Apple Tree

mation about contemporary artists in
Jerusalem or facts about Israel's mili-
tary battles, chances are you'll find it
all on a single Web site.
Mitchell Bard, executive director of
the American-Israeli Cooperative
Enterprise (which focuses on Israeli
educational and social-service know-
how), is also Webmaster of the Jewish
Virtual Library. He says, "I want any-
one with a question [about Israeli or
Jewish history and culture] to find the
answer on my site. If they can't, I usu-
ally try to find it for them."
The Jewish Virtual Library already
features 6,000 articles and averages
more than 100,000 hits a day. Check it
out at wwwJewishVirtualLibrary.org

The First Kibbutz: Israel is the only
country in the world that is home to
numerous collectives, called kibbutzim.
The state's first kibbutz was Degania,
in the Jordan Valley, established by 12
men and women in 1909. Founders
said, "We're Jewish peasants building a
homeland for our people."

Move Over, Paris: For years, Calvin
Klein, Ralph Lauren, Isaac Mizrachi,
Donna Karan and Arnold Isaacs (aka
Scaasi) have taken a leading role in
American fashion. Now, Jewish design-
ers in Israel are making their mark, and
not just with the already popular
Gottex bathing suits. Want to check
out the latest styles from Israel? Just
visit www.israelfashion.com (This is a
site with numerous graphics and
music. It requires Macromedia
Shockwave Flash 4 and will take some
time to load into your computer.)

Up, Up And Away. Among the astro-
nauts set to travel on Columbia Flight
107 is Col. Ilan Ramon of Israel.

Something Old, Something New:
One man's trash is ... well, not exactly
another man's treasure in this case, but
it is something to be used again and
again.
Israel has just begun participating in
a movement that has resurfaced in the
United States in recent years: recycling.
The country is starting with plastic
bottles, and programs already have
been instituted in Jerusalem, Be'er
Sheva and Tel Aviv to find a new use
for the bottles, rather than just dump
them into landfills.
The recycling effort comes in large
part thanks to Magshimim Atid Yarok
(which roughly translates to "Realizing
the Long Future Ahead"), an environ-
mental group comprising mostly
immigrants. Magshimim Add Yarok
first suggested reusing plastic bottles to

4/20
2001

64

The Big Story

make lawn furniture (previously, plastic
for the furniture was imported — and
at a high cost).
While Michigan residents can place
their recycling in containers at curb-
side, Israelis still have to make the extra
effort by bringing their plastic bottles
to large recycling bins located at select
spots throughout the country.

It's In The Cards: You can send a
virtual postcard of the Kotel
(Western Wall) via e-mail. Just go to
:www.ahavat-israel.com and click on
"postcard" at the left.

What's In A Name: Though we could-
n't imagine it as anything but "Israel,"
the country could just as easily have
been called Judea or Zion.
As the state was being established, a
great deal of debate existed about
exactly what to name it.

For The Children: Each year, Alyn
Hospital of Jerusalem treats more
than 5,000 disabled children of
every religion and background
(about 70 percent are Jewish and 30
percent are Arab).
Services include physical, music, art
and speech therapy, among others,
focusing not just on the child's physical
challenges but working to
improve every aspect of his or
her condition.
Among the hospital's special-
ties: head injuries resulting from
car accidents, neuromuscular
diseases, cerebral palsy, spina
bifida, congenital deformities,
general pediatric orthopedics
and special care for infants
requiring intermediate ventila-
tion and feeding management.
For a tzedakah (contribution)
box, or to make a donation, call
the local office of the American
Friends of Alyn Hospital at
(248) 559 ALYN.

You'll Love This: The hottest, the
hippest, the most divine skin creams
and bath products come from some-
thing dead.
The Dead Sea, that is.
Ahava (love) beauty treatments,
made from salts and other products
found in the Dead Sea, are a favorite
among many actresses and entertainers;
fortunately, they are available to the
rest of us mere peons, as well. You can
find Dead Sea hand lotion and foot
cream and soap and real mud (apply to
the body, sit 15 minutes [who knows
where ...] and then rinse off for lovely
skin).
Ahava products can be found locally

A bottling
plant in
Is3 ad.

In prayer at
the Western

Wall.

These wines
are no longer
the 'only game
in town.'

The inside of
the _Moro
Synagogue in
Rhode Island.

