MADAME PRESIDENT — We extend félicitations (congratulations) to Cyprienne Simchowitz, who has just been elected to a two-year term as president of the Alliance Française de Kansas City. Simchowitz, an international business consultant and an attorney who owns CYSIM International, is a native of Paris, France, and has lived in Kansas City for 28 years. AFKC is an organization dedicated to the appreciation of the French language as well as Francophone culture, history and art. The Alliance provides opportunities for members and interested people of the area to get together on a regular basis to exchange ideas as well as increase their knowledge of the Francophone world.
FROM MAMA’S KITCHEN — Congregation Kol Ami recently published “Memorable Recipes,” a cookbook to raise funds for the Reform congregation featuring 152 treasured recipes all contributed by congregants. Committee member Anita Hampshire said many of the recipes were “handed down from our mothers” while others are favorites that the cooks picked up here and there through the years. The book sells for $15 and can be purchased at Kol Ami, 7501 Belinder in Prairie Village or at the 42nd Annual Symphony Designers’ Showhouse gift shop until May 22. It’s located at 1000 Westover Road in Kansas City, Mo. For more information contact Kol Ami at (913) 642-9000.
DIPS AND DIVES — Congregation Beth Torah member Randal Strong-Wallace opened an exhibit for roller coaster lovers last week, which runs through May 28 at the Blue Djinn Gallery. It features working models of the five roller coasters from Kansas City’s World of Fun in 1980, plus a special exhibit of photographs. A meet the builder reception will take place Sunday, May 15, from noon until 5 p.m. If you miss this exhibition, you can catch another exhibit at Union Station beginning June 1. The gallery is located at 1400 Union Avenue in Kansas City, Mo. The exhibit runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. For more information visit www.docsnyderprints.com or call (816) 518-4649.
OPEN WIDE — Chris Merriweather, DDS, a dentist in Overland Park, recently spent time in Jerusalem volunteering at the Trudi Birger Dental Clinic through a special program called Dental Volunteers for Israel. DVI provides free dental care and oral health education to thousands of needy children in Jerusalem every year, regardless of race and religion, thanks to the support from friends and visiting volunteer dentists from around the world. Volunteer dentists from around the world, together with their Israeli colleagues, perform between 1,000 and 1,200 treatments each month. To make a donation or to volunteer like Dr. Merriweather, visit http://www.dental-dvi.org.il or email .