Kulanu: June 2023

KULANU A Magazine That Highlights "All of Us"

JUNE 2023

Sivan/Tammuz 5783

In This Issue: B’tzelem Elohim This Summer at GUCI...

A Jewish Camping Legacy

At a Glance: June View our most up-to-date calendar on the IHC website at ihcindy.org/calendar.

Mah Jongg Mavens, Friday, June 2 at 2:30pm Grab your tile set and play a game or ten with the other IHC Mah Jongg Mavens on Fridays.

This addicting game of skill, strategy, and luck is a great way to spend time with other IHC enthusiasts. This Circle also meets on June 16, 30 at 2:30pm and June 9, 23 at 10:00am Into Eternity: A Concert of Art Song, Sunday, June 4 at 4:00pm Hear art song and classical music with acclaimed artists from Indianapolis Opera. This event will include the world premiere of "Into Eternity" from Jewish-American composer Lori Laitman, which will feature the final written words of Holocaust victim Vilma Grunwald, mother of local survivor Frank Grunwald. He will be in attendance to speak about this work. The program will also include selections from American Art Song repertoire. This performance is free and open to all.

Lilith Salon, Tuesday, June 6 at 12:30pm at the Rusty Bucket Women of IHC are invited to Sisterhood sponsored Lilith Salon in April. It is more free flowing than a book club with far fewer pages to read! Articles are emailed ahead of time. For more information and to let us know you are coming, please email Marjorie Gullett at marjorie.gullett@gmail.com. Lilith Salon also meets on June 18 at 12:30pm.

Pride Shabbat, Friday, June 9 at 6:15pm Create community with the LGBTQ+ community in Indianapolis at a special Shabbat service kicking off the city's Pride weekend. Join us on Shabbat morning to participate in Pride Parade and make sure the Jewish community is represented!

Euchre Circle, Monday, June 12 at 10:00am All levels of play are welcome to come and have some fun, meet new people, and compete for a prize. Email Melanie Gottlieb at mlgott9675@gmail.com for more details This Circle also meets on June 22 at 6:00pm and June 26 at 10:00am.

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Highlighted Calendar of Events Board Game Social Circle, Thursday, June 15 at 6:00pm Take a break from the computer and phone screens and play some tabletop games face to face. We'll try both classics (Yes, we'll have Scrabble) and the latest in board games (Wingspan, anyone?). Whether you like word games, trivia games, dexterity, strategy games or just want to try something new, we'll have a variety of titles on hand to teach and play in small groups formed around your preferences.

No experience required. Contact Lou Harry with any questions.

Young Couples Night Out, Saturday, June 17 Havdalah & Dinner Experience time TBA Join Rabbi Chernow-Reader & Rabbi Jennifer Gubitz for a Shabbat evening of learning and connection with other young couples in Indianapolis. We will enjoy dinner, drinks and celebrate the end of Shabbat with Havdalah.

We welcome all the ways you describe your relationship to Judaism. Keep an eye on the Weekly Update email for more details.

Our congregation now has more than twelve IHC Circles! Circles are small groups formed around interests, passions, geography, life stage, or profession. There's a Circle for wine lovers, card sharks, young families, volunteers and more! To learn more about our Circles, including how to let us know you are interested head to ihcindy.org/ihc-circles/.

If you use Facebook, be sure to join the IHC Circles Group to stay up-to-date on all things Circles.

IHC Family News We Celebrate the B'nai Mitzvah of: Jordan Van Hampton, who will be called to the Torah on June 3, 2023. She is entering eighth grade at Carmel Middle School where she is on the Honor Roll. Jordan loves to draw, paint, bake, and crochet. She also plays the trumpet in her school’s jazz band and is a varsity member of her school's cross country and track teams. Jordan’s proud parents are Brian and Jenie Smith, and her siblings are Cameron and Felicity Park-Smith.

Maliyah Lyric Kushner, who will be called to the Torah on June 17, 2023. She will be entering eighth grade at Hasten Hebrew Academy, where she has always been on the Honor Roll. Maliyah enjoys baking, traveling, and arts and crafts.

Her mother is Michaela Kushner. She has a brother, Ryder Sharks.

We Celebrate with: New members: Shaina Hecht and Kyle Davis ~ Judy and Michael Harrington, whose generous donation to the Alzheimer's Association Greater Indiana Chapter will support a new initiative to reach communities that are disproportionately affected by Alzheimer’s and other dementia.

The best efforts were taken to create these listings since the last issue of the Kulanu. Please reach out to communications@ihcindy.org if you believe there was an omission or error.

Do you have news to share? We want to hear it!

Part of what makes the Indianapolis Hebrew Congregation community strong is the profound care we have for one another and the happenings in each other's lives. We celebrate and shout a hearty "Mazel tov!" for occasions like b'nai mitzvah, weddings, births, retirements, and the major accomplishments of our members. We are also a support system during the difficult time of mourning the death of a loved one.

IHC wants to recognize you and your family during celebratory and sorrowful times.

If you have IHC Family News to share, or have news to share about a fellow IHC member, please email our Communications Specialist, Emily Kaufmann, at communications@ihcindy.org or emilyk@ihcindy.org.

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A Message From Your Clergy Associate Rabbi Jordana Chernow-Reader

One of the most important concepts in Judaism is the belief that we are all created b’tzelem Elohim (in the image of God). Genesis 1:27 reads: “And God created humans in God’s own image, in the image of God, God created them.” This concept reminds us that all people, everyone, is created in the image of God and we all have a little bit of the divine spark in us.

While this is a simple concept to understand, it can be difficult to implement. Can you imagine how different the world would be if we really treated each other in this way? For example, if someone cuts us off in traffic, we are probably not thinking about their divine spark. Or if the line in Starbucks feels like it is taking a very long time, we most likely do not see the image of God in the people in front of us.

A friend of mine ran a program when she created headbands with the words "B’tzelem Elohim" written on them and for the rest of the day the participants had to wear them. She said it was remarkable how differently people interacted with each other while wearing their headbands. If we actually tried to see the image of God in everyone, it could change our relationships for the better.

Seeing the divinity in each other is especially important right now as many states around the country, including our own, are passing legislation which is decreasing the supports and opportunities for the LGBTQ+ community. Rabbi Jonah Pesner, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, said: "As it says in Genesis, all humans were created in the image of God. And that means that every person, every soul, is a creature of God that looks like God, whether they are transgender or lesbian or gay, and so we welcome all of them."

Each of us, created in God’s image, has a unique talent, with which we can contribute to the high moral purpose of tikkun olam, the repair of our world. Excluding anyone from our community lessens our chance of achieving this goal of a more perfect world.

We can continue to work towards tikkun olam (repairing the world) when we treat each other as if we are all B’tzelem Elohim. In doing so, we continue to build a more inclusive community where we support one another and bring out the best in each other. ~ Please join IHC for Pride Shabbat on June 9 and at the Pride Parade on June 10.

Coffee Hours with Rabbi Chernow-Reader Friday mornings on June 9 & 23 10:00-11:30am Monon Coffee Company in Broad Ripple

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This Summer at GUCI...

This summer, 75 school aged IHC children will head to Goldman Union Camp Institute (GUCI) for overnight camp or Camp K'ton. We asked some of them what they are most looking forward to at camp this year.

I am most looking forward to cabin bonding time, so I can get to know my counselors and cabin mates even more for a better camp experience.

I am most looking forward to campfires.

~Sam

I am most looking forward to finding out all of the Anaf (the oldest camper unit) secrets and traditions and PROJECT*!

I am most looking forward to time in the pool.

~Ruby

~Maliya ~Jude *Project is a musical put on by the oldest camper unit

I am most looking forward to bunk night. ~Kenzie

I am most looking forward to swimming. ~Kaden

I am most looking forward to the Migdal* Swing. ~Ben *the migdal is a climbing tower

Kallah Aleph first session June 13 - July 9

I am most looking forward to seeing my friends that I have not seem for a year and I am excited about Shabbat! ~Molly

Kallah Bet second session July 11 - August 6

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A Jewish Camping Legacy

Lou Cantor pictured outside the Mirpa'ah (infirmary) at GUCI. He spent more than 25 summers at GUCI treating campers. Picture courtesy of GUCI.

Dr. Cantor working in the Mirpa'ah. Picture courtesy of GUCI.

Lou Cantor’s first introduction to camping did not go well. One summer, as a boy, he attended a Boy Scout camp. He recalls disliking how military-like it was, and not relevant to him. When his parents told him the next summer he would be going to a different camp, Union Camp Institute, later to become Goldman Union Camp Institute (GUCI), in Zionsville, Indiana, he was understandably unpleasant and resisted. His parents signed him up for one session at GUCI. He loved it so much he ended up staying for two sessions his first year and many summers thereafter. Thus, began Lou’s profound passion for Jewish camping and GUCI.

Many years after he last attended GUCI as a camper, Lou explains there was a “serendipitous opportunity” to return to camp. One summer, the camp struggled to fill all the camp nursing spots.

Lou remembers chatting about it after services at IHC with GUCI’s camp director and offered to help in any way he could. That is how Lou started volunteering as the camp’s first doctor.

Each summer, for more than 25 years, he and Linda (his “assistant nurse”) would spend two weeks at camp. When the couple started their family, the children also came to camp, experiencing GUCI for the first time from a crib.

Both Lou and Linda agree that it was a lot to dedicate two weeks to care for sick campers and sleep without any air conditioning on steamy summer nights. However, those two weeks were always worthwhile for the Cantors in so many ways.

Born and raised in Indianapolis, Lou is a physician and a lifetime member of IHC. Lou made his way to Indiana University for college, where he met his future wife, Linda, who is an attorney.

She attended summer camps when she was young, but never went to a Jewish camp like her husband or siblings. Through Lou, Linda says she came to appreciate how instrumental Jewish camping was in his life and, with time, how important it would become in the life of their family.

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Emily Kaufmann, Communications Specialist

For Lou, he remembers how great it was being back in that camp environment. He loved being able to see people he knew as campers return to GUCI as rabbis and education professionals. Just like when he was a boy, the sense of community that permeated his GUCI experience was alive and well. He says, “[GUCI has] a culture of bringing in kids, leaders, and educators… who are really focused on the program… and what it takes to create a Jewish community.” Linda often thinks of the transformations she has witnessed in children every summer over the years. “They’ve made good friends while they have been learning.

They’ve become transformed young adults in many cases.” She also remembers the emotional final Shabbat of each camp session, when campers sobbed during song sessions, knowing it was the last time they would be together with their close-knit, camp friends that summer.

The Cantors’ two sons and daughter experienced those transformations as campers too. All three made lifelong friends at GUCI, and often find a GUCI friend wherever they travel. They have discovered passions at camp, such as music. One son first picked up a guitar at camp and continues to appreciate and share a lifelong skill he first recognized at GUCI. Lou and Linda also recognize that camp has supported traditional expressions of Judaism, such as attending religious school, participating in Bar and Bat Mitzvah and Confirmation, observing Shabbat and celebrating Jewish holidays at home. GUCI reinforces what they as parents try to instill in their children and prepare them for a life rich with Jewish meaning and traditions. This summer, that Jewish journey begins for Lou and Linda’s two granddaughters who are continuing the family traditions of attending GUCI. Their son also returns to camp this year volunteering as camp doctor, following in the same path his father forged many years ago.

Music makes up a big part of the GUCI experience.

Many campers, including Lou and Linda's son and daughter, find a passion for music during their summers at camp.

The Cantor Family made it a yearly tradition to pose in front of the same water fountain at GUCI.

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From campers to staff, and even clergy, IHC's presence at GUCI is felt each summer. Kol HaMachaneh “A Call to Jewish Camping” Fund directly supports IHC families wanting to send their children to camp.

Lou and Linda Cantor with their children at GUCI- Rob Cantor, Adam Cantor, Lauren Cantor, and Rob's wife, Braca Cantor.

Jewish camping is at the heart of the Cantor family story. Lou and Linda wanted a way to make sure other IHC families had an opportunity to weave Jewish camping into their own stories. From years spent on the GUCI advisory board, the two understood the financial support some families need to get their children to camp. As a result, the two created the Kol HaMachaneh “A Call to Jewish Camping” Fund at IHC. GUCI alumni might recognize the Hebrew phrase in the fund’s name; Lou explains that it continues to be used every morning for the wakeup call at camp, meaning “all the camp”. For Lou and Linda, it was vital that this fund directly support children in the IHC community.

Reflect on your own time at camp, the friendships formed, and life lessons learned. Think of the ways your children and grandchildren have transformed and grown their sense of Jewish community after attending GUCI. Perhaps, your family is like the Cantor family, whose camping experience resonates across the generations.

For the Cantor family, the success of Jewish camping bodes well for the future of the entire Jewish community. Both Lou and Linda agree that “Ultimately, if you are going have a vibrant Jewish community and congregational support, you need youth with strong Jewish identities.” The Cantors believe that camp provides a safe environment for kids to explore and find themselves, including how they connect with Judaism. They have seen it firsthand in their own children and in countless GUCI campers over the years. It is the hope of Lou and Linda that anyone who understands the power of community, connections, and spirit of Jewish camping, considers giving to this IHC fund.

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Supporting this fund means future Jewish campers can hear the wakeup call echo among the towering trees, knowing that they belong to something very special; that they are part of “all the camp.”

There are two ways you can support Kol HaMachaneh “A Call to Jewish Camping” Fund: Write a check payable to "IHC" with the memo line of "A Call to Jewish Camping Fund". Then mail to: 6501 N. Meridian Street Indianapolis, IN 46260 Head to the IHC website, www.ihcindy.org, and click the "Donate" button in the upper right corner. When choosing a fund from the drop down selection, it is listed under the EDUCATION AND YOUTH category.

If you need any assistance, please call 317-255-6647.

Temple Library Reference books evoke images of shelves filled with large tomes: encyclopedias, Bibles, biblical commentaries, annuals, art volumes, dictionaries, etc. Your Temple Library contains several of these resource materials. We also have works specific to Indiana and to our congregation.

The IHC bulletin collection dates back to 19431944. The first bound issue is from September 24, 1943. It is a two-sided single typewritten page, containing a sketch of the Temple at Tenth and Delaware, and lists the names and addresses of the rabbis: Morris Feuerlicht and Maurice Goldblatt, as well as the custodian’s name, John Phillips (no address, just his telephone number).

In those days, during the program year there was a weekly bulletin but none during the summer.

However, there were weekly summer services.

The September 24 issue provides the schedule for Rosh Hashanah services, the titles of the sermons, and who would be delivering them.

There are short articles on the front page: choir director, Farrell Scott, was now in the army and his wife would be leading the choir. New choir members were mentioned, congregants were urged to host soldiers as guests for the holidays, and the first day of religious school the previous Sunday had to be cancelled due to a problem with the furnace.

IHC Librarian Evelyn Pockrass The reverse side lists new Sisterhood members, members who had gotten married during the summer, yahrzeits, and the ten congregants who died during the summer. There was a request for the names of members’ relatives who died during the past year so their names would be mentioned during holiday “memorial” services.

Looking at the ’43-’44 weekly bulletins gives an overview of the functioning of the congregation decades ago.

Life goes on and browsing through these old bulletins, comparing them to the content of the Kulanu and weekly updates of today, can be a most fascinating trip through history. Much is the same, but now there are additional concerns such as abortion, LGBTQ+ issues, mass shootings, housing, racism – the list goes on.

Contemporary issues are often featured in our Periodicals while the background may be in the Reference section. Although reference books cannot be borrowed, they can be read in the library where there always is something to stimulate your interest.

Jewish Book Club Tuesday, June 13 at 12:00pm, A Half-Built Garden by Ruthanna Emrys No July Meeting

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Up Next at IHC...

Early Childhood Center Dates to Know

Upcoming IHC Board Meetings

June 5: First day of summer camp

Thursday, July 27 at 6:00pm in the Event Center

July 28: Last day of summer camp

Thursday, August 17 at 6:00pm in the Event Center

August 4: Meet the Teacher August 9: First day of school If you have any questions regarding enrollment for the school year, please reach out to the ECC Director Jodi Kaseff, at jodik@ihcindy.org or by calling the ECC directly at 317-254-2186.

Learning at IHC Wednesday, August 23 at 6:30pm First evening of Derech Torah Sunday, August 27 at 9:30am Jewish Learning Program Opening Day List of Adult Education offerings will be available in the coming months.

Join us at the Carmel Gazebo as we celebrate Shabbat outdoors! Pack a dinner and bring your chairs and picnic blankets for this lovely summer evening spent with one another.

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May Their Memory Be for Blessing...

June Yahrzeits June 1 Arthur Appel David Himm Alexander Karsh Frederick Killen Shelly Miller Saul Rosenberg Robert Tanner June 2 Theresa Berman Irving Goldberg Harold Sussman Jerry Yale June 3 Alan Kranowitz Celia Miller Gertrude Reed Lynne Silbermann James Widner June 4 Minnie Atlass Lois Baker Maxine Bloom Gertrude Cohen Bertha Dushman Celia Efroymson Jeanette Gould Barbara Greenberg Rose Hays Anna Hornstein Richard Klein Gaetana Mollin Ruth Poppe M. G. Smith Martin Zukof June 5 Roslyn Crandus Maria Dohmen David Fogle Barbara Nickbarg Ruth Pryweller Susan Rabb Morris Rossen Rose Schahet Morton Shapiro Philip Zimmerman June 6 Minnie Cutler Clara Goldstein Florence Herman Louise Levine Earl Marvin Douglass Popp Gerald Pryweller Julius Rosen Tillie Speyer Jules Werner Geneive Yaunt Harry Zukof June 7 Colin Davis Rose Greenwald Israel Hurwitz Bert Schechter Theodore Shonfield William Stewart

June 8 Sophia Brodsky Jackie Fish Betty Fleck Cecelia Frankel Henrietta Ganser Rachel Hurwitz Alice Kahn Harry Lockman Gussie Redish Nyla Shonfield Meyer Singer Eva Stiasny Bess Traugott Albert Weiss June 9 Helen Dionne Kenneth Dorrell William Hene Dorothy Miller Ruth Neumann Flora Romer Ida Silver Stephanie Sutherland Suzanne Zaltsberg June 10 Marilyn Arnove Bess Blumenthal Kenneth Glaser Milda Markus Mary Mayer Esther Medias Martin Stein Benjamin Sugarman June 11 Ethel Biller June Fisch Emanuel Kahn Emanuel Kahn Jr. Louis Lurvey Tillie Maierson Marta Stern Victor Teixler Marina Voldman June 12 Arthur Appel Alma Aronson Michael Frey Melvin Goodman John Holloway Leo Kolodin Arlen Pockrass June 13 Julius Getsug Isaac Leventhal Vivian Pecar Phyllis Rose Pinkus Rosenberg Albert Spitzberg Marc Wagman

June 14 Armin Bogar Eddy Brown Lucy Kahn Gladys Kaminsky Rose Levin Eunice Manders Leon Mishelow Donald Naughton Judith Perk Ruben Roth Mauna Schmutte Beatrice Sobel June 15 Eldon Berridge Brad Breighner Norma Johnson Mac Lawson Laura Rosenberg Charles Spiegal Ben Stone Louis Wender June 16 Florence Goldberg Rakhil Grinshpun Samuel Gurwitz Joseph Mehlman Nathan Miller Fannie Mossler Tillye Rosenberg Josephine Wurzman June 17 Ray Berman Lawrence Harrison Nathan Miller Himan Pearlman Doris Solomon Nannette Tesser June 18 Morris Burnstein Henry Butterman Garson Cohen Alan Halpern Norman Kaplan Bertha Mehlman Brenda Messing Robert Speicher Elinor Vaprin June 19 Leopold Breisacher Anna Broxmeyer Ruth Cannon Debbie Chalfie Vivian Chernoff Stanley Cohen Dorothy Efroymson June Herman Mania Kerschenblat Bobbie Popp Dora Rosenberg June 20 Rosalie Cohn Betty Golden Nannette Kahn Herbert Miller Dennis Stiasny David Sugarman Ida Tulkop Jessica Zimmerman

June 21 Robert Allison Arthur Glick Rex Hindman Solomon Koby David Leventhal Sam Mell Shirley Rosenberg Luba Voldman June 22 Joseph Baer Bessie Goodman Manfred Kramer Lillian Polisar Anna Schmuckler Herman Strashun Francis Ziker June 23 Larry Burke Shirley Cohen Wallace Goldstein Annalee Jaffe Philip Kushner Sidney Parkans Aubrie Zelikovich June 24 Marcia Abramson Stephanie Allen Mary Bassler Martin Cannon Lucille Cohen Fannie Epstein Charles Fisch Otto Freed Norman Glazer Ada Greenberg Jackie Law Rohanna McCormack Minnie Roger Minna Rothchild Bessie Scheer Jacob Yosha

June 26 Pola Flax Martin Glaser Moe Katz Sam Pactor Roberta Valentine Feyga Zurkovsky June 27 Teresa Blickman Jennie Brann David Cutler Bentsion Fvenkel Ruth Hoffman Steve Horwitz Ellen Lorch Alice Markwood Rose Olshewitz Dorthy Schlesinger Shelley Shane Selma Stein June 28 Karl Hene Howard Hess Ernest Lorch Alice Roth Shirley Sharpe June 29 Eleanor Anthony Ron Carlson Emil Haas Bett Hene Mabelle Jackson Joseph Jacobson Benjamin Lawrence Florence Lischin June 30 Ilana Fried Eugene Friedmann William Meyers Shirley Solomon

June 25 Andy Abels Simon Barez Ilene Goldburg Frances Goodman Louis Krinsky Sandra Lipp Joseph Mollin Bernard Nickbarg Harold Scheer Jacob Tesser Jack Wedgle Rosa Zimbler Reading the name of a loved one on a yahrzeit is a way to honor them, their lives and their memory.

Jewish tradition teaches that the memory of one who has lived righteously lives on for blessing. We hope the memories of your loved one will bring you consolation and lighten your grief on their yahrzeit.

When a yahrzeit is observed, there is a Jewish custom to give tzedakah. This can be a donation to your favorite charity.

If IHC is the charity of your choice, there is a full list of our tzedakah funds at ihcindy.org/give

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Connect with Us

Learn with Us

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Torah Talk Select Wednesdays at 9:30am Join Rabbi Krichiver to discuss Jewish sacred source texts in a non-intimidating way. Unless otherwise noted, you can attend in person or online. Proudly presented by Sisterhood. You can find the Zoom link to participate on ihcindy.org/online

317-255-6647 317-254-2186 www.ihcindy.org www.facebook.com/IhcIndy @ihc.indy

Worship Schedule

All services, unless otherwise noted, can be viewed live on IHC website.

Kabbalat Shabbat service Fridays at 6:15pm Nefesh Shabbat Service Every third Friday at 6:15pm Shabbat Morning Service Saturdays at 10:30am Join us for Oneg Shabbat following our Friday evening services.

It is a mitzvah to sponsor an Oneg Shabbat, whether it is for a special occasion (b'nai mitzvah/baby naming/anniversary) or just because you want to step up to help! You can host alone, as a family, or get a group together to co-host.

Shabbat Morning Torah Study Saturdays at 9:00am Led by IHC clergy, the group is guided through the weekly Torah portion text seeking understanding of the teaching for the time and discussing its message for today. Unless otherwise noted, you can attend in person or online. No prior knowledge is necessary and all are welcome. You can find the Zoom link to participate on ihcindy.org/online

The next issue of Kulanu will be available digitally in the beginning of July.

You will be able to access that issue and access all past issues online at ihcindy.org/kulanu-archive/ The next printed issue of Kulanu will be mailed out at the end of July.