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November 30, 2018 | 22 Kislev 5779
NOTEWORTHY LOCAL At college admissions time, experts say try not to sweat it
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Candlelighting 4:36 p.m. | Havdalah 6:39 p.m. | Vol. 61, No. 5 | pittsburghjewishchronicle.org
Community ‘shloshim’ encourages path forward
‘Menorahgate’ is Tree of Life fundraising mash-up of Steelers, Chanukah
Area teens — and their parents — are knee-deep in applications.
By Toby Tabachnick | Senior Staff Writer
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Lord Jonathan Sacks, former chief rabbi of the United Kingdom, in a recorded message. The shloshim traditionally marks the cessation of certain mourning practices less severe than those observed during the shiva period, but more severe than those observed for the rest of the first year following a person’s passing. Adam Hertzman, Federation’s director of marketing, said that approximately 300 people attended the community event commemorating that moment in time at the Marriott City Center on Washington Place. Members of the Clarion Quartet performed in between speeches, which participants said added to the event’s powerful dynamic. In his message, Sacks noted that zachor, the Hebrew word for “remember” is found 169 times in the Tanach. “In every other culture remembering is about the past,” he said. “In Judaism, all remembering is about the future and about life. We cannot change the past, but by remembering we can change the future.” What the 11 victims “died for, we must now live for,” he added. Certainly, everyone will remember where they were when they first heard of the attack, said
n oversize menorah will not be the only thing lit outside Heinz Field on Dec. 16, prior to the Steelers taking on the New England Patriots. In fact, if things go as planned, hundreds of folks will turn out to join nine homegrown millennials for their fourthannual Menorahgate, a tailgate party to celebrate friendship, football and the holiday of Chanukah. Friends since they were kids, the group of 27- and 28-year old guys — most have known each other since they were students at Community Day School or campers at Emma Kaufmann Camp — have turned this year’s event into a fundraiser for the victims of the Tree of Life massacre. Their original goal was to raise $1,000 by Dec. 16 through a fundraising link on Facebook. That goal was met within five hours. By Nov. 26, more than $20,000 had been pledged. While Menorahgate 2018 will occur about a week after the conclusion of Chanukah due to the Steelers schedule, the event’s organizers are still planning to mark the holiday as they have done together since 2015. “This came about because we were going to a Steelers night game [in 2015] and we wanted to tailgate,” said Andrew Exler, one of Menorahgate’s original seven founders. “Since it was also a night of Chanukah, we decided to bring a menorah to the tailgate and we lit the menorah before going into the game. Our entire group is Jewish and from Pittsburgh.” That tailgate party with its lit menorah attracted a lot of attention from other fans who “loved what we were doing,” so the
Please see Shloshim, page 20
Please see Menorahgate, page 20
LOCAL Embracing gratitude the most
Members of the Clarion Quartet perform at the community shloshim.
Photo by Adam Hertzman
Thanksgiving programs offer chance to feed responders Page 3 LIFESTYLE Chanukah, southern-style
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$1.50
By Adam Reinherz | Staff Writer
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inding light amid the darkness was a recurrent theme at the community event marking the shloshim, or 30 days, since the tragic murders of 11 congregants at the Tree of Life synagogue building. At the Nov. 26 ceremony, local and international speakers alike encouraged attendees to find inspiration from the countless acts of kindness shown by and for each other over the previous month, seek comfort from the upcoming holiday of Chanukah and continue to remember those lost by loving life itself. “It’s been 30 days since Dor Hadash, New Light and Tree of Life lost 11 members in the most horrible way possible,” said Jeffrey Finkelstein, Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh president and CEO. But since the Oct. 27 attack, there’s been “tens of thousands of acts of goodwill. … The one simple truth [is] we are stronger together.” Illustrating that concept, Israel Nitzan, Israel’s deputy consul general for the region that includes Pennsylvania, pointed out the myriad Jews and non-Jews who flooded synagogues throughout New York, where he is based, in recent weeks. “Virtually every community around the world mourned with you,” echoed Rabbi
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