SINGING FOR CHARITY — As one of her Bat Mitzvah service projects, Kansas City native Kayla Israel recently hosted “An Evening for Eos,” a benefit concert to raise money and awareness for eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders (EGID), which Kayla has been living with for many years. {mprestriction ids="1,3"}She now lives in Champaign, Ill, and was joined on stage at a theater there by her music teachers (Deb and Jim Dobbs) as well as three of her local theater friends (Maddie Henson, Ally Miller and Maddy Childress) for an evening of Broadway songs.
All proceeds raised went to the CURED Foundation, where 100 percent of donations go directly to fund EGID research at research hospitals such as the Cincinnati Center for Eosinophilic Disorders at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where Kayla goes for treatment. The event was a smashing success, raising over $1,600 to date. Individuals wishing to support Kayla’s cause can still send donations through “Kayla’s Evening for Eos” donation page at: http://curedfoundation.org/site/fundraising/fundraisers/. Kayla is the daughter Maya and Loren Israel and the granddaughter of Dr. Alan and Gayle Israel of Overland Park, and Nurit Davis of Champaign. Her Bat Mitzvah is April 18.
PROMOTING PEACE — I am happy to share a photo I originally saw on FB, with permission of course. It shows a former member of our Jewish community, Lara Portnoy, with her coworkers from the Peres Center for Peace. She recently joined the staff as the coordinator for the department of development and external relations. The center promotes lasting peace and advancement in the Middle East and Israel by fostering tolerance, economic and technological development, cooperation and well-being — all in the spirit of President Shimon Peres’ vision. Projects are implemented across a wide range of fields including peace education (through sports, social media and the arts), medicine, healthcare, business and environment.
ANNOUNCING OUR NEW COMMUNITY EDITOR — Many of you have already met or been in contact with our new community editor, Kris Baker, who has been filling in since early October. He officially joined the staff last week. He can be reached at or by calling 913-951-8426. He writes stories, edits press releases from local agencies, organizations and congregations, works on projects for our parent company MetroMedia and is ready to help you whenever he can. Welcome to our crazy community Kris!
NO JEWISH BABY YET — As of Tuesday, Jan. 6, we had not received any information about the first Jewish baby born in the Jewish community. So once again, here’s what you do if you think you know who the first Jewish baby is. Have the baby’s parents or a close relative (with permission from the parents) call Chronicle Editor Barbara Bayer at 913-951-8425, or contact her via email at as soon as possible after the child is born. A winner may not be declared immediately and could take as long as 24 hours after the initial contact with The Chronicle. The parent or parents must agree to be interviewed and photographed with the baby for a story to be published in the newspaper to be awarded prizes. The official rules were published in the Dec. 25, 2014, issue.
IT’S TIME FOR THE GREAT BRA EXCHANGE — A New Year tradition continues as customers of clair de lune, an Overland Park-based lingerie boutique, will be cleaning out their lingerie drawers and stepping into fitting rooms to demonstrate their support for victims of domestic abuse through The Great Bra Exchange from now through Jan. 25.
Customers are invited to donate their gently used bras and in turn receive $15 toward the purchase of a new bra at clair de lune. The bras they trade in are then donated to Hope House, a Kansas City metro area shelter for women escaping domestic abuse.
“Our customers and staff look forward to The Great Bra Exchange,” said clair de lune owner Terry Levine. “It’s a snowball effect, really. One customer donating a few used bras may not seem like a lot. But when hundreds of our customers participate, that’s a different story. Thanks to our customers’ generosity, we anticipate delivering another 2,500-3,000 bras to Hope House this year.”
This January marks the 11th year for the Great Bra Exchange and the association between the retailer and women’s shelter. It has proven to be a unique partnership for the organizations.
Through 10 years of Great Bra Exchange, Levine estimated that more than 17,500 bras have been donated to the shelter.
“We see women coming to Hope House with nothing more than the clothing they are wearing,” said MaryAnne Metheny, CEO of Hope House. “Who could imagine how important something like a bra becomes? We are extremely grateful to clair de lune and their customers for their efforts over the years.”{/mprestriction}