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Not So Funny Airing Of A Very Funny Video
In August, Holly Rotter of West Bloomfield sent a video to ABC's America's Funniest Videos (AFV)
depicting a bee waving its arm in response to her voice. The incredible video was taken July 3 while she
was waiting for the Jewish Community Center camp bus. She and her sons Daniel, 6, and Mitchell, almost
5, were picking raspberries on a bush in their yard when they noticed a bee raised its leg every time she.
talked. Amazed, she went off to get her video camera.
She filmed the boys and the bee. When she asked everyone "to raise their hand if you're happy because it's
Daniel's birthday," the bee complied. AFV decided to air the video at 7 p.m. Oct. 29. An announcement was
made at Eagle Elementary, where the boys go to school, and the family emailed everyone they knew to watch.
Ironically, everyone saw it but those who live locally. AFV was pre-empted by a Bob Seeger interview in
this market. Luckily, the ABC affiliate in Flint allowed the family to watch the show in their lobby, but the
boys were sorely disappointed and very tired from the trip.
"The odds are so slim of getting on the show, and no one locally could see it',' Rotter said. And no one here
will be able to see it either because the Rotters had to sign an agreement with AFV not to show the video.
Those of us who missed it will just have to wonder about that bee.
- Keri Guten Cohen, story development editor
Food For The Hungry
Crew 18 of Venturing, a co-educational high school
program of the Boy Scouts of America, will par-
ticipate in BSA's 28th annual "Scouting for Food"
program.
The weekend of Nov. 4, Scouts will be distribut-
ing bags to be filled with food. The weekend of Nov.
11, bags will be picked up and taken to distribution
centers to be packaged and given to the needy.
You can help by donating peanut butter, baby
formula and canned goods (especially tuna, soups,
canned fruits and vegetables). Crew 18's members
attend the Frankel Jewish Academy and Detroit
Country Day School.
- Keri Guten Cohen, story development editor
- Keri Guten Cohen,
Crew 18 members Samantha Freedman, Teddie
Olender, Melissa Gildenberq, Marnie Beals and
Danielle Depriest, all students at the Frankel
Jewish Academy, take a break during a recent
.
hike at Sleeping Bear Dunes.
Rosenberg Honored With Unity Award
Amin and Victor Ghalib Begg at the
awards dinner.
12
Novc:, rnber 2
Jewish Family Service's 10th
annual Fall Fix Up project runs
from 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 5. Volunteers are
needed to help homebound
Jewish older adults with minor
home repairs and indoor/out-
door cleanup, including raking
leaves, hanging pictures, cleaning
basements, winterizing windows
and other minor jobs.
Volunteers will meet at 9:30
a.m. at Yeshivas Darchei Torah,
21550 W. 12 Mile Road in
Southfield for breakfast, assign-
ment, tools and supplies.
To volunteer, contact Hilary
Rotenberg at (248) 592-2336 or
via e-mail at hrotenberg@jfsde-
troit.org. Sign up also is available
via the JFS Web site at www.
jfsdetroit.org.
story development editor
Brenda Rosenberg of Bloomfield Hills was honored with the 2006 Interfaith Partner Award at the 20th
annual Unity Banquet and Gala 2000 of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan (CIOM), held
Oct. 29. Rosenberg was the first Jewish recipient of the award.
In presenting her award, Eid Alawan, an interfaith activist and spokesperson for Dearborn's Islamic Center
of America, called her his "sister:' While acknowledging disagreements over the years, he said, "We respect -
each other for our honesty."
Victor Ghalib Begg, chairman of the CIOM and a leader of the Muslim Unity Center in Bloomfield Hills,
warmly called Rosenberg "an exceptional partner who represents a pluralistic partner in its highest form':
while noting that the issues they address and Rosenberg herself are "sometimes a little challenging."
All three have been involved in Interfaith Partners of the National Conference of Community and
Justice (NCCJ).
A brief video was shown about the Reuniting the Children of Abraham Project, which Rosenberg spear-
headed as a way to bring Jews, Muslims and Christians together based on shared principles and respect. The
project involved the development of an original play, written and performed by local teens of all three faiths.
The project was the brainchild of Rosenberg and Imam
Abdullah El-Amin, CIOM's executive director.
Rosenberg serves on the American Jewish Committee's
National Commission on Interreligious Affairs and as
co-chair of the AJC's Metropolitan Detroit Chapter's
Interreligious Affairs Commission, and is a member of
Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Hills.
Detroit Free Press religion writer David Crumm
received the 2006 Fairness in Media Award, and Dawud
Walid, executive director of the Michigan Chapter of the
Council on American-Islamic Relations, received the 2006
Syed Salman Community Service Award.
Brenda Rosenberg, Imam Abdullah El-
Fall Fix Up
Needs Fixers
- Don Cohen, special writer
Israel Prayer
Brigade Active
Nearly every day, Dorene
Weisberg of West Bloomfield
sets aside a few minutes to recite
five psalms traditionally said for
the protection of Israel and its
people. Once a week she is joined
by members of the "prayer bri-
gade" she created. They stop what
they're doing each Monday at
noon to recite the psalms.
Weisberg says the synchronized
recitation is "really a simple plan
and follows an initiative that came
out of Israel's Foreign Ministry
when the Ashkenazi chief rabbi
called for Jews worldwide to join
him in a special
prayer, all at the
same time, last
August:'
"I figure it's
something Jews
of every stripe
can do," she
Weisberg
said. "If, on one
day, everyone happened to do it
at the same time, worldwide, our
voices and our unity would be so
loud that the Almighty would have
to respond to our prayers:
For more information, e-mail
Dorene Weisberg at d_weisberg@
yahoo.corn, with "prayer brigade"
in the subject line.
- Shelli Liebman Dorfman,
staff writer
a
2006
This Week
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Punim, 4-year-old Amanda?
This week Amanda perfect the
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