…$200 Jan. 18-24, 2024 / 8-14 Shevat 5784 $200 Jan. 18-24, 2024 / 8-14 Shevat 5784 JEWISH NEWS JEWISH NEWS THE DETROIT thejewishnews.com The Holocaust Center’s newly renovated permanent exhibition places the emphasis on personal Jewish experiences. See page 12 The Holocaust Center’s newly …
…10 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N essay 22.5andMe: Am I Jewish enough? T he other night I had dinner with a colleague whose dad is from the Middle East and used to warn him as a child, “You are going to hear bad things about the Jews. They are all lies.” We talked a lot about the current moment after Oct. 7 and the response that followed the massacre in Israel, both of us shocked by the emboldening of antisemitism in American and...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 11 J N … I’m not considered Jewish because it only comes from my father’s side. I also wasn’t raised Jewish, don’t know the cultural customs nor the religious ones (except intellectually). And in this age when everyone’s trying to claim membership to one group or another, I think, despite my ancestry, it’d be dishonest … Still, after watching those Nazis chant, “Jews will not replace us,” I couldn’t help but ...…
…12 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N The Holocaust Center’s newly renovated permanent exhibit places the emphasis on personal Jewish experiences. Come Hear Our Story ESTHER ALLWEISS INGBER CONTRIBUTING WRITER OUR COMMUNITY COVER STORY ZEKELMAN HOLOCAUST CENTER …
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 13 J N continued on page 14 O n an early tour I took last month of the reimagined The Zekelman Holocaust Center (The HC), I was touched to find a panel in one gallery that showed my late father, Zyga “Zygie” Allweiss. I read a statement extracted from his own recorded testimony at the museum in which he shares a frightening experience he witnessed in a concentration camp. The memories of Holocaust survivo...…
…14 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 As the survivor population dwindles, the planning group started thinking about how best to meet the needs of future museum visitors. Mayerfeld said the planners realized they had the ability to present the Holocaust story in a new way, one that would ensure the survivors’ voices were central. “The decision to focus on Holocaust victims and survivors in the renovation is a truly unique approach for a Holoc...…
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…16 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 educational programming across the state. To date, more than 60 percent of the funds have been raised. After renovating the museum’s core exhibit, “The Holocaust, ” visitors will experience redesigned galleries reflecting the educational institution’s new orientation. The installation takes up 15,000 square feet of space on two levels of the building. Public tours stopped during the build phase that began...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 17 more mistreatment. ” A display case I noticed while touring the museum shows the altered prison uniform of tailor Ben Guyer, a local survivor. Resourcefully, he added pockets to the jacket after liberation and wore it around his displaced persons camp. EMPHASIZING EDUCATION A team put together by Ruth Bergman, the museum’s director of education, handled research and writing. “We wanted the educational appr...…
…18 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 leave out, ” she said. “It’s a huge responsibility. ” “We want to give people something to think about, ” Bergman said of the chosen material in each gallery. In a section discussing Germany’s Nuremberg Laws, for example, “we see on one wall, law after law enacted year after year to constrict Jews’ lives and isolate them, ” she said. “On the right side are quotes from survivors who remembered what it was l...…
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…20 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 future atrocities. The enlightening and often emotional experience of touring the museum is capped in the final gallery, one of the muse- um’s several new “reflection” spaces. Everyone is encouraged to write down thoughts of their museum experience on large blank cards. Posted to an expansive blank wall, the cards become a tapestry of messag- es in support of compassion, kindness and civic engagement. Exposu...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 21 OWEN KAUFMAN JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 21 JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 21 …
…22 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N K eter Torah Synagogue, a Sephardic shul in the heart of West Bloomfield, has a new rabbi on board. Rabbi Joseph Abadi, 40, has already begun to make an impact on the synagogue community since he started last month. Born and raised in the Syrian community in Brooklyn, New York, Rabbi Abadi’s journey began after high school when he immersed himself in the Old City of Jerusalem, delving into the teachi...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 23 are we here to do?’ ‘What is our obligation on this planet and to ourselves?’ That’s what we’re working on here,” he said. Jacob Rashty, vice president of Keter Torah, says Rabbi Abadi brings a young, vibrant, fun energy to Judaism and to the younger crowd. “He’s very good at teaching Judaism in a way that inspires people who maybe haven’t grown up in a religious community or don’t have much of a connect...…
…24 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N OUR COMMUNITY N early 3,000 students attended Federation-supported day schools last year. The schools cater to different segments and age groups within the community, yet they share the mission of nurturing children in a Jewish environment. Last year, they faced the same challenge: restoring normalcy after years of pandemic-impacted learning. We gathered educators to talk about the joys and challenges fr...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 25 continued on page 26 same passion. Then I get the kids, a radically connecting relationship. Even with a mask, it was so special to be in the room learning with people. Moshe Rabbeinu had to wear a mask to be around people. But he was still there amongst them. Rebecca Strobehn: I think that the transitions of the last couple years have made me aware, more than ever, how the sort of socio-emotional atmosphere...…
…26 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 communities, we see ourselves as preparing the future. This is the formal beginning when they come to school. We give them the positive feelings for Torah, for Hashem, for klal Yisrael [the whole Jewish people]. That’s a foundation. Phreddy Nosan- wisch: Hillel is a very diverse school — not everybody is going for the same reason, even kids within one family. So, what am I trying to do? Hillel has this mo...…
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…28 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N M ilo Rothberger of Bloomfield Hills, a 12-year-old Tamarack camper, has created a fund- raiser for his bar mitzvah project called “Kids Send Kids to Camp.” Milo rented out a theater at the Birmingham 8 for a screening of the 1994 film Camp Nowhere on Sunday, Jan. 28. All ticket sales and donations will directly support camper scholarships. The fundraiser was launched on Dec. 17, and Milo has raised more ...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 29 J N “First, he made a presenta- tion to the leadership at camp to see if it would be OK to do this. Then he went out and secured sponsors to under- write the cost of the event, and has really done all the work,” Davidson-Mertz said. “We are incredibly proud and inspired by the amount of effort and vision Milo has shown, and so grateful Milo is choosing to support Tamarack, of all the things he could support....…
…contents PURELY COMMENTARY 4-11 Essays and viewpoints. OUR COMMUNITY 12 Come Hear Our Story The Holocaust Center’s newly renovated exhibition places the emphasis on personal Jewish experiences. 22 New Keter Torah Rabbi Meet Rabbi Joseph Abadi. 24 Teachers Talking Jewish educators share insights. 28 Kids Send Kids to Tamarack Camper’s bar mitzvah project will help send kids to camp. FACES&PLACES 30 J...…
…faces&places 30 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N R andom acts of kindness occur daily at Jewish Senior Life of Metropolitan Detroit, but they had an extra special meaning at Fleischman Residence on Nov. 13, World Kindness Day. Residents gathered together and shared heartfelt words of appreciation for one another. Spearheaded by Fleischman’s Life Enrichment Coordinator Jurgita Astanaskovski, participants also designed cards and wrote ...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 31 J N Residents of Jewish Senior Life’s Hechtman Apartments celebrated the grand opening of their newly renovated din- ing room in style Nov. 29 by dressing in formal attire, dining on delicious hors d’ oeuvres prepared by Executive Chef Monica Reaume and dancing to a live big band orchestra. The beautifully appointed 4,000-square-foot dining room seats 180 and has been com- pletely rebuilt and redesigned with...…
…Hillel staff and fourth-graders, who designed the display, pose along their ‘Fence of Peace.’ COURTESY OF HILLEL faces&places 32 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N A t Hillel Day School, fourth-grade students and staff came togeth- er to help soldiers thousands of miles away. Hillel fourth-graders were moved to raise money for IDF soldiers after they watched a video of Hillel alum Eric Lipsky, son of Hillel 3rd/4th- grade Hebrew teacher Ron...…
…Women of Temple Israel’s Antique Road Show Ever wondered about the story and value behind that unique item in your home? Good news, the Women of Temple Israel can help you find the answer. Grab that treasured book off the shelf. Scoop up that old footrest your great-aunt dis- covered. And that painting that you find interesting but you really aren’t sure where it came from. Bring it along for an appraisal by Terri Stearn, the wi...…
…34 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N quick hits BY STEVE STEIN J ackie Kallen has been honored often in her lifetime, including being inducted into the Michigan Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1997. But her latest accolade is incredibly special to her. The 77-year-old dynamo from West Bloomfield will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) this summer during the Hall of Fame’s 35th-anniversary celebration, joining...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 35 publicist in 1978. Among the Kronk boxers she promoted were Thomas “The Hitman” Hearns, Milton McCrory, Duane Thomas and Hilmer Kenty. Kallen became a boxing manager in 1988. Among the boxers she managed in the early years were champions James Toney, Bronco McKart and Tom Johnson. She’s still a boxing manager. Her current clients are Sam Rizzo and Mykquan Williams. “I was the antithesis of someone entering ...…
…36 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N Brooke Kendall Jaffe, daughter of Hallie and Ryan Jaffe, will be called to the Torah as a bat mitzvah at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield on Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. She will be joined in celebration by her sister Sloane. Brooke is the loving grandchild of Leah and Jeff Fox, and Ellen and Mike Jaffe. She is a student at South Hills Middle School in Bloomfield Hills. Brooke’s most meaningful mitzvah p...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 37 J N MAZEL TOV! Carle-Milan D r. Catherine Carle and Mr. Jordan Milan were married on Nov. 18, 2023, at the Daxton Hotel in Birmingham, Mich. Rabbi Marla Hornsten of Temple Israel offi- ciated. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Louis Carle of Gatineau, Quebec. The groom is the son of Dr. and Mrs. Mitchell Milan of Birmingham. The couple will reside in Florida. Chait 50th Janower 50th D ianne and...…
…I t is no accident that Parshat Bo, the section that deals with the culminating plagues and the exodus, should turn three times to the subject of children and the duty of parents to educate them. As Jews, we believe that to defend a country you need an army, but to defend a civilization you need education. Freedom is lost when it is taken for granted. Unless parents hand on their memories and ideals to the next generation ...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 39 the Lord,” says a famous Christian text. Socrates, who spent his life teaching people to ask questions, was condemned by the citizens of Athens for corrupting the young. In Judaism. the opposite is the case. It is a religious duty to teach our children to ask questions. That is how they grow. Judaism is the rarest of phenomena: a faith based on asking questions, sometimes deep and difficult ones that seem ...…
…4 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N A s we enter 2024, many of us are feeling a sense of uncertainty, even wariness, in our bones. The events that exploded onto the world stage during the last months of 2023 — the brutal attacks on Israeli Jews by Hamas on Oct. 7, followed by Israel’s incursion into Gaza and the ensuing rise of antisemitic incidents around the world — have set off waves of shock, grief and apprehension for Jewish pe...…
…Synagogue Directory METRO DETROIT CONSERVATIVE Adat Shalom Synagogue Farmington Hills (248) 851-5100 adatshalom.org Congregation Beth Ahm West Bloomfield (248) 851-6880 cbahm.org Congregation Beth Shalom Oak Park (248) 547-7970 congbethshalom.org Beth Tephilath Moses Mt. Clemens (586) 996-3138 bethtephilathmoses.com B’nai Israel Synagogue West Bloomfield (248) 432-2729 bnaiisraelwb.org Congregation B’nai Moshe West Bloomfield (248) 78...…
…Temple Emanu-El Oak Park (248) 967-4020 emanuel-mich.org Temple Israel West Bloomfield (248) 661-5700 temple-israel.org Temple Kol Ami West Bloomfield (248) 661-0040, tkolami.org Temple Shir Shalom West Bloomfield (248) 737-8700 shirshalom.org REFORM/RENEWAL Congregation Shir Tikvah Troy (248) 649-4418 shirtikvah.org SECULAR/HUMANISTIC Congregation for Humanistic Judaism of Metro Detroit Farmington Hills (248) 477-1410 ...…
…42 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N T hree acclaimed musi- cians play a significant role in an upcoming Chamber Music Detroit con- cert. The event honors long- time Jewish pianist Menahem Pressler, who just missed reaching his 100th birthday and had been featured in more than 30 concerts for the 80-year organization. The three are Daniel Hope, a celebrated violinist who joined with Pressler in the closing years of the Beaux Arts Trio; St...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 43 an incredible moment for me because I had grown up with the name of the Beaux Arts Trio and had been to their concerts when I was a kid. I knew their recordings really intimately. “Suddenly, to be stand- ing opposite this incredible musician who had so much knowledge of chamber music and then to be playing cham- ber music with him was an incredible moment for me. He was an amazing guide in tell- ing how to r...…
…44 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N CELEBRITY JEOPARDY JEWS, MEXICAN JEWISH FILMMAKER, LOVE STORY: DON AND BOB Other items have crowded out my coverage of the second season of Celebrity Jeopardy. But, as I write this (Jan. 8), one out of the three Jewish contestants are still in the running. The finale will air on Jan. 23, 2024 (ABC, 8 p.m.). There will be many online sourc- es happy to tell you who is in the finale (including ABC). This ...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 45 J N ARTS&LIFE JUST FOR FUN See next week’s issue for answers. Answers to the Jan. 11 puzzle are on page 33. Jewish Joke of the Week Answer: The house can’t jump. How was the boy able to jump higher than his house? 1. heather mops mills (3 words) 2. male reptiles (2 words) 3. ample melee nut (2 words) 4. lasagna someday tough (3 words) 5. attaching rook shivering (3 words) 6. antagonized greaser hockey (3 wor...…
…46 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N BIM BOM BABY 10-11 AM, JAN. 19 (FRI.) A Shabbat celebration at Temple Shir Shalom for babies to 5-year-olds. Welcome Shabbat with the rabbis and cantor, play, sing and braid challah to take home. There is no charge for this event. TOT SHABBAT 10-11AM, JAN. 20 (SAT.) The Well and Adat Shalom Synagogue will celebrate Tu b’Shevat. Gather at the Outdoor Adventure Center, 1801 Atwater, Detroit, to learn abo...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 47 J N NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERTS 7:30 PM, JAN. 25+ (THURS.) The Detroit Symphony Orchestra will continue its 2024 William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series with a weekend of concerts at community venues across Metro Detroit conducted by British conductors Nicholas McGegan and Bertie Baigent, respectively. The concerts will take place on Jan. 25. at the Berman Center for the Performing Arts in West Bloomfiel...…
…the exchange community bulletin board | professional services For information regarding advertising, please call 248-351-5116 or 248-234-9057 or email salessupport@thejewishnews.com. Deadline for ad insertion is 9 a.m. on Friday prior to publication. 48 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N Aaron Mendelson Heating and Cooling, LLC. 248-855-0437 Cell: 248-912-2292 License # 7118488 Maintenance, Installation, Repair & Hot Water Heaters Ajmendelson1@...…
…OBITUARIES OF BLESSED MEMORY JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 49 J N c. 1955 HERBERT EDELSON, 95, of E. Hartford, Conn., died Jan. 10, 2024. He is survived by his children, Dr. Gary Edelson and Laura Friedman, Beth and Albert Kranc, and Lisa Edelson; daughter-in-law, Leora Bar-Levav; grandchildren, Daniel and Kelley Edelson, Dr. Rina Edelson and her fiance, Dr. Andrew Nathanson, Jacob Edelson, Elana Kranc and Morissa Kranc. Mr. Edels...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 5 J N JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 5 J N J N J for his contributions to the Jewish people, the Detroit Jewish community, and Aish HaTorah Detroit. May his memory be a blessing. Rabbi Alon Tolwin Rabbi Simcha Tolwin Aish HaTorah pays tribute to the memory of Lionel Margolick …
…OBITUARIES OF BLESSED MEMORY 50 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N Edith was the beloved wife of the late Aleksandr Gertsmark; sister of the late Astrida Chikhalenko. Interment was held at Adat Shalom Memorial Park Cemetery in Livonia. Contributions may be made to a charity of one’s choice. Arrangements by Dorfman Chapel. RICHARD S. GOODMAN, 77, of Farmington Hills, died Dec. 15th, 2023. He is survived his beloved wife, Joan Goodman; ch...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 51 J N SHARON LYNNE ROCKLIN, 84, of Farmington Hills, died Jan. 9, 2024. She is survived by her beloved husband for more than 62 years, Sheldon Rocklin; children, Andrew (Leigh) Rocklin, Marla Rocklin and Michael (Stacey) Rocklin; grandchildren, Alex Rocklin (fiancée,’ Phoebe), Olivia Rocklin, Sophie Jansen, Izzy Jansen, Ethan Rocklin and Adam Rocklin; brother, David Rosen; many other loving family members...…
…52 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N OBITUARIES OF BLESSED MEMORY Harry was a graduate of Deerfield Academy and MSU Agricultural Science Program. In 1953, he married Joan Friederichs, his wife of 63 years. Harry is survived by his daughter, Barbara Lydia, and her husband, Harold Hanson; son, Harris Lewis III (Chip); and his wife, Paula Winston; grandson, Harry L. Winston IV. He has two surviving sisters, Sally Winston Robinson and Ernes...…
…JANUARY 18 • 2024 | 53 J N L ionel Margolick, 81, formerly of Franklin, died peacefully on Dec. 1, 2023, in his hometown of Montreal, Canada. Margolick was a prominent, successful businessman and dedicated philanthropist whose achievements and generosity crossed multiple geographic barriers. He is remembered for his strong commitment to the Jewish people and Jewish ideals, and as a warm and giving friend and family member. ...…
…Looking Back From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History accessible at thejewishnews.com 54 | JANUARY 18 • 2024 J N Lone Soldiers — A Sense of Duty T he war against Hamas continues, and as I read the daily updates from the U.S. and Israeli media, I have often thought about the “Lone Soldiers” in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Anyone who has served in America’s armed forces may know the feeling of being alon...…
