HEW1SH PRESS VoLLXXX
No. 12 Omaha, NE
t 8 KFSLEV, 5761
December 15,2000
SERVING NEBRASKA AND WESTERN IOWA FOR 80 YEARS
Despite Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Partnership 2000 Continues with Allocations by CAROL KATZMAN, Editor
When organizers scheduled the General Assembly of the United Jewish Communities for November of 2000, participants assumed the annual meeting of Federations in North America would " be filled with even more projects of cooperation between Israeli Jews and Arabs. However, the conflict, which began prior to Rose. Hashanah, caused organizers to scrap the original agenda. One group though, continued to make plans, determine funding allocations, and try to bridge the gap between various groups. The Midwest Consortium of Partnership 2000 was one of only two P2K steering committee to meet in the two days following the G.A. last month. "Originally, we saw this as a wonderful opportunity to bring in the Israeli members of our team and schedule visits to several Consortium communities," explained Omaha's Zoe Riekes, chairman of the P2K Social-Cultural Committee. "When the violence flared in Israel, however, it became even more of an imperative to come together, not only in a show of solidarity with our friends and colleagues in the Western Galilee, but to make hard decisions about funding projects 'on-the-ground.'" The 13-member Midwest Consortium (which has expanded since its original formation of 10 cities five years ago), allocates approximately $600,000 every year directly to community-based projects and programs in the Western Galilee. It's an area, located north of Haifa and bordering the Lebanese border and the Mediterranean Sea, which contains the mostly Arab population of Acco, the pre-1948 community of Naliariyah, an assortment of kibbutzim and moshavim, Arab villages
and Rosh HaNikra. While it has been fairly quiet in this northwest portion of Israel, it has not been without conflict. According to Ahuva Lipman, the P2K director in Israel, several projects, including the JewishMuslim teen orchestra in Acco, had to be "temporarily suspended." "The fact that these cooperative projects had to be shut down makes it even more important to concentrate on building Zoe Hiekess eenter, chaired the Social/Cultural Sub-committee presentation at the recent Midwest Consortium Partnership 2000 allocabridges," Riekes added. "Turning the Tide' is tions meeting. Assisting her were: Beth Zuriel, the consortium^ coorone of those new projects dinator in Israel, and Danny Rizolio, Israeli chairman of the P2K subaimed at providing a committee. place where Jewish and Arab teens can meet in a Arab teens will experience performing a comnmxiineutral setting. There, they'll have access to infor- iy-service project together. mation about army service, employment, subYet another project aimed at bridge-building is in stance-abuse treatment, AIDS prevention, domes- the area of women's issues. Women of the region tic abuse and a variety of issues which are height- cave already been participating in monthly meetened during adolescence. ings, personal advancement courses, and the orgaAnother "bridging" project involves Eegional nization of three specialized groups for business Youth Leadership Development with young people and career, women, volunteers aiding victims of viofrom Acco and Mateh Asher. Based at Lohamei lence, and cooperation between Jews and Arabs. These three projects: Turning the Tide, Youth Hagettaot (the Ghetto Fighters' House), the project includes a workshop oirihe-umversal lessons .of the Leadership Development and.the Women's Forum Holocaust, a four-day summer seminar, and a joint were allocated $70,000 during the process, (Confitxuzed on page 8) summer project in which some 100 Jewish and
The Project Dreidel Chronicles by PAM MONSKY, Federation Communications Director
(The story you are about to read is true. The names of the family have been changed to respect their privacyJ The Project Dreidel Chronicles depict actual situations faeed by real Jewish families in Omaha. Project Dreidel is a tzedakah program sponsored by Jewish Family Service that has been providing Hanukkah gifts and Jewish holiday meals to families in our area who cannot afford them. Sometimes families and individuals have unexpected emergencies that require immediate intervention. Jewish Family Service is there to provide the financial and emotional support they need to get back to normal, and that support costs money year 'round. Your gift to the Jewish Federation of Omaha's 2001 Annual Campaign is what allows us to take care of each other. Despite our best efforts, our community's needs continue to outpace the increase in gifts to the Annual Campaign. Your increased Campaign gift ensures that every Omaha Jewish community member will have access to professional and compassionate help in a Jewish environment. THE APARTMENT In the case of the couple in this week's story, Jewish Family Service was literally able to keep the roof over their heads. The booming eeonomy has meant a tremendous increase in wealth for many in our Jewish community. But not everyone has benefited from this economic bounty. Numerous Jewish people in Omaha live paycheck to paycheck. Most of them are content with their lot and do not complain. However, advancing age and the illness that often follows, can befinanciallydisastrous.
Photo by Jen Gates Ruth and Sam Ullman are a Jewish couple in their late 5Q's who have both worked all their lives. Often, the money runs out before the next paycheck comes in. Even though their checkbook is often lean, they pay alJ their bills on time and have never gone into debt. They choose to "do without" rather than borrow money or use credit cards. Married for over 35 years, Sam and Ruth don't have any children, but they do have good friends. Sam and Ruth are also very proud people. They're proud of the fact that they don't rely on any government assistance programs for health insurance, housing, or food stamps, even though they probably would qualify. If they can't pay for something themselves, they figure, then they really don't need it. Unfortunately, Sam's medical needs recently put them on the brink of homelessness. Sam has diabetes and has been successfully managing the dis-
ease for many years, but the doctor ordered a change in the amount of insulin he injects dailyRegulating a diabetic's insulin is difficult and time consuming; too much insulin can lead to diabetic coma, too little causes high blood sugar levels. Although he was not feeling well, Sam wanted to go to work, but he passed out at bis job because of the wrong insulin level. It was obvious to both Sam and Ruth that Sam needed time off from work to recuperate at home. Sam could not return to work for several weeks and, of course, no work meant no paycheck. They also had to deal with hefty medical bills, as they had.no insurance. For the first time in their lives, they worried over how they would pay their bills. By tightening1 their belts, they were able to pay all their bills the first month Sam wasn't working. The one obligation they couldn't meet was the rent for their apartment. By the time the second month rolled around, Ruth and Sam knew they couldn't come up with the money to pay their rent at all. (Continued on page 8)
INSIDE: Prof. Greene speaks at Chabatf on medical ethics ~ page 6 Staff Ghanges~......,.n.MU>.,..>,..,...,,,t...pag<e 10 More Hanukkah. recipes.....*... .page t > Event to honor Beth El's Lucy White^-..^,_,.^ÂŤ......^..^^............^.Bage 12