ATHLETES EXCEL AT MACCABIAH — The 19th Maccabiah Games ended last week and two of our young regional athletes did well at the competition. Congregation Ohev Sholom member Zack Tanenbaum placed third and brought home bronze medals in both the freestyle and Greco-Roman competitions.
Jacob Biller, a 17-year-old student who will be a senior at Manhattan High School this year and a member of Temple Beth Sholom in Topeka, was one of 16 baseball players on Team USA. Team USA baseball had two challengers in Team Canada and Team Israel. Team USA defeated Canada twice in the preliminaries (12-0, 14-0), and split with Israel, winning 15-1 and losing 5-3. Canada earned the right to play USA in the Gold Medal game by winning an 11-inning game over Team Israel in their second meeting. Team USA won the gold medal by defeating Canada 9-0.
Jacob was the starting second baseman in four of the five games and was voted team captain. He did not get to play in the gold medal game because he was hospitalized after game four due to an infection.
Jacob said he loved the Maccabiah and it was “an all around amazing trip.”
Hailing from an area where the Jewish population is very small, Jacob enjoyed being around a lot of Jewish people and meeting other Jewish kids. He is a senior this year and hopes to play baseball in college. He said he’s talked to a couple of schools already about that possibility.
VOTE FOR PRIVACY PILLOWS — Bob Cutler has created the world’s first standard-sized bed pillow that features an undetectable secret compartment to safely hold your valuables and private items. The hidden entry point features a patented safety seal that keeps items in the pillow regardless of movement. The product is one of dozens featured in 18 categories on Walmart.com that individuals and businesses hope the discount retailer will sell on its website. The products with the most votes, individuals can place one vote each day through Sept. 2, will advance to the second round of competition. Following the current audition round, the products selected as finalists will participate in a web series during the autumn. Another round of voting will select winners, which may then get the opportunity to be sold through Walmart.com. The grand champions(s) may also receive valuable marketing support. See Cutler’s video about the Privacy Pillow and vote for the product at https://getontheshelf.walmart.com/product/13d4/The-Privacy-Pillow.
BONE MARROW MATCH — Last winter a Gift of Life drive was held prior to the Maccabeats concert at the Jewish Community Center. We were informed last week that a donor recruited at that drive has been identified as a match for a 63-year-old woman suffering from Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. The email went on to say, “We are truly grateful for all you have done to help grow the Gift of Life Registry, and we thank you for being a part of our family of dedicated volunteers.”