June-July 2014 - Congregation Beth El

Congregation Beth El is a member of The Union for Reform Judaism
ISSUE 143 · June/July 2014
“Honoring Tradition, Celebrating Diversity, and Building a Jewish Future”
Meet Beth
El’s New
Rabbi!
Pag e 3
Surviving
Nazioccupied
Southern
France
Pag e 5
Come to
the Annual
Shabbaton!
Pag e 6
Life Stories:
Swimming
at Pacific
Palisades
Beach
Pag e 8
In This Issue
2 President’s Column
3Profile:
Our New Rabbi
CONGREGATION
BETH EL
9
Buy Honey, Raise
Money!
15 Midrasha
10 Library
18 Calendar
16 Tzedakah
1301 Oxford Street
Berkeley, CA 94709-1424
Phone: 510-848-3988
Fax: 510-848-2707
Youth and Family
Education Office
4Events
11 Recipe
5 Member Spotlight
12 B’nei Mitzvah
6 Mitzvah Corps
12
Torah Study
Schedule
Nursery School Office
13 BENS
Camp Kee Tov Office
7 New Members
8 Life Stories
20Gift Shop
Direct Line: 510-848-9428
Direct Line: 510-848-2372
14 YAFE
9 Music Room
Direct Line: 510-848-2122
Midrasha Office
Direct Line 510-843-4667
CLERGY & STAFF
President’s Column
The Benefits of
Membership at Beth El
by Paul Sugarman
Rabbi Rebekah Stern
Associate Rabbi
ext. 228 · rabbirebekah@bethelberkeley.org
Rabbi Reuben Zellman
“Why does it cost so much to be a member of Beth El?”
I’ve heard that question many times over the past decades, both
from those who are members of our synagogue as well as prospective
members. Often the question is asked by someone who grew up in
a different religious tradition where the concept of paying annual
membership “dues” was unknown, or by someone who has never
before chosen to affiliate with a religious community.
But even many whose own parents belonged to a synagogue
are surprised to learn that Beth El’s annual base dues are now close
to $3,000 per member household, and that even that amount does not come close
to covering the $3,900 per household cost of running our synagogue and its multiple
programs and services. Although synagogue dues are considered a tax-deductible
charitable donation, paying nearly $250 per month to belong to one’s synagogue is, by any
measure, a considerable expense.
Let me assure you, Beth El runs a tight ship. Compared to most synagogues our size,
we are under-staffed and under-resourced. We are gradually working on remedying those
deficiencies — the hiring of Rabbi Rebekah Stern as our new associate rabbi and of Jose
Tirado as our facilities manager are steps in that direction — but our staffing remains
very lean. We must rely on volunteers to manage the tasks that are typically handled
in an institution our size by full- or part-time professionals: the program and events
director, development director, marketing & communications director and membership
coordinator. Or, regrettably, we must accept the fact that some of those functional areas
must sometimes be allowed to languish, inasmuch as the time and energy of our pool of
volunteers is not unlimited.
Although Beth El is understaffed and under-resourced, our synagogue is nonetheless
able to offer its members an enormous number of religious and educational adult and
youth programs of the highest quality, administered and staffed by professionals at all
levels. Gone are the days when our members were content to rely on volunteers to teach
our children or prepare them for becoming b’nei mitzvah. Gone, too, are the days when
we could rely on volunteers to administer our budget, now nearing $3,400,000, or to run
our facility. As a result, more than 64% of our expenses is in the form of compensation for
the clergy, teachers, counselors, administrators and staff who make our programming so
C o n t i n u e d o n pa g e 17
2 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Rabbi Yoel H. Kahn
Rabbi of the Congregation
ext. 215 · rabbikahn@bethelberkeley.org
Assistant Rabbi & Music Director
rabbirz@bethelberkeley.org
Norm Frankel
Executive Director
ext. 212 · norm@bethelberkeley.org
Debra Sagan Massey
Director of Education
ext. 213 · debra@bethelberkeley.org
Maguy Weizmann-McGuire
Early Childhood Education Director
ext. 219 · maguy@bethelberkeley.org
Zach Landres-Schnur
Camp Kee Tov Director
ext. 217 · zach@bethelberkeley.org
Tameka Young-Diaby
Bookkeeper
ext. 210 · tameka@bethelberkeley.org
Juliet Gardner
Clergy Coordinator
ext 235 · juliet@bethelberkeley.org
Molly Daniels
Communications Coordinator
ext. 211 · molly@bethelberkeley.org
Emily Schnitzer
Camp Kee Tov Admin. Coordinator
ext. 223 · emily@bethelberkeley.org
Diane Bernbaum
Midrasha Director
510-843-4667 · diane@midrasha.org
Odette Blachman
Gift Shop
ext. 240 · oblachman@sbcglobal.net
Rabbi Ferenc Raj
Rabbi Emeritus
ferenc@bethelberkeley.org
Profile
New Rabbi to Join Beth El
Clergy on July 1
by Elisabeth Wechsler
Congregation Beth El is fortunate to welcome Rabbi Rebekah
Stern as our newest clergy member starting this summer. Rabbi Stern says it’s
“thrilling to be coming back to a place where my Judaism began and to help others
find their way on their Jewish journeys.”
She added that “the opportunity to contribute to [Beth El], which was
instrumental to my Jewishness, is a joy and an honor.” Rabbi Stern will assist Rabbi
Kahn with services, life cycle events and pastoral care. She will also focus on all our
education programs at Beth El, such as the b’nei mitzvah program and the religious
school.
Rabbi Stern’s parents joined the congregation in the mid-1980s and they
enrolled her and her brother, Alexander, in BENS. When Rabbi Stern finished there,
she attended Beth El’s religious school (now called Kadima), went to Camp Kee Tov
during the summers, sang in the junior choir and later became a bat mitzvah at
Beth El.
Rabbi Stern is fluent in French, having spent two years in Paris in middle school
with her family while her father, a professor of education at UC Berkeley, worked
for the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD).
Although she admitted that at the time she was “totally miserable,” she now says
the experience of living abroad “was worth it 110%.” Upon deciding to become a
rabbi, Rabbi Stern attended rabbinical school at the Los Angeles campus of Hebrew
Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR).
During her final year there, she served as rabbinic intern at Peninsula Temple
Sholom (PTS) in Burlingame (a congregation with a membership of 750 families).
In order to do so, she and her family returned to live in the Bay Area that year, and
Rabbi Stern commuted weekly to Los Angeles to finish her classes.
In addition to her rabbinic ordination, Rabbi Stern earned Master’s degrees
in Hebrew Letters and in Jewish Education from HUC-JIR. At the end of her
internship year at PTS, Rabbi Stern was engaged full-time as assistant rabbi. She has
served in this capacity for the last three years, living in Albany with her family and
commuting to Burlingame six days each week.
Rabbi Stern is married to Sean Holcombe, who is originally from Phoenix. They
have two children, Leora (4), who attends BENS, and Jonathan (1). Sean is a licensed
marriage and family therapist who practices home-based family therapy, runs a
men’s group for new fathers and serves as a clinician in a crisis stabilization unit in
Solano County. The couple met one
summer at Hava Nashira, the Reform
Meet Rabbi Stern!
Movement’s annual conference
for Jewish music educators, held in
Join the congregation in greeting Rabbi Stern
Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
at two brunches at Beth El this summer:
Sean and Rabbi Stern married in
Sunday, July 13, 10:00 am-12:00 pm, and
2004 as she was accepted into the
Sunday, August 24, 10:00 am-12:00 pm.
rabbinical program, which included
spending a year together in Israel.
The same summer that she and Sean were at Hava Nashira, Rabbi Stern also
worked as a counselor at URJ Camp Newman, which was then under the assistant
directorship of Debra Sagan Massey, Beth El’s director of education. At that time,
Camp Newman was experimenting in training song leaders, for which Rabbi Stern
said there is still “a real need. Qualified song leaders are in short supply,” she
C o n t i n u e d o n pa g e 17
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 3
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the weekend with ruach (spirit)!
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Coming just before the High Holy Days, this year’s Shabbaton is an
opportunity to reflect on this past year and prepare for the beginning
of a new one. We invite you to unplug and join current and prospective
Beth El members across the generations at the 2014/5774 Beth El
Community Shabbaton.
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Debra Sagan Massey at debra@bethelberkeley.org.
We hope to see you there!
Anna Fogelman and Jessica Wolin
Shabbaton Planning Committee Co-Chairs
4 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Member Spotlight
Part II: Renée Risks More in Occupied
Southern France
by Elisabeth Wechsler
Part I of this story of Renée Passy-Zale, a new member of Beth El, ran
in the previous issue of The Builder and described her life in occupied
France as a young Jew during World War II. She and her Sephardic
family were forced to move frequently on short notice to evade Nazis
and French collaborators. They had many close calls.
Once settled in Aix-en-Provence in the spring of
1942, Renée’s family felt safe — for the present. Her mother’s
cousin, Germaine, had found the family a “dark, small apartment
with bed bugs,” but Renée didn’t care. She could breathe
more easily. Her father found a job through a classmate in civil
engineering at a construction company (he had fake IDs), and all
was well for a few months.
In the fall, Renée and her sister returned to public school,
but in November, 1942 the Allied forces landed in North Africa.
The France-based Nazis began to occupy Aix-en-Provence and
other areas of southern France. The occupiers took over the
construction company where her father worked. The French
Resistance asked him to spy on the construction company to
obtain military secrets from the company’s projects and to help
with sabotage, especially destroying the big guns installed to
shoot down planes.
Her father, Isaac, who spoke fluent German, befriended the
German colonel in charge of the construction company as part
of the Resistance’s request. The colonel called her father a “good
Frenchman.”
On December 2, 1942 (Renée’s 10th birthday), two men came
to their home possibly to arrest her father. Her older sister, Louise,
spent a lot of time with the three sons of Germaine, who were
known Jews in Aix-en-Provence. Renée thinks that that was part
of the reason the men came to the door.
Renée, who was alone, answered the door. The men asked
for her father. She said very politely, “Oh, he’s not here. Are you
friends of his?” The men smirked and she knew this was not a
good sign, so she made up a tale of how her father had gone to
Marseille and would be back the next day. The men left and Renée
screamed for several minutes in shock from the close call. As soon
as she came back to the apartment, her mother hurriedly rushed
to warn her husband, who was walking home from work.
That evening, Isaac slept on the roof of a friend’s building and
the next morning the men returned. Her mother stayed “sick” in
bed, Renée went to school as usual and her sister put on a maid’s
apron and answered the door. Her father had gone to work as
usual. The men left, suspicious but empty-handed.
That afternoon, the family moved to another apartment. It
was located on a street with a guard station that had a telephone,
staffed by Nazi soldiers. The girls were told to come home directly
after school. Her sister, to relieve her boredom, played the piano
at the window. A young Nazi soldier walking by apparently fell
in love with Louise just by listening to her music and seeing her
upstairs in the window.
One night after dark in late 1943, the outer gate bell rang, and
Renée saw a Nazi soldier with a “machine gun” in his hands. Her
mother fell on her knees at the door and begged Renée’s father
to go up on the roof to save himself. Renée then realized that her
mother was willing to sacrifice herself for her husband.
Her father disregarded her mother’s pleas and marched out
to the gate of the apartment building. After several long minutes,
he came back inside, laughing. It turned out that the soldier was
the young man who was in love with Louise, and he’d brought his
violin case to accompany her at the piano. The father’s excuse to
the soldier was that “Louise is very shy.” She was very beautiful at
15 and acted much older, Renée said.
C o n t i n u e d o n ne x t pa g e
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 5
The last dangerous incident happened in the summer of
1944. The family had moved again, this time to a house outside of
Aix-en-Provence. It was a long walk to town, Renée remembers,
but the family felt safer away from the street with the Nazi guard
station. Her father stopped working because his friend, the
French owner of the construction company, knew that her father
was Jewish and Isaac was afraid that the boss would be complicit
if the Nazis discovered that Isaac’s IDs were false.
In late spring, Renée’s teacher asked “all Jewish girls to
report to the principal’s office.” Renée stood very still with the
rest of the class, trying to appear calm, and watched two North
African girls (whom Renée thought were Islamic) leave the
classroom. They never returned. To this day when she attends a
bat mitzvah, she tears up thinking of those 12- and 13-year-olds
who were probably deported.
Her father told Renée
to walk away slowly
and not look back.
Renée stopped going to school because the Allied forces
intensified the bombing closer and closer to Aix-en-Provence.
One day, her father asked her to find a child’s shoe box and to
accompany him to the Palace of Shoes, a store owned by the chief
of the local French Underground. Her father put some papers in
the shoe box and tied it with a string. Then he and Renée walked
to the shoe store downtown, with Renée holding the box.
He told Renée that if they were stopped by the police to say
she didn’t know what was in the box and to walk slowly away and
not look back at her father, who presumably would be the target of
any arrest. They weren’t stopped and delivered the shoe box with
plans for sabotage to Monsieur Guindon, the owner of the store.
Fortunately for the Passy family, France was liberated by
American troops in August 1944.
Renée’s family moved back to Paris and she finished her
education. Now 18, she worked as a tri-lingual interpreter from
French to Spanish and English. Renée met her first husband at age
19 and they moved to the U.S. in 1953.
Her husband, Robert Alfandary, a “hidden” child in Belgium
during the war, had gone to the United States afterward for his
higher education and served with Supreme Headquarters Allied
Powers Europe, the Headquarters of Allied Command Operations,
under General Eisenhower. Robert was from Istanbul and, like
Renée, his background was Sephardic.
They had three daughters and a son but divorced in 1979. She
married Irving Zale in 1999. Irving was born in Cologne, Germany;
he had Polish roots. He was deported to the Krakow-Plasznow
concentration camp during the Nazi era. He died in 2011. Renée
now has seven grandchildren and her family lives in the Bay
Area. She gave a video interview to the University of Southern
California’s Shoah Foundation Institute and has been interviewed
by several publications about her wartime experiences.
She attained an Associate Arts degree at Diablo Valley
College, a Bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing at SFSU and
a Master’s degree in Creative Writing at SFSU. Renée lives in
Berkeley and attends Torah Study regularly.
6 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Mitzvah Corps
Mitzvah Corps
interview with
Trang Robinson
Interview by Laura Turbow
What made you want to be a
Mitzvah Corps member?
I was the Mitzvah coordinator
for BENS for the last two
years, and I loved how having
that job allowed me to
connect with my community
and meet new people. The
Mitzvah Corps has broadened
my connections to Beth El
at large, not just to BENS.
(The feel-good dopamine
reward mechanism for doing
good deeds is just an added
benefit!)
Did you personally know the people you were directly
helping out?
I recently signed up through Mitzvah Corps to bring a meal
to somebody. I didn’t know the exact details of the situation,
and don’t need to — knowing that I helped a person in need
is enough.
How did it feel to do this mitzvah?
It felt great to help someone in his/her time of need. After
the birth of our second son, the support from BENS and
Beth El was so warm and generous, I am happy to give back.
Do you think you’ll sign up to help again?
I will sign up to help again on the Mitzvah Corps’ Lotsa
Helping Hands website when a request goes out. It is now a
part of our lives!
What would you say to a Beth El member who has not yet
signed up for the Mitzvah Corps?
There are plenty of opportunities to help and you will meet
great, amazing people! I am a working mother of two — if I
can do it, so can you!
You can join the Mitzvah Corps by contacting me, Laura
Turbow, at laura@ltphoto.com. Visit the website to learn
more: www.lotsahelpinghands.com/c/645571/.
Members
Welcome to Our New Members!
We welcome the following people to our Beth El community
Compiled by Jerry Iserson, Associate Editor
Andrew and Sarah Rosenbach
Andrew and Sarah have lived in the Bay Area for a long time
(except for a six-year hiatus in LA), but moved to North Berkeley
three years ago. Andrew is originally from Southern California and
Sarah is from Cincinnati. Their children are Lula (8) and Julius (5).
Now that they live in the neighborhood, they have gotten to know
Beth El through Camp Kee Tov and various events, groups (Edah)
and friends. The family is active, enjoying soccer, music, art and
gardening. The Rosenbachs said they “are excited to be a part of
Beth El to enrich our lives with Judaism, tikkun olam (repairing the
world) and all the joys a community brings.”
Jessica Trubowitch & Juan Restrepo
Jessica and Juan have lived in the Bay Area for over 15 years and
moved from San Francisco to Berkeley four years ago. Jessica was
born in San Mateo but grew up mainly in Arcata, CA. Juan is from
Bogota, Colombia and eventually moved to Carmel, CA, where
he grew up. Their children are Antonio (16), Santiago Eben (3),
who just started at BENS, and Raphael Kelly (3 months). Jessica is
the director of legislative affairs and inter-group relations for the
Jewish Community Relations Council in San Francisco. She has a
Bachelor’s degree from the University of California Santa Barbara
in political science and a Master’s degree in public policy from
Sacramento State University (SSU). Juan is an assistant project
engineer for Herrero Builders, a commercial general contractor
based in San Francisco. He has a Bachelor’s degree in business
administration, with a concentration in international business,
from SSU and a Certificate in Construction Management from the
University of California Berkeley. Juan relates, “it was Raphael who
actually drew us to Beth El.” In looking at the nursery school, Juan
says, “we liked the feel and atmosphere of Beth El and decided to
join.” As an interfaith couple, “being a part of a Jewish community
is important to us and we felt that Beth El reflected who we are.”
The Restrepos enjoy spending time with family and participating
in outdoor activities such as hiking and going to the beach and
farmer’s markets. Juan is an avid music fan, enjoys bike riding and
has recently started running. Jessica loves reading, baking and being
with her sister and family who live in the Bay Area.
We also welcome Carl Nagin, of Richmond, to Beth El.
Letters to the Editor
Editor and Senior Writer
Elisabeth Wechsler
Associate Editor
Jerry Iserson
Art Director
Cheshire Isaacs
Communications
Coordinator
Molly Daniels
Member Contributors
Margie Gelb
Judith Gussmann
Lee Horowitz
Scott Spear
Susan Sugarman
Laura Turbow
Your thoughts and opinions are important to us. If
you have a subject of interest to the Congregation,
write a letter or essay of a maximum of 500 words
and submit it to elisabeth.wechsler@gmail.com. No
anonymous submissions will be accepted.
Copy Editors
Miriam Dym
Rose Gansky
Deadline for the next issue: June 20, 2014
Proofreaders
Bonnie Cooperstein
Juliet Gardner
Evie Groch
Miriam Schiffman
Letters, essays and guest articles may be edited
for length and at the discretion of the Marketing &
Communications Committee.
The Marketing & Communications Committee will
offer guidance and suggestions for future issues of
The Builder. Interested members are invited to join
the committee. Contact jeff.seideman@earthlink.net.
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 7
Life Stories
Blue: Pacific Palisades Beach,
Summer, 1957
by Judith Gussmann
Waves rose. White foam crested, then dissipated
into the blue water stretching to the horizon. There, the blue of
sea and sky melded, drawing me beyond earthly confines to the
expansiveness of the heavens. In that moment, at age 12, I first
realized I was but a small dot on an expansive planet. What would
it feel like to be a part of that vastness?
“Come on,” my father shouted, interrupting my rumination,
“Let’s ride those waves.”
Sun-heat sizzled. I stepped into the surf, relishing the water’s
cool slosh-slosh around my ankles. My father and I ran farther out,
kicking and splashing. I tasted salt, felt a sting on a fresh scratch.
A slimy seaweed string wrapped around my angle and slithered
off. Our jog slowed to a shuffle when we hit deep water, its weight
pressing against us. Then, the magic of releasing my feet from
their earthly pull, and I swam, free beyond imagination. My father
swam beside me. I looked at him and he smiled. His strokes were
calm, long and sure. His moves radiated mastery and control.
This wasn’t my usual father, so often frightened of horseplay
at the playground because I might get hurt; paralyzed by heights,
yanking me back from a sealed window in a high-rise building.
Terrified of so many things! And, oh, how I soaked up my father’s
angst like a porous sea sponge. His fears filled me with my own
litany of dreads, leaving me feeling unsafe in a world with no adult
to protect me.
My father even had a water-fear story: When he was twelve,
his father made him climb up to a vertigo-inducing high-dive
board at a Seattle lake. When he couldn’t jump, his father refused
to let him down. My dad sat on that narrow wooden perch until
nightfall when, in desperation, he finally hurled down.
But in the ocean, my father was not afraid. Why, I didn’t know.
For whatever reason, he loved the ocean, and I loved being beside
him there. He became the father I yearned for: sure of himself, able
to guide and protect me as I traversed life’s unpredictable road.
We swam until we reached gentle waves, letting ourselves
rise with the soft swells as they rolled by. Farther out, a distant
wave erupted. It loomed, exponentially higher than us. We
intuited some algebraic equation: How much closer we should
edge toward that wave so the trajectory would be exactly right
and we wouldn’t be thrown upward, or smashed downward,
into oblivion. Once at the just-right distance, we turned on the
diagonal, heads looking back to the rising wave, bodies facing
the shore.
We had intuited well. The wave was upon us, lifting us up just
after it peaked. My father and I pointed our arms forward, as in a
dive from that Seattle high board. We sailed, propelled by a force
far greater than us. I roller-coasted down with that wave, a part of
the wild blue freedom, stretching from sea to sky and beyond. My
father and I beamed at each other. And, side by side, we flew.
This story was written as part of Beth El’s Life Stories group.
For more information about joining the group, contact Marilyn
Margulius (mmargulius@gmail.com). There are both on- and off-site
meetings of Life Stories, and the emphasis is on telling a personal
story or family history.
Photographers Pro and Amateur: Beth El Needs Your Help
If you take photos at Beth El events , please consider sending them for inclusion in our photo database. Photos are
archived for use in publicity, illustrations for The Builder and other Beth El purposes.
We’re hoping to expand our stock of images, so bring your cameras to future events at Beth El! (An exception is during Shabbat,
when photographs are not permitted.)
Please send your Beth El photos (and any questions) to Molly Daniels at molly@bethelberkeley.org.
8 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Photo by Grant Palmer; used under a Creative Commons license
music room
Music at Beth El
in the Next Year
Buy Honey...
Raise Money!
by Rabbi Reuben Zellman
by Sharon Friedman
As many of you know, I will be on leave from Beth El from July
1, 2014, to June 30, 2015. Although I will miss being in our community for
that year, I am extremely excited about the opportunity to study and live
in a country and culture I have never experienced before. (To read about
what I’m doing in Santiago, Chile next year, see the January/February
issue of The Builder on Beth El’s website).
For more than four years I have served our congregation as assistant
rabbi and music director. I will be happy to return to Beth El as our
synagogue’s half-time music director. The music director position will
Our congregation will have the
opportunity to sing with and
learn from Beth El’s wonderful
volunteer leaders, as well as from
four visiting musicians.
What better way to wish family, friends and
business associates a “Sweet and Healthy New
Year” than sending a jar of honey?
Connect with your friends and family during
the High Holy Day season with a sweet greeting,
carrying on an enduring Jewish tradition.
Congregation Beth El will receive a portion of
the proceeds — right at the time of year when
we turn our attention to t’shuvah (returning to
our best selves) and tzedakah.
Shortly, the weekly e-update emails will post
a link for you to order an 8-ounce jar of delicious,
kosher honey that will arrive in time for Rosh
Hashanah. It will be decorated with a colorful
label and include a personalized card reading,
“L’Shana Tovah — Wishing you a Healthy and
Happy New Year.” The card will let the recipients
know that a donation by you has been made to
Beth El in their honor.
The cost wil be $10, with free shipping if you
order by mid-July. Stay tuned!
include nearly everything that I currently do with our music programs:
leading services for Shabbat and holidays, teaching classes in Jewish
music, working with our chorus, band and b’nei mitzvah students, singing
with our preschool and offering music at members’ lifecycle observances
and other community events.
And what about music for July 2014 – June 2015? We have been
assembling a music team to cover all of these roles on an interim basis.
During this next year, our congregation will have the opportunity to sing
with and learn from Beth El’s wonderful volunteer leaders, as well as from
four visiting musicians: Cantor David Frommer, who will be co-leading
some b’nei mitzvah services along with Rabbis Kahn and Stern; Rachel
Sills, one of our long-time b’nei mitzvah tutors who is also an oud player,
a singer and a specialist in music of the Middle East; Miriam Schwartz,
a wonderful singer and multi-instrumentalist who will be leading our
monthly Yismechu (chanting) service; and Jonathan Borchardt, one of
my colleagues in the Master’s program in choral conducting at SFSU, an
excellent pianist and conductor who has already come on board to work
with Beth El’s chorus. We are excited to welcome them to Beth El over
the next year.
It will be a terrific opportunity for our congregation to experience a
variety of music and styles, and to learn from these new teachers.
I want to express again my deep appreciation to our Board of
Directors, Rabbi Kahn and Beth El’s staff for making this leave of absence
possible for me. I am grateful to the many members of our community
who have expressed support and enthusiasm for this adventure.
I will be returning to Beth El in the fall for two weeks to lead our
High Holy Days services, and I look forward to seeing you all at Rosh
Hashanah 5775!
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 9
Library
New Books
People of the Book
The People of the Book adult education program is taking its annual summer
vacation. The group will resume in September. If you would like to present a
book for the September–December session, please contact Barry Silverblatt at
barry_s@pacbell.net. First-time presenters are especially encouraged.
by Scott Spear, Library Chair
Donations to the Aaron Plishner and Rabbi George Vida Funds make it possible to buy new books. Here are some recent additions:
My Promised Land: The Triumph and
Tragedy of Israel, by Ari Shavit, won the
Natan Book Award. The book is a history
of modern Israel, lyrically personal, morally
serious and rigorously reported, drawing
on interviews, historical documents, diaries
and letters and the author’s family history.
Daniel Gordis says that the contents capture
“both the triumph and the torment of Israel’s
experience and soul.”
Israel Has Moved, by Diana Pinto, is quite
different from other new books picturing Israel
today. The author presents new trends in all
of Israel society that signify changes for the
future. Shlomo Avineri and Saul Friedlander
call the book “brilliant,” the latter saying
that Pinto “draws a portrait of Israel as a
living entity, warts and all, caught between
the euphoric power of its creativity and the
weakness of its historical contradictions and
political impasses.”
Born in the Bronx, Yosef Yerushalmi spoke
only Hebrew and Yiddish when he began
kindergarten there. After a stint as a
congregation rabbi and 14 years teaching
at Harvard, he was Salo Baron Professor of
Jewish History at Columbia. His renowned
book, Zakhor, was read recently at Beth El.
Now, five years after his death, his essays and
lectures are collected in The Faith of Fallen
Jews. This new book shows “the variety and
the profundity of his work” (Leon Wieseltier) on a myriad of
Jewish topics, such as the political history of the Jews, Spinoza,
Marranos and conversos, Zionism, Freud’s Jewish identity, memory
and history and Jewish hope.
Another book recently read at Beth El was
written by Abraham Cahan, the legendary
editor of the Jewish Daily Forward. Now
there is the first general interest biography
of him, The Rise of Abraham Cahan, by Seth
Lipsky. Cahan founded the Yiddish daily in
1897; it became a national Jewish newspaper,
aiding millions of immigrants and working
passionately for social justice.
The period from the late 6th to the mid-11th
centuries C.E. saw a radical transformation
of Judaism. This era prepared the way for
Maimonides on the one hand and Kabbalah
on the other, through the Geonim, the heads
of the ancient Talmudic academies of Babylon,
recognized as the leading religious and
spiritual authorities by most of the world’s
Jewish population. The history of this radical
change is related in The Geonim of Babylonia
and the Shaping of Medieval Jewish Culture, by Robert Brody,
“a masterpiece of scholarship and erudition,” according to Neil
Danzig of Jewish Theological Seminary.
A Social History of Hebrew: Its Origins
Through the Rabbinic Period, by William
Schniedewind, views the history of the
Israelites through the lens of their language.
The book demonstrates how our long history
of migration, war, exile and other major
events is reflected in the linguistic evolution
of Hebrew, from its emergence in ancient
Canaan to around 200 C.E. The author holds
three endowed chairs at UCLA, one of which
is in biblical studies and northwest Semitic languages.
Find Advice and Comfort in the Beth El Library
Beth El’s Mental Health Task Force is organizing a collection of books that may assist our congregants when they are looking
for help with personal or family issues. Authors explore topics such as raising responsible children, marriage, coping with illness,
gender identity and more — all through a Jewish lens. Some of the books are classics, such as When Bad Things Happen to Good
People by Rabbi Harold Kushner. More recent selections include The Blessing of the Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogul and Yearnings:
Embracing the Sacred Messiness of Life by Rabbi Irwin Kula.
You will find these books on a shelf labeled “Personal and Family” near the check-out station. If you choose to borrow one of
these titles, please fill out the card inside the back cover of the book. We welcome your feedback about this collection and are open
to purchasing additional titles that congregants may recommend.
Susan Sugarman (susansugarmanlcsw@gmail.com) and Karen Harber (Kharber1@aol.com)
10 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
recipe
Farro, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad
Recipe offered by Margie Gelb
What a happy moment in time: Spring and Shavuot.
Excellent produce is in the stores, and we are invited to celebrate
with dairy. This recipe is actually two recipes in one.
In its original form below, you have the hardy and filling
“Farro, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad.” It’s perfect for potlucks,
picnics and bringing your lunch to work. If you’re looking for a
different version of the classic caprese salad, omit the farro and
proceed as directed.
Farro is an Italian grain, very similar to its longer-cooking
relation, barley. Both grains retain their individual shape after
cooking. Both are great in soup, as a side or in a salad. With farro,
extra parmesan cheese never hurts. Even if cooking it plain, stir in
grated parmesan and a little olive oil after cooking.
Either way you prepare it, this recipe can be assembled right
before you serve it, or 24 hours in advance, saving the basil for a
last-minute fold-in.
Time: 30–45 minutes, divided
Resting time: at least 1 hour
Serves 6
Ingredients
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1½ teaspoons dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1½ teaspoons salt, divided
1 cup farro
3 tablespoons capers, rinsed
½ pound bocconcini (little balls of mozzarella), cut in half
1½–2 cups cherry tomatoes (halved if large)
8 large leaves basil, torn into pieces
½ cup Kalamata olives, halved (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Cooking Directions
1. In a small saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic,
oregano, and pepper flakes. Watch carefully for 1-2 minutes to
make sure that garlic doesn’t burn. You don’t want the garlic to
turn too dark, but a little brown is okay. Take the pan off the heat
and swirl it around.
2. Set the garlic mixture aside to cool to room temperature, at
least 30 minutes or for as long as a day. (I usually put it in a small
jar and leave it out so the oil doesn’t congeal.)
3. Bring a 2- to 3-quart pot of water to a boil. Add 1 teaspoon
salt to the water (reserve ¼ teaspoon salt for seasoning). Cook
the farro for 15 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold
water until farro is close to room temperature. Set aside. (If you’re
making the salad the next day, refrigerate the farro overnight.)
4. Toss mozzarella with cooled flavored oil and capers and
let sit for up to 2 hours. Add farro, 1½ cups tomatoes, basil,
and optional olives. Look at the salad to see if it needs more
tomatoes for visual balance. Season with pepper and taste
before adding remaining ¼ teaspoon salt (the capers and olives
may add enough salt). Toss and chill.
5. Add basil leaves just before serving.
Alternative: To serve as a mozzarella and tomato salad, omit
the farro, increase the bocconcini to 1 pound and reduce the oil to
¹⁄8 cup.
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 11
b’nei mitzvah
The congregation is cordially invited to
attend the service and kiddush following to
honor these bar and bat mitzvah candidates:
Halle Steckel will be called
to the Torah as a bat mitzvah on
Saturday, June 7 at 10:15 am.
Halle is the daughter of Mo Morris
& Paul Steckel.
Aidan Sloan Mark will be called
to the Torah as a bar mitzvah on
Saturday, June 14 at 10:15 am.
Aidan is the son of Hayley Sloan
& Jason Mark.
Haley Ross will be called to
the Torah as a bat mitzvah on
Saturday, June 21 at 10:15 am.
Haley is the daughter of Alan Ross
& Pearl Pai.
Sonya Love will be called to
the Torah as a bat mitzvah on
Saturday, June 28 at 10:15 am.
Sonya is the daughter of Andrew
Love & Christine Meuris.
Anna Portnoy will be called
to the Torah as a bat mitzvah on
Saturday, July 5 at 10:15 am. Anna
is the daughter of Daniel Portnoy
& Suzanne Portnoy.
Ty Wenrick will be called to
Torah
Study
the Torah as a bar mitzvah on
Saturday, July 12 at 10:15 am.
Ty is the son of Robin Wenrick
& Edward Wenrick.
June 7
Parashat Behe’alotcha
Numbers 8:1 – 12:26
Maxim Schrogin
June 28
Parashat Chukat
Numbers 19:1 – 22:1
Bob Goldstein
July 19
Parashat Matot
Numbers 30:2 – 32:42
Rabbi Kahn
June 14
Parashat Sh’lach
Numbers 13:1 – 15:41
Jeff Gillman
July 5
Parashat Balak
Numbers 22:2 – 25:9
Ann Gonski
July 26
Parashat Massei
Numbers 33:1 – 36:13
Rabbi Stern
June 21
Parashat Korach
Numbers 16:1 – 18:32
Rabbi Kahn
July 12
Parashat Pinchas
Numbers 25:10 – 30:1
Naomi Janowitz
12 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Bens
BENS Wraps Up a Successful School Year
by Maguy Weizmann-McGuire
It is with great satisfaction and a bit of sadness
for me that the Beth El Nursery School (BENS) year is about
to end. Looking back, I’m fortunate to have had the chance to
see our children grow, gain confidence, develop positive selfesteem and become independent thinkers and doers. As the
BENS students make a transition to the next phase of their
development, they will take many of the skills and tools that our
invaluable staff introduced to them.
May was “Educator’s Month.” Along with many parents
and children, I joined in celebrating all BENS teachers for their
dedication, love, warmth and inspiration. Their hard work is
measured not only by what they do but also by the outcome of
our children’s accomplishments. To all BENS teachers: Thank you
for your amazing work — I look forward to another rewarding year
with you.
We also recognize the volunteers who made our programs
a great success. I’m indebted to BENS co-chairs Jenn Brysk and
Sharon Goldfarb, members of the Early Childhood Education
Committee and our families for their endless efforts of organizing,
supporting and implementing programs. Thank you for your
unselfish commitment to BENS.
Building a strong Jewish community, making connections and
strengthening our ties to Beth El have been our goals throughout
this year. Tot Shabbat Yafe, holiday celebrations and gatherings of
families in individual homes for Shabbat and social events have
become a tradition. BENS, the Program Council and Kadima hope
to continue collaborating on many meaningful events.
In April, we celebrated Pesach family-style. Parents and
children joined our staff in fun-filled, holiday-related activities:
pillow-making, charoseth bar, crossing of the Nile, Pesach puppet
theater and storytelling, dancing with Miriam, building a pyramid
and a photo booth with children dressed as Israelites. It was a day
to remember!
During the month of May, we celebrated Israel’s
Independence Day (Yom HaAtzmaut) with Kadima and the Beth El
community. Shavuot was a combined celebration with a Shabbat
service honoring and thanking our families for their contributions
to parenthood.
On Friday, June 13 at 12:00 pm, BENS will celebrate the end
of the year with a siyum (culmination) with all our families. The
siyum gathering will take place in our own backyard. Everyone is
welcome and we hope you can join us!
During the week of June 16, the staff and I will be
transforming the backyard into an organic play environment. Our
plan involves removing the existing play structure and replacing it
with spaces for music, drama, dance, reading, painting, climbing,
gardening and community gathering for everyone.
This year, BENS summer camp dates will parallel Camp Kee Tov:
Session I: June 23 to July 18; Session II: July 28 to August 22.
Session II will be comprised of three and four year-olds with a
maximum of 24 children. Register online:
bethelyouthed.wufoo.com/forms/bens-2014-summer-camp/.
Have a happy and healthy summer, and we look forward to
seeing you here again!
BENS Calendar
June
6/13Last Day of School: All-school
Siyum Culmination; 12:00–1:00 pm
6/16–20 BENS closed (Teachers’ In-service Training)
6/23
First day of Camp, Session I
July/August
7/18
7/28
8/22
Last Day of Camp, Session I
First Day of Camp, Session II
Last Day of Camp, Session II
Camp Kee Tov
Summer 2014
Session 1: June 23–July 18
Session 2: July 28–August 22
There are still a few spots available!
Sign up soon at www.campkeetov.org
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 13
Yafe
Todah Rabah, Rebecca!
Thank you, Rebecca!
Be an early bird
and get the worm!
Sign up for any YAFE program by July 1 and
get a $25 discount for each child. Don’t miss
out! Register at bethelberkeley.org.
by Debra Sagan Massey, Director of Education
June 2014 begins a new chapter in Rebecca
DePalma’s life. Over the past seven years, Rebecca has been
Congregation Beth El’s dedicated YAFE
administrator and youth advisor. She has kept
our schools running, grew the Madrichim
program and re-launched all three of our
youth groups. While doing all of this, she
married Sam and they recently had their
first child, Danny. This month marks a big
professional move for Rebecca as she takes
on the job of director of teen engagement at
Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills.
Rebecca’s gifts to the youth and families at Beth El have
been tremendous. We are grateful to her for reinvigorating our
youth programs, including launching our BESTY youth group,
Scribes and Band. She has made it her mission to find ways for
all teens to be engaged in Jewish life after bar/bat mitzvah. Most
significantly, she has taken the time and energy to get to know
so many of our teens personally and to guide them during these
challenging years.
Over the years, Rebecca has mastered various skills
at Beth El, from scheduling bar/bat mitzvah students, to
arranging Berkeley bus drop-offs for Kadima, to ensuring that
all students have money in their snack accounts to get their
weekly doses of sushi and chocolate milk. Her door has been
open to anyone to drop by and chat — whether it be about
a youth group event or a question about the YAFE schedule.
In addition, she has invigorated the Ruach and Sababa youth
groups with enriched Jewish programming that attracts many
of our youth and offers valuable leadership skills. She has run
many successful youth retreats: our b’nei mitzvah weekends,
Sababa Shabbaton and Ruach program during the annual
congregational Shabbaton. Rebecca has worked hard to get to
know all of our families, and we are grateful for the fabulous
work she has done at Beth El.
14 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Join us at Shabbat Yafe!
Everybody’s talking about...Shabbat Yafe! (Yafe means
“beautiful” in Hebrew.) Don’t miss out on this fun-filled
Shabbat evening with something for everyone! Mark your
calendars now for the last Shabbat Yafe of the school year!
Friday, June 13 Hosted by the Kindergarten class
Potluck assignments: A - M Main Dish; N - Z Side Dish or Salad
5:00 pm Tot Shabbat led by Isaac Zones
5:30 pm Community Dinner
6:15 pm Community-wide Shabbat Services
7:00 pm Oneg and Board Games
Mah yafe hayom — How beautiful is this day!
Personally, I owe Rebecca a multitude of thanks for all the
support she has given me during my years at Beth El. When I
arrived on the scene in the middle of the school year in 2008,
Rebecca was single-handedly keeping the school afloat. Her
excellent administrative skills ensured that things did not fall
apart, and she was patient with me as I got my feet wet and
learned my way around Beth El.
I am so proud of Rebecca and excited for the new door
that is open to her. Her opportunity to serve as a full-time
youth professional is truly rare, and this was quite a competitive
position. While we will miss Rebecca here at Beth El, I am thrilled
that she will have the opportunity to continue to do the work she
loves and at which she is so skilled. All of us at Beth El wish her all
the best.
B’hatzlacha (with luck and good wishes) on a new journey,
and we hope to continue to see her and her family around Beth El
in the future!
Midrasha
A Farewell, and a Welcome
to Our New Director
by Diane Bernbaum
It is difficult to realize that, after 33 years, I am
writing my last column for The Builder. Over the years I have
shared with you the news from Midrasha as well as some of my
more personal thoughts. I will truly miss this forum to connect
with you, and I hope that you will stay in touch.
Working at Midrasha has brought me into the heart of a
Jewish community that celebrates pluralism, diversity, love of
learning and creativity. In the East Bay we are also fortunate to
have rabbis and educators who put a high priority on working
together with colleagues. The Midrasha system benefits from that
close collaboration.
My work at Midrasha was not only with teens but also with
teachers of teens, parents of teens and rabbis of teens. The joy of
working in the same job for so long is seeing many of those teens
become parents, teachers and rabbis themselves .
I am delighted that the Midrasha Board has found a wonderful
new executive director, Rabbi Jennifer Flam. She is a gifted,
innovative Jewish educator and leader. She has experience as a
pulpit rabbi, pastoral guide and Jewish spiritual director. Since 2008,
Rabbi Flam has served as the director of congregational learning at
Congregation B’nai Shalom in Walnut Creek, where she worked in
close collaboration with Contra Costa Midrasha. She currently lives
in the East Bay with her husband, Jason, who works in media and
marketing, and their three-year-old twins, Eli and Mia.
Rabbi Flam was ordained at the Ziegler School of Rabbinic
Studies and has a Master of Arts degree in education from the
Fingerhut School of Education at American Jewish University. She
is a member of the Rabbinical Assembly, the Central Conference
of American Rabbis and the Jewish Educators Assembly. Rabbi
Flam holds a Jewish Spiritual Directors Certificate from the Yedidya
Center for Jewish Spiritual Direction and a Certificate from the
Rabbinic Management Institute at American Jewish University. Rabbi Flam and I have begun working together to smooth
the transition. Please join me in extending her a warm B’rucha
HaBa’ah, welcome to Midrasha in Berkeley!
A note from Rabbi Jennifer Flam
With a keen interest in developing
safe and exciting spaces for teens to
explore and develop their identities,
I am delighted to join the Berkeley
Midrasha family. Together we will
continue to build and strengthen
the vibrant, innovative, supportive
and pluralistic teen experience
known as Berkeley Midrasha. I very
much look forward to meeting the
entire Midrasha community in the
coming months!
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 15
tzedakah
Aaron Plishner Children’S Library
The Wyle Family in honor of Jerry Weintraub’s birthday
Donate to
Beth El!
It is a Jewish tradition to give Tzedakah to
commemorate life cycle events and other
occasions. Are you celebrating a birthday,
engagement, anniversary, baby naming,
bat/bar mitzvah or recovery from an illness?
These are just a few ideas of appropriate
times to commemorate with a donation to
Beth El. These tax-deductible donations are
greatly appreciated and are a vital financial
supplement to support the wonderful
variety of programs and activities that we
offer at Congregation Beth El.
Please make checks payable to
Congregation Beth El and mail to
1301 Oxford Street, Berkeley, CA 94709
or visit bethelberkeley.org/give/donate.
This contribution of $
in memory of* in honor of*
is
*
Please credit the fund checked below:
General Fund — Use Where Most Needed
Aaron Plishner Children’s Library
Allan and Tybil Smith Kahn Memorial Fund
Arjmand Adult Education Fund
Building Fund
Camp Kee Tov Scholarship Fund
Chevra Kadisha Fund
David Cotton Memorial Swig Fund
Homeless Meal Program
Israel Scholarship Fund
Bar Lev Landscape Fund
Marian Magid Memorial Fund
Men’s Club
Mitzvah Committee
Music Fund
Nursery School Fund
Oneg/Kiddush Fund
Prayerbook Fund
Rabbi Kahn’s Discretionary Fund
Rabbi Emeritus Raj’s Discretionary Fund
Rabbi Vida Library Fund
Social Action Fund
Youth and Family Education Fund
Youth Group Fund
Contribution:
Acknowledge:
From:
To:
Allan & Sybil Smith Kahn Fund
Susan & Michael Austin
Allan Berenstein in memory of Zevi Kahn
Diane & Ed Bernbaum in memory of Zevi Kahn
Odette Blachman in memory of Zevi Kahn
Barbara Fierer & Bob Brandfon in memory of Zevi
Kahn
Janet Byron in memory of Jules Byron
Bonnie & Max Cooperstein in memory of Zevi Kahn;
in honor of their 60th anniversary
Barbara Cymrot in memory of Zevi Kahn and Isa Leah
Cymrot-Wu
Martin & Jill Siegel Dodd in memory of Zevi Kahn and
Minnie Adler
Jonathan Zingman & Ann Daniels in memory of Zevi
Kahn
Ruth Schoenbach & Lynn Eden
Beverly & Richard Eigner in memory of Zevi Kahn
Juliet & Peter Gardner in memory of Zevi Kahn
Mark Aaronson & Margie Gelb
Robert Gilden & Marlene Getz in memory of Zevi Kahn
Sandy & Vivian Golden in memory of Zevi Kahn
Steven Joseph & Corey Hansen-Joseph in memory of
Zevi Kahn
Esther & Mark Hudes in memory of Zevi Kahn
David Kahn in memory of Zevi Kahn
Ruth Ehrenkrantz & Spencer Klein in memory of Zevi
Kahn
Kimberly Nies & Steve Kurzman
Michael & Peggy Lipson in memory of Zevi Kahn
Desmid Lyon in memory of Zevi Kahn
Harry & Marilyn Margulius in memory of Max
Margulius and Zevi Kahn
Lloyd Morgan in memory of Zevi Kahn
Paul Steckel & Mo Morris in memory of Zevi Kahn
Nancy Lewin-Offel & Jim Offel
Jim Gilbert & Susan Orbuch in memory of Zevi Kahn
Jennifer Rader in memory of Zevi Kahn
Lisa Ochs & Lea Salem in memory of Zevi Kahn
James Gracer & Rabbi Judy Shanks in memory of Zevi
Kahn
Stacey Shulman in memory of Zevi Kahn
Elaine & Allan Sobel in memory of Zevi Kahn
Ruth & Scott Spear in memory of Zevi Kahn
Michele Sullivan in memory of Zevi Kahn
Marc Davis & Nancy Turak in memory of Zevi Kahn
Phyllis Zisman in memory of Zevi Kahn
Ami Zusman in memory of Zevi Kahn
Annual Appeal
William Schechner
Bar Lev Landscape Fund
Marc Davis & Nancy Turak in memory of Jean Davis
B’nei Mitzvah Tzedakah Fund
David Kesler
Andrew Love & Christine Meuris in honor of the 2014
b’nei mitzvah class
Paul Steckel & Mo Morris
Ruth and Joshua Simon
Camp Kee Tov Campership Fund
Marc Davis & Nancy Turak in honor of the birth of
Barbara Cohn’s grandson, Theo
Address 1:
David Cotton Memorial Swig Fund
Diane & Ed Bernbaum in memory of David Sol Cotton
Address 2:
Gala
Dan Bellm and Rabbi Yoel Kahn
Lisa Fruchtman & Norman Postone in honor of Jennifer
and Jason Brand
Thank you for
your support!
General Fund
Janine Baer in memory of Irving Baer
16 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Stuart & Judy Berman in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Diane & Ed Bernbaum in memory of Minnie Adler
Florence Borkon in memory of Dorothy Rosenberg and
George Rosenberg
Judy Chess in memory of Morton Ross
Martin & Jill Siegel Dodd in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary; in memory of
Morris Shahan and David Joseph Siegel
Karen & Stuart Gansky in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Steven Joseph & Corey Hansen-Joseph in memory of
Minnie Adler
Juliette Hassid in memory of Marguerite Mizrahi
Stacey and Edward Holly
Esther & Mark Hudes in memory of Malka Glick Stern
and Sala Hudes
Patrick & Julie Matlof Kennedy in memory of Morris
Matlof and Genevieve Matlof
Robert & Sara Kupor in honor of Thomas Lurquin
Oren & Debra Sagan Massey in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Marv Pearlstein in memory of Harriet Pearlstein, Judy
Phoenix and Jan Selix; in honor of the bat mitzvah of
Jaden Yonover
Paula & Rabbi Ferenc Raj in memory of Tamas Raj and
Erzsi Raj
Steven Resnik for the supplies for the Gala Whiskey
Party
Angela Botelho & Barry Silverblatt in memory of
Jacqueline Silver
Paul & Susan Sugarman for the donation of furniture;
in honor of Max & Bonnie Cooperstein’s 60th
anniversary
Jeffrey Seideman & Elisabeth Wechsler
Jerry Weintraub in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Bruce & Margaret Winkelman in memory of Ruby
Winkelman
Beth Zeitman in memory of Nancy Feiner
Phyllis Zisman in honor of Max & Bonnie Cooperstein’s
60th anniversary
Homeless Meal Program
Janet Byron
Clarke and Maria Daniels
Nancy Turak & Marc Davis in memory of Henry Weil
Charles Meier & Sharon Friedman
Lauren & Andy Ganes in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Rose & Jack Gansky in honor of Max & Bonnie
Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Sandy & Vivian Golden in honor of Ellen Singer-Vine
Anna Mantell & Robert Goldstein in honor of the
births of Asia Elan Goldman-Lee and Jakob Lukas
Eigner; in honor of Cathy Stevens and Max & Bonnie Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Gale Antokal & Neil Gozan, and Judy Goldstein in
memory of Phoebe Gozan
Mary Jacobs in memory of Dick Frankel
Steven Joseph & Corey Hansen-Joseph
Edythe Heda
Michael & Peggy Lipson
Susan & Richard Seeley
Marc Davis & Nancy Turak in memory of Minnie Adler
Susan & Bill Zarchy in memory of Jeanette Zarchy,
Roslyn Slanhoff and Bertram Slanhoff
Ma Tovu capital campaign
Martin & Jill Siegel Dodd
Dan Bellm and Rabbi Yoel Kahn
Patrick & Julie Matlof Kennedy
Lloyd Morgan in memory of Alice Morgan
Steven & Katherine Resnik
Marian Magid Fund
Matthew & Lisa Friedman in memory of
Norman Friedman
Jean Henderson in memory of Robert and
Marilyn Hemmings
Albert Magid in memory of Marian Magid
Miriam Rabinovitz in memory of her sister,
Nancy Feiner
Miriam & Stan Schiffman in honor of Max &
Bonnie Cooperstein’s 60th anniversary
Marc Davis & Nancy Turak in honor of Cathy
Stevens
Phyllis Zisman in honor of Cathy Stevens
Mitzvah Committee Fund
Barbara Fierer & Bob Brandfon in memory of
Jacob Elkin Brandfon
Music Fund
Bonnie & Max Cooperstein in honor of their
60th anniversary
Linda & Mayer Riff in honor of the 50th
anniversary of Mayer’s bar mitzvah
Fred & Ila Rothenberg
Renee Passy Zale in memory of Feride Passy
Nursery School Fund
Diane & Ed Bernbaum in memory of Haya Amit
Oneg/Kiddush Fund
Kimberly Beeson & Rebecca Abravanel in
memory of Philip Gradolph
Arthur & Carol Goldman in honor of the birth of
granddaughter, Asia Elan Goldman-Lee
Plaques
Amy Roth & Robert Epstein in memory of Alan
Buder
Paula & Rabbi Ferenc Raj
Prayer Book Fund
Jack & Rose Gansky in memory of Louis Gansky
Project Nechama
Juliet & Peter Gardner in memory of Minnie
Adler
Rabbi Emeritus Raj’s
Discretionary Fund
J & J Yadegar Diamonds & Fine Jewelry
Rabbi Kahn’s Discretionary
Fund
Michael & Susan Austin in memory of Gay
Austin and Kurt Austin
Lois & Gary Marcus in memory of Zevi Kahn
Zena Ratner in memory of her father, Julius
Levine
Linda & Mayer Riff in honor of the 50th
anniversary of Mayer’s bar mitzvah
Steven & Doreen Rothman in memory of Irving
Zihn
Barbara & Denis Schmidt
Marcel & Margrit Schurman in memory of
Rafael Kafka
Rabbi Vida Library Fund
Lloyd Morgan in honor of Neil Levy
Ruth & Scott Spear
Paul & Susan Sugarman in memory of Susan’s
mother, Nancy Richard
Social Action Fund
Mary Jacobs in honor of Ellen Singer-Vine
Youth and Family Education
(YAFE) Fund
Julie Katz & Douglas Arnold
Gadi & Donna Meir
President’s Column
Rabbi Stern
co nti n u ed from page 2
co nti n u ed from page 3
robust and exemplary. Rest assured that
no one is getting rich working at Beth El.
Every one of our dedicated teachers and
staff members could earn more money
working in the for-profit sector. But we
are fortunate that, without exception, our
staff believes in the mission and values
of our synagogue and has chosen to help
support the success of our synagogue
community by working at Beth El.
To be sure, we charge fees, over and
above membership dues, to participate in
our youth programs, whether in the form
of Beth El Nursery School (BENS) tuition,
fees for Kadima and Chug Mishpacha, or
Camp Kee Tov. But all of those programs
operate at a loss on a fully-allocated cost
basis. We rely on financial support from
our membership dues and from voluntary
donations to help moderate what we
would otherwise have to charge members
whose children are enrolled in those
programs.
With 64% of revenues devoted to
personnel costs, where does the balance
of membership dues go? About 7% is used
to pay the interest on our mortgage loans,
and another 6% to reduce those loans
by principal amortization; 15% is needed
for direct program expenses unrelated
to personnel, and about 8% for general
operating expenses. Considering that
Beth El occupies a nearly 30,000-squarefoot building through which literally
hundreds of people pass almost every day
of the week, these non-personnel-related
expenses are modest indeed.
So, I suggest to you that the question
to ask is not, “Why does it cost so much
to be a member of Beth El?” but rather,
“How can the dues and fees I pay possibly
cover the cost of all of the many religious,
educational and social programs offered
at Beth El — the high-quality clergy,
educational and professional staff to run
those programs and the beautiful facility
to house those programs?”
L’shalom.
added. The then-program director of UC
Berkeley Hillel, Josh Miller, taught Rabbi
Stern how to play guitar, so that she could
lead services in the Reform minyan there.
She has always been interested in music;
in fact, she sang in choruses and in an
a capella group throughout high school
and at UC Berkeley. She also worked as a
song leader at Camp Kee Tov during the
summers of 2000 and 2001.
Rabbi Stern did not always know that
she wanted to become a rabbi, although
she said she was always the most
interested of her immediate family —
which was not particularly religious — in
Jewish ritual. While at UC Berkeley, Rabbi
Stern chose a major in psychology with a
minor in anthropology because, although
she did not then know what she wanted to
do professionally, she knew she “wanted
to do something with people.”
At the time of her graduation, Rabbi
Stern thought she might want to be a
lawyer. She explored her options first
through career counseling, then did
informational interviews with attorneys that
she or her family knew in order to find out
more about the practice of law. She also
worked in a law firm as a case clerk. “The
attorneys always asked me, ‘are you sure
you want to do this? You have to be really
sure’,” which gave her pause, she said.
As part of the career counseling
process, Rabbi Stern took a battery of
interest tests and worked with a career
counselor who was not Jewish and was
“very objective,” who had a big impact on
her. An interest in religious life came out
of those tests and, while she was a song
leader in a number of Jewish communities,
she had the opportunity to observe and
talk with different rabbis at their work.
She figured out that she wanted to “work
cooperatively with people a majority of
the time and not to be in conflict [such as
in the practice of law].”
When asked, these rabbis uniformly
said that they loved what they did, even
though they admitted that there were
numerous time and boundary challenges.
The rabbis uniformly encouraged Rabbi
Stern to consider studying for the
rabbinate. We’re glad they did!
Please join me in welcoming Rabbi
Stern to her new post at Congregation
Beth El.
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 17
Calendar
J u n e 2014 · S ivan –Tam m uz 5774
S u n d ay
1
8
M o n d ay
T u es d ay
W e d nes d ay
T h u rs d ay
F r i d ay
S At u r d ay
2
3
4
5
6
7
9:00 am BENS
Parents Café
2:00 pm Library
Committee
2:30 pm Life Stories
3:30 pm BENS Closes
7:00 pm Community
Tikkun Leyl Shavuot
@ JCC
Shavuot
Office & BENS
CLOSED
7:00 pm Shavuot
Yizkor Service
7:00 pm Israel
Committee
7:45 pm Chorus
Rehearsal
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
6:15 pm Shabbat
Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Halle Steckel
bat mitzvah
5:00 pm Tisch
(offsite)
9
10
11
12
13
14
7:00 pm Lehrhaus’
“Heschel’s Play List”
Class
7:30 pm Ritual
Committee
12:00 pm BENS
Siyum (Culmination)
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
Shabbat Yafe:
5:00 pm
Tot Shabbat
5:30 pm
Potluck Dinner
6:15 pm Communitywide Service
7:00 pm
Oneg & Activity
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Aidan Sloan
Mark bar mitzvah
19
20
21
7:00 pm Lehrhaus’
“Heschel’s Play List”
Class
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
6:15 pm Yismechu
Shabbat Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Haley Ross
bat mitzvah
8:00 pm Young
Men’s Poker Night
26
27
28
7:00 pm Lehrhaus’
“Heschel’s Play List”
Class
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
5:30 pm Chardonnay
Shabbat
6:15 pm Pride
Shabbat Service
7:15 pm Pride-B-Q
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Sonya Love
bat mitzvah
7:30 pm Beth El
Kevah Group
7:30 pm Executive
Committee
15
16
17
Father’s Day
2:00 pm Homeless
Meal: Medical Clinic
3:00 pm Leaders
Forum: Melissa
Breach
5:00 pm Homeless
Meal
2:00 pm Library
Committee
7:00 pm Program
Council
22
23
24
1:00 pm
Men’s Club:
Day at the A’s
3:00 pm Camp Kee
Tov Orientation:
Session I
CKT & BENS Camp:
Session I Begins
2:00 pm Library
Committee
7:00 pm Board of
Directors
29
30
SF Pride Parade
2:00 pm Library
Committee
18
25
LGBTQ Pride Shabbat — June 27, 6:15–8:30 pm
Celebrate summer & LGBTQ Freedom and Pride during our festive Shabbat evening!
Come at 5:30 pm for the first of our seasonal Chardonnay Shabbats to enjoy a
glass of wine or juice, refreshments and schmoozing. Our 6:15 pm Shabbat evening
service will be a festive celebration with special readings and music in honor of
LGBTQ Freedom and Pride. Then, at 7:30 pm the whole congregation is invited to
enjoy our annual Pride-B-Q, serving kosher and veggie barbeque foods during our
picnic supper under the Oak Trees. Everyone is welcome!
18 · T h e B ui l d e r · J u n e /J u ly 2 0 1 4
Young Men’s Poker
Night June 21
Join Beth El men under 50 for a poker
gaming night at Beth El on Saturday,
June 21, starting at 8:00 pm. There
will be music, food and drinks available
to keep the players happy and betting.
If interested, RSVP to Lee Horowitz by
June 18 at leejhorowitz@gemail.com.
The group organizing this event
also includes Mike Fogelman, Seth
Holcombe, Ted Obbard, Matt Rosen
and Brian Wise.
Calendar
J u ly 2014 · Tam m uz–Av 5774
S u n d ay
M o n d ay
T u es d ay
1
6
7
8
W e d nes d ay
2
9
T h u rs d ay
14
10:00 am Brunch
with Rabbi Stern
(see Profile on pg. 3)
2:00 pm Library
Committee
20
21
2:00 pm Homeless
Meal: Medical Clinic
5:00 pm Homeless
Meal
2:00 pm Library
Committee
27
28
3:00 pm Camp Kee
Tov Orientation,
Session II
Camp Kee Tov &
BENS Camp: Session
II Begins
2:00 pm Library
Committee
Summer’s here:
Chardonnay
Shabbats Start Soon
Save these dates for our annual
Beth El summertime tradition —
Chardonnay Shabbats: June 27,
July 25 and August 29. Starting
at 5:30 pm, these wine or nonalcoholic offerings with snacks
provide a way to socialize with
other members before the Friday
evening service begins.
15
22
29
16
23
30
S At u r d ay
3
4
5
7:00 pm Israel
Committee
Independence Day
Office, BENS & Camp
Kee Tov CLOSED
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
6:15 pm Shabbat
Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Anna
Portnoy bat mitzvah
10
11
12
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
6:15 pm Shabbat
Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service: Ty Wenrick
bar mitzvah
18
19
Camp Kee Tov &
BENS Camp: End of
Session I
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
6:15 pm Yismechu
Shabbat Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service
25
26
5:00 pm Talmud
Class
5:30 pm Chardonnay
Shabbat
6:15 pm Shabbat
Service
8:30 am Early Minyan
9:15 am Torah Study
10:15 am Shabbat
Service
2:00 pm Library
Committee
2:30 pm Life Stories
13
F r i d ay
17
24
31
Want to See More Builder Covers Printed in Color?
Did you like the last two issues of The Builder’s cover printed in color? Many feel that it
gave our synagogue magazine an especially attractive and professional look.
The current budget does not allow for the cover to be printed in color, so we need to
rely on donations to keep the color coming. Jeff Seideman and Elisabeth Wechsler donated
the extra $250 to print over 600 copies of the April-May issue of The Builder’s cover in color.
Dan and Robinn Magid have generously offered to cover the additional cost for the JuneJuly issue. And Jerry Iserson is donating the extra $250 for the August-September issue.
Will you step forward and write a tax-deductible check to Congregation Beth El for
$250, so more of the magazine’s covers can be printed in color? Just write “The Builder
cover” in the memo line of your check and send it to Norm Frankel, CBE, 1301 Oxford St.,
Berkeley, CA 94709-1424.
We thank you for your donation. Your support will be acknowledged in future issues.
co n g r e g at i o n be t h e l · bet h elberkele y. org · 19
congregation beth el
1301 Oxford Street
Berkeley, CA 94709–1424
From the Gift Shop
by Odette Blachman and Robinn Magid
In summer, our building echoes with the joyous sounds
of Kee Tov campers. The main office cedes its space to the camp office
and moves down the hall. Nevertheless, the Gift Shop hours remain the
same: Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Our capable
office staff can assist customers when a volunteer is not available.
Many celebrations take place in June: graduations, confirmations,
weddings, showers, teacher appreciation, b’nei mitzvah and birthdays,
too! We can suggest appropriate gifts for those occasions, from small
mementoes to more substantial selections. Besides ritual objects,
our home decor, beautiful jewelry and popular Ahava body and face
lotions are all reasons to shop with us!
Our newest Fair Trade shipments were unfortunately delayed for
various reasons but are now available, and we are excited to offer the
variety and good design at affordable prices. Visit our shop and explore
our displays. We think you will enjoy shopping at the Beth El Gift Shop,
and you will be doing a mitzvah in supporting the congregation!
If you have questions or want to make an appointment, contact
Odette Blachman at oblachman@sbcglobal.net.
Have a nice summer and come see us!
Nonprofit Org
US Postage
Paid
Berkeley CA
Permit #207