October 29, 2010

Vol. 90 No. 9 Omaha, NE

Allan Handleman celebrates 10th anniversary at the Jewish Press

by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press The word “fun” is used often when people describe Allan Handleman. The Jewish Press’ advertising manager is currently celebrating his 10th anniversary with our paper, and they have been ten very exciting years.

“When the editor Carol Katzman and Larry Axelrod, my predecessor, hired me in 2000, I walked Allan Handleman into a very nurturing atmosphere,” Allan remembers. “Larry saw potential in me, gave me two or three days to learn the basics of the job, and then turned me loose.”

Allan took to selling ads like a fish to water, and stuck with his new calling, even when shortly thereafter, Axelrod suddenly passed away.

“Whatever I thought I knew, I didn’t,” Allan remembers. “I remember, at first, I made sure not to only limit myself to selling to people I knew.

Throughout the years, what has amazed me is that talking to such a large variety of people, and connecting to others, comes so easy to me. Of course, I couldn’t do any of this without the support of Richard, our Creative Director, who does a fantastic job designing the ads I sell.”

“When Larry Axelrod died so suddenly, Allan stepped into his shoes,” Carol Katzman says.

“Despite having joined the Press just four months earlier, Allan personally called every single advertiser to reassure them the Press would continue to offer high quality service to every account. It became apparent that Allan was willing to take risks, like joining various networking groups. This helped him spread the word about the great target market the Jewish Press represents; this certainly has paid off over the years.”

“I sell ads, but more importantly, I sell the community,” Allan says, “and this community is amazing.

To quite a few people in the city, I am the face of Jewish Omaha, and so it is important that I emphasize how great this community is, and that I really believe in it. Sure, times are tough in the current economic climate, but we have to remember what a great community we have. It certainly isn’t all doom and gloom. We are all part of something great.”

“Allan always has the interest of the community at heart,” says Federation Assistant Executive Director Julee Katzman. “He has strong ties in our community to begin with, and has subsequently made a lot of connections in the Omaha area.”

Bob Goldberg, Federation Communications Director, has known Allan since eighth grade. “He is Omaha through and through. The man knows everybody, and is perfect for the job. On a side note, I am also very grateful to him for introducing me to Guinness beer.”

“We are very proud of Allan,” Jewish Press Board President Bobbi Leibowitz says. “When he started, Continued on page 2

Inside Op-Ed Page: see page 16

Celebrating 89 Years of Service to Nebraska and Western Iowa

October 29, 2010

Rabbi Azriel reflects on rejuvenating sabbatical

by CLAUDIA SHERMAN Among the highlights of his sabbatical was a ten-day Temple Israel Communications Coordinator Rabbinic Torah Study Seminar he attended at the Now that the High Holy Days have passed, and Rabbi Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. The topic was Aryeh Azriel is getting down to the daily tasks as spiri- “Engaging Israel: Jewish Values and the Dilemmas of tual leader of Temple Nationhood.” Subjects Israel, he took some time included The Value of to reflect on his threePeoplehood, Israel in the month summer sabbatiEyes of North American cal. As he traveled to Jews: The Challenge of Israel, Holland, Engagement, The Germany, the Baltics, Question of Sovereignty, Poland, and Denmark, The Narrative of Power he was able to explore and Jewish Statehood, “different modalities of Engaging Israel on the worship…and to sepaBig Screen, Israel and rate for awhile from the the Morality of War, environment that someTowards a Jewish times envelops us” limitForeign Policy, Israel: ing creativity and vision.

The Challenges of “You get a better Occupation and the rabbi” after a sabbatical, Issue of Minorities, The he added. “I have more Jewish People After the strength in a way. It Jewish State, and opens your soul to future Messianism and While on sabbatical in Israel last summer, Rabbi Azriel visited experiences and provides Zionism.

Emunah Bet Elazraki Children’s Home, a haven in Netanya for 180 the opportunity to heal In addition, the 127 Jewish kids from all over the world whose families are in crisis. oneself.” He expressed rabbis, cantors and eduRabbi Azriel delivered a check, donated by Temple Israel Religious his gratitude to Rabbi cators from all denomiSchool families, to the director (at right) of the Home.

Eric Linder, Cantor nations at the seminar Wendy Shermet, and the other staff members at Temple had the opportunity to choose electives. Rabbi Azriel Israel for their work during his absence. He plans to chose Talmudic Stories and Zealotry and Ecstasy: Elijah share his experiences throughout the year at worship in Midrash and Zohar. He also was able to take a tour Continued on page 2 services and through teaching opportunities.

Prepare for the JCC Maccabi Games/ArtsFest Israel in 2011

by DIANE MALASHOCK JCC Sports and Recreation Program Supervisor And you thought hosting the Games in Omaha was amazing; just imagine what it will be like next summer when the JCC Maccabi Games and JCC ArtsFest will take place in Israel for the first time! This 12-day Maccabi experience will be an unparalleled athletic, artistic, social, recreational and Jewish learning experience for Jewish teens ages 1417 from around the world. Hosted by Games partner Maccabi World Union, this trip will include five days of competition in a team or individual sport, an arts exhibition, a Day of Caring and Sharing Project, a weekend home hospitality experience in our P2K area of the Western Galilee, plus five days touring our Jewish homeland!

Team Omaha athletes and artists will depart Omaha on Sunday July 24, and return Friday Aug. 5, 2011.

Sports available are basketball, soccer, swimming, table tennis and tennis. Art specialties include acting/improv, broadcast journalism, culinary arts, dance, jazz, photography, rock music, visual arts and vocal music.

The maximum cost of this trip at this time is $2,990 per person plus domestic airfare to New York. This fee is

This Week: America Decides starts on page 10 See Front Page Stories & More at: www.jewishomaha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press’

21 Cheshvan 5770

U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor: Take Israel out of foreign aid Page 3

already subsidized by the Israeli government. Your cost may be even lower with the use of the $1,000 Israel Experience Incentive Grant for those who have not already taken advantage of this wonderful gift.

Additional grants have been requested from local foundations and we should be able to share the final cost per participant the first week in December.

Please contact Mary Sue Grossman at the Center for Jewish Education at 334.6445 for an Israel Experience grant application, or for needs-based scholarship applications which are confidential and available on Nov. 1.

Kimberly Robinson, 2010 JCC Maccabi Games cochair states, “Right now we want to talk with every eligible Maccabi athlete/artist and see who is interested in Maccabi Israel this summer! We don’t want anyone to miss this amazing experience due to financial reasons or to have missed the registration deadlines.”

A $500.00 nonrefundable deposit is due Dec. 15. The deadline for this trip are much earlier than in years past, and space is limited. If you are interested in this once-ina-lifetime JCC Maccabi Israel Experience or have questions, please contact me at 334.6424 or email dmalashock@jccomaha.org.

Coming Next Month: Hanukkah Gifts and More Black belt Sandy Gordon shows her scars with pride Page 7

Friedel students and staff welcome St. Augustine visitors Page 20

Page 2

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Cantor: Take Israel out of foreign aid

motorcycles roadsters scooters ATVs

utility vehicles snowmobiles watercraft trailers

9004 S. 145th St. Omaha, NE 68138 (402) 333-0655 333-0414 fax www.leisurelifesports.com

by JTA NEWS STAFF WASHINGTON (JTA) -- A Republican Congress would seek to remove funding for Israel from the foreign operations budget, a GOP leader said.

U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, the Republican whip and the only Jewish Republican in the House of Representatives, told JTA that a GOP-led House would seek to defund nations that do not share U.S. interests, even if it meant rejecting the president’s foreign operations budget.

Cantor, of Virginia, said he wants to protect funding U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor for Israel should that situaCredit: ericcantor.com tion arise.

“Part of the dilemma is that Israel has been put in the overall foreign aid looping,” he said when asked about the increasing tendency of Republicans in recent years to vote against foreign operations appropriations. “I’m hoping we can see some kind of separation in terms of tax dollars going to Israel.”

Cantor’s statement was a sign that the Republican leadership was ready to defer to the party’s right wing on

this matter. Some on the GOP right have suggested including Israel aid in the defense budget, and a number of Tea Party-backed candidates have said they would vote against what is known in Congress as “foreign ops.”

However, until now at least, the GOP leadership has backed deferring to the executive branch when it comes to foreign spending, albeit after it has completed budgetary negotiations with the Congress.

The GOP looks set to win at least the House in the upcoming Nov. 2 elections, partly because of the recent surge in conservative activism.

The pro-Israel community has always backed the president’s final foreign aid budget as a whole and strongly resisted proposals to separate funding for Israel for a number of reasons.

Among them, pro-Israel activists see aid for Israel as inextricably bound with the broader interest of countering isolationism; elevating Israel above other nations might be counterproductive in an American electorate still made up of diverse ethnic groups; and such a designation would make Israel more beholden to U.S. policy and erode its independence.

Pro-Israel officials before the interview with Cantor had told JTA that the priority in January would be making the case to newly elected Republicans for backing a holistic foreign assistance package.

Rabbi Azriel reflects on rejuvenating Sabbatical

DINNER SPECIAL Rose Blumkin Home Main Street | Tuesday, November 2 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. seatings Start your meal with a bowl of matzah ball, kreplach or hearty beef barley mushroom soup, and then enjoy savory, tender brisket accompanied by kasha varnishkehs and a colorful medley of cooked vegetables. All for just $12.99 a plate.

Regular deli items will be available as well as kid-friendly hot dogs and chicken tenders.

Reservations for the Star Deli Dinner are appreciated.

Please call Teresa at 330-4272 to save your spot.

THE KUKLIN GROUP

ReadytoSell?

Kimberly’s clients are selling their homes averaging 98% of original list price and averaging 28 days on the market! Call to get yours Sold Now.

D L O S New Listing: 20009 Elkhorn Ridge Drive See this gorgeous custom Victorian style home 6 bedrooms, includes fabulous master suite with sitting room; 5 baths. Deck extends the entire length of the house with the best views in Elkhorn overlooking lake & golf course. Amazing updated kitchen; large laundry w/lockers and drop zone. Terrific finished walkout lower level w/projection system. $550,000

Gary

Kimberly

402.880.1887 402.214.5955

Continued from page 1 that focused on Muslim identity in a Jewish State, another opportunity provided by the Hartman Institute.

Among the instructors was David Hartman, founding president of the Shalom Hartman Institute. He is considered a leading contemporary Jewish philosopher and internationally renowned author. An ordained rabbi of Yeshiva University, he made aliyah in 1971 and founded the Institute in 1976.

Natan Sharansky, former Soviet refusnik, former Knesset member and cabinet minister, and current Chair of the Executive of the Jewish Agency for Israel, delivered the keynote address at the summer program.

According to Rabbi Azriel, “Everyday was a highlight.

Everyday, you are challenged with some notions that are completely new, fresh, and out of the box.” He added that “the teachers were phenomenal and invigorating.”

While in Israel, he also visited the Western Galilee, Omaha’s Partnership 2000 region. The area is “such a jewel, because it creates opportunities for first encounters of meeting the native people. Every trip to Israel should include a trip to the Western Galilee,” he insisted.

While there, he spent an evening with a group from Kibbutz Cabri discussing how they are “growing closer to Judaism by observing Yom Kippur with prayers and readings of appropriate passages from the Torah,” commented Esti Wasiman from Kibbutz Cabri. “Rabbi Azriel raised interesting comments and ideas and praised what we are doing.”

Tami Hermesh, another member of the kibbutz, said, “I came to meet someone who leads a community. I met a tremendous source of inspiration, full of love for our doings, a mind that is open to new ideas, and he gave great faith along the way. I came away filled with inspiration.”

Rabbi Azriel also met with ten students from the Knafaim preparatory program to talk about the ninth of Av. The conversation covered forms of self-denial and baseless hatred, and led to discussion on positive human strengths.

Also in the Partnership region, he reunited with

Taylor Workman and Daniel Grossman, both from Omaha. The teens participated in the Kefiada program last summer. They taught English in a summer-camp setting to Israeli children, worked with Israeli co-counselors, and experienced Israel like Israelis.

In Tel Aviv, where Rabbi Azriel visited his parents, he attended Kabbalat Shabbat at the Port. “Secular Israeli families who want a taste of Shabbat celebrate with guitar and musical instruments,“ he explained. “Their synagogue is the water, the sky, and the sand.”

“I also officiated at the wedding of a former student of the Eisendrath International Exchange (EIE),” he said.

She had met Rabbi Azriel when she lived in Omaha with Dennis and Pam DePorte. Upon learning that the rabbi was going to be in Israel, she made arrangements with him to perform a Reform Jewish wedding ceremony.

In Amsterdam, “I went to see Anne Frank’s home.

“It’s overwhelming. You are exhausted physically and spiritually by the time you get to the top of the staircase where the hideout was.” The head rabbi of Holland’s 30,000 Jews took Rabbi Azriel on a car ride to see old Jewish neighborhoods. “It was a very sad, sobering trip as well as a history journey. I have been to concentration camps, but this had a different impact. It was shocking, as though talking about ghosts.”

In Berlin, Germany, he saw “how Germans deal with their past -- openly and courageously” as opposed to Poles in Warsaw he met “who make no apologies, and attempts to talk about the Holocaust evoke nothing.”

In Copenhagen, Denmark, he learned more about the relationship between Jews and the Danish people at The Danish Jewish Museum. In basement classrooms, the museum draws attention to other “killing places” (in addition to the Holocaust) such as Darfur and Rwanda.

Rabbi Azriel admitted that he missed the Omaha community while he was away and is grateful to the leadership of Temple Israel for understanding the need for clergy to have sabbaticals. “I wish everyone had a break to be able, after serious planning, to rejuvenate and invigorate, to find wholeness that comes from testing new grounds -- both physical and spiritual.”

Allan Handleman celebrates anniversary at the Jewish Press Continued from page 1 he was quickly thrown into being “the man” for the Press’ advertising department. He handled it well, and he never looked back. Now, after 10 years, he is ready for the next decade with new ideas; we are all very excited about what’s yet to come.”

Another familiar face in the JCC building who has known Allan for quite a while is Alan Potash, regional director of the Anti Defamation League, and ‘neighbor’ of the Press: “He is such a fun colleague to have around. Something not everybody may know is that he is not only a fantastic resource on current sports events, but also enjoys discussing criminal justice stories. He is a gregarious man, he knows something about everybody, and is a great conversationalist.”

Allan’s answer to the question of how readers can help him centers on one thing: word of mouth. “They can vocally support us,” he says. “Going to a business and telling them you saw their ad in the Jewish Press is absolutely the best thing in advertising. Another thing that really helps me out is when people make suggestions about new businesses I can approach, or make referrals. I always follow up on that right away.”

“It’s hard to believe Allan is celebrating his 10th anniversary with the Press,” Carol Katzman says, “I wish him and the other staff members continued success.” Those other staff members concur: congratulations, Allan! Here’s to many more successful and joyous years.

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 3

Hitler exhibit opens in Berlin, with Jewish applause

by TOBY AXELROD on the socio-political conditions, forms, BERLIN (JTA) -- The image of Hitler and consequences of Hitler’s rise to is still arresting, 65 years after his suicide power. The propaganda messages on disand the end of World War II. play are countered by images that convey Now the German Historical Museum the reality of what was happening. has dedicated an exhibit to the fascination Exhibit items were set up in a nearly Hitler held for the “Volk,” the ordinary 1,300-square-yard exhibition hall in ways German citizen.

It marks the first time a German museum has ventured into such territory, and the curators say they have taken great care to avoid glorifying the man behind the Third Reich, which in Germany would not only be distasteful but illegal.

Controversial though it is for some, the exhibit has been welcomed by the Central Council of Jews in Women working on small busts of Adolf Hitler, 1937.

Germany. The Council’s Credit: Süddeutsche Zeitung Photo/Scherl secretary general, Stephan Kramer, said he thought the timing was to discourage neo-Nazis from taking right, given today’s political climate. heroic photos of themselves near images “Especially the lower-middle classes are of Hitler. susceptible to wanting to be led,” he said, The exhibit opens only days after a new and politicians are “instrumentalizing study by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation their fears.” showed that some 10 percent of Germans Kramer said the exhibition “is dealing still wish they had a Fuhrer to tell them seriously with the issue, and I don’t think what to do during these hard economic there is a danger of any form of glorifica- times. tion.”

“My idea, my wish, is to explain these “Hitler and the Germans,” which historical events so that people know the opened Oct. 15 in Berlin and runs dangers which are caused by irrational through Feb. 6, includes posters, artifacts mass movements,” curator Hans-Ulrich and other contemporary propaganda illu- Thamer told JTA. minating the complex interaction The “fascination [with Hitler] was between the public and their “Fuhrer,” or caused by very modern technical methleader. ods, with movies and microphones and so Objects are arranged in three chrono- on,” Thamer said. “People at this time logical and thematic chapters, focusing thought it was very modern.”

Though it does not focus extensively on the genocide of the Jews, the exhibit “shows the persecution of German and European Jewry as one of the results of the rhetoric and ideology of the ‘Volksgemeinschaft,’ – the Nazi concept of a so-called Aryan racial community,”

Hitler’s secret memo regarding the socalled euthanasia program in which physically or mentally disabled citizens, whose lives were deemed unworthy by the state, were murdered in gas chambers.

Hitler, Austrian by birth, started off as an unremarkable soldier in World War II and rose to become the head of the National Socialist Party.

Jailed after his attempted putsch in 1923, he wrote his notorious autobiographical polemic “Mein Kampf” in prison and emerged as a popular figure. He became chancellor in January 1933 and soon amassed dictatorial powers.

Twelve years later, with six million European Jews The playing cards game "Führer Quartet," Berlin, after 1934. murdered, tens of millions Credit: Sebastian Ahlers, of European and Soviet solfrom the private collection of Rainer Graefe diers slaughtered in battle, and many German cities Thamer added. A sign reading “Jews are lying in ruins, Hitler continued his antiunwelcome in our town” is one of the Semitic rants in his last will and testaitems on display. ment, charging his followers to resist “the Illustrating the growth of the Fuhrer universal poisoners of all peoples, internamovement and the Nazi party, posters tional Jewry.” place Hitler alongside examples of “perToday, the spot above Hitler’s former fect” German specimens, past and pres- bunker, where he killed Eva Braun and ent. himself, is marked by a small sign. It’s a There are also items that were never few steps from the national Holocaust meant to be seen by the public, such as memorial.

To order a gift subscription to the Press...

Send a check for $40 for the rest of the year and for 2011, made out to the

Jewish Press, to 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154. For more information on how to connect your out-of-town relatives and friends, call 334.6448.

Chanukah G I F T S H O P The right choice for personalized assisted living in a comfortable, home-like environment Social, recreational and cultural opportunities • Restaurant style dining • Transportation • Wellness center, library and game room •

168th & Blondo

•

402-614-5222

•

OPEN HOUSE Sunday, November 7 , 10 a.m.- Noon Wednesday, November 10, 4-6 p.m.

HeritagePointeOmaha.com

Chanukah begins Wednesday night, December 1.

The gift shop has dreidels, decorations, candles, menorahs… everything you need to celebrate the holiday while also supporting the Women of Reform Judaism.

Page 4

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Foxman: Obama should end unilateral statehood threat

by JTA NEWS STAFF forthcoming about extending the freeze if the WASHINGTON (JTA) -- After meeting with Israeli Palestinians stand down from threats of unilateral stateleaders, ADL National Director Abraham Foxman called hood. on the Obama administration to “close all doors” to a “I believe there will be an extension of the settlement unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood. freeze,” he said, barring the “disincentive” of activity The Anti-Defamation League toward a unilateral statehood declaration. leader, speaking to JTA from Foxman cast his appeal in terms of Obama’s Jerusalem after meeting Tuesday commitment to Jewish leaders in the summer of with Israeli Prime Minister 2009 to equally pressure both sides.

Benjamin Netanyahu, among othThe Obama administration “continues to press ers, said it was his impression that Israel on settlements but doesn’t press the the Palestinians are accelerating Palestinians on anything,” he said. “I’m not sure plans to have the U.N. Security it has learned from its mistakes.”

Council recognize a unilaterally Also Tuesday, Foxman visited a Tel Aviv school declared state. attended by students from nearly 40 countries, “The Palestinians are engaged in where he met with the children of migrant workan effort to see if they can pre-empers who could be deported in the coming weeks tively establish a state,” Foxman or days.

Abraham H. Foxman, said. “They seem to be engaged in “We care about you, and in the spirit of Jewish Nat-ional Director of the ADL this fantasy that the world will delivvalues, we will do all we can to ensure that you er them a state with very little. What it takes is for the remain in Israel,” Foxman said at the Rogosin-Bialik U.S. to close every exit door and say ‘Get off this kick, School. “I am here with you today in solidarity, not you will not have our support.’” against the government of Israel but in standing up for The Palestinian Authority suspended direct what is best in the Jewish people, what is best in Jewish Palestinian-Israeli peace talks last month, barely weeks values, what is best in the Jewish and democratic state of after they were renewed, because Netanyahu refused to Israel.” extend a 10-month partial moratorium on settlement Foxman raised the issue of the threatened deportation building. of the children during his meetings with Netanyahu and The Obama administration wants Israel to extend the other Israeli officials. freeze, and has offered Netanyahu a package of incenIn August, ADL called on the government of Israel to tives of diplomatic and security guarantees as an induce- extend, on humanitarian grounds, the protection of ment. legal status to all of the children of migrant workers now Foxman suggested that Netanyahu might be more in Israel.

JDC teaming with UNICEF to help Haiti

by JTA NEWS STAFF NEW YORK (JTA) -- The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee is partnering with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF to help children in Haiti as the island country recovers from last winter’s devastating earthquake.

The JDC will give $240,000 to support UNICEF’s Child Friendly Spaces program, which builds safe and protective environments throughout Haiti for children who have lost their homes, families and communities in the earthquake, the JDC announced Tuesday.

“These are spaces that essentially offer recreational and educational opportunities for the children, ensuring that they have something to go back to,” a JDC spokesman told JTA. “It’s one of a number of programs.”

The JDC, which together with the North American Jewish federation system collected about $7.4 million to help in the Haitian relief effort, had partnered with ProDev to build tent schools and provide water tankers in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake.

It soon will be opening a middle school for 600 children in the village of Les Orangers, outside of Port-auPrince.

The JDC also has partnered with World ORT to train local builders to create housing and worked with Partners in Health to feed more than 2,000 Haitian children. It soon will be opening the first prosthetics lab on the island in partnership with Haiti’s General Hospital in Port-au-Prince, Magen David Adom, the Haitian Red Cross and the Sheba Medical Center in Israel.

November lunch specials at the Star Deli make for fabulous Fridays

by OZZIE NOGG Friday lunch at the Star Deli on Main Street is always a socio-gastronomic treat, and Chef Michael Aparo, Director of Food & Environmental Services at the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, is upping the yum-factor for November. "We've put special entrees on the menu for the past several weeks, and we're offering a different special on Friday, November 5, November 12 and November 19," Aparo said. “All our popular sandwiches, traditional soups and sides will be available, too, but we’re sure our patrons will want to try these November specials that are bound to become favorites. And please note that the Deli will be closed on November 26."

Here’s the line-up of Star Deli November Friday Specials: Friday, Nov. 5: Stuffed Cabbage Roll Call ‘em holishkes, galuptzi or praakes, Chef Mike Aparo’s cabbage rolls -- steamed and stuffed with ground beef, onions, rice and seasonings -are topped with a zesty tomato sauce. This entree comes with a vegetable, and is great soul food.

Friday, Nov. 12: Kansas City-Style BBQ Ribs The Star Deli’s smokey, sweet, tender fall-off-the bone meaty beef ribs are slow cooked and seriously sauced, Kansas-City style. So succulent, you’ll want seconds.

Friday, Nov. 19: Chicken Breast Sandwich Marinated, tenderized and hand-breaded (with the secret spices that make the Star Deli's Chicken Fingers so magically delicious) this special chicken breast sandwich is served on a Kaiser bun and garnished with red onion and tomato.

Friday, Nov. 26: The Deli will be closed.

Word has it that Soon-to-Come Specials include a Kosher Jewish Ruben sandwich (cheese-less of course), falafel served on home-made pita, and a brisket plate.

Stay tuned for dates and details.

The Star Deli on Main Street is open for lunch on Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with menu choices for all ages.

Mercedes-Benz of Omaha Under New Management When you deserve the best of care

“Angie knew exactly what needed to happen and how to make it happen. Suddenly all focus shifted from crisis to purpose, with an experienced set of eyes to guide us through unfamiliar terrain. Fortunately, there was someone on the scene making sure nothing was overlooked, making sure I was comfortable, that I was getting my medications exactly on time, and that everything was taken care of.” | Bruce A. Simon; President/CEO, Omaha Steaks

You’ve worked hard to build a lifestyle that affords you the freedom to enjoy the finer things in life. You want to be at home in an environment where you are comfortable.

That’s where we come in. We specialize in working with clients just like you to provide the highest quality care, dedicated personal attention, and a commitment SServing i Omaha O h to confidentially and discretion. Our goal is to augment the life you’re already living For more information about our by providing the help you need to keep doing what you love. This is why you elite in-home nursing care services, want Custom Care. call us at 402.320.3700 www.customcarenursing.com Raiising the Standardds off Serrving Excelllence

Please contact Ryan Knott, your Mercedes Sales Consultant 402.891.2612

Mercedes-Benz of Omaha 14335 Hillsdale Ave. (Just South of 144th & “L”)

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 5

Local Rabbi’s book on Arab-Israeli conflict to be featured during Jewish Book Month

by MARY BORT The Arab-Israeli conflict is a situation that we hear about in the news on an almost daily basis. Tensions between parties have resulted in anger and bloodshed. Approaches to resolving the ongoing crisis have been presented for years, but so far, the situation remains unchanged.

In his new book, The Jewish Case for the One State Solution, Rabbi Jonathan Gross offers the community a novel way to resolve the situation in Israel. “This book is my radical and u n i q u e approach to the ArabIsraeli conflict,” he explained.

Rabbi Jonathan Gross “To me, the idea is so simple and obvious. This book is my attempt to come to the truth. It is an issue that has been weighing on my heart my entire life. I’m passionate about Israel. My heart breaks when I hear of yet another person who has been killed.”

Rabbi Gross worked on his book for three years. “I have read and researched on this topic extensively,” he said. “I’ve been following politics in Israel, read multiple Israeli and American newspapers daily, and have read just about every book on the subject that is on the Kripke Library bookshelves. If I saw that anybody else had written what is in this book, I wouldn’t have written it. But my particular approach to the subject is new – I haven’t found it written about elsewhere.”

“The Jewish Case for the One State Solution” is a quick read; it is short and to the point. “You don’t have to know everything about the subject to read this book,” said Gross. “I provide a good synopsis that clearly spells out the history and the current situation.”

As part of the Kripke Jewish Federation Library’s Jewish Book Month celebration, Rabbi Gross will present his book to the community on Thursday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. He will provide a summary of the ideas he writes about in his book, answer questions and sign books. The event will

be held at the library, which is located in the Jewish Community Center.

Rabbi Gross wants to share his idea about how to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict. “I really want people to read my book,” Gross emphasized. “The more people that get involved in the conversation, the better. At the book signing, I’ll present my idea and then hear what you have to say.”

“If my ideas are wrong, I want to know that,” he continued.

“However, I will need to hear logical arguments to counter what I think are sound ideas.

Some people give me emotional arguments that are not supported by logic and fact. I believe my book is based on clear, rational logic.”

In a recent review posted on a popular Jewish blog, Torahmusings.com, “The Jewish Case for the One State Solution” received a favorable review. The review stated, “Rabbi Gross makes many interesting and original suggestions. He writes with an earnest caring and a devoted passion that engenders sympathy and respect.”

As most in the community know, Gross is the rabbi of Beth Israel Synagogue. He clarified that the book is his individual undertaking and is not to be considered a representation of Beth Israel Synagogue’s views or stance on the subject.

The Jewish Case for the One State Solution will be available for purchase at the event on Nov. 11 for $10. However, if you wish to purchase the book ahead of time, you can obtain it at a cost of $11.99 from www.Lulu. com.

For more information on any Jewish Book Month events, contact 334.6462 or gkatz@jewishomaha.org. Jewish Book Month is presented by the Center for Jewish Education through the Kripke Jewish Federation Library and is generously sponsored by the Special Donor Advised Fund of the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation.

Escape THE COLD Snowbirds Please let the Jewish Press know in advance when you are leaving and when you are returning. Sometimes several papers are sent to your “old” address before we are notified by the Post Office. Every time they return a paper to us, you miss the Jewish Press and we are charged 70¢! Please call us at 402.334.6448 or email us at jpress@jewishomaha.org.

834 S. 129 Ave. in Leawood West Great 5 BR home close to schools, place of worship, community facilities, Dodge and Interstate, loaded with curb appeal.

Call for a private showing. · Spacious kitchen includes dining area, double wall ovens, bow windows · Family room offers a gas log fireplace, wet bar, built-ins · Formal dining room and living room with crown molding. · Master BR with French doors to full bath and walk-in closet · 5 Large Bedrooms, 3 with wood floors · 3 Full bathrooms, each with tub and shower · Main bath with double sinks · Ample space in Rec Room for pool table, game table, wet bar and TV · Furnace ‘05, wood shingle roof ‘02, sump pump, humidifier · Professional landscaping, security, sprinkler, deck, partial wood fence · Now offered at $224,900 for over 2900 Finished SqFt!

Kathie Garrean Ofc: (402) 697-4291 Cell: (402) 880-5950

B ROW N E L L- TA L B OT G R A D S : P R E PA R E D F O R T H E F U T U R E .

FAC T: The most in-demand jobs of 2010 didn’t even exist in 2004.

In today’s fast-changing world, we can’t know what careers will be available for our children when they’re ready to enter the workforce.

OPEN HOUSE

Rabbis launch campaign for Women of the Wall

by JTA NEWS STAFF SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) -- A group of North American rabbis has launched an online campaign to support women who want to pray at the Western Wall with Torahs and prayer shawls.

The 28 rabbis, calling themselves Rabbis for Women of the Wall, sent a letter Monday morning to seven Israeli leaders urging protection for those women.

The letter, signed by the presidents of the Reform, Conservative, Renewal and Reconstructionist rabbinical associations, was sent to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, opposition leader and Kadima Party head Tzipi Livini, Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky and Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites.

It calls upon the officials, as well as Jerusalem’s mayor and police chief, to “provide protection to Women of the

Wall as they pray at the Kotel … rather than harassing them.”

The letter also calls on the Israeli officials to “find appropriate and safe venues at the Kotel for Jews who are not comfortable with women leading worship or holding the Torah or reading from it to enjoy their practice of Judaism unhindered, and physically separated from other designated portions of the Kotel where women are allowed to lead worship, wear a tallit, wear tefillin, hold the Torah and read from the Torah.”

For more than 20 years, members of Women of the Wall have fought, and lost, legal battles in Israeli courts seeking the right to pray with Torahs and prayer shawls at the Western Wall. They have faced physical and verbal attacks from haredi Orthodox men and women at the site.

The group has been permitted to pray at an alternate site, Robinson’s Arch, at the southern end of the wall.

Sunday • November 7th 1-3:30 PM

We do know that we can help them be successful if we prepare them to think critically, act responsibly, and adapt confidently to a changing world.

RSVP at brownell.edu • Meet students, parents, and teachers.

• Tour the campus and learn more about the curriculum.

• Attend helpful information sessions on Malone Scholarships and our Please College Counseling Program.

join us!

That’s what we do at Brownell-Talbot College Preparatory School.

We offer our students a safe, academically stimulating environment with the encouraging, individual attention they n need to be successful – no matter what the future holds.

Contact us today to get started.

Our College Counseling a ade!

Program begins in 8th Grade!

400 N. Happy Hollow Blvd.

Omaha, NE • 68132

402-556-3772 brownell.edu email: admissions@brownell.edu

Brownell-Talbot College Preparatory School is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States • www.isacs.org • The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools www.Advanc-ED.org • The Nebraska Department of Education • www.education.ne.gov.

Page 6

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Daisy, Donor Sabbath, and Pikuah Nefesh

Cohen’s Computer Club David M. Cohen, Ph.D., President

Learn basic computer skills! phone: (402) 637-3935 Locally owned email: dmc@ieee.org

Investment vs. Cost: The Future of Nebraska (Mike Meister's Vision…

Continued from last week)

I see Nebraska as a leader in tourism and understand that by focusing on our natubeauty Mike Meister ral and our urban centers as destination locations, that we will be able to export our tax burdens in a way similar to South Dakota and Florida.

I see a strong urban Nebraska economy based on small business growth and innovation.

I see a Nebraska with an infrastructure of roads that allow all Nebraskans to get their products to market in as economical a way as possible.

I see a fair and equitable tax system that allows us to care for the most vulnerable and making all of Nebraska stronger.

I believe in fiscal responsibility, local control and that state government should be there to offer a helping hand, not tell you what to do.

I believe in looking at the positive side of what the state does for its citizens. We must start investing in ourselves again.

If you believe, like I do, that Nebraska's greatest years lie before us, I would appreciate your vote on November 2.

Mike Meister Paid for by Meister for Governor Kevin Sylvester, Treasurer 614 E. 27th St. St. C, Scottsbluff, NE

WHY NOT DO IT THE EASY WAY?

NORM’S DOOR SERVICE GARAGE DOOR SPECIALISTS SALES AND SERVICE COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL RESIDENTIAL

6200 South 90TH St. at 90th & Washington

Omaha, Nebraska

402/331-8920

by JOEY HOFFMAN In May, 2006, my then-three-year-old daughter Daisy’s liver failed. She was instantly put on the transplant waiting list for a small bowel, a liver and a pancreas. I learned quickly the potential risks and complications, how to poise my petrified self in front of her and that Omaha breeds the kindest people I have ever known. Until now, it did not occur to me to ask, “How do Jews feel about organ donation?” Pre-transplant, I believed that Jewish people must be buried intact. True, but that’s only part of our story. When fellow transplant friends told me about Donor Sabbath (Nov. 12-14), an annual weekend designated to encourage leaders of all faiths nationwide to discuss with their congregations the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation, I asked four Omaha rabbis to weigh in on the subject and the concept of Pikuah Nefesh, “To save a life.”

“The sanctity of a body having hosted a soul, our neshama, our whole life and performing mitzvahs its whole life, we need to respect it by not damaging it,” says Rabbi Mendel Katzman of Chabad House.

“However, due to the requirement of Pikuah Nefesh, we have to do whatever we can to save a life. It’s required by the Torah.”

Rabbi Katzman uses Shabbat to illustrate when extenuating circumstances supersede tradition. “When a situation presents itself, the nefesh question, you have to do things that you wouldn’t do.

Nefesh requires that you override those other expectations in order to save a life.” He tells the story of Rabbi Joseph Rosen, an authority on halachah, or Jewish law, in the city of Ragatchov. When issues of health on Shabbat emerged, a fellow rabbi challenged him. “He was more lenient than other colleagues,” Katzman says.

“The stringent one asked, ‘Why are you so lenient when it comes to Shabbat?’ He said, ‘I’m stringent when it comes to nefesh.’”

Rabbi Mordechai Levin of Temple Beth-El agrees.

“Pikuah Nefesh is the central principal of Judaism,” he says. “We have the obligation to save a life that is in danger.” Of course, Levin says, a person is not required to die to save a life, but must do everything possible to help someone survive. In the spirit of Tikkun Olam -- to heal, repair and transform the world -- “If a person needs an organ, the principle applies.”

“Tyler loves to visit his Grandpa Sam at Remington Heights!”

– Laurie E. Granddaughter of Sam E., a happy resident of Remington Heights

12606 W. Dodge Rd. Omaha, NE 68154 402.493.5807 remingtonheightsretirement.com

In 1954, the first successful kidney transplant was performed. Today, 108,929 Americans are on the transplant waiting list; 485 are Nebraskans, according to the United Network of Organ Sharing (unos.org). A massive organ shortage has ignited a worldwide crisis.

Eighteen people die waiting each day. For some, the wait is so long they become too sick for transplant to be an option. The good news? One donor can save eight lives and improve the lives of fifty. Donating organs honors the deceased and turns a tragedy into a blessing.

“The mitzvah of saving another human life is beyond measure,” says Temple Israel’s Rabbi Eric Linder, who cites the Reform Responsa -- a book first published in 1889 that provides answers to questions of contemporary Reform Judaism -- as an essential resource on organ donation. It references Maimonides, a rabbi, physician and philosopher of the Middle Ages, who said: “He who is sick and in danger of death, and the physician tells him that he can be cured by a certain object or material which is forbidden by the Torah, must obey the physican and be cured” (Hilchot Yesodei Torah 5.6).

New York City-based Halachic Organ Donor Society (hods.org) is a preeminent organization that educates people on Jewish legal matters and rabbinical beliefs about organ donation. They have helped save the lives of over 200 Jews and non-Jews. In their website video, an orthodox family talks of their precious Hallali, a toddler who saved the lives of four children: two Jews and two Palastinians. “The Mishnah says to save one life is to save a whole world,” says Rabbi Jonathan Gross of Temple Beth Israel.

He continues. “To see a little girl whose life was saved, we understand what that means.” Indeed. One year post-transplant, while placing Daisy in her car seat after yet another doctor’s appointment, I wondered: After the trauma, the swirl of surgeries and blood transfusions, IV sticks and abdominal scars, how did she understand her world? My wise, mince-no-words girl and I talked (and talked and...) until finally she said, “Enough with the transplant stuff, let’s go have fun.”

And we did. Because we could.

For more information or to sign up as an organ donor, visit hods.org or donatelifenebraska.com or call 402.559.3788.

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 7

Showing my scars and loving it

by SANDY GORDON one Saturday morning. Bret started to show me White I was told by my mom at a very early age that I could- Belt form. It was like dancing, but dancing like a n’t do anything because of my chubbiness. I remember, tomboy. I liked it. When, after a few weeks, I started the vaguely, taking one tap class and one regular classes, I was the oldest one jazz class. Not an entire course, mind there and the only White Belt. you, one class. That was it. I went on The classes were a mixture of differto be a tomboy, growing up with an ent age groups and experience levels. I older brother in a neighborhood of worked hard. I punched and I kicked boys. I was always cognizant of my and I stood out like a sore thumb. Not size, needing the XL gym uniform in only was I the oldest, I was the only middle school, and never having a date White Belt and the only one without a to any of the school dances. As I got uniform. older I got heavier. I topped out at 230 But nothing was going to deter me pounds. from learning those 18 moves and I did eventually get married, but in learning them as perfectly as possible.

1983 when my son was three I went I looked at these kids every time I had through a divorce. That was maybe my to do my form in front of them and first transformation. I lost 60 pounds thought, “I have shoes older than by going to a lot of exercise classes and them.” putting myself first. It was a really hard I practiced at home every night. I thing to do after all those years of went to class two times a week and being told that I couldn’t do certain every Saturday morning. I went a third things. evening when I could manage it. I I remarried and had three more kids. couldn’t think of anything but My weight fluctuated over the next 18 Taekwondo and how it was making years. Three years ago, as I was me feel. embarking on menopause, I decided to Two months later Mr. Salomon said Sandy Gordon in fighting pose. start taking better care of myself. My I was ready to test. I couldn’t believe kids were heading it. Test? What did off to college and it that mean? was my turn to, Getting up in well, just be me. I front of people was almost done and performing? I being identified as didn’t know if I someone’s wife and could do that. someone’s mom. It The problem was time to focus on was: I still had no me. uniform. Master I was at a high Hemann procured school football a very old, faded game when Bret uniform from one Salomon from of his old schools.

Senior Master And, of course, Hemann’s Taekw- Sandy Gordon’s family, in back: Ben, Bruce, and Russell; in front: Becca, being the lowest ondo School here in Sandy holding Delilah, Shannon with Jameson, and Rachel. rank there, I had Omaha told me about Taekwondo. to go first. Master Hemann tried to put me at ease by I was intrigued, and asked him if a 53 year old woman introducing me from the school whose name was on the could learn to do this. He told me to come by on back of the “borrowed” uniform. That didn’t help Saturday and try it out. much. I did my form, I think. I did the One Steps, I I don’t ever recall, in my 53 years, setting a true goal think. I later was given a Certificate of Rank -- I had for myself. Sure there was college, marriage, kids. But advanced to Orange Belt-D. Granted, my name was those seemed very abstract and expected. I didn’t finish spelled wrong, but that hardly mattered. I passed withcollege but did the rest, I did all of those things that out passing out! were expected of me.

Not long after the first test, I asked Mr. Salomon how I walked into Senior Master Hemann’s School on that long it would take to get to Black Belt. He said about

What kind of Governor is Dave Heineman?

Find out the facts at

www.deficitdave.com Paid for by the Nebraska Democratic Party, 1327 H St, Suite 200, Lincoln, NE 68508

JOHN GALE FOR SECRETARY OF STATE Leadership & Integrity A fifth generation Nebraskan from North Platte, SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN GALE provides solid conservative leadership at the Capitol.

As a former businessman, JOHN GALE will continue to cut red tape and use our tax dollars wisely.

JOHN GALE has used technology to modernize our elections and provide 24/7 access for business and taxpayer services.

Paid for by Gale for Secretary of State, 101 So. Chestnut Street North Platte, NE 69101

On Tuesday, November 2,VOTE JOHN GALE for Secretary of State.

two years. Without even knowing it, I had set my first real goal. I did another tournament a year later in Central City as a Blue Belt. Again, 3rd place sparring. I limped all the way home, but the plaque sure looked good in my house.

Then, I received a phone call from my doctor: the rotator cuff of my right shoulder needed surgery. All I could say was, “There goes my Black Belt.” On May 5, I had my shoulder repaired. I missed only three classes.

On Testing Day, I met with a friend, who is a Black Belt. She gave me several small stones with Asian symbols and their meanings: Peace; Balance; Hope; Harmony; Serenity and Faith. I laid them out and contemplated which of these qualities best suited what I was up against later in the day. In Taekwondo we advocate virtues such as courtesy, respect, attitude, and perseverance. All of these things are important, but for some reason the stone with the word Faith is the one I was drawn to. My faith has always been a part of me.

Testing started promptly at 6:30 p.m.

Three of my four children were there (one was away in school), and I think they finally understood what I had been doing for two and a half years, and why. On April 29 of this past year I became a 1st Degree Black Belt in ATA Taekwondo.

Taekwondo has been a life changing event for me. It is the first time I feel that I am really doing something for me, that I am taking some ownership in what I have wanted to do with my life and my body and soul. I want it to be so perfect because that is how it makes me feel.

That is what it is giving to me, some kind of perfection to – not to sound cliché - complete me.

I am a 150 pound, 55 year old Jewish woman, who has four children, two grandchildren, a bad Achilles heel, and torn cartilage in my left knee. I’ve had two surgeries since starting this crazy thing. With pride, I walk around with bruises on my wrists from sparring.

How many women my age are doing what I am doing, period? I love it, and I show my scars with pride.

BIRTH Brandon and Rebecca (Demb) Schneider announce the Sept. 19 birth of their son, Ryan Blake.

He has a brother, Zachary David.

Grandparents are Dr. Larry and Marilyn Breslow Schneider of Cincinnati, OH, and Sharon and Marvin Demb of Pikesville, MD. Great-grandparents are the late Minnie and David Breslow of Lincoln, and the late Mary and Ed Schneider of Cincinnati, OH, and Esther Kruger and the late Zalmon Jerry Kruger, and the late Louis and Priscilla Demb of Pikesville, MD.

Page 8

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Israel can’t use Bible to justify claims, Mideast synod says

Actor Tom Bosley of Happy Days dies

by JTA NEWS STAFF tributed was meaningful to him, Bosley (JTA) -- Actor Tom Bosley, best told the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent. known as the Happy Days dad Howard “It was important for me as a Jew to Cunningham, has died. do it,” he told the newspaper. “I had Bosley died Tuesday at his home in lost a great uncle, whom I never met, in Palm Springs from heart failure due to the Holocaust.” lung cancer. He was 83.

Bosley, who was Jewish, was a Tony Award winner, but he gained his greatest fame as the patriarchal father of the Cunningham clan on Happy Days, the 1970s ABC sitcom about life in 1950s and early 1960s Milwaukee. Bosley was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1978. The show, which ran from 1974 to 1984 on the ABC During his career, Bosley often found himself playing non-Jewish Credit: ABC.com network, was No. 1 in characters, such as above on Happy Days. the Nielsen ratings during the 1976-77 Bosley reportedly found it amusing season. that he played numerous priests during Bosley also was known for his portray- his acting career even though he was al of the crime-solving priest on Father Jewish.

Dowling Mysteries and Sheriff Amos He won the Tony Award in 1960 for Tupper in Angela Lansbury’s Murder his role in Fiorello! In 1994 he returned She Wrote. to Broadway as Belle’s father in the He played himself in the 2004 movie original cast of the Disney musical Paper Clips, about the efforts of middle- Beauty and the Beast. His most recent school students in Whitwell, Tenn., to role was in the Jennifer Lopez movie collect 6 million paper clips in memory The Backup Plan. of the victims of the Holocaust.

A native of Chicago, he served in the The effort and the paper clip he con- U.S. Navy during World War II.

PETER SAGAL NOVEMBER 6 7:30 PM

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- A meeting of Mideast bishops declared that Israel cannot use the Bible to justify territorial claims to land in Israel. The final statement of the twoweek Synod of Bishops of the Middle East in Rome that ended Saturday blamed Israel for the conflict between the Jewish state and the Palestinians.

It rejected the use of the biblical position of the Promised Land to justify Jewish settlement of the West Bank.

“Recourse to theological and biblical positions which use the Word of God to wrongly justify injustices is not acceptable,” the bishops said.

The statement called for a two-state solution to the conflict and to create a peaceful atmosphere that will prevent an exodus of Christians from the region.

The document also criticized Jewish settlement of Jerusalem, saying that “We have meditated on the situation of the holy city of Jerusalem. We are anxious about the unilateral initiatives that threaten its composition and risk to change its

demographic balance.”

Participants included more than 170 Catholic bishops from Muslim countries, as well as other Church figures and nonCatholic representatives and experts.

Israel’s Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon rejected the statement.

“We express our disappointment that this important Synod has become a forum for political attacks on Israel in the best history of Arab propaganda,” Ayalon said. “The Synod was hijacked by an antiIsrael majority.”

In his Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Benedict XVI called on countries in the Middle East to guarantee religious freedom to non-Muslims. He said Middle East peace and a two-state solution were vital to solving the problems of the region.

“Peace is possible. Peace is urgent.

Peace is an indispensable condition for a life worthy of the human person and of society,” the pope said. “Peace is also the best remedy to avoid immigration from the Middle East.”

Bill gives national priority to Jerusalem

by JTA NEWS STAFF JERUSALEM (JTA) -- An Israeli Knesset committee advanced a bill that would give national priority to Jerusalem in areas such as housing construction and education. The measure approved Sunday by the ministerial committee on legislation is designed to push investment in Jerusalem and encourage Jerusalem residents to stay in the capital.

A preliminary reading of the legislation, proposed by Uri Ariel of the National

Union Party, is expected this week in the Israeli parliament, according to reports.

At least 39 of the Knesset’s 120 lawmakers already have signed on to the bill, Haaretz reported.

The bill could raise some hackles.

Though not mentioned specifically, the housing grants could cover Jewish neighborhoods in eastern Jerusalem, according to reports.

Ariel said the bill would bring “an end to the illegal building freeze” in the capital.

True Italian Food C a f e

|

B a r

|

&

D e l i

Enjoy our Outside Patio Seating Live Music in the Plaza every Friday Night

PrivatePartyRoom

CateringAvailable

Lunch » Monday-Friday 11:00-2:00 Dinner » Monday-Saturday 4:30-On

402.391.2585 RockbrookVillage|108thandWestCenterRoad 11027PrairieBrookRoad|Omaha,NE68144|www.PastaAmore.net

Bar & Bat Mitzvahs Let Us BeYour Party Planning Coordinators

Join NPR’s “Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me” host for an evening full of stories and laughter.

!"#$ %& ()*+(,*+(,(, - ./01203405+657

W W 2010-2011

Full-service Event Planning Packages Flexible and Adaptable to Your Needs 25 Years of Experience in Memorable Celebrations of Life Events Great Central Location Complimentary Local Area Shuttle Complimentary Custom Web Page For reservations or more information call 516-3617

10220 Regency Circle, Omaha, NE 68114-3766

Out

Dining

October 29, 2010

Trick or treat: Seeking a sign from Houdini

by EDMON J. RODMAN side, then no one can,” said Dietrich, who is known for LOS ANGELES (JTA) -- On Halloween, the anniver- having duplicated many of Houdini’s famous escapes. sary of his death, Harry Houdini will be back on stage.

In recounting the history of the Houdini seance, The Jewish Museum in New York is opening a new Scranton museum co-director Dick Brookz explains that exhibition, “Houdini: Art and Magic,” on Oct. 29, and for 10 years after Houdini’s death, the magician’s wife, curator Brooke Kamin Rapaport says the entrance Bess, would hold a seance on Oct. 31. Once she gallery will feature a replica stage projecting a life-size stopped, the tradition was passed on to others. image of the great Jewish magician performing his water “Houdini spent his life debunking charlatans, expostorture act. ing them on a regular basis,” It’s a new way to keep alive Brookz said. the memory of Houdini, joinEver fearful that frauds would ing an annual seance that seeks take advantage of his death, to contact the daring escape untimely or otherwise, artist and a graveside ceremoHoudini provided his wife ny for a man who was called with a code to authenticate his “The World’s Handcuff King return. and Prison Breaker” and the “The code was based on “Justly World-Famous Self‘Rosabelle Believe,’” Brookz Liberator.” related. “It was the name of a Born Ehrich Weiss in popular song of the time.”

Budapest, Hungary, in 1874, The museum’s seance will be Houdini was the son of a rabbi open to the public for a fee. who immigrated with his fam“People can also try and conily to Wisconsin in 1878. tact Houdini that day, and e“Coming to America, mail us with a report,” Brookz Houdini’s family faced a lot of said. The museum’s email the same issues that other address is magicus@comcast.

Jewish immigrants faced, net. including anti-Semitism,” said The museum’s website advisRapaport. es “No kooks please, this is a “I never was ashamed to serious seance test and seance acknowledge that I was a Jew, tribute.” and never will be,” Houdini is After Halloween, another parEhrich Weiss, alias Harry Houdini, during one of his quoted as writing to a friend in ticipant on The Jewish performances. Credit: Americaslibrary.com the show’s sepia-toned and Museum’s panel discussion, well-documented catalog. magician George Schindler will be among several magiAccording to the exhibition wall text written by cians paying their respects at Houdini’s grave at the Rapaport, his escapes “had particular resonance for Machpelah Cemetery in the Queens borough of New those who sought liberation from political, ethnic, or York City. Houdini is interred there in a bronze casket religious persecution.” created for his buried-alive stunt.

Generally considered among the most famous magiSchindler, the dean of the Society of American cians ever, Houdini died on Oct. 31, 1926, probably as Magicians, and the others at the cemetery will be a result of appendicitis compounded by a blow to the remembering Houdini at a ceremony that includes stomach.

Hebrew prayer.

“He really was involved with the new media of this “We used to perform the ceremony on Halloween, time. He was a savvy marketer,” said Rapaport while tak- but it became too much of a zoo,” he said. “So we ing a short break from installing the more than 160 moved it to the Hebrew date of his death. This year the objects, including advertising posters and broadsides dates coincide, so we are doing it on the day he was that Houdini used to promote his shows. buried, Nov. 4.”

Also on display will be works by artists influenced by Schindler and members of his society informally take Houdini and magic apparatus he made famous: hand- care of the Houdini grave site. cuffs, shackles, a straitjacket, a milk can and a packing Schindler noted that in the “broken wand ceremony” trunk, as well as a re-creation of the famous Water the magicians hold for Houdini, the wand, broken in the Torture Cell. silence of the cemetery, symbolizes the magician’s death.

Included, too, are everyday objects like those used in Houdini was concerned for the welfare of other magithe East India Needle Threading Trick, where Houdini cians and performers, Schindler said, and toward that would swallow needles and thread before slowly pulling end he started an organization to help them and the Red the line from his mouth with the needles threaded on it. Cross.

As for Oct. 31, Rapaport doesn’t expect anything Rabbis’ Sons, as it was called, raised $8,000 to aid the unusual to happen.

Red Cross, according to a 1918 edition of The New York “You’ll be the first one to know,” the curator quipped. Times. Among its members: Al Jolson and Irving Berlin.

The Jewish Museum also will be presenting a panel “Upon his death, his wife, Bess, left $1,000 to the discussion titled “Conjuring Houdini in the Popular magicians’ society for a Houdini Fund,” Schindler said.

Imagination.” Dorothy Dietrich, a magician who has “The fund, now around $300,000, is used to support appeared on stage and TV, will be among the panelists. magicians who have fallen ill or who have been injured.

Dietrich’s Houdini-related expectations for Oct. 31? It covers expenses not normally covered by insurance She’ll be waiting for a sign. like wheelchairs, nurses and comfort assistance.”

“At 1:26 p.m., the time when Houdini died, a group Schindler recalled one last way of remembering will sit around a table and join hands,” said Dietrich, Houdini. who will function as the medium at a seance run by the “At the graveside ceremony a rabbi is present,” he Harry Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pa., where she is said. “We say Kaddish.” co-director.

Edmon J. Rodman is a JTA columnist who writes on At the given moment, Dietrich will begin the seance Jewish life from Los Angeles. Contact him at edmoby saying, “Houdini, if you are here, give us a sign.” jace@gmail.com.

“Houdini said that if he can’t escape from the other

ORGANIZATIONS Dick Fellman, former county commissioner, Fulbright Scholar and now a member of the political science faculty at UNO will analyze election results from around the country and what it means for America on Wednesday, Nov. 3, noon at the Blumkin Home. An optional buffet lunch costs $13; beverage service is $3.

For more information or to be placed on the e-mail list call 334.6443 or bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.

LOMIR REDN YIDDISH Yiddish words have made their way into every phase of modern life, show biz, law, classrooms, etc. Come join

us at our new meeting room (across from the beauty salon) at the Blumkin Home, every Thursday, 1-3 pm.

For information, call Anne Skolkin at 343.1638.

JEWISH WOMEN INTERNATIONAL Jewish Women International, Omaha chapter, is hosting their Mah Jongg tournament on Sunday, Nov. 7 at 12:30 p.m. at the JCC. Sign-in time will be noon. The cost for participants is $18. Please make reservations by Monday, Nov. 1. Checks should be made out to Rosalie Greenspan. For more information, call Rosalie: 391.1954, or Esther: 393.4442.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

“since 1920”

Page 9

3151/2 So. 16th St.

CANTONESE FOODS and CHINESE FAMILY-STYLE DINNERS • Luncheon Specials 11-2 Mon-Sat • DINNER SERVED 5-9 Mon-Sat • Take Out Orders Available to 9 pm OPEN Daily 11 am-9 pm CLOSED Sundays & Holidays

341-3437

JIM & JENNIE’S GREEK VILLAGE Traditional Greek Dishes

♦ Roast Lamb ♦ Fish Plaki ♦ Stuffed Grape Leaves ♦ Chicken Reganato ♦ Souviaki ♦ Mousaka

♦ Sanganaki ♦ Spanakopita ♦ Lamb Kabob ♦ Chicken Kabob ♦ Seafood Specialties ♦ Full Bar

TAKE-OUT

CATERING

3026 No. 90th St. • 571-2857

R O Ñ E S AS î T A M 90th & Arbor 391-0191

Fax: 391-1086 Mon-Sat 11am-1am Sun 4pm-9pm Locally Owned & Operated

LUNCH SPECIALS Serving Mexican Food • Fajitas • Tacos • Enchiladas • Tamales Full American Menu • Steaks • Sea Food •Prime Rib • BBQ Ribs • Chicken Childrens Menu Available Party Room Available

When people mention Jack & Mary’s, they’re talking

Chicken!

RESTAURANT

Lunch and Dinner Miracle Hills Square

Steaks • Seafood Chicken 114th & Dodge 496-2090

Your Recipe for Great Food!

Claudia s r e n n i w 1 part Bread - Mac e s o o G n o 1 part Ne ’s Grille i x a T s l a u Eq

Now Serving Saturday Lunch Lunch:Tuesday - Saturday Famous Sunday: Brunch 10 am - 2 pm Dinner:Tuesday - Thursday 5 - 10 pm Dinner Friday + Saturday 5 - 11 pm

1/2 Price Bottled of Wine Tuesday + Wednesday

1822 N. 120 St. Omaha 402.898.1882

Page 10

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

PRINTING, COPYING and DIGITAL NETWORK

3706 South 132nd Street • 402/330-5050

Letterhead • Brochures • Newsletters Business Cards • Mailers • Postcards

John Sieler E VOT

State Board of Education Paid for by John Sieler, 7801 Woolworth Ave, Omaha, NE 68124

.

R .2 E V B EM NO M E RE OT V TO

For

Learning Community Council Leadership, Collaboration, Experience “The Learning Community Council has shown how much can be accomplished if professional-minded school leaders promote constructive dialogue.”

– Omaha World-Herald editorial

Vote for Nancy Jacobson Learning Community Council Paid for by Nancy Jacobson for Learning Community Council, David Jacobson, Treasurer

nancyjacobsonforlearningcommunity.blogspot.com

✓ VOTE

General election is Tuesday, Nov. 2 AMERICA DECIDES 2010 Editor’s note: According to Jewish Press election policies, this newspaper neither endorses candidates nor political parties. However, the Press welcomes advertisements and statements from candidates which we offer to our readers as a civic service. As of press time, these were the only statements received.

RICK BOUCHER LANCASTER COUNTY ATTORNEY I’m Rick Boucher. I want to be the next Lancaster County Attorney. A trial lawyer in Lincoln for nearly 30 years, I have built a successful law firm. I have worked with police and prosecutors since my law school days in Philadelphia at the District Attorney’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office. I will tackle problems with fresh solutions. My top priorities will be to improve public safety, maintain fairness and integrity within the County Attorney’s Office, and reduce taxpayers’ financial support. I do not plan to increase the budget. I will do more with less.

I love this community and have raised my family here. As Vice Chair of the Lincoln Community Health Endowment and Lincoln Charter Review Commission, I try to help lead our community. I am Special Counsel to organizations as diverse as the Nebraska Realtors and the Nebraska Sheriffs.

The court system must be fair and just for all. No one is above the law, and no one should feel below the law. Many do not feel that the law protects or serves them. My mother is of foreign descent, so I have an idea of how it feels when the law is indifferent. Also, in 1986, I helped the Senators Jerry Chizek (Millard) and Peter Hoagland (Omaha), along with the Anti Defamation League, pass LB 772 that would prohibit paramilitary organizations that preach racial hatred and create civil disorder against religious organizations. I learned how deep the hatred is within these armed extremist groups.

The legal system must be just and fair. With any new proposal, I will ask: Will it make the county safer? The second inquiry is whether it is fair and just to all. Thank you.

For more information: RickBoucher2010. com.

NANCY JACOBSON COUNCIL MEMBER, ACHIEVEMENT SUBCOUNCIL # 1 I have been married to my husband David for 35 years and we are the proud parents of 4 OPS graduates, 3 who have graduated from college and our youngest is currently in his senior year in college. I have an MSW from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

I am honored to represent District 1 of the Learning Community of Douglas and Sarpy Counties and I am running for re-election because I believe providing an excellent education is essential to a quality community.

There is a compelling need for the Learning Community because every child deserves a quality education. The Learning Community provides leadership to address the achievement gap. The innovative Elementary Learning Centers will connect students and families to services beyond the school day to help children learn the basic skills in reading, writing and mathematics so that more children will stay in school and move on to make a positive impact on our community.

The goal of providing an excellent education for all students requires community decision to fund our schools adequately. The Learning Community’s common levy authority provides a needs based formula that is fair for distributing funds that are needed now more than ever to educate our children. Our state is mandated to provide adequate funding for public education and I would like state funding for education to be a higher priority.

The Learning Community was created to equalize the socioeconomic diversity throughout all of our community because the disparity in achievement is too great. Good communication and compromise were used by the Learning Community to develop an equity plan and open enrollment policy to encourage socioeconomic diversity by providing more choice for students and families. Studies show that student achievement can be raised in a diverse classroom. Diversity will help students prepare for an increasingly diverse world.

Russian census to find large Jewish drop, expert predicts

TODD

FRAZIER S TAT E L E G I S L AT U R E

District 6 Paid for by Todd Frazier for State Legislature

by JTA NEWS STAFF MOSCOW (JTA) -- The Russian census under way will show a Jewish decline of as much as 25 percent, a specialist on Russian Jewish demography predicts. The estimate by Mark Kupovetsky, director of biblical and Judaic studies at the Russian State University for the Humanities, for the 2010 census is based on the stable decline of the Jewish population in Russia over the past years, as death rates rise and birthrates fall.

Kupovetsky told the Russian news agency RIA Novosti at a news conference last week that he believes the current census will show 40,000 to 60,000 fewer Jews than the 233,000 Jews from the most recent Russian census, in 2002. The first post-World War II census, in 1959, revealed 875,000 Jews.

Census workers frequently fail to ask respondents to declare their ethnic origins, Kupovetsky said. Evgenia Mikhalyova, head of the Federal Jewish Cultural Autonomy, told JTA that she declared herself Jewish only to be asked by the interviewer, “Are you positive?”

Kupovetsky said the Jewish birthrate is dropping because the majority of the Jewish population is urbanized and families have one or two children.

According to the demographer, half

of the Jewish population in Russia lives in Moscow and its suburbs, and 20 percent lives in the St. Petersburg area. The rest reside in cities with populations over 1 million.

Ongoing assimilation is another reason for the decline of the Jewish population in Russia, according to Kupovetsky. Up to 90 percent of Russia’s Jewish children now come from mixed marriages, he said.

In addition, between the census of 1989 and that of 2002, about 40 percent of the Jewish population left the country.

Emigration does not play a significant part in the Jewish population numbers, since it is counterbalanced by re-immigration, Kupovetsky said.

Berel Lazar, one of the two chief rabbis of Russia, recently told the German President Christian Woolf that the Russian Jews who left for Germany in the 1990s are now streaming back to Russia.

The potential inaccuracies notwithstanding, the census will serve as the only source of information about the numbers of the Jewish population in Russia because since the 1990s, no statistical data on mortality, marriages and birth have been collected based on ethnic groups.

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 11

Unifying factor in 2010 election: Never before

by RON KAMPEAS Ark.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Russ Feingold (D- -- it’s not hard to pick a side there.”

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Talk to veteran campaign Wis.).

Boxer, a Jewish candidate who is facing former watchers about this year’s congressional races, and withOthers at risk are rallying in the final weeks and have Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, is likewise considin seconds they will tell you that they’ve never before attracted a late burst of pro-Israel attention, including ered important because of the recent trend among liberseen elections quite like these.

Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) al Democrats to question Israeli policies.

“We’ve never seen a cycle where there’s been this many and Patty Murray (D-Wash.).

“She’s very liberal but also a leader,” said a donor who races this close to an election and you don’t is close to top Democrats and did not want know how it’s going to come out,” said Joy to be further identified. “She puts her Malkus, the research director at the name on pro-Israel legislation.”

Chicago-based Joint Action Committee for Getting to know you: the Tea Partiers Political Affairs, or JACPAC, a group that Reid’s race is also considered critical directs funding to candidates who are probecause he is facing Angle, who like most of Israel and moderate on social issues. “And the candidates backed by the Tea Party I’ve been doing this since 1982.” movement is friendly to Israel but also seeks Ben Chouake, president of NORPAC, a budget cuts across the board. That makes New Jersey-based, pro-Israel political her anathema to groups like JACPAC that action committee, agreed. are concerned about social services.

“This one has taken twists and turns that The Tea Party also makes some prosurprise almost all of us that follow these Israel conservatives nervous because some events,” he said. “I’ve never seen anything in the movement want to slash foreign like this in all the years I’ve been doing this funding, although they have promised to -- in my lifetime.” work out a way to maintain funding for Despite the unfamiliarity of the terrain, Israel. Some say that reveals a misunderthe rules of the Jewish fund-raising road standing of the holistic nature of foreign remain the same: Stick with your friends aid: If aid is cut across the board, it signals and get to know unknowns as fast as possian isolationism that can only harm Israel in ble. the long run even if it benefits from shortIn fact, the only change might be to term exceptions. append a “more-so": There are many more “The pro-Israel community has the friends at risk, and there are a lot more challenge of keeping up foreign aid overunknowns. An anti-incumbent surge Tea Partiers rally against Nevada Sen. Harry Reid in the Senate majority leader’s hometown all” if Tea Party candidates score major already has had an impact in the primaries, of Searchlight. successes, said an insider associated with ousting a clutch of incumbents in the Senate, where Reid, the majority leader, is facing a tough challenge AIPAC. races generally are much more expensive than in the from Sharron Angle, the Tea Party-backed Republican That effort to keep up foreign aid already is under way, House of Representatives. challenger. Reid is considered critical by the pro-Israel and pro-Israel insiders report warm conversations with “The thing that has created the greatest demand for community because he has taken the lead in helping to Angle in addition to Mike Lee, the Republican candidate money in the pro-Israel world are all these open Senate shepherd through Iran sanctions legislation. He’s also in Utah whose Tea Party insurgency unseated longtime seats,” said Lonny Kaplan, a veteran pro-Israel giver who seen as having advanced pro-Israel defenses, most incumbent GOP Sen. Bob Bennett, and Ken Buck, who is based in Philadelphia’s New Jersey suburbs and a past recently in a letter with his Republican counterpart, Sen. is challenging Colorado’s Bennet. president of the American Israel Public Affairs Mitch McConnel (R-Ky.), pressing President Obama to Other Tea Party candidates have kept their distance Committee. designate the Turkish group behind the Gaza Strip aid from the pro-Israel community. They include Senate A greater demand and, according to insiders, a sur- flotilla as terrorist. hopefuls Joe Miller, a Republican who is leading in prisingly greater supply considering the economy’s narIf Reid goes, and if the Senate changes hands, its pro- Alaska, and Rand Paul in Kentucky. row straits. Matt Brooks, who directs the Republican Israel cast is not likely to change: McConnell is also Paul’s association with his father, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul Jewish Coalition, said he has never seen money flowing solidly pro-Israel, and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), (R-Texas), whose isolationist polices have resulted in like this in a non-presidential election year. perhaps the chamber’s most stalwart Israel defender one of the worst pro-Israel records in the House, as well “This is the largest effort our leaders have made in a (and a Jew from Brooklyn), likely would replace Reid. as the younger Paul’s reluctance to parry outside of his midterm -- ever,” he said.

Yet pro-Israel insiders say it remains a priority to keep inner circle, have conferred upon his opponent, Here are some races to watch in this very watchable in place a party leader who has been a proven champion Democrat Jack Conway, the rare status of favored proseason: of Israel.

Israel candidate in an open race. The pro-Israel donor Endangered incumbents: The triumvirate “I’ve worked very hard for Harry Reid’s campaign, community as a rule attempts to split the difference in A number of pro-Israel incumbents are at risk in the and the pro-Israel community has been very very sup- such races, not wishing to alienate either side.

Senate. Some already have been or are almost being portive of him,” Kaplan said. “It’s a very tough race.

“Conway has great position papers on all of our issues written off, among them U.S. Sens. Blanche Lincoln (D- From my perspective we have a very friendly incumbent Continued on page 12

JANET STEWART FOR S.O.S. Nebraska’s Secretary of State combines electronic vote counting with a state law that does not allow manual recount. This invites election manipulation.

Janet Stewart should be elected Secretary of State on Nov. 2 to correct this.

Paid for by Don Eret, 712 Lincoln Ave., Dorchester, NE 68343

Governor Dave Heineman

Vote for

Guiding Nebraska through tough economic times As the economy slowed, Governor Heineman took control…

Built a strong cash reserve Controlled spending to balance our budget — without raising taxes Prioritized education funding Worked with the Legislature to pass a comprehensive jobs bill Kept unemployment rates in Nebraska among the lowest in the nation.

Steady Leadership.

Our Governor.

Dave Heineman.

Paid for by the Governor Heineman Committee | 1610 N St, Suite 100 Lincoln, NE 68508

Burke Harr STATE LEGISLATURE

District 8

Paid for by Burke Harr for State Legislature

Page 12

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Unifying factor in 2010 election: Never before Continued from page 11 -- Israel, [reproductive] choice and separation of church and state,” JACPAC’s Malkus said. “Rand Paul is not good on any of our issues.”

Unlikely challenges to incumbents -and unlikely incumbent House Democrats facing challenging races across the country fall into two categories: Those who just months ago were seen as sure bets, and those who beat the odds to win in 2006 and 2008, when Democrats scored victories over a weakened Republican Party. In 2008, those underdog Democrats were buoyed by voters enthusiastic about presidential candidate Barack Obama.

A typical candidate who used to be seen as safe but now is in jeopardy is Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.), who defeated his current opponent, Republican Allen West, by 10 points in 2008. Klein has strongly supported Israel in a heavily Jewish district that includes patches of Broward and Palm Beach counties.

West, however, has posed a formidable challenge this time, in part by linking Klein to a president perceived as less friendly to Israel than his predecessors, and in part because of anxieties among retirees over reports that Obama’s health care reform will suck funds from Medicare, the government-funded insurance plan for retirees. An AfricanAmerican Iraq war veteran, West also has an Achilles’ heel: Most recently he was associated with a biker gang that does not admit Jews or blacks as members.

Another Florida Jewish congressman is typical of the other column. In 2008, Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), facing an incumbent weakened by a strong primary

challenge, swept in a district that encompasses Orlando and leans Republican.

Grayson, one of the most outspoken critics nationwide of the Republicans, is

the commandments in question.

Which pro-Israel are you?

Two major campaigns have split the pro-Israel community: Rep. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) vs. Alex Giannoulias for the open U.S. Senate seat in Illinois, and Rep. Joe Sestak (DPa.) vs.

Pat Toomey for the open Senate seat in Pennsylvania.

JACPAC is backing Sestak because of the organization’s twin missions of supporting Israel and moderate social policies.

Toomey, Malkus Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is facing a tough Tea-Party notes, voted challenger in Sharron Angle. Credit: Brian Finifter against foreign now in trouble, with outside Republican- aid more often than not when he was a affiliated groups pouring money into congressman in the late 1990s and early negative campaign ads. He has offset the 2000s. blitz by raising four times as much as his On the other hand, Sestak has been tarRepublican opponent, Daniel Webster, in geted by right-wing groups like the individual donations, stemming from the Emergency Committee for Israel for his joy his politically incorrect broadsides associations with the left-wing pro-Israel bring the Democratic base. lobby J Street.

Grayson has accused Republicans of By and large, however, J Street associawanting the uninsured to die. tions have not figured large in the camNonpartisan campaign watchers criticized paign, said Kaplan, who is backing the Grayson recently for a TV ad that edited Democratic incumbent Rush Holt in remarks to make Webster appear as if he New Jersey. were endorsing New Testament comJACPAC is staying out of the Kirkmands that wives should submit to their Giannoulias race because of Kirk’s leaderhusbands. In fact, Webster was advising ship role on pro-Israel issues in the Christian fathers that they should ignore House and his record as a Republican

I am extremely proud to serve Nebraska’s second district in Congress.

I am dedicated to cutting federal spending, decreasing the deficit and fighting for Nebraska families.

I would be honored to have your vote on November 2nd.

Lee Terry

Paid for by Lee Terry for Congress

moderate.

NORPAC’s Choauake referred to Kirk’s seminal role in shaping the enhanced Iran sanctions legislation that passed over the summer.

“He’s brilliant and hard working; he’s a mover and a shaker,” he said of Kirk. “He can get stuff done -- he knows how to strategize to get to the finish line.”

Races to watch? Try people to watch Pro-Israel and Jewish money sometimes goes to candidates not because they need it, but because the community sees a future with the person in question.

That’s the case with Kelly Ayotte, a Republican leading in the open race for New Hampshire’s U.S. Senate seat, and Chris Coons, a Democrat in the same position in Delaware.

Ayotte “is someone who’s going to get into the Senate and do well,” Chouake said. “She’s been supported by Democratic and Republican governors as attorney general, which means she must be highly respected. She’s going to be a prime candidate for executive branch if they’re looking for a young Republican woman.”

The same is true of Coons, until now a little-known county executive, said the pro-Israel insider close to Democrats.

“He’s very much up on the issues, very foreign policy attuned,” the insider said.

“He pronounced [Iranian President] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad correctly.”

Reach out to the outreachers Asked why he was backing Ayotte in the New Hampshire Senate race instead of Rep. Paul Hodes (D-N.H.), a Jewish congressman with a solid-pro-Israel voting record, NORPAC’S Chouake’s answer was simple: “She called me. He didn’t.”

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 13

Jan Schakowsky and Jewish politics: the good, the bad, and the meshuggeneh

by EMILY GILLER “You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” –Leviticus 19:34.

For most Jewish people, this passage is the same passage that has been read several hundreds of times in Hebrew school. It is the passage from the Torah that describes what the Lord commanded the Israelites to do on Mount Sinai. For Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) though, this passage was a crucial argument that she used when discussing the issue of immigration.

Schakowsky, who is known for being a “leading advocate for women’s issues in Congress,” especially women who have immigrated to the United States, is also Jan Schakowsky known for being a strong Jewish woman in politics.

“I am constantly making reference to either my Jewish up-bringing, or something about our traditions.

It’s something I wear proudly, being a Jewish member of Congress and being a Jewish person,” Schakowsky said.

Schakowsky, who is up for re-election this year, was first elected in 1998 to serve the 9th district of Illinois, which consists of Evanston and areas around Evanston.

She is currently in her sixth term.

Schakowsky also has strong ties to Omaha. She is a cousin to Alvin Abramson and the late Doris Abramson and visited Omaha last December to support fellow democrat, Tom White, in his race to Congress against incumbent, Lee Terry. According to Abramson, while Schakowsky was in Omaha, she gave an encouraging speech in honor of White and also discussed Health Care Reform.

Beyond health care and women’s issues though, Schakowsky serves on many committees such as: the House Democratic Leadership, where she is Chief Deputy Whip and a member of the Steering and Policy Committee. She is also a part of the Energy and Commerce Committee, where she serves as Vice-Chair of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection. She is also a member of the Subcommittee on Health and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. Also, Schakowsky was appointed to serve on the House Select Committee on Intelligence by Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2007. Speaker Pelosi also appointed Schakowsky to serve on President Obama’s National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.

With such a long list of positions, one would think that politics have been an intricate part of her life from the very beginning. However, Schakowsky graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in elementary education, not political science.

Schakowsky actually got her start in politics in the late ‘60s when she took a leave of absence from teaching to raise her children. According to Schakowsky, in the “dark ages known as 1969,” she noticed grocery stores wouldn’t print expiration dates on food items, and in turn, would try to sell consumers old food products.

Schakowsky and five other women who called themselves “National Consumers United,” fought for better quality food products for consumers.

“We started cracking the codes and we would do that by pushing the stock boys up against the shelves and asking them how they knew to put the old products up in front. In fact, we found things that were days, weeks and even years old,” Schakowsky said.

That was Schakowsky’s first step into politics. The “National Consumers United” won their case and all members became shareholders in stores in their area.

From that point on, they would go to stores and do local inspections and television appearances.

“Finally one of our food chains started advertising, ‘Come here, we have freshness dates on all our food.’

And everything started to snowball and before you knew it, without legislation, most things had dates on it and although it didn’t change the world, it really changed my life. I thought if I could do this, what else could I do?” Schakowsky said.

After conquering the expiration dates, Schakowsky worked as a community organizer until 1990 when she was elected into the State Legislature.

“It took a long time to make the connection to electoral politics but I thought, you know, this is another way to make changes and help everyday people by getting involved in the political arena,” Schakowsky said.

Schakowsky made a point to mention that a lot of citizens in her district welcomed her help whole-heartedly due in part to her “Jewish sensibilities,” which she uses to “fight discrimination.” She also noted that a large percentage of Muslims live in her district, and are supportive of what she stands for and what she believes in.

“I’m not just against anti-Semitism, but all sorts of discrimination and have a strong support for human rights. They appreciate that about me. So I will stand with them for their right to have a mosque in the community so they can have the same right to religion as everyone. It’s something that’s out there and something that I’m proud of,” Schakowsky said.

Schakowsky also touched on the subject of AntiSemitism, particularly the comments made by Helen Thomas earlier this year. Schakowsky who looked at Thomas as a “pioneer in journalism,” took notice of Thomas’ devastating comments toward Jews and Israel.

“She broke new ground for women and became the front seat at the White House Press Corp. She was always asking the first question and that’s what I knew of Helen Thomas,” Schakowsky said. “After she said what she said, I felt I had to comment on how incredibly inappropriate her remarks had been. Even though she had a long and pioneering career, this was not ever an excuse for the anti-Semitic remarks that she made.”

These derogatory comments and the topic of Israel in particular have a strong impact on Schakowsky.

According to her official website, schakowsky.house. gov, she has a “deep connection to the State of Israel.”

She also has traveled to Israel while serving in the Illinois State Legislature, although she said national issues weren’t discussed too often in the legislature. It wasn’t until she was elected into Congress that Schakowsky was really able to touch on issues concerning Israel and the United States’ partnership.

“We make sure that there is a broad-based bi-partisan support, which there always is — to make sure that funding is never in jeopardy and in general, to support the security of our most important ally in the Middle East, which is Israel,” Schakowsky said.

Schakowsky also mentions that a fair amount of time and energy is used focusing on Israel and Middle Eastern affairs, not just by Jewish members but also by the entire administration and all of Congress.

A particular topic that is constantly discussed by Congress and politicians from all over is the subject of a two-state solution for Israel. Schakowsky is one of the politicians who is a strong supporter of a two-state solution.

“The demographics are clear, that without a two-state solution it will be hard for Israel to remain a Jewish and democratic state because of the way the population is growing. The Palestinians would outnumber the Jewish Israelis… there needs to be a two-state solution or the conflict will continue,” Schakowsky said.

She also mentions that after having various talks and meetings, Prime Minister Netanyahu is “really serious” about moving in the direction of a two-state solution.

Netanyahu has also been pressing for, with the backing of the United States, direct talks with the Palestinians, with the final outcome being two states.

Schakowsky also said that it would be beneficial for the Palestinians to work with Israel instead of against Israel because the economy in the West Bank is substantially more stable than the economy in Gaza.

“We’re hoping the Palestinian people in Gaza will also see that continuing with Hamas is a fruitless direction to bring the type of prosperity, as well as peace, to Gaza,” Schakowsky said.

Politicians such as Schakowsky agree that in order for the state of Israel to exist, violence in the Middle East needs to cease so a peaceful settlement can be reached.

However, only time will tell what Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli people decide to do.

As a member of Congress, Schakowsky spends a lot of time in the public eye, but beyond all the work, all the campaigning and all the press, she remains true to her views, her politics and her religion.

“People knew then, they know now, they know always that I am Jewish and they understand my undying support for the State of Israel,” Schakowsky said.

RICK BOUCHER LANCASTER COUNTY ATTORNEY

Paid for by Boucher for County Attorney Committee, 5555 S. 27th Street, Lincoln, NE 68512

Jeff Fortenberry United States Congress For America. For Nebraska ECONOMIC SECURITY Reigning in government overspending, encouraging small business AMERICAN SECURITY Strengthening national security, borders, and diplomacy FAMILY SECURITY Upholding strong family life and culture

I would appreciate your vote on November 2nd!

Paid for by Jeff Fortenberry for U.S. Congress Committee. www.SupportFort.com

ELECT JANET STEWART for Secretary of State BECAUSE IT’S TIME...

It’s time to end partisan imbalance in our statewide offices and Congressional seats- better for Nebraska and our Democracy.

It’s time for a new perspective in Nebraska government- a new voice to serve as our next Secretary of State.

It’s time to encourage more Nebraskans to participate in the political processregister, vote and run for elected office.

www.janetstewart2010.com www.jan

Paid for by Stewart for Secretary S t off State St t 509 W Westt Military Milit Ave. - Fremont, NE 68025

PROGRESSIVES, MODERATES, PLEDGE INDEPENDENTS TO-DO LIST q REGISTER 1. PLEDGE to vote again in 2010 2. Find your polling location and REGISTER to vote q DOWNLOAD 3. DOWNLOAD a “Bold Voter Guide” q VOLUNTEER 4. VOLUNTEER to come “Trick or Voting” with us on Halloween... and yes we want you in costume! q

PAID FOR BY BOLD NEBRASKA, 1141 H ST., 3RD FLOOR, LINCOLN, NEB 68508

Page 14

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

A Nebraska Staycation THE HISTORIAN’S F OOTPRINT

by OLIVER B. POLLAK This Labor Day, although it took some persuading, we found ourselves on the road by 8 a.m., and headed to Fremont. The highway nowadays bypasses Hooper’s historic train engines and carriages, as well as West Point, Norfolk, and Neligh. After three hours, my wife Karen and I arrived at Ashfall, Nebraska’s newest state park. We stepped into the past, and found ourselves in a landscape of 1.2 million years ago.

Darwin and his evolution are not in conflict with the earth being made in seven days, or the Hebrew calendar, Bone display at Ashfall unless one is a fundamentalist of the blindest conviction. Popular science fiction films like Jurassic Park (1993) set 200 million years ago, or 2012, with its seismic and tectonic extinction and Noah-like rescue of humans, dramatize and simplify prehistoric cataclysms.

Around 12 million years ago a volcano erupted in southwest Idaho. It spewed a cloud of ash that stopped small Female Rhino skeleton animals in their tracks, and downed the larger ones within a matter of days. It preserved them, much like Mount Vesuvius did to Pompeii in 79 C.E. Farmers in nearby Royal and Antelope County have been finding jaws, skulls, and teeth of ancient animals for almost a hundred years. The search turned serious and academic in 1971, when the University of Nebraska’s paleontologists became involved. The park

opened in 1991, and roads were paved in 1995. Most recently, the Hubbard Rhino Barn, completed in 2009, has created an international center of fossil research.

No word less than “amazing” is appropriate, although my wife Karen prefers “awesome.” Who would have thought that Northeast Nebraska was ever a subtropical savannah? And if you doubt that, what do you conclude about a cluster of 24 intact and scavenged skeletons in the space of half a basketball court? Killed and petrified in the catastrophe were 16 barrel-bodied rhinos, four three-toed stallions, two giraffe-camels, and a musk deer; all were caught in their tracks near a watering hole.

Those animals that survived the initial disaster grazed on ash-covered grass, and filled their lungs with the abrasive powder. Blowing and drifting ash covered their bodies, and sometimes they were preserved in the position in which they died, food still in their mouths.

The fossil beds were discovered in 1971, when paleontologist Mike Voorhees discovered the skull of a rhino calf in the wall of a ravine in a pasture on Melvin Colson’s farm.

That skull was part of a complete skeleton embedded in volcanic ash.

More than 200 skeletons were removed.

Then, in 1986, the Nebraska Games and Parks Commission purchased the land. Five years later, the park welcomed its first visitors.

My wife Karen and I visited on Labor Day, the last day the park was opened. There is something climatically predictable about Labor Day. It is time for the pools to close, for the heat to break, for the season to end. So when you start planning for next spring, make a resolution to visit one of Nebraska’s treasures.

Your Look...

Your Lifestyle Hairstyling Manicuring Pedicuring Waxing

A Full Service Salon for Men+Women

Countryside Village Pacific at 87th | 392-2039

Granite & Tile Quartz Zodiaq® Radianz® Cambria® SileStone®

Family owned and operated since 1970

Solid Surface

Call Tony Nogg 9101 Military Road • Omaha

Corian® Staron® Hi-Macs®

402-572-4044 www.MartinsCountertops.com

Elegant Year-Around Dining

650 North H Street Fremont, NE 68025

Judaism without the “experts”

by DASEE BERKOWITZ Some folks in the Jewish community decry the rise in “privatized Judaism.”

From a Jewish institutional perspective, this makes perfect sense. The bar or bat mitzvah celebration that takes place outside of the synagogue; the wedding officiated by friends of the couple without a rabbi present; couples who create their own wedding ceremony mixing Jewish traditions with their own homespun spirituality-these are all examples of a phenomenon that can make it feel like the role of qualified Jewish guides (rabbis, cantors and educators) and the time-honored institutions of community synagogues will be threatened.

Sometimes I think that the only Jewish communal job that is not going to be privatized any time soon is the mohel, who performs ritual circumcisions.

But what about the upside to this trend? At its best, privatized Judaism is an opportunity for those who see themselves on the sidelines of Jewish life to create their own Jewish experiences. It can empower them to find the resources, seek out guides, and answer questions about their own life cycle events as opposed to going through the “stock and trade” ceremony laid out before them like a set table.

Another upside to this trend is that privatized Judaism can yield creative new rituals for life transitions that don’t have satisfying Jewish rituals to mark them.

Consider, for example, a young woman I know who recently got divorced. The traditional “get” ceremony, though necessary for all sorts of reasons having to do with personal status, does not always satisfy the psychological need to mark the loss (and sometimes the relief) of a divorce. This young woman needed more. Sitting shiva for seven days, the ritual for mourning the loss of a loved one, seemed a compelling ritual to mark this loss for her. It also seemed to represent, by opposition, the

Design Flexibility and Quality– For every project we offer the perfect selection

Omaha/Fremont 402/727-8321 800/942-8321

FOR A LIMITED TIME! seven days of celebration after a wedding (the sheva brachot).

Another idea that helped mark this significant transition in her life was creating a ceremony to remove her wedding ring, to oppose the giving of the ring during her Jewish wedding.

Then there’s a woman who was becoming a grandmother for the first time. She was called up for an aliyah during the Torah service in the synagogue right after her grandson was born, but the language of the blessing sounded pat. She felt it didn’t express the awe that she felt bringing another generation into the world, nor the complexity of emotions that she experienced as she witnessed her own daughter transformed into a mother.

After seeking out a Jewish educator with whom she could study, she created a new mi shebeirakh blessing – one that alluded to the complex and heartening relationship between grandparents and their grandchildren exemplified by Jacob blessing his grandchildren at the end of the book of Genesis.

I heard from a first-time mother-to-be, who wanted to mark the stages of her pregnancy in significant ways.

While nine months is a long time to sustain heightened consciousness about the impending birth, seeking out an educator, she created a personal ritual for Friday night after lighting the candles to reflect the kabbalistic notion of receiving a neshama yeteira, an additional soul, on Shabbat. It marked a time for her to be conscious about the additional soul gestating within her.

Let’s not keep these creative expressions of Jewish identity to ourselves. Let’s share these and other ideas to make Jewish life resonant with Jewish traditions and reflective of our needs today.

Dasee Berkowitz is a Jewish life cycle consultant in New York. She can be reached at www.jlifeconsult ing.com.

nal o i t sa

n e

S

CD Rates Ask an Enterprise Banker about our latest CD Special and let us help put your money to work for you!

12800 West Center Road

330-0200 210 Regency Parkway

392-0400 N.A., MEMBER F.D.I.C.

EL ALAMO

“Best Mexican Food”

Nachos • Guacamole • Tacos • Fajitas Burritos • Shrimp • Enchiladas Combination Dinners Carnitas • Tostadas Tamales • Arroz Con Pollo • Machaca MEXICAN BEER Corona • XX • Bohemia • Tecate • Carta Blanca Open for Lunch and Dinner 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK

4917 South 24th St. • 731-8969

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 15

ENTERTAIN

FIRST CLASS

November FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29 BBYO New Members Convention thru Oct. 31 Modern Jewish Poetry, noon with Gary Katz Scholar in Residence J. Shulevitz, 6 p.m. at Temple Israel Birthday Blessings, 6 p.m. at Beth El SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30 Beth El Shabbaton for grades 3-5, 10 a.m. thru Oct. 31 SUNDAY, OCTOBER 31 Adult Education, 10 a.m.-noon at Beth El Scholar in Residence Judith Shulevitz, 10:30 a.m. at Temple Israel Yachad Art Reception, 11 a.m.

Sisterhood’s Annual Luncheon, 11:30 a.m. at Beth Israel MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1 Friedel Jewish Academy Red Ribbon Week Lets Wine About It! with Cantor Schlossberg, 6:30 p.m. at Brix YJO Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

Lecture Series with Rabbi Gross, 7 p.m. at Beth Israel Jewish Press Board Meeting, 7 p.m.

Medicine and Morals, 7 p.m. at Chabad TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2 Eye on Israel, noon Star Deli Dinner, 5:30 p.m.

BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7 p.m. at Beth Israel WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3 Hebrew 101, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel YJO Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

Community High School, 6:30 p.m.

Federation Community Event and Reception with Howard Rosenman, 7:30 p.m.

Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel Advanced Halacha Kollel, 9 p.m. at Beth Israel THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel History of Judaism in England, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Rabbi Levin’s Weekly Class, noon at Beth El USY Lounge Night Returns, 6 p.m. at Beth El JFS Love & Logic Class, 6 p.m.

Rabbis Around the World, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5 Women’s Friday Night Dinner, 6:30 p.m. at Chabad SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6 Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m. at Temple Israel Shabbat School, 10 a.m. Beth El USY attends UNO Maverick Hockey Game, 7 p.m. at Qwest Center SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7 BESTT classes not in Session at Beth El Adult Education, 10 a.m.-noon at Beth El WRJ Hanukkah Gift Shop Open House, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Revitalizing the Festivals, 10:30 a.m. at Temple Israel JWI Mah Jongg Tournament, noon Kids Holiday Shopping Sale at the LOVE Gift Shop, 1 p.m.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8 Lets Wine About It!, 6:30 p.m. at Brix Medicine and Morals, 7 p.m. at Chabad Beth El Women’s Rosh Hodesh Group, 7 p.m.

Joint Synagogue Women’s Glass Ribbon Project, 7 p.m.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9 Eye on Israel, noon ADL/CRC Executive Committee Meeting, noon BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel Community High School Board Meeting, 7 p.m.

Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7 p.m. at Beth Israel JCC Board Meeting, 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10 Rabbis & Presidents Meeting, noon Women’s Book Group, 3:30 p.m. at Beth El WRJ Hanukkah Gift Shop Open House, 4 p.m. at Temple Israel Parasha & Pizza Class, 6 p.m. at Beth El Temple Israel Mitzvah Corp, 6:30 p.m.

Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. at Beth Israel Community High School, 6:30 p.m.

Hebrew 101, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel UNO Goldstein Human Rights Lecture, 7 p.m.

Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel Advanced Halacha Kollel, 9 p.m. at Beth Israel THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 11 RBJH Honoring Our Veterans & Ladies on the Home Front, 9:30 a.m.

Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel History of Judaism in England, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Rabbi Levin’s Weekly Class, noon at Beth El WRJ Luncheon, noon at Temple Israel Author Event with Rabbi Jonathan Gross, 7 p.m.

Rabbis Around the World, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12 Temple Israel Shabbat Comes to You, 4 p.m. at Remington Heights Say Shalom! to Shabbat! & Tot Shabbat, 6 p.m. at Beth El JYG/OTYG Friday Night, 6 p.m. at Temple SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13 Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m. at Temple Israel Junior Congregation, 10 a.m. at Beth El Learner’s Service, 10:15 a.m. at Beth El SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 14 Adult Education, 10 a.m.-noon at Beth El 6th Grade Family Education program, 10 a.m. at Beth El Sisterhood Boutique, 10 a.m. at Beth El WRJ Meeting, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel OTYG Board Meeting, noon at Temple Israel Chaverim Event, 12:15 p.m. at Beth El JCC Dance Open House, 1 p.m.

Beth El Kadima Going to Zaap Laser Tag, 2 p.m.

Sunday Night Dinner, 6 p.m. at Beth Israel MONDAY, NOVEMBER 15 Mainstreeters Luncheon Program, 12:30 p.m.

Lets Wine About It!, 6:30 p.m. at Brix Medicine and Morals, 7 p.m. at Chabad TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 16 Main Streeters Committee Meeting, 10 a.m.

Eye on Israel, noon Executive Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m. at Friedel BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel Board of Directors Meeting, 7 p.m. at Friedel BESTT Board Meeting, 7p.m. at Beth El Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7 p.m. at Beth Israel Board of Trustees, 7 p.m. Temple Israel WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17 37th Annual Jewish Book Month Luncheon, 11:45 a.m.

Nebraska Jewish Historical Society Board Meeting, 3:30 p.m.

7 & 8 grader B’nai Tzedek Program, 6:30 p.m. at Beth El Community High School, 6:30 p.m.

Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel Advanced Halacha Kollel, 9 p.m. at Beth Israel

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19 Scholar in Residence Dennis Prager, 6 p.m. at Temple Israel SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20 Scholar in Residence Dennis Prager, 9 a.m. at Temple Israel Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m. at Temple Israel Family Junior Congregation, 10 a.m. at Beth El BBYO Sweetheart Dance, 7 p.m.

Dennis Prager & Panel Discussion, 7p.m. at Temple Israel SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 21 Adult Education, 10 a.m.-noon at Beth El Scholar in Residence Dennis Prager, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Kids Holiday Shopping Sale at the LOVE Gift Shop, 1 p.m.

Javitch Music Fund Concert Orchestra Omaha, 2 p.m.

8th Annual Chanu-kids Event, 3:30 p.m.

Thanksgiving Service, 5p.m. at Temple Israel MONDAY, NOVEMBER 22 Lets Wine About It!, 6:30 p.m. at Brix Medicine and Morals, 7 p.m. at Chabad TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 23 JFS Project Tzedakah - Hanukah/ Project Driedel, 8 a.m.

Eye on Israel, noon Agency Presidents & Directors Meeting, 4 p.m.

BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7 p.m. at Beth Israel

WITH

HONEYMAN RENT-ALL The Party Place

FOR THE FINEST IN ENTERTAINING ACCESSORIES, HOW CAN YOU THROW A PARTY AND NOT INVITE US? • Tables • Chairs • Linens • Skirting • China • Glassware • Champaign Fountains • Chafing Dishes • Party Canopies • Wedding & Church Displays • Dance Floors • BBQ Grills • Coat Racks • Candelabras • Margarita Machines • Chocolate Fountains

Our Visit room w o h S

11226 Wright Circle (1 Block South of 114th & Center)

333-2882

Wed Di ding & S splays upp lies

Finnamic

Comfortplus

Recife

SHOE CENTER

Certified Pedorthists On Staff

535 N 155th Plaza Omaha • 392-2952 PepperwoodVillage by Baker’s

6450 O Street Lincoln • 466-7463 North Side of O Street

Monday-Friday 9-6 • Saturday 9-4:30 • Phone orders welcome

Jade Garden

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24 Friedel No School Thanksgiving Break 24-26 JFS Project Tzedakah - Hanukah/ Project Driedel, 8 a.m.

BESTT classes not in Session at Beth El Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel Advanced Halacha Kollel, 9 p.m. at Beth Israel Beth El USY Kinnus & Lock in, 10 p.m.

Chinese Restaurant

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 25 Annual Thanksgiving Football Game, 10 a.m. at Beth Israel

2068 N. 117 Ave.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 26 Temple Israel Shabbat Comes to Blumkin Home, 2:30 p.m.

Birthday Blessings, 6 p.m. at Beth El

CARRY OUT AVAILABLE

498-8833 Beer and Wine Available North Park (117th & Blondo) M-Th: 11-9:30 • Fri & Sat. 11-10:30 • Sun. Noon-9:30

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27 Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m. at Temple Israel SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 28 Temple Israel Breakfast, 7:30 a.m. at Stephen Center BESTT classes not in Session at Beth El MONDAY, NOVEMBER 29 BESTT Classes resume, 4:15 p.m. at Beth El Lets Wine About It!, 6:30 p.m. at Brix Medicine and Morals, 7 p.m. at Chabad TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 30 Eye on Israel, noon Goldstein Supporting Foundation Meeting, 4 p.m.

B’nai B’rith Bible Quiz, 6 p.m.

JFO Executive Committee Meeting, 6 p.m.

BBYO Night, 6 p.m.

Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m. at Temple Israel B’nai B’rith Bible Quiz, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18 Women of the Torah, 9:30 a.m. at Beth Israel School Directors Committee Meeting, 10 a.m.

History of Judaism in England, 10 a.m. at Temple Israel Rabbi Levin’s Weekly Class, noon at Beth El Center for Jewish Education Board Meeting, noon Family Night Dinner, 5:30 p.m. at RBJH JOLT Session, 7 p.m.

Rabbis Around the World, 7:30 p.m. at Beth Israel

All events held at the Jewish Community Center unless otherwise noted. This calendar does not include all community events. For a complete listing, visit the Federation’s website: www.jewishomaha.org (click on calendar). To keep calendar accurate, call Marlene Hert at 334-6437. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the accuracy of the above events.

GREAT Food at GREAT Prices Expect More From An Employee Owned Store

Peony Park

7910 Cass St.

384-8668

Silver Memories, Inc. Assisted living for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, memory loss and other forms of dementia in the comfort of a real home.

Now serving Omaha at two locations.

Our original location at 80th & Maple and our newest in the heart of Leawood West near 126th & Pacific.

402/689-2800

Page 16

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Declaring war on NPR

by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press When on Oct. 20 Journalist Juan Williams was a little bit too honest on The O’Reilly Factor, NPR saw no other option than to cancel his contract. Williams had been with the network for 10 increasingly awkward years, due in part to Williams’ tendency to often leave his paper-thin objectivity at home when visiting Fox News.

“I mean, look, Bill, I’m not a bigot,” Williams said on O’Reilly’s show. “You know the kind of books I’ve written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, If I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried, I get nervous.’ (NPR.org) The comment didn’t go over well, and after it simmered for a day or so, NPR took action.

“NPR, like any mainstream news outlet, expects its journalists to be thoughtful and measured in everything they say,” wrote NPR Ombudsman Alicia Shepard. “What Williams said was deeply offensive to Muslims and inflamed, rather than contributing positively to an important debate about the role of Muslims in America.” (NPR.org) True; the comment was inflammatory. That, however, was not the true firestorm. Once Williams was let go, it seemed everybody had an opinion. Fox News acted fast and offered Williams a three-year, $2 million contract, as well as a guest slot as a Friday night host on the O’Reilly Factor. Newt Gingrich, himself a Fox News commentator, called for NPR’s federal funding to be cut. Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin, and John Boehner (to name but a few) added their voices to the choir, and suddenly the discussion wasn’t about Muslims and whether the media (or anybody else) should treat them with respect.

Instead, the discussion was about freedom of the Press, about whether Journalists are

allowed to have opinions and express them, and about whether NPR had committed an act of censorship in firing Williams. It was a classic example of shifting the discussion away from the real issue. Distract the audience, and win the debate.

This discussion itself is not entirely a bad thing. The role of the media is one that constantly changes; without a decent amount of self-examination, no media can survive.

Daniel Okrent, former public editor of The New York Times, said: “We value not the absence of opinion but the illusion of the absence of opinion.” (NPR.org) We all know that’s a slippery concept: this is the age of big cable networks that have no qualms about being as partisan as possible.

Let’s face it, we know what angle to expect, whether we turn on Fox or CNN. We know that if we want liberal spin we turn to Jon Stewart; nobody has any illusions about Rachel Maddow or Bill O’Reilly. Part of the reason we tune in to our favorite channel

(Founded in 1920)

(whichever channel that is) is that we want to hear news we agree with. Anything else is just too uncomfortable; we want to watch, listen, and nod vigorously. NPR, quite often, offers a welcome departure from that comfort zone.

Still, all this bickering back and forth distracts from the real issue. Because, had Juan Williams admitted to being afraid of Jews who wear traditionally Jewish garb, no one would have questioned NPR’s actions. Since his comments were made about Muslims, during a time when many people around the world see all Muslims as the boogeyman, no exceptions, it is acceptable for certain politicians to question whether NPR should still exist. In fact, on Oct. 22, South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint introduced legislation to remove all of NPR’s funding. It’s already ridiculously low: the US spends $1.43 per capita, compared to $22 in Canada, and $80 in Great Britain. Let’s hope it’s been a good pledge week; I imagine that a world without NPR might be scarier than seeing a Muslim who looks like a Muslim.

by STEVEN BURG NEW YORK (JTA) -- I was saddened to hear of the death of Tyler Clementi, an 18year-old college student driven to suicide by bullying over his sexual orientation. While Clementi’s case has grabbed national headlines, it sadly is far from unique.

Last September alone, no fewer than six boys in the United States committed suicide as a response to bullying they suffered over their sexual identities. Several of the victims were as young as 13 years old.

Bullying is nothing new, but modern technology has caused it to explode in new and dangerous ways. In Clementi’s case, intimate moments were webcast. Other teens are humiliated routinely via social networks. It takes no effort whatsoever to send a tweet, post a video or write on a virtual wall.

In the old days, bullies could usually only harass their intended victims live and in person. Nowadays a teen can be abused and publicly denigrated remotely and often anonymously.

Such cases are not limited to boys; nor are they limited to situations pertaining to the victims’ sexuality. Three girls are awaiting trial in Massachusetts for their role in harassing a classmate to the point of suicide. Even when situations do not reach the point of suicide as a perceived means of escape, bullying lowers selfesteem and leads to depression and anxiety.

Jewish Press Board Andy Ruback, Vice President; Eric Dunning, Treasurer; Howard K. Marcus, Past President; Daphne Pollak Alperson, Marc Brodkey; Phyllis Brown; Jason Epstein; Mel Epstein; Scott Farkas; Michael Kaufman; Jamie Meyerson; Michael Sigmond; Jim Simon; Dorothy Spizman; Nancy Wolf.

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

Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page stories and announcements, can be found online at: www jewishomaha.org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’

Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole.

The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content.

The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment.

Editorial The Jewish Press is an agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha.

Deadline for copy, ads and photos is: Thursday, 9 a.m., eight days prior to publication. E-mail editorial material and photos to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org; send ads (in .TIF or .PDF format) to: rbusse@jewishomaha.org.

There’s no place for bullying in God’s world

BEHIND THE HEADLINES

Bobbi Leibowitz President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Allan Handleman Advertising Manager Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Managing Editor Barbara Kirkpatrick Bookkeeper

It is unacceptable to harass or bully anyone for any reason. It makes no difference what a person’s race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or country of origin happens to be. A person’s income or social status is immaterial.

We are all created in the image of God, and the Torah demands that we extend common courtesy to one another.

Our responsibility goes even further in the case of the downtrodden and oppressed, insisting that we guard ourselves very carefully so as not to add to their troubles through our words and actions. (Causing pain to a widow, an orphan or a convert are particularly heinous acts under Torah law.)

Rabbi Akiva famously said in Leviticus 19:18 that the primary principle of the Torah is “love your neighbor as yourself.” However, the Sifra (a book of the Midrash) immediately follows that statement with what it considers to be an even more important principle: The sage Ben Azzai cites in Genesis 5:1, “This is the book of the generations of Adam.” The verse means that we all are descended from the same ancestors, Adam and Eve. As important as the verse cited by Rabbi Akiva is, it’s too easy for us to justify hating others because they are not our “neighbor; ” that is, they are not like us. Ben Azzai’s verse reminds us that black or white, rich or poor, straight or gay, Jewish, Christian or Muslim, we ultimately are one family -- the family of mankind.

Hate and fear of that which is different is not something with which we are born; it is something acquired. (song “You’ve Got to Be Taught,” the beautiful Rodgers and

Hammerstein in “South Pacific,” sends out that message.) Accordingly, I implore all parents, teachers and other role models to actively encourage an environment of tolerance.

This doesn’t mean that we have to agree with every decision that others may make in life. We may disagree with others’ theologies or lifestyles. But disagreement is not a license to abuse others. A child, a teen or an adult who harasses another person, verbally or physically, is automatically in the wrong.

At NCSY, we have adopted strict policies against acts of malice and aggression. All of our regions across North America are being instructed to have sessions on bullying. The Midwest Region, based in Chicago, already has announced a bullying program at its Fall Regional in Kansas City next weekend.

Unwelcome attention and a hostile environment are unacceptable regardless of the source. We all have the right to live free of intimidation. If we have legitimate differences of opinion with another person regarding religion, politics or other areas in which debate may be valid, that calls for thoughtful discussion and mutual respect.

I call upon parents, educators, clergy and all others who work with youth to join us in a zero-tolerance policy for bullying in all its forms, including cyberbullying. Not only will this save young lives from being needlessly thrown away, it will ensure a safer and healthier environment for all our children.

Rabbi Steven Burg is the international director of NCSY, the youth program of the Orthodox Union.

Letters to the Editor Guidelines The Jewish Press welcomes Letters to the Editor. They may be sent via regular mail to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154; via fax: 1-402-334-5422 or via e-mail to the Editor at: avandekamp@jewish omaha.org..

Letters should be no longer than 250 words and must be single-spaced typed, not hand-written.

Published letters should be confined to opinions and comments on articles or events. News items should not be submitted and printed as a “Letter to the Editor.”

The Editor may edit letters for content and space restrictions, but it should be printed as soon as possible to ensure timeliness. Letters may be published without giving an opposing view. Information shall be verified before printing.

All letters must be signed by the writer, but the name can be withheld at the writer’s request. The Jewish Press will not publish letters that appear to be part of an organized campaign, nor letters copied from the Internet.

No letters should be published from candidates running for office, but others may write on their behalf.

Letters of thanks should be confined to commending an institution for a program, project or event, rather than personally thanking paid staff, unless the writer chooses to turn the “Letter to the Editor” into a paid personal ad or a news article about the event, project or program which the professional staff supervised. For information, contact Annette van de Kamp-Wright, Jewish Press Editor, 402.334.6450.

Postal The Jewish Press (USPS 275620) is published weekly (except for the first week of January and July) on Friday for $35 per calendar year U.S.; $72 foreign, by the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Phone: 402.334.6448; FAX: 402.334.5422.

Periodical postage paid at Omaha, NE. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154-2198 or email to: jpress@jewishomaha. org.

American Jewish Press Association Award Winner

Nebraska Press National Newspaper Association Association Award winner 2008

October 29, 2010

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 17

New study of emerging Jewish leaders shows class differences F OCUS ON ISSUES

by JACOB BERKMAN NEW YORK (JTA) -- When the Avi Chai Foundation released sociologist Jack Wertheimer’s report on Jewish leaders in their 20s and 30s, the results of the survey confirmed what most observers of the organized world suspected. But between the lines there were some surprises.

For the study, titled “Generation of Change: How Leaders in Their Twenties and Thirties are Reshaping American Jewish Life,” Wertheimer and five other wellknown Jewish sociologists surveyed more than 3,000 Jews aged 22 to 40 who identify as Jewish leaders and conducted interviews with another 250.

The survey split respondents into two groups: those involved in “establishment” organizations that deal with the more traditional agenda of the American Jewish community -- such as Jewish federations, AIPAC and the Anti-Defamation League -- and those involved in “nonestablishment” organizations, such as Jewish start-ups, or social service groups.

Among other findings, the survey uncovered something of a class distinction within the young, engaged Jewish world: The more upwardly mobile seemed to affiliate with the traditional, establishment Zionist and Jewish organizations -- what Wertheimer calls protective organizations -- while young leaders involved in nonestablishment, progressive start-ups seemed to belong more to the traditional middle class.

“What we found is that people who are in law, for example, or out in Hollywood in parts of the entertainment industry are interested in the networking that Jewish organizations offer,” Wertheimer told JTA. “So they are more attracted to the networking opportunities that the establishment provides, whereas the non-establishment [leaders] tend to earn less and tend to be in not-for-profit work.”

The survey defined as leaders anyone who runs a Jewish organization, has a Jewish project, is involved in

Jewish organizations or is a Jewish thinker. The survey assumed that these people would likely be in control of the organized Jewish community over the next several decades.

Wertheimer found that those who call themselves Jewish leaders are a diverse lot that have varying affiliations with traditional or non-traditional Jewish organizations. Their views on Israel, assimilation and antiSemitism tend to vary in relation to their organizational affiliation.

Because they share highly critical views toward key organizations and synagogues, and many work outside traditional communal institutions, these future leaders are leading the Jewish world down a new path, Wertheimer said.

“We have a story of quite dramatic change,” he said.

The report found that leaders in both groups feel a strong sense of Jewish identity, and many of them share similar Jewish backgrounds.

Approximately 40 percent of individuals in both categories attended Jewish day schools. Seventy-one percent attended Jewish camps, 89 percent have two Jewish parents and about 45 percent come from homes described as Conservative. A low percentage come from Reform homes. About 55 percent of the leaders in both groups have spent time in Israel.

This is proof that whatever Jewish identity-building mechanisms the community has invested in are working, Wertheimer said.

If there is one similarity between young leaders of the establishment organizations and young leaders of the start-up world, the survey showed, it is that they both feel a strong sense of Jewish identity and belonging to the Jewish people. The differences emerge in the intensity of that sense of belonging and connection to the Jewish community.

According to the survey, 73 percent of the young leaders in non-establishment organizations have a strong sense of belonging to the Jewish people, while 75 percent in the establishment organizations feel the same.

On the other hand, 64 percent of the non-establishment set say they feel part of the Jewish community, compared

to 73 percent of the young leaders in establishment organizations.

The viewpoints really start to diverge when it comes to the issues of Israel, anti-Semitism, intermarriage and the value of social service.

Those involved in establishment organizations feel more strongly about Israel being central to their Jewish identities (51 percent of the establishment set vs. 32 percent of the non-establishment set), more emotionally attached to Israel (62 percent vs. 55 percent), more concerned about threats to Israel’s security (43 percent vs.

23 percent) and more worried about intermarriage (35 percent vs. 17 percent).

Some 39 percent of those under 40 are involved in some mix of establishment and start-up organizations, while only 27 percent were involved exclusively in establishment groups.

The study also indicates that the establishment of today is very similar in thought to the non-establishment of yesterday.

Regarding questions about Israel’s security, fears of anti-Semitism and the importance of Holocaust remembrance, there is a difference between the two groups.

However, even young leaders from establishment organizations are less fearful than the older generation of establishment leaders.

According to the study, 23 percent of young people and 39 percent of older people in the non-establishment world are concerned about threats to Israel’s security, compared to 43 percent of establishment young people and 59 percent of older establishment leaders. At the same time, 9 percent of young people and 14 percent of older people in the start-up cohort are worried about anti-Semitism in the United States, compared to 19 percent of both younger and older leaders in the establishment group.

On the question of the importance of remembering the Holocaust, 23 percent of young people and 36 percent of older people in the start-up cohort believe it is essential, compared to 39 percent of young establishment leaders and 45 percent of older establishment types.

And especially not with the Jewish vote, since a staffer embarrassed McMahon by compiling a list of donors to GOP opponent Mike Grimm and called it “Jewish money” to emphasize that it was coming from out of district. Yeshiva World estimates the Jewish population in the district, which includes a corner of Brooklyn, at as high as 15 percent.

McMahon fired the staffer right away, but he ‘ain’t leaving nothin’ to chance’. David Greenfield, a New York City Councilman who also happens to be a leader in the Sephardic community in Gravesend (part of McMahon’s district) endorsed McMahon, and at the Sephardic Multi Service Center, no less.

Rabbi Yaakov Spivak, writing in the Daily News, praises McMahon as an “independent Democrat,” which the dean of the Ayshel Avraham Rabbinical Seminary makes clear means “the UnObama.”

Also -- coincidentally* -- McMahon wrote to the U.S. attorney-general, Eric Holder, asking him to investigate allegations of judicial impropriety in the case that got Sholom Rubashkin, the boss of the Agriprocessors kosher slaughterhouse, 27 years for fraud.

“Ex parte communications are not permitted between a federal judge and the government prosecutors who bring a case to trial before that federal judge” Rep. McMahon writes in the letter. “If contacts between the judge and the government attorneys were hidden from the defendant, this would result in a significant miscarriage of justice…

These allegations demand immediate investigation.”

Some spectators have also questioned the wisdom behind the 27 year sentence imposed upon Mr. Rubashkin. A number of former US Attorneys General, US Attorneys, and several senior Justice Department officials wrote a letter to Chief Judge Reade on April 26, 2010, urging her to disregard the initial sentencing recommendation of 25 years. “Amazingly, instead of taking the advice of these experts, Judge Reade actually increased the length of the sentence proposed by federal prosecutors from 25 years to 27 years” Rep. McMahon writes. “This sentence appears to be grossly disproportionate to the sentences given to other similarly situated first time, non-violent white collar criminals.” *Yes, I know.

Quid Pro Kosher

BEHIND THE HEADLINES

by RON KAMPEAS I wrote a midterms campaign overview (see page11).

The truth is, the “Jewish stories” in this campaign are manifold, because the stories of a wild and insurgent campaign are manifold.

I noted a category of Democratic incumbents who “shouldn’t” have their seats because they won GOPleaning districts in Democratic leaning years, 2006 and 2008. Now the GOP and its allies are sparing no expense in getting what’s “rightfully theirs” back. My example was Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), in Orlando.

Another is Rep. Michael McMahon (D-N.Y.) who inherited Vito Fosella’s seat after the popular Staten Island pol admitted to maintaining two separate families and bowed out late in the 2008 campaign. McMahon looks like he’ll defy GOP wishing and hoping and will keep his seat, according to Nate Silver -- but he’s not taking any chances.

Jackson Home Appliance “OMAHA’S MOST TRUSTED NAME IN APPLIANCE REPAIR” NOW BRINGS THAT SAME ATTENTION TO HEATING & COOLING

2 for 1 Classified Ads for New Customers* with the Nebraska Statewide Classified Ad Network! LIMITED TIME OFFER

Buy One Week Statew ClassiÞe ide and d Ads Get 2nd Week FREE!*

e StatewidAds d e ClassiÞ

Jackson Heating & Cooling FEATURES CARRIER HOME HEATING & COOLING PRODUCTS CALL TODAY FOR YOUR FREE QUOTE FROM ONE OF OUR HVAC SPECIALISTS ON A NEW FURNACE, AIR CONDITIONER OR HEAT PUMP 8827 Maple Street Omaha, NE 68134

391-4287 Carrier Factory Authorized Nate Certified Technicians !" $%&% '(

Advertise in over 175 Nebraska newspapers for only $210/week....

Contact Your Local Newspaper For More Information or call 800-369-2850 www.nebpress.com *Only New Customers Qualify. To qualify as a new customer you may not have ever advertised in the NE Statewide ClassiÞed Ad Network. Must be consecutive weeks with no copy changes. Price per week is $210 for 1st 25 words, $7 each additional word. All ads must be prepaid.

!!"#$% '!( ) *)(++(, $!- ./0- ) .!12 3#)+(! 4#(+5+00 #0 0++"#$% -! '#55 6+55 7#-+ 8+*9$#*#)$ :;5+*-(!$#*0 ;</*=;>? @+AB C @+-)#5=D/0#$+00 7)5+0 :7)5+0=6/0- 7E* ;>? @+AB ?!0#-#!$0 -9(!/%9!/- F+1()0")( !)*+*,-./-0 1,2-/-0 34*1-*/,56 71-18/*+6 ,-. 433*9 842 ,.:,-;1<1-*= >3359 ,* ???=:/,124 =;4< @>A BCDEFGCEHIHG 42 ;,55 J/< $1*2/;K ,* HDLEHCDEDFBC= M!M

Page 18

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Candlelighting Friday, October 29, 6:05 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

Chabad House An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 S. 120th St. Omaha, NE 68144-1646 330.1800 www.OChabad.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 323 S. 132 St. Omaha, NE 68154

Temple Israel Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 7023 Cass Street Omaha, NE 68132-2651 556.6536 templeisrael-ne.org

The Neighborhood Prayer Group 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.tiferethisraellincoln.org

If you’re looking at this space, so are others!

Your ad can go here... to reserve space,

call

Allan Handleman, 402.334.6451

B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE

FRIDAY: Services followed by Oneg, 7:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, Nov. 5: Services followed by Oneg, 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker, Pam Cohn, School Principal, on the topic, Equitable Opportunitiesfor all Children. The community is invited.

Office Hours: Mon.-Thurs., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fri., 8:30 a.m-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Jonathan Gross and Rabbi Yitzchak Mizrahi.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 6:05 p.m.

SATURDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.; Free babysitting, 9:30 a.m.; Children’s Classes begin with Torah Parade, 9:45 a.m.; Kiddush is sponsored by Joshua Follick in honor of Cynthia Follick and their 10 year wedding anniversary; “Advanced Parshah Study for Kids” (ages 10 and up) and Shabbat Mishnah Group, Avodah Zarah, chapter 4, one hour prior to Mincha every Shabbat; Mincha, 5:45 p.m. followed by Seuda Shlishit; Havdalah, 7:04 p.m.

SUNDAY: Shacharit, 9 a.m.

WEEKDAYS: Shacharit, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: Lecture Series with Rabbi Gross, 7:30 p.m.

TUESDAY: Scholars Club for fourth-sixth graders, 3:45 p.m. at the Blumkin Home; Rabbi Mizrahi’s Weekly Class, 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Rabbi Weiss’s Weekly Class, 7:30 p.m.; Advanced Halchic Kollel, 9 p.m.; Follow the Kollel at www.omahakollel. blogspot.com.

THURSDAY: Women of the Torah class, 9:30 a.m.; Rabbis Around the World, 7:30 p.m.

BETH EL SYNAGOGUE Services conducted by Rabbi Mordechai Levin and Cantor Beth Schlossberg.

FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m.; Monthly birthday blessing: At services on the last Friday of each month, we honor everyone who has celebrated a birthday during the month, with a special blessing and reception.

SATURDAY: Morning service, 9:30 a.m.; Junior Congregation (3-7), 10 a.m.; Mincha/Ma’ariv, 6:10 p.m.

WEEKDAY SERVICES: Sundays, 9 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.; weekdays, 7 a.m. & 5:30 p.m.

SUNDAY: The Mystique of Judaism with Andy Greenberg, and Bible Study Discussion Group, 10 a.m.; Jewish Images on the Big Screen, 10:30 a.m. with Frydman-Levin.

THIRD-FIFTH GRADE SHABBATON: Saturday & Sunday, The theme, Israel, will be intertwined into all activities.

After Shabbat, participants will enjoy Laser Tag and bowling at Sempek’s. No Sunday school classes for participants; all other grades will be in session.

LET’S ‘WINE’ ABOUT IT!: Starting Monday, 6:30-7:30 p.m., join Cantor Beth Schlossberg at Brix Wine Bar in Village Pointe, for a weekly gettogether filled with great company and conversation. All adults in the Jewish community are invited.

THURSDAY: Rabbi Levin’s Life Lessons from the Hebrew Bible, noon. Cost is $36 for Beth El members, $45 for non-members.

To register, call the office, or email programming@bethelomaha.org.

PARSHA & PIZZA: New monthly mini course, led by Cantor Schlossberg, 6–7 p.m.

Cost is $3 per session for Beth El members, $4 for non-members.

To register, call the office.

All Beth El classes and programs are open to everyone in the Jewish community.

CHABAD HOUSE Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

FRIDAY: Service, 7 a.m.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Minyan, 10 a.m.; Youth Minyan, 10:30 a.m.; Mini Mensch title will be awarded. Kiddush luncheon follows. Join Rabbi Katzman, noon1 p.m.; W.O.W. Parsha, Prophets and Prayer, 12:45 p.m.

SUNDAY: Service, 8:30 a.m.

WEEKDAYS: Services, 7 a.m.

MONDAY: After school teen program, 2:40-4 p.m.; JLI class, Medicine & Morals, Your Jewish guide through life’s tough decisions, 7 p.m. Questions? Contact Shevi at 330.1800 or JLI@OChabad. com.

THURSDAY: The Parsha Club for Level I beginners, ages 5-6; and Level II intermediates and experts, ages 7-9, 3:50 p.m. Please contact Shevi@ochabad.com with any questions or to recive a guest pass.

FRIDAY, Nov. 5: Service, 7 a.m.; Women’s Shabbat Dinner,

BAT MITZVAH Phoebe Nicole Placzek, daughter of Kimberly and Matthew Placzek, will become a Bat Mitzvah on S a t u r d a y, Nov. 6, at Temple Israel.

Phoebe is a seventh-grade Honor Roll student at Westside Middle School.

Her interests include tennis, cross country, art, piano, clarinet and traveling.

For her mitzvah project, Phoebe helped with facepainting for a fundraiser, and organized and mailed invitations collecting for their “wish list.”

She has two older brothers, Aaron and Noah.

Grandparents are Barbara and Marshall Kushner, Claire Placzek and the late Gene Placzek.

6:30 p.m. at the Katzman home.

RSVP to office@ochabad.com.

All programs are open to the entire community.

CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN Services conducted by Rabbi Ilan Emanuel.

FRIDAY: Shabbat Evening Service, 7:45 p.m. led by Rabbi Emanuel, with oneg following hosted by Zoya Zeman.

SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:30 a.m. all led by Rabbi Emanuel.

SUNDAY: LJCS Gan Simcha Grade 2, 9:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. at South Street Temple; Grades 37 and their parents Shabbat Fair, 10 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; LJCS Teachers meeting, 12:30 p.m. at South Street Temple.

WEDNESDAY: Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE FRIDAY: Services, 7:30 p.m.

NEIGHBORHOOD PRAYER GROUP FRIDAY: Minyan, 6:15 p.m.

SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m.

ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME SATURDAY: Services, 9 a.m. led by Andy Greenberg.

Services will be held in the Chapel.

Members of the community are invited to attend Services.

a.m. Cost is $5 per person, no charge for children three and younger; Grades K-6, 10 a.m.; Camp Day for Grades 3-6, 10 a.m. RSVP to Bonnie Sullivan, 556.6536 or bsullivan@temple israelomaha.com; Making Room for the Shabbat, 10 a.m.-noon with Judith Shulevitz.

TUESDAY: Adult B’nai Mitzvah, 6:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY: Grades 3-6, 46 p.m.; All School Dinner, 6 p.m.; Family School, 6 p.m.; Grades 7-8, 6 p.m.; Hebrew 101, 6:30 p.m. with Mor Sheinbein; Cost is $18 for members; $25 for non-members; no charge for Family School parents; The Great Cantorate and Holocaust Music, 6:30 p.m. with Cantor Shermet.

THURSDAY: Adult Study with the Clergy,” 10 a.m.

Revitalizing the Festivals: Hanukkah, Sunday, Nov. 7, 10:30 a.m.-noon with Rabbi Azriel.

Omaha Community Siterhood Event, Glass Ribbon Project, Monday, Nov. 8, 7 p.m. at Beth El. This program is free and open to all women in the Jewish community age 12 and older. Contact the Temple Israel office, 556.6536 or mkube@templeisra elomaha.com, to RSVP. WRJ: A Night at the Sage Student Bistro. An evening in tribute to Brandon Thomas on Thursday, Nov. 11, 5:30 p.m. at The Institute for the Culinary Arts at Metro Community College in the Pegler Center (32nd & Sorenson). Cost is $30 per person.

TIFERETH ISRAEL

TEMPLE ISRAEL FRIDAY: Shabbat Service, 6 p.m. led by Cantor Shermet; D’var: Judith Shulevitz, The History of the American Sabbath.

SATURDAY: Sparks Beneath the Surface, 9:15 a.m.; An Intergenerational Retreat, The Sabbath World: Glimpses of a Different Order of Time, 10 a.m.2 p.m. at Camp Brewster at Fontenelle Forest. Fee: $25 for members, $50 for non-members, free for Family School participants. Contact Program Director wgoldberg@templeisraelomaha. com to register; Morning Service, 10 a.m.

SUNDAY: Pancake Man, 9

Services conducted by lay leader Nancy Coren. Office hours: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

FRIDAY: Shabbat service, 6:30 p.m.

SATURDAY: Learners minyan, 9:30 a.m.; Morning Service, 10 a.m. followed by Kiddush luncheon and Talmud study.

SUNDAY: LJCS Gan Simcha Grade 2, 9:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m. at South Street Temple; Grades 37 and their parents Shabbat Fair, 10 a.m.-noon at Tifereth Israel; LJCS Teachers meeting, 12:30 p.m. at South Street Temple.

WEDNESDAY: Hebrew classes (grades 3-7), 4-6 p.m. at Tifereth Israel.

B’nai Israel Speakers Series On Oct. 8, Bucky Greenberg spoke at B’nai Israel Synagogue. His topic was Exercise and Health, something that he knows a great deal about, becuase he has been a regular swimmer for decades. He has also won awards and medals in national and world competitions. The speaker series continues on Nov. 5 with Pam Cohn, School Principal, who will speak on the topic, Equitable Opportunities for all Children. The entire Jewish community is invited to attend.

UNVEILING A stone setting for the grave of Suzy Rubin will be on Sunday, Nov. 7, 11 a.m., at Golden Hill Cemetery, 5025 N. 42nd St., officiated by Rabbi Gross.

Pulverente MONUMENT CO.

October 29, 2010

A burial place for Sarah

SPARKS FROM THE WORD

by RABBI MYER S. KRIPKE Chayei Sarah Our Sidrah gives us Sarah’s age as 127, but it puts it as “seven years and 20 years and 100 years”. Perhaps this is meant to tell us that every year is important, indeed, irreplaceable. Thus we are expected to use our years meaningfully, and not trivially.

Further, it is said that Sarah died suddenly because she had heard of the readiness of her husband Abram to offer her son Isaac as an offering to God. Even though she knew that this didn’t happen, the shock of the situation itself was such that she died when she heard about it.

This gives rise to an attempt to explain differences in ancient “family” traditions. It goes on to make clear that the Semitic peoples came from one branch of humanity, while others, such as the Egyptians, came from another

branch.

There is (to me) fascinating bargaining for a plot to bury Sarah. Abraham comes to the Hittites on whose land they were living and asks to buy a burial place for Sarah. The Hittites say: “We will not withhold any place from you. Go ahead and give her the burial that you wish to give her.”

Abraham understands that this is a bargaining ploy, and says: “I would like to have the cave and burial place that belongs to Ephron the Hittite, and I will pay whatever is the standing price.” Ephron says: “I will not sell the land to you. You may have it. Just go ahead with your burial proceedings.” Abraham understands that this, too, is a bargaining ploy, and says: “But I want to own the land for certain.”

Ephron now says: “I tell you again, ‘bury your dead’.

For what is a piece of land worth 400 silver coins between me and you?”

Now Abraham, having heard the price, pays out the silver shekels. He proceeds to the burial, now assured that the land and the burial cave will be forever secure and sacred. Later, we are to learn of other burials of our Patriarchs in this burial cave.

Fiddler author Joseph Stein dies

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- Joseph Stein, who won a Tony Award for writing Fiddler on the Roof, has died.

Stein died Sunday in Manhattan after fracturing his skull in a fall. He was 98.

Stein was the author of more than a dozen Broadway musicals, but is Joseph Stein most well known for Fiddler, which won nine Tony Awards in 1965, includ-

ing Stein’s Best Author of a Musical.

He began his career in writing after meeting comedian and actor Zero Mostel, who played Tevya in the original Broadway production of Fiddler, and writing him some material, according to the New York Times.

Stein also wrote Enter Laughing, a comedy, based on an autobiographical book by Carl Reiner about a Jewish boy who wants to become an actor, as well as Zorba and Rags. He wrote screenplays for three shows including Fiddler, and also wrote a handful of television projects.

Stein earned a degree in social work from Columbia University in 1937 and worked for a decade as a psychiatric social worker.

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

60 Years Experience With Jewish Lettering and Memorials

Page 19

1439 So. 13th 341-2452

Frank L. Ciciulla, Jr.

Rebekah Davis U.S. House of Representatives www.rebekahdavis.com Hospital Chaplain for Congress Paid for by Rebekah Davis for Congress 308 E 10th St. Alliance, NE 69301

Advertise Statewide Classifieds $210 25 words 2x2 Over 170 Newspapers Display Ad $875 Over 170 Newspapers Contact this newspaper for more information, or call 800-369-2850

New campaign pushing genetic screenings

by JTA NEWS STAFF NEW YORK (JTA) -- A campaign is being launched to help New York rabbis encourage couples to perform screenings for Jewish genetic diseases before pregnancy.

The Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium and the New York Board of Rabbis are launching the Couples Aware campaign Thursday at the Park Avenue Synagogue in New York.

The program, which will run through late February, includes training sessions for rabbis at local hospitals.

The rabbis will review the basics of genetics with coun-

selors and learn ways to incorporate genetic screening into their premarital counseling sessions.

About one in five Ashkenazi Jews are carriers of at least one of 16 Jewish genetic diseases. Having two carriers of the same disease increases the chances of giving birth to a child affected by it.

“In the rare case that both members of the couple are carriers of the same disease, they can work with a genetic counselor to determine the best way to build a healthy family,” said Randy Glaser, co-chair of the Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium.

Slaughterhouse stops kosher slaughter over McDonald’s

by JTA NEWS STAFF (JTA) -- A slaughterhouse that supplies kosher meat to London-area stores has stopped kosher slaughter following a protest by McDonald’s.

Slaney Foods in County Wexford, Ireland, decided to stop religious slaughter, the Jewish Chronicle reported.

Slaney has supplied meat to McDonald’s for eight years.

McDonald’s has been under fire in recent days since media reports that halal meat, which is ritually slaughtered for Muslims, is used by some of the fast-food chain’s restaurants. After denying that such meat was used because it is against company policy, McDonald’s was forced to admit that some of its meat indeed was ritually slaughtered at Slaney.

Some McDonald’s patrons are against eating food made from ritually slaughtered meat because the animal is not stunned unconscious before it is slaughtered.

The Jewish Chronicle reported rumors had circulated that McDonald’s had given the slaughterhouse an ultimatum, but they have been disproven. But the newspaper quoted the slaughterhouse’s managing director, Rory Fanning, as saying that “It’s not that we are doing it because someone was influencing us outside the company. We made the decision ourselves.”

“There has been a lot of media coverage of ritual slaughter, and it was in the context of that that the decision was made,” she told the newspaper. “I’m not saying it’s the right decision. I am very hesitant.”

Statewide Classified CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING works! Place your 25 word ad into thousands of Nebraska homes for $210. Contact the Jewish Press at 402-334-6448 or call 1800-369-2850.

BANKRUPTCY: FREE initial consultation. Fast relief from creditors. Low rates.

Statewide filing. No office appointment necessary. Call Steffens Law Office, 308872-8327. www.steffenslaw.com. We are a debt relief agency, which helps people file bankruptcy under the bankruptcy code.

GUNS, GUNS, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, guns, Gun Show, Oct. 30 & Oct. 31, Fonner Park, Grand Island, NE. SELL YOUR classic car, truck or motorcycle online. Call this newspaper or call 800-369-2850 to place your ad on the national www.midwestclassiccars.com web site for only $25.00. Your ad runs until your vehicle is sold!

Godard won’t come to L.A. to pick up Oscar

by JTA NEWS STAFF LOS ANGELES (JTA) -- Film director Jean-Luc Godard will not appear in person to accept an honorary Oscar that some have urged be withdrawn because of views deemed anti-Semitic.

The news announced Monday by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences elicited little surprise in Hollywood and came two months after the academy’s invitation to Godard kicked off a lively discussion about the New Wave filmmaker’s alleged anti-Semitism and acknowledged anti-Israel record.

The charges were first examined by the Jewish Journal of Los Angeles and the Forward. The Zionist Organization of America and other critics have pressed for the withdrawal of the award for the French-Swiss director.

Godard was to have been honored at the academy’s Governors Awards dinner in Los Angeles on Nov. 13, but he left the academy hanging for two months regarding whether he would attend. Though an early admirer of Hollywood films, Godard in recent decades has

expressed his contempt for the movie capital and harshly attacked director Steven Spielberg.

The academy’s statement announcing Godard’s nonattendance tried to make the best of an embarrassing situation.

“Following a two-month cordial exchange of correspondence with Academy president Tom Sherak, JeanLuc Godard has regretfully notified Sherak that he will not be able to attend the [award dinner],” the statement opened. "'He reiterated his thanks for the award,'" reported Sherak," ‘and also sent his good wishes to the other individuals being honored the same night -- Kevin Brownlow,Francis Ford Coppola and Eli Wallach – who he refers to as the three other musketeers.’

“The Nov. 13 ceremony will pay tribute to Godard through film clips and commentary by his admirers. The award will be accepted on Godard’s behalf by the Academy and, following the event, the Academy will arrange for the Oscar statuette to be delivered to him in Switzerland.”

4 BEDROOM Doublewide. Will move to your land. Can include utilities installed on your land. We can move quickly. 800-375-3115.

FROM $33,500 - New factory-built homes. No Money Down with FHA & VA loans. Magnolia Modular Homes, 303-573-0067, call for Free pricesheet & floorplans. www.coloradofactorymodulars.com.

1,300 ACRES, 1 1/2 miles Niobrara River, Beautiful cabin sites, excellent deer, turkey hunting. Landing strip and fish pond possible. Remote location NW Nebraska. Will split six ways, financing to 50%. $1,300,000. 308-360-2419.

ESTABLISHED PRINT Advertising Company hiring Reps and Territory Managers.

Verified leads provided, up to 50% commission, gas and car maintenance program. Call Steven, 1-866-484-9263.

HELP WANTED: Positions open for experienced people in Construction, Steel Fabrication and/or Welding. Must be able to get CDL. Competitive wages and benefits. Buckley Steel, PO Box 2, Ainsworth, NE 69210, e-mail kim@buckleysteel.com, or call 1-800-310-0347.

EXPERIENCED REEFER drivers needed! Our incredible freight network offers plenty of miles! Opportunities for independent contractors and company drivers.

Call Prime Inc. today! 1-800-277-0212, www.primeinc.com.

HOME FOR the Holidays. OTR drivers APU equipped Pre-Pass EZ-pass. Every 60k mile raises. 2007 and newer equipment. Passenger/pet policy. 100% No Touch. 1800-528-7825.

WE BUY Diabetic Test Strips, unopened, unexpired, most brands, up to $10 a box. To help the uninsured. Call Kim, 1-800-692-0935.

Page 20

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

October 29, 2010

Friedel students and staff welcome St. Augustine visitors

Last month, Friedel students and staff visited the St. Augustine Indian Mission and school. On Friday Oct. 20, it was time to reciprocrate. The St. Augustine mission has served Native American people of the Winnebago and Omaha tribes since 1909.

Clockwise from left: under the guidance of Hebrew teacher Eadie Tsabari, St. Augustine students try out some Israeli dancing; Eliana Schuller blows the shofar; St. Augustine Director Fr. Dave Korth gives the shofar a try, while Friedel student Josh Pollack watches; Students from both schools baked Challah together, which teacher Denise Bennet is showing off, bottom right; below left, The two Principals: Ron Giller of Friedel, and Don Blackbird from St. Augustine.

Allan Handleman

for 10 great years of service.

,# & $ 1 # - " '3