I

To Life!

SPORTS

Scholar-Athletes

High school stars excelled on
court and in classroom.

Steve Stein
Special to the Jewish News

mother, Pauli, was visiting relatives in
war-torn Israel.
Isayev's family emigrated to the U.S.
urit Weizman and Yan
from the Ukraine in 2000. They lived
Isayev couldn't have taken
in Royal Oak for a year before moving
more divergent paths to
to Berkley.
their athletic success in high school.
"Bowling looked like an interest-
Weizman played No. 1 singles for
ing sport, and I thought participating
four years for the powerful Ann Arbor
would look good on my college appli-
Huron girls tennis team. She was a
cation:' he said. Isayev was averaging
four-time Division 1 All-Stater, and she around 90 at the time.
helped Huron win the state champion-
"Ninety is kind," said Berkley boys
ship when she was a junior by
bowling coach Rob Arney.
making it to the semifinals in
"But Yan worked very hard
the state tournament.
on his game during winter
Isayev had bowled less
vacation that year and when
than a half-dozen times and
school resumed, he was
he wasn't even averaging
averaging 130-140."
triple digits when he joined
Isayev never stopped
the new Berkley boys bowl-
improving. He was on the
ing program at the begin-
Berkley junior varsity as a
Weizma
ning of his sophomore year.
sophomore, and he spent
By the time he was a senior,
most of his junior season and
Isayev was one of Berkley's
all his senior season on the
top bowlers and he averaged
varsity squad. He competed
close to 200.
at the state tournament as a
Weizman and Isayev share
junior and senior.
another achievement. They're
Besides throwing a career-
the 2006 winners of Bill
high 266 game at last sea-
Hertz Memorial Scholarships
son's regionals, Isayev bowled
presented by the Michigan
a 300 in practice Nov. 30.
Isayev
Jewish Sports Foundation.
Isayev's parents are Igor
They'll be honored at the
and Anna. He has a sister
foundation's annual Michigan Jewish
Rimma, 20.
Sports Hall of Fame induction ban-
Weizman shares the 2006 Jewish
quet Nov. 6 at Congregation Shaarey
News female High School Athlete of
Zedek in Southfield.
the Year award with Bloomfield Hills
Each student-athlete received
Cranbrook Kingswood hockey and
$2,500 to spend on freshman-year col- softball player A.J. Roberts.
lege academic expenses. Scholarship
applicants are judged on athletic
Kickoff Time
excellence, scholastic achievement and
Registration has begun for the
financial need.
Michigan Region B'nai B'rith Youth
Weizman and Isayev were certainly
Organization's M. Jacob and Sons AZA
stars in the classroom. After graduat-
flag football league. Games begin Sept.
ing from Huron with a 3.926 grade
10, but pre-registration is required.
point average, Weizman, 17, is headed
Male Jewish high school students
to the University of Michigan to pur-
are eligible to join AZA and play in the
sue her career goal of becoming an
league. There is a $30 fee to partici-
architect.
pate in the league.
Isayev, 18, had a 4.03 GPA at
Games will be played Sunday after-
Berkley. He was nominated for the
noons through Dec. 3 at the West
Michigan High School Athletic
Bloomfield Jewish Community Center
Association's Scholar-Athlete Award.
athletic fields.
He'll be attending Wayne State
For more information on AZA and
University.
the league, call BBYO's Anna Dorf;
It was an emotional summer for
(248) 788-0700.
Weizman. For about half of the two
months she worked in the kitchen
Please send sports news to
at Camp Tavor in Three Rivers, her
sports@thejewishnews.com .

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40

August 24 • 2006

T f P

T i O N

Clean Hands, Pure Eyes

Shabbat Shoftim:
Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9;
Isaiah 51:12-52:12.

T

oday's portion
would have been impli-
emphasizes the
cated and culpable.
theme of justice
Judaism recognizes
and repeats the word tze-
the interdependence of
dek many times, teach-
all lives and our shared
ing that justice must be
responsibility, and each
diligently, vigorously and
of us is involved in every
intensely pursued if it is
wrong that we have the
to be attained at all.
power to prevent and
That same sedrah
failed to prevent.
Rabbi
has an unusual law that
As Jews, we live in a
Irwin Groner
seems incongruent with
post-Holocaust
era. We
Special to the
the ideal of statute. The
are
especially
sensitive
to
Jewish News
law describes a ritual that
the heavy burden of moral
accompanies the discov-
responsibility that lies on
ery of a slain person found outside
the shoulders of all who could have
a city; it is unknown as to who this
done so much to help Hitler's victims,
person is and to whom he belonged
who failed to do so. And we are all
or what happened to him. The Torah
well aware of what was not done. The
declares that if a person is found mur- outrage that was not expressed by
dered in an open field and the perpe-
world's religious leaders, the death
trator of the crime iss unknown, the
factories that were not bombed out
leaders of the nearest city are obliged
of existence, the escape routes that
to offer a sacrifice of expiation. They
were not opened, visas for the Western
are required to wash their hands and
democracies that were not given. How
to make a declaration, a public state-
many leaders of that time could have
ment: "Our hands have not shed this
said: "Our hands have not shed this
blood, neither have our eyes seen it."
blood, neither have our eyes seen it."
And the rabbis ask an obvious
And so, the ancient ritual speaks to
question: "Is this just, fair or neces-
our age. Violence in the Middle East
sary? Why this testimony? Why did
erupts and murder cuts down life.
the most respected and most honor-
And crime goes unpunished.
able members of the community have
We should strengthen our assump-
to make this declaration of innocence? tion of responsibility for the moral
Who accused them of the crime? Who
standards of our society. We should
would suspect them of such a terrible
recognize that while few are guilty,
deed?"
many are responsible. (A.J. Heschel)
Then the rabbis answered their own
Beyond the sadness of this time,
question. What the elders were saying
beyond the sorrow of these events, we
in their public declaration was not a
hear the prophet's blessing: "Violence
denial of outright murder. They were
shall no longer be heard in your land
denying any contributory negligence
or destruction Ivithin your borders."
on their part. Their statement was
May this be fulfilled for us, and for the
this: "The victim did not come to us
world.
hungry, and we sent him away with-
out food. He didn't come to us alone,
Irwin Groner is rabbi emeritus, Congre-
and we offered him no protection. He
gation Shaarey Zedek of Oakland County.
didn't come to us friendless, and we
failed to be his friend?'
The leaders were the most respected
people in the community. They rep-
Conversations
resented the entire city. They had to
Why is the ideal of justice
establish their innocence because all
so difficult to fulfill? Who is
society is involved in the fate of the
responsible for justice? Who
humblest and the weakest and the
were the most respected
n-lost pathetic. If it were otherwise, if
people in the community?
the leaders had been able to prevent
the crime and had not done so, they