Jewish Federation of Greater Naples Presents THE ISRAEL SCOUTS PERFORMANCE TUESDAY, JUNE 20 AT 7:00 PM • NINA ISER JEWISH CULTURAL CENTER
Please register at WWW.JEWISHNAPLES.ORG CELEBRATING JEWISH LIFE IN GREATER NAPLES, ISRAEL AND THE WORLD
FEDERATI N STAR
Published by Jewish Federation of Greater Naples
SERVING NAPLES, MARCO ISLAND AND THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES
www.JewishNaples.org Y June 2023 – Sivan/Tamuz 5783 Y Vol. 32 #10 INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Our Federation in Israel
10 Men’s Cultural Alliance
By Jane Schiff and Nat Ritter
12 Women’s Cultural Alliance 14 Community Focus 17 Tributes 18 Jewish Interest 23 Israel & The Jewish World 25 Organizations 26 Commentary 27 Synagogue News 31 Focus on Youth 35 Community Directory
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Summer Book Discussion Author Sally Koslow will Zoom in for the June 28 book discussion of “The Real Mrs. Tobias.” This event is free and open to the entire community. 4
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n mid-April, Jane Schiff, Susan and Nat Ritter and Paula Filler left for Israel and attended the General Assembly (GA) of Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA). Paula Filler traveled with Jewish Federation of North America National Mission and was joined at the GA by others from the National Women’s Philanthropy Board of JFNA. Nat and Susan Ritter and Jane Schiff traveled together to see our Naples partner agencies. We all met up at the GA and, while there, we saw Susan and Aron Ain, seasonal residents of Naples. Our trip came at an interesting time in Israeli politics as well as multiple Israeli celebrations. The politics, which, as of the time of this writing, are still far from settled, created protests outside and inside the conference. For your board members, seeing Federation help and care for Israeli citizens was our primary concern. However, we were aware of the politics consuming the country. This article will describe the journey of Jane, Susan and Nat. While in Israel, three important holidays were celebrated: Yom HaShoah, Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut.
Yom HaShoah
Jewish Federation of Greater Naples 4720 Pine Ridge Road Naples, FL 34119
Yom HaShoah — Holocaust Remembrance Day — is marked in Israel by a moment of silence with a siren blaring all over the country.
Yom HaZikaron
Yom HaZikaron is Memorial Day for fallen soldiers. In Israel, almost every family has or knows of a fallen soldier, so it is a much
were top destinations — Yad LaKashish and Neve Michael.
Yad LaKashish
Yad LaKashish, “a hand to the elderly,” is easy to explain. This is a place where highend Judaic gifts are handmade by elderly craftspeople … but it so much more! Yad LaKashish provides a social gathering experience that allows lonely people to have a reason to live and get up each day. The elderly people become family and develop a sense of pride. Their products are sold in their gift shop and online. Next time you come into the Nina Iser Jewish Cultural Center, walk into any room and see the beautiful mezuzah that is their handiwork. To see their pride, visit their workshops and have each of the women and men show you what they are doing and how they do it. See the smiles on their faces when you are truly amazed by the complexity and the skills they translate into beautiful objects. You can then go into the gift shop for gifts to take home!
Jane Schiff and Nat Ritter more personal experience in Israel than in the U.S. Solemn music is played on the radio and, at both the beginning and the end of the observance, people stop what they are doing and stand for a moment of silence. We were eating dinner at our hotel when the entire kitchen and wait staff emerged and led us outside as the sirens sounded. We found this to be quite a different experience than the Memorial Day sales that mark the holiday in the U.S.
Neve Michael
Neve Michael is a residential “family household” for children who have been ordered by Israeli courts to leave their home for a variety of reasons. As in the U.S., there are adults who are unable to care for their children. Neve Michael is the only residential home for children in Israel. When children initially arrive at Neve Michael, they go to live in a crisis center, where they remain until they are stable enough to move to a “family” home on the grounds of Neve Michael. continued on page 2
Yom Ha’atzmaut
Yom Ha’atzmaut — Israel’s Independence Day — starts the moment Yom HaZikaron ends. It is marked with singing, dancing, picnics and an air show that gave us such incredible pride in our Israel. Being in Israel for these three back-to-back holidays was a unique experience that none of us will ever forget. Naples has, for over 10 years, partnered with two particular agencies that
Save the Date The Catholic-Jewish Dialogue of Collier County will hold its annual Kristallnacht Commemoration on Sunday, Nov. 5.
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BBYO Naples The Naples BBYO chapter was well represented at the North Florida Region’s Spring Regional Convention. 32
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