The Jewish Week 5-8-2020

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HUC Head Bracing for a Year Without Precedent

College and Covid: Jewish Students Adapting

Reading in a Time of Coronavirus

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Ties Between Pols, Charedim Tested in Coronavirus Crisis Some observers see a fraying relationship in wake of criticism by de Blasio and Cuomo. Steve Lipman Staff Writer

T A packed house at Central Synagogue on the East Side. The sanctuary will likely not look like this for the High Holidays. CENTR ALSYNAGOGU E.ORG

Synagogues Plan for a New Year Like No Other

Covid-19 is forcing hard choices for the High Holy Days, from Zoom services to limited seating. The Coronavirus Crisis

Stewart Ain Staff Writer

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n the holiest days of the Jewish calendar, in this year of the plague, there’s likely to be a gaping spiritual hole in the worship experience, one that no Zoom screen will be able to fill. Synagogues across the country have begun forming committees to

develop options for September’s High Holy Day services that are in compliance with state and local directives and the suggestions of medical advisory panels. Some are considering reopening with limited attendance. Others are already assuming that people will worship at home and, depending on the

Editorial Arts Guide Sabbath

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hey are a reliable — no, ultrareliable — voting bloc, and therefore a coveted political prize for governors, mayors and City Council members. And Mayor Bill de Blasio, since his days as Mayor de Blasio meeting in December with Jewish a councilman represent- community leaders in Williamsburg in the wake of ing Orthodox precincts the attack in Jersey City at a kosher market. in Brooklyn, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo have tended the rela- straining the carefully cultivated ties tionship with charedi Jews in Borough that have taken years to establish. Park and Williamsburg with great care. “The relationship is frayed, it’s In the transactional nature of poli- been tested,” said Ester Fuchs, profestics, both sides of the equation — pow- sor of International and Public Affairs erful politicians and powerful charedi and Political Science and director of rabbis representing tens of thousands the Urban and Social Policy Program of votes — have benefitted. at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. But, she was quick to add, the situation is not a The Mayor and full-on “rift,” and is unlikely to porthe Orthodox: tend a long-term deterioration in ties Get Me Rewrite. Page 17 between the mayor’s and governor’s offices and the chasidic community. Weaponizing the “Friends disagree with each other” Coronavirus without ending a friendship, said Kalto Vilify Charedim. man Yeger, who represents Borough Page 18 Park and part of nearby Flatbush in But in the wake of the coronavirus the City Council. “Friends have to be outbreak, which has taken a huge toll honest with each other.” on the charedi neighborhoods of BorIn the last month, both the mayor ough Park and Williamsburg, that rela- and the governor took the chasidic tionship is being severely tested. Harsh community to task for flouting social condemnations by both Cuomo and de distancing recommendations. FollowBlasio of the small minority of charedi ing a crowded funeral of a chasidic Jews who are flouting social distanc- rabbi in Williamsburg a month ago, ing rules have driven a wedge, though continued on page 12 perhaps a narrow one, between friends,


TH E N EW YO R K

2 The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

Jewish Week

VOL. 232 NO. 45, May 8, 2020

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A Paris Chef’s Gourmet Meals for Covid Docs

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fter several grueling months caring for coronavirus patients in Paris, kosher-keeping Jewish doctors and nurses are finally getting the gourmet baguettes they deserve — stuffed amply with smoked salmon, watermelon radish, red onions and caper dill mayonnaise. They’re all courtesy of Ellie Balouka, a 33-yearold Ohio-born chef whose colorful salads, creative stuffed baguettes and poke bowls have become the rave among Jewishly observant Parisians. Balouka, who moved to Paris about 14 years ago, has been working to open her own kosher restaurant in the Opera neighborhood of the French capital, where she lives with her husband and kids. But she recently switched gears after learning that observant Jewish doctors and nurses treating coronavirus patients were going empty-handed while their colleagues enjoyed free food from local non-kosher restaurants. “They say, ‘We get deliveries every day, but we can’t eat a single thing,’” said Balouka. She decided to change that. Since Passover, Balouka has cooked and delivered some 60 meals to medical workers at hospitals in and around Paris. She has raised approximately 1,500 euros, or $1,625, and has contributed an additional 500 euros, or $541, of her own money to cover the cost of the meals and delivery. “The meals are free for them so they can go to work and say ‘Today I don’t have to prepare my lunch. I don’t have to even think. I know somebody is going to bring me a meal,’” she said.

Working the phones at an Odessa call center. COU RTESY OF J DC

France has been on lockdown since mid-March and is among the countries Ellie Balouka makes poke in Europe that have bowls and stuffed babeen hardest hit by guettes for Jewish doctors the coronavirus, with and nurses. more than 22,000 P HOTOS COU RTESY OF BALOU K A VIA JTA deaths. Hospitals there have been scrambling to find enough ventilators and beds for Covid-19 patients. Balouka, who is Chabad, delivers the meals herself, driving as far as 45 minutes outside Paris to get the food to doctors and nurses. For the hospital deliveries, she has been focusing on meals that are “simple and delicious” and don’t require reheating. She has made smoked salmon baguettes and other breads featuring an array of grilled vegetables — peppers, zucchini, portobello mushrooms and eggplant — with goat cheese and pesto. She also has brought in salmon and rice poke bowls topped with avocado edamame, mango and sweet potatoes. Balouka says the doctors and nurses who receive her food have been “shocked” by the gesture and “really impressed.” “For me, it’s so normal to help out,” she said. “It’s not something that I think is amazing. I think it’s something that needs to be done.” Jennifer Dolsten/JTA

Locked Down? Open Up to These Portrayals of Charedi Orthodox

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f the Netflix series “Unorthodox” has whetted your appetite for portrayals of the charedi Orthodox world on TV and film, you might consider the body of work of Yehonatan Indursky, the creator of “Shtisel” and several “Shtisel” co-writer Yehonatan Indursky in other movies, shows and his Tel Aviv apartment. documentaries. COU RTESY SAM SP I EGEL “Ponevezh Time”: The 2014 documentary depicts the spartan creed of study that prevails at the Ponevezh Yeshiva in Bnei Brak. The spines of the volumes of Talmud and commentary are cracked and taped many times over. The boys’ grayish-white shirts balloon over their thin bodies. Many of them sleep in their clothes. Elderly teachers huddle close to electric heaters that provide only a single coil of warmth. As my wife put it, “This doesn’t look anything like Harvard.” (Available in most coun-

Checking in on the Elderly in the Former FSU

tries on Amazon Prime and Google Play.) “The Cantor and the Sea”: The 2015 short film is about an unmarried, middle-aged cantor who arrives, along with his mother, at a seaside community to lead the High Holiday prayers. The movie carries the wisp of love, more like a poem than a novel. (YouTube) “Shtisel”: It’s the great cinematic novel of the charedi world. The characters sin and stray in different ways, but they are deeply rooted in their world and a pleasure to watch there. (Netflix) “Autonomies”: The six-part, 2018 series imagines a future in which a revolt over a draft law leads to a separation between the state of Tel Aviv and the religious autonomous region of Jerusalem. The cold peace between the two sides is ruptured when the daughter of the chief rabbi — brilliantly played by Shuli Rand, the star of “Ushpizin,” another classic portrayal of the charedi world — learns that the child she thought she lost at birth was actually given, in the hospital, to a secular couple in Tel Aviv. (Amazon Prime) Mitch Ginsburg/Times of Israel

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ince the start of the coronavirus outbreak, UJA-Federation of New York has allocated tens of millions of dollars to help Jewish residents and Jewish organizations in New York. Its long reach includes the poor and increasingly isolated Jews of the former Soviet Union. With new coronavirus hotspots emerging in Russia and the number of confirmed cases there at 145,000, UJA-Federation, with a grant of $75,000, is helping to expand a Joint Distribution Committee-sponsored network of call-in centers that coordinate the needs of thousands of elderly Russians. “We are working in a very different environment,” Michal Frank, the Joint’s Israel-based regional director for the former Soviet Union, told The Jewish Week in an interview. “There is much more of a need, and a different need. They are dependent on us, more so now. Many are extremely impoverished. “We’ve significantly expanded remote contact and phone calls … to combat social isolation,” Frank continued. The effort is part of the Joint’s Hesed centers network. “Our first concern is to ensure continuity of care.” The calls, she said, are also meant to “monitor cognitive well-being.” Frank said UJA-Federation has also awarded $135,000 to a Hesed project that is seeking alternative technology to help beat back loneliness and isolation for the more than 80,000 poor Jews in the FSU who get relief through the welfare centers. The JDC has also just opened a new phase in its Covid-19 FSU efforts by partnering with TechForGood, an Israel-based organization, to use technology to manage loneliness and social distancing among seniors in the former Soviet republics. She added that new technology is necessary because of the virus-related shutdown of the long-running “Warm House” initiative, in which seniors living alone could gather for worship and social events in members’ homes. While socially isolated, seniors throughout the former Soviet Union served by the Joint are overall in good physical health, she said. Close to half of these seniors are Holocaust survivors whose care is made possible through support from the Claims Conference, a JDC partner. “Only a few clients” have been diagnosed with Covid-19, Frank said. “We pray it will stay that way.” Steve Lipman

3 The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

IN THE BEGINNING


The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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IN THE BEGINNING

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Freighted decisions for a family that includes an ER doctor. Deborah A. Friedman Special to The Jewish Week

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inneapolis — The world that we are living in now seems foreign from the one we were living in just a couple of months ago. We have had to answer unCoronavirus answerable Diary q u e s t i o n s and come face to face with our own mortality. For some, facing mortality is a new phenomenon. For me and other cancer survivors — we have had years of practice.

sation, bruise and fever filled me with fears of relapse. My prior feelings of immortality were gone. I have learned to push uncertainties aside through my new life mantras: 1. Live every day as if it is your last. 2. Don’t let fear interfere. As a cancer survivor you need both. You want to seize every moment, but in order to do that you cannot let yourself get paralyzed by fear. Just a few months after finishing chemotherapy, I began medical school in Israel. I wanted to become a doctor, and I wanted to travel the world. I did not let my fear of relapsing get in the way of

Visionary New York real estate developer Curtis Katz passed away peacefully in his sleep on April 19, 2020 at his home in Boca Raton, Florida. He was 93. A giant of a man, Curtis leaves a void so large it can never be filled. Born in the Bronx to immigrants Erna and Adolph Katz on September 11, 1926, Curtis was always encouraged to follow his dreams. After graduating from Christopher Columbus High School, Curtis then went on to enter college at the age of 16 receiving his undergraduate degree at City College in 1948. After college, Curtis earned his law degree from New York Law School in 1951. He served his country with distinction in World War II, as a military policeman, from September of 1944 until 1946 in post-war Japan. A pioneer of New York City real estate, Curtis spent seven decades in the industry, founding a real estate development and management company and becoming a trailblazer in the cooperative and condominium businesses. A passionate advocate of Israel, Curtis was also fluent in seven languages and a voracious reader. Curtis was truly a philanthropist, supporting numerous charities, including many based in Israel. Curtis was a Zionist who had a great love for the land of Israel and supported it in every way possible. Curtis is survived by two sons, Adam and Jason, daughters-in-law Diane and Judy, as well as eight grandchildren: David, Elana, Samuel, Noah, Benjamin, Jordan, Jacob and Joel. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given to FACES, Finding a Cure for Epilepsy and Seizures, at NYU Langone Comprehensive Epilepsy Center.

Do you own assets in Israel? • Have you inherited assets in Israel, such as real estate, bank accounts or securities? • Are you a beneficiary of a Will or Estate that includes assets in Israel? The author with her family. “We had long discussions about whether we should separate to keep me and our two young boys safer.”

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When I was diagnosed with leukemia, I was 18 and previously in perfect health. I had never thought about dying, I thought I was immortal. After 2.5 years of chemotherapy, I was lucky enough to join the ranks of many other cancer patients — I was a survivor. As a survivor, my life did not revert back to life before cancer. A new life began. Every odd senDeborah A. Friedman is a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician practicing in Minneapolis.

living my life adventures. In medical school, I met and fell in love with my husband. He is now an ER doctor on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic. I am currently seeing patients in an outpatient clinic, a lower risk setting. We had long discussions about whether we should separate to keep me and our two young boys safer. This was not an easy decision, but we decided to stay together. We decided that we want to spend every moment we have

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The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

Confronting This Pandemic as a Cancer Survivor


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The Jewish Week

NEWS In New Post, Facing Pandemic’s Challenges HUC-JIR President Andrew Rehfeld is counting on his academic and executive experience to reshape Reform movement’s four campuses.

is new learning management systems and training teachers to be effective in their online classes. Rehfeld’s varied professional backndrew Rehfeld has an impresground of scholar, Jewish communal leader and executive administrator may sive history of adjusting to new provide just the right components to meet challenges. A professor of political science at Washthe current crisis. ington University in St. Louis for almost 20 Unlike the previous nine presidents years, he switched careers and served as of HUC-JIR, who go back to 1875, Reprofessional head hfeld is not a rabbi. He says it took three New York of the St. Louis weeks for the HUC-JIR’s presidential Andrew Rehfeld with Year-In-Israel students at Jerusalem Campus. H UC.EDU Jewish Federation search committee to convince him to from 2012 until last fallout of the pandemic well into the future. take the position. year, when he became the president of Hebrew Union “We’re assessing the impact for each of our students “I was excited, humbled and amazed at the opporCollege-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR). He is and campuses,” Rehfeld explained calmly during a recent tunity,” he recalled, “but I didn’t see the plausibility of a the first layman to lead the movement’s flagship center of Zoom interview from his home in Manhattan. non-rabbi in this position. He created a crisis management team of 32 on higher education, training rabbis, cantors, educators and Gradually, he came around. March 2, with heavy faculty involvement and stucommunal workers in the U.S. and Israel. Joy Greenberg, who chaired the 23-member presiIt would seem that nothing could have prepared Re- dent input “to help get through Passover.” Now a dential search committee, described Rehfeld as “uniquely hfeld, 54, for dealing with the impact of the coronavirus task force has been formed to prepare for the next qualified intellectually, spiritually and professionally” to in his first year on the job. He has been forced to cancel academic year and the worst-case scenario of a year lead the institution in its “mission to transform the Jewish in-person classes at the seminary’s four campuses — of distance learning, if necessary. community and the broader world.” “We also need to be prepared for “an on-again, offNew York, Cincinnati, Los Angeles and Jerusalem — When his appointment was announced last year, Reand prepare for the human, educational and economic again year if the quarantine comes back.” The task force continued on page 10

Gary Rosenblatt Editor at Large

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‘Excruciating Situation’ for Jewish Women on Biden In wake of sexual assault claim, some loyal Democrats wonder whether presumptive nominee deserves their support.

Ron Kampeas JTA

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ashington — April 27 was supposed to have been a good news day for Joe Biden: The venerable New York Rep. Nita Lowey convened hundreds of women on a phone call to launch a new group, Jewish Women for Joe. The timing, though, was not auspicious. The same day, Business Insider published the first onthe-record corroboration of a National sexual assault claim leveled in March by Tara Reade, an aide to Biden in 1992-93. That landed like a bombshell for the feminists and others who hope to oust President Donald Trump in November. “This is the most persuasive corroborating evidence that has come out so far,” Michelle Goldberg, a liberal opinion columnist for The New York Times, said on Twitter. “What a nightmare.” Two weeks ago, Goldberg concluded a column about Reade by saying that she had “doubt about Biden and doubt about the charges against him.”

Joe Biden arrives at a media event in Wilmington, Del., in March. SAU L LOEB/AF P VIA GET T Y I MAGES

[In an MSNBC interview last Friday, Biden vigorously denied the allegation, saying, “No, it is not true. I’m saying unequivocally it never, never happened.” The interview on “Morning Joe” and a post on Medium were his first public comments on Reade’s claim.] Jewish feminists, including those who for years have been active in exposing sexual impropriety in the Jewish organizational context, were bowled over by the revelation, too. In one private Facebook chat launched to discuss a forthcoming book on Jewish thinking that includes writings by confessed predators, the Biden allegations superseded everything on Monday.

Avigayil Halpern, a rabbinical student in New York, posed the question on Twitter: “I’m hoping that the newly launched @JewishWomen4Joe will react swiftly to these increasingly compelling allegations of sexual assault.” Julie Schonfeld, the Conservative rabbi who was one of the founders of the grassroots Jewish Women for Joe, said she was waiting out the latest Biden allegations to see if they had legs. “We definitely feel that women must be taken seriously and listened to,” Rabbi Schonfeld, formerly CEO of her movement’s Rabbinical Assembly umbrella group, said in an interview. But she added that allegations “have to be investigated,” and “at the moment the means of investigation happens to be through the media.” “We are following the credible media investigation and the analyses of people who are investigative journalists. [Reade’s] story as we currently understand it has a lot of problems,” she said. Rabbi Schonfeld mentioned a column by Ruth Marcus, a Jewish Washington Post opinion writer who wrote a book about the sexual assault allegations in 2018 against then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. “My gut says that what Reade alleges did not hap-

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7 The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

THERE FOR THOSE WHO NEED US MOST. We were built for these times. We’ve been caring for our community for more than 100 years. And thanks to your support, we’re positioned to respond rapidly and effectively to meet the vast needs of all who are counting on us. We’re on the front lines of the Covid-19 crisis, delivering meals for seniors. Stocking food pantries for growing numbers of hungry people. Offering emergency aid. Providing protective gear. Giving struggling families the cash assistance they need. Supporting cornerstone institutions that are the heart and soul of Jewish life. And ensuring dignified Jewish burials. Your help is needed now more than ever to ensure the vitality of our community. With your support, we will get through this together. If you need help, you can find resources at ujafedny.org.coronavirus/resources. Donate now. ujafedny.org


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Coronavirus Diary continued from page 5

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together. Every ER doctor and their spouse have had to have these discussions; there is no right answer. Some have family members who are high risk or immunocompromised and the choice has not been easy. Some are living in RVs, some in hotels, and some like us have decided to stick together. I have to confess I had another idea, at first. I asked him, half-seriously, if we could run away for six months or so. When this all first started, I was consumed by fears of losing him. If he had agreed, maybe we would be social distancing on a tropical island right now and drinking out of coconuts. But, alas, he did not agree. He said, “I didn’t go to medical school to run away when people need me the most.” He is a true hero. I have come to terms with my fears, and I no longer try to hide from reality — I accept it. We have set up a thorough decontamination process for my husband. He changes his clothes at work and jumps right in to the shower when he gets home. Thankfully, his work has been good to him and his colleagues. They have the PPE they need. Fortunately, it is not beyond hospital capacity yet in Minneapolis. As a cancer survivor and physician, I know how fleeting life is. I also know how precious it is. I have never hugged my husband and kids as tightly. I am enjoying this extra time with them now that schools are closed, soaking up every moment. Walking, running, biking and playing outside with the kids makes every day better. It is not easy, but I am fully aware of how lucky and blessed we are compared to others in this uncertain time. It has been hard not seeing friends and family, and having the kids at home all day every day. But in some ways knowing that we are all going through this together, makes it easier. All over the world, people are making choices to help their neighbors and those on the front line. I am lucky that I am technically in a low risk category. For those like me who are healthy and under 40 the mortality rate of Covid-19 is said to be “only” 0.2 percent. Unfortunately, statistics are only comforting to those who have not been a statistic. My chances of getting childhood leukemia were 0.005 percent. Even though I am lucky to be healthy now, I do not take this for granted. A global overall mortality rate of 3-4 percent could mean millions of lives lost. Watching the entire world work together to slow the spread of this dis-

“I didn’t go to medical school to run away when people need me the most,” the author’s husband, an emergency room doctor, told her. ease is awe-inspiring. This experience has reinforced my faith in humanity. Everyone is helping, and not just those on the front lines in hospitals. Covid-19 has made us all heroes. Staying home means saving lives. Protecting the elderly and vulnerable is a pillar of my Jewish faith. As well as the concept that if you save one life, you save a world. My husband in the ER does this every day. For those of us who are privileged enough to stay home, we are saving precious lives by binging on Netflix on our couches. The world will open back up once again. In the meantime, I continue to live my two post-cancer mantras: I try to live life to the fullest and not get paralyzed by my fears. I am scared for my family and friends, I am scared for those most vulnerable, and I am scared for those who are struggling. But I try to push my fears aside and live this precious life day by day. When this pandemic ultimately comes to an end, life will begin again. However, we should not expect the world will revert back to what it once was. There will be a new normal. While I cannot predict what that new normal will be, I do know that our perspective will change. We may be more present in our own lives after months of yearning for the return of our mundane daily routines. As we continue to be aware of our own mortality, our appreciation for little things will be heightened. Every day and every life will no longer be taken for granted — we will all be survivors. ■


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News continued from page 6 hfeld said he hoped to combine “a return to an academic footing, but in a position of leadership, management, fundraising, strategic planning and public messaging.” Now, as all those skills are being employed, Rehfeld notes that disruption can also result in “great innovation.” The impact of the coronavirus crisis has underscored some of the themes he emphasized in his inaugural address at his installation as president last fall. It was during that moving speech that he acknowledged the poignancy of his succeeding Rabbi Aaron Panken, who was killed when the small plane he was piloting crashed seven months earlier. “I take on a presidency that no one wished needed to be filled, under circumstances we pray we may never face again,” Rehfeld said, praising Rabbi Panken as “a gifted and beloved teacher.” Setting forth his own views, Rehfeld asserted that the Reform movement faces “a crisis of identity and authenticity.” By that, as he explained in his inaugural address, he meant Reform Jews too often define themselves by the things they don’t do, or only by their commitment to inclusion and social justice. He called for inspiring more people “to live committed, engaged lives as religiously, progressive Jews,” and strengthening “the ideological foundations of the Reform Jewish public sphere” that he worried “are not felt strongly enough in the pews to sustain us in the 21st century.” One of those foundations, he said, is “the primacy of reason ... understanding the world, including religious life, through reason, evidence and science.” He believes

that “reason and rationality must be the primary way to understand our world and God’s place in it.” Over the course of several interviews, Rehfeld observed that “a greater expectation and respect for science” was one of the lessons learned from the current pandemic. He also noted the need for a restructuring of America’s safety net, based on a policy of public welfare and caring for others. A Systems Thinker

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n his first months in his new post, Rehfeld fulfilled his pledge to spend a month residing at each of HUC-JIR’s four campuses, assessing the culture of each — seeing what practices could be shared — and getting to know faculty and students. Bruce Phillips, a professor of sociology at HUC-JIR’s Los Angeles campus, was impressed with how Rehfeld “asked different kinds of questions from a management perspective. He was looking at what resources make our campus unique and which ones can be shared with the other campuses. He’s a systems thinker.” For example, though the seminary’s first-year-inIsrael program was created more than five decades ago to help immerse students in the Hebrew language, Phillips said Rehfeld came to realize that “Israel is an important place where Reform Judaism will grow, and he said we should make nurturing Reform Judaism there core to our mission.” Sarah Berman, who is in her fifth year in the rabbinic program at the New York campus, has been deeply impressed by Rehfeld’s personal warmth — she was one of several people interviewed who mentioned his gift for remembering people’s names — and his ability to inspire by sharing his vision.

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Rehfeld spoke at a retreat Berman chaired last summer, and she said “it was instructive to hear him in an open and honest way talk about” who and what has influenced him in his path. “He thinks differently from any other administrative leader,” she said, “in using the past to approach the future. And he was able to make people feel seen and heard in a really special way.” During the retreat, Rehfeld was asked some “hard questions” by students, Berman recalled, like why he feels qualified as a layman to lead HUC-JIR. “Without being defensive, he talked about where he saw his strengths and limitations.” As he did in our interviews, Rehfeld has noted in his talks that he has been deeply involved in the Reform movement since his childhood in Baltimore. He taught Hebrew school, was a member of a temple youth group, served as a youth director in the movement’s camps and later served on the board of the congregation he belonged to in Chicago. It all began, he said, with his first temple youth group retreat at Baltimore Hebrew Congregation in 1981, from which he came away “inspired by a caring community of peers who took … ideas seriously, engaged in meaningful ritual and song, and created the space to welcome an outsider among them.” He said it was the first time he felt “at home in my own tradition.” In seeking to promote “the ideas and the leadership that strengthen the Jewish Public Sphere — the institutions that form the canvas of Jewish communal life,” Rehfeld says that HUC-JIR must be flexible in “responding to the needs of the consumer without wavering in our mission.” That mission, he believes, is “to drive our ideas and help build a foundation of goodness, holiness, righteousness and justice for all who inhabit the earth.” ■


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Dear Friends, As we begin to see the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic receding, I’d like to acknowledge what our community has experienced these last two months, offer my gratitude for your support, and speak about what lies ahead. The physical and emotional impact of this disease has been simply staggering for the people and communities we are here to serve, and for the people who provide healthcare. We have all felt deeply the profound pain experienced by so many during this time. This virus has brought illness, fear, and grief with stunning speed and on an immense scale. Its isolating effects – including the inability to visit sick loved ones – have only added to the cumulative anguish. We have all worked tirelessly to save lives and comfort those in need of healing, but this virus has made those tasks uniquely hard. Patients, families, and medical professionals have all felt a sense of helplessness to which we are unaccustomed. Against this backdrop, I believe we have reasons to be hopeful about the future. The perseverance, selflessness, and generosity demonstrated by our community and our healthcare workers have offered us a shining light amidst the darkness. On behalf of Maimonides, I want to thank every member of the community for the tremendous outpouring of support. You have fed our staff, donated life-saving equipment, helped augment our workforce, and given us spiritual and moral support. It has all meant a great deal.

In turn, no words are adequate to express my thanks to all of the healthcare workers putting their lives on the line every day inside our hospital, in nursing homes, on ambulances, and in their neighbors’ homes. Your courage, sacrifice, and endurance are an inspiration. We are now making significant strides in the fight against COVID-19. Working together, we have shown that we can slow the spread of the disease. Working together, we have shown that we can marshal the resources to provide care for all who need it. As of this week, we have safely discharged over 1,000 COVID-19 patients who received treatment at Maimonides. And we are on the leading edge of scientific discovery, having provided experimental therapies to over 400 patients as we work to find increasingly effective treatments. With each passing day, we will continue to make progress against this disease. We know you are counting on our team at Maimonides and we are incredibly grateful for your continued support and partnership.

Sincerely,

Kenneth D. Gibbs President & CEO

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

Letter to the Community


The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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Pols and Charedim continued from page 1

Cuomo called on the “Jewish Orthodox community” to refrain from holding large gatherings, stating that the Police Department would “do what they need to do” to enforce social distancing regulations. “I made it clear … that these social distancing regulations are not just pleas, they are regulations that you can be fined for,” he said. And last week, in a more heated dustup, de Blasio singled out “the Jewish community” after another large chasidic funeral in Williamsburg drew a crowd of thousands into the street.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo, above, at a recent coronavirus briefing. Left, Mayor de Blasio at a community meeting in Borough Park. DE B L ASIO CR EDIT: M ICHAEL AP P LETON/MAYOR AL P HOTOGR AP HY OF F ICE CUOMO CR EDIT: M I KE GROLL/OF F ICE OF GOVER NOR AN DR EW M. CUOMO

In a trio of tweets, the mayor said he had instructed his police department to fine or even arrest social distancing violators. “My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed. I have instructed the NYPD to proceed immediately to summons or even arrest those who gather in large groups. This is about stopping this disease and saving lives. Period.” Accusing the mayor of fanning the flames of anti-Semitism, a wide range of Jewish organizations faulted de Blasio for making a reckless, intemperate declaration. The Jewish responses to de Blasio’s statement included accusations that the mayor engaged in “scapegoating” the entire Jewish community for the actions of a few. Among those criticizing de Blasio’s words were Rep. Jerry Nadler, members of the City Council, State Senate and State Assembly, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the World Jewish Congress, the Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt and the Bend the Arc human rights organization. The mayor’s tweets had managed to bring together usually disparate Jewish organizations and leaders, Fuchs noted. Some critics noted that de Blasio had not responded in similarly strident terms earlier when New Yorkers gathered in parks to watch military planes fly over the city in a show of support for city workers. Others pointed to the mayor’s own habit of walking in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, where crowds sometimes gather on sunny days in spite of social distancing guidelines. And former State Assembly member Dov Hikind said a computer study of “anti-Semitic activity on Twitter” after the mayor’s tweets indicated “astounding data that makes clear as day the mag-

nitude of damage caused to the Jewish people.” The charedi news site Voz Is Neis cited Hikind’s “data analyst Mordy Rubin,” who noted that as news of de Blasio’s remarks trended on Twitter, so did antiSemitic reactions. Over the years, Mayor de Blasio has cemented his ties with the chasidic community. He supported the community’s positions on metzitzah b’peh, a circumcision technique in which the mohel uses his mouth to suck blood from the baby’s wound, by rescinding a parental consent form mandated by the Bloomberg administration. He was accused of slow-walking a Department of Education investigation into substandard secular education at several dozen charedi yeshivas. And before issuing tough measures requiring measles vaccinations, he was accused of dragging his feet when measles diagnoses spiked among some charedi neighborhoods. “He has given them a wide berth to manage their own community,” Fuchs said. De Blasio himself spoke of those ties last week at a news conference in which he addressed his tweets. “I have a long, deep relationship with the Orthodox Jewish community, a lot of personal relationships, a lot of people I know and respect,” he said. “I have a lot of love for the community.” Critics like Hikind, who served as an outspoken advocate of Orthodox interests during nearly two decades in the State Assembly, suggest the romance has soured. Hikind points to the fact that de Blasio is not seeking re-election in suggesting the mayor may be less inclined to play to charedi interests. Term-limited, “he doesn’t need people’s votes anymore,” said Hikind. And, Hikind said, the actions of some charedi Jews in ignoring the mayor’s directives last week in order to fulfill their religious obligations can be seen as a sign that the generally progressive positions of de Blasio often conflict with Orthodox Jews’ conservative views. “He doesn’t represent their values,” said Hikind.

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“A very specific issue”

ut several politicians and representatives of Jewish organizations call the recent dust-ups a blip in otherwise harmonious relations between the charedi community and the mayor and governor. They say it is too early to state what direction the relationship will take after the Covid-19 pandemic ends. And political and Jewish leaders add that the flouting of the social distancing

rules was committed by only a small, unrepresentative number of young charedi Jews, many of whom do not have access to television news reports or the internet that had carried the social distancing warnings. “It’s not the leadership” of the chasidic community who flouted the social distancing regulations, said David Luchins, professor of political science at Touro College. “This was a very specific issue,” not a symbol of a larger estrangement, said an official in a prominent Jewish organization who asked not to be identified. In a sign of the delicate nature of the relationship, several Jewish leaders pointed to recent letters of support for de Blasio issued by both sides of the fractured Satmar community, including the Yetev Lev D’Satmar and its affiliated Central United Talmudic Academy. Both letters stressed the long and close relationship between de Blasio and the Satmar community and denounced the attacks on the mayor. “Politics are always shifting,” said sociologist Samuel Heilman, who has written extensively about charedi Jews. “The chasidic community has always learned how to adapt and let bygones be bygones when it comes to their needs. Same for politicians.” “They need each other,” Luchins said, calling de Blasio “the best mayor they [the charedi community] ever had.” The charedi community will need to maintain a close relationship with de Blasio, whose term will end in 1½ years, Fuchs said, adding that the mayor’s wife, Chirlane McCray, is likely to run for Brooklyn borough president. “He still needs the community.” And the chasidic community “needs all the political goodwill they can muster.” Fuchs called the tweets “a mistake … an isolated incident, not an indication that he no longer will be responsive to the community.” She pointed to three upcoming things to look for to judge how the mayoral-charedi relationship develops after the height of the Covid-19 crisis: the identity of people appointed to City Hall task forces; future access to the mayor; and the frequency of highly publicized meetings. Naftuli Moster, a Borough Park-born former chasid who has become an advocate of stronger secular studies in charedi schools, suggested that the mayor’s language, referring to the “Jewish community” instead of singling out chasidic Jews, reflected his still-strong support for — and in — chasidic circles. Moster called the mayor’s tweets “a continuation of that special relationship. It was very clear this wasn’t a Modern Orthodox or Reform funeral, but a chasidic one. But the mayor still couldn’t bring himself to criticize chasidic leaders who have failed again and again to compel their followers to keep the social distancing guidelines. “In fact,” Moster said, “just earlier that day he told a reporter that chasidic leaders have been very cooperative … So to remain consistent, he simply lashed out at the ‘Jewish community’ and ‘all communities’ as opposed to once and for all saying what we all know to be true: he’s let chasidic leaders do whatever they wanted even at the expense of children’s health, education, and safety.” ■


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We hope and pray that this letter finds you and your family well in these tumultuous times. The global health emergency has created not just a medical and financial crisis, but a spiritual crisis as well. The Jewish community, perhaps more than any time in our lives, has turned to our rebbeim for leadership, inspiration and guidance. With the door of our shuls and yeshivot sealed, the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and its thousands of graduates have stepped up to confront the challenges on both national and local levels. • All branches of the University have migrated to an online platform. Our talmidim are able to continue their studies uninterrupted, through Zoom-based chavrutot and shiurim, while continuing to receive personalized guidance from their rebbeim and mashgichim. With so many major yeshivot tragically shut down during this period, RIETS has continued— and even thrived—through the wonders of modern technology. The Yeshiva is always in session.

• Our Roshei Yeshiva, most notably Rav Hershel Schachter and Rav Mordechai Willig, shlit”a, have navigated the community’s halakhic challenges and questions serving as the halakhic poskim for a large segment of Klal Yisrael. • Faced with challenges accompanying congregants’ increased sense of isolation, anxiety and depression, RIETS rabbis have risen to the occasion by providing halakhic and emotional support via virtual shiva visits, counseling sessions, piskei halakha for unimaginable sheilot, video-streamed shiurim, derashot, semachot and more. As we continue our century-old policy of providing semikha tuition-free to your future rabbinic leaders, we depend upon philanthropic support to carry out our mission. With our annual dinner and triennial Chag Hasemikhah postponed indefinitely, we are announcing an urgent appeal for your support.

Your generosity will mean all the difference as we face the future together. Please donate at YU.edu/rietsCampaign

Rabbi Menachem Penner

Lance Hirt

The Max and Marion Grill Dean, RIETS

Chairman, RIETS Board of Trustees

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

Urgent Appeal


The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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College and Covid

A Solemn Senior Spring Celebrating Passover and searching or closure in the time of Covid-19. Amanda Gordon Special to The Jewish Week Why don’t we stop fooling ourselves? The game is over, over, over. No good times, no bad times, There’s no times at all, just The New York Times sitting on the windowsill, near the flowers.

‘O

vers” has looped endlessly in my head for the past few weeks. The Simon & Garfunkel song seems to match the mood of resignation that hangs over life in quarantine. I’m home on Long Island with family, and though I finished my courses, I planned to spend the last months of senior year back in Chicago Amanda Gordon is a senior at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill.

with my friends. I was looking forward to lazy days by the lake and nights downtown. We planned to drive to New Orleans for spring break — a bona fide adventure — but as the Covid-19 outbreak spread and the news grew grim, the road trip dream died. Months of anticipation fizzled out and the reality of quiet domesticity set in. But everyone is dealing with dashed plans and social isolation. Sure, I may feel wistful scrolling through old photos or looking at my calendar, but I have plenty to be grateful for. I have enough in the pantry to follow New York Times food writer Melissa Clark’s recipes and enough Lysol wipes to do the obligatory surface swipes. When I need to clear my head, I can take long walks outside or drive along the water. When I’m feeling silly, I can barge into my sister’s room and show her some TikToks. For the time being, everyone in the house is healthy. I feel incredibly lucky. The other day, I joined a couple of friends on a group Zoom to make cocktails with a mixologist. Rachel Hillman, the assistant director of Northwestern Hillel, organized the virtual event as a way for seniors to get together. It was definitely

Uniting the Student Diaspora

A Northw

bittersweet to toast one another with our citrusy liqueur concoctions over a video call, but it was nice to see everyone’s faces and learn something. Although I’m no longer following syllabi for school, I’m trying to keep my mind somewhat alert by puncturing long, idle hours with the occasional educational activity. The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research is offering free classes; I’m very excited to delve into the world of Jewish cooking and Ashkenazi history from the comfort of my bed. Still, it seems impossible to create a routine that feels even remotely like the dizzyingly hectic days

students’ social distancing activities. Both Chabad and Hillel continue to program, too. Chabad offered Passover provisions as well How the WashU Jewish community has stayed connected as “Shabbat Take Out,” and Rebduring the coronavirus outbreak. betzin Chana Novack livestreams her challah making every Friday so Kayla Steinberg do we move on from that?” students can join in. Community members Chabad has also engaged stuSpecial to The Jewish Week like Libow have pitched in dents in coronavirus-related tikone of us saw this coming. We lived our to brainstorm and implekun olam. It asked students in last week at WashU before spring break in ment ways to keep traditions the St. Louis area to help bottle a normal way, not knowing that all of it — alive and connections strong. hand sanitizer for those in need, the communal Shabbat dinners with hundreds of Libow creates diasporic and hosted an event with stustudents, the Jewish hangout booths (affectionately editions of the weekly newsdents Daniel Peters and Alli known as “Jewths”) in the main library’s cafe, the letter “The Shtick,” which Hollender, who shared their Havdalahs and services and weekday events — she describes as “half for volunteer experiences in their would be upended. serious and half for jokes.” home communities with the And it hasn’t been easy. She started “The Shtick” in hope of inspiring others to do “On some level, I feel like our community is in fall 2019 as a way to connect the same. exile,” said WashU Chabad Rabbi Hershey Novack. the observant community on WashU Hillel connects with “Instead of having one Chabad House, we now campus — a mission espestudents through social media posts and online events. Assishave hundreds of small houses with a little spirit cially resonant now. “You read tant Director Tony Westbrook of the Chabad house in them because our students it and you’re reminded of the The author’s weekly newsletter, jokes that the community has “The Shtick.” K AYL A STEI N B ERG hosted a shakshuka- making are there.” session, and Rabbi Jordan GerSophomore Sophie Libow is one of these stu- or of the people in the commuson hosts Jewish Learning Fellowship classes and dents. “It’s really hard to go back home, and Jewish nity,” she said. “The Shtick” still features the student d’vrei daily “office hours” on Zoom. communal life has been cancelled,” she said. “How Torah and memes that make it a weekly hit along “Necessity is the mother of all invention and we Kayla Steinberg is a senior with some coronavirus-era additions like “Ask a are in need right now,” Gerson said. “The yearning at Washington University in Pre-Med: What is Your Take on the Coronavirus for Jewish content and education and experience St. Louis. Pandemic?” and a “Guess Who?” feature listing doesn’t end because of distance learning and so-

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AMANDA GORDON

Gordon of shuffling between obligations at school. Time is so slippery now. I waited nearly two and a half hours with my mom to pick up meat for Passover. While she stood on the curb outside the butcher, I entertained my-

Steinberg cial distancing. If anything, it’s even stronger.” In addition to staff, students have taken the initiative to create their own programs through First Year Students of Hillel and the Hillel Leadership Council. They have organized chevruta (study partner) Jewish learning; an event with Dr. Rabbi Pamela Barmash, associate professor of Hebrew Bible and biblical Hebrew at the university, discussing halacha and the coronavirus; a discussion about feminism in the Purim and Passover stories; and Reform and Conservative/egalitarian services, among others. Sophomore Scott Massey brought the Reform services he led at WashU Hillel online, hosting Facebook Live Friday night services that give listeners “a little dose of Jewish music and Jewish prayer.” “I knew that having some Jewish music and having a space for prayer was so much more important now than ever before, and I knew that I was able to deliver such an experience,” Massey said. Massey knows he cannot recreate the WashU Hillel service experience online — and he’s not trying to. Instead of leading song for 10-15

Hillel-goers, Massey reaches hundreds of listeners (with over 1,000 for his service through Hillel International’s “Hillel at Home”) including frat brothers, his grandparents and strangers. Knowing that many tune in to seek comfort and community during this pandemic, Massey sets intentions for prayers and works in words of Torah that connect to the current situation. He thinks that our communities will be different when we come back together — in a good way. “Every community is going to be a lot more grateful to have each other and a lot more intent on how they spend their time together,” he said. “I think everyone will be a lot more appreciative and thankful,” Libow agreed. But for now, WashU students and staff will continue to bond over newsletters and online services, through Netflix party and Zoom calls, doing all we can to stay connected at a time when we’re forced to be apart. ■

Covid-19 and the Omer: A Call to Do Good Isaac Adlerstein Special to The Jewish Week

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he emergence of COVID-19 has sent shockwaves around the globe and has disrupted all of our lives. However, while most of us are able to practice social distancing at home with plenty of food to eat, the more than 250 guests of the Interfaith Nutrition Network (INN) in Hempstead, New York, are far less fortunate. I began volunteering at the INN in January of 2017, during my posthigh school gap year. I was shocked to witness the degree of poverty and homelessness that existed just twenty minutes from my home. After being inspired by the INN’s no-questions asked policy and its core principle of treating everyone with dignity and respect (demonstrated by small gestures, like calling the clients “guests”), I decided to volunteer there three times a week. I volunteered with the INN’s soup kitchen, the Mary Brennan INN, as well as its social work resource center, the Center for Transformative Change. The INN also operates several homeless shelters across Long Island. I bonded with many of the guests, staff and volunteers, and decided to make the INN my charity of choice. Since enrolling at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, I made it a priority to volunteer regularly at the INN whenever I was home from school. Last Summer I met my girlfriend Deena Albert, another long-time volunteer at the INN, at the Mary Brennan INN. Since the emergence of COVID-19, like most other volunteers, Deena and I have been unable to support the INN’s operations in-person. Still, we have sought ways to stay involved. As we were, and still are, in the midst of a pandemic, we thought about the relevancy of the Omer—which we began counting on the second night of Passover. In the Second Century, during the first 32 days of the Omer, there was a mysterious epidemic that killed Isaac Adlerstein is a senior at Johns Hopkins University. He is a 2016 Write On For Israel graduate.

The View From Campus is a project of The Jewish Week to provide a deeper and more nuanced understanding of the challenges facing college students by hearing from them directly, in their own words. Articles appear once a month in these pages and regularly online. We are grateful to The Paul E. Singer Foundation for supporting this effort. If you are interested in writing for this column, please contact Lily Weinberg at lily@jewishweek.org.

The author and his girlfriend at a L.I. soup kitchen. COURTESY OF ISAAC ADLERSTEIN

roughly 24,000 of Rabbi Akiva’s students, supposedly for them failing to show proper love and respect to one another. The antidote for shortcomings like these in our own times remain studying and performing acts of charity and loving-kindness. Deena and I wanted to do this by rallying our communities around a shared act of chesed. On April 12, Deena and I launched an online fundraiser for the INN, with the initial objective of raising $5,000 to help cover the cost of the grab-and-go system the INN had to adopt due to social distancing guidelines. Thanks to the generous support of dozens of friends, family and strangers, we reached our goal within a week. At that point, we decided to double our goal, and within another week, we had successfully raised over $10,000. The fundraiser yielded enough money to purchase 2,668 bagged lunches, which could feed over 250 guests for two weeks. More than half of the donations were $20 or less, demonstrating how small acts of kindness can be aggregated to make a big difference in the lives of the less fortunate. While it appears as though COVID-19 is starting to level in New York, we must not forget about those who do not have a home to quarantine in, a bathroom to bathe in or a kitchen to eat in. These are very challenging times for us all, as individuals, as New Yorkers, and as Americans, but years from now, we can look back and remember how we helped get our hungry and homeless neighbors through this crisis. The success of our fundraiser was not only monetary. Indeed, the fundraiser empowered over 275 friends, family, and strangers from around the country and around the world to engage in acts of Chesed and Tzedakah. Please consider making a donation, no matter how big or how small, to your local soup kitchen or food pantry. If we can continue to perform acts of charity and kindness, perhaps we can help bring about the end of our own plague. ■

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

A Northwestern Zoom session to make cocktails.

self by walking up and down the main village drag, peering into dark shop displays and soaking up some sun. We made it home in time to make an almond flour cake and set up a few devices for our Zoom seder. After some technical difficulties, everyone patched in and we began reading from our digital Haggadah. My cousin conducted the seder with a comforting levity, ping-ponging passage assignments among family members on the “Brady Bunch”-esque grid of faces. The Haggadah included the traditional Nirtzah, which calls for “Next year in Jerusalem,” but the collective seder sentiment was that we hoped to be seated around my grandmother’s table next spring. Simon & Garfunkel wrote “Overs” for the soundtrack of the iconic 1967 film “The Graduate.” Although it didn’t make the final cut, it does bring to mind a disaffected Dustin Hoffman lounging about as April turns to May and May to June. I can’t help wondering if and when I’ll get back to campus for graduation, or at least to say farewell to the people and places I’ve come to love, but now that I’ve eaten the bread of affliction, I’m waiting for the hydrangeas to bloom. ■


The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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LETTERS

The Jewish Week

OPINION EDITORIAL

The False Choice Between Safety and the Economy

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he “open-up” protesters seen the Reconstructing Judaism stateholding signs comparing gov- ment asks leaders of its affiliated ernment-issued stay-at-home institutions to take into considerorders to Nazi directives seem to care ation “our deeply held values of pias little about historical accuracy as kuach nefesh (saving lives); caring they do about the well-being of their for the elderly, infirm and at-risk; fellow citizens. Nazism was a cult and focusing on community wellof death; the political leaders who ness over individual comfort.” Note are listening to the best advice of how that contrasts with the words of scientists and, yes, economists are Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a supout to slow the spread of a danger- porter of the “re-open” movement, ous contagion, save lives and make who said, “There are more importhe economy itself healthier in the tant things than living, and that’s long term. saving this country for my children Jewish institutions are for the and grandchildren and saving this most part resisting the urge to rush country for all of us.” A country that back to business treats its GDP as as usual, as was a sacred value evidenced in the and doesn’t do ‘Covid-19 threatens all it can to propainful but necessary decision tect the most by the Union for vulnerable — our most Reform Judawhich includes ism to close all the elderly, first sacred values.’ of its summer responders, camps, a bellhealthcare workwether of cloers and, evidence sures to come. As URJ said in its shows, people of color — is hardly a announcement, “the risks posed by country worth saving. Covid-19 threaten our most sacred Patrick and others are presentvalues: the health and well-being ing their fellow Americans with a of our children, staff, and faculty false choice between saving lives that attend camp, along with their and reviving the economy. As the communities back home.” vast majority of economists told Responsible leaders aren’t ask- researchers from the University of ing for a complete shutdown of Chicago Booth School of Business, Jewish life until we can safely abandoning the drastic lockdowns venture from our homes; rather, too soon would lead to “greater tothey are taking what Reconstruct- tal economic damage” down the ing Judaism leaders, in a model road. This doesn’t mean ignoring statement, describe and prescribe the deep pain caused by the devasas “actions dictated by our values tating losses of jobs, savings and and [that] are in concert with the revenue. Everyone wants busibest scientific and medical advice nesses, schools and entertainment available. ... Decisions must be lo- venues to open as soon as possible. cal and contextual, based on local Thankfully, the majority of Americircumstances such as infection cans agree that this has to go handrates, testing availability, health in-hand with adequate testing, care capacity, population make- contact tracing, proper sanitation up, availability of PPE, etc.” The and social distancing. They support Reconstructing Judaism statement a massive program of emergency also warns that openings of syna- aid to those who need it, undergogues, JCCs, camps, schools, in- standing such assistance is an institutions and organizations “will vestment, not a handout. happen in stages and may also be That’s what we and our leaders sporadic and inconsistent.” need to focus on. It doesn’t make you Like the URJ’s announcement, “soft” or unpatriotic to choose life.

‘Plot’ Reminds Us It Can Happen Here

In “‘The Plot Against America’Took Us to a Dark Place: the Present” (May 1), Andrew Silow-Carroll is correct: Not only did Philip Roth take America into a dark place, but a similar dark place currently exists. I am a first-generation American, and my parents were immigrants from Eastern Europe who raised five children, all abiding citizens. Americans [of a certain age] and particularly those who, like me, are of the Jewish faith, should recall when an isolationist Congress existed. Thanks in part to those isolationists, the U.S. government did not allow the passengers on the SS St. Louis, Jewish refugees seeking to escape Nazi Germany, from entry; it forced them to return to Europe, where many of them perished. That is not much of a difference from Trump’s indifference to immigrants seeking an opportunity to live and raise their children without fear of hunger and death. Benjamin M. Haber Flushing, Queens

Talented, Successful But Hardly Unique

Your April 24 editorial, “Conference of Presidents Names the Right Chair,” is troubling. You present no compelling reason to support the nomination of Dianne Lob, formerly of HIAS, to chair the Conference of Presidents. While Ms. Lob is quite talented and successful, she is not unique. The nominating committee acknowledged that there are other excellent candidates who, I assume, are not burdened by the broader issues that affect HIAS. Most troubling, however, is your brushing aside the vehement opposition of the venerable Zionist Organization of America, which was chaired by Justice Brandeis and later by the great Reform leader, Abba Hillel Silver, and, unlike HIAS, has remained unequivocally pro-Israel. You dismiss critics of Lob’s nomination as a “narrow sector that defines Jewish identity and selfinterest according to their own particular ideologies.” Is that how the Jewish Week views committed and forceful support of Israel? That speaks volumes. Mark I. Fishman President, PRIMER-Connecticut (Promoting Responsibility in Middle East Reporting) Fairfield, Conn.

Greenberg Wrong on Charedim

I was very disappointed to read Rabbi Yitz Greenberg’s article, “How Charedi Orthodox Theology

Failed Its Followers” (April 24). As a subscriber and fan of The Jewish Week for 26 years, I respect your broad readership. But who is anybody kidding? This newspaper is not the “go-to” newspaper of the charedi community. Rabbi Greenberg’s criticisms are shared with the wrong audience. I am not, nor have any interest in becoming, a “charedi” follower. But why is their theology of an allencompassing God, found throughout our liturgy, any less authentic than Rabbi Greenberg’s version of a “selflimited” God? I’m not even sure what “self-limited” means. Many believe when they are “in the right” they are permitted — or even obligated — to point out the errors of others, but I found Rabbi Greenberg’s article to break as many tenets of Judaism as he tries to criticize. Jeffrey Lawrence Highland Park, N.J.

Sanders Harmed the Jewish Cause

Your wistful and fawning editorial about Bernie Sanders (“What Sanders Got Right — and Wrong,” April 17) is an insult to the Jewish community. What Bernie Sanders got wrong negates anything he got right. Calling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “racist,” referring to AIPAC as empowering “bigotry” and denouncing Israel as using “disproportionate” force (for defending itself) marks him as a purveyor of anti-Zionism and antiSemitism. Sanders has emboldened the socalled “progressives” to attack and question America’s erstwhile bipartisan support for Israel. He has done much enduring harm to the Jewish cause. Henry I. Schanzer Edison, N.J.

For the Record The April 24 investigative story by Hella Winston — “How Much is an Unkosher Torah Worth?” — was made possible by a grant from The Jewish Week Investigative Journalism Fund. That was inadvertently omitted from the print version of the story.


EDITOR’S COLUMN

17

What de Blasio should have said after breaking up a Jewish funeral.

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ill de Blasio shouldn’t have singled out “the Jewish community” after breaking up a crowded funeral for a rabbi in Williamsburg last week. The Anti-Defamation League got it right when its CEO tweeted: “The few who don’t social distance should be called out — but generalizing against the whole population is outrageous especially when so many are scapegoating Jews.” However, those charging that New York City’s mayor intended to scapegoat all Jews are being disingenuous, and I think they know it. When they are not looking to score political points against a polarizing progressive mayor, they are trying to deflect attention from what’s become a real public health challenge among some charedi Orthodox communities (which I am careful to pluralize, because the charedim are no more monolithic than the Jewish population as a whole). De Blasio showed up April 28 at the scene of a crowded funeral procession for a chasidic rabbi in Brooklyn, and fumed. “[W] hat I saw WILL NOT be tolerated so long as we are fighting the Coronavirus,” he tweeted. “My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed. I have instructed the NYPD to proceed immediately to summons or even arrest those who gather in large groups. This is about stopping this disease and saving lives. Period.” Many felt the phrase “the Jewish community” implicated all Jews in the misbehavior of the few. Others pointed out that it was only a few months ago that Jews in heavily Orthodox neighborhoods had faced a spate of violent attacks.

And still others noted that on a balmy spring day, reckless crowds had gathered too closely together elsewhere in the city to enjoy the sunshine and a flyover by Navy jets, without a word from the mayor. Yes, and yes. In a sober, factual analysis of the fated funeral, David C. Greenfield, CEO of Met Council, noted the failures on all sides: by funeral-goers who wouldn’t obey the rules, by cops

Andrew Silow-Carroll

who had advance warning and still lost control of the situation, by a mayor who “clearly crossed the line” in one of his tweets. He called the incident an example of the Jewish saying, “one bad deed precedes another.” But here’s what I think also happened: The mayor thought he was being more sensitive by not singling out “the Orthodox community.” Instead he went with “Jewish community,” as if to show he had no particular animus toward any one denomination (the mayor has been criticized, you’ll recall, for being too close to the charedim, and dragging his feet when it came to, to give one example, enforcing secular learning standards at yeshivas). The term “community” can mean a lot of things. The squishy version, connotes otherwise unconnected neighbors or an affinity group, like the “arts community.” The aspirational version claims unity that doesn’t

really exist. That’s how we Jews often use the term, talking about “community” as if, as the old fundraising motto had it, “we are one.” It’s a useful phrase on happy occasions (“Happy Passover to the Jewish community”), but otherwise meaningless (“The Jewish community votes Democratic, except those who don’t”). De Blasio was (mis)using the word in a third, more specific sense: “community” as an identifiable polity with shared institutions and a leadership that can set and enforce norms. That’s “community” as understood in most charedi communities. Such communities are defined by neighborhoods, rabbinical councils, kashrut authorities, community councils and synagogues. Their members heed the authority of rebbes, scholars and “gedolim.” Had de Blasio said he was addressing leaders of the city’s Orthodox communities, he might still have been pilloried. But such specificity could at least have been justified. Charedi neighborhoods in the metropolitan area have been hit hard by the coronavirus, with hundreds dead, including other prominent rabbis. Even if you don’t accept the evidence that too many have been flouting the rules, you need to acknowledge that the coronavirus has been especially prevalent in the zip codes where many charedi Orthodox live. In an article lambasting the mayor for his tweet, New York Times columnist Bari Weiss also noted the ways Orthodox leaders had failed their followers during the crisis. And even spokespeople for charedim say that there are community customs and social habits that make them particularly vulnerable to the spread of

the virus. Strict precautions are warranted, for their sake and for that of ambulance drivers, police officers,

Strict precautions are warranted. Careless words aren’t.

healthcare workers and everyone else in the possible chain of transmission. C h a r e d i J e w s a r e n ’t the only people flouting the rules, but their distinct norms deserve particular

attention. That is why you need one approach for dispersing crowds watching an air show, and another to control mourners at a funeral. A smarter tweet would have made this clear. For example, de Blasio might have written: “I will be speaking with leaders of faith communities whose members are seen violating the rules, and any other groups that are in violation, and seeking their cooperation as we strictly enforce the rules. I will also be reiterating with law enforcement the need to enforce these rules in all public settings, including our streets and parks.” De Blasio said later he regretted the way his tweet was heard. But that’s not enough. Apologizing won’t undermine his ability to make the city safer, but it would give him the credibility he needs to succeed. n

The Walk of Life David Wolpe

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he Lord is my shepherd…” Few passages in the Bible are more familiar than the 23rd Psalm. It is recited at funerals, at the bedside of the sick and in times of consolation. Its brevity and majesty make it among the most loved poems of all time. For English speakers, the King James translation of the Psalm is part of the common culture: “my cup runneth over” and “I will dwell in the house of the Musings Lord forever.” For us, however, it is a word often unnoticed that is the most important in the entire Psalm: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me.” The word to notice is “walk.” The Psalmist is teaching us that we do not stay in the valley. When a mourner is trapped by grief, or a society overcome by sorrow, it is crucial to remember that grief is not a permanent state. The shadow must give way to light. In our time, what word could be more poignant? We are all in the valley, but we must not stay there. From 3,000 years ago, the Psalmist is reminding us — walk.

Rabbi David Wolpe is spiritual leader of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. His latest book is “David: The Divided Heart” (Yale University Press). Follow him on Twitter: @rabbiwolpe.

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

The Mayor and the Orthodox: Get Me Rewrite


OPINION

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

18

Weaponizing the Coronavirus to Vilify Charedim

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mong the most disturbing spectacles over the months since the coronavirus was unleashed on the world have been the attacks on charedi Orthodox Jews in both Israel and the United States. Some criticisms, like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s recent stern tweets following a funeral held in Brooklyn, are not born of antipathy to the Orthodox community. The mayor issued his rebuke to “the Jewish community” that “the time for warnings has passed” in the heat of the moment. And he seemed unaware that the funeral, although it became too crowded, had been coordinated with police. His choice of words was regrettable, but he told a news conference the next day that he hadn’t intended to slur the community. And his relationship with the community during his

Rabbi Avi Shafran writes widely in Jewish media and serves as Agudath Israel of America’s director of public affairs. This opinion piece was distributed by JTA.

tenure has been very good. Other critics, though, are less defensible. Over the weeks since the coronavirus crisis began, these critics have been attacking the entire Orthodox world without justification. Charedi Orthodox Jews — the perennial they — are always to blame for their backward ways. They reacted too slowly to close their schools. They ignore safety precautions and gather repeatedly in crowds. Their leaders are ignorant and are followed mindlessly by the masses. Never mind that those violating social distancing in the charedi world are outliers, no more representative of charedim writ large than those crowded along the Hudson watching the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds on a recent Sunday are of New Yorkers in general. Most of us have been staying home for months, doing our best to keep ourselves and others safe. The initial charedi reluctance to close schools was a function not of defiance but of valuing what the Talmud calls “the breath of the mouths of children

Rabbi Avi Shafran Mayor de Blasio is no enemy of Orthodox Jews. But others have pointed fingers unfairly. in their places of learning” on “which the world depends.” To an Orthodox Jew, children’s Torah study is spiritually vital, and only to be compromised when it is absolutely necessary. But once the gravity of the situation was clear, the charedi reluctance to close schools quickly gave way to full compliance with medical advice. Once the virus’ virality was clearly established, charedi

leaders not only shut down shuls and schools but pleaded with their flocks to heed every governmental health warning. Unfortunately, none of that has stopped those given to disparaging traditionally religious Jews from doing so once again. One particularly distasteful attack on charedi leaders, and on Jewish religious tradition itself, appeared in The Jewish Week. On April 24, Rabbi Irving “Yitz” Greenberg, in a piece headlined “How Charedi Orthodox Theology Failed Its Followers,” after duly expressing his great sympathy for charedi victims of the coronavirus, offered his explanation for why some charedi communities seem to have suffered disproportionately from the plague. No, it wasn’t because of the density of many charedi towns and neighborhoods. Nor were the regular interactions born of religious events, celebrations and daily prayer services salient factors. And no, poverty and the challenge of confining large families in small apartments were not the

main things to blame. The true villains, in Rabbi Greenberg’s judgment, are charedim and their leaders, a longtime bugaboo of his. With superb hindsight, he reprises how some chasidic leaders in 1930s Europe hadn’t foreseen the Holocaust, and counseled their followers not to panic and flee the continent. Jewish religious leaders, Rabbi Greenberg contends, are viewed by charedim as infallible. This is nonsense. The reason Jewish religious leaders are respected is their sensitivity and Torah scholarship, and that is very different from blind obedience. A great doctor is fallible, too, but her opinion is still invaluable. Blaming Jewish religious leaders, of course, has always been a popular pastime. “What good are rabbis?” the Talmud (Sanhedrin 99b) notes, was even in antiquity a common refrain of renegade Jews. Even before Purim, when there were no regulations limiting human interactions or closing schools or businesses, the

How Israel Kept a Lid on the Coronavirus

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he economy is in tatters. An unemployment rate that was below 4 percent last month is now above 25 percent. Businesses that looked solid just a few weeks ago may never recover. Promised loans and grants have proved hard to obtain or inadequate, been delayed or not come through at all. Lockdown and reopening policies have been inconsistent and illogical. IKEA is doing a roaring trade, but bereaved families were barred from military cemeteries on Memorial Day. We were allowed to jog 500 meters from our home, but not to walk 500 meters from our home … unless we were on the way to the shops.

David Horovitz is editor in chief of The Times of Israel, where a version of this essay first appeared.

We had days and days of screw-ups at the airport. Passengers boarded flights knowing they were carrying Covid-19. Prime ministerial pledges that all arrivals were being sent to state-overseen quarantine facilities were disproved time and again. In the early weeks of the crisis, major failures of communication and minor instances of obstinance and stupidity contributed to disproportionately high contagion rates in charedi Orthodox areas — notably the densely populated, 200,000-strong city of Bnei Brak and several Jerusalem neighborhoods. Communication was less than perfect in the Arab sector and in East Jerusalem, too, where Israel was also slow to set up adequate testing facilities. There were turf wars between our would-be Covid-19

David Horovitz It’s not over, and uncertainty abounds, but Israel’s Covid-19 stats are stunning. czar, Defense Minister Naftali Bennett, on one side, and our actual Covid-19 czar, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Health Ministry and most everybody else, on the other. And yet… As of this writing, Israel,

with 9.2 million people, has suffered 219 fatalities in the coronavirus pandemic. Of the nearly 16,000 confirmed cases, more than half have now recovered. Fewer than 100 Israelis are currently on ventilators. Compare those figures to other countries. By the Worldometers count, based on approximately the same stats, Israel has 25 fatalities per million citizens — which puts us at about 50th in the world, and better than the global average. (With many countries providing less reliable statistics, furthermore, Israel’s global ranking is actually almost certainly considerably better.) Certainly not peerless, but striking nonetheless. Sweden, which chose a radically less interventionist approach, has about 10 times as many deaths as Israel — about 2,500 — in a population only slightly larger than ours at 10

million. Belgium, population 11 million, has over 7,500 fatalities — 34 times as many as Israel. Britain, with a population six times ours, has buried 26,000 victims. The United States, with 36 times our population, has almost 300 times as many dead. Israel’s relative success is prompting growing calls for Israel to reverse the norm by which diaspora Jewry rushes to help it at times of emergency, and to urgently reach out with effective assistance to a diaspora in pandemic crisis. There is so much the experts have yet to understand about Covid-19. In the specifically Israeli context, are our numbers so low because we’re not reporting them properly? That seems highly unlikely. Because we’re not a huggy, kissy nation? But we are. Are we doing so relatively well because we’re a relatively


national charedi organization Agudath Israel, which I’m privileged to work for, alerted the community to the potential danger of Covid-19. It was acting as blame. always on the directives of the major rabbinic leaders llains, in Rabbicomprising the Council of Torah Sages. judgment, are On March 13, Agudath Israel communicated health their leaders, aauthorities’ new recommendation — issued the previboo of his. ous day — about social distancing and large gatherings. b hindsight, he Two days later it shared the strong recommendasome chasidiction from infectious disease specialists to severely s Europe hadn’tlimit “all social or communal gatherings, including Holocaust, andclosing shuls and schools.” And as soon as governr followers notment regulations were in place, they were endorsed e the continent.and publicized at the instruction of charedi leaders. gious leaders, In Israel, when the government’s Health Ministry berg contends,banned even outdoor prayer quorums, one of the most charedim as in-

Horovitz

ense. The reason s leaders are re-young population? Are our hygiene norms notably sensitivity andbetter than those in other, worse-hit countries? Are hip, and that isour wonderful healthcare professionals, in our peom blind obedi-rennially underfunded healthcare system, uniquely octor is fallible,outstanding? inion is still in- If the flow of tourism was a factor in the high contagion rates in the likes of Italy, Spain and the UK, ewish religiousthen how come we didn’t get more heavily battered rse, has alwaysfor the same reason? pastime. “What If population density is a major factor, then how s?” the Talmudcome Sweden, all 174,000 square miles of it, is suffer9b) notes, wasing so much more than tiny Israel, 8,550 square miles? uity a commonAnd if Bnei Brak, with its large charedi Orthodox gade Jews. families and its high contagion rates, was identified as e Purim, whenan epicenter, how is it that a lockdown, confining large egulations limit-numbers of known carriers to a closed area, proved ractions or clos-able to reduce the danger rather than incubating it? businesses, the Amid profound economic, medical and mental health concerns, Moshe Bar Siman-Tov, the Health Ministry’s director general, was asked in a TV interview a few days ago whether Israel hadn’t overreacted. Wasn’t his, and the prime minister’s, talk of m, population 11“tens of thousands” of Israeli fatalities if we didn’t r 7,500 fatalitiesheed the rules and batten down “an exaggeration”? many as Israel. “We have a very simple check,” he replied. “We population sixwere at a rate where the number of new patients was s buried 26,000doubling every three days… There was a single day nited States, withwhen the number of seriously ill patients rose by 50 pulation, has al-percent. If that trend had continued, today we’d have as many dead. over 600,000 people [ill], over 10,000 on ventilators, ative success isand many thousands who would have died.” owing calls for Pressed again: Bar Siman-Tov made one of the se the norm bycomparisons I cited above: “I don’t think so,” he said. Jewry rushes to“There are enough control groups — look at Belgium.” of emergency, Israel has just marked its Memorial Day and its y reach out withIndependence Day. This is always a surreal time, as tance to a dias-we transition from the depths of grief for our fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism to the heights of celmic crisis. much the ex-ebration. This year, it was doubly surreal — our sorto understandrow and our joy physically constrained. 9. In the specifi- But turning 72 in these nightmarish circumstances, ontext, are ourIsrael has at least wary cause for encouragement. They w because we’rewere not always perfectly executed, but the decisions hem properly?Israel’s leaders and authorities made, and that its citihly unlikely. zens generally heeded, were designed to maximize the ’re not a huggy,defense against a mysterious virus that disproportionately targeted the elderly — our parents, our pioneers. But we are. ng so relativelyFor now, the numbers and the comparisons suggest, e’re a relativelythat strategy has been remarkably effective. n

respected religious leaders in that country, Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, dean of the famous Ponevezh Yeshiva, declared that under the circumstances, public prayer is “a danger, impossible … a sin.” Charedi couples and families celebrated Pesach in seclusion without other relatives present — for many for the first time in decades. Rabbi Greenberg ignores all that in his quest to vilify charedi leaders. Charedim, he mocks, “firmly believe that as long as humans please God … [He] will defeat their enemies.” Charedim — like all believing Jews — know that we are not perfect and cannot rely on our mitzvot and avoidance of sin alone to ensure our safety, that we must make efforts on our own behalf, too. Despite Rabbi Greenberg’s insinuation, we do just that. At the same time, though, we recognize the

merit of our spiritual actions, which Rabbi Greenberg, astoundingly for any rabbi, seems to discount. He claims, without any evidence, that “some charedim allowed themselves to be exposed to the coronavirus because God would protect them.” Rabbi Greenberg might do well to consider some actual facts. Like the overwhelming charedi response to calls for plasma donations from survivors of the infection. Facilities in New York, Baltimore and Lakewood, N.J., were flooded with thousands of charedi blood donors. Blaming easily identifiable and, to some, “strange” charedim for various societal ills is easy. But doing so is not only contrary to everything our society was founded upon but won’t help us get through this crisis any faster. At a time like this, we should be unified in doing all we can to protect ourselves and others, not point fingers, especially at imaginary culprits. n

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dim

Shafran


The Jewish Week n www.thejewishweek.com n May 8, 2020

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The Jewish Week

THE ARTS

Reading in the Time of Coronavirus

Looking for inspiration (and a touch of optimism), from Victor Frankentstein to a warm and fuzzy dog story. Sandee Brawarsky Culture Editor

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read for information, empathy, for gateways to other worlds and also the pleasure of seeing words put together beautifully, but these days, I’m looking for inspiration. A book published in Austria in 1946 and now available, surprisingly, for the first time in English, it is remarkably timely due to the well-known author’s robust optimistic spirit in difficult times. “Yes to Life: In Spite of Everything” by Viktor E. Frankl, with an introduction by Daniel Goleman (Beacon Press), is a brief, life-affirming book consisting of a series of public lectures delivered by the late psychiatrist in Vienna, 11 months after he was liberated BOOKMARKS f r o m A u s chwitz. Frankl gave these talks before he published “Man’s Search for Meaning,” a psychological memoir that has sold more than 16 million copies in 50 languages. Goleman, a psychologist and author of the 1995 best-seller “Emotional Intelligence” and more recently “Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body” (with Richard Davidson), points out that the book’s title is drawn from a song sung by inmates at some of the four concentration camps where Frankl was imprisoned and his parents were murdered. (His wife was murdered in Bergen-Belsen.) Many prisoners despised the song as they were forced to sing it repeatedly, but others found hope in the lyrics, “Whatever our future may hold:/ We still want to say “yes” to life, / Because one day the time will come — / Then we will be free.” When asked about how Frankl managed to stay upbeat and resilient when he returned to Vienna after the war, given all he had experienced, Goleman tells The Jewish Week, “I think he was a very unusual person, to say the least; for one, he seemed to have an extraordinary capacity for forgiveness.” He adds, “Of course, the whole

question of finding purpose in life, despite overwhelming negative circumstances, is very profound. That became his major message over the rest of his life.” For Frankl, every crisis includes an opportunity. He speaks of giving life deeper meaning through serving others, through loving and through the way we react to suffering. Some of Frankl’s notes for the lectures that became this book were jotted down on stolen slips of paper during his last nights in a concentration camp, battling typhoid fever. He died in 1997 at age 92. While the timing of the book’s publication and the pandemic are coincidental, Goleman sees parallels with “the way we are now struggling with our world being turned upside down,” but makes clear that the current situation is nowhere near as horrific as what Frankl faced. These days, as many Jews count the Omer, or number the days between Pesach and Shavuot, Frankl’s words particularly resonate, as we are trying to make the days count, to fill them with meaning. n ard to get more inspiring than Danny Siegel, the author, lecturer, poet and tzedakah activist who has been spreading compassion and generosity for more than five decades. Over the years, Siegel has brought international attention to many “Mitzvah heroes” — unsung figures working modestly, including a woman who rescues abandoned babies with Down syndrome from institutionalization; someone who organizes pony rides for blind children; a Yemenite rebbetzin in Jerusalem who helps the city’s poor and elderly — and encouraged many to support them and to initiate their own creative acts of kindness. Through the Ziv Tzedakah Fund, which he founded in 1981 and ran for 27 years, Siegel raised mostly small donations and gave

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away more than $13.5 million dollars. “Ziv” means light or radiance. “Radiance: Creative Mitvzah Living” by Danny Siegel, edited by Rabbi Neal Gold, with a foreword by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin (Jewish Publication Society), is a collection of Siegel’s prose and poetry from the last 50 years. The pieces range from very practical ideas about giving wisely to the study of related Jewish texts and philosophy; his poetry is full of insight and the light of Jerusalem streets. An early practitioner of micro-philanthropy, Siegel, now 76, has helped innovative causes in Israel, the U.S. and around the world, including a school for child laborers in Asia, recognizing that no project and no contribution is too small. An idealist, he has helped generations of American Jews find meaning in acts of lovingkindness. While the book is not a memoir, readers will come to understand Siegel’s optimism and impact. In 2008, when he decided to close the doors of Ziv, he told Gary Rosenblatt of The Jewish Week that he saw himself not as a hero but as a matchmaker, connecting “authentic people” who wanted to give with “authentic people” doing extraordinary work. n or a different perspective, I turned to my husband Barry Lichtenberg, who offers two strategies for book lovers waylaid at home due to the Covid-19 crisis: The Tisha b’Av approach, aka The “you-thinkthis-is bad” strategy. Read a book, fiction or nonfiction that makes you count your lucky stars for living in the U.S. today and not. And not, say, medieval France at the start of the First Crusade. Or, the Purim perspective. Read a book that’s fun, if a bit offbeat, with a hopeful, if not entirely happy, ending. He offers a sampling of two books from column A and one from Column B in his voice, and says, “You know which way I lean.”

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creen One: Shiva. The m elderly mother. She had l productive life. Had a lovin family. Lots of grandchildren. S not sick with Covid and had a to say goodbye to the people she most, mostly through FaceTime. The mourner is surrounded b who love him. His wife. His fou dren. Friends from around the Each of us, including his immedia ily is beyond touch, framed by a He is sobbing. The grieving so A beautiful young princess frompoignant stories about his mother distinguished Norman stock elopesthe love that sustained him and b with the rosh yeshiva’s son. The younghim to this place. When a frien lovers flee their hometown in NorthernNew York shares a memory, we France, one step ahead of her father’sambulance in the background. W pursuing knights. Then the first Cru-together, yet apart. He utters the sade erupts and things get really hairy.of the Kaddish. I want to reach o A farfetched fable, you say? What if Itouch him. Instead, each of us r e told you a letter in the Cairo Genizah recounts this fantastic story! In “The m Convert” (Pantheon), Stefan Hertmans displays the Genizah letter anddeath. A young man taken by sudd weaves an unforgettable tale of twogenerous person. A man who ma star-crossed lovers on the run as Eu-nous. Seventy-five family member rope explodes in the First Crusade. Iand far join on one screen to lam had thought that the Genizah was lim-Some sing heart-wrenching song ited to medieval responsa and bills oftive grief. We sing along, alone, a lading. Now I know it also contains abecause singing together on Zoom screen makes us feel that we are tog tragic love story for the ages. If history straight-up is your thing,we try to sing as one that illusion i and even if not, “Hitler’s First Hundred Screen Three: Her mother Days: When Germans Embraced the3,000 miles away in a distant l Third Reich” (Basic Book) by Peter Frit-daughter made her life, work an zsche is must reading. In the course ofShe could not be with her moth barely 100 days, Hitler became the mostshe took her last breaths. She wa popular dictator of the 20th century. HowWould have flown anywhere in did the Nazis do it? Fear and violence,mother through her last days. Bu sure, but also a perverted moral calculuswrong side of the Atlantic, sick that preserving life meant destroying it,that took her mother, and barely a that the Germans were about to perishshiva, as friends and family from unless the Jews were destroyed. Thetheir best to sustain her. Nazis made brilliant use of mass media, Scene (not screen) Four: “A including radio and film. My favoriteMoses: Speak to the kohanim, th banner displayed in a Hitler propagandasay to them: Let none [of you] de film: “Go and Drain the Scandal Sump,person among his people except close to him, his mother, his fath Hitler is Our Trump.” As a little boy coming home fromter, his brother” [Leviticus 21:1shul one Shabbos morning in Crown In this week’s parsha, the pri Heights in the mid-’60s, I was mauledcome close to the dead except fo by a German shepherd a group of kidsrelatives. The Talmud [Eruvin 48a] unleashed on me. Ever since, I have been uneasy around dogs. Is this the one childhood trauma I never got around to telling my wife about? This can be the only explanation for the culture editor (reader, I married her) assigning me “Other People’s Pets” (Celadon) to review. R. L. Maizes’ novel conjures up a young woman who relates more to dogs than to people, and when not in

continued on page 23


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LEARN HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AND OTHERS AT HOME. WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF COVID-19? • The most common symptoms are fever, cough, sore throat and shortness of breath. Other symptoms include feeling achy, loss of taste or smell, headache, and diarrhea. • Most people with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) will have mild or moderate symptoms and can get better on their own.

WHO IS MOST AT RISK FOR SERIOUS ILLNESS? • People age 50 or older (people age 65 or older are at the highest risk) • People who have other health conditions, such as: Lung disease Kidney disease Asthma Liver disease Heart disease Cancer Obesity A weakened immune system Diabetes

WHAT SHOULD I DO IF I GET SICK WITH COVID-19 SYMPTOMS? If you are sick with COVID-19 symptoms, assume you have it. When you are sick: • If you have trouble breathing, pain or pressure in your chest, are confused or cannot stay awake, or have bluish lips or face, call 911 immediately. • Call your doctor if you are age 50 or older or have a health condition that puts you at increased risk, or if you do not feel better after three days. • Always contact a doctor or go to the hospital if you have severe symptoms of COVID-19 or another serious health issue. • Do not leave your home except to get necessary medical care or essential food or supplies (if someone cannot get them for you). • If you must leave your home: Avoid crowded places. Stay at least 6 feet from others. Cover your nose and mouth with a bandana, scarf or other face covering. Wash your hands before you go out, and use alcohol-based hand sanitizer while outside. • Household members can go out for essential work and needs but should monitor their health closely.

If you or someone in your home is sick: • Create physical distance: Do not have visitors. Stay at least 6 feet from others.

Sleep head-to-toe if you share a bed with someone who is sick, or sleep on the couch. Keep people who are sick separate from those at risk for serious illness. • Cover up: Cover your nose and mouth with a bandana, scarf or other face covering when you are within 6 feet of others. Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or your inner elbow. • Keep it clean: Throw tissues into the garbage immediately after use. Wash your hands often with soap for 20 seconds, especially after you cough or sneeze. Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer if you are unable to wash your hands. Frequently clean surfaces you touch, such as doorknobs, light switches, faucets, phones, keys and remote controls. Wash towels, sheets and clothes at the warmest possible setting with your usual detergent, and dry completely. Do not share eating utensils with others, and wash them after every use.

WHEN CAN I LEAVE MY HOME AFTER BEING SICK? • If you have been sick, stay home until: You are fever-free for three days without Tylenol or other medication and It has been at least seven days since your symptoms started and Your symptoms have improved • Reminder: New York is on PAUSE. This means that even if you have been sick, you should only leave your home for essential work or errands, or to exercise, while staying at least 6 feet from others.

NEED HELP?

• If you are having a medical emergency, call 911. • If you do not have a doctor but need one, call 844-NYC-4NYC (844-692-4692). New York City provides care, regardless of immigration status, insurance status or ability to pay. • For more information, call 311 or visit nyc.gov/coronavirus. The NYC Health Department may change recommendations as the situation evolves. 4.20

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ARTS GUIDE

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Editor’s Note: Check out “The Stream: What’s Going on in NYC This Week — Online” on our website (thejewishweek.com) for daily updates.

KLEZMER FIDDLE PROJECT — ‘A NIGN A DAY’ A stellar line-up of 35 klezmer string players from 12 countries — including New York City’s own Jake Shulman-Ment and Alicia Svigals — resuscitates the ancient Jewish nign tradition with melodies from Vol. 4 of Moshe Beregovski’s “Old Jewish Folk Music” collection. Every day during the lockdown a fiddler (or cellist) from the project will do a live broadcast featuring nigunim, chat and sometimes even a guest. — Through May 27, 4-4:45 p.m., facebook.com/ events/536517630631547/. See the line-up at ilanacravitz.com/ strings.htm. Free, but you can make a donation.

CONVERSATIONS FROM THE JERUSALEM BIENNALE: YONATAN ULLMAN Ram Ozeri, founder of The Jerusalem Biennale, asks the world’s most creative minds about their current projects, the impact of Covid-19 on their art and lives and their predictions and hopes for a post-pandemic contemporary art world. This afternoon he speaks with Yonatan Ullman, an artist, lecturer, writer and independent curator based in Tel Aviv whose work has been widely shown in New York, Philadelphia, Miami, London, Berlin, Brussels and Israel. The conversation will be in English. — Thursday, May 7, 2-3 p.m., Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, jccmanhattan.org/ programs/live-conversationsjerusalem-biennale-yonatanullman. Free.

ANNA SOLOMON: ‘THE BOOK OF V.’ W/ KATE BOLICK Anna Solomon appears in a Zoom webinar about her kaleidoscopic new novel intertwining the lives of three women — Lily, grappling with her sexual and intellectual desires as an at-home mother

preparing for Purim in 2016 Brooklyn; Vivian, who seems to be the perfect Watergateera political wife; and Queen Esther, a fiercely independent young woman in ancient Persia — across three different centuries as their stories of sex, power and desire finally collide in the present day. “Finely written … cerebral … almost old-school in its feminist com-

day, May 10, 10 a.m. EDT, The Jerusalem Writers Festival, http://fest.mishkenot.org.il/en/ events/a/view/?ContentID=207. No registration required.

‘HERSHEY FELDER AS IRVING BERLIN’ Hershey Felder (“Pianist of Willesden Lane,” “Maestro”) performs his 2019 hit show one night only, live from Florence, Italy, in support of 59E59 Theaters. Reflecting Berlin’s journey from child immigrant to America’s most beloved songwriter, Felder brings the man behind the iconic music to life

Executive Director Amy Spitalnick for a discussion of this landmark case and the broader fight against violent extremism. — Monday, May 11, 7 p.m., 92Y, 92y.org/event/a-trial-for-ourgeneration. $5.

FROM THE BRONX TO BROADWAY A conversation with legendary Broadway producer Emanuel “Manny” Azenberg, moderated by acclaimed journalist Budd Mishkin. — Tuesday, May 12, 7:30 p.m., FolksbieneLIVE!, nytf.org/live/.

Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin in a reprise of his 2019 one-man show to be live-streamed, for one show only, on Sunday, May 10 at 8 p.m. The show is in support of 59E59 Theaters. H ER SH EY F ELDER P R ESENTS

mitment.” (Kirkus) — Thursday, May 7, 7-8 p.m., Books Are Magic, facebook.com/ events/157227549034113/. Free.

ZALMAN MLOTEK’S ‘LIVING ROOM CONCERTS’ Enjoy more Yiddish music from everyone’s favorite Yiddish piano man, Zalman Mlotek, artistic director of National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene. — Thursdays, May 7, 14 and 21, 7:30 p.m., FolksbieneLIVE!, nytf. org/live/.

NICOLE KRAUSS AND ZERUYA SHALEV IN CONVERSATION WITH RANA WERBIN Best-selling authors Nicole Krauss (U.S.) and Zeruya Shalev (Israel) will join Israeli writer and editor Rana Werbin for an intimate conversation between Brooklyn, Tel Aviv and Haifa. They’ll talk about inspiration; their writing routines in normal times and in times of turmoil; and their thoughts on the changes in the literary and material worlds that may be in store for us. The conversation will be in English. — Sun-

in a special performance featuring some of the composer’s most popular songs, including “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” “Blue Skies,” “God Bless America,” “There’s No Business Like Show Business” and “White Christmas.” — Sunday, May 10, 8 p.m. EDT, 59e59.org/ shows/show-detail/hersheyfelder-as-irving-berlin-livebroadcast/. $50.

A TRIAL FOR OUR GENERATION: HATE IN THE TIME OF PANDEMIC The last few months have seen an alarming rise in white nationalist violence, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, antiAsian attacks and even plans to use the virus as a weapon. One innovative legal strategy is taking on the leadership of this violent movement with a lawsuit that holds accountable those responsible for the August 2017 Charlottesville violence. Scheduled for trial this fall, it has the potential to bankrupt and dismantle the leaders and hate groups at the center of this movement. Join leading litigator Roberta Kaplan and Integrity First for America

raeli music with Ron Tal, swing for “Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish” and Assaf Gleizner as music director. — Wednesday, May 13, 7:30 p.m., FolksbieneLIVE!, nytf.org/live/.

‘CITIZEN 865: THE HUNT FOR HITLER’S HIDDEN SOLDIERS IN AMERICAN’ Join Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Debbie Cenziper for a live conversation and audience Q&A about her new book “Citizen 865: The Hunt for Hitler’s Hidden Soldiers in America.” This powerful, character-driven story recounts the DOJ’s decades-long search for the SS trainees who helped murder 1.7 million Polish Jews and later hid in plain sight in cities and suburbs across America. One crucial investigation was among the department’s greatest achievements, but its story has never been told. — Thursday, May 14, 2 p.m., Museum of Jewish Heritage, mjhnyc.org/ events/citizen-865-the-hunt-

A sense of place: Writer and editor Rana Werbin, left, and novelists Nicole Kraus, center, and Zeruya Shalev talk about their work in these trying times from the vantage point of three different cities: Brooklyn, Tel Aviv and Haifa. The event takes place Sunday, May 10. ALAN ZWEIBEL AND FRIENDS: ‘LAUGH LINES’ Alan Zweibel will discuss his new memoir, “Laugh Lines,” and his life in comedy from the early days as an original “Saturday Night Live” writer to television work that includes “The Late Show With David Letterman” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” There is nothing we need now more than a laugh. — Wednesday, May 13, 7 p.m., 92y.org/event/alan-zweibeland-friends. $5.

ELEVEN HOURS AWAY A live concert celebrating Is-

for-hitlers-hidden-soldiers-inamerica-book-talk/. Free.

VIRAL: ANTISEMITISM IN FOUR MUTATIONS Emmy-winning filmmaker Andrew Goldberg explores anti-Semitism’s infectious behavior as he travels through four countries to speak with victims, witnesses and antiSemites as well as Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Fareed Zakaria, George Will and Deborah Lipstadt. The film spotlights the American far-right, the English far-left, the Hungarian prime minister’s campaign against Jewish philanthropist George

Soros and violence against Jews in France. — Premieres Tuesday, May 26, 9 p.m., on PBS. Ongoing:

‘LOVE, LOSS, AND WHAT I WORE’ The hit Off-Broadway play by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, using clothing and accessories and the memories they trigger, is based on the best-seller by Ilene Beckerman. In 2017, cast members Lucy DeVito, Tracee Ellis Ross, Carol Kane, Natasha Lyonne and Rosie O’Donnell reunited at 92Y for a special one-night-only performance directed by Karen Carpenter, who directed the original production. Now 92Y in association with Daryl Roth, announce a first-time, limited online release of the 2017 performance, available for a limited time. — 92Y, 92y.org/event/love-lossand-what-i-wore. $10.

‘CRESCENDO’ Loosely inspired by Daniel Barenboim’s West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, this feature film directed by the Academy Award-nominated Dror Zahavi focuses on world-famous conductor Eduard Sporck (Peter Simonischek, “Toni Erdmann”), who creates an Israeli-Palestinian youth orchestra. But the young musicians from both sides are far from able to form a team, forming two parties that deeply mistrust each other, both on and off stage. — At virtual theaters nationwide, menemshafilms.com/crescendo.

‘HEADING HOME: THE TALE OF TEAM ISRAEL’ This documentary charts the underdog journey of Israel’s national baseball team competing for the first time in the World Baseball Classic. Its line-up included several Jewish American Major League players — Ike Davis, Josh Zeid and ex-Braves catcher Ryan Lavarnway — most with a tenuous relationship to Judaism, let alone having ever set foot in Israel. — Now on DVD and Blu-ray as well as Digital HD and Video-on-Demand, menemshafilms.com/headinghome.


The Cruelty of Social Distancing

S

creen One: Shiva. The mourner* has lost his it define this distance as four cubits, “For a corpse affects elderly mother. She had led a meaningful and four cubits with respect to communication of uncleanproductive life. Had a loving large ness” [Shulkhan Aruch Yoreh Deah 371]. family. Lots of grandchildren. She was Hence, a Kohen must not come within not sick with Covid and had a chance four cubits of a corpse so as not to touch to say goodbye to the people she loved the corpse or overshadow him or a grave. most, mostly through FaceTime. Four cubits was a halachic category The mourner is surrounded by those that measured the space a person occuwho love him. His wife. His four chilpies — personal space, so to speak. Evdren. Friends from around the world. ery person is granted four cubits of her Each of us, including his immediate famown as she moves through the world. ily is beyond touch, framed by a square. But here’s the thing: The ancient SCOT T OSMAN He is sobbing. The grieving son tells measurement of four cubits, all agree, Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses poignant stories about his mother, about measures roughly six feet. the love that sustained him and brought Uncanny coincidence? Maybe not Zoom, however him to this place. When a friend from — the ancient world and suddenly our imperfecty, own apparently measure personal space New York shares a memory, we hear an allows us to reach out to the same way. Thanks to social distancambulance in the background. We pray one another. ing guidelines, we’ve suddenly entered together, yet apart. He utters the words the world of the priest. of the Kaddish. I want to reach out and But most of us are not priests. And many of the kohatouch him. Instead, each of us remains in our impennim among us do not abide by these laws. The temple is etrable frames. Screen Two: A me- long gone. We do not traffic in priestly notions of purity. Shabbat Emor morial marks a tragic Only now we know how cruel these laws could be. We death. A young man taken by sudden violence. A loving, know now that we are not meant to grieve at a distance. It generous person. A man who many described as lumi- is a fundamental disruption to being human. Nor are we nous. Seventy-five family members and friends from near disembodied angels. We are simply human. We are flesh and far join on one screen to lament, to rage, to grieve. and blood and want to be near other bodies. We want to Some sing heart-wrenching songs reflecting our collec- reach out with the warmth of touch in the face of cold death. tive grief. We sing along, alone, all of us muted but one, And yet, at this moment, I am grateful for these magic because singing together on Zoom yields dissonance. The pixels that allow us to reach out to one another, even withscreen makes us feel that we are together as one, but when out touching. At this moment we understand the cruel stricwe try to sing as one that illusion is shattered. ture the priest had to abide. And we understand a priestly Screen Three: Her mother was taken by Covid holiness that we don’t wish to know, a level of existence we 3,000 miles away in a distant land. Died alone. Her never wanted to reach. Our love knows no bounds. We are daughter made her life, work and family in America. reaching higher than ever, loving each other at a distance, She could not be with her mother to comfort her as soothing each other from across our lonely shelters. The she took her last breaths. She was a devoted daughter. love I’ve witnessed has been at once inspiring and heartWould have flown anywhere in the world to nurse her wrenching. We are flesh and blood, breathing and yearnmother through her last days. But here she was on the ing, reaching for one another, in the only way we can right wrong side of the Atlantic, sick with the same virus now. We are held by an unstoppable love. ■ that took her mother, and barely able to sit up for Zoom *Personal details have been changed to protect shiva, as friends and family from around the world did privacy. their best to sustain her. Scene (not screen) Four: “And the Lord said to RiveRside Moses: Speak to the kohanim, the sons of Aaron, and MeMoRial Chapel say to them: Let none [of you] defile himself for a dead For 212-362-6600 Generations person among his people except for his relative who is RiversideMemorialChapel.com A Symbol of Jewish Tradition. close to him, his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother” [Leviticus 21:1-2]. Shabbat Shalom In this week’s parsha, the priest is instructed not to Candlelighting, Readings: come close to the dead except for his immediate blood Shabbat Candles: 7:42 p.m. relatives. The Talmud [Eruvin 48a] and the codes based on

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continued from page 20 veterinary school, spends her time burglarizing homes with her locksmith-gonif father Zev, who has raised her after her mother abandoned her as a child when she fell through the ice while skating, only to be saved by a mysterious dog. Sounds farfetched, to say the

Torah: Lev. 21:1-24:23 Haftarah: Ezekiel 44:15-31 Havdalah: 8:47 p.m.

least, but Maizes, whose debut story collection “We Love Anderson Cooper” was published to acclaim last summer, brings this unusual story to vivid life. I found myself caring deeply about the characters, even the two-legged ones, and unable to put the book down. After the pandemic is over, the first time I pass a dog on a leash, I will try to pet it and not walk the other way. A small, non-barking, leashed dog. ■

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163 EAST PARK AVENUE MANAGEMENT LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Farad Zaghi, 172 East Park Avenue, Long Beach, NY 11561. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 18-61 REALTY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/07/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 9 Summit Drive, Manhasset, NY 11030. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 21 ECHO LANE LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/22/20. Latest date to dissolve: 01/15/2120. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 111 Conklin Street, Farmingdale, NY 11735. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 251 ASI LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/13/20. Office: Richmond County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 75 Noel Street, Staten Island, NY 10312. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 2707 Holland Ave LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/13/2020. Off. Loc.: Bronx Co. SSNY desig. as agt. upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Abdul J Titumir, 2707 Holland Ave., Bronx, NY 10467. General Purposes. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 326 Collins Avenue, LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 4/3/2020. Cty: Westchester. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 1133 Westchester Ave., Ste. N208, White Plains, NY 10604 . General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 33 AINSWORTH LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/09/20. Office: Richmond County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Sgarlato & Sgarlato, PLLC, 1444 Clove Road, Staten Island, NY 10301. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8

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56 MARWOOD LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 84 South Bayles Avenue, Port Washington, NY 11050. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

57 MEADOWFARM ROAD LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 4/21/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 57 Meadowfarm Rd., New Hyde Park, NY 11040, which is also the principal buisness location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

67-21 REALTY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/07/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 9 Summit Drive, Manhasset, NY 11030. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

ARM’d Forward LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 10/24/19. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 702 Eileen St., Franklin Square, NY 11010. Registered agent address is c/o Andrew R. McKenna, 702 Eileen St., Franklin Square, NY 11010. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 ATLANTIC FAIR OAKS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/18/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Renee Campanile, 22 Plymouth Road, East Rockaway, NY 11518. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Boats Against The Current LLC. Articles of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/23/20. Off. loc.: Nassau Co. SSNY des. as agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, c/o Humes & Wagner, LLP, 147 Forest Avenue, Locust Valley, NY 11560. Purpose: General. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 BOYZ CAPITAL LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/2/2020. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC5/ whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 19 Pine Rd., Valhalla, NY 10595, which is also the principal business location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 C.MarksCo, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/24/2020. Office in Westcheter Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 22 Rose Ln., Rye Brook, NY 10573, which is also the principal business location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Capture Consulting LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 1/23/2020. Cty: New York. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to Marisa Mirabello, 2 Longview Rd, Southampton, NY 11968. General Purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 CAT ASSOCIATES LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/26/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 81 Peachtree Dr., East Norwich, NY 11732, which is also the principal buisness location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 CINDY BRYKS CAPITAL ENTERPRISES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 339 Livingston Place, Cedarhurst, NY 11516. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Courtlandt Avenue Realty LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/8/2018. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Rodney Sani, 1 Penn Plaza, Ste. 3620, NY, NY 10119. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 CUSTOM GLASSWORKS, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 4/15/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 5 Penn Plaza, 23rd Fl., NY, NY 10001, which is also the principal buisness location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

DK Glebe LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 1/2/2020. Cty: Bronx. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 2332 Newbold Ave., Bronx, NY 10462. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 DK Unionport LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 2/18/2020. Cty: Bronx. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 2332 Newbold Ave., Bronx, NY 10462. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 DK Wallace LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 1/2/2020. Cty: Bronx. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 2332 Newbold Ave., Bronx, NY 10462. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 DUNETTA PUPETTA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/26/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 159-04 86th Street, Howard Beach, NY 11414. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 East 5th Strategies LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 05/08/19. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 338 E. 5th St., #13, New York, NY 10013. Registered agent address c/o Lisa Keitges, 338 E. 5th Street, #13, New York, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 EDR SURVEY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/31/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 574 Yale Dr, Oceanside, NY 11572. Registered agent address c/o United States Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Avenue, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 EDWARD BLUTH CAPITAL ENTERPRISES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 339 Livingston Place, Cedarhurst, NY 11516. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 ELS FAMILY ASSOCIATES, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 12/04/18. Latest date to dissolve: 12/31/2115. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 60 Highland Avenue, Roslyn, NY 11576. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 ESCAPE VENTURES VIRTUAL LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/17/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 19 Gloria Drive, Woodbury, NY 11797. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

D.K. Honeywell LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 2/12/2020. Cty: Bronx. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 2332 Newbold Ave., Bronx, NY 10462. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

FIVE COUSINS REALTY LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 01/09/2020. Off. Loc.: Richmond Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY to mail copy of process to The LLC, 545 CLAWSON STREET, Staten Island, NY 10306. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8

DID YOU SEE IT, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 4/2/2020. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to PO Box 187, Jefferson Valley, NY 10535. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Principal business location: 819 Mahopac St., Jefferson Valley, NY 10535. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

FRANCIOSA 2910 LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/15/20. Office: Bronx County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 784 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10462. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

DK Armand Place LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 3/8/2020. Cty: Bronx. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 2332 Newbold Ave., Bronx, NY 10462. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

INVICTUS X LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/09/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 37 Gallows Hill Road, Cortlandt Manor, NY 10567. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

HERTZ ENGINEERING, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/08/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the PLLC, 515 Anderson Street, Baldwin, NY 11510. Purpose: For the practice of the profession of Professional Engineering. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 HOLLY PLACE ASSOCIATES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/16/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 1244 Sawmill River Road, Yonkers, NY 10710. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 JACMAR CONTRACTING LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/14/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 10 Milano Court, Croton-OnHudson, NY 10520. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 JC ELITE MAINTENANCE LLC App. for Auth. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/19/2020. LLC was organized in DE on 3/18/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. as agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY to mail process to 601 E. Bay Dr., Long Beach, NY 11561. Required office at 614 N. Dupont Hwy., Ste. 210, Dover, DE 19901. Cert. of Org. filed with SSDE, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 JERRY SILVA CONSULTING LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/28/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 10 Evans Drive, Glen Head, NY 11545. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 JES WHITE PLAINS HOLDINGS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/25/20. Office: Bronx County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Sopher Management, 6132 Riverdale Avenue, Bronx, NY 10471. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 JONATHAN BUCHSBAYEW, LCSW, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/08/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the PLLC, 113 Linden Street, Woodmere, NY 11598. Purpose: For the practice of the profession of Licensed Certified Social Work. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Juxtapose Ventures II, L.P. Authority filed SSNY 2/25/20 Office: NY Co LP formed DE 2/20/20 exists 1209 Orange St Wilmington, DE 19801. SSNY design agent upon whom process against the LP may be served & mail to 9 Great Jones St Fl 4 New York, NY 10012 Cert of Regis Filed DE SOS 401 Federal St #4 Dover DE 19901 General Purpose JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 KEGB HOLDINGS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/29/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 970 N Broadway, Unit 301, Yonkers, NY 10701. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 KOUMOULOS PROPERTIES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/02/20. Office: Bronx County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o 74 Forest Avenue, Paramus, NJ 07652. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 KS ENTERPRISE L-TOWN LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/15/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Kyungmin Song, 31 Aerie Court, Manhasset, NY 11030. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

25 The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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BGMA CONSULTING AND MANAGEMENT LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 1/29/20. Off. Loc. : Richmond Co. United States Corporation Agents, Inc. designated as agent upon whom process may be served & shall mail proc.: 7014 13th Avenue, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5


The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

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NORTH 8TH STREET MANAGEMENT, LLC, Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/15/2020. Office loc: Kings County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 252-62 Brattle Avenue, Little Neck, NY 11362. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

Lima Consultants LLC. Articles of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/26/20. Off. loc.: Nassau Co. SSNY des. as agent of LLC upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, c/o Mason & Mason, PLLC, 394 Old Country Road, Garden City, NY 11530. Purpose: General. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

MARK J. BLUTH CAPITAL ENTERPRISES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 339 Livingston Place, Cedarhurst, NY 11516. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8

Lindsey Property Management, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/09/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 182 Lindsey Ave., Buchanan, NY 10511. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

MARTIN H. BLUTH CAPITAL ENTERPRISES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 339 Livingston Place, Cedarhurst, NY 11516. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8

LMKM Creations LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/09/20. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 42 Butterwood Lane East, Irvington, NY 10533. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

MARVIN SILVA TATTOO LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/11/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 53 Orchard Beach Boulevard, Port Washington, NY 11050. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Form. of 6H Fee Owner LLC. Arts. Of Org filed with SSNY on 12/31/19. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 12/23/19. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 120 West 45th St., NY, NY, 10036. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

LONG HAUL SNACKS, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/14/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Hassin Law Group, 330 Sunrise Highway, Suie 200, Rockville Centre, NY 11560. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

MLK CONCIERGE SERVICES LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/09/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 729 Boelsen Drive, Westbury, NY 11590. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

Notice of Form. of UWSLC LLC. Arts. Of Org filed with SSNY on 5/24/11. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 5/17/11. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 52 Vanderbilt Ave., NY, NY, 10017. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

NEOTECH PRODUCT SOLUTIONS, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/19/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 2099 Bellmore Ave., Bellmore, NY 11710, which is also the principal business location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

Notice of Form. of VALHALLA5, LLC. Arts. Of Org filed with SSNY on 2/24/20. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 1/31/20. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 120 Wall St., NY, NY, 10005. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

LUNA & RAMIREZ REALTORS LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 1/27/20. Off. Loc. : Bronx Co. United States Corporation Agents, Inc. designated as agent upon whom process may be served & shall mail proc.: 7014 13th Avenue, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

Notice of Form. of 413 W. 145 LLC. Arts. Of Org filed with SSNY on 1/23/20. Office location: New York. LLC formed in NJ on 12/9/16. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 810 Seventh Ave., NY, NY, 10019. Arts. of Org. filed with NJ SOS. PO Box 450, Trenton, NJ 08646. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Formation of 1265 Richmond LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/3/20. Office location: Richmond SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 1265 Richmond Ave., Staten Island, NY, 10314. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Formation of CAS Design Associates LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/25/20. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 535 Madison Ave., NY, NY, 10022. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Formation of 1373 GREENE LLC Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 1/16/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 5014 16TH Avenue, Suite 9, Brooklyn, New York, 11204. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Formation of CREDIT POINT DEBT RECOVERY, LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/18/20.Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 2804 East 19th Street 3f, Brooklyn, New York, 11235. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of formation of 402 MAIN STREET MANAGEMENT COMPANY LLC. Art. Of Org. filed with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/15/20. Office in Westchester County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 402 Main St, Ste 6 Armonk, NY, 10504. Purpose: Any lawful purpose JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of 9 ADAMS STREET REALTY LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/17/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Farrell Fritz, P.C., Attn: Damian J. Racanelli, 400 RXR Plaza, Uniondale, NY 11556. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of 90 MONTGOMERY ATLANTIC BEACH, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/01/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Registered Agent Solutions, Inc., 99 Washington Ave., Ste. 1008, Albany, NY 12260, also the registered agent upon whom process may be served. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Formation of A & R 57 LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/2/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 643 57th St., Brooklyn, NY, 11220. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of ACCOUNT DISTRIBUTION GROUP, LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/18/20.Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 2804 East 19th Street 3f, Brooklyn, New York, 11235. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of ATHLETES HOSPITALITY LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/21/20. Office location: Westchester County. Princ. office of LLC: 6 Fairview Ct., Cross River, NY 10518. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of Ava Realty NJ, LLC. Arts Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/5/20. Office location: Richmond SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 652 Huguenot Ave., Staten Island, NY, 10312. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of Beautiful Holdings LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/3/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 1850 81St St., Brooklyn, NY, 11214. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of Boconcept Westchester NY, LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 1/31/20. Office location: Westchester SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 10300 Howe Ln., Leawood, KS, 66206. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Formation of DIAMOND US BUILDING LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 03/16/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 942 41ST STREET, BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11219. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of DJTOD RICCARDI LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/3/20. Office location: Richmond SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 3 Foxholm St., Staten Island, NY, 10306. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of DUNKIRK PROPERTIES 300, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/30/20. Office location: Nassau County. Princ. office of LLC: 80 Skyline Dr., Ste. 101, Plainview, NY 11803. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 Notice of Formation of G4 18198, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/25/19. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o G4 Development Group, LLC, 14 Skillman St., Roslyn, NY 11576. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of GM Of Liberty Realty LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/9/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 26 Court St., Brooklyn, NY, 11242. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of Great Fan Realty LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 11/25/19. Office location: Westchester SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 145 Huguetnot St, New Rochelle, NY, 10801. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of JIA WANG 88 LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 11/20/19. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 917 56TH Street, Brooklyn, New York, 11219. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of JIA WANG NY LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 11/20/19. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 917 56TH Street, Brooklyn, New York, 11219. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of KBTC Devco LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/06/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: the Company, 245 10th Ave., Apt. 4W, NY, NY 10001. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of Kwok’s LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/11/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 137 Montague St., Brooklyn, NY, 11201. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,25,22,29

Notice of Formation of KBTC LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/06/20. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: the Company, 245 10th Ave., Apt. 4W, NY, NY 10001. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of Kyle’s Deals, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/10/20. Office location: New County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy to principal business location: 206 9th Ave, Apt. 4N8, New York, NY 10011. Purpose: To engage in any lawful act or activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Formation of Lifekey Health LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/27/2020. Office location: Nassau County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy to principal business location: 59 Middle Ln, Jericho NY 11753. Purpose: To engage in any lawful activity. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 Notice of Formation of LOCI ARCHITECTURE PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 02/27/20. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 594 BROADWAY, SUITE 506,NEW YORK, NEW YORK, 10012. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of M & P USA LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 03/02/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 2132 BAY RIDGE PARKWAY APT 2F, BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11204. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of MadeOfHonor LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/6/2020. Office location: New York County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy to principal business location: 1500 Lexington Avenue Apt 10J, New York, NY 10029. P urpose: Any lawful act or activity. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 Notice of Formation of MARKET SQUARE PRESERVATION GP, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/13/20. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 60 Columbus Cir., 19th Fl., NY, NY 10023. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of MAXIMILIEN CARE, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 02/05/20. Office location: Kings County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy to principal business location: 1763 Linden Blvd. Brooklyn, NY 11207. Purpose: To engage in any lawful act or activity. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of NYC Watchmaker, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/6/20. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 25 East 67th St., NY, NY, 10065. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of ODILOTID USA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/10/2020. Office location: New York County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC is: Jose G Barron 2561 Bent Spur DR, Acton, CA 95310. The Principal Business Address of the LLC is: 200 South Wilcox Street, Suite 332, Castle Rock, CO 80104. Purpose: Sale of software license for books loan JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22


Notice of Formation of Ostfeld Architecture, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/27/20. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 60 East 42nd St., NY, NY, 10165. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of Paramount Capital Advisory LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/02/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: Ben Haghani, 175 Great Neck Rd., Ste. 402, Great Neck, NY 11021. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of PEDRINE LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/01/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Formation of Phantasy Pictures, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/07/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 1010 Northern Blvd., Ste. 208, Great Neck, NY 11021. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Formation of PLATINUM PROPERTIES MELVILLE, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/16/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Philip Delprete, 475 Main St., Farmingdale, NY 11735. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of PMG CORNAGA, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 10/24/19. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 220 Fifth Avenue 9th Floor New York, New York, 10001. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of Pro-Arc Welding LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/27/19. Office location: Westchester SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 3 Northridge Rd., Cortlandt Manor, NY, 10567. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of R&L HOLDINGS NYC LLC.Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/4/20.Office location:New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served.SSNY mail process to 15 Renwick Street, #601 New York, New York, 10013.Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of Reditus LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/02/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The Company, 5 Oak St., Bayville, NY 11709. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Formation of Ron’s Piping And Heating LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 12/5/19. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 512 E 91st St., Brooklyn, NY, 11236. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

Notice of Formation of Royal Capital Funding, LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/5/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 1276 50th St., Brooklyn, NY, 11219. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of SACHI FERIS/RRCC, LLC Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/03/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 212 Gates Avenue, Apt A, Brooklyn, New York, 11238. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 Notice of Formation of Sam MNB Sheffield Avenue LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/4/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 183 Wilson St., Brooklyn, NY, 11211. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of SCARDIPDAP, LLC. Arts of Org. filed with SSNY on 7/29/19. Office location: Westchester SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 2A Adrian Ct., Cortlandt Manor, NY, 10567. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of SFH CAPITAL HOLDINGS, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/19/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: the Company, c/o 135 Harborview South, Lawrence, NY 11559. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of Silver Beach LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/17/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: the Company, c/o Marc S. Bekerman, PO Box 365, Woodbury, NY 11797. Purpose: any lawful activities. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Formation of T&L IDEAL HOLDING LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 1/31/20. Office location: Westchester SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 526 MAIN ST, NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK, 10801. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of TELECARING ASSOCIATES LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 11/04/19. Office location: Richmond SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 391 Riedel Avenue, Staten Island, New York, 10306. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of The Bloc Value Builders, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/9/20. Office location: New York SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 32 Old Islip, NY, NY, 10005. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Formation of TKO VISION HOLDINGS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/02/20. Office location: Westchester County. Princ. office of LLC: 20 Lounsbury Dr., Baldwin Place, NY 10505. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Formation of Y & C 668 LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 02/28/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 720 57TH ST #4D, BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, 11220. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 NVC LLC Art. Of Org. Filed Sec. of State of NY 2/11/20. Off. Loc. : Richmond Co. United States Corporation Agents, Inc. designated as agent upon whom process may be served & shall mail proc.: 7014 13th Avenue, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

Notice of Formation of ZARICA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on August 23, 2011. Office location: New York County . SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy to principal business location: 301 East 47th Street New York, NY 10017. Purpose: To engage in any lawful activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of formation of ZEN HEART LLC. Art. Of Org. filed with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/15/20. Office in Nassau County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC, 139 Fairview Blvd Hempstead, NY 11550. Purpose: Any lawful purpose JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qual. of 90MC Holdings, LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 04/02/2020.Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 12/21/2018. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to 444 Madison Avenue, 6th Floor New York, New York, 10022. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qual. of AQUINNAH/HOWJO LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 03/09/20. Office location: Westchester. LLC formed in DE on 12/26/19. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 59 Crescent Lane Sudbury, Massachusetts, 01776. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qual. of JR-HD ENTERPRISES I, LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 4/29/20. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 4/22/20. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 15 North Mill Street, Nyack, New York, 10960. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 Notice of Qual. of KKR CAPITAL MARKETS HOLDINGS L.P.. Auth. filed with SSNY on 3/25/20. Office location: New York. LP formed in DE on 12/7/01. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: 15 North Mill Street, Nyack, New York, 10960. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Qual. of LESOYA, LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 1/16/20. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 12/27/2017. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to275 Seventh Ave, 7th fl, New York, New York, 10011. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qual. of MANHATTAN LEARNING LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 03/16/20. Office location: Kings. LLC formed in DE on 2/27/20. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to: ATTN: Jason Bishop 7825 4th Avenue, Apt E5 , Brooklyn, New York, 11209. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Notice of Qual. of ROOSEVELT MEZZ LENDER LLC. Auth. filed with SSNY on 4/14/20. Office location: New York. LLC formed in DE on 4/9/20. SSNY desg. as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY mail process to C/O S3 Capital Partners, 535 Madison Ave,19th Floor, New York, New York, 10022. Arts. of Org. filed with DE SOS. Townsend Bldg. Dover, DE 19901. Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qualification of NYAIT LLC. Authority filed with Secy. of State of NY on 3/19/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware on 3/13/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to:c/o The LLC, 500 8th Ave. Rm.908, NY NY 10018. Address to be maintained in DE: 850 New Burton Rd., Ste.201, Dover, DE 19904. Arts of Org. filed with the Secy. of State of DE, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15

Notice of Qualification of 241 FIFTH RESTAURANT LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/09/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 12/02/19. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Boca Seasons 2300, LP, 1200 N. Federal Hwy., Ste. 200, Boca Raton, FL 33432. DE addr. of LLC: Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

Notice of Qualification of NJ2 HVAC LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/26/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/18/20. Princ. office of LLC: 510 Saddle Ridge Rd., Woodmere, NY 11598. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the princ. office of the LLC. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15

Notice of Qualification of ALLIANT RETIREMENT SERVICES, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/25/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in California (CA) on 01/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. CA addr. of LLC: 1301 Dove St., Ste. 200, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Cert. of Form. filed with CA Secy. of State, 1500 11th St., Sacramento, CA 95814. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

Notice of Qualification of PPC PURDY DEVELOPER LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/28/20. Office location: Bronx County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

Notice of Qualification of Arisaig Partners Research Services US LLC. App. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/7/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 2/5/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: c/o Corporation Service Company (CSC), 80 State St, Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE address of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808. Arts. of Org. filed with DE Secy of State, Townsend Bldg, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: any lawful activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

Notice of Qualification of PPC PURDY GP LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/28/20. Office location: Bronx County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

Notice of Qualification of CES SPACKENKILL SOLAR, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/22/20. Office location: Westchester County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 04/17/20. Princ. office of LLC: 100 Summit Lake Dr., Ste. 210, Valhalla, NY 10595. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St. #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Qualification of PPC PURDY MM LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/28/20. Office location: Bronx County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

Notice of Qualification of CRYSTAL IBC LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/25/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in California (CA) on 01/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. CA addr. of LLC: 1301 Dove St., Ste. 200, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Cert. of Form. filed with CA Secy. of State, 1500 11th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 Notice of Qualification of HIGH STREET VALUATIONS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/25/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in California (CA) on 01/31/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. CA addr. of LLC: 1301 Dove St., Ste. 200, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Cert. of Form. filed with CA Secy. of State, 1500 11th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 Notice of Qualification of JUJAMCYN MEDIA LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/06/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 02/20/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

Notice of Qualification of SNL YONKERS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/16/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 08/08/18. Princ. office of LLC: 3333 New Hyde Park Rd., Ste. 200, Lake Success, NY 11042. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. DE addr. of LLC: c/o Corporation Service Co., 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St.-Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Notice of Qualification of STEWARD ASSET MANAGEMENT, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/24/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 01/28/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Company, 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. The regd. agent of the company upon whom and at which process against the company can be served is Sheryl Ann Wirch Mejia, 109 Oxford Blvd., Garden City, NY 11530. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., P.O. Box 898, Dover, DE 19903. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 NY BIOTEK, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/20/20. Office: Richmond County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 949 Willowbrook Road, Staten Island, NY 10314. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Notice of Qualification of TEND, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/01/20. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 03/20/20. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543, regd. agent upon whom and at which process may be served. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., 401 Federal St., Ste. #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 Notice of Qualification of THREE UNCANNY FOUR, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 03/26/20. Office location: Kings County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 05/13/19. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, 401 Federal St., #4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 Notice of Qualification of WW NORTH AMERICA HOLDINGS, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/30/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 10/25/89. Princ. office of LLC: 999 Stewart Ave., Ste. 215, Bethpage, NY 11714. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., PO Box 898, Dover, DE 19903. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 Notice of Qualification of WW.com, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/30/20. Office location: Nassau County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 09/22/99. Princ. office of LLC: 999 Stewart Ave., Ste. 215, Bethpage, NY 11714. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. DE addr. of LLC: The Corporation Trust Company, Corporation Trust Center, 1209 Orange St., Wilmington, DE 19801. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, Div. of Corps., PO Box 898, Dover, DE 19903. Purpose: Any lawful activity. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 NYC PIZZA KITCHEN LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/09/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 90 Boulder Road, Manhasset, NY 11030. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/10,17,24 5/1,8,15 OZKARE, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/30/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporate Service Bureau Inc., 283 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12206, which is also the registered agent upon whom process may be served. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 PENA CLEANING SERVICE LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/19/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 160 Lewis Ave., Westbury, NY 11590. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 PENTHOUSE SAFETY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/20/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Daniel Ostrower, Penthouse Safety LLC, 225 Buffalo Avenue, Freeport, NY 11520. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 Pronar Health LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 4/1/2020. Cty: Richmond. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 337 Mason Blvd., Staten Island, NY 10309. General Purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

27 The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

Notice of Formation of OR 665 ST. MARKS, LLC. Arts. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 3/10/20. Office location: Kings SSNY desg. As agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served SSNY mail process to 485 Lexington Avenue, New York, New York, 10017. Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29


Pershing64 LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 04/09/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 84 S. Bayles Avenue, Port Washington, NY 11050. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22

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28 the

PLAN B SHOW LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/27/19. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 153 Hudson Street, Ground Floor, New York, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 PMT REALTY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/14/04. Latest date to dissolve: 01/30/2059. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o James A. Cartelli, Esq., 81 Main Street, White Plains, NY 10601. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 QUBIT 7A, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 2/10/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 12 East 88th St., Apt 7A, NY, NY 10128, which is also the principal business location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 RESIDENTIAL DYNASTY HOLDING LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/26/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 65 George Street, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 REUSABLE GOWN SERVICE LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/30/20. Latest date to dissolve: 05/01/3020. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 60 Madison Avenue, Hempstead, NY 11550. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 Rosetown, LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 3/19/2020. Cty: New York. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to Corporation Service Company, 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. General Purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 RUELILY LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/31/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 31 West 34th St., NY, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 RUNAWAY NY, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 3000 Marcus Avenue, Suite 1W5, Lake Success, NY 11042. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8 SACRED SOULS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/19/2020. Office loc: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against the LLC may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 377 E. 153rd St., Apt. 3B, Bronx, NY 10455. Reg Agent: U.S. Corp. Agents, Inc. 7014 13th Ave., Ste 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any Lawful Purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

SOHO RECORDS LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/20/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 51 Wooster St, 3rd Fl., NY, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 SOUNDVIEW PW LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/11/20. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Ripco Real Estate, Attn: Mark Kaplan, 100 Jerciho Quadrangle, Ste. 120, Jericho, NY 11753. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 SURGICAL SUPPLY CORE LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 2/28/2020. Office in Nassau Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 93 Fourth St., Garden City, NY 11530, which is also the principal business location. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 SUSTAINABLE LIFE SATISFACTION LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/26/2020. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer, LLP, Attn: Jason Reska, Esq., 850 Third Ave., 14th Fl., NY, NY 10022. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 Te Nona Kafe LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with SSNY on 2/12/2020. Off. Loc.: Richmond Co. SSNY desig. As agt. upon whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: The LLC, 1209 Bay St., Staten Island, NY 10305. General Purposes. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 THE GRACIOUS HOME BY FRANCINE VAL, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 01/08/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Francine Ingrassia, 115 Weyford Terrace, Garden City, NY 11530. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5 THE GRAZIANO CORNER PROPERTY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/01/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 1097 Hempstead Turnpike, Franklin Square, NY 11010. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 THE LAVELLE FIRM, PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/17/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the PLLC, 100 Herricks Road, Mineola, NY 11501. Purpose: For the practice of the profession of Law. JW 4/17,24 5/1,8,15,22 THE NEW KNOLLWOOD LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/17/2020. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o John C. Schnaufer, ESQ, LLC, 280 N. Central Ave., Ste. 311 Hartsdale, NY 10530. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29 THE QUAD GODS, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/13/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 34 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 200, Lynbrook, NY 11563. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

SOHO INCUBATOR NY LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/20/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 51 Wooster St., 3rd Fl., NY, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

TOXO REALTY LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 04/28/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, c/o Alton & Irena Papavangjeli, 607 7 Ave, New Hyde Park, NY 11040. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12

SOHO PUBLISHING NY LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 3/20/2020. Office in NY Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 51 Wooster St., 3rd Fl., NY, NY 10013. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/1,8,15,22,29 6/5

Wenew World LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 3/16/2020. Cty: New York. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to 136 East 36th Street 9F, New York, NY 10016. General Purpose JW 4/24 5/1,8,15,22,29

VALTO HOLDINGS LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 09/26/19. Latest date to dissolve: 12/31/2070. Office: Westchester County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 145 Mount Vernon Avenue, 1st Floor, Mount Vernon, NY 10550. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/18 Yeezy Plug NY, LLC, Arts of Org. filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) 4/20/2020. Cty: Richmond. SSNY desig. as agent upon whom process against may be served & shall mail process to Edward J. Chow, 364 Decker Ave, Staten Island, NY 10302. General Purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 YORK 13 CONSULTING, LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec. of State (SSNY) 4/9/2020. Office in Westchester Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC whom process may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 9 Round Hill Place, Chappaqua, NY 10514. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 5/8,15,22,29 6/5,12 ZARO’S WATER USA, LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 03/27/20. Office: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 40 Roselle Street, Mineola, NY 11501. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. JW 4/3,10,17,24 5/1,8

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cented Sanders, whose speaking volume is dialed up to a perpetual yell, like an arms-waving radical in full jeremiad. Bernie/David complaining about the height of the podium on the debate stage reminds me of the old Polish Jews in the shtiebel I attended growing up arguing concerned about ongoing annual parades about the design of the table and benches in Aalst, Belgium, a suburb of Brussels, they sat on as they drank Old Williamsburg which feature age-old stereotypes of big- during Shabbat kiddush. Something so innosed Jews with side curls. In February, consequential — how high the table was the parade featured marchers in Nazi sol- and how low the chairs were —created so dier costumes as well as marchers with much acrimony. fake beards and big noses It’s not just Sanders’ age, and large, faux-fur streit’s how David plays up Sandimels. This is not dissimilar ers’ meekness and frumpito the event at the Sanders ness (though, OK, he is rally. They’re both instances frumpy). It’s the anxiety over of pop culture influencing small things that cuts close thought and behavior. because it’s painfully accuIt’s easy to write off a rate. The portrayal reminds thing like the Brussels pame of the now-deceased rade. But the Nazi iconogsurvivor shtiebel Jews of Eli Reiter raphy, mixed with Europe’s my childhood. They dressed capacity for cultural genocide (see the messily, made mountains out of molehills minaret ban in Switzerland), tells a scary and took ridiculous stands on minute things, story. Satire works best when it punches like how small the herring had to be cut. up, when it attacks people or ideas that Pardon me for feeling defensive about Hoaren’t vulnerable to its attacks. Jon Stewart, locaust survivors. Perhaps I’m romantic and the king of American contemporary satire, I miss them. Perhaps I’m protective because said that satire is “a story we tell ourselves they are a dying breed. This kind of Jew about the rightness of our position.” But the wasn’t powerful or rich or a social climber. art of satire is limited in efficacy, and when Lampooning him isn’t punching up; it’s like it’s used as an attack on weak populations, taking free swings at the little guy suffering it’s more sinister. from genocidal trauma. There are caricatures aplenty in The negative stereotypes of Jews, of David’s portrayal of the middle-class- course, are centuries old (Jesus killers, Brooklyn-reared, thickly Brooklyn-ac- moneylenders, global financial string

pullers). A principled politician who, against all odds, built a huge progressive movement, being played as a nonstop complainer may not seem like a terrible thing. But making him appear puny is as othering as making him appear evil. Jews in pop culture portrayals are stripped of nuance and become dehumanized. They’re reduced to yelling old men. Portrayals of money-grubbing and puniness serve the same ends: Jews are not us. In David’s hands (and mouth), Sanders is merely “The Jew” — the old, wildhaired, difficult germaphobe who has big ears and says “oy” every third sentence. We’ve seen this before with Larry David; there is sexism behind the characters on “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” for instance Susie Essman’s character Susie Green, who only scowls, yells and swears — the image of the pushy, nosy mom is worse than that of the feeble Jew. We end up having sympathy for her philandering husband. We box ourselves in with this kind of self-imposed minstrelsy; we’re acting, in a sense, according to the image crafted by anti-Semites. I’ll admit, I found some of Larry David’s shticky Bernie Sanders routine funny — in large part because I feel seen in my own neuroticisms. But too often, David’s Bernie crashed and burned, an old dissatisfied Ashkenazi man who has overstayed his welcome — especially at a time with so much Jew-hatred in the air. It’s time to reconsider the place these Jewish clichés have in our culture. ■

viewed by an independent press.” Halpern, 23, said in an interview that she would vote for Biden to oust Trump “if that’s what it takes,” but she wanted a more honest accounting from Biden and his supporters. Biden as a senator and then as vice president to Barack Obama was closely identified with some of the key feminist gains of Lowey’s generation, helping to author the Violence Against Women Act and advance equal pay initiatives. For Rabbi Schonfeld, that makes backing him a no-brainer. “We are looking at every issue that is a threat to women’s health, well-being, equality, economic equality, everything that will keep women safe and alive — Joe Biden is a leader on that,” she told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Biden’s record with women is not unblemished. Feminists still criticize his handling of the 1991 Thomas hearings, which he chaired, saying that he did not protect Anita Hill, Thomas’ accuser. Last year he apologized after multiple women, including, Reade, accused him of unwanted touching. “As someone who has enthusiastically volunteered for both Obama and

for Jewish study, said that in the modern context, the type of person in question is key: One could seek truth from a scientist who has transgressed, but probably not from a rabbi. That question becomes more confounding with a politician. “It’s a tough question, they are governing but also serving as moral leaders,” she said without commenting directly on the Biden allegations. Katie Halper, the Jewish podcaster who first aired Reade’s allegations, said keeping Reade at arm’s length as a means of electing Biden is “shameful.” “Tara wants Biden to step down, understandably, as do others who see him as a disastrous candidate,” Halper, who backed Biden’s rival Bernie Sanders in the primaries, wrote last week in the Guardian. “Others wish Tara had been listened to before Biden was the last man standing, but now see no alternative. Both positions are understandable and neither should be shamed. But what is shameful is ignoring or belittling Tara because it’s politically inconvenient to grapple with her story. “We are in an excruciating situation with no easy solutions.” ■

Retiring Larry David’s Bernie Just in Time

A

s a voter, I was saddened when Bernie Sanders dropped out of the Democratic presidential primary race. As a consumer of culture, I was thrilled. It means that Larry David’s character will not likely appear as often on “Saturday Night Live” (though maybe there’ll be a skit with Bernie trying to sneak into the Democratic Platform Committee Culture View meeting posing as a bagels-and-lox delivery guy). When I saw the last “SNL” skit with the comedian lampooning the democratic socialist senator, I laughed, then cried, then went to see my therapist. Shelving that Jewish stereotype of a character was overdue, especially after a spectator attending a Sanders rally unfurled a flag with a swastika. The video of the Arizona event could have been a scene from HBO’s mini-series “The Plot Against America.” I’m not concerned about white nationalists, but I see hate spreading through the world like coronavirus. I’m concerned about recently desecrated cemeteries in France and ongoing anti-Semitic violence in New York City, home to the largest concentration of Jews in America. I’m

Eli Reiter’s column appears monthly.

Biden

continued from page 30 pen,” Marcus wrote two weeks ago. “My head instructs that it is within the realm of possibility, and fairness requires acknowledging that.” Marcus listed inconsistencies in Reade’s story as she has told it over the years and, at the time her article was published, the lack of corroborating evidence. On Wednesday evening, Marcus considered the new evidence and said Biden “needs to answer the legitimate questions about the allegations.” In the Business Insider story posted Monday, Lynda LaCasse, a neighbor of Reade’s in the mid-1990s, recalled her describing the assault at the time with the same details Reade first described in March. Prior to LaCasse speaking out, other associates of Reade had less specific recollections of Reade describing an incident or spoke anonymously. Biden’s campaign continues to categorically deny Reade’s claim, adding that “women have a right to be heard — and heard respectfully,” but also that the allegations “should also be diligently re-

Clinton, I’m not yet at a point where I feel comfortable actively campaigning for Biden,” said Michaela Brown, 25, a rabbinical student at Hebrew College in Boston. “If it appears that the Biden campaign begins to take steps towards appropriately, honestly addressing his alleged history of sexual violence and harassment, I will reconsider.” Evangelical Christians back Trump because they see him as a vehicle that advances their moral priorities, including restrictions on abortion and loosening strictures on church activism in public life. He does not need to be a model of morality himself, they argue. Rabbi Avi Strausberg, who has conducted sessions for Jewish officials in Washington on moral behavior in a political setting, said that distinction might not apply in Jewish theology. Should one seek moral leadership from a pure figure, or should one be able to learn from an impure figure while employing one’s own sense of morality to distinguish the good from the bad? Talmudic figures grapple with both paths, she said. Rabbi Strausberg, who teaches at Hadar, a New York-based institution


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movement and the rabbi, tuning in via Zoom. But one thing is already clear: This will not be a typical Rosh HaShanah or Yom Kippur. “It’s going to be very sad,” said Steven Bayme, the American Jewish Committee’s director of Contemporary Jewish Life. “The whole concept of social distancing runs very counter to the meaning of being a Jew in 21st-century America. The things we are so used to sharing with others will likely fall by the wayside. … Being a Jew is about being with others.” Rabbi Alan Lucas, spiritual leader of Temple Beth Sholom in Roslyn Heights, L.I., agreed, noting: “The most crowded part of the shul is the lobby, where everybody is standing and saying ‘Hi.’ … There will be a lot of challenges this year.” He said his congregation is considering having “multiple services with different experiences available to people — both watching at home and live.” But Rabbi Lucas said he doesn’t want to see a repeat of what happened in the days before New York State was ordered locked down by the governor and all synagogues were closed. “We had moved our daily minyan into the main sanctuary so that we had 20 people in a room that could accommodate 400,” he recalled. “But that proved to be an inducement for those who should not have come [because of their age and for medical reasons] to come. I realized that if I did not have the service they wouldn’t be tempted. We have to be careful not to recreate that dilemma.” Even if synagogues are given the green light to open, Rabbi Susan Elkodsi, spiritual leader of Long Island’s Malverne Jewish Center, said she is not sure if her synagogue would open its doors but rather continue with services on Zoom. “I am anticipating that even if we are allowed to gather it would not be in the interest of pikuach nefesh [the Jewish value of saving a life], especially with an older congregation,” she said, explaining that most of her congregation’s 30 families are in their 70s. But even if livestreaming and Zoom “provide a High Holy Day experience, it might not fulfill the needs of some regarding their Jewish identity and connection — and that is something we have to think about,” according to Rabbi Stewart Vogel, president of the Conservative movement’s Rabbinical Assembly. “Can there be a balance between being there in person and a virtual community? And is virtual a threat to the in-person?” As Bayme described the challenges, alternatives need to be found even in the Orthodox community. “The synagogue remains central as a pillar of community, and the challenge will be to provide synagogue programs and services without violating the formal restrictions imposed by the coronavirus,” Bayme said. In outlining new guidelines Monday for reopening businesses, Gov. Andrew Cuomo did not provide a specific timeline but offered a series of public health milestones that must be met and that will vary by region. The guidelines did not specify

houses of worship, although theaters and other crowded entertainment venues are designated as the last places to fully reopen under the plan. Although Reform and many Conservative synagogues are preparing to livestream and Zoom their services if they are not permitted or advised to reopen, Orthodox synagogues and some traditional Conservative synagogues will not, according to Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis. This would be consistent with Shabbat and holiday restrictions on using electrical devices and connecting with technology.

“The things we are so used to sharing with others will likely fall by the wayside. … Being a Jew is about being with others.” — AJC’s Steven Bayme The Midway Jewish Center in Syosset, L.I., is a traditional Conservative synagogue that has not conducted Sabbath or Passover services during the lockdown because it does not livestream or Zoom. But its associate rabbi, Joel Levinson, said that with the High Holidays approaching, “we have to think how to keep our people together and connected to the traditions and rituals” if synagogues must remain closed. “We are just starting to acknowledge that we have to think carefully about this,” he said High Holiday services. In addition to “the values of pikuach nefesh and shmirat hanefesh [to preserve a life],” Rabbi Levinson said, “we want to preserve Jewish souls and community. So we will have to do some very serious reflection on what we can do.” Rabbi Dahlia Bernstein, spiritual leader of Congregation Beth Ohr in Bellmore, L.I., said her Conservative congregation never used livestreaming before but installed it when the synagogue was ordered closed because of the coronavirus. “Before Shabbat we do a Zoom service, which is interactive and lets us see each other’s faces,” she said.

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Screening Congregants

f synagogues are allowed to reopen, said Rabbi Arthur Schneier, spiritual leader of Park East Synagogue, an Orthodox congregation in Manhattan, “it will be a challenge” deciding which congregants will be assigned seats in the sanctuary and which will be assigned to parallel services. “To give everyone equal treatment is the most important thing,” he said of his High Holy Day congregation of 2,500. Rabbi Potasnik said some Orthodox congrega-

tions are considering renting large auditoriums to accommodate members if their own synagogues cannot hold everyone while still maintaining social distancing. Others are considering holding several services in succession to accommodate everyone. He said a conference will be held soon exploring ways to approach the holidays with and without technologies. For those synagogues whose congregants will be praying at home, some are considering making a recording that congregants can listen to before the holiday to enrich their experience. At The Hampton Synagogue in Westhampton Beach, L.I., the cantor and professional choir will be recording all of the High Holiday services in the coming weeks for broadcast on the holidays on JBS, the Jewish Broadcasting Service, according to Rabbi Marc Schneier, the synagogue’s spiritual leader. “I am not advocating that anyone turn on a TV, but in this age of smart TV they can program it to turn on at a specific time and there would be no violation of halacha,” he said. Should the synagogue be able to reopen, Rabbi Schneier said it can accommodate up to 200 with social distancing. He said he expects many congregants to remain home because of the coronavirus. And he said he is considering asking those who do come to provide documentation that they either do not have Covid-19 or have the antibodies to prove they already had it. Farley Weiss, president of the National Council of Young Israel, stressed that the “halachic view has always been that the priority is to protect your life, and if you are risking your life by going to services, you should not go.” That same advice was echoed by Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal, the incoming joint CEO of the Conservative movement’s congregational and rabbinic arms. He wrote in an article in eJewish Philanthropy that before reopening, Jewish institutions must make health and safety a priority. It “should make us among the last to return to physically proximate activity, rather than the first,” he said. In an interview, Rabbi Blumenthal said that in addition to livestreaming or pre-recording programs, “some congregations may try to meet in small groups and empower lay leaders to facilitate various kinds of experiences either in person or online.” The Sutton Place Synagogue in Manhattan is planning to arrange for its members to reserve time during the 10 days between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur to come to the synagogue with their families and offer a prayer before the open ark. “This is one of the most meaningful parts of the High Holy Days during the Neilah,” the final service of Yom Kippur, said Rabbi Rachel Ain, the congregation’s spiritual leader. The pandemic, noted Bayme, “has reminded us of the precariousness of human life. As the Unetaneh Tokef liturgy puts it for the High Holy Days, we do not know who will live and who will die. Nonetheless, the message of Judaism remains fundamentally an optimistic one. As we enter a New Year, even under these dire conditions, we look forward to better times for all.” ■

The Jewish Week ■ www.thejewishweek.com ■ May 8, 2020

A New Year Like No Other


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