EDITOR'S NOTEBOOK jaw 34th Annual Meeting and Election of Officers Emotions And Heroes IV e're going to Israel as a community to show the world we're in lockstep with the Jewish state amid a time of upheaval and uncertainty spurred by Palestinian terror. We'll stand with our Israeli brethren and applaud their resolve. And we'll take in the sweet and not-so-sweet scents of this biblical, belea- guered land of our forebears. Under tight security Federation's Michigan Miracle Mission 4 will take place April 18-28, 2004, with six nights in historic Jerusalem and two nights in the Central Galilee, Detroit Jewry's Partnership 2000 region for building educational, busi- ness and social connections. Trip co-sponsors are the Detroit Jewish News and Michigan Board of Rabbis. More than 180 people have made deposits. Congregational buses with tailored schedules will come together for three mega events. Next April, there's nowhere I'd rather be as the chill of Israel Remembrance Day (Yom HaZikaron) morphs into the joy of Israel ROBERT A. Independence Day (Yom HaAtzmaut), SKLAR. Israel's 56th birthday. Editor What will make this Miracle Mission dif- ferent from the first three is the panoply of volunteer opportunities, from serving hot meals at a soup kitchen to fixing up homes damaged by terror, from brighten- ing the day for seniors to teaching new immigrants English or computer skills, from working with teens to visiting the ill or homebound. "It'll be very meaningful stuff, the kind of thing you'll look forward to," vows Mission Co-Chair Peter Alter. And he should see that vow fulfilled: Israelis desperately want diaspora visitors to nurture them. you be in Israel now, when we really need you and we really want to see you." Movingly, he told how on Yom HaZikaron in any of Israel's 43 military cemeteries, you'll see women weeping at the graves of sons killed in the 1948 War for Independence as well as in the latest conflict. "Every year," said Tamary, an army reserve officer, "we pray that the humungous number of 21,540 soldiers who gave their lives to the State of Israel will stay the same. But every year, unfortunately, the bitter reality slaps our face." The Human Gi The emotional toll is daunting. Last summer, a 6-year-old boy in Tel Aviv told Tamary that he and friends were playing a new game called "Suicide Bomber" to cope with all the death and destruction. "This answer stunned me," Tamary said. Me also. And it's why I'm proud to see Detroit Jewry firming up plans for its fourth Miracle Mission despite the terror that sporadically erupts. Impressionable kids like this 6-year-old boy are Israel's future; they need to see visitors who care about Israel and give of themselves to help keep it vital. Mission Co-Chair Dr. Richard Krugel thoughtfully said that Tamary's grim picture is precisely why we must go to Israel as a community, up to 800 strong aboard two El Al jets. "We will make a statement to Israelis that we're with them," Dr. Krugel said, "that we know it's tough there, that we're coming to shafe their angst and difficulties. We'll make a statement, especially to our fellow Jews in the U.S., that this is the time to go, that this is the right thing to do." King David proclaimed Jerusalem the eternal capital of Israel 3,000 years agO. Today, this "City of Peace" (in Hebrew Ir Shalom) is at the crossroads of three Alter major monotheistic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Tough, Tougher Islam. It's at the core of a firefight between the Jewish The 10-day trip can't come soon enough for Israelis, reeling people and Arab fundamentalists seeking to claim our home- from nearly 32 months of suicide bombings, roadside attacks land as theirs. and sniper fire that have taken at least 773 Israeli and foreign Jerusalem is steeped in history and spirituality, yet boasts the lives. trappings of a modern capital city. It's exhilarating and capti- We've heard about the depressed economy and a collapse in vating, yet rife with undercurrents. of political, religious and tourism causing empty hotels, bankrupt merchants, rising social strain that forever gnaw at you. It's the backdrop unemployment, heightened security and an army for a seemingly unrelenting battle between the only forced into guerilla warfare against a savage enemy. But democratic state in the Mideast and an Islamist culture there's an even more shocking undercurrent in Israel: that embraces martyrdom. People dying by suicide, not suicide bombers. Even if you harbor just a touch of Yiddishkeit "People, because of the bad economy, are deciding Uewishness), Jerusalem is where it will manifest itself more and more they can't take it anymore," said Israeli It's the hub for the Miracle Mission, the largest of any TV reporter Gil Tamary in keynote comments at the community-based mission to Israel. May 12 recruitment meeting for the mission at the Federation President Lawrence Jackier said the 2004 Krugel Max M. Fisher Federation Building in Bloomfield mission "is something you will be talking about with Township. "This phenomenon is reported almost every your children and your grandchildren and with each other for other week." many, many years." And chances are you will, as much He told the story of the 15-year-old national judo champi- because of the timing as the itinerary. on who ended it all a few months back when the power was Jackier is right: "You will feel so good about being Jewish. cut to his family's house because they owed 480 shekels — less It's great we all have Israel on our minds, but there is nothing than $100. The horror of that simple story affirmed my deter- like being present. Every single Israeli that you will encounter mination to go. Israel needs us, not just our dollars. will thank you over and over, and will make you feel almost In America, we take for granted eating out, celebrating a bat uncomfortable because you'll be like a conquering hero to mitzvah or taking a bus. In Israel, such simple acts can be them." ID lethal when terrorists lock on them to maximize what I call barbarity. For mission information and an application, call Sally Promoting the mission, Tamary, Washington bureau chief Krugel at Federation, (248) 203-1485, or e-mail her at for the Israeli Broadcasting Authority, said: "It's very nice to krugel@jfind.org. The $150 discount ends June 30. visit Israel in prosperity, but it's much more important that . Wednesday, June 4, 2003 7:30 PM Kahn Building Jewish Community Center 6600 West Maple Road West Bloomfield Join us to honor Outgoing President JIM ZACK 2003-2004 Slate of Officers D Directors President Daniel Gilbert Vice Presidents Joanne Aronovitz Carol Kaczander Robert Nusbaum Secretary Bobbie Miller Treasurer Eli Scherr Additional 3-Year Term Expiring 2006: Jeffrey Cohen Otto Dube Daniel Gilbert Ronald Hodess Lenny Hutton Barbara Jonas Daniel Medow Bobbie Miller Beth Kroft Mondry Robert Nusbaum First 3-Year Term Expiring 2006: Lisa Brown Mindy Cherney Steve Cicurel Shelley Gach Diane Gallagher Edward Hersch Howard Luckoff Christine Niskar Sheryl Stoddard Mary Topf P iecae com 24./ — No Charge — 5/16 2003 5