Vol. 90 No. 8 Omaha, NE
Celebrating 89 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa
14 Cheshvan 5770
October 22, 2010
Omaha Jewish Federation bestows Humanitarian of the Year award on Sharee and Murray Newman by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press On Nov. 3, the Jewish Federation of Omaha will present its annual Humanitarian of the Year award. The recipients are Sharee and Murray Newman, longtime Omahans with a strong message. To appreciate the Newmans’ dedication to the Jewish as well as the larger Omaha community, one must remember they have never operated in a philanthropic vacuum. On March 19, 1972, at the annual meeting of the Jewish Federation of Omaha, C.M. “Nick” Newman delivered a speech which contained the following words: “I am more impressed with the importance of Jewish history today because I personally feel that we are privileged to live in a time of Jewish renaissance; at a time of Jewish scholarship, creativity and Jewish opportunity – that is rare in our people’s history... I see Jewish history as a continuing thing – a growing, developing, improving Judaism... We don’t have to accept the prediction of sociologists of a few years ago, that in Middle America, the center of the United States, Judaism is going to be gone. You remember the Look Magazine article – I think it concentrated on Iowa. It said that Jews were vanishing. I don’t accept that. I feel that a valid and important – and a meaningful Jewish life – is possible here in Omaha... In a little community like this we can communicate with each other – we can work together. We can create in this community an example of a vital, creative Jewish community.” As Nick addressed the meeting with this speech, he had just finished his first year in office as President of the Federation and was about to embark on his second year. “Nick was diagnosed with liver and colon cancer six
months after that speech,” his brother Murray Newman remembers, “and he died eight months later, at the age of 47.” Murray finds his brother’s words as inspirational as on
Sharee and Murray Newman the day they were spoken: “Many of the issues, concerns and opportunities of which he speaks,” Murray says, “remain today. In some respects, the challenges are even more daunting.” Murray and his wife Sharee know all about daunting challenges, but have never shied away from one. Throughout the years, they, and the rest of the Newman family, have given to Jewish Omaha on every necessary
The best volunteer job ever
Oscar winning film producer headlines Federation event by SHERRIE SAAG Rosenman returned to New York in 1968 and began Development Associate, Jewish Federation of Omaha his career working for Sir Michael Benthall, who at the Howard Rosenman, the veteran Hollywood insider time was directing Katherine Hepburn in the Broadway best known for producing Father of the Bride with musical, COCO. He also produced TV commercials for Steve Martin, Family Man with Nicholas Cage and The ad agency Benton and Bowles, winning several Clio Main Event with Barbra Streisand, Awards. In 1973, he made the highlights the Federation move to Hollywood to work for Community Event, “The Gift You the ABC telefilm unit created by Get Back”, Wednesday, Nov. 3, Barry Diller and Michael Eisner. 7:30 p.m. in the JCC Theatre. He went on to produce numerBorn in Brooklyn and raised on ous feature films, working with the Long Island, Rosenman is the son likes of Ellen Burstyn, Steve of seventh generation Israelis. It Martin, Diane Keaton, Sidney was no less than an Israeli war that Lumet, Joel Schumacher and Gus forever altered the course of Van Sant. It was Van Sant who proRosenman’s life. As a student in the vided Rosenman his acting debut, mid-sixties at Hahneman opposite two-time Oscar winner University Hospital, he was certain Sean Penn in Milk, the 2008 – but not thrilled – that his future drama depicting the life of gay was in medicine, not movies. activist and politician Harvey Milk. “Then, in 1967, at the end of my Rosenman was the creative force second year, the Six Day War broke behind two important documenout. I volunteered to serve as an taries made in the 1990’s. He extern medic as part of the IDF described the making of Common and I went to Israel. I met Leonard Threads: Stories from the Quilt, the Howard Rosenman Bernstein, the famous conductor, 1989 story of the NAMES Project who was in Israel 30 days after the war to conduct AIDS Memorial Quilt, for which he won an Oscar, as Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony,” recalled Rosenman. the high point of his career. “Bernstein was being followed by a documentary Similiarly, he described his next documentary, The crew, and I became a gofer on the shoot. It was Mr. Celluloid Closet, written by good friend Vito Russo, as Bernstein who convinced me to follow my bliss, my pas- a film “that still resonates with me today.” The sion,” Rosenman explains, “because what I always want- Celluloid Closet garnered five EMMY nominations and ed, when I was a kid, was to be an actor or a producer.” Continued on page 2
Inside Op-Ed Page: see page 12
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occasion. Wherever one looks in the Jewish Community Center, one can find the Newman name. There is the Wall of Recognition next to the entrance, and there is a plaque next to the Kripke Library. The Newman name shows up on the Federation wall (Volunteer of the Year, 1984!), the Historical Society wall, and elsewhere. Sharee and Murray, however, will be the first to tell you it is not about those outward signs. There is something bigger brewing inside of them: a genuine passion to help make this community strong, and, more importantly, maintain what has been built up to this point. That passion shows. Federation Foundation Director Marty Ricks says: “For decades, Sharee and Murray Newman have set examples for others by their extreme generosity to Jewish and secular charities. They have shown by their significant donations to the Federation Annual Campaign, capital campaigns on the JCC campus and special campaigns assisting Israel in emergency occurrences, the importance of maintaining a strong, involved Jewish community in a city with a modest Jewish population. Recently, they have furthered their commitment through an endowment in their estate plan. They arranged for two funds that, after their death, will provide sufficient income to continue paying their annual campaign contributions at their present giving level. These endowment funds, a Lion of Judah Endowment (LOJE) for Sharee, and a Perpetual Annual Campaign Endowment (PACE) for Murray, represent our largest Foundation funds and will supplement the money raised in future Federation annual campaigns.” “I don’t like to be all doom and gloom,” says Murray, Continued on page 2
by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press In 2007, when Kimberley Robinson was Presidentelect of the Jewish Community Center’s Board of Directors, she was first approached to chair the 2010 JCC Maccabi Games. What made that such an attractive
Cindy Goldberg, Stacey Rockman and Kimberly Robinson proposition wasn’t only the event itself, it was also the presence of her co-chairs. Stacey Rockman, Cindy Goldberg and Kimberly were friends long before any thought of the Maccabi Games entered their minds. “We have such an amazing friendship, and it’s what made this experience even more incredible,” Kimberly says. “We all have very different strengths, and we know each other well enough that we can build on those strengths, but we can also step away and let someone else shine. Plus, we’re great at delegating to each other, and we can take constructive criticism; something that isn’t always easy when you don’t know the person you Continued on page 2
Coming Next Month: Hanukkah Gifts and More Federation honors Karen Lepp as JFS Volunteer of the Year Page 4
First and second graders explore on Synagogue Mystery Tour Page 11