A thank you to the Jewish Community

On behalf of the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy board of trustees I want to say thank you to the entire Kansas City Jewish Community for your enthusiastic support of the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy! We held the annual HBHA Civic Service Award celebration on April 10 and with your participation it was a huge success. The outpouring of support from the entire community was overwhelming and palpable.

The evening was very emotional as we celebrated our 45th anniversary. With our wonderful hosts, Trish Uhlmann and Dave Porter, we walked down memory lane and honored our long time friends and supporters, Maria and Fred (z”l) Devinki. For those of you who weren’t able to attend, the story was told of how it all began with a brief conversation begun by then Federation VP Sid Deutsch walking out of shul alongside Neil Sosland. Neil then discussed the concept with his wife, Blanche, who took to it without hesitation and thus the school was born. The Soslands gathered an amazing group of dedicated parents who pitched the idea to Hyman Brand, our first board president. He was so impressed with these “young punks” that he not only agreed to be the president, but went on to raise the money needed within two weeks of their meeting. This community has grown from that original school, housed in Congregation Ohev Sholom’s builidng, to what is now a state-of-the-art, top-notch community day school.

We honored Mirra Klausner and Brenda Althouse with the John Weill Uhlmann Young Leadership Award. Those two are such incredible assets to this community and we are all fortunate that Brenda and Mirra are taking such an active role and are accepting of their leadership roles within the Jewish community.

We also heard from Jonathan Edelman, recipient of the Head of School’s Shining Light Award. He spoke eloquently about the similarities and differences between the school from which he is about to graduate and the school that his mother, Debbie Sosland-Edelman (one of the first students at school when it began) graduated from when it was in its infancy. He noted how today’s HBHA is everything that those founding parents dreamed of, and so much more.

One of the great challenges facing that original group was how to serve the entire Jewish community. The school not only serves every denomination of Judaism, but also serves the whole community by providing an outstanding general and Judaic education that will help to attract Jewish professionals to Kansas City. These same attributes also help to bring our kids back home after college to take their places as the leaders in our community.

At this time of year, I feel it is especially appropriate for all of us to take a moment and express our gratitude for the fact that we are free and able to live in a society and a community that embraces and values our Jewish tradition. So, on behalf of the board of trustees, the parents, faculty and staff of the Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy, I would again like to thank the entire Jewish community for all of your support. Our school is here for, and because of, this Jewish community and we will always strive to carry out our mission to help keep our Jewish community strong and vibrant.

Eric Kaseff
President
HBHA board of trustees

Be inspired: Volunteer

In a recent article in The Chronicle, Village Shalom expressed the need for more volunteers. As a volunteer myself, I have received a tremendous amount of enjoyment and inspiration from the wonderful residents I now consider my friends.

If you choose to volunteer at Village shalom, any amount of your time (even one hour a week) would be greatly appreciated and much needed. The residents are always so excited to see the volunteers and look forward to spending time with them.

There are several ways you can get involved. Village Shalom has a calendar full of activities such as group games, visiting residents and assisting with dinner parties and entertainment. Recently the activities department planned a casino night for the residents. They did a fantastic job which was reflected by all the smiles and laughter heard throughout the room!

Hopefully, this has inspired you to become a volunteer for Village Shalom. If interested, please contact the volunteer coordinator at (913) 266-8310 or at

Betty Stern
Overland Park, Kan.