HOT TOPIC — Marvin Szneler, executive diretor of the JewishCommunity Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee reminded me this week that Orli Gil, The Consul General of Israel to the Midwest, will be here Monday, Aug. 29. Members of our community will have a chance to learn about a Palestinian request for statehood recognition to the U.N. Security Council at 7 p.m. that evening at the Jewish Community Campus. Her topic for the evening will be “Israel and the United Nations: Consequence of Unilateral Declaration of Independence.” She will answer questions following her presentation. Marvin said, “We all know our brothers and sisters in Israel have regularly faced many challlenges, and we support their quest for peace with her neighbors. Unfortunately, a unilateral declaration in the U.N. by the Palestinian Authority will not accomplish what necessary negotiations will accomplish. The Consul General’s visit with the community will assist all of us to have a better understanding of the many new challenges this could bring. We are also looking forward to the Israeli government’s perspective on the threats the changing leadership in the Middle East will bring to the region.” The event is open to the community at no charge. For more information, contact the JCRB at 913-327-8126.

JEWISH HERITAGE NIGHT — I hear many people in the Jewish community enjoyed Jewish Heritage Night at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park Sunday, Aug. 21, to see Sporting Kansas City defeat D.C. United 1-0.  I learned on Facebook that the  grilled kosher hot dogs were a big hit. Several local rabbis participated in a pre-game first kick and a bus load of BBYOers were among those in attendance. A portion of the proceeds from the group ticket sales is going to Sasone and the HBHA soccer program. Shown above enjoying the festivities and wearing Sporting KC tallit are BBYO Council Presidents Zachary Kaseff and Maddy Friedman.

SHOP FOR A CAUSE — Macy’s annual Shop for a Cause is Saturday, Aug. 27. One of the charities connected to this event is the Ambor Schanzer Fight Against Neuropathy. Pictured at left is Orven Schanzer, a Kansas City native. He is a former 20th Century Fox film and TV editor who now suffers from debilitating and crippling neuropathy. He helped promote this event by posing with actress and Marilyn Monroe impersonator Jodi Fleisher. His sister, the late Ruth Schanzer Gilman, who graduated from Kansas City’s Central High School, died from complications from neuropathy. It’s too late to purchase a shopping pass to benefit ASFAN, but donations to the organization will still help fund research. Donations can be mailed to ASFAN, 6720 Hill Park Dr., Unit 102, Los Angeles, CA 90068 or visit www.facebook.com/nervylisa (Lisa Gilman).

Ten years ago when Jay Lewis took over as executive director of KU Hillel, there were no more than a handful of Jewish students involved in the organization. Today it counts more than 250 students as active members and as many as 750 students were touched by the organization in one way or another during the last school year.

It’s estimated that approximately 1,800 Jewish students attend the University of Kansas. When the fall semester begins Monday, Aug. 22, they can expect another fun-filled year of programming inspired by Lewis’ desire to see KU Hillel continue to grow, thrive and continue to be one of the very best Hillels in the nation.

In an interview last week, Lewis said when he first joined KU Hillel, he wasn’t sure he was going to be there long. It was full of challenges that he and his staff took on immediately. Now he says he truly loves the job and hasn’t found another job that is as challenging and gives him more satisfaction.

This job gives Lewis a chance to blend two of his passions together. The first is his desire to help build a Jewish community and a future for the next generation of Jews. The second is his love for KU.

“As an alum I’m very passionate about the University of Kansas and I bleed crimson and blue. To be able to combine those two passions and be able to make a career out it is pretty awesome,” he said.

Lewis graduated from KU In 1993 and then earned a master’s degree in Jewish Communal Service from the Hornstein Program at Brandeis University. Prior to returning to KU, he was the assistant director of the Bureau of Jewish Education in Orange County, Calif. During his 10 years at KU Hillel, he has been recognized as KU’s Advisor of the Year and received Hillel’s prestigious Richard M. Joel Exemplar of Excellence Award. He commutes to Lawrence from Overland Park where he lives with his wife Kim and his two children.

Susie Greenberg, KU Hillel’s board president, said one reason the organization has become such a success in the last 10 years is Lewis’ leadership. In fact his vision has catapulted KU into becoming a top destination school for Jewish high school seniors.

“Jay is a very competent and charismatic leader, someone you want to hitch your wagon to. Over the past 10 years, his vision for KU Hillel combined with the growing demands of an increasing enrollment of Jewish students has developed into a brand of programming, engagement and tradition, which has become nationally recognized,” she said.

In the beginning

A lot has changed at KU Hillel since Lewis took charge. He said that change actually began before he was hired when the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City took KU Hillel under its wing. So a Kansas City-based board of directors was formed and more funding was also funneled to the organization through the Federation and the Jewish Community Foundation.

When he joined KU Hillel, Lewis said one of the first goals was to find out whether students at KU just weren’t serious about Jewish life or whether “the students at KU had never been given anything of quality to really engage them in Jewish life.”

Lewis said they quickly learned it was clearly the second hypothesis. To begin that engagement, the first thing staff focused on was Shabbat programming.

“Every strong Jewish community has Shabbat at the center of it and whatever way, shape or form that Shabbat is recognized or celebrated,” Lewis said.

When Lewis came on board during the summer of 2001, KU Hillel usually had two Shabbat programs each semester. By the end of his first year, the calendar included a weekly Shabbat dinner and service.

One of its most well known and popular programs, Rock Chalk Shabbat, was created in January 2003 as another way to get students to realize there had been a renaissance of Jewish life at KU.

“Our goal was to get 150 Jewish students to come together for a Shabbat dinner. We wanted to blow any preconceptions out of the water,” Lewis said.

For that first event, 165 students attended.

“That was really the symbolic turning point where students and potential students and parents and potential donors and community members really saw that there is potential for Jewish life at KU.”

Building membership

To increase participation, staff chose to focus its efforts on freshmen because they had no preconceived notions of KU Hillel.

“If we did a great job with freshmen for four straight years, we would be able to build our Jewish community,” he said. “We spent a disproportionate amount of time on staff and resources engaging freshmen in Jewish life.”

That strategy worked. But while building participation, Lewis also felt a student leadership structure needed to be developed to keep people interested and engaged.

“The big goal was by the end of the first year we wanted a number of students to feel ownership of the organization. We didn’t want to hear what Hillel needs to do is blank. We wanted to hear what we need to do is blank.”

New digs

Students were happily taking part in programs and the leadership structure had been built. Now KU Hillel needed a place to show it was a real organization. Its home in a “small, old, quaint house on Mississippi Street” needed to be upgraded.

“When I came, the organization functioned more like a small club. We were operating with a very small budget and there was no student leadership structure at all, so the house certainly met our needs at the time,” Lewis said.

In late 2009 KU Hillel moved into new quarters at 722 New Hampshire Street. Many of its programs are held there, including Shabbat services, dinners and erev Rosh Hashanah worship.

“About the maximum we can fit in here is about 100 people, but all of our furniture is on wheels so it is very multi-purpose,” he said. “It’s really become a great engagement tool and destination for Jewish students. The big programs — Bagels and Basketball and Rock Chalk Shabbat — those are done other places,” he said.

Besides having a more comfortable place for staff and volunteers to work and program space, the new offices help KU Hillel make a good impression on visitors.

“When high school students and their parents come through here looking at KU … and they see the space filled with students, they can tell we’re serious about Jewish life here,” Lewis said.

Continuing the momentum

Much of KU Hillel’s success over the last decade can be attributed to Lewis’ drive to always find “a smarter, more efficient way to accomplish our mission.”

“We’ve really created one of the most unique, innovative and most effective models for Jewish campus life in the country because we are constantly in that mode of enhancement and improvement,” he explained.

Over the years the staff has grown from three to five, and now includes a full-time rabbi and a staff member with a master’s degree in social work. Continued success also depends on finding the right mix of volunteers — including what Lewis calls “an amazing mix of parents, alumni and caring community members who truly believe that engaging 18- to 22-year-olds in Jewish life is vital to the future of the Jewish community.”

Lewis plans to work hard to continue maintaining the success KU Hillel has worked hard to achieve.

“We’ve grown very quickly and the budget has more than tripled than when I started. We want to make sure that we can continue to operate at this level and continue to grow to meet the needs of the Jewish students at KU,” Lewis said.

He believes KU Hillel can absolutely continue to grow.

“While we’re really proud of the number of students that we are reaching and the impact we are having on the students that we do reach, we’re still not anywhere close to reaching all of the Jewish students at KU and we really have to continue to strive to figure out how we can increase the breadth of the number of Jewish students we reach and also the depth of the impact we have on them. The stakes are just too high. If we don’t have this kind of impact on these students during these incredibly informative years, we’re not going to have a Jewish community in the future.”

The Jewish Communtiy Center will honor long-time volunteer Sally Slabotsky with its Community SuperStar award at the KC SuperStar competition on Sunday, Aug. 28, at Johnson County Community College.

Slabotsky has served as a leader at the Jewish Community Center for more than five decades, serving on virtually every committee the JCC has ever had. She is the second winner of the award. Last year it was presented to Ellen Kort, a former executive director of the JCC and current executive director of the Jewish Heritage Foundation.

“Sally has inspired other women and has set an example for all volunteers,” said Tammy Ruder, KC SuperStar’s executive producer. “She is always thinking about what is in the best interest of the Center and its members. She truly embraces the idea of giving back to her community.”

Slabotsky learned last winter that the JCC planned to honor her at this event during a lunch meeting with then-JCC President Bob Grant, Executive Director Jacob Schreiber and Kort.

“I was overcome with emotion. First I cried and then I was excited about it,” Slabotsky said last week.

She has been a member of the JCC all of her life. Now 82 years old, she first remembers taking part in JCC activities when she was 8. At that time she enrolled in the Jewish Folk Studies program at the JCC after she was not allowed to study at Talmud Torah because she was a girl.

“Five years later the Forward newspaper came and took a picture of the five graduates, and I was one,” Slabotsky said.

Slabotsky first joined the JCC board of directors in 1960, but prior to that she said she was very active when the JCC was located at 1600 Linwood.

“Mr. (Isadore) Bierfeld (then president of the JCC) told me at the time, ‘I’m so sorry. You’re doing such a good job, but you can never serve on the board because you’re a woman,’ ” she said. “Little did he know that eventually I would become president.”

Slabotsky is one of only four women who has served as a JCC board president. The first woman president was Evelyn Wasserstrom. Jeannette Wishna and Rhonda Eigenberg are the other two women who have held the position.

According to Slabotsky, the best way to describe the JCC is “perfection.”

“It is an umbrella institution that welcomes everyone. That I would say is a favorite thing for me due to the fact that you can find friends of a different faith and just a variety of things to do. Consequently it became a terrific spot for my children growing us as well as for my husband and myself for entertainment, recreation and physical activity,” she said.

She has friends and family coming in from Arizona, Colorado, California, Michigan and New York to help her celebrate this honor.

“It is so nice to be loved as well as remembered,” she said.

If there’s a common thread among the people and programs that will be honored at the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City’s 2011 Annual Meeting on Sept. 7 at Oakwood Country Club, it’s transformation.

Transformation at the board level will occur when, after two years, Bill Carr passes the president’s gavel to Miriam Scharf. Also included in the evening will be the formal election of a new slate of Federation officers and board members.

Jewish Federation incoming board officers are: Miriam Scharf, president; Bill Carr, immediate past president; Sarah Beren, secretary; Bari Freiden, vice president; David Gale, vice president; Ward A. Katz, vice president; Polly Kramer, vice president; Shanny Morgenstern, vice president; Steve Ruben, treasurer; and Patricia Werthan Uhlmann, vice president. Incoming board members are: Stacey Belzer, Lisa Bernard, Stanley J. Bushman, Seth Freiden, Paul Himmelstein, John Isenberg, Trudy Jacobson, Amanda K. Morgan, James M. Klein, Beth Kaplan Liss, Myra R. Litman, Linda Lyon, Karen D. Pack, Robert Palan, Amy Shapiro, Joshua Sosland and Ira Stolzer.

Carr will be recognized for his accomplishments, including the development of a new strategic plan and task forces on Financial Resource Development, Education and Identity, Engagement and Leadership, and Israel and Overseas. Scharf will build on the task forces’ work, while her commitment to engaging the next generation in philanthropic endeavors and doing more to welcome interfaith families promises to touch many lives.

Award-Winning Programs

Also touching and changing lives are the congregation and agency programs that will receive Program of the Year Awards at the Annual Meeting. This year’s winners are The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah’s Individualized Jewish Path and KU Hillel’s Israel Leadership Mission.

Individualized Jewish Path (IJP) invites members of the congregation to explore where they see themselves in their Jewish life and, through the process of sharing conversations, develop a personal program for Jewish growth.

“It is really less of a program and more of a congregational transformation,” says Amy Ravis Furey, Shared Vision/Individualized Jewish Path coordinator at B’nai Jehudah. “We call it our ‘Big Holy Awesome Goal’ or BHAG — that every member will create their own IJP and, in doing so, the individual, community and world will become better. We know that most congregants are traveling on their own journeys already — our work is to help them discover the resources to take that next step and connect them to a community where they can discover meaning and purpose.”

To date, more than 265 people have connected with IJP through one-on-one meetings or group workshops.

The KU Hillel Israel Leadership Mission is a 10-day Israel experience. Since 2007, 53 top student leaders have participated in the program and, upon their return, used what they learned on the trip to bring new ideas and initiatives to the Lawrence and Kansas City community.

Examples of programs created by mission alums include Israel Week, a video documenting their experience, Israel Shabbat, and Levaire, which is an eight-week program exploring the concept of “Complex Israel.”

“KU Hillel’s Israel Leadership Mission is in elite company,” said Malinda Kimmel, Hillel’s assistant director for Jewish student life.“Harvard is the only other Hillel in the country to offer such a high-level intensive Israel experience.”

Leaders and Educators

Winners of the Dan Fingersh Young Leadership Award and the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Religious Educator of the Year Award provide yet another reminder about how bright the future of our Jewish community is as the next generation takes over.

Neal Schwartz, who will receive the Dan Fingersh Award, considers himself a case study in Jewish transformation. In Shaker Heights where Schwartz grew up, his family celebrated Jewish holidays, but that was about it. A leadership development course he took at William Jewell College inspired him to start the Federation’s Emerging Jewish Leaders program, and he has also chaired the Jewish Federation’s Business & Professionals series. He and his wife, Dana, are also members of the Ben Gurion Society of young adults who support the Federation with annual gifts of $1,000 or more.

“There’s a model for success that for me includes leadership, ambition, honesty, reliability, resourcefulness and faith,” says Schwartz, who works for Cerner Corporation. “I feel I am more of these things because of my connection to Judaism and to the Federation.”

Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for Excellence in Jewish Education (selected locally by CAJE: The educational arm of the Jewish Federation) recipient Dayna Gershon has worked in Jewish education for 20 years, the past six of which have been spent at Congregation Beth Shalom, where she currently teaches fifth grade Hebrew School and is an assistant teacher in the pre-K classroom in Rose Family Early Childhood Education Center.

“Dayna’s love of the students is apparent as she leads them through the weekly Torah portion,” says Patti Kroll, school director. “When I teach these same students in seventh grade, I will often ask them where they learned a particular piece of information, and they happily respond, ‘from Morah Dayna.’ ”

“I do not feel like a complete person unless I am teaching,” says Gershon. “My favorite part of teaching is that amazing moment when the light bulb goes on and you see the excitement in a student’s eyes.”

Todd Stettner, executive director of the Federation, said the umbrella organization is fortunate and grateful to have board leaders like Bill Carr and Miriam Scharf, up and comers like Schwartz, congregation and agency programs like IJP and the Israel Leadership Mission, and educators like Gershon engaged in its mission to sustain and enhance Jewish life at home and around the world.

“To see them all recognized at the Annual Meeting instills confidence that the transformation of our Jewish community is in good hands,” he said.

The Jewish Federation’s 78th Annual Meeting is at 6:45 p.m. Sept. 7 at Oakwood Country Club, 9800 Grandview Road, Kansas City, Mo. The $15 couvert includes a Vaad-supervised dessert reception. The Annual Meeting is open to the community. RSVP by Aug. 31 at www.jewishkansascity.org, or contact Marjean Cox at 913-327-8103.

SARAH’S KEY — A few years ago my brother’s mother-in-law raved about a book called “Sarah’s Key.” Following her strong recommendation, my entire family read the book. She was right, the book was excellent. Now the book has been adapted into a movie. Last week I was lucky enough to score an invitaiton to a press screening for it and I asked my father to join me. Even though I am not a fan of subtitles, we both enjoyed the movie and thought it was true to the book. We each gave it two thumbs up. For more, see Keith “The Movie Guy” Cohen’s official review on Page 6.

POET WITH LOCAL TIES — Kansas City native Mike Gale recently published a poetry book called “Of Wisdom and Ignorance … and the Fine Line Between Them.” Gale is a Shawnee Mission South graduate who received his religious education at Congregation Beth Shalom who now lives in Seattle. The book can be purchased at Amazon.com. The website describes the book as funny, poignant and a bit too honest. “ ‘Of Wisdom and Ignorance’ provides an ironic look at our society, our hearts and lives whether we want to see it or not. Somewhere between ‘The Far Side’ and ‘Aesop’s Fables,’ the book’s poems and illustrations poke a little fun at our very human nature, and hopefully provide a few insights and answers along the way. It will make you think, make you laugh and maybe even shed a tear as you see some of your life played out in the words.” The writer is the son of Janet and Harold Price and Paul and Sandra Gale. I personally enjoyed the poem on religious freedom. Check it out to find your personal favorite!

SEARCHING FOR JEWISH PARTISANS — The New York Board of Rabbis has been asked to assist the Jewish Partisans Educational Foundation in identifying Jewish partisans. It is JPEF’s intention to pay tribute to these courageous individuals at a benefit in New York City on Nov. 7. These partisans resisted by fighting against the Nazis and their collaborators, destroying thousands of trains and convoys; most importantly, they saved thousands of lives. After the war, they had children and grandchildren — giving the world a living testament of those experiences. JPEF (http://www.jewishpartisans.org) is the only organization in the world solely focused on bringing the history and life lessons of the Jewish partisans to educational and cultural institutions across the globe. Every major Holocaust organization in the country relies on JPEF’s work. If you are aware of partisans and/or their families in your synagogue and/or community, please contact the NYBR office at or 212-983-3521, or JPEF executive director Mitchell Braff at or 415-563-2244.


JOPLIN SCHOOLS GET A BOOST WITH HELP FROM WESTERN EXTRALITE — Donated student desks and chairs arrived in Joplin, Mo., just in time for school thanks to Western Extralite Company, a full-service distributor of electrical and Datacomm products that arranged and paid for their delivery. The desks and chairs will be used by ninth- and 10th-grade students who will temporarily attend classes in the Memorial Education Center until their high school is rebuilt. The high school was one of six schools destroyed and three damaged in a May 22 tornado that tore through Joplin.
The donated desks and chairs were no longer needed by students at Leavenworth High School, thanks to the purchase of new equipment. Western Extralite covered the cost of delivering the surplus furniture to Joplin.
“We were pleased to be able to assist the Leavenworth School District in delivering surplus student desks and chairs to Joplin, where they are needed. By working together, we were able to help the families of Joplin who have lost so much,” said Western Extralite President Tom Isenberg.

Correction

Ohev Sholom Sisterhood Honey Cake Day is Thursday, Sept. 25, not Sept. 28 as published in last week’s paper.

In June the Jewish Community Center launched its new Jewish Life and Learning program by offering a taste of its fall programming. The new classes are now in place, a brochure is in the mail and fall programming will officially begin on Monday, Aug. 29. The brochure, “Jewish Life & Learning for the Curious Mind,” can also be accessed online at www.jcckc.org.

Jill Maidhof, the director of Jewish Life and Learning, explained that the change in name and the larger variety of class offerings is the result of a survey conducted by the JCC last spring.

“We sent a survey probing every aspect of what was then called the Department of Adult Jewish Learning to participants, faculty and other stakeholders, like funders. We carried on personal conversations with a variety of those people as well as thought leaders across the country and colleagues at different JCC’s,” she explained.

From the survey and conversations, the JCC decided to expand the scope of programming it offered beyond adult Jewish learning.

“In addition to formal classes, lectures and presentations people thought informal venues, recreational programming that focused on Jewish values and traditions, family programs, spirituality and personal development workshops, things like cooking, cultural arts emerged as a very important priority for folks.”

Besides enlarging the focus of its educational programming in a variety of ways, Maidhof pointed out the JCC has embraced a more collaborative approach to programming.

The first effort was to meet with representatives of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, which occurred early this year.

“Basically we said we are seeking the same ends, we are working with the same target audience, heck we are even in the same building. We could be far more than the sum of our parts and we have a great opportunity to work closer together,” Maidhof said.

Since the initial meeting Maidhof, Federation Associate Executive Director Alan Edelman and their staffs have begun to work together in co-promoting and planning and implementing programs.

Edelman explained that this collaborative concept, similar to the saying “it takes a village!” is happening in Jewish communities throughout North America.

“Jewish communities are coming to appreciate the value of collaboration as an effective means of engaging more members of the community along a lifetime continuum of Jewish living and learning experiences,” he said.

One of the reasons for this, he explains, is that at various stages of life, individuals may or may not be affiliated with a particular Jewish institution.

“Therefore, every Jewish organization, including the Jewish Federation, Jewish Community Center and congregations must offer a variety of activities that will create a net wide enough to catch every member of the community at one time or another. Hopefully, that initial activity will be meaningful enough to engage the person for the rest of their lives,” Edelman said.

“This new and evolving collaboration is our community’s attempt at bringing professional and volunteer leadership together to brainstorm ideas and implement programming.

We encourage members of the community to share their ideas for engaging more people in Jewish living and learning,” he added.

One of the first things the JCC did was invite the congregations, agencies and organizations in the community to submit their programs for publication in the brochure which has just been published. To be included a program needed to meet three criteria:

It had to be focused on Jewish content

It had to be open to the community without regard to membership or affiliation

It must take place between mid-August and December of this year.

Maidhof said that invitation resulted in a 33-page document “that really shows the breadth of what’s available in this city.”

The brochure is not meant to be the only resource for community programs. For instance some plans weren’t finalized before publication.

“We are strongly encouraging people to see it as a companion to Planit Jewish, the online Jewish calendar. But it’s a great example of reaching out and taking a step in the direction of more and more collaboration and better and more efficient use of community resources,” she said.

A couple of classes organized by the JCC will be held at sites other than the JCC this year. For example an Ayeka class will be held at Congregation Beth Torah. A cooking class is scheduled to be held at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah.

Maidhof is hopeful more and more collaboration will take place in the future.

“Right now we are in the stage of reaching out and looking at what’s possible,” Maidhof said.

Maidhof to lead JCC’s
Jewish Life and Learning program

After almost 25 years holding a variety of positions at the Jewish Community Center, Jill Maidhof has assumed the full-time position of director of Jewish Life and Learning.

Most recently she has served as the JCC’s associate executive director and served as interim director, along with Director of Finance Jim Sluyter, for an eighteen-month period before Jacob Schreiber joined the JCC in the fall of 2009.

Schreiber said what stands out about Maidhof is her love of Judaism and her passion for bringing its values, wisdom and sense of community to all people.

“That is what drives her. That is why she has served in just about every position there is in the JCC — because each one, when done correctly and with dedication, can positively impact the lives of so many,” he said.

In addition to her regular duties, Maidhof, who joined the JCC in October of 1986, had been serving as the interim director of Jewish Life and Learning since Jeff Goldenberg left the JCC in April. It was during that time that Maidhof decided she would once again enjoy a position that was more hands on and less administrative.

“I was reminded of how much I loved my years as a Jewish educator and the process of creating programs,” Maidhof said.

This new position allows Maidhof to return to a “long-time passion and leave a legacy of excellence in one focused area.”

“For many years, I had the privilege of learning first-hand about operations in many parts of the Center,” said Maidhof. “Now I’m excited to delve deeply into one area.”

Melton undergoes changes

Following an extensive study of adult educational programming at the Jewish Community Center undertaken last spring, the year one curriculum of the Florence Melton Adult

Mini School will be offered this fall in three 10-week units. In the past it has been offered as a year-long course. No changes are being made to the year two Melton curriculum this year.

Jill Maidhof, director of the JCC’s Jewish Life and Learning department, said the survey and one-on-one discussions with educators and students found that people unanimously believe that there is no better adult curriculum than Melton.

“It’s the best there is for the community setting,” she said.

However the survey did bring to light that on a local level repackaging Melton might better meet the needs of its target audience. One reason for that, Maidhof said, is people are becoming more resistant to making a commitment for an entire year.

“They may go out of town for several weeks at a time. It’s also a significant financial commitment,” she said.

The JCC worked with the international Melton faculty and will pilot the three, 10-week units this year. While the course has been designed by Rabbi Morey Schwartz, the curriculum developer for Melton, to stand alone Maidhof believes students will get the greatest benefit by taking all three sessions.

“Our hope is to hook people early and keep them in the system. We think with excellent teachers that’s exactly what will happen. But we also are very respectful that people have many concurrent priorities,” Maidhof.

Day of Discovery, now in its fifth year, gives adults in the Kansas City Jewish community a chance to discover what types of educational opportunities are offered through the year. In just one day, Sunday, Aug. 28, somewhere between 225 and 300 people will take the opportunity to learn, study and “discover” with some of the community’s finest Jewish educators, rabbis and cantors.

“Some of the people that I see at Day of Discovery are truly lifelong learners,” said Day of Discovery Task Force member Henri Goettel. “Others may be sticking a toe in for the first time.”

Goettel has been a part of Day of Discovery since its inception. A teacher at Congregation Beth Torah, she believes that identifying as a Jew is not something that a person does just once.

“I think it is incumbent on us to continue to learn and grow with the growth and changes that occur in our lives,” she said.

The program is co-sponsored by The Rabbinical Association of Greater Kansas City, Jewish Community Center’s Department of Jewish Life and Learning, CAJE/Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy and area congregations. Rabbinical Association President Rabbi Herbert Mandl of Kehilath Israel Synagogue said the association has been sponsoring Day of Discover from its onset because “it’s a great opportunity to launch the new Jewish year with study on a variety of topics.”

Annette Fish, who serves as administrator/program director of the Rabbinical Association and is the staff person who works with the Day of Discovery Task Force explained that a variety of topics are offered in an effort to appeal to all age groups.

“We would be delighted to see more people in the 20 to 40 age group participate. We hope some of the new topics that we have not offered in the past will appeal to them,” Fish said.

A total of 30 different classes are being offered by 29 different educators. Fish noted that many of the courses offered this year were chosen in response to the evaluations organizers received from last year’s participants. Two examples of that are “The Holocaust: From Persecution to Annihilation,” taught by Fran Sternberg, director of programming for the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education, and two courses on genealogy to be taught by professional genealogist Steven B. Chernoff, Ph.D.

Goettel thinks this year’s course selections are the best so far because they include traditional topics as well as timely ones, such as anti-Semitism and the Tea Party movement.

While she is a dedicated learner, Goettel said the classes are very accessible “to people who have never tried a Day of Discovery before.”

Personally Goettel likes the fact that Day of Discovery gives her the opportunity to study “with folks that I either don’t take the opportunity to study with other times or I simply don’t have that opportunity at all.”

For instance this year Goettel hopes to take the class on “How Your Advocacy Can Make a Difference for Israel,” being taught by Marvin Szneler, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee.

“I know that there are all kinds of opportunities to learn through the JCRB|AJC, I just never take the time to put them in my schedule. So here he is basically coming to me,” Goettel pointed out.

She’s also looking forward to studying with Rabbi Benzion Friedman and Esther Friedman of Torah Learning Center.

“Studying with Rabbi Friedman is an opportunity that I normally would not have as a woman,” she said.

Opportunities are widely available to study with Rebitzen Friedman, but, Goettel said, it’s another one of those things that she “just never makes the time to do.”

Day of Discovery quick facts

Date: Sunday, Aug. 28

Time: 8:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

Place: Jewish Community Campus

Cost: $20 per person includes classes, breakfast, deli lunch and dessert reception; $12 per person, classes only, no lunch (Fees rise on a space-available basis after Aug. 22)

Register online at http://tinyurl.com/dayofdiscovery2011 or mail registration form found in brochure.

For questions or to inquire about confidential financial assistance, contact Annette Fish, 913-327-4622, , or visit kcrabbis.org.

Recently, philanthropist and volunteer Stan Bushman asked Bill Carr, “What are you going to do now?”

A partner with the law firm of Lewis, Rice & Fingersh, L.C., Carr is wrapping up a two-year term as president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City. What Bushman really was asking him was, “What are you going to do now that you won’t be spending so much time in one way or another dealing with just about every issue that affects our Jewish community?”

Carr says he honestly isn’t sure. Considering how much he and his board of directors accomplished in an economic climate arguably more challenging than any in the past 50 years, he’s likely to have a lot more spare time.

New strategic plan

When Carr became president, one of his top goals was to develop a new Strategic Plan for the Jewish Federation.

“I focused on setting a path for how we could improve,” he said. To do so, he created four task forces, whose efforts are now resulting in new and exciting approaches to achieving the Federation’s mission of sustaining and enhancing Jewish life here at home and around the world.

Take the Financial Resource Development Task Force, headed by Ward Katz.

“The Federation is by far the largest aggregate, year-in and year-out fundraiser in the Jewish community,” said Carr. “The more successful it is, the more funds we can allocate to our Jewish agencies to do the things they want to do. But we’re often so busy running the campaign that there isn’t time to sit back and analyze how it can be improved.”

A large proportion of gifts today come from a relatively small group of donors, many of whom are older. “Gifts will need to come from a larger group,” said Carr. “It’s not automatic. I believe engagement comes before any type of leadership or significant gifts, but I think the Federation is up to the challenge.”

Fundamental to enlarging the donor base and meeting that challenge are issues being tackled by the three other task forces.

The Education and Identity Task Force, led by Stacey Belzer, is analyzing the success of Federation-run programs, such as Learning for Life, and working closely with a task force of the Funders Council exploring how community education dollars can be spent most effectively.

The Engagement and Leadership Task force, led by Sarah Beren, is focusing on ways to encourage everyone, regardless of means, to feel ownership in the Jewish community and good about helping it to prosper.

Chaired by John Isenberg, the Israel and Overseas Task Force is designing new ways to share the excitement and impact of the Federation’s work in Israel, Eastern Europe and other areas around the world.

The unanswered question

In addition to launching the task forces, Carr also wanted to build upon successful endeavors already established in the community, like the Funders Council, which serves as a vehicle for collaboration among the Federation, Jewish Community Foundation, Jewish Heritage Foundation and Menorah Legacy Foundation.

Funders Council initiatives undertaken during Carr’s tenure that he believes are especially important include enhanced cooperation between the funders and the synagogues, establishment of a common grant application form to eliminate unnecessary duplication of effort by the Jewish agencies, and assistance in the development of a plan to ensure the financial security of the Jewish Community Campus.

“While I can’t say it was a personal accomplishment,” says Carr, “I feel very good about the spirit of cooperation that’s been present in the community throughout my term and have great confidence in Miriam Scharf, whose knowledge, experience and dedication will serve her well as the Federation’s next president.”

Still, that leaves unanswered the question Stan Bushman asked about what Carr is going to do now. Carr says he isn’t sure, but then gives it some more thought.

“Maybe the larger question,” he says, “is what do you do with a leader after their term has ended? Once they’ve acquired all that knowledge of the community’s political, economic and social interactions? Do you let them drift away, or is there a way to utilize them?”

In answering a question with a question, Carr may be giving us his answer. He cares too much to drift away.  

Annual meeting planned Sept. 7

The Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City will hold its 78th Annual Meeting at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7, at Oakwood Country Club, 9800 Grandview Road. Cost is $15 per person and it includes a Vaad supervised dessert reception.

Miriam Scharf will become Federation president that evening. The outgoing officers, directors and committee chairs will also be honored as well as the program of the year winners: KU Hillel and The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah. Neal Schwartz will be recognized as the Dan Fingersh Young Leadership Award Winner as will Dayna Gershon as the CAJE Teacher of the Year.

Reservations are required by Aug. 31. RSVP at www.jewishkansascity.org, or call (913) 327-8103.

“We have two choices in life,” said JoAnn Oppenheimer. “Cope or don’t cope.” This saying, that she learned from her father, Harry Oppenheimer, has helped her through many of life’s challenges. As Oppenheimer puts it, she has always chosen to cope!

A Kansas City native, Oppenheimer was the youngest of the six children of Harry and Rebecca Oppenheimer (who are all deceased). Now in her 70s and living in Las Vegas, she spent the first 50 years of her life in the Kansas City area, graduating from University of Missouri-Kansas City. She grew up attending Keneseth Israel-Beth Shalom Synagogue on 34th  & Paseo, but as an adult belonged to Beth Shalom at 95th and Wornall, where her children, Brent and Adrian Hershman, became Bar and Bat Mitzvah.

But Oppenheimer has faced adversity along the way. Her first husband, Stephen Hershman, died in the Hyatt Regency disaster 30 years ago. Although they were already divorced by that time, she and their two children, who were teenagers at the time, planned the funeral and sat shiva together. Years later, her son Brent died tragically in a car accident when he was 35.

These events, along with others, brought her back to her father’s words, and she continued to cope and move forward in her life. But she knows many others have also faced adversity and need to learn to cope. For this reason she wrote, “Potpourri For and About Women.” The book “came about because I wanted to produce a self-help book for people currently experiencing traumatic challenges in their lives,” she said.

In the book 41 women, including Oppenheimer, talk about their challenges and how they learned to live life again. The women from throughout the United States share their stories. She found the women through acquaintances and friends who gave her referrals. It took her 13 years to complete the book, finally getting it published in 2010.

Anyone interested in the book can go to her website at www.AuthorJoAnnOppenheimer.com.

Oppenheimer believes that being raised Jewish influenced her writing. “I was raised by compassionate parents in a Jewish home,” she said, “and I am sure my upbringing helped me to be the compassionate person I am.”

While she wrote her book, Oppenheimer continued other activities. She has always been active in both community and political activities. For 10 years she served on the Nevada State Architecture, Interior Design and Residential Design Commission. In Las Vegas, she also served on the Jewish Community Center board, Women’s Philanthropy Jewish Federation and the Jewish National Fund.

Her writing skills were honed writing a “Single Again?” column for a national publication called “Affaire de Coeur” for two years. Now the column appears in each issue of the Las Vegas Israelite, the only Jewish paper in Las Vegas. She provides private coaching to help people with their transitions from couple to single again. She also has been a real estate agent for more than 20 years.

During her adult years in Kansas City, she owned JoAnn and Associates, an advertising specialty company that she had for 45 years. Her activities and work in the business world led to her being named the Outstanding Young Woman of the Year for Kansas in 1967 by the Outstanding Young Women Foundation. She also served on the UMKC Alumni Board for 25 years. One of her most unexpected honors was to be named Queen of the University of Missouri-Kansas City by the student body when she was a college junior in 1957. She believes she was the first Jewish Queen of UMKC.

Oppenheimer likes to stay active. “Even though I am in my seventh decade, I have no plans to retire,” she said. “Work stimulates me and helps me keep a healthy and positive attitude while I am helping people. To have goals, be productive and to help others is my way of life.”

PANTRY IS BARE — OK, so Yachad-The Kosher Food Pantry is not completely out of food, but the shelves are quite bare. I was there on Sunday and the pickings are slim for those who are in need of extra help. My friend Sherrill Parkhurst, who is the volunteer director of Yachad, said the pantry needs help in two ways right now. The first thing it needs ASAP is non-perishable protein, especially canned tuna and salmon and jars of peanut butter. Her second request is for more pairs of helping hands. This month volunteers delivered Simcha boxes filled with food, fresh bread and Shabbat candles to 97 Jewish families. Drivers are needed to help with this project and young, strong people are especially helpful when loading and unloading the vehicles. Yachad can’t wait until the High Holiday food drives to fill its shelves. You can help the pantry now by dropping food off at the pantry, which is located at Chabad House (6201 Indian Creek Dr.). A barrel is also located at Congregation Beth Torah. Parkhurst also will personally pick up donations. To volunteer or donate, contact Parkhurst at . Anyone needing a little extra help to get through these tough economic times can visit the pantry on the first Sunday of the month from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m., no appointment needed. Help is available, no questions asked.

MILITARY HONOR — A memorial to those who lost their lives or went missing in the western waters of the Atlantic Ocean during World War II was dedicated by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, but somehow that information didn’t make it to all the families of those whose names appear on the memorial. Not too long ago when Pete Rosen was researching family history, he learned about the East Coast War Memorial, located in New York City’s Battery Park. This summer his father, Herb Rosen, a career Army officer who retired as a lieutenant colonel after serving 21 years, and his mother, Bonnie, visited the memorial because the name of Herb’s uncle, Charles Rosen, is one of the 4,600 names inscribed on it. The memorial is huge, featuring four 19-foot pylons, but Herb was able to find the name he was looking for, listed as Charles Rosen, Master Sergeant, U.S. Army, Missouri. He was on a ship that was lost at sea in 1942. Charles Rosen’s youngest sister, Sue Singer, is his last surviving sibling and still lives in the Kansas City area. Serving our country runs in the Rosen family as Pete is a graduate of the Military Academy at West Point.

FUN EVENING — Leslie Mark reports that a fun night was had by all Aug. 4 at The Cheap Dates concert, part of the Thursday Night Summer Concert Series at Park Place. The band is made up of Toni Dodd, lead vocals; Max Berry, guitar/lead vocals; Dee Pack, guitar/vocals; Jimmy Rosenbloom, keyboards/vocals; Steve Cole, bass guitar/vocals; and Jeff Daniels, drums/vocals. “The best moment was seeing Skipper Feingold, with her nurse in tow, tapping her feet to the rock and roll — and then getting up and dancing,” Mark said. There’s only one more concert there this summer, from 6 to 8 p.m. tonight, Aug. 11.