Vol. LXXXIV No. 28 Omaha, NE
Celebrating 84 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa
The “Shiputznicks” Help to Repair the World on Teen Mitzvah Day by URI LEVIN develop leadership abilities, and even find the counJCC Community Shaliach seling they may need. The work at the Boys and Girls Earlier this month, 50 “Shiputznick” teens experi- Club included cleaning the club’s forest area and taking enced first hand the very important Mitzvah of “Tikkun apart different shacks that were left there since Olam”. The young volunteers included representatives Halloween due to the early winter that came this year. from all of the Jewish youth groups in Omaha. After The third group of 13 “Shiputznicks” went to the getting together at the JCC and putting on the Ronald McDonald House and helped clean and organ“Shiputznick” T-shirt, the ize the place for the resivolunteers headed out to dents. Since they opened four different projects. in September of 1994, the Seventeen of the volunOmaha Ronald McDonald teers went straight to House has served families work for the Eastern from 44 states and six Nebraska Office on Aging countries. These families (ENOA). The mission of come to the Omaha area the ENOA is to enable for medical treatment for older Nebraskans to live their children. independently and remain They come to Omaha to for as long as possible in be with their sick child, their own homes. As one and the Ronald McDonald of 670 area agencies on House provides them with aging created by Congress a place to temporarily call under the Older home. The Omaha Ronald Americans Act, the McDonald House is near Eastern Nebraska Office Shiputznick teens take a break from yardwork. Teens raked most area hospitals. The on Aging serves families eight yards through the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging. House includes family in Douglas, Sarpy, Dodge, Cass and Washington coun- rooms, a large kitchen and dining area, a recreation ties. ENOA’s role is to ensure that the older adults with- room, a playroom, a laundry facility, a sun porch and in its region have access to a continuum of services that ample parking. enable them to remain active, independent and in their Last but not least, a group of six singers went to the own homes for as long as possible. The young volun- Rose Blumkin Jewish Home for a wild Karaoke session teers spent their afternoon raking and cleaning the with the residents of the Home. The Rose Blumkin back yards of these older adults. Jewish Home has been regarded as a premier long-term Another 15 volunteers went straight into the woods care facility in Omaha for decades. Continually striving to of the Boys and Girls Club of Carter Lake. Their mis- provide exceptional services and programs, the Home is sion is to help young people of all backgrounds, espe- able to meet the high expectations of the Omaha Jewish cially those coming from disadvantaged circumstances. community. Social activities abound at the Blumkin They believe all kids deserve their chance to develop Home. Daily activities and special events keep the resithe qualities they need to become responsible and pro- dents mentally and physically stimulated, and our teens ductive citizens and leaders. Chartered in 1961, Boys had a great time being a part of these activities. and Girls Clubs of Omaha, Inc. is an affiliate of Boys Tired but satisfied, the teens and chaperones met and Girls Club of America. They provide development together again for dinner and a discussion at the House services to kids, giving them an alternative to the street. of Hunan where we could share our thoughts and tell It’s a safe place for kids to play organized sports, Continued on page 2
7 Adar II, 5765 March 18, 2005
JNF and Caravan for Democracy Call for Investigation of Study Abroad Programs by MARA SUSKAUER Director of College Activists Jewish National Fund New York, NY--Jewish National Fund and Caravan for Democracy have launched a campaign requesting State Department intervention of university policies denying students the right to study abroad in Israel. University students and community members across the country are signing a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the State Department to investigate this issue. “A battle often lost by Jewish students today is the opportunity to study abroad in Israel,” says JNF CEO Russell F. Robinson. “The Israel on Campus Coalition currently is watching over 50 schools that they consider ‘discourage study in Israel.’ We’ve recently heard from frustrated students from the University of California system and the University of Colorado, still trying to find a way to spend their junior year abroad in Israel despite huge roadblocks put in place by their universities. And these are the students who actually are trying. We need a grassroots campaign to galvanize our community and our students about this issue,” he added. In the past few years, universities across the country that have cancelled their study abroad programs to Israel cite the State Department travel advisory warning and/or difficulty with insurance for students traveling in Israel among other reasons. The campaign has two targets: Secretary of State, Dr. Condoleezza Rice and individual Campus Administration. In a letter signed by thousands of students and community members, Dr. Rice will be asked to reconsider the State Department travel warning to Israel and investigate its effect on university students who choose to study abroad at institutions of higher education. After all of the signatures have been collected, each campus will present their signatures to their Campus Administration with a letter asking them to reinstate and promote their study abroad programs. Continued on page 7 See related story on Birthright Israel on page 12
About to Acknowledge Cover-up, Argentina Begins New Probe of Blast by LARRY LUXNER BUENOS AIRES (JTA)--From their seventh-floor perch in downtown Buenos Aires, prosecutors Alberto Nisman and Marcelo Martinez Burgos have a sweeping view of this city’s most important public square, the bustling Plaza de Mayo. But the two men have had no time to enjoy the panorama. As chief prosecutors investigating the 1994 bombing of the AMIA headquarters only a few miles away, for the last six months Nisman and his chief deputy, Burgos, have been up to their necks in documents associated with the worst terrorist attack in Argentine history. On Thursday, this office will take center stage. That’s when President Nestor Kirchner will hand the two men top-secret files from Argentina’s intelligence agency, SIDE. The files are said to contain evidence never before seen by prosecutors attempting to discover who was behind the AMIA attack. Eighty-five people died in the attack, and some 300 were injured. “This is the first time in the history of Argentina that secret information is being declassified and given to people not associated with the intelligence services,” Burgos told JTA in an exclusive interview. The ceremony where Kirchner will release the files to Nisman and Burgos comes a day before top Argentine
Inside Opinion Page see page 8
officials meeting at the Washington headquarters of the Organization of American States are to assume legal responsibility for past administrations’ mishandling of the investigation.
Argentine President Nestor Kirchner, right, joins mourners during the Buenos Aires ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the AMIA bombing on July 18, 2004. Credit: Argentine National Presidency In so doing, they hope to re-establish Argentina’s credibility with the OAS and defuse a 1999 lawsuit brought before the group’s Inter-American Commission on Human Rights by Memoria Activa, a nonprofit group of AMIA victims’ relatives. Burgos says it’s time to stop deceiving victims and
their families about what really happened. “Unlike previous investigators, we’re going to work absolutely according to the letter of the law, no matter where it takes us,” he vowed. “We’re going to give all our efforts to this work.” Until now, the prosecutors’ office, the nerve center of the AMIA investigation, had been off-limits to journalists. But last week JTA became the first news organization to get past the front door, which is guarded by 24hour security personnel and a bank of closed-circuit TV monitors. The office, which takes up an entire floor in an old building used mainly by the government, was established after the conclusion of a three-year trial last year. After that trial, five policemen accused of complicity in the AMIA attack were released for lack of evidence. When JTA visited, workmen were busy installing telephone cables, laying carpet and welding iron bars on doors. Others were hauling boxes of files into a warehouse-like room fitted with metal shelving. Case documents fill up 658 volumes, each 200 pages long. Another 600 volumes detail each of the 30 or so lines of investigation, according to Burgos. “We are now ordering every one of these volumes,” he said. “It will take us four to five months to read and cross-reference this case.” Continued on page 4
This Week: Foundation Highlights Bess and Sam Rothenberg: Page 3 Coming March 25: Primary Election Issue Hadassah HIES Event Highlights Book Maven: Page 2
Teens “Negotiate” a Peace Settlement: Page 5
Former Omahan to Sign New Book: Page 7
Visions Makes Their Debut in Omaha: Page 12