Kulanu: June 2023

KULANU

JUNE 2023

Sivan/Tammuz 5783

In This Issue:

B’tzelem Elohim This Summer at GUCI... A Jewish Camping Legacy

At a Glance: June Highlighted Calendar of Events

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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 time in the pool.

I am most looking forward to bunk night.

~Kenzie

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 campfires.

~Ruby

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

~Maliya

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

I am most looking forward to swimming.

~Kaden

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

~Sam

~Jude

A Jewish Camping Legacy

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.

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.

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.

Emily Kaufmann, Communications Specialist

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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: Indianapolis, IN 46260

Write a check payable to "IHC" with the memo line of "A Call to Jewish Camping Fund". Then mail to: 6501 N. Meridian Street

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.

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

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.

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.

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

Up Next at IHC...

Early Childhood Center Dates to Know

June 5: First day of summer camp

July 28: Last day of summer camp

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.

Upcoming IHC Board Meetings

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

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

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.

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 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

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

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

Connect with Us

IHC Front Office

ECC Office

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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

Learn with Us

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

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.