April 7, 2006: Passover Edition

Vol. LXXXV No. 30 Omaha, NE

Celebrating 85 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa

9 Nisan, 5766 April 7, 2006 3 Sections

Page 2

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

The B’nai Mitzvah Class of 2001 Graduates In the April 14, 1989 Passover issue of the Jewish Press, Editor Morris Maline wrote, “What I wouldn’t give to have a note from my late parents and grandparents...What a treasure! Well, some lucky children--the (B’nai Mitzvah) Class of 2001--are going to have some fabulous moments in the years ahead when they read the messages in this issue.”

It all started because Silvia Roffman, a past president of the Press, realized that the babies born in 1988 (or thereabouts) would celebrate their Bar and Bat Mitzvah in the year 2001. “I thought about these children,” she wrote in that first issue, “and how it would be a fascinating project to follow them as they grew--how it could almost be a demographic study since these kids would be a microcosm of our Jewish community. If we identified 1988 babies and followed them through their early years, through school, outside interests and all the way” to their B’nai Mitzvah and high school graduation, “it might really tell us a great deal.”

Of course, in 1988, the notion of living in the first year of the next millennium took on other-worldly connotations. Our reference then was only to the award-winning film, 2001: a Space Odyssey.

The parents wrote of their hopes and dreams for their babies and toddlers back in 1989.

Beth Staenberg said then that she would go to shul with her son Marty Nachman and spend the day together. Today, Marty, who will graduate from Westside High School this May, is active at Beth El Synagogue and in USY. He’s been to Poland and Israel and hopes to return.

Max and Ian Rothenberg--identical twin boys--were identified in their photo as “Max and Ian? Or is it Ian and Max?” That hasn’t changed! But their mother, Bunny, stated that “They’re individuals; I want them to grow up as two children, not as one unit.” And today, the boys are unique, each with a separate identity, different interests and talents, but still

close, as brothers and friends.

Some parents wrote of the hope that twinning ceremonies for B’nai Mitzvah would no longer be necessary. That prediction turned out to be correct. By the end of 1989, the wall separating East and West Berlin had come down and the gates of the former Soviet Union were finally opened. Not only were twinning ceremonies unnecessary, Jews from the FSU had begun arriving in Omaha, including Ksenyia Kilishek, Olga Elkin and Lev Ginsburg, found in this issue.

As some moved out of town, newcomers joined the Jewish community. While Sarah Schulman, Nikki Bernstein, Avi Friedman, Zev Eisenberg, Phillip Hirshman, Ariel Urkowitz and Abigail Wolf no longer live in Omaha, we’ve welcomed Sam Anderson, Sean Bernstein, and Shiri Tene.

Maggie Fried, daughter of Omahans Ed and Sandi Fried, has been represented every time we focused on this special group, even though she and her family moved to Kansas City before her Bat Mitzvah in 2001.

In 1989, Sandi Fried said that she and husband Ed “made a conscious decision that we want her to be comfortable with books and be a reader.” Their efforts have paid off; Maggie has become an award-winning writer who hopes to pursue that in college.

Though not all the teens responded to our requests to be a part of this issue, we’re very proud of the fact that 32 of them are represented here. Two have already graduated-Jason Rich and Shevi Katzman--and several who became B’nai Mitzvah later in 2001 are high school juniors. Because those on either end of this short spectrum were in the original 1989 Passover issue profiling this group, we’ve included them here as well.

As an added bonus, we’re giving you a sneak peek at the new Jewish Press exhibit, opening this Sunday in the JCC Gallery: “Front Page:

85 Years of Jewish Press History.” While the 2001 B’nai Mitzvah class graduates look forward, the Press will take a look back on 85 years of publishing. Omaha is the only Jewish community its size which still publishes a weekly newspaper!

We hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we did in producing it. Thanks go to Silvia Roffman for her original idea which comes full circle and to the Press Committee for their inspiration, support and attitude of respect for one another.

We couldn’t produce an issue of this size without the tireless efforts of our sales team: Advertising Manager Allan Handleman and our newest staff member, Terri Greenwood, Advertising Executive. Their friendly solicitation of clients has earned them respect and allowed the Press to publish one of the biggest Passover editions in history!

We also thank Managing Editor Richard Busse for his artistic talents in creating the cover (using Lexie Newman’s self-portrait), many of the ads in this issue and the layout.

He’s one-of-a-kind and we’re lucky to have him on staff! Lori Kooper-Schwarz works hand-in-hand with him as his Assistant Managing Editor, scanning in many of the stories and photos you’ll see on these pages. She’s an efficient staff member who takes on new challenges with a smile.

Keeping track of all the ads is no easy task.

Thanks to the meticulous work of Barb Kirkpatrick, the Press continues to service clients with correct and timely information. And thank G-d for volunteers Dottie Rosenblum and Suzanne Singer and their attention to detail!

We wish you a joyous Passover holiday, filled with happiness, peace and a remembrance of children setting off on new adventures.

Chag Samayach Pesach!

Joanie Jacobson, Jewish Press Chairman Carol Katzman, Editor

Happy Passover Please join us at the opening of the Press exhibit...

Front Page: 85 Years of Jewish Press History Sunday, April 9, 3-5 p.m. in the Gallery of the Jewish Community Center

co-sponsored by NJHS Donors: Donor-advised Fund of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation The Herbert Goldsten Trust | The Leonard and Shirley Goldstein Supporting Foundation

(Founded in 1920) Joanie Jacobson Chairman Carol Katzman Editor Richard Busse Managing Editor Allan Handleman Advertising Manager Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Managing Editor Terri Greenwood Advertising Executive Barbara Kirkpatrick Bookkeeper Jewish Press Committee Howard K. Marcus, Vice-Chairman; Bobbi Leibowitz, Secretary; Scott Meyerson, Finance Chairman; Fred Tichauer, Immediate Past-chairman; David Herzog; Jamie Meyerson; Stanley Mitchell; George Quittner; Linda Saltzman; Joe Shyken; Michael Siegal; Nancy Skid; Dorothy Spizman; and Melany Weinstine.

The role of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to involve Jews in meeting Jewish communal needs locally, nationally and in Israel. Centers of Excellence of the Federation are: Community Relations, Jewish Community Center, Center for Jewish Education, Jewish Family Service, and Jewish Senior Services.

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The Sandra Belgrade Donor-advised Fund | Joel Alperson and Omaha Fixture, Inc. | Stanford J. Lipsey Sandy and Paul Epstein | Joanie and Richard Jacobson | Hugo Kahn Naomi and Bernard Bloom | Joe Burstein | Jay Chance | Jeri Falk and Peter Fitz | Linda Simons Gepford | Kathy Kirshenbaum | Ben and Elinore Kutler | Allan Levine Roland Lewis | James and Shirley Lipsey | DeDe Hurwitz Monowitz | Elaine and Robert Nacron | John and Sydney Rosenberg | Miriam Simon | Mordechai and Matlee Yadin

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April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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Next Year in Jerusalem FROM THE DESK OF THE PRESIDENT

by ZOË RIEKES, President of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Each Passover as we sit down at our seder and recite the words “next year in Jerusalem,” my thoughts are never far from our homeland. I have been blessed to go on 10 Israel trips since 1991, and these experiences have truly changed my life.

I am so pleased to see the many different options for Omaha Jews to experience Israel. Missions are a great opportunity to see first-hand how our campaign dollars help our fellow Jews. Our mission last fall brought a wonderfully diverse Omaha contingent to Israel. One of the trip’s special moments (and there were many!) was

when we met a group of Ethiopians at the airport as they arrived to begin their new lives in the land of their dreams.

Planning is well underway for our next mission, which will be an Israel-Prague trip at the end of October. In addition, Omaha Jews will have the opportunity to experience Israel as a family in June 2007, when we will have our first family mission since 1999.

I am especially pleased at all of the opportunities our young people have to visit Israel. The Federation has sponsored Israel Experience grants to high school students for the past several years. In addition, this summer, more than 20 Omaha high school students will visit Israel via ARTZA ’06, a four-week teen trip to Israel organized by the Jewish Community Center.

Another opportunity our young people have to visit Israel is through the birthright israel program. This partnership between the Israeli government, local Jewish

communities and the Jewish Agency for Israel, provides young adults ages 18 through 26, their first educational peer-group trip to Israel.

More than 35 college students from Omaha have participated in this 10-day fully subsidized trip. To date, 98,000 young adults from 45 countries have traveled to Israel for the first time on birthright israel trips.

My Passover wish for you and your family is that you will have the opportunity to visit the Promised Land, and experience the adventure of a lifetime.

For more information about the Jewish Federation of Omaha and its programs, or for information about Missions to Israel, contact the Federation office at 402.334.6432. For information about birthright israel or teen trips to Israel, contact The Center for Jewish Education, 402.334.6445 or your local synagogue, or visit the Federation website: www.jewishomaha.org.

Extreme Art

by ALEXA NEWMAN (Editor’s note: Alexa--Lexie--Newman’s self-portrait graces the cover of this Passover issue. A senior at Westside High School and an award-winning artist, Lexie will attend the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design-RISD--next fall.)

Thanks to my father, I have inherited the wimp gene.

I am scared of everything: amusement park rides, low ropes obstacle courses, rope swings, ice skating, rock climbing, jet skiing, and even roller skating. I am always the girl who is screaming and crying while my teammates hoist me up on the 20-foot-tall tight rope. When I shut my eyes to say my last words before placing my cautious foot on the wobbly rope, I think to myself, “I would much rather be doing art right now!”

Fortunately my fear of extreme physical activities does not extend to my art. I may not take risks on the roller rink, but I definitely consider myself an extreme artist.

I believe that thinking of ideas is almost as much fun as creating and seeing the final product. Being an extreme artist, my ideas are unpredictable and wild. This summer, in my pre-college design class at RISD, we were assigned to literally depict a personal and physical journey, using two dimensional and three-D elements.

My teacher gave an example of what she expected. “It could be anything. You could depict waking up in the morning or walking to your dorm.”

I was stumped and couldn’t think of anything inspiring. Then I remembered something and how annoyed I felt that morning. I reflected on my routine and began to scrounge for my three-D elements.

The process of making my visual journey was a journey in itself. Ideas seemed to come out of nowhere as I began to gather my materials. As I cut a giant womb from foam core, I started to have doubts, but with positive reinforcement from my hall-mates, I decided to take the risk.

I marked my calendar with the first day of my journey, utilized found objects and painted portraits representing my mood swings--troubled, shocked and miserable faces. A week later I was proud of my finished journey.

My five-foot fake womb sparkled as I hung it up on the wall for a critique.

I tend to get bitter towards my father when reminded that I inherited his wimp gene. Whenever I’m about to place my timid foot on the tightrope, I remind myself that it’s okay that I’m a wimp because I’m an extreme artist.

Extreme artists take risks, conjure wild and unpredictable ideas and truly treat art as a process. Who says extreme has to be white water rafting or parasailing?

Extreme means exceeding the limit, pushing past the unexpected, and entering the land of the spontaneous.

Lexie is the daughter of Murray and Sharee Newman.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Double Trouble

by IAN AND MAX ROTHENBERG The 10 things that have changed our lives in the last five years since our B’nai Mitzvah at Beth El Synagogue include: 1. Entering Westside High School...

Ahh, Westside High School. All we can say is ... FREE LAPTOPS. Oh yeah, then there’s the wonderful experience of getting yelled at by your brother’s teacher because he/she doesn’t realize we’re twins.

5. Swimming...

After trying every conceivable sport that a person can play, we found something we are actually good at. A big bonus--it really doesn’t involve eye-hand coordination.

6. Music...

“Music takes us out of the actual and whispers to us dim secrets that startle our wonder as to who we are, and for what, whence, and whereto.”--Ralph Waldo Emerson

2. Realizing the individualities of twins...

Yes, Ian and Max really are two different people.

Of course, we‘ve known that all along. Finally when we entered high school, other people started to notice that we’re separate individuals with our own personalities, talents, likes, and dislikes. People now see that we aren’t carbon copies of each other.

there was synagogue in Scottsbluff. We got a bunch of blank stares, and then they started asking us if we were actually Jewish because they had never met any real, live Jews before.

That’s when we learned that Scottsbluff was a place we don’t want to live.

8. Being told that you are going to hell because of your religion ...

Hopefully this doesn’t happen to most people.

It’s a very strange feeling when someone says to you (with a completely straight face,) “You are going to hell.” And they say this just because you’re Jewish.

Our response was, “We’ll see you there.”

9. Being asked if we, as Jews, pray to Allah...

Wow, how many other misconceptions must there be? This was another time we realized just how naïve and unaware people truly are.

3. Gaining the freedoms and responsibilities that come with age...

We began to drive and that was fun, but then we had to pay for gas and car insurance. Gaining freedoms and responsibilities has helped us grow as people. Responsibility has also taught us the value of hard work.

10. Finding out that one of our very best friends has cancer...

This is the most life changing experience you can ever imagine, and one we hope never to repeat.

When you get news like this you realize how unfair life truly is -- that some4. The wonderful joy of Advance Placement Left: Max and Ian Rothenberg--or is it Ian and Max? Right: the twins were pictured on the cover of the April 6, 2001, Passover issue, one can suffer so much Government class... without doing anything practicing for their B’nai Mitzvah at Beth El Synagogue.

AP Government is posto deserve it. You find Indeed, Mr. Emerson is right. sibly the toughest class we have ever taken, and yes, yourself asking why and getting angry at the world. Then we’re both in it. Did someone create AP classes just to you soon realize that anger helps no one. The only thing 7. Being the first Jews someone has ever met... torture teenagers? And why does our mother insist we that you can do is be there as a friend and a brother.

We were in Scottsbluff, Nebraska for a varsity travel take them? We will never know the answer to either swim meet. There were a group of kids there that startIan and Max are the sons of Bunny and Steve question. ed to talk to us, and out of curiosity, Max asked them if Rothenberg.

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April 7, 2006

School Should Be a Safe Haven

by MAGGIE FRIED Going into my freshman year, I really had no desire to be connected to Judaism. I found that after leaving the Jewish day school, I lumped together all of my poor experiences there with my desire to be Jewish and tried to push everything out of my mind. Services were painful and attending the community Hebrew school was equally torturous.

However, as the old memories of Jewish day school began to fade, my desire to participate in Judaism increased, yet I wasn’t really aware of my feelings.

One day at the end of the first semester of my junior year, I was so totally offended by something that I realized important how being Jewish was to me, so important that I decided to express my opinions to the entire school of 1,600 students.

Here is the article that I wrote for my school newspaper that helped me to realize that I love being Jewish and that no one had the right to tell me otherwise: If you had walked into Target or WalMart near the holidays, you would have seen aisles and aisles of candy canes in all sizes and flavors. These sweet treats have become something for everyone to enjoy, regardless of religion, but after receiving a candy cane on the last day of first semester, I no longer have any desire to eat or hand out candy canes.

After finals, I headed out to my car, excited for winter break to begin. On

my windshield I saw a candy cane. I grabbed it and expected to see a note saying “Happy Holidays!

Love Lindsey,” but instead I was greeted with: “Did you know that the candy cane repesents...a shepherd’s staff...the very shepherds that saw the star of Bethlehem; the name of Jesus by making a ‘J’; the red stripes symbolize Christ’s blood, who suffered death on a cross for our sins because he loves you.

The white stripes represent the purity that you can find through having a relationship with Christ as your Lord and Savior.”

I stared back at the note, horrified.

Suddenly, this cherished holiday candy took on a whole other meaning; the red no longer edible looked because it was supposed to represent blood and the white seemed to be calling out that candy canes are not for everyone to enjoy, only those who have dedicated their lives to Jesus.

Adding to this, the note seemed to claim that since I am Jewish, I am not and did not have a chance to be pure, unless I convert to Christianity.

School, especially public school, should be a safe haven, somewhere that we can be free to be ourselves and not have others tell us otherwise. With so many religions represented at our school, it is offensive to push a specific religion on others and make them feel inferior.

Wouldn’t it seem that if someone was going to go to church to confess his sins, he would do it out of his own motivation and not because he received a candy cane? To me, the candy cane had the opposite effect of what was intended. I was not moved to suddenly convert to Christianity and leave my Judaism behind, but instead, was upset that a particular religion was being pushed on me.

Until now, I have never experienced anything like this. After my freshman orientation, someone was handing out fliers for Club 121, but like most other people, I tossed mine aside and decided against attending the meeting for free pizza.

The difference between Club 121 and the candy cane is that no one tells me I am less of a person for not attending Club 121, plus the club claims to discuss many different religions. While I was very offended after receiving my candy cane, it is easy to forgive those that handed them out; they were doing so with good intentions.

The lesson learned from this is that while it is important to know about many religions, there is a line when it is no longer teaching, but pushing a religion on someone. Making others feel inferior because they are not your religion or claiming that your views are the only views is not right.

So in the future, save the missionary work for somewhere besides school.

Sam Anderson created this ceramic vase in early 2003. He is the son of Dr. Magda Peck Maggie Fried is the daughter of forand Dr. John Anderson. Sam is a senior at mer Omahans Sandi and Ed Fried of Central High School and a member of Overland Park, KS. Temple Israel.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 5

We must plant trees in the landscape of freedom.

We must take in our hands the tools to build cities of peace.

Sincere Good Wishes To You

Happy Passover!

Mayor Mike Fahey

A Happy and Joyous Passover

Richard and Fran Juro Kevin and Kimara Clark Steve Moskovits Keri Juro

Page 6

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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by NATE JOSEPH A lot has happened in the last six years. Yes, I was a Bar Mitzvah in September of 2000. Since that time I have been very busy in my middle school and in my high school. I was very active in leadership both in middle school, and at Temple Israel, and now at Beth Israel in my youth groups.

I learned the “truest” meaning of leadership.

The top three qualities of leadership are: 1) the ability to listen to others, 2) to be responsible for one’s actions and, 3) to have a creative mind to be able to lead others.

I learned to listen to many people as a leader in my youth groups both OTYG and NCSY. I learned how to fund raise for a spaghetti dinner, to make flyers for events, and to be able to recruit other members for the Above: Nate Joseph, right, youth group. As a leader sings a duet with an NCSY and member of YAB friend; right: more from NCSY (Youth Advisory Board) Shabbatonim.

I participated in learning the meaning of the importance of the “Drug Free Program” in schools.

Responsibility has been very important these past years. Being active in my youth groups and in school provided many challenges. I had the opportunity to meet many people--my first challenge in responsibility was learning how to be a Bar Mitzvah--and I do thank Cantor Jennifer Blum, Marvin Parilman and Ilene Kader for this.

As time went by, my responsibility excelled with my youth groups both OTYG and NCSY. I thank Stephaine Grossman, Joey Shyken, Brooke Shrago, and Rabbi Jonathan Gross. My motto is to be “responsible for your actions.”

Now, I speak as the President of my youth group NCSY. Creativity is also very important--this shows confidence where I was able to fulfill my obligations and responsibilities. Creativity enhances a mind, to build an image of what others would think I could do for them and then the amazement of what I accomplished. I showed many of these qualities by pulling together material for news articles, themes for dinners, programs, events and writing stories of my superheroes that had special powers.

Much of the above represents my last six years of maturity. I have many people to thank and I especially thank my parents and mentors as role models for giving me the confidence to continue. (If I forgot anybody, I apologize.)

Nate Joseph is the son of Ann and Ed Joseph and a senior at Westside High School.

Omaha Is Unique

by SEAN BERNSTEIN AZA#1--the first BBYO chapter ever--and it started In the middle of my eighth-grade year, my dad said here, in Omaha about 80 years ago. something along the lines of “Hey, my new job will be My family and I are even active members of Temple in Omaha, Nebraska.”

Israel. Surprisingly, at least to me, there is history, culTo be honest, I didn’t know what to think, but the ture, and plenty of happenings here. Omaha might not first thing I did was look up the driving age. By the time be a New York, a Jerusalem, or a Paris, but it is unique, of this announcement, I was used to moving, but this yet, for some reason, it gets a bad rap. In my time here was not along the East Coast, this was the Midwest, “the though, I have learned that this is truly a great place to lint in the belly button of America,” according to my grow up. uncle.

I started high school at Elkhorn, just after I moved, and now that I am a senior, and am looking back on these four years, I am glad my dad chose Omaha.

Growing up, he always worked in some aspect of the construction field, but he had decided it was time for him to teach.

After sifting through several schools, he chose the University of NebraskaOmaha.

The biggest thing that Omaha showed me was the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization--BBYO. I don’t think I would Winter Regional Convention 2005 took place in Omaha. Sean Bernstein and Chelsea Taxman, have ever joined a chapter another Omaha senior and BBYO member, were among those at the Convention dance.

Photo by Uri Levin had we lived anywhere else. There are plenty of Jews across the East Coast, but Now, being a senior, I’ve been planning for my future.

Elkhorn only has a handful. Add to that, my parents Over the summer, I realized what I want to study. I want were never very religious; at least I had a bubbe when I to become a doctor, emulating my godfather, one of my was in New York who showed me Jewish foods, culture, principal role models. I want to be able to make a living, and delights. After spending a few years in Elkhorn, while bettering the community. without any Jewish friends, I realized I was missing a It is going to be a rigorous journey, but I am eager to part of who I am. follow it, and maybe, it will even bring me back to For such a small community, the Omaha Jewish com- Omaha, to this superb community. munity is very strong and very warm. My family and I Sean Bernstein is the son of Rose and Stu Bernstein. were immediately welcomed. I joined Mother Chapter,

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 7

Hoops Star Has His Feet on the Ground

by JUSTIN JACOBSON Since November, 2001, when I became a Bar Mitzvah, things have changed a lot.

I have grown five inches; I have improved my basketball skills enough to play on the Burke Varsity for two years and I am a much better volunteer coach.

In basketball, I’ve played on the Omaha Crusaders the past two summers and plan to play with them again this summer. The last two summers we’ve traveled to places such as Las Vegas, Kentucky, South Dakota and Kansas City and our team has enjoyed some success in some of those tournaments.

I’ve enjoyed participating in the Maccabi games in Omaha when we were the hosts in 2002, and in Columbus, OH, St Louis, MO and Dallas, TX. Alex Epstein and Zach Muskin have played on most of my teams and we’ve had a good time being on the Varsity basketball team at Burke this year. My dad claims this is the first time in history three Jewish kids have actually played on the same high school team in Nebraska.

Basketball, academics, and hanging out with friends occupy the majority of my time. In addition to my Burke games on the weekends, I coach friends on two teams for YMCA leagues, and they have done well.

Of course, I can’t leave out my family who has supported me through everything I’ve gone through in my life. My two biggest supporters have to be Mom

and Dad. They’ve been great fans-attending all of my games and my dad only occasionally corrects the refs on my behalf.

I think I do get my athletic ability from Mom, but I’m very sure that I get my love of basketball from my dad.

My brother Ben has been a big influence on my choice to play basketball, watching him at Central High School, Lamar University in Texas, Iowa Western, and Tennessee Tech in Cookeville, TN. The best experience was traveling to Israel with my parents and sister Sara to watch him win a gold medal on the USA Maccabi team.

He always encourages me to do my best and gives me good tips on how to

improve my game. Planet Bennywood, as he is known around the house, currently attends grad school at Tennesse Tech and is weighing multiple options for his future.

My sister Sara was a senior at Creighton University and she worked at Homers Record store at the time of my Bar Mitzvah. Now Sara enjoys working at Joslyn Art Museum as assistant curator.

She spent some time after graduation in Italy going to art school in Florence.

I was fortunate enough to go with my parents in 2003 to visit Sara--or Toot--as she is known to our family. We toured Florence and Positano and it was truly a great experience. She always gives me good advice about music and clothes, and she always encourages me to do better in school.

Last, but not least my sister Rachel-formerly a New Yorker--currently has a plan to bring a little more culture to Nebraska.

She is the founder of Film Streams, a Foreign/ Indie film

The Jacobson family: Rachel, front left, Sara, Nancy, David, Justin and Ben.

Best Wishes For a Happy Passover from

theatre and plans to open two movie venues just west of the Qwest Center in downtown Omaha in 2006. Cho, her family nickname, has great ideas about movies and music, and I love going to movies with her. We appreciate one another’s finely developed sense of humor.

I am a junior at Burke and taking four honors classes and I will be graduating in 2007, so I am concentrating on keeping my grades up and taking the ACT. I plan on playing basketball on a summer travel team and look forward to next season at Burke.

Life is good as I continue to follow the path that I desire and I am very thankful for friends and family and experiences.

Next year I’ll decide which college I will attend and, oh yes, since I’ve given you the whole family’s nicknames, I will also tell you mine.

These days I’m known as many things but, my favorite has to be JJ, given to me for my initials, and for a man who also enjoys shooting three pointers about as much as I do: JJ Redick, the star at Duke.

Justin--JJ--Jacobson is the son of Nancy and David Jacobson.

Burke varsity: Justin Jacobson, Zach Muskin and Alex Epstein.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

See Stop Run

by ALY ROSE FRIEDMAN “See Spot run…” in my perspective it reads; “See…Stop…Run.” An illness neither deadly nor physically harmful.

For 17 years, when I glance at a page, the letters blend together, like watercolors. It is a weakness, but it has also revealed a secret strength. Dyslexia is the enemy of my own being.

Reading is a skill well-known through the United States, and frowned upon if an individual never learned. Society considers struggling readers as slow and stupid. But, the world doesn’t know the struggles of the dyslexic.

The illness was apparent in kindergarten. As a class we used spelling flashcards. I traced my tiny fingers along the words, trying hard to sound-out each letter, but still I lagged behind, I couldn’t read it. Simple words like “it,” I had to memorize. The school thought I was slow, so they supplied extra help. Reading tutors were hired, but I still felt that I was left fending for myself.

I felt as though I wasn’t as intelligent as my classmates. My grades wouldn’t improve, and when I watched the kids who excelled in school, it was heart wrenching for me. I ached to be like them, to be naturally smart. The only subject I would look forward to was my art class. It seemed to be the only class in which I shone.

I was shamed by my own disability.

I wanted to lift the block, the item that was holding me back from using all of my potential, and all I wanted was to become normal. Being unique was not pleasurable, but instead self-destructive.

In third grade I was shipped off to New York to visit a specialist. There they

enlightened me that I was as bright as the smartest children in school. The doctor informed me I had dyslexia. He also said that many dyslexic people have a tendency to surpass in such subjects like art, math, and foreign language.

When I arrived home I gained a little more self-esteem. My grades started to improve, and I started to feel very comfortable with my artistic abilities. School never was easy. Letters still scramble on the page, words read backwards, and reading is an effort. I am not a straight “A” student, and I know my future is not in library science.

But I work for every grade, and I know what learning strategy suits me best. I am

trapped by my internal enemy, but in return, it has provided me the talent to feel accomplishment in the little things I do, like reading a book.

Since then, my artistic talents have soared. In the summer of 2005 I was accepted into a program at Parson’s School of Design for fashion design. My focus has always been on fashion design.

And in September, I was handed an opportunity to show off my sewing abilities. The theater department at University of Nebraska at Omaha asked me to assist on sewing their costumes.

Soon after that, I was offered a great honor: to show-case my jewelry in a gallery in my home town of Omaha.

I won’t create a world phenomenon like Vincent Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”, or recreate a sensation like Channel’s “Little Black Dress.” But I will try to

break through barriers and recreate the forms.

I struggled all my life with dyslexia and now it’s time to show what I can offer. I may be different, but I can see what others don’t. I “see..stop...run.”

Aly is a senior at Millard North High School, and has been accepted into Savannah (GA) School of Art and D e s i g n (SCAD) and CSU--ColoState rado University in Fort Collins.

She is the daughter of Tom and Suzanne Friedman.

Photos from left: Aly Rose Friedman models her skirt design that she assembled and sewed; “The Voices of Color” oil paint on canvas, a Peter Max inspired piece of Jimmy Hendrix, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, and Eric Clapton. (Painted 2006); Aly Rose Design original necklace, handmade with lampwork beads and sterling silver. (Crafted 2005); “Love is a Rose” in acrylic paint and color pencil. It is a self portrait inspired by Roy Lichtenstein. (2005).

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April 7, 2006

Through the Lens

by LAUREN BAER Ever since I was allowed to touch my parents’ camera, I have taken snapshots of my friends and family, so when I got to high school, it seemed only natural that I take a photography class.

I realized photography isn’t always about what or who you are taking a picture of, it is also about composition and lighting. This class helped me to fall in love with photography. Ever since that first week when we learned about the rule-of-thirds and leading lines, I knew it was going to be something I wanted to spend time doing. I loved shooting, developing, printing, and everything that goes along with it. From the sound of the shutter clicking to the smell of freshly mixed chemicals, photography was my passion.

Now that I have had the opportunity to take several

years of photography in high school, I know I belong behind a lens. I am certain that the photography program at Ohio University will teach me, not only how to take a quality picture, but also how to communicate through my images.

Photography can open the door to many unique and creative jobs. At Ohio University, I hope to not only learn the skills necessary to succeed commercially, but also to explore various different fields in which I have interests. Most of the better university level photography programs in this country are fine-art based. I decided that I wasn’t interested in being an artist as I want to be out there--having my photography serve a purpose, rather than just hanging on walls or sitting in an album.

Being communications based, the Ohio U program will afford me the opportunity to explore both photojournalism and commercial photography.

I have always dreamed of having a “cool job� when I grow up, and not being tied to a desk. Through my love for photography I am sure that I can realize this dream.

Ultimately, I want to somehow work in media, either as a photojournalist educating readers on world events, or in the advertising world selling products and services. I hope to build the foundations necessary for beginning a successful career through my future studies in the School of Communications at Ohio University.

Lauren Baer is the daughter of former Omahan Robin Schneiderman Baer and Ken Baer of Dix Hills, NY. She is a senior at Half Hollow High School East.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 9

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Judaism in Unexpected Places

by LEV GINSBURG This winter, my family and I went on a cruise, and surprisingly enough, I believe that this was a good Jewish experience.

Since this cruise coincided with the week of Hanukkah, there was a small service every night to light the hanukkiah, which was electric, but it still was useable. Each night, we would say both blessings for the candles, and then also the blessings over wine and challah. The challah wasn’t the best, but it showed that the

Henry and Lev Ginsburg stand in front of the Holy Ark in Nidhe Israel, Bridgetown, Barbados. company was actually trying to do something.

On the cruise, we were fortunate enough to pay a visit to the capital of Barbados, Bridgetown, and gaze inside the beautiful, old synagogue in the downtown area. This synagogue wasn’t huge or overtly ornate, like some modern American synagogues, but it was still a beauty, and was modeled after Sephardic synagogues.

This was one of the few Sephardic synagogues I’ve ever seen. This only added to how rare and exciting an experience it was. It was painted pinkish-white on the outside, and had a balcony, for the separation between men and women. The ark was tall and made of dark wood, and was on one side of the room. The bimah was more towards the center, and had a small blue mogen david on it.

The first thought that came to my mind was, “How did Jews ever end up coming to this small, pleasant Caribbean Island?� I later read that to escape the Spanish Inquisition, a number of Jews came to this island and built a synagogue.

Over time, however, the Jewish community slowly became smaller and smaller, and eventually disappeared.

Then, in the 1930s, fleeing Europe to escape the Nazis, a new group of Jews arrived and has undertaken the task of reopening the synagogue.

Lev and Henry get ready for scuba diving in the Caribbean.

At first, the group received very little in terms of assistance, but once the news had spread, many contributors, including Jewish organizations in Britain, America, and Canada began giving assistance. The synagogue now looks beautiful, with a good number of originals still there, and some replicas of items that couldn’t be recovered. The congregation isn’t a very large one, and they only have services once a week, on Friday nights, but we weren’t able to attend.

All in all, I’m very glad I had the opportunity to visit a synagogue with such unique design and such great history during my lifetime. This vacation wouldn’t have been the same without these experiences.

Lev is a senior at Westside High School and the son of Michael and Larisa Ginsburg.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

My Shortcut to Happiness

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by LINDSAY BELMONT It was a moment where I gave my mom one of my famous “You’re kidding me, right? Well, I’m going to do it anyway” looks. She read it right away and responded, “Lindsay, you need to do what the doctor tells you.” Yeah right, I thought, there’s no way.

Most people search for a commitment in life, whether it is a job or career, and I can honestly say that next to school, dance is one of my biggest commitments right now.

For me, being unable to dance is equivalent to trying to breathe without any air. I would be deprived of my own oxygen. And for a while last year, I was gasping for breath. I injured myself by not stretching before doing the splits. I seriously strained muscles in my back, but it took what seemed like forever for the doctors to diagnose it.

During physical therapy, the therapist told me that my hip had shifted.

Thinking that the original diagnosis was incorrect, I went to the hospital for an MRI scan; there I was told that I may have degenerative disk disease.

Wrong again. All the while, I was not allowed to dance to my highest ability. I was basically told to sit out during class.

Did I ever sit out, though? Of course not.

But I did limit myself and I absolutely hated being held back by my injury.

Thoughts such as “Will this ever go away?” rushed through my head. All I wanted to do was dance.

As the late professional dancer Agnes de Mille once said, “To dance is to be out of your self. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful. This is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking.” I couldn’t agree with her more.

Like many little girls, I was enrolled in dance classes when I was a toddler.

“Creative Movement” was the first class I took, and I still have vague memories of gliding around the dance floor with a little wand in my little hand.

I haven’t stopped gliding since: dancing is one undertaking I’ve stuck with for almost my entire life. Fourteen years.

Endless classes with constructive criticism, smiles, sweat, and a fair share of tears. Dancing has an amazing effect on me; it pushes me to be better than what I’m comfortable with, it allows me to express whatever I am feeling. And when I’m dancing, everything else going on in the world leaves my mind. It’s my escape.

However, it seemed as though it would be some time until I would be able to run away from the outside world again.

“How many Aleve should I take today?” I inquired. Answering my question with another question, my mom replied, “Scale of one to 10--how bad is the pain?” I knew if I told her anywhere from seven and up, I wouldn’t be going to the studio. Six. It’ll be a six if I can just take the medicine and go. “Six,” I told her. “Okay, take one and I want you to promise me you’ll take it easy tonight.”

“I will,” I responded, knowing that I was somewhat stretching the truth.

Hey, whatever it takes.

After a few long, frustrating and aggravating months, I was finally able to dance as I had before. I wasn’t 100 percent better, but well on my way. I continued to work hard and gave it all I had, and eventually different leaps and jumps found

Lindsay Belmont practices en pointe, at Tarilyn's Dance Studio.

Above: Lindsay, age six, warms up her tap shoes for her 1995 dance recital. Below: Surrounded by some of the littlest dancers she helps to teach, Lindsay had some fun with the girls as they waited for their turn to dance in last spring’s recital.

their way back into my body. I cannot emphasize enough what a relief it was to be dancing again. I was so thankful that I was healing and able to perform in a competition, as well as in my studio’s yearly recital.

There is no way of putting into words what that rush of joy and exuberance is like when the spotlight’s on. I throw my heart out on the line while I’m dancing.

In a way, the setback helped me grow as a dancer. It’s simple.

Dance is my shortcut to happiness. It’s a natural high, a passion. My everything.

So as I proudly walked out of the auditorium after performing in the evening show of our recital last May, my mom instantly read everything my face was silently saying. The smile and tears said it all.

Lindsay is the daughter of Mark and Jill Belmont.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 11

High School Is Not All There Is to Life

by AVI KATZMAN All of a sudden, we have become a world full of cabbage patch dolls and life size Barbies. Everyone is apparently made at the factory and shipped out in plentiful supply. Everyone is the same. What’s with the fake, plastic exterior that people are sporting? I know I can’t really be judgmental, being a teenager myself, but most of the time, I feel like the one red apple in the bucket full of Granny Smiths.

While walking through the halls at school, I constantly find myself looking at the other kids in awe. Not because I am jealous of them or because they possess something I don’t, but mainly I wonder, “How can you pretend to be someone you’re not?” I take note of the metallic “blonde” hair, their summer-in-a-bottle tan, and the tight Abercrombie low riders.

These kids who call themselves the “in” crowd or the “A list” group have been around for centuries. I can just imagine back in medieval times, the cool knights probably had the newest, designer helmets. What is it about these people that have given them superiority over everyone else for centuries? Who was the first “popular kid” and how did that evolve? Will anyone ever know?

This topic always reminds me of teen movies. You know, the type where there is a high school. Within that high school there is a clique that owns the school. They own everything and everyone in it. Even the teachers fall to their knees when they’re present. Then there are the nerds. The type of kids who know exactly what they want to be in life; usually where they want to go to college, maybe even to make a medical discovery. Why is it that these well-balanced young adults always get the wrong end of the popsicle stick? Society has somehow made them out to be “losers” or “geeks,” when all they really are is focused.

At the end of the day, when the Betty’s and Veronica’s go home, do they look in the mirror and wish they were someone else? Do they ponder the wonders of the world, or have deep intellectual thoughts? Now I’m not saying everyone of this stature has pebbles for brains.

There are in fact, some genuine scholars within that crowd, but the majority, the way they are portrayed in teen chick flicks, shows otherwise.

I used to be on the outskirts of the “in crowd,” particularly in middle school. Every morning I would wake

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up and plan my outfit, every move, and every word to try to impress them. Middle school was, in my opinion, the worst two years of my life. Everyone is confused. No one knows which social group they belong to. Finding a group and fitting in was the most important thing, next to watching Dawson’s Creek every Wednesday night.

People have been known to start savage rumors about a friend just to make themselves look “cool.” Believe me, from experience, people will do anything for popularity,

Photos from top left: Alone in the Dorm, taken at the SVA dorm, summer of 2005; senior photo; Steamy New York, taken in October 2004 in New York City.

even if it means stepping all over a best friend or two along the way.

Of course once I got to high school, I started to see the finer things in life. I didn’t need them to make myself feel better. In fact, without them, I felt liberated.

High school gives kids (most kids) the chance to find what they do best. There are, however, the select few who have turned to self-inflicted violence instead of looking for the light at the end of the tunnel. How many times have you heard of a case of a young suicide attempt and when researching it more, find out it was due to lack of friends or an inadequate social life. In seventh grade health we watched Degrassi Junior High videos teaching us how to act in a pressured situation, and when to take action for a friend in need.

But did we really utilize what the teachers wanted?

Did we watch these movies for the educational content?

No, we watched to laugh and discuss the weird outfits and outrageous hairdos. Most people don’t think that similar situations will actually happen to them, but more than often, they do.

A question arises that makes us think about the influence of the media. Is art imitating life or is it the other way around? We see show after show about so-called “high school life,” but at the end of the half hour, will it all be real?

Some people don’t realize that high school is not all there is to life. It does not necessarily determine who you are going to be in 30 years. I am only 17, and I can’t decide between being an astronaut and a bio-physicist, but that doesn’t mean I’m doomed forever.

The kids that affect our bad decisions in high school are usually the ones who need the guidance. I realized I didn’t need that “crowd” to make me feel important. I don’t have time to care about what other people think.

So what if my clothes don’t match every day? Dawson was out, Wednesday nights were overtaken by homework. Like Mark Twain once said, “Dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. Love like you’ve never been hurt and live like it’s heaven on Earth.”

Maybe it is the nerds who will someday rule the world.

Avi is the daughter of Michael and Carol Katzman and a senior at Westside. After participating in the Young Judaea Shalem year-course in Israel next year, she will attend the School of Visual Arts in New York.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Hurricane Force around campus, completing “crucial” arena south of the Mason Dixon line, it to do, including working at the Jewish

by JASON RICH became increasingly clear that the hurri- Press as a Sales and Marketing Intern.

“This is unprecedented in the history of orientation activities.

As the morning drew closer to cane was gaining momentum and might. the United States, to have had a national Additionally, my time at Tulane for the Gary and Sherri Green, in the same sit- past month and for the next three years disaster of this magnitude with a diaspora lunchtime, it became frighteningly obviof this magnitude,” said Scott Cowen, ous there was indeed a real threat of a uation as my family as their son Corey is has been substantially elevated, as the stuPresident of Tulane University, express- storm. I call it a storm because although also a freshman at Tulane, drove to dent body now has a common link. ing the extreme severity of the situation Tulane University stepped into action and Jackson to pick up the two of us; we subThese last seven months have definitely days after Hurricane Katrina devastated there was a mandatory evacuation set into sequently met my parents in St. Louis. been an experience I’ll never forget or our nation’s Gulf Coast. regret. However, this will Though I obviously eventually turn into just didn’t experience tremenanother small story to tell dous adversity, as a freshmy kids and grandkids. man at Tulane I was defiThe last 18 years, hownitely affected by the cirever, will serve as the cumstances. After returnfoundation for the rest of ing to New Orleans for my life. Omaha has been spring semester, however, my community, has been I now realize that the triwho I am and how I have als and tribulations I have defined myself. I have had undergone over the last incredible experiences four months were not and role models as I’ve only bearable, but have Left: Jason Rich, left, and Corey Green, Tulane freshman, take a Tulane ‘bus’ to temporary dorms in Jackson, MS, during Hurricane matured in this unbelievgreatly enhanced my first Katrina; right: the gym in Jackson, where Tulane students spent the night as Katrina battered the Gulf Coast. able city and can think of year of college. no better place in which On Thursday, Aug. 25, my parents and place, it was still unknown to all how After arriving back to Omaha five days to grow up.

I departed Omaha, assumingly ready for severe this would be.

As the Press has followed our class over after I had left with nothing more than the 1,000 mile trek to New Orleans. We As the hurricane, gauged at a category three t-shirts, a pair of shorts, three pairs the past 18 years, we have grown and arrived Friday afternoon, ate dinner with three, traveled closer, the university set an of boxers and a pair of shoes, I immedi- developed along with the rest of the commy roommate-to-be and his family, and evacuation plan into place for all students ately enrolled at the University of munity. I personally want to thank the checked in to bed early, as we were eager- who had no other viable option. Because Nebraska-Omaha, uncertain about the Jewish Press and the entire community for ly anticipating moving into the dorms at we would undoubtedly be back to school tentative situation regarding Tulane. having such a profound impact on my seven o’clock the next morning.

by Wednesday, Aug. 31, I decided to We were first told that we would be childhood and my future. I will never forAfter unpacking and getting settled in head up to Jackson, Mississippi, with the returning on the 31st, which turned into get my time in Omaha and feel privileged my room the next morning, we were school. As we arrived, finding ourselves in the 12th of September; the projection to call it my home. looking forward to the President’s con- the overwhelming minority, we were ush- magnified to “until further notice,” and Jason Rich graduated from Burke vocation at one o’clock when rumors of a ered into a large gymnasium, fully outfit- eventually the fall semester was cancelled. High School last spring and is already a hurricane started to swirl around campus. ted with shiny hardwood floors, clean UNO proved to be highly beneficial. I sophomore at Tulane University, thanks Not previously knowing there was even a plastic bleachers, thick glass on the back- moved a lot of credits out of the way, to six classes at UNO last semester, addichance of a hurricane, coupled with the boards, and air mattresses…for the pro- spent time with family and friends, and tional credits taken while he was still in dismissive response of the few locals to fessors and their families. had the opportunity to do a lot of things high school and AP credits. He is the son whom we spoke, we casually strolled After one night in the finest lodging that I would have otherwise been unable of Phil and Diane Rich.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 13

Light Shall Always Overcome Darkness

by MARTY NACHMAN Being there was like being in a different world. Last summer, I was in a world twisted with hate and arrogance. It was a sick world full of revenge, hope, and resilience. This world was the Holocaust. The Majdanek death camp in Poland carried out the mission of the Holocaust through countless murders and bodies burned in that place. The last ceiling many Jews ever saw was stained green from the Zyklon-B gas. Now, the gas chamber causes people to cry, to think, to reflect, and even to hope. My experience was no different. As I stood there, in the cramped, unlit gas chamber, looking up at the same greenish stains, I became full of thought and emotion, but most of all, of hope.

I experienced the gas chamber, listening to a sad song written by an Israeli. I watched as my friends cried. I looked around and could not begin to fathom how or why the Nazis could systematically destroy a people in places like these. I was full of sadness. I would most likely have been dead in only a few minutes had I been standing in the same spot 60 years ago. This thought caused shivers to run down my spine.

The chamber seemed to get colder as I felt angry with the Nazis. I felt terrified and gloomy; despite this, I felt hope. I was angry and appalled the Holocaust ever occurred. At Theresiendstadt, a ghetto in the Czech Republic, Jews made a secret synagogue. There was hope in such dark places. I knew that to be true. The Jews had much optimism and faith, which inspires me so much. Most Jews from this camp died in the chamber, yet some survived. These survivors give me immense

Passover Greetings

PEACE Time comes and goes, Lives stop and begin, I continue to have foes, Time and again.

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Peace in the world, Only an ideal for most, Forgive those with whom I’ve quarreled, Then it’s a piece of toast.

All the time, We desire the killing to stop, The reduction of crime, The righteous on top.

Happy Passover

When that all takes place, Then once again, I shall love my neighbor, And welcome peace as my friend. hope that we, Jews, will persevere regardless of obstacles we may face.

Most of my experience in this unlit room was in silence. I pondered many things as I looked around this place, a dark room with two square openings in the ceiling, and two doors with a small eyehole at either end of the room. I thought what a survivor of this camp must undergo when he or she comes into this dreadful place.

They did not go through the chamber. It is hard for me to fathom what it feels like to look at the walls that were the last view on this earth for family and friends. Death crept upon them in only a matter of minutes. I could only imagine the lives of my great-grandfather’s family ending this way.

Something positive kept entering my mind. Hope! The existence of Israel gives me faith that the Holocaust will never have to happen again. Jews will always have a home in Israel. In this camp where 60 years ago Jews had hope, I was able to proudly sing of it in the national anthem of Israel, Hatikvah--The Hope.

Standing there in the gas chamber, I could feel a positive energy inside of me. I did not let the small, gloomy chamber allow me to me lose hope, rather, I became more optimistic. I had a zest for life. Inspiration came from survivors who were fortunate enough not to be forced to go to the gas chambers and from those who were sadly murdered. As it was getting time to leave this place of sadness, I felt alive!

I did one thing those in the past could not: I walked out. I remember those who died and continue to give hope to those who live for the future.

Marty is a senior at Westside and the During the USY trip to Israel in which Marty Nachman participated, he “climbed” son of Beth Staenberg and Gary Nachman. this waterfall.

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THE WORLD THAT DID NOTHING Watching and waiting most of the world was, For an event changing humanity to cease.

This was one of the many flaws, In those countries hoping this would keep the peace.

Only to a certain degree could the inmates try to defy, The Nazis with their evil methods of pain, Once they failed, colors of ash filled the sky, But still other countries did not complain.

Millions died, through day and night, Not knowing what their future would be, All slept and lived with fright, Just hoping and praying for the day they would be free.

Why were they killed?

Was it their fault?

Because Hitler wanted his dream to be fulfilled, If you were not Aryan, you would suffer the Nazi’s assault.

Humans treated like scum, Given little to no food and expected to labor for many hours.

Yet the rest of the world still would not come, Regardless of their great powers.

Helpless were those in the camps, Not a tool to use, save the hope the world would interfere, They prayed for help in the midst of severe cramps, Wishing for their prayers to be answered within the next year.

All types of people, gassed, shot, and burned, Yet still not a reason to assist, Though many years later, as the world learned, Peoples in these camps tried to resist.

Then finally they came, Liberation of the inmates finally became a reality, At the site of the people’s state, the soldiers were full of shame, Never will humanity understand Hitler’s morality.

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Page 14

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Finding My Jewish Identity

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by ABBY GINSBURG In eight months I will again be a freshman.

It is funny how I am just becoming accustomed to being an upperclassman and--poof--just like that I am an underdog once more. Thinking about being a college freshman, again makes me think back to being a high school freshman; while I have four more years of experience under my belt now, being a freshman is still being a freshman.

I remember being so scared to get out of the car and walk up the big steps outside of Burke High School on my first day of high school. How was I going to find my way around? Would I be able to handle all the class work?

Would I make new friends? What clubs would I join?

Now as I think about my first day of college in the fall,

Conference) for two weeks the summer after my freshman year. I took her advice and had a wonderful two weeks at CLTC at Beber Camp in Mukwonago, WI. CLTC inspired me to become even more involved in BBYO. I learned everything about chapter leadership, Israeli music, and made friends with whom I still talk frequently.

CLTC was the catalyst that jump-started my involvement in BBYO over the following three years. My sophomore year I ran for every position possible, attended every program, and every meeting. I was really growing to love BBYO. It had become a very familiar home for me.

The summer following my sophomore year of high school, I attended a very different BBYO summer program--Kallah. The same upperclassman influenced me to

Abby Ginsburg, center, exchanges ideas with the other two n’siot from KC and St. Louis at WRC this year in Omaha.

Abby, seated right, and Rachel Goldberg, standing: Richard Roth, David Seigmann and Margan Karr enjoy a night out.

these exact same questions rush through my head. The only difference now, is that I know I made it just fine through the first day of high school no matter how scary and intimidating I think it was, and I will make it just fine through the first scary and intimidating day of college.

I now know there are people and organizations in college, just like in high school, that are there to help you find your way. I found the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO), and it helped me find my way through high school.

Many of my friends refer to Tuesday as “Terrible Tuesday,” but this was never the case for me. I looked forward to Tuesday because it meant BBYO night.

My freshman year, BBYO gave me an opportunity to meet and converse with many upperclassmen. Slowly I began to become friends with them, and I realized people should not intimidate me just because they are older.

I was able to apply this lesson to my entire life, and even today I feel this has made me a much more confident, out-going person. But there was one sophomore who turned out to be a very influential person on my life as well as my BBYO career.

Noticing that I was becoming more and more involved in BBYO, this upperclassman convinced me to attend CLTC (Chapter Leadership Training

attend this program, and I was even happier I took her advice. Kallah is usually described as an intensive Jewish learning institute, or as intensive as you can get in three weeks.

The three weeks I spent in Starlight, PA, I can truly say changed the rest of my life. Through praying, learning, studying, reading, singing, crying, and dancing with 120 fellow Jewish teenagers, I found what role I wanted Judaism to play in the rest of my life. Kallah made me more confident, understanding, and all together a stronger person.

I can truly say I found my Jewish identity at Kallah.

Junior year past in the blink of an eye. I was elected S’ganit (Vice President) of Cornbelt Council and really enjoyed working with our council and with Mid America Region.

Of course, this year of school was also very challenging. Trying to balance my school work and my BBYO involvement was sometimes challenging, but that is just one more skill I have mastered thanks to BBYO. At the end of junior year I ran and won N’siah (President) of Cornbelt Council. I was so honored to be president of this organization I loved so much. It was definitely my turn to give time and energy back to BBYO. Continued on page 20

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Photos from top left: In his Lacrosse uniform for the Millard West club team spring 2005, Alex Wolf is senior leader. Alex also played table tennis in the intramural league he started at Millard West. He was second in the Lincoln Open, 18 & under division in January. Alex relaxes in the desert in Israel, summer 2005, with Young Judaea. On his trip summer 2004to Australia, above, he holds a koala bear. He traveled there with the People to People Sports Ambassador program. He is the son of Nancy and Phil Wolf.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 15

Memories Threaded Together with Love

by DENA RENNARD Use the power of string to explain the biggest or the smallest phenomenon.

Thread: the small, thin string used to hold together clothes, stuffed animals, quilts, etc. There isn’t anything unique about it. It’s simply a part of life, something that can be found everywhere and can easily be replaced, right? Not to me.

To me thread represents many of the memories of my childhood, probably because of my mother.

My mother loves to sew, and though I do not share her love of sewing, I have always loved watching the progress she has made on her quilts. I cannot count the number of quilts I’ve watched her make, but I’ve admired each one.

They are all different and wonderful in their own right, but I’d have to say my favorites are her college quilts. For each of my seven older siblings, she has made a college quilt that represents that child.

The quilts are extremely creative and include activities, personality traits, and more about each kid.

Each college quilt I’ve watched her make has made me wonder what mine will look like. Will she include my activities in Girl Scouting or the clubs I started at school? What about my favorite children’s book? Which scene will she decide to illustrate beautifully with her threads?

It’s almost like magic, her quilting, the way she can use just a thin feeble string, something easy to break, to hold together the entire quilt.

I remember when I was little I would sleep with my baby blanket every night.

My mom made it for me, and when I started to see loose threads along the binding, creating holes in one of my most

be-cause, though her arms and legs have suffered and the threads have come out, leaving huge holes, she’s still whole and the message of love from my mother is still clearly seen in the red heart on her chest.

When I look at my elementary school pictures, I am

The pieces shown here are a few pieces of artwork Dena Rennard completed this year. They are a part of her portfolio that won a gold key at the Nebraska State Visual Arts Competition. beloved possessions I cried.

I also remember crying over my Raggedy Ann doll, made for me by my mother when I was two. I loved my Raggedy to pieces, literally. Every time it fell apart my mom would sew her back together again. At some point, I don’t remember how old I was, she declared my Raggedy had been fixed enough.

If I let the dog chew off her head once more it was my loss. Luckily she’s still relatively intact. I guess I learned my lesson

again reminded of my mother’s love for me.

Each picture shows me wearing a beautiful, homemade dress- a gift from my mother to me every first day of school.

Every year my mother would take us kids out shopping, and we’d get to pick out the fabric we wanted for our new dress. She made us dresses for other occasions, too.

When we lived in Italy, two of my sisters and I got “sister dresses,” dresses

made in the same style out of similar material. Being the youngest, I got to wear all three dresses. She also made my flower girl dresses for the weddings of my two oldest sisters. I remember at the first one I felt so special because I was a girl in a white dress with a blue satin sash, just like in the song from The Sound Of Music.

My mother has always made me feel special through her sewing. Just a couple years ago she made bed a quilt just for me, a g a i n exactly what I wanted.

It’s yellow and b l u e , m o s t l y, and is covered in stars m a d e from vintage, or fake vintage, fabrics. It was a prize winner in a quilt show, too.

Sewing has been an important part of her life for many years. It’s the way she expresses her artistic talents. I share her love of art and color, and I am always amazed at her talents in sewing. As simple as thread might be, my mother couldn’t sew without it, which would have made one of my favorite parts of my childhood disappear.

Dena Rennard is the youngest of the eight children of Dr. Stephen and Barbara Rennard. She is a senior at Central High School.

Wishing You and Your Family a Happy & Joyous Passover!

Page 16

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Loyalty, Bravery and Courtesy

by AARON PASSER Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent; these are just some of the many qualities that I hope describe me. “It is almost impossible to believe that over 17 years have past since he came into our lives,� said my mom, Sandy. “He has a warm, magnetic personality that seems to attract babies, grandparents and dogs no matter where he goes. With his irresistible smile and quick wit there is never a dull moment; some days he leaves us cold in our tracks The Passer family at Aaron’s Eagle Court of Honor: Sandy, Aaron, Joel and Jeff. wondering, ‘Just where did As a toddler, apparently I loved music. I have played we get this kid?’�

I’m a junior at Brownell-Talbot School and despite my the trumpet since fourth grade. I’m in the Brownellbusy schedule I have achieved my goal of being named Talbot pep band and was selected to participate in the to the Headmaster’s List each semester. This year, I’m a Pioneer Conference Honor band for five years. I’ve even “cross-age helper,� assisting in the fifth grade classroom received superior ratings on solos.

Despite all the time spent on sports, I’ve managed to once a week.

I’m active in sports and participate in football, swim- squeeze in participation in the Omaha Area Youth ming and golf. My dream of becoming an NFL quarter- Orchestra’s Youth Philharmonic for the past three years. back is just a wistful remembrance, after realizing that In addition, I’m a member of the newly formed Youth everyone on the team wanted to be the quarterback. So Woodwind Ensemble. This has been a wonderful opporI’ve found my niche in the kicking game. This past fall, tunity with more playing time for the brass section.

Judaism is very important to me, too. I attend Temple I was the kicker for the Junior Varsity team and added to Israel high school weekly and am a member of OTYG-the teams scoring with many PATs. I credit the Jewish Community Center preschool with Temple’s youth group. I also assist in the sixth-grade its swim program and the summer JCC swim team for classroom at Temple as a Madrichim, as the kids learn fostering my love of swimming and this life long skill. For Hebrew prayers and trope.

This inspired me to come up with an idea related to the past two years, I received a varsity letter in swimming. “Watching the high school swim meets makes all those Judaism for my Eagle Scout project. I wanted a project warm summer evenings worthwhile,� added my mom. that would benefit the Jewish community and one that “It is so much fun to watch high school swim meets and would endure in the future.

I realized the former Orthodox section of Temple remember that little boy barely able to swim the length Israel cemetery was in disrepair and needed grounds of the pool.�

Golf is another passion. I’ve been on the varsity golf work. With further investigation, I found four graves team at Brownell for two years, and was one of five play- that had no markers and some of the older stones were ers to go to the State Tournament freshman year. I also becoming increasingly hard to read. I recruited fellow participate in the Inter-Club tournaments for scouts and adults to clear the area of over grown shrubs Champions Run and brought home a gold medal last and solicited funds to purchase bronze markers to place year from the JCC Maccabi games in Dallas, TX. That near the worn stones and new flat stones for the was a lot of fun! I’m already getting the golf bug and unmarked graves. With the extra funds raised, I also purI’m looking forward to the upcoming season with the chased a marble bench to add to the beauty of the area and provide a place of quiet solitude for visitors.

Brownell team.

“Aaron learned that the highest form of mitzvot is one that is truly given from the heart with no reward from the recipient,� said Sandy.

I’ve learned a lot from my involvement with Scouting and hope to never compromise the good character I’ve learned. I’ll always seek to maintain the high standards of being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent, all part of the Scout’s code.

Aaron is the son of Dr. Joel and Sandy Passer.

Above: For his Eagle Scout project, Aaron raised funds and recuited other volunteers to repair a section of Temple Israel’s cemetery. Aaron is a member of the Brownell-Talbot golf team.

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Two Countries to Call Home practiced in school. I remember the bomb shelter in my apartment building as a large playroom.

But my most vivid memory was seeing a bag laying on the street corner. We were taught to never trust a backpack left unattended for fear it would be a bomb. I learned at a very young age that you must appreciate and never take your safety for granted. Not in Israel and most definitely, not in America. Safety is the most precious right of all human beings.

It is complicated living in America when a large part of my heart in remains Israel. I believe in the Jewish homeland and yet my family and I decided to return to America. We established a home for ourselves in the Jewish community of Omaha. I have been active in Shiri Tene, born in Israel, visited relatives and friends there this past summer. Jewish youth I am continuously reminded how I organizations and through religious must never take my safety and security in observances and traditions in my synaAmerica for granted. Yet, I often think, gogue--Beth El-- and at home.

I believe it is through this network of “How can I continue to be committed to the existence of the State of Israel when I relationships and friendships that I have gained the inner strength to be an Israeli choose to make America my home?”

My cousin and I are very close. She was from afar. There is strength in numbers recently drafted into the Israeli Army. and my family and I are not without a Israeli soldiers are prime targets for ter- greater Jewish community.

Together with the larger American rorist activity. The Israeli military is made up of young, innocent, men and women Jewish population, we will always have another home--one half way around the who protect the Jewish State.

I worry for my cousin’s safety. Will she world from the North American contibe identified as an easy target in her mili- nent. We must never let the world forget tary uniform? Is she in danger while she how important Israel is.

It is my dream that one day peace will waits for a bus that will take her to the military base? How can I stop myself come to the Middle East. I remain certain that one day that dream can become from worrying?

I know it is necessary to have a strong a reality, although we have yet to reach military to protect and defend the exis- that goal. Intellectually I know I must tence of the State of Israel, yet I am sad- not harbor my worries for the security dened that my cousin is at risk. I am and safety of my family in Israel.

It is important to turn frightening proud of her and know she will do everythoughts into positive, constructive and thing possible to remain safe.

I will never take my safety in America innovative action. It is essential to be an for granted. I was lucky to have the active advocate, educate myself and stay opportunity to spend three years in my in touch with current events both in youth living in Israel. I went to school, America and in Israel. I will always feel played in the local playgrounds and blessed to be one of the lucky few who walked to and from our local toy store on are able to call two countries home.

Shiri is a senior at Westside and the a regular basis.

I recall the reoccuring emergency drill daughter of Mindy and Gadi Tene.

by SHIRI TENE I have always had a personal connection with the State of Israel.

As I listen to the daily media reports from my peaceful Nebraska home, it seems not a day goes by that I do not hear of a terrorist attack that threatens the peace and security of my beloved Israel. This frightening threat on the security of Israel causes me great concern for the safety of my loved ones who live there.

Page 17

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

by DAVID BRESEL It was a frigid morning in the heart of Florida. Thousands of spectators had gathered to see the event of their lifetime.

Millions watched with anticipation at home. It was a morning not to be forgotten.

As the chanting of the countdown began, no one knew that what was to come 73 seconds later would be a memory that would affect every American with grief and heartache. “We have lift off of the 25th shuttle mission…Challenger go for throttle up.”

Those were the last words given to the Challenger shuttle. A few moments later, as the spectators watched with joy and happiness, the shuttle suddenly exploded.

One of the passengers aboard the shuttle was Dr. Judith A. Resnick. Dr. Resnick was an extremely special person. In 1978, she was selected out of a pool of thousands to be part of the first American woman to travel to space. In 1984, she became the second American woman and the first Jewish astronaut in space. Two years later she would be onboard the Challenger shuttle in what would be her last mission.

For me to have a conversation with Dr. Resnick would be the highest of honors.

Being a fellow Jewish American I find it incredible that Dr. Resnick was able to show the world that it didn’t matter that she was a woman or a Jew, but that a person can achieve anything they want if they are dedicated and hard working.

There are no lines or boundaries for those who want to achieve. Dr. Resnick showed the world this. Her inspiration taught me when I was younger that even

being Jewish I was not limited. I can set goals and reach them just like anyone else. Her inspiration has been guidance for me in my life.

So the question that I would ask Dr. Resnick is, “If you knew your fate before it had occurred would you have changed anything?” I have no idea how she would respond, but whatever the response, I would just be grateful to have a conversation with such a person as Dr. Judith A. Resnick.

David Bresel is a senior at Westside High School and a member of Temple Israel and Chaim Weizmann AZA. David’s Mock Trial team went to the Nebraska State finals this year. He is on the debate team and a member of the National Honor Society. David is the son of Marge and Jim Bresel. This essay was written for a class at WHS.

Carrying on the Traditions

by DANIEL MUROW I have lived in Omaha for 12 years and attended Beth El Synagogue and Omaha Public Schools since kindergarten. I have had 12 “Hanukkah Breaks” and 12 “Christmas Breaks”, 12 “Easter Breaks” and 12 “Passover Breaks” and all the time wondered why there were separate names for my winter and spring vacations for public school and Hebrew school.

I have wondered why during the spring, meat was never served on Fridays at public school, but during Passover bread was served with every meal.

I have missed school for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur so I could attend services at Beth El and returned to public school the following day to a plethora of questions on where I was the day before.

Throughout my childhood in Omaha, I have become accustomed to going to public school with Christian children every day of the week, and explaining the story of Hanukkah every winter and the concepts of the High Holidays every fall.

No matter how many times I have been asked questions about what Judaism is or how many times I have sung “Frosty the Snowman” for “holiday concerts” at public school, I have always known that I had Shabbat to fall back on.

Every Friday night since I have lived in Omaha, I have enjoyed a delicious Shabbat dinner with my parents, my brother and sister, Nana and Zayde, and my aunt and cousin. Salad, soup, challah,

and whatever interesting kind of chicken Nana found in the cookbook that week would be on the menu.

My dad would take out the prayer books and fill a glass of wine, while Zayde would check every cabinet to find where the kippot were stored. Soon enough prayers would begin and “Shalom Aleichem” would be heard around the table in approximately five different octaves and at three different speeds.

Prayers would end and my little cousin would collect all the books, while Nana would present that nights meal.

Anything from “Pepsi chicken” to “Peanut butter chicken” was a possibility. I have loved the company and excitement around the kitchen table and the time I have been able to set aside every week to catch up with my family.

Now that I am on the verge of graduating from high school and moving on to college, I want to be able to carry on the traditions of my family on Shabbat and the other holidays. All of the Shabbat dinners, learning to wrap tefillin with my zayde and getting a Jewish education at Beth El have taught me a lot about who I am and where I came from.

I have learned so much from Nana, Zayde and parents; I want to be able to continue with the customs and traditions of the Potash/Murow family.

Dan Murow is the son of Janie and Allan Murow.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 19

The Sacrifices We Make

by SHEVI KATZMAN I stepped off the heated bus in the wee hours of the morning into the frigid winter air of the Ukraine in January. I had come on a trip with 35 other girls to explore and discover the location of the roots of our European Jewish heritage. This trip was the culmination of several months of intense study and preparation.

As I walked ahead of everyone on the unlit path in the snow, bundled in my multiple, yet too few layers, I tentatively tried to imagine what life must have felt like not too long ago.

They trudged through the snow on these very same roads probably at this time of the morning, yet under extremely different and dangerous circumstances.

They may have been trying to avoid getting caught by their oppressors. They may or may not have been wearing enough layers to keep them warm in the -30º C weather. They must have felt so alone and vulnerable in the darkness with the icy wind slapping their unprotected faces.

Surely, they were filled with trepidation, unsure of what the next moment would bring. Most likely, they did not have a safe place in which to take refuge from the cold. There was no place safe from religious persecution.

Here I was, confidently marching down the road I was instructed to follow. I knew that there would be a heated room at the end of the path in which to defrost myself and to say my morning prayers after daybreak.

I did not have anyone to fear to prevent me from displaying my Jewishness. I was surrounded by friends and mentors who offered security and strength. I really tried to get a taste of what it felt like for our families in those days, at this place.

Maybe just a glimpse.

Continuing down the path I began to

think about the sacrifices that were made. I tried to understand what real self-sacrifice is.

I thought of the countless stories I heard about Jews sacrificing everything they had, including their lives, for the sanctification of G-d’s name. I thought of Jews celebrating in dark, illegal sukkas-temporary huts open to the sky-- built right in the backyard of the infamous KGB, an organization that did more than just spy on the Jews of the former Soviet Union.

I thought of them traveling many miles on long, endless roads in their horses and wagons to receive encouragement and inspiration from their rabbis, from their spiritual leaders. I thought of those courageous Jewish women who broke the ice in sub-zero temperatures in order to immerse in the spiritual waters of the mikvah, the ritual bath.

But, how can I have self-sacrifice in this

Left: Shevi Katzman prays in front of a brick building which houses the gravesite of Rabbi Avraham HaMalach. Above: Shevi prays in the snow at Babi Yar, a memorial site to the 200,000 Jews murdered there in a single day. day and age? How G-d through meditation of His greatness. can I give of myself I prefaced my prayers in the room adjointo G-d and our peo- ing the gravesite by learning a section of ple? his book, the Tanya.

On foot down This section describes how to contemthe hill and trying not to slip, I notice plate on the greatness of G-d which leads lights dancing in the distance. They to concentration in prayer. Praying there, assure me I am progressing in the right with those thoughts in my mind, was an direction. As I walk down the dimly lit incredible feeling. path leading to the resting place of the The climax of my visit at the gravesite Alter Rebbe, Rabbi Shneur Zalman, came through song. The Alter Rebbe author of the Tanya, I am filled with awe taught that music is the pen of the soul and trepidation. and very powerful.

Here I am at his gravesite on the day of We sang the very moving and soul-stirhis yartzheit, the anniversary of his death, ring song that he composed, reserved for in the country where he kept Judaism very specific occasions due to its holy alive and well. That moment’s realization nature. We closed our eyes as we sang this gave me a surge of inspiration and a sense extraordinary melody and tried to take it of the great holiness of the journey that all in.

G-d allowed me to experience. I felt like The song inspired a love for G-d and a I was representing all the Jewish people drive to want to fulfill G-d’s will, which around the world who were commemo- is, of course, to observe his commandrating this day by studying the Alter ments. Both are concepts emphasized by the Alter Rebbe in his teachings.

Rebbe’s great written works.

The following day we visited the city of The Alter Rebbe wrote the handbook of mysticism. One of its main points is Babi Yar, where the pit in which more about attaining high levels of service of Continued on page 20

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

The Sacrifices We Make

Finding My Jewish Identity

plified sincere love for every Jew. I recalled some of the countless stories I was told about how he was always defending Jews before G-d. No matter how incriminating the evidence, he always found a reasonable defense. He looked to find their qualities, and taught us to accentuate the positive, ignore the negative. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak used his witticisms to ‘argue’ with G-d and demand that Jews be treated well.

In my imagination I was thinking about how Rabbi Levi Yitzchak, known as the “Ohev Yisrael” (Lover of Israel) was praising my community and my family. I was sure I could hear Rabbi Levi Yitzchak telling G-d how proud He should be of all of my friends and family in Omaha, whom I felt I was representing at his resting place in Ukraine.

Shevi stands in front of a Holocaust memorial near Mezibush- On the plane ride back to Israel, I thought about the -another place where thousands of Jews were killed. opportunities I have to give Suddenly, we burst into song to express of my life to others. I feel invigorated and our sadness. The songs of sadness led to motivated to give of myself to my people. songs of hope and faith, which our broth- I feel privileged to have gained a glimpse ers and sisters must have sung as they of those whose lives were literally sacriwere led to their deaths. The songs ended ficed because they were Jewish. The sacjoyously and with determination to give rifices I can make include dedicating my tribute to their lives and souls by living life to G-d and helping to make the world more aware of Him. for that which they gave their lives.

That evening, I sat on the bus ride to Shevi is the daughter of Rabbi Mendel the town of Berditchev, thinking about the place I was going to visit. Buried and Shani Katzman. She is spending this there was Rabbi Levi Yitzchak who exem- year learning in Israel.

Continued from page 14 After junior year was finally over, I spent the summer relaxing at Starlight once more. This time I attended ILTC (International Leadership Training Conference) and IC (International Convention). These two programs introduced me to BBYO on an international level.

My eyes were opened to how vast and successful this youth group is and just how many people it touches. These programs really motivated me to help perfect our council.

The past year I have been challenged with the responsibilities of being president of the B’nai B’rith Girls of Cornbelt Council BBYO. It has forced me to come out of my comfort zone, balance write responsibility, speeches, and effectively communicate with my elders and my peers. I can honestly say this position has prepared me for college more than any other leadership position I have ever held.

BBYO has been there with me all through my high school career and helped me grow. I know far down the road when I look back to high school, I will forever remember BBYO. I could not have made a better choice of what to help me through my high school years.

Now it is my goal to get through the

Continued from page 18 than 200,000 Jews were killed. We were filled with sorrow as we thought of how bitterly and tragically so many Jewish lives were lost.

first scary, intimidating day of college and find what will help me grow throughout my college years, as BBYO has done over the past four.

Abby is the daughter of Beth and Bill Ginsburg. A senior at Burke, she will enter the University of Wisconsin at Madison this fall.

Below: Circling their year-2000 time capusle are the girls of Ediar BBG. Abby Ginsburg is at lower left.

Above: Abby Ginsburg, second from left, enjoys an evening out with friends: Carly Arogeti, Bari Bridges and Rachel Goldberg.

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Every Year Brings Change

by SARAH SPOONER As I’m writing this I am reminded of the other articles about me written in the Jewish Press. I was reading one particular article that was written by my parents when I was a baby.

My father writes in it that he would like me to become Chief Justice of the United States. Was he kidding himself? Well, it would seem that I am growing up to become Grandfather a much more sophisticated Above: Jerome Milder, Sarah, and polite young woman grandmother Frances (Catch the sarcasm?).

When I was a kid, I always Milder, and brother Zach wanted to become an interi- Spooner celebrate a famior or fashion designer. ly simcha. Left: Sarah Something caught my eye in Spooner and Hamutal the area of design and it has Ginsburg at a BBYO’s Regional been my dream ever since. I Winter Convention in Omaha. watched hours of the popular television show “Trading Spaces” and increased my interest. In the future, I would love to attend Kansas University and major in Interior/Fashion design.

Today, however, I’m a junior at Burke High School. I have recently put most of my focus into college planning and when I should take the dreaded standardized tests.

I participate in cheerleading and have cheered each year since I was a freshman. Every year brings new changes and experiences.

Outside of school I am a proud member of Ediar BBG #710, one of the Chapters in the B’nai Birith Youth Organization. I started BBYO when I was a freshman and have enthusiastically taken part since.

BBYO has taught me so much about Judaism and has introduced me to some of my best friends who live in Kansas City and St. Louis. I volunteer as often as possible when I’m with the youth group. We have a group called Shiputznick that helps with local mitzvot. I have so much fun helping others, and I hope I can continue this attitude when I am older.

When I was in third and fourth grade I attended Camp Sabra. It was a life changing experience. I had

never been away from home for more than a week and it was an exciting change for me.

I had the time of my life meeting a new group of people, learning more about my faith and interacting in sports and outdoor activities. I would say being away from my family was the hardest, but I lived. Most of my friends attended every year since 10th grade, but I decided to stop going and go back to the Jewish Community Center’s summer camp.

This past summer I was able to be a Camp Counselor and it brought back so many memories from when I was a camper at JCC Camp. I still remember my old counselors and the impact they had on my life. I hope I was able to impact the children’s lives last summer.

This summer I will be on my way to Israel for an entire month. I am very nervous, yet too excited to explain. I have never been, but when I found out about the ARTZA trip I couldn’t stop anticipating the fun I would have. The JCC has put so much time and effort into planning this trip that I’m sure it will be a hit!

The two most favorite people in my life are my GMA and GPA (those are the nicknames I gave them about three years ago). Jermome and Francas Milder are the best grandparents. They have inspired me and always told me to follow my dreams.

They’ve always been there for me through thick and thin and to help me with my problems. I can’t last a couple of days without talking to them.

They love to donate to any organization that helps the sick. I know they have been through a lot these past couple of years. I am so glad that they are so strong and have held on to their spirts through all of these hardships.

Sarah is the daughter of Gayle and Jim Spooner.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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by SARAH SHERMAN The year will mark my high school graduation, upon which I will embark on a new life journey at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, IA, in the fall. I am anxious and excited to leave home and meet many new people.

As I approach this milestone, I reflect on the loss of my brothers, Joshua Edward and Daniel Ryan. Throughout elementary school, I was not consciously aware that my brothers’ premature deaths had affected me to any great degree.

My brother, Joshua, died at birth from a genetic kidney condition. One year later, my twin brother, Daniel, died of genetic kidney disease, also. Fortunately, I have not been diagnosed with the disease, although I may be a carrier of the gene.

Like other young people, I have considered many careers throughout high school, but find myself drawn to service to others. I have decided to major in criminal justice and someday would like to enter the field of law enforcement.

While in elementary school, I took swimming lessons; and, in this, I found an activity which I greatly enjoyed, and in which I excelled. Later, in middle school, I found I was able to use my swimming skills to help others.

I began volunteering with my swimming instructor to help mentally and physically challenged children learn to swim. Being able to help others learn a skill that I possessed was immensely rewarding, and I continued my volunteer work throughout my years in middle school.

During my sophomore year in high school, I also

started volunteering at Children’s Hospital. I experienced great satisfaction and happiness in being involved in helping others at the place where I was born. At Children’s Hospital, I was able to help with children facing medical crises and their families.

During my sophomore year of high school, I traveled to New York City with my class from Temple Israel and Rabbi Aryeh Azriel. The opportunity to visit Ground Zero and see Ellis Island, where my ancestors entered America, was an amazing experience.

I was awed by the chance to look at the empty space where the towering World Trade Center had once stood.

While I have eagerly anticipated attending college and pursuing a career for quite some time, I have just recently discovered that I have a strong interest in the field of law enforcement. My career goal upon graduating from college is to become a police officer. Today, I am confident in my ability to meet the challenge ahead, and I look forward to helping others. I know, absolutely, that I will attain my future goals--my happy ending.

Sarah is a senior at Millard and the daughter of Ruth and Marc Sherman.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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by CHELSEA TAXMAN never had the opportunity to be on the Following in the footsteps of three out- NFTY-Missouri Valley Regional Board. standing siblings and living in a town Regional Board was a high honor, as the where my family has never had trouble persons in this position held power over making an impression in the community, the largest, geographically speaking, it is hard for a young girl striving to flour- region in the youth group: about eight ish. What was I to do? states.

First, I looked at myself in the mirror and said, “Oy vey, you’ve got a tough act to follow.” The hardest part about my situation was not that I couldn’t do something well, but what I wanted to do was no different than what everyone had already done.

For instance, I love to sing and I love performing. So did my sisters and brother.

Also, I have a passion for leadership. Well, so did those who called seniority Above: Chelsea Taxman, second from right, and her siblings: before each car ride. (This Ben, Whitney and Lindsey. Below: Chelsea (dressed as assured front seat.) There Santa) helps collect canned goods for the Food Bank as part was no escape! I realized it of a Westside High School Student Advisory Board commuwould involve a lot of effort nity service project. from me in order to ever upstage the achievements of Lindsey, Whitney and Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben. Oy vey!

So, I decided to start small.

Freshman year, I joined Temple Youth Omaha Group (OTYG), the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO), and United Synagogue Youth (USY.) Small? Well, so I thought I should at I ran home after a regional convention least try them all out. On top of all this, I in Denver, CO and asked my mother if was elected Freshman Class Whitney or Lindsey were on the board.

Representative for Student Advisory My mom claims Lindsey ran and only Board (SAB) at Westside High School. remembers her eccentric attire of the 80s, This was not impressive enough for the not her speech, and she obviously did not Taxman Dynasty. As my mother would win. Yes! This was my time to shine. say “Been there, done that, have the tNow, I could do what I desire and be shirt.” Oy vey! the first to achieve it in my family. I spent I went through a couple of years of second semester of my junior year planhigh school trying out the different ning for what I would do for NFTYboard positions in these groups. I was a Missouri Valley during my senior year. secretary, vice president, historian, public One never knows how an election will relations, etc, but nothing was new for turn. However, my peers felt I could lead my parents. the region.

Now, I am the In the middle of my junior year, I gave Communications and Visual Vice up on my parents’ expectations and President (CVVP) of the region. I still am focused on my admiration of leadership a member of the other youth groups and did this for myself. I devoted hours a around Omaha as well as the secretary of week working on leadership events and Westside’s Student Advisory Board. responsibilities. Westside High School You must be thinking I am a crazy became worried about me--sending notes young girl, but you have no idea. When I home to my parents asking if I was still am not performing in the school’s award alive and planning to graduate. winning varsity show choir, or directing a It was tough to schedule a time to even play at Omaha’s children’s theater, I am rest my eyes. I thought adjusting the studiously working on an assignment for hours I wore my contact lenses would school. I mean, I am making an impact lengthen the hours in a day, but in the on the teenagers of the region, after all, end I found out this was crucial to my and doing something meaningful that future ability to see. I wanted to lead. gives me a sense of accomplishment every Around December of my junior year, I single day.

Chelsea is a senior at Westside and the remembered something my wise brother requested when I was a freshman. He daughter of Jeff and Sherry Taxman.

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April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 23

Facing Challenge of Internet Age, BBYO Seeks a Way to Reach Teens

by CHANAN TIGAY NEW YORK (JTA)--In the television world, network execs drool over the 18to 34-year-old demographic, since young viewers often help boost advertising revenue.

Young people, and teens in particular, also are seen as an essential target audience for Jewish educators, who view them as the key to another kind of currency: Jewish continuity.

In recent years, however, educators are finding their wares an increasingly tough sell to young Jews.

“Jewish teens have changed,” says Matthew Grossman, Executive Director of the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization.

“We can’t expect the same formula to work today that worked 80 years ago.

Teens aren’t joining groups like they did.”

“The reality is that a vast majority of Jewish teens are not connecting Jewishly during the teenage years,” he adds. “If you take out the Orthodox community, it’s a vast, vast majority.”

In this light, BBYO has launched a new initiative aimed at reaching Jewish teens in their own milieu, an online Internet community.

In the old formula--what BBYO’s senior manager of marketing and communications, Abby Strunk, calls a membership model--the group would engage Jewish teens who then became BBYO members, signing on to lead local chapters, regions or the international body.

While that model is still in use, today’s realities have led BBYO to re-examine the model, making positive Jewish experiences available to teens whether or not they’re affiliated with the group.

BBYO recently launched b-linked, an online community built on the model of social-networking sites like Friendster and Facebook, online communities that connect people through networks of friends for dating or making new acquaintances.

The site, www.b-linked.org, aims to revolutionize the way Jewish teens connect with each other. BBYO leaders hope that 50,000-100,000 Jewish teens will join b-linked over the next four years.

The site was launched in October and made available initially to the BBYO

community. It already has more than sports contests to community service.

2,000 members, and the group is publiB-linked will offer various sub-commucizing the initiative more broadly in an nities on a variety of topics. The subeffort to attract a wider spectrum of communities include: teens.

• b-accepted will provide tools to aid in “Our goal is to get as many Jewish the college-admissions process. Teens teens onto the site as possible, and then who join b-linked will receive a 10 perdeliver them meaningful Jewish experi- cent discount on a Princeton Review colences,” Grossman says. lege prep course; Lynn Schusterman, who Gross-man • b-inspired will link teens who are says has been instrumental in enabling interested in Judaism and spirituality; BBYO to move in this new direction, says • b-everywhere will offer information she sees b-linked as similar to birthright on travel opportunities; israel, a program that brings young Jews • b-yisrael will be devoted to informato Israel for free in hopes that they’ll tion on Israel; become more involved Jewishly and more • b-alive will focus on health and wellinvolved with Israel. ness.

“We’re hoping that if a kid logs on to “The beauty of it is that the kids prob-linked, they’ll get involved in Jewish vide all the content and activity,” says camping, Jewish youth groups, Jewish Marc Goldberg, senior technical manager summer programs,” says Schusterman, of of AOL Internet Access, who provided the Charles feedback on and Lynn the site as Schusterman BBYO develF a m i l y oped it. “The Foundation. members or The site has non-members the potential that want to to engage sit back and teens who are observe can otherwise do that, and unaf filiated still be able to and “may be take on a turned off by sense of owna synagogue ership as they or, potentialfind the areas ly, a youth that they like or group, to haunt.”

B-linked, a BBYO social networking Web site for teenage even Jewish Strunk says Jewish readers. camping,” the signifishe says. “When they log on to this, it’s cance of b-linked lies not simply in the something that’s hip and cool.” establishment of a website--other Jewish While BBYO would love to see these youth groups have Web sites, and some teens join the organization, it’s satisfied if offer opportunities for browsers to chat they simply find a way to engage positive- online--but in “the establishment of a ly in Jewish life through the site. networking community that allows teens Those who sign up on b-linked can cre- to connect with one another.” ate personal profiles to share with other Rabbi Sid Schwarz, founder and presimembers; communicate through message dent of the Washington-based Panim: boards about music, movies, sports, vol- The Institute for Jewish Leadership and unteer work and other favorite subjects; Values, calls b-linked “inspired and brilfind help with the college-admissions liant.”

Panim recently ran its annual Jewish process; shop for apparel and other merchandise; write online journals; and learn Teen Leadership Summit, which brings about upcoming events ranging from together top Jewish teen leaders from the

youth movements and beyond.

On the last day of the meeting, participants brainstormed for several hours about programs they’d like to see in the Jewish community. Their initial 25 ideas ultimately were boiled down to two, one of which was called Jew Wire.

“They essentially described BBYO’s initiative,” Schwarz says.

Schwarz says it’s telling that a “crosssection of highly talented Jewish teens” charged with bettering the Jewish community independently arrived at a program nearly identical to the BBYO initiative.

The site also represents a new direction for BBYO, whose leaders say it’s changing course to meet today’s challenges head-on. At its height in the late 1960s, BBYO had 45,000 members between its boys group, AZA--a Hebrew acronym for Fraternity, Charity and Benevolence (founded in Omaha about 80 years ago)-and its girls group, B’nai B’rith Girls.

Today, BBYO, which has been independent of B’nai B’rith International for three years, has 16,000 members.

“BBYO for 80 years was based upon a membership model; there was only one doorway to get in,” Strunk says. B-linked “provides, potentially, hundreds of doorways.”

Rob Callender, trends director at the Chicago-based Teenage Research Unlimited, a market research firm focusing on teens, says a site like b-linked could present BBYO with something of a Catch-22.

“Friendster and other social-networking Web sites are extremely popular, and in that vein it couldn’t do any harm,” he says.

On the other hand, teens today are attracted to diversity, and b-linked “may be perceived as being slightly limited if it only caters to the active Jewish community.”

Grossman says that while spirituality is “hot” in the Jewish teen community, “teens don’t necessarily equate spirituality” with Jewish practice.

“Our strategy is to play to the things that appeal to Jewish teens the most,’’ he says.

Page 24

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

A Summer to Remember but just going to the am proud of who I am and the religion I ball. Our efforts

by ZACH MUSKIN South and being around believe in.

Baseball and basketball have always had given us a run I felt the strength of my Jewishness the different types of peoat state and we been two loves of mine. ple was a great experience more acutely there than I have at any These sports have taken up most of my ended up winning other time. The lack of sensitivity only for me. time after school and every summer day. the sectional title I would have never proved to strengthen my convictions and Over the years baseball has been the more and placing second thought the sport that I my religious beliefs. My teammates were time consuming sport out of the two, and in the state. By loved could teach me so sensitive to the awkwardness of this expeafter spending all of that time and hard doing this we were much about people and rience for me. work, I was finally rewarded at the end of sent on an all-paid Over the years I have been on many life. There have been trip to Pine Bluff, the summer last year. great teams; my teammates and I have many life lessons.

I had just come off of a pretty good Arkansas, where we In Pine Bluff I was con- learned and grown together. One of the in the basketball season experiencing my first played fronted with my first important lessons I have learned from my highvarsity start, and I really had a good time. regional required Christian prayer; participation in sports includes a different baseball Baseball started off rocky when I was told school it was followed by a pork outlook on life.

I was going to be a backup player and tournament.

Sports have given me the opportunity dinner. I have never felt In Pine Bluff we possibly not make the summer team. my minority status more to play with a variety of people from difAbout two weeks into the season when played terrible and than I did in Pine Bluff. I ferent cultures and backgrounds. As I was really thinking about giving up went two and out, teammates we’re all part of baseball, I finally got a shot the same family, speaking at starting. I made the most the same language and of this opportunity and working toward the same earned myself another start. common goal, supporting From then on through the each other. The coach is like end of the summer season I a teacher helping to move us worked hard and was able to toward a positive experience work my way into the startwhile getting the most out ing role at third base. of each player.

All my doubts about playAs I reflect on my athletic ing were moved to the side. careers I know that it won’t I was excited because I was ever be as good as it is in on a really good team and I high school, and I feel fortuwas given the opportunity to nate to have had so many play. great opportunities to learn At the beginning of the about myself and others. summer our team started off The summer of 2005 was slow. By the middle months definitely a summer to we had begun to play with some heart and competed Left photo: Zach Muskin, center, with Burke varsity basketball teammates Justin Jacobson, left, and Alex Epstein, the first remember. like we knew we could. By time three Jewish boys have been members of the same high school team in Nebraska. The boys also played on the JCC Zach is a senior at Burke the end of the summer we Maccabi team. Muskin, who also plays baseball, is hoping to play on the college level next year when he goes to Kansas and the son of Mary Beth were playing our best base- University in Lawrence. and Bruce Muskin.

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April 7, 2006

Slaying the IB Monster

by SARA MUNZESHEIMER After 10th grade, the acronym “IB” had a whole new meaning for me. No longer could it refer to relatively harmless aspects of life like “Interesting Blueberries”, “Itchy Bundles”, or “Isolated Bonfires.” The International Baccalaureate Program (IB) was like a monster taunting me with a piece of candy that was the IB diploma, and I was in danger of having the life sucked out of me if I was crazy enough to attempt to obtain that coveted prize, the light at the end of a dark tunnel.

Okay, so maybe I’m dramatizing a bit, but when I first went into IB at the beginning of 11th grade, I felt like I was kissing my freedom goodbye: no more movies, no more football games, no more sleep. Why was I making this rash move, you ask?

Well, I was a hopeless over achiever. I am a hopeless over achiever. IB was an academic challenge that could and would be conquered. I would triumph even if I had to kill myself in the process.

The first day of 11th grade I went to school with a kind of mental armor, ready to go in and slay the IB monster.

First period passed by without consequence, but I wouldn’t be fooled by innocent appearances. “Fill out a book card,” instructed my second hour teacher. That seemed easy enough. Why did they say IB was hard?

It wasn’t until the second week of school that the high level of education finally set in. I found myself knee deep in homework, tests, and those dreaded pop quizzes. Yet there was an upside to all this academic stress. There was a whole group of fellow IB students there right along with me. We could study together, complain about IB together, and even go to social events together.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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IB also provided an intimate learning atmosphere with small classes and intellectual teachers. One day in my IB Theory of Knowledge class we were told to write 100 random questions. I wrote furiously for five minutes scribbling down a wide array of inquiries from, “What is love?” to “Is there really a God?” Things that I had never extensively thought about before were pouring out of my mind and onto the paper in front of me. I was questioning. Days melted into weeks, which melted into months, and I found myself face to face with the end of my IB junior year.

IB taught me to question.

It helped me realize that there is a huge world out there, lots of monsters to be slain, but also lots of allies to faithfully accompany me on my journey through life.

Nowadays, when I hear the acronym “IB”, I smile, because I know that it can be conquered quite successfully. I am now ready to face the world with my IB monster at my back and a whole world of education in my future Sara is the daughter of Alice Weiss and Ken Munzesheimer. She is a senior at Millard North.

Above left: Sara’s artwork: “Revealed in the Spotlight.”

Left: Sara Munzesheimer

by BRENT SALTZMAN gram with National Conference of Synagogue Youth I haven’t ever been bored during my time attending (NCSY) called TJJ: The Jerusalem Journey. high school. I have attended Burke for nearly four years I had a fantastic time and have been involved in both Technical Theater and while visiting holy sites in the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) Israel, extending my since I was a freshman. knowledge of Jewish hisJROTC is a fantastic program--it is mainly focused tory and culture. I had a around the Army and the United States Military. It terrific time kayaking, offers more than the use of weaponry and doing proper rapelling, hiking, shoppush-ups. ping, and sightseeing.

Its main goal is to “Motivate young Americans to My most memorable become better citizens.” The curriculum is composed of moment was my first time lessons on leadership, teamwork, discipline, and selfless at the Kotel or the service. As a third-year student, I am taught by an Western Wall. The feelextremely talented teacher, role model, and mentor: ings were indescribable! I Lieutenant Colonel (RET) Jeff Flagg. He has taught must say that I had the my class everything from Red Cross First Aid certifica- most fun rapelling tion to shooting a precision air rifle, as well as lessons in because I learned how to the every day class. accomplish that manuever JROTC has a wide range of extra curricular activities in JROTC. I was the only including cadet leadership in the form of a battalion person on my trip that Brent Saltzman stands at staff. My main duty as Special Projects Officer on the had previous experience attention during staff inspecbattalion staff is to update the website for the battalion, doing this activity in a tion of Burke’s J-ROTC. and archive on video all of the events and activities of the more controlled environbattalion. I was recruited into the program by another ment. member of the Jewish comGerson, munity--Trevor who was the Omaha Public School Brigade Commander when he was a senior at Burke.

I have also been highly involved in theatre at Burke.

I am currently the head soundman at the school. I have been involved in every production since my freshman year including: Neil Brent Saltzman rapells down a cliff in Israel, left, and performs drills for J-ROTC, right.

Simon’s Rumors, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, You’re a Good Man In my spare time I enjoy playing the drums, listening Charlie Brown, Story Theater, Musical Revue, and to music, working in Photoshop, and editing video.

Godspell.

After high school I plan on either enlisting in the We are currently working on our next production, Nebraska Army National Guard to serve my country to Hello, Dolly, which I assure you will be an extravagant the fullest extent of my ability or attend Metro performance Community College for its technical theater program.

Over this past summer, before my junior year, I spent approximately one month in Israel on a summer proBrent is the son of Lynne and Errol Saltzman.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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Home Run!

by BENJAMIN GOLDSTROM One of the worst days of my life became one of the best.

In the spring of 2005, I had played a smaller role on the Westside varsity baseball team than I had anticipated--as a part-time starter. But a teammate’s injury and my strong performance propelled me into the starting lineup by the time the state tournament rolled around. The next game figured to be a little tougher, but I never imagined what I’d have to go through just to play in that game.

When I went to bed that night, I felt fine. The next morning was a different story.

I had only been asleep for an hour or two. Sweat dripped off the ends of my hair onto my already damp pillow. I felt like I had been on a ride at an amusement park, one that spins around a thousand times. As I was getting off the ride, I felt like I had been punched in the stomach.

I threw off my sheet and shirt to cool off. For another two hours of dizzying, aching misery, I tossed myself back and forth. Finally, I stumbled through the darkness and limped into the bathroom. After repeating that process over and over again during the next sev en hours, I realized I had a case of food poisoning.

I never felt worse.

There was only one person who could help me become healthy enough to make it to school and the game: my dad.

Determined to find a solution, my father called a health hotline and got a nurse on the phone. Following the nurse’s instructions, my dad slowly fed me pear juice,

Gatorade and toast. By 11:30 a.m., I had gathered enough strength to make my way to school. I left class early, however, to get ready for the game as I was still sick.

At pre-game batting practice, I could barely lift my 30ounce bat. I was still weak, but hid my illness from the coach, fearing that he wouldn’t let me play. I ended up dragging myself to the batter’s box three times in that game. Despite my illness, I went 2-2 with a single, double and a walk, and two RBIs. I had helped my team to a 15-0 blowout of a very good team at the state tournament.

I learned some important lessons from this experience. When you have determination and you put your heart into something, you can overcome difficult circumstances. You can even surpass what you thought were your capabilities.

Regardless of the outcome of the game, I learned that it is important to take the risk of putting forth your best effort. I also learned that when other people are counting on you, you have to put aside your personal feelings and do the best you can do.

My work and determination have made my dream of playing college baseball become closer to reality. I have just been offered an academic and athletic scholarship and have signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Illinois Tech in Chicago next fall. This is a great opportunity that will allow me to pursue a degree in business and marketing, while letting me continue to play baseball--this time at the college level.

I hope to pursue a career that connects marketing and sports.

Ben is a senior at Westside and the son of Larry and Carol Goldstrom.

Inspired by Masada

by CAROLYN HAACK portion at my Bar Mitzvah, Daniel Fry was born in as well as lead more of the 1988 to former Omahan service. Without her, I Marti (Bresel) and Larry would not have gone anyFry. In 1994, he entered where.” In fact, to show his kindergarten and turned out appreciation towards her he to be a talented kid--good at gave her an aliyah, one of everything including sports. the honors during the Torah In the fourth grade, service.

Daniel started Hebrew He also got some help school in Kansas City. He from David Bell, who helped was definitely one of the best him with his sermon. David in the class. He learned how had fun by showing Daniel to read Hebrew and read his pet snake and driving Torah with the trope (the him to practices. He even musical cantillation) and met with him at Buffalo learned about some of the Wild Wings, where they had current events. He learned some fun eating the hot Daniel, second from right, and his two brothers, left, meet Dean about the state of Israel and chicken wings.

Smith, middle, the ‘winningest’ coach in college basketball. when it was founded. He Lisa Levine--one of the learned about the different tourists sights. best cantors in the Kansas His favorite story is about Masada. The fortress was City area--got Daniel to established by the Jewish leader Jonathan during the concentrate on what he Hasmonean Revolt (167-142 B.C.E.). During that perineeded to do. od, the Jews successfully fought for their independence Daniel dedicated his Bar from the Assyrian Greeks. (That’s where the Hanukkah Mitzvah to his bubbe, the story comes from!) In 63 B.C.E., the Romans gained late Jean Bresel and his control of Judea. Herod the Great, who was appointed great-grandmother the king of Judea by the Romans in 40 B.C.E., reinforced late Mary Krout. the fortress and also built two palaces there.

One of the other things Jewish patriots called Zealots captured Masada in 66 Daniel likes to do is travC.E. According to tradition, the Jews burned the camp Daniel enjoys playing football el; he has been all over and committed suicide in 73 C.E. rather than surrender at Boys Town High School.

North America. Some of to the Romans, just before the Romans recaptured the his favorite places include Naples, Orlando, St. fortress. Only two women and five children remained Petersburg, Miami, Cocoa Beach, and Tampa, all in alive. Byzantine monks settled briefly on Masada during Florida. He also liked Cancun, Mexico, The Atlantis the fourth and fifth centuries. Today, it’s a national park. Hotel in the Bahamas, Jamaica, Alaska and Hawaii.

After Hebrew school, Daniel had tutoring sessions Today, Daniel attends Boys Town High School in with Ida Mohr in Kansas City. She was the best Hebrew Omaha. He has been on their honor roll two times. He tutor one could have. “She made me drink plenty of is hoping to go to the University of Missouri at water before I started reading,” Daniel says. “She was Columbia or the University of Kansas at Lawrence and the reason I was able to recite more verses of my Torah will graduate in May, 2007.

JEWISH PRESS EARLY DEADLINE NOTICE Due to the closing of the office on Thursday and Friday, April 13-14 for the first two days of Passover, and Wednesday and Thursday, April 19-20, for the last two days, there are early deadlines for articles, photos and ads--at noon--as follows: Deadline Issue Deadline Issue Tuesday, April 11 April 28 Tuesday, April 18 April 21

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 27

Tennis Skills Net Lady Ace a College Scholarship

by GARY JAVITCH Like the many immigrants before them, Eugene and Julia Elkin sought a better life in America. They wanted what this country had to offer. They left behind the former Soviet Union with Olga, their four-year old daughter in tow, and a soon-to-be born daughter, Michelle, who arrived a month after they came to this country in 1993. This story is about their daughter’s achievements, and indirectly it is about family love and sacrifice. Above all, it describes goal achievement and dedication.

Olga, now 17, did not initially enjoy the racket sport according to her father.

“Olga’s first love was Tae Kwan Do, a form of Judo,” he said. “She was #1 in that sport in Nebraska,” he noted, but she had no one with whom she could compete. She often had to spar with the boys.

“So we pushed her into tennis and it took her six months before she really started loving it.” In actuality, Olga started playing late. The stars usually begin at the age of five or six. Olga started playing in earnest when she was nearly 10. The new immigrant family found the courts expensive. As the family fared better economically, they could afford more court time.

Olga’s first training in tennis came from an expert. It was her mom, who came “From Russia With Love,” so to speak.

“My mother coached a kids’ Olympic team back in Russia,” Olga related. “She was an amazing teacher.” Olga complimented her dad, too. “He was not a tennis coach,” she said. “But he had this uncanny ability to spot my technical errors and give me insight into what I was

doing incorrectly.”

Mike Henrich, an Omaha area coach also helped her. They obviously did well, because Olga began winning tournaments, some at the national level in her age group. In addition, as only a freshman at Millard North, she won the state high school tennis championship, beating girls two to three years older. In her sophomore year, she made it all the way to the finals, but in an attempt to take the state title a second year in a row, she got edged out by Cameron Hubbs from Westside, a competitor with whom she had an intense rivalry.

Ace tennis star Olga Elkin moved to the KC area to perfect her game.

During her junior year, however, Olga became frustrated with her progress. “I had no one to hit with and indoor court time was harder to get. I was just not moving at the pace I wanted. I thought it in my best interest to move.”

That decision to relocate to a more competitive tennis environment was part of Olga’s aspiration to make sports a part of her life’s work.

She did not see herself becoming a professional player. Rather, she thought she would really enjoy the career field of sports administration or management--or because of her fluency in Russian--perhaps international business. She also wanted to get into a good college.

From her tournament travel, Olga knew that Wichita State University was one of the few schools that had the specialized program that she desired. She thought WSU sports great, too. They also had a wonderful tennis coach.

Moving to the Kansas City area would improve her chances to achieve those goals. In doing so, tennis has become the high school senior’s life. She began her junior year in Kansas at Mill Valley High but finished it at Shawnee Mission High School, which she liked better.

Getting top grades, she has acquired almost all the credits she needs to graduate. So in her senior year she has an abbreviated school routine and an extensive practice schedule, leaving school at lunchtime and getting to practice an hour later. She practices Monday-Thursday until 7 p.m., and perhaps for an hour at most, or not atall on Friday. On Saturday, she works out for three hours and then it’s on to a lesson; she works out for three hours on Sunday.

If that seems a bit much, consider that twice a week, she also goes to a gym at 6 a.m. for an hour workout before school.

Fortunately, she lives with the family of one of her coaches, which made getting to the practice venues a whole lot easier.

Shawnee Mission is a good school; one of the tops in the country, Olga feels. She works as an office aide, takes college algebra and English. She only needs English to graduate but has to be there five periods, says the school.

Weekends are generally for tournaments. During February, for example, she had four tournaments all four weekends.

In the period from last October to November, she was out of town 10 weekends in a row.

Her parents try to go to as many as they can, so she sees them at least two times a month and at school holiday breaks. Yet, she still misses them and her sister. They come down more than she goes home.

In between all this, she finds time to study. She has nearly a straight ‘A’ average and ekes out study time at tournaments and evenings after practice.

Despite the rigor, Olga enjoys her life.

She even had a chance to play her old Westside tennis nemesis, Cameron Hubbs. “I beat her in a match this past summer,” she said with some satisfaction.

“Olge,” as her coaches affectionately call her, reflects on her new life: She doesn’t want to turn pro--I don’t even think about it. I am very happy that my parents got me into this sport. There were so many opportunities for scholarships and tennis is so good,” she reflected.

Highlighting this picture, Olga recently signed a national letter of intent with WSU, accepting a “full ride” scholarship.

It’s not too much too say that the Elkin family has lived the “American Dream.”

They have two daughters of which they are very proud.

And Michelle, now 13, plays tennis, too.

Page 28

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Mazal Happy Passover Tov The Committee and Staff of

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April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Vol. LXXXV No. 14 Omaha, NE

Page 29

Celebrating 84 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa

by JANET HENTHORN Foundation of the Jewish Federation The much anticipated applications for the Phil and Ruth Sokolof Honor Roll Merit Scholarships are now available. The application forms, which must be submitted by March 1, 2006, can be downloaded from the Center for Jewish Education Scholarships and Grants page on the Jewish Federation of Omaha’s website at www.jewishomaha.org.

The Sokolof Scholarships, which will be administered by the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation, may be the largest that have ever been available in the Jewish community, according to Steve Bloch, President of the Foundation.

Phil Sokolof died on April 15, 2004. Terms of his will created the Phil and Ruth Sokolof Honor Roll Fund and the Karen Sokolof Javitch Music Appreciation Fund.

Both Sokolof and his wife Ruth had a deep love for Phil and Ruth Sokolof, 1971. education and a great appreciation for the hard work that made success possible.

This influenced his establishing the criteria for the scholarships that are based on merit and not financial need.

In addition, recipients must be residents of the Omaha metropolitan area.

Meeting with Jewish Educators, Bush Stresses Vouchers, Choice

by Matthew E. Berger WASHINGTON (JTA)--President Bush brought his controversial support for school vouchers and charitable choice to a receptive Jewish audience, and expressed support for opportunities to help Jewish day schools.

Hanukkah came early to the White House as President Bush lit the menorah while the West Point Cadet Jewish Credit: Carrie Devorah chorale sang Hanukkah songs.

Bush met Dec. 6 with 13 Jewish educators and dayschool leaders, and focused the talk on his support for school vouchers and other education initiatives. Later in the day he hosted the White House’s annual Hanukkah party, attended by several hundred Jewish leaders. The event was held before the holiday this year because Bush won’t be available later in the month.

Continued on page 15

Inside Opinion Page see page 16

by JOAN K. MARCUS

Merit scholarships for $10,000 each will be awarded to two graduating Jewish high school seniors for their college or university education. The criteria for these scholarships, as well as those below, are overall good character, scholastic performance, personal achievement, and community service.

Merit scholarships for $10,000 each will be awarded to two Jewish college or university students who are currently enrolled in, or have been admitted to, a course of study leading to a career in the field of health care.

In addition, there will be up to two merit scholarships (amounts yet to be determined) available from the Karen Sokolof Javitch Music Appreciation Fund.

These scholarships will be for Jewish college, university or music conservatory students who are majoring in or pursuing a degree in music performance, composition or music education.

Fifty years ago Phil Sokolof founded Phillips Manufacturing Company. According to his daughter, Karen Sokolof Javitch, her father started the company as a one-man operation. He was the manufacturer, the salesman, the distributor and the billing agent for a steel product used in creating drywall Continued on page 5

Businessman, real estate developer, philanthropist, and community leader Harlan Noddle died Dec. 10 at the age of 69.

Services were held Dec. 13 at Temple Israel with interment at Temple Israel Cemetery.

“It wasn’t just about all the things Harlan built over the years--it was why he built them,” said Jan Executive Goldstein, Director of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. “He always cared about people, about humanity and about making the world a better place--be it here in Omaha, nationally, in Israel or anywhere else in the world where there was need. And he never stopped doing this for all of us.

“He was always there for those who needed him and his spirit will always be celebrated in this Jewish community,” she added.

Although Noddle was seriously ill for several months, he remained active in the Omaha Jewish community, most recently chairing deliberations of the Murray H. and Sharee C. Newman Supporting Foundation. He also made the presentation to Dr. Hal Maurer at Chabad’s 18th Anniversary celebration--not just because Noddle served on the board of the University of Nebraska Medical Center with Chancellor Maurer-but as his friend.

Continued on page 19

Project Dreidel Chronicles

Tomorrow Is a New Day

by SHARON BARGAS for Jewish Family Service The story you are about to read is true and used with permission. The names have been changed to respect the privacy of individuals and their families. Over the next several weeks, you’ll get to know some of the Omahaarea Jews helped by Jewish Family Service (JFS). Each person depicted in these stories has graciously agreed to share their story with the community to increase awareness of the programs and services of JFS that have made such a tremendous difference in their lives.

Through Project Dreidel, JFS provides Hanukkah gifts and Jewish holiday meals to families in our area who cannot afford them. But sometimes, families and individuals have unexpected emergencies that require immediate intervention. JFS is there to provide the financial and emotional support needed to get back to normal, and that support costs money year ’round.

Your donations to JFS allows us to take care of each other, ensuring that every Omaha Jewish community member will have access to professional and compassionate help in a Jewish environment. To find out how you can help make a difference in the lives of others, please contact JFS at 330.2024.

This is the first installment in a three-part series: Had it not been for Jewish Family Service, the woman in this first installment of “Project Dreidel Chronicles” might have fallen into such deep despair that she would-

This Week: Annual Hanukkah Issue starts on Page 21 Eyewitness to the Fall of the Minsk Ghetto: Page 3

15 Kislev, 5766 December 16, 2005 2 Sections

Harlan Noddle Leaves Legacy of Leadership

Foundation Announces Sokolof Scholarship Applications Available

Where Are They Now? Features Dr. Hugh Levin: Page 9

n’t have been able to get back up again.

Rosa Kaplanksy left the only world she had ever known five years ago to start a new life in hopes of offering her daughter a better life in Omaha.

A native of Russia, Kaplansky struggled to learn English and created a home for her teenage daughter, independently, with no help from a spouse. She has vivid memories of her husband’s excessive drinking and poor health forcing her to choose a life on her own.

Although she was a respected mechanical engineer in Russia, she did not have the opportunity to continue her career in the United States. Instead, she ended up working for minimum wage as a sales representative at a local discount department store. Repeating to herself over and over again, “I’ve never had any regrets,” she remained upbeat over the years.

A little more than a year ago, she was stricken with horrendous pain that forced her to go to a local emergency room. After numerous tests and many visits to various doctors, Kaplansky was forced to endure a surgical procedure where surgeons removed her left ovary.

That is when “getting by” for this Jewish Russian Continued on page 7

Coming Next Month: Tax & Financial Planning on Jan. 13 Inside the New Holland Center: Page 13

Behind the Scenes at Opera Omaha: Page 30

Page 30

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Memories of the First JP Editor (Editor’s Note: In honor of the opening of the joint exhibit: “Front Page: 85 Years of Jewish Press History,” co-sponsored by the Jewish Press and the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society, we present a compendium of stories from the Press’ 50th, 75th and 80th anniversaries, editorials from every Editor, and a selection of front pages from the exhibit. We hope readers will join us this Sunday, April 9, 3-5 p.m., for the opening of the exhibit at the Jewish Community Center.)

April 9, 1971

by MORRIS E. JACOBS The expression remains trite, but still how true it is: Time Marches On! I remember as if it were yesterday. when three leaders in our Jewish community called on me to obtain my views on the starting of an English language weekly newspaper for the purpose of keeping the Jewish citizens of Omaha informed on Jewish news and questions.

Also to stimulate and intensify the already excellent Jewish consciousness already existing in Omaha.

These three leaders--no longer with us--Henry Monsky, Harry Wolf and William Holzman--were looking for a profitable investment.

With selfless interest. They and others like them felt that such a non-profit publication would bring about even a greater unity and individual interest and participation in Omaha, which already had an outstanding national recognition.

Keep in mind that many of these Jewish men and women of the 1921 days of Omaha and later were accepted and respected Jewish leaders of national stature. It is not difficult to recall: From our small rural Midwest community with its mighty limited Jewish population came the birth of the now internationally famous AZA, the youth movement of the B’nai B’rith. AZA was the “brain-child” of Sam Beber, former Omahan. Two outstanding international presidents of the B’nai B’rith--Henry Monsky and Philip Klutznick came from Omaha. Mr. Klutznick later became a U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

These were the types of selfless Omaha Jewish leadership from which sprang the Jewish Press. From the pockets of these men came the money to launch and carry forward the Jewish Press. Full recognition and credit

should be given to them.

These men of such fine character not only set a high standard of operation and content for the Jewish Press; they worked unceasingly and unselfishly to set a Jewish community pattern for a better and more productive Jewish life, Jewish learning, and humanitarian service-Jewish and non-Jewish--which was respected and envied everywhere.

These were the guide posts! That was the beautiful, selfless pattern we all had to follow, and these high, lofty, selfless ideals continue to be carried forward in the Omaha Jewish community.

THE BEGINNING When I was approached by these friends of mine--these leaders of our community-soliciting my views as to whether such a publication (later to become the Jewish Press) should be launched. I was a 24-year-old newspaper reporter on the old Omaha Daily News. I liked being a newspaper reporter and had no idea of changing jobs.

However, as the discussion carried forward into the night, the Jewish Press was born--and I was no more a reporter for the Omaha Daily News. I became the manager and editor of the Jewish Press of Omaha.

My services on the Jewish press are years of memories I still hold dear with a feeling of great personal satisfaction.

The files of the Jewish Press tell the story best--of men and women of Omaha’s Jewish community--sometimes at great personal sacrifice--carrying forward for the protection; for the betterment; for greater unity and better understanding; for a more happy life for their fellow Jews everywhere.

I am pleased greatly by your invitation, to express my thoughts on this important event, for the present and the future should be kept aware of the past.

Standing now on the outside as an observer I take the liberty of making this statement: Omaha Jewry does remember! Omaha Jewry is carrying forward with that same unity; with that same interest; with that same participation. Omaha’s former leadership--those still with us and those now gone--can be mighty proud of this record--still respected and envied throughout the United States.

A Paper is Born On Dec. 16, 1920, the Jewish Press was born. The “parents” were 16 leaders of the community who invested their time, their efforts and their money to provide a high quality periodical for the members of the Jewish community.

The founders of the paper were: N. P. Feil, Harry Lapidus, William I. Holzman, Samuel Schaefer, Henry Monsky, H. A. Wolf, Morris Levy, Dr. Philip Sher, Harry B. Zinman, Saul Levy, Edward Simon, Sam Leon, Emil Rothschild, Herman Auerbach, Harry Malashock and Nathan Yaffe.

It was not a business venture. The 16 investors in The Jewish Press Publishing Company included in the articles of incorporation the notation that “all surplus not used in the expansion of the newspaper will be divided among worthy communal institutions.”

Morris Jacobs served as the first editor-manger of the paper until May of 1922 when Nathan Green became the managing editor. Green served the newspaper until Oct. 13, 1927 when David Blacker became the publisher of the Jewish Press.

Under Blacker’s ownership and guidance, the paper continued to grow in excellence and became an important part of the Jewish life of the community.

Twenty-three years later, in a note to the subscribers in the Dec. 15, 1950 issue of the Jewish Press, Blacker announced with regret that due to rising costs he could no longer publish the paper.

The Jewish Federation of Omaha took over the ownership, Jan. 6, 1951, and has maintained the publication of the paper ever since.

Congrats From Green Fifty Years! I remember so well those men who were the leaders in the cominunity of Omaha, recognizing the need for a Jewish Press to represent the Jews of the community--the foresight of the necessity and value a Jewish Press would have--and the power it could exert in aiding the many charities as well as its social activities; a place where Jews could meet to express their ethnic requirements within the nucleus of the wider community.

I have lived away from Omaha for many years but it was always my pleasure to keep abreast of the many activities of the Jewish Press and it’s success in every undertaking in behalf of the community of Omaha. It is great pride I feel in this newspaper speaking for our people.

To publish a weekly newspaper for 50 continuous years is a very great achievement. It signifies the importance of such a periodical in the community.

Congratulations on this your Golden Anniversary and my very best wishes for its continuous success.

Nathan E. Green April 9, 1971

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A Look Throughout the Years of the Jewish Press

by OLIVER B. POLLAK Professor of History University of Nebraska at Omaha (Originally printed in the Dec. 22, 1995 Jewish Press, this article has been updated to include the years from 1995-2005 by current editor Carol Katzman.)

Introduction The oldest English language Jewish newspaper is the Jewish Chronicle, founded in London in 1841. It celebrated its 150th anniversary in 1991. Virtually all records from before 1941 had been destroyed by a direct hit from one of Hitler’s bombs. The actual newspaper remains, a memorial to its own activity and existence, enough evidence to produce a 329-page book. (1) The newspaper is a community record and creates a communal atmosphere providing coverage of the various religious, social, cultural, economic and political activities. The Omaha Jewish Press reports and interprets local, national and international.

When the Omaha Jewish Press celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1971, there were still first person eye witnesses including Morris Jacobs and Nathan E. Green (see page 30). At this anniversary, no founders survive. The passage of time prompts new questions to be asked of the past.

Over the past 20 years, I have written for the Jewish Press, used it as historical evidence, served on its board of directors, and awaited its arrival every Friday.

Newspapers treasure and protect their independence. First Amendment Freedom of the Press rights are balanced against the needs of the diverse local Jewish community and the Federation.

Should the Press report the engagements and marriages of Jews and nonJews? Should the Press permit advertisements that promote non-kosher products. Everyone wants to be on page one in the next issue. Allocation of space, placement and timing of release are still sensitive issues.

Editorials may irritate constituents.

Freedom thrives on the clash of differing priorities, personalities and styles. Yet, in times of crisis, the Press, Federation and religious community have a common goal.

A weekly newspaper in a fastbreaking atmosphere is at a disadvantage. If the daily newspaper is covering the antiSemitism or vandalism at Jewish institutions, Jewish Press coverage is redundant and stale by Friday. The press attempts to cover stories that the general press does not.

munity to found a quieter and prouder voice, the Jewish Press. (2) Sixteen men from the Jewish community, all businessmen, professionals and members of B’nai B’rith, active in the Jewish Welfare Federation, filed Articles of Incorporation as the Jewish Press Publishing Company on Dec. 4, 1920.

Their charter stated that “all net profits or surplus, which shall remain subject to distribution as dividends, shall, if not retained as surplus for use in our expansion of the corporate enterprise, be utilized in the discretion of the Board for some worthy communal, philanthropic or charitable cause or purpose.”

The Jewish Press was not founded to make money, but it needed income, subscribers and advertisers, to stay open.

The first issue appeared on Dec. 16, edited by 1920, Morris E. Jacobs, a recent graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

His reminiscences are found in MEJ: The Story of Morris E. Jacobs and his Years at Bozell and Jacobs. (3) There was a close relationship between the Press and the Jewish organized community.

The Federation paid the press for publishing its annual reports. The Press published the names of givers and amounts donated and has always been supportive of Federation fund raising campaigns and Jewish Community Center activities.

The first anniversary editorial recounted that despite “almost universal antiSemitism we have striven to bring to our readers in our own humble way the message of the dignity and the honor of Israel’s heritage.” News reports of the post war disruption in Europe, the termination of emigration to the United States, and anti-Semitism in Germany were a constant feature.

On March 12, 1922, Irvin Stalmaster moved that the Jewish Press be sent to all Jewish citizens at the expense of the Federation. Morris Levy, William Holzman, Harry Lapidus, Harry A. Wolf and Harry Malashock appropriated $200 to send Press subscriptions throughout the state. Annual subscription has risen steadily from the original $1.50 a year.

Nathan E. Green succeeded Jacobs in May 1922 as manager. In April, 1925, the Jewish Press Publishing Company was officially dissolved though no change occurred in the masthead. Green remained manager until October 1927, when David Blacker took over the paper which he controlled until 1950.

David Blacker announced to Jewish Press subscribers on Dec. 15, 1950, that constantly rising costs of running the newspaper and the difficulty in securing enough advertising to meet those costs “have made it impossible for me to continue publishing the Jewish Press without more of a loss than I can afford.”

After 23 years of publishing the newspaper, one of his proudest achievements was the “New Year edition that was regarded by many as one of the most beautiful and inspiring in the nation.”

Blacker gave special thanks to Harry A. Wolf and his associates who voluntarily offered to run a schedule of advertising that materially reduced the loss during the last year.

Continued on page 32

Editorials may irritate constituents. Freedom thrives on the clash of differing priorities, personalities and styles.

Yet, in times of crisis, the Press, Federation and religious community have a common goal.

Independent newspaper vs. Federation organ Between 1915 and 1925, at least 38 English language Jewish newspapers were started to serve American readers and communities. Two of those papers appeared in Omaha.

The Konecky brothers started the Jewish Bulletin in 1916. It ceased publication in 1921. Briefly, the Jewish Bulletin was outspoken, irreverent, muckraking and left of center. Its frank statement of unpleasant facts and opinions, and its criticism of the “Jew Klux Klan,” the Omaha Jewish establishment, provoked the elders of the Jewish com-

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 31

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A Look Throughout the Years Continued from page 31 The Jewish Federation, responding to a committee chaired by Milton R. Abrahams, and including Harry B. Cohen, Hyman Ferer, David Goldstein, Arthur H. Goldstein, Dr. A. Greenberg, Morris E. Jacobs, Mrs. J. H. Kulakofsky, Milton Livingston, Mrs. Ernest Nogg and Samuel N. Wolf, voted to take over the publication of the press starting in 1951. The committee reviewed the costs of publication, sources of income, possible economies and supervision of publication and concluded that it was feasible for the Federation to assume these responsibilities. Three new committees were formed: publication board, business management committee and circulation committee.

While advertising may not have gone up appreciably a smaller staff resulted in lower overheads. It was reiterated “that a really important task facing the Press today, if it is to survive and continue to serve the community, is the increase of its advertising revenue.” (4) In early January, 1951, the Federation President, Joe M. Rice, announced that Harry B. Cohen, long time Federation board member, and former president of B’nai B’rith Henry Monsky Lodge would head the over-all publication committee. Milton Abrahams, who had been a college newspaper editor at Creighton University, headed the editorial committee. Sam Wolf became advertising committee chairman and Sam G. Saltzman chaired the Council Bluffs committee. The Federation planned to send the Jewish Press “to every Jewish home in Omaha for the next few weeks.”

The B’nai B’rith Messenger, published in Los Angeles, lamented the passing of the Jewish Press from independent ownership to Federation control.

They feared the newspaper would become nothing more than a mouthpiece for the upper crust of the community, the house organ of the Federation. The editor, Leonard Boasberg, recoiled at these predictions and said the “concept of a free press, which is in turn based on a fundamental principle of Judaism: the search for truth” was not threatened in Omaha.

Boasberg would continue to write the editorials, unless otherwise indicated. He invited criticism, “and if you’re too lazy to write, call me up preferably by Monday at the latest, and I’ll write down your ideas, give myself hell, submit it to you for your corrections and approval, put a big headline on it and sign your name.” (5) Just as Commentary, sponsored by the American Jewish Committee, did not dictate editorial policy, so the Jewish Press, sponsored by the Federation, continued as an active hybrid voice. According to some Jewish journalists, the first commandment is “Thou Shalt Not Wash Thy Dirty Linen in Public,” for it is “a shandeh far di goyim, a scandal in the eyes of the Gentiles.”

The press balances the journalist’s instinct to uncover with the communal instinct to avoid unfavorable publicity. (6) The Press is not a house organ but a free and independent newspaper with special consideration given to Federation business. An example of newspaper independence concerned the issue of rabbinic membership on Federation committees and the absence of rabbis from certain committees.

In 1970, it was formally announced that the Press could take a position independent of the Federation. The Omaha World-Herald twice noted that independence.

October 31, 1970

Against ‘12’ The Jewish Press has editorially opposed Amendment 12, which would allow state aid to families with students in non-public schools.

The Press, published in Omaha, said in its Friday edition, “The Principle of separation of church and state is vital to the freedom we enjoy as Americans. Since Amendment 12 would, in some measure, compromise that principle, we...oppose (its) passage.”

August 2, 1981 The Jewish Federation of Omaha’s weekly newspaper, the Jewish Press, has urged Israel to use restraint instead of retaliation in its dealings with the Palestine Liberation Organization.

“It is time for Israel Prime Minister Menachem Begin to rethink his policy of retaliation against PLO terrorists,” the paper said in an editorial. courtesy of Historical Society of Douglas County The Communal Record-Social, Educational and Political The Press is indispensable for the record of life cycle events: engagements, marriages, births, bar and bat mitzvah, confirmations, reports of illness and recovery, and obituaries.

When travel was a greater undertaking, taking as much as half a day to travel between Omaha and Lincoln in the 1920s, the press was filled with announcements of visitors’ departures from Fremont, Lincoln, Des Moines, Kansas City, Chicago and the east and west coast.

Omaha has a rich legacy of diverse Jewish organizations.

Their activities are plotted with remarkable accuracy. At different times the Press was the communal news for Sioux City, Des Moines, Lincoln and Council Bluffs. (7) The press fosters Jewish education announcing forthcoming activities and reminding readers of the annual book festival. Visiting performers, theatrical groups, musicians, rabbis, cantors, authors, political personalities, promote and strengthen the Jewish cultural heritage.

Jewish celebrities visit Omaha on their circuit across the country. Chaim Weizmann graced our city in 1923.

Golda Meir made several visits to Omaha in the 1930s leaving a flourishing Goldie Meyerson Club in her wake.

Elder statesman Abba Eban spoke at the Red Lion Hotel in 1995. How many remember when 35-year-old Aubrey Eban visited Omaha in 1950? The Jewish Press does.

(1) David Cesarani, The Jewish Chronicle and AngloJewry, 1841-1991 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994).

(2) See Oliver B. Pollak, “The Jewish Press: Captive or Critic? Nebraska Jewish Journalism, 1916-1921,” Western States Jewish History 27, October 1944, 39-52.

(3) Omaha: Bozell & Jacobs International Inc., 1978.

(4) “Press goes under new editorship,” JP, July 6, 1951, p. 1.

(5) Leonard Boasberg, “No Sad Song for The Jewish Press, Please,” JP, Jan 5, 1951, p. 6.

(6) Gary Rosenblatt, “The Dilemma of America’s Jewish Weekly Press,” Jewish Digest, February 1978, p.

48-56.

(7) The Iowa Jewish News was published weekly in Des Moines from 1932-1952.

The Tradition Continues

by CAROL KATZMAN Editor of the Jewish Press, 1996In my first editorial on July 12, 1996, as Editor of this newspaper, I wrote: “Now that Morris Maline (editor of this paper for more than 19 years) will be taking on his new role as Editor Emeritus, what can this community expect from me as the new Editor?

“In my meetings with each of the rabbis, the executive directors of the agencies of the Jewish Federation and with the Federation’s senior staff, I have promised that the Jewish Press will take an even more pro-active role in covering local news. And I asked for their help by letting us know, in advance, of the events, programs and classes offered by their institutions.

“I also requested that they alert us to the many exciting individuals in our Jewish community performing mitzvot, participating in stimulating work or volunteer ventures or living their lives in such a way that they set examples for others.”

So, have we accomplished that? Let’s take a look back through the last 10 years and see.

The Press introduced several new features--and published new categories of special issues since 1995: “Where Are They Now?”--covering former Omahans now leading exciting lives elsewhere in the country (or in the world) was introduced almost immediately in 1996 with a profile of Robin Monsky, the first female sports editor of the Central High Register, now a public relations businesswoman in Chicago.

Continued on page 33

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 33

A Look Throughout the Years Continued from page 32 Just last month, the Press began a new series: “The Next Generation in Business,” featuring Jon Meyers, second-generation owner of Nebraska Warehouses and President-elect of Temple Israel as our first profile.

New special issues have included Simchas & Celebrations (covering Jewish life cycle events), Home & Garden (with a Jewish approach), Senior Life (for our 55+ readers) and Arts and Entertainment.

That’s not to say that the last 10 years have been without controversy.

There have been editorials which have made some readers angry to the point of writing “Letters to the Editor” not suitable for printing; there have been debates among organizations and synagogues over which group has received too much coverage and which not enough.

So, we’ve opened our op-ed pages up to include a number of viewpoints--from the entire spectrum of Jewish religious life to the political spectrum--left and right--both in the U.S. and in Israel. And we’ve offered readers an opportunity to submit more than just 250-

word letters. In “Another Point of View,” readers have used a platform of longer length to voice opinions from anti-Semitism to abortion, from the Press’ right to have editorial independence (first passed in a motion by the Federation Board in 1971 and restated last year by Federation President Zoe Riekes) to Jewish life on college campuses. The point is--this is your newspaper. It’s not owned by the staff or the committee that runs it, and even the Federation Board is only the elected representative of the Press readership.

While we’ve tried to run the Press as an efficient business model--increasing ad revenue and seeking new sources of income--we also know the value of publishing stories by freelancers (so that more than one voice is heard on our pages), using a variety of political op-ed writers, cartoonists and photographers, and frankly, seeking out and publishing the best writing we can find.

Because the Jewish Press Committee and staff put a premium on our goal of publishing the very best Jewish community newspaper possible, we’ve garnered a record number of awards in the last decade: six from the

American Jewish Press Association and 10 from the Nebraska Press Association.

The Press also received grants from a number of foundations for such diverse projects as “Front Page: 85 Years of Jewish Press History,” a series of Sales and Marketing Interns, a summer Editorial Intern, Teen Age, a High School Intern, and more.

The Press has covered the JCC Maccabi Games, the move of Beth Israel to its new location, the expansion and remodeling of the JCC, Missions in Israel and the 18th anniversary of the March of the Living. We’ve featured Jews running for political office, national figures, members of the Knesset and famous authors.

Former Kripke Librarian Edythe Wolf indexes the Press, continuing a tradition begun by historian Carol Gendler in the 1970s. In the future, we hope to combine all the indices into one CD index. And maybe someday we’ll even digitize the entire Press--all 50,000+ pages of it!

(On the other hand, maybe I’ll leave that to the next Editor--in honor of our 100th anniversary in 2020.)

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Page 34

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Precious and Semi-Precious Donations to the Kripke Jewish Federation Library and the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society

THE HISTORIAN’S FOOTPRINT

by OLIVER B. POLLAK The end of 2005 provided a long weekend to read and consider gifts to the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. Their online catalogue allows patrons to access the collection when the library is closed.

I checked the library holdings against my bookshelf to identify items the library did not have.

My teenage reading was accelerated by Reader’s Digest Condensed Books and the Book of the Month Club. In 1960 the mailman brought William L. Shirer’s Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Last of the Just by Andre Schwarz-Bart. He delivered Frederic Morton’s, The Rothschilds, A Family Portrait in 1962. I think my first foray into a used bookstore occurred in 1963 and netted A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.

Judaica started to accumulate during the late 1970s. Former Jewish Press editor Morris Maline turned me to reviewing Judaica. Review copies came from the Lincoln Journal Star, and the burgeoning University of Nebraska Press Judaica list.

My growing interest in American Jewish history fostered my acquisitive instinct.

Browsing bookstore Judaica sections and forays on the web to support my research, netted an eclectic assortment of books on Jewish subjects or by Jewish authors.

One of the older and more curious items is The Making of a Millennium (Century Publishing, 1908)

by Frank Rosewater.

The Rosewater family owned the Omaha Bee newspaper. My copy is “ex lib,” formerly part of the Pershing College Library, in Beatrice.

“The Jewish Problem, How to Solve It,” a speech delivered by Louis D. Brandeis to the Eastern Council of the Central Conference of Reform Rabbis in June 1915, and reprinted in 1934, contains the bookplate of David B. Eisenberg.

Two items about Henry Monsky appeared as Russian nesting dolls. Henry Monsky the namesake of Omaha’s B’nai B’rith Lodge, President of the world’s largest Jewish men’s organization from 1938 to his death in 1947, played an enormous role in international Jewish affairs.

The American Jewish Conference published four volumes on its proceedings from 194348. My copies contain the purple book stamp of the “Franklin Delano Roosevelt, B’nai B’rith Women Four Freedoms Library.” Monsky’s speech, “Toward a Common Program of Action,” given on

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Jan. 23, 1943 to the Conference of National Jewish Membership Organizations literally fell out of one of

the volumes. The only other copy is in the non-circulating New York Public Library.

The AJC’s Final Report published in 1949, contained a further rarity, a carbon copy of a letter from Frank Coleman,

B’nai B’rith President to Sophie A. Udin at the Zionist Archives and Library.

Coleman complained it was “most ungracious” that no reference was made whatsoever to Henry Monsky who “died in the very act of presiding over the American Jewish Conference.” This letter is now housed at the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society Archives.

To round this out I parted with the unpublished Brandeis University 1976 doctoral dissertation of Isaac NeustadtNoy, “Unending Task: Efforts to United American Jewry from the American Jewish Congress to the American Jewish Conference.”

I reviewed John Parker’s, King of Fools (1988) about Edward VIII and Mrs. Simpson. My unflattering account of the Duke of Wales’ judgment of the Nazis prompted an irate royalist letter to the Lincoln Journal Star editor.

The editor suggested I glory in the evidence that someone was reading my review, and I continued to review for the LJS. Each book has a story. Used books have a smell, charm and mystery of previous owners and readers. Do I feel a sense of loss relinquishing control of books, donor’s remorse? Although I will lose possession of the book, I know where I can find them.

Oliver B. Pollak is an attorney, historian and author of several books and multiple articles. He is a past President of the Jewish Press and a co-founder and past President of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society. He can be reached at OBPOmni@aol.com.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Remembering David Blacker (Editor’s note: Mary Fellman, who now lives in an assisted living facility in St. Paul, MN, was Editor from January, 1946, to November, 1947. She wrote the following piece in the Dec. 22, 1995, issue of the Jewish Press, on its 75th anniversary.)

by MARY ARBITMAN FELLMAN For as long as I can remember, the Jewish Press has been a vital part of my life. Maybe it began in 1924 when my parents read about the ground breaking for the new JCC in the Press and took our family to it.

Maybe it was when my mother read in the Jewish Press about a Jewish Girl Scout Troop being formed at the JCC and sent me to it by streetcar.

For all these many years the Jewish Press every Friday became my weekly connection, my informant, my link to the life of Jews in Omaha, Nebraska, the U.S. and eventually Israel.

And after graduating from the University of Nebraska with a major in journalism I started writing many articles and columns about Sigma Delta Tau sorority, Junior Hadassah, the YANCS service group, the men and women in World War II, and other local activities.

the Jewish and non-Jewish communities.

Sometimes he would come back to our office on the fifth floor of the Brandeis Theater Building with great elation about the generosity of some donors. Other times he would weep over the lack of understanding and sharing of some families. According to his oldest daughter Jeanne “he truly believed he was his brother’s keeper and that was how he lived his life”.

Print shop moves It was during those 1943-47 years that the Press moved from the small crowded print shop at 4504 So. 24 St., across from South High School, to a much larger and more efficient shop at 4808 So. 25 St. In that shop, his Sun Publishing Company also printed the South Omaha Sun, Dundee News, Benson Times and other fine weeklies. It was the Jewish Press though, where his emotions were involved, where he always hoped for a “good word” of approval of an issue or the expanded enriched New Year’s issue from some of its readers.

Each New Year issue was the result of numerous hours of labor and creativity. For many years, the large ads were designed by Bon Theodore, and they were dramatic expressions of Jewish spiritual and historical feel-

Page 35

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David Blacker, publisher from 1927-50 Begins work at “Press” With all my connections as a “contributor” I did not really know David Blacker, publisher of the Press, until the day I walked into his office to apply for the job of “news editor.” I said, “Hello, Mr. Blacker,” and he said, “My father is Mr. Blacker; my name is Dave.”

And so began a four-and-a-half year unusual, educational, enriching experience that lasted long after I left to marry Morris Fellman in 1947.

Dave took over publication of the Jewish Press in 1927, seven years after it was officially begun by a committee of the Federation headed by Morris Jacobs. He started with Frank Ackerman as Editor, followed by Leonard Nathan and Harry Mendelson, who was also my mentor, my teacher.

Complex personality While Dave was always the publisher, official business and advertising manager, he was also the spirit and the conscience of the weekly. He was a complex, dramatic personality raised in poverty, successfully building security for his beloved family of wife, Marie, and three children Jeanne, Barbara, and Martin.

His style did not include many compliments and yet he became my energetic advisor, my master’s degree in journalism. He was a self educated scholar, having read every book in his extensive office and his home Jewish libraries. He was emotional, he was stoic. He cared tremendously for the well being, the growth, the Jewish life of this Omaha Jewish community, and he spoke with passion to friends and co-workers alike.

No one who heard his enchanted plea for the life and sustenance of the enslaved and desperate Jews in Europe in the 1940s will ever forget his passion as Jewish Philanthropies chairman. In those years he was the only chairman who served as the head of three campaigns.

He also served in many other major leadership roles in

Mary Arbitman (Fellman), editor, 1946-47 ings. Each ad was written with warmth and drama by David Blacker and his editors and, frankly, we took tremendous pride in our efforts to express love of Judaism, its history and its people.

Those were the years when the Press carried “many editorials and the weekly “Gems of the Talmud” by Dr. Philip Sher. Also columnists Boris Smolar, Alfred Segal, Rabbi Samuel J. Fox appeared in each issue. Those were also the days when stores like Carman’s, Herzbergs, Goldstein-Chapman’s, Natelson’s, Brandeis appeared in every week’s issues with large ads. Because of their support and that of other local companies, the Jewish Press was able to continue with a subscription rate of only $2.50 a year.

Now in its 75 years since the beginning of the Jewish Press, with private and later Federation ownership, after many men and women editors, columnists and contributors, the weekly “every Friday” newspaper continues to be the link between the Jewish people of Omaha and out state. It continues the original dream of its founders and its editors.

Personally, I am grateful for the irreplaceable opportunity of having been editor and for the enrichment to my life by learning from David Blacker. He was a unique man.

As I wrote at the time of his too-early death in 1965 at the age of 63, “No one who ever agreed or disagreed with him will ever forget his frankness, his clear thinking, his undaunted devotion, his stubborn determination to fight for whatever cause he championed.

“No one who knew him as ‘boss’, as he was to me, will ever forget his perceptive, quick, inquisitive mind, his retentive memory, his self-taught voluminous vocabulary, his gratefulness at acceptance as a respectable human being.”

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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by I. PERLMETER Editor of the Jewish Press Since its construction, the Jewish Community Center has very properly become the hub of activities of Omaha Jewry. And what is more important, its excellent facilities have caused the springing up of innumerable new forms of worthwhile endeavors to occupy the time of and, at the same time, benefit both young and old.

This progress has not been an irregular change, but has been noted as a slow but sure improvement that has occurred in the life of the Jews of the community.

This is particularly true of the younger boys and girls.

Today, a group of strong, well-organized clubs has displaced the meager mushroom organizations of another day. A Senior Council and a Junior Council have been planned and have become realities linking the various clubs and, through the mutual cooperation, accomplishing things undreamt of before.

The steady progression toward more and better activities at the Jewish Community Center could more appropriately be proven than by pointing out the prospects for this year.

This very week, the Center Players are inaugurating their season, and incidentally, the fall period for the whole Center, by presenting for the benefit of Omahaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s drama lovers the three-act comedy, Mammaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Affair.

The play is indeed well chosen, for the theme of its plot is the change of a modern young lady from a nervous, simpering and purposeless miss into a young woman with a mind of her own.

What could more clearly portray the spirit of the younger clubs at the Center?

They are growing, and in many ways.

They have not only become stronger in numbers, but stronger in purpose, especially in the desire to do worthwhile things. Serious endeavors like debates,

discussions, dramatics, religion, Jewish history and kindred subjects are beginning to occupy prominent parts in the program of the societies.

Some of them, like the AZA, are definitely pledged to carry out such an educational program. And the others are falling in line, too. At least one young club has discussed the question of taking the initiative in starting a new movement

among the young Omaha Jewry to bring a modern orthodox rabbi to Omaha.

The same subject is scheduled to occupy much of the attention of the Senior Council. Is this not proof of the new philosophy that is pervading our community?

Young men and women that have held few interests other than social or athletic are striving for goals that would daunt many of their adult acquaintances.

Skeptics who have viewed the practice of Judaism in America have long prophesied oblivion for the race that first gave to the people of the earth a code of living, the Ten Commandments.

But as long as young Jewish America progresses toward a greater obligation to assume its obligations, pessimism is hardly in order.

Perlmeter went on to become press secretary for President Harry S. Truman.

Editors of the Jewish Press, 1920-

Wishing the Community a Happy and Healthy Passover Senator Ben & Diane Nelson Paid for by Nelson For Senate

Morris Jacobs, Dec. 16, 1920-1922 Nathan Greene, 1922-1927 David Blacker, Publisher, 1927-1950 Editors under Blacker: Jeanette Glick Gerson, 1927-28 I. Perlmeter, 1929-1930 Frank Ackerman, 1930-1939 Leonard Nathan, 1939-1942 Harry Mendelson, 1942-1945 Mary Arbitman (Fellman), 1946-1947 Harry Mendelson, 1947-1948 Leonard Boasberg, 1949-1951 Samuel Fidman, 1951-1952

Rhoda Gordon, June 20, 1952Jan. 23, 1953 Harry Halpert, Jan. 30, 1953Jan. 4, 1957 Frances Klein, Jan. 11, 1957November, 1963 Bernard Freidberg, Dec. 20, 1963Sept. 11, 1964 Mickey Gerelick (Greenberg), Nov. 13, 1964-1974 Richard Pearl, 1975-1977 Morris Maline, 1977-July 1, 1996 Carol Katzman, July 1, 1996-present

Presidents/Chairmen of the Press Charles Monasee, 1970-1971 Harlan Noddle, 1971-1973 Stanford Lipsey, 1974-1975 Stanford Lipsey and Paul Alperson, 1976-1978 Silvia Roffman, 1979-1981 Ozzie Nogg, 1982 Jack Katz, 1983-1984 Don Klein, 1984-1986 Suzanne Singer, 1987-1988

Oliver B. Pollack, 1989-1990 Sheila Priluck, 1991-1992 Howard Kaplan, 1992-1994 Ben Wiesman, 1994-1995 Bob Eisenberg, 1995-1997 Steve Levinger, 1997-1999 Lloyd Roitstein, 1999-2001 Fred Tichauer, 2001-2003 Joanie Jacobson, 2003-2006

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 37

A Sampling of Jewish Press Editorials, 1920-2005 Dec. 14, 1922

Dec. 6, 1940

The Feast of Hanukkah

Ghetto Walls

by NATHAN E. GREEN Editor The Feast of Hanukkah, also known as the Feast of Dedication, and by other appropriate titles, occurs this year on December 15th, and will be observed in Jewish homes and in the House of God for eight days thereafter starting from the evening of December 14.

This festival is a minor holiday and is reminiscent of the Maccabean victory in the battle for Israel’s faith when the prophetic promise was verified: “Not by night, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.”

It recalls in particular the eventful year of 168 to 165 B.C.E., in Palestine. During that period, Antiochus Epiphanes, or “the mad man,” King of Syria, had resolved to quench the lamp of religious liberty and resorted to the crude tyrannies of imperialists to compel all subject peoples to speak one language and worship according to a ritual approved by the appointed priests of his empire and their religious heads, who naturally followed the polytheistic liturgy of the Greeks, then in a state of decadence....

by LEONARD NATHAN Editor If ever a people could stand and look with utmost scorn and contempt at their persecutors, it is the Jews of Warsaw, who are today bidden to enter the first enclosed ghetto in modern times. As in the centuries past, walls have been built to isolate the Jews. After a decade of seeing the revival of all the marks of humiliation, the idea of a ghetto ceases to be terrifying.

A ghetto wall is meaningless-except to mark with shame the people who build it. The Nazis, in their mad zeal to persecute, forget one thing--that the survival of the Jew has not been dependent on physical freedom.

For a thousand years, if not longer, the Jews of Europe lived out their existence behind protecting walls. Not until the first quarter of the Nineteenth century were the last imprisoning gates torn from their ancient hinges. If ghetto walls and ghetto gates were to accomplish any purpose, they would have centuries ago.

Rather than sympathizing with the Warsaw Jews, we consider them fortunate in being removed from the repulsive creatures around them. What have the Jews of Poland, filled with religious ecstasy, in common with those officious minions sent out from Berlin? What have the Jews of Warsaw in common with the scum of the gutter who make up the leadership of the Nazi party?

March 17, 1939

Appeasement Marches On

by LEONARD NATHAN Editor With Munich still uncomfortably close, it becomes apparent that Germany means to be appeased if she has to swallow up all Europe to do it. Last fall, in his heated Sportspalast bombast, Hitler pledged to the world that Germany would seek no further territorial acquisitions in Europe. In a little over six months, the troops of the Reich are again on the march, dismembering the rest of the republic whose stability Germany only recently guaranteed. The Nazi soldiers are in the city of Prague--to protect Germany from the “Slavic barbarians.”

Since the Munich pact, Germany has made every effort to reduce Prague to vassalage or to keep it in a state of unrest. Despite strong pressure from Berlin for the complete Nazification of the land, there has been a heroic, passive resistance in Prague government circles.

Slovakia, however, has been the scene of anti-Jewish demonstrations, as Germany prodded it on for independence demands. Strangely enough, Slovakia was the Catholic part of the republic and its government was clerical; the prime minister who handed the country to the Nazis being a priest. With the Catholic church on the defensive in the Reich, it is a matter of conjuncture and of grave concern that it should abet German influence.

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Feb. 21, 1942

A Noteworthy Anniversary

by LEONARD NATHAN Twenty-five years ago, when Jewry was facing the first of its great tribulations, a news-gathering agency was formed in the Hague to keep the various Jewish communities aware of what was happening to the others. In the ensuing years, correspondents were stationed in the large European centers, and when anything of great importance was happening, special correspondents were sent out. Through the medium of the Anglo-Jewish press, the Yiddish press, and daily news bulletins, a dayby-day story of the last 25 years of Jewish history has been built up.

In its quarter-century of existence, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (identified on its dispatches by the letters, JTA) has grown to be an important link in the great chain of news-gathering organizations. From Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, London, Geneva has poured momentous news.

But a news agency has been more than just a transmission belt for news. As an on-the-spot witness, it was able to keep Jews all over the world on the alert against

the world-wide intrigue of anti-Semitic leaders. From these stories, we were made aware of the plight of our fellows abroad and were thus able to systematize rescue work.

Mankind owes a tremendous debt to all foreign correspondents at this time. It was they who were the first to witness the rising tide of Nazism. But they did more.

They evaluated trends and were able to give warnings that if heeded might have prevented this tragedy.

Perhaps in some instances, their prophecies were wrong in detail; nevertheless they were in substance correct.

Like others of the news-gathering fraternity, the JTA correspondents remained on the spot no matter how great the trouble and left only when it was impossible to stay any longer. One of the most dramatic stories of the war was written by the JTA Warsaw correspondent who was among the last to leave that tragic city.

In the period of reconstruction, the task of a news agency will be immeasurably increased. The world must be on its toes to prevent a recurrence of the tragedy it is undergoing and it will be such organizations as the JTA that will keep us fully informed on trends and changes.

May 19,1944

Henry Monsky...Our Leader in Whom We Rejoice

by HARRY MENDELSON Editor The re-election of Henry Monsky as President of the B’nai B’rith for a third term of three years comes as no surprise. In fact, we practically assumed that he would again head the organization with which his name has become inseparably associated, particularly in recent years. We can hardly conceive a man more capable, more experienced and more fit to head the B’nai B’rith than our own Henry Monsky.

We, of the Omaha Jewish community, who have known him, admired him and loved him as we have seen him grow with the years in vision, in deepening knowledge of and in poignant concern for everything that concerns Jews here and abroad, are no longer surprised at anything Monsky may do and accomplish in the field of Jewish leadership. For we have seen him give more and more of himself as he matured and grew in stature giving much of his time, his effort, and creative powers to the welfare of his community and of his people.

To say that we are intensely proud of Henry Monsky is to understate how we feel towards our leader and friend. With a tingle of pleasure, we still recall that it was he who was one of the dominant guiding spirits behind the creation of the American Jewish Conference.

Continued on page 38

The Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation Congratulates the Jewish Press on its 85th Anniversary!

Omaha is the only city of its size in the United States to publish a weekly Jewish newspaper -- and it’s done with only three fulltime and three part-time staff members. Winner of multiple awards from both the American Jewish Press Association and the Nebraska Press Association for feature stories, special issues, and sales promotions, the Jewish Press serves the Jewish population of eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.

In honor of decades of service in publishing the news “from a Jewish point-of-view,” the establishment of an endowment fund for the Jewish Press would contribute to the continued delivery of accurate and fair reporting on the local, national and international scenes.

An endowment fund would...

• provide income to ensure that the Press can hire freelance writers for its special issues, cartoonists and Israeli • photographers, and pay columnists for op-ed articles and special features.

• enable the Jewish Press to maintain its high standards by sending editorial staff to American Jewish Press • Association and Nebraska Press Association Conferences and sales staff to business conferences.

• subsidize the monthly Teen-Age page by paying $150 to whichever youth group is featured on the monthly page, • keeping the community aware of teen activities and opinions.

• expand the presence of the Jewish Press on the internet allowing more staff time to post additional articles, • obituaries and social announcements at www.jewishomaha.org.

If you are interested in setting up a fund for the Jewish Press or for any other purpose, please contact Marty Ricks, endowment director of the Jewish Federation Foundation at 402-334-6440.

Page 38

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

A Sampling of Jewish Press Editorials, 1920-2005 Continued from page 37 His plea for a common basis for United Action made at the opening session of the Conference on August 29, 1943, comes back to us as strong as ever: “We have come together not to adopt or propagandize for one or another post-war plan; not to issue or publish manifestos or proclamations in reference to the important role of Palestine in any such plan; but rather to take such preliminary steps as will result in a course of action and procedure calculated to accomplish the single objective, devoutly to be desired, of some basis of agreement between the diverse and conflicting groups that constitute the American Jewish community...”

Oct. 6, 1950

Chapter’s End

by LEONARD BOASBERG Editor One of the most ancient Jewish communities in the world has nearly gone out of existence as a result of “Operation Magic Carpet,” which officially ended last week.

Nearly 50,000 Yemenite Jews, who had always believed in Isaiah’s prophecy that they would return to Israel on the wings of an eagle, were air-lifted to the new land of Israel in the 21-month historic modern exodus.

These descendants, according to one legend, of the Jews

sent by King Solomon to prospect for gold and silver, lived in incredible poverty in the backward country of Yemen. They arrived in Israel suffering from malnutrition and disease. Fifty-five percent had Oriental boils, 40 percent had malaria, 80 percent had trachoma.

Jews were infidels in the Moslem state. They paid special taxes, were not allowed to ride on horses and rode donkeys side-saddle only, had to build their houses lower than the lowest Arab house in a village. Jewish orphans were forcibly converted to Islam, and this is believed to be one origin of child marriages, since marriage would make an orphan no longer a child.

Continued on page 39

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April 7, 2006

A Sampling of Jewish Press Editorials, 1920-2005 Oct. 6, 1950 To the Yemenite Jews, Israel is a fantastic new world, with such incredible modern conveniences as beds and sheets, modern showers and lavatories, machinery and medicine. Today, only 6,500 remain in Israel reception camps. The rest, except for about 3,000 who have been unable to leave Yemen, are being absorbed in the new state’s economy.

With the arrival of the last two planes from Yemen last week, one of the most moving chapters in the drama of the ingathering of the exiles came to a close.

1952

The New Colossus

by SAMUEL FIDMAN Editor Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame With conquering limbs astride from land to land.

Here at our sea-washed sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a Torah, whose flame Is the imprisoned lighting, and her name Mother of Exiles, from her beacon-hand Glows world wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips.

“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

These tingling words, written by Emma Lazarus, comprise the world cherished message inscribed on a tablet within the main entrance of the pedastal on which the Goddess stands--officially it is named The Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World, but is better known simply as The Statue of Liberty; liberty, though, is perhaps not so simple a matter.

How many millions of tear-filled eyes have read and clung to the words and have beheld the splendor of the Grand Lady and have taken forever unto them the promise that she gave them....

1954

Shavuot’s Meaning Today

by HARRY HALPERT Editor The great sage, Maimonides, likened the counting of “Sephira” between the days of Passover to Shavuoth to the young man and woman counting expectantly the days before their marriage.

Shavuot is a joyous holiday. The synagogue is bedecked with green. The good Jewish housewife in the days of old was certain to have the table amply supplied with “blintzes” and other “milchigs” for the holiday repast.

“Milchigs” especially in the combination of milk and honey, symbolized to the Jew traditionally the best of everything. The land of Israel was described as a land of milk and honey and the Torah itself was also said to provide spiritual nourishment in those terms.

The decking of the synagogues in green was reminiscent of the harvest. Shavuot became identified as the festival of the Giving of the Law, but earlier it was essentially a harvest festival. For this reason, too, the reading of the Book of Ruth, with its pictures of harvest time in ancient Israel became a synagogue ritual...

1952

Academic Freedom Threatened

by RHODA GORDON Editor We thoroughly disagree with those who defend the banning of books in colleges on the supposition or pretext that there is danger of “poisoning the minds” of students.

We’re referring to the current squabble over the American Legion’s claim that the book, The State of Asia, used at the University of Nebraska, at Lincoln, is dangerous. To our way of thinking, “poisoning” the minds can best be accomplished by restricting academic freedom, and we think the Legion’s labelling of books is an insidious, although perhaps not deliberate attempt at this.

For if there is one assumption that is basic in and inseparable from a definition of democracy, we believe it is the theses that, in any free fight, truth will win.

Without free access to all factors, however, how can a pursuit after truth be accomplished?

Give any group, private or government, the privilege to say what shall be disclosed for study and what withheld, however, and obviously search for truth is seriously hampered. With this power begins the real danger, as history has shown again and again, of being led and misled. We believe the crux of the fight is not against these ideas, but against conditions in this country creating an emotional atmosphere in which truth is clouded.

We have enough faith in democratic teachings to regard them as strength-engendering truths, pitted against which, totalitarian teachings are analagous to stones hitting a steel wall.

Jan. 2,1970

A New Editorial Voice

by MRS. ROBERT GERELICK Editor In unprecedented action, the board of the Omaha Jewish Federation this week adopted a Publication Policy for The Jewish Press which will permit the paper to voice independent editorial opinions, which may or may not reflect the views of the Federation Board.

The adopted policy was proposed by Mr. Charles Monasee, chairman of the Jewish Press Committee.

Monasee explained that the regional expansion of the Jewish Press necessitated a Publication Policy independent of the Omaha Jewish Federation.

Mr. Monasee further noted the importance of an editorial voice for any viable newspaper. “Discussion, even controversy, is a healthy ingredient of modern Jewish life,” said Mr. Monasee. “The Jewish Press must be free to stimulate thought, discussion and expression of diverse views through its editorial columns.”

The adopted policy frees the Jewish Press from control by any one program, organization, movement, or point of view within Jewish life, and permits comment on all phases of that life.

The Jewish Press Committee, and the editor are solely responsible for the editorial views to be expressed by this newspaper.

In this, our first free editorial stand, we commend the Omaha Jewish Federation for its courageous action to further the cause of a “Free Press” at a time when great pressure is being exerted to curtail that freedom.

We are grateful for the confidence that has been shown us. We will strive for responsible, knowledgeable editorial comment on all matters pertinent to the progress of Jewish life.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 39

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Clarifying the Facts

by MICKEY GERELICK (GREENBERG) Editor, 1964-1974 While the war is still going on in the Middle East, it is important to clarify some of the salient facts concerning the initiation of the Yom Kippur War and some of the conclusions which can already be drawn from the present situation.

This assessment is essential; if Arab States, aided by their Soviet patrons, are not to succeed in distorting history, as they have done with a certain measure of success in the past.

1). That the Syrian-Egyptian coordinated attack on Oct. 6, 1973, was an overt act of aggression has been confirmed by the United Nations Truce Supervision Continued on page 40

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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A Sampling of Jewish Press Editorials, 1920-2005 Continued from page 39 attempts by small groups to Resorting to military stir Jewish consciousness at action at a time when the the GA brought little effechope of negotiation was in tive response. the air has been a long-vauntMany readers of this newsed aim of the Arab leaderpaper will recall that articles ship, despite efforts to presand letters have appeared ent a more moderate image from time to time urging in world opinion. This is action on the part of borne out by the following American Jewry. quote from Saut el Arab (The We regret to say that resVoice of the Arabs) on the cue efforts appear to be too Mickey Gerelick Greenberg little and too late. This is afternoon of Oct. 6, 1973: “The battles which took place so far not a good moment in Jewish history. proved that the decision to attack which More should have been done. More still was taken by the responsible Arab leader- should be. ship was not a mere adventure, but a planned campaign that did not avoid the June 1, 1990 needed sacrifices that the leadership sees as the price of victory and the return of Arab land and honor...Arab policy, how- by MORRIS MALINE ever, is once again aimed not at the Editor, 1977-96 The major news gathering organization return of lands lost following the War of serving Jewish newspapers in North 1967, but the destruction of all Israel.”

2). Israel’s firm stand on “no retreat” America is the Jewish Telegraphic from the cease-fire lines until a peaceful Agency.

With bureaus in Israel, Washington and solution had been achieved has been justified by the circumstances of the out- New York, and representatives in many break of the Yom Kippur War. If the pres- cities throughout the free world, the JTA ent Egyptian-Syrian attack had been provides hundreds of stories each week to launched against Israel in its pre-1967 its constituent papers and other conboundaries, the loss of civilian lives and sumers. In many ways, the JTA is to the damage to Israel’s centers would have Jewish newspapers what the Associated Press is to secular papers. been of catastrophic dimensions.

The big difference, of course, is that 3). The Arabs may have been encouraged by the prevailing international cli- the JTA does its job with a fraction of the mate of permissiveness as it regards reac- manpower and a microscopic budget, with the giant AP. tion to their declarations of violent intent compared against Israel. The Rosh Hashanah sur- Nevertheless, the JTA does a remarkable render to Arab gangsters in Vienna is last job and now is poised for making even in a series of concessions by European further improvements.

For example, not too long ago this nations to terrorism.

4). The role of the Soviet Union in newspaper received JTA dispatches by both the political and military planning mail from New York, a three-day delay, of the Yom Kippur War seems to be making it almost impossible to get timely beyond doubt. The growth in supply of material into the Omaha Jewish Press.

Now the stories come in daily by electhe most modern and sophisticated weapons to Egypt and Syria appears to tronic mail and we are limited only by our have been very intense last year. The internal deadline of making up a paper on withdrawl of the Russian advisor teams Wednesday with a Friday dateline. The and all Russian families less than four days latest news, however, is that the JTA is before the attack seems to imply prior taking on the challenge of using its member newspapers as correspondents. knowlegde of the war to come.

In recent weeks, the Jewish Press has been asked to provide coverage of both a Nov. 23, 1984 national singles conference and the national meeting of the American Jewish

by MORRIS MALINE Historical Society.

Editor, 1977-96 This means that activities taking place There is no excuse for the massive star- in Omaha now have the opportunity to vation in Africa. make national news through exposure to The world has had plenty of notice-- more than 100 Jewish publications across spelling out in graphic detail--the horren- the country. dous nature of the problem. We are at a With the help of the JTA, all of the loss to explain the lack of interest of both member publications will have the opporCommunist and Capitalist. tunity to transmit news taking place in In the past couple of weeks, world gov- their respective communities. Thus, if all ernments have responded the way they goes according to plan, Omaha will have should have many months ago. When growing access to stories coming out of people are starving, time is of the essence. such places as San Francisco, Phoenix, Now, hundreds of thousands of dead and Kansas City, Denver, Cleveland and dying are testimony to inaction.

Atlanta, to name a few.

The same inaction can be leveled, in part, to the Jewish communities of the January, 1990 world in response to the cries of the Ethiopian Jews over the last several years.

The plight of Ethiopian Jewry has been by MORRIS MALINE announced, discussed, discussed further, Welcome to 1990. and anguished over by many concerned To many, the Holocaust represents the Jews. Yet, there has been no extensive most terrible tragedy to befall the Jewish rescue, no major appeals, no universal people. There is no parallel in history for concern over these black Jews. comparison.

A front page story in today’s paper Six million people perished because one reports how the General Assembly (of the or more of their grandparents were Council of Jewish Federations--forerun- Jewish. This historical nightmare is well ner of today’s United Jewish documented. The testimony of survivors Communities) was disrupted in an and liberators plus physical evidence from attempt to bring this matter to the fore- the camps, film-footage from Nazi phofront of Jewish thinking and concern. tographers and detailed records of train Many GA attendees will recall that Continued on page 41

Jewish News Expands

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April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 41

A Sampling of Jewish Press Editorials, 1920-2005 Continued from page 40 movements and extermination techniques are enough to satisfy the most skeptical.

However, there are those who claim to be skeptics, but who in reality are antiSemites, anti-Zionists, antiIsraelis who seem to spend every waking moment pushing the virulent nonsense that the Holocaust was a figMorris Maline ment of Jewish imagination and deceit.

As difficult as it may be to understand or accept, these historical revisionists are having a degree of success and their membership appears to be increasing.

Let me conclude this editorial forward with a comment made recently by Nobel Peace Laureate Elie Wiesel.

In speaking of the Holocaust, he asserted that every survivor has an obligation to tell his story so that a permanent record of this monumental tragedy will be available to shout the truth to future generations.

With this in mind, let me announce that the Jewish Press of Omaha is starting to interview survivors and others who have direct knowledge of the Holocaust.

We anticipate that these interviews will be presented in our 1990 Passover issue. This special issue then will be forwarded to the Holocaust Museum in Washington where it will be preserved and made available to future scholars.

add another $85+ for religious school fees; • One week at Herzl Camp in Wisconsin next summer runs about $500; four weeks at Camp Moshave costs more than $2500, plus airfare and spending money in both cases; • A summer program in Israel for a teenager costs close to $5000, though the Jewish Federation offers a one-time grant of $1000 if the teen participates in the Israel Experience study course; a semester or year-long course in Israel, depending on the university or yeshiva program, can run anywhere from $8000 to $16,000 and that doesn’t include airfare, books and other incidentals; • Keeping kosher adds at least 10% to a Jewish family’s grocery bill (more if it’s a household of boys and/or carnivores!) and expect to pay another $1000 minimum to have an entirely kosher Passover.

These figures do not include any charitable giving or membership in any Jewish organizations, nor does it include the cost of hosting friends for a Shabbat meal, building a succah or adult trips to Israel. Yes, there is financial aid for those who qualify, but it can be an intimidating experience and those on the “borderline” are often ashamed to admit they need help.

We can’t afford to leave families with the choice of being Jewish or not; there’s got to be a better way.

There’s something wrong with our community when a myth of Jewish wealth is used to dismiss those who aren’t.

The following series of editorials won a second-place award in Editorial Writing from the American Jewish Press Association at its June, 2003, annual convention.

Jan. 4, 2002

The response to last week’s editorial was overwhelming.

It seems we hit a nerve on this subject, so it’s important that we continue the conversation. And, while we tried to describe an “average” Jewish family, there are others in our community who face different financial issues.

Take an older couple, for example. Let’s assume that in addition to Social Security and Medicare, the couple also has a small pension and procceeds from the sale of their home, which they are now using to pay rent on an apartment. The day comes when one spouse needs additional care and the decision is made to enter the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home.

This couple probably doesn’t qualify for Medicaid, which means the cost of care can exceed $4000 a month for a semi-private room (not including doctor’s appointments or prescription drugs). Within the course of a year, this couple’s savings could be depleted; if the spouse needs skilled nursing care because of dementia, but is physically healthy, a stay at any nursing home could be years.

The good news at the Blumkin Home is that once a resident is admitted, he or she will not be turned away, even if it eventually means that Medicaid pays the daily

The Cost of Being Jewish

by CAROL KATZMAN Editor, 1996There is an incorrect assumption that all Jews are wealthy. This is not just an anti-Semitic stereotype; its a myth within our own Jewish community. To set the record straight, here are some examples of what it costs to maintain a Jewish lifestyle in Omaha, NE, today: • Family membership for the Jewish Community Center: $756; • Tuition for one four-year-old for an entire program year at the Pennie Z. Davis Child Development Center at the JCC costs $2610 for 10 months; add about $300 a month for summer camping; • For full-time working parents who need year ’round child care for their infant, add another $11,000 per year; • Synagogue membership for a young family can run anywhere from $350 to $2000 depending on income;

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Part II: The Cost of Being Jewish

rate (which does not cover the Home’s daily costs, nor does a gift to the Federation’s annual campaign). The bad news is that the surviving spouse may have no spare funds for such “luxuries” as car insurance, a visit to her children, or a movie out with friends. That’s not much of an existence for the caregiving spouse who is already stressed with additional responsibilities.

One way to change this is to encourage couples under the age of 65 to purchase long-term nursing home ins urance. Another way is to request that the Fedeation host a series of open meetings to discuss concerns regarding future services and facilities planned for this community.

We have some serious financial issues to face in an aging Jewish community that is not growing. While the facilities built in the last decade are beautiful, they don’t solve the problems of all the folks who want to use them.

Jan. 18, 2002

Part III: The Cost of Being Jewish As part of this continuing series of editorials, the question of what your gift to the Annual Federation Campaign covers will be explored.

As mentioned last week in this column, your gift to the campaign does not subvent any cost of operating the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home.

While funds are allocated to the outreach activities provided by Jewish Senior Services, staffing Y.E.S. and Visions, no funds are received by the Blumkin Home to offset the cost of operations. As mentioned previously, Medicaid does not fully cover the cost of a resident’s stay.

The Home already uses the investment income from its endowment towards operations, however, with falling interest rates, will there be enough of a return to keep room rates stable? Or will the Home, yet again, be forced to raise rates?

Even if the Federation had sufficient funds to allocate to the Home--let’s say $100,000 a year--it would only lower the cost for each private-pay resident by about $1000--hardly a dent in the $48,000+ families are currently paying.

The Campaign also does not cover the full amount of scholarships granted to Jewish families at the Jewish Community Center, whether for general dues or for monthly fees for preschool or camp. The JCC builds in a “loss” in the dues line of their budget, but that line has grown to try to keep pace with the number of Jewish families who wish to join but can’t afford the annual fee.

Now let’s talk about other scholarships. The Foundation has performed a wonderful service for this community by expanding the number and size of scholarship funds available for pre-school, day school, camp and college. However, the grants don’t come close to helping families cover all the expenses.

Continued on page 42

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Page 42

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

A Sampling of Editorials

An Outgoing Editor Writes ‘30’

needs. (And now we can worry about the Continued from page 41 and even after recent changes, the appli- future of the Jewish community in cation process can still be intimidating. Argentina, too.)

There are some funds allocated from the So even if the Federation were to start Federation’s Annual Campaign to grant covering some cost of operations at the additional scholarships, but the demand Blumkin Home--or allocate funds to is growing faster than the dollars avail- cover more shcolarships to the JCC and able. its CDC, it would mean This year will be even taking major funding more difficult as interest away from other agencies, rates and returns on services and programs. investments drop to a 15 It may be time to do year low. There are only exactly that--or perhaps there are other opinions two options for this comavailable. Regardless of munity: cut services and the outcome, there are programs or raise additional dollars for the camresponsible leaders, both paign. staff and lay people, who Both options are diffican lend their expertise to cult, especially while this putting these issues on country is experiencing a the table.

Carol Katzman recession and is now payWhatever the choices, ing for an expensive war against terror- these serious issues must be discussed in a ism. Add the same difficulties in Israel to serious, open and honest manner. We the equation and it translates to reluc- can’t keep this a secret any longer. tance in cutting funding for overseas

December, 1947

by MARY ARBITMAN Editor, 1946-1947 Through this editorship, it has been my privilege to grow stronger in mind and thought through association with those who lead and those who work to make the Omaha Jewish community one of the finest in this country.

To work with them has been a joy but an even greater degree of pleasure has come from the eagerness and the desires of those many representatives of every type of organization, from the 10-yearold enthusiasts of a youth group to the experienced chairman of the oldest organization--all eager to cooperate in bringing their news before the Jewish community.

There has been much hard work put into the saving of lives in Europe, the raising of funds, the fight for a homeland, the elevation of new leaders, the loss of some of our greatest men, the fight against rising anti-Semitism, the building

of new education centers, the concentration on the training of our young generation in the history, culture and language of their people, the development and the pride in a courageous body of men and women fighting openly in the defense of a country and a land they call home-these and many other phases of Jewish life have passed through the kaleidoscope of an editor’s eye.

For the opportunity of serving during these exciting years, your resigning editor is grateful; but for more than that, there has been the gratification and supreme satisfaction of working with one’s own people, of discovering the richness and maturity of their thinking, the progress and high standards which they foster and demand in their community and civic lives--the humor and the hopefulness that prevails as a binding thread through all times of good and bad fortune, the progress and failures which our Jewish people have learned to face with serenity and courage.

AJoyous Passover To All Our Friends

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April 7, 2006

The Way Things Were Sept. 29, 2000

by MICKEY GREENBERG Editor of the Jewish Press, 1964-74 The Jewish Press is 80 years old!

(It’s nice for me to be younger than something!)

I grew up with the Press, although I don’t remember too much about the paper during the early years. I do remember there were changes when it became a community newspaper owned by the Jewish Federation of Omaha.

Prior to that, it had been an independent newspaper published by David Blacker and there were valiant efforts by some people to maintain its independence.

The paper, however, was not financially solvent; the Federation was paying its bills and like other Jewish communities, the Press became a house organ. The talented professionals left and the weekly paper became just another task for the Federation’s clerical staff.

By the early 1960s, news was primarily birth announcements and obituaries, organizational and Federation activities, and iddybiddy basketball scores. (The JCC was big on basketball leagues then! Starting with the youngest players, there were also ‘midget’ leagues for grade school kids, Youth Council Leagues, Varsity and Senior Leagues for the older group. The only thing missing was a pre-natal league!) Center sports dominated one of the four pages of the Jewish Press.

In 1964, when Paul Grossman was Chairman of the Press, he asked if I would become the Editor. Paul Veret, then Executive Director of the Federation, used other words. He avoided “Editor” and suggested I “put out” the paper for a few weeks on a trial basis.

I went to work part-time for $50 a week, serving as editor from 1964-74. The “trial basis” status was in effect for 10 years; I was never given permanent status.

It was an interesting period--for me--for the Jewish Press, for Omaha and world Jewry.

The office in 1964 was one desk in an office shared with three of the Federation’s clerical staff. With the help of the Sun Newspaper staff, where the Press was published, I managed to get the first few issues off the ground. Four pages, similar to the previous weeks, contained the b-ball scores, meeting dates, births, deaths, synagogue schedules and little else. They were not impressive issues.

I was a one-woman newspaper, gathering the news (and making sure the iddy-biddy scores were accurate), taking pictures with my $10 personal camera, typing the copy. I solicited and produced the ads, took the paper to the Sun, proofread it and laid out the pages (I think I made coffee, too!). The only thing I didn’t do was deliver the paper, though I did get blamed when the Press was late.

There wasn’t much time left for creativity, but encouragement from Stan Lipsey and David Blacker kept me going.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 43

May You Find Happiness and Fulfillment in this Joyous Celebration

In November, 1964, two new columns were introduced: “In My Opinion,” which solicited readers’ opinions, and “Teen Talk.” But I had to figure out how to get readers to write (this was before e-mail, so it required paper, envelopes, postage and mailing). It presented a real challenge.

What subject would spark a response? I hit on a surefire subject: teenagers. With the help of Barbara Jess, the first editor of the column, “Teen Talk,” was launched.

She posed questions to selected teens; their views were expressed in the column and readers responded to their provocative answers.

“Teen Talk” was an instant success and its topics ran the gamut of inter-dating, curfews, participation in Christmas programs, BBYO conventions, sexual behavior, driving, Bar Mitzvah parties, religious education and more.

A column about teenage drinking prompted a flood of responses by readers who were shocked at the responses (most of the teens thought a little drinking was okay). Some letters chastised the kids for their opinions; some chastised the parents and some the Press for printing the column.

The important things was that people were reading and reacting and that was the right direction. Some 35 years later, parents are still concerned about the same things. Some of the teens quoted in those columns are now parents of teens themselves; I wonder how and if their views have changed!

In January, 1965, I was given approval to write an editorial column on a trial basis and Sidelines was born. I managed to upset Jewish tennis players, Republicans, Democrats, women golfers and card players. I responded with anger to the anti-Semitic remarks by Arthur Godfrey who talked about boys dying in Vietnam, while Jews were still having ostentatious Bar Mitzvah parties in Florida.

Since I had two boys eligible for the draft and a daughter about to become a Bat Mitzvah, I assured Mr. Godfrey we would call off the Bat Mitzvah if that would stop the dying in Vietnam.

Then there were the senseless remarks by Nebraska Sen. Roman Hruska, who also thought there was a place in government leadership for mediocrity. I took exception to that, as well as to Vice-president Spiro Agnew’s comment, “If you’ve seen one slum, you’ve seen them all.”

Four pages do not a newspaper make, however, and I convinced the Press leaders to let me work full-time and produce an eight-page paper. On Feb. 18, 1965, the first eight-pager of my regime hit the mail. Overnight, I doubled the size of the paper, doubled my salary, and doubled the deficit!

Continued on page 44

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

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The Way Things Were Continued from page 43 Hadassah helped by buying two pages for their monthly bulletin and a number of other organizations, from ORT and Brandeis Women to NCJW, followed their lead.

In the following years, I had the privilege of interviewing many notables: President Lyndon Johnson and Vicepresident Hubert Humphrey, former Israeli Prime Minister David Ben Gurion; Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel also attended two American Jewish Press Association Meetings in Israel, heady experiences for someone still on “trial basis.”

Basketball scores were still in the paper, but no longer dominated. There was still a deficit and the paper had grown from eight to 12 pages.

New features were added, including editorial comments by Harry Golden.

Regular news stories from Lincoln, Sioux City and Des Moines expanded the Jewish Press to a regional paper.

There was a cooking column, one from the library and Looking Back.

Regular reports from the ADL and Center Youth activities. It was a good newspaper, providing a wide range of world and local news.

Federation events were still included, but the Jewish Press was no longer a house organ of the Jewish Federation. In 1970, the Federation adopted a Publication Policy for the Press which freed the paper and created an independent Jewish Press Committee, headed at the time by Chuck Monasee. In his presentation to the Federation Board, Monasee noted that the paper had expanded and was now a regional paper. As such, it could no longer be under the control of the Federation.

The growth continued; by 1973, the staff tripled to include an advertising manager and an associate editor. The paper was recognized by the AJPA as “an example of excellence in the field of Jewish journalism.” Today, the Jewish Press continues on the path of growth and improvement.

When I resigned as Editor in 1974, I

wrote the final Sidelines column (which was still on a trial basis!). I was pleased with the accomplishments of those 10 years and wished I could have said I passed the trial periods, because it was the best job I ever had.

There are still forces around to keep me humble. I soon learned some things are not meant to be changed.

When my Omaha daughter and her

family (Marcia and Steve Pitlor and their children, Lisa, David and Kim) come to visit us in Scottsdale, AZ, my son-in-law often spends time flipping through the pages of the bound copies of the old Jewish Press issues which I have as a momento of my years with the paper.

Frequently, I hear him call to his children to “come and look at this!” It is not all the innovation in the Jewish Press which he finds exciting. It is not the brilliant Sidelines columns written by his mother-in-law.

What he wants my grandchildren to see is his name or his picture or the score in the Center Sports basketball column!

Guess you can’t win ‘em all!

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IbyN RETROSPECT CAROL GENDLER • The Jewish Bulletin was founded in 1916 with Maxim Konecky, and later his brother Isaac, as editor. A benefit dance was held the following year to raise funds to keep the weekly paper going.

It was said that “on account of the high cost of paper and other expenses, the paper has been stuggling to maintain its purpose as a newspaper medium for the Jewish people.”

• A private, non-profit corporation, called the Jewish Press Publishing Company, was established in 1920 by Dr. P. Sher, H.A. Auerbach, Nathan P. Feil, William Holzman, Harry Lapidus, Morris Levy, Saul Levey, Sam J. Leon, Harry Malashock, Henry Monsky, Emil Rothchild, Ed Simon and Nathan Yaffe.

Morris Jacobs would serve as editor at a monthly salary of $150.

• The Omaha quota in the United Jewish Appeal campaign of 1926 was $75,000. William Holzman served as state chairman of the drive.

• Representatives of 36 Jewish organizations met in October of 1929 and pledged both moral and financial support toward a Jewish communal survey to be undertaken at the direction direction of the Buerau of Social Reseach of New York.

It was hoped that the survey would determine whether the Jewish communal needs were being discharged, whether the needy, the delinquent, the sick and the aged were getting proper attention, whether Jewish children were receiving sufficient education and whether Omaha was over-organized as a community.

The two most significant organizations in Omaha in 1929 were the Jewish Welfare Federation and the Jewish Community Center. In addition, there were no less than 43 other Jewish organizations. The survey concluded, not surprisingly, that Omaha was over-organized.

The 1929 survey listed the following Jewish women’s organizations: Jewish Women’s Welfare Organization, Bikur Cholim Society, Hadassah, Junior Hadassah, National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section, Daughters of Zion, Pioneer Women, Ladies Labor Lyceum and Chesed Shel Emeth.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 45

Sidelines Revisted

Sept. 29, 2000

Sept. 29, 2000

by MICKEY GREENBERG Editor, 1964-74 I spent a great deal of time going through back issues of the Jewish Press from 1964-74. My mission was to choose a few major stories; it was an impossible task! My ego kept getting in the way. There was no question that every word of every issue of the Press during that period was important. (Would I print anything that wasn’t important?)

Then I was distracted by all the errors which weren’t caught when they should have been: wrong identification of pictures, bridal photos switched.

Yipes! Can you imagine what young grooms must have felt when, in a moment of terror, they thought they married the wrong girl?

In one issue, photos of Marty Shukert and Rabbi Myer Kripke were switched (readers weren’t confused; they knew Rabbi Kripke never had that much hair!).

Then there was the “Do You Remember” column. I tried to be very careful with that one. I tried not to include the weddings of couples who were no longer married or people who were deceased. But once, I chose a couple who were still married to each other after 25 years, but the heading was dropped and the item ran under “15 Years Ago.” Go explain that to kids who were 17, 19, and 21! (Today that kind of mistake might not upset the kids, but 27 years ago it was kind of a problem.)

Once I accepted a Statute of Limitations on proofreading errors and that 26 years was enough time for bridegrooms to discover who they really married, I began to enjoy the nostalgia of reading through those old issues.

One particular issue captured my imagination: the Passover edition of 1970, dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Jewish Press. The first thing that hit me were the incredible accomplishments by the Omaha Jewish leaders then.

Their deeds and their deaths are symbolic of these giants, not only in Omaha, but also throughout the Jewish world, like: Harry Lapidus, William Holzman, Henry Monsky, Phil Klutznick, Sam Beber, H.A. Wolf, Sophie Neveloff, Dr. Philip Sher, Sadie Kulakofsky and Dr. Abe Greenberg.

Add to that list some of the leaders during the past 30 years: Nick Newman, Elmer Gross, Harry Sidman, Jack Marer, Joe Rice, David Beber, Jules Newman, Mort Richards, Morris Jacobs, Milt Livingston, Paul Veret, David Blacker, Rabbi Sidney Brooks, Mollie Delman, Rose Blumkin, Milt Abrahams--the list goes on.

A special edition could be devoted to each of them.

How fortunate we are to have known them and that there are others taking their place. If I had to choose one word to describe the Omaha Jewish community, it would be “connected.” It took us moving away to an unconnected community to make me realize how

by OLIVER B. POLLAK President of the Jewish Press, 1989-1990 The Jewish Daily Forward started in New York in 1897 as a Yiddish-language newspapers for Jewish immigrants. It had a clear social, economic, and political agenda under the editorship of Abraham Cahan.

Perhaps most remembered are the “Bintel Briefs,” an advice column, excerpts of which have been reprinted in book form and been read on National Public Radio.

The English language weekly, begun in 1990, has a circulation of about 26,000. I started subscribing in November, 1996, and have been a happy Forward reader ever since.

The Forward has a global reach in news coverage-politics, film, literature, art, the profane, obnoxious and sacrosanct. As a weekly, and published in New York, the Forward is able to scoop the slower, narrower and glossier monthlies. Ben Katchor’s neurotic cartoons are praiseworthy. It has a questioning and skeptical tone, though the editor, Seth Lipsky, has left, replaced by former columnist J.J. Goldberg.

A couple of years ago, I was driving by the Gene Leahy Mall on my way to Council Bluffs. While listening to the country and western station WOW-FM, to my surprise, the Forward was advertising for subscribers, a most unlikely place to reach its target audience. I wondered what magic salesman got that account! Are there demographics for Jews who listen to country and western?

Well, pardner, I don’t know how many people responded to that ad!

Forward’s subscription office provided further information on current Nebraska subscribers. They, of course, could not give me names, but they did give me zipcode information. In the area around Omaha, there were 34 subscribers and, around Lincoln, seven. So for the entire state of Nebraska, I speculate there are about 45 subscribers, including libraries and synagogues.

I know a couple of local Forward subscribers.

Knowing they might be reading the same stories as I am is a common link for quick conversation openers.

“Did you read that piece on...?” Rabbis sermons sometimes mention an item in the Forward and study groups have focused on some provocative articles.

So impressed am I with the Forward that at Hanukkah, 1998, I decided to send several gift subscriptions, which I got around to doing at Hanukkah, 1999.

The Forward, by the way, also is available for persuing in the Kripke Jewish Federation Library.

(Editor’s note: Passover 2006--5766--is next week; a gift subscription to the Jewish Press is just $31 domestic delivery, or $36 overseas. Call 402.334.6448 or e-mail jpress@jewishomaha.org to order today.)

The Forward in Nebraska

important that is.

Although I left Omaha years ago, I still use the pronoun “we” when I speak of the Jewish community; I still consider Omaha my home; I have children and grandchildren living there, childhood friendships and ties that have not been broken.

When I come “home” to visit, I’m startled by the many new faces and new names which have become part of the Omaha Jewish community. Then I walk through the halls of the JCC and look at the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society exhibits; there are so many familiar faces--so many reminders of the contributions made by my generation, that I still feel at home.

In the pages of the Jewish Press, I see an important historical record of my family. There are pictures of my mother as Beth Israel Sisterhood President; me as Youth Council President (in the old days, it was called Round Table of Jewish Youth). I see photos of my children in leadership roles in the JCC expansion and pictures of their children--my grandchildren--in all their various youth activities.

The pages of the Press recorded the births of my children, their religious school activities, their Bar and Bat Mitzvah celebrations, their school graduations, marriages and births of their own children. The historical record continues with the life cycle events of my grandchildren. The death of my parents were in its pages and someday, mine will be, too (although I hope I can hold out until the 100th anniversary of the Jewish Press).

Does it matter? I think it does. The same historical records of other Omaha Jewish families attest to the continuity of Jewish life in Omaha. I attended Central High but rarely missed a day at, the old ‘J’ on 20th and Dodge after school. I met my old friends and developed new friendships there. The JCC was the hub of teenage and organizational life. As an adult, I found myself on the pages of the Press as a participant in many community projects, including the creation of the current JCC. There have been many changes since the Jewish Press made its debut in 1920. On a recent visit to Omaha, I stopped in to see its new suite of offices in the expanded JCC. That was a real change from a single desk in the corner, my office in 1964.

It is likely there will be more changes in the years ahead. The important thing is that the Jewish Press will continue to serve the community in the future as it has for the past 80 years. That’s continuity.

I can visualize the 100th anniversary edition of the Jewish Press when Marty Shukert’s grandchildren might look at a picture of him and say to their balding grandfather, “Gee, Zayde, you sure used to have a lot of hair!”

Perhaps the bridegrooms will look at the switched bridal pictures and know they married the right girl.

And maybe, if I’m lucky, my great-grandchildren will find my picture, but won’t find my obituary yet.

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Page 46

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Major News Stories from the Jewish Press 1943

gogues of the city for the graduates, their parents and friends.

Rabbi Lou H. Silberman of Temple Israel will conduct the services. Principal address will be given by Rabbi Israel Moshowitz and Rabbi David A. Goldstein will participate in the services.

Speaking for graduates will be Jeanne Blacker, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David Blacker, and Irvin Gendler, son of Mr. and Mrs. A.B. Gendler. Both are students at Central High School and are members of National Honor Society.

Dr. Phillip Sher, chairman of the Omaha Jewish Education Bureau, will extend greetings from the community at large. A reception will be held in the Vestry rooms of the Temple following the services with members of the Temple Israel Sisterhood in charge.

Yancs in Action

by MARY ARBITMAN Purim, Shalach Manes, and hamentashen will long be associated in the minds of more than 100 Servicemen stationed in Omaha and attending the Purim supper-dance Sunday in the Center auditorium.

It was a gay and festive occasion, with a grand march to pair off partners for one dance, six piece soldier orchestra from Fort Crook, Purim gifts for each Serviceman from the pupils of the City Talmud Torah, lucky No. 100 winning a long distance call home way down to Greenville, Texas (pronounced “Grainvil” by a true Texan), thick slices of beef roast, browned potatoes, kasha, combination salad, taiglach and hamentashen for dessert...a truly traditional Purim dinner with our sincerest thanks for it going to the women of the B’nai B’rith Auxiliary under the presidency of Mrs. Joe Goldware.

April 13,1951

Ferer Elected Federation President Hyman Ferer was unanimously elected president of the Jewish Federation at the Federation’s 48th annual meeting Wednesday night at the JCC. The former first vice-president replaces Joe M. Rice, who was presented with a plaque for his services to the community during the past two years. Presentation was made by Milton Livingston, president of the Federation in 1947 and 1948.

Other Federation officers for 1951-53 are: First vice-president, J. Harry Kulakofsky, succeeding Mr. Ferer; second vice-president, Louis Somberg, succeeding Mr. Kulakofsky; treasurer, Jack W.

May 25,1945

Jewish Community Honors 70 High School Graduates More than seventy Omaha and Council Bluffs Jewish high school graduates will be honored at the annual Baccalaureate service sponsored by the Omaha Jewish Federation on Thursday, May 31, at Temple Israel. This special service is being held in cooperation with the syna-

Marer, succeeding Mr. Somberg; and secretary, Dr. Abe Greenberg, succeeding Nathan Nogg.

Mortgage Burned Re-elected honorary president was Dr. Philip Sher, who presided over the burning of the Jewish Community Center building mortgage, a highlight of the annual meeting.

Mrs. Harry Wolf was elected honorary vice-president. A Federation resolution in honor of her late husband was read by Mrs. J. Harry Kulakofsky....

opportunity for a cooperative development of one of the finest camping areas in the United States,” Mr. Nogg stressed.

Will Serve Entire Community “At long last we have a site of our own, which we will use for the benefit of the entire Jewish community,” Norman Batt, Chairman of Camp Jay-C-C said. “This is a perfect site for our Children’s Camp; in addition, the size of the camp site will permit us to develop special areas for Golden Agers, Young Adults, and Family Camping.”

December 16, 1960

October 16,1970

Federation Buys Site for Camp

Rabin to Visit Nebraska

Longtime Dream Now a Reality The purchase of a 182-acre tract of land for a permanent camp site was announced

by Harry Trustin, Jewish Federation president. The land is located in Cass County, near Louisville, Nebraska, in the area where Camp Jay-C-C first opened 22 years ago.

“We believe that we have the finest camping area in Nebraska,” Ernest A. Nogg, chairman of the Camp Site Committee and Federation first vicepresident, reported. “The land is scenic rolling and heavily wooded and is ideal from every viewpoint. It meets the strictest requirements for camp sites, and is truly wonderful ground.

“The camp site is between two existing camps. On the west it adjoins the Lincoln YMCA camp; on the east, it is next to Camp Harriet Harding. The Platte River is on the north. This offers a wonderful

GAUCHER DISEASE

Omaha--Announcement was made this week of plans for a two-day visit to Omaha and Lincoln by His Excellency, Yitzhak Rabin, Israel’s Ambassador to the United States.

Ambassador Rabin will arrive in Omaha Wednesday, November 4, and will be the guest speaker that day at the Public Affairs Luncheon of The Omaha Chamber of Commerce. Reservations for the 12 noon luncheon at the Omaha Hilton Hotel may be made with the Chamber of Commerce, 341.1234.

Lincoln Activities Ambassador Rabin will be the guest of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln Thursday, November 5. The Ambassador will present a major address under the auspices of the Nebraska Higher Education Television Commission, cosponsored by the Convocations Committee of the Lincoln campus.

Continued on page 47

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Major News Stories from the Jewish Press Continued from page 46 1965: We mourned for many leaders, including Eddie Cantor, Sir Winston Churchill, Dr. Martin Buber.

1966: New threats of war between Israel and Syria erupt; Beth El honors Cantor Aaron Edgar; Joseph Katelman elected mayor of Council Bluffs.

1967: Israel is victorious in the Six-Day War with the Arabs; Ed Zelinksy named International AZA President; 1968: Golda Meir is installed as Israelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fourth Prime Minister, following the death of Levi Eshkol.

1970: Paul Veret dies, ending a 26-year career as Jewish Federation Executive Director; Mort Greenberg succeeds him. Plans begin for a new JCC on 132nd Street; independent publication policy adopted for the Jewish Press; ADL warns of Radical Right activities.

1971: Temple Israel celebrates its 100th birthday; Hubert Humphrey speaks at the Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Campaign Pacesetter event; town meetings are held to determine the needs for the new JCC. 1972: Sally Priesand ordained as the first female rabbi by the Reform movement, while Jewish youth participate in a Washington rally protesting the Vietnam War; David Ben Gurion resigns from the Israeli Knesset; three of the four students killed at the Kent State tragedy were Jewish; the community mourns the deaths of President Harry Truman, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, Dr. Abe Greenberg and Templeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cantor Manfred Kuttner; the world is shocked by the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at Munichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Olympic Games.

1973: JCC cornerstone dedication delayed due to the death of leader Nick Newman; Israel faces the Yom Kippur war; Vietnam peace agreement signed; Sam Greenberg named King of Ak-Sar-Ben; President Lyndon Johnson and David Ben Gurion die; official opening of the new JCC. 1974: JCC membership reaches 1000; Jewish day school merges with Montessori; Library plans first book fair; community mourns J. Harry Kulakofsky.

1975: Committee to resettle Jews from Soviet Union; tornado severely damages Temple Israel.

1976: Omaha World-Herald columnist Wally Provost champions Soviet Jewry cause; Eli Zalkin named regional President of Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;rith; Edward Zorinsky wins Nebraska Senate race.

1977: Leonard â&#x20AC;&#x153;Buddyâ&#x20AC;? Goldstein becomes President of the Jewish Federation; Jewish Family Service resettles two Russian families; Israel Bonds dinner raises half-a-million dollars; Anne Katzman elected President of Hadassah Regional Board; community mourns Robert Feinberg.

1978: Society of Survivors is formed; Mary Fellman named first woman President of the Jewish Federation of Omaha; Israel Bonds honors Norm Krivosha, who was appointed Chief Justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court; 47,000 people attend the Festival of Biblical Art and Archeology at the JCC; community mourns the death of Sadie Kulakofsky and Lois Schrager; Camp Esther K. Newman closed.

1979: Jewish Federation celebrates its 75th anniversary; Philip Klutznick honored by Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;rith; Beth Israel hosts controversial speaker Rabbi Meir Kahane; two full-time Jewish studies teachers hired at Jewish day school.

1980: Press Editor Morris Maline meets President Jimmy Carter at the White House at the American Jewish Press Association meeting.

1981: Rose Blumkin donates $1 million for new home for the aged; NCJW founds Seven Can Help community service project; group announces formation of Nebraska Jewish Historical Society.

1982: Rabbi Paul Drazen chosen as spiritual leader of Beth El; Livingston Plaza dedicated; Shirley Goldstein honored with the Federationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Humanitarian Award for her efforts on behalf of Soviet Jewry; Jewish day school moves to Beth Israel West building; Ruth Sokolof mourned.

1983: ADL hosts Elie Weisel; Mizrachi womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s organization changes name to AMIT; Jane Brooks elected to NFTS national board; Jewish Family Service relocates to JCC.; South Street Temple in Lincoln celebrates 100th anniversary; Beth El and Beth Israel merge schools into United Talmud Torah of Omaha.

1984: Mitch Warren elected National President of NFTY; Andee Gordman elected International BBG President; Danzig Exhibit opens at Joslyn; Jerold I. Rosen named first director of Jewish Federationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new Foundation.

1986: Chabad of Nebraska founded; Cantor Leo Fettman honored by Israel Bonds; Steve Riekes named to National Board of Housing and Development.

1987: First ARTZA teen trip to Israel; Jewish day

school rededicated as the Friedel Jewish academy; community mourns Edward Zorinksy; Klutznick Chair in Jewish Civilization established at Creighton University.

1988: Rabbi Aryeh Azriel hired to head Temple Israel; Saranne Gitnick installed as second woman to head Jewish Federation board; Jeff Aizenberg hired as JCC Executive Director; Tifereth Israel hosts Wolf Blitzer; NCJW sponsors first Child Care Fair and publishes its first Resources Available for Teens Guide.

1990: NJHS hosts national meeting of American Jewish Historical Societies; Beth El breaks ground for new building; new addition completed at Blumkin Home; Dana College hosts symposium on the Rescue of the Danish Jews.

1990: Bikur Cholim organization ends after 62 years of service to community, funds to go to Jewish Family Service; Jay Lerner and Tom Fellman chair Operation Exodus campaign to resettle Jews from former Soviet Union in Omaha and Israel.

1991: Anne Frank Exhibit opens at Joslyn Castle; NJHS plans exhibit on Jewish businesses on North 24th St.; steady stream of Jews arrive from FSU. 1992: Former Lincolnite Rabbi Michael Graetz named President of Rabbinical Assembly in Israel; Louis Friedman Jewish Funeral Home dedicated; Cantor Michael Weisser of Lincoln converts former grand dragon of Ku Klux Klan; community mourns Rabbi Isaac Nadoff and Jerold I. Rosen, first Executive Director of the Foundation of the Jewish Federation.

1993: Peace Accord signed by Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat at White House--Federation President Jerry Slutzsky is there as a witness; Becca Goldstein elected International BBG President.

1994: Groundbreaking of new Gordman Center for Jewish Education to house Friedel Jewish Academy; Rabbi Ruth Ehrenstein welcomed as first Reconstructionist rabbi.

1995: Beyt Shalom forms first Reconstructionist synagogue in Nebraska; Peace accord signed between Israelis and Jordanians; Leonard Greenspoon named Klutznick Chair at Creighton Univeristy; Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated.

1996: National Council of Jewish Women-Omaha Section celebrates its 100th anniversary with original musical â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sentimental Journeyâ&#x20AC;? at The Rose Theater; Yale Gotsdiner named President of Lincolnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Interfaith Council.

1997: Jan Goldstein named first woman Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Omaha; Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Israel defaced and vandalized; Chabad of Nebraska announces purchase for first permanent residence.

1998: Jim and Elaine Wolf establish endowment fund for ADL, celebrating Executive Director Bob Wolfsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10th anniversary; NCJW introduces Dictionary Day; community mourns Eddie Belgrade, Ephraim Marks.

1999: AZA celebrates 75th anniversary of formation in Omaha; JCC expansion and remodeling--opens new Child Development Center and Fitness Center; Edythe Wolf retires as librarian after 25-year stint; Jan Schneiderman elected NCJW National President; community mourns Abe Baker, Merriam Cooperman, Mollie Delman, Philip Klutznick, Hermene Zweiback, and Rabbi Sidney Brooks.

2000: Community mourns Milt Abrahams, Dorothy Kripke, Lee Jane Parsow, and Morton Richards.

2001: Omaha participates in solidarity missions to Israel; Larry Axelrod, Advertising Manager of the Jewish Press, dies suddenly; Central High School celebrates 100th anniversary of its building; community mourns Dr. Jay Parsow.

2002: Omaha Jewish Community Center hosts the JCC Maccabi Games; Federation celebrates its 100th anniversary; Beth El hires Rabbi Mordechai Levin; community mourns Iz Bognanoff, Pennie Z. Davis, Harold Farber, Leonard Friedel, and Howard Vann.

2003: Offutt chaplain Rabbi Kalman Dubov deployed to Iraq; Jewish Press wins record number of awards--three from Nebraska Press Association and three from American Jewish Press Association; community mourns Jack Duitch, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Docâ&#x20AC;? and Freda Bleicher, Yale Richards, and Eddie (â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ediarâ&#x20AC;?) Rosen.

2004: Rabbi Kripke honored on his 90th birthday; Beth Israel moves to its new building, hires Rabbi Jonathan Gross; Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Israel celebrates 100th anniversary of continuous Jewish presence in Council Bluffs, community mourns Henry Riekes.

2005: Ozzie Nogg is first freelancer elected to AJPA Executive Board; both Lincoln Synagogues hire new rabbis; community mourns Harold Cooperman, Maury Udes, Harlan Noddle and Karin Levin.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 47

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April 7, 2006

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This Passover, No Soup for You: Matza Balls Gain a Creole Flavor

by LINDA MOREL Cajun cuisine, transformed even that most traditional of NEW YORK (JTA)--When Hurricane Katrina roared Jewish foods--the matza ball,” Ferris says. into New Orleans, destroying much of the Big Easy, the Jewish women in New Orleans still prepare Passover flood waters also altered Jewish life in this sultry city. dumplings as they were made during the antebellum With so many homes in ruin, there’s now only a fraction period, she explains. of the original 9,500 people left to celebrate Passover in While matzah ball preparation is fairly standard, “the this fabled port, famous for strong coffee and decorative creole influence appears in the seasoning, which includes ironwork balconies. green onions and parsley.” Some cooks add ginger and “When you drive from Mississippi toward New garlic as well. In New Orleans, matza balls are either Orleans, as you approach the bayous, the radio stations served in an Alsatian-style beef-vegetable broth, called change, the music changes, and you know you’re in a red soup, or in chicken and sausage gumbo. Surprisingly, different place,” says Marcie Cohen Ferris, an Arkansas they are also sauteed in copious amounts of butter and native and author of Matzoh Ball Gumbo: Culinary Tales presented as a side dish.

“Serving the matza balls as a side dish, rather than of the Jewish South (University of North Carolina Press).

New Orleans is a gumbo of sorts, a piquant stew of floating them in soup, de-ethnicized them,” says Ferris.

French, Spanish, Indian, African and Jewish influences, “In the soup bowl, the matzah ball was Jewish, but seasoned with Creole and Cajun spices and punctuated served on a plate, it became an American side dish, as innocuous as rice or potatoes.” by jazz.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Cathy A compelling storyteller, Samuel Wolf grew up in New Orleans Ferris turns history into rivexposed to few Jewish traditions. But eting reading. Her book she remembers her Aunt Maud’s matza describes early 19th-century balls swimming in butter.

Jews who traveled to New “By serving matza balls, even in such Orleans from Alsace, France. a non-traditional fashion, the Samuel Attracted to the French culwomen made a statement, albeit disture and language, they creet, about their family’s New Orleans appreciated the city’s Jewish ancestry,” says Ferris. “In a famemphasis on fine food. Soon ily in which all vestiges of Judaism were German Jews arrived too. absent, the matza ball’s survival sugAlong with Christian busigests the power of food and Jewish nessmen, Jews followed the women’s ability to shape their family’s cotton trade to New Orleans, ethnic identity in the kitchen.” where their traditions relaxed This identity was enhanced by the into the balmy air.

African influence. “My entire life of wonIn 1826, Jacob de Silva Marcie Cohen Ferris, author of Matzoh Ball derful family eating experiences was Solis, a Sephardic Jew and forGumbo: Culinary Tales of the Jewish South. solidly nurtured from my mother’s mer ritual slaughterer, moved Credit: Dan Sears ‘country Jewish’ recipes to those of our from the East Coast to New Orleans. Amid the heat, creole culture, and bubbling mix- long-time housekeeper, Vinie Williams,” said Anne Zoller ture of people, he encountered a Jewish community, which Kiefer. “Together they created the perfect mix of Jewish and spicy creole delicacies like dirty matza dressing for stunned him more than the cayenne pepper in food.

There were no synagogues in town, and as Passover Passover,” a muddy colored, but perfectly clean dish.

During better times, kosher cookbook author Mildred approached, no matza to be found. He survived the holiday by grinding his own meal. But he was dumbfound- Lubritz Covert created Passover fried green tomatoes ed by the indifference to Judaism exhibited by these for the holiday. “How much more southern can a Jewish Ashkenazi Jews who mixed freely with the largely hostess get?” she asked. “L’Chaim and Bon Appetit.”

During Hurricane Katrina, her house was destroyed.

Catholic population. Undaunted by their apathy, in 1827 Solis helped them establish Congregation “We were totaled. There’s nothing left.”

Sadly, Covert’s synagogue suffered the same fate.

Shangarai Chased, or Gates of Mercy.

During the Civil War, another Sephardi Jew, 16-year- Since the disaster, many Jews have settled in other parts old Clara Soloman, kept a diary, detailing life in a of the country, probably never to return.

“The unfortunate part is that New Orleans is not a Confederate slave-owning family. During the spring of 1862, she described the shortage and poor quality of town that attracts Jews,” Covert says. “Since World War matzah. “Our matzas are so miserably sour that I don’t II, the population has hovered around 10,000. When one Jew dies, another is born.” But currently only about think I have eaten a whole one.”

Soloman was devastated when a favorite slave escaped. half of the original population has returned to the city.

As Passover approaches, Covert is living in her fifth Because Passover revolves around the bitterness experienced by the ancient Hebrews in bondage, it’s uncomfortable to rental home, awaiting her condominium’s completion.

At 70-something she’d find it too hard to abandon the contemplate Jewish slave owners celebrating Passover.

“It’s hard to imagine the historical mindset of anoth- Big Easy where she was born.

“The post-Hurricane Katrina population may be smaller period, such as slavery days in the old South,” says Ferris, the associate director of the Carolina Center for er but it will become stronger,” Ferris says. “Tragedy has Jewish Studies and assistant professor of American stud- a way of invigorating Jewish communities.”

She’s confident that the spice of Jewish life, along with ies at the University of North Carolina. “While few Jews were plantation owners, they acquiesced to this institu- Creole matza balls, will endure in New Orleans.

RED SOUP tion because slave owning was the way you demonstratcontributed by ed that you were a white Southerner, something that Florence Weiland Schornstein was important to Jews of the period.”

By adopting local fare, which in some cases included 2 cups coarsely chopped green cabbage shellfish and pork, Jews joined mainstream society to 1 large Yukon Gold potato, peeled and cut into 1demonstrate loyalty to white Creole culture. “At the heart inch chunks of the Creole kitchen are African American women who 1 large onion, coarsely chopped 1 large turnip, peeled called on their knowledge of tropical foods,” Ferris says. and cut into 1-inch chunks At first working as slaves but later employed as cooks, black women artfully combined French fare with African 1 cup sliced leek, well-rinsed of grit spices and local foods. “When this cuisine entered 2 medium carrots, sliced 1/2 inch thick Jewish homes in the 19th and 20th centuries, a new cuisine that mixed Jewish and Creole traditions was born in 1 stalk celery, sliced Louisiana.” The quintessential example of this fusion is 8 cups water 1 6-oz can tomato paste matza ball gumbo.

Over the decades, Jewish women in New Orleans have 2 tsp kosher salt produced a spate of privately published cookbooks, culi- 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper nary memoirs filled with family stories and favorite recipes. 1 2-lb piece well-trimmed boneless beef brisket One of the best of the genre is Lee Geismar Stamler’s From Gumbo to Matzoh Balls: A Cookbook Flavored with 1/2 cup shelled fresh Memories of Growing Up in Cajun Louisiana. or frozen peas (optional) “In these cookbooks, one sees how French cooking Favorite matza ball recipe (optional), styles, African spices and seasonings, native produce and such as Creole matza balls (below) seafood, all of which are basic elements of Creole and Continued on next page

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 51

Matza Balls Gain a Creole Flavor Continued from previous page In a soup pot, place the cabbage, potato, onion, turnip, leek, carrots, celery, water, tomato paste, salt and pepper. Stir to mix well. There should be enough water to barely cover the vegetables; if not, add more-but don’t make the soup too thin.

Add the brisket; stir again, and bring to a boil over high heat. Skim off the foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until the brisket is tender when pierced with a fork, about 21/2 to 3 hours. Remove from heat.

Remove the brisket from the soup. For the best flavor, cover the soup, wrap the brisket, and refrigerate both overnight.

To serve, skim any fat from the soup. Cut the brisket into 1-inch pieces and return to the soup. Bring to a boil over medium heat.

Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper, if necessary. If desired, add the peas and cook an additional 2 minutes. Serve hot with matza balls, if you wish.

Yield: 6 generous servings; more if you add matza balls CREOLE MATZA BALLS contributed by Anne Zoller Kiefer 2 tbsp canola oil 1/4 cup finely chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley 2 to 21/2 tsp any brand of Creole Seasoning: Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Kosher for Passover “Magic Seasoning” can be ordered through Kosher Cajun, www.koshercajun.com 2 large eggs 1 packet (from a 5-oz package) matza ball mix Kosher salt In a small nonstick skillet, heat 1 tbsp of the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until tender, 2 to

3 minutes. Stir in the parsley and Creole seasoning and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

Scrape the onion mixture into a medium bowl and let cool slightly. Add the eggs and remaining 1 tbsp oil. Mix with a fork until the eggs are well broken up. Add the matza ball mix and stir until blended. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, fill a large saucepan with water. Cover and bring to a boil.

Moisten your hands and form the matza ball mixture into 12 balls, using a heaping tbsp. mixture for each one. Add a big pinch of salt to the boiling water and drop the matza balls in.

Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes or until cooked through. Serve soon or, with a slotted spoon, transfer to a container. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Reheat matza balls in soup.

Yield: 12 matza balls “DIRTY MATZA” DRESSING contributed by Anne Zoller Kiefer 1 tbsp olive oil (omit if using giblets) 1 cup chicken livers (about 6 oz), trimmed and halved, or finely chopped, cooked giblets.

(For a vegetarian version, use 2 cups sauteed mushrooms instead) Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 9 unsalted matzas, broken up 1 stick unsalted butter or margarine 1 large onion, chopped 2 celery stalks, chopped fine 3 garlic cloves, minced 1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley 3-4 tbsp creole seasoning, Chef Paul Prudhomme’s Kosher for Passover “Magic Seasoning” can be ordered through Kosher Cajun, www.koshercajun.com

cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian version) 1 large egg Preheat oven to 350º. Generously grease a 9x9 inch glass baking dish or casserole.

If using the livers, heat the oil in a heavy medium skillet over medium heat.

Carefully add the livers and sprinkle each with 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper. Cook, turning often and scraping the bottom of the pan, until livers are browned but still pink in the c e n t e r, about 4 minutes.

Tr a n s f e r to a small bowl (but don’t wash the skillet). Let livers cool slightly and then chop.

MeanMatzoh Ball Gumbo: Culinary w h i l e , Tales of the Jewish South, by place the Marcie Cohen Ferris. matzas in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Let stand, pressing them down into the water, until softened, about 10 minutes. Drain in a fine-mesh strainer, pressing out the water and breaking up the matzas with your hands. Dry the bowl; return the matzas to the bowl.

In the same skillet, over medium heat, melt all but 1 tbsp of the margarine.

Add the onion, celery, and garlic, and cook, stirring often, until tender, 8 minutes. Stir in the parsley, Creole seasoning, 3/4 tsp kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

1/2

Wishing Your Passover Is Filled With Health and Happiness.

Cook, stirring 1 minute. Scrape the mixture into the matzas.

Add the livers or giblets (or mushrooms), broth, and egg. Mix well. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and dot with the remaining 1 tablespoon margarine. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake until the surface is browned and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes longer. Serve hot.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings, 7 cups PESACH FRIED GREEN TOMATOES contributed by Mildred Lubritz Covert 1/2 cup matza meal 1 tsp kosher salt 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 1/8 tsp granulated sugar 2 large eggs 4-5 large green tomatoes (about 2 lb), cored and sliced 1/2 inch thick, ends discarded. (If you can’t find green tomatoes, use hard, unripe red tomatoes) 1/2 cup or more vegetable oil for frying In a pie plate, mix the matza meal, salt, cayenne pepper, and sugar.

In another pie plate, with a fork, beat the eggs. One at a time, dip the tomato slices into the beaten eggs, letting the excess drip off. Then coat with the matzah meal, pressing it into the surface. Place the crumbed tomatoes on waxed-paper-lined baking sheets.

In a large heavy skillet, heat half the oil over medium heat. Add a layer of tomatoes and fry, turning once, until browned and crisp, 6-8 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Repeat with the remaining tomato slices, adding additional oil as needed.

Serve hot.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Tales and Recipes to Nourish the Body and Soul

by TRINA KAYE Food has a special place in Jewish culture. Jewish holidays and festivals are often centered on a family meal with special delicacies. As generations pass, the meals served and stories told at the dinner table become intertwined; only in a Jewish home could the smell of brisket be associated with a mother’s love.

Though special and unique in the Jewish tradition, this love of food and family, and the desire to invite everyone to the table to talk and laugh, is universal in all cultures.

Blending stories and memories with recipes, internationally acclaimed author, Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski, and Judi Dick have created A Taste of Nostalgia (ArtScroll; March 2006; $24.99), a different kind of Jewish cookbook, full of stories and familiar recipes.

These tales will make you laugh, make you think, and nourish your spirit just as chicken soup with kreplach nourishes the body. Selected from a vast treasury of Jewish experience, the stories provide a meaningful, enhancing backdrop to the delicious recipes found in this special cookbook.

Rabbi Twerski says, “I believe that associating stories with recipes can animate one’s spirit, eliciting a chuckle or providing a thoughtful insight.” These poignant tales, lovingly retold, bring back memories of what it was like for Jews in Europe more than 100 years ago. They evoke a yearning for the warmth and simplicity of a lifestyle that can, with a story or a comforting meal, be recalled with deep emotion.

In developing his manuscript, Rabbi Twerski envisioned a book that was truly A Taste of Nostalgia. In the finished work, he provides the reader with a familiar and comforting framework of Jewish holidays and celebrations, beginning with Shabbat, the festival days (Yomim Tovim) and special occasions.

To complement this spiritual treat, Rabbi Twerski asked highly regarded editor and Jewish mother, Judi Dick, to use her culinary expertise and motherly touch to recreate the Jewish kitchen experience of the past century. The result is more than 150 traditional recipes, masterfully adapted for today's family. The recipes are listed in chapters devoted to Jewish holidays and occasions, including an extensive selection of Shabbat recipes, over 30 “kosher for Passover” recipes, timehonored delicacies, and mouthwatering treats for Rosh Hashanah, Hanukkah, and special occasions.

Special days in the Jewish calendar are often associated with certain foods, and Rabbi Twerski and Judi Dick provide fascinating insight into these holidays and traditions with food for thought and body. Rabbi Twerski’s stories and Judi Dick’s recipes illuminate the experiences of an ancient, yet timeless, culture and heritage.

Rabbi Twerski, M.D. is a prolific writer in the fields of self-improvement, addiction recovery, and Jewish phi-

W i s h i n g

y o u

a

losophy. He is an acclaimed psychiatrist, an ordained rabbi, and medical director of Gateway Rehabilitation Center in Pittsburg PA. A frequent lecturer on a broad range of topics, including stress, self-esteem, spirituality as well as chemical dependency, Twerski has also written 31 books to date including: Substance Abusing High Achievers, Life's Too Short, I’d Like to Call For Help, But I Don’t Know The Number, Do Unto Others, and collaborative effort with Peanuts comic strip creator Charles Schulz, When Do The Good Things Start?, Waking Up Just In Time, I Didn’t Ask To Be In This Family, and That’s Not A Fault…It’s A Character Trait.

Scientific contributions and community efforts have earned him honorary degrees from St. Vincent’s College, Duquesne University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Twerski was awarded the 1998 Caritas Award for Service by Catholic Charities of Pittsburgh. In 1997 he received the Pennsylvania Medical Society’s greatest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, for his dedication in his work in the chemical dependency field.

In addition, he has received the Martin Luther King Citizen’s Award and a Citation for contribution to the Integration of Religion and the Behavioral Sciences.

Judi Dick is a seasoned book editor for Brooklynbased ArtScroll Mesorah Publications, the leading publisher of Judaica works for the English speaking world.

She is also a celebrated cook with expertise in traditional European Jewish cuisine.

MEAT TZIMMES WITH KNAIDEL Makes 10-20 side dish servings TZIMMES: 2-21/2 pounds breast flanken (short ribs) 1-2 Spanish onions, in large dice 3 pounds carrots, in 1-inch rounds 2 pounds sweet potatoes, in 1-inch chunks 3/4 cup sugar salt to taste water to cover OPTIONAL ADDITIONS: 1-2 apples cut into chunks 6 pitted prunes (prunes burn easily, so stir tzimmes frequently) 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon lemon juice KNAIDEL: 1 cup matza cake flour 1/2 teaspoon kosher-for-Passover baking powder Pinch of salt 1 tablespoon sugar 1/2 cup oil or 1 stick margarine 3 tablespoons cold water For the Tzimmes:

H a p p y

P a s s o v e r

In an 8-quart pot, place the flanken on the diced onions.

Simmer over low heat 1-11⁄2 hours, until almost tender. Do not add water. The meat will release its own juices.

When meat is nearly done, add the rest of the ingredients and water to cover. Any or all of the optional ingredients can be added at this point. Continue cooking for 1 hour until the vegetables are soft. You can add a knaidel to the tzimmes about 45 minutes before vegetables are finished.

Remove the meat, divide into serving size pieces and return to the tzimmes. If the mixture is too liquidy, dissolve 1 tablespoon flour in 1/3 cup cold water and stir into the tzimmes. Simmer until thickened.

For the Knaidel: Sift the dry ingredients together. Add oil and water and mix thoroughly. Form this knaidel mixture into a rounded oblong. Put the knaidel into the tzimmes, tucking it next to the meat for the last 45 minutes. Make sure there is enough liquid for the knaidel to absorb and expand. If not, add water in small increments.

Cover the pot and let cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

SWEET POTATO KUGEL – EGGLESS This recipe has become one of my Passover staples for 40 years. Some of my kids like it so much that they make it during the year as a special treat.

Makes two 9” round pans KUGEL: 8-10 sweet potatoes 4 Tablespoons margarine (or 4 Tablespoons cottonseed oil, frozen) 1/4 cup wine 1/2 cup orange juice 3/4 teaspoon salt TOPPING: 1-2 apples lemon juice Place unpeeled sweet potatoes in a pot with water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook until soft. Remove the potato peels and place potatoes in a bowl.

Add the rest of the kugel ingredients to the warm potatoes. Mash ingredients together and spoon into a pan (loaf, square, round, whichever you prefer).

Peel the apples and cut into eighths. Slice thinly (dip slices in lemon juice so that they will not oxidize), and arrange in an attractive pattern on top of kugel.

Bake at 350º for 30-40 minutes.

Variation: For a sweeter kugel, in step 2 add 1/2 cup sugar and 3-4 tablespoons potato starch to the mixture.

(The sugar will loosen the mixture and the starch will thicken it again.) In step 3, after you slice the apples do not dip them in lemon juice. Layer them attractively on top of the sweet potatoes and sprinkle top with sugar or sugar/cinnamon mixture.

Continued on next page

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 53

Tales and Recipes to Nourish the Body and Soul Continued from previous page TRADITIONAL FALSCHE FISH Many European Jews did not use fish in any form on Pesach. They devised a method of using ground chicken that was shaped into balls, poached in a rich tasty broth, and served in place of gefilte fish.

My friend Gitta says that the reason many people do not like falsche fish balls is because ground chicken tends to be dry.

Her trick is to use schmaltz (or oil) both in the broth and in the ground mixture.

POACHING BROTH: 2 carrots, sliced 1 parsley root, sliced 1 knob celery, sliced 2 large onions, sliced 1 Tablespoon schmaltz or oil salt to taste pepper to taste sugar to taste G R O U N D MIXTURE: carrots knob celery onions eggs ground chicken sugar pepper to taste salt 1-2 Tablespoons schmaltz Place the sliced vegetables into a deep 8or 10-quart pot. Add seasonings. Add water to 2 inches above the vegetables.

Bring to a boil and let simmer at least 11/2 hours. Taste the broth and adjust seasonings.

The proportion of puréed vegetables to ground chicken should be 1⁄3 vegetables to 2/3 chicken. Purée all the vegetables on the S-blade of the food processor.

Combine puréed vegetables with chicken and 1-2 eggs per pound of chicken. Add schmaltz. Mix well. If possible blend with hand blender until very smooth.

With wet palms, shape 1/4-1/3 cup of the mixture into an oval or small ball. Place in simmering broth. Continue until all the mixture has been used. Poach in broth for 1 hour. Allow to cool in broth.

Using a slotted spoon, remove fish portions to a container. Refrigerate.

YIELD: Varies 2 lbs. ground chicken mixed with the proper amount of the other ingredients yields 10-12 servings HOT BORSCHT WITH MEAT Borscht is a traditional Pesach soup. In the shtetl, however, borscht and potatoes (with or without meat) were a mainstay of the Eastern European diet. Polish Jews added more sugar and Russian Jews preferred it zestier. When garlic was added, it was called knobel borsht. On Pesach, many European Jews did not use garlic, for any number of reasons. Many households have continued this tradition of not using garlic on Pesach and therefore the garlic is optional. This recipe has been in my daughter-in-law Fraidle’s family for generations.

2 lbs. breast flanken 2-3 marrow bones 6-8 cups cold water 8-10 medium beets (2-3 lbs.), peeled and shredded 1-2 medium onions, chopped 1-2 garlic cloves, minced (optional) 1/4-1/3 cup lemon juice 1/4 cup sugar 1 Tablespoon kosher salt 3-4 potatoes, peeled, cubed and cooked (optional) Place meat and bones into a 10-quart pot. Add the water and bring to a boil.

Lower the flame and simmer for one hour. Skim off the foam that rises to the surface.

Add the beets, onions, and garlic (if using). Simmer for 45 minutes.

Add lemon juice, sugar, and salt and

cook for at least half an hour or until the meat is tender. Adjust seasonings* and serve hot, with or without boiled potatoes. *NOTE: If you are not planning to serve this right away, be aware that it tastes lemonier (more tart) after it settles, so adjust the seasoning when ready to serve.

YIELD: 6-8 servings.

POTATO KNAIDLACH I got this recipe from my friend Fay Glatzer and I’ve been making it for years.

For those who don’t “bruk,” (use foods that involve wetting Matza) these are a very satisfying alternative to matzoh knaidlach. My family especially enjoys them in vegetable soup. (In their estimation, nothing compares to egg lukshen in chicken soup.) The recipe doubles or triples easily, and the knaidlach can be frozen and reheated in soup.

1 large potato, cooked and mashed 4 Tablespoons potato starch 1 egg 1⁄3 cup oil salt to taste pepper to taste Combine all the knaidel ingredients and mix together until smooth.

Add 3 quarts of water to a 4-quart pot and bring to a boil. Add salt to taste.

Use moistened hands to form balls of the mixture, or scoop out a tablespoon at a time, and drop into boiling water. Boil for 20 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.

Add to soup.

YIELD: 5-6 large knaidlach or 8-10 small knaidlach CHOCOLATE NUT SPONGE CAKE There isn’t an Erev Yom Tov that goes by without my friend Toby Goldstein calling to ask “So what new recipes do you have for me?” The truth of the matter is, Toby gives me more recipes than I give her. This is one of hers. I’ve been making it for more years than I care to admit.

8 eggs, separated 1 whole egg 1 cup sugar, divided 1/4 cup sweet red wine 1/2 cup potato starch 1/2 cup ground filberts 4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, grated on the broad shredder Preheat oven to 350°.

Beat 8 egg whites until foamy. Slowly add 1/2 cup sugar and beat until stiff. Set aside.

Beat 8 egg yolks and 1 whole egg until thick. Add 1/2 cup sugar and beat until incorporated. Add wine and then the rest of the ingredients. Beat together to form a thick batter.

Fold 1/2 the whites into the yolk mixture, then fold in the rest until completely incorporated. Pour batter into an ungreased 9” or 10” tube pan.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Remove from oven and invert to cool.

YIELD: 12-14 servings STRAWBERRY FLUFF This recipe works like magic. The single egg white fills the whole mixing bowl with light, fluffy, sweet ice cream.

Ingredients: 1 pint fresh strawberries, cleaned and puréed 1 egg white, unbeaten 1/2 cup sugar Place all the ingredients into the large bowl of a mixer.

Beat on high until mixture fills the bowl.

3. Transfer to a container and freeze.

YIELD: 12-16 servings

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April 7, 2006

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by MARK MIETKIEWICZ Passover is quickly approaching and that means pretty soon you’ll be reaching into a familiar drawer and pull out stack of well-worn and slightly wine-stained haggadot. Nothing will ever replace those haggadot and their special memories. But if you take a few minutes on the Internet, you will find many stimulating and provocative on-line haggadot that could give you new insights and make you shine at this year’s seders.

Most of the haggadot below are in English, some with Hebrew sections. None require Hebrew fonts.

Please be aware that many of these haggadot contain God’s name and should be treated accordingly.

Chabad has created a wonderful section about the haggadah. You can go through the seder with an English translation that includes step-by-step instructions. And you can download a pdf file that contains the entire Hebrew text of the haggadah (with Hebrew instructions.)

Unfortun-ately, there is no version at this site that contains both Hebrew and English. [http://tinyurl.com/ gq9ab] For insights into how the seder has been observed in Sephardic homes, take a look at the Sephardi Connection site. For example, among North-African Sephar-dim, after Mah Nishtana is recited, the seder leader would leave the room and come back with a walking stick and the afikoman in a cloth on his shoulder. The children would ask: “Where are you coming from?” And he would proceed to tell the story of his exodus from Egypt. On the other hand, the haggadah adds, “Note: stealing the afikoman is an Ashkenazi tradition.”

When the Sephardi seder concludes, “some take the haroset and put it in five places (khamsah) at the entrance of the house (near the mezuzah, on the door posts, etc.) for good luck.” [http:// tinyurl.com/osuoq] Several traditional haggadot have been scanned in their entirety and can be downloaded and printed out at the Torah on the Net site. I particularly recommend the 1920 edition that is “Arranged by J.D. Eisenstein” and “Illustrated by LOLA.” [http://tinyurl.com/q96rx] There are many on-line haggadot that represent a great deal of individual effort.

Robert Parnes’ Hagadais a synthesis of the traditional and the modern and is set out clearly with responsive readings. [http://tinyurl.com/ g8qbb] Another unique version is The Anonymous Haggada: A Synthesis of The Passover Ritual and Liturgy With The Twelve Steps of Recovery by Hershy Worch. Worch draws a parallel between

the Israelites’ trek to freedom and the modern-day recovery program used by people to free themselves from various addictions and dependencies. [http:// jewish.com/modules.php?name=Pass over_JACS] Charles Finn took a decade to put together his companion to the haggadah. Just 16 pages long in Word format, it is mostly in English with some Hebrew text. He has illustrated his work with lovely medieval woodcuts and more contemporary artwork. [http://tinyurl. com/zmc8s] A bit less traditional but very wonderful site is Uncle Eli’s Special-for-Kids Most Fun Ever Under-the-Table Passover Haggadah. Written in the style of Dr. Seuss, Uncle Eli retells the haggadah in a familiar yet unique way: “Why is it only on Passover night we never know how to do anything right? We don’t eat our meals in the regular ways the ways that we do on all other days...Cause on all other nights we may eat all kinds of wonderful good bready treats like big purple pizza that tastes like a pickle crumbly crackers and pink pumpernickel...Yes--on all other nights we eat all kinds of bread but tonight of all nights we munch matzah instead.” [http://tinyurl. com/zxd9x] If you’re planning to lead a seder this year and need a bit of help on your Hebrew pronunciation or want to brush up on a tune, the Virtual Cantor is at your service. (Actually, you’re at his service!) The Cantor-also known as Josh Sharfman--has recorded the entire traditional haggadah and put in online so that you can listen to it anytime.

The seder has been divided into 38 parts (e.g.

Dayenu, Fourth Cup, Chad Gadya etc.) so that you can easily jump to any part of the haggadah. And since all the files are in the mp3 format, you can even copy them onto your iPod or mp3 player and review them anywhere. [www.virtualcantor.com/haggadah.htm] After visiting everyone else’s haggadah, create your own. The Open Source Haggadah allows you to skim through Hebrew and English text, commentary, songs, readings and rituals, choose the elements that appeal to you, and assemble your own haggadah online. You can even filter texts by affiliation: “Chabad, Conservative, Feminist, Humorous, etc.”

When you’re done, you can print your own haggadah. And if have a favorite custom or commentary you’d like to share, you are encouraged to add it to the site.

Please note that this site is free but does require registration. Also, I have had some problems with the display of Hebrew characters on my PC. On my Mac, Hebrew displayed properly. [www.opensourcehaggadah.com/] Mark Mietkiewicz is a Toronto-based Internet producer who writes, lectures and teaches about the Jewish Internet. He can be reached at highway@rogers.com.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 55

Families Reinvent Passover Seder to Alleviate Their Children’s Boredom

by JANE ULMAN a modern phenomenon, perhaps traced back as far as the point in the seder to interrupt and talk about it.

ENCINO, Calif. (JTA)--At this year’s Passover seder, Matzah of Hope introduced in the 1970s to draw attenOne year her father brought the shirt her grandfather during the singing of “Dayenu,” Noah Kussin-Bordo tion to the plight of the Soviet Jews. But New York wore on his 1912 voyage from Ukraine to the United will rise, gather up a pair of maracas and take his place as author and Jewish researcher David Arnow says that States. Another year her son shared the rod used to head of the Dayenu Band. His younger cousins, with “this really reaches back to what the original designers of repair his broken leg. Wallace makes bringing an item “a their tambourines, kazoos and hand-held drums, will the seder had in mind.” condition of acceptance.” Other stipulations, which she follow as he leads them around the dining and living What can be construed as the earliest Haggadah, dat- spells out in a pre-Passover e-mail, include coming hunrooms, marching and singing, while the grownups ing back 1,800 years to the Mishnah, contains some gry, not bringing food items and understanding that all remain seated. fixed rituals such as drinking four glasses of wine, reclin- questions are welcome.

“We know that when Dayenu comes, we actually have ing and eating bitter herbs and matzah. But it also Simone Shenassa of West Orange, NJ, finds it easy to something to do,” said Noah, 11. includes some ad-libbing. The child, while not required engage all the members of his family with the traditionChildren like Noah and his al Persian custom, when cousins, who normally get “Dayenu” commences, of bored during sedarim, are hitting each other with taking increasingly participabunches of scallions to imitory roles at seders as famitate the whipping of the lies like the Kussins, who live slaves. in Northridge, Calif., devise “It’s very much a free-foractivities for the kids. all,” Shenassa said, explainThese activities help entice ing that people get up from children who may be bored their chairs to whip others if they are only called upon across the room and that it’s to read the Four Questions the one time children are and steal the Afikomen. permitted to strike a grandNow they are playing with parent. To end the ruckus, wind-up toy frogs, staving the guests bite the scallion in off hunger pains with edible Hostess Sara Aftergood explains the ‘Plates of Seder,’ the Dressed as Pharaoh, guest Bob Gross performs a magic the middle, signaling that centerpieces, making Hillel proper plates and utensils to use for each course at her Los trick at Sara and David Aftergood’s Los Angeles seder. the whip has been broken Credit: Courtesy of Sara Aftergood and that they need to clean sandwiches from mounds of Angeles seder. pyramid-shaped charoset and competing in Wheel of to recite the Four Questions, was expected to pose other up the mess and resume singing.

Matzah games. questions throughout the seder. The father would then And in Los Angeles, Sara Aftergood has been captivat“The real purpose of the seder is to re-enact the story, answer those questions with a Midrash or explanation ing her guests with innovative seders for the past 20 but people need permission to do other than the model that was adjusted to the child’s level of understanding. years, originally motivated by wanting to reinforce her we grew up with,” said Ron Wolfson, education profes“Over the generations, the spontaneous parts became children’s Jewish day school studies. sor at Los Angeles’ University of Judaism and author of prescribed,” said Arnow, author of Creating Lively One of her recent institutions occurs at the seder’s conPassover: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration.

Passover Seders. “Where we are now is trying to recreate clusion, around midnight. Bringing out a silver platter, Family educator Alice Langholt has been using her the balance with seders that are meaningful and engag- she distributes to her 40 costume-clad guests seder fortune cookies, consisting of two long, broken pieces of own Haggadah at her seders in Cleveland since 1999. ing and yet tied to the roots.”

And it’s not only some younger children who need to matzah containing a phrase and tied with ribbon. Guests For the plagues, she sets each place with items such as Band-Aids and Neosporin to represent boils, sunglasses be drawn in. To grab the attention of teenagers, Rabbi then take turns reading their fortunes. They range from for darkness and toy cows for pestilence. At the appro- Mark Fasman of Shaare Zedek Synagogue in St. Louis, quotes from Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel about the priate time, guests are given construction paper and bought a deep fryer and held a “burgers and fries” sec- importance of learning Torah, to “Isn’t the hostess pretty?” and “I simply insist on staying to clean up this mess.” crayons and instructed to draw a representation of their ond seder for his then-adolescent son and cousins.

But Wolfson and other educators emphasize that none “Teenagers are the classic second child,” said Fasman, plague, which they then explain to the group.

For the 10th plague, the slaying of the first-born, referring to the wicked child--and burgers and fries, of these activities are designed to replace the actual readLangholt asks all the first-born guests to rise and recite a along with a driver’s license, are their ultimate symbols ing of the Haggadah. Rather, they recommend that fampassage from A Common Road to Freedom, an alterna- of freedom. “As soon as I said, ‘This is your seder,’ he ilies use them to punctuate the reading.

“Passover is the most observed holiday of the whole tive, Jewish/black Haggadah, which begins, “Each drop was able to take it seriously,” Fasman added. of wine we pour out is hope and prayer that people will In Louisville, KY, Sheila Steinman Wallace enables year,” Wolfson said. “It’s thrilling to think that this ritucast out the plagues that threaten everyone everywhere everyone--those Passover-savvy and not, those Jewish al has been transformed into something accessible and they are found.” and not--to participate in her seder by asking them to celebratory that gets the message across that once we It may seem that balancing tradition with innovation is bring something to share and then to determine at what were slaves and now we are free.”

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Omaha Teen Celebrates Family Day During Year-Course in Israel

by BRIANNA GREENSPAN A group of more than 400 students from America, England, and Israel, decided to defer our university and/or army service one year in order to spend time living and volunteering in Israel on Young Judaea’s Year Course.

The program is made up of three semesters: community volunteering, Israel Experience, and Jerusalem Studies.

A few months ago, 10 of us came to volunteer for three months at Hadassah Neurim Youth Aliyah Village for our Israel Experience.

Hadassah Neurim, located above Netanya on the cliffs of the Mediterranean Sea, has roughly 500 students: 260 boarding students and 240 day students ranging in age from 14 to 20. Seventy percent of the children came to Israel alone, leaving their families behind in Russia and Ethiopia; many others are disadvantaged Israeli youth.

At Hadassah Neurim, the teens are able

The 10 of us wanted to do something to continue their studies in a nurturing environment, which offers them a host of special for the children in the village who other critical services, including counsel- were not able able to spend this day with ing, vocational training, and other activi- their families. We offered friends and relties designed to help them succeed in atives back home the chance to “adopt” a school and in life. The village is also known for its athletics program, which has grown to include 130 athletes who compete at national and international levels.

Israel celebrated Family Day in late February. On this day, children generally spend quality time with loved ones and exchange gifts.

Family Day was started in honor of Henrietta Szold, the founder of Hadassah as well as Youth Aliyah, on her Hebrew birthday. She had no children Omahan Shira Kronick, left, and Brianna Greenspoon are of her own, but regarded all in Israel this year, participating in Young Judaea’s Year children in Youth Aliyah as her Course. children.

child (or two or three). They responded by sending packages full of candies, personal hygiene products, and items parents include in a care package to summer camp. The students appreciated the notes of support as well.

This was a very important project to let the students know that someone cares on Family Day and to contribute to the intimate, family-like atmosphere of the village.

The Young Judaea Year Course participants also are willing to accept monetary contributions and to compile packages with the proceeds for future projects.

Checks should be made out to Young Judaea, with the memo section stating “Neurim Family Day.” Please send checks to Lapid Levi, Young Judaea Year Course, Hadassah Neurim, PO Box 40298, Israel, and direct any questions to me at qt9026@aol.com or to Omahan Shira Kronick at lilkronick15@aol.com.

Omaha College Grad “Graduates” from Livnot U’Lehibanot

by JOANNA KAY I am still safe and happy in the land of Israel. My program, Livnot U’Lehibanot, has come to an end, and I will miss the people and activities that filled my days.

So what have I been doing here since the last e-mail? Too many things to mention.

The last I wrote, I hadn’t even started my five-month program, so there’s a lot to cover. My parents, Les and Helen Kay, came to visit on a 10-day tour at the end of August. It was their first visit and they loved the country; why wouldn’t they?

Though I encountered many obstacles and opportunities, I have traveled all over Israel, crawling through caves, jumping into freezing cold water from 30 foot

cliffs, climbing mountains in the Yehudiya national park, the Judean Desert, as well as the Negev; and hiking and hiking until I had blisters on my feet and my legs refused to work.

I visited ancient ruins all over Israel, saw how olive oil is made, and enjoyed a Bedouin made meal and hospitality. I spent time painting Ethiopian Absorption Centers and apartments and helping out in soup kitchens.

Most of my time was spent between the golden city of Jerusalem and the mystical city of Tzfat. Being in these holy cities during Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Hanukkah was very intense.

Never before have I lived in a place where

I didn’t have to take off work or school for the holidays. It was amazing to see people on the street Friday nights going to synagogue or meeting with friends and families for Shabbat dinner.

Other cities I enjoyed were Acco with its old city and citadel, Haifa with the amazing Baha’i Gardens, and Eilat with its magnificent beaches where I got certified in scuba diving.

There also was an independent option in Jerusalem. I moved into an apartment for six weeks and found myself an internship at the Bible Lands Museum, responsible for researching objects and information for a new exhibit in September on ancient music. It was such a great oppor-

tunity for me to get more involved in the inner workings of museums. I loved the internship and and the feeling of living in Israel on my own and being part of society.

I traveled to Turkey and enjoyed the mosques and Turkish baths. I went to Jordan and saw the ancient city of Petra just as shown in Indiana Jones! I made it to Egypt just in time to see pyramids and sphinx, and belly dance on a Nile cruise, among other things. Seeing a world wonder up close and personal is awe inspiring.

Greece is my first destination, completing my list before coming home. It has been one adventure after another, and it’s not over yet.

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(402) 891-1222 Celebrating Our 108th Year

First AIPAC-Sponsored Tour for Non-Jewish Students Strengthens Tie

by DAVID J. SILVERMAN president of Liberty’s Stand with Israel club.

WASHINGTON (JTA)--Bryan Hair says he traveled “Having an ally we can work with in the Middle East thousands of miles from the Christian college he attends is the best way to achieve our long-term goals in the in Tennessee to learn “the true meaning of the word region of stopping terrorism, establishing democracy courage.” and getting rid of tyranny,” he said.

Hair had his epiphany atop a hill in an Israeli army Colas cited a poll he read indicating that Palestinians base, peering at a Hezbollah tower less than a mile away would model their ideal government on Israel’s. in Lebanon.

Other participants said they better understand Israel’s “People live in fear there of a 9/11 every single day,” security situation after visiting an army base along the said Hair, who leads a pro-Israel advocacy group at border with Lebanon.

Carson Newman College.

Seeing first-hand how small Israel is, and how close it The American Israel Education Foundation, an affili- is to its enemies, conveys the sense of urgency, said ate of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Grant Woodard, a senior at Grinnell College in Iowa hosted 43 students from 40 different colleges on a first- and the national president of College Democrats in time tour of Israel last month.

America.

The students -- from Ivy League schools, state univer“It makes you understand why it is so necessary to sities, major Christian and historically black campuses-- take security measures such as building the fence,” he visited Christian and said.

Jewish holy sites, army Woodard was joined on bases and tourist destinathe trip by a number of tions.

College National The 10-day trip, the Democrat board memfirst of its kind for stubers. He said trips like dents underwritten by this ensure that the next AIPAC, also involved generation of Democrats meetings with policy “will continue to care and ambassadors, makers, informed about be journalists and other Israel.” opinion leaders. Other Woodard joined Paul U.S. Jewish groups have Gourley, a graduate of sponsored tours for nonthe University of South Jewish students in the During the first mission to Israel for non-Jews sponsored by the Dakota and current chairpast.

American Israel Public Affairs Committee, participants meet with man of the College AIPAC says the mission U.S. Ambassador to Israel Richard Jones, left, in January 2006. Republican National is part of the pro-Israel Also pictured, left to right, are Wayne Ting of Columbia University, Committee, as honorary lobby’s recent efforts to Michael Davis of Stetson Law School, Jill Stracko of St. Joseph’s chairs of the AIPAC misreach beyond the Jewish University, A’shanti-Fayshel Gholar of the University of Nevada at sion. community to American Las Vegas, and Grant Woodard of Grinnell College. Credit: AIPAC The two issued a joint communities not tradiresolution urging the tionally known for pro-Israel activism.

United States and its allies not to deal with Hamas, the The students, all non-Jewish student leaders known terrorist group that won a landslide election in legislative for their pro-Israel sympathies, said they returned more elections last month, unless it disarms, renounces viopassionate than ever before about advocating for the lence and recognizes Israel’s right to exist. The resoluJewish state. tion also endorsed legislation that would tighten sanc“All these years I’ve been advocating for Israel and tions on Iran until it complies with nuclear inspectors. speaking about the U.S.-Israel relationship,” said Jamal “Israel is a beacon of freedom and democracy in the Sowell, former student-body president at the University Middle East,” said Gourley, who was joined by several of of Florida and now a graduate student in higher educa- his Republican board members. tion at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. “But Some of the more religious Christians on the trip said now that I had the chance to see first-hand what I’ve they always had been interested in Israel because of the been advocating for, it takes my passion to a whole other Bible and the covenant between God and the Jewish level.” people.

That was the reaction AIPAC officials were hoping to “My love for Israel is genuine,” said Hair, a Baptist. hear.

“Following the political situation the last few years and “These students are America’s future leaders, and going to Israel have added a different viewpoint on why these missions give them the tools they need to become I love it, without forsaking my old opinions.” more effective advocates for a strong U.S.-Israel relaHair expressed regret that many in the world consider tionship,” AIPAC board member Barry Silverman said. Israel overly dependent on the United States.

Most of the students previously had attended AIPAC “The world must see that Israel can stand on its own,” student policy conferences, and most will attend said Hair, describing it as a strong, vibrant, and self-susAIPAC’s policy conference starting March 5 in taining democracy.

Washington, an annual centerpiece of pro-Israel activism On two occasions in Israel, the non-Jewish students and lobbying. joined with 84 Jewish students who were on a separate Sowell, an African American, says he has been working mission co-sponsored by AIPAC and Hillel: The hard to expand pro-Israel outreach to different cultures, Foundation for Jewish Campus Life. They met with a goal he shares with AIPAC. Richard Jones, the U.S. ambassador to Israel; Avi “It steps up advocacy to a whole other level,” he said. Granot. President Moshe Katsav’s top adviser; and The case for Israel needs to be made by people of var- attended a roundtable discussion with Steven Erlanger ious cultures “because what happens in Israel is going to of The New York Times, Joel Greenberg of The Chicago come back to affect all of us here in America,” he said. Tribune and former CNN Middle East Correspondent “I’ve tried to stress it’s not a Jewish issue -- it’s a human Jerrold Kessel.

Jewish students were heartened to join non-Jewish issue.”

Many participants say they intend to pursue careers in students on some events, said University of Californiapolicymaking. Brian Colas, a junior at Liberty Berkley junior Marissa Matthew, who attended the University, a small Christian school in Virginia, is con- AIPAC-Hillel Jewish trip.

“It makes you that much more excited to support sidering joining the State Department after graduation.

“Going on the trip gave me a better ability to articu- Israel when you see that you’re not alone in the fight,’’ late to others why it is in America’s best interests to she said. have a strong relationship with Israel,” said Colas, the

EARLY DEADLINE NOTICE Due to the closing of the Jewish Press office for the first two days of Passover, Thursday-Friday, April 13-14, and last two days of Passover, Wednesday, Thursday, April 19-20, there are early deadlines--at noon--for ads, articles and photos, as follows: Issue Deadline Tuesday, April 11 April 21 April 28 Tuesday, April 18 Passover pictures may be picked up during regular business hours. For more information, call the Jewish Press office at 334.6448.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 59

Forget the Four Cups Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Book Reveals Story of Crypto Jews Set in New Mexico, Abuelitaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Secret Matzahs is a HOWARD COHEN of Wine: Filmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Patriarch byJacobo loves to visit his grandmother (abuelita) in Santa beautifully told tale by celebrated childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s author Fe, New Mexico. While there, he befriends David, a Sandy Eisenberg Sasso and lushly illustrated by Rolls through Seder Jewish child, and Jacobo notices that Davidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family has renowned Southwestern artist, Diana Bryer. Because Jacobo and his family are of Spanish descent, the story also teaches Spanish vocabulary and is perfect for multicultural classrooms. The book appears in a paperback Spanish translation by Dennis C. Sasso, the husband of the author.

Sandy Eisenberg Sasso, award-winning childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s author of inspiring books for children of all faiths and backgrounds, was the second woman in the United States to be ordained as a rabbi and the first rabbi to become a mother. She is the author of many wonderful books, including Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Paintbrush, In Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Name, Adam and Eveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s First Sunset and Noahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Wife. She and her husband, Dennis, have two children and live in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Diana Bryer paints the people and rich history of northern New Mexico from her studio in Espanola Valley. She has been creating her unique style of American folk art for 45 years. Her paintings are found in numerous public and private collections. She has illustrated several childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s books, including Cleo and the Coyote.

Abuelitaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Secret Matzahs is published by Emmis Books.

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many of the same traditions as his abuelita: they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t eat pork, they light two candles on Friday nights, and they eat unleavened bread during Passover. Jacobo suspects that the tortillas his own grandmother serves during semana santa, Holy Week, are Easter matzas!

In engaging, accessible language, Abuelitaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Secret Matzahs tells children the fascinating but little-known story of Crypto Jews, Jews forced to convert to Christianity during the Spanish Inquisition who secretly maintained their Jewish identity and customs throughout the agesoften unawar e of the reasons for some of these customs.

When Jacobo persists in asking his grandmother about these practices, she tells him the secret of their past and offers him the chance to be the keeper of traditions for his generation. As Jacobo learns about the origins of his family, he begins to think about his own place in the chain of the generations. After reading the story, parents and children will be able to discuss their own family traditions and history.

by TOM TUGEND LOS ANGELES (JTA)--Just in time for Passover comes the comedy When Do We Eat?, presenting your typical Jewish family, the Stuckmans, assembled for a warm seder celebration.

As the program notes put it, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Even though the Stuckmans gather for a Passover seder, this could be any family with any background.â&#x20AC;?

Here is the portrait of â&#x20AC;&#x153;anyâ&#x20AC;? family: â&#x20AC;˘ Father Ira has a hair-trigger temper, a constant stomach problem he insists is heartburn, and makes a nice living manufacturing Christmas ornaments. â&#x20AC;˘ Long-suffering mother Peggy has had a tent built outside the house and roasted a lamb on an outside spit â&#x20AC;&#x153;just like Mosesâ&#x20AC;? so that her fervently Orthodox son can eat at the seder. â&#x20AC;˘ Daughter Nikki is a professional sex surrogate who, with dadâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s financial backing, is branching out into cybersex devices for the homebound. â&#x20AC;˘ Son Ethan, a former high-tech entrepreneur who went bust, recently became Chasidic. The glowingly spiritual young man splits his time between talking about the Rebbe and God and dealing with old sexual tensions with his second cousin Vanessa, who spends most of the seder talking on her cell phone. â&#x20AC;˘ Jennifer, Iraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s daughter from a previous marriage, is a lesbian who brings along her African-American companion Grace. Wearing a large crucifix, Grace tries desperately to infuse some spirituality into the proceedings. â&#x20AC;˘ Teenage son Zeke is a stoner, and has just picked up a tab of Ecstasy cut with LSD, called â&#x20AC;&#x153;touch-of-God X.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;˘ Youngest son Lionel is autistic. His father insists heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an â&#x20AC;&#x153;idiot savantâ&#x20AC;? because of his high video game scores. â&#x20AC;˘ Grandfather Artur, descended from six generations of hat makers, frequently extolls the virtues of Iraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s siblings and mother, all killed in the Holocaust, usually to imply his disappointment in Ira. All in all, a well-adjusted clan, w h i c h quickly goes about smashing the seder plate and p r e t t y m u c h A scene from the film, When Do We Eat? ever ything Credit: Think Film Company else in the large backyard tent where the celebration is taking place.

Early on, Zeke senses the impending storm, and slips his Ecstasy into his fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s antacid.

Ira starts seeing biblical visions, including a cantorial trio and a cameo appearance by Moses.

Inspired by the visions, Ira fancies himself a second Moses commanded to lead his bickering tribe into a place of harmony. The family members, however, are not easily led by the cantankerous, flawed and clearly high patriarch.

Up to the beginning of these hallucinations, the film is hard to beat as an exercise in unabashed vulgarity.

One redeeming feature of the enterprise is the setting of the seder table, drawn from the illustrations of Artur Szykâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s well-known Haggadah.

When Do We Eat? brings back somber memories of It Runs in the Family, the short-lived Kirk/Michael Douglas movie of three years ago.

That one also featured three generations of a Jewish family, the Gombergs, who are as dysfunctional as the Stuckmans, but obscenely rich to boot.

By coincidence, the Gombergs also have a seder from hell but somehow are brought to understanding and love at the fadeout.

After the sad experience of the Douglas film, which sank without a trace despite a big-name cast, it took a certain foolhardy courage for director Salvador Litvak, who co-wrote the script with his wife Nina Davidovich, to tackle the same story line and antics in this film.

Among the better-known actors trying to extract some measure of credibility from the general hysteria are Michael Lerner as the father, Lesley Ann Warren as his wife and Jack Klugman--who played Oscar in televisionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s The Odd Couple--as the grandfather.

Other family members and guests include Meredith Scott Lynn, Shiri Appleby, Mili Avital, Ben Feldman, Adam Lamberg, Max Greenfield, Cynda Williams and Mark Ivanir.

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Page 60

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Matza, Dinosaurs and Passover: Children’s Books for Jewish Awareness and Fun

BOOK REVIEW

by SHEILA WILENSKY Sitting on a parent’s lap engaged in picture books enlivens a child’s imagination.

These special times can also engender awareness of Judaism in ways that a young child can understand. Here are some mostly new titles that will add to Passover holiday festivities.

A dinosaur befriends a young boy for family Passover preparations and the seder in Dinosaur on Passover by Diane Levin Rauchwerger, pictures by Jason Wolff (Kar-Ben Publishing, 2006). This dinosaur juggles boxes of matzah and acts out the Pharaoh’s part, entertaining the sleepiest children.

Had Gadya: A Passover Song, paintings

by Seymour Chwast with an afterward by Rabbi Michael Strassfeld (Roaring Brook Press, 2005), connects vibrant images for young children to the traditional song, which encourages music as an important part of the Passover celebration.

National Jewish Book Award-winning author Roni Schotter’s Passover! (Little, Brown and Company, 2006), illustrated

by Erin Eitter Kono, is a short rhyming

text for young children who already have some familiarity with Passover.

Even Izzy the dog gets involved in this sweet story of family fun during the holiday season.

For a lively picture book that includes the story of Passover, This is the Matzah

by Abby Levine, illustrated by Paige (Albert Whitman & Billin-Frye Company, 2005), sets the mood for the Seder, from the exciting parting of the Red Sea to the menu that includes matza lasagna.

Pearl’s Passover: A Family Celebration through Stories, Recipes, Crafts, and Songs, written and illustrated by Jane Breskin Zalben (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2002), depicts Jewish family life in the spring. From burning the chametz and preparing the home for Passover to instructions for making Miriam’s timbrels (tambourines), Pearl’s Passover will delight children age five and up. As they imagine Miriam, Moses and Aaron’s sister, leading the women out of the parted Red Sea, dancing with joy at their escape from slavery in Egypt, kids will be inspired to join in at modern-day seders.

Wonders and Miracles: A Passover

Companion, Illustrated with Art Spanning Three Thousand Years, written and compiled by Eric A. Kimmel (Scholastic Press, 2004), is a valuable resource for family sharing.

As a Haggadah with stories and Jewish history, Wonders and Miracles will embellish the seder experience.

It’s never too early to introduce books about Judaism to children.

Toddlers will enjoy The Numbers of My Jewish Year, a board book written by Marji E. Gold-Vukson, pictures by Joni Oeltjenbruns (Kar-Ben Publishing, 2006), which introduces many Jewish holidays in simple text.

Dreamer from the Village: The Story of Marc Chagall by Michelle Lisker, illustrated by Emily Lisker (Henry Holt and Company, 2005), reveals the life of one of the most creative artists of the 20th century, whose roots trace back to a humble Jewish family in a Russian ghetto. Chagall’s paintings of religious symbols, people, farm animals, visions and feelings express the inspiration that the artist gained from his heritage and surroundings. Exuberant illustrations help stir children’s imaginations, while acquainting them with Judaism throughout the year.

Sheila Wilensky owned the Oz Children’s Bookstore in Southwest Harbor, Maine, from 1982-97. She is a freelance writer and editor living in Tucson, AZ, and can be reached at: sheilawil@hotmail.com.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Everyone loves a good story, especially when it’s told by an artful storyteller.

“Passover,” from One People, Man Stories, a Jewish folktale series, fills the bill! Tune in to NET Radio on Sunday, April 16, 3-4 p.m., when “Passover” airs. You can also listen to it or any NET Radio program live on netNebraska.org.

Hosted by the irrepressible Jerry Stiller, the hour-long special shares stories of Passover. This spring holiday celebrates renewal and rebirth figuratively and literally--it is a time when Jews remember the Biblical story of the Exodus, the Israelites’ journey from slavery to freedom.

Listeners hear Passover tales that focus on heroines. Celebrating spring, A Prayer for the Earth, read by Joan Allen, tells of Na-amah, Noah’s wife, who gathers the seeds of the earth while her husband corrals the animals onto the ark. In Miriam’s Cup, reader Sara Mornell shares the Exodus story from the perspective of Moses’ sister, Miriam.

Listeners can also enjoy an American tale, The Carp in the Bathtub, read by Estelle Parsons, that pays tribute to one of the holiday’s culinary delights, gefilte fish.

Miriam Margolyse reads The Magician, a Yiddish classic, in which an elderly couple is visited by an elusive stranger, who conjures hope and a sumptuous Passover meal.

And finally, Zayde’s Trunk, read by Mike Burstyn, is the story of a more contemporary exodus to freedom. It recreates the coming of age of a Jewish boy at the beginning of the 20th century.

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Dining

April 7, 2006

Chametz: Out of Sight Out of Mind

by BATSHEVA POMERANTZ (IPS) In Israel, the pithy saying “Dust is not chametz (leaven) and children are not the korban (Paschal sacrifice)” reminds homemakers to take pre-Pesach cleaning in their stride and have patience with their children when they unintentionally leave a trail of chametz.

According to biblical law, the prohibition of chametz applies to the fermented products of five kinds of grain: wheat, barley, oats, rye and spelt, which are not to be found in the house during the festival.

Israeli rabbis publish detailed annual guides regarding Pesach cleaning, all of which state that thorough cleaning should take place only in rooms where chametz is located, including bedrooms if people nosh there, the living room, dining room and balcony. Work stations and cars are also checked and cleaned or vacuumed and clothing to be worn on Passover should be shaken and brushed to remove specks and crumbs.

The general obligation to dispose of crumbs, however, does not apply if the crumbs are less than the size of an olive and are dirty enough to prevent a person from eating them The cleaning and koshering (ritual scouring) of the kitchen is a most intensive task, requiring flexibility and elbow-grease for the scrubbing of countertops, sinks, tables, chairs and kitchen appliances. It should be noted, however, that it is sufficient to wipe an oven with a rag soaked in detergent or clean it with a regular oven-cleaner, then turn the oven to its maximum temperature for at least one hour in order for it to be kosher for Passover.

A microwave simply needs washing down 24 hours after the microwave last contained chametz, and a bowl or cup of boiling water placed inside for about 10 minutes. The glass tray should be immersed in boiling water.

If chametz particles cling to pots used throughout the year, they can be soaked in bleach or detergent to render any crumbs inedible and therefore not considered chametz. This does not, however, make the vessel kosher for Passover so it must then be stored away. In Israel many people take metal pots and utensils to a central kashering location where they are put into wire baskets and immersed in boiling water.

Where possible, it is best to have separate sets of dishes, cutlery and pots for Passover, yet it is possible to make some of these fit for Passover use by this same koshering process. A rabbi should be consulted for specifics.

Businesses which have warehouses stocked with chametz stand to lose a substantial income over Pesach.

The institution by Israeli rabbis of the legal sale of chametz to a non-Jew for the week of Passover, allows businesses, both large and small, to survive over Pesach.

The stipulation that the Jew repurchase the chametz for a nominal fee after Pesach protects his right to reclaim his produce.

The sale of chametz for food companies is sound business sense. “We sell our chametz through a rabbi from the rabbinate, who is also the plant’s mashgiach (kashrut supervisor),” says Eli Rapoport, director-general of Mevushelet, a plant that produces and distributes 18,000 meals a day to kindergartens, schools, colleges, old-age homes, around the country. “We have chametz ingredients in our storehouses that must be sold in order to be used after the holiday. Our religious clients inquire about this after Passover.”

The procedure of selling the chametz takes place a few

days before Passover, and goes into affect before noon on the 14th of Nissan, the day before Passover.

Throughout Israel the sale usually takes place in the synagogue with the local rabbi acting as a shaliach (messenger) for the homeowner. The rabbi then passes on the sale document to the Chief Rabbinate and the entire chametz of the State of Israel is sold to one non-Jewish person.

This year, for the 11h year in a row, Jaber Hussein, an Israeli-Arab from Abu Ghosh near Jerusalem, will buy the chametz of the State of Israel in a business transaction conducted in the offices of the Chief Rabbis. As Food and Beverage Department manager at the Jerusalem Ramada Renaissance hotel, Hussein was originally approached by former Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau regarding buying the country’s chametz.

“I understand the importance of this transaction. It helps the Jews and is an example of cooperation and coexistence between us,” says Hussein, 42, a father of four.

Most grocery stores and supermarkets in Israel carry a certificate attesting to their selling the chametz during Passover as after the festival, observant Jews will only buy in places that have such certification. For the ultraOrthodox, however, the mass sale of chametz is not sufficient, and they wait until processed foods appear on the shelves that were prepared after Passover. In some stores one can buy packages of flour with a stamp, “ground after Passover 5766 (Jewish year)” or breakfast cereals, cookies and pasta stamped, “Prepared after Passover.”

During the holiday, Israeli supermarket shelves are lined with paper on which kosher for Passover food is placed. Sometimes shelves with chametz packages are covered with broad sheets of paper, so they’re out of sight. The customer knows by the certificate that the supermarket does not own the food and that it was sold before the holiday.

Some small eateries, like falafel or pizza stands, close down during Passover, since it’s not profitable for them to make the complex changeover. Others take advantage of the break to be on vacation with their family.

Finally, with the house free of crumbs, the essential bedikat chametz search, which takes place after dark on the 14th of Nisan, takes place. This search is on to make sure that all parts of the house are indeed clean and that no remnants of chametz remain. Candlelight is used to provide focused light for the search in the darkened house. Ten small pieces of bread are placed throughout the house and family members make a thorough search for chametz. The 10 pieces of bread are swept with a feather or wooden spoon onto a piece of newspaper and then into a small bag.

The head of the household then recites a blessing and an annulment of all chametz that was found in the bedikat chametz. Carefully wrapped, the package is placed on the side, separate from Passover dishes and food. The following morning these last vestiges of chametz are burned outdoors in a small fire with a final annulment of chametz that is in the homeowner’s possession, which he may not have seen or be aware of.

With chametz now out of sight and out of mind, the focus switches to preparations for the Passover Seder in anticipation of having an enjoyable and meaningful Seder with family and friends.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 61

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The Kosher Palette II: Coming Home Set to Debut In 2006

by MARTTA ROSE Banking on the popularity and fundraising success of their first, award-winning The Kosher Palette, the Joseph Kushner Hebrew Academy/Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School will publish The Kosher Palette II: Coming Home this year, chock full of new recipes and entertaining tips.

Kosher Palette II will have a fresh look and focus. Additional features include a mini-table of contents on each chapter opener, highlighting recipes to indicate cooking ease or appeal such as “child-friendliness.” A theme page in each section will also be added with simple entertaining suggestions and additional recipes.

The book also takes notice of social changes that have taken place during the last five years. “There is a trend now in entertaining to put out a very attractive table without spending a tremendous amount of preparation time,” said Sandra Blank, editor of both books. “Since 911, there’s also a trend toward families eating together and a return to ethnic cuisine. People are ‘coming home’ to the table and we’re capitalizing on that.”

She added that the goal is to incorporate flavors and aromas that people remember so fondly while creating new memories by offering a variety of innovative and delicious recipes that are current with today’s food trends.

Included in the book are holiday recipes, such as the upcoming Passover holiday; it begins on April 12 with the first seder and concludes on April 19 in Israel and for Reform Jews in the Diaspora, and April 20 for the rest of the Jewish community.

“Passover Seders evoke memories of our grandmothers’ and great-grandmothers’ homes,” Blank said. “However, the restricted number of foods that can be served on Passover may prove daunting for even the most seasoned cooks. To help ease the menu-making process and facilitate an elegantly accessible meal,

‘Kosher Palette II’ offers dozens of recipes that are sure to make your Seder memorable.”

The original Kosher Palette cookbook, published in early 2000, sold more than 70,000 copies worldwide, generating more than $1 million in sales.

According to Blank, “It was a tremendous fundraiser and a great community project.” Personal and corporate sponsors stepped forward to help underwrite the cost of publishing both volumes.

About 1,200 to 1,500 recipes were submitted for Kosher Palette II. Recipes were broken down by sections: appetizers, soups, salads, poultry, meat, fish, side dishes and so on. The recipes were then distributed to many volunteers and rated on how well they tasted and looked, and in some cases, modifications were made.

“The taste testing process was a lot of fun for those who participated and generated excitement and enthusiasm toward the new book throughout the many communities involved,” Blank said, who added that each recipe was taste-tested three times for accuracy.

The Kosher Palette II: Coming Home contains more than 300 recipes, including those for traditional holiday feasts.

Illustrated with nearly 100 elegant photographs and personal anecdotes, the cookbook also features a wide array of practical ideas for creating dazzling tablescapes. A wealth of tips, along with wine parings, will help cooks create meals that are memorable and distinctive.

Corporate sponsors of The Kosher Palette II, Coming Home are Kraft Foods, Atalanta Corporation, Royal Wines, IDT, Manischewitz Foods, Dale & Thomas Popcorn, Pepperidge Farms and Ram Caterers.

The purchase price is $29.95 plus $1.80 tax for NJ residents only. To order, call 973.597.1115, ext. 1197 or visit the web site at www.thekosherpalette.org.

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READ IT AND EAT Reviewed by LOIS FRIEDMAN

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From Baltimore, Maryland’s Beth Tfiloh’s Orthodox Congregation and Dahan Community School comes 320 recipes reflecting varied cooking styles and trends...some secret family recipes and others current fusion finds.

Following kashrut and the American Dream are Jewish stories, food history and trivia. Baltimore’s Tulkoff family has been producing their own pungent, popular variety of horseradish since the 20s is one story.

O t h e r s , about cooking experiences, children’s r e c i p e s , Passover options and Cook’s Notes are scattered on sidebars throughout the sections: Appetizers & Beverages, Breads & Soups, Salads & Dressings, Entrees & Sauces, Kugels, Quiches & Pastas, Too!, Vegetables & Side Dishes, Desserts, Kids in the Kitchen, Menus for Jewish Holidays and

American Celebrations.

The recipes are labeled Dairy, Meat, Pareve, a matza symbol marks the recipes for Passover and have brief instructions. Easy as 12-3 Carrot Pudding, Chilled Two-Melon Soup and Cousin Gail’s Three Cheese Macaroni are among the recipes...so are Koncleton, Cardiac Kugel, Dudu’s Favorite Lamb Shank Tzimmes (Grandma Bessie’s, too) and Tziviah’s Carrot Kugel.

You and your children can make this meat recipe from the Kid’s section for Passover.

CRISPY CHICKEN STRIPS 11/2 lbs. boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips or nuggets 1 (12 oz.) bag potato chips 1 large egg, beaten Preheat oven to 400º. Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.

Crush potato chips until fine with a rolling pin and place in a shallow dish.

Dip chicken into egg, then roll in chips until covered. Place on prepared sheet.

Bake 15 minutes. Turn and bake about 15 minutes longer or until chicken is brown. Serve with dipping sauce of choice.

Serves 4.

Lois Friedman can be reached at ReadItAndEat@yahoo.com.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 63

The Haggadahh That Took on Hitler

by DR. RAFAEL MEDOFF small black mustache on the wicked son was the only One of the most popular haggadahhs in the world surviving symbol, apparently because while some might almost didn’t make it into print--because nervous pub- have regarded it as an allusion to Hitler, it was at least lishers were afraid that some of its illustrations might theoretically open to interpretation. offend Adolf Hitler.

Public opinion in England during the 1930s strongly The story of Arthur Szyk’s controversial haggadah supported the government’s policy of appeasing, rather begins in the early 1930s when Szyk, the renowned than confronting, Hitler. From the Oxford University Polish Jewish artist, began creating a lavishly illustrated student vote (64% to 36%) vowing to “in no circumedition of the traditional Passover haggadah. stances fight for King and Country,” to the 130,000 sigBut Szyk’s was no ordinary haggadah. Deeply pained natures on a petition by the Peace Pledge Union by the Nazi persecution of German Jews, Szyk hoped to renouncing war, there was ample evidence of the call attention to their suffering by linking it to the plight nation’s overwhelmingly pacifist mood. Even something of the Jewish slaves in ancient Egypt. The illustrations in as seemingly small as an anti-Nazi caricature in a Jewish his haggadah featured numerous overt references to the Nazis. The armbands worn by Szyk’s Egyptian taskmasters bore swastikas, as did the snakes. Two of the snakes had the faces of Nazi chieftains Joseph Goebbels and Hermann Goering. The “wicked son” was dressed in distinctly German clothing and sported a Hitler-style mustache.

Syzk completed his haggadah around 1936 and began looking for a publisher. That’s when his difficulties began. Publishing houses in Czechoslovakia and (according to some accounts) Poland rejected Szyk’s haggadah for fear that the anti-Nazi imagery would offend Adolf Hitler.

It was a tense time in Europe. Hitler had recently annexed the Saar region, remilitarized the Rhineland, and launched a massive military buildup, including the development of an air force, the Luftwaffe--all in blatant violation Arthur Szyk, left, and a page from his Hagaddah. of the peace treaty Germany had signed at the end of World War One. The Poles, Czechs, and other religious book could be seen by jittery Britons as an nations bordering Germany watched with apprehension, unnecessary provocation of Berlin. wondering if they might be the next meal on Hitler’s “The English public was so desperate for peace that menu. they averted their eyes to the reality that war was comIn 1937, Szyk moved to London, where his haggadah ing,” says the eminent British author Michael was accepted for publication by the newly-formed Moorcock, whose latest novel, The Vengeance of Rome, Beaconsfield Press. But the publisher insisted on one deals in part with the international community’s failure condition: all of the overt anti-Nazi images had to be to stop Hitler while it was still possible. “People really removed.Although he refrained from publicly comment- believed--or simply wanted to believe--that appeasing ing on the changes, it is not hard to imagine the regret Hitler would work. They were horribly mistaken.”

Szyk must have felt at the censoring of his art.

As it happened, Szyk’s anti-Nazi passion became an The faces of Goebbels and Goering on the snakes were asset after England was forced, by the German invasion removed, as were the swastikas on the snakes’ bodies. of Poland, to go to war against Hitler. Impressed by the Each of the swastikas on the armbands of the Egyptian powerful illustrations Szyk contributed to the war proptaskmasters were replaced with a small black circle. The aganda campaign, the British government asked him to

go to the United States to help rally public opinion to support U.S. aid to England. Settling in New Canaan, Connecticut in 1940, Szyk soon became the editorial cartoonist for the New York Post while simultaneously contributing anti-Nazi illustrations and cartoons to Collier’s, Time, Esquire, and other leading magazines.

His work earned him widespread admiration, including the accolades of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who remarked, “This is a personal war of Szyk against Hitler, and I do not think that Mr. Szyk will lose this war!”

Szyk closely followed the reports reaching the U.S. in 1941-1942 about German massacres of Jews, and was appalled at the refusal of the Allied leaders to take the atrocities seriously. “They treat us as a pornographical subject--you cannot discuss it in polite society,” he protested.

Szyk decided to use his art as a weapon to raise public awareness of his people’s plight, as he had attempted to do with his anti-Nazi haggadah years earlier. He became a leading member of the Bergson Group, a Jewish political action committee that tried to raise public awareness of the mass murder and lobbied the U.S. government to rescue Jewish refugees.

Szyk’s illustrations appeared in the Bergson Group’s full-page newspaper advertisements, brochures, and publications. Bergson activist Ben Hecht, the famous playwright, called Szyk “our one-man art department.”

As Passover approaches this year, many of us will take our copy of the Szyk haggadah-which has thankfully been reprinted many times-- down from the bookshelf and glance admiringly at its extraordinary artwork. It is really more a show piece than anything else, since owners enjoy viewing and discussing it but are understandably reluctant to bring it to a seder table laden with things that spill and stain.

Nevertheless, we remember Arthur Szyk’s greatness, not only for his remarkable artistic talent, but even more so for his determination to use that talent on behalf of the persecuted Jews of Europe. “I am but a Jew praying in art,” Szyk would sometimes say. At a time when most of the world ignored the plight of Europe’s Jews, Syzk answered their cries with his unique “prayers” --his art and activism on behalf of an abandoned people.

Dr. Medoff is director of The David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies; he can be reached at: www.WymanInstitute.org.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

May the Entire Family Be Together

BERT’S EYE VIEW

by BERT LEWIS What could I possible write about Passover, after so many years of filling this space with family memories? I’ve lost track of the number of times I told about the chores involved in preparing the kitchen. The trips up and down the basement steps, hauling down the chametz and bringing up the Passover necessities, just like at your house when you were a kid!

Remember when I told you all about the many dozens of eggs which were part of the “Passover order”? The many boxes of matzos, matzo meal, cake meal and potato starch in addition to the “special” coffee and other such staples which came in with the eggs which were “the Passover order”.

Surely you remember everything I’ve written about the gathering of the clan, first around the tables of grandparents, then at my parents’ table. Wonderful gatherings where each and every member of the family managed to be present and nobody sent an excuse for absence. It simply wasn’t done--it was a command performance.

And haven’t I written volumes about the soup with the little yellow eggs floating between the matzo balls?

You couldn’t have forgotten all my comments about the gefilte fish plus the ubiquitous horseradish...you know, the stuff that made your eyes water and your nose run.

I recall specifically sharing my memories of the fleishiga mashed potatoes sprinkled with grebenes and hard boiled eggs--now you remember, yes? And finish off all that food talk with a mental picture of the tallest sponge cake ever made with only “Bubie-power” in the absence of an electric beater.

Because I know for sure that you remember every one of those things I’ve already told you about, there’s

no point in being repetitious and telling about them all over again. But after all, a person who’s a nostalgia freak, like I am, is compelled to go over certain memories at least one more time.

Mostly, after covering all the above components which make up personal remembrances of Passover, I have to say the most important and dearest memories are of my family. Of my Mom doing the work of ten moms, preparing everything, and of my Dad, at the head of his table, proudly conducting his seder.

Of those guests who gathered to join our family, of the years when there were so many there was a “children’s table” to accomodate everyone. And the inevitable jokes about “how old do I have to be before I can sit with the grown-ups?”, from the oldest child still sitting with the kids.

I’m sure I can still remember being seated (with somebody else next to me) on the piano bench, because every available chair was in service, back when my earliest memories come back to me. And that’s one of the precious memories, because it has to do with everyone who sat at the seder table.

How can we talk about any or all of these things without special attention given to those who occupied a place at the table? I know I’ve probably repeated many of my own remembrances of the aunts and uncles and cousins, plus an isolated “stranger,” who were there, at the table stretched from the dining room into the living room. Stretched? Yes of course, by adding a kitchen table to the end and covering it all with table-

cloths, to appear to be one loooooong table.

If only there was such a thing as temporary magic, I’d re-create just once more, what it was like when we were all present, when we were all young and when the family was complete. Before the elders began leaving us....when we were a complete family. But there isn’t such a thing as magic, temporary or otherwise, so we must enjoy and be thankful for those who are present.

It doesn’t do any good to complain about the way people are scattered from one coast to another these days, so we might as well forget about that.

Wishing doesn’t make it happen, so here’s what I think.

Make that lovely seder table as festive as possible, whether to seat six or 16. Tell the age-old story and listen to the four questions, even if they come from a 40- year-old. Drink the wine, all the while remembering which child (in years gone by) knocked back the entire glassful, then fell off the chair.

Enjoy being together and saying the old familiar words, including the “next year in Jerusalem.” Maybe, just maybe, it would be okay to silently add “next year, may the entire family be together for seder.”

As I said in the beginning, there really can’t be much I can say about Passover here in this space, having already written countless words about it. See? I was right, wasn’t I? Happy Passover everyone!

Bert Lewis can be reached at BertLewis39@aol.com.

Wishing the Entire Jewish Community a Happy and Healthy Passover

Caring for America’s Girls and Boys

April 7, 2006

World of our Ancestors: Focusing on Family History at the Holiday Table

by SCHELLY TALALAY DARDASHTI • Discuss when, why and how immigrant ancestors left TEL AVIV (JTA)--Reconnecting long-lost family often the Old Country, whether that was Eastern Europe, begins with a relative’s random comment during a holiday North Africa or elsewhere. Who stayed behind and why? gathering as generations gather around a dinner table. Did they choose to settle in certain cities because cousins The holiday season is an ideal time to share roots and tra- were already there? Was the family name changed in ditions, and to begin a family history project, adding last- America? Do you know the original name, and the town ing links to the chain of Jewish identity and continuity. they came from?

At a family gathering in Israel, Ingrid Rockberger heard • Holiday gatherings provide opportunities to transmit a relative say that an the past and preserve it for American cousin had visited future generations. Here are family in Sweden. Something some suggestions: clicked, as she vaguely • Record family elders as recalled meeting some by SCHELLY TALALAY DARDASHTI they sing traditional Swedish cousins in London, discuss their life melodies, TEL AVIV (JTA) -- For information on all aspects of Jewish as a young child, some 50 genealogy, go to www.jewishgen.org, the award-winning experiences or relate stories years ago. This was the cata- site for the field, for information and record databases that told by their own grandparlyst for a family reunion grow daily. For books on Jewish genealogy, go to ents. reuniting the Israeli, British www.avotaynu.org. Avotaynu publishes many of the • Encourage youngsters to and Swedish branches. interview grandparents about essential reference books used by enthusiasts, as well as Decades ago, my aunt in Avotaynu: The International Journal of Jewish Genealogy. their lives; record those sesFlorida said, quite offhandJoin a local Jewish genealogical society for assistance. sions. edly, that her grandfather There are some 80 international societies, including the • Order kipot for holiday repeatedly claimed that Nebraska Jewish Historical Society (call 402.334.6441). For get-togethers, suitably “Talalay was our name when locations and contact information, go to www.iajgs.org, inscribed, to commemorate we left Spain.’’ She added the website of the International Association of Jewish the event. that no one believed it, and Genealogy Societies.

• Discuss your family’s most laughed at the idea of naming patterns. Did a Plan to attend the 26th IAJGS International Conference on our Ashkenazi, Yiddish- Jewish Genealogy, or www.jgsny2006.org, set for Aug. famous scholar ancestor speaking family having such 13-18, in New York City, hosted by the New York Jewish account for a name appearing origins.

Genealogy Society, which anticipates some 2,000 frequently in each generaDecades went by before I researchers and international experts from around the tion? began to search, but I never world.

• For a fascinating interforgot her comment. generational activity, look at Mogilev, Belarus, has been the focus of my search - old family photos and ask guests to bring their own phofrom there we immigrated to America and elsewhere. I’ve tos to share. Pull out those dusty old shoeboxes of unlalocated far-flung branches in several countries. beled pictures stuck on the top shelf of a closet. Do guests However, my quest for a Sephardi connection contin- recognize anyone in those images, know their names or ued, and I discovered a number of Sephardi-named fami- the relationship? lies in the city, adding to the possibility.

• Protect old photos by placing them in archival poly In 2004, a Spanish researcher discovered a 1353 protectors (sold by the box at most large office supply archival document, signed by a kosher winemaker with stores), or use copies, storing the originals safely away our rare name. In October, I’ll return to Barcelona to from sticky fingers of over-enthusiastic guests. continue the search in several archives.

• Make each holiday a memorable family event with a While memories fade and older generations pass, writ- group photo. Label each with the date, place and guests’ ings and images survive, preserving family lore. Make sure names; send a copy to each guest. A video of the festivito share these with extended family, and include copies as ties adds an additional dimension. gifts for new babies, bar/bat mitzvah and weddings.

• Keep a holiday record book, list guests’ names, the In June 2005, genealogy sites received 11 million hits, menu, and add each event’s labeled group photo. Many and that marketing survey didn’t even include JewishGen. families have done this for years, and it is delightful to see According to www.ancestry.com, the world’s largest toddlers grow into adults with their own babies. genealogy website, a recent poll indicated that 73 percent • All Jewish holidays revolve around food--or the lack of Americans are interested in their roots. Susan King, of it--so talk about family culinary traditions that may prohead of www.jewishgen.org, the largest Jewish genealog- vide hints of family origins. Peppery or sweet kugel, gefilte ical website, recently announced the website, which fish with whitefish only or other varieties provide receives millions of hits, counts some 160,000 subscribers Ashkenazi hints, while many Sephardi dishes offer comfrom around the world, joined by some 5,000 new peo- munity-specific variations.

• Preserve family favorites by sharing copies of holiday ple monthly.

A proliferation of specialized books, online Jewish delights.

• When you invite your holiday guests, send them simgenealogy classes and special projects have inspired and ple family sheets to complete and return. assisted researchers in preserving family history.

Prepare a family tree chart from this information and Even without spending a lot of time on the Web, there’s a lot you can do during the holiday season to pique inter- distribute it at your gathering. Download simple charts from www.ances-try.com. Perhaps someone will catch est among genealogy during the High Holidays: • Share your family’s history at holiday gatherings this the genealogy bug and begin to work seriously on gathering family information. year, transmit family stories to the younger generations.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 65

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Illuminated Sarajevo Haggadah Is Being Reproduced for Passover

by RUTH ELLEN GRUBER already expressed interest, particularly VIENNA (JTA)--This Passover, repro- after the Associated Press ran a story ductions of a well-known illuminated about the project last summer.

“We have several dozen inquiries and manuscript are going on sale--for $1,350 requests from all over the world,” he said, apiece.

The Sarajevo Haggadah should be from individuals and institutions.

After reimbursing Wolfensohn and ready just before Passover, Bosnian Jewish leader Jakob Finci told JTA. “We repaying the bank loan, the proceeds will are printing a limited edition of just 613 be divided between the publisher and La Benevolencija, the Bosnian Jewish culturcopies--the number of the mitzvot.”

The Sarajevo Haggadah has long been al, educational and humanitarian society.

The creation of this edition represents a symbol of Jewish presence--and suranother step in the Sarajevo Haggadah’s vival-- in the Balkans.

Handwritten and illuminated in 14th- extraordinary history.

“The Hebrew word ‘Haggadah’ means century Spain, the lavishly illustrated 109-page manuscript was brought to ‘telling’ or ‘story,’” Finci writes in an Sarajevo after the expulsion of the Jews introduction to the edition. “In front of from Spain in 1492 and remained intact you is a remarkable story, not only because of the beauty of the illuminathrough years of conflict and upheaval.

It served countless family seders over tions, but also because of the strange histhe centuries, and wine stains mar some tory of this rare book.”

The Sarajevo Haggadah of the pages. Owned by was created in about the Bosnian National 1350, probably as a wedMuseum since 1894, it ding gift, but it changed escaped the Holocaust, hands--and countries--a hidden away in a number of times over the remote mountain vilcenturies. The full details lage. It also survived about how and when it the brutal Bosnian War arrived in Sarajevo are not of the 1990s, either known. It was sold to the locked in a bank vault or stashed away in pri- The original Sarajevo Haggadah, Bosnian museum in 1894 shown before its restoration, in the by Joseph Kohen. vate custody.

In December 2002, underground bank vault where it was Legends formed about where and how it manthe book went on dis- kept for years.

Credit: Ruth Ellen Gruber/JTA aged to survive. play at the museum.

During World War II, just before the A full-scale copy of the Haggadah was published in the early 1980s, but it was Germans entered the city in 1941, the printed on paper. The new edition is director of the museum smuggled it to a printed, like the original, on parchment, Muslim professor who hid it in a mounand bound with leather covers. Each copy tain village, some say under the floor of a is meant to be, as much as possible, a mosque. Its whereabouts during the 1992-95 Bosnian War are a matter of replica of the Haggadah itself.

“It will look exactly like the original,” rumor. The museum was bombarded and Finci said. “The copies that were pub- badly damaged, but the Haggadah survived unscathed, hidden for most of the lished in the past were just copies.”

The idea--and seed money--for the time in a vault of the National Bank.

Bosnia’s then-president, Alija project came from James Wolfensohn, Izetbegovic, displayed it briefly at a comthe past president of the World Bank.

“When he saw the Haggadah during a munity seder in 1995, partly to dispel visit to Sarajevo, he asked why we didn’t speculation that the government might try to produce a better facsimile,” Finci have sold it to purchase weapons.

Edward Serotta, director of the Viennasaid. “When I answered that it would be too expensive, he said that he would be based Central Europe Center for ready to provide money for it, which we Research and Documentation, produced a documentary on the Haggadah for could repay him after publication.” personally donated “ABC’s Nightline” in 1996.

Wolfensohn “The facsimile of the Sarajevo $150,000 for the project. The edition’s publisher, RABIC of Sarajevo, provided Haggadah is certainly an achievement,” further funding, and the project was also he told JTA. “But I look forward now to a real, critical analysis of the book and its helped with a bank loan.

Finci said that potential buyers have history.’’

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Jewish Family Service Needs Community’s Help to Stock Pantry for the Needy

by SHARON BARGAS Deciding what to cook for dinner is an everyday occurrence for most families.

Unfortunately, stopping at the grocery store or pulling ingredients from kitchen cabinets is not always an option for some local families. As a result, these Jewish neighbors may be forced to go to bed hungry. Through the Jewish Family Service (JFS) Pantry, Jews have a special opportunity to help feed low-income Jewish families.

JFS, in keeping with the biblical mandate tikkun olam, “perfecting the world,” established the Jewish Community Pantry last year. This program seeks to address the growing problem of hunger by supplying non-perishable food items to those in need. The other goal of the pantry is to provide supplies allowing families to maintain sanitary homes.

“These supplies are difficult to keep in stock,” says Tanya Siena, pantry coordinator. “In fact, we never have toiletries

and cleaning products for more than a week or two.”

JFS is calling on the community to assist in replenishing supplies that have been depleted as a result of increased usage due to higher gas and food prices.

Currently, the following items are needed for the pantry: toiletries, paper goods, laundry detergent, and cleaning products.

“The JFS pantry exists to help fulfill the mitzvah of taking care of the less fortunate,” says Becki Brenner, Executive Director. Food and household items will be distributed once a week, with eligible Jewish households able to pick up items twice a month. The pantry is open from 10 a.m. until noon. There will be no cost to recipients.

Drop off donations to JFS, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and until 2:30 p.m. on Friday. For more information on the Jewish Family Service Pantry, call 330.2024.

April 7, 2006

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 67

Heston, Thou Shalt Not Be Jealous: New Ten Commandments Is Better

by TOM TUGEND The casting draws heavily on the British LOS ANGELES (JTA--The story of Isles, with Scottish actor Dougray Scott the Exodus makes for great cinema and as Moses, Linus Roache as his brother, stunning visual effects, as Cecil B. Aaron, and Welshman Paul Rhys as DeMille and Charlton Heston proved Ramses, the stubborn pharaoh. half a century ago.

Now The Ten Commandments, with its timeless themes of slavery and freedom, faith and doubt, adultery and fidelity, battles and miracles, has been shaped into a four-hour miniseries by ABC-TV. It will air in two two-hour segments April 10 and 11, and should draw good ratings in the Passover and Easter season.

The 2006 Ten Commandments easily outscores the 1956 Heston epic.

Without commercials, the miniseries is actually slightly shorter than the original three-and-a-quarter hour film, but is by far the more subtle, credible and engaging of the two.

In addition, the fact that the TV show’s international ensemble lacks the film’s big-star cast proves to be an advantage rather than a drawback.

The basic plot is familiar from the Bible. It starts with the rescue of baby Moses from slaughter to God’s choice of Moses as liberator, the 10 plagues, the giving of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, 40 years of wandering in the desert and Moses’ death in sight of the Promised Land.

Veteran producer Robert Halmi Sr. A scene from a new ABC-TV miniseries, The Ten Credit: Ken Woroner and director Robert Dornhelm have Commandments. gone to considerable lengths to authentiScott portrays a complex Moses, a man cate the biblical scholarship, dress style chosen against his will by God and tested and physical setting of the drama, with almost beyond endurance, torn by the Morocco substituting for the Sinai punishments he must inflict, badgered by Peninsula. his stiff-necked tribe, and yet rising to

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Somewhat jarring is the characters’ occasional slipping into anachronistic colloquialisms. Pharaoh declares, “I will not be moved” and “I’m willing to bargain,” while Moses asks Ramses “Give us our freedom--is that too much to ask?”

One embarrassing scene has Moses, like an ancient televangelist, exhorting his flock after the Golden Calf episode. you “Will renew your promise to God?” shouts Moses.

“Yes,” roars the A scene from a new ABC-TV miniseries, The Ten Commandments. crowd.

Credit: Ken Woroner “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” though Dornhelm largely avoids Fortunately for nostalgic DeMille fans, DeMille’s penchant for making all Egyptian and Jewish maidens look like the miniseries does not stint on spectaculars.

“America’s Next Top Model” hopefuls.

The parting of the Red Sea scenario is Care has been taken to realistically depict the hovels and rags of the Hebrew one even the old master would applaud slaves in Egypt and the expanses of the and the fight against the Amalekites depicts masses of Israelite archers unerrSinai Desert.

Scriptwriter Ron Hutchinson has intro- ingly shooting arrows into the chests of duced some telling analogies between the onrushing enemy horsemen.

However, the film’s bloodiest scene is biblical story and the current human condition in Moses’ constant emphasis that reserved for the slaughter by Moses of the “to be a free man, you must stop thinking Golden Calf idolaters, their wives and children. like a slave and think like a free man.”

As a bonus feature, ABC-TV will air the The TV drama’s faults tend to be minor, though a bit much is made of the 1956 Ten Commandments with Heston supposed sibling rivalry among Moses, on April 15. pre-destined greatness.

Omar Sharif as Jethro, Moses’ fatherin-law, may be the most familiar face to mature viewers. Argentina’s Mia Maestro is an attractive Zipporah, Moses’ wife,

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Page 68

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006

Stuck in the Desert

Cooking Light 2005 (Oxmoor, $34.95)

READ IT AND E AT Reviewed by LOIS FRIEDMAN To help you start off your diet after eight days of indulging in Passover goodies...here are over 1000 recipes with numerical instructions and nutritional data from a whole year’s worth of recipes from the pages of Cooking Light magazine (more than 10 million subscribers), over 100 menu plans and access to their website.

Organized by the month with Superfast recipes, Reader recipes, Classics, Lighten up, Cooking Class and Ready in 20 minutes features. January includes Power-Up Your Plate with eight nutritional foods and Feeding the Mind. Passover Suite has O M A H A

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With your quest to be fit and to resolve to add healthy recipes to your diet, try this quick and easy, healthy recipe to make in your food processor...it’s kosher for Passover, too.

RADISH SLAW WITH NEW YORK DELI DRESSING 4 cups shredded radishes (about 40) 2 cups finely chopped yellow bell pepper 11/2 cups shredded carrot 1/2 cup white wine vinegar 4 teaspoons sugar 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper Combine first three ingredients in a large bowl. Combine vinegar and remaining 5 ingredients, stirring with a whisk.

Drizzle dressing over slaw, toss well to combine. Serve immediately. Yield 10 servings (serving size: 3/4 cup).

Lois Friedman can be reached at ReadItAndEat@yahoo.com.

P E R F O R M I N G

DEBBIE REYNOLDS

A R T S

JOURNAL ENTRY FROM ISRAEL

by TEDDY WEINBERGER Passover is the formative event in Jewish religious memory. With the Exodus, the 12 Israelite tribes become one Jewish people. The Passover seder is in part designed to awaken a Jew’s national consciousness.

From the traditional Haggadah’s perspective, a seder will be successful if it does indeed enable participants to see themselves as those “who personally went out from Egypt.” This theme of the Exodus was used repeatedly by Jewish writers over the millennia to characterize Jewish migration to the Land of Israel.

Second Isaiah, for example, the great prophet of the return to Israel after the destruction of the First Temple, says, “A voice rings out: ‘Clear in the desert a road for the Lord! Level in the wilderness a highway for our God!’” Knowing of the powerful account of the Exodus in the Pentateuch, it was only natural for Second Isaiah to depict the Jews’ trip from Babylon to Israel (toward the end of the 6th century BCE) as going through a desert wilderness.

As we take stock on this Passover holiday in Israel, it is obvious to everyone that we are still somewhere in the desert of our national aspirations--we have experienced the Exodus but we are not yet in the Promised Land.

Up until this (recently concluded) intifada, however, there was a certain excitement and charm to these desert-like conditions (indeed it was possible to for-

get that we were even in the desert).

There are still plenty of Israelis who can regale you with first-hand accounts of smuggling Jews into Israel in the years before 1948 and of battle stories from the War of Independence.

What’s happened over the last few years, however, has caused me and most Israelis to see our desert existence in its true dimensions: We may have declared our independence on May 14, 1948, but it feels like the State of Israel is still in the process of being born. Everyone now knows that until we settle our business with the Palestinians we will continue our wanderings.

Yet unlike the Jews in the biblical desert, it’s hard today to even imagine the Promised Land. The Bible tells us that the adults who were destined to die in the desert could at least take comfort in God’s promise that their children would inherit the Land--and they, of course, also had the great blessing of Moses’ leadership. In Israel, we are not united by any kind of vision for the future.

Perhaps what we really need this Passover is not a seder through whose experience we can relive the Exodus from Egypt, but a seder through which we are led to imagine our Exodus from the Egypt of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

This sure would make it easier to believe that “not only were our ancestors redeemed by the Holy One Blessed Be He, but even we were redeemed with them.” Happy Passover.

Teddy Weinberger made aliyah with his wife, former Omahan Sarah Ross; he can be reached at: weinross@netvision.net.il.

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Tickets: (402) 345-0606 or www.ticketomaha.org For Group Tickets Call (402) 661-8516 The Holland Center and Orpheum Theater welcome patrons with disabilities.

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April 7, 2006

Exodus Hero Left Legacy of Courage for Modern Heroes like Rosa Parks

BEHIND THE HEADLINES

by SIMON GREER NEW YORK (JTA)--The holiday of Passover celebrates the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt, but the Haggadah doesn’t mention Nachshon ben Aminadav. Who was this man?

According to the biblical account of the exodus, the people have no sooner left Egypt than they encounter a seemingly insurmountable obstacle--the Red Sea. As Pharaoh’s army pursues them from behind, God performs a miracle and divides the sea in order that the Israelites may walk through on dry land.

In the rabbinic retelling of this story, the crossing of the Red Sea becomes a test of the Jewish people's faith.

According to one midrash, as the people stood on the edge of the sea, each tribe said, “I’m not going in first.”

As each tribe waited for another group to take the plunge, and as Moses himself stood praying to God, one man--Nachshon ben Aminadav--jumped into the water.

This action prompted God to split the sea in order that the rest of the people could walk through safely.

Nachshon is a biblical profile in courage. Without his faith and determination, the Exodus story might have ended before it even had begun.

Even today, we are often still inspired by a contemporary Nachshon to take the first step, to lead us through uncharted waters. This year we lost two women who fulfilled that role profoundly: Rosa Parks and Betty Friedan.

Their stories are well known. Parks, who lived in Montgomery, AL, was a civil rights activist with the NAACP in the 1940s and 1950s. Parks was an educated woman--she was among only 7% of blacks with a high school diploma at the time--who has been involved in desegregating the South.

On Dec. 1, 1955, Parks boarded a public bus and took an empty seat next to a black man. When told to vacate their row of seats for a white man, the man next to Parks complied. Parks did not and was arrested.

The next day, she agreed to be the plaintiff in a lawsuit by the NAACP challenging segregation on public buses.

At the same time, leaders of the local Women's Political Council took action, making 35,000 handbills calling for a bus boycott in Montgomery. It would last for more than a year and help Martin Luther King Jr. become the nation’s preeminent civil rights leader.

Friedan was a housewife earning money on the side by writing for women’s magazines when, in 1963, she produced one of the most important books of the 20th cen-

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 69

EXECUTIVE OPPORTUNITIES

tury. The Feminine Mystique took aim at a central myth of postwar America: Women were happy to give up their career ambitions to be housewives. The book was based on and inspired by interviews Friedan conducted with and surveys she distributed to alumnae of prestigious women’s colleges.

Her surveys and interviews with women across the country made it clear that discontent with household drudgery--“the problem that has no name”--was pervasive. Yet 18 years after World War II, no one had been able to articulate this problem in a way that could galvanize an entire women’s rights movement.

In the years after The Feminine Mystique was published, Friedan helped to found several of the most important women’s organizations in the United States, including the National Organization for Women and the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws.

Parks was not the first black to be arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus. Friedan was not the first woman to recognize and stand up to the daily oppression suffered by women in their role as housewives. Like Parks and Friedan, it is unlikely that Nachshon was the only one willing to step into the unknown, to step into the Red Sea. But each of them was the first to inspire multitudes to follow them on what appeared to be a fool’s errand.

Nachshon looked at the sea, heard God’s command to cross and saw potential where others saw debilitating peril. He was driven by his determination to reach the promised land and his certainty that the Israelites were but one step behind him.

Contemporary Nachshons like Parks and Friedan inspire us because they saw potential where we remain transfixed by peril.

Our hopelessness often leads us to dismiss challenges like the ones confronted by Parks and Friedan as lost causes. Their faith, courage, and hope compel us to improve conditions that are too often ignored. In the biblical story, it would not have been enough for Nachshon alone to step into the Red Sea. The community needed someone to go first, but Nachshon needed a community behind him, to walk with him toward the promised land. Similarly, it is not enough to celebrate the courage of leaders like Parks and Friedan.

Their example should be a challenge for us to follow closely behind and to walk together into the Promised Land. This Passover, I hope we accept their challenge to confront hopelessness with righteous action.

Simon Greer is President & CEO of Jewish Funds for Justice, a national public foundation dedicated to mobilizing the resources of American Jews to combat the root causes of domestic social and economic injustice.

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April 7, 2006

Candlelighting Friday, April 7, 7:38 p.m.

Wednesday, April 12, 7:43 p.m.

Thursday, April 13, no earlier than 8:44 p.m.

Synagogue Listings B’nai Israel Synagogue 618 Mynster St. Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com

Beth El Synagogue Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Omaha, NE 68154-1980 492.8550 www.bethel-omaha.org

Beth Israel Synagogue Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific St. Omaha, NE. 68154 556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org

Beyt Shalom An Affiliate of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation 3012 S. 119 St. P.O. Box 390352 Omaha, NE 68139 660.2395 www.beytshalomomaha.org

Chabad House An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 S. 120th St. Omaha, NE 68144-1646 330.1800 nebraskajudaism.com email: chabad@aol.com

Congregation B’nai Jeshurun South Street Temple Union for Reform Judaism 2061 S. 20th St. Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 435.8004 southstreettemple.org

Offutt Air Force Base SAC Memorial Chapel 301 Lincoln Highway Offutt AFB, NE 68113 294.6244

Rose Blumkin Jewish Home 333 S. 132 St. Omaha, NE 68154

B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE FRIDAY: Services followed by Oneg, 7:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, April 14: Services followed by Oneg, 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker, Barry Rubin, who will discuss “Democrat Politics: Jewish Perspective.”

Passover Potluck will follow. Call 323.8885 to let us know what you will bring.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Office Hours: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

FRIDAY: Musical Kabbalat Shabbat Service, 6 p.m., in the chapel.

SATURDAY: Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Evening Service, 7:50 p.m.

WEEKDAY SERVICES: Sunday, 9 a.m./5:30 p.m.; Weekdays, 6:55 a.m./5:30 p.m.

Sitter Service is available during Friday night and Saturday morning services, on a drop-in basis, at no charge.

ADULT EDUCATION SUNDAY, 10 a.m.: Bible Discussion Group, and Living Hebrew, Nashir Choir, 10 a.m.; Jewish Pot Pourri Class, Adult Torah Trope Class and From Your Heart to God’s Ears, 11 a.m.

THURSDAYS, noon: Rabbi Levin leads Discovering the Talmud: Lessons for Everyday Living. Note: Class will not be held during Passover on either April 13 and 20; and will resume on April 27.

PASSOVER Shaharit/ WEDNESDAY: Siyyum B’khorim, 6:30 a.m.; Minha-Erev Pesach, 4:30 pm.

THURSDAY, First Day: Shaharit, 9:30 a.m.; MinchaMa’ariv, 5:30 p.m.; Community Seder, 6 p.m. at Beth El.

Temple Israel Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 7023 Cass Street Omaha, NE 68132-2651 556.6536 templeisrael-ne.org

The Neighborhood Minyan 1317 No. 57 St. Omaha, NE 68132 551.6609

Tifereth Israel Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Blvd., Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 423.8569 www.tiferethlincoln.org

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BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE Office Hours: MondayThursday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fridays, 8:30 a.m-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Jonathan Gross.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 7 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Free Babysitting, 9:30 a.m.; Junior Congregation, 10:30 a.m.; Kiddush is sponsored by Jordana Kurtzman in honor of Joshua’s birthday; Mincha, 7:30 p.m.; Havdalah, 8:40 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Contact the synagogue office for Mincha/Ma’ariv service time.

WEEKDAYS: Shacharit, 7 a.m.; Contact the synagogue office for Mincha/Ma’ariv service time.

TUESDAY: Annual Pre-Pesach dinner at Bagel Bin. The Bagel Bin will be open until 8 p.m., and will take pizza orders in advance;

Search for chametz no earlier than 8:35 p.m.

WEDNESDAY-Erev Yom Tov: Shacharit, 7 a.m. followed

by Siyum B’chorim; Burning/ Nullification of Chametz before 12:21 p.m.; Burning of chametz will be done at 11:30 a.m. at Beth Israel; Pesach To Go orders will be available for pick up in the morning. The office will close at noon in preparation of Pesach and will be closed Thursday and Friday; Mincha, 7:45 p.m.

THURSDAY-First Day of Pesach: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; A Pesach Kiddush sponsored by Paysie and Susie Shyken in honor of Gary’s 30th birthday; Mincha, 7:45 p.m.; Second Seder, 8:30 p.m. at Beth Israel.

FRIDAY-Second Day of Pesach: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; A Pesach Kiddush sponsored by Sisterhood; Mincha, 7:45 p.m.

BEYT SHALOM FRIDAY: Shabbat in the Home WEDNESDAY, April 12: Pesach Community Seder, 6 p.m.

Vistors are welcome. Call 660.2395.

CHABAD HOUSE Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman.

FRIDAY: Services, 7 a.m.

SATURDAY, Shabbat HaGadol: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m. followed by Kiddush; Vision & Leadership, a Farbrengen commemorating the Rebbe’s Birthday SUNDAY: Shacharit, 8:30 a.m.

WEEKDAYS: Services, 7 a.m.

TUESDAY: Formal search for Chametz, 8:34 p.m.

WEDNESDAY-Fast of the First Born: Chametz may be eaten until, 11:13 a.m.; Burn Chametz before 12:19 p.m.; Chabad Family Seder, 7:15 p.m.

THURSDAY, Pesach Day One: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m.; Priestly Blessing, 11:30 a.m.; Kiddush to follow davening.

FRIDAY, Pesach Day Two: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m.; Priestly Blessing, 11:30 a.m.; Kiddush to follow davening.

Programs are open to the community. For information or to register, call 330.1800 or visit: www.nebraskajudaism.com.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN Services conducted by Rabbi Ilan Emanuel.

FRIDAY: Snacks, 6:15 p.m. provided by Kim Jacobson; Family Shabbat Service, 6:30 p.m. led by Rabbi Emanuel.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. all led by Rabbi Emanuel.

SUNDAY: Gan Simcha, grades

To Submit B’nai Mitzvah Announcements Announcements may be e-mailed to the Press with attached photos in .jpg or .tif files to jpress@jewishomaha.org; faxed to 402.334.5422, or mailed to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154. Forms are available through Omaha and Lincoln synagogues, by contacting The Jewish Press at 402.334.6448, or by emailing the Editor at: ckatzman@jewishomaha.org. You can also submit announcements online at the Jewish Federation of Omaha website: www.jewishomaha.org. Click on “Jewish Press” and go to Submit Announcements.

2-7 and Hallah High, 9:30 a.m.noon, at Tifereth Israel; grades K1, 9:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. at B’nai Jeshurun; Board of Trustees Meeting, 1:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: No Hebrew classes.

THURSDAY: Community Passover Seder, 6 p.m.

ADULT EDUCATION SUNDAYS, 7 p.m. Intro to Judaism, led by Rabbi Emanuel.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m.

PASSOVER WEDNESDAY, April 12: First Seder, 6 p.m., led by Andy and Carole Greenberg.

THURSDAY, April 13: Services, 9 a.m. led by Rabbi Maximo Shechet; Second Seder, 6 p.m., led by Rita Paskowitz.

FRIDAY, April 14: Services, 9 a.m. led by Rabbi Maximo Shechet.

TEMPLE ISRAEL FRIDAY: Shabbat Evening Service, 6 p.m. Rabbi Aryeh Azriel and Cantor Wendy Shermet will officiate; Tot Shabbat and Dinner, 6 p.m. Rabbi Craig Marantz will officiate. Cost for dinner is $5 for adults and children eat for free.

SATURDAY: Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15-10:30 a.m.; Shabbat Morning Service, 10:30 a.m.; Haley Halsted, daughter of Mendy and Michael, will celebrate her Bat Mitzvah.

SUNDAY: No Religious School.

SITTER SERVICE: Available at each Friday evening service, Saturday mornings when there is a bar or bat mitzvah, and Sunday mornings when there is Religious School. Advance reservations and a $5 donation are appreciated.

Sorry, there are no facilities for infants.

TUESDAY, April 11: No Family School.

WEDNESDAY, April 12: No Religious School; No Middle/High School.

THURSDAY: Passover Morning Service, 10:30 a.m.; Congregational Seder, 6 p.m.

ADULT EDUCATION SUNDAY, April 9: Film Series with Moshe Gershovich in the Chapel: Memory, Image and Meanings: The Holocaust in Films.

1-4 p.m.

NEIGHBORHOOD MINYAN FRIDAY: Services, 7 p.m.

SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m.

WEDNESDAY: Services, 7:45 p.m.

THURSDAY: Services, 9 a.m. and 7:45 p.m.

FRIDAY, April 14: Services, 9 a.m. and 7:45 p.m.

TIFERETH ISRAEL Services conducted by Rabbi Royi Shaffin. Minyan, MONDAY & THURSDAY, 9 a.m.

FRIDAY: Shabbat HaGadol, Services, 7:30 p.m. with dessert following.

SATURDAY: Parashat Hashavu’a class, 8:30 a.m.; Morning service, 9:30 a.m., followed by Shabbat lunch and Talmud class.

SUNDAY: Gan Simcha, grades 2-7 and Hallah High, 9:30 a.m.noon, at Tifereth Israel; grades K1, 9:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. at B’nai Jeshurun.

WEDNESDAY, April 12: Men’s Lunch Group will meet at the Knolls, at 12:30 p.m.

Contact Yale Gotsdiner at 423.7066; No Hebrew classes; Mincha; First Seder, 6 p.m THURSDAY, April 13: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m.; Mincha, Second Seder, 6 p.m.

FRIDAY, April 14: Shacharit, 9:30 a.m.

April 7, 2006

Index of Advertisers Advertiser Page AAA Rents ................................................... 26 Abacus Consulting ....................................... 10 Abraham Catering ....................................... 14 Abrahams, Kaslow & Cassmann LLP .......... 44 Absolutely Fresh Seafood Co. ...................... 69 Access Catering 66 ..................................... 53 Acura of Omaha .......................................... 44 Advantage Mortgage Service, Inc. ............... 65 Alegent Health ............................................. 59 Alkar Billiards ............................................... 20 All Makes Office Equipment Co. .................. 65 All Seasons Home Improvement Co. ........... 41 Allens .......................................................... 47 American Family InsuranceTodd C. Johnson Agency ......................... 69 American National Bank ............................. 23 AMIT Women .............................................. 38 AmSan Nogg Paper & Chemical .................. 21 Arboretum ................................................... 43 Associated Counseling Professionals ........... 55 Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;rith Henry Monsky Lodge ................ 38 Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;rith Youth Organization .................... 28 Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Israel Synagogue ................................ 38 Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;nai Jeshurun Synagogue ......................... 50 Badger Body & Truck Equipment Co. ........... 13 Bag â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;N Save ................................................ 34 Belgrade Family .......................................... 43 Bell, Angela Massage Therapist ................... 31 Bergman Incentives/Bergman Jewelers ...... 58 Bernina Sewing Centers .............................. 12 Beth El BILU USY ........................................ 28 Beth El Sisterhood ....................................... 38 Beth El Synagogue ...................................... 38 Beth Israel NCSY ......................................... 28 Beth Israel Sisterhood ................................. 38 Beth Israel Synagogue ................................. 38 Bloomfield Forum .......................................... 7 Blooms ....................................................... 33 Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska ............ 35 Blue Williâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ................................................... 57 Blumenthall Cady & Associates ..................... 5 Borsheimâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s .................................................. 57 Broadmoor Development Company ............ 20 Brodkeyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ..................................................... 21 Brownell Talbot ............................................ 16 Buy Trux Now .............................................. 24 Canfieldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sporting Goods ........................... 43 Care Consultants for the Aging .................... 32 CB Richard Ellis/MEGA ............................... 35 CBS/Home-Gary & Kimberly Kuklin ............ 50 Center for Jewish Education ........................ 67 Chabad ....................................................... 38 Christelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ..................................................... 25 Cohen Family ................................................ 6 Countryside Village ...................................... 42 Crown Pointe Retirement Community ......... 66 Crowne Plaza ............................................... 11 Dance Shoppe ............................................ 42 David Morton Food Marketing ..................... 47 Enterprise Bank ........................................... 67 Expressions Imprinted Sportswear .............. 30 Eye Essentials ............................................. 35 Factory Eyeglass Outlet ................................ 12 Fahey, Mayor Mike ......................................... 5 Family Enrichment, Inc. .............................. 32 Family Fun Center ....................................... 65 Fifth Third Bank ........................................... 52 First Westroads Bank .................................. 36 Franchise Net .............................................. 69 Frankel, Zacharia, Arnold, Nissen, Stamp & Reinsch, LLC ............................................ 43 Fraser Stryker Law Firm ............................... 63 Friedel Jewish Academy ............................... 31 Garboâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Salons & Spa .................................. 57 Genzyme ..................................................... 46

Advertiser Page Girls & Boys Town ........................................ 64 Gordmans ................................................... 72 Grace/Mayer Insurance .............................. 24 Great Western Bank .................................... 44 Greek Islands ............................................... 61 Grubb & Ellis/Pacific Realty ......................... 31 Hadassah ................................................... 38 Hadassah Upper Midwest Region ............... 56 Hagel, Senator Chuck and Lilibet ................ 62 Hampton Inn ............................................... 19 Harris Center for Judaic Studies at UNL ...... 13 Hockenbergs ............................................... 40 Honeyman Rent-All ....................................... 9 Horizon Dental Center ................................... 6 Hour Glass Studios ..................................... 66 Hy-Vee ......................................................... 48 I-Go Van & Storage ...................................... 58 Ideal Water .................................................. 35 Industrial Packaging Corporation ................. 46 Internet Car Lot ........................................... 66 ITEX ............................................................. 50 Jacobson Fish Co., Inc. ............................... 13 Jake Schreibman Foundation ...................... 55 Java Nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Ice .................................................. 33 Jay Moore Landscaping .............................. 60 Jet Linx ........................................................ 63 Jewish Community Center ........................... 10 Jewish Family Service .................................. 40 Jewish Federation of Lincoln ....................... 34 Jewish Federation of Omaha ......................... 3 Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation .... 37 Jewish Press ..................................... 2, 28, 68 Jewish Senior Services ................................ 29 Jewish War Veterans .................................... 38 John A. Gentleman Mortuaries .................... 54 Julioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s .......................................................... 39 Katelman Company Antiques ........................ 4 Kind Hearts ................................................. 56 Kohllâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pharmacy & Homecare ................... 58 KPTM/KXVO ............................................... 23 Krieger & Krieger .......................................... 16 Lakeside Dentistry ....................................... 31 League Offering Volunteers for the Elderly ... 38 Lerner Company ......................................... 10 Learning RX ................................................. 19 Liâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Prince & Princess ................................... 42 Lionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Automotive Upholstery ...................... 26 Louie Mâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Burger Lust ................................. 61 Louis Liquor Grill & Bar ............................... 39 Lynn Roberts International ............................. 9 Malashock Jewelry ...................................... 41 Malbar Vision Centers ................................... 6 Marathon Realty Corporation ......................... 9 Mark Sanford Group .................................... 21 Marks Clare & Richards ............................... 26 Marriott Regency Hotel ................................ 68 McGill, Gotsdiner, Workman & Lepp, P.C., L.L.O. ................................. 22 McGrath, North, Mullin & Kratz, PC LLO ..... 30 MDK & Associates ....................................... 47 Mediterranean Bistro ................................... 14 Michaelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Truck Sales .................................. 24 Mid-City Jewelry & Loan .............................. 44 Mid Con Systems Inc. ................................. 21 Midwest Ear, Nose, & Throat, P.C. ............... 36 Midwest Woodworkers ................................... 6 Mortgage Specialists ................................... 58 Mulhallâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ..................................................... 30 N. Pitlor & Son, Inc. ..................................... 12 National Council of Jewish Women ............. 38 Nebraska Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Home Society ............. 41 Nebraska Democratic Party ........................ 40 Nebraska Furniture Mart ............................. 26 Nebraska Jewish Historical Society .............. 38 Nebraska Press Statewide Classifieds .......... 71

Advertiser Page Nebraska Wine & Spirits, Inc. ...................... 35 Nelson, Senator Ben and Diane .................. 36 No Frills ......................................................... 5 Nobbies ....................................................... 50 Noddle Companies ..................................... 18 Northwestern Mutual-Robert Randels ............ 7 Nova String Quartet ..................................... 62 O Dining & Lounge ...................................... 61 Omaha Compound Company ..................... 22 Omaha Paper Stock Co. ................................ 8 Omaha Performing Arts Society ............ 49, 68 Omaha Public Power District ....................... 54 Omaha Steaks ............................................ 20 Omaha Surgical Center ............................... 11 Omaha Temple Youth Group ....................... 28 Omaha Trans Video ..................................... 21 One Drake Place ......................................... 62 Osborne, Tom for Governor ......................... 45 Parsowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ...................................................... 57 Pasta Amore ................................................ 33 Pearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Gourmet Coffee ................................ 37 Peterson Brothers Realty Co. ....................... 55 Pip Printing .................................................. 67 Planned Parenthood .................................... 24 Pollak & Hicks, P.C. ....................................... 4 Premier Countertops ..................................... 4 Pulverente Monument Co. .......................... 62 Randyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pharmacy ...................................... 19 Regency Court ............................................. 57 Regency Lodge ............................................ 34 Remington Heights ...................................... 51 Residential Mortgage Services, Inc. ............. 11 Ricketts, Pete for Senate .............................. 53 Rockbrook Floors ......................................... 18 Rockbrook Village ........................................ 33 Rossi ........................................................... 33 Rotellaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Italian Bakery ................................ 65 Russellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ...................................................... 42 Ryco Packaging Corp. ................................... 7 Sanctuary Day Spa ..................................... 46 Sarahâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ........................................................ 42 Schwalb Realty ........................................... 13 Security Equipment, Inc. ............................. 54 Security National Bank ................................ 33 Sieckmann Golf & Sports Performance Labs ................................... 60 Solâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jewelry & Loan ................................... 32 Sonny Gerber Auto Sales ............................. 25 Soul Desires ................................................ 63 Spirit World .................................................. 14 St. Joseph Villa ............................................ 22 Stoddard Family , Jay .................................. 65 String of Purls .............................................. 42 Suburban Newspapers Inc. ........................... 9 Summit Financial-Joseph John ................... 25 Sunridge Village ........................................... 47 Superior Pools, Spas, Etc. ........................... 52 Swartzbaugh Farber .................................... 37 Temple Israel ............................................... 38 Terry, Congressman Lee .............................. 18 Tier One Bank ............................................. 32 University of Nebraska Medical Center ........ 27 V. Mertz ....................................................... 39 Valentinoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ................................................... 14 Visions ........................................................ 38 Wells Blue Bunny ......................................... 15 Whispering Ridge Family Dentistry .............. 52 Wiesman Development ............................... 25 Winery ......................................................... 39 Winterer, Kerry for Legislature ...................... 60 Wolfson Used Cars ...................................... 16 Wyndham Street Ltd. .................................. 53 Yaakov Agam Art Sale .................................. 55 Zioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pizzeria ................................................ 61 Zuerlein Dentistry ........................................ 17

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 71

PEOPLE WHO READ NEWSPAPERS ARE

STUDENTS WITH BETTER GRADES It all starts with Newspapers CORRECTION The Jewish Press gets its classified ads from the Nebraska Classified Ad Network. In the March 31 issue, an inappropriate ad was published in the column and we take full responsibility; it was not our intent to offend our readers. We apologize and will be more vigilant in the future.

BILINGUAL FOSTER OR ADOPTIVE PARENTS NEEDED

CALL 1-800-7-PARENT

APRIL IS NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH

Learn how to

Become A Donor

ORGANANDTISSUE DONATION: Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about Life.

(800) 718-LIFE

www.nedonation.org

Statewide Classified ATTENTION ADVERTISERS! For $195/25 word classified, you can advertise in more than 170 Nebraska newspapers. For more information, contact the Jewish Press at 402-334-6451 or call 1-800-369-2850.

BANKRUPTCY: FAST relief from creditors. Statewide filing. Affordable rates. Call Steffens Law Office, 308-872-8327. www.steffenslaw.com. We are a debt relief agency, which helps people file bankruptcy under the bankruptcy code.

ALL CASH candy route. Do you earn $800 in a day? Your own local candy route.

Includes 30 machines and candy all for $9,995. 1-888-755-1356. $$CASH$$ IMMEDIATE cash for structured settlements, annuities, law suit, mortgage notes & cash flows. J.G. Wentworth - #1 1-800-794-7310.

HOT TUB buyers, buy direct from manufacturer, save $1,000 to $1,500. 20 models, $2,495 to $4,995. We deliver. For prices and specs call 1-800-869-0406. goodlifespa.com.

620 ACRES hard grass pasture land near Oconto (central Nebraska), well fenced, well watered, for sale, 308-872-6572.

STEEL BUILDING sale! Sentinel Building Systems. Agricultural, commercial, specialty. Free quote & estimated erection costs. www.sentinelbuildings.com, 800-327-0790.

WOLFF TANNING beds. Buy direct and save! Full body units from $22 a month! Free color catalog. Call today! 1-800-842-1305, www.np.etstan.com.

A BUSY full-line GM and Polaris dealership in Valentine, NE is looking to hire GM or ASE Certified Technicians. Competitive benefits and pay. Company pays for additional GM, ASE and Polaris training that may be required. If interested, call Kort at Miller Brothers, Inc. 1-800-658-4428.

CONTRACT SALESPERSONS to sell aerial photography of farms on commission basis. Must have own vehicle and be willing to travel. Contact Morning Star Photography: 1-877-882-3566.

/0/ .&/5)0'6-- '-"703 4.0,&34 &"3/ 61 50 "44*45 .&%*$"- 3&4&"3$) N

NON MENTHOL FULL FLAVOR SMOKERS

MEN TO YEARS OF AGE N AVAILABILITY DAY STAY N N

$"-- 50%":

COOL JOBS. National marketing group hiring 12-15 money-driven individuals. Must be available to travel. Two weeks paid training. Transportation accommodated. No experience necessary. 1-877-531-2155.

HIRING FOR 2006: Average postal employee earns $57,000/year minimum. Starting pay $18/hour. Benefits/paid training & vacations. No experience needed. 1-800-5841775. Ref #P1011.

HITECH, INC, in Gibbon, NE, is accepting applications for a machinist/welder. We offer competitive pay and benefits. Apply within or call 308-468-5580, 8am-5pm.

SERVICE TECHNICIAN needed in progressive GM dealership. Experience and ASE Certification preferred. Benefits plus ongoing training. Contact Wyatt at 800-462-4389, Harchelroad Motors, Imperial, Nebraska.

COMPANY DRIVERS & O/Ops: Pay, choices, benefits, Grand Island offers the best: Competitive pay, outstanding benefits. 96% of our fleet is from Lexington-Omaha. CDLA/clean MVR required, 6 months experience. 866-472-6347, wwwgiexpress.com.

DRIVERS: LOCAL, dedicated, regional & OTR drivers needed - pay up to 43 cpm, average $50K/year + benefits. Only 90 days CDL experience required. Buy your own 2004 or 2005 Freightliner conventional - $0 down, no credit check, low payments. 1-877-4525627.

O/Os & Company drivers wanted! Flatbeds & Van. 48 states. Home weekly. Invest 5 minutes, call 1-800-228-9842 â&#x20AC;&#x153;For drivers with high standards,â&#x20AC;? Fremont Contract Carriers. Since 1966. www.fcc-inc.com.

2OSE 3TREET ,INCOLN WWW MDSPS COM

OWNER OPERATOR: 100% dedicated round trips! Gardena, CA to Janesville, WI. 800523-9677 ext. 2160. www.bawc.com. 100% no touch/automotive freight. 100% fuel surcharge adjusted weekly. 1996 or newer tractor. CDL Class A/18 months experience.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 7, 2006