Sponsored by the Benjamin and Anna E. Wiesman Family Endowment Fund AN AGENCY OF THE JEWISH FEDERATION OF OMAHA
It’s time to decide
November 2, 2012 17 Cheshvan 5773 Vol. 93 | No. 7
This Week
Running for OPS Board by ANNETTE VAN DE KAMPWRIGHT Editor of the Jewish Press Jennifer Kirshenbaum, Human Resource specialist at the Rose Blumkin Home, wife of Matt, and mother of Kathleen and Laura, has a plan. This November, she hopes to win a seat on the OPS
Lion of Judah/ Pacesetters Brunch Pages 4 & 8
President Barack Obama by RON KAMPEAS WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Israel, a heated issue throughout the campaign, finally took center stage at the final presidential debate. It was mentioned a total of 29 times by President Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney at last Monday night’s foreign policy debate at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. Actual policy differences, however, seemed to be in short supply. Israel and the Iranian nuclear program were among the main topics in
OJC plans overnight at the zoo Page 9
a debate that largely focused on the Middle East. But whether the subject was Iran sanctions, the need to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons or the U.S. commitment to Israel, the clashing candidates sounded surprisingly similar notes. Aaron David Miller, a vice president of the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, said the broad areas of agreement on the Middle East reflected a growing consensus among both parties that any president’s priority should be to focus
Governor Mitt Romney on the struggling American economy and tread carefully overseas. “There were tactical political reasons why the governor wanted to create the impression that he is a centrist,” said Miller, a former top Middle East negotiator in Republican and Democratic administrations, speaking of Romney. “But I think we are faced now for the first time since the end of the Cold War with a remarkable consensus on what we can do in the world. The Continued on page 2
The story of Warsaw Anat Hoffman’s arrest galvanizing liberal Jewish groups Page 16
Inside Point of view Synagogues In memoriam
This Month Hanukkah Issue See Front Page stories and more at: www.jewishomaha.org, click on Jewish Press
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by STEVE RIEKES During the summer of 2012, Steve Riekes traveled to Eastern Europe. His wife Margo accompanied him, as did good friends Nathan and Hannah Schwalb, and Dr. Bernard Bloom, formerly of Omaha, and his wife, Naomi, of Dallas. What follows is a story about Warsaw, part one of a series of articles Steve wrote about his experiences. Part two, Krakow, and part three, Auschwitz, will appear during the coming weeks. This long-planned trip was very special to us because, among other things, this is an area of the world in which so many of our ancestors had come from. While these places were special, in and of themselves, highlights were the exceptional lectures, comments, and insights of Professor Stephen Berk of Union College in New York. The tour was organized by Ayelet Tours of Albany, New York. About 50 persons from all over
The older section of Warsaw. the United States participated. While the Holocaust looms large, it is not the whole of the story of East European Jewry. Jews lived in this area for over 1,000 years. During that millennium, Jews in that area made enormous contributions to civilization. They created the Yiddish language and literature. They were engaged in tremendous scholarship, both religious and secular. They developed music, art, dance, and culinary creations. The Hassidic movement was created. Warsaw, the capital, was devastated during World War II. It was rebuilt under Soviet occupation, evident by the many dull looking build-
ings designed in the Soviet style. But it also has a charming old town, beautiful parks, and some shopping centers that are as modern and attractive as one would find anywhere in the world. Chopin is the city’s cultural icon, and his music can be heard everywhere. Before World War II, three million Jews lived in Poland, about 10% of the total population. However, the relation between Poles and Jews has been a “very mixed bag” of positive and negative, as Professor Berk frequently noted. In the 13th Century, the Polish nobility eagerly sought Jewish Continued on page 3
Jennifer Tompkins Kirshenbaum school board, District 12; she is running on a platform of increasing student achievement, leadership, sound judgment, transparency, accountability, and fiscal responsibility. Her credentials include 16 years of Human Resource experience and a seat on the Board of the Sanitary Improvement District. As a substitute teacher, she has intimate knowledge of what makes a classroom work, and she has been an OPS parent for eight years. Born and raised in Omaha, she graduated from Burke high school and earned her Master’s Degree in business administration from UNO. She also holds a teaching certificate from the University of Nebraska. Why did you decide to run? I found out in early February that Sandy Jensen was going to leave her seat, and I started hearing people talk about who would replace her. I began to think: we need someone who is interested in bringing a supportive attitude, and who isn’t merely tearing things down and criticizing the way things are. I hear a lot of talk about the OPS board, especially the Sebring emails, and that’s sad -- we need to get back to the real business of keeping our schools functioning, and we need to focus on the students. There are also those voters who don’t actually have children in the school system, and perhaps they care more about where their taxes are going. The thing is, when we have quality public school education, everybody benefits. These are the children who will someday be your doctors, your dentists, your accountants, and so forth. Fighting for them now will benefit society as a whole. Which three important qualities can no school board go Continued on page 2