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Chai Rollers Initiative to Tackle ‘Suicide Epidemic’ 1908 2016 108 years Emery kicks off football season The Texas Gulf Coast’s Jewish Newspaper Since 1908 Page 16 September 1, 2016 - 28 AV 5776 Volume CIX - Number 21 Houston, Texas jhvonline.com $2 Per Copy Houston student takes on administration over anti-Israel incidents By AARON HOWARD | JHV high school level. the effectiveness of student activism at the high What’s also new is that Jewish high school school level. As the fall semester begins on U.S. college students are refusing to be intimidated, even The Jewish Herald-Voice spoke with Terk by campuses, pro-Israel organizations forecast that when high school administrators fail to address phone from Austin, Texas, where he is preparing this year will see new levels of pro-Palestinian acts of bullying, vandalism and offensive conduct to start school at The University of Texas. student initiatives. These initiatives include against Jewish students. everything from resolutions calling for boycott, In November 2015, anti-Israel students at Carnegie incident divestment and sanctions against Israel; to intim- HISD’s Carnegie Vanguard High School covered On Nov. 1, 2015, a student at Carnegie posted idation and posting clearly anti-Semitic messages over Israeli flags during an International Festival at least two messages on social media. One post on social media. Some college campuses have and posted a Twitter message calling for intifada. on Twitter was a cartoon reproduction of a become environments where Jewish students Eliav Terk, then a senior at Carnegie, refused to character with horns and a Star of David lurking feel threatened, particularly if they identify remain silent. over a child. The Arabic caption called for intifada. themselves as being pro-Israel. Terk’s willingness to act, provide metic- Terk went to the school administration on Nov. What’s new is that anti-Israel student activ- ulous documentation and persistence in going 11 and spoke to Assistant Principal Juan Garner. ities no longer are only an issue on college above the high school administration when they campuses. They’ve also become a problem at the refused to take action, provide a case study in See Anti-Israel on Page 2 Eliav Terk Community-wide Chai rollers initiative to tackle ‘suicide epidemic’ By MICHAEL C. DUKE | JHV A network is being created to stem the tide of suicide among young adults in greater Houston’s Jewish community. As many as nine community members, all under the age of 36, have died by suicide over the past year-and-a-half, prompting concerns of an epidemic. Three such deaths occurred during this summer alone. They coincide with a larger national trend, in which suicide in the U.S. has surged to the highest levels in nearly 30 years, according to federal data. Among young adults under the age of 34, suicide has become a leading cause of death. In response, young adults, local leaders and mental health experts in Houston are formulating a community-wide initiative, aimed at supplying suicide-prevention training for people in the community, and providing support to survivors, including bereaved family members and friends. “This is too big a problem – we need to tackle it as an entire community,” said Linda Burger, CEO of Houston’s Jewish Family Service, who convened an emergency meeting on Aug. 25 to formulate a plan of action to deal with the crisis. Tomer Dagan, Devorah Kirsch, Jessica Cherem and Ori Gross were among the crowd of Houstonians who enjoyed the tables at TORCH Young “We need a community response to Professionals’ first-ever Casino Night on Aug. 27. The newly established TORCH Centre was decked out with blackjack, craps, roulette, and Texas Hold’em tables for an evening of gambling, food, drinks and fun. Rabbi Johnny Ouzzan, director of TORCH YP, fulfilled his vision of bringing local suicide and support of survivors,” Burger young professionals together to enjoy a celebration in TORCH’s new home in the community. At the end of the evening, the gambling came to a close and the chips were cashed out for tickets and prizes that were raffled off. See Suicide on Page 4 Generations of pioneering, giving and caring are in Selber’s DNA By ALICE ADAMS | JHV and commitment to improving the quality of life for all Houstonians, Selber, with deep humility, gives credit for Sara Speer Selber is a household name, given the her achievements to the past generations of her family. regular accolades she has earned over the years. So, it will Easily traced, her U.S. roots reach back to 1872 when come as no surprise to learn she will be receiving the Free her great-uncle, Abrom Kaplan, landed in New York from To Be Award during the 2016 Writers In The Schools Nov. his home in Most, Poland. He was 15, had virtually no 20 gala. money and had been abandoned by an acquaintance he Selber, who has been a WITS parent, as well as collabo- thought would help him navigate this new country. rator and social justice advocate, spends each day making As Johanna Kaplan wrote in “Abrom Kaplan’s Cajun a meaningful difference for the people and places of Dream,” the boy wandered until he happened upon a rabbi Houston. Robin Reagler, Ph.D., and executive director of and distiller who worked for his father back in Most. With WITS, applauds Selber, not only for launching Camp Hope, this man’s help, Kaplan acquired a stock of trinkets and in collaboration with WITS, making it the first camp for household items. He peddled them on the east end of the HIV-positive children in the South. That partnership was Brooklyn Bridge, then he traveled north and sold his wares formed about 20 years ago when Selber was chief executive along the back roads of Connecticut. of the AIDS Foundation of Houston and needed pointers “He soon heard about a ‘new Southwestern country,’ on journaling for her campers. and by 18 he had relocated to Crowley, La., where with “Sara passionately promotes poetry and Writers In The hard work, he became financially successful, able to Schools,” Reagler said, “and is a fierce champion of perfor- assist people from his Polish home who wanted to mance poetry for Houston’s teen writers.” JHV: MICHAEL C. DUKE But, with yet another award for ongoing leadership See Caring on Page 4 Sara Speer Selber RIVEROAKS 4807 Kirby Dr at Highway 59 • 713-524-3801 • riveroaksjeep.com CALL BLAKE HELFMAN TODAY AT 713-524-3801 4807 Kirby Drive • Houston, TX 77098 • riveroaksjeep.com Houston, TX 77098 Dip Into Kehillah High! Wednesday, September 7 7:30 - 9:00 pm Congregation Beth Israel 5600 N. Braeswood Blvd. Kick off the 2016-17 year with fun, food, and friends! Kehillah High is an innovative educational program for Jewish students in grades 8-12. Kehillah High is entering its second year as a multi-denominational partnership that includes Congregation Beth Israel, Congregation Beth Yeshurun, and Congregation Brith Shalom. Enrollment is also available to any Jewish teen whose affiliated synagogue does not have a formal teen educational program, and to any teen whose family is not affiliated with a synagogue. If you’re already enrolled in Kehillah High, welcome back! If you’re still thinking about it, join us and you can register that night. For more information, contact Danielle Alexander, Kehillah High Director at 713.271.7369 or [email protected] Partly funded by PAGE 2 JEWISH HERALD-VOICE SEPTEMBER 1, 2016 UP CLOSE Anti-Israel From Page 1 was rejected by the Carnegie High School administration. Terk voiced his concern about the image to “In their rebuttal, they repeatedly Garner and showed him the cartoon. attempted to portray me as the aggressor Garner said he could not determine who was seeking a form of vengeance at whether the cartoon was anti-Semitic the school. Additionally, at no point in the or not and that he would need to obtain rebuttal did they state they would prevent background information. Immediately after anything like this from happening again.” the meeting, Terk made detailed notes of the On June 16, the grievance was sent to conversation. the HISD Regional Superintendent Jennifer Nothing was done between the initial Topper. At that point, Topper reviewed the meeting and the school’s International An Iranian flag was put on top of an Israeli flag grievance and contacted Terk to arrange an Festival on Nov. 13. Organized by the An anti-Semitic Tweet posted by a Carnegie during International Day at Carnegie Vanguard interview to discuss the grievance and the International Club on campus, the High School student. High School. administration response. International Festival featured regional A meeting between Topper and Terk took booths with cuisine, music and fashion at all times. Students are expected to use presented a copy of the Tweet and a photo of place on June 21. shows from the countries in that region. social media responsibly. Misbehavior at any the scarf with the Hamas slogan, “Jerusalem “Mrs. Topper was extremely responsive One of the displays was a Middle East time, including bullying, cyberbullying, etc. is ours, we’re coming for it.” and in no way attempted to minimize or booth. On the border of the booth were ... that interferes with a student’s education Administrators promised to investigate delegitimize the validity of my grievance,” the flags of all the countries in the region, or substantially disrupts school operation is the scarf, speak formally with the students said Terk. including Israel. prohibited.” and contact the proper authorities in HISD. “She conducted a full investigation and Twice during the festival, the Israeli flag The Code of Student Conduct continues: By the beginning of the new school accepted my grievance,” he continued.
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