Spring 2009 B'nai B'rith Magazine

B’nai B’rith Regional News Moves to the Web

B’Nai B’rith m

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PUBLISHED SINCE 1886

Spring 2009

Israeli Women’s Roles Grow

Diabetes Impact Increases in Jewish Community

Lower East Side: Fading into Jewish History

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How your support helps B’nai B’rith make a difference on critical issues

Stepping Forward to Cope With Difficult Times

This is the time of year when we sit around the seder table and look back on one of the darkest periods in Jewish history. We rejoice that we were freed from oppression, and we look to a glorious future as we traditionally end the seder symbolically singing, “Next year in Jerusalem.”

Today, we live in a dark period of a different variety. Around the world, almost unprecedented numbers of men and women are out of work, many seniors on limited incomes find their life savings have dwindled to alarmingly low levels, and thousands have been forced to abandon their homes.

From our earliest days, B’nai B’rith has sought to improve the lot of the community. Whether helping widows and orphans in New York in1843, helping Peruvians cope with the devastating 2007 earthquake in that country, or participating in a joint relief team to help provide clothing to 3,500 children escaping to Kenya from war-torn Somalia.

Today is a time when all who can must step forward to help.

We know these are difficult, frightening times for everyone,

but we also know that we have a 165-year history of the men and women of B’nai B’rith stepping forward to help in times of need.

Only with the help of our loyal members and supporters can we continue to deliver thousands of meals to poor and elderly Jews at Passover. Only with your help can we provide essential pharmaceuticals and medical supplies to needy senior centers and nursing homes in the heart of Latin America. Only with your help can we work with other nonprofits to bring clothing to children escaping to Kenya from Somalia.

At this time of year—and especially in this year—there are many worthwhile organizations asking for contributions.

Few, if any, can point to a 165-year history of trust. Few can point to the kind of worldwide network of people helping people that is B’nai B’rith International.

We know these are difficult times, but we trust that we can count on you to let us continue to help the world through your generous contribution.

To see how you can help, contact the Department of Development at 800-573-9057.

B’nai B’rith M a g a z i n e

spring 2009

14 Israeli Women’s Roles Grow

Several key leadership positions in Israel today are occupied by women, for the first time ever. They include president of the Supreme Court, Dorit Beinish; speaker of Israel’s Knesset, Dalia Itzik; and Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gabriela Shalev. And there is Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, whose Kadima Party recently eked out a win in Israel’s elections. With so many women in key leadership positions in government, business, law, and academia, the prominence of women in Israel is not easily dismissed. But, in assessing whether these gains are real or merely symbolic, the more significant question is whether women at the grassroots levels of Israeli society also have seen change.

By Uriel Heilman

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Lower East Side: Fading into Jewish History

For American Jews, the Lower East Side resonates like nowhere else in the country. While Ellis Island represents the extension of freedom and opportunity, the Lower East Side stands for the harsh, but necessary, lower rung that set immigrants on the path to permanent settlement in the New World. But how can the Lower East Side maintain its hold on the Jewish soul when the number of Jews living there decreases and the institutions that once testified to the area’s cultural richness vanish?

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Diabetes and the Jewish Community

Obesity and inactivity are causing diabetes rates to skyrocket. By 2025, according to the International Diabetes Federation, approximately 380 million people will suffer from the disease, which causes blood sugar levels to rise and damages nerves and blood vessels. For the Jewish community, diabetes raises several ethnic-specific questions, especially as Passover approaches: What insulin regimen should be followed at Passover when the meal is eaten later than usual? How much matzo do you need to eat to fulfill the seder mitzvah?

What is the required amount of wine to be consumed?

After years of reporting member-related news in B’nai B’rith Today newsletters, B’nai B’rith International is embracing the technology of the day by unveiling new regional web pages. The new section of www.bnaibrith.org will allow lodges and units to promote their activities more effectively and will supplement the BBT section in B’nai B’rith Magazine.

By Rich Bindell

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At a time of tightening purse strings, Jewish camps that have not prepared for their futures are facing the challenge of keeping their bunks full. With that foresight in their kit bags, B’nai B’rith International’s two summer camps, Beber Camp and Perlman Camp, are investing in their futures with focused marketing programs; by tapping into a supportive alumni community; and by gaining knowledge and help from the summer-camp-oriented Grinspoon Institute.

By Rich Bindell Cover photo illustration by Simeon Montesa.

By Carolyn Vogel Benson

page Israel at War six

By Moishe Smith, President, B’nai B’rith International

BBT Takes to the Web

BBI Summer Camps Thrive Despite Economic Challenges

By Hillel Kuttler

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Curious? See page 10

DEPARTMENTS Editor’s Note 7 From the EVP 8

The Sandwich Generation 42 Jewish Geography - The Jews of Utah 44

Point of View

Israel at War A Personal Reflection

By Moishe Smith President, B’nai B’rith International

F

or eight years, the Jews in the Diaspora sat in their living rooms listening to reports coming from Israel where, almost on a daily basis, innocent civilians were under indiscriminate attack from the Gaza Strip.

Our hearts filled with angst that a terror organization could indiscriminately target civilians going about their daily lives, filling them with fear that at any moment rockets could obliterate a kindergarten, hospital, or senior residence in their town of Sderot and surrounding communities.

With time, the range of the arbitrary attacks grew wider to encompass Ashdod, Ashkelon, and Beersheva. Many of us wondered about, and were in fact perplexed by, Israel’s degree of restraint.

What other democracy would subject its citizens to such an extended and outrageous period of bombardment?

On December 27, 2008, Israel’s words of “enough is enough” resonated across the Diaspora: Operation Cast Lead began.

And, as is their habit, members of the international community once again called for a measured response. Israel continued to be held to a different standard. Very few praised Israel for eight years of restraint, but rather criticized her for finally putting action to the words “enough is enough.”

On January 11, 2009, I landed in Israel and was met at the airport by BBI World Center Director Alan Schneider and Avigdor Warsha and Jorge Stainfeld, both special BBI presidential advisors, respectively from Israel and Uruguay.

Our first stop was the central town of Holon to pay a shiva call on the Rosner

6 Spring 2009

family. Maj. Roi Rosner, 27, was killed a few days earlier by anti-tank fire in Gaza. It was the sixth time during my BBI presidency that I had the sad duty to pay respects to the family of a hero fallen in defense of not only the state of Israel but of every Jew living in the Diaspora.

The next morning, we headed south to Sderot, where we met with the newly installed mayor, David Buskila, and his colleagues in an underground shelter set up as a command post to conduct municipal business.

We met with the Home Front Commander in charge of Sderot during Cast Lead. We toured Sderot and were shown sites hit by incoming missile attacks. Missiles from one such attack landed about three yards from a car where the occupant barely escaped with his life; the impact in the roadway and the shrapnel holes in the car and the surrounding residential buildings were sights staggering to someone who lives in North America.

We visited an Ethiopian school and dropin center where we delivered games and toys for the children. It was the second day back for the students after the center was closed because of rocket attacks; about 80 percent of the students were in class.

I want you to imagine for a moment our children in North America having to attend school where roof fortification is necessary to have safe buildings for attendance.

I want you to imagine going out to recess and having the playground covered with a fortified structure so that children can play without harm.

North Americans would never accept

such conditions and restraint from their government.

The experience was repeated in Beersheva, Ashkelon, and Ashdod, where, over three days, we were subjected to three red alerts, joined the population in running to find cover in a shelter, and listened to the subsequent thuds of the landing missiles.

I felt first-hand the terror from incoming rockets, which have been plaguing the south for all these years.

For the first time in my life, I felt genuine fear. But, regardless of my fear, I realized we must be steadfast in our understanding that Operation Cast Lead was the right thing to do and we need not be afraid to justify this action by the Israeli government.

Experiencing first-hand for several days the fear Israelis, young and old, live with daily only strengthened my resolve that Jews of the Diaspora live in safety and security—because the residents of the State of Israel stand up for us.

As part of our trip, we were also briefed by then-Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Welfare and Social Services Minister Isaac Herzog (who also holds the portfolios for Diaspora, Society, and Fight Against Anti-Semitism), Cabinet Secretary Ovad Yehezkel, and Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz. The briefings were to the point, direct, and very helpful in helping understand the rules of engagement and those for disengagement.

B’nai B’rith International continues to be active in its support for the government and people of Israel, and I was proud to be among the esteemed leadership from many of the Diaspora organizations in

B’nai B’rith

M a g a z ine Spring 2009

Israel showing their support at this most important time.

In Ashkelon, Marty Davis, from the World Zionist Organization, and his wife, Terry, were very helpful. At a briefing by Livni, we were joined by David Harris of the American Jewish Congress and a delegation of 40 members of the French Jewish community, led by the chairman of CRIF, Richard Prosky.

As I finished this column, I learned that Israel undertook a unilateral cease-fire and, as is typical in unilateral action, Hamas fired 16 rockets into Israel as the government was setting up an emergency treat-

ment center at the Eretz crossing to assist in treatment of Gaza civilian population.

Ideally, Hamas will get the message sooner rather than later.

I wish to again thank my special presidential advisor, Jorge Stainfeld from Montevideo, Uruguay, who, on a moment’s notice, said, “Moishe I will meet you in Israel when you land,” and my special advisor, Avigdor Warsha, for his steadfast assistance whenever I travel to Israel. Also, Alan Schneider, for the amazing program he put together in a matter of days so that our presence would be both felt by and effective for the local population.

Editor’s note In this issue of the magazine, we have two stories that relate directly to recent political and military activity in Israel.

First, Uriel Heilman examines the growing societal role of women in the Jewish state. Aside from the Kadima Party’s Tzipi Livni, at this writing still foreign minister, there is the president of Israel’s Supreme Court, Dorit Beinish, whose position is akin to that of chief justice in the United States; the speaker of Israel’s Knesset is Dalia Itzik; and Gabriela Shalev is Israel’s first female representative to the United Nations.

Uri also has a one-on-one interview with Shalev, in which she discusses her role at the U.N. and the recent tense situation in Gaza.

As the magazine went to press, the leaders of Israel’s two largest political parties were immersed in difficult negotiations with smaller parties aimed at forming a ruling coalition, as neither Livni, nor the Likud’s Binyamin Netanyahu, received enough votes to form a government on their own in February’s national elections. Shimon Peres had chosen Netanyahu to form a govern-

ment. The prime minister-designate then had six weeks to form a coalition.

For those of you in B’nai B’rith’s regions and communities, we also have a story announcing the launch of BBI’s new regional and community web pages.

The regional web pages, located in the U.S. Regions and Communities portion of the BBI website (www.bnaibrith.org), include a calendar of events, programming information, and general facts about each region or community in the United States.

The new format allows members to post information on upcoming activities through their regional coordinators and share success stories from past events in a timelier manner than in the past.

And, with the Passover holiday approaching, Carolyn Vogel Benson discusses the two types of diabetes and the unusual challenges facing diabetic Jews, and those who might be susceptible to the disease, during holiday seasons.

We at the magazine and at B’nai B’rith wish you all a Happy Passover.

Hiram M. Reisner Editorial Director B’nai B’rith International

Vol 123, no. 1

Moishe Smith President, B’nai B’rith International Daniel S. Mariaschin Executive Vice President Deborah Auerbach-Deutsch Vice President, Communications & Publisher Hiram M. Reisner Editorial Director Janet Lubman Rathner Senior Editor Rich Bindell Associate Editor Simeon Montesa Art Director Vivian Hayward Graphic Designer Ruth E. Thaler-Carter Copy Editor Theodore Fischer Proofreader Harvey Berk Production & Advertising Manager Advertising Office: Fulton Advertising 301-604-3466 Editorial Offices: 2020 K St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20006 202-857-6681 or bbmag@bnaibrith.org Readership: Approximately 175,000 Signed articles represent the opinions of their authors and are not necessarily the view of B’nai B’rith or B’nai B’rith Magazine. Return postage must accompany unsolicited material, for which no responsibility is assumed.

Contents ©2009 by B’nai B’rith. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A. The B’nai B’rith Magazine (ISSN 1549-4799) (continued on pg. is published quarterly (Spring, Summer, Fall,9) Winter) by B’nai B’rith, 2020 K St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20006, and is indexed in the Index to Jewish Periodicals. Subscription rates: U.S. and possessions, one year, nonmember, $12; Canadian member, $12; Canada non-member, $17; overseas member (outside U.S. and Canada), $36; overseas non-member (outside U.S. and Canada), $48. Members of Hillel and BBYO, $7.50. $5 of member dues goes toward B’nai B’rith Magazine.

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B’Nai B’rith 7

From the EVP

Looking at the Macro of Terror Individual Incidents Have Broader Context

By Daniel S. Mariaschin Executive Vice President, B’nai B’rith International

O

ne day after Israel’s January ground incursion into Gaza, the European Union’s External Affairs minister, Benita Ferraro-Waldner, emphatically proclaimed that “it is absolutely necessary that the violence has to stop.”

The statement begs the question: Where was Ms. Ferraro-Waldner when, for eight years, the terrorist organization Hamas indiscriminately fired thousands of rockets and mortars into Israeli cities and towns?

For that matter, why mention only the one minister, when most of Europe’s leaders were either silent on the subject before the Gaza campaign began at the end of December or “equivocal”—blaming both sides for any violence which has occurred?

The issue goes beyond Israel and Hamas.

To wit: In the midst of the Mumbai terrorist siege and killings, many in Europe and elsewhere sought to frame the crisis as only an India-Pakistan issue, and not within the broader context of a terrorist assault on democracy and countries that maintain close relations with “the West.”

Is it possible that these European leaders, who have the benefit of information we don’t have, are really content with compartmentalizing the threat posed by terrorist groups—even after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Bali, Casablanca, Madrid, and Mumbai, to name only several of the more infamous targets?

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read that Iran is the main supporter of Hezbollah and, increasingly, of Hamas. And yet, European nations refuse to place the former on state terrorism lists and prefer to see 8 Spring 2009

the latter as only Israel’s (and increasingly Egypt’s) problem, as set within the context of the broader Israeli–Palestinian issue.

B’nai B’rith International, through its European Union office in Brussels, has pressed members of the European Parliament to urge their home governments to officially declare Hezbollah a terrorist organization.

Does anyone doubt that this is a group that came into being and lives by terror? Its insinuation into what passes for Lebanon’s parliamentary and cabinet structure allows those unwilling to see the organization for what it is to take a pass at doing the right thing. “It’s part of the Lebanese political system,” they say, “so it’s not just a terrorist organization.”

For years, we’ve heard almost the same thing about Hamas. “They [Hamas] also sponsor schools and clinics, so they are more than just a terrorist group” is the refrain heard most often. Notwithstanding that Hamas is on the terrorism lists of a number of European states, few of the European Parliament countries’ officials (those of the Czech Republic and the Netherlands, for example) were willing to directly place the blame for the Gaza crisis on Hamas’s rocket-based aggression against Israeli civilians.

We have to hope that, after all that has happened over the past eight years, there is some hidden consensus among European Union member states that terrorism is a threat to all of us and that, beyond the obvious local context of each incident, every democracy is threatened by terrorism. Once reaching that conclusion, something has to

be done about it before it is too late.

On the surface, one wouldn’t know it.

One detects a certain “blinders-on” attitude toward all this, which—if not corrected— does not augur well for the future.

In the wake of Israel’s war against Hezbollah in 2006, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1701, which called for the deployment of a large international force to Lebanon.

The purpose, as stated at the time, was not just to create a buffer between Israel and Hezbollah but to prevent the re-arming of Hezbollah.

The unambiguous result: In the twoand-a-half years since the resolution was adopted and those forces deployed, Hezbollah is now estimated to have many more thousands of rockets and other materiel than it did when the fighting began.

As for Hamas and Gaza: The first two attempts at a U.N. Security Council resolution simply called for a cease-fire and an end to hostilities. The Bush administration blocked the first resolution because it did nothing to identify Hamas as the initiator of hostilities and—equally important— failed to prescribe a mechanism for preventing Hamas from ever again firing rockets into Israel.

The issue is not just a matter of Europe looking the other way. Other international players, who should know better, play the same game, intentionally pulling their diplomatic punches or hoping the issue will simply go away.

Our answer to this is to emphasize, when we meet with foreign diplomats, that these

B’NAI B’RITH INTERNATIONAL

crises are not just Israel’s problem. Many of us have been saying this for the better part of four decades, but if the message is being heard, in most cases you wouldn’t know it.

There is some lip service paid by some nations, but most seem to want these situations to go away as quickly as possible.

Band-Aid therapy is the accepted antidote.

After 9/11, much was written about the new challenges posed to the United States and others by the specter of a “long war” with international terrorists. The enemies,

some wrote, don’t wear uniforms, and they aren’t organized in strict military fashion.

But they are every bit as pernicious as enemies of old who did wear uniforms and were so organized.

What was true in 2001 is certainly true in 2009: The world’s democracies, save for a few stouthearted and realistic states and their leaders, have yet to really heed these important lessons.

We really can’t afford to lose any more time for them to get it right.

Mariaschin Speaks After Mumbai Attack B’nai B’rith International Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin spoke last December at a memorial for the victims of the late-November Mumbai, India, terror attack. Among those remembered were Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his pregnant wife, Rivka, who were killed at the Nariman House, the Chabad Jewish community center they ran in Mumbai. The following are Mariaschin’s remarks, in part.

Terrorism is terrorism. Terrorism, whether carried out in the name of religion, politics, or both, can have no possible justification. And terrorism must be recognized as such wherever perpetrated—whether in New York, or in Washington, or in London, or Madrid, or Istanbul, or Bali, or Casablanca, or in Djerba, or in Buenos Aires, or in Munich, or in Mumbai, or in Jerusalem and anywhere else in Israel.

When the significant majority of international terrorist movements and attacks are motivated by the same set of twisted ideologies and goals, the same twisted interpretations of faith, this must be acknowledged publicly and without equivocation. And those responsible for the acts of premeditated and indiscriminate evil—not just the operatives, but the financers, and the harborers, and the inciters, and even the apologists and the appeasers—must be combated, collectively, consistently, and effectively.

Sadly, though, it is unlikely that the world, particularly those with direct influence over the past and would-be murderers, will finally be moved to say “Enough!” to people who enter a

train station or a social-religious center and massacre, with a smile on their face and the name of God on their lips, over 170 random or not-entirelyrandom innocents.

And the world may still not truly distinguish between the piety of violent haters who target journeyers (of all backgrounds) staying in hotels and the piety of a young couple who have moved far from their birthplaces to extend warm, eager, and unquestioning hospitality.

It is appropriate that the Mumbai emissaries of the Lubavitcher rebbe, of righteous memory, were returned to burial in the Holy Land, draped first in the flag of Israel…they were representatives and leaders of the Jewish people, who were killed as Jews, in Jews’ service, along with four of their brothers and sisters in faith—each of them an entire world of stories, good deeds, dreams, and families.

In every generation, we have faced those committed to evil and to our destruction, but we’ve seen even the most formidable adversaries come and go, while we have persevered and remained, as we shall.

International President Moishe Smith Honorary Presidents Gerald Kraft Seymour D. Reich Kent E. Schiner Tommy P. Baer Richard D. Heideman Joel S. Kaplan Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin Honorary Executive Vice President Dr. Sidney M. Clearfield Chairman of the Executive Dennis W. Glick Senior Vice Presidents John R. Rofel Seymour G. Saideman Harold I. Steinberg Jacobo Wolkowicz Treasurer Harold Shulman International Vice Presidents Pablo Sergio Grinstein Argentina Dr. Peter Schiff Australia and New Zealand Matilde Groisman Gus Brazil Rochelle Wilner Canada Hernán Fischman Chile, Bolivia, and Peru John Manheim Europe John P. Reeves Europe Arie Bar Zion Israel Leon Birbragher Northern Latin America and the Caribbean Daniel Mermelstein Uruguay and Paraguay

B’Nai B’rith 9

Keeping Kosher for Passover — at the Zoo

By Janet Lubman Rathner

W

ith Passover on the horizon, there’s no monkeying around with chametz—even if you happen to be a monkey.

That’s the word from the Zoological Center Tel Aviv-Ramat Gan, also known as “Safari,” where as part of Passover preparation, cages and habitats are scoured for crumbs and animal residents are switched to a Kosher-for-Passover diet.

For the primates, that means fare mirroring that of their human cousins.

“Their early-morning feed is two slices of bread,” says Amelia Terkel, curator at the popular tourist attraction, the largest animal collection in the Middle East. “These two pieces are replaced by matzo, so it is not a large change in diet. In fact the novelty acts as an enrichment in their routine.”

Other Safari critters—the elephants, giraffes, and hippos, for example—spend Passover chowing down on a concoction that is tasty but yeast-free.

10 Spring 2009

“It’s a concentrate in a matzo mix. It’s based on legumes, which are not chametz: beans, lentils, chickpeas, etc., plus corn,” Terkel says. “Everybody who eats grains or pelleted food gets it.”

While there is nothing in Jewish law requiring that the hoof-and-paw set observe Passover kashrut, human Passover sensitivity does have a role in both the cleaning frenzy and change in cuisine.

“It’s so our visitors won’t be offended and also so our zookeepers won’t have to handle chametz,” Terkel says For the humans involved—Safari employees and guests—there is a practical side to the to-do.

“The enclosures are always kept clean of course. This is important for the good hygiene and health of our animals, [but] this is an opportunity to clean more thoroughly, paint walls, work on maintenance items, and generally brighten the facility,” Terkel says.

Safari also offers the opportunity for guests to fulfill their own Passover obligations.

“As part of their biur [the elimination of ] chamtez, we invite [the visitors] during the week before Pesach, to bring in bread and drop it in a dedicated bin for Yossi the elephant. He eats it before the holiday begins,” Terkel says.

As humorous and good-natured as this may sound, designated chametz receptacles also could be the answer to a dilemma that plagues zoos throughout the world all year long.

Some, like the one in New York’s Central Park, find the situation particularly troublesome around Passover. That is when the Big Apple’s observant Jewish population descends with bread, cereal, cookies, and anything else gleaned from kitchen pantries that contain leavening; all of which gets fed to the animals. This despite prominently posted signage asking visitors not to do so.

“Their weight and calorie intake is monitored and this [unauthorized food] isn’t good for them,” says Kate McIntyre, the Central Park Zoo’s communications manager, reflecting on the deluge of carbs and starch of which zoo dwellers—particularly snow monkeys— are only too happy to accept.

For those who want to feed the animals purely for enjoyment, Central Park’s petting zoo makes a low-calorie grain available. While this does not resolve the issue of chametz, it could still be interpreted as a mitzvah.

“It’s for the health of the animals,” says McIntyre, entreating visitors to stick to the posted rules. “People need to know that.”

Both zoos concur with the wide-held credo: “Don’t Feed the Animals.”

Passover or not, leave your chametz at the door. Your furry friends will thank you.

Passover at the Tel Aviv Safari: Matzo see, matzo do.

Photos courtesy of Tibor Jager, Zoological Center Tel Aviv-Ramat Gan

B’Nai B’rith 11

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green, but that is impossible, as only those deserts with underground aquifers or connected to lakes or rivers can be so transformed. Nor can the Negev justify its existence by being the home of sacred sites.

The first requirements for settling the Negev are to retain Israeli the progeny of existDiplomacy’s Diverse ing families and to Face attract the youth of Israel there. The golf course was a first step. The next step was to build a tourist attraction next to the golf course. This would be made possible by attracting golf players from around the world.

There are hundreds of thousands of golf Building up the Negev players who would like to play golf and visit Israel, and a lot of those are business Dear Editor, [people]. There are a number of reasons too A few years ago, I financed an investigation technical to elaborate here on why the Negev into the feasibility of building a golf course should be attractive to IT investors. I suspect in the Negev and, in addition, promised that the huge attraction of a golf course to to send a professional instructor to [teach] non-Jews raises hackles, but Israel could well golf [at] Ben Gurion University as soon as benefit from support from all sides. the golf course was initiated. After several months of research by an Israeli economist, Fraternally, with trips to desert golf courses, the plan Monroe Burk was found to be technically and economiColumbia, Md. cally feasible, and a number of kibbutzim expressed interest in making land available for the golf course.

The feasibility report was written up in the Sports and Us press and seemed to have public support.

Both the university and the agencies whose Dear Mr. Mariaschin, approval was necessary stealthily refused I enjoyed your bylined article, “Finding Jewcomment to me on this report, although ish Pride in America’s Pastimes.” writing the report involved expending quite Particularly close to home was your a bit of money. identification of the late Saul (Mariaschin) The story of Elli and Dalia Rosenberg Marsch, my favorite and most tenacious (Winter 2008) well illustrates how dotennis opponent. gooders can be frustrated by adherence to Actually, a couple of years ago, when I first past myths about the Negev. Ben Gurion saw your name in the magazine, I dropped you pursued a dream about turning the Negev 12 spring 2009

a note and asked if, in fact, you were related to Saul. Now, my strong suspicion is confirmed. I loved your description of him as a “star basketball player” because I’m sure he was.

Even more importantly to me, Saul was a “star” human being. One of the best people I ever met. A fabulous people person, a great raconteur, and a nearly undefeatable opponent on the tennis court because of his super-desire “not to lose to a younger man.”

It has been 19 years since he died, and there isn’t a Friday morning (the day of our regularly scheduled game) that I don’t think about the great times we had together, both on and off the tennis court.

It was a great article beyond your mentioning of Saul. Hank Greenberg was a personal friend of ours. Another terrific guy, inside or outside of the baseball stadium.

We have been blessed with sports heroes whose talent, personalities, and dignity brought great credit to their people.

Yours very truly, Robert Kolter Beverly Hills, Calif.

a a a a Dear Editor, Daniel Mariaschin’s article in the Winter 2008 issue regarding Jewish athletes jogged my memory [of ] when I first became involved with the Brooklyn Dodgers in the late 1930s and was delighted that Goody Rosen was their center fielder.

As Dodgers fans, we could only half-cheer for the very solid catcher of the hated Giants, Harry Danning. Of course, we all had no trouble rooting for the best of the lot, Hank Greenberg, out in Detroit. That was the American League team [that] we followed.

For the curious, interested, and beyond, there’s a website [that] is very comprehensive and detailed, [and] catalogues the plethora of Jewish athletes, www.jewsinsports.org. Also, simply searching the Amazon book listings by entering “Jews in Sports” brings up many “hits.”

Photo by iStockphoto

You said, “Hockey was also difficult, since there are so few Jewish players.” I would like to inform your readership that [that] is not so much the case anymore. In 1997, my son, while still enrolled at the University Sincerely, of North Dakota, having won the NCAA Martin Leichter Division I championship with his hockey Boynton Beach, Fla. team, played for the U.S. team at the Maccabiah Games in Israel. a a a a Although it was the only time there was ice hockey at the Maccabiah games, there Dear Editor, I am writing in response to the article in the were four teams with roughly 80 Jewish hockey players. Parenthetically, I would add Winter 2008 edition called “Finding Jewish [that] Canada won, but my son received the Pride in America’s Pastimes” by Daniel Magoaltender award as the most outstanding riaschin. I very much enjoyed your article goalie. After he completed the tournament, about Jewish athletes, but I feel compelled he changed and attended Lake For290184_Paramount_C_r1.qxd:Layout 8:20schools PM Page 1 to respond to your rather significant void2 of 2/3/09 est College, where he graduated, and then hockey players.

Like Mr. Mariaschin, I guess many of us with any interest in the subject have some tales from our youth about unearthing some of “us.”

began his first of three years of professional ice hockey.

To this date, there are many more Jewish players who have continued to pursue their hockey interests. Coincidentally, my first cousin in Canada has a son who is now playing minor league hockey in Ft. Myers. His name is Jacob Mickflickier.

Being a Jewish hockey player has been a big part of my son’s life. I hope this helps amplify your otherwise delightful story that brings back many fond memories [of ] his years as a child-to-adolescent to professional hockey player.

Yours truly, Garry M. Vickar St. Louis

A COMPELLING STORY ABOUT THE “MOTHER OF ISRAEL.”

INGRID BERGMAN

ALSO STARRING JUDY DAVIS, ANNE JACKSON, JACK THOMPSON

GOLDA A WOMAN CALLED

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MARCH24

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B’Nai B’rith 13

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, right, gestures as then U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice looks on during a joint press conference at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem in October 2007.

Israeli Women’s But Total Equality Remains Elusive

W

hen Tzipi Livni took the stage in Jerusalem last November at the annual conference of the North American Jewish Federation system, she stood blinking uncertainly for a few moments under the glare of the klieg lights while the cavernous hall thundered with applause.

After the raucous crowd finally settled down, Livni, Israel’s foreign minister launched into an emotional quarter-hour pitch for values in the Jewish state.

“This gathering is about Tikkun Olam,” Livni said, using the Hebrew term for repairing the world. “Tikkun Olam needs 14 spring 2009

to start in doing something for yourself, in understanding better who you are, before you are doing for the others.

“We need not to forget the ultimate goal of the State of Israel,” she added. “We need to keep the nature of the State of Israel, the character of the State of Israel as a Jewish state, because this is the raison d’etre of the State of Israel.” But, she emphasized, “It’s not a matter of religion. It is more a matter of nationality. A Jewish state is not a monopoly of rabbis. It’s what we are; it’s what each and every one of us feels inside.”

The address wasn’t the typical stuff of Foreign Ministry speeches. But then again, Livni

By Uriel Heilman

did not represent your typical foreign minister.

When she took over as head of Kadima, Israel’s largest political party, Livni became the highest-profile woman in the Israeli government. But she’s not the only one.

Several key leadership positions in Israel today are occupied by women, for the first time ever. The president of Israel’s Supreme Court, Dorit Beinish, whose position is akin to that of chief justice in the United States, is a woman. The speaker of Israel’s Knesset is Dalia Itzik; she also served as interim president of Israel after a disgraced Moshe Katsav left office due to a sex scandal. Israel’s ambassador to the United Na-

Photo by Sebastian Scheiner/AP

Roles Grow tions, Gabriela Shalev, is Israel’s first female representative to the U.N. In Israel’s most recent municipal elections, held in November 2008, some 300 women were elected to city councils around the country, practically doubling the number of women serving in municipal government, according to the Israel Women’s Network.

Outside of government, too, more and more women can be found at the top.

Galia Maor, the CEO of Israel’s largest bank, Bank Leumi, was named Woman of the Year in 2008 by the leading Israeli financial daily, Globes. She also was listed

by Fortune magazine as one of the world’s

50 most powerful businesswomen. The CEO of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Ester Levanon, is a woman. The president of BenGurion University of the Negev is Dr. Rivka Carmi, who previously served as director of the Genetics Institute at Soroka Hospital, in Beersheba.

The list goes on and on.

A Slowly Changing Concept That so many leading positions in Israel are held by women is all the more remarkable for its almost commonplace treatment in the Jewish state. A female CEO? Most Israelis simply shrug their shoulders. A woman lead-

ing Israel’s largest political party? Israelis seem to hardly notice it.

In considering this phenomenon, it might seem that women leaders are old hat in Israel, which elected its first female head of state back in 1969: Prime Minister Golda Meir, who was the world’s third female head of government in modern history.

But Meir’s election was an aberration more than an indicator of a trend, as she was considered a larger-than-life figure in modern Jewish history. Before Meir came along and for many years after, Israeli society was dominated by male figures, particularly when it came to positions of power.

B’Nai B’rith 15

Today, however, with so many women in key leadership positions in Israeli government, business, law, and academia, the prominence of women in Israel is not easily dismissed.

“I don’t think we’ve reached the ‘Era of the Woman,’ but there’s no doubt that, in 20 years, there has been a big difference,” says Rina Bar-Tal, chair of the Israel Women’s Network, a nonprofit organization that works to improve the status of women in Israel. “Many changes have been made, both on the awareness side and on the practical side.”

The proliferation of women at the top surely is a symbol of progress for Israeli women in achieving parity with men.

But, in assessing whether these gains are real or merely symbolic, the more significant question is whether women on the grass-roots levels of Israeli society also have seen change.

“Women are still far from equality, but the entire conception of women in society has changed,” says Levana Zamir, president of NETA—Women in Management, an organization that promotes Israeli businesswomen. “Twenty years ago, people asked women what their husbands did for a living; today, they ask women what they do for a living. Among the younger generation of women, it’s understood they’ll have a career. Women are expected to have ambition nowadays. For 100 years, there hadn’t been such a significant change in society.”

Today, more than 50 percent of the Israeli workforce is female. More than half the graduates of bachelor’s, master’s, and Ph.D. programs are women. Israeli law mandates that women be paid the same as men for performing the same work. The law provides affirmative action for women and, in 2001 the Knesset extended gender-based affirmative action to the public sector. Mothers receive 14 weeks of paid maternity leave, a key sign that the state values the role women play both in the professional world and in the home.

“I think there’s a great improvement,” Shalev, the U.N. ambassador, told B’nai B’rith Magazine recently. “Women are really shattering the glass ceiling.”

Shalev notes the advancement of women in the American political arena, where Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin had a huge impact on the recent presidential elections. At the United Nations, Shalev adds, there were only eight female ambassadors a decade ago;

16 spring 2009

Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

Top photo: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Speaker of the Knesset Dalia Itzik speak to the media on Capitol Hill in February 2007.

Bottom photo: Israeli Air Force Sgt. Maj. Keren Tendler, one of a five-person helicopter crew killed when they were shot down by a Hezbollah missile over Lebanon in August 2006. Tendler, 26, was the first Israeli female soldier killed in action.

today, there are 25, with Shalev and Susan E. Rice, the proposed U.S. ambassador to the United Nations of the incoming new administration, the latest additions.

“This is really the age of women, and I think Israel is at the forefront,” Shalev says.

The Other Side of the Coin At the same time, some women’s rights advocates still deride Israel as a chauvinistic society. Here, too, they say, one need look no farther than the government for examples.

In 2006, Israel’s president was accused of rape, leaving office a year later in the wake of a sex scandal that had become a national embarrassment. Around the same time, Israel’s justice minister, Haim Ramon, was found guilty of sexual harassment and forced to resign, although he returned to government just six months later to take up the post of deputy prime minister. In 2000, Yitzhak Mordechai, Israel’s transportation minister and a former defense minister, was convicted of sexual misconduct.

Photo by Getty Images

Prof. Ruth Halperin-Kaddari, author of “Women in Israel: A State of Their Own,” says these episodes are symptomatic of a society that is not committed to gender equality.

If anything, she says, the ascendance of women to high-profile positions of power masks Israel’s gender problems.

“All these [achievements] are not indications of real, substantive change,” says Halperin-Kaddari, who is chair of Bar-Ilan University’s Ruth and Emanuel Rackman

Center for the Advancement of the Status of Women. “Women’s representation in public life and in decision-making positions, although you [the writer] have pointed out some outstanding positions and gains, are exceptions to the general rule.

“The everyday lives of all women in Israel have not really been altered. If anything, they have actually worsened or are about to as a result of the economic crisis, like the situation of all women in the world.

Gender-based violence against women has not been diminished; wage gaps have not been decreased.”

Halperin-Kaddari points to two major factors unique to Israeli society that hamper women’s progress in the country.

One is the military. Although Israel’s army has a reputation for egalitarianism that dates back to the fighters of pre-state Palestine, and 18-year-old women are subject to two years of compulsory service, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) actually barred women from serving in combat roles until a landmark lawsuit in 1995. (Women’s service in combat during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence was born of necessity and was abandoned shortly after the state’s creation.)

Today, very few women serve in combat roles, and there are far fewer women than men serving in positions where they acquire skills that later can be applied to high-wage careers in civilian life, such as high-tech.

In Israeli society, the army also serves a role similar to college fraternities in the United States: It is during their compulsory threeyear military service that men forge the old boys’ networks and lifelong connections that become useful later in life, when they’re looking for jobs, places to live, or business connections. Many maintain those connections through annual reserve duty, from which women are exempt.

Changes are also afoot in the IDF, however.

In 2000, Israel’s law of military service was amended to mandate gender equality throughout the military, with a few exceptions. In 2001, the Israel Air Force graduated its first female jet fighter pilot, Roni Zuckerman. Since then, a handful of others have followed her lead into flight school.

More than one-quarter of the IDF’s officers are women, the number of women serving as secretaries or clerks in the military has dropped by one-third over the last decade, and 88 percent of all positions are open to women, according to the IDF spokesman’s office.

B’Nai B’rith 17

Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (center) and Chief Justice of Israel’s Supreme Court Dorit Beinish (left) arrive for a Memorial Day ceremony at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem for Israeli civilians killed in war and other conflicts in April 2007.

The IDF created its first fully co-ed combat unit four years ago, the Karakal battalion, and the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah constituted the first time Israeli women fought in battle in current times. The war also saw Israel’s first female soldier killed in action, helicopter engineer Sgt. Maj. Keren Tendler.

“In my opinion, nobody thought that girls would go in,” one female air force medic, “R.,” said shortly after the war, in remarks provided by the IDF spokesman.

Even just a few weeks before the war, she did not believe Israel would send women into fighting in Lebanon.

“I would not have believed that we could reach such extreme situations,” R. said. “You go in, to the same area which had been struck by an anti-tank missile barely seconds ago.

The feeling is crazy—you don’t know if your friends were in the helicopter.”

R. was part of the team that evacuated the wounded and dead from the helicopter crash that killed Tendler.

“It does not matter who is a male and who is a female,” R. said. “If a helicopter crashes, we both have to perform the same tasks, quickly and professionally. We really are not different.”

The Orthodox Factor The other unique issue that hampers women’s empowerment in Israeli society is Orthodox-dominated religious control of certain matters of state, such as marriage and divorce law. In Israel, there is no separation of religion and state, and the courts that oversee matters of marriage and divorce apply centuries-old rules that often favor men over women.

Specifically, under Orthodox interpretation of Jewish religious law, husbands have the power to deny their wives religious writs of divorce, known as gets. This is a problem even for secular women—if a husband denies

Photo by Ronen Zvulun/AP

group that offers legal, financial, and emoa woman a get, the Rabbinate will not allow tional assistance to “chained women,” argues her to remarry. And in Israel, where there is no civil marriage, marriage via the Rabbinate that the Rabbinate can do more to address the problem. In theory, the Rabbinate has is the only option. the power to apply pressure on recalcitrant Some recalcitrant husbands exploit this husbands, from freezing their bank accounts legal loophole to extort their estranged wives, to throwing them in prison. But such tactics demanding cash, property rights, custody are rarely put into play. over children, and other stipulations before One group, Kolech, has formulated a pregranting their wives a divorce. nuptial agreement to preclude the denial of While there is some legal recourse for a get by a husband. But it’s not clear whether these “chained women”—called agunot— the agreements are enforceable in Israel’s to apply pressure on their husbands, the religious courts and, in any case, the number ultra-Orthodox-dominated Rabbinate and of couples who adopt such agreements is the religious courts it oversees rarely apply thought to be negligible. such pressure.

“The situation has gotten worse in recent years,” says Halperin-Kaddari.

Photo by David Rubinger/Getty Images “Rabbinical groups support men who condition the divorces on demanding their wives give up their rights.”

Several groups have cropped up over the last decade or so to try to combat this phenomenon; although there are not that many women in this situation, it has become a rallying call against Rabbinate domination. But lacking legal power, their actions have little impact beyond the court of public opinion.

Last November, the Rabbinate was supposed to hold a groundbreaking conference in Jerusalem on the issue of agunot, but the forum was canceled at the last minute due to pressure from ultra-Orthodox leaders.

The director of Mavoi Satum, a

Israeli feminist Alice Shalvi, chairman of the Israel Women’s Network, at her desk.

18 spring 2009

Galia Maor, president and CEO of Israel’s Bank Leumi, speaks during the NASDAQ and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange investor conference in September 2006, in New York.

Photo by Diane Bondareff/AP

While the Orthodox establishment does not countenance female rabbis, an increasing number of women are serving as religious advisers—or yoatzot—passing judgment on matters of religious law for women. And, in December, Kolech announced that it would begin training women to serve as formal judges on rabbinical courts. Though the Rabbinate has not sanctioned co-ed courts, Kolech insists the day is nearing when women judges will be appointed to rabbinical courts.

Even in the Orthodox synagogue, women are no longer hiding behind the mechitza— the curtain that separates men and women during prayer services. At one popular egalitarian Orthodox synagogue in Jerusalem, Shira Chadasha, women read from the Torah and lead services just as their male counterparts do—albeit on separate sides of the mechitza.

The number of women becoming rabbis in Israel’s non-Orthodox Jewish religious movements is growing as well, but the Conservative and Reform movements in the country are still struggling to gain a broad following.

An Economic Aspect The most significant change for Orthodox women, however, has nothing to do with religion: Over the last 10 years or so, ultraOrthodox women have flooded the workforce as never before.

Many have attained degrees in Orthodox schools and women’s-only colleges, and they have gone to work at schools, joined businesses, or become entrepreneurs. In families where the husband is a yeshiva student, the wife has become the primary bread-earner, even while managing the household.

In the Jerusalem suburb of Modiin Illit, an outsourcing company called CityBook Services is one of a host of businesses around the country that cater to Orthodox women’s needs. The company provides a women-only work environment, and shifts end at 3 p.m. so the women can go home to take care of their families. More than 120 women work at the company.

“Eighty percent of the people we have here had never worked in an organized way.

Those who did worked in education or as a secretary,” says Eli Kazhdan, the company’s CEO. “They wouldn’t work in a regular place because the environment is not conducive to their religious lifestyle.”

All told, some 1,200 ultra-Orthodox women work in Modiin Illit at more than a dozen companies.

Arab-Israeli women, too, are entering the workforce in greater numbers, due to greater access to education for Arab girls and young women. As more Arab women pursue higher education, they defer marriage and achieve financial independence, something that is quite rare in the Arab world outside of Israel.

Critics in the Arab-Israeli community— some women included—view these women’s new-found independence as a threat to the family unit and to tradition. As with critics in the Jewish community, they argue that women’s rights should not necessarily mean fashioning a role for women that is identical to that of men.

Women’s Choice The question of what constitutes women’s progress is as old as the debate over feminism. For some it is a choice between career

and family, but for most women it is a matter of doing both.

“The feminist movement in Israel in the past 20 years has talked to women about being able to do both—obtain a profession and education, and be moms and have a family,” says Bar-Tal, of the Israel Women’s Network. “In the United States, women were told to make a choice: Do either/or.

That created a wave of women who either don’t have a family or a career. In Israel, it’s very different.”

While economic needs have helped propel women into the Israeli workplace, established attitudes also have kept women in their traditional household roles.

“It’s very difficult, because the woman is still responsible for the kids, for the home.

But she’s also expected to be a CEO, a pilot, or something else,” says Zamir, of NETA— Women in Management.

Women’s advocates say that women in the workplace are expected to behave as men do—with no special accommodation.

As Israel’s highest-profile female politician, Livni often is heralded as the archetype of the career woman. She has been described in the Israeli press as cold and calculating, even as she is dismissed as inexperienced. Some columnists and colleagues have criticized her for not being manly enough, and others for being insufficiently feminine.

Livni dismisses such talk. In an effort to soften her image during the election campaign, the foreign minister granted a reporter from Israel’s Channel 10 an interview in her home; her husband participated.

Early on in the broadcast, the reporter asked Livni, who stood at the kitchen sink making coffee, whether she cooks. “Of course,” Livni replied; she prepares dinner every Friday night.

When the interviewer suggested this tidbit might “shatter the persona of the tough career woman who doesn’t cook,” Livni protested.

“Why does this go together? I didn’t expect that from you,” Livni admonished the female reporter. Women, Livni was saying, can do one without giving up the other.

Israeli Women, continued on pg. 25

B’Nai B’rith 19

Gabriela Shalev Israel’s First Female U.N. Ambassador Outlines Challenges

By Uriel Heilman Photo by Seth Wenig/AP

Shalev speaks during a Security Council meeting on the situation in Gaza at U.N. Headquarters in New York, on Jan. 6, 2009.

UNITED NATIONS — Prof. Gabriela Shalev, who last September left her job as rector of Ono Academic College near Tel Aviv to take up the post of Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, is the first female to represent Israel in that capacity.

Although she has no prior experience in diplomacy or politics, Shalev is a renowned jurist who has also served as chair of the Israel Broadcasting Authority, as a member of the Jewish Agency’s Board of Trustees, and on a committee for formulating ethics of cabinet members.

Shalev recently spoke to B’nai B’rith Magazine about Israel’s negotiations with the Palestinian Authority, what Israel can expect from the Obama administration, and the delicate nature of her work at the United Nations.

20 spring 2009

Q -- A predecessor of yours, Dore Gold, famously referred to the United Nations as a “Tower of Babble.” What is the goal of Israel’s U.N. representative in a body that expressed so much hyperbole against Israel over the years?

A -- The United Nations is like a mirror, or microcosm, of the world. As we live in an imperfect world, the United Nations cannot be perfect, and it is not. Our mission is, on the one hand, taking care of the security and the peace of the people of Israel, and, on the other hand, we must show a different face of Israel—Israel beyond the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; Israel that can offer and contribute to the world so much in medicine, technology, and development.

We have a guy, one of our consuls, who is very much involved with what we call the positive agenda of Israel in the United Nations. He is always frustrated. He asks why we don’t stress more that Israel has so much to offer to the world. We offer our help to people in vulnerable areas of the world. We recently signed a framework agreement with the United Nations Development Program to share our expertise and know-how in all fields of science, medicine, and agriculture with the developing world.

But I know this is not as sexy or as interesting for journalists [as conflict]. They— and we—are much more involved with issues of security and peace.

Q -- With a new president in the White House and a new U.S. Secretary of State, how do you anticipate relations between Washington and Jerusalem will change?

A -- Every American president since Harry Truman has been supportive of Israel.

We believe that [President Barack] Obama will continue [in] his administration to support Israel, to understand the problems we are facing, and to be as strong an ally of Israel as the American presidents were in the past.

I was at a meeting of AIPAC, and [thenSen.] Hillary Clinton gave a speech [that] was very supportive of Israel. We know that she’s a great ally of Israel and very effective regarding Iran, and how the world and the United States should react to the nuclear development of Iran.

But, of course, there are many other problems that the American president has to face.

You know, he has Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, the economic crisis. But I believe when Israel is discussed it will be in a very positive way.

Q -- Israel came under heavy criticism when it launched its military campaign against the Hamas regime in Gaza.

How do you defend Israel’s actions in the halls of the United Nations, where Israel is subject to so much criticism?

A -- Gaza is a difficult and sad situation, but we did not cause the situation. There is only the Hamas to blame. And the situation in Gaza is an outcome of what the people there elected. They elected Hamas, and this is the outcome of their own will and suffering.

The answer is not with us; the answer is with them. The first condition is dismantling the terror—and this is something that is very crucial and important: dismantling the infrastructure of the terror in Gaza.

I want to tell you a story about a young boy named Moshiko, who is 10 years old.

He lost his leg when a rocket hit his house in Sderot. He moved with his family to his grandmother’s house in Ashdod, which is more than 15 kilometers away from Sderot and from the Gaza border. And then, a few days later, there were rockets firing at Ashdod. This young boy said: “Where shall I go from here? We went from Sderot to Ashdod; now where shall we go? To Tel Aviv?”

Q -- Israel has been pursuing intensive bilateral negotiations with the Palestinians since the peace talks were renewed in November 2007 in Annapolis, Md. But the Hamas rejectionists in Gaza remain an obstacle to any settlement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. How can Israel pursue peace with one part of the Palestinian polity while another part refuses to negotiate or even lay down its arms?

A -- Even in Israel, there are people and parties that are claiming that the peace process has to stop as long as we are being fired upon and rockets are [being fired at us]. And the Palestinians are also very weak. But our partners—and they are our only partners—are the Palestinians in the Palestinian Authority.

I hope the Palestinian people will understand that the only way to proceed with Israel is through their official government, which is the Palestinian Authority, with whom we discuss and have talks all the time.

Everybody was hoping that by the end of 2008 there would be a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. This did not happen, unfortunately, not because we did not want it—we want peace and we

stress it all the time—but it so happened that even the Palestinian Authority had to back up because of what happens with the Hamas.

I think people have to understand that it’s not a Swiss clock [that] ticks in the Middle East. We have our own clock, and it ticks differently. 2009 is a long year and we must be hopeful that something good is going to happen. What’s the alternative?

Q -- What is the role of the international community in moving IsraeliPalestinian peacemaking forward?

A -- We in Israel welcome all support that we can receive from the international community and from moderate countries in the region regarding the peace process, but we want to remind everybody that all agreements and all negotiations are bilateral. This is something that has to be agreed and decided between the parties themselves. Only bilateral negotiations can bring, at the end, a comprehensive agreement in the framework of the Annapolis process.

Q -- Some Israelis suggest it would be easier and quicker to reach a peace deal with Syria than with the Palestinians, and that this is where Israel ought to be spending its energy. Should Israel be pressing ahead on the Syrian track?

A -- We welcome every country—every neighboring country, every Arab country, every country in the world—that is willing to make peace with Israel. We hope to have peace with all neighboring countries that still don’t have peace with Israel.

I think we are reaching it—slowly, painfully, with many challenges, but we are reaching it—on a bilateral track of negotiations with the Palestinians.

Q -- For several years now, Israel has been trying to make the case against Iran. Three rounds of economic sanctions later, the Iranian quest for nuclear capability continues practically unabated. Does the solution to the Iran problem lie in the U.N., or does it lie elsewhere—in military action, perhaps?

A -- Iran is not a problem only [for] Israel.

I mean we, of course, will be targeted, but it will not end there if the worst-case scenario happens. We see Iran as our biggest threat.

Iran is a convergence of Holocaust denial,

Gabriela Shalev, continued on pg. 43 B’Nai B’rith 21

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Israeli Women, continued from pg. 19 Later in the interview, the reporter suggested that one needs both self-confidence and arrogance to run such a complicated country. She asked Livni how she, or “any woman at your age and your experience up till now, can be prime minister of the most complicated country in the world.”

A visibly annoyed Livni replied: “Would you ask a man this question, by the way?”

In reality, of course, women may need special accommodation, and this is where government has a role to play. Paid maternity leave, affirmative action, and government-supported early childhood programs all are designed to level the playing field and help women reach positions in society where they, too, can help shape the Jewish state.

Wage equity laws, sexual harassment laws, and other workplace provisions, meanwhile, are designed to eliminate double standards women often encounter at home, in the workplace, and in society at large.

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Observers say Israel’s laws are years ahead of the United States’ when it comes to supporting women trying to juggle careers and families. But, advocates say, Israel lags behind when it comes to enforcement.

Despite the mandate to the contrary, many Israeli women are still paid less than men for equal jobs. Gila Maor, even though she runs Israel’s largest bank, has a salary far lower than those of her counterparts.

Women in Israel routinely are asked at job interviews about their family status—which is illegal in the United States—because many employers are wary of hiring women they expect to get pregnant.

“It’s a myth that whatever woman wants to do, she can make it, and it’s up to the individual, and there’s no systematic discrimination or problems,” Halperin-Kaddari says, adding Israel needs more affirmative action, including the allotment of a designated number of seats in the Knesset for women, to bring women to full equality.

Whether such provisions are fair or subvert democratic and meritocratic processes is debatable.

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In the meantime, women in Israel are continuing to make gains on their own.

When Kadima voters went to the polls in December to choose their Knesset slate, four women made it into the top 10 slots, with Livni coming in at number one and Itzik, the Knesset speaker, at third.

In Israel’s national elections in February, more Israelis voted for the Livni-led Kadima than any other party.

Sixty years ago, after Israel was founded, the state was extolled as an egalitarian utopia where men and women worked side by side. But except for a few kibbutzim, gender equality was more myth than reality.

Now in its seventh decade, with women like Beinish, Itzik, and Maor at the helm of key Israeli institutions, the country appears to be inching ever closer to those ideals.

This story was written following Israel’s election while the country’s leadership remained in flux.

B’Nai B’rith 25

Photo courtesy of Katz’s Deli, photographer unknown

The

Lower

East Side: Fading into Jewish History

By Hillel Kuttler 26 spring 2009

New York — A tan brick wall

anchors the northern section of the Seward Park apartment complex and its namesake playground on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Eight feet up the wall, outside what once was Sinsheimer’s Café, a plaque commemorates “the site—60 Essex Street— where B’nai B’rith, the first national service organization created in the United States, was founded on October 13, 1843.”

Four blocks south, a placard in a Catholic churchyard at the corner of Rutgers and Henry streets notes that building’s mid-19th century Protestant origins. “You’re always walking in somebody’s footsteps,” it reads.

“Who will walk in yours?”

The multi-denominational messages attest to the constancy of change in urban America.

Jews might find such change hard to accept, though, on the Lower East Side, which each year is losing more of its Jewish character.

Just last summer, Abraham Stern accepted a multi-million-dollar Photo by Yeva Dashevsky offer for his Hester Street building, so he closed Gertel’s, beloved for its rugelach and cookies for 94 years.

“The feeling of having a place like the Lower East Side, which was the most populated Jewish area in New York, is gone,” says Stern, who relocated his bake shop to Brooklyn.

“It was a beautiful, historical neighborhood, and it’s gone. There’s not much left of it.”

Kadouri and Sons, a dried-fruits-and-nuts store next door, also sold out and moved.

Preceding these landmarks were Ratner’s and Shmulka Bernstein’s, whose fresh onion rolls and Rumanian pastrami, respectively, seduced generations. And the spirits of waiters past surely hover with in-

creased surliness over the abandoned Grand Street Dairy Restaurant.

The Rabbi Jacob Joseph yeshiva at 165–167 Henry Street is now an apartment building, still topped by three engraved Stars of David. The Jewish Daily Forward newspaper no longer is published on East Broadway, although the Yiddish lettering remains on the original stone structure that housed it—now a condominium. Many former clothing shops along Orchard Street are now bars and nightclubs.

Time’s passage demands keener powers of recollection to conjure the Jewish past. Nostalgia, however, doesn’t pay the bills.

“The traditional customers who used to come in on a daily basis moved. They became younger. Chinatown encroached, too,” says Neil Ovadia, whose family runs Kadouri and Sons. “Most of the business was on the weekend. It just didn’t warrant keeping the store anymore.”

The company has been in Ovadia’s family since before his grandfather, Haim Kadouri, shifted it from Iraq to Israel and then, in the mid-1970s, to the Lower East Side. It now calls an industrial zone in the borough of Queens home and caters solely to wholesale customers. Ovadia still lives at 51 Hester Street, in the building where a clothing store replaced Kadouri’s colorful bins of grains, dried fruit, nuts, spices, and candies.

As a resident, he likes the new Lower East Side. Although many of the retail businesses that provided a Jewish flavor have departed, worthy successors have arrived, he says.

“The neighborhood has changed, somewhat for the better. It’s not the same Lower East Side it used to be, but I am happy to see other establishments of substance coming in,” says Ovadia. “The Seward Park Playhouse has been re-established. There are wonderful ethnic restaurants in the neighborhood. You can get almost any type food you can imagine.

“The ethnicity helps re-establish what the Lower East Side was all about. It’s nice to see that the Lower East Side is not just another corporate part of Manhattan.”

BBB On a windy Friday-after-Thanksgiving morning, clusters of tourists crisscross the neighborhood. They sample pickles and chew

on bialys, but mostly they listen intently.

At the corner of Essex and Hester streets, one guide displays for her group a blackand-white photograph of the area. It depicts the Lower East Side of yore: tenements from which fire escapes hang, carts of merchandise, horses, and wall-to-wall people. She asks them to consider the present-day vistas with the 110-year-old scene in mind.

The request is eminently doable. Much of the tenement stock remains, as do the fairly narrow streets. Yonah Schimmel’s is the same dumpy place on Houston Street with out-of-this-world knishes as when it opened in 1910. Katz’s Deli, of “When Harry Met Sally” fame, still operates a few doors down.

And as B’nai B’rith International Executive Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin notes, the famous street names—Rivington, Chrystie, Ludlow, Norfolk, Broome, Eldridge, and, especially, Allen, where Mariaschin’s great-grandfather lived briefly— remain as guideposts for Jewish visitors.

On the other hand, how can the Lower East Side maintain its hold on the Jewish soul when the number of Jews living there decreases and the institutions that once testified to the area’s cultural richness vanish?

For American Jews, that question hits home—literally so—because the Lower East Side resonates like nowhere else in the country.

While Ellis Island represents the extension of freedom and opportunity, the Lower East Side stands for the harsh, but necessary, lower rung that set immigrants on the path to permanent settlement in the New World.

Most American Jews can trace their roots to ancestors whose first steps in the United States led from Ellis Island to the nearby Lower East Side.

The neighborhood remains legendary in the mind’s eye of even third- and fourthgeneration American Jews. Say “tenement,” “immigrant,” or “sweatshop,” and we imagine Grandpa dodging horses on Delancey Street on his way to work as a pushcart peddler on Hester Street or as a sofer (scribe) on Essex Street. For that reason, the Lower East Side is “more than a landmark,” says Mariaschin. “It becomes a lodestone, so central to the American Jewish experience.”

The Lower East Side, he adds, “was a lively center of Jewish life and an incubator for fu-

The landmark Katz’s Deli, of “When Harry Met Sally” fame, then and now.

B’Nai B’rith 27

The recently restored 122-year-old Eldridge Street Synagogue, now known as the Museum on Eldridge Street, is a beautiful testimonial to what once was.

Photo by Kate Milford

ture Jewish generations, many of whose sons and daughters became household names in American culture and business. There’s been a long and continuous presence of Jews in that place: from 1820 to the present. That’s a long run; almost the entire length of the [history of ] the United States.”

Hundreds of thousands of Jews lived in the area at its peak of 1890, when the 980 residents per acre made it “the most crowded place in the world [and] almost completely Jewish,” according to area resident Lori Weissman, marketing coordinator for the Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy (LESJC). The 2000 census, she says, showed just 30,000 Jews there.

Some who remain also are concerned for the future of the neighborhood, but plan to stick it out. Lenny Zerling, who owns G&S

28 spring 2009

Sporting Goods, remembers when “you could get anything you wanted down here,” when bridal, fabric, and linen shops lined Grand Street; haberdasheries dominated Orchard Street; and Judaica and book stores occupied Essex Street.

“When the bridal stores left, the linen stores left. When there were six bridal stores, you’d go from one to the next and shop,” he says, interrupting to serve a young, blackhatted Jewish man searching for workout gloves. “Each place that left—it had an effect on the others. This happened over a period of 10–15 years.”

Zerling grew up in the area and lives above his Essex Street shop, which his father Izzie founded in 1944. An Estonian immigrant who became a lightweight boxer, Izzie used to sew everything by hand. Today, the box-

ing gloves and speed bags that hang near the main counter are made in China. “Business stinks,” off 25 percent last October compared to October 2007, Zerling says. “With the economy going into the sink hole, it’s worse. It makes it tough to survive.”

Why, then, is he still here?

Zerling shrugs. “Tradition,” he says.

Tradition, indeed, has become the neighborhood’s greatest Jewish industry. The apartment complexes along Grand Street, between Essex Street and the East River, remain occupied by many older Orthodox families. They are now being joined by other Jews who have been moving in ever since those co-op buildings went condo a few years back and prices skyrocketed. But Lower East Side, continued on pg. 52

B’nai B’rith Regional News Moves to the Web

By Rich Bindell

A

fter years of reporting member-related news in B’nai B’rith Today newsletters, B’nai B’rith International (BBI) is embracing the technology of the day by unveiling new regional web pages. The new section of www. bnaibrith.org will allow lodges and units to promote their activities more effectively and will supplement the BBT section in B’nai B’rith Magazine.

“As a nonprofit organization, it is critical for us to send a consistent, timely, and powerful message, as well as share relevant and up-to-date information about our activities with our members,” says BBI Chairman of the Executive Dennis Glick.

The regional web pages, located in the U.S. Regions and Communities portion of the site, include a calendar of events, programming information, and general facts about each region or community in the United States. The new format allows members to post information through their regional coordina-

30

BBI unveils new regional web pages at www.bnaibrith.org, which will allow lodges and units to promote their programs and activities more effectively and efficiently.

tors on upcoming activities and share success stories from past events in a more timely manner than in the past.

“Advancements in technology have provided new opportunities for the way we send and receive information,” says Glick. “We are now capable of providing

more information, more quickly, and we have the ability to target and reach more specialized portions of our audience.”

Each region has a designated coordinator who will collect material to send to BBI for posting.

Those interested in contributing content to their area’s web page

32

can do so by contacting their regional office or president, who will identify the coordinator.

Omaha Community President Gary Javitch previewed the site on behalf of the Henry Monsky Lodge in Omaha, Neb. “The new website has color, convenience, and clarity,” Javitch said.

“It gives our lodge an intercontinued on pg. 34

Inside this Issue BBI Camps Overcome Economic Challenges 2008 Policy Conference

30 32

B’Nai B’rith 29

B’nai B’rith Today

BBI Camps Overcome Economic Challenges; Grinspoon Institute Lends Camping Expertise

By Rich Bindell

30 spring 2009

Photo courtesy of Perlman Camp

J

Top photo: A typical scene by the lake on the grounds of Perlman Camp in Starlight, Pa. Bottom photo: Diane Troderman (third from left) and Harold Grinspoon (fourth from left) visit with Executive Director Stefan Teodosic (second from left) and the staff at Beber Camp in Mukwonago, Wis., to discuss strategic and developmental planning for the camp’s future.

Director Stefan Teodisic.

“We’re at capacity with a great staff return rate.”

Reason for Optimism

Both directors are optimistic about their camps’ futures because they have put much thought and effort into positioning them for success. In addition to analyzing marketing techniques and using alumni, the camps have turned to the Harold Grinspoon Institute for Jewish Philanthropy, which is

Photo courtesy of Beber Camp

ewish camping in America has established itself as more than just a tradition—to many, it’s a rite of passage. For some children, it’s how they make an initial connection to their heritage in a way that is social and fun. For others, going to camp reinforces an existing connection and strengthens that relationship through shared experiences at an impressionable age.

But, at a time of tightening purse strings, Jewish camps that have not prepared for their futures are facing the challenge of keeping their bunks full. With that foresight in their kit bags, B’nai B’rith International’s two summer camps, Beber Camp and Perlman Camp, are investing in their futures by focusing on marketing programs, tapping into a supportive alumni community, and gaining knowledge and help from the summer camp-oriented Grinspoon Institute.

“Jewish summer camps are a great environment in which to develop a Jewish identity and learn how to be a Jewish leader,” says Lewis Sohinki, director of Perlman Camp in Starlight, Pa. “What better way for parents to teach their children about being Jewish than sending them to camp?”

Some parents apparently concur and have turned to B’nai B’rith: Perlman Camp is close to full capacity for the summer of 2009, and Beber Camp in Mukwonago, Wis., is experiencing similar success. “Beber is in a great place, and many of the parents know that, because they were campers here when they were kids,” says Executive

doing its part to help Jewish camps thrive nationwide.

Former real estate developer and institute founder Harold Grinspoon believes that offering a camping experience to Jewish youth is extremely important.

“My kids went to Jewish camp.

It’s a very special way to establish a strong connection to Judaism,” he says. “It’s one of the best resources to ensure Jewish identity and Jewish continuity. The sad thing is that Jewish camping is grossly underfunded.”

Grinspoon, who never attended summer camp himself, started the institute in January 2004 to help camps in three major areas: fundraising, strategic planning, and working with their boards/ committees. With a staff of 17 professionals, the Grinspoon Institute currently aids 75 camps across the country.

Institute consultants, or “mentors,” help Jewish camps identify and incorporate successful fundraising tactics, marketing resources, and

B’nai B’rith Today

networking strategies. Mentors work with camp staff to create a solid development plan, identify needed improvements, and engage camp boards and alumni in fundraising and promotion.

Perlman has recently begun to adopt some of the institute’s methodology. “We’re in [the] beginning stages of working with them,” says Sohinki. “We’ve developed a strategic planning committee and established a three- to five-year plan. I dedicate a lot of our success [to] the guidance that the Grinspoon Institute gives us.”

The institute also makes funds available to camps through a three-phase matching-gifts program. After working with Grinspoon to meet certain criteria, eligible camps can receive up to $100,000 in the first phase of the program, up to $150,000 plus a bonus in the second phase,

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and up to $75,000 in the third.

The institute matches one dollar for every three dollars that camps raise on their own.

“The real smashing thing we’ve done is provide matching grants for fundraising,” says institute Director Sue Kline. She says that a major factor in helping camps develop is identifying their alumni base. “Even our best and longest-lived camps often don’t have a solid list of alumni.”

The institute also provides incentives to campers by offering discounts on registration to wavering parents. “Incentives tilt families who are making decisions about sending their children to camp to send them to Jewish camps,” says Kline. “We have a lot of proof that this happens.”

Another big part of the institute’s approach is to create an environment of learning for camp professionals. To that end,

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it hosts conferences where people can share ideas. “We just had a conference in West Springfield [Mass.]—our seventh conference,” says Kline. “We brought close to 300 people, camp lay and professional leaders, for two days of programming [and] we invited major philanthropists to have lunch with [institute personnel].”

Connecting to a New Generation

Beber Camp has worked with the institute for the past two years and has seen increased enrollment in that time, due to both the program and internal initiatives.

The camp also is doing its own part to increase enrollment.

In addition to working with Grinspoon, Teodisic created the Ambassador Program, which engages families of campers to help with recruitment.

“The goal is to take the mission

of Beber Camp to as many kids and families as possible, and fill our camp,” says Teodisic. “They [the “ambassadors”] find the people...and incentives are offered based on the number of kids they recruit. Because of the success of the program, we’ve been able to cut our marketing budget of $30,000 down to $10,000.”

The institute has taken notice of Beber’s Ambassador Program and invited Teodisic to its annual conference to explain how the plan works and share this best practice with other camp leaders.

Perlman has also benefited from Beber’s success. “We have mirrored their program identically,” says Sohinki. “A lot of my beginning months each year are spent recruiting new campers. But the first impression needs to be top-notch. That’s why alumni are so important. They want to give their kids that same feeling.”

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B’nai B’rith Today

Snapshots of the Policy Conference December 7-9, 2008

Photo by Julian Voloj

William Korey (holding plaque), B’nai B’rith’s first director of the United Nations office and former head of BBI policy and research, receives the B’nai B’rith International Champion of Human Rights Award from (starting from left) BBI EVP Daniel S. Mariaschin, President Moishe Smith, and Honorary President Seymour Reich for his leadership in human rights advocacy. Korey is a leading authority on Eastern European anti-Semitism and human rights and has served on the faculties of City College of New York, Columbia University, Yeshiva University, and Brooklyn College.

BBI Midwest Region Program Coordinator Rachel Haskel, AEPi member Michael Oxman, and International Vice President John Reeves discuss one of the sessions at the 2008 Policy Conference.

Photo by Joel Samen

Conference attendees (from left) Asher J. Matathias from New York, Harold Miller from Connecticut, and Jack Berkowitz from New York pause for a photo in between sessions.

Photo by Julian Voloj

Photo by Julian Voloj

Meirav Elon Shachar, counselor, Israeli Mission to the U.N., and Ambassador Grover Joseph Rees, U.S. special representative for social issues, lead a panel on the Human Rights Council.

Photo by Julian Voloj

J.J. Goldberg, editorial director of The Forward, shares his thoughts on post-election issues affecting the Jewish community as BBI President Moishe Smith and EVP Daniel S. Mariaschin look on.

32 spring 2009

B’nai B’rith Today

New York City served as a meeting ground last December for the 2008 B’nai B’rith Policy Conference, “B’nai B’rith at 165: Meeting the Needs of a Changing World,” which hosted members and guests from across the country and around the world. B’nai B’rith leaders and members met for three days of dialogue on issues and obstacles facing Jews in the years to come. Conference attendees participated in seminars and programs focusing on three main topics: “Celebrating Our Roots,” “Pressing Issues and Changing Perspectives,” and “How to Make the U.N. an Agent for Change.”

Photo by Joel Samen

Photo by Avital Aronowitz

Eugene J. Fisher, former associate director, Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, is a leading expert, author, and advisor on the Christian-Jewish relationship. Fisher is one of the recipients of B’nai B’rith International’s Inaugural Award for Outstanding Contribution to Relations with the Jewish People.

A man participates in a visit to the historic Museum at Eldridge Street on New York City’s Lower East Side, part of a bus tour that helped kick off the 2008 Policy Conference.

U.N. photos by Julian Voloj

The 2008 Policy Conference at the Millennium U.N. Plaza Hotel in New York City celebrated the 60th anniversaries of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. BBI Ambassador and Chair of United Nations Affairs Joseph E. Harari (left) Vice Chair of U.N. Affairs Aaron Etra, and Former Director of U.N. Affairs Sybil Sanchez lead a program on how to make the U.N. an agent for change.

B’Nai B’rith 33

B’nai B’rith Today

Milton Berle Newest Addition to BBI Jewish-American Hall of Fame

By Mel Waks

A

portrait plaque honoring Milton Berle has joined those of more than three dozen previous inductees in the JewishAmerican Hall of Fame exhibit at B’nai B’rith International’s Washington, D.C., headquarters. Inaugurated in 1969, the Jewish-American Hall of Fame’s previous honorees include Albert Einstein, Louis Brandeis, Benny Goodman, Golda Meir, and Hank Greenberg.

Berle, known as “Mr. Television” and “Uncle Miltie,” was born Mendel Berlinger in New York City on July 12, 1908. His career began in 1913, when he won a look-alike contest with his impersonation of Charlie Chaplin. In spite of a very busy career, Berle still managed to have a bar mitzvah in 1921 in New York, though he had a matinee theater performance that very afternoon.

“For a while, while writing my ‘Today I am a man’ speech, I thought of putting in a plug for the show at the Alhambra, but I took it out at the last minute,” Berle remembered.

“To my amazement, when I finished my speech, Rabbi Benjamin Tintner said to the congregation, ‘You think that’s something? You want to go over to the Alhambra Theatre before tomorrow night, when he closes, and you’ll see what this young man can do!’”

Berle received one of the first Emmy Awards ever given—for starring in NBC’s “Texaco Star Theater” (1948).

He was also the first person to 34 spring 2009

Photo by Simeon Montesa

B’nai B’rith Regional News Moves to the Web (continued from pg. 29)

be inducted into the Television Hall of Fame (1984) and Comedy Hall of Fame (1992), and the first to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York Television Academy (1996).

He was named to the “Guinness Book of World Records” for the greatest number of charity performances made by a show-business performer over a period of 50 years. He also received an award for entertaining at stateside military bases in World War I as a child performer, and he later traveled to foreign bases during World War II and Vietnam.

The exhibit can be seen Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.–3 p.m. by appointment; to arrange a visit, e-mail Cheryl Kempler at ckempler@ bnaibrith.org or call her at 202-857-6647. To take the

virtual tour on the website, go to: www.amuseum.org/jahf.

B’nai B’rith members can obtain limited-edition medal versions of Berle’s Jewish-American Hall of Fame plaque at special discounts. The nostalgic design depicts Berle, in his signature bow tie, and features the lyrics from his theme song, “There’s just one place for me...near you!” The three-ounce, two-inch, trapezoidshaped medals have been struck in bronze (limited to 500) pure silver (limited to 250), and gold-plated silver (limited to 35).

They are available for contributions of $35, $95, and $150, respectively, from the nonprofit Jewish-American Hall of Fame, 5189 Jeffdale Ave., Woodland Hills, CA 91364; or by calling 818-225-1348. Indicate that you are a B’nai B’rith member to receive a 10 percent discount.

national website and greater credibility to know that we’re part of a larger organization.

It’s another way to promote what we do.”

The Great Lakes region is pleased it has new presence on the web.

“We used to have a regional website, but it was just too time-consuming trying to keep it current,” said Don Cohen, director of the Great Lakes Region. “By providing the design and support, and housing it on the B’nai B’rith website, we’re going to be able to greatly expand our web presence, which is just what our president Peter Perlman and our board has been asking for. At the same time, we’re making sure to keep in contact with our members who are not on the Internet.”

Environmental concerns also entered into BBI’s decision to move most regional and community news from a paper publication to the Web. Using the Internet saves paper and cuts production costs; the organization now saves 124,800 pages or 2,064 pounds of paper each year.

B’nai B’rith created a special committee to discuss issues relevant to the nonprofit’s overall communications objectives. The decision to migrate BBI information to the Web was based on suggestions approved by the overall BBI Executive Committee.

B’nai B’rith Today

In the News BBI Receives Grant to Build New Low-Income Apartments for Seniors in Alabama

the end of 2009. BBI and Wiregrass hope the first residents will move in sometime in 2010.

For more information about BBI properties, please visit www.bnaibrith.org or send email to senioradvocacy@bnaibrith.org.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has selected B’nai B’rith International and its partner, the Wiregrass Foundation, to receive a Section 202 Supportive Housing B’nai B’rith Leaders Meet with Pope and Program for the Elderly award. The $3,824,700 allocation will be Italian Prime Minister used to build a housing facility in Dothan, Ala., for low-income B’nai B’rith International President Moishe Smith and Executive senior citizens.

Vice President Daniel S. Mariaschin participated in a February Those age 62 and over, who qualify economically, regardless of mission to Rome and Israel organized by the Conference of religion or race, will be eligible for subsidized apartments in the Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

39-unit independent living facility. The private management agency The mission included meetings with Pope Benedict XVI and SPM will oversee daily operations of the apartment complex.

Italian Prime Minister Sergio Berlusconi. Among the issues BBI is the largest Jewish sponsor of federally subsidized housing discussed with Berlusconi were European Union policy toward for the elderly in the United States. The B’nai B’rith Senior Housthe Middle East and the Iranian nuclear threat. ing Network consists of 39 apartment buildings in 25 communities, The meeting with the pope centered on relations between the encompassing more than 4,000 apartment units and serving more church and the Jewish community, the controversy over traditionthan 7,000 people. alist Bishop Richard Williamson’s denial of the full extent of the Advanced Funding Ad:Version i 4/15/08 9:43 PM Page 1 Construction on the new building in Alabama is set1239 to begin by Holocaust, and the pope’s planned trip to Israel.

B’nai B’rith Today (BBT) is now a special section in B’nai B’rith Magazine. BBT will focus on timely, major issues affecting the members, supporters, and leaders of B’nai B’rith International, including regional success stories, programming, departmental initiatives, events, etc. Strictly regional news will now be covered on our upcoming websites, whose launch dates will soon be announced. If a regional story is newsworthy, timely, and unique, it will be considered for submission to BBT and publication in the magazine.

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Diabetes Impact Increases in Jewish Community Organizations Evolve in Response to Crisis

By Carolyn Vogel Benson

O

besity and inactivity are causing diabetes rates to skyrocket. By 2025, according to the International Diabetes Federation, approximately 380 million people will suffer from the disease, which causes blood sugar levels to rise and damages nerves and blood vessels.

Researchers and health professionals blame Western diet and lifestyle for the diabetes pandemic. Cars, labor-saving devices, fast food, prepared food, and hours of inactivity behind a desk—or on the couch—have been deemed the culprits for weight gain.

The extra weight, they believe, triggers susceptibility genes that set off a cascade of inflammatory and chemical changes leading to diabetes; too many simple sugars and starches, and insufficient exercise, are prescriptions for danger.

And people are looking for help.

“I think, over the years, the more instant and fast-paced we’ve become, the more unhealthy we’ve become,” says Nechama Cohen, executive director of the Jewish Diabetes Association (JDA). A nonprofit, nonsectarian organization, the JDA has become a leader in diabetes education and advocacy and in publicizing the link between obesity and the disease. The association’s motto, “Take Very Good Care of Yourselves,” is from Deuteronomy (4:15).

Cohen founded the JDA in Brooklyn, N.Y., soon after she was diagnosed with diabetes in 1985. Her symptoms included extreme thirst, frequent trips to the bathroom, blurred vision, weakness, confusion, dehydration, and extreme itching.

“I felt like I was slipping away into a faint or into a coma,” Cohen tells B’nai B’rith Magazine.

36 spring 2009

What Is Diabetes?

Diabetes affects metabolism of carbohydrates: sugars and starches found in grains, dried beans and legumes, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, and snack foods.

Digestion breaks down carbohydrates into a simple sugar called glucose, which cells “burn” for energy. The bloodstream carries glucose throughout the body, but before the sugar can pass through a cell’s outer barrier it needs a “key.” The key is insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. If the pancreas ceases to produce insulin, type 1 diabetes occurs.

Complications Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes have the same serious, life-threatening complications if they are not controlled: • Heart disease • Stroke • Vision problems • Blindness • Foot ulcers • Gangrene • Kidney disease • Nerve damage • Gastric problems

Type 1 Diabetes

Most cases of type 1 diabetes are the result of an immune system gone haywire. Infectionfighting cells mistakenly attack and destroy insulin-producing cells in the pancreas as if they were invading microorganisms. If type 1 diabetes is not diagnosed or treated, a lifethreatening coma can occur.

Up to 20 gene mutations appear to make some people susceptible to type 1, but scientists believe the immune system attack is triggered by something in the environment.

Viruses have long been suspected, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). However, a recent Australian study of children implicates obesity, inactivity, and possibly a deficiency in Vitamin D, the “sunshine vitamin.” Toxins and stress may also be involved.

Many people have type 1 susceptibility genes, but only a fraction develop diabetes, according to Stanford University researchers in an article published in the November 2008 edition of Clinical Immunology. Although pancreatic cell destruction can begin years earlier, the symptoms of type 1 are usually sudden, as was the case for both Cohen and Rabbi Hirsch Meisels.

Meisels’ symptoms struck when he was five. “I was staying overnight with neighbors while my parents were away, and I was nauseated and vomiting all night,” recalls Meisels, founder of the support group Jewish Friends with Diabetes International.

“Sometimes the symptoms are like the flu.”

Previously, he had been feeling extremely thirsty and was making many trips to the bathroom. The next morning, his parents took him to the hospital, where he was diagnosed.

Type 1 usually appears in children and young adults, but Cohen was 35 years old and the mother of five when she was diagnosed. She described her experience in an article posted on her website: “One day, out of the blue, I got very thirsty. I drank bottles and bottles of water. I was on a monitored weight-loss program and was losing weight beautifully. I started eating more. The more I ate, the more weight I lost, the thirstier I became and the more I needed the bathroom.

“I tried not to slow down but I was becoming very weak,” Cohen remembers.

“My eyesight was blurry. I had been walking a lot and I stopped. I had two car accidents because I was totally confused. By Shabbos, I couldn’t get out of bed.”

At first, her physician thought she had type 2, but her symptoms of extreme thirst, frequent urination, and weight loss soon progressed to weakness, confusion, irritability, and blurred vision.

People who have type 1 require daily insulin replacement. Blood sugar levels

must be monitored, and tight control of carbohydrate consumption is vital to avoid diabetes complications.

Type 2 Diabetes

Obesity and inactivity are strongly linked to type 2 diabetes, which typically occurs when cells in muscles and fat become resistant to insulin. This, in turn, prevents both glucose and insulin from entering the cell. As a result, the hormone and the sugar build up in the bloodstream and, in time, the pancreas reduces its production of insulin.

The National Institutes of Health announced in March 2008 that an international team of researchers has identified six more genetic variants involved in type 2. Four of these variants were found in a study population of Israeli Ashkenazi Jews. The same variants were found in a Finnish population.

So far, 16 genes have been discovered for type 2, and they have appeared in many different ethnic groups.

“By combining information from the large number of genes now implicated in diabetes

risk, it may be possible to use genetic tools to identify people at unusually high or low risk of diabetes,” says Dr. David Altshuler, of Massachusetts General Hospital, the Broad Institute of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, who is senior author of a study published in an online edition of the journal Nature Genetics.

“However, until we know how to use this information to prompt beneficial changes in people’s treatment or lifestyle, widespread genetic testing would be premature,” says Altshuler.

Dr. Martin Silink, president of the International Diabetes Federation, has described type 2 diabetes as a “silent, isolating disease” because a heart attack or stroke may be the first sign that someone has the disease.

Red flags for diabetes include fatigue, excessive itching, skin infections that are slow to heal, tingling and numbness in the feet, and any of the symptoms described for type 1.

However, these symptoms are so subtle that they often go unnoticed or undiagnosed until serious complications result.

Photo by iStockphoto

B’Nai B’rith 37

Taking Care of Ourselves

For Peniel Moed, a lawyer in Baltimore, there were no symptoms of type 2. The condition was discovered during a routine

physical in 2002, when his doctor took a fasting blood glucose sample.

“I was placed on an oral medication for the diabetes and went to see a nutritionist several times. We talked about levels of blood sugar and foods, especially the number of carbs in those foods,” recalls Moed, who was 68 when he was diagnosed. “She told me to control the carbs and pace myself during the day so that I could have enough energy.”

He also began an exercise regimen at a local gym and walked whenever he had the chance.

“That worked great for a few years, but the weight started to creep up,” Moed says. He was recently placed on a new drug and is working on eating less. “When we have more people over during the holidays, unquestionably, there is more food around the house. It’s a question of self-control.”

Today, Moed walks to the subway station every morning, a distance of approximately a mile, and then the same distance to his office. Twice during Shabbat, he treks to and from his synagogue, a two-mile jaunt each way. He also exercises at his gym twice a week and gets his blood glucose level checked every three months.

Complications from both types of diabetes can be prevented or delayed. A Diabetes Control and Complications Trial conducted by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) found that, through intensive control of blood sugar levels, participants with type 1 dramatically delayed or prevented eye, nerve, cardiovascular, and kidney complications.

Another study concluded that people with insulin resistance can prevent or delay the onset of type 2 with weight loss and exercise. The National Diabetes Education Program, sponsored by the NIH and CDC, finds that, by losing 5 percent to 7 percent of body weight and exercising 30 minutes a day five days a week, many people who are insulin-resistant and have higher-than-normal levels of blood glucose can ward off or stall onset. You can break up the half-hour of exercise into three 10-minute segments and still benefit.

“If your blood glucose is high but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes, losing weight and increasing physical activity will greatly lower your risk of getting type 2 diabetes,” says Dr. Larry Blonde, chair of the program.

Although the Western lifestyle is a problem for everyone, for Jewish people there’s the matter of “tradition, tradition, tradition.”

Think about those beloved, highly caloric Ashkenazi dishes like matzo balls, kugel, latkes, sour cream, schmaltz, bagels, and honey cake. Observant Jews have an even greater

[ ] “I think, over the years, the more instant and fast-paced we’ve become, the more unhealthy we’ve become,” says Nechama Cohen, executive director of the Jewish Diabetes Association. A nonprofit, nonsectarian organization, the JDA has become a leader in diabetes education and advocacy and in publicizing the link between obesity and the disease.

38 spring 2009

challenge, with major and minor holidays celebrated every two months and Shabbat observed every week.

“A Jewish person with diabetes needs to learn how to navigate their way through all these eating opportunities and stay in control of their blood sugar levels,” Cohen wrote in the Jewish Press on March 21, 2008. “Go and try to explain to a doctor why you absolutely have to have four cups of wine at one meal and a given amount of matzo. I do not know if anyone knew the carbohydrate content of matzo balls until we [researchers] came along.”

Understanding the effect carbohydrates have on blood glucose levels is key to managing diabetes, as well as preventing it, says the American Diabetes Association (ADA). According to the ADA, there are three main types of carbohydrates: sugar, starch, and fibers. Starch and sugar raise blood glucose levels.

The ADA recommends three methods of meal planning for people with diabetes.

These are also useful for those who want to lose weight or are insulin-resistant:

• Fill your plate mostly with non-starchy vegetables and reduce portion sizes of starchy foods and meats.

• Keep track of how many carbohydrates you eat, check your blood glucose after eating them, and set a limit.

• Choose low-glycemic response foods to “fine-tune” blood glucose levels, including dried beans and legumes, such as kidney beans and lentils; all non-starchy vegetables and some starchy vegetables; most fruit; and many whole grain breads and cereals like barley, whole-wheat bread, rye bread, and all-bran cereal.

The glycemic index-glycemic load approach to counting carbs measures how quickly a carbohydrate-containing food converts to blood glucose. Foods are ranked low, moderate, or high based on how they compare to a reference food—either glucose or white bread.

Many foods have not yet been tested, so information is limited and measurements

can vary, making it difficult to compare sources. David Mendosa, a freelance medical writer who writes about living with diabetes, has a long list of foods and their glycemic index and load on his website, www.mendosa.com, as do the Harvard Health Publications-Newsweek, and American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Foods that are low in glycemic index and load are high in fiber, which slows the breakdown of carbohydrates into glucose and, in turn, the release of insulin into the bloodstream. This prevents spikes in blood sugar and eliminates cravings, Cohen explains in “Enlitened Kosher Cooking.” Cohen’s cookbook is an important resource for everyone who would like to switch to a healthier diet, and it is particularly helpful to persons with diabetes because the recipes come with calculations for carbs and fat.

A summary of the 60th Scientific Sessions of the ADA Conference concludes that, for people at risk for type 2, clinicians should emphasize “carbohydrates with a low ability to raise blood glucose (low GI),” as well as

For more information: Jewish Diabetes Association

www.jewishdiabetes.org

American Diabetes Association

www.diabetes.org

National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse

diabetes.niddk.nih.gov

International Diabetes Federation

www.idf.org

National Diabetes Education Program

ndep.nih.gov

National Diabetes Prevention Program

diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/preventionprogram/index.htm

JDA Connection for Healthy Living, Pesach Guide

www.jewishdiabetes.org/alon/PesachApril2004En.pdf

JDA Connection for Healthy Living Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur Guide

www.jewishdiabetes.com/alon/kippur_english.pdf

Jewish Friends with Diabetes International

www.friendswithdiabetes.org

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/76/1/5

Harvard Health Publications, Newsweek

www.health.harvard.edu/newsweek/Glycemic_index_and_ glycemic_load_for_100_foods.htm

David Mendosa, Living with Diabetes

www.mendosa.com

B’Nai B’rith 39

Photo courtesy of B’nai B’rith Homecrest House Activities Director: Doris Torti

Eileen Lambert, Senior Manager-Nutrition Services of Sodexo Senior Services, leads a nutrition workshop at B’nai B’rith Homecrest House in Silver Spring, Md.

monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, “which may improve insulin sensitivity.” Interestingly, this all seems to point to the types of foods favored in Mediterranean and Sephardic cuisines.

Cohen suggests substituting low-glycemic veggies like cauliflower, cabbage, or zucchini for potatoes in latkes, and spaghetti squash for noodles in a kugel.

If you miss mashed potatoes, mash cauliflower and green beans together, she says. Use whole-wheat matzo meal for knaidlich.

Another helpful cookbook is Chana Rubin’s “Food for the Soul: Traditional Jewish Wisdom for Healthy Eating,” which contains 100 traditional adapted recipes stressing whole grains, beans and lentils, and leafy vegetables.

Portion size is also important. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, portion sizes have mushroomed in the past 20 years, and we are unknowingly consuming more calories than we think. For example, a bagel—in 1980, three inches in diameter and 140 calories— is likely to be six inches in width and a whopping 350 calories today.

Choosing healthy food every day and exercising regularly are good starts to changing your lifestyle to prevent diabetes or reduce its effects, but what’s even more important is to have a good—even spiritual—attitude concerning how we live our lives. Several of the above writers have touched on this. Our bodies need to be cared for so that our souls can be nourished. And this is not a new idea for Jews: 800 years ago, Moses Maimonides wrote about the importance of a healthy diet and exercise.

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The Jewish-Diabetes Connection

The Jewish Diabetes Association (JDA) began as a small support group with a mission to manage diabetes and still comply with Torah law.

Participants ponder topics such as: What insulin regimen should be followed at Passover when the meal is eaten later than usual? How much matzo—a high-carbohydrate food—do you need to eat to fulfill the seder mitzvah? What is the required amount of wine to be consumed at a seder, and can dry wine, which has low-sugar content, be used?

These questions and more are answered in JDA’s “Connection for Healthy Living Pesach” and “Shabbos/Yom Tov” guides, compiled with the assistance of a rabbinical board and health professionals.

The JDA’s website also has information on prevention, parents and children, and research updates. In addition, the group publishes a newsletter and magazine.

Although the guides are most helpful for observant Jews with type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes (also called juvenile diabetes), they also contain information on how to follow a nutritious low-calorie or low-carb diet within Jewish holiday traditions and law.

Nechama Cohen, who founded the JDA in Brooklyn, N.Y., shortly after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1985, has also written a cookbook, “Enlitened Kosher Cooking,” which can help Jews with diabetes enjoy kosher foods while keeping their diabetes under control. The English version is now in bookstores, and a Hebrew edition is planned.

Cohen wrote the cookbook based on her own experience. “I was diagnosed right after Chanukah, so after that was Purim—which was not easy—and then, of course, came Passover, the ultimate dietary challenge for anyone, especially with diabetes; all this is what led to writing the book. Now holidays are a whole different world, as is the Sabbath,” says Cohen.

Another excellent source for insights into the Jewish-diabetes connection is Jewish Friends with Diabetes International. Its website (www.friendswithdiabetes.org) provides easy-to-read diabetes food guides for Passover, Shabbat, and Rosh Hashanah.

The organization also holds weekend retreats for children, parents, and recently married couples; offers call-in lectures that have reached as many as 50,000 people worldwide; and hosts two email discussion groups: one for people dealing with diabetes and the other for the exchange of kosher, low-carbohydrate recipes, tips, and friendly support.

“Diabetes is multiplying by the day,” says Rabbi Hirsch Meisels, who founded Jewish Friends in 2000. Although the original mission was to provide educational information for Jewish people with type

1 diabetes, Meisels’ organization now also addresses the critical need to prevent type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes and metabolic syndrome, a condition that can lead to diabetes.

BBI Educates on Nutrition, Diabetes

At B’nai B’rith Homecrest House in Silver Spring, Md., diabetes and the obesity connection is an issue of constant discussion.

“We’re having more and more [people] experiencing diabetes, and just about every other person who comes in here asks about diet and foods,” says Chuck Thornton, director of marketing and development at Homecrest House, one of B’nai B’rith International’s 37 federally subsidized senior housing facilities.

In response to the interest, Homecrest House and Sodexo, a food service company which oversees the facility’s kitchen operations, recently held a well-received nutrition workshop for residents.

“They learn how to choose from the menus and balance carbohydrates throughout the day, and how that benefits their condition,” explains dietician Eileen Lambert, senior manager, nutrition services at Sodexo, who led the workshop at Homecrest House. “When they were growing up, they were told, ‘No sugar, no candy, no cake, no pie; nothing good.’

We’re telling them that, based on new research, as long as you balance it out, you can have that [dessert]. It’s the amount. Portion size is key.”

The B’nai B’rith Center for Senior Services also held a discussion panel on diabetes prevention and management this January at the B’nai B’rith Apartments in Deerfield Beach, Fla. The speakers, who included a nutritionist and a registered nurse from North Broward Medical Center, discussed topics including basic nutrition concepts, such as portion size, calorie control, and the food pyramid.

“It was great to see the audience so involved and interested in nutrition,” said Jayme Levy, BBI assistant director of advocacy and programming, who moderated the panel. “I hope that these workshops continue to raise awareness about the need for diabetes prevention in our communities.”

Photo by iStockphoto

B’Nai B’rith 41

New View on the Sandwich Generation The Grandparents Move In

By Rachel Goldberg, Ph.D.

O

n October 30, 2008, I became a member of the “sandwich” generation. At 37, I am a mother—worrying about the cost of diapers, daycare, and college—and a daughter— equally worried about my mother’s arthritis, my father’s heart disease and emphysema, my in-laws’ health, and everyone’s incredibly shrinking retirement accounts.

Millions of members of the sandwich generation—more women than men—find themselves responsible for taking care of both their kids and their parents. This can put a tremendous strain on family finances, careers, even marriages. This country is just beginning to recognize how much this can affect people in all three generations, from lost work time to the financial pinch of paying for long-term care and daycare.

I am lucky.

My parents don’t need expensive care, and my son is too new to need daycare. I am living the sandwich generation dream: I have the grandparents taking care of the kid!

But I have also joined another subset of that sandwich population, one that includes President Obama (whose mother-in-law lives at the White House) in its ranks— those engaged in multi-generational living.

After several years of badgering my parents about why they live in New Jersey when both their daughters live in Maryland, I now have them living in my (not very large) house. Apparently, the sight of my son did what two years of logical arguments could not—it made my parents realize that Maryland (specifically, my base42 spring 2009

Illustration by Simeon Montesa

ment) is the place to be.

And, yes, being part of the sandwich generation has its increasingly common and well-known burdens.

My parents move more slowly, and I worry more. I wonder what will happen if they need anything expensive, and I know they wish they could set up a lush college fund for my kid, instead of fretting about their retirement funds.

Also, I often feel strangely caught between childhood and adulthood, as I am someone’s mother, but my parents talk to me as if I were still only 12. There are times when my mother’s total calm and confidence in the face of my son’s most recent oddity (projectile vomiting, crying for no reason, etc.) makes me feel just this side of incompetent.

I have to shop for both my parents and my kid. I have to search online for new baby formula that won’t make my son sick and do my mother’s Medicare drug plan enrollment on the same day. It’s not easy—and it’s almost always weird.

But there is more to this sandwich generation thing than just the exhaustion and fear.

As an aging-issues professional, I know all

about the importance of civic engagement for older adults, the skills and experience of older workers, and all the rest. But I think I have been as guilty as anyone of being afraid to face my parents’ old age. And although they are slower than they used to be, I now realize I underestimated how much it would benefit all of us (even my husband) to have my parents with us during this time.

Despite their various quirks and infirmities, both of my parents have found ways to help with the baby. My father’s near-legendary insomnia made him the ideal pinchhitter when the baby simply would not sleep.

And when I stay with the amazing-awakebaby all night, my mother is happy—really, really happy—to take him in the morning so I can nap.

And I have discovered what employers who hire older workers also find out: they know things. My mother knows all about babies. (Dad doesn’t, but he likes them just the same.) They both approach my child with the knowledge that comes from experience; in this case, that everything will be fine. Whereas I am certain that each new change is the beginning of a disaster, my

Gabriela Shalev continued from pg. 21

parents have seen it all work out—twice— and are less unnerved.

And because they are now seeing me as a parent and themselves as grandparents, it occurs to them to tell me things about their grandparents, parents, cousins, and lives that I have never heard before. (Or ignored or forgot.)

I am seeing them in a different way, and I think they may be seeing themselves differently, too, as they figure out how they fit into this new generation. I will be 38 when this is published, but sometimes I feel like I am just getting to know my parents. This is one of those moments with a lesson in it someplace.

I worry about my mother and father, but I don’t worry more because they live here now; I think I worry less. And I worry about my child. And obviously, my parents will not be providing free daycare forever. But this has been good for me, and good for them. They seem happier and more energetic around the baby than they have been in years.

I knew all this already. I knew that civic engagement, volunteer work, working with kids, all were great for older people.

I also knew that older people had skills and experience that could be real assets to the work force. And yet it took seeing my parents engage with my child and “work” as daycare-grandparents for to me know it the way I know it now.

Can we end elder abuse and age discrimination by having all older adults move in with me, or even with their own kids?

No. Really, no.

But being in the sandwich generation isn’t always as bad as it sounds.

Rachel Goldberg is B’nai B’rith International’s director of aging policy.

threatening to wipe Israel off the map, developing nuclear capabilities, and arming and sending weapons to Hezbollah on our north and Hamas in our midst. We think Iran is really a very cruel enemy, but not only of Israel.

I think the United States understands this, I think the world understands it, and I think the Security Council now also—after all these resolutions and economic sanctions—will come to grips with it. We hope the carrots-and-sticks and the engagement, which the United States already announced, is going to help, but it is—to my mind and to our mind—not an Israeli problem, but a problem of the world.

Every international body, every government, every moderate Arab state that can be effective and help to stop the development of nuclear capabilities in Iran, and stop the incitement coming from them, and the hate of Israel and the Western world, is welcome.

Q -- You have said that representatives of moderate Arab states are cordial and sometimes friendly to you in the halls of the United Nations, but it’s another matter entirely when it comes to official interactions and meetings. Is this what you expected before you went to New York?

A -- Somebody asked me if I’m disappointed, because, when we were kids, we learned that the United Nations represented the spirit of the world. At my age, and after so many years of [seeing] and learning what happens in the world, I was not disappointed, but still I found the United Nations to be a place of doublespeak. It reminded me of Orwell’s “1984.” You say something, and really you mean something different.

In the halls, delegates from moderate Arab states are always very nice and friendly and cooperative, and we have very good talks, but when it comes to voting or even to sitting across from each other at a public forum, it’s something else.

There is an ambassador from one of the half-moderate Arab countries with whom I sat one evening at a dinner hosted by the Turkish ambassador. We sat for two-and-ahalf hours and we had a wonderful discus-

sion. Some time later, we sat opposite each other at a public meeting for one whole hour and he avoided any eye contact with me—he wouldn’t even wink, not to [mention shake] hands—because there were 60 or 70 ambassadors there, and some of them would not like to see any kind of handshake or even greetings between the Israeli ambassador and an Arab ambassador.

Q -- You are Israel’s first female ambassador to the United Nations, [and] one of several women currently occupying major positions of power in Israel. Is this the age of women in the Jewish state?

A -- I should hope so. I think there’s a great improvement, especially if you consider the situation just a few years ago.

Women are really shattering the glass ceiling, and I think this is true in the United States as well, and in the United Nations.

This is really the age of women, and Israel is really at the forefront. There’s an improvement all over the world but, unfortunately, not in many countries in our region. So when we speak about human rights, there are many human rights that are not respected. In Arab countries, there are places that women are not allowed to drive, not to [mention] places where women are stoned because of adultery or rape or things like that.

Q --You were appointed when Ehud Olmert was prime minister. With the change in government in Israel, do you expect another political appointment to take your place?

A -- I see myself as representing the State of Israel, and not Olmert, Tzipi Livni, or Binyamin Netanyahu. In the jargon of the Foreign Ministry, I’m called a political appointment, but I’m not a political person, and I’d rather call it an outside appointment because I’m not part of the diplomatic corps or the political scene.

I hope and I want to represent my country, and not this government or that government.

This story was written following Israel’s election while the country’s leadership remained in flux.

B’Nai B’rith 43

Utah’s Jews

A Longtime Minority with a Presence

By Janet Lubman Rathner

U

tah is a place of rugged natural beauty, world-class skiing, the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS)—and where to be Jewish is to be gentile. According to the Latter-day Saints (at 58 percent, they are Utah’s majority population), anyone who is not a follower of the Book of Mormon is a gentile.

Simon Bamberger, a German-Jewish hotelier and entrepreneur running for governor in 1916, found himself refuting a label typically employed by followers of his faith when discussing their Sabbath-on-Sunday neighbors.

“As a Jew, I’ve been called many a bad name, but this is the first time in my life that I’ve been called a damned gentile,” Bamberger retorted, when informed during a campaign stop that the term was a voter turn-off.

Former naysayers subsequently began referring to him as an “Israelite,” a term of high regard among Latter-day Saints, and Bamberger went on to win, becoming Utah’s first, and thus far only, Jewish governor.

Jewish merchants line the streets of downtown Salt Lake City, circa 1920.

Photos courtesy of “A Homeland in the West: Utah Jews Remember” book & exhibit

44 spring 2009

Although Jews remain anomalies in Utah today—of the state’s 2 million residents, approximately 5,000 are Jewish, with most living in or near the capital of Salt Lake City—Jewish merchants have maintained a presence in Salt Lake City and throughout the Beehive State since 1854.That is when German immigrant Julius Brooks opened a millinery that went on to thrive despite a boycott of non-Mormon businesses by the Church of Latter-day Saints in the 1860s.

“This was the crossroads where the East met the West…and a critical destination for West Coast to East Coast [travel and business],” says Eric Shapiro, whose peddler grandfather, Simon, an immigrant from Lithuania, opened Shapiro Trunk & Bag Company in Salt Lake City in 1917.

Simon had a lot of company.

Siegel Brothers Clothiers, Kolitz Candy Kitchen, Kahn Brothers Wholesale Grocery, Cohn Brothers Dry Goods, and Auerbach’s Department Store were just a few of Salt Lake City’s early Jewish-owned businesses.

According to “A Homeland in the West: Utah Jews Remember,” recollections assembled in 2001 by Jewish author, historian, and Salt Lake City resident Eileen Hallett Stone, the downtown’s plethora of Jewish merchants led locals to refer to the shopping area as “Jewish Row.” “Salt Lake City was a prime destination.

It was a real Western town and offered a lot of adventures and working opportunities.

That’s why they came,” Stone tells B’nai B’rith Magazine.

While most of these retailers have gone by the wayside, Shapiro Trunk & Bag—known for handmade “touring-car” trunks, which were strapped to the backs of automobiles— evolved into the present-day Shapiro Luggage & Gifts, a premiere business accessory store with branches in and around Salt Lake City, as well as outlets in Boise, Idaho, and Tucson, Ariz.

Jewish Geography “Salt Lake City was a Jewish merchantbased community, but now we are the only ones left,” reflects Shapiro, 46, who runs the stores with his two brothers—the third generation of family to do so.

Shapiro says economic challenges led to the demise of the early Jewish-owned establishments, less than religious affiliation.

“It is more and more difficult for independents to survive. You’d find that anywhere,” Shapiro says.

Shapiro grew up with a strong sense of Jewish identity, enhanced by involvement with the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization (BBYO), where he was a chapter president. There is no longer an active B’nai B’rith lodge in Salt Lake City, but other institutions enrich Jewish life: BBYO; a Jewish Community Center; a synagogue offering a blend of Reform and Conservative observance; Chabad; and a Hillel at the University of Utah. Add the area’s abundant natural

amenities, and it is clear why Simon Shapiro’s progeny remain entrenched.

“We have incredible winters and great summers. There’s hiking, biking, and camping.

My wife and boys are incredible skiers. We don’t have subways or Neiman’s, but you can survive without those things,” Shapiro says.

a religious minority in a state heavily influenced by yet another religious minority?

How does a Jewish child attending public school deal with mandatory Mormon study hall?

“I was quick to let my high school

A Major Minority Back in the day, the LDS church donated land for Salt Lake City’s first Jewish cemetery. It also contributed funding for the construction of an early synagogue.

But what is it like to be

B’Nai B’rith 45

know I’d get a free period,” says Shapiro. Today, as a parent, he encourages his own children, ages 7 and 10, to be equally assertive.

“We tell them, ‘Stand up and be proud of who you are. You’re different,’” Shapiro says.

Shapiro’s father Joel, 86, who was active in B’nai B’rith’s former B.F. Peixotto Lodge, recalls when teachers had to be educated about the significance of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, and his requisite absence from class for those observances.

“We were treated well,” Joel Shapiro says.

“Today, we still live in a culture influenced by the LDS church, but the LDS doctrine is inclusive of Israelites.”

Which is not to say there aren’t challenges.

“Assimilation is an issue. Certain amenities are not as accessible: Kosher meat we import from Denver…and there is no fulltime day school,” says Rabbi Tracee Rosen, spiritual leader of Kol Ami, Salt Lake City’s 380-family multi-denominational synagogue, whose blended makeup is in itself a bit of a departure.

Rosen relocated to Salt Lake City from Denver six years ago. She views the community not only from the perspective of a rabbi, but also as a newcomer from a city with a substantially larger Jewish population, and now, having just adopted a baby girl, as a parent.

“Jews who live here and choose to participate are more engaged than what you’d find

46 spring 2009

in a larger community,” says Rosen. “Everyone counts here. You can’t assume, ‘Someone else will do it if I don’t.’”

Worldwide, Jews outnumber Mormons, but not by much. Defined by their respective miniscule populations—approximately 13 million and 12 million— the religions have a special bond, Rosen says.

“There is a certain amount of empathy, and [Mormons] are big supporters of Israel,” Rosen says.

Proxy Baptism On occasion, there are clashes.

Mormons believe in the afterlife, and “proxy baptism”—the posthumous conversion of nonbelievers—is key to the religion.

According to church policy, the practice is reserved for the departed with descendents to give permission; hence the reason for the state-of-the-art genealogical research resources for which the Mormons are famous.

However, in recent years the names of Anne Frank and other Holocaust victims, as well as Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal, have been found on the International Genealogical Index, the Mormon database of posthumous ordinances. This has led the Wiesenthal Center Museum of Tolerance to repeatedly ask that the names be removed and for an end to the proxy baptism of Jews.

“They think it’s an act of kindness, that they are doing us a favor, but it’s quite a

bit of chutzpah…the epitome of arrogance to infer that they are the gatekeepers of heaven…and that they are preparing our way,” says Rabbi Marvin Hier, founder and director of the Los Angeles-based Wiesenthal Center. “They need to know that [Jews] can get to heaven on their own. We say, ‘Thanks, but no thanks.’”

Hier has received assurances from the LDS Church that proxy baptism of Jews is not a Mormon objective, but he says it is difficult for church elders to police the practice.

“They have clusters that decide they want to do this. Is it foolproof that there won’t be another outburst in the future? No,” Hier says.

As recently as November of last year, an official with the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors complained that the practice continues.

LDS Church spokeswoman Kim Farah says efforts are ongoing to put a stop to proxy baptism of Jews.

“Church leaders and members empathize with the depth of feeling of all Jews regarding the Holocaust. Because of this, an understanding was reached with Jewish groups in 1995 that the church would remove Holocaust names from its public database which were not submitted by descendents,” Farah tells B’nai B’rith Magazine.

“The agreement also put in place a system where Jewish groups would provide the

Jewish Geography Left, on opposite page: The Bernstein family in Clarion, Utah.

Middle: Jewish Salt Lake City residents I.J. and Abe Wagner and their parents.

Right: Simon Bamberger’s inauguration.

Below: Auerbach’s department store, circa 1934.

Staying in Place

church with any names that reappeared on the database so they could be removed,” she explains. “In good faith, the church has followed this process for over a decade. It is hoped that new technology the church is developing will aid in efforts to curtail wrongful submissions.”

Kol Ami’s Rosen considers the uproar a misunderstanding.

“It’s an issue of problematic semantics. It doesn’t change [religious] status. Also, the church makes the genealogy available to all, and Jews have benefited from the research.

You don’t get one without the other,” Rosen says.

Semantics aside, life for Jews in Utah has its advantages. Rosen’s verdict?

“It’s beautiful. It’s easy to get around. Things are accessible. You know your neighbors.

There is not a lot of Jewish infrastructure, but what we have is very robust.”

Which is why, despite invitations from their grown son to relocate to San Francisco, a place where gentiles do not light candles on Shabbat, Salt Lake City natives Fred and Irene Tannenbaum, both 82 and themselves the offspring of the town’s early Jewish merchants, won’t be pulling up stakes anytime soon.

“We like it here. We’re very comfortable,” says Tannenbaum, also a former B’nai B’rith lodge president. “My wife says they’ll have to take her out feet first.”

B’Nai B’rith 47

Planned Giving

The Herman Legacy

A Generous Investment, A Promise Kept

By Rich Bindell

B

Photo courtesy of Bernie Greenapple

teers involved in helping local youth. The assisted by identifying qualified students ernard Greenapple was president foundation created criteria for scholarships, and setting up interviews. of the former B’nai B’rith South participated in interviewing students, and Once selected, the students were invited Orange County Lodge (also once to attend an award dinner in their honor, assisted in planning award ceremonies for known as the Mission Viejo Lodge) in which gave them an opportunity to learn recipients. The scholarships were provided Orange County, Calif., when he was apmore about B’nai B’rith. to students based on academic merit and proached by Al Herman to co-manage a Sadly, Herman passed away five community involvement, regardless of scholarship fund in the name of his son, years ago. Before he died, he had asked religion, race, or creed.

Stuart Herman.

Greenapple to keep a promise: to ensure To select recipients, BBI volunteers Recently, after 10 years of providing scholthe fund’s continuation after his death worked with five or six high schools in arships to local students, the Stuart Herman and, if the South Orange County Lodge the community. Each volunteer would Foundation transferred the remainder of ever ceased to exist, to guarantee that coordinate with a specific school and create the fund, approximately $120,000, to B’nai the remainder of the foundation’s money a selection committee. School counselors B’rith International (BBI). The gift would be donated to BBI. was made upon the death of Al HerRather than be the sole controller man and closing of the lodge, and of the account, Greenapple rewill continue to be used to support cruited two other lodge members, academic scholarships.

Art Simon and Frank Lieberman, Al Herman, an educator and to assist in the management of founder of the South Orange the fund.

County Lodge and five others, was “I didn’t want to control [the a lifetime member of B’nai B’rith. account] by myself, so I went to the When his son Stuart, an attorney, lodge and got two volunteers added passed away unexpectedly, Heron the account,” Greenapple said. man started the foundation in his “That way, we would have three name, with his own funds, to offer people overseeing it together.” scholarships to high-school students The South Orange County Lodge throughout the community. closed in January of 2008. Although In his desire to see the program he had nothing more than a verbal continue, Herman asked Greenapple agreement with him, Greenapple is to co-manage the funds and offered fulfilling Herman’s wish. instructions on what to do with the Thanks to Herman’s generosity, money following his own death.

B’nai B’rith has become the recipi“He wanted to ensure the proent of some $120,000. gram continued as long as possible,” Greenapple says. “So before he To make your designated gift to B’nai passed away, Al wanted to make B’rith for a specific purpose, please sure the money was protected, and contact the Planned Giving Departhe wanted to give a good portion of ment, 2020 K Street NW, Washingit to BBI.” South Orange County Lodge founder and lifelong B’nai B’rith ton, DC 20006; 800-656-5561; Although it is separate from and member Al Herman (left) established the Stuart Herman Foundaplannedgiving@bnaibrith.org. Our independent of B’nai B’rith, Hertion in his son’s name to provide scholarships for local high school professional staff will be pleased to man saw the foundation named for students. Bernie Greenapple (right) kept his promise to manage work with you to reach your goals. his son as a way to get BBI volunthe scholarship upon Herman’s passing.

48 spring 2009

W

Keeping the Tradition Alive Takes Leadership: Yours.

ith a bequest that costs you nothing today, you can have the impact of a lifetime. Your gift to the B’nai B’rith Foundation supports our wide scope of missions at home and abroad. At this time of year, when we renew our promise to faith, family, and community, consider a gift that ensures Jewish continuity and provides important services for Jews around the world.

Our planned giving professionals can put their expertise to work and help you design a customized bequest that fits your family’s current needs and future goals.

Give the gift of leadership. Together we can ensure Jewish tradition remains alive and well for generations to come.

To Make a Bequest

A

bequest to the B’nai B’rith Foundation of the U.S. will perpetuate your love for Judaism by providing positive Jewish experiences for young people and important services for Jews of all ages around the world. To remember B’nai B’rith in your will or estate plan, please include: B’nai B’rith Foundation of the U.S. (tax ID # 53-0257218) 2020 K Street, NW Washington, DC 20006

The B’nai B’rith Planned Giving Team

Planned Giving: Ensuring a Jewish Future B’nai B’rith Foundation of the U.S. • 2020 K Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006 • 800-656-5561

Photo by Stacey Smith, USBR

Moshav on the Range

By Janet Lubman Rathner

All that remains of the Clarion colony are a couple of tombstones etched in Hebrew and English.

Central Utah seems an odd spot

for a Jewish farming colony, but that is the story of Clarion.

Located in rural, off-the-beaten-path Sanpete County, 135 miles south of Salt Lake City, Clarion is where turn-of-thecentury Jewish immigrants from Russia and Poland—weary of the urban poverty of New York and Philadelphia—took a stab at cooperative agricultural living.

They failed.

“They didn’t have the experience to deal with the conditions. Even now, the area is not farmed. It looks like a moonscape,” says Robert Goldberg, a history professor at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City and author of “Back to the Soil: The Jewish Farmers of Clarion, Utah, and Their World,” published in 1986.

In 1911, a dozen members of the Jewish Agricultural and Colonial Association arrived in Utah’s Gunnison Valley to lay claim to 6,000 acres purchased by 152 Jews. Subdivided into 40-acre tracts, the price of the land—$10 an acre with 10 percent down and the rest to be 50 spring 2009

paid over a 10-year period—was a princely sum for the colonists. Most of them had to borrow the money for the down payment.

Under the tutelage of Russian immigrant Benjamin Brown, one of the few who came to Clarion with actual farming experience, the Jewish colonists cleared 1,500 acres and planted wheat, alfalfa, and oats.

Due to irrigation problems, the crops did not succeed.

The second year, with the arrival of more colonists (at its peak, Clarion grew to more than 200 residents), the harvest was devastated again; this time by heavy summer rains, subsequent flooding, and an early frost.

Clarion’s trials were not lost on Utah’s general populace.

“The Mormons always looked at Jews as biblical cousins, and biblical cousins should help biblical cousins, [so] the Mormon Church gave money toward the success of the colony, ” says Goldberg.

But financial aid could not remedy Clarion’s chronic water problems, fickle weather, and marginal land quality.

By 1915, the majority of the co-op’s residents were calling it quits. Salt Lake City Jews stepped in, providing funds for the cash-strapped colonists to return to that which they had fled: the slums and sweatshops of the East Coast.

Goldberg says that while the Jewish community felt a responsibility to help Clarion, it stopped short of inviting the failed farmers to start anew in Salt Lake City.

“They weren’t too thrilled with the immigrants. They thought they were socialists.

They gave money to them for tickets to go back,” Goldberg says.

For a few more years, a handful of Clarion’s colonists soldiered on, but it was a difficult existence. Finally, in the 1920s, amid fears that in addition to agricultural and financial struggles they stood to lose their children to assimilation, the remaining residents left.

Today, on the barren land where Clarion once stood, a couple of tombstones etched in Hebrew and English are all that remains of this early 20th-century experiment in Jewish cooperative agriculture.

Focusing on the People Who Help B’nai B’rith Make a Difference

Making The World A Better Place More than 40 years ago, B’nai B’rith helped pioneer the concept of honoring individuals and corporations to raise funds and help us better serve the community. In every case, we find honorees that exemplify the goals of the organization.

On May 7, at New York’s Grand Hyatt, B’nai B’rith will honor pharmaceutical leader Novartis AG, and its chairman and chief executive officer Dr. Daniel Vasella, with the prestigious Distinguished Achievement Award.

Honored for the second consecutive year on Ethisphere’s list of the “World’s Most Ethical Companies,” and Fortune’s “World’s Most Admired Companies,” Novartis is at the pinnacle of corporate responsibility.

Novartis’ outstanding record of researching and developing medicines to fight neglected diseases—such as malaria, dengue fever, tuberculosis, and leprosy—and making them readily available, without profit, to poor countries, and providing vital education about disease prevention, parallels B’nai B’rith’s 165-year record of aiding the most vulnerable around the world.

Through programs like our Disaster Relief Fund and Communities in Crisis, B’nai B’rith works with partners like Brother’s Brother Foundation and IsraAid to bring needed medicines and medical supplies to the most needy in Latin America; to feed Georgian war refugees and bring clothing to children fleeing Somalia; and to provide medical supplies, housing, and construction assistance to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. In local communities, B’nai B’rith volunteers collect and distribute food packages to poor and elderly Jews during Passover as part of our Project Hope.

B’nai B’rith is proud to stand shoulder-toshoulder with Novartis as together we fulfill the biblical adage of Tikkun Olam; literally, repairing the world.

To learn how you can help B’nai B’rith make a difference in the world, call the Department of Development at 800-573-9057.

Outside what once was Sinsheimer’s Café on the Lower East Side, a plaque commemorates “the site—60 Essex Street—where B’nai B’rith, the first national service organization created in the United States, was founded on October 13, 1843.”

Lower East Side, continued from pg. 28 the new arrivals tend to be younger, lessaffiliated folks, more interested in hot, new restaurants than in Jewish history.

“The joke,” says Weissman, “is that all the young people are dying to get a deal in the neighborhood that their immigrant ancestors

were dying to get out of.”

That leaves much of the burden on culture-conscious visitors to sustain the Jewish life that remains.

To some extent, they’re pulling their weight impressively. A reporter attempting to interview Rabbi Mordechai Blumenthal, owner of Torahs Plus Judaica, could not en-

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ter the Essex Street store on this November morning because seven customers filled the cramped quarters.

A few steps north, Alan Kaufman extends a smile and a free taste at his Pickle Guys shop. Tours run by the Tenement Museum (around the corner on Orchard Street) and by LESJC are popular. The recently restored, 122-year-old Eldridge Street Synagogue, now known as the Museum on Eldridge Street, is a beautiful testimonial to what once was.

For now, the neighborhood effectively addresses residents’ needs. A butcher shop, restaurants, bakeries, grocery stores, and synagogues cater to the observant population. Some wonder, though, how much longer that will continue.

Rabbi David Feinstein, dean of Mesivta Tifereth Yerushalayim, a yeshiva on East Broadway, cannot fathom the attachment many young Jews in the area have to “the American dream—that they have to have a house.” He does not like the fact that so many are leaving.

“The old-timers are here and the [Orthodox-affiliated] youngsters are moving out,” he says. “At the moment, we’re still viable.”

But what if the area in which he says he’s spent “nearly my whole life” becomes unsustainable for committed Jews like him?

“It doesn’t bother me,” Feinstein responds, without hesitating. “There’s no holiness in the Lower East Side. As long as it exists, we have to service the population. If there’s no population to service? Fine. We close down and move on. It’s no ‘must’ that we have a Jewish population on the Lower East Side.”

Kaufman begs to differ. He plans to stay put, no matter what—even if the landlord raises the rent on his tiny Essex Street shop when the lease comes up for renewal in three years.

“I’d like to stay because of tradition. If you lose the pickle store, the bialy store, there’d be nothing left of the Lower East Side,” Kaufman says. “Times change, I guess. I’m 50. I’m too stubborn to move on. You gotta have roots, something to come back to, to say, ‘This is something I belong to.’”

Shalom! and best wishes to our many Jewish friends

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1-800-697-4733

Please Mention B’nai B’rith When Calling

Mention B’nai B’rith Receive A Discount

145 North Redwood Dr. • San Rafael, CA 94903

8600 Tamarack Ave., Sun Valley, CA 91352

8138 ORION AVE. • VAN NUYS, CA 91406

D&D CREMATION SERVICE

415-499-9400

SUNSET DISTRICT 19TH AVE COMPLETE AUTOMOBILE REPAIRING & SERVICE DOMESTIC & FOREIGN CARS

PET CREMATION

TUNE UPS • BRAKES • WHEEL ALIGNMENT • FRONT SUSPENSION Open Mon-Sat 8-6 Sunday 10-5 (Oil Changes Only)

Individual or Communal Service Prompt Pick-Up! Small or Large Pets Veterinary Hospitals Welcome

Mechanic On Duty

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TOWING AVAILABLE

CASTROL OIL CHANGE SPECIALS WHILE YOU WAIT... NO APPT. NEEDED Ask About Our Specials

SUNSET SERVICE SUPER LUBE

TED LAMPROS “Car Doctor”

(415) 731-7211 Please Mention 2095 19TH AVE. & QUINTARA, SAN FRANCISCO This Ad $2.00 Off Regular Price On Oil Change

(323) 879-9073 (323) 268-7050

Reutlinger Community for Jewish Living

Fringale

Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah Jews In Jazz Travelogue Around the World Golden Age of The Artist Within Yiddush Theatre Passion for Poetry Klezmer Music 101 Vistas of Ancient Egypt Impressionist Virtual Art www.rcjl.org Music Therapy and Choir

R

E

S

T A

U

R

A

N

T

Bete’ Avon

Urge (TheTo Eat. )

For Lunch or Dinner OPEN 7 NIGHTS A WEEK

4000 CAMINO TOSSAJARA IN DANVILLE, HWY 680

570 FOURTH STREET SAN FRANCISCO • 94107

• INDEPENDENT • ASSISTED LIVING • ALZHEIMER’S • SKILLED NURSING CARE

TEL•415•543•0573 COLORADO

FREE IN-SHOP ESTIMATES With Mention Of This Ad

(719) 475-8585

http://ticktockshop.uswestdex.com “Over 30 Years Experience” ONE OF THE LARGEST SELECTIONS OF WATCHES AND CLOCKS IN THE PIKES PEAK REGION Master Watchmaker #3028 7 N. Circle Dr. Colorado Springs, CO

- 50 Years of Accounting Experience www.eckhoff.com (cpas@eckhoff.com) Contact Michele Hassid

u ]

www.avantipoolsandspas.com See us @ superpages.com E-mail: avantipools@sbcglobal.net

David Mattson

Payroll Services • Tax Planning and Preparation Accounting and Auditing • Computer Installation & Management Services • Financial Planning Estates & Trust Planning • Litigation Support Business Valuation

Mobile Paper Shredding & Recycling

Serving All Of Southern California ON-SITE DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION Est. 1988 • Offices coast to coast • Security-cleared personnel • Shredded in our truck at your location

SALES & SERVICE

FOR ALL MAKES ANTIQUE CLOCKS RESTORED PARTS MADE FOR OBSOLETE AND FOREIGN CLOCKS

ASK ABOUT

AUTHORIZED GUARANTEE SERVICE • FREE DELIVERY ON FLOOR CLOCKS

COLORADO

OUTDOOR KITCHEN DISTRIBUTORS INC. “DENVER’S COMPLETE BARBEQUE SHOP”

Ducane, Broil King, OCI Big Green Egg • Broilmaster Natural Gas & LP Grills Bar Stools & Fireplaces & Inserts Patio Furniture & Accessories

303-991-9911

4401 S. Tamarac Pkwy.

Denver, CO 80237 Proud Supporters of B’nai B’rith

THE PEPSI BOTTLING GROUP • BEVERAGE SALES • VENDING SERVICES • SPECIAL EVENTS

(801) 972-7400 Service & Repair 1-800-903-4352 Fax 972-7470

3388 WEST 1987 SOUTH

Salt Lake City, UT

B’Nai B’rith 59

CONNECTICUT Complete One-Stop Collision Center 24 HOUR TOWING

Quality Repairs & Service Guaranteed • Foreign & Domestic, All Makes & Models • Certified Body Men • Mechanical Repairs • Rapid Turnaround Time • Quality Used Cars Bought & Sold • Insurance Forms Expertly Processed • Rentals Available • Insurance Company Recommended and Approved • Windshield Replacement Hours: M-F 8am-6pm 26 Bridge St. • New Milford

Sat Hours by Appointment

Marvin P. Schweitzer, ND

Wellness Institute Experienced, Caring, Cutting Edge Health Care for the Whole Family

Advanced Wellness-Oriented Diagnostics Botanicals • Homeopathy • Nutrition Acupuncture • Energy Medicine • Oxygen Therapy Non-Invasive Allergy Testing and Desensitization Candida • Environmental Detox

(203) 847-2788

One Westport Ave., Norwalk, CT www.wellnessinstitute-ct.com

860-355-4230

a -1 a u to b o d y w o r k s .tr i p o d .c o m

Stamford Marble Imports Co. “We are direct importers from around the world.”

Custom Fabrication & Installation to Architectural Specifications Fireplace Surrounds, Vanity Tops, Kitchen Countertops, Tables & more!

Architects & Decorators are Welcome!

Large Selection of Marble, Granite Ceramic Tile, Natural Stone. (including custom & hand painted tile)

12 Camp Avenue, Stamford, CT tel: 203.322.5457 fax: 203.329.9873

• State-of-the-Art Spray Booth and Bake Oven • FREE Estimate • FREE Loaner Car • Frame Machine & Measurement System

Foreign Car Specialists Porsche, Volvo, Mercedes, BMW FREE Pickup & Delivery Your Insurance Company Knows Us! 36 Lucy St. Woodbridge, CT (between Rte. 63 & 67)

(203) 397-2909 WOODBRIDGE (203) 387-8069 AUTO BODY SHOP, Fax: (203) 389-4002 INC. 45 YEARS EXPERIENCE FULLY INSURED FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED INSECT & DISEASE CONTROL FERTILIZING TREE SURGEON

203/531-5759

TREE

SERVICE

COMPLETE LANDSCAPING & LAWN CARE LAWNS–NEW & RENOVATED FOUNDATION SHRUBS TICK CONTROL

Licensed By State Of Conn #1177H NY #CO-606856

MEMBER CONN. TREE PROTECTIVE ASSN. 1 ARMONK ST. GREENWICH, CT

United We Stand

BAYBERRY INSURANCE An Independent Agency

PAM ATKINS, CIC • HOME • COMMERCIAL • FARMS • LIFE • BOATS /MARINE • AUTO

(860) 445-5625 One Fort Hill Road, Groton, CT 06340

Around The Clock Home Care

COMPANION-SITTERS PERSONAL CARE ATTENDANTS CERTIFIED NURSES AIDS 24 HOUR SERVICE - 7 DAYS REGISTERED & LICENSED NURSES

(203) 262-6066 Union Square Southbury

60 spring 2009

KLAFF’S

Foreign & Domestic Repairs

Lighting • Kitchens • Baths Decorative Hardware • Tile & Stone

One of the first and largest family-owned design centers in the country — selling an unsurpassed selection of quality lighting, baths, kitchens, decorative hardware, tile & stone.

Gift certificates available.

South Norwalk • Danburg Westport (Lighting only)

203-866-1603 Klaffs.com

Auto Repair Inc. Preferred Services Since 1972

State Certified Auto Emissions Repair 174 West Center Street Manchester, CT Phil, Jim & Paul Locicero

Family Owned and Operated Since 1972

Tel. (860) 646-5036 Mon-Fri 7:30am-5:30pm

DELAWARE

GEORGIA

ONCE A WEEK OR ONCE A YEAR WE CAN SHRED A BOX OF PAPER IN JUST TWO MINUTES Why Use Document Security?... ON-SITE SHREDDING TOTAL SECURITY • LOWER COST • SECURITY CONTAINERS •PROFESSIONAL & PROMPT LOCAL SERVICE • CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION ISSUED •WE RECYCLE

800-60-SHRED SERVING THE TRI-STATE AREA

Air Conditioning and Heating Sales & Service

Service on All Makes & Models • Heat Pump Specialist CUSTOM MADE INDOOR WEATHER

GA Reg. # CN-006153

(912) 201-9822 Toll Free 1-888-612-9822

Billy Cox - Owner

FLORIDA

IDAHO

ILLINOIS

GENERAL SALES SPECIALTIES , INC.

(208) 464-2736

Relief Medical Services, Inc.

Timber Inn

Creativity Is The Key To Our Success…

And Yours Buttons • Beverageware • Balloons • Calendars Wearables • Key Chains • Pens • Pencils

Lodging, Bar and Grill

Email: gsi2@bellsouth.net or visit: www.generalsalesmiami.com 8560 NW 56th Street • Miami, FL

5 Deluxe Rooms With a View

Free Catalog

(305) 592-2700 • Fax: (305) 592-2052

“You Will Love Our Log Inn”

P.O. Box 498, Pierce, ID 83546

ILLINOIS

Providing: Pre-arranging saves money

(813) 645-3231

WOOD WONDERS

CUSTOM FURNITURE & CABINETRY RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL www.woodwonders.info

954-981-1010 3160 Pembroke Rd. Pembroke Pk., FL

THE SOURCE FOR SERVICE - QUALITY - SELECTION Entrance & Interior Locks • Cabinet Knobs & Pulls Switch Plates, Hinges • Towel Bars, Etc. Faucets & Accessories

DECORATOR ARE HARDW & BATH CO. Tues-Wed-Fri-Sat: 9:00-5:00 Monday & Thursday 9:00-8:00 Closed Sunday

847•677•5533

3921 Touhy • Lincolnwood IL (East Of Edens Expy-Touhy Exit)

This space could be yours!

To advertise in our Mart Sections, call 866-612-4295.

RN’S • LPN’S • CNA’S COMPANIONS • LIVE-INS “Round The Clock Nursing” 7 Days A Week Private Duty Home Care • Assisted Living Est. 1973 www.reliefmed.com 323 E. Ontario • Chicago

312-266-1486

4845 Dempster • Skokie

847-679-6065

Mention B’nai B’rith

Reception & Conference Center On the River

• Receptions • Rehearsal Dinners • Showers • Meetings • Retirement & Awards Dinners www.riversidereceptions.com

630-262-8371

Fax: 630-262-8372 35 North River Lane, Geneva, IL Since 1978

CENTRAL PARK SERVICE, INC.

“Your Dealership Alternative” Complete Auto Repair/Diagnostics Foreign & Domestic

847-869-0076

www.centralparkservice.com 2966 Central St., Evanston, IL Mention B’nai B’rith for Free Safety Check

B’Nai B’rith 61

ILLINOIS

Wishing The Jewish Community A Happy Passover • Nursery Furniture & Accessories • Big Kids Bunks, Desks, Twin Beds • Strollers, Carriages, Highchairs • Crib, Cradle & Twin Bedding • Shower & Gift Registry A Family Business SInce 1917 Open 7 Days For Your Convenience WE DELIVER & ASSEMBLE

O COOF WESTMONT S / G A G

www.lazarsfurniture.com

400 E. Ogden Ave. in Westmont

847-679-6146

1-800-MY-ACURA JAY S. GOLDENBERG ATTORNEY & COUNSELOR

B’nai B’rith Member

Wills, Estates, Trusts, Probate Buy-Sell Agreements Business Succession Planning

Voice: 312-346-7899 Fax: 312-896-5047 800-346-1763 attyjsg@chicplan.com www.chicplan.com

221 N. La Salle St., Ste. 2040, Chicago, IL 60601

6557 North Lincoln Ave. • Lincolnwood, IL

MEMORIAL PARK CEMETERY AND MAUSOLEUM Serving The Jewish Community For Over 83 Years (847) 677-4401

„Substantial Pre-Arrangement Savings Now Available‰ 9900 Gross Point Road Skokie, Illinois, 60076

Happy Passover

Karlin Kerschner Sharpe & Co. LLP Certified Public Accountants

847-272-6050 666 Dundee Rd. #1802 Northbrook, IL S

I Passport CHICAGO’S AUDIO/VIDEO RENTAL NCE 1966 COMPLETE DELIVERY AND SET UP Renewal • VIDEO PROJECTION • HOTEL & RESTAURANT SHOWINGS Service • FILM PROJECTION

Passport Renewals Visas Legalizations Instant Passport Photos

NO APPOINTMENT NEEDED Perry International www.perryvisa.com

312.372.2711 Fax - 312-372-2715

100 W. Monroe Chicago Monday-Friday 9 to 5

] u 62 spring 2009

• SLIDE PROJECTION • COMPUTER PROJECTION

ESSANNAY SHOW IT

851 WEST GRAND AVE., CHICAGO, IL

800.427.6968 Mention B’nai B’rith When Calling

Hg Consultants Mercury Vapor Inspection Service for the Home • Enviro-Health Screenings • Pre-Purchase Real Estate Inspection for Mercury Vapor Detection & Exposure Management Licensed & Insured

708-359-1009

Serving Chicagoland & Suburbs

NATIONAL

Visit the Hawk to take advantage of discounts, specials & coupons offered by B’nai B’rith supporters & advertisers

Where the road ends and the trails begin... Historic guest ranch in Cowles, New Mexico, 45 miles from Santa Fe. Birding • Fishing • Hiking • Riding Dining in 1912-vintage lodge.

Open June–September

Headline News-Resources-Entertainment-Discounts-Specials-Coupons

www.hometownhawk.com RESS FINANCIAL CORPORATION 1780 Town & Country Drive, Suite 105 Norco, CA 92860

BRUCE R. BEASLEY President

architecture + planning + interior design WASHINGTON DC•CHICAGO•DUBAI•INDIANA• ORLANDO•SAO PAULO•SEATTLE•SHANGHAI 722 12th Street NW, Suite 100 Washington DC 20005 John Jessen, AIA, NCARB, IIDA

(202) 822-8227 www.voa.com

SUPERFAST COPYING & BINDING SYSTEMS WE DO IT ALL Full Color Printing COLOR COPIES BLACK & WHITE COPIES

FULL COLOR POSTER: $6.50 PER SQUARE FOOT Ask forVolume Discounts Binding Digital Output Graphic Design Typesetting

310-452-3352 Fax: 310-452-7662 2358 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, CA

Phone (800) 343-7377 Fax (866) 481-2032 PROFESSIONAL TRUST DEED AND LAND CONTRACT FORECLOSURE SERVICES

Mention B’nai B’rith when calling

THE BEST DEFENSE

• Protect business documents, cash & records • Protection against fire and theft • Wide selectio nof safes & files • 24 hour service to customers

MEILINK® 614-882-2236 A Division Of Fire King International

BRUCK SAFE

C O M PA N Y

Sales • Installation • Service 108 E. College Ave. Westerville, OH 43081

Check out the newly launched B’nai B’rith regional and community websites at

www.bnaibrith.org.

B’Nai B’rith 63

KENTUCKY

• Fashion Eyewear • Contact Lenses • Artificial Eyes • Free Hearing Evaluations Mon - Tues 9-6 • Wed-Fri 9-5 • Sat 9-1 - closed 1st Saturday each month -

www.lenzoptical.com

(502) 897-0856 4012 Dupon Circle, Louisville Sherwood Buliding

Byron Electric Company Inc. Incorporated Since 1959 fax 502-893-9593 4333 Robards Lane Louisville, 40218

(502) 893-7501

LOUISIANA

PARRAIN'S SEAFOOD Fine Seafood Dining With An Upscale Casual Atmosphere Open 7 Days A Week

Bank Online At whitneybank.com Refinance Now...

Take Advantage of Historically Low Rates Ask For Bob Leeds (504) 838-4474 Cell # (504) 259-6277 Mortgage Information

225-381-9922

(504) 838-6300

3225 Perkins Rd. Baton Rouge, LA

(504) 586-3549 Customer Service (504) 838-6565

Member FDIC

Mortgage Rate Line

Perkins Road Near The I-10 Overpass

Ernest’s Orleans Restaurant “Serving The Finest”

• Open 4:30 PM • DINNER ONLY Tuesday – Saturday – Valet Parking – – All Major Credit Cards Accepted – LOCATED AT 1601 SPRING ST. “ON TOP OF THE HILL” TAKE MARKET ST. EXIT (19A) OFF I-20

(318) 226-1325

1601 Spring St., Shreveport, LA www.ernestsorleans.com

MARYLAND

This space could be yours!

To advertise in our Mart Sections, call 866-612-4295.

64 spring 2009

Honor thy Father and Mother

Thank you for helping us to daily honor hundreds of deserving fathers, mothers and loved ones at

B’nai B’rith HOMECREST HOUSE

Your gifts allow us to make our house a home with activities, fitness and computer centers, concerts and more!

Our 42 Assisted Living Apartments allow for subsidized apartments plus care that includes medications administration, three meals, housekeeping, laundry and more that may also be subsidized for limited income seniors.

Our 235 Independent Senior Apartments allow seniors with limited means a place of their own that may be subsidized in a vibrant community with supper each evening.

Contact us now for resident application information!

We also welcome your gifts of financial support!

E-Mail Call 301-598-4000, Ext 79 B’nai B’rith office@homecrresthouse.org ask for Chuck Thornton in the On the Web at: Homecrest House Marketing/Development Office www.homecresthouse.org 14508 Homecrest Road, Silver Spring, Maryland 20906

MARYLAND

MASSACHUSETTS

The Best Costs Less At Poirier • Innova/Evo, Primal Frozen, Merrick • Food, Treats & Toys • Apparel and Beds • Unique Gifts - Including Jewish Themed Toys • Small Animals and Birds

- Small Animal and Bird Boarding - Hanukkah Toys & Treats At The Shops at Sumner Place 4611-N. Sangamore Road, Bethesda, MD Tel: 301-320-3998 • Fax: 301-320-8834

Passover Greetings

BEST WISHES TO B’NAI B’RITH “Over 50 Years of Factory Authorized Service” Visit Our Showroom

SUB-ZERO

MONOGRAM

WE CARRY ALL MAJOR BRANDS

NORWOOD

NEWTON

Sales: 617-558-5500 Service: 781-769-2446

Sales and Service 788-769-2446

Hours: Mon & Thur: 9:30AM-8:00PM Tues & Wed: 9:00AM-6:00PM Fri & Sat: 9:00AM-5:00PM Sunday: 12:00PM-5:00PM

FAST DELIVERY • GREAT SERVICE

www.poiriersales.com

GARY'S DISCOUNT LIQUORS

AND

Bottled only at the original spring source in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Geologically protected, consistently inspected. Naturally mineral-rich and sodium free. Available in Glass.

FREE DELIVERY COOLERS AVAILABLE 301-953-3913 • 888-256-8806

Hours: Mon & Thur: 9:30AM-8:00PM Tues & Wed: 9:30AM-6:00PM Fri & Sat: 9:30AM-5:00PM Closed Sunday

Tile & Marble

ORNERSTONE

RETAIL SHOWROOM LARGEST SELECTION

Lowest Prices On Kosher Wines In Massachusetts

SPECTACULAR SERVICE

WWW.GARYSLIQUORS.COM

CONTRACTOR FRIENDLY

655 V.F.W. PARKWAY, RTE. 1 WEST ROXBURY 617-323-1122 FAX 617-323-6024

EASTON INDUSTRIAL PARK

Granite and Marble Countertops & Vanities

508-230-TILE (8453)

15F Plymouth Drive, So. Easton, MA 02375

MASSACHUSETTS

Let Our Sushi Chef Come To You!

Corporate or Private Functions Serving 20-1,000 Guests Traditional & Contemporary Jamapese Cuisine Sushi • Tempura • Teriyaki

617-542-4311

57 Broad Street Boston, MA www.sakurabanaonline.com

Since 1933 SERVING: Palmer, Monson, Ware, Warren, West Warren, Belchertown and parts of: Brimfield, Ludlow & Wilbraham • 24 Hour Service for Our Oil Customers • Residential & Business Oil Deliveries • Full Service Department ] u • Installation of Replacement Furnaces & Boilers t

413-283-8356

Corner of Main & Bridge Streets, Three Rivers, MA

UNITED MARBLE FABRICATORS

Custom Work of All Kinds Commercial • Residential • KITCHENS • BATHROOMS • VANITIES • FLOORING AND WALLS • FIREPLACES • FURNITURE • CONFERENCE TABLES Come Visit Our Showroom 222 Arsenal Street • Watertown, MA

u

617-926-6226

] B’Nai B’rith 65

MASSACHUSETTS

A Quality Senior Community

MICHIGAN Serving the Jewish Community ....Since 1913

• CONVENIENT TO DOWNTOWN • AFFORDABLE RENT INCLUDES HEAT & A/C • NO FIXED ASSET LIMIT

Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel 2120 Lake Michigan Dr. N.W. Grand Rapids, MI 49504 616-453-8263

• ALL SEASON SOLARIUM • STUDIO, ONE & TWO BEDROOM APARTMENTS

Canterbury Towers 508 757-1133 6 Wachusett St. Worcester, MA

MICHIGAN

When you need physical, occupational or speech therapy, life can shift into a lower gear. We’re here to help you get back up to speed.

Our therapy team will custom-build a program just for you, including aggressive goals and measurable outcomes all under your doctor’s direction. Call for details.

6800 W. Maple West bloomfield, MI 48322 248-788-5300

Greetings to B’nai B’rith From

Ken Visel - Over 25 Yrs. Experience

HealthCall of Detroit Providing Quality in Home Services for Southeastern Michigan

• Complete Home Health Services • Nursing (R.N., L.P.N. & C.N.A.) • Medical Supplies

3501 S. Wagner Rd., Ann Arbor, MI

(734) 741-0080 66 spring 2009

Full HVA/C Service Specialists In Pneumatic Solid State & DDC Building Automation & Control Systems

248-435-6644

4900 Leafdale, Royal Oak, MI

Please Mention This Ad When Calling

Rehab helps return you to your life cycle.

Danto Family Health Care Center

Design • Planting Construction • Renovation

COMMERCIAL CLIMATE CONTROLS CORPORATION OFFICE RETAIL INDUSTRIAL

SERVING SPORTSMEN SINCE 1958

y for a b et t er r ec over

OLIVE BRANCH LANDSCAPING INC.

COMMERCIAL CLIMATE CONTROLS CORP.

1-800-991-9933

3100 S. DIVISION AVE., GRAND RAPIDS, MI

SPORTSMEN SERVING SPORTSMEN

FISHING TACKLE • FLYTYING MATERIALS • LIVE BAIT MARINE SUPPLIES • GUNS & AMMO • RELOADING EQUIPMENT CLOTHING • CAMPING • HUNTING & FISHING LICENSES • ARCHERY

GIFT CERTIFICATES

8 AM TO 8 PM MON-FRI SAT 8 AM-5 PM

616-245-9156

1-888-AL N BOBS www.alnbobs.com

MINNESOTA

NOTHING VENTURED NOTHING GAINED!

Venture Mortgage A FULL SERVICE COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE BANKING FIRM Mick Thorsland, President Peter Hennen, Vice President Steve Petersen, Vice President Brian North, Assistant Vice President Joe Shaw, Sr. Consultant Mention B'nai B'rith When Calling

952-893-1877

Fax: 952-893-9312 7801 E. Bush Lake Rd. Ste. 350 Edina, MN 55439 www.venturemortgage.com

MINNESOTA

OTTING HOUSE MOVERS HOMES BOUGHT & SOLD DELIVERED TO YOUR SITE

CUSTOM MOVING

35 Years Experience Licensed and Insured Free Estimates/References

952-461-3265

27626 Pillsbury Ave., Lakeville, MN 55044

ACKERMAN PIANO SALES & RESTORATIONS MINNESOTA’S LARGEST RESTORATION CENTER Rebuilding & Refinishing New & Used Piano Sales Pianomation Systems Tuning & Moving 2511 W. Hwy. 13, Burnsville, MN

952-890-2806

www.ackermanpiano.com

WINDOW TREATMENT YOU WILL LOVE...

“EVERYTHING FOR YOUR WINDOWS” DON’T SETTLE FOR JUST STOCK SIZES CUSTOM WORK & WINDOW SHADES MADE ON SITE “Finest Quality Material and Workmanship at Economy Prices”

MODERN WINDOW SHADE CO. For In-Home/Office Estimates Call

612-729-8256

Fax 612-729-3688 OPEN: MON-FRI 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM Serving St. Paul & All Suburbs Locally Owned Since 1932 3400 CEDAR AVE.

Complete Paint & Collision Repair • Free Estimates • Expert Body Repairing and Painting • All Insurance Estimates Accepted • Certified Technicians

Boulevard Collision 6901 Laurel Ave., Golden Valley Minnesota 55426

ASBESTOS • MOLD • LEAD HVAC Commercial Duct Cleaning Interior Demolition Licensed • Bonded • Insured Free Estimates • Insured A-Rated

SERVING THE 5-STATE AREA

763-746-0670 www.envirotechrs.com industrial • commercial

SLIMLINE SAUNA PRODUCTS

SAUNAS

ELECTRIC SAUNA & HEATERS IN ALL SIZES FOR HOME & COMMERCIAL ASK ABOUT OUR 5 YR WARRANTY WRITE OR CALL FOR FREE CATALOG & PLANS

“Building Sauna Heaters Since 1964”

952-955-2668

200 Madison St., Watertown, MN

• Fabricators & Installers of Natural Stone • Kitchen Countertops, Vanity Tops & More • Personalized Service • 20 years experience

VISIT OUR SHOWROOM

651-779-8612

1400 E. Hwy 36, Maplewood, MN

763-595-0006 Monday - Friday 7:30-5:30

After Hours Towing 454-1533

www.minnesotagraniteandmarble.com Need more than toner for your Just Add printer?

Our new Cartridge PLUS program allows hassle-free printing...no hidden costs, no contracts. Just add paper.

We do the rest including: 4 Hr Delivery All repairs Cleaning Free loaners Installation Convenience Tech Support Peace of mind All for the cost of a cartridge!

Call Today

Paper.

Blvd. Collision

Louisiana

REMEDIATION SERVICES, INC.

394

Laurel Ave.

Read past issues of B’nai B’rith Magazine at www.bnaibrith.org.

612•331•7757 • www.cartridgecare.com

B’Nai B’rith 67

MISSOURI

Quality Wood Products Inc.

Manufacturing Quality Ideas Since 1946

Specializing In Custom Cabinetr y For Over 40 Years

All Types of Interior & Exterior Signs • Lighting Repair & Maintenance • Hoist/Crane Service • VEHICLE GRAPHICS • NEON SIGNS & REPAIRS • DIGITAL GRAPHICS

• WALL SIGNS

• CHANNEL LETTERS

• BANNERS

• AWNINGS

For More Information

• ELECTRONIC MESSAGE CENTERS • MONUMENT SIGNS • ADA COMPLIANT SIGNS • POLE SIGNS • MUCH MORE!

VISIT ONE OF OUR SHOWROOMS:

CONSULTATION • DESIGN • MANUFACTURING INSTALLATION • MAINTENANCE

www.qwpi.com 14111 Marshall Dr., Lenexa, KS 913-492-5057 107 NE 91st, Kansas City, MO 816-436-0055

4900 LISTER AVENUE • PO BOX 300228 • KANSAS CITY, MO 64130

Phone: 816-923-8208 Fax: 816-923-9512 unitsignkc@aol.com

HARTKE NURSERY

• TREES - SHRUBS - ROSES • ANNUALS - PERENNIALS • HOUSE PLANTS - POTTERY • FRESH PRODUCE IN SEASON • LAWN & GARDEN SUPPLIES • LANDSCAPE DESIGN OPEN 7 DAYS & INSTALLATION

Baxter Gardens OF CHESTERFIELD

Landscape, Irrigation and Garden Center

“WHERE QUALITY IS FOREMOST” Since 1971

314-997-6679

636 - 532-1033

1030 N. WARSON RD. • ST. LOUIS, MO BETWEEN PAGE & OLIVE www.hartkenursery.com harke@sbcglogal.net

HEARTLAND HEALTH • The Cancer Center • The Heart Center Missouri Quality Award Winner • Neurology Top 100 Hospitals for Heart and Orthopedics • Arthritis Services • Orthopedics • The Diabetes Center • Trauma Services • Rehabilitation • Wound Care Program • Mental Health Services • Women’s & Children’s Health Services • General medical & Surgical Services

www.baxtergardens.com

www.heartland-health.com

17259 Wild Horse Creek Road Chesterfield, MO

5325 Faraon St., St. Joseph, MO 64506

(816) 271-6000

NEBRASKA

NEVADA

CRAIG ROAD PET CEMETERY

HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING

& FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORIES

Private Individual Cremations Family May View Private Cremation On Request Crematories On Beautiful Cemetery Grounds Not In Industrial Area Or Out Of Clark County

COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL

GROUND BURIAL • NICHES MAUSOLEUM ENTOMBMENT - Pick Up Service Available -

AUTHORIZED SERVICE

SALES - DESIGN - INSTALLATION

HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS SERVICE ALL MAKES FINANCING AVAILABLE

(402) 333-2775 24 HR EMERGENCY SERVICE

11701 Centennial Road, Omaha, NE

Enfield’s

There is a dif ference

(402) 468-4588 Fax (402) 468-4557 Email: dturley@microlnk.net

FREE ESTIMATES

BODY REPAIRS & PAINTING STAR-LINER FRAME STRAIGHTENING

(402) 289-3248

SERVING 10 STATES WITH MAUGET TREE INJECTION PRODUCTS Elkhorn, NE

68 spring 2009

702-645-1112

7450 W. Craig Rd. L.V., NV

Statewide Fire Protection

TRIANGLE

i [

All Major Credit Cards Accepted

7193 County Road 40 Omaha, NE 68122

OVER 40 YEARS EXPERIENCE

1st Class License • Insured • Systemic Injection, Spraying & Fertilizing • Bracing Pruning • Arborist Supplies & Tools

ONLY ENDOWMENT CARED PET CEMETERY IN LAS VEGAS SERVING LAS VEGAS SINCE 1979 FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED

BODY SHOP

INSURANCE WORK - FREE ESTIMATES

(402) 553-1040

ENTRANCE ON BINNEY ST.

6132 1⁄2 MILITARY OMAHA, NE

24 HOUR SERVICE

• • • • • • • •

737-1055

Inspections & Maintenance Emergency Service New Construction Remodeling & Retrofit Design & Consulting Commercial & Residential Over 25 Years in Las Vegas License #26095

3130 WESTWOOD DRIVE

NEVADA

NEW JERSEY

It’s not a special offer, just plain everyday low rates.

50

• Convenient local office • Money-saving discounts • Low down payments • Monthly payment plans • 24-hour service and claims

SUNSHINE CLEANERS SAME DAY SERVICE CONVENIENT DRIVE THRU WINDOW

AUTO • HOME • RENTE RS MOTORCYCLE • BOAT

702-643-0057

3315 W Craig Rd, Ste 110 No Las Vegas, NV 89032 Home, renters, and boat coverages are written through non-affiliated insurance companies and are secured through Insurance Counselors Inc, the GEICO Property Agency.

Some discounts, coverages, payment plans, and features are not available in all states or in all GEICO companies. © 2007 GEICO. The GEICO gecko image © GEICO 1999-2007

• Cleaning in our plant on premises • Shirt & Laundry Service • Shoe Repair • Drapery Service • Wedding Gown Preser vation • Silks • Leather • Suede • Furs • Complete Alteration Service

609-641-6324

OPEN 7 AM-6PM/SAT 8 AM-5PM 1630 TILTON RD. • NORTHFIELD

SOMERSET PARK PHARMACY A “Good Neighbor Pharmacy”

FREE DELIVERY Charge Accounts Available Most Insurance Plans Accepted Carlton Cards & Gift Department Excellent Customer Service Open 7 Days A Week

732-846-6666

900 Easton Ave., Suite 26 Somerset, NJ (Behind IHOP & Boston Market)

NEW HAMPSHIRE

RARE C

OINS

OF NEW HAMPSHIRE INC. “The finest investment in quality coins, precious metals, integrity and service” Highest Prices Paid

Estates • Collections • Free Appraisal - Call For An Appointment We Will Come To You See Us Before You Decide To Sell

1-800-225-7264 603-673-9311 www.rare-coins.com

LIFE Bonded & Insured

Ocean National Bank Building, 28 Jones Rd., Milford, NH 40 Min. From Boston

For The Best In Skin, Hair & Body Care Call

201-567-6020 363 GRAND AVE., ENGLEWOOD, NJ 07631

www.TheBeautySpa.com

www.elanfur.com

Barth Wind Elan 6740 W. Dempster MORTON GROVE 847-967-8444

Elan Furs

675 N. Michigan Ave. CHICAGO 312-640-0707

Elan Furs

2727 E. 86th St. INDIANAPOLIS 317-255-6100

B’Nai B’rith 69

NEW JERSEY In your time of need you can rely on us

DEWEY'S DRY CLEANERS ALL WORK DONE ON PREMISES EXPERT TAILORING & ALTERATIONS SAME DAY SERVICE Major Credit Cards Accepted

856-783-1124 State Hwy No. 561, Gibbsboro, NJ M-F 7AM-7PM SAT 8AM-6PM

Serving the Jewish Community as an independently owned and operated funeral home with compassionate, ffordable funeral services for over 25 years.

THE CHELSEA AT MONTVILLE Assisted Living

Caring for our community...

Assisted Living at it’s finest.

(973) 402-1100 www.chelseaseniorliving.com

Martin Goldstein, Manager NJ Lic. No. 4025

Nesanel M. Rabenstein NJ Lic. No 4621

Eric J. Amyot, Director NJ Lic. No. 4179

313 Second St. • Lakewood, NJ 08701 800-487-2553 • 732-364-0900

www.belkoffgoldsteinfuneralchapel.com

NEW YORK

Riverside Memorial Chapel, Inc. Funeral Directors For Generations A Symbol Of Jewish Tradition THE WESTCHESTER RIVERSIDE MEMORIAL CHAPEL, INC. 21 West Broad Street Mt. Vernon, NY

914/664-6800 MANHATTAN 180 W. 76th Street (At Amsterdam Avenue)

New York, NY

212/362-6600 This Establishment is a Subsidiary of Service Corporation International 1929 Allen Parkway, Houston, TX 77019 713/522-5141

www.riversidememorialchapel.com

Pat & Ralph Landscaping & Nursery Custom designs that reflect your lifestyle, whether acres, an atrium, an estate or a terrace.

We design, install and maintain every aspect of your landscaping project.

Please call for a consultation or to visit our nursery.

718-232-1326 1412 64th Street, Brooklyn, NY

70 spring 2009

A very good place to be.

Wishes The B’nai B’rith Membership And Neighbors A Very Happy Passover

By Lisa’s Hand Lisa N. Rohde, Artist

• Hebrew & English Calligraphy • Specializing In Custom Illuminated Ketubbot • Invitations

By Appointment Only No Saturday Calls

For Reservations Call

Tel: 212-787-3161

(914) 476-3800

19 W. 70th St. #B, NY, NY 10023

125 Tuckahoe Rd. At N.Y. State Thruway Exit 6W, Yonkers, NY

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzes51mi/bylisashand/

The Kensico Cemetery

The Kensico Cemetery (Non-Sectarian) and Sharon Gardens (Jewish Faith) are situated in a rural setting with beautiful trees, rolling hills and sweeping lawns in Westchester County. They provide a serene and peaceful resting place not found in many cemeteries today. For FREE color brochure call toll free:

1-888-KENSICO or 1-888-536-7426 P.O. Box 7, Valhalla, NY 10595 Sharon Gardens is a division of The Kensico Cemetery 914-949-0347

www.kensico.org

Huntington Hills Center For Health and Rehabilitation Experience The Difference!

LI Premiere Subacute Specializing in: • Short Term Orthopedic Care • I.V. Therapy • Post Surgical Care • Medically Complex Resort-Like Accommodations: • Cable TV • Concierge • Interior Garden Coutyards • 5,000 Sq. Ft. Rehabilitation Gym Our Family Caring For Yours!

400 South Service Rd., Mellville, NY

631-439-3000

www.sharongardens.com

Happy Passover

Glaser Bake Shop Inc. Family Owned & Operated Since 1902

Specializing In Cakes and Home-Made Butter Cookies 1670 First Ave. At 87th St. New York, NY

212-289-2562

NEW YORK

NORTH CAROLINA

ARISTON FLORIST 110 West 17th Street New York, NY 10011

Featuring the Finest in Floral Arrangements Creative Displays For Homes and All Occasions City-wide Delivery

8

1-800-422-2747

www.aristonflorist.com

Fax (212) 242-5479

We get down to business.

So you can.

MEDICAL MANAGEMENT CORPORATION OFAMERICA Barry Haitoff, Pres.

Specializing In Highly Effective Billing & Accounts Receivable Management www.mmcoa.com Please Mention This Ad

845-278-8823 • Toll Free 888-323-8823 1620 Route 22, Brewster, NY

A.E. Rosen Electrical Company, Inc. Edward Rosen - President Cliff Wessot - Vice President Adam Rosen - Treasurer OHIO

• Professional Janitorial Services • Commercial Carpet & Tile Floor

• Complete Cleaning Services • Care For Your Office

ServiceMaster Advanced Building Cleaning The clean you expect.

The service you deserve.

704-588-8980

www.servicemasterabc.com

Call For Free Estimate With Mention Of This Ad Proudly Serving the B’nai B’rith Members of the Carolinas.

OHIO

H UESTON WOODS RESORT & Conference Center

• 92 Guest Rooms • 2 Luxury Suites • 25 Two Bedroom Cottages • 12 One Bedroom Cottages • Private Balconies • Indoor/Outdoor Pool & Sauna • Massive Stone Fireplaces

• 18 Hole Championship Golf Course • 625 Acre Lake/3600 Acre Park • Fishing/Boating • Full Service Conference Facilities For Business Gatherings • Great Getaway For Family Vacations • Paintball Field & Target Range • Specializing in religious functions and retreats

Reservations (800) 282-7275 Or Call (513) 664-3500 e-mail: tarvan@xanterra.com Visit Us At: www.hwresort.com 5 Miles North Of Oxford, Near Miami University & Kings Island

Celebrating Our 100th Anniversary!

W.C. W INKS HARDWARE

COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL • RETAIL Thousands of Hard-To Find Items Personal service • Seletion • Quality Hours: 7:30-5:30 Monday-Friday

Phone: 503-227-5536 Fax: 503-227-8457 200 S.E. Stark Portland, Oregon 97214 www.winkshardware.com B’Nai B’rith 71

OHIO

MEMBER CANTON REGIONAL

GARDEN CENTER & LANDSCAPE

“COMMERCIAL REFRIGERATION IS OUR ONLY BUSINESS”

www.lakeviewgardencenter.com Large Selection Of Dwarf & Unusual Shrubs • Trees •Plants Perennials Bulk Mulch & Topsoil.

Brick Patios & Stone Work

WALK-IN COOLERS & FREEZERS

Ice Machines & Beverage Dispensers

513-829-6624

- 24 HR ANSWERING SERVICE Akron, OH Canton, OH

SALES • SERVICE • RENTALS • LEASING

ANY SIZE OR SHAPE

HUMANE REMOVAL • REPAIRS • PREVENTION ATTIC RESTORATIONS & CHIMNEY CAPS

STOELTING

BATCH/GELATO FREEZERS SOFTSERVE/YOGURT FREEZERS

(330) 784-4527 (330) 452-0111

www.millersrefrigeration.com

SQUIRRELS RACCOONS • SKUNKS u ] t

* SERVICE SINCE 1946 www.centralexterminating.com

Humane Removal Damage Repair • Prevention

B’nai B’rith Thank You For Your Continued Support

Attic & Chimney Screens Installed Wildlife Biologist On Staff

Everything Is Homemade

EMERGENCY SERVICE AVAILABLE

216-642-3044

www.crittercontrol.com t

CALL 1-800-CRITTER TOLL FREE . . . . . . . . . .800-274-8837 Cincinnati, OH . . . . . . . .513-521-6084 • INDUSTRIAL • COMMERCIAL • RESIDENTIAL • INSTITUTIONAL

SERVING CLEVELAND & ALL SUBURBAN AREAS

®

Serving All Of Cleveland & Suburbs

u ]

PEST & TERMITE CONTROL

CRITTER CONTROL

BIRD • WOODCHUCK MICE • BAT BEES • FOX • BEAVER COYOTES • ETC.

Protecting People, Property and Wildlife RACCOONS • SQUIRRELS • MOLES • BATS BIRDS • OPOSSUMS • SKUNKS • ETC.

OHIO LICENSE #23897

The Nation’s Leading Wildlife Control Firm™

CRITTER CONTROL OF CINCINNATI

216-771-0555 1-800-554-1422 3302 St. Clair Cleveland, OH 44114

OTIS CAFE “WORTH THE WAIT”

Breakfast Served All Day Call ahead to place large orders.

Featured in: Country America – Sept. ’97 & Martha Stewart’s Living – Nov. ’02

541-994-2813

Hwy. 18 Otis Junction • Otis, OR

Coming in Our Future Issues: Jewish Genealogy 101: Evolving Beyond the Web—The need to travel long distances and search dusty files for vital genealogical information is lessening, thanks partly to the Internet. But learning how to mine for the desired data, training people to transmit the knowledge to the next generation, and understanding the acquired information’s broader significance remain challenges for genealogists and historians throughout the Jewish world.

Saving Small-town Jewish Communities—Small-town Jewish communities nationwide are employing an array of tactics aimed not only at staving off demise but also at promoting growth. One of the more unusual approaches comes from Dothan, Ala., where Larry Blumberg, a lifelong resident and a developer of hotels, established the Blumberg Family Relocation Fund. Last fall, the fund began offering Jewish families up to $50,000 each to relocate.

72 spring 2009

PULONE & STROMBERG, INC. COURT REPORTERS

- VIDEO CONFERENCING OFFICES IN SAN JOSE & SANTA CRUZ

1-800-200-1252

Happy Passover

408-280-1252

www.pulone.com

LAVEN

Restore your karma. Remodel.

InsuranceMichiana.com Commercial Coverages Property & Casualty Personal Lines • Long Term Care Group Health • Competitive Rates Online Quotes 2628 S. Michigan St., P.O. Box 2379 South Bend, IN 46680-2379 Phone 574.291.5510 • Fax 574.291.8505 Toll Free 1.800.552.2910 www.insurancemichiana.com

Designing, remodeling and building with a conscience.

(612) 789-7070 www.otogawa-anschel.com

HENRY A. KNAPP, C.P.A., P.C. • Complete Income Tax Service • Accounting Service • Fiduciary & Trust • Partnerships & Corporations

(520) 887-1838 5501 N. Oracle Road, Suite 131 Tucson, AZ www.accountant-city.com/knappcpa

Melissa’s can create signature gourmet gift baskets to fit any theme or occasion!

FISHER FORENSIC DOCUMENT LABORATORY INC. INCORPORATED 1982 • Signatures/Handwriting Identification • Fabricated Documents • Alterations • Indented Writings • Document Laboratory for Nondestructive Tests Testimony in over 195 Trials

1-800-987-8129 510-987-8129 510 3rd Street, Suite 102 Oakland, CA www.doclab.com

BEVERLY L. JONES CPA PC

ACCOUNTING • BOOKKEEPING • PAYROLL

Tax Preparation Business & Individuals IRS Problem Solutions

FREE CONSULTATION www.bljcpa.com

(757) 463-2585

1435 Crossways Blvd Suite 203 Chesapeake, VA 23320

B’Nai B’rith 73

PENNSYLVANIA

KULZER & COMPANY INC Peter R. Kulzer General Appraiser/Broker Commercial – Industrial – Residential • Appraisal • Market Studies • Investment Analysis • Consulting SINCE 1951

412-563-3882 300 Mt. Lebanon Blvd., Pittsburgh, PA

Custom Designe

Kitchen Kitchens & Baths Concepts Inc. Professional Installation Or Delivery Only

Established 1923

HOUSEHOLD • BUSINESS & PIANO MOVING SPECIALIST LOCAL AND LONG DISTANCE MOVING BETHLEHEM, PA

610-867-4513

* ESTATE PLANNING • TRUSTS WILLS • POWERS OF ATTORNEY

Cabinetry By: KOUNTRY KRAFT-SCHROCK & OTHERS

ESTATE ADMINISTRATION • PROBATE

Visit Our Showroom

EVENING AND WEEKEND HOURS

610-789-9594

2510 Huntingdon Pike Huntingdon Valley, PA

Mon-Fri 9-3 Sat 9-Noon Evenings by Appointment

TAX PLANNING & PREPARATION

215-947-6707

363 West Chester Pike, Havertown, PA

CUSTOM CATERING

MOVING & STORAGE CO.

JEFFREY M. ENGLE, ESQ., CPA

Full Service Off-Premise Catering Create your own menu with the assistance of our Catering Coordinator from Soup and appetizers to full Meals & Desserts!

WEDDING & ALL OCCASION CAKES

Homemade Sour Cream Pound Cake with Buttercream Icing.

Decorated to Your Specifications!

HENNING’S MARKET 290 Main St. Meadowbrook Plaza Harlesyville, PA 19438

SESTILI NURSERY, INC. Serving The Greater Pittsburgh Area With Pride & Quality Service For Over 60 Years Complete Lawn & Garden Supplies Trees - Shrubs - Sod - Soils - Mulches - Roses Perennials - Annuals - Ground Covers - And More

Delivery & Installation Available

www.sestilinursery.com

215-256-9533

Open Everyday 6AM-11PM for more information log on: www.henningsmarket.com

3721 Swinburne

412-681-1200

TENNESSEE

General Shale Brick Building the American Dream

NORTHGATE GALLERY INC. OUR QUALITY EXCEEDS OUR PRICE

Mia C. Fleetwood Jeff Fleetwood

Over 47 Years Of Proven Experience

Direct Importers Of European Antiques And Custom Reproductions We Invite You To Our Spacious Showrooms — Over 22,000 Sq. Ft. of Fine Antiques Showrooms Open MON.-SAT. 9 A.M. TO 5 P.M. www.NorthgateAntiques.com Email: gallery@northgateantiques.com

(615) 221-4341 ]

1690 Mallory Ln. Brentwood, TN

74 spring 2009

u

Germantown, TN Humboldt, TN Jonesboro, AR Memphis, TN

Oxford, MS

800.281.7524

Tupelo, MS

;JALL=J KALL=JK

The Ultimate In Professional Pet Care For That Special Family Friend In Their Own Domain CALL FOR DETAILS • Member Of National Association Of Professional Pet Sitters

•

%5,-&

314)5,0,

CORDOVA, TN

OUTPATIENT CENTERS East

6025 Walnut Grove, Suite 508, Memphis, TN 38120

901-767-LUNG

DeSoto

401 Southcrest Circle, Suite 212 Southaven, MS 38671

662-349-0488

Collierville

1500 West Poplar, Suite 206 Collierville, TN 38017

(901) 850-1170

Treating diseases of the chest... where patient care is first

TEXAS d Uniteand t S e W

CSTI ACOUSTICS PE, INCE.Bd. Cert., NCAC, FASA

THE BUYING POWER OF OVER 9000 STORES NATIONWIDE

“United We Stand”

Featuring

Residential & Building Room Acoustics (Reverberation & Echo Control) Speech Privacy Sound Systems, STC Tests, HVAC, Vibration

CARPET • CERAMIC • HARDWOOD SHEET VINYL • PERGO

Carpet

NORTH

SOUTH

4006 South Lamar

Brodie Oaks Shopping Center

512-416-9764

CARPET ONE - AMERICA’S LARGEST CARPET RETAILER

1508 W. 35th Austin, TX

512-454-2653 $10.00 Value With Any New Or Transferred Prescription Cash Purchase: $10.00 off prescription price

www.cstiacoustics.com

Long-Term Care and Custom Compounding Specialists

281-492-2784 15835 Park Ten Place, Suite 105 Houston, TX 77084

Mention B’nai B’rith when calling

Limit one per customer. No cash refund.

State and local restrictions apply. Exp. December 31, 2009

FARMER’S MARKET R.L. SAYERS FAMILY

WHOLESALE - RETAIL

• FRESH FRUITS & VEGETABLES DAILY • • FULL LINE OF PRECUT VEGETABLES (Lettuce, Onions, Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Etc.)

• FRUIT BASKETS FOR ALL OCCASIONS • SUPPLYING RESTAURANTS - SCHOOLS • WATKINS PRODUCTS COMPLETE SELECTION OF NUTS SPECIALIZING IN CRACKING & SHELLING PECANS (817) 838-8526 (817) 838-8781 FAX 838-7754 “FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED” 5507 E. BELKNAP, FT. WORTH, TX

“We do it all - We do it right” SAME DAY SERVICE Drapery & Leather Cleaning Wedding & Beaded Gowns In-House Shirt Laundry Certified Master Dry Cleaner Alterations & Repairs • Reweaving OVER 30 YRS EXPERIENCE

t

817-441-6377 817-596-0106

621 N. FM 1187 #D Aledo Willow Park I-20, Exit 415

Plumbing & Drain Cleaning All Types of Plumbing Repairs

512-452-6646 6725 Shirley Avenue Austin, Texas 78752

Full & Self Service

M-F 6:30AM-9PM Sat 7AM-9PM Sun 7AM-5PM • Computer Engine Diagnosis • AAA Approved Repair Facility • ASE Certified Technicians • Auto Inspections • Wrecker Service Available • Laserwash 4000 Car Wash 40 Years This Location

FERGUSON AUTOMOTIVE u ] t

ADRIAN’S CUSTOM CLEANERS

5800-Z Camp Bowie M-F 6:30-6:30 Sat 8-4

Financing Available

512-346-7034

Noise Monitoring, Modeling & Control For Chemical, Cogen.

Drilling, Piping, Offshore, Acoustic, Fatigue

817-732-5171

M-T-W-F 9:30-6 Th 9:30-8 • Sat. 10-4

10961 Research Blvd.

Industrial & Environmental

u ]

Designers on Staf f

345-1388

Taylor’s Rental 3701 North Hills Dr. Austin, TX

FAST FRIENDLY SERVICE

• TENTS • CANOPIES • SMOKERS • CONCESSION EQP. • TABLES • DANCE FLOOR

• CHAIRS • CHINA • CANDELABRA • SILVER • LINENS • STAGING

(817) 332-5258 220 University Drive Fort Worth, TX 76107

EMERGENCY & CRITICAL CARE

NORTHWEST BEXAR COUNTY & SURROUNDING AREAS ALL NIGHT - 7 DAYS OPEN MON-THURS 6PM-8AM FRI 6PM – MON 8AM (24 HOURS ON HOLIDAYS) VISA - MC - AMEX - DISCOVER

210-684-2105 8734 Grissom Road, San Antonio, TX

Since 1981 JOD/ • Secure Records Storage • Tape Rotation Services • Fast Pickup & Delivery • 24-Hour Access • Document Shredding

Simplified Flat Fee Billing No Exit Fees

713-849-5988 www.safesite.cc B’Nai B’rith 75

VIRGINIA

Classic European Fashion

L’AUBERGE CHEZ FRANÇOIS

American in Paris brings a touch of Paris and Italy to the heart of Old Town.

No passport needed!

Personalized style consultant service.

Open 7 days a week - 10:30 to 7:00

A FRENCH COUNTRY INN For Reservations

(703) 759-3800 Receptions • Group Lunches 332 Springvale Rd. Great Falls, VA www.laubergechezfrancois.com

on the corner of King St. & South Payne.

B’nai B’rith Members 1225 King Stree, Alexandria, VA Bring In This Ad For A 703.519.8234 5% Discount Fax: 703.519.8235

We Provide Access To The World ALL LANGUAGES • ALL FIELDS Technical • Legal • Advertising Translation • Interpretation • Typesetting Video Narration • Localization RAPID TURNAROUND • FREE ESTIMATES Serving DC • MD • VA www.alexandriatranslations.com

703-799-7606 800-248-8574 WASHINGTON

A Caring, Non-Denominational, Offering Assisted Living Services • Month to Month Leases • Sponsored By The Catholic Diocese of Richmond • Four Distinct Assisted Living Personal Care Plans • Planned Program Of Activities/Events • Fine Dining Services 5345 Marian Lane, Virginia Beach, Virginia 23462 www.marian-manor.com ©Coordinated Services Management, Inc. Professional Management of Retirement Communities Since 1981

757-456-5018

THE

Bethesda Magazine Best Breakfast

“A gem among local bakeries.”

The Washington Post

The First Name in Pancakes

Rockville, MD 301-468-0886 Falls Church, VA 703-891-0148 Bethesda, MD 301-986-0285

All Ingredients Are Natural and Preservative-Free

Call for more information: 703-281-7437 Fax: 703-281-7488 800-387-9319

www.piegourmet.com 507 Maple Ave W., Vienna, VA 22181

WASHINGTON

• • • • •

Golf Tournaments Weddings Bar/Bat Mitzvahs Receptions • Holiday Parties Business Meetings

Lewis River offers flexible indoor and outdoor space for your next event.

Located on the banks of the Lewis River just a short drive north of the Portland Metro.

3209 Lewis River Rd., Woodland, WA 98674 360-225-8254 • 1-800-341-9426 www.lewisrivergolf.com 76 spring 2009

Seattle, WA

Member International Society of Arborculture and Tree Care Industry Association

www.seattletree.com

LINCOLN HEIGHTS • SOUTH HILL

ALLFLOWERS

Pancake House

Weekday Senior Menu Lunch Monday - Friday Now available - Gluten-Free Pancakes

INC.

COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL Fine Pruning • Removal • ISA Certified Arborists All Trucks & Chippers Run On Biodiesel 206-367-4048

Turn Your “Dream” into a Dream Home FREE IN-HOME DESIGN CENTER

Drapes • Shades Blinds • Shutters Tile • Carpet Vinyl Flooring Wallpaper & More!

RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL Mon-Fri 9-5:30 • Sat. 10-4

] u t www.wallflowerdesigns.com

509-534-5064 2820 E. 30th Spokane, WA

WERNER’S CRASH SHOP • • • • •

Foreign & Domestic Unibody Specialists Color Matching Specialists Insurance Estimates Serving Downtown Queen Anne & Magnolia for Over 29 Years

Front Drive-In Entrance For Estimates

710 Taylor N., Seattle,WA 1 Block North of Mercer at Roy

206-285-0780

www.wernerscrashshop.com

WASHINGTON

Gracious Downtown Retirement Living

BODY & FENDER SPECIALISTS

A Senior Community offering: • • • • • • • •

All Insurance Accepted • All Work Guaranteed Foreign • Domestic • European Luxury

206-323-3112

Over 40 years local ownership A sense of community, only 80 apts.

Custom-designed apartments Month to month rental options Customized care services Assisted Living Skilled Nursing New Health Center opening in 2009

EXETER HOUSE 72 0 Seneca Street • Seattle, WA 98101 marketing@exeterhouse.org www.exeterhouse.org (206) 622-1300 Call for a tour and complimentary lunch Presbyterian Retirement Communities Northwest

DANDER & DAUGHTER’S

CORPORATE or PRIVATE OCCASIONS CHAIRS • TABLES • LINEN • CHINA SILVER • GLASSWARE • PARTY TENTS CANOPIES • PAPER & PLASTIC SUPPLIES RENTALS • SALES • DELIVERIES OR TOLL FREE

206-362-3222 1 800-892-2239 1310 N. 131st St. Seattle,WA 98133-7630

Your Quick Dry Cleaning & Sanitizing Express

Asthma & Allergy Sufferers Get Relief Now!

RS AUTO REBUILD INC. Serving Seattle Since 1965

B’nai B’rith Members Mention This Ad For A 10% Discount On Cleaning

www.abbeypartyrents.com

1265 S. King, Seattle, WA Free Estimate With Mention Of This Ad.

Sales • Support • Training Computer Systems Integration & Software Experienced, Certified Professionals www.ccscentral.com

(425) 672-4806 1-800-672-4806 Lynwood, WA

100% Satisfaction Guaranteed Free Estimates • Carpet/Upholstery Cleaning • Oriental and Area Rug Cleaning • Fabric Protection • Red Alert® Red Stain Removal • Water Damage Restoration • P.U.R.T.® Pet Urine Removal Treatment 206-364-9867 • 206-789-1133 206-935-3355 ] Serving City of Seattle u Independently Owned & Operated t

Happy Passover from B’nai B’rith International Moishe Smith President, BBI

Daniel S. Mariaschin

Executive Vice President, BBI

B’Nai B’rith 77

WASHINGTON D.C.

DO IT YOURSELF & CUSTOM FRAMING

FRAMERS’ WORKROOM SINCE 1981

Conservation Framing Dry Mounting Needlework Blocking Large Selection of Frames & Mats Open Evenings & Saturdays All Work Done On Premises Commercial Accounts Welcome We Cut/You Assemble MON 10AM-5PM TUES-THUR 10AM-9PM FRI 10AM-5PM, SAT 10AM-6PM www.framersworkroomdc.com

202-363-1970

] 4431 WISCONSIN AVE. NW WASH D.C. 20016 u (1/2 Block From Tenleytown Metro)

High Holiday Greetings

NEWMAN GALLERY ROTATING EXHIBITS OF ORIGINAL WORKS

Conservation Framing On Premises Art Restoration Free Pick-Up & Delivery

202-544-7577

Please Mention This Ad

513 11th St. SE, Capitol Hill www.newmangallery.com

Alliance Convalescent & Surgical Supply, Inc. www.alliancemedical.webatonce.com

SALES - RENTALS

REPAIRS

Wheelchairs • Beds • Stairclimbs • Custom Stockings Mastectomy • Ostomy • Braces • Oxygen • Crutches Walkers • Fittings

FREE DELIVERY MEDICAID - MEDICARE 1217 Brentwood Road, NE Washington, DC

Tel: (202) 526-2066 • Fax: (202) 526-0370 email: alliancemed@aol.com

Packages Available

Windsor Park Hotel

Near Downtown, on Embassy row. Nestled in a charming neighborhood of majestic homes, regal embassies and tree-lined streets that are a pleasure to behold in any season. Walk to the National Zoo, Rock Creek Park, and Woodley Park Metro.

All the Capital sights are within easy reach.

Moderate Rates • Free Continental Breakfast • 43 Pleasant Rooms with AC, color TV, mini refrigerator, direct dial phones and voice mail.

2 computer stations with wireless internet free to guests.

2116 Kalorama Rd., NW, Washington, DC 20008

202-483-7700 • 800-247-3064 Fax: 202-332-4547 www.windsorparkhotel.com

Established 1947

Happy Passover

John, Bill & Tom Deoudes

VENDING COMPANY

DC - MD - VA • Juke Boxes • Cigarette Machines • Snack & Candy Machines • Video Games • Pin Ball Games • Pool Tables WE SELL USED MACHINES JUKE BOX RENTALS FOR PARTIES 202-882-5700 4115 Kansas Ave. N.W. ONE OF THE OLDEST MOST RELIABLE FIRMS IN THE AREA Washington, D.C.

WISCONSIN

ELECTRICAL AND COMMUNICATION CABLING CONSTRUCTION & REPAIRS

To advertise your business in our Mart Sections, call 866-612-4295.

Since 1929

CALL

262-522-3900

MOVING MILWAUKEEANS AND WISCONSINITES FORWARD SINCE 1975 Home • Business LOCAL/LONG DISTANCE/PACKING/HEATED STORAGE/BOXES & PACKING SUPPLIES One Item • Thousands of Items 414-263-6402 • 3210 N. Pierce Street Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212

78 spring 2009

Readership: Approximately 175,000 B’nai B’rith Magazine cannot guarantee the veracity of advertisements nor accept responsibility for them. B’nai B’rith Magazine does not screen advertisements for compliance with the laws of kashrut. We do attempt to avoid advertisements that would be blatantly offensive to all who observe kashrut. Advertisement in B’nai B’rith Magazine does not imply endorsement by the magazine or B’nai B’rith International.

You’re on a gurney. You’re having a medical emergency far from home.

You’re in a hospital you don’t know, being tended to by people you’ve never met, and whose competence you have to take on faith.

IS THERE ANYWAY TO ENSURE THAT YOU GET THE BEST MEDICAL CARE?

YES

there is something you can do, providing you do it now, BEFORE the need arises.

As a member of B’nai B’rith, you can register for the Emergency Assistance Plus (EA+) Program with a simple phone call. Then, when you suffer a medical emergency away from home, EA+’s Emergency Response Team will assist you to ensure you get the best possible care — and get you back home, if needed, even if you’re on the other side of the world.

See how EA+ works for YOU...

PART 1: Medical Evacuation helps get you to the best medical facility quickly. If the local facilities are not good enough, EA+ will pay to move you, or airlift you, to a more suitable place.

PART 2: Medical Assistance helps you get the best medical treatment.

EA+ assigns you a medical care expert to constantly monitor your treatment and make sure you’re

Total peace of mind... getting the very best care you need. If necessary, EA+ will send With an EA+ card in your pocket, one of its medical specialists to you don’t have to worry your bedside to take about medical mishaps “EA+ was a lifesaver charge of your away from home — or on my last trip.

I treatment. about getting the best would never go care, or paying thousands PART 3: Assistance for anywhere without of dollars in airfare to Companions helps to it.” look after your John W., Ohio bring a medical specialist or loved one to your traveling companions side, and then back home again. during your emergency. If you’re EA+ does it all for you. alone, EA+ will pay to fly in a family member. EA+ will also pay Special B’nai B’rith Group Rates... to send them, and you, home, EA+ covers you 24 hours a day including any kids traveling with anywhere in the world for a full you, and with an escort if 12 months for only $79, and only necessary. EA+ will assist to send $20 more to include your family. pets home, too.

You are guaranteed coverage. You PART 4: Travel Assistance helps tie cannot be turned down, providing up all loose ends. EA+ will help you register now. replace lost prescriptions, passports and visas, plus provide interpreters if you’re in a foreign B’nai B’rith Members: country. And if you’re unable to Register Now drive your vehicle, EA+ will pay to return your vehicle home, even Call toll-free from thousands of miles away.

1-866-633-6440

Full USA and Worldwide Protection on EVERY trip for the next 12 months Weddings Graduations Anniversaries Reunions Funerals 21741 ©2009 AGIA

Seminars Business trips Conventions Weekend getaways RV trips

Camping trips Sports events Tours Cruises Vacations

Ask for “EA+ Program.”

Call M-F: 8am - 7pm EST

+

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