F���������’� A����� C�������� C���������� Saturday, January 31, 2015
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU AT THIS SEASON’S TWO BIG EVENTS:
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E�� L��� P����� �� t ��� B��� u o d C������� E���� l so Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Celebrating Jewish Life in Collier County, Israel and the World
Federation Star Published by the Jewish Federation of Collier County serving Naples, Marco Island and the surrounding communities
www.JewishNaples.org INSIDE THIS ISSUE: 4 6 7 14 20 23 23 25 28 30 30 32 34 35
Men’s Cultural Alliance Women’s Cultural Alliance Community Focus Jewish Interest Israel & the Jewish World Tributes Business Directory Commentary Focus on Youth Rabbinical Reflections Synagogues Organizations Community Calendar Community Directory
6 WCA’s “Season” is off to a resounding start!
8 Subject of Israeli best-seller visits Naples
January 2015 - Tevet/Shevat 5775
Kiev rabbi makes connections By Carole J Greene
B
eing a journalist provides me opportunities to connect with fascinating people. When Rabbi Alexander Dukhovny visited Naples on November 12, I enjoyed the privilege and pleasure of chatting with him about the challenges and successes of the Progressive Jewish Congregations (i.e. “Reform”) of Kiev, Ukraine. He is chief rabbi of the present 47 (!) congregations, an impressive increase from the eleven existing when he began. As we talked, the word “connections” came up multiple times. Rabbi Dukhovny came to the U.S. to foster connections with American Jews and forge new ones. Temple Shalom’s Judi Palay is one of the former connections and she opened her home to the rabbi, whom she’d met when traveling in Ukraine. When he spoke that evening at Temple Shalom, he likened his role on this whirlwind “talking tour” (if it’s Wednesday, this must be Naples) to fertilizing seeds of Progressive Judaism sown by others in Ukraine. “American rabbis plowed the soil. I’m the fertilizer because I know the culture, the language.” Although he knew all his life that he was a Jew, he came to the rabbinate
Federation President
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28 Naples BBYO teens at Regional Kallah
later in life. First, he became a scientist and worked in the field of ecology. “I would have preferred studying the humanities, but Jews in the former Soviet Union (f.S.U.) weren’t allowed to be historians or philosophers.” Utilizing his fluency in English, he often acted as a tour guide for American ambassadors and members of congress. He took them to Babi Yar, the infamous ravine in Kiev where, in two September days in 1941, German forces and local collaborators massacred nearly 34,000 Jews. As a rabbi, he says, “I get to combine all of these disciplines, because a rabbi is not only a teacher but also a scientist and a tour guide.” In addition to Judi Palay at Temple
Shalom, another local connection is the Jewish Federation of Collier County, which currently provides a grant to a Jewish preschool in Kiev. The rabbi detailed a wish list of ongoing “pockets of need,” for donations from people he meets on this talking tour who desire their own connection to Jews in Ukraine. “We need money for mundane expenses, like rent for premises and salaries for professionals. We also train lay leaders to conduct Shabbat services and do congregational work. We want to sponsor summer and winter camps that provide education promoting Jewish self-identification.” Noting that in Judaism the primary unit is the family,
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Jeffrey Feld, Steven D. Goldberg, Rabbi Alexander Dukhovny, Judi Palay, Rabbi Adam Miller
The case for giving at the beginning of the year…and for giving more Alvin Becker
Israeli artist to exhibit at Estero Fine Art Show
Vol. 24 #5
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number of organizations have as their priority to support the most vulnerable people in our community – children, the aged, and those suffering humanitarian emergencies. Other groups seek to keep Israel safe, strong and prosperous. Still others support Jewish practices and perspectives that enrich our lives and draw us closer to family, friends and community. Finally, some promote advocacy to
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ensure that our voices are a prominent force in policy decisions. But ONLY the Jewish Federation of Collier County includes all of these priorities in its work as an important force in our community – creating, building, supporting and strengthening much needed groups here and elsewhere. Please see page 3 for a list of organizations and programs that were supported, in part or in whole, by Federation dollars last year. I am confident that you will find one or more groups or programs that strike a responsive chord
in your supportive thoughts. Note that the list is long – but so are the needs. And those needs are immediate and continue to grow. Don’t wait to make a contribution to the Jewish Federation of Collier County until later in 2015. The beginning of the year is a wonderful time to be part of a caring community that gives back. Donate now. Volunteer now. Make a difference now. You’ll have the whole year to feel good about what you’ve done. Happy New Year!
GIVE GIVEYOUR YOURBUSINESS BUSINESS GROWTH GROWTHPOTENTIAL. POTENTIAL. ADVERTISE ADVERTISEWITH WITHTHE Federation Star Contact Jacqui Aizenshtat at 239.777.2889 Robin Leonardi • 941.552.6307 • rleonardi@jfedsrq.org or jacqui1818@gmail.com. www.TheJewishNews.org