THE CHICAGO JEWISH NEWS January 30 - February 5, 2015/10 Shevat 5775 www.chicagojewishnews.com One Dollar Poetic license Chicagoan David Silverman has just published a book of poems about his three favorite subjects: love, faith and basketball. Why ‘Jew tax’ is a warning to all What now for Jews living in Cuba? Rabbi Kurtz on standing up to evil Jewish perspective on Mr. Cub 2 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Beth Alexander’s custody battle in Vienna generating international uproar By Cnaan Liphshiz JTA VIENNA – In an apartment in the Austrian capital, Beth Alexander is deleting hundreds of photos of her 5-year-old twin boys from Facebook. In one picture, Benjamin and Samuel are laughing as they hold a toy. In another they are waiting to be served lunch in their native Vienna. The ordinary snapshots are the kind uploaded by countless mothers all over the world. Yet Alexander, a British-born modern Orthodox mother in her 30s, is barred from displaying them by order of an Austrian court, which in November ruled in favor of her ex-husband’s motion claiming the photos violated the twins’ privacy. “Removing these pictures is painful to me,” Alexander said. “They allow my family back in Britain to sort of keep in touch with the boys and they show that despite all that has been said about me, I’m a good mother and the children are happy when they are with me.” The injunction is the latest in a series of legal setbacks that have left Alexander with restricted access to her boys and declared barely fit to be a mother – rulings that have led to mounting international criticism and claims of a colossal miscarriage of justice. Leaders of the British and Austrian Jewish communities have spoken out about what they consider to be a highly unusual case that has unfairly limited Alexander’s maternal rights. Her case even made it to the floor of the British Parliament, where lawmakers last year described it as a Kafkaesque situation that has wrongly maligned Alexander as mentally ill and an unfit mother. “I have no reason to assume that Alexander is in any way incapable of being a mother,” Schlomo Hofmeister, a prominent Viennese rabbi who knows the Schlesinger case well, said. Hofmeister said it was tragic that the children were deprived of equal access to their mother and called on both parents to “find a time-sharing arrangement in the interest of these children, who are suffering.” Alexander, who was known in the media by her married name, Beth Schlesinger, until she changed it recently, was separated from her husband, Michael Schlesinger, in 2009 after three years of marriage. The couple formally divorced last Beth Alexander and her twin boys, Benjamin and Samuel. (JTA) year. In 2011, a court-commissioned psychologist reported that Alexander had “reduced parenting abilities” and was oblivious to Park Plaza is expanding and renovating to accommodate the needs of our growing number of residents: New synagogue, multi-use room, new spa-like bathrooms, state-of-the-art physical therapy facility, and a stunning new lobby! If you are looking for an active, vibrant retirement community call Yehuda at 773.465.6700. Park Plaza. Best Independent Living for Active Seniors! Best value start ing a t $1 ,750 6840 N. Sacramento Avenue, Chicago Y www.park-plaza.org Y 773.465.6700 her children’s “significant developmental delay.” Though the report by psychologist Ulrike Willinger also acknowledged Alexander’s “close, loving bond” with her children, it concluded that Schlesinger should receive custody. An Austrian court agreed, awarding Schlesinger full custody and restricting Alexander’s visitation rights to a few hours every week. In 2011, four policemen removed the children from her care as Alexander was feeding them supper. It would be eight weeks until she saw the children again. Though the Willinger report’s findings were disputed in two subsequent psychological evaluations, the court refused to reconsider its ruling. Last year, Austria’s Supreme Court rejected Alexander’s appeal without explanation. Alexander, who has a master’s degree from Cambridge University and works in Vienna as a university lecturer and an English teacher, says her ability to fight for her rights in Austria is severely limited because she is a foreigner without local connections and at first was not fluent in German. But while she has been unsuccessful in the courts, her lobbying efforts are becoming increasingly successful in swaying public opinion in her favor. Her case was the subject of a debate in Britain’s House of Commons last year, during which lawmaker Graham Stringer made the Kafkaesque reference and cited concerns that Schlesinger may be abusing his family’s alleged ties to justice officials. “One has to suspect that undue influence and conspiracy were taking place,” Stringer said. Ivan Lewis, another British lawmaker, called the Austrian justice system’s handling of the case “one of the worst miscarriages of justice,” adding that Alexander “was falsely and cruelly labeled mentally ill and an unfit mother, labels both disproved by independent professionals.” 3 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 For Cuban Jews, improved ties to U.S. may not resolve central challenges By Josh Tapper JTA HAVANA – On a recent Friday night inside this city’s Beth Shalom synagogue, Aliet Ashkenazi, 25, stood draped in a blue-and-white prayer shawl leading prayers in a mix of Spanish and near-perfect Hebrew. It was the first time she had ever led services – a feat considering she converted to Judaism seven years ago after discovering her father was Jewish. The 300-seat sanctuary in the Cuban capital was near capacity, but the crowd filling the wooden pews was largely American, comprised of tour groups from New York and New Jersey. The next morning, with the Americans gone, the crowd had thinned. A handful of youths sat in the first few rows, leaving a gray-haired cohort of congregants in the back. This is typically how things go for Cuba’s 1,500 or so Jews: Hordes of out-of-town guests arrive, bringing with them suitcases full of clothing and coveted medical supplies, and then they’re gone, leaving Cuba’s diminished Jewish community behind. A month since the United States and Cuba announced renewed diplomatic relations after more than five decades of mutual recrimination and mistrust, it remains unclear how rapprochement will change things for Cuba’s Jewish community, which has shrunk tenfold since the end of the Cuban Revolution in 1959, when there were 15,000 Jews here. “If it will be better for Cuba, it will be better for Jews in Cuba as well,” said Ida Gutzstat, executive director of the B’nai B’rith Maimonides Lodge, a community center atta ched to the Sephardic synagogue in this city’s Vedado neighborhood. Amanda Amato, a 49-yearold secretary, sipping a plastic cup of Cristal beer at one of the lodge’s biannual parties, said, “We have a difficult economic situation now, but it’s not for all time.” Already there has been some easing. Americans – including the thousands of Jews who fled Cuba after the revolution – now can send remittances of $2,000 every three months to Cubans, four times the previous limit. While Cuban Jews endure the same depressed conditions as other Cubans, surviving on monthly food rations and salaries that rarely exceed $40 per month, the community as a whole is the recipient of largesse most Cubans can only dream of. Cubans generally have restricted Internet access, but com- puters at Beth Shalom are wired, and the synagogue’s youth lounge contains a PlayStation and Nintendo Wii. Financial support from humanitarian organizations such as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, which has operated in Cuba since 1991, enables Beth Shalom to provide community members with meals on Fridays and Saturdays – often non-kosher grilled chicken or canned tuna, followed by coconut ice cream. The synagogue office houses the community’s pharmacy, which twice a week dispenses free medicine supplied by Jewish tourists and aid organizations. While heath care is free in Cuba, over-thecounter drugs are rationed for ordinary Cubans. The Jewish community also enjoys the support of the regime. President Raul Castro twice has attended Hanukkah celebrations at Beth Shalom. The country has two other synagogues in Havana and smaller congregations in the provincial towns of Santa Clara, Camaguey, Cienfuegos and Guantanamo. Cuban Jewry’s greatest privilege, though, is also one of the community’s biggest challenges. Ordinarily, Cubans are barred from emigrating without special permission from the government. Yet since 1992, when the Cuban constitution was changed to accommodate freedom of religion, a government concession to stave off unrest once Soviet aid ended, Jews have been allowed to leave for Israel. In 2013, 72 Cuban Jews made aliyah, according to Israel’s Absorption Ministry – a considerable number given the size of the community. Luis Szklarz, 76, who attends Adath Israel, which is secured The Sephardic Center is one of three synagogues in Havana. It is also home to Cuba's Holocaust museum. behind a gate laced with barbed wire in Old Havana, said as long as the embargo remains in place, Jews will continue to leave the island. “The old people are going to die and the young people are making aliyah,” he said. “There is no future.” PLANT A TREE WITH JNF, WIN A TRIP TO ISRAEL!* Tu BiShvat is Wednesday, February 4, 2015 Plant a tree in Israel and you will automatically be entered into a raffle to win: GRAND PRIZE: • 2 roundtrip tickets to Israel, courtesy of EL AL Israel Airlines • 2 free nights at the Carlton Tel Aviv 2 RUNNER-UP PRIZES: Free E-Z TreeTM accounts Contest begins January 26, 2015 and runs through 11:59 pm February 4, 2015. * No purchase, payment or donation necessary to enter contest. Contest rules can be found at jnf.org/tbsrules. 800.542.TREE(8733) • JNF.ORG/RAFFLE 4 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Contents Jewish News ■ The Argentine-Israeli journalist who first reported the death of Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman has fled to Israel following threats to his safety. Damian Pachter, who works for BuenosAiresHerald.com and tweeted the news of Nisman’s death, left Argentina after the threats and being followed by people he did not know. “I will return when my sources tell me that the conditions changed,” Pachter told an Argentine publication. “I don’t think that I will be there during this government.” Nisman was found dead of a gunshot wound in his home soon before he was to present evidence that Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner covered up Iran’s role in the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center in Buenos Aires. ■ European Jewish groups are again protesting the name of the world’s largest ship, which was named after a Dutch officer in the Nazi Waffen-SS military force. The Pieter Schelte, which docked in Rotterdam, is named after an SS officer convicted of war crimes in World War II. Schelte conscripted 4,000 Dutch into forced labor for Nazi Germany and called Jews “parasitic.” “Naming such a ship after an SS officer who was convicted of war crimes is an insult to the millions who suffered and died at the hands of the Nazis,” said Jonathan Arkush, vice president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews. “We urge the ship’s owners to reconsider and rename the ship after someone more appropriate.” Esther Voet, director of the Hague-based Centre for Information and Documentation on Israel, or CIDI, noted the 10-year fight to have the name changed. “But no, we’re left with this fact: the largest ship in the world is named after an officer in the SS, and not enough people are offended to get this changed,” she said. The Swiss shipbuilding company Allseas named the ship for Pieter Schelte Heerema, the father of Allseas’ owner, in recognition of his work in the oil and gas industry following the war. The company said that Heerema defected from the SS during the war. ■ Bernie Madoff wrote that the pain he caused investors with his financial fraud was “nothing” compared to the anguish he has suffered from his sons’ deaths. Madoff, who defrauded investors of billions of dollars in one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history, wrote in an email to NBC News that his sons were unaware of his crimes and that they never forgave him. “As difficult as it is for me to live with the pain I have inflicted on so many, there is nothing to compare with the degree of pain I endure with the loss of my sons Mark and Andy,” he wrote. “I live with the knowledge that they never forgave me for betraying their love and trust. As much as I tried to reach out to them in an attempt to explain the circumstances that caused my betrayal they could not find it possible to forgive me.” Mark Madoff committed suicide in December 2010, on the second anniversary of his father’s arrest. Andrew Madoff died last year from cancer. Several large Jewish institutions and charities fell victim to the Madoff scheme. Madoff was convicted of fraud in 2009 and is serving a 150-year prison sentence. ■ In hopes of easing escalating tensions with Iran, Israel reportedly sent a message to the Iranian government via Russia. The message came following the strike on Hezbollah operatives in Syria that killed an Iranian general. Senior commanders of Hezbollah, the Lebanese terror group, were also among the 12 people killed in the strike. Israel is widely believed to have executed the strike, though Israeli officials have not commented on it. According to the report, Israeli officials told their Russian counterparts that the strike was made in self-defense and that Israel did not want regional instability to follow in its wake. The Russian officials then sent the message to their contacts in the Iranian government. ■ Israeli scribes restored a 200-year old Iraqi Torah scroll that arrived in Israel under mysterious circumstances. The Associated Press reported that the scroll, written in northern Iraq by two scribes using pomegranate ink, was delivered water damaged to the Israeli Embassy in Jordan in 2007 before being transferred to Israel in 2011 when riots were sweeping the Arab world. The scroll was restored by a group of scribes in Jerusalem. U.S. troops uncovered a trove of Iraqi Jewish relics in the Iraqi secret service headquarters in Baghdad in 2003, much of it waterlogged. The U.S. National Archive restored much of what has become known as the Iraqi Jewish Archive, and it remains for the time being in the United States, although Iraq claims it as property. Much of Iraq’s 2,500-year-old Jewish community emigrated to Israel after riots before and during Israel’s 1948 War of Independence. The remainder fled after persecutions led by Saddam Hussein in 1968 and 1969. JTA THE CHICAGO JEWISH NEWS Vol. 21 No. 17 Joseph Aaron Editor/Publisher 6 Torah Portion Golda Shira Senior Editor/ Israel Correspondent 7 The Maven Pauline Dubkin Yearwood Managing Editor Joe Kus Staff Photographer 8 Cover Story 10 Senior Living Roberta Chanin and Associates Sara Belkov Steve Goodman Advertising Account Executives Denise Plessas Kus Production Director 12 Community Calendar Kristin Hanson Accounting Manager/ Webmaster Jacob Reiss 12 CJN Classified Subscriptions Manager/ Administrative Assistant Ann Yellon of blessed memory 14 Death Notices 14 By Joseph Aaron www. chicagojewishnews .com Some of what you’ll find in the ONLINE version of Chicago’s only weekly Jewish newspaper DAILY JEWISH NEWS For the latest news about Jews around the world, come by everyday and check out what’s making headlines. 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Bernstein Special to Chicago Jewish News By Rabbi James Gordon Special to Chicago Jewish News “Wait until next year!” In many sports towns, this is a familiar lament. This woeful exclamation is especially popular in Chicago among baseball fans. After all, the Cubs last won the World Series in 1908, while – until 2005 – 1917 was the last time that the White Sox were World Champs. Yet, each year Chicago fans remain optimistic, hopeful that their favorite team will finally win. In a city where losing has been painfully accepted, fans look for players and coaches who can ensure that the flame of hope is never extinguished. The sports figure in Chicago history that best illustrates eternal hope is Mr. Cub, Ernie Banks. The first African American to play for the Chicago Cubs, this Hall of Famer approached life, in general, and the Cubs’ chances of winning, in particular, with great optimism and hope. A two-time National League Most Valuable Player, for almost his entire career, Ernie Banks played for sub-par Cub teams. Nonetheless, he approached each game with a sunny attitude summarized by such statements as: “It’s a beautiful day for baseball! Let’s play two today!” Before each season, Banks the player, always hopeful and optimistic, predicted that the Cubs would succeed in the upcoming season: “This is the year of the little bear.” Before the 1965 season, he predicted: “The Cubbies thrive in ’65.” In 1968, Banks proclaimed: ”Things look great in ’68.” Unfortunately, each year the Cubs fell far short of Ernie’s bright predictions. Then before the 1969 season, Banks, who was now surrounded by other top players and led by fiery manager Leo “The Lip” Durocher, boldly proclaimed: “The Cubs will shine in ’69!” And shine they did, at least for most of the season. The Cubs opened the ’69 campaign winning nine of their first ten games. Historic Wrigley Field was transformed into a field of dreams being fulfilled. The “Bleacher Bums” were led by relief pitcher Dick Selma, Ron Santo clicked his heels after each victory and Ken Holtzman threw a no-hitter against the mighty Braves. The Cubs carried a nine and one-half game lead over the New York Mets into mid-August. As predicted by Ernie Banks, they were indeed shining. Then, suddenly, the Cubs’ fortunes soured as they began losing and the Mets winning. A seven-game Met winning streak coincided with an eight-game Cub losing streak. The “Miracle Mets” ended up A bar mitzvah and Ernie Banks Ernie Banks winning the division by eight games and went on to win the World Series. The collapse of what many consider the best Cubs team of all-time caused tremendous sadness and consternation among players and fans. In spite of it all, one person remained hopeful – Ernie Banks. While others mourned, Ernie stated with great optimism and hope: “It was just not meant to be. But things will be heavenly in nineteen-seventy!” To succeed in life’s endeavors, it is important to have hope. While approaching life with a realistic attitude, it can only help if one is optimistic. The Hebrew word for hope is tikvah. Most appropriately, Israel’s national anthem is known as the Hatikvah (The Hope). In 1878, Naphtali Herz Imber composed the lyrics to the Hatikvah, which has instilled hope in millions of Jews. After the Holocaust, the world was introduced to the optimism and hope of Anne Frank, a teenager, who recorded her accounts and feelings in a personal diary while hiding in Nazi-occupied Holland during World War II. At the end of every Passover Seder, the participants express their hopeful optimism when they proclaim: “Next year in Jerusalem!” (L’Shana ha-ba-ah bi-Yrushalayim!”) In Talmudic literature, the sage who is best remembered for instilling optimism and hope in others is Nahum Ish Gahmzo (Nahum of Gahmzo). Although Nahum, in great likelihood, was from Gimzo, a city in ancient Israel, he received the name Gahmzo, because of his sunny, positive approach towards life. No matter how bad things were, he would proclaim: “This too is for the good! (Gahm zo l’tova!)” The Talmud relates a story about Nahum Ish Gahmzo that reinforces the lesson that those who approach life with an optimistic, hopeful attitude eventually will be rewarded for their efforts. As a representative of the Jewish community, Nahum was chosen to deliver a gift of precious jewels to the Roman Emperor. The journey necessitated an overnight stay at an inn. That night, thieves stole the jewels from its pouch and replaced them with dirt. After Nahum arrived at the palace, he presented the Emperor with the pouch that – unbeknownst to him - now contained earth. When the King opened the bag and found the dirt, he threatened to kill all the Jews of his Kingdom since he felt that they were mocking him. Nahum then invoked his famous saying: “Gahm zo l’tova!” inspiring the miraculous arrival of the Prophet Elijah. Elijah convinced the Emperor that this earth was holy and could help the King defeat his enemies in war. Since this proved to be correct, the Jewish people were spared and rewarded with precious jewels and, in time, the robbers were punished. We learn from the optimistic approach of “Mr. Cub,” Ernie Banks, and the sage Nahum of Gahmzo, that no matter how bad things may be, it is always important to have hope. When we play sports, we must remain optimistic of our chances of winning or succeeding in other ways. Hope of peace, better times and the arrival of the Mashiach (Messiah) continue to hearten the Jewish people to move forward after personal and national tragedies. Unfortunately for Mr. Cub, he never had the opportunity to win a World Series. However, if we adopt Nahum of Gahmzo’s approach and say that there is some good in everything, then we must patiently wait for that reward. Perhaps, the silver lining may be that someday soon the Cubs and White Sox will meet in a “Chicago Subway (World) Series.” If that doesn’t happen this season, then just “wait until next year!” Rabbi James M. Gordon, J.D. is the assistant rabbi of Lincolnwood Jewish Congregation A.G. Beth Israel in Lincolnwood. In October 1961, I attended a bar mitzvah party for Mark D. Pearlstein. Mark later became a leading condominium lawyer in Chicago and for many years wrote a widely read weekly column on condominium law for the Chicago Tribune. The party was at a hotel on Lincoln Park West, I think the Webster. I walked into the party room with my parents. They walked ahead to greet some people they knew. I was about 20 years old, and felt a little out of place, because it seemed that all the people there were either my parents’ age or Mark’s age, 13. I was standing in the middle of the room deciding where to go and whom to greet, when I heard the “kids” (Mark’s contemporaries) screaming: “Ernie Banks is here! Ernie Banks is here!” I thought, “That’s ridiculous. Ernie Banks couldn’t be here. If the Pearlsteins knew Ernie Banks, I would know about it.” After a moment, I couldn’t resist the temptation. I slowly and skeptically turned around, and sure enough, there he was, in the flesh, ERNIE BANKS! He was dressed in a gorgeously tailored dark suit, looked extremely handsome and dignified, and was holding a little gift-wrapped box in his right hand. He was smiling, but looking a little bewildered. I don’t know how the confusion was resolved, but it turned out that he was invited to a bar mitzvah party in the adjacent room, and after a minute or so, he went over to that room. During the SEE ERNIE ON PAG E 1 2 pauline & company GOING OUT OF BUSINESS SALE PRICES SLASHED! UP TO 70FF% O * *of retail Now Is Your Time To Save! 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This is an anniversary of sorts, and not a good one. On Jan. 30, 1933, Adolph Hitler was named chancellor of Germany. This date marked a crucial turning point for Germany and, ultimately, for the world. His plan, embraced by much of the German population, was to do away with politics and make Germany a powerful, united, one-party state. Very soon after this he initiated his plan for the annihilation of the Jewish people in Europe and beyond. Exactly six years later, on Jan. 30, 1939, Hitler spoke to the Reichstag and outlined his plan for the “Jewish problem.” He stated: “Europe will not have peace until the Jewish question has been disposed of. The world has sufficient capacity for settlement, but we must finally break away from the notion that a certain percentage of the Jewish people are intended by our dear G-d, to be the parasitic beneficiary of the body and of the productive work, of other peoples.” He went on to state: “If the international finance – Jewry inside and outside Europe should succeed in plunging the nations into a world war yet again, then the outcome will not be the victory of Jewry, but rather the annihilation of the Jewish race in Europe!” A few years later, on Jan. 20, 1942, a meeting of the senior officials of the Nazi regime was held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee. In one 90-minute meeting the fate of European Jewry was doomed. Using legal Rabbi Vernon Kurtz language, the 15 people present invited by Reinhard Heydrich were determined to move forward with the final solution to the Jewish problem. Adolph Eichmann, who was present, said: “During the conversation they minced no words about it at all … they spoke about methods of killing, about liquidation, about extermination.” Raul Hilberg, the Holocaust historian, writes that there are three types of individuals who must be studied during the years 1933-1945. There are the perpetrators, the victims, and the bystanders. For the perpetrators, he writes, “We spare no compassion; for the victims we give honor to their memory; for the bystanders we wonder about their actions.” The individuals in the room may not have been the perpetrators of the mass killing of the Jews with their own hands, but they could not absolve themselves of the guilt for allowing the evil to occur. In the face of evil, silence and indifference are inexcusable. In our Torah reading of this Shabbat we read of the plight of the Israelite people as they traverse the desert and make their way to the Sea of Reeds. Moses, the liberator, is their leader but there are times when Moses does not seem to be up to the task. He is only human after all. When they reach the sea with the Egyptians pursuing them, Moses does not know what to do. The text states: “Then the Lord said unto Moses, ‘Why do We Buy Antiques! Collectibles, Paintings, Costume Jewelry Furniture, Lamps, Light Fixtures, Clocks, China, Etc. Estate Sales Professionally Conducted 36 Years Experience Free estimates ~ We Make House Calls Paying a Premium Over Scrap for Gold and Silver Call Linda Mark: 773-348-9647 www.miscellaniaantiques.com you cry out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.’” The Talmud in the tractate of Sotah imagines that Moses was engaged in prayer. Not knowing what to do, he reached out to G-d. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: “My beloved ones are drowning in the sea and you prolong in prayer before Me?” Moses then asked G-d what to do and G-d replied with the biblical verse: “Tell the Israelites to go forward.” Saint Augustine, the fourthcentury philosopher wrote: “Pray as though everything depended on G-d, work as though everything depended on you.” This is exactly what G-d was telling Moses. There is a time for prayer, but there is also a time for action. According to the Midrash, the children of Israel did not know what to do until Nahshon, the son of Aminadav, of the Tribe of Judah, jumped into the sea. When the water reached his nostrils the sea split and the children of Israel moved forward onto the dry land. Nahshon was a man of action. He couldn’t stand by while others were suffering from indecision and fear. According to the Midrash, it was because of his action that the children of Israel were saved. We cannot stand by the sidelines when we see hunger, violence, or evil. We must be the Moses of action, the one who protected the Israelite slave when he slew the Egyptian taskmaster. G-d taught Moses that there is a time for prayer and a time for action. We must show bravery and courage like Nahshon the son of Aminadav and put our bodies forward to protect others. We must recognize that we have an enormous amount of power to bring goodness or evil to the world. At the Wannsee conference, all were guilty. Whether they participated individually in the killing or not, it did not matter, they were part of the evil of the Holocaust. These dates on the civil calendar remind us that evil is possible and we must stand up against it. We must not be bystanders allowing the evil to proceed. In order to do so, we need the courage of Nahshon, we need the strength of conviction of Moses, and we need the willingness on our part to make a difference for goodness in the world. I pray that we are up to the task. Rabbi Vernon Kurtz is the rabbi of North Suburban Synagogue Beth El (Conservative) in Highland Park. 7 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 THEMaven Chicago Jewish News JEWS IN THE NEWS… ■ During a trip to Israel in 2001, Sara Crown Star found herself a witness to the aftermath of a suicide bombing where 15 civilians were killed, including seven children and a pregnant woman, and 130 were wounded. She sat on the doorsteps of her Jerusalem hotel, watching 90 ambulances drive to the bomb site, counting whether the 120 members of her group returned safely. In the face of such a tragedy, she told herself how important it was to do something to strengthen the Jewish community at home, in Israel and around the world. Since then, Star has devoted herself to serving the local Jewish community and Israel. This year, she is taking on one of the largest annual fundraising efforts in the country as chair of the 2015 Annual Campaign of the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago. The recently concluded 2014 Campaign raised $82.1 million. “We are thrilled to have Sara at the helm of our 2015 Annual Campaign,” said JUF President Steven B. Nasatir. “She is a dynamic community leader who is bringing great passion, creativity and commitment to this role.” Star is active in numerous non-profit and charitable organizations, with particular interests in early childhood education, medical research, health care, and philanthropy. ■ The National Council of Jewish Women Chicago North Shore Section has received a sixteen thousand dollar grant from the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago to fund the Jewish Coalition Against Sex Trafficking (JCAST) Chicago’s work of eradicating sex trafficking in the Chicagoland area. JCAST Chicago is a non-profit coalition that engages participants in community service and advocacy against trafficking, and provides leadership development opportunities for women and girls. “In our experience, the average Chicagoan thinks that sex trafficking is something that happens overseas, or at least ‘not in my backyard.’ It’s everywhere. Both victims of trafficking and purchasers of sex come from all walks of life,” said Beth Gordon, JCAST Co-Chair. “No one is immune.” 2015 Prime Pesach E Laguna Beach Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks Rabbi Eli Mansour Rabbi Marvin Hier Rabbi Abraham Cooper Malcolm Hoenlein Championship Golf Private Beach Sara Crown Star ■ Simon Wiesenthal Center Midwest Region Director Alison Pure-Slovin has been named a member of the state of Illinois’ Holocaust and Genocide Commission. ■ In an effort to engage children ages 9 to 11 in reading books about Jewish traditions and values, the Harold Grinspoon Foundation has created an online, social networking experience that encourages children to engage with each other, express their ideas, and communicate through a variety of multi-media channels, many of which are of their own creation. Annabel Berk, 9, of Chicago, has been selected to join the national PJ Our Way Design Team. As a member, Berk will serve as an online resource to her peers, helping lead conversations about Jewish children’s books nationwide. PJ Our Way allows participants to select one of four books every month, giving them more choice on their journey toward being life-long readers while introducing them to Jewish ideas. At , participants can create book trailers, videos, quizzes, author interviews, and other media to communicate with peers about the books. ■ Chicagoan Zafra M. Lerman, creator and advocate for the Biennial Malta Conferences, which promote international scientific cooperation and diplomacy by convening scientists from 15 Middle Eastern nations, has been chosen by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to receive the Award for Science Diplomacy. She was honored for her efforts to “elevate the use of scientific cooperation as an instrument of peace, and as a pathway to better understand the role of science in addressing major societal challenges in the broader Middle East, despite the political barriers that exist at the official levels.” Rabbi Elie Abadie M.D. Rabbi Lewis Wienerkur Vieques Island Beaches Ranked in World’s Top 10 Spectacular Bioluminescent Bay Breathtaking Scenery Incredible Attractions Rabbi Dr. Seth Grauer Rabbi Steven Weil Rabbi Sion Setton Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis Dr. David Pelcovitz Award Winning Skiing Breathtaking Scenery Incredible Attractions Aspen Non-Gebrokts Special Performances By Speakers Ohad, Baruch Levine, Modi, Senator Ted Cruz, & Lior Suchard U.S. Representative Ed Royce, Nick Muzin & Much, Much, More ! 212-335-0828 [email protected] www.theprimeexperience.com For Information About The Four Seasons Westlake Village www. chicagojewishnews .com The Jewish News place in cyberspace 8 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Poetic license Chicagoan David Silverman has just published a book of poems about his three favorite subjects: love, faith and basketball. By Pauline Dubkin Yearwood Managing Editor To be a Jew in the twentieth century is to be given a gift...the gift is torment —Muriel Rukeyser Well, nothing has changed. The gift is still torment. The torment of wanting. An old story by now. A weary immigrant sets down the heavy bags of persecution. Craves acceptance. Trades history for the promise of a new beginning. He sees a door in the distance and wants to enter. He wants this more than he has wanted anything. Decipherer of science, mathematics, medicine; winner of prizes. Surely they will appreciate such noble contributions and let him in. And, fearing this may not be enough, he brings his children as an offering. The centuries pile in an endless mountain of time, eclipsing the sun. And the Jews stand in silent horror as an ancient darkness descends upon the land. That verse is not from poet/financier/community activist David Silverman’s recent book of poetry, “It’s the Little Things: Poems About Love, Faith and Basketball.” Rather, it’s a response to the killing of French Jews and cartoonists that took place earlier this month in Paris. And it follows a pattern of Silverman’s: When he’s anxious or upset about something, he usually writes a poem about it. The pattern has been ongoing since the Chicago man was a student at Ida Crown Jewish Academy in the 1970s. But the recent poem’s bleakness is not typical. “It’s the Little Things” is a more upbeat collection, touching on subjects ranging from Silverman’s love for his wife (many of those) to the “strange custom” Jews have on Purim of “eating Haman’s ears” to a visit to the cardiologist’s office to watching a Chicago Bears game in Israel with his son. The poems are both in rhyme and free verse, some closer to prose, and there’s even one “channeling” one of Silverman’s favorite poets, the humorist Ogden Nash. But mostly the verses are about exactly what the title promises, the three touchstones in Silverman’s life: love, faith and basketball. avid Silverman wrote his first poems when he was a student at Ida Crown Jewish Academy in 1973 and ’74, with the encouragement of one of his teachers. “I was a really terrible poet at 15,” the genial Silverman recalled during a recent telephone interview. “I wrote poems with mortifying titles, like ‘Unanswered Desire.’ I was an expert on unrequited love. I wrote poems to this girl in my class. It was horrible writing; I was drowning in a tsunami of hormones.” He remembers that he compared his crush’s eyes to almonds – “what every teenage girl wants to hear. I read it to her and she kind of laughed this nervous laugh,” he says with a laugh of his own. “But I married another girl who appreciated my poems better than the high school girl, and I am still writing poems to impress the girl I love, my wife.” D I did not choose you because you are beautiful, though you are beautiful. And I did not choose you because you are wise, wiser than I am in all that matters. I did not choose you because you chose me, instead of him (thank you, by the way, for that). And I did not choose you because you loved me, when no one should have. I chose you because I had no choice in the matter, the moment I saw your face. “To My Wife” from “It’s the Little Things” Silverman and his wife, Lauren, recently celebrated their 32nd anniversary. They have four grown children and are expecting their first grandchild this spring. One son made aliyah three years ago and is now a lieutenant in an IDF combat intelligence unit. Another son just graduated from David Silverman high school in Israel. His parents, Marvin and Barbara Bloom Silverman, made aliyah more than 30 years ago. His mother runs an organization called A Package From Home, which sends “care” packages to IDF soldiers. Since 2001, the organization has sent more than 2,000 packages to soldiers, he relates proudly. Silverman himself, who was a member of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange for more than 20 years, is now a financial futures trader working for an Israeli high-tech company based in Herzliya – the only non-Israeli employee. He travels to the Jewish state frequently. Even with his on-the-go life, poetry has been a constant for him since the embarrassing days of high school versifying. It still is. “I read and write poetry and it gives me a lot of pleasure,” he says. “I read poetry every single day. I’m religious about it.” His tastes are eclectic, ranging from Billy Collins to Ogden Nash to Yehuda Amichai, plus a group of little-known Israeli poets, many of whom are his friends. And yet, when I think of it, every good thing that’s happened to me, happened by reaching into the infinite outside, sometimes not even knowing what I was reaching for. At the Battle of Tel Hai, the martyred Trumpeldor’s last words were said to be: No matter, it is good to die for one’s country. Exhilarating words. Dangerous words. Words to make a man feel like he’s flying. From “Upon Reading a Poem by Amichai That Brings Back a Memory” “I like poems that tell a story,” he says. “Many of the poems I write are really telling stories. Writing a poem about how the sunlight looks when it hits a pond is not something that engages me particularly. I write my poems whenever I have something I’m concerned about, something that is causing me some anxiety. It helps me to write about it. I can’t even predict when it’s going to happen. It builds inside me, and then it erupts, when I can’t contain it anymore.” Afterwards he “buffs and polishes” his words, “gets them really shiny.” He declares that he is “really lazy” and doesn’t like “really obtuse things. I don’t appreciate it when the poet makes me work really hard. I like very plain, direct, funny, engaging poetry, and that’s how I write.” Most of his poetry, he says, “is something really private. For the first 10 years I was writing, I never showed my work to anyone, even my wife.” Gradually he began to become more confident in his writing and to send out his poems, and has had a respectable number published over the years. At the same time, he became involved with a group of poets in Israel, who encouraged him to put together and publish a book. “After 20 years of writing, I finally had enough poems and felt it was worth it to edit them properly,” he says. “I really wanted to do this for my wife and kids.” He decided to self-publish the book, both because poetry is notoriously difficult to find a publisher for and so he could have complete control over the finished product. The book is put out by Cyclamens & Swords publishing company along with several fellow poets in Israel. Almost alone among today’s authors, Silverman decided not to sell the book through Amazon or any other website. In fact, he’s not selling it at all but is giving it to friends and anyone who comes to the public readings he is planning on holding, which will benefit Chicago Jewish organizations. He’ll also send a copy to any Chicago Jewish News reader who emails him (david2740@aol. com) and pledges to make a do- nation in any amount to a charitable organization. “I do it to generate some profits for organizations I care about,” he says. The organization he cares about the most, and one that, like poetry, has been a constant in his life since high school is the Ark, the Chicago social service agency that provides a broad array of services for Jews struggling with economic hardship. “Other than involvement with my family, this has been the most meaningful and important relationship in my life,” he says of his involvement with the Ark, which began innocuously in 1977 when Silverman was a high school student and discovered that you could miss class at Ida Crown if you spent your time working on a chesed (charity) project. “I thought this was the best loophole I ever heard of in my life,” he says with a laugh. “I started going to the Ark – it was on Western and Devon then. I worked in the food pantry, I took Mrs. Goldberg to the dentist, I delivered food packages. I did so much work for the Ark I won a leadership award from my school.” Shortly afterwards, he was called in to the assistant principal’s office and told that he missed 57 days of school and would not be able to graduate, nor would he receive the award. Eventually all was forgiven, and Silverman did graduate from high school and did receive the award. Meanwhile a lifetime relationship had been created. He is now co-president of the agency, his second time in that position, and has served on the board and been closely associated with the organization for years. “I get reminded every time I do anything associated with the Ark that there is no difference between the clients and me or anyone else I know,” he says. “It is random bad luck and how the dice are thrown. There is an anvil out there that will fall on every one of our heads and we have no control over it, and I am really privileged to be involved with the Ark. It is quite selfish. It helps me remember that every moment is precious and every person who does so is lucky to be able to provide assistance.” 9 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 In fact, he contends that the organization is just as advantageous for its benefactors and volunteers as for its clients. “The average person thinks the Ark’s mission is to help the indigent. That is true, but it exists as the bridge for people who have the capacity to help,” he says. “It is two sides of the same coin. The true meaning of tzedakah (charity) is building community. It is equally important to have all the people in the community connected, and that’s the genius and the beauty of the Ark.” Despite perpetual economic hard times, the Ark, Silverman says, “has held up pretty well” thanks to improved fund-raising staff, many generous donors and some good-sized bequests. “It’s people in the community coming together to recognize that this is something meaningful for everybody in the community, and it’s worth the time and effort,” he says. hat about the other constants in his life as exemplified in the book’s title? Take “Faith.” “I grew up in a Jewish home, got a Jewish education with tikkun olam (repairing the world) at the forefront,” Silverman says. “It just seemed kind of natural to me as I started to learn more about poetry and started writing to write about Jewish topics as well as love and basketball.” W It is taught that the notes of the shofar – the single, uninterrupted t’kiah, the wavering calls of shvarim, and the staccato sobs of t’ruah – describe the condition of the soul during a lifetime. We are born clear and straight, succumb to crookedness as adults, and grieve for our mortality in old age. But the final blast of the shofar, the breathtaking t’kiah g’dolah – an extended t’kiah, powerful and pure – reminds us that God receives the penitent, who seeks to return to a state of innocence. From “What Jessica hears” He recalls a time when his daughter Jessica was a toddler and the family attended a small West Rogers Park synagogue with “a makeshift mechitza (separation barrier between men and women) made out of cotton sheets.” Their daughter, warm and smelling of Honey-Nut Cheerios, walked back and forth from one parent to the other, hugging each one in turn, then suddenly started singing at the top of her voice, proclaiming that “the Torah was a tree of life and we should grasp on to it.” “I remember thinking it was like a message to me, and I understood for the first time how deeply rooted this tree of life is. This is the meaning of life: Hold on to Torah and to the people you love,” Silverman says. A friend, a non-believer, asks me why God no longer performs flashy miracles, as he did in biblical times. Has He lost his touch? If God exists, let Him show Himself to me in a burning bush that does not consume itself! What can I say? He is an old friend and I am used to his derision, when it comes to matters of faith. And though I believe, with complete faith, that God appeared to Moses in that burning bush, I do not tell my friend he is totally missing the point. The burning bush is no more miraculous than the bush itself. And the fire that burns but does not consume, smolders deep within, even, the skeptic. From “Miracles” And then there is basketball. “From the time I was a little kid, basketball has been kind of at the center of my life,” Silverman says. “I always had a basketball in my hand, even though I wasn’t a very good player.” He recalls a close friend from high school who died seven years ago from a heart attack. “We bonded over basketball,” he says. “The gym became a real sanctuary for me from a lot of problems, a safe place, a warm place. I have very fond memories of it. When I had my own children, basketball was something I wanted to share with them, and it became very important to both my boys. It’s been kind of a constant throughout my life.” Each morning I rebound shot after shot – four or five hundred guided missiles – and return the ball to his impatient hands. He is afraid to slow down, lose his rhythm, as if each shot is connected to prior shots and every shot to come. He is the careful warrior covering his tracks; the archeologist, searching for something shiny just beneath the surface; the student of history, who knows that those who fail to learn from the past are doomed to hit less than nine out of ten from the free throw line. About halfway through his workout, as the sun rises, it shines through the windows high above the court and hits him like bright lights on a Broadway stage. At this hour, no one else is here to see his performance, appreciate his craft; how he cuts left or right with equal ease, how perfect his body language. And yet, he does love a crowd. To see the stands filled with people who have known him his entire life. To hear his name announced with the starting five. To know that a particular girl is watching him, to know what it feels like to have someone watch you like that. But, at 6:00 am, an audience would be superfluous and, anyhow, there is much work to do before show time. He is content to rehearse his part: a monologue of crossover dribbles, baseline jumpers, and lefty lay-ups. Chasing a rare miss, hardwood squeaking beneath my heavy feet, Joshua smiles at me as I pass him the ball. When he is ready, when the stands are empty and he takes off his uniform for the last time, I will pass other things to him; that has always been my job. But, not today. How glad I am, for mornings like this, glad to still be of use. How grateful I am for the ball and hoop and the glorious games of life. THE SIDNEY & FRANCES AVNER TORAH LEARNING CENTER OF NORTHBROOK From “Shooting Hoops Before Dawn With My 16-Year-Old Son” Love, faith and basketball – “the little things” – rendered in poetry. That’s David Silverman’s new book – and his life. Present The Fifth Annual Jack Ogron Memorial Program Special Needs in the Jewish Community: Helping Each Other Grow and Learn PANEL DISCUSSION with local experts covering all areas of expertise & Q&A RESOURCE FAIR to follow with dozens of local organizations and ancillary services For families of children of all ages and types of special needs, from typical learning disabilities to the most significantly challenged Sunday, February 8th * 1pm TLC Northbrook, 2548 Jasper Court, Northbrook (Northbrook Community Synagogue Building) This event is free, however reservations are greatly appreciated. PANEL PARTICIPANTS: Brian & Benji Rubin, Rubin Law * Sherri Schneider, Family Benefit Solutions Abbie Weisberg, Weisberg, Keshet * Beth Wyman, JCFS * Representative, CAU Allan Bergman, CEO of High Impact Mission Based Consulting FAIR PARTICIPANTS INCLUDE: Keshet * Matt Cohen & Associates, LLC Whitted + Takiff + Hansen * Steinberg Behavior Solutions Tikvah Program of Camp Ramah * Yachad Ancel Reiter, LLC * North Shore Pediatric Therapy Timber Ridge Pediatric Therapy, LLC * Edelson Law, LLC * H.U.G.S. JCC Day Camping * Michael H. Erde & Associates,P.C. * Wee Speech, P.C. Rubin Law, A Professional Corporation Family Benefit Solutions Discovery Toys NSSRA Anixter Center Options for College Success Beth Osten & Associates Pediatric Therapy Glenkirk Encompass Clearbrook A.B.S. Behavioral Services Shore Community Services The Child & Family Law Center The Sensory Kids Store JVS Chicago Calian & Gross, LLP Best Futures, Inc. The Friendship Circle of IL JCFS Libenu Foundation JCFS Therapeutic Day School & Yeshiva IL Association of Microboards & Cooperatives The PEERS® Program City Kids, Inc. Center for Enriched Living Center for Independent Futures Esther Buchbinder OTR/L, M.Ed. Equip for Equality Total Link2 Community Family Voices of IL Law Offices of Stacey J. Dembo AND MORE! Email [email protected], [email protected] call 847.272.7255 or go to www.TLCNB.com for more information. 10 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Senior Living Understanding brain health On a regular basis, Hedy Ciocci, B.S.N., Administrator of the Selfhelp Home, will answer some of the many questions we have around aging. Hedy specializes in dementia care, and has extensive experience working with families and elderly patients. Recently, Hedy interviewed Dr. Michelle London, Clinical Rehabilitation Neuropsychologist and Founder of the Chicago NeuroRehabilitation Center, about mild cognitive impairment, dementia and depression and how to evaluate, test and treat these disorders. Q. What is your back- ground? A. I am a rehabilitation neuropsychologist and I completed my post doctorate fellowship at John Hopkins in rehabilitation psychology and neuropsychology. My specialty is diagnosing individuals with brain diseases, promoting cognitive health and providing treatments to improve cognitive health in order to return individuals to their optimal level of functioning. I have a boutique private practice called the Neuro Rehabilitation Center where I mainly treat younger patients who have ADHD, learning disabilities and traumatic brain injury. I just opened a second private practice called the London Neuropsychology Group at Weiss Hospital where we focus on the aging brain and treat patients with dementia and delirium. Q. Can you tell me more about the neuropsychological evaluations for seniors you are doing to diagnose dementia and other cognitive issues? A. We begin by getting an idea as to where the individual’s memory and thinking skills are today. Our focus is on memory and thinking skills and we begin to identify whether the issues Let us help make this chapter one of your best. It begins with the right setting. Comfortable surroundings that please the eye and senses. A responsive staff for resident support needs, with a licensed nurse on-site 24/7. Professionally guided fitness and therapy for an active lifestyle. Delicious, chef-prepared cuisine. Concierge and transportation services. Enriching activities for mind, body and spirit. What happens next is up to you. After all, it’s your story. 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We’re not just considering medication interventions, but also lifestyle changes that can have a significant impact on brain health. Q. What kinds of lifestyle changes can people make to improve their brain health? A. In this earlier phase where we begin to see some mild cognitive impairment, we can make some changes that slow down the progression of dementia and help to make a person’s brain more resilient and healthy. There is a change in the field where we are becoming more proactive and less reactive. We are no longer waiting until there is a negative event before we address the early changes people are experiencing as it relates to memory. Some of the lifestyle areas we look at are things like physical activity and exercise. We have found that brain health and better outcomes are closely linked to a certain level of daily physical activity. Studies show that just 15 minutes per day of light activity can have positive effects on cognition and brain structure, as well to help keep neurons intact. Cross training and doing a variety of different exercises are best because otherwise our body and brain gets bored when we keep doing the same type of exercise and the impact is reduced over time. Social activities are also important and can be better than prescribing medication. Having a strong social network and not isolating yourself makes a large difference. We have found that the larger the social network, the better the brain functions. My advice is to keep going out to bridge club and lunches because the more friends you have, the better off your brain is going to be. It affects the brain in so many ways because it keeps our language centers going, improves problem solving, and helps us to predict social responses. As we get older, our world tends to shrink and we have fewer friends and are less able to get out to activities. This isolation can cause a cascade of events that is bad for the brain. Q. What kinds of brain problems can occur when someone becomes very isolated? Can you explain that? A. When you don’t get Ask Hedy enough input into the brain, you don’t get the level of functioning you really need during critical times. It can also cause depression and it’s kind of a cause and effect situation. When we become depressed, we tend to isolate ourselves and when we isolate ourselves, we become more depressed. Major depression and dementia also tend to go hand-in-hand. Our hippocampus, which affects our memory, starts to shrink when people have untreated depression. Depression is very treatable with medication and when managed, it contributes to better brain health and cognition is often improved. Q. What other lifestyle changes can be made to improve brain health? A. Diet is also very important to brain health. There’s been a lot of research about what types of diets are helpful and people should check with their doctors before making a significant diet change or engaging in a more rigorous exercise routine. A Mediterranean diet does the brain a lot of good due to the antioxidants and Omega 3 fatty acid coming from fish. People can work with a nutritionist or doctor to find out more about whether this type of diet would be helpful for them and what other adjustments to make in this area. There are other things to consider such as the importance of sleep as it relates to cognition, having humor in your life and keeping the brain engaged through things like crossword puzzles. Smoking is bad for the brain, as is stress, so it is important to eliminate or reduce these factors as much as possible. Q. What is the average age of the person who is coming to see you? A. Most of the older patients I see have Medicare and one neurological evaluation per year is covered, for the most part, under Medicare. The old way to CONTINUED O N N E X T PAG E 11 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Senior Living CONTINUED F RO M P R E V I O U S PAG E deal with cognitive deficiencies was to wait until something bad happened or the patient might have an incident that concerns them so they talk to their physi- cian about it. The doctor might give them a quick, five minute screening called a “mini mental evaluation” and depending on the results, the physician might note on the person’s chart that they have Alzheimer’s. It isn’t easy to identify Alzheimer’s with a five minute test. There are also reversible causes for memory impairment that might not be identified with this type of testing. Ideally, the gateway to getting to a neuropsychologist is to talk with your primary care doctor about your symptoms. We need a referral from the patient’s primary care doctor indicating a neuropsychological evaluation is warranted to evaluate cognition and thinking abilities. It is best to be evaluated sooner rather than later and if you have any inkling that you are experiencing some changes, an evaluation will, at the very least, provide a baseline for comparison down the road. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, but it really is an umbrella term and it is critical to get the right diagno- sis. Advocating for yourself and asking for a more comprehensive evaluation may uncover some different causes for the memory impairment. I advise seniors to talk with their doctors and if you feel that something is changing relative to your cognition, to take action quickly to determine the cause and the appropriate intervention. Dr. Michelle London RETIREMENT LIVING. REDEFINED. The Merion is Chicagoland’s newest luxury retirement rental community located right in the heart of downtown Evanston. • DAILY SOCIAL CALENDAR • FINELY FURNISHED APARTMENTS • UNPARALLELED DINING VENUES Artfully reborn out of the historic North Shore Hotel, The Merion is redefining retirement living by offering for-lease, beautifully furnished apartments situated in an environment suited for those with the most discerning expectations. The Merion is for those that have worked hard and played hard. Now it is time to retire easy. Contact us to schedule a casual tour today! RETIREMENT APARTMENTS 847.807.1803 MerionEvanston.com 1611 Chicago Avenue Evanston, IL 60201 12 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Ernie CONTINUED F RO M PAG E 5 time he was in our room and the object of so much excitement, he was very calm and friendly. After we completed dinner, there again was some commotion. The kids were yelling, “Ernie’s leaving! Ernie’s leaving!” They all scrambled out of the room and chased him, trying to get autographs. He proceeded on his way, very calmly, pleasantly and with great dignity, and stopped to sign some autographs. I was wondering how he was going to make it to his car, but he did, and he didn’t seem the least bit perturbed by the commotion. Mark passed away at age 64 on Dec. 11, 2012. I didn’t know if Mark had related the Banks incident to his children, so I called the cantor who was officiating at the funeral and told her the anecdote because I wanted it to be preserved for history. It turned I always liked Ernie Banks. He was a great ballplayer, sure, but he was such a nice, humble person. out that Mark had told his son, who told it to the rabbi. At the end of the eulogy, the rabbi summed up all of Mark’s accomplishments and ended as follows: “And Ernie Banks even attended Mark’s bar mitzvah party!” I always liked Ernie Banks. He was a great ballplayer, sure, but he was such a nice, humble person. It’s outrageous that he once had to hold out to get a salary of $100,000 a year, when now players who couldn’t carry his bat or glove are making 100 times more. May Ernie Banks rest in peace, and may he and Mark Pearlstein hopefully be able to meet and talk baseball in the grandstand of the World to Come. CJN Classified HELP WANTED DENTIST WANTED Far north side group dental practice looking for associate to work in our family dental practice. Great work environment. Excellent earning potential. Days and hours flexible. 773-478-5520 [email protected] HELP WANTED? Call 847-966-0606 to place your classified ad. 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Call me directly at 773-569-6438 • David Community Calendar Saturday January 31 Temple Beth Israel Sisterhood presents T’Fillot Nashim (Women’s Prayer Service) followed by luncheon. 10:30 a.m., 3601 W. Dempster, Skokie. tbiskokie. org or (847) 675-0951. Congregation Beth Judea holds Havdalah Game Night for families with pizza, snacks, ice cream following service. 5:45 p.m., Route 83 and Hilltop Road, Long Grove. $5. RSVP [email protected] or (847) 634-0777. Sunday February 1 Jewish Child and Family Services holds program, “Helping our Girls Feel Good about Being Female” for grades 3-8. Temple Sholom of Chicago, 3480 N. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. Time and more information, [email protected] or (847) 745-5420. Lubavitch Chabad of Illinois’ Women to Women hosts 16th annual luncheon, “Above Nature” featuring Chana Gittle Deray, teacher, mentor and writer. 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Lubavitch Chabad of Northbrook, 2095 Landwehr Road, Northbrook. $54, chabad illinois.com/womentowomen or (773) 875-9147. Tuesday February 3 Jewish Child and Family Services presents “Nechama: A Workshop to Comfort the Bereaved Among Us” for the newly bereaved and their loved ones. 6:30-8 p.m., Temple Chai, 1670 Checker Road, Long Grove. [email protected] or (224) 625-2810. Jewish Child and Family Services holds first annual Tu b’Shevat Recovery Seder led by Rabbi Paul Steinberg. 78:30 p.m., Temple Beth Israel, 3601 Dempster, Skokie. $10, $18 couple. Register, jcfs.formstack.com/forms/ Jewish_Center_for_Addiction or (847) 745-5422. SPOTLIGHT The 2015 Kosher Halftime Show, hosted by Nachum Segal, is a family oriented alternative to the performance on broadcast television. The program will stream and be available during halftime of the Super Bowl on Soulfarm Sunday, Feb. 1, on www.nachumsegal.com. The program will feature the group Soulfarm, which will perform three songs, including the debut of “Shalom Lach Eretz Nehederet.“ This Hebrew song is a remake about wandering away from and then returning to Israel. Wednesday February 4 Ezra-Habonim, the Niles Township Jewish Congregation Sisterhood celebrates Tu b’Shevat (Israeli Arbor Day) with luncheon and bingo. 11:30 a.m., 4500 W. Dempster, Skokie. $18 Sisterhood members, $23 nonmembers. Reservations, (847) 675-4141. CJE SeniorLife holds support group for caregivers of individuals with dementia. 7-8:30 p.m., Weinberg Community for Senior Living, Gidwitz Place, 1551 Lake Cook Road, Deerfield. (847) 236-7853. Thursday February 5 Congregation Beth Shalom holds Ideas Café with dinner featuring journalist Carl Schrag interviewing educator Binnie Swislow about “Israel’s Success: A Story Told in Hebrew.” 6:30-7:45 p.m., 3433 Walters Ave., Northbrook. $15. RSVP, [email protected] or (847) 498-4100 Ext. 46. Friday February 6 Congregation Beth Shalom holds Young Family Outreach Dinner and Storybook Service. 6 p.m., 3433 Walters Ave., Northbrook. $25 family. Register, [email protected] or (847) 498-4100 Ext. 46. Saturday February 7 Congregation B’nai Tikvah hosts Magical Musical Evening featuring B’nai Tikvah’s choir and rock band, the Hurricane Quartet, Steve Grant and Friends Jazz group and the Deerfield High School Chamber Orchestra. 6 p.m., 1558 Wilmot Road, Deerfield. (847) 945-0470. Sunday February 8 JCC Chicago holds Character Breakfast with crafts, singalong and photo ops. 9:30-11 a.m., Bernard Weinger JCC, 300 Revere Drive, Northbrook. $12 adult, $6 child. Register, http://bit.ly/jccfrozen2-8 or (847) 763-3603. Congregation Kol Emeth Sisterhood holds Family Traditions Cooking event featuring Pillsbury 2014 Bake-off finalist Arlene Erlbach. 10 a.m.-noon, 5130 W. Touhy, Skokie. $5 members, $7 non-members. RSVP, [email protected] or (773) 454-6148. JUF/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago holds jBaby Chicago Suburban Launch Party. 10-noon, Little Beans Café and Big Beans Family Activity Center, 430 Asbury Ave., Evanston. Registration, http://www. juf.org/jBabyChicago/event_ reg.aspx?eid=8. Jewish National Fund holds Tu b’Shevat Community Celebration with art contest, entertainment, games and prizes, tree planting. 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., Chicagoland Jewish High School, 1095 Lake Cook Road, Deerfield. jnf.org/ chicagotubishvat or (847) 656-8880. 13 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 By Joseph Aaron CONTINUED F RO M PAG E Get Home Care 14 support from Washington… “When Israel wants something from the United States, it typically makes three stops: the pro-Israel lobby, Jewish members of Congress and the White House… Netanyahu ignored all three when he accepted an invitation to address Congress about U.S. Iran policy. Neither congressional Jews nor the American Israel Public Affairs Committee were notified of the speech, much less consulted. The White House found out three hours before Boehner announced the address.” Ah, the White House. Jews love to blame Obama, saying he’s not nice to Bibi. But can you blame him when Bibi over and over acts like a thug, treats the president abominably. And doing what he’s doing with this speech is the most abominable of all. And it is Israel that will pay the price for Bibi’s lack of menschlichkeit. “It will be difficult to trust Netanyahu in the future,” an unnamed senior US official told Israeli TV. “At a critical juncture that requires close cooperation on strategic matters, he preferred to advance his political interests while disrupting the correct working relationship between the two governments.” Other American officials told the Haaretz newspaper that Netanyahu had “spat” in Obama’s face in agreeing to speak to Congress without alerting the White House. “There are things you simply don’t do. He spat in our face publicly and that’s no way to behave. Netanyahu ought to remember that President Obama has a year and a half left to his presidency, and that there will be a price,” he said. How rightly nauseated the American administration is, is seen by the fact that Secretary of State John Kerry, a very long time supporter of Israel and the administration’s most ardent advocate for Israel, found what Bibi is doing particularly offensive. Kerry, who over the past month made frenzied efforts on Israel’s behalf on the world stage – calling almost 50 world leaders to convince them to oppose a UN Security Council resolution which would have set a timeframe for the establishment of a Palestinian state. But Bibi doesn’t care about that, or anything but Bibi. You see his speech before Congress will come just two weeks before Israel’s election and Bibi figures it will help him win votes if he’s seen back home addressing a joint session of Congress, seen publicly taking on Obama, which Israelis, big talkers, love. They pee in their pants at the thought of losing America’s financial, diplomatic and military support, but they just love to feel like they can say anything to us and about us. Makes them feel like big people and that’s especially so for Bibi, a midget when it comes to leadership and Jewish values. And so because he thinks it will help him politically and because he doesn’t have the brains to recognize he is being used by Boehner and the Republicans to make life difficult for Obama, Bibi is doing something so odious that even those Obama haters at Fox News found it disgraceful. During an on-air conversation between Chris Wallace and Shepard Smith, the two roasted Netanyahu. Wallace referred to Boehner’s invitation to Netanyahu, as “wicked.” Added Smith, “It seems like they think we don’t pay attention and that we’re just a bunch of complete morons – the United States citizens – as if we wouldn’t pick up on what’s happening here,” Smith said. Truth is that this is the inevitable result of Bibi’s sick obsession with Iran. Because he is incapable of leaving the shadow of his right wing father, a historian who concluded that the world has always hated the Jews, will always hate the Jews, that all are out to get the Jews and none can be relied on to help the Jews, Bibi has become crazed by the unending cataclysmic thoughts about Iran filling his head. So much so that the former director of the Mossad, an Iran expert, publicly spoke out about how Iran is not the threat Bibi makes it out to be, and that Bibi needs to calm down. But he can’t and he won’t. And that has led him to be used by Boehner, insulting the president of the United States as no Israeli prime minister ever has. In the process, he has managed to antagonize Democrats, even those in favor of sanctions, because they don’t like to see a country we have done so much for treat the president as Bibi is, and has even angered some Republicans, who don’t like Obama, but don’t like seeing a foreigner come to our country to oppose our president. But Bibi doesn’t care. Doesn’t care that he has antagonized Israel’s best friend at the behest of crybaby John Boehner, who isn’t doing this for Israel, but for his own political purposes. That Bibi can understand, since he is doing this to help his political prospects at home and, he hopes, make his now dead daddy proud. As one Israeli political expert put it, “Netanyahu’s step may serve him personally, politically, but it hurts Israel’s security. A responsible prime minister who has the state’s best interests in mind would not do this. A responsible prime minister would find a way to work with the US president – any president – to safeguard our most vital interests.” We now know that Bibi’s most vital interest is Bibi. using your Long Term Care Insurance Benefits We help our clients attain approved for Home Care and maximize the value of their Long Term Care insurance benefits with our FREE support services. Mitch Abrams Managing Director Call us to schedule a free evaluation. (847) 480-5700 ; Care for people of ALL ages www.TheHomeCareSpot.com ; Scheduling available 24/7 ; Around the clock care ; LTC pricing review ; Free claims processing and benefits management The Chicago Jewish News gratefully acknowledges the generous support of RABBI MORRIS AND DELECIA ESFORMES 14 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Death Notices Jack W. Cohen, beloved husband of Verna Cohen, nee Wittert. Loving father of Michael Cohen and Susan Cohen. Cherished grandfather of Lindsay Cohen. Fond brother of Jean (the late Ralph) Cohn and the late Marjorie (the late Myron) Ridker. Dear cousin, uncle and friend to many. In lieu of flowers remembrances to your preferred charity would be appreciated. Arrangements by Mitzvah Memorial Funerals. Monica Jacobs, age 71. Devoted daughter of the late Eugene and Detta. Dear sister of Leslie “Les” (Flori) Ja- cobs. Dear aunt of Darryl and Darci Jacobs and Jeremy Bruner and great-aunt of Tannon and Maven Bar- talomy. Arrangements by Mitzvah Memorial Funerals. Harriet Kremen, née Berdaline Lepgold, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Beloved daughter of Gordon Lepgold (Manny Gordon) and Margaret Warschauer Lepgold (Gordon). Loving wife for 58 wonderful years of Norman Kremen. Cherished mother of Gary Alan and Julie Lynn Kremen of California. Proud grandmother of Isaac Micah and Ethan Julian Kremen. Fond sister of the late Jack Lepgold and his children and sister-in-law of the late Mildred “Millie” Needelman, June 20, 1920–January 25, 2015; preceded in death by husband, Joseph and sister, Gladys Raffkind. Survived by children, Jerald (Margaret) Needelman, Howard (LauraLee) Needelman, and Hope (Andrew) Klassman; 10 grandchildren; 8 great grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, Memorials to the Blumkin Dorothy and the late Harold Diamond and their children. Devoted friend of many and volunteer treasurer of Ketura Hadassah. Donations in Harriet’s memory would be appreciated; send to: Hadassah, 60 Revere Dr., Ste 800, Northbrook, IL 60062, www. hadassah.org/chicago northshore. Arrangements by Chicago Jewish Funerals – Skokie Chapel, (847) 229-8822, www.cjfinfo.com. Home of Omaha, NE. or your favorite charity. Arrangements by Lakeshore Jewish Funerals, (773) 625-8621. Still Directing! Mitzvah Memorial Funerals 630-MITZVAH (630-648-9824) Names you have trusted for decades... Still here to serve you when needed I.Ian “Izzy” Dick Seymour Mandel In December of 2014 Izzy and Seymour celebrated their 91st and 80th birthdays respectively. This make them the two oldest practicing and most experienced licensed Jewish funeral directors in the state of Illinois. Izzy and Seymour serve the families that call them through Mitzvah Memorial Funerals. Combined with Lloyd Mandel, Bill Goodman and Larry Mandel, Mitzvah Memorial Funeral has the most experienced staff of Jewish funeral directors in Chicago with over 200 years of combined experience. Mitzvah Memorial Funerals also provides the lowest price! In most cases we save families $2000-$5000 versus what Chicago Jewish funeral homes with chapels charge for the same or similar services and casket. If your Synagogue has a discounted funeral plan that we are not currently a provider of you can still choose us. We guarantee to be at least 25% less!* Lloyd Mandel Founder, 4th generation Jewish Funeral Director, also licensed in Florida (no longer with Levayah Funerals) Seymour Mandel 3rd generation Jewish Funeral Director, Past President of the Jewish Funeral Directors of America (J.F.D.A.) (Formerly with Piser) William Goodman Funeral Director, Homesteaders Insurance Agent (no longer with Goodman Family Funerals) Ian “Izzy” Dick Oldest licensed Jewish Funeral Director in the State of Illinois Lawrence “Larry” Mandel If you have already made pre-arrangements elsewhere you can switch to us. In most cases we will refund your family thousands of dollars. 4th generation Jewish Funeral Director, Homesteaders Insurance Agent (Formerly with Piser) 847-778-6736 We also offer pre-arrangements and fund through Homesteaders Life. Find out why Mitzvah Memorial Funerals was entrusted to direct more than 800 funerals since opening. www.comparemitzvah.com *Guarantee is on base price of funeral plan including services, casket and miscellaneous items. Not included in this are the cemetery charges, vault and cash advance items. 500 Lake Cook Road, Suite 350, Deerfield, IL • 8850 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, IL 630-MITZVAH (648-9824) • www.mitzvahfunerals.com By Joseph Aaron Bozos Boehner and Bibi Okay, we have now forfeited our right to complain. Have you noticed what is going on in Nigeria with the terrorist group Boko Haram? While Isis and Al Qaeda get much of the world’s attention, and while, in the Jewish world, Hamas and Hezbollah get all the attention, the savages of Boko Haram have been systematically going from city to city, murdering thousands of people. Men, women and children. And where has been the Jewish outrage? Where has been the Jewish mobilization? You know Jews are very good about always complaining about how the world doesn’t care about us, doesn’t understand or do anything about our suffering, when, in fact, it does. The French government response to the murders of those four Jews in the kosher supermarket has been stunning. The French prime minister said France would not be France without its Jews. The French president ordered thousands of troops to patrol Jewish schools and neighborhoods. Because of our history, Jews, of all people, should be first in line to protest and scream and act when Boko Haram does what it does. Sure, it’s easy for us to complain about Hamas and Hezbollah because they directly affect us. But wasn’t that what much of the world said about us during the Holocaust? It’s just the Jews, not our business, no reason for us to get involved. And we all know the Torah teaches us to remember that we were “strangers in a strange land,” meaning because we have gone through what we have gone through, we must be there, always, for everyone and anyone going through the same thing. And yet, where is the Jewish community in regards to Boko Haram? Do we only care about the terrorists aiming for Jews? Shame on us. And speaking of shame, I really thought it would be impossible for me to be any more disgusted by the behavior of one Prime Minister Bibi. But he has now done something that truly takes the cake. Bibi has allowed himself to be played the fool by House Speaker John Boehner, has allowed himself to be a pawn in a disgraceful political game, be part of a stunt that reminds me once again how depraved Republicans are. If Barack Obama is for something, the Republicans are against it, even if it’s good for the country. Their whole agenda is to disagree with the president. Even if it involves national security, even if it involves something that has always been the domain of every president, namely foreign policy. Obama is trying to negotiate with the Iranians to keep them from acquiring nuclear weapons. He’s not guaranteeing it will work, but he believes, as do I, that it is worth a try. Unlike all those chickencrap right wing Jews who think it would just be so easy to send in the Israeli air force to bomb Iran. Not understanding that has no chance of destroying Iran’s nuclear program, not understanding the very negative consequences that would result. Obama is trying to negotiate and so has said, for the time being, it’s important the big mouths and little brains that make up Congress not pass a bill that would call for renewed sanctions on Iran. Obama has persuasively made the case that such a bill would ensure the negotiations fail. He has said let’s give the talks a chance, and if they don’t succeed, then he will be the first to call for the imposition of draconian sanctions on Iran. But the time for that is not now. And as commander in chief, that’s his call to make. In our system, the president conducts foreign policy. And while it’s one thing for the juvenile Republicans to stamp their feet in protest, what Boehner has done is truly one of the ugliest actions in American history. He, without consulting the White House, invited the prime minister of Israel, who is psychotically obsessed with Iran, to address a joint session of Congress for the sole purpose of disagreeing with the president. Shameful. But far more shameful is that Bibi said yes. Think of it. The United States is the best friend Israel has in the world. The United States under Barack Obama has provided Israel with the Iron Dome missile defense system, which protected Israel against Hamas rockets; has vigorously opposed all attempts at the UN to create a Palestinian state; has done literally dozens of other things in strong support of Israel. And yet despite all that, the prime minister of Israel is going to go in front of Congress to stick his finger in Obama’s eye, to publicly say why Obama is wrong, to publicly urge Congress to do exactly what Obama has asked them not to. In the process, Bibi has, as the Jewish news service JTA put it, antagonized the “three sectors that Israel relies on to ensure continued SEE BY JOSEPH AARON ON PAG E 1 3 15 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Point of View ‘Jew Tax’ a warning to all horrific events in France should signal everyone who values freedom that the Jew Tax we pay today is actually a flashing warning sign to Jews and nonJews alike. Extremist violence is a threat everywhere to the life of the mind, the life of the spirit and to life itself. We are all Charlie. So, too, the war against the Jews is a war against us all. By Michael Millenson A few months ago, I wrote bluntly on The Huffington Post about the “Jew Tax;” that’s what I called the portion of my synagogue dues going for surveillance cameras, alarms and a security guard. Now, in the wake of the recent massacres in France, taxpayers in all Western nations find themselves facing a version of that same fee. My article was prompted by the surge in anti-Semitic violence coinciding with the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas. But as a report from the Anti-Defamation League made clear – and as the renewed focus on the horrific 1994 attack on a Jewish community center in Argentina has reminded us – that outbreak was just the latest manifestation of decades of antiJewish prejudice deliberately instigated by Israel’s opponents and too often indulged by the West. The attack on the Hyper Cacher kosher market in Paris should make the connection clear to all. This time it was Islamist extremists targeting Jews. Other times it’s been secular anti-Israel fanatics. And sometimes, though less frequently in Europe in recent years, garden variety anti-Semites. Whatever the motivation, as I wrote in August, “the poisonous impact is deeply personal for every Diaspora Jew.” That poison, more potent than ever, has now spread. The headline of a story in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz by Anshel Pfeffer starkly linked antiSemitism and the slaughter of staff at the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. It read: “First they came for the Jews. Then they came for the journalists.” And perhaps both at once, in the person of Elsa Cayat, the only woman killed at the Charlie Hebdo offices, likely because in “the eyes of the killers [a Jewish woman]... was one of the enemies of Allah,” in the words of an article in Tablet, accusing leftists of ignoring this inconvenient truth. The Israeli newspaper headline, of course, refers to the famous lament of German pastor Martin Neimöller, initially an enthusiastic supporter of the Nazis. The United States Holocaust Museum quotes this version of a poem he wrote: First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out– Michael Millenson is a consultant and writer who has long been active in the Chicago Jewish community. This article originally appeared in the Huffington Post. Customers in a Paris café watch TV news coverage of the hostage taking in a kosher supermarket which resulted in the massacre of four Jews. Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out– Because I was not a Trade Unionist.Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out– Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me–and there was no one left to speak for me. In France, soldiers and police carrying automatic weapons guard entire Jewish neigh-borhoods. That the last time so many uniformed men swarmed those same streets was to deport Jews, not deter attacks, is an irony more bitter than sweet. That many ordinary French Muslims have rallied to the defense of their Jewish neighbors is extraordinarily hopeful. That foreign leaders who tolerate and even encourage antiJewish attacks marched to protest the Charlie Hebdo massacre – in particular, Turkey – is maddening. It’s not just French taxpayers paying the price of stepped-up protection of the Jews. Heavily armed SWAT teams stand outside a Jewish museum in New York City. Stepped up security surrounds synagogues and major Jewish community institutions in Washington, Los Angeles, Chicago and cities throughout the world. I wrote in August how some Jewish organizations have taken down identifying signs and how one Jewish day school protects its parking lot with thick steel gates designed to deter would-be car bombers. I lamented that the anti-Israel anti-Semites who cannot put us in ghettos have slowly forced us to build our own walls. The problem has steadily grown. When I was in high school, my synagogue was firebombed, as was another about 20 miles away. A couple of years after I finished college, one of our synagogue members was held hostage by Arab militants who took over the building housing the Jewish organization where he worked. I didn’t grow up in Paris or Paraguay, but in a quiet suburb of Washington, D.C., and it’s been almost 40 years since I last lived there. Which is the point: they first come for the Jews, but it doesn’t stop there. It’s already been forgotten that British supermarkets just last summer removed all their kosher foods due to of “anti-Israel” attacks. But though no other faith faces anything close to the worldwide threat of violence that shadows Jewish religious and communal activities, we cannot forget that extremists increasingly threaten everyone with whom they disagree. Recall that the cowinner of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize was a young Pakistani Muslim, Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban for the crime of promoting the right of girls to get an education. We Jews certainly noticed the chutzpah shown by Hezbollah and Hamas, religious extremist groups that have brutally killed Jewish civilians and their own political opponents, in denouncing the attacks against Charlie Hebdo. As I wrote back in August, Hamas tried to persuade U.S. journalist Charlie Rose that Hamas does “not actually fight the Jews because they are Jews, per se.” This, despite the fact that the Hamas charter is filled with explicit anti-Semitic language. Those who murder Jewish men, women and children do not much care whether their victims are critics of the current Israeli government – or any Israeli government – or supporters. The Keshet Annual Rainbow Banquet KESHET A RAINBOW OF HOPE FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS with Keshet March 8, 2015 Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers 5:30 p.m. Reception 6:00 p.m. Dinner Honorees Simon Lesser and Carol Patinkin Keshet Parents, Board Members, Volunteers Community Service Awardee Jan Schakowsky United States Congresswoman from Illinois’ 9th District Employer of the Year Awardee Athletico Physical Therapy Premier provider of physical therapy services throughout the Midwest Guest Speaker Edward Asner Seven-time Emmy Award winner and Advocate for individuals with special needs Banquet Chairmen Barry and Elizabeth Bennett Mark and Shari Coe Mark and Carla Frisch Sidney and Lisa Glenner Avi and Batshie Goldfeder Robert and Debbie Hartman Jeff Hay Craig and Robbi Kanter David and Ronna Ness-Cohn Jules and Carol Pomerantz For more information call Keshet at 847.205.1234 or visit KESHET.ORG KESHET, A PARTNER IN SERVING OUR COMMUNITY, IS SUPPORTED BY THE JEWISH UNITED FUND/JEWISH FEDERATION OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO 16 Chicago Jewish News - Jan. 30 - Feb. 5, 2015 Vitality Encouraging an active and fulfilling lifestyle. Every day at the Selfhelp Home brings a new opportunity to energize your senses. From fresh, homemade meals to regular exercise classes and social events, there are many ways to become engaged in our community and remain involved with everything you’re passionate about. With a little help from our staff, you can develop your talents in our art studio, listen to lectures and enjoy performances by a variety of Chicago-area entertainers. Live a vibrant lifestyle while receiving the care and assistance you need from people you have come to know and trust. Great care, right at home… the Selfhelp Home. For more information, visit our website at www.SelfhelpHome.org or schedule a tour by calling 773.271.0300. 908 W. Argyle Street, Chicago The Selfhelp Home is a non-profit senior living community offering independent living, assisted living, intermediate, rehabilitation and skilled nursing services.
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