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2 The Jewish Standard, July 2012

MICHAEL HAYMANPUBLISHER AND EDITOR

JULIUS HAYMANB.A., L.L.B.

EDITOR 1937-2000

ANITA SURMANEditor

General News Section

The Jewish Standard is published monthly in Toronto and Montreal by Michael Hayman, B.A., M.A., Editor and Publisher. 1912A Avenue Road, Toronto,Ontario M5M 4A1. (416) 537-2696; Printed and bound in Toronto, Canada by Regal Press Canada. Publication Mail Registration Number 40715545 e-mail:[email protected]

Cover Story

The Israeli GuideDog Center for the Blind isone of the great grassrootsorganizations in Israel.Prior to its establishmentthe only way for visuallyimpaired Israelis to obtaina guide dog was to travelabroad. Very few Israeliscould take advantage ofthis opportunity. In1991, through the dedica-tion of founder NoachBraun and the financialhelp of Norman Leventhalof Warrington,Pennsylvania, the Centerwas founded and todayoffers new hope to atleast some of Israel’smore than 27,000 regis-tered blind people. It costs$25,000 to train a guidedog; yet the dogs are pro-vided free of charge.Readers are encouraged tog o t o w w w . c a . i s r a e lguidedog.org for moreinformation and to contactits Canadian office atsara. israe [email protected] And no trip toIsrael can possibly be com-plete without a visit to theCenter in Beit Oved just out-side Rehovot. - The Editor

We have long deplored the ultra-Orthodox attempts to dictate the terms ofJewish life in Israel. With a political systemthat currently allows for the exercise ofpower far beyond what their numericalstrength might justify, Israel’s haredi havebeen able to keep other streams of Judaism,on the periphery, regardless of whether theright or the left is in power. No one is sug-gesting, as a poster in Jerusalem did someyears ago, that religious Jews are “murder-ous savages, bent on using their fangs toexecute non-religious Jews” at the WesternWall. But their stubborn inflexibility onissues that affect the vast majority of Israelis- Reform, Conservative and secular - hasgone far beyond what some might see asexpressions of healthy debate in the demo-cratic process.

Now, however, there is a ray of hopefor Reform and Conservative Jews in Israel.In 2005 Reform Rabbi Miri Gold petitionedIsrael’s High Court seeking equal fundingfor non-Orthodox religious services. Thepetition asked that regional councils in out-lying communities be allowed to finance thesalaries of the community leaders in thesame way that hundreds of regional coun-cils, neighbourhoods and communities dofor the male Orthodox rabbis they employ.The availability of funding would, Reformand Conservative leaders argued, relievethe roughly 250 rabbis of much of theirfundraising needs and enable their move-ments to expand their reach.

For seven years the State and eventhe Supreme Court seemed to use whateverdilatory tactics they could to avoid a reso-lution. At one point the State agreed toaccept the term “community leaders”, butrefused to recognize Reform andConservative rabbinates. A panel ofSupreme Court Judges maintained that thisdid not go far enough and requested theintervention of Attorney General YehudaWeinstein. Perhaps sensing the inevitable,he agreed to the definition “rabbis of a non-Orthodox community” and to equal wages.To placate Shas’ Ya’akov Margi salaries willbe paid through the Culture and SportsMinistry and not his Religious ServicesMinistry. (Another petition before the HighCourt is seeking recognition of non-Orthodox rabbis in towns and cities. A rul-ing is expected shortly.)

The reaction from Israel’s ultra-Orthodox has been predictable. They haveno intention of accepting the principle

that “there is more than one way to beJewish, even in Israel”. United TorahJudaism MK Yisrael Eichler describedthe decision as “another proof that thelegal system serves as soldiers in theReform war against the Torah”.Reform Jews, he continued, were noth-ing more than “Christian priests”.Added Moshe Gafni, chair of theKnesset Finance Committee: “All of asudden there is money for Reform andConservative clowns for whom Judaismis a mockery”.

The Orthodox defiance probablydidn’t surprise Reform and Conservativeleaders. It certainly did not deflate theirspirits. Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of theUnion of Reform Judaism, has heraldedthe decision as a “watershed moment” forthe non-Orthodox. MK Nitzan Horowitz(Meretz) called the announcement a “signifi-cant step in the challenge for pluralism andfreedom of religion”. And Reform RabbiGilad Kariv called it a “first but significantstep” that will “annul the deep discrimina-tion of non-Orthodox streams in Israel”.They reject the suggestion of some observersthat their “joy is tragically misplaced” andare unfazed by the fact that the “concession”is not based on a court ruling and could beignored.

A recent development in Israelipolitics offers further encouragementto those seeking an Israel which is atrue amalgam of dif ferent religiouslifestyles. We are not totally comfort-able with the size of the recently formedcoalition, although we are delightedthat Israel’s largest party, Kadima, isnow part of the government. One of thestrengths of a democracy is that there isalways a government in waiting. Thenew official Opposition Labor, with itsstill learning leader Shelly Yachimovich,has not even begun to show that it isready to assume power. Still, we’llovercome our reservations if Netanyahuimplements two key components of theagreement with Kadima. The govern-ment must eliminate, or at least radi-cally amend, the Tal Law, which pro-vides military exemption for haredimen. And it should immediately over-haul Israel’s unstable electoral system,making it more difficult for parties withlittle electoral strength to gain repre-sentation in the knesset and the powerto hold governments hostage.

A Small Step Forward For Israel’sReform and Conservative Rabbis

The Jewish Standard, July 2012 3

THE WORLD IN REVIEWNEWS OF THE RECENT PAST IS REVIEWED

By NOAH FREEDMAN

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New York JewryUndergoing Change

One of the largestsurveys ever taken in theUnited States has revealedsome stark changes takingplace among the 1.5 millionJews living in New YorkCity, Long Island andWestchester. The numberof Orthodox Jews is mush-rooming, increasing bymore than 100,000 over thepast decade. One third ofNew York area Jews areOrthodox today and per-haps even more significantsix out of ten Jewish chil-dren live in Orthodoxhomes.

But the growth hasbrought with it severe prob-lems. New York’s Jews arepoorer and less educatedthan they were a decadeago. In fact, the levels ofpoverty are unparalleled inrecent history. In 2002240,000 Jews in the NewYork area lived below thepoverty line. In 2011, theyear of the study, 361,000Jews were considered poor.Lack of education is onefactor contributing to thehigh levels of poverty. So,too, are large families withsmall children. What theauthors of the study call the“fluidity of households”,Jewish families from diversebackgrounds, is also amajor contributing factor.

The changing face ofNew York and area Jewryhas political consequencesas well. Many of theOrthodox lean heavily con-servative in contrast to the“liberal” tradition of NewYork’s non-Orthodox. “Wehave a community” saysSteven M.Cohen, one of thereport’s three authors, “thatis large, that is diverse and

that is challenged by pover-ty, by elements of disen-gagement, and alsostrengthened by diversity,by growing areas of Jewishinvolvement”.

Other aspects of thestudy concluded that thereis a big drop in affiliationamong non-Orthodox Jewsand a lessoning commit-ment to Jewish life. Fewerparents are sending theirchildren to Jewish DaySchools and philanthropy isnow being spread outbetween Jewish and non-Jewish causes.

was featured. In a scenewhich takes place in acemetery a headstone isvisible in both English andHebrew. The Hebrewappears to be trying to say“Beloved husband andfather, dearly missed”.Bad enough that theHebrew was written inreverse and barely madeany sense. But when readin the right directionthings really got interest-ing. Instead of “he will bedearly missed” the literaltranslation into Hebrewwas “he was pickled atgreat expense.”

It was the eagle eyeof Hebrew LanguageServices that caught theunique translation.

Google TranslateNeeds New Editor

WHILE MUCH OF ISRAEL’S SECURITY PROBLEMSare centered on the Gaza Border and the borderwith Egypt in the Sinai, ensuring that communi-ties such as Gilo remain safe is also vital.

Anyone familiar withthe internet is aware of howeasy it is to translate fromone language to another bygoing to “google translate”.Well, perhaps one shouldexamine the translationsmore carefully before carv-ing them in stone.

We don’t know howmany readers watchShowtime’s ”Episodes” star-ring Matt LeBlanc, he ofFriends fame. In a recentepisode a Jewish headstone

On May 7 twomedia giants, Google andFacebook, signed theInterparliamentary Co-ali-tion for CombattingAntisemitism. The agree-ment declares that bothsides will work together to“build best practices forunderstanding, reportingupon and responding tointernet hate.”

Notably absent fromthe signing was Twitter.The company continues tofall back on the right offree speech. Its spokesper-sons describe Twitter as“the free speech wing of thefree speech movement” andrefuse to submit to pres-sure from governments orcitizens groups, even whencriminal or terror relatedmatters are at issue. TheSimon Wiesenthal Centerwon’t even give Twitter a Fgrade when it comes tofighting hate.

Twitter, FacebookAnd Free Speech


It also urged statesto include women as specialenvoys, participants inpeace negotiations and inmilitary peace keeping oper-ations. Israel adopted thisinto law over a decade ago,but has yet to fulfill any ofthe requirements under theresolution, Chazkel told TheMedia Line.

“There are very fewwomen who are in thestrategic positions that theysaid they were going to.There is yet to be a womanwho is on the front lines ofpeace negotiations with thePalestinians. This is apromise that they have been

making for over 10 yearsthat hasn’t been fulfilled,”says Chazkel.

Chazkel founded theIsraeli chapter of WIIS inSeptember 2010 with LeaLandman with the declaredaim of boosting the influ-ence of women in foreignand defense affairs in Israeland the Middle East. Theywere teaming up with themother organization sittingin Washington DC, whichwas established in 1987and today boasts some5,000 members in nearly 50countries.

Chazkel comes from ��

MEN ONLY IN THE IDF ESTABLISHMENT

Israel is one of just afew countries that subjectsits women to mandatorydraft and has a femalemajor-general sitting on thearmy’s general staff. Untilrecently, the chief justice ofthe Supreme Court and thehead of the parliamentaryopposition were bothwomen.

From appearances,it would seem that womenhave a respectable role inIsraeli establishment. Butappearances can be mis-leading.

“Israel has the low-est representation of womenout of any Western country

in strategic leadership posi-tions in the field of securityand conflict resolution,”says Julia Chazkel, the co-founder of the Israelibranch of Women inInternational Security(WIIS).

A dozen years ago,the United Nations SecurityCouncil passed Resolution1325 calling on memberstates to increase the repre-sentation of women “at alldecision-making levels innational, regional and inter-national institutions andmechanisms for the preven-tion, management, and res-olution of conflict.”

WOMEN SERVE IN THE ISRAELI ARMY BUT MEN GET THE PROMOTIONS

By ARIEH O’SULLIVAN, MEDIA LINE


We Join in Extending Best Wishes to the

Jewish Community of

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We wish you well in the coming year.

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We are always pleased to serve you.GIL BLUTRICH MAKES HIS MARK

Submitted by THE COMMUNICATIONS GROUP INC.

An illustrious andrare example of Canadianmaritime history has finallycome home. The S.S.Keewatin — the crown jewelin the Canadian PacificRailway’s once-mightyGreat Lakes Steamship fleet— was repatriated bySkyline InternationalDevelopment Inc.(www.skylineinvestments.com/) and arrived at itsoriginal home in PortMcNicoll, ON, June 23,2012 as part of a communi-ty celebration.

In 2011, Skyline’sChairman and President GilBlutrich announced anagreement following fouryears of negotiation to pur-

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SINCE IMMIGRATING to Canada and estab-lishing SkylineI n t e r n a t i o n a lDevelopment in 1998,Gil Blutrich has helmedthe company’s rapidemergence as an innov-ative real estate andhospitality firm special-ized in destination com-munities by identifyingunderleveraged assets,re-thinking their foot-print and investingstrategically to increaseprofitability. In 2004, hewas awarded Ernst &Young’s Entrepreneur ofthe Year in Ontario.Blutrich is also theFounder and Chairmanof Mishorim Group(MSHR: Tel Aviv).

chase and repatriateKeewatin to its originalhome in Port McNicoll,where the R.J. and DianePeterson Great Lakes andS.S. Keewatin Foundationwill operate and maintain


brutish lout named Luis,whom she does not want tomarry – she discovers twostartling revelations thatwill forever change her lifeand that of her family. Firstof all, her mother and fathertell her that they were origi-nally born Jewish, and con-verted as “New Christians”for the sake of survival; andsecond, her parents havehidden a letter written byher great-grandmother,revealing thatTorquemada’s grandmotherwas Jewish.

The story takes yetanother twist when Isabel

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BOOKS IN REVIEWThere was a lengthy

period of time when Spainwas a society that was toler-ant of the ethnic communi-ties that lived on the IberianPeninsula, especially thecountry’s Jews.

That all changed bythe 1490s, thanks to theSpanish Inquisition. Led bya fanatical monk namedTomas de Torquemada,Spain’s Jews (whom hedeemed as “heretics”) wereforced to convert toChristianity, or suffer theconsequences. And thoseconsequences usuallymeant unspeakable a c t sof torture, often climaxing

in a ceremony called the“auto da fe”, where Jews,and Marranos, would endup being tied to a stake andburned alive. It was proba-bly the darkest and mosttragic episode in the historyof the Jewish people prior tothe rise of Adolf Hitler andthe Nazis.

To give young adultreaders an idea of what lifewas like for the Jews in late15th century Spain whenthe Inquisition was at itsmost macabre, Hungarian-born novelist Eva Wiseman– who resides in Winnipeg –has written a compelling andhighly readable historical

novel called “The LastSong”.

The story focuses onIsabel de Cardosa, a 14-year-old girl from Toledowhose father Enrique is awell-to-do nobleman wholoyally serves as the chiefphysician to King Ferdinandand Queen Isabella. Shelives a privileged life inToledo and is a devoutCatholic. And like manyChristians in Spain at thattime, she harbors a poiso-nous resentment towardsits Jewish population.

However, as Isabelapproaches her 15th birth-day - and is engaged to a

“THE LAST SONG” IS A CHILLING HISTORICAL NOVEL DEALING WITH THE SPANISH INQUISITION

Reviewed by STUART NULMAN

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MANCHESTER, N.H.Recognized as NewHampshire’s commercialand industrial leader, as wellas its largest city and thehome of nearly 10 percent ofits population, Manchester(www.manchestercvb.com)is only 58 miles from Boston.

Manchester firstgained national fame in the1800s as the home of themassive textile mill of theAmoskeag ManufacturingCompany. TodayManchester is home to amelting pot of high tech com-panies, banks, business ser-vices enterprises, retailers,manufacturers and healthcare professionals.Commerce is just one part ofManchester's appeal. Thecity is also the focal point ofthe state's cultural commu-nity and home to many ofthe region's eight collegesand universities. Culturalinstitutions such as theCurrier Gallery of Art andPalace Theatre join with thenew Verizon Wireless Arenaand outdoor concert venuesto attract world-class per-formers and exhibits to thecity. Performances, exhibits,classes, workshops and lec-tures are offered to the gen-eral public at many of thearea's institutions of highereducation. Other city attrac-tions include theManchester HistoricAssociation, Franco-American Centre and theSEE Science Center.

A C C O M M O D A -TIONS: A brand new LaQuinta Inn and Suitesrecently opened at 21 FrontStreet in the former Clarion

Hotel. Located in the historicMillyard district, this hoteland conference center (thatpart known as the FallsCenter) overlooks the beauti-ful Amoskeag Falls. There isa convenience store in thelobby, free high-speed wire-less Internet accessthroughout the hotel, a fit-ness center, business center,seasonal outdoor pool, meet-ing facilities, an airportshuttle and pets are wel-come, Guest rooms are fur-nished with La Quinta’s sig-nature pillow top mattress-es, microwave, refrigeratorand coffee maker, iron, iron-ing board, hair dryer, as wella 32 inch flat panel HDTVwith over 35 HD channelsfrom which to choose.Breakfast here is free, andincludes waffles, hot andcold cereals, bread andmuffins, fresh fruit, coffee,juice, pastries, bagels andmilk.

This four floor facili-ty has 109 rooms, includingthree suites. It is located offof Exit #6 of the I-293. Youcan call 603-669-5400 orgo to www.lq.com. Roomscan start as low as $79 anight. Following a multi-million dollar renovation,Alta Properties in partner-ship with Roedel Companies(roedelcompanies.com) offi-cially opened the propertylast April, complete with aribbon cutting ceremonyfeaturing the mayor, thehead of the Chamber ofCommerce and La Quintaexecutives.

David Roedel, a part-ner of Roedel Cos., explained

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We Extend Best Wishes to Our JewishFriends and Patients throughout

LONDONWe wish you well in the coming year.

We are always pleased to serve your needs.

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HELPFUL HINTS FOR THE JEWISH TRAVELLER

By MIKE COHEN


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To its credit, Israel isone of a handful of coun-tries where women haveserved as prime minister.Golda Meir did so duringthe tumultuous 1973 YomKippur War. Until lastmonth, the head of,Kadima, the largest politicalparty in Israel, was TzipiLivni, a former Mossadagent and foreign ministerunder the government ofAriel Sharon and EhudOlmert. Livni lost out in aleadership contest in Marchto her rival, former armyChief of Staff and DefenseMinister Shaul Mofaz.

But Meir and Livniare the exception. In its 64-year history, only 10 womenhave served as ministers,(including Meir and Livni)and there are currentlythree female minister out ofBinyamin Netanyahu’sunprecedentedly large 29-member Cabinet. Theseinclude Minister ofAgriculture Orit Noked,Minister of ImmigrationAbsorption Sofa Landverand Minister of Sport andCulture Limor Livnat.

Ironically, one of themajor leaders in last sum-mer’s social protests byhuge swaths of Israel’s mid-dle class was a Daphni Leef,a 25-year-old videographer.

Based at IDC, theWIIS helps students andyoung professionals preparetheir resumes and honetheir interviewing skills.They also hold monthly lec-tures on security, women’srights and conflict resolu-tion.

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a background in counter-terrorism analysis andinternational law.Landman, a former IsraelAir Force intelligence officer,

is a research fellow onnational security and eco-nomic affairs at the HerzilyaInterdisciplinary Center(IDC).

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fit perfectly in institutionalbarriers in the places thatthey already work to helpthem achieve higher andreach leadership positionsin the security sector,” shesaid, but did not elaborate.

And then we workwith networking opportuni-ties for women at the high-est levels to get them toknow each other and toreally build a Girls Club

Chazkel said thegroup has three main targetgroups: students, mid-levelcareer women and womenin senior positions.Students are given mentorsand help in career opportu-nities and linked to entry-level job opportunities inthe security sector.

With women at mid-level careers, Chazkel saidthey help them earn promo-tions by various training.“These training programs


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We Take Pleasure

in Extending

Best Wishes to the

Our Jewish Friends in

LONDON

We are always

pleased to

serve you.

We Are Pleased to Extend Best Wishes toOur Jewish Friends and Customers

throughoutLONDON AND AREA

We wish you continued successin the year ahead.


that can counter the AllBoys Club,” Chazkel said.

“We are doing majorresearch to find out whatare the institutional barri-ers. I think a lot of themhave to do with sexualharassment, feelings of alack of role models – whichis why we think the mentor-

ing opportunities are themost important thing, sothat women that are cominginto the field know thatthere is someone there tohelp them,” she said.

Politics and thedefense establishment aremale-dominated. Therewere those who saw theoption to changing this bypresenting an alternative. InIsrael, there are today over50 registered women's orga-nizations, the majority ofwhich are devoted to provid-ing solutions, such aspreschool daycare, assis-tance to single mothers, andlegal counseling, to theproblems women face.Others are focused onissues such as peace, secu-rity, and social welfare,such as The Women inBlack, Rachelim Womenand Four Mothers.

I n t e r e s t i n g l yenough, public opinion sur-veys usually show no differ-ences between the views ofIsraeli men and women onissues related to peacemaking.

“Women don't neces-sarily think differently thanmen when it comes to peacenegotiations and security,but the perception ofwomen is that we do,” saidChazkel.

According to a dis-sertation written by FaniaOz-Salzberger, who nowteaches at the University ofHaifa, Palestinians weremore willing to acceptwomen on their peace nego-tiating teams than Israelis.

“This isn’t necessari-ly because women are moreinclined to peace, but ratherbecause the perception ofus is that we are,” Chazkelsays. “So I personallybelieve, and believe strong-ly, that these are reasonsthat we need to put womeninto strategic positions.Because we have a uniquething that we bring to thetable and we have some-thing that adds to the tableand it's important to bring

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that the improvements forThe Falls Center and LaQuinta Inn and Suites metthe company’s originalobjective of improving thebuilding's overall functional-ity. The site also offers theGreater Manchester commu-nity and those visiting theQueen City a completely re-

vitalized option. "Designedas a sister property for ouraward winning HiltonGarden Inn Manchester, TheFalls is virtually a brand newhotel with contemporaryarchitecture and interiordesign," said Roedel. "It pro-vides exceptional price valueand excellent service that

We Are Again Pleased to Extend Best Wishes to

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LONDON AND AREA

We wish you continued success

in the year ahead.


We Take Great Pleasure in Extending Greetings to the

Jewish Community ofLONDON AND AREA

We wish you well in the coming year.We are always pleased to serve you.

MEN ONLY��

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women into strategic posi-tions.”

Chazkel believesthat Israel is progressing,albeit, slowly.

“If we want to con-tinue progressing ourselvesas a Western society that’smoving toward democratic,and equal opportunities, we

need to make sure we repre-sent ourselves at the levelthe European's are and thelevel that the Americansare. So, in order to do that,we need to make sure thereare more women in leader-ship positions—becausethat's the future,” Chazkelsaid.

THE WORD MACHAL IS A HEBREW ACRONYMfor “Mitnadvei Chutz L’Aretz”, meaning“Volunteers from Abroad”. The Machalniks weremainly veterans of World War II. As the warclouds were gathering over Palestine, these veter-ans felt an obligation to support their brethren inthe new-born State of Israel. More than 4,500 vol-unteers came from 58 countries - men and women,Jews and non-Jews. Most importantly, these vet-erans brought their invaluable World War II expe-rience and skills. They rallied to Israel’s aid in herstruggle against the invasion of 6 well-armedarmies. "Volunteering to fight in the War ofIndependence was the most important aspect ofmy life" said a young 86 year old Stanley whocame from Kenya and who went to Israel with 800men and women from South Africa. The abovephotograph was taken last month when thesebrave heroes were honoured in a special exhibition“By Land, by Air and by Sea” at the Museum ofthe Jewish People (the Diaspora Museum) whichopened to the public on June 1st.

TRAVEL TALES��


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our guests will really enjoy."SHOPPING: Check

out The Mall of NewHampshire, a traditionalstop for us anytime we visitManchester. It has 125 spe-cialty stores, four full-ser-vice restaurants and a 550-seat Food Court. Macy's, JCPenney, Sears, and Best Buyserve as the anchors and aRuby Tuesday Restaurantpleases our taste buds.

JEWISH COMMUNI-TY: "Greater Manchester"takes in a number of thesurrounding towns includ-ing Londonderry, Derry,Bedford and Amherst. TheJewish Federation of NewHampshire (www.j ew ishnh.org) is the sole social ser-vice agency in the state,other than the synagogues,

New Hampshire isknown for its motto of ‘LiveFree or Die,’ and it is consis-

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tent in the Jewish communi-ty as well, officials tell me.The State is known for its“Hidden Yidden” who oftenchoose not to associate withthe ‘”typical institu-tions.” Many of them be-long to a Chaverot and par-ticipate in JewishFederation cultural or learn-ing activities, but do notbelong to traditional syna-gogues. There are threeJewish places of worship inManchester: Temple AdathYeshurun(R) at 152Prospect Street, TempleIsrael(C) at 66 Salmon Streetand Chabad/Lubavitch ofNew Hampshire (O) at 7Camelot Place.

Mike Cohen’s e-mailaddress is [email protected]. Readers can gog onto his travel files atwww.sandboxworld.com/travel.

We Extend Best Wishes to the Our JewishFriends and Customers throughout

KITCHENER-WATERLOOWe are always pleased to serve you.

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•BRINGING HISTORY HOME

�� the vessel as a maritimemuseum. The Keewatin willbe moored in a new water-front park in Port McNicoll— steps from the originallocation where it was origi-nally t ied. The park will

feature a replica of thetown’s original train stationand surrounding EnglishRoyal gardens. Once there,restoration work will becompleted to return theship to her original early20th century grandeur.

“This vessel is one ofa kind,” said Eric Conroy,author of the book A SteakIn the Drawer, which detailshis experiences working onthe Keewatin as a 17-year-old. Conroy, a long-timeKeewatin volunteer whoworked with Blutrich tonegotiate her repatriation,will chair the R.J. andDiane Peterson Great Lakesand S.S. KeewatinFoundation.

Constructed fiveyears before the ill-fatedvoyage of RMS Titanic, theKeewatin is the last surviv-ing vessel in the GreatLakes Steamship fleet andfeatures many of the samedesign and constructionfeatures of her cousinTitanic, including a quadru-ple expansion steam engine

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RECENTLY GRADUATED FROM DUKE UNIVERSITYwhere she played number one singles on a fullathletic scholarship and a “graduate” of ITC inHaifa, Nadine Fahoum has decided she wants togive back to her country Israel, the children andpeople she loves. Forgoing private sector opportu-nities, Ms. Fahoum is determined to pursue a newcareer off the tennis courts, by accepting a positionas a Development Associate for the Israel TennisCenters Foundation in New York City. JacquelineGoldstein, VP for Global Development, stated that“Ms. Fahoum will be raising awareness and fundsfor ITC’s co-existence and social impact programs.Nadine is a wonderful example of the kind of lead-ers that the ITC is developing. As a proud IsraeliArab, she is the perfect role model andAmbassador for Israel.” Fahoum wants to helpcreate a better future for the next generation ofchildren in Israel, regardless of their backgrounds.Adds Fahoum: “I am a product of the Israel TennisCenter’s co-existence program and firmly believethat through playing tennis together, Arab andJewish children can overcome barriers of under-standing. When children build relationships start-ing at a young age they only see each other asfriends. Without the ITC, I would not be at theplace I am today.” Nadine may be the first Israeli-Arab Muslim woman to work globally for a JewishPhilanthropic organization in the United Statesraising money so that more Arab and Jewish chil-dren can get to know one another through thesport of tennis.

We Extend Best Wishes to the Our JewishFriends and Customers throughout

KITCHENER-WATERLOOWe wish you well in the year ahead.We are always pleased to serve you.


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We Extend Best Wishes to the

Jewish Community ofKITCHENER-WATERLOO

We wish you well inthe year ahead.

We look forward toserving you.

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BOOKS IN REVIEW��

1492, Ferdinand andIsabella announce an edictthat all Jews are to beexpulsed from Spain by theend of July, Isabel and herfamily fear that they will beforced to leave their life ofprivilege in Toledo and go toan unknown country.

Wiseman accuratelyportrays the macabrenature of the Inquisitionand the pathological suspi-cion and fear ChristianSpaniards had of the coun-try’s Jews, This loathing ofJews led to widespreadinforming on anyone whowas suspected, without anyevidence, of being a Jewishheretic. As well, shedescribes in graphic detailthe Inquisition’s sinistermethods to try to convinceJews to convert toChristianity. Her portray-al of Torquemada isabsolutely chilling (especial-ly the scene later in thebook when Isabel has anaudience with the GrandInquisitor in his murkychambers and triesß andconvince him that herfather is a devoted and loyalChristian and servant to theking and queen, and shouldbe released from his incar-ceration).

Through Isabel,readers get a portrait ofsomeone who is not onlysmart, intelligent andresourceful, but of a younglady who also becomes asymbol of tolerance. Sheaccepts a group of peoplewhom she hates at first, butwhen she discovers the trueface of these people, is morethan willing to accept themfor what they are (especiallywhen she discovers that sheis actually part of thatgroup).

“The Last Song” is awell written and movingnovel that provides yetanother example of thesuffering Jews have had toendure in so many coun-tries in which they havelived. Like the Holocaust, the

establishes a secret friend-ship with Yonah, the son ofa skilled Jewish silversmith.Then her father is accusedby Torquemada of being aheretic and is arrested andtortured. In the summer of

Spanish Inquisition is partof our history younger gen-erations should never for-get. And thanks to the storytold in the “The Last Song”

the lessons of history areless likely to be forgotten.

The Last Song byEva Wiseman (TundraBooks, $19.99)

We Extend Best Wishes to OurJewish Friends and Customers


Holocaust MuseumsFeud

Some twenty yearsago the Holocaust Museumin Washington asked theAuschwitz-Birkenau StateMuseum to lend it parts of abarrack that had been locat-ed in Birkenau. As the endof the agreed upon “loan”period drew closer theHolocaust MemorialMuseum’s directors hadsecond thoughts aboutreturning the barracks.“There are a number of sim-ilar facilities at Birkenau”,argued one official at theAmerican museum.

W l a d y s l a wBartoszeewski, director ofthe international council ofthe Auschwitz-BirkenauState Museum, accused theAmericans of “robbingAuschwitz”.

For two years nego-


We Extend Best Wishes to the Jewish Community ofKitchener-Waterloo

We are always pleased to serve your needs.

We Extend Best Wishes to the Jewish Community of

KITCHENER-WATERLOOWe wish you success in all

your endeavours.We are always pleased to serve you.

DR. CHRISTOPHER LANE, C. Psych.Psychologist

• Assessments • Psychotherapy Sport Psychology• Children • Adolescents • Adults • Couples • Families

ph (519) 725-9456fax (519) 725-4889

50 Westmount Rd. N.Suite 222Waterloo, OntarioN2L 2Y9

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Congratulating the

Jewish Community of

KITCHENER-

WATERLOO

We wish you

continued success.

We are always

pleased to serve you.

WORLD IN REVIEW��

have dragged on with bothsides hoping litigation willnot be necessary. Hopes fora resolution have improvedslightly since Sarah JaneBloomfield, the director ofthe U.S. HolocaustMemorial Museum, joinedthe Auschwitz-Birkenaumuseum’s internationalcouncil. Soo, too, didRonald Lauder, chairman ofthe World Jewish Congress.

Chasidic PR ConsultantForced to Quit

Yossi Gestetner was-n’t on the job very long beforehis past came back to haunthim. Eight days after he washired by the New York StateRepublican Party as Directorfor Jewish OutreachGestetner was forced toresign after a controversialinterview on The JewishChannel. (See page 15)

THERE’S A 40-SOME-thing Jewish mom inToronto and she’s mak-ing some big waves inthe computer animationindustry…a field typi-cally dominated by menwho live, eat andbreathe video games.Her name is JulieSteiner, and she’s thepresident of Percy3D-- asmall company that hasrelationships withHollywood powerhous-es such as Universaland Paramount Pictures.Julie has developed anapp called PercyFXwhich allows users topersonalize movie clipssuch as ‘Forrest Gump’or ‘Back to the Future.’Users can insert theirown message and haveit move fluidly through-out the clip as if it werepart of the actual movie.Rendering animation ina 3D space for movieswould take days andweeks, but with Julie’sdirection, her companyenables movie fans topersonalize clips inunder a minute andthen send it to theirfriends or posted onFacebook. It’s a funform of entertainmentand unique to JulieSteiner’s company.

We Extend BestWishes to the

Jewish Community of KITCHENER-WATERLOO

We wish you successin the years ahead.

We are alwayspleased to serve you.


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Initially, The GOPhad declared thatGestetner “has been aresilient voice forConservative values” andthat he “has illustrated abroad understandingand deep connection tomembers of the JewishCommunity.”

During the inter-view, however, Gestetnerwas asked about his pastaf filiation with TrueTorah Jews AgainstZionism, a small anti-Zionist faction based inBrooklyn. Then therewas his defence of NewSquare arsonist ShaulSpitzer. After thatGestetner became aspokesperson for a rallyto benefit NechemyaWeberman, currently ontrial for molesting atwelve-year old girl overa four year period.Gestetner told the inter-viewer that it was up torabbis to deal with accu-sations within theJewish community.Following the views ofSatmar and AgudathIsrael on matters of sex-ual abuse is not ideal fora person aspiring to aspokesperson for a main-stream political party.

NIKKI YANOFSKY STOLE THE SHOW AT THE RECENT reception held to benefit the Israel Guide Center forthe Blind.

expansion steam engineand “Scottish” boilers, aswell as a grand staircase,Edwardian dining saloon,hand painted Italian glassand oak trim throughout.Strict regulations wereimposed on wooden cabinsteamships on the GreatLakes after the 1949 S.S.Noronic fire disaster killed118 passengers and onecrew member, making thefinancial viability of theovernight cruiser difficult.New modes of transporta-tion also made the vessellargely obsolete.

Launched July 6,1907, the Keewatin wasretired in 1966 after almost60 seasons ferrying passen-gers from Port McNicoll onGeorgian Bay, to PortArthur (Thunder Bay) onLake Superior.

Built by the FairfieldShipbuilding andEngineering Company inScotland as Hull No. 453,the 350-foot long Keewatincarried 288 passengers witha crew of 86, and cruised ata top speed of 14 knots.Along with her sister shipS.S. Assiniboia, Keewatinwas the first Great Lakesship to boast radar.

BRINGING HISTORY�� We Take Great Pleasure in

Extending Greetings to the Jewish Community ofLONDON AND AREA

We wish you well in the coming year.We are always pleased to serve you.

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