ATTENTION ALL HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS
UNITED HEBREW SCHOOLS
COMMUNITY JEWISH HIGH SCHOOL
Exhibition Honors
Israeli Soldier-Poet
SANDRA COHEN
Special to The Jewish News
O
nce in a while
As I progress towards
the course's end
I feel a pang of fear
Today I felt such fear
If the war comes
When the war comes
I will have to lead men to die
But those men were not men
a short time ago
Some don't even shave yet
And I will have to have the
calm power
To yell to them
Or to whisper
Kadima (forward)
And,
I will have to have the calm
power
To step forward myself
These moving words were
written by Alex Singer in
August 1986. Thirteen
months later, on his 25th bir-
thday, he was killed by a PLO
unit in the security zone in
Lebanon while attempting to
rescue his company
commander.
A more moving tribute
could not have been organiz-
ed to this young American
immigrant than the exhibit
recently held at the Fisher
Hall Gallery in Yemin Moshe,
Jerusalem, initiated by
Mayor Teddy Kollek and put
toether by the Israel
Museum.
Pages from Singer's sket-
chbooks presented a visual
diary resounding with keen
observation and a sense of
spontaneity, featuring in fine
pen-and-ink and watercolors
his travels in London,
Scotland, Europe and Len-
ingrad, as well as his ex-
periences in the Israel
Defense Forces.
Selections from his letters
and journals pulsate with pro-
found commitment, warmth
and affection for both his
family and Israel.
Alex Singer was born in
Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y., in
1962. He, his parents and
three brothers came to. Israel
in 1973 where an intended
one-year stay stretched to
four. He entered Cornell
University in 1980. During
Singer's junior year at the
London School of Economics
he visited Europe where he
sketched in England,
Scotland, Spain, Italy and
Greece. His commitment to
Israel is mirrored in these
words from Scotland:
"I just returned from a
short excursion to Scotland —
easily the most beautiful
place I've ever been. But,
after all the wandering I've
done this year, I know that
Scotland is the last place I'll
live because a life alone on
the moors cannot be a life in
the Jewish people. Judaism
demands commitment to a
nation . . ."
the
"Letters
from
Diaspora," his thesis at Cor-
nell University, was based on
these travels and summaries
of the history of the Jews in
England, Spain and Russia.
In this letter from Spain,
words embroidered with sen-
sitivity flow as in a stream,
giving expression to his
strong identity with the
Jewish people:
"Like the archeologist I feel
I can never cross the boun-
dary between observation and
participation because the
Spain I am visiting is not the
Spain of earlier times which
I'm trying hard to find. I am
a Jew where Jews once were
and where only shadows and
shells remain."
A fervent interest in
cultural heritage and contem-
porary Judaism took him to
Leningrad, and an emotional
meeting with Jewish
refuseniks.
"My visit to Leningrad
made me feel that there are
ways for non-Soviet Jews to
overcome the intolerance of
the USSR for Jews. It may
sound pretentious, but I know
from the joy with which I was
received in Russia that my
visit gave the people I met a
burst of energy and hope.
Who knows? Maybe that
energy will give them the
strength to overcome the next
hurdle."
Following graduation with
highest honors from Cornell,
Singer came to Israel to study
Arabic at the Hebrew Univer-
sity, and in 1984 he became
an immigrant. Six weeks
later he was inducted into the
I.D.F. An account of the ar-
duous 88 kilometer "Red
Beret March" (Masa Kumta),
which signals the end of basic
training for Israeli para-
troopers, concluded with the
emotional entry into
Jerusalem and the sight of
the Western Wall. Capturing
with sensitivity those special
moments, he wrote:
"The views of course were
another joy as they always are
when one enters Jerusalem."
and
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF NEAR EASTERN AND ASIAN STUDIES
announce
a special college credit course
"MODERN JEWISH HISTORY - 1880-1990"
Instructor: Dr, Murray Rosman, Historian; Professor
Bar Ilan University and Hebrew University,
Midrasha-College of Jewish Studies —
Bargman Scholar-in-Residence
Students who take this course will receive 3 hours of Advanc-
ed Placement college credit at Wayne State University,
(Credit is transferable to other colleges and universities.)
WHEN: TUESDAYS, 3:30-6:00 P.M.
BEGINNING FEBRUARY 7, 1989
WHERE: UNITED HEBREW SCHOOLS
21550 W. TWELVE MILE ROAD
SOUTHFIELD
TUITION PAID FOR BY
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY, CENTER FOR JUDAIC STUDIES
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:
UNITED HEBREW SCHOOLS 354-1050
NIA NIIIII
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36 Day General Trial Membership
$36.00 per Family or
VISA'
$18.00 per Individual
• walking & running tracks
• indoor pool
• racquetball, walleyball, squash, basketball
(no court fee)
• olympic weight room
(must be 16 & over)
• babysitter available for a fee
• Prices based on cost of 36 consecutive days
• Good during February 1989 only
• must be paid in full
Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit
6600 West Maple Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48322
661-1000, est. 265
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
37