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JewishA publication of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, serving V the Berkshires and surrounding ice NY, CT and VT Vol. 27, No. 1 Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 January 1 to February 17, 2019 jewishberkshires.org

Come Together for a Community “Tehillim B’Zug” Havdalah and Concert Federation-supported Project Zug partnered A cappella singers of Pizmon headline a festive Berkshire and Israeli artists exploring the Book of mid-winter celebration Psalms

PITTSFIELD – On Saturday, February 2 by the Jewish Federation of the at 7:15 p.m., all are invited to a special Berkshires, Congregation Ahavath community-wide Havdalah and concert Sholom, Congregation Beth Israel, featuring the a cappella singing group Temple Anshe Amunim, Knesset Pizmon at Temple Anshe Amunim, Israel, Hevreh of Southern Berkshire, located at 26 Broad Street in Pittsfield. the Berkshire Minyan, and Berkshire This free event is co-sponsored Hills Hadassah. Partial funding is also provided by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation. Inside Pizmon features students from This fall, the Mishkan Museum of Art in Ein Harod featured work created The Story and the Stories...... 2 New York City’s Columbia University, collaboratively by Israeli and American artists participating in Project Zug (Hebrew Barnard College, and Jewish for “partnership”). Local Berkshire artists and others from our Southern New Marveling in Israel, Mobilizing Theological Seminary. It was founded England Consortium (SNEC) partners worked together with Israeli artists from the at Home...... 3 in 1987 as the first ever Jewish colle- Afula-Gilboa region to respond to passages from the Book of Psalms. Above is Your Federation Presents...... 5-8, 11-13 giate a cappella group and has traveled “I shout for joy at your handiwork” (92:5), an assemblage of mixed media elements fashioned by the Berkshires’ Heidi Katz and an oil painting by Shay Witelson of Local News...... 11-13 PIZMON CONCERT, Kibbutz Yizre’el. For more on the Federation-supported Project Zug, please see Thinking of You, Florida Snowbirds...... 14 continued on page 6 page 24. DEVOTED TO BOOKS Deborah Lipstadt wrote a new book Inside! Interviews with authors on anti-Semitism. Then Pittsburgh happened. Michael Wex and Aaron Thier, plus By Ben Sales / JTA a review of Barry Joseph’s book on bubbles NEW YORK (JTA) — The advance copies of Deborah Lipstadt’s new book, Antisemitism Here and Now, show a cover photo of a white supremacist carrying a tiki torch. But that iconic image of the August 2017 white power rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, could now be replaced by another one: Police tape cordoning off the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh. Or per- PERELSHTEIN VIA JTA PHOTO: OSNAT haps the row of cut-out stars display- Deborah Lipstadt, author of the ing the names of that massacre’s 11 forthcoming book Antisemitism Here victims. and Now Antisemitism, written in 2018 and due out in February, offers a concise course Charlottesville. and comprehensive overview of the Then the shooting happened. For various forms of Jew-hatred that have Lipstadt, the renowned Holocaust his- reappeared or intensified during the torian and Emory University professor, past few years. And before Pittsburgh, the tragedy in Pittsburgh was both there already was plenty to write a surprise and a reaffirmation of her about: anti-Semitic attacks in Europe; warnings. the “alt-right” in the US; the per- Lipstadt, 71, spoke with JTA in New sistence of Holocaust revisionism and York City about what the Pittsburgh denial; whether and when criticism of Israel qualifies as anti-Semitic; and of LIPSTADT BOOK, continued on page 23 Page 2 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019

Scholar Reflections The Story and the Stories By Louis D. Levine

Allow me to paraphrase the prophet Amos. I am punishment, and eventually is allowed to enter the Land of Israel, but not Moses. not a rabbi, nor the son of a rabbi. And while Amos The story is presented as a seamless narrative, and we mostly remember it protested too much, for he was indeed one of Israel’s as such. But if it is a single narrative, why, upon close reading, does it present great prophets, I can stake my claim with no fear so many contradictions? Why at one point does God tell Moses to take his “staff of contradiction. But I am greatly honored by the which turned into a snake” (Ex. 7:15), while several sentences later God instructs Berkshire Minyan, who asked that I represent them Moses to have Aaron do the task (7:19)? How, if all of the large animals owned by in the Rabbi Reflections column. the Egyptians have died in the fifth plague (9:6) can these animals be subject to On the last Shabbat of 2018, we began read- the skin disease of the sixth plague (9:10)? Why does the text call the mountain ing the central story in the Torah, the exodus from Sinai in Exodus and Horeb in Deuteronomy? Egypt. We all know the story. Jacob’s family comes to For our traditional commentators, these and countless others are not inconsis- Egypt, grows into the people Israel, and is enslaved. tencies, but purposeful variants in the single narrative, placed there as a source Baby Moses, miraculously rescued by Pharaoh’s for often brilliant homiletic interpretations. Modern Bible study has offered an daughter from the reeds, grows to manhood, flees alternative approach. Rather than see an original single narrative, scholars have Egypt, but is eventually commanded by God to postulated that many parallel versions of the stories circulated in antiquity, return and lead the people out of slavery. He does so and through a complex process that is now lost to us, they were edited into the reluctantly, certain that he is unequal to the task, and equally certain that nei- text we have before us. In that process, elements from more than one version ther Pharaoh nor the Israelites will pay him heed. He is right. were often incorporated, and through creative editing, harmonized as much as When Moses and his brother Aaron present themselves to Pharaoh and possible. demand in God’s name that the people Israel be released, Pharaoh dismisses How different were the stories? At times they seem to differ in details, as the them. God’s response is, “Now you will see what I shall do to Pharaoh, for through examples cited above indicate. But we have hints that far more fundamental dif- a strong hand will he (Pharaoh) send them off and through a strong hand will he ferences may have been present in antiquity. As an example, we can briefly turn drive them from his land.” The ten plagues follow, eventually convincing Pharaoh to another telling of the story we just to let the Israelites go. They leave Egypt, Pharaoh changes his mind and sets out outlined. Psalm 136 is traditionally What were these other in pursuit, and the miracle at the Reed Sea ensues. Moses then leads the people recited every Shabbat, and every fes- to the foot of Mt. Sinai, where the climactic moment of the tale occurs. All the tival day. It is recited at the Passover stories, these other people hear the voice of God and see God’s presence manifest in smoke, fire, and Seder table. Apparently originally a thunder. While Moses is on Sinai, Israel rebels, spends forty years in the desert as call-and-response poem, each of its versions that we no twenty-six lines ends with the refrain, longer have, or have only “for His kindness is forever.” The first half of those lines is largely a list of as hints? And what did we God’s kindnesses, mostly “historical” lose when our ancestors events. Verses 5-9 speak of creation, 10-15 of the exodus and the crossing created the single story? of the sea, 16-22 of the journey in the desert and the defeat of enemy kings, naming Sihon, king of the Amorites and Og, king of Bashan. What is so striking is what is omitted. Here we have no covenants with the Patriarchs, only one of the plagues, no manna, and no Sinai. The central event in the trajectory of the Jewish people, the giving of Torah, does not make it into the list of God’s kindnesses. I am not suggesting that the Psalmist did not recognize the obligations that the community had accepted. But apparently for him, in his telling of the story, the source point of those obligations did not loom large enough to rank with the killing of Sihon and Og. It leads us to wonder, what were these other stories, these other versions that we no longer have, or have only as hints? And what did we lose when our ancestors created the single story? Would the continued existence of multiple versions of our foundation story have enriched the tradition, or would they have impeded the weaving of the fabric that makes up the Jewish approach to Torah? If nothing else, as we create new foundation stories, it should lead us to consider what value may accrue in allowing for and preserving multiple versions, what dangers and opportunities lurk in allowing such an approach, and what will be lost or gained should we follow the ancients in creating only one, approved narrative.

Louis D. Levine, a member of the Berkshire Minyan in Great Barrington, served as the founding director of Collections and Exhibitions at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust from 1998 to 2011. While there, he was responsible for 25 exhibitions, including the award-winning “Ours To Fight For: American Jews in the Second World War” and “Fire in My Heart: The Story of Hannah Senesh.” Before coming to the museum, he served as Assistant Commissioner for Museums in the New York State Education Department and director of the New York State Museum, and prior to that as Director of Exhibits at the Royal Ontario Museum, where he was also a curator and head of the West Asian Department. He taught at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the University of Copenhagen; he was a Fulbright Fellow in Iran, the W.F. Albright Fellow of the American Schools of Oriental Research, and a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has written and/or edited seven books and monographs and dozens of articles and book reviews in the fields of archaeology, Assyriology, museum studies, and Holocaust studies. He is currently preparing a biography of Hannah Senesh, about which he recently lectured at Oxford University. Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 3 In My View After Seeing Our Good Work in Israel, Mobilizing to Confront a Frightening New Reality at Home By Dara Kaufman

In November, I had the privilege of traveling to when he visited the Israel for the Jewish Federation of North America’s Berkshires in 2016 as annual General Assembly (GA), which was followed the head of the delega- by a two-day mission to our Partnership2Gether tion of the Olive Tree region, Afula-Gilboa. I was joined by Federation Project, a co-existence board member Judy Cook and her husband Jeffrey, art exhibition that and by Leslie Kozupsky, the Federation’s develop- Federation presented at ment officer. the Berkshire Museum. The day the GA ended, our Berkshire delegation We were quickly put traveled with community members from Hartford, to work making sand- New Haven, Stamford, Worcester, Springfield, and wiches for the commu- New Bedford to learn more about the Afula-Gilboa nity center’s Sandwich region and to see, firsthand, some of the projects Club. We were dis- our federations were funding through our support mayed to learn that the of the Southern New England Consortium (SNEC) of local schools were not Partnership2Gether. equipped to provide That evening, we met up with our friend Yonish, co-founder of the regional lunch during the school grassroots co-existence group Marching Together Towards a Shared Future, and day. Kids eat only if they the leader of a group of Israeli Jewish and Muslim photographers who had pre- bring something from sented their exhibition, “Dialogue through the Lens,” in the Berkshires last year. home. Unfortunately, He had arranged for the group to be hosted for dinner at the homes of four Israeli many families do not Arab families in the Gilboa region. have the ability to send It was a fascinating evening, and a first for all of us. The Zoabi family wel- their child with a sand- comed my group with a beautiful dinner and Yousef, the patriarch, was joined by wich, which means four of his nine sons and three of his daughters-in-law as we sat in deep conver- that many kids must sation late into the night. We covered it all, from politics, to the security situa- go the entire day trying tion, to discrimination, to cultural differences and raising families. They were not to learn on an empty naïve, and they stomach. firmly believed Daniel and his staff that they could affect change by IN MY VIEW, Development officer Leslie Kozupsky (right) with her Jews and Arabs continued on page 4 hostess in Afula-Gilboa getting to know one another and articulat- ing their com- mon goals for their families and shared community. The next day, we stopped at the Valley Rape Crisis Center in Afula, which was founded 12 years ago with the support of C. Jeffrey Cook and Federation board member Judith Cook in our SNEC part- Israel ners. Prior to the creation of this important center, women who experienced sexual assault had to travel over 90 minutes to Haifa in order access services and receive counseling and trauma support. The center continues to receive funding from our Federation and other SNEC partners. We met Outreach and Support Coordinator Sari Bru, who shared how the center is working to prevent sexual violence through educational workshops in Dinner with the Zoabi family schools and by offering support through crisis intervention and counseling. The center received over 1,500 calls and worked with more than 450 clients last year. Later that day, we met up with Daniel Benn, the executive director of Afula’s community centers, who shared with us the amazing work the centers are doing to create resiliency in underprivileged neighborhoods. We first met Daniel Berkshire

JAewish publicationA publication of of the the Jewish Jewish Federation Federation of the Berkshires, of the serving Berkshires, V the Berkshires serving and surrounding the ice Berkshires NY, CT and and VT surrounding NY, Berkshire CT and VT

Published nine times a year by the JA ewishpublicationA publication ofof the the Jewish Jewish Federation Federation of the Berkshires, of the serving Berkshires,V the Berkshires serving and surrounding the ice Berkshires NY, CT and VT and surrounding NY, CT and VT Jewish Federation of the Berkshires The color photography in this issue of the Berkshire Jewish Voice is made possible through the generosity of Michael P. Dara Kaufman: Publisher and Managing Editor and Susan Albert, honorary publishers. The staff of the Michael P. and Susan Albert: Honorary Publishers Albert Stern: Editor Federation and the BJV are deeply grateful. Rose Tannenbaum: Graphic Design and Layout Jenny Greenfeld: Advertising Sales Representative and Assistant Editor

Thank you volunteers Ellen Rosenblatt and the BJV delivery team, Editorial opinions expressed in the Berkshire Jewish Voice are those of the Mitch Greenwald, Roman Rozenblyum, and Ron Turbin newspaper and not those of any individual. Signed editorials do not represent the view of the newspaper, but rather express the writer’s view. The Berkshire Jewish Voice is under no obligation to accept any advertisement. It does not guarantee the kashrut of any merchandise or service advertised. To have the BJV mailed to your home, please send a minimum donation of $18 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Berkshire Jewish Voice welcomes signed letters on subjects of interest to the Next issue publication date: February 18, 2019 – April 7, 2019 Jewish community. Letters are printed upon space availability. The BJV reserves Press deadline: January 8, 2019 • Advertising deadline: January 30, 2019 the right to edit all letters for content, length, and style. The BJV does not print Berkshire Jewish Voice e-mail: [email protected] anonymous letters, insults, libelous or defamatory statements. Published letters do Phone: (413) 442-4360, ext. 11 Fax (413) 443-6070 not represent the views of the Federation, its board of directors, or the newspaper, but rather express the views of their authors. For verification purposes, please include full name, home address, and a day and evening telephone number. Send letters to: Berkshire Jewish Voice, 196 South Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201, or email: [email protected]. Paid advertisements do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires or its members. Page 4 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019

Letters to the Editor IN MY VIEW, continued from page 3 realized this one day when, at a community dinner, a teen asked Thank You Jewish Berkshires, from the Salzmann Family if he could take his meal home instead of eating it there. When asked why, he replied that he would rather give it to his little Dear Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, brother to have at school the next day. From that day forward, My dearest friend and special companion of 68 Daniel enlisted the community center’s teens to help make years was a collector of precious objects. Among his hundreds of sandwiches that are distributed each morning to possessions of most importance were people, those he kids who show up to school with no food. Today, over 150 teens called friends and who became his extended family. volunteer to make 1,000 sandwiches each week. But, as we I would like to thank all of our family of friends learned, the need is really double that. from the Jewish Federation for the generosity and Later that evening, we had a chance to meet old friends and kindness that they shared in loving memory of Rabbi make new ones as we traveled to Kibbutz Ein Harod Ichud for Harold. Rabbi’s concern and compassion left us the opening exhibition of Project Zug. (Please see related article better than before. Again, on behalf of myself and on page 24.) It was a privilege to represent the many Berkshire my children, Ariel and Josh, we want to thank you, artists – Pam Wax, Chaim Bronstein, Jeff Kramer, Jennifer Burt, dear friends, for your honor paid in loving memory of Regina Karas, Heidi Katz, and Francine Licata – who participated Rabbi. and whose beautiful artwork was on view. Sincerely, We were fortunate to be joined at the opening by many Israeli Audrey Salzmann friends from previous living bridge programs who came to share Lenox their support and reconnect. Mashrachz Zaobi and Nava Teitler had visited us as part of the Olive Tree Project exhibition, and David Beutler and Rina Cohen had cooked our community Camp was Amazing, Truly Very Vibrant and Different a fabulous dinner as part of Federation’s “Hafla: Israel at 70 Celebration” this past March. David also hosted Hevreh’s teens Dear Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, Special, Very Nice, and at Kibbutz Yizre’el when they were in Israel this past February. Thank you for helping to enable me to attend I loved seeing that those “people to people” connections were Interesting/Fun URJ Crane Lake Camp this summer. Camp was beginning to spread far and wide throughout the Afula-Gilboa Dear Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, a fantastic opportunity for me to gain new skills, region and our Berkshire Jewish community. These connections Thank you very much for providing me have fun, and reconnect with my Jewish faith. enrich our community and strengthen our bonds with Israel in a with the opportunity to attend Crane Lake Nearly all aspects of camp were fantastic, but most very real and personal way. Camp this summer. Going to camp was an of all the Maccabiah games and the services in the As our visit concluded, I traveled to Tel Aviv to spend the amazing experience! I attended camp for beautiful outdoor sanctuary. Services at camp are weekend with my brother-in-law and his family. Arriving back at three weeks and I loved it. The atmosphere truly a very vibrant and different sort of prayer their apartment late Saturday evening, we turned on the news at camp was incredible and it was really than I am used to. The Maccabiah games or Color to see the tragic and horrific events unfolding in Pittsburgh. amazing to know that everyone there was War was exciting and as an Olim captain, also very The following day, just before I got on the plane to come home, also Jewish. All the activities at camp were stressful in a new leadership role. However, it was I emailed our rabbis and leaders inviting them to a community really interesting/fun. Some of my favor- one of the most rewarding things I have ever done. meeting to discuss how we would respond to this frightening ites were hockey, soccer, softball/baseball Thank you, and heart-wrenching new reality. Hours later I arrived at the and football. I loved all the activities at the Daniel Munch Federation to see our conference room filled with Jewish, inter- lake too, whether it be playing on the giant Lenox water inflatables, going tubing with one of faith, and civic leaders. my friends, or going water skiing for my first I don’t think I have ever been prouder of our community than time (I stood up until my time was over)!!! Truly, It is a Many Splendored I was in the days that followed that meeting and the resulting I also really enjoyed color war, even community vigil. though my team lost. Shabbat was also very Thing To move so swiftly from seeing the impact of our work as a community in Israel to standing in community with our neigh- nice, particularly Friday’s Shabbat dinner Dear Jewish Federation of the Berkshires. bors here in the Berkshires and in Pittsburgh, reminded me and both services on Friday and Saturday. Thank you for helping us go to Eisner Day just how grateful I am for the work of our Federation and what The doughnuts with Saturday’s breakfast Camp. We loved it. I (Gabriel) loved swimming. I an honor it is to represent each of you in our effort to make our and having the whole day for free play made (Ezra) loved swimming. We loved our counselors. world a better, safer, and more just place for all. Shabbat really special!! Thank you for help- Camp Eisner is just the best. We cannot wait for ing me go to camp and have this amazing next year. Thank you. Thank you! Dara Kaufman is executive director of the Jewish Federation of opportunity. Love, the Berkshires. Sincerely, Ezra and Gabriel O’Dell – 5 years old Aliza Munch Great Barrington Lenox

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38 MAIN STREET 6 MAIN STREET 35 RAILROAD STREET W. STOCKBRIDGE, MA CHATHAM, NY GT. BARRINGTON, MA (413) 232-4253 (518) 392-0332 (413) 528-4211 Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 5 Your Federation Presents Chair Yoga: Easy Yoga for Connecting With Community Programs/ Mobility and Peace of Mind Kosher Hot Lunch On Thursday, January 3 at the Massachusetts Housing 10:45 a.m., join Linda Novick Authority. Programs in the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires’ Connecting With for “Chair Yoga: Easy Yoga for She explains that her Community series are free and start at 10:45 a.m. most Mondays and Flexibility, Mobility, and Peace approach to yoga encourages Thursdays at Knesset Israel (16 Colt Road, Pittsfield). Programs are followed of Mind.” This free program at everyone to listen and love by a kosher hot lunch. Lunch is a $2 suggested donation for adults over 60 Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road in their body. Her yoga classes years of age or $7 for all others. Advance reservations are required for lunch Pittsfield is part of the Jewish encourage gentle stretching, Federation of the Berkshires’ proper breathing, strength and and can be made by calling (413) 442-2200 before 9 a.m. on the day of the Connecting With Community balance. She attended Pratt program. Lunch alone is also served Tuesday. series. Institute in Brooklyn and has For further information on all programs, please call Nancy Maurice Linda Novick says: “Chair a BFA in art education, and Rogers, program director, at (413) 442-4360, ext. 15. For lunch menus and Yoga is appropriate for peo- has taught art for 50 years. ple of all levels of mobility. It She’s been teaching yoga a chronological list of all scheduled programs, please see page 17. Note is a series of breathing and since 1997, and lately has that lunch menus are subject to change. stretching exercises done in a been focusing on easy yoga chair, which increases mobil- for elders. She taught on staff ity of the joints, flexibility, at Kripalu Center for 7 years, strength and stamina. Some and is now a regular pre- of the exercises are performed senter, offering programs that The Process of Aging, with Maggie Bittman standing behind the chair, combine painting and yoga. while holding on. Participants She’s the author of the book, On Monday, January 14 aloneness; and engaging free will learn breathing techniques The Painting Path: Embodying and Monday, February 11 will. to enhance lung capacity, as Spiritual Discovery through at 10:45 a.m., the Jewish Bittman will highlight how well as easy stretches and Yoga, Brush and Color. Federation of the Berkshires this is a lifelong process, and yoga postures. Yoga is good presents “The Process of the ways people return to for all bodies. Beginners are IF YOU GO Aging” with therapist Maggie these existential truths at each welcome.” Bittman. This free program at stage of life with the added Linda Novick, MFA, is an Sponsor: Jewish Federation Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road, wisdom that comes with aging. author, teacher, artist, and of the Berkshires / Connecting in Pittsfield, is part of the Within this context, partici- professional level Kripalu With Community Federation’s Connecting With pants will discuss, share and Yoga teacher. She currently Venue: Knesset Israel Community series. offer support, as they explore teaches yoga at Berkshire Date & Time: Thursday, This program will provide these existential truths. West Fitness Center and January 3 at 10:45 a.m., an opportunity to be part of a Kimball Farms, and all over followed by lunch (see page 17). group dialogue, created and IF YOU GO the Commonwealth with facilitated by Bittman, who will explain her outlook and Sponsor: Jewish Federation of approach, emphasizing that the Berkshires / Connecting With aging begins at birth. She will Community discuss how all of us are con- Venue: Knesset Israel fronted with four existential Date & Time: Monday, truths as we age – the search January 14 and Monday, to find meaning and purpose; February 11 at 10:45 a.m., Therapist Maggie Bittman facing mortality; experiencing followed by lunch (see page 17).

For further information on all Jewish Federation of the Berkshires programs, please call Nancy Maurice Rogers, Program Director, at (413) 442-4360, ext.15. Social Welfare History – Past to Present On Thursday, January 17 at 10:45 a.m., join University and social work practice at Rhode Rosalind Kopfstein (DSW, LCSW, and MSW) for Island College. She serves as co-president of “Social Welfare History – Past to Present,” a pro- Berkshire Hills Hadassah, and is chair of the gram on the evolution of public policy on pro- Human Services Advisory Council for the City viding aid to those in need. This free program of Pittsfield. at Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road in Pittsfield is part of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires’ IF YOU GO Connecting With Community series. Says Kopfstein: “Social workers are trained Sponsor: Jewish Federation of to help people, but social policy determines the the Berkshires / Connecting With limits on how we can provide assistance. From Community the Poor Laws of England in 1601 to the Social Venue: Knesset Israel Security Act of 1935 to the current law titled Date & Time: Thursday, January 17 TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families at 10:45 a.m., followed by lunch of 1996), we see similarities in how people are (see page 17). judged, assisted, and labeled. The culture of who we help, and why we help some and not others, will be explored.” Rosalind Kopfstein was director of Jewish Family Services in Danbury, CT for 13 years and is a licensed clinical social worker, prac- ticing since 1973 in the fields of aging and devel- opmental disabilities. She also taught sociology at Western Connecticut State

You may request that the Berkshire Jewish Voice be mailed to your home. Just email us at [email protected] for information. Page 6 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 Your Federation Presents

PIZMON CONCERT, continued from page 1 Volunteers will also be needed to transport Pizmon mem- to hundreds of communities just as immaturely as they do. bers to and from the Metro in the New York metropoli- At the same time as we bond, North Wassaic train station tan area, across the coun- however, we teach them and on Friday afternoon and try (including a performance they let themselves be taught Sunday morning, as well as for President Obama in because we are not ‘teachers’.” to their respective lodgings Washington, DC), and around Their diverse repertoire and between services and the world, including stops in includes fun songs, Jewish gatherings. Wales, Great Britain, Canada, rock, liturgical works, Yiddish Please call Myrna Israel, South America, and classics, catchy new melodies Hammerling at (413) 445- Ukraine. The singers share to prayers, inspiring spiritual 4872, ext. 16 if you are able to their music at day schools, harmonies, and other genres. provide overnight accommoda- nursing homes, synagogues, The group is co-ed and plural- tions (North, Central or South) USY events, and college istic, with members originat- or are willing to be a driver. campuses. ing from nearly every Jewish Not only do the members background. Pizmon in concert of Pizmon sing in various set- tings, they have adopted as Volunteers Needed their motto: “Jewish Outreach Are you able to help wel- Through Music.” About their come our guests and make Berkshire Hillsmen Chorus Sings for You focus on the younger gener- them feel at home in the On Thursday, February 7 ation and their parents, one Berkshires? member explains: “We as a at 10:45 a.m., enjoy the Volunteers are needed to a cappella song stylings group and as individuals can host the fourteen students for make a connection to the of the Berkshire Hillsmen meals and overnight. A few Chorus in a free program at younger generation better students who are Shabbat than our parents can. We Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road observant will need to be in Pittsfield, part of the Jewish dress like the kids, we talk like within walking distance to them, and sometimes, we act Federation of the Berkshires’ one of our local synagogues. Connecting With Community series. The Berkshire Hillsmen is a chorus with the Barbershop Harmony Society. Rehearsing in Richmond, the chorus website! has members who live in Check out our Massachusetts, New York, and Connecticut. Originally based in Pittsfield, the chorus moved District,” which includes quar- training. While some members www.jewishberkshires.org to the Congregational Church tets and choruses from east- can read music, all learn the in Richmond which is more ern New York, New England, songs with recordings on CD centrally located for the mem- and, in Canada, choruses from that are specific for each indi- For calendar listings and events bers. After more than 50 years Quebec to Newfoundland. The vidual part. of singing in the Berkshires, Hillsmen have been named they still the “small chorus champion” IF YOU GO enjoy lifting numerous times. their voices The repertoire of the Sponsor: Jewish Federation in song. Hillsmen includes songs from of the Berkshires / Connecting The the 1890s to the Beatles and With Community Hillsmen beyond, Broadway tunes, and Venue: Knesset Israel compete with patriotic numbers. The mem- Date & Time: Thursday, Febru- other cho- bers of the Hillsmen have a ary 7 at 10:45 a.m., followed by ruses in the variety of backgrounds, but lunch (see page 17). “Northeast only a few have had musical

Two Programs on Combating Cognitive Decline This winter, Connecting With Community will twice host Meghan Lemay, regional manager of The Alzheimer’s Association in Western Massachusetts, for programs relating to cognitive decline. The Alzheimer’s Association works to provide care and support for all of those affected by Alzheimer’s and of the Berkshires’ Connecting With other dementia, as well as to reduce Community series. the risk of dementia through the pro- The Alzheimer’s Association works motion of brain health. to provide care and support for all On Monday, January 7, “Healthy of those affected by Alzheimer’s Living for Your Brain and Body” and other dementia, as well as to presents information on the latest reduce the risk of dementia through research around how nutrition, exer- the promotion of brain health. The cise, social engagement, and cognitive Alzheimer’s Association also runs a activity can improve the aging process 24/7 Helpline which is open and avail- and reduce one’s risk of cognitive able anytime day or night to answer decline. a quick question or provide in-depth On Monday, February 4, care consultation, emotional support, Lemay returns for “Understanding educational information, or resource Alzheimer’s and Dementia,” which and referral. Alzheimer’s Association will offer an opportunity to learn 24/7 Helpline: (800) 272-3900. about the impact of Alzheimer’s, the difference between Alzheimer’s and dementia, the stages and risk fac- IF YOU GO tors of Alzheimer’s, current research Sponsor: Jewish Federation of the Berk- and treatments, and Alzheimer’s shires / Connecting With Community Association resources. Venue: Knesset Israel These free programs at Knesset Date & Time: Monday, January 7 and Israel, 16 Colt Road in Pittsfield Monday, February 4 at 10:45 a.m., fol- are part of the Jewish Federation lowed by lunch (see page 17). Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 7 Your Federation Presents How to Build a Just, Thriving, and Safe Berkshire Community On Thursday, February as leaders in building their 14 at 10:45 a.m., we own community and holds ewishA publication of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, serving the Berkshires and surroundingice NY, CT and VT J V welcome Alisa Costa, a vision for all people in the initiative director for Pittsfield to experience a Working Cities Pittsfield, just, thriving, and safe a resident-driven initia- community that leads to Thank you to our supporters! tive focused on building an improved quality of life. The Berkshire Jewish Voice extends a very special “thank economic opportunity for Ms. Costa has 20 years you” for the generosity extended thus far by 177 house- all regardless of back- of non-profit social justice holds as of today who have sent in their contributions for ground. She will speak on advocacy experience. She voluntary subscriptions to the paper in 2018. the topic, “How to Build moved to the Berkshires a Just, Thriving, and two years ago from New Anonymous (2) Marilyn Dukoff Safe Community.” This York’s Capital Region, Sylvia Allan Irene Goldman-Price free program at Knesset where she worked for sev- Ellen and Burt Downes Jerry Rodman Israel, 16 Colt Road in eral non-profit social jus- Pittsfield, is part of the tice organizations includ- Jewish Federation of the ing Planned Parenthood, Berkshires’ Connecting With Community series. the New York AIDS Coalition, and New York SEED WHAT YOU READ! BECOME A SUBSCRIBER TODAY! Asks Alisa Costa: “What happens when we Civil Liberties Union. Yes, I support the Berkshire Jewish Voice! Please accept my vol- look at our community through the lens of eco- untary tax-deductible subscription contribution. nomic class? How does it change the way we see IF YOU GO each other and interact? If we understand these Sponsor: Jewish Federation of the Berkshires / _____ $360 Mensch & Honorary Publisher differences, can we change the way our commu- Connecting With Community (Supports color printing in one edition of the Voice) nity functions so it benefits everyone? In this interactive program, learn about these differ- Venue: Knesset Israel _____ $180 Sponsor Mail check payable to: ences and how small changes can make a big Date & Time: Thursday, February 14 at 10:45 a.m., _____ $72 Patron Jewish Federation of the Berkshires difference in our community.” followed by lunch (see page 17). _____ $36 Friend 196 South Street, Pittsfield, MA 01201 Working Cities Pittsfield celebrates residents _____ $18 Supporter (Please add Berkshire Jewish Voice in the memo)

Name to be listed: ______Film: King – Man of Peace in a Time of War p I wish to remain anonymous On Monday, January 28 at 10:45 a.m. Connecting With Community will screen the film King – Man of Peace in a Time of War to honor the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This 60-minute documentary features exclusive interviews with such notables as Jesse Jackson, Quincy Jones, and Colin Powell Volunteers Are Vital that provide fresh insight into the life and per- Another Pajama Drive Success! sonality of the late civil rights leader. In time for the holidays, our PJ Department of Children & Families. A IF YOU GO Library and the Jewish Federation special shout out to Annie Selke and of the Berkshires collected over 180 Pine Cone Hill for donating robes, blan- Sponsor: Jewish Federation of the Berkshires / new pairs of pajama sets and bot- kets, and tote bags. Connecting With Community toms to help Berkshire kids keep Venue: Knesset Israel warm this winter! We thank everyone Todah Rabah! Date & Time: Monday, January 28 at 10:45 a.m., for their generous donations to this B’shalom, followed by lunch (see page 17). important community program for the Susan Frisch Lehrer, Coordinator of Berkshire Office of the Massachusetts Volunteers and the PJ Library

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Call Now To Schedule healthyimagema.com 413.458.6294 [email protected] 616 Main Street | Williamstown Ma Free consultation Private & Convenient Appointments Page 8 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 Your Federation Presents New Storytelling Workshop: Turkish Kurdistan, with Chris Andersen “A Day in the Life…” On Thursday, January 31 at 10:45 a.m., meet Chris Starting on Monday, series. The first session will Andersen, who will talk about December 31 at 10:45 a.m., focus on discussions based his childhood adventures in Program Director Nancy on recollecting and rekindling Asia Minor in a program titled Maurice Rogers of the those stories. You may decide “Turkish Kurdistan.” This free Federation will present and to come to this first session program at Knesset Israel, 16 curate a three-part personal with one story in mind; if not, Colt Road in Pittsfield, is part storytelling series titled “A the flow of ideas will assist of the Jewish Federation of the Day in the Life…” This free you in finding that story. In Berkshires’ Connecting With program at Knesset Israel, 16 the second session, our oral Community series. Colt Road in Pittsfield, is part stories will turn into simple Chris Andersen had the rare of the Jewish Federation of the writings. We will keep it to a and transformative opportunity Berkshires’ Connecting With short format, making it easy to live in Turkey as a young Community series. to approach and accomplish. teen with his family. It was Subsequent sessions will As we write our ‘Day in the 1954, and Turkish Kurdistan be held on Thursday, January Life…’ story, it becomes part of was not embraced by Turkish 24 and Monday, February 25, our legacy and something for nationals. Andersen will share also at 10:45 a.m. posterity. how he found a way to discover “The third and last session the rich and hidden culture will be an opportunity for peo- of the Kurds and, on the way, Kurdish people on horseback ple to share their ‘Day in the experienced self discovery, as Life…’ short story. People may well. In this program he shares Hospital. In the Berkshires, children through specialized listen to the stories of others with us the risks and the Chris has opened his home foster care, while raising his and/or share their own – no adventures that drove him in throughout years working with own family. pressure. These sessions are this direction. intended as a way to access Later in life, Chris our own lives as well as hear Andersen served as captain in from others. This is a one the US Army. In civilian life, IF YOU GO story, one entry approach and he worked in hospital emer- Sponsor: Jewish Federation of the Berkshires / Connecting With is accessible for anyone inter- gency rooms and operating Community ested in participating.” rooms from Arizona to New Venue: Knesset Israel Says Nancy: “A story from Hampshire and with patients Date & Time: Thursday, January 31 at 10:45 a.m., followed by lunch the pages of our lives can be IF YOU GO at the Northampton State (see page 17). drawn from our childhoods or from our lives as adults. These Sponsor: Jewish Federation stories are chapters from our of the Berkshires / Connecting lives that we carry with us. With Community They inform our lives and the Venue: Knesset Israel Scam and Fraud Awareness and Prevention lives of those we choose to Date & Time: Monday, Decem- On Thursday, January 10 scams and fraud happening share them with. ‘A Day in the ber 31, Thursday, January 24 at 10:45 a.m., learn about in our area, as well as how to Life…’ presents an opportunity and Monday, February 25 at “Scam and Fraud Awareness recognize the signs of potential for us to access these stories. 10:45 a.m., followed by lunch and Prevention” from two fraud and tips to help you avoid (see page 17). “This will be a three-session local financial services pro- becoming a victim. fessionals from MountainOne “Scams can happen to any- Bank. This free program at one, anywhere, with criminals Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road in using both technology and traditional con- Pittsfield, is part of the Jewish artist tactics,” says Kozak. “This program will Federation of the Berkshires’ assist you in developing awareness for potential Connecting With Community scams before they happen.” series. MountainOne Bank’s Dick IF YOU GO Hamantashen Alcombright (Vice President – Local Business & Customer Sponsor: Jewish Federation of the Berkshires / Relations Manager) and Connecting With Community By the dozen Kelli Kozak (Vice President – Venue: Knesset Israel Community Engagement) will Date & Time: Thursday, January 10 at 10:45 a.m., present on current types of followed by lunch (see page 17).

This Winter, Don’t Kvetch – Stretch at PJ Library Yoga Havdalah and Dinner GREAT BARRINGTON – On Saturday, February 2 from 4:30-6:30 p.m., get out of the cold with our PJ Library program featuring yoga and Havdalah at Lifeworks Studio, 50 Castle Street. Dress in your PJs and come ready to relax with some aleph-bet yoga, sing some songs, and prepare for the new week ahead. This event is FREE and recommended for ages 3-7. Pizza and dessert will be served, but an RSVP before January 30 is a must. Please RSVP at (413) 442-4360, ext. 10 or [email protected]. PJ Library is made possible for Berkshire families through a community partnership of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, the Spitz Tuchman Family Fund, the Jewish Women’s Foundation, and the Harold Grinspoon Foundation.

Central County orders may be picked up at KI Mon. Mar. 11 through Fri. Mar. 15. 10:00–12:00 and 2:00–4:00.

North County orders may be picked up at Congregation Beth Israel on Mon. Mar. 18 and Tues. Mar. 19 from 10:00–2:00.

South County orders may be picked up at Hevreh on Mon. Mar. 18 and Tues. Mar. 19 from 12:00–4:00. Homemade by KI volunteers! Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 9

LOCAL NEWS Trying to Beat the Winter Shabbat Shira and Community Shabbat Blues? Hadassah has a Dinner Great Solution GREAT BARRINGTON – On Friday, January 18 at LENOX – By mid-January most of us have had it: the cold, the 6:15 p.m., Hevreh of Southern ice, and the snow. We all need a break! Berkshire comes together for So why not give Berkshire Hills Hadassah’s “Baby It’s Cold Shabbat dinner, sponsored Outside Cabaret” a go? On Sunday, January 20 from 4 to 6 p.m., by the Harold Grinspoon all are invited to come and warm up with good food, friends, and Foundation and Shabbat music at the Gateways Inn, 50 Walker Street, Lenox. Shira, to celebrate the beau- Cabaret entertainers Laura Rosenthal and Jane Rosen tiful music that inspires will dazzle everyone with beautiful melodies from “The Great Shabbat of Song. This year’s American Songbook.” Shabbat Shira theme is Enjoy entertainment and refreshments, with a cash bar. “Justice and Joy.” Kindly RSVP by January 16 with payment of $36 per person to: This Shabbat service will Berkshire Hills Hadassah, P.O. Box 187, Pittsfield, MA 01202 combine the Hevreh Choir (led by Amy Renak) with the choir from Zion Lutheran Church Calling All Villagers – (also led by Amy) for an uplift- ing and inspiring Shabbat Hamentaschen Baking Shira, or the Shabbat of Song. Shabbat Shira marks the reading of Parashat Beshalach, Commences at KI which includes Moses’ famous PITTSFIELD – It takes a village to make the thousands of “Song of the Sea.” Together hamentaschen that roll out of Knesset Israel’s kitchen every with student cantor Shani winter. Cohen, the blended choirs will This year, the combined forces of Knesset Israel’s bakers, the lead participants in a musi- late Joe Madison’s friends from the Monday Morning Mountain cal experience filled with joy, Boys, Federation volunteers (adults and campers), and Knesset intention, and a focus on Israel Hebrew School students will meet every Sunday from justice. 9:30 a.m. to noon and every Thursday evening 5:30 to 8 p.m. The Community Shabbat from January 20 until February 28 to fill Knesset Israel with the Dinner, hosted by Hevreh’s warmth of volunteering and the wonderful aroma of just-baked religious school 3rd, 4th, and cookies. 5th grade classes, will immedi- From the dough makers cracking hundreds of eggs, to the ately follow services. preschoolers decorating bags for senior citizens for Joe’s Project, Hevreh requests fami- Educational family fun at Hevreh, led by Rabbi Jodie Gordon (top to baggers putting together mishloach manot bags, this project lies and individuals RSVP in center) needs a lot of volunteers. advance for this free dinner, If you are a baker, want to learn to bake, can help clean up which is sponsored by the Hirsch and Rabbi Gordon Hevreh welcomes inter- and pack baked cookies, or are just volunteering so you can Harold Grinspoon Foundation. for this special Shabbat faith families, GLBTQ families, Graphic Design get first dibs on warm cookies, please contact Cindy Helitzer RSVP forms can be found on Celebration. It’s a wonderful nursing moms, babies and sib- www.tgo.com at [email protected] or call (413) 499-1202 and leave a Hevreh’s website at Hevreh. way to learn more about the lings of all ages, grandparents message. org. All Shabbat servicesBarbara at GreenfeldHevreh community and see and special people, new mem- If you would like to volunteer to help with the Jewish Hevreh areProof open of adto for:the com______- the religious school in action. bers, Pleasefirst timers, respond neighbors, by ______Federation of the Berkshires’ Joe’s Project – kids decorating the munity and participation is Immediately following ser- and friends. BJV May 2016 bags (now until March 1), packing mishloach manot bags and welcome.Publication: ______vices, a special Kiddish lunch Communityto: (Tel) 413/Shabbat 528-0328 on (Fax) 413/ 528-0328 [email protected] delivering them to homebound Jewish seniors (mid-March), then Come sing in Shabbat with will be served. This program February 8 contact Susan Frisch Lehrer at [email protected] or Hevreh! ASend wonderful to: [email protected] to is free and open to the com- On❏ Friday, Changes February req’d. & 8new at proof (413) 442-4360, ext. 14. stay warm in the Berkshires. munity and does not require 6:15 p.m., Hevreh hosts a New this year is the introduction of locations in north and No. of pages (inc. cover): ______pre-registration.1 Community❏ Approved Shabbat as is. spon ❏ -Approved with corrections as noted. south counties as pick up points for prepaid orders (eliminat- More Special Shabbat Tot Shabbat sored by the Harold Grinspoon ing the need to travel to KI in Pittsfield). Prepaid orders may Services Proof sent: ______4/25/16 On Saturday, Proof January # ______1 12 Foundation.Approved It by:will feature______be picked up at Congregation Beth Israel in North Adams on and February 2 at 9 a.m., a delicious Shabbat catered Monday, March 18 and Yachad Shabbat On Saturday, January 5 have your little ones grab their dinner and special abbrevi- Tuesday, March 19 from grownups for a one-hour joyful ated Shabbat service with 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and at 10 a.m., Hevreh hosts its annual Yachad Shabbat, Shabbat celebration with sing- special songs and prayers. from Hevreh of Southern ing, movement, storytelling, Community Shabbat is free Berkshire in Great during which the Religious School comes together to cel- Shabbat snacks, and more! and open to the entire com- Barrington on Monday, Rabbi Gordon, Rabbi munity with advance RSVP. March 18 and Tuesday, ebrate Shabbat. The Shabbat morning service is geared Hirsch, and student cantor This event is appropriate for March 19 from noon to Shani Cohen (and their special all ages, and families with chil- 4 p.m. Pick up for cen- towards K-8 students and includes special Torah studies, pals, Shluffy the Sloth and dren are encouraged to attend. tral Berkshire orders will Barak-y Raccoon) look forward Hevreh of Southern be at Knesset Israel from adult learning, prayers and song. Join Hevreh’s Rabbi to sharing Shabbat together Berkshire is located at 270 Monday, March 11 through with famlies each month. Sate Road in Great Barrington. Friday, March 15 from 10 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m.

New Home? Second Home? Israeli Retirement Home? Let me show you… Jewelry The Berkshires Barbara K. Greenfeld ABR, C-CREC, CRS, GREEN, RSPS, SRES Broker Associate • Lic. in MA & NY The Mews, by the Red Lion Inn Courtyard 413-441-5986 Stockbridge, MA [email protected] Roberts & Associates 413-298-4436 Realty, inc.

Full Rental Depts. at Pittsfield, N. Adams & Lee Page 10 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 LOCAL NEWS Yachad Day of Service Welcome the Birthday of Trees with a GREAT BARRINGTON – On painting, visited residents at Sunday, January 20 at Laurel Lake, and helped to Family-Friendly Tu B’Shevat Shabbat 10 a.m., as part of Hevreh of clean up local parks. If you Southern Berkshire Religious are aware of an organization Service and Seder School curriculum and to in Berkshire County that commemorate the service of might benefit from this Day of PITTSFIELD – Temple Anshe Amunim invites Martin Luther King, Jr., reli- Service, please contact Rabbi the community to celebrate Tu B’Shevat, the gious school families will come Jodie Gordon at jgordon@ new year of the trees, on Friday, January 11, together for a day of service. Hevreh.org. beginning at 5:30 p.m. During this Yachad Day of This annual program is Tu B’Shevat is the fifteenth day of the Service, participants will be free and open to community Hebrew month of Shevat, and welcomes the involved in various social jus- members with social action emergence of spring. Jews mark the holiday tice/social action-related proj- initiatives. Contact the Hevreh with a traditional Seder, similar to a Passover ects around South County. office for more information at Seder, and with planting of trees in honor of or In the past, students (413) 528-6378. in memory of loved ones. have helped Construct with The evening will begin with Shabbat Shira, the Sabbath of Song, and a family-friendly Friday evening service full of music. The eve- Donate • Volunteer • Make a Difference ning will continue with a celebration of Tu B’Shevat by exploring the enduring connections between Judaism and nature. A dairy dinner will be served following the service, featuring those fruits that are symbolically linked to Tu B’Shevat. There is an $8 Reservations are required for dinner by per person charge for the din- January 4. Please contact the Temple Office for ner, with a maximum charge of registration details by calling (413) 442-5910 or $25 per family. emailing [email protected]. This event is open to all members of the community. Major funding for the event is provided ERKSHIRE by the Harold Grinspoon B Foundation. OUR CUP RUNNETH OVER! OOFING & Temple Anshe Amunim is R located at 26 Broad Street in The Jewish Federation of the Berkshires’ GUTTER CO. Pittsfield. 413-298-1029413 298 1029 2018 Annual Campaign exceeded goal! www.BGRCo.net CEDAR ROOF STANDING SEAM METAL ASPHALT SHINGLES Thank you to all who participated! Written Estimates • Fully Insured • Owner Installed MA Lic. #145878 SEAMLESS GUTTERS Copper • Aluminum • Gutter Covers

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Your Federation Presents Middle East Update 2018 on the New Rules of the Game Professor Ralph Nurnberger analyzed the region’s new realities

On November 4, the US relations with both allies involved continue to focus solutions and use them to capitol for both Jews and Jewish Federation of the and rivals wishing to do busi- on four core issues – bor- structure a deal between the Palestinians is an idea that is Berkshires hosted Professor ness in that country. Professor ders, security, refugees, and two parties. On each of the also off the table. Ralph Nurnberger at its Nurnberger also shared that Jerusalem. But the new US four core issues, US diplomats Professor Nurnberger also annual Middle East Update, he wasn’t sure of what kind approach to the problem is to have taken a new tack: shared some insights into this year titled “The Game of of deal the US would prof- acknowledge that historically, • On borders, US policy is to how Israel is working with Pawns.” The nearly 200 per- fer to both Israel and the as the professor character- support Palestinian self-rule, neighboring Sunni Muslim sons who attended this event Palestinians, only that since ized it, “the peace process has with Israel controlling borders countries to create what he at Shakespeare & Company’s the Trump administration took not produced peace…The past and crossings with the West characterizes as “the ultimate Elaine P. Bernstein Theatre the reins of diplomatic policy, approach has not worked, and Bank. deal” to create stability in the in Lenox heard Professor the United States has taken so try something new to end • Security would be under region. Nurnberger’s thoughts on how bold moves to put pressure the conflict.” Israeli oversight, without Overall, Professor policy toward the Middle East on Palestinian leadership and He showed how, in the much Palestinian autonomy. Nurnberger seemed neither has changed in the era of US society, among them relocating past, Israeli and Palestinian • Refugees entitled to repa- overly optimistic nor overly President Donald Trump. the US embassy to Jerusalem representatives negotiated triation would be limited to pessimistic – as his insightful The update took place and suspending hundreds of terms with each other, per- those people dispossessed talk showed, there are still too against of backdrop of uncer- millions of dollars in payments haps facilitated by a modera- in 1948, rather than to their many intangibles still in play. tainty, just one day before to Palestinian beneficiaries. tor – an “inside-out” approach. descendants, as well – contra As he reminded the gathered the United States reimposed Professor Nurnberger The Trump approach, how- numerous United Nations’ early in his talk – “Things in sanctions on Iran in a move asserted that current dis- ever, is “outside-in,” whereby resolutions. the Middle East rarely work that seemed destined to affect cussions among the parties outsiders come up with • Jerusalem as a joint, divided out as planned.”

PHOTOS BY STUART MASTERS

As my parents planted for me before I was born, so do I plant for those who come after me. – Talmud Thank you to these individuals who through their gift to the Legacy Circle will ensure that the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires thrives long into the future. May your name be a Blessing, and may the example you set inspire others to create their own Jewish Legacy.

Lee & Sydelle Blatt Elaine Friedman Erna Lindner-Gilbert* Lisa Fletcher-Udel Betty Braun* Eiran Gazit Amy Lindner-Lesser Edward Udel Cipora Brown Jeffrey Goldwasser & Helen Maislen* Michael & Joan Ury Barbara Cohen Jonquil Wolfson Ellen Masters Mark & Judy Usow Mark Cohen* Jordan & Laura Green Stuart Masters Henry* & Beate* Voremberg Mimi Cohen Harold Grinspoon Estelle Miller Alexandra Warshaw C. Jeffrey & Judith Cook Ellen Heffan Robert Newman* Florence Wineberg* Gerry & Lynn Denmark Ed Jaffe* Ken & Fran Rubenstein Rabbi Deborah Zecher & Jonathan & Lara Denmark Elihu Katzman Stella Schecter* Rabbi Dennis Ross Anonymous (10) Sheila K. Donath Marilyn Katzman Arlene D. Schiff *Of blessed memory Ed Abrahams Melva Eidelberg Dara Kaufman Gary Schiff Norman Avnet* Monroe England, in memory of Howard & Nancy* Kaufman Stephen & Deborah Schreier Barbara Bashevkin Monroe B. & Isabel England Lawrence Klein Martin Silver Robert Bashevkin Dr. Armand V. Feigenbaum* Sarah Klein Sylvia Silverberg, in memory of Linda J. L. Becker Dr. Donald S. Feigenbaum* Arthur Kriger* Jerome Silverberg Robert Berend Steven Feiner Fred & Brenda Landes Richard A. Simons & Marcie Shelley Berend Diana & Stanley Feld Beth Laster-Nathan Greenfield Simons Helene Berke Stuart M. Fischman Andrew S. Levine* Mark & Elisa Snowise Lawrence Berke Lynn & William Foggle Toby H. Levine Harold Sparr* Page 12 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 Your Federation Presents

“Life in Israel – An Inter-Religious Dialogue” Illuminating Life in the Afula–Gilboa Region

On November 12, four Israeli residents from our partner community of Afula- “Peace will come from the bottom, not the top” of society, asserted Amani Gilboa visited Federation’s Connecting With Community program to discuss Masalha Zoabi, a Muslim mother of two who is now a resident of the Israeli-Arab religion, politics and their personal perspectives on the intersection of secular village of Tamra. She detailed some of the challenges she and other Israeli Arabs Jewish, Muslim, and Modern Orthodox life in Israel. With most of the information face, some of it racially charged, when trying to live outside predominantly Arab about Israel coming to us via the media, this forum provided Berkshire residents areas. Amir Cahaner, whose family members have a history of serving in the with the chance to hear firsthand what life is like in Israel. IDF’s elite units, asserted that “Most hate comes from people who know Arabs Moderator Dr. Ravid Pitaro, a former Southern New England Consortium the least,” adding that political leaders often exploit racial issues to divide the (SNEC) Young Emissary, explained how Afula is a Jewish city with a significant electorate. Arab population (nearly 40 percent) who have moved there “to integrate and coex- “There is work to be done with our citizens – Israeli citizens” both Jewish and ist.” Ayala Carmi, who was raised on a secular moshav in Gilboa and who started Arab, he said. “That is the concern of Israel. In places like the West Bank, there to practice Orthodox Judaism as an adult, reported that “Most of the time, life are geopolitical issues to solve. Within our borders, there are no such issues.” is good and people do not just want to co-exist side by side, but to live together. Ravid, Ayala, Amani, and Amir then broke bread with us at the kosher Many people [in the Gilboa region] believe in the Earth and that working the land lunch program that followed the forum, a chance for everyone to get to know is important.” She added that “Israel is a young country that needs to grow up,” one another on a more personal level. Overall, another meaningful connection and show more sensitivity not only to her Israeli Arab citizens, but also to its between the Jewish Berkshires and Afula–Gilboa through the Jewish Agency For Orthodox population. Israel’s Partnership2Gether program and the Southern New England Consortium (SNEC) program.

Federation Executive Director Dara Kaufman with (from left) Ravid Pitaro, Amani Masalha Zoabi, Ayala Carmi, and Amir Cahaner. Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 13 Your Federation Presents

Ringing Out Chanukah 5779 with a Dazzling Display of Light and Communal Spirit On the frigid evening of December 9, hundreds of members of our Jewish community joined holiday revelers enjoying the spectacular inaugural Winterlights festival at the Naumkeag Gilded Age man- sion in Stockbridge for a Federation-sponsored celebration of the Festival of Lights. On this last night of Chanukah 5779, Federation Executive Director Dara Kaufman lit the candles of a menorah, while Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch of Temple Anshe Amunim led the crowd in brachot and a selection of favorite Chanukah tunes.

Despite a regional potato pancake shortage this Chanukah, latkes enough were on hand for all who wanted one.

Rock of Ages

PHOTOS COURTESY OF FAOLAN SUGARMAN-LASH Dara Kaufman (left) with Rabbi Liz Hirsch STRENGTHEN What are your financial goals? Are you saving for a long and secure retirement? Hoping to build a legacy for you and your family? Our Greylock Investment Group can help you with your goals by developing an investment plan or fine tuning an existing plan aligned with your needs, goals and level of investment experience.

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In 1976 I was an administrator at Temple University in Philadelphia…that year the Hillel program at U of Pennsylvania was sponsoring a “first-timer” trip to Israel for faculty and administrators of local colleges. I was most fortunate to be selected and receive the scholarship which allowed me to participate. The trip itself consisted of all the standard sites, visiting dig- nitaries, lectures and home visits. I extended my stay in order to do more exploring on my own. On the day of my departure, I got to the airport with plenty of time to spare and stood on lines for lengthy periods of time. Much to my dismay, and maybe 15-20 other passengers, they closed the gate to our flight while we were on line. We later learned that frequently El Al changed their departure times as a precautionary move. We were taken to a lounge where El Al staff worked with us to find other flights that could accommodate us. They offered us a flight to Orly airport in France, but could not arrange our connecting flights back to US. I had never been to France and decided that I was better off staying another day in Israel and return to Philadelphia the next day. An elderly couple (probably my age now) who I was sitting with asked if I minded if they stayed along with me…of course I said yes. Awhile later the staff found room on a Pan Am flight to NYC where I knew I could figure out a flight back to Philadelphia and my mother lived in Long Beach, Long Island so I knew this would work…and we flew off a few hours later. While in flight the Bursar came to my seat and asked me to join him in a different section of the plane. He then proceeded to tell me that I had made a very good decision as the flight to Orly An Air France jet of the kind hijacked in 1976 had been skyjacked to Entebbe. You cannot imagine my feelings of anxiety, fear, sadness, and relief on hearing this news. He asked me to convey the information to the couple who came with me. To Our Community Members Years later I asked Rabbi Arthur Rulnick what one should do when asked to show passports and or raise their hands to admit Wintering in Florida – being Jewish. He quickly stated that our lives are sacred and that of course one should never put their lives in danger even if We Miss You and Are Thinking of You! it meant lying. Those of us who live year-round in the Berkshires may be shivering through another chilly New There are many stories to be told by survivors of not being in England winter, but don’t think that Federation has forgotten our Florida snowbirds. Because we the place of danger for a variety of simple reasons…slept late, remain committed to providing you with Jewish connection wherever you may be, we’re sharing missed the train, etc…this is my story! this photograph recently captured by a friend of the Berkshire Jewish Voice who lives in Miami Beach. Please note – Our sharing this photo in no way constitutes an endorsement of “needamohel.com,” nor of any services that may be provided by the person representing himself as said “mohel.” In fact, we cannot stress strongly enough that if the term “caveat emp- tor” should be applied to any type of transaction, it should definitely be considered before enlisting the services of someone (presumably in possession of sharp knives) who rides around town with a sign reading “MOHEL” and “needamohel.com” on his car door. We share it only to show that we are thinking of you and of your Jewish journeys as they may be experienced in the Sunshine State. And if you need further proof we miss you, snowbirds – this March, Federation’s Executive Director Dara Kaufman will be visiting our donors who are wintering on both the east and west coasts of Florida. Plans for Dara’s visit are still being finalized, but we hope you’ll join her and catch up with friends and news from the Jewish Berkshires. You’ll be hearing from us soon. (Also, please remember to request that Federation forward your copies of the Berkshire Jewish Voices while you’re away for the winter – the post office doesn’t forward newspapers, but we’ll be glad to do so if we have your address.) PHOTO: NANCY WOLFF-DIAZ Only in Miami? Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 15

BERKSHIRE JEWISH VOICES Traveling with Jewish Taste Trees By Carol Goodman Kaufman

It may be a cold and snowy January here in New England, but in Israel it’s the month of Shevat, and the country’s almond trees are decked out in fabulous pink and white blos- soms heralding the coming of spring. This Tu B’Shevat, the New Year of the Trees, is a perfect time both to plant new trees and to partake of the bounty of the land. We can only plant trees by proxy at the moment (please remember to call your Seven Species Muffins Hadassah JNF tree lady), but even if you’re not hosting or attending a Tu B’Shevat seder, you Adapted from a recipe by Tori Avey can certainly enjoy the wonderful foods associated with the holiday. It is traditional on Tu B’Shevat to eat every one of the seven biblical species mentioned in the Torah: wheat, barley, olives, grapes, figs, pomegranates, and dates, but I wouldn’t suggest eating either raw wheat or barley. And while olive trees can be seen even on major streets in just about every town, they are not ready for prime time until they’ve been treated with brine or oil. Trust me on that one; I’ve actually made the mistake of trying olives straight from the tree. But the other five species grown in the Land of Milk and Honey are available in markets indoors and out.

Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (or half 3/4 cup golden raisins each all-purpose and whole wheat) 1/2 cup dried figs 1/2 cup barley flour 1/2 cup dates 2 tsp. baking powder 1 1/4 cups unsweetened almond milk 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1/4 cup applesauce 1/4 tsp. salt 1 tsp. cinnamon 3/4 cup pomegranate seeds 1/2 tsp. allspice 1/2 cup chopped pecans 2 large eggs Paper muffin tin liners 1/3 cup light olive oil 2 tbsp. turbinado sugar 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 tsp. cinnamon 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. A Tu B’Shevat sampler Remove stems from figs and discard. Roughly chop dates and figs. Set aside. By the way, that honey referred to in the Torah is much more likely to be In a food processor blend together the following ingredients until very date honey than the product of honeybees with which we are familiar here in the smooth: dates, figs, almond milk, applesauce, cinnamon and allspice. The end States. result should be similar to the texture of apple butter or smooth fruit pre- The seven species include flavors neutral, sweet, and savory, so a complete serves. Set mixture aside. meal is easy to imagine. Cook up a big pot of mushroom barley soup (check off one item), then whip up a loaf of whole wheat cinnamon raisin bread (two more In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, light olive oil, sugar, brown items on the list). Serve these with a block of good cheese and a variety of olives sugar, and vanilla extract. on the side (one more). For dessert, put out a plate of chewy Smyrna figs, full In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, barley flour, baking powder, bak- and luscious Medjool dates, and sweet and tart pomegranates (these three round ing soda, and salt. out the seven species). Gently mix the pomegranate seeds into the dry mixture, making sure the Easy peasy, you have a Tu seeds are well coated with flour. B’Shevat dinner that will Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Pour the fruit mixture from warm you on a frigid win- the blender into the well. ter’s night. For those of us with Add the egg mixture to the well. less time on our hands, Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until the dry ingredients are wouldn’t it be really neat just moistened and a lumpy batter forms. Do not over mix – if you do your to have a recipe that muffins will turn out heavy and dense. includes every one of the Fold raisins and chopped pecans into the muffin batter with a light-handed seven species? Dates, stir. raisins, and figs sound Line your muffin pan with paper muffin cups. like the foundation of a really dense and delicious Using an ice cream scoop, divide batter equally into muffin cups, filling each fruit bread. But olives? cup to the top and mounding the surface slightly. Probably not a good fit. Mix the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl using a fork. Sprinkle That is, that’s what I about a ½ tsp of cinnamon sugar mixture evenly across the surface of each thought until I happened muffin. upon this recipe that uses Place muffins in the oven and immediately turn heat down to 375 degrees F. olive oil. Brilliant, delicious, and pareve to boot. Bake for 25-27 minutes until the tops of the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let muffins cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tin and cooling on a rack. Serve warm.

Carol Goodman Kaufman is a psychologist and author with a passion for travel For Tu B’Shevat, why not build a tree made entirely and food. She is currently at work on a food history/cookbook, tracing the paths of seven species mini-muffins? that some of our favorite foods have taken from their origins to appear on dinner plates and in cultural rites and artifacts around the world. She invites readers to read her blog at carolgoodmankaufman.com and to follow her on Twitter @goodmankaufman. Page 16 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 OBITUARIES

Loretta Skoletsky, 88, and Michelle Lynn Skoletsky Graveside services were decades; nourishing profound loves her fiercely, including loved to cook holiday of Monroe Falls, OH; and held Monday, December 10, connections across her family, her children, Sara Munson meals for her family three great-grandchildren, at Baron Hirsch Cemetery, past and present; colorful, and her husband David WEST HARTFORD, CT Brayden and Aspen White Staten Island, NY with Rabbi flowing clothing; bringing the Sagaties (Stone Ridge, NY) and – Loretta Skoletsky (nee and Kennedy Lynn Skoletsky. David Weiner, spiritual leader arts to those with all abilities; Joanna Munson Perales and Sumberg), 88, died Monday, She also leaves her sister- of Knesset Israel, officiat- “spice”-colored lipstick; show- her husband Olegario Perales December 3 at Hughes Health in-law, Elaine Shindler, and ing. Memorial donations may ing up in ways big and small; (Cheverly, MD); her grand- and Rehabilitation in West numerous cousins, nieces and be sent to Knesset Israel blasting Paul Simon, Leonard children, Addysen and Jasper Hartford, CT, where she nephews, and great-nieces and Charitable Causes, 16 Colt Bernstein, Nina Simone, the Sagaties and Pablo and Rafael resided for the past several great-nephews. Road, Pittsfield, MA 01201. Beatles, and klezmer music on Perales; her former husband years. For her entire married Loretta was a kind, loving all occasions whether appro- and his wife, Doug and Toddy Wendy Rabinowitz, 72, life, she lived in Pittsfield and mother who cared deeply priate or not; witnessing the Munson (Richmond, MA) and her art reflected a deep moved to Connecticut in 2016 for her children and grand- love between her daughters family; her sister, Barbara study of Torah to be closer to her son Barry. children. She will be greatly as sisters and their children Wenk (Chicago, IL); her cous- Born in Little Falls, NY on missed. LENOX – Wendy Rabinowitz, as cousins; cooking in her ins, Dr. Richard and Susan August 1, 1930, a daughter Graveside services were 72, died Tuesday, December kitchen; Judy Chicago’s “The Rabens (Berkeley, CA) and of Louis and Celia (Samuels) held Wednesday, December 5 11 at Berkshire Medical Dinner Party,” Guys and Dolls Ronnie and Joyce Rabens (San Sumberg, Mrs. Skoletsky was at Knesset Israel Cemetery, Center. the musical, and art museums, Diego, CA) and their fami- educated in Little Falls schools Pittsfield, with Rabbi David Born on the South Side of everywhere; being open to all lies; her nephews, Bill Zolla and was a stay-at-home Weiner officiating. Donations Chicago on January 6, 1946 emotions wherever and when- (Manchester, NH), Brett Zolla mom while her children were may be made to Knesset to the late Sam and Geraldine ever; sending thank you notes (St. Louis, MO), and Brad younger, eventually working at Israel, 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield, Bielsker Rabens, she attended to recognize small acts of kind- Zolla (Cincinnati, OH) and Jays Clothing and Eaton Paper MA 01201. North Shore High School, ness; allowing herself to grow their families; and her cousin Company. the University of Illinois at and learn throughout her life; Wendy B.’s daughter, Tracy Stella Schecter, 98, She was a member of Chicago, and the Art Institute abundantly detailed list mak- Donsky (Boston, MA) and seamstress maven Congregation Knesset Israel of Chicago. ing; celebrating the Jewish hol- family. and its Sisterhood. She LENOX – Stella Schecter, Wendy was an artist, spe- idays as if they were mini-the- With her passing, she joins enjoyed cooking, baking, and 98, died on Thursday, cializing in Judaic textiles, who ater productions; developing her best friend, Joy Hopkins going out for dinner with her December 6, in the comfort of exhibited her works through exclusive tastes for specific Hausman; her beloved par- late husband Edward at their her own home. her business, Living Threads foods (including but certainly ents, Sam and Geri Rabens; favorite eateries. She was a Stella was born in Vienna, Judaica. Trained as a weaver, not limited to Concord grapes, her husband’s parents, Dr. wonderful cook and prepared Austria and came to the her artwork incorporated Italian ices, green shakes and David and Lilly Borak; her many Passover Seder meals United States in 1939. She mixed media such as pottery popcorn); acting zany, goofy, aunt and uncle, Dave and and other High Holy Day was a seamstress maven, and shards, tree bark, and the and impulsive; homebirth and Bertha Rabens; her cousin, meals for her family. worked in the garment district metal in earrings “borrowed” breastfeeding; finding for- Wendy B. Arbit Hite; and her For almost 60 years, she of New York City and made from her daughters. Her art giveness both for herself and daughter’s best friend, Emily and her late mother-in-law dresses for many, including reflected a deep study of Torah others; activism on behalf of Reid O’Conner. Part of her prepared the “breaking of the Marilyn Monroe. She was very - its lessons were truly alive for the planet and marginalized lives on through her tissue fast” meal after services on active in Hadassah, and a past her, and her inner experience communities; being a free spirit donation to New England Yom Kippur for local and out- president of the Cranford, NJ of the meaning of the Torah who relished breaking the Donor Services. of-town relatives and friends. chapter. went beyond mere words. She rules; uncontrollable giggling Funeral services were held In her earlier years, she Stella is predeceased by wove these “living threads” into at Toad’s swimsuit in Frog on Sunday, December 16 at enjoyed playing mahjongg. her husband Joseph Schecter, her inspiring pieces. and Toad Are Friends; kayak- Temple Anshe Amunim, offici- In addition to her parents, with whom she built a life Wendy was fearless in a ing on the Housatonic River; ated by Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch, she was pre-deceased by her for 68 years. She is survived rare way for a person with her tchotchkes; and passing down followed by a gravesite service husband, Edward (September by her son and daughter-in- sensitivities. She wove her family stories both profound at the Temple Anshe Amunim 2015) whom she married law, Dr. Gary I. and Dawn feminism, humanism, and and mundane, sorrowful and Cemetery (within Pittsfield on June 15, 1952; her sis- M. Schecter, of Pittsfield; spirituality through everything hilarious. Cemetery). ter, Rose Sumberg Schecter daughter, Reba J. Schecter of she did, and had a heartfelt She was married on Donations may be made to and her brother, Lawrence Tyringham; and granddaugh- appreciation for the expression September 24, 1989 to Jeffrey WAM Theatre, the Elizabeth Sumberg. ter, Raquel M. Richter of NY. of the divine in many forms. Borak at Temple Anshe Freeman Center, or 350.org, She leaves her two sons, The family would like to She was passionate about Amunim in Pittsfield. After 29 in care of the Roche Funeral Louis Mark Skoletsky of thank Cecylia, Donna, and activities performed to heal years of marriage, they were Home, 120 Main Street, Lenox, Copley, OH and Barry Howard Betty for everything they have and repair the world, or tikkun astonished at how fresh their MA 01240. Skoletsky of Hartford; two done over the years to make olam; creating and maintain- love was each day. granddaughters, Jennifer this transition as comfortable ing deep friendships includ- In addition to her husband, Sarah White of Chillicothe, OH as possible for Stella. ing hundreds that spanned Wendy leaves a family who

Calendar – Ongoing Events Around the Community

Continuous – Chabad of the Berkshires Wednesdays, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. mountains. Silence, chanting, and medita- Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. Temple Anshe “Smile on Seniors,” or “S.O.S.,” volunteer – Hevreh of Southern Berkshire, 270 State tion designed to help prepare for Shabbat. Amunim, 26 Broad Street, Pittsfield program to serve senior citizens in the Road, Great Barrington, offers an hour of All welcomed. Information: (413) 663- – “Torah Plus: Exploring Jewish Text and Berkshires. Information for families who “Shalom Yoga, Gentle Stretch and Med- 5830 and www.cbiweb.org. Culture.” Join Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch for a can benefit and volunteers: Rabbi Levi itation” with Nina Lipkowitz a certified conversation based on the texts of the Fridays, once a month at 5:30 p.m. Volovik at (413) 499-9899 or visit www. Kripalu and Jewish yoga and meditation Jewish people and reflect on Jewish values (followed by a family style Shabbat jewishberkshires.com. teacher. Check https://hevreh.org/cal- and thinking and what it means “to be dinner at 6:30 p.m.) – Knesset Israel, endar/ for updates. All levels welcome. Jewish.” All texts are offered in English. Monthly, fourth or fifth Sunday – Vol- 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield. Shirei Shabbat Contact Nina at [email protected] Free and open to the public. Informa- unteers from Congregation Beth Israel, (“Songs of Shabbat”). Unique service with any questions. tion (413) 442-5910 or templeoffice@ 53 Lois Street, North Adams “Take and combines melodies from Carlebach, Deb- ansheamunim.org. Eat” program cook, package, and deliver Wednesdays – Knesset Israel, “Enhanced bie Friedman, and Camp Ramah to create hot meals for all North Adams clients of Prayer Class for Adults” 10:00-11:30 a.m. a ruach filled (“spirited”) family friendly “Meals on Wheels.” Information: (413) at 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield, KI library. What experience. Cost for dinner $20 adult; $15 Knesset Israel 663-5830 or [email protected]. are we saying when we read prayers at a teen, children free. Dinner reservations 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield service? How does the siddur language are due by the Monday before services. Sundays (second of each month) – connect with my life today? How can I build Full information: (413) 445-4872, ext 10. ONGOING MINYANS Berkshire Hills Society of Israeli Philatelists my Hebrew reading fluency and practice meet. Discuss Israeli and American stamps. Saturdays at 8:45 a.m. – Hevreh, 270 Sunday 8:45 a.m. and 7 p.m. my reading skills? How can I be more com- Coffee and donuts. Information: Ed He- State Road in Great Barrington. Every Tuesday 7 p.m. fortable with the language and process of litzer, (413) 447-7622, daytime. Shabbat morning, gather in Rabbi Neil Friday 5:45 p.m. prayer? Facilitated by Myrna Hammerling. Hirsch’s study and dive into the less-often Saturday 9:30 a.m. and evenings Tuesdays, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. – Torah Newcomers always welcome. Information: read books of the Bible. All are welcome to approximately 30 minutes before sunset Portion of the Week study group at Knesset (413) 445-4872, ext. 16. begin the day with coffee while studying Israel, 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield. Facilitator Thursdays (fourth of each month) – and relaxing on Shabbat. Sessions will CANDLE-LIGHTING Myrna Hammerling guides the group Hadassah Book Club. For times, locations be between 45 and 60 minutes. Please January 4...... 4:15 p.m. through the triennial cycle, year-round in of meetings, and further information be in touch with Rabbi Hirsch for further the KI Library. Newcomers always welcome January 11...... 4:23 p.m. about the books: Patti Lipman plipman@ information: [email protected]. to this gathering of students of diverse fairpoint.net. January 18...... 4:31 p.m. ages, backgrounds, and perspectives who Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. Temple Anshe January 25...... 4:40 p.m. search together to deepen understanding Fridays, at 9:00 a.m. – Meditation with Amunim, 26 Broad Street, Pittsfield – of our foundational text. Free. Information: Rabbi Rachel Barenblat in the Congrega- Rabbi Liz P.G. Hirsch leads a meditation February 1...... 4:49 p.m. (413) 445-4872, ext. 16. tion Beth Israel sanctuary, 53 Lois Street, and light yoga group. February 8...... 4:58 p.m. North Adams, overlooking the Berkshire February 15...... 5:07 p.m. Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 17

ProgramsPrograms taketake placeplace onMondays most Mondays and Thursdays and Thursdays at 10:45 ata.m. 10:45 Lunch a.m. is Lunchserved is Monday served Mondays,and Thursday Tuesdays,at 12 p.m, and through Thursdays September at noon. 3. Tuesday lunch resumes on September 8. Venue: Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Rd, Pittsfield, MA.

Knesset Israel, 16 Colt Road, Pittsfield, MA.

JANUARY chicken**#, brown rice noodles, Oriental blend vegeta- Tuesday, 1...... Closed for New Year’s Day bles, bread TBA, pineapple and tea.

Thursday, 3...... 10:45 a.m., Chair Yoga with Linda Tuesday, 29...... Beef stew**#, noodles, salad, Novick. Lunch: Fish chowder**, grilled cheese on multi- white bread, applesauce and tea. grain bread, mixed vegetables, fruit cocktail, coffee, tea Thursday, 31...... 10:45 a.m., Turkish Kurdistan, with and milk for coffee. Chris Andersen. Lunch: Dairy hodgepodge (pizza, lasagna, Monday, 7...... 10:45 a.m., Healthy Living for your chili and other dairy leftovers), mixed vegetables, salad, Brain and Body. Lunch: Meat loaf**#, salad, peas and car- bread cubes, cookies, coffee, tea and milk for coffee. rots, mashed potatoes, rye bread, chocolate chip cookies FEBRUARY and tea. Monday, 4...... 10:45 a.m., Understanding Alzheimer’s Tuesday, 8...... Chicken nuggets#, zucchini rice and Dementia, with Meghan Lemay. Lunch: Meat loaf**#, soup, sweet potato fries, green beans, chef’s choice of zucchini rice soup, peas & carrots, mashed potatoes, bread, apricots and tea. rolls, pears and tea.

Thursday, 10...... 10:45 a.m., Scam and Fraud Aware- Tuesday, 5...... Northern Indian lamb meat ness & Prevention. Lunch: Macaroni and cheese, tomato sauce**#, brown rice, cauliflower, salad, pita, peaches soup, salad, beets, scones, tropical fruit salad, coffee, tea and tea. and milk for coffee. Thursday, 7...... 10:45 a.m., The Berkshire Hillsmen Linking Young Monday, 14 ...... 10:45 a.m., “The Process of Aging” Chorus Sings. Lunch: Fresh fish, mushroom soup, Italian with therapist Maggie Bittman. Lunch: Spaghetti and meat- beans, rice pilaf, scones, pie, coffee, tea and milk for Jewish Women in balls (meatballs are gluten free), chicken soup, Italian coffee. beans, Italian bread, pears and tea. Their Fight Against Monday, 11...... 10:45 a.m., “The Process of Aging” Breast Cancer Tuesday, 15...... Roasted chicken**#, mushroom barley with therapist Maggie Bittman. Lunch: Turkey pot pie#, veg- soup, roasted Brussels sprouts, noodles and onions, Challah, etable soup, rice, multigrain bread, tropical fruit salad (866) 474-2774 chocolate chunk cookies and tea. and tea. www.sharsheret.org Thursday, 17...... 10:45 a.m., Social Welfare History Tuesday, 12...... Salisbury steak**#, noodle soup, from Past to Present. Lunch: Vegetarian moussaka, salad, potatoes O’Brien, baby carrots, pumpernickel bread, rice, pumpkin muffins, baklava and dried fruit and nuts, grapes and tea. coffee, tea and milk for coffee. Thursday, 14...... 10:45 a.m., How to Build a Just, Thriv- Monday, 21...... Closed for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day ing, and Safe Community. Lunch: “Seafood” linguini, salad, Italian beans, rolls, white cake and chocolate frosting, Tuesday, 22...... Salami and egg frittata#, celery rice coffee, tea and milk for coffee. soup, salad, green beans, Italian beans, grapes and tea. Monday, 18...... Closed for President’s Day Thursday, 24...... 10:45 a.m., “A Day in the Life.” 2nd of 3 part series with Nancy Maurice Rogers. Lunch: Black bean Tuesday, 19...... Tomato goat cheese pasta, broc- burgers with cheese, minestrone soup, beets, broccoli, coli, corn cobettes, cran-orange muffins, fruit cocktail, Like us on hamburger rolls, ice cream and melba sauce, coffee, tea coffee, tea and milk for coffee. and milk for coffee. Facebook: Thursday, 21...... 10:45 a.m., Program to be An- Monday, 28...... 10:45 a.m., Screening of film, King nounced. Lunch: Grilled cheese and tuna on whole wheat, • Jewish Federation – Man of Peace in A Time of War. Lunch: Malaysian curry salad, beets, cookies, coffee, tea and milk for coffee. of the Berkshires • PJ Library Berkshire County Page 18 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019

BERKSHIRE JEWISH CONGREGATIONS & ORGANIZATIONS Berkshire Minyan Congregation Ahavath Sholom Jewish Federation of the Berkshires Welcome to the Lay-led egalitarian minyan Reconstructionist 196 South St., Pittsfield, MA Jewish Berkshires held at Hevreh of Southern North St., Great Barrington, MA (413) 442-4360, jewishberkshires.org Everyone is welcome to attend Berkshire, 270 State Rd., (413) 528-4197, ahavathsholom.com services and events at any of the Great Barrington, MA Jewish War Veterans organizations listed here. (413) 229-3618, berkshireminyan.org Congregation Beth Israel Commander Robert Waldheim Reform (413) 822-4546, [email protected] Berkshire Hills Hadassah 53 Lois St., North Adams, MA Please call the organizations P.O. Box 187, Pittsfield, MA (413) 663-5830, cbiweb.org Knesset Israel Conservative directly to confirm service times (413) 443-4386, Hevreh of Southern Berkshire 16 Colt Rd., Pittsfield, MA or to inquire about membership. [email protected] Reform (413) 445-4872, knessetisrael.org Learn more about our Jewish B’nai B’rith Lodge, No. 326 270 State Rd., Great Barrington, MA (413) 528-6378, hevreh.org Temple Anshe Amunim community and find great Chabad of the Berkshires Reform events on the community 450 South St., Pittsfield, MA Israel Philatelist Society 26 Broad St., Pittsfield, MA calendar at: (413) 499-9899, c/o Dr. Ed Helitzer, (413) 442-5910, ansheamunim.org JEWISHBERKSHIRES.ORG jewishberkshires.com (413) 447-7622 ______

MAZEL TOV Mazel Tov to… Christina Kelly on becom- c c c is a founding trustee of the ing president of Congregation Paul and Lisa Green on Bea Selig on her 95th Professor Steven Miller organization. Beth Israel in North Adams – their 25th anniversary. birthday. of Williams College for c plus, a hearty yasher koach to c c being elected a Fellow of Berkshire Hills Hadassah Elizabeth Miller on complet- Elaine Epstein on her Rabbi Yaakov and the American Mathematical (Rosalind Kopfstein and ing her tenure in that role. extra-special birthday. Nina Rone on their special Society. Sherry Boullt, co-pres- c c birthdays. c idents) on receiving the Federation board of direc- Sandi and Alan Rubin on c Paula Lustbader on B’Tenuah “In Motion Award” tors member Anne Schnesel, the occasion of their daugh- Howard Cooper on the being honored by the Jewish at the Hadassah Connecticut who became a great-grand- ter, Jen Rubin, having her birth of his fourth grand- Women’s Foundation of the Regional Meeting in December, mother for the first time with first book, We Are Staying, son, in Jerusalem, to parents Greater Palm Beaches (JWF) recognizing all of the activities the arrival of Eliza Jules published. Abigail Cooper and Sholom at its Imagine the Possibilities and efforts our local chapter Barshay in September. Proud Wolf. luncheon in December. Paula offers. parents are Samantha and Devin Barshay. Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 19 DEVOTED TO BOOKS

A Few Words with Michael Wex about Rhapsody in Schmaltz By Albert Stern / BJV Editor

When Michael Wex’s agent kugel. In contrast, a Sephardic of whatever goes into their originally passed down. proposed that he write a book Shabbat meal in Dubrovnik mouths.” Wex also had the oppor- on Jewish food, the author would be very different In that passage, Wex hints tunity to uncover a fascinat- of the classic Born to Kvetch: than one in North Africa, as at the key ingredient that ing historical convergence Yiddish Language and Culture Sephardic Jews were more makes Yiddish food Yiddish that took place in Cincinnati in All of Its Moods and five likely to absorb elements of – those doing the praying. in the early 20th century, other books on Jewish themes the regional cultures in which “No real Jew likes to rely on where Proctor & Gamble first wasn’t sure he was the man they found themselves than anything that makes life easy,” manufactured Crisco, the for the job. their Ashkenazi counterparts, he writes, which might not parve “psudeo-schmaltz” that “I’m not a foodie,” he con- even as they remained no less be so debilitating in itself but transformed Jewish cooking fesses, adding that his main religious. for the primal nature of the in America, and where the concerns about the food he Wex points out that “noth- Jewish people, summed up Manischewitz company grew eats have tended to center ing but chulent and matzoh by this additional characteri- into a kosher food giant by around portion size rather are without analogues in zation: “The Israelites…never successfully marketing mat- than culinary sophistication. other cultures.” Nevertheless, complain unless they have a zoh as something to be eaten But as this connection because of rules of kashrut, chance to speak.” year-round, rather than just Wex makes early in Rhapsody “Jews don’t eat like the people Certainly, putting together seasonally during Passover. in Schmaltz, the 2016 book around them. The food might a book like Rhapsody in In Rhapsody in Schmaltz, he that resulted from his agent’s have the same taste, but it Schmaltz was no easy task for recounts how these two very suggestion, he clearly was comes in a different package.” Wex, as there was no defini- different companies “unwit- Michael Wex the perfect author to explore, This sense of difference and tive research that examined tingly came together to trans- as the book’s subtitle has it, separation was ingrained in Ashkenazi food with a goal form kosher food in America and binds us to our ancestors “Yiddish food and why we can’t the traditional Jewish culture of synthesizing the histori- from a scattering of local no matter how different our stop eating it”. of Eastern Europe: “Exile in cal, cultural, religious, and butchers, bakers, and grocery outward lives are from theirs. Jewish terms means everlast- culinary elements that cre- stores into an industry that About Jews and food, he The word “matzoh” comes ing unassimilability, staying a ated and define it. The book could turn ethnic particularity concludes: from a Hebrew root mean- stranger instead of just being “was all first-hand research,” into a national brand and reli- ing “to squeeze, extract, Minute, if not obsessive, one.” he says. “I was up to my gious need into all-American drain out” – exactly what analysis of the contents He adds that “every stan- neck in 12th century legal product preference.” Wex says is done to the meat [during of every plate, pot, and dard Jewish dish is associated tomes, thinking ‘for this I left he first made the connection the kashering process]. bowl as if they were ele- with a holiday or Shabbos,” yeshiva’? But if you know your when he noticed the proximity Much kosher food is thus ments of a vast system in with delicatessen food being way around the literature, you of the P&G and Manischewitz matzoh, in one form or urgent need of interpre- the one exception, and one know where to look. I plowed factories to one another another, and it’s probably tation is the source of the that once smacked of frivolity, through the sources myself.” while looking over maps of no coincidence that the frequently noted concern at that. Wex says that when While ancient and medi- Cincinnati. Yiddish for “to squeeze, with food and digestion he was growing up in Canada, eval writing about dietary The true pleasure of extract, drain out” is so often displayed by “to a degree I was ashamed laws abounded, Wex found Rhapsody in Schmaltz – what “kvetch.” even completely irreli- to have had ‘low class’ delis that sources about the food makes it a classic that belongs gious Jews. Although the It’s as close to a unified as my hangouts. They were closer to contemporary times on every Jewish bookshelf, ritual or religious moti- field theory explaining the looked at as the Jewish were harder to come by. “The alongside Born to Kvetch – is vation for such worries interaction of Yiddish lan- equivalent of bars, except no first cookbook in Yiddish was its seamless blend of history, might have vanished, the guage, culture, and cuisine as one drank anything but Dr. published in 1896,” he says. halacha, Torah, midrash, and behavioral reflex remains Jews are going to get. While a Brown’s soda.” “There was this idea that tra- humor. As a work of scholar- and is passed from one spate of cookbooks published Holy day associations ditional dishes were passed ship, it is dense as a chulent, generation to the next as in recent years have fostered aside, the essential religious from mother to daughter. The but goes down lightly as…so just that: a reflex, a way the idea of a pan-Diaspora notion underpinning what idea of a cookbook on making I’m trying to think of a light of dealing with food that Jewish cuisine redolent with Wex posits as the “Yiddish” chulent would be an insult.” Yiddish food, but can’t. is often assumed to be multicultural flavors and approach to food is the He says that Jewish cook- Michael Wex is a Jewish universal. You can stop flourishes, in Rhapsody in Talmudic idea that “every- books became more preva- master of the punch line on keeping kosher or making Schmaltz, Wex hones in on thing here on Earth belongs lent as Jews became more a par with Woody Allen and blessings; it isn’t as easy what he calls Yiddish food, to God, and that we get the assimilated, and left behind Rodney Dangerfield, one who to stop looking deeply into Ashkenazi cuisine that is benefit.” God must be thanked the traditions that connected also has sharp insights into everything that you eat, “heavy, unsubtle and, once it properly before a comestible religious practices and dining an immutable Jewish char- even if you no longer know emerged from Eastern Europe, is ingested, and therefore, it’s habits. These early cook- acter, which remains intact why you’re doing so. redolent of an elsewhere that important “to say all the right books, he says, featured “foods nobody missed.” brachos (blessings), because redolent of Mom and home “Ashkenazi food has a when you are eating, you are fires,” and provided an ethnic small set of themes,” he says. in fact praying. In that sense, identity centered around food, “It’s one food culture that pre- there is an act of prayer in rather than religion. During dominated from Germany and that sandwich you’re eating.” the course of his research, France to Russia. The dishes As he writes: “In the tradi- Wex himself cooked many were more or less uniform.” tional Jewish world, recipes of the dishes in these cook- He says that certainly there is are a prescription for prayer books, using the authentic a difference between Litvash and those who do the praying kosher ingredients specified, kugel and Polish kugel, but in thus need to be hyperaware of to find out just what the food the end kugel is a kugel is a the contents and composition was supposed to taste like as

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(413) 528-9700 Ever wanted to try yoga? FIRST CLASS FREE! Beginners Welcome. • Mat Yoga: Wed 5:30-6:30pm Fri 9am-10am Drop-ins welcome • mats provided • Chair Yoga: Thurs 11:30am-12:30pm • Private instruction in your home Radon Testing ❑✓ COMPETITIVE PRICING Universalist Unitarian Church ✓ and Mitigation ❑ PROMPT SERVICE 175 Wendell Ave, Pittsfield ❑✓ FIVE-YEAR WARRANTY NEHA & NRSB CERTIFIED Vickie Bandoski 413-358-0199 • [email protected] Page 20 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 DEVOTED TO BOOKS Book Review Seltzertopia: The Extraordinary Story of an Ordinary Drink By Avi Dresner / Special to the BJV

The subtitle of Barry and it’s not hard to see why device that Joseph employs to Joseph’s Seltzertopia is The given his painstaking research help tell the story of seltzer is Extraordinary Story of an into seltzer’s evolution from to look at it through the lens Ordinary Drink, and the book naturally carbonated spring of a young non-Jewish seltzer definitely lives up to that title. water bubbling up through convert, John Seekings, who There is nothing two cents the earth’s crust to its pride of falls in love with and buys plain about this story, which place on modern tables, espe- The Pittsburgh Seltzer Works is frequently as effervescent as cially – though not exclusively without knowing anything at its subject matter. – Jewish ones. all about seltzer. The device The book grew out of an The book is divided into doesn’t always work, in my article Joseph wrote for The three main parts, and features opinion – or, at least, it doesn’t Forward newspaper in 2004 chapters entitled “How Seltzer always live up to many of the about the home seltzer maker, Got Religion,” which explores other seltzer voices in the SodaStream, which turns tap the inextricable connec- book – however, it does take water into seltzer. Not coinci- tion between seltzer and the on a special bittersweet poi- dentally, Joseph’s most recent Jews; “The Birth Of A Modern gnancy as many of the Works’ Barry Joseph article in The Forward also has Seltzer Man”; “How Seltzer customers live in the Jewish to do with seltzer, in this case Got Funny,” which traces its Squirrel Hill neighborhood of from a Quentin Tarantino film: And for some people the fact (pun intended) recounting how use in comedy from The Three Pittsburgh. Not surprisingly, brutally honest, full of chutz- that the seltzer man comes, seltzer helped win Israel’s War Stooges to Clarabell the Clown though, seltzer is a New York pah, with the charismatic you know, every week or two of Independence. to The Simpsons; and “How story, and some of the book’s power to spin dramatic stories weeks, and brings something Joseph’s original article is Seltzer Got Its Groove Back,” greatest moments and quotes packed with unexpected life to their door, it’s a wonder- reproduced in its entirety in which makes the case that come from New York seltzer lessons.” This is not hyper- ful feeling. Even on the route, the book’s prologue, and fea- seltzer is now more popular men. bole. In describing his calling it’s a small-town atmosphere tures the following quote from than ever, even if its case is One of the most distinct to Joseph, Walter, who left law on wheels. In a world where a SodaStream ad: “Matzo, now cardboard and not wood, voices belongs to Walter school to take over his father’s you’re being run around, circa 1440 B.C. Chicken Soup, and its bottles are plastic and Backerman, a third generation route, shares this: rammed around like a num- circa 1280 A.D. Homemade not glass. In between, Joseph seltzer man, who is one of the “I think seltzer, aside from ber, it’s good every now and Seltzer, 2004.” One might takes the reader on some fas- few to still deliver siphon bot- being a drink, is part of, like, then to know you are a per- add Joseph’s book to this list cinating detours spanning the tles throughout New York City, an art form. You know, in the son, and that somebody cares of accomplishments. It took universe of seltzertopia. and whom Joseph describes changing world that we live about you, and knows about him over ten years to write it, The main recurring framing as “…a character escaped in, in a world of disposability, you, knows about your life.” in a world where values are In between pearls like erratic, where the vague areas this, Joseph also shares of society are so precarious obscure but fascinating tid- that people can’t even get a bits on almost every page. For Educational Opportunities true perspective on life, in a example, did you know that world like that, sometimes you seltzer takes its name from LEARNING A R TS SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES need something that gives you Niederselters, Germany, or permanence. I mean, there is that Ben Franklin actually THINKING futureHumanities KNOWLEDGE Career KEY something reassuring about CHANGE consistency. Ya follow me? SELTZERTOPIA, SUCCESS Lecture Exciting continued on page 22 Nurturing wonder. Building skills.

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GREAT BARRINGTON – The a screening of the short film hardship, but a source of joy Berkshires’ Jewish Festival Egg Cream by Nora Claire and sweetness. Through a tour of Books and The Berkshire Miller, Peter Miller, and Amy of egg cream establishments Jewish Film Festival of Linton. Egg Cream is a bitter- led by a filmmaker and his Knesset Israel are pleased to sweet look at memory, history, young daughter, exhaustively be collaborating on an Egg and the enduring meaning of researched archival imagery, Cream Eggstravaganza on a beloved chocolate soda drink and even a song by Lou Reed, Saturday, February 16 at born on the Jewish Lower East the film examines the Jewish 7 p.m. at Hevreh of Southern Side. The egg cream contained experience in America and the Berkshire, 270 State Road. neither eggs nor cream – it EGG CREAM, The evening will begin with was a product of necessity and continued on page 22 Educational Opportunities

LEARNING A R TS SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES HumanitiesKNOWLEDGE KEY THINKING future Career Egg cream ingredients – no eggs, no cream… CHANGE SUCCESS Lecture Exciting

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DEVOTED TO BOOKS Do Not Be Afraid – Do Be Entertaining Great Barrington’s Aaron Thier on his novel, The World is a Narrow Bridge Interview by Rabbi Seth Wax / Special to the BJV Aaron Thier is a local author who grew up in Williamstown, and after college, graduate school, and stints living in Miami, now lives with his wife and two children in Great Barrington. His most recent book, The World is a Narrow Bridge, follows two 30-somethings in their travels across the United States, as one of them is compelled by Yahweh, the God of the Hebrew Bible, to proclaim that He alone is God. Along the way, they meet Satan (who turns out to be a sweet guy), unintentionally impersonate an eccentric couple, turn up in unexpected places, struggle over whether or not to have a child, and raise important questions about what it means to be human in America after the 2016 elections. “It’s a charming and thought-provoking book,” says Rabbi Seth Wax, Jewish Chaplain at Williams College, who recently caught up with Aaron to discuss it. What follows is an edited and redacted version of their conversation.

of a political system over a what he might think of as his component that I could move chaotic reality of human life, “real life.” around; it wasn’t any good to and that was what I wanted think about it. And I needed to talk about. It started out SW: This book is about a man another way to frame that cartoonish and flip, but by the and a woman who about the problem. After college I end it became deadly serious. same age as you and your wife came back to Williamstown The Yahweh character is very and who both lived in Miami. and came to synagogue and much a character. I was thinking Talking with you, it seems like started reading the old sto- temporary reality where I could of the biblical depictions of Him some their dialogue and inner ries, as stories, just because connect with myself and my as compressed metaphorical monologues may have been my background is literary. It history. And Rabbi Neil Hirsch representations of what it feels lifted from your life. Also, the was very meaningful for me had everybody chant this phrase like to be a human. In that way, characters talk a lot about in a lot of different ways. The in English over and over again. those stories are immensely whether or not to have kids. stories felt like they belonged Just as a way of thinking about meaningful and have great Was this book inspired by your to me, because I’m Jewish, and what does it really mean? I explanatory power. my people had written them found myself over the next cou- Aaron Thier life? long ago, and they still seemed ple of months repeating it to SW: In your book, Yahweh is AT: Oh, for sure, it’s 100% au- to speak to me. And services myself. And I don’t know why, SETH WAX: How did the idea powerful, and He often says tobiographical. I tell people it’s themselves, because I had this but it helped tremendously. It for the book evolve? that He is compassionate. But non-fiction sometimes. We went rabbi who talked about God could be that the bridge is direc- to graduate school in North in all these different ways, was tional. You have to keep moving AARON THIER: I tell it like a Yahweh actually comes across Florida and lived in Miami off- meaningful because he offered in one direction. You can’t stand joke, but it’s actually true. I as insecure, moody, capricious, and actually kind of mean. and-on for a period of six years. all these different ways of fram- still because then you’re just on started writing a novel about all ing what I was the bridge. The way Satan talks the 19th century US presidents Which is also how He sometimes thinking about. about it, and the way I thought living together in a condomini- So it was very about it at the time, is that this um building in South Florida. appears in the Because I was writing after making Hebrew Bible. personal. And is poetry that has meaning I When I think about, it became peace with what happened in 2016, that didn’t have can’t really articulate. Because if the new book quite naturally. Toward the end of the book, you I was thinking about comfort. The that much to do I could, I would say it in a differ- But I think what happened was, with eternity. ent way. But I’m saying it in this I thought, “Well, since I have suggest that Yahweh might be comfort of the long, long, long view. way because it has incantatory the presidents, maybe I can meaning. have some literary characters.” an avatar for our SW: The title of So I added Huck Finn at first. worst intentions your book is, The We also have a two-and-a-half And then I thought, “If I have or our darkest side. What do World is a Narrow Bridge. It’s SW: What do you hope your year-old and a three month-old. Huck Finn, why not Yahweh?” you mean by that? a line that’s attributed to the reader will take away from your And then once Yahweh ap- Hasidic master Rabbi Nachman book? AT: The notion that he’s an peared, he just swept everyone SW: Can you talk about your of Breslov, there’s a popular avatar is like saying he’s a AT: I always want to write a off the table. Jewish background? tune for it, and it has become living metaphor. He’s an idea somewhat well-known. What’s book that’s entertaining. Be- that walks around. And it may AT: I went to Hebrew school in interesting is that when you in- cause I believe in the value of SW: He does have a way of not be clear in the book, but North Adams. At first, I had a troduce the phrase in the book, entertainment; it’s an important taking up a lot of space when- Yahweh’s interactions with simple-minded idea that I didn’t it’s offered by Satan – who is a part of being a human being. ever He shows up. How did you Murphy and Eva are simple and believe in God, so I couldn’t really nice guy – and it’s given But because I was writing after end up on Yahweh? How did he stereotypes. This is just how he engage with any of the rest of to the main character, Eve, as making peace with what hap- evolve as a character? talks to creatures like this. He it. That went away quickly. I got something she can say when pened in 2016, I was thinking won’t compromise with them, a sense that the religion is sep- she is afraid. What does this about comfort. The comfort of AT: What I was trying to write and he won’t discuss anything arate from the ethnic identity. phrase mean for you? the long, long, long view. The was how we got to where we with them that they want him I thought of myself as Jewish comfort of that incantation: are: why does America look the to reveal. But then there’s a because I had to, because other AT: I remember singing the song the world is a narrow bridge. way it looks today? What would sense that he does have this kids shouted at me about it at in Hebrew when I was little. A Of embracing the notion that those 19th century presidents other existence. And some of his school. But as I got older and few days after the 2016 elec- most things, you’re not going to think about it? But there are anguish derives from his own experienced some of the bad tion, I went to my synagogue. understand, but it might be fun deeper questions than that. I feeling of helplessness in the things, there was an experience There were a lot of people to think about. started thinking about all the face of whatever incomprehen- that I couldn’t think my way out there that day. I was looking deeper things that you can’t sible problems he’s facing and of. There was no intellectual for a space outside this con- argue with. You spread a veneer

SELTZERTOPIA, continued from page 20 EGG CREAM continued from page 21 played a role in bringing it to America?! How about that the founder of Fox’s U-Bet took the famous mythology of a simpler time. siphon bottle seltzer, milk, and name from his sojourn in Texas, where he picked up the phrase “you bet”? Following the film, author Fox’s U-Bet egg creams. And, on the subject of U-Bet and its role as one of the essential ingredients of a per- Barry Joseph will give the The event will kick off a fect egg cream, Joseph quotes a 1975 Playboy interview in which Mel Brooks explains that audience a taste via video week-long egg cream special “Psychologically, [the egg cream] is the opposite of circumcision. It pleasurably reaffirms your of his book Seltzertopia: The at the Great Barrington Bagel Jewishness.” Extraordinary Story of an Company in Great Barrington, The same can be said of Seltzertopia itself. Like seltzer, this book will quench your thirst, and Ordinary Drink, which he will in advance of its Memorial Day leave a pleasant aftertaste long after you’ve put it down. be presenting on the opening through July 21 egg cream night of the book festival in special to benefit the book Barry Joseph will be the opening night author of the Third Annual Berkshires’ Jewish Festival of July at Hevreh. The book will festival. Books, which begins with his appearance on Thursday, July 18 at 7 p.m. at Hevreh of Southern be available for advance pur- There is a $5 sug- Berkshire, 270 State Road, Great Barrington, and runs through Sunday, July 21. Other authors chase at the February event, gested donation for the include Tova Mirvis, The Book of Separation, on Saturday, July 20 following Shabbat services, and audience members are Eggstravaganza, and RSVPs which begin at 10 a.m., and Chef Rossi (she only goes by one name), author of The Raging Skillet encouraged to return and have are strongly recommended to at 10 a.m. on Sunday, July 21. For advance reservations, more information about these and other Joseph sign them at the festi- ensure that there are enough festival events, and to pre-order signed copies of the books, contact Hevreh at (413) 528-6378 or visit val in July. egg creams for all. www.hevreh.org After his video appearance To RSVP and for more at the Eggstravaganza, audi- information, call Hevreh ence members will be invited at (413) 528-6378, or visit to share their own egg cream hevreh.org reminiscences, and enjoy real Tevet/Shevat/Adar 5779 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org Page 23

DEVOTED TO BOOKS

LIPSTADT BOOK, continued from page 1 shooting means for American Jewish groups? anti-Semitic abuse from Trump for fighting world anti-Semi- Jews and how Jews should There are lots of people supporters directed toward tism when you have coddled fight anti-Semitism. The inter- who proclaim they’re against reporter Julia Ioffe, who wrote an anti-Semite like Orban, view has been edited for length anti-Semitism — “Pittsburgh? a critical profile of Melania when you have made room for and clarity. Terrible!” Linda Sarsour, you Trump in 2016.] a soft-core Holocaust denial know. At the same time, on That would have been law like the Polish law. When JTA: What are your the other side of her mouth, the moment for him to look you’re talking about anti-Sem- thoughts about the book she’s talking about don’t straight into the camera and itism, there’s a red line. following Pittsburgh? humanize Israel and when you say, “Listen, this is not how Lipstadt: I wasn’t sur- wear a Jewish star it makes I want to win the presidency. You criticize people on both prised by Pittsburgh, but I me feel unsafe. She’s talking This is not what America is left and right, anti-Israel was shocked. I wasn’t sur- out of two sides of her mouth. about.” Instead he said “I have activists and the Israeli prised because I kept saying [At an event in September, no message for them.” [Trump prime minister. Do you feel something’s going to happen after criticizing Israel, Sarsour told CNN, “I don’t have a mes- like you’re fighting a losing in our country, and had been said, “If you’re on the side sage to the fans.”] battle trying to carve out happening. of the oppressor, or you’re You have a president who space in the middle? It would be easy to say defending the oppressor, glorifies violence. You have I call it as I see it. If I everything changes after or you’re actually trying to this violence, this glorification thought it was a losing battle Pittsburgh, and I do think humanize the oppressor, then of violence. You put it together I probably wouldn’t do it. everything changed for Jews, that’s a problem…” In 2017, with white nationalism, white I think there are a lot for synagogues. Any syna- speaking at a march protest- supremacy. At the heart of of Jews who feel like I do. I gogue board that in the past ing racism, Sarsour said, “I’m that white nationalism is a think there are a lot of Jews Jews on the left who suddenly, 10 days hasn’t met to discuss going to be honest, there are deep-seated anti-Semitism. who will read half the book when Trump was running, security operations is crazy. instances of things that hap- and remember half the book, saw anti-Semitism on the right That’s the new normal. pened to me at this space that You criticize activists who who will be appalled when I’m and began to get all upset We had one incident, a made me feel unsafe.” Some lead the Boycott, Divestment putting down the right and about that. And they weren’t horrible incident — it doesn’t people took that as a reference and Sanctions movement, love it when I’m putting down wrong. But they had a patch characterize our whole coun- to Zionist signs.] or BDS, against Israel. the left and be appalled when on. try — but it is disturbing. I I don’t trust people like But could you explain why I’m putting down the left and All those people on the tell the story, the one I end that. One of the reasons I’m you also have harsh words love it when I’m putting down right who are now saying the book with, of walking into particularly not trusting of for Israeli Prime Minister the [right]. Pittsburgh was a one-off, but shul with a little friend who’s someone like that is that Netanyahu, who they I’m not out to win a popu- we really should be worried now six-and-a-half, and her there are so many Jews on oppose? larity contest. I hope I’m not about BDS. Of course we mother said, “Say thank you the left who come so cheap. Bibi has done a num- a voice crying out into the should be worried about BDS, to the police officer for keeping They wrote me, “Look, Linda ber of things. First of all, his dark. I didn’t write the book to but if you’re on the right you us safe.” Sarsour criticized Pittsburgh, welcoming and embrace of convince people who already can have a conversation with She’s going to figure it look, she’s helped to rebuild [Hungarian prime minister] know what they think. If the those people. If you’re on the out soon enough. She’ll look a cemetery,” etc. Give me a Viktor Orban, who has been book makes people a little bit left you can try to have a con- across the street at the church break. Anyone who’s not going pushing this Soros imag- uncomfortable, and makes versation with those people. dead opposite our shul and to criticize what happened in ery [billboards criticizing the them reassess where they are If you’re only seeing it on there are no police officers Pittsburgh … someone gets liberal Jewish philanthropist and what they’re doing and the opposite side of the tran- there. How do you recognize credit? OK, so she’s raising George Soros] and cracking where they see things, that’s som, you’re instrumentalizing a shul now if you don’t know money to help rebuild a cem- down on the Jewish commu- good, too. this for political purposes. exactly what the number is or etery, that’s very nice. But at nity of Budapest in a horrible, I call for civil society. It what the cross street is? Look the same time she’s making horrible way. So what should we do to used to be we could take our for the police officers. Kids rec- awful statements about Jews. No. 2, what happened with fight anti-Semitism? lead from government and ognize that. Not just about Zionists but the critics of BDS and that I compare anti-Semitism to leadership. We can’t. So it There will be kids who say about Jews. policy of keeping them out [of herpes. For most of the time becomes incumbent on civil what do I want to go to Hillel [Lipstadt clarified that she Israel]. Not only is it antithet- we’ve had herpes, it couldn’t society to take a role. for? There will be parents who was referring to comments ical to Israel being a democ- be cured. And if you were sud- A healthy democratic will say, you know what? Why Sarsour has made about racy, but it steals us of our denly under stress, boom, up society cannot tolerate should I take my kid to a place supporters of Israel, which best argument against BDS. would come a herpes infec- anti-Semitism and racism. If where there’s danger? includes many Jews.] BDS says “shut down the con- tion. Anti-Semitism is like her- that is festering in its midst, it Farrakhan, he called Jews versation, don’t bring anybody pes. When a society is under says something is unhealthy In your book, you focus termites, and Linda Sarsour who might disagree with you,” stress, it appears. about the society. It’s not just largely on people who and Tamika Mallory and lead- and we say “no, open up the I would say the following Jews for whom this is danger- enable or minimize ers of the Women’s March are conversation.” things: They won’t cure it, but ous. This should terrify you. anti-Semitism, as opposed embracing him and praising Most of all, the Polish law at least it might help alleviate Because if this is happening to hardcore anti-Semites him. He called us termites. [criminalizing blaming Poles it. to Jews, it may start with the themselves. Why is that? How much more do you need? for collaborating with the Don’t see anti-Semitism Jews but it doesn’t end with It’s “farfaln” [Yiddish, Holocaust]. When the Polish only on the other side of the the Jews. roughly, for “a lost cause”] to On the right, is a person law came out, Israel was political transom from which try to change those people. I with 50 Twitter followers appalled and was absolutely you are located. All these could write about David Duke who sends a meme some- critical of Poland for from here until the cows come. thing we really need to be this law. But then I’m not going to change David concerned about? they announced with Duke’s mind. We all know If it were one person with great fanfare, with David Duke is a lowlife of the 50 followers I’d say let’s get Bibi at the table, first order, but it’s the people a life. But it’s not one person we’ve worked things who might be influenced by with 50 followers. It’s 500 out with Poland, and David Duke who I want to people with 50 followers and Poland is changing reach. one of them with a thousand the law so that it’s not Farrakhan, he’s a disgust- and another, like a Richard as offensive. ing excuse for a human being. Spencer, who figures out how What they had But it’s the people around to take those 50 and 50 and done is essentially him, Linda Sarsour, [Women’s 50 and turn them into some- changed the punish- March co-chair] Tamika thing more acceptable and ment from criminal to Mallory, who have the voice of more mainstream. civil, but at the same the press, who are listened to. It’s a ripple effect. The time taken away pro- They’re enablers. The enablers internet can be a weapon or it tections for professors are much more dangerous can be a great tool for con- and artists. to me than the people we necting people. Given that we This bending recognize. now have the internet, given to Poland on this On some level, it’s that these right-wingers have law was realpolitik. the non-Hitlerian kind of learned how to use it, they Bibi did it because anti-Semite, the one who have a tool they didn’t have he wants Orban in doesn’t quite present as an before. Hungary and whoev- anti-Semite, who’s much more The thing that really galva- er’s leading the Polish dangerous because that’s the nized it was, of course, having government at the person who’s going to have a president who — I don’t moment, and Austria, access to the public. know if Donald Trump is an to be his friends. Now anti-Semite, I doubt that he’s you can say that’s How do you view Linda an anti-Semite. But that’s the realpolitik, but don’t Sarsour’s activism and wrong question to ask. The do that and then fundraising on behalf of question to ask is, does he claim Israel is the Jewish causes, and her col- enable anti-Semites? primary spokesper- laborations with progressive [Lipstadt then refers to son and the address Page 24 Berkshire Jewish Voice • jewishberkshires.org January 1 to February 17, 2019 CULTURE AND ARTS “Tehillim B’Zug” Federation-supported Project Zug partnered Berkshire and Israeli artists exploring the Book of Psalms Over the past year, the Jewish Agency for Israel’s Partnership2Gether program brought together artists from Israel’s Afula/Gilboa region and Connecticut and Massachusetts communities participating in the Southern New England Consortium (SNEC). Seven very creative people from the Berkshires took part in Project Zug – Chaim Bronstein, Jennifer Burt, Regina Karas, Heidi Katz, Jeff Kramer, Francine Licata, and Pamela Wax. We’ve reproduced some of their works, along with those of their Israeli counterparts, with edited excerpts from their joint artists’ statements. Participating artist Tanya Fredman, whose own artwork was recently on view in Lenox during the summer months, curated an exhibition of the finished projects that appeared in Israel’s first art museum, the Mishkan Museum of Art in Ein Harod, which is located in the Afula/Gilboa region. In her introduction to the show’s catalog, “Tehilim Zug,” Fredman explained how Project Zug brought together artists from diverse backgrounds in trans-Atlantic collaboration. For more on the Mishkan Museum of Art, visit www.museumeinharod.org.il/en.

By Tanya Fredman Sefer Tehillim, the Book of Psalms, has been read, prayed, recited, studied, questions provided by the Hadar Institute, and revealed new meanings about the sung and cried again and again throughout time and place. Its words comfort us, text, about one another, and about themselves. challenge us, bring us together and express our deepest sorrows and joys. The art that was born from these discussions is multi-faceted, each piece por- Over the past year, nine partnerships (“Zug” in Hebrew) were formed among traying a different aspect of the Havruta experience and of the Book of Psalms. nine Israeli and nine American artists. They connected across the ocean to delve Look closely and you will find tears and joy, sound and silence, grief and hope. into the Book of Psalms in “Havruta” partner study and to create artworks based We were thrilled to host the first public exhibition of Project Zug at The on their learning. Mishkan Museum of Art, Ein Harod, as the museum celebrates 80 years of col- Havruta study is a powerful experience. A deep bond was formed between lecting and exhibiting art and of creating connections and conversations. the valleys and hills of the Afula-Gilboa region of Israel and the Southern New Every “Zug” in the exhibition is an open conversation, and we hope you will England region of the United States. The artists spoke weekly, using texts and join it.

“Connection” Jennifer Burt and Erela Koren (Kfar Yehezkel) Erela says: “I was born and raised was founded in 1937. In the picture [a forces in transforming the wilderness Jordanian border, between marshes in Kibbutz Maoz Hayim, a descendant photo and computer graphic printed and establishing Kibbutz Maoz Hayim and mosquitoes and with unbear- of the founders of the kibbutz, which on canvas], a group of pioneers join in the Beit Shean Valley, on the able heat. This wonderful group of people expresses for me, above all, the concept of “Brothers dwelling together” (Psalm 133:1). The coura- geous connection between them is reflected not only in the building of the Land of Israel, but also in the cooperative and egalitarian form of life that the kibbutz invented.” Jennifer says: “The concept of connection inspired my piece, which is based on the Ashrei prayer: ‘happy are the people who dwell in your house’ (Psalm 84:5), imply- ing that those praying are part of a household. My [sculptural assemblage] is about opening the con- fines of the heart, something that is at once fully organic yet safely encased, literally and figuratively. Psalms 145:16 is considered most significant and says, “You open your hand...” there is a Yad, or hand, By Erela Koren protruding out of the top of the piece pointing at the viewer.

By Jennifer Burt

“HaMakom” (The Place) as a metaphor for G-D Francine Licata and Judy Spigiel (Kibbutz Megido)

The Book of Psalms is akin to a blueprint of G-D’s nature and the vast range of human emotions, relationships, and experiences. They are universally recognized as a foundation or bedrock upon which to stand face to face with G-D and oneself. Together our work suggests that psalms are “The Place” to lay down all hopes, fears, desires and praises, and from within “HaMakom” all prayers are affirmed, held and sustained. Judy offers a mixed media canvas. Her work relates to the entire Book of Psalms. Her elements portray the psalms as the “cornerstone.” Francine’s assemblage of found objects reflects her search for this foundation and her journey to reach “HaMakom.”

By Judy Spigiel By Francine Licata