish comIsrael and Hamas which began after Oct munity registered to attend the public meeting with the JCRC. 7, when Hamas attacked Israel, killed Jeremy Spiegel, the assistant direc1,200 Israelis, and took 250 hostages. tor of the JCRC, addressed council “Members of this council and myself have heard from the residents who have members about the massive increase in antisemitism since Oct. 7, claiming that come before us and have worked with a cease-fire resolution would further fan Jewish and Palestinian local leaders the flames of antisemitism. He shared to draft a consensus language around some of the harrowing antisemitic incithe resolution that would speak for a dents that have happened in Cincinnati unified voice in Cincinnati,” said Aftab since the start of the war. after the public comment period. “In schools, Jewish students have “I hoped that we could get there, Cincinnati JCRC that we could find a collective message centered around peace, humanitarian support, and an end to the deaths of innocent civilians – particularly children. But it’s become clear that this time that consensus language doesn’t exist for an issue that is among the most nuanced and complicated in international affairs. “When we have consensus, we will be here to listen and to engage. But at this time, I do Cincinnati City Council's public forum, Feb. 14. not believe council should take been confronted in hallways and told a position.” Hitler should’ve finished the job. TeachSince Oct 7 and the start of the ers tell their students that Jews have Israel-Hamas war, numerous American been killing for a long time,” Spiegel cities have passed cease-fire resolutions said. “Visibly Jewish teens are forced calling on Israel to end its campaign in to leave the park after receiving death Gaza. threats. These are not isolated incidents, The high attendance at this meeting and they are not occurring in a vacuum. was to support a cease-fire resolution, The words and rhetoric taken in this which was never on the agenda. The chamber have the power to heal or dicease-fire resolution was brought up vide us at this pivotal moment.” on Feb. 7 by Council Member Meeka According to the ADL, between Oct. Owens. 7 and Dec. 7, antisemitic incidents in the At the same meeting on Feb. 7, United States rose 337% compared to council members Mark Jeffreys, Reggie the previous year. Harris, and Seth Walsh put out a stateHolocaust survivor and Israeli citizen ment that a cease-fire agreement would Zahava Rendler spoke at the public further divide the Cincinnati commuforum. “I have to say this is the darkest nity and be unbalanced. time in our nation’s (Israel's) history,” “We, the undersigned, do not believe she said. that we as Cincinnati City Council, can Several members of the Jewish comput forward a balanced and unified munity who spoke at the forum encourresolution on the war in Gaza. Instead, aged and welcomed the opening of a we are asking representatives for both dialogue between the Palestinian and communities impacted by this conflict, Jewish communities of Cincinnati. to discuss a path forward where both “A cease-fire resolution does not communities can have their voices solve this painful, complex international heard. We hope such a dialogue can problem,” said Rabbi Moshe Smolkin. start to repair relationships in our city “We must begin an essential dialogue impacted by this horrible conflict.” to repair wounded relations within our Hundreds of people spoke before the council. While the majority of those who city."

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

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of angst, with advocates filing frequent By Jacob Gurvis, JTA federal complaints alleging antisemitism ORLANDO — Ethan Smith ranks fifth in his New Jersey high school class, on campuses, Congress holding a series of hearings on campus antisemitism, scored high on the SAT and aced a full and parents banding together to share slate of five AP tests last year. On Oct. 1, reports of incidents at their children’s he submitted his application to a nearby schools. Some Jewish schools have Ivy League school, the University of threatened not to send their graduates Pennsylvania. to schools that don’t commit to keeping Six days later, Hamas attacked Israel, students safe. launching a war that has been accompaThere’s evidence that a large number nied by a reported spike in antisemitism of students are choosing not to apply in the United States — including on to Harvard: The university reported a college campuses. About two months after that, Penn President Liz Magill told 17% dip in early decision applications this year. Though the early decision Congress that calling for the genocide deadline was Nov. 1, a month before the of Jews wouldn’t necessarily violate the explosive congressional hearing, Harrules at her school. vard faced scrutiny immediately after Magill later resigned, but for Smith, the conflict began, when a coalition of the damage was done. He withdrew his Jacob Gurvis student groups circulated Penn application and a letter blaming Israel for now plans to attend his Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. home state school of De Almeida said she Rutgers University. was accepted to Penn “I just felt personally State but is mostly more comfortable there considering colleges in being fully who I am,” Florida, including the Smith said of Rutgers, University of Florida, which has a large Jewish which is the only univerpopulation. He worried sity in the country with that Penn would be a more Jews than Rutgers. place where he would be Ethan Smith at the BBYO convenShe said UF’s large Jew“constantly looking over tion in Orlando, Feb. 16. ish community and its my shoulder, worrying strong Hillel appeal to her, though she what somebody was going to do once I acknowledged it isn’t immune to bigwalked into Hillel.” otry: The campus Chabad was tagged Smith’s decision is emblematic of a with antisemitic graffiti in November. feeling shared by many teens active in Gabriel Golubitsky, a senior from the BBYO Jewish youth group, which met for its annual convention in Orlando Cleveland, said the rise in antisemitism has only strengthened his desire to be Feb. 15-18: As they look at colleges, Jewishly active in college and advocate along with thinking about academics, location and the social scene, many have for Israel, where he plans to spend a gap year with Young Judaea after graduafound themselves weighing a new faction. tor: antisemitism. “If anything, I wanted to go to A new survey of nearly 2,000 BBYO schools with more antisemitism, so I participants across North America, could fight it,” Golubitsky said. He said taken in recent weeks found that 64% said antisemitism on campus was an im- he is mostly considering state schools in portant factor in their decision regarding Ohio. “Kids know me as the pro-Israel kid because I post a lot about it.” He where to attend college. More than 60% said many teens don’t understand both said they had experienced antisemitism sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in person. something he blamed on the education “It made me not apply to some colleges,” Bianca De Almeida, a senior from system. Antisemitism on college campuses Miami, said regarding the December also took center stage at BBYO’s opencongressional hearing, where the presiing plenary session. Israeli influencer, dents of Harvard University and the actress and producer Noa Tishby Massachusetts Institute of Technology warned the teens that anti-Israel activalso declined to say outright whether ists are “going to tell you they don’t campus policy prohibited calls for the hate Jews, they just hate Israel. Or even genocide of Jews. better, they hate Zionists.” “A lot of people didn’t apply to those Golubitsky’s friend Emir, a Boca schools,” De Almeida said. “It became a Raton native who declined to share his safety concern.” last name, said he hopes to attend the The teens’ rethinking comes amid a University of Miami, partly because he broad reckoning by American Jews in wants to go to school locally. the wake of Oct. 7 and the ensuing war. “The school not having a big antisemWidespread, harsh criticism of Israel, a itism problem and having a big Jewish spike in reported antisemitic incidents, community made me want to stay in and what some experienced as inadequate concern about Jewish trauma have Florida,” Emir explained. He said his high school has a large Jewish populacaused many U.S. Jews to question their tion and is home to a lot of pro-Israel inclusion in institutions and milieus advocacy — something he described as where they previously felt secure. Colleges have been a particular source comforting.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

THE REGION

FBI arrests Indiana man over threats to ‘kill every Jew’ — but didn’t tell Jewish community about him By Andrew Lapin, JTA The FBI arrested an Indiana man who promised to “kill every Jew” in Fort Wayne last year — and local Jewish leaders are questioning why they weren’t alerted to the threat sooner. The suspect, 41-year-old Jeffrey Stevens, admitted in interviews that he had posted violent antisemitic threats directly to the website of the CIA, as well as in a Facebook direct message to the Fort Wayne Police Department, according to a newly released affidavit. Stevens also wrote to the CIA, “I am going to shoot every pro-Israel US government official in the head,” and boasted of having “strong Palestinian, Hezbollah, and Iranian contacts.” He is charged with communicating a threat in interstate commerce and faces a maximum of five years in prison. The Feb. 13 arrest came amid reports of rising antisemitism in the United States as the IsraelHamas war extended into its fifth month. Since Hamas’ Oct. 7 invasion of Israel, U.S. Jews have been attacked on college campuses, in their homes, on the way to synagogue, and one Jewish man in Los Angeles died after an altercation at a street protest. In that time, the FBI has made other arrests in connection with antisemitism. Stevens told officials he had a “drinking problem,” according to the affidavit. He wrote the posts, including one reading “Death to the Zionist,” following Oct. 7, but also posted some Israel-related material from other social media accounts prior to the attacks. As news of the arrest emerged, Jewish leaders wondered why they had not been warned of Stevens’ intentions, despite the fact that he sent his threats directly to law enforcement months ago. “We only found out about this two days ago and the whole incident occurred in November,” Jaki Schreier, executive director of the local Jew-

ish federation, wrote to JTA in an email. “We are NOT HAPPY to say the least.” Fort Wayne, the second-largest city in Indiana, has around 450 Jewish families among its approximately 250,000 residents, according to the Federation. Schreier said she would meet soon with the Secure Community Network, a nonprofit that coordinates security for American Jewish institutions, to discuss why the Jewish community was not told sooner of the threat. The SCN itself praised the arrest in a statement. “The offender in this case made threats to the Jewish community of Fort Wayne as well as to the dedicated members of our law enforcement and intelligence communities,” Michael Masters, SCN’s national director and CEO, said in the statement. “This arrest highlights the potential spillover of international tensions into our own backyards and sends a clear message that our law enforcement partners continue to mitigate threats before they cause harm, especially amid rising Jew-hate.” Also in mid-February, the FBI reportedly found antisemitic material at the home of a woman who recently opened fire at a Houston megachurch, wounding one person before she was shot and killed by off-duty officers. Authorities found a painting with the message “Death to Jews” at the shooter’s home, her former mother-in-law, a self-professed Jewish Universalist rabbi, told the Forward. The shooter, who is thought to have been suffering from mental illness, brought her 7-year-old son with her to the church. He was shot in the head and critically injured. Since Oct. 7, authorities have also arrested a Jewish man who threatened to kill Palestinians; and anti-Palestinian attackers killed a 6-year-old boy in Illinois and shot and wounded college students in Vermont.

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OPINION

How cease-fire became a dirty word, even to some progressive groups By Andrew Silow-Carroll At the end of January, Jacob Frey, the Jewish mayor of Minneapolis, vetoed his city council’s resolution endorsing a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war, calling it “a one-sided resolution that adds more division to an already fraught situation.” On Feb. 8, the council voted to override his veto, adopting a resolution that calls for a “permanent ceasefire” and places the war squarely “in the context of the 75-year displacement of Palestinians.” Overridden but unbowed, Frey issued his own cease-fire proclamation. Like the council’s, it calls for an immediate cease-fire, the return of Israeli hostages, and humanitarian aid for Gazans. Unlike the council resolution, it specifically endorses a two-state solution, eliminates a call to end U.S. military aid to Israel, and makes no reference to accusations in the International Criminal Court and elsewhere suggesting that Israel is carrying out genocide. “It differs from the resolution passed by council in that it attempts to honor, uplift, and include Minneapolis residents across faiths,” Frey explained on Instagram. “We need more unity right now, and furthering (division) and hate at home does not help achieve peace abroad.” The differences between the two proclamations are both subtle and pointed, and typify a fierce debate over cease-fire, a word that has come to carry a host of meanings and more emotional and political baggage than its plain definition implies. For many defenders of Israel, calls for a cease-fire suggest Israel surrender its right to defend itself and eliminate an enemy that slaughtered 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped 250 others on Oct. 7 and would surely try to do it again. That many of the early calls for cease-fire came from groups that disdain Israel is reason enough to reject the term, many argue. Even those who might now support a pause in the fighting that would allow the return of some or all of the hostages and humanitarian aid for displaced Palestinians ask why Israel should agree to end a war they consider just and necessary. “A premature cease-fire, without ensuring the elimination of Hamas’ military and governing capabilities, will only prolong that organization’s reign of terror over the people of Gaza, perpetuate its threat to the Israeli citizenry, and doom any prospect of a political end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” said Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, in a statement. As for proponents of a cease-fire — a growing number of city councils across the United States, NGOs, left and far-left Jewish groups, and the pro-Palestinian supporters they sometimes march with — the term can signify a range of positions. For the far left, which includes many anti-Zionist Jews, Israel is solely to blame for the conditions that led to the Oct. 7 attacks, and stopping the war means nothing less than preventing the genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza. Some Jews calling for a cease-fire express sympathy for Israel and its security dilemma but are moved by the enormous civilian death toll in Gaza and want the war to cease on humanitarian grounds. And some progressive and even centrist Zionists wonder whether the huge scale of bloodshed will weaken Israel politically and diplomatically without eliminating the threat of the Hamas ideology.

So, what do you think? PAGE 12

On Feb. 11, more than 30 Israel-based civil society and human rights organizations called for “an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and demand the immediate release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip.” “An immediate cease-fire will prevent further loss of civilian lives and facilitate access to vital aid for Gaza to address the unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe there,” read their petition. “These steps are vital for ensuring human rights and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike.” Among the North American Jewish mainstream, however, the word is seldom used. Only one member of the 50-member Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations — Americans for Peace Now — has issued a call for a cease-fire. On Jan. 22, the left-wing Israel advocacy group J Street said it is time for a “negotiated stop” to the fighting, but pointedly did not use the word cease-fire. And when the Biden administration suggested the euphemistic “humanitarian pause” in the fighting last November, the right-wing Zionist Organization of America called it “pro-Hamas and anti-Israel.” What terms are used to describe a stop in the fighting — cease-fire, humanitarian pause, cessation of hostilities — are less meaningful to scholars and lawyers than they are to politicians and activists, explained Virginia Fortna, professor of U.S. Foreign and Security Policy at Columbia University. “A lot of the words just end up getting used interchangeably, and the distinctions are not super meaningful,” she said. “Cease-fire is a catchall term for lots of different kinds of things, from a very local and temporary pause to a unilateral cease-fire and all they way to a formalized, negotiated” agreement. More significant is the distinction between ceasefire and armistice, which means a permanent end to the fighting. Fortna, who has written a book on the durability of cease-fire agreements, has been following the Israel-Hamas war and looking past the cease-fire debate to what happens next. “What could a peacekeeping mission look like?” she said. “Who could be involved, and be trusted enough and be seen as impartial enough to both sides and allay serious mistrust?” The Jewish debate over cease-fire is felt keenly in the Reconstructionist movement, whose 95 affiliated congregations and 370 rabbis tend to lean to the left. The movement hasn’t called for a cease-fire; rather, in an essay on Dec. 21, Rabbi Maurice Harris, the movement’s Israel Affairs Specialist, described two camps among rabbis and congregants. Those calling for an immediate cease-fire, he wrote, hold mainstream views about Israel but argue that “the most important of our Jewish values now is the prohibition against the killing of innocents,” and they distrust Israel’s leadership. Opponents of an immediate cease-fire defend Israel’s right to self-defense and feel “that allowing Hamas to remain in power would be a grave mistake that would harm Israelis and Palestinians in the long run.” In an interview, Harris noted that a “disproportionate” number of rabbis in the Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association are part of Rabbis4Ceasefire, a group that issued its first call for a cease-fire on Oct. 20 — a full week before Israel launched its ground invasion of Gaza. At the same time, there is a cohort of Reconstructionist rabbis more closely aligned with their local Jewish Federations, “who want to see the movement aligned more vigorously and publicly with the calls for

solidarity that come from” the Jewish Federations of North America. “Speaking personally, one of the things I find a little confusing about the most visible calls for cease-fire is they don’t seem to respond when there’s an offer on the table for a temporary pause in the fighting and Hamas says no,” he said. “If the most important thing is for the killing to stop, I would think some of the cease-fire folks would be protesting Hamas’ refusal to go ahead and accept a deal even for a temporary cease-fire .” The Reform movement also hasn’t issued a call for cease-fire, even though its statements condemning Hamas and supporting Israel’s right to self-defense clearly align the movement with the pro-Israel left. They include calls for “an end to the West Bank occupation,” condemnation of settler violence against Palestinians, and support for a Palestinian state. Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said he is sympathetic to the calls for ceasefire — including one issued by more than 1,000 current and former members of the URJ in December. “Ceasefire as a standalone call I think for some people is just a cry from the heart for the humanitarian disaster which war always is, and this war is no exception,” he said. But Jacobs said his movement can’t get behind a cease-fire “that preserves Hamas’ current role as governor and military force in Gaza.” “This war will end with a negotiated cease-fire — that’s how the world works,” he continued. “What matters greatly is what comes after. The hostages have to be released. And I think who governs Gaza after the cessation of hostilities is really important.” As often happens in polarizing political debates, a term becomes toxic when it gets too closely associated with one side or the other. Pro-Palestinian protesters were early in calling for a cease-fire, in some cases within days and even hours of the Oct. 7 attacks. Some of these demands were also coupled with positions and rhetoric that many Jews, including those on the left, couldn’t countenance. A controversial letter signed by Harvard Palestine solidarity groups calling for “action to stop the ongoing annihilation of Palestinians,” issued Oct. 9, held “apartheid Israel…entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.” A Cease-fire Now resolution introduced Oct. 16 by 13 Democratic progressives in the House of Representatives did not call out Hamas’ unprovoked attack on Israel or mention the hostages. A Cease-fire Now petition by the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace declares that Israel “is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.” “The rape denialism among progressive groups, the slanderous overreach in characterizing Israel’s behavior as genocide, the quick leap to calls for cease-fire instantly after Oct. 7 — denying Israel the legitimacy of self-defense — and the regular omission of calls to release the hostages as part of the cease-fire conversation are all colossal moral failures,” wrote Yehuda Kurtzer, president of the Shalom Hartman Institute, in a Jan. 29 essay in the Forward, defending “the moral and political necessity of Israel’s military response.” Kurtzer elaborated in an interview. “We’re not really talking about the legitimacy of cease-fire,” he said. “Everybody wants that.” Both sides have been negotiating over terms for a cease-fire, and both sides have rejected offers. “When I wrote my piece in the Forward, I got accused by people on the left as being pro-genocide. Continued on Page 26

Views expressed by columnists, in readers’ letters, and in opinion Send letters (350 words max.) to The Dayton Jewish Observer, pieces do not necessarily reflect the opinion of staff or layleaders of 525 Versailles Dr., Dayton, OH 45459 • MWeiss@jfgd.net The Dayton Jewish Observer or the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton.

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UPCOMING EVENTS WEDNESDAYS, 12:30 - 3:30PM Open Canasta SUNDAY, MARCH 3, 2PM Let’s Put the “J” in LGBTQ+ THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 6PM Cultural Arts & Book Series — Benedetta Guetta SUNDAY, MARCH 10, 4PM Cultural Arts & Book Series — Jonathan Freedland SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2:30PM Cultural Arts & Book Series — Tom Dugan THURSDAY, MARCH 28, 7PM Cultural Arts & Book Series — Rick Richman

Connect with us! Check out our events. For more information, check out our calendar at jewishdayton.org.

Let’s Put the “J” Sunday, March 3, 2 - 3:30PM The Boonshoft Center for Jewish Culture and Education (525 Versailles Drive, Centerville, 45459) Are you or your family a member of the LGBTQ+ community looking to connect with others within the Jewish community? Join us for an afternoon of connecting with friends old and new, noshing, and doing something good for the community. We will be making cards of encouragement, empowerment, and support for those David’s Place serves! No cost. RSVP by March 1. Donations of new winterwear (hats, scarves, gloves, mittens) for David’s Place are your admission! Jewish Family Services

Do you have a favorite photo of nature that brings you joy? Share that joy with others! You can submit your photos to Jewish Family Services. We will use them to create Passover cards as part of our holiday outreach. Email photos to Jacquelyn Archie at jarchie@jfgd.net by March 29. JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES of GREATER DAYTON

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SHARING YOUR JOY @ PASSOVER

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March 2024 JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON & ITS AGENCIES

A Women’s Freedom Seder

O U R J O U R N E Y TO WA R D S C O M M U N I T Y

T U O E N I D Thursday, April 4

Sunday, April 7, 4:30 – 6PM La Fiesta Mexican Restaurant 8331 N Main Street, Dayton, 45415

Join us as we celebrate the 10th Annual Dayton Women’s Seder Our Journey Towards Community

Meet your Boomers Group friends at 4:30PM for dinner after attending When Dance Transcends Barriers at Beth Jacob Congregation (please see pg. 27 for further details). Let us know you will be joining us and we will reserve a table! Cost: Dinner on your own.

6 – 9PM at Beth Abraham Synagogue 305 Sugar Camp Circle, Oakwood, 45409

$54 per person. RSVP online by March 14 at jewishdayton.org/events or contact Stacy Emoff at semoff@jfgd.net The Jewish Community Center is proud to collaborate with women from Beth Abraham Synagogue, Beth Jacob Synagogue, Hadassah, Temple Beth Or, and Temple Israel.

RSVP at jewishdayton.org/events or contact Stacy Emoff at semoff@jfgd.net or call 937-610-5513.

JUNE 3 - JULY 26 Camp Shalom is planning a summer of fun! We offer the traditional camp experience, a variety of specialty camps including outdoor adventures, magic, ninja warrior, cheerleading, and more! Join us for weekly swimming and field trips, great counselors, and lots of friends! CAMP SHALOM IS HIRING SUMMER STAFF! Do you know someone 16 or older who would be a great camp counselor? Interested candidates should contact Suzzy Nandrasy at snandrasy@jfgd.net. See jewishdayton.org for more information. Register at app.compdoc.com/register/jccgreaterdayton.

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

March 2024 JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON & ITS AGENCIES

MARCH

Thursday, March 7 @ 6PM FEATURING the Author’s Appetizers, Salads, and Desserts

EVENTS

Sunday, March 10 @ 4PM In partnership with JCC Book Club

In partnership with Beth Abraham Synagogue

via Zoom Enjoy from the comfort of your home! No Cost

Livestream at Beth Abraham Synagogue Must attend in person to view Livestream

Jonathan Freedland The Escape Artist — The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World

305 Sugar Camp Circle, Oakwood, 45409 Cost: $18 Benedetta Guetta Cooking Alla Giudia — A Celebration of the Jewish Food of Italy Jews Inspired Eggplant Parmigiana?! • Cooking Alla Giudia is a tribute to the wonderfully rich, but largely unknown Roman culinary heritage of the Jews of Italy. Benedetta Jasmine Guetta tells the story of how the Jews changed Italian food, while sharing kosher recipes from all regions of Italy, including plenty of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options.

Breakout to Broadcast • In The Escape Artist, Jonathan Freedland tells the story of Rudolf Vrba who, in 1944, escaped from Auschwitz to warn the world. His was the first full account of Auschwitz, a forensically detailed report that would eventually reach Roosevelt, Churchill, and the Pope. And yet too few heeded the warning that Vrba had risked everything to deliver.

Thursday, March 28, 2024 @ 7PM

Sunday, March 17, 2024 @ 2:30PM

In partnership with Hadassah

In partnership with the Dayton Metro Library

via Zoom No Cost Dayton Metro Library, 215 E. 3rd Street, Dayton, 45402 No Cost

Rick Richman And None Shall Make Them Afraid — Eight Stories of the Modern State of Israel

Tom Dugan Wiesenthal “The Jewish James Bond” • In the award-winning one-man play, Wiesenthal, now available in book form, the famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal looks back at his life on the day of his retirement. With warmth, wit, and surprising humor, he recounts how he tracked down history’s most notorious killers, but offers a warning that, although progress has been made, the human savage still lurks beneath the wafer-thin surface of civilization. In this program, author Tom Dugan will explore the life and legacy of Wiesenthal in the context of Holocaust history and modern times, highlighted by short scenes from the play itself.

Our Tribute to Israel's Endurance • This is the story of how Zionism created a modern miracle—told through the little-known stories of eight individuals, four from Europe and four from America—who collectively changed history. These stories are central to the miraculous recovery of the Jewish people in the 20th century. Taken together, they reflect both a people’s return to its place among the nations and the impact on history a single individual can make.

To purchase tickets for in-person events or to register for free events, please visit jewishdayton.org/events or call 937-610-1555

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JCC CULTURAL ARTS PROGRAMMING IS MADE POSSIBLE BY A GRANT FROM OUR COMMUNITY SUPPORTER OHIO ARTS COUNCIL IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL.

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March 2024 JEWISH FEDERATION of GREATER DAYTON & ITS AGENCIES

JCC

FEDERATION

Legacies, Tributes, & Memorials

JEWISH FEDERATION OF GREATER DAYTON ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of Esther and DeNeal Feldman Mr. Stuart and Mrs. Mimi Rose

JOAN AND PETER WELLS AND REBECCA LINVILLE FAMILY, CHILDREN AND YOUTH FUND In memory of Ed Meltzer Joan and Peter Wells

TALA ARNOVITZ SCHOLARSHIP FUND In memory of Esther and DeNeal Feldman Beverly Saeks

PJ LIBRARY In memory of Ruth Goldberg In honor of Bruce and Debbie’s new granddaughter Marcia and Edward Kress

FELDMAN FAMILY BBYO FUND In memory of Esther and DeNeal Feldman Whitney Fisch

SCHOLARSHIPS & STUDENT LOANS Heuman Scholarship & Interest-free Student Loans

Applications are now available. Completed applications are due Friday, March 29. Are you a member of the Dayton Jewish community who will be enrolled at a two- or four-year college, technical program, or graduate school in the academic year 2024-2025? If so, you may be eligible to apply for a college scholarship and/or interest-free student loan through the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton. It is easy to apply for both incredible opportunities at the same time on a single, unified application. To request the application and to learn more about the Heuman Scholarship, please contact Alisa Thomas, executive assistant, at 937-610-1796 or athomas@jfgd.net. If you have questions specific to interest-free student loans, please contact Tara Feiner, executive director of Jewish Family Services, at 937-401-1546 or tfeiner@jfgd.net.

PAGE 16

JEWISH CEMETERIES FUND In memory of Esther Feldman Susan and Nathaniel Ritter Jackie and Jay Dorman Melissa and Tim Sweeny Ann and Sheldon Berger In memory of Esther and DeNeal Feldman Dr. and Mrs. Marvin Galler Marilyn and Larry Klaben Friedman Family Helene and Gary Blumenthal Steven Ballas

INNOVATION GRANTS Do you have an innovative idea for a collaborative program that will engage and bring together the Greater Dayton Jewish community? Apply for an Innovation Grant! Contact Tara Feiner at tfeiner@jfgd.net or 937-401-1546 to request an application packet. Completed applications are due by noon on Friday, March 29. The application packet includes: • Innovation Grant application (Adobe PDF) signed by the senior officer of the organization(s). • Innovation Grant Budget application (Microsoft Excel) • First-time applicants must supply a copy of the organization’s IRS tax exempt certificate 501(c)(3) for all groups involved if there is a collaboration. Prior Innovation Grant awardees do not need to resubmit their tax-exempt status. For more information visit, jewishdayton.org

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

CALENDAR Classes

Beth Abraham Classes: w. Rabbi Glazer. Mondays, 10 a.m.: Mishnah Matters on Zoom. Register at 937-2939520. 305 Sugar Camp Cir., Oakwood. Beth Jacob Classes: w. Rabbi Agar. Tuesdays, 7 p.m.: Torah Tuesdays on Zoom. Thursdays, 7 p.m.: Thursdays of Thought on Zoom. Call to register, 937-274-2149. 7020 N. Main St., Harrison Twp. Chabad Classes: Tuesdays, 8 p.m.: Code of Jewish Law. Wednesdays, 7:30 p.m.: Talmud Class. Thursdays, noon: Parsha Study on Zoom. chabaddayton.com. 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. 937-6430770. Temple Beth Or Classes: Sundays, 12:30 p.m.: Adult Hebrew. Sat., March 2, 10 a.m.: Apocryphal Study in person. Thurs., March 7, 7 p.m.: Chai Mitzvah in person & Zoom. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 937-435-3400.

a.m.: Virtual Torah Study. Sun., March 3, 10, 17, noon: Aseret: The Big Ten w. Rabbi BodneyHalasz in person, registration required. $18 for digital book, $36 for printed book. Sat., March 9, 9:15 a.m.: Hybrid Torah Study. Sat., March 9, 1 p.m.: Purim Perspectives, registration required. Fri., March 15, 11 a.m.: Living w. Loss w. Rabbi Bodney-Halasz. Thurs., March 28, 3:30 p.m.: Living w. Ambiguous Loss w. Rabbi Bodney-Halasz. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. tidatyon.org/calendar. 937-496-0050.

JCC Cultural Arts & Book Series See schedule, Page 15.

Men

Chabad Bagels, Lox & Tefillin: Sun., March 3, 9:30 a.m. 13+ welcome. 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. chabaddayton. com. 937-643-0770.

Women

Temple Israel Classes: Tuesdays, noon: Hybrid Talmud Study. Wednesdays, 10 a.m.: Torah Queeries w. Rabbinic Intern Kit Brewer, call for location. Saturdays, 9:15

Chabad Women’s Circle Mega Challah Bake: Thurs., March 14, 6:30 p.m. $36. 12+ welcome. Register at chabaddayton.com. 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. 937-643-0770.

Adults

Temple Beth Or Arts & Music Café: Sat., March 2, 6 p.m. $25, includes food & drink.

Karen Jaffe, Noah Wotherspoon, Steve Wyke, Marc Gilbert & Mary Rogers perform. RSVP at templebethor.com. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 937-435-3400. Temple Israel Brotherhood Ryterband Brunch & Speaker Series: $7. Sundays, 9:45 a.m. March 3: Cantor Yvon Shore, Dir. Liturgical Arts & Music, HUC-JIR Cincinnati, Fighters, Healers, Survivors: How Music Built a Jewish Nation. March 10: Neurosurgeon Dr. Jonathan Borden, Kettering Health Network, Spine Care. March 17: Lela Klein, Exec. Dir. & Co-founder of Greater Dayton Union Co-op Initiative, Dayton’s Emerging Cooperative Economics Ecosystem. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 937496-0050. Beth Abraham Rick Pinsky Brunch Speaker Series: $8. Sundays, 10 a.m. March 3: Dr. Jack Bernstein, Astronomy, Astrophotography & the Upcoming Eclipse. March 17: Dr. Neil Katz, Work, Play, Live: Two Months in Yellowstone. RSVP to 937-293-9520. 350 Sugar Camp Cir., Oakwood. Beth Abraham Book Talk: Mon., Mar. 25, noon w. Marco Zoppas, author of Bob Knows: Conversations w. Dylanologists

on Zoom. Register at bethabrahamdayton.org. 937-293-6520.

Community

JFS Let’s Put the “J” in LGBTQ+ Sun., March 3, 2 p.m. Free. Accepting new winterwear for David’s Place. RSVP jewishdayton.org/events. Boonshoft CJCE, 525 Versailles Dr., Centerville. 937-610-1555. Temple Beth Or Corned Beef Lunch: Tues., March 12, 11 a.m. $20 meal, $20 lb. Preorder at templebethor. com/events/corned-beef. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 937435-3400.

Purim

Chabad Ckids Purim: Sun., March 17, 4 p.m. Free. Ages 5-12. RSVP at chabaddayton. com. 2001 Far Hills Ave., Oakwood. 937-643-0770. Anshe Emeth Purim: Fri., March 22. 6 p.m. Pizza dinner and hamantashen making. 7:30 p.m. service. 320 Caldwell St., Piqua. RSVP to ansheemeth@ gmail.com. Temple Beth Or Purim Hamen-nosh-en Dinner & Megillah Reading: Sat., March 23, 5:30 p.m. Free. Cash bar. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash Twp. 937-435-3400.

Temple Israel Adult Purim Party: Sat., March 23, 6:30 p.m. $15. RSVP. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 937-496-0050. Beth Jacob Presents Barbie Goes to Shushan: Sat., March 23, 7:30 p.m. Free. 7:45 p.m. Michah, 8:30 p.m. Ma’ariv, 8:45 p.m. Havdalah & Megillah. 937-274-2149. 7020 N. Main St, Harrison Twp. Beth Abraham Purim at the Esty Awards: Sun., March 24, 11 a.m. Family Megillah Reading. 11:45 a.m. Carnival, free. 12:15 p.m. Lunch, $12 adults, $7 kids 3-12, $36 family max. 1 p.m. Shpiel. RSVP for lunch by Mar. 15. Bring mac & cheese boxes for The Foodbank. RSVP to 937-293-9520. 305 Sugar Camp Cir., Oakwood. Temple Israel Megillah Reading & Purim Carnival: Sun., March 24, 11 a.m. $6 adults, $4 kids. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 937-496-0050. Chabad Purim in the Shtetl: Sun., March 24, 5 p.m. $15 adults, $8 kids. RSVP at chabaddayton.com. 5500 Seybold Rd., Brookville. 937643-0770.

Saturday April 6, 7pm

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THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

PAGE 17

RELIGION

CONGREGATIONS Beth Abraham Synagogue

Conservative Rabbi Aubrey L. Glazer Cantor/Dir. of Ed. & Programming Andrea Raizen Fridays, 5 p.m. Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. 305 Sugar Camp Circle, Oakwood. 937-293-9520. bethabrahamdayton.org

Beth Jacob Congregation

Traditional Rabbi Leibel Agar Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. Evening minyans upon request. 7020 N. Main St., Dayton. 937-274-2149. bethjacobcong.org

Temple Anshe Emeth

Reform Rabbinic Intern Gretchen Johnson Friday, March 22, 7:30 p.m. 320 Caldwell St., Piqua. Contact Steve Shuchat, 937-7262116, ansheemeth@gmail.com. ansheemeth.org

Temple Beth Or

Reform Rabbi Judy Chessin Asst. Rabbi/Educator Ben Azriel Fridays, 6:30 p.m. 5275 Marshall Rd., Wash. Twp. 937-435-3400. templebethor.com

Temple Beth Sholom

Reform Rabbi Haviva Horvitz 610 Gladys Dr., Middletown. 513-422-8313. templebethsholom.net

Temple Israel

Reform Senior Rabbi Karen BodneyHalasz. Rabbi/Educator Tina Sobo Fri., March 1, 6 p.m. Fridays, March 8, 15, 22, 6:30 p.m. Saturday, March 9, 10:30 a.m. 130 Riverside Dr., Dayton. 937-496-0050. tidayton.org

Temple Sholom

Reform Rabbi Cary Kozberg 2424 N. Limestone St., Springfield. 937-399-1231. templesholomoh.com

Through the valley of deepest darkness By Rabbi Karen Bodneyand looked out for each other. Halasz, Temple Israel There were bicycles all around, The Talmud teaches that vis- and children out playing toiting the infirm relieves 1/60th gether in the courtyard areas. of their pain. It is integral to My son Jonah kept looking their healing process. Offerlongingly out at the children ing comfort from mental and playing soccer on the lawn, physical suffering is part of likely wishing he was playing our responsibility as with them instead Jews. of learning about Going on a misincendiary balloons sion trip to Israel and bomb shelters Jan. 22-25 was my with us. way of fulfilling Many members that duty, of saying: of this kibbutz were “You are not alone. involved in efforts I’m with you.” It toward making peace was also a shiva call. with their neighbors We were seven in Gaza. rabbis (five Reform, Rabbi Karen BodneyEvery year, Kfar two Conservative) Aza holds a kite fesHalasz from the Midwest. tival for peace. They With my colleagues, I create colorful, joyful kites and, returned to Kibbutz Kfar Aza, as a community, send them where I had been almost a year toward Gaza with messages of ago to the day. peace. I thought I was prepared for This event began as a response to the Gazan population sending incendiary kites to Kfar Aza to set Israeli homes what I would see there, having and fields on fire. Gazans also watched many videos, heard sent balloons filled with exfrom our kibbutz tour guide plosives intended to detonate via Zoom after the attack, and when children approached already having seen pictures. them. But I don’t think anything Oct. 7 is the day of the ancan prepare a person to see nual kite festival. Instead of that level of destruction. I flying kites that day, the person was personally relieved that who planned the festival was enough time had passed that found murdered, with his arms I did not smell the stench of wrapped around his family. burnt and decaying flesh that His kites were there, too. many who had visited have When I entered the kibbutz written about. this time, I was greeted by Lir, Kibbutz Kfar Aza is nearly a 27-year-old lifelong resident two miles from the Gaza of Kfar Aza who survived the border. When we visited last Oct. 7 attacks. Our group was year, many Temple Israel conone of many there that day, as gregants found it a beautiful, well as some reporters. idyllic home where they could Lir trains therapy dogs. She easily see themselves living. said she was glad her dogs The ground was lush, the were not outside with her that flowers were beautiful, and the morning; Hamas killed most of homes were well kept. the dogs they saw. Everyone knew each other Lir woke up the morning of

Perspectives

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PAGE 18

Remains of a home at Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Israel, Jan. 23.

Oct. 7 when she heard rockets. At 6:30 a.m., she went outside to look. She sensed something big was going on. She saw five paragliders and 10 terrorists from the Nuchba elite combat unit of Hamas. The Nuchba fighters came first and took out Kfar Aza's gate. By 9:30 a.m., the second wave of terrorists had infiltrated. The gate and path became a nonstop road for Hamas and Palestinians between Gaza and the kibbutz. Lir immediately went into her saferoom when she saw what was happening and connected with other kibbutz members through WhatsApp.

March • Adar I/Adar II

ADDITIONAL SERVICES Rabbi Nochum Mangel Associate Rabbi Shmuel Klatzkin Youth & Prog. Dir. Rabbi Levi Simon. Beginner educational service Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. 2001 Far Hills Ave. 937-643-0770. chabaddayton.com

Photos by Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz

A Jewish leap year

Shabbat Candle Lightings March 1: 6:11 p.m. March 8: 6:19 p.m. March 15: 7:26 p.m. March 22: 7:33 p.m. March 29: 7:40 p.m.

Purim

Feast of Lots

March 24/14 Adar II Commemorates the rescue of the Jews in ancient Persia. The reading of the Book of Esther, costumes, grogers (noisemakers), and eating hamantashen are part of this festival.

On the Jewish calendar, months follow the cycle of the moon. However, there are approximately 12.4 lunar months in a solar year. The solution is a 19year Jewish calendar cycle with a second month of Adar — Adar II — added in the 3rd, 6th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th and 19th years.

That morning, the kibbutz had been attacked from four directions. The first line of defense Hamas took out was Kfar Aza's volunteer emergency squad. The IDF did not arrive until 12 hours later. During that time, Hamas murdered 63 members of the kibbutz and took 16 as hostages into Gaza. At least 10 more kibbutznikim are still in hospitals, injured. As she showed us the newly replaced gate, Lir spoke about one of the young women taken hostage who remains in Gaza. She is a close friend of Lir. Lir is worried that her friend

Torah Portions March 2: Ki Tissa (Ex. 30:11-34:35) March 9: Vayakhel (Ex. 35:1-38:20; Ex. 30:11-16) March 16: Pekudei (Ex. 38:21-40:38) March 23: Vayikra (Lev. 1:1-5:26; Deut. 25:17-19) March 30: Tzav (Lev. 6:1-8:36; Num. 19:1-22)

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

RELIGION may be pregnant. Women were raped on the 7th and hostages continue to be raped in captivity. Every week that passes makes that scenario harder to think about. There was deep pain in Lir’s eyes. She openly shared that her own mental health has suffered greatly since that "Black Sabbath" of Oct. 7. I can’t imagine the strength it must take for her to return to the scene of the crime and tell the stories of her friends and neighbors. It's important to her on a level I would never be able to understand. We were brought to the dor tzair area, the young generation homes. This is where young adults, newly married couples, and young families live. The terrorists had done their research and went straight to that location. Lir told us of horrible atrocities: men and women raped, decapitated, amputated, and families bundled together and set aflame. This only touches the surface of the cruelty she witnessed. For the sake of the families and their privacy, she wouldn’t go into more details. There were different colored markings on the walls. These told the stories of the atrocities: the number of people who were found, how many corpses remained, a note Memorials to victims of the Nova massacre affixed to poles at the site More than 400 freshly planted eucalyptus trees, one for each from ZAKA to declare the space clear of where 400 youths were killed or taken hostage outside Kibbutz Re’im. youth killed or taken hostage at the Nova massacre. bodies or body parts. sleep at night again if she returns. Most homes remained off limits, to guard Along the road to Re’im, there were still some Lir requested three things from us: knowledge, the privacy of the families. Only one had been apblackened areas from where burnt cars had been. proved for people to enter, the home of Noar Hasidim missions to enable survivors to share stories, and The festival was held near the woods with a single fundraising. and his partner, Sivan Elkabetz. entrance where the security sat. When we first pulled Knowledge: This request is to help put Lir in touch Inside, there were bullet holes everywhere, like in, we were overcome by rows and rows of freshly with someone who has worked with communal Swiss cheese. Family photos memorialized the scene planted eucalyptus trees, more than 400 of them, each after they had been murdered. We saw Hebrew words trauma and knows how to rebuild a community that memorializing one of the fallen youths or hostages has suffered like this. saying, “human remains on the sofa.” taken to Gaza. They had been planted by the victims’ The people who survived the Oct. 7 atrocities are The young couple had been tortured for hours. families, together with Jewish National Fund, in honor deeply traumatized and will need a lot of support and of Tu B’Shevat, the new year of the trees. To see the The words they shared that day on WhatsApp were care moving forward. posted on the wall. I felt nauseated by the darkness country bloom again is a statement of resilience. They need specialists and senior therapists who that had befallen their home. We were farther south from Kfar Aza, which meant specialize in trauma and are able to provide the staff Many other houses in that neighborhood had mewe were nearer to the fighting in Gaza. Every few morial banners on them with the names and photos of there with advanced tools and methods to treat the minutes we would hear the sound of artillery going community. those who had been killed or taken hostage inside. off. Those sounds still trigger me after my experiMissions: The kibbutz would like to help raise the Everywhere you looked, you faced death and deences with the bombings in Jerusalem from when I voices of survivors to testify to their pain and the struction — burnt walls, charred roofs, blood-stained lived there, 1995-96. We walked from the area of the depravity they experienced. furniture strewn around. newly planted trees to where the festival took place. They seek community leaders who As we passed through, Lir We wandered in the drizzling rain toward an area will help create platforms for kibbutz shared story after story about near the trees that had been set up as a memorial, with members to share their personal stories the inhabitants of the houses placards on top of individual poles. Each represented with people overseas, to bring the great- a single life, all in the space where they had been and their fates: near misses, er community and kibbutz members deaths, kidnappings. dancing in the early hours. together for an unmediated encounter. Over and over she said there We recited El Malei Rachamim, a Jewish memorial Fundraising: The third request is to was no logic to the day. There prayer for the dead, only for the clouds to begin rainhelp with financial support to help the was no rhyme or reason to ing tears upon us. kibbutz rebuild. I was proud to share who survived and who didn’t. that Temple Israel had already made a One family tried to jump n the Mishnah, Rabbi Tarfon reminds us not to give generous donation to their cause. out of the window of their house as it burned, only to up, especially when the task is daunting. As we got back into our van, we were all quiet. It be gunned down by three terrorists waiting for them We must remember each of us has a role to play and was hard to say anything at all. We just needed to sit outside. Another individual did the same thing and we must not be discouraged from doing the work. in the silence and process what we had just seen. survived. I pray that Israel continues to build upon its strong As we turned the corner, I was surprised to run into foundations of love and kindness, seen so abundantly e drove to the site of the Nova Festival outside someone I knew: Rachel Waldorf, who used to work at since the war began. Kibbutz Re’im. Nova was a yearly dance party Goldman Union Camp Institute in Zionsville, Ind. She May this endure long after this war, that we always that closed out the holiday of Sukkot. It was put was also there with a mission. I think we were both look out for one another in difficult times and never together by a close-knit rave community that enjoyed glad to share a big hug. stop dreaming of what is possible. listening to and dancing to psytrance music. It is a We saw a lamppost with a bullet hole through it. I still believe that peace is within reach and, as the very hippy-like, eco-conscious group of people who That bullet had killed the mayor of the kibbutz, a Nova survivors remind us, we will all dance again. gather together at various parties over the year. Their strong advocate of peace. events celebrate love and life. Neither weapons nor As we completed our tour, Lir shared that she Excerpted from Rabbi Karen Bodney-Halasz's Reflections plastic cups are allowed. There were between 3,000 wants to return to Kfar Aza and raise a family there, on My Mission to Israel, Jan. 22-25, 2024. To read the and 4,000 young people at this party. but first, she needs to figure out if she will be able to rabbi's complete mission diary, go to tidayton.org.

Everywhere you looked, you faced death and destruction: burnt walls, charred roofs, blood-stained furniture strewn around.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

PAGE 19

Arts&Culture

Playwright/actor brings Wiesenthal back to life

By Ari L. Noonan Jewish Journal Simon Wiesenthal — history’s most successful pursuer of Nazis,who brought almost 1,100 criminals to justice — lives again in playwright and actor Tom Dugan’s talented hands. Dugan has been performing his one-person play, Wiesenthal, around the world since 2009. And in 2021, he published a book based on the play. He'll bring scenes from Wiesenthal the play and a talk about the book to Dayton on March 17 as part of the JCC's Cultural Arts and Book Series. To quote the book: “Wiesenthal was a Polish Jewish Holocaust survivor, Nazi hunter and writer. After World War II, he dedicated his life to the search for and legal prosecution of Nazi criminals, and to the promotion of Holocaust memory and education.” Wiesenthal died at the age of 96 in 2005; Dugan polishes the

Nazi hunter's unprecedented accomplishments to a brilliant gloss. How a nice Irish Catholic boy from New Jersey came to bring a broad, intense focus to a modern-day Jewish hero is also fascinating. “Writing about Wiesenthal resonated with me,” Dugan said, “because of the important lessons my father taught me and also because my wife, Amy, and our two boys, Eli and Miles, are Jewish. “My father’s generation did a great job of passing down to my generation the valuable lessons of the Holocaust. It was incumbent on me to pass those lessons to later generations. Writing and performing Wiesenthal is my way of doing that.” Dugan’s father, a World War II veteran, “was a liberator,” the author said. “I have always had the idea of honoring his participation in the war. When Wiesenthal passed away in

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Tom Dugan as Simon Wiesenthal.

2005, I immediately started asking people, ‘Would you see a play about Simon Wiesenthal?’ The answer was ‘yes’ in every case. So I figured I had something.” Dugan writes that “tolerance plays a big part in my life. Teaching the value of tolerance was, I believe, Simon Wiesenthal’s greatest achievement.” Wiesenthal the book is a photo-laden volume enhanced by a study guide and questions that can serve as educational tools for teachers and students. Not that this happened overnight. Two years of research and one year of writing built the script. The book was published by Deborah Herman of Bashert Books, Stockbridge, Mass.

Herman, Dugan’s collaborator, said she fell in love with Wiesenthal the play shortly after it debuted off-Broadway in November 2014. “After the play, I told Tom ‘If you ever want to do a book, call me,’” she said. “Hopped right on it,” Dugan cracked. “Called her five years later,” in 2019, not long before Covid-19 exploded. Throughout the pandemic, Herman and Dugan spent their southern California-to-Massachusetts days on Zoom. “I am so impressed by his attention to detail,” Herman said. “His entire career was about the future, not the past,” Dugan added, “how the lessons we have learned from the Holocaust must be applied today. The most important message is

that people cannot understand the evil that the Nazis represented until they can recognize the potential for evil in themselves. That is tough for people to swallow.” Dugan said teaching was a crucial Wiesenthal contribution to society. “Nazi hunting was heroic and necessary,” he acknowledged. “But as a teacher of the psychology of man, and of sociology, that was Wiesenthal’s most valuable legacy. He broke down how these things could have happened in an understandable, human way that the masses can wrap their head around in present times.” Wiesenthal talked about “the human savage,” Dugan said. “When Wiesenthal said we must recognize the human savage in ourselves, that’s a tough pill to swallow. People get very offended. ‘There is nothing in me that would be in a Nazi,’ they say. ‘Nazis are monsters.’ My answer is, ‘Monsters are make-believe. Nazis were real. They were human beings.’ People don’t like to hear that. The danger is that if you make the Nazis like vampires, there is no danger there. The savage inside of us is very real. Unless you look at it and understand it, you might be moved by it.” The JCC Cultural Arts & Book Series in partnership with Dayton Metro Library presents Tom Dugan, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, March 17 at the Main Library, 215 E. 3rd St., Dayton. The program is free. Register at jewishdayton.org/ events or 937-610-1555.

PAGE 20

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

Arts&Culture

The Escape Artist recounts unforgettable story of Holocaust survival

Philippa Gedge

By Dan Friedman, forward.com Only four Jews, out of the millions who were transported to the Nazi killing camp at Oświęcim in occupied Poland, managed to escape. Jonathan Freedland’s The Escape Artist (Harper) aims to tell the now relatively unknown story of how, in April 1944 — after around 1.75 million Jews had been slaughtered in front of their eyes — Walter Rosenberg and Alfred Wetzler were the first to escape. Their story has been told several times over the years — by them and others. The reasons that it has been repeatedly ignored and forgotten are among those prompting Freedland to tell it again. Freedland recounts Rosenberg’s experiences and his dawning recognition of what the Nazis were doing and how it depended on obscuring the truth. “As he worked,” Freedland writes, “he only became more convinced that he had understood the Nazis correctly. A smooth process of destruction was what the SS wanted and, for that, absolute, watertight ignorance was a prerequisite.” Rosenberg didn’t just escape to save himself — in order to defy the Nazis and save lives, he wanted to bring truth to the world. “It was clear to him,” Freedland writes, “that the Jews destined for destruction could defy their fate here only if they knew of it…Somehow Walter had to get out of this place and tell the world what was happening.” The weight of the truth, however, was not sufficient to pierce the “bubble of ignorance in which the Nazis sought to envelop their victims.” It needed the intercession of the flamboyant diplomat George Mantello and the English reporter Walter Garrett to get the message to audiences that could make a difference. They were, on the face of it, crucial because of their position as what might now be called “influencers.” And, even then, the truth was not enough. The Hungarian Jewish community could not bring themselves to usefully process the detailed information in the report that had been specifically brought to save them. As for the Allies, Freedland notes, they had no interest in disrupting their war efforts by trying The JCC Cultural Arts & Book Series in partnership with the JCC Book Club presents Jonathan Freedland via Zoom, 4 p.m., Sunday, March 10. The program is free. Register at jewishdayton.org/events or 937-610-1555.

to put Auschwitz out of commission. A gevity, meant that they could testify acdistrust of the intelligence and the lack curately to about 1.75 million murders. of political will on the part of the Allies They decided to go when the Theresiento help “wailing Jews” meant they did stadt Czech community was slaughtered little or nothing, no matter how much after a six-month stay of execution in they learned (as early as 1942) about the camp. If the Nazis were killing the Auschwitz and the other death camps. “model” Jews they had kept to show Even those who were predisposed the Red Cross, they would kill every to help found it difficult to compreJew in Europe. Wetzler and Rosenberg hend: “I knew, but I didn’t believe it. had been in Auschwitz for about two And because I didn’t believe it, I didn’t years each; the average survival time of know,” the French-Jewish philosopher a prisoner in Auschwitz was barely three Raymond Aron said. So, despite the fact weeks. that hundreds of thousands of HungarTo avoid detection by the Nazis, ian Jews were saved for a variety of Rosenberg took the identity and name reasons, including his report, Rosenberg of an Aryan Czech — Rudolf Vrba. remained bitter for the That name, washed clean of rest of his life. He blamed It's a weighty but any Germanic taint, would the Jewish leaderships of be the one he kept for the Hungary and Slovakia for sharp tale that rest of his life. He used the betraying their communi- should become name for both his report and ties and carried that blame his later memoir I Cannot one of the most over to various Israeli Forgive (later rereleased as leaders after the war. stunning texts I Escaped from Auschwitz: Since Freedland and Shocking True Story of on required high The I were both members of the World War II Hero Who school reading English Habonim Dror Escaped the Nazis and Helped (a Jewish socialist Zionist lists of the future. Save Over 200,000 Jews), as youth movement) in the well as for his repeated testi1980s, certain challenges monies over the decades. have barely changed. One glaring exAt the heart of the book is Vrba’s ample of these is how to explain the Ho- biography, centered on his Auschwitz locaust to an audience that knows little experience, but Freedland does not stop or nothing about it, while at the same with the escape. He pauses to consider time adding something impactful to the the fate of the Vrba-Wetzler Report that corpus of Shoah literature for those who the escapees produced immediately on already live with the knowledge of the their arrival at a safe house of the ResisNazis’ systematic mass murder of the tance, outlining in detail the atrocities Jews of Europe. committed at a single one of the GerIndeed, in a strictly pedagogical man death camps in Poland. The report sense, that split mandate was essentially did not immediately succeed; indeed, it the challenge that the young Slovakians arguably did not succeed at all. Rosenberg and Wetzler faced when they There are two minor weaknesses in escaped the Nazi killing camp. They Freedland’s otherwise compelling and needed to “warn the world” — and vivid account. First, Freedland skates specifically the half million Hungarian over Vrba’s falling out with Wetzler. Jews who were yet to be Given the intimate relatransported to Auschwitz at tionship of their camp the time of their escape. existence, escape and But the scale and brutality tour to spur the Jews of the Nazis’ continent-wide and Allies to action, their dehumanization and murder subsequent estrangement project was almost imposfeels abrupt and calls sible to convey. The people out for a more detailed in the camps lived every day explanation. intimately acquainted with Then, provocatively, the obscenities of Nazi rule; Freedland calls the appeople beyond the camps parent suicide of Vrba’s knew too little to care. older daughter “the How could Rosenberg greatest catastrophe of and Wetzler even think they his life” — even greater could tell the Allies and the than his immolation in remaining Jewish communithe hell of Auschwitz for ties enough to make a difference? over 20 months. According to FreedAs clerks of the camp, the two had “a land, Vrba felt that he had been guilty measure of free movement” and might of both transmitting the idea of suicide even have survived to the end of the and of not spotting its possibility and war. However, as clerks they also had averting it. He learned there had been a “increased proximity to information” history of suicide in his family, and he which, along with their exceptional lonframed his daughter’s death as a form of

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

Jonathan Freedland

second generation survivor trauma. For Vrba, whose greatest achievement was a carefully planned, and excruciatingly executed escape, it is devastating to know that there is no escaping history. Freedland starts by recounting how Vrba and Wetzler get past the guards and the fences. They need to do it alone and without telling anyone else anything, because prisoners and locals will be murdered for any help they provide. The two-stage escape involves the pair planning to almost starve in the noman’s land between the inner and outer fences with “cheap, Russian tobacco… soaked in petrol and dried” to disguise their smell from the guard dogs. With no outside contacts and no way of knowing who to trust, the journey to true freedom stretched for miles and weeks beyond the borders of the camp. Indeed the book could be considered an ongoing account of Vrba’s continuing journey. In Freedland’s telling, Vrba emerges as a preternaturally sharp man whose punctiliousness in the face of an infernal abyss and scrupulous escape is one of last century’s great achievements. He went on to have a career as a biochemist in the U.K. and Canada, but he was always more famous as a Holocaust witness. His confident, accurate, detailed demeanor meant he was called to testify in war crimes trials across the world and to appear in Holocaust documentaries, most notably in Claude Lanzmann’s Shoah. As Freedland follows Vrba’s descent into hell and his epic journey from the abyss to deliver the truth, he takes no shortcuts, leading us through the most harrowing era of modern human history and the traumatic disappointments that follow it. With painstaking detail, he uncovers the humanity in one of the Shoah’s great witnesses but also brings Vrba’s truth about Nazi inhumanity to a new audience in a riveting, accessible way. It’s a weighty but sharp tale that should become one of the most stunning texts on required high school reading lists of the future.

PAGE 21

Beth Abraham, Dayton’s only Conservative synagogue, is enthusiastically egalitarian and is affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

Arts&Culture

Zionism’s key figures explored

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By Kylie Ora Lobell, jewishjournal.com There have been plenty of books written about Zionism and its early founders and builders, like Theodor Herzl, Vladimir Jabotinsky, Golda Meir and Louis D. Brandeis. While many of these works are compelling and help readers learn more about the history of the Jewish state, they tend to be overviews of these individuals rather than deep dives into their stories and legacies. Now, in a new book by Rick Richman, readers can become more familiar with these legends and how they contributed to Israel. And None Shall Make Them Afraid: Eight Stories of the Modern State of Israel portrays 125 years of Jewish history through little-known stories about Herzl, Jabotinsky, Meir and Brandeis, along with Chaim Weizmann, Abba Eban, Ben Hecht, and Ron Dermer. “The stories are not only fascinating — you can read any chapter in the book at random and be amazed by things you didn’t know, about people you thought you did — or about people you don’t know, but who did things it’s amazing we are not all aware of,” Richman said. “The book also illustrates the impact on history that a single individual can make.” In the chapter on Herzl, Richman writes about how the founder of the modern Zionist movement actually had very few ties to his Judaism. While he had a bar mitzvah and went to a mostly Jewish high school, he started assimilating once he went to university and did not have his son circumcised. The JCC Cultural Arts & Book Series in partnership with Hadassah presents Rick Richman via Zoom, 7 p.m., Thursday, March 28. The program is free. Register at jewishdayton.org/ events or 937-610-1555.

“On Dec. 24, 1895, six weeks before the publication of The Jewish State, Herzl was at home lighting a Christmas tree for his three children,” Richman writes. “For many years, the common belief was that Herzl became a Zionist as a result of covering the Dreyfus trial in 1894 in Paris for a Viennese newspaper. More recently, scholars have shown that Herzl’s embrace of Zionism had nothing to do with that case. The story of Herzl thus presents a mystery.” And None Shall Make Them Afraid is also about lesser-known Zionist figures like Ben Hecht, a prolific screenwriter from the Golden Age of Hollywood who wrote His Girl Friday and Angels Over Broadway. Hecht contributed to a column called My Tribe Is Called Israel in a progressive tabloid and ended up cochairman of the Committee for a Jewish Army, which was “part of Vladimir Jabotinsky’s effort to build support for a Jewish Army to join the fight against Hitler,” Richman writes. “In early 1942, (Hecht) gave his first speech, to a thousand people at a fundraiser held at Twentieth Century Fox. (Hecht said), ‘It was a night that was to alter my life as completely as if I had changed my name and gone to another land.’” With the book, Richman said, “I was seeking to write about figures who were not generally known, or who were known but whose accomplishments were not generally known. I found that the stories of those involved in the historic work of Zionism had in some cases been forgotten or misrepresented or not yet given their full due.” The author, who practiced law for three decades at O’Melveny & Myers LLP and worked for Deloitte LLP, is currently a scholar at American Jewish University, where he conducted Continued on Page 24

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

FOOD

Celebrating, documenting Italy's Jewish cuisine By Alix Wall, forward.com To some, orecchiette is just a pasta shape. To Benedetta Jasmine Guetta, it’s infuriating. “The history of orecchiette literally enrages me,” she said of the pasta whose name translates as “little ears.” Italians tell her the pasta shape comes from the Puglia region, unaware that it originated with the Jews who settled there from the south of France. “They are called small ears for a reason,” she said. “For which holiday do we eat the ears of the bad guy? Purim!” Guetta is a woman on a mission. After co-founding Labna, the only kosher Jewish food blog in Italian in 2009, and teaching Jewish cooking classes in Italy, she realized how few Italians knew how much Jews had influenced their beloved cuisine. To help them learn, she wrote two cookbooks in Italian. Her latest cookbook, and the first in English, is Cooking alla Giudia: A Celebration of the Jewish Food of Italy (Artisan Books). In addition to well-known Jewish-Roman dishes like fried artichokes, the book has recipes for such lesser-known dishes as prosciutto made from cured goose rather than pork; a Passover dessert in the form of a snake, representing how Moses’ staff turned into a snake to intimidate Pharaoh, and a kosher spaghetti carbonara, substituting zucchini, dried beef or turkey bacon for the pork in the classic dish. There are numerous Passover dishes, too, with quite a few Passover desserts, including matzah honey fritters (see recipe below), a chocolate mousse cake, and a flourless chocolate cake. The recipes tell stories of Jewish wandering. One of her favorite recipes, she said, is a Passover almond cake that arrived in the Tuscan port city of Livorno from Portugal, then went to Libya, and then returned when the Jews fled. “This gives you a sense of how the Jews and Jewish food travel to different places throughout the generations,” she said. While Roman-Jewish recipes have been well documented both in Italian and English, Guetta said that many lesser-known Jewish-Italian recipes were in danger of being lost. The grandmothers who cook them live in the smaller regions, and their handwritten recipes often include instructions like “knead until it feels right.” “I wanted to preserve this wealth of recipes from the smaller communities that weren’t written down and are on the verge of disappearing,” she said. Guetta grew up in Milan. While most Italian Jews say they are neither Ashkenazi or Sephardi, tracing their roots to historical Israel at the time of the Roman conquest, Guetta is among the exceptions: her father is from Libya. “We observed the holidays,” she said. “We didn’t eat anything not kosher, or meat and milk together, but we didn’t keep separate dishes. Most Italian Jews The JCC Cultural Arts & Book Series presents appetizers, salads, and desserts from Cooking Alla Giudia, with a livestream conversation featuring Benedetta Guetta at 6 p.m., Thursday, March 7 at Beth Abraham Synagogue, 305 Sugar Camp Cir., Oakwood. $18. Register at jewishdayton.org/events or 937-610-1555.

small fish like sardines and anchovies, which led to the invention of the famous aliciotti con l’indivia. “The Jews then came up with yummy dishes that are now considered specialties,” said Guetta “It drives me nuts that no one knows these stories.”

Honey Matzah Fritters

One of the best culinary inventions from the women of the Roman Ghetto are pizzarelle, small, sweet matzah fritters soaked in honey. These treats can be found in bakeries year-round. I know it might be difficult to believe that anybody would want to eat matzah when it’s not Passover, but give pizzarelle a try, and you’ll instantly be converted into a matzah lover. Makes 30 fritters. 6 matzah sheets 3 large eggs 6 Tbsp. sugar 2⁄3 cup (raisins, soaked in hot water until plumped and drained ½ cup pine nuts 1 Tbsp. grated orange or lemon zest Up to 3 Tbsp. matzah meal Sunflower or peanut oil for deep-frying 1⁄3 cup honey (see note) Break the matzah sheets in half, place them in a bowl filled with water, and weigh them down with a plate to keep them submerged. Soak for two hours, then drain the matzah and squeeze them to remove all the water. Benedetta Jasmine Guetta Transfer the matzah to a large bowl and mash with a potato masher to make a thick and somewhat are pretty secular.” chunky paste or batter. Mix in the eggs, sugar, raisins, One reason for the Italian ignorance of Jewish food, pine nuts, and orange or lemon zest. Stir in some or all she said, is that most Italians don’t know any Jews, or of the matzah meal: you are looking to obtain a thick if they do, they are unaware they are Jewish, she said. “I often get ‘Really?’ as if I was some exotic creature batter that will keep its shape when dropped by the spoonful into the hot oil for frying. It should not look or alien,” she said. Because of her blog, Italians now too wet and runny. approach her with all their Jewish questions. Pour 1½ to 2 inches of oil into a large saucepan and “It’s not like I’m a big guru of being heat over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer Jewish, but, funnily enough, I’ve found reads 350 degrees. You can test the oil by dropping a myself representing the Jews unintensmall piece of food, such as a slice of apple, into it: if it tionally,” she said. sizzles nicely but doesn’t bubble up too wildly, the oil There are a few of her own family’s is ready. (An apple is said to help minimize the smell recipes in the book, like one of her favorof the frying oil, so I generally go for that, but any bit ites, a tuna paté, but mostly she presents of food will do.) other people’s recipes. Working in batches to avoid crowding, using two “I wanted to give the flavor of what spoons, drop small mounds of the matzah mixture you might currently eat in an Italianinto the hot oil and fry the fritters for five minutes, or Jewish house,” she said. until golden brown, turning them once to ensure even Guetta now lives in Los Angeles, cooking. Drain the cooked fritters on paper towels where she moved to be with her Israelifor a few minutes, then transfer to a plate and drizzle American partner. She runs Café Lovi, with the honey before serving. a small cafe in Santa Pizzarelle have to be eaten as Monica specializing in soon as they are ready: they are sandwiches on challah, her favorite scrumptious hot from the pan, bread. but they get soggy quickly. Guetta points out the Jewish influNote: If the honey is very ence on Italian cuisine does not stop thick, heat it up in a small with orecchiette. In fact, many wellsaucepan with three tablespoons known Italian dishes were somehow of water and a squeeze of fresh influenced by the Jews. lemon juice to liquefy it before “In the 19th century, Italians drizzling it over the pizzarelle. thought eggplant might be poisonVariation: For a chocolate ous,” she said. “Jews in Spain had version of pizzarelle, omit the learned how to cook with it from matzah meal and add two tabletheir Arab neighbors.” spoons of unsweetened cocoa The influence worked in both powder. Keep in mind, though, directions, she said. Different popes that while pizzarelle made with came up with arcane prohibitions to cocoa are delicious, the color is make life for the Jews harder. One unappealing. pope ruled that the Jews can only eat Honey Matzah Fritters

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

PAGE 23

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Make 'Haman's Fingers' this Purim A crunchy, rolled treat from Greek and Turkish Jewish tradition.

By Vered Guttman, The Nosher Jews around the Diaspora always let their imagination soar when it came to Purim revenge-food. Greek and Turkish Jews adapted the Middle Eastern sweet phyllo “cigars” and named them after Haman’s fingers. In this sweet treat, phyllo dough is filled with chopped almonds and warm spices like cinnamon, then rolled into cigar shapes, brushed with butter or margarine, and baked until golden and crisp. 12 phyllo dough sheets, thawed overnight in the fridge 2 cups sugar 1 cup water 2 Tbsp. lemon juice 2 cups blanched almonds 2 cups walnuts Grated zest of 1 orange 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 tsp. rose water (optional) 6-8 Tbsp. melted butter

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Take phyllo out the fridge two hours before you start cooking. Put sugar, water and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Cook for five minutes and remove from the heat. Transfer syrup to a measuring cup and let it cool down in the fridge for about 20 minutes. It can still be warm

when you use it, just not boiling hot. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Put almonds and walnuts in a food processor and grind until fine (but don’t let it become a paste.) Take two tablespoons of the ground nuts and keep in a small bowl for later. Add one cup of the sugar syrup to the food processor (keep the rest for later) and mix again. Add orange zest, eggs, and rose water and mix briefly, then transfer to a medium bowl. Cut each phyllo dough sheet into two rectangles of about 7-by-8 inches. Cover phyllo with a towel. Put the first phyllo sheet on a working surface, narrow side towards you, and brush it lightly with the melted butter, almost all the way up. Spread a tablespoon of the nut filling along the edge closest to you, leaving a half-inch clear on the sides. Fold the sides on the filling then start rolling the pastry from the filling side to create a cigar. Transfer to the baking sheet. Continue with the rest of the phyllo. Keep the cigars on the baking sheet an inch apart. Brush each cigar with butter and then generously brush with the sugar syrup. Bake for 12-14 minutes until golden and crispy. Transfer to a cooling rack. Keep in a sealed container at room temperature up to four days.

majority of whom have never Zionism’s key figures vast known a world without Israel — do not

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Continued from Page 22 research for his book. He’s always been a Zionist, spending a summer on a kibbutz during college and going to three missions to Israel organized by Rabbi David Wolpe, now retired from Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. With And None Shall Make Them Afraid, Richman hopes to not only fascinate readers with these stories, but also to show the real work and dedication that went into building the Jewish state. “I think that American Jews — the

fully appreciate what it took to achieve a Jewish state, and what the existence and persistence of such a state meant for the Jewish people, not only those who chose to live in Israel but those whose status in other countries was fundamentally changed by the miraculous recovery of the Jewish people in the 20th century,” he said. “I hope that the stories in this book can help remedy the current deficiency in common memory about what it took to get us where we are today.”

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

JEWISH FAMILY EDUCATION

Truth, white lie, or falsehood?

the Creator,” writes Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski. So the rabbinic sages of the Talmud called emet, Truth, “the seal of God.” Infusing our thoughts, speech, and actions with truthfulness is one way of fulfilling Salonika, Greece, 1936. The disinformation has become big the mitzvah to emulate God. people in Nico’s Jewish neighbusiness. While it places a high value borhood called the little blondMost concerning are the on truthfulness, Jewish tradition haired blue-eyed boy Chioni, newest terms gaining traction: is also realistic, Rabbi Louis JaGreek for snow, because he my truth, truthiness, alternacobs acknowledges. never lied. He adored his tive facts, post-truth, even truth There are occasions grandfather, who once warned decay. when telling a him about lies. “Sometimes, All reflect the declining role “white lie” may be if you say a lie long enough, of objective facts, data, and necessary. people believe it’s the truth,” he analysis in defining what is “The Torah altruth or falsehood, in favor of lows one to alter ideological purposes, personal the truth for the beliefs, opinions, emotions, and immediate purpose of pursuing peace, Candace R. intuition. In the Jewish worldview, fulfilling a mitzvah, Kwiatek falsehood isn’t celebrated. On praising a bride, the other hand, there is no bibli- and maintaining cal commandment, “Do not lie.” one’s humility and said. “Never be the one to tell Rather, the Bible categorically modesty,” adds lies, Nico.” “I won’t Nano,” he states, "Distance yourself from Mordechai Lewis. assured his grandfather. that which is false,” the only However, “(t)his leniency is Salonika, 1943. Separated commandment phrased in such only permitted where the falsefrom his family during a Nazi terms. The expression “dishood does not affect anyone roundup, Nico was discovered tance yourself,” Rabbi Zalman else adversely, there are no by a German officer who soon Melamed explains, “implies other means available, and one recognized his usefulness. In that not only should one avoid does not do it regularly. exchange for a promise that his outright and deliberate lies, Truth is clothed in speech family could return home, Nico one should distance (oneself) (words that convey truth), acwas to inform everyone arriving from any semblance of falsetions (behaviors that manifest at the train station to keep calm, hood whatsoever,”including “walking in God’s ways”), and that they were going north gestures or even silence that thought (reflection that leads where their families would be communicates a deceptive mes- to integrity between what you resettled together, with homes sage.” think and what you do). and jobs. Certain he was doing Conversely, “engaging with Bidding strategy. Rav Safra the right thing, Nico did what truth” means drawing nearer had a certain article to sell. he was told. And Truth wept. to God, who is identified with Truth must still be weeping. Truth. Rabbi Simcha Bunim of The daily news regularly posts Peshischa taught, “It is cusstories that spotlight lies involv- tomary for an author to place ing academia, corporations, his name in the opening of his elections, immigration, politibook. God placed His Name cians, science, and other topics. emet—Truth, in the opening Lying is increasing in daily life chapter of the Torah.” too, according to numerous Its Hebrew letters—aleph, studies. mem, taf—appear at the ends At the same time, expanding of the first three and last three euphemisms suggest growing words of the Creation narrative, ambiguity about the nature of like a divine signature. truth and lies. Fact-checking for “Emet thus envelops all of fake news, misinformation, and creation, a testimony to God as

Judaism's Worldview Series

When a buyer approached him and offered a suitable price, he mentally agreed to accept the offer. But, engaged in prayer at the moment, the Rav didn’t immediately answer. Thinking the rabbi had rejected his bid, the prospective buyer kept on increasing the price. After completing his prayers, the Rav said to him, “Take the article for the sum you originally stipulated. I had intended to give it to you for that sum, but I was unable to interrupt my prayers.” Chicken leg. The legendary trickster Hershel of Ostropol was hired as a cook by a wealthy nobleman. His first task was roast goose, which he accomplished easily. But, tempted by the delicious aroma, he ate one of the legs before serving. When the nobleman demanded an explanation, Hershel responded, “Sire, is it possible, could it be, that this goose had only one leg?” “Impossible,” growled the angry nobleman. “Please sire,” said Hershel. “Allow me one day to clear my name.” The nobleman gave a sharp nod. The next day, Hershel invited the nobleman to go hunting. When they spotted a stork standing on one leg by

Literature to share

Anya and the Dragon by Sofiya Pasternack. Set in 10th century Eastern Europe, this vivid fantasy for middle schoolers is the story of Anya’s quest to rescue a dragon and save her family. It’s fast-paced, light-hearted, and filled with likable characters and intriguing Russian and Jewish traditions. The Little Liar by Mitch Albom. Salonika, Greece, the European city with the largest percentage of Jews before the Nazis arrived. Nico Krispis, 11, never lies. A German officer, Udo, uses him because of it. His classmate, Fanny, loves him for it. His older brother, Sebastian, resents him on all counts. And the voice of Truth narrates their story. A brilliant, thought-provoking tale about truth, love, and what it means to forgive and be forgiven. Impossible to put down.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

the riverbed, Hershel grinned, “See?” The nobleman immediately clapped his hands and shouted, and the stork flew off with its two legs outstretched. “Like that bird, my goose had two legs,” the nobleman complained. “What do you have to say now?” Hershel calmly replied, “Well, if you’d clapped your hands and shouted at the roast goose, you would have seen its other leg, too!" Truth sparks. As God prepared to create humans, He invited the angels to share their thoughts. The angels of Kindness and Righteousness said, “Let humans be created, for they perform acts of lovingkindness and establish justice.” The angels of Truth and Peace said, “Let humans not be created, for they are filled with lies and discord. So, God cast Truth down to earth.” The angels gasped: “Master of the universe, why are You demeaning Your very seal? Let Truth ascend from the earth.” The great Kabalist Rabbi Yitzhak Luria explained that “when truth is thrown to the ground, it shatters into shards which are scattered throughout the world. These are sparks of truth, embedded in each and every human being. Each person’s role is to collect these sparks of truth and connect them, until the entire truth arises from the earth.”

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OBITUARIES Helen Cohen, age 84, of Lake Mary, Fla., passed away on Jan. 29. Helen was born in New York, Feb. 22, 1939, the first child of Dr. Harry and Rosalie Einhorn. Helen grew up in Dayton and graduated from Fairview High School, later attending Indiana University. She had several jobs over the years, but her passion was performing with Sweet Adelines Gem City Chapter, of which she was a member for over 35 years, and volunteering at Hospice of Dayton. Helen was predeceased by her husband, Bob. She is survived by her children, Steve, Marlee (Lee Cutler) and Michael (Joanna); grandchildren, Jordan, Miles, Rayna and Dara; and siblings, Larry (Claudette) and Bobbi (Jim Jennison). The family requests donations made in Helen’s memory to The Jewish Pavilion in Orlando.

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Louis Levin of Centerville; Lou was born in Columbus on Oct. 16, 1925 to Morris and Molly (Winter) Levin. He died peacefully on Feb. 5 at Kettering Medical Center. He was preceded in death by his father, Morris Levin; mother, Molly Levin; brothers, David Levin, Samuel Levin, and Allen Levin; and sister, Mardelle Friedberg. He is survived by his only child, Ryan Levin (Alison); nephews, Howard Michaels, Gary Friedberg, Robert Levin, and Michael Levin (Pam); nieces, Danielle Young, Diane Brun (Hal) and Elaine Smith (Steve). In addition, he is survived by his life partner, Sara Litwin, and her family. He is also survived by his ex-wife, Karen Levin, numerous great nieces and great nephews, and many other relatives and friends. In their later years, Lou, Al, and Sara became snowbirds. They took great delight in spending time on the east coast of Florida either in Boca Raton or Palm Beach Gardens. All the relatives living up north have fond memories of visiting them and having a fantastic time. Lou was one of the owners of Levin Service Company along with his brothers, Sam and Al. They built many of the entertainment venues that Daytonians have enjoyed through the years. They were originally in the beer and wine carryout business, but expanded into the drive-in theater business in the late 1940s. They built the Sherwood Twin Drive-in Theater, Dixie Drive-in, the Captain Kidd Drive-in, along with many others throughout Ohio and in Chicago. Their crown jewel was the Kon-Tiki Theater on Salem Avenue. They also built the Rhino Restaurant in Downtown Dayton. They purchased Caesar's Creek Flea

L’dor V’dor. From Generation To Generation.

GLICKLER FUNERAL HOME & CREMATION SERVICE Larry S. Glickler, Director Dayton’s ONLY Jewish Funeral Director 1849 Salem Avenue, Dayton, Ohio 45406-4927 (937) 278-4287 lgfuneralhome@gmail.com

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Market in the early 1980s and built Treasure Aisles Market. After Sam Levin passed away, his monies were used to endow the Levin Family Foundation. Lou was extremely proud to take on the role of philanthropist in his later years. He was a trustee of the foundation and actively involved in the distribution of funds up to the time he passed away. He was very pleased that he could have a positive impact upon the lives of so many people here in Dayton and abroad. Interment was at Beth Abraham Cemetery. The family is requesting

that any donations be made to the Dayton Foodbank in Lou's memory. We would like to thank Danny Reveal for being a caregiver and friend to Lou. The family deeply appreciates the staff at the Rehabilitation Center at Bethany Lutheran Village and the care that was given to Lou during his illness. Finally, a special thank you to the hospital staff who took care of Lou during this very difficult time. Lou and his twin brother, Al, spent their entire lives together. They were each other's best friend. When people would ask about their

being twins, they referred to themselves as "womb mates." They served together at Okinawa in the Army from 1944 to 1946, surviving being strafed by the Japanese on the first day that they arrived on the island. Throughout all their 98 years, they maintained that intense identical twin connection. It was a bond that transcends all others. When his brother Al passed away on Dec. 23, 2023, Lou was devastated. The greatest solace for the family is that Lou and Al are together again.

Cease-fire

people who have had family members killed by Israel. There are hundreds of thousands of people that are now it that category.” Wise says she also hears from rabbis who won’t sign on to Rabbis4Ceasefire because they risk losing their jobs. “There’s such a chilling effect for speaking out for a ceasefire,” she said, adding that the fact that five times as many rabbis joined Rabbis4Ceasefire than those who had been part of the anti-Zionist JVP’s cabinet suggests that there are “longtime progressive Zionist activists” looking for a place to express their concern for Israeli Jews and Palestinians. One of those rabbis is Rachel Kahn-Troster, the executive vice president at the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility. “For me, just calling for a cease-fire was so morally important,” said Kahn-Troster, who previously worked at T’ruah, the rabbinic human rights group. “I was less concerned about the perceived toxicity of the groups (calling for a cease-fire) in this real moment of urgency.” Kahn-Troster said she grounds her values in the Jewish teaching that all people are created in the image of God, and in the imperatives of human rights. She has been heartened by the Israeli human rights groups calling for a cease-fire. “The call for release of detainees on both sides is really important, but for me the most important piece is that what is happening in Gaza is so horrifying and continues to be horrifying,” she said. “I recognize that to some people that may sound naïve, and that there are a lot of really important questions that need to be answered to ensure safety and security for both Palestinians and Israelis.

“But at this moment, the most urgent thing is to have a cease-fire so that Palestinians re-enter and rebuild, and to just end the scale of death and destruction that is happening.” Rabbi Jill Jacobs, the CEO of T’ruah, acknowledges that the early adopters of cease-fire had essentially co-opted the word and the concept. “That word just became associated with not caring about Israeli lives or caring about the hostages," she said. “So, unfortunately, that word ended up becoming toxic, even though it shouldn’t be.” In December, Jacobs put out a statement urging the U.S. government to negotiate “another cease-fire,” following the six-day break in November, that would release the remaining hostages, provide humanitarian aid to Gazans and end the war “as quickly as possible.” As the death toll among Palestinians in Gaza and Israeli soldiers continues to rise, said Jacobs, she is seeing more discomfort among Jews about how the war is being carried out and its rising death toll among Palestinians and Israeli soldiers. “I think that’s why it is important to take that word back,” she said, referring to cease-fire. “Yes, we understand that there were some people calling for a cease-fire too early. There are some people who were saying cease-fire without any concern for Israelis or, worse, support killing Israelis. “But that word does not have to be associated with those ideas. And we very much can take it back and say, this is actually what’s good for Israel right now, and certainly for Palestinians.”

Continued from Page 12 They’re basically saying those are your two options — either you are pro-cease-fire, or you are pro-genocide, which is morally obtuse.” Rabbi Alissa Wise, a founder of the JVP rabbinical council, is also the lead organizer for Rabbis4Ceasefire, whose Oct. 20 statement called for “a complete cease-fire now” and the release of all Israeli hostages. She said she and other organizers agreed that the new coalition wouldn’t “officially be a JVP project.” “We knew that JVP and other organizations have their baggage, and we didn’t want to create any reason why a rabbi whose Jewish values led them to call for a cease-fire” wouldn’t be able to express that publicly, she said in an interview. “We didn’t want to create any barrier to their participating in this call.” As of Feb. 7, 275 rabbis had signed their petition. Members have protested at the United Nations, held a Chanukah vigil in New York’s Columbus Circle, and prayed in front of the U.S. Capitol. “Fundamentally, there is no military solution and there needs to be a diplomatic one, and that also includes prisoner exchange and a return of the hostages,” said Wise, who noted that the return of the hostages was always a condition in her group’s call for a cease-fire. “The only time the hostages have come home safely is during a cease-fire.” She also rejects the idea that a cease-fire undermines Israel’s right to self-defense. “From the beginning, this idea that Israel’s goal is to eliminate Hamas is a vengeful fantasy. You can kill people, but you can’t eliminate an ideology,” she said. “Hamas recruits their fighters from

Andrew Silow-Carroll is editor at large of the New York Jewish Week and managing editor for Ideas for JTA.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

WHEN DANCE TRANSCENDS BARRIERS The story of Jewish & African American dance in Dayton

Sunday, April 7, 3 – 4:30PM at Beth Jacob Congregation 7020 N. Main Street, Harrison Township, 45415 Uncover a chapter in Dayton history with the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC). Experience a leap through time with a soul-stirring performance by DCDC2, that celebrates the extraordinary lives and legacies of DCDC founder and African American trailblazer, Jeraldyne Blunden, and Jewish pioneering figures of Dayton Ballet, Josephine and Hermene Schwarz. Witness the rhythm of resilience as Blunden's unwavering spirit blends with the groundbreaking steps of the Schwarz sisters. Prepare to be captivated by a mosaic in motion, where faith, passion, and artistry transcend the bounds of tradition. This spiritual journey presented by DCDC illuminates the untold story of women who defied limitations and ignited a dance legacy that continues to inspire. Experience the intertwining of two cultures that leave audiences breathless with the power of dance that knows no barriers. Tickets may be purchased in advance through the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton at jewishdayton.org/events. Cost is $18 each, or $10 each for a group of four or more. Day of event – cost is $18 each.

Funding provided by an Innovation Grant of the Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton.

THE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • MARCH 2024

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D I NNER 2024

P R E S I D E N TS

S U N D AY, J U N E 2 5PM @ THE BOONSHOFT CENTER FOR JEWISH CULTURE & EDUCATION (525 Versailles Drive, Centerville, 45459)

Rabbi David Wolpe

An evening with Keynote Speaker Rabbi David Wolpe, who has been recognized as The Most Influential Rabbi in America by Newsweek and one of the 50 Most Influential Jews in the World by The Jerusalem Post. Rabbi Wolpe serves as the Max Webb Emeritus Rabbi of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles and as a Senior Advisor to the Maimonides Fund. He is the bestselling author of eight books, and numerous articles in leading newspapers and journals. BRUCE & DEBBIE FELDMAN Event Chairs

Tickets on sale at jewishdayton.org April 15 for more information contact Melanie Vincent at mgomez@jfgd.net or 937-401-1547.