COMPILED BY ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM An Appeal For The Children With Canavan's I ts headquarters are hardly impressive: a table in the middle of a Manhattan apartment. Yet the story behind the Canavan Foundation is remarkable. When their daughter, Morgan, was 4 months old, Orren Alperstein Gelblum and her husband, Seth, discovered she had a little-known ailment called Canavan's, which affects primarily Jews of Eastern European ancestry. The brain disease limits both Morgan's physical abilities (she is not expected to ever walk or talk) and her life span: Most Canavan children don't live past childhood. But instead of simply feel- ing sorry for themselves, the Gelblums decided to do some- thing. "You can't just sit back and hope for a discovery," Mrs. Gelblum told the New York Times. "You have to make it happen." That's when the Gelblums began organizing what would become the first Canavan Foundation. In three years, they have raised $111,000. The money has been given in grants to three teams of sci- entists and will be used to cre- ate a prenatal test to check for the disease. There is, at pre- sent, no way to determine if parents carry the Canavan gene or whether their unborn children have the affliction. Today, Mrs. Gelblum serves as president of the Canavan Foundation. Its advisory board consists of physicians from throughout the world. For information, contact the Canavan Foundation at 320 Central Park West, Suite 19D, New York, NY 10025, (212) 877-3945. B'nai B'rith Seeks Alumni THIS OIN NOV) '11 1.) UNITED SYNAGOGUE (S. CONSERVATIVE IUDAISNI USCJ Adds TDD A s part of its ongoing commitment to serve the disabled, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism (USCJ) has installed a TDD telephone in its New York office. Anyone with a TDD machine can receive informa- tion concerning USCJ pro- grams and projects by dialing (212) 260-7442. In addition, the USCJ recently published its sixth Directory of Accessible Congregations, which lists synagogues that are accessi- ble by ramps, elevators and other means. For informa- tion, contact the USCJ at 155 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10010, or call (212) 533- 7800. New Israel Fund Opens In Britain Shown from left: Orren Alperstein Gelblum with Morgan; Foundation Vice President Eileen Alperstein; Dr. Edwin Kolodny, a member of the organization's scientific advi- sory board; and Arnold Alperstein, Canavan Foundation treasurer. Some Fast Advice I f the idea of not eating and drinking an entire day on Yom Kippur makes you, well, a little anxious, consider these tips from experts at the Hadassah- Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem. Dr. Elliot Berry, head of clinical nutrition at the hospi- tal, recommends taking fre- quent drinks of water throughout the day before the fast begins. The last meal before the fast should include complex carbohydrates (like macaroni, rice, potatoes and whole-grain bread) which, when stored in the liver, help retain water so the body suf- fers less dehydration. Professor Ya'acov Bar- Tana, head of the school's department of medical bio- chemistry, advises against overeating before a fast. Proteins and fats are absorbed more slowly than sugars and provide the neces- sary energy, but the best preparation for a fast is a bal- anced meal comprising 55 percent complex carbohy- drates and sugars, 15 percent proteins and 30 percent fats. Professor Bar-Tana says that the fast should be bro- ken by drinking (but not car- bonated beverages) and eat- ing a slice of bread or dry cake. After an hour, you can sit down to a full meal. T he New Israel Fund recently opened its first office in Great Britain, with a ceremony that fea- tured Knesset member Avraham Burg of the Labor Party. More than 150 persons attended the opening event, held at St. John's Wood Synagogue in northwest London. The Fund supports a num- ber of programs in Israel, including educational and social activities that foster Israeli-Arab cooperation, and a battered women's shelter and rape crisis center. T ie B'nai B'rith Youth Organization (BBYO) National Alumni Association's first Israel StiKly Institute is set to leave for Israel on Dec. 27. The 10-day trip, for BBYO alumni in college and graduate school, will depart from New York. Highlights of the trip will include visits to the Hebrew University on Mt. Scopus, the Harry Karen Institute for Propaganda Research in Tel Aviv, Masada, the Diaspora Museum, and a tour of the archaeologi- cal sights in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. The purpose of the Israel Study Institute is to help col- lege students maintain and strengthen their Jewish identity while living far from home and without the struc- ture provided by synagogue and family. For information, contact the BBYO alumni office at (202) 857-6633. Reform Launches Denmark Campaign F ifty years ago this month, in an unprece- dented display of nation- al compassion and courage, the Danish people saved its 8,000-member Jewish com- munity from death at the hands of the Nazis. Throughout the High Holy Days, the Reform movement is holding a campaign to thank the people of Denmark for their heroism. Rabbis will deliver sermons; temple bul- letins will publish articles, and children in religious schools will be encouraged to write Queen Margarethe II, the granddaughter of the monarch who led the massive rescue effort, King Christian X. Reform leaders hope that at least 8,000 letters of thanks — one for every Danish Jew saved — will reach the queen. The story of the rescue began shortly before Rosh Hashanah 1943, when George Duckwitz, a German marine attache in occupied Denmark, learned of a Nazi order to ship all Danish Jews to concentra- tion camps. He informed a Danish leader who, in turn, alerted the Jewish community. The Danes then hastily organized a secret under- ground network to ferry their Jewish fellow-citizens to neu- tral Sweden. Men and women from all walks of life took part, providing money, hiding places and secret transporta- tion to the docks. The Material Girl Does Israel M adonna (shown here, having recently com- pleted an extensive analysis of the theory of rela- tivity) is bringing her unique talents to the Holy Land. The Michigan-born enter- tainer, whose unforgettable hits include "Like a Virgin" and "Like a Prayer" (Remem- ber those lyrics, "In the mid- night hour, I can feel your power." Wow! Strong stuff?), is going to be like a big hit, no do313t, when she hits Israel on Oct. 15. Madonna and her 112-per- son entourage will perform at Hayarkon Park in Tel Aviv.