Vol. LXXXV No. 52 Omaha, NE
Celebrating 85 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa
18 Elul, 5766 September 8, 2006
Preliminary Construction Begins on New Rose Blumkin Jewish Home by OZZIE NOGG The Hasidic master, Rebbe Nachman of Bratzlav, said that the worth of any society can be measured by the way it treats its elders. By that standard, Omaha will be judged favorably. As we approach the New Year, and after extensive demographic studies and needs analyses of our local Jewish community, blueprints for the new Rose Blumkin Jewish Home are off the drawing board and on track for construction. “The driving force in this project went far beyond our obligation to house and feed the Residents of the existing Blumkin Home,” said Bob Belgrade, President of the Board of the RBJH and Jewish Senior Services, and a member of the steering committee overseeing the building project. “Our Home is clinically solid, and our reputation as the best long-term care facility in the region is well earned. But the Blumkin Home was built in 1982, and the philosophy of health care has changed in those 24 years,” he added. “Residents and their families deserve even more than we’re delivering. With that in mind, our mission is to ensure that the current building evolves from its traditional hospital-like feel into a dramatically transformed, totally new living environment, one that more closely resembles the kind of comfortable, inviting home we’d custom build for ourselves,” Belgrade concluded, “a home that people will be happy to live in and that their families and friends will enjoy visiting.”
According to Mike Silverman, Blumkin Home Executive Director, the first step prior to formal construction will see the creation of two prototype resident rooms located near the present lobby and reception area. “These rooms will be built according to our new architectural plans,” Silverman said. “But we’ve wisely chosen to take time to pilot them, to test the layouts and new furnishings before we spend community dollars to modify resident rooms in the entire building. When the model rooms are finished, we hope visitors to the Home will stop by and take a look. We want your feedback.” The main work of Phase One will transform resident rooms on the existing southwest corridor into a 25-bed Special Care Unit--SCU--dedicated to those with early to mid-stage dementia and Alzheimer’s. Most resident rooms in the SCU are private, and the unit will have its own dining area, lounges, sunroom, spa and laundry. “Most important,” Belgrade said, “this unit is completely secure. Residents can walk on the interior loop as well as in the enclosed outdoor garden without fear of getting lost or hurt. Family members can have faith in our ability to insure their loved one’s safety in a setting that is staffed, around the clock, by professionals trained to meet the daily challenges of residents with dementia.” What Belgrade and Silverman describe is only one of many phases designed to make the new Rose Blumkin Jewish Home a model nursing care facility. In
Above: rendering of new exterior of the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home’s west entrance. addition to the new Special Care Unit, the construction will upgrade two Extended Care Units, reconfigure the Short-Term Care Unit, and add a Main Street that lets residents feel they’re part of the larger, outside world. Silverman added, “When the project is complete, every inch of the building will have been touched, and changes to the existing footprint will add 20,000 square feet that, according to Silverman, “maximizes the use of current space and enhances the environment for our residents, visitors, volunteers and staff.”
Jewish Groups to Honor Japanese Hero
UNMC’s Eppley Cancer Center to Recognize Brokaw and Noddle by MARY ZGODA The University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Eppley Cancer Center will recognize legendary newscaster Tom at the Brokaw Ambassador of Hope Award Gala Oct. 13, 6 p.m., at Qwest Center Omaha. The award is given to individuals who have made significant contributions in the fight against cancer through Harlan Noddle research, patient care activities or by raising public awareness of cancer. Dr. Ken Cowan, Director of the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center, said Brokaw continues the tradition of excellent past honorees. “It is a great honor for the Eppley Cancer Center to have him involved in our event and also to recognize him with the Ambassador of Hope Award,” Dr. Cowan added. In addition, the family of the late Harlan Noddle, a prominent Omaha businessman, will receive the Margre and Chuck Durham Spirit of Nebraska Award. Nancy Noddle and the couple’s children, Jay Noddle and Susie Noddle Levine, will acept the award which is presented to those whose contributions to the UNMC
Inside Opinion Page see page 12
Eppley Cancer Center demonstrate the spirit of giving to the community. Harlan Noddle, a longtime supporter of UNMC and The Nebraska Medical Center, lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in December 2005. He was 69. Prior to his death, Noddle served for eight years on the Medical Center board of directors, and as chairman from April-Dec. 2002. He also was the chairman of the University of Nebraska Foundation board of directors and was elected to the Omaha Business Hall of Fame in 2002. As founder and chairman of Noddle Development Company, he left behind a legacy of economic growth and community development. Noddle’s firm handled such major projects as Qwest Center Omaha, One Pacific Place and the First National Business Park. The Spirit of Nebraska Award was first given in 2004 to the family of the late Liz Karnes, an Omaha community leader who died in 2003 following a 12-year battle with cancer. A world renowned journalist, Tom Brokaw is best known as the anchor of the “NBC Nightly News” from 1983 to 2004. During his tenure, the program was consistently the highest rated evening news show. Brokaw began his broadcast journalism career in Omaha working at KMTV from 1962-65. Complementing his distinguished broadcast journalism career, Brokaw has written several books and numerous articles, essays and commentaries for several publications. His best-known book, The Greatest Generation, Continued on page 3
This Week: Federation Honors Volunteers: Page 3 See Front Page Stories & More at: www.jewishomaha.org, click on ‘Jewish Press’
Part II and III of 9-11: Five Years After: Page 7
Discussion of a new Blumkin Home began in 2002 when Jewish Senior Services took a hard look at the changing demographics of Jewish seniors in the community to determine whether existing Home facilities, programs and services would satisfactorily meet future needs. The original Steering Committee, made up of Howard Kooper, Joanie Bernstein, Bob Lepp, Belgrade, Silverman and the late Harlan Noddle, reviewed proposals, developed strategies and crunched numbers. From day one, the group wrestled Continued on page 2
by GARY JAVITCH In August 1940, while the Japanese were forging an alliance with Nazi Germany, and while the Second World War was raging on the European continent, an unlikely Japanese diplomat boldly stepped forward to rescue thousands of Jews trapped in Lithuania with little or no chance of escaping the looming threats. To commemorate his heroic deeds, the B’nai B’rith Henry Monsky Lodge and the Institute for Holocaust Education with a grant from the Terry K. Watanabe Charitable Trust, will present Sugihara: Conspiracy of Kindness, a 90-minute historical documentary that tells the remarkable story of Chiune Sugihara and the Consul Chiune Sugihara Jewish refugees he helped to save. Members of the Japanese-American Citizen’s League helped plan the evening and have been invited to this event. The presentation will take place at the JCC on Sunday, Sept.17, 6 p.m., beginning with a special hors d’oeuvres reception. The program, which is free and open to the public will close with a dessert reception. In addition to the film, Omahan Helen Manheimer, a recipient of one of the last Sugihara-issued visas and survivor of this harrowing war-time experience will attend Continued on page 3
Coming This Month: New Year’s Issue Sept. 22 America Decides 2006: Esch Challenges Terry: Page 8
JCC Gallery Features Work of Milton Wolsky: Page 16