April 20, 2001

JEWISH PRESS VoLLXXX

No. 26

Omaha, NE

27Nisan,5761

April 20,: 20,2001

SERVING NEBRASKA AND WESTERN IOWA FOR 80 YEARS

United Way Recognizes Volunteers Kay Ferer and Sheila Tomps by PAM MONSKY, Federation Communications Director Kay Ferer and Sheila Tomps will be honored by the United Way of the Midlands as Volunteers of the Year at the United Way Annual Recognition Luncheon on April 24. Ferer was nominated by the Jewish i Federation of Omaha for her work with the Women's Division of the Annual Campaign, her service to Young Energetic Seniors (YES) and her devotion to the residents of the Rose Blumkin Home. She will be recognized as Volunteer of the Year in the Elderly category at the Luncheon. "For the past five years, Kay has led the Kay Ferer Sheila Tomps Young Energetic Seniors Women's Campaign Blumkin Home Sing-A-Long every Tuesday since division for the Federation. She is also the only 1980, is an involved officer for Y.S.S. (Young Campaign division leader to get 100% participation Energetic Seniors), and also volunteers at from her donors! Kay is a wonderful lady and very Methodist Hospital every Friday. deserving of this wonderful award!" said Kathy Sheila Tomps will be recognized as Volunteer of McGauvran, Federation Women's Campaign the Year in the Health category. Tomps was nomiDirector. nated by Jewish Senior Services and the Rose Ferer's most selfless acts of volunteerism are Blumkin Jewish Home. undoubtedly her visits to elderly community memLois Wine, Director of Volunteer Services for bers who are hospitalized. She has helped with the

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Jewish Senior Services said of Tomps, "She is very deserving of this honor. Sheila does so much for us at the Home and for the community. We're just gratefiil to have her as a volunteer!" Tomps' volunteer career includes work with Boy Scouts and mentally-challenged students at Rose Hill School and Special Olympics. Her dedication to the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home, however, is most amazing. Tomps is always available to visit lonely residents, and assists with errands, doctor appointments and is the first one to volunteer as a chaperone on outings. Tomps does not seek recognition for the hundreds of hours she gives to the residents of the Home. At her request, there is no written record of the time she spends there. Ferer and Tomps will both be recognized at the 46th Annual United Way of the Midlands "Change the World" Volunteer Recognition Luncheon on Tuesday, April 24, at the Doubletree Hotel. For more information and tickets to the luncheon, please call the United Way at 522-7931.

Piecing Together a Lost Past by LEO ADAM BIG A, Special to the Jewish Press ——•

For the first 52 years of his life, Fred Kader lived everyday in the shadow of a lost past. An orphaned child of the Holocaust, Kader% early years remained an unfathomable mystery that he hoped one day to solve so that he might finally come to know how he survived the Shoah as a small boy in his native Belgium. That he had been one of an estimated 4,500 hidden children in his homeland during World War II, he already knew. That he was the lone surviving member of his immediate family, he was certain. That he ended up in an orphanage reserved for Jewish children, he definitely recalled. That an uncle found him after the war and took him in to live with his family, he also remembered. But precisely how he came to be hidden, where hewas protected and by whom were details frustratingly outside his memory's reach. After all, when the events that eventually, tragically separated Kader from his family first transpired he was about four years old — an age when distinct memories are rare in even the best of circumstances. Given the trauma he endured during the four years he was in hiding, he no doubt buried memories that he might otherwise have retained. Few members of his extended family who were left could provide only partial answers to the questions that dogged him all these years later. For Kader, a pediatric neurologist with his own private practice in Omaha, the strain of not knowing his own life history left an ever-present void he could not fill. With the disturbing sense that pieces of this puzzling odyssey lay just beyond his grasp, Kader, a soft-spoken man with sensitive eyes, described what it is like to be burdened with such a gulf inside. "It's like a big box of unknown," he said in his delicately-accented voice. "If s a big box that's empty, yet it isn't empty. You know it's full of things but there's no way of getting into it. When you have a chance to talk about it, you remember so little that it takes just a few minutes to put in words what you can say about it because the rest of you just represses it all. The pieces you know; fill just a small corner of the box and the rest of the box is empty and yet you know it isn't. "And you know whatever is in there certainly affected you and influenced you and has a direct relationship to who you are and what you do. It's a strange kind of void. It's part of you and yet it's

separate from you. You must keep going in spite of it and just try and accept it." Fragments and snatches of memories from wartorn Europe haunted him, but he could never make sense of them or be sure they were not fabrications of his imagination. Besides, the images in his head were obscured—like shadows filtered through a screen. For example, he recalled resting his head in someone's lap and crying during a noisy, nighttime road trip, but could not remember who consoled him or why or where he was traveling. Then there ¥red K a d e r i s t h e o n l y b l o n d e child in this 1942 photo, second row, ^ a f J_^!_1™a?^..°L _^m second from left. Another friend, Marcel Chojnacki, with whom he is wandering the streets as a is seated in the third row, third from front. little boy lost and being "Emotionally, I was trying to stay pretty calm, whisked away to safety. Why he was alone and who cool and collected because I didn't want to build up rescued him he did not know. "It was all bits and pieces," Kader recalled. "Some any kind of false hopes," he said. "I mean, who was of it I knew was facts; some may have come from going to know anything about this one little Jewish something I remembered and other parts of it may boy in the middle of this immense devastation that have come from something I read and incorporated. went on in Europe?" Much to his astonishment, however, he discovAfter a while, things kind of merge and it's hard to ered a wealth of information that, for the first time, tell what is a memory and what?s a nightmare." Striking an uneasy truce with his seemingly irre- gave him a near complete picture of how his own trievable and intractable past, Kader got to the hidden child story played out and revealed the point of never expecting to fully know what caused identities of those individuals whose actions shielded him from almost certain death. These revelahim to be spared amid the Holocaust. Then, at the urging of a fellow hidden cMld from tions came about as the result of Kader meeting Belgium who, amazingly enough, had also wound people at the conference who knew his story either up as a pediatric specialist practicing in Omaha- as researchers or as first-hand participants who child psychiatrist Tom Jaeger—Kader joined Ms aided his survival. friend at the First International Gathering of (Continued on page 9) Children Hidden During World War H in a shared search for clues to their missing stories. COMING EVENTS: Heading into the 1991 conference in New York Yom HaShoah, community commemoration City, the then-52-year-old Kader adopted a decided- of the Holocaust-Wednesday, April 25, 7 p.m., ly guarded attitude about what he might find, so as at Temple Israel not to be disappointed if his questions turned up no Yom HaAtzmuut, Sunday, May 6, 12:30 p.m.. at real answers. the JCC

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 20, 2001

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SAMUEL D. KOVITZ Former Omahan Samuel D. Kovitz died in San by Rabbi Myer S. Kripke .- • -• •• » Francisco at the age of 88. P a r a s h a t Shemeni He is survived by his wife, Helen Lipsman At a small dinner not long ago, I sat next to the Kovitz; daughter and son-in-law, Julie Kovitz and author of a novel I had been reading. After dinner, Harry Pasternak of Berkeley, CA; and sister, he was to speak to a large assembly. Not speak, Libby Modlin of Culver City, CA.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS FRIDAY, APRIL 20 Lion of Judah & Pacesetter Luncheon with Raquel Newman, Noon, Location: tba Temple Israel "Shabbat Comes to You," 3:45 p.m., at Livingston p

SUNDAY, APRIL 22 Grade 5 Parents Meeting, 10 a.m., at & Temple Israel s Outreach Program, 10 a.m., at Temple Israel A Israel Experience Grants Program, 2 p.m.

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MONDAY, APRIL 23 YESProgram, 10 a.m. College of Jewish Learning, 7:30 p,m.

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TUESDAY, APRIL 24 BBYO Night, 6 p.m. Federation Board Meeting, 7:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25 OTYG & JYG- Dinner, 6 p.m., at Temple Israel Yom Hashoah Commemoration, 7 p.m., at Temple Israel

really; he was to read from his own work. He did, indeed, read a new, tragic story, a story not yet published. What had impressed me about his novel included what seemed to me to be the inability of a Jew with any sensitivity to write a page not influenced by the Shoah, the great destruction of European Jewry by the Nazis. The Nazis took the mass murder of Jews to be a prime purpose of life. They were able to talk themselves into believing that this was all but a divine command. From all over Europe, they rounded up Jews and sent them to the murder centers in Poland. But enough; the facts are too well known to require retelling. Nonetheless, we cannot permit ourselves to avoid discussion of this unique, unprecedented human tragedy. Jews were the victims. But the tragedy revealed the astonishing failure of Christianity. The savage defamation and persecution of Jews in Christian Europe over many centuries came to a head in the Shoah. It is not surprising that the Nazis were helped all over Europe by non-Nazis. No one protested. No national government-no church association—not the Pope. Isn't that what Jews ate for? For burning? I must adroit, or shall I say, proclaim, that I have not been able to write a page without the underlying influence or suppression of the Shoah. It is not subtle. It is a profound influence, a major factor in my thinking and feeling. It is nothing I can avoid. It is an ingredient of the ink in pen or typewriter ribbon or computer print. For a moment, I return to Busch's Invisible Mending. How is a well-told, extremely complicated story of love and marriage and a continuing love outside and parallel to the love within the marriage. Is such love natural? Is it legitimate? But these questions are elbowed aside by the intrusion of thoughts of the Shoah. How odd! What does A have to do with B? And the question obtrudes: Is this a permanent wound to the Jewish people? If not permanent, how many generations will be drained, at least in part, of the usual blood flow from the heart to the brain and back? Can Jews return to any kind of normalcy, as the Christian perpetrators did so easily? Is this whole thing a little blip in the flow of history, or has humanity confronted a major flaw in its constitution? Can humanity be redeemed?

How to Submit an Obituary to the Jewish Press The family of the deceased, the synagogue or funeral home used by the synagogue should submit in writing to a staff member of the Jewish Press: the full name, age, and date of death of the deceased, location of service and burial site. The survivors shall be listed, including names of surviving spouse, sisters, brothers, sisters-inlaw, brothers-in-law, sons, daughters, sons-inlaw, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren and their places of residence; the number (but not names) of great-grandchildren, as well as the name of the spouse or any children who preceded the deceased in death. Companions or life partners of the deceased shall be listed. In cases where confusion might arise due to people of t h e same name either being the deceased or a survivor, maiden names or middle initials shall be added, if known. A photo of the person, if available and if deemed notable by the Editor, shall be included in the obit. Other pertinent biographical information (including honors or the serving as an officer in a Jewish organization) may be included at the Editor's discretion. The Jewish Press cannot use obits obtained

directly from the Omaha World-Herald, Synagogues should fax the notice to the Press (1402-334-5422); or it can be faxed by the funeral home or the family of the deceased may fax, mail or e-mail the obit to the Press (see mast on page 4 for complete list of numbers and addressee). Memorial suggestions are acceptable to any bona fide, charitable organization; addresses will be included to out-of-state non-profit organizations, if provided.

Sweet Favors After Passover in Israel The day after the Passover festival, Israelis celebrated the Mimouna festival. Although the origins of the Mimouna are found in the North African communities, who represent most of the revelers, the day is celebrated by a wide range of Israelis. Sephardi communities offer hospitality to all, and families the length and breadth of the country go to the parks to prepare barbecues. The President, Prime Minister and leading cabinet ministers were found enjoying delicious sweet confections in the large tents specially set up for the day in Sacher Park, Jerusalem.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 26 Adult Education, 10 a.m., at Temple Israel p LOVE Board Meeting, 7 p.m., at & the RBJH Conference Room Adult B'nai Mitzvah Class,'7 pirn., at Temple A YJO Dinner, 7 p.m., Location: tba 1

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All events held at the JCC unless otherwise indicated. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the accuracy of the events. To keep calendar accurate or for questions, call Marlene Hert at 334-6437.

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Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

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^MM^^MW^&S FRIDAY: Shabbat Comes to You, 3:45 p.m., Rabbi Stiel will lead a shabbat service at Livingston Plaza; Shabbat evening service, 8 p.m. Rabbi Aryeh Azriel, Rabbi Debbie Stiel and Cantor Jennifer Blum will officiate. In commemoration of Yom HaShoah, special guest speaker Anna Rosmus will tell a story of the Holocaust from her unique perspective. The Oneg Shabbat will be sponsored by the Women of Reform Judaism. SATURDAY: Bagels and Bible, 9:30-10:15 a.m. Dr. Racelle Weimar* will join us for a special Holocaust reading. Services, 10:30 a.m. TUESDAY: Service of Healing and Renewal, 7 p.m. Are you or your family coping with illness, loss or grief? Are you looking for a special opportunity for spiritual renewal through prayer, song and reflection? Then join us for this inspirational bimonthly service. SITTER SERVICE Available for Shabbat services Friday evening and Saturday morning, as well as Sunday mornings when there is Religious School. Please make reservations through the Temple office. Cost is $2 per family. There are no facilities for infante. ADULT EDUCATION SUNDAY, April 22: Jewish Journey Book Group, 10-11:80 a<m. Led by Temple member Tamra Willett-Johnson, this four-week course will explore the Jewish themes found in The Ladies Auxilary by Tova Mirvis; Alternative Methods of Spirituality in Judaism, 10-1 ls30 a.m. Facilitated by Professor Guy Matalon, this class will look at different ways of understanding and practicing spirituality within Judaism, WEDNESDAY, April 25: Midrashah, 10 a,m,. noon, THURSDAY, April 26: Adult Study with the Rabbis, 10-11:30 a.m. Guest speaker will be Dr. Racelle Weiman; Adult B'nai Mitzvah, 7-0 p.m.. TOTSHABBAT Friday, April 27, 7 p.m.: This is a special service for children through the primary grades. Come join the Rabbi for snack and a story, and songs with Patty Nogg. RCiSE BLUMKIN JEVVISH H0ME FRIDAY: Services, 7 p.m., led by Nancy Rips, SATURDAY; Services, 9 a.m., led by Rabbi Maximo Shechet. Services are held in the Herbert Goldsten Chapel, followed by Kiddush.

Office hours: Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Fridays, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Services conducted by Rabbi Howard Kutner. FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 7 p.m. The West Minyan will be at the home of Susan and Dennis Paley, 13014 Leavenworth, 7:80 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbos services, 8:45 a.m. Babysitting is provided free of charge from 10 mm. until the conclusion of services, Kiddush is sponsored by Sisterhood; Insights into the Parsha class, 7:15 p.m.; Mincha, 7:45 p.m.; Havdalah, 8:55 p.m. SUNDAY: Services, 9 a.m. and 7:55 p.m. WEEKDAYS: Services, 7 a.m. and 7:55 p.m. TUESDAY: Talmud class with Rabbi Kutner, 7 p.m. KOSHER CHINESE BUFFET DINNER Sunday, April 29, 5 p.m.: All-You-Oare-to-Eat dinner. Cost is $12 per person; children under 12 eat free. Make your reservations today. CONGREGATION B'NAI JESHURAN ; SOUTH. STREET TEMPLE \ 200,1. S. 20th St., Lincoln, NE <}8502-27»7 435-8004 jewishruthraskn.oi Services officiated by Cantor Michael Weieser. FRIDAY: Sabbath Eve sorvice, 7:45 p.m. SATURDAY} Torah Study, lOa.m.-noon. SUNDAY: Hebrew School, 9 a.m., Koli{;ioun School, 10 a»m, • MONDMV Acted*Hebrew Study/Movies, 7 p.m. TUESDAY* Conversion class, 7-8:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY: AA, Meeting, library, 7:80 p.m.

TIFERETH ISRAEL Moniberof the United Synagogue of Conservative 'Judaism •8210 Sheridan Blvd., Lincoln, NE (»8i»02-5230 :

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18G6 Sc^ 120th St., Omaha, NE 68.144-1040 Phone: 330-1800 E-MAU.--eluibad@uol.com WEBSITE: www.chalHiclcenters.coin/omnlia Services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman, MONDAY-FRIDAY: Services, 7 a.m. SATURDAY: Services, 0:30 a.m. MONDAY: Genesis Lunch Series, 11:45 a.m.« 1 p.m. TUESDAY: A Tale of Two Souls, 9:30-11 a.m,; Bais Midrash, 7 p.m.

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Phone: 322-4705 e-iriail:doc,)ob@aol.t"om FRIDAY; Services, 7:80 p.m. Discussion topics will be "Existentialism," and "The Philadelphia Plague." Oneg Shabbat and kiddush will follow.

Office Hours: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m.5 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Services ore conducted by Rabbi Paul Drazen and Cantors Emil Berkovits and G. Michael Horwitz. FRIDAY: Services, 6 p.m. SATURDAY: Services, 9:30 a.ra. Zev Eisenberg", son of Robert Eisenberg and Pam Kohll, wil become a Bar Mitzvah. Kiddush will be sponsored by Zev's family; TSS (Torah and Siddur Skills) Program, 10 aon.; K'tantan (K-3rd grade) 10:45 a.m.; Shahbat Story Time (pre-K and younger), 11 sum.; Mishnah study session with Rabbi Drazen, 7:80 p.m,, followed by Minha-Ma'ariv and Havdalah, 8 p.m. SUNDAY: Services, 9 a.m.; Torah Trope Class for upcoming B'nai Mitevah students and their parents, 9:15-10 a.m., call Cantor Berkovits at Beth El, 492-8550, for more information; Perek Yomi, 10:15 a*m. The group continues its study of the Book of Proverb. This week's discussion leader is Marty Shukort. WEEKDAYS: Services, 6:55 a.m, and 5:30 p.m, FREE SITTER SERVICE: Available every shabbat morning' froro 10 a.m. to the conlusioh of services. This program is underwritten by the Early Childhood 'Development. Committee and welcomes children ages 18 months6 years. . • ADULT EDUCATION WEDNESDAY: Adult H'nul Mltzvah Class roHumob on May 2, 7::$0 p.m. THIRD FRIDAY SKRVlCK AND DINNER Friday, April 20, 0 p.m.: lumorH now mombers. BAZAK Sunday, April 22, 3 p.m.: Card party and BBQ BELLS (Beth El Lunch and Learn on Shabbat) Saturday, April 28: The three-session series is titled "The Bible in the 21s(, Century: Where Have all the Heroos-nnd VilHati8--Oonti7M; Session 1, "Abraham, Moaes and Joshua: Unearthed or Buried by Archaeology?" will bepin immediately sifter the Shabbat morning kiddush. Dr. Leonard Greonapoon will guide us in our study. Lunch is $5, pnynblo in advnncn with reservations. Babysitting it) free, by reaorvulum only. For more information, call Susie Dnizan at '192-8550,

BAR MITZVAH Benjamin Daniel Salzinger,'son of Lynn and Fred SaMnger, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah Saturday, April 28j at Temple Israel A seventh-grade honor student at Lewis and Clark Middle School, he t'ujoys baseball, basket.biilj and golf. lie pluys sebullforthe Memorial I lfillsido Teimi rind played | bawkoLball at the JCC. For hih mi I/A ah project, he vohinhsorod at the t!reif,'hton University Child Dovcilopmeiit Center. Ben has two brothers, Sam and Kyle. Grandparents are Bette Roberta and the late Morris Roberts, and Iho. late Munny and Ida Salzingor.

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Page 4

EDITORIAL Last night, government officials and leaders of the Jewish community of Lincoln commemorated the victims of the Holocaust with a ceremony at the state capitol. In addition to Anna Rosmus, who spoke about her work in Germany exposing the actions of her fellow townsmen during World War II, the program included the lighting of candles hy Holocaust survivors and rescuers, poetry readings, and remarks by Gov. Mike Johanns. A new candle, the Candle of Hope, was lit by the newest victims of extermination, the Lost Boys of Sudan, orphaned when their parents and older siblings were murdered by opposing tribal factions. Rosmus will tell her story again tonight at Temple Israel in Omaha. And on Wednesday night, at 7 p.m. at Temple Israel, the Jewish community in Omaha commemorates Yom HaShoah when Dr, Racelle Weiman, the first director of the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education in Cincinnati, participates in the annual ceremony. Those of us who didn't suffer the horrors of the Holocaust can never fully understand what the victims must have experienced. We cannot know the stark terror of watching children being torn from the arms of their parents, never to be seen again. We cannot imagine the seemingly

April 20,2001

Dry Bones

Who Will Remember? endless hunger, the numbing cold, the wails and screams of the dying, the loneliness, the sickness, the heartbreak. Neither can we imagine ourselves brave enough to send our children away with strangers, in hopes they will survive, even if we don't. Nor can we see our friends and family members courageous enough to risk their lives by hiding a hunted family. The Holocaust is too horrendous to imagine, yet too powerful to forget. In addition to the loss of six million of our own, another five million political prisoners, homosexuals, Gypsies, mentally and physically challenged, members of the clergy, and others perished. Yet, despite the depressing results of the efficient Nazi execution factories, there were good, kind people who lent a hand and saved a life. There weren't many, to be sure, but 40,000 survived in Japanese-held territory; another 10,000 lived because of a lone Japanese Ambassador and a quiet German clerk; Oskar Schindler helped more than 1100. And then there were the townspeople of Chambord, in Prance, who hid Jews because it was the right thing to do. If only more had acted like them, there might have been more survivors. We can't change the past, but neither can we forget.

U06R6 U9S6T AT

WATS AS AS

Fight Back or Die

BEHIND THE HEADLINES by SIDNEY ZION

Yasser Arafat's guerrilla war against Israel will end in one or two days: Arafat will blink, or the Israeli army will unleash its power and destroy the terrorists. Arafat, steely-eyed now, thinks, otherwise. On the day that President Bush demands he stop the war, Yasser spits in Dubya's eye, he announces that the intifada will continue until the Palestinian flag is raised "in every mosque and church and on the walls of Jerusalem," He had some reason to believe this as long as Ehud Barak was Israel's prime minister and Bill Clinton sat in the White House. But if Arafat thinks that Ariel Sharon will walk the Barak plank, his dream will sooner or later~and I think sooner-turn into a nightmare for his people. Because you don't have to be a great warrior like Arik Sharon to understand that the only way to win a guerrilla war is to wipe it out. That's just textbook stuff, History 101. No country in the world can permit terror against its citizens for long--and Israel is one country that can't survive it. • The Israelis.would still win a conventional war against the Arab world, but a guerrilla war is different in kind. It Saps the country of its ability to

live a normal life. When a Jew in Tel Aviv can't walk the streets in safety, when children have to work cell phones to assure their parents that they made it to school alive - well, nobody can live like that And this is the way of life today in Israel. The great "peace process" has delivered peritonitis to the nation. The peaceniks who said there was "no alternative" are now faced with the fact that the only alternative is war. The war was not proclaimed by Israel, but by Yasser Arafat, who decided that Bill Clinton, the best friend the Palestinians ever had in the White House, was the enemy incarnate. This is the pathology of the Palestinians, now shown in living color. They consider themselves victimized, their land "stolen" by the Jews, and nothing will appease them but the destruction of Israel. Against this madness, Israel has no choice but to put down this intifada with all the strength it has. Sharon, thus far, has shown restraint - and therefore been bitterly criticized by his right-wing base as "Barak-dark." . There is something to this charge, to be sure. Arik's reaction to the murder of an Israeli baby at point-blank range was to hit Arafat's headquarters,

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in the knowledge Arafat was in Amman at the Arab summit. That looks like no response at all. But I don't buy that Sharon wanted it to be simply a symbol, a lefcting-off of steam to make his people think he was serious. I think Arik was giving Arafat a warning that if he continues this intifada, anything goes. Maybe I'm dreaming, but I have known Sharon for 30 years, and nothing he has ever clone makes hini an appeaser. But even if he has such thoughts, even if he goes against bis past and wants to do a deal with Arafat under fire, the law of battle against guerrilla war makes this impossible. George W. Buift seems to understand this. If he didn't give a green light to Sharon to end the terror, he turned it on amber. And Israel doesn't even need his go-ahead. The Jewish State would not be here today if it had to poll the United Nations, or even America, before defending itself. Against the wall, Israel has always done what it had to do for itself. If Yasser Arafat won't blink, it's guns out for Israel. The alternative is slow death. Sidney Zion is a free-lance writer whose work often appears in the New York Post.

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The role of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to involve Jews in meeting Jewish communal needs locally, nationally and in Israel. Centers of Excellence of the Federation are: Community Relations, Jewish. Community Center, Jewish Educational and Library Services, Jewish Family Service, Jewish Senior Services. The Jewish Press is a Constitutional Committee of the Jewish Federation of Omaha, Deadline for copy, ads and photos is: Thursday, noon, eight days prior to publication. The Jewish Press (USPS 275620) is published weekly on Friday for $28 per calendar year U.S.; $32 foreign, by the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Phone: 402-334-6448; FAX; 402-334-5422; e-mail editorial material; photos and address changes to: ckatxman@jowishomaha.org; send ads (in .TIF or .PDF format) to: Kilapour@jewishomaha.org. Periodical postage paid at Omaha, NE. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The; Jewish Press, 333 So. 132nd St., Omaha, NE 68154-2198.

Lloyd Roitstein Chairman Carol Katzman Editor-in-Chief Maureen LaPour Managing Editor Allan Handleman Advertising Manager Barbara Frankel Rocky Stern Sales representatives Timothy J. Ketelsen Bookkeeper Jen Gates Production Assistant George Schapiro Volunteer

JEWISH PRESS COMMITTEE Fred Tichauer, Vice-Chairman; Joanie Jacobsort, Secretary; Howard Silber, Treasurer; Elyce Azriel; Jill Belmont; Jean Duitch; Penny Endelman; Kip Gordman; Gary Kudyin; Howard K. Marcus; Linda Saltzman; Steve Simon; Amee Zetzman; George Schapiro (Honorary Committee Member). Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Committee, the Jewish Federation of Omaha or the Omaha Jewish Community as a whole. The Jowiih Press reserves the right to edit letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the KashrutU of any product or establishment.'

April 20,2001

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 5

Icitus ON isstiis Mentioning the Elephant by J I N S A

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There's an old adage about polite people talking about everything but the elephant sitting in the corner. We've forgotten most of it, but are reminded of the elephant by the Chinese and the Palestinians. A Chinese fighter jet buzzed our surveillance plane over international waters, crippled it and forced it to land, removed the crew, separated the captain, and refused to permit American diplomats to visit American citizens for several days. The Palestinians rejected the establishment of an independent state with partial control over Jerusalem, then organized a shooting war against Israel, which recently included a suicide bombing that killed two boys waiting for a school bus, murdering a baby girl in her mother's arms, and critically injuring a baby boy with mortar fire. The Chinese and the Palestinians would like an apology. The Chinese demand was in the media. The Palestinian demand stems from an incident last week where Israeli troops exchanged fire with security men in a convoy with PA security chief Mohammed Dahlan. "I will not attend (further security meetings) before all the rules and bases for such meetings are changed and before Israel apologizes," Dahlan said. In all of this, the media (and far too many governments) treat Chinese and the PA as if they are the political equivalent of the U.S. and Israel. As if they are democratic. As if they honor international standards and signed agreements. As if their demands are within the bounds of reasonable behavior. AH if they are aggrieved parties. Most people have thus far been too polite to mention that both the PA and the PEC are repressive, corrupt dictatorships that consider international agreements and the rule of law useful only if they bring about the desired outcome, but are otherwise simply paper to be trampled, Both engage in violence agninst their own people and others. Both initiated this trouble and both want someone elae to take the blame. Fortuimtely, neither President Bush nor Prime Minister Sharon seems inclined to do HO. They have bluntly called the elephant an elephant, in wtark contrast to their predecessors. President Clinton called China a "strategic partner," ignoring both internal and external signs that China considered us something elae. The Barak government called Arafat its "peace partner," while Arafat WUH busily preparing his war against the Jews. There will be a price to pay for this now bluntness, and it should not be underestimated. In Israel, there is a serious threat of increasing terror, a horror inflicted primarily on civilians. In China, our servicemen were hostages and other Americans have been "detained" by authorities, their fate unclear. The cost of ignoring the elephant is that American and Israeli policy will continue to be built on the dangerous hope of civilized behavior by uncivilized governments. In the long term, the latter price will be the greater one,

In Latest Battle over Rich Scandal, Holocaust Museum Head Finds Support by PETER EPHROSS —

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NEW YORK (JTA)--Rabbi Irving Titz" Greenberg has built a reputation as a man of letters, but not of the kind that have swirled around him lately. In the latest volley in an escalating war of words, a majority of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council is defending Greenberg, the embattled council chair, against a campaign to unseat him over his role in the Marc Rich pardon scandal. Thirty-five members of the 50-plus-member council prepared a letter last week backing Greenberg, who is under pressure to resign for lobbying on Rich's behalf. Even his backers admit that Greenberg made a mistake when he sent a letter on museum stationery in December asking President Clinton to pardon the financier. Yet last week's letter went on to say, "We have complete confidence that the museum will continue to flourish under Rabbi Greenberg'a leadership." The pro-Greenberg letter came in response to another letter, signed by 18 current and former members of the council, that was made public last week. That letter recognized Greenberg's "long and distinguished career us an educator and as a leading proponent of Jewish thought." But it called on him to resign for his role in the Rich pardon, saying lie had unintentionally "entangled the museum in a political controversy inimical to its mission." The scandal is the latest involving the museum, which has drawn close to 16 million visitors and widespread praise since it opened in 1993, but has also made headlines for political squabbles and infighting. Depending on whom you talk to, this latest crisis may or may not be partisan in nature. In any case, it also appears to be driven by other forces, including disagreements over the future direction of the Washington-based museum. But Groenberg's detractors say it is his actions alone in the Rich scandal that led to their: campaign. "There in no rntionalo to involve the; museum in the pardon of Mure Rirh, 4.11n pardon of a fugitive," sold Deborah Lipstadt, one of the signatories to laat week's unti-Groenbortf letter. "This museum WHS created to commemorate the vision of l,!)n Holoeaunt," and the damage done by Greenborg'B lobbying for Rich "can't be repaired" by an upolopfy, said Lipstadt, a professor of modern Jewish and Holocauat studies at Emory University in Atlanta. Lipstadt said Greenberg'a actions on behalf of Rich are exacerbated by the fnot that Greonborg also directs Michael Stoinhardt'a charitable foundation, which helped establish Birthright Israel, Rich contributed $5 million to Birthright, which sends North American Jews on free trips to Israel. "No one is suggesting a quid pro quo, but appearances count," Lipstadt said. Judging from the latest letter, most of the council disagrees with Lipstadt's faction. Among the signers of the pro-Greenberg letter are several prominent members of the museum The Jewish Institute fxtr National Security Affairs is council, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie rum-profit, non-partisan organization engaged in analyWiesel and two former members of the Clinton sis and promotion U.S.-Israet strategic cooperation.

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administration, Dennis Ross and Stuart Eizenstat. The council oversees the museum. Greenberg "made a mistake on Marc Rich, but for 40 years, he has worked as a teacher and a Jewish leader" to commemorate the Holocaust, Wiesel said. A longtime council member, Greenberg is an Orthodox rabbi best known in the Jewish community for his writings on the Holocaust and his leadership at two organizations that promote Jewish pluralism and learning: the Jewish Life Network and CLAL--The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. The pro-Greenberg faction criticizes the tactics of his critics, Greenberg apologized at a January council meeting, and his apology was accepted by the council and the museum's Executive Committee, his backers say. The matter was not raised at February and March council meetings, they add. •In addition, Greenberg was presented with the letter calling on him to resign on April 4, just one day before the letter's contents appeared in the New York Jewish Week. •

The way in which Greenberg's critics conducted their campaign was "stealth terrorism," said Mennehem Rosensaft, a council member and Greenberg supporter. For his part, Greenberg told JTA hist week that. he would not quit over his role in the scandal surrounding Rich, who became a m^jor.philanthropist to Jewish and Israeli causes after fleeing to Switzerland in 1088 to escape prosecution. "I have no intention of resigning," Greenberg aaid, adding that he would pursue the museum's goals "vigorously*1 until his term ends in January. President Bush can then appoint another member of the council to bo its chair, and many believe ho will appoint aomoone with closer lies to Un> Republican Party Unm Greeiilieri;, who was luuuwl U> the yuat by Clinton lui»t your. In J9Q8, the museum came under fire for its onugniu, off-again invitation to Palestinian Authority Prosidsmt Yasser Arafat to visit the museum. Arafat eventually declined the invitation. Soon thereafter, John Roth, an appointee to head the museum's Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, was criticized for making comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany. Roth eventually resigned his post under pressure. Greenberg first came under fire earlier this year, after a public speech characterized m anti-Israel by an opinion writer in the Wall Street Journal. Greenberg said the opinion piece not only was "an outrageous misrepresentation," but portrayed the opposite of what he actually said. Both Lipstadt and Ruth Mandel, the council's vice chair and another signatory to the antiGreenberg letter, deny that the present campaign is politically motivated. (JTA correspondent Sharon Samber [-in Washington contributed to this report.)

Our Warmest Thanks to -the Hundreds of Volunteers— famflvj, friends and children—who bring lau^xtar,joy and sunshine, even on the coldest day, to our R The Rose Blumkin Jewish Home Administered by Jewish Senior Services an Agency of" the Jewish Federation of Omaha

Page 6

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

April 20, 2001

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Y.E.S.. Members will meet Monday at the JCC. Play bingo at 10:15 a.m., or exercise with Stacey Paskert at 10:30 a.m. Bring articles to share for "YES Talk" at 11 a-m. Following lunch at noon, Westside High school sophomore Danielle Burr will perform highlights from the musical Hello Dolly (she played the lead in the school's production). For transportation, call 3304272.

JEWISH SENIOR SERVICES The program "Women and Aging: A Celebration," WALK-IN, DROP-IN For those going on the day trip to Bluffs Run on Thursday, May 3, has been canceled. Casino to see the performance of Red, Hot and TEMPLE ISRAEL OUTREACH Blue, a musical group from Branson, MO, please meet at the front entrance of the JCC at 8:45 a.m. Take a step back in time and see where early Jewish Omaha planted its roots. Join Temple For transportation, call Maggie Conti 334-6521. Israel Outreach on Sunday, April 22, 10 a.m., as Mary Fellman, Co-Founder of the Nebraska Jewish VISIONS Reminder: For those going to the Gateway Arch Historical Society, takes us on a wonderful two& Pioneer Village, meet at the front entrance of the hour tour of Jewish Omaha. We will also visit the NJHS Museum at the JCC. Ollie the Trolley will JCC at 7:15 a.m. Membership Luncheon Meeting is Friday, May depart from the east side of Temple Israel and 18, 2:30 p.m., at the Caniglia's Venice Inn. Cost is return at noon. Tickets are $5 per person. Seats are $8 per person. Guest is sportscaster Dave Webber limited, so please R.S.V.P. to Bonnie at Temple from WOWT, Channel 6. Send reservations to today, 556-6536. Wally Elkon, 1005 N. 63rd St., Omaha, NE 68132. Deadline is May 11. Make check payable to Jewish MARRIAGE Senior Services. Baseball & Bar-B-Q is Thursday, May 31. Cost LAINOF/NACHER is $12.50 per person. Join the Visionaires for our Meredith Raisel annual Golden Spikes event, including dinner buf- Lainof, daughter fet and the game, in the Stadium View Club. Game of Carole and Dr. starts at 7:05 p.m. Seating is limited. Send reser- Wayne Lainof of vations to Harry Alloy, 11317 Harney Plz. Circle, Bellevue, and Omaha, NE 68154. Robert Avraham Visions presents Winnipeg's Folklorama includ- Nacher, son of ing Canada's Festival of Nations on August 13-17. Susan and Stuart Cost is $549 per person double occupancy. Nacher of LivingFolklorama is the largest multi-cultural festival of ston, NJ, were its kind in the world. Price includes round trip married March 14 motor coach, four nights accommodations, four in Ganei Yehuda, Jerusalem, Israel. evening meals and throe lunches, guided tour of The bride has a BA in Psychology from the the Festival of Nations, reserved seating for enter- University Virginia and an MS in Child tainment, guided tour of Winnipeg, afternoon Development of from Whealock College. She is curcruise on the Assiniboine River, visits to the histor- rently a student at Neve Yerushalayim. ical port and Royal Canadian Mint. The groom has a BS in computer science from the Send application form with $50 deposit to Betty College of New Jersey. He is a student at Yeshivot Sanford, 9205 Western St., Omaha, NE 68114. Ohr Somayach in Jerusalem. Space is limited. Deadline is June 4. Make check Amanda Hoffman, sister of the bride, was matron payable to Visions, of honor; Gabrielle Hoffman, niece of the bride, was flower girl; Marc Nacher, brother of the groom, was OMAHA CENTER FOR TORAII LEARNING best man. SATURDAY, APRIL 21, 5, p.m., a class on the The couple live in Mattersdorf, Jerusalem. weekly Torah portion is hosted by Rabbi Levin at his home, 2001 N. 56th St. TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 7 p.m., Beit Midrash at BIRTH Chabad house. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 25, noon, Lunch 'n Jessica a n d Scott Marland of Chicago Learn meets in the Kripke Federation Jewish announce the March 14 birth of their daughter, Library. Our topic will be "Pirkei Avot: Sayings of Madeleine Rose. the Sages." Please bring a lunch. Grandparents are Neil and Naomi Arnold of THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 7 p.m., Talmud study, Mendota Heights, MN, and Barbara and James tractate Sukka, meets. Call for location. Marland of Highland Park, IL. For more information about these and other OCTL Great-grandparents are Ida Arnold of St. Louis programs, please contact Rabbi Levin at 551-1564. Park, MN, Bess Rothenberg of Omaha, and Thelma since 1892

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B'NAI B'RITH BREADBREAKERS Tony Payne, Executive Director of the Iowa West Foundation, will speak at Breadbreakers on Wednesday, according to Gary Javitch, Chairman. Breadbreakers meets every Wednesday at noon at the Park Inn Regency (formerly the Regency West Best Western) at 107th and Pacific. Cost for lunch is $9; for beverage service only, $2.

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GBAD The Jewish Press will feature "A SALUTE TO 2001 GRABS" in the June 1 issue. Photos are dm by May 14...no exceptions! All Jewish graduating high school seniors are urged to send their senior pictures along with the following: Name. Parents — High School — — Plans after graduation • Please send to: Jewish Prens . 333 So. 132nd St., Omaha, NE 68154

April 20, 2001

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 7

by Mary Fellman, Editor

What's New at the Krlpke Jewish Federation Library? Several now cookbooks are now on the shelves at the library covering a wide range of culinary interest. From Master Chefs Cook Kosher to the 2nd Aue. Dell and from Mazel Tov Yall (the ultimate Southern Jewish Bake Book) to the Jewish Vegetarian Year Cookbook, you are certain to find tantalizing, tasty tidbits. Come browse! The library has also received two new largeprint mysteries. Scott Turow (author of Burden of Proof) has a new legal thriller, Personal Injuries. The book possesses fully-developed characters and a plot full of twists and turns. It will keep you guessing until the very end. Best soiling author Faye Kellorman's new novel Jupiter's Bones revolvea around the mysterious death of a cult leader, Father Jupiter. Petor Decker and Rina Lazarus are again featured in this continuing series and we learn more about their changing family dynamic. Hope to see you soon.

DIAMANT

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baum. Front row, from left: David Kutler, Debi Kutler, Jaynie Kubuck, Shirley & Max Kirshcnbaum, Ryan Kirshcnbaum, Kylie Kirshenbaum, Kevin Kirshcnbaum, Alex Kirshenbaum and Rachel Kirshcmbaum.

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A vast amount of infor- • rnation about cancer is I available toll-free by j phone or on the World I Wide Web. { The American Cancer Society's phone num- r I ber, 1-800-ACS-2345, and its Web site, which Jj jean be accessed at www.cancer.org, sup- \ ! plies cancer facts, research updates, support ! [ group locations, and other practical and edu- | ; cational information. ;

New Books on Tape: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant Magician of Lublin by Isaac Bashevis Singer The Rabbi Series by Harry Kemmelman Jewish Book of Why and Second Jewish Book of Why, both by Alfred Kolach

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Who is the oldest Jewish Nebraskan? Call me with the name and birthdate of the oldest Jewish Nebraskan you know! Mary Fellman 393-3144

Thursday, April 26 Bluffs Run Casino Cost Is $5 Free Luhch • Free Show For more information, call Maggie Conti

334-6521 SAVE SUNDAY, MAY 20! On Sunday, May 20, there will be a community event to celebrate the "newest Jewish holiday," Yom Yerushalalm. Yom Yerushalaim commemorates the return of Jerusalem to Jewish control in 1967-for the first time in a Imost 2,000 years! This festive event will feature a kosher family picnic followed by a free concert by popular Jewish rocker Yehuda, to be held outside the JCC in and around the newly remodeled Frohm Pavilion,

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Everybody is Forgetful now and then; everybody has emotional highs and lows. But anyone with several of the symptoms listed below, or with frequently recurring symptoms, needs a thorough medical exam. Warning signs of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia include: 1. Memory loss that affects job performance. 2. Difficulty performing familiar tasks, 3. Forgetting simple words or using inappropriate ones. 4. Getting lost in time and place. 5. Poor judgment, 6. Misplacing things and putting them in odd places, like a hat in the microwave. 7. Rapid mood changes, often for no obvioiks reason. 8. Loss of initiative or interest in one's usual pursuits.

Anyone with diabetes should wear a medical I.D. If you are embarking on your first serious attempt at necklace or bracelet stating the type of treatment regular exercise, or if you've tried before and failed, you may have two things In common with a lot of they use, in case of emergencies. America. How About A Coronary Artery Scan? One, you know you're supposed to exercise Persons should have a scan if they: because It's good for you, And two, you figure it's • are above the age of 35 • have high cholesterol going to take a lot of time, hard work and maybe • have a family history of coronary artery disease even suffering for you to really see any benefits. • have high blood pressure Asmoke •have diabetes Here's the problern-you're only half right. • have a sedentary lifestyle • are overweight You're right about the myriad benefits of physical Studies have shown that knowing the results of activity—but you're wrong about how hard it is to this scan can b© a powerful motivator for patients to receive them. Even a modest amount of daily movemake meaningful and lasting lifestyle changes that ment can offer great health benefits. Think of yourself can benefit their heart health, hence reducing the as starting at the base level of a pyramid that conrisks of subsequent, disabling, costly and even fatal sists of three levels, health and wall-being, weight coronary event, . ! loss, and total fitness,

Exercise., ,lt"s Good For You!

Page 8

AprO 20, 2001

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Henry Monsky Lodge Announces Winners of Bert Render and Earl SiegeS Awards

Boys Town Jerusalem Remembers Soldiers of Valor

by JEWISH PRESS News Service — —

Jim Farber, Chairman of the B'nai B'rith Charity Sports Banquet, has announced the Metro High School Scholar/Athletes of the Year, Selected by local media representatives, athletic directors and 56 coaches from metro-area high schools, these athletes will be honored at the organization's 47th annual dinner on May 9 at Ak-Sar-Ben. Farber named Daniel Bruce, a senior at Millard West High School, and Laura Spanheimer, a Marion High School senior, as the area's top Omaha athletes. Bruce will receive the Bert Render award as the top male athlete. The Earl Siegel plaque will be conferred upon Spanheimer. Each scholar/athlete's school will also receive a $250 donation to its scholarship fund. Highlighting the $95 per plate charity event are University of Florida Head Coach Steve Spurrier and KKAR news talk radio personality

Otis XII. Spurrier, a national and SEC conference championship coach, will be the featured speaker,, while Otis XII will serve as the banquet's Master of Ceremonies. Bruce, the son of Dave and Marilyn Bruce, lettered in three sports, receiving accolades for his superior play in football, baseball and basketball. In the fall, he will attend the University of Nebraska at Lincoln on a baseball scholarship. His goal is to play professional baseball after earning a degree. Spanheimer plans to attend Creighton University in September on a basketball scholarship. The daughter of Dick and Mary Spanheimer, she earned great acclaim for her accomplishments in basketball, cross country and track. Tickets for the banquet, annually among Omaha's largest and most popular, may be obtained by calling the B'nai B'rith Office at 334-6443.

Although the State of Israel is April 25, this year. Included in only 52 years old, its relatively this toll are 72 graduates of Boys short history has been fraught Town Jerusalem, including a with wars. This tragic shedding recent victim, Ehud Geula, who of Jewish blood is mourned by was killed by Palestinians during the nation as a whole as the the intifada. Above, Geula's country recalls its fallen soldiers father pauses by a photo of his on Yom HaZikaron (Memorial son prior to lighting a yarzeit Day) which falls on Wednesday, candle in remembrance.

ADL Sends Omaha-area High School Students to Washington by JEWISH PRESS News Service -

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For the second year in a row, a generous donation from former Omahan Robert B. Sturm of Denver, CO, made it possible for 20 Omaha students to participate in the Anti-Defamation League's Youth Leadership Mission. The high school students, of diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds, joined 20 students from the ADL's Mountain States Regional office in Denver at the United States Holocaust Museum in

Washington, D.C. to explore current issues of bigotry, intolerance and extremism. This unique program applies the lessons of the Holocaust to modern-day issues, using the lens of the Holocaust to view human behavior. ADL has developed the Youth Leadership Mission to help motivate students in fighting prejudice within their own lives, in their schools and communities. The delegates learn to become positive agents for

change and help teach their peers about the strength of diversity. For more information about the program, contact Debbi Brown at the ADL-CRC Plains States office in Omaha, 333-1303. Bob Sturm

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April 20, 2001

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 9

A Lost Past (Continued from page 1) First, he met writer Sylvain Brachfeld, the author All of the children were slated for transport to of a book chronicling the hidden children of Europe, Auschwitz. A convoy of trains carrying Jews from including those in Belgium, and who upon hearing Prance were to be their passage. That day, the Kader's original name—Jeruzalski—immediately trains were late arriving, Kader has learned, placed him and his story. because some captives kept jump"It was really meeting Brachfeld ing off, causing repeated delays as that just sort of put the key in the the guards recaptured the fleeing lock and unlocked the door," Kader y\ prisoners or shot them on sight. said. "I mean, he just pinned me. In an ironic and tragic twist, it He said, 'I know who you are and I turns out Kader's father and uncle know exactly what page you're on were on one of the trains en route in my book. I know exactly what to Malines. Neither Kader nor his you looked like as a kid.' father could have known the other "And the door just swung open was so near. And, as fate would and from there I met all these peo- ' ' have it, Kader's uncle—his father's pie who knew me and knew what brother—escaped into the countryhad happened to me.. I didn't know Fred Kader and Marie s i d e during one of the train conthem, but they recognized me. They Albert Blum met again at v °y' s unscheduled stops, but his were actually able to corroborate this reunion in 1995. father did not. some of the things I had in my During the better part of a day memory. They dated it, they placed it, and a time- and night, the enterprising Blum took advantage of line started, and my early years got sorted out. It the delayed trains to negotiate with German army was like catching up with my life story. It was over- officials, some of whom could be bought with whelming." bribes, for the release of the children to her care Perhaps the most powerful corroboration came and for a guarantee of their safe transit back to from Marcel Chojnacki, who informed Kader that it Wezembeek. As the day drew on, some of the older was his lap the then-four-year-old Kader rested on children with Blum, including Chojnacki, wanduring that mysterious road trip at night. dered off to investigate the barracks compound It turned out Chojnacki actually discovered around Malines, Kader and some other orphaned children waiting It was while nosing around one barracks that to be transported to Auschwitz. He put them in the Chojnacki and his mates came upon the huddled, hands of a rescuer, Madam Marie Albert Blum, a ragtag forms of Kader and the others, who were nurse who arranged for the waifs to be transported brought to Blum's attention and added to her proby truck back to safekeeping. tective custody. At the time, Ghojnacki was a fellow hidden child, Malines proved to be a crossroads of hearts and although older than Kader, in the charge of Blum, fates. While Kader, hia uncle, Madam Blum and who operated the Home of Wezembeek, a former her wards were spared the horror of Auschwite, the sanatorium-turned shelter for Jewish children and. brutally efficient Gestapo were so intent on meetalso part of an underground network of safe houses ing their deportation quota that they dragged throughout'Belgium. The'child-saving network thai; patients out of hospitals and onto the trains to take Blum participated in was known and somewhat tol- the place of the children. It is presumed Kado.r's erated by the Nazis and was sanctioned and partially fnther wont to his doiith in AumihwiLs:, too. protected by high levels of the Belgium ruling class, When, in 1991, Kader met up again with including Queen Elizabeth of Belgium. Chojnacki and learned how ho cama to be with him Before Chojnacki and Madam Blum intervened under Blum's protection, it wae liko coming face to on his behalf, Kader had already boon rescued face with his long "lost brother" and finding the once. His story of loss and survival began in once closed door to his unknown past opened wide. September, 1942. The mass deportation of Jews in Kader said, "He knew how [ came to be saved. Belgium was already well under way. His father Meeting Marcel, the door didn't just awing open, it had been rounded up with other Jewish men and came off the hinges. It was just a flood of informasent to a forced labor camp in Franco. Hia older tion. It couldn't come fast enough. It grew exponenbrothers were already on their way to death camps. tially. I was trying to keep my feet on the ground to One day, Kader found himself with his mother at make sense of all this," He and Chojnacki have become close friends in the Antwerp rail station, where trains were transporting Jews to Malines, the station en route to the ensuing yeara. As part of his attempt to reclaim Auschwitz. A surviving aunt, who was also at the his past, Kader has traveled to Belgium to visit station that day, later told him his mother made many of .the sites he spent his hidden childhood in the heart wrenching decision to try and save her and to thank Chojnacki, Blum and other individulone remaining son by ordering him to walk away als who played a role in his survival. from her. His mother knew he stood a chance For Kader, the term hero only begins to describe because of his Aryan-like features—namely, blonde how he feels about Blum, a Jewish woman who hair and blue eyes. risked her life over and over to aid helpless chilLike a good little boy, Kader obeyed his mother dren like himself. Blum has been recognized in her own country and around the world for her efforts. and wandered away, never to see her again. Kader's immediate post-war life, like that of He does not remember his mother's face or voice or smell or manner, No photographs of her or any many hidden children, was an unsettled affair. He member of his family exist. Of that fateful day, he stayed at a convent for a time and for two years lie recalls only aimlessly walking the streets of and other children fended for themselves at the byAntwerp and being swept up and carried away by then vacated Wezembeek facility and grounds. He developed street smarts during this tim«. some unknown good angel. "You had to mature fast if you were going to surIn recent years, Kader has learned his rescuer that day was a nun who escorted him to a house vive," he said. His uncle found him—purely by accinear Antwerp, set up for hiding Jewish children. dent-and brought him to live with his family. Called the Home of the Good Angels, Kader was Kader said his uncle rarely spoke about the war there with five other children only a short while or the personal losses endured. "It was too painful before the house was raided. Kader and the other to talk about it. He survived and my father didn't. children were sent to Malines, the only train termi- He was the sole survivor of the family. And here I nal and deportation site for Auschwitz from was reminding him of the family that he lost." Belgium and France. His uncle's family treated him well, but his Meanwhile, the Wezembeek orphanage was also orphan's aense of abandonment and wariness made shut down by the Nazis, who forced Madam Blum him resist their kindness. "As a kid, you realize there's nobody there for you. and the dozens of children in her protection to move to Malines. It. was there where the paths of You're i t You're on your own. You don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, whether you're safe or Kader, Blum and Chojnacki intersected. After being thrown out of their hiding place, not. You lived through the war. You ended up in an Kader and his fellow young vagabonds, suffering' orphanage. Then, you're at your uncle's place. They from lack of food and sleep, were holed up in on© tried very hard to make a family life for mo, but J corner of a former army barracks in Malines. Soon, don't think I let them because everywhere you K<>, Blum and her caravan of orphans arrived, too- you wonder, how long am I going to be here?" (Continued on page 10) unawore of the presence of'Kader's group. :

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A Lost Past (Continued from page 9) Kader's mistrust and alienation only intensified when, at age 11, he was sent to live with a great aunt and her family in Montreal, Canada. "And then all of a sudden you're transported to a different place. To a different country. With a different family. So, again, you're left wondering 'How long? How come? and What's going to happen next?' I looked at it as the next step in being alone and traveling on an ongoing basis. It took me years and years to make sense of my existence." Finally, with time, he came to feel he did have a home and a family, after all. "It took a while to accept that there was no more wondering about whether I belonged somewhere. You realize this is not just another tempoKader was reunited with his boyCelebrating Fred Kader's 60th rary stopping place, but that this is hood friend from the orphanage birthday a few years ago were: Lilian Chojnacki, left, Sarah and at Wezembeek, Belgium, at the it. This is where you're going to Fred Kader, and Marcel first international Gathering of become part of a new family and this Chojnacki. The couples have Children Hidden During World is where you're going to plant roots." Gradually, Kader began to flourish maintained close contact since Warn in 1991. in his new life. He did well in school, especially upon discovering that eduLANDSCAPING cation was an opportunity to make something of himself and, in a way, •20 Years Experience to make up for some of what he had •Personal Touch lost. Prom the time he arrived in •Creative Designs Montreal he felt compelled to serve •Professional others. Monday through Friday: Installation "I knew I wanted to do something to Breakfast 7-11 a.m. H Lunch 11 a.m.-3 p.m. help people." Mention this ad • Pancakes • Omelettes • Rissotto • Salmon Burger He couldn't fully understand it then and receive • French Toast • Wild Rice w/Artichokes 10% Discount but he has since come to believe his 1259 So. 120th St. (402) 334-7172 wartime experiences are what drove him MONTEMARANO LANDSCAPES, INC. to be a physician focusing on children, "It's no accident I found myself 332-3641 working in medicine with kids. My

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Leora Azriel, daughter of Rabbi Aryeh and Elyce Azriel, and Rachel Katzman, daughter of Michael and Carol Katzman, were two of the 75 students selected for this summer's Genesis program at Brandeis University. The four-week program offers high school students from across North Ed Joseph was recently appointed as deli man- America an opportunity to study such diverse subager for the No Prills Supermarket at 138th and jects as theater, film, law and international studies Millard. He was formerly the Assistant Deli in a Jewish environment, Manager at the Baker's Eagle Run store. Yad VaShem, t h e International School for The American Association of Retired Persons Holocaust Studies in Jerusalem, Israel, and (AARP) celebrates National Independent Living t h e Centre of Organizations of Holocaust Week with a Home Modification Workshop on May Survivors in Israel have issued a Call for Papers 10, 2-3:30 p.m., at the AARP office, 808 So. 74 PI, on "The Legacy of Holocaust Survivors: The Moral Suite 106. The featured speaker is BevVan and Ethical Implications for Humanity." Phillips, OTR/L of Home Access Solutions. Learn The conference will take place April 8-11, 2002, how to choose the right modifications and equip- and is opentodignitaries, scholars and educators ment to live safely and independently, at all levels and those Holocaust-related institutions whose major commitment is to transmit the Samuel M. Cohen, M.D,, PhD, was one of history of the Holocaust and its implications. three physicians honored by the University of For an applications, contact Ephraim Kaye or Nebraska Medical Center recently. Dr. Cohen is Kathryn Berman, Coordinators, Third chairman and professor of UNMC's department of International Conference on the Holocaust, Yad pathology and microbiology and received the VaShem, P.O. Box 3477, Jerusalem, 9X084, Israel, Arnold J. Lehman Award last month from the or call 011-9722-644-3640, or visit the conference Society of Toxicology. website; www.yadvashem.org.

LINCOLN CENTER Jewish Federation of Lincoln to Sponsor Two EventsThis Weekend

Jewish Press, Omaha, NE

Page 11

The Omaha Community Playhouse presents Mack & Mabel, a musical based on the careers of the legendary film maker Mack Sennet and his favorite comedienne Mabel Normand. The show opens tonight and runs Wednesdays through Saturdays, 7;30 p.m., Sundays at 2 and 6:30 p.m., through May 20. For ticket information, call the Playhouse box office at 553-4890. Opera Omaha presents Man of La Mancha, the Broadway hit based on the 16th-century Cervantes novel Don Quixote. This musical, which won five Tony awards in 1966, ran for 2328 performances in New York alone! The performances are Wednesday, April 25 and Friday, April 27, 7:80 p.m., and Sunday, April 29, 2 p.m., at the Orpheum Theater, For tickets, call 34-OPERA or toll-free at 1-877-346-7372. The Omaha Symphony will perform a family concert The Listener by the Magic Mime Company at the the Rose Blumkin Performing Arts Center this Sunday, April 22, 2 pan. The performance is only one hour, preceded by an "instrument petting zoo" at 1 pjni. Ernest; Richardson will conduct selections from Carnelot at the Super Pops Season Finale on Friday and Saturday, May 4-5, 8 p.m., and Sunday, May 0,2 p.m., at the Orpheum. Tickets arc available by calling the box office, 842-3560, or visiting the symphony website: www.omahasymphony.org. •

The Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater in the at 9 p.m., following a talk about Greenberg*$ legaSheldon Memorial Art Gallery will be the site for a cy by members of the Jewish Federation of Lincoln. On Sunday, April 22, lO.eutn. to• 1 p,m,, volunshowing of the documentary film, The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg. Greenberg played base- teers from the Jewish community will read the ball for the Detroit Tigers and his refusal to play names of victims of the Holocaust on the steps of the Capitol, according to Chairman Marcia on Yom Kippur is legendary. The film will be shown on Saturday, April 21, Kuahner, as part of the statewide commemoration.

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Nebraska Educational Television presents several Holocaust-related filme and historical documentaries. Schindhr's List, the Academy Award-winning film by Steven Spielberg, will air Saturday night, April 21,8:30 p.m. The Trial of Adolf Eichmann will air Sunday, April 29, 8:30 p.m. The two-hour documentary depicts the 1961 capture, in South America of the most notorious war criminal by Israeli secret agents and the trial in Israel. Kichmaim is the only criminal evertohave been executed in Israeli history. JFS to Host International On Sunday, April 29, 11 p.m., ETV will present Adoption Information Meeting Liberation of the Spirit: The Journey of Magda Watts. The documentary recalls her childhood in by JEWISH PRESS News Service Hungary, the trauma of deportation and life in the Jewish Family Service will host a meeting for concentration and her cathartic return with anyone interested in learning more about interna- other survivorscamp to Auschwitz later. tional adoption on Sunday, April 22, 1-8 p.m., in Also on Sunday, April 29, years 5 p.m., and continuing the Jewish Family Service conference room. on Sunday, May 6, 5 p.m., ETV will present They Deborah Otto, LICSW, Director of Family Came for Good: A History of Jews in the United Resources, will provide information about adoption States. This two-part series starts with the arrival from China, Russia and Lithuania, and will discuss of the Jews in colonial America and details their procedures, cost and expectations. She is also an struggles and triumphs, adoptive parent who is able to field questions from For more information and complete program an adoptive parent's perspective. schedules, visit NET Online at: Additionally, there will bo an opportunity to meet http://net.uni.edu. parents who have worked with Family Resources and Jewish Family Service to adopt children internationally. Attendants should use the Jewish Family Service entrance located across from Livingston Plaza Apartments.

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Jewisk Press, Omaha, NE

April 20,2001

Leading Authority on Jews In the Far East Speaks at Temple by CAROL KATZMAN, Editor

Sail south from Eilat on Israel's Red Sea; make a left around the Arabian Peninsula and there's India. According to Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, foremost authority on Jews in the Par East, that's exactly what King Solomon's fleet did more than 2500 years ago. "Sandalwood, spices, ivory and colored gems were all used in the building of the Temple," Rabbi Tokayer explained to the J e w i s h Press in a recent interview. "And he exported copper from the mines near Eilat back to India." The Bible offers other evidence of the presence of the Jews. Words like monkey, ivory and peacock are not Hebrew; they're Sanskrit, the ancient and original language of India. Romans also record finding large Jewish communities in India on both coasts in the first century. Today, most of the Bene Israel, located in and around Bombay, and the Cochin community in Southern India, have left, immigrating to Israel. Even St. Thomas Apostle, according to the Christians, was sent in the first century from Jerusalem to inform the Jews of India of the start of Christianity. Rabbi Tokayer, who lived in the Far East for more than a decade, has traveled extensively in the Far East, from India to China, visiting sites where, long ago, Jews left evidence of their religion, culture, language, rituals, and customs. He will speak about his adventures and tell the stories of how the Jews got to the Far East as the Samuel and Ida TCai-man Scholar-in-Residence at Temple Israel, the weekend of April 27-29. The schedule is as follows: Friday, April 27, 8 p.m.—"Pepper, Silk and Ivory: The Exotic Jews of China, Japan and India"; Saturday, April 28, 4 p.m..-"The Fugu Plan: The Untold Story of the Japanese and Jews During World War IT; S u n d a y , A p r i l 29,10 a.m.—"The Oriental Mystery: The Lost Tribes of Israel in Japan." Rabbi Tokayer served as U.S. Air Force Chaplain in Japan following his rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. He received his bachelor's degree from Yeshiva University and also has a master's degree and Doctor of Divinity from the Jewish Theological Seminary. Following his discharge from the service, he served as the rabbi of the Jewish community of Japan from 1968 to 1981 and was Vice-president of

the Federation of the Jewish Communities of Southeast Asia and the Far East. "By the seventh century, there were four silk routes from Paris to J a p a n , " Rabbi Tokayer explained. "The routes were land and sea, sea and land, through the desert, or around the desert. "That's how you get Jews in strange places!" According to Rabbi Tokayer, what Jews found in the Far East was different from Europe or the Middle East, as they were not dealing with a a daughter religion." Hinduism, Taoism, Buddhism, Shintoism are not related to Judaism, and therefore to Christianity and Islam. Jews encountered a very accepting environment on their travels from India to Japan. "The rule was 'all rays lead to the sun,"* Rabbi Tokayer said. * That attitude of ^ymi have your way; I have mine; it's all wonderful/ meant there was absolutely no evidence of any anti-Semitism, hostility or discrimination with any oriental religions. "In fact, there were times when the Jews pioneered and monopolized the silk routes," he added. "The oldest Hebrew manuscript on paper, not on parchment, was actually found in Tibet! Of course, Jewish traders often stopped in Tibet to buy spices, perfume and silks." Rabbi Tokayer points to the elements of Judaism that appear in Shintoism as another feature of'the first cultural pluralism." For example, Shinto priests wear a kind of tallis, or prayer shawl. Every Japanese family celebrates a pidyon haben, a ceremony found in Judaism to redeem the first born son back from a Kohen, or member of the priestly family. In addition to telling these fascinating stories, Tokayer's Shabbat afternoon talk in Omaha will revolve around the Fugu Plan. "We understand the Holocaust as a GermanChristian,'5 Toyaker concluded. "Surprisingly, there was a Japanese plan to save the Jews of Europe. It is estimated that some 40,000 lives were saved in Japanese-held territory, in addition to the 10,000 Jews saved by Ambassador Sugihara in lithuania." In addition to speaking about his experiences in the Far East, Rabbi Tokayer also takes groups on tours there. In fact, there are still a few spaces left on this summer's trip to China, Japan and Hong Kong, where the rabbi will "walk participants through the stops on the Fugu Plan."

June Pearson, Kings Gate Resident 7 fell in love with this place the first time I saw it! I feel like I died and went to heaven. - It's so close to my church and shopping. I like the friendships I've made, the food, and the games I play at the senior center. I have so much in common with the other residents. I'd recommend King's Gate Senior Apartments to anyone over 62. I'd tell them to get together with people their own age."

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The concept of a jost and merciful Master of the Universe may seem irreconcilable with the atrocities that occurred during the Second World War. Dr. Richard Buck of Creighton University will tackle this complex issue on April 23, 7:36 p.m., at the JCC, in "Martin Buber: Recovering the Dr. Richard Buek Sacred." The session is the second of four on "Contemporary Jewish Philosophers" in the Odyssey of Jewish Experience and Expression. Buck, who holds a PhJD, in Philosophy from the University of Kansas, works mainly in social and political pMIosopby and ethical theory. He also studies philosophy of religion and is very much interested in the work of immanuel Kant. "Bufoer tells us that in the presence of needless suffering and senseless cruelty, we must concentrate on t h e 'I—Thou Relationship' in order to recover the notion of the Sacred," Buek said. "The structure of this relationship is not original with Buber, but he refined it and is known for his thinking on i t The basic idea is in many ways similar to Kant's discussion of dignity.3* According to Kant, he added, our sense of moral obligation toward others conies from our recognition of the dignity, or intrinsic value, of those others. In Ms first class, Buck gave participants a guide for the second. Copies can be picked up at the Kripke Federation Jewish, library, where library Director Harris B. Finkelstein has prepared two shelves of volumes that pertain to the Odyssey program. The program features the following subject areas: "Photographic Images of Jewish Omaha," with Dr. Oliver Poliak; "Contemporary Jewish Writers," Dr. Joan Latehaw; and "The Word in English: Modern Jewish Translations of the Hebrew Bible," Dr. Leonard J. Greenspoon. Sessions will take place April 23, April 30 and May 7. Each evening, Buck and Latehaw present in the first period, 7:30 to &25 pan.; Greenspoon and Poliak in the second, 8:35 t o 9:30 pan. There is a short break with refreshments in between. Free and open to the public, the program is sponsored by the College of Jewish Learning of Jewish Educational and library Services (JELS). For more information, call 334-6445.

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