INSIDE Subscribe today! [email protected] Quick Look 3-5, Israel at 73 Art from 10-13 6-7 Dallas Doings the Heart 14-23 Senior Jerry Skibell’s passion for 24-25 Jewish Foodie creating the beautiful, p.20 26 Post Pics 28-29 Columnists 31 Obituary Thursday, April 15, 2021 • 3 Iyar 5781 • VOLUME 75 NO. 15 • tjpnews.com $1.00 Israel marks its birthday with remembrance and celebration Coverage starts on p.3 and continues throughout Light Shabbat candles: SHALOM BAYIT: HEALTHY TEEN RELATIONSHIPS 7:40 p.m. Friday, April 16 Free Temple Shalom program is Sunday, April 18, pp.6-7 Shabbat ends: 8:50 p.m. Saturday, April 17 ISRAEL AT 73 April 15, 2021 | 3 73 fun facts about Israel To celebrate Israel’s 73rd that received at least one dose Netanya created the world’s largest birthday on April 15, we’ve brought of the COVID-19 vaccine and in mosaic made of socks, using 12,000 together a list of 73 weird, wacky the number of vaccination doses in total. (All of them clean, thankfully.) and remarkable things about this administered per 100 people in the tiny country in the Middle East that total population. 19. Cows in Israel produce more milk you most likely don’t know. on average than do dairy cows in 12. Israel is a global leader in medical other countries. By Nicky Blackburn clowning, and was the first country (Israel21C via JNS) in the world to send medical clowns 20. An Israeli company has developed into COVID-19 wards. a revolutionary spray-on skin made Photo: Illustrative photo via Shutterstock 1. Israel has the highest number of of nanofiber to help heal wounds. Israel celebrates Independence Day, April 15, 2021. altruistic kidney donations per capita 13. In 2007, Israeli businesswoman 26. Israel is roughly half the size of 32. In 2020, Tel Aviv was named in the world: 1,005 in the past 11 Shari Arison initiated Good Deeds 21. Israelis love kids. With an average Lake Michigan. the fifth most expensive city in the years, and counting. Day to encourage people to help each of three children per woman, Israel world to live in, according to The other. That year, 7,000 people took part has the highest fertility rate among 27. The glue on Israel’s postage Economist Intelligence Unit. Zurich, in Israel. In 2019, 3.9 million people took the 37 countries in the OECD, where stamps is kosher. Paris and Hong Kong came in before 2. The oldest tree in Israel is a jujube part in 108 countries around the world. the average is 1.7. it. tree in Ein Hatzeva on the road to 28. Israel has more than 50 Eilat, which is thought to be between 14. Israel is bordered by snowy peaks 22. Israel performs more in-vitro alternative meat startups — a 33. An Israeli company has developed 1,500 to 2,000 years old. at one end and a desert beach on the fertilizations per capita than any disproportionately high number a paint that uses sunlight to activate other. other country, and it’s free for the first compared to elsewhere around a cooling mechanism on cars, 3. Scientists in Israel managed to two babies. the world — making it a fake buildings, planes and even clothing, grow fresh dates from sixth-century 15. Israel has 137 beaches — all of meat powerhouse. Perhaps it’s no providing air conditioning without seeds found at Masada and Qumran. them beautiful. 23. Babies in Israel are 10 times less surprise, given that the country has electricity. The hotter it is, the more likely to be allergic to peanuts than more vegans per capita. the coating cools. 4. The Israel Postal Service has a 16. Israel is piloting a new locally- in other countries. Studies suggest special Letters to God department, developed AI system to help it’s because they eat Bamba peanut 29. Researchers in Israel have grown 34. Israel takes in more immigrants for all the letters arriving in Jerusalem lifeguards protect swimmers on the snacks from an early age. mouse embryos in bottles in a than any other country in the world from around the world addressed to beaches and give real-time data revolutionary way to observe the per capita. Since it was founded God. They are opened and placed on wind, waves and other possible 24. According to Hebrew-language first stages of mammalian embryonic in 1948, 3.3 million people have into the cracks of the Western Wall. hazards. Wikipedia, there are seven different development. immigrated to Israel. ways to eat a Krembo, one of Israel’s 5. About 1 million notes are left in the 17. Israel recycles 90% of the favorite snacks. 30. In 2020, Israel was the eighth most 35. In 2020, the most popular baby Western Wall every year. wastewater it creates, making it the expensive country in the world to live names in Israel were Mohammad for leading nation in the world for water 25. Members of a voluntary in. Switzerland came in at No. 1. boys and Miriam for girls. 6. At the Church of the Holy Sepulchre recycling. In the United States, only organization called Trail Angels open in Jerusalem, an old wooden ladder 1% of wastewater is recycled. their homes to hikers on the 1,025- 31. Israelis eat some 24 million 36. Syrian hamsters were first has been propped up against a km (637-mile) Israel Trail, offering free sufganiyot (doughnuts) during the window since the 18th century. No 18. In July 2012, a group of artists in beds, showers and other amenities. eight-day holiday of Hanukkah. see FACTS, p.30 one can move it because the building is managed by six different churches and none can agree on who owns the ladder. 7. Israel is the only country to have revived a dead language and made it the national language. 8. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Israel was 54 degrees Celsius (129.2 Fahrenheit) in 1942 at Kibbutz Tirat Zvi in the northern Jordan Valley. (The highest temperature ever recorded worldwide is 56.7 degrees Celsius in Death Valley in 1913.) 9. While Jerusalem has snowstorms every few years, and even the Negev desert gets occasional snow, Tel Aviv has only had one snowstorm in its history. In 1950, it snowed 12-18 cm. (4.7-7 inches), thrilling locals, many of whom had never seen snow before. 10. More than half the landmass of Israel is desert, but it still has an Olympic bobsled and skeleton team. 11. Israel dramatically leads the world in a share of the total population 4 | April 15, 2021 ISRAEL AT 73 Iron Dome still a game-changer For 10 years, resilience in times of conflict. By Hanan Greenwood (Israel Hayom via JNS) “I Jimmy Wisch don’t want to create the illusion Publisher & Editor | 1947-2002 that the Iron Dome defense system will provide a complete or Rene Wisch comprehensive solution. The system Publisher & Editor | 1947-2010 is still in its experimental phase and in any case, we can’t deploy one to PUBLISHER & EDITOR defend every house, every school Sharon Wisch-Ray or every facility,” said Israeli Prime [email protected] Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a Cabinet meeting March 27, 2011. VP SALES & CIRCULATION At the time, multiple rocket Susan Wisch salvos were being launched at Israel’s [email protected] southern communities by Gaza Strip-based terrorist groups. With Photo: David Buimovitch/Flash90 VP SALES & MARKETING An Iron Dome missile defense battery near the southern Israeli town of Ashdod. just 15 seconds to find shelter every Amy Doty time a siren warned of an incoming In return, Israel undertook to Moshe Patel told Israel Hayom in a intercept rockets and mortar shells. [email protected] rocket, the area’s residents lived in produce 50% of the system’s rare interview. “We’re talking about This success has given Israeli civilians constant fear. components in the United States. threats that don’t even exist in the an unimaginable sense of security. PAGE DESIGNER Ten days after Netanyahu spoke, “The various parts are field at this time, but will probably We are in an ongoing revolution. We Chad Austin April 7, 2011, the Iron Dome air- manufactured in different places emerge in the coming months.” are constantly testing the systems [email protected] defense system made history by and we collect the relevant basket Patel stressed that despite the fact and upgrading them. It should be intercepting a Grad rocket. The rest, of components, bring it here and that the enemy uses rocket barrages understood — our capabilities are AD REPRESENTATIVES as they say, is history. assemble them into a complete to penetrate Israel’s air defenses, “we completely different from the ones we Nancy Sadicarios “It was very clear to me that this system. Rafael is the largest have very high interception rates. had in 2011. We are constantly busy [email protected] system will meet the needs on the employer in northern Israel and it We are constantly ahead of our assessing the threat and adapting to Judy Wisch ground,” said Michal, an engineer is largely thanks to Iron Dome,” enemies.” the relevant situation.” at Rafael Advanced Defense Systems said Toaff. All systems making up Israel’s Toaff recalled that “when Iron COPY EDITORS/PROOFREADERS who was involved in the development In the decade since it became air defenses are now closely linked, Dome was first unveiled we were Phyllis LaVietes, Susan Wisch of Iron Dome from 2008.