As part of a strategic expansion of its Western Region organizational presence, American Friends of the Hebrew University (AFHU) opened a new office serving Orange County, San Diego and Palm Springs.  AFHU, which is headquartered in New York City, has seven offices throughout the U.S.

The office will be located at 18340 Yorba Linda Blvd. Suite 107, Yorba Linda.  Caron S. Berkley, former association director of the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California (JPAC), is the director of the office.

AFHU’s renewed focus on this area will further the organization’s mission in support of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.  Through an array of activities, the new office will showcase the University’s achievements, state-of-the-art research and expertise in a broad spectrum of scientific and scholarly fields.

For more information, contact Berkley at (949) 407-6547 or (800) 916-9998 x214.

Annual AIPAC Dinner

The America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Orange County annual dinner will be held Sunday, February 12, at 6 p.m. at the St. Regis in Monarch Beach.

Speakers will include Stephen M. Berk, currently professor of history at Union College in New York and former chair of the department of history, director of the program in Russian and Eastern European studies and faculty adviser to the Jewish Student Organization there.  Berk was a scholar in residence for the Orange County Community Scholar Program last year.  He is the author of Year of Crisis, Year of Hope: Russian Jewry and the Pogroms of 1881-1882 (Greenwood Press, 1985) and is writing a book entitled, Our People Are Your People: American Jewry and the Struggle for Civil Rights 1954-1965.  In 1996, Professor Berk received the prestigious Holocaust Memorial Award from the Holocaust Survivors and Friends Education Center.  He has also been a consultant to the Wiesenthal Holocaust Center in Los Angeles.

Also speaking at the dinner is Bakari T. Sellers, a House member in the South Carolina General Assembly.  When Sellers was elected in 2006 at the age of 22, he was the youngest member of the Assembly and the youngest black elected official in the United States.  A Clinton Fellow with the Democratic Leadership Council and a member of the South Carolina Legislative Black Caucus, Representative Sellers is an attorney at Strom Law LLC.

Cost of the dinner is $125 per person.  For reservations, click on www.aipac.org/OCdinner2012 or call (323) 937-1184.estions or
DIETARY LAWS OBSERVED – BUSINESS

A 2009-10 report by Arnon Groiss of Impact-Se, the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Curriculum describes the school books Rahman would have been exposed to as delegitimizing Jews and Israel, denying their historical and religious presence and ascribing to them dubious and nefarious characteristics, as well as assigning full blame to them for the Middle East conflict and stressing the ideal of violent struggle for liberation over peaceful negotiation.

After school, Rahman would have been exposed to Al Aqsa Television children’s programs, like this one: “What do you want to do to the Jews who shot your father?” says the cuddly bear.

“I want to kill them,” a child’s voice pipes up.

“We don’t want to do anything to them,” a little girl shakes her head at the bear.  “Just to expel them from our land.”

“But if we slaughter them, they’ll be expelled,” the bear cheerfully corrects her.

“Yes, that’s right,” she agrees.

Graduating from this kind of education, Rahman enrolled in Al Quds University, with its Abu Jihad Museum, honoring the master terrorist who engineered the Coastal Road Massacre.  In 2007, Al Quds held a week-long celebration honoring Yahya Ayyash, the notorious Hamas “engineer credited for numerous deadly attacks and for inventing the suicide belt.”

On March 11, 2011, Al Quds held a celebration of the 33^rd anniversary of the death of Dalal Mughrabi, a despicable Lebanese woman who landed on Israel’s coast in a dinghy with a dozen other terrorists, killing nature photographer Gail Rubin and then hijacking a passenger bus which she blew up with a grenade, killing 38 Israelis – thirteen of them children.

“Now we go to a glorious chapter in Palestinian history… ” the Palestinian television announcer says, introducing Mughrabi’s sister, who says: “This is a day of glory and pride for the Palestinian people and a blow to the Zionists.  She [Mughrabi] left a note to our father saying to point all rifles at Zionists, so if you haven’t yet…”

The release of terrorist murderers was a bad idea for many reasons.  But while it might have emboldened him, it didn’t put the idea of killing Jews into Zaid Abd al-Rahman’s head.  For that, it took a village.  If the West is ever really sincere about tackling the problem of peace in our area, the first sign will be the halting of all funding and cultural exchanges with the likes of Al Quds “University.”  It will be the attention paid to reversing the damage done by years of toxic PA and Hamas brainwashing, the kind that turns young people into monsters.

When the security fence goes up between Ramot and Beit Iksa, Palestinian apologists. Al Quds University and its television broadcasting system will vent fury at further evidences of Israeli “apartheid.”

But we should all know better who really built this fence.

This article was first published in the Jerusalem Post on 18 November, 2011.

Time: 6:30 PM.  Join us for dinner at Orchid Restaurant, 3033 Bristol St #D, Costa Mesa, 92626, 714-557-8070.  The menu is a creative merging of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean culinary delicacies.  Approximately 1 miles south of 405 Fwy & South Coast Plaza shopping center on the ocean side of 405 Fwy.  RSVP with Andrea 714-852-3745, so she can reserve enough seating.  JSPSA.COM

#864   Sunday/Feb. 5                         Dinner at a Greek Restaurant in Los Alamitos

Time: 6:30 PM.  Meet at Preveza Greek Restaurant at 10931 Los Alamitos Blvd, Los Alamitos, 90720, 562-596-6400.  Located North of Katella and West of Los Alamitos Blvd.  People in the Los Alamitos and Long Beach area have highly recommended this restaurant for their Greek food.  When I went here they were very busy, and I thought the food was great too!    RSVP with Mark 714-772-7457.  This is repeat activity that drew a lot of people in the past.

#865   Friday/Feb. 10                                                   Jewish Services in La Mirada

Time: 7:30 PM.  Join us for Jewish Services and Oneg at Temple Beth Ohr, 15721 Rosecrans Ave, La Mirada, CA 90638, 714-521-6765, templebethohr.com.  There is additional parking at the church across the street.  Many people have raved about this rabbi and have told me he is very good.  Just come and we will try to sit together for services and the Oneg.  JSPSA.COM

#867   Sunday/Feb. 12 Katella Deli in Los Alamitos

Time: 6:30 PM.  Katella Deli, 4470 Katella Ave., Los Alamitos, 90720, (562) 594-8611. Many people tell me this is their favorite Deli & Bakery.  Will it be yours?  This has been a busy Sunday event in the past. We always get a good turnout here since it is centrally located for the Orange County and L.A. people.  RSVP with Bob 562-430-8175 and let him know if you’re coming. It helps with the restaurant for seating purposes.  JSPSA.COM

#868   Friday/Feb. 17    (Musical Service)       Singles Shabbat Service, Westminster

Time: 7:30PM.  Shabbat Services at Temple Beth David, 6100 Hefley, Westminster, 92683, 714-892-6623. Join us and the South Coast Simcha Band for a service of music (this is a special musical service for this Friday).  Stay for the Oneg.  From Beach Blvd. and Westminster Blvd, take Westminster Blvd. west, go past Goldenwest, proceed past Edwards St, look for a small street called Willow Lane (there is an Arco gas station at that corner).  Turn Right.  If you hit the freeway entrance, you’ve gone too far.&nb sp; First Left is Milton, go Left.  First Left is Hefley, go Left to 6100 Hefley St.  (Some people find the Temple hard to find.  I hope these directions help!)  Just come.  JSPSA.COM

#869   Saturday/Feb. 18                Dinner at Sizzler & Free Symphony Concert in La Mirada

Time: 6:00 PM. Meet for dinner at Sizzler’s Restaurant at 15252 Rosecrans Ave, La Mirada, 90638, 714-228-0153.  Afterwards we can drive or walk to the La Mirada Performing Arts Center, 14900 La Mirada Blvd, La  Mirada, 90638, 714-994-6150.  ADMISSION AND PARKING ARE FREE.  www.lamiradasymphony.com It’s recommended to be there before 7:30 PM.  Concert starts at 8:00 PM and they fill up quickly.   Concert is  “The Russians Are Coming!” Staring  Kihae Kim De Fazio.  More Info/Directions/RSVP, call Call Rodger 714-771-4623.  JSPSA.COM

#870   Sunday/Feb. 19                                     Cuban Restaurant in Redondo Beach

Time: 6:00 PM.  Join us for dinner at Havana Mania at 3615 Inglewood Ave, Redondo Beach, 90278, 310-725-9075.  There is a large menu.  Recommended by Erica.  RSVP with Paula at 310-541-2622. Call her so she reserves enough seating for us.  (New Restaurant for the group)  JSPSA.COM

#871   Monday/Feb. 20       (Presidents’ Day)     Peruvian Dinner in Fountain Valley

Time: 6:00 PM.  Join us for dinner at Casa Inka at 8610 Warner Ave, Fountain Valley, 92708, 714-847-7555.  This restaurant was referred to me by my daughter, and I tried it.  The food is excellent. Try the green and yellow sauces.  RSVP with Joan at 714-964-7031.   JSPSA.COM

#872   Saturday/Feb. 25                                            Dinner & Movie in Long Beach

Time: 6:30 PM.  Join us for dinner at Mimi’s Café, 6670 E. Pacific Coast Hwy, Long Beach, 90803 (562) 596-0831. After dinner and socializing we can decide which movie we would like to see.  There is a movie theatre across street on Pacific Coast Hwy and another one across from 2^nd St. RSVP with David at  949-413-7591.  JSPSA.COM (just a note: tomorrow 2/26 is David’s Birthday)

#873   Sunday/Feb. 26          Breakfast at Katella Deli and El Dorado Nature Center

Time: 10:00 AM.  Meet for breakfast at Katella Deli, 4470 Katella Ave., Los Alamitos, 90720, (562) 594-8611.  After breakfast, we will take a walk at El Dorado Nature Center, 7550 E. Spring St, Long Beach, 90815, (562) 795-7751.  The Nature Center is accessible to everyone.  You can go at your own pace.  1 & 2 mile trails.  Parts of the trails are along a lake where you can see lots of turtles in the water swimming with the fish.  Pay for parking, but the Nature Center is FREE.  There is a museum  and gift shop.  Just come.  More info/ call Marty 714-894-5679.   JSPSA.COM Easy Walk.

There are many types of summer camp experiences in the world.  However, as Jews, Jewish summer camp is perhaps the most important experience that we can offer our youth.  Summer camp in general certainly gives children a sense of independence, but a Jewish summer camp begins a special connection that is difficult to achieve anywhere else.  The first time a child is running around, screaming, singing, dancing, all in the name of Shabbat is a powerful moment.  The first time children rise as the Torah is taken from the ark and look around to see a sanctuary made of trees, grass and flowers is a powerful moment. That first campfire watching friends and strangers make total fools of themselves and feeling the common thread throughout the crowd that we all share, a tradition, a culture, a bond — that is powerful moment.

There is no denying that Jewish camp strengthens Jewish youth, but the question remains, “When do I send my child?”  The great news for parents in the Orange County community is that this question can be answered by sending their children to The Bureau of Jewish Education’s Community Shabbaton the weekend of March 2 to 4 at Camp Alonim in Simi Valley. Every year more than 300 third to eighth graders from all over Orange County come together to experience Jewish summer camp for a weekend.  The participants on this weekend have the opportunity to learn from inspiring educators, bond with our trained and skilled youth staff and experience Shabbat with friends old and new.

The Community Shabbaton has become the testing ground for thousands of kids in past years to give camp a try.  This experience has helped families figure out how ready they are to take that leap to a summer experience.  No matter what families decide, the values our kids come home with each year are invaluable to their development as Jews.

Powerful moments happen on our Shabbaton.  They sing, dance and run around in the name of Shabbat.  They feel the energy of learning Torah in an experiential setting.  They see the common thread that weaves its way through each child, each staff member and each educator.  This is where the journey begins to camp, to identity building and to community.  How do you get started?  Join us on the Shabbaton and take the leap.

For more information about registering your child for the Community Shabbaton, please contact Eric Nicastro at (949) 435-3450 or eric@bjeoc.org.

The Spirit of Gilboa
A generous donation from an anonymous Orange County donor allowed Habonim Dror Camp Gilboa to enter into a process of purchasing a beautiful 40-acre campground in Big Bear.  Gilboa’s dreams of finding a home were realized just in time to hold summer 2011 sessions around the serenely beautiful Bluff Lake, and the camp is now getting prepared for a second season at its new home.  Another summer of kayaking, hiking, learning and forming friendships is just around the corner.
Camp Gilboa is part of Habonim Dror youth movement, and in a youth-led community, every camper has a say in camp decisions and shares responsibilities at camp.  This not only creates a sense of ownership and cultivates a strong sense of community, but also empowers the children and fosters the creation of strong leadership skills.
“Our counselors are all graduates of the youth movement, and the powerful experience they’ve had as campers inspires them to come back,” said Dalit Shlapobersky, Gilboa’s executive director.  “They formed their connection to Israel and a strong sense of Jewish identity here, and they want to make sure younger children experience the same sense of Jewish idealism.”

Habonim Dror Camp Gilboa
8339 West 3rd St.,
Los Angeles CA 90048
(323) 653-6772
www.campgilboa.org

Alonim Highlights
Camp Alonim is a non-denominational Jewish summer camp located just outside Simi Valley that provides staffed train transportation for Orange County families.  At Camp Alonim, the beauty of Judaism is experienced every day through music, Israeli dance, sports, arts and crafts, social action and nature.  Every activity is viewed as an opportunity to discover a spark that will ignite a lifelong love of Judaism.  Campers are able to safely experience new things, build skills, make lasting friendships and have pure fun.
In its nearly 60-year history, over 30,000 “Alonimers” have experienced the joys of Jewish living in what many call their “home away from home.”  Highlights of the Alonim program are horseback riding, an unparalleled Israeli dance tradition, electives such as mountain biking and radio broadcasting, unforgettable Shabbat experiences and opportunities to explore some of Alonim’s 3,000 acres of breathtaking nature.  Alonim’s newest program is an Israel trip for entering 12th graders that is open to veteran campers as well as those who have never before been to camp.
The camp is open to children entering grades 2 to 12: session 1, June 19 – July 1, $1,860; mini-camp, June 24 – July 1, $1,090; session 2, July 3-22, $2,675; session 3, July 24 – August 12, $2,575; counselor-in-training (entering 11th grade), June 18 – August 12, $3,830; Gesher Israel (entering 12th grade), July 2 – August 6.
Fees are $4,995 for the first 15 enrollees.  Financial aid is available.  Obtain online registration and scholarship information.

Camp Alonim
American Jewish University
15600 Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90077
(877) 2ALONIM (877/225-6646)
www.alonim.com
JCamp Options
The Merage JCC’s JCamps offer families a wide variety of summer camp options with programs available for children of all ages, starting with preschoolers through grade school and including high school campers and leadership opportunities.  Each camp offers unique Jewish camping experiences.  Three sessions and two mini camps are available with JCamps open from June 18 through August 31.  Flexible scheduling options are available.
At Camp Yeladim preschoolers can enjoy the summer camp experience in the security of a nurturing early childhood center.  Directed by Peter Blair, credentialed and highly trained early childhood educators at Camp Yeladim guide young children through a summer of making new friends, learning, creativity, imagination and, of course, lots of fun!  Yeladim groups include Shemesh (sun) for two year olds, Keshet (rainbow) for three year olds and Kochavim (stars) for four year olds.  Camp activities include pool play, water play and group swim experiences taught by highly trained aquatics instructors.  Special guests join campers each Wednesday with exciting programs such as magic shows, marionettes, exotic animals, music concerts and dramatic performance.  Three and four year olds at Camp Yeladim delve into sports and gymnastics weekly in the JCC’s gym.  Summer camp sing-alongs, messy hands art activities, and Shabbat through the senses round out each week’s activities.
ACA accredited Camp Haverim, for campers in grades kindergarten through eleventh grade, is all about fun and friendships.  Under the leadership of camp director Audra Martin and assistant camp director Ariella Klein, Haverim campers can participate and excel in sports, swimming, science, arts and crafts, theatre and Judaic activities.  The JCC’s campus — with its pool, gymnasium, theatre and sports fields — provides a perfect setting for the wide variety of activities offered at Camp Haverim.  Campers get to choose their “chug” (activity) once a week for “chofesh” (free time) including face painting, drawing, hand ball, karate, hip hop, can jam, ladder, golf, parachutes, magic, chess, jewelry making, ceramics and more.  Each day brings campers a special activity such as tie-dye, chalk art, shaving cream, goop, pop rockets, broomball, tent pitching, parachute games and computer activities.  Specialty camps include Academics Camp, Science Adventure Camp, Theatre Camp and Camp Sporto.  Audra Martin said, “At Camp Haverim there is a strong focus on Jewish heritage and building Jewish identity.  It’s hands-on Judaism through art, music, dance and drama.  We emphasize Jewish values and ruach (spirit).”
Camp Yofi, the JCC’s resident camp for grades 2 to 11, is located at the ACA accredited YMCA’s Camp Edwards in Angelus Oaks in the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, just a short walk from Jenks Lake and only 26 miles from Big Bear Lake.  Camp Haverim senior staff member Eric Schwartz is the new Camp Yofi Director.  Yofi campers can explore endless possibilities with a long list of activities to choose from including canoeing, swimming, basketball, volleyball, cheerleading, Gaga, softball, Krav Maga, pottery, basket weaving, fishing, flag football, cooking, gymnastics, Karaoke, rock climbing, hiking, archery, zip line, mountain biking, camp fires and field trips to local attractions.
Schwartz said, “I am thrilled to be joining the Camp Yofi family for Summer 2012.  At Camp Yofi, we provide a safe, fun, caring environment where campers make new friends, learn new skills and create lifelong memories.”

JCamps
Merage Jewish Community Center of Orange County
1 Federation Way, Irvine, CA 92603
(949) 435-3400
www.jccoc.org/jcamps

Making a Jewish Camp Jewish:
Camp Haverim’s TAG Initiative
Torah Avodah Gemilut Chasadim is an initiative designed to enrich the Jewish components of summer camp.  By presenting different units such as Shabbat, Judaism and the environment, Shalom Bayit and Tikkun Olam, Camp Haverim explores new ways of integrating Jewish life, experiences and values into camp.  This year’s initiative theme is B’tzelem Elohim (In God’s Image).  The Torah teaches that humans are “created in God’s image” (Genesis 1:27)…Understood metaphorically, it provides a purpose in life: to act in a God-like manner.  This has obvious implications on how we treat ourselves and others, as well as the world around us.  Jews, therefore, have understood the concept of B’tzelem Elohim as a moral imperative and as a guide for living.  TAG: Jewish Values through JCC Camping is funded by a JCC Cares grant from the JCC Association.

About Heritage Pointe (from www.heritagepointe.com)
A non-profit, 200-resident community in Mission Viejo, Heritage Pointe provides independent, assisted and memory care services for the elderly, while incorporating Jewish traditions and lifestyles.  It offers specialized social, cultural, religious, educational and recreational activities to seniors.  Amenities include comprehensive health care services, an on-site synagogue, traditional Judaic programs and a Kosher kitchen serving three meals a day. Fundraising from within the community provides $1 million annually to assist residents in financial need.
In the fall of 2010, Heritage Pointe was named one of the “TopWorkplaces” for the second year in a row by The Orange County Register.  In the spring of 2009, the Heritage Pointe synagogue became a named congregation: K’hilat Horim (Community of Parents), led by a full-time cantor, Susan Deutsch.
For more information, contact Heritage Pointe at 27356 Bellogente, Mission Viejo, California 92691; www.heritagepointe.org; (949) 364-9685 (tours); (949)364-0010 (donations).

Ilene Schneider

It’s Tu B’Shevat:
Have You hugged a tree today?
An apple could have been drab-colored like the potato.  It could have lacked color, taste and fragrance and still be deemed valuable for its life-giving contents.  God arranged the soil, water, air and sunlight into a lusciously-flavored and ready-to-eat delicacy, wrapped in a beautifully-tinted and fragrant wrapper, demonstrating that He wishes that we enjoy the fruit.  (Based on lesson from Sing, You Righteous, Rav. A. Miller)

While Eileen Garbutt, director of Women’s Philanthropy for the past 12 years and this year’s Women’s Voices honoree, quipped that the organization “has the lunch down to a science – simply meet the challenge of finding an affordable speaker who will make everybody from women in their 20s to women in their 80s happy,” the event has proven increasingly popular with local women.  However, it is, as this year’s luncheon chairs Michelle Prescott and Barbara Shapiro explained, only part of the Women’s Philanthropy story.
“There’s something for everybody, whether it’s helping underprivileged children with their reading, crocheting blankets for premature babies or working in a soup kitchen,” Prescott said.  “People move here from out of state or out the area, get invited to lunch and get involved.  If you have an idea, Women’s Philanthropy makes it happen.”
“You get to meet and learn from amazing people of all ages who want to make the world a better place,” Shapiro added.  “When you go out to help people who don’t have jackets, you realize how fortunate you are.  There are so many things you can do if you put your money together and put your efforts together.  You get so much more out of it than you put into (volunteering).”
According to Ann Miller, president of Women’s Philanthropy, “We reach out, we touch, we do, we ask, we receive, we work with our hands and we give from our hearts.  I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me who gave me a better world as a Jew, and I want to pass that on to generation after generation.”
Garbutt, who is being honored as the 2012 Anne Entin Woman of the Year for her “long-term dedication and commitment” to serving the community, added that the “strength of the organization is the women, the quality of leadership.”  She said that each president makes her own mark and is special in some way.
“The women are bright, dedicated, caring and full of great ideas,” she said.  “There are 65 women on the board, who get turned on, become ardent supporters and do great humanitarian things.”
Garbutt, who served as president of the organization for three years before joining the staff, has been active at Temple Bat Yahm since she moved to Orange County in 1986.  She has served on the congregation’s board of directors, most recently as secretary; has chaired many fundraising events, chaired TBY’s annual food drive and is currently a vice president of the Women of TBY.  Garbutt was Sisterhood president, honored as Sisterhood Woman of the Year for community service and also received its continuing service award.  She graduated from Rutgers University with a B.A. in sociology.
Dani Shapiro, a novelist, memoirist and essayist, as well as a graduate-level writing teacher, believes that her writing brings her deepening understanding, while, at the same time, she tries to craft stories that are universal and resonate with her readers.  Shapiro has written a book approximately every three years while teaching and mentoring.
She was raised in an Orthodox home and had “a complicated childhood as the only child of older parents who were not each other’s first spouses.”  Not knowing where she belonged, Shaipro went to college “at a young 17,” started rebelling against her upbringing, ended up in a “dreadful, predatory relationship” and dropped out of college.  Then, at age 23, her parents were in a car accident in which her father was killed and her mother badly injured.
“It was the worst possible shock, but it turned my life around,” Shaipro said.  “I knew I needed to show up.”
Shapiro’s first best-selling memoir, Slow Motion, is a brutally honest portrayal of that tumultuous coming-of-age.  The trauma of what followed the accident — the grief, loss and need to grow up very quickly — has already spoken to generations of young people.
A second shock – that of 9/11 at the time her young son was recovering from an illness – caused Shapiro to do some more evaluating.  “We decided not to stay in New York, where there was too much shock,” she said.  “We wanted to live a more peaceful, quieter life, so we moved away from New York where the air was Jewish, to Connecticut.  I had fled the strict way I was raised but hadn’t replaced it.  Nothing ever made me feel so Jewish as being in an area where I felt that I needed to make it known.”
Once again mining her own life experiences in Devotion, Shapiro attempts, in early midlife, to understand the longing she feels to believe in something after having fled the rules and rituals of her youth.  A story of motherhood, daughterhood, modern midlife and spiritual crisis, Devotion is an exploration of one woman’s winding path in search of her own definition of grace.  Along the way, she meets a rabbi, a Buddhist and a yogi who become her teachers, guides and friends.  Her story is a universal one, appealing to skeptics and believers alike.
Shapiro’s next book is about writing.  In Still Writing: the Pleasures and Perils of a Creative Life, she will share insights about the practice of writing from novices to well-known writers and show how the writing process is like the practice of prayer, meditation and music.
For more information on Women’s Voices, contact women@jffs.org.

Q: How did you begin the project of raising funds to sanctify Jewish graves in Poland?

A: I have kept in touch with Maria (Marisia), the youngest daughter of a widower who had been in the army with my father and whose family hid my family during the Holocaust.  While visiting with Marisia, I met Zbigniew Nizinskie, who wanted to sanctify the interment pits into Jewish burial graves and who was given the Associate Righteous among the Nations Award by Yad Vashem.  Nizinskie finds the pits, authenticates the victims and converts interment pits into ritual graves, supervised by the chief rabbi of Poland.  He gives the names and circumstances of their demise to the rabbi for updating Yad Vashem’s Holocaust roster.  I thought I would raise $5,000 to help him.

Q: How did the project grow?

A: I didn’t want to open my own charitable account, so I got in touch with Jewish Federation & Family Services (JFFS).  I’ve been working with JFFS through the Global Jewish Lifeline project of the Connect 2 Israel initiative, helping programs that serve Jews worldwide — to solicit the funds needed for the Lasting Memory Foundation, which is Nizinskie’s organization in Poland that is finding, authenticating and working with the chief rabbi of Poland in sanctifying the burial pits as Jewish graves.  JFFS has been able to provide nearly $10,000, thanks to the generosity of community members, and its global partner, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) which has an office in Poland.

Q: Why is this so important?

A: Sometimes this brings closure to living relatives.  Using these funds, Nizinskie has sanctified five graves totaling 357 souls.  While waiting for outside funding, his priority is to amass leads for sanctification.  He has nearly 40 leads; thirty have been authenticated, ready for conversion.  Each sanctified grave achieves three goals: a) bury our dead, b) enhance the Holocaust’s visual impact and c) update Yad Vashem’s roster.

Q: What does it mean to preclude genocide?

A: Hate is a prerequisite for genocide.  The Nazis and others deployed hate with great skill to brainwash armies of killers to be perfectly comfortable in killing (people they were told were) the worthless, hateful and despicable trash/vermin/rats.  The key to preclusion and prevention is to eradicate the concept – hate of differences – that allows genocide to develop and flourish.  Hatred or dislike of others is the fertilizer of dehumanization.  Ergo, we must make otherness acceptable.  Then, dehumanization will not take root and genocide will be less likely to develop.

A: How does the concept work?

Q: The program is akin to a pandemic eradication program.  As in pandemic prevention, Preclude Genocide does not wait until loss of life is or is about to be in full swing.  We act to preclude the outbreak of a pandemic or genocide.  At the earliest signs of a potential pandemic, society acts to eradicate the offending element.  There are many objects of hate – a person’s race, ethnicity, gender, sexual behavior, religion and so on.  We group and name them as otherness.  Genocide develops in eight preventable stages.  I am aware of three approaches to Genocide Preclusion: 1. Academic, teach students of educational institutions ranging from elementary to post graduate as well as attendees of symposia (e.g. UN) to become activists.  2. Institutionalizations, restructure the institutions’ climates so as to depress the public’s hate levels.  3. Accept Otherness, merge ideas for accepting and embracing otherness with the information dissemination techniques of the US Interagency report PREVENTING GENOCIDE A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers.  Instead of disseminating messages of hating otherness we will teach, preach and propagandize messages to accept, embrace and love otherness.

Q: What motivates you?

A: There’s no benefit in being negative.  I find humor and joy in every situation – and I’m one of the most tenacious people in the world.  People were embarrassed to be survivors, because the perception was that nobody fought.  Everybody who was a survivor fought.  It was not until the Holocaust deniers came on the scene that Judaism had anything to do with the Holocaust.  If I can influence people, I will.  I’m simply trying to remember and then to prevent such horror from ever happening again.

In addition to its support of the Lasting Memory Foundation, Jewish Federation & Family Services continues to provide significant programs and services to Holocaust survivors in Orange County.  To learn more, or to make a donation in support of Holocaust survivors in OC, contact Doris Jacobson: (949) 435-3484, ext. 333 or doris@jffs.org.

Above is the first stanza of the most well-known song for Tu B’Shvat.  Though the words to this song were written in the mid-20th century, they smacked of the stuff of myth to me while I was growing up.  Living in New York City, I could not possibly tell you what an almond tree looked like, and the odds of seeing one blooming in early February seemed unimaginable as I walked through the city’s slush and cold.  Only when I moved to Israel did the song make sense.  Wouldn’t you know it?  Those trees blooming all around me in Givat Ze’ev at the beginning of February are almond trees.
Israeli schools are open on Tu B’Shvat (Wednesday, February 8).  B’nei Akiva and other organizations give children an opportunity to plant trees on this day as an alternative to school.  Needless to say, even kids who are not particularly fond of youth movements sign up for this field trip.
The other rite of the day consists of a Tu B’Shvat Seder, which has been gaining in popularity in recent years thanks in part to my friend Yaacov Maoz.  Yaacov, who works for the Israel Association of Community Centers as a director for the Unit for Jewish Community Renewal, has created guides for a number of Jewish holidays.  These booklets are geared to the secular Israeli public and are especially intended for communal celebrations.
Yaacov’s Four Season Seder for Tu B’Shvat nicely combines traditional Jewish sources with modern Israeli culture.  He includes the Talmudic discussion of the four New Years, with Tu B’Shvat being the New Year for Trees.  Yaacov speaks of the spread of the holiday by the Kabbalists in Safed in the 17th century.  It was this group that introduced the custom of the four cups of differently colored wine to the Tu B’Shvat Seder, going from white, to rose, to light red, to dark red (symbolizing the ripening of the natural cycle).  The booklet is divided between these four cups, and in each section there are modern Israeli songs and poetry; Judaic texts and historical, traditional and scientific information on a number of plants, trees and fruits native to Israel: the date, the olive and the pomegranate.
When I lived in the States, if Tu B’Shvat happened to fall on a Shabbat we would invite people over and have a Seder.  Now that I’m in Israel I feel less of an urge to celebrate the holiday, which as Yaacov writes, “symbolized the yearning for the Land of Israel, its scenery and fruits.”  My yearning came to a close in July of 1997.  Still, as with jelly doughnuts before Chanukah and dairy products before Shavuot, my local Israeli supermarket will make it hard to ignore the upcoming holiday.  I will be tempted by many kinds of dates, several forms of almonds, as well as all other possible kinds of nuts. [Although interestingly, the fruit of the carob tree, a.k.a. St. John's Bread or “buxer” in Yiddish, which was always around to gross people out in the States on Tu B’Shvat is hard to find.]  Then there will be a huge assortment of dried fruit, ranging from the unusual etrog (citron), to apricots, prunes, bananas and figs.  To be sure, much of this dried fruit will come from Turkey, but I guess that’s close enough.  Happy Tu B’Shvat.

Time: 6:30 PM. Sweetie Thai Cuisine, 10557 Valley View, Cypress, 90630 (714) 828-7371 (corner of Cerritos Ave.)  The food here is VERY good.  My favorite is the steamed fish.  I’ve lost count on how many times we’ve been here as a group.  The food is better than most Thai restaurants I’ve been to.  There’s music, and we usually get a big turnout.  After dinner and socializing, whoever is interested can go see a movie.   RSVP with Gil (714) 897-7717 and let him know you’re coming.  JSPSA.COM

Sunday/Jan. 8: Lunch At Keno’s Restaurant and Movie at Cinema City Theatres

Time:  noon.  Keno’s Restaurant (Coffee Shop), 5750 E. La Palma Ave, Anaheim, 92807; (714) 777-9511.

(Upscaled coffee shop)  Afterwards, we will walk or drive to movie theater across the street at the Cinema City Theatres, 5635 E. La Palma Ave, Anaheim, 92807, 714-970-6700.

RSVP with Howard at 714-577-0278.  JSPSA.COM

Saturday /Jan. 14: Dinner at the Sizzler and A Free Symphony Concert in La Mirada

Time: 6:00 PM. Meet for dinner at the Sizzler’s Restaurant at 15252 Rosecrans Ave, La Mirada, 90638, 714-228-0153.  Afterwards we can drive or walk to La Mirada For Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Blvd, La  Mirada, 90638, 714-994-6150.  ADMISSION AND PARKING ARE FREE.  www.lamiradasymphony.com  Recommend being there before 7:30 PM.  Concert starts at 8:00 PM and they fill up quickly.   Concert is  “Viva Espana” Jeff Cogan.  More Info./Directions/RSVP, call Call Ted 562-691-4856.  JSPSA.COM

Sunday/Jan. 15: Chinese Dinner in Redondo Beach

Time: 6:00 PM.  Come and enjoy wonderful Chinese food in a pretty setting at W’s China Bistro on 1410 S. Pacific Coast Highway, Redondo Beach, 310-792-1600.  We will have our own area to visit and enjoy upscale Chinese cuisine.  Sure to be a good time.

Call Erica to RSVP 310-541-7345.

Friday, Jan. 20: Shabbat (Musical) Service in Fullerton

Services start at 7:30 PM.  Come & join us for services at Temple Beth Tikvah, 1600 N. Acacia Ave , Fullerton , CA 92831 , 714-871-3535, tbtaa@sbcglobal.net.  Musical Services are very popular & entertaining.  They draw a good turnout, and it’s a good place to meet people.  Sit back & relax and enjoy the musical service.  Coffee, snacks afterwards at the Oneg. Just come.  We try to sit together.  JSPSA.COM

Saturday/Jan. 21 (Couples’ Night) Dinner at Thai Restaurant and House Party in Long Beach

Time: 7:00 PM.  Meet at May’s Thai Kitchen on 3832 East Anaheim St, Long Beach, 562-494-3003.  After dinner, we will go to Eileen house for dessert.  If you have a fun game , you might want to bring it along.

RSVP with Eileen/Ben at 562-420-9980.

Sunday, Jan. 22: Breakfast at The Original Pancake House in Orange

Time: 10:00 AM.  Join us for breakfast at the The Original Pancake House at 3322 E. Chapman Ave, Orange, 92869 , 714-221-8674, www.originalpancakehouse.com (approximately 1 mile east of  Fwy 55 on Chapman Ave. When you pass Prospect St, it’s on the right side of the street.    Busy Restaurant.  Their main meal is breakfast.  They are open for breakfast and lunch only.  After breakfast, we can decide on doing something else.  It is a good idea to RSVP with Gene at 714-326-7374, because the restaurant is very busy.

Friday, Jan. 27: Synaplex Shabbat Alive Service at University Synagogue in Irvine

Time: 8:00 PM.   Join us for services & speaker at University Synagogue, 3400 Michelson Ave, Irvine, 92612, 949-553-3535.   “Shabbat Alive” for all ages Shabbat Alive is our Jazz and Pop Service with combo of musicians l ed by Rabbi Rachlis and Cantor Braier.   Just come   JSPSA.COM

Saturday/Jan. 28: Dinner at an Indian Restaurant in Irvine

Time:  6:30 PM. Join us for dinner at India’s Cook House, 14130 Culver Dr. #M, Irvine, 92604, (949) 857-4858.  This has been a popular repeat event at this restaurant!  Delicious Indian cuisine and reasonable prices, you just can’t beat it.  If you have concerns with the food being too spicy, just request it NOT SPICY.   For me, I like it HOT! RSVP with Derek   (949 ) 751-7701.  It helps him reserve enough seating.  JSPSA.COM  (  good food at a cheap price.)

Sunday/Jan. 29: Early Japanese and Movie

Time: 5:00 PM.  Join us for early Japanese dinner at Octopus at 375 W. Birch St #2, Brea, 92821, 714-990-4111 + an early movie.   Good food at reasonable prices.  If Japanese food is not what you want, there are several other food places on the street.    Free parking in the parking structures off Birch St.  There are 2 movies theatres within 2 minute walk from the restaurant located at 155 & 255 W. Birch St.

www.octopusrestaurant.com RSVP with Stella at 562-860-8642 or just come. JSPSA.COM

Now in the sixth year, the coveted Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards provide one of the most prestigious and rewarding opportunities for Jewish teenagers in the state of California. Recognizing a wide range of community service and social action projects, the awards are given annually to up to five young volunteers who demonstrate leadership and commitment to making the world a better place. Recipients are each awarded $36,000 to be used to further their education, to expand current projects or to explore new possibilities.

Tikkun Olam is central precept of Judaism that translates to “repair of the world.” The Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards have created exciting opportunities for past recipients, who have since engaged with world leaders, celebrities and internationally-known sports figures. Recipients have harnessed media and public attention to develop awareness, partnerships and truly make a difference in the world.

Established by Bay Area philanthropist Helen Diller, who has given more than $200 million over the past decade to charitable projects supporting education, the arts, medical research and leadership training for teens, the Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Awards aim to celebrate and encourage the next generation of Jewish leaders who are already pursuing their visions for significant social change. The award is funded by the Helen Diller Family Foundation.

NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN VIA A SIMPLE ONLINE FORM

WHO: QUALIFICATIONS FOR NOMINATION:

· Teens may be nominated by teachers, community leaders, rabbis, or anyone who knows the value of their volunteer service and commitment —EXCEPT family members. Teens may also nominate themselves.

· Each candidate must be a California resident aged 13-19 years old at the time of nomination, and must self-identify as Jewish.

· Community service projects may benefit the general or Jewish community.

· Teens remunerated for their services are not eligible.

TO ENTER: Complete the simple online nomination form at www.jewishfed.org/teenawards/process
For more information: www.jewishfed.org/diller/teenawards; (415) 512-6437; dillerteenaward@sfjcf.org

NOMINATIONS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY JANUARY 6, 2012

The Jewish Business Network (JBN), which meets every month on the first Tuesday at noon, at the Samueli Jewish Campus in Irvine, helps people to promote their business and make referrals to other members, to learn important information from each month’s featured speaker and to make new friends.  The cost is $18 for a kosher lunch from Blueberry Hill Catering.  There is a special discounted annual membership rate, with associated benefits.  Reservations are a must by the prior Monday at 10 a.m.  Register on www.meetup.com (search jewish business network, in Orange County, to register) or at (949) 250-9990 or at jwwilk@cox.net.

On Tuesday, January 3, the featured speaker will be Suzanne White, regional grants manager for the Red Cross.  She covers Orange , Riverside and San Bernardino Counties and will be discussing the work Red Cross performs during crises, as well as other services.
Jewish Business Connections (JBC) of South OC is changing its meeting date to the third Thursday of the month.  On January 19 at 6 p.m. there will be a short business presentation and speaker.  Afterwards, the meeting will offer focused circle networking, kaballah of business with Rabbi Zalman Marcus and a chance to schmooze, network, build and grow one’s business connections.  Light refreshments will be served.

The location is Chabad Jewish Center of Mission Viejo, 24041 Marguerite Pkwy, Mission Viejo.  The cost is $10 with a special member rate available.  RSVP on meetup.com or get on the mailing list by contacting Alexandra@pantel.com.

Ilene Schneider

From my earliest memories, Israel “lived” in my childhood home; my parents followed the news, sponsored discussion groups, sent money and ached with indescribable despair when Israel fell under siege.  The ideal of Israel seeped into my psyche; first as a pipe-dream, then a potentiality and, ultimately, a daring reality.  Israel is beautiful, spiritual, earthy, fun, edgy and frightening, and there isn’t a day here that I don’t feel intensely alive.
When my late mother-in-law was trying to raise her eight children in the Bukharian Quarter of Jerusalem and later in the run-down Shkuna HaTikvah section of Tel Aviv, buying kerosene for cooking from a vendor who hosed the precious liquid into unwieldy jerry cans was standard practice in the early days of the fledgling state.  Milk for the toddlers was invariably purchased from a dairy farmer who rode through the narrow, pitted streets on a wooden cart, pulled by a tired nag.
A scrawny chicken – ungutted and unplucked – was occasionally purchased in the shuk by my father-in-law on his way back from synagogue.  If he had the money.  If the ritual slaughterer had finished his morning prayers.  If the poultry truck had arrived from the distant farm.  Tomatoes meant one stall.  Eggs meant another.  A replacement for a broken coffee cup meant a bus ride to the part of the city that sold dishes.  When children needed shoes or clothes, they rode several buses to the shabby Kiryat Shalom factory district that sported “castoff” outlets.
Examples of such arduous day-to-day living are endless, but a friend recently prompted me to assess whether or not my “Israel life” is more taxing than life in America.  She had just come on aliyah and was having a hard time adjusting to the subtle changes that such a traumatic life-move entails.
On our weekly grocery shopping trip she pointed out that the line at the meat counter was terribly long and that the “honor system” of knowing who was in front of you and who came after was tension inducing.  “Why don’t they have numbers?  There would be no confusion!”  I pointed out that I’d never said to someone “Excuse me; I’m next,” and been challenged, and even if I “gave up” my turn to avoid friction, wasn’t it amazing that one could observe the laws of kashrut (kosher) and shop in a reasonably priced local supermarket?  I recalled my “separate trips” in the States for a) kosher meat; b) kosher dairy products; c) kosher baked goods.  And when large, all-service kosher supermarkets came onto the scene, they were usually so over-priced that I broke the family budget in a fraction of the time.  For someone who enjoys shopping, all of this bouncing around might have been no big deal, but for someone like me, it was torturous.
Together my friend and I began to enumerate the delightful gifts that this life-adventure has given us along with a vow to mentally conjure up the “list” whenever we are having a crummy, “how-could-I have-come-here” day.
Upon stepping back, I always marvel that I’ve learned a new language.  A new ancient language and can talk to teachers, doctors and laborers from around the globe.  A new language means a new world, and I’ve encountered this new world during the peak of “middle age.”  If this doesn’t keep one young, I don’t know what will.  Admittedly, I speak it badly and don’t understand everything the first time but, damn, I’m still proud!  Translating for tourists always gives me a charge, and the first time I cried upon listening to – and comprehending – a stirring Memorial Day song, I knew that I’d accomplished something wonderful.  How many people accomplish “wonderful” during the second half of life?
My manicurist is from Uzbekistan and was a certified accountant before she took up the art of gel coats and eyebrow plucking.  My Yemenite plumber is an expert winemaker, plying this second trade in the kitchen of his city apartment.  Israel seems to demand “reinvention,” and trying something new is nothing new for most of us who have bravely begun life anew.  Financial officers become tradesmen, nurses become spinning instructors and few I’ve met are hung up on labels or the stigma of not having achieved the material success that so permeated my American life.
I doubt that I’ll ever tire of the uniform-heart that Israelis seem to possess in times of strife.  Whether during times of war, the burial of a national leader or the release of a captive soldier, Israelis of every stripe huddle around their television sets and breathe, cry, applaud and fear with one heart.
Most of my secular Jewish Facebook friends do not know about Shavuot, Tisha B’Av, Shemini Atzeret, Tu B’Shvat or Lag B’Omer.  And if, perchance, some secularists have a vague recollection, by-and-large their children do not.  In Israel, regardless of a particular Jew’s level of observance-or-non, the calendar plays a big part in this Jewish country.
Ideology builds character, and I’ve yet to meet an Israeli who is comfortable “sitting on the fence.”  The army and National Service weigh heavily on the Israeli psyche and lead to a certain homogenous maturity that appears to be lacking in the youth of other countries.  Sometimes brash, pushy, indiscreet and loud, Israelis are a “result” of several millennia of both hardship and an irrepressible will to survive; today’s “product” is always exciting and unpredictable.  From the Western Wall to Masada, from the Haifa Bay to the beaches of Eilat, Israelis are fiercely proud of their land, and every one of them is qualified to be prime minister (or a tour guide).
If my friend hadn’t pointed it out to me, I might not have realized that the shopping carts in the supermarket were very heavy and hard to maneuver.  On most shopping days, I only recognize that I’m shopping in Israel and that my grandmother would never have dared to dream such an impossible fantasy.  Jews having their own country?  Jewish policemen?  Jewish dance schools?  Jewish jails?  A Jewish army?  Impossible!
Well, I live in Eretz Impossible, and it’s going to be a good day.  I knew this even before the sun rose this morning.  Because I live in Israel.  Because nearly a lifetime ago I was given a choice.
I chose to come home.