HEWISH PRESS VoI.LXXXl
No. 16 No.
Omaha, NE
l3TPVPt 5762 l3Tevet,5762
D e c e m b e28,2001 r^.; December
SERVING NEBRASKA AND WESTERN IOWA FOR 80 YEARS
Joe Ginsberg Dies After Long Illness
Solidarity Mission Participant Speaks Out
by JOAN K. MARCUS, Special to the Jewish Press —
Joe Ginsberg, a tireless volunteer in the Omaha community, died Dec. 21. His son, Jay Alvin Ginsberg, preceded him in death in 1986. Ginsberg came to Omaha from Des Moines in 1958. He took a position as produce buyer for the Hinky Dinky Supermarket and the family joined Beth El SjTiagogue. When Jay became a teenager, he urged his father to begin helping at Talmud Torah and that began Joe's volunteer career. Ginsberg often spoke of his late son's plea of "C'mon pop, help us! We don't know what we're doing''"5 It was then that he began to help with Purim carnivals, candy sales, and other school activities. He expanded his volunteerism to help with all children at Beth El and continued to help, almost until his death, with children through high school. In 1995, he received the Jewish Federation's Humanitarian of the Year Award, the highest award given by the Federation to someone who has provided ongoing and outstanding service. He was cited for guiding two generations of youth at Beth El Synagogue. Ginsberg's involvement with young people grew after Jay's death. He became involved with Mad Dads, an organization started in North Omaha in 1989 to try to prevent the use of drugs and alcohol by young people. He was also heavily involved with the Boy Scouts of America. He was in charge of trying to recruit Jewish Cub Scouts in Eastern Nebraska and Northern Iowa. This work with Scouts led to another program with children who have been apprehended for misdemeanor crimes. The kids are given their choice of going to court and having the crime on their records for life or attending a sixmonth scouting program. Ginsberg taught classes to pre-teens and teenagers. He always thought that if children know the "facts of life", they might be diverted from crime. He believed in taking groups to prison to hear convicted criminals speak of their crimes. After Jay's death, Ginsberg joined Temple Israel,
in addition to keeping his membership at Beth EL He joined the Black-Jewish dialogue • ,, group at Temple •*•' • because he wanted to be part of the frank ] discussions between Jews and members of Omaha's African\ ;u;" • •American community. Eddie Staton, founder and leader of " -*™ the Mad Dads, said, "Joe Ginsberg was a tireless, kind-hearted man. He was kind, caring, conscientious and more concerned with what goes on in the black community and with black youth than some blacks themselvesf He was honored 18 months age by a group of organizations, including Mad Dads, Mid-America Boy Scout Council, TeamMates and Omaha Home for Boys and Beth El for his "significant contributions* on behalf of teens and the community. He was president of the Beth El Men's Club for three years and received almost every honor bestowed by the synagogue. He was always proud of the fact that he got letters from former United Synagogue Youth members. Some of the children said, "Joe made each and every one of us think we were the most important. He always found the kids that needed help!" Ginsberg also started the "Gift Certificate'' program at Beth EL The certificates are purchased from grocery stores and other vendors at a discounted price and then sold to congregants at a profit. He always said that he was the richest person in Omaha, "not in money, but in the satisfaction" he received from his volunteer work. Ginsberg called together a "Rabbis' Council'"' that tried to look into the problem of drugs and alcohol among Jewish teenagers. He always said he wasn't (Continued on page 2)
JELS Presents UNO's Gershovich on 'Muslim-Jewish Relationships' by DIANE AXLER BAUM —•
If you missed Dr. Mqshe Gershovich speaking about "Muslim-Jewish Coexistence" last fall, or if you yearn to hear more on this hot topic, three opportunities are coming your way in January. Gershovich will speak on "Muslim-Jewish Relationships and Coexistence through History" in consecutive Thursday sessions at the JCC, Jan, 10, 17, and 24. The sessions, free and open to the public, will start at 7:30 p.m, and conclude with questions and answers. To fully understand today's headlines, we must explore the background and ramifications of ArabJewish discord. Dr. Gershovich has the education and personal experience to offer valuable perspectives on these burning issues," said Carolyn Novicoff, director of Jewish Educational and Library Services. The College of Jewish Learning, a division of JELS, is sponsoring the program. Gershovich said his opening lecture, Jan. 10, will concentrate in general on Muslim history and on Islam as a religion and a civilization. He will probe, for example, "the contract Muslims used to have with Christians and Jews" and the three sources of Muslim jurisprudence—the Koran, or holy book; the Hadith, or sayings of the prophet Mohammed; and the Summah, or actions of the prophet. In the second lecture, Jan. 17, he will focus on
various episodes of Jewish-Muslim. and Jewish-Christian interaction, to make a point that "the Jews often fared better under Islam than under Christianity." His final talk, Jan. 24, will look at frictions between Muslims and Jews that originated in Dr. Moshe Gershovich the 19th Century, continued over the years, and "have come closer to home since Sept. 11th." The talks will provide an in-depth follow-up to the lecture he presented Nov. 29 as keynote speaker for the annual Rabbi Sidney H. Brooks Lecture. Co-sponsored by Temple Israel and the Department of Philosophy and Religion of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, the lecture drew an audience of more than 300. Gershovich came to UNO's College of Arts and Sciences in 2001 to teach Modern European History. He offers courses in. World Civilization, (Continued on page 9)
I inn Tried man, urn.* of II membt r.- from Omaha Jewish community to participant in Hie recent Solidarity Mission to Israel, looks out over the sculpture gardens as a lone fignre at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. (More photos and his full story on page 11.)
Vote for Your Favorite Jewish Athlete by JEWISH PRESS News Service
•—
As a prelude to the Passover issue of the Jewish
Press, Jews in Sports: Omaha Hosts the 2002 Maccabi Games, readers can vote for their favorite Jewish athletes of all time. The Passover issue, which will be published on Mareit 22, 2002, will feature profiles of local Jewish athletes, as well as previews of the athletes and volunteers involved in the Maccabi Games. The Games, scheduled for Aug. 4-9, are expected to draw some 1OO0 athletes plus parents and coaches. Readers can submit the names for their favorite Jewish, athletes in four categories: deceased, living, male or female. The staff at the Press will compile the lists and readers will be able to vote for thenTop Ten; the results will be published in the Passover issue. For more information about the Top Ten list of Jewish Athletes, call the Press office, at 334-6448. To advertise In this special issue, call Allan Handleman, Advertising Manager, 334-6451, or Ray Pred, Account Executive, 334-6559.
Teens Fill the Ranks of Volunteers at Switch Day
\
Harold Farber, center, aims for a strike as members of BBYQ assisted residents of the Rose Blum kin Jewish Home daring Switeh Day on Tuesday so the staff could spend time with their families on Christmas. More photos in next week's Press.
3NSXDE: Monthly Calendar
pages 6-7
Look Who's Coming to Gmaha~..~..page 12