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Remembering Sue Meyers Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration Page A7
Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group Zooming along Page A8
On the national level, she served on the International AfANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT fairs Committee which set policy regarding Israel-related Editor, Jewish Press work. She also served on the National Membership Comue (Harriet) Meyers passed away April 20 at the mittee and the Field Service Committee. age of 85. Sue was a lifelong volunteer for The “I like what NCJW does and what it National Council of Jewish stands for,” she also said. “There is real Women (since 1958) on value to the services it provides.” the local and national Among the many other causes Sue level, the Douglas County Homestead Meyers championed over the years, Exemption Program, Temple Israel, one deserves special mention: she was and many other charities. a member of the Mayor’s Commission In September 1980, Sue said: on the Status of Women from 1973-75. “The personal satisfaction I get “There is a difference between from volunteer work is hard to dewomen’s rights and women’s liberascribe. I sometimes wonder where I tion, ” she said. “The Commission find the time, but I guess I want to worked for women’s rights, for equal make the time—so I do. Everything pay and equal opportunity for educaI’ve done gives me some kind of satistion. We also started a rape hotline. I faction in its own way. I’ve met some personally was involved with the situof the most wonderful people, beation of women who were incarcercause volunteer work fills your life ated, how they were treated, what with wonderful people.” rehabilitation was available. It was fasThe list of organizations Sue dedicinating work. ” cated her time to is long, but it is the In 1981, Sue was awarded the presNational Council of Jewish Women Sue Meyers tigious Hannah G. Solomon Award, that was front and center in her philwhich is presented by NCJW to an individual who has anthropic work. She was the financial secretary for the changed the lives of others through his or her leadership efNCJW-Omaha section from 1967-69. From 1969-71, she was forts and service. Honorees are those who have helped Ways and Means Vice President and from 1971-73 she was change and expand the role of others in vital areas of comthe President. Then, in 1975, she became the Chair for the munity life, and whose leadership in areas of NCJ W concern thrift shop: — improving the quality of life for women, children, and “I love the thrift shop,” Sue said at the time. “It provides families — has motivated others to fight for change, and has good quality, inexpensive clothing. It’s a good feeling to see See Sue Meyers page A2 people leave the shop happy with what they bought.”
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Europe on $5.00 a day: True stories Page C1
Teen Leadership Award
REGULARS
Spotlight Voices Synagogues Life cycles
B5 B6 C6 C7
Spirit of Federation
Lauren Kugler
Zoe Berman
Patty Lee Nogg
Bruce Friedlander
GABBY BLAIR Staff writer, Jewish Press The Robert and Ellen Gordman
Jewish Teen Leadership Award annually honors two local teens who have demonstrated exceptional commitments to our community. Criteria for nomination includes active participation and demonstrated leadership ability in local youth groups, strengthening their organizations, developing future leadership and community involvement. The Jewish Federation of Omaha is pleased to announce that this year’s award winners are Lauren Kugler and Zoe Berman. See Teen Leadership page A4
Although our community has many opportunities to say thank you to the amazing kindness shown by our lay leaders, it is particularly important to remember those kind deeds right now. While we are unable to plan for a Jewish Federation of Omaha Awards Night and Annual Meeting the way we have done in the past, we are no less eager to shine the light on a number of people who have gone above and beyond. During the month of May, we highlight our awardees, leading up to the Virtual Annual Meeting, which is
scheduled for Monday, June 1. As we get closer to that date, we ask that you check our website at www.jewishomaha.org for the latest details, just in case we have to adjust the time and/or date. If there is one thing we have all learned: sometimes plans change. Patty Lee Nogg and Bruce Friedlander are this year’s Phil and Terri Schrager Spirit of Federation Award recipients. Both recipients agree it’s an interesting time to prepare for the Annual Meeting. See Spirit of Federation page A3
A2 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
News
Sue Meyers
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Our approach to desperate times: Step 3, Communities in community JEREMY FRICKE Education Director Tri-Faith Initiative We are individuals and communities in community. To improve our relationships and understanding of one another, we need to seek the balance between recognizing our similarities and our differences. WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER When we say “we are all in this together” we aren’t just grandstanding. We mean we are in this together with all of its depth and complexity. Being interdependent didn’t start with COVID-19 and it will not end with COVID-19. Our togetherness is not only based on our sameness. Tri-Faith Initiative started by seeking “sameness.” Congregants from Temple Israel and Omaha’s Muslim community, then the Omaha Episcopal community, and eventually Countryside Community Church, all found shared humanity and deity foundational to those relationships. These congregations not only said “we are in this together” but live it by building and worshipping physically next to each other. Like all successful relationships, our Tri-Faith community here in Omaha takes work and patience. Members of these congregations might share humanity and an Abrahamic faith, but many members don’t speak the same language or have the same customs. They go to different schools, have different socioeconomic statuses, and live in different neighborhoods. In interactions with people who are different from you, you learn quickly that we are not all the same - even though we share much in common. Our differences are beautiful, valuable, and
important alongside our similarities. COMMUNITIES IN COMMUNITY People build communities based on both similarities and differences. We identify ourselves with a variety of communities: our city, state, country, race, gender, sexual orientation, religious community, and the other various groups we hold dear. In these communities, we work together, we argue, and we have fun. Sometimes people collaborate - sometimes people have conflict. Different communities find different successes and difficulties. While we are all “in this together”, our circumstances are very different. During this period of physical distancing due to COVID-19, we recognize that those who work in essential services are putting themselves in harm’s way every day. Often these workers are underpaid and undervalued, even during a pandemic. Many of us are lucky to be paid working remotely, while others are not. Even before this pandemic, many of those who are elderly or immuno-suppressed lived
in fear every day of contracting illness. People who have concerns with accessibility, though, have finally been heard in ways that they haven’t before as events and programs are now able to be accessed from our homes. While hate touches all of our lives, the circumstances are different for the rise of hate against Jewish cemeteries, Sikh Temples, and Mosques. Pagans continue to be belittled for their religion and atheists still are seen as less moral. None of these issues are quite the same, and they deserve to be understood within their own contexts. Different communities face different concerns. Tri-Faith Initiative has a particular ability to bring people from different communities together by creating inclusive spaces for people to connect across lines of difference - especially religious difference. This focus on relationshipbuilding in tandem with improving religious literacy and understanding See Desperate times page A4
KARA EASTMAN
Continued from page A1 resulted in progress and enlightenment in the community. In 1998, Sue made the front page again when she received the NCJW Distinguished Services Award. Sue was passionate about her family and friends. Her “Thrift Shop” group continued weekly lunches for over 40 years. She expanded her inclusion of family and friends often while snow birding each winter in San Diego and Scottsdale. As her family grew, she derived immense pleasure in spending time with her 10 greatgrandchildren. In 2016, she established the David J. and Sue Meyers Jewish Experience Scholarship Endowment Fund at the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation. This Fund enables Jewish Omahans under the age of 21 years from families who are in need of financial assistance to attend an overnight summer camp sponsored by a temple, synagogue or other Jewish organization. The fund also helps qualified youth to attend youth group conventions, or take organized trips to Israel that are sponsored by a Jewish organization. The David J. and Sue Meyers Youth Experience Fund at Temple Israel was established to assist children of Temple Israel to attend an overnight camp, attend national or regional youth group conventions, or take organized trips to Israel. “I believe it is critical to expose youth to the many wonderful Jewish experiences,” Sue said about these Funds. “They so often lead to the youth becoming active young adults and participating in leadership roles as they become older.” With that, Sue left the community with warm memories, but also with clear instructions: roll up your sleeves and get involved—no matter your age. Sue was preceded in death by husband, David J. Meyers; parents, William and Claire Wolkoff. Sue is survived by her brother, Stan; 3 sons, Jon (Denise), Joe (Tina), and Bill (Beth Wischman); grandchildren James (Beth), Tamara Draeger ( Jared), Shaina, Sheila Brown (Clarence), Stacy Tonniges (Dave); 10 great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. Memorials may be sent to the David J. and Sue Meyers Jewish Youth Experience Fund at Temple Israel, or to the David J. and Sue Meyers Jewish Experience Scholarship Endowment Fund at the Jewish Federation of Omaha Foundation.
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Chabad to offer Drive Thru BBQ GABBY BLAIR Staff writer, Jewish Press Omaha Chabad is excited to announce an all-Kosher Drive Thru BBQ on Tuesday, May 12 from 4:30-6:30 p.m. (or until meals run out!) in honor of Lag B’omer. Rabbi Blotner of Omaha Chabad is collaborating with Jacob Geltzer and BBYO to host this tasty event. He shares, “This idea was inspired by local and national events of the sort, happening now in wake of the virus and distancing. Chabad’s pop up deli night a few months back had a wonderful response and it seemed like a good time to offer another delicious kosher meal available to the community.” He explains: “The Chabad Drive Thru BBQ will be held outdoors, and each customer will remain in their car. We will have multiple properly spaced food prep stations and grills in the large side yard of Chabad. Cars will be
directed through the parking lot in a systematic, organized fashion and our servers will take orders, collect payment and deliver togo meals directly to cars, in a safe, friendly and healthy environment.” Safety is a main priority and all state and CDC guidelines and precautions will be adhered to in order to ensure the health and safety of those participants and consumers. Additionally, Rabbi Blotner is also looking into the possibility of having some sort of live music or other entertainment for those waiting in the car line. Consider taking the night off from cooking at home- It is sure to be delicious! Please order in advance at OChabad.com/ BBQ. Receive 10 percent off your order if placed by Friday, May 8!
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Spirit of Federation Continued from page A1 “It’s interesting, not because we are disconnected,” Patty said. “Somehow that’s not the right word. As a community, I think we have really stepped up to the current challenge. I’m impressed with the speed with which everything went online immediately; it was inspiring to see people jumping right in!” “It’s a frightening time,” Bruce added. “It’s tough to explain to our young grandchildren why they can’t hug their grandparents, they can’t go to school or see their friends. This is a time when we need our community more than ever.” “Patty Lee Nogg is the walking definition of ‘no job too big or too small,’ said Joanie Jacobson. “From baking hamantashen at Beth El Synagogue to leading the Federation Campaign, from stuffing envelopes to chairing the Lion of Judah Division, Patty has worked fervently and proudly for the Omaha Jewish community for over 40 years.” “Bruce Friedlander never says no! He is a committed and tireless volunteer for the JFO,” Louri Sullivan said. “He recently served his second term as Annual Campaign Co-Chair; 2019 Campaign he chaired with wife Pam and their family, the 2020 Campaign he chaired with Sharon Kirshenbaum. Both years have been record breaking. I know this is due to Bruce’s commitment to doing everything within his power to make the campaigns successful.” “I grew up learning about tzedakah from my family,” Bruce said, “and that means both raising money and getting involved. I was very fortunate to be mentored by Phil Schrager during the early 1980s. Knowing this award comes from both the Schrager family and the Federation makes it extra special.” Patty agrees she’s all about spirit: “If there’s ever been a good word to describe me, that is probably it. I do get spirited, I get excited and passionate when I have the opportunity to volunteer,” she said. She added: “Having spirit is essential, and that makes this award different and very special.” A life-long member of the Council Bluffs and Omaha Jewish communities, her first love is family. Wife, mother, Bubbie, sister,
aunt, cousin or niece — she’s there for everyone including us, her communal family. As a young mother of three, Patty joined the National Council of Jewish Women and shared her musical theater talents with its Trouping Theater. She has continued to work for NCJW doing everything from updating the Council Directory to serving on its Board, earning her NCJW’S Distinguished Service Award and the coveted Hannah G. Solomon Award. Better known as “Miss Patty,” she lit up the Pennie Z. Davis Child Development Center as its Judaic Specialist, music teacher and was many a kid’s favorite preschool teacher, earning her the Eileen S. Erman Educator of the Year Award. A long time member, volunteer and supporter of Beth El Synagogue, she earned the Beth El’s President’s Award for outstanding service. Any Jewish Federation would be lucky to have a Patty Nogg — that special someone who enriches every aspect of Federation life. From the CDC to the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home — from the Annual Campaign to Jewish Family Service — from the Jewish Community Center to the Foundation of the Federation, Patty happily shares her time, resources and love for this community, earning her the 2016 national KipnesWilson/Friedland Lion of Judah award. Close to her heart, Patty established the Richard (Pete) Lee Suicide Prevention Fund in memory of her beloved brother and works tirelessly with Jewish Family Service to save lives of men, women and children who suffer from mental illness. Patty continues to serve as president of the B’nai Israel Cemetery Committee in her hometown of Council Bluffs. “The breadth and depth of her passion, devotion and willingness to serve — her leadership, credibility, and loyalty to all that is Jewish is undeniable and unquestioned,” Jacobson added. “Worker, leader, advocate and friend, Patty Lee Nogg is one of the best friends our Jewish community could want.” Prior to chairing the Annual Campaign, Bruce served a two-year term as President of the JFO. During his presidency, Bruce was at the JFO offices every day, cheering on the staff See Spirit of Federation page A5
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Continued from page A1 These young women will each receive a one thousand dollar stipend for use towards a conclave, convention, Jewish summer camp, or Israel experience of their choice and their names will be added to a plaque which is part of a permanent display at the JCC. Award presentations will be made at the JFO’s Virtual Awards Night & Annual Meeting, currently scheduled for Monday, June 1. As we get closer to that date, we ask that you double check times and/or dates on our website (www.jewishoma ha.org) or our Facebook page for the latest details, just in case. If there is one thing we have all learned during this time is that sometimes, plans change. Westside Junior, Lauren Kugler, shared that she was honored to have been selected for this award. “There are so many amazing teen leaders in our community, and I am humbled to have be chosen. This community has been so supportive of me and I enjoy the opportunity to give back.” Kugler has found her community relationships to be of particular comfort during the severe disruptions to normal life due to COVID-19. “During this time of quarantine, BBYO has been one of the only things to remain as normal as possible during this time. I’ve been working with other teens around the region to plan programs over Zoom.” Kugler is the 2019-2020 President for both Council N’siah and MZ Yoshanah BBG Chapter N’siah; additionally she is a Regional Coordinating Committee Member. Lauren served as 2018-2019 Council Aym HaChaverot (New Member Educator and Recruiter) and MZ Yoshanah BBG Chapter Aym HaChaverot (New Member Educator and Recruiter) and was the BBG Eternal Light Award Winner in 2018. Omaha BBYO Director, Jacob Geltzer, shares that “Lauren has shown that she has what it takes to grow BBYO membership and strengthen our community by having recruited 8 new
members during her time as Aym HaChaverot. Through her guidance and educational programming for these new members, they have now gone on to hold many leadership positions in BBYO on both the local, regional, and international levels. As president of the council and her BBG chapter, Lauren has worked tirelessly to find new ways to improve our local programming and set new standards and expectations for our chapters.” Geltzer continues, “not only has Lauren helped on the local level, but by being a part of the Mid America Region’s Regional Coordinating Committee, she has been able work and collaborate with other council presidents to plan engaging and meaningful regional programs. She has also helped identify issues in our region and formulate strategies to strengthen our region. Lauren attends all BBYO programs with a smile and positive attitude, which rubs off on everyone who attend our programs. It has been a privilege to work and collaborate with Lauren these past few years and I am excited to see what she will do next for BBYO.” Traci and Lance Kugler couldn’t be prouder of their daughter. “Lauren has worked so hard to be a good leader in Omaha’s Jewish youth community, for which she cares very deeply. Her desire to help strengthen our community is very authentic and it is rewarding to see her apply her passion in positive and impactful ways.” As Lauren still has her senior year ahead of her, she had not yet confirmed her after graduation plans. Heavily interested in science and math, she is considering studying biology as a pre-med major in college. For Central High School Senior Zoe Berman, community service and involvement has always been a part of life. The Friedel Jewish Academy graduate was nominated for the Gordman Teen Leadership award by this year’s JFO Volunteer of the year, Faige Jeidel, who shares that Zoe has See Teen Leadership page A5
Desperate times Continued from page A2 creates a social structure that can last. As we shared in our previous pieces, nurturing human wellbeing and dismantling stereotypes are important steps to reduce desperation. But to create lasting impact, Tri-Faith Initiative makes structural change, by helping communities find new ways to interact with one another. By coming together, we can learn how to support each other. BUILDING EMPATHY THAT LASTS We can improve the world one step at a time. By gathering together, we build empathy and relationships that last. Even with the necessity to physically distance ourselves during the pandemic, Tri-Faith Initiative makes gathering while apart a priority. We provide a wide variety of programs to make sure that people from different backgrounds can continue to fill their
minds and their hearts. Whether we come together in workplaces, classrooms, small groups, picnics, or auditoriums, gathering and learning together allows us to move beyond simple tolerance into acceptance and understanding. It is said that there are no more than six degrees of separation between people around the world. Our deep connection to one another is why it is so important to physically distance ourselves from one another during this pandemic. Yet, it’s also the reason each of us can make such a profound impact on the world. Your actions are an important part of combating COVID19 and you are an important part of Tri-Faith Initiative. Your choices matter, and you can benefit the entire world with just a few small actions: You can call your neighbor, join a Tri-Faith Initiative program or group, or donate to a good cause in your community for the benefit of everyone. Which of these will you choose today?
The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020 | A5
Spirit of Federation Continued from page A3 and offering to help with whatever was needed. As his presidency drew to an end, the FRD team asked him to consider cochairing the campaign. Without missing a beat, he said yes. “As a Campaign Chair,” Louri Sullivan said, “he sets the bar high for himself – he does not ask anyone to do anything that he has not already done himself. He is a cheerleader for volunteers and staff alike. He is a friendly guy and never fails to mention the work of the JFO in his conversations with community members. There isn’t a job that he will not do.” “My reward is being part of the fundraising,” Bruce added. “Not having to say ‘no’ when there is a need is immensely important to me. Saying ‘no’ is heartbreaking. There is no such thing as ‘enough’ when it comes to helping others, especially in this situation.” “Bruce always has a smile on his face and a kind word for everyone. He has helped expand our volunteer base over the last several years with his involvement. People just nat-
urally want to be with Bruce and to help with what he’s doing. He is very appreciative to both volunteers and staff. Bruce has been a role model to many, showing how to give time and energy to further build and sustain a strong and vibrant Jewish community.” “On June 1,” Bruce said, “We will have the chance to come together—even if it is via the computer screen. When we have that opportunity, we have to embrace it, even if it is under less than perfect conditions.” “I really urge everyone to join the Annual Meeting, especially now,” Patty said. “When we recently came together for several car parades in the JCC parking lot, it was so fantastic to just be able to actually see faces and smiles and wave at each other. You can talk on the phone all you want, but seeing each other’s expressions makes you feel alive. Feeling that connection, it’s why I love to volunteer. I feel we need that now more than ever. I hope many people log on June 1 and join the JFO Zoom meeting. It will be great to see each other!”
Teen Leadership Continued from page A4 proven to be a tremendous youth leader at Beth Israel Synagogue. “Zoe is a terrific role model both for her peers as well as for the youth at our synagogue. She is passionate about her Judaism and has a real thirst for knowledge. She is always looking to better herself in all areas. She encourages other teenagers to participate in synagogue programming and attend events that they never would have attended otherwise. She is also a great leader for the younger kids. She is trustworthy, responsible, and mature.”
Jeidel continues. “An active member of our synagogue, Zoe leads a class for middle school girls on Shabbat morning and runs an engaging B’nei Akiva style group for kids on Shabbat afternoon. She is always the first to volunteer for anything. Whether it is running or planning an activity, driving around to do shul errands, or delivering packages to the homebound, Zoe is the one we have come to rely on.” In addition to her very active participation at Beth Israel, Zoe has served as President of the local NCSY chapter for the past See Teen Leadership page A6
News LOCA L | N ATION AL | WORLD
Mid America Region BBYO hosts virtual Spring Regional Convention JACOB GELTZER BBYO/Teen Program Director Times have changed, but what hasn’t changed is BBYO’s mission of creating meaningful Jewish experiences for all Jewish teens. BBYO’s Mid America Region (MAR), which is made up of chapters from Omaha, Kansas City, St. Louis, and Minneapolis, planned to be in Kansas City the weekend of April 23-26 to hold its annual Spring Regional Convention. This convention is a special one for our members as it is the last convention of the year, and also a weekend of honoring our senior members. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Spring Convention had to be cancelled. While we were not able to meet in person to hold this convention, teen leaders rallied around the idea of planning a first of its kind virtual con-
vention. This virtual convention still held many of the same programs that would have been done in person but adjusted them to the new virtual setting. Over the weekend, over 60 teens logged on and attend some amazing teen led services and programs. Some highlights of the weekend included being able to bring in Shabbat with both MAR members and friends and family from all over the world when we hosted a Friday night Shabbat service on BBYO’s new On Demand platform. We also had the chance to talk with current and past International BBYO board members where teens asked them about their time in BBYO and about their experiences after graduating. Finally, the week leading up to our virtual convention, teen leaders offered graduating See BBYO Spring Convention page A6
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Teen Leadership
Continued from page A5 three years and has held a position on the chapter board for NCSY JR. As president of NCSY, Berman is responsible for planning and executing events, get togethers, and learning opportunities. She is also responsible for recruiting Synagogue and community members for our Shabbatons and programming. Upon finding out that she was selected as one of this year’s award winners, Berman was humbled and thrilled. “I am passionate about creating spaces for Jewish kids to connect with other Jewish kids, and being part of NCSY has helped me do that. I’ve been really lucky to be supported by the community on my Jewish journey. I attended Friedel Jewish Academy and received Jewish Experience Grants from the Federation to be able to go to summer camp and on Israel trips. Beth Israel Synagogue, led by Rabbi Jonathan Gross when I was younger, and now by Rabbi Ari Dembitzer, has been a big support for me in connecting to programs and have also provided me opportunities to give back to the community that has helped me so much.” Outside of Synagogue, Zoe is an avid dancer. She has been a part of the JCC Train-
ing Company for the past few years and loves practicing and performing with her group, something that has been put on pause in light of COVID-19. When asked how she, as a high school senior, was coping with the severe disruptions due to COVID-19, Berman shared the following: “It is a little crazy to just suddenly be finished with high school. I was close to a few teachers and it is weird to not have a chance to say good-bye to them. Since I’ve been so involved with activities in the NCSY Region, it is really disappointing to not have our final Spring Convention. There are a number of NCSY traditions that celebrate the seniors that I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Because of my involvement in NCSY and my traveling to Israel the last two summers, I’ve been connecting with friends from around the world on What’s App, so it doesn’t feel as strange to me as it might feel to other teens these days to be hanging out virtually with friends instead of in the same room. NCSY is offering many online classes and Zoom events, so I’ve been keeping myself busy. Zoe plans to attend Machal at Michlalah
Jerusalem College in Israel in 2020-21, and then Yeshiva University’s Stern College for Women as a Dean’s Scholar beginning in the fall of 2021. In spite of the current uncertainties, Zoe is focused on staying positive. “I’m taking things one day at a time, and am hopeful that I’ll be able to leave for Israel in August but I know that at least, I’ll be able to do classes online starting in the fall until it’s safe to travel. On a trip to Israel, I got a silver ring with “gam zu letova” (this too is for the best) etched on it. When things don’t happen exactly as I planned them out, it is good for me to remember that saying and to think about how blessed I am in so many ways.” Zoe’s parents, Beth Cohen and Harry Berman, are very proud of the person their daughter has become. “Of all of the things Zoe has accomplished, we are most proud of the commitment she makes to things she believes in and that she holds to her convictions, even when it is hard. There are easier things to do, particularly in middle-America, than to embrace religious traditions but Zoe does just that while also focusing her efforts to volunteering with the Jewish community.”
ORGANIZATIONS B’NAI B’RITH BREADBREAKERS Due to the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home temporarily being closed to the public, B’nai B’rith Breadbreakers will not meet until further notice. For specific speaker information, please email Gary.Javitch@Gmail.com, Breadbreakers chairman. For more information or to be placed on the email list call 402.334.6443 or bnaibrith@jewishomaha.org.
Vote Innis!
Continued from pages A5 seniors the opportunity to still participate in our tradition of giving their Regional Lives. This tradition gives seniors the opportunity to pass on their wisdom to the next generation and thank those who made their experiences in BBYO so special. While this convention was one for the history books, teens are eagerly ready to get back to being with their friends and participating in meaningful Jewish experiences in person. Until then, BBYO members are excited to still be able to hold and attend programs and meetings through BBYO On Demand. BBYO On Demand is a rapidly expanding hub that offers teens various ways to share ideas, learn, laugh, watch TV, make music, challenge each other, make the world a better place, celebrate all that they are, and have a really fun time while doing it. It’s also a way for each of them, independently or with friends, to engage with exciting content, featured guests, incredible speakers and entertainers, and most importantly, other Jewish teens. To see what is going on in the On Demand world, go to bbyo.org/ ondemand. Looking to help support our movement? The BBYO On Demand FAN Club is an easy way to show your support and empower a global community of Jewish teens with a recurring monthly gift. Support BBYO today by joining the BBYO On Demand FAN Club at the level that’s right for you, or with a one-time gift by going to bbyo.org/ondemandfan. All donations go to your specified community. For more information about BBYO, please contact BBYO/Teen Program Director Jacob Geltzer at jgeltzer@jccomaha.org.
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Yom Ha’atzmaut
A8 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
News LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D
Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group Zooming along MARK KIRCHHOFF Community Engagement and Education, JFO Purported to be one of the longest continuous standing book discussion groups in the country, the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group (originally named the Jewish Federation Library Book Discussion Group) debuted on Nov. 15, 1979. A team of dedicated women, including late “Library Diva” Dorothy Kaplan, were intent on beginning a book club at the Kripke Jewish Federation Library. Their goal was to select books with Jewish content and/or authors which they hoped would appeal to women of different ages and taste. With the diversity of topics everything from poetry and mysteries to science fiction and biographies – and guest facilitators, the Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group offers something for everyone and always welcomes new members. The group meets on the third Thursday of every month at 1 p.m. in the Kripke Library. No record of meetings and attendance are kept, but colloquial wisdom holds that in 41 years less than 15 meetings have been cancelled for weather or other unforeseen reasons. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that COVID-19 was not going to stand in the way of the April Meeting. Thanks to the technology of Zoom and the determination of the book group members to become proficient in using it, the meeting was held on April 24. (Fourth week of month adjusted to accommodate the Passover Holiday.) And when the big hand was on the “12” and the little hand was on the “1,” there were the faces
of the discussion group members on the computer screens ready to discuss Seven Blessings: A Novel by Ruchama King Feuerman. Promotional description says this of the novel: “The closed, secret world of matchmaking in contemporary Israel provides the titillating pivot for a story of uncommon proportions. In Ruchama King’s skillful hands, Seven Blessings maps out the complicated lives of five expatriate women and men whose search for a soul mate, in many ways, mirrors their search for God.” With no more than a slight bump here and there, the group members proceeded with a robust discussion of the book. At the same time, they welcomed three new group members, Nancy Skid, Nancy Wolf and Monica Parker Nemani. So what did these newbies think of participating? Nancy said: “As one who doesn’t participate but wanted to because I could come this time... Zoom is keeping events happening. People seeing and talking together. Amazing!” Monica said: “Thank you for the great Zoom book club experience. This gave me a chance from Toronto to join in. I’ve been reading the books with my mom [Doris Parker] for a while now. But this was great to join the conversation and see everyone, especially my mom, while being home from work. Things are closed up here and we hope to get back to normal soon.”
Doris Parker enjoyed sharing with her daughter, and also pointed out one of the challenges with Zoom, “Overall this was an enjoyable way to do book club. My daughter joined from Toronto. This allows slots for more participants than might come to the JCC for our book club. Some of us with hearing problems may find it hard to discriminate words on computer/Zoom as opposed to being in a live environment. So I still look forward to our live get-togethers sometime in the future.” Other group members were happy to share their thoughts: “Book group is always fun and enlightening, even though we can’t meet in person. Zoom is definitely a good way to meet now.” - Judith Tully “It is especially fun to see everyone, even if we can’t be together in person, this is the next best thing. I miss those who cannot go online for whatever reason.” - Lynne Saltzman “We could see and hear everyone perfectly well, and it felt like we were all in the same room together, expressing many different opinions as usual.” - Gilda Pieck “I was impressed how the women brought their A- game to the discussion. If anything, being online helped to keep us focused on the book! While also lifting spirits by hearing and seeing each other, too.” – Deirdre Evans So, it will be Zoom or Room on May 15 at 1 p.m. when the group discusses Murder Wears Mittens by Sally Goldenbaum. New members are always welcome. The group receives administrative support from the Community Engagement & Education arm of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. For information about the group, contact Shirly Banner at 402.334.6462 or sbanner@jewishomaha.org. To view books discussed by the group over the past several years, go to www.jewishomaha.org, click on the “Community & Education” pulldown tab and navigate to “Kripke Jewish Federation Library,” then to “Dorothy Kaplan Book Discussion Group.”
* Jim Fried, President Jon Meyers, Ex-Officio Betsy Baker Ellie Batt Toba Cohen-Dunning Ron Feldman David Gilinsky Ron Giller John Glazer Abigail Kutler
John Lehr Lisa Lucoff Mike Norton Nancy Schlessinger Matt Shapiro Mike Siegel Phil Wolf
David Gilinsky, President Bob Belgrade, Vice President Jon Meyers, Ex-Officio Mike Siegel, Ex-Officio Steven Bloch Paul Epstein Ted Friedland Donald Goldstein Kip Gordman Gloria Kaslow Howard M. Kooper Jody Malashock
Murray H. Newman Steve Nogg Susan Norton Martin Ricks Carl Riekes Andrew Robinson Stacey Erman Rockman Harley D. Schrager Norman Veitzer *2020-2021 Board not yet finalized
the
omaha
Toba Cohen-Dunning, Co-President Jeff Kirshenbaum, Co-President James Farber, Ex-Officio Mike Abramson Joanie Bernstein Sharon Brodkey Darlene Golbitz Larry Kelberg Kate Kirshenbaum Alan Kricsfeld Tina Meyers
Susan Norton Jeff Platt James Polack Shayna Ray Dorothy Spizman Terri Zacharia
John Glazer, President Jason Epstein, Ex-Officio
Abigail Kutler, President Eric Dunning, Ex Officio
Amanda Blumkin Shane Cohn Dan Epstein Laurie Epstein Karen Flayhart Mosah Goodman Janet Klein Howard Kutler Terry Rush
Danni Christensen David Finkelstein Candice Friedman Bracha Goldsweig Margie Gutnik Natasha Kraft Chuck Lucoff Eric Shapiro Andy Shefsky Shoshy Susman Amy Tipp
Mike Schmidt Meagan Spomer Joy Watanabe
Ellie Batt, Co-President Ron Giller, Co-President Jim Fried, Ex-Officio Mike Abramson Lindsay Belmont Bob Bleicher Carol Bloch Becki Brenner Shirley Cemaj Ted Friedland Herb Friedman David Gilinsky
Steve Hogan Nancy Jacobson Rich Juro Gary Lipschutz Jamie Meyerson Bob Nefsky Andrea Olson Alan Parsow Erin Porterfield
David Radler Mark Singer Meagan Spomer Tom Vann Jim Wax Aaron Weiner
*As of April 29, 2020
We invite the community to a VIRTUAL EVENT of the Federation's Awards Night & Annual Meeting on Monday, June 1st at 7:00 p.m. for the installation of the Boards. Visit www.jewishomaha.org for details.
The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020 | B1
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SECTION 2 | LO CAL | N ATION AL | WORLD
Beth El and online technology bring Rabbi Josh Warshawsky in Concert OZZIE NOGG n Sunday afternoon, May 17, Beth El Synagogue will present a free concert streamed live featuring Rabbi Josh Warshawsky. The annual fundraising event, which begins at 4 p.m., supports the Seth Rich Memorial Camp Scholarship Fund. “Due to Covid 19, camp this summer may be up in the air,” said Hazzan Michael Krausman. “But summer camps have given so much to our kids and our community, we now can certainly bring a bit of camp spirit to our students and the entire Omaha community through this online concert.” A nationally known touring Jewish musician, song leader, composer, and teacher of Torah, Josh Warshawsky travels to synagogues, camps, and Jewish communities across the country sharing his music and teachings on prayer. He has released three albums of Jewish music, filled with melodies written intentionally to express the deep meaning of the words of our tradition. Warshawsky was ordained as a rabbi in May 2019. He is on the faculty of Songleader Boot Camp and during the current ‘at home lockdown’ has been leading Thursday night online sing-alongs for the Camp Ramah family. Josh has spent the past nineteen summers at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, and for the last six summers has taught and performed at various Ramah camps across the U.S. “Josh brought his sensitivity and knowledge of our liturgy
to Beth El two years ago as Musician in Residence,” Josh and an online concert.” He was excited about Hazzan Krausman said. “His warmth and charming the idea of joining Beth El for another exciting exmanner, as well as his unique, delightful music, won perience. Josh is now working with Eadie Tsabari, us all over. This online concert will do the same.” Beth El’s Director of Congregational Learning, to Joel and Mary Rich’s son, involve our students in the Seth, was murdered in WashConcert. Everyone is very exington D.C. in July, 2016. He was cited.” Joel Rich and his wife, twenty-seven at the time. “Josh Mary, along with Pam and Warshawsky and Seth knew Bruce Friedlander, are Coeach other as campers at Camp Chairmen of the afternoon. Ramah in Wisconsin,” Joel ex“The Seth Rich Memorial plained, “and grew closer in Camp Scholarship Fund, allows 2011 when they both were on Beth El children to experience staff.” Seth was Rosh Boating, Jewish summer camp,” Joel exhead of the boating program, plained. “Students create lifelong and Josh was working with the friendships in an environment singing activities. Their cabins where Jewish values are taught were right across from each and practiced daily. What they other. They were just a year learn at camp will stay with apart in age, and during their them throughout their lives. days off they frequently did Moving forward, the need to things together. help families will be even Rabbi Josh Warshawsky “I first met Josh in 2013, when greater. If you have the ability, I attended the Centennial Biennial conference of please visit our website at www.bethel-omaha.org United Synagogue of Conservative Jewry,” Joel con- and consider making a donation to the Fund. tinued. “I became closer with him after we lost The Maccabeats — an all male a cappella choir Seth. I’ve been lucky to be with Josh at three other — were scheduled to perform at Beth El before the Biennial USCJ Conferences where he performed, current health crisis. They are now scheduled to and each meeting started with a hug.” perform live at the synagogue in the spring of 2021. According to Joel, “When our original plans for One of the members recently said, “Tell the fine this year’s concert had to change, I thought about people of Omaha that we’ll make it there yet.”
B2 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
News LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D
Connecting Jewish teens through Esports JACOB GELTZER BBYO/Teen Program Director In a time of quarantine and social distancing, we are all looking for ways to stay in contact and connect with friends and family. For today’s Jewish teens, there is no better place to do just that than with Lost TribeSM Esports. Lost TribeSM Esports (LTE) is a nonprofit organization that aims to connect with a new generation of Jews through Esports, which is among the fastest growing industries in the world, seeing regular coverage on ESPN and other mainstream sports media. LTE’s mission is to create a year-round global home base for Gen Z Jewish gamers, wherever you live and whatever your skill level. LTE is currently partnering with many other Jewish organizations, including, but not limited to, JCC Association of North America, JCC Maccabi Games, Foundation for Jewish Camps, and BBYO just to name a few. This past year, Lost TribeSM Esports was huge part in the 2019 JCC Maccabi Games as one of the Second Sports options and soon to be an official sport offering at the next Maccabi Games. LTE also
created an Esports gaming lounge at BBYO’s past International Convention and hosted a LEADs day program with industry experts where teens learned about what Egaming is doing for economies, academics, and careers, all while playing in a stateof-the-art facility at the Dallas Mavericks’ Esports headquarters. In today’s day and age where teens are already consumed in media and gaming, LTE offers teens an opportunity not only to do something they already love to do, but also the opportunity to do it while connecting with other Jewish teens from around the world. Currently, Lost TribeSM Esports has partnered with BBYO, JCCs and Jewish camps all around the country to put on a variety of tournaments. These past few weeks, teens have been competing in NHL, NFL Madden, and NBA 2K tournaments. Not only is it just fun and games, but teens can also win some really great prizes. All tournaments are FREE to play and open to all Jewish teens. LTE is focused on only promoting Esports style games and does not See Connecting through Esports page B3
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Omaha Gives at home: Because the giving’s still going! JAMIE SKOG-BURKE Director of Development, JFO May 20 is the Omaha Community Foundation’s 8th annual Omaha Gives! This year, while our ability to gather together has been postponed, the Omaha Community Foundation looks forward to showing through this day of giving that community isn’t cancelled. Ally Freeman, the Foundation’s Director of Communications shared, “We want to rally the community to come together to support nonprofits who need us now more than ever.” In an effort to engage even more community members, the Foundation has decreased the minimum gift to $1. A new section has been added to organizational pages to highlight their specific COVID-19 response measures and at checkout donors will be able to support the Foundation’s COVID-19 Response Fund. Across the country we are seeing that community is still showing up. People understand that nonprofits are facing unprecedented challenges and need our gifts; there is a lot of momentum around giving days right now. In the month of March the Colorado Gives platform, raised three times what they normally raise. The national Giving Tuesday movement ran #GivingTuesdayNow this past Tuesday. In April, Arizona Gives Day saw a growth in the number of donations and a significant jump in scheduled giving. A theme of this year’s giving day is “We are OG!”. “We know that when this community comes together we can make a powerful im-
pact,” Freeman said. “Omaha Gives is all of us coming together to give. It takes each one of us to make this day a success and a celebration.” You can help make a difference! Get involved on social media... make a Cheer Page for your favorite nonprofit, share Omaha Gives posts on your profile, and enter into #WhyIGiveOG social media contest. You
could win $1,000 to share with an organization of your choice by posting why you give with the hashtag #WhyIGiveOG. Any individual can give on the OmahaGives.org starting May 1. The Jewish organizations that will be participating in this year’s Omaha Gives are: The Jewish Federation, ADL/CRC, IHE, Friedel, NJHS, Temple Israel, Beth El, Beth Israel, Bnai Israel, Chabad, NCJW. Donate this year and help us show: We Care. We Connect. We Come Together.
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The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020 | B3
May is National Mental Health Awareness Month TERESA C. DRELICHARZ, MS, NCC, LIMHP, RPT National Certified Counselor Therapist – Adoption Specialist, Jewish Family Service In our society it’s very common to hear people talk about their physical health, even posting workout progress on fitness apps, or sharing and comparing number of steps taken in a day. We celebrate weight loss and increased physical fitness by posting before and after pictures on social media, and some are even willing to post about feelings of failure when they take steps backward in their quest for a healthier body. We are much less likely however, to talk about our mental health issues, let alone reach out for support in our quest for a healthier mind. During the month of May, you are likely to see an increased amount of information related to Mental Health advertised through many forms of media. Though Mental Health Awareness is crucial all year long, May has been designated as a time to give extra attention to a critical issue, even more so during this COVID-19 pandemic. Even those who have always considered themselves fairly mentally healthy may be experiencing increased feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and anxiety during this time of uncertainty. We are all dealing with the devastating loss of lives, threats of on-going health prob-
lems and financial ruin, and the loss of living life as we previously knew it in our society. It’s taking a toll on the population in general, and those who already suffer from mental illness may be experiencing an even higher level of symptoms during this time.
Now more than ever is the time to break through the stigma of discussing mental health problems, and reach out for help and support. Many of us can improve our sense of sadness and isolation with a simple phone call to a loved one or friend, a virtual visit, or even a socially distant wave, or over-the-fence
conversation with our next door neighbor. For others, more intense intervention may be necessary. A mental health diagnosis can be treated, often with great success! Much like we seek treatment for physical ailments and illnesses without hesitation, we should feel free to address mental health issues without shame, or feelings of apprehension. If you think you might need a higher level of intervention, please seek help! Not just during this crisis, but at any point in time! Many mental health professionals in our community are providing services via telehealth during this emergency and beyond, including therapists at Jewish Family Service. Our Virtual Counseling services are as secure and confidential as our in-office sessions. Sessions are held through real time video-conferencing, using Zoom, and clients can attend sessions from a smartphone/laptop, or using a webcam on their desktop computer. Services are available to clients across the state of Nebraska. For more information, please call JFS at 402.330.2024!
Connecting through Esports Continued from B2 include shooter style games. Teens can find all tournaments and register for them and at www.losttribeesports.org. Thanks to the generous support of Michael Staenberg, the Omaha JCC is excited to be one of the focus JCCs as Lost TribeSM Esports continues to improve its offerings and programs to the Jewish community. With this support, we are excited to begin working on offering in-person events, post quarantine, and will continue to promote all upcoming tournaments planned by Lost TribeSM Esports. Be sure to follow the Omaha JCC and Lost TribeSM Esports on Facebook and Instagram to see the ever-growing list of tournaments. For more information about Lost TribeSM Esports and how you can get involved, please reach out to BBYO and Teen Program Director Jacob Geltzer at jgeltzer@jccomaha.org.
After 40 years of remodeling bathrooms, we are still here for you Nothing is more important to us than the safety and well-being of our customers and employees. As the coronavirus situation evolves, we’re committed to transparency about what’s happening with us, and how that affects you. Because we are considered an essential business, ReBath Omaha has remained open and fully operational throughout the COVID-19 restrictions. For proactive measure, our location, at a minimum, has adopted the guidelines of the Red Cross to limit the spread of COVID-19. Some of these guidelines include, frequent hand washing for 20 seconds, making sure employees stay home if they feel sick, social distancing and working from home when possible, and disinfecting product samples multiple times a day. While our showroom has closed for the safety of our customers and staff, we are still providing free in-home design consultations. We are taking proactive measures with our design consultants and installation crews to ensure your safety in your home, such as disinfecting work areas, wearing masks (when requested by the homeowners), not shaking hands, and sitting on the opposite sides of the table to design. We will continue to monitor the evolving situation and adjust as needed. We hope everyone stays safe and healthy. And, please do not hesitate to safely take advantage of your time at home and schedule your free in-home consultation by visiting rebath.com or calling us at 402.796.1322. PAID ADVERTISEMENT
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B4 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
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DHHS COVID-19 update All 93 Nebraska counties are covered by state Directed Health Measures. You can find these at http://dhhs.ne.gov/coronavirus. It's critical that Nebraskans follow these enforceable state Directed Health Measures to help slow the spread of COVID-19 in the state. These measures help protect each other and those who are more vulnerable to severe illness and death, and help hospitals and clinics from being overwhelmed so they can continue to provide care to families, friends and neighbors who need it. Governor Pete Ricketts recently unveiled TestNebraska, a public-private partnership designed to increase testing capacity and #CrushTheCurve in Nebraska. The Governor is urging all Nebraskans to take the assessment provided on the TestNebraska website to help identify cases of COVID-19 in the state. After taking the assessment participants who fit the criteria will be notified via phone or email that they qualify to be tested for COVID-19. Nebraskans can take the assessment at www.testnebraska.com. DHHS supports Governor Ricketts in urging Nebraskans to follow the Six Rules to Keep Nebraska Healthy. 1. STAY HOME. No non-essential errands and no social gatherings. Respect the tenperson limits. 2. SOCIALLY DISTANCE YOUR WORK. Work from home or use the six-foot rule as much as possible in the workplace. 3. SHOP ALONE. Do this only once a week and do not take your family with you. 4. HELP KIDS SOCIAL DISTANCE. Play at home, no group sports and no playgrounds.
5. HELP SENIORS STAY AT HOME. This can be done by shopping for them. Do not visit long-term facilities. 6. EXERCISE DAILY. Do your best to stay as healthy and safe as you can. Recent studies show that a significant portion of people with COVID-19 lack symptoms and those who eventually develop symptoms can pass the virus to others before showing symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC now recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (grocery stores, pharmacies, etc.) especially in areas of significant community-based transmission. Cloth face coverings are not a substitute for social distancing. Public health officials continue to emphasize that maintaining 6-feet social distancing is crucial to slowing the spread of the virus. You can find tools and resources for individuals and families, schools, communities, businesses, healthcare facilities, and first responders on the DHHS website and the CDC's website at https://www.cdc.gov/ coronavirus. DHHS opened a statewide COVID-19 information line to help answer general questions and share the latest information and resources with Nebraskans to help keep them informed. The number is 402.552.6645; hours of operation are 8 a.m.-8 p.m. CDT, 7 days a week. DHHS will continue to update Nebraskans through the DHHS website and on Facebook and Twitter as we have new information.
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Above: Sue McCann of Ballgowns for Smiles wanted to do something special for the Residents of the Rose Blumkin Jewish Home and donated the supplies for a craft project of making cheerful bookmarks for Residents to work on during this time of quarantine. Ballgowns for Smiles is a non-profit that puts on programs to bring joy to people living in senior living facilities. Pictured is Lois Endelman.
Above: Lisa and Jill Salomon “enjoying tea on the patio.”
SP O TLIGHT
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PHOTOS FROM RECENT JEWISH COMMUNITY EVENTS SUBMIT A PHOTO: Have a photo of a recent Jewish Community event you would like to submit? Email the image and a suggested caption to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org.
Above, below and bottom: Another Wacky Wednesday from the Home. This week was Blast From the Past – staff dressed up wearing their favorite outfit from their favorite era. A special lunch was served to all RBJH employees from a generous anonymous donor. Lunch included wings and chicken fingers with sides and a variety of cakes from Nothing Bundt Cakes to celebrate the Director of Nursing Shelley Cash’s birthday.
Above: Shari Binder and her friends from QLI playing cards.
Right and right bottom: Jewish Federation of Omaha volunteers delivered packages to families with young children for Yom Ha’atzmaut.
Below: Ezra Blair was thrilled to receive the JFO’s Yom HaAzmaut surprise activity package, delivered by volunteer Deborah Kronik.
B6 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
Voices
The Jewish Press (Founded in 1920) Abby Kutler President Annette van de Kamp-Wright Editor Richard Busse Creative Director Susan Bernard Advertising Executive Lori Kooper-Schwarz Assistant Editor Gabby Blair Staff Writer Michael Ivey Accounting Jewish Press Board Abby Kutler, President; Eric Dunning, Ex-Officio; Danni Christensen, Candice Friedman, Bracha Goldsweig, Jill Idelman, Andy Isaacson, Natasha Kraft, Andrew Miller, Eric Shapiro, Shoshy Susman and Amy Tipp. The mission of the Jewish Federation of Omaha is to build and sustain a strong and vibrant Omaha Jewish Community and to support Jews in Israel and around the world. Agencies of the Federation are: Community Relations Committee, Jewish Community Center, Center for Jewish Life, Jewish Social Services, and the Jewish Press. Guidelines and highlights of the Jewish Press, including front page stories and announcements, can be found online at: wwwjewishomaha. org; click on ‘Jewish Press.’ Editorials express the view of the writer and are not necessarily representative of the views of the Jewish Press Board of Directors, the Jewish Federation of Omaha Board of Directors, or the Omaha Jewish community as a whole. The Jewish Press reserves the right to edit signed letters and articles for space and content. The Jewish Press is not responsible for the Kashrut of any product or establishment. Editorial The Jewish Press is an agency of the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Deadline for copy, ads and photos is: Thursday, 9 a.m., eight days prior to publication. E-mail editorial material and photos to: avandekamp@jewishomaha.org; send ads (in TIF or PDF format) to: rbusse@jewishomaha.org. Letters to the Editor Guidelines The Jewish Press welcomes Letters to the Editor. They may be sent via regular mail to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154; via fax: 1.402.334.5422 or via e-mail to the Editor at: avandekamp@jewishomaha. org. Letters should be no longer than 250 words and must be single-spaced typed, not hand-written. Published letters should be confined to opinions and comments on articles or events. News items should not be submitted and printed as a “Letter to the Editor.” The Editor may edit letters for content and space restrictions. Letters may be published without giving an opposing view. Information shall be verified before printing. All letters must be signed by the writer. The Jewish Press will not publish letters that appear to be part of an organized campaign, nor letters copied from the Internet. No letters should be published from candidates running for office, but others may write on their behalf. Letters of thanks should be confined to commending an institution for a program, project or event, rather than personally thanking paid staff, unless the writer chooses to turn the “Letter to the Editor” into a paid personal ad or a news article about the event, project or program which the professional staff supervised. For information, contact Annette van de KampWright, Jewish Press Editor, 402.334.6450. Postal The Jewish Press (USPS 275620) is published weekly (except for the first week of January and July) on Friday for $40 per calendar year U.S.; $80 foreign, by the Jewish Federation of Omaha. Phone: 402.334.6448; FAX: 402.334.5422. Periodical postage paid at Omaha, NE. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Jewish Press, 333 So. 132 St., Omaha, NE 68154-2198 or email to: jpress@jewishomaha.org.
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We can learn from everything around us ANNETTE VAN DE KAMP-WRIGHT Editor, Jewish Press It’s been close to two months since life began to shut down, and after our initial enthusiasm (‘We can do this!’) frustration is settling in. It doesn’t matter that we remind ourselves there are many others who have it worse, it’s hard not to be tired of the way things are. We’re exhausted, unmotivated. We’re spending too much time thinking and not enough time running around. Remember those days when there were a million things on the calendar and you prayed for the world to slow down? Now it has, and we’re not doing well. Mind you, we’re still busy—but we’re missing the constant influx of other people, other voices. Zoom isn’t the same as running past each other in the hallway and sharing an understanding look because there is so much going on. This past weekend, I felt it. The dishes weren’t getting done quickly enough. We mowed half the yard. We filled half the flower pots and burned half the firewood. We did some of the laundry but not all (and put none of it away). We had Shabbat dinner with my daughter’s wheat bread because nobody felt like making challah. I called my mother and we lamented the fact that we had literally nothing new to discuss-which is unheard of. She lives halfway across the world, we always have something new to discuss. Everything we do, we’re only doing it half-way. And this very inability to finish anything is getting on my nerves, making things even more challenging. It’s Monday morning, it’s raining (of course it is) and just when I am in danger of drowning in unattractive self-pity, I find a Zoom meeting on my calendar.
“11 a.m., Momentum Zoom,” it says. And so I join, find friends, share, commiserate and within 5 minutes, I begin to feel better. Part of that is because the Momentum trip I joined in 2016 has left its mark on my life and how I view things. It taught me that when women learn together, it can be magical. We pull each other up, we catch each other when we fall and become better human beings when we truly connect. It also left me with a group of women with whom I can always be honest, with whom I can discuss topics that I might choose to stay mum about with others. Four years later that experience continues to shape our friendships. Getting a small reminder of what that trip was like is always welcome, but especially now, when most of us don’t know how to feel. In my experience, every Momentum session I’ve ever been in offers new and surprising insight. The host of the meeting reminds us there are many different responses we have to the current situation. There is rarely one right answer—we probably don’t all ask the same questions either. Then she says this:
“We can learn from everything around us.” I write it down, because I recognize those words: it’s when we speak with others, when we get a different perspective and are reminded of something we hadn’t thought about ourselves. That conversational ‘aha’ moment when because of someone else’s words we suddenly see a little light at the end of the tunnel. To be frank, I have no idea what I’m supposed to learn from COVID-19. But I also know that not having an easy answer is not necessarily the point. In this case, it’s the question that matters. It’s the notion that, maybe, just maybe, I can open my eyes and see this as an opportunity, as well as a challenge. It’s not the answer, it’s the possibility of an answer. Here’s my plan: I’m going to ask myself daily: ‘What can I learn from this?’ If I’m fed up because nobody is putting their dirty dishes in the sink, I can ask myself. If I feel lethargic and guilty because I haven’t worked out, I can ask myself. If I can’t sleep because I stayed up too late and consequently overslept five days in a row and now it’s midnight and I’m not tired, I can ask myself. It’s an almost perfect alternative to complaining, so let’s give this a try. I’ll let you know how it works.
Weaponizing the coronavirus
The initial haredi reluctance to close schools was fered disproportionately from the plague. RABBI AVI SHAFRAN a function not of defiance but of valuing what the No, it wasn’t because of the density of many NEW YORK | JTA Among the most disturbing spectacles over the Talmud calls “the breath of the mouths of children haredi towns and neighborhoods. Nor were the regmonths since the coronavirus was unleashed on in their places of learning” on “which the world de- ular interactions born of religious events, celebrathe world have been the attacks tions and daily prayer services on haredi Orthodox Jews in both salient factors. And no, poverty Israel and the United States. and the challenge of confining Some criticisms, like New York large families in small apartCity Mayor Bill de Blasio’s stern ments were not the main things tweets following a funeral held to blame. The true villains, in in Brooklyn, are not born of anRabbi Greenberg’s judgment, are tipathy to the Orthodox comharedim and their leaders, a munity. The mayor issued his longtime bugaboo of his. rebuke to “the Jewish commuWith superb hindsight, he nity” that “the time for warnings reprises how some Hasidic leadhas passed” in the heat of the ers in 1930s Europe hadn’t foremoment. And he seemed unseen the Holocaust, and aware that the funeral, although counseled their followers not to it became too crowded, had panic and flee the continent. been coordinated with police. Jewish religious leaders, Rabbi His choice of words was reGreenberg contends, are viewed grettable, but he told a news Haredi Orthodox Jews are seen at Passover in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn amid by haredim as infallible. conference the next day that he the coronavirus pandemic, April 11, 2020. Credit: John Nacion/NurPhoto via Getty Images This is nonsense. The reason hadn’t intended to slur the community. And his re- pends.” To an Orthodox Jew, children’s Torah study Jewish religious leaders are respected is their senlationship with the community during his tenure is spiritually vital, and only to be compromised sitivity and Torah scholarship, and that is very difhas been very good. when it is absolutely necessary. ferent from blind obedience. A great doctor is Other critics, though, are less defensible. Over But once the gravity of the situation was clear, fallible, too, but her opinion is still invaluable. the weeks since the coronavirus crisis began, these the haredi reluctance to close schools quickly gave Blaming Jewish religious leaders, of course, has critics have been attacking the entire Orthodox way to full compliance with medical advice. Once always been a popular pastime. “What good are world without justification. the virus’ virality was clearly established, haredi rabbis?” the Talmud (Sanhedrin 99b) notes, was Haredi Orthodox Jews — the perennial they — leaders not only shut down shuls and schools but even in antiquity a common refrain of renegade are always to blame for their backward ways. They pleaded with their flocks to heed every governmen- Jews. reacted too slowly to close their schools. They ig- tal health warning. Haredim — like all believing Jews — know that nore safety precautions and gather repeatedly in Unfortunately, none of that has stopped those we are not perfect and cannot rely on our mitzvot crowds. Their leaders are ignorant and are followed given to disparaging traditionally religious Jews and avoidance of sin alone to ensure our safety, that mindlessly by the masses. from doing so once again. we must make efforts on our own behalf, too. DeNever mind that those violating social distancing One particularly distasteful attack on haredi spite Rabbi Greenberg’s insinuation, we do just in the haredi world are outliers, no more represen- leaders, and on Jewish religious tradition itself, ap- that. At the same time, though, we recognize the tative of haredim at large than those crowded along peared in the Jewish Journal. merit of our spiritual actions, which Rabbi Greenthe Hudson watching the Blue Angels and ThunOn April 20, Rabbi Irving “Yitz” Greenberg, after berg, astoundingly for any rabbi, seems to discount. derbirds on Sunday are of New Yorkers in general. duly expressing his great sympathy for haredi vicAt a time like this, we should be unified in doing Most of us have been staying home for months, tims of the coronavirus, offered his explanation for all we can to protect ourselves and others, not doing our best to keep ourselves and others safe. why some haredi communities seem to have suf- point fingers, especially at imaginary culprits.
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Should you put your life at risk to help others? IRA BEDZOW NEW YORK | JTA For a short period of time, New York state officials enacted controversial guidelines that again tested the inherent tension that the COVD-19 pandemic is causing between our country’s most deeply cherished values — respect for multiculturalism and religious freedom on the one side and the state’s responsibility to promote the common good on the other. On April 17, at the recommendation of the Bureau of Emergency Medical Services, the Regional Emergency Services Council of New York issued guidelines stating that EMS personnel should not attempt to revive a person if they find him or her in cardiac arrest. The edict was a further push toward public safety over treatment of individuals and respect for moral and religious values than one issued earlier this month stating that if EMS workers could not revive a person from cardiac arrest in 20 minutes, they should not transport the patient to the hospital. The new guidelines were abandoned only days later, though in practice it is doubtful that they were actually followed. The official statement for its rescission is that the guidelines did not reflect New York’s standards. Nor did they reflect Jewish values. Jewish law recognizes that life is of ultimate value, but it also appreciates that there will be times when saving a person’s life may come at the expense of another. For example, the Talmud tells a story of two people who are stranded in a desert and only one has enough water to survive. Rabbi Akiva offers that the person should not share his water, as it would cause both of them to die. The duty to save another person’s life applies only when “your brother may live with you” and not at one’s own expense. But attempting to save someone who is infected with COVID-19 and in cardiac arrest is not the same as sharing one’s water bottle. While the risk of infection without proper equipment may be high, it is not obvious that continuing CPR will necessarily lead to the EMS worker’s ultimate demise. It could, however, lead to spread of contagion, which may indirectly lead to life-threatening situations. Jewish law does address the extent of one’s duty to save another when there is a potential risk to life rather than a definite one. Rabbinic scholars begin their analysis of this matter with the question addressed to Rabbi David ben Solomon ibn
Zimra (who lived in Safed in the 16th century). “What should one do if a government officer tells a Jew: ‘Let me cut off one of your limbs in a way that you will not die, or I will kill your friend!'” (Responsa Radbaz, 3:627) Of course, attempting to save a patient with COVID-19 is in
life-threatening danger is 50 percent or greater. When the chances are less than 50 percent, Rabbi Wosner contends in “B’Geder Hovat Hatzalah L’Zulat She’Yigrom L’Torem Huleshet HaGuf v’Toreach,” the person has an obligation, or at least should act out of piety, to try to save the other person. If saving another will only risk making a person sick but not in danger to his health, then he is certainly obligated to save the other person. Medical professionals, however, may have an even higher duty to treat than the layperson in Jewish law. For example, Rabbi Eliezer Yehuda Waldenberg (19152006) wrote in Teshuvot Tzitz Eliezer 9:17 that physicians have a higher level of duty toward patients, which stems either from the permission physicians have to heal — a customary expectation of the profession — EMTs outside NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City, April 2020. Credit: John Lamparski/ or because they are comGetty Images pensated for their work. He no way as extreme as this question, but the legal and moral does add, however, that this greater responsibility comes with point is analogous. How much should one be willing to sacri- greater divine protection from harm, since the person is enfice of himself or herself to save another person’s life? gaged in such a great mitzvah as saving other people’s lives. Rabbi David ben Zimri writes that if the risk is not lifeWe should be thankful that the state’s health commissioner, threatening, one may endanger one’s health for the sake of an- Dr. Howard Zucker, rescinded the guidelines that challenged other. If, however, there is a risk to one’s life, then attempting medical professionals’ fiduciary responsibilities and potento save them is misguided piety. tially their religious and moral values, yet the pandemic will Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (the Chafetz Chaim) writes that continue to challenge the balance between state priorities and one should not put oneself in potentially life-threatening dan- individual liberties. ger to save another from certain danger. However, he adds The best way for us to ameliorate these tensions and avoid that one must calculate the situation properly, and be very challenges to our values is for us to avoid creating opportunicareful not to rationalize improper risk aversion under the ties for these situations to occur. Rather than fight against repretense of religious piety. (Mishna Berura 329:19) actionary decisions to deal with the problems that COVID-19 Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi Wosner (1913-2015) clarified Rabbi keeps presenting, we should continue to be proactive in stopKagan’s demand for proper calculation. According to Rabbi ping the contagion. Wosner, opting for personal safety over attempting to save anIra Bedzow is the director of the Biomedical Ethics and other is justified only when the chances of putting oneself in Humanities Program at New York Medical College.
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When life gives you lemons I know it is a bit cliché to say right now but I really feel that we are experiencing a ‘when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade’ time period. A number of years ago I heard a person speak about seeing negative events as opportunities and turning them into positive events and outcomes. At the Institute for Holocaust Education we are doing just that. Our focus has been at adapting and SCOTT LITTKY moving forward to attempt to make an Executive Director, impact within our community and the IHE wider State of Nebraska. Our first challenge came right before our annual Week of Understanding. It became apparent to us that we were going to have to change directions. For more than ten years we have brought Holocaust survivors in from out-of-town and had our local survivors offer their testimony. In the past few years we have reached over 7000 people during the week. As a result of the COVID-19 virus, we turned the Week of Understanding into a virtual event. Material was prepared that included links to past talks given by all of the participating survivors along with their bios and related material. This information was then sent to middle school and high school teachers throughout the State of Nebraska along with our local synagogue schools. The material prepared was even shared throughout the country by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. IHE took the lemons we were presented with and made lemonade! Each year during April in the gallery of the Jewish Community Center, our annual Art and the Holocaust exhibit is displayed. Hundreds of local middle school students participate in this program and the top 10 percent are displayed. The program is growing and this year four new schools participated.
As a result of the shutdown of both local schools and the Jewish Community Center, the exhibit has been turned into a virtual display that is available for viewing on our IHE website! Yet another opportunity for us to make lemonade! The Tribute to the Rescuers Essay Contest was proceeding as planned this year with record participation of over 500 high school student essays. The first round of judging was held on Feb. 27 as planned. Right after this, the second round was held in early March. Again as the COVID-19 situation became more serious we recognized that we would have to put the reception rewards program on hold but that we could proceed with the
contest. So, the winners have been chosen and notified and later this summer, when we can return to the office, we will hold the reception. Again we made lemonade with our lemons! Yom HaShoah has always been held on the Wednesday evening closest to the Hebrew date for the commemoration. This year that date was Wednesday, April 22. When we first learned that we would be working from home and not able to hold events in person, we knew that we needed a new plan for Yom HaShoah. Cancelling the commemoration was not an option. So with the assistance of Hazzan Michael Krausman, the son of a Holocaust survivor, we held a virtual service. Once we overcame a bit of a technical challenge, the program was held and was very meaningful. For our annual program for Jewish middle school and high school students we provided the synagogue with lesson plans and materials to use online with their students. We again choose to look at this as an opportunity and not holding the event was simply not a choice. IHE continues during this pandemic to have contact with our teachers throughout Nebraska and Iowa. We continue to share materials and assistance where needed. We have even held a few Zoom classes with the assistance of our Education Coordinator, Kael Sagheer and our second generation survivors. We are still blessed in Nebraska and Iowa with a number of survivors. IHE continues to check in with them and provide support where needed. If anything we at IHE are blessed by their support and love. Our survivors have amazing outlooks on life and have hope towards the future. We will be stronger from the experience. As we move forward, we at the IHE continue to plan new programs and educational opportunities for later this summer and into the next school year. If you would like more information or to contact us, please visit our webpage at www.ihene.org or our Facebook page www.facebook .com/ihene.
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Europe on $5.00 a day: True stories RICH AND FRAN JURO MADRID AND TANGIER t was July, 1966. I had just taken the NY Bar Exam, and Fran had spent a year working for the Welfare Department of New York City. In addition to talking to clients in what would soon become Fort Apache, The Bronx, Fran had planned a four-months-long journey through Europe – on $5 a day per person for food and lodging. Here’s some of the highlights, and the low lights: We flew from NYC to Madrid, Spain. Fran had made reservations at a first class hotel for $3 per night. It had marble steps and marble bathrooms. We went through El Prado Museum and the other capital city’s touristic sites. The only problem was that all the restaurants, including the one in our hotel, did not open for dinner until 9 p.m. So sometimes we skipped that meal, which kept us within our budget. In law school Andy was one of my friends. He received a law degree from Columbia University with me. The next day he received a doctorate in history from Princeton. Pretty bright guy, but different: during the summer he ran a bar in Tangier, Morocco. During the winter, Andy brought his Moroccan friend Abdul to live with him in NYC. We weren’t sure if Abdul was Andy’s servant or his lover, but we didn’t ask. Of course, we had to visit Andy in Tangier, so we flew there from Madrid. We found our cheap but comfy hotel, and the next day set out to find Andy in his bar, Ibn Battuta. It was named for a 14th century Muslim Moroccan scholar and traveler. He visited Central and Southeast Asia and China, like
Marco Polo, plus the Muslim lands in between. He wrote a book of his travels. (Now we have a blog about ours: FranandRichsTravels.com.) We knew that the bar was on the beach, and the quickest way to get there was through the Casbah.
Lake Geneva Credit: Joachim Kohler. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
But we got completely lost in the maze of tiny meandering streets. As smart Columbia and NYU grads, we figured out a solution: we spotted a European woman, obviously heading for the beach. So we followed her for a few rambling blocks... until she entered her home. Then we had a better inspiration: we gave $1 US to a local youth, said “Ibn Battuta a la playa” (Spanish for “Ibn Battuta at the beach”, since Tangier had been part of Spanish Morocco). The boy showed us out of the labyrinth and to our rendezvous with Andy. SWITZERLAND AND HOLLAND Fran had booked us on a Royal Air Maroc flight to Geneva, Switzerland. We arrived and stowed our luggage at the train station. Next we had a
lovely walk on the shore of Lake Geneva. Then we headed back to the train station for our dinner. Throughout Europe, it was always a good, inexpensive place to eat. We boarded our late-night train for Zurich, planning on sleeping on the train to save the cost of a hotel. In Zurich, our budget hotel (there’s no such thing as a budget hotel anymore in Zurich) was clean, and right by the Limmat River. We walked to the department store nearby, and bought our lunch: loaf of bread, cheese, lettuce, tomato, and wine, and ate it on the sloping grass banks watching the swans swimming on the Limmat. Nowadays, the Limmat still runs through Zurich, but the city is dominated by a different kind of banks. We took a bus tour for a day through the Alps. It was a big bus, and there were many hairpin turns overlooking the valleys thousands of feet below. Fran, suffering from acrophobia, sat on the inside seat, but still didn’t enjoy it. After a few days, we boarded another overnight train for Amsterdam, Holland. No, we didn’t stay in the famous “red light” district. Instead, Fran had reserved a room in a canal house. The boardinghouse had five steep flights, and no elevator, but thankfully we were staying on the third floor. After dragging up the luggage, I was exhausted but I was young, and you couldn’t complain for $2.80 a night. One evening the owner asked us to watch the front desk while he went out (to the red light district?). A large African man walked in from the street and repeatedly asked in a loud voice for “la clef ”. Neither Fran nor I had seen him before, nor did we speak French, so we just shrugged and See Europe on $5.00 a day page C2
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Europe on $5.00 a day Continued from page C1 ignored him. Only after the proprietor returned did we learn that the stranger was a regular renter and he was asking for “the key”. In 1966 there wasn’t a big line to get into the Anne Frank House, the famous canal house where the young girl’s family hid from the Nazis and kept a diary of her tragic life. After a memorable visit, we signed the guest book. We noticed that a few names above ours was Elliott Pollack, a not uncommon name in New York. A nice surprise was meeting him and his wife outside on the street. Elliott had been in my year at Columbia, but had skipped his senior year and went right to law school (another very bright guy). We enjoyed lunch together and compared notes on law school and touring Europe. The next day we took the train to Rotterdam, then and now the biggest port in Europe. We ate at the “Seamen’s Retreat”, which was good, cheap, and open to the regular public. My brother Evan had given us a travel gift: a coupon book for “Buy 1, Get 1 Free” at famous restaurants in Europe. We tried one: d’Vijff Vlieghen (the Five Flies), located, of course, in another canal house. After a delicious dinner of Dutch specialties, we presented the coupon to the waiter. He brought over the maitre d’. Obviously, the gentlemen had never seen a coupon book before, and he rudely said he couldn’t accept it. We demurred, saying this was valid for one free dinner with one paid. The maitre d’ got so upset that he shouted: “Get out of this restaurant!” So we complied,
paying for neither dinner. (Years later we went back to d’Vijff Vlieghen Restaurant, paid full price, and it wasn’t as good.) Amsterdam was full of wonderful museums and attractions. Yes, we did the Rijksmuseum, Royal Palace, and the Portuguese Synagogue.
Amsterdam Credit: Agnes Monkelbaan. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Then and now, you can go around with canal boats, trams, or just walking. Finally, after a wonderful but exhausting week, we took the train to Dusseldorf, Germany. GERMANY AND DENMARK My brother Evan also arranged for an apartment for us for $5 a day in Dusseldorf. The apartment belonged to the secretary of one of his associates; she moved in with her parents during our stay. Dusseldorf was an industrial city that had been bombed to smithereens by the Allies during WWII. So the apartment, like virtually all of the buildings in the city, was new. It had a nice furniture, TV, and all other
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modern appliances... except a refrigerator. The Germans still liked to shop every day and any refrigerated product was put in a cool place and used in a day or two. Even then Erope had shelf-stable milk, and continues to use that product today.
stores were empty. We were looking for “Nefertiti’s Bust”, the famous Egyptian sculpture of the Pharaoh’s wife carved in 1340 BCE. It was then (and now) in an East Berlin museum. After a long walk, we found the museum complex. None of the museum attendants spoke English nor were interested in helping our quest. Finally, we gave up. So much for customer-friendly in Socialist countries. Another clue in our political education was how hard it was to take the U-Bahn back from East Berlin to West Berlin. Even as Americans, we had to change subway trains, and were subjected to several East Berlin security ofBerlin Credit: Ansgar Koreng. Licensed under the Creative Com- ficers checking documents and mons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. rudely interrogating us. Cologne, near Dusseldorf, was a day tour. But then followed the single best airplane The difference was, the magnificent Cologne flight we’ve ever had. Back then, there were Cathedral was not bombed during the war. student flights, especially in Socialist counFran and I had ambivalent feelings, admiring tries. Fran had booked us on Czechoslovak all the Germans had rebuilt while remember- Airlines from East Berlin to Copenhagen, ing how the Nazis had started WWII and con- Denmark. The airline sent a bus to pick the ducted the Holocaust. students up in West Berlin. We were all busy We took the railroad to West Berlin, which taking pictures when we went through was divided in 1966 into four separate sec- Checkpoint Charlie, the infamous border setions: US, Britain, France, and USSR. Surpris- curity station between West and East Berlin. ingly, it was easy it to take the U-Bahn A big East German police officer boarded the subway from West Berlin to East Berlin. The bus. “Who vas taking pictures?”, he deRathskeller (City Hall) was right outside the manded in a thick German accent. No one anstation, and we ate there. It was basically the swered. Again he asked, in even a deeper, only thing we could buy in East Berlin, as the See Europe on $5.00 a day page C3
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Europe on $5.00 a day Continued from page C2 more ominous tone: “Who vas taking pictures?” A timid voice from a small girl answered: “I was.” The East German border official walked up the aisle to her, ripped her camera from her, and tore the film from the camera. (Yes, boys and girls, way back then you had to use physical film in cameras.) Everyone felt sorry for the girl who had her pictures confiscated, but everybody felt glad that they still had photos in their camera. Finally, we proceeded to Schonefeld Airport in East Berlin. When we boarded the prop plane from Czechoslovak Airlines, we were given delicious Czech candy and a Czech bandanna. Once we were in the air, they served Czech beer and food. Now do see why we described this as the best flight we’ve ever had. Oh, the cost? $10 each!! SCANDINAVIA Landing in Copenhagen without reservations, we rushed to the clearinghouse office which assigns visitors places to stay. We were given the name of Pension Klokken, and it turned out to be cheap and convenient for our week of sightseeing. Walking and taking local tours, we were delighted with Tivoli Gardens, the huge amusement park; Kronborg Castle, referenced in Hamlet as Elsinore, which is the Danish name of the town of Helsingor; The Little Mermaid, the small bronze statue based on the Hans Christian Andersen story, which has become the iconic symbol of Copenhagen; The royal palaces and museums; and The friendly Danish people, most of whom spoke English even then. Our next transportation was something we had never ridden before. A train that went right onto the ferry from Copenhagen to Malmo, Sweden, and then went on the railroad tracks directly to downtown Stockholm. There we stayed at an alcohol-free hotel run by the Women’s Temperance Union. Sex was ok, but
no booze! Fran loved the Swedish clothes and that the cab seemed to be going in the wrong bought a sleeveless green velour A-dress, direction. She gestured wildly and got the leather boots that were half-white and half- driver to pull over, but he didn’t speak English, black, and some other items. They were the and we didn’t know the Finnish word for “railenvy of young women in the USSR, and even road”. Finally, the driver flapped his arms in back in the USA. They were not in her $5 daily imitation of a bird or airplane. Fran shook her budget, but she figured she deserved it for giv- head, then said the magic words: “choo choo”. ing up wine whilst in Sweden. To get to Helsinki, Finland, we rode the Baltic Sea ferry. Arriving safely, we headed to the Hotel Sakatuntatelu, which was a student dormitory for the University of Helsinki. We remember that it was quite a ways from downtown. Recently, we went back to Helsinki. Now the university is in the middle of the city. Being August, there were very few students present. Being Finland, we had to try Copenhagen Credit: Kristoffer Strolle. Licensed under the Crethe sauna in the lower level. ative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. My thermal went without incident. But when Our driver promptly made a U-turn and Fran went down, there were already a bunch headed for the train station. of Finnish women there, mostly cleaners for THE USSR the dormitory. They insisted that Fran have Fran had made arrangements for the tour an authentic experience. So first they “beat” of the Soviet Union at the New York City office her with birch branches. Then they made her of Intourist, the USSR travel agency. It was $15 plunge into the very ice cold small pool. Its a per day per person, but it included all rooms, sauna Fran has never forgotten. food, beverages, tours, tour guides, and transFinnish is a language barely related only to portation: air flights from Moscow to Estonian and Hungarian, neither of which we Leningrad, Kiev, Yalta, and back to Moscow. speak. But there is a 10 percent minority of The train trip from Helsinki to Moscow was Swedes in Finland, so all the public signs are a preview of the USSR. On the advice of printed in Swedish as well as Finnish. We Thomas Cook, Ltd., the travel agent, we don’t speak Swedish either, but that language splurged and got Class A; that included topis related to German. We don’t speak German and-bottom sleeping berths, chai (tea), food either, but had just spent two weeks there, and in the dining car, and a couple of other luxuso we recognized some of the basic words. ries. One of our neighbors in the sleeping car We had a problem leaving Helsinki. The taxi was an American diplomat and his family. He headed, we assumed, from our student resi- asked us what we were carrying into the dence towards the train station. Fran noticed country as there were strict controls. So he
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took our James Bond books, Vogue and other fashion magazines, and some other decadent contraband material that would have been seized by the border inspectors, and put them into his official USA diplomatic pouch. Our other “neighbors” were two Soviet officials who were returning from Europe. They were extremely nervous what the customs agents would find. They were literally sweating about the questions they would be asked. We didn’t know how the two fared, but all our illegal items made it through in the diplomatic pouch. When the customs officials went through our luggage, they discovered Fran’s jewelry bag. They pulled it out triumphantly. Fran emptied it. All it contained was the hollow silver beads we bought in Mexico for $8. “Phoo” (or maybe it was the Russian equivalent), said the inspector disappointedly. Our hotel in Moscow was the Metropol. It was a cavernous, square block of a pre-revolutionary hotel. A heavy Russian lady sat in a chair on every floor, 24 hours a day, and collected your room key if you left (and hopefully gave it back to you when you returned). The public bathroom and shower were down the hall. We were sure the room was “bugged” so that the KGB could listen to everyone, especially Americans. On the radio, you could hear announcers saying stuff that we recognized as “Vietnam”, “imperialist”, “Americanski’s”, and other worrying news. We were also sure that we would be followed anywhere we went. I grew up in New York and was an expert on using subways. So we got a map of the famous Moscow subway system and promptly entered, barely noticing the exquisite decoration of the below-ground station. The plan was to go three stations, exit, cross the street, and go back the other way the same stops. We counted the three stations, and went up the steps to the street. But, there was no kiosk for See Europe on $5.00 a day page C4
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then Stalin. It was not till the 1970’s that thousands of Jews Continued from page C3 us to re-enter in the opposite direction. Then we expected the were permitted to leave the Soviet Union for Israel, the USA, KGB agents who we were sure were following us to appear and and other Western countries. laughingly show us how to get back. There were no agents; we One night I went to a concert performance. Fran didn’t, and were alone on a big street. stayed at the Astoria Hotel. She Luckily, we were wearing was wandering around, and Western clothes. A taxi pulled pretty soon was invited to a up. The driver said “Dollars?” graduation party by some We said “Da (‘yes’), Metropol young people (we were young Hotel”. The driver immediately then too). When the Western threw his customers out of the music played, she taught the cab and drove us to our hotel. others how to dance the Twist. Lessons learned: the Moscow She was the hit of the party. subway stations are set up difLuckily, she wasn’t arrested for ferently than New York’s; Rusbringing decadent dancing to sians really want U.S. dollars; Leningrad. Fran had a much and KGB agents were not folmore enjoyable time than I had. lowing us everywhere. Then we flew Aeroflot Air (we The Russian language uses called it “Aeroflop” because of the Cyrillic alphabet. It has the old planes and terrible onGreek letters augmented by time performance) to Kiev, the some Slavonic sounds that capital of the Ukraine Soviet were made into letters. I was in Socialist Republic. Back then, a fraternity in college, and the Ukraine was one of about knew most of the Greek letters. 15 Russian-dominated Soviet (I was expelled by my college Socialist Republics. They fraternity, later gave Fran my ranged from Estonia in the fraternity pin, and even later Moscow Credit: Alvesgaspar. Licensed under the Creative Com- Baltic to Mongolia in Eastern the fraternity became co-ed.) mons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Asia. It was not until 1991 that So just like we were happy to see Swedish signs in Finland, we the Soviet Union collapsed and those SSR’s became truly incould read many of the Russian signs phonetically, and then dependent countries. figured out what some meant. For example, PECTOPAH phoBut even in 1966, Kiev was more cultured and progressive netically reads RESTAURAN, and, yes, it means restaurant. than Moscow. Some people in Kiev dressed in fashionable There were flavored drink machines in parks. The sign said clothes imported from Hungary, a Russian dominated nation VOBA, but we figured out what they were. The problem was bordering on Western Europe. It was 20 years before Cherafter you put in a one kopeck coin, instead of dispensing a can nobyl, the terrible nuclear catastrophe near Kiev. It was also or bottle, you were supposed to reuse the “community cup”. before the Ukrainians started conducting tours of Babi Yar, Fran knew it wasn’t conducive to health, and quickly bought the ravine outside Kiev where 33,000 Jews were massacred by two collapsible plastic cups that we carried. the Nazis in 1941. The synagogue was also still closed in 1966. After seeing the Kremlin, Lenin and Stalin’s tomb (Stalin is My father’s parents were from Kiev, or the region nearby. I no longer there after his de-heroification), and the other sights heard there was an office where you could look up your anof Moscow, we flew up to Leningrad. That city was founded cestors. I went there but the office was closed. It might not by Tsar Peter the Great in 1703, and was the capital of Russia have given me much information anyway. My grandparents, for about 200 years as St. Petersburg, until the Russian Revo- like millions of Jews in the “Russian Pale” in Eastern Europe, lution of 1917. It was then called Leningrad until 1991, when left in the 1890’s to escape pogroms and oppression. Their a city referendum renamed it St. Petersburg again. Whatever name was not Juro then, probably Jurofsky (sp?) or something you call it, the city is beautiful with canals and the Neva River different. I’ll probably never know. flowing into the Gulf of Finland. Our group consisted of eight people: In Leningrad/St. Petersburg, we stayed at the Astoria Hotel. Fran and myself; It was better than the Metropol in Moscow, but not much. ReA nice young man named Ted, whose family lived by themcently we went back, and the Astoria has been transformed selves in Wichita, Kansas, on a street they named Easy Street, into a luxurious 5-star hotel. The city is filled with royal palaces, and changed the address every year to reflect the year they wonderful art and history museums, and other attractions. were in (e.g. 1966 Easy St. that year); Probably the most famous is the Hermitage Museum, filled Mr. George and Mrs. Eileen Cribbes, an interesting older with Impressionist and other world-famous paintings collected couple from Edinburgh, Scotland; he was the founder and by the Czars before 1917. In 1966, there was only one room chairman of the Edinburgh Festival; open to the public. Here’s how we got a complete tour of it: Maria, a lady from western Canada, who had escaped from I was walking around wearing a short sleeve white business the Ukraine, and went to visit relatives surreptitiously when shirt that I used to wear in law school. A man stopped me, and we were in Kiev; in good English, said: “If you sell me your shirt, I’ll take you Dr. Ernst and Mrs. Betty Schmidt; he was born in Switzerinto the Hermitage.” Turns out he was the Director of the mu- land, moved to the USA, and worked as a physician in southern seum, heading for a conference in Stockholm, and felt funny California; he had a couple of kids and had married Betty later. because there were no white business shirts for sale in Two of the eight spoke Russian fluently. Maria was originally Leningrad in 1966. Fran said: “If you take us all around the from the Ukraine, but she wouldn’t ever speak Russian or Hermitage, I’ll give you two white shirts.” So that’s what we Ukrainian (they are similar), lest it gave away her past to any did the next day; and he gave us an amazing private tour. official that she had escaped to Canada years ago. Dr. Schmidt Leningrad had been besieged from the German Nazi Army was fluent in 33 (yes, 33) languages. Growing up in Switzerfor 2-3 years in World War II. People died from starvation and land, where there are 5 official languages, and then learning disease in the hundreds of thousands. After the war, the Soviet 28 more. Whenever we met someone foreign, we induced Union spent its money on heavy industry, not on museums, them to speak to Dr. Schmidt in that language. He always knew so the Hermitage was still in bad shape 21 years later. On our it. But Dr. Schmidt was also growing quite deaf in 33 languages. private tour of the museum, we saw renowned paintings layFor only 8 people, Intourist wouldn’t furnish a guide to fly ing on the dirt floor. When we went back years later, the Her- around with us. Maria wouldn’t speak Russian, and Dr. Schmidt mitage was restored to its former glory as one of the world’s didn’t hear. So Fran and I were named de facto tour leaders. finest art museums. Fran talked to a woman curator, who told Occasionally, we would ask Maria privately what something us that the museum director wore his white shirts proudly for meant, or more often, we would ask Dr. Schmidt to translate a several years before retiring. written memo. Being tour leaders didn’t mean much except Another Czarist landmark was Peterhof, which was the Im- when it came to food. (Fran is, then and now, very concerned perial Palace and Park started by Peter the Great and expanded with food.) The food had been pretty blah in Moscow, mostly by later rulers. Versailles outside Paris was the inspiration, but cabbage and potatoes and “mystery meat”. The tasty products most people consider Peterhof even more magnificent. It is in were black bread and chocolate (!), and, of course, the vodka, the suburbs of Leningrad, and the Germans savaged it during which was served in prodigious quantities. But we rebelled in WWII, but 1000 Russian volunteers helped restore parts of it Kiev when we were served terrible Chicken Kiev two dinners soon after. In 1966, the palace wasn’t open, but the park was. in a row. (There was no edible chicken in it.) Fran and I went There are glorious statues and fountains throughout. The nat- to the local guide and complained. Turned out they were subural gravity of the surrounding area causes the hundreds of mitting coupon-vouchers for the food they selected. From then fountains to erupt in beautiful cascades of water. on, Fran selected the menu, turned in the vouchers, and had The Great Synagogue of Leningrad was, I believe, the only enough left to have a big party at the end of the tour. synagogue that continuously operated in the USSR during the The famous resort of Yalta on the Black Sea was next. Yes, whole Communist period. Atheism was the official religion, there were beaches, but the beaches were not sand but rocks. and unofficially it was the deification of the leaders Lenin and See Europe on $5.00 a day page C5
The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020 | C5
News LOCA L | N ATION AL | WO RLD
Europe on $5.00 a day Continued from page C4 That didn’t deter the Russians who were on vacation. Most of the men were large, and most of the women were larger (at least around the waist). Plus, the large women didn’t have bathing suits. They wore bras and panties! (No, I won’t subject you to a photo.) In February, 1945, the leaders of the Allies met in Yalta to negotiate what would happen after WWII ended (the Germans surrendered 3 months later). Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, and Franklin Roosevelt agreed that both Germany and the city of Berlin should be divided into 4 parts, administered by the US, France, Great Britain, and the USSR. Russia was “given” the Eastern European countries it had recaptured back in return for promises to hold free elections in those nations (they never happened) and also to join in the war on Japan. The atomic bomb that brought Japan to surrender had not yet been tested, and FDR thought that the war in the Pacific would go on for years. The new United Nations was also planned successfully. Roosevelt was sick and died two months later. We sat on the concrete bench that the three Allied leaders sat on, and immersed ourselves in history. In 1966, the Vietnam War was ramping up. It was the height of the Cold War between the US and the USSR. There was military conscription then in the USA. When I graduated law school I lost my student deferment. Even though I had volunteered three years earlier for the US Marines’ law program, I had been
rejected as my eyes were too weak. When we were in Yalta, my father received a letter from the Selective Service asking me to report for a physical for induction in the US Army. My Dad replied that I couldn’t appear for my physical exam because I was in the USSR. I’m sure the service officials weren’t expecting that answer. We flew back to Moscow and stayed in a different “old barn” hotel. Our group enjoyed the party that Fran had saved coupons for. A day later, Fran and I went to the Moscow airport. It was crowded with Chinese students who had been evicted from their studies in Russia. Apparently, Communist China and the USSR were now feuding too. Still, Fran and I boarded the evening plane for Prague, Czechoslovakia. PRAGUE, THE ORIENT EXPRESS, AND BELGRADE In 1966, Czechoslovakia was still one country and enjoying the start of the “Prague Spring”, which was the relaxation of the strict Socialist controls of the country. There were private restaurants and other small businesses, and a general softening of the Soviet daily rules. We had a reservation at a small private hotel in the middle of Prague, but our taxi driver stopped at 2 a.m. in the middle of a neighborhood plaza and indicated our hotel was somewhere up one of the streets. Fran stayed with the luggage while I tried to find our place to stay. It was dark on the dimly lit streets. I wasn’t so concerned with being assaulted as I was just worried about searching endlessly. After about 20 minutes, I found the small hotel in the middle of the block. I rang
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the bell repeatedly. The sleepy manager finally appeared and disspiritedly showed us to our room. Prague was and is a wonderful city to visit, filled with attractions: Prague Castle, Wenceslas Square, National Museum, National Library, St. Vitus Cathedral, National Gallery, Charles Bridge, Old Town Square with the Astronomical Clock, and on and on. Our favorite
ulent Schonbrunn Palace and attended classical concerts.. Soon it was time to board the Orient Express, heading south for Belgrade and Istanbul. Started in 1883, the Orient Express ran from Paris to Istanbul. It shortened its distance over the years, and stopped running in 2009. After an uneventful night, we arrived in Belgrade, the capital of Yugoslavia. In 1918, after World War I, the Allies decided to form a new nation in the Balkans from parts of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire and the old Ottoman Empire. The new nation was called Yugoslavia, literally the Land of Southern Slavs. During WWII, Yugoslavia was occupied by the Fascist countries of Germany and Italy. After WWII, the monarchy was abolished and the partisan Helsinki Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- leader Josip Tito became Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. leader. But Tito, unlike the was probably Josefus, the Jewish Quarter, in- other Socialist heads in Eastern Europe, cluding the Community Hall, the ancient broke with Stalin in 1948. He embarked on a cemetery, and four old synagogues. The Old- neutral, “non-aligned” policy, and accepted New Synagogue is the oldest synagogue in Eu- aid from the USA. Yugoslavia did OK till Tito’s rope that still has regular services. It was built death in 1980. In the late 1980’s, nationalism in 1270, so it will be 750 years old! There are reigned supreme. After some wars and negotwo big outside clocks on the main Jewish tiation, in 1991 five independent republics square. One has Latin numbers, the lower one were created from the former Yugoslavia: Serhas Hebrew letters/numbers. bia, Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, and Bosnia Next stop was Vienna. It too has numerous and Herzegovina. museums and attractions. We went to the op- See Europe on $5.00 a day page C8
RE-ELECT
Patrick
BONNETT Papio-Missouri River NRD Board #9 Paid for by Patrick Bonnett
FOR LEGISL ATURE District 25
Paid for by Suzanne Geist for Legislature
Synagogues
C6 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
B’NAI ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE
618 Mynster Street Council Bluffs, IA 51503-0766 712.322.4705 email: CBsynagogue@hotmail.com
BETH EL SYNAGOGUE
Member of United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism 14506 California Street Omaha, NE 68154-1980 402.492.8550 bethel-omaha.org
BETH ISRAEL SYNAGOGUE
Member of Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America 12604 Pacific Street Omaha, NE. 68154 402.556.6288 BethIsrael@OrthodoxOmaha.org
CHABAD HOUSE
An Affiliate of Chabad-Lubavitch 1866 South 120 Street Omaha, NE 68144-1646 402.330.1800 OChabad.com email: chabad@aol.com
CONGREGATION B’NAI JESHURUN
South Street Temple Union for Reform Judaism 2061 South 20th Street Lincoln, NE 68502-2797 402.435.8004 www.southstreettemple.org
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE
Capehart Chapel 2500 Capehart Road Offutt AFB, NE 68123 402.294.6244 email: oafbjsll@icloud.com
ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME
323 South 132 Street Omaha, NE 68154
TEMPLE ISRAEL
Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) 13111 Sterling Ridge Drive Omaha, NE 68144-1206 402.556.6536 templeisraelomaha.com
TIFERETH ISRAEL
Member of United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 3219 Sheridan Boulevard Lincoln, NE 68502-5236 402.423.8569 tiferethisraellincoln.org
B’NAI ISRAEL For information on our historic synagogue, please contact Howard Kutler at hkutler@hotmail.com or any of our other board members: Scott Friedman, Rick Katelman, Janie Kulakofsky, Carole and Wayne Lainof, MaryBeth Muskin and Sissy Silber. Handicap Accessible.
BETH EL Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Steven Abraham and Hazzan Michael Krausman. VIRTUAL MINYAN SCHEDULE: Mornings on Mondays and Thursdays, 8 a.m.; Evenings on Sunday-Thursday, 5:30 p.m. FRIDAY: Virtual Shabbat Story Time (Grades PreK-2), 11 a.m.; Virtual Let’s Get Cooking with Eadie (Grades 37), 11 a.m., 3 p.m.; Virtual Kabbalat Shabbat with BESTT, 4 p.m.; Shabbat-To-Go, (Pick Up); Virtual Kabbalat Shabbat, 6 p.m. SATURDAY: Virtual Shabbat Morning Services, 10 a.m.; Virtual Havdallah, 9:18 p.m. SUNDAY: Virtual BESTT (Grades K-7), 10 a.m.; Yiddish Class with Hazzan Krausman, 11 a.m. MONDAY: Virtual Jewish Law Class with Rabbi Abraham, 8 p.m. TUESDAY: Virtual Jewish Values Class with Rabbi Abraham, 11:30 a.m. WEDNESDAY: Virtual Coffee & Conversation with Rabbi Abraham, 2 p.m.; Virtual BESTT (Grades 3-7), 4 p.m.; Virtual USY Check-In, 5:15 p.m.; Virtual Hebrew High, 6:30 p.m. THURSDAY: Virtual Singing in the Synagogue with Hazzan Krausman, 11:30 a.m.; Virtual Teen Book Club, 4:30 p.m. Please visit bethel-omaha.org for additional information and Zoom service links.
BETH ISRAEL Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Ari Dembitzer. FRIDAY: Kabbalat Shabbat, 7 p.m. SATURDAY: Havdalah, 9:18 p.m. SUNDAY: Rambam: Rabbi Moshe, 9:45 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Parsha and halacha with Rabbi Yoni, 1 p.m.; Special Presentation: Oshry Moyal: A Life in Quarantine, 7 p.m. MONDAY: Deepening Prayer, 7:15 a.m.; Laws of Shabbos, 7:30 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Parsha and halacha with Rabbi Yoni, 1 p.m.; JYE BI Parsha and Mishnayot with Rabbi Yoni, 1-2 p.m. TUESDAY: Deepening Prayer, 7:15 a.m.; Laws of Shabbos, 7:30 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Parsha and halacha with Rabbi Yoni, 1 p.m.; JYE BI Parsha and Mishnayot with Rabbi Yoni, 1-2 p.m. WEDNESDAY: Deepening Prayer, 7:15 a.m.; Laws of Shabbos, 7:30 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Parsha and halacha with Rabbi Yoni, 1 p.m.; JYE BI Parsha
and Mishnayot with Rabbi Yoni, 1-2 p.m. TURSDAY: Deepening Prayer, 7:15 a.m.; Laws of Shabbos, 7:30 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Parsha and halacha with Rabbi Yoni, 1 p.m.; JYE BI Parsha and Mishnayot with Rabbi Yoni, 1-2 p.m.; Parsha Inspiration, 4:30 p.m. FRIDAY: Deepening Prayer, 7:15 a.m.; Laws of Shabbos, 7:30 a.m.; JYE BI Tefillah with Faige, 10 a.m.; Musical Kabbalat Shabbat with DJ JJ, 7 p.m. Please visit orthodoxomaha.org for additional information and Zoom service links.
CHABAD HOUSE Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Mendel Katzman. Due to Coronavirus, all services and classes have moved online. For schedules and more information or to request help, please visit www.ochabad.org or call the office at 402.330.1800
B’NAI JESHURUN Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Teri Appleby. The Temple office is on reduced hours until further notice and all services and activities are being offered via livestream or teleconferencing. Please call 402.435.8004 or email office@southstreettemple.org for further information or to make an appointment for a visit, if necessary. You may also email Rabbi Appleby at rabbi@ southstreettemple.org or Board president Nicholette Seigfreid at president@southstreettemple.org. South Street Temple’s events can be found at https://south streettemple.org/calendar/. FRIDAY: Erev Shabbat Service, 6:30 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:13 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbat Morning Service, 9:30 a.m.; Torah Study, 10:45 a.m.; Havdalah, 9:44 p.m. SUNDAY: Tefillah Time with Rabbi Appleby and Nancy Coren for all students, 10-10:30 a.m.; 1st and 2nd grade, 10:30-11 a.m.; 6th and 7th grade, Hebrew with Ms. Ilyana, and Gesher, 10:30-11:30 a.m.; Gan Simcha, 11:30 a.m.noon; 4th and 5th grade, Hebrew with Ms. Nava, 6-7 p.m. TUESDAY: Tea Time with the Rabbi, noon; Intro to Judaism Class, 6:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY: 6th and 7th grade with Abby Coren, 56 p.m. As you start to make summer plans, consider sending your child to LJCS CAMP ISRAEL! July 20-31 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Tifereth Israel Synagogue. Kosher snack and lunch included. Tuition is July 20-24 - $75 per camper and July 27-31- $75 per camper. This program is open to children ages 5-14. We require ALL campers to be registered through the LJCS, therefore we cannot accept drop-in guests. Please contact Andrea at 402.217.2631 if you are interested in enrolling your student no later than July 1.
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE All services canceled until further notice.
ROSE BLUMKIN JEWISH HOME
The Rose Blumkin Jewish Home is currently closed to visitors.
TEMPLE ISRAEL
Virtual services conducted by Rabbi Brian Stoller. DAILY VIRTUAL MINYAN: Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. FRIDAY: Tot Shabbat; TBD; Shabbat Evening Service, 6 p.m. SATURDAY: Torah Study, 9:15 a.m. SUNDAY: Youth Learning Programs for Grades PreK6, 10 a.m. Visit ParentSquare for link information. WEDNESDAY: Mindfulness Meditation with Margot Anderson, 9 a.m.; Jewish Law & the Quest for Meaning with Rabbi Stoller, noon; The Complexity of Modern Israel: An Honest Look at Politics, History & Life in the Jewish State, 6:30-7:30 p.m.; Hello, Is There Anybody Out There?: God, Prayer and Spirituality in the 21st Century, 7:30-8:30 p.m. THURSDAY: The Israel Forum, 10 a.m.; Virtual Café with Cantor Alexander, 1 p.m. Please visit templeisraelomaha.com for additional information and Zoom service links.
TIFERETH ISRAEL
Virtual services conducted by Nancy Coren. FRIDAY: Evening Kabbalat Shabbat, 6:30-7 p.m.; Candlelighting, 8:13 p.m. SATURDAY: Shabbat morning Service, 10 a.m.; Havdalah (72 min.); Candlelighting, 9:14 p.m. SUNDAY: Tefillah with Rabbi Appleby and Nancy Coren for all students, 10-10:30 a.m.; 1st and 2nd grade, 10:3011 a.m.; 6th and 7th grade, Hebrew with Ms. Ilyana, and Gesher, 10:30-11:30 a.m.; Gan Simcha, 11:30 a.m.-noon; Resilience - Nurturing Our Ability to Bounce Back: A zoom workshop facilitated by Cathy Kushner, 1:30-2:30 p.m.; 4th and 5th grade, Hebrew with Ms. Nava, 6-7 p.m. WEDNESDAY: 6th and 7th grade with Abby Coren, 56 p.m. SUNDAY: Family Challah Bake, 10:30 a.m. As you start to make summer plans, consider sending your child to LJCS CAMP ISRAEL! July 20-31 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Tifereth Israel Synagogue. Kosher snack and lunch included. Tuition is July 20-24 - $75 per camper and July 27-31- $75 per camper. This program is open to children ages 5-14. We require ALL campers to be registered through the LJCS, therefore we cannot accept drop-in guests. Please contact Andrea at 402.217.2631 if you are interested in enrolling your student no later than July 1. Please visit tiferethisraellincoln.org for additional information and Zoom service links.
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Israel eases coronavirus rules JERUSALEM | JTA Sabas and savtas can visit the grandkids and Aroma can start brewing anew. In a nationally televised address Monday, May 4, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a further relaxation of coronavirus restrictions in Israel. The new rules permit visits by first-degree relatives – without hugs — and cancel the restriction on movement beyond the immediate vicinity of one’s home. This means that grandchildren and their grandparents to get together for the first time in weeks. Malls, markets and gyms can open beginning May 7, and gatherings of up to 20 people may be held in open spaces, though with masks and the appropriate social distancing. By May 17, outdoor weddings can have 50 guests. Kindergartens, preschools and day care centers will open on May 10. Schoolchildren in grades 1-3 and 11-12 began returning to their classrooms on May 3. The government plans to lift all restrictions on gatherings by the middle of June, which will allow the opening of sports arenas, theaters, hotels and restaurants. Netanyahu said the relaxation of the restrictions will be reassessed if there are 100 new coronavirus cases a day, a doubling of cases within 10 days or at least 250 serious cases in hospitals.
The empty Carmel market in Tel Aviv on March 23, 2020, following the government’s orders to keep all bars, restaurants, malls, and markets closed in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Credit: Tomer Neuberg/Flash90
Israel has seen 16,246 coronavirus cases and 235 deaths. Some 10,064 COVID-19 patients have recovered. Several hospitals have been able to close their coronavirus units in recent days. Meanwhile in the U.S., Holocaust imagery and rhetoric continue to be evident at protests against
stay-at-home orders in state capitols. Signs reading “Heil, Pritzker” and “Arbeit Mach Frei JB,” were seen Friday afternoon at a protest against stay-at-home orders in Springfield, Illinois. “JB” referred to the Jewish governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker.
Life cycles IN MEMORIAM
ROSE MEYERSON KAUFMAN ROSENBERG Rose Meyerson Kaufman Rosenberg passed away on April 28, 2020 at age of 97. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Bernard Kaufman, her second husband, Jacob Rosenberg, her beloved children, Larry Kaufman and Ellen Sue Kaufman, and her brother, Meyer Meyerson. She is survived by her nephew and nieces, Robert and Kimber Meyerson, Judith and Ray Smith, and Janice and Ray Meyerson. She will be missed by her family, by her many friends, and by the staff at the Rose Blumkin Home, as well as by her Mahjongg group.
MADELINE KRIPKE Madeline Kripke of Greenwich Village, New York passed away on April 25 at age 76 due to complications from COVID-19.
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She was preceded in death by her parents, Rabbi Meyer S. Kripke and Dorothy Kripke and sister Netta Kripke. She is survived by her brother, Saul Kripke. Madeline graduated with a bachelor's in English from Barnard College. After graduating from college, Kripke held several jobs, including as a welfare case worker and a teacher. She eventually became an editor and a publisher, doing copyediting and proofreading. She also worked at several bookstores, eventually becoming a book dealer. Kripke acquired a collection of approximately 20,000 dictionaries in her two-bedroom apartment. She was a member of the Dictionary Society of North America and received their Richard W. Bailey Award for Distinguished Service to Lexicography and Lexicology in 2017. Memorials may be made to an organization of your choice.
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JCC update MARK MARTIN JCC Executive Director May is here and we are diligently working on a safe reopen plan. We are awaiting formal state, local, and Center for Disease Control guidelines to help us finalize those plans. Watch for email updates and surveys from us over the next few weeks as we gather more information to move ahead. We can’t wait to safely welcome you back! As our campus remains closed, we continue to provide a steady stream of live and ondemand content via the Virtual J . If you haven’t checked it out yet, please do so! All of our department directors, along with their staff, are working hard to bring online resources to our members. If there is something you’d like to see featured, please let us know! During the campus closure, staff may not be in their offices or at their desk to receive your call or voicemail. The best way to get in touch with our staff during this time is via email. Staff information can be found on our website. Membership or business representatives can be reached by emailing jcc memembership@jccomaha.org. Registration • At this time only Summer Camp and Summer Swim & Dive Team registration is open. • Camp registration can be done online or by emailing jberkey@jccomaha.org. • If any camp is cancelled and not able to be rescheduled re-
The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020 | C7
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C8 | The Jewish Press | May 8, 2020
News LOC AL | N AT I O N A L | WO R L D
Europe on $5.00 a day Continued from C5 Later Montenegro and Kosovo became independent countries too. But we were there in 1966, during Tito’s “independent Communist” phase. We didn’t have a reservation in Belgrade and the places we contacted didn’t have any rooms. A local man took pity on us: “I think I have friends that will rent you a room.” He called them, and pretty soon a middle-aged couple picked us up at the station. “We have room because our kids are grown and gone,” they explained as they drove us. Their home was small but comfortable, although it had only one wooden stool in the one bathroom (but it was inside!). ISTANBUL AND ATHENS We re-boarded the Orient Express toward Istanbul. Most of our train-mates were heading home, including the members of the Turkish National Bike Riding Team. We shared food and beverages. We learned some Turkish. We showed them how to shuffle playing cards using a “bridge”. They showed us some Turkish games. Only later did I learn that the captain of the team had made Fran an honorary member of the team with a pin, propositioned her, and wanted her to come back to Ankara with him. She said “No” (although I think she was tempted). In the next car were over 20 young people from Communist Cuba. They were mostly singers and musicians, heading for Sofia, Bulgaria, to give performances and perfect their art. We talked with a couple of them, including an opera soprano whose goal was to sing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. But a strange thing happened at the Yugoslav-Bulgaria frontier border: all the Cubans were forced to get off the train. Apparently, their tickets were routed through Romania, and even though all were Socialist countries, they needed about $1.00US per person to stay on the train. We offered the $20 to them, but their leader refused. He was a Communist hard liner who had been a manager for Sears in Havana, and it was beneath his dignity to accept help from USA people. So we just left all 20 Cubans standing on the tracks with their luggage at
the border crossing. Hopefully, they made it to Sofia eventually. Reaching Istanbul, we headed for our pension. But it looked a lot more decrepit and bug-infested than the others we had been staying at. Fran got physically sick just looking at it, so we went to the deluxe Divan Otel. The manager of the first place got even: we had told our family to write to us there, and when we went to pick up our mail, the proprietor demanded $5 to hand over
Malmo Credit: Leomn Petrosyan. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
the mail. We paid it, even though that was two nights’ lodging. Istanbul is another top place for tourists: Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Hagha Sofia, Grand Bazaar, Suleymaniye Mosque, etc. We took the ferry across the Bosphorus so we could walk around a neighborhood in Asia. Istanbul is the only major city in two continents, and now, counting Tangier in Africa, our journey had been to three continents. We flew from Istanbul to Athens, Greece, and found our economical hotel included a great view of the Acropolis. After going around Athens for a couple of days, we stopped in a tour agency that had a poster advertising four days around Greece for $39! It was true, and included some breakfasts and
lunches. It was only $49 to stay at deluxe hotels. We declined, but since we were the only couple staying at the cheap hotels, the tour leader decided to put us at the better hotels with everybody else. Fran had not been feeling well in Istanbul or Greece. We had been on the journey for 3 ½ months. The plan was to fly from Athens to Rome, stay a week, and then fly TWA home. Fran noticed that our TWA plane, after stopping in Rome, continued onto New York. The TWA agent in Athens must have said “Crazy Americans” under his breath when we asked if we could just stay on the plane to NYC. He kept his aplomb, changed our tickets and our baggage receipts. We flew across the Atlantic, and so ended our long but rewarding trip. EPILOGUE It turned out that the reason Fran was feeling sick was that she was pregnant. Remember the overnight on the train into Russia? That’s probably when it happened, and our son, Kevin, was born in May, 1967. I was reclassified “head of family” and didn’t have to go to Vietnam. Years later, we went to visit some of our Russian co-tourists. We saw Mrs. Cribbes in Edinburgh (her husband, George, had passed away), as did our son Kevin when he was on a college rugby trip. Betty Schmidt died too, but we went to see Dr. Schmidt at his nursing home in California. He still couldn’t hear, but he still beat me in chess. Our friend Andy, who ran the bar in Tangier, became a history professor at the University of Puerto Rico. Six years later we were supposed to go with a group to London. It was canceled due to a coal strike in England. We had vacations and baby sitters lined up, contacted Andy, who suggested we go to Haiti, so naturally we did. We’ve been traveling to strange places ever since, with only about 15 of the 196 nations to go. For accounts of 20 of our journeys to Haiti, North Korea, Nauru, and the Congo, you’ll have to go to our blog: franandrichstravels.com. Bye for now.
Father’s Day
Publishing date | 06.12.20
Space reservation | 06.03.20
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