The American Israelite, May 23, 2013

AI

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 14 SIVAN, 5773

2013 B’nai Mitzvah Vendors Directory p.12

CINCINNATI, OH Candle Lighting Times Shabbat begins Fri 8:33p Shabbat ends Sat 9:34p

VOL. 159 • NO. 44

The American Israelite T H E

O L D E S T

03

E N G L I S H

Jewish Community Relations Council welcomes new associate director

LOCAL

p.5

Congregation Sha’arei Torah welcomes new rabbi this summer

NATIONAL

p.7

With new luxury dorm, Orlando philanthropists...

ISRAEL

p.9

Syria, target of reported Israeli airstrikes, jumps to...

DINING OUT

p.15

20 Brix focuses on traditions of fine dining

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK! FOLLOW US ON TWITTER!

SINGLE ISSUE: $1.00 J E W I S H

06

W E E K L Y

I N

A M E R I C A

Jewish Federation honors top volunteer, professionals in the community

|

08

E S T .

1 8 5 4

|

“ L E T

Orthodox women share tricks of the entrepreneurial trade at inaugural...

T H E R E

09

B E

L I G H T ”

IDF not responsible for 2000 al-Dura shooting, government...

HUC-JIR’s highest honor goes to Maestro James Conlon Rabbi David Ellenson, President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR), presented the 2013 Roger E. Joseph Prize to Maestro James Conlon, Music Director of the Cincinnati May Festival, at the HUC-JIR ordination ceremony at Congregation Emanu-El in New York City on Sunday, May 5. Mr. Conlon was awarded the prize for his extensive efforts to publish, produce and perform the lesser-known works of composers suppressed by the Nazi regime.

“I am very honored to receive the Roger E. Joseph Prize,” says Mr. Conlon. “When I read the names of previous recipients who are some of the most courageous personalities of the last fifty years who fought for social justice, I feel humble in their company. I accept the prize, not on my own merit, but on that of those composers whose contribution to Western culture has yet to be given its due.”

He adds, “We cannot restore to these composers their lost lives. We can, however, return the gift that would mean more to them than any other – to play their music. By keeping alive their music and that of other victims of totalitarianism, we deny those past regimes a posthumous victory.”

When announcing the prize, Rabbi Ellenson said, “It is a privilege to present HUC-JIR’s highest honor, the Joseph Prize, to Maestro Conlon, in recognition of his efforts to raise public consciousness to the significance of works of composers whose lives and compositions were suppressed by the Nazi regime. The Orel Foundation, which he created, is dedicated to giving attention to these composers with the performance of their works.”

Following a performance of the Britten War Requiem, which Mr. Conlon directed as part of the May Festival, on Saturday, May 11, Rabbi Jonathan Cohen, Dean of HUCJIR’s Cincinnati campus, said, “We are so honored to recognize Maestro James Conlon – his contribution to the musical heritage of our city has elevated us all. As the CollegeInstitute in Cincinnati rescued

Rabbi Jonathan Cohen and Maestro James Conlon

Jewish scholars from World War II and the Holocaust and became a preservation site for tens of thousands of books and documents from destroyed European communities, Maestro Conlon has led the way in uncovering and bringing to life the musical creativity of World War II and Holocaust victims. His efforts and achievements are internationally acclaimed, and we are deeply grateful for his extraordinary work.”

years, and is the longest tenured music director in the Festival’s 140 year history. He also holds a place among the longest-tenured music directors of any major classical music institution in the country. Along with Cincinnati May Festival, the Maestro is concurrently Music Director of Los Angeles Opera and the Ravinia Festival (summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra). In addition, he has served as Principal

By keeping alive their music and that of other victims of totalitarianism, we deny those past regimes a posthumous victory.”

Maestro James Conlon Considered one of today’s most versatile and respected conductors, Mr. Conlon has conducted virtually every major American and European symphony orchestra. His worldwide touring, recordings, television appearances and speaking engagements have made him one of classical music’s most recognized interpreters.

Mr. Conlon has provided the artistic leadership for May Festival for 34

Conductor of the Paris National Opera and General Music Director of the City of Cologne, Germany. He has led more than 260 performances at the Metropolitan Opera since his first appearance there in 1976. He has appeared at Teatro alla Scala, Royal Opera at Covent Garden in London, Lyric Opera of Chicago and Teatro del Opera di Roma.

In recent years, he has led a com-

plete Mahler Symphonies cycle with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, as well as the first production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle in Los Angeles. Currently, he is concluding a three-year project honoring the centenary of the birth of Benjamin Britten 1913.

He was named Commandeur de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture, and in 2002, received the Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest distinction from then President of the French Republic Jacques Chirac. Conlon has recorded for EMI, Erato, Capriccio, Decca and Sony and has won two Grammy Awards. In 2007 he received the Crystal Globe Award from the Anti-Defamation League for championing these works, and in 1999 he received the Zemlinsky Prize for his efforts in bringing that composer’s music to international attention.

The Roger E. Joseph Prize was established 35 years ago by a generous gift from Burton M. Joseph, z’’l, and his sister, Mrs. Betty Greenberg, in memory of their brother, a lawyer, World War II hero and polio victim.

Although almost completely paralyzed, he resumed his law practice and advanced causes of social justice, inspired by his own exceptional personal courage and passionate devotion to principle and justice.

The first Joseph Prize was awarded in 1978 to Victor Kugler, who risked his and his loved ones’ lives to shelter Anne Frank and her family.

Other Joseph Prize recipients have included the people of Le Chambon, a Huguenot village in France, which rescued thousands of Jewish children during the Holocaust; Helen Suzman, a leader of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa; Jan Egeland, under Secretary General of Humanitarian Affairs at the United Nations, for rescue efforts in Darfur and around the globe; Rosa Parks, the “mother” of the American civil rights movement; Raoul Wallenberg, in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust; and Father Patrick Desbois for devoting his life to confronting antiSemitism, furthering CatholicJewish understanding and preserving Holocaust memory.

Now it’s easy to jump in feet first with up to $1,800 grants for ALL first time campers* And up to $1,000 grants for ALL second time campers

So hurry

and take

advantag

e of this R Open to generous all first- a gift NOW nd secon Cincinnati ‌ d -y e a J r e c w ampers* ish comm R Grants in u th n ity. e are n scholarsh ot need-based and ip or finan are not co R Additio c ntingent o nal need-b ial aid dollars. n other ased gran Please co ts may be ntact you available r congreg for those ational ra who quali bbi. fy.

a pp ro ve d c am p s f o t s li a d n a s App lic at io n a re av a il a ble at amping /c rg .o ti a n in c jewishcin o u t th e Je w ish b a n io t a m r fo Fo r mo re in o r to subm it m ra g ro P g in p O ve r n igh t C am : yo u r a pp lic at io n rnight r, Jewish Ove ael Wagne wish Contact Mich ator of the Je tr is in m d A g Campin cin.org or wagner@jfed m t a n o ti ra e Fed .

513-985-1510

R Up to $1,800 available for three-week sessions or more R Up to $900 available for two-week sessions R Campers who have already applied for 2013 Jewish Overnight Camping incentive grants are eligible for the increased grant amounts.

*Camp must be on the list of approved camps to qualify.

Grants funded by

Administered by

R Up to $1,000 available for three-week sessions R Up to $500 available for two-week sessions.

LOCAL • 3

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Jewish Community Relations Council welcomes new associate director Cincinnati’s Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) is pleased to announce the hiring of Seth Harlan as associate director, beginning May 1, 2013.

The JCRC is the public affairs arm of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati. Since its inception in 1939, it has worked to protect Jewish security, recognizing that Jewish security depends on a just society for all. To achieve its mission, the JCRC works on a broad range of local, national and international issues, concentrating its efforts in the areas of Israel, the Middle East and anti-Semitism.

As associate director, Harlan will work closely with Director Sarah Weiss, the JCRC board and staff members in the Jewish Federation’s Israel Center to coordinate missions to Israel; serve as a resource for both the Jewish and non-Jewish communities; strengthen the JCRC’s network of interfaith and community contacts; and organize events, including the upcoming JCRC Annual Meeting on June 11.

Gary Greenberg, JCRC president, said, “As the new Associate Director, Seth will help us achieve our mission of protecting Jewish security by playing a key role in all three areas of the work we do:

Seth Harlan

community and government relations; Israel advocacy and Jewish security; and education.”

Before joining the JCRC, Harlan worked at Catch Media, an Israeli high-tech startup in Jerusalem, where, as assistant to the CEO, he managed corporate relationships in Israel and internationally and created customized Israel tours.

Previously, he taught a Middle Eastern Affairs course for college students through the American Jewish University and served in the Nahal Infantry Brigade of the Israel Defense Forces.

Harlan graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Elliot School of International Affairs at The George

Washington University and holds a master’s degree in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He speaks fluent Hebrew and is proficient in Arabic.

“Having lived in Israel and with his knowledge of the Middle East, Seth will bring a perspective to the JCRC that will complement Sarah’s experience working with local religious communities and combating antisemitism,” said Shep Englander, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati.

Harlan will take over the role of associate director from Gal Adam Spinrad, whose husband, soon to be ordained by Hebrew Union College, has accepted a rabbinical position at The Temple in Atlanta, Ga. “Gal has been an amazing asset to the JCRC for the past three years, leaving Seth with big shoes to fill,” said Weiss. “I have no doubt that he’s up to the challenge, and I look forward to working together with him to serve the community.”

Harlan is originally from Dayton, Ohio, and has spent the past seven years living in Israel. He moved to Cincinnati in February with his wife, Paula. They currently live in the Montgomery area.

JCRC on page 19

JVS Career Services moves to Blue Ash JVS Career Services, which provides Jewish community members with various support services when seeking employment or pursuing higher education, has moved to larger office space so it can expand its services.

JVS Career Services has moved to the CMC Office Center in Blue Ash, a few miles north of its current location.

“Our relocation is the first of several steps we’re taking to enhance our programming for a broader range of job seekers in the Jewish community,” said Peter Bloch, president and CEO of JVS Career Services. “We’re confident that we’ll be able to help many more people achieve their career objectives and, in doing so, strengthen our already vibrant Jewish community.”

With increased support from the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, JVS Career Services has more than doubled its office space. The new space includes cubicles for temporary use by job seekers, an expanded computer lab for job searching and social media training, and a space for mock job interviews and other training needs. Workshops will be held in meeting rooms elsewhere in the office center.

Formerly known as the Cincinnati Career Network, JVS Career Services offers workshops

as well as one-on-one sessions to train and guide individuals in the job search process. JVS Career Services trains people to develop effective resumes and cover letters, improve their job interviewing, networking and salary negotiating skills and strengthen their use of social media. The organization provides those services to any person who seeks help, including those who are unemployed or underemployed, whether they are entry-level workers or top executives.

In the last five years, more than 350 people have found jobs after participating in workshops and other programs provided by JVS Career Services.

JVS Career Services is the lead agency for the career and employment goals of Cincinnati 2020, an initiative spearheaded by the Jewish Federation to transform the Greater Cincinnati area into a national model for Jewish communities.

Also in partnership with the Jewish Federation, JVS Career Services administers various scholarships including the Hilb Scholarship Fund, which has provided financial assistance to college students since 1955.

For more information about JVS Career Services, including a schedule of workshops, meet with a career consultant or to provide

networking help to a job seeker, call JVS Career Services.

B'nai B'rith of Greater Cincinnati Alfred M. Cohen Unit #4 Presents the

70th Annual

Judge Robert S. Kraft Memorial Service Sunday, May 26, 2013 @10:30am Honoring Members of the Jewish Community Who Gave Their Lives For Our Country Harry Sudman, Moderator Keynote Speakers Major Mardis, Director of Operations, Air Force ROTC Det 665, University of Cincinnati, Ohio State Senator Eric Kearney, District 9, Ohio State Representative Connie Pillich, District 28, Gary Saltzman of B’nai B’rith International

4 • LOCAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

man of this event, every year from its inception, until he passed away in July 1982. The late Judge Robert S. Kraft and Jack Landman then took over as co-chairmen until 1993. The program this year again is being co-chaired by Harvey Chyette and Elaine Owen of B’nai B’rith of Greater Cincinnati Unit #4.

The public is invited and encouraged to attend and participate in this service of remembrance, which is the only one of its kind in the entire community. In the event of inclement weather, tents will be used.

Camp at the J offers adventure and fun Summer is a chance for children to be adventurous, active, have fun, and make lifelong friends. Camp at the J offers these experiences along with the opportunity to explore nature, discover new interests, swim, and be physically active. Camp at the J is currently enrolling children who will be entering grades K – 8 this fall.

“We are really excited to partner with other JCCs this summer.

We planned combined field trips and regional art projects with the Columbus, Louisville and Indianapolis JCCs, giving kids an opportunity to meet new friends and build community.” said Matt Steinberg, assistant camp director, Camp at the J. Camp activities include nature, crafts and games, as well as specialty camps. Red Cross swim lessons and daily recreational swimming are offered in both the outdoor and indoor JCC pools for campers in grades K - 3. Weekly themes and special events add to

the summer fun.

Campers explore nature by planting and maintaining a community garden and participate in ecofriendly social action. They also maintain and nurture the compost

around the region.

“Camp at the J fosters a love of outdoor play, curiosity and responsibility. We hope to expose our campers to a variety of new experiences, as well as develop skills they

We encourage them to learn something new and find their hidden talents while building lifelong friendships.”

Ilana Nadel bin to create soil for their garden.

Many regional trips including Kings Island, Hocking Hills State Park, COSI, Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame (and game), and Wright Patterson Air Force Base are planned for campers in grades 4 8. Several of these trips will also be attended by JCC day campers from

already possess. We encourage them to learn something new and find their hidden talents while building lifelong friendships,” said Ilana Nadel, director, Camp at the J. Healthy and delicious kosher lunches with vegetarian options and nutritious sides are offered to all campers for a small fee. This

exciting new option is a huge time saver to parents.

Nadel continues, “Kids are happy when they are healthy. We want to provide children with healthy food choices and give parents peace of mind…and less time packing lunches.”

Camp at the J offers 11 weeks of summer fun, June 3 – Aug. 16, which includes one, three and six week camps and takes full advantage of the extensive indoor and outdoor spaces at the Mayerson JCC. Camp facilities include indoor and outdoor heated pools, a modern playground, Ga Ga pit (Israeli dodgeball), archery range, ball field, full-size gym, art room and music room. The camp day is from 9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Extended day options are available from 7 - 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 - 6 p.m.

For more information about Camp at the J or to register your camper, see the Mayerson JCC contact information in the community directory of this issue.

Annual wine tasting dinner at Wise Temple The annual wine tasting dinner at Wise Temple is one of the most popular dinners and a fun way to celebrate Shabbat. On May 31, Wise Temple members will have an

opportunity to taste Israeli wines at the Annual Shabbat Dinner and Wine Tasting. Immediately following Shabbat services, congregants will enjoy a dinner specifically cho-

sen to complement the chosen wines. The dinner will include wine tastings and a presentation by Wise Temple member, Dr. Jim Greenberg.

This year, Jim’s presentation and the

wines to be explored will once again focus on Israeli “boutique” wines.

Reservations are necessary for the dinner. For more information, please contact the Temple office.

Wise Temple’s Evening at the Piano Lounge audience with a style reminiscent of the golden era of the New York cocktail pianist. Downer comes with 12 years of classical study and experience playing in many venues including exclusive private clubs and the night club circuit.

The event co-chairs, Nancy

Goldberg and Barb Mandell, have been hard at work to ensure every detail is in order. They have planned amazing entertainment, a delicious dinner and a perfect atmosphere. So strap on your toe tapping shoes, warm up your voice and prepare to belt out the words to your favorite

tunes. Come with your song requests and a zest for interactive music. A fun-filled evening awaits you.

Delightful dinner and this unique experience costs a fee. Wise Temple hopes to see you at their Evening at the Piano Lounge. RSVP by contacting Wise Temple.

Join Wise Temple for YoFI Shabbat in the Park Fill the air with music as you celebrate Shabbat with the grass between your toes and the sun on your cheeks. On June 7, Wise Temple’s YoFI group will host Shabbat in the Park.

After an age-appropriate, interactive service and a delicious picnicstyle dinner, the evening will be topped off with some old fashion

playground fun and a visit from the ice cream truck. New friends will be made amidst Shabbat songs, underdoggies, giggles down squeaky slides and elbows dripping with ice cream.

Wise Temple’s Shabbat in the Park begins at 5:30 p.m. at Hopewell Meadows Park.

YoFI co-chair, Caroline Wells says, “YoFI has great programs all

year round, but we especially look forward to Shabbat in the Park. It’s a great way to get to know other families.” Alison Moss, also a YoFI co-chair, adds, “The kids always have a great time at the park, and the adults enjoy being able to sit back and socialize.”

Wise Temple’s YoFI group addresses the social, spiritual and reli-

gious needs of families with young children. While events are designed for children from birth to age 6, all the YoFI programs are geared toward the entire family including older siblings, parents and grandparents.

So pull up a spot in the grass and surround yourself with nature, family and friends as we celebrate Shabbat together. RSVP required by June 1.

The American Israelite “LET THERE BE LIGHT” THE OLDEST ENGLISH-JEWISH WEEKLY IN AMERICA - EST. JULY 15, 1854

VOL. 159 • NO. 44 THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013 14 SIVAN 5773 SHABBAT BEGINS FRIDAY 8:33 PM SHABBAT ENDS SATURDAY 9:34 PM THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE CO., PUBLISHERS 18 WEST NINTH STREET, SUITE 2 CINCINNATI, OHIO 45202-2037 Phone: (513) 621-3145 Fax: (513) 621-3744 publisher@americanisraelite.com editor@americanisraelite.com production@americanisraelite.com RABBI ISAAC M. WISE Founder, Editor, Publisher, 1854-1900 LEO WISE Editor & Publisher, 1900-1928 RABBI JONAH B. WISE Editor & Publisher, 1928-1930 HENRY C. SEGAL Editor & Publisher, 1930-1985 PHYLLIS R. SINGER Editor & General Manager, 1985-1999 MILLARD H. MACK Publisher Emeritus NETANEL (TED) DEUTSCH Editor & Publisher GABRIELLE COHEN JORY EDLIN Assistant Editors ALEXIA KADISH Copy Editor JANET STEINBERG Travel Editor MARIANNA BETTMAN NATE BLOOM IRIS PASTOR RABBI A. JAMES RUDIN ZELL SCHULMAN RABBI AVI SHAFRAN PHYLLIS R. SINGER Contributing Columnists JOSEPH D. STANGE Production Manager ERIN WYENANDT Office Manager e Oldest Eng Th

ewish N h-J ew lis

If you love music, ambiance, style and charm, you’re going to love Wise Temple’s Evening at the Piano Lounge. Wise Temple’s senior adults have an incredible evening planned for you. On June 1 at 6 p.m., pianist and entertainer, Judi Downer, will entertain the

AI

•

Gary Saltzman. A color guard will be presenting colors and will fly the American flag which had been flown over Afghanistan on March 26, 2002 during a combat mission.

The War Memorial, established at this location and dedicated Oct. 14, 1945, to the memory of our valiant servicemen, involved the joint efforts of various leaders in the Jewish community, including Louis Weiland. Uncle Lou Weiland, as everyone referred to him, served as the original chairman of the War Memorial Committee, and as chair-

Est. 1854

of the Armed Forces, for the 70th year, all held at this location, will participate in this program.

State Senator Eric Kearney of the Ohio 9th District, and State Representative Connie Pillich of the 28th District will serve as keynote speakers. Representing the active military as keynote speaker will be Major Mardis, Flight Commander of the Air Force ROTC Detachment 665 at the University of Cincinnati, who will speak on the life of soldiers in today’s military. Representing B’nai B’rith International will be

• ca

On Sunday, May 26, at 10:30 a.m., B’nai B’rith will hold their annual memorial service at the Robert S. Kraft Memorial Garden in the Covedale Cemetery. This memorial service is held in memory of the servicemen of the Jewish faith from the Greater Cincinnati area, who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country while serving overseas in the U.S. Armed Forces.

The program is presented by B’nai B’rith of Greater Cincinnati Alfred M. Cohen Unit #4. Family members of the honored and former members

r in Am ape er sp i

Memorial service honors soldiers lost during wartime

THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE (USPS 019-320) is published weekly for $44 per year and $1.00 per single copy in Cincinnati and $49 per year and $3.00 per single copy elsewhere in U.S. by The American Israelite Co. 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, OH. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE AMERICAN ISRAELITE, 18 West Ninth Street, Suite 2, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2037.

The views and opinions expressed by the columnists of The American Israelite do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the newspaper.

LOCAL • 5

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

Congregation Sha’arei Torah welcomes new rabbi this summer The members of a relatively new Cincinnati congregation are just months away from officially welcoming their first rabbi.

Rabbi Ezra Goldschmiedt starts Aug. 15 as the spiritual leader of Congregation Sha’arei Torah, a mainstream Modern Orthodox shul that formed in Amberley Village in 2011.

Goldschmiedt, who visited Cincinnati in March with his wife Elyssa, said he was impressed with the enthusiasm shown by congregants.

“That was definitely a big part of wanting to be there, is knowing that it’s a place where I think what we have to give would be well received,” Goldschmiedt said.

Rabbi Ezra (Right) and Elyssa Goldschmiedt

For the past two years, Rabbi Goldschmiedt has lived in Toronto, Canada, where he is a part of the Yeshiva University/Torah M’Tzion Kollel. The kollel, he said, places “a very strong emphasis on community service and teaching in high schools and the greater community.”

As he perused the Internet for job listings, Sh’aarei Torah’s statement of principles caught his attention and was “a big reason” he was very interested in the position, he said.

“It’s rare to find a shul that actually makes the effort to what they are about and to express positions with a certain confidence and conviction,” Goldschmiedt said.

The principles themselves were something he very much connected to, including a strong connection to modern Orthodoxy and a strong connection of wanting to maintain a certain degree of openness and understanding, he said.

“It says in the statement (that) the name ‘Sha’arei Torah’ itself is meant to express that there are many different paths in Jewish life and we’re accepting of the wide spectrum that exists,” he said.

Goldschmiedt said he also was impressed by the community’s enthusiasm, its day-school system

and the openness of the rabbis he met.

Cincinnati offers “a tremendous amount of room for growth,” Goldschmiedt said.

“You have all the great ingredients for a community to really take off,” he said. “You have, I think, a nice range of Jews who live in the area. That’s good for diversity. I think that’s very healthy for a community to have.”

Norman Frankel, president of Sha’arei Torah’s board, called Goldschmiedt “a dynamic individual who has a unique ability to relate to individuals of all ages and backgrounds.”

“During his initial visit to Cincinnati, it was apparent that not only is Rabbi Goldschmiedt an outstanding speaker and educator, but there is a sincere warmth of character that was felt by the entire congregation,” Frankel said. “Our members felt that as we continue to grow it is important that our rabbi reflect our personality as a congregation, which is an open and caring shul, and Rabbi Goldschmiedt and his wife Elyssa exhibited these characteristics.”

Rabbi Goldschmiedt is “an incisive and creative thinker,” as well as a warm and humble individual, said Arna Poupko Fisher, a volunteer coordinator for Sha’arei Torah.

“The founders of Sha’arei Torah, The Village Shul, envisioned that it would play a critical role in the increasing vibrancy and vitality of our Jewish community,” she said. “With Rabbi Goldschmiedt leading the way, this vision is transforming into a reality.”

Rabbi Goldschmiedt’s religious vision involves faithfulness to the Jewish tradition and strict observance of Jewish Law while being “fully engaged in modern culture,” according to Nachum Klafter, an executive board member who chaired the congregation’s rabbinical search committee.

“This blend of old and new is exactly what the members of Congregation Sha’arei Torah are looking for in our religious leadership,” Klafter said. “We are also excited about Mrs. Goldschmiedt’s arrival to our community, who is also an accomplished professional and a talented teacher of Torah.”

Ethan Katz, a Sha’arei Torah board member and search committee member, said the Goldschmiedts, in all of their interactions, radiated openness and a desire to help anyone to grow spiritually.

“As Sha’arei Torah continues to build a mainstream Modern Orthodox community that we hope will make all Jews across Cincinnati feel welcome and spiritually uplifted, we are confident we have found exactly the right rabbi and a rebbetzin to lead us,” he said.

“With their combination of warmth, intelligence, religious devotion and ability to inspire, we are confident the Goldschmiedts will attract people from near and far.”

6 • LOCAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Jewish Federation honors top volunteer, professionals in the community This evening, May 23, at the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati’s 117th Annual Meeting, President Andy Berger will present the Goldstein Volunteer of the Year Award to Beth Guttman and two Weston “Avodah” Awards to communal professionals Danielle V. Minson and Sarah Ganson.

Guttman will receive the Robert V. Goldstein Volunteer of the Year Award, which recognizes the efforts of volunteer leaders who have made a significant impact in the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Jewish community at large. Created in 1990 in the memory of Bob Goldstein, an exemplary Jewish communal leader, the Goldstein Award is recognized as the most prominent of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati’s awards.

Guttman is a longtime leader and volunteer in several community organizations throughout Greater Cincinnati. She is the treasurer of the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati’s board of trustees. She is a past president of the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and currently sits on its board. Guttman has also served as the Federation’s Vice President of Financial Resources Development and is on the Planning & Allocations committee and its connecting council. She is a past president of Yavneh Day School (now Rockwern Academy) and is a member of and volunteers regularly at Adath Israel Congregation.

Outside of the Jewish community, Guttman is a newly elected member of the board of trustees of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and serves on the

Beth Guttman, Danielle V. Minson and Sarah Ganson

executive committee and board of the YWCA of Greater Cincinnati.

She is a volunteer at Tender Mercies in Over-the-Rhine and the Winners Walk Tall program at Silverton Paideia Elementary School. In 2007, she was recognized for her contributions to the community as a Cincinnati Enquirer Woman of the Year.

“I am honored to receive this award named after Bob Goldstein, whom I admire greatly for his commitment to our local Jewish community and his tireless efforts toward Jewish continuity. Through my work in the community — at the Foundation and the Federation, helping make possible programs that create a vibrant future — I hope to carry on Bob’s legacy. I think of the outstanding leaders who have been Goldstein honorees, and I’m humbled to be included in their company,” Guttman said.

The Jewish Federation’s Danielle V. Minson will receive the Harris K. and Alice F. Weston Senior “Avodah” Award, given to outstanding Jewish communal professionals with 10 or more years of experience in their field.

Minson has been serving as the

Chief Development Officer for the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati since 2005. She recently helped lead a fundraising initiative toward the creation of the Barbash Family Vital Support Center of Jewish Family Service. Minson previously served as the Jewish Federation of Philadelphia’s Assistant Campaign Director and then, from 2000 – 2005, as its Director of the Renaissance Group. She began her career in Cincinnati, working at the Federation from 1996 – 2000.

Minson earned an MSW from Yeshiva University’s Wurzweiler School of Social Work and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is an alumna of the Israel experience program Project Otzma.

In her tenure at the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, Minson has successfully increased revenue by adding and refocusing resources to encourage endowment, supplemental and corporate giving, in addition to annual giving through the community campaign. She has also — in response to current trends — created a long-term strategic vision that will continue that growth by concentrating on rela-

tionship development and working closely with donors to help them identify their philanthropic passions and meet their goals.

“I was surprised and honored to be chosen for this award,” said Minson. “I am humbled to be in the company of Beth Guttman, who has given so much back to the community through her leadership and dedication, and of rising star Sarah Ganson.” Minson continued, “I want to thank Alice and Harris Weston for creating this award in perpetuity; they are an inspiration to me and other professionals to leave this world a better place than we found it.”

Sarah Ganson, from Cincinnati Hillel, will receive the Harris K. and Alice F. Weston Junior “Avodah” Award, given to outstanding Jewish communal professionals with five or fewer years of experience in their field.

Ganson is the Program and Engagement Associate at Cincinnati Hillel, where she has worked since 2011. In her role, she strategically plans, develops and implements programs and events, often collaborating with the University of Cincinnati, and engages students with the agency.

In 2010, Ganson graduated from Ohio University with a bachelor’s degree in women’s and gender studies, Jewish studies and history.

During college, Ganson — a Cincinnati native and graduate of Yavneh Day School and Sycamore High School — worked as a student intern for the campus Hillel and helped start “Bobcats for Israel.” In 2009, she raised money for JNF, to fund her participation in Hillel’s Israel Alternative Spring Break pro-

gram, which involved serving in underprivileged communities throughout Israel. After graduation, Ganson returned to Israel for six months through the MASA Career Israel program and worked at Tel Aviv University’s Hillel.

Ganson is a board member of Breast Cancer Bricks Along the Journey. It is a non-profit organization that raises money for breast cancer research through an annual brick auction.

Ganson said, “I have benefited so much from my own engagement in Jewish life — as a student at Yavneh, as a camper at GUCI, as an active member of the Hebrew Club at Sycamore, as a leader at OU Hillel and as a cofounder of OU’s first Israel club, “Bobcats for Israel” — that I am grateful to have the chance to give back by helping to shape young Jewish leaders and get them involved in our community. I am honored to receive this award for doing the work that I love.”

The Jewish Federation’s 117th Annual Meeting — Cincinnati 2020 LIVE — will be held this evening, May 23, at 7 p.m., at the Mayerson JCC. Attendees will pay tribute to local agencies’ and congregations’ achievements in the past year and honor our community’s volunteers and professionals who are making Cincinnati 2020 a reality. They will also be the first to hear about a generous gift to the Jewish Federation, which will fund a new Cincinnati 2020 initiative that focuses on encouraging young adults to move to and stay in Cincinnati. The event is free and open to the public; no registration is necessary.

coordinator. “Thanks to the generosity of Camp Livingston, the entire 600 acre facility will be ours for the day. We are excited to be able to offer amazing amenities such as these to our families for free that would easily cost hundreds of dollars a day anywhere else,” she adds. “Plus, what could be a better way for kids to get their first taste of overnight camp without having to stay overnight?”

“We are happy to be partnering with Shalom Family to introduce Jewish camping to a whole new audience,” explains Ben Davis, director of Camp Livingston.

“This event will give young children and their parents a taste of all the fun that overnight camp has to offer… as well as the education.

After all, they might learn academic skills in school, but at camp they learn life skills!” he adds.

To RSVP for Family Camp Daycation, or to learn more about Shalom Family please contact Julie Robenson whose information is listed under Shalom Family in the Community Directory located

in this issue.

Shalom Family is an initiative of The Mayerson Foundation and puts on some of the biggest events throughout the year for young Jewish families who want to connect with one another and the Jewish community. Events are always FREE and have included Israel’s 65th Birthday Beach Bash, Once Upon a Purim Party, Dream Job-ARama Kids’ Career Fair, the Potato Pancake Arty Party, Circus Sundae, Superhero Hanukkah, and more!

Camp Livingston has been serving Jewish families of all affiliations for over 90 years. It offers a safe and nurturing environment that incorporates Jewish identity and Israeli culture into daily life, all while fostering valuable communal life skills, self-confidence, and an appreciation of the outdoors. There campers can gain self esteem and confidence, form lasting friendships and memories and a gain a sense of social responsibility. For more information on Camp Livingston, please consult the Community Directory in this issue.

Family camp Daycation Want the kids to take a vacation from those video games… a rest from the remote control… an escape from all those electronics? Now’s the perfect time to gather up the family and go on a Great Outdoor Getaway for the day when Shalom Family and Camp Livingston present Family Camp DAYcation, featuring 600 acres of fresh air and fun, including a lakefront aqua park, a giant waterslide, climbing wall, zip line, canoes, kayaks, arts and crafts, sports, a campfire cookout and more, on Sunday, June 9. This event includes lunch and snacks and is free with an advanced RSVP. It is open to families with children 12 and under in which at least one parent is Jewish. Older siblings and grandparents are welcome.

Camp Livingston is located in Bennington, Ind., less than two hours from Cincinnati. Families who don’t want to drive can hop aboard the Shalom Family Shuttle Bus which will not only provide free and convenient transportation to and from camp, but will also include magicians, song sessions, snacks

Young families will get to enjoy a one day outdoor getaway.

and more to keep both kids and parents entertained on both legs of the trip! The shuttle will depart from the Mayerson JCC in Amberley Village at 10 a.m., and will depart from camp at 4 p.m. Camp Livingston is easy to get to and has plenty of parking for those who pre-

fer to drive to camp on their own.

“Whether you went to camp as a kid, or have never stepped foot in a cabin, much less a canoe, this event is for families looking for a fun new way to enjoy an ‘old school’ day in the great outdoors!” explains Julie Robenson, Shalom Family event

NATIONAL • 7

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

National Briefs

With new luxury dorm, Orlando philanthropists offer Hillel evergreen funding model

By Uriel Heilman Jewish Telegraphic Agency

State Department report finds rise in anti-Semitism, persecution of Christian minorities (JNS) The newly released International Religious Freedom Report for 2012 by the U.S. State Department study found an increase in anti-Semitism as well as persecution of Christians and other minorities.

The report stated, “Holocaust denial and glorification remained troubling themes, and opposition to Israeli policy at times was used to promote or justify blatant antiSemitism.” It singled out Venezuela, Egypt and Iran as areas of “great concern” for expressions of anti-Semitism “by government officials, by religious leaders, and by the media.”

The report also said, “Christians were a leading target of societal discrimination, abuse, and violence in some parts of the world,” citing attacks by Muslim extremists in Nigeria and Pakistan as well as state-sponsored persecution in Iran such as the arrest or torture of Pastor Saeed Abedini.

ZOA regains tax-exempt status WASHINGTON (JTA) The Internal Revenue Service reinstated the tax-exempt status of the Zionist Organization of America.

“The work of the ZOA has never been altered or diminished one iota during this period,” ZOA President Morton Klein said in a statement Monday announcing the May 15 IRS decision. “Our campus work; our Title VI efforts; our Capitol Hill work; our writings, lectures, TV and radio appearances have continued as always.”

New Jersey city honors Palestinian-Americans (JTA) The northern New Jersey city of Paterson raised a Palestinian flag at City Hall as part of an event honoring its Palestinian-American citizens.

Mayor Jeffery Jones read a proclamation on Sunday marking May 19 as Palestinian-American Day in Paterson to cheers of “Long Live Palestine,” The Record newspaper reported.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority ambassador to the United Nations, was among some 150 people who attended the ceremony.

Local and national ArabAmerican leaders said they were not aware of any other U.S. municipality raising a Palestinian flag.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Real estate developer Hank Katzen has a conviction: If you build it, they will come.

Except this is no baseball field in an Iowa cornfield. It’s a $60 million, 600,000-square-foot luxury dormitory at the nation’s second-largest college campus, the University of Central Florida in this city.

When it opens in August, the new dorm will push the bounds of cushiness. Every room has en-suite bathrooms and flat-screen TVs. Suites have island kitchens with stone countertops, washer-dryers and walk-in closets. Duplex units feature spiral staircases and twostory atriums.

There is a resort-style swimming pool, 24-hour fitness center, sauna and game room. The parking garage is seven stories, ensuring that no student will have to take an elevator or brave the Florida elements on the way from their cars to their dorm rooms.

But what makes Katzen’s new facility noteworthy isn’t so much the lavishness as the idea behind it: to

Courtesy of Uriel Heilman

Orlando real estate developer and Jewish philanthropist Hank Katzen is aiming to create a perpetual funding source for the new Hillel at the University of Central Florida.

create America’s first self-sustaining Hillel. The ground floor of the seven-story building will include a 20,000-square-foot Hillel center with operations to be funded in large part by rental income from the 600bed dormitory.

The Jewish philanthropists behind this unique arrangement aren’t simply giving the 15-yearold Hillel at UCF a building;

they’re giving it a permanent income stream.

“This is a remarkable gesture of philanthropy – the university desperately needs the beds, and Hillel could use this funding,” said Sidney Pertnoy, a Miami businessman and philanthropist who is chairmanelect of Hillel International.

“There are some Hillels connected to some housing, but noth-

ing even remotely resembling this model. It’s a unique cash-flow model and we’re super excited about it. We’re hoping this is a prototype for other communities.”

The unusual project is an attempt to address a perennial problem faced not just by Hillel chapters but by Jewish institutions around the world: How to create a perpetual funding source.

“There are communities around the country where a powerful donor provided an agency with a building free and clear only to find shortly thereafter that the agency was crushed by the operating costs,” said Katzen, the Jewish philanthropist spearheading the project as well as the board president of UCF’s Hillel.

“The capital crunch and the Bernie Madoff double whammy has emaciated the endowment model for many organizations,” Katzen said. “We were looking for an economic machine that would take advantage of the opportunities afforded by a large university to connect a student housing project and our Hillel.”

DORM on page 22

Repurposed rock brings hope to Massachusetts church vandalized with swastikas

By Susie Davidson JointMedia News Service SHARON, Mass. – One month after a large rock was thrown through the windows of a Sharon, Mass., church – in addition to swastikas being painted on the church doors and a banner for an upcoming Jerusalem Day celebration being shredded – the same rock was repurposed as a symbol of hope during an event featuring noted televangelist Dr. Pat Robertson.

At the Victory Assembly of God Church on Sunday, the rock, which was inscribed with the words of Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon forged against you shall prosper,” became the centerpiece of a renewed and undeterred Jerusalem Day celebration at the church.

“This is a time to celebrate our love for the Jewish people and for Israel,” said Robertson, chairman of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) and host of its “700 Club” show.

“When people ask me why, as a Baptist, I have such love, I tell them it is because we worship a Jew, who lived in Nazareth and died in the city of Jerusalem,” Robertson told the transfixed, capacity crowd of congregants, Jews from area synagogues, and Rabbis Jonathan H. Hausman,

Courtesy of Victory Assembly of God Church

The rock thrown through the windows of Victory Assembly of God Church in Sharon, Mass., last month has been repurposed as a symbol of hope, inscribed with the words of Isaiah 54:17, “No weapon forged against you shall prosper.”

Barry Starr and Jonina Pritzker.

Outside, Sharon police and fire department officials, and a local security company maintained a tight presence, screening each entrant and eschewing phones and electronics.

According to its website, which features a photo of the repurposed rock on its home page, the church, which has a congregation of 250 and holds activities for adults, youth and children, seeks to “build relationships, strengthen families and encounter God through meaningful worship.”

Speakers at the event, which

became a fundraising drive for Jerusalem’s ALYN Hospital, also included Shai Bazak, consul general of Israel to New England, and Col. Amnon Meir, the Israel Defense Forces’ liaison officer to the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC).

Bazak explained that his first name, Shai, was an acronym for Jerusalem – appropriate because Bazak was born in 1967, just after the city’s reunification.

“It is a part of my name,” he said of Jerusalem, adding that when he suffers from any stress, a vein in his forehead even forms his name’s first Hebrew letter, Shin. The gravestone of Bazak’s father on Jerusalem’s historic Mount of Olives cemetery reads, “One of the liberators of the City of Jerusalem.”

“Jerusalem of gold, iron, war, peace, tears, hope, of children and of elderly people; everyone has a piece of Jerusalem in their heart,” Bazak said.

Meir, a veteran of the second Lebanon War, said, “It was tough, but I knew exactly what I had to do.” Now, however, Meir said he doesn’t know “what the future will hold for Israel.”

“And I can’t say, because I am an officer of the military,” Meir said. “But I can tell you that Jerusalem is the heart of the Jewish people.”

ALYN (All the Love You Need), for whom the event raised money, is a nonprofit rehabilitation center in Jerusalem for physically challenged and disabled children, adolescents and young adults. Cathy Lanyard, executive director of American Friends of ALYN Hospital, told the crowd, “Love never fails at ALYN. All the therapies in the world are meaningless unless you have the human touch, which is a recipe for miracles.”

8 • NATIONAL / INTERNATIONAL

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

IDF captain, one hand prosthetic and the Moroccan king funding other paralyzed, still yearns to defend Israel preservation of Cape Verde of these kids being soldiers…

By Alina Dain Sharon Like every organization, it has its Jewish heritage—but to JointMedia News Service problems, but the impact is that dollars go much further than most what end?

CHICAGO – By the time places,” Komisar said.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Captain Ziv Shilon realized an explosive device had detonated near him while on patrol near the Gaza border, his left hand was torn off and his right hand was still hanging on by just a few pieces of skin. Ten surgeries and months of rehabilitation later, his left hand has been replaced by a hook prosthesis and his right hand is paralyzed.

That’s not going to stop him, he insists. Despite his injury, Shilon plans to enroll in law school and to later return to an army combat role.

“Defending the state of Israel is a need that still burns inside of me. It’s the noblest goal one can devote one’s life to, and I do not regret it for a moment… I really hope it will be possible,” he said in an interview with JNS. In March, Shilon visited the U.S. and was honored at the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) National New York Gala Dinner. He returned to the U.S. in mid-May, this time to Chicago, where FIDF supporters Morris Silverman and Lori

Courtesy of Shahar Azran

IDF captain Ziv Shilon (center), who has one prosthetic hand and is paralyzed in the other, poses with former IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. (Res.) Gabi Ashkenazi (left) and Friends of the Israel Defense Forces National Director Maj. Gen. Yitzhak (Jerry) Gershon at FIDF’s national gala in New York this March.

Komisar arranged for him to receive tests at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago to see if he can be fitted for “a better prosthetic and a different type of rehabilitation,” Komisar told JNS. “He is special, he’s just all goodness, it’s incredible,” Komisar said of Shilon.

By supporting FIDF, Komisar and Silverman help Israeli children and families who have lost a parent or relative in uniform, among other projects. “The FIDF really takes care of the human side

A battalion commander in the Givati brigade, Shilon was already commanding 150 soldiers at the age of 25 by the time he was injured on Oct. 23, 2012. That day, heavy fog impaired the unit’s visibility as they scanned an area near Kibbutz Kissufim for explosives. Fearing sniper fire, he had left his forces behind him. The device detonated as he attempted to open a gate. Severely injured and scared of a possible kidnapping, like what had happened to Gilad Shalit, Shilon somehow managed to pick up his left hand, placed it on top of his barely hanging right hand, and ran back to his soldiers.

Despite having gone from commanding so many soldiers and doing a job for seven years that required great physical fitness to a young man fully dependent on his family, Shilon feels that his IDF service had a purpose. “I allowed citizens to be safer and for mothers to take their kids to kindergarten,” he said.

CAPTAIN on page 19

Orthodox women share tricks of the entrepreneurial trade at inaugural conference

By Michele Alperin JointMedia News Service Chaya Appel-Fishman hatched the idea for a network of Jewish businesswomen at age 16, when she rented a college campus and created a conglomerate of creative arts programs with 120 participants and a 20-person staff.

“I wanted mentors who could give me advice and deal with my religious needs,” she recalls. “And many women reached out to me for support, asking me ‘How did I do it?’”

Now 24 and the founder and executive director of The Jewish Woman Entrepreneur nonprofit, Appel-Fishman was the driving force behind the organization’s first conference, which took place this month.

Attended by 300 Orthodox women, the May 5 conference at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, N.J., had broad goals.

“This conference wasn’t meant to be just about work-life balance,” Appel-Fishman tells JNS. “We wanted to blend core, substantive business content as well as challenging, difficult issues and also networking to encourage women to meet and support each other.”

Starting as notes on napkins, Appel-Fishman’s idea for a

Courtesy of The Jewish Woman Entrepreneur

Orthodox Jewish women network at the first-ever conference of The Jewish Woman Entrepreneur nonprofit on May 5 in New Brunswick, N.J.

women’s business network was eventually concretized with a website in 2009, nonprofit status, and now the conference.

Attendees reflected a healthy blend across the spectrum of Orthodoxy, suggests AppelFishman, but with more Hassidic women than expected, including 50 on a bus from Borough Park in Brooklyn. Fifteen women came under the aegis of From Sister to Sister, which supports divorcees with children.

Some women there were the heads of huge businesses, some were trying to figure out how to get a small service-oriented business off the ground, and others just love to work.

“They have large families and need a dual income,” Appel-Fishman says.

“Our goal is to validate women

who work because they need to and those who work because they want to,” she adds.

Although Appel-Fishman is interested in a wider spectrum of Jewish women, for now her primary constituency is narrow. “We are focusing predominantly on the Orthodox community – because they need us the most,” she says. “They needed an exclusively Jewish and kosher organization; other Jewish women have elsewhere to go.”

Although many women who attended were from the New York area, women also came from as far as California and the Midwest to be at the one-day conference.

Ellen Paxton, a newly observant woman who is founder and chief learning officer of Professional Learning Board in Minneapolis, came to meet other entrepreneurs.

She hopes to expand her company, which offers online classes to largely secular education professionals to help them meet licensing and professional development requirements, to the Jewish community. “I have grown personally in my Judaism, and now it is time to grow professionally in that regard,” she says. “The more I stay true to my values, the more it supports the growth of my business.”

WOMEN on page 20

By Cnaan Liphshiz Jewish Telegraphic Agency

PRAIA, Cape Verde — A Portuguese rabbi and a Moroccan diplomat stood shoulder to shoulder in a Catholic cemetery here while 200 mourners howled in grief as they buried a resident of this island off the western coast of Africa.

The foreigners had come to Cape Verde’s main cemetery earlier this month not to bury a local, but for the rededication of 10 gravestones of Moroccan Jews – members of an extinct community whose roots trace to the 1860s.

With virtually no practicing Jews on Cape Verde today, the cemeteries had fallen into neglect.

Now a Washington-based nonprofit is spearheading their restoration.

The Cape Verde Jewish Heritage Project has a board stuffed with prominent Jewish Washingtonians, but its funding comes largely from one man – King Mohammed VI of Morocco.

According to the group’s U.S. tax filings, the king was the organization’s sole listed donor in 2011, giving $100,000. Smaller donors make up about a quarter of the project’s funding, the CVJHP said.

Andre Azoulay, a senior Jewish adviser to the king and a member of the project’s advisory board, told JTA that the effort is reflective of the king’s “deep commitment” to preserving Jewish heritage in Morocco and elsewhere. But even if, as some speculate, it is motivated by a desire to attract tourists and curry favor with American Jews, the king’s drive clearly sets Morocco apart from other Middle Eastern countries where Jewish sites have faced increasing threats under new Islamist governments.

“This is all part of a strong push from His Majesty the King that started three, four years ago, when we saw cemeteries have become vulnerable because of lacking care by all of us,” Azoulay told JTA. Approximately 3,000 Jews are living in Morocco, a North African monarchy about the size of Texas that had been home to a large and thriving Jewish community for centuries. In the 19th century, a number of Moroccan-Jewish families resettled in Cape Verde, attracted by the financial potential of this transatlantic hub.

Over time the families totally assimilated, though their Creolespeaking, Christian descendants include some of Cape Verde’s most prominent businessmen and politicians, including the country’s

Courtesy of Cnaan Liphshiz

Abdellah Boutadghart, right, of the Moroccan embassy in Senegal, and Rabbi Eliezer Di Martino of Lisbon at the main cemetery in Praia for the burial of a Cape Verde resident, May 2, 2013.

first democratically elected prime minister, Carlos Alberto Wahnon de Carvalho Veiga.

Unlike many Arab countries with once sizable Jewish communities, Morocco has taken wideranging steps to preserve its Jewish history. The Casablanca Jewish museum was restored, the small but colorful 17th century synagogue in Fez was renovated, and dozens of former Jewish schools and more than 100 synagogues were rehabilitated with funding from the crown.

In 2011, in a move that Azoulay calls unprecedented in the modern Middle East, the Moroccan constitution was changed to note that the country has been “nourished and enriched ... [by] Hebraic influences,” among others. The Moroccan parliament adopted the new language along with amendments that transferred some powers from the king to elected parties.

“I am not trying to paint a onesided rosy picture. There are some difficult and maybe black pages in the book of Moroccan Jewry,” Azoulay told JTA. “But there are many, many more beautiful chapters.”

The king’s restoration activity already has brought benefits in the form of increased Jewish tourism.

More than 19,000 Israelis entered Morocco in 2010, a 42 percent leap from the previous year, according to Israel’s Tourism Ministry. The World Federation of Moroccan Jewry says the kingdom receives another 30,000 nonIsraeli Jews annually.

Among them was Joel Rubinfeld, the Brussels-based cochair of the European Jewish Parliament, who spent 12 days in Morocco in March meeting with government officials and visiting his mother’s hometown. Rubinfeld believes the government’s intention to honor the country’s Jewish past is sincere, but he said other considerations are at work as well.

FUNDING on page 20

INTERNATIONAL / ISRAEL • 9

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

International Syria, target of reported Israeli airstrikes, Israel jumps to top of Iran’s foreign interests Briefs Briefs

By Alex Traiman JointMedia News Service Canadian PM defends support of Israel, questions arming Syrian rebels (JNS) Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper called Israel “the one stable, democratic ally in this part of the world” and expressed frustration with lack of current support for the Jewish state on a visit to New York City on Thursday. He also criticized the idea of arming Syrian rebels in an effort to help defeat the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

“There’s nothing more shortsighted in Western capitals in our time than the softening of support we’ve seen for Israel around the globe,” Harper said, according to the Associated Press.

Harper’s words came just a week after a video of a Syrian rebel commander appeared online showing him cutting the body of a dead soldier and biting into his heart, Reuters reported.

When asked to explain his actions, the rebel commander said the man’s phone contained video clips of him raping women, burning bodies and cutting off people’s limbs.

The recently reported Israeli airstrikes on Syria, which were neither confirmed nor denied by the Jewish state, targeted weapons depots allegedly storing Iranianmade weapons intended for the Lebanese terrorist organization Hezbollah. While the transfer of high-grade weapons may pose a direct threat to Israel’s security, there are greater questions about a tectonic shift in the balance of power in the Middle East.

“Iran as been exerting increasing influence across the region, in countries including Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and even in the Gulf States, such as Kuwait and Bahrain,” Israel Defense Forces Brig. Gen. (ret.) Dr. Shimon Shapira told JNS. Shapira, a senior fellow at the Jerusalem Center of Public Affairs (JCPA), recently published a report detailing Iranian intentions to partner with Hezbollah to affectively grab control of Syria. The report cites coordination at the highest levels between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Hezbollah.

“Syria is the bridge between Iran and Lebanon,” Shapira said.

According to the JCPA report, “Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah paid a secret visit to Tehran where he met with the top Iranian officials headed by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Gen. Qasem Suleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guard Corps.”

Toulouse shooting revisited

by French police with arrest of new suspect (JNS) French authorities have detained a 25-year-old on suspicion of helping the gunman who killed three Jewish children and a rabbi at a Jewish school in Toulouse in southern France in March 2012.

The man has not been named, but a formal investigation is working to determine whether he helped the gunman, Mohamed Merah, steal the scooter the gunman then used during the Toulouse shooting.

By Shlomo Cesana and Israel Hayom JointMedia News Service

Alleged front group for Hamas hosts hundreds at prestigious Brussels venue (JTA) Hundreds attended an event that an association with allegedly close ties to Hamas organized at a prestigious venue in Brussels.

Some 300 people showed up on Saturday at the College SaintMichel for an event organized by the Palestinian Return Centre, a British nongovernmental organization that has denied allegations by the Israeli government and other bodies that it is “a front” for Hamas.

An appeal by the European Jewish Parliament to the mayor of Etterbeek —one of the municipalities that make up the Belgian capital — failed to prevent the event, which was advertised as the 11th Palestinians in Europe Conference.

An Israeli government review of the death of 12-year-old Muhammad al-Dura during the AlAqsa Intifada in 2000 has officially debunked a French television report suggesting he was killed by direct Israel Defense Forces fire.

The 36-page report, which was presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, further concluded that it was highly likely that the boy survived the incident unscathed and therefore may still be alive. The boy’s father, Jamal, urged an international inquest into the shooting.

The incident took place on Sept.

30, 2000 – the early days of the AlAqsa Intifada – when Jamal alDura and his 12-year-old son Muhammad were filmed by a France 2 news crew as they were taking cover behind a concrete barrier after they were caught in a crossfire between Israeli soldiers

IDF, fired on from Syria for third straight day, views incidents ‘with concern’ (JNS) An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) jeep in the central Golan Heights was hit by gunfire from across the Syrian border on Tuesday, marking the third straight day the Israeli army was fired on from Syria, the IDF said in a statement.

IDF artillery units “returned precise fire” and destroyed the source of the gunfire, according to the statement.

Courtesy of Israel Defense Forces

Iran manufactured anti-tank missiles belonging to Hezbollah that were captured by the Israel Defense Forces in southern Lebanon.

Amid reports of recent Israeli airstrikes on Syria targeting Iranian missiles, Israel has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.

The leaders discussed an operational plan that includes the “establishment of a 150,000-man force for Syria.”

The tactical coordination is the latest manifestation of a long-established Iranian pattern of expansionist foreign policy – a principle outlined in the Iranian constitution.

Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iran has been tangibly extending its influence across the region by force, particularly during periods of civil turmoil.

“Iran created Hezbollah in the summer of 1982. This was a strategic decision to export the revolution to the Arab World,” Shapira told JNS. According to Shapira, Iran was

able to establish influence in Lebanon partly because both are Shiite-majority states with similar religious views. Perhaps more importantly, Iran was taking advantage of long-term instability plaguing Lebanon, during a 15year civil war.

Decades later, following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, multiple insurgencies against U.S. troops were led by the Quds Force, an elite division of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. Numerous experts have cited growing Iranian influence in Iraq – another unstable Middle Eastern nation with a sizable Shiite population.

SYRIA on page 21

IDF not responsible for 2000 al-Dura shooting, government report finds and Palestinian police forces in Netzarim Junction, on the Gaza Strip’s main north-south highway.

France 2 reported that the boy was killed by direct fire from a nearby IDF post. The story was widely covered by the international media, and the footage of the boy and his father, crouching in fear and sobbing as bullets whistled over their heads, quickly became one of the Second Intifada’s most potent symbols, causing Israel’s international image considerable damage.

The IDF had initially accepted responsibility for the incident, but an inquest headed by then-GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen Yom-Tov Samia concluded that the boy was not hit by IDF fire.

Footage edited to support biased reporting The Israeli government review committee was formed in 2012 by Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who at the time served as strategic affairs minister. The committee examined the raw footage filmed

by the France 2 crew, and found that it was edited to exclude a part at the end in which the boy – declared dead by the reporter on film merely a moment earlier – is clearly seen alive and moving.

The report, which was presented to Netanyahu by Minister for International, Intelligence and Strategic Affairs Yuval Steinitz, further found that there was no evidence that the boy and his father were injured at all, let alone severely, by IDF fire; concluding that the French television station edited the footage to support its biased reporting.

The report also criticized other media outlets for basing their coverage of the case solely on France 2’s report, disregarding the fact that the incident was witnessed by multiple reporters. “The French reporter’s own account of the events has varied over the years and is riddled with contradictions and falsities,” the report said.

SHOOTING on page 22

200 firebombs thrown at Rachel’s Tomb in past three months (JNS) Over the past three months, some 200 firebombs and 80 explosive devices have been thrown at worshippers and Israeli soldiers at Rachel’s Tomb on the outskirts of Bethlehem in the West Bank.

Committee Chairman MK Avigdor Lieberman instructed the army to examine options to assure the safety of the worshippers and present the plans to the committee in one month.

IDF receives new advanced riot protection equipment (JNS) The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Central Command has received new advanced equipment and tools to help its soldiers combat violent riots, particularly in Judea and Samaria, according to the IDF’s website.

The new equipment and tools include protective suits for soldiers and advanced GPS systems.

Palestinians break hole in security fence, Israeli security alters ‘silk gloves’ response (JNS) An Israeli security official said security forces are altering their previous “silk gloves” approach to rioters such as a group of Palestinians who entered Jerusalem on Friday without passing through a security checkpoint. The Palestinians used hammers to make a hole in the security barrier between Jerusalem and Abu Dis. According to the Palestinian protesters, Israeli Border Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at them after they entered through the hole in the fence, and there were several injuries. Dana said such Palestinian rioters were often previously handled with “silk gloves,” but that “their brazenness has crossed the line.”

10 • BAR/BAT MITZVAHS

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

The evolution of the bat mitzvah

By Michele Alperin JointMedia News Service

For all of your Bar/Bat Mitzvah needs.

Castle House has the best selection.

3435 EDWARDS ROAD • HYDE PARK

(513) 871-2458 www.c a s t l e h o u s e.com

SAT

MON–FRI 9:30 AM –6 PM THURS 9:30 AM –8 PM 9:30 AM –5:30 PM & SUN 12 PM –5 PM

In the 90 years since Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan’s oldest daughter, Judith, became the first American girl to mark her Jewish coming-of-age in a synagogue, the bat mitzvah celebration has become an accepted practice in many synagogues.

Honoring this history, the National Museum of American Jewish History and the Moving Traditions non-profit have collaborated on a new traveling exhibition, “Bat Mitzvah Comes of Age,” which is on display through April 27 at The Laurie M. Tisch Gallery at The JCC in Manhattan.

“In less than a century bat mitzvah has gone from being so radical to so mainstream – so much so that my own daughter, when told that her grandmother could not have a bat mitzvah and that I could have one only on Friday night, said, ‘That is so weird!’” says Deborah Meyer, executive director of Moving Traditions.

The exhibition grew out of a project initiated by Moving Traditions board chair Sally Gottesman to collect personal stories called “Bat Mitzvah Firsts” through an Internet survey. This meshed well with the organization’s goals.

“At Moving Traditions, we look at how Judaism needs to continue to change in each generation to reflect how women and men live their lives today and how we want to live our lives going into the future,” Meyer says.

The new tradition of bat mitzvah was propelled by a generation of enterprising young women, supported by their parents, rabbis, and synagogue ritual committees.

“In some ways, it is a forward trajectory when you stand back,” says Meyer. “But when you look up close it is not exactly linear. It is in fits and starts as Jewish life changes over time.” For example, the young women who had the first Saturday-morning bat mitzvahs were often not permitted to return the next week to the same bimah for an aliyah.

Many of the early bat mitzvahs were held on Friday nights, when there is no Torah reading, whereas today in most Conservative and Reform congregations, bar and bat mitzvah ceremonies are virtually identical. In traditional congregations, a girl often delivers a talk, or she may chant Torah in the presence of women only; others in

Orthodox circles either just hold a party for the bat mitzvah girl that is not connected to Shabbat, or do not celebrate the bat mitzvah at all.

To create an exhibit, Meyer and Gottesman sought advice from staff at the Philadelphiabased National Museum of American Jewish History, and the museum agreed to partner with them. As the idea grew and developed, they decided to expand the survey data by recording 11 oral histories, under the guidance of documentarian and Moving Traditions board member Lori Perlow, who co-curated the exhibit with Josh Perelman, a historian at the museum, and Rabbi Carole Balin, professor of Jewish history at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.

Courtesy of Sherri Langston

Sherri Langston, on March 18, 1988, the day she became the first female cadet to celebrate a bat mitzvah at West Point.

“Bat Mitzvah Comes of Age” is not only about a coming-of-age ceremony for girls, but more broadly treats the process by which individuals help shape and change ritual. “It’s an amazing story of how Jewish life changes and how gender is often at the center of change in Jewish life,” says Meyer.

As the exhibit came together, the curators learned that the development of bat mitzvah was parallel to progress in the women’s movement. Judith Kaplan’s bat mitzvah came two years after women got the right to vote, and the real flourishing of the bat mitzvah across denominations came in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, along with the development of feminism.

Another unexpectedly surprising tidbit arose in the personal stories contributed through the survey. “There is some kind of correlation between women pushing for a bat mitzvah and becoming

important figures in American life,” says Ivy Weingram, who managed the exhibit for the museum, citing Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan and many rabbis as examples.

For Meyer, one of the most moving personal stories was that of Marjorie Lehman, now associate professor of Talmud and rabbinics at the Jewish Theological Seminary, who observed her bat mitzvah in 1976 in Hewlett, N.Y. Meyer says, “She writes about her longing to kiss the Torah and touch and hold it the way boys could. She was so invested in Jewish life, but was not allowed to have a bat mitzvah.” When their synagogue refused to allow the bat mitzvah, her family supported her by borrowing a Torah, and she had her aliyah in her backyard.

The exhibit has no actual artifacts, but rather images of artifacts and graphics from the women who completed the survey and some from the museum’s collection.

One of Weingram’s favorite museum artifacts from the exhibit is a letter Mordecai Kaplan sent to Abraham Joshua Heschel, congratulating Heschel on his daughter Susannah’s bat mitzvah and alluding to Kaplan’s other three daughters: “You probably know, Dr. Heschel, that I inaugurated the Bat-Mitzvah celebration with my oldest daughter Judith in April 1922. She was the first of the four reasons for my doing that, the other three also being girls.”

Meyer emphasizes the importance of engaging with Jewish history. “If we don’t understand where we’ve come from, how do we understand who we really are?

And this helps us imagine where we might want to go,” she says.

“Many of the girls longed to participate in the Jewish community, and by taking this risk and stepping out as a bat mitzvah pioneer, they were in fact helping to create the Jewish community in which they wanted to participate.”

In parallel with the New York exhibit, the National Museum of American Jewish History will be marking the 90th anniversary of the bat mitzvah through special programming and a national effort to collect and preserve bat mitzvah artifacts.

“The last panel asks visitors to contribute their own bat mitzvah stories and memories,” says Weingram. “It is through these personal stories that the history of bat mitzvah in America unfolds and is brought forward in the museum.”

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

BAR/BAT MITZVAHS • 11

Advice to a bar or bat mitzvah in 2013

By Rabbi Bradley Solmsen JointMedia News Service Mazel Tov on your upcoming simcha! It’s never too early to start thinking about your bar or bat mitzvah, and I advise you to approach this important rite of passage not as a sort of graduation ceremony, but as a meaningful transition toward Jewish adulthood.

Becoming a bar or bat mitzvah is an exciting opportunity. I use the word “becoming” here intentionally.

In our tradition, bar and bat mitzvah is not something that just happens TO us, but an event that requires the bar or bat mitzvah to take an active role.

The more you make the process your own, the more momentous it will be.

I have three questions that I hope will help you think about ways to make your bar or bat mitzvah as meaningful to you and your family as possible.

What is important to you?

What do you love to do? What’s important to you? Are you a musician or artist? Do you have a favorite hobby? I urge you to think about ways to incorporate your passions into your bar or bat mitzvah experience. Talk to your rabbi, cantor or an educator at your synagogue about how to do this. You might be sur-

prised at the many ways you could make your bar or bat mitzvah a more personalized experience. I have worked with teens who have integrated live music into their ceremonies and others who have brought a love of cooking into their learning process.

One teen, in addition to studying about different ways of celebrating Passover, studied recipes from all over the world and cooked some of them for her family’s Passover seder.

What can you contribute to your community?

One of the most important aspects of becoming bat or bar mitzvah is taking on greater responsibility in your community. Ask yourself how you can make a difference. The answer to this question might be based on one of the interests you thought about in the previous question, or it could be based on something you might think is missing or should be improved in your community. I know teens who have started non-profit organizations or lobbied their elected representatives to make real change. It is important to be connected to your synagogue, but that isn’t the only place where you can make a difference. And don’t let your age stop you. It can be challenging to find the right opportunities when you are young, but there is

so much you have to offer and so much your community needs.

What might you want to teach?

Teaching is another way of adding your voice to the Jewish people in an essential way. When you teach something, it forces you to become a specialist in that area. The Jewish people need to hear from you and learn with you and from you. You are essential to writing the next chapter in the history of the Jewish people.

I worked with one bat mitzvah student whose Torah portion included the passage that discusses the obligation to remember and keep Shabbat.

She studied the Torah text and its commentaries and found related contemporary texts and works of poetry, art and music that exemplified what keeping Shabbat meant to her. After her bat mitzvah, she turned this into a four-session adult study seminar!

What might you be able to teach your peers or even adults in your community?

All of these suggestions will be easier to do in partnership with an adult in your congregation. But, don’t wait to be asked – make an appointment with your rabbi, cantor, teachers or other community leaders to discuss ways to make your bat or bar mitzvah one of the most meaningful milestones in your life.

12 • BAR/BAT MITZVAHS

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

2013 B’nai Mitzvah Vendors Directory Use any of these vendors for all of your B’nai Mitzvah needs: A-1 AMUSEMENT & PARTY RENTAL With a phone number that ends in “4 - FUN,” how could a blurb on this company not stress it’s the place to go for all the fun stuff - interactive inflatables; “adrenaline rush obstacle courses;” carnival, water and video games and concession equipment including a Belgian waffle stick and a caramel corn maker.

Company president, Donald Maslyn, writes on their website that all of their equipment is maintained in-house and that his team is “dedicated to your safety and satisfaction.”

In business since 1992, the company serves Cincinnati, Dayton, Kentucky and Indiana.

“We provide the best and newest games and attractions in the industry,” Maslyn said.

Recent clients include Sylvie from the Indian Hill After-Prom Committee, who wrote, “...you have the best selection, most professional attendants, and your prices are fair.”

A LA CARTE Raised in the Jewish community of Cincinnati, Chef Jeffrey and his staff’s detail to Jewish cuisine is unparalleled. We help make your event spectacular and memorable, whether planning traditional Kiddush luncheon fare, California Contemporary Cuisine, or an NYC Deli Experience. One of our key talents is creating menus to fit your personal tastes or needs. We are also highly experienced in kosher catering and working with VAAD Hoier of Cincinnati.

BALLOON WORKS For either centerpieces or accents, balloons work.

That is the big message of Balloons Works—and that they “will build and design just about anything with or without balloons.”

Virtually anything imaginable is within this company’s reach— arches, Eiffel Towers and cityscapes.

Also, Balloon Works offers designs based on flowers and other materials besides balloons such as leis, poker chips, table covers and carpets.

Popular themes include tropical, Mardi Gras, under the sea, casino and under the stars. Sports themes are favored as well.

The company offers custom imprinted and promotional items as well.

Courtesy of Graceology Photography

Matthew rocks out during his Bar Mitzvah party with help from some of these vendors.

CASTLE HOUSE Located in Hyde Park, Castle House specializes in designer clothes and shoes for girls, boys and infants.

Founded 56 years ago, Castle House carries 100 - 150 different designers each season, including Joseph Aboud, Calvin Clothing and Lilly Pulitzer.

The shop carries gift items as well such as monogrammed blankets, towels and sun-hats.

Their motto is, “If you can’t find it anywhere, call us...”

FABULOUS FREDDY DJ & MC He provides music for any occasion including weddings, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, reunions, birthdays and more. His music includes party and dance music, rock, hip-hop, oldies, pop, latin, swing, disco and funk.

Book Fabulous Freddy for all of your fun, dancing and Bar/Bat mitzvah game needs. Dance the night away with DJ Freddy’s jams. He’ll make sure to keep the party hopping all night.

For information, please contact Fabulous Freddy directly.

HILTON CINCINNATI

MUSIC FOR ANY OCCASION

NETHERLANDS Party & Dance Music PLAZA RockThe - Hip Hop - Cincinnati Oldies - Pop Hilton Latin - SwingPlaza - Discois- aFunk Netherland National Historic Landmark and Historic

Phone: 513-300-8192 Hotel of America. The hotel has Weddings - Bar/Bat Mitzvahs been completely restored its Reunions - Birthdays - ANY to EVENT

1930s grandeur and is one of the world’s finest examples of French deco. Known for itsSPECIAL worldCartREATING THE class service and food, the hotel MEMORIES OF LIFE offers a unique and beautiful place for Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, wedJdings, EFF receptions THOMASand CATERING more. The Hilton815 is rated as aSAAA FourOAK TREET Diamond hotel, and named the LUDLOW KYwas 41016 #1 Hilton Hotel in the U.S. for 291-0286 Food(859) & Beverage in 2011 & 2010.

The Hilton features three breathtaking including VOTED “Bballrooms, EST CATERER ” – Cincinnati Magazine the Hall of Mirrors.

Along with

Bar and Bat Mitvahs, the hotel can do overnight accomodations, private dinners, afternoon tea and celebration brunches. Group rates are available for blocks of 10 or more rooms.

JEFF THOMAS CATERING This prize-winning caterer offers custom menus with a flair for the unusual. Jeff Thomas works closely with his clients to design a menu specifically suited to their needs and tastes. Buffet, Seated and Station menus are available with a wide selection of options. Thomas prides himself in the fact that his world travels allow him the luxury of infusing new and different cuisine ideas to the Tri-State area. It is his belief that each event is a performance with its own unique theme. No cookie cutter events with this company! Thomas and his courteous staff allow you the luxury of enjoying your own event as a guest. From food and tableware to linens and centerpieces, Thomas is the only one to have!

JEWISH FAMILY SERVICE Have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah or other celebration coming up? You can easily decorate your tables while helping local families in need by renting Centerpiece for Tzedakah baskets from Jewish Family Service.

The custom-bowed Centerpiece for Tzedakah baskets support JFS’s Food Pantry, which is the source for free kosher food, personal care items and supportive guidance for individuals in the Greater Cincinnati Jewish community experiencing financial difficulties.

“The baskets are the best things ever,” noted Janet Cohen, who used Centerpiece for Tzedakah baskets to decorate for her children’s wedding weekends.

“With so many people in need of basic necessities, it makes sense to

BAR/BAT MITZVAHS • 13

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

put your money toward the needs of others.” She looked into other centerpiece options, but chose the baskets to provide support for an organization that strengthens lives throughout the community.

A Centerpiece for Tzedakah is an attractive basket filled with kosher food packages and other sundries. The baskets are elegantly wrapped and decorated with ribbons in the colors of your choice and include a personalized card acknowledging your donation to the Jewish Family Service Food Pantry.

The rental fees are tax-deductible.

To order a Centerpiece for Tzedakah contact Sandee Golden at JFS at least three weeks before your event.

LEN KALTMAN PHOTOGRAPHY/ MITZVAH PIX You will find great prices on Bar/Bat Mitzvah photography.

Len Kaltman has photographed over 150 B’nai Mitzvah in the Cincinnati area.

One of the reasons he shoots so many is that he doesn’t shoot weddings—he only photographs Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. According to Kaltman, “About six years ago a friend of mine asked me to photograph her son’s Bar Mitzvah and since then, the phone hasn’t stopped ringing.” And he doesn’t charge wedding prices, either.

He offers one simple price, which includes full day coverage and all the photos. Instead of insisting his clients purchase

prints or albums, Kaltman provides all the photos on a disc along with full reproduction rights. His customers make their own albums using online services such as Shutterfly or Blurb, or have traditional prints made at any lab. And family, friends and guests can download the photos free of charge too.

His contemporary editorial shooting style captures the high energy of today’s B’nai Mitzvah parties. Word of mouth has been great for his business and he generally holds dates two to three years ahead of the event. Kaltman proudly mentions that “once a family has a Bar or Bat Mitzvah date set, I’m usually the first call.” You can see samples of his photos along with his extensive client list at his website: www.mitzvahpix.com.

MICHAEL ZERO PHOTOGRAPHY One of Cincinnati’s best kept secrets for unique and amazing Bar and Bat Mitzvah photography is Michael Zero Photography. In a day and age when everyone claims to be a photographer, where mediocrity rules and where most professional photographers are just going through the motions, finding and hiring a true professional, an artist, an innovator, a lighting master with technical savvy second to none, is more important than ever.

Michael Zero takes a fresh approach to Bar & Bat Mitzvah photography. He works with

select clients who share his vision and appreciate the art of photography. Michael possesses a special ability to connect with his subjects and this allows him to capture them at their best and highlight their unique personality.

Michael is supported by a team, allowing him to focus on what truly matters — your images.

An in-person appointment can be made to consult with Michael on your event photography needs.

OASIS CONFERENCE CENTER While others might be content to follow the lead of the ordinary, you have always looked above and beyond to something better.

And now there is a place that lives up to expectations like yours.

Whether you’re hosting 20 or 2,000, Oasis Conference Center, located in Northeast Cincinnati, offers an unbeatable combination of spectacular surroundings, incredible service and abundant, flexible space. Our unique facilities can be transformed to fit your every need, whether you’re hosting an intimate executive retreat, an important teleconference or a massive industry trade show.

From an outdoor patio with sweeping golf course views, to an intimate boardroom, a bright and airy pre-function atrium or an expansive ballroom, we offer an array of options for any event, including meetings, banquets and Bar/Bat Mitzvahs.

VENDORS on page 14

14 • BAR/BAT MITZVAHS

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

THE PHOENIX The Phoenix was built in 1893 and provides an elegant and incomparable turn-of-the-century ambiance. They also have wedding specialists to help you plan the perfect Bar/Bat Mitzvah. From traditional to Star Wars Lightsabers, The Phoenix works for you.

Stunning 19th century elegance, a dazzling marble staircase, Tiffany stained glass windows, majestic 35-foot ceilings and heavenly cuisine all combine to help capture the magic. There is no place like the Phoenix to have a Bar/Bat Mitzvah party.

They sought out the best products available. Nova from New York’s Acme Smoked Fish.

Corned beef from Sy Ginsberg in Detroit. Hard crusted rye bread from Detroit. Not to mention their own creations – chopped liver, blintzes, knishes and kugel to name a few. At RASCALS’ Deli their goal is to serve the absolute best products to remind you of that great deli experience. When you come through their doors, you become a part of their family.

They have a full line of catering options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts and other options for Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. Call for more information about their catering services.

RASCAL’S DELI They are inspired by some of the greatest deli’s in the country.

Everyone from Katz’s and the Carnegie in New York, Corky & Lenny’s in Cleveland, Detroit’s Bread Basket and the Stage Delicatessen in Detroit. What do they all have in common? Great rye bread, pastrami, corned beef and brisket. Matzoh ball soup.

Lox and whitefish. Chicago style hot dogs. Homemade soups and desserts. Dr. Brown’s Cream Soda.

TAFT MUSEUM OF ART The Taft Museum of Art is one of the finest small art museums in America. A National Historic Landmark built in 1820, the Taft is home to an extensive art collection that includes European and American master paintings, Chinese porcelains, and European decorative arts. See major works

by Rembrandt, Hals, Goya, Gainsborough, Reynolds, Turner, Ingres, Whistler, and Sargent, as well as the greatest Gothic ivory sculpture in America.

VENDORS from page 13

Their space offers elegance, convenience and a masterpiece just around the corner. Consider the Museum for your Bar/Bat Mitzvah needs. Their great house and your great taste combine to create your own masterpiece.

Facility spaces available to meet your Bar/Bat Mitzvah needs are the Luther Hall and the Garden Tent. The Luther Hall is an indoor 30 feet by 40 feet cherry-paneled room with state-of-the-art audio/visual capabilities. Located in the new Museum wing, it is an attractive setting for a sit-down dinner for buffet, with cocktails and appetizers in the adjoining lobby/cafe area. It seats 110 people and lets 150 people stand.

The Garden Tent is available May through October. A tented brick terrace provides a lovely site for events and receptions. The 30 feet by 60 feet tent, secluded behind the Museum, adjoins the beautifully landscaped garden with an open lawn. This versatile space can be arranged to accomdate a band and dance floor. It seats 225 people and lets 300 people stand.

For information regarding the availability of these facilities and other services, contact Kitty Paschall at the Museum.

DINING OUT • 15

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

20 Brix focuses on traditions of fine dining

CAFE MEDITERRANEAN Cincinnati's first and only true wine, restaurant and wine retail store.

Come in and enjoy an appetizer or entrée paired with one of the 100 wines we pour daily.

FRESH, HEALTHY,

By Bob Wilhelmy Dining Editor

Authentic Cuisine

Tradition has to be one of the most powerful words in the Jewish lexicon. At 20 Brix Restaurant, traditions of fine dining are held in reverence, according to GM Clay Mitchell.

For instance, one tradition of outstanding eateries of the past is the idea of freshness and quality of foods, bought local, from people the chef knew and trusted. Anyone who has had corn on the cob prepared the day it was picked knows the difference freshness makes.

At 20 Brix, the produce is provided by local growers almost year round. “During the growing season, 90 percent of the produce we use in our dishes comes from within 25 to 30 miles of here, and we know the growers by name,” Mitchell said.

“Some specialty items come from locals with 10-by-10 foot plots, while others we rely on have small farms, with larger fields of produce. We have one man who grows our mushrooms for us. Others have greenhouse and hothouse capabilities for the colder months, and we build our menus around what they have and what is best of the season.”

Doing business that way provides fresh-picked, field-ripened quality, obtained from producers who put a lot of TLC into their plantings.

The same buying tradition holds true in the purchase of beef and fish at 20 Brix. Beef used in steak entrees is an Ohio product.

The cows are Black Angus and grass- fed. Meat from such cows is healthier than that from cornfed cattle, according to Mitchell.

The meat is leaner for one thing.

Grass-fed cows mature in the natural way that grazing animals have done for thousands of years.

Beef arrives at 20 Brix in loins and is dry aged on site for 14 days.

Steaks are hand cut in the kitchen to the specifications of the menu.

The aging process enhances flavor and tenderness, making for a better, healthier, more natural steak; all pluses for the diner.

And by the way, when you sit down to a 20 Brix steak, you’ll get more than just a steak. There are pommes frites (fingerling potatoes) and a baby arugula salad on the plate along with the steak, which is added value.

Fish, anyone? Blue Fin Seafood is the purveyor of fish found on the menu at 20 Brix. “With the fish, we take only the freshest and best of that day, and we build it into our menu,” Mitchell said. He called the approach “market selection,” meaning there is a preparation style listed on the menu, but the fish species is not indicated.

Currently, the prep includes white-wine braised onions, Yukon gold potatoes, warm cucumber hash, kalamata olives and chili oil

9525 KENWOOD ROAD (513) 745-9386

LOCATED IN THE CROSSINGS OF BLUE ASH

cafe-mediterranean.com

101 Main St • Historic Milford

831-Brix • www.20brix.com

THAI SUSHI PASTA DINE-IN • CARRY-OUT • DELIVERY * * * * * SUNDAY SPECIAL * * * * *

Half-Price Domestic Beer & Apps 513.351.0123 | ORDER ONLINE! + MENUS, COUPONS & SPECIAL OFFERS

BlueElephantThaiSushi.com ONLY 2 MINUTES FROM HYDE PARK SQUARE

2912 WASSON ROAD • CINCY

9386 Montgomery Rd Cincinnati, OH 45242 (513) 489-1444

(Top-bottom) From left, Paul Barraco, chef, and Clay Mitchell, GM, amid the al fresco area; In the wine-store area is Beth Batten, retail manager.

to dress out the fish selection. So ask your server about the fish.

Some days it might be salmon, some days arctic char, some days butter fish, and so on.

This approach of serving what is best and freshest is how restaurants operated in eras past. Few do today, and when a diner finds one, that’s a bonus in my book.

The culinary force behind 20 Brix is Executive Chef Paul Barraco. He too is local, having trained at the Midwest Culinary Institute at Cincinnati State. His primary talent is taking simple ingredients and turning out elegant dishes, according to Mitchell.

“Paul’s roots are here, but his knowledge of flavors and tastes allows us to feature different influences — Southern, Italian, Spanish, French and contemporary American,” he said. “Our core menu has those influences and a medley of flavors.”

The 20 Brix experience includes al fresco dining in an area that is being expanded and enhanced by a covering to filter the sun and provide added protection

to the leafy environs. At the front of the restaurant is a retail wine market that features nearly 200 labels. Mondays, diners can select any bottle at market price and take it to the table for dinner. That’s a good deal, and better than halfprice wine nights at many fine-dine eateries, because half price is still higher than market price.

Wine - tasting nights also are held at 20 Brix, with five wines to taste and complement five smallplate food pairings. Information on the tastings can be found at 20 Brix’s website.

See you at 20 Brix.

The American Israelite can not guarantee the kashrus of any establishment.

Sushi • Steaks • Raw Bar Live Music Every Tues thru Sat! (513) 936-8600 9769 MONTGOMERY RD. www.jeffruby.com

GET RESULTS. Your restaurant will also receive featured articles and a spot in the Restaurant Directory.

Call 621-3145 today.

AMBAR

BABA

KANAK

350 LUDLOW AVE. CINCINNATI, OH 45220 (513) 281-7000

3120 MADISON RD. CINCINNATI, OH 45209 (513) 321-1600

10040B MONTGOMERY RD. CINCINNATI, OH 45242 (513) 793-6800

CINCINNATI’S BEST INDIAN RESTAURANTS

AI

The American Israelite

AVAILABLE AT THESE FINE LOCATIONS:

bigg’s

Marx Hot Bagels

Ridge & Highland

9701 Kenwood Rd. Blue Ash

Izzy’s 612 Main St. 800 Elm St.

Kroger Hunt Rd. – Blue Ash

Rascals’ Deli 9525 Kenwood Rd. Blue Ash

16 • OPINION

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Is China trying to co-opt the Holocaust?

By Rafael Medoff JointMedia News Service During his visit to China this week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recalled that the city of Shanghai was “one of the few places that opened its gates” to Jews fleeing Hitler.

Officials of the Chinese Communist government, standing nearby, beamed with pleasure at the expectation that people all over the world would read how their regime rescued Jews.

But is it true?

As the prime minister noted, the port city of Shanghai was a haven for many European Jewish refugees during the Hitler years, at a time when most other countries, including the United States, closed their doors to all but a fortunate few. It is important to note that much of China was under Japanese military occupation from 1931 until 1945, and immigration to Shanghai was controlled by the Japanese government, not the Chinese. The Japanese, hoping to improve their relations with the U.S. and the American Jewish community, permitted about 20,000 German and Austrian Jews to settle in Shanghai during the 1930s.

This immigration was made possible in part by false documents given to Jews by the Dutch consul in Lithuania, Jan Zwartendijk, and by transit visas to Japan provided, without official sanction, by Japan’s acting consul-general in Lithuania, Sugihara Chiune.

Officially the visas were good for only eight to 12 days, but the Japanese authorities allowed the refugees to remain in Japan for up to eight months until they found other destinations. Many went to Shanghai, including 500 rabbis and students (and their families) from the famous Mir Yeshiva.

Beginning in 1943, most of the Jews in Shanghai were confined to a two-square-mile section of the city known as the Restricted Area.

Conditions were harsh but certainly not comparable to what Jews suffered in Europe. These Jews were saved from the Holocaust because of Japan’s – not China’s – policies.

There were several individual Chinese citizens who came to the aid of the Jews during the Holocaust. But they were nationalists, not Communists; they were associated with the antiCommunist forces led by Chang Kai-Shek, who later lost the Chinese civil war and fled to Taiwan in 1949.

One was Dr. Li Yu Ying, a prominent scholar and president of Soochow University. While living in the United States in the 1940s, he served as one of the co-chair-

men of the Emergency Committee to Save the Jewish People of Europe (better known as the Bergson Group), an activist movement that held rallies, lobbied in Washington, DC, and sponsored hundreds of full-page newspaper advertisements promoting rescue of Jews from the Nazis. Dr. Ying had previously served the Chang Kai-Shek government in several capacities, including as China’s representative to League of Nations meetings.

Two other Chinese citizens have been honored by Yad Vashem for assisting Jews during the Nazi era. One was Pan-Jun-Shun, who moved from China to Russia in 1916 (i.e. more than thirty years before the Communists took over in China). He was living in the city of Kharkov, in the Soviet Ukraine, when the Germans invaded in 1941. Pan saved a Jewish girl named Ludmilla Genrichovna from the Nazi round-ups by hiding her in his home.

The other Chinese rescuer was Dr. Feng Shan Ho, who served as China’s consul-general in Vienna from 1938 to 1940. He issued unauthorized visas to Jews trying to escape Nazi-controlled Austria, enabling them to reach the safety of Shanghai. Dr. Ho represented the Chang Kai-Shek government.

And after the nationalists fled to Taiwan in 1949, he served as Taiwan’s ambassador to Egypt, Mexico, and other countries.

When Dr. Ho was posthumously honored by Yad Vashem in 2001, the Communist Chinese ambassador attended the ceremony – and insisted that the ambassador from Taiwan be excluded. The Beijing government-controlled press gave prominent coverage to the honoring of Ho, whom it identified as “a Chinese diplomat,” erroneously implying that he was associated with the Beijing regime.

It is not hard to understand why Beijing’s rulers would falsely seek to take credit for what the Chinese nationalists and the Japanese did to help the Jews. Xu Kuangdi, an official of a government agency called the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, explained after visiting the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum last fall, “The spreading of this story plays an active role in promoting the understanding and friendship between the Chinese and people from all over the world.”

Translation: It’s good PR for the regime, and it stimulates tourism, especially by foreign Jews interested in seeing the old Shanghai ghetto area – the same reason the Chinese government installed a kosher kitchen at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

CHINA on page 22

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Do you have something to say? E-mail your letter to editor@americanisraelite.com

Dear Editor, I am a long time subscriber to the American Israelite and a WWII veteran. I am writing to find out if you would be interested in a World War II event which I experienced. I feel that the article I am enclosing would be a fitting publication for Memorial Day. The article by Marc S. Bendesky describes an event in which his father was killed in World War II. He describes his efforts to find out about his father.

The 26th “Yankee” Infantry Division was engaged in the Battle of the Bulge in December, 1944.

During a break in the fighting, after extensive combat and casualties, our battalion was temporarily relieved and located on a farm not far from the front lines. We received mail from home as well as supplies, ammunition and rations.

While eagerly reading my mail, Morris, or “Sonny,” as we called him, came to me and proudly showed me a small photograph he had just received which showed his wife holding their year - and - a half - year - old son, Marc. I told him he must be proud of them and that I hoped he woul be able to see them soon. I then returned the photo to him. About ten seconds after I returned the photo, as he was returning to his company, a German artillery barrage struck our position, killing him.

I survived this as well as the rest of the war and I was determined to find his wife, his parents and his family so I could tell him how proud and happy he was to receive the picture just before he died.

Since the Yankee Division was a federalized Massachusetts National Guard Division and Sonny had been with the division longer than I, along with the fact that many of its personnel were from the Boston area, I mistakenly thought that he was also from Boston. In addition, he was married and lived off the base during training so I didn’t have much personal contact with him until we served together in combat. Since I concentrated my time and effort to contact his family in the Boston area, I was not successful. I was discouraged and gave up for many years. When the internet came into use, however, I was able to obtain the names and phone numbers of every Sonenstein in the country, but again was not successful. I concluced by this time that his parents and siblings had died and his wife was either dead or had remarried.

I realized that if his wife had remarried, unless I found her married name, I would not be able to locate her. I knew that we all had G.I. insurance and that she must

have received his insurance after his death, so I called the Veterans Administration. They acknowledged that his wife had remarried, but I was told that it was against regulations for them to give me her new name or location. Realizing that a woman may be more sympathetic as I pleaded my case, I called the V.A. repeatedly until a female representative answered. This turned out to be true. She reluctantly gave the married name of Bendesky and her location in Lutz (Tampa), Florida. I obtained the phone number on the internet, called and was connected to his son, Marc, who by this time was sixty - two years old.

He was, of course, grateful to hear about his father’s reaction to the picture and the circumstances of his death. He also told me that he and his siblings grew up one block from where I lived for a short time in Philadelphia.

Memorial Day, while a holiday which we all enjoy, is more importantly a day of remembrance and mourning for those members of the military whose life ended at a very young age in service to our country. In honor of Sonny and the many other soldiers of the 26th Infantry Division who were killed during the war, I would be pleased if you could publish Marc’s article on or around Memorial Day. Sincerely yours, Emanuel I. Marks Loveland, OH Israel Morris Sonenstein 1921 1944 Killed in Action Battle of the Bulge WWII

By Marc S. Bendesky My name is Marc S. Bendesky and I never knew my father. I was less than two years old when my dad, Israel Morris Sonenstein, was killed near the small town of Bastogne on December 27, 1944.

He was killed by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge, one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. Morris was born in 1921 and raised in Philadelphia. He lived with his parents, Michel Sonenstein and Ester Welt (who immigrated to the U.S. from Romania) and his sister (Yetta) and three brothers (Ben, Phil and Lou).

Sonny (Morrs’ nickname) graduated Overbrook High School in 1939 and in 1941 married my mother Frances Snyder. In 1942 he enlisted in the U.S. Army, was a technician fifth grade medic, and was assigned to the 26th Infantry Division (the Yankee Division), 101st Infantry Regiment. I was

born in July 1943. Our family lived near Sonny’s training camp in Fort Jackson, S.C. before he was shipped overseas in September 1944. His division was assigned to Patton’s Third Army. I was a year and half old when my father was killed. He was 23.

After the war, my mother married Jack Bendesky who adopted me and gave me his name. My mother gave birth to another son, Alan in 1947, and to a daughter, Lyn in 1952. When I was 12, my parents told me about my father, Morris, and played a record he made for my mother and me shortly before he was killed. They also gave me the Purple Heart medal and certificate he was awarded and a memorial signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

As I grew older, I decided to learn more about my father’s military life and untimely death. I studied the war and the Battle of the Bulge where my dad was killed.

My wife, Eileen and I went to Europe in 1990 on our 25th wedding anniversary and we toured te town of Bastogne, Belgium and the area where Morris was killed. My research taught me a lot, but a major piece of the puzzle eluded me. For all my efforts, I was not able to locate anyone who had served with and knew my dad.

I am grateful to report that changed on December 26, 2004, when almost exactly 60 years after my father’s death, the telephone rang at our Bendesky home. It was call I’ll never forget.

The call was from Emanuel “Manny” Marks, an Army medic who had been with my father the day he was killed. He had been trying for some time to track down my mother and me.

His search bore fruit when he spoke to a veteran’s organization.

Unfortunately my mother died a few months before he made the call but he did find out that she had married again and her name was Frances Bendesky with a last known address of Lutz, F.L. A call for Lutz information for anyone named Bendesky was all it took to locate me.

Manny told me that he and Sonny became good friends during the few months they knew each other. Both were medics but according to Manny, Sonny had the much more dangerous job. Sonny was a platoon medic attached to an infantry company during battle. He would care for the wounded in the field. Manny took over thereafter and carried the wounded from the battle field to aid stations. In Manny’s words Sonny was a real hero to the soldiers of I Company.

LETTERS on page 22

JEWISH LIFE • 17

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

For an 11-year-old who adored his intellectual and idealistic grandfather, there seemed to be no contradiction between the different foods and the various and variegated readings. intently at the drama unfolding in front of us. As soon as the train came to a stop, he lunged forward, grabbed the three hoodlums, and literally threw them out of the compartment. Trembling with fear, as the doors closed with the toughs outside, I asked my grandfather, “Why did you protect those hassidim? You aren’t even religious.”

Nonchalantly, he responded, “They are part of our Jewish family. And you must always protect the underdog. That’s what Judaism teaches.”

And now the point of my reminiscences. In the Brooklyn of my childhood, there were two Passover Sedarim; the first we celebrated at the home of my religious maternal grandmother, and the second with my communist grandfather. On his dining room wall hung two pictures, one of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (who he thought was bringing communism to America) and the other of Joseph Stalin.

On the beautifully set table were all the accoutrements – matza, maror (bitter herbs), haroset, the egg and the shank bone – but on the side were fresh rolls for family members who preferred pumpernickel to the “bread of affliction.” We read from the Haggada and my grandfather read passages from Marx, Engels and Shalom Aleichem about communist idealism and our obligations to the poor. For an 11-year-old who adored his intellectual and idealistic grandfather, there seemed to be no contradiction between the different foods and the various and variegated readings.

When I came upon the fascinating law of Pessah Sheni, the “second chance” Passover sacrifice that features the roasted meat, the matza, maror and haroset together with the hametz and without the usual festival prohibitions, this was the closest thing I could imagine to my grandfather’s Seder. An evening that featured the “peoplehood” and familial aspects of a celebration which taught us to identify with the slave, the stranger, the downtrodden, but without fealty to G-d who placed restrictions upon our diet and our activities. My grandfather was “far away” from the traditional definitions of observance; he was even “defiled by death” – the spiritual death of com-

munism that had captivated his intellectual world like an evil, seductive slave woman (Rav A.Y. Kook, Iggarot R’eya 137).

Such a Seder has no staying power; to the best of my knowledge, none of my Riskin cousins have Jewish spouses or attend Passover Sedarim. By the end of his life, my grandfather himself understood this. In our last discussion before his fatal heart attack, while reclining on the bed of a Turkish bath, he told me of his great disillusionment with communism after reading of Stalin’s antiSemitic plots against Jewish doctors and Yiddish writers of the Soviet Union.

“I gave up too much too soon for a false god. I yearn for the Sabbaths of my parents’ home. I now understand that all of communist idealism is expressed in the words of our Prophets and experienced in the Passover Seder. You are following the right path…”

Shabbat Shalom Rabbi Shlomo Riskin Chancellor Ohr Torah Stone Chief Rabbi – Efrat Israel

HAPPENING @ YOUR

SYNAGOGUE? S TAY U P -T O -D ATE W ITH A S UBSCRIPTION T O T HE A MERICAN I SRAELITE NAME ADDRESS CITY

STATE

CHECK TYPE OF SUBSCRIPTION

1 YEAR, IN-TOWN

CHECK TYPE OF PAYMENT

CHECK

ZIP 1 YEAR, OUT-OF-TOWN

VISA

LIFETIME

MASTERCARD

DISCOVER

1-Year Subscription: $44 In-town, $49 Out-of-town Send completed form with payment to: The American Israelite

18 W. 9th St. Ste. 2 • Cincinnati, OH 45202-2037

CHANGE OF ADDRESS? SEND AN EMAIL TO PUBLISHER@AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

www.americanisraelite.com

AI

The American Israelite

T EST Y OUR T ORAH KNOWLEDGE THIS WEEK’S PORTION: BEHALOSCHA (BAMIDBAR 8-12) 1. The Menorah was made from which material? a.) Gold b.) Silver c.) Wood 2. What was the purpose of blowing trumpets? a.) Part of a sacrifice b.) To announce a gathering of the community c.) To announce they were moving in the desert d.) All of the above 3. What were the trumpets made from? tip of Israel. Moshe sent the spies to Canaan from there.

EFRAT, Israel – “In the second month [Iyar] on the afternoon of the fourteenth day, he shall prepare it [the second Passover Sacrifice]” (Numbers 9:11).

One of the many injunctions in this week’s portion is that of Pessach Sheni – “second Passover” – a “second chance” for anyone who was ritually impure on Passover to bring the festival sacrifice four weeks later and eat it then.

At this time, though there would be no festival and no prohibition of hametz (leaven), one could partake in this delayed Passover sacrificial meal with matza and bitter herbs.

Although the analogy is not completely apt, this strange combination of Passover, hametz and matza sparked within me some significant childhood memories which may contain important lessons regarding our attitude toward different kinds of “religious” observances.

Throughout his life, my paternal grandfather, Shmuel, was a communist. In Czarist Belorussia, he organized the workers in his father’s factory to protest against their boss. In 1906, he escaped from Siberia to New York and opened a woodworking business, which he handed over to the workers as soon as it became profitable.

He was a Yiddishist – an atheist who wrote a regular column for the Freiheit (the New York Yiddish communist newspaper) – and he truly believed that “religion was the opium of the masses.”

When I was about three years old, he crafted for me a miniature “stool and table” set as a special gift; it remains in our family until this very day. He then asked me to try to place my fingers in the manner of the kohanim during the priestly benediction; when I did it successfully, he kissed me on the forehead and admonished me: “Remember, we are kohanim, Jewish aristocracy. Always be a proud Jew.” As he left the house, I remember asking my mother what “Jew” and “aristocracy” meant.

Another childhood memory is of a train ride we took together from Bedford-Stuyvesant, where I lived, to Kings Highway, where he lived. Two elderly hassidim boarded the train and sat directly opposite us; three neighborhood “toughs” began taunting the hassidim and pulling at their beards.

My grandfather interrupted his conversation with me and looked

WHAT’S

a.) Gold b.) Silver c.) Ram's horn 4. What color was Miriam's tzaraat? a.) White b.) Red c.) Green 5. Where did the Children of Israel travel after Hatzerot? a.) Rephidim b.) Desert of Paraan c.) Desert of Tzin

3. B 10:2 4. A 12:10 5. B 12:15 Desert of Paran was on the southern

by Rabbi Shlomo Riskin

SHABBAT SHALOM: PARSHAT BEHA'ALOTECHA • NUMBERS 8:1 - 12:16

Written by Rabbi Dov Aaron Wise

ANSWERS 1. A 8:4 2. C Chapter 10

Sedra of the Week

18 • JEWZ IN THE NEWZ

JEWZ

IN THE

By Nate Bloom Contributing Columnist LIBERACE: BEHIND THE SCHMALTZ Liberace (1919-1987) was, in his own way, just about as weird as music producer PHIL SPECTOR, now 73, and like Spector, is perfect fodder for an HBO bio-pic (“Behind the Candelabra” premieres on Sunday, May 26, at 9PM). MICHAEL DOUGLAS, 68, plays Liberace, who soared to TV stardom in the early ‘50s as a light classical pianist who jazzed things up with flamboyant costumes, fancy candelabra laden pianos, and a beaming smile. The film centers on the gay relationship between Liberace and Scott Thorson (Matt Damon). It features the last score composed by the late MARVIN HAMLISCH. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, co-stars include: Dan Akroyd as Liberace’s real-life manager, SEYMOUR HELLER. A genuinely good guy, Heller was Liberace’s manager from 1950 until the pianist’s death; PAUL REISER, 56, as “Mr. Feld,” a character who is a composite of Thorson’s lawyers; Debbie Reynolds as Liberace’s mother; and Rob Lowe as the drug-addicted, incompetent plastic surgeon Jack Startz (who I think was Jewish). By the way, Lowe’s wife is Jewish and their two sons were raised Jewish.

In 1977, Liberace met Thorson, then a 16-year-old vet’s assistant and became his lover. He showered Thorson with gifts and put him in his stage show.

According to Thorson’s memoir, the relationship foundered because Liberace was unfaithful and because Liberace insisted that Thorson have multiple plastic surgeries to look like a young Liberace! Thorson says that these painful surgeries left him drugaddicted. He sued Liberace for palimony in 1982 and settled for a smallish sum in 1986, a year before Liberace died of AIDS. ANOTHER JEW “SURVIVES” I just got tipped off that JOHN COCHRAN, the winner of the just-concluded TV season of “Survivor” (“Caramoan”), is Jewish. This tip was borne by two 2011 twitter tweets. In one, Cochran, 25, explained his last name: “It’s an Irish name (father’s Irish Catholic). My mother’s Jewish, though!” In another, he responded to a Happy Chanukah wish with: “Chag sameach!” A Harvard Law school grad, Cochran previously competed on the show in 2011 (“South Pacific”), but didn’t win. His win this season was by unanimous vote and that’s only happened two other times in 25 prior competitions.

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

NEWZ

The Happy Chanukah tweet that Cochran responded to was also directed to ETHAN ZOHN, 39, and STEPHEN FISHBACH, 34. Zohn won “Survivor: Africa” in 2002. A pro soccer player, he has fought a decade long battle with cancer and he now says he’s cancer-free. Fishbach finished second in the 2009 competition, “Survivor: Tocantins.” He was the valedictorian of the same Los Angeles high school class that included school basketball players JASON SEGEL (later an actor) and Jason Collins (the pro player who just came out as gay).

THE LAST HANGOVER “The Hangover Part III,” we are promised, will be the last “Hangover” film and, unlike the second entry in the series, will not largely repeat the plot of the first.

This time the gang goes on a road trip – but there’s no wedding or bachelor party. Once again, TODD PHILLIPS, 42, directs, with the whole original crew onboard, including JUSTIN BARTHA, 34, and veteran JEFFREY TAMBOR, 69. (Opens Thursday, May 23.)

SHALOM, JOYCE AND PHIL Dr. JOYCE BROTHERS, the famous psychologist, died on May 13, age 85. Here’s some Jewish and family “color” not found in most obits: she was born Joyce Bauer, the daughter of two attorneys who were practicing Jews.

She graduated from Cornell University, where she was a member of the mostly Jewish Sigma Delta Tau sorority. In 1949, she wed MILTON BROTHERS, then a medical student, later an internist. They had one daughter, four grandchildren, and two greatgrandchildren. She was a longtime member of the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies. In 1968, she received a merit award from Bar Ilan University.

Legendary record producer PHIL RAMONE was honored with a memorial concert on May 11. Many of the artists, whose best albums he helped shape, performed, including BILLY JOEL, 64; PAUL SIMON, 71; and PETER YARROW, 74 (Peter, Paul and Mary). Ramone, who died in March, age 79, was the most important American pop/rock producer of the last 45 years and his career and death was covered in every media outlet. I didn’t cover it because, until a little while after his death, it was almost impossible to find out what I am reporting, here, for the first time in any news outlet: Ramone was born Philip Rabinowitz, and under that name, he graduated from Julliard. Why he took the name “Ramone” remains unclear to me.

FROM THE PAGES 150 Y EARS A GO Wood’s Theater - The present week has mostly been devoted to the benefits of the employees of this establishment, and we were glad to see that they were well attended, as the beneficiaries have made every effort to deserve the favor of the public. Next Saturday evening, Mr. G.H. Gilbert, the stage manager also takes a benefit, and we may safely predict an immense rush, as Mr. Gilbert’s excellent management of the stage entitles him to a high position in public favor. Next week, Miss Provost, an excellent actress commences an engagement here. The lady just has concluded an engagement in Boston and the papers of that city speak of her in the highest terms. Miss Provost achieved here some years ago her first triumphs in the profession. June 5, 1863

125 Y EARS A GO The wedding of Miss Martha Levy and Mr. Mose F. Hollander, of New Orleans, La., will take place about the middle of July next.

Messrs. Wheeler & King have opened a saloon at the northwest corner of Fourth and Plum Streets.

Everything that will be served is of the very best, and their nineyear-old “Foxtown” whiskey is especially desirable for medicinal purposes.

Miss Rosa Lovinger, the granddaughter of one of our fellow citizens, Mr. B. Shroder, graduated with the highest honors at the High School, at Madison, Ind., on Wednesday. She was the recipient of the gold medal, having graduated with the unusual average of one hundred per cent. Her average per cent for the four years was ninety-seven and six-tenths, a most remarkable record. - May 25, 1888

100 Y EARS A GO These are busy days, or rather, evenings, at the College of Music.

Graduation or other pupils’ recitals occur almost every evening. Among those announced for the near future are those of Miss Helen Gellenbeck and Miss Ruth Buckley, of the elocution department, who will present an unusually fine program of dramatic readings on Friday evening, May 23. On Saturday evening, May 24, pupils from the class of Miss Lillian Kreimer, assisted by Miss Marie Boske, violinist, pupil from the class of Mr. Walter

Werner, will give an instrumental and vocal recital. On Tuesday evening, May 27, Miss Anna Van Unruh and Mr. Ellis McDiarmid, assisted by Miss Betty Gould, accompanist, will appear in a graduation musical recital.

Friends of the various pupils are cordially invited to be present.

At a special meeting of Congregation Adath Israel, of Boston, Mass., held for the purpose, Rabbi Harry Levi, H.U.C., ‘97, whose present term of office ends on September, 1914, was unanimously elected for a further period of six years. In reporting the election the “Boston Jewish Advocate” utilizes the occasion to pay Rabbi Levi a fine tribute, as follows: It is the first time in the history of this congregation that the rabbi should be elected for such a long term of years. Rabbi Levi came to Boston less than two years ago to fill the pulpit of Temple Israel, leaving a large congregation in Wheeling, W. Va. May 22, 1913

75 Y EARS A GO Carl E. Pritz was re-elected president of Cincinnati’s United Jewish Social Agencies at its annual dinner Wednesday, June 1st, at Losantiville. Re-elected also were: Leo F. Westheimer, first vice president; Alfred J. Friedlander, second vice president; Jeffrey L. Lazarus, treasurer; William J. Shroder, treasurer of Endowment Fund; Louis D. Marks, honorary treasurer; Maurice J. Sievers, executive secretary; Miss Frieda Bohn, secretary.

The nominating committee consisted of Dr. Henry B. Frieberg, chairman; Gus H. Hilb, Mrs. J. Victor Greenebaum, Mrs. Sidney Deutsch, Harris Hutner.

Dr. Martin Buber, German Jewish savant, was granted honorary degree of doctor of Hebrew law, in absentia, at the commencement exercises of the Hebrew Union College, America’s oldest rabbinical seminary, Saturday May 28th. - June 2, 1938

50 Y EARS A GO Mrs. Joel Essig is chairman of Hadassah’s Cafe Sabra Saturday, June 8, at 9 p.m., at the Jewish Community Center.

The program includes dancing, entertainment and a 11 p.m. supper.

Proceeds will go toward the Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center.

Tickets may be obtained from

Mrs. Essig, Mrs. Ben Rappaport, Mrs. Jerome Lear or Mrs. Harry Finer.

On Wednesday, May 22, Mrs. David Graller was installed as president of the Cincinnati Chapter of the Brandeis University Women’s Committee at the annual luncheon meeting at Wise Center. - May 23, 1963

25 Y EARS A GO Jack C. Rubenstein will be nominated president of Jewish Family Service at the agency’s annual meeting on Thursday, June 2 at 5:30 p.m. at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History.

A.J. Randman has been elected the 18th president of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Cincinnati, and will be installed on Friday, June 3, noon, at the Omni Netherland Plaza, Continental Room. Other officers to be installed are Susan Dlott, David Goldman, and Barbard C. Rabkin, vice presidents; and Milton Schwartz, treasurer. New board members are Michael Glassman, Rabbi Zvi Hollander, Kathy Horowitz, Rabbi David Indich, Jerome Lerner, Dr. Milton Orchin, and Richard Snyder.

Students from the 1988 class of the Cincinnati campus of Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion will be ordained by President Alfred Gottschalk at Isaac M. Wise Temple, Eighth and Plum Streets, Saturday, June 4. The ordination will mark the 113th academic year of the College - Institute. - May 26, 1988

10 Y EARS A GO The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and the Jewish Community Relations Council will honor Stanley M. Chesley at the annual Peace of the City luncheon June 23 at 11:30 a.m. at the Cincinnati Hilton Netherlands Plaza Hotel. The Peace of the City Award is presented annually to men and women who are actively involved in their community and are dedicated to creating a fair, equitable, and just society for all.

The board of directors of the Jewish Family Service has appointed a new executive director to replace Joel Kaplan who resigned in December 2002.

Howard Schultz, currently the executive director of the Jewish Community Center of Louisville, Ky. will assume the duties of executive director of the Jewish Family Service of Cincinnati July 1, 2003. - May 29, 2003

COMMUNITY CALENDAR / CLASSIFIEDS • 19

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

COMMUNITY CALENDAR June 4 7:30 p.m. - Adath Israel Annual Meeting 3201 E. Galbraith Rd. (513) 793-1800

All of May Jewish American Heritage Month May 23 7 p.m. - Jewish Federation of Cincinnati Annual Meeting Mayerson JCC 8485 Ridge Rd. (513) 985-1534 May 29 6:30 p.m. - AJC Annual Meeting Losantiville Country Club 3097 Losantiville Ave. (513) 621-4020 May 30 5 p.m. - Eight Over Eighty Adath Israel Congregation 3201 East Galbraith Rd. (513) 793-1800 June 1 6 p.m. - Evening at the Piano Lounge Wise Temple 8329 Ridge Rd. (513) 793-2556 June 3 7:30 a.m. - Jewish National Fund Annual Breakfast Mayerson JCC 8485 Ridge Rd. (513) 794-1300

June 6 Golf 8 a.m. or 1:15 p.m., Tennis 2:30 p.m., Dinner 6 p.m. JCC Adams Golf Classic & Tennis Open Losantiville Country Club 3097 Losantiville Ave. (513) 722-7220

Send an e-mail including what you would like in your classified & your contact information to

June 11 7 p.m. - JCRC Annual Meeting Mayerson JCC 8485 Ridge Rd. (513) 985-1500

business@ americanisraelite.com

June 11 6 p.m. - Rockdale Annual Meeting 8501 Ridge Rd. (513) 891-9900 June 25 7 p.m. - JFS Annual Meeting 8487 Ridge Rd. (513) 7663326

COMMUNITY DIRECTORY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS ORGANIZATIONS Access (513) 373-0300 • jypaccess.org Big Brothers/Big Sisters Assoc.

(513) 761-3200 • bigbrobigsis.org Camp Ashreinu (513) 702-1513 Camp at the J (513) 722-7258 • mayersonjcc.org Camp Chabad (513) 731-5111 • campchabad.org Camp Livingston (513) 793-5554 • camplivingston.com Cedar Village (513) 754-3100 • cedarvillage.org Chevra Kadisha (513) 396-6426 Cincinnati Community Kollel (513) 631-1118 • kollel.shul.net Cincinnati Community Mikveh (513) 351-0609 • cincinnatimikveh.org Eruv Hotline (513) 351-3788 Fusion Family (513) 703-3343 • fusionnati.org Halom House (513) 791-2912 • halomhouse.com Hillel Jewish Student Center (Miami) (513) 523-5190 • muhillel.org Hillel Jewish Student Center (UC) (513) 221-6728 • hillelcincinnati.org Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati 513-961-0178 • jcemcin.org Jewish Community Center (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org Jewish Community Relations Council (513) 985-1501 Jewish Family Service (513) 469-1188 • jfscinti.org Jewish Federation of Cincinnati (513) 985-1500 • shalomcincy.org Jewish Foundation (513) 214-1200 Jewish Information Network (513) 985-1514 JVS Career Services (513) 936-WORK (9675) • cincinnaticareer.net Kesher (513) 766-3348 Plum Street Temple Historic Preservation Fund (513) 793-2556

DO YOU WANT TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED?

Shalom Family (513) 703-3343 • myshalomfamily.org The Center for Holocaust & Humanity Education (513) 487-3055 • holocaustandhumanity.org Vaad Hoier (513) 731-4671 Workum Fund (513) 899-1836 • workum.org YPs at the JCC (513) 761-7500 • mayersonjcc.org CONGREGATIONS Adath Israel Congregation (513) 793-1800 • adath-israel.org Beit Chaverim (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Beth Israel Congregation (513) 868-2049 • bethisraelcongregation.net Congregation Beth Adam (513) 985-0400 • bethadam.org Congregation B’nai Tzedek (513) 984-3393 • btzbc.com Congregation Ohav Shalom (513) 489-3399 • ohavshalom.org Congregation Ohr Chadash (513) 252-7267 • ohrchadashcincinnati.com Congregation Sha’arei Torah shaareitorahcincy.org Congregation Zichron Eliezer 513-631-4900 • czecincinnati.org Golf Manor Synagogue (513) 531-6654 • golfmanorsynagogue.org Isaac M. Wise Temple (513) 793-2556 • wisetemple.org Kehilas B’nai Israel (513) 761-0769 Northern Hills Synagogue (513) 931-6038 • nhs-cba.org Rockdale Temple (513) 891-9900 • rockdaletemple.org Temple Beth Shalom (513) 422-8313 • tbsohio.org Temple Sholom (513) 791-1330 • templesholom.net The Valley Temple (513) 761-3555 • valleytemple.com EDUCA EDUCATION Chai Tots Early Childhood Center (513) 234.0600 • chaitots.com

Chabad Blue Ash (513) 793-5200 • chabadba.com Cincinnati Hebrew Day School (513) 351-7777 • chds.shul.net HUC-JIR (513) 221-1875 • huc.edu JCC Early Childhood School (513) 793-2122 • mayersonjcc.org Kehilla - School for Creative Jewish Education (513) 489-3399 • kehilla-cincy.com Mercaz High School (513) 792-5082 x104 • mercazhs.org Kulanu (Reform Jewish High School) 513-262-8849 • kulanucincy.org Regional Institute Torah & Secular Studies (513) 631-0083 Rockwern Academy (513) 984-3770 • rockwernacademy.org Sarah’s Place (513) 531-3151 • sarahsplacecincy.com Yeshivas Lubavitch High School of Cincinnati 513-631-2452 • ylcincinnati.com ORGANIZATIONS ORGANIZATIONS American Jewish Committee (513) 621-4020 • ajc.org American Friends of Magen David Adom (513) 521-1197 • afmda.org B’nai B’rith (513) 984-1999 BBYO (513) 722-7244 Hadassah (513) 821-6157 • cincinnati.hadassah.org Jewish Discovery Center (513) 234.0777 • jdiscovery.com Jewish National Fund (513) 794-1300 • jnf.org Jewish War Veterans (513) 204-5594 • jwv.org NA’AMAT (513) 984-3805 • naamat.org National Council of Jewish Women (513) 891-9583 • ncjw.org State of Israel Bonds (513) 793-4440 • israelbonds.com Women’s American ORT (513) 985-1512 • ortamerica.org

or call Erin at 621-3145

JCRC from page 3 The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati envisions a healthy, secure and sustainable Cincinnati Jewish community and, through the community-wide strategic plan Cincinnati 2020, brings diverse groups together to build it. They raise money and use a volunteerdriven, transparent process to distribute it to the local, national, Israel CAPTAIN from page 8 Making matters worse, Shilon’s mother has been battling cancer for six years. “My father is trying to coordinate between taking care of my mother and taking care of me,” and had to leave his job. But “I also have my girlfriend, who helps me a lot,” Shilon said.

“There is a black argument, ‘What is worse to lose, hands or legs?’ The main problem with two non-functioning hands is doing every day things like eating, showering, getting dressed. These are things that I am slowly more able to do on my own, but I need a lot of help daily,” he added.

During his visit to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Shilon was screened to see if he can be fitted with a better prosthetic that “would make him much more independent,” said Komisar, who first met Shilon at the FIDF New York gala. Later she went on a FIDF mission to Israel, and at Shabbat dinner she encountered Shilon again.

“I have a relationship with the Chicago Rehabilitation Institute and I just felt like they could help,” she said.

Therapists at the center also examined Shilon to see if his paralyzed arm could be rehabilitated.

Komisar plans to work with Shilon to see when he can come back to Chicago for further evaluation and treatment.

Israel is a young country that does have its problems, Komisar said, but soldiers like Shilon are “the best and the brightest, so whatever we can do, for their families, for their needs, we’re happy to do.” Moreover, “I really believe that without Israel my children really don’t have a shot in this world with the amount of antiSemitism out there, and these kids

SENIOR SERVICES

• • • • •

Up to 24 hour care Meal Preparation Errands/Shopping Hygiene Assistance Light Housekeeping

(513) 531-9600 and overseas programs that need it most. They connect our community agencies with the leaders and expertise they need to thrive. And they work to protect Jewish security by educating the community and advocating for Israel. They do all this to help people in need, create an engaged community, assure our Jewish future and support the Jewish people in Cincinnati, in Israel and throughout the world. in Israel fight for every Jew in the whole world and they’re brave, wonderful,” she said.

“Right now there are prosthetic hands that can open, close and make a few finger movements,” Shilon said. A fully bionic hand like a real hand is not yet commercially viable, but “they told me they can maybe get me a hand that will be able to hold my rifle, and then I could go back to combat,” he said.

Shilon has been particularly saddened since April’s Boston Marathon bombings, in which victims also lost limbs. “All of the Jewish community and the people of Israel offer our condolences to the American public for this horrible attack in Boston. It’s something we’ve experienced on a daily basis and unfortunately the U.S. has entered these senseless events,” he said.

One way to try to adjust to reality without limbs is to “look to your left and… see that your friend has it tougher,” Shilon said. “Focus on the fact that there is still life out there and you still have the capability to help others, and through helping others, you will automatically feel you are also helping yourself to get back to a routine and organized life. It really requires mental strength; you cannot break and you cannot give up,” he said.

Once in a while, Shilon admitted, “It’s of course allowed and necessary to have a few small ups and downs.”

“That’s okay,” he said. “Climb one hill at a time. Don’t try to cross Mount Everest. It’s not possible to think that in three months you can go back to the way things were if you lost both your legs. You need to create small goals along the way for yourself, and go step by step until you can climb the entire Empire State Building.”

20 • BUSINESS

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

Bike 4 Friendship comes through Cincinnati What does a veteran of the IDF, a 60-year-old man from Denver, and a Yeshiva student from New York City all have in common?

They were all participants in last year’s Bike 4 Friendship crosscountry bike trip.

The grueling 3,500-mile bike ride is held annually to help raise funds and create awareness about the important global activities of Friendship Circle International.

Friendship Circle is an organization that connects children with special needs with teenage volunteers who provide them with friendship, companionship and opportunities to socialize and be a part of the community. In addition

to helping the children themselves, Friendship Circle also helps their families by organizing getaways, social events and programs for parents, and providing them with resources and support. This year’s Bike 4 Friendship 3rd annual ride will begin in San Diego, (starting point of Race Across America), on June 16, finishing in New York City on Aug. 4.

Mendy Lipszyc, Kosher Manager at Kroger Blue Ash will be riding with Bike 4 Friendship for the first week, from San Diego to Phoenix, and had this to say, “I started biking two years ago as a way to get into shape and completed my first century (100 mile) ride

last summer. When I heard about the chance to ride for children with special needs I knew I had to find a way to do it. While I would love to ride the full seven weeks, I just don’t see my wife letting me off for that long. Instead, I have made it my seven year goal to ride one week each year until I complete the full trip. Along the way I hope to raise funds for this great cause.”

This year, for the first time, Bike 4 Friendship will be coming through Cincinnati, with a meet the bikers event on July 22, and heading out for Dayton on the 23. If you would like to cheer on the riders by riding along for a few miles, or all the way to Dayton contact Mendy Lipszyc.

Spiritual well-being and beauty abound with Alef Bet Jewelry’s unique designer pieces Dick Weiland accepts his appreciation award from Joyce Kinley.

Weiland recognized for administrative approval On April 23, 2013, the City of Cincinnati Board of Health, along with Health Commissioner Noble Maseru and Chairperson Joyce Kinley, presented resident Dick Weiland an award of appreciation.

Weiland was recognized for his administrative approval for the Cincinnati Health Department and Ohio Department of Job and Family Services to increase Medicaid payments to Cincinnati Primary Care health centers. Prior to this approval these health cen-

ters were not receiving sufficient reimbursements for eligible preventative and primary care services being provided to those in need.

The City of Cincinnati was the first health services provider in the state to obtain this approval and the additional Medicaid payments allowed the city to maintain and enhance its preventative and primary care services. $1.3 million was received and approximately $1 million will be received annually.

WOMEN from page 8

ence to network. “I am trying to get writers, artists and photographers and to get out the word so people will like us on Facebook and purchase a membership,” she says.

Robin Ticker of Brooklyn, who has a background in computer science, wants to create a business to help parents who are not computer savvy put some limits on their children who use the Internet and social media. “They are getting into stuff contrary to the Torah lifestyle and are overexposed to a lot of ideas,” she says.

Many attendees had existing service businesses they strive to expand. Rena Schleifer of Monsey, N.Y., has a doctorate in nutrition and does counseling to help people integrate healthy eating and movement into their daily lives. “I’m here to learn how to transmit that message,” she says. “If I want to make money, I have to become an entrepreneur.”

Other businesses and nonprofits were focused primarily on the Orthodox community. Elana Bergovoy of Chicago, who started the International Shidduch Group Network as a volunteer eight years ago, now has matchmaking support groups for mothers on every continent. Drawn to the conference because “it sounded very empowering,” she is ready to take her grassroots organization to the next level. “I need to know how to be a professional,” says the former teacher. “I have to monetize it so that I get paid, because my time is precious.”

Charisse Smoller of Fremont, Calif., will be launching Jewish ECards & More when she gets her website up in August. Working as an occupational therapy assistant 29 hours a week to pay her business staff, Smoller came to the confer-

Inspired by faith, fashion, and forward-looking designs, Alef Bet

by Paula jewelry has grown into a worldwide company devoted to creating Jewish pieces with an eye to what the modern girl craves.

Alef Bet, meaning alphabet in Hebrew, started in 1996 with a line of jewelry featuring the Hebrew characters on beads that were artfully transformed to match the trends of the time. As things have moved into the 21st century, Alef Bet Jewelry has incorporated glittering stones, charms, and images that are both meaningful and imbued with grace.

The Health Bracelet is a dainty blessing in disguise featuring the words health, fortune, or protection, and also outfitted with a

smaller charm depicting the traditional Hamsa, eye, or star. When given as a gift, this bracelet is a heartfelt token of friendship, and when paired with other bracelets it stacks to create effortless elegance.

With the Hamsa bracelet, wearers can feel confident when walking through life knowing that this special token is meant to help stop any harm from coming their way. The Hamsa looks like a hand and is a symbol of protection that wards off unwanted thoughts and feelings. Alef Bet Jewelry has incorporated sparkling cubic zirconia stones in their design, and uses sterling and 14k gold plated chains.

For those on the hunt for something truly unique, they

should set their sights on the Evil Eye Bracelet and its matching necklace. These beautiful charms are meant to watch over their wearers and bring them good luck – a perfect present for those writing new chapters in their lives.

The brilliant cubic zirconia stones shine with good tidings and are dazzling when paired with a little black dress.

Alef Bet Jewelry is a family operation that was first started by Paula Brooks and now is run with the help of her daughter, Alissa Haroush. It’s not every day that women come across jewelry that reflects their inner faith, which is why Alef Bet Jewelry is dedicated to creating pieces that are imbued with detail and grace.

FUNDING from page 8

defeat last year; Daniel Mariaschin, the executive director of B’nai B’rith International; Herman Cohen, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state; and Toby Dershowitz, who heads a Washington public affairs consultancy.

But Azoulay grows indignant at any suggestion the king has his eye on the economic or political benefits of his largesse.

“This effort is the concrete manifestation of a consensus in Moroccan society, that our society is partly built on Jewish culture, a culture deeply rooted in three millennia of history,” he said.

“You have to understand the purity of it,” Azoulay added. “Those who think it is to attract tourists are just out of order.”

As popular revolutions have swept the Arab world since late 2010, Jewish heritage has suffered under newly empowered Islamist governments. Two Jewish cemeteries were desecrated earlier this year in Tunisia, prompting Israel to express concerns for the safety of the country’s Jews, the daily Maariv reported.

In Egypt, the government pre-

vented several dozen Israelis from making the annual Passover pilgrimage to Alexandria’s main synagogue, one of the few properly maintained and functioning Jewish sites in the country. Egypt also briefly censored a film about the flight of its Jews following Israel’s establishment.

But in Morocco, a similar film, titled “Tinghir-Jerusalem: Echoes from the Mellah,” won a prize last month at the Tangier Film Festival.

It also triggered protests from a few hundred Islamists and left-wing activists saying the film promoted “normalization” of ties with Israel, The Associated Press reported.

Still, many Jewish visitors speak of Morocco as a friendly place. Nuno Wahnon Martins, the director of European Affairs at B’nai B’rith International, said he felt safe enough to abandon all caution when asking for directions to synagogues during a recent visit. And Rubinfeld said he was surprised to hear a Hebrew song blasting from the stereo of a shop in Casablanca’s main market.

“Being a Jew in Morocco is safer today than on some streets in Brussels,” said Rubinfeld.

“There may certainly be pragmatic incentives: attracting tourism and investments down the line,” Rubinfeld said. “For some, it is a political calculation to improve Morocco’s international standing.”

A Moroccan diplomat, who spoke to JTA on condition of anonymity, said the restoration project could bring political dividends for Morocco, which has been accused of human rights abuses in Western Sahara, a disputed territory to which the kingdom lays partial claim.

“To Morocco’s great consternation, the U.S. last month proposed the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara help monitor human rights,” the diplomat said.

“It’s very useful for us to have someone – a strong lobby group, perhaps – to help talk the State Department out of this idea. The Jewish lobby is a very strong one.”

The board of the Cape Verde Jewish Heritage Project includes Howard Berman, a former California congressman who chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee until his

FOOD / FIRST PERSON • 21

THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013

All about food Zell’s Bites

1/3 cup milk or half and half

Lainey Paul’s army experience Live from Israel

Method for Filling 1. In a 2 - quart bowl, mix the berries or fruit, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, lemon juice, or “Fruit Fresh,” and tapioca together. Set aside 2. Preheat oven to 425°F. Place the melted butter into an 8inch square, glass baking dish.

Add the fruit and mix well.

by Zell Schulman Comfort food is a gift we give ourselves whenever we’re feeling stressed out or lonely, or have a need to remember and feel the feelings we enjoyed and remember from special times in our lives and the taste of the foods that remind us of those feelings.

The fresh fruits and vegetables which we find in our farmer’s markets this time of year bring wonderful memories back to me.

Small cherry tomatoes, pulled off their vines, green lettuce pushing its way up through the ground and into a wonderful salad, tiny champagne grapes accompanied by a wonderful wine and a good cheese. These are just of few of the treats that spring rains provide us with in this season and early summer. The recipes I am sharing with you are two of my favorites.

I have to hide my cobbler or it gets eaten as soon as it comes out of the oven, and the grapes are a special addition to family gatherings and summer parties. Enjoy!

ZELL’S FRUIT COBBLER Serves 6 - 8 The crust for this cobbler is so easy to prepare. It has a better flavor if served slightly warm. You can top it with vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream if you desire, but it tastes great without it.

Filling Ingredients 4 cups of your favorite berries or fruit l cup sugar or if the fruit is on the tart side, use1-1/2 cups 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 2 tablespoons lemon juice or 1 tablespoon of Fruit Fresh* 2 - 1/2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted Pastry Ingredients 1 cup unbleached flour Pinch of salt 1 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder l tablespoon sugar 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Processor Method for Crust 1. Add the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar into the processor bowl. Pulse two times. Add the vegetable oil and butter. Pulse two times.

2. With the processor running, slowly pour the milk or half and half through the feed tube, just until the dough begins to form a ball around the blade.

3. Remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured board.

The dough will be on the soft side.

Use your hands and form a round disk. Cover and allow to rest 1 to 20 minutes. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a square to fit onto the top of the fruit.

4. Place the crust on top of the fruit. Press the crust against the sides with a fork or your hands.

Brush the top with a little milk.

Prick in several places with a fork to let the steam escape. Bake 20 minutes or until the crust gets lightly brown. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool completely.

GRAPES DOYLE Serves 8 If you’re looking for an elegant, quick dessert this is the answer. My late friend and neighbor Ann Doyle served these at ladies’ luncheons and on her buffet table when entertaining a large crowd.

Ingredients 1 - 1/2 pounds of green seedless grapes 6 tablespoons honey 3 tablespoons brandy 1 - 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice Sour or whipped cream for garnish

by Lainey Paul Well once again, I have A LOT of catching up to do.

As many of you know, I was back in the states for a two week mini vacation from the army. And boy, was it needed! If you’re offended I didn’t get in touch with you, know I barely got in touch with anybody, because I’m not gonna lie, all I wanted to do was sleep. But knowing who I am (and who my mother is, mainly) that was far from what my trip actually looked like.

For starters, I pretty much went through hell and back just to get home. Not only did I have to travel for about 40 hours due to cancellations and delays, I also just had two of the hardest, most exhausting days in the army, barely sleeping.

All I wanted was to hop on that plane and pass out. But no—my flight from TLV got cancelled, and then I got rerouted through Rome six hours later only for my flight in Rome to be delayed four hours making me miss my connection in NY only to get back to Cincinnati at 2:30 a.m. And not only did I end up going to sleep at 5 a.m., I also had to get up the next morning to give a d’var torah at shul (which was my last blog if you haven’t already read it). And yes, this is the time where you pity poor Lainey who just wanted an easy trip home after a hard week in the army.

But enough with the pity session, the rest of my trip was pretty amazing. I started my first week in Cincinnati where I got to spend quality time with my family and close friends. I was even able to attend the Yom Ha’Atzmaut celebration at the JCC where I think I saw pretty much the entire Jewish community. My face hurt from smiling and talking so much about SYRIA from page 9

Method 1. Remove the grapes from their stems. Place the grapes, honey, brandy and lemon juice into a large bowl. Stir well, cover and allow the grapes to marinate 3 to 5 hours. Stir every once in awhile. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

2. When ready to serve, using a slotted spoon, remove the grapes into a glass serving bowl. Set the cream in a small bowl beside it.

Today, Iran is attempting to take advantage of a similar crisis in Syria.

“We can now say that there are over 1,000 Hezbollah fighters operating in Syria,” Shapira said.

Furthermore, Iran is now recruiting Shiite fighters in Iraq to come to Syria.

As many as 80,000 or more have been killed in Syria since the start of the country’s civil war in 2011. As the Alawite regime of Bashar al-Assad strains to retain

my supposedly “interesting” life. I was very pleased to hear, however, that my blog is actually read and I’m not just writing to make my mother happy! Thank you!

I was surprised at how easily I was able to slip back into “American” life and how “in place” and at home I felt. It was like I never left—yet everyone had continued their lives without me. I never fully put into perspective what a different world I live in, though, until I went to dinner with two of my best friends. We were just sitting, talking casually about life—them about college and parties and whatnot and me kind of just sitting there nodding my head pretending to know what they were talking about—when suddenly one of my friends stopped mid-sentence and said, “Wow, Lainey, I can’t believe you’re listening to us talk about school and parties right now when you’re actually saving lives every day!” Well, I would hardly say I’m at the point of saving lives, but the truth is, as much as they are two of my closest friends in the world, I definitely felt the disconnect. I was telling them how lunch is the favorite part of my day because then I know half of my day is already over and I only have one more half to push through. They, on the other hand, responded that they think of lunch as the time when they decide which party they’ll attend or which project they need to start to work on. It was hard seeing my friends and knowing that the people I consider so incredibly important in my life will never truly know what I’ve been through and what experiences I’ve been having.

It’s a lone soldier’s problem combined with the unit I am in.

After a fun-filled week of much needed catching up in Cinci, I headed to Los Angeles with my mom to visit the rest of the family. I spent Shabbat with Grandma, visited one of my best friends at Chapman University, and spent quality time with my cousins, brother, sister-inlaw, nephew and sister. Even harder than feeling the disconnect with my friends, was having to leave my nephew Hudson (2 years old) whom I had just spent two days playing with and getting to know, and knowing it would probably be another year until I got to see him

again. Is that how I want my future to look like? I love Israel with all my heart and know I want to be here forever...but at what price? I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately...not in the sense of regretting my decision at all to make Aliyah but about how important it is not to take family and friends for granted and to always remember the amazing things still back in America.

After the short visit in LA I was lucky enough to be home at a time to see my brother compete in the Junior Olympics National Gymnastic Competition in Portland, Ore. I hadn’t seen him compete in a while so it was very exciting! I got to be home for the most important one. And he was amazing, of course! Came in 10th place allaround for his age group and 5th place in both rings and parallel bars.

And yes, I have been bragging about him to all my friends back here and my commanders were very impressed to say the least! I was also able to see another one of my best friends in Portland, making it a very successful trip all around.

Leaving my family this time around was much harder than making Aliyah for some reason. I think because of what I said before—I came back to see that everyone had gone on with their lives and I was feeling a little left out. I know I’m doing things too but it was just a weird feeling to experience. Once I was back in Israel, though, everything got back to normal and felt right at home. As soon as I got back, I joined up with my unit in the shetach (field/wilderness) and was surprised to see how much they missed me and how much I, in fact, missed being with them. It was great getting back into the swing of things and my commanders didn’t waste one second getting me reacclimated. I was lucky enough to get out for Shabbat, go back Sunday and get out Tuesday for Shavuot! I spent chag on kibbutz and spent time with garin members I hadn’t seen in what felt like years.

I’m headed back into the army tomorrow, though, but at least Shabbat is only in two more days!

I hope you all had a Chag sameach :)

power, radical Sunni opposition groups, including elements of al Qaeda, are seeking to take control.

“The Iranians are afraid that if the Sunni radicals will achieve a victory, this will affect the Sunni balance of power in Iraq and the Gulf,” Shapira said.

Iran is attempting to take control of Syria, to further entrench itself as the primary power broker of an empowered Shiite Crescent that includes Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Bahrain, and even parts of eastern Saudi Arabia.

To do this, Iran needs the help of its most trusted proxy, Hezbollah, which has a committed a laundry list of global terror attacks, but at the same time works to assert greater civil and even political control, as has been seen in Lebanon.

“Hezbollah has two wings with one head,” Shapira said. “One wing, the civilian wing, takes care of the population. This includes clinics, pharmacies, schools, and youth movement organizations.

This wing functions to support the second wing: the military wing.”

Until next time, Lainey

22 • OBITUARIES D EATH N OTICES MALOF, Gary A., age 59, died May 15, 2013; 6 Sivan, 5773.

HOLSTEIN, Martin Richard, age 83, died May 16, 2013; 7 Sivan, 5773.

MABO, Joseph, age 82, died May 16, 2013; 7 Sivan, 5773.

SIEGAL, Leah D., age 87, died May 16, 2013; 8 Sivan, 5773.

KOLODNY, Victor, age 75, died May 17, 2013; 8 Sivan, 5773.

NEMOFF, Julie, age 78, died May 17, 2013; 8 Sivan, 5773.

FRIDMAN, Lev, age 88, died May 20, 2013; 11 Sivan, 5773.

ZEFF, Irving, age 81, died May 21, 2013; 12 Sivan, 5773.

DORM from page 7 The new venture represents a collaboration among local Jewish philanthropists, Hillel and UCF. What makes the project viable, the donors say, is the university’s massive student body and limited housing supply. Over the last seven years, UCF enrollment has ballooned by 50 percent, to 60,000 – second only to Arizona State University. An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 UCF students are Jewish.

Alan Ginsburg, a real estate developer and Orlando philanthropist, donated about $7 million to the project, including the land, which was purchased six years ago and is now valued at $12 million.

Katzen, who was a Taco Bell franchise owner before turning to real estate full time 20 years ago, is donating his time and construction expertise.

WWW.AMERICANISRAELITE.COM

SHOOTING from page 9 The review also found gross inconsistencies in the medical reports detailing the treatments the two underwent at Shifa Hospital in Gaza: “None of the bullets that supposedly hit both was ever recovered, not by the journalists who witnessed the incident, not by Palestinian security forces and not by the doctors who treated them.”

“The al-Dura case clearly demonstrates the need for the media to adhere to the strictest ethical and professional standards when covering asymmetric conflicts,” the report stressed.

‘The truth will prevail’ “It is important to focus on this CHINA from page 16 And China’s leaders are determined to keep up appearances: a government website reports that a Beijing official who visited the Shanghai LETTERS from page 16 But Manny had one longing desire—to locate Sonny’s family.

That was prompted by the events of the day Sonny died.

The Yankee Division had fought in France and Belgium for four months before reaching Luxembourg when the Bulge began on December 15.

Eisenhower was in charge of the allied troops and soon thereafter asked Patton to provide help to the allies stationed in the small Belgian town of Bastogne about 50 miles away Hitler had been pushed back into Germany during the previous six months and was losing the war when he attempted one last offensive. He gathered all available troops in an attempt to divide the allied forces in two. To accomplish this he needed to control Bastogne as it provided the best road network to the east. But the 101st

incident, which has slandered Israel’s reputation,” Netanyahu said Sunday. “This is a manifestation of the ongoing, mendacious campaign to delegitimize Israel. There is only one way to counter lies, and that is through the truth. Only the truth can prevail over lies.”

Meanwhile, Jamal al-Dura was quoted by Army Radio on Monday as saying, “Israel keeps changing its version of the events, but I want an international investigation.

There’s a body – my son is buried in Bureij [refugee camp].”

The Israeli government “is afraid of the results of an independent investigation… When Israel agrees to an international inquest, I will agree to have the remains exhumed,” he said.

Director-General of the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs Brig.

Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser, who headed the review, told Army Radio, “Israel has never opposed an international inquest in the case. If anyone wanted to hold one, it could have been done 13 years ago.”

A statement by France 2 said, “It is hard to understand why no one in the committee contacted France 2 or (as far as we know) Mr. al-Dura in the matter, despite his willingness to have his son’s remains exhumed.” Yarden Vatikai, head of the government’s National Information Directorate, disputed France 2’s assertion that it was not consulted or contacted for the report, saying that “numerous attempts were made” to get

their input.

museum “put his hand on the escalator, and when he casually raised the hand, he saw it was still spotlessly clean. Then, he looked back at the head [of the museum] with a satisfied smile… The two Sanitation Aunts are

very industrious… Whenever visitors come to the Museum, they would see the two Aunts busy with their job.”

Sanitizing the museum is one thing. Sanitizing history is another.

Chairman Mao was not some kind

of Asian Raoul Wallenberg. His followers are not the ones who deserve the credit for the Shanghai haven, or for the brave efforts of individual Chinese citizens who rescued Jews from the Nazis.

Airborne was in the small town and put up a formidable defense. But time was running out and they desperately needed help. The Yankee Division was in the thick of it as they marched toward Bastogne.

During a break in the fighting, the division was reading Christmas mail in a farm house, with the Germans nearby. During the break Sonny approached Manny to show him a card he received that included a picture of me and my mother.

Manny says he will never forget that encounter with Sonny as moments later a mortar shell landed in the barn killing him almost instantly. He remembers how proud Sonny was showing off his family to his good friend.

Patton and his troops relieved Bastogne on December 26 and the Battle ended in mid January.

In 2006, Manny vacationed in Florida with his wife, Shirley. We met for the first time where he told

me more about Sonny and about his life. Manny was also from the Philadelphia area before the war.

He earned an engineering degree, had a successful work career in Cincinnati where he raised a family. When we met, Manny gave me a handful of citations, a chronology of the Yankee Division’s days while in Europe, the Bronze Star and other medal’s issued for Sonny’s heroics.

My search is now complete and I feel very grateful for the contribution Sonny and others made to his country. War is a terrible event and impacts the lives of many Americans.

I have much to be happy about.

I grew up in Philadelphia and Edgewater Park, N.J., graduated from Burlington HS and Rider University. I had a successful CPA career and worked as a corporate executive for several companies. I married Eileen Jastrzemski in 1965 and have two married children, Darnon and Nicki and two grandchildren, Sydney and Eva. I am looking forward to retirement and spending more time traveling, working on my family tree (which currently has 370 relatives). I sus-

pect I will find time to learn even more about Sonny and get to know Manny better.

In May 2007, Manny completed his Memoirs of a Combat Medic - WAR AS IT REALLY IS, which he dedicates to the combat infantrymen and the platoon medics who died taking the high ground. It is a very thorough writing of his Army life and includes many maps, pictures, awards and related military documents of the Yankee Division.

It also has details of my father’s death. That section reads - “One of my most devastating experiences occurred... When an extensive artillery barrage screamed in on us.

Sonny suffered numerous shrapnel wounds and bled to death. Sonny had, in performance of his duty as a company medic, lived with an infantry company confronting danger every moment of the day and had earned the respect and admiration of his fellow soldiers and, in particular, we litter bearer.”

Having read his memoirs I can now envision much of my father’s days in the war as Manny and Sonny were not far apart throughout much of their enlisted days.

Thank you Manny.

‘This case was fabricated’ Dr. David Yehuda, who was sued by France 2 for libel after he refuted claims that the boy’s father was injured in the incident, and was later cleared by a Paris court, welcomed the report’s findings, saying, “This whole case was fabricated.

The boy didn’t die. This is a very important day, not just for me but for the country.”

The government review committee had asked Yehuda to submit the same records and expert opinion he had presented the French court during his trial, in which he provided proof that scars Jamal al-Dura claimed to be the result of the incident were in fact caused years earlier.