BERRIE FELLOWS IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL page 6

SUMMERTIME AND THE RESEARCH IS REWARDING page 8

PARTNERNING ON JOB TRAINING FOR DISABLED page 10
AN ISRAELI SOLDIERS WAR STORY page 29
AUGUST 12, 2016
VOL. LXXXV NO. 49 $1.00

NORTH JERSEY

85

2016

THEJEWISHSTANDARD.COM

The

producer

How 16-year-old Ariel Abergel

came to the Kaplen JCCs Equity
production of My Name is Asher Lev
page 18

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upcoming at

Kaplen

JCC on the Palisades

the Wandering israeli:

a Musical travel Journal
Join actor Elad Shippony and musicians Sagi Eiland and
Eran Edri as they interweave theater, storytelling and
live music into an exciting and humorous adventure.
This highly-acclaimed stage performance has been
showcased at Israels National Theatre The Cameri
since 2008.
Thur, Sep 15, 7 pm in English, 9 pm in Hebrew, $28/$32

Why study music at home when you

can study music at thurnauer?
Join our amazing school and be part of our vibrant music
community, where you can take private lessons, learn
from great teachers and enjoy frequent performance
opportunities!
Registration is now open! JCC membership not required.
Visit jccotp.org/thurnauer or call 201.408.1465 for details.

MeMber registration

is oPen!
Dont miss out on the great fall we have lined up
for kids of all ages including classes in art, science,
cooking, sports, dance, drama, music and more.
Sign up early to get all the classes you want! Best
part, we now offer a new discounted full-year
registration option.
Check out our new online class finder tool at
jccotp.org/classfinder, and get personalized class
recommendations based on your childs interest,
ages and availability.
For details visit jccotp.org.
Registration for the public opens Aug 15.

community

adults

children

Creative arts Classes

My name is asher Lev

Kids Club

find your creative voice!

presented by palisades players:

after school picK-up service and

Try acrylic or watercolor painting, explore your

inner vision through drawing and sketching, and
expand your imagination with ceramics & pottery.
Knit a gorgeous sweater or sew a dress.

a community theater

childcare program, grades K-6

Aaron Posners stirring adaptation of the modern

classic novel by Chaim Potok follows the journey of a
young boys struggle between art and faith.
Sat, Aug 27, 9 pm, Sun, Aug 28, 2 pm & Mon, Aug 29,
7:30 pm, Ticket prices: $15/$20

We provide doorto-door transportation, snack, and

an after school class, well escort them to that too.
Kids Club is a terrific place to unwind with lots of
games, books, and open playtime. Call 201.408.1467
for details.

Classes start in September. Call Michele at

201.408.1496 or Judy at 201.408.1457.
Visit jccotp.org/creativearts

Mon-Thur, Sep-Jun, after school-6 pm

to register or for more info, visit

jccotp.org or call 201.569.7900.

Kaplen

JCC on the Palisades taub campus | 411 e clinton ave, tenafly, nJ 07670 | 201.569.7900 | jccotp.org

2 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Page 3
Did this Yiddish secret help
Michael Phelps win medals?

Aly Raisman helps power

U.S. womens gymnastics
team to Olympic gold
l Lynn and Rick Raisman can exhale.

The Jewish parents of Aly Raisman,

the 22-year-old gymnastic star, have
been notable for their decidedly nonWASPy emotional responses as they
watched her compete.
As it turned out, Alys Olympic performance in Rio was notable as well.
She was captain of the United States
womens gymnastics team, which won
the Olympic gold medal.
The Americans finished with a total
of 184.897 points, easily outdistancing silver medalist Russia, which had
176.688 points. China took the bronze.
It was the second consecutive Olympic team gold for Raisman and the
United States, whose team members

nicknamed themselves the Final Five.

Rio will be the last Olympics to host
five-member gymnastics teams. Starting in 2020 in Tokyo, each team will
have four members. (Sportswriters for
the Jewish press already are working
on their four sons metaphors.)
Raisman, the veteran of the group,
is nicknamed Grandma by teammates Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas, Laurie Hernandez, and Madison
Kocian. This reportedly is due to her
propensity to nap.
Raisman, of Needham, Massachusetts,
won a gold medal in the 2012 London
Olympics in the floor competition, performing a routine to Hava Nagila.
JTA Wire Service

Lynn and Rick

Raisman watch
their daughter
Aly perform.

Like a lot of second generation

Ashkenazi parents, my parents used
Yiddish as a secret language when
they didnt want the kinder to know
what they were talking about.
Thats why I managed to learn exactly one Yiddish phrase from my father:
Es vet helfn vi a toytn bankes that is,
It will help like cupping a corpse.
Obscure? Sure. But all you need to
know is that bankes (rhymes with
swan kiss) is a folk remedy involving little glass cups that are heated
and then applied to the skin, forming a vacuum that healers believed
would suck out bad spirits, malevolent humours, and whatever else
was making you sick in the pre-antibiotics era.
Essentially, the Yiddish phrase is an
expression of futility: Whatever you
think you are doing to help will work
like giving medicine to a dead body.
So imagine my surprise when I
learned that the hottest new therapy
and pre-event routine for Olympic
athletes is bankes! Those purple
circles covering the shoulders and
backs of swimmer Michael Phelps
and other athletes? Those are bruises from cupping therapy, in which
trainers apply the heated glass cups
to loosen and stimulate muscles.
Ive done it before meets, pretty
much every meet I go to, Phelps
told the New York Times on Monday.
So I asked for a little cupping yesterday because I was sore and the
trainer hit me pretty hard and left a
couple of bruises.
According to one study of the
cupping technique, in which 30
gymnasts were randomized into
two groups, athletes in the treat-

ment group more quickly recovered

their creatine kinase levels (which is
good), experienced milder fatigue,
and even enjoyed better interpersonal relations.
An Israeli academic who has
reviewed the cupping research
suggests the treatment works by
stimulating the immune system by
producing helpful proteins.
He also didnt rule out the placebo
effect.
A placebo effect is present in all
treatments, and I am sure that it is
substantial in the case of cupping
as well, Leonid Kalichman, a senior
lecturer at Ben-Gurion University of
the Negev, told the Times. A patient
can feel the treatment and has marks
after it, and this can contribute to a
placebo effect.
In other words, if it you think its
working, that may be enough. Or
as they say in Yiddish, The mind
is everything. What you think you
become.
Oh wait, that was Buddha.
Never mind.
Andrew Silow-Carroll/JTA Wire Service

Candlelighting: Friday, August 12, 7:40 p.m.

Shabbat ends: Saturday, August 13, 8:41 p.m.

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CONTENTS
Noshes4
briefly local 12
oPINION14
cover story 18
Dvar torah............................................27
Crossword puzzle 28
arts & culture 29
calendar30
obituaries 33
classifieds34
real estate 36

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Jewish Standard August 12, 2016 3

Noshes

Dont let them do

to you what they did to me.
Judy Garlands advice to a young Barbra Streisand, according to an interview
with Ben Brantley in the New York times. (Barbra took the advice. They didnt.)

AT THE MOVIES:

Slicing, dicing
Sausage Party
Sausage Party
is an R-rated
animated movie about
one sausage leading a
group of other foods on
a quest to discover the
truth about their existence and what really
happens when they are
taken from the store.
SETH ROGEN, 34, has a
leading voice role as a
sausage, and he cowrote the film. JONAH
HILL, 32, also plays a
sausage. Some characters have cute names
my favorite is Sammy
Bagel Jr. (a bagel). One
blogger noted that all
this sounds like the plot
of a hilarious SNL short
but whether the
premise will sustain a
feature-length film is still
unknown. (Opens
August 12.)
Equity, which
opens in limited
release on August 12, has
been praised as the first
film that shows Wall
Street women engaging
in cutthroat high-finance
deals. Women are not
just peripheral characters, as in such similarly
themed films as Wall
Street or The Big
Short. The script is by
AMY FOX, 40, who is
best known for her play
and film The Heights
(2005). Equity was
co-produced by ALYSIA
REINER, 46, and she
plays one of the films
three leads. (Reiners
best known for playing
the nasty assistant
warden Fig on Orange is

the New Black.) Shes

married to actor DAVID
ALAN BASCHE, 47 (The
Exes). SOPHIE VON
HASELBERG, 29, BETTE
MIDLERs daughter, also
appears in a biggish part.
(No, Sophies father,
MARTIN, wasnt born in a
Bavarian castle. He was
born in Argentina, the
son of a Jewish mother
and a German father.)
Sources confirm
three more
Diaspora Jewish athletes
at the Games: SETH
WEIL, 29, from the San
Francisco area, a rower
on the Mens Four
team, which is given a
good chance of medaling. Weil sports an
impressive beard and is
fondly called the
Bearded One in rowing
circles. He grew up
sailing and windsurfing
on San Francisco Bay. He
was a 67 pudgy college
freshman when he was
invited to join the
schools rowing club. To
his surprise, he loved it
and was good at it, and,
as a bonus, he shed 70
pounds. SAM OJSERKIS,
26, the coxswain for
Weils team. (If the team
gets a medal, Ojerskis
gets one, too.) Hes from
Linwood, NJ. FELIPE
KITADAI, 27, is a judo
athlete from Brazil. He
won a bronze medal for
Brazil at the 2012 Games;
he also won a bronze at
the 2009 Maccabi
Games in Israel.
While the Games are
still on, heres my best

Seth Rogan

Jonah Hill

Meryl Streep and Simon Helberg in a scene from

Florence Foster Jenkins

Alysia Reiner

Sophie von Haselberg

answers to two Olympic

questions I get asked:
(1) Why are there always
Jews in fencing events?
Answer: 50 Jews have
won Olympic medals in
fencing, a remarkable
total. Fencing, of course,
is an urban sport, and
Jews, by and large, are
an urban people. More
to the point: Years ago, I
read that Jewish college
students in Hungary,
Germany, and Austria
started this cultural
tradition in the late 19th
century. They were constantly insulted by nonJewish classmates, and
per school tradition, they
would challenge their
foes to a fencing match.
Reportedly, so many
Jews got so skilled in
fencing that some nonJewish college clubs prohibited their members

from honoring Jews

with the right of answering an insult with a fencing match. And (2) Why
are there so many Jewish
Olympic swimmers? Answer: 42 Jews have won
Olympic medals in swimming, another remarkable total. Anecdotally,
my sense is that Jews,
even nonathletic ones,
have a fondness and respect for swimming. Its
healthy, nonviolent, and
almost the perfect sport
for a protective Jewish
parent. There is even
respect for swimming
from the non-sporting
ultra-Orthodox. They
know that the Talmud
(Kiddushin 29a) specifies
three skills that parents
must teach their children:
To learn Torah, to make a
living, and to swim.

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STANDARD1 AUGUST 12, 2016
E-Class_StripAd.indd

From Big Bang Theory

to Meryls pianist
Florence Foster Jenkins was the subject of a long
feature piece on CBS Sunday Morning recently, and if
the film lives up to its clips and its interesting backstory,
it should be a hoot. Its based on the true story of the
title character, a New York heiress, who, as the result
of a medical condition, couldnt hear her own singing
voice just the sound in her head. In the 1940s, Jenkins
was such an important socialite and philanthropist that
nobody had the nerve to tell her how awful her opera
singing was. However, things came to a head when
she gave a concert before a packed house in Carnegie
Hall. Meryl Streep plays Jenkins. SIMON HELBERG,
35 (Wolowitz on The Big Bang Theory), co-stars as
Jenkins pianist. He told Today that director STEPHEN
FREARS, 75 (The Queen), cast him mostly because he
is a trained pianist and wouldnt have to fake it. By the
way, Helberg recently revealed another talent: he is a
karate black belt. (Opens Friday, August 12.)
N.B.

N.B.

California-based Nate Bloom can be reached at

Middleoftheroad1@aol.com

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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 5

Local
Unity in diversity in Israel
Berrie Fellows learn about the Jewish state, each other, and themselves through visit
ABIGAIL KLEIN LEICHMAN

diverse group of 18 Berrie Fellows

from Bergen County packed their
personal perspectives with them
on a 10-day mission to Israel, July
25 to August 4.
Before the trip was over, much of that baggage was jettisoned as they gained new perspectives on peace, pluralism, and coexistence in the Jewish state.
The Berrie Fellows Leadership Program,
an 18-month learning and training program
for 20 32- to 52-year-old Jewish lay leaders
from northern New Jersey, is funded by philanthropist Angelica Berrie of Englewood
and administered by the Jewish Federation
of Northern New Jersey.
We used Israel and its challenges as a
lab for exploring how significant Israeli
thought leaders are navigating, handling,
and addressing the complex issues they face,
Laura Freeman, the Berrie Fellows program
director, said.
The trip also was intended to present the
Jewish homeland as an inspiration for leadership, and expose contrasts between the
Israeli and American ethos of leadership.
As somebody who grew up in Teaneck
and went through the Jewish day school system, I have strong feelings toward Israel and
spent summers here with my family, said
Yehuda Kohn of Teaneck, 43, executive director of Rabbi Pesach Raymon Yeshiva in Edison and a member of the executive committee of the Torah Academy of Bergen County.
I thought I had a really good handle on
what goes on here and felt pretty confident
in my viewpoints, he continued. Subconsciously, I thought this trip would back up
my viewpoints.
What I learned instead is that nothing is
as it appears initially. Everything is far more

Berrie Fellows convene outside the Knesset. Back row: Jason Shames, Peter Zlotnick, Fran Weingast, Greg Haber, Susan
Kardos, Frank Golum, Cluve Lipshitz, Shira Feuerstein, Yehuda Kohn, and Adi Rabinowitz. Front row: Eileen Pleva, Sara
Nanus, Christine ODonnell, Dina Seelenfreund, Debbie Bohnen, Donna Weintraub, Marcy Cohen, Karen Miller, Dan
Shlufman, Laura Miller Freeman, Andi Wolfer, and Elana Stein Hain
PHOTOS BY DONNA WEINTRAUB

complicated. I thought ultimately you could

have concrete negotiations that could in theory accomplish a solution like in the business
or nonprofit world, but I see there is a lot
more that needs to be done more understandings and conversations before getting to
the negotiation table and there are amazing volunteers, professionals, and politicians
working on these issues. Seeing all the moving parts has given me a much deeper understanding of whats going on here.
Donna Weintraub of Haworth, 51, said she
noted throughout her encounters in Israel

Elana Stein Hain, left, the director of leadership education at the Shalom
Hartman Institute North America and a faculty member for the Berrie Fellowship, with Berrie Fellows Andi Wolfer, Donna Weintraub, Fran Weingast, and
Deena Seelenfreund at the Gush Etzion winery.
6 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

that things are way more complicated than I

thought, but everyone seemed optimistic. Its
about the people-to-people connection, the
relationships and the groundswell from the
deep thinkers to the school principals. That
message resonated with me.
Ms. Weintraub, a summer camp referral agent who sits on the board of trustees
of the Jewish Federation of Northern New
Jersey and on the executive board of Temple Emanu-El in Closter, cited the groups
conversation with peace negotiator Tal
Becker, a fellow at the Shalom Hartman
Institute, a pluralistic center of research
and education in Jerusalem. Tal said
that hes not optimistic because the story
ends well, but because it hasnt ended. He
doesnt worry about outcome but about
process and who he is in the process.
Ms. Weintraub said she gained new respect
for the power of listening to different perspectives on the same event and realizing that
everyone has his or her own truth. Even in
our Jewish community at home, we are not
within our own little cocoon at JFNNJ but we
are an umbrella, and I believe its important
to embrace and understand everyone and
bring them under that umbrella.
The visitors started their trip in Zichron
Yaakov in the Haifa region, visiting members
of the Maoz Leadership Network, a voluntary
group of Israeli business, academic, and political leaders who are addressing seemingly

intractable socioeconomic challenges by

advancing social initiatives and reforms.
By weaving leadership learning from
individuals in the Maoz network into all the
issues we explored, many of the lessons the
fellows took home were about leadership and
understanding that no one owns the truth,
Ms. Freeman said.
In the north, the group toured Yemin Orde
Youth Village to learn about its educational
and leadership programs for at-risk young
people; met with participants and graduates
from the Hashomer Hachadash (New Guard),
a voluntary organization helping farmers and
ranchers protect their land in the Negev and
the Galilee; spoke with Israeli philanthropist
Amir Elstein and with an official from the
strategic planning board of Safed, and met
with Arab educational leaders.
Moving on to Jerusalem, the group had several study sessions at the Hartman Institute,
learning about the complexities of life and
politics in Israel. Shabbat dinner was hosted
by Rabbi Donniel Hartman, president of the
institute and author of Putting God Second:
How to Save Religion from Itself.
Continuing in Jerusalem, the Berrie Fellows spoke with the citys mayor, Nir Barkat; Maoz Network member Elisheva Mazya,
the CEO of Ruach Hadasha (New Spirit), an
organization working to strengthen Jerusalem as a social and cultural center, and other
dignitaries including former senior Foreign

Local
Affairs Ministry adviser Ashley Perry.
Marcy Cohen of Englewood, 44, came
away with a feeling of hopefulness after a dinner at the Jerusalem home of Wendy Singer,
executive director of Start-Up Nation Central, which connects companies and countries to people and technologies in Israel
that can solve their most pressing challenges.
(Ms. Singers husband, Saul Singer, co-wrote
Start-up Nation: The Story of Israels Economic Miracle with Dan Senor.)
Ms. Singer was full of optimism about the
innovation taking place all over Israel and
especially in Jerusalem, said Ms. Cohen, a
member of the executive committee of Englewoods Congregation Ahavath Torah.
After a few days of hearing about harsh
realities of the Arab-Israeli conflict and security, Wendys talk was so uplifting, Ms. Cohen
continued. I work for MasterCard as vice
president of global digital communications,
and Start-Up Nation Central has matched
MasterCard with Israeli startups developing
online payment technologies. She cited this
as an example of the model working well, and
it was gratifying and humbling for me.
Ms. Singer told the Berrie Fellows about
efforts to tap into and support the technological and entrepreneurial talents of the chronically underemployed Arab and ultra-Orthodox populations in Jerusalem, and eventually

to bring their innovations to the attention of

Fortune 1000 corporations and governments
around the world.
Dan Shlufman of Tenafly, 52, observed
that despite the vast diversity among Israelis culturally, religiously, and politically, in
Israel he senses a strong feeling of cohesion he feels is lacking in the diaspora. In
North Jersey, he said, We dont have the
conflicts they have in Israel, but we also
dont have the sense of community that we
really need to thrive. The Jewish community is one, and as Berrie Fellows that is a
notion we can bring back with us.
A lunch with three members of the
Knesset, Israels Parliament, was an eyeopening experience for him. Even though
we have a picture of the Knesset being dysfunctional, it actually functions very well,
and there is a high level of respect for one
another which we didnt expect to see,
Mr. Shlufman, who is a mortgage banker
and real-estate attorney on the board of
the JFNNJ and an officer of the mens club
at Temple Emanu-El in Closter, said.
There are members from the far right
who wouldnt give up a single piece of dirt,
members from the far left who would give
back everything but Jerusalem, and also Arab
members, he said. In general, the leaders
we met all tied history to their leadership;

Speaking at a Shalom Hartman Institute project for Jewish and Arab

principals on coexistence and mutual
understanding are, from left, Andera
Biadse, principal of the Baka Al Garbia
High School, Dani Elazar, director of
the institutes Beeri Program, and Dr.
Dalia Fadila, president of Al Qasemi
Engineering and Science College in
the Haifa region.

they really believe that what went on here in

the past has a lot of influence for the future.
Jerusalems mayor talked about 3,000 years
of the citys history and how he feels responsible for all religions and people.
The community in diversity that they

witnessed paralleled what is occurring within

their own cohort, he added. Our group is
very diverse, and on the trip we have gotten very close despite strong religious and
political differences. Everyones been able
to accept others and its been a wonderful
bonding experience. Were all committed to
the cause of the Jewish people and Israel but
come at it from different angles.
Ms. Cohen said the fellows are eager to
invite several of the people they met to speak
in Bergen County. Weve heard such valuable insights that we will bring back, but how
much more significant it would be if we could
bring the people to our communities. When
you hear it face to face, its more impactful.
She noted that Canadian migr Sharren
Haskel, at 31 the youngest member of the
Knesset, already has been in New Jersey and
spoke to students at Solomon Schechter of
Bergen County in New Milford about leadership opportunities for women in Israel.
Ms. Cohen would like to invite Oded Revivi,
mayor of the municipality of Efrat in the Gush
Etzion bloc south of Jerusalem, a region surrounded by Arab villages and often the target
of terror attacks.
Mr. Revivi, who also heads the Foreign Desk
of the YESHA Council the umbrella governing organization of the Jewish communities in
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 7

Local

Living, learning, researching in Israel

23 YU undergraduate scientists work on high-level projects at Bar-Ilan
Abigail Klein Leichman

hat are the long-term

effec ts of kangaroo
care (skin-to-skin contact between mother and
baby) on levels of depression or anxiety
in siblings of multiple births? When she
interacts with her baby, how do a mothers
facial expressions affect their heart rates
and oxytocin levels?
These were two of the scientific questions that Chaya Apfel of Teaneck explored
during the Summer Science Research
Internship Program, a joint initiative of
Bar-Ilan University in Israel and Yeshiva
University in New York.
Twenty-three undergraduate science
majors from Yeshiva College (for men) and
Stern College for Women were selected to
participate in the internship program, now
in its sixth year.
The students gained hands-on experience in Bar-Ilans research laboratories
under the guidance of faculty members
from the Institute for Nanotechnology
and Advanced Materials, the Gonda (Goldschmied) Multidisciplinary Brain Research
Center, the Mina and Everard Goodman
Life Sciences Department, and the departments of engineering, mathematics, chemistry, physics, and computer science.
As in the past, the seven-week internship program was overseen by biomedical
engineer Dr. Ari Zivotofsky, associate professor in Bar-Ilans Interdisciplinary Brain
Science Program. Dr. Zivotofsky earned a
masters in Jewish history at Yeshiva University before he moved to Israel in 2000.
Our unique program gives talented U.S.
university science students the opportunity to become embedded in a high-caliber
Israeli university lab, thereby experiencing
rather than just hearing about what it
is like to live, learn, and research in Israel,
Dr. Zivotofsky said.
In the labs, they become part of a team
and contribute to the ongoing projects.
Spending their summer with a like-minded
group of peers fosters an unparalleled
commitment to research, Israeli science,
and religious Zionism.

Summer Science Research Interns from Bergen County, left to right: Netanel Paley, Yoni Schwartz, Tamar Felman, and
Chaya Apfel of Teaneck, and Ilana Karp of Fair Lawn.

Based on the students interests and academic experience, Dr. Zivotofsky matched
them with appropriate mentors and
research assignments.
I have learned some very practical techniques that are used in psychology research, Ms. Apfel, a Stern senior,
reported. This includes how to use EEGs,
heart monitors, and several different computer programs for coding videos, setting
up different parts of experiments, and analyzing the data.
She was assigned to professor Ruth
Feldmans developmental social neuroscience lab.
What has been really fascinating is seeing the techniques and experiments that I
have read about in my textbooks actually
come to life, Ms. Apfel said. It was also

interesting to see the very real, emotional

side of experiments and research.
When evaluating anxiety and depression forms, I had to inform my supervisor
whenever a participant had a score that
fell into the range of having one of the
disorders. My supervisor, who took care
to know each participant, would have to
call up the participant (or his or her parent, depending on the age) to inform them
of their score. My supervisor took care
with each phone call that she made and I
could tell that each abnormal score really
affected her. I used to think research was
very technical and emotionless, but I now
see the humane, caring side of research.
Ms. Apfel said she hopes to make aliyah
some day. Having this program in Israel
is a tremendous opportunity as I get to see

and experience the day-to-day and career

life of Israelis, she said.
Tamar Felman of Teaneck, also entering
her senior year at Stern, was placed in professor Sharon Gannots electrical engineering lab. The lab researches speech and signal processing.
I spent time studying how to record
impulse responses in Bar-Ilans Acoustics
Lab and learned how to simulate such an
experiment virtually using a multipurpose
software platform that can solve physicsbased problems, she said.
Throughout my college career, I have
been exploring different fields of engineering, trying to get a taste for what
interests me most, she added. The Summer Research Internship Program gave
me the chance to expose myself to what

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8 Jewish Standard AUGUST 12, 2016

Local

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Yoni Schwartz at his internship laboratory.

engineering entails in a more hands-on way.

Through working in the lab and visiting Israeli
companies like Teva Pharmaceuticals and Israel Aerospace Industries, the program helped me become
more familiar with some of the many engineering
career options there are.
During weekly field trips, participants also visited
the government-sponsored Agriculture Research
Organization (Volcani Center) and dug for a day at the
Tel es-Safi/Gath archaeological site. In the evenings,
they had the opportunity for Torah study at YUs Jerusalem campus, where they were housed.
One thing I enjoyed most about this program was
that it took place in Israel, Ms. Felman said. Not only
did I get a chance to further my academic studies and
research experience, I got to do it all surrounded by
my brothers and sisters in a land that I love.
Other interns from Bergen County were Netanel
Paley and Yoni Schwartz of Teaneck, who worked in
the labs of nanotechnology professor Galit ShohatOphir and medical diagnostics professor Gad Miller,
respectively; and Ilana Karp of Fair Lawn, who studied the protein structures and potassium channel of
a toxin in the lab of chemistry professor Jordan Chill.
Ms. Karp, a Stern sophomore, said she found her
work fascinating, because we are not only able to
identify tiny particles that are invisible to even most
microscopes, but we are even able to distinguish
between them despite the numerous numbers in a
single protein. I have learned a lot of new laboratory
techniques and have had exposure to science that Ive
never seen before.
She added that her internship has helped her identify what areas of science she might like to pursue as
a career.
The YU-BIU program adds so much to the existing science and research education of our students,
including the world-famous research base, the highlevel mentorship and a strong peer group, said Dr.
Karen Bacon, dean of the undergraduate faculty of
arts and sciences at Yeshiva University.
The BIU-YU Summer Science Research Internship
Program is partially funded by the J. Samuel Harwit
& Manya Harwit Aviv Charitable Trust of Los Angeles,
as well as by Dr. Mordecai D. Katz, a YU graduate and
chairman emeritus of the Bar-Ilan Global Board of
Trustees, and his wife, Dr. Monique C. Katz.

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Local

Yachad/Jewish Home work

together on vocational curriculum
Federation grant will enable people with special needs
to gain competitive advantage by obtaining a certificate
Lois Goldrich
While the Jewish Home Family
already enjoys a strong relationship
with Yachad, the two groups new
joint venture offering vocational
training to people with special
needs will take that partnership
to a new level, Sunni Herman, the
Jewish Homes executive vice-president, said.
With a grant from the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey,
the two organizations are banding together to offer a certificate
Sunni Herman
Chani Herrmann
program giving people with special needs the skills they require to
obtain paid employment.
him for a lifetime Sunni likened the new
It all began when Chani Herrmann, the
certificate program to teaching someone
director of New Jersey Yachad a projto fish.
ect of the Orthodox Union that promotes
We at the Jewish Home have a practice
inclusion for children and adults with
of hiring individuals with special needs,
disabilities in the broader Jewish comshe said. We look to see their educamunity and Sunni Herman connected
tional background and experience to see
at a program run by the Berrie Fellows
how theyll fit. We thought, wouldnt it
Leadership Program. (We note that the
be great to create some sort of certificate
two women, who are not related, have
program for people in the dietary and
confusingly similar last names. Thats
housekeeping departments? They would
why were using their first names here.)
then have a competitive advantage to be
One of the programs goals is to bring prohired in these areas.
fessionals working in different corners of
At the time, she said, the federation was
the community into a more cohesive,
putting out requests for proposals and
unified group.
theres a category specifically for Jewish
Bergen County is an extraordinary
continuity and engagement for special
Jewish community in terms of connectneeds individuals. The idea of the certifiing different Jewish organizations, lookcate program was warmly embraced.
ing out for different populations, the
The project will target young adults
Jewish Homes Sunni Herman said. Volwith an array of abilities and help them
unteers from Yachad work with the activibecome job-ready, said Eve Yudelson,
ties department at the Jewish Home, and
Yachads New Jerseys director of vocational programs, which now works with
help with rehab and with dietary services.
people from 20 to 50 years old. Its very
Chani and I spoke about what we could do
exciting. Among other services, her
beyond the volunteer experience to elevate it to the next level.
department offers one-to-one on-site job
The Berrie Program made a huge
coaching to help them hit the ground running, equine-assisted learning activities
impact on me, Yachads Chani Herrmann
to help people bridge the gap between
said. It opened up doors to meeting
themselves and others, internships both
other professionals, and the structure of
at nonprofit organizations and small
the program allowed for us to get to know
local businesses, and travel training, to
each other in a meaningful way. Meeting
help members cope with transportation
Sunni was the first step in this new partnership. We did not know at the time that
arrangements.
this would be something that would bring
Were working toward 100 percent
our two organizations together in a way
paid employment, Ms. Yudelson said.
that helps facilitate inclusion in the workThe partnership with the Jewish Home
place for young men and women with
may have been born locally, but it will
special needs.
have legs everywhere, giving participants
Drawing on a concept put forth by Maia grounding in both customer service
monides neatly summed up in the sayand interpersonal skills. In other words,
ing, Give a man a fish and you feed him
Yachad, which is dedicated to inclusion
for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed
in every part of Jewish life, now will take
10 Jewish Standard AUGUST 12, 2016

Eve Yudelson

its efforts one step further, helping young

adults with special needs transition to
adult life.
The certificate program will take place
over 12 weeks, including both classes and
hands-on experience. Ms. Yudelson envisions offering these classes three times a
year, with a maximum of five students in
each cohort. She stressed that while the
goal is for students to learn the handson core competencies one needs in the
housekeeping or customer service industries, more important than getting the certificate is gaining the knowledge. Those
who struggle can always go into the next
cohort and keep trying, she said.
While the venture is still in the planning stages, were planning a program
so good it should be able to work for any
job, she continued. Getting a certificate
will mean something outside of the Jewish Home. Or it might lead to a job at the
Jewish Home itself. To help give Yachad
members the social skills they need to
be valued workers, the organization also
has created additional social events that
provide more opportunities for inclusion
and friendship.
Yachad is writing the curriculum for the
pilot certificate program with input from
the Jewish Home. For special needs people
looking to enter the working world, we
can help them gain skills, Ms. Yudelson
said, adding that her vocational program
also helps them develop coping mechanisms and negotiate the world around
them. Its part of transitioning.
Yachad staff are shadowing our managers in dietary and housekeeping to see
how we provide orientation and special
training for competencies, Sunni said.
They will develop a specific curriculum,
objectively looking at work flow, processes, how to use equipment, as well as

the social aspect. How do housekeepers interact with residents,

with families? How do dietary staff
interact both the technical and
social aspects?
She noted that the Yachad staff
will do the teaching, but Jewish
Home staff will be guest lecturers. For example, the human
resources director will talk about
the facilitys orientation procedure and the director of social
services will address customer
service and working with people
with dementia. Its very important to give people a chance to
succeed, to give them the tools
to succeed, she said.
New Jersey Yachad works with approximately 200 families with children 7
years old and up who have a wide range
of special needs, Chani Herrmann said.
Services include parent support groups,
sibling programs, parent seminars, inclusive weekend retreats (Shabbatons), fam-

It feels like the

right program at
the right time.
Its exciting to
be part of it.
ily retreats, social skills groups, afterschool
programming, and the growing vocational
services department. Yachad also offers
a free Birthright trip to Israel and a wide
range of inclusive summer programs.
The group has chapters in Bergen and
Middlesex counties, although it serves
people from across the state. As an agency
of the OU, we rely on their support as
well as on communal fundraising to provide the level of services that we do, she
said. Our vocational services department
does receive some government funding for
those who qualify.
The certificate program will begin the
week after Labor Day and will take place
on Wednesdays. We hope it will end with
a certification celebration, Ms. Yudelson
said. It feels like the right program at the
right time. Its exciting to be part of it.
For more information on the certificate
program, call New Jersey Yachad, (201)
833-1349, or email Eve Yudelson at yudelson@ou.org.

Local

Middle school students work on a project at Gerrard Berman day school.

The price is right

Gerrard Berman offers free
sixth-grade tuition to newcomers
LARRY YUDELSON

ey kids. How would you like

to try a new school?
A Jewish day school in
Oakland is hoping to recruit
new members of its sixth-grade class by
waiving tuition for new students.
We want to provide the opportunity
at the middle school level for a broader
range of enrollees, Robert Smolen said.
Mr. Smolen is head of school of the Academies at Gerrard Berman Day School
Solomon Schechter of North Jersey, affiliated with Conservative Judaism.
Sixth grade is the beginning of middle school, and a natural point to transition in or out of a school. Gerrard
Berman has had sixth-graders transfer
from the Rockland Jewish Academy
in West Nyack, N.Y., which only goes
through the fifth grade. Other new
sixth-grade students have made shifts
in their own personal Jewish study,
Mr. Smolen said.
With the new free tuition initiative,
the school hopes to raise its profile, and
to help rising sixth-graders and their
families consider becoming part of this
years class.
We have the staff, the resources,
the ability, so theres no reason we
shouldnt extend ourselves, Mr. Smolen said.
Sixth-grade tuition runs $17,730,
although not all families pay that rate.
On its website, the school promises
that it is committed to making its education accessible to all families with
financial aid.
Prospective new students shouldnt

worry about having missed out on years

of Hebrew language instruction. Were
taking them at their level of Hebrew,
Mr. Smolen said. Well have a special
mechina program for them. Mechina is
Hebrew for preparation. Well provide
for them a beginners level. We know
theyll be quick studies.
Last year, the Gerrard Berman middle
school had 28 students. Were looking

We want to
provide the
opportunity at
the middle
school level for
a broader range
of enrollees.
to bring on a dozen more, Mr. Smolen
said. Overall, the school has a little over
a hundred kids, he said.
The money for the tuition break is
coming from a special enrollment grant
that our board found funding for, Mr.
Smolen said. The board said, We have
funding. I said, If you have funding,
then Im going to promote it.
So far, Mr. Smolen hasnt heard any
reaction from the schools present parent body. But he expects them to be
positive. Every parent welcomes the
expansion of the community and the
opportunity for the classes to grow,
he said.

Discover more ways to

live well

at home.

Call for a free consultation 201.750.3077

Do you want to live independently and stay in your
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 11

Briefly Local
JHF begins driver assessment program

Koby Mandell

CHABAD

Tisha BAv documentary

Valley Chabad will screen a new
documentary, With My Whole Broken Heart, on Tisha BAv, Sunday,
August 14, at 7:30 p.m.
The film, produced by the Rohr
Jewish Learning Institute, tells the
stories of two Jewish teenagers who
were hiking near their homes in
Israel in 2001 when they were stoned
to death by Palestinian terrorists. A
few months later, those murders
were followed by the kidnapping
and murder of Wall Street Journal
reporter Daniel Pearl.

The film features interviews with

Daniel Pearls parents, Ruth and
Judea Pearl, and Sherri Mandell, the
mother of Koby Mandell, who was 13
when he was killed.
The 45-minute documentary
also follows the lives of two of the
youngest survivors of Auschwitz
and Buchenwald, Rabbi Yisrael Meir
Lau, former Israeli chief rabbi, and
Rabbi Nissan Mangel, an author and
rabbi in Brooklyn. For information,
go to Valleychabad.org or call (201)
476-0157.

JHR occupational therapist Happy

Thampikutty assists a client.
COURTESY JHF

assessment allows us to help individuals

and their families know when it is time to
stop driving as well as whether there are
ways we can help folks continue to drive
safely. Its a natural fit for us to offer this
new service, using our outstanding therapy staff to continue to work with the
older adults in our community wherever
they live.
For information or an appointment,
go to www.jewishhomefamily.org/driving, call (201) 518-1174, or email driving@
jewishhomefamily.org.

COURTESY BRIS AVROHOM

Daniel Pearl

The Jewish Home Family has launched a

driver assessment program to help older
adults and their families maximize driver
safety. The program, at the Jewish Home
at Rockleigh, offers of a battery of assessments to measure reaction times, vision,
range of motion, and cognition.
At the first stage, an occupational therapist gives a report than can include recommending special equipment to enhance
safety. The second stage takes place on the
road with an occupational therapist in a
dual-control vehicle, to assess road skills.
If a driver is found to be unable to continue driving, the Jewish Home will deal
directly with the physician, sparing family members having to do it themselves.
Independence specialists also will offer
advice on all the local safe transportation
options available.
We are here to objectively measure an
individuals abilities and to be there for
the client and their family during this very
sensitive decision-making process, said
Ilana Dallas, director of rehabilitation.
We know that more and more people
want to age in their homes, in the community, added Carol Silver Elliott, the Jewish
Home Familys president and CEO. Living in a spread-out world, getting around
for those at home can be complicated,
and people are understandably reluctant
to give up driving. Yet we also know their
skills may not be at a level that allows them
to drive safely.
Offering professional, clinical driving

The Leopold family, from left, Jordan, Brianna, Julie, Howie, and Hayley.
Another daughter, Malayna, is not pictured.
COURTESY JCCP/CBT

New lay leader for Paramus shul

Howard Howie Leopold of Oradell
was installed as president of the JCC of
Paramus/Congregation Beth Tikvah.
He and his wife, Julie, have been active
members of the shul for many years, and
their children attended religious school
there. Brianna Leopold now is a student
at the Bergen County High School of

Jewish Studies. Hayley and Malayna will

celebrate their bnai mitzvah in the fall.
Joining Mr. Leopold on the board are
vice presidents Wayne Zeiler, Gerry
Menter, and Robert Chananie; financial secretary Paul Duboff; treasurer
Stuart Smith, and recording secretary
Debbie Zeiler.

Tfillin presented to camp staff

A new pair of tfillin was given to Rabbi
Mendel Zaltzman, right, the director
of Bris Avrohom in Fair Lawn and the
Fair Lawn Day Camp, by Rabbi Mordechai Kanelsky, left, executive director of
Bris Avrohom in Hillside, and Shterney

Kanelsky, its associate director, who is not

in the photo, in memory of their daughter
Bat Sheva. The tfillin will be kept on hand
for the use of staff and attendees. Two
Fair Lawn Day Camp counselors stand
between the rabbis.

JFS schedules LinkedIn profile workshop and rsum class

Re-Launch Career Services, a program from
the Jewish Family Service of Bergen and
North Hudson, offers LinkedIn101, a free
workshop given by Kenneth Lang, a digital business analyst and project manager.

12 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

The workshop is on Thursday, August 18, at

7 p.m.; registration begins at 6:30.
Participants will learn the steps to create
a LinkedIn profile and how to enhance an
existing one, including the LinkedIn photo,

how to use the URL for a rsum, and how

to add an email address to a profile. Seating
is limited and registration is required.
Re-Launch Career Services offers oneon-one assistance in resume writing,

interview skills, job search techniques,

and more. All Re-Launch programs and
services are provided at no cost.
For information, call JFS at (201) 8379090 or email info@jfsbergen.org.

Local

Supplies and demand

Federation to fill backpacks for needy kids
Larry Yudelson

ere come the most painful five words that we

regularly write in this
newspaper: Its back to
school season.
Yes, were two weeks into the
second full month of summer or
three weeks until Labor Day. Which
means that people who plan ahead
are thinking about school.
Among such people who plan
ahead is Beth Figman, director of
volunteer services at the Jewish
Federation of Northern New Jersey. She has been planning a backto-school event that will take place
at the federations Paramus offices
on Tuesday, August 16, beginning
at 10 a.m.
The event is Supplies for Success and its goal is to prepare a
thousand backpacks filled with
school supplies for disadvantaged

children in North Jersey.

We probably will have about
a hundred people coming to help
pack, Ms. Figman said. Thats how
many came last year, when the federation prepared 550 backpacks.
This has grown exponentially,
she said. People seem to love the
idea of it.
The backpacks will be distributed
through 17 different schools and
organizations, including the nine
Hackensack and Teaneck schools
where the federation sends its Bergen Reads volunteers, the areas
Jewish family service agencies, local
food banks, and the Boys and Girls
Clubs of Paterson.
It costs $18 to sponsor a backpack,
Ms. Figman said. There have been
individual and corporate sponsors.
Representatives of some of the
recipient agencies will be at the
backpack-packing event on Tuesday.
Its really heart wrenching when

you hear someone say that a mom

has to decide between getting the
groceries she needs that week and
getting school supplies, she said.
Its an issue in northern New Jersey
that people arent aware of.
Broader issues of poverty and
school funding are often contentious. People easily get their head
around school supplies, Ms. Figman said. Its a tangible thing.
Helping the needy students is
the Jewish value of tikun olam,
she added.
The actual ordering of supplies is
being handled in conjunction with
the UJA-Federation of New York,
which has been running a similar
drive for years. The Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey orders
the same supplies from the same
outlet in Florida, and some additional goods among them socks
and pens being are donated by
local businesses.

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Jewish Standard AUGUST
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2016PM13

Editorial
On Tisha BAv

isha BAv finally is coming. Finally, this Saturday

night, it will begin.
Theres the same buildup to it every year, of
course, three weeks, then nine days, then the
day itself. But this year, everythings seemed so ominous
that it seems to have been looming on the horizon for
months. (And because the ninth of Av is Friday night, it
actually will be a day later than usual, starting on the 10th
of the month.)
In some ways, the days almost like a litmus test for Jews.
Its fair to say that in the Orthodox world, its as standard
a part of the calendar as any chag or other holiday. In
the liberal world, its far less compulsory. Many Jews have
never heard of it. Many think of it as a relic of a long-dead,
little-regretted past.
For others, it is a plunge back into Jewish camp.
There is something about sitting in the dark, on the
ground, surrounded by the people youve lived with for
weeks and soon will have to part from. Sitting on the grass,
maybe, near the lake, if there is one, hearing the sounds of
the crickets and the leaves and the water lapping up on the
shore. Seeing the light from all the flashlights maybe even
all the candles, actual flickering, guttering flames, if it was
long enough ago, or if you are at a camp that takes risks.
The trope to which we sing Eicha is hauntingly beautiful. It
takes the terrifying words of Eicha Lamentations, an aptly
named book which do not rise up to hope until the end,
after they pass through an abyss of desperation, despair, and
abandonment, and somehow make them beautiful too.
The other songs of mourning we sing that night also
haunt, songs of desolation, pleas for help.
The melodies linger in your head long after theyre
done, long after youve gotten up off the floor, brushed
off your clothes, and gone home to a foodless night and
day, a day that slowly swells up toward hope and future.
Its possible, people think, that Tisha Bav has been
saved, at least for observant liberal American Jews, by
summer camps. The beauty, the wildness, the words of
savagery, the moving up to comfort as it ends, combine
with memories of camp, of complete Jewish lives, away
from everything else, and are potent and powerful.
There is both irony and truth in long-ago ugliness remembered at least in part because it is combined with beauty.
Not everyone today is moved by the fast of Tisha BAv. It
is done in the hope of returning to the Temple sacrifices,
to Jewish life as it once was, before our long-ago enemies
destroyed it. Many of us are very glad that religious devotion does not involve blood and death; some of us can see
Tisha BAv as symbolic but others of us cannot.
All of us, though, can hope that the movement away
from Tisha BAv, toward comfort and hope, will see us
through the rest of this ghastly election season. We need
JP
hope. We need comfort.

Jewish
Standard
1086 Teaneck Road
Teaneck, NJ 07666
(201) 837-8818
Fax 201-833-4959
Publisher
James L. Janoff
Associate Publisher Emerita
Marcia Garfinkle

Editor
Joanne Palmer
Associate Editor
Larry Yudelson
Guide/Gallery Editor
Beth Janoff Chananie
About Our Children Editor
Heidi Mae Bratt

thejewishstandard.com
14 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

KEEPING THE FAITH

MPH: Miles per halacha

hen you get behind the wheel,

think Torah. It may save someones life perhaps even yours.
Those words seem even more
relevant today than when I first wrote them in 2010.
According to news reports, seven people died on New
Jersey roads last weekend, making it the worst weekend
so far in 2016.
The year itself is shaping up to be New Jerseys deadliest in quite a while. There have been 324 accidents and
341 deaths since January 1 50 deaths in just Bergen,
Passaic, and Hudson counties. In 2015, those numbers
were 291 and 309 respectively; there were 305 accidents
and 328 deaths until this point in 2014.
The 2014 total amounted to one death for every 70.2
miles of New Jerseys 39,042 miles of public roads. It
Jersey drivers actually said they believed that 75 mph is
also bucked a national trend, which had just recorded
a three-year low, according to State Police superinten- the real speed limit in the state.
dent Col. Joseph Rick Fuentes.
Then there are the texters and the talkers: In 2010, 21
In 2014, New Jersey recorded 523 fatal collisions
percent of Garden Staters admitted to sending text messages while driving. In 2015, according to a survey comthat resulted in 556 deaths, an increase over 2013, and
missioned by Plymouth Rock Assurance, that number
resulting in an average of 1.52 motor vehicle fatalities
had soared to 33 percent.
per day, Fuentes said.
Thirty-eight percent in the Plymouth Rock survey said
Neither bad weather nor winding roads were at fault,
they used handheld cell phones while driving.
according to the Fatal Accident Investigation Unit within the State Police. Two-thirds
That also was up from 2010, when the PublicMind Poll showed only 18 percent using
of the deaths occurred on straight roads,
handheld devices.
it said; about 80 percent of the accidents
For the record, a New England Journal
happened on clear days. Interestingly, said
of Medicine study some years ago found
the FAIU, nearly 71 percent of the drivers
that cellphone use of any kind increases
involved in fatal crashes were men.
the risk of an accident by 400 percent
Alcohol, on the other hand, was a factor
the same risk as the one posed by driving
in many of the 2014 deaths; 31.3 percent of
while intoxicated.
those who died had consumed some alcohol before getting in their cars. Of all driv- Rabbi
So where do the Torah and halacha
Shammai
ers, 12.2 percent were legally intoxicated.
come into this? It is simple, really: Bad
Engelmayer
This is not a great surprise. In 2010, 21
driving behavior not only violates state
percent of drivers responding to a Fairlaw, it also violates Jewish law. In a very
leigh Dickinson University PublicMind Poll admitted
real sense, the Torah (in this sense, both written and
to first drinking and then driving. The more educated
oral) prohibits speeding, driving under the influence,
among us were the worst offenders. According to a press
using cellphones, playing with onboard computer maps,
release accompanying the PublicMind Poll, 30 percent
looking at someone while talking to them and driving at
of respondents with a post-college education admit to
the same time, chomping on a hot dog, double-parking
it, as opposed to 20 percent of those who never gradu- on a busy street, parking in a crosswalk, or otherwise
ated college.
engaging in behavior behind the wheel that endangers
Speeding also is a factor. The poll showed that 84
lives or property.
percent of Garden State drivers push the pedal over 65
The Torahs main prohibition in this regard is found
miles per hour at least some of the time, while 47 per- in Exodus 21:33-34. When a man opens a pit, or digs a
cent go over 75 mph. An amazing 25 percent of New
pit and does not cover it, and an ox or an ass falls into
it, the one responsible for the pit must make restitution;
Shammai Engelmayer is the rabbi of Congregation Beth
he shall pay the price to the owner, but shall keep the
Israel of the Palisades in Cliffside Park.
dead animal.

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Founder
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Opinion
True, a pit is not a car, and besides, Moses
never heard of a car. The open pit, however,
represents all things with the potential for
causing harm.
Then there is the law of the parapet (see
Deuteronomy 22:8), which includes everything that is inherently dangerous and, in normal circumstances, could cause a person to
die, according to Maimonides. (See the Rambams Mishneh Torah, The Laws of Murder
and the Preservation of Life, Chapter 11:4.)
Because of these two laws especially, it is
correct to say the Torah bans handheld cell
phones in cars. Driving with one hand while
engaging in conversation is placing a dangerous hazard (a moving automobile) in a public domain; a cell phone in a car increases the
chances of an accident occurring.
How the Torah applies the open pit and the
parapet to matters automotive can be seen in
a responsum issued a half-century ago by the
late Rabbi Yitzchak Yaakov Weiss, the Min-

a driver who
exceeds the speed
limit, and thus
cannot stop his
car when it is
necessary, has the
legal status of
rodef, a pursuer
with the intent
to kill
RABBI YITZCHAK WEISS

chat Yitzchak, whose halachic rulings often

dealt with contemporary technological, social,
and economic matters.
Rabbi Weiss ruled that a driver who
exceeds the speed limit, and thus cannot stop
his car when it is necessary, has the legal status of rodef, a pursuer with the intent to kill.
The same applies to drivers who do not obey
traffic signs or who pass other cars in a hazardous fashion, or who drive without having
obtained a drivers license. Although they do
not willfully endanger other peoples lives,
they are in the category of rodef....
This also includes drivers who park their
cars in a way that poses a hazard to pedestrians or who park on the sidewalk, thereby forcing pedestrians to walk in the street. These are
classified as people who dig a pit in a public
domain.
The bottom line: Bad behavior behind the
wheel is like digging a hole in the ground, and
that hole could end up being someones grave.

The opinions expressed in this section are

those of the authors, not necessarily those of
the newspapers editors, publishers, or other
staffers. We welcome letters to the editor.
Send them to jstandardletters@gmail.com.

The courage to question

odern Orthodoxy takes pride in its intellectual

courage. We often say our ideology is based on a
willingness to confront new ideas and the ability
to manage, if not always resolve, conflicts between
religious tradition and current modes of thought.
But Orthodox Judaism, including its modern branch, is also said
to have its theological limits. Emotionally charged debates continue to flare up over acceptable beliefs and who may legitimately
display the Orthodox label.
Virtually all such discussions revolve around the origins of
Scripture and how to contend with the claims of modern biblical
scholarship. Gods incorporeality, for example, once was a major
point of contention in Jewish theology. But today, an Orthodox
writer who accuses another of rejecting the tenets of Jewish faith
is almost certainly referring to his targets nontraditional views of
the Bible. For the heresy hunter, secular biblical scholarship is the
last heresy standing.
As Jews who choose to live in what often seems like two irreconcilable intellectual worlds, we feel the full brunt of the issue. It
is up to us, especially our educators, to formulate a courageous
response.
Depending on the school and the community it serves, the
yeshiva educator who wishes to broach this topic may be in a delicate position and has several factors to consider: Do the risks of
proactively raising this issue outweigh the benefits? How will the
parent body react to the introduction of such controversial material? What if students begin to doubt all they have been taught
about the basic assumptions of Judaism? Might this new knowledge, even when refuted, lead students off the derech (off the
path; that is, to abandon religious observance)? If even one young
man or woman stops keeping Shabbat after learning about the
Documentary Hypothesis, would the effort be worth the cost? If
students do not seem troubled by the subject, a teacher may conclude, it would be foolish to stir up the hornets nest.
But a significant risk arises a risk that may manifest itself only
later when educators choose to ignore or defer discussion of an
issue that is all but certain to confront religious students at some
point in their lives. In Ad Ha-Yom Ha-Zeh (Until This Day),
a rich survey of this topic, Rabbi Amnon Bazak of Yeshivat Har
Etzion describes the anguish of some yeshiva alumni who encountered secular Bible studies in university for the first time:

Stay or go?
Frances Jewish community
agonizes over its choices

hould I stay or should I go?

If I stay there will be trouble, if
I go it will be double!
Those infamous words from
the Clashs 1981 hit Should I Stay Or Should I Go
were constantly on our minds during the recent
Jewish Federation of Northern New Jerseys mission to France.
The Jewish community is sadly divided by
the recent anti-Semitic violence that has taken
the country by storm, beginning over a threeweek period in January 2006 when Ilan Halimi,
a 26-year-old French Jewish cellphone salesman
was kidnapped, tortured, and murdered, in an
obvious act of anti-Semitism, by a group calling
itself the Gang of Barbarians. And while not all
the recent violence in France has targeted the
Jewish community exclusively, the community
nonetheless remains fearful, and in some cases

Exposure [to academic Bible

studies] may stimulate questions
that [some yeshiva graduates] consider unanswerable, and they may
react with shock and horror to the
destruction of the entire way of
thinking on which they were raised.
These graduates often direct their
anger at various stages of the reliDavid S.
gious educational system which
Zinberg
failed to prepare them in any way
for this struggle. I believe it is completely appropriate to expose our students at some point to the
fundamental questions [raised by biblical scholarship] the
problems and their proposed solutions. The questions will lead
them to a deeper and more truthful understanding of the Torah
on its own terms. At the same time, the questions will enable
students to establish a firm intellectual world one that is not
based on suppression which will allow them to formulate their
own pathway through that world. (My translation.)
Rabbi Bazak cuts a path through the thicket of textual problems
he lays out in every chapter of his book. But his particular solutions, he implies here, are not as important as the questioning process itself (the book is subtitled Fundamental Questions in Bible
Teaching). By demonstrating how to confront difficult problems
honestly, rather than suppressing sensitive matters or dismissing
problems with dogmatic answers, teachers model the intellectual
courage from which their students can draw, years after leaving
yeshiva. Courageous questioning, he adds, is not only a survival
skill, it is an avenue for spiritual growth. (Rabbi Bazak attributes
this idea to Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook.)
This, I think, is part of a larger lesson for our children and
students, which goes well beyond biblical criticism: The biggest
questions, including religious questions, tend not to have unique
solutions expressible in binary terms like true or false, good or
bad, permissible or prohibited. And to acknowledge and live
with a question that may not have a conclusive answer is an act
of courage.
David S. Zinberg lives in Teaneck with his wife and three sons. He
works in financial services.

traumatized, and in lock-down mode.

No Jewish institution can be found without
French army soldiers, fully decked out with assault
rifles, at its entrance. After the Charlie Hebdo attack
on January 7, 2015, and the attack at the Hyper
Cacher kosher supermarket a day later, Jewish
schools in Paris had soldiers living inside their buildings 24/7. That has left the students jittery to this day.
The Israel Trauma Coalition now has expanded its
service network to France, providing support and
counseling to families who have been traumatized
as a result of these attacks and the ongoing security that it hopes will help prevent further incidents.
These efforts are an attempt to secure the future of
the French Jewish community as its numbers are
beginning to dwindle.
And while record numbers of French Jews are
emigrating to Israel 8,000 went in 2015 many
more are staying put. After all, France has the third
largest Jewish population in the world, behind only
Israel and the United States. It is a community that
has been in place for well over a millennium and has
had full rights since the 1700s. What does it mean to
global Jewry if the third largest Jewish population in
SEE STAY OR GO? PAGE 17

Roberta
Abrams

Julie Lipsett
Singer

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 15

Opinion

We must take sides

Moms Demand Action works for common sense gun legislation

he Bergen County chapter of

them off at college? Make no mistake over
Moms Demand Action for Gun
the last few years, gun violence has become
Sense in America is a group that
personal for all of us.
works tirelessly on commonSo thats why Moms Demand Action is
sense gun legislation in this country. Moms
working day in and day out in every state
Demand Action was formed after the shootin this country and in Washington D.C. We
ing at Sandy Hook Elementary School that
demand universal background checks.
took the lives of twenty 6- and 7-year-old
Theres another false American mantra that
children. Today, just 3 1/2 years or so later,
goes We just need to enforce the gun laws
Sarah Nanus
Moms Demand Action has more than three
that already exist. But unfortunately, many
million members, with chapters in every
of those laws actually dont exist. Now,
state of our country.
under federal law, background checks are required only
Im the local group leader of the Bergen County chapfor sales conducted by licensed dealers. That means conter. When people hear that I choose to devote much
victed criminals and other dangerous prohibited purchasof my time to this organization, the first question they
ers and even kids are able to buy guns online or at gun
always ask me is why I do it. Why is this issue so imporshows without a background check no questions asked.
tant to me? Have I, or has somebody I love, been personNearly 40 percent of all gun sales in this country occur
ally affected by gun violence? And the simple answer to
without a background check. That means almost half of
that question, thank God, is no. But the real truth is that
all gun sales are totally unmonitored.
I take the gun violence in this country that threatens our
The second question people generally ask me, after they
children, and our families, and our loved ones, and our
understand why Ive become so invested in this issue,
friends, and our acquaintances, and our police officers
is, But are you making any progress? And the simple
every day very personally.
answer to that one, thank God, is yes.
I distinctly remember the moment I heard about the
Moms Demand Action isnt just waiting around for
shooting at Sandy Hook. I was in the parking lot of my chilour federal government to get moving. We already have
drens elementary school, Solomon Schechter Day School
helped to close the background check loophole in at least
of Bergen County. I was about to pick up my kindergarsix states.
tener. She was just the same age as many of those children
Weve helped pass laws that keep guns out of the hands
who wouldnt be coming home to their families that night.
of domestic abusers in at least 13 states.
And it hit me in an instant that this shooting could have
Weve blocked the gun lobbys efforts to pass more than
just as easily taken place at our school. In our classrooms.
60 dangerous state laws, which wouldve breezed right
And I realized that as a parent and as a Jew, I had to step
through otherwise.
up and start doing something.
Weve convinced at least a dozen very significant AmeriI realized that there is a serious problem of unrestricted
can businesses to enact guns not welcome policies.
gun access in our country. If I didnt do something, who
Weve persuaded Facebook and Instagram to monitor
would? If I didnt step up to protect my children, then I
the gun advertising and promotions that take place on
was just as much to blame as anyone else.
their platforms more closely.
When you think of our most basic Jewish principles
And in June, when our Congress finally decided to lis the ones that have been taught to us, repeated to us
ten to the American people, and took to the House floor
throughout our lives what comes to mind?
to start fighting hard for universal background checks,
I can tell you what comes to my mind: Do not stand
which more than 90 percent of Americans want, Moms
idly by the blood of your neighbor, from Leviticus 19.
Demand Action drove in more than 100,000 phone calls
Right?
in just seven hours to our members of Congress, showing
If I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now,
our resolve and support.
when? from the Talmud.
This is not a sprint. This is a marathon. But let me tell
Thats a big one.
you something, we are taking our country back.
And how about another quote from the Talmud: You
When Moms Demand Action first started, you couldnt
are not obliged to finish the task, neither are you free to
beg a politician running for office to include gun violence
neglect it.
prevention in his or her platform. It was the third rail of
I see Moms Demand Action as embracing our most
politics. Politicians were so fearful that the NRA would
basic Jewish principle of tikun olam. There is something
sabotage their campaign if they simply mentioned combroken in our world that must be repaired. Every single
mon sense gun laws. And now, just three years later, the
day, 91 people in America are killed by guns. Ninety-one.
politicians are calling us: What can we do? What events
That means that Americans are 25 times more likely to be
can you help us put together? Im putting gun violence
murdered with a gun than are people in other developed
prevention into my stump speech. Its what my constitucountries. Twenty-five times. Theres a false American
ents want. Lets work together.
mantra that goes Guns make us safer. But in actuality,
Let me remind you of a time, not so long ago, when
a gun in the home is 22 times more likely to be used in an
smoking was everywhere. In movie theaters, in stadiums,
unintentional shooting or suicide than to be used effecin airplanes, in schools. Sounds familiar, doesnt it? There
tively in self-defense.
were rumblings about how unsafe this was for our chilId like to venture a guess that Im not the only one
dren and our families, but what could we do? The tobacco
who takes gun violence personally. You may never have
industry was so strong! This was a mainstay of our econthought about it in these terms before, but who here
omy and of our way of life! Well look how far weve come
thinks twice now before going to the movies, or walking
in just one generation to safeguard our loved ones. We
into a big stadium, or getting on line in the airport? Who
will do it again.
gives their children or grandchildren an extra kiss these
And finally, after I explain to people why I do what I do,
days before putting them on the school bus or dropping
and that its really been worth my time, they often ask, Is
16 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

there anything I can do to help? And the answer to that

questions couldnt be simpler.
Its yes.
Simply go to www.momsdemandaction.org and click on
join us or take action, and youll be on your way. You
can give as much time or as little time to the cause as you
feel comfortable giving. Some people feel more comfortable just making a donation. As I said before, this cause
is very personal. And please dont let the name fool you,
Moms Demand Action is not just for moms. Its also for
dads, and grandparents, and aunts, and uncles, and teachers, and anyone else who wants to stand up for our kids
and say Enough.
This November we are approaching an incredibly crucial election, of course on the national level but also on the
state and local levels. If gun violence prevention is important to you, the single best thing you can do is to educate
yourself on how your candidates have voted on gun safety
laws in the past, and how they say they plan to vote in the
future. Then, you vote accordingly.
Call your representatives, call your senators, call your
candidates, and ask them if they support universal background checks for all gun purchases. Then, when you

Moms Demand Action

isnt just waiting
around for our federal
government to get
moving. We already
have helped to close
the background
check loophole in at
least six states.
go to the polls in November, if this issue is important to
you, vote only for candidates who support universal background checks for all gun sales.
We can change our laws, but only if we have leaders
in office who have gun sense. And fortunately, because
we live in an area where almost all of our candidates support the Jewish community and support Israel, we have
the luxury of putting other important issues like this one
at the top of our list when we consider our votes.
As we all know, Elie Weisel, very beloved and influential Jewish icon, recently died, and when that happened
our Facebook feeds and other reading materials have
been filled with his wisdom and words. But the one quote
that keeps capturing my attention is We must speak, we
must take sides. For neutrality helps the oppressor, never
the victim.
As moms, as dads, as grandparents, as Jews we must
speak. We must take sides.
Sarah Nanus is the local group leader of the Bergen County
chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America
and a member of Cohort 4 of the Berrie Fellows Leadership
Program. She lives in Tenafly with her husband, David,
and their three children and belongs to Temple Emanu-El
of Closter.

Opinion

Was Bar Kamzta right?

its leaders (and populace) allowed him to be

ere approaching Tisha Bav,
shamed?
the day of mourning for the
A different Talmudic passage, from Baba
destruction of Gods Temple
Metzia, offers some insight. The Torah in
in Jerusalem and nineteen
Leviticus commands, You shall not wrong
centuries of Jewish exile.
one another. This refers to verbal oppresAnd Im wondering whether Bar Kamtza
sion, the Talmud explains. It elaborates that
was right.
embarrassing someone is akin to killing them.
It was because of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza
Then it tells the story of Rabbi Eliezer being
that Jerusalem was destroyed, the Talmud
Larry
shunned by his colleagues and retaliating
says.
Yudelson
in shame and anger by summoning a wave of
Heres the story of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza.
Divine devastation and death.
Once upon a time, a man threw a party in Jerusalem. He meant to invite his friend Kamtza.
Why were his angry prayers answered?
Instead, the invitation was delivered to Bar Kamtza, who
All the gates of heaven are locked, the passage concludes,
showed up for the party. The host asked him to leave. Bar
except for the gates of oppression.
Kamtza begged to be spared the embarrassment of being
Given that God so evidently hates verbal oppression and
evicted. He would pay for his meal. Heck, he would pay for
emotional insult, why did the rabbis not speak up to defend
half of the party. Just dont make him leave. Dont embarrass
Bar Kamtzas honor?
him in front of everyone.
Rabbi Zechariya appears to excuse rabbinic inaction.
The host didnt compromise. Bar Kamtza was evicted.
Where is the halachic obligation to protest in the face of
And Bar Kamtza, seeing that the rabbis attending the party
meanness? Sure, the Torah commands you should not
didnt protest, plotted his revenge not against the host but
oppress, which the Talmud understands to mean even
against the entire Jewish people. When a Roman official sent
through words. And the Torah commands you should love
an animal to be sacrificed in the Temple, Bar Kamtza subtly
your fellow as yourself, which Hillel taught means not to do
maimed it, disqualifying it as an offering.
what is hateful to you to someone else. Surely Bar Kamtzas
As the Talmud tells the story in tractate Gittin, the rabenemy, the surly host, transgressed these commands.
bis who oversaw the Temple worship debated. Should they
But where is it written that the rabbis must protest injustice? There is no specific mitzvah, no Mishnah, no line in
accept the animal nonetheless, breaking the law this one
Tractate Sanhedrin demanding that rabbis speak out against
time for the greater good?
offenses before God particularly one thats not happening
Rabbi Zecharia ben Avkolos was a stickler for rules. The
in the name of religion. The party Bar Kamtza accidentally
law should not be set aside, he insisted. Instead, the sacrifice was rejected, the Romans were infuriated, and the
crashed was not held in a synagogue catering hall.
Roman war machine moved into motion and destroyed
And yet: God didnt block Bar Kamtzas revenge against
Jerusalem and the Temple.
the rabbis. As the Talmuds telling of the Temples destruction continues, all the auguries foretold that the Romans
For Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai, who escaped Jerusalem
would conquer Jerusalem and destroy the Temple.
and rebuilt Judaism after the destruction, the villain was
Why?
Rabbi Zecharia. The unnamed host, by contrast, is not
This is where its important to remember the role played
directly fingered by the Talmud. Perhaps bad behavior by
by the rabbis of the time at least as understood by the later
wealthy people is expected.
rabbis who wrote the Mishna and Talmud. The rabbis were
But what about Bar Kamtza himself?
at the top of the leadership pyramid. They told the priests
Why isnt he declared the villain?
how to act. They effectively supervised the Temple.
Could it be that his complaint against the Jewish community was not unfounded? Did not God allow Bar Kamtzas
The Temple was a material sign of Gods presence miracles took place there daily (according to Pirkei Avot.) The
anger to be acted out, ultimately deciding that Bar Kamtza was right: Jerusalem deserved to be destroyed because
rabbis, as arbiters of the Temple, were custodians of Gods

presence and God, by being present in the Temples, was

asserting to rabbinic leadership.
The silence of the rabbis was intolerable to God.
To have reduced Gods concerns to the blemishes on a
calf and to ignore the Divine calls for justice, mercy, and
empathy was blasphemy.
Better for God to evacuate the Temple than to provide
false witness.
In other words, Bar Kamtza was right.
If the rabbinic leaders were unable to live up to their
responsibilities, they didnt deserve Gods presence or
Gods blessings on their institutions.
Which brings us to the question: are our rabbis and other
leaders are we passing the Bar Kamtza test?
When feelings were hurt, which side were we on?
Were we silent when bullies struck?
Did we side with the victims or the cover-up?
Did we run to help the powerful and look away when the
powerless needed help?
Did we hide behind the excuse its complicated when
confronted with the tears of the oppressed?
Because the lesson Bar Kamtza is that our mightiest institutions can, and will be, obliterated by the grief and pain
and anger of the shamed and oppressed.
Larry Yudelson of Teaneck is the associate editor of the
Jewish Standard. He seldom throws large parties.

Northern New Jersey. What motivates us, day after day

and year after year, to raise money for Jewish needs?
What motivates us to leave our families and travel
around the world to experience the reach of our communal philanthropic dollars? This is it! Edith is it!
Knowing that no matter what each individual Jew in
France chooses to do to stay or to go the federation
and all our donors will help secure the community for
those who stay and also secure a soft landing in Israel
for those who go.
This indecisions killing me. If you dont want me set
me free!
Who knew the Clash would be so prophetic about the
Jewish community of France?

Stay or Go?
FROM PAGE 15

the world disperses? This is an important question that

we are left to ponder.
The issue of what French Jews should do illustrated
the old adage ask two Jews one question and get three
answers. While many refuse to leave, others refuse to stay.
And then there are those who are waiting to see whats
next. They are waiting for one more incident to help make
their decision. Unfortunately, this is not a new story.
The situation is complicated, to say the least. And we
are glad we were able to witness it firsthand, even though
it often was depressing to confront the fear and anger
of those we met. But there also were incredibly uplifting moments. Like when our delegation participated in
handing out passports and plane tickets, on behalf of the
Jewish Agency for Israel and the government of Israel, to
220 people making aliyah. That included Edith, our new
adoptive bubbe, who could barely walk without assistance, but cheered and chanted Yisrael, Yisrael, Yisrael while dreaming of at last going to the homeland of

This triumphal procession, as Roman carry spoils

theyve taken from the Temple, is on the inside wall
of the Arch of Titus in Rome.
WIKIPEDIA

Julie Lipsett Singer sits with Edith, a French Jew

whom she calls her new adoptive bubbe.

the Jewish people. Edith couldnt stop kissing and hugging us and patting our cheeks to thank us for this new
lease on life at 87!
People often ask why we have devoted ourselves to
the federation system through the Jewish Federation of

Roberta Abrams of Montvale has been an active member

of Jewish Federation of Northern New Jerseys board of
trustees for many years. She is now the federations vice
president of financial resource development.
Julie Lipsett-Singer is chief development officer at the
Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey.
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 17

Cover Story

My Name Is
Asher Lev
Fort Lee high school student talks about JCC production
and how hes come to be its intern producer

Joanne Palmer
rt is about very many
things pontificating
about it is done at the
pontificators own great
risk but one of those
things is the minuet
between the specific and the universal.
Those two allies and enemies step and
pivot and bow to each other, glance and
look away, flirt and glare.
Sometimes the subject of a work of art is
that dance, sometimes subtly, sometimes
not so much. My Name Is Asher Lev, the
play, written by Aaron Posner and based
on Chaim Potoks novel about a chasidic
boys need to chose between his tradition
and his life as an artist, is entirely straightforward about the conflict.
It, like many other plays, books, and
movies like, for example, to be obvious,
Fiddler on the Roof tries to use the
specificity of its setting and characters to
tell a more general story about the eternal
internal struggle between tradition and
change.
So it makes great sense that when Ariel
Abergel of Fort Lee wanted to produce a
play at the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades in
Tenafly this summer, he picked My Name
is Asher Lev. (See box for details.)
Is anything ever entirely straightforward, though? Ariels not your ordinary
theatrical producer. Hes 16 years old, a
rising junior at the Solomon Schechter
School of Westchester in Hartsdale, N.Y.,
and hes interning as a producer, under
the tutelage of Deborah Roberts of Tenafly,
the JCCs longtime drama school director.
And to be clear, its not as if Asher Levs
story is Ariels. Hes not chasidic, his father
does not disapprove of him, and he is not
planning to ditch a Jewish life to forge
another one as an artist. Hes planning to
bring them together. Still, there are parallels, hints, and echoes.
Ariel is the much youngest of the five
children of Lydia and Joseph Abergel. His
18 Jewish Standard AUGUST 12, 2016

Ariel Abergel goes over the script for My Name is Asher Lev.

oldest sibling is 33 and the next youngest is 22; all have been married and his
parents have eight grandchildren. He is
in the enviable position of being part of
a large family and growing up as an only
child. His father is an art dealer, focusing mainly on contemporary art, a calling
that demands much travel from both parents, so Ariel has a well-exercised sense of

James Janoff

independence.
His parents both were born in Morocco;
they, both sets of grandparents, and other
siblings settled in Fort Lee decades ago,
when his parents were young. His family forms the core of the growing Moroccan community in town. His grandfather, Rabbi Simon Abergel, who died at
93 two years ago, founded the Sephardic

Congregation of Fort Lee.

Ariel, though, has forged his own religious path. He started at an Orthodox
day school but soon transferred to the
Solomon Schechter Day School of Bergen
County, where he feels more at home. Im
proud to consider myself a Conservative
Jew, he said; that does not stop him from
loving and appreciating the Sephardic
Orthodox community that surrounds him.
Ever since he was young, Ariel said, he
has known that the theaters potent magic
was what he wanted. I saw my first Broadway show, Mary Poppins, when I was 7,
and ever since then Ive always been fascinated with all aspects of the theater. I
remember watching her Mary Poppins
fly into the mezzanine, and I remember thinking that I just wanted to be in the
room where that happened.
I turned to my mother at intermission,
and I said that I wanted to be in the theater. And the first thing that we did was go
to the JCC we already were members
and we met Deb Roberts.
Ms. Roberts has an extraordinarily deft
touch with children; under her tutelage,
they discover things not only about theater they learn a great deal about theater but also about themselves. Her
classes bring together children and teenagers from a wide range of Jewish backgrounds. Thats one of the things thats so
great about the JCC, Ariel said. No matter what denomination of Judaism people
come from, they just come together here
and spend their days together.
Ariel took musical theater and acting
classes with Deb for a few years, he said,
and then it got to the point where I said
that I love acting, and I would love to experience more of the theater.
Acting, he said, is in some ways and
necessarily self-centered. (Ariel does not
sound like someone his age, but he really
is 16, and this is really what he says and
how he thinks.)
Being an actor is like being at the center of a very big circle, and I dont know

whats waiting for me outside that circle, he said.

When youre an actor, it has to be
all about you, about making yourself
look great instead of making the show
look great, and thats not who I am. Its
all about perfecting your own personal
craft, which is a very exciting thing to
do but there is so much more that
adds to the magic of theater.
Deciding that he wanted to expand his
horizons two years ago, when he was 14,
I spent the summer as an intern at Goldstar Talent Management, a talent management company in Columbus Circle in Manhattan, run by the husband-and-wife team
of Lynn and Sid Gold.

I talked to clients when he wasnt able

to, Ariel said. Werent they taken aback
when they see that they were talking to,
well, a kid? Most of the business was
done over the phone, Ariel said. They
didnt necessarily know.
Ariel has gone to the last two conventions of the International Model and TalSid Gold
ent Association. A manager from L.A.
and I were chatting during the convention,
recommend anyone to me again, Ill take
and at one point he asked me if I wanted to
him right away. I dont care if hes 8 years
go to a bar tonight with a few other managold.
ers, Ariel said. I said I cant. Im underOh, and something else everyone says
age. Im 16. And he said I thought you
when they talk about Ariel. This time, its
were at least 22.
Mr. Gold. Hes a real mensch, he said.
When he finished that internship, Ariel
Sid introduced me to many agents
started ninth grade; because the Bergen
and casting directors in the industry, and

I said Deb, if you ever recommend

anyone to me again, Ill take him right
away. I dont care if hes 8 years old.
Someone recommended Ariel to me,
Sid Gold said. Deb Roberts. She said If
you want an intern, I have someone really
great. I said Great. How old is he? She
said 14. I said Oh no. Thats not possible. Thats too young. Thats impossible.
To make a long story longer, I said okay,
and then afterward I said Deb, if you ever

From the left, Ariel talks with the director, Marci Elyn Schein; the plays three actors, Valerie Stack Dodge, Nathan Gardner, and Mark J. Quiles, read through the
script; Ariel and Mark Quiles sit together at the productions first table read.
PHOTOS BY James Janoff
Jewish Standard AUGUST 12, 2016 19

Cover Story

At a Culture Club lunch-and-learn, students and faculty members Skyped with

New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley. 
Courtesy Ariel Abergel

Culture Club members beam outside the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, where
theyve just seen Spring Awakening. 
Courtesy Ariel Abergel

Ariel with empty frames for Asher

Lev; the art inside them is left to each
viewers imagination.
James Janoff

Schechters Dr. Bill Blank and Ariel

Abergel at the opening of Ariels play
in Stamford.
Courtesy Ariel Abergel

County Schechter does not have a high

school, he went to the Schechter in Westchester. His commute was long and he
plunged himself into activities at school,
so he had to give up his classes at the JCC.
Toward the end of his freshman year,
Ariel started the Culture Club. Our mission is to broaden and strengthen the cultural experiences of the students in our
community, to take them to the theater,
to introduce them to forms of art they
wouldnt have been influenced by if it
hadnt been for clubs such as this one.
The clubs first activity was a 13-member outing to The 39 Steps on Broadway. Both students and faculty are part
of the club, and faculty often go on the
trips which are on school nights, not to
Sunday matinees, which are more practical but less exciting not as chaperones
but as participants. Not all of them loved
the show, but we kept hearing how good
it is to be out of school together with faculty members as friends, as one community. Not only do we see theater even
if someone doesnt like what we see, it
will be a great night, because the faculty
get to know their students better, and the

students get to know the faculty better.

The Culture Club also hears from prominent artists and critics. This year we
Skyped with Ben Brantley, the New York
Times chief theater critic, and Michael
Riedel, the critic for the New York Post,
actually came in to meet with us.
How did he know these people? I
didnt. I just cold call. I never expect them
to respond but Ive learned that these
people are just people. We dont realize
that but they are.
Last school year, the club went on one
outing each month; this year Ariel hopes
to arrange two a month. The idea is to
make people happy, and to let them know
that we are next door to one of the greatest
cities in the world. We have to take advantage of that. And if we dont the arts will
collapse. We cant let that happen.
There are very few aspects of the theater that dont interest Ariel. He also writes
plays; this summer, his second short play,
When They Dimmed The Lights, which
follows a boy and a girl on their first date
for 15 minutes in real time, won first place
at the Palace Theatres annual Emerging Young Artists competition, and it was

20 Jewish Standard AUGUST 12, 2016

staged at the theater, in Stamford, Conn.

The honor also came with a $2,000 prize.
Ariel is close to Dr. Bill Blank, his school
psychologist, who is a former actor, a
Tisch graduate, a Culture Club member,
and its incoming faculty adviser. He really
needs to become a Broadway producer,
Dr. Blank said. He is instantly likeable,
hard working, and always figures out a
way to get things done. If the answer is no,
he figures out a way to yes. He will be an
absolute force to be reckoned with.
To that end, Ariel applied for an internship with a producer this summer. He was
accepted, and everything was on track
until the producer learned that her lawyer,
fearing liability issues, said that she could
not have a 16-year-old in the office. I was
scared that I wouldnt have anything to do
this summer, Ariel said. So I thought,
Why dont I just produce my own show?
He talked to Ms. Roberts, and together
the two of them decided that he would
intern as a producer at the JCC. They
looked at a list of possible plays, and I
said, I am Asher Lev, Ariel said. Its one
boys struggle between art and faith.
When I read the blurb about the play,
I thought, well, this is a version of me, but
reading it, I thought, this is me, he added.
The reason I love Asher Lev is because it
so specific to the community, yet it is such
a universal play. I think that anyone who
sees it will be touched by it, no matter what
their religion, race, or sexual orientation.
Its many peoples story, Ms. Roberts
confirmed. Thats true whether or not the
details are completely accurate. In Ariels
case, many of them are accurate.
I have always been extremely interested
in Chaim Potoks work, and moved by it,
she added. I thought that this is a chance
to do something really meaningful.
Although it has been many years since

Equity actors worked at a JCC production,

the three actors in My Name Is Asher Lev
Nathan Gardner, Mark J. Quiles, and Valerie Stack Dodge all belong to the union.
I put up a notice in Backstage, and we
received 115 submissions, Ariel said. We
narrowed it down to three phenomenal
actors. The director, Marci Elyn Schein,
who also is an Equity actress, works at
Schechter, and Ariel loves her work. He
and a professional, David Zanko, are both
working as set designers.
I dont know anyone like Ariel, Lynn
Gold said. What I admire about him one
of the things I admire about him! is that
he is very very traditional. His family is
very traditional. He has one foot in pop culture, and one foot in traditional culture.
His name is Ariel Abergel. It almost
could be Asher Lev.
Who: The Palisades Players, a group of
Equity actors, will perform
What: My Name Is Asher Lev, a play
by Aaron Posner based on the book by
Chaim Potok
Where: At the Eric Brown Theater at
the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades, 411 E.
Clinton Ave. in Tenafly
When: There will be three performances open to the public, on Saturday,
August 27, at 9 p.m., on Sunday, August
28, at 2 p.m., and on Monday, August
29, at 7:30 p.m. The Sunday performance will be followed by a talkback
with the cast.
On Thursday, August 25, senior citizens
and veterans will be invited to a dress
rehearsal.
How much: $15 for JCC members; $20
for everyone else.
For more information and tickets:
Go to jccopt.org/shows or call
(201) 408-1493.

Jewish World
ResouRce & HealtH FaiR

To name
or not to name

Tuesday, August 16, 1-5 pm

FRee ScReeningS, HeAlTH TipS,
enTeRTAinmenT, giveAwAyS

Jewish organizations grapple

with the Trump question
RON KAMPEAS
WASHINGTON This condemnation is
against you personally, the Jewish War
Veterans said earlier this week, concluding its message to Donald Trump. You,
Mr. Trump, deserve our contempt.
If the sign-off to the statement condemning the Republican nominee for
his attacks on the Muslim parents of a
soldier killed in action was cuttingly personal, it was also necessarily personal.
JWV is an apolitical organization, the
group said in the same statement. We
do not support or oppose candidates
or parties.
The veterans statement encapsulated
a dilemma faced by Jewish organizations as they brace for the November
election: Many of Trumps remarks, if
they came from just about anyone else,
would draw an immediate rebuke from
Jewish groups, founded on principles of
protecting the vulnerable from ridicule
and discrimination.
But Trump is the nominee for one
of the two major parties, and tax laws
prevent nonprofits from endorsing
or opposing a presidential candidate.
(Trump, notably, believes the tax laws
are a bar to free speech. He wants to
repeal them.)
Its a fine line that Jewish groups are
straddling in different ways. Some criticize the rhetoric, without mentioning the speaker. Others name Trump,
but, like the Jewish War Veterans, go to
lengths to make it clear that they are not
taking a position on whether he should
be elected.
Hillary Clintons campaign has
taken notice, and sees the statements
as validating its case within the Jewish community.
At the Jewish organizational level,
major leaders who do not usually speak
out during campaigns have stood up,
Sarah Bard, the Democratic nominees
Jewish outreach director, said during
the Democratic National Convention
in Philadelphia.
In addition to Jewish War Veterans,
the Anti-Defamation League and the
Reform movement have named Trump
the ADL by far the most frequently.
Among other times when they named
Trump, the civil rights group called out
Trumps hate speech against immigrants in July of 2015, said his plan to bar
Muslims from entering the country was
deeply offensive in December of 2015,
called on Trump to distance himself
from white supremacists in February,

gave away $56,000 in donations Trump

had made to the group in March, criticized Trumps America First slogan
in April, and called on the nominee to
reject the support of racists in July.
Jonathan Greenblatt, the groups CEO,
noted that the ADL had called out other
candidates by name, including Senator
Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the contender for the Democratic nomination
who inflated the number of Palestinian
civilians killed during Israels 2014 war in
the Gaza Strip.
Were going to do what we do,
because its the right thing to do,
he said.
The ADL may have more leeway
because Trumps perceived offenses violate its raison detre: He is seen as defaming minorities, and it is, after all, a league
against defamation.
Of late, weve found ourselves indeed
calling out instances of bigotry on the
campaign, like for example when Donald
Trump described Mexicans coming over
the border en masse as rapists and murderers, and then when he talked about
closing the border to all Muslims, we
spoke out about these things because,
again, bigotry in all forms, whether its
directed against Latinos or immigrants
or Muslims or refugees, we find it reprehensible, Greenblatt said.
Rabbi Jonah Pesner, the director
of the Reform movements Religious
Action Center, said the movement usually is careful not to name candidates in
its statements, except when what a candidate says is clearly in violation of a
value it holds dear.
That was in the case in March, when
the movement wrote Trump asking for a
meeting to discuss instances in which he
or his surrogates had disparaged Mexicans, Muslims, women, and Jews, and
when he appeared to condone violence
against protesters.
Pesner said that the letter was crafted
carefully to focus on instances of
Trumps offensive speech, rather than
on the overall prospect of Trump as
a president.
We reminded our audiences we
never speak about candidates, and we
were neither endorsing nor rejecting Mr.
Trumps candidacy, he said. We wrote
the letter with footnotes, so we could be
completely appropriate, so we werent
talking about his candidacy but what he
had said.
Bend the Arc, a Jewish social justice group, targets Trump through its
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endorsements are much looser than for nonprofits.
Other Jewish organizations have taken care not to
name Trump.
The Orthodox Union, opposing Trumps Muslim ban
proposal last December, did not name him. The American Jewish Committee, in a March statement released
after Trump appeared to condone violence against protesters, said that The political season is a long one, and
in the heat of the moment, candidates and their supporters say and do things they do not mean or which
they phrase carelessly. The statement did not mention
that Trump was the only candidate to have made such
calls. David Harris, the AJC director, was unavailable

for comment.
On August 3, the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the
umbrella body for Jewish community relations councils,
released a statement that urged civility from all sides
and praised the Democratic party for including a similar
appeal in its platform but, despite decrying hostile,
acrimonious, and demeaning rhetoric, did not name
such rhetorics most notorious purveyor, Trump.
David Bernstein, the JCPAs president, said that if
other organizations wanted to be less risk averse, that
was their choice.
For an organization committed to promoting a more
tolerant society, were willing to speak publicly when it
comes to crossing a line, he said. That doesnt mean
were not going to exercise judiciousness.
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Canada withdraws logo from major event due to anti-Semitism

The Canadian government withdrew its logo from the
World Social Forums event list of partners following
complaints made by members of Canadas parliament
that the program included anti-Semitic content, Canadas National Post reported.
Two Liberal members of parliament said they saw a
blatantly anti-Semitic cartoon on the events website,
which showed a stereotypical Jewish man wearing a hat
with a Star of David.
The cartoon, which was posted on a page for a forum
session about Islamic terrorists being in the service of
world Zionism-capitalism, was later removed from the
website. The event was also cancelled.
The Prime Minister, the Government of Canada, and
the Canadian Parliament have been very clear that we
oppose the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and that anti-Semitism is never acceptable, the
Canadian MPs, Anthony Housefather and Michael Levitt, said in a joint statement.

The annual World Social Forum, which began on

Tuesday in Montreal, is a gathering of an expected
10,000 activists from around the world seeking to find
concrete alternatives to the neoliberal economic model
and to policies based on the exploitation of human
beings and nature, the forums website states.
The forum also says it is committed to censoring proIsrael perspectives.
We have already taken a stand to exclude all people,
organizations or activities that promote any kind of
oppression, supporting Palestinians, and all the people
struggling for their emancipation and freedom, the
website states.
An accompanying document also advises on the
boycott of academics, artists and products it links to
Israeli apartheid.
Famous anti-Israel activists such as Noam Chomsky
and American actor Danny Glover have attended and
supported the World Social Forum in the past. JNS.ORG

Jewish World

Why Spain is standing up to BDS for now

CNAAN LIPHSHIZ

nly last year, Spain was still the

undisputed bastion of the BDS
movement in Europe.
Some 50 Spanish municipalities had passed resolutions in recent
years endorsing BDS an acronym for the
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. Thats more than in
any other European country.
Relying on backing from a strong far left,
the branches of Spains BDS movement
were able to exert considerable pressure.
Last August, BDS activists pressured
the organizers of a reggae festival near
Barcelona to demand that the AmericanJewish singer Matisyahu sign a statement
condemning Israels treatment of Palestinians. Matisyahu, who was the only artist
asked to sign the document, was disinvited
when he declined. He was reinvited after
an international outcry over what was perceived as an anti-Semitic measure.
It was not an unusual occurrence in a
country that topped the Anti-Defamation

Leagues 2015 anti-Semitism index in Western Europe, and where Jews often are conflated with Israel including by a Catalan
lawmaker who demanded in May that the
head of Barcelonas Jewish community be
removed from the local governments parliament for being a foreign agent.
But the wind has shifted for BDS in
Spain, where the movement recently was
labeled discriminatory in a series of legal
defeats and resentment growing against its
activists because they oppose trade with
Israel at a time of economic crisis.
Over the last year, pro-Israel activists
have obtained 24 rulings, legal opinions,
and injunctions against BDS in Spain,
according to ACOM, a nonprofit based in
Madrid. Thanks to litigation by its volunteer team, including several lawyers, BDS
motions have been repealed, defeated,
or suspended this year in a dozen Spanish municipalities.
The BDS movement in Spain is established and works systematically, ACOMs
president, Angel Mas, said. But for
the first time, they are encountering a

Learn
to

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response that is as systematic.

Last month in Campezo, a town 210
miles north of Madrid, an ACOM ultimatum forced the City Council to scrap a
resolution it passed in June supporting
BDS. ACOM threatened to sue based on
precedents set in Spanish tribunals this
year, ruling that BDS is unconstitutional
and discriminatory.
In January, Spains Council of State, the
countrys highest consulting body, made a
similar ruling, forcing the government to
compensate a West Bank Israeli university
to the tune of $107,000 over its exclusion
from a state-sponsored scientific competition for political reasons.
Such rulings are commonplace in neighboring France, where BDS is included
among other forms of illegal discrimination against countries or their citizens
under a 2003 law introduced by Pierre Lellouche, a Jewish lawmaker. Dozens of BDS
activists have been convicted in France of
inciting hate or discrimination based on
the Lellouche law and other legislation.
In February, Britains ruling Conservative

Party said it would pass similar laws.

But in Spain, where a judge opened a
war-crimes probe against the late Israeli
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2009, such
strong judiciary treatment of BDS is unexpected and revolutionary, according to
Yigal Palmor, a former Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman who had served in Spain
as cultural attach during the 1990s.
Palmor said that the BDS shift coincided
with several developments in Spain that
were welcomed by Israeli diplomats and
Jewish community leaders. They include
legislation to naturalize Sephardic Jews,
support for Israels position on Palestinian
statehood, a crackdown on anti-Semitic
hate speech, and a massive investment in
the restoration of Jewish heritage sites.
Palmor attributes these changes to a
mix of factors, including Spains gradual adoption of European standards on
hate speech, improved rule of law, and
the election of a relatively stable centrist government.
And then theres the effect of the
SEE SPAIN PAGE 24

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Jewish World
Spain
FROM PAGE 23

financial crisis. Many Spaniards feel their country cannot

afford to spurn any partners, especially not an affluent Western country like Israel. Last year, Spain had 21 percent unemployment overall, 45 percent among workers under 25.
The effects of the financial crisis on popular attitudes
toward BDS were on full display last month in the northern
city of Santiago de Compostella. After its city council passed a
nonbonding resolution supporting BDS, Israels national airline, El Al, reportedly ended talks on opening a direct connection to the city.
Local politicians for Spains centrist Popular Party accused
the local government, led by a far-left party, of sabotaging the

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local tourism industry and putting precious jobs at risk.

Israel, whose 2015 GDP per capita was 36 percent
higher than Spains $25,831, provides Spain with approximately 350,000 tourists annually.
Some observers also see a financial incentive in
Spains historic legislation to grant citizenship to Sephardic Jews with ties to Spain last year.
Spanish officials described the move as correcting the
historical wrong done to Iberian Jews during the Spanish Inquisition, a state- and church-backed campaign of
persecution that began in 1492 and was not abolished
until 1834. During that period, hundreds of thousands of
Jews fled Spain and countless others became Christians
under duress.
At least 4,500 of their descendants became Spanish
citizens under the legislation in a process that generated
millions of euros in revenue for Spanish notaries, government offices and language instructors. The legislation coincided with several Spanish initiatives to draw
wealthy residents from abroad as well as tourists.
In 2004, Spains Congress passed a nonbinding
motion conditioning support for Palestinian statehood
on direct negotiations between both sides. The motion
was considered a diplomatic victory for Israel and its
supporters, especially after the parliaments of Britain,
France and several other European countries pledged
unconditional support for Palestine.
Until recently, Spains largely independent judiciary was subject to pressure from BDS supporters,
noted Ramon Prez-Maura, a journalist for Spains
ABC network.
The problem was pressure and intimidation of
judges by lobby groups with anarchist traditions and
violent tactics, he said. There has been a crackdown

on this sort of thuggery, and this has empowered the

judiciary, not only on Israel.
Representatives of the BDS movement in Spain did
not respond to requests for an interview. But a campaign
launched on the movements website in April showed it
is feeling the heat.
In a petition titled Stop criminalizing BDS, it asserted
that activists of non-violent struggle [against Israel] are
under threat. It urged the European Commission to
enforce human rights guidelines guaranteeing freedom
of speech and the right to boycott in Spain.
Though Spain has modernized greatly since the fall of
the dictatorial regime of Francisco Franco in 1975, it is
still a decade or two arrears in many areas compared to
other Western European countries, Palmor said. Many
Spaniards display strong anti-American and by proxy,
anti-Israeli sentiment and a worldview of Jews thats
at times based on medieval imagery, he added.
With a Jewish population of only 6,000, there is
a lot of ignorance about Jews, Palmor said. That
manifests itself in phenomena that hardly occur elsewhere in Western Europe, including the airing of antiSemitic screeds on public radio and cases like the Matisyahu affair.
Those tendencies suggest why ACOMs Mas is not celebrating his victories over BDS just yet. He calls it a fight
against a rival much larger and stronger than his group
of volunteers.
The Spanish Jewish community is small and overstretched, he said. Its not the kind of community that
can easily confront over time a challenge presented by
well-entrenched activists with foreign funding and a
foothold in government.


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Dvar Torah
Dvarim/Hazon:
Mourning through our ancestors eyes
The Book of Deuteronomy
Tisha BAv has suffered from
begins with Moses recounting
neglect, some of it principled. Should we not celehow the people in the wilderness rebelled and missed the
brate the renaissance of the
first opportunity to enter the
Jewish people in its land, I
Land. Rebelling in fear of the
hear it said, rather than forever mourn its destruction?
unknown and nostalgic for
I have always felt strongly
Egypt, they are condemned
that we should observe Tisha
to forty years of wandering,
Rabbi Dr.
BAv faithfully in the tradiuntil the next generation has
David J. Fine
tional way precisely because
the opportunity to step forTemple Israel
ward where their predecesof the re-establishment of
and Jewish
sors failed.
Jewish sovereignty in the
Community Center,
Parashat Dvarim always
Land. Only an appreciation
Ridgewood,
Conservative
falls on Shabbat Hazon, the
of the distance through history that has kept the JewShabbat immediately preceding Tisha BAv (or on this year,
ish people from the Land of
on the actual ninth of Av, while the fast is
Israel can help us fully celebrate the reality
postponed to Saturday night and Sunday).
of Israel today.
The haftarah, most of which is traditionally
Study after study most recently the
recited in the mournful trope of Lamentacomprehensive Pew report has shown
tions, relates the hazon (vision) of Isaiah,
how new generations of American Jews
the dreadful prophecy of Gods turning
born after Israel was established do not
away from the people as their sinfulness
hold the State of Israel as a significant signpost of their Jewish identity. Israels exisovercomes their merit. Read together, we
tence is taken for granted. American Jews
are left with a sense of distance, standing
today respond to Israels politics, not to
outside the Land, outside the City, outside
the question of its existence. While politiof Gods mercy.
cal engagement is all well and good, we
In my experience, the observance of

need to strengthen our historical perspective, appreciate the miracle that the very
existence of Israel represents. Tisha BAv
helps me do that.
By crying over the destruction of Jerusalem, I see the Jerusalem of today through
the perspective of a long vision.
Isaiahs vision matches the tone of Lamentations in theology as well as cantillation. The people understood the calamity
of Jerusalems destruction as a result of
their sinfulness. So we fast on Tisha BAv to
demonstrate to God our purity and renunciation of sin, just as we do on Yom Kippur.
Fasting is not a sign of mourning in Jewish
tradition. We all know that at a shiva house
we eat a lot as eating brings consolation.
Fasting is a response to sinfulness.
This classic theology that is all over
the Tisha BAv observance has been challenged in the aftermath of the Shoah. Most
theologians today cannot accept that God
could bear any responsibility for genocide.
This represents the second challenge to
Tisha BAv: How can we associate historical suffering with divine punishment if we
no longer hold God responsible for historical calamities?
My response here is the same as my

response to the first challenge: Only by

understanding the experience of our
ancestors can we fully appreciate where
we have come today. Although I do not
credit the God of Israel with the successes
of Nebuchadnezzar and then Titus over
Jerusalem and the fall of the first and second temples, I do appreciate the theological and poetic responses of my ancestors. I
need to cry with them, to shake with them
in fear of Gods wrath, in order to appreciate what it must have felt like to see Gods
house burn, and the city forsaken. Only
after seeing through their eyes can I then
see through my own.
In the parashah, Moses brings the narrative up to the second command to
enter the Land given to the new generation. They will go in where their ancestors
stayed without. Where even Moses will not
go. We are in that assembly. We are looking in as the new Jewish state continues to
grow. We have the future of multiple paths
before us. Moses does not lead the new
generation. But he gives them the benefit of what came before. That legacy is
there for us to fortify ourselves with, both
through Shabbat Devarim and Hazon, and
Tisha BAv.

Republican nominee, addressed a rally in

Wilmington, North Carolina,
Hillary wants to abolish, essentially
abolish the Second Amendment, Trump
said, referring to the constitutional right
to bear arms. Clinton wants stricter gun
controls, but is not opposed to the Second Amendment.
By the way, and if she gets to pick her
(Supreme Court) judges, nothing you can
do folks although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I dont
know, he said.
Trumps campaign lambasted the dishonest media for misrepresenting his
remarks as calling for an armed attack on
Clinton or on the judges she names.
Its called the power of unification,
Jason Miller, a communications adviser,
said in a statement. Second Amendment people have amazing spirit and are
tremendously unified, which gives them
great political power. And this year, they
will be voting in record numbers, and it
wont be for Hillary Clinton, it will be for
Donald Trump.
Miller did not explain how a call to gun
rights supporters to vote in November

would apply to Trumps scenario, which

posited options for gun rights supporters
after Clintons election.
Clintons campaign called the remarks
dangerous.
This is simple what Trump is saying is dangerous, her campaign manager, Robby Mook, said in a statement. A
person seeking to be the President of the
United States should not suggest violence
in any way.
Malloy said Trumps remarks echoed the
sickness which permeated Israel prior to
Rabins 1995 assassination.
Supporters of Rabin and some of his
critics said that politicians, including thenopposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu,
did not speak out during rallies when
some in the crowd called Rabin a traitor
or likened him to the Nazis because of the
peace talks he led with the Palestinians.
This is insanity, its a sickness, its an
evil, Republicans and Democrats and
Independents have to reject this, we have
to stand up to this, otherwise this insanity will play itself out in our own country,
Malloy said.

BRIEFS

Israel cooperating
with Arab nations
on Iran concerns
and refugee flows

Iraq. Should those types of challenges

spread to other parts of the Middle East,
Europe might face an even larger second wave in the not too distant future,
he added. 


Israeli Foreign Ministry Director General

Dore Gold said that Israel is consulting
with Arab nations on shared security concerns, especially about Iran.
The Sunni Arab states increasingly see
the Middle East through the same prism
as Israel, Gold told the Financial Times.
Gold said that much of the focus in cooperating with Gulf states has been on how
to stop the threat of terror associated with
the Islamic State terror group. For example, Israel has eased military force restrictions on Egypt and allowed it to send its
military into the Sinai as necessary.
The strategy to work with Arab countries also is helping Europe, Gold said.
The paramount threat to Europe today
comes from waves of refugees that have
already reached great numbers in European countries.
The last wave [of refugees] came about
because of the dissolution of Syria and

JNS.ORG

After Trumps
comments on guns,
governor recalls
killing of Rabin
WASHINGTON Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, responding after Donald
Trump said gun rights advocates could do
something about Hillary Clinton, likened
the political atmosphere in the United
States to the period before an assassin
killed Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
I instantly thought about Rabin and
Israel, Malloy, a Democrat like Clinton,
the partys presidential nominee, said
Tuesday on MSNBC. There were rallies going on in Israel where Death to
Rabin was shouted and politicians didnt
respond, so Im going to respond.
Malloy was speaking after Trump, the

JTA WIRE SERVICE

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 27

Crossword
LAUGHING ON THE OUTSIDE BY YONI GLATT,

Local

KOSHERCROSSWORDS@GMAIL.COM
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: MANAGEABLE

Diversity
FROM PAGE 7

the West Bank has worked simultaneously toward rapprochement with local
Arabs and keeping Efrat citizens safe without fences.
This is a leader who faces immense challenges, but has created a community, along
with others, where there is a sense of security
and calm, Ms. Cohen said. He has a specific
process he teaches to mayors of other cities.
In Gush Etzion, the Berrie Fellows had
an open dialogue with the founders of Shorashim (Roots), an organization devoted to
understanding, non-violence, and transformation among Israelis and Palestinians,
and later were hosted at the home of an ultraOrthodox woman.
Another great day challenging our truths,
Ms. Weintraub posted on Facebook on
August 2. At Hartman we learned about the
changing world of ultra-Orthodoxy with sociologist Neri Horowitz and liberal Judaism in

Israel from Dr. Ruth Calderon [and had a]

conversation with Vardi Rosenblum, a modern Haredi woman [who] opened her home
to us all and told how she is leading the way
to find balance between her community and
modern Israeli society.
Weve had the opportunity to meet leaders from across the spectrum, and from each
one I was able to take away specific skills
listening, asking questions that I can use to
handle situations at home, said Mr. Kohn,
who belongs to Congregation Rinat Yisrael
in Teaneck.
The Berrie Fellows headed back to the
United States feeling that despite the many
challenges to Judaism around the world,
this is one of the best times in the 3,500year history of the Jewish people, Mr.
Shlufman said.
We tend to forget that we have it pretty
darn good, he added. We have a Jewish
nation that is thriving, and we have a lot to
be proud of. We should look at the glass as
half full, and focus on the positive.

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28 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Across
1. Rehovot need?
4. Author Levin
7. Siddur on your phone, e.g.
10. Pose (to a Rabbi)
13. Possible request from this papers
editor: Abbr.
14. Its a candle
15. First word of Scarborough Fair
16. Piece on Disraeli, for short
17. Right-wing U.K. protest group thats
pro-Israel
18. Some characters in Spielbergs
The BFG
19. Like one receiving the Israel Prize
21. Reading of Prophets
24. King Solomon had a magnificent one
25. Gunk in Reitmans Ghostbusters
26. It makes Lees Banner turn into
the Hulk
28. Staffs (the INS Lahav)
29. ___ Hadibrot
30. Book that predates the siddur
32. The IDFs HaKirya, e.g.
33. Hachnasat Orchim words
34. Sounds of hesitation by those who
dont speak Hebrew so well
35. Plug-___ (some Babylon downloads)
37. Ryan Braun admitted to using (at
least) one: Abbr.
38. Reinsdorfs Bulls, on the scoreboard
41. Israeli Mount thats also a
Melbourne school
43. City east of Beer Sheva
44. Prideful song
47. David of NYPD Blue
49. ___ Hara
50. Musician Brian thats anti-Israel
51. Rabbi Kaplan or Minister of the
Interior Deri
52. Like Fox (clothing) sales
54. Closing ceremony
57. Not kosher
59. City on Guanabara Bay
60. Compass heading
61. Seinfeld voiced one in 2007
62. Word before Kodesh
63. Transport made by Qoros
64. Jewish school in Riverdale, N.Y.
65. Extra periods for Casspi, for short
66. Tref home?
67. Joel Silver produced 48 ___
68. Tevye ___ Milkman

Down
1. Shalom or shamayim predecessor
(in song)
2. Szolds Womens Zionist Organization
of America
3. Like Joshua, as a leader
4. It should be tithed
5. Jephthah probably felt it
6. Solo that means lioness in Hebrew
7. Ahava spa sound
8. Elisha to Elijah, e.g.
9. Phnom ___, home of
Cambodias Chabad
10. Israel, as a study locale for many
19-year-olds
11. Miller who played Nancy Schultz in
Foxcatcher
12. ___ HaKodashim
20. TV financial adviser Suze
22. Not something youd want flat in
the Negev
23. Greeting from Kermit or Louis Nye
27. Walkways at Teddy Stadium
29. Monkey of Scott Weingers Aladdin
31. ___ Hanasheh
33. Channel that gave a lot of coverage
on Debbie Wasserman Schultz
35. Sound some might make if offered
kosher locust
36. Jonathan Tropper or Jonathan
Kellerman, e.g.
38. Like the worst villain
39. Part of the new year
40. 1997 Lisa Loeb hit
41. Moses spent some time there
42. Oy alternative when erring
43. TV Stark thats a rodef
44. They make a kosher candy line with
fish gelatin
45. Zurer of Shtisel
46. Mila 18 and The Haj, e.g.
47. Its not kosher from a sturgeon
48. Passionate states (in Ecclesiastes,
perhaps)
53. Frozen Kleins treats
55. Titus built a notable one
56. Poh
58. Commandment pronoun

The solution to last weeks puzzle is

on page 35.

Arts & Culture

Pumpkinflowers
A soldier tells the interlocking stories of Israels war with Lebanon
JONATHAN E. LAZARUS

y n ow, M a t t i F r i e d mans recently published

Pumpkinflowers: An
Israeli Soldiers Story
should be well on its way to joining
the select group of wartime narratives that continue to grip and grate
on the conscience long after they
have been read, put back on the
shelf, or passed along.
The intriguingly titled book certainly belongs in the top tier of commentary about Israeli combat, micro
and macro, fiction or nonfiction. It
exhumes a war (Lebanon) that never
received a formal naming; one that
petered out in stalemate and virtual
status quo ante; one that traded a
lethal enemy, the PLO, for an even
more virulent one, Hezbollah; and
one that persisted so long (19822000) that a peace process blossomed, stagnated, and withered during its entirety.
While it might be a stretch comparing
Lebanon to Vietnam, the fallout from this
adventure produced a loss of innocence,
optimism, and the willingness to compromise across a wide swath of Israel. The
army, one of the nations revered institutions, became bogged down defending a
narrow security zone of outposts across
the rugged landscape of southern Lebanon. For many of the younger generation
of conscripts stationed there, the names
Herzl and Ben-Gurion merely stood for
streets. Additionally, a feckless ally, the
Christian militia, added to the opaqueness
of the mission.
Friedmans tours as a radioman at one
of the outposts (the Pumpkin) elevates his
writing beyond mere reporting, allowing
him to burrow into the souls of the teenaged soldiers he served alongside. These
raw recruits werent defending a homeland attacked from all borders like the
veterans of the Independence, Six Day,
and Yom Kippur campaigns. They were
charged with the less inspiring goal of
keeping the northern communities free
from shelling and incursions by guerilla
forces proxied in Damascus and Tehran.
Pumpkinflowers is both searing and
sobering. Friedman tugs at our feelings
about nobility, absurdity, and tragedy by
capturing mood and melancholy with
the spare sketches of a gifted wartime
Jonathan E. Lazarus is a former news
editor of the Star-Ledger and is a
proofreader at the Jewish Standard.

correspondent. His soldiers command

our attention in their often brutal, cynical,
and bizarre settings, while they confront
and process the dozens of challenges that
accrue in an unconventional combat zone.
Born and raised in Canada, Friedman
emigrated to Israel and spent only a year
and a half there before being conscripted
into the IDF at age 19. His Lebanon experiences date to 1998 and clearly stamp
the hard-learned lessons of authenticity on Pumpkinflowers. Friedman later
attended Hebrew University, joined the
Associated Press as a correspondent,
began a family that includes twin sons and
a daughter, and wrote The Aleppo Codex,
which won the 2014 Sami Rohr prize.
For those puzzled by the title, the
Pumpkin and others like it Red Pepper,
Crocus, Cypress, and Basil referred to
earthen outposts just inside southern Lebanon, forming a security network stretching from Mount Hermon in the east to the
Mediterranean in the west. Established
by Israel as its main forces withdrew, the
region was home to about 200,000 inhabitants, mostly Shiites. Flowers was the
anodyne IDF code for casualties, while the
fragrant but poisonous oleanders stood
for fallen combatants.
Friedmans depictions of life in the
Pumpkin nearly replicate the static trench
standoffs of World War I. For Israeli soldiers, it meant enduring long spells of inactivity punctuated by intense exchanges or
high-risk sniper probes. This contrasted
starkly with stunning IDF victories in earlier, more fluid conflicts and added new

levels of stress and uncertainty to the lives

of the outpost inhabitants.
From Readiness at Dawn in the morning to lights out in the triple-decker bunk
bays, the soldiers tested their wills against
guerrillas hiding in nearby villages like
Nabatieh, who used the hills, valleys, and
dry river beds running up to the Pumpkin
as conduits for their attacks. Rockets and
mortars posed a constant threat to the
Israelis, while roadside bombs and even
booby-trapped rocks often took a grisly toll
on their patrols and occasional tank forays.
Structurally, Pumpkinflowers is comprised of four segments, each with distinct sensibilities, and all interlocking
powerfully. In the first, we meet Avi Ofner,
a brash, free-spirited trooper whose service at the site preceded Friedmans by
four years. Avi reads voraciously, dreams
expansively, and tries to live large despite
his relative shortness and the confines of
the outpost.
He and his unit, the Fighting Pioneer
Youth, were trained for the open desert
warfare of earlier campaigns instead of the
guerilla counterinsurgency in Lebanon. It
was 1994, but the armys clock was still set
at 1973, Friedman writes. At 19, Avi was
assigned to the Pumpkin in the wake of a
close Hezbollah infiltration, during which
the enemy took crude propaganda footage
that caused a sensation in the Arab world.
The incident came to be known as The
Disgrace in Israeli headlines.
During the next two years, Avi participated in enough action and witnessed sufficient loss of life and limb to discharge

himself mentally from the army

before his term of service ended.
On what was scheduled to be his
last deployment to the Pumpkin, he
stopped to pick up a bag of burgers
for his comrades, a unit tradition,
before boarding one of two giant
troop helicopters. (Many convoys
were considered too exposed by
then.)
The choppers flew uneventfully
to the northern edge of Israel and
had just cleared Kibbutz Dafna
when they collided. The rotors of
one craft sliced into the belly of
the other, sending both ships dizzyingly earthward. Avi and all 72
aboard lost their lives in the Finger
of Galilee. It was February 4, 1997.
The dimensions of the tragedy
and personal loss mobilized the
efforts of a core of kibbutz women
against the war. We meet Bruria, Ortna, and their cohort in the
books second segment. Their tactics include hectoring motorists at busy
intersections with the Four Mothers petition; plastering bulletin boards with copies of a withdrawal manifesto, and trying to
convince the nations movers and shakers
to redraft policy.
Slowly, their pleas began to be heeded
by ordinary Israelis and they were no longer derided as Nasrallahs whores. They
organized earnest convoys of bikes and
jeeps nationwide to spread their message,
referring in many instances not to the loss
of soldiers, but to the deaths of their children. The idea that soldiers are children,
everyones children, the joint custody of
all Israeli adults, caught on then and has
never really gone away, notes the author.
Friedman kept tabs on the growing civilian displeasure with Lebanon while serving a new tour at the Pumpkin. And he
observed more rote and resignation among
the troops this time around, despite the
continuing attacks and provocations. The
third segment of Pumpkinflowers dwells
deeply on the most uncomfortable ironies
of war, with the men acting somewhat like
prisoners behind their own bunkers, many
realizing the futility of their ability to influence a decisive outcome.
The mission in Lebanon ended on May
24, 2000, with both a whimper and a
bang. Hezbollah paraded into areas abandoned by the Lebanon militia, while the
Israelis blew up their outposts one by one.
The Pumpkin resisted detonation to the
last, requiring heroic efforts by an officer
to prime the charge. The few remaining
SEE PUMPKINFLOWERS PAGE 35

JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 29

Pumpkinflowers
FROM PAGE 29

soldiers then scampered into armored

vehicles and made for the border.
After he was discharged, Friedman
majored in Islamic and Middle Eastern
studies at Hebrew University. Then, at 25,
he decided to re-visit Lebanon, protected
this time by a clean Canadian passport
rather than an armored column. In a bittersweet fourth segment of the book, more
of a coda really, he flies to Toronto, where
he re-acquaints himself with drooling my
vowels instead of spitting them, before
proceeding to London, and finally Beirut.
The Lebanon sojourn allows him to
share caf tables and conversations with
shopkeepers and Shiites. Posing as a tourist, Friedman hears the locals roundly condemn Israel, Jews, and Americans. As he
heads south, he dances and picnics with
a young group of revelers along the banks
of the Qadisha River, and listens to them

30 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

debate intermarriage with Christians.

Next, a visit to the Hezbollah museum in
an old prison at Khiam, where graffiti proclaimed Jews are AIDS.
Finally, Friedmans battered taxi brings
him to the cusp of the Pumpkin. Hes traveled thousands of miles to reach a point
20 minutes from his parents home on the
other side of the border. He walks the last
leg to the top of hill and passes Hebrew
graffiti reading, Aryeh, we want invitations to the wedding.
Under the rubble, remnants of the Pumpkin greet his trained eye. He navigates the
old trench line and observes the unrelenting natural forces of southern Lebanon
slowly overwhelming the outpost with vegetation. The Pumpkin holds one last surprise for him: a mystery woman who sits
on the western embankment and murmurs
until a man calls her away. She doesnt spot
Friedman, who walks back to his cab knowing his odyssey has come full circle.

Calendar
Friday
AUGUST 19
Shabbat in Glen Rock:
The Glen Rock Jewish
Center holds its meet
and greet Shabbat
with Rabbi Jennifer
Schlosberg and Cantor
Dorothy Goldberg, 5:30
p.m., a traditional kosher
barbecue dinner at 6, and
services under the stars
at 7:30. 682 Harristown
Road. Reservations, (201)
652-6624 or www.grjc.
org.

Shabbat in Hoboken:
The United Synagogue of
Hoboken hosts Shabbat
in the Park for children
and adults of all ages,
6 p.m. Bring a kosher
or vegetarian picnic
dinner; challah and grape
juice provided. It will be
canceled if it rains. Church
Square Park, 5th and
Willow/Park. (201) 6538666 or ushpreschool@
gmail.com.

Shabbat on the
Palisades: Temple

The Alacorde Trio performs for Caf Europa,

a social program sponsored by Jewish
Family Service of Bergen and North Hudson
for Holocaust survivors, funded in part by
the Claims Conference and the Jewish Federation of
North Jersey, at the JCC of Paramus/Congregation Beth
Tikvah on Wednesday, August 17, at 11:30 a.m. Kosher
lunch. East 304 Midland Ave. Shari, (201) 837-9090, ext.
237, or sharib@jfsbergen.org
COURTESY JFS

AUG.

17

Sunday

Monday

Thursday

AUGUST 14

AUGUST 15

AUGUST 18

Alzheimers support in
Waldwick: Alzheimers

Holocaust films in
Teaneck: Congregation
Rinat Yisrael screens
two films from Torah
Umesorahs Rabbi Leib
Geliebter Memorial
Foundation about the
Jewish experience during
and after the Holocaust,
4 p.m. Strike on Heaven
recounts the story of
the Third Reichs war on
Yiddishkeit and Sheiris
Hapleitah recounts
survivors experiences in
the immediate aftermath
of the war as they set
about rebuilding their
lives and families. 389
West Englewood Ave.
(201) 837-2795 or www.
rinat.org.

New Jersey offers a

community education
program, Coping with
Behavior Changes in
Alzheimers Disease,
at Senior Connections,
4 p.m. 164 Franklin
Turnpike. (973) 5864300 or www.alznj.org.

Wednesday
AUGUST 17
Paramus Yiddish club:
Khaverim Far Yidish
(Friends for Yiddish)
meets at the JCC of
Paramus/Congregation
Beth Tikvah, 2 p.m. on
the third Wednesday of
the month. $10 yearly
dues. East 304 Midland
Ave. Varda, (201) 7910327.

30 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Beth El of Northern
Valley in Closter invites
the community to the
informal Prayers on
the Palisades Shabbat
service led by Rabbi
David Widzer of Beth
El and co-hosts Rabbi
Jordan Millstein and
Cantor Nitza Shamah of
Temple Sinai of Bergen
County of Tenafly at 6:30
p.m., at the State Line
Lookout off the Palisades
Parkway. The exit is
northbound on the PIP
two miles north of Exit
2. Bring a lawn chair and
bug spray. If the weather
is inclement, services will
be held at Beth El, 221
Schraalenburgh Road,
Closter. (201) 768-5112 or
www.tbenv.org.

Barbecue in
Bergenfield: Bais
Medrash of Bergenfield
holds a barbecue in the
backyard of the new
BMOB property, 385
South Prospect Ave.,
11:30 a.m.- 2 p.m. www.
bmob.org.

Shul meet and greet in

Leonia: Congregation
Adas Emuno offers a
meet and greet with
wine and cheese and
kid-friendly snacks in
its garden, 4-6 p.m. 254
Broad Ave. (201) 592-1712
or www.adasemuno.org.

Tuesday
AUGUST 23
Childrens program in
the park: Congregation
Bnai Israel in Emerson,
in conjunction with
Shalom Baby, a program
of the Jewish Federation
of Northern New
Jerseys Synagogue
Leadership Initiative,
offers Popsicles in the
Park, a fun program
for family members and
other caregivers with
newborns to 4-year-olds
and their siblings, 9:3011:30 a.m. Program with
crafts, songs, a story
read by Rabbi Debra
Orenstein, and popsicles
at Washington Park.
Washington Avenue in
Emerson. (201) 2652272, (201) 820-3902, or
Sarahd@jfnnj.org.

History in Fort Lee:

The JCC of Fort Lee/
Gesher Shalom and
its CSI Scholar Fund
present visiting scholar
Eitan Kastner, 1 p.m.
Refreshments at 12:30.

Shabbat/open house
barbecue in Paramus:
COURTESY

YMCA

Music in Wayne: Pianist/

vocalist/actor/showman
Brian Gurl presents the
music of Scott Joplin,
George Gershwin, Jerry
Lee Lewis, and Billy Joel
in Smokin the Ivories
for the Summer Concert
Series at the Wayne
YMCA, 7 p.m. Series runs
through August 25. The
Metro YMCAs of the
Oranges is a partner of
the YM-YWHA of North
Jersey. 1 Pike Drive.
(973) 595-0100 or www.
wayneymca.org.

The JCC of Paramus/

Congregation Beth
Tikvah hosts Barbecue
and Brachot, a Shabbat
dinner barbecue for
prospective members,
6:45 p.m., and services
at 8. East 304 Midland
Ave. Reservations, (201)
262-7691.

Sunday
AUGUST 21
Shul open house
in Cliffside Park:
Congregation Beth Israel
of the Palisades holds
an open house, 11 a.m.2 p.m. 207 Edgewater
Road. (201)-945-7310,
(201)-945-1759 or
selkam3208@icloud.com.

The series concludes with

Jews and Space: The
Changing Significance
of Jewish Structures.
Kastner is a history
teacher/department chair
at the Frisch School in
Paramus. 1449 Anderson
Ave. (201) 947-1735.

Blood drive in Wayne:

Adam Lang leads a
community Leaders
Save Lives Blood Drive
at Temple Beth Tikvah,
3-8 p.m., with the
American Red Cross. All
presenting donors will
get a $5 Dunkin Donuts
gift card, $5 Amazon gift
card, and a coupon for
Turkey Hill Iced Tea. 950
Preakness Ave. (973) 3412568.

Singles
Wednesday
AUGUST 17
Seniors meet in
Montvale: Singles 65+ of
the JCC Rockland meets
for dinner at Daveys
Locker, 6 p.m. Individual
checks. 5 Park St. Gene,
(845) 356-5525.

Thursday
AUGUST 18
Widows and widowers
meet in Glen Rock:
Movin On, a monthly
luncheon group for
widows and widowers,
meets at the Glen Rock
Jewish Center, 12:30 p.m.
682 Harristown Road. $5
for lunch. (201) 652-6624
or email Binny, arbgr@
aol.com.

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Calendar
Southside Johnny coming to bergenPAC

Ayala Shapira

Tickets on sale at the Bergen Performing

Arts Center in Englewood for upcoming
shows include a performance by Southside
Johnny and the Asbury Jukes on Saturday,
January 28, at 8 p.m.
The Jukes have more than 30 albums
on their resume, thousands of acclaimed
live performances across the globe, and a
legacy of classic songs.
The group released the anticipated

Shashi Ishai

Soultime!, its first new studio CD in

five years, with all original material, on
Leroy Records in September. The new CD
was recorded in the Jukes hometown,
Asbury Park.
The center is at 30 North Van Brunt St.
Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.
com or www.bergenpac.org or through
the box office at (201) 227-1030.

Chabad benefit for terrorist victim

Ayalas grandfather, Israel, is the gabbai
at Ms. Ishais Netanya shul. Anyone who
donates chai ($18) at the meeting will
receive a copy of Ishais book, Ask Avigail, a compilation of stories from her
timesofisrael.com blog. Funds raised will
be given to Ayala as a belated bat mitzvah gift. For information, call (201) 9070686 or email rivkygoldin@gmail.com.

COURTESY JHF

Chabad of Teaneck will hold a benefit for

women on Monday, August 15, at 8 p.m.
at the Chabad House for Ayala Shapira,
who was critically wounded in a West
Bank firebomb terror attack in 2014,
when she was 11.
Shashi Ishai, now of Netanya and formerly of Teaneck and a blogger for the
Times of Israel, will lead the benefit.

Exodus Supreme

Randy Accardi

Concerts billed at Jewish Home sites

The Leonora Messer Summer Concert
free series at the Jewish Home at Rockleigh, opens with a performance by
Randy Accardi on Wednesday, August
17. It continues Septtember 14 with Ed
Goldberg & the Odessa Klezmer Band.
Both concerts are at 6:30 p.m. JHR is at
10 Link Drive.
The Billie Kramer Leonora Summer

Concert free series at the Jewish Home

Assisted Living in River Vale continues on Wednesday, August 17, at 6:30
p.m., with klezmer music by Ken Maltz;
August 24 with Exodus Supreme; and
August 31 with comedian Vinnie Mark.
JHAL is at 685 Westwood Ave. For
information on either series, call (201)
784-1414.

Summer a plus
at Moriah camp
Moriah Plus at the Moriah School in
Englewood offers an end-of-summer
program for the weeks of August 22
and 29. The program will incorporate fun camp activities as well as a
variety of Moriah Plus classes, including mixed martial arts, Zumba, jewelry making, dance classes including
street jam, and graffiti art.
Moriah Plus is Moriahs afterschool program, a mix of homework and recreational activities,
and healthy snacks. More than 350
children participate in the program,
now in its third year.
To register or for information, call
(201) 567-0208, ext. 376, or email
moriahpps@gmail.com.

SWAN
LAKE
THURSDAY | SEPTEMBER 22 | 8:00PM
presented
by

O N E N I G H T O N LY !
Children enjoying a Moriah Plus activity.
COURTESY MORIAH

Purchase tickets at www.BergenPAC.org and TicketMaster.com

Charge by phone: 201.227.1030, or 866.448.7849, in person at the BergenPAC Box office,
or any participating TicketMaster outlets.
Visit www.RussianGrandBallet.com for more information.
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 31

Jewish World

Black Lives Matter leader defends

genocide claim against Israel

he co-author of the Black

Lives Matter platform passage
accusing Israel of genocide
defended the term, saying Israels actions fit in its wider definition.
Benjamin Ndugga-Kabuye co-authored
the statement along with Rachel Gilmer,
the former board member of a Zionist
youth group. Ndugga-Kabuye said that he
understood why Jewish groups disagree
with the statement but was perplexed that
it has received so much attention.
He compared it with the accusations of
genocide that black activists have leveled
at the United States and called the IsraeliPalestinian conflict one of many international conflicts to which black American
activists feel connected.
The way we look at it is, we take strong
stances, Ndugga-Kabuye, a New York City
organizer for the Black Alliance for Just
Immigration, said. The demand were
making is were against the U.S. continuing funding and military aid to the government of Israel. These are all things that are
going to be in debate.
The platform, released August 2 by the
Movement for Black Lives coalition, largely
is a statement of the goals of a movement
that coalesced around police violence
directed against black people in the United
States, mass incarceration of AfricanAmericans, and other domestic issues.
But it also calls for ending U.S. military
aid to Israel and accuses Israel of being
an apartheid state. The platform includes
a link to a website promoting BDS, the
movement to boycott, divest, and sanction Israel.
The US justifies and advances the
global war on terror via its alliance with
Israel and is complicit in the genocide taking place against the Palestinian people
reads the Invest/Divest section of A
Vision for Black Lives.
A string of Jewish organizations, from
the Anti-Defamation League to the Reform
movement and National Council of Jewish Women, has condemned the genocide and apartheid language as well as
the BDS endorsement. Truah, a rabbis
human rights group that opposes Israels
West Bank occupation, also criticized
the document.
Most of the organizations took pains to
note that they are sympathetic to other
parts of the platform, many of which
jibe with liberal Jewish positions on the
criminal justice system, economic justice,
and immigration.
While we are deeply concerned about
the ongoing violence and the human rights
violations directed at both Israelis and Palestinians, we believe the terms genocide
32 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

and apartheid are inaccurate and inappropriate to describe the situation, NCJW
wrote in a statement. Further, BDS is too
often used to de-legitimize Israels right
to exist.
Jewish Voice for Peace, which supports BDS, was the rare Jewish group that
endorsed the platform in its entirety.
Ndugga-Kabuye said state actions dont
have to rise to the level of the Holocaust or
other historical genocides to deserve the
term, which he said could connote unjust
state killing of a disadvantaged group. He
compared his usage of the word to We
Charge Genocide, a group that opposes
police violence in Chicago.
Were talking about a structure of
violent deaths that are state sanctioned,
that are without accountability, and that are ongoing, he said. We can say
The Jewish community in New York holds a rally for the Black
Lives Matter movement outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn
this is whats happening in
on July 28. 
ERIK MCGREGOR/PACIFIC PRESS/LIGHTROCKET VIA GETTY IMAGES
Palestine and not equate it
with whats happening in
The platform accuses the
from Israel or fled and were prevented
South America. It doesnt
United States of subjecting
from returning.
say its the same number of
black Americans to food
Fighting Israeli apartheid, the statepeople being killed or the
ment said, is inseparable from fighting racapartheid and educational
[same] manner of people
Benjamin Nduggaism in America. It called on its allies to join
apartheid. In both cases, it
being killed.
the BDS campaign.
claims the government has
Ndugga-Kabuye said the Kabuye
As Black people fighting for our freedeprived black communities
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
dom, we are not thugs and our Palestinof access to the same resources enjoyed by
is just one of many international issues
ian brothers and sisters are not terrorists,
white Americans.
the platform comments on. They include
the statement said. For the children who
Ndugga-Kabuye said that his goal was
the dangers African migrants face in crossing the Mediterranean Sea and conflicts
are met with tear gas and rubber bullets
thinking about all the different ways
in Somalia, Colombia, and Honduras. He
as they walk home from school, for the
American military policy impacts different black communities across the world
said the passage on Israel is longer because
families of those we have lost to police violence, for the communities devastated by
and how thats tied into whats going on
theres a certain prominence to it, and
economic violence and apartheid walls,
here domestically.
that may require us to go a little more in
we fight.
The main effort of a number of the
detail. But he said the statements about
On Friday, Jewish Voice for Peace
sections in the platform is to connect the
other conflicts, charging the United States
released a statement from a group called
domestic Movement for Black Lives to the
with imperialist actions, are just as strong
the Jews of Color Caucus backing the platinternational movement for black lives in
as the language condemning Israel.
forms section on Israel.
a number of different countries, he said.
I dont see it as a special connection, Ndugga-Kabuye said about the link
We call on the U.S. Jewish commuGilmer, the co-author of the Invest/
nity to end its legitimization of anti-Black
between the Movement for Black Lives and
Divest section, told Haaretz that her father
racism through its combined attacks
the Palestinian cause. We stand in solidaris African-American and her mother is
ity with Palestine, but its not any different
on the Black Lives Matter Platform and
Jewish. She is a former board member
than our connection with the Somali comU.S. Palestine solidarity, the statement
of Young Judaea, a Zionist youth group,
munity. Its not any different than our consaid. We call on the U.S. Jewish groups
although she no longer identifies as Jewnection with the Colombian community.
ish, according to Haaretz, and she has
that have engaged in this anti-Black violence to retract their racist and harmThe vast majority of the platform
become an anti-Israel activist. Now she
ful statements.
addresses issues unrelated to the Israeliis the chief of strategy for Dream Defenders, a black community organizing group
Mainstream Jewish groups rejected the
Palestinian conflict. Its six sections deal
based in Florida.
notion that because they object to the use
with physical, social, economic, and political discrimination against black people.
She did not respond to email and Faceof the term genocide and the emphabook messages from JTA seeking comment.
sis on Israel, they are opposed to the
Among its list of demands is an end to
Dream Defenders released a statement
economic and social justice goals of the
capital punishment, free universal education, a universal basic income for black
doubling down on the genocide language.
Black Lives Matter movement. The groups
Americans, the demilitarization of police,
The statement accused pro-Israel critics
noted how difficult, if not impossible, it is
a broad reform of the prison system, and
of being wolves in sheeps clothing for
for them to work with members of Black
reparations for black Americans.
supporting the Black Lives Matter moveLives Matter on common causes when
ment only as long as it supports Israel. It
In addition to demanding an end to forthe language about Israel signals they are
eign aid for Israel and Egypt, the platform
asserted that Israel committed genocide
not welcome.
calls for divesting from the fossil fuel indusduring its 1948 War of Independence, as
JCRC cannot and will not align
try and reducing the U.S. defense budget.
SEE BLACK LIVES PAGE 35
some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled
COURTESY OF NDUGGA-KABUYE

BEN SALES

Obituaries
Sidney Friedman

Sidney Friedman, 90, of

Fort Lee died August 5.
Born in Chicago, he was
an accountant.
His wife, Regina, ne
Eberhardt, children
Deborah and Michael,
and a grandchild, Shawn,
survive him.
Arrangements were by
Eden Memorial Chapels,
Fort Lee.

Phyllis Noble

Phyllis J. Noble, 76, of

Emerson died August 7.
Arrangements were by
Louis Suburban Chapel,
Fair Lawn.

Renee Pollak

Renee Pollak, ne Stein, of

Wayne, formerly of Pompton Lakes and Hoboken,
died August. 5.
Born in Germany in

1935, she was taken at age

4 on a kindertransport to
Brussels, where later she
was hidden with a Catholic family. She came to the
U.S. in 1945.
Predeceased by her
husband of 40 years, Dr.
Robert, she is survived by
children Michele Pollak
(Alan Frenkel) of Franklin
Lakes, Jacqueline Dartley
(Edward) of Ridgewood,
and Daniel (Paula) of
Wayne, and by grandchildren Emily, Zoe, Amanda,
Ian, Shaye, Aiden,
and Tahlia.
Donations can be sent
to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsons
Research or the American
Society for the Prevention
of Cruelty to Animals.
Arrangements were by
Robert Schoems Menorah
Chapel, Paramus.

Robert Schoems Menorah Chapel, Inc

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Selma Rosen

Selma Rosen, ne Silverstein, 91, of Highland Beach, Fla., died

August 3.
Born in New York, she
was predeceased by her
husband, Ben, in 2000,
and is survived by sons,
Edward of Park Ridge
and Michael of Newport Beach, Calif., and
four grandchildren.
Arrangements were by
Eden Memorial Chapels,
Fort Lee.

Gustave Wexler

Gustave Wexler, 97, of

Hackensack, formerly of
Ho-Ho-Kus and Teaneck,

201-791-0015

died August 4.
He was president of
Wexler & Wexler, CPAs,
in Elmwood Park. A
World War II Army veteran, he was a member
of the Jewish War Veterans in New York City
and a former member
of the Jewish Center
of Teaneck.
Predeceased by his wife
of 73 years, Florence, he
is survived by children
Laura Carabello ( Joseph),
and Elliott (Lynne); seven
grandchildren, and seven
great-grandchildren.
Arrangements were by
Louis Suburban Chapel,
Fair Lawn.

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Murray a. Meltzer, M.D.

Murray A. Meltzer, M.D., 80, of Goshen
(Woodridge Lake), CT, and Tenafly, NJ, died
August 4, 2016. An adored and admired
surgeon who has left the world a better
place. He is survived by his daughters Lori,
Deanne, and Jennifer; his sons-in-law Peter
and Vineet, his grandchildren Trevor, Allison,
Maya, and Jake, his eldest brother, Marty,
and many much-loved cousins, nieces, and
nephews. He was a wonderful husband to
his late wife of 47 years, Adrienne. He was a
Professor of Ophthalmology and the Director
of Ophthalmic Plastic Surgery at Mount Sinai
Hospital in New York. He practiced medicine
and taught younger physicians until the day
he entered the hospital. He loved it so. Born
in Brooklyn, NY, the youngest of three boys
of the late Jacob and Rose Meltzer, and
brother of the late Irwin, Murray graduated
from New Utrecht High School, Cornell
University, SUNY Downstate Medical
College, and went on to further training in
New York and London. A memorial service
was held at Temple Sinai of Bergen County
in Tenafly. Notes of condolence may be
sent to MurrayAMeltzerMD@gmail.com.
Donations may be made to Virtuefoundation.
org or mmrf.org. Arrangements by Barrett
Funeral Home, Tenafly.
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JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 33

Classified
Garage Sale

Cemetery Plots For Sale

GARAGE & JUDAICA SALE

Sat. Aug 20 & Sun. Aug 21
9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
featuring Paintings Books
Jewish Artifacts
and other related items.
Dishes, Glassware & Ephemera
55 Highview Avenue
Bergenfield, N.J.

. Cemetery Plots

Beth El/Cedar Park

Paramus, N. J.
Gravesites Available
$1150 each
Excellent Location
Call Mrs. G 201-429-2585
914-589-4673

(201) 837-8818

Help Wanted

Situations Wanted

TEACHER
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ASSISTANTS needed for Gan Iris
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Plaza
Road, Fair Lawn, N. J.
Call 201-414-6998

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time care - 15 years experience
caring for the elderly with Alzheimers/dementia. Knowledge of
kosher food preparation, will shop,
clean, administer medication and
drive client to MD appointments.
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Are You Looking for

Professional Nurse/CHHA
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Antiques

NICHOL AS
ANTIQUES
ESTATES
BOUGHT & SOLD

Fine Furniture Antiques Accessories

Cash Paid

201-920-8875

Sterling Associates Auctions

SEEKING CONSIGNMENT AND OUT RIGHT PURCHASES
Sculpture Paintings Porcelain Silver
Jewelry Furniture Etc.

TOP CASH PRICES PAID

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info@antiquenj.com

70 Herbert Avenue, Closter, N.J. 07642

FREE APPRAISALS TUESDAYS FROM 12-2

IN OUR GALLERY. CALL FOR APPOINTMENT.

Antiques Wanted
WE BUY
Oil Paintings

Silver

Bronzes

Porcelain

Oriental Rugs

Furniture

Marble Sculpture

Jewelry

Tiffany Items

Chandeliers

Chinese Art

Bric-A-Brac

Tyler Antiques
Established by Bubbe in 1940!

tylerantiquesny@aol.com

201-894-4770
Shomer Shabbos
34 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Call
Spendylove Homecare
732-430-5789
*****

AIDE available to do elder care.

Warm, loving, caring, experienced,
reliable, excellent references. Livein or out. 201-668-7946
CAREGIVER with 15 years experience looking to take care of elderly. Live out. Lt housekeeping, cooking, doctors appts, shopping, etc.
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CNA/HHA seeking private care for
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Situations Wanted

COMPANION: Experienced, kind,

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732-895-8696
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companion, nursing skills, medical
experience. Will do cooking, shopping, daily routine. Live your life
call Shida 973-333-7878

Help Wanted

Part-Time Jewish Teen Coordinator

The Glen Rock Jewish Center, a 250-family Conservative egalitarian

congregation in Bergen County, NJ just minutes outside of Manhattan,
is seeking a part-time young Jewish educator/teen coordinator who will
be responsible for:
Planning and executing educational and social programs for post
bar/bat mitzvah students and teens.
Monthly programming to take place beginning September 2016,
with the possibility of periodic supplemental programs on other days.
Competitive pay
For more information, please email your interest and
experience to Rabbi Jennifer Schlosberg at rabbi@grjc.org.

EXPERIENCED
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Please call Jenna
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Modern Furniture & Art
Judaica Art
Oil Paintings
Porcelain
Bronzes Silver
Chinese Porcelain Art
Jewelry & Costume Jewelry
Men & Women Watches
Other Antiques

VETERAN/COLLEGE graduate
seeks employment in telephone
sales. 25 years experience in purchasing and marketing of diverse
products. Proven success in generating new business through
building strong relationships, senior
buyer of toys, hobbies, hard goods
and bulk toys. Honest, hard worker. email:yendisid@optImum.net

Downsize
Coordinator

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Antiques

Situations Wanted

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Established 2001
NURSES AIDE /CARETAKER
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Pumpkinflowers
FROM PAGE 29

soldiers then scampered into armored vehicles and

made for the border.
After he was discharged, Friedman majored in Islamic
and Middle Eastern studies at Hebrew University. Then,
at 25, he decided to re-visit Lebanon, protected this time
by a clean Canadian passport rather than an armored
column. In a bittersweet fourth segment of the book,
more of a coda really, he flies to Toronto, where he reacquaints himself with drooling my vowels instead of
spitting them, before proceeding to London, and finally
Beirut.
The Lebanon sojourn allows him to share caf tables
and conversations with shopkeepers and Shiites. Posing as a tourist, Friedman hears the locals roundly condemn Israel, Jews, and Americans. As he heads south,
he dances and picnics with a young group of revelers

Black Lives
FROM PAGE 32

Call us.
We are waiting for
your classified ad!
201-837-8818

ourselves with organizations that falsely and maliciously assert that Israel is committing genocide,
wrote Bostons Jewish Community Relations Council in
a statement on the platform. That being said, the statement continued, As we dissociate ourselves from the
Black Lives Matter platform and those BLM organizations that embrace it, we recommit ourselves unequivocally to the pursuit of justice for all Americans, and
to working together with our friends and neighbors in
the African-American community, whose experience
of the criminal justice system is, far too often, determined by race.
Ndugga-Kabuye said he understood that the term
genocide could prevent some Jews from joining the

along the banks of the Qadisha River, and listens to them

debate intermarriage with Christians. Next, a visit to the
Hezbollah museum in an old prison at Khiam, where
graffiti proclaimed Jews are AIDS.
Finally, Friedmans battered taxi brings him to the
cusp of the Pumpkin. Hes traveled thousands of miles
to reach a point 20 minutes from his parents home on
the other side of the border. He walks the last leg to the
top of hill and passes Hebrew graffiti reading, Aryeh,
we want invitations to the wedding.
Under the rubble, remnants of the Pumpkin greet
his trained eye. He navigates the old trench line and
observes the unrelenting natural forces of southern Lebanon slowly overwhelming the outpost with vegetation.
The Pumpkin holds one last surprise for him: a mystery
woman who sits on the western embankment and murmurs until a man calls her away. She doesnt spot Friedman, who walks back to his cab knowing his odyssey has
come full circle.

Black Lives Matter movement. He said it was something we have to consider, but its also something we
have to accept. He said that negative Jewish reactions
to the platform recalled the later years of the 1960s civil
rights movement, when white and black allies split over
tactics and ideology.
He rejected the idea that accusing Israel of genocide
makes the movement anti-Semitic, saying the accusation
is not connected to Israels Jewish character.
Are you saying Im committing genocide because of
who I am, my identity? Ndugga-Kabuye said, hypothetically placing himself in Israels role. That would obviously be racist. But if youre talking about a series of policies that are in place between one group over another,
folks may argue were wrong, but the question of whether
were anti-Semitic is another question altogether.
JTA WIRE SERVICE

www.thejewishstandard.com
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 35

Real Estate & Business

Ben-Gurion University security startup technology deployed at Rio Olympics
A new app, SayVU, conceived as a graduate student project at Ben-Gurion
University of the Negev,
has been deployed at
the 2016 Rio Olympics.
International Security &
Defense Systems (ISDS),
the security integrator for
the Olympics, selected
SayVU as one of the Israeli
technologies being used to
protect attendees.
SayVU, available on the
Android platform, enables
a user to send a distress signal to an emergency hotline even if a phone is locked
and without having to access the application. The message can be sent in a number
of ways: shaking the device, tapping the
camera button, or simply speaking into
the phone.
SayVU strives to minimize the response
time of emergency services and other
authorities, and make sure the user gets
assistance as quickly as possible, according to SayVU chief executive officer Amotz
Koskas. We have established a hotline
center at the 2016 Rio Olympics, which

helps emergency and law enforcement

agencies respond to alerts and ensure the
safety of Olympics attendees.
SayVU also includes the option for automatically turning on the phones microphone. It sends the recorded voice, GPS,
and other locating information to an
emergency hotline. The app uses patent
pending machine learning techniques to
determine the users patterns and checks
when it senses abnormalities. If there is
no reply, the app automatically sends out
a distress message.
In addition to SayVUs lifesaving security

benefits, the technology

provides real-time event
and emergency reporting to emergency medical
services and law enforcement agencies as well
as threat management,
regional threat mapping
and trend prediction.
The technology was
conceived and developed
in the wake of the kidnapping and murder of three
Israeli youths in 2014. One
of them managed to call
and report the kidnapping but the police
did not immediately respond because
they thought it was a prank. Koskas, at the
time an MBA student at BGUs Guilford
Glazer Faculty of Business and Management, wondered if there was a technological means to prevent similar instances in
the future.
A year later, Koskas won the joint Google
and BGU competition Students Thinking
Innovation in the Public Sector in collaboration with Digital Israel and the
staff of the Accessible Government initiative to promote innovation in the public

sector through information and communication technologies. The new technology attempted to meet two main needs: to
give citizens the tools to send out a distress
message and location quickly in an emergency, and to enable the authorities to get
a clear, real-time situation report.
Recently, the company ran a pilot with
kindergartens in Ofakim, Israel. It was
deemed a success when a pedophile was
caught by a teacher who used the app. As a
result, the Ofakim municipality decided to
use the app for all educational institutions,
social workers, and the municipal hotline,
with other municipalities following suit.
SayVU Ltd. has embarked on a $2 million round of funding. The company is
developing strategic partnerships in the
U.S., China, Europe, and Africa.
The company was also just awarded
a $1 million grant from the U.S.-Israeli
BIRD Foundation for a project funded by
Israels Public Security Ministry and the
U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The goal is to provide orientation within
buildings and non-failure communications
under extreme conditions to first responders such as police, firefighters, and emergency medicine personnel.

Showcase Properties
Beautiful Colonial
in Englewood.
acre property.
6 Bedrooms, 3 Baths.

OR

L
SA

LE

OR

SA

Charm and character in this

elegant home, three floors of
livable space, completely updated
and upgraded w/the spaciousness
found in older homes!

Englewood

Englewood

71 Glenwood Rd.

185 E. Palisade Ave. Apt. C6A

LD

LD

LD

SO

SO

Englewood
204 Maple St.

Ayelet
Hurvitz

Harrington Park
18 Jay St.

Broker/Salesperson

LD

SO

SO

Norwood

Recipient of the NJAR Circle of Excellence

Sales Award 2012-2015
Sterling Society Award Winner
2014-2015
Five Star Professional Award Winner 2015

Exceptional Service,
Exceptional Results
Direct: 201-294-1844

Alpine/Closter Office: 201-767-0550 x 235

ahurvitz12@yahoo.com www.ayelethurvitz.com
36 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Fort Lee

152 Piermont Rd.

Atrium Palace
ED

AS

LE

Englewood

185 E. Palisade Ave. Apt. B6B

s
e

s
-

Real Estate & Business

E Designer Resale continues under new ownership
E Designer Resale, the Cliffside Park
consignment store, has undergone
an ownership change. Teaneck
native Eileen Potrock has taken the
reins of the store.
Her goal for E Designer is to bring
a high-end shopping experience at
affordable prices to consignment.
She is offering free styling for all customers as well as a friendly, fun, and
personalized salon type atmosphere
similar to the shopping experience
in Madison Avenue boutiques. Ms.

Potrock was previously working in

the television and film industry in
the production end and also worked
in movie costuming as well as styling in the New York area.
Popular items include Chanel
and Hermes handbags as well as
clothing from top designers from
Rag and Bone to St. John and Chanel. E Designer even offers layaway
for those high-ticket items that clients desire.
The store currently accepts new

El Al offers savings
on flights to Israel
EL AL Israel Airlines is offering savings on nonstop
flights departing the U.S. August 19 through September 27. The special roundtrip fares are $809 from
New York ( JFK/Newark), including taxes and carrier
imposed fuel surcharges. Tickets must be purchased
by August 11.
For all Matmid members, El Al is offering a September bonus promotion with savings of up to 20 percent
less than what is usually required for a bonus ticket.
This promotion allows departures September 1 to 30
in both economy and business class from New York.
El Al boasts the most nonstop flights between the
USA and Israel for a total of 30 every week: 16 from
JFK, six from Newark as well as the only nonstops from
Los Angeles (five weekly) and Boston (three every
week).
For details, restrictions, and to purchase either September promotion, visit www.elal.com, call (800) 2236700 or contact any travel agent.

and gently worn womens designer

clothing, handbags, shoes, and
accessories for consignment and
plans to expand to carry mens
accessories, including wallets,
belts, sunglasses, ties, and jewelry.
There is currently a summer sale
through August 27 and then again
September 721. The Fall Preview
is taking place on September 22nd.
The store is closed for a short holiday from August 28 through September 6.

ALPINE

$2,250,000

ALPINE/CLOSTER
TENAFLY
RIVER VALE ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS TENAFLY

894-1234
768-6868

FOR SALE BY OWNER

Gem on prime Chestnut Street location.
Room to expand on huge 154' x 140' lot.
Close to houses of worship.
Priced to sell. $850,000

CRESSKILL
Orna Jackson, Sales Associate 201-376-1389

666-0777

568-1818

894-1234 871-0800

OPEN HOUSES

t TEANECK t

By appointment.
Please call 786-514-6520

OPEN HOUSE

Sung Min Yoo, Lead Agent

25 Washington Street, Tenay
Mobile 201-994-9295

LOVELY

Light & bright brick colonial on park-like acre, beautiful cul-de-sac street, newer
kitchen, updated master bath w/Jacuzzi, 6 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, gorgeous walkout ground level w/sauna, gym, bath, laundry & cedar closet,
private yard w/pool & oversized deck.

Direct lender
2 to 3 day approval
Closings within 30 days
Northern NJ Appraisers
FHA loans w/55% debt ratio
Credit scores as low as 580

Smart, easy living in Norwoods premier townhome

community. This distinctive Cascade model offers
4 bedrooms, 3.5 full baths, and roomy 2-car garage.
Blue Ribbon School System. Call for more info.

TM

ENGLEWOOD EAST HILL

Let Us Finance Your

House Purchase

709 Holly Court, Norwood

Sunday . August 14, 2016 . 1-3pm

The staff is fluent in several languages, including Russian, Hebrew, Spanish, Italian, French, Korean, and a bissel Yiddish.
E Designer is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through
Friday and 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday. It is located at
720 Anderson Ave., Cliffside Park. Call (201) 943-3401.

Larry DeNike
President

MLO #58058
ladclassic@aol.com

Daniel M. Shlufman
Managing Director

MLO #6706
dshlufman@classicllc.com

Classic Mortgage, LLC

Serving NY, NJ & CT

25 E. Spring Valley Ave., Ste 100, Maywood, NJ

201-368-3140

www.classicmortgagellc.com

MLS
#31149

189 Cherry Ln.

$380,000

1-3 PM

904 E Lawn Dr.

$450,000

1-3 PM

Lov Street. 139 Deep Prop. Beautiful Nat Woodwork. LR/Fplc, DR

open to Granite Kit, Fam Rm/Sep Ent. 2/3 BRs, 3 Baths. Fin Bsmt.
Det Gar.

C Club Area. Beaut 4 BR Tri-Level. Spacious & Open LR + Form DR,

Skylit Isle Kit open to Fam Rm/Sldrs to Patio. C/A/C, Gar.

BY APPOINTMENT

t TEANECK t

C Club Area. Perfect Starter Home. Freshly Painted. 2 Large BRs,

Fin Bsmt, Gar. Room to Expand. $290s
Col/75' X 110' Corner Prop. Encl Frnt Porch, Lg LR/Fplc, Lg Din
Rm, Eat In Kit. 4 Second Flr BRs. Fin 3rd Flr. Full Bsmt. 2 Car Gar.
Needs Updating. $325,000
3 BR, 2.5 Bath Col. Prime Loc near all incl Phelps Park & Cedar Ln.
LR/Fplc, Form DR, Fam Rm, Updated Kit, Recrm Bsmt. H/W Flrs, C/A,
Gar. $419,900

ALL CLOSE TO NY BUS / HOUSES OF WORSHIP /

HIGHWAYS / SHOPPING / SCHOOLS & NY BUS
For Our Full Inventory & Directions
Visit our Website
www.RussoRealEstate.com

(201) 837-8800
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 37

Real Estate & Business

SELLING YOUR HOME?

Call Susan Laskin Today

To Make Your Next Move A Successful One!
BergenCountyRealEstateSource.com

Cell: 201-615-5353

The Butterfly Festival returns

to the Teaneck Farmers Market
The Cedar Lane Mana ge m e n t G rou p i s
hosting a repeat perfo r m a n c e o f T h e
Butterfly Fe stival
w i t h Mu s i c a l L e gends founder Lauren
Ho o ke r o n T hu r s day, August 18. Shell
have two free shows
at 2:30 and 4 p.m. at
the Teaneck Farmers Market.
Children are encouraged to come in their
own butterfly costumes. Also featured
that day, starting at
12:30, is beekeeper
Daniel Senter, with his
bees frames. There
will also be face painting with Indigo Art Studios, and an arts and
crafts table.

test

Singers at Teaneck Farmers Market last week

2016 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. Coldwell Banker is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.
An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Owned and Operated by NRT LLC.

NVE-3184 3Q Red Door Ad 5x6.5_NVE-3184 3Q Red Door Ad 5x6.5 7/13/16 9:21 AM Page 1

When opportunity knocks,

NVE helps you answer the door.

MORTGAGE
Rates as low as

NVE. Our mortgage team knows

their way around the neighborhood.

%
%
2.500
2.576
Rate
APR*
Rates valid on Loan Amounts
Up To $1,000,000

At NVE, we know the local market inside and out. In addition to offering a full
range of flexible mortgage products, our Mortgage Specialist works closely with
you every step of the way to ensure a smooth process and speedy closing.
Call today at 201-816-2800, ext. 1230, or apply online at nvebank.com

FORT LEE THE COLONY

1 BR 2 Baths. Updated. Mountain view. $149,900

1 BR 1.5 Bath. Updated. Full river view. $189,900
2 BR 2.5 Baths. Total renovation with laundry. Redesigned.
Full river view. $325,000
Corner 3 BR 3.5 Baths. Total renovation with laundry.
Spectacular in size and layout. Must see! $695,000
Serving Bergen County since 1985.
Thank you for your trust in me.

Allan Dorfman
NMLS #733094
*APR = Annual Percentage Rate. APR is accurate as of 7/1/16 and may vary based on loan amounts. Loans are
for 1-4 family New Jersey owner-occupied properties only. Rates and terms are subject to change without
notice. As an example, the 7-year loan at the stated APR would have 84 monthly payments of $12.99 per
thousand borrowed based on a 20% down payment or equity for loan amounts up to $500,000. Payments
do not include amounts for taxes and insurance premiums, if applicable. The actual payment obligation will
be greater. Property insurance is required. Other rates and terms are available. Subject to credit approval.
Bergenfield I Closter I Cresskill I Englewood I Hillsdale I Leonia I New Milford I Teaneck I Tenafly

38 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016

Broker/Associate

201-461-6764 Eve
201-970-4118 Cell
201-585-8080 Office
Realtorallan@yahoo.com

The Art of Real Estate

*TENAFLY SHOWCASE*

Ruth Miron-Schleider
Broker/Owner
MIRON PROPERTIES

PU REN
RC T O
HA R
SE
!

EX
QU
CO CA ISI
LO PE TE
NI
AL
!

8 WOODLAND PARK DRIVE $858,000

23 DOWNEY DR $1,198,000 OR $5,900/MO

LE JUS
AS T
ED
!

123 HICKORY AVENUE

SO

11 WHITEWOOD ROAD

SO

7 GLENWOOD ROAD

82 OAK AVENUE

SO

LD

SO

LD

74 SHERWOOD ROAD

511 KNICKERBOCKER ROAD

SO

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15 BIRCHWOOD PLACE

186 ELM STREET

SO

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LD

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297 ENGLE STREET

SO

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LD

30 OXFORD DRIVE

140 DOWNEY DRIVE

SO

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J
SO UST
LD
!

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120 DEVRIESE COURT

CT
U
AC RES
RE QU
! E

24 SUNDERLAND ROAD $1,788,000

SO

LD

PI

J
SO UST
LD
!

26 CLOVER STREET

SO

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150 COLUMBUS DRIVE

1 KNICKERBOCKER ROAD $1,198,000

LE JUS
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ED
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27 SUFFOLK LANE

SO

B
M RIC
A
ST SO K &
UC NR
CO Y
!

LD

29 FARVIEW ROAD

Contact us today for your complimentary consultation!

T: 201.266.8555 M: 201.906.6024
Ruth@MironProperties.com
www.MironProperties.com/NJ
JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016 39

40 JEWISH STANDARD AUGUST 12, 2016