Archived News

Rabbi Mark Borovitz has faced his own journey dealing with addiction, and it was his faith that guided him through it to come out stronger on the other side. Now he travels the country letting others who are dealing with these issues know that things can get better. On April 13 he will be in Kansas City as the keynote speaker at First Call’s Annual Community Gratitude Luncheon. The luncheon is from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Rabbi Borovitz, who lives in Los Angeles, attends 10 to 15 such events a year, and says he is always grateful for the opportunity.

Question: What do you call a 6-foot-4-inch lanky, red-headed Jewish man from Virginia?

Answer: The newest rabbi at The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah.

The congregation just announced that Rabbi Daniel Kirzane will be joining B’nai Jehudah as one of its rabbis, beginning July 1. Rabbi Kirzane will be replacing Rabbi Alexandria Shuval-Weiner, who is leaving after seven years to become senior rabbi of Temple Beth Tikvah, in Roswell, Georgia.

HAMLISCH AND BACHARACH TUNES COME ALIVE AT QUALITY HILL PLAYHOUSE — Quality Hill Playhouse continues its season dedicated to film music with an exploration of 1960s and ’70s cinema in the intimate cabaret revue “What They Did for Love: The Music of Marvin Hamlisch and Burt Bacharach,” opening April 17.

Faith Always Wins.

That’s the name of the foundation the Corporon family set up following the deaths of family patriarch William Corporon and his grandson Reat Griffin Underwood, who were brutally murdered in the parking lot of the Jewish Community Campus on April 13, 2014. A short time later, Terri LaManno’s life was also cut short in the parking lot of Village Shalom. An anti-Semite who has said that he planned to kill Jewish people is accused of shooting all three that day. Ironically, none of the three were Jewish.

Following the April 13, 2014, tragedy at the Jewish Community Campus and Village Shalom, a group of caring individuals decided that they, as a community, have the power to outshine and overcome such senseless acts of hate. SevenDays is a challenge for young and old to embrace diversity across races, religions and cultures. Through three events — Faith, Love & Song, Faith, Love & Kindness and Faith, Love & Walk — the group hopes to promote understanding and encourage kindness to “Make a Ripple to Change the World.”

Family means everything to Ellen Portnoy. She knows her family history very well and has portraits of family members from past generations proudly displayed in her home. But she felt one family heirloom was better shared with the world than displayed once a year during Passover at her Overland Park home. So it now resides in a New York museum.

“And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.” — Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5

Thanks to the generosity and foresight of donors who provided the Jewish Community Campus with Automatic External Defibrillators, or AEDs, another life has been saved.

HORROR MOVIE HAS KC CONNECTIONS — We found out too late last week to inform you that the movie “It follows” opened in theaters here last week. It was written and directed by David Robert Mitchell, the grandson of Sunie and Lee Levin. “It Follows” debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014 to critical praise and was widely released March 27. It is still playing through today, Thursday, April 2, for sure. Interested theater-goers will have to check their local listings to see if it’s still on local screens through next week. Here’s the synopsis of the R-rated movie:

Rabbi Rebecca Reice, associate rabbi at Congregation Beth Torah, has informed the congregation that she is opting out of the last year of her contract so that she may join her husband, Asher Lazarus, as he accepts new employment in Austin, Texas. She will continue in her role at the Reform congregation until June 30.

Joan Jacobson is an active member of the National Council of Jewish Women. She and the organization both champion the rights of children, women and families. It’s her work advocating for the rights of children that will be recognized when CASA of Johnson & Wyandotte Counties honors Jacobson as its CASA Volunteer Honoree at its Promise of Hope luncheon on April 2. The Promise of Hope Luncheon, celebrating the Kansas organization’s 30th anniversary, will be held from noon to 1 p.m., with networking beginning at 11:30 a.m., at the Ritz Charles in Overland Park. To reserve a free space, visit www.casajwc.org or call 913-715-4034.