March 2012 – Adar/Nissan 5772

CONGREGATION P’NAI TIKVAH (Formerly Valley Outreach Synagogue) Kol Kiruv

March 2012 Adar 5772 Vol. 21—No. 9

Table of Contents Cover Page 1 Rabbi’s Message 2 BE HAPPY; IT’S ADAR!! Cantor’s Message 3 Our Cantor earns his PhD 4 Tis the month to be silly, make jokes, and thor- How Unique is Israel? 5 History Lesson 6-8 oughly turn your Hamens into Hamen-taschen! Purim Fun 9 When Adar comes, our sages teach us, our joy CPT Quilt by Dotti Elgart 10 increases. Purim Recipes 11-12 LV Jewish Music Festival 13 Cremation or Burial 14 We’ll celebrate Purim at Kraft-Sussman Chapel, on Shushan Purim Volunteer for Super Sunday 15 (Thursday night, March 8th) at 6:30. Come in costume and come Return of TRIBEFEST 16 Jewish Computers 17 prepared for “lots” of fun. Great items will be on display and ripe Purim Flyer 18 for the picking, including new golf clubs and a golf bag, a ticket for Updates & Fundraising 19 Women’s Rosh Chodesh 20 “Goldah’s Balcony,” a fax machine, certificates for all kinds of won- SheppingNachas fun de Kinder 21 derful services, and lots and lots of surprise goodies.. (Lottery tick- Jewlicious Learning 22 ets are 2 for $5; 5 for $10, and an arm’s-length for $20.) The kids Mitzvah Envelopes 23 Mi Shebeirach 24 will be presenting a cute Purimspiel and the Not-Quite-Ready-for- Birthdays/Anniversaries 25 Primetime Players will be regaling us with a Purim Parody. Cantor Kidz Korner 26 Marla Goldberg and Rabbi Mintz will give us the gantze megillah (be primed to ooh, aah, boo, and sigh), and the delicious hamentaschen Clergy and Staff will be courtesy of Phyllis Zuckerman, Marlene Silverman, and Janet Rabbi: Yocheved Mintz Kanofsky. Cantor: Jonathan Friedmann Accompanist: Marek Rachelski Newsletter: Davida Lewin-Schermer, Come one, come all. We’re gonna have a ball! Doris Turrentine, Educators: Rabbi Mintz , Carly Matt (Teaching Assistant on leave) Sami Owens Temp. TA Congregation P’nai Tikvah will worship on Shabbat, March 2nd and 16th, at Bookkeeper: Lynn Pisetzner Kraft-Sussman Chapel, in the Bank Nevada Business Park at 3975 S. Duran- Administrative Assistant: go, Suite 104, in Las Vegas. Tot Shabbat will be held on March 2nd and will Doris ‘D’vorah’ Turrentine begin at 6:30 PM. Kabbalat Shabbat and Maariv services will begin on both dates at 7:30 PM. Purim Celebration, Thursday, March 8th at 6:30pm for CPT on the Web: all!! www.pnaitikvahlv.org Social Network with CPT: Torah Study will take place at 10:00 AM on March 3rd and 17th at Rabbi www.facebook.com/ Mintz’s home. A bagels and lox brunch is served. Please RSVP by calling pnaitikvahlv the administrative office at (702) 436-4900 or by emailing [email protected] . www.twitter.com/ pnaitikvahlv

1 So how are we to react to miracles, by whatev- er way they are defined? Perhaps you saw the 2004 film, Hiding and Seeking, in which a Rabbi’s Message modern Orthodox middle-aged father takes his adult Charedi sons to Poland to see where their “There May Be Miracles” grandparents had escaped the Shoah. The young men are totally disinterested, initially, but, as the move shows, when they meet the family of the righteous Polish gentiles who had risked their lives in order to save their grandfa- Dear Chevreh: ther, the are reduced to tears and recite the prayer “Baruch ata…she’asa li (li-avotai) nes At Purim, we speak about the miracles associ- ba-makom ha-zeh”/ Praised are You…who has ated with Esther HaMalkah. At Pesach, we performed miracles for my ancestors and for are reminded of the many miracles that ended me.” up with our liberation from Egyptian slavery. At Chanukah, we spin the dreidel and retell the When someone recovers from a dangerous ill- miracles that happened “ba-yamim ha-heim, ba ness, survives an accident, escapes danger, or -z’man ha-zeh”/ in those days at that time. Not gives birth to a baby, we recite birkat ha- only our holidays, but our Torah, and our litur- gomel. What is the Jewish way of handling gy are replete with references to miracles. miracles? We pray!

But how do we conceive of the term “neis”/ While we may not always recognize the mira- miracle? Is it an event that demonstrates G-d’s cles that surround us, when we do recognize power before masses of people, such as the them, the Jewish way is to express gratitude, parting of the Reed Sea or the defeat of Ham- “Baruch HaShem.” an? Does a miracle need to suspend nature? And do we have to believe in miracles to be May we recognize the miracles, small and considered “good Jews?” large, with which we are blessed, throughout our lives. The “Modim Anachnu” prayer of the Amidah has us thanking G-d “for the miracles tat are L’Shalom and Be Happy! It’s Adar!! with us daily.” That would seem to imply that not only those miracles spoken about in the TaNaKh, like manna from heaven, fit the defi- nition, but, by “daily” that would imply waking up, bodily functioning, cycles of night and Rabbi Yocheved Mintz, Mashpiah Ruchanit day….and, in fact, our liturgy has us give thanks for all of these “wondrous ways.”

Yet another conception of the miraculous in- volves those moments when we escape danger. The “miracle on the Hudson,” the mother who lifts a car off her child, the critically ill coma- tose person who suddenly awakes….these are not suspensions of natural law, as Rabbi Robert Tabak notes, but unexpectedly positive out- comes.

From Our Cantor - The Bible most often associates the kinnor with gaiety. It is characterized as a sweet and pleasant conduit of glad- ness and delight (Ps. 45:9; 81:3). In Isaiah 24:8, the Instrument of Joy “merriment of the kinnor” is stilled as punishment for the people’s transgressions (24:8). And the single verse linking the instrument to lamentation, “So my lyre is given to mourning” (Job 30:31), is not a literal depiction Dear Friends, of musical accompaniment, but a metaphor suggesting that at times of deepest sorrow even the joyous tones Musical instruments were an important part of the cultural of the kinnor turn melancholy. These citations and more makeup of ancient Israel. Sixteen instruments or instrument led musicologist Alfred Sendrey to conclude that the groupings are cited in the Bible, appearing in numerous sa- kinnor was “a dispenser of joy at merry banquets, at cred and secular settings. They were apparently such a com- popular feasts, and at celebrations of victories and coro- mon feature of biblical life that the authors found it unnec- nations.” essary to describe them in any detail. Yet, while the text provides no clear indication as to their shapes, sizes, sounds, This jubilant quality comes through in Psalm 92. In addi- or how they were played, their very inclusion bespeaks an tion to being preceded by the psalmist’s ebullient en- environment rich in instrumental music. dorsement of religious music—“It is good to praise the Lord, to sing hymns to Your name” (v. 2)—mention of Not surprisingly, musical instruments occur most frequently the kinnor is followed by an unambiguous statement of in the Book of Psalms, the Bible’s liturgical songbook. In glee: “You have gladdened me by your deeds, O Lord; I some cases, they are listed in psalm headings, which relate shout for joy at Your handiwork” (v. 5). For the original how the texts were to be performed. In other instances, audience, simply using the term kinnor was enough to they appear in the body of the psalms, usually in descrip- signify the psalm’s ecstatic intent. tions of praise offerings. An example of this is Psalm 92, a song for the Sabbath day (Mizmor shir l’yom ha-Shabbat). Its This has relevance for our own day. Psalm 92 is often opening verses depict the exuberant singing of hymns extol- sung during the Kabbalat Shabbat service on Friday eve- ling God’s steadfast love, faithfulness, handiwork and de- nings. Attentive congregations seek to capture the spirit sign. Along with these devotional words is passing reference of the text, choosing musical settings that reflect its to three instruments: asor, nevel and kinnor. elated mood. In so doing, they not only uphold the psalmist’s objective, but also capture the joyful essence Although it is widely agreed that these instruments belong of the kinnor without it ever being played. to the string family, there is uncertainty surrounding the asor and nevel. Only the kinnor appears in enough passages Best Regards, and with enough supporting information to give an idea of what it was—namely a type of lyre. Still, the kinnor exhibits many of the issues involved in the positive identification of biblical instruments. Research into the origins and charac- teristics of the kinnor is too voluminous to summarize here, Cantor Jonathan Friedmann but it is worth noting that no authentic picture of the instrument has been found among ancient ruins. Added to this, the term kinnor may have been used in connection with more than one instrument, or may in some places be a general term for stringed instruments. Despite these and other vagaries, sources from Josephus to modern-day musicolo- gists concur that it was some version of a lyre.

OUR CHAZZAN IS NOW CANTOR DR. JONATHAN FRIEDMANN

We are thrilled to announce that Cantor Jonathan Friedmann has recently earned his Ph.D. in Theology from the joint program of North-West University (South Africa) and Greenwich School of Theology (UK). The title of his dissertation is "A Musical People: The Role of Music in Biblical Life." Using an ethnomusicological approach, it uncovers the important role music played in shaping and defining the self-identity of ancient Israel.

The entire congregation wishes his Mazal Tov on this achievement!

4 How Unique is Israel?

Israel is the only country in the world surrounded on all sides by enemies, but the people's headaches are caused by the neighbors upstairs. Israel is the only country in the world where the coffee is already so good that Starbucks went bankrupt trying to break into the local market. Israel is the only country in the world whose soldiers eat three sets of salads a day, none of which contain any lettuce (which is not really a food), and where olives ARE a food and even a main course in a meal, rather than something one tosses into a martini. Israel is the only country in the world where one is unlikely to dig a cellar without hitting ancient archaeological artifacts. Israel is the only country in the world with bus drivers and taxi drivers who read Spinoza and Maimonides. Israel is the only country in the world where no one cares what rules say when an important goal can be achieved by bending them. Israel is the only country in the world where "small talk" consists of loud, angry debate over politics and religion. Israel is the only country in the world where the ultra-Orthodox Jews beat up the police and not the other way around. Israel is the only country in the world where inviting someone "out for a drink" means drinking cola, coffee or tea. Israel is the only country in the world where bank robbers kiss the mezuzah as they leave with their loot. Israel is the only country in the world that truly likes and admires the United States. Israel is the only country in the world where no one has a foreign accent because everyone has a foreign accent. Israel is the only country in the world where people cuss using dirty words in Russian or Arabic because Hebrew has never developed them. Israel is the only country in the world where patients visiting physicians end up giving the doctor advice. Israel is the only country in the world where people call an attache' case a "James Bond" and the "@" sign is called a "strudel". Israel is the only country in the world where people read English, write Hebrew and joke in Yiddish.

5 History Lesson

GEORGE WASHINGTON was the FIRST President to write to a synagogue. In 1790 he addressed separate letters to the Touro Synagogue in Newport, RI, to Mikveh Israel Congregation in Savannah, GA, and a joint letter to Congregation Beth Shalom, Richmond, VA, Mikveh Israel Philadelphia, Beth Elohim, Charleston, S. C., and Shearith Israel, New York. His letters are an eloquent expression and hope for religious harmony and endure as indelible statements of the most fundamental tenets of Amer- ican democracy.

THOMAS JEFFERSON was the FIRST President to appoint a Jew to a Federal post. In 1801 he named Reuben Etting of Baltimore as US Marshall for Maryland.

JAMES MADISON was the FIRST President to appoint a Jew to a diplomatic post. He sent Mordecai M. Noah to Tunis from 1813 to 1816.

MARTIN VAN BUREN was the FIRST President to order an American consul to intervene on behalf of Jews abroad. In 1840 he instructed the U.S. consul in Alexandria, Egypt to use his good offices to protect the Jews of Damascus who were under attack because of a false blood ritual accusation.

JOHN TYLER was the FIRST President to nominate a U.S. consul to Palestine. Warder Cresson, a Quaker convert to Judaism who established a pioneer Zionist colony, received the appointment in 1844.

FRANKLIN PIERCE was the FIRST and probably the only President whose name appears on the char- ter of a synagogue. Pierce signed the A ct of Congress in 1857 that amended the laws of the District of Columbia to enable the incorporation of the city's FIRST synagogue, the Washington Hebrew Congre- gation.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN was the FIRST President to make it possible for rabbis to serve as military chaplains. He did this by signing the 1862 Act of Congress which changed the law that had previously barred all but Christian clergymen from the captaincy. Lincoln was also the FIRST, and happily the only President who was called upon to revoke an official act of anti-Semitism by the U.S. government. It was Lincoln who canceled General Ulysses S Grant's "Order No. 11" expelling all Jews from Ten- nessee from the district controlled by his armies during the Civil War. Grant always denied personal responsibility for this act attributing it to his subordinate.

ULYSSES S. GRANT was the FIRST President to attend a synagogue service while in office. When Adas Israel Congregation in Washington D.C. was dedicated in 1874, Grant and all members of his Cabinet were present.

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES was the FIRST President to designate a Jewish ambassador for the stated purpose of fighting anti-Semitism. In 1870, he named Benjamin Peixotto Consul-General to Romania. Hays also was the FIRST President to assure a civil service employee her right to work for the Federal government and yet observe the Sabbath. He ordered the employment of a Jewish woman who had been denied a position in the Department of the Interior because of her refusal to work on Saturday.

THEODORE ROOSEVELT was the FIRST President to appoint a Jew to a presidential cabinet. In 1906 he named Oscar S. Straus Secretary of Commerce and Labor. Theodore Roosevelt was also the FIRST President to contribute his own funds to a Jewish cause. In 1919, when he received the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts while President to settle the Russo-Japanese War Roosevelt contributed part of his prize to the National Jewish Welfare Board.

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WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT was the FIRST President to attend a Seder while in office. In 1912, when he visited Providence, RI, he participated in the family Seder of Colonel Harry Cutler, first president of the National Jewish Welfare Board, in the Cutler home on Glenham Street.

WOODROW WILSON was the FIRST President to nominate a Jew, Louis Dembitz Brandeis, to the United States Supreme Court. Standing firm against great pressure to withdraw the nomination, Wil- son insisted that he knew no one better qualified by judicial temperament as well as legal and social understanding; confirmation was finally voted by the Senate on June 1, 1916. Wilson was also the FIRST President to publicly endorse a national Jewish philanthropic campaign. In a letter to Jacob Schiff, on November 22, 1917, Wilson called for wide support of the United Jewish Relief Campaign which was raising funds for European War relief.

WARREN HARDING was the FIRST President to sign a Joint Congressional Resolution endorsing the Balfour Declaration and the Palestine Mandate supporting the establishment in Palestine of a national Jewish home for the Jewish people. The resolution was signed September 22, 1922.

CALVIN COOLIDGE was the FIRST President to participate in the dedication of a Jewish community institution that was not a house of worship. On May 3, 1925, he helped dedicate the cornerstone of the Washington, D.C. Jewish Community center.

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT was the FIRST President to be given a Torah as a gift. He received a miniature Torah from Young Israel and another that had been rescued from a burning synagogue in Czechoslovakia. Both are now in the Roosevelt Memorial Library in Hyde Park. The Roosevelt administration's failure to expand the existing refuge quota system ensured that large numbers of Jews would ultimately become some of the Holocaust's six million victims. Fifty-six years after Roose- velt's death, the arguments continue over Roosevelt's response to the Holocaust.

HARRY S. TRUMAN, on May 14, 1948, just eleven minutes after Israel's proclamation of independ- ence, was the FIRST head of a government to announce to the press that "the United States recogniz- es the provisional government as the de facto authority of the new state of Israel." Truman was also the FIRST U.S President to receive a president of Israel at the White House, Chaim Weizman, in 1948 and an Ambassador from Israel , Eliahu Elat in 1948. With Israel staggering under the burdens of mass immigration in 1951-1952, President Truman obtained from Congress close to $140 million in loans and grants.

DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER was the FIRST President to participate in a coast-to-coast TV program sponsored by a Jewish organization. It was a network show in 1954 celebrating the 300th anniversary of the American Jewish community. On this occasion he said that it was one of the enduring satisfac- tions of his life that he was privileged to lead the forces of the free world which finally crushed the brutal regime in Germany, freeing the remnant of Jews for a new life and hope in Israel.

JOHN F. KENNEDY named two Jews to his cabinet - Abraham Ribicoff as Secretary of Health, Edu- cation and Welfare, and Arthur Goldberg as Secretary of Labor. Kennedy was the only President for whom a national Jewish Award was named the annual peace award of the Synagogue Council of America was re-named the John F. Kennedy Peace Award after his assassination in 1963.

RICHARD M NIXON appointed the US' FIRST Jewish Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger. This President saved Israel from destruction with an emergency airlift of arms during the devastating Yom Kippur War of 1973. This decision forever changed America's strategic relationship with the State of Israel, as demonstrated by the punishing Arab Oil Embargo, in reaction to US support for Israel.

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JAMES EARL CARTER successfully negotiated Israel’s FIRST-ever peace treaty with an Arab country, the Camp David Peace Accord between Israel, and her most dangerous enemy, Egypt, saving countless lives. After 33 years, the treaty still holds.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH in 1985 as Vice President had played a personal role in "Operation Joshua," the airlift which brought 10,000 Jews out of Ethiopia directly to resettlement in Israel. Then, again in 1991, when Bush was President, American help played a critical role in "Operation Solomon", the escape of 14,000 more Ethiopian Jews. Most dramatically, Bush got to the U.N. to revoke its 1975 "Zionism is Racism" resolution.

BILL CLINTON appointed more Jews to his cabinet than all of the previous presidents combined and put Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, both 1st appointed to the federal bench by Jimmy Carter, on the Supreme Court.

GEORGE W. BUSH was the first president to assemble the largest group of Jewish neo-conservatives under one administration in US history. They included Richard Perle, Chair of the Pentagon’s Defense Policy Board, and Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz, along with Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith and Dov Zakheim, in addition to Edward Luttwak and Paul Adelman and National Securi- ty Advisor Elliott Abrams. The man who most Americans heard as the President’s spokesman was Ari Fleisher. After 9/11, perhaps President Bush’s most important Jewish appointment was Michael Chrtoff, US Secretary of Homeland Security and co-author of the US Patriot Act. On a lighter note, Bush was the first president to celebrate Chanukah in the White House residence, which he repeated several years while in office.

BARAK OBAMA will certainly be remembered for successfully nominating Elena Kagan to the Su- preme Court, making the high court the most Jewish in American history, with three Jewish justices. He has also surrounded himself with perhaps the largest inner-circle of close Jewish advisors, including Da- vid Axelrod, former Senior Advisor to the President, Rahm Emanuel as former Chief of Staff and now Sabbath observant Jack Lew as the President’s new Chief of Staff. Although catching serious flack from various segments of the American Jewish community regarding statements he has made regarding the Israel-Palestine peace process, it can be argued that no American President has done more for Israel’s security, from the toughest Iran sanctions legislation in history to thwart their nascent nuclear weapons program, to directing funds for innovative Israel defense systems, including Iron Dome, designed to shoot down new Iranian-backed short range missiles being launched from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. On a lighter note, starting in 2009, Obama was the FIRST president to host a Passover Seder in the White House residence, marking perhaps the FIRST time that gefilte fish was served on Presidential fine china, and it is a tradition which is now in its third year, with Obama at the head of the table.

With help from Professor Sherman L. Cohn, Georgetown University Law Center

8 Purim Fun

9 Dotti Elgart Does it Again!

Dotti Elgart, quilter extraordinaire, designed and created a beautiful quilt interpretation of Congregation P'nai Tikvah's logo. Encapsulating the feel of the desert, the sense of community, the friendly and welcoming environment, and message of hope that is Congregation P'nai Tikvah, this banner will be displayed at all services and special programs.

Bon Appetite

“Hamantaschen” A recipe for triangular Purim cookies

2/3 cup pareve margarine or butter

½ cup sugar

1 egg

½ teaspoon vanilla

3 tablespoons milk

2 ½-3 cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Dash of salt

1. Cream the shortening with sugar. Add egg and milk and continue creaming until smooth. 2. Add the vanilla. Stir in the sifted flour, baking powder, and salt until a ball of dough is formed (a food processor is excellent for this). 3. Chill for 2-3 hours, or overnight. 4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 5. Taking ¼ of the dough, roll out on a lightly floured board to a thickness of 1/8 inch. Cut circles of dough with a drinking glass or round cookie-cutter. With your finger, put water around the rim of the circle. Fill with 1 teaspoon poppy-seed, prune, apricot, or chocolate filling. Press two sides of dough together, then fold up the third side and press the ends together to form a triangle. Bake on either well-greased cookie sheet or cookie sheet covered with parchment paper, for 10-16 minutes, until the tops are golden.

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Purim Cake

250 g semi-sweet chocolate 1/2 cup melted margarine 3/4 cup brown sugar 2 eggs 3/4 teaspoon vanilla 3/4 cup ground nuts 1/2 cup sifted flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 confectioner’s sugar

Cut the chocolate in small pieces. In a bowl mix margarine, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla. Gradually add nuts, chocolate, sifted flour and baking powder. Mix well. Pour the batter into a glass bowl. Put it into the microwave on high temperature for 6 minutes. Let it cool completely before cutting. Sprinkle the top with confectioner's sugar.

Purim Corn Flakes

Bars 1 cup corn syrup 1 cup peanut butter 1 cup sugar 5 cups Corn Flakes 125 g semi-sweet chocolate

Put the corn syrup, peanut butter and sugar into a medium sized pot and let it boil. Remove it from the fire and add the Corn Flakes. Mix well. Pour it into a medium pan. Melt the chocolate on a double boiler and spread it over the Corn Flakes. Cut in squares.

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More Purim fun

Jewish Computers

You can now purchase Kosher computers made in Israel by a compa- ny called DELL-SHALOM. The price is low... even with the shipping from Israel. However, before you purchase a kosher computer of your own, you should know that there are some important changes from the typical non-kosher computer you are used to, such as:

1) The 'Start' button has been replaced with a 'Let's go! I'm not getting any younger!' button.

2) You hear 'Hava Nagila' during startup.

3) The cursor moves from right to left.

4) When Spell-checker finds an error it prompts, 'Is this the best you can do?'

5) When you look at erotic images, your computer says, 'If your mother knew you did this, she would die.'

6) It comes with a 'monitor cleaning solution' from Manischewitz that gets rid of all the 'schmutz und drek.'

7) When running 'Scan Disk' it prompts you with a 'You want I should fix this?' message.

8) After 20 minutes of no activity, your PC goes, 'Schloffen.'

9) The PC shuts down automatically at sundown on Friday evenings.

10) It comes with two hard drives - one for fleyshedik (business software) and one for milchedik (games).

11) Instead of getting a 'General Protection Fault' error, your PC now gets 'Ferklempt.'

12) The multimedia player has been renamed to 'Nu, so play my music already!'

13) When your PC is working too hard, you occasionally hear a loud 'Oy Gevalt!'

14) Computer viruses can now be cured with matzo ball soup.

15) When disconnecting external devices from the PC, you are instructed to 'Remove the cable from the PC's tuchus.'

16) After your computer dies, you have to dispose of it within 24 hours.

17) But best of all, if you have a kosher computer, you can't get SPAM

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UPDATES and Fundraising Opportunities

TORAH STUDY On’gai Shabbat— Just a few openings left! THIS MONTH:

We still have a few openings left for those of you who Rabbi Mintz will lead Torah want to celebrate a simcha or commemorate the memory Study on Par’shat on T’tzaveh of a loved one by sponsoring an Oneg Shabbat. And for Saturday, March 3rd and on Par’shat Va-Yakhel- you foodies who want to get your Bobby Flay or Gordon Ramsey on, there’s still time! Check out the schedule Pekudei on Saturday, March 17th at her home at below; an opening is your opportunity: 10:00 AM. A bagel and lox brunch will be served on both dates. Please call the office at (702) 436-4900 March 2nd Sponsors: Carol & Larry Bernstein or email Rabbi Mintz at [email protected] to RSVP. Caterer: Gloria Granat March 16th Sponsors: Phyllis & Stan Zuckerman and Rozlyne Tessler Congregation P’nai Tikvah has a New URL, Caterers: Phyllis & Stan Zuckerman April 20th Sponsor: Art Kunis New Facebook and Twitter Addresses CATERING OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE May 4th Sponsor: Harriet Miller Make our new web address, www.pnaitikvahlv.org , a CATERING OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE Favorite! Our new website is currently under development; May 18th Sponsors: Phyllis & Stan Zuckerman we can’t wait to share the results with you!! Caterers: Phyllis & Stan Zuckerman June 1st SPONSOR & CATERING Social networking with your shul is easier than ever! OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE “Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ June 15th SPONSOR & CATERING pnaitikvahlv and follow us on Twitter at OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE www.twitter.com/pnaitikvahlv .

Call the office at (702) 436-4900 or email Doris Turrentine Thanks to member Danielle Holland—CPT’s social network at cptdoris@a for more information or to book your date maven—for keeping us current!! now!

Box Tops For Education are a Simple Congregation P’nai Tikvah Way to Support P’nai Tikvah’s Earns $3 Jewlicious Learning Program!

in MaxPerk Rewards Box Tops for Education is a very For Every Donated simple way for you to contribute Ink or Toner Cartridge to CPT’s Jewlicious Learning program every time you shop! Clip Just like any other organization, Con- box tops from hundreds of prod- gregation P’nai Tikvah uses a good deal of office sup- ucts. Each box top is worth 10 plies. As a member of Office Max MaxPerks program, cents for the program, and some products are offer- CPT earns MaxPerks rewards based on our purchases and ing double and triple box tops! Bring them to ser- also on used ink and toner cartridges we return to our local vices with you and place them in the “Box Tops for Office Max store. Donate your used HP, Dell and Education” box. For a complete list of products Lexmark ink and toner cartridges to us—either by bring- bearing the Box Tops for Education symbol, go to: ing them to services or dropping them off at the congrega- http://www.boxtops4education.com . tion office—and we’ll earn $3 in rewards for each cartridge. All Box Tops should be brought to Shabbat Services or sent to Dale Gardner

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Don’t Forget your Women’s Rosh Chodesh Veggies Calendar for the Year

As we journey through 5772, we don’t want you to miss a minute of what’s in store for Women’s Rosh Chodesh! The remaining meeting dates are:

Nisan/March 25 (at Roz Tessler’s) Iyyar/April 22 (at Linda Ortega- Kauffman’s) Sivan/May 20 (Yom Yerushalayim— we’ll attend the scheduled program at 3:00 PM at Midbar Kodesh Temple in Henderson, then grab a bite to eat after at the Cheesecake Factory

Thank you for opening your homes for the meet- WANTED: Help in Setting Up the ings. We will announce the locations and times of Worship Area all meetings in our service programs, in the newsletter and in email updates. Getting your home ready for a get-together can be pretty challenging...especially if you’re short on time and help. Well, our home at Kraft-Sussman (as great as it is) requires preparation and set-up Women’s Rosh Chodesh on Friday afternoons so it is ready for services on The ladies attending the Rosh Chodesh Adar get-together at Friday evenings. We could definitely use your Annie Goodrich’s home, Sunday evening, March 26th, had assistance with this! Set-up time is cut in half an eclectic experience. Not only did they welcome the new when a few people pitch-in. So step up to perform month, enjoy delicious refreshments, and discuss the topic this mitzvah (after all, of Purim from a feminine standpoint, they also went to the how close are you to the Oscars…well, virtually. The airing of the Oscars’ telecast magic number 613?) and was enjoyed with great delight. call the office at (702) th 436-4900 to volunteer. The next get-together will be March 25 at the home of Roz Tessler, when we will welcome the month of Nisan and fo- cus on Passover. Mitzvah Envelopes:

NEWSLETTER ADS: Mitzvah envelopes are given If you are interested in placing an ad in the out at services with the hope Kol Kiruv, you are welcome to send the ad to that they will be filled out and [email protected] The cost is $25 for 1/4 page, $50 returned with a donation for for 1/2 page, and $100 for a full page. Placement of the congregation. Honoring or remembering ad is subject to approval by the editor. loved ones, giving tzedakah for a MiShebeirach, simply being thankful for meaningful services, and any other reason you can think of helps the For details regarding current CPT fundraisers or congregation’s sustainability and funds future suggestions for future fundraising opportunities, programming. please contact Dale Gardner [email protected]

20 Shepping Nachas fun de Kinder!

   

Once a grand and beautiful suburban movie theater that— over time—fell into disrepair, the Des Plaines Theater underwent extensive renovation and re-opened in November 2011 to much fanfare, becoming a newly cherished venue for live theatrical performances and concerts.

CPT member Carly Matt is thrilled and thankful for the opportunity to perform in a series of cabaret-style shows from March 15th thru 18th at the Des Plaines Theater in Des Plaines, Illinois (a northwest Chicago suburb). When theater manager (and Carly’s childhood friend), Allison Orr, began to search for performances to stage at the newly-renovated and re-opened venue (formerly planned as a movie theater intended to screen “Bollywood” Hindi features), she immediately thought of Carly, knowing that her vocal talents and ability to beautifully perform material across a variety of musical genres would appeal to audiences from across the Chicagoland area. Orr presented Carly’s YouTube videos to her production staff who enthusiastically agreed that Carly should bring a “bit of Las Vegas” to the “Windy City”. Carly will perform songs from cinematic favorites—a nod to the theater’s former life as a movie house—as both a solo artist and accompanied by local opera and musical theater perform- er Rob Riddle. Tickets are $15. Tell your Chicagoland family and friends to take in one — or all— of Carly’s Restored to its former glory, the theater interior’s performances. They’ll be in for a real treat!! appointments pay tribute to a golden age while incorporating the latest in theater knowledge and technology.

Shepping Nachas fun de Kinder! We know you’re bursting at the seems with pride, so share with us your children’s and grandchildren’s accomplishments — we’d love to hear about them!! Email the editor at [email protected].

Jewlicious Learning

Our talmidim have been working on Hebrew, learning the Shma and V’ahavta, studying about Tu B’Shvat and Purim and, if that wasn’t enough, practicing to present a Pu- rimspiel for the whole congregation, March 8th. They hope you’ll all attend the Purim celebration and enjoy their skit, in which Gabriela Werner plays the part of “Lisa Stein, girl reporter,” Hannah Werner plays “Rebecca Rulin, Junior Journalist.” Our Scene Announcer is played by MayLee DeLee, “King Achashverosh” is played by Billy Matt, “Mordechai” is played by Jacob Koubi; Aaron Segal is a hilarious “Vashti”; Kalisheva Adler-Swanberg is “Queen Esther”; and Haman is played (with a great evil laugh) by Sammi Holland.

The whole class wishes T.A. Carly Matt a great run in her cabaret performances this month at the DesPlaines Theatre just west of Chicago. In her absence Samantha Owens is assisting Rabbi Mintz.

MITZVAH ENVELOPES

Barbara Holland -In memory of Dora Weiman, Jacob Weiman

& Eleanor Wohl Wayne Hornstein -In honor of Rabbi Mintz Rachel Piekarsky -In honor of Rabbi Mintz

Hedda Abbott -In memory of my mother Bertha Schachter Mi Shebeirach/”Get Well” Wishes to… Jon Axelrod Davida Lewin-Schermer Hedda Abbott -In memory of husband Jim Schermer William Ernst -In memory of my favorite aunt Hannah Nager Suzanne Frank -Special Thank You to Annie Goodrich & Levi for Garret & Isaac Lewin the beautiful flowers David Lieberman Kristen Jaeger & Tim Lockett Marjorie Lieberman -In memory of Felicia Johansen Dr. Jordan Lurie Dotti & Ken Elgart Paulee Marich -In memory of Dotti’s father Louis Silverman Lewis Mayron Harriet Miller "CHAI CONTRIBUTIONS" TO LIFE! Davida Lewin-Schermer Edith Rome—Here’s to a speedy recovery & To have a “Chai Contributions”…to life! sent out, please contact the office at 436-4900, or so indicate on your Mitzvah sunshine days envelope. Mitzvah Funds and Tribute Card funds are used Jay Segal to help maintain and grow the vital programs and services of Doris & Palmie Turrentine Congregation P’nai Tikvah.

TORAH FUND ISRAELI TREES

PRAYER BOOK DEDICATIONS It is customary to acknowledge the MiShebeirach For $40.00 a prayer book can be dedicated “In Memory” or prayers of the congregation with a small donation “In Honor of” and a card from CPT will be sent to the fami- made in your loved one’s honor. ly. The prayer book plate will be placed on the inside cover of our new Kol HaNeshamah siddur.

Happy March Birthday!!

Jason Deal March 8 Marge Lieberman March 10 Anjuli & Justin Adler-Swanberg March 1 Harriet Bernstein March 14 Zandra & Elliot Bender March 9 Lesley Korach March 15 Wendy & Laura Kraft Sussman March 11 De’Anne Ernst March 16 April & Jim Long March 12 Lesley Wagmeister March 19 Susan & Rick Bindhammer March 24 Laura Kraft Sussman March 26 Jana & John Khoury March 26

If we missed your birthday or an anniversary, we apologize. Please call the synagogue office at (702) 436-4900 so we can update and correct our records.

KIDZ KORNER for March/Adar/Nisan

YAHRZEITS FOR MARCH

Dear Lord,

I thank You for this day. I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving G-d and an understanding G-d. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for everything I have done, said or thought that was not pleasing to you.

Rudolph Berdy Michael Kosso -Remembered by Barbara Finkelberg & Lynn -Remembered by Kristen Jaeger & Tim Pisetzner Esther & Ben Marber Albert Bernstein -Remembered by Sam Marber -Remembered by Larry Bernstein Barbara Piekarsky Frank Brandt -Remembered by Ron, Jay & Allyssa Berri- -Remembered by Ann Brandt gan Piekarsky Irving Cohen Louis Tessler -Remembered by April Long -Remembered by Harriet Bernstein & Roz Abraham Feldman Tessler -Rememberd by Barbara Holland Henrietta Bloch Zuckerman Carolyn Gamerman -Remembered by Stan Zuckerman -Remembered by Iris Katz

Memorial plaques are available for your consideration

To honor the departed, To inspire the living. To be remembered in the hearts of Those we leave behind is, In a sense, to live forever. For further information, call the Synagogue office at 702-436-4900 Mitzvah donations also appreciated.

CALENDAR AT A GLANCE:

Mar 2 Tot Shabbat Service, 6:30 PM at Kraft-Sussman Chapel Kabbalat Shabbat & Maariv Services, 7:30 PM at Kraft-Sussman Chapel Mar 3 Torah Study, 10:00 AM at the Rabbi’s Home (Please RSVP) Mar 7 Fast of Esther Mar 8 Purim Megillah, 6:30 PM at Kraft-Sussman Chapel Mar 9 Shushan Purim Mar 11 Daylight Saving Time Burial or Cremation: The Jewish View 5:30 PM at Kraft-Sussman Chapel Mar 16 Kabbalat Shabbat & Maariv Services, 7:30 PM at Kraft-Sussman Chapel Mar 17 Torah Study, 10:00 AM at the Rabbi’s Home (Please RSVP) Mar 20 First Day of Spring Apr 6 First Seder Apr 7 Second Seder—CPT Community Seder, at UNLV Foundation Bldg , Blasco Event Wing (RSVP for tickets)

Blessing for the Month of Adar

May we be blessed to embrace the joy of Adar, to be cognizant of the miracles that surround us, and to be able to face our Amalekites with courage and conviction. Amen

Kol Kiruv, the newsletter of Congregation P’nai Tikvah, is available on-line at www.pnaitikvahlv.org at no cost. If mailed, hard copy delivery is $36 annually. Please notify us and remit payment .