Every year students at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy are greeted on the first day of school by faculty and staff. This year they were also greeted with some structural changes aimed at helping the school balance its budget.

“Along with our new programs and new staff, I am extraordinarily pleased with physical changes made to our facility,” Head of School Howard Haas said. “We added rooms and we are utilizing our space better than ever before. Our library is in a newly remodeled space by the kindergarten room and, for the first time, we have a computer lab in the upper school. These positive moves facilitate a considerable reduction in rent, which is a significant step toward balancing our budget.”

Now beginning his fifth year at the school, Haas said he continues “to feel extremely positive toward our role in educating our students and community.”

The school’s library was previously located in the lobby of the Jewish Community Campus. The art room and the computer lab are no longer in the building’s basement. The art room is now on the first floor and the computer lab is on the second floor.

Numbers are growing

Haas is also excited that all indications are the community day school’s enrollment will be bigger than last year. Last week Tamara Lawson Schuster, director of admission, said she can’t say yet exactly what those figures are as they change every day. However last year’s enrollment stood at 232 students.

“This is wonderfully positive news,” Haas said. “Our kindergarten class is strong with 28. So in this time of economic catastrophe, our numbers are growing.”

Schuster said HBHA is happy with its current retention rate.

“In the past, HBHA would have significant attrition going from the different school divisions — going from lower school to middle school and from middle school to upper school. This year all of our students in fifth grade stayed and moved on to sixth grade (middle school), except for one who is moving out of the country,” Schuster said. Two students, however, have chosen not to advance from eighth grade to high school.

The school is also appealing to families who had started their children in public school.

“This year we have five new fifth graders, as well as two new eighth-graders and seventh-graders,” Schuster said.

Expanded programs

Principal Gayle Gray said the staff is very excited about changes made to the music program. Before this year, the lower school music program was simply choral music based in the teaching of Jewish songs.

“We wanted to expand that to cover more general music,” Gray said.

A new music teacher was hired just before school started to teach general music. Lower school students will meet with that teacher once a week. They will continue learning Jewish music from Devra Lerner once a week as well.

“We are going to be giving more opportunities for students in the area of performing, creating and listening to music with understanding,” Gray said. “We will be creating a comprehensive and sequential music education program that aligns with state and national standards and benchmarks.”

A few weeks ago the Facebook community was all abuzz that a big official state event celebrating Kansas’ 150th birthday was taking place in Wichita on Oct. 8, which is Yom Kippur. Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback is expected to attend the Kansas 150 Festival as are many other elected officials from across the state.

The event was planned to coincide with the annual Kansas League of Municipalities meeting, which always takes place the second weekend in October. That weekend this year is Oct. 8-10. Jewish officials in Wichita believe the event was scheduled because no one on the planning committee really looked at a calendar or understood the significance of the date.

After meeting with Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer last week, officials of the Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation in Wichita believe that scheduling the event that day was simply a coincidence and not a slight at the Jewish community.

The event

The Kansas 150 Festival is not a state-sponsored event. It is sponsored by the Kansas Association of Counties and the League of Kansas Municipalities. According to the website ks150.com, Wichita Mayor Carl Brewer, who is also president of the League of Kansas Municipalities, is serving as chair of the event. He is being assisted by Gov. Brownback, Overland Park Mayor Carl Gerlach, immediate past president of the League, and Dodge City Councilman Jim Sherer, the League’s president-elect, along with other business and civic leaders from across Kansas. The day’s event includes a parade followed by a fair with vendors and a concert.

The Jewish population in Wichita is estimated to be between 800 and 1,000 people. The city’s population is about 400,000. Last week four people from the Mid-Kansas Jewish Federation — Sandy Diel, Federation director; Rabbi Michael Davis of Congregation Emanuel; Rabbi Nissim Wearnick of Ahavath Achim Hebrew Congregation; and Paul Wolff, president of the Mid-Kansas Federation — met with Wichita’s mayor to discuss the situation. Diel said they learned that the date for the festival was chosen to coincide with the meeting.

“They wanted to have an event for all of the city and county officials and their families that would be in Wichita for that meeting. They thought it seemed like a good idea to celebrate Kansas’ 150th birthday,” Diel continued. “They didn’t just pick the date out of thin air.”

Diel pointed out that other events have coincided with the High Holidays in Wichita. For instance the annual Susan G. Komen race is in Wichita the last weekend in September. In Kansas City, the Plaza Art Fair often coincides with the High Holidays as well.
Diel said she learned the governor always speaks at the League of Kansas Municipalities meeting.

“That’s how he got involved with this program, without realizing it is Yom Kippur,” she said.

A teachable moment

Besides learning why the date had been chosen, Diel said the group also hoped to educate the mayor about the importance of the High Holy Day.

“Nobody planning this event was familiar enough with the Jewish calendar to know it was a holy day. So we talked to him about why it was a holy day and we gave him a calendar for the future of Jewish holidays provided by the JCRB in Kansas City. We hope in the future when planning events he will be more aware of these days,” Diel said.

Diel said they told the mayor that Jewish people have a strong history in the state of championing civil rights and endorsing freedom.

“We are disappointed that we will not get to share in the celebration,” Diel said, also informing the mayor that the first congregation in Kansas was established in Leavenworth two years before the territory even became a state.

“Jews have always been a part of Kansas history. The fourth mayor of Wichita was Jewish,” she explained.

Extending the festival?

Diel said the date for the Kansas 150 Festival cannot be changed. The festival will still be going on after sundown, making it possible for members of the Jewish community to attend a small portion of it if they choose. There is also the possibility of adding an event on Sunday.

“That option is being explored now, but there is no commitment that will happen for sure,” Diel said.
Diel said she and her colleagues were happy with the result of their meeting with the mayor.

“We all walked away feeling that we understood each other better. We were educated on the event and believe it wasn’t a slight to the Jewish community. It was an oversight that just required more education. If they attempt to extend some things and that really comes to fruition, that would be a really good show of good faith and we believe that the mayor is going to try to do that,” she said.

Ken Sonnenschein, M.D., found a way to merge his passion for cycling with his compassion for the mentally ill.

Dr. Sonnenschein, a children and adolescent psychiatrist with Kansas City Psychiatric Group who attends Congregation Beth Shalom, started Bike for the Brain six years ago. The annual bike race raises funds for organizations that provide services for mental health patients and promotes awareness about these illnesses. This year’s event starts at 8 a.m. Sept. 5 at Johnson County Mental Health Center, 6000 Lamar Ave. in Mission, Kan.

“There are many different types of runs and walks for many different things,” Dr. Sonnenschein said. “As I was going around and participating in many of these runs, walks and rides I was wondering, ‘where is the mental health event?’ ”

Dr. Sonnenschein has been an active cyclist for 15 years. He said he decided to create a race to benefit the patients he serves.
“The reason we call it Bike for the Brain is because we know that these mental health disorders are brain-based disorders,” Dr. Sonnenschein said.

Because mental illness can affect a patient’s emotional state and behavioral habits, Sonnenschein said some people forget that the disorders stem from the brain. He said some people still have the attitude that, “these aren’t real illnesses.”

Sonnenschein said many patients also suffer from an internal stigma that makes it difficult to seek treatment.

“We all want to be well and when we are not well we are slow to acknowledge that,” Dr. Sonnenschein said. “That is even more true when we are experiencing some type of emotional or behavioral change.”

Some patients feel too embarrassed or ashamed to let others know that they have a chronic mental illness such as bipolar disorder or generalized anxiety disorder, Dr. Sonnenschein said.

“There is a shame factor that interestingly doesn’t exist with other types of illnesses,” Dr. Sonnenschein said.

Last year 420 people attended Bike for the Brain. This year’s event will include a variety of routes that range from 3 miles to 75 miles. The 75-mile route will take participants past some of the events’ beneficiaries and other mental health resources in the area.
The bike race starts at 8 a.m. A non-competitive 5K run will also start at 8 a.m. for non-bicycle riders who want to participate.

This year’s Bike for the Brain will also include the annual Tricycle Challenge. Adults who donate $100 will race against one another on child-sized tricycles. Children will be able to race the tricycle course at 11 a.m.

Dr. Sonnenschein said the tricycle contest proves to be a hit year after year.

Sharon Lawrenz, executive director of Pathway to Hope, promotes Bike for the Brain every year. For the past two years Pathway to Hope has received funds from Bike for the Brain. The organization provides services to people in treatment for mental illnesses. Pathway to Hope owns a house called the Blake House, which provides transitional housing for patients who receive treatment at the Johnson County Mental Health Department.

“It houses up to six people who are doing relatively well in their recovery,” Lawrenz said. “Last year we got enough money (from Bike for the Brain) to get new appliances for the kitchen and a washer and a dryer.”

Lawrenz said Bike for the Brain’s impact extends beyond financial. She said that when people with mental illness are able to see other successful people with mental illness and the family members and community members who support them it helps break the stigma.

“Really the majority of people with mental illness are doing really well,” Lawrenz said.

Suicide Awareness Survivor Support of Missouri and Kansas is another recipient of Bike for the Brain Funds.

Bonnie Swade, co-founder of the group, lost her son to suicide. She said events like Bike for the Brain are important to the community.

Swade’s survivor group plans to host a remembrance walk on Sept. 11 at Loose Park, 51st Street and Wornall Road, Kansas City, Mo.

While the survivors walk is intended to be a solemn event Dr. Sonnenschein said people can bring their entire family to Bike for the Brain. He said he considers the Bike for the Brain a therapeutic event.

“Exercise is good for us and being with other people is good for us,” Dr. Sonnenschein said.

Along with cycling and mental health, Dr. Sonnenschein lists gardening as one of his passions. He co-chairs the Mitzvah Garden. Volunteers plant fruits, vegetables and flowers in the garden and donate the harvest to those in need.

Dr. Sonnenschein said these three passions intertwine with his faith.

“We all have an obligation to repair our broken world,” Dr. Sonnenschein said. “One of the things that we have been encouraging is the wellness challenge.”

Dr. Sonnenschein said the components of the Bike for the Brain wellness challenge include: exercise, fun, socialization, spiritual development, healthy diet and charitable giving. People can accomplish several of those components by attending this year’s Bike for the Brain event. For more information, visit www.bikeforthebrain.org.

From its inception, the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy has been known for its pluralism. The Kansas City Jewish community couldn’t possibly support Jewish schools for different movements, so HBHA was designed as a community day school when it was created 45 years ago.

But that didn’t always serve the needs of the Orthodox Jewish community. In the past many families left town in search of the proper education for their children or sent them away to boarding schools in Memphis, Tenn., Chicago or New York. Two years ago, after being approached by members in the community, school officials decided to try to find a way to provide the type of Jewish education these families requested.

“We needed a school community that unapologetically taught according to Halachah and Orthodox Jewish practice,” explained HBHA Head of Jewish Studies Rabbi Avi Weinstein. “We were excited by the idea that might be possible.”

So with the help of the Community Kollel of Kansas City and Congregation BIAV’s Dani Rockoff, a program was created two years ago to give the school’s youngest students a more in-depth Jewish education. The program, known as Matmidim (the persistent ones), began for kindergartners and adds a new grade each year. This year it is in grades kindergarten through second. These students attend general studies and specials with their entire grade. They break off into a separate class for Hebrew, prayer and Judaic studies. Currently there are about eight students enrolled in each of the three grades.

“This program was initiated to meet the growing needs of the Orthodox community to have a program of its own where their practice at home would be reinforced in the school as well as a tool for the growth of the community,” Rabbi Rockoff said.
The program was created at HBHA, Rabbi Weinstein said, because it is in everybody’s interest not to replicate infrastructure.

“Our hope would be that while one community would be happy our entire community would be enriched just by demonstrating that part of a pluralistic vision is to give people what they want Jewishly without us judging whether it’s good or bad,” Rabbi Weinstein said.
Rabbi Rockoff said he is pleased that the Orthodox community and the school have worked together on this project for a variety of reasons, including the sharing of resources.

“We support the Academy as the flagship educational institution for day school education in Kansas City. We want the community as a whole to be stronger,” Rabbi Rockoff said. “The HBHA administration as well as the lay leadership has really shown support for our program and for our community. Things are going very well and we are looking forward to growth and success.”

Rabbi Weinstein pointed out that the program isn’t exclusively for Orthodox children.

“Any child can attend this program. They just have to understand the framework in which this program is operated. Every single year we’ve had people who are not Orthodox in practice in this program,” he said.

Rabbi Rockoff said plans are to continue growing the program through eighth grade. Other than adding second grade, the only change made to the program this year is the expansion of the role Ayala Rockoff, Ph.D., plays. The first-grade Matmidim instructor is now also the liaison for the community and has become the curriculum coordinator.

“She will spiral and build the curriculum and make sure it fills the needs that this curriculum requires,” Rabbi Weinstein said.

Older HBHA students who want more Jewish enrichment often meet one-on-one with a member of the Kollel.

“If an older student wants Jewish enrichment, we make sure they get it,” Rabbi Weinstein said.

Parent Cara Ernstein likes the program, and its small classes, for her 6-year-old daughter Charli.

“A lot of kids start school needing to learn basic Judaism like what is kosher and what is Shabbat,” Ernstein said. “In our case, we do that already, so it gives our daughter a chance to get a deeper understanding of laws and customs and things like that.”

Rabbi Rockoff said the program has already been instrumental in keeping families here. It’s also been instrumental in attracting Orthodox families to the community.

“Now we can tell people about our very exciting and innovative Matmidim program that is continuing to grow. There have been families who have moved here for the express purpose of supporting our community and the growth of the Matmidim program,” Rabbi Rockoff said.

Minyans available to all

Two minyans take place every day there is school at the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy — one egalitarian and one with a mechitzah. The community is welcome to attend either minyan.

“People in the community have always come and we always like that,” said Rabbi Avi Weinstein, HBHA head of Jewish Studies.
Minyan begins at 7:55 a.m. The egalitarian minyan is held in the chapel and the mechitzah minyan is in Conference Room C.

“Depending on your flavor of Judaism, everyone will feel comfortable and everyone is welcome,” Rabbi Weinstein said.

It would be easy to assume that recent Blue Valley North graduate Jon Ruben would major in business in college. After all, he won state and regional awards three years running in annual competitions sponsored by the Future Business Leaders of America. But his experience as a paraprofessional for Sasone for students with learning disabilities at Congregation Beth Shalom helped to shape his college goals.

Patti Kroll, the religious school director at Beth Shalom’s Polsky Religious School, nominated Jon. She described him as “mature beyond his years,” and added, “He cares deeply for the students and wants to continue to do what is best for the educational program.”

“When I was a freshman and a sophomore, I was considering a major in business,” he said in a recent interview. But his high school physics and calculus teachers suggested he consider STEM (science, technology, engineering or math) as a career goal. So now his dream is to be a college physics or math professor.

Of course other experiences have added to that decision: years of attending Camp Herzl in northern Wisconsin led to a position as OZO this year. A highly selective position, former campers compete against one another for these coveted staff jobs. “Working as a staff member and volunteering as an OZO allows me to give back to the camp that has been so great to me over the years,” Jon explained. “I think that I have the best job in the world!”

He has spent six of the last seven years at Herzl, but his many years as a student in the Polsky Religious School made him take a chance on a trip to Israel. Two summers ago, he went there with the USY Pilgrimage, skipping a summer at Herzl. “I went on the trip not knowing anyone, and I went away with so many close friends! It was truly wonderful to experience all of the places that I had learned of and studied over the years at Beth Shalom’s religious school,” he said. “From that experience, I was able to experience Judaism first hand, in the Jewish homeland.”

In addition to working at Beth Shalom and Herzl, Jon worked at the JCC summer camp and volunteered as a madrich (teaching assistant) in other classrooms at the Polsky Religious School. He also co-chaired the synagogue’s USY Purim Carnival, participated in Panim el Panim, an advocacy program for Jewish teens in Washington, D.C., and has held several positions in student government and other organizations. But Jon highlighted his para-professional experience at the Polsky Religious School as “incredibly rewarding.”

Jon’s academic credentials are also impressive. He has achieved a score of 5 on eight AP tests and a 4 on the ninth. Add to that a GPA of 4.33 and a high class ranking, and it’s even more remarkable to learn that Jon has been hearing impaired since infancy. While he wears hearing aids, his mother Lisa said, “He does not consider himself to have a disability.”

It’s no wonder that colleges and universities competed for him. But he chose Ohio State University in Columbus over a slew of other offers “based upon the scholarships as well as the strength of their math, engineering and physics programs,” he explained. He also wanted to have the big-school experience. “So Ohio State was the perfect fit.”

Though not exactly around the corner, OSU is now only a non-stop flight away. It’s close enough so that Jon will still be able to get home often enough to see his parents, Steve and Lisa Ruben, and sisters Ashley, 16, and Julia, 11. Plus, he still gets to spend time with his grandfather, Rod Minkin, whom he considers his mentor. “My grandfather has been a wonderful role model over the years. I have learned so much from him,” Jon said. “I always looked forward to the insightful (and often, funny!) stories that he would share, as well as the Shabbat dinners at his house.”

Minkin, chairman of the board of directors of the Menorah Medical Center from 1999-2001, must have made a bigger impression on his grandson than he even realized. All those “insightful stories” that Jon heard during those many Shabbat dinners have obviously influenced Jon’s choices … not only in the volunteer world, but in his educational and career choices.

This young man’s character is also reflected in the volunteer example set by his father; Steve is treasurer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City and has been a member of the Federation Audit Committee for the past four years.

Educator Kroll added that Jon “knows when to ask questions to get a better understanding of what he needs to do and is not afraid to take a risk. He has a wonderful attitude, is reliable and responsible and truly understands his role in the classroom. Jon is an exceptional young man with a great concern for others.”

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.