SJL Deep South, March 2013

13Volume 23 Issue 3

Southern Jewish LifeP.O. Box 130052Birmingham, AL 35213-0052

Southern Jewish Life

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Southern Jewish Life March 2013 3

Last month’s column, where I took on my friends at the Ala-bama Baptist over a series of articles on trying to convert Jews, generated a lot of buzz.

We received a lot of positive feedback from ou readers, and a lot of traffic on our website. The piece rocketed to most-viewed status, rivaling our piece on the dedication of Beth Israel in Me-tairie, which has held that position for months.

Most surprising was a request from the Alabama Baptist itself to reprint the piece in its entirety. Given that some of the argu-ments I made explain the Jewish perspective on certain Christian beliefs, which obviously do not adhere to the party line in Baptist churches, it never occurred to me that they would entertain the thought of running my response.

It would not surprise me if I have made it onto a couple of prayer lists somewhere — as a journalist I need all the help I can get. I did receive a couple of lengthy responses by readers of the Alabama Baptist, by email and regular mail. They were cordial in tone and inquisitive in nature while asserting their fealty to their belief system.

Of course, there were verses mentioned that I did not get into in my original piece, especially favorites from Isaiah that missionaries say refer to Jesus but in the original Hebrew (and original context) talk about the Jewish people. The letters pointed out something I touched on last month — that so much of what Christians think they know about Judaism is wrong. That leads to us often using the same words but speaking vastly different languages.

There was also some comment from inside the Jewish commu-nity about the extent of exclusion of Jews who convert to Christi-anity (through messianic groups or other avenues). What of Jews who find inspiration in Jesus’ message or simply enjoy attending church with a neighbor or non-Jewish relative?

It is clear in contemporary Jewish life that Jews often find inspiration beyond our walls, whether through Eastern religions, church music or other avenues. There is no problem with being inspired by non-Jews, although one will find that the inspirational teachings of Jesus are generally found in our tradition (logically, since he was a Jew).

When we look at Jesus, we look at the Jesus of history, as op-posed to the Christ of faith.

It’s when one buys the entire package that we have to maintain the boundaries defining ourselves. And there is plenty within our own tradition that should inspire us; the problem is we generally don’t bother looking within.

•••

On a somewhat different topic, last month Tim Tebow ran into a publicity buzzsaw when word got out that he was going to speak at an “anti-gay, anti-Semitic” church — First Baptist Church of Dallas. He later backed out.

The megachurch and its pastor,

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4 March 2013 Southern Jewish Life

Philosophy:To link the Jewish communities of the Deep South, to tell you the fascinating stories of one another, and to document and preserve the news of events large and small, all a part of the rich culture of Southern Jewry.

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Opinion Front Porch

Robert Jeffress, have been known for outspo-ken views, especially during the most recent Republican presidential primary. Jeffress has had some rather unpleasant things to say about Catholics, Muslims, Mormons and the gay community.

Since most of the articles highlighted “anti-Semitic,” what sort of anti-Semitic statements are involved? Jeffress has said that Jews are going to hell.

Big deal.

If you have a strict fundamentalist view of Christianity, then all non-believers are going to hell. Anyone without Jesus is in the same boat — Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, atheist.

He thinks I’m going to hell? I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. It’s not the nicest thing for him to think, not a pleasant belief system to hold.

But anti-Semitic? We’re not being singled out or hated. And if that’s the extent of his statements on Jews, it is a huge stretch to call him anti-Semitic.

Sure, there are issues of theological anti-Semitism in Christianity, and the Christian world has been working to address that since the awful awakening that came from the Holocaust happening in the center of Chris-tendom.

Jeffress has a record of saying noxious things about those who are not like him. But calling someone an anti-Semite for think-ing we’re going to hell? The term should be reserved for the real haters — the conspiracy theorists, Holocaust deniers, supremacists and jihadists.

Larry BrookEditor/Publisher

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Making shelter near Gaza: For members of the Birmingham Jewish community, when rockets rained on southern Israel from Gaza, thoughts inevitably turned to the Duvdevani family.

Birmingham native Margaret Kartus Duvdevani lives in Moshav Talmei Yosef, just a few miles from the Gaza border. When sirens would go off indicating a rocket launch from Gaza had been detected, residents had mere seconds to find shelter.

The Birmingham Jewish Federation discovered that the moshav needed a protective shelter, so with the Federation’s Israel-World Jewry Bureau and the Birmingham Jewish Foundation’s John A. Williamson Israel Fund, $13,000 was allocated for Operation Lifeshield to provide a shelter.

The agency provides emergency air raid shelters to communities vulnerable to rocket attacks. The above-ground shelters are steel-reinforced concrete and can be deployed quickly to places in need.

Rabbi Shmuel Bowman, executive director of Operation Lifeshield, is visiting Birmingham and speaking on March 11 at 7:30 a.m. in the Levite Jewish Community Center board room. His talk is open to the community.

Tornado misses Hattiesburg synagogue: On Feb. 10, a major tornado tore through Hattiesburg, causing tens of millions of dollars in damage to the University of Southern Mississippi and cutting a path through town.

B’nai Israel, the only synagogue in the area, avoided damage as the tornado’s path went about half a mile to the north. Rabbi Uri Barnea said there was flooding near the building because eight inches of rain had fallen, but the building was high enough that no floodwater seeped in.

The tornado came just six weeks after Springhill Avenue Temple in Mobile was hit by a tornado, causing roof and window damage. In late January, the Mobile congregation resumed activities in the building, and repairs are forthcoming. A tornado relief fund has been set up for things that will not be covered by insurance, and the congregation is anticipating a six-figure out-of-pocket cost.


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Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward, left, and Pensacola City Council President P.C. Wu, right, welcome Yoram Ettinger to Pensacola, along with students from the Newpoint School.

Ambassador Ettinger draws large crowds in Pensacola:Retired Israeli Ambassador Yoram Ettinger had a busy weekend on his visit to Pensacola.

The former Consul General to the Southwestern United States and Alabama trade representative in Israel spoke to a crowd of 1200 at the First Pentecostal Church in Pensacola on Feb. 17, discussing the historical connection between the United States and Israel. He also spoke at B’nai Israel Synagogue on Feb. 16.

Upon his arrival on Feb. 15, he was met at the airport by Mayor Ashton Hayward and other local dignitaries, and a group of students from the Newpoint School.

In his remarks, Hayward pointed out that the first Jewish settlers in Florida arrived in Pensacola in 1763. “We honor and celebrate our Jewish heritage. Pensacola is a friend to the Jewish people as well as to the state of Israel.”

Escambia County Commissioner Steven Barry, Rabbi Jordan Gerson of B’nai Israel Synagogue and pastor Brian Kinsey of First Pentecostal Church were also among those in attendance.

In a press briefing, Ettinger spoke of President Obama’s upcoming trip to Israel and the relationship Obama has with Israel. He hopes Obama has learned from his “mistakes” of depending on the international community, and of applying a moral equivalency between Israel and the Arab side. He called Chuck Hagel’s nomination to be Secretary of Defense “questionable.”

Ettinger visited the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, a non-profit research institute that pioneers “technologies aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities.” There and at a luncheon, Ettinger had meetings to discuss economic and research ties with the Pensacola area.

At B’nai Israel, he spoke of the importance of the territories to Israel’s security, and debunked conventional demographic wisdom, stating that the Arab birth rate is falling while the Jewish rate is rising, and the Arab population in the territories is overstated by 1 million.

At the church, he spoke of how America’s founding fathers had a reverence for Hebraic traditions, and the tangible ways Israel pays back America for its friendship. He quoted Alexander Haig’s assessment that if Israel did not exist, the U.S. would need additional aircraft carriers and personnel in the Mediterranean amounting to $20 billion a year.

He also noted that Iran’s ultimate target in acquiring nuclear weapons is not Israel, but the west’s assets in the region.


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Jewish cuisine expert visiting Huntsville: Tina Wasserman, author of “Entrée to Judaism: A Culinary Exploration of the Jewish Diaspora,” will be in Huntsville this month for a weekend of events at Temple B’nai Sholom.

Wasserman, who lives in Dallas, has 40 years of experience in culinary instruction. She is the food columnist for Reform Judaism magazine, and in 1994 was elected to Les Dames d’Escoffier, an International Culinary Society that honors women in the food and beverage industry. She was chef for the cooking demonstration school at the Marshall Fields department store in Dallas.

At the March 15 7 p.m. Shabbat service she will speak on “Beyond Brisket and Bagels: The Expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 and Its Effect on World Cuisine.”

On March 16 she will offer a cooking demonstration of 10 Passover recipes. “Cooking for Passover: More Than Sponge Cake and Matzo Brie” will be a hands-on experience with a maximum of 50 participants. Reservations for the 7 p.m. program are $20 and had a March 5 deadline. Sponsor packages for four admissions and a cookbook are $200.

On March 17, she will cook with the students in Huntsville’s joint religious school.

Torah and the Mississipi Delta in Mobile: On March 17, the Mobile Area Jewish Federation will present Saul Kaye, a pioneer in Jewish blues music. The 5 p.m. concert will be at T.P. Crockmeir’s downtown, and reservations are requested by March 11.

Kaye is a San Francisco singer and songwriter who had released five albums of differing styles over the last two decades. But one idea kept pulling at him — mixing Jewish history, personalities and liturgy with the Blues.

In 2008 he released Jewish Blues, Volume 1, and embarked on what is being called “Torah dipped into the Delta.” Volume 2, which he wrote in Montana and Israel, came out in the summer of 2010, and last March he released volume 3.

A native of South Africa, he would listen to “The Blues Train” on radio as a child. He stated that “I would play my guitar all night with Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters and B.B. King until I passed out somewhere in the wee hours.”

While his early albums were conventional, his recent venture into the Blues has coincided with a return to his own roots. In 1997 he reconnected during a family trip to Israel, then became more involved in the community upon his return to California.

He notes that the slave experience is the catalyst for Blues music, and “Jews know the pain of spiritual crisis and call to Hashem with their own form of blues.” His albums take the Jewish experience and blend it with the African one “as a cross cultural stew.”


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Birmingham’s Temple Beth-El is teaming with Maureen Holt of Little Savannah restaurant for a Community Conversation on April 20 with an Earth Day theme. Holt will speak on “What’s On Your Plate,” about the slow foods movement, eating local, and keeping quality foods on the plate. A light Kiddush lunch will follow the 9:30 a.m. service, with recipes from Little Savannah. Co-sponsors are welcome to help support the luncheon and contribute to Alabama Possible-The Alabama Poverty Project.

The Mobile Christian-Jewish Dialogue will feature Roy Hoffman for “A Jewish Writer in the Bible Belt,” March 14 at 7 p.m. in Byrne Hall, Spring Hill College.

Agudath Israel-Etz Ahayem in Montgomery will hold a Texas Hold’em poker tournament on March 10 as a fundraiser. Doors open at 1 p.m. with a $100 donation to play, with first deal at 2 p.m. During the first hour there will be a $50 rebuy. There will be cash prizes for the first three places, and other prizes for fourth through eighth place.

The Mobile Area Jewish Federation will hold its annual Federation Shabbat service for both local congregations on March 15 at 6 p.m., at Ahavas Chesed. Nate Ginsburg, president of Springhill Avenue Temple, stated that the Mobile and national Federations have contributed to the congregation’s tornado fund. “Remember when you are asked to give to the Federation that they helped us out in our time of need.”

Visit Israel this summer with Rabbi Brian Glusman. The Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta and Congregation Beth Shalom are co-sponsoring a Multi-Generational Family Trip to Israel this summer. This tour is scheduled to leave Atlanta on June 11, 2013 and return on June 24. Rabbi Glusman and Rabbi Mark Zimmerman will serve as trip leaders. For additional information, contact Rabbi Glusman, (678) 812-4161 or send an email to [email protected].

Huntsville Hadassah will have a weather preparedness event on March 10 at 6 p.m. at Temple B’nai Sholom with WAAY-TV meteorologist Ari Sarsalari. Box dinners will be available for $10.

Pensacola’s Temple Beth El will have its annual marriage re-consecration ceremony at Shabbat services March 29, at 7 p.m. consecration ceremony at Shabbat services March 29, at 7 p.m. consecration ceremonyThose observing significant anniversaries — every five years — are encouraged to participate.

Rabbi Scott Hausman-Weiss, former director of adult outreach at Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El, returns to Birmingham for Shabbat services on March 8 at 5:40 p.m. He is now senior rabbi at Congregation Emanu-El in Houston.

On March 21, Montgomery’s Temple Beth Or will present a talk by Mirabai Starr, author of “God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity and Islam.” The 7 p.m. talk is open to the community, sponsored by the Rothschild-Blachschleger Lecture and Culture Fund. Books will be available for purchase and autographs.

Ron Bernstein from Jewish National Fund will speak at Temple B’nai Israel in Monroe on March 10 at 2 p.m. He also spoke at Shabbat services at Gemiluth Chassodim in Alexandria on March 1.

“We Remember,” the documentary which tells the personal stories of individuals who were witness to the horrors of Hitler’s reign, will be shown at the Fairhope Public Library on April 5 at 1 p.m. The film features two members of Springhill Avenue Temple’s Youth Group, Victoria Hirsch and Corey Garfunkel, as the interviewers, and debuted last fall.


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Shaya leading culinary weekend in Greenwood: Alon Shaya, chef at Domenica in New Orleans, continues to rack up the accolades, and this month he will be leading a Culinary Weekend at the Viking Cooking School in Greenwood, Miss.

Shaya opened Domenica with John Besh in 2008, a family-oriented, authentic Italian restaurant in the historic Roosevelt Hotel.

In February, the James Beard Foundation named him a semifinalist in the Best Chef in the South category. There are 20 semi-finalists, five from New Orleans. Finalists will be announced on March 18.

In December, New Orleans Magazine named him Chef of the Year.

From March 22 to 24 Shaya will lead classes at the weekend cooking school. There are one-night and two-night packages available with the Alluvian Hotel in downtown Greenwood. More information is available at vikingcookingschool.com, or by calling (662) 451-6750.

Marching in Remembrance: Alabama Stands With Israel is coordinating a March of Remembrance in Montgomery on April 7 at 2 p.m. The group, which holds the march each year, starts at the Catoma Street Church of Christ, which was the first location for Montgomery’s first synagogue, then continues to the Capitol Building for a ceremony honoring victims of the Holocaust.

The march is part of an international effort to stand with Israel and remember the Holocaust. A similar march will be in Birmingham and in New Orleans on that day. Last year the Jewish community did not participate in those marches, because much of the planning and participation came from local messianic groups.

Grants for first-time campers: Campers currently in grades 1 through 9 in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana or Northwest Florida are eligible for a Goldring Jewish Summer Camp Experience incentive grant.

They must be a first-time camper, a resident of the eligible area and attend a non-profit Jewish sleep-away camp this coming summer. Applications are available from the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana at jefno.org, and the deadline is March 31. Grants are not based on financial need, and there is no requirement of synagogue affiliation.


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Fundraising challenges: Two regional organizations had quick fundraising opportunities in the last month.

Jewish Children’s Regional Service was aiming for part of $50,000 being donated by Gulf Coast Bank to the 10 charities that got the most online votes. The contest was slated to end on March 4; as of press time JCRS was in 16th place. The New Orleans-based JCRS was the only Jewish non-profit signed up.

An anonymous donor issued a $500,000 challenge grant to the Jackson-based Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life — but the match has to be pledged (not necessarily paid) by March 10. The challenge is a $1 match for every $2 raised, so $1 million in pledges is needed.

Donors must pledge in writing by March 10 and have until January 2015 to finish paying. Gifts must be designated to one of four departments — education, rabbinic services, community engagement or cultural programs/museum.

Israeli Soldiers Tell Stories Across South: The Israeli Soldiers Stories tour was at McNeese State University’s Old Ranch in Lake Charles on Feb. 19. Drew Alyeshmerni, left, is an Israeli soldier who spoke about her experiences in the military. Vida Velasco, right, represents StandWithUs, an Israel advocacy organization. The event was co-sponsored by McNeese Multicultural Programming, Tabernacle of David and CUFI @ MSU.

The tour also stopped at the University of New Orleans for a Feb. 28 program, sponsored by StandWithUs and Allies of Israel. A group of Palestinian protestors attended the event and staged a walkout.

Orit Kopel, another Israeli soldier who was unable to make the McNeese State event but spoke in New Orleans, said “We came for the purpose of creating a dialogue. The pro-Palestinian protesters came for the sole purpose of shutting us up. They are not helping the Palestinians, they only harm them. Because only dialogue can lead to peace.”

They also spoke at Mississippi College on Feb. 26, and the Tulane Hillel on March 1.

Open Door for couples with recently-converted spouse:Ramah Darom is holding one of three first-ever “Open Door Retreats” in the Conservative movement — for young married couples where one of the spouses recently converted to Judaism.

The retreat will celebrate Jewish life, include a Shabbat experience and the opportunity to build friendships with similar couples in the region. The Ramah Darom retreat will be May 24 to 26. Other retreats will be at Ramah California and New England. The subsidized cost is $200 per couple.

Sponsored by the Ramah movement and the Jewish Theological Seminary, the OpenDoor Retreats are designed as short-term programs for couples, families, and individuals who are celebrating aspects of life’s journey or coping with challenges encountered along the way

For registration or more information visit opendoorretreats.org.


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Reunion, rededication weekend draws large crowd for Bama ZBTAresty receives Intʼl Man of Year recognition

Faron Lewitt, executive director of the ZBT Foundation, reads the award to David Aresty

For the last two years, friends and alumni of Zeta Beta Tau at the University of Alabama have been working on a cam-paign to completely renovate the ZBT House, fi nishing last August. Th e weekend of Feb. 15, they came to Tuscaloosa to see the results and cel-ebrate a fellow Bama ZBT be recognized as International Man of the Year.

Vikki Grodner said attendance far ex-ceeded initial expectations, and many who were there had not been back to campus in decades. Over 340 attended what was billed as “the biggest weekend in Psi Chapter history.”

Th e Hillel and Sigma Delta Tau sorority also held events during the weekend, highlighting Jewish life on campus.

Tuck said the impetus for the renovation was a challenge from then-University President Robert Witt to the Greek system to upgrade their houses, and the university made fi nancial resources available to make it easier to do so.

Likewise, Witt made growing the Jewish enrollment at Alabama a prority, and in the last few years the Hillel House moved into a new building, while next door Temple Emanu-El also built a new building in its return to the campus area.

Th e ZBT House at Alabama had not been updated since 1970, and Tuck said they were at the point where the house had to meet the needs of today’s student, or lose students to fraternities with more

modern facilities.Th e chapter has

raised $1.1 million, and the campaign continues toward a $1.5 million goal. Th e chapter is also sell-ing commemorative bricks for the porch outside of Alumni Hall.

Tuck said the re-sults have been im-mediate, with 32 new members this year, up from 25 per year. Within recent memo-ry, the total member-ship had been in the 30 to 35 range.

Also, “Where we

Photo by Nik Layman

Among those in attendance was surprise guest Bertha “Mama” Silver, who served ZBT “with love and devotion” for 22 years.


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ZBT making return to Tulane campusOn March 3, the Sigma chapter of Zeta

Beta Tau plans to initiate 45 “founding fa-thers” at Tulane University, and promote a new beginning after several diffi cult years.

Laurence Bolotin, ZBT executive direc-tor, said ZBT has been working with Tulane, the Tulane Hillel and Chabad, alumni and the local Jewish community to re-colonize Tulane.

Hillel welcomed ZBT back with a Shab-bat dinner and event on Jan. 18, and on Feb. 14, 39 participated in a commitment ceremony.

“Th ese students represent the best and brightest at Tulane,” he said. “Th ey have a cumulative GPA of nearly 3.5, are actively involved in the campus Jewish community, have been recognized as individuals for their commitment to community service and philanthropy, and share ZBTs desire to be an organization without pledging at Tu-lane.” In 1989, ZBT became one of the fi rst national fraternities to abolish pledging.

Founded in 1898 as the nation’s fi rst Jew-ish fraternity, it became a national fraternity with the addition of Tulane in 1909. Th e

14th chapter, Tulane ZBT was the fi rst lo-cated outside the Northeast.

In 2005, the ZBT house at Tulane was damaged by Hurricane Katrina, but a big-ger blow came in January 2007 when a Winter Break fi re left the chapter homeless. Th e cause of the fi re was never offi cially de-termined and was one of several fraternity house fi res at Tulane in recent years.

In 2008 the chapter rebuilt and was able to move into its new home in March 2009 — but in 2010, ZBT was kicked off campus because of violations of hazing policy.

Th e chapter was told not to try and return until those involved had graduated. In Janu-ary, the process began for ZBT’s return.

Sophomore AJ DeLeon told the Hullaba-loo that they “want to bring back a great or-ganization that really fell out of touch with its roots, and we want to bring it back and make it our own and make it something we can be proud of.”

Phi Mu currently occupies the new ZBT house, but the lease expires in the summer of 2014, and Bolotin said ZBT will return to the building in the fall of 2014.

had trouble getting members to live in the house prior to the renovations, we now have 29 fully occupied rooms,” he said. New mem-bers hail not only from Alabama, but from places like Utah, California, Illinois and New York.

Before the afternoon basketball game on Feb. 16, the house was rededicated. Th at eve-ning, there was a reception at the University Club where David Aresty was honored as ZBT International Man of the Year.

Th e recognition was announced on July 28 at ZBT’s international convention, but Aresty could not attend because on July 20 he had a liver transplant. He noted that he was released from the hospital in Nebraska on July 28.

Faron Lewitt, executive director of the ZBT

Foundation, made the presentation, stating that Aresty “exemplifi ed the teaching of ZBT’s ritual... to better the communities in which we live.”

Ken Grodner, who serves as advisor to Bama ZBT, detailed how Aresty was in New Jersey watching coverage of the April 27, 2011 tornado that cut through Tuscaloosa, killing dozens and destroying hundreds of buildings.

Th e COO for Alfred Dunner, Aresty coor-dinated the donation of 32,000 new women’s outfi ts valued at $1 million for what became Dressing Up! Tuscaloosa.

Th e event transformed a school gym into a fashion center where women aff ected by the

An overflow crowd at the University Club

Continued on page 32



Selma Pilgrimage focuses on Jewish heritage

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For this year’s Historic Selma Pilgrimage, there is an emphasis on the city’s Jewish heritage.

Many sites of Jewish interest are on the roster for the 38th annual event, which takes place March 15 and 16. Th e Jewish community, which now is but a handful of members, dates back to the 1830s.

Th ey arrived on the bluff s of the Alabama River and established a variety of retail and wholesale stores. Th e newcomers contributed their time and skills to help build Selma into the “Queen City of the Black Belt,” and their names remained prominent.

A formal community was established just after the Civil War with the establishment of Mishkan Israel. In the early 20th century, an Or-thodox congregation would also be established.

It is said that on the High Holy Days back then, one could roll a bowling ball down Broad Street and not hit anyone, since so many stores were closed.

Th e tour will include Mishkan Israel, which was built in 1899 and is known for its stained-glass windows, including one depicting Ruth, a rarity as synagogue windows generally do not depict human fi gures.

An eff ort is underway to raise money to preserve the Mishkan Israel building and eventually turn it into a museum and meeting space.

Also featured will be the Harmony Club, which used to be the Jew-ish social club. Located just steps from the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the club was founded in 1867. Th e current building was built in 1909 and later became an Elks Club. After years of being abandoned, it was pur-chased in 1999 by David Hurl-but, who started renovating it into a public space and private residence. It has been featured in the New York Times and HGTV, and he and Bill Tomey are continuing the restoration.

Th e building now also hous-es an Italian restaurant, and this summer will be the venue Adler Building

The Harmony Club in Selma has been restored


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for a Bar Mitzvah party for the fi rst time in decades.

Down the street, the Adler building will also be featured. It housed a Jewish-owned wholesale grocery and cotton business. Also on the list is the Kayser-Turner-Searcy House, an Italian Renaissance Revival home built by Jewish businessman Isadore Kayser. He owned Kayser Department Store, and this house incorporates ideas from his many trav-els.

Th e Koenigstahl-Williamson-Luker House is a handsome Queen Anne home that was owned by the family of Jewish businessman Levi Koenigstahl. Th e unusual mural on the parlor ceiling has been beautifully preserved.

New to the pilgrimage this year are the Downtown Walking and Shopping Tour and Th e Tin Man’s Gallery, studio of renowned folk artist Charlie Lucas.

Friday night events include an Old Live Oak Cemetery Tour where Selma’s residents-at-rest tell how they helped shape history. Th e “newer” Jewish cemetery is located among Live Oak’s Spanish moss-draped avenues.

Tickets and information will be available at the Vaughan-Smitherman Museum or online at selmapilgrimage.com.

Call for Southern Jewish history papers

Th e Southern Jewish Historical Society has issued a call for papers that can be presented at its annual conference in November.

Since 1977, the SJHS has worked to foster scholarship about the experience of Southern Jews. With an annual conference, academic journal, and active grant and award programs, the society has helped to move Southern Jew-ish history from the margins of the American Jewish narrative into the mainstream.

Th is year’s conference will be Nov. 1 to 3 in Birmingham. Th is is the 50th anniversary of civil rights demonstrations in Birmingham, and the conference will be part of the city’s commemoration of the events.

Although the history of Jews and the Civil Rights Movement will be of particular inter-est, proposals that deal with all dimensions of Southern Jewish history are welcomed. Submission of panel proposals will also be considered.

Paper proposals are due by March 15. Ab-stracts should not exceed more than one page. Submissions should include an abstract, a CV and contact information. For panel propos-als, include abstracts of each paper, CVs for presenters and panel organizer, and contact information for all participants.

Proposals should be submitted to Dan Puckett at [email protected].


Two more large Jewish conventions set for New Orleans

Two large national Jewish gatherings are set for New Orleans over the coming year.

Th e Jewish Federations of North America announced that next year’s TribeFest will be held March 16 to 18, 2014, at the Sheraton New Orleans. Also, United Synagogue Youth, the teen group for the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, will hold its annual Inter-national Convention in New Orleans, Dec. 22 to 26.

Th e USY convention attracts over 1000 teens and staff from across the country, exploring the educational theme “Tikun Olam — Repairing the world.”

In workshops, informal classes and group activities, Convention delegates will discuss and analyze how they can make a diff erence through their actions and their philanthropy. As part of a long-standing tradition, participants will spend the Monday of the Convention engaged in a social action project, holding a Day of Service in New Orleans.

Th ere will also be leadership workshops and committee meetings dealing with a wide variety of topics including Israel, political action programming, chapter and regional communications, social action programming and text study. International offi cers will also be elected.

TribeFest, for Jews ages 22-45, off ers a diverse range of experiences and events and draws about 1500 participants. Th is will be the third TribeFest — the fi rst two were held in Las Vegas in 2011 and 2012, but it took a hiatus for 2013.

According to JFNA, “TribeFest will refl ect the vibrant setting of its host city, New Orleans, off ering meaningful, fun, and top-quality content.

“Th rough presentations by dynamic leaders in politics, en-tertainment, music, art, food, religion and other aspects of Jewish life, TribeFest will off er attendees many ways to connect to their own Juda-ism and how they see themselves as part of the community.”

Referring to the 2012 event, Brian Katz of New Orleans, then the JFNA National Young Leadership co-chair, said “TribeFest is an im-portant part of Jewish Federations’ eff orts to engage young Jews, and bring more voices to our tables. TribeFest not only creates a sense of community, but also raises awareness about the incredible, life-saving services at Jewish Federations.”

For the 2014 event, Alison Lebovitz of Chattanooga is National Young Leadership Co-Chair Designate. She is a Birmingham native and an alumna of the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School.

Previous TribeFest headliners have includ-ed Hollywood actress Mayim Bialik, “Saturday Night Live” star Rachel Dratch, best-selling hu-morist and author A.J. Jacobs, Olympic gold-medal swimmer Lenny Krayzelburg, Idealist.org founder Ami Dar and author of “Th e Acci-dental Billionaires,” Ben Mezrich.

Brian Katz of New Orleans and Shelly Kupfer of Washington speak at TribeFest, March 2012, as National Young Leadership co-chairs.


Montgomery’s Temple Beth Or held its annual Jewish Food Festvial on Feb. 24 (pictured left), bringing in the general community to learn about Jewish food and a litle bit about Jewish practices.

Special items for the festival, most of which were handmade by Tem-ple members, included pastries such as rugelach, strudel and mandel bread; hot plates of brisket or pastrami; matzo ball soup; potato latkes; and quajado (spinach pie).

Beth Shalom in Baton Rouge will have its 29th annual Jewish food festival on March 17 to 19. Th e $9 lunches include a corned beef sand-wich on rye bread, chips, dill pickle and homemade brownie. Egg salad and tuna are available by request.

Lunches can be picked up on March 17 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. On March 18 and 19, there will be lunch delivery to area businesses with a minimum of fi ve lunches, from 10 a.m. to noon. Tickets are available at Beth Shalom.

In Alexandria, the annual Jewish Temple Corned Beef Lunch Sale will be April 9 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Th e $8 package includes a sand-wich, chips, cole slaw, pickle and mint. Complimentary soft drinks are available for dine-in, and New York cheesecake will also be available. Tickets are now available online, and delivery is available for 10 or more lunches.

In Jackson, the annual Bazaar at Beth Israel will be on April 10. Cooking is already being scheduled for items such as cabbage rolls, kugel, carrot tsimmes and brisket. Th e much-anticipated event in-cludes a white elephant sale, silent auction and takeout for bulk food items and desserts.

Hebrew Union Congregation in Greenville held its Deli Day on Feb. 28, and Dothan’s Temple Emanu-El has its Deli Day on May 2.

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More than Matzah Now, Good Reading,and Fresh Ideas All Year The New Jewish Table, by Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray

Chef Todd Gray, who happens to be Episcopalian, meets and falls in love with Ellen Kassoff — yes, Jewish — and together they go on to open Washington restaurant hotspot Equinox. With the success of that venture, they’ve co-authored “The New Jewish Table,” with an emphasis on cooking what’s in season, and what’s local.

Divided into four seasons, the book additionally provides menu ideas for Jewish holidays. Passover suggestions include ‘salad of roasted heirloom beets with capers and pistachios’ and a recipe for a baked gefilte fish that’s an interpretation of the French quenelles de brochet (pike dumplings). quenelles de brochet (pike dumplings). quenelles de brochet

Todd’s deviled egg salad, grilled lamb burgers, and vanilla and peach melba are among the majority of recipes included that gratefully don’t require an excessive number of ingredients or steps, perfect for weeknights.

Full of fresh ideas and out this month, it’s just what’s needed for some Pesadik inspiration.

Jewish Cookery Book: on Principles of Economy, by Esther LevyThree historic books — among the 1100-plus inventory of the American Antiquarian Society — were chosen to be the first reprinted recently to honor American culinary history. Among that trio is this reprint of the 1871 volume by Esther Levy, an important guide for European Jewish immigrants on how to adapt to life in the New World while maintaining their Jewish heritage. Recipes, menu suggestions, medicinal concoctions for various ailments and household management tips read as fascinating and (mostly) charming. This was the first Jewish cookbook written in America, and the second written in English.

A recipe for pressed beef begins:“Take a piece of brisket of eight pounds, cosher it and bone it, roll it tightly in a cloth, with some marjoram, parsley, thyme, cayenne pepper, salt and nutmeg; then tie it tightly and put it into the brine for two weeks...”

Joan Nathan pens the introduction to this edition, inviting readers to look at many of the recipes as predecessors of dishes we know well today.

Chic Made Simple, by Esther DeutschIt should come as no surprise that a food stylist and recipe developer would produce a gorgeous, picture-filled cookbook. That’s huge plus to those of us who like to see what we’re working toward when following a list of directions.

While this could have benefited from a single photographer for a completely cohesive look, the important component is of course the recipes. Each stands on its own as easy to execute with familiar ingredients and delicious results.

Especially appreciated are suggestions on preparing dishes in advance of Shabbat and making dairy recipes pareve. Very nice.

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Passover Seders


Many area congregations are having congregational or community Seders. Here is a list of those we had by press time, with brief details. For cost and reservation information, check our website or contact the individual congregation. For those looking to attend a Seder in someone’s home, most congregations can make arrangements.

Temple Emanu-El, Birmingham: Second Seder, led by Rabbi Jonathan Miller, March 26 at 6 p.m. Reserve by March 21.

Temple Emanu-El, Dothan: March 25, 6 p.m. Etz Chayim, Huntsville: March 26, 6 p.m. Temple B’nai Sholom, Huntsville: March 26, 5:30 p.m. The Seder will begin

at the county jail and then move to the Temple.Ahavas Chesed, Mobile: March 25, 6:30 p.m. Reserve by March 20.Springhill Avenue Temple, Mobile: Congregational Seder, March 25, 6 p.m.

Reserve by March 20.Agudath Israel-Etz Ahayem, Montgomery: Community Seder, March 26 at

6:30 p.m.Beth Shalom, Fort Walton Beach: First-night Seder will be held March 25 at

6 p.m. at Eglin Air Force Base’s Bayview Club. Because of security at the base, certain forms of identifi cation will be required for those who do not have a military ID. Reservations open through March 19.

Temple Beth-El, Pensacola: Sisterhood’s First Night Seder, catered by Ap-petite for Life. March 25, 6 p.m. Reserve by March 18.

Gemiluth Chassodim, Alexandria: Passover picnic at the Wellan home, March 31 at 5 p.m., weather permitting.

Beth Shalom, Baton Rouge: Second Night Seder, March 26, 7 p.m. Reserve by March 19.

Northshore Jewish Congregation, Mandeville: Second Night Seder, March 26, organized by Sisterhood.

B’nai Israel, Monroe: March 25, 6:30 p.m. Reserve by March 18.Beth Israel, Metairie: Second night Community Seder, after 7 p.m. service. Gates of Prayer, Metairie: Sisterhood hosting, March 26 at 6 p.m.Shir Chadash, Metairie: Second night All Star Musical Seder, March 26, 6:15

p.m. Features an all-star band made up from members of six well-known local bands.

Temple Sinai, New Orleans: Second night Seder, March 26, 6 p.m. Service at 5:30 p.m.

Touro Synagogue, New Orleans: Sisterhood Second Night Seder, March 26, 6:30 p.m.

B’nai Zion, Shreveport: Catered fi rst night Seder, March 25.B’nai Israel, Hattiesburg: Community Seder, March 25, 6 p.m.Beth Israel, Jackson: Second Seder, March 26, 6 p.m.


“Celebrate the good things”Exhibit at BCRI portrays Muslims who sheltered Jews during the Holocaust

In an era when the news is fi lled with confl ict between Jews and Muslims, Muslims and Christians, “it is always good to have heart-warming stories where people go beyond cultural boundaries and help each other.”

Th at was a prime motivation that led Ashfaq Taufi que, president of the Birmingham Islamic Society, to bring “BESA: Muslims who Saved Jews in World War II” to the city. Th e exhibit, which is coordinated by the Hebrew Union College — Jewish Institute of Religion Museum, will be displayed at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute from March 5 to June 30.

Th e exhibit debuted at Yad Vashem in 2007, after photographer Norman Gershman decided to focus on Albania while doing a photo essay on Righteous Gentiles that saved Jews during the Holocaust.

He learned that Albania, as a nation, refused to collaborate with the Nazis even when occupied — and that 70 percent of Albania’s popula-tion was Muslim.

“French saved Jews, Poles saved Jews, Ukrainians saved Jews, many people saved Jews,” Gershman said. “Muslims? What, are you crazy? Th at’s the story.”

After the war, Albania became a tight dictatorship cut off from the outside world until the 1990s, so the story was little known. As the exhibit opened in 2007, a fi lm crew went to Albania, Bulgaria and Is-rael with Gershman to make a documentary, which will be screened at the Birmingham Museum of Art on April 18 at 7 p.m. Taufi que was hoping to bring Gershman in for the screening, but Gershman’s health would not allow it.

A 2008 book about the exhibit was published by Syracuse University Press.

Besa is a code of honor in Albanian culture that demands taking responsibility for the lives of others in a time of need.

Before World War II, around 200 Jews lived in Albania. When the


Happy Passover from

Nazis gained power, hundreds of Jews crossed the border from Yu-goslavia, Germany, Greece, Austria and Serbia. When the Germans occupied Albania in 1943, the Albanian population refused to comply with Nazi orders to turn over lists of Jews resid-ing in Albania.

Almost all the Jews living within Albanian borders during the German occupation, those of Albanian origin and refugees alike, were saved. And those who took part in protecting the Jews stated it was their Muslim faith that infl uenced them to act.

Th ey gave their Jewish neighbors and guests Muslim names and passports, hid them when necessary — usually in plain sight.

Yad Vashem had 63 Albanians listed among the Righteous Gentiles, but Gershman uncov-ered over 150. Because of the tight isolation of Albania almost immediately after the war, the rescuers lost contact with those they had saved.

Th e fi lm focuses on Gershman and Rexhep Hoxha, a Muslim Albanian toy shop owner who has three Judaic books that belonged to a family his father had sheltered 60 years earlier. Hoxha’s mission is to track down members of that family so he can return the books.

Th e fi lm debuted at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival and has been at many Jewish fi lm festivals since. It was also screened last year at the Islamic Society of North America convention in Washington, in

a program co-sponsored by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.Taufi que fi rst learned of the exhibit about three years ago. He was for-

warded an email about the exhibit, was intrigued and contacted the Eye Contact Foundation, which Gershman founded.

After fi nding out what it would take to bring the exhibit to town, Taufi que spoke to friends at the YMCA, who immediately jumped on board. He mentioned it to others he knew at the Civil Rights Institute and the Museum of Art, and in September 2011 the groups got to-gether to start the process.

Taufi que originally wanted to bring the ex-hibit for early 2012, but it was suggested that it be delayed to coincide with the 50th an-niversary events of Birmingham’s civil rights struggle, taking place this year.

More recently, Ann Mollengarden from the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center be-came involved, making fi ve primary sponsors for the exhibit.

After the exhibit was set, other groups were invited to be co-sponsors. Birmingham’s three synagogues and the Birmingham Jewish Fed-

eration are participating, along with a wide range of churches.While Taufi que acknowledges the “political realities” that divide the

groups, “it’s always good to get us in the same room from time to time and forget about our political diff erences, and celebrate the things that have gone great.”

The sign reads: The Jewish Refugees of Solomon Adixhes and family drank from this nearby well while being sheltered by Ali and Ragip Kraja when being chased by the Nazis


Fresh off a 13th anniversary celebration of his time at New Orleans’ Temple Sinai, Can-tor Joel Colman is set to conquer another endeavor. Th is month he makes his opera debut as Old Hebrew in the New Orleans Opera’s presentation of “Samson and Deli-lah.”

Based on the Biblical story from 1150 B.C.E., the production stars Richard Cox as Samson and Edyta Kulczak as Delilah.

Performances are March 15 at 8 p.m. and March 17 at 2:30 p.m. Music critic George Dansker will lead a “Nuts and Bolts” lecture an hour before curtain. Th e performances, at the Mahalia Jackson Th e-ater for the Performing Arts, are in French with English supertitles.

Th e original production, which debuted in Weimar in 1877, was in German.

Th ere are three acts, set in Gaza during the Philistine occupation. Old Hebrew’s prophetic role comes when Samson returns from killing Philistine commander Abimelech.

Colman noted that anyone who comes late and does not get seated until the second act would therefore miss his performance, which is entirely in the fi rst act.

Colman is a member of the New Orleans Vocal Arts Chorale, which a year ago was augmenting the chorale for the New Orleans Opera’s presentation of “Carmina Burana.” During the show’s run he made sure to say hello to a congregant, Rachel Van Voorhees, principal harp-ist for the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. She introduced him to Robert Lyall, artistic director for the opera.

Colman fi gures that later, Van Voorhees mentioned to Lyall that Colman was a bass-baritone, as Lyall was starting to cast for the Spring 2013 season. At the fi nal performance of “Carmina Burana” Lyall pulled Colman aside and asked to hear Colman audition a couple of weeks later. He auditioned and got the role of Old Hebrew.

Th is isn’t Colman’s fi rst time on stage. He has performed with the Tulane Summer Lyric Th eater, most recently in a run of “Fiddler on the Roof” last summer. But opera is another animal.

For starters, Colman is not fl uent in French. “Th ank goodness my organist (at Temple Sinai), Marcus St. Julien, is fl uent with the French opera repertoire.”

Also assisting his language skills has been Gisele Schexnider, a local French academic whose daughter, Margaux, had her Bat Mitzvah at Temple Sinai in January 2012. A year after being the Bat Mitzvah stu-dent, Margaux is now the teacher, and Colman said “I think she enjoys getting back at the cantor.”

He added that “last time I sang for her, last week, she wasn’t laugh-ing as much,” so he took that as a good sign.

Th e other major challenge is that the other three principals are all pro-fessional opera performers. “Th at’s what they do, that’s their life. Th ey’ve all sung at the Met in New York.” He compares it to being asked to play on an NBA team. Th e local performers have been rehearsing since January, and he said the opera’s chorus is “top notch.” Th e principals arrive in town on Feb. 27 for an intensive set of rehearsals leading up to the show.

He calls Lyall a “mensch” who is sensitive to Colman’s obligations at Temple Sinai. Th e Vocal Arts Chorale is also fl exible, with members signing on as to which of the four programs per year they can fi t into their schedule. “Temple Sinai keeps me very busy,” he said.

Having these additional musical outlets “stretches you vocally and challenges you,” he said, “and strengthens my role as a cantor.”


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An artist’s centennialNOMA exhibit a retrospective on Ida KohlmeyerBy Lee J. Green

Ida Kohlmeyer’s love for her native New Orleans and in some in-stances her Jewishness comes out in her abstract expressionist art. Th e New Orleans Museum of Art is honoring her memory with “Ida Kohl-meyer: 100th Anniversary Highlights.” Th e exhibit features signifi cant pieces of hers from NOMA’s permanent collection in an exhibition running through April 14.

Born in 1912 to a Polish immigrant couple, Kohlmeyer was an in-spirational woman and artist whose determination led to her prolifi c body of work, according to exhibition curator Anne C. B. Roberts. “We are delighted to celebrate the centennial of a dynamic artist who had a tremendous impact on NOMA, the city of New Orleans and the art world at large,” said Roberts.

Kohlmeyer studied English literature at Tulane, then her interests transferred to Latin American art after she met and married Hugh Kohlmeyer in 1934.

In 1947, when their second daughter was born, Kohlmeyer started taking classes at the John McCrady Art School in New Orleans. With two young children at home, Kohlmeyer then earned her Masters of Fine Art degree in painting from Tulane University’s Newcomb Col-lege at the age of 44. She would go on to become one of the most celebrated abstract expressionists from the South.

After receiving her degree, she took summer classes from the noted Hans Hoff man in Massachusetts, where she was infl uenced by abstract expressionism.

Her fi rst solo show was in New York in 1959. She would have doz-ens of solo shows across the country, especially in New Orleans. Solo shows in the region included Montgomery, Jackson, Birmingham, Monroe, Laurel and a 1997 memorial tribute show in Mobile, shortly after she died.

In 1966 the Peace Corps commissioned her to do a painting that would be presented to the Corps’ founding director, Sergeant Shriver. In the early 1980s she did a set of fi ve sculptures, the Krewe of Poydras,

Ida Kohlmeyer, Synthesis BB, The New Orleans Museum of Art: partial and promised gift of Arthur Roger, 2012.121


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across Poydras Street from the Superdome.She also did the Aquatic Colonnade, a se-

ries of 19 metal sculptures at the Aquarium of the Americas. Originally installed in 1990, the sculptures were restored last year after years of fading in the sun, and to take care of some minor damage from Hurricane Katrina.

Th e stained glass windows in the Forgotston Chapel at Touro Synagogue were designed by Kohlmeyer, and the original watercolor is dis-played in the social hall.

Th e selection of works in the NOMA exhi-bition touches on the breadth of Kohlmeyer’s professional career. Her play between color and line is evident in her early work inspired by Hoff man, her teacher, and colleague Mark Rothko, both of whom are also Jewish and pil-lars in the abstract expressionist canon.

Whether muted or bold, it is color that de-fi nes shape, space and sentiment. Th e organic shapes, often delineated by color, create a dy-namism that moves the viewer’s eye around the picture.

Th e relationship between Kohlmeyer and NOMA has spanned half a century. In 1953, Kohlmeyer submitted Cityscape — New Or-leans to the annual juried exhibition. Th ough it did not win, other works would win in 1957 and several subsequent years.

Kohlmeyer would later have solo exhibi-tions at NOMA in 1957, 1974, 1985 and 1997. Her paintings, drawings and sculptures have also been included in numerous group exhibi-tions. In all, her work was in over 200 solo and group shows during her lifetime.

Ida and her husband, Hugh, were also avid collectors of art from around the world and donated numerous works to NOMA from their collection.

March Madness hits Jacobs Camp

Th e Henry S. Jacobs Camp in Utica has launched March Madness, through April 8. Last summer, $5000 was raised in a compe-tition where donors mentioned their favorite university, and the top university in terms of dollars raised would have that amount matched. Also, the university’s fl ag would fl y over the camp’s Wet Willie water slide during the summer.

Last summer there was a tie between Ala-bama and Washington University, so their fl ags alternated weeks. Will their fl ags fl y again, or will runners-up Texas, Indiana, Temple, Loui-siana State, Wisconsin, Memphis. Georgia, Northwestern, Yeshiva, Colgate or Auburn prevail?

Funds raised go to capital improvements at the camp, and this year the goal is $10,000.


By Lee J. Green

While the third annual Birmingham Fashion Week features dresses and other fashions from up-and-coming as well as established design-ers, a portion of the events’ proceeds addresses the needs of schools and communities in Alabama from the devastating 2011 tornadoes.

Birmingham Fashion Week kicked off on Feb. 26 and ran through March 2.

Alabama Forever, a non-profi t group co-founded by Birmingham Jewish community member and University of Alabama graduate Alex Sokol, will benefi t from Birmingham Fashion Week. Additionally, the kick-off party is hosted by the Gus Mayer department store at Th e Summit.

Sokol visited tornado-ravaged Tuscaloosa on April 28, 2011 — the day after the storm struck — and knew what he had to do. “My wife and I felt a calling. I wanted to devote my life to this and help those in need,” he said. “After a disaster strikes, people need food, water and diapers. But once that need has been replenished, there is so much more we can do to rebuild and improve our communities, our schools and the quality of life across Alabama.”

Along with long-time friends Chris Nix and Ed Welden, Sokol then almost immediately launched Alabama Forever. At fi rst it was mostly a disaster-response mission, but it soon branched out into the wider purpose of helping communities and schools in need. “We want to change lives and leave a lasting impression,” said Sokol.

One of the three main initiatives is the Alabama Forever Classroom Project. Th is helps not just schools aff ected by storms, but also Black Belt and inner-city schools by providing important teaching resourc-es, technologies and supplies the schools need but can’t aff ord. “We rank in the 40s among U.S. states in many educational statistics and we want to play a role in improving that,” he said.

Th e second is the Alabama Forever Sports Endowment. All middle school and high school coaches and administrators in the state can apply for needs-based grants that would provide things such as safety supplies (concussion-protection helmets, for example). Th e organiza-tion has also funded the start-up of several new sports programs at schools that did not have them before.

“Sports and community are so intertwined in Alabama. Improving schools and improving athletic programs helps to improve communi-ties,” said Sokol.

Th e third initiative is the Building/Re-building Communities Pro-gram. Alabama Forever partnered with Nick’s Kids, a charity founded a few years ago by Alabama Crimson Tide Head Coach Nick Saban and his wife, Terri, to rebuild and build new playgrounds in Tusca-loosa and hard-hit Phil Campbell.

Pratt City, just west of Birmingham, was also devastated by the 2011 tornadoes. Th anks in part to the donation of computers and educa-tional resources from Alabama Forever, the Pratt City Library will open its doors again in June.

Sokol said that growing up Jewish, he has always been focused on the importance of tzedekah and mitzvot. His father, Bruce, started the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama and provided a good road map for the launching of Alabama Forever.

Alex Sokol serves on the board of Camp Smile-A-Mile, a year-round program that helps send children with cancer to camp, with Birmingham Fashion Week founder Geana Lee Fleming. Th e Camp is

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also a recipient from Birmingham Fashion Week.

BFW was founded on the “ideals of bringing unity to our commu-nity through fashion.” Th e week of events at various locations culmi-nates with the fi nal runway show at Birmingham’s Pepper Place.

Th is year, BFW has been ex-panded to seven days of various events showcasing world-re-nowned designers, including Hei-di Elnora (former “Project Run-way” TV show contestant from Birmingham), By Smith and An-nie Griffi n. Th is year also features designs by and appearances by “Project Runway” previous con-testants Anthony Ryan Auld from Baton Rouge, Joshua McKinley and Laura Kathryn.

On March 2, the Emerging De-sign Winner and Rising Design Winner was to be announced. One of the submissions eligible in the student category is an Andy Warhol-inspired dress designed by Alabama School of Fine Arts student and Jewish community member Annie Bloomston.

Gus Mayer has been hosting the opening night event for Birming-ham Fashion Week the past three years. CEO Jeff Pizitz, also an in-volved member of the area Jewish community, considers their involve-ment a large mitzvah.

“Th is benefi ts two very important charities and it helps young de-signers to get discovered so that they can further their careers. It is a special event and we’re happy to be a part of it,” said Pizitz.

He said Gus Mayer carries several of the lines produced by design-ers who have been involved with Birmingham Fashion Week.

“It’s a great way to showcase some of our area’s and the nation’s top designers,” he said. “Birmingham is a stylish community and this event gives us a chance to show the nation how fashion-conscious and fash-ion-forward we are here.”

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Two Jewish Scouts from Troop 320 of Mountain Brook, both of whom are seniors at Mountain Brook High School, recently at-tained high honors in Scouting.

Joel Phillips Michelson is the fi rst Eagle Scout in the troop to earn three Eagle Palms. Th e highest rank a young man can achieve in Boy Scouts is Eagle. After he receives his Eagle rank, the only other awards he can earn are Sil-ver, Gold, and Bronze Palms. Th ese are earned for each additional fi ve merit badges, over the 21 required for Eagle, and three months of ad-ditional involvement in the troop.

Joel is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Michel-son of Mountain Brook, grandson of Dr. and Mrs. Leonard Michelson of Montgomery and Th e Honorable and Mrs. Ed Fowler of Hamil-ton. He was awarded Eagle Scout in October 2011 and had his Court of Honor in February 2012. His Eagle project was to refurbish the Brookwood Forest Elementary School Nature Trail, leading a team to build a podium and benches for an outdoor classroom. He used timbers to delineate the trail and raised over $750 for continuing maintenance.

Troop 320 has had almost 250 Eagle Scouts in its 45 years of existence. One of the newer Eagles is Harrison Bleiberg, son of the late Elizabeth Wideman Bleiberg and Larry Blei-berg.

For his service project, Harrison built an information kiosk marking the fi ve-mile Linda and Jack McDuff ee Mountain Biking and Fitness Trail at the Levite Jewish Com-munity Center. He has served as president of the Temple Youth Group at Temple Emanu-El, and in the troop has been Senior Patrol Leader, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader and Webmaster.

At his Eagle ceremony at Mountain Brook Presbyterian Church, Emanu-El Rabbi Laila Haas gave the invocation.

Above, Joel Michelson. Below, Harrison Bleiberg at his LJCC Eagle Scout project

Area Scouts soar as Eagles

Vision for the future: Pittler recognized by NIESteven Pittler of Birmingham was recog-

nized in the Audacious Goals chal-lenge at the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health. NEI director Paul Sieving said “When we look back 10 to 12 years from now, what do we want to have accomplished? Th e Au-dacious Goals initiative will help propel us into that future.”

Th e top 10 proposals of about 500 submissions were selected to be presented at the Audacious Goals De-velopment Meeting in Potomac, Md., in late

February. Pittler’s presentation is “Using

Molecular Scissors Genome Editing to Cure Ocular Genetic Disease.” Th e proposal would permanently correct gene defects in patients at the site of the mutation using mol-ecules that act like scissors to pre-cisely replace genome errors with the correct DNA sequence.

Pittler is a professor in the De-partment of Vision Sciences in the

School of Optometry at the University of Ala-bama at Birmingham.


Sinai’s “La Juive” wins Big Easy award

Fillers receive national Israel Bonds recognition

Carol and Jimmy Filler of Birmingham were among 19 recipients of the Israel65 Award at the Israel Bonds Prime Minister’s Club Dinner, held January 27 in Boca Raton, Fla. Th e Fillers were recognized for dedication to Israel, leadership in the Jewish community, and long-time support for Israel Bonds.

In addressing the sellout crowd of 750, Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz declared, “Israel bonds are an expression of friendship and commitment that is so important to the Israeli people.”

Master of ceremonies Howie Mandel commented on 2012 record sales that exceeded $816 million, praising Israel Bonds as “one of the most successful organizations.” He added that an investment in bonds represents “freedom, technology and the future.”

Th e evening culminated with the presentation of the Israel65 Award, which was made by Steinitz, Mandel, Tapoohi and Bonds Chairman of the Board Richard Hirsch. Over $230 million in Israel bond invest-ments were announced at the event.

Master of Ceremonies Howie Mandel, Israel Finance Minister Dr. Yuval Steinitz, Carol and Jimmy Filler, Israel Bonds President and CEO Izzy Tapoohi, Israel Bonds Chairman Richard Hirsch

Macy Hart, founder and president of the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life, was honored with the Religious Leadership Award from the Mississippi Religious Leadership Confer-ence, Feb. 7 at its 40th annual banquet. Th e event was held at Galloway Memorial United Methodist Church in Jackson.

Th e Mississippi Religious Leadership Conference (MRLC) is an interfaith coalition which grew out of the Committee of Concern. It consists of many faith leaders from across the state, joined together for the common purpose of discussing, addressing and participating in action that supports social justice, human rights, equality and other important issues in Mississippi today.

Temple Sinai won the 2013 Big Easy Classical Arts Award for Best Community Opera Production, for the Selichot program that featured selections from Fromental Halevy’s opera, “La Juive.” Th e awards lun-cheon was produced and hosted by Gambit Magazine.

“La Juive” was one of the most popular operas of the 19th century, and was seen as a plea for religious tolerance. Th e production was scheduled for a repeat performance at Shabbat services March 1 at Touro Synagogue.

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tornadoes could select new outfi ts and receive many other services.John Mason, director of the Governor’s Offi ce of Faith-Based and

Community Initiatives, said after disasters “we typically discourage the gifting of clothing because it’s usually cleaning out the attic.”

Th is was very diff erent, he said. “You contributed to the rebuilding of the souls of the people who were aff ected by the storms.” He pre-sented a proclamation from Governor Robert Bentley, while the city of Tuscaloosa named Feb. 16 David and Patti Aresty Day and presented them with the key to the city.

Aresty said he was “deeply humbled” by the evening. He said rather than simply write a check for relief eff orts, “it was time for us to come down here.”

He noted that the volunteer team put together “a shopping experi-ence that was better than retail,” and “I’m not sure I understood the scope of it until I came down here.”

Searching for a way to end his remarks, Aresty relied on the old ‘Bama standby — “Roll Tide.”

Looking to the future, Vikki Grodner said the weekend was “an ex-cellent springboard to engage alumni of all ages and as a lead in to the chapter’s centennial celebration in 2016.”

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Steve Dubrinksy received the Alma Latina Business Award from the Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama “for exemplifying out-standing concern and support for the Latino community.” As owner of Max’s Deli in Birmingham, he was caught in a controversy over con-cerns about the state’s immigration bill.

At Springhill Avenue Temple in Mobile, Robin Ayers, Shirley Boyd, Elizabeth Fry, Deborah Sack and Carol Zimmerman were called to the Torah as adult B’not Mitzvah on March 1. Th e ceremony was delayed from January because of the Dec. 25 tornado damage to the building.

Rabbi Edward Paul Cohn of Temple Sinai in New Orleans was ap-pointed to the Ethics Review Board by Mayor Mitch Landrieu. He will fi ll the unexpired term of Cornelius Tilton through June 30. Th e board, formed in 2006, administers and enforces the provisions of the Code of Ethics of the City.

Th e New Orleans Estate Planning Council elected Saundra Levy as Saundra Levy as Saundra Levypresident for 2013. Th e council promoted education and awareness of estate and trust planning. Levy is executive director of the Jewish Endowment Foundation of Louisiana.

Gitty Friedman of the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School in Birmingham was inducted into the American Hebrew Academy’s prestigious Honor Society. Th is international honor society acknowledges exceptional 8th and 9th grade students who have demonstrated excellence in aca-demics, athletics, the arts, leadership and service in their community.

Th e Foundation for the Mental Health Center of North Central Ala-bama presented the James O. Denton award to Ann Denbo. Denbo is former president of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. Th e award was presented at the Southern Night and Broadway Lights gala on Jan. 18 at the Princess Th eater in Decatur.

Rabbi Joel Fleekop of Temple Beth-El in Pensacola was recognized by the Independent News as a Rising Star. Th e program honors 50 leaders under the age of 35. Fleekop, wife Andrea and daughters Yael and Maya moved to Pensacola last June.

On Jan. 26, Clare Grisham was honored as Huntsville Hadassah’s Woman of Valor. Th e event was held at the Huntsville Country Club, and daughter Hannah and son Max spoke about their mother and their comical relationship with her. Erin Arnold, Southern Region Vice President, gave an update on Hadassah happenings. During the eve-ning, Grisham made her husband and son Associate members.

>> ZBT


Golden weekend for Etz Chayim’s 50th anniversary in Huntsville

Above, past presidents of the congregation were recognized, along with past presidents of Sisterhood (below).

It isn’t often that a rabbi gets to offi ciate a milestone anniversary of the congregation where he was born.

Rabbi Brian Glusman, who currently lives in Atlanta and is past rabbi of Birmingham’s Temple Beth-El, did just that for the 50th anniversary of Etz Chayim, Huntsville’s Conservative congregation. He quipped that his relationship with the congregation, where his father is a past president and founder, and his mother a past Sisterhood president, goes back to his bris.

Th e congregation celebrated its anniversary over King Weekend in January with Shabbat services, a family Havdalah and a gala.

Etz Chayim, which numbers some 65 families, is the younger of Huntsville’s congregations. Temple B’nai Sholom dates back to 1876 and has a building over twice as old as Etz Chayim — in fact, B’nai Sholom’s is the second-oldest building in the state that continues to be used as a synagogue.

As Huntsville grew following World War II with the establishment of the Marshall Space Flight Center, B’nai Sholom experienced growth, but there were also some newcomers who “decided they wanted a dif-ferent kind of worship” and “needed a place to call home,” Glusman said.

Etz Chayim’s original members started meeting in a classroom in 1962, then rented space in other locations, including Scottish Rite on Bob Wallace Avenue. Starting in 1965 the congregation rented a house on Whitesburg Drive until they bought a small former church at its current location on Bailey Cove Road in 1969. Th at building was torn down in 1996 to make way for a larger sanctuary and social hall, and during the construction services were held at Hope Presbyterian Church.


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Glusman offi ciated the weekend. Also in attendance were Rabbi Phil and Rebecca Lieberman. Lieberman serves Etz Chayim once a month and lives in Nashville, where he teaches in the Judaic Studies program at Vanderbilt. A Marine Corps chaplain, he also routinely works with a battalion in Bessemer.

An overfl ow crowd attended the Sunday night gala at the Double-tree Hotel to reminisce. It was also a time to celebrate community co-operation, or as co-chair Gary Hall said, “the unity in community.” He co-chaired the weekend with Sandy Pepper.

Pam Rhodes spoke on behalf of the Jewish Federation of Huntsville and North Alabama, noting that “the little green synagogue on Bai-ley Cove” has “contributed so mightily to the Jewish community of Huntsville.”

She said that Bill Goldberg “held the Federation together for a lot of years” and many other Etz Chayim members have been invaluable to strengthening the Federation and the community.

Rabbi Beth Bahar of Temple B’nai Sholom, while acknowledging that the “shared history has a few rocks and a few bumps,” said “the relationship between our congregations is growing and blossoming” through joint eff orts like BBYO and the NaChAS joint education pro-gram.

She conveyed “the love and respect of the Temple board” and pre-sented Etz Chayim with an artistic papercut from a Judaic artist in Tennessee.

In his remarks, Glusman echoed Bahar’s theme of cooperation and unity, saying “may the two congregations continue to grow together and may all of us continue to know good things.”

Julian Brook of Birmingham, international treasurer for United Syn-agogue of Conservative Judaism, brought greetings from the move-ment, and spoke of the virtues of smaller congregations in smaller communities.

Joe Sacks and Paulette Goldstein reprised roles they had played in the congregation’s 25th anniversary celebration by presenting certifi -cates to all of the past congregational and Sisterhood presidents.

Goldstein recounted how her husband came to Huntsville the eve of Rosh Hashanah in 1962 to start a new job. She stayed behind for a while in Florida with the children. “He called that night and said you would never believe what happened.”

He related that Harold Pizitz, who would become the congregation’s fi rst president, called him and said “You have a Jewish-sounding name — we are holding our fi rst Rosh Hashanah service in the lobby of this motel.”

“Th at was the start of our relationship with Etz Chayim,” she said.Past President Max Rosenthal, in remarks that closed the weekend,

said it was time for “the old-timers to pass the torch.”He said “you don’t have to follow in our footsteps. Do it your own

way, but make sure the synagogue survives and thrives.”

Southern Jewish Life March 2013 Southern Jewish Life March 2013 35

In Purim celebrations around the area, everyone was

Happy It’s Adar

Victoria Holdiness as Vashti with Deb Roa at B’nai Israel in Monroe

Above: Beth Shalom, Baton Rouge. Below, a Wicked Purim at Birmingham’s Temple Emanu-El, jointly held with Beth-El

Above, B’nai Israel Sisterhood, Pensacola, held Vashti’s Banquet on Feb. 10. Below, Judy Caplan Ginsburgh of Alexandria and her assistants at Temple Sinai, Lake Charles

“Greased Purim” at Beth Israel, Jackson

Above left, Gemiluth Chassodim of Alexandria is “welcomed” to the Wild West Purim at Temple Sinai “welcomed” to the Wild West Purim at Temple Sinai in Lake Charles. Above right and below, Purim at Beth Israel, Gulfport

Rocket City BBYO performs Shushan High Purim Shpiel, directed by Shoshana Rosenthal, at Etz Chayim, Huntsville

Above, Purim at Chabad in Birmingham. Below, at Knesseth Israel. Bottom, more Wicked at Birmingham’s Emanu-El


Kosher-Style Recipe: Healthy Connections

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Owners Mark and Paige Pinson were trying to balance careers with family. Time was an is-sue and it seemed the only convenient options were unhealthy, salty, fatty fast foods. Th ey did some research with fresh, take-home/delivery meal plan places in Atlanta and Los Angeles, realizing that Birmingham did not have any-thing like this. Th us Healthy Connections was born, says director Regenia Lauderdale.

“It can be diffi cult and expensive to eat right these days. Many families have two working parents and don’t have time to cook often. Th is is so much healthier than fast food and it’s much better than, say, frozen dinners since these are made fresh (not frozen) before heat-ing up at home. If someone does cook regular-ly, it takes time and can get pretty expensive buying all of those ingredients. Plus, we have nutritional experts coming up with these meal plans,” she said.

In 2007, Healthy Connections, located on Acton Road in Vestavia, started partnering with the UAB EatRight program. Th e meal plans were derived by nutritionists and dieti-cians at the University of Alabama at Birming-ham, prepared fresh by Healthy Connections’ Chef Darrell Davis.

“When we fi rst started, I think that people were primarily focused on the convenience factor. But with today more and more people needing specialized diets and focus on their health, we’re having people tell us all the time how happy they are because the meals really do work. Th ey enjoy the taste and they’ve got-ten results with weight loss,” said Lauderdale.

Healthy Connections off ers two separate plans — a 1,800-calorie-a-day meal plan and a 1,200-calorie-a-day meal plan. At www.healthymealsbirmingham.com, customers can view the given menu, which has the week’s diff erent selections for each of the three meals per day. Th e menus are set on a six-week rota-tion, so the same week of meal options comes up once every six weeks.

Customers can call ahead and get just one meal at a time at a fi xed cost ($9.20 or $10.20). Th e cost then goes down as the number of meals in a given week goes up. For example, three meals a day every day for four weeks, a total of 84 meals, is $519 for 1,200-calorie meals and $599.80 for 1,800-calorie meals. Th ere are numerous plan options based on the number of meals, calories-per-meal as well as for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Davis said while the kitchen is not a strict kosher kitchen, he does cook the meats sepa-

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Blackened Tilapia1 pound tilapia fillet1 cup mushrooms½ cup celery2 tablespoons lemon juiceOreganoOnion powderGarlic powder

Vegetable mix ingredients1 bunch beets1 pound carrots6-8 potatoes1 onion1 large cucumber6 tablespoons oilJuice of 1-2 lemons1-½ teaspoons salt

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Tilapia directionsPreheat oven to 350 degrees. Place fish topped with vegetables and seasoning in baking pan. Wrap tightly with foil and bake 20-30 minutes.


Continued from page 38

>> Recipe

stays in Shushan.) And what do people drink to forget more often (that can be mentioned here) than costumes they wear in public?

If you were going to dress up for Purim as the king, and the February deadline got the best of you, you can use the costume for Pha-raoh instead. Just know that this time your character won’t get the girl in the end. Neither will you, unless you help with the dishes.

Unfortunately, if you have leftover hamen-taschen, you can’t serve it at the Seder. No matter how much better month-old pastry tastes (and sits) than matzah.

However, Beholder’s Eye scientists are hard at work on a new Purover confection: matzah-based marrortaschen. For progress updates, please subscribe to the emergency health alerts issued by the Centers for Disease Con-trol and Prevention.

Doug Brook is a writer in Silicon Valley who attacks the Esther reading so fast, he could be called the Megillah Guerilla. For past col-umns, other writings, and more, visit http://brookwrite.com/. For exclusive online content, /. For exclusive online content, /like facebook.com/the.beholders.eye.

advance. For larger meal-plan orders, Healthy Connections off ers deliveries Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Th e pick-up kitchen is open on Acton Road from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday, then 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Th ursday.

As part of EatRight’s partnership, all menu items and recipes have been reviewed and screened to make sure the food not only takes good, but provides proper daily nutrition while continuing to maintain a low-calorie diet.

“A lot of science and expertise goes into these meals. It can be a challenge to get people to realize how tasty healthy foods and meal plans can be. My husband was really into fried foods as many are down here in the South. It’s how most of us grew up eating. But now he swears by the Healthy Connections food and not only is it good for him, he says he enjoys the meals more than most of those foods,” said Lauderdale.

Some of those kosher-style options for breakfast include oatmeal with toasted pecans, whole wheat apple pecan pancakes, mush-room frittata. Lunch and dinner selections in-clude grilled turkey sandwich with cranberry mayo substitute (no eggs), blackened tilapia, honey chipotle BBQ chicken, chicken breast with peach chutney, chicken salad, turkey spa-ghetti, black bean burgers, grilled tuna burgers as well as numerous salad options.

“Th ere is so much variety. Th is is proof you can have fl avor and options with a balanced diet,” added Lauderdale.


Continued on previous page

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Passover is so early, Jews barely had

enough time to give up keeping kosher

for Lent…

PuroverIn some years, Jews get messed up by the addition of a leap month

to the Hebrew calendar. (If they realized that the additional month is actually Adar, not Adar II, they’d be even more messed up.)

But, as Cubs fans are already saying, just wait until next year. Th is year had the opposite eff ect, with Adar coming so early that Purim was a week before February ended. So, because Passover will arrive in Purim’s usual month, this year’s March column covers both Passover and Purim by uncovering new truths about them both.

If the early arrival of Passover this year makes it seem like your Sed-er is out of order, know that you had fair warning. It was predicted by Punxsutawney Phil, who, on Feb. 2, did not see his shadow because the passing Streit’s truck — itself well ahead of schedule — was blocking the sunlight.

(It’s six weeks if you don’t count each Shabbat, as the Talmud in-structs. Hush up and read.)

With the adventure of an early Passover comes the equally off -season advent of our neighbors’ spring holidays, starting with a Mardi Gras so early that you didn’t need ice in your drinks.

Th is gave Jews barely enough time to give up keeping kosher for Lent. Of course, Jews each year are supposed to give up fasting for Lent, but the Fast of Esther always gets in the way.

At a minimum, though, Ashkenazi Jews off er a neighborly homage by giving up lentils for Passover. Mention that to your Catholic friends, as they prepare for their atypically timely reading of Megillat Easter.

At any rate, this column’s faithful readers can rest assured. Th ere are numerous Purim observances that both of you can easily adapt to the Passover Seder.

On Purim, we’re commanded to drink until we can’t tell the good guy from the bad guy. (Of course, some single women simply call that “Saturday night.”) Th e holiday’s name actually comes from its most commonly uttered phrase, “pour ‘im another one!” With four glasses of wine, this fi ts the Seder just as well as a ham and cheese on rye doesn’t.

In ancient times, people often drank grog. After several rounds, they’d become particularly loud and unruly, thus noisemakers on Pu-rim were called groggers. On all other Passovers, you don’t bring grog-gers to the table — they give Mother a headache. On this Passover, you might have many of these more traditional groggers.

(If you do bring Purim groggers to this year’s Passover Seder, and use them each time the bad guy’s name is mentioned, two things: a) don’t mention this column, and 2) the Seder leader can’t complain be-cause, unlike the Megillah reader, at least he has the vowels and such in front of him.)

Of course, being Judaism, the good must come with the bad. Namely, with Purim and Passover so early this year, it’s a month longer until the holidays of theologically-mandated drinking arrive again. Th is coming year, Jews are stuck with a Lent-like fast after all.

Not all of the crossover observances involve alcohol — just the ones that make you forget the other ones. (Whatever happens in Shushan,

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SJL Deep South, March 2013

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