Vol. LXXXII
No. 9
Omaha, NE
26 Cheshvan, 5763
November 1,2002
SPECIAL ELECTION PREVIEW STARTS ON PAGE 8-DON'T FORGET TO VOTE ON NOV. 5
Israel Campaign Designates Funds after School Security Costs Reduced
Child Prodigy to Perform 5 Benefit at 'The Rose
by BERT LEWIS — If you live in San music and playby RACHEL POMERANCE — — Diego, chances are very ing an instruNEW YORK (JTA)-The United Allocations are determined through good- you know the ment, it was the Jewish Communities, the umbrella a special committee with 10-15 repre- name Eugene Ugorski. piano-at age 4. group for North American federations, sentatives from various size federa- If you happen to be a This was under has designated $18 million in new tions and UJC staff. devotee of classical the guidance of funds as part of its Israel Emergency Recommendations for projects come music, the odds his mother, Campaign. The move comes amid from the UJC's overseas partners, improve greatly. If you Luba, herself a scrutiny of the campaign, stemming the Jewish Agency for Israel and the also happen to be pianist and from confusion over funding for one of American Jewish Joint Distribution acquainted with a piano teacher. its designated priorities, security for Committee, which work closely with music lover whose Eugene's parIsraeli schoolchildren. the Israeli government. name is Mickey Stern, ents were The latest allocations-for medical After Israel's initial August estimate then of course you astonished at services, trauma relief and citizen that it would take $20 million for know Eugene's name. his "incredible safety programs-include $12 million 1,500 new officers to patrol kinder- The reason for that is musical pitch that were originally targeted for gartens and schools with small popu- simply, Ms. Stern is so and his ability school security. lations, the government cut its esti- interested in promoting to play by ear." Those funds were reallocated after mate in early September to $8 million the career of this 12They watched year-old prodigy, she the Israeli government reduced its for 865 guards. him put a clasmakes certain everyone estimate of the cost of installing (Continued on page 15) sical compact school guards at knows his name. Eugene Ugorski performs Nov. d i s c on> a n d p i c k kindergartens and If you're inclined to 1 9 ' 7 P m 'a t T h e R o s e up his violin and nursery schools, accordsay "who?" when you hear Eugene's play along. His father says, "he just ing to UJC officials. name, then allow me to introduce you started to play, and we knew the vioThe Israel Emergency to this very special young person. lin would be his instrument forever." Campaign, the largest Eugene has only been in this counPerhaps it's too soon to say "forever," emergency fund-raising try since he was five-years-old. He but clearly this young boy possesses effort for Israel to date, was born in St. Petersburg, Russia both tremendous talent and a great was launched in April and has lived in San Diego since his love for his music and his violin. to respond to the mateparents moved here in 1994. So much Wisely, his parents realized they rial and emotional for biographical facts. Now please needed to find just the right teacher needs of the Jewish read the really interesting story of for the gifted boy. At age six, he began state amid the ongoing this extraordinarily gifted child. taking lessons from master violinist intifada. Some $319 His parents tell of bringing home a Vesna Gruppman, a former associate million has been raised small violin when Eugene was 31/2 concertmaster for the San Diego in moneys and pledges An armed guard stands outside a Jerusalem years old. The story goes that the lit- Chamber Orchestra. Gruppman, once for the campaign, school Sept. 1, as children arrive on the first day tle boy loved to touch it, and handle it, a child prodigy from Russia, has been which has been extend- of Israel's new school year. treating it almost like a favorite toy. Eugene's only teacher. ed through next year. Photo by Brian HendlerIJTA. However, when he began reading (Continued on page 8)
Children Paint Peace a Laughing Matter by CLAUDIA SHERMAN
Temple Israel Communications Coordinator --«-»——•~At the invitation of the Israel Ministry of Education, Maureen Kushner, a teacher from New York City, has visited schools from the Northern Galilee to the Southern Negev beginning in 1994. Working with Jewish, Arab, Bedouin, and Druze children as well as the children of Ethiopian and Russian immigrants, Kushner encourages her students to express their deepest feelings and fears about peace and war through word association and art. Forty-seven of the murals and paintings produced by the children in Kushner's classes are coming to Omaha this month. Kushner herself will introduce the exhibit, "The Art and Soul of Peace Through Humor," at a reception on Saturday, Nov. 9, 5:30 p.m. at Temple Israel. The art exhibit will be on A Rainbow and the Olive Branch) by Maharat, 10 display through Nov.25. "Generous donations from Kavod, a Tzedakah Collective, and Temple Israel's Janis Yale Enrichment Fund have made it possible for us to bring the art exhibit here," said Rosie Zweiback, Temple's program director. "We hope the entire Omaha Jewish community will join us and our friends from First United Methodist Church and the Islamic Center of Omaha for the reception," she added. This event marks the fourth gathering of the trifaith communities of Temple Israel, First United Methodist Church, and the Islamic Center of Omaha. "Each meeting has promoted the values of peace, understanding, and communication," according to Zweiback. Prior to going to Israel, Kushner taught in innercity New York elementary schools for 20 years. War-torn Land, by Andre, 10 and Anton, 10
Those children, whom Kushner described as living in a war zone since they pass armed drug dealers on the way to school and live with constant danger and fear, provided her with the original inspiration for a slide presentation, "Peace Through Humor." Depicting the art work of the children from Israel, the presentation was the result of getting children to be creative which "doesn't happen all at once," explained Kushner in an interview with The Jerusalem Post Magazine. "It's a process. "Very often, the spark ignites only after an hour in the classroom. I'll walk into a classroom, and first of all, we'll brainstorm about words connected to war and then words connected to peace. "The Arab children usually have 'separation' and 'starvation' in their lists of associations of war. The Jewish children have 'suicide bombers' and 'violence' in theirs. For the Arab children, associations of peace include 'open borders' and 'economic stability.' For Jewish children, the words include 'tranquility' and 'happiness' and 'kindness' in addition to the usual flowers and doves of both cultures," she said. (Continued on page 19)
INSIDE: Election Preview begins ^^ZZ. Z^ZZ.
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Rabbis Announce Schedules for Sabbath of Six Million Lights page 20