IMPORTANT NOTE TO READERS: 3 WEEKS UNTIL OUR NEXT ISSUE Please note that the next edition of the St. Louis Jewish Light will be published July 13 — three weeks after this edition (instead of the usual two weeks between papers). After the July 13 edition, the Light will resume its every-other-week publication schedule. In the meantime, the Light will continue to publish stories online at stljewishlight.org and send our email newsletters (sign up at stljewishlight.org/newsletters).
A N O N P R O FIT, IN D EP EN D EN T N E W S S O U R CE TO I N F O R M , I N S P I R E , E D U C AT E A N D CO N N E C T T H E S T. LO U I S J E W I S H CO M M U N IT Y.
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VO L . 75 N O. 13 Artist’s rederings show interior and exterior spaces of the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum, which plans to open in November.
FALL OPENING PLANNED
Vastly expanded St. Louis Holocaust Museum plans to reopen in November BY ELLEN FUTTERMAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
& BILL MOTCHAN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH LIGHT
“
This special place will give all of us the education and tools needed to join with others working to counter hate, fight bigotry and shape a better world.” —Carol Staenberg
The St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum will reopen Nov. 2. The new 36,000-square-foot structure will be four times larger than the previous facility, which was located on the lower level of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis building. It has been closed for two years during construction. When the museum reopens, it will have additional resources to continue its mission: to use the lessons of the Holocaust to reject hatred, promote understanding and inspire change. Helen Turner, the museum’s director of education, said the lessons of the Holocaust are more important than ever in the world today. “We’re seeing a rise in antisemitism, not only in this country, but around the world,” she said. “How do we respond? Holocaust museums are really here to help people learn the history and come up with ways to respond and create a brave space to practice that response so that they’re ready when they encounter antisemitism or any other form of injustice in the world.” The expanded museum, which will have its own dedicated entrance, will include a
new, permanent Holocaust exhibition, classrooms, a performance auditorium, archives and a special exhibit space. It will also include a new Impact Lab, which will challenge students — and all visitors — to reject hatred, promote understanding and inspire change.
NOMINATIONS ARE CLOSING SOON SUBMIT YOUR UNSUNG HERO TODAY!
SEE PAGE 17 FOR SUBMISSION DETAILS
In the interactive Impact Lab, visitors will have an opportunity to learn more about current issues such as genocide or hate crimes viewed through the lens of the Holocaust. See HOLOCAUST MUSEUM on page 6
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June 22, 2022
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INSIDE THIS WEEK’S STL JEWISH LIGHT The Newspaper of the Jewish Community of Greater St. Louis — Founded 1963
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TRUSTEES Dan Bindler, Jerry Ehrlich, Richard Flom, Judy Kaplan, Mia Kweskin, Beth Manlin, Lauren Murov, Ryan Rich, Steve Rosenzweig, Angela Sandler, Bruce Sandweiss, Adam Schneider, Helene Sherman, Joan Silber, Alan Spector, Dan Winograd ADVISORY COMMITTEE Terry Bloomberg, Nanci Bobrow, Ph.D., Charles C. Eisenkramer, Dodie Frey, Diane Gallant, Steve Gallant, John Greenberg, Rabbi Elizabeth Hersh, Gianna Jacobson, Gary Kodner, Linda Kraus, Sanford Lebman, Dr. Ken Ludmerer, Lynn Lyss, Donald Mitchell, Michael N. Newmark, Adinah Raskas, Jane Tzinberg Rubin, Marvin J. Schneider, Richard W. Stein, Barbara Langsam Shuman, Sanford Weiss, Jenny Wolkowitz, Vivian W. Zwick Founder Morris Pearlmutter (1913-1993)
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INDEX ChaiLights.................................................24
Newsmakers.............................................13
Classifieds.................................................22
Opinions...............................................10-11
Features...............................................12-13
Simchas..................................................... 17
Local News..............................................4-9
Spotlight Photos.......................................23
2022 Graduation Announcements.... 14-16
Tributes..................................................... 17
Healthwatch........................................ 18-19 STAFF
CANDLE LIGHTING TIMES
EXECUTIVE Betsy Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer Ellen Futterman, Editor-in-Chief EDITORIAL Robert A. Cohn, Editor-in-Chief Emeritus Mike Sherwin, Managing Editor BUSINESS AND ENGAGEMENT Stacy Wolff Smart, Director of Business Development and Communications Jordan Palmer, Chief Digital Content Officer Angela Jolly, Administrative Assistant
Shabbat begins Friday, June 24: 8:12 p.m. Shabbat ends Saturday, June 25: 9:18 p.m
SALES Shane Blatt, Senior Account Executive Angie Rosenberg, Senior Account Executive Kelly Morris, Account Executive Elaine Wernick, Account Executive
Torah reading: Shlach
PRODUCTION Erin Eason, Creative Lead
Shabbat ends Saturday, July 2: 9:18 p.m.
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Eric Berger, Burton Boxerman, Barry Gilbert, Repps Hudson, Cate Marquis, Margi Lenga Kahn, Cathleen Kronemer, Bill Motchan
Shabbat begins Friday, July 1: 8:12 p.m.
Torah reading: Korach
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The ST. LOUIS JEWISH LIGHT (ISSN 0036-2964) is published bimonthly by the St. Louis Jewish Light, Inc., a notfor-profit corporation, PO Box 411487, St. Louis, MO 631419998. Periodical postage paid at St. Louis, MO. Copyright 2022. Postmaster: Send address changes to the St. Louis Jewish Light, PO Box 411487, St. Louis, MO 63141-9998.
The June 8 news brief “Sababa returns Sept. 18; musical lineup released” included incorrect information about the event’s musical acts. Sababa, the Jewish arts and culture festival, will feature Jewish a cappella group Six13, Jewish singer-songwriter (and native St. Louisan) Sheldon Low as well as Klezundheit!, a St. Louis klezmer band. Sababa takes place Sept. 18 at Andrew and Ann Tisch Park on the east entrance of the Washington University campus.
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June 22, 2022
JEWISH LIGHT
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NEWS & SCHMOOZE
s p l e h m a r g o r p n o i t a r e d e F h s i Jew l e a r s I o t e n O t o o R e k a t s n e e St. Louis t BY ELLEN FUTTERMAN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Sarah Rumfelt and Katie Wallace happily chatted as they waited Sunday afternoon for the meeting at the Jewish Community Center’s outdoor pavilion to start. It was uncomfortably hot and humid, with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees, but that didn’t dampen the girls’ enthusiasm, or anyone else’s for that matter. The next day they were leaving, along with 42 other St. Louis Jewish teens, on Israel Bound, a three-week adventure to the Jewish state under the auspices of Jewish Federation of St. Louis. Their parents were excited for their daughters. And, they agreed, what helped make the trip even more enticing were the $3,000 Root One vouchers to defray the cost of the trip, which typically runs from $5,500 to $6,500. “It’s a real game-changer,” said Andrea Rumfelt, Sarah’s mother. “A $6,000 trip ends up being half of that. It makes a huge difference.” In addition, Federation provides travel grants of $750 for participants between age 14 to 27. In Katie’s case, the cost was even less because her parents had contributed to Federation’s Passport to Israel program. Federation earmarks $200 a year, for a maximum of eight years, when families and participating congregations contribute a combined minimum yearly total of $200 to this special Israel fund. Families that contribute all eight years receive an additional $360, bringing the total saved to over $3,500 for an educational Israel experience. Think of it like a 529 plan, but instead of saving for college, families are saving to send their child (or children) to Israel — and there are matching funds. “Between Passport to Israel and the
Root One and (travel) vouchers, we really Jewish teens going to Israel, and we’re had no out-of-pocket expenses,” said specifically looking to broaden the impact Melissa Wallace, Katie’s mother, adding beyond the community of teens who are that Katie’s older sister Emma had gone already engaged,” Amiel said. “We’re not on the Israel Bound program in 2018 and ignoring the engaged kids at all, but rather thoroughly enjoyed the experience, expanding our reach to include Jewish American teens who might not list being though Root One didn’t exist back then. It was launched in 2020 with a $20 mil- Jewish as one of their top 10 identities, like lion gift from the Atlanta-based Marcus they would being an artist, or part of the Q Foundation to help American Jewish teens community, or a vegan or a social justice warrior. We want to entering 10th, 11th and 12th grades provide them with travel to Israel in meaningful Israel the hope of deepexperiences that ening their Jewish focus on their specifidentity and preic areas of interest paring them to deal and/or identification.” with any anti-Israel This summer, for sentiment they may instance, Root One encounter in the partnered with the future. Israel L acrosse Root One doesn’t Association for a trip offer its own Israel gea red towa rd experiences but Jewish American works through High school juniors Katie Wallace, left, and teen lacrosse players. well-established Sarah Rumfelt both said they were beyond And a partnership is trip providers that excited to be going to Israel for the first time. in the works with include Jewish JCCA Maccabi to youth groups such as BBYO and USY, bring 1,000 American Jewish teen athletes Jewish summer camps and Jewish com- to Israel for next year’s games, Amiel said. munal organizations like St. Louis’ He explained that an uptick in antisemFederation. itism on college campuses inspired Bernie While COVID affected many of the teen Marcus to start the Root One initiative. trips in 2020 and 2021, Root One expects “He felt the community needed to step to bring about 7,000 teens through 40 trip up and create a proactive approach by providers to Israel this summer, 8,000 helping a whole generation of American teens in 2023 and 9,000 in 2024, said Jewish teens connect to their Jewish idenSimon Amiel, executive director of Root tity as well as create a deep connection One. with Israel — the state, the people, the culLast year, Root One funding grew to $60 ture and the land.” million, with some of that money earAmiel also notes that teens on these marked to attract Jewish teens who have youth trips would still be eligible for little to no affiliation with Jewish commu- Birthright because that program doesn’t nal life or Israel and wouldn’t typically preclude participation by those who have consider a teen trip there. gone to Israel at age 18 or younger. “Our entire existence as an organization “We would like to see a meaningful is to maximize the number of American immersive Israel experience as being a
ABOVE: St. Louis Jewish teens gathered June 12 at the Jewish Community Center’s Day Camp Pavilion for last minute instructions at a meet-and-greet before 44 St. Louis Jewish teens departed on a three-week Israel Bound trip. under the auspices of Jewish Federation.
normative part of every American Jewish teen’s life experience during high school,” he said. “We want to elevate that experience so much that it has a resounding and transformative impact on these young people that lasts the rest of their lives.” Of course, there is no such thing as a completely free lunch. As a caveat for receiving the Root One voucher for the Israel Bound trip, each teen had to earn a total of 18 nekudot points by attending various in-person and online classes, said Karen Rader, director of the Israel Center and travel initiatives at Federation. Among the classes offered were Israeli Geography Bee, Lag B’omer Bonfire with the Shinshinim, Challenges of Nation-State Building, and Israeli Society and Politics Escape Room. On Sunday, June 12, as the St. Louis teens and their parents listened to trip leader Jody Gerth go over last-minute instructions and highlights of the itinerary, it was hard to tell who was more excited, the teens or their parents. In addition to visiting iconic sights such as the Western Wall, Masada and the Dead Sea, teen participants will spend two nights with an Israeli host family in St. Louis’ partnership region of Yokneam-Meggido and travel with 14 teens from there for five days. “I’m not really sure what I’m most excited about,” said Katie Wallace, who attends United Hebrew Congregation and will be a junior at Parkway West High School. “I suppose pretty much everything.” For more information about Jewish Federation’s youth trips and other Israel programs, go to: http://bit.ly/3zDp20e.
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LOCAL NEWS
June 22, 2022
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Rabbi Janine Schloss moves on to education role at Temple Emanuel BY BILL MOTCHAN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH LIGHT
Rabbi Janine C. Schloss will take on a new role as rabbi educator at Temple Emanuel beginning July 1. Schloss departs her two other assignments, as spiritual leader of Shir Hadash Reconstructionist Community and chaplaincy coordinator at Jewish Family Services (JFS). Schloss will be responsible for the Temple Emanuel religious school, the tot program and some adult education programming. In addition, she will back up Senior Rabbi Elizabeth Hersh in the pulpit. The education portion of Schloss’ new position will be a return to familiar territory. “I have worked in Jewish education for the last 20 years of my career,” she said. “I
ran very large religious schools at large synagogues, including the religious school at Shaare Emeth from January 2000 through June 2005. Then I moved to Seattle, where I ran a very large religious school at Temple Beth Am from July 2005 through June 2019.” From Temple Beth Am, Schloss came back to St. Louis, where she has held the dual roles at Shir Hadash and JFS. She grew up in Palo Alto, Calif., and earned her bachelor’s degree in religion from Princeton University and her master’s degree and rabbinic ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Schloss said she is eager to learn the culture of Temple Emanuel and meet families and students. “My goal is to take the best of what already exists in the program and then
Rabbi Janine C. Schloss. PHOTO: BILL MOTCHAN find the ways that I can help the program be even more successful and to help the students, each in their own individual ways, become as successful as they can,” she said. “Temple Emanuel has a blessing of being a small community, which allows the program to really attend to the individual students. “I’m looking forward to meeting them
The J to host screening of documentary ‘Fiddler’s Journey’s to the Big Screen’ The St. Louis Jewish Film Festival is hosting a movie screening of the documentary “Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen” on Sunday, July 17 at 4 p.m. The film looks back at producer-director Norman Jewison’s 1971 feature version of the beloved stage musical, “Fiddler on the Roof.” The showing will take place at the Jewish Community Center’s Staenberg Family Complex’s Performing Arts Center. Narrated by Jeff Goldblum, the film captures the humor and drama of Jewison’s quest to recreate the lost world of Jewish life in Tsarist Russia and re-envisions the beloved stage hit as a widescreen epic. Oscar-nominated filmmaker Daniel Raim puts audiences in the director’s chair and in Jewison’s heart and mind, drawing on behind-the-scenes footage and never-before-seen stills, as well as interviews with Jewison, actresses and more. The film explores how the experience of making “Fiddler” deepens Jewison as an artist and revives his soul. Last year marked the 50th anniversary of the film musical that was once called, “the most powerful movie musi-
and knowing how I can help each of them be successful in their own ways. Having run very large schools, we always work to attain those same goals, but it looks different at a school of 500 or 600 students than it does at a smaller school. So I’m really looking forward to the personalized attention that we’re going to be able to offer the students and their families.”
Federation announces eighth Millstone Fellows cohort Jewish Federation of St. Louis has announced the 2022 class of Millstone Fellows, Millstone Leadership Initiatives’ premier program for emerging and established leaders in the St. Louis Jewish community. The first retreat for the cohort was June 12. This select leadership program creates conditions that spark the emergence of new ideas for emerging and established leaders who will envision and realize a strengthened Jewish community. Facilitated by local and national trainers and educators, Fellows integrates Jewish learning with general leadership skill-building so that participants will become more informed, thoughtful, and effective leaders wherever they are leading. The eighth cohort of Millstone Fellows are:
cal ever made.” Tickets for the showing are $14 including fees and can be purchased by visiting https://bit.ly/3PXdquI.
Kol Rinah’s Verein Group Jews in Science Series Presents:
• Seth Albin • Hila Ben Abraham • Mariel Brechner • Autumn Dennis • Jenna Lew-Feit • Jessica Goltzman • Lea-Rachel Kosnik • Jennifer
ABOVE: 'Fiddler on the Roof' director Norman Jewison (right) on set in 1970 with Chaim Topol, who played Tevye. PHOTO COURTESY OF ZEITGEIST FILMS
Lederman • Kevin Litt • Helen Petty • Adam Rosenberg • Benjamin Singer • Yona Spiegelglass • Daniel Stark • Alan Zagier
Have the Best Summer Become a J Member Today
The Jewish Enlightenment The Jewish Enlightenment was the foundation of what we today call the Conservative Movement of Judaism. We will hear from Christina Feist, (Live from Paris, France) Christina is a PhD candidate/Research Fellow from the University of Potsdam and Paris-Sorbonne. Feist’s dissertation dives into the ‘Roots’ of the Jewish Enlightenment, and introduces the key “players” of this crucial group of thinkers. She will explain the role of the Jewish Enlightenment in today’s world. Register to join us on Zoom – Sunday, July 17 at 1:00 pm KolRinahStL.org (we will send you the link)
Everyone is welcome at the J.
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June 22, 2022
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Community-wide Pride Shabbat Picnic planned The St. Louis Jewish Community Center and its partners will host a Pride Shabbat Picnic in celebration of Pride Month on Friday, June 24 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Anyone who identifies as LGBTQIA+, their allies, and families of all kinds are invited to the community-wide event at the Jewish Community Center’s Day Camp Pavilion on the Staenberg Family Complex campus in Creve Coeur. “Everyone is welcome at the J,” said Lynn Wittels, president and CEO of the J.
“We’re proud to offer our Pride Shabbat Picnic to our community as an intentional event and space where our LGBTQIA+ members and families are embraced.” The J is to co-hosting the event with Jewish Federation of St. Louis, PJ Library and Keshet. “It is so important for LGBTQIA+ Jews and our families to celebrate who we are in Jewish spaces. For me, my Jewishness is informed by my queerness, and my queerness is informed by my Jewishness,”
said Rabbi Micah Buck-Yael, who serves as Keshet’s Director of Education and Training. Buck-Yael will also lead the Shabbat services and light the Shabbat candles at the picnic. Attendees are asked to bring their own blanket and dinner to enjoy picnic style. There will be ice cream and interactive activities, such as face painting, music, a photo booth and community art project. Jennifer Baer, director of family engagement at Federation, adds that this Pride
Covenant Place Tenant Council donates $1,000 to Federation to support Ukraine relief efforts Just days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Covenant Place resident, Ruth Mariam, contacted Covenant Place President & CEO, Joan Denison, expressing her desire to help. Mariam, in her 90s, recalled how when her family members went to fight in World War II, “We didn’t know how bad it was, we didn’t see it on TV.” She acknowledged the many Ukrainian and Russian refugees who reside at Covenant Place and how their families might be affected. “These are our neighbors and friends. What can we do? How can we be sure if we send money that it will help the people?” The Jewish Federation of North America (JFNA) was already working to address the challenge of evacuating families from Ukraine to Israel and getting people needed supplies. The day Mariam called the Jewish Federation of St. Louis was distributing information about how to send funds to JFNA to support their work in Ukraine. Denison assured Mariam that funds would be appropriately used.
Mariam took her request to Covenant Place Tenant Council President Dee Wolf, who brought the issue to the council for consideration. The Tenant Council raises funds throughout the year through the sale of tributes and other activities. These funds support special programs and events that they independently plan and facilitate, a long-held tradition at Covenant Place. Over the past two and a half years, there had been no events due to COVID. The Tenant Council held a meeting and voted to donate $1,000 to Federation to support the people of Ukraine. “A lot of people come from that area — my mother did,” said Wolf. “A lot of people still have family there. We see it’s a terrible situation and feel it is our duty to help.” “How could anyone refuse to help what’s going on, to help people,” said Mariam. “We say ‘never again’ and it’s here again. To know what people went through during the Holocaust and here we are again.”
Shabbat Picnic keeps with Jewish values as it embraces b’tzelem elohim, kavod (respect) and adam yehidi nivrah (every person is uniquely beautiful). “We want to inspire and promote deeper lessons about self-love,” said Baer. “It’s a powerful message to be comfortable with who we are and to love ourselves.” To RSVP, visit https://jccstl.com/event/ pride-shabbat-picnic/.
Discussion group planned for Jewish grandparents whose adult children have intermarried “The Grandparents Circle,” a five-week discussion group for Jewish grandparents whose adult children have intermarried, will be offered by Congregation B’nai Amoona’s Jewish Senior Connection Program during the summer. The curriculum, developed by the Jewish Outreach Institute, offers skills and techniques that grandparents can use to nurture, and in some cases help establish, their grandchildren’s Jewish identities. The group will also provide participants with a supportive and open-minded environment where they can share their achievements and acknowledge their challenges. There is no charge to participate. For questions or to register to participate in “The Grandparents Circle,” contact Marcia Mermelstein, Jewish Senior Connection Coordinator, at 314-576-9990, ext. 139 or at marcia@bnaiamoona.com. A meeting day and time will be developed based on the consensus of the group.
Marcia Mermelstein is Jewish Senior Connection Coordinator
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June 22, 2022
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Holocaust Museum: Vastly expanded and ready to open to this fall CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Some elements in limbo The capital campaign for the museum renovation and expansion surpassed its $21 million fundraising goal, and the excess will be used to increase its endowment, said Amy Lutz, communications and social media manager at the museum. However, the museum is still without an executive director, and the search for one probably will not begin for a month or two. In July, the board of Jewish Federation will review the findings and recommendations of a task force to decide whether the museum should be its own entity or remain a division of Federation. Members of the task force include experts in museum management, business and nonprofit development, law, financial planning and accounting, and have been working for more than seven months weighing the pros and cons of the issue. “The (Federation) board is going to be submitted a case — here are the pros, the cons, the ups, the downs — and that should come in July,” said Greg Yawitz, Federation board president. “We will not vote the day it is presented, even if we do prep work, because it is a very big decision. The task force Greg Yawitz report is north of 150 pages, so there is a lot to review. We are going to dig in and do the work and ask the questions, and we will decide because there are arguments in both directions that must be considered. “This isn’t about the Federation or the museum. It’s about looking at the data in the industry with the experts and saying, ‘What is the right thing to do here?’ Basically, with the task force, we put together a think tank, not museum people vs. Federation people. Everyone is here for the best outcome, that’s what’s important. We only have one shot to get this right.” Yawitz said it’s more logical to hire an executive director for the museum after a decision is made about its future management. “It’s two completely different jobs. Are you the executive director of your own entity or are you the executive director of a museum that is a division of Federation?” said Yawitz, noting that Gallagher Museum Services, which manages and runs museums as a third party, is oversee-
UNDER CONSTRUCTION: Photographed earlier this month, work continues at the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum (above and below), which plans to reopen in November. PHOTOS: BILL MOTCHAN
Helen Turner (above left) is director of education at the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum and Amy Lutz (above right) is the museum’s communications and social media manager. 200 docents. She said she expects school field trips to the museum to resume with gusto after the December holidays.
A world class attraction ing operations at the Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum. “I’m more about getting it right than getting it done quickly. Once the (Federation) board issues the vote, it’s a lot easier to post the job, because then we know the reporting structure, the organizational structure, this is what the job looks like. It just makes more sense.” One thing for sure right now is the need
for more volunteers. Lutz said the museum recently hired Haley Stodart as manager of volunteers, and she will launch “full scale” volunteer recruitment by the end of the month. This includes a series of open houses at the museum for volunteers later in the summer. Lutz said that while the museum previously had about 75 docents leading tours, the revamped museum will require 150 to
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Museum leaders expect the $21 million expansion will also make St. Louis a major center for Holocaust learning, along with the most prominent locations in Skokie, Houston, Dallas and Washington, D.C. “This St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum will be an important destination and resource for the entire region,” said Carol Staenberg, capital campaign chair. “We know that the lessons visitors learn from their experience cannot be contained inside the museum walls. This special place will give all of us the education and tools needed to join with others working to counter hate, fight bigotry and shape a better world. None of this would be possible without the generCarol Staenberg ous support we’ve received from the St. Louis community.” Architecturally, the expanded museum will be a striking presence, said Turner, the museum education director. That includes a specific design choice involving the use of color. “We have a section that is very unique to our museum, which is going to be about choices,” she said. “We’ll be looking at the choices that people made and, to illustrate the difficulty in the complexity of choices, that whole museum section will be gray. “That gray zone is a really unique architectural choice, and to get people to understand that the Holocaust didn’t happen in a vacuum. It happened with real human beings making choices much as we all make choices, and we explore the complexities of those as human beings.”
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June 22, 2022
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Justice Breyer: Supreme Court ruling in Maine school case could lead to broad public funding of religious schools BY RON KAMPEAS JTA
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Maine parents seeking funding to send their children to religious schools, a development that a dissenting Jewish justice, Stephen Breyer, suggested could open the door to broad public funding of parochial schools. Ruling Tuesday in Carson v. Makin, the 6-3 majority favored parents in Maine who objected to a state policy that funded private school education for students who lived in districts without public schools, but explicitly excluded religious schools on church-state grounds. The court’s two Jewish justices, Elena Kagan and Breyer, who is retiring, were in the dissenting minority. Jewish groups were split on the case: The Orthodox Union filed a brief on behalf of the parents, and the Anti-Defamation League filed a friend of the court brief favoring the state. The court divided conservatives from
Stephen Breyer in his office in Washington, D.C., August 2021. PHOTO: BILL O'LEARY/THE WASHINGTON POST VIA GETTY IMAGES
liberals on the bench. John Roberts, the chief justice, wrote the decision. “Maine’s ‘nonsectarian’ requirement for its otherwise generally available tuition
assistance payments violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment,” Roberts wrote. “Regardless of how the benefit and restriction are described, the program operates to identify and exclude otherwise eligible schools on the basis of their religious exercise.” Breyer said in his written dissent that the ruling could open the door to broader public funding of religious schools. “Does that transformation mean that a school district that pays for public schools must pay equivalent funds to parents who wish to send their children to religious schools?” Breyer wrote. “Does it mean that school districts that give vouchers for use at charter schools must pay equivalent funds to parents who wish to give their children a religious education?” Liberal groups tracking the case agreed that the decision was far-reaching and could transform education funding. “Far from honoring religious freedom, this decision tramples the religious freedom of everyone,” said Americans United for Separation of Church and State. “Worse,
the court has opened the door to government-enforced tithing, an invitation religious extremists will not ignore.” Roberts, responding to Breyer, said the liberal justice was reading too much into the majority opinion. In Maine’s case, he noted, the state had a range of options, including building schools in the affected districts or creating boarding options for students who must travel long distances to neighboring districts to attend public schools. Orthodox groups, who have long sought state support for families sending their children to private Jewish day schools and yeshivas, praised the decision. “A state discriminating against religion — as Maine did in its tuition assistance program — is just as unconstitutional as a state promoting one particular religion,” the O.U.’s Washington director, Nathan Diament, said in a statement. “In today’s ruling, the Supreme Court has advanced religious liberty for all Americans of all faiths.”
Center for Israel Education plans Annual Educator Workshop Registration fee waived for groups of 3 or more The Center for Israel Education has learned that its annual enrichment workshop on modern Israel works best when schools, synagogues, youth groups and other local and national organizations send teams of educators to learn together. So for CIE’s 21st annual summer workshop, to be held online July 24 to 26, the center is providing an incentive for groups: Registration is free for cohorts of three or more from one institution. The registration fee otherwise is $150. The free-for-three offer encourages, for example, Jewish day schools to send administrators and secular studies teachers as well as Judaic teachers to expand skills on implementing content into a curriculum that incorporates aspects of Israel across subjects and grade levels. The educator enrichment workshop offers sessions that build a comprehensive understanding of modern Israel’s history, politics, economy, society and culture and that provide tools and tips for curriculum development and classroom experiences. Sessions will be held from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (Eastern time) all three days and from 7 to 8:30 p.m. the first two nights. CIE will make video recordings available to registered participants. Registration and more details are available at israeled. org/workshop. Contact workshop coordinator Heather Waters at heatherwaters@ israeled.org for more information.
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June 22, 2022
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OPINIONS
Viewpoints expressed in letters, commentaries, cartoons and other opinion pieces reflect those of the writer or artist, and not those of the Light. We welcome submissions of letters and commentaries to: news@stljewishlight.org
We all have the opportunity to enter our ‘promised land’ After a two-year hiatus due to COVID, the opportunity to visit congregants at Jewish sleep-away camps is back in my summer plans. I am excited to have this opportunity return and see our children in such a wonderful, informal educational setting. When I visit, I often think of the first annual foray into a “new” camp with the 12 spies we encounter in this week’s Torah portion. Parashat Sh’lach L’kha provides two diametrically different reports from the spies who were sent to “scout” the Land of Israel. They bring back ripe fruits and 10 of the 12 report that the “land flows with milk and honey, but it is a land of giants. We felt like grasshoppers in their sight.” Joshua and Caleb contradict the other scouts, urging the people to go up and conquer the land. The people insist Moses let them go back to Egypt. Angered by the report of the spies and the people’s reaction, God punishes them with 40 years of wandering in the desert. They are told that the generation liberated from Egypt will not enter the
Rabbi Jeffrey Abraham serves Congregation B’nai Amoona and is a member of the St. Louis Rabbinical and Cantorial Association, which coordinates the d’var Torah for the Jewish Light. Land of Israel. Only their children, led by Joshua and Caleb, will victoriously enter; the people who had suffered years of Egyptian slavery are condemned to die in the desert. What did the spies either say or do to bring on such severe punishment? There are a variety of views. Rabbi Obadiah Sforno, a 16th-century Italian scholar, suggests that when they mention giants, they mean to suggest that the climate of the land is so polluted that only the strongest among them will survive. When they claim that they felt like grasshoppers, the spies are deliberately exaggerating the
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ABOUT THE OPINIONS SECTION
D’VAR TORAH — PARASHAT SH’LACH L’KHA
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JEWISH LIGHT
physical size of their potential enemies. Modern commentator Rabbi Pinchas Peli says that by observing that it is a land that eats up its people, the spies are conducting a demoralization campaign deliberately deceiving the people. Psychologist Erich Fromm observes that the affirmation of one’s own life, happiness, growth and freedom is rooted in one’s capacity to love. We love productively only when we learn to love ourselves. We can only conquer “promised lands” when we have regard for our talents and believe in our creative powers. The sin of the spies grows from their failure of self-love and self-respect. Perhaps that explains their punishment. Only Joshua and Caleb, who refuse to see themselves as “grasshoppers,” are worthy of entering the Promised Land. We are all going on different journeys. Whether it is our younger members going on different journeys at camp this summer or each of us navigating the uncertainty of life, we can all find a positive silver lining and enter into our own personal promised land. Shabbat Shalom!
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Email letters@thejewishlight.com
Remembering HoJo’s [Regarding Editor-in-Chief Ellen Futterman’s June 8 News & Schmooze column, “Farewell to HoJo’s a Futterman family favorite”] Like Ms. Futterman, I was an aficionado of Howard Johnson’s, and was saddened to read that the last one had recently closed. In fact, to the best of my recollection, I believe I was there the first day it opened at the location on Clayton Road in Richmond Heights in the summer of 1954. That fall, I entered my first year of high school, and HoJo’s was later to become one of my favorite haunts as it did for many of my fellow classmates at Clayton High School. Everything about HoJo’s was top notch — the food, the service, the staff and the ambience, plus, it was immaculately clean with plenty of parking. In a sense, HoJo’s became my “home away from home.” During the mid-’50s and early ’60s, I must have eaten dinner there as often as I ate at home. I met lots of people, including several young ladies, a few of whom I later dated. Although I don’t have the fondest memories of my high school experiences, frequenting HoJo’s are memories I’ll treasure forever. Thanks Ms. Futterman for a splendid feature, and for taking me on a stroll down memory lane. Gene Carton Clayton
Spreading wings and gritting teeth: It’s time for sleep-away camp BY ELIZABETH MACANUFO
Ada Macanufo, age 10, leaves for camp.
I went to Camp Herzl in Minnesota for three weeks, returning on my 13th birthday. I hated it. I missed my family, objected to spending time outdoors and, as a Reform Jew, felt lost among my more religious peers. And yet, I strongly suggested that my 13-year-old son and 10-year-old daughter attend sleep-away camp this summer. It seemed like a good idea when we first discussed it, back when temperatures were still below freezing. My son hadn’t slept away from us in years, the pandemic hampering the customary sixth grade camp. Both kids had friends attending the camp. We collectively decided they should give it a try. As their departure date approached, my anxiety increased. My instincts scream to keep them as close as possible at all times. But, as painful as it feels, I know I must encourage their independence, preparing them for life beyond my constant watchful eye. I helped them pack, one efficiently and calmly in half an hour, and one less so over the course of several hours with tears. The next day we drove to Potosi. With a final reminder about bug spray and sunscreen, we said our goodbyes with what
seemed like a preview of college years. Figure out where you’re going, make sure there’s money in their spending accounts and see ya later, mom. In another sign that I need to take a break from Holocaust-related fiction, I swam some more. I enjoyed the couldn’t help but think of Jewish brief, lighter load of dishes and families separated throughout laundry. history. I reassured myself that Intermittently (or maybe conour separation was (very) tempo- stantly), I checked the camp app rary and intentional for their for recent pictures. I have no phomaturity. tographic evidence that they are And fun! They’re supposed to enjoying themselves. Yet, I’m be having fun — during record hopeful. I’m proud of them for heat. I waited a full 24 hours trying something new, existing in before contacting the camp to ask the world for a week away from about their plans for my son’s their parents, exercising their group. He was to spend the full own judgment. time outside. The camp represenIn the meantime, I am going tative assured me about air-con- down to the camp a day early to ditioned breaks. enjoy a night in the lodge. You With some peace of mind, I know, to ease the pickup the next tried to squash my desire to call morning. And if I happen to see camp daily to check in. If an one of my kids on the other side urgent issue occurred, they of the lake? So be it. But at least would find me. With my worry- I’m leaving the binoculars at wart impulses at bay, I tried to home. enjoy myself, despite the Elizabeth strangeness of not commuMacanufo is nicating with my kids. a nonprofit In their absence, I enterprofessional. tained our younger daughter She and her (who is eager to go to camp husband, James, as soon as she poops withhave three out my company). We children and live swam, left her with “the best in Richmond babysitter ever” and went to Heights. a great ballgame, then
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June 22, 2022
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OTHER VIEWPOINTS Voices on Jewish topics from St. Louis and beyond
Defying labels in a search for truth BY ERIC MINK
Over the many years I’ve earned a living as a fact-driven opinion journalist, regular readers who choose to spend some of their time with my work — for which I’m always grateful — discover early on that my positions on public issues tend to wind up on the left side of the political continuum. So considering the political polarization in which we social-networking Americans seem to wallow, it may seem odd that one of the public figures I’ve come to admire and respect is a politician with sterling conservative credentials of long-standing and with whose views on most issues — voting rights, firearms regulations, foreign affairs, immigration, tax policy, military power, torture — I heartily disagree. I speak of Elizabeth (Liz) Lynne Cheney, a mainstream Republican, the lone congressperson for the state of Wyoming. She’s now in her third term in the U.S. House of Representatives and spent a bit more than two years on the House Republicans’ senior leadership team, chairing the Republican Caucus. In the context of conservative/ Republican credentials, it’s worth noting that Liz Cheney’s father is Richard (Dick) Cheney, a two-term Republican U.S. VicePresident under President George W. Bush, Secretary of Defense under President George H.W. Bush, White House Chief of Staff for President Gerald Ford, a 10-year congressman representing Wyoming in the House and, as his daughter Liz would be 30 years later, Chair of the House Republican Conference. U.S. viewers couldn’t have helped but
notice Liz Cheney in live coverage of three public hearings televised so far of the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Cheney is the committee’s vice chair. Some 20 million people watched the first session on June 9, carried simultaneously in prime time by the major networks and all the TV news channels except Fox’s. Subsequent hearings took place on June 13 and 16 and two more are scheduled for June 21 and June 23. A session postponed from June 15 has not yet been rescheduled. As alarmingly conveyed by video, audio and documentary evidence and sworn testimony of participants and witnesses amassed over the past year by committee investigators, the violence in and around the Capitol was executed by mobs of domestic extremists who had been methodically worked into a frenzy by months of then-President Donald Trump’s flagrant lies that he actually won re-election in November, 2020, (he didn’t) but was cheated out of it by rampant voting fraud (that actually didn’t exist). The lies continue. Even before the committee was formed, Liz Cheney was among the few Republicans to denounce Trump’s refusal to admit the truth of his election loss and his dishonest attempts to stay in power. She was among the even fewer Republicans to continue calling out his extended campaign of falsehoods as months rolled by and damage to the democratic principles and traditions of the country accumulated. Cheney paid for honoring those principles. True to Trump’s petty, punk nature,
the Republican former president exploited fellow Republicans’ fears of his power over the party’s base and got Cheney replaced as chair of the House Republican Conference. Last fall, he endorsed a Republican candidate running against Cheney in Wyoming’s upcoming August primary. In addition to her crystal clear criticism of Trump’s cheap but dangerous imitation of a tin-horn dictator, I also was impressed that she knew she was taking a massive professional risk by speaking out against him and could gain little, if anything, by doing so. Well, unless you’re the kind of person who values knowing you have not stood silent while a president of your own party debases his office, defiles his oath and damages American democracy with a multi-part plan to subvert the legitimate result of a free and fair United States election. Little wonder that the Select Committee’s chair, Bennie Thompson — a Mississippi Democrat of quiet conviction and dignity who has represented the people of his state’s 2nd congressional district in the U.S. House for 29 years –- described Cheney as “a partner” when he introduced her at the committee’s hearing last week. “She’s a patriot,” he said, “a public servant of profound courage, of devotion to her oath and the Constitution.” Cheney then summarized the topics and situations the committee would address in other hearings and the evidence backing them up. She concluded her remarks this way: “There’s a reason why people serving in our government take an oath to the Constitution. As our founding fathers recognized, democracy is fragile. People in
Eric Mink is a freelance writer and editor and teaches film studies at Webster University. He is a former columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Daily News in New York. Contact him at ericmink1@gmail.com. positions of public trust are duty-bound to defend it, to step forward when action is required. In our country, we don’t swear an oath to an individual or a political party.... We take our oath to defend the United States Constitution. And that oath must mean something.... In his own opening remarks, Thompson, too, explored the significance of an oath. Noting the diversity and geographic dispersion of the committee members, he pointed out what they shared: “We swore the same oath. We swore an oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.... We can’t sweep what happened under the rug. The American people deserve answers. “So I come before you this evening not as a Democrat, but as an American who swore an oath to defend the Constitution. The Constitution doesn’t protect just Democrats or just Republicans. It protects all of us: We, the people. “The cause of our democracy remains in danger.... There are those in this audience who thirst for power but have no love or respect for what makes America great: devotion to the Constitution, allegiance to the rule of law, our shared journey to build See ERIC MINK on page 24
Some predictions about a post-Ukraine War world BY MARTY ROCHESTER
Russia’s war on Ukraine is now in its sixth month, with little end in sight. There has been much handwringing and speculation over the meaning and importance of this war, with some observers going so far as to view this as an existential event fundamentally changing the future of world order. My own guess is that, as awful as the war is, I do not think it will prove any more earthshaking than 9/ll, which at the time also seemed to threaten to alter our lives forever but in fact had relatively minor implications other than airport screening inconveniences. Recall, no foreign terrorist group has successfully carried out a deadly attack inside the United States since 2001, and no more than roughly 100 people have been killed here over the past 20 years by jihadist-motivated terrorists. In the 1970s, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger asked Chinese leader Chou En-Lai what he thought of the 1789 French Revolution. He replied, “Too soon to tell.” It is especially premature to judge the long-term implications of events occurring in the early 21st century. Still, we can try to make some educated guesses. Admittedly, few observers, including the most distinguished scholars, have done a good job of correctly assessing and anticipating events of late. I vividly recollect attending a panel session at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association in Washington, D.C. in the spring of 1987, featuring two American diplomats engaging two Russian diplomats in a discussion about “the future of U.S.-Soviet relations.” This was at a time when the Cold War was still raging and when U.S. President Ronald Reagan was continuing to charac-
terize the USSR as the “evil empire.” One of the Russian diplomats began his comments by uttering what he took to be an old Romanian proverb, that “it is always hard to predict anything, especially the future.” Indeed, who in that room, or any room, can claim to have predicted that within a half decade the world would witness the end of the Cold War and the end of the Soviet Union, with hardly a shot being fired? Most people shared former Carter administration national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski’s 1986 assessment that “the American-Soviet conflict is not some temporary aberration but a historical rivalry that will long endure.” Yet, by December 1991, the USSR had dissolved into Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and assorted other independent republics, with the new Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev proclaiming that “the world is leaving one epoch, the Cold War, and entering a new one” while President George H.W. Bush proclaimed a “new world order” of peace and harmony. At that very moment, amid much fanfare and jubilation, Francis Fukuyama of the U.S. State Department famously wrote that we were witnessing “the end of history,” as the forces of Western liberal democracy and free market capitalism had seemingly achieved their final triumph over all other competing ideologies. But the “holiday from history,” as George Will called it, was short-lived, as was the jubilant mood. The fall of the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, 1989 (11/9) was followed by 9/11 on Sept. 11, 2001, with euphoria suddenly turning to despair and a doom and gloom view of the future. The point is that humanity in the recent past has found itself lurching wildly between the extreme mind-sets of heaven
one minute and hell the next. Can we do a better job this time around in understanding the nature of world events, in particular the significance of the current crisis in the Ukraine? At the moment, Russia has been using its artillery advantage to achieve some gains in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region. At a minimum, it seeks to occupy eastern and southern Ukraine and move on Odessa, a vital port city, However, given high Russian casualties and low morale among its troops, most observers doubt the Kremlin can ultimately accomplish such objectives. One of the best analyses is offered by Liana Fix and Michael Kimmage, in “What If Ukraine Wins?” in Foreign Affairs, June 6. The authors argue that Ukraine may be able to defeat Russia, but “the most plausible victory would be ‘winning small,’” that is, giving up reclaiming Crimea and settling instead for the status quo prior to the Russian invasion in February. “Victory in the war would not end the conflict with Russia,” as for the foreseeable future “postwar Ukraine will resemble Israel in its full-time orientation toward self-defense.” The best-case scenario may be for the United States and its allies to pressure both the Ukraine leadership as well as Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the current round of fighting. Ukrainian President Zelensky may be reluctant to accept anything but total victory, rightly thinking that God is on his side in the naked aggression committed by Russia. However, given the substantial costs the United States has incurred in the conflict, not only donating well over $50 billion in military and economic aid to Kviv but also risking the threat of escalating hostilities by Moscow, we have a right
J. Martin Rochester, Curators’ Distinguished Teaching Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, is the author of 10 books on international and American politics. to expect Zelensky to be willing to compromise if it spares not only further American expenditures and insecurity but also further carnage in Ukraine. As for Putin, he, too, might be willing to compromise if it meant an end to his own military casualties as well as the sanctions crippling his economy, as long as Ukraine agreed to abandon any effort to join the NATO alliance in the future. When the dust has settled, as I suggest above, I do not think the Ukraine War will go down as a major historical event. It will prove to be an anomaly in an age when territorial aggression against another sovereign state was thought to have been outlawed. Putin, nearing 70 years of age, will soon pass from the scene, as will the significance of Ukraine in Russian foreign policy. The United States will continue to experience frictions with Moscow, although it will not be a new “Cold War” along the lines of what Brzezinski predicted, only the normal kind of “great-power rivalry” that has characterized international relations for centuries. Whether America’s primary rivalry will be with Moscow or Beijing, one hopes that we can summon the kind of wise statesmanship that will enable us to cope with an ever more complex world order.
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How watchmaking skills saved 3 Jewish brothers from the Nazi death machine Riveting memoir tells story of brothers’ survival — two of whom settled in St. Louis BY ROBERT A. COHN EDITOR-IN-CHIEF EMERITUS
Every Holocaust survivor story is both a miracle and a curse. The miracle for any Jew in Nazi-occupied Europe between 1939 and 1945 is the fact that they managed to escape the merciless, ruthless and efficient Germans at all. The curse is survivors’ trauma, often compounded by the torment of guilt. “Why did I survive when hundreds in my family, neighbors perish in hell holes like Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Mauthausen—six million Jews in all? “The Watchmakers,” by Harry Lenga and his son Scott Lenga, is not an easy book to read, and yet it is a mustread, especially as vicious atrocities appear in real time daily on TV and social media from Ukraine and places like an elementary school in Texas. “The Watchmakers” is a gripping true story chronicling the harrowing experiences of Harry Lenga and his two brothers, Mailech and Moishe (they would later go by Marcel and Morris, respectively), who learned the highskill trade of making and repairing watches from their father, Mikhoel Lenga. Little did these three Hasidic yeshiva bokhers know that the skills learned from their dad would literally save them from the gas chambers when they were imprisoned after the Nazi invasion of Poland on Sept. 1, 1939. To describe “The Watchmakers,” which will be published June 28, as “gripping” or “stranger than fiction” are understatements. The manuscript is derived from the oral history that survivor Harry Lenga recorded for the St. Louis Holocaust Museum (now the Kaplan-Feldman Holocaust Museum), at the behest of his son Scott, a St. Louis native who now resides with his wife in Israel. Longtime Holocaust Museum docent Vida “Sister” Prince interviewed Harry Lenga and transcribed the recordings, which are the primary source for this powerful book. Scott Lenga lovingly curated Harry’s straightforward memoir based on those transcriptions, which constitute a precious legacy. Harry Lenga (1919-2000) was a native of Kozhnitz,
‘The Watchmakers’ by Harry Lenga (above left) and Scott Lenga (above right); Citadel Press, 315 pages, $27.95.
Poland and employed in Warsaw when the Germans stormed into Poland. At great personal risk, he was able to escape from the hellish Warsaw Ghetto in 1941 and reunite with his family later that year in Kozhnitz. That town was not a refuge for the Lenga family; they escaped before the Nazis murdered its entire Jewish population. According to Harry Lenga’s memoir, the watchmaking band of brothers survived the rest of the war in a series of infamous Nazi labor, detention and death camps. In heart-pounding detail, Harry’s memoir describes how they
managed to survive through the very skills in watchmaking they had learned at their father’s workbench. They arrived in a nearby Polish labor camp “with a suitcase full of watchmaking tools and watch parts from their father,” a decision which literally saved their lives. From the first labor camp, the three brothers from 1942 and 1945 to the camps in Wolanow, Starachowiche, Auschwitz, and the Austrian camps of Mauthauesen, Melk and Ebensee. In what the book aptly describes as a “bold strike of audacity,” Harry Lenga approached “cruel, sadistic foreman named Cornibus,” who was wearing a broken wristwatch with no internal mechanism. Cornibus was stunned when Harry presented him with a fully operational restored watch. Cornibus set the brothers up so they could make and repair watches for Nazi camp officials. The Lengas were literally “buying time” by making or repairing time pieces. The three brothers stayed together in camp after camp, still “buying time” with the skills they learned from their dad. The Lenga brothers were liberated from Ebensee on May 6, 1945, led by an American tank commander named Robert Pensinger, whose testimony is quoted in the book. Harry and brother Morris immigrated to St. Louis in 1949. Harry married and had three children, including Scott Lenga, whom we thank for making sure the story of his father and his two brothers is now and forever told in this stunning book.
AMY FENSTER BROWN
Nominations are open for Amy’s Mom Awards BY AMY FENSTER BROWN
As I write this, I’m watching the Tony Awards, where Broadway artists are honored for their outstanding work. I love awards shows so much: the celebrities, the fashion, the speeches in which the winners act like they’re surprised to be revered because they’re just everyday normal people. I miss my original comedy hero, Joan Rivers, of blessed memory, and her half-interviews/half-roasts on the red carpet. She was the master of putting on a friendly face (that she paid a whole lot of money for) to ask, “Who are you wearing?” and then ripping the stars’ fashion choices to proverbial shreds when they walked away. I should be so gifted. If ever I were on a red carpet and was asked, “Who are you wearing?” the best answer I could muster up would be “Lane Bryant.” Today, I did three loads of laundry, which included bedding, so that chore involved the aerobics of stripping the sheets and putting them back on to make the bed. I also emptied the dishwasher, ran
to two grocery stores and cooked dinner. And now I am writing this column. Working parents know the deal. Chores have to get done, work has to get done and family time is the fun stuff in between the tasks. We don’t get awards, but we should. I wish the ghost of Joan would float into my life and present me a medal for “Momming So Hard” while she tears into me for wearing a shapeless schmatta. What if moms did win awards? Like, just for being moms. Imagine some of the fun categories.
Best Public Meltdown — Also known as “The Karen Award” (sorry friends named Karen, Karin or Karyn). The nominees in this category: • The mom stuck in the carpool line behind a yenta mom who is chatting an extra-long time with her kids’ preschool teacher. • The creatively frugal mom at the grocery store where the cash register did not ring up her order as a BOGO and instead charged her full price. • The mom who ate her entire salad and then realized the dressing was not fat free
as she had ordered and these workers can’t get anything right because you can’t find good help anywhere these days.
Most Embarrassing Sideline Performance
• The sports mom whose child was barely tapped during a game and she screamed, “Sweetie! Are you OK? Ref, are you blind? I’m going to kill that other kid!” • The theater mom who fake-coughed obnoxiously loud when her child appeared on stage, so said child would know where said mom was in the audience so said child could “play directly to her.” • The mitzvah mom who mouthed every single word RuPaul Drag Race performance style of her bubbeleh’s speech while standing right next to him on the bimah, then winced when he messed up a word.
Meanest Mom
• The horrible mom who bought store brand sandwich cookies instead of actual Oreos, knowing there is a huge difference in flavor and now there is nothing at all to eat in this house. • The lazy mom who had the nerve to
Columnist Amy Fenster Brown is married to Jeff and has two teenage sons, Davis and Leo. She volunteers for several Jewish notfor-profit groups. Fenster Brown is an Emmy Award-winning TV news writer and counts time with family and friends, talking and eating peanut butter among her hobbies. ask her sons to put their cups in the dishwasher when she could have done it herself instead of interrupting their heated debate over which one of them could actually beat a cheetah in a foot race. • The buzzkill mom who wouldn’t allow her 15 year old to go out late because he had an early start the next day but he says it’s because he went out last night and accuses her of “not wanting him to have fun two nights in a row.” I hope you’ll enter yourself in a couple of these categories. And even if you don’t win, remember, it’s an honor just to be nominated.
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LIGHTER SIDE Q&A WITH
LIZZY KLINE
DECLUTTER EXPERT Lizzy Kline is a Young Israel congregant and married mother of four who helps people declutter their homes and then assists them in reorganizing so they find maintainable solutions to better enjoy every space in their home. (Learn more at happyspacesbylizzy.com)
What is the best find from someone’s home you helped declutter and reorganize? It’s always fun to find gift cards and help show them how much is on there. Found money!
How did you come to get into this line of work?
Having a master’s in social work, I wanted to do something to help people. When I was in college, I used to help my roommates and family members organize and, more important, declutter to help alleviate anxiety. When Bobby, my youngest, was in kindergarten, I was exploring the idea of starting something to help others. The best advice I got was to explore my options and not say no, and the rest is history.
I know you and your husband Chris have four children, ranging in age from 19 to 12. What are you looking most forward to doing as a family this summer? This summer we are taking a vacation to Utah with extended family. The kids are all going to sleep-
away camp as counselors and campers in Pennsylvania. Chris and I are looking forward to a little quiet time, and of course, I’m looking forward to do my editing and organizing in a few rooms of my house, aka kids’ bedrooms.
Were there any lessons learned from the pandemic that you have incorporated into your family’s routine or adapted in some way? The pandemic had its advantages for our family. We used our outside space like many others to entertain, which was always a great way to not only connect with friends and family but neighbors as well. I loved spending time connecting to my home, probably more so than the past, and have worked hard to make it into the space that works best for all of us, like including a guitar room for my rockstar
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husband and son. Lastly, I always enjoyed making dinner for my family. We keep kosher and don’t have many other options. I found a good weekly meal plan that works for my family that we generally stick to.
What do you do to chill/ relax — or what is your go-to self-care regiment?
I work out every day without exception. That is my time. I try to first thing in the a.m. if I can. I religiously get my nails done because that is a must in this profession. Otherwise, I enjoy spending time with family and friends.
NANCY KRANZBERG — THE ARTS IN ST. LOUIS
Versatile in form, function, ceramics span millennia BY NANCY KRANZBERG
I recently interviewed young Vincent Stemmler on his work in the arts. He calls himself a multi-media artist and he uses many non-traditional materials. When he started talking about ceramics, he said that he pushes the art form past the traditional limits of the medium that ceramics are thought to be. Then I thought of my friend and longterm gallerist, Duane Reed, who specializes in contemporary ceramics. One of his latest exhibitions featured Matt Mitros, who adds plastics and found objects to his ceramic works to produce what he calls compositions. Reed then went on to talk about another exhibition entitled “Radical Pots,” which features works that are extreme in the handling of clay. I looked up books talking about the history of ceramics and found such titles as “Southwestern Pottery: Anasazi to Zuni” by Allan Hayes and John Blom; “Origin and Development of Form and Ornament in Ceramic Art” by William Henry Holmes; “Gifts From the Fire: American Ceramics-1880-1950; From the Collection of Martin Eidelberg”; “Ceramic Art and Civilization” by Paul Greenhalgh and “Clay: The History and Evolution of Humankind’s Relationship with the Earth’s Most Primal Element” by Suzanne Staubach. Where to start with a paper on ceramics? Well, I found that ceramics is one of the most ancient industries on the planet. Once humans discovered that clay could be dug up and formed into objects by first mixing it with water and then firing,
the industry was born. As early as 24,000 B.C., animal and human figurines were made from clay and other materials, then fired in kilns partially dug into the ground. About 5,000 years ago the pottery wheel was invented. There have many versions of the pottery wheel over the centuries. Regardless of the type of wheel used, it is still done today and is possibly the oldest documented art form in the world. The history of pottery dates back 10,000 years and is still thriving and evolving. A walk through the Victoria and Albert Museum in England or our own St. Louis Art Museum show fine examples of ceramic art from nearly every place on the globe. I decided to stay in the modern times and found some books on ceramics in our own collection of art books here at home. Garth Clark wrote a book in the 1980s entitled “American Potters, The Work of Twenty Modern Masters.” Clark was the founder and director of the Institute for Ceramic History in Los Angeles and a well-known lecturer on ceramics at more than 80 universities as well as art museums and art schools in the United States and England. The appearance of this book is therefore especially meaningful. It was the first critical study of the American potter’s role in modern art and the first attempt to understand one of art’s most misunderstood mediums. Some of the featured artists were Rudy Autio, Richard DeVore, Betty Woodman, Karen Karnes and Peter Voulkes. Barbara Okun and Cissy Thomas of the one-time well-known Okun-Thomas Gallery turned St. Louisans onto understanding and
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For more of Nancy Kranzberg’s commentary, listen to KWMU (90.7) St. Louis on the Air the first Friday of each month at approximately 12:50 p.m. She also hosts a weekly Arts Interview podcast for KDHX (88.1), available at artsinterview.kdhxtra.org. collecting contemporary ceramics. They moved to Santa Fe and closed the gallery here at a time when contemporary ceramic art was finally being featured at major art museums around the country. And looking back, University City Pottery was founded by visionary Edward Gardner Lewis. He sought to experiment with a new approach to women’s education, which included publishing a journal and offering mail order classes. He lured Taxile Doat, the eminent French ceramist from Sevres, France, Adelaide Alsop Robineau, master porcelain artist from Syracuse, N.Y. and others to work in porcelain. Unfortunately, University City Pottery’s Utopian ideals proved to be impossible to sustain but works from the University Pottery are a part of the St. Louis Art
Museum’s collection as well as other major art museums throughout the United States. The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University has been a unique public/private partnership in higher education for more than 100 years. Since its inception in 1900, the College of Ceramics has attracted renowned artists and scientists as faculty in ceramics, glass and other materials. And right across the river at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville is a great ceramics program committed to fostering the evolution of ideas and techniques while broadening the scope of possibilities within contemporary ceramics. Students receive engagement from peers and faculty across disciplines in the Department of Art and Design. The ceramics faculty acknowledge their roots in ancient history while striving for new interpretations, a high standard of craftmanship, challenging the “physicality” of the medium and creating art that speaks of our time and place. Just thinking of the wealth of ceramic art around the world past and present, and the possibilities for the future, make my head spin much faster than any potter’s wheel.
Page 12
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JEWISH LIGHT
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NEWSMAKERS Newsmakers is a compilation of the Jewish community’s newsworthy professional and academic accomplishments. Submit your news to news@stljewishlight.org. Call 314-743-3669 for more information. Newsmakers is compiled by Elise Krug.
Nancy Litz was recently installed as the next president of the National Council of Jewish Women St. Louis for a two-year term. She attends Congregation Temple Israel. Of 21 entries (pre-K to kindergarten) in this year’s Creve Coeur Arbor Day Art Show contest, the top three honors went to students in the Congregation B’nai Amoona Linda Rotskoff Early Childhood Center. First place went to Moses Ohana, son of Katya and Shimon Ohana. The Panda class took second place, and Celia Picker, daughter of Elyse and David Picker received third place. Michael Geigerman and Robert Rosenthal are among 31 lawyers honored with a Missouri Lawyers Media ICON Award. This award is presented to lawyers age 60 and older in recognition of their notable and sustained success and leadership within and beyond the field of law. They will receive their awards at the fifth annual luncheon June 29 at the Missouri Athletic Club. Geigerman is the managing director of US Arbitration & Mediation, vice president of the St. Louis Mediation Project and a member of Congregation Shaare Emeth. Rosenthal is a lawyer with Brown & James and attends Central Reform Congregation. Pepe Prince Finn has joined the board of directors of Operation Food Search (OFS), a nonprofit hunger relief organization. She is a longtime supporter of OFS and brings a broad range of experience and civic involvement to the board. Finn is a lawyer and serves as CEO and board chair for Stern Brothers, an investment banking firm nationally certified as a Woman-Owned Business Enterprise in more than 20 states. She is a member of Temple Israel.
summer. The show runs July 5-13. Coco, daughter of Karen and Jeffrey Bland, will be in seventh grade at John Burroughs in the fall and attends Shaare Emeth. Amanda Lopatin, a recent graduate of Rice University, received the James Street Fulton Prize for Excellence in Philosophy because she demonstrated the highest levels of achievement and motivation in the field of philosophy. She also received the Linguistics Prize for Excellence as the top graduating senior majoring in the department of linguistics. Amanda is the daughter of Cheri and Brian Lopatin and will pursue a doctorate in philosophy at Berkeley. Her family attends B’nai Amoona.
University in the fall, majoring in sports analytics. He and his family are members of B’nai Amoona.
Ken Levine is the new business manager for Seeger Toyota. He is responsible for securing financing for new and used vehicles. Levine is a member of Shaare Emeth. Levine’s daughter Becca Levine has joined the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City as the financial resource development associate. Parkway Central High School senior Danny Baris is one of seven in the Parkway district selected for the 2022 Missouri Scholars 100 list. This is a statewide program that honors 100 of the state’s top academic students in the year’s graduation class. Son of Melissa and Jon Baris, Danny plans to attend Syracuse
Ellior “Elli” Rose, daughter of Rabbi Carnie and Paulie Rose, received the Youth of the Year award from the Men’s Club of B’nai Amoona. She has been actively involved in United Synagogue Youth locally, regionally and nationally. She is a teacher at B’nai Amoona’s religious school, a member of the Torah read-
ing corps (the Yad Squad), a B’nai Mitzvah tutor, a Shabbat morning babysitter, and also leads prayer services. Elli is committed to tikkun olam through a wide variety of activities including the “HaMakolet” Food Pantry and JCRC’s Student-toStudent program. This fall, Elli will attend Case Western Reserve University as a member of its women’s tennis team. Elli also recently received Whitfield School’s Outstanding Senior of the Year Award, which is given to a senior who has been an outstanding school citizen, distinguishing themselves by leadership in extracurricular activities and involvement as a significant contributor to the St. Louis community. She was also recognized as the school’s female Athlete of the Year for being the first athlete in Whitfield’s history that went to state finals in tennis, state and soccer. Elli was also given the Class of 2022 Community Service Award.
FIRST ROW, FROM LEFT: Diane Friedman, Elise Krug, Coco Bland, Amanda Lopatin and Ken Levine. SECOND ROW: Becca Levine, Danny Baris, Fred Blumenthal and Ellior “Elli” Rose.
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Haley Abramson, Alex Abramson’s sister, received the grand prize at the Five Minute Pitch Competition held by the Design of Medical Devices Conference in April in Minneapolis. The title of her speech was “Towards a Universal Device for Point-of-Care Medicine: A Custom Transducer for Long-Term Monitoring of Local Vascular Flow via Ultrasound Imaging.” Abramson, a Johns Hopkins University doctoral candidate, was awarded $500, and her project was selected for a Johns Hopkins Discovery Award, receiving $100,000 in funding for one year.
Coco Bland will be part of the “Mary Poppins” youth ensemble at the Muny this
SECOND ROW: Robert Rosenthal, Pepe Prince Finn, Alex Abramson and Haley Abramson.
The Men’s Club of B’nai Amoona has honored Fred Blumenthal as its Man of the Year. He has taken an active leadership role in the annual Men’s Club Shabbat and participates in most Men’s Club activities. Blumenthal contributes classical music reviews to the St. Louis PostDispatch and is the former president and current vice president of the St. Louis Circle of Jewish Music.
Alex Abramson is joining Georgia Tech as an assistant professor in chemical and bimolecular engineering. His lab will develop ingestible, wearable and implantable bioelectronics and drug delivery devices to treat the world’s most pressing diseases. If you or someone you know wants to invent medical tools that will have a quantifiable impact on patient’s lives, learn the latest micro-engineering and advanced manufacturing techniques and be a part of a group with a track record of bringing devices into clinical trials, please reach out through this website to apply. The lab opens August 2022. agabramson.com/future-lab
Diane Friedman and Elise Krug were installed as co-presidents of the B’nai Amoona Sisterhood for a two-year term. Krug is also joining the St. Louis Rabbinical and Cantorial Association as its administrator. She will be responsible for community engagement, administration and strategic planning.
TOP ROW, FROM LEFT: Nancy Litz, Moses Ohana, Celia Picker and Michael Geigerman.
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June 22, 2022
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Parents: Heidi & Brian Seigel
Parents: Eduard & Ella Pernik
SARAH PERNIK Ladue High School
Special message: Congratulations Mason, we are so excited for this next chapter at Indiana University.
MASON SEIGEL Parkway Central High
B.A. in History and Advanced Language Certificate in Chinese
BRYANNA VANDENBURG Parkway North
Yale University
MORGAN ZUHLER
Special message: We are so proud of you. We can’t wait to see all that you will accomplish as you start your next adventure. We love you.
Special message: Congratulations, Morgan! So proud of you. Wishing you much success in all your endeavors. Love, Mom
MIZZOU
Parents: Leigh & Jordan Palmer Congregation: CRC
Grandparents: Sylvia Keith and Jack & Mary Vandenburg
Congregation: Kol Rinah
HARRY RUBIN
Congregation: CRC
Parents: Melissa Keith and David Vandenburg
Parents: Donn & Beth Rubin
Special message: “Yay Harry! Love, Mom & Dad & Sam”
Parents: Carrie Craven
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
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Bachelors of Science-Parks, Recreation & Sports Management
Grandparents: Karen & Mark Seigel and Lynn Steinberg
Grandparents: Semyon & Alina Ilyashov and Yefim & Raisa Pernik
Special message: We are so proud of all of your accomplishments and can’t wait to see what the future holds! XOXO
JEWISH LIGHT
MAX PALMER
Gateway STEM High School
Special message: Congrats Max. You’ve overcome more in two years than your mother and I ever did. You’re amazing and we are so proud of the young man you’ve become. Good luck at S&T.
2 02 2
GRADUATES Parents: Brian & Stacey Deutsch Grandparents: Ken & Diane Deutsch and Barry & the late Elaine Silver
JACK DEUTSCH
Parkway Central High School
Congregation: Shaare Emeth Special message: Congratulations on this milestone! We are so proud of you! Love, Mom and Dad
Congregation: Temple Israel
Congregation: United Hebrew Special message: We are so proud of you and can’t wait for your next adventure. We love you! Mom, Dad and Grace
Parents: Lisa & Larry Carson
Parents: Alissa & Brad Arst Grandparents: Cathy & Randy Arst and Amy & Steve Schlesinger
AMANDA ARST
Parkway Central Middle
Special message: We are so proud of what you have accomplished and the amazing person that you are! We love you! We love you!
CALEB CARSON
Marquette High School
BA in Political science + Communication
Parents: Amy & Brad Snitzer Grandparents: Beth & Ron Shapiro and Steve Snitzer
B.S. in Psychology Parents: Andy & Melissa Pomerantz
Parents: Amy & Martin Gallagher
Congregation: United Hebrew
Grandparents: Eileen & David Lynn and Carol & Bill Pomerantz
Grandparents: Ina Mae Frankel
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
MIKAELA SNITZER
Parkway Central High School
RYAN F. GALLAGHER Truman State University
DANIEL MORGAN POMERANTZ
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JEWISH LIGHT
Master of Arts in Hebrew Letters Parents: Mark & Marci Thal
Bachelors Degree Parents: Ericka Zoll-Phelan & Jim Phelan and Dan Zoll & Amy Weiss
Congregation: Central Reform Congregation
AARON ZOLL
Johns Hopkins University
Special message: We’re all so proud of you, Aaron! We have no doubt that your future is bright. We love you!
SAMANTHA “SAM” THAL HUC-JIR
Parents: Laura & Michael Silver Grandparents: Gay Klearman Kornblum & the late Allan Klearman and Ilene & George Silver Congregation: Shaare Emeth
RYAN SILVER
Ladue High School
Special message: Congratulations, Ryan! We are in awe of the remarkable young man you have become! Duke is lucky to get you! Love, Mom and dad.
AMANDA ARST CALEB CARSON JACK DEUTSCH LEXI FLOM RYAN F. GALLAGHER ANDREW S. GOLDBERG CELIA ANNE GOLDBERG MACEY GOLDSTEIN REMI HOBERMAN SIMONE MARGOT HOTTER SOPHIE IZSAK JORIE MYERS MAX PALMER SARAH PERNIK DYLAN MAXWELL PINES DANIEL MORGAN POMERANTZ ELLIOR ROSE HARRY RUBIN MASON SEIGEL KATIE SILVER RYAN SILVER MIKAELA SNITZER SAMANTHA “SAM” THAL BRYANNA VANDENBURG AARON ZOLL MORGAN ZUHLER
Special message: “Dearest Ellior, We are so deeply proud of you and can’t wait to see all the great things you will accomplish next! We love you, Ima and Abba”
ELLIOR ROSE
12th grade, Whitfield School
Parents: Bonnie & Steve Myers Grandparents: Suzie & Bob Fuchs and Sheila & Gary Myers
Congregation: United Hebrew
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
Special message: Dylan, we are so proud of all of your accomplishments and are DYLAN MAXWELL PINES confident of your future Marquette High School success at Case Western Reserve University. Congratulations!
Special message: Congrats Jorie-we’re extremely proud of your intelligence, kindness and leadership. Your boundless work-ethic will serve you well at UC-Boulder Aerospace Engineering. The sky isn’t the limit!!
JORIE MYERS
Marquette High School
Parents: Christian & Yana Hotter
Parents: Laura & Michael Silver Grandparents: Gay Klearman Kornblum & the late Allan Klearman and Ilene & George Silver
Grandparents: Michael & Marina Levitasov, Carol Frodeman, William Hotter
Congregation:Shaare Emeth
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
KATIE SILVER Ladue High School
Special message: Congratulations, Katie! We marvel at the extraordinary young woman you have become! Emory is lucky to get you! Love, Mom and Dad
Congregation: United Hebrew Special message: Mazel Tov, Simone! We are beyond proud of you. Onto your next adventure - Brandeis University!
SIMONE MARGOT HOTTER Thomas Jefferson School
2022 GRADUATION ANNOUNCEMENTS CONTINUE ON FOLLOWING PAGE
V
A to Z
Special message: We are very proud of you! We look forward to calling you Rabbi Sam in two years!
Congregation: B’nai Amoona
Grandparents: Sheryl & Charlie Feldman and Jeanne & Harvey Pines
Grandparents: Sandy & Ken Birenbaum, Beth & Steve Leeds and Ken Hoberman
GRADUATES
Grandparents: Paulie Rose
Parents: Jennifer & Ken Pines
Parents: Michelle & Jason Hoberman
Special message: Congrats, Remi! We are so REMI HOBERMAN proud of all you have accom12th grade, Whitfield School plished and are excited for your next stage at Syracuse University! MTTCT
Parents: Rabbi Carnie & Paulie Rose
Grandparents: Judith Levin
Grandparents: Barb & Mel Goldman
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2 0 2 2 GRADUATES Parents: Megan & Jonathan Flom
Parents: Glenn & Nancy Goldberg
Grandparents: Susan & Alan Flom and Marcy & David Johnson
Grandparents: Phyllis & Allan Goldberg and Estelle & the late Bruce Kidder
Congregation: United Hebrew Special message: “Lexi, we are so proud of you! We wish you continued LEXI FLOM success at Ohio State! We are Marquette High School so excited for you to begin your new chapter and we will always be here to love and support you. We love you so much! Mom, Dad, Halle, & Sam”
Special message: AnANDREW S. GOLDBERG Congratulations, drew!! We are so proud Parkway North High School of you and we know you will continue to do great things at Miami University in Oxford, OH.
BS, Biopsychology, Cognition,& Neuroscience Parents: Susan Bindler and Michael Goldberg
Parents: Rabbi Andrea & Brett Goldstein
Grandparents: Barb and Dan Bindler, and Phyllis and Allan Goldberg
Grandparents: Carole & Jay Goldstein and Valerie Fein Northwestern University
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
Special message: We are so very proud of all of the hard work that has helped you earned these degrees and of your many other wonderful accomplishments.
Grandparents: Mary & Phil Marblestone and Mickey and the late Bernie Izsak
Congregation: Shaare Emeth
BS and Masters degree in Computer Science
MACEY GOLDSTEIN
Parents: Allison & Michael Izsak
CELIA ANNE GOLDBERG University of Michigan
Congregation: B’nai Amoona Special message: Congratulations Sophie on Marquette High School your high school graduation! We can’t wait to see all that you accomplish at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business and beyond! Love, Mom, Dad and Rachel.
SOPHIE IZSAK
SUBMIT A GRADUATION ANNOUNCEMENT Missed the deadline to submit a graduation announcement? The Jewish Light will run additional 2022 graduation announcements on our Simchas page in the July 13 and 27 editions. To submit an announcement, visit: STLJEWISHLIGHT.ORG/GRADS
Congregation: Congregation B'nai Amoona
Special message: Congrats, Celia! We’re so proud of you---Love, The Family!!
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MERLIN AND HARRIET (BRAEN) LICKHALTER CELEBRATE 65TH ANNIVERSARY Merlin and Harriet (Braen) Lickhalter of Naples, Florida, recently celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary at a dinner party with family and friends. They met when Merlin was a freshman at MIT. They were married on June 9, 1957, in Belmont, Mass. by the late Rabbi Earl Grollman, brother of the late Rabbi Jerome Grollman of United Hebrew Congregation.
They have two children, Barbara and Debra, and two grandchildren, Erica and Jonathan. After Merlin’s service as an Army officer at Ft. Lee in Virginia, they returned to and lived in St. Louis for more than 50 years. Harriet was a CPA and Merlin was an architect. Harriet served as vice president of the National Council of Jewish Women and president of the Women’s
Architectural League. Merlin served on the boards of both United Hebrew and the Arts & Education Council. After retiring and moving to Naples, they became deeply involved with a number of Naples’ nonprofit organizations. Harriet served on the board of Temple Shalom as treasurer, and on the board of Classic Chamber Concerts as treasurer. Merlin has been active with several major
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WILLIAM LEVINSON “Rochelle and I are sorry for the loss of your Special Friend.” - Stanley & Rochelle Ferdman ELEANOR LOUISE PEARLMAN CHODEN “In loving Memory from her children and grandchildren.”
SANFORD WEISS - Stacey George ALICE HANDELMAN “Alice was a true champion of so many causes in the area. May her light always continue to shine on you and our entire community.” - Laura & Michael -
IN HONOR OF
LARRY GLENN “I have known Larry ever since he became a lawyer. I consider him a friend and a great lawyer.” - Arthur Litz -
JUDY KAPLAN “The best things in any city take place because of volunteers (and friends) like Judy! Thank You!” - Juliet Feibel -
FLOYD EMERT “May your dad’s light always continue to shine on you.” Love, - Laura & Michael Silver -
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cultural arts organizations, including serving as board chair of both the United Arts Council and Classic Chamber Concerts. He was the cofounder and board chair of ArtsNaples World Festival. He is serving on the board of the Jewish Federation of Greater Naples, co-chairing the building committee responsible for the current construction of their new building.
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June 22, 2022
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HEALTHWATCH
JEWISH LIGHT
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Healthwatch is a monthly feature focusing on a health- or fitness-related topic with a Jewish angle. The feature is published the second edition of each month. Have a suggestion for a potential Healthwatch subject? Email news@stljewishlight.org.
At Polish clinic for Ukraine refugees, Hadassah’s doctors dispense medicine and expertise ical clinic since March. There, she received treatment by doctors and Russian- and Ukrainian-speaking nurses who had volunteered to go to Poland as part of Hadassah’s ongoing Ukraine relief effort. Nina was far from alone. At what felt like the last possible minute, Elena escaped Kharkiv, Ukraine, with her 13-year-old twins and her autistic 15-yearold son, Daniel, who cannot speak. Janna, 77, who ran from the devastated Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, contracted a severe case of pneumonia during her three-day road trip to Lviv. When Lviv itself came under air attack, the main hospital there discharged Janna and evacuated her to Poland.
BY LARRY LUXNER JTA
After Russian shelling intensified last month and a rocket exploded close to the Zhytomyr home of Nina, 76, she fled for Ukraine’s Polish border. When she arrived several days later after a long trip by car with other Zhytomyr residents, Nina was experiencing severe back pain. She was directed to the Przemysl Humanitarian Aid Center, a repurposed shopping mall near the Medyka border crossing in southeastern Poland, where doctors from Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Organization, one of Israel’s leading hospitals, have been running the med-
All these refugees ended up at Hadassah’s clinic. “My grandfather’s cousin perished in Bialystok, not far away from where we were,” Rivka Brooks, director of pediatrics at Hadassah’s Mount Scopus campus in Jerusalem, said in an interview from Poland. “Imagine seeing the same Polish scenery and women standing with one suitcase 80 years after the Holocaust, when no one was there for us. You can’t not feel emotional about it.” Brooks, 52, is among dozens of Hadassah doctors and nurses — both Jews and Arabs — who have volunteered over the last two and a half months for the humanitarian mission, a collaboration
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among the Hadassah Medical Organization, which operates two hospitals in Jerusalem; the New York-based Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, which is funding the effort; and Hadassah International, the organization’s global fundraising arm. Dr. Yoram Weiss, acting director-general of the Jerusalem medical center and the person who designed and oversees the Ukraine program, said Hadassah began sending medical teams to the Polish border in early March. Now on its 10th mission, Hadassah already has treated more than 10,000 refugees and plans to maintain its presence in Poland at least through early June. “It seems the numbers are decreasing, but we’re being very careful because as hostilities increase there’s a possibility we’ll end up seeing more refugees,” said Weiss, 63, an anesthesiologist who spent eight years running Hadassah’s Ein Kerem campus and the last seven months as HMO’s acting director-general. “At least for the next month, we’ll continue to offer our services.” Most of those services consist of stabilizing patients with urgent health problems, like cancer and heart disease; treating refugees for gastrointestinal issues resulting from poor nutrition during the journey from Ukraine; and providing medications left behind in the rush to evacuate cities under attack. In addition to running the medical clinic at the Przemysl refugee center, Hadassah doctors and nurses are treating children at a second refugee center in nearby Korczowa, Poland, and, in partnership with Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), triaging trauma patients at the border. In addition, Hadassah sent trauma experts to train their Polish counterparts at the Medical University of Lublin, a regional trauma center about 125 miles to the north, in how to handle major traumatic injuries and mass casualty situations. “Unlike other organizations, our physicians do not come independently, but as a group — four physicians, including two pediatricians, four nurses and an administrator,” Weiss said. “All are volunteers, and sometimes we have more people who want to go than we can accommodate.” David “Dush” Barashi, Hadassah’s head medical clown, has been one of the medical center’s volunteers, putting sick and often anxious children at ease with his pranks and silliness. It was Dush who noticed a fragile 8-year-old boy and gently convinced him and his mother to come to the clinic, where the boy received a thorough check-up. “The amount of respect we have gained with the WHO [World Health Organization], Médecins Sans Frontières and the Polish Red Cross is really amazing,” Weiss said. “They look at Hadassah and our impact on treating refugees, and they see us as an example of how things should have been done.” The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) has been supportive. JFNA president Eric Fingerhut visited the Hadassah border clinic and JFNA has given Hadassah two grants to support the humanitarian mission. Brooks, the pediatrician, who volunteered in Poland from March 28 to April Continues on opposite page
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9, said the most common conditions she encountered were anxiety, high blood pressure, abdominal pain and food poisoning. Among her patients: a child with cystic fibrosis, a 16-year-old with severe frostbite in her toes, and a multiple sclerosis patient who had forgotten to pack her pills in the rush to flee the Russian bombs. “It’s very upsetting to see people who fled their country with only a suitcase,” said Brooks, 52. “It’s only women; you hardly see any men.” Men were required to stay behind to fight. “And it took me five days to suddenly notice that the children are very quiet and subdued.” Ahmad Naama, a senior emergency room physician at Hadassah’s Ein Kerem campus, is one of several Arab doctors who have joined their Jewish colleagues to care for Ukrainian refugees in Poland. “With my 11 years of knowledge and experience in the ER, I was sure there was something I could offer,” the 37-year-old trauma specialist said when asked why he volunteered for the mission. “I even took an ultrasound machine with me and used it in a few cases. One was for a pregnant woman concerned about her baby. Another was an 80-year-old lady who had fluid in her lungs. We sent her to the hospital, which more or less saved her life.” During Naama’s stint at the Przemysl aid center in mid-April, he often saw 150 to 200 patients a day. “Most of the refugees were close to the areas being bombed and they left. Others were hidden underground for a week or two,” said Naama, who lives in Jerusalem. “They usually leave their medicines behind, and they arrive very stressed, vomiting and with diarrhea — especially the kids, because they were on buses and they’re dizzy and nauseous.” The ER doctor recalled a boy of 7 — the same age as his son — who couldn’t even urinate because he was so emotionally and physically exhausted. “It’s very sad what’s happening. This is 2022, and unfortunately, history always repeats itself,” he said. “Ordinary people came to our camp with a small bag, not even a suitcase. They left everything behind and it’s a matter of survival. It’s a disaster.” Ruven Gelfond, 51, head nurse for orthopedic surgery at Hadassah’s Mount Scopus campus, already had taken part in missions to Ethiopia, Haiti and the Philippines before traveling to Poland. His logistics expertise and knowledge of both Ukrainian and Russian were crucial in organizing donated medical supplies and distributing locally sourced medications. “We weren’t doing heroic surgery as in Haiti, but our help was critical, and our ability to make quick diagnoses saved lives,” said Gelfond, recalling how one patient developed dangerous bedsores after one month in a damp cellar and another suffered a burst appendix. “Many patients were in severe emotional distress. We provided a modicum of hope in a sea of despair.” Rhoda Smolow is national president of Hadassah’s American operation, Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America, which has more than 300,000 members and supporters and is funding the medical relief effort in Poland. “I’ve always been exceptionally proud of what our hospitals do, not only for Israeli citizens but for the world,” Smolow said. “We believe that when there is a crisis, we need to act — and act we did.” “This is an effort that speaks out to the world. My heart breaks for these people,” Smolow said. “We’ve shown the world what can be done in these situations, and the fact is that years ago no one did this for us. So we hope others will act the way we are acting now.” This article was sponsored by and produced in partnership with Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America. This article was produced by JTA’s native content team.
June 22, 2022
Page 19
BELOW: Dr. Ahmad Naama, a senior ER physician at Hadassah, at the medical center’s border clinic in Poland. PHOTO: JORGE DIENER
ABOVE: Dr. Rivka Brooks, director of pediatrics at Hadassah’s Mount Scopus campus, showing a young Ukrainian refugee how a stethoscope works. Brooks is one of Hadassah’s many doctors who volunteered at Hadassah’s border clinic in Poland. PHOTO COURTESY OF HADASSAH
Does My Pacemaker Have Anything to Do with Heart Failure? The short answer to this question is: “maybe.” Most of the time, pacemakers are implanted for one simple reason: your doctor feels your heart rate is too slow. In general, pacemakers correct a slow heart rate. How much you are “paced” once the device is implanted depends on the frequency and duration of your slow heart rate and pacemaker setting defined by your following physician. That action – support of your heart’s lower rates with the pulse from an implantable pacemaker – is typically neutral to the strength of the heart. But in certain circumstances, pacing can hurt or even help your heart’s strength. Pacemakers are just one component of a class of medical devices known as cardiac implantable electronic devices or CIEDs. These devices include pacemakers, defibrillator/pacemakers, cardiac contractility modulation, loop recorders, and remote heart failure monitors. Patients who are paced often, which some data suggests is greater than 20% of the day, have a risk that the pacing itself weakens their heart muscle. However, in some cases there is the potential to fix, if not improve, the weakened heart muscle by modifying the
pacemaker (depending on the mode of pacing, number of leads, location in the heart, etc.). The reasons that pacing damages heart pumping function in some patients are not entirely clear and the best approach to diagnosis and treatment is multidisciplinary; it can include an internist, cardiologist, electrophysiologist, cardiothoracic surgeon and others. Having a “one size fits all” approach, or simply proceeding with your CIED care without consideration for today’s standard, is simply not the best-case scenario. If you are having refractory heart failure, cardiac implantable electronic devices may be a critical part in helping you feel better and lower your mortality, and an integrated team approach that St. Luke’s can provide is the standard of care today. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a heart condition that needs a first diagnosis or a second opinion, trust the heart specialists at St. Luke’s Heart & Vascular Institute. Contact us at 314-205-6801 or visit stlukes-stl.com/hearthealth. Same-day cardiology appointments are available.
Stephen Pieper, MD, FHRS St. Luke’s Hospital
1-3712
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June 22, 2022
OBITUARIES
STL
OBITUARIES INDEX Auer, Marian Elkin, Joan Emert, Floyd N.
Rich, Geraldine Night Rothman, Ivan Jay
Glenn, Larry W.
Shapiro, Albert G.
Greenberg, Bernice Bebe
Utrecht, Zena Witt, Donald J.
Kaskowitz, David
Zvibleman, Faye
Kravetz, Gail Jean
JOAN ELKIN, June 14, 2022 Beloved wife of the award winning novelist, the late Stanley Elkin; dear mother and motherin-law of Philip Elkin (Marilyn), Bernard Elkin, and Molly Elkin (Ivan Wasserman); dearest grandmother of Jessica, Jacqueline, and Samantha Elkin, and Sydney, Teddy, and Joey Wasserman; dear sister of Marshall Jacobson (Beverly) and the late Bernard Jacobson (Jean), and sister-in-law of the late Diane Brandwein (Richard). Joan Elkin died just two months shy of her 90th Birthday. She lived a long and full life. Joan was strong and fit, running and lifting weights until last year. She loved the theater, the symphony, opera - all performance art where people came together to make something. And she loved to laugh. Great big belly laughs. Joan Elkin was a brilliant artist, and her work hangs in homes and Institutions nationwide. She will be sorely missed. A memorial service was held Friday, June 17 at BERGER MEMORIAL CHAPEL, 9430 Olive Boulevard. The service is available via Live Stream. Visit bergermemorialchapel.com for Live Stream details. Memorial contributions preferred to The St. Louis Art Museum, One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, St. Louis, Missouri 63110. Berger Memorial Service
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FLOYD N. EMERT, June 5, 2022 Beloved husband of the late Arleen Kreisman Emert; Dear father and father-in-law of Cindy Shapiro (Lon), Brad Emert, Todd Emert (the late Julia Sheade) of Chicago, and Julie Yawitz (Greg); Dear grandfather of Adam Shapiro (Samantha), Robert Shapiro (Leah), Kylee Emert, Amy Shapiro (Jake Weinstein), Courtney Emert, Craig Emert, Alyson Yawitz, and Kaitlyn Yawitz; Dear great-grandfather of Hudson, Sloane, and Reagan. Dear brother and brother-in-law of Florence Kootman (the late Phil), the late Evelyn Rudin (the late Arthur), the late Betty Seligson (the late Paul), and Harvey Emert (Gail); Loving companion of Irene Fox and cherished friend of her family; Dear uncle, great-uncle, brother-in-law, cousin and friend to many. Floyd was in the schmatta business and owned a number of women’s clothing stores in the metro area. Ever the showman, Floyd loved music, singing, and theater. He was extremely social, loved his time on the beach, and boating. Most of all, Floyd loved his family with all his heart and soul. A graveside service was held Sunday, June 12 at Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery, 650 White Road. Please visit bergermemorialchapel.com for Live Stream details. Memorial contributions preferred to Autism Speaks/Kaitlyn’s Crew. Berger Memorial Service
LARRY W. GLENN, June 9, 2022 Larry Glenn, son of Austin and Valada Glenn, was born July 9, 1947. He graduated from St. Louis University School of Law in 1974, cum laude, after receiving his BA in business from the University of Missouri, Columbia in 1969. Larry married Gail in 1970. His three passions included his family and friends, the law and his photography. Larry loved his career as a trial lawyer. He believed in helping those who were wronged and fought valiantly in their defense. His many accomplishments included: President of the Lawyer’s Association of Saint Louis, chair of the trial section of the Metropolitan Bar Association, chair of the legal committee at Shaare Emeth and Camp Rainbow, and syndicated columnist in a business/legal newspaper serving several states. He entertained his readers with strong A Monument Dedication For
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legal opinions, but was most known for his article on the tragic death of Arthur Ashe, as well as other socially relevant topics. As a respected member of the legal community, Larry was often asked to be a guest speaker at various legal seminars. He was a lawyer in his heart to his last day. Larry was a committed member of the Board at the Sheldon and the Missouri Association of Trial Lawyers. His compassion was reserved for his many years as a founding Board member of Camp Rainbow, a special camping program for children with cancer or blood diseases. Although an accomplished professional, Larry always put the needs of his family as his highest priority; whether coaching little league baseball, soccer, working on Science Fair projects or helping drive endless carpools, his family knew they could count on his support. As the family enlarged, he offered the same enthusiasm and carpool runs as he watched his grandchildren flourish. Many a friend and relative have their home aesthetics enhanced by a photo from Larry. An avid amateur photographer, everyone could count on him to document all family activities and travel excursions. Once Larry was diagnosed with Parkinsons, Gail and Larry used his huge cache of photos to benefit the Parkinsons Association by donating proceeds from their “Pictures for Parkinsons” events. Larry and Gail believe strongly in giving back to the community. After surviving cancer twice in his thirties, Larry was diagnosed with Parkinsons in his early sixties. Larry not only loved his family, immediate and extended, he found great comfort and joy in his connections with many close friends. With his friends, he traveled extensively, participated in a history book club, and enjoyed his long lasting poker group, golf trips and photography excursions. Larry led the way to purchase a well loved home in Montana, setting the stage for longterm meaningful memories with family and friends. Larry will be missed by his wife, Gail, his children Ethan and Alise, granddaughters Alyssa Fritz, Anna Gardner and Isebella and Cheyenne Glenn (Arizona), in laws, nephews, nieces, extended family and his deep and loyal following of incredible friendships. In spite of various hardships, Larry maintained his dignity and took great pleasure in the life he led. A funeral service was held Sunday, June 12 at the Mausoleum at New Mt. Sinai Cemetery, 8430 Gravois. Memorial contributions preferred to the Greater St. Louis Chapter of the American Parkinson Disease Association, 16100 Chesterfield Parkway West, Ste. 125, Chesterfield, MO 63017. Please visit bergermemorialchapel.com for Live Stream details. Berger Memorial Service BERNICE BEBE GREENBERG passed peacefully on June 7, 2022 at age 89. Born in St. Louis to Samuel and Mary Bronfin, Bebe attended Soldan Blewett High School. She was married to Bernard (Benny) Greenberg, of beloved memory, for 66 years and was mother to Mark (Jan Carp), and Barry (Deni), grandmother and great grandmother. A private service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee Inc. as her father was born in Trostyanets, Ukraine. Berger Memorial Service Obituaries continue on opposite page
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MARIAN AUER, June 14, 2022 Beloved wife of Arthur I. Auer, MD. Dear mother of Arthur I. (Shary) Auer, II and David E. Auer, MD. Loving grandmother of Hannah E. Auer (Tyler) Whitley, Alex H. (Sandi) Auer, Sam E. Auer and Nicole M. Auer. Cherished great grandmother of Grayson Q. Auer and Jackson K. Auer. Dear sister-inlaw of Betty Auer (Tom) Philipsborn. Beloved daughter of the late Howard and Myrtle Dillie. Dear aunt of Lisa Philipsborn (Paul) Blumberg, Anne (Rick Ray) Philipsborn and Mari (Eric Terman, MD) Philipsborn. She was born and grew up in Granite City, IL. Her early primary grades were attended in a one room schoolhouse. She received her R.N. from the Barnes Hospital School of Nursing and worked at St. Louis Maternity Hospital in Labor and Delivery for a number of years. Marian married the love of her life, Arthur, March 2, 1957 and they spent over 65 wonderful years together. While they lived all their life in Clayton, MO, she and Arthur enjoyed traveling the world to places far and near. Marian was a member and lifelong volunteer for NCJW and the Miriam Foundation, but her primary interest was raising her two boys. She enjoyed being a lifelong reader, crossword puzzle worker and partner to her husband. A memorial service was held Friday, June 17 at Temple Israel, #1 Rabbi Alvan D. Rubin Drive. Live stream available at www.ti-stl.org/watch. Private family interment. Contributions in Marian’s memory may be made to the Scholarship Foundation, 6825 Clayton Avenue, Suite 100, St. Louis, MO, 63139 or to the Miriam Foundation, 1138 N. Warson Road, St. Louis, MO, 63132. A Rindskopf-Roth Service
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St Louis artist DAVID KASKOWITZ, 97, was born September 26, 1924 in Poland, immigrated to the United States in 1930 and died June 8, 2022 at Mason Pointe in St Louis. He had a generous heart, a quick sense of humor and a curious mind. David showed promise as an artist from an early age. In the army, he worked in the graphic arts department illustrating training materials throughout World War II. When he was discharged, he went to Washington University on the GI Bill to study fine arts. He met his future wife and fellow student Dorothy Knussman in the art school. When he went to Paris to study under Fernand Léger, he pleaded with Dorothy to join him. When circumstances didn’t allow for that to happen, he came home. She met him at the boat in New York Harbor on Valentine’s Day 1949 and they were married in 1950. Starting a family and leaving academic life for the “real world” was looking pretty scary to David. But he had a strong will and continued to pursue his life with great purpose. David went to work for the pioneering KETC/ Channel 9 in 1954, starting before the station even went on the air. Long before computers, he hand-drew signage and educational materials. David went on to do commercial art for Southwestern Bell for 30 years until his retirement. Daughter Rochelle was born in 1952 and son Don in 1958. All the while, David and Dorothy created art and maintained their ties with the art community. The couple had two-person art shows, were part of drawing groups, exhibited at local galleries and won prizes at juried shows. Often the couple would go on outings with artist friends to paint. Their subjects ranged from nature to industrial buildings to a junkyard, from Forest Park to Afton to north St Louis. Rochelle fondly remembers her dad taking her to the junkyard where he enjoyed painting on a Saturday morning while she played among the junk cars and the occasional sound of a “hobo” waking up. Looking back, David couldn’t believe he took her there. Rochelle remembers those Saturdays fondly. Recognized for his distinctive watercolors and whimsical sketches, Dave was a well-known St Louis artist. A dedicated friend, David had special bonds with fellow artists in St Louis, some dating back to the late 1940s when he and Dorothy were art students at Washington University. Dave was a member of the artist guild, the Edward Boccia art group, and various other art groups in St Louis. David and Dorothy were co-founders of a drawing group that met weekly at UMSL for some 50 years until Covid. Through his art and other activities, such as learning Yiddish and T’ai Chi at the community center and delivering meals on wheels for more than 30 years, David met people, made friends and found purpose. Dave and Dorothy were residents of Cool Valley until Dorothy’s death in 1999, when Dave moved to Crown Center in University City, and more recently to Mason Pointe. David was the beloved husband of the late Dorothy Kaskowitz, and son of Alfred and Leah Kaskowitz. His siblings Sherry Kaplan, and Jacob predeceased him. He is survived by children Donald (Rosemary) and Rochelle (Sandra) and grandchildren Matthew, Louis (Mariko), Aaron and Joseph (Sarah) and great grandchild Emiko. A graveside service (also available via Live Stream) was held on June 13, 2022 at United Hebrew Cemetery, 7855 Canton Ave, University City, MO. Friends and family gathered immediately following the graveside service at Millar Park picnic pavilion on Canton Avenue, just east of the cemetery. The family requests donations to meals on wheels of greater St Louis http://www.mowstl. org/donations.html, Crown Center for Senior Living https://crowncenterstl.org/give/, or purchase a membership to the St Louis Art Museum https://www.slam.org/membership/. Visit www.bergermemorialchapel.com for the livestream and more information. Berger Memorial Service
OBITUARIES GAIL JEAN KRAVETZ, age 83 of St. Louis, died peacefully on June 13, 2022. Jean is survived by her daughter Teri Berry (Tim); grandchildren, Rachel Berry (Tony Porter), Alex Shearon (Willie), and Carson Berry; brother Bruce Michelson (Renee) and her nieces and nephews. Preceded by parents Sam and Lottie Michelson, husband Sanford Kravetz, and sister Anita Berry. Jean, the second daughter of Sam and Lottie, was born in St. Louis on April 13, 1939. After attending Clayton High School, Jean started her higher education career at Indiana University and finished her degree in education at Washington University in St. Louis. She met and married Sanford Kravetz in 1962. Their daughter Teri was born in 1964. Jean worked for Traveline Limited as a bookkeeper for over 30 years. She lost her husband to melanoma in 1984, and Jean herself survived a valiant fight with breast cancer after being diagnosed in 1993. Teri and her husband, Tim, made Jean a grandmother in 1992 with the birth of their first daughter, Rachel. As a grandmother, Jean took on her new role as “Ga,” not only to her 3 grandchildren, but to everyone she met. Ga was an example of the power of a positive attitude and a good Cardinal baseball game. She will be dearly missed. May Jean rest in peace. Funeral services were held June 21 at BERGER MEMORIAL CHAPEL, 9430 Olive Boulevard, followed by interment at United Hebrew Cemetery. Memorial contributions preferred to the Susan G. Komen, 13770 Noel Road, Suite 801889, Dallas, TX 75380. Please visit bergermemorialchapel.com for more information. GERALDINE NIGHT RICH, June 17, 2022 Beloved wife of the late Melvin Rich for 69 years; dear mother and mother-in-law of Randall (Debra Lawner) Rich and the late Michelle Rich; loving grandmother of Adam Lawner Rich and Cory (Samantha) Rich; dear sister of the late Harvey (the late Betty) Night, the late Bernice (late Norman) Schnurr, late Evelyn (the late Elton) Schackman, late Ralph (Judy) Night and the late Donnie (the late Nanette) Night; sister-in-law of the late Alfred Rich and late Sidney (Audrey) Rich; aunt and friend to many. Geri lived life on her own terms from beginning to end. A funeral service was held Sunday, June 19, 2022 at Berger Memorial Chapel, 9430 Olive Blvd. 63132. Interment followed at Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol Cemetery, 9125 Ladue Rd. Memorial contributions preferred to Congregation Temple Israel, 1 Alvan D. Rubin Drive, St. Louis, MO 63141 or The Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital, 1001 Highlands Plaza Drive West, Suite 140, St. Louis, MO 63110-1337. Visit www.bergermemorialchapel.com for more information. Berger Memorial Service
IVAN JAY ROTHMAN, June 10, 2022 Beloved husband of Peggy Nodiff Rothman for 58 incredible years; dear father and father in law of Joel David Rothman and Daryl Cary (Linda) Rothman; adoring grandfather of David, Rachel and Daniel Rothman; Brother of Helen (Kenneth) Goldstein; uncle of Jeffrey Goldstein, Sharon Bass, Steven Nodiff, Daniel Nodiff; great uncle of Kaitlyn, Zachary and Max Goldstein, Steven Nodiff Jr, Carly Bass, Cassie Nodiff and Marissa Tucker; great-great uncle of Aria Self; dear son of the late Harold and late Clarice Rothman. Ivan was a revered teacher in the Parkway School District, known for challenging every student to reach their potential, think critically, and find their own voice. To this day, countless former students reach out to attest to how Ivan transformed their or their children’s life. If anything rivaled his love of teaching, it was his love of animals, especially his many beloved, behemoth canines throughout the years. The
June 22, 2022
current crew, Big Benny, and sweet Flame, miss him dearly already. And if anything eclipsed both of these things, it was his love of his family, for whom he worked tirelessly and sacrificed his entire life. Ivan made an indelible impression on all who knew him—there was no one quite like him, and his legacy shall live on through the many who loved or were impacted by him. A funeral service was held Tuesday, June 14 at Berger Memorial Chapel, 9430 Olive Blvd. 63132, followed by interment at Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery-White Rd. The service was livestreamed at www.bergermemorialchapel. com. Memorial contributions preferred to Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry or St. Louis Humane Society. Berger Memorial Service ALBERT G. SHAPIRO, June 9, 2022 Beloved husband of Sally Shapiro for over 68 years; dear father and father-in-law of David (Marla) Shapiro and Amy (Brad) Worth; dear grandfather of the late Michael Worth, Allison “Ali” Worth, Josh (Kristen) Shapiro and Abby Shapiro; great grandfather of Nolan and Caleb Shapiro; dear brother of the late Harriette (late Harold) Hafits and Sally (late Milton) Zuckerman; dear uncle, cousin and friend to many. A private graveside service was held at Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery-White Rd. Memorial contributions preferred to CHADS Coalition, PO Box 510528, 63151 or a charity of your choice. Visit www.bergermemorialchapel.com for more information. Berger Memorial Service UTRECHT, ZENA (née Zuckerman) June 17, 2022 Beloved wife of the late Charles Bailen and the late James Utrecht; dearest mother and motherin-law of Hillary Zimmerman (Christopher Hebeler) and Gloria Bailen (Curt Worden); loving grandmother of Joanna Zimmerman and Susan Zimmerman. Zena was an ardent baseball fan; she could throw as good as any boy and knew all of the Cardinals stats. She was a needlepoint artist, and her beautiful canvases were sought by many. She knew every lyric to every musical. She taught us pig Latin, the Greek and Roman gods and goddesses from Bullfinch’s Mythology, and various silly songs that probably aren’t appropriate today. She was the youngest Girl Scout Leader in Troy, Ohio, only a couple of years older than the high schools girls she led. She was the most beautiful lady in our small town. She worked briefly for Hobart and for the Sheriff’s Department. Zena reconnected with our Dad, Chuck Bailen, and was with him until his death in 2005. She loved opera and appeared on stage in several Opera Theatre of St Louis productions. She volunteered at the St Louis Art Museum and at
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the Cathedral Basilica of St Louis. In her later years, she found and embraced a new community at The Bethesda Barclay House in St Louis, where she made cherished friends for the rest of her life. Her daughters, granddaughters, and sons-in-law will miss her. A Memorial Service will be held at a later date. Memorial contributions preferred to Planned Parenthood of the St Louis Region (www. plannedparenthood.org) or Channel Nine PBS (donate.ninepbs.org). Please visit bergermemorialchapel.com for more information. Berger Memorial Service DONALD J. WITT passed away June 13, 2022 at the age of 84. Beloved husband of Toby Witt (nee Strauss). Cherished father of Holly Witt, Marcy (Jeff) Conen, Lee (Deanna) Witt and Nancy (Mark) Sassower. Loving grandfather of Whitney (Aaron) Hersh, Jordan Conen, Matthew Conen, Jacob (Libby) Witt, Max Witt, Ilana (Mesud) Dedic, Alexis Sassower, and Andrew Sassower and dear great-grandfather of Liora Hersh. Dear brother of Marvin (Kay) Witt. Dear brother-in-law of Arthur (Merrill) Strauss. Further survived by many loving relatives and friends. A private graveside service was held in Milwaukee on Wednesday, June 15th at 11:00 AM. Memorial contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project or a charity of your choice. Visit www.goodmanbensman.com for more information. FAYE ZVIBLEMAN, June 8, 2022 Beloved daughter of Vivian and the late Leon Zvibleman; Beloved sister and sister-in-law of Alan (Jalie) Zvibleman, the late Debbie (Jim) Kiske, and Sherri (Mark) Zellinger; Beloved Aunt of Sam Zvibleman, Charlie (Ally) Zvibleman, Emily (Jon) Tirjan, Jeff (Paige) Kiske, Logan Wieczorek and Allison Wieczorek; Dear cousin and friend to many. Faye attended University City High School and graduated from Northwestern University. After graduation, Faye spent her entire career supporting new doctors at the Washington University School of Medicine. Upon retirement, her focus shifted to her B’nai Amoona family. She was an active congregant and earned the title Minyanaire. Her love for her family and friends and faith was evident in everything she did. Humble in nature, she was always bragging about someone else’s accomplishments – whether it be one of her nieces or nephews or cousins or friends. Her enjoyment of the Jewish education classes she participated in was with her until the end. Her love, giving and kind spirit, and smile was something everyone immediately recognized in her and will be missed at every family event, gathering of friends, and even phone calls. A graveside service was held Friday, June 10 at B’nai Amoona Cemetery, 930 North and South Rd. 63130. The service was livestreamed at www. bergermemorialchapel.com. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions preferred to Congregation B’nai Amoona, 324. S. Mason Rd. St. Louis, MO. 63141. Berger Memorial Service
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June 22, 2022
STL
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46. Hertz alternatives
27. Horowitz who makes undercover videos
51. A famous bear and a famous catcher 52. Rabshaka to Chizkiyahu, e.g.
16. Time
70. Food distribution giant
17. The richest Jew with an eponymous company
71. Month that sounds like a car
34. Compound with a high pH, in sci. class
19. One can make millions putting a ball in one 20. Back, in a boat 21. “Mama ___!” 22. Palindromic Genesis figure 23. Richest Jew who owns an NBA team 27. One makes music louder 30. Not well 31. Fide preceder 32. The world’s richest Israeli 38. It can drip or drop 39. Action before a shot 42. Richest former Jewish politician 46. Lotion ingredient, sometimes 48. Debt letters 49. Droop 50. Richest Jew with a “prophetic” company 56. Use + 57. C.I.A. at sea 58. Desert peninsula east of the Red Sea 62. 1,002, in old Rome 63. World’s richest Holocaust survivor
33. Less friendly
3. Deal 4. Av dip
44. Commonly texted letters
6. Computer created by Arthur C. Clarke
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8. Show fear, in a way
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35. The only word Beaker says when singing “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
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28. Kind of drop 29. Like 22-Across
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STL
June 22, 2022
JEWISH LIGHT
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LOCAL ACTIVISM
Members of the Jewish community take part in the March For Our Lives STL rally on June 11 in downtown St. Louis. PHOTO: PHILIP DEITCH
SP
Members of the Jewish community take part in the Wear Orange, Gun Violence Awareness Day Rally at Kiener Plaza on June 4. From left are Marion Miller, Diane Scollay, Gail Wechsler, Irwin Neufeld, Linda Kram, all volunteers with Moms Demand Action and also with the affiliated BeSMART for kids program. PHOTO: PEGGY NEUFELD
TLIGHT
GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY
PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS SUBMIT A PHOTO: Have a photo of a recent Jewish community event you would like to submit? Email the image and a suggested caption to news@stljewishlight.org. VIEW MORE ONLINE: stljewishlight.org/multimedia
GRA N D RE O P EN I N G B’NAI AMOONA’S GALLANT FAMILY JUDAICA SHOP
Paul Gallant (below) cut the ribbon to officially reopen the Gallant Family Judaica Shop at Congregation B’nai Amoona on Sunday, June 12. Creve Coeur Mayor Bob Hoffman, a member of the congregation, called the Gallant family “Generous donors who allowed us to beautifully rebuild the space to shine and sparkle. It was Paul’s wish that we
highlight Judaica and unique gifts.” The shop features Judaica from local artists as well as Israeli artists, according to Gail Armstrong, director of development. “We have ceramic artists, we have painters, we have glass blowers and they’re all working with Judaica art and that makes us unique,” she said.
ABOVE: Creve Coeur Mayor Bob Hoffman speaks at the opening. BELOW: Leslie Litwack (below) and Michael Litwack (at bottom) browse B’nai Amoona’s Gallant Family Judaica Shop.
ABOVE: Paul Gallant cuts the ceremonial ribbon. ALL PHOTOS: BILL MOTCHAN
LEFT: B’nai Amoona Congregation members celebrate and shop as the Gallant Family Judaica Shop reopen their doors. At center is Galia Movitz.
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June 22, 2022
STL
CHAILIGHTS
JUN
YOUR CALENDAR OF ST. LOUIS JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS
NHBZ discussion: What Is Your Greatest Blessing?
At 1 p.m. Laura Eggert of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library leads an online Mirowitz Center presentation about how our nation still feels the impact of President Johnson’s legislative legacy today. This program is part of the Mirowitz Center’s continuing series, “Presidential Legacies.” Free. Register online at http://bit.ly/Register_ MirowitzCenter, 314-733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
TUESDAY | JUNE 28
An image from ‘Dear Jack, Dear Louise’ at New Jewish Theatre.
Coffee Talk with SnL features Polly Blitzer
Shabbat services — a shorter version of the Friday service, with families and kids in mind. Families will meet outdoors, weather permitting. For more information, email Karen@kolrinahstl.org or RSVP online at https://bit.ly/KR-July1.
Life lessons and Lincoln
At 10 a.m. historian Christian McWhirter of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Museum will lead an online Mirowitz Center discussion looking at Lincoln’s life for lessons about persistence, dedication, tenacity and spirit. McWhirter is the author of “Battle Hymns: The Power and Popularity of Music in the Civil War.” Free. Register online at http://bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314-733-9813, or email skemppainen@ mirowitzcenter.org.
THURSDAY | JUNE 30 What scammers don’t want you to know
At 2 p.m. Sarah Wetzel, director of communications at the Better Business Bureau, will lead an online Mirowitz Center discussion about scams by phone and email and how to reduce the risk of being scammed. Free. Register online at http://bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314-733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
FRIDAY | JULY 1 First Friday night family Shabbat services
Kol Rinah is starting back up its First Friday Night For Families, with 6 p.m. Kabbalat
Local Jewish organizations and congregations can submit calendar items to news@ stljewishlight.org. All items received by 5 p.m. Friday will be considered for the following week’s edition.
Presidential legacies: LBJ’s trials and triumphs
We are always told to count our blessings, but have you ever wondered what is your absolute greatest blessing? Join the discussion when NHBZ Rabbi Ze’ev Smason asks this question at 10:15 a.m. This talk is part of NHBZ’s weekly “Starting Points: Wisdom for Daily Living,” which features interactive discussions that explore relevant, contemporary topics. NHBZ membership is not necessary to attend and RSVPs are not required. For more information, call 314991-2100, ext. 2.
WEDNESDAY | JUNE 29
stljewishlight.org
condition. Free. Register online at http://bit. ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314-733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
SATURDAY | JUNE 25
At 8:30 a.m., join NCJWSTL for its virtual monthly coffee talks hosted by NCJWSTL Past President Susan Katzman and Vice President of Membership Lisa Gubernik. The special guest will be Polly Blitzer, a leading beauty expert, writer and brand consultant whose work has been featured in publications like Vogue, Allure and The New York Times. Blitzer regularly talks beauty tips and tricks on The Today Show, CNN Weekend News, and other shows. For more information and to RSVP visit: https://bit.ly/ June22ct
JEWISH LIGHT
WEDNESDAY | JULY 6 Stroke in the 21st century
At 10 a.m. Dr. Renee Van Stavern, a vascular neurology specialist and professor of neurology at Washington University, will discuss “Stroke in the 21st Century,” looking at the signs, risk factors, prevention and treatments. Free. Register online at http:// bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314-7339813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
THURSDAY | JULY 7 Rabbi Rubenfeld discusses ‘Angels in Judaism’
At 2 p.m. Rabbi Avi Rubenfeld of Chabad of Chesterfield will lead an online Mirowitz Center discussion about to discuss the Jewish belief in angels. This program is co-sponsored by Chabad of Chesterfield and the Mirowitz Center. Free. Register online at http://bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
SATURDAY | JULY 9 Rabbi Uri Lati at NHBZ
Enjoy a Shabbat filled with inspiration and enlightenment when NHBZ welcomes Rabbi Uri Lati. Lati is internationally acclaimed for his talks in both English and Arabic on the subjects of faith (Emunah) and the love of a fellow Jew (Ahabat Yisrael). At NHBZ, Lati’s topics will include how faith can empower Rabbi Uri Lati your life, as well as the power of prayer
PHOTO: JON GITCHOFF
(tefilah.) He will speak during morning services, at a Moroccan-themed lunch and at the afternoon meal (Shalosh Seudos). This event and lunch are free of charge, and NHBZ membership is not necessary to attend. Contact NHBZ for approximate times or more information. Reservations are appreciated for lunch (but not required) to office@nhbz.org.
TUESDAY | JULY 12 Blood drive at Kol Rinah
Kol Rinah’s Tzedek Team has partnered with ImpactLife for a blood drive at Kol Rinah from 4 to 7 p.m. Schedule your appointment to donate a unit of blood and save up to three lives. Kosher snacks will be provided. Giving blood takes about an hour. Donors must be healthy, weigh at least 110 pounds and be 17 or older. Masks are required. Register online at https://bit.ly/ KR-July12.
STARTING | JULY 12 Rabbi Smason begins 3-part series on ‘The ABCs of Judaism’
From noon to 1 p.m., Rabbi Ze’ev Smason of NHBZ will lead an in-person class on “The ABCs of Judaism” at the Mirowitz Center. The discussion is the first of a three-part series, looking at Judaism’s teachings to guide your life. The first part looks at “Humor: Laughing When You Need It The Most.” Future dates will be Aug. 9 (“To Tell The Truth: Is Honesty Really the Best Policy?”) and Sept. 13 (“A New Year: Where Should You Begin?”). Free. Register online at http://bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
THURSDAY | JULY 14 Tech Tutor: Keeping your computer in tip-top shape
At 10 a.m. Larry Edison will lead an online Mirowitz Center class about ways to make sure your computer and your computer practices are working together to stay in a fit
SATURDAY | JULY 16 Kol Rinah’s Tot Shabbat for young families
At 10:30 a.m., join Morah Karen Kern for a short musical Shabbat service, perfect for kids ages 5 and under and their families and siblings. Service will be outdoors in the Kol Rinah courtyard or Guller Chapel (10:30 to 11:30 a.m.). Masks are required for ages 2 and up. Registration required. For more information, email office@kolrinahstl.org.
SUNDAY | JULY 17 Jewish War Veterans meeting
Jewish War Veterans Post 644 meetings will take place via Zoom for the foreseeable future at 10 a.m. the third Sunday each month. For more information contact Post 644 Commander Ellis Frohman at 636-5197512
The J hosts screening of documentary ‘Fiddler’s Journey’s to the Big Screen’ See related news brief on page 4.
ONGOING ‘Dear Jack, Dear Louise’ at New Jewish Theatre
The New Jewish Theatre continues its season with “Dear Jack, Dear Louise,” which runs through June 26 at NJT’s Wool Studio Theater in the Jewish Community Center’s Arts & Education Building, 2 Millstone Campus Drive. For tickets or more information, visit newjewishtheatre.org.
Tech Tutor – Hardware helper
On Mondays in May, sign up for a half-hour session with Larry Edison, who offers oneon-one assistance in learning how to use one’s technology devices. Sessions are in-person at the Mirowitz Center (plan to wear a mask and maintain social distance). Tech Tutor is supported through a grant from the Women’s Auxiliary Foundation for Jewish Aged. Free. Register at http://bit.ly/Register_MirowitzCenter, 314-733-9813, or email skemppainen@mirowitzcenter.org.
Eric Mink: Defying labels in a search for truth CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 a more perfect union.” Two days before the first January 6 Committee hearing was held and televised, Cheney was interviewed by noted conservative writers Jonah Goldberg, Stephen F. Hayes and David French for The Dispatch, an online magazine co-founded by Goldberg and Hayes that explores issues and conservative perspectives. “There comes a moment,” Cheney said during their discussion, “where I think we
2022-06-22 page 24.indd 24
all need to say, ‘Wait a minute... This was a violent assault on the United States Capitol, and it was provoked by a sitting president of the United States.... And I would say to some of my colleagues and others who think that the way to respond to this investigation is with politics and partisanship -– those people are not acting in a way that is healthy for the country.’” Cheney pointed out that Trump lost more than 60 election-related cases in courts. Members of his own campaign, the Department of Justice and Department of
Homeland Security investigated the reports of fraud that Trump heard and found them false. But Trump keeps repeating the lie of the stolen election, and people keep believing him. “So I think everybody who knows it’s not true, which is the majority of people in my party, has a duty to say so, has a duty to say, ‘this is just not true,’” Cheney told the interviewers. “You may have wished the election had turned out differently, but it didn’t. And if we want to win the next election, we had better embrace the
Constitution. You know, we better not go down this path of embracing this lie.” Liz Cheney’s conservative. I’m liberal. She’s a Republican. I belong to no party. We disagree about a great many issues. But regarding the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021; why people were killed, wounded and terrorized; and who is responsible for these crimes against democracy –- on these matters, I admire and respect Cheney’s honor, courage and determination and believe she will do everything humanly possible to find the answers.
6/21/22 5:08 PM