For 12-year-old twin brothers Jack and Sam Reeves, coming of age in their Jewish tradition has a profound meaning. On Nov. 30, just weeks after turning 13, they will observe their B’nai Mitzvah — a moment that symbolizes crossing the threshold of boyhood and becoming accountable for their own actions.

But the Reeves brothers will celebrate another milestone at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah come the end of November: growing from a very shaky beginning into thriving young men.

In celebration of their B’nai Mitzvah, and as a way to honor those who helped them get past that shaky beginning, the boys chose to create a playroom at Overland Park Regional Medical Center for their mitzvah project. The Sam and Jack Reeves Play Therapy Room opened Sept. 29.

The NICU

Jack and Sam Reeves of Leawood weighed a combined 3 pounds 12 ounces when they were born on Nov. 5, 2000, and spent the first 79 days of their tentative lives in the Overland Park Regional Medical Center NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). The boys’ mother, Lisa Reeves, recalls watching her tiny, fragile sons in their incubators with husband Matthew, wondering if they would each survive the years to become a Bar Mitzvah.

“Would they walk or talk, what would their quality of life be,” says Lisa, a school psychologist in the Blue Valley School District. “There were more questions than answers for a long time.”

Lisa went into pre-term labor week 25 of her pregnancy and on Halloween 2000 delivered the boys at 26 weeks. She   remained   in   the  hospital  for a week following Jack and Sam’s birth. When Lisa was discharged and ordered to go home and rest to regain strength, she and husband Matt took the worst car ride of their lives.

“On the way home we talked about being scared and not knowing what to expect,” says Lisa. “We were shell-shocked and shaken but prepared to take Jack and Sam’s progress one day at a time, one step at a time. Although we were emotional because our newborn sons weren’t with us, we knew the boys were in the best possible hands.”

Some days during Jack and Sam’s wobbly journey to self-sufficiency the Overland Park Regional Medical Center NICU nurses reported to the anxious couple that the brothers took one step forward and two steps backward.

On other days there were monumental victories, like when Jack and Sam started inching their way up on the weight scale.

Requirements for the boys’ homecoming included being able to breathe on their own; to take food by mouth rather than via a feeding tube; and to maintain a consistent body temperature. It was a joyous occasion when on Jan. 23, 2001, at 3 months old, Jack, who weighed 4 pounds, 15 ounces and Sam, at 5 pounds, 6 ounces, were approved by neonatologists to go home.

“They were huge compared to their auspicious beginnings, but pretty tiny for almost 3 months old,” says Lisa. “They came home on supplemental oxygen with apnea monitors, but they came home,” says Lisa. “At last we were a united family.”

Choosing a mitzvah

Fast forward to 2013 when Jack and Sam, now middle school students and brothers to sister Abby, 7, began planning the community service portion of their B’nai Mitzvah. Jack, who is hearing impaired, loves music and drama; Sam, who has cerebral palsy, is into sports. Finding common ground for a collaborative project posed a bit of a challenge for two boys with passionate opinions.

“The project needed to represent something that impacted their lives,” says Lisa. “One day during a family brainstorm session we talked about the Overland Park Regional Medical Center NICU. That resonated with Jack and Sam, who said they wouldn’t be here if it hadn’t been for those doctors and nurses.”

Both boys, the grandsons of B’nai Jehudah members, Sheryl and Michael Porter and Marian and Charles Reeves and the great-grandsons of Ruth and Harry Kreiter of Chicago, felt this project was important.

“I feel really good that we could do something to help the NICU. If it wasn’t for them, we wouldn’t be alive today. Helping them start the playroom helps us show them how much we appreciate all they did for us,” Sam said.

Jack added, “It is important to our family to do what we can to make the world a better place. It just made sense to us to do our B’nai Mitzvah project for the NICU because they did so much for our family. It feels good to give something back to them.”

So Lisa got the ball rolling by calling Elaine Riordan, a social worker at the Overland Park Regional Medical Center NICU, to discuss the idea of outfitting a playroom.

“Elaine was there in 2000 when the boys were born,” says Lisa. “In fact, I discovered many of the same nurses and doctors were at the NICU.”

Elaine receives updates from many NICU parents on their babies.

“Every year hundreds of little miracles leave the NICU and go home to grow and become the persons they were meant to be,” she says. “All NICU staff members love to get holiday cards or Facebook posts from our graduates. Anyone will tell you, it is very heartwarming to see babies — and their families — flourish.”

Like many other parents, Lisa and Matt proudly sent updates on Jack and Sam to the NICU. Elaine wasn’t surprised when she received a call from the Reeves about the boys’ philanthropic project.

“To me, it’s part of the miracle,” says Elaine. “The twins’ efforts will provide a play therapy room for older babies and developmental equipment and toys for preemies. And probably most importantly, their story will provide inspiration for hundreds of parents that sit at the bedside of their babies, hoping and praying for their own little miracles.”

Project Reeves-NICU was launched in earnest. NICU occupational therapists briefed the family and drafted a wish list of items for the room. The boys appealed to family and friends for support and donations started appearing daily in the Reeves’ mailbox.

Cash in hand, the boys piled into the family minivan for shopping excursions to purchase a squishy floor mat, rolling shelves, crib and wall mirrors, bouncy chairs and other equipment.

The initial wish list was satisfied, more money was raised and the boys continued checking things off a second list. In early September the family gathered to assemble items in their basement for transport to the designated room at Overland Park Regional Medical Center.

“We’ve collected more than $3,000,” says Lisa. “We will continue to raise money and hope to help out NICU families through the Overland Park Regional Medical Center Circle of Hope Foundation to address ongoing needs.”

Since Chanukah and Thanksgiving won’t overlap again until the year 2070, you might consider celebrating them together this year — unless you’re around age 30 or younger, then you’ll likely have another chance.

But in honor of “Thanksgivukkah,” Creative Candles has produced its Harvest Candle Set for the first and second nights of Chanukah, which fall Wednesday, Nov. 27, and Thursday, Nov. 28. The five candles from the locally-owned Jewish company come in an array of harvest-inspired autumnal colors: terra cotta, moss green, gold, chocolate and café aulait.

You can purchase them online exclusively through The Jewish Museum in New York City. The set of five is $10. Just go to http://shop.thejewishmuseum.org/jmuseum/product.asp?s_id=0&prod_name=Hanukkah+on+Thanksgiving+Candles&pf_id=PAMDICHOJLEAMFMI&dept_id=3144#.UlbkYdKsjTo.

“They come packaged as a set of five in a tidy little tube that would make a great holiday or hostess gift,” said Maxandra Short of The Jewish Museum Shops. “The hand-dipped candles are virtually smokeless and dripless and made in the U.S.A. They’re really high end.”

Pamela Fleischer, who works with her husband Ken Weiner, owner of Creative Candles, said the idea for the Harvest Candle Set evolved while she was talking to one of their buyers. They agreed they had to come up with something for Thanksgiving.

“When the buyer saw some of the products with all the 54 colors we make, she said it would be great if we could get a harvest assortment,” Fleischer said. “She said wouldn’t it be fun just to package for the first and second nights of Chanukah. So right then we came up with the product. I just think it’s a fun thing for the holiday season.”

Creative Candles has been making Chanukah candles since at least 2006, Fleischer said — a year after Weiner purchased the then 45-year-old business. Originally sold only in ivory, Chanukah candles now come in silver, pearl and sapphire as well. They, too, are available only through The Jewish Museum.

Fleischer said Creative Candles and The Jewish Museum go back a long time.

“That was in place before my husband bought the business in 2005,” she said.

So if you want to do something special to combine Chanukah and Thanksgiving, the Harvest Candle Set is the perfect way to do that.

“They’re just a beautiful way to celebrate this sort of holiday without committing too much to an entire menorah,” said The Jewish Museum’s Short.

The 17th annual Chanukah Art Contest is open for entries. Deadline for entries is 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 18. The deadline is very early this year as the first night of Chanukah is Nov. 27, the night before Thanksgiving.

The contest is sponsored by Chabad House Center and The Jewish Chronicle. This year’s grand prize, provided by Chabad House, is an iPad mini.

The contest is open to all students in grades K-8. This year entrants will all be judged together in one level. One grand prize will be awarded. Two first prizes — gift cards to Target or Michael’s — will be awarded. This year the name of every child who enters the contest will be recognized in The Chronicle’s Chanukah edition.

Since its inception, the contest has attracted children form all corners of the Jewish community. Students must live in the greater Kansas City or surrounding areas (Lawrence, Topeka and St. Joseph) to be eligible. Photos of the winning pieces of art will be published on Thursday, Nov. 28, the second day of Chanukah.

Art projects must relate to the story or celebration of Chanukah. They may be either two- or three-dimensional (for example paint, drawing, craft or sculpture). Art must be original. Entries created from kits will be disqualified.

An iPad mini will be awarded to the creator of the most outstanding art project. Gift cards to Target and Michael’s will be awarded to the two first-place finishers. A student is not eligible to win the grand prize two consecutive years.

Entries must include the student’s name, grade, religious school name (if applicable), home address and the best telephone number to reach the student’s parent/s. Please put this information on a separate sheet of paper, attached to the entry. Students should not write their names on their entries as judges are not allowed to know the identities of the artists.

Entries will not be returned. Entries will be available for pickup until the end of the year at Chabad House.

Art projects may be dropped off now through Nov. 18 at Chabad House Center of Kansas City: 6201 Indian Creek Drive, Overland Park, KS 66211.

The decision of the judges (staff members of The Chronicle and Chabad House) shall be final.

For questions or more information, visit www.ChabadKC.org or contact the Chabad House, 913-649-4852 or .

A VISIT WITH THE POPE — Last spring Rabbi Herbert Mandl was supposed to go to the Vatican to do research in its library, an honor in itself. But his wife Barbara was injured in an accident on the first leg of the trip, forcing the trip to Rome to be postponed so she could heal. As they say everything happens for a reason and now that the trip has been re-scheduled — he leaves this week for three weeks in the holy city — he has learned he will get an opportunity to have a personal meeting with Pope Francis. He’s very excited, and we’ll tell you about his meeting with the pope and his research in November after he returns.

MORE PEW INFO — KU Hillel’s Facebook page alerted us to what the campus organization called, a “fantastic article about the future of Jewish life,” in USA Today, “Jewish campus groups optimistic despite statistics.” It was written by Allison Hammond, a junior at KU who went to Israel last year on KU Hillel’s Birthright trip. KU Hillel’s Evan Traylor is one of the students interviewed in the article. Check it out here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/10/13/jewish-students-pew-study/2975387/.

ON THE STAGE AGAIN — Ruth Bigus is on the stage again, this time performing “Forbidden Broadway: Greatest Hits,” with the group she helped form, Mid-Life Players. It’s a non-profit group that does musicals in concert, using performers age 35 and up. She said, “It gives us an outlet to perform shows we might not be cast in at our ‘mature” state! This show parodies all the wonderful Broadway musicals we enjoy — including my favorite ‘West Side Story!’ ” Shows are Oct. 18-19, Oct. 25-26 at the Alcott Arts Center in Kansas City, Kan. She’s in all but the show on Oct. 25.

ISRAEL-BASED TEVA ANNOUNCES LAYOFFS — JERUSALEM (JTA) — Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, headquartered in Israel, said it was laying off 5,000 employees.

The layoffs, which were announced Oct. 10, will take place at Teva sites worldwide and amount to 10 percent of the company’s workforce, according to the Israeli business daily Globes.

Hundreds of employees in Israel are expected to lose their jobs, though most of the layoffs will take place outside of Israel, Teva President and CEO Jeremy Levin told Globes.

Cutbacks and restructuring expected to take place through 2017 are expected to save the company $1.5 billion to $2 billion, half of it in 2014.

Levin told Globes that the cost-cutting plan was due to global challenges, not financial distress.

The local Teva office just moved into a beautiful new building at College and Nall in Overland Park.

TECHY WITH LOCAL TIES — Yeshivat Noam, a Jewish day school in Paramus, N.J., was recently awarded a $1 million dollar multi-year grant to create the school’s Educational Technology and Innovation Program. What makes that relevant to us is that Seth Dimbert, a former student at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy and a leader in the field of educational technology, innovation and 21st century learning, has been hired to lead the school in this new approach to learning. “We conducted a thorough search and all roads led to him,” said Rabbi Chaim Hagler, the school’s principal, in the New Jersey Jewish Standard.

Dimbert, who was also quoted in the Jewish Standard, said the program is still in the early stages but it will allow the introduction of new technology.

“Technology is the language our students speak, and utilizing this allows us to speak to them,” Dimbert said. His goal is to teach the students “the skills they will need to navigate a complicated world.”

Dimbert is the son of  Ellen and Ron Dimbert.

Last week a study came out noting that a growing proportion of Jews are unlikely to raise their children Jewish or connect with Jewish institutions. Congregation Beth Shalom, with a series of classes provided by the Jewish Outreach Institute, hopes to change that, at least a little.

The JOI mini courses are called Mother’s Circle and will be offered on Sunday afternoons from 1 to 3 p.m. three times this fall — Oct. 20, Nov .3 and Nov. 17. They will be taught by Annie Glickman, the regional director for The Florence Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning, A Project of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. This Jewish mother of three also happens to be the wife of Beth Shalom Rabbi David Glickman.

“Mother’s Circle provides the curriculum. I’m acting as the facilitator because it’s really a curriculum that lays out suggestions for questions, suggestions for study, suggestions for conversation and of course there is this ritual component where in any given class we’re bringing in ritual objects that you might see or experience in the home or in the synagogue. There’s a tactile component as well,” Glickman explained.

JOI’s Mothers Circle was originally established as an umbrella of free educational programs and resources for women of other religious backgrounds raising Jewish children within the context of intermarriage or a committed relationship. However the mini courses at Beth Shalom are open to any woman — non-Jewish, Jew by choice or born Jewish — who wants to become empowered and learn more about raising Jewish children.

The free mini courses provide an overview and guide to Jewish parenting. Through experiential education and a supportive environment, JOI explains participants will gain confidence through knowledge and establish key goals by addressing topics such as creating a Jewish home and Jewish life-cycle events.

Judy Jacks Berman, Beth Shalom’s director of early childhood education, said the Conservative congregation is offering the courses free to any woman in the community — members or non-members, affiliated and non-affiliated.

“We have an anonymous donor who believes in supporting us in outreach efforts to bring in interfaith families as well as families of all different backgrounds who are raising Jewish kids and want to be a part of the Jewish community,” said Berman, who serves as the program’s coordinator.

Beth Shalom offered a taste of Mother’s Circle just before the High Holidays.

“The women who came were very, very positive and interested in continuing to learn more together and now we want to get the word out that we will be having more classes and anyone is welcome to join in,” Glickman said.

Berman noted the target audience is early childhood parents.

“You don’t have to be an early childhood parent, you can be raising older children, too. But it seems that when people have children, that’s the age they start thinking about how they are going to raise them,” she noted.

Glickman and Berman made it clear that the mini courses will be taught in a non-judgmental manner.

“It’s very open. We certainly talk about ritual and practice but there is no obligation. There’s no pressure. It’s really just education, for women to be able to make choices and have more background so they can decide what they want to bring into their home and what they want to talk to their children about,” Glickman said.

“It’s a very non-judgmental environment, very open and any question is welcome. It’s an opportunity for women to fill in the gaps if they have heard about things or if they have questions about things,” she continued.

They expect to offer a hands-on learning component as well.

“Most likely we’ll have a cooking or baking component, so it won’t just be a discussion. It will be an opportunity to learn and dialogue together,” Glickman explained.

This is not the first time JOI’s Mother’s Circle classes have been offered here. They were offered in some combination by the Jewish Community Center and CAJE, the educational arm of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, from about 2003 to 2008 and taught by Tamara Schuster. It was funded by a variety of funds, foundations and individuals.

Glickman said when Mother’s Circle classes were offered here then, they were exclusively offered to women who were not Jewish.

“We’re still seeing a priority in reaching out to women who do not identify as Jewish and we are also seeing women who may have grown up Jewish or who may affiliate Jewish but need the same kind of outreach in order to strengthen their understanding of Judaism when they are faced with how they are going to raise their children. We’re just trying to find where women are and give them the tools to empower them in a non-judgmental and non-threatening way. Mother’s Circle has been terrific in providing the resources to do that and meet the needs of these parents,” Glickman said.

The first session on Oct. 20 will be about creating a Jewish home. Glickman said they will discuss such common vocabulary as mensch and mitzvah, learn a little about ritual objects found in a Jewish home such as a mezuzah, and talk about other things, including bedtime and Shabbat prayers.

The second session, set for Nov. 3, will focus on life-cycle events as well as Jewish education.

The theme of the third session Nov. 17 is Chanukah and the December dilemma.

“This highlights the December dilemma and juxtaposing Chanukah versus Christmas and how to balance that. We’ll discuss the challenges and some of the conversations we can have with our kids about what we see and what we experience,” Glickman said.

If the demand is there, more courses will be offered in the spring. As a woman with 30 years of experience as an educator in the Conservative movement, Berman is thrilled that Beth Shalom is making this opportunity available.

“In the old days the interfaith family only felt welcome at a Reform congregation. Times have really changed and the truth is that the Conservative movement and Conservative synagogues are reaching out to interfaith families because so many of the Jewish spouses grew up in a Conservative or an Orthodox home and they are much more comfortable in a Conservative synagogue,” she said.

“We want people to know that we are open and accepting and welcoming with wide-open arms the interfaith family and the family that is really searching for more meaning in their life.”

Berman added that Rabbi David Glickman, who came to Beth Shalom as its senior rabbi in the summer of 2012, “is very, very, very accepting at welcoming people wherever they are and helping them find meaning in the family life.”

Childcare will be available with advance reservations. To learn more or to sign-up, contact Berman at 913-647-7287 or .

Each season, Kansas City Symphony Music Director Michael Stern programs classical favorites as well as hidden gems of the repertoire. During the Oct. 25-27 concerts, the Symphony and guest pianist Alon Goldstein will treat audiences to one of these gems with a performance of Tchaikovsky’s “Second Piano Concerto.”

“We’re pleased to welcome virtuoso Alon Goldstein back to Kansas City,” Stern says. “His take on this second concerto by Tchaikovsky is a thrilling ride. While the work is played less often than the famous ‘First Piano Concerto,’ the second concerto is equal in lyrical vitality and power. I absolutely adore this piece, and I love doing it with him. So, I am happy that it is with this concerto that he is back with us for his first orchestral concert in Helzberg Hall.”

Goldstein, too, is pleased to return to Kansas City to share his interpretation of the Tchaikovsky, which he describes as a marvelous work. One highlight of the concerto for Goldstein is the slow movement because of the equal interplay of solo lines with the piano, violin and cello. He likens the movement to a sort of triple concerto.

“It’s an incredibly gorgeous movement with these incredible Tchaikovsky tunes,” he says. “It has this longing quality, melancholy, and love of the Motherland — this ever flowing, everlasting sense. You have this wonderful display of pianistic virtuosity in the outer movements, but at the same time, these other orchestral forces within the second, slow movement.”

The highly sought-after pianist is quite the globetrotter, frequenting concert halls and festival stages all across the nation and abroad. Just last season, he completed a 17-concert Latin American tour with the Israel Chamber Orchestra, performing in Argentina, Columbia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay. The collaboration was so well received they earned a return tour for the 2015-16 season. Other season highlights included a debut with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra as well as the Tokyo Quartet on its final tour. This season he has already performed in Germany, Israel and various locations across the U.S. Yet even with his extensive touring and performances with elite international ensembles, Goldstein agrees that the Kansas City community is lucky to have such a vibrant and successful symphony orchestra.

“The audience in Kansas City is an audience that is exposed to such high level music and so much music as well,” he says.

Not only is Goldstein an award-winning pianist, taking home top prizes from numerous prestigious competitions in the United States and Israel over the years, but also is an acclaimed recording artist. The Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., chose a live recording of one of his recitals there for its first album release. He has recorded solo recital programs through the Jerusalem Music Center “Mishkenot Sha’ananim” and the Israeli Music Institute featuring works by Israeli composers. In upcoming albums, Centaur Records will release a live recording of Goldstein performing Mendelssohn’s “Piano Concerto No. 1” and “Piano Concerto No. 2” with the Israel Chamber Orchestra and Yoav Talmi conducting.

“Making music with Alon Goldstein is a very easy and joyous experience,” Stern remarks. “I think it always enhances the experience, for us on stage and also for the audience, when performers are like-minded in their approach and their intent, and this is especially true with him, since it is always a treat to collaborate with close friends. Alon, by virtue of his wonderful training — he is ‘old school’ in the best sense of the word — has a special place for me. His intrinsic feeling for music and the textual intentions that the composer wrote in the score, his astonishing technical command of the piano and his natural communicativeness, make him a musician very much out of the ordinary.”

Goldstein owes his success as a pianist in part to the superb training Stern mentions. A graduate of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Goldstein studied with legendary pianist Leon Fleisher, who is also a part of the 2013-14 Kansas City Symphony season lineup. Fleisher will perform the iconic “Piano Concerto for the Left Hand” by Maurice Ravel Feb. 7-9.

As for the three-concert series on Oct. 25-27, the Symphony will open with “Les Préludes, Symphonic Poem No. 3” by Romantic-era Hungarian composer Franz Liszt, then follow with “Concerto for Orchestra No. 2” by Pulitzer prize-winning and contemporary composer Steven Stucky who is from Hutchison, Kan., and end with Goldstein’s performance. Tickets are available through the Symphony Box Office at 816-471-0400, or online at www.kcsymphony.org. Tickets start at $23. Group and senior discounts are available. Students 25 and younger with a valid I.D. may purchase tickets for $10, based on availability. The Symphony performs at Helzberg Hall in the Kauffman Performing Arts Center, located at 1601 Broadway, Kansas City, Mo. Garage and street parking information can be found online at the Symphony’s website.

The 15th annual Kansas City Jewish Film Festival kicks off at the Jewish Community Center in the White Theatre on Saturday night, Oct. 12. As usual, it features great films with a Jewish twist. The festival’s finale, “Dorfman in Love,” set for Sunday night Oct. 20, written by Wendy Kout and starring Sara Rue and Elliott Gould, may be the most lighthearted on this year’s agenda.

Rue plays Deb Dorfman, 27 and single, who lives in suburban Los Angeles with her depressed widowed father and works for her manic married brother. When Jay, her unrequited love, needs a cat sitter for a week, Deb volunteers. Bad news: Jay just moved into a downtown L.A. loft and it’s a total mess. Good news: this gives Deb one week to transform the chaos into the perfect home for Jay and win his heart. Over the course of one crazy week, Deb Dorfman discovers true love by having learned to love herself.

Krista Blackwood, the JCC’s director of cultural arts, calls the movie “a feel-good, laugh-out-loud romantic comedy.”

“You’ll find yourself rooting for Deb Dorfman, played by Sara Rue (best known from the sitcom ‘Less Than Perfect’ and the comedy-drama ‘Popular’), to spread her wings and find love. Rue’s deadpan comic flair brings extra charm and joy to what could have been a tired rom-com formula. And Elliot Gould is perfectly cast as Deb’s kvetching dad,” Blackwood said.

Writer Kout is best known for her work in television. She created and was the executive producer on the hit ABC show “Anything But Love,” starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Richard Lewis. She also wrote for or developed projects for Paul Reiser, Jane Fonda, Robin Williams, ABC, CBS, NBC and Lifetime Television.

She has also written many feature scripts, but none of her film projects before “Dorfman in Love” were ever produced. Recently she’s been concentrating on writing plays. Her first play, “Don’t Blame Me, I Voted for Helen Gahagan Douglas,” co-written with Michele Willens, was a 2006 O’Neill Conference Finalist and was nominated for the Weissberger Award. Her second play, “Naked in Encino,” premiered in November 2012 in Denver and won four Marlowe Awards.

Kout describes the opportunity to write “Dorfman in Love,” as beshert. It all started with a visit to downtown Los Angeles, a spot she wasn’t all too familiar with, and a chance meeting with old friend and producer Len Hill.

Hill is now a real estate developer who owns a lot of downtown property and he invited Kout to see some of his properties. The tour is something she now says changed her life. It was while she was standing on the rooftop of one of his buildings that she was inspired to write this screenplay because she was moved by his passion.

“As a writer, we’re always attuned to themes and characters and ideas and I started feeling something. I realized that I was looking at my friend who had repurposed his life and he was sharing it with me, who had repurposed her life from being a screenwriter to a playwright, and I was staring at our city, which was in the process of being repurposed.

“I said Len, I’ve just got to tell you this area is such a rich arena for a film. It’s not just about repurposing our cities and our buildings. We have the capacity as human beings to be repurposed. And he looked at me and he said, ‘You write it and I’ll produce it.’ That’s what we did.”

She asked for, and was given, the unusual freedom to find her voice during the process. She suggested to Hill that she write a screenplay and if he liked it, he could produce it. If not, she would move on.

She’s thrilled she got the freedom to write Jewish characters.

“I’m Jewish and I write Jewish characters and I’m actually kind of proud of that and I didn’t have to change that,” she said. “You’ll hear Yiddish in this film and you’ll say ‘Oh my God I’m actually hearing Yiddish in an American movie.’ ”

Rated PG13, the movie was theatrically released this past March after a successful run in film festivals. It won Best Feature in the Miami Jewish Film Festival (2012), Marbella International Film Festival (2012) and Hollywood Film Festival (2011) and Best Comedy in the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival (2012).

“We have so loved the festival process and we would not have had theatrical distribution had we not been discovered by festivals and supported by them, specifically Jewish festivals all over the world,” she said.

If you miss it at the local Jewish Film Festival, it is available On Demand on most cable networks and on DVD through Amazon.com.

It’s gotten rave reviews as well. Alanna Berman of the San Diego Jewish Journal, noted that the film is much more than a love letter to Los Angeles.

“As much a Jewish comedy as a romantic one, the film lightheartedly explores how a change in scenery can quite literally change everything. It’s no wonder that ‘Dorfman’ won Best Comedy at the Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival last year,” Berman wrote.

Kout hopes “Dorfman” draws a big crowd here.

“The people who attend film festivals are very important to independent filmmakers,” she said. “We all want them to feel our gratitude about seeing these films and attending these festivals because as our initial audience they help expand our audience with their support. Part of what has happened with our little movie is people like it and when they like it they share it on Facebook and in emails. That’s how we became known to distributers and also continue to be known in the world. If you go Amazon.com you’ll see 53 reviews of the movie and almost all of them are raves and those are just people who just found it,” she said.

“Even though I may not be there to say this, I say thank you to the audience and all the audiences for all the films at the Kansas City Jewish Film Festival.”

Bob Woodward, renowned investigative journalist and author, will be the featured speaker at Village Shalom’s Ages of Excellence Celebration at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, at the Overland Park Convention Center.

Community leaders Pella Fingersh and James Klein are co-chairing the evening, which includes an elegant buffet dinner beginning at 6 p.m. for event sponsors, and a champagne dessert reception following Woodward’s presentation.

Proceeds from the Ages of Excellence Celebration help to provide financial assistance to senior adults who rely on Village Shalom for vital programs and services.

Woodward has worked as a reporter for The Washington Post since 1971, and is currently an associate editor of the daily newspaper. In 1972, as a young reporter for The Post, Woodward was teamed with Carl Bernstein; the duo was responsible for much of the original news reporting on the Watergate scandal in the 1970s that led to numerous government investigations and the eventual resignation of President Richard Nixon. The Post won the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of Watergate.

In addition, Woodward was the main reporter for The Post’s coverage of the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He was awarded the National Affairs Pulitzer Prize in 2002. He has won nearly every American journalism award, including the Gerald R. Ford Prize for Distinguished Reporting on the Presidency in 2003.

The Weekly Standard called Woodward “the best pure reporter of his generation, perhaps ever.”

Woodward is a prolific author with 17 non-fiction books in the last 40 years that have been national bestsellers, with 12 rising to No. 1 — more than any other contemporary non-fiction author. Woodward’s latest publication, “The Price of Politics,” published in 2012, examines recent efforts by President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress to restore the American economy.

“This is a unique opportunity to learn about modern American history from a preeminent journalist who not only documented it, but helped to influence its course,” said Pella Fingersh. “It will be an exceptional evening for the entire community.”

At the event, Woodward will participate in a unique “Conversation on the Couch” with esteemed local journalists Micheal Mahoney of KMBC-TV Channel 9 and Steve Kraske, host of KCUR’s “Up to Date” radio program and a columnist for the Kansas City Star. Woodward will also sign books following the presentation.

For more information about the Village Shalom Ages of Excellence Celebration, contact Sally Beyers, director of development, at 913-266-8412 or .

HOBBY LOBBY UPDATE — We reported last week that the Hobby Lobby craft store chain wasn’t carrying Chanukah merchandise in its new New Jersey store located in a heavily populated Jewish area. Comments from a store employee stating that “We don’t cater to you people,” ended up making headlines first on a Facebook blog and eventually in stories published by such mainstream news outlets as CNN, USA Today, Huffington Post and the Washington Post. Here is  the latest update  from our own news partner, JTA:

Hobby Lobby president says chain will carry Chanukah items (JTA) — The president of Hobby Lobby said the Oklahoma-based chain will carry Chanukah items in its stores near areas with large Jewish populations.

Steve Green in an interview with The Associated Press published Saturday, Oct. 5, said the items will be in his crafts stores in New York and New Jersey by November.

On Oct. 4, Green called blogger Ken Berwitz, who started the anti-Hobby Lobby backlash with a post last week. The two spoke for about 15 minutes, according to the AP, and Berwitz said the conversation was “pleasant” and the situation should be “diffused.”

Berwitz said in the post that he would never visit the retailer again after being told “We don’t cater to you people here” during a call to a New Jersey Hobby Lobby store in which he inquired whether it would be carrying Chanukah items.

In a statement published Oct. 3 on the ADL’s website, Green apologized for the alleged remark and indicated that his company has “deep respect for the Jewish faith.” The statement made clear that the owners “do not tolerate discrimination at the company or our stores.”

The ADL also issued a statement saying that the organization “has no reason to believe that Hobby Lobby has refused to stock Chanukah items because of hostility to Jews or anti-Semitism.”

“A store choosing not to carry Chanukah items does not violate anyone’s rights,” the organization added.

ATRIUMS MINYANS — This week, Rabbi Scott White of Congregation Ohev Sholom and Rabbi Doug Alpert of Congregation Kol Ami began offering a morning minyan once a week at the Atriums. It will take place at 7 a.m. every Wednesday. In his weekly message to members, Rabbi White said he and Rabbi Alpert “are delighted to host a traditional prayer service there … The service is open to all comers.” He noted that Ohev’s regular morning minyan will be held per usual on all weekday mornings, including Wednesday.

HBHA BLOOD DRIVE — If you’re in the mood to perform a mitzvah and save a life, stop by the Jewish Community Campus tomorrow, Friday, Oct. 10, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and give blood. The Community Blood Center needs to collect 580 units of blood daily to meet the needs of area hospital patients. For more information contact HBHA Health Coordinator Elisa Pener at 913-327-8189.

AUTHOR APPEARANCE — Kansas City native Chip Fleisher owns Steerforth Press, a small publishing company in New Hampshire, and he thinks its newest book will be of interest to members of the Jewish community. He is referring to “The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard,” written by Stephen Jimenez. The author will appear in an event hosted by Rainy Day Books at Unity Temple on the Plaza next Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m. This month marks the 15th anniversary of the murder and Jimenez, an investigative journalist, unravels a tragic story involving one of the most serious problems that has faced the American heartland. The book relies on hundreds of hours of interviews with more than 100 subjects in 20 states, including the men convicted of killing Shepard — Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson. Jimenez first reported some of his material as the co-producer of an hour-long story on ABC News “20/20” in 2004. He has spent the last nine years on further investigation, bringing forth new sources and explanations as to why this story has not been told. People Magazine has called it “A gripping read.” The Jewish Daily Forward has already run a review filled with high praise under the headline “What If Matthew Shepard’s Murder Wasn’t an Anti-Gay Hate Crime?” You can read the full review at http://forward.com/articles/183494/what-if-matthew-shepards-murder-wasnt-an-anti-gay/?p=all. To RSVP or for more information, contact Rainy Day Books at 913-384-3126 or visit www.rainydaybooks.com.

Writing in the Torah is considered the 613th mitzvah and final commandment (Deuteronomy 31:19). To commemorate its 25th anniversary, and to give its members the opportunity to fulfill this commandment, Congregation Beth Torah will write its own Torah. The project, “Renewing Our Promise Write Here, Right now — Together!” was launched on the first night of Sukkot. Members of the congregation will gather on Sunday morning, Oct. 6, as the scribe, Rabbi Moshe Druin, dips his quill into the ink and writes the first letter of Beresheet, “In the Beginning.” The Torah will be completed on Sunday, June 8, 2014.

“As each letter is essential to a Torah, anyone who helps write a letter, or contributes to its writing, is considered to have written a Torah,” said Beth Torah President Michelle Cole.

The Torah writing project is being organized by Samantha Hammontree with assistance from committee chairs Teresa Hellman (ceremonies), Frank and Robin Sterneck (fundraising), Miki Herman and Eileen Kershenbaum (education), Sandi Cantor (marketing) and Linda Zappulla and Julie Chesis (Torah writing experience). Hammontree said Beth Torah hired Sofer on Site to actually write the Torah. Rabbi Moshe Gruin, or one of his colleagues, will come to Beth Torah and conduct eight Torah-writing sessions. Because there are 304,805 letters in the Torah, not all of it will be written on site at the Reform congregation.

Rabbi Druin said scribes have been writing Torahs for more than 2,000 years and in many cases, congregations have commissioned Torahs and simply given the honor of writing a few letters to wealthy or important congregants. However, that’s not how Beth Torah is doing it.

“What we’re doing is going back to the tradition that was done over 2,000 years ago. When scribes would write a Torah they would go with the skins of an animal to a town and they would write the Torah with every family. Every person would have a chance to participate in the physical writing of a letter,” the scribe said.

While Rabbi Gruin helps a person write his letter by giving the person the chance to help hold the quill, at the same time he will give families the opportunity to learn and understand what they are writing.

“These letters have woven into them incredible messages of wonder and have inspired us for the past 2,000 years. The idea is to get every family connected not only through the physical writing but ultimately connect spiritually with the letters that they are writing and the meaning of it. At the end it will be a scroll that everyone will be emotionally attached to,” said Rabbi Druin, who has been a scribe for 32 years. He expects to spend about 10 minutes with each family.

“He has this phenomenal ability to connect you to Torah,” said Hammontree, who added that Beth Torah will offer a variety of educational opportunities in connection with this project.

While most people only have one opportunity in their lifetimes to fulfill this 613th commandment, Rabbi Mark Levin actually participated in a Torah writing project at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah in the 1980s. He’s very excited about this project because it’s causing people to consider the Torah in ways they haven’t before.

“People are doing a lot of examining of Torah in a way that says what’s important about this to my life, and that’s been very heartening and very exciting,” Rabbi Levin said.

He said he hopes when people come to inscribe their letter in the Torah, they will be thinking about “what mitzvah is particularly important to me, what story or Parasha is particularly important to me.”

“Maybe it was important to a grandparent, maybe it’s something they’ve always kept with them, maybe there’s something in their lives or they say this is always something that I live by. It’s an interesting idea and I’m really looking forward to people thinking oh, you know I don’t necessarily consciously think about this but this has always been important to me,” Rabbi Levin continued.

Beth Torah has four Torahs now, not including the Holocaust Torah on display in the foyer that is on permanent loan from a synagogue in Britain. When the new Torah is complete it will become the congregation’s primary Torah.

Beth Torah’s leadership has made it clear that every single member of the congregation should have a chance to participate in this project, so no monetary value has been placed on the actual writing of a letter. An anonymous family has agreed to underwrite the cost of the project.

“We want everyone to be involved in the Torah writing project no matter what. We want them to have a piece of the Torah because this is a once-in-a-lifetime project,” Cole said.

Even though there is no official donation request, the brochure suggests dedication categories ranging from $36 for Friends of Torah all the way up to $36,000 and more.

“As a fundraiser this is very important. We have not done a major fundraiser in our congregation since the building fund was launched in 1994. In the Reform movement most synagogues do major fundraisers every five years,” Cole said. The amount the congregation hopes to raise has not been announced.

“The idea is that the experience will move you to a place where you want to donate. They don’t have to, but they’ll want to,” Hammontree added.

During Sunday’s opening ceremony, Rabbi Levin and Rabbi Rebecca Reice will scribe the opening letters along with Cole, the current president, and Eileen Garry, who is a past president and represents the founding members. In addition Kelly Kaplan, whose name was drawn on Erev Sukkot, will write a letter as the representative of the current members.

“On the last visit, June 8, all the parchment will have been sewn together and we will write the closing letters of the Torah. We will wrap it up in our wimple and we will dance and celebrate,” Hammontree noted.

Hammontree is amazed with the amount of excitement this project has generated as well as the number of people who have volunteered to help. She said it’s also bringing people together at a time when the congregation is in transition. Late last year Rabbi Levin announced that he will reduce his role at Congregation Beth Torah in the summer of 2014. An interim rabbi will begin serving the congregation at that time and a permanent rabbi will be hired, probably coming on board the summer of 2015.

“Beth Torah means house of Torah and this project forces us to come together and build community at a time when we need it most, which is figuring out who are we, what do we want to be and how are we going to get there,” Hammontree said. “If we reconnect with the roots of why Beth Torah was built, which is what this project essentially does, it reconnects each member, each family back to Beth Torah,” Hammontree said.

Cole agrees.

“Just like the name of this campaign, Renewing Our Promise, this project helps us plan for the future. By participating in this project, this makes all of our current members part of the future because this Torah will always be with us and this project will never happen again,” Cole said.