Dec 18, 2017 Jewish News

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Southeastern Virginia | Vol. 56 No. 8 | 30 Kislev 5778 | December 18, 2017

Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film

presented by Alma & Howard Laderberg* and Patricia & Avraham Ashkenazi

Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018 – Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018

7 Recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

29 Eating right during the holiday season

30 Rachel Fish in Tidewater

—page 12

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Education Matters 33 The A’Bisil Theater at Beth Sholom Village Supplement to Jewish News December 18, 2017 jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 15

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LETTER

Jewish news jewishnewsva.org Published 21 times a year by United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.

Closing a remarkable year

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T

he calendar year is sweeping to a close, ending what has been quite a remarkable period. It began with the inauguration of our 45th president and it is ending with the declaration of Jerusalem as the official capital of Israel. In

between, we fed hundreds of thousands of Jews around the globe and answered their prayers for an end to their isolation by establishing Cheseds and Centers.

The end of the year means the celebration of Hanukkah, and in Tidewater because of our Jewish Family Service, it means that no Jewish family will fail to hear the joyful sounds of children opening up presents, spinning dreidels, and eating latkes. Because of our support of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s annual campaign, this phenomenon will be repeated in Hungary, Romania, Pardes Katz, Neve Michael, and Kiryat Yam. It also means that despite growing political parties in Poland and Hungary that want to revise and glorify aspects of their fascist past, the meaning of the miracle of Hanukkah is being celebrated more loudly than ever.

The end of the year is also the last opportunity for you to make your gift to the UJFT annual campaign, pay your outstanding pledges, and still have them be eligible for application to your 2017 federal and state taxes. The U.S. and global stock market has performed well. Please speak to your financial advisor and accountant about the wisest manner to turn your gains into a tax-efficient charitable gift.

Turn to the one you love or look inward to your Jewish heart and mind and dialogue and reflect on how you can fulfill the mitzvah of tzedakkah and support the miracle of Hanukkah by making a year-end gift to the UJFT 2018 Annual Campaign.

Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus of the Tidewater Jewish Community 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Suite 200 Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462-4370 voice 757.965.6100 • fax 757.965.6102 email news@ujft.org Terri Denison, Editor Germaine Clair, Art Director Sandy Goldberg, Account Executive Heather Sterling, Account Executive Marilyn Cerase, Subscription Manager Reba Karp, Editor Emeritus United Jewish Federation of Tidewater John Strelitz, President Alvin Wall, Treasurer Stephanie Calliott, Secretary Harry Graber, Executive Vice-President www.jewishVA.org The appearance of advertising in the Jewish News does not constitute a kashrut, political, product or service endorsement.

The articles and letters appearing herein are not necessarily the opinion of this newspaper. © 2017 Jewish News. All rights reserved.

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John Strelitz President United Jewish Federation of Tidewater

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Contents Letter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Briefs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Torah Thought. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 25th Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Education Matters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Tax laws in flux: time to give. . . . . 27 Strategies to eating right during the holidays. . . . . . . . . . . 29

Issue Date Topic Deadline Jan. 22, 2018 Investments Jan. 5, 2018 Feb. 5 Mazel Tov/Food Jan. 19 Feb. 19 Retirement Feb. 5 March 5 Passover Feb. 16 March 26 Camp March 9 April 9 Israel @ 70 March 23

Quotable Israel Today’s Rachel Fish. . . . . . . .30 Tidewater Limmud. . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 What’s Happening. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Who Knew?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Mazel Tov . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Beth El helps those in need for the holidays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Candle lighting Friday, December 22/4 Tevet Light candles at 4:35 pm

“He intensely believed that laugher is the best therapy.”

—page 13

Friday, December 29/11 Tevet Light candles at 4:39 pm Friday, January 5/18 Tevet Light candles at 4:45 pm Friday, January 12/25 Tevet Light candles at 4:51 pm Friday, January 19/3 Shevat Light candles at 4:58 pm Friday, January 29/10 Shevat Light candles at 5:06 pm

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 3

Briefs Boston Globe cartoon of Sheldon Adelson uses anti-Semitic images, Jewish leaders say Two Jewish leaders denounced a Boston Globe editorial cartoon that they said uses a caricature of Jewish billionaire Sheldon Adelson with anti-Semitic tropes.

The cartoon that appeared Dec. 1 was titled “Murder on the tax-cut express” and shows Adelson aboard a train conducted

by President Donald Trump labeled as riding in the section for “priority passengers.” Adelson is shown in a dining car reading a newspaper headlined “Estate Tax Repealed,” and a waiter is serving him a large sack labeled “$14.6 billion.”

In a letter to the editor published in the newspaper, Robert Trestan, regional director of the New England region of the Anti-Defamation League, and Jeremy Burton, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston, said they were “deeply disturbed and offended” by the Ward Sutton cartoon.

“The portrayal—singling out, among all the donors and interests who stand to benefit, a prominent Jewish individual, Sheldon Adelson; depicting him with an exaggerated hooked nose; linking him with money; and positioning him as hidden inside the train while others conduct—evokes classic anti-Semitic imagery and reinforces existing stereotypes,” they wrote.

“At a time when hatred and bigotry of all forms are seeping into the mainstream, it is critical that the Globe and other responsible media outlets refrain from giving additional aid to those who no doubt will see this cartoon’s publication as further verification of long-established anti-Semitic views.” (JTA) Couple sues Manhattan hotel for ‘starving’ the guests at daughter’s bat mitzvah A couple is suing a Manhattan hotel for allegedly “starving” the guests at their daughter’s $37,000 bat mitzvah party.

The lawsuit against Hotel Eventi was filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, the New York Post reported.

Nancy Held, the mother of the bat mitzvah girl, said the food for her 150 guests at the party in May was so mishandled that

the hungry adult guests began eating the children’s ice cream desserts.

She said in the lawsuit that the 700 hors d’oeuvres were never served to the guests as promised, and that the main course, a choice of steak or scallops, was served cold.

“We were starving,” Held’s husband, Marc, told The Post. “We were hosting the party and we didn’t have any food to eat.”

The hotel offered $1,000 and a night in a suite to make up for the errors, according to Held. The couple is suing for $637,000 in damages.

Nancy Held said in a court filing that she had been planning for her daughter’s big day ever since being misdiagnosed with a fatal genetic mutation in 2013.

The family also later discovered that the hotel was using photos of their event in promotional material, which the family had not given permission for. (JTA)

IDF discovered and demolished a terror tunnel that crossed into Israel from Gaza The tunnel, which had been monitored for several weeks, was demolished Saturday, Dec. 9 the Israel Defense Forces announced. The tunnel is believed to have belonged to the Hamas terror organization. The exit of the tunnel had not yet been completed.

It was blown up using a new method that does not require air strikes or explosions.

The tunnel had electricity and other amenities, such as ventilation and communications equipment, suggesting that it was a significant tunnel for Hamas, the IDF also said in a statement.

The demolition of the tunnel, which began in Khan Younis and extended past the Israeli-Gaza border into farmland in southern Israel near the Gaza border, comes about six weeks after another tunnel was discovered and blown up, while members of the Islamic Jihad, which was digging the tunnel, were inside.

“We see this as a severe violation of Israeli sovereignty and we hold the Hamas terror organization responsible,” said Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus. “The IDF will continue to discover and destroy the tunnels in order to defend and protect Israeli

4 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

civilians and has no interest in escalating the situation.”

“We have achieved new technological capabilities in the fight against tunnel terror,” Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said after the tunnel’s destruction was announced. “I hope that the threat of the tunnels to the residents of the Gaza border area will become a thing of the past.” (JTA)

Senate unanimously passes bill to help Holocaust survivors obtain restitution, seized assets The Senate unanimously passed a bill to help Holocaust survivors and the families of victims obtain restitution or the return of Holocaust-era assets.

The Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today, or JUST Act, which was introduced in February by Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., received unanimous approval on Tuesday, Dec. 12.

The measure requires the State Department to report on the progress of certain European countries toward the return of or restitution for wrongfully confiscated or transferred Holocaust-era assets, including property, art and other movable property. It also requires a report specifically on progress on the resolution of claims for U.S. citizen Holocaust survivors and family members.

The World Jewish Restitution Organization praised the bill’s passage, urging that it be signed into law this year.

“Through this legislation, the United States will help survivors achieve a small measure of justice for the wrongful seizure of their property during the Holocaust,” the organization’s chair of operations, Gideon Taylor, said in a statement. “Now is the time—while the remaining survivors are alive—for countries to provide restitution.”

The JUST Act is designed to build on the international Terezin Declaration on Holocaust Era Assets and Related Issues of 2009, which affirms the protection of property rights and recognizes the importance of restituting or compensating Holocaust-related confiscations.

Several nations that endorsed the

Terezin Declaration have not fully addressed the restitution of Jewish communal, private and heirless property, co-sponsors Baldwin and Rubio have said.

A companion bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in February

by Reps. Joseph Crowley, D-N.Y., and Christopher Smith, R-N.J. (JTA)

Most Jewish institutions resume operations after Skirball Fire Most of the Jewish institutions that had been threatened by the so-called Skirball Fire in Los Angeles have resumed normal operations.

All evacuation orders, road closures and restrictions due to the fire in the Bel Air area were lifted Dec. 10, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.

The Valley Beth Shalom Synagogue in Encino, California, which took in about 25 Torah scrolls from area synagogues and schools for safekeeping, announced that it would resume normal operations.

The same day, the Stephen Wise Temple was cleared to hold Shabbat services and brought its Torah scrolls back from Valley Beth Shalom in time for the services.

The Leo Baeck Temple announced that while its buildings and grounds were not burned, they suffered significant smoke damage and the temple would not be able to reopen its facilities right away. Many of the Leo Baeck events were moved to Stephen Wise, which also invited the members of the smoke-damaged temple to join it for Shabbat services.

The Milken Community Schools reopened for regular classes. The Los Angeles eruv remained undamaged by the fire and was available for Shabbat.

The Skirball Cultural Center reopened Dec. 8 and held a Hanukkah festival two days later that was moved indoors due to air quality concerns.

The Skirball Fire broke out on Dec. 6, one of several wildfires blanketing the area. It destroyed six homes and damaged 12 others, and required the evacuation of about 700 homes as well as an apartment building. It damaged 475 acres.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said the blaze was caused by an illegal cooking fire at an area encampment. (JTA)

Torah Thought

The Joseph saga

T

he great and most colorful Joseph saga extends over four Torah portions and 13 chapters. How opportune it is as we celebrate the miracle of Hanukkah and the reading of Joseph’s awesome adventures, that the Jewish experience has often been to find ourselves like Joseph in the darkness of the pit without losing faith in the light of redemption yet to emerge.

Just like Joseph, the dreamer and interpreter of dreams (he should have kept some of them to himself!), the Jewish people have believed that noble, as well as disturbing dreams have the potential and power to transform reality. In the way of Joseph who was not accepted by his own immature kin—begrudging him his unique spirit and grandiose ideas of a youngster whose father’s favoritism put him at risk—we have felt isolated throughout much of history.

We have been rejected for insisting on living our own authentic lives as a minority. Our faithfulness to our faith and conscience has been interpreted as a negative reflection of aloofness, rather than one choice. Joseph, through his mind’s genius and heart’s compassion, was able to save both his adopted empire of Egypt and his family from small Canaan. In the process, he taught us that borders and feelings do not have to be obstacles to a constructive response to life and death issues.

Rather than dwelling on past hurts and injustices that could have crippled him and others, Joseph managed to transcend his personal insecurities and apprehensions to accomplish lasting goals, using his talents to society’s benefit. Joseph wisely chose the high road, becoming a great Egyptian, while also earning his status as a great Hebrew brother and leader. His early self-centered dreams

turned into a blessed reality for all concerned through his maturity of character.

The ultimate challenge of this mighty ruler, second only to Pharaoh, was to conquer and control his own raging passions, which he had already proven with tempting and aggressive Mrs. Potiphar, earning him the rabbis’ honorific appellation “Hatzadik” (The saintly one). He was able to repeat it with his brothers at the pinnacle of his brilliant career with so much at stake for himself and for them.

What a moving moment of victory it is for all concerned when Joseph can no longer hold back his tears and eagerly desires to reveal his true identity to his overwhelmed brothers, not quite realizing that they would never recover from the shock of the encounter and/or from the guilt that would continue to burden them.

Perhaps Joseph’s favorable decision to reach out to them was ultimately prompted by Judah’s display of sincere love for Brother Benjamin, as well as for father Jacob’s well-being. Earlier, Joseph learned of his brothers’ remorse and fear when being challenged by him, acknowledging their past wrongdoing.

Upon reconnecting to his family he was ennobled and made whole. Joseph could have abandoned his Hebrew background, protecting his painfully acquired identity and status, but he knew that his remarkable life’s success had to carry a humbling message of healing and gratitude.

Joseph appeals to us in his humaneness which is not lost when he becomes powerful. His survivor’s skills of ascending from the pit to the palace inspire us, reflecting the historic Jewish challenge to survive and even thrive. He is the prototype model of the modern Jew, enlightening us about living in two worlds. He perceived God’s guiding hand in his tumultuous life, steeled and sensitized by adversity turned into advantage.

Joseph and the Maccabees of all ages have taught us that to be a Jew is to somehow make a difference, reducing darkness and rejoicing in the light’s promise.

—Dr. Israel Zoberman, founding rabbi of Congregation Beth Chaverim

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Jerusalem

Jerusalem recognition reaction

P

resident Donald Trump’s announcement that the United States intends to move its embassy to Jerusalem as a recognition of that city’s status as the capital of Israel, has been met with myriad responses—from jubilation to dismay, from pride and relief to anger and protests and destruction.

The following articles reflect some of those reactions. As always, the articles, opinions, and op-eds are not necessarily the opinion of this newspaper, but rather an attempt to cover multiple views of the issue.

—Jewish News

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New York, NY, December 12, 2017— Anti-Semitism has emerged in forms both subtle and overt at anti-Israel rallies taking place globally in response to President Trump’s announcement on Jerusalem this month, according to a new analysis by the Anti-Defamation League.

ADL experts are monitoring incidents globally and in the United States. While there have been serious incidents overseas, including the firebombing of Jewish community sites in Sweden and hatefilled remarks by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, several protests in the U. S. have been marred by anti-Semitic chants and expressions as well.

Virulent anti-Israel protests were held in more than a dozen cities across the U.S earlier this month. Many of the demonstrations were marked by extreme anti-Israel and anti-Zionist messages, with some denying Israel’s right to exist and others supporting resistance by any means. In New York City, chants in Times Square of “Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the Army of Muhammad will return,” recalled a 7th century battle that ended in a massacre of Jews.

In the Middle East and Europe, protests and riots broke out in major capitals.

Further escalating tensions, President Erdogan vowed to use “all means to fight” against U.S. recognition of Jerusalem and called Israel a “terrorist state” that “kills children.”

The League also voiced concern after a series of anti-Semitic caricatures appeared in Arabic language media across the Muslim and Arab world. An ADL survey of a dozen cartoons appearing in newspapers and websites across the Arab world shows that the Jerusalem decision is being characterized in deeply anti-Semitic terms. ADL has raised the issue of this most recent collection of anti-Semitic cartoons with members of Congress.

Some of the cartoons suggest that Israel controls U.S. foreign policy, depicting President Trump as a puppet or pawn of the Israeli prime minister, while others evoke classic anti-Semitic themes, with Jews stereotypically depicted with large noses, pointed teeth, and large ears.

Several cartoons suggest that Israel and the U.S. are conspiring to wrest control of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem away from Muslims.

“Our concern is that the anti-Semitic expressions we’ve seen overseas and in the United States could escalate,” says Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “While people have every right to voice opposition to President Trump’s position on Jerusalem, anti-Semitism as a response is completely unacceptable. This is especially true of world leaders and those Arab media outlets that are aiding and abetting the incitement by evoking dangerous anti-Semitic themes and conspiracy theories.”

Jerusalem OP-ED

Winners and losers as the US recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital Michael J. Koplow

(JTA)—President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his announcement that he will move the embassy there from Tel Aviv will have a number of consequences for Israelis, Palestinians, and the wider region.

For Israel, it has finally received from an American president what it has long craved, which is righting the historic wrong of it being the only state whose self-declared capital is not recognized by the rest of the world.

Israel’s government institutions are primarily in West Jerusalem in undisputed territory, and by formally recognizing this fact, Trump acknowledges what has been obvious to Israelis since the founding of the state 70 years ago. In using language that was not qualified and declaring “Jerusalem” to be the capital, some Israelis may interpret this to constitute an endorsement of Israeli claims to the entirety of the city, even though Trump explicitly ruled out this announcement as prejudging final status issues or the specific borders of Israeli sovereignty in the city.

Nevertheless, even a more appropriate interpretation that the U.S. has recognized only the undisputed sections of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is an enormously positive development for the Israeli government, and it will have cause to celebrate.

For the Palestinians, Trump’s qualifier that his announcement does not prejudice final status issues and the president’s extolling of the importance of peace will not eliminate the bitterness of this pill.

Trump’s lack of an explicit endorsement of an equal Palestinian claim to part of the city will be seen as a reversal of longstanding American policy and make it far more difficult for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to continue to engage with Trump’s emerging peace initiative. It will adversely affect Palestinian cooperation with the U.S. and Israel going forward, and is likely to lead to protests

and violence.

While nothing that Trump said Wednesday, Dec. 6 has actually changed the situation on the ground, for the Palestinians this is an extremely significant symbolic loss.

The announcement will also make it more difficult for Sunni Arab states to be

Trump may end up killing his own peace initiative for the sake of an announcement whose timing was unnecessary now. seen as publicly backing a Trump peace initiative, as Jerusalem remains one of the most sensitive issues among Arab publics.

Serving as boosters for the Trump peace plan or being seen as heading toward normalization with Israel following this announcement will put Arab governments in a political bind, and despite the president’s prediction that this move will make a peace agreement easier, the opposite is likely to be the case. Public opinion serves as a heavy brake even in authoritarian states, and while the importance of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has subsided for many Arabs in recent years, any changes in Jerusalem’s status quo have the ability to reverse that trend given the unique sensitivity surrounding the city.

While the Trump announcement will change nothing on the ground itself, as Israel’s capital was Jerusalem even before Trump acknowledged it and moving the embassy will take years, the symbolism should not be understated. In declaring Jerusalem as Israel’s capital without making a clear statement that the U.S. does not recognize unhindered Israeli sovereignty in eastern Jerusalem, Trump may end up killing his own peace initiative in the cradle for the sake of an announcement whose timing was unnecessary now.

Michael J. Koplow is the policy director of the Israel Policy Forum.

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jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 7

Jerusalem Opinion

US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital long overdue Gordon Robertson

I

n a move long overdue, the United States of America has finally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Congratulations to President Trump, congratulations to people of Israel, and congratulations to everyone who prayed to see this day. Over the past 50 years, the people of Israel have served as faithful stewards over Jerusalem and have insured that all holy sites were accessible to people of all faiths. Before the Six Day War, East Jerusalem was not open to every faith, particularly the Jewish faith.

If you were Jewish, it was illegal for you to be in East Jerusalem, the Western Wall, or even the Jewish Quarter. After the Six Day War, Israel opened the city to everyone who wanted to visit in peace.

To those who say that the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel will somehow derail the peace process, I say the peace process hasn’t been on any kind of rail for the past 70 years.

As Abba Eban famously said after the Geneva Peace Conference of 1973, “the

Arabs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.”

I understand that the Palestinian Authority remains steadfast in its efforts to establish East Jerusalem as the capital of a new Palestinian State, but I wonder what that new state would do to Jews. Two years ago, the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas had this to say about Jews in Jerusalem: “Al-Aqsa is ours and so is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. They have no right to desecrate them with their filthy feet. We won’t allow them to do so and we will do whatever we can to defend Jerusalem.”

(Mahmoud Abbas, Palestinian Authority TV, September 16, 2015) Abbas is the architect of the Palestinian Authority’s “pay for slay” program, in which families of terrorists receive monthly checks that increase based on the severity of the crime against Israelis. So far this year, the Palestinian Authority has paid $355 million to the families of terrorists who have killed Israelis.

The Trump Administration, the Senate, and the House of Representatives

are working hard to pass the Taylor Force Act. When it becomes law, the US will finally stop payments to the Palestinian Authority and end this state sponsored terrorism.

Palestinian schools teach hatred of Israelis, Palestinian soccer stadiums are named after people who killed Israelis, and Ramallah’s streets are dedicated to terrorists. One street there bears the name of Yahya Ayyash, nicknamed “The Engineer,” because he developed Palestinian suicide bombs. Ayyash Street will be the location of the future compound for the Palestinian President.

Another square in Ramallah is named after Abu Sukkar, the man known as the “Refrigerator Bomber.” Mr. Sukkar loaded a refrigerator with explosives and detonated it in Zion Square in Jerusalem in 1975, killing 15 innocent people. And in 2015, Ramallah added a new street in honor of Muhannad Halabi, a 19-yearold Palestinian who stabbed two Israelis to death in the Old City of Jerusalem.

As long as the world turns a blind eye to the incitement and the violence that

regularly comes out of the Palestinian Authority, there will never be a chance for peace. At the White House meeting with President Abbas last May, President Trump said, “There cannot be lasting peace unless the Palestinian leaders speak in a unified voice against incitement to violence and hate. There’s such hatred. But hopefully there won’t be such hatred for very long. All children of God must be taught to value and respect human life, and condemn all of those who target the innocent.”

As we wait for that day of peace, let us rejoice today that the United States has finally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. In so doing, we have also recognized that Israel, as a sovereign state, has the right to designate its own capital. May all the nations of the world move their embassies to Jerusalem.

Gordon Robertson is CEO of the Christian Broadcasting Network and executive producer of the film, In Our Hands: the Battle for Jerusalem.

At UN session on Jerusalem, Nikki Haley says recognition advances peace

A

t a special discussion at the United Nations Security Council about U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said the move improves the chance of reaching a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.

“We must recognize that the prospect of peace is advanced, not set back,” by President Donald Trump’s move, Haley said Friday, Dec. 8 at the meeting at the UN headquarters in New York City.

The declaration affirms, she said, that “all parties are honest with each other” as “for nearly 70 years, Jerusalem has been the capital of the State of Israel” regardless of U.S. recognition. She said the recognition was based on “common sense.”

But the move, Haley added, does not mean America is taking a position on the “boundaries or borders” of

8 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

any final sovereignty in Jerusalem, which “is still to be decided on by Israelis and Palestinian in negotiations,” she said. Haley also reiterated Trump’s call for maintaining the status quo at Jerusalem’s holy places.

Haley also spoke of the Jewish People’s attachment to Jerusalem “through 3,000 years of exile,” calling Jews “patient.”

In her address, Haley also attacked the singling out of Israel at the United Nations, saying that the world body has “done much more damage for the prospects of peace than to advance it.”

The special session was called after world leaders said the move to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital would disrupt peace prospects in the Middle East.

The envoys for Russia and China spoke of “grave concern” over the U.S. move, adding it threatens their

vision for a two-state solution in which Israel and a Palestinian state both have their capitals in Jerusalem.

The Chinese ambassador said the Israeli-Palestinian remains “central to efforts to reach peace throughout the Middle East.”

The representative of Italy, who said his country was one of the initiators of the emergency meeting on Jerusalem, said Rome remains committed to neutrality on Jerusalem until its status is agreed-upon by Israelis and Palestinians in peace talks.

Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, tweeted a photo of himself and Haley shortly before the session. He said he would “call on all countries to join us *this* year in Jerusalem, the capital of the State of Israel.” (JTA)

Jerusalem

Embassy move to Jerusalem likely won’t happen before 2019, Rex Tillerson says (JTA)—Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that moving the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem “is not something that is going to happen this year, probably not next year.”

Tillerson made the remarks Dec. 8 in Paris, where he was meeting with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian, CNN reported.

His statement followed mass protests by hundreds of thousands of demonstrators in Asia and the Middle East over President Donald Trump’s declaration that the United States recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and will prepare to move its embassy there from Tel Aviv.

In the West Bank and Gaza, one Palestinian man died and 100 others were wounded in riots that resulted in clashes

with the Israeli army.

In Indonesia, Pakistan, and Malaysia, many thousands held vocal protest rallies outside the U.S. embassies. Massive protests were also recorded in Jordan and Turkey.

Tillerson said that Trump had ordered the State Department to “start the process of making the move” but it would take time, as the department still needed to acquire a site, make construction and building plans, and ensure necessary authorizations before actually building the embassy.

He also said that Trump’s decision does not “indicate any final status for Jerusalem,” adding that “would be left to the parties to negotiate and decide.”

Satmar rebbe condemns US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital

T

he head of a Satmar Hasidic faction slammed the U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum, the Satmar rebbe in Kiryas Joel, a haredi Orthodox village in upstate New York, condemned the White House announcement by President Donald Trump.

“We declare in the name of haredi Judaism: Jerusalem, the holy city, will not be the capital of the Zionist state, even if the president of the United States says it is,” Teitelbaum said, Israel National News reported. “Just as haredi Jews did not recognize President Truman’s declaration in 1948 that Israel is the Jewish state, we

don’t recognize it today.”

Satmar is anti-Zionist and does not recognize the formation of the State of Israel.

Teitelbaum was speaking to thousands of followers at the annual event marking Chuf Alef Kislev, which commemorates the day that the late Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum, the founder of the Satmar movement in America, escaped from the Nazis during the Holocaust in 1944.

“Jerusalem is a holy city, a city of piety.

Zionism is the opposite of fearing God and Torah, and it has nothing to do with the city of Jerusalem,” Teitelbaum also said. (JTA)

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ore than 130 Jewish studies scholars from U.S. colleges and universities signed a statement expressing “dismay” at President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Jerusalem is the focus of national aspirations for both Israelis and Palestinians

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The statement criticizes Trump’s “decision to reverse decades of bipartisan U.S. policy by declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel, and authorizing the relocation of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv, outside of a negotiated political framework that ends the legal state of occupation and ensures respect for the rights of all Israelis and Palestinians to Jerusalem.”

“Jerusalem is of immense religious and thus emotional significance to Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike. It is the focus of national aspirations for both Israelis and Palestinians. We hope one day to see a world in which all inhabitants of the land enjoy equal access to the city’s cultural and material resources. Today, unfortunately, that is not the case,” the scholars say in the statement.

The statement continues: “In this context, a declaration from the United States government that appears to endorse sole Jewish proprietorship over Jerusalem adds insult to ongoing injury and is practically guaranteed to fan the flames of violence. We therefore call on the U.S. government to take immediate steps to deescalate the tensions resulting from the President’s declaration and to clarify Palestinians’ legitimate stake in the future of Jerusalem.” (JTA)

Nation

Ruth’s

At Hanukkah reception, Trump basks in warmth of his Jerusalem recognition

P

resident Donald Trump celebrated his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital at the White House Hanukkah reception.

This year’s event came one day after the formal Jerusalem recognition and Trump directed the State Department to prepare for moving the U.S. Embassy to the city from Tel Aviv—a campaign pledge that both he and several former presidents had made but which until now had been unimplemented.

“Well, I know for a fact there are a lot of happy people in this room,” he told the dozens of guests at the reception Thursday, Dec. 7 clarifying with one word what he meant: “Jerusalem.”

Yet the president devoted most of his speech to conventional Hanukkah greetings, mentioning the “miracle of the Maccabees” and how “they found only enough oil to light the lamp for a single night.”

That the lamp burned for eight days—the miracle celebrated by Jews around the world on Hanukkah—shows “God’s presence in his dwelling place and a symbol of the faith and resilience of the Jewish people. You do have faith and you do have resilience,” Trump said.

Later he said, “The miracle of Hanukkah is the miracle of Israel. The descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have endured unthinkable persecution and oppression. But no force has ever crushed your spirit, and no evil has ever extinguished your faith.”

Trump was standing by his wife, Melania. Beside them was his daughter Ivanka and her husband, senior adviser Jared Kushner, and the president’s grandchildren, whom he noted are Jewish.

“I am also proud that my beautiful grandchildren—Arabella, Joseph, and Theodore—have joined us tonight right here as we celebrate with all of you the sacred traditions that they observe

each year at home,” Trump said.

Vice President Mike Pence, his wife, Karen, and Rabbi Meir Soloveichik also were on hand. Soloveichik is director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University, and the rabbi at Congregation Shearith Israel in Manhattan.

Jewish Cabinet officials Steven Mnuchin and David Schulman, secretary of the Treasury and Veteran Affairs, respectively, and Trump’s special Middle East peace envoy Jason Greenblatt, who also is Jewish, were among the guests.

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, who is Jewish, was at the reception wearing a kippah. Breyer was appointed to the high court by former President Bill Clinton, but there were no notable Democrats at the event, the Times of Israel noted.

Congressional Democrats, as well as Jewish leaders who have been critical of Trump, were excluded from the guest list, the New York Times reported.

“It’s deeply unfortunate that the White House Hanukkah Party—a bipartisan event bringing together Jewish and non-Jewish leaders alike to celebrate the Festival of Lights since 2001—has turned into a partisan affair under this administration,” Rep. Nita Lowrey, D-N.Y., told the Times.

The White House denied that politics played a role in the invitations.

“I am not aware of the political affiliation of any of the guests, but I do know that this year was meant to be more personal than political,” first lady Melania Trump’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham told the Times.

Jared Kushner did not disclose his heading of a foundation that funded settlement projects

J

ared Kushner did not disclose on government filings his position as a director of a family foundation that funded projects in West Bank settlements.

Kushner’s position as co-director of the Charles and Seryl Kushner Foundation from 2006 to 2015, when the foundation donated at least $38,000 to the building of a Jewish seminary in the West Bank settlement of Beit El and an additional $20,000 to Jewish and educational institutions in other settlements, was not disclosed on his filings with the Office of Government Ethics, Newsweek reported.

The revelation came two days after reports that Kushner, President Donald

Trump’s Jewish son-in-law and a White House senior adviser, attempted to stop a vote on an anti-settlement resolution that passed during the Trump transition period.

The U.S. State Department has traditionally labeled the settlements as an impediment or “unhelpful” to a two-state solution, but charitable donations to institutions there are legal under U.S. law.

Kushner has amended his financial records several times since his first filing with the government ethics office in March, and also has made three revisions to his security clearance application.

Newsweek reported that Kushner’s omission was first discovered by a team

of researchers at American Bridge, a progressive research and communications organization. The group shared the discovery with Newsweek and its researchers suggested Kushner’s failure to disclose his position may have been an attempt to avoid “potential conflicts with his job negotiating Middle East peace.”

Had Kushner disclosed his position in the family foundation in his financial records, his involvement in the settlement donations and potential conflicts of interest with his government position may have been considered by the Office of Government Ethics, according to Newsweek. (JTA)

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Before she died in 1995,Ruth arranged for a Hampton Roads Community Foundation bequest to forever give good health to the community she and her husband Victor loved.

This year 15 students are studying to become physicians, physical therapists, nurses and other medical professionals thanks to scholarships generated by Ruth’s generosity. Many more Goodman Scholars will follow every year.

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jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 11

25

Annual Virginia Festival of Jewish Film

presented by Alma & Howard Laderberg* and Patricia & Avraham Ashkenazi

Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018 – Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018 Multiple theaters throughout Virginia Beach and Norfolk

-

Free—Pre-Festival event Marshall Monday, Jan. 15, 6 pm, free TCC Roper Performing Arts Center 340 Granby Street, Norfolk Directed by Reginald Hudlin; starring Chadwick Boseman, Josh Gad, Kate Hudson, Dan Stevens, Sterling K. Brown, and James Cromwell; USA; English; 118 mins

Presented in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and in partnership with Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater and Hands United Building Bridges (HUBB), an interfaith dialogue group focused on race and faith in Tidewater.

Discussion to follow. RSVP requested to 321-2304 or MEichelbaum@ujft.org.

25th Anniversary Celebration

Shelter Saturday, Jan. 20, 7:15 pm Chrysler Museum 1 Memorial Place, Norfolk Directed by Eran Riklis; starring Neta Riskin, Golshifteh Farahani, Yehuda Almagor; Germany, Israel, France; English and Hebrew with English subtitles, 93 mins

W

hat’s the secret to living into your 90s—and loving every minute of it? In this documentary, irrepressible writer-comedian Carl Reiner (who shows no signs of slowing down at 95), tracks down several celebrated nonagenarians, and a few others over 100, to show how the twilight years can truly be the happiest and most rewarding.

N B

ased on an early trial in the career of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Marshall follows the young lawyer to conservative Connecticut to defend a black chauffeur charged with sexual assault and attempted murder of his white socialite employer. Muzzled by a segregationist court, Marshall partners with a courageous young Jewish lawyer, Samuel Friedman. Together they mount the defense in an environment of racism and Anti-Semitism. The high profile case and the partnership with Friedman served as a template for Marshall’s creation of the NAACP legal defense fund.

The younger girls, particularly clingy Erika, stay close to their older sister, but Fanny is clearly very much still a child herself, with a penchant for climbing trees.

She takes care of her sisters until she is forced to flee in a rush, becoming the head of a group of eight children heading across occupied France.

Opening Night

aomi Rimon, a Mossad agent, is sent on an easy mission: to protect Mona, a Lebanese collaborator, in a safe house in Hamburg, Germany, for two weeks.

Based on The Link by Shulamit Hareven, this subtle thriller explores the intimacy that develops between the two women as they are exposed to the threat of terror that now engulfs the world. In this game of deception, beliefs are questioned and choices made that are not their own. Their fate takes a surprising turn in this suspense-laden, elegant neo-noir.

Directed by Danny Gold; starring Carl Reiner, Iris Apfel, Tony Bennett; USA; English, 86 mins

In partnership with Beth Sholom Village and Brith Sholom Center. RSVP to 321‑2304 or MEichelbaum@ujft.org. *of blessed memory

12 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Naro Expanded Cinema 1507 Colley Avenue, Norfolk Discussion before the film with VirginianPilot critic Mal Vincent, as he shares stories and juicy Hollywood gossip about the film and its stars.

Fanny’s Journey Sunday, Jan. 21, 2 pm TCC Roper Performing Arts Center 340 Granby Street, Norfolk Directed by Lola Doillon; starring Léonie Souchaud, Fantine Harduin, Juliane Lepoureau; France, Belgium; French with English subtitles; 94 mins

In partnership with the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater

If You’re Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast Sunday, Jan. 21, 2 pm, free Beth Sholom Village 6401 Auburn Drive, Virginia Beach

Cabaret Monday, Jan. 22, 7:15 pm

T

his true story tells the compelling tale of Fanny Ben-Ami. After the arrest of their father in German-occupied Paris, Fanny and her younger sisters Erika and Georgette are sent by their mother to a children’s boarding school in rural southeast France.

Directed by Bob Fosse; starring Liza Minnelli, Michael York, Helmut Griem; USA; English, German, Hebrew, French; 124 mins

C

abaret tells the story of Sally Bowles, an American cabaret singer in Berlin in 1931. Sally meets British academic Brian Roberts, who is finishing his university studies. Despite Brian’s confusion over his sexuality, the pair become lovers. The arrival of the wealthy and decadent playboy Maximilian von Heune (Helmut Griem) complicates matters. This love triangle plays out against the rise of the Nazi party and the collapse of the Weimar Republic.

1945 Tuesday, Jan. 23, 7:15 pm Simon Family JCC 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach Directed by Ferenc Török; starring Péter Rudolf, Bence Tasnádi, Tamás Szabó Kimmel; Hungary; Hungarian, Russian with English subtitles; 91 mins

I

n August, 1945, a remote Hungarian town prepares for the wedding of the village magistrate’s son. Meanwhile two Orthodox Jews arrive with two coffin-shaped wooden crates, supposedly filled with soaps and perfumes.

When the town gets wind of their arrival, rumors spread about their intentions. Is this a harbinger of the return of more Jews? The townspeople fear that these strangers may be heirs of the village’s denounced and deported Jewish neighbors and have come to claim their family’s stolen property. Paranoia runs rampant, leading to tragic events and a potent, unexpected ending.

While many films exist about the Holocaust, few are about its immediate aftermath when greed and material gain from the Jewish peoples’ demise was pervasive.

disabilities. There, he is forced to come to terms with his own high-functioning autism.

At the group, David is paired with Sarah—a quirky and outgoing woman whose optimism initially irks David.

Despite their contrasting personalities, they forge a bond. As their relationship deepens, Sarah, confident in herself and her individuality, challenges David to embrace his own uniqueness.

An endearing and naturalistic romantic comedy about people navigating the difficulties of a relationship.

The Pickle Recipe Thursday, Jan. 25, 7:15 pm Beach Cinema Alehouse 941 Laskin Road, Virginia Beach Directed by Michael Manasseri; starring Jon Dore, Lynn Cohen, Miriam Lee; USA; English; 97 mins

Limited seating. Dinner and drinks available for purchase. Arrive by 6:30 for

Keep the Change Wednesday, Jan. 24, 7:15 pm Zeiders American Dream Theater 4573 Bank Street, Virginia Beach Directed by Rachel Israel; starring Jessica Walter, Christina Brucato, Evander Duck Jr.; USA; English; 94 mins

Limited seating.

D

avid, an upper-class charmer, leads a comfortable life until he is mandated to attend a support group for adults with

ordering and best seating. Discussion before the film with writer/producer, Sheldon Cohn.

J

oey Miller is the king of Detroit party emcees, a single father, and drowning in debt. During one of his latest gigs, a freak accident destroys all his prized sound equipment. With his daughter Julie’s bat mitzvah only four weeks away, he is willing to do almost anything to replace it.

As a last resort, he turns to his shady Uncle Morty, who agrees to give him the needed 20 grand, but under one condition: Joey must steal his grandmother Rose’s top-secret kosher dill pickle recipe.

Palms Associates Old Point National Bank Additional support from

Route 58 Delicatessen

Simon Family JCC Open to all seniors with lunch included.

RSVP requested to 321‑2304 or MEichelbaum@ujft.org.

Animal House Sunday, Jan 28, 7:15 pm

Jazz Soirée

Body & Soul: An American Bridge Saturday, Jan. 27, 7:15 pm Harbor Club 333 Waterside Drive, Norfolk Jazz Soirée John Toomey Trio LIVE following the screening. Light desserts and one drink ticket included.

Directed by Robert Philipson; starring Benny Goodman, Teddy Wilson, Johnny Green, Libby Holman, Jack Hylton, John Coltrane, and Louis Armstrong; USA; English; 58 mins

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very musical encounter is a cross-cultural encounter, according to Josh Kun of the University of Southern California.

Out of all such encounters that have resulted in the richness of American popular music, none has been so prominent or so fraught with fraternity and conflict as the one between African Americans and American Jews.

Body and Soul is among the most enduring standards. Through interviews with historians and music enthusiasts and rare archival footage, the film examines this timeless song’s history and the complex musical interplay between Jewish and African-American cultures.

Naro Expanded Cinema 1507 Colley Avenue, Norfolk Directed by John Landis; starring John Belushi, Karen Allen, Tom Hulce, Stephen Furst; USA; English; 109 mins

Discussion before the film with Lorraine Wright, widow of the late, local born actor and comedian, Stephen Furst(stein).

As Furst’s sons, Nathan and Griffith Furst, said upon news of his death on June 16, 2017 due to complications from diabetes, “To truly honor him, do not cry for the loss of Stephen Furst. But rather, enjoy memories of all the times he made you snicker, laugh, or even snort to your own embarrassment. He intensely believed that laugher is the best therapy.

W

hen they arrive at college, socially inept freshmen Larry and Kent attempt to pledge the snooty Omega Theta Pi House, but are summarily rejected. Lowering their standards, they try the notoriously rowdy Delta Tau Chi House, and get in. The trouble is, the college dean has it in for the Deltas. He has put them on “Double Secret Probation” and secretly assigned Omega’s president the task of having their charter revoked.

Film Festival Pricing

FILM FESTIVAL SPONSORS Major support from

Free Screening Body & Soul Wednesday, Jan. 24, noon

Presented by

Full Festival Pass—$70

Includes 7 days of movies and receptions

Opening Night Film and 25th Anniversary Celebration—$35

Simon Family JCC

Body and Soul with Jazz Soirée—$15

United Jewish Federation of Tidewater

Per film for adults (does not include opening or closing night films) Students and faculty are free(with valid ID) for all TCC Roper Performing Arts Center showings

and

Individual Film Ticket—$10

Purchase tickets and passes online at SimonFamilyJCC.org/FilmFestival, at the JCC Customer Service Desk, or by calling 757-321-2338.

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 13

2018 EDITION

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JANUARY 28TH 10AM-1PM It’s time for Super Sunday, the Tidewater Jewish Community’s annual fundraising phone-a-thon, organized and run by volunteers like you, and it’s bigger than ever! Three ways to get involved means you can support Super Sunday AND enjoy Operation Hamantaschen with your family!

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For more information contact Jasmine Amitay at 757.965.6138 jamitay@ujft.org www.jewishva.org/SuperSunday 14 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Operation Hamantaschen This year, Operation Hamantaschen will take place as part of Super Sunday! Bring the entire family for a special day of fun, service, and giving back to the community from 10am-1pm! We’ll have activities in the gym avvailable from 10am-12pm for the little ones and babysitting is available.

Education Matters

Supplement to Jewish News December 18, 2017 jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 15

Education Matters Beth El welcomes the Park Place School Patti Wainger

W

alking through Congregation Beth El’s education wing on a weekday, one might be surprised to hear the sounds of violins. The source of the music is from students who attend the Park Place School, located at Beth El since August.

Each of the 66 second through sixth graders who attend the school take weekly violin instruction in addition to participating in a robust enrichment program that includes art instruction, a global Citizenship class, and social and emotional training. The core class instruction is rooted in national and state standards and is shaped by individual needs in each

classroom of 15 students. Students who are eligible for free or reduced lunch— and who were not thriving in school—are the participants in the privately funded, tuition-free program.

Park Place School started in 1996 as a three-year pilot program, Project Rebound. The program targeted 10 Norfolk Public School students who improved their test scores in core subjects for reading, math, and spelling an average of about 20 percentage points. After completion of the three-year pilot project, the students re-enrolled into the Norfolk Public Schools working at, or above grade level. All students who attended Project Rebound graduated from high school.

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16 | Jewish News | Education | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

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Since moving to their new home this fall, Park Place students and staff have been welcomed with open arms by the Beth El family and the community at large. Beth El has provided volunteers working in creative writing and the BEAR reading program, congregants collected and donated 54 Thanksgiving meals, and Sisterhood hosted a holiday luncheon with gifts for all. As the word spreads, other groups are lending support. Virginian Wesleyan students conducted a food and clothing drive for Park Place students, and Norfolk Academy is partnering with the school by sending middle school students to do community service and enrichment projects.

The opportunities are limitless to help these incredible students. To lend support to the Park Place School, contact aphillips@parkplaceschool.org.

Education Matters Setting all students up for success at Hebrew Academy of Tidewater Jewish Proverb: “Who is wise? The one who learns from every person.”

Carin Simon

A ROMAN HOLIDAY

W

hile a Jewish Day School experience is often considered a homogeneous education, within every group of students, a range of abilities always exists. Hebrew Academy of Tidewater’s goal, therefore, is to create a caring community so that students feel comfortable asking for help and accepting that help from teachers and fellow students.

Everyone has a strength Many of HAT’s “mission appropriate” students may thrive at the school, but have a learning disability or attention issue that makes learning more difficult. In these cases, the faculty examines the student’s needs and designs strategies to set the student up for success. The school emphasizes that all students have both strengths and areas for growth, and everyone learns from each other.

Small classes mean individual attention With class sizes of fewer than 20 students, HAT teachers offer differentiated instruction. Students can be seen working one-on-one with a teacher as other students work independently. The school’s project-based learning approach allows students to work in groups to explore, create, and discuss ideas. As a result, students feel motivated and excited.

Fidget time HAT understands that young children need to fidget. Their little bodies are not made to sit still for hours at a time. HAT classrooms, therefore, are equipped with enhancements such as bouncy chairs, stationary bikes to use while seated, a standing desk, and a cord that attaches to a desk for resting feet. When students are comfortable in their classroom, they tend to focus better on their classwork.

JANUARY 19-21, 2018

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JoAnn Falletta, conductor Tianwa Yang, violin

Share the warmth of the seven hills of Rome.

This enchanting concert includes Beethoven’s beloved Violin Concerto performed by soloist Tianwa Yang, and the beautiful Intermezzo from Cavelleria Rusticana is one of those timeless pieces you never forget.

Study skills Teaching students self help skills is key in a classroom with a variety of skill levels.

In additon to posted visual aids to help students follow directions, opportunities for partner work allow students to collaborate and alleviate the pressure of “getting everything right.” Students are taught study skills such as how to break up work into chunks and to study each night when a test is planned for the end of the week.

Student Support Specialist When teachers are concerned about a child’s performance, they speak with the Student Support Team. The Student Support Specialist meets each day with select students to provide extra support and ensure that each student’s educational needs are met. This support might be extra tutoring, help with organization, or ongoing classroom assistance.

Strategies for anxiety Students have all sorts of worries which can impact both behavior and academic performance. Understanding that behavior problems often stem from school

anxiety, HAT introduced a mindfulness program last year. Starting the school day with a short yoga class to calm their minds, followed by a lesson on social and emotional skills using the Second Step Program, the children were taught how to communicate their worries, along with strategies to employ when worries arise.

Accepted at the best Hebrew Academy’s mission and responsibility is to provide the best education to its student body. The early years, or preschool through grade five are essential in providing an education that delivers students the academic, social, and emotional skills to set them up for success as they develop into independent learners.

As a testament to this job, very year, HAT students are accepted to the most competitive public and private middle school programs in Tidewater.

To schedule a tour of the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater, contact Carin Simon, admissions director at 757-424-4327 or csimon@hebrewacademy.net.

FEBRUARY 1 & 3, 2018 Newport News & Norfolk Michael Krajewski, conductor Dave Bennett, clarinet, guitar, piano, vocals

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jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 17

Education Matters Dance about Kristallnacht inspired by UJFT Holocaust Commission conference O

ver many decades of creating choreography that conveys an emotional story, Elbert Watson, Norfolk Academy dance director, has covered many searing topics. Most notably, he has developed dances that explore aspects of AfricanAmerican history, from slavery to the Civil Rights Movement.

Although Watson possessed an active interest in exploring the role of prejudice and ethnic hatred in creating a climate in Europe that led to the persecution and murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime and its collaborators, he had never created a solo dance about the Holocaust.

This summer, Watson attended the Educators’ Conference at Norfolk

Academy, which was sponsored by the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. The creative spark was kindled by one of the authors who spoke at the conference: Alexandra Zapruder, who spent more than a decade creating Salvaged Pages: Young Writers’ Diaries of the Holocaust.

Watson began reading the volume and got hooked. He decided to create a dance inspired by the diary entries of Klaus Langer about a young German girl’s experience of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. In November 1938, Kristallnacht was an organized wave of anti-Jewish attacks that took place in Germany and Austria, when rioting mobs looted thousands of Jewish businesses and pillaged or torched 267 synagogues, with an

estimated 30,000 Jewish men arrested by the Gestapo.

The dance was featured in Norfolk Academy’s fall dance concert with Mary Alice Russell ’18 as the soloist. Russell has acted in school plays and taken dance lessons with Watson since her Lower School years. She performed last year as Glinda the Good Witch in Norfolk Academy’s Winter Musical, The Wizard of Oz. Watson says that Russell’s experience was crucial.

“You have to bring the ugly! You have to do that to create the empathy.”

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18 | Jewish News | Education | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Steve Budman.

Esther Diskin

“I needed a dancer who could act,” he says. “Many dancers are afraid to immerse themselves in the acting process.”

Still, the harrowing aspects of the situation posed an incredible, even exhausting challenge, Russell notes. “I am usually a happy, positive person. I have played happy roles and some sassy roles. I had never played someone who faced, and will face, oppression.”

The dance takes place on a bare stage, save for a large, plush armchair at the center, where a young girl reads a magazine. She seems entertained, until something catches her eye as she flips the pages, and her mood briefly darkens. After an interval, she puts down the magazine and twirls around the room, seeming to delight in her solitude; at one point, she seems to hear some disturbance but decides to ignore it.

As she returns to the chair and appears

Elbert Watson.

to doze off, the theater fills with the sound of shattering glass; as the girl leaps about the room in panic, the audience shares her fear, as the crackling, crunching sound of glass continues for several unbearable minutes. When the girl tips over the chair and hides behind it, the audience fully appreciates the depth of her terror.

Watson acknowledges that those moments, and the actions of the dancer stuffing her suitcase frantically and then heading out the door, are not beautiful to watch. “I have seen pieces done about the Holocaust, and some of them are moving, but they are also sometimes pretty,” he says. “You have to bring the ugly! You have to do that to create the empathy.”

Watson says that he plans to continue developing the dance about Kristallnacht, and perhaps get one of the dancers in his professional troupe to perform it. For Russell, even after stepping out of that character, the impact of the dance shapes her thinking about world events and even personal activism.

“It is hard for me to think about how the character is fighting for her life.… Her life, as she has known it is over,” she says.

“It was a terrible, terrible thing. It cannot happen again.”

Education Matters ADL resource helps college students learn how to deal with anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias on campus New York, NY—The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has a new, multi-platform resource to equip college students with essential information and tools to deal with anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias on campus.

‘THINK. PLAN. ACT.’ is a comprehensive resource that prepares students for encounters with anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias by defining what constitutes anti-Jewish animus, anti-Zionism, and anti-Israel rhetoric and provides students with proactive strategies to deal with anti-Semitic incidents and prevent anti-Israel activity on campus. Through scenarios, videos and how-tos, the resource identifies examples and appropriate responses to common anti-Israel and anti-Semitic incidents students face, which include: • Mock anti-Israel demolition notices; • Swastikas and other forms of anti-Semitic vandalism; • Key information on free speech issues, including a set of tips on how to work with college administrators.

As part of the project, ADL produced an online resource featuring a series of testimonials of personal anecdotes from students who have confronted anti-Israel activity or experienced anti-Semitism on their respective campuses as well as a video explaining anti-Semitism and anti-Israel bias. The resource is available online at www.adl.org/ThinkPlanAct. Hard copies of the publication are available.

“The reality is most Jewish students and pro-Israel advocates have positive experiences on campus. However, some students continue to face anti-Semitic incidents on their campuses as well as anti-Israel activity, some of which crosses the line into anti-Semitism,” says Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “With this resource, we hope to give students the tools to respond effectively. Students should know there’s great support on campus for them from the administration and Jewish life groups.”

Investments Coming Jan. 22 To advertise call 757.965.6100 or email news@ujft.org Ad deadline Jan. 5 Reserve your space now!

MORE THAN AN EDUCATION.

AN INSPIRATION. Join us for our Pre-K through grade 12 OPEN HOUSE on Saturday, January 20, 2018 at 2 p.m.

For more information or a personal tour, contact our Director of Admissions, Mary Peccie at (757) 480-1495 or visit norfolkcollegiate.org.

Lower School Campus Grades Pre-K through 5 5429 Tidewater Drive, Norfolk

Middle/Upper School Campus Grades 6-12 7336 Granby Street, Norfolk

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 19

Education Matters Virginia Arts Festival’s education outreach makes learning leap to life Alli Focke

F

or more than 20 years, the Virginia Arts Festival has brought renowned artists from around the globe to Hampton Roads. In addition to the packed schedule of world-class performances, the Festival reaches out to students each year. In fact, during the past school year, more than 39,000 area students saw performances and many even interacted with artists, allowing them to experience worlds beyond the classroom.

Virginia Arts Festival’s WorldClass® Education programs offer opportunities to explore the beauty and the power of the arts. Special student matinees allow students to feel the thrill of live performance in a theater or concert hall, and then incorporate the experience into class discussions and projects that open students’ minds to new ways of learning. The Festival also schedules in-school performances or master classes Richard Alston Dance instructs a group of Governor’s School for the Arts dance students on May 2, 2017.

that bring these renowned artists into the classroom to share their gifts, their knowledge, and their experiences.

“We take a very collaborative approach to our programs, working with teachers to supplement and enrich their curriculum,” says Christine Foust, director of education and community engagement at the Virginia Arts Festival. “We listen to their goals, needs, and concerns and work together to prepare students for our education programs.”

The Festival can bring a string quartet into a school where a student who is studying cello may hear their instrument performed at a professional level for the first time, says Foust. “When a young thespian or dancer attends a performance, it can open their eyes to the possibilities of what they are studying. It is a really meaningful and motivating experience that students might not get otherwise.”

WorldClass® Education programs set for 2018 include Macbeth with the American Shakespeare Center on Tour ( January 17); storyteller Charlotte Blake Alston

20 | Jewish News | Education | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Royal Winnipeg Ballet leads a dance masterclass at Brickell Academy on March 30, 2017.

(February 8); Rhythm Live! (February 23); Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (March 2); Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra (April 20); and the Virginia International Tattoo (April 25–27). Dozens of in-school performances, workshops, and master classes are also planned. For full details on these programs and more information, visit www. vafest.org/education.

Education Matters

Small School ...BIG IMPACT

Starting a B’nai Tzedek fund comes naturally for Liora Kaplan

A

Barb Gelb

bright, articulate, and very composed 13-year-old who became a Bat Mitzvah last month, Liora Kaplan also became a philanthropist, starting a B’nai Tzedek Teen Philanthropy Fund at the Tidewater Jewish Foundation.

Liora learned about B’nai Tzedek over a year ago when her father, Scott Kaplan, TJF’s president and CEO, first launched the program and asked Liora’s opinion of the flyer Liora Kaplan. being created for the program.

Liora says she chose to participate in the B’nai Tzedek Teen Philanthropy Fund because she thought it would be a way to continue doing something Jewish after her Bat Mitzvah.

Not surprisingly, the Kaplan family already has a tradition of Tzedakah. Each Hanukkah, they designate one night that they don’t get presents, but instead give Tzedakah, deciding where to give as a family. For Liora, then, making the decision to start her own fund was a natural continuation of what she learned from her family about giving.

When a teen donates $250 or more to start a philanthropic fund, TJF matches up to $250. Each year the teen gets to make a distribution of 5% of their fund to a Jewish charitable organization.

Liora says she hopes to use her fund to help people who need it and to make a difference. She thinks other teens should get involved too, saying, “They’ll feel good about it in the future—it’s a great way to continue to be involved.”

For more information on starting a B’nai Tzedek Fund, contact Barb Gelb at bgelb@ujft.org or 757-965-6105.

ATTENTION HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS! Announcing the 2018 Stein Family College Scholarship Applications are now available at: www.JewishVa.org/TJF-Stein Applications deadline is March 30, 2018

OPEN HOUSE Jan 7, 2018 2 pm - 4 pm

Child-Centered Environment Emphasis on Integrity and Responsibility A Partnership with Parents A Community of Inclusion An Environment for Learning

YEARS

Questions? Contact Barb Gelb at 757-965-6105 or bgelb@ujft.org HON O R B E FO R E H O N O R S

EDUCATING CHILDREN GRADES K-8 419 Colonial Avenue • Norfolk, Virginia (757) 627-1383 • www.thewilliamsschool.org

The Williams School admits students of any race, color, religion, national and ethnic origin.

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 21

Education Matters Hillel International’s ‘Jewish College Bound’ tool helps students make connections WASHINGTON—One of the greatest challenges for college students can be finding a place on campus where they feel at home and can form a community in an unfamiliar place. As the center for Jewish life on 550 college campuses around the world, Hillel helps ease students into the college experience and provides ways to

make new friends and connections.

It’s possible for the process to start even before students step foot on campus through Jewish College Bound, Hillel International’s tool to connect incoming freshmen with their local Hillel. Parents, youth group advisors, or students themselves can submit the students’ contact

information and receive information from local Hillel staff and student leaders.

“Even for students who aren’t sure how to get involved in Jewish life, Hillel can show them numerous opportunities to find their home away from home on campus,” says Paige Gutter, a rising junior at Miami University of Ohio.

Jewish College Bound is part of Hillel’s efforts to ensure students find a community on campus where they can create the connections that will ensure their Jewish futures and solidify their cultural and religious identity in ways that represent their own unique backgrounds and life goals.

Have an out of the ordinary winter at the Simon Family JCC. Enjoy arts, crafts, cooking workshops, swimming, science projects, and more!

Camp Dates: December 21st - December 29th Monday through Friday 6 am to 6 pm Pre-Registration required For more information and to register, call 757-321-2338 or visit www.SimonFamilyJCC.org.

22 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Education Matters This classroom job in my kid’s pre-K made me a Jewish day school believer Carla Naumburg

(Kveller via JTA)—For some parents, sending their children to Jewish day school is a given. Perhaps they went to day school and want that same experience for their kids, or perhaps they didn’t and wish they had.

This was not the case with my husband and me. He’s a day school grad who felt no particular need to continue that legacy. As the product of a completely secular upbringing, I have often wished for a stronger Jewish education, but I wasn’t sure if that was enough of a reason to justify the financial burden and schlepping required to get my girls across town each day to a Jewish school.

Nonetheless, when my older daughter reached pre-K, I found myself touring two of the four Jewish day schools within driving distance of our house. During those tours, it was apparent that my girls would get a strong secular education, as well as fluency in Hebrew, a strong Jewish identity, and a deep understanding of Jewish texts, values, and practices that I never got as a kid.

Most of all, they’d know where they came from, where they belong and where they could always return. I loved that.

But I wondered if my husband and I couldn’t give our daughters a good-enough Jewish education and identity—with the help of our synagogue, Hebrew school, and extended family. We could hire a tutor, send them to Jewish summer camp and visit Israel.

That would be enough, wouldn’t it?

For us, day school would be a leap of faith, and I remember the exact moment I saw clear to make that leap. Josh and I were touring the kindergarten classroom at the Jewish Community Day School outside of Boston. In many ways, it looked the public school kindergarten classroom I remember from own upbringing, just with more Hebrew.

There was a large circular rug on the floor with each child’s name written on strips of tape. Small plastic chairs were

situated at round tables with the kids’ names in English and Hebrew. The walls were covered with the alphabet and Aleph Bet, and kids’ artwork. A toy Shabbat set complete with wooden candlesticks, kiddush cup and challah sat on a small table.

There were blocks and legos, costumes and masks, and lots of books in Hebrew and English.

You walk your classmate to the nurse’s office even if he’s the one who kicked you yesterday, even if she’s the girl you excluded at recess, because that’s what Judaism teaches.

The teacher led us to a board on the wall that listed all the classroom jobs, with a space for a child’s name next to each role. There was the beloved line

leader, of course, and several other fairly common roles.

But I was captivated by one particular job: the class comforter. The class comforter has two primary responsibilities: to accompany a sick classmate to the nurse’s office and, along with the teacher, to call children who are sick at home to wish them a “refuah shleimah,” a full recovery.

I felt my eyes welling up as the admissions director described this. I had rarely heard of a school calling sick children at home to check on them, and in the few cases I had it was always the teacher calling, often with a reminder about making up work.

This was something entirely different.

This school was not only teaching the Jewish value of “bikkur cholim,” visiting or helping the sick, but it was showing the children how, in the most concrete possible way, to live those values in the context of community.

Being part of a community means helping and comforting those who need it, not because you’re their best friend or you’re bored with math. You walk your classmate to the nurse’s office even if he’s the one who kicked you yesterday, even if she’s the girl you excluded at recess, because that’s what Judaism teaches.

I was thinking about my own daughter, a generally healthy child who was frequently home from preschool because of asthma, croup, ear infections, or other illnesses. I was thinking about what it would mean to her to get a phone call from a classmate on a sick day. You matter.

We’re thinking about you. We miss you, and we hope you come back soon.

My own experience of becoming a mother had been so much harder than I’d ever imagined. For the previous five years I had felt confused, anxious and scared.

The sheer number of decisions I had to make on a daily basis was overwhelming, and I frequently worried I was making the wrong choice. It was my community – my family and friends, our neighbors, our synagogue, and the new mother support groups I attended each week – that got me

through it. They gave me advice and ideas, and sat with me as I cried when there was no advice to be given.

I hadn’t really thought about what being part of a community meant before becoming a mother. It was just something I had fallen into by virtue of which dorm I happened to be assigned in college or where I worked. Once I became a mother, I was fortunate to live in a town and be part of a religion and culture that values community.

When we signed up my daughter for day school, we were choosing to be a part of another community—for ourselves and for our children.

My daughters are now in third and second grade at Jewish Community Day School, and they are living and learning the values and practices I had hoped they would. In addition to studying literacy, math, engineering, and other secular subjects, their Hebrew is better than mine.

My younger daughter helps lead services on Friday night. They are grappling with the Torah’s stories, what they mean and how they are relevant to life in the 21st century.

Most important, they are learning, in the words of Ram Dass—a spiritual leader who grew up Jewish in the same town where we live—that we’re all just walking each other home. Or, in some cases, to the nurse’s office.

Carla Naumburg, Ph.D., is a clinical social worker and writer. She is the author of two books, Parenting in the Present Moment: How to Stay Focused on What Really Matters [Parallax, 2014] and Ready, Set, Breathe: Practicing Mindfulness with Your Children for Fewer Meltdowns and a More Peaceful Family [New Harbinger, 2015].

This article was sponsored by and produced in partnership with the Avi Chai Foundation, which is committed to the perpetuation of the Jewish people, Judaism and the centrality of the State of Israel to the Jewish people. In North America, the foundation works to advance the Jewish day school and overnight summer camp fields.

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 23

Education Matters First Person

From Brooklyn to Norfolk State Dr. Scott M. Debb

I

Dr. Scott M. Debb

grew up in a not so religious American Jewish household in a heavily Orthodox section of Brooklyn in the 1980s. I felt disconnected from my culture and outcast from the community, even though it surrounded me. Only a few generations removed from an Orthodox ancestry, I have learned more about my great grandparents’ Eastern European roots, their (cultural) arrival in the U.S., and in particular, my grandmother’s early life growing up on Lower East Side of NYC. She lived through the Great Depression, the fall of Nazi Germany, and was a staunch advocate for civil rights including women’s empowerment and community activism.

She died not to long into 5776, and her

Employment Oppor tunity Director of Summer Day Camp & Children/Family Programming Seeking an energetic, organized, and articulate individual with excellent people skills to oversee and coordinate the Summer Camp and Children/Family Programs at the UJFT/Simon Family JCC. Independent judgment, initiative, and creative program planning skills required.

The ideal candidate enjoys interacting with children and is dedicated to promoting an appreciation for Jewish culture and values. Must be proficient in preparing yearly budgets, maintaining fiscal responsibility, and administrative management with willingness to work evenings, weekends, and holidays.

Experience in hiring, training, and supervising summer camp and volunteer staff, required.

Qualifications include, but not limited to: BA/BS degree from an accredited college or university; 3-5 years proven leadership experience directing a Summer Day Camp and Children & Family Programs; Detail-orientated; Ability to communicate to Jewish, Interfaith, and general audiences; and Strong proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite.

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

Complete job description at: www.simonfamilyjcc.org.

Submit cover letter, resume, and salary requirements to: resumes@ujft.org The United Jewish Federation of Tidewater/ Marilyn and Marvin Simon Family Jewish Community Center is firmly committed to a policy of equal employment opportunity for all qualified persons without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, non-disqualifying disability or veteran status.

Equal Employment Opportunity

24 | Jewish News | Education | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

92 years can be characterized by the image of a physically small 85-year-old great-grandmother taking a city bus to diverse areas of Brooklyn to assist with campaigning on the street leading up to the 44th Presidential election.

I have been inspired by my grandmother’s acumen for facilitating change, and motivated by my relatively new-found connectivity within the Jewish community.

In this age of global connectivity and technology-driven collective knowledge, what it means to be a human is fundamentally changing. We must work to understand how these changes are both a function of, and contribute to, our fastpaced, instant-access world. I never had the opportunity to fully understand my Jewish identity during my childhood, and I can only wonder how I might be different today if technology and connectivity were so omnipresent three decades ago.

Life can be chunked into stages and at this point, I exist in a reality that allows me to impact not just my three children, but also the next cohort of change-makers and leaders of the world. I have worked my way through a semblance of a lowlevel managerial career, into a world of counseling and crisis intervention for at-risk children, and now predominantly university research and teaching students at the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels. To a flaw, I have a passion for this work that transcends the standard 9-5 job, and although it may sometimes appear as workaholism, that is an oversimplification that serves no justice regarding why I do what I do and to the extent that I do it.

I have the privilege of working at Norfolk State University as a professor of psychology. I teach introductory level psychology courses, oversee the undergraduate practicum students getting real-world experience in the field, and assist with coordination and teaching doctoral students in the Virginia Consortium Program in Clinical Psychology, a collaborative partnership between NSU, ODU, and EVMS. I conduct research into quality of life issues, resilience and coping, and more recently cyber-psychology, and I am a research mentor for incoming Doctoral students who share common clinical and research interests. My position has allowed me to create new new curriculum in the area of conflict analysis and the development and coordination of a new masters degree program to be offered at NSU in the area of cyber-psychology.

Engaging in these activities has allowed me to develop friendships with like-minded people across the globe. I have been inspired by my grandmother’s acumen for facilitating change, humbled by the realization of not being able to change the world—a lesson learned daily while working with children and families in crisis—and motivated by my relatively new-found connectivity within the Jewish community. This latter point became undeniable after completing the Hineni Young Leadership Mission to Israel this past June, which was simultaneously the best and worst experience of my life, but ultimately motivated me to become more involved in boards and committees that affect Jews in this area. As part of the Community Relations Council and a member of the NSU community, the goal now is to help connect these two worlds through campus events and outreach activities.

Dr. Scott M. Debb, Licensed Professional Counselor and assistant professor of psychology and practicum coordinator and CyberPsychology director at Norfolk State University.

K-5th

The Hebrew Academy of Tidewater inspires academic excellence within a warm community environment

Guided by four core values: Respect ‫כבוד‬

Community

‫קהילה‬ Repairing the World ‫תיקון עולם‬ Love of Learning ‫תורה לשמה‬

Schedule your tour today!

757.424.4327 | www.HebrewAcademy.net 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23462 Visit our preschool at www.StrelitzEarlyChildhood.org

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Education | Jewish News | 25

Education Matters The David Project Joining Hillel International

Pro-Israel Campus Advocacy group to become part of the Hillel Movement WASHINGTON, D.C.—Hillel International has reached an agreement with The David Project to integrate the pro-Israel group into Hinenu, Hillel’s Israel education and engagement department.

The two organizations have a long-established partnership that will be formalized to serve the missions of both organizations. The David Project will strengthen its proven methodology for building diverse pro-Israel support on campus, while helping Hillel empower Jewish students on campus to create enduring connections to Israel.

“Hillel values the approach The David Project has taken to build strong relationships on campus with a wide array of students to strengthen the pro-Israel community,” says Eric D. Fingerhut, Hillel International president and CEO. “This work complements Hillel’s vision of broadening the network of support for Israel throughout the campus. We are proud to incorporate The David Project into Hillel International and together grow this program to impact more students.”

The David Project reached 10,000 Jewish and

non-Jewish students this past academic year on 45 campuses, cultivating student leaders and organizations as allies for Hillel and the pro-Israel community. The David Project trained activists to engage their peers on campus through individual conversations, group programming and The David Project’s “Israel Uncovered” mission. The David Project empowers 300 interns each year at Hillels to better articulate their support for Israel and reach out to their peers beyond the Jewish community.

“We are eager to begin this new chapter as part of Hillel,” says Phillip Brodsky, executive director of The David Project. “Our partnership with Hillel will strengthen our work so that we can continue to grow our movement of Jewish and non-Jewish students excited to talk about Israel and bring their communities together.”

The David Project will continue to be led and staffed by its current employees under the guidance of an advisory board to be created together with Hillel. It will gain access to Hillel’s operational, development and marketing infrastructure, management team, and vast campus

The David Project reached 10,000 Jewish and non-Jewish students this past academic year on 45 campuses, cultivating student leaders and organizations as allies for Hillel and the pro-Israel community. network and partnerships.

The David Project and Hillel International have been close partners for more than five years, and currently work together on 45 campuses. The mission of The David Project will remain unchanged: empowering Jewish and non-Jewish student leaders to build mutually beneficial and enduring partnerships with diverse student organizations so that the Israel community is integrated and valued on campus.

Winter Children’s Classes Starting January 3 | Ages 3–8 Yoga With Brigitte!

Develop concentration and build self-confidence by connecting body and mind.

Cheerleading With Message in Motion

Learn basic cheer techniques such as motions, jumps, chants and cheers, dance, and stunts.

Princesses and Superheroes with Little Scholars Save the world from evil-doers everywhere in this interactive and high energy class.

Wiz Kids with Little Scholars Explore the world of science through everyday objects, experiments, and encounters.

For more information, or to register, visit www.SimonFamilyJCC.org/ChildrensClasses or contact Jasmine Edwards: jedwards@simonfamilyjcc.org or 757-321-2327.

26 | Jewish News | Education | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Tidewater Jewish Foundation First Person

Tax laws in flux: Give now!

Scott Kaplan, president & CEO, Tidewater Jewish Foundation

Y

ear-end is often the most opportune time to consider financial and tax planning strategies.

As this article is being written, Congress and the White House are negotiating significant changes in the Scott Kaplan. tax laws that could, if enacted, impact financial strategies and tactics. This makes it more important than ever to meet with advisors to review your investment portfolio and consider tax, financial, and charitable giving strategies before December 31. Things may become clearer as year-end approaches, but this will require you to be flexible and prepared to act in a short timeframe. It appears that most changes in the tax code would be effective after the start of 2018.

Tried and true year-end tax strategies generally revolve around shifting some tax burden to a future year. Deferring receipt of a bonus payment to 2018, accelerating deductions into this year by prepaying a deductible expense, or making larger charitable gifts all can lower this year’s tax bill. Keep in mind however, that you may need to factor in the application of the alternative minimum tax (“AMT”) to determine if shifting income and deduction strategies provide maximum savings in your financial situation.

Comprehensive tax reform is expected to repeal the AMT for future years, but it will most likely remain in place for 2017 and would need to be addressed in your calculations. And if tax reform cuts back or eliminates other deductible items such as state and local income tax or property taxes, it may make sense to consider accelerating the payment of these items after factoring in the application of the AMT. Keep in mind that for those who itemize their deductions, gifts of cash to public

charities such as the Tidewater Jewish Foundation are fully deductible, up to 50 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI).

Any excess can be carried forward and could be deductible for up to five years.

Tax reform could increase this AGI limitation for cash gifts to 60 percent starting in 2018.

With the stock market at an all-time high, this year-end is an opportune time to review your investment portfolio and consider timing the recognition of capital gains and losses for assets held long-term (more than one year) and shortterm. Under most tax reform plans, it appears that most capital gains sales will remain “tax advantaged” with a top rate of approximately 24 percent. Part of your capital asset review could be consideration of a gift of appreciated securities to charities. For example, you can avoid paying capital gains tax on the value of securities transferred to TJF and may be able to receive a charitable deduction for the full fair market value of the securities at the time of the gift.

Remember that gifts of appreciated assets are fully deductible up to 30 percent of adjusted gross income. Again, any excess can generally be carried forward and be deductible for up to five years.

Donating appreciated stock, either to create a donor-advised fund (“DAF”) at TJF, or adding such securities to an existing DAF in 2017, is an excellent way to maximize tax saving from such gifts, as well as provide a vehicle from which you can make recommendations for future charitable grants. Currently, TJF offers a program where it adds $2,500 to a new DAF of at least $7,500, increasing the amount of future grants you can recommend.

Estate Taxes and Life-time Giving It is expected that any comprehensive tax reform plan will make significant changes (including potential repeal) to the estate tax, the generation-skipping transfer tax, and perhaps the gift tax. Such changes,

if enacted, could dictate modifications to estate and bequest planning, as well as lifetime gifting strategies. Again, keep a close eye on Washington to see how tax reform could impact your current estate plan.

TJF professionals remain available to work with you and your other professional advisors to maximize the benefits of these and other tax planning strategies for you and the Jewish community.

For more information, contact Scott Kaplan, president and CEO of Tidewater Jewish Foundation at 757-965-6109.

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, tax, or financial advice. When considering gift planning strategies, always consult with your own legal and tax advisors.

With the stock market at an all-time high, this year-end is an opportune time to review your investment portfolio and consider timing the recognition of capital gains and losses for assets held long-term (more than one year) and short-term.

MEDITERRANEAN SALAD greens, shrimp, artichoke, mushrooms, radishes, feta, pepperoncini, sardine, white anchovy, beets, tomato, cucumber, chickpeas, egg, fresh herbs, red wine.

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 27

holidays

Strategies to stay on course with a healthy diet—even during the holidays Sandra Porter Leon, MS, RDN

’T

is the season for joy, but also the time of year that can derail your diet. With a little planning and willpower, you can enjoy grandma Ellie’s latkes and other culinary delights during the holidays, without feeling deprived or defeated. You don’t need miracles, just a few strategies to help navigate such temptations without over-indulging.

Replace mindful eating for holiday eating Celebrating the holidays can be joyful, but often laden with stress—a trigger that can raise cortisol hormones and encourage mindless eating behavior. Inserting mindful tools does not have to mean an hour morning meditation, but simply taking a few breaths before a meal in order to visualize eating with control, chewing bites slowly, and enjoying the smell and taste of each bite.

Stick to the plate Noshing at social gatherings can easily amount to 500–1,000 extra calories.

Successful dieters vow that the small plate rule is invaluable in reducing total intake, as well as tricking your brain that you are eating bigger portions.

28 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Sandra Porter Leon, MS, RDN

Eat before the party Fill up on healthy snacks that include salad, fruits, vegetables, and lean protein before a holiday party so you arrive satiated and have the willpower to eat just one sufganiyot, the deep-fried Israeli doughnuts—or even split with a friend, enjoying a few bites without all the guilt.

Another trick is to keep gum and mints handy to deter overeating.

Plan. plan. plan.

On those days without holiday obligations, stick to your diet and workout plan (try to fit in at least 150 minutes

of exercise per week). On the days that require more willpower, cut out the morning Frappuccino in order to make room for that extra indulgence. Anticipate the extra calories and plan accordingly.

Go easy on the alcohol How can you resist that second Margarita with the seven-layer dip at the office holiday party? Salty appetizers encourage increased libations that can add an additional 250–500 calories. Start with the other bubbly, a club soda and a splash of juice, then enjoy a glass of wine, light beer, or a low-calorie cocktail like a gin and tonic. Extra alcohol consumption can lead to increased appetite, as well as poor sleep, which can lead to weight gain.

Tidewater Jewish Foundation congratulates all of our LIFE & LEGACY partners on a fantastic first year.

Thank you to all of our legacy donors for securing our Jewish future.

Catch enough zzz’s With all the late night parties and out-oftown guests, you may feel sleep-deprived, which sets the stage for increased stress hormones and high-carb cravings, adding 250–300 empty calories per day. Shoot for at least seven hours of sleep per night!

Keep hydrated Do not confuse hunger with thirst, especially between meals. Instead of mindlessly reaching for the mixed nuts, keep a 16-ounce bottle filled with fruit-flavored water or tea nearby so you are prepared for a quick drink when the snacking urge overwhelms.

Divide and conquer Friends and family often show their love through food, and the holiday season is that time of year where a plethora of goodies is easily accessible. When one client received a tin of Harry and David’s chocolate covered cherries, she divided them in several zip lock bags and put them in the freezer to enjoy as an occasional treat. Out of sight, out of mind, out of mouth. If you don’t have that kind of willpower, re-gift, or give away!

Good luck and get set for success!

Sandra Porter Leon is a professor at Tidewater Community College where she teaches classes in nutrition and public health.

HEBREW ACADEMY OF TIDEWATER

H EBREW A CADEMY T IDEWATER

OF

HEBREW ACADEMY OF TIDEWATER

H EBREW A CADEMY T IDEWATER

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For more information on LIFE & LEGACY or to make your commitment for the Jewish future, contact Barb Gelb at bgelb@ujft.org or 757.965.6105. jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 29

it’s a wrap

Israel Today’s Rachel Fish speaks with myriad groups Wendy Weisman

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“The CRC and NSU Honors College deserve the thanks of the community for putting together such an interesting program on modern Israel, its history, politics, and religious factions,” says Bob Nusbaum, pictured here with Dr. Page Laws.

ducator and editor, Rachel Fish, visited Tidewater in early November, making stops at local high schools, universities, and other public forums along the way.

Fish, associate director of the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies at Brandeis University, began her trip at the Simon Family JCC as part of Yom Limmud, a day of Jewish learning.

She spoke at that event about academic boycotts of Israel and teaching Israel, discussing the concept of bringing academic content and best practices to the teaching of Israel Studies for educators and parents.

The following day began at Norfolk Academy where Fish spoke to the International Relations Fellows on how she created change at the Harvard Divinity School when she was a graduate student.

The next few stops included lunch with community members, an interview with news reporter Mark Martin at Christian Broadcasting Network, and a dinner discussion with students from Virginia Wesleyan University, whose textbook

“Students in Norfolk Academy’s International Relations class enjoyed learning both from Dr. Fish’s scholarship and from her personal story. Her visit to the class generated some great follow-up conversations.”

—Dave Rezelman, International Relations Fellows Program at Norfolk Academy.

“Rachel’s visit was a fantastic opportunity for our students because it showed the impact one person can have if they follow their principles and the importance of being informed and active. The discussion time after her presentation gave them greater insight into some of the current and historical issues affecting Israel and the Middle East. The timing couldn’t have been better as we had a student delegation in Israel while she was speaking to the Academy students.”

—Greg Falls, Partners in Education Coordinator for the Global Studies and World Languages Academy at Tallwood High School.

Mark Martin interviews Rachel Fish at The Christian Broadcasting Network for CBN News.

30 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

requirement is Fish’s Essential Israel: Essays for the 21st Century, a compilation of essays from authors describing the cultural, political, and historical landscape of Israel. The evening ended with a speaking event at Virginia Wesleyan University for students and faculty. It was based on the topic, What Does it Mean to be Literate about Israel in the 21st Century?

Fish’s third day in Tidewater included a visit to Tallwood High School’s Global Studies and World Languages Academy,

a panel discussion at the Robert C. Nusbaum Honors College of Norfolk State University with panelists Rev. Dr. Melvin T. Blackwell of Little Zion Baptist Church and Dr. Craig Wansink, director of the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom Virginia Wesleyan College. Her visit concluded at the Simon Family JCC with an Israel Today event presented by the Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.

it’s a wrap

Yom Limmud offered exchange of ideas

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festival of Jewish ideas based on the concept that everyone should be a student and that anyone can be a teacher, Yom Limmud was held on November 12 on the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus. Tidewater Yom Limmud’s goal was to bring people together of all backgrounds and ages to help nurture, mentor, and celebrate Jewish life and learning. The community was invited to learn and teach workshops on any Jewish topic.

The program began with a fascinating lecture by Rabbi Michael Panitz of Temple Israel. He spoke about a 500-year-old copy of the Later Prophets with Rabbi David Kimhi’s Commentary & Censorship.

Ezra Glinter, an award-winning journalist and author, then spoke about a collection of 42 pieces from America’s greatest Yiddish newspaper, The Forward, brought together in English for the first time.

The two breakout sessions which followed the two speaakers captured the unique spirit of Limmud. Attendees could choose from 19 different lectures, workshops, and discussions. Led by community members and professional educators, embracing the personal development, knowledge, and skills, were a celebration of Jewish Ideas and growth.

Next, everyone joined together for an enlightening discussion on past and future

of American Jewish Bible Translation, presented by Rabbi Barry Schwartz, JPS director.

Rabbi Jeffrey Arnowitz of Congregation Beth El, and the president of the Board of Rabbis and Cantors of Hampton Roads, made closing remarks, thanking both the presenters and attendees, noting, “This taste of Limmud really showed us everything Limmud can be. The learning was diverse, engaging, and relevant as were the participants and the teachers, both local and imported. I am really excited to bring Limmud back next year with even more excellent learning and to a wider audience.”

Yom Limmud Festival offered a small taste of an international charity based in the UK called Limmud (learning in Hebrew), a model and an inspiration for more than 80 Limmud groups across the world—from Bogota to Beijing, from Jerusalem to Johannesburg, from New Zealand to New York.

As the attendees took one step further on their Jewish journey, they also were part of a global movement that inspires people across the globe.

For more information about Yom Limmud and other programs, contact Adi Abramov, Jewish Life and Learning program coordinator, at 757-321-2334 or aabramov@ujft.org.

Dr. Samantha Vergano, medical genetics specialist CHKD, teaching session.

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jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 31

what’s happening Meet state legislators on Date with the State

Tidewater Learning Connection to host workshops for parents, administrators, and educators

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 7 am–4 pm

Bus leaves from the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus

Issue selection meeting

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Wednesday, Feb. 15, 7 pm

Thursday, Jan. 11, 12:30 pm

TCC Roper Performing Arts Center

Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus

Thursday, Feb. 16, 8:30 am, 1 pm

ach year, members of Jewish communities across the Commonwealth of Virginia travel to the State Capitol in Richmond to collaborate on Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day, also known as Date with the State. This annual event is a powerful forum to communicate with General Assembly members about issues of importance to the Jewish community.

To prepare for this year’s Date with the State, the Community Relations Council’s Legislative Action Committee will host a meeting on Thursday, Jan. 11 to discuss potential issues for the delegation to present to the General Assembly representatives. Past issues have included social service programs, support for local agencies including Jewish Family Service and Beth Sholom Village, the VirginiaIsrael Advisory Board, and combating bias legislation.

On the day of the Date with the State, Tuesday, Jan. 30, the Tidewater delegation will travel by bus to and from Richmond, where the group will divide into teams

to visit the regions’ State Senators and Delegates. Following the appointments with legislators, the delegation will convene for lunch with other Virginia Jewish communal lobbyists. The Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General have been invited to join the group. Following lunch, the group will board the bus to return to Tidewater.

The $36 fee includes a kosher lunch and helps defray the cost of transportation.

Checks made out to the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater (mail to UJFT, 5000 Corporate Woods Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23462, ATT: CRC DWTS) will reserve a space.

Early drop off is available for parents of students at the Strelitz Early Childhood Center and Hebrew Academy of Tidewater, who are attending the Advocacy Day. Pre-registration required with RSVP. For information, contact Wendy Weissman, assistant CRC director at 757-965-6107 or WWeissman@ujft.org.

Simon Family JCC’s Leon Family Gallery

Repairing the World December and January

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roduced by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Repairing the World is comprised of work by Israeli and American photographers known as JDOCU who come together to learn, travel, and document the JDC’s work around the world. Photographs from JDC’s Archives are also included.

JDC is the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian organization, operating in more than 70 countries and helping Jews and others in need to survive and strengthen community.

Founded in 1914, JDC is a non-partisan, unifying force in the Jewish community. Today, JDC works to save the world’s poorest Jews, revitalize Jewish life, empower Israel’s future, and rescue victims of global emergencies.

With local community support, the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater works to meet the challenges facing today’s Jewish community at home and around the world, through a network of local Jewish agencies and overseas service partners, including the JDC. Proceeds from the sales of the Repairing the World exhibit will go to the JDC’s Campaign for the World’s Neediest Jews, above and beyond UJFT’s annual Israel and Overseas allocation.

32 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

Sandler Family Campus

Deb Freeman

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idewater Learning Connection, an initiative of the Hebrew Academy of Tidewater, will present workshops to empower parents, administrators, and teachers with the tools to motivate diverse student populations.

Julie Lythcott-Haims, author of How to Raise an Adult, will provide the keynote address on Wednesday, Feb. 15. LythcottHaims is former dean of freshmen and undergraduate advising at Stanford University. Her work has appeared on TedTalks, PBS, and in Forbes, the New York Times, Slate, and the Chicago Times. She is also host of the podcast, Getting In, which offers students and parents advice about the college application process and serves as an antidote to the college admission “arms race” mentality.

Erin Walsh and Michele Tryon will present workshops on Thursday, Feb. 16.

Walsh is the coauthor of the 10th

anniversary edition of the national bestseller Why Do They Act That Way? A Survival Guide to the Adolescent Brain for You and Your Teen, and a consultant throughout the nation on issues related to digital media, children, and youth.

Tryon is the community outreach coordinator and parent educator for Children’s Hospital of the Kings Daughters. She conducts and coordinates professional and parent workshops, webinars, trainings, and classes throughout Hampton Roads.

TLC’s mission is to offer thoughtful and inspiring parenting and educational programming. It is committed to producing impactful programs that add value to conversations around education, student advocacy, and parental challenges.

Tickets range from $36-$218. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www. tidewaterlearningconnection.org, or contact Patti Seeman at pseeman@hebrewacademy. net or 757-424-4327.

what’s happening Noted local artist’s work will have lead role in new Beth Sholom theater Sunday, Feb. 4, 2 pm First performance will be tribute to mothers and fathers Joel Rubin

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orraine Fink’s iconic artwork hangs on the walls of many Tidewater homes and galleries. A series of designs entitled “Seven Days of Creation” is permanently displayed at the Sandler Family Campus and another inspired by the Torah is outside the social hall of Ohef Sholom Temple.

Now, an image of one of those works will have a unique place at Beth Sholom Village in Virginia Beach.

The piece depicts two young entertainers, a perfect pairing to evoke the type of entertainment that The A’Bisl Theater at Beth Sholom Village will offer. With a mission to deliver “music, comedy, and stageplays with a Jewish twist,” The A’Bisl (that’s a little in Yiddish) will occupy space in the soon to be renovated Pincus Paul multi-purpose room, complete with lighting, staging, a sound system, and more.

“I am so thrilled that we are partnering with Lorraine Fink on this very exciting project,” says David Abraham, CEO Madi Rossettini will direct De Mommas and De Poppas of Beth Sholom on Sunday, Feb. 4 at Beth Village, who Sholom Village, a musical and comedic tribute to parents was among a as the finale to Kahbaid or group of staff Honor Weekend.

Norfolk artist Lorraine Fink (third from right) was joined by family members for the announcement of the logo for The A’Bisl Theater, which includes her original work.

and Fink family members who attended an unveiling of the A’Bisl logo, which includes Fink’s dancing duo. “The A’Bisl will be a true community undertaking, enabling local singers, dancers, actors, and comics to share their skills and talents in front of appreciative audiences, either in a dinner theater or general seating format.”

A sneak peak of the programming planned for The A’Bisl—which will not be fully ready for prime time until next fall —will take place as the finale to Kahbaid (Honor) Weekend, which will celebrate the fifth commandment to honor parents.

Called De Mommas and De Poppas, it will feature a host of local individuals from inside and outside the Jewish community, performing songs, comedy routines, and monologues from Jewish shows. Madi

BINA High School’s Shabbos Dinner Friday, Jan. 19, 6 pm B’nai Israel Congregation Adults: $25; Children 4-11: $15; and Family: $125.

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ponsorships available. RSVP by Jan. 15 to info@binahighschool.com or 757-502-9129.

B’nai Israel is located at 420 Spotswood Ave. in Norfolk.

Rossettini, The A’Bisl’s new theater manager and a veteran of local stage shows in New Jersey and here in Hampton Roads, will direct the lively hour-long production.

Lorraine Fink is certainly comfortable working in her studio in her Norfolk home.

Surrounding her are indigenous craft, sculpture, masks, fabrics, and drawings, drawn from trips with her late husband, Dr. Bill Fink, to such places as New Guinea, India, China, Russia, and Israel. Fink, who earned a BFA and MFA in Visual Studies from Old Dominion University, says, “I look forward to seeing what happens at The A’Bisl.” Then with a smile, she suggests a theatrical twist to her logo: “Maybe we should call the logo ‘Shall We Kazatzke’ or how’s ‘Rhapsody in Blueish.’”

YAD Guys’ Night Out: Topgolf Thursday, Dec. 21, 6:30–8:30 pm

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he YAD Guys Night Out will be at Topgolf this month. See who has the longest drive, and test skills on the range alongside YAD guys.

RSVP to Sara Gottschalk at sgottschalk@ujft.org for a spot in one of the bays.

jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 33

what’s happening

Calendar

Tidewater Chavurah’s Second Friday Shabbat Service Friday, Jan. 12, 7 pm

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idewater Chavurah’s Second Friday Shabbat Service will take place at the home of Hal and Elaine in the Great Neck Meadows area of Virginia Beach. Rabbi Ellen Jaffe-Gill will lead the service, with prayers and joyful songs. A “congregation without walls,” events are held in members’ homes or at other locations. An Oneg will follow. New faces are always welcomed.

For event information and location address, email carita@verizon.net or dlqt@cox.net or call 499-3660 or 468-2675. Go to www.tidewaterchavurah.org or Tidewater Chavurah Face book page for upcoming events.

mazel tov to

Birth Fay and Charles Silverman on the birth of their first grandchild, Frederick Quinn Silverman. Born November 17,

2017 to Sam and Nicole Silverman of Columbus, Ga., he is the nephew of Paul (PJ) Silverman. His grandparents are “thrilled, proud, and over the moon!”

Mazel Tov submissions should be emailed to news@ujft.org with Mazel Tov in the subject line. Achievements, B’nai Mitzvot, births, engagements and weddings are appropriate simchas to announce. Photos must be at least 300k. Include a daytime phone for questions. There is no fee.

SAVE THE DATE

Monday, December 25, 2017 7 am - 2 pm

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Annual Switch Day Spend time with residents!

Volunteer activities include: • Serving food • Reading books • Playing board games l for residents • And, more!

A Switch Day socia & volunteers begins

at 2 pm

For additional information or to reserve a spot, call or email Sara Incheck at 757-282-2384 ext 412 or sincheck@bethsholomvillage.com

34 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

DECEMBER 20, WEDNESDAY Seniors Club. Celebrate Hanukkah with Israeli songs, bingo, prizes, traditional food, and more. 1:30 pm. Open to all seniors. Simon Family JCC. RSVP to Melissa Eichelbaum, program associate at 321-2341 or MEichelbaum@ujft.org.

December 25, Monday Switch Day. Beth Sholom Village. 7 am–2 pm. Spend time with residents and serve food, read books, play board games and other activities. Switch Day social for residents and volunteers at 2 pm. For additional information or to reserve a spot, call or email Sara Incheck at 757-282-2384 ext 412 or sincheck@bethsholomvillage.com.

December 31, Sunday Brith Sholom Annual New Year’s Eve Extravaganza at Beth Sholom Village at 6 pm (pictures at 5:30 pm). New this year is a non-alcohol cocktail time and dessert table. Other features include a photo booth, dancing, live entertainment by Fond Memories, hats, and party favors. The evening will close with a non-alcohol toast. $25 per couple or $12.50 per member; $45 a couple or $25 per person, for guests. Call LeeAnne Mallory at 757-461-1150 or email at Brith.Sholom1@hrcoxmail.com for menu or for joining information.

January 11, Thursday Help choose which issues the CRC takes to Richmond for Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day on Jan. 30. To RSVP (required) for this 12:30 pm lunch meeting at the Sandler Family Campus, or for more details, contact Wendy Weissman, assistant CRC director at 757-965-6107 or WWeissman@ujft.org. See page 32.

January 19, Friday BINA Shabbos Dinner. B’nai Israel Congregation. 6 pm. RSVP: info@binahighschool.com or 757-502-9129. See page 33.

JANUARY 20, SATURDAY—JANUARY 28, SUNDAY 25th Virginia Festival of Jewish Film presented by Alma* and Howard Laderberg and Patricia and Avraham Ashkenazi. See page 12, visit SimonFamilyJCC.org/FilmFestival, or call 321-2304.

January 28, Sunday Super Sunday at Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus. United Jewish Federation of Tidewater’s annual phone-a-thon. 10 am–1 pm. Contact Jasmine Amitay at 757-965-6138 or jamitay@ujft.org. www.jewishva.org/SuperSunday.

January 30, Tuesday The Community Relations Council of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater travels to Richmond for the annual Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day. 7 am–4 pm; leave from the Sandler Family Campus. $36 includes kosher lunch and helps defray the cost of transportation. For more information about how to join this year’s delegation, or to RSVP (required) by January 25, visit www.JewishVa.org/CRCDateWiththeState or WWeissman@ujft.org. See page 32.

FEBRUARY 7, WEDNESDAY Beyond the Book Festival event with Michele Streit Heilburn, author—Celebrate the Holidays Your Way with Matzo, 35 Recipes for Passover and All Year Long. 7:30 pm, location TBA. For more information or to RSVP, contact Adi Abramov, Simon Family JCC’s Jewish Life and Learning coordinator at 321-2334 or AAbramov@simonfamilyjcc.org.

FEBRUARY 12, MONDAY CRC, Simon Family JCC, and community partners present Israel Today with policy expert Aaron David Miller at the Reba and Sam Sandler Family Campus. 7:30 pm. Free. For more information or to RSVP, visit JewishVA.org/IsraelToday, contact Melissa Eichelbaum at 321-2304, or meichelbaum@ujft.org.

Send submissions for calendar to news@ujft.org. Be sure to note “calendar” in the subject.

Include date, event name, sponsor, address, time, cost and phone.

Nadiv lunches at Scope

WHO KNEW? James Franco to direct, star in film about poet Shel Silverstein

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ctor and director James Franco will direct and star in a film about children’s book author and poet Shel Silverstein.

The film, based on the book A Boy Named Shel, by Lisa Rogak, will focus on Silverstein’s personal life and professional struggles, Deadline Hollywood first reported.

Silverstein, who was born into a Jewish family and grew up in Chicago, is the author of the well-known children’s poetry collections Where the Sidewalk Ends and The Light in the Attic, as well as the children’s book The Giving Tree.

He also illustrated his books and collections. Silverstein also was a singer-songwriter and screenwriter.

Franco, who is Jewish, is fresh off his latest success, The Disaster Artist, a biographical comedy-drama film that chronicles the making of Tommy Wiseau’s 2003 cult film The Room, a critical flop that went on to become a cult classic. Franco and the film are reported to be in contention for several Oscars this year. (JTA)

SodaStream enters Latin American market through Argentina BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA)—The Israeli company SodaStream will begin operating in Argentina as a first step toward selling its products throughout Latin America.

The sparkling water brand will invest approximately $36 million in its first industrial plant in Argentina.

“Here is the first country where we are going to settle with an office, then we will go to Brazil, Uruguay, Chile and Colombia,” CEO Daniel Birnbaum announced in Buenos Aires. “For us, Argentina is the capital of Latin America.”

The Argentina factory will manufacture the soda-making equipment for the

country’s market, as well as some merchandise to be shipped to the region. The factory will employ approximately 100 people.

SodaStream, which is well known for its home carbonation machines of the same name, also launched a website in Spanish and sells its products in major cities throughout the country.

Among the factors triggering the decision to establish the plant in Argentina is the large consumption of soda and recent agreements signed between Argentina and Israel. Argentina is the second-largest consumer of soda in the world, with 80 liters per capita annually, behind Germany, with a soda consumption of 160 liters.

In September, during the first visit of a sitting Israeli prime minister to Argentina and the region, Benjamin Netanyahu and Argentine President Mauricio Macri signed acooperation agreement between the countries to promote investment and trade.

In September 2011, Argentina signed a free trade agreement with Israel.

Israel’s trade agreement with countries that belong to the South American joint market known as Mercosur—namely Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay—went into effect in June 2010, and in September 2011 with Argentina.

In October 2014, SodaStream announced it would close its factory in the West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim and move to southern Israel in the face of pressure from the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, or BDS, against Israel over its policies toward the Palestinians. The movement claimed that SodaStream discriminated against Palestinian workers and paid some less than Israeli workers. Some 500 Palestinian employees lost their jobs at that time.

The company now has more than 1,400 employees in the Idan Hanegev industrial park near Rahat, one-third of them Bedouin Arabs from the surrounding area.

Members of Nadiv, the new men’s giving circle through UJFT’s Young Adult Division, had lunch in an interesting place on Tuesday, Dec. 12. The group met on the floor of Scope with the owner of the Norfolk Admirals, 28-year-old Ardon Weiner. Nadiv members learned the latest with the hockey team and what it’s been like for Weiner to run the team as a first-time owner.

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obituaries Calvin Warren Breit Virginia Beach—Calvin Warren Breit died peacefully on December 4, 2017 at the age of 92 in Virginia Beach.

He was born on May 6, 1925 in East Orange, New Jersey to Albert and Henrietta (Kessel) Breit and was named after Presidents Calvin Coolidge and Warren Harding, but that did not stop him. Cal (or Callie as he was known to his favorite cousins) spent his young life traveling with his mother and father around the country during the Depression to various cities where his father found work, including Austin, Texas and Duluth, Minnesota, before they finally settled in Norfolk where his father ran a shoe store in Ward’s Corner.

Cal enlisted in the Army at age 18 during World War II and was shipped to France where he served in the 117th Infantry Division in the Lorraine Campaign, before being evacuated with injuries to London, England where he remained hospitalized for six months.

He was awarded the Bronze Star, having been assigned to cross enemy lines alone during a fierce battle when his company was under siege, in order to report the need for assistance.

Upon returning to the U.S. after the war, Cal enrolled at New York University Law School where as a first-year student he was named to the Law Review. His law school education was interrupted when his father became ill; he returned to Norfolk to help manage the shoe business so that his older brother could finish medical school. He completed his legal

education at William & Mary and established a law practice in Norfolk where he flourished, and garnered a reputation as one of the finest trial lawyers in Virginia.

His skills in the courtroom inspired three of his sons to become lawyers, though trying to match his intellect and wit was always a fool’s errand for them.

Cal was also dedicated to his community. He was a founding member of Temple Israel, and an active member of the Jewish Community Center. He was a brave civil rights advocate who traveled to Mississippi during the civil rights movement to lend his support and counsel.

More importantly, Cal was an inveterate, doting grandfather. He loved each of his grandchildren without reservation, showered them with affection, and was a source of great pride to them, as they were to him.

Cal was blessed with the steadfast allegiance and love of his wife, Jakie, to whom he was married for 68 years, and who pre-deceased him in May of this year.

He is survived by his three sons, Mitchell (and wife Marjorie), Billy, and Jeffrey (and wife Suzy); his 10 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

His son Kevin and brother Harvey also pre-deceased him.

Funeral services were held at Temple Israel.

Contributions in Cal’s memory may be made to Jewish Family Service of Tidewater, Hospice and Palliative Care.

Online condolences may be made to the family at hdoliver.com.

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Eileen S. Gatling CHESAPEAKE—Eileen Sandra Gatling, 76, died December 5, 2017.

Mrs. Gatling was born in Portsmouth, Virginia to the late Harry and Evelyn Laderberg Hassett.

She was a long-time kindergarten teacher’s aide in the Chesapeake School System.

Left to cherish her memory are her loving husband of 35 years, Thomas A. Gatling; children, Joe, Evelyn, Connie, and Kathy; sister, Valerie; and a host of other family and friends.

Donations may be made to Sentara Life Care, c/o the Sentara Foundation, 6015 Poplar Hall Dr., Suite 308, Norfolk, Va. 23502. Express condolences to the family at www.altmeyerfh.com.

Naomi Lauter, who led AIPAC efforts in San Francisco for 50 years SAN FRANCISCO ( J. The Jewish News of Northern California via JTA)—Naomi Lauter, who led Bay Area operations for the American Jewish Public Affairs Committee for more than half a century, has died.

Lauter died Dec. 4 in San Francisco, the city where she was born and lived most of her life. The cause was congestive heart failure, J. reported.

She was 87 and had retired only eight years earlier.

Lauter started as AIPAC’s chief volunteer recruiter in the 1950s, going on to open its Bay Area office in 1983 and serving as its first regional director.

Approaching her 70s, she became a consultant in the late 1990s.

She also played a pivotal role in establishing the San Francisco Holocaust Memorial near the Palace of the Legion of Honor, helped launch services for the Bay Area’s Holocaust survivor population and co-founded the New Israel Fund.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called Lauter “my cherished, close friend and an inspiring force in our community for civil rights, justice and meeting the needs of all people. As a pillar of the San Francisco Jewish community, she worked tirelessly to uphold and enhance the strong U.S.Israel relationship not just in California

but around the country.”

Doug Kahan, executive director of the Bay Area’s Jewish Community Relations Council, remembered Lauter’s commitment to civil rights, high-quality public education, strong Israel-American relations and Holocaust remembrance.

“Many will carry on her work because she was such an effective teacher—and that is her remarkable legacy. And, at the same time, this force of nature will be greatly missed,” he told J. Naomi Ets-Hokin was born in San Francisco to a father who ran an electrical engineering firm and sat on numerous Jewish communal boards and a Hungarian-born mother who volunteered for Hadassah. There were nightly discussions at the kitchen table.

“There was never a night we didn’t go to the Encyclopedia Britannica,” she told J. in a 2010 interview.

While a student at Lowell High School, she met Robert Lauter on a blind date. Before long she joined him at the University of California, Berkeley. The two eventually wed and were married for 61 years.

I. L. (Si) Kenen, who in 1951 founded the agency that later became AIPAC, recruited Lauter to expand the organization’s volunteer base, and she remained one of its most active volunteers for decades. In 1983, she opened AIPAC’s Bay Area office, and after 16 years there she became the organization’s community consultant, traveling the country to train AIPAC staff. She visited Israel more than 35 times.

In addition to her Jewish community activities, Lauter became involved with the civil rights movement in the early 1960s, volunteering with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and later working to desegregate San Francisco schools.

In 2010, Lauter stepped back from the daily grind of her AIPAC duties, but she remained fully engaged with politics, the Jewish community and her growing family. Her husband died in 2012.

Lauter is survived by four children, David, Jonathan, Sarah and Sam Lauter; daughters-in-law Liz, Deborah and Stephanie Lauter; 10 grandchildren and four great-granddaughters. (JTA)

obituaries

William John “Bill” Jucksch

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serendipitous meeting in 2011 spurred a meaningful relationship between the Holocaust Commission and Bill Jucksch. We are so grateful that he allowed us to capture his story of liberating Gunskirchen Lager as World War II came to a close. The hour that he, as an impressionable 19 year old, spent in that pit of Hell, affected him for the rest of his life. He unselfishly opened up and enabled us to continue to share his experience, in his own voice, after he was gone. The world has lost a soft-spoken man of integrity, and the Commission has lost a good friend. May his memory be a blessing.

—Elena Baum, UJFT Holocaust Commission Virginia Beach—William John “Bill” Jucksch, of Virginia Beach, passed peacefully into eternal rest at his residence Tuesday, November 28, 2017.

Bill loved life and lived it to the fullest and loved spending time with his family. Son of Edward and Frances Marie (Beavers) Jucksch, Bill was born in McAllen, Texas on October 29, 1925.

After spending his early years in urban centers of Chicago, Cleveland, Manhattan, and Jackson Heights, he returned to his maternal family’s rural roots in Neosho, Missouri. While living with his grandparents, John Bransford and Amanda Jane Beavers, he attended Neosho High School where he lettered in football and track.

During his senior year, Bill answered a call to serve his country during World War II. He did so honorably in the United States Army as an Observer/Infantry Liaison Radio Operator assigned to the Headquarters Battery, 607th Field Artillery Battalion, 71st Infantry Division of General George S. Patton’s 3rd Army.

The 71st surged through France, Germany and Austria, breached the Ziegfried Line, assaulted rivers including the Rhine and Danube, and annihilated the German 10th SS Mountain Nord Division while capturing many cities, towns, and nearly 80,000 enemy troops.

In April 1945, Bill and the other members of the four man forward liaison element of the 5th Infantry Regiment discovered and liberated an estimated 10,000 near-death Jews from the death camp Gunskirchen Lager, poignantly documented in a powerful film made for the What We Carry project sponsored by the Holocaust Commission of the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater.

William John “Bill” Jucksch, from What We Carry.

During occupation in Germany, Bill was instrumental in wiring the Nuremberg court, site of the war trials, with audio devices for translation purposes. He separated from service with the rank of Staff Sargent, Battalion Communications Chief, was awarded two battle stars and the French Croix de Guerre. Subsequently, Bill was awarded the distinction of Chevalier (Knight) of the Legion d’Honneur by the President of France. Bill was a true patriot and a life member of the VFW Post 392.

Following WWII, Bill earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri. He relocated to Waterford, Conn. where he began what became a more than 30-year career as an electronic scientist for the US Navy, employed by the Naval Underwater Sound Laboratory (NUSC). He conducted and led research and development related to underwater acoustics aboard over 30 United States naval submarines and surface ships in North and South Atlantic Oceans, Mediterranean, Norwegian, and Caribbean Seas, and the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way, he earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Connecticut and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Northern Colorado. He was awarded the coveted “Decibel” award from the Technical Director of the Navy Underwater Sound Laboratory. He concluded his civil service career as science advisor to the Commander in Chief, US Atlantic Fleet, Norfolk, where he served with distinction from 1979 to 1981. At the conclusion of his career, he received the Navy Superior Civilian Service Award, the highest honorary award the Chief of Naval Operations may bestow upon a civilian employee.

Predeceased by his parents and his brothers William Charles Jucksch and Raymond Jucksch, Bill is survived by his bride of over 60 years, Theresa Gemma (Cattalani) Jucksch, his two sons Jeff (wife Bekki) Jucksch, and Tom Jucksch, three grandchildren, Michael, Avery, and Logan Jucksch, and two great grandchildren, Gemma and Finley Jucksch. Bill is also survived by brothers Ronnie, Gene, and Jimmy, and a multitude of nieces, and nephews.

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jewishnewsva.org | December 18, 2017 | Jewish News | 37

Tidewater

Beth El helps those in need for the holidays Fay Silverman

T

hanksgiving is a perfect time to reach out to neighbors in need and make sure all families are able to enjoy a holiday meal. So, knowing there were families of students at Park Place School (the community school that resides in Congregation Beth El’s building) who may not have been able to enjoy a special meal, became a passion of congregant Patti Wainger.

Along with contributions provided by students from Virginia Wesleyan, gifts from local grocery stores, baskets from Rose and Womble Realty, and a donor contribution through the Ghent TowneBank Branch, Wainger lead a crew of helpers to provide complete meals to 54 families of Park Place School. Every family with a child on food assistance enjoyed a complete Thanksgiving Feast thanks to a group of amazing, zealous Beth El

members.

Soon after the Thanksgiving holiday, Rabbi Jeffrey Arnowitz noticed pictures posted on Facebook of the empty shelves at the Milk and Honey Food Panty at Jewish Family Service. The shelves were depleted by the increased need for Thanksgiving meals. But as the cold weather approached, the needs for many continued to rise, and so Beth El began a Hanukkah Food Drive to help replenish those Food Panty shelves. All members were asked to bring non-perishable food or to make a monetary contribution when attending school, services, or a program. Kosher and non-kosher foods were accepted.

The notice about the food drive was sent to the Sunday School students and the families responded immediately. Older Sunday school students began plans to take a field trip to the nearby Harris Teeter

to do additional shopping.

Sharon Wasserman, director of Congressional Learning, says, “It’s wonderful to see so many people helping others in need. The students used tzedakah contributions collected over a number of months and put these funds to an excellent purpose.”

Hila Zach’s second grade Beit Sefer Shalom class choose items JFS also distributed a while shopping for the JFS Chanukah Gift Program. request for donors to their tzedakah from their heart and they do.”

Chanukah Gift Program. On Sunday, Dec. In his weekly newsletter, Rabbi 4, the students in Hila Zach’s second Arnowitz wrote, “let’s show how grateful grade class used their tzedakah collecwe are for what we have by sharing our tions from this year (along with additional bounty with those who have less—that’s contributions) and visited Target to fulfill how we recognize that everything we the Hanukkah requests for two children have is a gift from God and should be on the list. Zach wrote to the parents shared.” in her class, “the children need to bring

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38 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org

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The heartbeat of our community starts with creating respectful relationships – relationships that elevate all of us beyond our individual potential. Respect at Norfolk Academy engenders joy, fortifies community, and strengthens resolve. Those are outcomes we prize. Norfolk Academy prepares citizen-scholars – young people with the capacity and the desire to effect meaningful change wherever they go.

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40 | Jewish News | December 18, 2017 | jewishnewsva.org