…SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 | 43 ARTS&LIFE BOOK REVIEW P eople who like food (and we all do eat!), people who like folktales (don’t we all like a good story?) and people who like scholarship (a smaller group) will enjoy The Angel and the Cholent, the latest collection of folktales from the Israel Folktale Archives published by Wayne State University Press. The Angel and the Cholent: Food Representations in the Israel Folktale Archives pres...…
…44 | SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 JEOPARDY JEW? JEWS OF SEX-ED (THE SERIES), SCI-FI SCRIBES As I write this, a week of already-filmed Jeopardy episodes, hosted by now- ousted host Mike Richards, are being aired. Already- filmed episodes, hosted by Mayim Bialik, will start being aired on Sept. 20. Also, as I write this, contestant Matt Amodio is still winning Jeopardy games. He has the third- longest winning-streak in Jeopardy hist...…
…SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 | 45 GLOBAL CONNECTIONS 4-5 PM, SEPT. 23 The American Friends of Rabin Medical Center will present “Who Is an American Jew in 2021: Insights from the Pew Study.” Robert Siegel (former senior host of NPR’s All Things Considered) interviews Prof. Shuli Rubin Schwartz, Rabbi Elka Abrahamson and Prof. Jonathan Sarna. Free. Register at: gcsept. splashthat.com. Learn more at afrmc.org. MSU CONCERT SEPT. 23-27 80...…
…46 | SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 T his classic oven-baked hot dip is a perennial favorite at restaurants and household parties alike. It will disappear before you even realize it, so make sure to reserve a little dish for yourself off to the side when you’re preparing to serve. This dip is perfect with pita chips, crusty sourdough bread slices or a selection of your favorite crack- ers. It is even better if made in advance, as it be...…
…SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 | 47 Call today for your free in-home consultation 248.855.8747 Caren Bass Custom Closets,Inc. WHERE PROFESSIONAL SERVICE MAKES THE DIFFERENCE as featured on HGTV Leading the industry with over 30 years experience in the Metro Detroit Area. Now also organizing the Metro Denver Area with our 2nd location Custom Closets, West, Inc. Call today for your free in-home consultation www.loisharondesigns.com Lois Haron ...…
…48 | SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 OBITUARIES OF BLESSED MEMORY Ida Nudel, the diminutive Prisoner of Zion who made aliyah after win- ning her battle against the Soviet Union, died on Sept. 14, 2021, at age 90. Known as the “Guardian Angel” for the campaign she led to provide humanitarian items for Prisoners of Zion in Soviet jails, Nudel — who was just 4’11” tall — was the best-known female refusenik. She famously won the support of actre...…
…SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 | 49 PHILLIP BENESON, 86, of West Bloomfield, died Sept. 14, 2021. He is survived by his children, Ilene (Steven) Bez, Warren (Karen) Beneson and Steven (Karen) Beneson; grandchildren, Benjamin, Alexandria, Adam, Ryan and Zachary Beneson, Shayna (Andrew) Vanuden; great- grandchild, Austin; brother and sister-in-law, Stewart (Barbara) Beneson; sister-in- law, Esther Beneson; many loving nieces, nephews, othe...…
…law, Marvin (Doreen) Billet of Michigan and Dr. Herbert Greenberg of Florida; many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews. David was preceded in death by his parents, Louis Berman and Zena Achtman Berman; his brother, Jerry Berman; his sister-in-law, Lola Billet Greenberg; brother-in-law, David Bergman. The private burial was attended by Janet, Jeff, Stacey and Bill as well as their five grandchildren, their granddaug...…
…dinner at Meer Apartments in West Bloomfield, where she resided from 2010. Everyone with whom Layah came in contact seemed to love her, from her many longtime friends to fellow residents and staff members where she lived, and even her caregivers in the last chapter of her wonderful life. She will be deeply missed. She is survived by her sons and daughter-in-law, Dean and Michele Weingust, Don Weingust; daughter and son-in-law, ...…
…OBITUARIES OF BLESSED MEMORY 52 | SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 may be made to Jewish Hospice & Chaplaincy Network, 6555 W. Maple, West Bloomfield, MI 48322, jewishhospice.org; Kadima, 15999 W. 12 Mile, Southfield, MI 48076, kadimacenter. org; or to a charity of one’s choice. Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel. SHIRLEY ANN GILL, 93, of Bingham Farms, died Sept. 10, 2021. She is survived by her nephew, Stan Gill; nieces, Sharon (...…
…SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 | 53 tributes; or Project Healthy Community, P.O. Box 252433, West Bloomfield, MI 48325, projecthealthycom- munity.org. Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel. LAWRENCE ROSENBERG, 81, of Detroit, died Sept. 12. 2021. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Rhonda and Morris Brown of Bloomfield Hills; loving nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Mr. Rosenberg was the beloved husband of the late Janet Rosenb...…
…Looking Back From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History accessible at www.djnfoundation.org 54 | SEPTEMBER 23 • 2021 Goodbye to a ‘Stand-Up’ Guy T his column was inspired by a sandwich. That’s right, a sandwich. But not just any sandwich. This one has a backstory. It is really an ode to a person who some consider one of the greatest, if not the greatest, Jewish comedians in American history: Jacki...…
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…$200 Sept. 16-22, 2021 / 10-16 Tishri 5782 JEWISH NEWS JEWISH NEWS THE DETROIT thejewishnews.com Our Local Heroes Remembering How grassroots efforts, secret trips and rallies paved the way for Soviet Jewish freedom. See page 10 …
…248-762-5319 M E R E D I T H @ M E R E D I T H C O L B U R N . C O M M E R E D I T H C O L B U R N . C O M 4 4 2 S . O L D W O O D W A R D A V E . , B I R M I N G H A M , M I 4 8 0 0 9 — P R O V I D I N G A L U X U R Y E X P E R I E N C E A T E V E R Y P R I C E — MEREDITH COLBURN R E A L E S T A T E …
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 3 contents PURELY COMMENTARY 4-9 Essays and viewpoints. OUR COMMUNITY 10 Remembering Our Local Heroes How grassroots efforts, secret trips and rallies paved the way for Soviet Jewish freedom. 14 A Little Bit of Israel at Camp Tamarack Tamarack had 35 Israeli staff members this summer, the most ever. 16 Putting Out the Welcome Mat Ann Arbor Jewish agency prepares for influx of hundreds of...…
…4 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 wise and otherwise That’s a Slap in the Face S ixty-five years ago, in 1956, the rabbis who taught Hebrew sub- jects at the Yeshiva Beth Yehudah, then located on Dexter and Cortland, were allowed to slap male students for not behaving properly during class. Each teacher had a dif- ferent type of slap. Most slapped across the face, some harder than others. Two longtime teachers were different kinds of hitter...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 5 1120 E Kearsley St, Flint 810.234.1695 flintarts.org The Sheppy Dog Fund, Dr. Alan Klein, Advisor, presents topics of art, religion, and history through its funded lecture series. Guest Lecturer Dr. Taylor Hagood Resplendent in its elaborate beauty, baroque art embodies an era of immense religious upheaval in Western culture—the Catholic Counter-Reformation. In this lecture, Taylor Hagood will explore the fo...…
…D uring the Sukkot holiday, the Pico- Robertson neighbor- hood of Los Angeles erupts in joyful celebration. Our 40-plus kosher restaurants all have suk- kot attached. \ There’s a sukkah on top of Ralph’s supermarket. One could con- ceivably sukkah hop to a different hut every five minutes and not exhaust the inventory. Google “Sukkah’s on Fire” to see my music video showcasing an assortment of local sukkot, accompanied by a wac...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 7 JFMD & UJF 21-22 Annual Meeting Tuesday, October 5, 2021 7:30 pm The Berman Center for the Performing Arts Jewish Community Center 6600 W. Maple Road, West Bloomfield Masks will be required Virtual option available Link will be emailed to registrants prior to the event Register at: jewishdetroit.org/annualmeeting Meeting Highlights Presentation of Federation’s Highest Honor The Fred M. Butzel Memorial Award f...…
…8 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 D uring their meetings at the White House on Aug. 27, President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett that the U.S. is committed “to ensur[ing] Iran never develops a nuclear weapon … We’re putting diplomacy first and seeing where that takes us. But if diplomacy fails, we’re ready to turn to other options. ” The Biden administration made it clear from the get-go that it intended to ret...…
…E very year during the High Holidays, Jews recite a litany of ways we have fallen short in a confessional prayer. Known as a viddui, the prayer is a centerpiece of our Yom Kippur liturgy. This year, we again will reflect on our shortcomings. But one takeaway from the past year is that even when we do our best, it may not be enough. So many of us joyously awaited the return to in-person High Holiday services, only to ha...…
…OUR COMMUNITY I n the early 1970s, a slow trickle of Soviet Jewish refugees reset- tled in Metro Detroit. They gave up life in the USSR to pursue religious freedom and better opportunities for their families. What started as a few hun- dred immigrants steadily began to pick up speed. By the late 1980s and particularly the mid- 1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the trickle turned into a wave and thou- sands of Sovie...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 11 Remembering Our Local Heroes continued on page 12 Soviet Jewry was organized by a small group of deeply committed activists. This, Yost explains, paved the way for a wider communal movement to launch several years later. Piece-by-piece, awareness of what Soviet Jews were experi- encing daily made its way to Jewish leadership in the Metro Detroit community. They learned that many Soviet Jews experienced co...…
…12 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 OUR COMMUNITY continued from page 11 R ae Sharfman of West Bloomfield calls herself “just a small soldier in a big movement.” She started volunteering to help save Soviet Jewry shortly after the first Leningrad Trial, which happened on Dec. 15, 1970. In it, a group of Soviet Jews was charged with attempting to hijack a small Soviet commercial plane. Their aim was to reroute it to Sweden from where they wou...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 13 OUR COMMUNITY to take matters into their own hands. They boarded a plane en route to Moscow and later Leningrad with luggage full of clothing, religious articles, medicine and electronics Soviet Jews could later sell, like cameras. “We went as tourists,” Weiner recalls, “and at night we’d sneak out after dinner to see Soviet Jewish families.” While in Soviet airspace, they didn’t dare utter a word of the...…
…OUR COMMUNITY A fter Tamarack’s summer 2020 programming was canceled due to COVID-19, Tamarack returned this summer with calculated safety measures in place. While Israeli campers were not able to make it to camp, 35 Israeli staff members, the most ever, brought Israel to life this summer. “This year we had an Israeli counselor in every village, ” said Carly Weinstock, director of Tamarack’s Camp Maas. “The Israeli camper program ...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 15 it just gives you a bigger, more detailed picture.” Hazon said it’s through those personal connections at Tamarack that she’s made best friends for life. “That’s the biggest impact, having Jewish-American people here and having best friends from Israel and keeping in touch with them — that’s the best thing there could be.” Hazon, 22, was a Tamarack camper one time in 2012. This summer was her first time ...…
…16 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 OUR COMMUNITY A s chaos and vio- lence wash over Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, resettlement agencies across the U.S. are preparing to support an influx of Afghan refugees fleeing the country. Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County, which has a robust resettlement program in place, is one of the agencies getting ready to help. They’re now resettling their first Afghan refugee since the violence esc...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 17 conceptions about any Jewish organization is that they only serve Jewish individuals, ” Eadeh describes, “but we serve every- body in our community. “It doesn’t matter what any- body’s income status is, ” Eadeh continues. “If somebody has a need, we will do our best to meet that need within our ser- vices. ” JFS helps refugees like those from Afghanistan from the day they arrive in the U.S. until the day they...…
…OUR COMMUNITY W hen Delta Air Lines put out a call for crews to operate an urgent flight out of Germany, which at the time was simply coded as a “military operation, ” Southfield-based pilot Captain Alexander Kahn happened to have a few free days in his monthly schedule. “I accepted the rotation, ” Kahn, 52 and a member of Southfield’s Young Israel syn- agogue, says. What the pilot didn’t know is that he would be flying a plane ...…
…Air Base was central to military operations and the place where freed hostages, injured soldiers from war zones and more were taken before making their way home to the U.S., the mission came full circle for Kahn, the son of a Holocaust survivor. “My father was liberated from Buchenwald concentra- tion camp by Patton’s 3rd Army on April 18, 1945, ” he said. “Having lost his parents and most of the rest of his family in the Holocaus...…
…OUR COMMUNITY 20 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 O n Sept. 22, 2021, the United Nations is holding a one-day event to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its first World Conference Against Racism, held in Durban, South Africa, in 2001. This is a dubious com- memoration. The first Conference, Durban I, infa- mously devolved into an antisemitic, anti-Israel hate fest. This is well-docu- mented. For a firsthand account of the Conference, ...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 21 eral flyers lauding Hitler and indicating that the outcomes would have been favorable had he won — including no Israel. Neturei Karta — opponents of Zionism — stood in the streets showing their own placards declaring that Zionism was not Judaism and the like, shar- ing the demonstrations with real Jew-haters. The atmosphere in the huge and impressive media center was, fortunately, very different. There was...…
…22 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 Y ou don’t need a sukkah to celebrate the festival of Sukkot this year, just ask The Well. Sukkot Sounds (powered by The Well) is a grassroots initia- tive to pair local musical artists and educators with hosts to co-create gatherings that enrich, diversify and revitalize the ancient Jewish cultural celebra- tion of Sukkot. There are many ways to par- ticipate in Sukkot Sounds. People can host or attend a ...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 23 B ’nai Moshe is thrilled to have one of, if not the only, “living” genizah on the grounds of a synagogue in Metro Detroit — perhaps the country even. A genizah is a place to bury ritual items such as damaged prayer books, tallitot and other ritual objects that should not be thrown away. Over time, the contents of the genizah will become one with the Earth. This summer, Zachary Friedman led a group in ...…
…T wo University of Michigan students from Alpha Epsilon Pi found a creative way to raise funds and awareness for mental health challenges on campus. By selling customized hats, the pair raised nearly $1,000 for Friendship Circle’s UMatter. “Your story isn’t over,” states the front of the cap. On the side, it reads “National Suicide Awareness Month” with a hotline number. For someone struggling with thoughts of suicide, this powerfu...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 25 stories to hundreds of people in the audience, knowing I played a role in getting these conversations out there really meant a lot to me,” Stone said. Even after leaving for college, UMatter’s mission never left Stone’s mind. Brecher and Stone’s donation will help UMatter programming continue impacting teens in the community. “Jonah found a remarkable way to continue supporting UMatter’s programming ...…
…26 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 OUR COMMUNITY A cross Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, antisemitism is no stranger to American Jews. Jonah Liss, 18, a recent grad- uate of International Academy in Bloomfield Township, while scrolling through Twitter, unfortu- nately saw messages such as “I wish Hitler was still alive, ” “Kill the Jews” and other hate directed at Jews. He then felt it was his duty to research the instances of...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 27 faces&places About 900 Metro Detroit chil- dren in need, identified by 21 local human service agencies and schools, received new winter jackets, gloves/mittens, hats, socks, masks, pants/ leggings, books, sweatshirts, underwear, toothbrush/tooth- paste, bookmarks and greet- ing cards at the slightly modi- fied Back 2 School Store. The Aug. 12 drive-through event arranged by the National Council of Jewish Wom...…
…28 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 faces&places A winery tour in Israel might be a bit difficult to take right now, so NEXTGen Detroit, Federation’s young adult division, brought the tour to more than 45 young adults on Aug. 11. The group gathered at Dayspace Studio in Royal Oak and sampled a diverse collection from multiple regions in Israel, beginning with a blind strolling tasting and finishing with a formal sitdown pairing. Wine Gu...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 29 NATIONAL P resident Joe Biden will nominate Deborah Lipstadt, the Emory University Holocaust historian, to be the State Department’s antisemitism envoy. The White House alerted top Biden supporters of the pick, which has been expect- ed for weeks, in late July. Lipstadt is perhaps best known for defeating Holocaust denier David Irving after he sued her in a British court for def- amation for calling him ...…
…Q : What were your early experiences of Zionism when you were growing up? Rochelle Zelcer: Growing up, I went to Akiva Hebrew Day School [now Farber] w and then I went to Hillel Day School, which were very Zionistic places in terms of education, the teachers and the overall messaging from the schools. I also went to Tamarack Camp, which is also very Zionistic. My parents are from the former Soviet Union, and I grew up with an underly...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 31 MAZEL TOV! Maxx Wyatt Lyngaas, son of Sarah and Brian Lyngaas, will be called to the Torah as a bar mitzvah on Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021, at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Township. He will be joined in celebration by his brother Drew and proud grandparents Andrea and Richard Ketchel, and Mary-Ellen and Karl Lyngaas. Maxx is an eighth grader at Derby Middle School in Birmingham. For his mitz- vah project...…
…32 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 W hen words take wing, they modulate into song. That is what they do here in Parshat Haazinu as Moses, with the angel of death already in sight, prepares to take leave of this life. Never before had he spoken with such passion. His language is vivid, even violent. He wants his final words never to be forgotten. In a sense he has been articulating this truth for 40 years but never before with such emoti...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 33 requires cherut, the positive freedom that only comes when people internalize the habits of self-restraint so that my freedom is not bought at the expense of yours, or yours at the cost of mine. “That is why I have taught you all these laws, judgments and statutes. None of them is arbitrary. None of them exists because God likes giving laws. God gave laws to the very structures of matter — laws that generated...…
…34 | SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 Synagogue Directory CONSERVATIVE Adat Shalom Synagogue Farmington Hills (248) 851-5100 adatshalom.org Ahavas Israel Grand Rapids (616) 949-2840 ahavasisraelgr.org Congregation Beth Ahm West Bloomfield (248) 851-6880 cbahm.org Congregation Beth Israel Flint (810) 732-6310 cbiflint.org Congregation Beth Shalom Oak Park (248) 547-7970 congbethshalom.org Beth Tephilath Moses Mt. Clemens (586) 996-3138 beth...…
…SEPTEMBER 16 • 2021 | 35 Shomrey Emunah Southfield (248) 559-1533 congregation-shomrey- emunah-105705.square.site The Shul-Chabad Lubavitch West Bloomfield (248) 788-4000 theshul.net Woodward Avenue Shul Royal Oak (248) 414-7485 thewas.net Yagdil Torah Southfield (248) 559-5905 Young Israel of Oak Park (248) 967-3655 yiop.org Young Israel of Southfield (248) 358-0154 yisouthfield.org RECONSTRUCTIONIST Congregation Kehillat...…
…C ongregation Shaarey Zedek won the Inter- Congregational Men’s Club Summer Softball League championship in the league’s inaugural year in 1996. There were six teams in the league, and no divisional setup like there is now. Times were different. Shaarey Zedek didn’t win another title until this year. The 25-year dry spell ended last month in a most unlikely and spectacular way. After finishing in third place in the five-team Koufa...…
