Jewish News, Feb. 17, 2023

SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER

Sophie Stern planned to be a dancer when she was 8 years old.

“The first time I got on stage, I was in a dance ensemble, and I just knew it was right,” she told Jewish News.

Now, at 19, nothing’s changed to dim her passion for dance, all kinds of dance — especially modern. She acts, sings and “loves all the performing arts,” but it was dance that captured her heart.

When she’s not on stage, Stern is also a passionate advocate for people with an intellectual or developmental disability (IDD). That includes herself, given that she has Down syndrome.

As the newest member of the Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council (ADDPC), she will have a pretty big platform to promote self-advocacy and self-determination for those with an IDD.

The 23-member council is composed of selfadvocates, family members, professional stakeholders and state agency representatives — all appointed by the Governor. Stern was the last member to be appointed by former Gov. Doug Ducey.

The council addresses the critical needs of people in all stages of life, including housing, transportation, employment, “and especially, community inclusion,”

Jewish freshmen are figuring out the state House

When Gov. Katie Hobbs was inaugurated in January, it was the first time in more than a decade for a Democrat to have the top job in Arizona. Although the Republicans still have the majority in both legislative chambers, her election reshuffled the political calculus in the state.

A lot of the day-to-day in politics, however, doesn’t change that much.

For example, fresh-faced freshmen legislators come into office every two years looking to learn the ropes. They have to get a grasp on procedural rules, meet new people and build the kind of relationships they hope will pay off down the line.

This year, there are three Jewish State House freshmen, Democrats Rep. Seth Blattman (LD-9) and Rep. Consuelo Hernandez (LD21) and Republican Rep. Alexander Kolodin (LD-3). Their transition into office thus far has gone pretty smoothly, they all told Jewish News.

Hernandez had a bit of a head

start, given that her sister, Rep. Alma Hernandez (LD-20), has served in the State House since 2018 and her brother, Daniel Hernandez, is a former representative.

“I’m grateful to have my siblings who I can lean on,” she told Jewish News. “They’re so busy, though,

and I can’t ask them everything.”

She said her father taught his children they have to figure things out on their own, so that’s what she’s doing.

One valuable lesson her siblings taught her is the importance of bipartisanship and finding common

Sophie Stern knows how to stand up for herself. Her new role lets her do the same for others.

From left, Rep. Seth Blattman, Rep. Consuelo Hernandez and Rep. Alexander Kolodin. COURTESY OF SETH BLATTMAN, CONSUELO HERNANDEZ AND ALEXANDER KOLODIN

SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER

Jewish billionaire Mat Ishbia is the new owner of the basketball franchises.

SEE JEWISH FRESHMEN PAGE 3

said Jon Meyers, director of ADDPC.

“Our hope is to create and promote opportunities for people to be embraced, become part of the community and find equitable opportunities wherever they might live,” he said.

Meyers first came to know Stern through her mother, Amy Silverman, who read her personal essays about raising a daughter with Down syndrome on KJZZ, National Public Radio’s Phoenix affiliate station.

Meyers was so captivated by the essays that he reached out to Silverman, and the two became friends.

That’s how Stern first learned of the open council seat, but there’s no doubt she earned her position, Meyers said.

To become a council member, Stern had to apply and demonstrate that she had something valuable to contribute, he said.

“She’s on the council because she deserves to be on the council,” he said. Stern is creating a life and career as a member of her community, which makes her a great addition.

Stern graduated from McClintock High School in Tempe last year and now attends Glendale Community College, with a focus on dance. She is a regular performer at Detour Company Theatre, a Scottsdale theatre company for adults with intellectual, developmental and physical disabilities.

In fact, when Stern attended her first council meeting in January, she couldn’t wait to tell people of her involvement with Detour and share information about its upcoming shows.

“There’s no question that she is going to thrive,” Meyers said. “She’s very gregarious and passionate about the things that matter to her.”

Stern looks forward to sharing insights

about her Judaism with her fellow council members and speaking out for her rights and beliefs.

She already has some practice at advocating for herself.

“One time, I was in class and someone called me the R-word and I told him not to. The teacher was in the hallway and another student repeated the word,” she said. Rather than letting the situation go, she told her theater teacher, who was able to intervene.

“If someone has a disability, saying the R-word is like saying the F-word,” Stern said.

While performing in the musical “Hairspray,” she had another occasion to tangle with the offensive word, which appears in the script.

“That’s really bad and my friend said it on stage. I was not OK with that, so I went to the director and told her it was a bad word for people with disabilities, but she wouldn’t take it out,” Stern said.

She let her mother know about the conflict and they were able to convince the director of the need to remove the word from the script.

“My friend Al was next to me when I told the director and he gave me the biggest hug ever and said that he loved me so much,” Stern said. Sadly, Al died in a car crash on Oct. 24, 2021.

“That was hard; it’s very hard to get emotions out and I was very, very upset,” she said.

On the recent anniversary of his death, Stern made a cake and took it to the crash site.

“I don’t know how I did it without crying. I’m so proud of myself,” she said.

Amy Hummell, executive director of Gesher Disability Resources, agreed that Stern is a good fit for ADDPC because of her ability to self-advocate.

Hummell co-hosted a book event with Meyers a few years ago for “My

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Can’t Even Believe It:

A Story of Science, Love and Down Syndrome,” Silverman’s book about her daughter. When Gesher’s speakers’ bureau, Damon Brooks & Associates, was asked to find a speaker about Down syndrome for an event this spring, Hummell first asked Silverman to speak, thinking Stern might be too young.

They decided instead that Stern should tell her own story; it’s a real bonus that she is not afraid of public speaking.

“It’s not the same when someone tries to tell a person’s story for them,” Hummell said.

Additionally, helping people with disabilities find jobs was one of the reasons for acquiring the bureau. Unemployment in the disability community is upwards of 75% and of that percentage, 75% are ready, willing and able to work — but haven’t been given the opportunity, Hummell said.

“People have it in them to speak up but don’t know how, and often they’re not cheered on. Sophie has family support

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Sophie Stern at her high school graduation in 2022 COURTESY OF SOPHIE STERN

which gives her confidence and then she can support others, which is why she’s such a good representative on the council.”

Meyers said finding self-advocates to be on the council can be challenging, which is why he and others are excited to see what Stern does now that she’s a member.

“She clearly has the drive to become

JEWISH FRESHMEN

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

ground, she said.

The freshmen already have a bit of common ground due to their religion, and along with Alma Hernandez, there are now four Jews in the State House. Though they represent different parties, they have been in contact and even floated the idea of an unofficial Jewish caucus or possibly a ‘Jewish Day’ at the capitol.

In 2020, Blattman campaigned for the House seat he eventually won in 2022. During that campaign, one of his political signs was vandalized with a swastika. Kolodin reached out to him to lend support, and told him despite being on different ends of the political spectrum, “‘as a Jewish person, I find this reprehensible,’ and I greatly appreciated that,” Blattman said.

“We started to build a relationship, and I’m hoping to work with him on legislation. As Jewish people and Jewish legislators, we do have a bond,” he said.

Through her siblings, Hernandez already knows a few Republican legislators who are still in the chamber. Now she’s able to say hello to them at the capitol, which has eased her entry.

“It’s really helpful in relationship building, and that doesn’t happen overnight,” she said.

While in office, legislators are expected to keep the jobs they had when they were elected, even though they are often at the capitol for long hours while the Legislature is in session.

Blattman owns a furniture manufacturing business in Phoenix, and he is learning to balance what he owes his constituents with his business.

“I think everyone down here (at the capitol) is making sacrifices so that they can do a job that they believe in,” he told Jewish News.

Kolodin, who calls himself

“unapologetically hard right,” told Jewish News that he wasn’t surprised to find the government to be “as dysfunctional as I imagined it would be.”

He believes there are a lot of talented conservatives in the Legislature that he’s excited to serve with and is optimistic he can be a part of “accomplishing good things and stopping the bad things.”

All three freshmen have introduced legislation.

Blattman’s first bill addressed restoring

someone who is a standout, regardless if she has a disability,” Meyers said. “I don’t think she looks at herself as someone with Down syndrome; she looks at herself as a dancer and a sister and a daughter and a friend — someone who is living an incredible life.”

Stern knows exactly what she’s going to do with her time on the council.

the Permanent Early Voting List and “putting the ‘permanent’ back in the permanent early voter list,” he said.

Hernandez introduced two bills regarding railroads. One limits the length of trains allowed to pass through rural areas. The other requires an annual inspection for trains. Currently, there are no regulations in the state around train inspections and the number of crew on board.

Both bills deal with safety issues for employees and the public. She shares many of the same policy goals as her fellow Democrats but also wants to focus on the issues that can garner agreement.

“They’re not exciting bills but they impact my district,” she said.

She is close to introducing a bill to access funding for 24/7, on-call OB-GYN critical care in the more rural part of her district. With her background in global health, this issue is close to her heart and something that should be done on a bipartisan basis, she said.

“It’s very black and white, and at the end of the day people want to be able to see women and babies have access to care,” she said.

Kolodin, an attorney, is introducing a bill allowing juries to apply community values in considering the guilt or innocence of people on trial.

“Juries should be able to decide if the law is unreasonable,” he said. “I’m optimistic to get it into a committee — fingers crossed — but people should get that this is common sense.”

The North Valley Young Republicans already named Kolodin as one of the top 10 legislators for January. He is also making news for sponsoring HCR 2018, which proposes breaking Maricopa County up into four separate counties. Kolodin’s resolution refers the plan to the November 2024 ballot.

As a Republican, Kolodin has an advantage in getting his bills heard, while the two Democrats, Blattman and Hernandez, have to contend with the fact that they’re in the minority party, which adds a hurdle for their own legislation.

Once they’ve introduced a bill, the majority party (the Republicans) decides whether it will be assigned to a committee and the committee chairman might put it on the agenda for the whole committee to hear. If it is voted on and passed by the committee, it goes to the entire chamber to be voted on and passed. Only then

“I’m going to tell everyone that people should stand up for one another.” JN

February is Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month. To learn more about Gesher Disability Resources, visit gesherdr.org and to learn more about Arizona Developmental Disabilities Planning Council, visit addpc.az.gov.

does the Senate get a crack at it.

Blattman, who represents a very competitive district and spent most of his campaign talking to Republicans, is heartened by the interpersonal relationships between the two parties he’s witnessed so far.

“We do get along on a personal level,” said Blattman. “Building those interpersonal relationships is important if you want to get things done in the legislature.”

Hernandez agreed.

“Normal people don’t care about that kind of partisan politics. I’m willing to talk to anyone if they’re willing to talk to me because, at the end of the day, I have to go back to my district and they want to know I’m trying to get something done for them.”

Legislating is more than introducing bills. On Wednesday, Jan. 25, the House Ways and Means Committee considered HB2501, which allows a pregnant person to claim their unborn fetus as a dependent. Because of the implications for fetal personhood, Blattman, who sits on the committee, received many emails from people who wanted to weigh in.

“Getting those emails and calls and seeing the names of the members of the public who are for, who are against, who are neutral and reading their comments so we know what people in our district think, we take it heavily into account when voting,” he said.

Kolodin, meanwhile, receives calls and messages every day about the water controversy unfolding in Rio Verde Foothills, which is in his district. The area is near Scottsdale city limits but falls outside its boundaries as an unincorporated area of Maricopa County.

On Jan. 1, Scottsdale cut off Rio Verde’s access to its standpipe at Jomax and Pima roads, which private haulers had long used to provide water to Rio Verde Foothills residents.

Residents filed a lawsuit asking for an injunction so Scottsdale would temporarily have to provide water to the haulers, saying they were in crisis.

“People aren’t showering and this is not OK,” Kolodin said.

On Jan. 24, a judge ruled against Rio Verde, saying this wasn’t an issue for the courts but for the government, which means Kolodin and the Legislature at large will continue to focus on this issue. JN

Operation Snowbird 2.0 collects hundreds of coats for refugees heading north

SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER

For a second year, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix (JCRC) put out a call to collect winter coats for newly arrived refugees in Arizona. And just as they did last year, Jewish communities in the state and across the country stepped up to answer that call by delivering hundreds of coats and winter gear.

Approximately 2,500 asylum seekers arrive weekly at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) Welcome Center in Phoenix, as well as a few local churches with temporary refugee shelters. The only clothes the refugees have with them are often too thin to withstand winter temperatures in some of the cold places they are en route to, further north and east, where they will be resettled with family, friends and other sponsors while they await asylum hearings.

Last year, Paul Rockower, JCRC’s executive director, looked north to Sedona, the Verde Valley and Flagstaff for donations of winter coats. He also asked JCRC colleagues from Youngstown, Ohio, and Buffalo, New York, to pitch in, which they did. This year, Temple B’rith Shalom in Prescott and JCRCs in Providence, Rhode Island and Boston, Massachusetts, also lent a hand.

Temple B’rith Shalom Rabbi Susan Schanerman rallied her members to deliver coats by the end of November and found a receptive audience. Anna Keating, who leads a coalition of volunteers on this issue, said the coats B’rith Shalom delivered were “packed in boxes the density of a neutron star” that arrived just when they were needed.

“It was a very fulfilling and meaningful experience for us,” Schanerman said.

Rockower is grateful about the overwhelmingly positive response he’s

received since he first asked for coats last year.

“We don’t have winter coats here, which is why we reached out to places where they get more wintry weather,” he said. “Thankfully, they took up the charge and were able to work together with their communities to be able to run with this and donate large capacities of winter coats for the asylum seekers.”

Rockower coordinated his efforts with Keating, who calls her coalition, “our Interfaith Refugee Asylum Volunteers, or IRAV.”

Keating started working with members of Greater Phoenix’s Jewish community through Barbara Lewkowitz, who organizes social action at Beth El Phoenix. She then met Rockower, who connected her with synagogues and organizations that could help her find the heavy coats and winter gear the refugees need.

“I’ll watch as buses pull up and 40 people get off and not one of them has a coat,” Keating said. “It’s an impossible task to get a coat for all the babies, toddlers and people of all shapes and sizes. It breaks my heart to send people, even children, with only a blanket up north where it’s freezing.”

The Jewish community has been a tremendous help in this regard, especially those in places where people have more experience with frigid weather. Even though many Jews in Greater Phoenix grew up in colder climes, after a few years in the desert, they seem to forget just how heavy a coat needs to be.

Keating is from Minnesota and remembers the cold but she understands her fellow Phoenicians, who are generous but sometimes donate coats that just can’t cut it.

“You ask for a winter coat here and you get a hoodie. We can’t send people to New York where the temp is zero degrees in a hoodie. Paul’s connected us with people who understand what winter is and that’s been really special,” she said.

Stephanie Hague, the chief policy officer for the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island, definitely understands the cold, and when Rockower reached out to her, she was prepared to help.

“It felt like a natural fit for us,” she said. She and her staff posted about the need for coats on social media and around the Jewish community center, where they put collection boxes.

“We had boxes out for a week and they were overflowing with coats within days. This is the time of year when people are going through their coats, so we had gently used and brand-new ones.”

While she works mostly with local groups in Providence, “every once in a while, we can reach out and this was such a specific ask for a specific population. It felt like the right thing to do and people were happy to participate.”

Similarly, in Youngstown, Melissa Bateman, community engagement director for Youngstown Area Jewish Federation, and Nicholas Bush, the Federation’s development and community relations manager, were also happy to help.

“We are a small community and we’re always trying to look outside of Youngstown to make an impact,” Bateman said. “Last year, we sent 500 pounds of supplies to Ukraine.” Bush agreed.

“We’re always thinking about others

and we really know the importance of a winter coat right now,” he said.

Bush did the shopping and said he “didn’t want to buy anything I wouldn’t wear. I wanted to keep someone warm with the most effective coats possible.”

They collected money to buy new coats and asked stores for donations. They’re now sending them to Beth El, where Keating will collect them and get them to the refugee shelters.

Bush and Bateman know of many Youngstown residents who are snowbirds in Arizona. Next year, they will reach out to those folks to bring extra coats when they pack their bags for the desert.

Keating said Arizona’s Jewish community has stepped up in other ways to assist asylum seekers. For example, volunteers from the National Council of Jewish Women Arizona and Beth El baked hundreds of muffins, put together food packages and had clothing drives that have all been enormously helpful. Additionally, a group from the Jewish Community of Sedona and the Verde Valley continues to get donations to her.

“The Jewish community has just been wonderful,” she said.

Rockower is already planning to have a coat drive for next year. Keating assumes he’ll call it Operation Snowbird 3.0.

“The capacity this year is even greater,” he said. “It helps Jewish communities who are not on the frontlines with asylum seekers to help and engage in this act of compassion and to support those who have asylum status, and we’d like to get more involved because, as wonderful as they’ve been, we’re still close to being outstripped by the need.” JN

Volunteers at Beth El Congregation bake muffins for newly arrived asylum seekers.

Beth El’s bakers open the boxes of winter gear from Rhode Island and Ohio the week of Jan. 20.

COURTESY OF BARBARA LEWKOWITZ

Mat Ishbia realizes dream as new owner of Suns and Mercury

JOEL ZOLONDEK | SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

The NBA’s Phoenix Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury organization’s new majority owner Mat Ishbia’s press conference at the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix was a family affair, featuring his three children, parents Jeff and Joanne Ishbia and his brother, Justin. His new basketball family was represented by former Suns players Kevin Johnson, Tom Chambers, Dan Majerle, Cedric Ceballos, Alvin Adams and Ann Myers Drysdale, Hall of Fame star and vice president of the Mercury. In attendance were members of the local and national media, Phoenix dignitaries, including Mayor Kate Gallego, community leaders and Ishbia’s business associates. The sale of the team, which was valued at $4 billion, was approved by the other NBA owners on Feb. 8, 2023.

Ishbia expressed his passion and gratitude for the game of basketball. He said, “basketball is a huge part of my life, always has been.” He was a high school guard at Seaholm High School in Birmingham, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. He was the team captain and averaged 25 points a game as a senior and was named Jewish athlete of the year by the Detroit Jewish News.

In a January 23, 1998, interview with the Detroit Jewish News, his coach Dave Watkins said, “His basketball IQ is as high as anybody I’ve had on the team, and I’ve had some pretty good players the last six years. He really understands the game. He’s not the tallest or quickest, but you would be hard pressed to find anybody smarter than him on the court.”

Ishbia said in the article, “I think that I understand the game and enjoy it. I always like to be around it.”

At Michigan State University, Ishbia secured the last spot on the Spartan’s varsity

team under coach Tom Izzo. He was on three NCAA final four teams, including the winning 2000 National Championship team. He earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State in 2003. He has been a prominent alum and in 2021 pledged $32 million to help expand its athletic facilities. Izzo stated, “what Mat Ishbia has done for our university and our program, for me in particular, is humbling and sort of tear jerking as anything that has happened to me.”

Ishbia was introduced by Suns’ broadcaster Tom Leander who said, “we are here to celebrate new beginnings.”

When he took the stage, he walked past the lectern and said, “I am not a stand-infront-of-the-podium guy,” and proceeded to speak to the crowd of more than 200 people for about 20 minutes without using any notes.

He started by saying that he was honored to be part of the great Suns and Mercury tradition and continuing in the path of the legendary Jerry Colangelo. Robert Sarver, who bought the team from Colangelo in 2004, was praised by Ishbia for selecting him to purchase the team.

On Arizona Sports Ron Wolfley’s radio interview Feb. 10, Jerry Colangelo remarked “first of all, before the actual announcement, Mat Ishbia reached out to me. He wanted to make contact. We had a great meeting and I got to know him somewhat. He wanted to engage me as a mentor. Quite honestly, I think it’s a breath of fresh air. I think the fans in Phoenix will be well served under this new leadership.”

At the press conference, Ishbia expressed his core values stressing, “doing the right thing, all the time, for the community.

I look at it as a community asset, and I am the steward of it.” In terms of how

the organization will function, he shared his “Four Focuses for Success:” culture, fan experience, community impact and winning basketball.

His vision of the Sun’s and Mercury’s corporate cultures will be centered around all the “team members” — meaning all of the people in the organization, not just the players. He emphasized that “you can’t win without great people.” He will recruit and train his team members “so that they will never want to leave. The thing I look for is work ethic, leadership and attitude, these are things I value.”

Ishbia grew Michigan-based United Wholesale Mortgage from 12 to 7,000 employees in only 20 years, taking over the company from his father, Jeff, who founded it as a side business to his law practice. United Wholesale Mortgage is now the largest mortgage company in the country and was taken public in 2021.

The experience the fans have is important to Ishbia. “We can’t win every game, but we can win every fan’s heart, even when we lose,” he said. “Making fans feel good about coming to the Footprint Center and rooting for the teams is going to be stressed by having the team members and players being fan friendly.”

Ishbia wants to have an “amazing community impact” by contributing to local hospitals and children’s organizations

through the work of the Phoenix Suns Charities.

When it comes to winning, Ishbia wants to “think big.” He said, “I want the teams to be best in class, to become an elite franchise.”

On Wednesday night, before the Feb. 9 NBA trading deadline, Ishbia showed his ability to make a blockbuster deal, bringing All-Star Kevin Durant to the Suns. It is the most notable trade in the NBA this season, and the biggest acquisition for the Suns since Jerry Colangelo traded for player Charles Barkley in 1992. Ishbia seized the moment to give his new team a chance for an NBA title this season.

Ishbia’s older brother, Justin, remarked that the two would play one-on-one games on their court at home. One day he came home from college to find Ishbia shooting over an 8-foot tall obstacle that their dad had erected. Justin asked his 16-year-old brother why he was practicing in that way, since there were no eight footers playing high school basketball. Ishbia replied “I’m going to be in the NBA one day.”

On Wednesday February 8, 2023, Ishbia realized his dream. JN

Joel Zolondek of Phoenix is a retired CPA enjoying a second career in sports photography and photojournalism.

Mat Ishbia and Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego at the Feb. 8 press conference. COURTESY OF JOEL ZOLONDEK

Brandeis’ Book & Author day features national authors and brand-new books

MALA BLOMQUIST | MANAGING EDITOR

On March 13, Brandeis National Committee Phoenix Chapter hosts its annual Book & Author event, bringing authors and patrons from across the country. The day includes author talks, book sales and signings, boutiques and a luncheon. This year celebrates the 75th anniversary of both Brandeis University in Massachusetts and the Brandeis National Committee.

Carol Kern, co-chair of the event, first brought Book & Author to the Greater Phoenix area 33 years ago when she saw a similar event held by the Los Angeles chapter. She has been the chapter, regional and national president of the Brandeis National Committee, in addition to chairing the event many times over the years.

“They made this wonderful event called ‘Authors & Celebrities’ and they would get this enormous crowd of people. I said, ‘We have to do this!’” said Kern.

Kern said when it first started, she had a contact in Texas who had an “in” with publishers and helped get authors to

attend. But over the years, the Phoenix Chapter has established relationships with publishers, publicists and authors.

“We have an author committee, and several people start working on it at the beginning of summer and by the fall, they have our authors already,” said Jan Lebovitz, co-chair.

“The key to our books is that they are not out yet,” said Linda Ullman, co-chair. “They’re brand-new books; three came out in November and December of last year and two are coming out now."

“We usually have a Jewish author or an author that has a connection to Brandeis,” added Kern. “The author may not be Jewish but their book has Jewish content, either about the Holocaust or the war.”

The five authors featured this year are Wanda M. Morris, Rebecca Makkai, Rabia Chaudry, Larry Lofti and Dani Shapiro. Olivia Fierro, co-host of Good Morning Arizona and host of “Olivia’s Book Club,” is the moderator.

Ullman said she noticed something

when looking at the programs from previous years. “If you look at all the authors who have come to this over the years, some were famous at the time, most were not, but have become very famous. Like James Patterson, Dennis Lehane and Brad Meltzer.”

Book & Author was held in person last year, after a year on Zoom in 2021, along with all the chapter’s other programming, including its study groups.

A portion of the proceeds from Book & Author goes to whatever the university’s fundraising campaign is for that year. This year, the “Legacy of Louis: Inspiring Inquiry,” named after Louis Brandeis, the university’s namesake and the first Jewish Supreme Court Justice, raises funds for the construction of a research archive. Brandeis’ family donated original letters, photographs, documents and family objects to the university, and the library wants to create an interactive addition for people to access these objects.

“The Brandeis library is incredible,” said Lebovitz. “It’s a world-class library

and everything we do seems to add to it at some point.”

She added, “I moved here six years ago from Chicago. A friend told me, ‘When you move, you have to join Brandeis and you have to go to their Book & Author event — do not miss that event.’”

The Phoenix chapter began in 1950 and is the largest in the country, with 1,100 members and more than 90 study groups.

“People wonder if we are all alumni and we are not,” said Ullman of the chapter. “Ninety-nine percent of us haven’t gone to Brandeis. It’s an incredible university with incredible values and represents so many things — we’ve all made lifelong friends.”

“Even though you join for socialization, study groups or some of the programs, you find that we have so much in common and you want to support something that has the same values as you do,” said Kern. JN

For more information, visit brandeisphoenix.org.

Harold & Jean Grossman Teen Israel Experience Incentive Fund

Do you know a teen heading to Israel this year? The Harold & Jean Grossman Teen Israel Experience Incentive Grant Fund made possible through a generous endowment established by Harold (z”l) & Jean (z”l) Grossman, and administered through the Center for Jewish Philanthropy, encourages Jewish teens to participate in teen/peer Israel experience programming. Applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis for any upcoming Israel trip.

ELIGIBILITY & REQUIREMENTS. JEWISH TEENS CAN APPLY IF:

• They live in the area served by the Center for Jewish Philanthropy (Maricopa County).

• Are enrolled in the 10-12th Grade (including the summer following graduation).

• The program must be at least 16 days in Israel, run by a non-profit organization.

• Have not already received the Grossman Teen Israel Experience for a prior trip.

• This is NOT a needs-based scholarship program, this is an incentive grant.

< For more information and to apply

The co-chairs of the Brandeis’ Book & Author event, from left, Jan Lebovitz, Carol Kern and Linda Ullman. COURTESY OF GALE GRADUS

‘No such thing as a typical day,’ say synagogue executive directors; NATA has their back

SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER

Zach Dunn recently ended his tenure as the executive director for Phoenix’s Temple Chai to take the same role at Congregation Ahavath Chesed in Jacksonville, Florida, close to his aging in-laws. It will be his third executive director role at a synagogue in his 13-year career.

The job is especially challenging because of its unpredictability, he said. Dunn has a calendar full of scheduled meetings and events, but he never knows when it will all be upended by something he never saw coming.

“I don’t know what my day looks like when I walk in,” he said.

His discovery of the National Association for Temple Administration (NATA) made his life a little easier. He attended his first NATA conference last November and, in addition to having access to useful data and trends, he started networking with people who face the same issues he does.

“This job can be very lonely at times, and there is comfort in knowing colleagues

across the country dealing with the same exact issues that you’re dealing with — it just makes you feel better,” Dunn said.

Rebecca Weinstein, NATA’s executive assistant, hears similar feedback all the time since taking the job in April of last year. Congregations expect their directors to be personable so new members feel welcomed, skilled project managers for the building and event planners, knowledgeable about finances and budgets, competent grant writers and even to have handyman skills for quick fixes.

Additionally, they also have to manage the sometimes big personalities of their staff and clergy. For example, a congregation might have a dynamic rabbi who wants to help with administrative work but clashes with the staff, or a great religious school director who also happens to be a rabbi and wants to take on more rabbinic responsibilities, or a very talented rabbi and cantor that don’t work well together.

“Half the congregation likes Person

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A and the other half prefers Person B — where does that leave you? This can be a really bad burnout job,” Weinstein said.

She knows the daily stresses as well as anyone, having been Temple Emanuel of Tempe’s executive director before taking the job at NATA. She often found herself turning to her NATA colleagues for ideas and support.

While NATA is officially tied to the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), it is open to all denominations and its members range from small, one-person operations to huge synagogues with thousands of members.

In 2017, Weinstein attended NATA’s Institute, an intensive course offered every other year to a small cohort of members. It includes classes in human resources, synagogue management, budgeting and finance, governance, membership and marketing, as well as liturgy, ceremonies and holidays and a history of Reform Judaism.

This year’s Institute is Feb. 19-22 in Sandy Springs, Georgia, and will be the first since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Institute is always a small cohort of about 20 people, while the annual conference held each fall has a few hundred attendees, and is especially helpful for people new to the job.

Weinstein’s first NATA conference was the one she helped to plan in November. She realized how much she had missed by not attending when she was still at Temple Emanuel. She described the conference as a “magical” experience.

“If I had gone to a NATA conference when I first started and had made the connections I have now but while I was in the moment and had specific questions that needed answers or resources or mentors, it may have helped my longevity in the job,” she surmised.

Aliza Goland, David Lamden and Jack Feldman, all executive directors of synagogues and lay leaders of NATA, have two decades of experience in their profession and are well aware of the challenges. The relationships they’ve built with the help of NATA are a big part of the reason they’re still persevering in a job with a high rate of attrition.

“My job description is whatever doesn’t fall on anybody else’s desk,” Goland said of her position at Temple Aliyah in Woodland Hills, California. But it’s work she loves and “the job I’ll retire from,” she said.

Some of the day-to-day challenges are hard to understand for an outsider. Part of their work is to fix a broken dues

model and find ways to lessen the financial burden of synagogue life for a younger generation of Jews. They are tasked with finding engaging programming to coax new members and keep existing ones. They have also spent an increasing amount of time dealing with security concerns.

“Suddenly, I was applying for Homeland Security grants and getting training for the sweet 80-year-old volunteer at the front desk, who has to learn to run, hide or fight,” Weinstein said.

Sometimes they have to navigate unbelievably dire moments.

Goland recounted a fateful week in November 2018, right as she was leaving for NATA’s annual conference in Austin. On Nov. 7, there was a mass shooting at Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks. Thirteen people were killed, including the shooter, and 16 injured. The following day she got on a plane and by the time she landed, she learned that the shooting was not the only tragedy her city was dealing with.

The Woolsey Fire that would burn 96,949 acres — 9,000 near Thousand Oaks — had begun. She immediately made plans to return.

“What helped me in that moment was being with my colleagues, who gave me strength, resources and support. I was looking at pictures of Torahs being evacuated from our congregation amid smoke and flames — and the world turned upside down. But my colleagues were there for me.”

During the next three weeks, Goland had to manage her synagogue’s shutdown and move the preschool and religious school to another facility. Her colleagues helped her find fire mitigation and other essential resources.

“My colleagues gave me strength to live through that,” she said.

Lamden, executive director of

discover ways

The Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival  is supported by grants from: the City of Tempe - Community Arts Grant, the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix,  the City of Scottsdale, the Molly Blank Fund, the Morris and Gertrude Furman Foundation and the Arizona Commission on the Arts.

Zach Dunn, his wife and children joined the AZ Jews for Pride group, organized by Temple Chai’s Cantor Ross Wolman, at the 2022 Phoenix Pride Parade.

Congregation Emanuel in Houston, could relate.

When Hurricane Harvey hit the Houston area in 2017, Lamden was in Phoenix with family.

Lamden’s first job as executive director was at Temple Solel in Paradise Valley, where he worked from 2007-2013. His sister’s kitchen in Tempe became his command center because it had a working phone and internet. Colleagues he had met through NATA started coming out of the woodwork to offer financial assistance, he said.

“It is amazing when you realize that it’s more than you and your staff. Your team

has a very deep bench because of all these colleagues you’ve built relationships with and they’re asking, ‘How can I help?’ and it’s not just words,” he said.

He had to check on every congregant to make sure they were OK and find out if they needed help. Because his building was in better shape than others in the city, he led efforts to help the Jewish community in Houston.

After spending countless hours on the phone, exhaustion set in, but he continued to get encouraging texts and calls from his cohorts across the country. The following year, he was able to help Goland in her time of need.

“It is unbelievable to know that you can feel like you’re in freefall and you have colleagues around the country who are there to catch you and hold you and legitimately help you in any way possible,” he said.

On the other hand, Feldman recounted a random day, one devoid of any heartpounding drama but still full of critical tasks to keeping his Temple Sinai in Atlanta, with 1,650 families and an operating budget of roughly $7 million, running smoothly.

His day started with an early meeting with his house committee to go over major purchases, such as replacing the rooftop air conditioning units before summer. Next, he met with the immediate past president to discuss the nominating committee. That was followed by lunch with the budget and finance committee, which is preparing to begin a project that will turn a part of the property into a long walking trail. In the evening, he had an endowment committee meeting. In between those larger meetings, he spoke with his associate director about security and a security grant process, in addition to meetings with the cemetery committee.

It was a long and exhausting day and the next one was completely different.

“We learn and we adapt and we rely on our colleagues,” he said. “‘David, how do you do this? What’s your magic? Oh,

you’re doing it that way? Well, thank you. That’s a great suggestion.’”

He and his colleagues collaborate and sometimes they don’t agree. But when they face their most difficult challenges, they can call someone who’s met something similar.

“At the end of the day, you can’t work in a vacuum and be successful because your way may not be the best way or the only way. That’s the beauty of NATA.”

Peer-to-peer support is something that’s important to NATA’s leadership and Weinstein has been tasked with assisting regional groups to ensure that all NATA members can connect with a local group, as well as the national organization. She was once part of such a group of executive directors in Greater Phoenix who met weekly to troubleshoot, share resources and sometimes just let off steam.

Dunn was happy to have the assistance of the colleagues he’s met through NATA and in Greater Phoenix and he’ll keep in touch with many of them, he said.

“We’re all here for the same goal: to bring people together where they can practice their religion and we’re gonna give them that safe space to do it. I do this work because I think people need that.” JN

To learn more about the National Association for Temple Administration, visit natanet.org.

Rebecca Weinstein of Tempe (left) was instrumental in planning the National Association for Temple Adminstrators’ (NATA) November 2022 conference.

COURTESY OF NATA

SOTU stump speech

President Joe Biden delivered his second State of the Union address last week. He spoke to a newly divided Congress and an electorate that polls indicate is generally unimpressed with his performance in office. He used the attention-grabbing State of the Union spectacle to make clear his intention to pursue a second term, with the theme of his campaign to “finish the job.”

Biden’s speech began with, and repeated, his bipartisan aspirations — a recurring theme in the president’s decades-long political career. He was complimentary of Republican congressional leadership as he argued that his first two years in office have generated bipartisan support on a range of important issues. And he invited his “Republican friends” to continue to work together with him “and find consensus on important things in Congress,” including the lifting of the debt ceiling.

Biden’s goading on the debt ceiling issue, including barbs about high deficits under the Trump administration and accusations of Republican demands to cut entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, drew audible protests and

accusatory jeers from some in the audience, including repeated yelling of the accusation “You lie!” by newly empowered right-wing warrior Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). Recently elected Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy appeared unnerved by the outbursts and sought to gently shush the offenders.

The speech then morphed into campaign mode as Biden previewed the themes he will likely pursue in his expected 2024 re-election bid. Those include challenges to the policies, proclivities and personalities in the Trump administration and a focused pitch towards pivotal blue-collar voters. Biden’s

American manufacturing and Americanmade products, pledging to impose new requirements that all construction materials used on federal infrastructure projects would have to be made in America, as he promised to make “Buy American” the law of the land.

To further address the concerns of everyday Americans, Biden promoted the previously obscure Junk Fee Prevention Act to crack down on airlines that charge fees for families that want to sit together; prohibit high ticket-processing fees for concerts and events; and prohibit media companies from charging customers to change service providers. And then, in typical stump-speech campaign mode, he asserted that “Americans are tired of being played for suckers. Pass the Junk Fees Prevention Act so companies stop ripping us off!”

But Biden seized the opportunity and responded to the hecklers by pivoting off-script and seeking to orchestrate bipartisan support to preserve Social Security and Medicare, notwithstanding the debt ceiling debate. Biden’s urgings were met with a standing ovation from the entire chamber.

lunch-pail pandering was textbook: He criticized Big Oil for reaping outrageous profits when gas prices were at a record high. He skewered Big Pharma for drug prices that gouge regular Americans. And he criticized Big Tech for collecting too much personal information, especially on children. He encouraged support for

A new tool for Jewish philanthropy

The Jewish philanthropic sector is valued in the billions of dollars. It is, literally, a very big business. It is comprised of organizations and individuals dedicated to the highest forms of tzedakah and good works that together have significant impact and worldwide reach.

At its core, there is a recurring dynamic that drives the players: Charitable organizations must find donors interested in funding the organization’s efforts, and funders want to find nonprofits that match their philanthropic goals. Last week saw the launch of a tool that has the potential to make the nonprofit sector more efficient, more effective and even more consequential, through a partnership between the Jewish Funders Network (JFN) and impala, a nonprofit sector digital database.

Founded in 1990, JFN has more than 2,500 members. Its ranks include private foundations and individual philanthropists in the United States, Israel and nine other countries. JFN works not just to promote giving, but also enables

and encourages the exchange of ideas to maximize the impact of philanthropic giving. JFN’s meetings and conferences give those in the Jewish nonprofit world the opportunity to come together, share ideas and walk away energized. This year’s conference will be held next month in Phoenix.

entity’s IRS 990 forms, annual reports and websites. With such a reservoir of information available to it, any philanthropic organization or donor faces a much less daunting chore of researching and connecting with potential partners interested in or devoted to the very idea or sector the searcher is looking for.

Foreign-policy issues were addressed largely in passing. And the pro-Israel community heaved a sigh of relief that no mention was made of the Jewish state and concerns over developing policies. Those issues will undoubtedly be addressed in Biden’s expanded pitch for re-election. Stay tuned. JN

Impala is a digital database that assembles publicly available information on millions of foundations and nonprofits. It collects data by scraping details from each

According to a recent article in eJewish Philanthropy, impala will offer free subscriptions to members of the Jewish Funders Network and their grantees for

A NOTE ON OPINION

two years. The free subscriptions almost guarantee a significant mining of impala’s data. Should usage drop off when the free subscriptions lapse, it will be another lesson learned. But for now, the Jewish nonprofit world is taking this opportunity seriously. The Jim Joseph Foundation, the Glazer Foundation, DARE Foundation and JFN’s board chair, Marcia Riklis, have pledged $525,000 to fund the project. Our community is constantly searching for new and innovative ways to tackle the challenges we face. The planned cooperation between JFN and impala could help develop connections to address many of those issues and could be of great value.

Free access to the impala database for organizations and donors opens myriad partnering opportunities to help the people and causes that the nonprofit community exists to serve. We applaud this win-win development, commend the philanthropists who have committed to fund it and look forward to reports of significant successes from this exciting opportunity. JN

We are a diverse community. The views expressed in these opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of the officers and boards of the Jewish Community Foundation, Center for Jewish Philanthropy, Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix, Mid-Atlantic Media or the staff of the Jewish News. Letters must respond to content published by the Jewish News and should be a maximum of 200 words. They may be edited for space and clarity. Unsigned letters will not be published. Letters and op-ed submissions should be sent to editor@jewishaz.com.

IMPALA IS A DIGITAL DATABASE THAT ASSEMBLES PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION ON MILLIONS OF FOUNDATIONS AND NONPROFITS.

BIDEN’S SPEECH BEGAN WITH, AND REPEATED, HIS BIPARTISAN ASPIRATIONS — A RECURRING THEME IN THE PRESIDENT’S DECADES-LONG POLITICAL CAREER.

A leadership call for critical and necessary debate about Israeli policies

DEBRA STEIN

As the 118th Congress begins its work, we believe it is important to state our concerns — which are widely shared by supporters of Israel here and around the world and by a significant number of Israelis — regarding some of the policies proposed by members of Israel’s new government.

of long-standing international norms and coalition agreements, legitimize settlement outposts retroactively and expand Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank.

Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, Israel has had no greater ally than the United States, and the two countries have formed enduring unbreakable ties based on deeply held shared values.

At this pivotal moment in Israel’s history — and with the beginning of a new Congress — we take this opportunity, as leaders in the American Jewish community, to affirm the importance of maintaining those bonds and upholding the strength of the U.S.Israel relationship.

Teen trip of a lifetime

RABBI DEBBIE STIEL

Three weeks ago in Washington, D.C., I had the incredible joy of watching teenagers from Temple Solel in Paradise Valley, Congregation Beth Israel and Temple Kol Ami in Scottsdale and Temple Chai in Phoenix, share their thoughts, concerns and well researched suggestions on important political and social issues with staffers from the offices of Senator Kelly, Senator Sinema and Arizona members of the U.S. House of Representatives. Each of our students proudly stood before these staff liaisons

Our criticisms emanate from a love for Israel and a steadfast support for its security and well-being. Some will try to dismiss their validity by labeling them antisemitic. We want to be clear that, whether or not one agrees with a particular criticism, such critiques of Israeli policy are not antisemitic. Indeed, they reflect a real concern that the new government’s direction mirrors anti-democratic trends that we see arising elsewhere — in other nations and here in the U.S., rather than reinforcing the shared democratic values that are foundational to the U.S.-Israel relationship.

We are, for example, concerned about the Israeli Justice Minister’s plan to limit the Supreme Court’s power, proposed modifications to the Law of Return, to change the status quo on conversions to Judaism and calls by ultra-Orthodox coalition members to outlaw nonOrthodox prayer at the Western Wall. We are also concerned about provocative actions that seek to open the Temple Mount to Jewish prayer in defiance

Let us be clear: when antisemitism shows up in debates about the situation in Israel and the occupied territories, it must be called out. It is antisemitic to advocate the destruction of Israel or to deny the right of the Jewish people to self-determination. It is antisemitic to condemn Israel by using antisemitic tropes or singling out Israel because of its Jewish character. It is antisemitic to use Israel or Zionism as a surrogate for Jews, to hold Jews collectively responsible for Israel’s policies or conduct or to suggest that American Jews are more loyal to Israel than to the U.S. Accusations of antisemitism, however, must not be abused or misused. Indeed, it is profoundly irresponsible to conflate charges of antisemitism with criticism of Israeli policies, especially when antisemitism is on the rise in our country and elsewhere around the world.

Promoting equal rights and justice for all peoples, including Palestinians within Israel and in the occupied territories, is neither anti-Israel nor antisemitic. Indeed, the two-state solution, which is critical for Israel’s survival, provides both Israelis and Palestinians with national

rights, individual human rights, safety, and security. It is not antisemitic to hold Israel to the standards that guide the U.S. commitment to human rights across the globe and reflect our commitment to democracy. And while we do not support the BDS movement, we recognize that non-violent actions that press for changes in Israeli policies are not ipso facto antisemitic.

Turning political disputes about the policies of the Israeli government into an argument about antisemitism interferes with the critical and necessary debate about these policies. It also makes it harder to fight antisemitism by diverting attention away from genuine occurrences of anti-Jewish bigotry and hate.

The bottom line is this: There is no contradiction between combating antisemitism and criticizing the deeply troubling policies of the new Israeli government. Those who employ accusations of antisemitism as a political weapon poison the debate and they weaken our ability to fight real antisemitism and effectively advocate for a strong U.S.Israel relationship. JN

Debra Stein is a Scottsdale resident and board member of the Jewish Democratic Council of America. She is a signatory along with over 170 Jewish leaders, and the only Arizonan, on this statement that originally appeared on israelandantisemitism.com.

Debra Stein

COURTESY OF DEBRA STEIN

Teens from the Reform Judaism’s Religious Action Center’s L’Taken program at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

COURTESY OF RABBI DEBBIE

Jerusalem, spiritual jewel

Hollywood is home to most actors, producers and film moguls.

Silicon Valley (and Israel) is where most tech startups are located, Texas is where most energy and natural resources corporations are based, whereas New York (Wall Street) and London are where a disproportionate number of financial services firms are headquartered.

The Talmud describes Jerusalem’s erstwhile uniqueness much as we relate to these business hubs. Absent any indication of a different hometown, one may assume that a prophet originates in Yerushalayim (Megillah 15B).

Where else would a man or woman achieve the uber-sophisticated spiritual development necessary to enter the ranks of prophecy? Which, according to Maimonides, demands deep wisdom, razor-sharp self-control, far-reaching intellectual capacity and decisive disengagement from any worldly interests?

The character of Yerushalayim and the inspiration that it instills in visitors is the basis for the Biblical mitzvah of aliyah la’regel, the thrice annual, nation-wide visitation to Jerusalem and the Temple which a verse in this week’s parshah powerfully describes as “appear[ing] before the Master, the LORD.” Although we

can only assume that its impact pales in comparison to a pilgrimage to the ancient city, a visit to contemporary Yerushayalim does not disappoint.

I visited most recently one year ago, and I was astounded by the number of major construction projects, infrastructure upgrades and residential building going on throughout the city. Its recently completed light rail system is packed with passengers and major expansions and extensions to additional neighborhoods are underway. The highway from

continues at least a pace with its physical expansion, with its multitudes of Gemaralugging yeshiva students, its throngs of Kohanim (descendant of the sons of Aaron who served as priests in the Temple in Jerusalem) overflowing and spilling out of the Kotel Plaza on Pesach and Sukkos, and its endless, head-spinning variety of shuls.

Few experiences can inspire more than a visit to one of its loud, crowded yeshivas, an Erev Shabbos (Friday) trip to the Machane Yehuda open market with its

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and spoke about why the congressperson should or should not co-sponsor or vote for an upcoming bill. The staffers took notes and they also shared how they progressed, in some cases from Phoenix high-school students themselves, to now working with our congressional leaders.

We were blessed to bring a very large contingent of young adult Reform Jews from the Phoenix area. In total, there were 47 students along with six chaperones (myself and Jesse Edwards from Temple Solel, Rabbi Sara MasonBarkin and Rachael VanLandingham from Congregation Beth Israel, Amanda Campbell and Carly Kastner from Temple Kol Ami) on our trip.

We came for the Union for Reform Judaism’s Religious Action Center’s (RAC) L’Taken teen program. Each

southern Yerushalayim to Gush Etzion is undergoing a major widening project. A new, fast, low-cost train takes travelers to and from Ben Gurion Airport to a stunning modern Jerusalem train station. Not far from the city entrance, a towering apartment building is under construction that will be the tallest in the city, and there are dozens of major renovation projects in progress in each of its many neighborhoods. The city’s parallel spiritual growth

year, thousands of teens attend a L’Taken weekend. At L’Taken, they learn about social justice topics, tour Washington, D.C. and explore Jewish values that inform the Reform movement’s advocacy on modern issues.

On our L’Taken weekend, we joined over 300 students from 38 different congregations from throughout the United States. Most of our teens had never been with that many Jews their own age before. This itself was an impactful event which helps our students deepen their Jewish identities and feel connected to the larger Jewish world. Already at Shabbat services on the first morning, our students began to make friends with Jews from other congregations.

The four days that we were in D.C. were packed! Our students had fun visiting Smithsonian museums, Georgetown, Pentagon Row, the Washington Mall and the congressional office buildings around the U.S. Capitol (they even ate in a staff cafeteria). They spent impactful time at

thousands and thousands of Jews of all stripes and types bustling through its packed alleyways, or a few quiet moments of prayer at the Kotel.

Notwithstanding other cities that claim or boast special religious status, Yerushalayim remains the spiritual capital of the universe.

The symbolic significance of Yerushalayim spirituality has come up regarding the debate over the results of

the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and celebrated Havdalah together at the Jefferson Memorial. They participated in educational electives on topics such as reproductive choice, food insecurity, climate change, gun violence prevention, LGBTQ rights, voting rights, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They listened to the story of someone who had been homeless — so that they might understand that challenge better. And they learned about lobbying, advocacy and how a bill gets passed.

On the final day, as I listened to our students speak on Capitol Hill, I was so relieved that we had finally made it to DC. You see, the past two years we tried to bring students to L’Taken. Each time, the RAC canceled L’Taken due to COVID19. But seeing our students all dressed up and addressing congressional staffers, I felt so grateful that these 10th -12th grade students finally had this opportunity. Our Phoenix students got to know each other, learn important skills, and see how we can

the recent Israeli elections which reflect a politically divided electorate. One major issue is the role of religion in the state. “This is the struggle, if you will,” wrote Elliot Abrams, “between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, between those who go to the beach on Shabbat and those who go to synagogue.” The former is concerned that the democratic foundation of the country is at stake, while the latter, the growing majority, fears an ambivalence or hostility to the state’s Jewishness and “they see no point in an Israel that is just another liberal democracy like Canada or Norway or the United States.” As Yossi Klein Halevi put it, “an Israel stripped of its Jewishness would lose its reason for being, its internal cohesion and the vitality that has enabled it to survive against the odds.” Let’s hope that these factions can meet in the middle, and both appreciate that a healthy, vibrant Israel needs the economic heft of Tel Aviv but is bereft of purpose without the spiritual lodestar of Jerusalem. JN

take our Jewish values and use them to promote social justice.

After the trip, I heard the following comments from our students which just point to how powerful this experience is, “I never knew you could go to the office of your senators,” “I plan to take a government course over the summer now and return to D.C.,” “It was very meaningful to be with so many other Jewish students,” “I really learned a lot about what is going on between Palestinians and Israelis,” “I am so glad to know the teens from the other local congregations.”

We talk frequently about Jewish values and being part of the bigger Jewish community, but a trip like this brings those lessons home in a very tangible, memorable and impactful way. If your children have a chance to attend L’Taken, I highly recommend it. JN

Rabbi Yisroel Isaacs is director of the Greater Phoenix Vaad Hakashruth, rabbi at Beth Joseph Congregation and director of the Jewish Enrichment Center.

PARSHAH MISHPATIM

EXODUS 21:1 - 24:18

RABBI YISROEL ISAACS

Find area congregations at jewishaz.com, where you can also find our 2023 Community Directory.

SHABBAT CANDLE LIGHTING

Rabbi Debbie Stiel is the associate rabbi of Temple Solel in Paradise Valley.

Rabbi Yisroel Isaacs

COURTESY OF RABBI YISROEL ISAACS

NOTWITHSTANDING OTHER CITIES THAT CLAIM OR BOAST SPECIAL RELIGIOUS STATUS, YERUSHALAYIM REMAINS THE SPIRITUAL CAPITAL OF THE UNIVERSE.

Arizona students can tour Auschwitz virtually thanks to the East Valley JCC. It starts with a ‘punch in the face.’

SHANNON LEVITT | STAFF WRITER

Human remains, skeletal and naked, are among the first images of “Auschwitz Virtual Live Tour.” Russians captured the gruesome scenes as they liberated Auschwitz, the largest of six Nazi death camps, in January 1945. Jerzy Wójcik, the tour’s creator and only guide, begins with them precisely because they act as a “punch in the face.”

For a two-hour tour of the largest concentration camp ever built and the epicenter of the Final Solution, such a shock is necessary to remind people just what they’ve signed up for, he said.

Wójcik explains that these murdered victims were left by the Nazis, who did not have time to burn the bodies before fleeing the advancing Russians. As he speaks, his voice is quiet, nearly a whisper, but the images are loud, certain to focus viewers and immediately cast out distractions.

Roughly 60,000 people have seen the tour since Wójcik developed it two years ago and joined forces with the East Valley Jewish Community Center (EVJCC) in Chandler to promote it. He’s learned what works, especially when it comes to presenting information to kids.

“Being part of the educational system and part of teaching the new generation of people gives me a lot of satisfaction,” Wójcik told Jewish News.

Thanks to a grant last summer from the Molly Blank Foundation and a grant from the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix last spring, the EVJCC is offering the tour to Arizona’s schools for the 202223 school year.

Rabbi Michael Beyo, EVJCC CEO, hopes schools take advantage of the offer, especially given that Holocaust education curriculum for seventh through 12th graders was mandated by legislation signed by Gov. Doug Ducey in 2021.

“This is such a great opportunity to teach Holocaust education in general, and specifically about Auschwitz,” Beyo told Jewish News.

Tours for schools are customized in consultation with teachers, who may request that some of the more graphic images are not included, particularly for younger students.

Last year, 4,000 Chandler School District high school students spent three days experiencing the virtual tour, with plans for more this spring. The district tweeted its thanks:

“With help from Rabbi Beyo and @EastValleyJCC, our high school students opted in to experience a virtual field trip of Auschwitz & learn the historical importance of the Holocaust.”

During the 2021-2022 school year, more than 6,000

middle school and high school students from more than 40 schools in Arizona and across the United States attended the tours.

A high school teacher in Michigan told the EVJCC, “Students were in awe. We had such a great conversation after and continue to reference what we learned on the tour; it has contributed a lot of new information to our curriculum.”

Students come to the tour with various levels of knowledge about the Holocaust and what part Auschwitz played. Some have spent a semester covering World War II with an emphasis on the Holocaust, some have read “Night,” Elie Wiesel’s autobiographical

SEE ARIZONA STUDENTS, PAGE 14

“Auschwitz Virtual Live Tour”

ARIZONA STUDENTS

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account of being imprisoned there and some come to the tour having had only a brief introduction.

Wójcik said the tour accommodates them all.

Wójcik was born and raised in the Polish town that borders the infamous concentration and death camp, and after being steeped in its history for most of his life, he spent 15 years as a certified Auschwitz guide and educator.

In 1947, Auschwitz, a huge complex divided into three main sections, including 40 satellite camps, was established as a museum that preserved much of what remained of the original sites. Wójcik created the virtual tour after the COVID19 pandemic shut down in-person visits — when there was no telling when it would open again.

Wójcik uses both Google Maps and his own footage to show the large scale of the place juxtaposed with some buildings’ tight and ominous interiors. Giving a macro and micro view was remarked upon by several high school students in their feedback to the EVJCC.

Without geographical restrictions, he can take his viewers from prisoner barracks and the inside of a gas chamber to a collection of victims’ most personal belongings: eyeglasses, prosthetic limbs, even hair — the one item the AuschwitzBirkenau Memorial and Museum doesn’t allow visitors to film.

One question students often ask

concerns what people did all day.

He explains that no matter their profession, people were forced mainly into physical labor: digging, making fences, building things, fixing existing things, cultivating land, growing potatoes, building gas chambers and carrying bodies to crematoriums. Thousands were also sold as slave labor to places like IG Farben’s chemical plant outside of Auschwitz.

At this point, Wójcik takes time to point out that many existing German companies, such as Bayer, Siemens and Volkswagen, benefited from Auschwitz and slave labor. He suggests investigating these and other companies as a homework assignment to discover what role they played and whether they ever suffered any consequences for their actions.

The tour’s script includes details of prisoners’ daily lives, including photos of the thin, striped uniforms and wooden clogs they wore and a description of their scraps of daily food that consisted of roughly 300 calories made up of tea or coffee, a thin soup with a few vegetables, potatoes and maybe, some days, meat, and a slice of bread, even, on good days, a pat of butter.

Wójcik shows pictures of people so stunted by malnutrition that a teenage boy looks like a prepubescent child and an adult man resembles a teen. There’s a photo of an adult woman who weighed 50 pounds when she was liberated. She died shortly after.

The Russians liberated 7,000 people

and more than 600 died soon after. They were given food, but their bodies rejected it.

However, the overwhelming majority of people who arrived at Auschwitz were selected to go straight to the gas chamber. For those chosen to live, life expectancy was two months on average.

One thing Wójcik wishes he had more time for is stories of survivors.

He tells a few of their stories, including one woman who invited him to stay at her house in Tel Aviv in 1999. She was a teenager when she was arrested in Krakow, the same city where Wójcik now lives.

A student once asked her why she didn’t try to escape while she was being transported.

“While I was holding the head of my mother in one hand, in the other hand I was holding the hand of my younger sister,” she replied. “How can you possibly try to escape in a situation when you’re just trying to hold onto your family?”

During the Q&A following his Dec. 4 public tour, participant Corinne Vance commented that it is “sobering beyond words to know that people knew and did nothing.”

Wójcik hears this often and said that the words “never again” are often repeated by well-meaning people who have no concept of how to prevent further atrocities.

“Atrocities have happened, are happening now and they are going to

happen in the future and the question is exactly the same: Who knew and how did we react? Whether it was Yugoslavia or Rwanda or even now in Ukraine, the reaction is the same,” he said.

It’s one of the reasons his work is so important to him.

Another is ensuring that people don’t forget the past, especially now that survivors are passing away and there’s a rise in antisemitism.

Though nobody has ever denied the Holocaust outright to his face, he has met people who tried to diminish it.

“Antisemitism is driving that and it’s the same sort of myths that the Jews are ruling the world and controlling the media,” he said.

The EVJCC is a great partner for Wójcik since it has a long history and high caliber of Holocaust education, as well as established connections in the U.S. and Canada, said Beyo.

“It’s easier for us to promote these tours than an individual person sitting in his office in Poland,” Beyo said.

The EVJCC schedules public tours every Sunday and every other Saturday for $39. It is a scholarship boon for those who, for any reason, can’t travel to Poland.

“There are so many hundreds of thousands — or millions of people maybe — that would want to have that experience, but going to Auschwitz in Poland is not on their bucket list,” Beyo said. JN

To schedule a tour, visit holocausteducation.center/ arizona-schools.

Expo gives parents overview of Jewish options for kids’ summer

MALA BLOMQUIST | MANAGING EDITOR

On Jan. 9, people came to the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center in Scottsdale to shop for options to fill their kids’ summer at the JKids and Teens Expo.

Event Smart Productions provided music as children participated in activities and picked up swag from organizations representing camps, teen Israel experiences, enrichment activities and schools.

Shalom Phoenix and the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix (CJP) put on the event that provided parents the opportunity to speak with representatives from organizations directly and get their questions answered.

“The JKids and Teens Expo was created to help families connect with the different opportunities available for Jewish kids and teens,” said Andrea Cohen, director of youth philanthropy and community engagement for CJP. “Our goal was to elevate these local and regional initiatives and help families see the tremendous breadth of programming available.”

She said plans are already in the works for a second JKids and Teens Expo in January 2024.

Mary Passell, Jewish Studies teacher at Pardes Jewish

The JKids and Teens Expo showcased a variety of camps and enrichment activites for kids.

Day School in Scottsdale, echoed Cohen’s sentiment about opportunities: “This is a great way to get connected and see what programming is out there.”

Parent Tammi Goldberg, who has 12-year-old twin boys, came to find out more information about BBYO, an organization that offers leadership development programs and helps teens build their Jewish identity. “I did that as a kid and I would like my boys to join,” she said.

Dana Furman, a parent with elementary school-age children, said she was “looking for organizations that don’t require the COVID vaccine and offer a more traditional camp experience.”

Volunteer teens, some with the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Phoenix’s Hebrew High’s Monthly Mitzvah program, passed out Shalom Phoenix insulated lunch bags to attendees.

“It was wonderful to see so many different types of organizations serving the Jewish youth of our community in such an uplifting environment,” said Rabbi Aviva Funke, associate director of BJE and principal of Hebrew High. “It was an added bonus to see so many teens volunteering to help.”

In addition to “bringing the big Jewish fun,” said Rachel VanLandingham, director of youth education and engagement at Congregation Beth Israel

in Scottsdale, the expo allowed the kids to “see us coming together as a community even though we are different entities.”

This was the first time since before the pandemic that many of the participants were able to meet with prospective parents in a venue alongside their fellow professionals.

“It’s finally great to see people, to see new families and to get everyone together for the new year,” said Sarah Bochenek, youth director at both Congregation Or Tzion in Scottsdale and Temple Beth

Sholom of the East Valley in Chandler.

Andre Ivory, education director at Congregation Or Tzion, said he was happy to see his counterparts and that it’s “a great opportunity for all congregations, organizations and agencies to share the vast activities offered in our community.” He passed out a lot of information and looks forward to following up with members of the community.

Chi Isiogu, program director at Temple Chai in Phoenix, said the event was a “great networking opportunity for Jewish

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professionals, in addition to seeing what everyone here has to offer.”

Funke agreed about the networking opportunity. “As much as it was informative for families, it was equally as important to the various organizations to have a chance to see each other and empower one another for what we do. I left with new potential collaborators and meetings on the calendar — and I look forward to more community programs like this,” she said.

Many of the parents leaving the expo held stacks of papers and brochures.

Stephanie Heller, who has three children — a 9-year-old and 5-year-old twins — came for information about overnight camps, Camp Ramah in California and Camp Daisy and Harry Stein in Prescott, and Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center’s Shemesh day camp in Scottsdale.

“I am familiar with East Coast camps, but not here, and I wanted to see what camps had to offer,” she said. “There’s a lot of information and I’m a tiny bit overwhelmed — it kind of felt like speed dating.” JN For more information, visit jewishaz.com. click on the 2023 Community Directory and flip to the Youth/Teens section on page 40.

Jewish News is published by the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix, a component of the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix.

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COURTESY OF THE BUREAU OF JEWISH EDUCATION OF GREATER PHOENIX’S HEBREW HIGH

Dealing with debt

OPHIR GROSS | COLUMNIST

The start of the new year has provided an upward turn for the housing market as activity rises following the sudden shift we witnessed just nine months ago. Local real estate professionals and economists are noticing a substantial increase overall — an increase in homes listed for sale, pending transactions and, most importantly, buyer demand. While our market hasn’t returned to its heightened peak of buyer activity, as we saw in 2021 and early 2022, it’s projected to head back in that direction once interest rates begin to fall.

Before the demand frenzy shifts into full gear, it’s an ideal time for first-time home buyers to enter the market while competition is still limited. Discovering your buying power is one of the essential first steps of the home-buying process — facilitating your maximum buying power will provide you with more flexibility and comfort. To get the best possible loan option, credit, debt-to-income ratio and down payment are key determinants for lenders. The higher the credit score, the lower the debt-to-income ratio and the higher the down payment, the better mortgage loan you will obtain.

We will review the importance of, and tips for managing, your debt-to-income

ratio for the most favorable loan option. Let’s begin with the basics. What is debt? According to The Economic Times, “when a party or corporation borrows money to make big purchases or investments that are normally unaffordable and has to be repaid within a certain time, along with interest, such borrowed sum is called debt.” Simply put, debt is any borrowed sum that needs to be repaid. And just to clear the air, debt isn’t inherently bad. You will always have debt in your lifetime, whether it’s from buying a house, a car, student loans, medical bills or an installment purchase. While some debt is better than others, how you manage your debts is equally important. The key is understanding how to utilize debt in your favor.

What is debt-to-income ratio?

According to Rocket Mortgage, “Your debt-to-income ratio, or DTI, is a percentage that tells lenders how much money you spend on monthly debt payments versus how much money you have coming into your household.”

Lenders look at how much debt you have compared to how much money you make monthly and determine what additional debt you can take on, given your current financial situation. While every financial institution varies on DTI requirements, the industry standard for a conventional loan can be as high as a 50% ratio. For FHA loans, those limits can go up to 57%. Lenders prefer to work with borrowers with lower DTI, as it implies you’re less likely to default on your loan. It is the responsibility of lending institutions to ensure the amount they approve you for isn’t going to push you over the edge and put you in a financial bind. For this reason, managing your debt is vital.

Before spending thousands of dollars to pay off your debts, always consult with

a lender to see if those funds are better spent towards a downpayment instead of debt repayment. If a lender suggests your DTI is on the higher end, consider the following tips.

One approach is paying off your most expensive loan first — and by most expensive, I mean your loan with the highest interest rate. After that, begin repaying the loan with the next highest interest rate and so on. This method is known as the “avalanche method.” Another tactic is using the “snowball method” — begin by paying off your smallest balances first and then rolling that same payment towards your next smallest balance and then your next smallest balance. I think you’re getting the hang of it!

The key is always to be aware of the debt you are taking on, especially if you are planning on buying a house! Financing many different purchases will slowly add up. And when it comes to cosigning, the general rule of thumb is to stay away from it! Be cautious about cosigning for others, as their debt now

becomes your debt. And if you are going to cosign, it’s vital to ensure the primary borrower makes all the payments for the first 12 months, as after that, lenders typically don’t count that debt as your own anymore.

While buyers begin to take advantage of the current market, it’s imperative you set yourself up to be just as competitive. Understanding your buying power and working towards the best possible loan scenario is the name of the game. You can do this by consulting with a lender and reviewing your credit and debt-toincome ratio. Remember, the more you know and are prepared, the smoother the home-buying process will be. JN

Ophir Gross is a realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty and has a combined skillset of business strategy and consumer psychology. She is a member of JNFuture Root Society, Women in Philanthropy, NowGen Phoenix, attends Congregation Beth Tefillah and began her roots in the community at the Phoenix Hebrew Academy and, formerly, Jess Schwartz High School. She can be reached at ophir. gross@cbrealty.com or 480-794-0807.

Wedding trends

JODY STACHEL | SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

It is an extremely exciting time to be planning a 2024 wedding! Many brides and grooms want to create a unique experience for their guests while, at the same time, following the latest trends. Here are some trends that are proving to be popular this year.

Dress designs

Bridal dress designs that are trending right now include colored dresses, removable sleeves, pearl details, gloves, feathers, 3D florals, capes, bows, mock necks and cowl necklines.

Bridesmaid’s choice

Brides are picking bridesmaid dresses in varying hues of the same color. Gone are the days where each bridesmaid dress had to match. Popular colors that make a statement are deep purples, greens and blues. There is more focus on mismatched styles as bridesmaids are given the choice of the design that fits them best. Floral dresses are also increasing in popularity and are a favorite pick for springtime weddings.

Splashes of color

While blue seems to be the most popular color choice right now, bright pinks and oranges are also gaining momentum.

Eco-friendly options

Eco-conscious brides and grooms continue to focus their attention on creating eco-friendly affairs. Care is being taken to use products that can be recycled or reused.

Electronic invitations will continue to grow in popularity and graphic designers are being asked to design an invitation that can be uploaded into the custom sections of invitation websites. Evite was one of the original websites for

electronic invitations, but many other companies have entered this arena such as Greenvelope and Paperless Post. These websites offer the bride and groom the ability to message their guests at any point and inform them of changes, additions or requests for responses from guests whose RSVPs didn’t come in on time. Using electronic invitations also s aves money on the printing costs of traditional invitations and the postage to send them out and get the RSVP cards back — not to mention saving trees.

Creative displays

Artistic displays will continue to grow in popularity. Trending is arched, rounded, tubular and acrylic panels used for seating charts, drink stations, dessert presentations and photo opportunities. These displays are often used where the bride and groom or their planners want to create a specific “look” for their wedding.

Going retro

Vintage or retro designs continue to be popular and a nod to the 1970s will show itself in wallpaper designs, disco balls and the use of 70s fonts on invitations.

Keep it simple

Black and white will rise in popularity in 2024 and will show up in an array of black metals for decor and backdrops with the use of bright white florals to soften the black. Choosing elega nt invitations using bright white card stock and black font provide a very simple but elegant presentation.

Personalize it

Personalized neon signs have taken over social media for parties and weddings since 2021 but will continue in a bigger and bolder way moving into 2024. Although expensive, brides and grooms get to keep the sign and display it in their home after the wedding is over as

a reminder of their special day for years to come.

Welcome back

Coming back into popularity will be champagne towers and champagne walls. Also continuing are “the over the top” looks of large, hanging floral displays over guest tables.

See you later

More traditional wedding activities such as the bridal bouquet toss and garter pulls are continuing to fall in popularity.

Weddings in 2023 and into 2024 will continue to be an experience. The pandemic made us all realize that there is no time to waste and we must take every opportunity to celebrate — especially when it comes to weddings! JN

Jody Stachel is the owner of Events 13/ Candy Rocks LLC. For more information, visit events13.com.

PHOTO BY TAYLOR GRAY ON UNSPLASH

They were denied Jewish weddings in the Soviet Union. So these 3 couples just got married again.

PENNY SCHWARTZ | JTA

Veiled brides holding white bouquets; a gold-colored chuppah; the signing of ketubahs, Jewish marriage contracts; lively Jewish music wafting through a social hall as guests danced the hora.

It had all the telltale signs of a traditional Jewish wedding. But the three couples were already married — and had been for a collective total of 125 years.

The event on Wednesday was an opportunity for three Ukraine-born couples to have the Jewish ceremonies they could not have when they first wed, when Jewish practice was forbidden under communism in their country.

“It was my dream for many, many years and dreams come true,” said Elisheva Furman, who first married her husband Fishel in Ukraine 50 years ago.

Held by Shaloh House, a Chabad Lubavitch organization in Boston that serves Jews from the former Soviet Union, the event was also an opportunity for Chabad rabbinical students to practice officiating at Jewish weddings.

Shaloh House launched a rabbinical training institute in 2021, after Rabbi

Shlomo Noginski, an educator at the school, was stabbed eight times outside the building in a vicious attack that jolted Boston and especially its Jewish community.

“This wedding ceremony is a victory of love and kindness over oppression and hate,” said Rabbi Dan Rodkin, director of Shaloh House, in a statement. “It is a testament to the strength of the Jewish people and the resilience of these Sovietborn couples, who want to celebrate their union in accordance with their faith and heritage.”

Rodkin himself grew up in Russia. The Chabad movement, which is especially strong in the former Soviet Union, where it was born, has sought to reach Jews from the region whose practices and connection to Judaism were attenuated by living under communism. Shaloh House offers a school, synagogue and community center all focused on Boston’s substantial community of Russianspeaking emigres.

Growing up, despite antisemitic repression, Elisheva and Fishel Furman both said their families maintained a strong Jewish identity and privately observed Jewish holidays. But “it was dangerous” to show their faith in public, said Elisheva, the grandmother of four. So when they got married, they did so only in a civil ceremony.

Their religious ceremony and the two others that took place Wednesday, individualized for each couple, stretched for more than four hours and featured a festive meal and desserts including traditional Ukrainian and Russian foods.

The event took place in the lead-up to the one-year anniversary on Feb. 24, of Russia’s invasion into the couples’ homeland that is under ruthless bombardment that is devastating Ukraine. Rimma Linkova, who’s been married to Alexander Linkov for 40 years, and one of the other couples being married, has a cousin still in Ukraine. They talk regularly, she said.

“It’s almost one year of the war and it’s still not ended. It’s very difficult. It’s dying for no reason.” Linkov said.

The third couple was Sofya Hannah and Gedalia Gulnik, who used their Hebrew names.

Yelena Gulnik said she was thrilled to see her parents have a Jewish wedding, something she said her father was initially hesitant to do after so many years of marriage. The mother of three, whose kids attend Shaloh House’s day school, was born in Odessa and came in 1994 with her parents to Boston when she was

12 years old.

“My parents never had a chuppah, they never had a religious ceremony. They were not familiar with many religious Jewish traditions,” Gulnik said. “But it was an amazing opportunity. I don’t think they would have ever done this if Rabbi Rodkin hadn’t offered.”

Being at a wedding for her grandparents is “a little weird since you don’t see it every day,” Yelena’s oldest daughter said. “But it’s certainly exciting.”

Among the attendees were New England Patriots Jewish owner Robert Kraft, and his wife, Dana Blumberg, who themselves were married in November. Kraft, whose Campaign to Fight Antisemitism philanthropy launched in 2019, made a $250,000 donation following the attack on Noginski that helped start the rabbinic program.

“When I saw Rabbi Noginksi getting stabbed in my hometown of Boston, it hurt me,” Kraft told JTA at the wedding.

“This hit close to home, which was shocking to me,” he elaborated in an email response to a question. “It’s an important reminder that antisemitism and hate happens everywhere, even in a community like ours.”

“Since the attack, I have been moved by how Rabbi Noginski has used this horrible incident as an opportunity to raise awareness of the prevalence of antisemitism and the need to stand up to all acts of hatred,” Kraft wrote. “He is a real hero, who not only saved lives that day, but continues to use his experience

to educate others.”

Noginski’s personal story has struck a chord for many. As a young man growing up in St. Petersburg, he and his mother experienced antisemitism, eventually leading them to move to Israel. He and his wife, who at the time of the attack had only recently arrived in Boston, have 12 children.

He has added his voice beyond Boston, speaking in Hebrew at a Washington D.C. rally on antisemitism in July 2021, less than two weeks after the attack. His alleged attacker was arrested but has not yet been tried.

But while the attack was in the background at the wedding event, it was not the main focus as the families celebrated together.

“The wedding has enormous meaning,” said Dmitry Linkov about his parents’ ceremony.

He was 5 when his family left Kyiv and settled in Boston. They lived secular lives when he and his younger sister were growing up, he said, but he and his wife, active in Chabad in Chestnut Hill, now embrace more religious practice and observe Shabbat and keep a kosher home.

“What my parents have done tonight will be passed on for generations. It’s a blessing for our future generations,” Dmitry Linkov told JTA.

He hopes the Jewish wedding ceremony inspires other Jews from the former Soviet Union who fled persecution.

“They are celebrating for a nation,” he said. “It’s pretty amazing.”

Featured Event

THURSDAY, MARCH 2

Building Your Personal Brand

5:30-7 p.m. Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Join the Center for Jewish Philanthropy’s Business & Professionals group for drinks, networking and a discussion on the topic of personal branding by PR expert Nicole Myden. Attendees will leave the event with the tools they need to build or enhance their own personal brand. Cost: $18 per person. For more information, visit phoenixcjp.org/brand.

Events

SUNDAY, FEB. 19

Babka, Bagels and a Book with Maggie Anton: 11:30 a.m. Beth El Congregation, 1118 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. Join Beth El Women’s League for a book signing, meet and greet and discussion with guest author Maggie Anton about her book, “The Choice.” Cost: $10. For more information, visit bethelphoenix.com.

Hamentashen Baking Party: 3:30-5 p.m. The New Shul, 7825 E. Paradise Lane, Scottsdale. Join PJ Library and The New Shul to bake hamentashen, sing songs, hear stories and make Purim crafts. For more information, contact Jolene Kuty at kutychiropractic@yahoo.com.

The Honey Girl of Auschwitz Comes to Fountain Hills: 3:30-4:30 p.m. Chabad of Fountain Hills, 16830 E. Ave. of the Fountains, Fountain Hills. Hear Esther Basch’s personal recount of her harrowing experience in the Auschwitz death camps. Cost: $15 in advance; $20 at the door. For more information, visit jewishfountainhills.com.

SUNDAY, FEB. 19-MARCH 5

27th Annual Greater Phoenix Jewish Film Festival: In theaters and virtual. Enjoy the latest and greatest in international Jewish feature films, short films and bonus content. For more information, visit gpjff.org.

MONDAY, FEB. 20

Sisterhood Luncheon: 12 p.m. Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, 12202 N. 101st Ave., Sun City. Lauren Abramowitz, gemologist and appraiser, will discuss how to determine what jewelry is worth. Cost: $12 for Temple members, $15 for nonmembers. RSVP deadline is Feb. 15. For more information, contact 623-977-3240 or email TempleBethShalomAZ@gmail.com.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 22

Jewish Community Center Blood Drive: 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. A Vitalant bloodmobile will be in the parking lot. Preregister to schedule an appointment at vitalant.org, use code JCCVOS or contact 877-258-4825.

THURSDAY, FEB. 23

Annual Arizona Breakfast for Israel: 7:30-9 a.m. JW Marriott Desert Ridge, 5350 E. Marriott Dr., Phoenix. Join Jewish National Fund-USA and members of the Desert States community for a celebration commemorating the 75th anniversary of Israel’s independence. For more information, visit jnf.org.

FRIDAY, FEB. 24

Purim Family Shabbat with PJ Library: 5 p.m. Beth El Congregation, 1118 W. Glendale Ave., Phoenix. Sing and dance with Mr. Erez, Shabbat prayers, crafts and hear the Purim story. Dress in your favorite costume! For more information, visit bethelphoenix.com/ form/PJ-Purim.

SUNDAY, FEB. 26

WIP Cares Day – A Day of Action for Women IN Philanthropy: 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Congregation Beth Israel, 10460 N. 56th St., Paradise Valley. Join Women IN Philanthropy for a light breakfast and program before heading out in groups to participate in mitzvah projects at organizations across Greater Phoenix. Cost: $18 suggested donation. For more information, visit phoenixcjp.org.

Purim Puppy Party in the Park: 1-3 p.m. Soccer fields at Pardes Jewish Day School, 12753 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Join Gesher Disability Resources and friends from the community and Arizona Humane Society for a fun, inclusive Purim celebration. For more information, visit gesherdr.org.

The Iranian Jewish Experience: 6:30-8 p.m. Beth El Congregation, 1118 W. Glendale Ave., Phoenix. Join the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Phoenix for a presentation by Tabby Refael, an awardwinning weekly editorial columnist for The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. She was born in Iran after the Islamic Revolution. Part of BJE’s Jewish Passages 2023 series. Cost: $20. For more information, visit bjephoenix.org/programs/passages.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1

Art Opening Reception: ‘Sunshine in the Garden:’ 5:30-7:30 p.m. The Gallery at Mountain Shadows, 5445 E. Lincoln Drive, Paradise Valley. Join local artist Nancy Kravetz at a reception for the exhibition that highlights her lifetime of work. The exhibit is on view now through March 31. For more information, visit mountainshadows.com/ resort/the_gallery or nancykravetz.com.

SUNDAY, MARCH 5

Purim Carnival: 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Congregation Kehillah, 5858 E. Dynamite Blvd., Cave Creek. Enjoy a costume parade, bounce houses, crafts, music, food and more. Cost: Free. For more information, visit congregationkehillah.org.

Breaking Glass Ceilings: First Druze Woman in Knesset: 12-2 p.m. at Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, 12202 N. 101st Ave., Sun City and 5:30 p.m. at Temple Kol-Ami, 15030 N. 64th St., Scottsdale. Join the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Phoenix for a presentation by Gadeer

Kamal-Mreeh, the first Druze member of Knesset. The event is part of the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Phoenix’s Jewish Passages 2023 series. The Temple Kol-Ami event is also presented by the Ben Gurion Society. For more information, visit bjephoenix.org/programs/passages.

3GAZ Purim Celebration: 3-5 p.m. Horizon Park ramada #2, 15444 N. 100th St., Scottsdale. Holocaust survivors and 2Gs, 3Gs and 4Gs are all welcome to enjoy refreshments and Purim crafts. RSVP to 3gaz@phxha.com by March 1.

MONDAY, MARCH 6

Purim Celebration: 5:30 p.m. Beth El Congregation, 1118 W. Glendale Ave., Phoenix. Purim celebration featuring dinner, a magic show, Megillah reading and more. Reservations required for dinner. Cost: $15 adults; $10 children; $45 per family. For more information, visit bethelphoenix.com/ purim-2023.

TUESDAY, MARCH 7

JFCS Memory Café Hosts Purim Party: 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. Temple Chai, 4645 E. Marilyn Road, Phoenix. In-person Purim Party for individuals who are living with memory problems and their care partners. Come enjoy food and live music by Eric Kaye. Guests are encouraged to wear costumes and bring a non-perishable food item to benefit the Just 3 Things food pantry. For more information, visit jfcsaz. org.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY, MARCH 10-12

Documentary Film Series: Virtual. Join the Arizona Jewish Historical Society for its monthly film series. This month’s feature is “Song Searcher: The Times and Toils of Moyshe Beregovsky.” Cost: Free. For more information, visit azjhs.org/ documentary-film-series.

SATURDAY, MARCH 11

Best of Sondheim and Bernstein: 2 & 7 p.m. Don Bluth Front Row Theatre, 8989 E. Via Linda #118, Scottsdale. Join the Carolyn Eynon Singers for their first concert of the season. For more information, visit cesingers.com.

TUESDAY, MARCH 21

Lighting the Spark: 7:30-9:30 a.m. Clayton House, 3719 N. 75th St., Scottsdale. Join the Center for Jewish Philathropy of Greater Phoenix for their 2023 campaign breakfast honoring Michael and Carmen Blank with the Center for Jewish Phianthropy Spark Award, Leah Bold Mondlick with the Lee Amada Award and Bryce Schotz with the Sy Clark Award. For more information, visit phoenixcjp.org/spark.

The Orwellian Lies About Israel: 6 p.m. Congregation Beth Israel, 10460 N. 56th St., Scottsdale. Joion Mort Klein, president of ZOA ( Zionist Organization of America), for a discussion and dinner. Presented by the Jewish Women’s Conservative Forum. For more information, contact lks19@cox.net or LynnKahn@ymail.com.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29

Community-Wide Briefing with Oren Segal: 6 p.m. Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Join Oren Segal, vice president of the Anti-Defmanation League’s Center on Extremism, for a discussion of the landscape of extremism in the U.S. and in Arizona and what we can do to fight it. RSVP required at bit.ly/AZOren23.

SUNDAYS

B.A.G.E.L.S: 9-11 a.m; last Sunday of the month. Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Grab a bagel and a cup of coffee at Bagels And Gabbing Every Last Sunday and enjoy some time with your friends and make new ones. You must register to attend. Bagels and coffee will be provided. Cost: Free for members, $5 for guests. For more information and to register, visit vosjcc.org.

MONDAYS Mahjong: 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. East Valley Jewish Community Center, 908 N. Alma School Road, Chandler. Come play Mahjong each week. For experienced players only. Free; registration required at evjcc.org/ mahjong.

THURSDAYS

Storytime at Modern Milk: 9:30 a.m. Modern Milk, 13802 N. Scottsdale Road, #163, Scottsdale. Storytime for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Integrates children’s books and songs while giving parents new ideas for play. Cost: $5. For more information and to register, visit modernmilk.com/after-baby.

Meetings, Lectures & Classes

SUNDAYS

Chassidus Class: 9 a.m. Online. Learn about the Chasidic movement with Rabbi Yossi Friedman. Cost: Free. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Jewish War Veterans Post 210: 10 a.m. Online. Any active duty service member or veteran is welcome to join monthly meetings, every third Sunday. Cost: Free. For more information, email Michael Chambers at c365michael@yahoo.com.

SEE CALENDAR, PAGE 23

Beautiful babies and moms

A group shot of the moms with their babies at the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Phoenix’s Baby & Me Shabbat on the first Friday of every month.

OF

OF

Eagle pride

Temple Chai Cantor Ross Wolman (left) has deep generational roots in Philadelphia, and Congregation Or Tzion Rabbi Andy Green (right) began his rabbinic career in a synagogue near Philadelphia. They were both excited to show their Philadelphia Eagles’ pride before the Super Bowl LVII on Sunday, Feb. 12.

COURTESY OF CANTOR ROSS WOLMAN

PAN talks estate admin

Professional Advisory Network’s January gathering took place on Jan. 24, at the Ina Levine Jewish Community Center. Pictured from left are Amy DL Hummel, executive director of Gesher Disability Resources, Lauren Garner and Lisa Paine, who are partners at Jaburg & Wilk Law Firm. Each gave presentations on the ins and outs of estate administration.

Being better bus

Arizona Jews for Justice’s team packing its ‘Let’s Be Better Humans’ bus full of lunch bags to pass out to people experiencing food insecurity. Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz gives a sermon before people climb on board.

JCRC on the court

The Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury basketball organizations held a panel discussion around Martin Luther King, Jr. Day for leaders in Greater Phoenix to share what they do to make Phoenix more equitable and inclusive. Pictured from left: Dr. Mark Clifford of DREAM Foundation; Vince Kozar, president of the Phoenix Mercury; Angela Hughey, president/CEO of ONECommunity; Andrea Trischan, DEI manager of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury; Veronica Aguilar, vice president of Teach for America; Ashlee Atkins, president of Greater Phoenix Urban League Young Professionals; and Paul Rockower, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Rabbi Michael Berenbaum, American scholar and filmmaker, spoke about understanding contemporary antisemitism at Temple Solel on Jan. 29. Pictured from left are Temple Solel Rabbi John Linder, Phoenix Holocaust Association President Sheryl Bronkesh, Rabbi Michael Berenbaum and Martin-Springer Institute Director Bjorn Krondorfer.

This COMMUNITY page features photos of community members around the Valley and the world. Submit photos and details each week to editor@jewishaz.com by 10 a.m. Monday.

COURTESY

BUREAU

JEWISH EDUCATION OF GREATER PHOENIX’S BABY & ME

CALENDAR CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20

Anxiety in the Modern World: 6 p.m. Online. Learn the secrets of the Torah for living stress-free in the current environment with Rabbi Boruch of Chabad of Oro Valley. Cost: Free. Tune in using this link: zoom. us/j/736434666. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

MONDAYS

Ethics of Our Fathers: 7 p.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Zalman Levertov. Tune in at: bit.ly/2Y0wdgv. Cost: Free. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Quotable Quotes by our Sages: 7 p.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Shlomy Levertov. Tune in at: JewishParadiseValley.com/ class. Cost: Free. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Partners in Torah: 7:30 p.m. Online. Join a growing group of inspired learners with Project Inspire. Cost: Free. Tune in at: us04web.zoom.us/j/3940479736#success, password is 613. For more information, email Robin Meyerson at robin@ projectinspireaz.com.

Learning to Trust in God: 7:30 p.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Yossi Friedman. Tune in at: ChabadAZ.com/LiveClass. Cost: Free. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Torah & Tea: 7:30 p.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Yossie Shemtov. Cost: Free. For more information, visit Facebook.com/ ChabadTucson.

TUESDAYS

Tuesdays at the J: 10-11:30 a.m. East Valley Jewish Community Center, 908 N. Alma School Road, Chandler. Join individuals and couples age 55 plus for presentations on a variety of topics. Cost: Free; registration required. For more information, visit evjcc.org/tuesdays.

Let’s Knit: 1:30 p.m. Ina Levine Jewish Community Campus, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. Share the pleasure of knitting, crocheting, etc. outside the social hall in the campus. Can’t knit? We can teach you! Every level welcome. Cost: Free. For more information, visit vosjcc.org.

Maintaining an Upbeat Attitude: 7 p.m. Online. A class exclusively for people in their 20s and 30s, learn how Jewish Mysticism can help with your attitude with Rabbi Shlomy Levertov. Cost: Free. Tune in at: JewishParadiseValley.com/YJPclass. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

WEDNESDAYS

History of the Jews: 11:00 a.m. Online. Learn the Jewish journey from Genesis to Moshiach with Rabbi Ephraim Zimmerman. Cost: Free. Tune in here: zoom. us/j/736434666. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Torah Study with Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley: 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Online. Weekly study group explores that week’s portion and studies different perspectives and debates the merits of various arguments. Intended for adults, Torah study is open to students of all levels. For more information, contact the TBS office at 623-977-3240.

Happiness Hour: 11:30 a.m. Online. Class taught by Rabbi Pinchas Allouche that delves into texts and references culled from our traditions to address a relevant topic. For more information or to join, visit cbtvirtualworld.com.

Torah Study with Chabad: 12 p.m. Online. Take a weekly journey of Torah with Rabbi Yossi Levertov. Cost: Free. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Lunch & Learn: 12:15 p.m. Online. Grab some food and learn with Rabbi Yehuda Ceitlin. Cost: Free. Get Zoom link by emailing info@ chabadtucson.com. For more information, visit chabadtucson.com.

The Thirteen Petalled Rose: 1 p.m. Online. Kabbalah class that studies “The Thirteen Petalled Rose” by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz, focusing on the many concepts of Kaballah and Jewish Mysticism and applying them to everyday life. For more information or to join, visit cbtvirtualworld.com.

JACS: 7:30-8:30 p.m. Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center, 12701 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale. In person and via Zoom support group for Jewish alcoholics, addicts and their friends and family on the first and third Wednesdays of the month. Cost: Free. For more information, email jacsarizona@ gmail.com or call 602-692-1004.

THURSDAYS

America’s Four Gods: 10-11 a.m. Temple Beth Shalom of the West Valley, 12202 N. 101st Ave., Sun City. Interactive four-week program led by Rabbi Dana Evan Kaplan and Temple President Fay Henning-Bryant, Feb. 2-23. Based on the book, “America’s Four Gods: What We Say About God — And What That Says About Us,” written by Paul Froese and Christopher Bader. Cost: $18 for members and $36 for non members; advance registration and payment required by Jan 30. For more information, contact 623-9773240 or templebethshalomaz@gmail.com.

Ladies Torah & Tea: 10:30 a.m. Online. Learn about the women of the Torah with Mrs. Leah Levertov. Cost: Free. Tune in at: ourjewishcenter.com/virtual. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Talmud - Maakos: 11 a.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Shlomy Levertov. Cost: Free. Tune in at: JewishParadiseValley. com/YJPclass. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

The Science of Everything: 4 p.m. Online. Explore the most fundamental work of Chassidut: the Tanya, with Rabbi Boruch. Cost: Free. Tune in at: zoom. us/j/736434666. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

Teen Discussions: 7-8:30 p.m. Online. Learn with Rabbi Tzvi Rimler. Cost: Free. Tune in at cteen.clickmeeting.com/east-valley. For more information, visit chabadaz.com.

SATURDAYS

Saturday Mindfulness Gatherings: 9:30 a.m. Online. Hosted by Hospice of the Valley. To join by phone, dial 1-253-215-8782, meeting ID 486 920 2119#. To get the Zoom link or for more information, contact Gill Hamilton at ghamilton@hov.org or 602-748-3692. JN

WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENT

RENEE BETH JOFFE & THOMAS (TOM) WILLIAM HRLEVICH

Renee Beth Joffe and Thomas (Tom) William Hrlevich were married at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Dec. 31, 2022. The couple are going on a cruise for their honeymoon.

The parents of the bride are Marsha Joffe of Scottsdale and the late Ivan Joffe. The groom’s parents are Nancy and Richard Hrlevich of Surprise.

Renee is the administrator at Congregation Kehillah in Cave Creek and Tom is an independent freight broker.

PIPER SHEA YOSOWITZ

Piper Shea Yosowitz will become a bat mitzvah on March 18, 2023, at Temple Emanuel of Tempe. She is the daughter of Amy and Rob Yosowitz of Tempe.

Piper’s grandparents are Marsha and Kenny Dobin of Silver Spring, Maryland; and Nancy Levy and Gerald Yosowitz of Orange Village, Ohio and the late Vivian Yosowitz.

For her mitzvah project, Piper volunteered for different hunger-related organizations including Feed My Starving Children, Paz de Christo Outreach Center, Midwest Food Bank and St. Vincent de Paul.

Lee Shapiro of Phoenix died Jan. 20, 2023. She was 73. Lee was affiliated with the Alpine Ski Club.

Lee is survived by her life partner, John Henson, of Phoenix; daughter, Stacey Shapiro of Austin, Texas; son, Cory Shapiro (Rachel Zaslow) of Phoenix; stepdaughters Jenifer Henson of Mesa; Jermaine Hendrickson (Michael) of Everett, Washington; Jessica Henson Natland of Gilbert; stepson, John “JJ” Henson, Jr. of Phoenix; five stepgrandchildren; parents, Annette “Denny” and Cecil Yolles of Toronto, Canada; sister, Marilyn Goldberg (Melvin) of Toronto, Canada.

Services were held on Jan. 24, 2023, at Paradise Memorial Gardens, officiated by Rabbi Eliot Baskin and arranged by Sinai Mortuary of Arizona Donations in her name can be made to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, 1702 E. Highland Ave. #400, Phoenix, AZ 85014 or the Mayo Clinic, 5777 E. Mayo Blvd., Phoenix, AZ 85054.

MT. SINAI CEMETERY

For sale: one plot in a semi-private estate in the original Jacob Section of the cemetery (Jewish only allowed).

Has been upgraded to companion (burial for 2) space. Includes granite bench on adjacent space with name engraved. jarpell@yahoo.com

BAT MITZVAH

A student at Kyrene Middle School, Piper enjoys running track, playing baseball and tennis, hanging out with friends and watching sports, movies and television shows. JN

Agreeable Jews, Dead Jews, and the Challenge of Diversity

March 2, 2023 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm MST

Location: Congregation Beth Israel

Dara Horn

Is there any connection between recent antisemitic attacks and recent controversies about public Holocaust education? Actually, yes, and it’s built into a strange historic bargain struck between Jews and nonJewish societies, including here in the United States. In this lecture, we will learn about the parameters of that bargain, and the reasons why we all should opt out.

In-person event to be held at:

Congregation Beth Israel

10460 North 56th Street Scottsdale, AZ 85253

Presented in partnership with:

hybrid event (in-person and virtual) | $18 or free

Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz President & Dean